In Moonlight - Ch 3 - What About Knox?

"Hey Clay, I got your call," Mary Cavaliere called out. "What about Knox? Is he OK?" 

Mary had a very short list of friends in Evergreen Harbor, but somehow steady, reliable, down-to-earth Clay French and tree-hugging stoner Knox Greenburg were both on it. So, when Clay had called and said Knox needed help, Mary hadn't asked for details. She'd just hopped on the next city bus and headed for the Caboose. The train-station-turned-tavern wasn't the only place in the Harbor to hang out and get a drink, but it was their place.

"He is definitely not OK," Clay replied. "You remember that girl he was seeing, Shannon?"

"The one he kept saying he was going to introduce us to but hasn't," Mary nodded. She had teased Knox a few times about his maybe-imaginary girlfriend who lived in another city. "What happened, did she break his heart?"

"She died," Clay said grimly.

"Madonna!" Mary gasped, the sudden shock making her Amorosan accent more pronounced. "What happened?"

"I guess it was a mugging or something," Clay explained. "He's pretty messed up about it. Missy's in with him now, trying to comfort him."

As Mary followed Clay into the lounge, she reflected that she wasn't supposed to be here. The more people she interacted with, the more likely someone would realize that Mary Cavaliere wasn't Mary Cavaliere at all. It was even possible they would recognize her as Mariah Huntley, the infamous ex-gangster wife of Miranda Goth, daughter of musical superstar Cassie Goth. There'd been enough paparazzi at the damn wedding, to say nothing of the news coverage of the Alto family's attack on the newlyweds. 

She was in hiding from gangsters. She was supposed to be lying low and maintaining minimal contact with people. That hadn't worked out, and "minimal contact" had turned into making friends. 

Mary wasn't supposed to be here, but she was, and she was going to help a friend.

"Shannon was just so... so... in tune, you know," Knox was saying sadly, as Mary sat down across from him. "Like she was just so connected to the world... like spiritually connected to the Real World, not the whole soulless corporate grind people think the world is."

"Oh Knox, she sounds really amazing," Missy said soothingly. 

The usually vivacious, but currently subdued, redhead was Clay's girlfriend. She was one those 'strangers are just besties I haven't met yet' people. It was really her fault, Mary thought, that she wasn't doing the whole 'minimal contact' thing. From the moment Mary had met her at work, Missy had just effortlessly pulled her into this circle of friends. 

"What you had must have been so special," Missy continued.

"It was," Knox said sadly. "When we were together it was like... like we were one soul."

"I'm so sorry, Knox," Mary said, her voice (and her accent) thick with emotion. She knew just what Knox meant, about being one soul with the person you love. The idea of losing that had featured heavily in her newer nightmares. "It sounds like such a useless thing to say, but I really am sorry."

"Thanks, Mar," Knox said. "I really appreciate you just being here."

"Of course," Mary said, while thinking minimal contact be damned. "You just let us know what you need."

"Anything at all," Missy added. "We're all here for you."

"I just don't understand how this could happen," Knox cried. "I mean, the cops said it was a mugging. How could someone do that? Kill her... for what? For money?"

"There are bad people in the world," Mary said. She knew. As Mariah, she'd seen what poverty and desperation drove people to do. She'd seen what greed and cruelty could do, too. She forcibly reminded herself that Mary Cavaliere hadn't lived on the streets, hadn't been a gangster. 

"Maybe it wasn't that," Knox said. "Maybe... maybe it was the protest. You know... maybe those evil land developers wanted to silence her!"

"Easy there buddy," Clay said. Clay worked an office job at the Evergreen Development Company. He and Knox didn't always agree about the whole evil land developers idea.

Out of the corner of her eye, Mary saw her wife, Mandy... in Evergreen Harbor, her name was Mandy... coming in.

"Knox, I'm so sorry," Mandy said. "I know it hurts. You love her. So, it's OK for it to hurt."

"Yeah... I loved her," Knox sighed.

"Come here," Mandy said softly, gently pulling Knox to his feet and into a comforting embrace. "You love her... even when she's gone, you still love her."

