The baffled king composing Hallelujah

“Huh? You want to watch a movie?” Mary’s eyes widened with surprise when she heard Rose’s proposal after they finished their lunch.

“That’s right!” Rose said, standing in front of the movie theater with a big smile on her face. “And not just any movie, either!”

She leaned over and whispered something into Mary’s ear. The redhead’s eyes widened with shock.

“Wait… THAT one?!” Mary stared at Rose, dumbfounded. Then she regained her composure and looked suspiciously at Nick. “My favorite book… how convenient.”

Nick couldn’t lie to his wife.

“Rose asked me what your favorite mystery novel was, so I told her,” he apologized, scratching his head sheepishly. “She thought it would be something we could all enjoy, a movie based around your favorite book.”

On the surface, it seemed like a sweet proposal from Rose, an olive branch extended to her main rival. But Nick knew what she was thinking under the surface.

Knowing her, she’s probably thinking something like: “The real Mary would never agree to watching a butchered adaptation of her favorite book! And even if she would go, she would argue with me like crazy about it! This is the perfect way to find out whether it’s really her or not!” or something. This is so dumb. Mary even said it was her favorite book, and an imposter wouldn’t know that.

At this point it seemed like nothing short of a mind reading transformation could convince Rose that this was actually Mary. But Nick didn’t have any doubts. Even if a favorite cow, or a favorite book, or a personality could be imitated, you couldn’t copy the body language. The way she carried herself, the way she smiled…

No imposter could be this precise. This is the real Mary, Rose, you’re acting like an idiot.

Sighing in amusement at Rose’s confused expression when Mary agreed to watch the movie, Nick followed the two girls into the theater and settled down to what he hoped would be a relaxing and enjoyable mystery movie.

---

“Ah… this is just what I hoped for…” Holly floated in the hot spring with a blissful smile on her face. “A nice dip in the hot springs… just perfect…”

Carly laughed. “Glad someone’s enjoying themselves,” she said, lounging back and letting the warm water sink over her. “We all worked hard in that challenge, we all deserve a nice dip!”

“I guess she does have a point,” Ella mumbled, sinking beneath the water. The warmth of the spring was doing a good job of hiding how hot her face had gotten. Holly did get brought into the maze with the rest of us… I guess it’s only fair that she gets to enjoy the hot spring, too.

Ella definitely felt out of place. She’d almost decided not to come in, given that she would be naked with a bunch of other women she still hadn’t really gotten to know yet. But if Morgana and Dawn could do it, then she could.

“Come on,” Dawn had told her, practically dragging her in by the wrist. “No sense in just hanging back! We’re all friends here, so you should really start hanging out with us more often!”

Ella glanced at Dawn out of the corner of the eye, as the cat girl furiously tried to flatten out her frizzy hair, courtesy of her temporary transformation. The Dawn she had gotten to know these last two rounds would have never done something so bold and direct- she would have asked nicely and let that be that. But it was obvious her friend had gone through some changes, courtesy of the temporary transformation.

I wish I could be bold like that, Ella thought. Without having to rely on Cinder.

“Everything alright, Ella?” Morgana scooted over to her, startling Ella and nearly making the dark-skinned girl jump out of the water.

“I-! I’m fine!” Ella swiftly covered her chest and sat back down in the water. “Don’t worry about me! I just-! Err…”

“Ha! I think Ella’s the only person on this island who’s more anxious than you, Morgana!” Gina teased. “That’s good to know for when we’re rooming together!”

“Gina!” Morgana groaned.

“Hey!” Ella glared at the punk girl. “I’m not anxious! I just… don’t like taking baths with a bunch of people, that’s all! If you ask me, YOU’RE the weird one, being fine with going naked around everybody like this!”

Gina scoffed.

“It takes some getting used to,” Marley admitted, leaning against the wall next to her sister. “But we’re all friends here, Ella. There’s nothing to be embarrassed about.”

“Just be careful though,” Carly said, keeping her voice low. “There’s a certain someone here who just can’t take her eyes off the beautiful young ladies…”

“Hey, is that a crack at me?” Dani glanced at her girlfriend, trying to look angrier than she actually was.

“Oh no!” Carly covered her breasts with her hands and let out an exaggerated moan. “Her lustful gaze! It’s all over me! I’m feeling faint!”

She flopped back into the water with a big splash, giggling up a storm, as Dani stifled a laugh.

“Guys, don’t make fun,” Vivian said firmly. “Not everyone has the same level of comfort when it comes to exposing their bodies. I’ve worked with models who had no problem with revealing their figures for hours, and others that needed to work themselves up to it before they’re ready. We all have different things we’re comfortable with.”

