SBR 1.33: Total Eclipse of the Start

"'The Investigator shows her softer side, and her more abrasive one, and she and Sam put together a conclusion that has been long elusive...'"

Events of Note

 * Kitty talks about Sam’s childhood, how a house collapsed on him and he slept for six years.


 * Kitty and Sam find a secret message in Marie’s notes, and it burns away to reveal ashes in the shape of a rose in chains.

Summary
Sam begins the segment by welcoming Kitty onto the show. She speaks briefly about her time in the Impossible House, but concludes that it mostly just very disorientating. She moves on to talking about Madame Marie, immediately spitting facts such as: She wasn’t a very good mother. She remarks that many arcanists were suspicious of her and the radio show, and when she died, Sam became the new recipient of that negativity.

Kitty speculates about how the radio show might just be more than a spirit box broadcast, and mentions off hand that the show started after a house collapsed on top of Sam. Sam is, quite rightly, taken aback by this. Somewhat surprised that they don’t remember, Kitty tells Sam what happened that night, and how Sam stayed in the hospital for several months before coming back home. All in all, they were asleep for six years. Sam is distressed by this information and Kitty explains that it’s a painful memory to talk about for her.

The two of them talk more about the Impossible House, which apparently still stood despite having collapsed. When she started working as an Investigator for Marie, Kitty had spent a lot of time there. She states that the house always seemed to be shrinking away from you but changed about four years ago. Sam links this date to when the forums were set up. After that, the house seemed to invite you in, seeming more friendly. Kitty tells Sam about the time that Astrid the Janitor visited the house and threw a shoe through the window. The house spat it out three streets away, breaking a man’s nose.

At this point, Kitty shows Sam the notes that Marie gave her regarding the House. Some of the words were underlined, and the two of them sort the notes chronologically to get the message ‘The deal was brokered, save the boy or the end is nigh’. Kitty draws a summoning circle to try and reveal any further meaning behind the message, but her incantations fail. Despite Kitty’s scepticism, Sam tries one from the Little Book of Big Magic. It sets the notes on fire, leaving only ashes behind. The ashes are in the form of a rose wreathed in chains. Sam recognises the chains and shows Kitty the ‘Unrelenting’ card from the True Arcanist Tarot. She talks about how dangerously powerful T.A.T. are, and Sam mentions Oliver’s tattoo.

He awkwardly implies that he’s seen Oliver shirtless, and Kitty reprimands him for a lack of subtlety. Sam begins to talk about Oliver, but Kitty interrupts him, stating that the conversation would be better had ‘off-air’. Sam explains that they often feel better talking about things when the listeners are present, but concedes. They remind the listeners not to post in the thread about the Man in the Flat Cap, and bids them all a goodnight.

Characters Featured

 * Sam Enfield


 * Kitty Enfield


 * Anna Enfield (mentioned)


 * Madame Marie (mentioned)


 * Oliver Boleyn (mentioned)


 * The Flat Cap Man (mentioned)


 * Astrid the Janitor (mentioned)

Trivia

 * The title of this episode is a reference to the song ‘Total Eclipse of the Heart’ by Bonnie Tyler.