Streetlamps were turning on now, night falling quickly. Stars began to appear, and soon the streets hustle-and-bustle slowed to only a few people. Cars still occasionally flew past, heading off somewhere in the dark, but generally it was quiet. Most people had closed up shop, but inside a small and closed down theater, there was a woman. A stranger to the town's peaceful appearance, she was determined to pull off a great feat.
Pacing back and forth on the old wooden stage, her heels making clacking noises against the boards, the woman thought. Her eyes were shut tight in concentration, mumbling incoherent words under her breath and shaking her head. She had to make sure her plan would go smoothly, or else he wouldn't show up. It had to be big, it had to be bad. It had to blow minds. Or very least, blow someone up.
The woman laughed to herself, thinking of what would go down tomorrow. She would set up for her show, like normal, and proceed. The audience will certainly be in for a show, she thought. She had bought the town's trust, using her sickeningly sweet facade. It was always easier to fool idiots by acting kind, and so she had them like flies in honey, waiting for their quick demise. Once she set her plan into action, she would be over the news, once again. Oh, how she loved the thrill of being famous, for the worst reasons though. It just made it more fun.
Her eyes snapped open, hearing the sound of something moving. She looked around, and finally down to the ground. Fortunately, it was just a mouse. No cops to ruin the surprise of the show, not until tomorrow. Moving towards it, the mouse skittered away, hiding in one of the many cracks in the flooring. She had to crack a smile at that, the mouse unknowing of how it would end, just like everyone on this miserable planet, even herself.
Making her way over to a makeshift vanity, she smiled in the mirror. She brushed her dusty brown hair over her shoulder, before picking up a small top hat with a rose pinned to it. She adjusted it onto her head, having it tilt slightly to the side while she read a few newspaper clipping she had taped onto the mirror
"Mysterious Woman Sets Mayor Ablaze." was the heading of one. It showed her in one of her disguises, a headshot, beside a picture of the show. Oh, she remembered that one. It was one of her favourite tricks, and the way the audience screamed left a warm feeling. It could've been the fire, but still.
"Murderous Magician on the Loose Once Again." read another. It described how she had escaped from a little county prison some buffoons had kept her in. It was pretty easy to get out, the guards were stupid anyways. They didn't even both to look if she had actually escaped before opening the cell door. The memory left a smile on her face.
But one was different from the rest. It wasn't about her, or another one of her tricks. The heading said "Dark Miracles stopped by Professor Layton" The story was about how an archeology professor had stopped a man called the Masked Gentleman, who was terrorizing a town with so called Dark Miracles. She already knew they were all tricks, but from what she had seen, this Masked Gentleman was to be admired. When she had a television while living in a motel, she had watched news coverings about the case, reading up about him online as well. His tricks were much better than her own, more entertaining, grander than hers ever were. She strived to make her magic as magnificent as his were, studying every trick he had ever done to imitate it. She could never get it perfect though, much to her dismay.
She fluffed her hair, shaking herself out of her thoughts. She couldn't just get caught up in that right now, she had a magic show to plan. Like most magicians, she couldn't ever disclose how she did her tricks, but she liked to think she had something a bit different from the rest of them.
Noticing the mouse come back out, sniffing around, a smirk spread across her face. She snapped her gloved fingers, watching as the spot where the mouse stood envelop it in flames. None of the surrounding wood caught fire, but in seconds the mouse was just a black corpse, it's writhing body now still. She made her way over to it, picking up what had been a living rodent seconds before. Smiling slightly, she whispered something to it.
"What a small insignificant life you had. Thank you for volunteering, little mouse, it must have been an honour to perform for me."
She held the burnt mouse in her hands, carrying it over to a barely boarded up exit. Tossing it through one of the holes in the wood, she dusted her gloves off, flicking a light switch. The few lights in the theatre turned off, except for a spotlight. To an imaginary audience, the woman gave a bow, before straightening up and saying clearly,
"Thank you, for attending the show of the great Carmilla LaRoux!"