AUTHOR'S NOTES: This one is set after you meet the Spectre without the blade, exchange the initial dialog with her, and she proposes to possess you so you can take her out of the cabin.

The Narrator: "The Princess's ghostly form hovers in front of you expectantly, her preposterous request to possess you still hanging in the air. Technically dead or not, you need to find a way to slay her."

Voice of the Cold: "We need to do no such thing. She's dead, she can't leave this place without us. What's she going to do, haunt this cabin forever? Our work is done, let's simply leave."

Voice of the Hero: "Okay, but hear me out, what if we did what she wanted? She seems pretty harmless, and we're the ones who killed her, don't you think we owe her?"

The Narrator: "You most certainly do not! You owe it to the world to finish the job properly, because the Princess is anything but harmless."

Cold: "Hmm. I wonder if she could hear Him while possessing us? Wouldn't that be interesting, bringing her face to face with the one who wants her dead so much?"

(· "Alright, I've given it enough thought. Let's do this thing." [Let the Princess possess you])

The Narrator: "The Princess swims through the air towards you before pausing just before you, her dark-rimmed eyes staring into yours."

The Princess: "You're trying to make it up to me, aren't you? Thanks for being a pal, killer. I mean it."

The Narrator: "The Princess grins and throws her arms around you, their icy touch shockingly solid. There's a hunger in her gaze as she grins darkly at you."

The Princess: "See you in there, killer."

The Narrator: "The Princess, her arms around your shoulders, pulls herself towards you, closer and closer, her sunken eyes still fixated on yours, and you just stand there like a deer caught in the headlights. Her icy embrace enveloping you, your beak almost touching her face, she raises a single eyebrow. Then she ceases to be solid and starts to pass into you, the frost piercing deep into your flesh as a freezing numbness overtakes you, crystallising your heart. Don't just let this happen, resist her before it's too late! Your mind grows cloudy and drowsy, your limbs go numb, and then, when the Princess is gone completely, the numbness gives way to a terrible cramping pain. Your muscles convulse and your nerves fire in every direction at once. You cannot breathe, your very lungs filled with ice. You drop to the ground, but you barely even feel the impact as you lay there, flailing in agony. Everything goes dark."

Hero: "...And did we die?"

The Princess: "No, this isn't what it's like. C'mon, killer, up and at 'em. I know everything is rough right now, but you have to get up."

The Narrator: "You manage to lift an eyelid, trying to get your bearings, your vision swimming as a cold mist freezes the moisture on your eyes."

The Princess: "Who are you? Do you always narrate what's happening to him?"

The Narrator: "You, um, don't need to know who I am. I simply narrate events as they happen, yes."

Cold: "Oh, someone doesn't want to own up to what He's been telling us to do now that she can hear Him say it."

Hero: "Yeah, you should know He's the one who's been telling us to-"

The Narrator: "Ahem, you can barely manage to move, the cold and weight too much, your vision swimming."

The Princess: "You already mentioned that. Hey killer, it's surprisingly noisy in here. Are these shards of broken glass also you?"

Hero: "Hey, I'm not a shard of broken glass! I'm a… me?"

Cold: "How very articulate. For a shard of broken glass."

Hero: "What does that make you, then?"

Cold: "Probably the same. It doesn't matter."

Hero: "Of course it matters!"

The Princess: "You don't have to fight about it, guys."

Hero: "What we are matters, I don't wanna be a shard of broken glass, I feel real."

Cold: "Well, there's your first mistake: feeling."

The Princess: "They're not listening to me. Do they ever listen to you, killer?"

(· "It's so noisy… And so cold… Can't think… Can't act…")

The Princess: "Guess I did quite a number on you, huh? It's no worse than what you did to me but I guess I should still try to help out. Maybe I can help you move somehow? Orrr maybe I could find a way to heat you up..."

Hero: "Woah, did you hear the way she said that? Does she mean-"

Cold: "You know she can hear you, right? I don't care, but you're going to embarrass yourself."

The Princess: "I can, and I'll be happy to answer any questions about what I mean."

Hero: "Uh, no, that's, uh, that's okay, thank you."

The Narrator: "With these asinine discussions filling your mind and your body frozen, it seems the end of the road has come for both you and the Princess. Unable to move, time starts passing-"

The Princess: "Wait a minute, I haven't even tried helping him yet. Who are you, anyway? You're different from these shards, you don't belong here. You're like an echo someone left behind, a memory of a person. Not so different from me, really."

Hero: "He's a ghost too? What if the Princess killed Him when He was still alive?"

Cold: "Now isn't that interesting? Is that why He's been telling us to slay her?"

