Her beauty and the moonlight overthrew you

Once her disguise was affixed, it was impossible to tell Mary’s echo apart from the real thing. That was perfectly intended, of course- upon tasking her with this role, the producer had made it possible for the echo to completely mimic all of her original self’s transformations. Of course, that wasn’t to say she actually had them- it was just an illusion.

But an illusion indistinguishable from the real Mary. Nick would never be able to tell the difference. After all- she may have just been an echo, but she was Mary.

In every way it mattered, anyhow.

Movement in the corner of her eye caught Mary’s attention.

“Hey, you. Where do you think you’re going?” She snapped, turning and looking at the leprechaun girl in the hotel basement, trying not to get noticed.

Nola bristled, the color draining from her face. “I… I don’t know what you-”

“Sure you do,” Mary said, stepping closer. She licked her lips. “You know exactly what I’m talking about. Don’t you? Nola.”

Nola gulped. “Look… I don’t know what you think, but… I don’t really care about any of this, you know?” She held up her hands. “You know how there are lots of hosts and show assistants who fall in love with the master? Nope, not me! I’m just a girl who does her job and doesn’t ask questions! I don’t work for Dakota, or anybody, really! I just work for the producers! That’s all! So I don’t really have any allegiance to Nick or any of the others, so if you’re worried that I’ll spill the beans about your little scheme, don’t worry about that, I won’t! You can count on me, I’m always reliable, that’s what they call me, ‘Nola, the Reliable’ because I’m always so-”

Mary lunged forward and slapped her hand over Nola’s mouth, and pushed her against the wall. Her lips curled up into a menacing sneer as she narrowed her eyes.

“You know something, girly?” She rasped. “You talk too much.”

Nola’s eyes widened and she scrambled to say something, but Mary’s hand over her mouth muffled any pleas she might have been trying to make.

With her other hand, Mary held her finger up to her lips. “No, no, shush shush shush now,” she crooned, shaking her head. “I don’t want to hear one more word from you unless I ask for it. Okay? Nod if you understand.”

Nola gulped audibly and nodded.

True to her word, Mary removed her hand. “There, you see?” She said, looking at Nola as the leprechaun staggered away. “I’m an honest person. I keep my word. I don’t know why you’re so scared of me… I’m still a good person at heart.”

She punctuated her claim with a twisted laugh, doubling over.

Nola just smiled a shaky smile and nodded, too intimidated to say anything. She knew she had the protection of the producers, but that only went so far- and Mary’s echo had even more protection than she did!

She really didn’t want to find out what would happen if the two of them were at odds with each other.

“Now then… from what Mr. S told me, you were serving my other self this past round, weren’t you?” Mary asked, narrowing her eyes. “The Little Goody Two-Shoes.”

“Y-yes, that… that’s right,” Nola squeaked. “Mary earned my s-service as a boon, when-”

“I don’t need all the details,” the irritable girl cut her off. “It doesn’t really matter. Is that why you brought her to that room? The one she wasn’t supposed to go into?”

Nola winced. “I… I was just trying to help,” she mumbled, looking down. “I thought… if she knew about what happened to Dakota… then maybe she’d be able to reach her somehow.”

“…Ha. Ha! HAHAHAHA!” Mary doubled over with laughter again. “Oh, that’s just like me! How sweet! She was trying to help the woman who dragged her into this mess! That’s rich! Oh man… I can hardly remember what it was like to be that sweet and naïve!”

It made her feel sick to her stomach.

“Once upon a time, I was just like that,” she mused, tapping her chin. “But then, I was given this transformation. At least, that’s how I remember it, anyway. But that’s not how it went down, is it? After all… I’m just an echo.”

The echo turned to Nola, who flinched.

“The truth is, none of that happened, because I never really existed. I never got that transformation. Hence why I exist now. Isn’t that strange? …If I didn’t know any better, I’d say it was a miracle. But it’s not.” Mary shook her head, grinning wickedly. “I was brought into this reality by the producers. Because the real one… well… …She has you to thank for that, doesn’t she?”

Nola looked down. This was all her fault. Mary had learned something she wasn’t supposed to learn, and so she was getting punished, just like Dakota. But whereas Mr. S still had a use for Dakota… he had no use for the real Mary.

I’m sorry… I was just trying to help. I didn’t know!

