"Nobody knows you. Not even you..."
It was speaking to me—in my own head! How? I couldn't tell, but their voice is disturbing to me. I couldn't move or walk, and my muscles were stiffened. It must have been King Glum's little trick, or so I thought when I heard their voice again.
"Sebastian? Is that..."
"No. No one."
"N-no one? W-who's no one?"
"Nobody. I am nobody, as you are..."
"No! I'm Pearl...I can't be nobody. People know me!"
"Who? The star? Or the so-called audience?"
"Everyone knows me! The Joylings, the humans, and even the children!"
"The children knows no pearl."
"No, no! Get away from me! Please!"
The voice—the terrible voice. Echoing from the void, its words are calling for utter nonsense. It was trying to drag me down, trying to make me sad as a Frowling. But I knew I couldn't let it win, for I would never fall so easily by a Frowling's curse.
I screamed at the top of my lungs, trying to break free from this voice. Yet I couldn't hear anything but their haunting voice. Such a ghostly voice to my ears, trying to break from the inside. My vision is fading and flickering like a bulb as if I was being controlled by it.
"What is this? Are you King Glum's doing? I know that Frowling still has it. He's not getting away with this!"
"Why are you denying? Do you think it'll help you?"
"Stop! Eugh! Get away from me!"
"I've been here longer than you imagine."
"No! Eugh! Get off me!"
"Soon, you'll see. In the darkest night with a starless sky..."
"No, no!"
"In an ocean without a wave or beacon of hope..."
"Ugh! Stop it!"
"And in one last dance that abandons joy..."
"Help! Somebody! Help!"
"A black pearl emerged, and the sun was never bright again."
At last, the voice freed me from the grip. I felt like I was being choked by it, and my hands were on my neck. How could it happen? I never will it. It was trembling in fear—it shouldn't be able to do so. My eyes, soaked with tears of life, twitched in horror at this loneliness I've had.
The voice spared me, but at what cost? I've never had the feeling of that grip long since my life in the studio. But the voice? I couldn't recognize the voice or its intention. It speaks in a riddle, teasing me with death, and then leaves me with a message. What a terrible voice—it must have been King Glum's doing.
"*Sobs* What...what was...what was that...?"
"What? What did...*sobs* Oh...I'm scared...why...?"
"Pearl! Are you there? Will you come out already! I'm lost here!" Starglaze calls me carelessly, as usual.
"Starglaze...Starglaze..." I reached my arms for him, but I was on a different floor.
I pass out in horror. Fear struck me with this new discovery, and I have never wanted to sleep so long. Eventually, the carpet became my bed for sleep. It seemed this detective was struck during her investigation with the mysterious witness.
—————————————————————————————————
Soon, the doctors arrived after seeing the mansion empty. Greedy and envious of its beauty, their legs are tempted to step in where their clothes do not accommodate. But with their presence here, this case could be solved as easily as a final leap on the ballet.
"Woah, what game are you playing now? Can I join?" Daniel appears on the kitchen mumbling for the view of the scene. Starglaze is as busy as before.
"Sir, Step off! This is a crime scene. Don't step in unless you are also a part of the Joyling enforcer."
"Crime scene, but I don't see a dead body here." Adele criticizes, which puts Starglaze in utter disappointment.
"You'll see one tomorrow or today...make your choice..."
"Whoa, is that a threat I hear? Careful, star! I've been known to fight criminals before..." Daniel braces for a fistfight.
"Woah, criminals? Do I look like a criminal? I'm the anti-criminal, my friends! Or should I say...my human associate while Pearl is deepening herself with the other humans?"
"What? Did she say that?"
The humans insist on joining, with their heads passing through the line. Too bad I couldn't be there to help them with our case. But I think Starglaze may have some fun dealing with these people while I'm out.
"Well, she said I wasn't too fun as a friend! In fact, she didn't even want to be my friends anymore!"
"Woah, that took quite an escalation. But I'm sure that isn't the whole story..."
"No! It's even worse! I couldn't even imagine what's come in her head when she says that. Whole years spent in the studio for what? Helping a little girl who couldn't stop complaining about not fitting her performance to an expectation. Always have been..."
"As if you ever did something more than grunting and begging." Daniel whispers down his lips.
"What?" He turns around
"You did well, friend. I pity you..."
"I know, right? Sheesh...now I had to do this crime scene of hers for nothing. Are you two going to help me or what? Don't make me talk with you, too..." He returned to his work, collecting shards of glass on the floor.
—————————————————————————————————
At first, they were unhelpful in our case. But soon, these humans are useful at picking up clues from a smaller, unseen size. I must say that aside from their unfunny gag for a show, they do have the adequate benefit of being confident with their lack of status.
