"Pearl," The voice echoes. Its hand reaches out once more to Pearl in a dark corner. She was hopeless and helpless.
"NO...! Huh?" She yelled. In the blink of an eye, she finds the shadow disappears in the morning light.
What a dream. Pearl finds herself in another room, sleeping with her blue dress on, on what seems to be a bed on the floor. It was morning outside the window, with a drizzle dropping on the glass, and birds chirping on the tree branches.
"Oh...bad dream...in my bed..."
The human said this is where she sleeps, but there's no bed here for her to sleep. Rather, she has to sleep on the floor using a thin mattress and one wrinkled pillow. It was cold, and her blanket was too thin to cover her feet. Last night was not a good sleep, nor was today a good awake.
"Hurt...it hurts everywhere...my back hurts..."
"Cold..." She shivers. Her skin may be glossy and solid like marble, but the cold stings like a needle. She felt like a snowman in her own bed, carrying cold in her touch. Moving out a muscle in this marble-ish skin felt stiffer than ever.
"Sick...I feel sick..." She was disgusted and looked upon with contempt. Waking up in this kind of bed is more insulting. Not only do the humans have less decency than her, but what they made as an 'attire' lacks everything a beauty can make. Who could've worn such humiliation every day? Of scratches and tatters.
"Change..." She reached for her wardrobe.
"Nothing. Nothing good...keep blue dress, then..." Her voice was weakened by the bad morning. For her not to sleep on the good side of the pillow, drained her spirit whole.
"Terrible..." She wasn't happy with the room. The walls were filthy and good for nothing. Not even a table could hold her precious mirror and makeup tools, which had been standing on the marble floor for a long time. And lastly, so many boxes and shelves are standing around this small room, blocking her view from the outside. Who is this room for?
"Where's everyone...? Am I...alone?"
"Crumpled cloth...blanket not tidy...pillow missing...must be Starglaze..." She examines a friendly mark on the side of her bed. Somehow, she can tell who it belongs to.
"Downstairs...it is..."
She used to be more energetic at this hour. But today was a different day in a different place. The first thing she sees downstairs is not a playground filled with Joylings or a caretaker. The wall is not concrete, nor are the steps. It was sullen and narrow as a step.
Yesterday felt like a dream. Pearl was wandering in a fake maze that turned out to be a trick of a wall. Luckily, the scent of this room is nothing like downstairs. The humans have quickly handled the poison she has been taken.
"Oh...?" She wanders down the stairs. Now a wall is painted green grass, the first floor is as simple as it was. Not a maze, no darkness, only a floor with a clear view.
"Pearl, you're awake! This early..." Donna yelled from the dining room. That call is only a few steps away from the stairway.
The humans are surprised that she was an early bird. Maybe Pearl wasn't an early bird when she was a human. The humans haven't even prepared anything on the table to eat, and outside is still dark as dusk. How can she be so early before the sun?
The human parents were too busy cleaning off the walls; reminding Pearl that she would've been poisoned again. But these humans caught her by surprise, for they seemed to wear their sleeping clothes differently. The father looked like he was wearing a towel around his body and nothing inside, while the mother looked like she had a thin curtain for clothes. Although they might be too busy to change with this duty.
"Early...? Isn't it late to wake up...?"
"N-no? It's five o'clock! Why would you think so?"
"Because...because Sebastian always said we are late if we don't wake by five." Pearl joins the table.
"Oh, my. You had it all wrong, Christine. Every child should sleep from nine to seven so they don't get tired when they wake up. It is how sleeping should have been." Donna comforts.
"Otherwise, you would've been sick."
What the humans saw from her was a surprise, and it was only when they told the truth that Pearl finally understood why. She had never thought that she was racing before the sun. Another lie she didn't believe coming from the man she had once trusted so much. To think that she has been tiring herself for his compliment, and now she was doing it again for no one but the pain.
"Oh, no! I'm so sorry! I'll go back to sleep..." She was preparing to leave the dining room, but the humans insisted on letting her stay.
"It's okay! You don't have to sleep again if you're not tired! Sweetie, it looks like you'll be better not sleeping for now. You'll miss so much today..." Donna's words were enough to stop Pearl from reaching the stairs' rail.
"Today? What do we have today? Do we have a show?"
"Aww, you wanted to go for a show?"
"N-no! You don't have to! I'm okay with staying here all day!" Pearl quickly shuts off her parents with worry, but her human father comforts her first.
"Calm down, Christine. We don't have a show here...we're retired from the stage, remember?"
"*Gulp* R-right..I know! Ehehe...I was just worried that you'll have to...uhm...tire yourself like I do..." She excuses.
