A young woman, around 20 years old, was sitting on her dormitory bed, one that was old and uncomfortable but served its purpose nonetheless, putting the finishing touches on a tiny blue dress. This woman was Barbra Bublik, the only daughter of Buddy Bublik, one of the two makers of Showdown Bandit, a once popular children's show that had aired and been canceled decades ago.
Ever since she was young, Barbra wanted to make a marionette for the show, and she had started it when she turned ten, but when her father died and the show shut down, she stopped her progress. She never really got the chance or motivation to continue her old childhood project until now since back in high school she had decided to try and revive the show.
When she finished the dress, a navy blue dress with a white apron and lace at the ends (other than the collar), she slipped it onto the little birch wood puppet, who had long white hair with a navy blue bow tied into it and black shoes. All that was left for the little puppet were her eyes and her strings.
Barbra was about to get up to grab these things when she heard someone come in through the front door and address her.
"You almost done with that?" The person asked cheerily
"She's almost done, Juli, I promise you" Barbra replied, getting up and going to the old parts drawer
Julia Hemingway was Barbra's roommate and closest college friend, who was trying her best to become an agent. She was amazing with bills and money, so she promised Barbra that when she graduated and got hired by her father's company, GXHM, she would deal with the accounting and the bills and even pay for the repairs of the old studio since it was a wreck at this point.
Barbra was happy to have a friend like this. Even though they aren't in the same classes, they still had an incredible bond that would be nearly impossible to break. The big thing that brought them together was their love for Showdown Bandit, so when Barbra told Julia that she wanted to revive the show, Julia agreed to help her in any way possible.
"Well, don't work too hard, okay? Otherwise, you'll be dead before the first episode is released" Julia joked
Barbra chuckled before finally finding a set of piercing blue eyes that would fit the little puppet's eye sockets. Before going back to the couch, where Julia was now inspecting the little puppet carefully, Barbra grabbed some string and a wooden puppet cross. She quickly went over to the couch and sat down.
"Can you tie some string to this?" Barbra asked, holding the string and puppet cross out to Julia
Julia nodded and gave Barbra the puppet while taking the items and quickly getting to work on them. Barbra took the little puppet in her arms and carefully placed the eyes where they were meant to go, making sure they were straight and not derpy, before closing the eyelids.
Julia gave her the now strung-up puppet cross before going to the laptop to finish her job application to her father's company. Barbra got to work on stringing up the little puppet, which wasn't that difficult. When she finished, the little puppet opened her eyes and looked around frantically.
When her eyes landed on Barbra, she froze. Barbra wasn't holding the wooden cross that helped her to move, so how?
"Juli, she's done" Barbra said
Julia looked over and smiled in excitement before rushing over to see the little puppet, who backed up until she was against Barbra's flat stomach.
"You weren't kidding!" Julia said
"Nope. And every other puppet in the studio is like that" Barbra explained
The little puppet cowered and shivered, clearly afraid of these two.
"Wh...Who...?"
The little puppet spoke for the first time. Her voice was light and delicate, high-pitched and soft. She sounded like a terrified child.
"My name is Barbra, and this is my friend Julia" Barbra said calmly, gesturing to Julia
Julia waved lightly. The little puppet turned to face her maker.
"Who...am I?" The puppet asked timidly
"Your name is Lillybeth White. Lilly for short" Barbra explains gently
The young puppet, Lilly, nodded slightly. She was, very clearly, scared of these giants, but for some reason, she felt at least a little more comfortable with this Barbra giant. Why, though? Why was Lilly only okay with...Barbra?
Julia quickly got up and grabbed her laptop and went back to the couch, bringing up an old picture of Bandit, the protagonist from the old show. Lilly's eyes went wide and began to sparkle in excitement.
"Who is he?" She asked
"Give us some time to explain and-"
"Is he real? Is he in this room? Can I meet 'im? I wanna meet 'im. When can I meet 'im?" Lilly interrupted, hints of a western accent coming into her voice
Julia giggled while Barbra sighed. Lilly was meant to be the newly adopted daughter of Bandit himself, so it wasn't exactly a surprise to them that Lilly would be this excited after seeing her father figure.
"Well, you're in luck kid" Julia started, causing Lilly to turn around
"We're gonna go and introduce you to him tomorrow along with everyone in Showdown Valley" Barbra finished
"Say where now?" Lilly asked, tilting her head
Barbra and Julia let out a collective sigh. They had a long night of explanations ahead of them.
Good thing it was Saturday tomorrow.
YOU ARE READING
Show Rebuilt, Lives Renewed
Fanfiction(A sequel to Showdown Showtime) Please note: Showdown Showtime doesn't belong to me. It belongs to @Terraritrash
