Bisque d'Ecrevisse

Lily turned as the door to the Innamorti Suite opened and Maddy peered in and waved nervously with her hand, a half smile on her face as she evaluated how Lily was looking.

“Hey Lily, me and Eliza were just coming over to check on you,” the chef opened the door wider to reveal the professor standing there with her, “We also thought maybe it might be good to possibly help Eliza with her date tomorrow? Since she is going first and all.”

The flower girl sighed and exchanged a glance with the professor who seemed to be determined to look at her feet for the moment. There were few things Lily wanted to do less than help someone else prepare for a date with Caleb, but Eliza had been good to her consistently, not just here but at school as well. She didn’t want to see anything bad happen to her.

“Yeah alright, come on in. I’m doing fine, just got overwhelmed earlier when I saw Caleb with...her.” the words came out like she had just seen something particularly foul in a sewer drain.

Maddy’s features tensed as she walked and came to sit next to Lily on the bed. She knew there was a lot of history between Lily, Caleb, and Amy. It certainly seemed more complicated than what the girl with no romantic experience was capable of helping with. She wanted Lily to feel better but couldn’t ascertain if anything she might say might actually make the situation worse. So she fiddled with her fingers between both hands before giving Lily a wordless pat on the shoulder.

Eliza also came down to sit with the two girls, “Lily, I understand Caleb’s infidelity hurt you, you have every right to feel the way you do,” she placed a hand on Lily’s knee, “Just take care that this place is not going to be sensitive to your needs. They want to see you in compromising positions with Caleb, they want that for all of us. Even if that was something Amy was full-heartedly opposed to she will be encouraged to do so or risk forfeiting and ending up like those people we saw.”

Lily tensed up remembering those images and Maddy watched amazed as Eliza was able to say all this firmly with a conviction that the chef lacked. The flower girl pouts, hands in her lap, “What do you want me to do then? Get over it? Not get mad when I see them together? Because I just…I can’t do that right now.” She felt the outline of the chastity belt through her skirt.

Eliza’s eyes lowered and she shook her head, “That’s not what I’m saying, what I’m trying to say is take steps to at least attempt to resolve these emotions. Try talking with Amy, maybe you’ll find out you have more in common than you think. If you can put the bitterness you feel about this other woman behind you, then you only need to worry about dealing with Caleb. This just puts you in the same boat as the rest of us,” She saw the withering look Lily gave her and returned it with a slight smile, “Alright not exactly the same as the rest of us, but I don’t want anything bad to happen to anyone here, especially my former student.”

Softening her expression Lily looked downward, “I can…try at least, if that woman is willing to meet me halfway then I won’t dig my feet in the sand. I can’t promise anything else though, certainly not with Caleb.”

Her face brightening, Maddy leaned in, “There are ways to get points without interacting with him too! They posted some options downstairs, you should check it out when you have a chance!”

Lily self-consciously adjusted her skirt, feeling her face awash with shame, she gave the other blonde a half-hearted smile, “Yeah I’ll check that out,” Her expression then changed and she focused back on Eliza, “Can we talk about what happened with Noemi this morning? I thought you were against us using Sabotages? I know it was hers you used but…”

Eliza sat up straight and adjusted her glasses, “I think I was too quick to dismiss the use of Sabotages yesterday based on the nature of the show and the way they were presented.”

Maddy looked concerned and began to shrink in on herself, “Wait, you think we should be using them? But forcing those changes on someone else…I mean,” she thought of Noemi’s naked form from breakfast and felt her body heat up, “It just seems…dirty.”

Fiddling with her glasses, Eliza gave the rest of the group a nervous smile, “I think that’s just it, we don’t have to **** them on people. With Noemi, she agreed to have it done to her and because of that, we were able to turn her situation around. The key thing is consent, we can’t use them on ourselves but if there is a change maybe someone wants temporarily, there's no harm in facilitating them. We are already at a severe disadvantage in this place, we shouldn’t disregard possible tools at our disposal.

Lily’s lips pursed, she saw the logic but she had to admit, giving in to anything this show wanted felt like something she didn’t want to do.

On the opposite end, Maddy brightened and sheepishly asked, “Do you think they have cards that might make me thinner?”

“They might, but Maddy, I don’t think you need anything like that. Remember at the opening ceremony, Caleb said he would choose you over everyone else,” The memory stung in Lily’s memory but she didn’t want to see her roommate put herself down like this more.

Facing downward, Maddy fiddled with her fingers, “Yeah but he just said that I seemed less intimidating not that he found me attractive…”

Lily’s face heated up and she found her voice rising up, “Didn’t the guy follow you around in the restaurant you worked at? Like, it’s clear he likes what he sees.”