She'd experienced more than her share of loss, Mary thought. So she knows what to say... or maybe being comforting and kind just comes naturally to her.

"Yeah... I love her," Knox smiled weakly. "I do. I love Shannon Charm." 

"Shannon Charm," Mandy breathed. Mary saw her eyes briefly widening with shock.

"Yeah, great name, don't you think," Knox said, slouching sadly back to the couch, too lost in his own grief to notice Mandy's reaction.

"Yeah," Mandy nodded. Mary watched something come over her wife's face, something terrifyingly familiar. Something she hoped their new friends, rightly focused on Knox, didn't see either because it wasn't a look that went with the persona of Mandy Cavaliere. It was the kind of mysterious look that sometimes came over the face of Miranda Silveroak-Goth when things were getting really weird.

"Knox, I'm sorry but I need to pull Mary away for a minute," Mandy said softly. Glancing at Missy and Clay, she added, "We'll be back as soon as we can."

Clay nodded back at her. "So, Knox... you wanna tell me more about those evil land developers?"

-------------

"What's going on?" Mariah asked. Standing outside the Caboose, she didn't feel like Mary Cavaliere anymore. She felt more like Mariah than she had in months.

"Shannon Charm," Miranda replied. She definitely wasn't Mandy right now. "I knew someone named Shannon Charm at school. There can't be two of them."

"At school back in Henford?" Mariah asked, but as much as she hoped so, she already knew what Miranda's answer would be.

"At the Academy, in Glimmerbrook," Miranda said.

"So, Shannon Charm was a witch?" Mariah breathed softly.

"Not just any witch," Miranda said seriously. "The Charms are one of the Old Families. Old blood and old magic going back more than a thousand years. You don't just walk up to a witch of the old blood and stick a knife in them."

"Ummm... I mean, you can. Carla B did it to you," Mariah disagreed softly. Sometimes, when she closed her eyes, she could still see Carla with the Altos' tough guys behind her, blocking their way.

"Well, first, the Goths aren't an Old Family and, second, Carla knew what she was doing," Miranda said firmly. "She was ready for me and she brought a bunch of guys... and we still got away."

"Yeah, we got away," Mariah nodded. Barely, she added silently. For a moment, she imagined she could still feel her wife's hot blood against her hands, could almost see her lying, bleeding on the cobblestones of an empty Tartosan street.

"I just don't believe that some mugger in Windenburg could kill Shannon Charm," Miranda said. "There's something more going on. I can feel it." 

In Moonlight - Ch 2 - Family Emergency

It would take a family emergency to bring me back here so soon, Genie thought, looking up at her family's sprawling mansion.

The Von Windenburg Estate, Genie reflected, had been rebuilt by her great-grandfather, the banking magnate Baron Henry Von Windenburg, after the original manor was destroyed during the Second Great War. The Von Windenburgs had been a prominent and wealthy family, and their money had bought power far in excess of the relatively minor noble title they had purchased sometime during the Renaissance. 

Genie supposed her mother was doing a pretty good job of ruthlessly preserving the family's wealth and power, if not the noble title. Though she'd never met him, Genie felt her great-grandfather surely would have approved. She was also pretty sure she wouldn't have liked the man.

She certainly hated the house he'd built. 

"Welcome back, Ms. Genevieve," Stephens greeted her. "Your return is most timely and appreciated."

The family butler, Stephens was the only living person Genie allowed to call her Genevieve without correcting them. A fixture of the household, he was trained in the old traditions of service. He handled the cooking and cleaning, greeted guests, and oversaw the house and the staff of maids and gardeners who came in daily. The man (though her sister Blair, or maybe Debra, occasionally claimed he was actually a robot) was tireless, always proper and usually unflappable. 

Genie was surprised to see strong emotion pushing past Stephens's facade. 

"Kassidy called me," Genie said by way of explanation.

"Very good," Stephens said with visible relief.

"Stephens, what's happened?" Genie asked. "Kassidy wasn't able to explain much on the phone."

