ThreeSisters

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<<set $ouch to 0>><<set $Irinaneg to 0>><<set $Mashaneg to 0>><<set $Olganeg to 0>>Which sister are you? [[Olga]], [[Masha|Maria]], or [[Irina]]? (This is a Choose-Your-Adventure text experience. The object of the game is best explained by the audio file at the Three Sisters attraction, in the park. Click the back button to get taken right back to it, then press play on the bar at the top of the Three Sisters area to hear details about Clicking the back button at any time will take you right back to the Time Atlas. It will not take you to the previous choice so that you can redo it, although there are ways to do such things. It is a winnable game, though for obvious reasons it's foundation in Chekhov is a bit... drunk...)

<<set $olgamirror to 0>>...silence. It is snowing outside. You consider commenting on that fact, but it would only remind you that your sisters don't listen to you when you speak to them. All your fine advice, prepared for them by your busy mind as it worked and lived over a long, long row of days, but they don't follow it. Or rather, they do, without intending to, which spoils the good it might have brought them. You're not going to look at them. Why should you? [[Break the silence.]] Look at the [[snow]]. Look at the [[clock]]. You can do what you like. Absolutely any of those three things. Because you are free. That is what 'freedom' means.

<<set $mashamirror to 0>>You sit amid the silence, with your book, which you haven't the patience to read. You don't want to leave the comfort of your sisters company. They're the only sincere people in all this terrible vastness called Russia. Why, if you ever found out they weren't sincere, you'd go to Moscow immediately, for what choice would you have? You think about the objects in the room... they fill you with a sense of choice. You can [[think about Ivan|Ivan]] or [[think about Ivan|Ivan]] or pretend [[you're going to marry Ivan|Ivan]] or [[think about names for the baby you'll have with Ivan|Ivan]] or [[think|Ivan]] about how grand it will be to start work at the telepgraph office, so that you can buy Ivan the alcoholic spirits of which [[he|Ivan]] is so fond.

<<set $IrinaMirror to 0>>You are sitting with your sisters in the sitting room, amid the silence. There is a window looking out onto the snow, but you aren't looking at that, you're looking at your sewing. You should have told your sisters you had sewing to do. But then, why? They never listen to you. They aren't even fussing over you as they should, since today is your Saint's Day, which is like a birthday, but holier, and more pointless. Are they jealous, these two sisters of yours? They would be, if they understood your opinions, which are sophisticated and advanced. Work will make you happy. If only these silly women would get out of your way so you could work! Why not [[complain]]? Do you want to [[make them jealous|IrinaObjects]] or [[talk to them]], Irina? Or do you want to [[prick your finger|prick]] and see if they even notice, if they care for you at all? You could also look at the [[clock|IrinaClock]].

"Do you remember father's funeral?" you chirp, smiling and feeling young again. Neither speaks, or even looks up. This is strange to you. Until you realize that each of them assumed you were talking to the other. It's just as well. Now that you've had a moment, you realize how weirdly your tone contrasted with the subject matter--Masha would have thought so, anyway, if she'd been paying attention. Mashsa is naive, and plain. Sometimes she acts as though she were the youngest. If she were, it would scarcely make a difference, because she never acts her age. Irina, the youngest, does act her age, without intending to. How like a girl, you think to yourself. You suddenly know yourself to be the most sensible woman in all Russia. (You'd rather be the youngest.) [[Look at the snow|snow]], or [[keep talking]]?

In Moscow you can sit in an enormous restaurant where you don’t know anybody and where nobody knows you, and you don’t feel all the same that you’re a stranger. And here you know everybody and everybody knows you, and you’re a stranger... and a lonely stranger. Go to [[Moscow|YouLose]]. Or [[don't|Olga]].

You look at the clock, and think, "yes, it is." You can [[keep looking at it|clock2]] or you can [[go back|Olga]] to whatever it was you were doing before.

"Well," you say, pleased with yourself, "I suppose one can't forget one's own father's funeral, but then again, I never forget anything." Time passes. You don't know how much time because you forgot to count the ticks of the clock. "It's snowing," you say, without looking away from the snow. "I know it is, Olga," says Irina. You might speak to [[Irina|SpeakIrina]], you suppose, or [[Masha|TalkMasha]]. They are, indeed, two other people in the room. You could just enjoy the [[snow]], too. There was something else you had been planning to enjoy, but you can't remember what it was. That's for the best, more than likely, you weren't in the mood for whatever that was at the moment anyway.

"You remember father's funeral, don't you, Irina?" Irina is sewing. You marvel that she didn't tell you she'd be doing any sewing. She just started it, as if it was something she did every day. You stare at her, because you can hear that she has something more to say--that is a very particular kind of silence, and you can hear it. "Yes", says Irina, flatly, after some time. A moment later, she adds, "Of course, I do." You keep staring at her, so she can say the thing she has to say. The silence of someone having something to say, and making ready to say it, is quite particular. Then you remember that the silence of snow sounds almost the same--you're probably just confusing the two kinds of quiet, that's all. Who could blame you? With them both going on at once like that, it's impossible to understand anything anybody's not saying! [[Speak to Masha|TalkMasha]] or [[Look at the clock|IrinaTalks]] or [[look at the snow|IrinaTalks]].

