[{Singing}

  The ability to sing. Current capacity includes : Free navigation through 8 octaves; voice projection; perfect breath control; perfect diction; free use of belly voice, head voice, and mixed voice; perfect pitch; basic music theory; basic music history; throat and vocal cords preservation

  {Tips}

  To evolve ‘singing’, try new genres or harder songs

  {Tips}

  You could discover a new ability by using some of the capacity of ‘singing’ in another domain]

  ‘This is way too powerful ! I can know exactly what I have and what I ck, and there are tips to improve my abilities ? ‘Path of Destiny’, I love you so much ! It’s the best gift I could have dreamed of !’

  She expected the wheel of gifts, but she had received something far more precious. Just by listing the content of an ability, Cyrielle could know what knowledge she cked, and even research if some of the content of the ability could be used elsewhere. It was a big growth opportunity, and if she pnned it well, she could evolve all her abilities and even gain new ones.

  But she couldn’t do it all at once.

  ‘I bet if I upgrade too many abilities at once, it will hurt a lot. I don’t want to relive the pain I felt when my ‘aura’ was boosted. And more than that, I'm already way too busy !’

  She couldn’t fit anything else into her tough schedule. Between the things Julie asked of her and what she did for herself like sewing and studying, Cyrielle had her hands tied. She wasn’t in a rush anyway, she was already the fastest achiever of all ‘Path of Destiny’ owners and had gained tremendous rewards for it. If she continued at her current pace, she was guaranteed to receive more.

  ‘Let’s rex a bit. I deserve it too.’

  With a smile, she resumed her cooking.

  ***

  Cyrielle was so busy that time flew by, and soon it was the 17th of december. She was checking her MyTube channel in Julie’s car, trying to distract herself from the stage fright that was creeping up on her. After all, it was the day of the drag show.

  ‘I can’t believe I already have more than 10,000 subscribers… It doesn’t feel real at all… And why are there so many comments in english ? I can’t possibly be already an international star, I’m not even a celebrity in France yet !’

  She was shocked, but her fear was taking over. The bag on her knees containing the stage outfit felt very heavy. She had checked multiple times to make sure it was perfect, but now she didn’t know. Maybe it was ugly, or badly made. And what if it came loose on stage ? It would be a disaster.

  Next to her, Julie was sneaking gnces at her stern face.

  ‘I thought she would be at least a little stressed out, but she is so calm. Well, I may not know about her past, but to obtain such abilities she must have suffered a lot and honed her skills under strict supervision. Two numbers at a drag show are probably nothing to her.’

  It was another misconception that was added to the pile. Despite all of that, the two friends arrived early to the restaurant. It was one of those pces where you could eat a meal while enjoying a performance or a concert. Far from the pubs Cyrielle was used to sing at, this pce felt more elegant and refined, without being too serious either. It was just a very nice room, well decorated, and with a lot of colored spotlights. The stage was also quite big, twice the size of Julie’s apartment.

  Two people were chatting on the terrace. Cyrielle recognized Madame Fabergé who was out of drag, and next to him was a petite woman with a round face. She turned around when she saw Julie and Cyrielle approach.

  “Oh, so it’s you ? I heard so much about your singing abilities, to the point where I subscribed to your channel ! Should I call you Madame Cyrielle ? By the way, I’m Joté Dusang, a drag king.”

  It was a good question. Should she be known by her channel name or by her real name ? It didn’t make a lot of difference because both were simir, but the meaning was important. She needed to choose if she wanted to use a stage name.

  But that question was answered for her, with a big spoonful of misconceptions. The one who was mistaken, this time, was the man interpreting Madame Fabergé. He had seen Cyrielle’s brows get slightly closer and immediately jumped to conclusion.

  “Don’t try to act close when you don’t know her, honey. We just have a business retionship for now, so obviously we should call ourselves by our stage names. We should be grateful that someone of her status even came to perform at our show !”

  “Oh, is that so ? Sorry, I got ahead of myself…”

  ‘No, but I want to be friends with you ! I want to call you by your real name when you’re not in drag, am I not allowed to do that ? I swear those people are so frustrating !’

  Cyrielle’s despair didn’t show on her stiff face, but she still made an effort to speak.

  “I don’t mind, you can call me Cyrielle. What should I call both of you out of drag ?”

