Once again, the girls were pleasantly awoken by the smell of bacon and the twinkling of a bell, Amanda’s sweet voice whispering them to tell them that breakfast was ready. The two girls (who had at some point in the night returned to normal) quickly got ready, practically bounding through the field in excitement to get to breakfast.

~~~

Dining Room

     “So girls,” Howard said, taking a sip of coffee, “Any big plans our last day in Château de L’ange?”

     “Wait! We’re leaving already?” Sable asked, “It feels like just yesterday that we even got here!”

     “Well, it was two days ago,” Howard chuckled, “And unfortunately yes. We’re going to be expecting a large influx of guests at the hotel tomorrow thanks to the finale on Saturday, and what good hotel mogul would I be if I wasn’t there to personally help them get situated?”

     “But!” Annette looked on the verge of tears, “There’s so much I still wanted to do! Lisa and Ann were going to let us off early from rehearsal today because we got so much done yesterday!”

     “Really?” Howard grinned, looking over to Lisa and Ann.

     “Not everyone waits until the last minute to plan out their trick, Howard,” Lisa returned his grin, her biting words doing nothing to ruin his good mood.

     “Especially since you’re supposed to use the last day before a show to iron out any last minute issues,” Ann agreed.

     “I’ll have you know that some of my best work came from the fact that we had waited until the last minute,” Howard said pompously.

     “Well, when you four are done,” David said, “Annette, I want you to come to the library. I may have found something interesting that you’d like to see.”

     “And would you mind coming to my room?” Jill asked Sable,

     “What for?” Sable asked suspiciously.

     “Not much,” Jill admitted, “Just to talk really. It’s been a while since I’ve gotten to just talk to people other than David.”

     “And if anyone needs me,” Amanda said, getting up from the table, Isabella in tow, “I’ll be in the greenhouse watering the plants.”

     “There’s a greenhouse here!” Nora said. She was wearing a white T-shirt, with the neon sign sun of Movie Magic Square on it.

     “Yes! Would you like me to give you a tour?” Amanda asked. Nora shook her hair, following after Amanda.

~~~

Library

     “Ah! Annette!” David smiled, as he looked up from the large ancient book he was read, “How was rehearsal?”

     “Rather uneventful,” Annette sighed, putting Rocky on the floor, who was currently in the form of a black Shih Tzu. “Lisa and Ann are really great at taking over the magician role, but they really run it in a no-nonsense sort of style.”

     “Well, they are professionals,” David pointed out, “not everyone in the magic community is as… eccentric as Howard is. Now then! About what I wanted to show you! Come and take a look at this,” David flipped several hundred pages back from the book he had been reading.

     “You wanted to show me a book?” Annette asked skeptically, walking over to David’s side of the table.

     “Not just any book!” David grinned, “When I first saw Rocky, I had the odd feeling that I had read a story somewhere about a creature similar to him. And Lo and Behold, after some careful searching I managed to find it!”

     “Really?!” Annette said looking at it, “What’s it about?”

     “Well… That’s not as impressive. From what I’ve been able to translate from the Ancient Kobold language, this is the logbook used for some ancient Kobold explorer.” David pointed to the illustration on the opposite page, which showed a faded image of a black shape moving around in a forest, an aura of darkness emanating off of it.

     “I’ll do my best to translate, but there’s still some word that don’t directly translate, so you’ll have to forgive me. From what I’ve gathered, the background is that this legendary Kobold explorer, ᚲᛟᚱᚾᛒᛟᛚᛞᛁᛟ, had decided to attempt navigating the world on foot, and had long since passed into a polar forest, which he names ᛗᛟᚦᛖᚱᛚᚨᚾᛞ, and I think is Russia? *Ahem* Anyways,”

     ‘Today, I continued my journey eastward, by now, I’ve traveled several distances further than any other Kobold in history. It has been many, many nights since I have last passed civilization, and as the weather has gotten colder, the animals that I have been hunting for food have been appearing less and less frequently.

     As I continued to walk, a terrible snow storm beset me, blinding my vision as I continued forwards. And how glad I did, for when the terrible snow storm finally dissipated, I stood in front of a truly ᛗᚨᛃᛖᛋᛏᛁᚲ site.

