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. 

Moonrise - 2 - Changes

Etta Blackwood stood alone, watching the evening sunlight dance on the water, and thought about changing her life.

She could smell the rich autumn scents of the Moonwood, with the peaty smell of old leaves and the sharp bite of evergreens. She could feel the stirring breeze that rustled through the branches, the wind whispering secrets to the ancient trees and kicking up the waves on the water. She could feel the cool spray of wind-carried water against her skin. 

Almost, almost, she could feel the magic in the earth, the air and the water. She knew she shouldn't. Her Power had been ripped away by the Council's justice, punishment for her crimes. She should be blind to the currents of magic in the world, but there was so much magic in the ancient Moonwood, even blinded, she could still see.

She wondered sometimes if exiling her here where she could almost, but not quite, touch the magic that was her birthright had been a kindness or another, subtler punishment.

"You asked to see me." The woman's voice, cool as the wind on the water, interrupted Etta's thoughts. Etta hadn't heard anyone approach, for the simple reason that the woman hadn't. She was simply there, at Etta's side, as if she had always been there. 

Tall and graceful, ageless and wise, her hair like woven sunlight, her eyes the violet of gathering twilight, Gwen Silveroak was almost painfully beautiful. Here, in a town of werewolves, she made no effort to conceal the sharply pointed ears that marked her as one of the true alfar, the timeless immortals of the Magic Realm. If the Fairy Queen stepped from the pages of a child's storybook, she might look like Gwen.

Etta pushed down the terror that rose inside her in the presence of the Elder Guardian of Glimmerbrook. She remembered the words of another story - you must never run from anything immortal.

"I did," Etta replied, forcing herself to remain calm, to show no fear. "I am pleased you came."

Gwen smiled at the antique courtesy. To thank the elven-folk directly had once been an unpardonable breach of etiquette. It was a nicety few remembered or enforced, but Etta was determined to avoid giving even half-forgotten offense. This was too important.

"You said once that you could restore my powers," Etta said after a moment. There was no reason to dance around the issue. 

"I did," Gwen agreed. "You refused. In fact, you begged me not to restore that which the Council had taken." 

"I remember," Etta nodded.

"Do you remember why?" Gwen asked mildly.

"My magic... the magic my father taught me... is dangerous," Etta said. "He raised me to hate and fear the alfar, the Old Families and the Witches' Council. He said that they are tyrants who hoarded the deeper secrets of magic for themselves... yourselves... to keep dominion over the world. He trained me to be a weapon against the Council. His weapon. All my magic was bent to that purpose."

"I should mention to Uncle Simeon that he has dominion over the world," Gwen mused, more than half to herself. "I imagine the very notion would send him to his bed in sheer horror. Magic is neither good nor evil. It is a thing of nature, like fire... and like fire it can be used to create or destroy," she added, returning her focus to Etta.

"It is easier to destroy," Etta said. "I was taught to destroy." 

"You were taught fear," Gwen said in disagreement. "To use fear, yes, but more, you were taught to fear. You fear the Council. You fear your father. You fear me. You fear yourself."

"Yes," Etta whispered.

"Why do wish to have your powers restored now?" Gwen asked. "What has changed?"

"The world has changed," Etta replied. "I'm not a werewolf, but I work with the Wildfang pack now. We patrol the outer boundaries of the Moonwood and beyond. I've seen the dangers growing. The Dark Court seems to be in disarray, but they are growing stronger... and they aren't alone. There are other things moving in the shadows. Something is taking shape in the Dark, something great and terrible. I... I want to help. I want to protect. I need my powers back."

"Do you?" Gwen asked. "You have a brilliant mind and a grasp of magical theory that rivals most magisters. You have the imagination and ingenuity to put that knowledge to use. The Council took your Power, and in its place you have made yourself into a formidable hedge witch."

"I'm... I'm blundering around in the dark," Etta cried. "I'm a blinded artist trying to paint. A deafened musician trying to play a concerto by rote memory and dreams."

"And you have achieved wonders," Gwen said calmly. "So, I ask again - Why do wish to have your powers restored now? Or perhaps I should ask - who wishes to have her power restored? Does Etta Blackwood ask for the power to protect, to do good. Or does Claudette Faust, daughter of darkest magic, ask to regain the magic that is her birthright? Who are you really?"

"I don't know," Etta whispered. "God help me, I don't know."

Gwen turned and looked out over the water, over the Moonwood. Perhaps, Etta thought, she turned her Seer's eyes to the future, to the Inevitable Moments Etta knew were gathering like a storm, just beyond the horizon.