"Ms. Kassidy has suffered a tragedy," Stephens explained. "A recent but, I gather, significant friend of hers has been cruelly and violently taken. She is in need of comfort and support, beyond what I am able to offer."

"Where are the others?" Genie asked.

"Your sisters, Ms. Blair and Ms. Debra, are still at university and, to my knowledge, are unaware of Ms. Kassidy's troubles," Stephens said. "With the Houses in session, Representative Elderberry is staying in the legislative apartments at the Palace, in order to have close access to his staff."

"What's this one's name?" Genie mused, half to herself. Stephens graciously declined to acknowledge her interruption.

"Mrs. Elderberry is in the library," Stephens concluded in tones so empty of emotion that Genie was struck by the butler's furious outrage at her mother's failure to comfort Kassidy. 

"Well, no need to disturb her," Genie replied, struggling to keep her own outrage in check.

Really, she shouldn't have been surprised. Her mom's response to almost any difficulty was to paste on a false smile ("You mustn't be so emotional, Genevieve") and carry on ("You must be strong, Genevieve"). Even the death of Grand-père Jacques hadn't caused to her to so much as mess up her flawless mascara ("My father never approved of weeping, Genevieve"). 

"I'll go up and see Kassidy," Genie said, shaking herself out of her thoughts.

With any luck, Genie thought, I can talk to Kassidy, and mom won't even know I'm here.

"Genevieve, I wasn't expecting you," Luna Elderberry's voice cut through her like a knife.

I should have touched wood, Genie groaned inwardly. "It's Genie, mom."

"Well, it is good to see you, dear," Luna said, giving her an oddly cold and emotionless kiss on the cheek. "Though we ought to get you some better clothes and really, there must be something you can do about your hair, Genevieve."

"I am not here to talk about clothes or my hair, mom." Genie forced her hands to not reflexively try to smooth her unruly curls. "I'm here to see Kassidy."

"Oh," Luna replied dismissively. "That's nice, dear."

"She called me in tears!" Genie snapped. "She's lost a friend and she's devastated. She needs some support, some comfort. Maybe even some love. I'm sure you've read about love somewhere!"

 "There is no reason to take that tone with me, young lady," Luna snapped back. "What Kassidy needs is to be strong and confident... and to recognize that associating with certain types will only bring her grief."

"Associating with certain..." Genie rocked back, staggered by her mom's sheer audacity. "You associate with criminals! You launder money for gangsters! Grand-père Jacques was a gangster! Uncle Max is a gangster... a gangster who shot me!" 

"Really dear, I had some very stern words with your Uncle Max about that, and he assures me he wasn't aiming at you," Luna said firmly. 

"Well that makes the bullet wound in my arm feel so much better, mom," Genie snarled.

"This just proves my point, dear," Luna continued. "Associating with people like Claudette Faust, or Blackwood or whatever she calls herself these days, or especially people like Shannon Charm, only leads to pain and grief."

"I can't... I can't even talk to you," Genie huffed. "I'm going up to see my little sister, who needs me. Goodbye."

"Hey there kiddo," Genie said. 

After taking a moment to calm down (her mother always got under her skin), she'd found Kassidy in her room. 

That room had changed since she'd last been in it. The toys and stuffed animals that had fueled the vibrant imagination of the youngest Elderberry girl were still there, but in the years since Genie had left for university, Kassidy had added posters about music and environmentalism. Glancing with a reporter's curiosity at Kassidy's desk, Genie saw books on politics, environmentalism, and art among high school textbooks, teen magazines and her little sister's favorite children's books. 

It was as if the room itself, like the grief-stricken teen standing in the middle of it, was balanced between childhood and maturity.

"Genie," Kassidy sobbed softly. "Oh, Genie."

"I'm here, kiddo," Genie said, pulling her sister into a hug. "I'm here."

"It's so awful," Kassidy sobbed.

"You want to talk to me?" Genie prompted gently. "It might help."

"She's dead, Genie," Kassidy gasped, as if saying it out loud horrified her. "Shannon's dead. Someone... someone killed her."