With the remaining hours going for nothing, Pearl could only stay for a talk with her human parents. At last! That interest in Pristine Pearl shows up on the table. She felt like a star on the table again, except she was in the wrong place for an interview. But luckily, Pearl just had her eyeshadow back.
"So, how was the day in the Institute? Could you tell us more about your friends? Please tell us you're not a loner..."
"No, I have a lot of friends! In fact, everyone
"Ooh...really? I mean—hang on a second—we get it that Starstuhm is a popular family, but..." The father sat on the chair with an interested face.
"Are you really that popular? I never heard of Joylingers or the Pristine Pompous Hour show or whatever it is called. We don't watch cartoons, sadly..."
Pearl was a famous one. How can anyone forget her gleaming dress and perfect dance? But time passes, and everyone might have forgotten about her in the wind. She was lying here with a cloth that didn't belong on the stage, and a chair that wasn't meant for a star like her. Retirement might have been too difficult.
"I am! Well, I am one of the four popular Joylings in the studio. From what I heard, I should've been known by kids," Pearl takes a sip of the coffee.
"Am I still popular?"
"We're not sure, Christine. Ever since the news got out, most of the merchandise and anything from Joylingers has been taken off. No posters, no toys, and not even a station to broadcast cartoons other than a recent news..." The father replies, sipping a coffee like Carolina did in the morning.
"But I'm glad you're still having a friend out there instead of going alone in the dark. We couldn't imagine how horrible that would be for you to live in the darkness..."
Her human parents are happy for her, though they feel envious of her glory without them—She can tell that. But each word only makes the family more doubtful of her, as if they were worried for her instead of adoring her gleam.
"Well, how was life there, then? You eat well, right? Do you get sick, too? Can you get sick?" Donna questions with a rush. So many worries for her to add.
"I eat well! I do get sick sometimes, but not for long, and I can get sick..." She answered one by one. Her mother was surprised by her tone and speed.
"What do you do when you're not performing, then? Do you play with your friends? Do you—" The father's turn to ask. He was calm, slow, but still concerned for her glory.
"I practice my ballet...I did that every day..."
"Why?"
"Because I have to. I am a ballet chosen for that role when I was made—brought there. They said I was one of the Joyling that deserves the role. If not, I would've been a trash going down the darkness..." She replies with worry. The answer set the humans with surprising pity.
"I'm just keeping what I did best."
There was silence on the table, and not what Pearl desired. Her family's growing concern was not what she expected from the table when she humbly bragged about her life. It looks like they didn't like the fame she had, despite it bringing her so much attention. Why? Why is everyone always so concerned about her flawlessness?
"Pearl, what you did there—did you...Did you adore it?" The mother was saddened. That face made her wonder if she should be honest.
"I am. It was...amazing, but...also not amazing..."
"I did something there...I dance, I twirl, and I made it all like...no, I mean...I was not enjoying it..."
Something tells her that she shouldn't say these things. It's like she knew something was set for her. But lying was almost ineffective, for the humans seemed to have heard enough to understand. But would they be angry at her for willingly taking that role? Carolina didn't like it once when she told her.
"I wasn't enjoying it! Uhm, I was...hating it! Yeah..."
"Pearl, it's okay. We just want to know if you—" Donna consoles her.
"I hated it! I hate that stage! Uhm, I don't have any feeling for that place, mother. I promise...I'm so glad I was out of there." She exacerbates her tone. With a fake anger, she covers her traces through a confidence.
"It has been years since I was pressed there and I couldn't be more relieved being here with you...! I am so pleased to be saved...yeah! *Gulp* And I hope we can do more to erase that day from me..."
The humans looked at one another, staring concerned yet suspicious at her words.
"Well, if you say so. We're just wondering if you were still missing that place or that man Sebastian. We heard he was the one who gave you that role..." The father muttered.
"We're afraid he might have...made you believe otherwise..."
"Hehehe, no father! That's silly! Why would he? I mean, how can he? I am a strong girl," She brags with her arm out.
Luckily, Pearl didn't let them know much about the other side. Should they ever know that she desired such stardom, it would've made them unhappy. These humans may have something else on their minds, and Pearl promised herself she wouldn't let them know, no matter what. It was for the good of both her and these people.
"Well, in that case...would you like some sweet chocolates? We've bought one from the store just for you!" Donna offered.
"Definitely!" She snatches it.
"Haah...what a smile..." The father mumbled.
Though the table felt too sullen afterwards, the humans had no suspicion about her words. They continued painting the wall clean from poisonous substances, while Pearl got to eat a sweet snack from the box the human mother offered for her.
Life was much better in this way—a comfort that didn't need to be interfered with by anything more than a sweet present. Here, Pearl is no star for the show, meaning the skirt no longer holds any meaning but the past. Like her parents, they had already enjoyed their lives this way.