The Narrator: "As you well know, you need to slay her because she will end the world. I have no prior history with the Princess and am nothing like her."

The Princess: "Oh, so you're the one pulling the strings. I did think it was weird my killer was all apologetic and willing to help me out. You should know better than to listen to suspicious voices in your head telling you to kill people, killer. Now let's get you up and moving about."

(· [Try to move])

The Narrator: "Your every muscle has turned to stone, any attempt to move them as you try to lift yourself up is an agony of cramps. You manage a couple of stumbling movements on all fours before collapsing again."

The Princess: "What are we gonna do about you, killer? Lemme see if I can help, there must be some way to control you…"

Hero: "You said we'd get to be in control."

Cold: "Not like we can do much right now anyway."

The Princess: "Just to help get us out of here, I'll let you have control back if you tell me to stop. I wonder what-"

(· "-this here is? Oh, that's proper weird. Can I only talk through this or can I do more? Just talk? I'll leave it to you, then.")

Hero: "Where'd she go?"

Cold: "Somewhere we can't follow, obviously. We've never been able to use the outside voice."

The Narrator: "You feel an icy, yet soft presence like a drift of snow shift and move around inside you as the Princess explores. A series of strange and random sensations comes over you. A sudden tickling sensation to your left ankle. The taste of butterscotch. A sharp headache-"

The Princess: "Sorry, sorry, I'll stay away from that one!"

Hero: "Oww, I felt that."

Cold: "It wasn't so bad."

The Narrator: "An awareness of the colour of your kidneys. A slow, warm touch to your left elbow gently running upward."

The Princess: "Hey, you said warm! Maybe I can warm you up after all, eh, killer?"

The Narrator: "More touching to that elbow. Warmth as an invisible hand caresses it. Rubs it. Faster. It gets a little annoying after a while, actually, makes your feathers bristle."

Hero: "Dunno if that's helping, Princess."

The Princess: "There must be something else I can do."

The Narrator: "Something touches your spleen. A pinprick in your toe. You click your tongue. The feathers on your chest all stand on end."

The Princess: "Wow, you're so fluffy… Those seem nice and warm."

Hero: "Did you hear that? She likes our feathers."

Cold: "She can still hear you when you whisper, you know."

Hero: "R-right."

The Princess: "I can! And actually, I do like your feathers, they're so pretty. Love to take a closer look at them some time."

Hero: "Oh, y-yeah. They are, we actually have a whole preening routine, but, y'know, it's all worth it for nice plumage."

Cold: "Flattery goes a long way with you, doesn't it? Listen to you getting all flustered."

The Narrator: "As you can hear, you've been listening to entirely the wrong little voice lately. A cold, gentle touch slowly runs up your spine and sends a shiver ahead. Your knee kicks out, making your body shift."

The Princess: "I found something! Now if I can just get the other leg to move..."

The Narrator: "That knee kicks out a couple more times. Your arm pulls back sharply. You swallow. You sneeze. You blink."

The Princess: "Am I just activating reflexes? That's no good, but maybe if I can find the other knee..."

The Narrator: "Another sneeze. Your left knee keeps kicking. You gag. You shake out your feathers. Your arms suddenly move to protect your head. Your right knee kicks out."

The Princess: "Found it! I'll have you up and walking about in no time!"

The Narrator: "Your knees twitch repeatedly, one kicking out and then the other. Your body, lying on its side now, shuffles about in a circular motion, its legs twitching one after the other. You end up kicking the Princess's bones repeatedly, clouds of dust taking to the stale air. You continue wiggling and shuffling around uselessly."

(· "Princess, this isn't helping. Please give it a rest and let me have another go.")

The Princess: "Fine, fine, I'll go look for something else. Wish you had like, a getting up reflex."

The Narrator: "As you feel the Princess shift in your mind, you feel another gentle touch pet your elbow. It vanishes, and you try to get up again, your knees feeling weird, but looser from all the reflexive motions. You stumble a few steps, making it to the stairs before collapsing on them."

Hero: "How are we gonna get all the way up those?"

The Princess: "I know you can do it, killer. And I'm gonna find some way to help."

The Narrator: "The feeling of someone pulling on your tail. And again. And again."

(· "Princess?")

The Narrator: "She moves on. The scent of a walrus. You scream for no reason. A sudden sting in your left, um, cheek."

The Princess: "Hihihi."

The Narrator: "And another one. Your shoulder feels warm. Your teeth itch. A tickling sensation on your upper thigh. And then your thoughts start running fast, your memory and imagination spooling up and conjuring images."