"Tell me about Shannon," Genie said, trying to draw her out. 

"Shannon's the best," Kassidy sighed, then corrected herself. "Shannon was the best. She's... she was brilliant and cool and she is... was... so dedicated to the environment."

"How did you meet her?" Genie asked. "At school?"

"No, Shannon's older," Kassidy said. "Like, your age, I think. I met her at Speak for the Trees. You know, the environmental defense group?"

"Yeah, I've heard of them," Genie said, trying to hide a slight smile. 

She was sure her mom was thrilled that Kassidy was getting involved in political causes that were directly and vocally in opposition to Rep. Elderberry's right-wing Axis party. That made two of the four Elderberry girls standing up against their father's politics (if Debra or Blair had any interest in politics of any kind, they hadn't mentioned it to Genie).  

"Well, Shannon's an organizer for the local chapter," Kassidy continued. "Her and her boyfriend, Knox. That's how I met her. She has... she had... so much passion. 'Don't let anyone tell you you can't change the world. We change the world every day with our will and our words' she'd say."

"She sounds cool," Genie said. "Actually, she sounds a little like my friend Miranda... who is also very cool."

"Shannon's the best," Kassidy said. "She was the best. Oh... oh Genie..."

Tears slipped freely down Kassidy's face, the unashamed grief of youth.

"I know, kiddo," Genie sighed. "I know. It's hard to lose someone."

She didn't really know, Genie admitted to herself. Other than Grand-père Jacques, the only person she'd ever lost like this had been an ex-boyfriend, and the narcissistic scumbag had been handing Genie over to be killed at the time. She admitted to herself that she'd mourned Johnny Pretty, probably more than he deserved, but she was sure it had been nothing like what Kassidy was feeling. 

"She's really gone. I just can't believe she's really gone," Kassidy was saying. "Oh... oh, what about Knox? I wonder how he's doing."

In Moonlight - Ch 1 - So, I'm Dead

"So, I'm dead," Jenny Poole moaned. "I can't believe this is really happening."

The TV screen was a tiny window into another world, the world of technicolor brightness and sleek but kitschy styles that was the fictional 11th floor of Blankwood Towers. Through that window, they watched as the sultry Babette - Jenny's alter-ego on the daytime comedy-drama The Urbz - flinched, shuddered and began her slow, final collapse.

"You didn't know?" Genie Elderberry asked, slightly confused. "I mean, you filmed it..."

"Yeah, but it isn't... like.. real until they air it," Jenny insisted. "I can't believe I'm really dead. My life is over."

"Well, it was a really great death scene," Gabbie Moretti, Genie's roommate, offered. 

"Really?" Jenny asked sadly as Babette's death continued to dramatically play out on the screen. 

Jenny, declaring a deep need for moral support, had come over to Gabbie's dingy but comfortable Spice District apartment to watch the episode. Despite Gabbie's occasional insistence, Genie still thought of it as Gabbie's apartment, even though Genie shared the rent in exchange for the closet-like spare bedroom. It was certainly Gabbie's TV. 

"It was a fantastic death," Gabbie smiled. "I wouldn't be surprised if you get nominated for a daytime television award for this episode."

"It would serve the show-runners right," Genie said, trying to sound encouraging. "I can't believe they killed your character off."

"Yeah, you were great," Gabbie said. "Who killed you? Wait, was it Sophie? I bet it was Sophie. She was jealous about Babette getting the Diamond Bright modeling contract."

"I don't know. I don't get the scripts anymore," Jenny moaned. 

Genie blinked, torn between wanting to explain to Gabbie why it simply wasn't possible for Sophie to have poisoned her own sister over the Diamond Bright contact and wanting to point that that wasn't really the important thing at the moment.

"You know what this is?" Jenny added, the hint of heat in her voice throwing off Genie's train of thought. "This is... wha'd'ya call it? ... retribution! The Urbz is produced by Symphony Entertainment... and Symphony was all tied up with the Alto Family. They fired me because I helped you take down the Altos!"

