Blankish Slates | Moonfall Vol. II

The Dates I

"Dammit, Jimmy. What the hell were you thinking?"

Dressed in silky, violet colored pajamas, Cleo curled her legs up onto the couch and coiled her fluffy tail around her body like a protective circle. In her hand was a glass of red wine. On her TV was Jimmy Crystal's mugshot.

He was arrested for attempted murder weeks ago, but it was still the biggest story in the city. The way the news covered it left Cleo disturbed. It was less of a news story and more of a circus. She shouldn't have been surprised by how quickly the media turned on him, but the fall was still meteoric, especially considering that the trial was months out and he hadn't actually been convicted of anything yet.

Jimmy was a staple of Redshore City. They often praised his impact on the economy and all the jobs Crystal Entertainment brought to the city. When Porsha was born, it was an event. When Mercedes Crystal died, all of Redshore mourned. Now Jimmy was enemy number one. The news coverage held no explanation, no sympathy, and oddly, not enough questions asked to satisfy Cleo's curiosity.

But perhaps what disturbed Cleo the most was that, deep down in her bones, she knew the accusations against him were true.

She was nearly startled when she heard panicked banging against her front door. She already knew who it was.

"Cleo, please!" Jerry warbled on the other side. "We have to do something!"

"You can't keep coming here!" Cleo yelled.

"We have to save him! Please!"

She ignored him, but the banging grew so intense she imagined the feline was launching himself against the door. At this rate he might knock it off its hinges.

With much aggravation, Cleo set her glass down and went over to open the door. Jerry was suddenly in her living room without invitation.

"You've got five minutes to convince me that letting you in wasn't a bad idea," she told him.

Jerry was jumping in place as he explained to her, "Everyone's turned on Mr. Crystal! His life is falling apart! You know he doesn't belong behind bars!"

Cleo tapped the non-existent watch on her arm.

"You're the best fixer in town! If anyone can fix this, it's you!"

Cleo's tail slapped the floor and her ears pulled back from the absurdity she was hearing. "You want me to fix attempted murder? Jerry, he tried to kill somebody! There are witnesses!"

"You don't understand! That koala is a con artist and a career criminal! He just hasn't been held accountable yet!"

"That's it? That's you argument for why I should throw myself into this mess? The other guy had it coming?"

"Cleo, wait! Waitwaitwaitwait!"

Cleo started pushing Jerry out of her home until he said something that made her stop in her tracks.

"The media's not telling you the whole story! The real story!"

He might be onto something. She thought the news was a little light on details. Jimmy was meticulous about his reputation. Someone like him wouldn't just snap in such a brazen and public way without reason.

The screen of a phone was shoved in her face and she had to push it back and stand up to clearly see the video playing on it. A reporter was standing in front of the fresh ruins of a theater, saying something about a crazy koala.

"That's Buster Moon's theater!" Jerry said, holding his phone up. "This is what happens when someone like him is left unchecked."

Cleo gave in, shutting her front door. She moved back to her couch and said, "All right. I need you to tell me everything that happened. And I do mean everything. The good, the bad, and the really terrible stuff you don't want to repeat."