Fluffy white clouds passed by in the sky overhead as yet another peaceful day unfolded in the Grey Garden. Children were out playing with one another, angels and demons talking amicably with each other as they all got along on this fine day. Everybody was outdoors for the most part, taking in the sunshine while going about their business; though some individuals were still indoors because of things like work or also due to just simply wanting to spend time inside interacting. It was like this throughout the Grey Garden; no conflicts weighed everyone down to prevent them from having a good time and enjoying each other's company with fear of angering the other side.
However, there was one individual in particular who was still very much asleep in her bed, and for once it actually wasn't Yosafire, one of the three most infamous overslept individuals aside from Raspbel and Etihw, of course. Surprisingly enough, this time it was Macarona who slept in, and she had a very good reason for doing so. Last night was her first time working as a part time night guard at Clarabella's Museum of Arts and Crafts, an all-nighter which left her exhausted at the end of her shift. It was to be the very first of seven all-nighters with six nights left to go before she received a paycheck at the end of the week that would go towards that fundraising charity.
Some might think the job was boring, and they were correct to a certain extent. What they were also aware of somewhat was how dangerous the animatronics were at night. It was nothing more than a silly rumor to them, but Macarona went through the whole night and found more than an element of truth to it since the idea was based upon old programming in those very animatronic characters that were supposed to be kept inside so they didn't cause trouble. The software dated back to the war and it was constructed by Clarabella, an esteemed engineer in addition to being an artist. Every night that hardware programming would kick itself into gear and they would resume the old technological duties they used to fulfill during the war. And Macarona was the only one who could stop them from wreaking havoc by keeping the doors closed on them.
It must have been somewhere past one thirty when Macarona finally awoke, but a glance at her bedside clock told her it was actually a few minutes prior to that. Stretching her arms up in the air while yawning, the young angel got out of bed and left her bedroom, sauntering down the stairs just past the guest room with two beds and a bathroom. She stepped through the hallway and into the kitchen, going to the refrigerator and pulling out a couple of eggs and butter before heating up the stove. As Macarona pulled out a frying pan and placed it on a burner, her cell phone rang from its spot on the counter where it had been plugged in to charge. She picked it up and answered the call, noting that it was from her boss, Xerxes.
"Hello, this is Macarona speaking," she said her customary dialogue whenever she took a call and responded to it before Xerxes' voice came through from the other end.
"Hey, Macarona, what's up? Had enough sleep since last night?"
"Hello, Xerxes," she replied while cutting a slice of butter and dropping it onto the pan with a butter knife she pulled out from a drawer. "Yeah, I got a pretty good morning of rest."
"I have to ask," Xerxes then spoke up from his end, "because I spoke with you concerning the old programming in our animatronic characters. Did you have any bad dreams about them? If so, that's understandable due to the old hardware. I know it's not something one can get used to."
"Not at all, they were pretty tame last night despite their slightly aggressive behavior," she answered before adding, "though two of them did get into the basement while Leonidas took out a camera. Aside from those incidents, nothing much happened last night."
"Good, looks like you getting the hang of it," Xerxes remarked with a compliment. "I heard about that and made sure our technicians examined the sensors after the day guard informed us of that incident. We have also repaired the camera by the main doors and fit it and the others with a protective seal to prevent the wires from getting cut. By the way," he then continued as Macarona cracked her eggs and dumped the yolk in the pan while it cooked, "the day guard also told us that you received a call from a stranger over the phone, is that right?"
Nodding on her end, Macarona found the right opportunity to discuss the mysterious caller with him. "Indeed, there were a couple of odd things this person mentioned."
"Did this individual give you their name?"
"No," Macarona answered as she recalled last night's message, "but they did specify they used to be a night guard like me while also reiterating the same information you provided yesterday afternoon in addition to a couple other remarks."
"What were they?" Xerxes inquired.
"First this person said the animatronics attacked demons, which I kind of expected due to their programming, but I had not thought they would also assault angels as well since the hardware would dictate to them a mode of protection for angels," Macarona explained as her boss spoke up with his opinion on that particular matter.
"True, we've had other angels besides you in the same occupation. You're actually the first one since I assumed the curatorship about a week or so ago, but I am aware of others before me who have taken the job prior to my promotion. They and the demons who were assigned to the job or were hired for it became scared after a while and resigned after two or three nights. I guess the animatronics must have spooked them at some point, but I don't blame them considering the older software in the animatronics. The only night guard who is still with us is Crona because she put in a form to be reassigned as our day guard, but some of the former night guards do return from time to time as visitors. We even allow them down into the basement since they're part of the museum."
