Chapter 13
The Kaleido Stage
It was time, the crowd already was seated and the sun had long since set.
Only minor problems appeared but they all had been solved before the first eveningshow started.
The last pressconference that had been held before the opening posed little trouble. Kalos had done it so many times it became second nature, but then one reported asked if the rumour was true that their newest topstars were engaged in a romanitic relationship. It was amazing how quickly rumours spread and Kalos expected them none too soon and just answered.
'I fail to see what that has to do with tonights show.'
The crowd was full of anticipation and many were lured to the show by promised intense drama and romance.
Such a stage hadn't been seen since Sora's angel act, but this time unbeknownst to the public it was not going to be just a play, the feelings real.
The small booklets contained small hints about the characters that were going to appear and reading about every character increased the anticipation of the crowd until the collective rumble was getting almoast out of hand.
It was then the lights where turned down and with darkness also came silence. It firstly showed Rosetta as the princess that surrounded by many suitors whom she had control over.
A very lavish display of elegance and beauty followed that showed not just the glory of the princess, but her kingdom as well. Many joined whilst this part of the show progressed showing that the pompeuos display was supported by a great strength and sense of unity. Rosetta's costume was very enticing and quite a sight. It just showed the great strength that was everpresent.
The first time she played such a role she had a hard time wearing a oldfashioned dress and this time needed something unique to ensure mobility. The color all carefully chosen to complement to accent her intense hair and seagreen eyes. Individual wide strands who stationary formed the skirt, in midair proved very practicle. She didn't need jewelry to accent her charms but still had some small precious stones insterted at key points.
Overall the lilac-blue costume looked as if the redhead had never worn such a beautiful garment, as if she had been born with it.
But beautiful and enchanting the princess was, she still was alone. The scene ended and it got dark again.
The music that before was just used to emphasise the glory of the princesses realm now changed to a more adventurous theme as everything light up again.
On the ground May led the second part of the stage.
It now showed a band of warriors ruled by etiquette and honor and a common ruler who was the chinese herself. It showed them to be straightforward people displaying their strength openly. An impressive display indeed. May in the role of the warrior-prince was very impressivly dressed. He costume blend togther with her dark hair and blue eyes.
Her hair however this time was tied into one single ponytail as the image of the prince needed to be a masculine one. However there still was that strong trace of her feminine nature nothing would ever be capable of hiding.
Wearing a thin leather armor, with pauldorns and wiedling a long sword she hinted at her warrior heritage. It showed all of them bound toghether under a common cause driven by a noble zeal. The tent now became dark again and the short break followed which left the audience a minute to recouperate and consider the grand display they had just seen.
Nothing happened that would hint it to be a romantic play, but they hoped that the next scene might.
As the room was enveloped by light it split the who stage in two, each of the factions at one side and where they overlapped May and Rosetta stood on the trapeese. At first it seemed a joyfull greeting and the two sides celebrated their meeting. The leaders however were not at all enticed and tried to warn their people.
But it was lost and after some time the factions saw just how their values and morals weren't the same and as a result a confict insued. Each of the leaders did their best to end the confrontation but in the end found themselves powerless.
The only option was for the princess and the prince to join and unite their people under a common seal. It would be a union not driven by feelings but by purpouse and objective.
Kalos watched everything as he did and was pleased with the show, but saw that May and Rosetta had chosen their path that would leave from this stage. He called one of his assitants and orderd him to rewrite their contract for just the three weeks that this show would last.
Like this he would already start to initiate the recovery that the stage would need after the loss of the two girls.
The short break ended and May and Rosetta now returned both on the highest trapeses overlooking the other performers who where locked in a intense conforntation, victor and vanquished unclear. As the diverse and plentyfull smaller acts started to get closer to the ground the girls were lowered to two props that looked like cliffs.
