Silvana was vulnerable. She was lying down crying in pain. Her back was free for the striking which the figure with inhuman strength behind her was about to do just that.
Silvana, still in pain gulped. "P-Please…" The masked girl wheezed. "It hurts… so much."
The figure cracked some knuckles making Silvana more afraid than she already had been. "Don't worry. I'll be finished within 25 seconds. It'll all be over soon! Hey-yah!"
"GAH!"
"Take that!"
"Nooooooooo!"
"Here I come!"
"Please stoooAAAAP!"
"Prepare yourself!"
"OWHOWHOW!"
"ROCK PUNCH!"
*SQUEEEEEAAAAAAAAL*
"WIND KICK!"
"Huh?"
"IRON FIST!"
"HHAAAAARRRR YOU TRYIN-"
"EXPLODING KNEE!"
"SIG!"
"FIGHT…"
"AMMY!"
"ING…"
"I'M GONNA DIE AGA-"
" N!"
"Ah~~~~~"
Chapter 81: Back
"Thanks for fixing my spine." Sil thanked from the bottom of her heart, shaking her masseur's hands with two of hers. "Feels better than ever~"
"I'm so happy for you, Sil." Silvana's new mom cheered.
"It was nothing, Ms…" Rulue picked out a card from her pocket. "Ms. Pierrot." She glanced at the first name on the card. The Fighting Queen felt like she had heard of that name before. Regardless she's definitely heard of the last name before. And not just through Zeri's grapevine and circus flyers.
"Say. Are you perhaps dimensionally displaced?"
"Well, I know you are, Ms. Rulue. Um… I've heard a lot of Rulue the Fighting Queen on my old homeworld." Sil played a little dumb.
"Ohoho." Rulue opened her fan and laughed behind it. "Aaah." She sighed in a satisfied manner and then closed the fan. "It's been so long I've been recognized as such. With my priorities right now, I'm just the best chiropractor in Zeri."
"Yeah~" Sil rubbed her back. "You're great. Like it never happened~" She spoke in a blissful state. Not recognizing she could be compromised at the moment. "I feel like I can practice non-stop!"
"Oh. You better not. Stay somewhere comfortable with a good book for the rest of the day. The pain will slowly catch up. After that, you'll feel even better."
"Oh. Ffffffffunnnnn?" Sil shrugged.
Rulue kept looking between Silvana and Melody. Carry the fact that this is the sister of Amitie, a girl she's acquainted with. And the fact she's a Pierrot, ergo clearly adopted into Amitie's family.
"I'll cut to the chase, Ms. Pierrot." Rulue's voice took on a more serious tone. Sil shivered from it she figured what she was gonna say as the blunette leaned over. Melody held Silvana when she recognized she got scared. "Are you who I think you are?"
"What?" Sil's new mom mumbled.
"N-No…" Silvana proceeded to feed Rulue the lie she's been feeding others. That she'd been held hostage and tortured by that doppelganger of Arle who took her place to trap the real Arle using her circus. And how it screwed her up.
"You poor child, sorry you had to repeat that." Melody held her a bit tighter.
"…Thanks."
"I see, sorry to hear that." Rulue sympathized.
"I hate my life." Sil inaudibly mumbled, looking at a spot on the floor.
"Sil's been trough a lot." Mel said, not even knowing the half of it.
"I do get that impression. Regardless of that, it's great to hear the Pierrot legacy is back."
"Eheh. You're welcome, I tried my best to fill the role as best I could."
"You must be, I've heard good things about your Circus. I can't wait to finally visit myself."
"Mail me when you plan to visit. I'll secure a front-row seat for you. As a thank you. (And because I'm big a fan.)"
"Ohohoho." The lady laughed with the back of her hand covering her mouth. "Thank you very much. Well, then. I'll see myself out. Actually… If it's not too much to ask. May I look around the tent? I'm curious about the behind the scenes."
"When the staff questions you say today's guest password: 'dumbbell'." Rulue nodded and retraced her steps out of the caravan.
Once she was out of earshot Melody spoke in a comforting tone. "Sil. If you ever wanna get your past off your chest. I'm here."
"I know, mom. But I'm not ready. 'Prolly not ever…" Sil held the arms holding her.
"That's alright. If you don't wanna pull off the mask(, metaphorically I mean), then don't pull off that mask."
"…"
"Go to your room and be as comfy as you can. You don't want to be standing around when that backache returns."
"Good idea, mom." Sil was intent on putting on a relaxing vinyl as well. Maybe some nice cold drinks with painkillers if needed for the last stretch of back pain.
"How about I'll get your dad to make some curry?" She said while letting Sil go.
"Oh, thank you~"
Sil indeed had made herself comfortable. Window open, pillows supporting her back, record player, a book, and a cool box full of drinks. Relaxing with the knowledge that her back pain she's had for days now will be over.
Though she shouldn't have the first of these. "Geez, I know Amitie's Dad is scary, but he's not dangerous." Ugh, that voice… She turned down the volume on her record player. "Come on. You're her boyfriend, you should try and get along with her new parents."
"We're not a couple…" Sig rebutted Arle outside the window around the corner.
"Sig, nobody buys that. Just own up to it." Because Arle said it Sil was even further conflicted about what she should do. "Be her boyfriend. Go to her. If her dad opens the door don't try to sneak in from the window. I can't be there when he opens though. Not because her dad's scary, I got a lot to deliver a lot tomorrow. I can't risk getting mauled by a clown." Neither Sil or Sig knew if Arle was lying with some truth but all involved were glad that fight wouldn't be relived today.
Except maybe Sil on a subconscious level.
"Arle?!"
"Rulue!?"
"Nooooooo…" Sil grumbled. She got jealous and scared. But the latter concern subsided. She remembered Arle had already bought her lie.
Sil didn't dare get up though. No matter how much she wanted to pretend to be Rulue's good(?) friend and having a reunion. She turned up the volume to try and tune them out. But not so loud to pull attention to herself. It didn't really help.
"I've become a recovering amnesiac. How about you?"
"Are you pulling my leg?"
"Nope."
Sil would've liked to have reunions like that with Arle's friends.
"Oh yeah, Silvana had backpain. Hey, Silvana! If you can hear me: Screw you, I'm not my Doppelganger! Stop lashing out! Or else you'll do stupid things like fall and break your back!" Arle reminded her.
"Screw you!"
Sig said something but he was to quiet to hear from inside. So quiet he was ignored thanks to a question Rulue's commanding voice asked.
"Sorry about that. Apparently that one Doppelganger (you know the one) did stuff to her. And she lashes out at me. Nothing new from what I can remember but this feels worse."
"She told me something like that…"
Sig walked away from the reunited ladies to lift himself up at the window to see Sil, he pushed the curtain aside. "Hi, Sig." She said with her mask on, clearly smiling behind it.
"Is your back okay now?"
"Yup~ But I'll be in pain again for a little while more before it's really gone. I feel it's returning actually…" She spoke while bracing herself.
Sig might've widened his eyes a little. "Hold on, I'm coming." The boy was gonna hug her pain away.
Author's Notes:
I had a little time off from my current project to revisit this one. It'll be infrequent, but I won't quit. But in the meantime, please give the current project a shot. It's called "An Ordinary Puyo Puyo High School AU", available now on Fanfiction, Archive of our Own and DeviantArt if you're into that.
I do wanna say that "An Ordinary Puyo Puyo High School AU" is a slow burner, so please stay with it until it's first climax. We're busy worldbuilding and introducing the characters.
Next up: 2 Mini-Chapters I guess.
