“Good Morning Girls~” Howard’s voice sounded particularly more sing song than usual that morning. He clearly was extremely excited to be waking the girls up this morning. “If you two finalists would kindly make your way to the Lobby in a timely fashion, we have a very special gift all set up and waiting~” The girls grinned as Howard’s voice once again faded into aether. They got up, managing to get ready in half the time they normally did, as they headed down to the lobby.

~~~

Lobby

     In the lobby, Martin and Howard were standing next to a large flat screen TV. Martin was idly shifting from standing on the balls of his feet to a more neutral stance, while Howard was twiddling his thumbs, watching the Golden Elevator for any signs of movement. As the doors to the golden elevator opened, depositing Kacie and Paxton out into the lobby, Howard seemed to snap to attention, quickly waving them over, “Girls! Come over here! We have something very exciting to show you~”

     “So,” Howard began, his happy smile shifting to a more serious tone, “I’m afraid we’ll have to start out with some bad news girls… I’m afraid the other contestants won’t be coming in until late Saturday afternoon… It seems that all of the inbound flights have been absolutely booked solid, and the Production team doesn’t have enough in the budget to charter the AFT-1 for a special flight.”

     Kacie and Paxton seemed crestfallen at the news that they wouldn’t be able to talk to their fellow contestants prior to the show. “But luckily,” Martin grinned, producing a CD from behind his body, “We were able to get all of them together to film a little something for you two…” He placed the CD into the side of the TV, which automatically turned on from sensing the piece of media being entered.

     The formerly black screen turned on, revealing a shot of familiar faces. Standing int a small group, the six former contestants of the season smiled at the camera, uniformly shouting, “Congratulations Kacie and Paxton!”

     Of all the girls, Rachel and Olive looked like they had changed the least since their time on ANGA. Maybe Rachel’s hair was a little longer? Olive could have been a few inches taller or shorter depending upon how her last decompression went. That ultimately didn’t matter though, as they both looked really happy to be addressing their fellow contestants once more.

     Natalie seemed to have not changed all that much physically either, she still was a rather mousey looking woman, but she still seemed different in the way she held herself. She had a much more confident stance, and had seemed to have managed to get her frizzy hair in order slightly, better framing her beaming face.

     Of the girls though, the most changed was clearly Dahlia, or at least the three girls the three girls that could be commonly associated with being Dahlia. For starters, the proper Dahlia was still in her half-size state, being held up in the frame by Julia, who held her like a bit like a teddy bear against her chest. If that wasn’t enough, it seemed that Dawn and Julia had some additional magic performed on them since the last time they were on screen. They were still very much half people, but it seemed as though someone had been kind enough to help fill them in. In place of Dawn’s left half was a vaguely translucent gemstone in the approximate shape of her normal body, the light twinkling oddly off of its sharp angles as she waved the arm as though it were normal flesh and bone. Julia, meanwhile, had her right half replaced with what appeared to be blue glass blown in the shape of her body. While Dawn’s gemstone half was rough and angular, her glass half was smooth and rounded, moving with the same grace afforded to her regular body.

     After the initial congratulations had died down, Olive took over, “You know girls, We’re all so proud of you guys,” her voice was choking up a little bit, her eyes getting slightly teary-eyed.

     “Yeah!” Natalie cheered, “You’ve both come such a long way since the beginning of the season!”

     “And obviously, we’re all rooting for you!” Rachel chimed in.

     From her spot held against Julia’s chest, the tiny Dahlia called out, “No matter which one of you wins! We’ll never forget the wonderful times we had together.”

     As the video continued to play out with various cries of encouragement, Paxton and Kacie began to tear up just as much as the girls on stream. “Now, don’t you two start crying on us,” Rachel smiled, her eyes getting a little teary-eyed, and causing Kacie and Paxton to look a little shocked, “After all, you two are going to be representing all the hard work we all put in over the whole season.”

     “Rachel’s right,” Natalie was having a hard time keeping up her own smile without a few tears escaping, “Just because we’re crying is no excuse for you to be. After all, one of you is going to get to become Martin’s assistant.”

     Olive was full on bawling by this point, unable to really form a sentence, with Dawn thankfully picking up the slack for her, a slight twinkling behind her voice, “Our journeys may have came to an end, but yours are only beginning. Be proud of all that you’ve accomplished.”

     Despite the video’s protests, Kacie and Paxton were full on balling now, the two of them sharing a hug as Paxton cried into Kacie’s shoulder, “I miss them so much.”

     “I wish there was a way they could be here-“ Kacie agreed, similarly crying into Paxton’s shoulder.

     “We do too~!” The sobbing voice of Olive rang out. This time, there was no mistaking it, the video had clearly responded to them, Kacie and Paxton looking at the video through confused and tear-filled eyes.

     “W-Wha-“ Kacie said, Olive looking sheepishly at the camera, tears still running down her face.

     “N-Nothing!” Olive responded, “Just- Don’t- Err…” Olive wiped at her tears, her face still bright red, but slightly happier, “Well shoot. Sorry. Looks like the cat’s out of the bag.”

     Kacie and Paxton, through still tear stained eyes, looked towards Martin and Howard. Howard beamed, “Well girls, I think it’s now time for your real present.”

     Howard walked towards the screen, pressing his hand through it, the video feed warping around it like water. As he retracted his arm, a feminine arm came with it, and soon enough Olive was standing outside of the television, in plain view of both of the girls. She immediately ran over, roping the two of them in as she said, “I’m so sorry girls. We wanted it to be a big reveal and I went and screwed it up,” Kacie and Paxton found it impossible to move, as Olive continued to hold them in a big, mama bear styled hug, fresh tears still forming as she cried, “It’s so good to see the two of you. Look at how much you’ve grown while I’ve been away~”

     While this was going on, Howard and Martin were tag teaming bringing the rest of the contestants through the television set. The immediate first thing each girl did upon finding fresh footing in the Weiss Hotel was go over and join the group hug, each one trying to talk over one another expressing how happy they were to see them, how their lives had been, and ideas they had for what they could do for their shows.

     As Martin helped Natalie out of the TV set, he turned it off, smiling warmly at the sight of his former assistants absolutely dog piling his current assistants. “I know what you’re thinking,” Howard said, coming up besides him and watching over the scene.

     “Oh, is it that obvious?” Martin sighed.

     “I’m afraid it’s the one downside to the job,” Howard sighed, placing his hand against Martin’s shoulder, “You get one of the greatest troupes of assistants a magician could ask for… and then you get to see all but one of them leave you.”

     “You know… I’d gladly give up on being a World Class magician for one last chance to perform with them all again,” Martin admitted, his voice shallow as he did his best to hold in some tears. In front of them, the dog pile loosened up slightly to give Kacie and Paxton some room to breathe.

     “Yep,” Howard agreed, “but that’s just how the world works sometimes…”

     Martin and Howard continued to watch for a while, as the girls caught up on everything that had happened to the various former contestants, such as the friends they were making in the ISAG, or magician’s that had offered them job offers.