“Now, here I am. Forced to pretend to be my sappy, meek, other self!” The echo’s face twisted with fury. “Ugh! I can’t STAND it!” She dug her fingers into the sides of her face. “It would have been one thing if I’d been allowed to just start from where I was, but NOOOOO… Mr. S had to make some adjustments. Or so he said, anyway.”

Cackling, she turned to Nola, her green eyes manic and twitching.

“What do you think, Nola? Do I look… well-adjusted?”

Nola gulped, knowing there was no right answer to that question.

Then, the echo’s smile turned into something that wouldn’t look out of place at all on the real Mary’s face, and strolled over, draping her arm over the leprechaun’s shoulder.

“Hey, come on, there’s no need to get all nervous!” The echo coaxed her. “Come on, just because I’m not the Mary you know, doesn’t mean we have cause problems for each other! Like you said, you’re just here to do a job, and so am I. And your job’s the easy one! While I’m with Nick, playing my other self and acting like everything’s alright, all you gotta do is go along with it, and not tell anyone what you know! Doesn’t that sound easy?”

Nola was too frozen by Mary’s touch to respond.

Scowling, Mary dug her nails into the other woman’s shoulder. “I asked you, doesn’t that sound easy?” She repeated herself with a growl. “After all, Nola… all you need to do is keep that big mouth of yours shut! And you’ve been doing great so far. Haven’t you?”

She reached over and tapped Nola’s pale little lips playfully.

“…Besides. It won’t be for very long,” Mary assured her. “Soon enough, Dakota’s gonna break, and Mr. S is going to turn her back into the host she’s supposed to be. And then, it won’t matter what Nick knows or doesn’t know, and I’ll finally be able to do what I want to do!”

She stretched her arms over her head, thrilled.

“…And what’s that?” Nola asked quietly, looking down.

Mary’s eyes snapped over to her and she scowled. “…Excuse me?”

Nola shivered and looked hesitantly up at her. “I-I just… I just wondered… what exactly IS it that… you w-want to do?”

A shadow crossed the echo’s face, and she scowled. “That… well, that’s none of your business!” She snapped, stomping her foot and balling up her fists. “All you’ve gotta worry about right now is keeping that mouth of yours shut, and letting me do my part! That’s it!”

She slinked closer to Nola, her eyes glittering like emeralds as she glared at the leprechaun. “…And if you think that’s too hard for you… there’s always room for one more in the dungeon…”

Nola stiffened immediately when she heard that veiled threat. “Oh! N-no! That’s okay! I can be good! I promise! Like I said, team player, remember? H-hahaha…”

Mary immediately smiled a genial smile, and clapped her hands together. “Good! Great! Just what I want to hear!” She chirped, standing up straight. “Glad we could come to an agreement! Since it sounds like you and the other me were such good friends, I hope we can do the same!”

She extended a gloved hand to the trembling leprechaun, who know that she was making a deal with the devil even as she took it.

After all… she was a host herself. Or trying to regain her position as one, anyway.

That was her job.

“Hmm hmm hmmmmm…” Mary hummed as the elevator stopped off at the entrance to the Master’s Suite. Just in time for her to catch Ella and Holly leaving.

“Oh! Ella! Are you done cleaning the suite already?” Mary asked, pretending to be her cheerful other self.

Ella blinked. “Uh, yeah,” she said, nodding.

“You’re really late, Mary,” Holly said, surprised. “Nick was waiting for you. Aren’t you always talking about how important it is to be punctual?”

Mary sighed and slumped her shoulders. “I know… I’m so sorry… I was with Nola trying to get her help with something, and you know how much that girl can talk. She’s so sweet, but…”

There were a load of bad things she could say about Nola, but that wasn’t what her other self would have done, so she let the topic drop there.

It wasn’t like it really mattered to the echo one way or another, after all.

Ella bit her lip. “Well… I should probably get going… Holly’s going to be sleeping over in my room, so… yeah.”

“Yup, gonna let you and hubby have aaaalll the personal time you two need to yourselves,” Holly teased her best friend, wiggling her eyebrows.

“Hehe, you have no idea,” Mary giggled, smirking a playful smirk as she imagined all the things that she would be doing with Nick during their “personal time” together.

Holly blinked, surprised. “…Everything okay, Mary?”

“Huh? What do you mean?” Mary tensed slightly.

“Well it’s just, usually when I say something like that, you get all red in the face and go ‘Come on, Holly, stop teasing me like that!’ or something,” Holly pointed out.

