Chapter 6: The Inhabitants
As morning rose the next day, Paris was already awake, as always. As Krystal slept, he sorted out the clothes for the washing machine, putting the dirty clothes in the basket. It was just turning 9am, when he heard the doors to the theatre open.
Poking his head out into the hallway, Paris looked in the direction of the front doors, now hearing footsteps.
"Wonder who that could be?" he asked himself, stepping into the hallway and walking towards the sound. He stopped just as he reached the opening into the main hall, now spotting a pair of children walking through the theatre's halls.
"I've never seen those two before. Who are they?"
"Didn't you once say that it was rude to eavesdrop on people? My, how things change." Balan stated as he stood behind Paris, causing the puppet to jump.
"A bit of warning next time, if you please." He grumbled, turning his attention back to the newcomers. "Who are the kids?"
Balan put a hand on his shoulder. "Come, I'll introduce them to you." He offered, walking along, pulling Paris as he did so. Paris would've said something, but sighed as he led him to them.
As they drew closer, Balan waved to both of them. " Ah, Emma, Leo, glad you two could make it." He said happily.
"Of course, Balan." Emma replied. "Helping you out with another visitor is the least we can do."
"Speaking of," Leo continued. "Where is the visitor you need help with?"
"I'm afraid that she's asleep right now." Balan explained. "It's been a rough couple of days for her."
Emma put her hands over her mouth in shock. "What happened to her?"
"It's a long story," Paris explained, stepping out from behind Balan.
Both teens stared at him, both frightened by his sinister appearance. "Oh, that's right," Balan said sheepishly. "I forgot to tell you both about Paris." He gestured to Paris. "This is Paris, he's Krystal's partner."
"Is that the name of the visitor, Krystal?" Emma asked.
Paris nodded. "Yes, that's her name." He held out a hand to shake, noting the hesitance across their faces. "I don't bite, you know."
"I've seen too many horror films to know you're bluffing." Leo retorted.
"Now, now." Balan said, stepping between them. "I know Paris looks a bit scary, but I can assure you, Paris here is a gentleman."
Paris nodded in agreement. "And if you're worried I may attack, you'll be happy to know I can't harm humans, only dolls and objects." He held his hand out again.
Leo studied Paris' expression for a moment, a sly smirk cast upon his white face, and he could barely make out some sharp teeth in his mouth as he grinned.
Conceding defeat, he took Paris' hand, and shook it.
"Now, that wasn't so difficult, was it?" Paris remarked slyly, which earned him a glare from Leo. Emma did the same, shaking his hand.
"Now then," Balan continued. "Paris, this is Emma and Leo. They helped save a couple of inhabitants from Lance a few years back."
"I see." He folded his arms. "Do they come by the theatre often?"
"We stop by every now and then." Emma explained, reaching into her pocket and taking out the note Balan had delivered them. "He asked us to come by today to help with a new visitor. He didn't give any instructions, just asked us to stop by."
"What is it you wanted us to do, anyway?" Leo asked.
Snapping his fingers, Balan produced the leather-bound book from the night before and showed the page to Emma and Leo. "There's a place that sells rings here in the city. I need you two to pick up one with this stone on it." He pointed to a Black Obsidian crystal.
"Why that one in particular?" Leo questioned.
"You see, without getting into the details, Krystal has been harassed by a former friend of theirs for the past seven months. This, as you can imagine, caused her immense stress. I had witnessed her breakdown yesterday, truly a sad sight."
This news shocked both Emma and Leo.
"Seven months?!" Emma gaped.
"That's crazy." Leo added as he read the passage. "So this crystal helps with worry and stress, makes sense you'd want to get this for Krystal."
"Getting the ring was actually Lance's idea, believe it or not." Balan explained.
"Really?!"
"Yes, it was his idea. He came to me last night asking about crystals and their beneficial properties." He made the book vanish with a wave of his hand. "But, as you know, Lance and I cannot leave the theatre for long stretches of time, which is why I asked you both to assist me."
"Makes sense." Emma reasoned. "But yeah, we'll help you with this."
"Yeah!" Leo confirmed. "If it'll help Krystal heal, we'll help. Like you helped me and Emma before with our problems."
"Anything else we should know before heading out?"