The Princess: "Oh, this is new, it's all visual. Is that what the cabin looks like? And that's my hair, it's so nice and fluffy! And that… Oh, that's me. Dying. You picking up that blade and… coming down to the basement. My corpse. You stabbing me."

Hero: "We should stop thinking about it. I wish we could stop thinking about it."

Cold: "Ah, 'stop thinking about it', well known to be the most effective way to stop thinking about something."

Hero: "Princess, you don't have to look."

The Princess: "Oh believe me, it was much worse from my perspective, I can handle it. That… That's my scar. An… empty void? You taking the blade from the table, and then you taking the blade from my rotting corpse. My scar again. Me alive, and then me as a ghost. Hey, it's my scar again. So is that. Wow, killer, you think of my scar a lot. Do you feel guilty about giving it to me?"

Hero: "Yeah, we do."

Cold: "Well, they do."

The Narrator: "You shouldn't feel guilty. You did what you had to do to protect the world, and I highly recommend doing it again."

The Princess: "It's… well, it's not okay, killer. I'm glad you feel guilty, 'cause you should. But remember you are trying to make up for what you did, and that really means a lot. You can't change the past, but you're choosing to do better now."

(· "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry.")

The Princess: "Thank you. C'mon, killer, quit it with the memories of my scar, no need to keep dwelling on it. It's gonna bring the whole mood down. Unless… Waaait a minute, actually there's more to this thought than just my scar. Killer, are you thinking about my boobs?"

Hero: "Uh, no, no we definitely wouldn't do that, it's just guilt about stabbing you that's making us think of that, nothing near your scar has anything to do with it."

Cold: "I don't think about you at all."

The Princess: "Oh, now that I mentioned them there's some… related images starting to pop up around here. Didn't realise your eyes had been wandering, killer. Ooh, bouncy."

(· [Scramble up the stairs as fast as you can.])

The Narrator: "A hot flush coming to your frozen face, you begin pulling yourself up, one stair at a time. It is incredibly heavy and slow-going, but you're making progress."

The Princess: "Hehehehe, looks like I've found a way to motivate you, killer. So, I'm just gonna keep snooping around your memories and imagination and see what else I can find, and if you wanna get me out of your head you'd best move fast."

Hero: "Do you really have to? You could go play with the reflexes again."

The Princess: "But this is so much more fun and motivating, little shard. Plus, you're not feeling quite so cold any more, are you?"

Cold: "She's not wrong. If her cold is impeding us, this is a pretty effective solution."

Hero: "Whose side are you on?"

Cold: "It's amusing how you think there's 'sides' just because the Princess is making you feel embarrassed about feelings we shouldn't be bothering with in the first place. This is truly a problem of our own making. Well, of yours, anyway."

The Princess: "Oh my, killer, I gotta say you did a pretty good job with that scar, aesthetically speaking. Nice accessory to the girls, but I guess I don't need to tell you. If I'd known my killer was so sweet on me, I might've tried some different tactics to get you to let me out."

Hero: (Embarassed groan) "Can't believe you seemed so sweet and innocent before."

The Princess: "Oh, I can be innocent. It's fun to pretend sometimes. Don't sweat it, I'd say you have a dirty mind, but if you were looking at mine I'm sure it wouldn't be any better. You got a nice chest too, y'know, wouldn't mind burying my face in all that fluff some time. Now what's this thought here? Looks like we're on to a different topic. Didn't realise I was giving you that good a view of my legs while floating around. Anyway, at least we'll be in good company if I can't leave here, eh?"

Hero: "That's a horrifying thought."

The Princess: "Aww, don't you enjoy me being inside you?"

Hero: "You really need to think about how you phrase things."

Cold: "You say that as if she said it by accident. She didn't."

The Princess: "Ohh, what's this now? Is that what I looked like when I was about to possess you? Gotta say I make a real cute ghost. But- ah, I see. In this fantasy, I'm not possessing you when I get closer. Oh, that's an odd feeling. Never pictured kissing myself before. Oh. Oh, wow, killer, that looks real fun. Hehehe, looks like I found a good one, there's a lot more runtime still to go aaaand judging from the beginning a lot more action too… But maybe I'll just give you a little bit of time to get out of the cabin before I look at the rest of it. You've made it up the stairs, it's not far now."

The Narrator: "As you drag yourself up the final stair, into the cabin, you remember there's much, much worse to the Princess than being a dirty-minded invasive tease. If you cross that room and leave, she will end the world. But the pristine blade is still lying on the table where you left it. Drag yourself to it, take the blade, and end this."

Cold: "Now isn't that an idea? We've done it before, and this time we'd get a two-for-one. How very efficient."