     In front of me, a forest sprouted upwards from the frozen ground. However, it was not like any forest I had seen back home. Instead of trees, the forest was made up of icy ᛏᛟᚹᛖᚱᛋ. Each rose easily thirty Kobolds high, ice from the outer layer to the very center, their tips pointing skywards in defiance of the harsh elements that surrounded them.’

     “He goes on for quite a while, just describing the scenery,” Howard explains, “Which makes sense, since he’s never seen anything like it. I’ll just skip ahead to the bit that concerns Rocky.”

     ‘Upon my travels in ᛗᛟᚦᛖᚱᛚᚨᚾᛞ, not once did I see a creature, save for one. Although, I cannot be certain whether it was the beast that had created the illusions I saw in the forest, or if the beast was merely an illusion of the forest. In either case, the illusions I encountered were far to strong and vivid to have merely been hunger.

     For instance, when I had fallen forwards in the snow, my shoes having been replaced with fish. Or when my reflection reached out of the mirror to pull on my tail. In all of these instances, I could have sworn I saw a black shape flash before my eyes, disappearing before I had the chance to look at it.

     That is, save for when i had finally reached the other end of the forest. I had turned around, hoping to thank ᛒᚨᚱᚷᛜᛃ for allowing me to come out of the forest unharmed, and there was the black shape. It’s form was indeterminate, save for two intense yellow eyes. From his body, waves of darkness emanated outwards, almost as though his shadow was growing larger to block out the sun. I blinked, and the beast was gone.

     I shall never know if the beast I saw was truth or an illusion, I have chosen to name the apparition I saw ᚲᚨᛋᛒᛚᚨᛋᚲᛁᚠ, after the legendary Hound of Shadows that leads those who have died in battle to the afterlife.’

     Annette stood there, absorbing the story Howard told her. Eventually she said, “I don’t know David…”

     “I looked it up in another Kobold book of mine,” Howard pulled out a smaller book, this one without many pictures, “the legendary Hound of Shadows was said to be a shapeshifting beast that would confuse explorers so that they would die, allowing him to eat their bodies and lad their spirits to the afterlife.”

     “Non of which Rocky would do!” Annette said, “Except for the transforming part of course.”

     “How about the fact that he saw an indeterminate shape with yellow eyes?” David pointed out.

     “Which he fully admit he might have been hallucinating,” Annette pointed out, “Plus, he said that Rocky was controlling his own shadow, which Rocky can’t do. Watch! Rocky! Make the room darker with your shadow!” Rocky tilted his head to the side, to which Annette said, “See!”

     She had to bite her tongue though, as Rocky closed his eyes, his shadow expanding outwards, slowly enveloping the library in an unnatural darkness. David looked beyond excited, while Annette, in shock said, “Rocky! Since when have you known how to do this! Put your shadow back!” Rocky yipped, his shadow quickly returning back to normal

     “Well,” David grinned, “It’s not much info, but at least we have a better ballpark now on how to look up your impossible friend.” Annette seemed down by this revelation. “What’s wrong, I thought you’d be happy about finally figuring out something about Rocky’s species.”

     “I am,” Annette said, not doing a good job at showing it, “It’s just that… I’m worried that by finding out more about him, the appeal of having this mysterious creature with unknown abilities is just going to disappear.”

     “Hey now,” David said, “Just because we have a lead, doesn’t mean the mystery’s completely gone. After all, we found the Higgs Bosom, but there are still many mysteries to our world. So cheer up, because I’m certain there’s still many mysteries to solve with Rocky.”

     “Okay,” Annette sniffed, smiling a little bit, “Although… Does this mean I have to call him a- How did you pronounce it? Ts-? K-? Ph-?”

     “ᚲᚨᛋᛒᛚᚨᛋᚲᛁᚠ” David corrected, “And it’s just a name. I’m certain the scientific community would be find calling it whatever you decided.”