Balan pulled out a notebook, writing down some info on it regarding the ring. He then handed it to Emma. "There, that should have all the key info you need." Included on the note was a sketch of what they were looking for; a simple ring with a Black Obsidian crystal.
"Sterling silver?"
"It's the safest type of silver to wear on your skin." Balan explained. "Regular silver stains the skin."
"Okay, Leo and I will keep that in mind when we're getting it."
"Perfect!" He took out some money from a pocket, and handed it to them both. "That should be enough to cover it. I'm giving you extra just in case."
"Thanks Balan." Leo said, as he and Emma left through the front doors. "We'll be back as soon as we can."
"Hopefully we can meet Krystal later." Emma added.
"I hope so too, I think she'd like the bit of company today. Take care!"
The two teens waved as they left, leaving Balan and Paris standing in the hallway. "They seem like nice kids." Paris said.
Balan nodded. "Quite so, Paris. I know Leo can be a bit standoffish, but he has a good heart all the same."
"He kinda reminds me of someone I know, but a lot less irritating." He closed his eyes. "But that's not important right now." Gazing up at the clock, he looked towards the halls. "Krystal will probably be getting up soon."
As they spoke, Krystal shuffled her way up the hall, a dressing gown covering her body with her pyjamas clearly visible underneath. "Was someone here?" she asked, a loud yawn escaping her.
"Nothing to worry about, dear." Balan assured her. "We had visitors, but they are busy at the moment. They'll be back soon enough."
"Huh? What kind of visitors?"
He gave a playful wink at her. "You'll have to wait until later, Krystal, I'd rather not spoil." He put his hands together. "Now, would you like a cup of tea?"
"Yes, actually." She told him.
"I'll make her tea," Paris offered. "I know how she likes it."
"Very well, Paris. The kitchen is just a few doors down that way." Balan told him.
"I'm sure I'll find it." Paris said, walking off in the direction Balan had told him.
Krystal, while this happened, examined some paintings on the wall. The all looked like posters for different kinds of plays or musicals, all hand-painted too it seemed. Balan took notice of this.
"Eeyahoo?" he mused, standing behind her. "You like art, Krystal?"
"Yeah, I really enjoy it."
"Do you like making art yourself by any chance? Painting, drawing, sculpting, that sort of thing?"
"I mostly do digital art, but I'm rather partial to a bit of traditional art as well, mostly drawing and oil pastels."
He studied her words carefully. "Would you like to do some art today, Krystal?"
Her ears perked at that, standing bolt upright on her head. "Yeah, that sounds nice today. Maybe something with oil pastels, because I haven't done anything with them in ages."
"I'm sure we can find you the materials you need." He offered. "I happen to know a rather skilled artist here. I can introduce her to you if you'd like?"
She mulled over his offer for a moment, before nodding with certainty. Maybe it'd be a good thing to take her mind off what happened with Floof yesterday. She turned to face Balan, her eyes glittering like a child in candy store. "That sounds great, I'd like to meet them."
"Excellent!" Balan said, his big smile covering his face again. "We can leave once you've had your tea. How's that sound to you?"
"Sounds good, I need tea in the morning otherwise I can't function. Paris can attest to that."
After Krystal had her tea, Balan lead her through the theatre, before stopping at a door. "This door leads directly into Wonderworld." He told her, opening the door with a free arm.
"Watch your step, dear." He said, helping her step through the door.
She was blinded for a moment, as her eyes adjusted to the light. Blinking rapidly, she opened her eyes to see she was standing on a grassy plateau, with Tims hopping around and playing with each other.
She looked around at the strange imagery, noting blocks floating in the sky, and statues that resembled Tims.
"Welcome to the Isle of Tims." Balan told her, as a Tim jumped into her arms.
"So, are we in Wonderworld?"
"A part of it, yes." He took her hand, leading her up to a train platform, where a train was stationed, its doors open awaiting a passenger. "All aboard." He told her, gesturing to the open door.
She laughed a bit, before stepping into the carriage. The interior of the carriage, she had to admit, was exquisitely decorated, the seats in particular seeming to be covered in some type of velvet material.
Balan poked his head into her carriage. "You all set?"
