Venice: A banshee

It’s useful for us when a monster reskins itself. This is basically the origin story for a banshee-like creature, but found in Venice. We can just shift the stats across and change the appearance. It also describes an instance of Venetian love magic, which is useful to us.

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It was in the dogado of Memo that seven unmarried sisters—a prodigious number of spinsters as Venice society went—lived together in their own house opposite the Ponte della IMaravigie just below the Palazzo Bembo. Six were plain and one was fair, the youngest — and their spinsterhood was regarded with suspicion.

One day there chanced along the Rivo di San Trovaso a gondolier who had just gained laurels at the regatta. Something constrained the stalwart youth to linger by the iron-grilled window of the spinsters* home, but strange sensations pervaded his whole anatomy so that he became weak and incapable of movement. His companions chided him and threw the name of the least prepossessing of the sextette, Dulcina, in his teeth, and they said he was bewitched! No face was shown at the lattice, and no sound issued from the darkened room, still poor Giovanni was rooted to the spot. At last with a fierce effort he threw off the enchantment, if such it was, and determined to unfathom the mystery, and if the sisters were witches to out upon them!

Good Friday came round and Giovanni sought once more the mysterious dwelling. It was broad daylight and climbing up the grille he peered into a room, and there beheld not Dulcina, but Marina, the pretty sister, upon her knees before a crucifix! The athlete entered the room, and, as he did so, he beheld in the water of the canal the reflection of seven brilliant stars, —all paled, as he looked up, but one, —and that one flashed its beams upon the kneeling girl. She was astounded at his presence, and, when he straightly charged her with witchcraft, she weepingly replied: —’My art is not that of a witch, goodly youth, but of Cupid. I have prayed for thee, that Heaven would make thee strong and true. See, my star is shining o’er thy head— “

“”And my arms,” exclaimed the enraptured Giovanni, ”are around thy breast, witch or no witch thou hast gained me for thine own.” With that he held her tightly to his bosom, and, unresisted planted hot kisses upon her lips and with his finger removed her tears.

No doubt there was a wedding, and possibly the six plain bridesmaids were transformed into comely brides as well : but the story has no such ending. No, —alas, —brave Giovanni was stabbed in a night affray and beauteous Marina drowned herself in the canal ! Sometimes they say, an eerie sound comes round the corner of the bridge —people call it “Marina’s Wail.”

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