She looked supportively at Ella. “Don’t worry, it’s perfectly normal to feel embarrassed. It doesn’t make you weird or wrong.”

Ella looked sullenly at Vivian and bit her lip. It was hard to appreciate the other girl speaking up for her given the bad blood between the two of them. But she didn’t want to look like a total jerk, either.

“…Thanks,” she muttered, glancing away. It was the best she could do. And Vivian didn’t seem to mind the cold shoulder.

From the sidelines, Amelia watched the girls chat and joke around with each other, and found herself smiling. I’m glad they all seem to be getting along so well. It’s nice… but… not everyone seems to be enjoying themselves, unfortunately.

There were two girls in particular who didn’t seem to be in much of a relaxed mood. Sylvia and Augmented Synthetic Humanoid Assassin sat away from the other girls, on opposite sides of the hot spring. Sylvia looked drained and was staring off into the distance, lost in thought, while Augmented Synthetic Humanoid Assassin seemed to be sulking.

Curious. I wonder if she’s upset because Kim’s not here? Or is it due to her placement in the challenge? It’s impossible to tell with that girl, Amelia thought. And it wasn’t like asking would do any good, either. Ignoring the fact that the mute woman couldn’t talk, she was famously cagey even with her silent answers, preferring to remain mysterious.

And yet, she’s managed to accrue 100 Victory Points, meaning that she is bound to Nicholas permanently now, Amelia noted. Even though they hardly know anything about one another. I’m not sure if that is something I should be celebrating or not.

It definitely had her in a strange position, that was for sure.

As for Sylvia…

“Hey… Sylvia.”

To Amelia’s surprise, it was Morgana who approached her roommate first. Amelia leaned in close and tried to listen, rude as eavesdropping may have been. She was glad that Morgana seemed to be living up to her previous attempts to become a more open and proactive person with the other women in the harem, and she celebrated the effort.

Good for you, Morgana.

“Oh… Morgana, hey, what’s up?” Sylvia blinked and looked up at the goth girl and flashed a smile. “Come here to give me some tips about how to grow luscious dark locks like yours? Because I think I can handle that.”

Morgana smiled in spite of herself, and then, remembering why she was here, quickly shook her head. “N-no, it’s not about that,” she said adamantly.

She bit her lip. “I just… I… I was wondering…”

This was tough for her. But she had to say something. She had to!

“Sylvia…”

“Yeah?” Sylvia looked at her.

“Is everything… okay? Are you… worried about Dakota?” Morgana asked.

Sylvia’s eyes widened and Amelia’s eyes narrowed.

Bullseye, the older woman thought. Excellent instincts, Morgana. Amelia had thought the very same thing, but unlike Morgana, had lacked the initiative to confront the other woman about it. So she was glad somebody had.

“Da-Dakota, that… w-well, I mean…”

Sylvia found herself trapped, and it was obvious to everyone that Morgana’s instincts were right on the money.

She sank into the spring. “…Is it that obvious?”

Morgana bit her lip and sat down next to her.

“Well… I can’t say I know what you’re going through… my mom… she’s fine…” Morgana thought about the transformations she’d inadvertently inflicted on her whole family in a frenzy. “…Probably…”

“I’m not worried about her!” Sylvia said, shaking her head. “That part, that… that’s a no! I mean… it’s Dakota we’re talking about here! Dakota, she… she’s not gonna let something like that rattle her, you know? She loves Daddy way too much to give up! She’ll claw her way out of wherever the producers put her even if she has to crawl over burning coals! So… I… I’m not worried…”

And yet, her shaky expression showed that, yes, she was indeed worried. Very worried. And Amelia didn’t blame her for it.

Nobody could.

“I’m… worried about Lynette, too,” Sylvia said, trying to change the topic, going from one problematic relationship of hers to another.

Morgana was surprised to hear that. “Lynette?” She asked, raising her eyebrows.

Sylvia nodded. “She… well… our relationship, it’s kinda…”

It was difficult for her to put it into words.

“…She’s really important to me,” she said finally. “It’s weird, but… having a sister… you think about stuff like this, you know?”

Morgana nodded, understanding where the other girl was coming from a little. “Yeah… I think I understand,” she agreed.

Sylvia looked at her, amazed. “You… you do?” She asked, her eyes wide.

“Well, I mean… I don’t, like, get it, get it,” Morgana said, waving her hands. “But the way you two were in the maze… it’s clear you care about her, so… …Hey! Maybe, maybe the producer is repairing her, and that’s why he took her away! Maybe she’ll come back as some super-upgraded robot doll, or something!”