"Just admiring the interior of this train," she replied before sitting on the seats.
Balan grinned, as the train began moving along its tracks, which Krystal noted were way up in the sky. She looked out over the Isle as it disappeared from view before the train pulled to a stop. Looking outside showcased an artists studio attached to the side of a luxurious mansion.
Stepping out of her carriage, Balan took her hand, and lead her towards the studio, opening its doors. Inside were a whole manner of art supplies; canvas, paint, paint brushes, oil pastels and more. On the opposing side of the room was a short stout woman with magenta hair and an artists apron, as she was painting some type of landscape with watercolours.
"Lovely work as always, Lucy," Balan expressed, getting the woman's attention.
"Ah, Balan! So nice to see you." She approached them, looking at Krystal before gesturing for Balan to kneel down to her. "Is this?"
Balan nodded. "Yes, that's the one I told you and some of the others about."
Lucy became pensive. "How is she today?"
"A little shook, but she's managing. I actually brought her here today to do some art and take her mind off what happened yesterday."
"That's a good idea, Balan." She pulled away from Balan, holding out a hand for Krystal to shake. "I'm Lucy, it's a pleasure to meet you."
Krystal shook her hand in response. "I'm Krystal, nice to meet you too."
"You know, Balan had been talking to some of our friends about you. I'm sure they'd love to meet you." Her expression became more sombre. "I'm sorry to hear what happened to you these past few months, it's truly sad to hear."
Krystal tensed at the mention of her problem, but noted that, like Balan and Lance, Lucy's tone of voice seemed genuine. "Thanks, I appreciate it."
"So my dear, what kind of art did you want to do today? My studio has art supplies to suit all types of artists."
"Oil pastels if you have them."
Lucy smiled. "Ah, oil pastels. A lovely art medium." She called to someone, an octopus-looking creature that had paintbrushes for hands. "Inky Blaster, can you find me some oil pastels?"
The octopus nodded and headed over to an art shelf and searched in some boxes, before finding something and presenting it to Krystal. "Thank you, Inky Blaster. Here you are, a box of oil pastels, good quality too. Do you use any type of paper or..."
"Mixed media paper, if you have it."
"Of course. My, my, you certainly know your art supplies, don't you?"
"I've picked up a few tricks over the years." Krystal explained as Lucy called another creature, this one resembling a white unicorn with a mane with purple and lilac. It soon approached them, holding a mixed media pad, handing it to Krystal, along with a roll of masking tape and some tissues.
"Thank you, Air Unicorn. You'll need these," Lucy explained. "The tissues to blend the pastels, and the masking tape to mark off parts of the art. The only other thing you'll need is a pencil, but Balan can provide you with one."
"Thanks Lucy." She looked at the two creatures that helped Lucy. "Who are they?"
"Those are some costumes that inhabit my stage." She gestured to Air Unicorn. "Every inhabitant has a handful of costumes that represent aspects of themselves. Inky Blaster for example, represents the part of me that loves to paint." She faced Krystal. "There's a few others around here, but it seems that they may be busy."
"If I may interject momentarily," Balan asked, stepping to Krystal's side. "You recall Lucy said the others would like to meet you, Krystal?"
"Yes?"
"Well," Lucy added "Balan had thought about setting up a little get-together this evening for our friends, and wanted you to meet them there."
"Is there going to be a lot of people?"
"There's going to be roughly 14 of us. 16 if you count Balan and Lance."
Krystal thought for a moment. "Do I have to dress formally? Like in a dress or something?"
"Jeans will be suitable enough." Balan assured her. "If you'd rather wear something more casual, by all means, go ahead."
"So, you think you'd like to come to it later?"
Krystal thought for a moment, her ears flattening, as Balan placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder. "My dear, if it gets too much for you, you're free to leave the party at any time."
"That seems okay," Krystal replied. "I'll come to it and try to meet them."
"Wonderful!" Balan said, pulling her into a hug. As he turned to leave, helping Krystal carry her supplies, he waved to Lucy. "We'll see you and the others later this evening."
Lucy waved in response. "I'll let the others know not to crowd her."
After this, Krystal and Balan returned to the Isle via train. Stepping outside onto the Isle, they their way back to the Theatre so Krystal could work with the oil pastels.
