The Wrong Masks
By Riverwolf
One day, the Masked Fool came upon a strange
town. Nobody regarded him as they normally did, because everyone he
saw was wearing a Mask just as he did. Listening around town, he
learned of its customs: they wore Masks for everything, with specific
Masks for specific occasions. What Mask was suitable for what
situation was determined by the rules the People there agreed upon,
and the Fool noted that this seemed to have worked some magic on the
Masks; they had the power to influence the Wearer's behavior in
subtle but noticeable ways. To wear the wrong Mask to the wrong
situation seemed a grave, grave offense. Yet each Mask was unique;
even in the case of a shared theme or pattern, there were no two
perfectly identical Masks to be found in all the town.
The Fool grinned to himself, and wondered what
mischief he could bring here. He soon regarded a particular Man, whom
he decided to follow home. He found that this Man had many, many
Masks, because he did many, many things. He had a Wife, which itself
called for the Lover's Mask, the Partner's Mask, a Friend's Mask
unique for her, and the Moneyman's Mask. He had fifty Friends, each
of which had their own variations on the Friend's Mask, which he
would swap quickly every time he interacted with any of them. He had
to swap quickly, because, as the Fool had learned, it was taboo in
this town to ever reveal your True Face to anyone. He had two jobs:
he worked part-time as a Teacher, for which he had the Teacher's Mask
and Student Practice Masks for every one of his Students; and he
worked as an Accountant, which called for the Coworker's Mask for
interacting with those he worked with, his Worker's Mask which he
wore to get through the tedious day, and the Employee's Mask which he
wore when talking to his Boss. Yet still he also loved to play games.
He played at the Casino, which called for the Gambler's Mask that
kept him from losing too much money. He also loved to play ball
games, which donned him the Sportsman's Mask that kept him active and
fair.
But every time he was alone, he would regard
himself in the Mirror, without any Mask on. He would smile, for he
could see his True Face, which no one else could see.
The Fool thought it would be most amusing to
play a trick on this Man. That night, while the town slept, the Fool
crept into this Man's house, and tip-toed to his bedroom, careful not
to open the door too fast lest he should disturb the Man and his
Wife. He saw the two sleeping in bed, naked except for their Lovers'
Masks, and saw on the wall the row of so many other Masks. The Fool
looked at them, and under his breath chanted a spell. Then he left.
The next day, the Man donned his Sportsman's
Mask, for today was a ball game's. Arriving at the field, however, he
noticed that his Teammates were looking at him strangely. He paid
that little heed, however, and the game began. But he played
differently this time. In between the rounds, his Teammates would
chastise his overly cautious play, which was losing them the game. He
was angered, and felt a surge of non-equivalent stress each time. He
also began to taunt the other Team, and used under-handed techniques,
bordering on cheating, to score. In the middle of the game, both
Teams unanimously agreed to kick him out of this game.
When he got home and removed the Mask, he
realized the source of his error: he had accidentally put on the
Gambler's Mask; not appropriate for a game with no tangible rewards
for winning or penalties for losing. He laughed at his mistake, and
thought that since he was already holding it, he'd put it back on and
just go to the Casino instead.
When he arrived at the Casino, he made his way
to the Poker Table he most frequented. But as the game began, he
started to talk aloud what the rules to the game are. The other
Gamblers ignored him, but the Dealer calmly but firmly told him that
it wasn't his job to explain how the game was played. He apologized,
but as the game went on, he began pointing out what he perceived of
as faults in the way the other Gamblers played, and tried to offer
suggestions on how to do better. He kept doing this despite them
giving him dirty looks. The Dealer told him that if he didn't stop,
he'd be asked to leave. But he finally did the worst thing you could
do in a game: he lost, and exclaimed his defeat in a softly
exaggerated manner, as would be done to a child deliberately lost to.
Indeed, he had deliberately lost, folding a hand that was a straight
flush. The Dealer and the other Gamblers looked at his folded cards,
and furious, asked him to leave the building.