I’m still acting like that!? What’s the matter with you, other me!? You two are married, aren’t you!? How are you such a fucking virgin!? Mary’s echo screamed at her other self internally, while not letting any hint as to her true nature leak past her smile.

“Well… you know how it is,” Mary said quickly, giving her best duplicitous smile. “I’m trying not to be too shy tonight… given how I’m trying to rock his world, you know?”

She slowly controlled her glamour as to make her cheeks turn red. “…Oh my gosh, did I really just say that out loud?!” She wailed, covering her face. She needed to, in order to keep Holly and Ella from seeing the agonizing look of frustration she was wearing as she hurled mental curses at her counterpart for making her behave like such a blushing moron.

“Ah, now THAT’S more like you,” Holly giggled. “I knew you couldn’t keep up the act for long, heheheheh.”

“Holly!” Mary wailed. You have no idea.

“Um… well, we-we’ll be going now,” Ella said, clearing her throat as she tried to purge the mental image of Mary and Nick together from her mind.

“Wait, Ella!” Mary called after the latina, startling her.

Ella blinked. “Y-yes?”

“About the challenge, I’m sorry you had to go through that,” Mary apologized. “Turning naked. I know it was Cinder who lost all her clothes, but… that must have been very embarrassing.”

“OH! Th-thank you for saying so, but… it’s alright,” Ella said, giving her a sheepish smile. Mary’s words of comfort did help her a lot though.

“Probably not as embarrassing as having your first time in front of a church full of people and getting knocked up, eh?” Holly teased.

Mary turned red. Jesus! How could you do something that embarrassing and still have a hard time talking about sex!? What’s the matter with you, Mary!?

“Okay, we’ll be going now!” Holly called as she skipped towards the elevator. “Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do!”

“And that would be?” Mary called after her.

Holly turned around and stuck her tongue out.

When the elevator doors closed behind the girls and Mary was alone, she slumped over and let out an exasperated sigh. “Geez… is that really Holly? What the fuck happened?”

From what she knew, her best friend had been almost as prudish and uptight as SHE used to be. And that was saying something. When the producer had filled her in on how everybody had changed in order to help her cover story, the echo had a hard time believing it.

“Well, good for her,” Mary said, standing up straight and turning to the Master’s Suite. “But she’s got nothing on me.”

A wicked smile on her lips, Mary stepped inside, and greeted Nick. “Hi, honey!” She said with a playful smile on her face. “I’m home!”

“Mary!” Nick stuck his head out of the kitchen and his face brightened when he saw his wife again. “I was starting to get worried!”

“Nick? What are you doing in the kitchen?” Mary asked, her eyes wide. “…Wait, don’t tell me you were planning to cook dinner for us tonight!?”

Nick looked sheepishly at her. “Guilty as charged.”

“I should have guessed,” she said, rolling her eyes and walking over, leaning in to give him a chaste kiss on the cheek. “That’s my guy, always looking out for me.”

“I told you, didn’t I?” Nick reminded her. “Tonight is all about you. You’ve been doing so much for me, it’s only fair I give you some care back, don’t you agree?”

Mary tapped her chin, pretending to think it over. “Hmm… well… you make a compelling case,” she admitted. But why do I smell burnt cheese?

Nick glanced over his shoulder, and she saw the hesitation in his face.

“…You sure you don’t need any help?” She asked.

“No! Nope, I can do this!” Nick shook his head. “Holly gave me some pointers! It’s just, uh… it just might be a little while.”

“Well, don’t keep me waiting too long,” Mary said, rubbing her belly. “I’m already pretty hungry. And I’m not just talking about dinner.”

Nick blushed and grinned at her. “Just, uh… you can just wait on the couch and relax or something while I finish up, okay?” He suggested.

“Sounds good,” Mary chirped, walking over and grabbing a mystery novel off the end table. One of the few things she still had in common with her other self was her love of mysteries. It was what let her put on such a convincing performance.

As Nick went back to cooking, Mary looked up at where her invisible camera was located, the one that would be beaming everything that happened tonight into the dungeon where her other self would be watching.

Curling up her lips into a smile she walked directly in front of the camera and gave her other self a wave, winking and blowing a kiss.

She couldn’t wait for dinner… and dessert.

“Wow, this is delicious!” Mary didn’t even have to pretend. Nick was a better cook than she remembered. Probably since the last time she had been this close to him was in college, when he was showing her his culinary talents of cup ramen boiling. “You made this?”