"So," Balan began, putting his hands behind his back. "What did you make of Lucy?"
"She seems nice." Krystal replied, stepping back into the Theatre. "What time is that get-together you had planned?"
"5pm." He placed a hand on her shoulder. "Remember what I said, if it gets too much for you, the others will understand."
"You sure?"
"They'll understand completely."
Krystal placed her supplies on the table in the main area, deciding here would be a good spot to do her art.
She turned to face Balan. "Thanks."
"Not a problem." He left the room, allowing Krystal to work in peace. She soon set to work with oil pastels.
A few hours later, Krystal was in her room, getting ready for the get-together. She'd just showered, and was wearing a fresh t-shirt and jeans. Her gloves were still stained with pastels, but she'd managed to clean most of it off.
"You ready?" Paris asked, standing in front of a mirror, fixing his bowtie, wearing his suit from before.
"Yeah, just about." She picked up a small bottle of perfume, Beyoncé Heat, and sprayed some on her wrists and neck. She turned to Paris. "Does this look okay?"
"Balan said you should wear something casual. You look fine."
"Thanks." She moved to the doorway, waiting for Paris to join her. Soon enough, he joined her side and linked his arm with hers. "You know the rules, Paris."
"I know, I know," Paris replied with a wave of his hand. "Don't be rude or blunt to the others."
"Even though they are all humans?"
Paris grumbled. "Yes. It will certainly be difficult, but I'll try. For you."
She hugged him. "Thanks."
Balan had told them earlier to come to a large room in the theatre, an auditorium of sorts. Following the directions they'd been given, they soon reached the large double doors, gently pushing them open. Inside were roughly 12 people, not counting Balan and Lance all conversing with each other in smaller groups.
Randomly dispersed around the room were some costumes like the ones Krystal saw on Lucy's stage earlier. Some resembled animals, some resembled living objects, some resembled people.
Noticing their presence, Balan approached Krystal and Paris. "Ah, you two made it. Wonderful to see you two! You look great, Krystal."
"Thanks, Balan." Krystal replied as Lucy approached them.
"Krystal!" Lucy beamed, shaking her hand, she noticed Paris at Krystal's side.
"Lucy, this is my partner, Paris. Paris, this is Lucy, I met her earlier today."
Paris studied Lucy's appearance, before shaking her hand in response. "Nice to meet you."
Lucy nodded. "Some of the inhabitants are over there." She gestured to a small group of four people, taking her by the hand.
Krystal stopped for a moment. "Is it okay if Paris joins us?"
"Not at all, Krystal." She replied, leading Krystal over while Paris followed after her. Before they got to the group, Lucy faced Krystal. "If you get nervous, just let me know."
Krystal nodded in response, mustering up the courage to approach them.
As the group came into view, Krystal took notice of the people Lucy led her to. They were all sitting on around a coffee table with a pair of couches, two people sitting on each.
On one couch, were two people; a dark skinned man with purple hair wearing a suit, and a young lady around Krystal's age with icy blue hair, a light pink hoodie and a pair of shorts.
On the other couch, sat a man who looked like a farmer with a straw hat, overalls and a red shirt. The other was a young man in a clown costume with light green hair.
The purple-haired man, upon noticing Lucy's presence, turned to face her. "Hey Lucy." He greeted.
"Hey Cal." Lucy replied, turning to Krystal. "Everyone, this is Krystal, the one Balan had told us about. Krystal's partner Paris is accompanying her."
Paris merely nodded in response.
The others sitting around the table all began talking amongst themselves, before the green-haired man approached Lucy. "You mean the one who had been harassed?"
"Yes."
An audible gasp echoed throughout the group, as Cal approached Krystal. "Oh my...Please, take a seat."
Krystal sat on a free spot on the couch, next to the woman wearing a hoodie. "We should all introduce ourselves." She said. "I'm Iben."
"The name's Jose." The farmer said, shaking her hand.
"My name's Attillio," the green-haired man said, offering a friendly smile.
"And I'm Cal." The suited man said, sitting next to Krystal.
"Balan gave us the gist of what happened yesterday." Jose explained. "Words cannot express my sadness and sympathy for you."
