It made sense for the owner of a video store to be quite familiar with the phrase "It was a dark and stormy night." It wasn't necessarily a cinema trope first and foremost, but the relationship between literature and film was practically like that of an uncle and nephew. Questionable metaphors and criminally overused first sentences aside, Belle hesitated to call this "a dark and stormy night." Not just because it was only four in the afternoon, not that one could tell with how dark the clouds overhead were, but also because the phrase simply didn't do this weather justice. The rain came down in buckets, the thunder and lightning refused to take a break, and the wind roared with just enough force to create that uneasy pit in her stomach. The one that formed in anyone's gut when faced with grim weather conditions. Needless to say, most of Sixth Street closed early in response. Random Play, however, remained open, at least for now. It wasn't like any sources had said this was storm was an actual threat to anyone's safety, and besides, most of the store's business could be run without electricity in the event of a blackout.
All the same, she had no desire to sit around in the store's front room. Being near all the windows in these conditions called to mind a non-zero amount of thriller movies where severe weather was itself an antagonist, and worsened that pit-in-stomach feeling. She'd instead left today's work to Wise, and kicked back in the staff-only room, watching sickeningly sweet films of various genres to keep herself distracted. It was as she was switching out tapes to watch the next one that she heard the computer behind her, and the AI contained within, speak up.
"Master, I have cross-referenced weather data related to the present with similar storms from the past few decades. Based on wind speed and immediate surroundings, the risk of significant structural damage to the video store is 0.000001%."
"Are you trying to reassure me?" Belle certainly hadn't asked for the analysis, but hearing that it would take a miracle for her or the store to be in any real danger did make her feel a bit better. Was it because Fairy had heard her fretting about it with Wise earlier, when the weather notice was first put out?
"Negative. I have not reached the second half of my conclusion. While there is no real danger to personnel or property, I have calculated the likelihood of a power outage sometime within the next thirty minutes is 91.824%. In the event of an outage, I will be temporarily unavailable. Because of this, I would like to temporarily install myself on your smartphone. Please be advised that, based on the model of your phone and the amount of electricity I require, your phone will run out of power approximately ninety minutes after I am installed."
"Let's not do anything hasty." As convenient and helpful as Fairy was, having it in her pocket sounded awful. Not to mention the battery drain Fairy had mentioned. "Can I think about it for a bit?"
"You may. However, I would prefer receiving an answer - preferably a positive one - sooner, rather than later."
Bleep bleep! Bleep bleep!
"Speaking of phones, Master, it appears yours is now ringing. Shall I send an automated text message stating that Phaethon's services are unavailable due to inclement weather?"
"No, I'll handle it." A quick look at the screen revealed it was Anby. And, rather unusually, it was a call instead of a text message. Only mildly suspicious, Belle answered the call. "He-" Immediately, she winced away from the phone against her ear. Whatever was going on over on Anby's end, it was loud. It was like her ears were getting physically assaulted by weaponized white noise. "Hello? Anby?"
It was difficult to make out Anby's voice through all the background noise, and the pieces she could make out didn't quite paint the full picture. "Proxy, a-open-?"
"...Could you repeat that? There's a ton of static on your end. Are you okay?"
"I'm f-. You're pro-ing the weather. I have som-th."
"Umm... sorry, I can't make out what you're saying. Did you say the weather? Wait, are you outside!?"
"Yes. Th-."
"Anby, the background noise is getting worse. I can't make out a word you're saying, get inside before you keep talking!"
"-whe-sed. W-. -ore-, -." After a couple seconds of relative silence, Belle could hear a door sliding shut on the other end of the line, punctuated by an almost immediately silencing of that deafening white noise in the background. "Alright. I'm inside a convenience store now. Can you hear me?"
"Loud and clear! What were you calling about?"
"There's a couple of things I need your help with. Are you busy?"
"Sorry, Anby, I'm not doing any Proxy work today."
"That's fine. I was actually planning on visiting the video store today, and wanted recommendations. There's also something else I wanted help with, but I would prefer to talk about it in person. Are you open for business today?"
"Oh! Yeah!" Belle made for the staff-only door, and said "I'll get some films together for you. What are you looking for?"
"Weather like this is perfect for watching horror movies. If you have one where the weather is a central point, or even the antagonistic force, that would be even better."
"Sure," Belle said, her sense of professionalism being the only thing keeping the tone of her voice pleasant in that one moment. Anby went and described the one film Belle tried not to think about on days like this. But she knew Random Play kept it in stock, at least. A quick look around on the shelves, and...
"Sorry, Anby. I know the perfect film to scratch that itch, but it looks like it's out of stock right now."
"That's fine. I'll be at the store in about twenty minutes. I can look at what's available when I get there."
"Wait, are you walking here? I can go send Wise to pick you up if you want."
"No thank you. I need to do something else on my way there. See you soon."
"But he could just-"
Beep.
Call ended.
"Anby's coming over," Belle clarified, turning to face Wise. "She'll be here in about twenty minutes."
Those twenty minutes were spent rather peacefully, all things considered. Some of the time was dedicated to preparing for Anby's visit, some was spent chatting with Wise or Fairy, but most of it went to more lounging around on the couch, watching whatever teeth-rottingly sweet film next found itself in Belle's hands. And, much to Fairy's dismay, the request for a mobile installation was ultimately denied. Once it got closer to twenty minutes, Belle tried to keep herself in the front room, ready to greet Anby as soon as she got through the door.