"I'm... sorry," Genie offered weakly. 

Crazy as it sounded, it was possible. Jenny, along with her boyfriend Orange Bailey-Moon, had worked with Genie to investigate the Alto crime family - the last major criminal family since the fall of the Landgraab Syndicate. With the surprising assistance of the abused girlfriend of one of the crime family's bosses, a young woman named Corrie, they'd uncovered a ledger detailing the Altos' illegal activities and turned that ledger over to the right people. 

Now the crime family's leaders were either in jail or on the run. 

Being an aspiring reporter, Genie had published the details of the ledger and the story of how they'd gotten hold of it. So, she really was sorry. The story that had been her big break might well have cost Jenny her job.

Still, Genie mused, killing off Jenny's character on a TV show seemed like pretty mild retribution for the Altos. 

Genie's whole investigation had started after her friends and former university roommates, Mariah and Miranda, had been attacked by the Altos' hired killers in retribution for Mariah testifying against crime boss Nick Alto. Though they'd survived the attack, Mariah and Miranda had gone into hiding and still hadn't been seen or heard from.  

The Crown Prosecutors Office had offered protection to Genie, Jenny, Orange and Corrie. For reasons of her own, Genie was fairly confident that the surviving factions of the Alto family weren't going to come after her. She wasn't entirely sure that her friends turning down the CPO's protection had been as good an idea. 

All things considered, if killing off Babette was the extent of the Altos' revenge, Genie felt she could be OK with that. The other alternatives were a lot worse.

"So, where's Orange?" Genie asked, pulling herself back to the moment. 

She was surprised Jenny's big, athletic, sweetheart of a boyfriend wasn't here, being his solid and comforting self. Orange Bailey-Moon was, among his other virtues, an amazingly supportive man. He'd done a lot of maturing since Genie had first known him at university.  

"He's away on a stupid book tour," Jenny grumbled. "Teaching consent culture to cowboys out West or something."

"Yeah, that sounds like Orange," Gabbie grinned.

"It's not his fault," Jenny added. "He tried to get out of it, but his publisher insisted and I said he should go. I told him I'd be fine." 

"You know, if you'd just told him the truth, I'm sure Orange would have..." Genie started, a little exasperated with Jenny. Before she could expand on the thought, her phone rang, interrupting her. "What now? Oh, hang on... I should take this. It's Kassidy."

Kassidy Elderberry was Genie's youngest sister, a bright-eyed, idealistic teenager passionately dedicated to whatever cause had caught her attention this week. With her two middle sisters, the twins Debra and Blair, off at university, Kassidy was the last of the Elderberry girls left at the family's sprawling estate.

Genie had abandoned that life in order to escape from her parents. Her father, the (less than) Honorable Representative Rohan Elderberry, was bad enough. His politics offended, his corruption grated, and his habit of sleeping with his interns (who these days were younger than Genie herself) frankly nauseated her. Her mother, Luna Elderberry, was a nightmare. A wealthy and powerful banker, Genie knew for a fact she helped the crime families launder money. 

Unfortunately, the pages in the Altos' ledger that would have proven her parents' corruption had been expertly removed (probably by Luna herself) just before Genie had gotten hold of it.

"Hey Kassidy. Shouldn't you be in school?" Genie asked, answering her phone. "Kassidy? 

She listened with growing concern as her little sister sobbed into the phone. "Genie, I... I can't... I don't... How can this happen? I don't understand, Genie. How can something like this... just... happen!?"

"What's wrong? Kassidy, what's happened?" Genie pressed. 

"She... she's... Oh God." Kassidy's voice faded into gentle, quiet sobbing. 

"OK, OK... just breathe, kiddo. I'm coming," Genie said. "Yeah, I am," she added over her sister's mumbled objections. "I'll be there as soon as I can. No, I'm getting on the next train. You just wait for me, OK."

"What's wrong?" Jenny asked as Genie quickly looked up the train timetables on her phone.

"I have to go," Genie said, leaping up from the couch.

"What's wrong?" Jenny repeated.

"I don't know," Genie answered. "Family emergency."