"Which brings me to the next point the caller brought up," Macarona proceeded with her line of inquiry. "I was also told that some of the night guards didn't have the luck necessary to pull through and that they weren't suffering anymore. From what that comment may have implied, I've interpreted it as meaning a few of the night guards died while on duty. Would you happen to know of anyone who was killed by the animatronics while working as night guards?"
"Not to my knowledge," Xerxes replied, "but I shall definitely look into that in about an hour and provide you with a list of the deceased when we next meet. I have some contacts within Blancblack Castle and around the Grey Garden in general, so something is bound to come up."
"Alright, thanks," Macarona said as she finished preparing some scrambled eggs. "One of the last things the caller told me to do was resign ASAP after the first night, but I'm staying on."
"If that's what you want, I won't stop you," Xerxes commented, "but you are free to speak with me about the subject and decide if you want to withdraw from the position later on. Anyway, I got to go now; I have a meeting with the other executives in a few minutes. Take care, Macarona."
"You too, Xerxes," Macarona said as she began to hang up while taking a plate out from one of the cupboards. "Goodbye." With the conversation over, Macarona put her phone back on the counter and put the charger in before setting her meal on the plate and bringing it to the dining room table where she ate in peaceful solitude reading the morning paper she picked up in front of her house as she arrived back following the first night at the museum.
There were around six hours of leisure time left to her for the afternoon and early evening, so Macarona made sure she was fairly busy in that time. Her first order of business was to shower and then go shopping for more food and bringing it home to put it away which would take about two hours or so. Then with four hours left, Macarona decided to pay a visit to Blancblack Castle and talk with Miss Grora about Robin. Something was drawing her into a strange web of intrigue associated with the museum. Although it was an assumption at best, Macarona believed there was more to Clarabella's Museum of Arts and Crafts than met the eye.
Most of it was basic knowledge, really, stuff Xerxes already put forward to her and as much of the public as possible because he appeared to be willing to share any secrets he knew of while helping uncover more when necessary. However, what snared her interest was the odd phone call she received. It sounded like whoever this individual was clearly knew more about the mystery than what was being let on. Despite feeling that it wasn't her place to get too involved, Macarona felt she and many others were being left in the dark on purpose to hide something. That was why she believed it was necessary for her to make her own inquiries as well like a detective did to learn more about what was going on and why it was happening.
It might have been dangerous and it probably would not yield much, but Macarona needed something to occupy herself during the time she was not on the job. If this mystery was going to keep her busy, she might as well take the opportunity to learn about the museum by discovering who the key players were in its establishment. Who was Clarabella, and who were the angels who had animatronics built to honor them after their passing? Macarona had to admit, it sounded like it would be a fun affair despite the danger involved. Whether it really was a web of intrigue or just a simple desire to do research about Clarabella's Museum of Arts and Crafts as a fun little project remained to be seen. Only her investigation would tell.
…
It was nearly three when Macarona was finally ready for what was left of the day ahead of her. She had just gone to the little shed outside her home to take her bicycle out and ride it to the food store. A small list was in one hand as she began to read off of it to confirm she had everything checked off. "Let's see…milk…eggs…lettuce…tomatoes…apples…that's everything." It wasn't the largest list she had, but Macarona usually went for what she needed instead of what she wanted. She was quite the frugal spender like her friends were, and it was something that rubbed off on her while learning how to balance a budget effectively in school, a lesson made fun since Mr. Lowrie was the teacher explaining the lesson. He was one of her favorite teachers at school in addition to Ms. Greif because their lessons were always so clear to understand.
Bringing her bike out the main path, Macarona got on it and put her feet to the pedals. The motion of them swinging in the air as she cycled was relaxing while en route to the food store. It was good exercise as Macarona made it a point to ride her bicycle everyday whenever possible if the weather wasn't bad enough to prevent her from enjoying the sport. Along the way she observed the interactions between others and looked up at the clear sky, watching clouds pass by above the Grey Garden. Smiling as she neared her objective, Macarona noticed a few kids younger than her signal for her to stop. She saw why as she got off the bike to move it around them so they could continue watching snails race. Macarona chuckled at the prospect of enjoying something so mundane, but it was more exciting than watching paint dry or grass grow. Those kids sure were happy because they were having a lot of fun with their activity as tedious as it was for something that didn't quite reach the level of softball or board games.
A few minutes later Macarona was entering the small lot in front of the food store and put her bicycle to a halt by the bike rack. Taking a chain from a pocket on the side of the back wheel, Macarona tied the bike to the rack before heading inside to get a basket when a familiar voice from behind called out her name. "Ah, Macarona," she heard the other girl say as Macarona turned to find Dialo coming up from behind her, "how are you today?"
