I knew, however, this would be a good experience for both of them in the long term. The frustration they were feeling proved that on its own. I’ll admit I shed a couple tears myself watching the two of them, but that was just because I was moved, for the record! It was one of those times when I just got a little overcome with emotion.
Just then, Halkara placed something on my lap.
“Here,” she said. “Halkara Pharmaceuticals’ signature eye drops.”
“I…don’t know whether that was considerate of you, or just plain weird.”
Most people would offer a handkerchief, right?
After we returned to the house in the highlands, I finally got to ask the question that had been in the back of my mind ever since the contest.
“So which of you wrote your sketch?”
“I did!” Flatorte declared as she threw her hand into the air.
Laika, however, looked a little chagrined. What does that reaction mean, I wonder?
“I suppose you might say the sketch was written, in a sense, but the truth is, the particulars of our lines weren’t set in stone at all,” Laika explained. “The overall flow of the performance was planned in advance, but everything else was improvised on the spot. There was a very real danger Flatorte might not come up with anything to say at all, and I spent the whole performance on pins and needles worrying it would fall apart.”
“You guys went for a really risky tactic, huh?!”
It became quickly apparent, however, Flatorte hadn’t had any sort of malicious intent behind her choice to set up the skit that way.
“When you’re doing a live show, putting yourself up against the wall is what makes your performance feel authentic!” Flatorte asserted. “The most important thing at times like those is momentum. There’s no way amateurs like us could win against professional comedians when it comes to polish and technique, and since we were working with such a big audience in the finals, our only choice was to throw caution to the wind and make it up as we go!”
Huh. You know, maybe Flatorte thinks about comedy in more or less the same way she thinks about music? They’re both performing arts, I guess.
“That, and also I, the great Flatorte, would never fail to come up with material on the spot. It was a piece of cake.”
You’d think the only way to interpret that was melodramatic boasting, but Flatorte had said it so offhandedly, I actually got the impression she was being sincere. She hadn’t intended to brag at all, for once.
Is she just such a brilliant performance artist that she doesn’t think it’s anything worth bragging about…?
Laika had a very conflicted look on her face as she stared at Flatorte. I was coming to understand all over again why someone like her, who valued effort and diligence above all else, would clash with Flatorte so consistently. They just weren’t on the same wavelength.
In any case, there was no question they’d really outdone themselves this time. That didn’t just go for the dragons—I was impressed with my daughters as well, of course. When I peeked into their room, by the way, I found they’d put their third-place medals on display.
It really is nice to have something physical to symbolize your accomplishments, I reflected.
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