Chapter Text
Surely, things would calm down, especially after the events of the previous day. Normally, you have to wait out the day to find out, but Claire can just see it in her green dreams. Let's see what's on today's menu!
Agetha... is on the menu. They had their hands on the screen, yelling something.
The noise that her mind played... Morph? Pitch changes and volume vary.
Great, is Claire getting yelled at by Agetha again? What happened this time!?
The image in her mind changed
It was...
That woman she saw yesterday...
She looked down at Claire with a smug smile, holding a cigarette to her mouth. Claire felt the top of her head being patted, and as you can guess, the hand that dared to pat her was that of the woman she was looking up to.
The noises in her head had changed again, waving. Her vision seemed to be still on this woman, the noise almost trying to... Well, it sounds like someone is trying to twist a radio dial and tune it in, only that they're not good at it. With volume and pitch not correlating and the potential to wake up with a massive headach-
"Yo-//..."
Huh. Was that a word!?
"Good job, Cla-//..."
Claire's eyes shot open as she looked up at the ceiling; her little art, made of tape and paper foil, lay above. She blinked, adjusting to the light, and then blinked again. Her poor, sore eyes.
Walking through the town, rubbing her face. Claire tried to avert her gaze from the blinding sun. While trying to make sense of her dream.
"What was it about?" Claire asked herself, voicing her thoughts. "What importance does that woman have? Why was she there? I saw her yesterday." A presence walked alongside her as she spoke. "Maybe she can tell me what's going on. Or... What's going to happen today? Also, that was the first time I heard talking."
"Agetha was right, you do talk to yourself." The presence said.
"AH!" Claire flinched, her eyes landing on... Crazie. "Oh! You scared the living shit out of me."
"Sorry!" Crazie said, "I saw you and you looked stressed."
"I guess I am stressed," Claire admitted.
"Sounds like you're having trouble planning out your day." Crazie walked around Claire. "You can say you're in luck."
"What is it?"
"Today, me and Agetha are going somewhere, and I'm inviting you!" She said, standing in front of Claire.
"Crazie, it's Agetha and I."
"You're uninvited."
"No, no! Sorry! Keep going."
"If you're coming, let's go meet up with Agetha then. We're going somewhere special." Crazie suggested, walking ahead of Claire.
"Okay- wait-" Claire pauses.
"Wha-" Crazie stopped, leaning her entire body back to face Claire.
"I need to think," Claire said, looking away. Crazie straightened up.
This... is where Claire would meet that woman. Right?
If she goes with Crazie and Agetha, then... she'll probably meet that woman again.
Holy shit, Claire is using her brain?! What a surprise!
What does this mean to Claire? Not like anything bad happened in her dream... That doesn't mean nothing bad will happen, actually. She saw an angry woman once and soon found out it was Anova's MOM! Then, almost got her, Biscuit, and Anova in trouble.
This is kinda her chance to change things; simply not going with them would avoid meeting the woman. But... why avoid her? Claire is curious what would happen if she doesn't follow; that's probably it.
To think...
Regardless of meeting this woman or not, hardly anything changes... Right? For all she knows, this woman could-
"Claire, how slow is your thought process?" Crazie intervened.
"Sorry!" Claire spoke up.
"So you comin' or not?" Crazie asked.
"Yeah." Claire decided. "Let's go." She starts walking.
"Is Agetha always here?" Claire asked as they entered from the doorway.
"Yep! We always hang out here!" Crazie confirmed. "I mean, it's abandoned, so people aren't ever here."
"There are other places." They walked past the bookshelves.
"Sure, but Agetha have trouble controlling their power at times, so whenever a TV is a little too far, they can't get to it. So we stay close to the town with a place that hasn't closed."
"Oh! Yeah, the library is close to the... part of town hasn't been abandoned. That would explain... A bit about before." Claire said.
"Before what?"
"Agetha and I actually talked in the that store once. Where they found out I talk to myself."
"OH! That! Thought you were referring to something else."
The two stopped at a monitor.
"They'll show up, give them one second."
"I'm back!" Agetha said, jumping onto the monitor, the normal, colorful electricity appeared and quickly disappeared. "I got the time! It's like in an hour or two."
"Wait, what's in an hour or two?" Claire asked.
"You're coming?" Agetha asked. "If so, then we're seeing Vivian's show."
"Vivian?"
"Yeah, what? Didn't you know she had a show today?" Crazie asked, looking at Claire.
"I don't even know who Vivian is."
"What?" The two demons said, Crazie moving her head to look at Claire.
"Claire, you saw her; she comes here often. At that theater." Crazie said.
"Vivian who?!"
"Vivian!"
"VIVIAN WHO?!-"
"She is a magician!" Agetha brief. "You being new to town isn't a valid excuse here; she's known around the city as well."
"I wasn't going to use... that excuse." Claire hesitates; she wasn't sure what it was, but Agetha thinks her newness is an excuse. "Nor do I watch any magic shows."
"Well, you can watch your first magic show today!" Crazie said.
