Well it would seem that the general consensus is that I should continue this fic for awhile. Of course, that means that my fans will have to inform me themselves of when this has degenerated into general suckage. I'll go down in a blaze of Glory! Well maybe not exactly glory, more like a blaze of humiliation, but I am Sooo blazing!
I have had several requests to include Pesmerga, but I haven't played the earlier Suikoden games, so I was wondering if anyone could fill me in on his personality or point me to a website with his bio or something, all I know is he's Yuber's antithesis or something.
Anyway, I'm hoping to get the musical chapter out soon, but I wanted Yuber to escape the narrator's booth first. If anyone if upset by the way Chris acts, well, try casting her in a play- she is that bad. That and I'm still trying to avoid naming a specific flame champion in this fic, it doesn't change much anyway- I know, I finished the last two chapters three bloody times.
Sleeping Beauty- take 2
Budehuc castle lay in a peaceful seeming stupor as the hottest days of summer beat down on the castle residents. Dios sat aboard the deck of the ship, trying desperately to scrub the red dye out of Sasarai's uniform, just as he had been doing since the unfortunate incident in the Highwayman.
"This wouldn't have taken so long if the stupid fanfic author hadn't forgotten that it had happened until now…" He growled irritably. He had consulted just about everyone in the castle on methods of cleaning, but none of the tricks seemed to work, even Luce hadn't managed to get it clean- and she had managed to clean up after Joker and Ace…
Dios was becoming suspicious of the latest cleaning method, Franz had insisted that rubbing the cloth in Mantor dropping and then scrubbing it with battery acid would get rid of any stain- unfortunately it seemed to be getting rid of the uniform. As if for some reason, Franz was bitter towards the Harmonian government or something…
Meanwhile in the theater. Yuber sat idly in the little box and carved another mark into the wall. "Nobody knows the trouble I've seen, nobody knows my sorrow.." Damnit! It had been days now and he hadn't killed anyone, it was driving him crazy-(er)!! All those people, passing through the bar, drinking and looking all happy, and not bleeding or screaming or anything. And then that breathing- the constant in and out, it was so repetitive. He was at the point that if someone would only remove the demon wards, he would be so grateful that he would only maim them. Maybe if he could just convince Mio that he had reformed…
Elsewhere in the castle, Tuta took another Aspirin and sighed. Caesar had been admitted with a broken nose and multiple head injuries, and was now convinced that he Penguin and a strategist in a cold war somewhere. Albert wasn't helping either- he kept trying to feed his brother raw fish, and laughing. To make matters worse, Mio wasn't here to help him, she was still working on her sessions with Yuber in the theater.
Back in the theater-
Yuber hung his head, trying his best to look dejected so that Mio would let him out of the stupid narrator's box. "I guess I've always just used violence as a way of getting attention," he finished pitifully.
"Well that's marvelous progress," Mio smiled cheerfully, making a note on her clipboard, while simultaneously looking through her second hand copy of A Amateur's Guide to Psychiatry. (Don't you hate people who try to solve all of your problems with a knowledge of psychiatry learned from fortune cookies?) "So why do you think people dislike you?"
"Because I'm the incarnation of chaos and destruction?"
"Well that's a good start, why else?"
"Because I'm always trying to kill them and bathe in their blood…" he added sheepishly.
"So now that you know, do you think that you can stop?" Mio asked hopefully.
"Yes'm." So close, soooo close.
"So what do you do when you see someone now?"
Damn, a trick question… "Um, not kill them?" He answered skeptically.
"That's right!" Mio smiled happily, "So what should you do when you meet a group of children playing?"
Oh the humiliation, he was about to begin when he heard a chuckle from somewhere in the bar- one that sounded oddly familiar… He swung his head around and scanned the crowd. Nothing. "Uh, I should greet them cheerfully and-" He heard the sound again. Nothing was out of the ordinary among the bar patrons as he watched them suspiciously.
"Oh, I think that's enough for today, Nadir wants to do another casting of Sleeping Beauty, but if you get through the play without trying to kill someone, I'm sure I can let you out."