"What are you reading, Masha?" Masha looks at you, then she turns the book over and looks at the spine. "Pushkin," she says, and goes back to it. You [[remember something]] in Pushkin about a magical woman of some kind. But you feel you musn't speak of that. There could be effects. You hope you don't decide to speak things that have disagreeable effects. You could keep thinking along this meandering line, or you could simply [[be sensible]]. You could also just [[criticize Irina|CritIrina]] or [[Masha|CritMasha]] to keep in practice.

Irina astonishes you by asking you a question. "Should I go to Moscow?" What a question! On hearing it, Masha looks like she's just been shot, accidentally of course, by a hunter, probably Ivan Romanovitch, he drinks, and he's never killed anything, you should ask him what he's going to do with that gun next time you see him, it will be funny. You laugh at the joke you'll make when you see him. "Why are you laughing at me?" Irina asks. "I'm not," you say, honestly. You can tell by her silence that she doesn't beieve you. "I've never been to Moscow," says Masha. Oh, this is bad. This is very, very bad Olga, do something. "Shall we all go to Moscow?" Irina asks, as if waking up from a dream, but in an improper way. [[Encourage this|OlgaYes]] or [[discourage it|OlgaNo]], but you cannot remain silent upon this point. It is too important.

"With total rapture and delight, a criminal in prison talks about the birds which he can see from his window, and which he had never noticed before. Now of course, after he's been released, he doesn't notice the birds anymore, just as beforehand. In the same way, you won't notice Moscow, when you actually live there." There. Now that you've downplayed it, with affectedly provincial condescension, Irina is almost sure to go to Moscow. [[It's only a matter of time.|YouLose]]

<<set $Irinaneg to -1>>"No, of course not, you stupid girl, whatever would you do in Moscow? Find a man with decent shoes and try to have an affair with him? However will you manage that? You have to be married in order to havr an affair, no one will marry you, didn't you know that? Are you very tired, my dear sister? I think you must be very tired to have asked such a question," and since this is almost certainly a joke you've just made, you laugh. Then you realize... it isn't funny. What if she actually has had trouble sleeping recently? "Irina, are you having trouble sleeping? I'm sorry I was jovial just now. Masha, is Irina not asleep? Not now, she's obviously wide awake now, as are we, but when we are asleep, I mean, does she not sleep?" Masha doesn't look up from her book but instantly replies, "I have no way of knowing". You can [[silently judge her]], if you like. Irina sets down her sewing. She seems like she's in a bit of a huff. You might find it more productive to [[judge Irina silently]] instead.

Nothing changes except that Masha's silence is now a little louder than the silence of the snow. You and Masha both stare in the direction Irina just went. If she were standing where you're looking, you realize, you'd be able to see her. But she's gone to her room. A few minutes later, you can see her again, because she's come back. She has a suitcase in her hand and an angry look on her face. [[Ask where she's going|OlgaAsksIrina]] or [[ridicule her|OlgaAskaIrina]] or [[beg her to stay|Olgabegsirina]] or [[say nothing|Olgasaysnothing]]

"[[Moscow]]" she says, cornering you unfairly. [[Throw a dig at her|Olga]] [[Scream at her|Moscow]]

"Irina Sergeyevna Prozorova, have you no fear of God?" you exclaim. "Where could you possibly be going?" [[Moscow]] she says. You are too shocked to speak. She's gone. There's the ticking of the clock, but you just sit there without listening to it. At this point, it would only be a distraction. [[What did it all mean?|YouLose]]

You beg. You are ignored. So you [[consider whether or not you should simply say nothing|Olgasaysnothing]].

You say nothing. At length, Irina returns, and throws a bag to you, and another one to Masha. "I've just started an enormous fire, I'm probably insane, let's go to Moscow." Isn't it remarkable how one can be in one's sitting room, and before one knows what one's about, one is on a train? [[Indeed.|YouLose]]

[[Why not go to Moscow, indeed?|YouLose]] (Oh damn... you don't seem to have another choice... how'd you get cornered into THAT?)

You lose because somebody went to Moscow. The object of the game is to not go to Moscow, and that goes triple for your two sisters. If one of you goes to Moscow, you all lose. But why? There will come a time when everybody will know why, for what purpose, there is all this suffering, and there will be no more mysteries. But now we must live ... we must work, just work! [[THE END]].

You look at the clock, and think, "yes, it is." You can [[keep looking at it|Clock3]] or you can [[go back|Olga]] to whatever it was you were doing before.

You look at the clock, and think, "yes, it is." You notice your {{reflection|OLGAreflection]]. You can [[keep looking at it|clock4]] or you can [[go back|Olga]] to whatever it was you were doing before.

You look at the clock, and think, "yes, it is." You can [[keep looking at it|clock5]] or you can [[go back|Olga]] to whatever it was you were doing before.

You look at the clock, and think, "yes, it is." You can [[keep looking at it|clock6]] or you can [[go back|Olga]] to whatever it was you were doing before.

You look at the clock, and think, "ses, it ys." You can [[keep looking at it|clock7]] or you can [[go back|Olga]] to whatever it was you were doing before.