Hero: "We're not slaying her, no matter how embarrassing it is to have her rooting around in our imagination. We made that mistake once before and we regretted it in more ways than one."

Cold: "I don't care either way. But since you want to get all melodramatic, wouldn't it be awfully romantic to die together?"

The Princess: "I trust you, killer. I know you'll do the right thing. I know I'm giving you a hard time but it's actually… really flattering to see you think of me this way. It's… nice to be wanted. And you've, well, you've surprised me. Didn't think I'd start getting sweet on my killer, but here we are."

The Narrator: "Remember, the Princess's charms are all part of the manipulation. You were doing so well before. Just finish the job and the whole world will thank you."

(· "Let's get you out of here… And hopefully out of my mind." [Crawl to the door])

The Princess: "Thank you, ki- Thank you. And hey, surely it's not all bad having me in here? Dunno if you've realised, but our lips are in the exact same place right now. You know we've basically been kissing the whole time, right?"

Hero: "Woah. That's… Actually we can kind of feel her there, right? Like, her presence, all frosty but… soft?"

Cold: "It's simply possession, you can get all sentimental about it or stick to the facts. It doesn't matter."

The Princess: "Hehehe, and you know, that's not the only parts of us overlapping right now. There's something else further down I can think of that's become one…"

Hero: "Uh, buh- Hm, you know, um- Well, um, I mean- So, like, uh-" (Cough) "Haha, well… Y'see-"

Cold: "It's quite interesting to have you in here flustering them. Their weaknesses are so easily exploited."

The Princess: "You know, our hearts! Our hearts are beating as one, and with every heartbeat I'm telling you I know you can do it, that you're gonna bring me home. We're almost there, and it's all thanks to you."

The Narrator: "Your talon clutches the door handle, and you pause for a moment. Please tell me you're reconsidering your course of destruction. Surely you are more rational than to let the world be destroyed in exchange for a bit of flirting. But no, you turn the handle and step outside. We're doomed."

The Princess: "You did it! You did it, I knew I could count on you, thank you so much! Let's see if I can pop out. It's been fun sharing a body with you, but I'd like to look you in the eyes again…"

The Narrator: "Once more you feel a tender touch caress your elbow and a sting in your left buttock before there's a sharp pulling on your entire body, the Princess slowly ripping herself out. The intense cold and stiffness finally leave with her as a big, grateful smile and two shimmering, dark-rimmed eyes appear in front of you."

The Princess: "Look at that, I'm outside! Thank you so much, can't believe I'm saying this, but you actually made it up to me. Thank you for giving me a second chance, I know how hard it was to get me up here."

(· "You're the one who gave me a second chance.")

The Narrator: "The Princess's ghostly hug is still very cold, but after the ordeal you just went through it really doesn't feel that bad. You can quite easily bring yourself to focus on the pleasant sides of her touch."

Hero: "She feels like soft fresh snow."

The Narrator: "The Princess stares into your eyes with that same grin and raised eyebrow as before. Except she doesn't see it through, blinks, looks away nervously."

The Princess: "So, there's something I'd like to give you, uh, not like as a reward but just because I do kind of like you and look, I know sometimes fantasies can just run wild and don't mean anything but um, y'know, if you wanted to…"

Hero: "Hang on, did she lose her nerve now that she actually has to look us in the eye about it? After all that teasing of hers?"

Cold: "What a silly reason to get nervous. But it's obvious what she wants, isn't it?"

(· [Kiss the Princess])

The Narrator: "Is it not enough for you to doom the world without kissing its destroyer on its grave? What has the world ever done to deserve this? But you're not listening to me, are you? You touch the Princess's pale cheek with your hand, and for a moment it feels unreal, your hand beginning to pass through like she's smoke. But then she solidifies a bit more, and lets herself be pushed to face you. She smiles a shy smile before closing the distance. Her lips are cold and dry, yet their touch is surprisingly pleasant, not unlike ice cream. She embraces you at least as tightly as when she possessed you, but her frosty touch stays on the outside of your body, soft and cold like a blanket just turned over on a winter's night. It is icy bliss. Her fluffy hair settles on your shoulders like snow on a mountainside. Her hands wander your body, petting far more than just your elbow, their gentle caress setting your feathers on end and making you shiver for a variety of reasons. When you finally part, you tuck her cloudy hair behind her ear. She flashes you a mischievous grin."

The Princess: "Ahh, you know, I think I like that even better than all the fun I had while possessing you. But speaking of, I never did get to see past the beginning of that one fantasy. You wouldn't mind showing me what happens next, would you?"