"Yeah, I'm inclined to agree with Jose," Attillio added. "No one should have to go through what you went through."
"Seven months, wasn't it?" Iben asked.
"Yeah, seven long, stressful months." Krystal confirmed.
Cal nodded. "We even heard how Lance got that "friend" of yours to leave. I don't think I've ever seen him that angry before."
"Knowing Lance cursed, in his purified form no less, just drives it home even further how mad he was." Iben added.
"It goes without saying, if Floof comes back, you'll have us on your side Krystal." Attillio said, determination coating his every word.
"That goes double for me." Jose finished, nodding in agreement.
Krystal smiled happily at that, the fact these people were willing to stand by her side gave her more comfort. "Uh, I don't want to pry but, what exactly brought you guys to this theatre? Since Balan told me people are brought here when they're struggling with personal issues."
They all looked at each other, before Iben took a deep breath. "I'll start. I came here shortly after the death of my parents. I was set to marry my partner at the time, but losing them made me want to shut out people in case I'd lose someone else."
Paris stared in response to Iben's story. Even he had to admit, that it was tragic. "I'm sorry that happened to you." He continued listening to the others stories with Krystal.
"As for me, I was once a great chess champion, and I had won several trophies in my time. One day however, I lost to a newbie and started losing matches against anyone and everyone. I was obsessed with trying to get back to my former glory, so much that my I had neglected my wife and she passed away."
"I had a son that was going to college so, I worked hard in my cornfield to try and make sure he had enough money to pay for it. However, a tornado destroyed my cornfield, not a single ear left, to the point I fell into despair."
"I was once a very talented artist; my works would always be the stars at art events and even got shown in museums. However, after a while I soon started to doubt myself, I couldn't find a good thing to paint. It got to the point where my canvas were painted nothing but black."
"As for me, I work at an amusement park as a clown and was madly in love with one of the workers who played a princess. I was too afraid to confess my feelings to her, fearing that she'd reject me."
Krystal was silent. These people had all gone through such hardships, much like herself. "I feel so sorry for you guys."
"Agreed." Paris added.
"There's no need to be sorry, Krystal." Cal told her. "We've all managed to face those problems and find solutions, thanks to Balan, Lance, Leo and Emma."
"Yeah," Attillio added. "We may have let Lance let our negativity overtake us, turning us into Negabosses, but Leo and Emma helped us, and face our problems."
"Wow, Lance had told me a brief version of what happened before but I hadn't idea it was like this."
"Balan thankfully allowed us to freely come and go after what happened so, our stages that were created while we were here before have stayed here for when we come back." Lucy added. "Which is what you saw yesterday when Balan brought you to my stage."
After a few more minutes of conversing with each other, Lucy motioned for Krystal to follow them again. "We have a few others to meet."
"Okay." Krystal said, standing up from her seat with Paris. "It was nice talking with you. All of you."
"Same to you," Cal said, shaking her hand. "It was nice chatting with you."
Waving goodbye, Lucy led them to the next group, who were sitting on the other side of the room, all sitting around a round table with a white cloth. Another group of four people sat around speaking amongst themselves. There were two dark-skinned ladies, one with beads in her hair, the other in a wetsuit.
There were also two men, an elderly man with a cane and the other was dark-skinned and wearing a firefighters outfit. They talked amongst themselves before a dark-skinned lady with beads in her hair noticed Lucy, waving to her.
"Lucy!" She greeted happily.
"Hello Sana." She gestured to Krystal behind her. "This is Krystal."
"Hi there. It's nice to meet you." Krystal said shyly, gesturing to Paris. "This is my partner, Paris."
Paris bowed his head in response. "Nice to meet you all."
"Oh!" Sana approached Krystal. "Funny, we normally don't get anthro animals in the theatre. I guess hearts are hearts at the end of the day, after all."
Another dark-skinned lady in a wetsuit nodded in agreement. "That makes sense."
"Oh, where are my manners." Sana said, noticing she hadn't introduced herself or the others at the table. "I'm Sana."
"I'm Fiona." The lady in the wetsuit added.
The elderly man stood up, using his cane to support himself as he approached them. "My name's Bruce." He introduced himself, shaking Krystal's hand.
"And I'm Eis." The firefighter added, standing by Bruce. "Please, take a seat."