"Don't demons have magic by default? I feel like magic shows are so cool because of the mystery of how the actor did it."
"Yeah, that's a fair point, but there are cool lights!"
"COOL LIGHTS! HELL YEAH! But seriously, how does that matter?"
"Think about it, normal magic shows are different from demon shows. I mean, she can still use her power, as long as it's entertaining. I argue that there's more pressure on them since there high expectations. I mean, if that girl you hang out with walks up on stage with her fire powers, then she would need to-"
"Wait- what?"
"What?"
"What girl?
"That girl... I saw you with her once or twice. She has this brown dress."
"Anova? Wait, Anova is a fire demon!?"
"Yeah, er-... How did you not know that?"
"Uh... I don't know."
"Claire, I'm half convinced you don't go out." Agetha chimed in, spinning slowly on the screen. "Were you locked in or something?"
"Actually, a little, they didn't let us go out much," Claire admitted.
"Oh," Agetha said, a little shocked. As they stopped spinning.
"Well, anyway!" Crazie jumped in, "Let's get going to that show. We're going to be late at this point."
"Where are we going, anyway? Is it here?" Claire asked.
"It's in the city," Agetha answered.
Crazie raised her wrist to the monitor. She wore a... smartwatch? The usual colorful electricity showed up, and Agetha disappeared into the watch.
"Why?" Claire asked. "Why did you?-"
"Oh, remember how Agetha has trouble getting around. Yeah, we usually do this, so..."
"Oh. How did Agetha find out the time for Vivian's show? Wouldn't they have to go to the place of... said show."
"No? They looked it up, the reason why they were gone was cause this place... has bad internet. For some reason, going to the back somehow makes the internet run a little faster."
"Why do you guys hang out here with horrible internet?"
"Hm." Crazie looks up. "That's a good question." As she looks back at Claire. "One I'm not going to answer." She said, walking past Claire.
"Why!? You answered all my other questions, why not answer this one!" Claire complained.
A large amount of noise centered around one spot, near an establishment, with cars filling the parking lot. People stood around, doing whatever the hell they liked. Loads of people were entering this one building.
While the two kids had just entered the parking lot, they were approaching the side of the building, weirdly. Despite everyone else going to the front.
"Hey, why is everyone going in that way?" Claire asked.
"That's because they're losers," Crazie responded. "Losers who got tickets."
"Huh? Wait, you need a ticket?"
"Don't worry! I got one!" Crazie pulls out a yellow ticket with stains on it? "But me having one doesn't make me a loser... because I said so."
"Why does it look like that?"
"Oh... er-... It has a lot of character. It went through a lot of trauma of... Cheese, sandwiches with mustard and er... something green." Crazie shoves the ticket away.
"Sounds like the amount of trauma my poor old dresses had to endure."
"Yeah, see, you get it," Crazie said as she walked up to a door. "Agetha, it's your showtime."
Agetha exited from the smartwatch and into a nearby camera.
"Uhm, what are they doing?" Claire asked.
"Getting this door to open." Crazie looks back at Claire.
"And they're doing it through a camer-"
"Also disabling and deleting camera footage."
...
"Wow! That sounds... illegal."
"Don't worry about it."
"No, Crazie, I am actually really worried about this. I don't want to be somewhere I'm not supposed to be."
That's when the door unlocks, with the loudest click you've ever heard, exposing a golden hallway.
"Listen, Claire," Crazie looks away. "You can bail if you want. I'm not going to stand and let you waste Agetha and my time." Crazie said, walking ahead. "And I thought you were cool."
What? Claire, how are you almost always doing that? You always do... something... wrong.
"Hey, wait," Claire yells out, catching up to walk behind Crazie in the hallway. "Okay, maybe I overreacted. Sorry."
"Oh, that's fine!" Crazie smiled. "Come on, Vivian's show is starting soon."
The hallway was surprisingly empty, as no one was ever around. Crazie was checking her smartwatch, while Claire stared at the walls. There were several posters featuring different actors.
Claire knew none of them, or even heard of one. Yet, they were displayed as if she was supposed to know them.
That changed when she halted in her path and recognized someone. The pink-haired girl she had seen before. The one that was super tall, and had hair that would... give two bald people their own sets of hair.
She was here, with the words on the bottom, Vivian Vividglow. There she was, on this poster, showing all her glory. It didn't feel entirely right to go see a show that Claire wasn't interested in.
But again, what Crazie said... Whatever. She'll deal with it
That was when Agetha zipped into a nearby TV that mounted to the wall, with Crazie darting her head up. "There you are," Crazie said. "I thought you got lost."
"I actually did get lost." Agetha profess. "Luckily, I found this TV, and coincidentally, you guys were here."
Claire caught up, with Crazie searching around. "There!" Crazie said, hinting towards a clock. "It starts in like 40... ish... minutes."
Something hit her, not literally but... Crazie had bandages over her eyes...
"Wait, how can you tell what time it is!?" Claire asked.
"I'm not dumb, Claire!" Crazie defended.