Maddy found her own voice rising as she shook her head, “He didn’t come that often, besides he stopped! If I was attractive wouldn’t he have tried harder?”

The way she was so insistent on being perceived as unattractive, Lily wanted to reach over and shake Maddy but found Eliza reaching out and putting a hand on both women’s chests.

“Relax, this isn’t something worth arguing over. Maddy, I’m sure we can find something like that if you really want, but maybe you should wait until your date is done to see if you really need it. Lily, I’m sure Maddy has reasons for feeling the way she does and we can’t brute **** her anxiety out of her.”

Both women hung their heads, despite her now being younger than both of them, Eliza had just scolded both of them like a strict parent. Eliza’s facial features softened as she pulled her arms away, “I’m glad that we can talk together like this. I honestly was worried that I wouldn’t have friends here considering how much older I was than the rest of you girls. Even after they de-aged me I was worried I wouldn’t fit in so to be able to sit here with you both and talk like this, joking, scolding, whatever. It’s nice.”

Maddy without hesitation leaned across and enveloped the professor in a warm hug, “You’ve been nothing but kind to me since I got here and you’re so supportive. I don’t know what I’d do without you here.”

Offering a kind smile, the flower girl nodded, “I mean you were always one of my favourite professors. I’m glad I’m getting to know you better, though I do wish it was under different circumstances.”

Eliza nodded, “A harem is quite a whimsical way to meet back up, though it does happen in some books I read. Though normally it’s the prince reuniting with a childhood friend as she is added to his harem.”

Lily smirked and raised an eyebrow, “Woah professor, what sort of books are you reading?”

“I’ll have you know, reading harlequin romances is a perfectly acceptable hobby for a woman my age.” Eliza’s face flushed red.

“Wow, Eliza, I never figured you to be into bodice-rippers,” Lily chuckled and smirked over at the tomato-red professor.

Maddy who was still holding the Professor looked over between the two other women, a blank look of confusion on her face, “What sort of book is that?”

The flower girl grinned, “Oh Maddy, if you’ve never experienced one, we got to grab one for you to read. Think they have them in the library teach?”

Eliza’s face was still crimson but her expression turned thoughtful, “No harm in checking…”

Lily got up from the bed and began dragging Maddy behind her, “Come on roomie, wait till you get a load of this.”

Eliza smiled wistfully after them, grateful that she had distracted them from their original purpose in coming together, as she left the room.

---

Out on the water, Mira and Maya sat across from each other on the gondola as their Faundolier dragged their oar through the water and slowly glided the boat through the water. The two had been on the water most of the afternoon at this point, stopping briefly for a bite to eat at a fortunate isle full of various restaurants, though that had been one of the milder things they had discovered.

They had come to an area that was an amusement park that had required BP to enter but even from the outside they could tell it was intimidatingly big. Not to mention the sign outside mentioning prizes to be won inside, had made it difficult for Mira to convince Maya to leave if only so they could see what other options were available to them before spending any precious BP.

They then came to a large circus tent with performers outside. The performers had all been fauns dressed in brightly coloured outfits and wearing masks. They noticed that the circus performance itself did not cost any BP but only held performances at night. So if they wanted to see what it was truly about they would have to come at another time.

The next area they visited was an extensive greenhouse that smelled of perfume. Wild plants with vibrantly coloured flowers consumed the space as Fauns in white outfits seemed to gather the oils they needed for scents.

The gondola had next taken them to the restaurants right around when they were getting hungry for lunch. They had just been telling the Faundolier to take them to some place interesting they hadn’t yet seen. Taking them to the restaurants made the duo curious if the Fauns had access to more information than was readily apparent.

Then they had been led to a beachfront, what appeared to be an ancient ruin of marble and stone,a tower that seemed to reach upwards to the heavens to the point that neither Maya or Mira could see the top from the base. Then they had been led to what appeared to be an entrance to the underground but after getting a few meters in and recognizing the walls were paved with skulls, they had turned around and were now back on the boat.

Mira kept her eyes on the water, “You know the last location sealed it for me, but I wonder if this place isn’t designed exclusively with the nature of this show in mind.”

Maya leaned in, “What like it’s just a general soundstage or something for various shows they shoot or something like that? There’s got to be loads of things you could do with a vaguely Venice island.”

Tapping her chin before letting her fingers drag in the water, Mira finally shrugged, “I’m not entirely sure what I mean exactly, but it feels clear that not all these locations are suitable for dates, some of them feel more suited for an adventure video game or something like that?”

Maya raised an eyebrow, “Didn’t expect a woman like you to be into video games.”

