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> There was a sign on the door. It read "Warning! Deathworlder story time! Humans inside!" Faintly, through the budget soundproofing, a cogniscent with good hearing could make out the wailing cry of an alarmed human larva. One with even better hearing would be able to make out the voices of other young humans, saying "It's OK, it's OK, it's not real, it's just a story. Right, Miss? It's not real, right???" -- Anon Guest

Fairy tales do not exist to tell children that monsters are real, they say. Fairy tales exist to tell children that monsters can be _defeated_. That acknowledged, there are some who are unprepared for the finer details. Precautions are always taken, by necessity. Warnings for the literate. Pictograms for the less literate. Hazard stripes[1] for those who fail to pay attention to words or pictures.

Those who feel brave enough, prepared enough, or simply curious enough are welcomed, warned, and permitted to sit with the others. Most of them are under five. A few are a little _too_ enthusiastic for their own good. The storyteller is on an elevated seat, gesturing as the words flow from mouth to listening ears. Offensensitivity shields stand between the room and an observer just outside the door. Unfortunately for Dyw, that shielding was the budget variety that was not as effective as it should have been.

"Strength was most important for the leader of the peoples, even though it had taken him many years to reach the seat of power and strength was fading from his limbs," said the storyteller. "So it came to be that the appearance of strength was as important as actually being strong. They used chemicals to put colour in his hair, and more chemicals to add colour to his face. They used clever speakers to interpret his ramblings, and always, he had to maintain a show of moral strength. That meant beating down on those judged as immoral, and enacting harsh punishments for the unlucky--" they stopped as one of the children burst into tears.

Dyw peeked into the room. One of the smaller Human larva was howling, tears pouring from their eyes. The storyteller, paused in their telling, offered open arms and comfort. There was always one who possessed more sensitivity about such things.

Two older children were already helping, with appropriate permission of course. Dyw, a Companion in training, edged past the Offensensitivity shields just in case they were needed. Firstly, it was much louder inside the storytelling space.

"It's okay, it's green," said one of the older sprites. "It's just a story. There's no way any of that could be real. Right miss?"

The storyteller winced. "It's not real any more. In most places," she allowed. "We are safe from the cardboard strongmen, because we have laws and protective agencies that prevent any such thing happening, any more. You don't have to worry about the bad men."

The children picked up on the careful selection of words. They were old enough to know what selective truth was _and_ notice it when it happened. "You didn't say it isn't real at all," worried one of the larva in the middle of the group.

Sigh. "Sadly, Greater Deregulations exist. They perpetuate the sins of their forebears without ever once thinking about how it all fails to work. Their strength is not real strength, but they admire it all the same. We cannot change their minds. We cannot teach them. We can only try to rescue those who are hoping for escape."

The child who had been upset wiped their face on their arm. "Like my gram'ma?" they quavered.

"Like your gram'ma. One day, everyone will learn better ways of solving problems. One day, everyone will start from a better place. Until then, we must all learn how it went wrong so we can spot when it's about to go wrong, and then act to stop it."

Dyw held back from comment, picking a guarding stance in a corner so they could listen to the rest of the story.

[1] Interestingly, the "I am danger" warnings throughout the known universe have evolved from hazardous creatures and, therefore, evolved from nature in an amazing case of convergent evolution. Yellow and black are good starting points. So too is a stripe of red. In extreme cases, a stripe of nauseatingly bright green is also necessary, so those who can see into the UV spectra are adequately repulsed.

[Image <a href="https://www.canstockphoto.com">(c) Can Stock Photo / korzeniewskidan</a>]

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