  As soon as she finished her question, both the man and the woman opened their eyes wide.

  ‘Oh my gosh, she is more friendly than I thought ! I can’t believe she is trying to make us rex and is actually striking a conversation with us. I’ll never forget this moment ! I wanted to try and build connections with her, and use her influence to my advantage, but I can’t possibly do that to someone so sweet. I’ll be her fan all my life !’

  They tried to hide their excitement as best as they could, but their voices were slightly high pitched.

  “I’m Honoré out of drag, and Madame Fabergé on stage. You can refer to me as ‘he’ when I’m like this, and ‘she’ with a wig. But whatever you call me I’d be grateful so you don’t need to make so much effort.”

  “I’m Léna and, as I said, my drag persona is Joté Dusang. You can ask me anything you don’t know !”

  Afterwards, Honoré went to discuss tonight’s details with the restaurant staff and Julie, while Léna took it upon herself to show Cyrielle around. The petite woman had a proud face as if she was given an important task, but Cyrielle was starting to get used to the way people treated her, so she just tried to remember the information while calming her stage fright.

  She was informed that Madame Fabergé's show started with an opening segment to introduce lesser known drag artists. Anyone could register in advance and perform during this part of the show, though Honoré tended to prioritize the drag babies of his own house. Joté Dusang had one of the registered numbers. After a short break, the second segment began, which usually included a guest appearance in the middle. The guest here was usually a better or more established drag artist than those in the first part. As she heard this, Cyrielle felt the pressure shoot up, and her heart began beating louder.

  While speaking, they had reached the back of the building. In the parking space reserved for the staff, there was an old rusted bus that had lost its tires. Cyrielle tilted her head in confusion. It was strange to find that kind of vehicle in France to begin with, it was a two floor yellow bus like the ones in TV shows.

  “And here is the artist's corner ! You can change inside. It’s a little cold since there isn't any heating system but it’s cozy. If you are the shy type, there are curtains installed in a corner to hide yourself when you change.”

  They were to get into drag and do their makeup all together inside the old bus, in front of the windows ? Cyrielle was suddenly very grateful that this ‘waiting room’ was situated in the staff’s parking lot.

  “If you want to use the privacy corner, I suggest you do so now. When everybody arrives, there will be a fierce battle to secure the curtains. If you have any painful or awkward stuff like a corset or high heels, you should wait until you're about ready to go on stage before putting it on. But you might want to put your makeup on first, if you're the type who takes their time with it.”

  Makeup ? What makeup ? Cyrielle had completely forgotten that part. But before she could say anything, Léna was gone.

  ‘It’s too te to have regrets now. I’ll just put on my outfit and make it work.’

  Cyrielle entered the bus. The walls were rusted and there wasn't any carpet or furniture anymore, it was like a metal room with some tables and chairs here and there. Climbing the stairs to the second floor, she discovered the ‘privacy corner’. Curtains had been arranged in a square, blocking the light on all sides. It wasn’t very big, maybe the size of a changing room in a clothing store. Cyrielle immediately entered and shut the curtains tightly. It didn’t take her long to put on her stage outfit, and she went back to the first floor. Léna was inside with brushes in hand, applying makeup while in her underwear. When she saw her, the petite woman sprung up.

  “Oh my gosh, Cyrielle ! You are so beautiful !”

  Her outfit was indeed quite amazing. It was an impressively tailored suit vest in a midnight blue tone, with golden stars embroidered and a transparent bck veil attached under her sleeves forming a train behind her. The bottom was an 1880’s inspired skirt with yers of fabric in a gradient starting from light blue and going all the way to bck. In her hands was an adequate hat with stars. The concept for her look was unmistakably ‘Night sky’.

  Léna walked around Cyrielle to take in the details, her half painted beard and her bare chest giving her a very strange look.

  “It’s perfect ! I can’t wait to see you in full makeup, it will be legendary !”

  At this point, her gaze nded on the bag Cyrielle had come with. It yed open on one of the tables.

  “Wait… You didn’t bring makeup ? Oh no, did you forget ? Don’t worry, I can let you borrow mine.”

  Cyrielle was about to refuse when suddenly blue characters appeared.

  [Sensing an opportunity for destiny. Acquiring ability : Makeup art.]

  She smiled elegantly.

  “I would be grateful.”