As a collaboration, this story has rules. They are rules that utilize the branching options of Protagonize's Addventure story type. First and foremost, every chapter absolutely must end in the middle of a sentence. However, that must not be the exact middle. Furthermore, it cannot be in the middle of a word unless that word is hyphenated. These sentence fragments are to be finished by three options offered in the branch titles. So, the final sentence in the chapter, be it dialogue or narration, is best suited to be of such a nature that its finishing options send the story off in a variety of unique directions.

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            The moon was full in a sky that was polluted by no great city lights. Far from civilization, it was bright enough to read a book outside in the middle of the night.

            And at a quiet little cottage in the woods, there was a woman doing just that. She walked up the path, beneath a mixed forest that threatened to overshadow her reading.

            An owl hooted, and bats flew overhead, between the trees on either side.

            This is quaint, she thought. He's probably sleeping, though.

            A mosquito buzzed past her, and she slapped it against her shoulder. And step by step, she neared the cottage. Black leather boots left deep prints in the dirt, and creaked against the stairs of the porch.

            Her left hand knocked softly upon the door. The other held her book, which she kept reading.

            And when the door swung open, a young man stood in the doorway, savouring the breeze of the night. He smiled at her without parting his lips, and said, "I love you, --"

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