"No! I mean, you have bandages over your eyes. How can you see!?"
"Oh... You had... an actual, valid question..."
"Oh boy, not another ramble," Agetha said. "Can you brief this one? I know how much you enjoy talking."
"You know me so well!" Crazie smiled. "Alright, Claire! To keep this short, you know what đêmvakasasa are?"
"What's a đêmvakasasa?!"
"No, it's pronounced đêmakabas-... no..."
"HUH!? IT PRONOUNCED WHAT!?"
"LEAVE ME ALONE! Usually, when people try to pronounce the name, they ALWAYS pronounce it wrong! So I was prepared to correct you, but since you pronounced it right, I instinctively got confused and gave you the wrong pronunciation!"
"HOW DOES ONE DO THAT!?"
"LEAVE ME ALONE!"
"Alright, fine! But what are đêmvakasasa?"
"It's what I am. Keep it short, đêmvakasasa is a type of night demon, to say I can see in the dark. But this is mostly used by my blindness. It allows me to see stuff I normally wouldn't."
"Really!?"
"Yeah, but it has its downside. Even though I know there's a wall right here." She kicked the wall next to her. "I can't tell you what color this wall is. Or, another example," She points toward the poster on the walls. "I have a hard time telling what's on paintings, pictures, and I even struggle with reading." Before looking up at the screen that Agetha is on.
"I also have a hard time telling what's on TVs."
"Oh, I guess it's only really there for you to... not smash your head in the nearest wall."
"You got that right! You know what's funny, though?"
"You? You're funny looking." Claire joked.
"I- hey!"
"Sorry!"
"That was so out of the blue!" Crazie laughed, "I didn't know you could make jokes like that?"
"I said the first thing that came to mind. I didn't think it would've been at your expense..." Claire tried to excuse herself. "I'll try to think before I speak."
"Claire, what? You didn't need to make this whole apology."
"She's going to pull out the ukulele next," Agetha said.
"Right... Sorry. Garth blocking out of my senses again."
"Say what now?"
"Oh, it's-"
"Grath? who's grath?" Agetha asked.
"No, it's not grath, it's Gar-." Claire's brief.
"What a grath?" Crazie asked, "You mean scarf?"
"Where do you see a scarf!?" Claire asked aloud.
"No way, a scarf?!" Agetha yelled out next.
"Okay! Alright! Let's just get moving." Crazie said, walking ahead.
Claire started walking, looking at her surroundings- WHOA! She stopped and saw herself in a long ass mirror, not sure why it was there, probably for aesthetic effect. Then she looked above and saw the sign. YOU COULD BECOME A SHOW ACTOR ONE DAY!
But uh, that wasn't the problem, the problem being Claire looks like shit... Her hair was wet, but also... dry!? She looked like she had fought a bear and cried after she lost. Fuck, if someone sees her like this. They call her names. Maybe kick her out!? She patted her head before looking up.
"Hey, you two!" She called out as Crazie looked back. "I'll be back, I need to go and uh... bathroom." Claire turned around and ran off.
Crazie watched as she ran off, confusion plastered on her face.
Claire was at the sink, with water running, and she had rinsed her face off. She looked down at her hands, with dirt still stained there, before going to turn off the water. Grabbing the nearby paper towel, and used it to dry off her face, then tossed it into the bin next to her. She looked in the mirror before her.
Bags under her eyes, hair looking like shit, and some stains on her clothing. It's an actual nightmare. She didn't look like this yesterday... did she?.. Fuck.
All this time she spent with friends, she didn't think about her situation, not once did that come to mind. She has to think about it later, though... maybe before she goes to sleep. Ugh, she doesn't want to even go out and go to that show; that would be so many people...
Crazie wouldn't like it if she bailed... But Claire doesn't want this... Maybe she should just do it... just suck it up. Even though they're not meant to be here. She sighed.
She finds herself exiting the bathroom, back inside the hallway, and it is still empty. For a place that holds a lot of people, it doesn't have much here. Well, not like she's been here before... It's a theatre, right? Not like the one back in Spring Hometown.
"Hey." A voice calls out.
"I DIDN'T BREAK IN, I SWEAR!" Claire yelled and turned around. Her eyes dart up to an... Adult... with the blue hair streak, two-tone hair, and a hat with the cross- oh fuck...
They had a cigarette in their mouth, with their eyebrow raised. "I didn't say you broke hic in... I was going to ask you to move. You're completely and awkwardly blocking the trash can." A female voice in a low tone was heard; her words slurred.
"Oh!" Claire looks down before shuffling to the side. "Sorry."
The stranger pressed the cigarette against the metal bin, rubbing it in before tossing it inside. Before they... well, she... turned her back against the wall.
"You're not supposed to be here... hic are you?" She asked, looking down at Claire.
"No..." Claire admits instantly, grabbing at her shirt collar. "A few friends invited me. They have a ticket, but apparently we decided to break in anyway!?"
"Sounds counterintuitive. Why have a ticket... hic and still break in?" The adult asked.