"Good afternoon, Dialo," Macarona said as she waved hello to the demon. "I'm doing well. How about you? I didn't think I'd see you or the others out and about. Are you and Chelan finished for the day?" she inquired, somewhat curious as to why her friend was not at the library.
Dialo shook her head as she and the angel acquired a couple of baskets from a few stacks of them that were set up by the entrance. "No, we're still on duty. The little kitchen was running a bit low on food and the attendant assigned to the duty for today was preoccupied with some of the visitors, so I offered to go in her stead," she briefly explained before moving to a similar topic. "A more pressing matter would be your part time job, Macarona. How is that going, by the way?"
"It's alright," Macarona responded as the two of them walked together down an aisle. "I'm actually getting used to it as a matter of fact even though it's already been the first night. The job is fairly easy and simple to do, but I just need to stay awake so the animatronics don't cause issues."
"Yes, I've been meaning to inquire about that," Dialo admitted while they shopped. "I have thought about calling you this morning, but figured you would need to rest up from work. Are the animatronics in the museum truly harmless, or is there truth to the nonsense Yosafire and Rawberry were spouting yesterday? I ask only because I want to see if that hasn't scared you away from it."
"As a matter of fact, that rumor they brought up is most certainly true to some extent."
Dialo put an index finger to her chin and closed her eyes, evidently in deep thought since she was going to think about the matter. "Explain," she said casually, a habit her friends were quite familiar with since Dialo did like to analyze things from multiple perspectives. She was one of the smartest students in school, something Macarona admired in Dialo which she tried to emulate as best she could whenever possible. Sometimes she succeeded, sometimes she missed the obvious.
"Alright, sure, I can do that," Macarona said as she began her brief tale. "For starters, the animatronics used to be weapons based on actual angels in the war until it ended. They were made by Clarabella, an angel who served as an engineer besides being an artist from what I interpreted when I spoke with Xerxes, my boss. Their programming was altered to make them friendly during the day, but at night their old software from the war was preserved. Therefore they revert to their original programming after eight o' clock each night. Although Xerxes has looked into getting that software removed to make them safer, the previous curator whose family still owns them turned down the idea. Other angels and demons had issues when in the same position I am as I've heard from a strange caller last night, plus a few of them might have been killed by the animatronics. Xerxes said he'll get back to me on that. That about wraps it up so far."
Dialo remained silent for some time as they continued shopping. Macarona stayed silent to let her think in peace despite all the other sounds coming from throughout the food store. At one point the demon finally spoke up, saying only a single word at the moment. "Interesting…"
"So what do you think, Dialo?" Macarona inquired out of curiosity, wanting to know what her demon friend had come up with. "Anything you can analyze from that?"
"Just a bit, I'm afraid. You did cover much of it," Dialo said as they were just about done shopping. "From what I can gather, Clarabella either created those animatronics after the angels died so their service could continue even after their deaths. The previous curator must be descended from her which could explain why their old hardware is intact with the new software installed. As for their hostility, the animatronics are all angels which means only demons would feel their wrath unless the programming was designed to punish heretical angels for siding with demons."
Macarona nodded in agreement. "That was my assessment as well, though I hadn't thought of a piece in their programming determining whether they should punish heresy. Still, I expected it to some degree based on what I heard."
"Who was this caller, by the way?" Dialo then inquired as they both made their way to the checkout counter to pay for the food they were purchasing.
"I wasn't given a name, the person just mentioned having been a former night guard."
"Then it must be someone from inside the museum's faculty, an individual who held that position as well. Whether that person is still there or goes to visit the museum despite the obvious trauma are the only options I can think of concerning the caller's identity."
"Xerxes said that too," Macarona uttered as the demon went on to two other questions.
"What of the victims who perished? Were they present during his tenure as curator?"
The angel shook her head. "Nope, but that's what he is looking into."
Dialo sighed as they both finished paying for the food and exited the store. "I'm afraid that there isn't more to add since you've got everything accounted for so far. What will you do now?"
"I'll speak with Miss Grora about one of the animatronics who served in a scouting squad under her," Macarona said as she prepared her bike. "Hopefully she can tell me more about her."
"Well, good luck with your inquiry," Dialo said, waving goodbye to her while wishing her luck. "I hope your search comes to fruition at some point."
"Thanks!" Macarona called back as she rode off on her bicycle. "Good luck with your job as well, Dialo. I might come by sometime if I'm available."
…
The impressive walls of Blancblack Castle stood before her as Macarona sauntered up to the front doors, passing by various employees, angels and demons, on her way inside. Pushing the large front doors open and stepping aside to let a few of the workers exit the magnificent structure, the young angel then went over to a map on the wall presenting the various departments within the castle. There were several floors and many different departments dedicated to specific duties like administration, defense, economics, things like that. All topics that were pretty complicated for someone like her who only had a small, passing knowledge of each, so finding Alela Grora on her own without help would be like finding a needle in a haystack. Fortunately, another angel came by to offer her assistance. "Excuse me, miss, how might I be of service to you today?" she inquired as Macarona turned to ask where Grora was and which department she might work in.
