//------------------------------// // What We Do For Friends // Story: Mother X: Father // by Tatsurou //------------------------------// With Diamond in hand - well, pocket really, as even Ness realized walking around with a gem that big in his hand was just asking for trouble even from anyone not corrupted by Giygas' madness waves - the group made their way back to Fourside before heading for the Topolla Theater. The large off-white structure stood tall and proud - though not too tall - in the city near the road out of town, where it was likely to garner attention from anyone entering the city via the main road. The white marble columns that held up the overhang over the entrance and the steps leading up would definitely catch the eye, drawing attention to the posters displaying the various acts that had and were presented there. Inside, pale blue carpets stretched edge-to-edge in the large open 'reception' area, with a single desk blocking the way further in save for a single gap blocked by one person. Ness went up to the man in a suit. "Uh, we need to-" "Please have your tickets ready," the man interrupted calmly before proceeding to ignore the group. "So...the only way we can get in is if we get a ticket to the show?" Jeff deduced thoughtfully. "Seems that way," Moondancer observed calmly. "What about the backstage pass Lucky gave me?" Paula asked curiously. "For the Chaos Theater?" Buzz Buzz reminded her. "Oh...right..." Sighing, Ness made his way over to where someone else was sitting behind the desk. "Um...tickets?" he asked nervously. "$10 per person," the man replied in the bored tone of one who had worked in the service industry for far too long, was probably waiting for his shift to end so he could go home and pretend customers didn't exist for the night, and likely wouldn't be influenced by Giygas' madness waves if a generator were inside the building because all trace of imagination and fantasy had been ground out of him by the daily grind. It was a very evocative tone for having so little inflection. "$30 for your group." His eyes fell on Moondancer. "No pets allowed." "She's not a pet, she's my friend!" Ness snapped out insistently. "Ness, it's okay-" Moondancer began comfortingly. "No it's not!" Ness interrupted. "Just because you aren't human doesn't mean they should kick you out!" "Young man, call her whatever you want," the clerk responded in his usual bored tone, "but some of our customers have animal related allergies. Service animals only. No exceptions." Ness' fists clenched as he was plainly seething. Before he could open his mouth, however, Paula spoke up. "Does that include therapy animals?" she asked curiously. "Like, for those who need the animal assistance in order to function outside their homes and manage socialization?" "Yes, but only if kept on leash and wearing the proper identifying jacket," the clerk continued dryly. "Sorry, Ness," Jeff spoke up consolingly. "I know you prefer to let her walk on her own-" Moondancer's eyes widened, then narrowed. "Don't you dare-" "But for here at least you'll need to hold her leash," Jeff finished, handing Ness a leash that was hooked to Moondancer's turtleneck...which now had a few yellow pieces of paper with the words 'Therapy Animal At Work' attached to it on either side and on her back. Blinking, Ness took the leash. "$15 for the 'service animal required' seats, since that takes extra cleaning and is separated from the rest of the theater to protect customers with allergies," the clerk explained with a bored tone. "Total for your group is $45, seats are the front row left side, corner booth." As Ness paid for the tickets, Moondancer glowered up at Buzz Buzz. "Not one word..." she growled under her breath.(1) Before going in to watch the show, Ness decided to see the manager about paying off the band's debt. He nervously walked up to the desk in the office, a blond woman sitting calmly behind it as she went over paperwork. "E...excuse me..." he began nervously. "Custom, Complaint, Confusion, or Cordiality?" the woman asked calmly without looking up from her papers. "...huh?" Ness asked in confusion. "I'm a busy woman," she responded immediately. "In addition to managing the theater and balancing the budget for existing acts, I'm also the talent scout, seeking out new acts and figuring out who has what it takes to make it. A lot of big stars got their start here. So are you here to do business, file a complaint, your confused about something going on, or just here to say hi?" "Uh...business," Ness answered readily. "New contracts, existing contracts, or auditions?" "...existing contracts?" "So whose contract are you here about?" The woman finally looked up from her papers. "The Runaway Five," Ness answered, unsure if he was more or less nervous now that there was eye contact. He subconsciously clutched Moondancer's 'leash' tighter. Rolling her eyes, Moondancer stepped up next to him to offer some comfort and support. The woman looked Ness over carefully. "Oh, you're Ness," she said calmly. "Lucky said you were looking for a way for them to pay off their debt and would be in sometime soon. Described you pretty well." She interlaced her fingers as she looked at him over her glasses. "So how do you intend to pay off a multi-million dollar debt?" "How'd they even accrue that much debt, anyway?" Paula asked curiously. "Mostly room service charges," the manager explained calmly. "They've all got some pretty odd tastes when it comes to meals, especially Lucky and Keyboar, their keyboardist. Anything the hotel they stay at doesn't have in stock gets delivered special at a higher charge, and everything comes here via their contract...and I have to pay it off regularly whether they've made enough for the theater to pay it off or not. Between that and all the fees on those exchanges and the cost of a shipping company that would make delivery runs through Threed while it was overrun by ghosts...it adds up quick." She frowned. "That...and there was that incident with Gorgeous(2) and a few fangirls that needed to be smoothed over...but I think that might be something I shouldn't discuss with minors." "Will this cover it?" Ness asked curiously, setting the Diamond down on the desk. The manager's glasses slipped off her nose. "Wha...how...where did you get something like this?" she gasped out in shock. Pulling out a small tube, she began carefully examining the gem through it. "We helped out a gold miner in the desert," Ness explained calmly. "He hasn't found gold yet, but he found this and gave it to us." The woman stared at the Diamond for a time, then slowly lowered the tube she was examining it through before carefully putting her glasses back on. "This...will cover the debt, and free the Runaway Five from their contract," she explained calmly. "But...are you sure that's what you want to use it for?" Ness looked at the gem for a time. "...well, it's a bit too heavy to play catch with it...so sure. Can't really think of anything else I'd do with it." "...alright then," the manager finally responded, plainly unsure how to take that last statement. "Then the debt is paid and they're free to go." Picking up a packet of papers, she calmly tore them to shreds before dumping them into a small wastebasket. "Did you hear that?" Groovy called out from just outside the office before the entire band came charging in. However, before any of them could say anything to thank Ness...they caught sight of Moondancer. Moondancer, for her part, glowered angrily at them. "Not. One. Word." (1) Originally, the plan for this scene was to stop at 'no pets allowed', have the brief bit about Ness insisted Moondancer wasn't a pet for a bit of cute character interaction, then have Moondancer volunteer to wait outside. Then the 'therapy animal' line showed up...and the rest of this seemed much funnier. (2) Remember, it was revealed that Gorgeous was Eldaman in disguise. Think about that in regard to the 'incident'.