Chapter Text
1: INT. HOBBYHOO STUDIOS - DAY
WE OPEN on CLICK CLACK'S penthouse in the clouds, mildew-smelling and swathed in shadow.
LIGHTS ON, revealing the forms of both Click Clack and a mortal visitor - HARMGRET WELLS, independent radio host. She carries her trusty MICRODAGGER. Harmgret has arrived on a mission - a journalistic mission.
CLICK CLACK
"Tell me, Ms. Wells, what brings you to my most auspicious realm?" the god greeted warmly.
HARMGRET WELLS
It's A Pleasure, Mr. Clack.
She glances down to make sure the Microdagger is recording.
HARMGRET WELLS
I'll just Cut to the chase here, so as not to waste your time. There've been Plentiful rumors about you and Thespius Green since your change in relationship status a few weeks ago - some more worthy of being reported on than others.
Click Clack leans back in his seat, his arms posed casually behind his head, as Harmgret holds the Microdagger up in his general direction.
CLICK CLACK
Click Clack began his monologue. "My darling's been all butterflies and roses since the Godpoke came through. We both owe them a great deal for... well, for finally getting me to see the obvious. My poor dear Thespius was pining for a hundred years, and it'll be a while before we've made up for all that missed loving - though luckily for us, we’ve got all of eternity to catch up!"
HARMGRET WELLS
(speaking into Microdagger)
Makes Sense To Me! You know we’re all overjoyed to know you two are on the same page after All This Time. ...There’s also been some odd weather lately – more sunny days than predicted, and summer storms that would be more typical in July than in early September. In the past, this kind of phenomenon has been attributed to the emotions of local gods. Not To Pry, but is that the case here?
CLICK CLACK
"Oh, perhaps, perhaps," the god dithered. "Lots of emotions going around, for the both of us, between the admittance of love and the entirety of the... primary storyline," Click Clack said, implying the ordeal of Inspekta's subterfuge and the difficult rift-closing.
HARMGRET WELLS
Of course, of course.
CLICK CLACK
They continued. "Relief, guilt, pure adoration... all that pathos you'd expect, and then some! Only reasonable that we be excused some meteorological melodramatics. The weather will right itself soon enough, though, not to worry."
Click Clack reaches above his head and taps a hanging cardboard cloud to demonstrate, sending it swinging back and forth before catching it and returning it to relative stillness. He glances back at Harmgret.
CLICK CLACK
Did the stalwart reporter have any other questions for the STUPENDOUS Click Clack?
HARMGRET WELLS
Just One! As you're Well aware, plenty of Lovers and Dreamers make their home in Hobbyhoo Hills, holding out hope for their Own love stories. What's a Word Of Advice That You'd Like To Leave For Them Today?
CLICK CLACK
Why, that was an easy one to answer, and Click Clack did so with gusto! "You've got to let those special someones see the love you feel, even if it might be... frightening. Changing things is hard, but you can't get caught in the doldrums of uncertainty! You've got to CUT TO THE CHASE, as you would say, Ms. Wells. Not that it'll necessarily turn out as you hope, but-"
Click Clack gives a dreamy sigh, kicking a leg up and clasping their hands by their masked face, expression held in a wobbly smile.
CLICK CLACK
"It might just end up better than you ever dreamed," he concluded.
A pause, as Harmgret lets the words sink in for a moment.
HARMGRET WELLS
...You heard it here, folks! Buckle down and tell those Cutie Pies how you feel, By Orders Of The God Of Storytelling. This has been Mirror's Edge with Harmgret Wells, reminding you to Stay Sharp!
Harmgret stops the recording and flashes Click Clack a sharp grin.
HARMGRET WELLS
Thank you for your time Mr. Clack.
CLICK CLACK
"It was a pleasure speaking to you!" And with that, the god of storytelling bid the fearless radio host adieu.
Harmgret Wells soon stepped back into the elevator, descending to the mortal realm. Alone once more with his thoughts, Click Clack returned his focus to the script before him - the seventeenth installment of Oh, Partner Mine!
2: CONT.
The god of storytelling clicked and clacked away, pausing frequently to take time reading back over a line or two, going back to make sure everything held together, cross-referencing. Typos, inconsistencies, every flaw and dent in the text was sanded away. Extraneous details and clunkily written lines were carefully pruned, the scenes sewn back together with a deft hand, the stitches invisible.