You look at the clock, and think, "ses, tit sy." You can [[keep looking at it|clock8]] or you can [[go back|Olga]] to whatever it was you were doing before.

You look at the clock, and think, "sis, tet sy." You can [[keep looking at it|Clock9]] or you can [[go back|Olga]] to whatever it was you were doing before.

You look at the clock, and think, "sis,t eir." You can [[keep looking at it|clock10]] or you can [[go back|Olga]] to whatever it was you were doing before.

You look at the clock, and think, "sist, res it." You can [[keep looking at it|clock11]] or you can [[go back|Olga]] to whatever it was you were doing before.

You look at the clock, and think, "sister st.ic z" You can [[keep looking at it|clock12]] or you can [[go back|Olga]] to whatever it was you were doing before.

You look at the clock, and think, "sister, which..." You can [[keep looking at it|clock13]] or you can [[go back|Olga]] to whatever it was you were doing before.

You look at the clock and think, "[[Sister Witch|Clock132]]" This is a dream, so [[wake up|Olga]].

"Sister," says Masha... in a tone you mistake for menace... until you remember <<linkreplace "who Masha really is.">>who <<linkreplace "Irina really is.">> you are. <</linkreplace>><</linkreplace>> ... <<typesim "Sisters, what wretched enchantment is this? This is so strange. Why are we trapped in this ludicrous situation? Have we had this conversation before? No, of course we haven't. I am the eldest, I always speak first. What am I trying to remember... that's right! The clock! Remember, sisters! My number is six">><<goto "Olga">> <</typesim>>

Time stops. Your sisters are looking at you. The silence of the snow has stopped, too. You look out the window -- the snow has halted in mid-air. You've fallen asleep. You can [[wake up|Olga]] or you can [[say something|Witch]] or you can [[say something else|Witch]]

"I don't see why nobody's talking to me, it's my birthday, after all, isn't it?" They're still ignoring you. You could [[dance|complain]] around the room or just [[ignore their ignoring you|Irina]].

Decisions, decisions. You could... [[Make fun of Olga|OlgaBoring]] [[Praise Olga|OlgaBoring]] [[Praise Masha|OlgaBoring]] [[Ridicule Masha|OlgaBoring]] [[Scream]]

"Oh, ouch!" you say. Neither of them look up. Well, you never. <<set $ouch to -1>> [[Go back to sewing|Irina]] or simply [[sit in silence.|Irina]]

You're the youngest. It's your job to set it. Well, you won't unless someone asks you to, and that's just all there is to it. Imagine their not even [[remembering]] to ask you to set the clock, as if each of them were putting on haughty airs, as if she were the youngest. Well, neither of them are, Irina. You are!

"Do you remember father's funeral?" asks Olga in the cheerful tone she uses when she wants you to see how much more she knows than either you or Masha. Just now, she knew you were going to amuse yourself by remembering something, and she had to go and spoil it by remembering something first. Well, now you don't care. Olga can't expect you to abandon all your plans for the afternoon just because she wanted to remember things with you. Olga really is an emotional tyrant, isn't she, Irina? [[Yes, she is|OlgaTyrant]], but then again, [[no, she isn't|OlgaGood]]. And really, it's [[Masha|MashaTyrant]] who ought to apologize. Of course, you can simply [[make her apologize|MashaSorry]].

"You needn't be such an ogress, you know, Olga."

"Olga," you say, "you are so very good." Olga looks surprised. Irina agrees, flashing that smile she always uses when she needs something she could easily attend to herself. "Yes," she says, "I'd just been talking to Ivan Romanovich, you know, that man who drinks and carries a hunting rifle about with him all the time. That is his name, isn't it, Masha?" You could [[tell her she's horrible|Irinabad]] or [[stay silent|Olgasavesmasha]].

"Masha, you really did marry that ridiculous husband of yours because you hoped you were capable of human feeling, but you aren't, you're a husk, your soul is--Olga, do you know those stacking dolls whose faces aren't painted on quite right? Doesn't Masha remind you of one of those? You know how the very small one toward the end opens up and inside that, there's a shapeless little lump of something, only a splotch of paint on it someplace, it doesn't even look human, isn't Masha rather like one of those? Oh tee-hee-hee." No one's laughing, they're looking at you like you're horrible. That must be because they know you're right. <<set $Mashaneg to -1>> You can't think of anything to do now but [[pretend that never happened.|Irina]]

You look at Masha with cold defiance. She is reading a book, and has been for an hour at least. She knows you're staring, <<linkreplace"why won't she say anything?">> Oh, she looked up! ... <<linkreplace "at Olga.">> Well, that's just even more insulting. You might as well answer Olga's idiotic question by saying that you [[do remember father's funeral|DaddyDead]] or by [[denying that you remember it|NoDaddyDead]].<</linkreplace>><</linkreplace>> Oh, nevermind, [[it scarcely matters|Irina]].

"Yes, of course I remember father's funeral" you say. Are they going to ask you to wind the clock or not? How can you remind them that time is passing? They seem preoccupied with not noticing the passage of time. "What is it you wanted to say?" Olga asks you. Aha! Now, now is your chance to make Masha pay! Hmmm... but how? [[Make Olga disapprove of her|Disapprove]] or you could just [[insult her|Insult]], but you could also take the moral high road and [[sew|Irina]]. That would fix Masha.

