AN: First I would like to apologize for the huge delay between the posting of Chapter 3 and this one. Sorry!
Second, I'd like to explain: This chapter was subjected to a merciless editing and re-writing and worrying that the pace was too slow or too fast and so on. I posted a lot of other non-MR stuff that just hit me. And, finally, this was sort of a big chapter in the scheme of things (my transition from just starting out to in the thick of the story starts here) so I wanted it to, well, not suck.
~*~
He met Marmalade down in old Moulin Rouge,
Strutting her stuff on the street,
She said, "Hello, hey Joe, you wanna give it a go?
Oh, come on!"
Tonight, Satine was Lady Marmalade. She pranced and twirled and winked at the regulars who, today, found it much easier to approach her. She sauntered through a deluge of franc notes, giving only a mysterious, cat-like smile to overly-interested men.
This was to only thing she ever wanted to do—to dance, to sing, to anticipate the thunderous applause…
She had dreamed of it for so long.
Somehow the transition from holy being to creature of the underworld hadn't jarred her audience. They were more used to this anyway—a clear view of what they were buying.
But, in any case, she still intimidated them. She was a precious gem to stare at and to want, but to hold—
Inconceivable.
Voulez-vous coucher avec moi,
ce soir?
They pressed in on her from all sides and suddenly her eye hit something it had not really anticipated seeing.
The maharajah. He was seated, cool and confident. His dark skin and deep eyes penetrated her soul the way they had last night and she could feel his hot breath as he laughed with her.
And she didn't care. She had forgotten him. The day had been long and eventful and her heart had been foolish to think it knew what it was doing right after she woke up. He was just another man with a full pocket and a fondness for the girls Zidler kept around.
And yet, she couldn't move. For a slow-motion moment, she couldn't tear her eyes away. She wasn't thinking of love so much as her confusion. It infiltrated her skull, shooting through her thoughts like an arrow Cupid himself had aimed incorrectly.
You like your job! All of us should be so lucky.
She recovered her bearings, spinning like the thoughts through her mind.
If it was a hobby, you'd be called a slut. Good thing it's a job, 'cause then you get upgraded to prostitute.
Birdie had said it that morning before she'd collapsed on the sofa. She'd been a little nervous then and shared what was possibly too much. She didn't want to think about that now.
This was her thrill, her joy. The days in its anticipation were nothing compared to its ecstasy. It was worth it now, she knew it. They crowded around her, loving her and she watched the crowd, loving it. People made her nervous, but crowds? No, never. This crowd was better than any other. They didn't watch tamely and clap politely but shared her elation, moving and…
Mocha chocalata ya ya!
Creole Lady Marmalade…
She ran with the music to the trapdoor and, right on cue, a million tiny sparks exploded from around it. Beneath their manic cascade she disappeared, the queen of the underworld.
"Get the hell over here!" hissed in Satine's ears before the last notes had even died. As usual, Birdie's voice rose sharply as she used one of the words that would have cost her her head when she was a lady. She sat in front of a vanity, quickly lining her lips in pale pink.
"What is it?" asked Satine, concerned at the look of worry on Birdie's face.
"Oh, God…" The seated dancer clutched her head. "Fuck absinthe. Fuck the Rouge…
Can you do my hair, dear?" she requested, unsuccessfully trying to wipe the dark circles from beneath her eyes. "Tiny little braids." A tiny hiccup burst in her chest.
"They look so beautiful and they fly about so as you spin…" Birdie began babbling as in a fantasy while Satine braided cornrows into her white-blonde hair.
"What…?" she whispered to Love as she stood next to her to adjust her beaded dress. Two days down here as a member had let her ignore the scandal that would have been found in the short skirts and plunging necklines anywhere else.
"She does this every night," Love whispered back. "Ever since that one that—"
"Damn you, Love!" Birdie screamed. "You have no fucking personality! You're a Collie bitch who comes when she freakin' called… You're just another whore who's here because the fellows say she has talent…" Her head rolled over her shoulders, making the strands of hair Satine was braiding escape her fingers.
"You forgot for the money," Love said, expressionless. Satine reclaimed the lock and finished the last braid before a man popped in and called out,
"Ruby! Peacock! Yasmine! Birdie!" The four followed him out, checking their reflections in the mirror. Love sank into the seat Birdie had filled.
"She gets like that," she said mildly. "Wouldn't drink for anything when she came here. Don't look at me like you're surprised—I've been here longer than you'd think. Since I was younger than you, even. We all have something here that changes us, usually breaks us.
"Up to about a year before she appeared I was 'vivacious' and 'exotic.' Not the star, but with plenty of admirers.
"Then my stomach started filling out." She laughed bitterly. "For me it was my son; for her it was some asshole who beat her up. That's how she showed up, you know—black and blue and bleeding. She probably would've died if Harold hadn't called the doctor. Thought I'd get you acquainted, hmm? Peacock was starving, Yasmine was sent by her father from Egypt, Lioness was with the circus until she hurt her leg on the high wire and became completely terrified of heights, Ruby's really fucking sick and is just here for the ride until it kills her…
"I forgot the rest." She outlined her eyes again, even more darkly. "Doubted you'd hear it from them." Suddenly she seemed to shrink into herself and the life that had shone in her eyes was gone. "Sorry," she whispered. "I'm usually not like that. I usually keep secrets to myself…"
Love hastily finished her makeup and slouched off, once again dead to any onlooker. Satine ran her fingers through her hair and pulled off the dress she was wearing. Pulling another one over her head, she heard a new song start above. She wondered when Zidler would come and get her so she could meet that night's customer. Would tonight be like last night?
"Seems to me, your man underpaid," said a deep, but distinctively feminine, voice. Rich and beautiful, it matched the girl's dark brown eyes which, in the light, leaned toward red. Two full lips rested on her olive face. She laid across a chair and looked as if she had long been watching Satine from this perch.
"All he wants to buy is your body. He expects you to act but, at the same time, to be so good at it he can't tell the difference.
"He doesn't think you'll wake up with a headache and actually remember him. He just presumes it's his experience." She stared into Satine's eyes.
"Someday, you will learn the difference between your body and your heart. I hope you'll also find out which one a man wants from you.
"Until then, make your bordello your stage."
~*~
"In the booth, darling!" Harold stood behind her and lifted her hand so that it pointed at the man.
His hair had grayed long ago and now reflected a halo of yellow light on it's white curls. Despite his age, his body was still muscular and lean. He laughed with his friends as Satine made her way over.
Their conversation yielded to thin air as, one by one, they caught sight of the rustling, sequined dress. She walked slowly, letting her earrings dance around her neck.
"Voulez-vous coucher avec moi…" she began, waiting for him to finish her sentence.
"Ce soir." He said, twisting the question into an answer. His gaze followed the dress as if it hypnotized him. She leaned down, her eyes capturing his.
"To the elephant?" she whispered.
~*~
It was so easy tonight. She didn't think and hid herself deep within her heart. That night, she forgot her heart and forgot everything except that she was an actress…
And this was her role.
~*~
AN: There you have it, finally! Please review, as I hate only getting one review per chapter! But, I would like to thank my one –REPEAT REVIEWER-, Yvi, who also told me how to find the extra features! Thank you so much! (Look, I've even broken a grammatical rule which I tend to yell at people about—I shouldn't really use 'so' there at all.)