When he got home, he ran straight to the
bathroom to look in the Mirror. Even though he had not taken another
Mask of the wall earlier, and replaced the Mask that he knew was the
Gambler's from looking at it, he now saw resting on his nose the
Teacher's Mask. He tore it off in a fright, revealing his True Face
to himself in the Mirror. He stared at it for a moment, before
leaving the bathroom and donning the Family Mask. When his Wife came
home, still wearing her own Worker's Mask, he asked her in fright if
it was, in fact, the Family Mask he was wearing. Confused, she told
him that it was. Relieved, and waiting for her to don her own Family
Mask, he told her of the day's strange events. She told him that his
memory might be faulty, since she remembered that both of them slept
very poorly the previous night from terrible dreams. He was comforted
by this possibility, and they spent the rest of the night relaxing.
Donning their Lovers' Masks that night, they retired to bed.
The next morning, feeling more confident for
they had gotten better sleep this time, the Man went through his
morning routine, and then grabbed the Masks he used for his
Accounting job, for today he had to go in. He had disregarded the
events from the previous day, but still, before going out the door,
he quickly, and quite automatically, double-checked that he had the
right Masks. But when he got to work, he found himself unable to
focus on the job he'd been assigned the past week. He felt in himself
too much energy to be sitting in a chair for eight hours, and soon
began pacing up and down the halls, hoping to relieve some of the
energy. The whole morning passed, and he barely got any work done.
His Coworkers, noticing his strange behavior, asked him what was
going on, and why he wasn't wearing the right Mask. He began to feel
a small wave of panic, as he tried to quickly don the Coworker's Mask
so he could interact with them appropriately. But he suddenly felt
himself unable to let them talk, and began spouting off personal
details of what happened the previous day, while standing
uncomfortably close and trying to hug them. They finally left him and
reported this strange behavior to the Boss. The Man went to one of
the bathrooms to see what Mask he had on, and saw that it was the
Family's. He looked at the Mask he had been sure was the Worker's,
but saw with horror the Sportsman's. He made sure that the third Mask
was, indeed, the Employee's Mask, and knowing that he'd soon be
called into the Boss's office, he donned it there in the bathroom. He
saw in the Mirror that it was still the Employee's Mask, just as he
heard over the loudspeaker his name being called.
The Man looked up at his Boss, her intimidating
Employer's Mask staring back at him, and struggled to explain his
behavior. He explained the events of the previous day, and he had
been sure to check that his Masks were correct. The Boss looked down
to take some notes, as he reflected aloud being reminded of something
he'd seen in a movie once. Almost without thinking, that train of
thought led him to talking about movies in general, favorite moments
in them, and snarky comments about some of the lesser-quality ones.
His Boss looked up from her notes, and held a hand up for him to
stop. He continued on, apparently unaware that she'd made any gesture
at all. She finally stood up and demanded to know why he had changed
Masks. The Man felt afraid, though oddly calm considering the
circumstance. Still without thinking, he made an offhand and somewhat
crude joke that he often shared with his Wife. Half an hour later,
the Man walked briskly out of that building, with all his personal
affects from his cubicle.
He all but ran into the bathroom when he got
home, without taking his Mask off. He just stared into the Mirror,
unable to fully process what he was looking at. He'd never taken that
same Mask off, which he was sure had been the Employee's Mask back at
the office, but now the Friend's Mask, the one he specifically had
set aside for his Wife, looked back at him. He tore the mask off and
threw it to the ground, barely avoiding crushing it as he ran to the
bedroom. He cried on the bed, not waiting to put another Mask on, and
was still crying when his Wife came home. It was all she could do to
throw off her Worker's Mask and grab her Lover's Mask, so she could
cuddle him in comfort. But when he rejected the cuddle, she noted
that he kept his face turned away from her; it was naked. She asked
which Mask he wanted, noting to him that she wore the Lover's. He
told her to get his own Lover's Mask. She did so, and from behind,
strapped on his face. He turned to face her quickly, and asked in a
quivering voice filled with fright, if it was still the Lover's Mask.
She confirmed that it was, and he embraced her tight, worrying aloud
to her that he might be going insane. She realized that something
similar had happened this day as happened the previous, but not
wearing the proper Masks to provide verbal comfort, she settled on
love-making. The whole time, he was afraid the Mask he wore would
change in the middle, but it thankfully remained the same. When they
finished, they went to sleep in each others' arms.