~~~

Kacie’s Rehearsal

     “Uggh… Why is this so much harder than in Europe?” Kacie sighed, as she struggled to keep in time with Martin and the music.

     “Don’t look at me,” Tetra shrugged, “If anything I would think that it’d be easier with two heads.”

     “Maybe it’s because I’m trying to do two things at once,” Kacie mused, Tetra walked over. Tetra was wearing her classic DJ gear, her black hoodie/dress wrapping around her second body in a hug.

     “Well, you’re doing a great job at trying to get the steps right,” Tetra smiled, looking over her secondary body with Kacie’s head attached. She was in a rather classy looking black ballgown, her tattoos casting a slight glow off the slightly reflective material.

     “Thanks,” Kacie smiled right back, “and at least you’re handling the mixes well enough.”

     Martin watched this scene looking a little concerned, “Um… Kacie… Why do you talk to yourself like that?”

     Kacie blushed, “Oh! Uh…”

     Tetra was all smiles, “Sorry, my brain sometimes tends to run on autopilot when I’ve got control of two heads at once. It’s why I usually keep Tetra turned off when I’m not using her.”

     Kacie nods, still clearly quite embarrassed, “It also seems to be a lot worse with Tetra… I think because there’s such a disconnect between us two in my mind.”

     Tetra stuck out her virtual tongue, “Even though we definitely are still the same person in control.”

     Martin nodded, “O-Okay… We really should probably talk about that at some point, but as long as you’re as you’re certain your still just you-“

     “Yes. I am Kacie,” Tetra said.

     “And I am also Kacie.” Kacie said.

