⋆.˚⋆✮⋆˙⋆ Every Show has an Ending  .˚⋆✮⋆˙

On the evening of Firstide 3, fireworks could be seen rising over the outskirts of the Spire's Fairgrounds. They'd pop and fizzle for hours on end, the sound of laughter slowly turning into tears... Then would come a quiet that lasted till morning, a quiet that seems to carry with it a message: The Midnight Circus is Gone. 

Following the death of Harrison Bellefuelle, a notice would be posted by Ser Maliketh detailing his thanks to those who were present... But little word is spoken of those who sought to stand with the Man with the Black Mark. A quiet mistrust brews in the spire, Harrison's death bringing with it mixed emotions for many present. There is both mourning and celebration to be had. 

The Midnight Circus was, in many ways, a beautiful disaster: it was a breeding ground for forces both good and evil. While Harrison Bellefuelle and his supporters may go down in infamy, so too has good managed to crawl through and persevere in spite of the terror set upon the world by Terryn Bellefuelle. The Midnight Circus is a violent wound upon the world, the tragedies suffered by both members of and victims of the Circus are countless and ever-expansive: the wound may scar, but it shall also, finally, heal. 

The ripple effects of the Midnight Circus' presence will have untold consequences upon the future of the Spire, but as of now: the curtains have been closed... The rain begins to part, a peculiar tree will begin to grow where the Midnight Circus Big Top once stood... 

OOC... WE GOT A LOT TO COVER!

Hey. Where the fuck do I even begin?

The Midnight Circus was my first eventline in Avalore and needless to say when I started I was in way over my head: not even a staff DM yet I had managed to cultivate one of the most populated eventlines in active rotation. Needless to say, this was stressful: there were times where I was beyond overwhelmed, the heavy demand of players was hard to curb and I'd come to realize, slowly but surely, that I would sadly not be able to satisfy everyone's demand on my own... So I have some people to thank personally!

SPECIAL THANKS TO:

Caitiebug - For helping me exponentially during the first half of the Midnight Circus and helping me get my footing on the server! Caitie personally helped run a Carnie event for arc 2 and was responsible for being able to assist me in reaching some more members who had been interested but couldn't get a shot at the eventline under my personal busy schedule. Thank you so much for the support Caitie, it means the world to me. 

Sol - For helping with the Coronis Kidnapping arc exponentially and assistance throughout as a close friend and confidant throughout the process of writing this arc. Additionally was a trackpad WARRIOR and helped me with the final build site, I could not have done this arc without Sol's support.

Delta - For helping with the finale build site and overall emotional support throughout this eventline! Delta is responsible for the FANTASTIC build site we used for the finale: the coordinates to the creative build will be posted publicly soon so people can visit the finale arena! Delta was an absolute champion for helping me pull together the Big Top at the full on 11th hour of this eventline. Thank you so much for all the effort you put in to helping me achieve my vision!

Yeehawboot - My #2 throughout the eventline, Yeehaw's supporting roles as both Dorian and Cavaliere were essential in making the circus arc possible. Having acted as my partner in crime and secondary DM of the Midnight Circus Eventline, Yeehaw put in so much effort into helping me plan and achieve many events throughout the campaign. Yeehaw was the reason I got the confidence to pursue this eventline in the first place, so all of this and I mean ALL OF THIS is thanks to him. Give your cowboy a salute my good fellers. 

RopeFish - Having been a major help in Harrison's plotline due to the interference of the Waking One, Rope has been a constant supporter of the Circus and a huge inspiration to me as a DM. Rope and I worked together on a lot of the latter half arcs of Nigredo and Albedo and their crossover with their Waking One arc has given the Midnight Circus a great way to continue its legacy forward. Thank you so much for working with me and I can't wait to work with you further in the future!

Pyrias - Pyrias went ABOVE AND BEYOND for me during the Midnight Circus arc. Between setting up the Undercity fairgrounds to letting the Midnight Circus' presence work at the Fair event, Pyri has been behind the scenes doing absolutely crucial work for this eventline's progression. Meriel's involvement in both Harrison's development as well as in the rehabilitation of many of the Carnie characters and, of course, handling the government side of this arc has been so crucial in raising the stakes. Thank you so much for all of your involvement and please continue to have an amazing break!