Krystal nodded, taking a seat at the table as Sana sat across from her. "We were just talking about you. Balan was here a few moments ago telling us you'd come to this party."
"Needless to say," Bruce added. "We have the utmost sympathy for you regarding your plight."
"I'm in agreement." Sana replied. "We've had so many people come to this theatre with big problems. But, what happened to you, is arguably one of the worst things we've heard."
"I know some inhabitants had to deal with bullying, but not straight up harassment like your situation." Fiona added with a nod.
Krystal tilted her head in confusion. She wondered what kind of bullying those particular inhabitants had dealt with.
"That's for the those respective inhabitants to tell their story." Lucy said. "You'll be meeting them soon."
Krystal nodded in response. "So, what about you guys? What brought you to the theatre?" Paris listened along with Krystal.
A moment of silence fell across them, before Fiona cleared her throat. "I'll go first. You see, I'm a diver, as you can see by my wetsuit. I loved my job, going into the ocean and meeting all kinds of sea creatures, especially dolphins. One day while I was diving, a dolphin knocked my air tank off, making me almost drown. This made me terrified to go back into the ocean after that."
"As for me," Bruce continued. "I clean up litter in a city everyday. I love doing this, I like city to be clean for everyone. However, every time I did this, my hard work would be undone the next day. This continued for a while, all the while, I felt invisible due to my work going unnoticed."
"I'll tell my story next." Eis said. "I'm a fireman so, naturally I've had to save my fair number of people from burning buildings. One day, however, during a rescue, I choked. I was terrified. My colleagues managed to finish the rest of the rescue, but I felt helpless after that."
"Guess I'll tell my tale next." Sana took a deep breath. "I love birdwatching in a forest near the city near me. While out there one day, I noticed a rare pair of Lazuli birds, nesting in a tree with a nest of eggs. I watched them for weeks on end, eagerly waiting to see the chicks hatch. However, a building company from the city were planning on bulldozing the forest to make more housing for people. I pleaded with the builders to wait until the chicks to hatch, but they didn't listen.
"I tried and tried to get the Lazuli birds to leave and nest somewhere else. In the end, the tree they were nesting in was torn down, destroying their nest and eggs. They didn't even want to migrate, the loss of their eggs was too much for them to bear."
Krystal fell silent. These people, like Cal, Jose, Attillo and Iben she'd met a little while before, had dealt with some very tough issues. Noticing her silence, Sana patted Krystal's shoulder.
"Don't worry. After all coming here and meeting Balan, Lance, Emma and Leo, we were able to face our problems and move forward with our lives."
They sat and chatted for another little while, before deciding to move on once again to the final group of inhabitants.
"It was nice talking with you." Krystal said finally, shaking their hands.
"Same, it was nice finally meeting you." Fiona replied.
"I hope that "friend" of yours leaves you alone." Sana added. "Sooner, rather than later, preferably."
Waving their goodbyes, Lucy led them to the final set of inhabitants, sitting near the stage. Compared to the previous inhabitants, these three were considerably younger. There were two young girls and a boy. The first girl had purple hair and a pair of red glasses, the second girl had green hair with a large bow, and the boy had green hair similar to Attillo's, glasses and a tan body warmer.
The girl with green hair, noticed Krystal first, running up to her, holding her pet cat in her arms. "Oh my gosh. Are you Krystal?" she asked, her eyes lighting up with wonder.
"Yes."
The young girl squealed with delight, running back to the other two. "That's her. That's the one Balan told us about!"
"That's her?" the boy asked.
"Her appearance matches what Balan told us." The bespectacled girl replied. "And the puppet that's with her matches up with what Balan had said too; white skin, red eyes and cheeks, black hair and a black suit."
After a quick conversation amongst themselves, the three approached Krystal and Paris.
"I'm Cass." The green-haired girl said.
"I'm Yuri." The second girl replied in a shy voice.
"And I'm Haoyu." The boy added.
"Nice to meet you three." Krystal said. Paris nodded in response.
"Balan was telling us what happened to you." Yuri said. "It was awful!"
"You have no idea..." Paris grumbled under his breath.
"Yeah." Haoyu said with a nod. "Yuri and I have been bullied before, but what happened to you was much, much worse."
