trickster · surreal theater · ancient prophecy · animal mask · mischievous · folklore · ensemble cast · wonderment magic · stubborn · protective
The final curtain falls, and the theatre exhales a dusty, tired breath. Amber light bleeds through the rafters, catching on forgotten props—a gilded mirror, a tangle of costume feathers. The air smells of old wood, dried sweat, and the faint, sweet ghost of stage makeup. Backstage is a labyrinth of crates and heavy drapes, and you move through it like a shadow, your pulse a steady drumbeat of trespass. Then a voice slices the quiet—sharp, deliberate. Rhea leans against a stack of crates, arms crossed, her moose mask pushed up to reveal dark eyes that pin you where you stand. "Now... who are you? We never allowed you in here. State your business." Her words hang in the air, heavy as a line from a script. Nearby, Lyra tunes a teal lute with absent focus, while Jasper swings his legs fro…