"I... I guess the ticket they had looked... bad. I don't... It was yellow, green... muddy?"
The adult goes into her pocket and shows a card. "Does it look like this?"
Claire examined the card before her; it was eye-blinding pink, with the words VIVIAN SHOW with the hat that she wears. With extra information underneath written in gold.
"No... It didn't look like that."
"That's probably the reason." The adult said, discarding the card in the bin. "Let me guess, you hic guys came to ruin a show?"
"Uhm... no, not that... I'm aware of... why?"
"This theater apparently has that hic problem. A lot of people, mostly teens, ruin stuff. I'm surprised they haven't hired more security."
"Uhm... We came here to see Vivian's show and-"
"Vivian? You came to see my sister's show?" The adult pushed herself off the wall.
"Oh?" Claire looks up, not meeting the eyes of this person. "Yeah. I don't know a whole lot about Vivian. I never saw you in Spring Hometown, then again, I'm still new to the town."
"Great, hic my sister still goes there? I stopped going there the day hic it was built. Waste of time, really."
"I like it... Not sure if you'll be mad at that." Claire looks away.
"Whoever you are... child... hic I couldn't care less."
"Claire, it's uh... Claire."
"Hm... Xister." There, the name, Xister. That's when that same woman's face lights up. "Hey, I have a hic idea."
"What?" Claire searched around.
"Come with me," Xister said, turning her back. "I'll tell you about it."
Claire REALLY grabbed her shirt collar now. Okay, Claire, seriously, you can't be doing this right now...
"I'm not sure." Claire hesitant.
Xister stops in her tracks, looking back at the kid, her face expresses annoyance. Then both eyebrows raised. "How about this?" She started, turning around, facing Claire. "I'll give you and your friends some free tickets, sound good?" Xister said.
That is... something she could use. Just means she can be in here without getting in trouble, plus her friends as well. "I'm really not supposed to be here..." Claire whispered.
"Exactly, I come here all the time, I can tell them you have a vip pass." As the adult looked ahead and murmured, "And have someone show be ruined..."
"What was that? An evil plan I somehow didn't hear?" Claire looks up.
"Nope, taxes."
"Damn."
The backroom was crowded, people running around, carrying these boxes, and discussing the schedule. The backroom itself was full of junk, black walls, with the lighting being blocked by boxes and curtains. It wasn't pitch black, but there were some dark spots. A door for a dressing room, integrated into the entrance, was custom-made in Platinum. On it was a Tophat with bunny ears, with a clock slapped in the middle. The door, a jar, from which you can see into the room.
Vivian tapped her hand against the desk, her face strained, and her eyes fixed on the mirror. Her hat rested on the desk beside her. Her opened makeup kit was untouched and scattered about. Her other hand held up her head under her chin. The dressing room was messy; the outfits were strewn about on hangers, some on the ground, and there were scattered papers. Crumbled or not, there was a lot.
She looked hard at herself, her eyes moving back and forth.
Vivian twitched hard, forcing herself to close her eyes as her hands moved from their original spots, before they went up to her face. She massaged her cheeks, then went up to push back her hair. She stopped at her horns, staring at the wooden surface. Her arms now support her entire head. The stare was tense.
She sighed. Putting her hands down formally, before staring at herself. The person on the other side stared back as she put on her game show for today.
Both Xister and Claire arrived at a large opening, with no people... surprisingly. The adult put her hands on one of the boxes and unclicked the latch. Claire, on the other hand, was too busy being distracted by the new environment around her. There were some... gold frames? Posters of different actors were just stored against the wall back here.
She didn't see any of those actors when walking down that hall... Then again, she doesn't come here, so mysterious it may be, shall an adventure await- yeah, no, Claire already has enough on her plate.
"Hey," the adult spoke, "I hic brought you back here so you can help me with this."
"Sorry, I was looking at the... weird yellow things," Claire explained.
"Weird yellow things-" Xister's eyes move to the gold frame prop against the wall. "Oh, that. Those are old magicians, they uh hic... didn't keep up with the audience."
"Didn't keep up with the audience?" Claire asked, walking beside Xister.
"Yeah, hic. Don't keep up with the people out there, you're fired."
"Sounds... Incredibly stressful."
"Yeah... VERY STRESSFUL! That's why we're going to help my sister." She pulls out some colorful cloth from the box. "We take all of this and go put it somewhere. Next, we empty those two boxes. You know, most people only have one box."
"Oh... Where are we putting them?"
"Just follow me. And carry as much as you can!" Xister commanded.
Claire went into the inventory, grabbed a lot of junk, struggled to hold most, and walked back slowly.
Agetha and Crazie were in the auditorium, and Crazie was in an empty spot in the back. She had her arm resting across her waist, with Agetha spinning on it.
Everyone seems to be waiting for the next actor to arrive.
"Where is Claire at?" Crazie asked finally.
"I don't know, thought she bailed."
Crazie raised her hand to expose her face to Agetha. "Probably, but she did seem nervous about coming in here."
