“Pardon me, but I’m
afraid it’s not quite time to start our ‘battle’ just yet,” said Lloyd, pulling
back his hand and laying it atop the kitchen table. “I hope you haven’t forgotten our current
state affairs…or to be more precise, the affairs of my kin.”
“Ah, where is my mind today? I’m afraid I was just so excited to see you that I let that little bit of information slip
my mind.” Gaston stroked the tip of his
masked chin with a few slinking fingers.
“Now then, let me see…where did I leave them? I didn’t do something so cliché as throw them
into a wood chipper or incinerator, did I?”
The corners of Lloyd’s
mouth tightened.
“Oh, don’t you worry,
Lloyd. I was merely trying to get you
riled up a bit; I so hate it when my enemies get too lax; staying in one’s
comfort zone for too long breeds sloth and sluggishness, you see.” He folded his arms and cocked his head. “Your father has been left unharmed; I
suspect that he’s gallivanting through town as we speak, trying desperately to
find his son no matter the cost…though his noble efforts may very well make him
his own worst enemy.” He motioned with
his head toward the hallway. “Your guest
should be very close by. Though I wonder
what you’ll do, in light of the glimmer of truth you’ve earned through that
little demonstration.”
“Ku fu fu…my, you’re
looking a little tense again, Lloyd. Perhaps
you should take a break from this hero business. Or rather, do yourself a service and get a
massage. The sheer amount of pressure
escaping from your body is astounding. Frankly, I’m surprised you can even move.”
Lloyd shook his head
rapidly. “Where is JP?”
“Oh, yes, the boy. Well, I suppose you’re looking to obtain the
full set, aren’t you? To answer your
question, JP is right behind you.”
Lloyd nearly leapt out
of his chair as he turned about -- but to his shock, no one stood behind him.
“…Is what I would like
to say. But alas, the young prince is
still within my grasp. And I don’t
intend to let him go anytime soon -- not without the proper coaxing.”
“Then speak. What do you want from me?”
Gaston leaned forward
and rested a forearm on the table; for a moment, Lloyd felt his body, and the
room, grow a bit colder. “I’m going to
be in a certain place. As will my
associate. As will your brother. If you can come to that certain place and put
an end to the performance before day’s end, then I swear on my life…” He chuckled and glanced briefly at his
chest. “My un-life…that no harm will come to your brother -- and he will be
returned to you without conflict.”
“And if I should fail?”
“I would prefer not to
give you the gruesome details.”
“Fine. If you would have me dance, then I have no
choice but to dance.” Lloyd stood up and
pressed his hands against the table.
“Now, if your business is concluded, I’ll have to ask you to leave.”
“You’re going to throw
me out? Rather uncouth of you, monsieur.” Gaston stood up as well. “But in spite of your kind offer, I can see
myself out. I’m not quite as helpless as
I appear, you see. The same can’t be
said for others in the room, but I suppose such inability is to be expected.”
“You give me too little
credit,” said Lloyd, pressing a hand to his hip. “Is it so wise to underestimate the one who
will defeat you?”
“Defeat me? Lloyd, you
poor sod -- haven’t you realized that you’ve already lost? You may be the hero, but so long as you’re an
actor in MY play, you’ll never have an advantage against me. So just play along, do as I say, and enjoy
the show until your blissful descent into the abyss.” And with those words spoken, Gaston swept his
cape over his body…and in the next instant, vanished from the kitchen.
Lloyd let loose a sigh
that he’d been nursing for what felt like hours. “This is going to be very troublesome,” he
muttered, rubbing the back of his head.
But of course, his lethargy didn’t last.
“Ah, yes! M-Miss Walters! Are you here?
Are you hurt? If you can hear my
voice, give a shout!”
“…Lloyd?”
The voice came from the
hall -- and Trixie came from it not long after.
She pressed a hand against its corner, and massaged her head with slow,
circular motions. “Ah man…I’ve really
been out of it, haven’t I?”
“No matter; what’s
important is that you’re safe and sound.”
Lloyd clambered over the den’s wreckage to stand before her. “You -- you ARE safe and sound, yes? No harm has come to you?”
Trixie gave her body a
quick survey. “Well, my head’s killin’
me, but other than that I think I’m all right.
But how’re ya holdin’ up, pal?”
“My state of affairs is
of no consequence,” Lloyd answered, waving a hand through the air. “Considering what just transpired, I’m more
concerned about you.”
“Uh…that’s real
flatterin’ and all, but…” She scratched
above her ear. “What happened now?”
“You mean you don’t
remember?”
Trixie shook her
head. “Last thing I remember was that
masked freak tryin’ to crush me and yer family.
And then after that…” She looked
around the house. “I dunno. I don’t even know how I got through the front
door.”
“Is that right?” But before she could say any more, Lloyd held
up a hand. “Wait. So in essence, you’re saying that you just
woke up a moment ago?”
“Guess so, yeah. Sorry.”
Lloyd’s brow
tightened. “But when I was expelled, I
ended up talking to you on the phone a short while later. You were the one who told me JP was
abducted.”
“Y-ya got expelled?!”
“A delightful story, I
assure you. But that aside, you don’t
remember our conversation?”
“Lloyd, I didn’t know
we even had a conversation.”