“I tried my best,” Nick said humbly, looking down at the bowl of macaroni and cheese. “I burned it a little at the edges, but at least I didn’t use one of those easy cheesy packets or anything! Real cheese, real pasta-”

“And real bacon, too,” Mary said, crunching through a small sliver of meat. “Yummy!”

She batted her eyelashes at her supposed husband and smiled a cheesy smile. “Maybe I should have you cook me dinner more often!”

Nick laughed. “You deserve it, honestly.”

Mary let herself put on a blush. “Oh, stop it…”

“No, I mean it!” He insisted. “Mary, you’re amazing! I know I’m always saying that, but it’s true! You’re always working so hard, and doing so much for me… and I’ll admit, sometimes I take you for granted. Like today, for instance.”

He looked down. “I know it was rude to invite Rose along when it was meant to be our own personal date… and she was really rude to you, I’m sorry for that. And the fact that you just went along with it, because you cared about Rose and wanted to help her… that was amazing.”

“Oh, come on, it… that was nothing!” Mary laughed, waving aside his concerns. Literally nothing. You think I care if you go flirting with that French bimbo? Get over yourself, asshole. Just because your wife is deluded enough to fall for you after the crap you’ve pulled getting us roped into this shitty game, doesn’t mean I give a crap.

“…You’re an amazing wife, Mary,” Nick said sincerely, standing up and walking around the table so that he could look her in the eyes. “And I don’t think I show you enough how much I understand that. So that’s why… I promise, I’ll do whatever you want tonight. Okay? Whatever it is, if you want to read a book together, or just cuddle on the couch, anything. Okay?”

He placed his hand over hers.

The echo figured that the real Mary would have been touched by such an offer. Heck, I would have been too, back when I liked him that way. But that all passed a long time ago, she thought.

Too bad for you, Nick, you are going to do everything I want… but I’m not your sweet little wife. She’s watching though, watching you say all these wonderful things to a woman who isn’t her. And you’re breaking her little heart right in two!

She had to struggle to keep the triumphant smile off of her face. And you’re going to deliver the finishing blow by the time we’re done tonight!

“There is something I want from you,” she whispered, gazing up lovingly into her “husband’s” eyes. “Can we… start with a kiss, before anything else?” The thought of kissing him where her other self could see was too tantalizing to resist.

Nick smiled a smile that made her sick to her stomach. “Sure,” he said, nodding. “A kiss is a good place to start.”

They leaned in and locked lips, kissing each other. Mary’s echo sighed into his mouth as she made out with him. Well, this part isn’t as bad as I feared, she thought, quite enjoying the feeling of kissing Nick for the first time. No wonder the other me couldn’t get enough of it!

She quite relished the thought that she would be the only Mary to get to kiss him from now on, while her copy was forced to watch.

But then he jerked his head back.

“Nick?” She asked, raising her eyebrows. “What’s wrong?”

Nick looked like he had seen a ghost. “What’s going on here?” He asked, startled at first, then his tone turned angry. “Who are you?”

Mary’s blood went cold. “Huh?! What-what are you talking about!?”

Nick narrowed his eyes. “You’re not Mary,” he said, standing up and backing away from her. “Who are you?!”

“Nick? You’re talking crazy right now!” Mary stood up and faced him, trying to mask the frantic feeling running through her. “Did Rose get in your head again? Come on, we went over this already-”

“I’ve kissed my wife more times than I can count,” Nick cut her off. “And that kiss, it was like kissing her for the very first time, like I’ve never kissed you before in my life! So I don’t know what’s going on here or what you’re playing at, but Mary wouldn’t kiss me like that!”

“Nick!” Mary forced herself to start crying. “How could you say something so mean? I… I thought…!”

He didn’t fall for it. “If you were the real Mary and I accused you of that, you wouldn’t start crying to manipulate my emotions. You would get angry, and start providing me with evidence that you’re the real thing. So now I know for sure that you’re not. Where’s Mary!? Who are you?! What did you do with her?!”

Well… I guess that’s it, then. I couldn’t fool him even for one night. You stupid slut! I bet you enjoyed kissing him all those times, didn’t you!?

She took a deep breath and let out a long, exasperated sigh. “…So you finally figured it out, then, huh… …Well. You’re wrong, Nick, dead wrong. Sure… I might not be your wife…” she raised her hand and banished her disguise, presenting her real self to Nick for the first time. “…But I am Mary. And I’m the only Mary you’re going to see ever again!”