"Hey, what is this? I think I found something." Mr Daniel found a clue we haven't discovered during our investigation here. It was a blue blob sticking on the ground with a chilly sensation on a touch, seemingly falling from a height by the look of the spread. I'm not really a detective, but that is a clue for sure.
*Flash* *Flash*
"Where? Where?" He flashes that screen shutter over my face again.
"Starglaze! Watch for the eyes! Ouch..." The doctors were blinded.
"What is that?" Starglaze wonders with his face out to the doctors.
"It looks like some kind of liquid. It's squishy, wet, and...cold..."
"Well, it doesn't sound like ice or water to me. And it surprisingly still cold..."
"Yep, that's definitely not an ordinary juice. But what's that?"
"I'll tell what's that! That's King Glum's doing. What else could made that?" I stand ready. A little crack on the head, but nothing bothersome.
I woke up as soon as I heard the new evidence on the floor, and that one was enough to prove my thoughts about last night's invasion. The monster was real, and the beast was leaving another clue. It was awkward to have everyone looking at me in a mess.
"Pearl, are you okay?" Daniel mumbled.
"Yeah, I'm fine. I bumped into something when I went to bathroom...but it doesn't matter, because now we have an evidence about King Glum's presence."
"Now, where is it? I need to see!"
"We can't rule that one out from a blob, little one. It could've been an goo from the ceiling or a leaking lotion from your father's dry hands. Everyone can have this kind of substance around them..." Daniel stands even in the truth.
"Well, why don't you investigate that substance with...uhm...your doctor's skill?" I tried to be patient. But this is urgent.
"It's not...well, we can try. Adele, maybe you can go back and fetch me that tool on the carriage? Maybe we can do some test we should've done to you, Pearl."
—————————————————————————————————
[Outside]
The doctor quickly goes to investigate the substance while the yellow line is still closing on the scene. It was finally a moment for us to stop doubting this scene and move into a perfect case. My hands go for the radio, calling the one and only Joyling for this. But Starglaze didn't look too happy with me.
Between me and Starglaze, we didn't get along as we expected from this scene. However, it doesn't mean we are parting at any moment. We're still friends, but maybe we'll even remain friends after we get along with someone else. But for now, we're not getting good together.
"So, how's the wound? It really looks like you had more on your head now." He approached me with a scowl.
"Oh, don't mind it. It's only a crack, will be fixed soon!"
"You're welcome...I guess..." His eyes were rolled away, and he floated away quietly.
"Starglaze, are you okay?"
"Me? I'm fine. What else should I be worried about? I'm just...wondering."
"Really? So, no heartache between two of us...right?"
He looked at me with such a stare. But despite that, he mumbled to me calmly that nothing happened. I didn't remember how he said it. But he gave me a nod, and that was his sign of saying we're still friends, though I noticed that his sudden tone of dismissal took a bit longer than when he was really an ignorant.
"Alright, let's see if Graham can read this substance well and right..." I set the transmission ready. This machine looks so old and capable of more than just a call. It feels relieving to still hear my friends' voices in the Institute.
"Pearl...?" He looked back at me with a calm, cynical face.
"Yeah?" I replied smilingly.
"I think maybe we should go out tomorrow for a walk." He was asking me a request I'd never heard from him.
"W-whoa, really? Why?"
"Well, I want to find—"
"Hello? Hello? Pearl? Is that you?"
Starglaze was about to say something, but Graham immediately cut off from the radio. I do believe my time was quite urgent here, with our case still warm and Graham still on the edge of curiosity. The detective was eager to hear more about King Glum after our recent gathering on the investigation.
"Ah, Graham. Glad to find your voice still on the line. I hope I don't disturb you yet..."
"Miss Pristine, no need to rush—I'm in no hurry. My things are packed, and the Institute's seen fit to grant me full leave to take your case on directly. So then—whenever you're ready, feel free to tell me what you know." He's still as formal as always.
"Is that so? Sounds good..."
"Aye, well—King Glum might've done better to mind his steps, what with bein' an escaped prisoner and all. Now the Institute's sendin' folk out quiet-like to sweep the town. And me? I've been handed early leave… and an early job, lucky devil that I am."
"Good, good...I'll meet you tomorrow. Anyway, I've gathered a substance from the kitchen that I believe coming from King Glum himself. I need you to see for it..."
Hearing the news of his soon departure from the Institute brings me hope about this place with more Joylings. Moreover, with his presence out next to me in this lonely mansion, I couldn't help but imagine his thoughts as he saw the beautiful life I've had here with my friend Starglaze.
"You seems confident about this job than a ballet. Maybe you should've picked this job earlier with Graham if you know this'll fit."
"Oh, Starglaze...being a detective all day isn't that comforting when you have papers and cases all day. Moreover, I don't fancy an accent like that every day." I tease him. But he went silent without a word.