     Rocky walked over, rubbing himself against Annette, indicating that he wanted to be picked up. When Annette picked him up, he licked at her face with his long tongue, licking away a few tears that had managed to escape. “Thanks Rocky,” Annette sniffed.

~~~

Greenhouse

     “Nora?”

     “Yes Amanda?” Nora asked, putting down her own watering can to look over at her. Amanda was wearing a large floral sunhat, and a brown apron with a large pocket which would have housed a variety of gardening tools, were in not for the fact that she was currently holding Isabella with her left arm as she watered plants with her right.

     “Would you mind holding Isabella for a bit while I water the hanging plants?” Amanda asked, hiking up her arm slightly to get a better grip on Isabella again, who was doing her best to struggle out of her grasp.

     “U-Um… Are you sure?” Nora asked, “I’ve never really held a baby before.”

     “Don’t worry,” Amanda smiled, already walking over to Nora, “it’s really easy.” She showed Nora how to make a little pocket with her arms so that Isabella crush her, passing her off like an expert mother as turned around and started watering the high up plants.

     Nora was in shock. Holding something so precious in her arms for the first time ever had stirred up her maternal instincts, making her want to hold her forever. Isabella seemed to look at her like she was the most interesting thing in the world at that very moment. “Hey Isabella!” Nora whispered, “I’m Nora. It’s so nice to meet you!” Isabella could only respond with little bubbles of spit, which made Nora want to hold on to her even more.

     “Alright!” Amanda said, putting down the watering can, “All done, you can give me Isabella back now Nora.”

     “Um… Would you mind,” Nora asked shyly, “If I could… maybe hold onto Isabella for a bit longer?”

     “Well,” Amanda said, looking as though she were thinking it over, “Isabella’s bedtime is coming up, but I guess we can hold off on that until I’m done with watering the greenhouse.”

     “Yay-“

     “Just remember, no magic,” Amanda looked at her sternly.

     “Yes ma’am!” Nora said, before cautiously asking, “Amanda… Do you mind if I ask you… a bit of a personal question?”

     “It depends on the personal question, but shoot,” Amanda said, continuing to water the plants.

    “Did you know my Mom?” Nora asked, shocking Amanda into accidentally dropping her watering can.

     Amanda, for her part, reacted quickly, rightening the can before too much of the water fell out. “You mom?” she turned around, “Yes, I knew Elana. I never really go the chance to interact with her much outside from work. What would you like to know?”

     “Well…” Nora said, not sure what to ask now that she had the opportunity, “I guess… Was she really as great and kind as Dad describes her?”

     “Your mom,” Amanda smiled warmly, “was probably one of the kindest women I had ever met. Do you know what she asked me the first time we performed together?”

     “What?” Nora asked.

     “She wanted to know if I wanted a home-made muffin,” Amanda smiled at the innocent memory, “apparently she would just bake them all the time when Howard was practicing, and so she always gave them out to the stagehands and staff at every function she’d go to.”

     “Really?” Nora laughed.

     “I know! It sounds a little ridiculous after the fact, but Elana truly didn’t have a bad bone in her body,” Amanda laughed a bit with Nora.

     Eventually though, their laughter died down, and Nora had to ask the question that she had been dreading, “Do you think… if Mom were still alive… that she’d be proud of me?”

     “Nora,” Amanda walked over, wrapping her arms around her, “Of course she would be proud of you! You’re following in her footsteps and becoming a magician’s assistant! What more could a mother ask for?”

     “It’s just that…” Nora bit her lip, “I’m nervous about Dad.” Amanda waited so that she could gather her thoughts. “Yesterday, when Dad and David took us out to that magical wellspring place, I asked around about him. Mainly because Dad never really talked to me about his past other than… that one time. Almost everyone agreed that before he met Mom, he was a real scumbag and that he’d treat his assistants unfairly harsh. I’m impressed by both Annette and Sable, but I’m really worried that they’re not going to be able to provide that rock that he needs to stop him from going too far.”

     Amanda nodded her head, “And now you’re having second thoughts about leaving him?”

     “A little bit,” Nora sighed, fiddling with Isabella a little bit, “I don’t know, maybe it’s the Stockholm Syndrome talking? The fear of finally leaving the hotel and going off on my own? I know that the ISAG is very protective of how its members are treated, but what if I end up having to help a magician I end up having no chemistry with for a while? There’s just so many what-ifs, and then my head starts swimming, and I don’t know what I should do.”

     “Nora,” Amanda sighed, “It’s completely natural to feel that way. You’re about to make a big step in your life, and it’s normal to not have everything figured out right away. I’ve been in the business much longer than you, and even I don’t know everything.”

     “So… What should I do then?”

     “Well, that’s something you’re going to have to ultimately figure out for yourself,” Amanda said, taking Isabella from Nora, “I can give you advice, but ultimately, you’re going to have to work through your own feelings and figure it out. Now, if you’ll excuse me for a moment, I think it’s about time this sleepy head took her nap.”

     Amanda left the greenhouse, leaving Nora to contemplate her plans for the future.

