A Little Night Music Ch. 15

"She is ALONE without us, Troy. Contessa Helena de San Finzione has Maria, Colleen, the Generalissimo, the Ultimados; hell, there are people outside holding candles and praying to a God that she fucking hates for Contessa Helena de San Finzione! And Denise looks up to her; she's probably crying in her room in Tacoma, or involved with something like outside right now. 'La Contessa' is who all of them are here for.

"Helena Parker has you and me, Troilus, and nobody else in the entire fucking world! Persephone's gone. Even if she's not dead, she's gone. One other person gives a fraction of a fuck about Helena Parker; and that's just because WE give so many! Susan came for us and Maria."

Julie was starting to wind down now. She didn't often have moments like this, and the ones that she did only happened when one other subject was brought up. Troy knew better than to relax just yet. He remained still, ready to hug or restrain his best friend; whichever of the two that she would undoubtedly soon require.

"And I guess they need us too. I know Susan needs you right now, especially. So yeah. Go... go check on them, Master. Or rest, or whatever; just... bring me back some food, and you can... relieve me. Whenever Helena DOES wake up, she's going to be swarmed by people in masks who're worried about La Contessa. It's going to be terrifying. One of us should be the first face that Helena Parker sees without a mask on."

Julie started to warm up again.

"So, I am staying RIGHT HERE until THAT fucking cunt WAKES UP!"

She turned toward the glass and pounded some more. Tiny, ignorable cracks were now forming, none big enough to cut her skin yet.

"YOU HEAR ME?" She screamed at the glass. "WAKE UP, YOU FUCKING CUNT!"

* * *

In Helena's bedroom, she and Suzy-Q heard a voice that seemed to come from outside and all around them. It carried a pressure, as if the world were a soap bubble popping in the mouth of da good puppy-wuppy who'd managed to bite it in mid-air.

"WAKE UP, YOU FUCKING CUNT!"

They both recognized Julie's voice as the room around them began to fade. Suzy-Q was fading as well.

"Guess that's your cue, Helen. Don't die. Love to do this again; but, ya know, if almost-dying was the 'why' of it, no pressure whatsoever."

Helen kissed her one last time before she vanished and the room began to be replaced by blackness, then redness, then whiteness.

* * *

On the other side of the glass, Julie Equals watched as Helena Parker's eye twitched. She nudged Troy and told him to look as her lips began to move.

She wasn't speaking audibly, and it was difficult to see what she was saying with the hose from the nasal mask in the way, but Julie recognized the shape of her mouth on the last two words.

"...Skanky... Cow..."

"Get somebody," she said, jumping up and down as she squeezed the man she loved before realizing that he couldn't possibly with her holding him that way and letting go. "Dammit, Troilus, get the fucking doctor NOW!"

Troy ran as Julie pressed up against the glass and continued to watch Helena.