The Puppet Theatre – Part 2: Opening Night

The little theatre was full on Saturday.

Forty chairs, forty faces, children in the front row, wide-eyed. Tereza crouched behind the miniature stage with a puppet on each hand, her heart racing. Beside her, in the cramped dark, Marek held the dragon. Their shoulders pressed together. Her hands were cold.

"Ready?" he whispered.

"Terrified."

"Good."

The curtain rose on a moonlit castle he had painted, silver and blue. The audience gasped. The princess appeared at a tower window, in her new blue gown, and began her lament.

"Please, brave sir…"

The dragon roared. The children squealed and clutched each other. The knight, a tiny wooden figure with a tin sword, charged across the stage. Marek's deep growl rolled out of the dark; Tereza's high voice answered. They tumbled through the story together, never missing a cue. At the last line, the princess clapped, the dragon bowed, and the entire audience, children and parents alike, burst into applause.

Behind the stage, in the dark, the two of them leaned against each other, laughing, breathless.

"We did it."

"We did."

"They loved the dragon."

"They loved the princess."

"They loved both of us."

The audience filed out, chattering. A little girl waved to the empty stage. A lantern glowed over the door. Marek set down the dragon and stood, holding the curtain edge.

"Can I ask you something?" said Tereza.

"Yes."

"May I kiss you, Marek?"

"Yes," he said. "And if you say stop, you must make me a puppet of myself."

"With the beard?"

"With the beard."

She kissed him, soft and quick, then slowly, a hand against his paint-stained overalls. He kissed her back with tender wonder, one hand rising to the scarf at her hair. The theatre was silent. A last drip fell from the repaired roof, a single, gentle sound.

When they parted, both of them were smiling.

"Green?" he asked.

"Green," said Tereza. "Very green."

The theatre now sells out every Saturday. There is a new puppet by the door, a bearded man with paint on his sleeve. He is the dragon's best friend.

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