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A bar in Ohio...
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Mysterio sat calmly at the bar, sipping drinks. He coughed gently, muttering to himself, wondering how it came to this. He looked over the bar casually, studying the patrons.

Then he saw them.

One of them was Shadow, a looming, near-shapeless form of darkness. The other was Marionette, a young girl dressed like a puppet, right down to the strings leading up to a handle, and a key on her back. He tried to make himself blend in.

Sadly, blue skin and silver hair tends to stand out in a room full of mostly humans.

"Mysterio! Hi!" Marionette said as he spotted him, smiling. Both she and Shadow drifted over to him and sat down next to him.

"You vanished after that meeting with the other writers. We were worried about you! You haven't finished our latest chapter yet!" Shadow said, garnering an irritated look from Marionette.

Mysterio just smiled weakly. "Sorry about that. I've just had a lot on my mind, that's all," he said.

Marionette frowned.

"Is there anything wrong?"

"Hm? No. It's just..." Mysterio shook his head. "The RPG's starting to go dead, guys. People are leaving, and the meeting was about closing the site, but leaving the archives up for anyone who wants to read them, and maybe leaving the mailing list open in case someone wants to post something. Some of the writers are starting to realize that what started as fun is becoming work, or just don't have enough time anymore, and they wanted to leave with everything on a high note."

Marionette gasped. Shadow fumed. "So what happens to us?"

"I dunno, guys. It's all discussion right now, so I don't know..."

Marionette bit her lip, then smiled. "You had fun writing for us, right?"

Mysterio nodded, smiling warmly.

Marionette continued, saying, "And you can still write our story on your own time, right?"

Mysterio blinked, then said, "Yeah..."

Marionette giggled, "So then it shouldn't matter! No matter what happens, you had a good time, made some friends, and did what you loved to do!"

"I guess..."

Marionette hugged him, "And we had a great time with you. Don't be depressed because it's possibly ending. Just remember all of the good times you had while it was still active."

Mysterio looks at Marionette, then smiles.

Marionette giggled. "That's better. And from everything you said, it won't be completely dead. Now, c'mon. This is only the beginning."

Mysterio chuckled. "I knew you'd be a good thing for me. C'mon. Let's see if I can actually get your lastest chapter done."

Shadow, meanwhile, has been grumbling this whole time.

"Can't believe this... I actually get a storyline, then the fools want to shut it down..."

Marionette pulled out a dustbuster, sucked up Shadow, and brought him with them, walking out of the bar, and a into new chapter for all of their lives...

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Dedicated to everyone at Darkfighter, wonderful writers all, and damn decent human beings to boot. I thank you. Thank you for putting up with a fool like me, and thank you for helping me become a better writer. You're all wonderful.
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