     Martin continued, “Okay. Well, let’s try that one again then Kacie,” Martin grinned, reaching out and walking Tetra back to their mark. Tetra grinned, as Kacie walked over to where Tetra’s mark normally was.

~~~

Paxton’s Rehearsal

     “Okay, but does it look realistic enough?” Paxton asked, having her conjuration bend its body to and fro, standing closer than she probably should have been to check the finer details.

     “The face looks good from out here!” Martin shouted from his seat in the back row.

     Paxton looked closely at the freckles she had added, despite her best efforts to make them appear randomly, they still always seemed to want to create symmetrical patterns over the faces she created. “It doesn’t look off?”

     “I mean, you’re trying to design a person from scratch,” Martin chuckled, “People are rather diverse and weird looking. I think looking a little off would make them more normal than anything else.”

     Paxton let the conjuration slip, making some more adjustments to the focus she had developed before bringing them back into existence. The person’s short blond hair had grown significantly longer, now reaching to about the small of their back. Their arms had been lengthened slightly as well, although they weren’t any taller for their short time gone. “What about now?”

     “Have it raise its arms out,” Martin shouted back. Paxton nodded at the conjuration, the simple human form nodding, outstretching their arms like a T. “Hm… Ah! Hands Paxton.” Martin chuckled.

     Paxton blushed, noticing that she had accidentally given the person two left hands. One short dispel and fix later, and the person had the correct hands at the end of their arms. “Alright. How about now?”

     Martin looked at the facsimile of a person, walking up and down the aisle to get better angles, occasionally having Paxton move the conjuration. Finally he said, “Looks perfect!”

     Paxton smiles, “Great. That’s one down, only a few more to go!” Martin groaned, as Paxton sat down to prepare a new, focus.

~~~

Dining Room

     After rehearsals had ended, the girls had eagerly rushed to the dining room, where their former fellow contestants and the former winners of the previous seasons of ANGA were waiting patiently for them.

     Dinner went over swimmingly. Despite how much they had talked about that morning, it really felt like they could talk with one another forever. They talked well into the night, so late in fact, that the former winners had to politely announce they were going to bed, and warning the girls to not stay up too late.

     Of course, that was about an hour ago now, and while the girls were still very tired, they still felt like they had much to talk about. “So,” Natalie smiled, “Would you girls be alright with starting a group chat? Because I really want a way that we can keep in contact with each other once the show’s over.”

     “I agree,” Paxton smiled from her position on the table. Currently, and throughout the entire evening, she was nothing more than just her head, floating around of its own volition. “I don’t want us to end up splitting apart in thousands of directions. You all mean so much to me.”

     “And I’m really going to need to keep tabs on all of you,” Olive smiled, “After all, how else am I going to know where to send out my home-made cookies to?”

     It was as the group chat was being set up, that Rachel smiled brightly. “Hey… I just had an idea.”

     Kacie grinned, “What’s your idea Rachel?”

     “Well… Okay, show of hands, how many of you girls want to still perform together.” It wasn’t even really a question, every girl instantly raised their hand (Paxton raised her head). “Okay, so, I think I might have found a way we could still all perform together, at least in spirit.”

     Rachel smiled, as she pinched her arm, pulling away a small, ball of flesh about a half centimeter in diameter. The little ball turned pink, her arm flattening the little bump as she reached over to Olive, doing the same with her arm, her little ball turning orange. As she went around the table, pilfering a little bit of flesh from each of her fellow former contestants, each bead transforming into their favorite color, the other girls watched, fascinated.

     Rachel took the eight balls, slowly rubbing them together, the flesh melding and morphing as she worked it in her hands, the various colors stayed separate, marbling slightly until she was left with a small rainbow marbled orb, slightly larger than three fourths of an inch in diameter. The orb hardened, looking almost like an oddly colored pearl

     Rachel reached up, plucking off one of her hairs, which she proceeded to wrap around her finger a couple of times, before pulling at the hair, causing it to transform into a thin, golden chain. Pulling off one of her earrings, she removed the pearl, placing it in her pocket, as she embedded the small ring into the larger pearl, then feeding the necklace through it before closing the loop.

     “There,” Rachel proclaimed proudly, displaying the makeshift pearl necklace. “This represents our eternal bond as assistants… I think we should give this to whoever wins. That way, they can wear it when they perform, and it’ll be like we’re all performing on that stage.”