Kiwibird - The #1 supporter in me NOT BURNING OUT! Kiki joined Avalore as a way to help me with the circus as Kitty and was with me through thick and thin. Kiki's always been my #1 goon and through efforts as both Rico and Kitty deserves props as by far the most involved player in the Midnight Circus. Thank you so much for all of your effort and for making sure that I stay sane throughout this process, it could not have been done without you. 

Electric - An absolute trooper from day 1 of this eventline, Electric has been supporting the Midnight Circus since before I was a staff DM and has been an absolute rock throughout the process of this. I appreciate your patience in waiting for the finale and all of the additional effort put into both checking on me throughout the eventline's initial pop-off as well as the effort put into all of your write-ups and plannings. From Terryn's death to Harrison's, Maliketh has been an absolute star player throughout this event and its all thanks to Electric's commitment and care to seeing this through to the end. Thank you. 

THANK YOU FOR PARTICIPATING!

I want to give a HUGE shoutout to everyone who participated in this arc! there are so many people to name, but I'm going to call special attention to EemaTidesong, AnubisWizard and Lumu for all their above and beyond participation throughout each stage of the arc.

Thank you to EVERYONE who organized a Hunting Party to fight Harrison and EVERYONE who worked to take down the Man with the Black Mark:

Electricwisekid as Maliketh, Kiiwiibird as Kitty, Captain_Cynical as Crow, Dinomono as Bracchus, Moosh as Yarrow, Alexuhhhh as Lucian, Stqted as Sigurd, Anubis as Icarus, Eematidesong as Elijah, Elias as Renna, Merrylights as Meridy, Xeno as Hazel, Bliinx as Melody and Delta as Andromeda! 

Thanks to everyone who helped rescue carnies and assist in Kidnapping Rescue Efforts for both Caleb and Coronis!

Bliinx as Raven, PEACHGORE_ as Misty, BrunoPhil as Rasmus, Crea as Serra, Abam as Anwar, Nerdocalypse as Kyrus and Pyrias as Meriel 

Thank you to everyone who acted as a henchman to Harrison during his tenure! 

Catmerization as Perilla, PEACHGORE_ as Iseva, Kiiwiibird as Rico, Delta as Cosimo, Sr. Dimentio as Joka, Ropefish as Leona and Drach as Emyr!

THANK YOU TO EVERYONE WHO PARTICIPATED IN THIS EVENTLINE, YOUR INTEREST AND CARE MEANS THE WORLD TO ME AND I CANNOT THANK YOU ALL ENOUGH FOR THE WARM WELCOME TO DMING IN AVALORE!

Don't worry. There'll be more Dean Content to come... But...

A NOTE FROM THE DM:

I'm taking a break from DMing for a spell. The Midnight Circus has been as fun as it has been taxing and I think I've run upwards of 100 NPC encounters/Events in the last 4 months. That's a lot. As someone with a family, job and life to live I've decided I'm unable to run anything else on this scale solo ever again. Sadly, the scale of the Midnight Circus as a solo project is something I believe is not replaceable. It was ungodly stressful and strenuous at points, with me waking up to over 100 DMs and Messages during the peak of its popularity. I do wish to apologize for the ending arc being as bottlenecked as it was, unfortunately I did not have the resources to match the desires of everyone.

I'd like to formally apologize to anyone who feels like they missed out, I hope to do everything I can in the future to give more chances to RP with me and be involved in my eventlines, but I can't reasonably get to everybody. I'm one man, a man who loves to tell stories. I hope everyone enjoyed what I had to say with this eventline and I hope you will all give me the grace I need as I take a small break. 

I am absolutely honored and humbled to have performed such a high-scale eventline as my first, and I truly do hope everyone who participated was able to get some good out of The Midnight Circus.

Thank you for dancing amidst the flame with me, Avalore. 

AND NOW: A COMPILATION OF MIDNIGHT CIRCUS MATERIAL...

The Full Midnight Circus Recap
By Dean

How to Kill Harrison: A Guide
By Electricwisekid, Kiiwiibird, Lumu

How to Kill Maliketh: A Guide
By Dean

Midnight Circus Interlude: Hymn of the Hanged Man
By Dean

The Rescue of Caleb Citranitas: Director's Cut
By Dean

The Death of Harrison Bellefuelle: Director's Cut
By Dean

⋆.˚⋆✮⋆˙⋆ And Now: The Curtain Closes on the Midnight Circus..  .˚⋆✮⋆˙