Tengen Toppa Gurren-Lagann Fan Fiction / Crossover With Non-anime Series Fan Fiction ❯ Factory ❯ Blue in the Cracks ( Chapter 64 )

Blue in the Cracks

I: Bad Habits:

Ian and Violet are failing to get the finances under control. It doesn't help that the other stars don't know how bad everything is.

“We need to tell them the truth,” Violet said.

“What good is that going to do?” Ian asked. The artist shrugged.

“It's better than handling this alone,” she said.

“Some of them are going to forget and do what they want to do,” he pointed out.

“Oh…” Violet said.

“How is your end doing?” he asked.

“Good,” she said. “They said they can help.” The director took a breath and lowered his shoulders.

“That should be good,” he said. That's when he noticed the look of worry on her face.

“There's a catch, isn't there?” Ian asked. “What is it?” Violet lifted her chin.

II: Shooting Day:

Meanwhile, the project had its up and down days. On the good days, work got done. On bad days, well…

Day one went through without problems. Andy had that much planned in his head. This was going to be simple. He would stand in front of a pair of doors and give a little speech of what was on his mind. This scene wasn't supposed to take long. Should be easy, right?

“Action!” Ian shouted. The cameras started rolling.

“Greetings,” Andy said. “My name is Andy Teach. I welcome you to our kingdom.” He held out his arms. The camera pulled out to get more doors into the shot.

“This is the Stardust Factory,” he went on. “We have many dreams inside. Tell me, what are you dreams? I will tell you mine.” The camera zoomed into his face.

“My dream is to give you one last look before we all wake up,” he asked. Ian had a confused look behind the camera. What was this? What was he talking about? Andy held out his hands.

“Come inside and I will take you into the dream,” he said. The director-artist opened the door and went into the building.

“Cut!” Ian shouted. Andy came back out of the building.

“How was that?” he asked. The other director quickly nodded.

“Good!” he said. He didn't like where this was heading.

III: The Gap:

They already shot Toshiko's scenes. She didn't say they couldn't use them. Not like it was going to matter anyway.

Rumors started to float among the stars. Was the Factory going to end after this project? That couldn't be. Why would he do that? They wouldn't get time to think about this. They had that project to shoot. It didn't help that word about the opening scene came as a surprise to the stars in the middle of shooting.

Maybe it would've been better to tell them ahead of time. Then, the production wouldn't have fallen to pieces so badly as it did.

For now, everyone was focused on giving it their all for this alleged final show.

IV: Backers:

Ian and Violet had to come to the same conclusion. The guys in suits were doing their best to keep it together. Toshiko leaving presented some problems that could rise up.

“Did you get her back?” Ian asked. Violet lowered her phone and shook her head.

“There's no point,” she said. “Once she's made up her mind---”

“—There's no changing it,” Ian finished. “Right, right.” Violet took off her sunglasses.

“So we keep on as usual then?” she asked.

“That's all we've got at the moment,” the director said.

“Oh…” she said.

“So when is she coming?” Ian asked. The artist lifted her chin.

“Tomorrow,” she said. The director nodded.

“Oh,” he said. Was it that bad that they had to turn to this?

V: On the Search:

Someone has to take Toshiko's place. Andy said that it had to be so. Nobody questioned it. Did they even have time for any auditions? Ian and Andy were going to have to try and make it work.

She had been looking for a job for quite some time here. They just let her out of the mental hospital. She didn't have anywhere to go. If she was going to find somewhere to stay, she was going to need money. Looked like it was time to turn to the streets.

She hated it, but she was also good at it. Then again, any woman could do this. But she can't keep doing this. She needed something more stable.

Her answer came in a form a flyer on an old pay phone.

VI: Setting Up the Meeting:

It was Violet when made the call.

“Hello?” she asked. “Can I speak to mother?” The artist listened and waited. Ian stood by waiting. He held his breath the whole time. Violet turned to him. She covered the receiver with her hand.

“Could you please leave the room for a while?” she whispered. “I need to do this alone.” It took a while for it to sink in.

“Oh,” the director said. Violet watched as he walked out the door. She sat up straight seconds later.

“Mother?” she asked. Ian stood in the doorway, watching with big eyes. Violet took in a deep breath. Here it goes. There was no turning back after this.

“Mother, I need your help,” Violet said one breath.

VII: Phone Call:

The phone rang in Andy's office.

“Hello?” he asked.

“Are you still looking for an actress in your movie?” a woman asked on the other line. Andy paused with his writing.

“Yes,” he said. “Are you interest in the part?”

“Yeah.”

“Can you come in today?”

“Yes.”

“Does noon sound good?”

“Yes.”

“Great. I will see you then.” Andy hung up. It looked like the project was going to stay on track.

VIII: Speeding Towards the Edge:

They are trying to keep it together. There are temporary fixes everywhere. It could only hold for so long. However, the universe has a sick sense of humor at times. That becomes apparent after three days.

Black Tape