~~~

Jill’s Room

     Jill’s Room looked significantly different from how it had first appeared on the last season of ANGA. For starters, the room had nearly doubled in space, transforming more into a single studio apartment than a bedroom. Along one wall, Jill had been gathering treasures from her various television and performance appearances, primarily posters, newspaper clippings, and a cardboard standee of herself. Scattered around the floor were a variety of flattening devices of various quality, ranging from high grade, to DIY products.

    “Sorry about the mess in here,” Jill explained, walking over to the kitchenette and pulling out some tea packets, “What sort of flavor do you like?”

    “Chamomile,” Sable responded.

    “You can go ahead and sit down at the table, tea’ll be done in a bit!” Jill pointed to a small table with some plain looking chairs. Within a couple of minutes, the two of them were sitting down, enjoying a nice cup of tea each.

    “So,” Sable said, looking expectantly at Jill, “Do you think I have a shot at winning?”

    “Of course I do,” Jill smiled, “Although I think that both you and Annette have a really good shot of winning if you give it your all.”

    Sable shook her head up and down, sort of like she expected the answer. Sable took a sip of her tea, before asking, “So, why do you have so many flattening tricks scattered around?”

    “Oh!” Jill blushed, “Well… Flattening is my favorite trick, and when David and I tour, I’ve tried to always pick up a flattening machine as a souvenir, just to see if other parts of the world have found a more interesting way to do it.”

    “And have you found any that are really interesting?” Sable asked.

    “Well…” Jill got up, beginning to rummage around her room, until she found what she was looking for.

     The device was stainless steel, with a large mill style wheel operated by a hand crank, and three different edges to feed into from the wheel, two with weirdly serrated, while the other was completely flat. A little Italian flag was present on the base. “Is that what I think it is?” Sable asked.

     “Yep!” Jill beamed, “It’s a special magic pasta maker!” Jill walked over to the kitchen, returning with a knife and a washcloth. In a swift motion, she cut off her own hand, which she covered with the washcloth, before flicking away, revealing that her hadn’t had turned into a cube of flesh with approximately the same dimensions as her hand.

    “The one major downside is that it can’t take much in at once,” She explained, taking the cube of flesh and feeding it into the mill so that it would come out of the non-serrated edge. “But the fun thing about it is that it enchants your part so that if its eaten, it will return to the owner.”

    “Wait… Eat?” Sable asked.

    “Yep!” Jill grinned, her former hand having been squished out, she set the machine to a thinner thickness, and fed it back in, “The machine basically transforms anything fed into it into living pasta.”

    “What does it feel like?” Sable asked.

    “Well,” the Jill pasta was being fed in at an even thinner thickness once more, “the flattening’s mostly the same as any other, so pretty enjoyable. Getting eaten though? It’s a weird combination of detachment, followed by being tightly constricted, and then vanishing.”

     “Does it taste good?”

     “About the same as any other pasta,” Jill smiled, “Why, do you want to try some?”