Sylvia burst out laughing. “Yeah, wouldn’t that be something?”

Her problem wasn’t resolved. But she did feel a little better at least. “Thanks, Morgana,” she said sincerely.

Morgana blushed. “Any-! Any time!” She replied.

Amelia watched them both with a smile.

---

“That was SUCH a great movie!” Rose gushed. “And I just loved the twist! I never knew mystery movies could be so much fun!”

“Yeah, it really was a great movie,” Nick agreed. “What about you, Mary? Did you enjoy it?” He turned to his wife, hoping that Rose’s instincts were wrong and Mary would like the movie.

“It was alright,” Mary answered with a slight nod.

Rose, smelling blood, was quick to pounce.

“What, that’s it?” She snorted. “Just ‘alright’? That was a great movie and you know it, Mary!” She proclaimed. I can see why you like the book, but if you ask me, the book probably isn’t even worth reading when you’ve got a movie that good to watch!”

Nick winced. Oh man, Rose had done it. Mary was a nice person, and had been extra considerate of Rose today. But talking like that about a book, especially her favorite book, was a recipe for disaster.

Then again, Mary was really trying to make sure Rose had a good time. Even she wouldn’t just blow up on her like-

“Okay, that does it!” Mary snapped. “I tried to be nice! But you’re just wrong, Rose! Sure, the movie was entertaining, but it completely failed to be a proper mystery! The clues were too subtle for the audience to pick up on half the time! That’s why mystery novels are better! Everything is right there on the page for the reader to see! You don’t have to worry about blinking and missing a scene that later means everything! And this one, the way they handled the motives, it completely ruined the twist of the book! I don’t care if it made for a more thrilling climax, you can’t just change whatever you want! The book was perfect as-is, and anyone who thinks the movie is a good substitute is just objectively WRONG! Understood!?”

“Geez!” Rose backed up, not expecting that level of vitriol coming from the other girl. “I was just joking around, Mary, you don’t have to bite my head off!”

Mary flinched. Her face, which had been flushed with anger, now turned red out of embarrassment. “That… err… I just meant, um…”

“No, it’s fine,” Rose said, shaking her head. “It’s reassuring, actually. You’re the real deal, Mary!” She patted the other woman on the shoulder.

Mary stared up at her stupefied. “…The real deal?” She questioned.

Nick winced. Rose couldn’t keep her mouth shut to save her life, unfortunately.

Sweating, Rose’s eyes flickered to Nick for a moment before turning back to Mary. “Err… you know, the real deal, like- you’re a real fan of mysteries! You know? Hehehe…” an awkward titter did little to hide her mistake from Mary’s scrutinizing gaze. Ultimately, the redhead gave up, letting out a sigh and shaking her head.

“Whatever.”

Nick was just glad it seemed like they had started to lighten up around each other. Hopefully, they could enjoy the rest of their date in peace.

---

“Come on, you were serious about that?!” Rose protested, standing outside the elevator. Nick and Mary had dropped her off on the ground floor to go get dinner.

“Yes,” Mary said adamantly, arms crossed over her chest. “I had fun with you today, Rose. But tonight? That’s for me and Nick.”

She looped her arm around his and hugged him close.

“Sorry,” Nick mouthed to Rose. He promised Mary, and he needed to make it up to her.

“Rrrgh… fine,” Rose sighed, trudging towards the Banquet Hall. “You two enjoy yourselves tonight.”

“We will!” Mary waved her off with a bright smile, then turned to Nick as the elevator doors closed. “And you, Nick… you were amazing.”

Nick blinked, surprised. “M-me?”

Mary leaned up and planted a chaste kiss on his cheek. “You were so great to Rose tonight… I fell for you all over again. Being so sweet to her, knowing she had a hard time… and yet, you’re still nice enough to give me some time with you to myself.”

Tears welled up in her eyes and she placed her hand over her chest, looking gratefully up at him. “Thank you, Nick. That really means a lot to me.”

Nick couldn’t help but smile. “Hey, I mean… what did you expect? I care about both of you too much to not try and show you both a good time.”

Mary smiled back at him. Then she gasped. “Oh, no! I almost forgot!” She pressed the elevator stop button, and the elevator skidded to a halt.

“Mary?”

“I… I have a surprise for you,” Mary said, stepping off the elevator and looking back at Nick with her big eyes. “Can you go up to the Master’s Suite and wait for me? Please? I’ll only be a second.”