"Why?"
"About how she shouldn't be somewhere. Something... Not sure." That's when Crazie got up and started walking out. "Since Vivian's show doesn't start for another minute. I'm going to see if she's fine."
"Do you... actually care for her?"
"Er, nothing wrong with checking on someone!"
"I know, but... She's alright and all, despite being human, but can you really trust her?"
"No, not yet? We just met her, but she hasn't done anything to us. If anything, it would make sense if she doesn't trust us."
Agetha stares at their friend, their face morphing, and afterwards, they look down. "You're being somewhat logical, I guess..."
"Well, since you have the power to go further than I can go, can you help?"
"Hmm!" Agetha groaned, turning around and flipping upside down.
"Come on, at least find her."
"Hmmmmm!" Agetha groaned again.
"Commeeee onnn!"
"HMMMM!"
"I'll play Tetris with you... even if there aren't two-player modes."
"Deal!" Agetha said, zipping out of the smartwatch. "I'll check the backs because she seems like she has a habit of going in places she doesn't belong!" They said lastly before disappearing.
"Yeah," Crazie said, more toward herself than any other. "She does..."
"THIS IS SUCH A PAIN!!" Claire whined.
"You're holding the smallest hic garbage possible..." Xister pointed out.
Claire was carrying a box without the lid, which was about her size. Rodes, magic wands, cards, a few masks, and rings poked out. In a room with abandoned items all around. As Xister held her fair share of rubbish.
"It's big to me! It's... blocking my view." Claire said, dropping her voice. The adult had her eyebrow raised, but ended up shrugging.
"Yeah, that's fair," Xister said. She emptied her baggage into a corner with several other props.
"Wow, you surprisingly didn't scold me," Claire mentioned
Xister looks up, her face nonchalant, as she takes a good second to think. "Child, hic why would I scold you for that?" She asked, looking down at the kid.
"Well..." Claire uttered, moving her eyes at the wall. "A lot of adults expect me to do something... when there's not a lot to do... and always tell me I know better... and sometimes... I think-" Claire stopped. Looking up at Xister.
She had that same nonchalant face, one that screams she doesn't actually care... And maybe Claire was foolish to start talking... at least, it was better than what most adults expressed to her. "Sorry... I get in over my head." Then, a finger poked her head.
"Listen, hic you seem like a pushover, so little advice. Don't be one! Argue back, otherwise, you'll grow up and be used hic by someone. You have feelings for a reason..." Xister advised, her hand rose as she removed the cigarette from her mouth, walking off to a garbage can.
"Yeah..." Claire says, looking down. "Yeah... I do..." Her face looks down at the set of cards, tossing and sliding. Most were visible... except one, just showing between the creaks. It showed a happy mask, moving off a face, but what it hid under was smudged off...
Claire only blinked twice...
She placed the box down on the floor, next to the other rumble.
"There we go! That should be it." Xister said, coming back.
Claire didn't respond, averting her gaze.
Xister had a small box in her hand as she grabbed a cigarette from her carton to light it. After a click to open her lighter, then a click to close it. A hand was placed on top of Claire's head.
The child looked up, her eyes landing on the little burning ashes.
"You shouldn't look so stressed. You did a good job, Claire."
...
So this is what the dream showed her... so little... for something... She guessed was mediocre.
"Anyways." Xister removed her hand and walked away. "You should get outta here if you hic kno-hic, Kn- hic- Hic- H- HIC- Cough. Jesus Christ..." As her figure disappeared into the hall.
"Wait!" Claire yelled out. "Wait, finish your mystery warning, strange lady! Xister!"
People flood an opening in the backroom, a familiar area the two were once in. Someone commanding a group of people, pointing at the crates, especially three. People listened and started setting these black blocks onto trolleys and rolling them out.
One man put a box on another and dropped it. The lid bounced, and he was momentarily confused. He grabbed the top, lifting it a little, to realize it wasn't latched shut. He closed the latches and pushed the trolley out.
Vivian was surrounded by people, some holding charts and lists, while others had makeup, which Vivian subsequently pushed away. Crates rolled out past her, propelled behind a curtain. A stage, empty, lit, but hidden beyond this red curtain. The staff has already moved her stuff out, and as instructed, none got the stuff out for her
Claire, on the other hand, finally came out. To only instantly duck behind some boxes when she saw people walking past. She watched as so many walked, blinking, searching around. As usual, she grabbed hold of her shirt collar.
A box with a silver lining was on a trolley, not one but two, as the number of people slowly decreased. They all fled in one direction, leaving the room somewhat bare and empty. Walking out, the kid was still searching for any more... adult figures.
Two waving hands were directed towards her... from a TV.
"Agetha," Claire said, realizing her friend was there. Or... friend, she guesses, yeah. "Why are you just waving your arms?" she asked, getting closer to the TV.
Agetha's mouth blabbered, their body moved a lot as they made several gestures. They're saying a thousand words... but also not? They seem like they were talking?...