The comotion underneath them subsided as the people who enganged in conflict looked up to their leaders, their heroes. They alone could not decide this battle and so left the outcome to the two representant of each people. No one suspected what was about to happen and how the two rules would consipre in order to restore peace.
The trapeese set was changed and the two started headfirst slightly resigned to the outcome as their roles would portray a forced romance that served just that one purpouse, the union of their people.
As Rosetta was the representant of the feminine side she took the lead and presented herself enticing, but also dangerous.
May representing the masculine half of this relationship was not one to shy down from the challenge and gave chase showing himself willing to give away his affections for the right cause.
It was a serious act at first but then started to become more and more frivolous as slowly the two factions noticed their leaders attempting to gain eachother affections.
In that instant the conflict stopped and admired at their rulers who had exchanged the heat of war for that of love. As the comotion under them subsided the two were happy to have ended the conflict and now May was ready to welcome their union under the same cause.
But Rosetta backed away staying out of the chineses reach hinting that the game of courtship had just begun. Somehow the prince found it strangly alluring and resumed his chase, at first blaming it on defending his honor, but maybe there was something more.
The princess now having her suitor's attention and persistance, showed her nature as enchantress and started to seduce her future coregent.
If she had to throw her affections to someone she should at least have the pleasure of giving them to someone she considered worthy. The chase was getting more and more intense the redhead deviating from the original moves challenging May's abilities.
The chinese however had expected something like this from Rosetta and altough not capable of predicting her moves approached her calm knowing just what the girls limits were.
But unbeknownst to her this was what the redhead had been playing at all along and after the chinese had been lured into a false sense of security she was ready to unleash her full prowess.
May at first thought that the redhead was in her reach and just as she was about to grab her Rosetta plunged. May didn't see any trapeese below and as she was rapdidly descending very close to the floor was one trapeese left that was now swinging directly under the girl catching her in the last minute.
Gaining momentum she passed dangerously close to the other perfomers on the ground and those that were in her way wisely jumped out of the way. It took her just one good swing to gain enough momentum to jump to the middle of the complex of swings.
May was astounded and noted that she must have picked up these moves from Sora and now for the first tried them herself.
She had always practiced and performed with her so she knew what her partner was capable of, but this daredevil act showed just how determined Rosetta was. In this way the chinese was forced to act to defend her honor, but also keen on impressing the princess.
Whether princess was the right term for Rosetta's role was debatable as this was no damsel in distress or ruled by a superior king or queen, the best term that would discrbibe her was empress, strong and independant.
May joined her on the lower trapeeses and felt the same odd tingle that she hadn't felt in a long time as the days spent practicing didn't bring anything new.
The emotional depth was enough to sustain her but only now did she regain the excitement of the stage. And if Rosetta didn't find her worthy she would prove her wrong.
And so the chase resumed itself much more serious then before, but this constant challange was something both enjoyed.
However May rembered something that had slipped Rosetta's mind and would use it to her advantage. Whilst on one of the lower trapeeses there where no ordinary means of reaching the redhead a few meters above even with the gained momentum and Rosetta knew she was out of reach.
Secure however as she felt May tensioned her right arm and as she came to the peak of the swing used her all her might to propell herself up in order to finally catch the princess.
The redhaired girl however surprised by the sudden move still had kept her options open and escaped nearly having been caught. This small loss seemd to rile up the chinese as now she couldn't stand another minute blindly chasing Rosetta, but after a few other jumps she realized.
Again she had fallen in the princesses trap and became the persistant suitor who lost all other purpouse but try to gain her love. But was giving up her own will worth it? Reuniting her people now seemed a meaningless task as she stopped. The redhead saw that the game had again changed and it was not to her liking, if she prince had lost interest then she would need to tempt him and she did so by proceeding towards him.
May was acting indifrence and stayed put not impressed by even the most lavish of moves that Rosetta could bring. The princess was getting nervous and desprate. In front of was the only one who had ever showed interest in her that trangressed means to an obective and became real affection.
