Act 3: The Ball - Crisis

Even with his past experiences with her, Femke's dolled up look catches Konrad like a bolt of lightning. He looks her down and up, and seconds pass. Finally, he allows her to take his arm. With a polite smile and a nod, he answers, "I would be delighted to have your company."

Steve's jaw drops in surprise when he spots Femke with Konrad. "Whoa!"

Femke's lips curl up into a smile for a second as she takes Konrad's arm and go inside the Upper wing, soon followed by the other adventurers.

The Grand Hall is the most majestic room they've ever set foot in, with its huge chandelier hanging down from the ceiling, numerous paintings lining up the walls, and lavish red carpet covering the whole floor. Many of the guests walk up the double stairs to the left, headed for the ball room which is located on the second floor. Others however are listening to a fairy hovering in the middle of the Marble Hall, promoting some kind of event as two other fairies hand out pamphlets to the guests.

"Hear, hear! Come to the greatest action packed comedy play of our time, Deadly Weapon 3, which will begin in only thirty minutes! The third entry in one of the most beloved theater series of the last twenty years, it is guaranteed to make you double over in laughter! Come, and the only thing you'll regret is that you can't watch the sequel soon enough!"

Fluffle leans towards Steve's ear and says, "Look! It's Minerva!"

"Deadly Weapon 3? I've never heard of a play with a name like that." Konrad takes Femke over to the fairies to get a pamphlet.

Steve nods in acknowledgement to Fluffle and starts making his way over to Minerva so she'll know they are there.

The moment Minerva spots Konrad and Femke, she points them out to her two siblings, and they bring the floating piles of pamphlets over to them.

"You!" the leader of the troupe exclaims. "Yes, you! You should come watch our show! I can tell you're appreciators of the theatrical art, and what better place for a date than this place right here!" She points to the door behind her, the one leading to the Bow Room, while the two other fairies hand him a pamphlet. "Thirty minutes from now! We'll be waiting!"

She then spots the rest of the party members and approaches them next, repeating her pitch. Her siblings however are not content to hand over a single pamphlet to each, and they begin to stuff Mihai's and Steve's pockets with several of them.

"Don't forget! Thirty minutes from now!" Minerva repeats, her index pointed at them. "Come laugh!"

The fairies then depart to convince the other guests, albeit in a less pushy manner this time.

The pamphlet consists of a synopsis of the story, a cute drawing of the two protagonists, and a map that shows how to reach the Bow Room. Fluffle, who's received his own sheet, appears intrigued by the drawing.

Steve, who is also admiring the art, says, "Wow, we'll have to ask who drew this later. Do you think it was Amber?"

He starts heading towards the Bow Room, falling in with the others if they are doing the same.

"Well, they weren't supposed to perform Deadly Weapon 3, if I remember correctly," Fluffle replies. "Maybe a last minute change of plans? This does look hand-drawn."

After flipping through the pamphlet and showing Femke, Konrad asks, "Well, shall we go and wait for it to start?"

Mihai takes a look at the pamphlet - "Think i know the artist."

"Amber, can you hear me?"

Femke glances at the flyer, then looks at the closed double doors that lead into the Bow Room. "I would like that," she says, "but I don't think we can right now. Maybe we should come back later?"

"So it was Amber," Fluffle says, impressed.

Mihai unexpectedly receives an answer to his telepathic message, but not from the person he'd hoped to speak to.

"Sorry, dear, but it's just me," Smirk replies. "While you're there, think you could look for some wine and taste it for me? Maybe it'll work this time."

To Steve and Konrad's surprise, they also hear him.

"Flyers are falling out of your pockets," Thirza remarks, grinning.

"Step 1 of my "How many things can I stuff in my pockets tonight" plan is a complete success!" Steve gives his best crazy weaver laugh (think like a mad scientist).

"Alright, then." Konrad pauses and listens to Smirk's sudden greeting. "Why don't we reunite with our friends and catch up in the meantime?"

The group decides to wait in the Marble Hall for the doors to open. Until then, they make small talk, commenting on the numerous paintings lining the walls and the upcoming performance the fairies have prepared for tonight. Thirza mentions that she's attended a play of the first Deadly Weapon over a decade ago, but never the second one, and she's curious to see how connected the stories are.

After fifteen minutes, Minerva and her siblings return, the rest of the pamphlets gone.

"You're all here!" she exclaims, smiling. "I knew you couldn't resist a good comedy. You even kept all the pamphlets! Come in, come in! We'll open the door for you."

Minerva then leads the adventurers into a small improvised theater, where a stage has been erected at the end of the room, and chairs placed everywhere else. Already, other spectators are waiting for the adventurers to head inside.

"Isn't it awesome?" one of the fairy siblings says.

"Too bad we don't have fairy chairs," the other adds.

"Your family did a great job on everything, guys," Steve says, admiring the setup, "Any recommendations on where we should sit?"

All three fairies respond at the same time.

"The front!"

"The front!"

"The front!"

"Splash zone it is," says Steve happily, heading for a seat in the front row.

"There won't really be any splashes, will there?" Konrad follows Steve and leads his date with him. Every now and then, he tries to send a mental "Hello" over to Femke. Could it be possible to get through?

"Depends on how much glitter they were able to secure for the magical duels," answers Steve.

The other guests soon follow after the adventurers and take the chairs around them. The fairies wave goodbye before going backstage, where they must prepare for the upcoming event.

"Fairies are very resourceful," Fluffle says in response to Steve, "so I assume they'll have a lot of glitter."

"My father would say it's part of the experience," Thirza remarks.

"Hmm. I'm sure we'll be fine!"

Meanwhile, Femke doesn't say a word, but she does keep holding Konrad's hand while she examines the black curtains of the stage, which sometime flutter as the people behind them move. She doesn't react to Konrad's telepathic prompting.

No response from Amber either.

"We'll have to leave during the intermission," Thirza whispers to Mihai. "We can't stay here for the whole play."