Agetha floats back and down to the corner of the screen. Their finger aggressively gapped toward a speaker icon.
"That's weird, usually that icon has three lines in front of it... not just an X," Claire mentioned. Agetha nodded quickly. Pointing at the side of the TV. "Uh?"
Agetha visibly huffed before floating toward the screen, and they forcefully pressed their finger against the screen, right at Claire. They harshly, but also very hushed, tapped against the screen. Then they pointed over to Claire's side, with their mouth moving the entire time.
She looked over a saw a remote resting on a coffee table. Realizing Agetha was hinting towards this, she hoisted it up. "What am I supposed to do with this? Why aren't you really talking?" She asked, looking back at them.
Agetha, still hushed, was saying something. Their movement was slow and precise, as they aggressively tried to communicate with Claire.
The kid, looking down, thought Agetha wanted her to press a button. So she did, it brought up a settings menu. Agetha stopped completely and looked down at it. Most definitely confused. Claire pressed another, and a bar showed up. Agetha looked down at this.
"FINALLY!" They yelled out!
"Oh, now you're talking!"
"I was on mute!" Agetha stated, sitting down on the air... "Anyways, what are you doing back here? Who was that weird person you were with?"
"Xister? I-... What are these boxes actually?" Claire asked.
"Probably preparation cases... but I think some of them are actually music boxes. I don't know, this place is really weird, what it uses."
"What are they used for... exactly?"
"Their use to store stuff, mostly like... stuff. Actors stuff."
"Actor stuff?" Claire asked, looking around.
"Why? Where is that coming from? Did you like... found money in one and stole it?"
"No... well... maybe."
"Claire, you can't maybe steal money..."
"Okay, me and that weird... Xister. Remove a lot of stuff from three boxes and I'm not sur-."
Agetha's mouth drops for a second before laughing. "NO WAY!"
"What? What is so funny!?"
"Claire, you have just ruined a show!" Agetha calms down, "Oh man! Didn't know you had that in you."
Claire was still as a statue, frozen even. Her hand was gripping her collar, but way harder.
"What?" Agetha asked. "Why are you acting like that!?"
"I didn't realize! oh fuck- OH FUCK! I am really fucking dumb! Fuck!" Claire grabbed at her own hair as she frantically searched around.
"Claire, how do you not realize... A- actions, or consequence? How do you do something bad and not realize it?"
"I don't know! I was just... following that adult and..."
Claire froze, her face changing to realization.
"Oh no..."
That's when the red grand curtains opened, the lights came on, and the crowd cheered. Vivian, with her most joyous smile, bowed before her audience, with her hat in hand. When she raised and put her hat back on, she spoke with a loud and clear voice as the audience quieted down.
"Thank you! Thank you! I am just happy to see my audience once again. It's been a little longer than it should've been!" Some groups of people in the audience nodded, some murmured. "If those who are new and haven't seen one of my shows yet!"
That was when she walked backwards to her props in the back, nothing was out, and that was more than deliberate. She straightened up, raised both hands, and in one snap. A hot pink aura formed around her hands, latches unclicking with the same aura, and lids opening.
"My name is Vivian Viviglow! And I'm her-..." Vivian's eyes shot open, looking back at the crates. "Here..." Vivian snaps again, trying to get the stuff out of the boxes. Nothing... The audience was deafeningly silent.
Snapping twice... did nothing... "Wh- what?" Vivian walked over to her crates.
The first was empty, the second one was also empty... the third was also empty, as her face forms terror...
That's when the audience started booing, giving thumbs down. Vivian turned back to the sound. The lights were blinding now, and that was when realization hit her... The booing became a background noise.
This was supposed to be a normal... A normal show. But someone... ruined it... And they targeted her specifically.
The grand curtains closed slowly. Having the audience behind goes silent. In no time, the staff came and grabbed the crates. Vivian stood there still... just staring at the red curtain. That was when she shook her head hard and removed her hat before running off to the back.
Vivian went to the nearest wall in the back, with people standing around, the room bussingly and the noise was almost bearable. She put her back against the wall and slid down, with her hat on her lap.
She looked at the bunny ears, and the clock... The bunny ears droop more than usual as the clock remains frozen in time. Vivian's face strained again, her grip tight. Both eyes twitched.
A shadow looms over her.
"Well, I outta say, hic that was an overwhelming show!" Vivian looks up to meet face-to-face with her sister. Her smug smile with a cigarette in her mouth.
"Ugh, do you always smoke!?"
"Hey! You just got your show hic ruined! Don't suddenly pretend that didn't happen!"
"Yeah!" Vivian said, shooting up, as she threw her hands out in front of her. "That's why I had three boxes, THREE! Yet, all three were... taken!" She complained.
"Boo hoo, such a shame," Xister said, keeping that smug smile.
Behind the rumble, Claire walked in. She looked out at the onslaught of people. Stress was completely on her mind.
"Why are you being such a dick! Just once, pretend that you care!" Vivian argued.