     The girls though the idea was absolutely adorable, Kacie and Paxton very quickly agreeing to the terms, Natalie holding on to the necklace for safe keeping until a winner had been properly crowned.

     With it getting obscenely late now, the girls finally retired to their various bedrooms, mentally preparing themselves for the busy last couple of days ahead.

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

& Question Corner &

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

To Paxton and Kacie: “Can't wait to see you perform, seriously, your rehearsals look amazing. Also for sure I would go party with you!” -Andrea (@@Jeaune)

 Paxton: “Thanks Andrea,” Paxton blushes, “I still can’t believe we’re only two days away from the big performance… I really never thought I’d get this far… I keep pinching myself to see if I’m dreaming,” Paxton laughs, “Well, I’m glad I could have met you Andrea, and everyone else really. I’m looking forwards to partying with you when it’s all over,” Paxton smiles warmly at the camera.

 Kacie: “Well, with all of the other contestants back, I know that we’re going to have an absolutely amazing time at the afterparty on Sunday, Andrea! Regardless of who wins or loses (Although I still really hope I win!)”

To Annette and Sable: “To be honest, yes, let us do a lil show for the girls and you know what, I have an idea would love to float by you, maybe we can create something really sweet for them. I will send it via an separate mail, got your address via Paige, she is a blessing for the show.” -Andrea (@@Jeaune)

 Annette: “Ooh! Yes! I’m sure the girls would love it! Your idea seems like an absolute blast Andrea! I’ll start training Rocky on the steps now, and I’m sure it’ll be ready by the afterparty!”

 Sable: “I agree with Annette. This’ll be an absolute blast Andrea! And a great way for me to finally fulfill that promise,” Sable smiled sheepishly.

To Nora and Nudd: “First of all, yush you just confirmed my first impression, you two fit so sweetly together, when you want to talk to Howard about it, I'm here for you both. Also he is blissfully unaware of the signs. Like seriously Nora, your father thinks you are too good for Nudd, which is not the truth. You two are attracted to each other like magnets.

Second, Nudd, no need to talk like a showman or a in mystery shrouded mage to me, there are two things that get me angry, doing injustice and telling me I'm dumb. Such an underlying accusation grind my gears and let you look arrogant as hell, which I know you aren't so change your attitude at least towards me, I am not afraid to duel. I respect your line of magic/work, so do respect that I am taking a more scientific approach to certain things. After all, I'm not telling that the laws of physic and magic can’t coexist, since I'm a Magicienne that also practices Witchcraft. I hope I made myself clear.” -Andrea (@@Jeaune)

 Nudd: For a moment, Nudd’s eyes flash with lightning, his hand briefly glowing as he confidently says, “Really now? If you’re looking to duel, I’d gladly def-“

 Nora: Nudd was interrupted by Nora, wrapping her arms around him, looking concerned, “Nudd, Honey…” she said, making sure that Nudd could see how his behavior was affecting her.

 Nudd: The intensity seemed to slip away from Nudd in an instant, the glow dissipating as he took some deep breaths. “I-… I did it again… Didn’t I?” He asked, his face turning to a similar look of concern as he looked away from Nora, clearly embarrassed.

 Nora: Nora nodded, adjusting her position to give Nudd a proper hug, lying her chin on his shoulder. “Yep…”

 Nudd: “S-Sorry,” Again, Nudd refuses to look at Nora or the camera, “And to you too Andrea… I-… My magic’s really important to me… I can get a little…” He doesn’t finish his sentence.

 Nora: “Don’t worry, Honey,” Nora cooed in his ear, giving him a little kiss on the cheek, “You’re getting much better at controlling it, Sweetie~”

 Nudd: Nudd sighs, before turning around, Nora loosening her grip just a little bit so that he can give her a proper hug. Whispering, “Only because of you~”

 Nora: “Nonsense,” Nora whispered back, “The changes are all you Honey~” she gave him a reassuring squeeze.

 Nudd: Nudd bristled slightly from the squeeze, but very quickly relaxed into it. he sighed lovingly, his body language returning to a more neutral stance.

 Nora: “My Dad has it all wrong,” Nora kissed Nudd’s cheek, “You’re much too good for me Nudd~ You practically treat me like a princess~”

 Nudd: Nudd smiles, giving Nora his own kiss on her cheek, tiny sparks shooting out, “Well, the best assistant deserves the best treatment~”

 The two snuggle for quite a bit, Nudd’s outburst a long forgotten memory by the time they remember that they were still on camera and left.