She just knew that her little sister needed her. Already, her mind was racing ahead, planning out what to pack and hoping she could make it to the station in time for the next train to Windenburg. 

In Moonlight - Prologue - A Doom Set In Motion

In the middle of the autumn, the heat of that year's long summer had finally given way to cool, crisp winds blowing down off the snow-capped peaks of the Granite Mountains. The leaves had turned, and the people of Windenburg kept their umbrellas close at hand, knowing that even a bright, clear day could swiftly turn dark.

Windenburg. 

They call it the Old City. The heart of the Windslar Republic. Nestled at the base of the Granite Mountains, it is a place of cobblestone streets and medieval architecture but also a place of modern commerce and culture. A city where a visitor can enjoy the stately symphonies at the Windslar Orchestra or the driving beat of hard rock music in the city's many nightclubs, listen to powerful sermons in the Jacoban Cathedral, or debate postmodern philosophy and popular culture in the nearby coffee houses.

That mixture of old elegance and modern commerce were clearly displayed in the offices of the Von Windenburg Bank. The financial institution had served the noble families of the once-Kingdom of Windslar since the Middle Ages, and the wealthy merchants and captains of industry since they had risen to transform the Kingdom into a Republic.

Now, more than two hundred years later, it remained the bank of choice for both the old nobility and the modern wealthy.

Of course, wealth and power are known to attract disagreement, dissent, and even active protest.

"Speak for the Trees!"

"Don't let greedy bankers, rapacious developers, and crooked politicians destroy the beautiful natural world!" Knox Greenburg's voice boomed from the megaphone. 

"Speak for the Trees!"

"Don't let them tear down protected woodlands!" Knox continued.

"Speak for the Trees!"

"The environment matters, people!" Knox shouted. "Call your Representatives! Join us! Protect the environment!"

"That was awesome!" Teenaged Kassidy Elderberry settled her cap, partially dislodged by an errant gust of wind, on her wavy hair. 

The protest had broken up, and if no one had stormed the Von Windenburg Bank demanding they cease funding Knox's 'rapacious developers,' at least a fair number of people had gathered during their lunchbreak to watch the protest. A few had even accepted fliers and invitations to learn more.

"It was pretty awesome," Knox grinned proudly, for all that he only had eyes for the elfin face of Shannon Charm.

"I've just got one question?" Kassidy pressed on, oblivious to the significant looks passing between the two more grown-up protestors. "What's 'rapacious' mean?"

"It's another word for greedy," Knox replied confidently.

"Close enough," Shannon smiled. "It did go well, didn't it."

"It was awesome!" Kassidy repeated. 

"Totally awesome," Knox grinned.

"Hey Shannon, why didn't you lead the chants and stuff?" Kassidy asked. "I mean, you were fantastic, Knox, but Shannon organized the whole thing..."

"Because Knox is fantastic at that sort of thing," Shannon answered smoothly. "I'm better at organizing. We all do our parts."

"Cool. Umm... do you need me to help clean up or anything?" Kassidy asked, glancing at her watch. "I mean... it's just that I have to get going if I'm going to catch the ferry back across the bay..."

"Get going," Shannon said gently. "I can take care of things here."

"You're sure?" Kassidy asked.

"I'm sure," Shannon smiled. "Besides, we don't want your mother to be angry with you for being late."

"As opposed to her being furious with me for protesting her bank?" Kassidy grinned proudly. "OK, I'll see you guys later." 

"So, you need me to help clean up?" Knox asked. 

"I've got it, really," Shannon smiled. "Besides, Kassidy isn't the only one running late. If you don't get going soon, you'll miss the next train back to the Harbor."

"Evergreen Harbor will still be there," Knox smiled, taking Shannon's hands in his. "Maybe I'll stay here, help you clean up... go back to your place..."

"Where my father is," Shannon pointed out. 

Knox winced. "Not my biggest fan. I think he wants to turn me into a toad."

"If he catches you in my bed, you'll be lucky if he turns you into a toad," Shannon said earnestly.