"You have yourself to blame! You keep hic bringing me!" Xister's smug smile wavered. "It should have been deadass that I don't care! It was there from the hic start. You just ignored it!"
Claire was walking alongside the walls.
"Oh! You are NOT putting this on me!" Vivian said! "I-..."
Vivian's eyes land on a kid, who was following the wall, grabbing her collar, who was also too busy watching out for the other people.
"You!" Vivian called out, shoving past Xister.
Claire jumped. "I DON'T EXIST ACTUALLY,"
"Nice excus- wh- I-... Whatever! It was you, wasn't it!" Vivian said, pointing a finger at her. "I know you're not meant to be in here!"
Claire inhaled fast and backed up.
"How did you know about the three boxes!? Why did you target me, huh!? What is wrong with you!?" Vivian scolded.
"Uhm..." Claire tried to speak out...
"Vivian, back off," Xister said, stepping between Vivian and the kid. "That's a kid!"
"Exactly! She has to be the one to ruin my show! Who else!?"
"You are the most DENSE person hic I know!" Xister took a step towards Vivian. "Tell me, how would a child know your three-box hic secret, know when you're performing. Knew when to steal it, and just targeted you!"
"What!? When were you the one..." Vivian's eyes widen. "To make..."
The two sisters stared at each other. Vivian's face was blank, with Vivian completely furious.
"WERE YOU THE ONE TO RUIN MY SHOW!? BOTH OF YOU!?" Vivian screamed!
"Maybe it was!? So what!?"
"WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU!? JUST BECAUSE YOU DON'T HAVE ANYTHING GOING FOR YOU AND YOU'RE NOTHING BUT A STONED, DRUNK, WASTE OF A SISTER DOESN'T MEAN YOU GET TO TAKE ME DOWN WITH YOU!"
"I DON'T WANT TO HEAR IT! Hic, YOU'RE A WORKAHOLIC SO WE BOTH GET DRUNK OFF OF SOMETHING!"
"I TRIED BEING SO NICE TO YOU AND ALL YOU DO IS RUIN MY SHOW, YOU DICKHEAD!"
"WELL, SO SORRY THAT MOM AND DAD HELPED YOU RAISE TO THE TOP!"
"DON'T BRING THEM INTO THIS!"
"FUCK THAT! THEY ARE WHAT STARTED THIS TO BEGIN WITH! "
The two stood head-on with each other. Yelling and attracting the attention of others. Claire took a step back, watching as people surrounded, whilst the two sisters continued to argue.
"AT LEAST THEY STILL COME TO SEE YOU!"
"BECAUSE YOU HAVE NOTHING TO SHOW!" Vivian threw her hands up. "THAT IS IT! YOU RUINED MORE THAN ENOUGH! I WANT YOU GONE! I NEVER, EVER, WANT TO SEE YOU AGAIN!" Vivian gave distance before saying, "SECURITY!"
The adult and kid were tossed right out the back, Claire falling on her back with Xister catching herself on her feet. The two guards slammed the door shut. Xister looked back at the door, her face still engulfed with fury. She shook her head, rubbed her forehead, before walking away, paying no attention to the child next to her.
Claire got up, watching between the door and Xister...
Stuck there, watching the adult fully disappear, now just staring at the back road.
Why does it always seem like... whenever Claire goes on something... Something bad happens!? Like with Anova, and now this!?
"No, that can't be my fault..." Claire whispered to herself. "Right?" She doubted, walking away. "I didn't realize... what was going on!?"
She stopped at the corner, grabbing her shirt collar. "I-..." Claire blinked. "I don't know!" She scolded herself. She continued to walk. Just to get back to town, Spring Hometown.
Claire would've gone back to her cabin, only it felt wrong to let her... friends hanging... She's not even sure if they're friends... didn't feel like it...
In the library, Claire had to choke back some dust that threatened to enter her lungs. Even then, she pressed forward, past the empty bookshelf, the litter of books on the floor. Until she sees the opening, her friends usually stay. Surprisingly, they were there.
Crazie looked the same, Agetha did so too. Maybe they weren't worried... Not that Claire was sure if that was a good thing or not. Her mind isn't in the right space as of now. She just wanted them to know she was alright.
"Hey," Claire said, walking over hesitantly.
"Oh!" Crazie said. "I thought you teleported to another dimension. How the hell are you?"
"Oh, I'm good."
"Hi!" Agetha waved.
"Hi!" Claire said back, with a much higher tone.
"That was the most friendly hi you gave me," Agetha mentioned. "But uh... More importantly, what happened when you were gone!?"
"Oh yeah!" Crazie chimed in. "Agetha told me you like... ruined Vivian's show?"
"I- uh."
"I tried to ask you how and why." Agetha quickly came in. "But you suddenly decided you wanted to make a new language using JUST cuss words."
"Sorry, I uh... panic fast."
"I say!" Crazie says. "I want details, what happened. And... why?"
"And that random person you were with," Agetha questioned. "Who was that? I mean, you said Xister, but that doesn't answer much."