"Oh, I'm just looking for Miss Grora. Would you happen to know where I may find her?"
The attendant nodded. "Certainly, she is currently in the central garden watering the plants. It is just through those doors over at the center against the back wall."
Macarona bowed to show her appreciation. "Thank you, have a good day," she said while walking towards the doors she was pointed to as the angel returned the remark.
Stepping through the doors, Macarona looked up at the sky and then gazed in awe at the foliage surrounding her. The garden was truly a beautiful place, perhaps rivaling the cliff side she and Yosafire loved to hang out at with their friends. It was like a study in contrasts with flowers of all kinds both signifying the beauty of light and the attraction of darkness as if there was a light at the end of a shadowy tunnel or a shadow cast against the ground by the sun. All around there were plants and trees representing both sides to produce a horticultural landscape portrait in which the black absorbed the white that was also reflecting off of it like a ball bouncing on the ground.
This wasn't Macarona's first time here. She'd come to visit this garden several times to do some homework for school in peace when she felt in the mood for uniting the sense of an urban setting with rural horticulture. Each visit was truly breathtaking because the garden made seasonal adaptions much like Clarabella's Museum of Arts and Crafts did by rotating foliage from a season out for more plant life relevant to the current season. That was why this place in the castle was yet another of Macarona's favorite spots to hang out in the Grey Garden.
As she walked along the cobblestone path built into the garden so people could walk around the location and admire it for the sheer beauty this garden espoused, Macarona caught wind of a voice from the other side of a hedge close by.
"Goddammit Ater, get the hell back here right now!" an angry lady shouted at the top of her lungs, her voice tinged with so much rage one didn't have to guess who it was.
From the sound of it, Grora was in mad pursuit of Ater yet again over what Macarona and many other inhabitants knew as an issue the angelic archer took to the extreme quite seriously. The problem in question was a past incident in which Ater accidently scratched out Grora's left eye, and the furious angel adamantly refused to forgive the cat demon for what she perceived was a grave offense. Nobody blamed her for feeling angry about the loss, but Ater really didn't do it on purpose and she apologized to Grora many times over while accepting the constant physical abuse she received from the angel on a daily basis every day.
However, there were occasions when she sometimes ran away from Grora because Ater was terrified of her, which was expected and understood considering the fact that Grora always gave the poor cat demon an extremely stern beating at the sight of her. Fortunately, Miss Etihw and Mr. Kcalb always stood up for Ater and Wodahs made frequent trips to them with Grora being dragged along in tow by her ear to receive lectures on how her misconduct completely went against the peaceful nature of the Grey Garden. Grora was also forced to apologize to Ater every time she beat her. Ater would accept the apology each time, but she knew Grora wouldn't change.
And this just so happened to be one of those occasions which Macarona suddenly realized she was unlucky enough to have walked into without knowing it until it was too late. Two cats, a white one and a black one, both of whom were Ater and Arbus, suddenly darted out from within the hedge beside her while she was walking. Caught off guard, Macarona suddenly cried out as she stopped short mid-step and accidently stumbled over her own feet when she tried to get out of their way. Luckily she managed to keep her footing and her balance as the two cat demons timidly raced up an oak tree in the garden and hid within its branches.
At the end of the hedge ahead of her, Macarona watched as Grora ran into view with her bow drawn and two arrows nocked to the string. The other angel's pigtails flapped in the breeze during her pursuit of the kitties, and she stopped her murderous rampage briefly only to look for them since they appeared to have escaped her wrath…for the moment, anyway.
Of course, being an expert archer, Grora instantly saw their hiding spot and flew up in the air before taking aim at the frightened girls at the sharp end of her arrows. "There you are, you little wretched curs…" she growled at them as she drew the string back. "Time to pay for my eye!" Grora then shouted while releasing the string to let her arrows fly, but fortunately Ater and Arbus reacted just in time to get out of the way as they both hopped back and changed into their humanoid forms still featuring the wings and tails of demons in addition to their cat ears.
Unfortunately, in doing so the two of them shrieked as they slipped on the branches and lost their balance, falling into a sunflower patch on the ground below with a loud thud. In that time Grora nocked two more arrows and repeated her previous motions when shooting the arrows at them. Yet again Ater and Arbus got away, this time believing their best hope of escape to survive the angel's attacks was to hide behind Macarona. Although Macarona didn't mind defending them, she wasn't too happy with the prospect of being used as a meat shield to fulfill that objective.
