Whoa! — Flora's aunt exclaimed — Two gloomy geniuses at work. They uploaded Daniel's voice into the system, and now he's with us forever. Ya mon! Time to Evi, mi know seh you di one behind di wheel. Mi Queen send ya nuff respect, an' wi waitin' fe yuh visit.
Evelyn turned to glance at her modest niece, who was staring at the snapshots of models selected for Vanna's upcoming show. The designer was flipping through them rapidly, giving a full bio on each girl and narrating her journey through life. It was pretty obvious Flora couldn't care less, but since you can't just cancel etiquette, she listened politely. Auntie decided to rescue her and asked:
So, sweetheart? Where are we headed? You kept even me in the
The Eastside Fair, That's our stop.
Episode № 1: A Love Charm Against the Evil Eye.
The crowds at events like these always split into three distinct categories.
First, there are the hawkers — tough, thick- skinned merchants stationed in their stalls, waiting for customers to snap up their goods. These are often cheap trinkets designed for tourists. The vendors come alive when mobs rush in to buy their figurines or magnets, but when ignored, they slump into their phones with existential gloom.
Second, the entertainers — fairground workers, performers, costumed weirdos, and staff of all stripes. Their life isn't too different, though some suffer extra under heavy costumes or spend their days hustling from one gig to the next.
And lastly, the cornerstone of every market economy — the visitors, the faceless, collective
bloodstream of any entertainment zone. To all the above categories, these people don't have faces
they are walking dollar That's how they're seen, universally. But there are exceptions.
The group that spilled out of the brightly painted trailer drew plenty of attention just by being themselves.
Leading the pack was a full- figured Black woman in a long speckled dress and open- toe wedges. A hefty video camera perched on her shoulder, which she petted like a pirate strokes his parrot — it was clear the camerawoman loved her tool of the trade.
Behind her came a ragtag bunch of curious figures, some of whom outshined the fair's own performers — who, in turn, glanced at them with thinly veiled envy.
Manu, for one, got his first fans in the form of an elderly couple holding cameras, who shyly asked for a photo with him.
Flora bristled immediately, seeing it as a textbook case of racism — photographing an albino as if he were some exotic attraction. But the Hawaiian gently placed a hand on her shoulder and whispered:
It's I've long gotten used to this kind of attention. At least these folks were polite enough to ask. Sometimes people just grab you and snap a selfie without a care. That's outrageous! — Flora exclaimed loudly, causing the older couple to flinch and scurry away in embarrassment. — Let them go! That's no way to behave in a civil society.
Manu said nothing, but his grateful look spoke volumes — his second wave of gratitude that day. The first had come earlier in the trailer, where he'd fainted from terror. His phobia hadn't vanished, despite his brave attempts to conquer it.
It was the director herself who placed a damp cloth on his forehead, unbuttoned his shirt and started fanning him with a towel she'd found in the trailer. The man came to quickly, and the only side effect was a string of jabs from Campus. But hey—those were survivable. Even fight- back- able.
Especially since Campus had vanished.
Flora was deep in her thoughts and didn't immediately notice Vanna tugging at her elbow, clearly trying to say something.
Yes? I'm — The project lead finally snapped out of it.
Flora, Flora! The puppet's gone! What do we do?
It was true. In the thick crowd flowing past them, it was hard to make out anyone. But Campus was one of a kind — he'd definitely have stood out.
And sure enough, he did.
Next to the - ring toss- booth, a small crowd had gathered. Everyone wanted to throw more rings and win one of the plush toys. It didn't even matter which one — it was all about the thrill first, the prize second.
A couple of drunken dudes kept buying throw tickets and hurling rings at the pegs with war cries. Still hadn't landed a single one. Standing with them, clapping them on the back for encouragement, was the man Campus had latched onto — a guy in a cap and a beer, blending right in.
And Campus?
He was chilling on the prize rack. Nestled between a pink bunny and a floppy- eared elephant, looking suspiciously not- inanimate. His strange little body stood out immediately, and one of the drunk guys hollered:
Yo, Ducky, check that freaky thing in the corner! What the hell is that, a demon? I want that in my car! Let's try to knock it down. Here — take the cash, buy us ten more throws.
The rings flew. One of them grazed the forehead of the poor girl running the booth, who gave them a death glare. One ring left. It missed its target and bounced right off Campus's plush gut.
And then the - toy- came to life, yelling:
Oh for f**k's sake, look at this jackass! He's thrown thirty goddamn rings — I counted, bitches and hasn't landed one! If that's how you aim in bed, your kid's probably living in the curtains right now!
The crowd froze. A woman screamed somewhere behind them. Ducky dropped his drink and hit the ground — out cold. He and Manu were now unconscious bros. Guess that's it for rides and reproduction tonight.
All of this was punctuated by Campus's booming gremlin- laugh:
Hee- hee-
The booth girl rushed over, pulled Campus off the prize rack, and shoved him back into the arms of his mystery handler.
Pretty sure this belongs to
The unnamed southerner beat a hasty retreat, rejoining the group of actors. They stared at him in shock, until Evelyn asked bluntly:
How the hell did you manage to smuggle that bastard in? Language, sweetheart! — Campus — I was entertaining the public. Bringing joy! And how did I get in there? Well, everyone loves a little... incentive. Speak for yourself, — Flora
I always And the chick at the booth liked mine. I promised not to cuss for thirty seconds — deal of the century!
Evelyn nailed it:
— The happy family is back together.