A Misshaped Mutant

Ep 10 - Masks

Aha. There it is.

There's no mistaking it.

The one and only piece...

The mutant stared at the small stall in the narrow, crowded area. There were custom-made, handmade, and store bought masks dangling from the thick red threads that held them. The mutant observed each mask, each having their own details with a variety of animal options.

So hard...

What should I choose?

The mutant looked down at the old lady that stood behind the mask stall. He was quite glad that he did fit in quite a bit considering this stall was selling masks. "Hello dear. How may I help you?" The old lady spoke, looking up at the yokai. The yokai returned his gaze to the masks.

"Uh, sorry to bother but do you perhaps, have any... sturdy masks? Ones that doesn't get chipped so easily." The mutant asked. "Oh of course I do. I do have exceptional sturdy masks in storage. Please mind me a moment." The old lady replied, walking to the back of her stall. The yokai leaned to the side with curiosity, trying to get a peek. There was a few dusty old boxes huddled up in the corner. The old lady opened one of the boxes, putting her hands into the box.

The mutant let out a quiet trill of clicks, curiosity getting the better of him. He knew he shouldn't expect too much from a normal human stall but he really liked how carefully crafted these masks were, every detail carefully carved into the wooden piece. It was a masterpiece to him and he loved it. They allowed you to change your appearance, concealing your face. And that's what he needed right now. The old lady returned to the front of the stall, placing down a couple of different masks. "I forgot to ask you if there was a specific animal or creature you wanted. Please tell me if you want any more." The old lady smiled.

The curious yokai nodded, shifting his gaze onto the laid out masks. There was a dragon mask, a demon mask, two fox masks, a wolf mask, and a bird mask. "I can tell you got a good eye." The old lady complimented. The yokai's gaze unconsciously drifted towards the fox masks. The old lady narrowed her eyes at the yokai. She shifted and started to walk deeper into her stall.

The mutant's thoughts was interrupted when he heard a thud. He looked up to see the old lady holding a fox mask as if she was offering it. The yokai's pupils shrank and grew, unsure of what he was supposed to feel. He grabbed the mask from the lady's hands. It was quite dusty but it was in a good shape. Using his sleeve, he rubbed the dust off of the mask. Getting a better look, he observed the details of the finely carved mask.

The wooden fox mask was decorated with black stripes on the sides and red stripes on the top of the mask and around the eye holes. Yellow lines were added to the red stripes on the forehead along with some dots. As expected, the insides of the ears were red and the nose was black. The mutant let his fingers trace behind the mask. The texture was smooth.

Hold on.

The mutant flipped the mask over, revealing the back of it. The mutant frowned behind his mask. There wasn't any straps. The yokai glanced up at the old lady. She didn't seem to notice his disappointment. He had high hopes for this one but guess not everything is perfect. "I'm willingly to discount this one for you my boy." The old lady spoke, gesturing at the mask that rested in the mutant's hands. The mutant gloomily looked at the mask but shook his head. He should be happy he found something amazing as this.

The yokai was about to ask the price when he froze up. He was so mesmerized by the masks that he forgot he actually didn't have any money and had left himself out exposed. The yokai looked down like a sad puppy, placing the mask down. "Sorry. I can't afford this." He shook his head. Maybe he'll steal it later. The old lady had her eyes squinted at the yokai. "Oh don't worry dear. I'll let you have it for free. I was planning to get rid of it sooner or later."

The yokai perked up. His pupils went immensely round. "Really?!" The yokai chirped. The yokai picked up the mask like he was a little kid who was getting his dream toy he's wanted all of his life. The old lady nodded, smiling.

The yokai stepped back with the mask in his hands, giving the old lady a bow to show appreciation. The old lady waved back.

———                     ———

The mutant was back at his hideout. He held the mask up in the air, figuring out how he should out it on since it didn't have a strap. He pulled off his hood and his mask and grabbed a cracked mirror he had found while scavenging. Adjusting the mask onto his face, he felt a shiver on his face. The mutant pushed the mask off his face, staring at it as if it tried to do something to him.

Staring at it for a few more seconds, the mutant shook his head. Surely he was just imagining things. He gently pushed the mask back on, feeling the shiver again.

Ignore it. Ignore it. Ignore it.

He a felt a tickle.

Something is tickling his face.

But what is–?

"GAHH!" The mutant yelled, gripping onto the mask. Something attached the mask to his face. He couldn't take it off. The mutant pulled and tugged at the mask but it wasn't coming off. Panicking, the mutant's arms started to bulge, shapeshifting the muscles. He gave it one more pull, feeling the mask coming off of his face slightly.

Click.

The yokai froze. The tickling stopped. Trying to catch his breath, the mutant tapped on his mask. It felt normal. Was that a good thing or a bad thing?

The mutant turned to the cracked mirror. The mask looked normal. The mutant moved closer to the mirror, touching the surface of the mask. His pupils blinked through the eye holes. They were slit. Right. Just calm down. You're fine.

Regaining his cool, the mutant gripped onto the sides of the mask. Giving it a small tug, the mask popped off. Blinking surprised at the ease, he flipped the mask over.

Do humans normally have masks like that? But if they do, that wouldn't explain the first mask I got. The mutant looked at the chipped mask. Maybe because it was higher quality? But then again, if he recalls his memories correctly, all the other masks on sale had straps except this one. The mutant widened his eyes in horror. "Is it a CURSE?!" The mutant said out loud. He wasn't exactly sure what a curse was but the humans acted like it was a bad thing. But at the same time, they didn't seem to.

The mutant yokai shook his head. He was probably just overthinking things. He'll deal with it later.