"Help us, Macarona!" the cat demons wailed in fright while Grora flew over, still in the air with two additional arrows from her quiver nocked in the bow. "Please save us! We'll do anything! Make her stop! Make her go away! Scary, scary, scary!"
"Don't even think about listening to them Macarona!" Grora retorted coldly, taking aim at Ater and Arbus while they cowered behind the younger angel in fright. "I've spent far too long in my life without my precious eye, and now I'll finally return the favor by taking theirs!"
"B-but I-I didn't even have anything t-to do with that!" Arbus protested, hoping her words would reach Grora's ears and appeal to her common sense.
"Fair enough," Grora uttered quickly as she moved both of the arrows together to aim only at Arbus' twin sister. Moments before they were pointed at both cat demons; now she only had her most hated enemy of all time in her sights: Ater.
Terrified at the thought of being abandoned to death by her only twin sister, Ater shrank back even further as her trembling became slightly uncontrollable. "W-what…? I-I said s-sorry, I-I…D-don't leave me Arbus!" she cried, tears pouring down her face.
"I won't go on without you Ater!" Arbus also cried, hugging her twin so hard that neither of them wanted to relinquish their grip on one another. What they didn't realize, however, was that Macarona was also in on their show of sisterly affection and could feel the life being choked out of her. She gagged at the sudden movement, not because of the bear hug, but rather due to getting suffocated in the cat demons' frightened embrace.
"Always together!" they squealed in unison. "Sisters together forever! Cross our hearts and hope to die!" If they thought the little chant was going to stop Grora, they were wrong as the angel then repositioned her arrows back where they were.
"As you both wish," she said coldly, her voice firm with conviction as she spoke. "You'll die as you lived, together in the grave." She pulled the string back, about to release it once again until a sudden hand gesture from Macarona cut her off. Although the other angel felt she couldn't maneuver effectively in the grasp of two frightened cat demons, Macarona managed to form a time out sign with her hands as she gasped for air in desperation, believing she might pass out soon.
"W-wait…" she wheezed, shivering much like Ater and Arbus, but without the inherent fear of getting sniped by Grora. "T-time out…D-don't I-I…" she paused to cough and gasp again, "get a-a…s-say in this?" Macarona was originally uninvolved in this dispute, yet the cat demons brought her into this unintentionally without her consent. It wasn't their fault really, but if she was going to help them, she needed to act as a proper mediator instead of being a meat shield.
"Absolutely not!" Grora retorted, oblivious to the condition Macarona was in just as much as Ater and Arbus were. "This isn't your fight, Macarona, so don't interrupt me when I'm furious with them!" Again she pulled the string back, this time intent on killing the cat demons.
"B-but…" Macarona tried to protest, but her voice died in her throat as her vision began to blur. It was getting harder for her to see because she was losing oxygen and couldn't take any more in since her body was being crushed in a massive bear hug between two other people. She was on the verge of fainting as her sight started growing darker, but luckily she felt released as the pressure on her body dissipated. Her mind couldn't fathom why or how exactly, but Macarona knew she was gently set down by a patch of flowers as a familiar voice addressed Grora in a strict tone, evidently displeased with her misconduct concerning Grora's attempt to murder his pets.
At first Macarona didn't know who it was since she was recovering from her near faint, but she gradually felt multiple things pressing against her chest twice at a time. Once the groggy spell was over with its veil lifted, she opened her eyes to find Arbus and Ater kneading her. They were both kneeling beside her on either side, smiling down at Macarona as she eventually sat up and blinked very rapidly, rubbing her eyes while groaning slightly. "Oww, that hurt," she muttered softly, taking deep breaths to take in more fresh air to better orient herself as the cat demons giggled and joined their hands together with wide grins spread across their faces.
"Yes, CPR success!" they cried out in joy, laughing happily as they embraced their friend in a much gentler hug than minutes ago and pressed their cheeks against Macarona's. They purred and cuddled up against her to thank her for distracting Grora long enough so Kcalb could intervene on their behalf. Macarona couldn't help but giggle as she put her arms around them to return the hug, grateful for their concern following what was likely a life threatening experience.
"Thanks girls, you really saved me," she complimented them, slightly exaggerating so Ater and Arbus could feel proud of their accomplishment. The two of them meowed happily in response and continued to purr as Macarona, having closed her eyes while hugging them, opened them to see Kcalb giving Grora a serious lecture on what would happen to her if she continued to hurt his cat demons. Despite not wanting to laugh at her, Macarona couldn't help but smile at how the situation was diffused before blood was spilled in the garden. She hoped the upset angel would understand the message behind the smile and not jump to the conclusion that it was an insult when it actually wasn't, but knowing Grora, she probably might infer that anyway.