“I’m not particularly, but video games are part of the business. I don’t ever want to sound uneducated so I always make sure to read about the latest releases. I also do it for cartoons and anime. It helps me stay abreast of trends in the market and that makes it easier to market my talents. It doesn’t apply to things like commercial work of course, but even things like commercials have trends.”

Maya let out a low hum of interest, “You take your job very seriously, was Caleb one of your better talents?”

Mira smirked, “If you want information you don’t have to try and conceal it with me.”

Smiling but shaking her head Maya continued, “No, genuine curiosity. Will the information be helpful to know more about you and Caleb? Sure. But I’m not trying to suss out statistics. I meant what I said at breakfast. Regardless of the game, I’m not against being friends with people.”

“Your tact of how you go about it suggests you don’t have much experience doing so,” Mira raised evaluatively.

Maya’s face grew sour, “Yeah, never was great at it and I’m more out of practice now than I’ve ever been. That being said I don’t intend to apologize for who I am if that’s what you’re getting at.”

Mira closed her eyes and let out a slow breath, “No that’s not what I’m saying. Be yourself, I’m just bracing you for the fact that others are less likely to believe you’re earnest given the way that you conduct yourself. If they think the game is always going to come first with you, they’re not going to lower their guard.”

Clenching her fingers against the wood of the gondola, Maya’s fingers went white, “Fine, I get it, anyway tell me about how Caleb was as a client, I was earnest in wanting to know about that.”

The Bengali woman sighed, unsure how much she had said had sunk into the lottery winner, but pressed forward, “He was good, he has a great voice for a variety of work, energetic and youthful despite his actual demeanor as an individual. He was quick at turning work over after it was given to him and receptive to feedback. He just…lacked ambition”

That piqued Maya’s interest, “how do you mean?”

Mira turned to look at the clouds in the sky, “When I lost the ability to sing, I would have done anything to get it back. I poured myself into my work, but if I could sing again?” she brought her hands up to her chest, “I would have given it all up. Caleb has pretty severe agoraphobia, he can’t leave the indoors without having panic attacks. That being said, he doesn’t try to get treatment anymore. I’ve directed him toward services and even offered to have the agency pay if he would just commit the time to it. Because the bastard has the talent to do more, but he can’t if he only does things remotely. He’s just accepted this is his lot in life and refuses to see anything more.”

That seemed to strike a nerve with Maya whose face sank, Mira was about to reach out when the boat jostled as they reached the dock of a new location. The Faundolier tapped the side of the boat twice to signal that they had arrived and Maya stood up, the excitement on her face making Mira doubt what she had seen as the lottery winner jumped out of the boat.

“Well then, let’s see what we have here- oh” From the dock, there was only a short distance away from what was the only thing on the island. Like the other locations they had visited, the island sported paved stone flooring rising up from the water and docks. This particular island was small and in the center of it was a building, or the remains of one.

The building was partially fallen in on itself and from the dark marks on the ground, the scorching on the stonework, and the wooden beams reduced to charcoal, it seemed pretty evident that it had been caught in some sort of blaze. A tottered-over steeple and collapsed altar made it likely that the building had been a small church of some kind prior to whatever fire it had been caught in.

Maya raised her leg to step over some debris and began to walk around inside the interior. Looking around and through the various scattered stonework, she called out to Mira who was walking along the outside, “Hey see anything? Anything that might indicate what happened here or why this place might be considered important?

Mira shook her head, pressing her hand against a partially collapsed portion of a wall that fell from just the pressure of her hands, “No, nothing like that…it’s just a burned-down church.”

Scrunching up her face Maya kicked over a wooden beam and then located something on the ground, it appeared to be a charred set of rosary beads. She reached down and grabbed it. Despite the fire being over ages ago, the beads felt warm to the touch. “Found something, some beads!”

Mira walked over, her heels crunching bits of charcoal under her feet, “Yeah well I think that’s about all we’re gonna find here. I can’t figure out why we might have access to here, but I think we’ve seen all there is to see.”

Pocketing the rosary, Maya nodded, “Yeah, we can head back now. I’m sure there’s more to see but already I think we got enough to work with for at least the first round.”

Mira held back her skepticism of how useful any of this would be while their Master remained steadfast against moving outside but kept it to herself as they went back to the gondola.

---

As Amy moved through the marketplace, she noticed how essentially the place was an anachronistic wonderland. Most of the shops were set up like old-style bazaars, but would be hanging things like electric watches, she even saw a furby of all things out on display. Not to mention most of the clothing that was out had definitely been made using a sewing machine.

She had to admire the fauns for staying in character though, motioning as if they were sellers barking at her to come into their shops even with muted voices. Eventually, she found what she needed, crossing to a faun who had their wares laid out on a carpet, gesturing to them like they were treasures from a far-off land.