To Everyone: “What can I say the last few days of this season coming in and it was a bliss to work with all of you, even if I became a bit more heated than I should have been. Can't wait to see you on Friday!” -Andrea (@@Jeaune)

 Drake: Drake smiles, “And it was an honor to work with you Andrea. I know that we’ve had our difference, but I must say, it’s really nice to see someone as passionate about our show as you. I hope you’ll have an enjoyable weekend.”

 Martin: Martin flashes one of his trademark grins, “It’s been a pleasure Andrea. You’ve managed to bring a lot of happiness to my assistants during this turbulent period in their lives, and for that, you’ll have my eternal gratitude. Hopefully I can find you an appropriate gift in return. I can guarantee you right now that there’ll always be a seat open at my shows if you want it.”

 Kacie: “Andrea, this whole season has been an absolute blast! I’m so excited to see you Friday too, and I really hope that you’ll enjoy the show on Saturday!”

 Paxton: Paxton blushes, “And it’s been great time talking with you Andrea. Again… You really don’t know how much your chats have meant to me… Even if I don’t win, I’m so glad I came on the show!” Paxton smiles.

To Drake: “Ooh Poor Drakie, I hope you weren't too inconvenienced, by your transformation. BIG HUGS to you dear. Just remember, next season, try not to insult the magician. Any way I'll see you really soon.” -Genie Schutter (@@James-MacCloude)

 Drake: Drake blushed, “No I-“ Drake coughed, starting again and purposefully dropping his voice a little lower than normal, “N-No I wasn’t too inconvenienced. Although I’m definitely going to have to give Paige a massive raise for all of the help she gave me yesterday. Well, and really for all she’s done beyond her normal line of duty this season.

 It’ll be nice to see you again Genie~…” Drake seems conflicted, as though he wants to say something, but thinks better of it, “I- I know that Howard’s taking you’re family out for a tour of the Vegas Strip. I hope you have a fun time… By the way, if you’re not busy… I- I’d love to take you out for lunch on Saturday? This place will be a madhouse with people trying to get the best seats for the evening show, but as a VIP guest, you won’t have to worry about that. Plus, I know this lovely café downtown that has some amazing coffee and sandwiches…”

To Nudd: “A wonderful performance with transforming Drake, I'm sorry you didn't get more of a prize. But maybe If David and Howard agree I can arrange for something in tune with your theme.” -Jacob Schutter (@@James-MacCloude)

 Nudd: Without Nora nearby, Nudd seemed to fidget in his seat uncomfortably. “I- I don’t need anything… It was plenty reward enough to wipe that smug look off Drake’s face… Plus we got standard performance compensation for it.”

To Nora: “Hi It's David Schutter, just saying, I enjoyed Nudd and yours performance yesterday. Not sure if you remembered meeting me at the afterparty last year.” -David Schutter (@@James-MacCloude)

 Nora: Nora smiled warmly, “I think I vaguely remember meeting you David. Granted, last year’s afterparty was a bit of a blur. I’m sure this year’s only going to be even more wild,” she winked. “Thanks for enjoying the show! I’ll make sure to tell Nudd you liked it!”

To Paxton: “Hugs to you Girl, I'm glad you had fun today, head on backwards is an interesting transformation to be sure, though a little disorienting at first. Anyway I'll see you very soon.” -James Schutter (@@James-MacCloude)

 Paxton: “It was definitely more than a little disorientating. Almost all day, anytime I wanted to reach for something, I’d instinctively reach out the wrong way and have to remind myself to try and grab it behind me.

 But that doesn’t really matter. I’m also very excited to see you soon! I’m probably going to be super busy tomorrow, but that shouldn’t stop us from meeting up, maybe after rehearsal? Or we could always push it until the afterparty? We probably should… But I don’t know!” Paxton blushes, “I- I’m sure it’ll work out. See you soon! Hugs!"

To Kacie: “WOW! writing a song! You are a very talented young lady. I can't wait to hear it. Good Job!” -Jenny Schutter (@@James-MacCloude)

 Kacie: Kacie blushed. “Thanks Jenny~… Hopefully you’ll enjoy it.”