“But…” Lloyd shook his head, and pressed a few
fingers to his temple. “No. I suppose that for the moment, details like
those aren’t important. We can discuss
the particulars AFTER we save my brother; according to Gaston, he, his
associate, and JP are still somewhere in Porbeagle. If we can find them, we can save JP before
any harm comes to him.” He couldn’t help
but break out a smile. “Funny. It seems rather odd that I have to explain
this to you, given that you already explained it to me…well, so to speak.”
Trixie rubbed the back of her neck. “Sure wish I could remember anything,
pal. Sounds like we need all the help we
can get against this freak.”
Nevertheless, she shrugged and stared heatedly at Lloyd. “But like ya said, that ain’t important right
now. We gotta find and save JP -- and
the sooner we do, the sooner I can make Gaston eat that mask o’ his.”
“Spirited as always,”
said Lloyd, hoping that Trixie didn’t pick up on his nervous quivering. “At any rate, our first step is…”
“…Is?”
“I have no idea.”
“Dammit, Lloyd! Get serious, will ya?”
“Actually, this is
likely one of the rare moments when I am.”
He took a seat on the couch, managing a stable position in spite of it
being flipped well off-base. “On the one
hand, I have a nemesis calling me to the battlefield -- a foe that knows my
name and my abode, and has my brother in his clutches. One would think that if ever there was a time
to set aside fears and inhibitions, this would be it.”
He rested his chin atop
clasped hands. “And yet, I can’t help
but feel as if I’ve failed before my adventure has already begun. The evidence has piled up against me. I’m a flimsy sap. I’ve done more harm than good. And in spite of my lofty aims, I haven’t made
a single stride toward anything so far.
The most I can say is that I’ve helped two other students get expelled
and brought a teacher…EX-teacher to tears.”
He lowered his eyes for a moment and took a slow breath -- and then,
looked back to Trixie with a sheepish grin.
“So sorry to bore you with my angst, Miss Walters; I merely thought I
should lay my thoughts bare. I’m finding
the truth to be a rather unsavory dish, you see, and…”
Lloyd’s eyes widened as
he stared at Trixie. He expected her to
look down on him with a mix of disdain and pity, and maybe even turn her back
on him. But instead, she’s broken out
into a smile -- one that grew wider and wider as she tried to stifle a
laugh. She started snorting, once,
twice, three times…and then, the dam broke.
She burst into hearty guffaws.
“Did I do something
wrong?” Lloyd asked, pointing feebly at her.
Trixie didn’t answer,
of course. She just kept rocking back
and forth as she laughed, throwing a few tears into the air. “Hahahaha!
Oh, jeez! I just can’t believe
how insane ya are, pal!” She brushed a tear from the corner of one
eye. “Wow. I haven’t laughed like that in a while.”
“So…I DID do something
wrong?”
Trixie shook her head,
and with a quick sigh got the last laugh out of her system; even so, she still
wore a sizable smile. “Lloyd, d’ya know
how that power o’ yers works, exactly?”
“Ah -- well, frankly,
no.” He glanced at his palm. “It seems as if there are a number of caveats
and rules to learn. And even then, I
still don’t know its full effects…or the consequences therein.”
“Yeah, I figured as
much. I mean, ya only had it for, what,
three days tops?” Trixie took a seat next
to Lloyd. “I know I was pretty much yer
first test subject, but I still dunno exactly what ya did, either. But ya know, I’ve been thinkin’.” She looked up at the ceiling and reared back
a bit. “Yer power’s all about helpin’
people -- makin’ ‘em feel better so they can do better in life.”
“I certainly hope
that’s the case.”
“I think it is. I’ve had a crazy day so far, ya know --
actin’ like JP’s bodyguard, and then bein’
JP’s bodyguard. He almost got shot at
and burned alive, but I did everythin’ I could to make sure he got home safe.” She looked around the ruined den. “I screwed up, but at least I tried. And ya know what? I don’t think that I’d have tried at all if
it wasn’t for a certain purple-haired dandy.”
“Y-you don’t mean me,
do you?”
“Ya know any other
purple-haired dandies?”
“Well, there was a TV
series a while back where --”
“The point is, power or
not, ya helped me out. Ya let me believe
that could do something important, and meaningful, and brave, and maybe even
impossible, just because I was alive.”
“How so?” Lloyd
asked. Did she remember her time in the
audition room? Or maybe --
“I can’t say for sure
exactly. But thinkin’ about it now…I
guess ya could say I owe ya one for showin’ me the way.” She stared at him, still wearing a
smile. “Lloyd. Yer an idiot.
Yer the stupidest damn dandy I ever met, and I still ain’t convinced yer
not from a loony bin. But that’s exactly
why yer better than ya think ya are.”
“I’m afraid I don’t follow.”
“Ya may be crazy, but
yer the right kind o’ crazy. Always
tryin’ to put on a show…always tryin’ to help others…always tryin’ to make
people happy…even if ya screw up, yer always doin’ yer best. And ya can keep on doin’ yer best for as long
as it takes.”
She patted him on the
shoulder. “Now ain’t the time to feel
sorry for yerself. We got a punk-ass kid
to save.”
Lloyd stared blankly at
her for a moment, and then turned away.
He slid off the sofa, climbed to his feet, and started down the hallway
-- all without a word.
“L-Lloyd! Where’re ya…?!” But before she could object any further, she
sighed and rubbed the back of her neck.
“Agh. Guess he needs a little
time to think or somethin’. Can’t be
helped, I guess. Just hope I got through
that numbskull head o’ his.”
She looked around the
den and groaned. “Might as well clean up
a little.”
TO BE HEARTINUED…
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