"Now," Kcalb went on after giving Grora a stern reminder to behave properly, "since you have run through much of this garden and destroyed several of the flowers here, you shall now go over to the florist's and purchase more to replace them after digging the remains out. Do I make myself clear, Grora?" he finished, arms crossed across his chest as she hung her head in shame.
"Yes, sir devil," she uttered before walking over to some flowers until she turned around to face him again. "But they ruined part of the garden too, you know!" she yelled, pointing a rude finger towards the cat demons while glaring at them. "So go ahead and punish them too!"
"They only ran through part of a hedge," Kcalb said as-a-matter-of-factly, "which was due in no small part to you pursuing them with your bow drawn. I shall not repeat myself again, Grora: dig out what you ruined, go to the florist's, and replant everything, understand?"
"You do the crime," Ater quipped.
"You do the time!" Arbus finished for her.
"You reap," Ater started another joke.
"What you sow!" Again, Arbus completed the joke.
"Yeah, yeah…" Grora muttered under her breath as she headed off. "You both suck…"
Not wanting to miss her chance to inquire about Robin, Macarona leaned forward to call her name as Kcalb stepped over to her and extended a hand out to help her up. "You alright?" he asked in a much nicer tone than when he was lecturing Grora, but it still possessed the same aloof nature that was inherent in Kcalb's way of speaking. "Sorry you had to be a part of that."
"Yeah, sorry," Ater and Arbus parroted apologetically as they each made a fist to playfully bat at strands of Macarona's hair which swayed softly in the wind.
"It's alright, Mr. Kcalb, I'm fine," she remarked, gently taking their hands away from her hair. "I didn't mind, really. I'm glad to have been of at least some help if that was possible."
"Well, you did distract Grora long enough for me to get here and stop her," Kcalb said as he pulled his pets off her and motioned for them to run off, "so I should also thank you for that."
"You're welcome," Macarona said with a bow of gratitude, "and thank you for getting here so quickly. I was afraid I might die of suffocation."
"It's no problem, Macarona," the devil politely waved the appreciation aside as he accepted it nonetheless. "Now tell me, what brings you here to the castle today? I heard from Froze that you took a job as the night guard for Clarabella's Museum of Arts and Crafts, so I assumed you would still be resting from last night's work at this time."
Macarona nodded to validate his statement. "Yes, indeed, that is what I'm doing part time over spring break. I got enough sleep today, so I decided to spend a bit of time looking into some history regarding the museum and its animatronic characters. Miss Grora may know something about the character I'm inquiring into today, which is why I came here."
"Ah, I see," Kcalb commented blankly. "I know of the animatronics, yes. Etihw once took me there—well, she more or less dragged me by force—but the semantics aren't important. If you want to ask Grora about one, I believe you're referring to the archer. Robin is her name, correct?" he asked as Macarona nodded again to confirm his guess. "There are plenty of Robins in the Grey Garden, and there were also others during the war as well. Some of them may have served in the angels' army, a few might have even known Grora and fought with her."
"The plaque for Robin at the museum did say she served with Grora on a scouting mission until she heroically led away several legions of demons," Macarona said, bringing up what she knew so far. "I wanted to know more about who the animatronics were made to honor them. First I want to know about Robin since her trail is the closest I know of."
"Saving her squad from legions, eh?" Kcalb remarked as he shut his eyes and closed the fingers on his left hand, save for the index and middle fingers as he placed them against his chin. "That rings a small bell, so I probably know a little something about that. If I heard more I might be able to offer a bit of aid to your investigation."
"Thanks, I appreciate it," Macarona said, bowing in appreciation again as Grora came up with some dead flowers in her arms which she proceeded to drop on the ground before them while a bit of sweat trickled down her forehead from the work she was just about done doing. All that was left were a few more spots and it was off to the florist's with her. Grora could have used a bit of rest, but Kcalb punished her with an order for her misconduct and she had to fulfill it dutifully.
"What's this about a Robin?" she inquired, wiping dirt, soil, and mulch off her hands.
"Macarona is looking into the origins behind Clarabella's Museum of Arts and Crafts and the animatronic characters there," Kcalb explained to her. "She wants to learn more about Robin, an angel who worked an assignment with you when the war was still on."
"Oh, that Robin!" Grora exclaimed as her final memories of an old acquaintance emerged to the surface of her mind. She sighed as she ran a hand through her hair, accidently getting soil in it with Grora unaware for the moment because she was lost in nostalgia. "How long has it been? Too long I reckon since I last saw her…" she muttered to herself, a small smile spreading across her face as she bathed in her recollection of one who seemed to be an old friend. "Yeah, I knew of her. Robin was one of the best scouts in Lady Etihw's forces at the time. Always an aloof girl, that one, hardly letting anyone in despite coming across as a welcoming soul. Robin had a very cheerful disposition for someone who preferred the solace of solitude, claiming that silence was golden as it helped one focus and keep their eyes on the target. I miss her a lot."
