"Political captivity is generally recognized, whereas the domestic captivity of women and children is often unseen. A man's home is his castle; rarely is it understood that the same home may be a prison for women and children."

-Trauma and Recovery: The Aftermath of Violence - from Domestic Abuse to Political Terror (by Judith Herman, M.D.)

WARNING: The below contains spoilers. Don't read if you haven't finished the story or if you enjoy drawing your own conclusions.

RESOURCES & NOTES

Here's a short list of resources used in "Eulogy":

The Spanish Lords are a fictional gang from Grand Theft Auto and are themselves based on the real life Latin Kings.

The (unseen) eye-eating monster is the Corinthian from Neil Gaiman's Sandman graphic novel. Jareth's comment about the nightmare being a dark mirror for humanity is a direct quote from that series.

Harry's discussion about the nature of good and evil comes in part from repeat readings of "The Gift of Fear" (by Gavin de Becker). Should be required reading for its deep analysis on how to predict violent behavior.

While writing, I listened to the Cure and NIN. It helped set the mood.

Q + A

I've had some thoughtful conversations with readers while this story ran, so I'm sharing them here for anyone who wants more to read. I've condensed some of the following questions since a few of them have been asked more than once.

Q. When does this story take place?

Around 2023, if you figure Toby's about 38 and he was born in 1985 or thereabouts. That means this story takes place in the not too distant future.

I chose this setting for "Eulogy" because the menace of our modern era fit the tone perfectly. In a sense, the Goblin King is representative of the new world order after 9/11. He's not unlike the terrorists and warlords Toby fought overseas.

Q. What is Sarah to the Goblin King? Why does he want her so much?

Jareth views Sarah as a possession. One reader referred to Sarah as his "wife", which I thought was interesting since that would require Jareth viewing her as a person. Sociopaths aren't capable of love, and the Goblin King is certainly a sociopath (and a sadist). I think Sarah was the first person to ever come so close to defeating him, which annoys and delights him in equal measure.

In addition to Jareth's power, Sarah appears to share some of his sociopathic traits.

Q. Is Jareth hitting on Toby?

Jareth isn't flirting to convey sexual interest. He simply likes to play with his food and assert his dominance. It confuses and unnerves Toby, and the more unbalanced Toby is, the easier it is for Jareth to reach his goals.

Q. Why doesn't anyone in this story see Jareth for what he is?

A true answer: magic.

A truer answer: monsters exist all around us, but we almost never see them unless we know what to look for. Ted Bundy was VERY charming. It's how he got his victims and evaded capture for so long.

Q. What's wrong with Sarah's eyes?

The eyes are the window to the soul. Sarah has lost both.

Q. Why's Toby's train of thought so hard to follow? He sure bounces around a lot.

Toby does bounce around a lot, especially when he's talking about something emotional. The storytelling becomes increasingly erratic at the end when he and Sarah are trying to escape Jareth by literally fleeing through Toby's memories, with scenes jumping from one to another in quick succession. If it feels dizzying to read it, imagine writing it.

The lack of focus and the constant switch in the narrative was my attempt at showing what it's like to live with trauma. You often feel as if you're existing in multiple levels of reality at once, with innocuous everyday things triggering the memory of a traumatic event. You exist in the world but you're not fully present in it. The past isn't gone, you're constantly reliving it.

Nobody's ever asked this, but I envision Toby and Cassie played by Josh Hartnett and Rutina Wesley, respectively, and Lupita Nyong'o as Abimana. Harry evolved into Tommy Flanagan in my head as I wrote him (if Flanagan could pull off a New York accent).

Jareth would be played by David Bowie, of course, but Bowie from his menacing Thin White Duke phase.