"Alright everybody, give it up for the Demon Twins!"
The audience breaks into a smattering of applause, and the two cosplayers wearing matching bright clothes and black contacts bowed as they stepped back into the line-up of fellow costumed convention-goers.
"Next up, we've got another pair of Twin Stars. Come on up here, you two!" The black-clothed judge gestured towards the two that were next in line, a man and woman smiling nervously as they stepped forward. The man looked to be in his early twenties with shaggy brown hair and wore a black suit and a small black top hat. The woman was of a similar age, with long straight brown hair, a short skirt, and a thick, lime green sweater.
"Now, tell me a little bit about yourselves." The judge extended the microphone towards the two, and the sweater-wearing woman quickly took it out of his hands. The two exchanged a long glance before the woman began speaking.
"Well, it's- it's a funny story… we actually didn't come to the con together, we just met the night before and figured our costumes matched perfectly and we signed up for this last minute and it all worked out really well, I think!" Her words came rapidly, each one that flitted by taking its place in a rhythm that was almost musical in its simplicity.
"I helped her with her costume." His words were slower, darker, each one filling the room until it had to make way for the next.
"Right, right. He was great about that, really."
The judge shook his head, laughing gently. "That's great, but I was talking about your costumes. Tell us about your take on Alcor and Mizar."
Once again, after a brief moment of hesitation, the woman was the first to speak. "I'm Mizar the Twin Star! I knit my own sweaters and make sure nobody messes with my buddy Alcor here!" She punctuated the statement by spinning around on one leg, a wide grin on her face as she twirled. A smattering of claps and cheers came from the audience as her motion stilled.
"And I…" The man gave a wide grin, revealing a set of pointed teeth that looked as real as his yellow-and-black eyes. "I am Alcor the Dreambender, the Forgotten One, and of course, the Twin Star. One of the world's most powerful demons. Those who cross me- or my twin Mizar- will soon r̭̝͇̲ͬ̉ͨẽ͉͍̱̼̻̥̗̂̕g̷͓̦ͧ̈́r̠͙e̗͓͈͉̗̗͓t̰͔̱ͫͧ̌ ̨̙͒̆i̠̲̬ͪ̋̃͗̚ţ̈." The last few words resonated with a dark echo. The cheers from the crowd were even louder this time.
The judge gave a nervous laugh as he took his microphone back. "Good job, you two! You've certainly got the voice down there, Alcor- and those contacts are just perfect! I have to ask- where did you get them?"
The man's gaze turned towards the ground, his face flushing. "They're… er… they're custom-made."
The judge gave a terse nod. "Well, their creator certainly did a wonderful job then! Now, before we move on to the next contestants, any last words from you two?"
The man burst into a sneeze, which had a high-pitched sound that didn't seem to match up with his low voice.
The room erupted into laughter.
"Aww, does Alcor the Dreambender have a case of the sniffles?"
"I-" He sneezed again, the second sneeze just as small and cute as the first. "No! I, Alcor the Dreambender, do n̺͉̼͍̮͗̅̍ͯ̄̓͢ǫ̰ͩ͐̔t̘̖͘ get the sniffles!"
"Alright, alright if you say so." The laughter began to die down. "Give a bow, you two! Mizar the Twin Star and Alcor the Sneezer!"
The Mizar cosplayer gave a bow as the room filled with both applause and laughter, but the other one remained in place, wide-eyed.
"Actually…" His words came faster than before. "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry, but I really have to answer this summons. Excuse me for a minute, everybody."
"No worries there, Alcor my buddy! Do whatever you have to do!" the judge replied.
Mizar and Alcor turned to face one another.
The Mizar cosplayer put her hands on her hips. "But Alcor, you promised to stick around for me!"
He flashed her another fang-filled grin. "Actually, I didn't. You said I could stay here while I was corporeal. You didn't say I had to."
"But… but we're in the middle of the costume contest! That's not fair!" The woman pouted and gave the man her best puppy-dog eyes.
"Demons aren't fair."
And then, in the blink of an eye, the man in the Alcor costume disappeared from the stage.
The room fell silent.