    The two girls spend most of the rest of the afternoon just walking through a highlight of Jill’s collection, enjoying the chance for a relaxing day before Saturday.

~~~

The Subway Ride Home

    The farewell dinner had been large and merry, and the girls had boarded onto the subway car (which had been simply resting in David’s lawn for the past two days). The ride back was much less interesting than the ride over, with Jill, Annette, and Sable using the opportunity to get a little bit extra sleep, while Lisa and Ann tried to entertain themselves and watch a movie on her smartphone. David and Howard sat next to each other, and Nora rested her head against her father’s shoulders.

    “David…” Howard said.

    “Hm?” David said, shaking slightly from being awoken by his light slumber, “Yeah?” he mumbled.

    “I just wanted to tell you, I’m very thankful for everything that you’ve done for me.”

    “And what’s that Howard?” David asked, sitting up slightly more, gradually becoming more lucid.

    “You know what I mean,” Howard said, “For pushing the network so hard to hire a has-been like myself.”

    “Howard. You’re not a has-been. I mean, you’ve still got a few good years in you before you’re going to have to transforming yourself to look younger,” David gestured at his body.

    “I heard what the producers told you,” Howard grimaced, “they made sure I was well aware that I wouldn’t have been selected to host if it wasn’t for you. And now look at me,” David just stared at Howard, as he continued to open his heart, “I’m performing again!”

    “I’m sure you would have eventually-“

    “And without you, I'm sure that the twelve contestants lives would be drastically worse than they are now.”

    “Well I’m sure-“

    “And Howard, you managed to do the one thing that I’ll never be able to repay you for,” Howard tilted his head towards the sleeping form of Nora, “You managed to reunite me with my daughter.”

    “Howard-“.

    “If Elana could see me now,” some tears finally managed to break through, “I know that she would be looking down and smiling, and for that, I’ll forever be in your debt.”

    “Howard,” David finally said clearly, “I don’t want you to feel like you owe me anything. You’re an old friend, and I saw the opportunity to help. I’m sure if you were in the same situation, you would have done the same.”

    The older man stayed silent for a while, just enjoying the persistent rhythm of Nora’s head gradually applying pressure as she breathed in, and the pressure lightening as she breathed out. “David?” Howard asked.

    “Yes?” David said.

    “Do you think if I asked her, Nora would be willing to become my assistant?”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

& Question Corner &

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

    To Sable: “I promise not to teach that type of destructive magic to your sisters. Besides, I am more focused on teaching you. If they want me to tutor them at all, they must prove their worth just like you have.” -Izzy

    Alright. Thank you Izzy. Although chances are if you teach me something really cool, I'll be teaching it to them whether you perceive them as worthy or not. They are my family after all, and in my eyes they're all worthy of learning something new.

    To Sable and Annette: “I know the current situation for you two is pretty uncomfortable and I wish the producers wouldn't be so addicted to make "click baity" stuff. As I said last time you two do wonderful and amazing!

     Regardless of who is winning, you both have a permanent fan. Again good luck and best wishes for your future.” -Andrea

    Sable: Aw! Thank you so much, Andrea!

    Annette: Yeah, thanks for the support!

    To Howard: “I know I got harsh at you, and at first it seemed like you were just, excuse my words, the biggest self-absorbed narcissistic man on earth. I know how demanding studios can become, but sometimes it's better to do the right thing than what is demanded. I mean would it be so bad to have two winners this year?

    Anyway, I know I channelled a lot of negative energy towards you, but you are a good host. It is just, you probably have already noticed, I have an incredibly strong moral compass.

     That put on the table, I know when I got too far too. I hope you can forgive me for bluntly pinning you down on that decision you had to make. If you want me to make up for it let me know.” -Andrea

    You don’t have to worry about it Andrea. As I said, I can understand where your discontent comes from, and many of the points you bring up about the annoyance of studio interference and the lack of being able to truly reward both girls equally for their time on the show are two things that are simply things that I must deal with thanks to the nature of the program.

    To Everyone: “You have shown what determination, trust and willpower can achieve. Have you anything you want to do after the end of ANGA?

    Was the last weeks an enrichment for you, did you find aspects about yourself you never had realised?” -Andrea

    Howard: Well, obviously when a winner is eventually determined, we are going to have to get to work straight away so that we can get our first show out of the way and focus on improving from there. As for things I’ve learned about myself… well, in some ways, I’ve started this season with nothing, and have received everything, so I guess I cannot complain.

    Sable: If I don’t win, the plan’s going to be to meet up with Sinopia and from there… I’m not really sure? Maybe start working out a routine with her? I’ve definitely discovered a lot about myself thanks to the show.

    Annette: Well, the first thing I’m going to do if I lose is give Rocky the largest treat I can find for him. After that, probably start prepping for the upcoming Beast competitions. And who know, maybe I’ll start looking for a magician who’s pet-friendly?

    To Howard, David, Jill and Nora: “A new friend and I saw you at Movie Magic, but decided not to approach, it looked like you four were having fun. We were both disguised.

    She said the magic in the place had increased in the last thousand years or so since she was last here. I had spotted it right away when i first came to Hollywood, and it is a good place to recharge or quickly repair certain magical items.” -Genie Schutter.

    Howard: It’s also a great place to buy magical items, just as long as you verify that they’re real and not some transfigured piece of trash.

    David: One time Howard. It was only the one time!

    Jill: Well, if you were disguised, you should have came up and said hi! We could have grabbed lunch together!

     Nora: Yeah, the more the merrier!