Or, What Became of Meili?

Meili sat in shock in the wings, behind the closed curtain. She looked at the locked, clear case that had once held Laurel, now full of nothing but ash and bones. There was no way the assistant could have escaped her demise. Meili herself had locked the girl inside, and had seen there were no trap doors- the entire container was transparent. The Chinese girl walked over to the box and looked around, spotted the key on the floor. She picked it up, and put her hand on the padlock. It was still hot. She looked around, saw nobody, and inserted the key. The lock was stiff, but eventually turned and opened.

Meili inhaled, steeled herself, and opened the case. She pulled back, wrinkling her nose and blinking as the smell of burnt sulfur filled the air. Morbid curiosity got the best of her, and she bent over, examining the corpse closely. Something didn't quite seem right... She reached her hand out, slowly... and gave a startled shriek as she felt a hand on her shoulder.

"Sorry," said a familiar, female voice, as the hand pulled her back. "It's an expensive prop, you can't touch it." Meili turned to see herself face to face with Laurel, in a short, fluffy black bathrobe.

"But-" Meili blinked, confused, then unfurrowed her brow, relieved.

"I would have been out a little sooner, but got stuck backstage. Robyn couldn't find... well, you know. Opening night and all, a bit of confusion."

Meili heard voices and turned as Robyn and two male stage hands walked on stage. The men started sweeping up the floor as Robyn, in cut-off jeans and a t-shirt, waved to Laurel. "Hey Lu! Where's my costume from the opening act?"

Laurel took Meili's hand and walked her towards the redhead. "Find it yourself- you're the one who left it laying on the funnel prop."
"But I was in a hurry!"
"The costume rack's five feet away, ditz," the blonde smirked. "Don't worry, I picked it up and put it in the costume closet after my 'Cut Scene'. Please, take better care of my costumes or you'll be doing the show naked."
"Oh, you'd like that, wouldn't you?" Robyn grinned.
Laurel rolled her eyes, "Mari would, that's for certain."

Meili turned from watching her escort to see where she was headed and stopped short as she rounded the corner into a hallway. Standing in front of her was The Magician. He smiled, his eyes twinkling. Laurel whispered to her, "Have a good evening," patted her on the shoulder, and walked past, but Meili's eyes never left The Magician's.

The Magician took her hand and shook it, clasping firmly with both of his. "Allow me to thank you for being such a wonderful volunteer, Meili, and to apologize. I know you didn't have the clearest view of the show."

Meili thought back to the events of the evening, and smiled. "It's all right, I saw things well enough."
"Still, it's distracting to have to watch from the control booth." The Magician pulled off his shirt mic, and lifted his arms as a techie in black clothes removed the transmitter pack from his belt. "Still, very few people get the opportunity to see themselves beheaded."
Meili watched as the Magician helped the technician remove the wire from under his armpit. The performer, who's movements had been so precise during the show, looked awkward as he twisted. Still, he seemed comfortable and pleasant. Meili smiled again, "I did appreciate the perspective."

The Magician removed his jacket and held it out to Laurel as she walked by, her hands already full of hangers and clothes, "Could you take this, please- I'm with our volunteer."
Laurel stopped, looked pointedly at her full hands, then held out an arm. "Sure, boss."
The Magician tossed his jacket over her extended elbow. "Thank you, kindly."

Meili watched the bustle as the Magician led her by the hand down the hall way. She peered into an open door and spotted a half-naked woman in the process of getting dressed. "Oh! That's-"

The Magician smiled. "Of course, it's Marisol. Hitomi's running down the post-show checklist in the booth."

Meili stopped, then felt embarassed that she was surprised by the revalation. "It looked so real, though..."
"I know. But like your vivisection, my dear, only an illusion. I can't kill off my assistants every time I perform- they take too long to train." He chuckled along with Meili. "No, I only kill them off for the final performance." His eyes lit up as hers widened. He opened a door, and grasped her hand more firmly. "Of course, volunteers who've seen too much, now..." Meili put her hand to her mouth, gasping involuntarily. The Magician pushed her through the threshold and closed the door.

Meili breathed quickly, and thought back to her first time on the stage that evening, remembering the drop through the floor trap, and Hitomi quickly helping her crawl under the stage to the corridor that led to the back of the theater. She had seen a lot. She certainly knew how she got off the stage in full view of the audience... if not how the Magician had performed the rest of the illusion. She turned from the door. Behind her was the frame she'd been strapped in, before the switch had been made. The saw was still resting between the rods, where "her" head had been sawn in half and removed. It looked very sharp. On the teeth... was that... blood?

She squeaked as she heard the door open. Hitomi stood there, a clipboard and pen in hand. "I trust you'll sign this non-disclosure agreement?" Meili nodded, took the pen, and signed.
"Thank you," Hitomi bowed slightly and took the clipboard back. She peeled off the bottom copy, then pulled an envelope from under it, and handed both to Meili. She took the volunteer's hand, and led her past the prop, out into a corridor. A few short steps later, and Meili realized she was in the entryway of the theater. Her friends were waiting for her at the door, and the small group applauded as they saw her and Hitomi.

"Meili! You're back!" her friend, Jacob smiled. "We thought you got lost."
Meili turned around as Hitomi slipped back into the corridor. She looked down at the envelope, and opened it. Inside was a ticket to next week's performance, and a picture of the Magician, taken that night as he was performing the vivisection trick on her. She had to admit, it did look real. On the back, his signature, and a note, "Thank you for volunteering, and putting up with my teasing. I hope you enjoyed the show."

Her friend Jennifer turned Meili around and gave her a hug. "That was amazing! Tell me, how did the Magician..."
Meili put her hand to Jennifer's mouth. "Shh. Really, I have no clue." She smiled. "Now let's all go get some dessert. You guys owe me, big time."

---
Hitomi looked sternly at the Magician, who was grinning devilishly from the doorway as he watched the scene. "Really, boss, you need to stop scaring the volunteers like that." She pulled the saw from the vivisection prop and started to put everything away.

"Oh, let me have my fun, Hitomi. Besides, you have to admit, we've not had a single one refuse to sign the NDA." He laughed. "Come on, I'll help you finish up."
Hitomi smiled. "Thanks, boss."
"No problem. Oh, let the rest of the crew know, the cast party's at Bushido Sushi around 11:30. See you there!"