"No," you say. Nobody says anything for a long time, and so, without looking up from your sewing, you add "I don't." You hear the sound of snowfall, even though it [[doesn't sound like anything|Irina]].

"Masha is so distracted with being in love, she can't even join us in a chat about father's funeral!" you say, and you giggle and loan a warm smile to Olga... but only because (here's where it gets complicated) <<linkreplace "you want Olga to think">>you want Olga to think<<linkreplace " that you think">> that you think that Olga already knows about Masha being in love with Ivan Romanovich, who drinks.<</linkreplace>><</linkreplace>> Olga looks suitably shocked. Masha stares at you in horror. [[Say "Oh dear, did I speak out of turn?"|OhDear]] [[Laugh at Masha and ridicule her.|MashaMoscow]]

"Oh Olga, you really are hag-like in your croneliness and sagacity," you say with a giggle. "Isn't Olga hag-like, Masha?" Masha seems to be remembering something. "Are we really sitting here?" Masha asks. "Are we not meant to be much older, more sinister somehow? Are we not meant to..." "...to what?" says Olga, deeply interested. Should you distract your sisters from this line of conversation? You could [[suggest a party|suggestparty]] or [[say nothing and hope the room lapses back into silence|Irina]].

Masha stands up, and her book falls to the floor. Forgetting that she's not the youngest, but the middle child, she balls her hands into little fists which shake at her side as her frown intensifies in ugliness. At length, she points at you and yells "You're horrible!" and runs out of the house, into the snow. "You haven't got your coat!" cries Olga, but Masha is already gone. Now you are alone with Olga. [[Tell Olga you don't see any reason to go after Masha|OlgaLeaves]] [[Advise Olga to go after Masha|OlgaRemains]] [[Sew.|MashaReturns]]

Masha gets pissed off and goes to [[Moscow]].

Well, shit, she actually did it. [[Moscow]], that is.

"Go after her," you say to Olga. "You must!" Olga looks to you, to the door, to you again... and cries "I'm going to Moscow too, you can't stop me!!" [[Well...|YouLose]] shit.

You sew and say nothing. Olga says something, but it isn't worth listening to, and you're not even sure she said it out loud. In fact you know she didn't. Probably thought it was beneath her. You hate Olga. Masha comes back. "I forgot my coat," she said, "and you may be sure I have not returned for any other reason, and I do not care to converse with either of you. I simply wish to take my coat and go." "Your book, dear," said Olga. Masha stamps over to pick it up, and Olga, antique spider that she is, says "And while you're here, I wish you'd tell me what's upset you. Why, if you're in love, there's nothing for it but to have the gentleman over." Masha perks up at this. [[Discourage it|NoInvitation]] [[Encourage it|Invitation]]

"That's a fine idea, and I am so sorry for blurting that out as I did, I had no idea you didn't mean for Olga to know." Masha pretends to forgive you... no, no actually, you're certain she does forgive you, damn her, and now she's begging for a party at the house, and for you to write the invitation. Oh, how you loathe this... this power she has... this... Strange. Is Masha... some kind of a witch? Well, if she were a witch, obviously, you'd have no choice but to obey her. You realize you could show Masha, once and for all, how free you are... and maybe then she'd learn what freedom means. [[Write the invitation for her|IrinaWitch]] [[Change your attitude, and discourage the party|NoInvitation]]

You discourage this plan. Masha pouts, but seems to accept your opinion as a kind of absolute fact, like... well, like snow. She goes back to reading. [[Sew|Irina]] or [[don't|Irina]], it probably makes no difference.

You sit down at the desk and begin to write... "Write to Ivan Romonovich first, oh you must, for he sometimes goes to bed very early." Yes, of course, of course, Irina, you must write one of your very charming letters to Ivan Romonovich (who drinks) -- if one were to watch this little scene, one would be sure to think that Masha was the youngest -- but of course, she isn't, Irina, because you are. Masha is the second youngest. Or... second oldest. Anyway, the letter: <<typesim "Why does my head dictate so oddly to my pen? My number is nine. Wait, have I spoken out of turn? I speak last, don't I? Did you girls say something? The clock... someone has to set the clock. Have we already had this converstion? Help immediately please. In Haste, Your Sister Witch">><<goto "Irina">><</typesim>>

You like thinking about Ivan. This was such a good idea! And your sisters won't bother you, since you're pretending to read this book of poetry. Should you actually read it though? [[Yes|Yespoetry]]. Or... [[no|nopoetry]]

You silently judge Masha. She hasn't looked up from that book, but neither does she seem enthralled by it, or in any way at ease. Hard to judge that... perhaps you could judge her reading material? It's Pushkin. Before you can judge that, you realize she has not so much as turned a page in the hour she's been sitting there with it open her lap. The judgement rendered to your thoughts by your long years of accumulated wisdom is that Masha is thinking about sex and is only pretending to read. You further reason that a woman can become a man's friend only in the following stages - first an acquantaince, next a mistress, and only after that, a friend. Irina suddenly storms out of the room in a huff. [[Call for her to come back|CallIrina]] or [[don't.|CallIrina]] (Good Heavens! Perhaps you should have judged Irina instead.)

Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock. It is so, so difficult to [[keep this judgement silent|sjudge1]]. It's a good one, you can tell. Oh, oughtn't one simply to [[blurt it out]], when one is so sound in one's judging of one's sister?

Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock. This judging of Irina is becoming ever so spirited. You are near to bursting with soundness of mind. [[Explode it out into the room|sayit]] or [[persist in silent judgement]], or [[try to remember something particularly awful about her to judge|remember something]].

The first judgement that comes to mind is what comes out of your mouth. "Irina, do you know that your heart is like a fine piano no one can play because the key is lost?" [[Stare at her and wait]].

Flatly and without looking up, Irina says "yes." [[Be sensible|snow]].

Remembering things usually makes you fall asleep, and this is not exception. You are now either [[Irina]] or [[Masha|Maria]].

You sit there, sensibly. But knowing so little about why your two sisters have behavded in such an extraordinary and aback-taking way this afternoon, your sensible point of view has yielded no truly fresh ideas. You can go to [[Moscow|YouLose]] or simply [[face tomorrow.|Olga]]

"Irina, you are ridiculous, father would be ashamed of you, he would! It's true, I swear it! He would be as ashamed of you as I am of myself!" You collapse, but you feel you could [[maintain your tragic dignity|maintain]]... if you tried... or, perhaps, you [[could not|ChangeSisters]].

They don't seem to feel it, unfortunately. You'd know. [[Sigh|Olga]]

Blah blah blah, it says. [[Sigh|Maria]].

No, no don't. It is probably a love poem, and Russia hardly needs any more of that. Remember what you and Ivan most agree on: the nation needs work poetry, rather than love poetry. Enjoy a moment of self-satisfaction, in which you feel superior to [[Olga|Betterthanolga]] or [[Irina|Betterthanolga]] or even [[yourself|Betterthanolga]].

Better than she? Oh quite. Quite. You quite agree with that, but this agreeable thought is rudely interrupted by a most idiotic question from Olga, when she asks if you remember your father's funeral. At first you thought she was talking to Irina, but this is an opportunity to make Olga feel stupid, and perhaps you oughtn't let it pass you by. [[Look up to make Olga feel stupid|OlgaStupid2]] [[Continue pretending to read|pretendread2]] [[Actually read]]

"Your heart is a piano, but it's locked and the key is lost," you say to Irina. She looks at you with hatred. "What??" she demands. You sigh, saying "It's perfectly simple, you obsess over work, because you don't know what it is, and when you do, you'll hate it; and you also dream of one day feeling love, but you never will, you haven't the capacity. I don't mean anything hurtful in saying so, I envy you, to be honest. I'm tired of feeling so... well, so alive all the time, you know?" Irina looks devastated, and that satisfies you. <<set $Irinaneg to -1>> You look down at the magnifying glass that you've been holding on the page of the volume of Pushkin you're reading, and you see yourself reflected in it. You can now switch roles, which sister shall you be? [[Masha again|Maria]]? [[Olga]]? [[Irina]]?

"Oh," you say to yourself, and "Mmm. Yes, mmm. Oh." You could [[silently chastise yourself]], or [[whistle]].

Did you meet in the desolate darkness of the forest The singer of love who sings of his sadness? Did you notice a trace of tears or smile, Or a gentle and mournful glance? ⁠Did you meet him? Something tells you that you are probably a witch. [[Fall asleep|Witch]] [[Say, "Are we witches?"|ChangeSisters]] [[Stay awake uneventfully|Maria]]

"Irina isn't innocent, she's wicked. It would be better for her if she had been born plain. Oh, Irina, I don't mean to upset you. Oh, I've said such beastly things. How unlike me to have said all that just now, what can I have been thinking? Do laugh with me, is it not, in fact, quite funny that I have behaved so very badly while you are so very earnest and good?" [[It might be too late for all that... you might have said something you cannot unsay.|ChangeSisters]]

The pause in the conversation had only just matured into sourness when Olga answered, not Irina's ogress of a question, but with a question of her own. "Am I so very good, really and truly? I don't know that being the headmistress of a school is all that admirable. Perhaps there was a sacrifice involved." "Why, what would you have done?" "Oh, I don't know... gone to Moscow. I wish I'd gone at least once. Too late, too late! God didn't grant it." "Why, sister, you should go to Moscow!" Irina says. Has she gone mad? [[Protest|MashaStopsOlga]], [[encourage|Mashakillsolga]], or [[keep silent|mashakeepssilent]]?

"Olga, dear sister, remember your dignity, your gift for reasoning. You are so clever, Olga, I simply know that you'll sit back down, you will do that, won't you, dear Olga?" Olga looks at you. You [[will|Moscow]] go with me, [[won't you|noolgano]]?

"STOP!" screams Olga, "STOP, I cannot bear it any longer, you break the very teacup of contentment by beating it with spoons from better times! I will not stay in this house a minute longer, I'll go mad!" Olga throws herself through the window. None of you saw that coming. <<set $Olganeg to -1>> [[Ask Irina to send out invitations to the party.|ChangeSisters]] [[Ring for the elderly servants|ring]] and ask them to go out and check on Olga. Go to [[Moscow]].