"Well, if he does, you can kiss me and turn me back into a handsome prince," Knox laughed.

"Wouldn't you have to already be a handsome prince for that to work?" Shannon laughed.

"Well, can at least you put me into a nice pond where I can hop around for the rest of my days," Knox said with mock gravity.

"Probably, but it would be better if we didn't put it to the test," Shannon grinned. "Now get going."

"OK, OK," Knox sighed, turning to walk away. Glancing back over his shoulder he added, "You'll come up to the Harbor this weekend?"

"I'll try," Shannon replied.

Still smiling, Shannon turned her attention to cleaning up the signs, fliers and other bits of mess left after the protest. She didn't mind cleaning up. It felt curiously good to do pure physical work. Well, maybe she did use the odd, whispered Word to make the work go faster, but she had to subtle about it.

"Excuse me," a woman's voice interrupted her thoughts.

"Yes?" Shannon said, turning to see a woman in a black hoodie.

"Are you Shannon Charm?" the woman in black asked.

"Yes." Shannon nodded. "Can I... hhhaaa..."

A sharp pain pierced her chest. She couldn't catch her breath. Looking down, she saw the knife, wet and bright with blood, withdraw from her chest. The woman in black betrayed no emotion as she plunged the knife into her again.

With a third and final thrust, the woman in black simply walked way.

Shannon struggled for breath. 

The world spun as she sank to her knees.

Oddly, her first clear thought was that she hoped Cole - her father's butler - could clean the blood off her shirt. She liked this shirt. Cole wasn't a pleasant person, but he was terribly good at cleaning. 

Her second thought was that she wouldn't be able to meet Knox in Evergreen Harbor after all. 

She really wanted to see him again. One more time. 

One last time.

Her final thought, as darkness claimed her, was to wonder if the woman in black could possibly understand the Doom she had just set in motion?

Moonrise - 3 - A Secret

Mary Cavaliere had a secret.

Actually, she had a lot of secrets, not the least of which was that her name wasn't Mary. Her name was Mariah and she was living in Evergreen Harbor, in hiding, because she'd testified against crime boss Nick Alto.

On the whole, she was finding that life in hiding wasn't all that bad. Sure, she had to work a boring sales clerk job at S-Mart, but she'd done far worse things to earn money in her young life. They weren't rich, but they had enough to pay rent and get by on. Above all, they were a 'they.' She was getting to live a fairly quiet life with the woman she loved. Really, it had actually let her set aside so many of the secrets she carried.

Unfortunately, it had led to the embarrassing secret she was currently hiding. 

It had started weeks ago, when she'd gotten off an early shift. Home alone, and unsure what to do with herself, she'd found herself poking at the TV. She had no idea what had possessed her. Curiosity? Perversity? Insanity? Whatever it had been, she was totally hooked now. 

Not for the first time since that fateful day, her shift had ended early enough for to race home and indulge in her secret vice. 

If anyone ever found out that 'Riah B - all around tough girl, ex-gangster and sometime spy -  was a total KPop Demon Hunters fan, she'd never live it down.

But no one knew. No one knew that she watched the movie every chance she got. No one knew that she knew the words to every single song (even the ones in Korean). Absolutely no one knew she always... always... cried during the final, climactic musical battle.

Or that she couldn't help but sing along. 

[Golden - Huntrix, music video]

"I'm done hidin', now I'm shinin'," she sang, and if she was off key, there was no one there to care. "Like I'm born to be."

"We're dreaming hard, we came so far," a beautiful, perfectly pitched voice joined in.

"GAH!" Mariah gasped, leaping to her feet, mortified.

"Sorry," Miranda laughed. "I didn't mean to startle you."

"I didn't... I wasn't... I was just..." Mariah stammered. "Porco cane! I thought you were at yoga class."

"I was," Miranda said. "We finished early. I really am sorry."

"OK... it's OK," Mariah said, taking a deep breath. "It's nothing. I was just... someone at work suggested this silly movie and I was just..."

"Singing along," Miranda finished.

"I... ummm," Mariah stammered.