"Sounds like you two were very close, Miss Grora," Macarona remarked as the other angel surprisingly shook her head in response before proceeding.
"No, she and I were in the same unit for only a few missions. Nothing too spectacular, but I enjoyed observing her as Robin interacted with the others and fought with them. Robin usually moved to other squads from time to time since she always requested to be reassigned so she could help end the war at a faster pace. What amazes me is how calm and collected she always was even in the heat of battle. She was quite a master of organizing her thoughts and adapting to alterations in the flow of combat whether we gained the upper hand or were at a disadvantage. Robin hardly had any associates among us, and even Lady Etihw herself found she was also excluded from the archer's social life which upset her quite a bit, so Robin's list of contacts was surprisingly limited."
"Were you among them despite serving together only on occasion?" Macarona then asked as Grora shrugged, closing her eye with the small smile still on her face.
"Somewhat, but we never sought each other out. I was her superior in status and ranking, but her skills exceeded mine. Whenever we were together, the two of us would always co-lead in our squad and split into two groups to get things done by covering more ground. Hers was always finished before mine because her genius mind would construct a foolproof plan that always went off perfectly. I'll admit, I made several blunders on more than one occasion, but she didn't blame me for any sort of incompetence. Robin always said that failure was an obstacle to success, one in necessity which would help others improve their own skills."
"What about any other contacts?" Macarona inquired next. "Was one of her associates an angel by the name of Clarabella, the original proprietor of the museum?"
Interestingly enough, that got an affirmative response from Grora. "Yeah," she began while nodding her head, "Robin worked for most of the time, but all of her free time was spent in what used to be the original structure for that place. She once told me it brought her peace and she also enjoyed admiring the artwork. That girl was definitely an excellent example of the beholder in the notion that beauty is in the eye of the beholder. I heard she got into Clarabella's good graces and was given special permission to check out sections not permitted for the public. Once she produced a poem about the museum and Clarabella put it up for display in the main lobby. In fact, I would say Robin and Clarabella were close friends, closer than anyone else we knew of."
"I see…" Macarona uttered before proceeding to another matter concerning Robin. "Then came the fateful day when Robin sacrificed herself to save you and the other angels in your squad."
Grora's face darkened at this as Macarona realized she hit a sour chord and attempted to apologize for it, but the other angel spoke up first. "No, she and I were the only survivors at that point. Our mission was going so well until I made an incalculable mistake and cost us the whole squad. She simply told me to flee when I was too injured to fight and deliver the message of our defeat to Lady Etihw while she drew them off in another direction." Tears suddenly appeared in her eye as she related this terrible memory to Macarona. "I screwed up and cost us the life of one of our best scouts and the lives of several other angels, and I wasn't punished for it aside from the guilt that demonstrated how I failed big time because I was so foolish."
Macarona just stood there in silence for several moments before tipping her head down in shame after having forced Grora to relive those final tragic moments of Robin's life. "I…I'm sorry, I…I didn't mean to bring up something painful to you."
"No, it's quite alright," Grora reassured her even though she made no attempt to wipe away the tears. "That's all in the past now, so we can only live for the present, the peace our respective people have established so that there will be no more death, no more war." Her eye was still shut, but Grora was suddenly caught off guard when Kcalb actually wiped away her tears.
"Don't cry," he said, his voice still maintaining its aloof tone while also sounding sweet as well. "I'm sure she wouldn't want you to." Grora looked down at the ground, a tear dropping down onto a broken flower as the devil continued to speak. "If it's any sort of closure, the demons under me at the time informed me they couldn't locate her in their search."
Grora looked up at him, feeling a sense of hope rising within her, a warmth that she thought was a sign Robin could've been alright. It was a longshot since Robin could still be somewhere out there in another world if possible. "T-then…is she…" Her words struggled to come out, though seeing the look in Kcalb's eyes showed her that it probably wasn't possible for Robin to be alive.
"I'm sorry, Grora," he apologized softly. "After Etihw and I made peace we and our people searched high and low for anyone missing in action. We've recovered the remains of many, save for some including an archer named Robin. I believe she is the one you are referring to."
"You remember her, Mr. Kcalb?" Macarona inquired as he nodded.