You say nothing... Irina says nothing... Olga's face becomes strangely awed, as if beholding a miracle in some corner of the room you'd never thought to look at before. "I... I must... I must be going now, my sisters..." Irina looks agitated, suddenly, as Olga, as if in a trance, rises and begins to walk, with increasing determination, to her bedroom. [[Whatever could the matter be?|YouLose]]

"I think we ought to have a party!" Olga and Masha both laugh at this. "Oh, Irina, whatever shall we celebrate?" says Olga. Masha says, "I think it's a dreadful idea." [["Oh, but I'm the youngest, and I'm so very young and impetuous!"|BecauseYoung]] [["It'll do us good, and we'll invite all the most decent people we know, and Olga, you and I will finally be able to ask Ivan Romanov (who drinks) what he's been doing with that hunting rifle all this time!"|BecauseIvan]] [["So that Masha can be close to Ivan Romanov, of course. She's in love with him, didn't you know?"|BadIvan]] [["Fine, forget I said anything."|Sour]]

Olga laughs and says, "Well certainly, if it seems appropriate, and who wouldn't like to know why Ivan Romanov carries a hunting rifle around on his person as if he wishes us all to think he's been hunting." "Oh, but isn't this just something we'll talk about and never do, like going to Moscow?" You can ask her to elaborate on that remark she just made about [[Moscow|YouLose]] or you can [[start writing the invitations|StartWriting]].

Masha, gives you a look with the hint of a smile in it, and you can tell she's very pleased to have you as a co-conspirator. Olga laughs and says, "Well certainly, if it seems appropriate, and who wouldn't like to know why Ivan Romanov carries a hunting rifle around on his person as if he wishes us all to think he's been hunting." "Oh, but isn't this just something we'll talk about and never do, like going to Moscow?" You can ask her to elaborate on that remark she just made about [[Moscow|YouLose]] or you can [[start writing the invitations|StartWriting]].

Masha attempts to poison you with a ferocious look. "What could move you to say such things, Irina?" she asks. "He drinks, you know" says Olga, helpfully. Maybe you should [[apologize|BecauseYoung]]. Oh, but would it not be fun to [[pretend you haven't any notion why she's so upset?|Irina]]

You pout so hard you actually fall asleep. You may now switch bodies. Your progress will be saved, but you can continue on from the viewpoint of any of the sisters. [[Irina]] again, or [[Olga]] or [[Masha|Maria]].

"This is nonsense, I'll write the invitations right now!" and Olga laughs even louder at this. "Irina, if you weren't the youngest, there'd be no explanation whatever for this mad spell you've fallen under!" <<if $ouch is -1>>Since you pricked your finger earlier, you can [[write the invitations in blood, if you choose|writeblood]].<<else>>You write them out in ink and send them, then all of you do [[nothing|party]] until it's time for the party<</if>>

Just for a lark, you sign one of the invitations in blood. <<set $Devilscoming to -1>> You and your sisters resolve to do a fair amount of [[nothing|party]] before the party.

You're at the party. That drunken fool, Ivan Romanov, is here with a gun. <<if $Irinaneg is -1 and $Olganeg is -1 and $Mashaneg is -1>>[[Laugh at him|IvanDies]]<<else>>[[Laugh at him|IvanLives]]<</if>> [[Just drink and enjoy yourself, to whatever degree you can.|JustDrink]] <<if $Devilscoming is -1>>Talk to the [[mysterious gentleman]] who stands in the corner, staring directly at you.<</if>>

<<if $irinaneg is -1>>Irina does not go to Moscow.<</if>> <<if $olganeg is -1>>Olga does not go to Moscow.<</if>> <<if $mashaneg is -1>>Masha does not go to Moscow.<</if>> <<if $irinaneg is -1>><<if $olganeg is -1>><<if $mashaneg is -1>>You win!<</if>><</if>><</if>>

You dance complainingly about the room and then sit back down again. They don't seem to have notied you. "I yearn for work," you say, quoting the only philosophical conversation you've ever had. Well, that encompassed most of the complaints you're ever likely to have. You could complain about your [[Saint's Day party|complainparty]] or about the fact that you're [[not in Moscow|NotInM]].

You talk about how you all used to live in Moscow and you don't remember anything about it except that you were happy and nothing was as annoying as it is here in this nameless provincial town. You are interrupted mid-sentence by Masha, who says, "Oh for God's sake, let's just go to Moscow then." "But you're married, Masha, dear," says Olga, the older of your sisters. "I'll just tell people he died," she says, and before you can blink, almost, she has her bag. "I'll just buy new clothes when we get there," says Olga, and within the hour you're all piling onto the train. They're still not listening to you; rather, they're somehow mistaking your chirpy little protests for excited gratitude. [[Oh.|YouLose]]