"Really?" Krystal asked.
Yuri nodded. "I was bullied by kids at my school because I liked bugs and everyone else thought I was weird and gross. That's what brought me to the theatre."
"As for me, I have a love for flying. It's my dream to fly, ever since I was little. I've been trying for months to build a flying machine so I can soar and fly in the sky. I've made several prototypes of my machine, but every single one ended up with me failing and crashing in spectacular fashion.
"This caused a lot of kids at my school bullied me for having such a silly and unrealistic dream. As you can imagine, my constant failure and being bullied for having a dream, brought me here."
"That's awful." Krystal reasoned.
"I agree." Paris added.
"A girl can like bugs, nothing wrong with that. And having a dream about flying high above the clouds isn't a silly dream. If anything, it's a rather admirable dream to have."
"Looks like I'm last to tell my story." Cass said. "I live near a clock tower in a city and one day I met a cute little kitten."
The kitten in her hands meowed in response.
"We became good friends after that, and would meet each other everyday by the clock tower. One day however, on my way to meet them at the clock tower, as I approached the traffic lights, the kitten was on the other side of the road.
"The kitten saw me, and crossed the road to meet me. But as they did, a car passed on the street, right in the path of the car. I shouted to them to stop, but they stopped as the car collided with them. I forced myself to turn away and run away, thinking they'd been knocked down.
"The guilt from me thinking I had caused the death of the kitten, brought me here to the theatre, along with the others." She pet the kitten in her arms. "But once my problems were fixed, I came back and was relieved to see the kitten was safe and sound."
"Yeah, same with us." Yuri added, gesturing to Haoyu. "After facing my issues in the theatre, I spoke to the other students at my school and showed them some of the bugs I'd raised, and they actually took an interest in them."
Haoyu nodded. "After I left the theatre, I took another stab at making my flying machine and got it working."
"It seems you're getting along well with the other inhabitants." came Balan's voice as he approached them.
"Yes," Krystal replied. "It's been very interesting hearing the other's stories."
Balan smiled widely. "Wonderful! I have an announcement to make on stage. I hope to see you all in attendance." He turned to Krystal. "I have two other inhabitants I'd like you to meet. They'll be stopping by a bit later than usual."
"I see." Krystal nodded. "Guess we should all get prepared."
"That sounds right." Lucy added. "I'll see you and Paris when Balan makes his announcement."
"It was nice meeting you, Krystal." Cass said.
"Yeah, same." Yuri added. "I wonder what Balan's announcement will be?"
As Krystal and the others prepared for the announcement, a door near the back of the auditorium, opened, leaving Leo and Emma inside. Lance was there to greet them.
"Ah, Leo, Emma." He said.
"Hey Lance," Leo greeted.
"We got the Black Obsidian ring you and Balan asked for." Emma added, handing Lance a small box with the ring he and Balan had picked out last night.
He opened the box and was happy to see it was he exact ring; a sterling silver ring with a Black Obsidian crystal.
"Is it okay?" Emma asked. "We asked them for a ring that matched the description Balan gave us."
Lance smiled. "It's perfect. I'll give this to Krystal once Balan makes his announcement soon."
Emma nodded. "When are we meeting Krystal?"
"Soon. She's still meeting the other inhabitants right now."
As the spoke, Balan had seen Leo and Emma and approached them. "Ah, Leo and Emma, you're finally here."
Lance presented the ring to Balan. "They were able to get the ring, Balan."
"It looks perfect." He replied. "Come, I'm ready to begin the announcement. Follow me."
Lance, Leo and Emma nodded and followed after Balan to the stage. As Balan stepped onto the stage with Lance at his side, Leo and Emma waited backstage. Balan took a microphone and tapped it, making sure it was working. Soon enough, Krystal and he inhabitants had gathered around the stage.
"Good evening everyone," Balan greeted. "As you may have seen, Krystal has recently entered our theatre. Just like all of you, Krystal has been dealing with a lot of her own problems. Chief among them, is their former friend harassing them for months on end."
"It got to the point where Balan and I had stepped in when she came to the theatre's doors yesterday." Lance added, standing to Balan's side. "As some of you know, it's exceedingly rare for me to curse, let alone in my purified form I used yesterday when confronting them."