"Now I do even though I've never laid eyes on her, though I only know of what had been reported to me and the search afterwards. Eventually Etihw lost hope on her and decided to call off the search for Robin even though she was one of the only MIAs left. It was a hard decision for her to make because she felt she had failed those we couldn't locate, and an even harder one for me because I felt guilty about all the losses I caused. Even now we're both still guilty, but leads were hardly found since then and there weren't any clues as to any of their whereabouts. It's as if Robin just vanished into thin air like some of the others, so whether she may still be alive or not is really left up to the whims of fate to decide and reveal whenever possible."
Grora's head was still tipped down in shame. While Kcalb's remark that the demons didn't kill her offered some comfort, the fact remained that an old associate she wasn't too close with, but still liked all the same, was missing like so many other angels and demons that were possibly lost to both sides forever. It wasn't the best outcome, but at least she could hope for some sort of discovery that could provide her with much better closure.
Seeing her discomfort at the direction this conversation went in, Kcalb placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder. "Go on and get some rest to sort out your feelings," he told her. "Give Robin more thought if you wish. I'll have other gardeners finish cleaning the mess and head to the florist's myself. Just take some time off for now, alright?"
Grora didn't respond verbally, but a mere nod of her head acknowledged she understood the command given to her. Though she would've preferred to continue working as a way to honor Robin, Grora knew there was truth in the devil's words as she slowly walked to the doors. She left in complete silence, mentally asking all the angels who died because of her for their forgiveness despite feeling she didn't deserve any of it even though they would have forgiven her.
Macarona and Kcalb watched her off before the devil turned back to her. "Does that satisfy your inquiry, Macarona?" he asked as Macarona sadly nodded in response.
"It does…but I didn't want Grora to feel sad for losing an old acquaintance of hers." Her voice was soft as she spoke, but the devil merely closed his eyes and nodded.
"I understand it wasn't your intention," he then said, opening them again. "It is a painful topic, yes, but at the very least she doesn't have to keep her emotions bottled up. It's good for her to have gotten this off her chest. Grora hardly talks about her failures from the war, so opening up about it can help her get through some tough times of her past." Kcalb sighed in relief, glad that the angel finally talked about it despite beating herself up over the blunders she made. He hoped she would find closure soon. "Anyway," he proceeded to another topic, "not to change the subject, but you've already cleared one night at your new part time job, correct? Someone who knows your boss told me the animatronics there are dangerous due to old software implemented during the war that made them into weapons of destruction. Have you felt threatened by them at all?"
"They tried to come after me, yes," Macarona responded, "but I survived the night okay. I was actually quite prepared for them to be honest, and I was only concerned with just two of them. The other two did not come by the security office down in the basement, plus there are safeguards in place to ensure I'm alright while preventing them from escaping. I shall be heading back there tonight for my next shift since I want to protect the Grey Garden by keeping them locked inside."
Kcalb crossed his arms and nodded in agreement with her decision. "That's very noble of you considering the danger you're placing yourself in. If you need any help, don't be afraid to ask. You're welcome to come speak with Etihw, Wodahs, and I about it. And Macarona," Kcalb said, placing a hand on Macarona's shoulder to offer some encouragement. "Do your best and come out of this unscathed, okay?" he asked as Macarona nodded in response.
"Yes sir, I'll do my job to the best of my abilities and protect our world," Macarona pledged to him despite not being an employee of Blancblack Castle. Still, she was one of the four main heroines of the Grey Garden from Ivlis' invasion, so Macarona felt a strong urge to fulfill this duty straight to the letter as she said goodbye to Kcalb and went home. Her inquiry about Robin was now finished even though it hurt Grora's heart, and she felt one step closer to uncovering the truth which she would let Grora in on to give her the closure she desperately needed.
Although her actual motive for the investigation was simply pure interest in the history of Clarabella, the museum, and those animatronics, Macarona realized there was likely a mysterious secret hiding behind the place—something old and forgotten not disclosed to the public. It drew her in when she received that mysterious phone call last night, probably because the person, a previous night guard, wanted other night guards like them to unite. Perhaps that was why she felt the need to participate in this little movement just as something to do for a group that hadn't even been formed yet. Even so, this certainly did make for quite an interesting conspiracy theory.
…
Well, that wraps up the third chapter and now it's on to the second night. I've put more thought into it and have a good idea of how I want to proceed with it now. The gimmick I mentioned previously in the author's notes last chapter shall be implemented, but it shall also be improved upon so as to fit the lore behind this story. I said before that the gimmick will be a reference to a specific animatronic character from Five Nights at Freddy's, and I'll reveal which one in the next chapter's author's notes. You'll probably have already guessed who that is by now, so I won't keep you waiting any longer for the answer. Just be patient for a short while longer until the second night is up; you'll have the answer then. Anyway, I hope you enjoy reading this as I enjoy writing it.
