Wolf, please, do not flatten your ears before you even consider hearing us out. I understand why you may be upset by-

You UNDERSTAND? Do you, Dollmaker? Tell me how you [i]understand[/i] what it's like to lose your only child! Don't you dare compare your Kith to my DAUGHTER, my own flesh and blood, the only child I ever bore my husband! Do you [i]understand[/i] what I sacrificed to bring her into this world? Do you [i]understand[/i] what I lost when she died? Do you [i]understand[/i] what the wretched, good-for-nothing Hero took from-

I [i]DO[/i] UNDERSTAND! ... Wolf... You are not the only one who has suffered at this loss. And while our pain may not be the same, it still hurts us both to this day. Damsel was your only child; never would I compare that to my bond with Eludance - no mother should ever have to mourn her baby. But Witch already has to mourn a mother he can't remember. This isn't about [i]us[/i], it is about him. It's about doing what is right by Witch, [i]for[/i] Damsel. This isn't what she wanted, for any of us. This isn't what she wanted for her baby.

Witch isn't a little kid anymore, you know. He's grown up a lot since everything that happened with the Stage being freed. And he's the one that wrote this script, so like, don't you think that [i]maybe[/i] he already has an idea of what's really going on? He's sharper than peppermint, Wolf! Even if he hasn't fully come to terms with it, he's obviously got some idea of who Hero is supposed to be to him. And something about his words might actually be reaching Hero! Mawnite came and told me what happened when they brought over the costumes to the castle. This is a chance for them both to really see the other for who they are!

[i]Huff![/i] And when all those thoughts and feelings leak out of Hero's ears again, then what?! What is my grandson left with?! The same damn thing we all suffer? The knowledge that he's lost not just one parent, but two!? How can you even think to ask me such a thing!? What is the point?! To hurt him, on the [i]off chance[/i] it helps Hero? BAH! Hero can suffer for all I care! Witch doesn't deserve to suffer with him. He's a sensitive boy, and if he knew the truth - that his father was cursed to forget him with every unending death? He'd cry candy tears until there was a river of molasses so thick he'd have nothing left in him!

He'll always have you. He'll have Castwick, too. He'll have all of us here on the Stage. And he'll still have all his Traveler friends and those he's bonded with in the other remnants. He'll even have at least the memory of the Hero he already knows and cares about now, no matter what may become of Hero in the future. But he'll also have the knowledge he needs to truly and finally mourn... to move on, if he must. Now, while he is still young and his heart is still malleable. While he still has you here to love and support him through it.

Look, I was just a gingerbread brat myself when the Hero's curse happened, but I've been up in that same tower where Damsel was kept. I've got a pretty good idea about the sort of Stage she was looking down on every night. She risked [i]everything[/i] for the chance to be with the man she loved, to have a family with him. Witch won't stay a child forever. He's going to find out someday about all of this one way or another. And if you leave it like this, keeping him in the dark because you're afraid he won't like what he sees, all that means is that when he finds out, he's going to realize all the years and opportunities he's missed out on because of [i]you[/i]. He deserves the chance to make his own choice if this is something he wants to pursue further. The Witch is one of the oldest roles on the Stage; there has always been one in some iteration or another. Witch's magic is powerful, even at his age. And that, mixed with his earnest emotions and bond with Hero, is the best chance we have to either bring Hero back to his senses... or finally let him go. It's not fair to anyone involved to just keep punishing him forever. Why should we let the Narrator continue hurting so many people through Hero? Why does he still get to control our memories of Damsel like this?

...Do you really think Witch already knows? Damn it, I knew I couldn't trust the Travelers to keep their mouths shut... or the ghosties and ghoulies.... or the Kith... or the possessed dolls... [i]*sigh*[/i] [size=10]It was always just a matter of time...[/size] I just thought... he could have a few more years without being hurt like this. He's had so little time free from the curse of the Narrator to truly be happy! I just... ... ...I will agree to this [i]once[/i]. If playing out this performance does not work, does not spark something in that unsightly corpse of a man, that is it. But I'll go along with this reckless plan just this once... for the sake of my daughter's memory. After that I will not hear another word on the matter. Are we clear?

Thank you, Wolf. This may hurt, but I truly do believe it is what Damsel would want for Witch. And perhaps this is also what Witch wants as well. Even if he doesn't know who Hero truly is to him, he is already longing for the shadow that Hero left behind in his life. Witch wrote these words; he put into [i]script[/i] his thoughts and feelings. Let us honor that and see what comes of it...

Witch will always have us Wolf... Thank you for this chance. No matter what happens, I'll never stop keeping Witch safe. I tried to hide things from him too, but he is strong, like his mother and grandmother, he can handle this, I believe in him with all my heart.