update from sparkleup
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<p>A dull clang rang out from the dim light of the stage, followed by a sickening thump. The girl, looking no older than fifteen, sprawled, limp and bloodied, unconscious on parquet. A person stood over her, breathing heavily, spittle flecking their lips and madness in their eyes. They let out a feral scream and leapt high in the air, a length of pipe held over their head and brought it down with all of their might.</p>
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<p>A dull clang rang out from the dim light of the stage, followed by a sickening thump. The girl, looking no older than fifteen, sprawled, limp and bloodied, unconscious on parquet. A person stood over her, breathing heavily, spittle flecking their lips and madness in their eyes. They let out a feral scream and leapt high in the air, a length of pipe held over their head and brought it down with all of their might.</p>
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<p>Right as it was about to land, the lights went out, leaving the entire auditorium from stage to doors in pitch black. In the darkness, the last of the shout was punctuated with another clang and a horrible crunch.</p>
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<p>Right as it was about to land, the lights went out, leaving the entire auditorium from stage to doors in pitch black. In the darkness, the last of the shout was punctuated with another clang and a horrible crunch.</p>
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<p>The play continued from there. The police showed up. The investigation was swift and decisive. The arrest was made. All of this in utter darkness.</p>
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<p>The play continued from there. The police showed up. The investigation was swift and decisive. The arrest was made. All of this in utter darkness.</p>
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<p>Even at the scene change, though, as the lights came back up, as the foyer disappeared and was replaced with a courtroom done up all in wood, the scene for the rest of the performance, the puddle of blood remained on the floor, untouched and bright red, glinting in the stage-lights.</p>
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<p>Even at the scene change, though, as the lights came back up, as the foyer disappeared and was replaced with a courtroom done up all in wood, the scene for the rest of the performance, the puddle of blood remained on the floor, untouched and bright, arterial red, glinting in the stage-lights.</p>
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<p>At first, I thought it must have been a mistake, some stagehand forgetting to clean up the mess. As the play continued, though, it became increasingly clear that this was intentional. The attorneys deftly avoided stepping in the puddle, never looking at it. The judge never looked at it. The jury never looked at it. Neither did the bailiff or any of the witnesses.</p>
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<p>At first, I thought it must have been a mistake, some stagehand forgetting to clean up the mess. As the play continued, though, it became increasingly clear that this was intentional. The attorneys deftly avoided stepping in the puddle, never looking at it. The judge never looked at it. The jury never looked at it. Neither did the bailiff or any of the witnesses.</p>
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<p>The perpetrator, however, couldn’t seem to keep their eyes off it. Even as they were brought to the stand, even as they rambled, nigh-incoherently, in response to the whys and hows that the prosecutors threw at them, their gaze never left the blood, still untouched, unsmeared except for where the victim’s body had pushed it. Even as flashbacks played in reverse chronological order, from the police’s investigation to the murder, to the point at which the perpetrator had first met the victim early in their childhood, all taking place in a feathered spotlight behind the prowling lawyers with the rest courtroom dimmed, they stared, eyes wide. Their expression was at times hungry, at times mournful, but always keenly focused.</p>
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<p>The perpetrator, however, couldn’t seem to keep their eyes off it. Even as they were brought to the stand, even as they rambled, nigh-incoherently, in response to the whys and hows that the prosecutors threw at them, their gaze never left the blood, still untouched, unsmeared except for where the victim’s body had pushed it. Even as flashbacks played out in reverse chronological order, from the police’s investigation to the murder to the point at which the perpetrator had first met the victim early in their childhood, all taking place in a feathered spotlight behind the prowling lawyers with the rest courtroom dimmed, they stared, eyes wide. Their expression was at times hungry, at times mournful, but always keenly focused.</p>
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<p>As the play drew up to the climax, as the attacker was convicted and condemned to live forever, mouldering in some dark cell, they at last darted around the defense’s table, hands still cuffed before them, and collapsed, laughing and sobbing in equal measure, above the pool of blood, smearing it on their hands, over their face and clothes. “I did it!” they howled. “I fucking did it <em>and it didn’t mean a fucking thing!</em>“</p>
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<p>As the play drew up to the climax, as the attacker was convicted and condemned to live forever, mouldering in some dark cell, they at last darted around the defense’s table, hands still cuffed before them, and collapsed, laughing and sobbing in equal measure, above the pool of blood, smearing it on their hands, over their face and clothes. “I did it!” they howled. “I fucking did it <em>and it didn’t mean a fucking thing!</em>“</p>
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<p>We were once more dropped into utter blackness, treated to nearly five minutes more of wails and screeches, giggles and sobs, laughter and half-words, all slowly fading to silence.</p>
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<p>We were once more dropped into utter blackness, treated to nearly five minutes more of wails and screeches, giggles and sobs, laughter and half-words, all slowly fading to silence.</p>
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<p>The analogy was clear — almost ham fisted — and it left my stomach churning. It left a lump in my throat and a hotness on my face. It left me sobbing. Me and so many others in the audience, from what I saw when the lights came back up. Each seat had a cone of silence above it, preventing me from hearing anyone else. Beside me, Dry Grass had started crying from the beginning and hadn’t lifted her head from her arms folded on the small table before us throughout the entire performance.</p>
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<p>The analogy was clear — almost ham fisted — and it left my stomach churning. It left a lump in my throat and a hotness on my face. It left me sobbing. Me and so many others in the audience, from what I saw when the lights came back up. Each seat had a cone of silence above it, preventing me from hearing anyone else. Beside me, Dry Grass had started crying from the beginning and hadn’t lifted her head from her arms folded on the small table before us throughout the entire performance.</p>