The Man woke the next morning afraid. He was
reluctant to let go of his Wife, or that he might be wearing the
wrong Mask, now. She woke soon after, and, kissing him, assured that
the proper Lover's Mask was still resting on his nose. He rose from
bed, and after the morning routine and kissing his Wife goodbye as
she left for work, he sat down in his chair to think. For two days,
now, his Masks had changed while he was wearing them. He was sure
that he didn't simply put the wrong Mask on, because his Boss had
accused him of quickly changing Masks while she wasn't looking even
though he didn't. Faint echoes of stories told to scare children
began to come back, of Masks coming to life and taking a form of
their own. But he shook such thoughts away; he didn't have an
explanation as to what was going on, but surely one must exist. In
any case, his job as Teacher was that day, so he grabbed the
Teacher's Mask and all his Students' Practice Masks, so he could do
his job. But before he left the house, he put them all on three
times, and each time checked in the Mirror that they were the proper
Masks. On the way, he did likewise with his car's Mirrors. Each time
the Masks were correct, though this constant checking made him almost
late.
Arriving in the classroom with the Teacher's
Mask on, he passed out the Student Practice Masks to all the
Children, with which they replaced their own Masks, if in unpracticed
form. For the first part of the day, the Masks remained as they were
supposed to be, and the Man began to feel relieved: today would pass
without incident. But when the Children were expected back from
lunch, they didn't arrive. Not unusual, and the procedure in this
case was for the Teacher to go and escort the Children to the
classroom. But when he turned to the door to retrieve them, he found
himself unable to move. A strong panic wave suddenly took him, and he
wanted to bolt to a bathroom to look in a Mirror. But he remained
stuck where he was. He tried to think, what Mask might do this to
him. But panic kept him from mentally checking off what his various
Masks could do. After several minutes, the Head Teacher came in,
clearly upset. He asked the Man why the Children were wearing all the
wrong masks, before asking then why he was, as well. The Man tried to
explain, but he was in such a panic that the words didn't really come
through. The Head Teacher, clearly concerned but more frustrated,
asked him to leave, to which the Man responded by bolting through the
door, back to his car, and speeding home. In his bathroom, he saw the
Employee's Mask staring back.
The Man removed the Mask, and thought that it
would be good to talk to his Friends about this. He sought out his
Friends' Masks, but they were nowhere to be found; he instead found
the Students' Practice Masks in their places, and knew then what
Masks the Head Teacher had been talking about, when he'd mentioned
the wrong Masks the Children were wearing. He put on the Coworker's
Mask and called up the school, saying that those Masks were his, and
that he didn't know how they'd been switched with the proper ones.
The Teacher on the other side said that they'd be returned to him
later that day, but that the Head Teacher has said that the Man is
not to return to the school until he's been psychologically
evaluated. Slowly hanging up and staring at the phone, the Man
realized somberly that he was out of work. He was still staring at
the phone when the Friends' Masks were finally returned to him a few
hours later.
He finally managed to grab his various Friends'
Masks and contact his Friends, asking each one to come over. When
they arrived, he put on the Masks appropriate to each friend and
asked, in turn, if he's wearing the wrong Mask. Indeed, they
confirmed that he was wearing the Students' Practice Masks each time.
He was somewhat relieved again that he wasn't going crazy, but still
confused and even now a bit cross at these strange events, explained
the previous days to his Friends, and went to his room to replace
these wrong Masks with the right ones. Before leaving, he
double-checked and then checked again that they were right, but when
he got back to his Friends, they told him that he was once again was
wearing the Students' Practice Masks. Starting to panic, he ran back
to get the real Friends' Masks, but came back once again with the
wrong ones. One by one, his Friends left, chastising the Man for this
sick joke of his. He begged and pleaded them not to leave, that this
was some strange magic working on the masks, but nobody believed him.
Finally, he was left alone.