———————————————————————————————————————————
[Second floor]
The sun finally sets by the window. Her first time seeing its ascension felt unreal, like a beam of spotlight coming from the distant unknown. Not only is the light warm as fire, the rays where it shines are adoring from the window.
"So warm...." She peered her eyes into the window. What kind of light is shimmering through this window right now? Because it looked more delighted than anything she was told.
"Is this really dawn, mother? It looks more beautiful than I thought..."
"Mother?" She looked at her room, and found her mother judging her blue dress with disgust.
"Your blue dress looks awful, Christine. No one should walk around like this..."
Today, Pearl was given another dress to wear. This time, her mother has something else in the wardrobe for her. That blue blouse she was wearing had gone crumpled like a paper ball. She has been wearing them all day and for a night. Luckily, the mother had something else to change that view.
"Let me give you something good, dear. I know we haven't bought you a new shirt for six years, but we still have some attire we bought from many years before you were born..." The mother checked through her wardrobe.
"In case we have another child," She rolled her eyes.
"Here! Why don't you try this? I thought it might fit you..."
The human offers a dark coat as a first style, one that every human wears outside. It is ugly and has no quality of a star. Whoever wore this might have resent their name into the darkness.
"Eh, maybe not? It looks too...ugly..." Pearl refuses with ick.
"Fair enough. I've always hoped you never liked it because nobody else here..."
The mother goes for a second one. It was a pale, brown, thick shirt they called a 'sweater' for a cold environment and well covering from neck to toe. Though the fluffy side serves no beauty, and the outside isn't cold.
"Mom, what is that thing? I don't want to look ugly..."
"Right...let me go for another..."
The human goes for the third one. A yellow blouse, but a short one. A younger Joyling, like Pearl, would've fit into that, but it looks like something out of a show—one that Pearl didn't get starred on. Also, why short?
"No, no. That's not even..."
"You're such a picky girl, aren't you? I imagine you wear a lot of gowns in that studio." The mother picked the fourth one.
"Ooh, speaking of dress..."
Now, the human gave Pearl something beautiful. She was given another blouse, but more than just a bland blue. Rather, she wore something more red like her eyeshadow, which was surprisingly close to her preference. It's adorable for a blouse, despite being near a maroon red to magenta paint on her old blue dress. Luckily, it didn't smell poisonous. At least she hasn't seen anything strange yet.
"How's this? Not enough for your taste?" The mother replied.
"Hm, I'll take that! Hehe, I love this one...Ooh, a bowtie? Even better!" She happily takes her gift.
"Ah, I see your taste going well here..."
She went to the bathroom to change her clothes. From the wrinkled blue blouse with the buttons starting to loosen to a more refined magenta blouse with a bow tie and a frilly neckline, Pearl shifted back into her old self in a pink. If it weren't for the ribbon in this blouse, Pearl might never have chosen any other human clothes than this one. The happiness on her face and the beauty were what made her feel more comfortable.
"So, how does it look? Are you beautiful, dear?"
"It's...amazing!!" Her eyes glimmered with hope. This time, it wasn't a fabricated lie for her mother. That magenta immediately attached to her body like her old dress. Though, the pink is too dark and her arms are more tightened with the puffy shoulders. But almost nothing is flawed in this look than the lack of stars on it.
"I'm beautiful! I'm beautiful! I'm beautiful!"
"Woah, I suppose we should buy more pink, then. I know girls like pink, but not this...much likes..."
"I'm beautiful! I'm beautiful just like He said..." She froze.
But from that beauty, Pearl saw an unwanted figure outside her body. An old friend in the darkness greeted her before the name was mentioned, waiting for Pearl as if she were waiting for the shadow too. For that happiness was short-lived before her eyes, the human saw Pearl standing in fear, like a statue looking into the void.
"Pearl? Pearl, are you okay?"
"No! I'm not!" She yelled. Her eyes are out of touch with reality.
"Pearl? What's the matter?" The mother turns from relief to surprise.
"Uh, uhm...I am! I'm sorry, I thought I saw something...on the shadow...uh..." She snaps in an untimely event. But this time, she isn't going to stay silent.
"*Sniff* *Sniff* I think I inhale poison in the air? I almost got something else in my eyes, mother..." She excuses.
"My goodness, even here? I'm sorry, Pearl. David, over here! We need more paint on this room!" Donna yelled from Pearl's bedroom.
"Phew..." She breathed a sigh of relief. That seems too close to a question.
Knock! Knock! Knock! The knocks on the door silence everything within. Not even Pearl could tell who could be knocking so early today.
"Huh?" She mumbled.