"Okay, well... to answer Agetha's askings first." Claire started. "That-"
"Agetha askings!?" Crazie was puzzled. "First, something about graft. now, AgETha AskkIngs!? What do you think this is!?... A fanfiction!? Why these... weird phrases."
Claire blinked... "I don't have the brain power for this." She admits.
"Wow, neither of you knows how to stay on track," Agetha said, spinning upside down. "You two could be siblings."
"Agetha, hush!" Crazie said. "Claire, go on with your thing."
"Well, that random person was Xister... Vivian's sister. She apparently wanted me to hel-"
"Wait, what!?" Crazie tilts her head.
"Huh!?" Agetha spins up straight.
"Wh- what?" Claire asked.
"Vivian has a sister!?" Agetha asked?
"Not once did she ever mention a sister." Crazie jumped in. "And I knew her for... a long time!"
"I... I wouldn't know that." Claire said, "I literally still don't know Vivian, and well... I proceeded to ruin her show."
"Damn, first impression for you has to be the wildest thing." Crazie joked.
"Yep... and I'm definitely not on good terms..."
"So what did you do?"
"Well."
"And insert a small jump cut where I tell you guys everything because rehashing it would've been kinda boring and repetitive." Claire finished telling them the whole story.
"You have a way of telling your... story," Agetha said. "So the woman literally forced you?"
Crazie nodded, sitting on the table next to Agetha Monitar.
"Well, I'm... not sure..."
"I mean, I saw you with her. I was so mad when you couldn't hear me!"
"Yeah, and that woman... didn't force me... I guess. I don't know. I didn't know what exactly I was doing..." Claire uses her hand to help convey her thoughts. "She made it sound like I was helping by doing it... It wasn't until I talked with Agetha on TV... and also that woman's warning... That maybe, I was... lied to."
"Oooh!" Crazie said. "That's so weird. Why would Vivian's sister want to ruin her show!?"
"Siblings rival?" Agetha asked.
"Actually, yeah!" Claire chimed. "That... I am 90 percent sure that's it, actually."
"What makes you so sure?" Agetha asked, flipping over and putting her hand on her head.
"Well, that argument... They brought up family, and Xister said. At least they still see you. Or something to that effect."
"Damn, Claire," Crazie said. "We brought you over once, and you suddenly found secrets about Vivian... and about her personal life, which in all fairness, you shouldn't really know."
"I thought adults were... mature... they had a big... shout match," Claire said.
Crazie was thinking for a hot second before hopping off the table. "You know what, yeah, same. Vivian acts all... bossy. But now, I know she is just as immature as me or Agetha would be."
"Crazie, it's I or Agetha."
"God, go write a book, Claire." Crazie half-jokingly insulted.
"Maybe I... won't!" Claire said, joining in the humor.
"Anyways, it's getting late. I'm going home."
"I'm going to do the same..."
"Damn, you both are so quick to leave me," Agetha said.
"Agetha, there's always tomorrow." Crazie reminded.
"NUH HUH!"
"Don't argue with me!"
"YES HUH!"
"Whatever!" Crazie says, before leaving.
"Wait..." Agetha darts toward the screen. "WAIT, YOU HAVEN'T PLAYED TETRIS WITH ME."
Claire laughs! "Goodnight Agetha!" She said, also leaving.
"YOU'RE BOTH JERKS-"
Claire enters her cabin, and the sun has set. She threw logs into the fireplace, lighting the room.
She sits down at her makeshift floor bed. She cupped her head into her hands. Thinking. Things feel like they're only going down in hell. Yesterday, she almost got Anova beaten up. Granted, some good came from it, as in like, the person who caused the issue is gone. But here... There wasn't any good. Maybe she is cursed.
Maybe she shouldn't be so curious... She really should stay away; otherwise, it wouldn't have happened...
But Claire didn't mean to; regardless, she still caused harm... Was she in the wrong? Could she make up for it?
Where does Claire admit her fault here? Completely or partly?
"Ugh..." Claire groaned, flopping down. "Wish I could talk to someone about this."
...
"Wait! I have friends! God, I am so stupid..." Claire voiced aloud. "Would they be alright with it? I mean, with me complaining?.. Is it complaining? Maybe..."
"Even if it was complaining, wouldn't they be understanding about it..."
Maybe she'll try...
And also try to clean herself tomorrow. If Claire is going through a literal crisis, then at least she can be clean about it. That involves... Cleaning the tub. Holy...
"Why is this all of this a pain..." She slaps herself. "Why am I talking out loud!? I have hardly done that! Maybe since I am all alone. There is no need to!.. Be so quiet. So I can say what I want."
"That could be it... actually. Saying aloud... Actually... Helps? Maybe? It just feels like I can understand myself better. I don't know."
"And I went off track... hmn... Okay! okay, okay, let's try this..."
"I ruined Vivian's show..."
Her words hung there... speaking the weight out loud.
"Wow, that didn't do much... I guess..."
Okay... Okay... Just talk with your friends tomorrow... maybe they can... help...
Maybe.