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Georgie sat down, her face buried in her hands as Antigone paced. The otherwise pitch black mortuary was only lit by a candle whose wax spilled over a wooden desk cluttered with books. She stopped in front of one of the coffins built from Rudyard's door and stared down into it. Any moment now the ringmistress would have her head and there was nothing she could do to stop her. The two were trying their best, the ringmistress had to understand that. Georgie’s attempts to assure her that they would be fine were unheard. Each clown they had hauled down the stairs took a toll on the aging wood, ultimately breaking the bottom few steps.
Upstairs the door burst open, a rectangle of light beaming down on Antigone as she stood in front of the coffin.
"I have come here to discuss a funeral." Marlene muttered as she descended the stairs, not hearing Antigone's warning about the broken stair. "I do not care whose it is."
Much too caught up in her rage the ringmistress stepped directly into the space where a step ought to have been. Tripping, she launched forward to Antigone, who in turn fell backwards; the lid of the coffin slammed shut as they fell in. Marlene found herself on top of Antigone with both of her hands locked in her hair. In her attempt to get the ringmistress away from her, Antigone had held her hands up in apology and now found them pressed against Marlene's breasts. Panic manifested throughout her body, feeling the ringmistress's tense form pressed against her. The heat between them was unbearable, she could feel Marlene's warm ragged breath on her neck.
"Miss Magdalena I can only offer you my sincerest apologies."
"Shut up." The ringmistress muttered.
"I'm sorry?"
"I said shut up." She gripped Antigone's hair eliciting a tiny whimper.
She tried to lift herself up, trying to force the lid off, but all it resulted in was banging her head against the wooden lid. Finally she gave up, slumping against Antigone's body.
The embalmer held her breath, certain that Georgie would soon be trying to get them out, but much to her unknown dismay Georgie had fallen asleep and was snoring soundly on Antigone's sofa.
"I can't believe this happened again..."
"This has happened before?" The ringmistress demanded.
"Well. I haven't fallen into a coffin with another person." She said frantically.
"Oh, marvelous. Nor have I." The sarcasm dripped from her voice. The ringmistress groaned, Antigone tried to move her hand away from her chest but only pressed against them more. "I should throttle you."
"Miss Magdalena, once we get out of this coffin I will give you anything you want, just take it."
"You can give me the funeral you promised me three whole days ago." Her voice rising in a whine.
"Listen, I am sorry we are trying our best! I have to do this funeral, I have to do it for Bijou."
The ringmistress narrowed her eyes, feeling this strange woman try to move her hands away from her chest once more. Marlene tried to lift herself up as much as she could to allow her to do so, in the process bumping her head on the coffin lid. She managed it, her hands laying flat on Marlene's back and shoulder. She tried to lift herself once more, the backs of Antigone’s hands grating against the lid.
"Just stop it." Antigone said. "If Georgie was able to help us she would have done it by now."
"Your dedication is remarkable."
"Thank you..."
"Remarkably stupid."
"E-excuse me?" Antigone said, her voice shaky.
“Tell me this,” Marlene said, unintentionally pulling Antigone’s hair as she spoke with her hands, “When was the last time you visited my circus? I have never seen you before, which is a shame really.”
“When I was six…”
"You have not been to the circus since you were a child and when a clown you have not seen in that time dies, you suddenly believe you are the one who needs to bury them all?" Marlene said, Antigone could feel the ringmistress try move her hands, only getting knotted further in her hair. "It's a waste of my time and yours."
Antigone thought about it for a moment. The ringmistress frankly was right, thirty years is quite a long time to have passed and she was quite lucky that Bijou was still alive when they had met.
"You don't understand." Antigone said quietly.
"Then make me understand." The ringmistress sighed. "If we are going to be stuck in here then you may as well tell me why you care so much even after all this time."
She listened intently, it was the only thing she could do. Laying on top of the prodigal daughter of a thankless industry, this temporary grave was not alone. As she listened to this strange woman something tugged on her heartstrings and she began to absently caress her hair. Antigone was taken aback by the gesture, wearily welcoming the comforting touch as she told the ringmistress of her childhood desire to be under the shimmer of the circus lights, to give it her all.
"I always wanted to be a clown." She finished. “I still have the makeup.”
"Really?" Marlene groaned when she recoiled in surprise, banging her head against the wooden lid again. "Maybe that can be payment for this absurd situation."
"What?"
"You give yourself to me for a time,” She said, still caressing Antigone’s hair. “Be a clown at my circus."
Antigone began to stammer. "Well, I- No, I couldn't, No!"
"You just said you wanted to be a clown."
"I just-I couldn’t bring myself to."
"Mm, what a shame," The ringmistress said quietly. "I would have loved to have you."
For what felt like the millionth time, Marlene banged her head against the coffin lid. Cursing under her breath, she pressed full force against the lid, finally it burst open. Georgie jolted awake at the sound. She rubbed her eyes, her vision clearing to see Antigone laying in the coffin with the ringmistress on top of her, her hands propping up on each side of the coffin.
"Georgie this isn't what you think." Antigone pleaded.
The ringmistress climbed out with a scowl on her face. "It truly is not." She said as she placed her fallen top hat back on her head. Her eyes lingered on Antigone as she stumbled out of the coffin. “The funeral shall be tomorrow, about nine o’ clock.” Finally leaving the mortuary in a huff, in the back of her mind the ringmistress hoped that she would perhaps see that creepy girl again some day, in another time and in another place.