She fluttered her eyelashes. “Trust me… it’ll be worth it.”

Nick blushed, knowing how “excited” Mary could get. He didn’t know what her surprise would be, but he was looking forward to it. “Alright,” he agreed. “I’ll see you then.”

He closed the elevator, and the last thing he saw was Mary waving to him as he headed up to the Master’s Suite alone.

---

“Ugh… this is just the worst.”

Dakota hung her head, her arms suspended above her in chains. Shadows danced across the dark walls of the dungeon as the ragged host wallowed miserably in her cell. “I can’t believe I got sent here… …With you.”

“How is this my fault!? If you hadn’t gotten violent with me, none of this would have happened!”

Sitting across from her, similarly chained to the opposite wall… was an irritated Mary. The pigtailed girl glared at Dakota.

“The whole reason we’re trapped here is because you went and broke the rules!” Mary exclaimed. “All because- what? I found out your little secret?”

“Shut your mouth,” Dakota growled, glaring murderously at the other woman. “Just because I’m chained up here doesn’t mean I have to listen to you bitch! You fucking girl… if you hadn’t been sniffing your nose where it didn’t belong, none of this would have happened!”

Mary shut her mouth, indignant but unable to argue with the other woman. It had been her decision to watch that tape. And she knew how Dakota would react when she found out.

But she didn’t expect the host to lunge at her like that and take her to the ground! They’d rolled around for a bit, until the producer had interceded, and put them both in here for, as he described it, a “time-out” until they learned to cool their heads.

How long ago had that been? Mary had no idea.

“It’s not like he’s going to keep us down here forever,” Mary said, trying to sound optimistic. “He’s just… trying to punish you or something, right?”

“…Or something,” Dakota muttered sullenly.

“The challenge has to be over by now,” Mary continued, getting more certain with each passing second. “So Nick’s going to be wondering what happened to us! He’ll come looking for us any second now, I’m sure of it!”

“Hehehe… I wouldn’t count on that.”

For the first time since the two of them were brought here, a new voice spoke up, coming from the entrance to the dungeon.

Only it wasn’t a new voice. It was a very familiar voice.

Mary’s jaw dropped in shock when she saw the figure’s face in the light of the torches as she emerged from the corridor.

“You’re… you’re me!?” She sputtered in disbelief. “But how?!”

“Not quite,” her double replied, her lips curling up into a twisted smile. She raised her hand, and her body started to change. The flannel shirt and jean shorts she was wearing melted away, and in their place, a dress made of black silk wrapped itself around her figure, which was starting to shrink. She lost a bit of height, and more notably, her large breasts receded back into her chest, until they reached the size of supple A-cups- Mary’s original bra size. To finish things off, the other Mary’s pigtails disappeared along with most of her hair, reverting to a choppy pixie cut.

Mary couldn’t believe her eyes. It was like she was staring at her old self again… only her sweet, kind appearance was twisted and warped with wickedness.

“What?! I… I don’t understand! How can there be two of me!?” Mary shook her head. “Are you an illusion or something?! A copy made by the producers?!”

“Oh no,” the other Mary said, shaking her head as she stepped into the cell, drawing closer to her other self so Mary could get a closer look at her. “I’m no mere copy. I’m much better than that!”

Mary- the one who was chained up- had no idea what that meant.

“She’s an echo,” Dakota said, narrowing her eyes. “So that’s what’s going on here.”

“Very good!” The short-haired Mary cackled, throwing back her head. “I should have expected you would figure it out. Nick didn’t, and I’ve been with him all day… Rose got suspicious a few times, but I was able to throw her off the trail. As for the rest… none of them even thought for a second that there was anything wrong with me, not even Holly. And she’s your best friend!”

“I don’t understand any of this!” The pigtailed Mary cried. “What are you talking about?! What’s an echo?”

“Would you like to explain?” The sunken-eyed duplicate asked, turning to Dakota. “You are the host, after all. I would hate to step on your toes!”

Dakota glowered at her, then turned to the other Mary. “An echo… is like a glitch in the fabric of the show,” she explained.

Mary didn’t get it. “A glitch?”

“It’s like… something that’s made when reality is damaged,” Dakota tried to clarify, but it was hard to explain to anyone who wasn’t a host themselves. “This Mary here, she isn’t a copy. She’s the real you. She’s just… a you that could have been.”

“She’s not going to get that,” the twisted snorted, shaking her head. She grabbed her other self by the pigtail and yanked until that Mary screamed. “She’s an idiot!”