That evening, the Man was quite exhausted. He
felt like nothing mattered anymore, having lost both his jobs and all
his friends. When his Wife came home, she suggested they try working
on the house expenses. He put on the Moneyman's Mask, but soon into
the workings, she remarked to him, confusedly, that he was now
wearing his Coworker's Mask. The Man thought that at least this time,
the wrong Mask wasn't entirely inappropriate, and they could still
work, though he found himself unable to remember all the financial
terms and concepts. When they finished, his Wife told him to get the
Partner's Mask so they could talk this out properly. Confident this
magic wouldn't hinder his relationship with his Wife, but still
feeling very tired, he grabbed the Mask and went to her. But not long
into talking, he started to feel a strong desire for her body, and
began cuddling closer and whispering flirtations. She told him that
the Lover's Mask was not good for this sort of thing, and as she
didn't feel in the mood to grab her own, in any case. The Man began
to feel less and less. Frustrated, she suggested they just put a
movie on for them to watch and get their minds off of this.
The Man went to grab the Friends' Mask for his
Wife, and came out with the Partner's Mask, along with a broom to
clean the house. His Wife uttered, becoming more and more tired and
frustrated herself, that at least maybe that would help calm him
down. But she began to feel a growing resentment. She told him to
call his Family, that maybe they could help, but when he did, he wore
the Moneyman's Mask instead of the Family Mask. Instead of help, he
asked for money, and no one in his Family would do such a thing, each
one hanging up on him in anger. His Wife, becoming quite afraid that
she was losing this man she loved, in desperation grabbed her Lover's
Mask and made to cuddle with her husband. She felt him slipping away,
and tried in vain to grasp him, that he'd not leave her alone. But he
began talking about certain tasks that needed doing, for though she
had grabbed his Lover's Mask herself, and tried to put it on, she
found him wearing the Worker's Mask. He was gone. He didn't even seem
to care, anymore, that he was wearing the wrong Mask. She felt a
sadness and anger never felt before, and in a rage, accused him of
playing her this whole time, that there's no magic in the Masks, and
that he's just been quickly swapping them out as a sick joke. She ran
out of the house, then and there, into the night's darkness. The Man
never saw her again.
Many weeks passed. The Man never left his house
in that time, never talked to any of his Friends, Family, or Wife,
and was ultimately fired from his Teaching position, having never
made the appointment for a psychiatric evaluation. He didn't put on a
single Mask in that time. Without any money, he never paid any of his
bills, and one day, an eviction notice finally came into the mail. He
had lost his fun, his jobs, his Friends, his Family, and his Wife.
Now, he would lose his Home.
The night of the last day in his house, he
threw every single one of his Masks into the fireplace. He then went
into the bathroom, and stared long at his face in the Mirror. “At
least I have my True Face, that now the whole world can see.” he
said bitterly to himself. But as he stared, something about his True
Face began to seem off, somehow. There were strange rivets and
markings that were not of his skin. Dread slowly began to build
inside of him; this thing he thought was his True Face was, in fact,
yet another Mask. In a horrified rage he tore at the face, trying to
rip this thing off for good, that maybe he had a True True Face
underneath. But the pain was too great; not a single thread came
loose. He tried feeling around his face, for some chink he could use.
He noticed, then, many protrusions he'd never felt or seen before.
Looking back in the Mirror, he realized that this Mask was actually
not singular; it was a Mosaic Mask made up of many smaller Masks.
Grinning like a madman, he began to tear at one of the smaller Masks.
He felt pain, but it was bearable, and soon the Little Mask came off.
He laughed hysterically, and began tearing at each of the others. The
pain increased with each Mask torn off, but he didn't care. Finally,
he came to the final mask; the pain so great now that he couldn't
feel it. He clasped its nose in between his fingers, and screaming in
mad triumph that he could finally see his True True Face, flung the
last Little Mask into the fireplace. And then, he died.
The next day, Bankermen came to his house to
remove him. But when he didn't answer the door, they entered to see
if he was home. They curiously noted the house's vacancy; it was
known around the neighborhood that he hadn't left at all in weeks,
even to restock his food. The only strange thing they found was,
lying on the floor of the bathroom, a pile of Little Masks encircling
a naked mannequin.