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<p><em>“That means I did a good job!”</em> the skunk sent via a sensorium message as she rested her head over her cocladist’s shoulder, grinning at me.</p>
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<p><em>“That means I did a good job!”</em> the skunk sent via a sensorium message as she rested her head over her cocladist’s shoulder, grinning at me.</p>
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<p>I shook my head in disbelief and leaned forward to pat her gently between the ears.</p>
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<p>I shook my head in disbelief and leaned forward to pat her gently between the ears.</p>
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<p>After another minute or so, Dry Grass carefully swiveled around to face me, looking over Motes’s shoulder in turn. “This little asshole <em>knows</em> I hate it when she does those scenes.”</p>
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<p>After another minute or so, Dry Grass carefully swiveled around to face me, looking over Motes’s shoulder in turn. “This little asshole <em>knows</em> I hate it when she does those scenes.”</p>
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<p>The skunk squirmed about in her arms until she was sitting sideways in her lap. “I did not know you were here!” she countered. “That would not have changed the show, but I still did not know, or I would have warned you to arrive late.”</p>
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<p>The skunk squirmed about in her arms until she was sitting sideways in her lap. “I did not know you were here,” she countered. “That would not have changed the show, but I still did not know, or I would have warned you to arrive late.”</p>
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<p>Dry Grass took the chance to wipe her face with a napkin swiped from the table. “I would have appreciated that, yes.”</p>
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<p>Dry Grass took the chance to wipe her face with a napkin swiped from the table. “I would have appreciated that, yes.”</p>
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<p>“You would have hated the original all the more! Ioan wrote it so that my body was supposed to stay on the stage instead of just the blood. When I said I wanted the part, ey changed it to be just the blood so there was not just a kid’s body laying on stage, even though it took some creative work with gravity.”</p>
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<p>“You would have hated the original! Ioan wrote it so that my body was supposed to stay on the stage instead of just the blood. When I said I wanted the part, ey changed it to be just the blood so there was not just a kid’s body laying on stage, even though it took some creative work with gravity.”</p>
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<p>I glanced back to the stage, realizing that it was actually canted toward the audience by a few degrees. Enough that we could clearly see the surface of the stage — back to a matte black instead of the parquet that had been there before — without it being so unnerving as to make us feel like we were going to fall towards it, or that the actors were going to fall into the audience.</p>
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<p>I glanced back to the stage, realizing that it was actually canted toward the audience by a few degrees. Enough that we could clearly see the surface of the stage — back to a blissfully clean matte black instead of the blood-stained parquet that had been there before — without it being so unnerving as to make us feel like we were going to fall towards it, or that the actors were going to fall into the audience.</p>
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<p>“You are right,” Dry Grass was saying, straightening out Motes’s shirt and overalls, both of which were thoroughly stained with paint. “I would have hated that even more. I did not even see the rest of the play, skunklet. I put my head down and turned down my hearing.”</p>
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<p>“You are right,” Dry Grass was saying, straightening out Motes’s shirt and overalls, both of which were thoroughly stained with paint. “I would have hated that even more. I did not even see the rest of the play, skunklet. I put my head down and turned down my hearing.”</p>
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<p>“Aw!”</p>
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<p>“Aw!”</p>
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<p>“It was pretty good,” I admitted. “I can tell you about it later.”</p>
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<p>“It was pretty good,” I admitted. “I can tell you about it later.”</p>
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<p>Motes, preoccupied obtaining as much affection as she could, merely shrugged.</p>
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<p>Motes, preoccupied obtaining as much affection as she could, merely shrugged.</p>
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<p>“I am fine with it,” Dry Grass said, then added with a smirk, “That is why I brought you here, after all, is it not? That and the experience?”</p>
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<p>“I am fine with it,” Dry Grass said, then added with a smirk, “That is why I brought you here, after all, is it not? That and the experience?”</p>
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<p>I laughed, nodded.</p>
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<p>I laughed, nodded.</p>
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<p>A Finger Pointing leaned down to her Motes’ ear. “My dear, could you–?” she cooed, beckoning Beholden and the other Motes to join us at the table. “Please, Reed; I am <em>intensely</em> curious what they have to say about all this.”</p>
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<p>A Finger Pointing leaned down to her Motes’s ear. “My dear, could you–?” she cooed, beckoning Beholden and the other Motes to join us at the table. “Please, Reed; I am <em>intensely</em> curious what they have to say about all this.”</p>
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<p>Beholden seemed focused on straightening out Motes’ mane — perhaps a little more than could be expected, as though working to distract herself — though she nodded all the same.</p>
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<p>Beholden seemed focused on straightening out Motes’ mane — perhaps a little more than could be expected, as though working to distract herself — though she nodded all the same.</p>
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<p>“Alright, thanks. I’ll just read it to you, it’s fairly short.” Feeling a little silly just staring off into space to read, I summoned up the letter on a sheet of paper and began to read.</p>
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<p>“Alright, thanks. I’ll just read it to you, it’s fairly short.” Feeling a little silly just staring off into space to read, I summoned up the letter on a sheet of paper and began to read.</p>
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<blockquote>
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<blockquote>
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