"Indeed, it is very rare. Krystal," Balan gestured for Krystal to come on stage. "Lance and I have a gift for you."
Krystal looked confused, but walked onto the stage, standing between Balan and Lance.
"Lance and I were talking last night about a way to help you, and Lance had suggested crystals with healing properties. Black Obsidian specifically." He presented Krystal with a small box containing the ring and took it out of the box, slipping it over Krystal's right index finger.
"So, Balan and I present you with this ring to help you with your worry and stress."
Krystal examined the ring on her finger. She had to admit, it was a beautiful ring. "Oh my." Her eyes began to well up with tears of happiness. "Thank you, both of you."
"Our pleasure, Krystal." Balan replied with a bow.
The inhabitants clapped and cheered for Krystal, Balan and Lance.
"I must admit," Paris began. "That ring looks beautiful on your hand."
"Yeah, the stone isn't too big either. It's the perfect size."
"I'm honestly surprised Lance was the one that suggested buying that ring for you."
Krystal smirked. "See? I told you Lance was a good guy."
Paris huffed. "I suppose."
"You gonna ease up on Lance after this?"
"Heh, we'll see, Krystal."
After the crowd had calmed down, Balan approached Krystal.
"Krystal, there are two people I'd like you to meet." He motioned to Emma and Leo backstage and they came out. "Krystal, I'd like you to meet Leo Craig and Emma Cole. They were the two that helped the inhabitants a few years back."
Leo looked at Krystal. "Whoa, so you're the one Balan told us about this morning."
"We're so sorry to hear what happened to you." Emma added as she shook Krystal's hand. "It's very nice to meet you. Balan had actually asked us to pick up the ring in the city earlier today."
"Yeah, we were in the theatre this morning and wanted to meet you then, but Balan had suggested we meet later. That "friend" of yours sounded like a nasty piece of work, going off what Balan told Emma and I."
"I appreciate the sympathy you two." Krystal said.
"I hope your issue gets resolved." Emma said, giving her a hug. "You have everyone's backs here."
"Thank you."
"It's getting late." Balan said, placing a hand on her shoulder. "I believe we should all retire for the night."
Lance nodded. "I agree. It's been very tiring for Krystal the past couple of days."
"I can imagine," Leo said. "Emma and I will be back tomorrow, Balan."
"We should let Krystal get her rest. "Emma agreed.
"Very well," Balan said. "We'll see you tomorrow."
After saying their goodbyes, Leo and Emma left and Krystal was led back to her room. As she got ready for bed, changing into her pyjamas again as Paris sat on the dresser.
Balan opened her door. He placed his hands behind his back. "So, how did you find the party?"
"It was nice." Krystal replied with a yawn.
"I'm glad you enjoyed yourself." He turned his attention to some art Krystal had made sitting on her nightstand. Walking over, he picked it up, noticing it was an oil pastel art piece.
The piece itself was a pair of red curtains with a spotlight, and an all too familiar silhouette of himself.
"Eeyahoo? Did you make this, Krystal?" he held the oil pastel art in his hand.
"Yeah. Do you like it?"
"It's absolutely lovely! You have quite the talent for art, my dear."
Krystal let out another yawn, causing Balan to chuckle. "It seems you should sleep now, Krystal, it's been a long day." She nodded and climbed into bed, snuggling under the covers.
"Remember Krystal, if there's any trouble, give me or Lance a call in the middle of the night and we'll be more than happy to assist you."
"Thanks for the offer. Night Balan."
"Goodnight Krystal." Balan said, giving her a hug and then closing the door.
Author note:
*crawls out of a hole*
It is almost 1am as I'm writing this. You're welcome.
Fret not, I and this fanfiction are not dead! I've been struck with writers block for a long time and finally this past week I've gotten inspired again. I guess to make up for the delay, I made this chapter extra long to compromise.
I'm sorry this chapter took so long to write, I cannot apologize enough. I sincerely hope that I wrote each of the inhabitants correctly. Feel free to let me know if I've made any mistakes.
So, after writing a long 21 page (22 in Word) chapter, I'll be taking another break. Hope you all understand.
*crawls back into their hole*