You laugh at him, as do your sisters. For a moment it looks as though he's going to shoot himself, which causes the suggestion of a lull... but then he points the rifle at Masha's husband and pulls the trigger. A gasp. But... CLICK. Not loaded. He laughs like it's the funniest joke anybody's ever told. <<if $Irinaneg is 0>>Irina laughs. Somebody failed to sabotage her confidence.<<else>>Irina does not laugh. Good job, you messed with her head, and now she can't enjoy herself!<</if>> <<if $Olganeg is 0>>Olga laughs. Who didn't tell her how empty her life was bound to be given her unmarried status and her age?<<else>>Olga does not laugh. Nor should she, she'll never get to Moscow. WOO HOO!<</if>> <<if $Mashaneg is 0>>Masha laughs. She's neither in mourning for her life, nor is she unhappy. WHAT THE HELL?!?!<<else>>Masha looks just so uncomfortable. Awesome! Maybe now she'll wear more black, she looks sturdy and dignified in black.<</if>> Too bad Ivan didn't do anything really memorable, that might have made some kinda difference. Maybe nobody goaded him into anything destructive and inane. Oh, Ivan. Oh, Russia! OH HUMANITY! You sort of win. They didn't go to Moscow on your watch, so that's "good" but you didn't make sure they never, ever, ever will, and that would have been better. Meaning worse, because worse is better in The Three Sisters for some reason. [[The End|THE END]]. (And a middling ending it was, too.)

You laugh, as do your sisters. Soon everyone is laughing at Ivan Romanov, who drinks. For a few moments, he is laughing too... or almost laughing. He seems to catch sniping fragments, like "...never been hunting in his life..." and "...that gun matches his stupid moustache..." His smile becomes peaceful... then in one gesture, he sets the rifle upright on the ground, holding it there while he jams his mouth down on the barrell, and he fires. [[His brains are everywhere|YouWin]]

As you drink, you ruminate on your limited success... <<if $Irinaneg is -1>>Irina is disillusioned. Well done!<<else>>Irina looks optimistic and is talking about Moscow a lot. Not ideal.<</if>> <<if $Olganeg is -1>>Olga is aware of her inadequacy. Well done!<<else>>Olga looks confident and strong, like she's ready for a long jouney.<</if>> <<if $Masha is -1>>Masha is terrified. Well done!<<else>>Masha looks rather attractive, and she's clearly willing to leave her husband... that would be fine, but she's holding a big train ticket to Moscow and fanning herself with it. Not ideal.<</if>> Thing is, everybody knows, the party doesn't end until Ivan Romanovich who drinks either goes home or shoots himself, so you should try to goad him into that if you want to end The Three Sisters properly. We'll call this a draw. You can save your progress if you just live the day over again as [[Olga]], [[Masha|Maria]], or [[Irina]].

YOU WIN!!!!! Congratulations! The three sisters have undermined each other so completely, the mood of inescapable tragedy prevailed in their house, and that poor man killed himself. They'll be no popping off to Moscow for THOSE three! Well Done! The Three Sisters: Five Acts About Not Going To Moscow [[THE END]].

"Irina, you look like a gibbon. Go upstairs and put something else on, it's your Saint's Day, for Heaven's Sake." She goes upstairs and is back down in a trice. She's wearing something similar, but, you know, not exactly the same. Well, that setted that! [[Relax into smugness|Olga]] or [[criticize Masha while you're at it|CritMasha]]

"Masha, you little simpleton, do you realize you don't fit into any of your dresses anymore? Pardon me for laughing, you might be pregnant. Are you?" "No," she says, frowning at you. <<set $Mashaneg to -1>> "Well then you're hilarious! Irina, don't you think she looks like she's with child? Who knew her badger of a husband had it in him? Oh, I'm just terrible." Though neither of your sisters have any idea what's wrong with you today, you've clearly upset Masha, and that seems best, somehow. You can [[go back to staring at things in general|Olga]] or you can stare specifically at the [[snow]]or the [[clock]].

The little beard, the charming eyes, the revolting... something about him is revolting, but you stand charmed. Charmed, but not powerless. There is no doubt. This man is literally the devil. [[Smack]] him. [[Kiss]] him. [[Talk|TalkDevil]] to him.

You smack him. Your hand burns. "Good," the devil says, admiring the 2nd degree burn on your hand. "Maybe that mark will remind you of your secret quest. To wake your sisters from this hackneyed dream of literary smugness. You're witches. Find a way to make the others see it!" <<set $Devilscoming to 0>> [[And with that, he's gone|party]].

You kiss him. Your senses become ravenous. When you're done, you see the others are trying to pretend they weren't even looking at you, oh, how you loathe the very sight of them! Your eyes, now, are thirsty for rich colors, your skin for all varieties of tawdriness, your ears for twisted music, dissonant and shrill, or the burning strains of violins played by wunderkinds who've sold their souls. "Cackle not," the devil says, "they still burn withes here. Wake your sisters." <<set $Devilscoming to 0>> [[And with that, he's gone|party]].

You're about to talk to him when you realize he was never there. You whirl about to look at the party--did they see you talking to a vacant corner? They may have, but they don't seem to care... although your sisters both look uncomfortable, as though they were just at the verge of seeing something terrible, but grand, and liberating, too. Can there be anything as dreadful as freedom? <<set $Devilscoming to 0>> Nothing to do but [[rejoin the party|party]].