"Yuber smiled, trying not to look murderous. Yuber watched her leave the room, it wouldn't be long now, but he couldn't help but feel that someone was watching him- mocking him, while he was trapped…
The people slowly crowded into the theater, ordering food and settling into the seats. Soon, the lights dimmed and the curtains rose upon the now familiar set for Sleeping Beauty. Yuber sighed, and began to recite the narration in an uncharacteristically unedited way, "Once there was a peaceful kingdom ruled by a good king and queen who had only one beautiful daughter as their heir. They were very happy until an evil witch decided to curse them, and place the princess under a curse of sleep until she was kissed by her one true love." Yuber groaned inwardly thinking of the next line, think of the murders, as soon as this is over I will kill them all, he thought to himself continuing, "Who will be the one to save the lovely princess from her curse?" As he finished the line, he heard the distinctive click of a camera, (They got them the same place they found the cardboard and elevators, okay?) He turned furiously to see it was recording his humiliation, only to see the tail end of someone's long black hair as they slipped out the stage exit. No-it couldn't be… Yuber's eye twitched reflexively.
Sarah and Hugo walked onto the stage from the right.
"Finally, a decent casting job," Sarah muttered, "Now I will curse you Princess." She said blandly, raising the real wand that she had used in the last production.
"No," Hugo gasped, trying very hard to act his part despite his mother and Luce pointing him out and whispering together from the audience.
"Don't worry princess," Sarah smiled maliciously, "I've had practice with this part."
"Um, you're only supposed to pretend to zap me," Hugo said worriedly.
"Oh I think this adds to the realism," she smiled and shot a beam of light from her staff, knocking Hugo to the floor. "Crap, why can't they ever fall on the stupid bed?" She leaned over and tried to move Hugo's prone form, just as the sound of a horse began from the left of the stage, "Forget it, he can stay there." Sarah straightened and left the stage as Chris walked onto the stage, followed by Rico, who was again clacking coconuts together for the horse sounds.
A flash of light enveloped the stage and suddenly the castle was surrounded by paper-meche roses. "Uh-Pri-Princess," Chris stuttered badly, glancing nervously as the audience. After an inappropriately long pause she turned and began expertly slashing through the thorn bushes and entering the castle on the opposite side- and then stumbled heavily over the unconscious 'princess', crashing halfway over the bed before falling, armor and all, on Hugo- who, if he hadn't been knocked out by magic already, would have been knocked out by the weight.
Chris struggled ungainly to her feet from the tangle on the floor, "Who put that Princess there?" she murmured to herself, before remembering that she was still onstage and casting a look of trepidation back towards the audience behind her. "Oh-um, wa-wake up…." She began lamely and stooped to kiss the princess.
A clatter of broken glass, followed by a loud clamor was heard from the audience as Borus leapt from his seat, determined to slay Hugo for daring to be kissed by Lady Chris while he was unconscious. The cur! Percival and Leo struggled valiantly to calm him as he worked towards the stage in fury.
"Its just a play, stop it." Roland begged, adding his own weight to the knights trying to stop Borus.
"Let me go!" Borus got out, before being tripped by Aila and landing heavily on his face.
"Um, you're supposed to wake up now!" Chris whispered fervently to Hugo, who lay unresponsively in her arms. "Hello?" She asked, shaking him. "Isn't he only supposed to pretend to be asleep?" She asked Nadir desperately.
"Well the witch is only supposed to pretend to knock him out too," Nadir replied, "but she made the opening a lot more realistic."
"Then how exactly do I finish the play?"
"Oh," Nadir answered, suddenly thoughtful, "I hadn't thought of that, uh- just pretend he's awake."
Chris moaned and hauled Hugo bodily to his feet, "Um, ah, oh…", she recited while trying to keep him upright.
The curtain dropped and to a half-hearted applause.
Once the play had ended, Mio ran cheerfully up to the narrator's booth, "I'm so proud of you!" She exclaimed happily, "Now I can take these off."
But Yuber barely even registered her presence. He stood staring at the around the stage wondering, could it be- him??
Hours later when he did realize that he was freed he went on a killing spree, but that's a given. It happens so often that it isn't really news worthy anymore.