The tone of the show had shifted since the pivotal Episode 14, with the main romance going from subtextual to explicit, and the emotions at play becoming heightened by that finally-spoken love. Byella and Styella loved each other, above all else. It was, more than ever, the driving force of the story. The two acrobats would hold onto one another no matter what the world, or their money-grubbing former ringmaster, threw their way.
So then, why would Byella lose her grip?
Where had this come from? This scene, and the trajectory it would send the show on! The drastic, sudden tone shift! Click Clack could hardly process the achingly tragic scene before him. Why would her hands slip, why would she fall, in solemn, shocked silence, to the ground so far below? It was... utterly unexpected. And all the more impactful for it, of course, but even Click Clack found himself in disbelief. Was this truly Thespius's vision for these characters?
Feldly had always been villainous, unabashedly so. He was flippant, cruel, uncompromisingly self-interested. But... would he go to these lengths, just to get back at the profitable lovebirds who had left his circus...? Click Clack had hardly thought the character capable of murder. Reckless endangerment, sure, but one would expect life-or-death stakes to be a bluff, a narrative sleight of hand. These characters, with their genre-mandated tone armor, had never had to reckon with the threat of true, incontrovertible death.
...They had to consult Thespius about this. Not to change it, not necessarily, but to understand the direction of the series going forward. Whatever striking visions had entered Thespius’s dizzyingly talented mind, Click Clack had to understand them to continue editing the story and themes to a laser focus. A long chat was in order, to get the two on the same proverbial page.
Click Clack hopped up from his seat, plucking the sheaf of papers from Georgia and tucking the script under his arm. He clambered nimbly up a stack of his books and out through a window - only to pop back in a second later to toss a piece of paper back into his spotlight. It drifted down to land perfectly in front of his usual seat, facing any potential visitors and reading "OUT FOR LUNCH! RETURNING SHORTLY". Satisfied, the god of teamwork disappeared from sight once more.
3: THESPIUS'S CLOUD - DAY
CLICK CLACK enters, making their way through the clouds with script in hand. They are a bit winded after the climb up to their lover's realm.
As they move, THESPIUS GREEN comes into view, and the gentle strumming of TONY's strings can be heard. Thespius nods his head to the music, lying on his stomach in the clouds and scribbling in a notepad.
CLICK CLACK
"DARLING! OH, THESPIUS!" The small god called out.
Thespius immediately looks up, his face breaking into a delighted grin.
THESPIUS GREEN
Oh, Clicky! I've missed you mightily, honeybun!
His spare hands stop playing Tony and rush over to scoop up Click Clack, bringing them close.
CLICK CLACK
The god giggled cutely as his body was gently squeezed and caressed!
Thespius plants a big kiss on Click Clack's mask, leaving them loopy.
CLICK CLACK
"Hehehe!! C-Come on now, Thespie, there's an important editing discussion to be had!" Click Clack insisted.
THESPIUS GREEN
...Sweetness, won't you give me a moment to adore you? There's no way I could zone into any kinda serious talk when my heart’s left unexpressed.
CLICK CLACK
"Oh, alright..." Click Clack could hardly refuse their lover a moment of affection after how long they'd deprived him of the romance he embodied.
THESPIUS GREEN
Merci beaucoup, mon lapin.
He kisses Click Clack's mask again, leaving the ink of his face slightly smudged.
THESPIUS GREEN
You're just so dang cute...! I can't stand it!
CLICK CLACK
C-Click Clack, still unused to such intense affection, was already beginning to melt in their lover's arms... LITERALLY!
THESPIUS GREEN
Don't worry, my darling, you'll be alright. It's hardly Love if it doesn't make a guy come apart at the seams.
CLICK CLACK
"Mm, true enough...! And beautifully said..." The god, trying to let go of his workaholic tendencies, let himself relax, tense muscles relaxing into a warm, tarry sludge.
THESPIUS GREEN
Ah, there you go... lucky you, I'll love you no matter your viscosity, partner mine. Stay a while, won't you? Mellow out.
CLICK CLACK
The god of teamwork gave a final, resigned sigh, and settled down into their lover’s calloused palms, their narrative worries forgotten for the moment. They were still learning to allow themself to simply be, and be loved.
THESPIUS GREEN
You'll get the hang of it, honeybun.