Amy smirked and pointed to the pristine ruby-red netbook on display, “How much?” the faun made many sweeping and dramatic motions before raising their hand up with two fingers, “You got it”

Amy 20 BP - 2 BP: 18 BP remaining

The Faun lifted the netbook and handed it to Amy and she smiled before bringing out her cell phone and leaning in, “Hey you’re supposed to help us contestants out right?” the faun nodded eagerly and Amy popped out a 2 TB SD card from the slot in her phone and handed it to the faun, “Can you get me transcripts of the most recent human seasons of this show? As many as you can fit on this ok?” The faun paused and then took the SD card and nodded leading to Amy giving it a large grin, “Thanks, pal.”

She pocketed the Netbook and her cellphone then turned towards the back of the shopping district, there was one other place she wanted to go without prying eyes on her. Crossing across the marketplace she eventually came to the front of the Sabotage Shop and let herself in, a bell ringing as the door swung open.

Behind her desk yawning, was the woman that Amy had come to see, “Sleeping on the job? Are you even allowed to leave the shop?”

Arietta’s eyes opened and focused to rest on Amy before leaning against the desk and resting her head in the crook of her hands, “I am allowed to leave. Would I? That is a different question. My role is to serve you contestants here at the shop, so if I’m not here I'm not exactly doing my assigned task am I?”

Amy let her hand rest on the desk and drummed her fingers against it, “I had some questions for you, now that the assistant isn’t here to interrupt them.”

Arietta gave the Japanese woman a sly smile, “Be careful dearie, she may not be here, but her and Lucian always have eyes on what’s going on. Just remember that before you end up grabbing a shovel to dig your own hole.”

Pausing, Amy looked the older woman in the eyes, her expression was playful but there was a kindness underneath the stern warning, “You wouldn’t answer anything that would get me in trouble I don’t think.”

“You don’t think? What makes you think that way? I’m just as much of the show as the fauns are or as Lucian is.” She lazily gauged Amy’s response as the woman kept her eyes on Arietta.

“No, because even though you run this horrid place you haven’t actually pushed us to buy anything. You explained everything but you seemed happy when Mira noticed the loophole in how to use them. I think you’re on our side, whatever you are.” She spoke confidently but even now she was unsure. It was possible this was an elaborate ruse for the game, to give them someone to trust only to uproot it later, but the more time Amy looked at Arietta, the more she felt the comfort that came from being around someone who cared about you. Like an aunt she couldn’t remember having, or a godmother.

Arietta’s smile was gentle and she spoke lazily, her vocal fry tinging every word that left her mouth, “It’s sweet that you think that. I’ll answer whatever questions I can but you’re right if I think it will get either of us in trouble, you won’t get it out of me.”

Smiling wide Amy leaned in and launched into her questions, “Can you tell me are you real? Are you a creature like the fauns? Have you been on other seasons of the show? Is there any way off this island? Is there anything I should know moving forward? Why do you seem tired all the time?”

Lazily, Arietta crossed her arms on her desk and laid her head on top closing her eyes, “You didn’t hold back at all now, did you? Well…” She began to circle one finger around on the flat surface of the desk, “I’m as real as Lucian. I am definitely a creature, but I couldn’t say if I’m like the fauns. I have not been on any other season of this show, I was pulled specifically for this one. The only way off the island for contestants is to reach the end of the challenges. Focus less on outsmarting the game, they have infinite resources and can change on a dime. You’d be better served getting ahead with the other contestants and the Master, however, you want to do that. I’m tired all the time because I spent a long time sleeping and now it’s more comfortable than being awake.”

Amy sighed, a lot of the answers were what she had expected but they also didn’t really change anything about how she conducted herself, well except for…she paused, “If one of the other contestants hates me, what should I do?”

Arietta opened her eyes and reached out with her hand and took Amy’s and squeezed it gently, “This competition is going to cause ups and downs for everyone here. There will be times when you hate others and times when others hate you. You can only conduct yourself with integrity and honesty.”

Feeling wetness in her eyes, Amy hurriedly wiped it away, “Pretty odd thing for someone running the sabotage shop to say.”

“I say this because of the shop I run, no one’s ideals or morals here will stay static. I guarantee you everyone will betray their own morals at some point while they are here, whether out of desperation, fear, or something else. This is the game, and they will drive you all to it.” the elder woman squeezed Amy’s hand again before letting go.

“Thanks…Arietta, can I come to talk to you some other time? Not for questions but just to talk?” Amy looked down shyly.

Arietta’s expression was complicated, “You would be better served talking to your other contestants, but yes you are always welcome to visit.”

Amy turned to go but not before offering a quick “Thanks” over her shoulder.

Arietta sighed and looked into the cards lining her shop, before tucking her head down and closing her eyes.