It dawned on her that she had pushed her luck too much and was on the edge of loosing the only person that would ever satisfy her. The troubles of the people were forgotten as this had turned into a genuine pursuit for love.
This time however Rosetta knew that May strategy was to make her endure the same pains of seduction she had just wielded, but this time if it would mean that her only love was not lost she blindly accepted.
How quickly Rosetta had submitted herself make the chinese feel something she had almoast never felt on the stage, the feeling of being desired, meaning the world to someone.
Such were the glorious satisfactions that affections brought, but after a few rounds of chase she started to slow down. The prince yearned for the affections of the princess, but toying wouldn't result in anything and so there was just one thing left to do, he alone would initiate it.
Rosetta noted that May had slowed down and met again that May she had known outside the stage. She saw that the chinese was tired of all the games and presented her with a simple choice.
Accept her love or walk away.
It was no choice and she got up to near to the cliff where she started, there was the longest trapeese which she needed to jump a great distance but also jump slowly enough for May to do her part.
From here on now everything became familiar again as in the last weeks they had been constantly showing their devotion and now the final climax required just that.
Their hearts again beat wildly to some unheard rythem, rushing boiling blood trough their veins which flooded them with the feeling of anticipation. Everything somehow beating in unison, the dramatic music, their breaths, their hearts even the crowd, everything now was pulsating getting constantly faster.
Kalos also had been caught by the wave of excitement and was impressed how they had handled their first show together, it really was a shame that they had chosen their way off the stage.
"Giving their best at all time, that is what I always wanted and altough they could remain at the stage after this is done after that hardship is sure to follow. With them bound as they are performing roles that would somehow cross their true feelings would be something that both are to weak for. In the end if that would happen and it surly will if they would stay, they themselves will probably choose to leave."
Rosetta and May now where at the peak of their swings and were preparing for their climactic act. But it took them a few moments to break away from swinging in unison as for this to work there had to be a small delay between them. Rosetta slowed slightly down signaling to May that it was time.
With a sense of enchantment and endearment both forgot to shout the name of the maneuver as they usually did and Rosetta launched herself on a trajectory that led under where May was and the chinese having the achived the necesarry delay also released her bar.
Altough the moment was a split of the second to the two girls and everybody watching them it seemed to dilate and at the exact moment that odd pulsation stopped as May grabbed Rosetta and snatched the girl with her. As always they made one slow but gracefull revoltution that however moved them in such a way that it was now up to Rosetta to get them to safety, which she easily did. Grabbing the central bar and summoning the strength in her right arm she propelled May and herself on top of the bar and there embraced themselves like they did so many times before.
Both had been tempted to kiss right there and now, but its was just equally good of a result. The music now turned to a soothing serenade which marked the end of their act and sealed their first co-starring. White and red flowerpatels started raining from the top of the tent and an odd draft made them all fall in circles, wals around the two showing just how much deep love was between them.
Kalos looked at them and sighed, it had been a wonderfull show, but it marked the begining of the end as after the next two weeks they would leave under his order.
With their right hands joined and hidden between the two embracing girls they felt strength building up in them as in that moment both had one last thing to add to their act before it was done. The crowd was overjoyed seeing the two and already some started applauding and cheering for them, but the crew backstage wondered why the two didn't want to part.
That was the established sign that they should turn off the lights and end the show.
Sora who had been immesnly pleased with the show also wonderd as the minute passed, but then her eyes widened and she quickly told the supervisor next to her to quickly reestablish the former dramatic music. The man altough didn't question her and made the necesary adjustments.
He gave the two less then half a minute, but Sora knew that something would happen.
Kalos also started to wonder what was going on and quickly was told that Sora asked for this extension.
Onstage May and Rosetta were relived that the other had understood their sign and they listening to the music around them deducted that they had only a few seconds to really complete the show.