We've sent all the pictures we've captured from the mansion to the Institute using the humans' weird machine on the carriage near the radio. It spewed so much steam and ate our Polaroid like a grinder before I could hear Graham taking the results and immediately working on his little machine for a test. He was a diligent Joyling when it came to solving cases and investigating mysteries.
*Unintelligible sound*
One could only say the louder the machine, the more terrible it sounds when it grinds its gear. I could listen to a rant equal to Fuss's terrible act on the microphones. But at least we've heard a gratifying sound on the other side as Graham reveals yet a crucial step in our case. This one is beyond our expectations.
"So, what do you find?"
"I...may have a clutter in my results. Permit me to clarify the findings I have gathered..."
"The Chrono-Nator indicates that every image you've recovered is aligned precisely to three strokes past midnight. Each serves as evidence—deliberate, I believe—of resistance. Wood abrasions occurred 2.6 seconds after the glass had shattered, and the glass itself broke at intervals ranging from ten to fifty seconds... all within the window of 3:38 AM."
"Wow, that's got to be the best machine in the world." Ms Adele commented.
"I think that's too much and irrelevant on our case, Mr Graham. I want an important detail, not a redundancy." I inquire from him.
"Not yet finished, Ms Pristine. Every image you've recovered is aligned precisely...However..." He pauses with slight recalibration.
"—The final substance you discovered... contradicts the timeline entirely."
"How's so?" My head turned serious as soon as I heard that. I knew immediately that he found something. Otherwise, he wouldn't gave such pause to me.
"Unlike the shattered glass, the soaked walls, and the scoring across the counters, this substance is—" He sets another pause, longer this time.
"—unmistakably recent. It did not occur last night at all. In fact, its formation registers precisely at half past seven this morning."
"But just now is eight! How can that be?"
The substance brings me a new question. Such evidence convinces me that Glum was still here, lingering with that sadness on his face at me. But now I'm wondering where I should go from this finding. Even the humans are silent and confused, hands laying even lower than before.
"Are you sure it was a few minutes ago? That machine might've been broke by now!"
"The machine consumes only truth, Miss Adele. Such temperate in the substance is young enough to be a late evidence."
"Now that we've gathered all pertinent clues concerning the suspect, let us proceed to the witnesses. Madam, if you would—please recount what you observed last night."
"Well, it's—ugh!"
Once again, I was befuddled. The surprise was too much for me, even calling back the voice in my head once more. My head was light, like I was in the sky, dancing my way through the stairway to heaven. Everything flickers in black before I can continue what I'm about to share with Graham.
I can hear her voice again, but there's something wrong. I couldn't hear anything outside my ears, and my body was shaking vigorously. I have no control over my body. I feel numb but not REALLY numbed. I just can't feel anything.
But then, I regain my senses and control with force. Struggling my way without moving a muscle had given me a moment of clarity to ease these pains away. Yet when I woke up from this awful stiffness, I could only wonder how I ended up gripping onto the carriage so tight.
"Pearl! Pearl!"
"Pearl? Pearl, are you okay?" Adele was calling me. It was a faint-turned scream to me.
"No! Get off—uh?" I woke up once again, and everyone was looking at me with such eyes. The voice is messing with me, telling me stuff that almost made me mad.
"Pearl? Something's got into you lately?"
"W-what? No! I'm just...uhm..." I pause briefly, looking at my grip and realize how wrinkled it is.
"Looks like someone was too scared with their little enemy? Too bad I didn't get too involved with him in many seasons..."
"First of all, it's twenty-six episodes. And two, I'm not scared of him—only worried! How am I supposed to be calm right now when I have his awful presence haunting me from finding peace as a human here?" I stand back at Starglaze.
"Maybe you would know that if you were really a human. Now I had to go back and clean these human's fingers off. Thanks a lot, Starglaze the Joyling..."
"How's that my fault?"
"You would know that if you were a human!"
I walked off calmly with a little shame on my face. Luckily, the humans can't see it through my sheer confidence and beautiful gaze. I could only hope that Starglaze was too stubborn enough to read through my words and hope he didn't laugh at me again. Poor star, I didn't mean to speak at you like that.
"Woah, what was that?" Mr Daniel was confused. He didn't know what just happened there.
"What's that? That sounded like a tear in a friendship. Looks like Starglaze is not going to have a friend anymore..." Ms Adele replied.
"Augh! I can't take it anymore!" The star yelled, interrupting the two doctors.
"If she really just wanted to be a human without me, then so be it! She thinks I couldn't manage my fingers, too? Let's see how wrong she was! Starglaze will be a human way before her!" He floated away with an irritated face. Such creature.
"What was that?"
"I don't know, but I don't like it."