"Summon me again when you do," Gwen said with a sad smile.

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

"She's right, Lux," Etta moaned.

After Gwen had vanished, Etta had walked the paths of the Moonwood alone for a long time. It had been dark when she'd finally reached the Wildfangs' old trailer and had tried her best to explain her meeting with Gwen to her friend and partner.

"I don't know the answer," Etta continued. "Am I really Etta, or am I still Claudette? Sometimes I do catch myself thinking of my witchcraft as a birthright... as something the wicked Council took from me. I know why they did it... why I let them do it. I misused my powers. I hurt people... betrayed my friends. I thought that I couldn't be trusted with those powers... but I've wanted them back. Every. Single. Day."

"So, who am I, Lux?" She sighed. "Am I really Etta? Or am I Claudette, just pretending to Etta?"

The tawny-haired woman gave her an odd look. Slowly, she stood up and gave Etta another slow, considering look, as if studying her from head to toe. Finally, she smiled.

"You're a big dummy," Lux Demarco said with a smile.

"Oh thanks," Etta groaned. "I knew I could count on you."

"Etta, I'm a werewolf, " Lux said firmly. "At least once a month, I lose control and become a Wolf rampaging though the woods, a danger to anyone in my path. The truth is I am always at some risk of losing control. It takes constant work to keep my balance.... the balance between Lux Demarco and the Wolf, because I am both, at the same time, always.

"So, have you ever considered that you, Claudette 'Etta' Blackwood, are both, at the same time?" Lux concluded.

"You're right. I'm a big dummy," Etta groaned.

"Yeah but at least you're cute," Lux smiled, kissing her on the cheek.

Etta Blackwood stood with Lux, this strange, wild woman who knew all her secrets and somehow still welcomed her, allowing her to be best friend and lover. They stood together watching the firelight dance, and Etta thought about changing her life.

Moonrise - 1 - Rising Star

'Cause I've been battered and bruised

Been lied to and used

but now I'm rising...

 - Rising Star by Cassie Goth

Corrie couldn't get the song out of her head, but she was OK with that. Cassie's words spiraled through her head, heartfelt advice from a friend she still hadn't quite met yet (though Jenny had promised to introduce them).

As she walked into the studio, she was surprised by how calm she felt.

This was it. She was here, at last. After the auditions and rehearsals. After George's lies and abuse. After escaping home and running away to the city. 

... been battered and bruised / Been lied to and used

I'm rising, she sang along in her head.

"Umm... hi, Mr. Chavarrin. Sir. I'm here... for the shoot. I'm Corrie... you... remember... I... umm... hi," Corrie stammered, knowing she sounded like a complete idiot and totally unable to stop the flood of words tumbling from her mouth.

"Hi, Corrie." The skinny dark-skinned director smiled soothingly, with all the grace of a man who had spent many years shepherding nervous young actors. "Good to see you. You didn't have any trouble finding us."

"No. No trouble, sir. I just followed your directions," Corrie said, with a deep breath.

"Well, just keep that up," Mr. Chavarrin chuckled. "I need to talk with Alex here about getting the sound set up. Why don't you grab a bite to eat and then get into costume. We'll call you when we're ready for you."

Through the dark of night

Try as they might

I kept shining 

Now I'm rising... 

"Corrie, come on over here," the director called at last.

"I'm here." Corrie dashed to his side. "I'm ready. I was just going over my lines."

"Good, that's good," Mr. Chavarrin smiled.

"I was thinking... about my character, about how maybe she's just really happy to be there. How she feels free and... it's silly. I'm sorry," Corrie blushed.

"You know what... I like it. Go with that," Mr. Chavarrin said, a little surprised with himself for getting caught up in her enthusiasm.

"Really?!" Corrie beamed.

"Really," the director laughed. "Show me that freedom. Let's do a run through."

"Quiet on the set."

Corrie took a final deep breath, settling herself into the moment. All her fears seemed to evaporate under the heat of the studio lights. 

Now I'm rising... 

"Camera... and rolling!"

With a cheerful grin, she threw herself into her part.

"Aaar yea sick o' grime and mess when y'er swabbin' the deck?

"Thar be one cleaner that'll blow yea down!

"That be Salty Sudds, me hearties!"

"... and cut!" Mr Chavarrin shouted out. "Perfect. That was fantastic."

Looking out over the studio, seeing all the eyes on her, Corrie smiled.

I'm going to be a star, she thought to herself.

'Cause I've been battered and bruised

Been lied to and used

but now I'm a rising star!