The tension in their arms had built up to the point they could not contain it anymore, and the petals that were raining around started to fall towards them. In that moment that dilemma passed trough their minds, whether to chose their love or their precious stage.
After today's performace it was painfully clear just how much both meant to them. And then with enough might stored in both of them they finally saw it.
The thrid option, the one Kalos and everybody failed to see, the one way no one ever considered which they hoped would gain them both the stage and their love.
Resigned they now gambled everything on one last card and with slightly parting from eachother but still with a their hands joined they pulled in one last time before pushing themselves apart from eachother.
Such strength hadn't been seen since the legendary maneuver and the petals that had started to close in on them due to the depression cause by the build-up now scattered away trough the pressurewave created by the two parting.
The two looked immensly sad as they had propelled themselves away from eachother. The princess and prince had forsake their love just when they had reached it.
The two now plummeted and Sora quickly ordered the lights to be shut. The crowd was in awe, what had just happened? Why did the two break apart right now? Had their love not been true?
A minute ago the crowd had been cheering, but now many of them started shedding tears as the love the two had shared didn't deserve to end like that.
Rosetta and May grabbing individual bars and landing back on the big cliffprops heard the cries and laments of the audience and felt sad having cause them, but this was their choice and they had no other option but accept it. Kalos looked amazed.
They had done it, they just trough that moment prooved themselves much more capable then he had ever considered them or would have even dreamed of.
"They actually did it. Their endured the hardship that the stage would bring against love, as there is nothing more cruel then having them deny their love on stage when they feel it so strongly in their hearts. In the end they didn't chose to detach themselves or run away, but perform with their hearts and endure anything that the stage could throw at them."
The man was now overjoyed and quickly summoned his assitant again, telling him to restore the old conditions of the two girls contract. They had prooven themselves.
As two spotlights now lightened the two cliffs the two altough seperate trough a chasm were immensly happy. The crowd seeing them still with their tears in their eyes started cheering again for the two. The sad ending had been dramatic and unexpected and had deeply moved them.
Maybe a happy ending wouldn't have had such a profound effect on them and they applauded the two for having put on such a grand show. The crew from backstage also started joining with the audience clapping having been affected just as much.
Mia had the most tears altough she also liked the show to have ended with a happy couple, but Cathy cheered her up, she on the other hand really liked how it turned out, maybe there was something to romantic stories after all.
Sora also joined the two backstage really content with what she saw and having heard Kaloses decision to keep the two on the stage. As the lights outside dimmed down and the two big props were lowered the two got off, but despite being surrounded by many caring friends and colleagues in that moment had eyes for just one person and quickly ran in eachothers arms.
Mia seeing them like that instantly was cheered up, but what the next happened made her and most people around shy away emberassed. The two girls in the peak of euphoria having transgressed so many times now shared a kiss of which tenderness this stage and its crew probably had never seen before.
Most looked away not wanting to seem rude, Cathy however liked how the two looked in that moment before Mia covered her eyes and turned her around leaving her only to asked confused. 'Whaaat?'
Rosetta and May didn't notice at all and were filled with joy and somehow knew that they had proven themselves, not just to Kalos or the stage, but to the whole world.
In the future they would face similar difficulties and some obstacles that would inevitably crush and bring them down, but and now everybody knew that as long as they had eachother they would prevail. Their love now to the stage neither curse nor blessing but to eachother the last piece to their fufillment.
From afar Fool had seen them and altough visbly enticed by the two girls was happy and surprised with their solution. He rembered what Rosetta told him before the stage and those words remained etched in his memory.
"Indeed true love crosses everything that surrounds it, even fate that cruely tries to manipulate it. But the question still remains. Who is cruel this time? Fate harboring machinations? or Love harborning defiance?"
In the end looking once more at the two girls he was happy that they wouldn't leave and noted that this was one of the moments. An event which many belived untrue and others wrote odes and novel about. The instant in which two souls met in time and united by an affectionate bond converged into the common point called ... Love.