When Anby did arrive, hell came with her. Once the door started to open, the wind flung it wide open, inviting the rain that had been battering the walls of the store to spill in and cover the floor, knocking several items off the store counter, and throwing one unfortunate Bangboo behind said counter off the stool it had been standing on. In the couple of short seconds it took for Anby to get inside and shut the door behind her, everything downwind of the door was in a state of total disarray. And then there was Anby herself.
Actually, on closer inspection, Anby seemed more or less fine. Her hair was in general disarray, but otherwise, the weather left her looking none the worse for wear. Probably to do with the change in wardrobe. Fitting for the weather, she came to the store dressed in a yellow raincoat, with a pair of rain boots in the same color as well. The whole getup came complete with high-vis patches here and there, and the raincoat's hood had a transparent visor that extended from the hood. Her rain gear was completely soaked, and the wet sheen of water caused it to reflect some of the light coming from overhead. As she pulled down the hood, and started undoing the buttons, Anby greeted the store managers with the same unfazed tone as always.
"Good afternoon."
"Hey there, Anby." It got blown off the counter by the wind that came in with her, but preparations had already been made for Anby's visit in the form of a towel for her to dry off with. Picking it up off the floor and holding it out in her direction, Belle said "Here."
"No thank you. I won't be here long. Once I get the tape I'm looking for, I need to get back to what I'm doing." With her raincoat removed, all that was left underneath was a rather normal-looking tank top and bike shorts that, in a stark contrast to her hair, were almost completely dry. The lights overhead were continually dimming for brief moments, signaling that the power lines were dancing on a thin line to a blackout. Holding up the removed raincoat over her arms, Anby asked "Is there someplace I can put this?"
"Just set it on top of the towel." There were a couple of chairs near the door. That would work. Belle put the towel on the seat of the chair, and Anby put her raincoat on the towel to avoid tracking more water all over the store. "So, what was that other thing you wanted help with? The one you wanted to discuss in person?"
While Anby started her explanation, a couple of the store's Bangboos began busying themselves around the room, trying as best they could to clean up the floor with a mop that had been set aside for this moment.
"It was a dark and stormy night..."
"Anby, it's only half past four."
"I know. That's a common line people use when they aren't sure how else to start a horror story. But you don't see it very often in movies. Lately, I noticed a trend. Most of the time, if an important character wears a yellow raincoat, it's a horror movie. Like this one, or this one." From the shelf before her, Anby picked up two distinct movies that did fit her description. They were certainly horror movies, and the scene where a major character wore a yellow raincoat was fairly notable in both of them. But they didn't seem to be ones she was interested in renting, as they soon found their way back onto the shelf. "I wanted to figure out why that is."
"Uh-huh..."
"On the other hand, disaster movies don't have that, if they're meant to be action films instead of horror. Not even ones where the disaster is a flood or hurricane. So it has to be something specific to the horror genre."
"Maybe the director makes it that way so the character can stand out in a dark environment?"
"I thought the same thing. But then, why does it not come up in disaster movies, like I mentioned? It has to be something specific to horror movies. Which is why, while the weather is like this, I'm going to investigate some ghost stories around New Eridu."
"Are you sure about that? I know the weather out there looks a lot scarier than it is, but couldn't you wait for it to clear up first?"
"Then I wouldn't be in the scene with the raincoat, and we'll never find out why this only happens in horror films. It has to be on a stormy day like this. That's what I wanted your help with."
"And you're sure I have to go with you?" Belle looked at the window again. She considered the Cunning Hares important customers as a Proxy, but more than that, she considered them dear friends. And there was a lot Belle was willing to do for a friend in need. This, however, was pushing it quite a bit. Anby didn't even give a verbal answer to that question. When Belle looked back to her, she was staring right back. Unblinking. Unflinching. Frankly, unsettling.
"Yes."
"But it's so awful out there," Belle groaned.
"I need to cover more ground than I can manage on foot, and several metro stations are closed on account of the weather. Nicole didn't want to drive me around, either. You're my last hope, Proxy. Plus, having someone with a car nearby will let me make a quick exit, if the situation gets out of hand."
"Wait, you only needed me to drive? Why didn't you just say so?"
"Because I also need you to follow me around. In horror movies, anyone who goes off to explore on their own is almost guaranteed to turn up dead the next time you see them. I am leaving my life in your hands. Also, if I tried to walk home in this weather, whatever video tape I rent might get ruined."
"You're really twisting my arm here, huh? Fine! Fine, I'll help."
"Thank you, Proxy. We can start investigating whenever you're ready." As Anby stepped up to the counter to get the movie of her choice checked out, suddenly, the lights in the store suddenly went out.
"What timing..."
"Don't worry. I have a flashlight." Anby reached down to some sort of pocket, only to grab empty air. Then she remembered. With the path lit by the frequent flashes of lightning, Anby went to the chair where her raincoat was left to dry, and fished a flashlight out of its pockets. "It's good to keep one nearby on days like this," she said, switching it on and returning to the counter. "Also, it helps set the scene."