"You're doing a wonderful job of ignoring me," you say to one sister, and to the other, you say, "you, too!" They look at each other and almost smile. You [[hate your sisters|Irina]]. You have no other options.

You scream, a shrill, ear-sundering shriek. your sisters look at you, bewildered and annoyed. [[Go right back to sewing|Irina]] [[Ask them what they're looking at|OlgaBoring]] [[Do nothing|Irina]] Strange to say, but it's moments like these that make you feel you almost could [[become someone else|ChangeSisters]]. You say as much, and feel strange for what you've said.

[[Click here to return to The Stolen Shore|http://www.thestolenshore.com/index.html]]

"Olga, really," you say, laughing, "what sort of a ridiculous question is that? If I had asked such a question, I'd pour turpentine in my eyes so I'd never have to see myself in the looking glass ever again, haw haw!" <<set $Olganeg to -1>> Your sisters look at you like you're insane, but you don't care. You can [[stare at Irina|stareIrina]] or [[stare at Olga|stareOlga]] or [[return|Maria]] to the pleasantness of not-actually-reading your book.

You stare at Irina so hard you feel you [[could become her|Irina]], but of course, you're quite condemned to [[remain just who you are|Maria]], and that is as God wishes.

You stare at Olga. Let her feel how it is to be stared at, as if your face was horse-like and your antiquated charms were but the empty comedy of other peoples' mocking silence! Despite the workmanship of that complicated thought, the silence that follows does not, in any way, suggest it. [[Well, I'll read then|Maria]] [[Irina, that dress does not become you|DigAtIrina]]

"Are you really going to wear that, on your own special day?" Irina looks down at herself, then looks up and asks, "Why, does it make me look too spiritual?" Say [[yes|toomuch]] or [[no|harlot]] or return to [[staring at your book|Maria]].

"A hundred years from now, there will be women dressed just as Irina is now, sitting in the windows of Amsterdam. You may call me a madwoman, but there it is." They are trying to ignore you. [[Ignore THEM|Maria]]. Haw haw.

"Why are you dressed like a one of those unmarried women of Moscow who've nowhere to be at dinner time?" "OH!" cries your other sister, and covers her mouth, for you have just said the very naughtiest of naughty things. [[Say "Whore!"|ChangeSisters]] [[Giggle a bit, then discreetly fall silent|Irina]]

<<set $Mashaneg to -1>>Oh, Masha, you simpleton! you say, silently, unto yourself. [[What ever drove you to such harshness?|Maria]]

You whistle tunelessly. "Don't whistle, Masha, it reminds me of father's funeral," says Olga. [["That's why I do it"|ChangeSisters]] [[Say nothing|Maria]]

Having made an utterance of which you were scarcely capable, you (whoever that may be) must now change sisters... or start over as yourself. So, what's it to be [[Masha|Maria]], er, [[Irina]]? [[Olga]]? Who are you?

The servants will not come for quite some time. You and your sister fall asleep shortly after ringing for them. When you [[wake up|party]]...

"No, sister," you say. A strange wind blows from nowhere to nowhere, passing through the room. You all look up, around, your eyes flickering about like candles in the momento-haunted attic of a house that's been sold to people you, ironically, would have moved to get away from anyway. You can [[remain standing|MashaWitch]] in this strange way, but really, the three of you should just [[sit down, and...|ChangeSisters]]

Masha croaks like a frog, "My number is four", and sits down with her book. "Whatever could I have meant?" she (that is, you, for somehow you are Masha now) say(s). [[Perhaps if you had a moment to catch your breath|Maria]] You could always just [[Scream]].

"i should have thought my sisters would have prepared a better party for me," you say. Olga looks genuinely hurt. [[Rush to her and apologize|rusholga]]. [[Pretend]] you don't notice.

<<set $Olganeg to 0>> You rush to where Olga is sitting and throw yourself at her feet, pressing her hands in yours and begging her to forgive you for being so beastly. "Oh, why my child, of course I forgive you!" she almost blushes. Hers is the face of purest happiness. "You don't see how tired and wounded I am most days, that's all. Because you're so intent on finding work, and so earnest! That's all it is. There, there," says Olga, "I forgive you." <<link "Tell Olga you despise her and go back to your chair" <<set $Olganeg to -1>> <<goto "Irina">><</link>> [[Tell Olga you revere her and go back to your chair|Irina]]

To letting Olga know you've seen how hurt she is, you pretend to address your comments, now, to Masha, who clearly isn't listening and hasn't looked up from her Pushkin (or even turned the page). "Oh Masha, do I have to write the invitations myself? I won't, not today of all days." Masha ignores you. [[Write the invitations yourself|StartWriting]]. [[Sit back down and wait for someone else to do it|Irina]].

<<set $Olganeg to -1>><<set $Irinaneg to -1>> You feel you and Irina both are quite injured, though invisibly, by this... and that ultimately, it's for the best. Only Masha now lives in any hope (that is, danger) of beholding Moscow again. [[Nod at the rightness of this|ChangeSisters]] [[Take your seat again and steadfastly refuse to see the virtue of this new and unexpected sorrow|Olga]]