"Well, I... ow," Miranda flinched, her hand jumping to her side.

"What? What's wrong?" Mariah's hands practically flew to her wife's side. "Are you alright? Is it hot? Swollen?"

The Alto Family hadn't taken Mariah testifying lightly. She'd broken the Code of Silence and, within the criminal Families, there was no higher offense. When their killers had caught her, it had been Miranda who'd taken a knife. Mariah could still feel her wife's bright red blood, hot and sticky, flowing between her fingers as she'd desperately tried to save her.

"I'm fine," Miranda said, reassuringly. "It's healed. The muscles are still a little weak and I overdid it at yoga. That's why I came home early."

"OK... OK, I just..." Mariah took a deep breath.  "I mean, you could have died!"

"Hey, immortal witch here," Miranda smiled fiercely. "It takes more that some bitch gangster with a knife to kill me."

"Liar," Mariah countered. "Gwen told me... you don't get old, and you hardly get sick, but she was very clear. Accident or injury, or some putana with a knife, can still kill you."

"Well, she didn't," Miranda said soothingly. "I'm fine. Just a little sore." 

"I can't lose you," Mariah breathed. 

"Immortal witch. You will never lose me," Miranda said, a hint of sadness hiding deep in her eyes. 

"OK, good," Mariah sighed.

It was something they had both quietly agreed not to talk about. Miranda would never grow old. Mariah would. Someday, hopefully years from now but someday, it would be Miranda who lost the woman she loved. They both knew it. They both put it aside.

"Now, let's talk about this movie," Miranda said lightly, pulling her wife back down onto the couch. 

"Oh God, I just..." Mariah said.

"I like it," Miranda said.

"You've seen it?" Mariah blinked.

"A movie about a trio of KPop singers, with magical powers, who fight demons," Miranda laughed. "Of course I've seen it. It's great." 

"Yeah, it is." Mariah felt her enthusiasm threatening to break through. "I mean, it's OK."

"Oh come on," Miranda laughed. "You love it... and you're allowed to like it."

"I mean, it's..." Mariah stammered. 

"Not exactly on brand?" Miranda teased. "Sure, for tough girl Mariah... but maybe it is for Mary Cavaliere. Maybe Mary Cavaliere loves KPop and musicals. Maybe she even sings!"

"OK, maybe she does," Mariah laughed. "What would her wife Mandy think of that?"

"Oh, I think Mandy thinks Mary is a total nerd," Miranda grinned. 

Without warning, Miranda leaning in and starting tickling her. Mariah squealed, amazed as she always was, at how this strange, beautiful woman completely disarmed her. 

"Stop, stop," she laughed.

"It's one of the many things Mandy loves about Mary," Miranda, or Mandy Cavaliere as she was now, smiled.

"So, how was Mandy's day otherwise?" Mariah, or Mary, asked as she struggled to catch her breath.

"Fine," Mandy smiled, "Except I think someone stole my spare towel out of my locker at the community center."

"Really?" Mary chuckled. "Lame."

"So, wanna watch this movie again?" Mandy grinned.

-----------------------

Author's Note

Yes, like Mariah, I am a KPop Demon Hunters fan. I do sing along and I do cry during the final song. The first time I saw that movie, like Mariah, I was just looking for something watch, decided "what the heck?" and I fell in love with it. More, I knew Mariah would be a fan of it despite it being "not on brand" for her. So, it had to exist in the Wyrd'verse. :)

If you haven't seen it, KPop Demon Hunters is on Netflix and a soundtrack playlist is on YouTube. 

Anyway, I had wanted to include elements of this story as a chapter in In Shadow, to show what M&M were up to, but I just couldn't find a way to make it fit. This short story actually takes place sometime before the events of In Shadow - Ch 32 - The War Goes On. The missing towel Mandy mentions was taken by Jake Volkov, for use in Etta's folk charm that misdirected Max V's occult henchmen (which can be seen in one of the flashbacks in that chapter).

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed checking in with M&M as much as I did.

Mary and Mandy Cavaliere will return.