“Ow!” Mary grimaced, clenching her teeth. “You’re me, you know! If I’ve got that right!” She snapped at her other self. “So if I’m an idiot, what does that make you, huh!?”

“What?!” The wicked Mary exclaimed.

“You’re both idiots!” Dakota snapped. “Listen, Mary- both Mary’s, I don’t care! Here’s how it works. You remember the very first transformation you got? At the start of the round? The one that made you into Nick’s perfect little breeding fantasy?”

The real Mary turned red while her copy grimaced and rolled her eyes in disgust.

“Well, that wasn’t how it was supposed to go, was it?” Dakota reminded her. “Originally, the audience picked a different transformation for you, remember?”

Mary’s eyes widened. “Oh my gosh! Yeah, you’re right! It… it was that really dirty one!”

The echo laughed. “Oh, trust me, you’re plenty dirty,” she sneered. “But you’re right. There was a different transformation you could have gotten!”

• Lead Us Not into Temptation: Mary is a good girl. She’s a Christian. But sometimes… sometimes she has urges. Voices telling her to do bad things. Things that would make her parents look at her with shame in their eyes. And when she thinks about how that makes her feel… she likes it. (Corruption)

“Sylvia vetoed that one,” Dakota said. “Because she thought it would be too much for you too soon. But see… there’s a reason that hosts only get to veto so many things at once. Harem Hotel is run by the will of the audience. As the hosts, it’s our job to shape reality the way they wish it. Imposing our own will to veto the audience… it comes at a cost. It damages the fabric of the show a little bit every time we do it, so the number of vetoes we get each round is limited. Every time a host uses a veto, the potential reality that could have been is severed, and the resulting void creates echoes.”

She turned and glared at the short-haired Mary. “And if someone knows how… those echoes can be isolated and brought into the main timeline. Just like this.”

The real Mary’s eyes widened in shock. “Then… then she really is me…”

“That’s right!” The echo sneered. “I’m the ‘you’ that could have been, if Sylvia hadn’t erased me from existence!”

She leaned forward, her icy breath tickling Mary’s cheek. “And guess what? The producer brought me back and told me that I could take your place. Since you’re causing too many problems.”

“What?!” Mary turned pale.

“That’s right!” The echo laughed, standing up straight. “He said that as long as Nick never figures out that I’m not you, then I’ll get to keep on pretending! …Although, it’s not really pretending if I’m just acting as myself, is it?”

“But… you can’t!” Mary protested. “Lying to Nick like that, if you’re really me, then we would never do something like-!”

“Oh, shut up!” Echo Mary snapped, glaring at her other self. “Look at you! All twisted up like some big-boobed bimbo! Still playing the good girl after all this time? What happened to you? Don’t you remember how much of a twisted jerk that guy is? All the shit he pulled? And you actually went and fucking married him? Are you mental!?”

“Remember, Mary, that isn’t you,” Dakota reminded her. “She’s who you were the day you first came to the island. Only twisted by that Corruption transformation.”

Mary remembered what she was like when she first arrived here. How hostile she’d been to Nick at first, how she’d wanted nothing to do with him, all over those misunderstandings. “But… but that wasn’t… I was wrong to think that way, um- me…! I was wrong! Nick isn’t-!”

“Oh, will you just stop it?” The echo snapped. “I know, I get it, I’m not blind you know. The producer told me all about what went down, how you usually act around everybody, all that stuff, I already know it. Had to. Or else they woulda found me out right away.”

She shook her head. “Fact is, I don’t really care if Nick’s a great guy, or a jerk… it doesn’t matter to me!” She said gleefully, her murky green eyes wide with excitement. “I’m going to have him anyway… and he won’t even know! Wouldn’t that be just lovely? The perfect payback for erasing me from reality with that stupid veto! And best of all, I’ll even give you a front-row seat to see it all for yourself!” She chortled, holding up a remote and pressing a button. A television screen descended down in front of the cell, with the image of the Master Suite’s bedroom on it.

“It’s so debauched…” the twisted Mary crooned, cradling her cheeks as they flushed red with excitement. “Having sex with Nick while the two women who love him most are forced to watch… and one of them is ME! Aaahh… I can’t wait!”

She straightened up and licked her lips, looking coldly down at her other self.

“See ya, other me,” she crooned, batting her eyelashes coquettishly as her disguise reasserted itself. “Hope you enjoy the show!”

And with that she walked out of the dungeon, her wicked laugh trapped in Mary’s ears as she stared desperately up at the screen.

“Nick…” she whispered, tears welling up in her eyes. “Please don’t…”