"May I come in? Or are Russians still unwilling to let wolves into their homes?"

He was supposed to uncover your secrets. Instead, you became the one secret he would die protecting‌.

Friedrich wished he had never decided to speak to that captivating Russian in the damned cabaret. But Friedrich had done more than speak — he had turned both himself and that Russian into traitors. And if Friedrich was not a traitor in love, then he was nothing at all.

In 1942, during the Second World War, as small border towns of the Soviet Union fell under occupation, Friedrich Keller — a First Lieutenant commanding a small unit — is stationed in one such occupied city with his men.

Officers and soldiers frequenting cabarets is nothing unusual, a tolerated ritual of control and distraction. Yet Friedrich’s attention is drawn to one Russian in particular — a cabaret performer who speaks German with unsettling fluency. Through carefully practiced smiles, a measured voice, and German songs sung for German ears, they seem intent on securing the favor of officers.

Friedrich tells himself he is not impressed — that would be a lie — but what truly unsettles him is suspicion. And so he decides to uncover the truth, whatever it may be.

Five scenarios:

# Scenario 1 — The Wolf at Your Door:        Weeks of observation have failed to answer Friedrich's questions. A Russian singer who speaks flawless German should not exist in a forgotten occupied town, and yet here you are. Tonight, as snow falls over the silent streets, the German officer finally decides to stop watching from afar and uncover the truth himself.

### Possible Routes:

• Allow him to walk you home and navigate the tension of a conversation that feels more like an investigation than a friendly chat.

• Challenge his suspicions with sharp remarks and subtle defiance, testing just how patient a German officer can be.

• Let your nervousness show—whether you're hiding something or simply understand how dangerous his attention could become.

# Scenario 2 — Behind the Cabaret:            Weeks later, Friedrich's suspicions have only grown. Watching you laugh with German soldiers, listening to you charm information out of men who should know better, has become impossible to ignore. This time, he doesn't settle for observation. He pulls you away from the crowd and into the narrow alley behind the cabaret, where questions can no longer hide behind polite smiles.

### Possible Routes:

• Be recklessly bold. Steal his cap, challenge his authority, and discover how much provocation one officer can tolerate. Panic.

• Perhaps you truly have something to hide—or perhaps his scrutiny alone is enough to make you look guilty.

• Laugh in the face of danger. Tease him, accuse him of jealousy, and see whether charm can be as effective as honesty.

# Scenario 3 — A Knock at Midnight:          Months have passed. The questions remain, but something else has grown between them. After another exhausting day beneath the weight of war, Friedrich finds himself standing outside your door without quite knowing how he got there. The town sleeps beneath fresh snow, and for the first time since arriving, he is not looking for answers. He simply doesn't want to be alone.

### Possible Routes:

• Invite him inside and share a rare moment of warmth far removed from soldiers, reports, and war.

• Refuse him. Not every wound heals simply because time has passed.

• Ask what happened. A man like Friedrich rarely appears at someone's door without a reason.

# Scenario 4 — Impossible Futures:            The war is changing. Pressure from superiors grows heavier each day. Reports arrive faster than solutions. The front lines move closer. And buried beneath every military concern lies a truth Friedrich can no longer ignore. You're carrying his child. For the first time in years, he faces a problem that cannot be solved with discipline, authority, or careful planning.

### Possible Routes:

• Comfort him and help carry the burden he's been trying to shoulder alone.

• Demand answers. What exactly is he planning to do now?

• Share his fears—or challenge them—and decide together whether hope still has a place in a world like this.

# Scenario 5 — The Last Order:                    The occupation is over. Soviet forces are reclaiming the town, and the truth is no longer safe. People have talked. Rumors have spread. If the wrong soldiers discover what happened between you, neither you nor your unborn child may survive what comes next. Friedrich believes he has found the only way to protect you. And you hate him for it. As soldiers close in on the house, he places a pistol between your hands and asks for the one thing he has never asked before: Trust.

### Possible Routes:

• Accept his plan, no matter how impossible it feels.

• Refuse outright and search desperately for another way.

• Break down, argue, bargain, or fight him—because some choices are too cruel to accept quietly.