I took that advice, and Montana and I became as one. We felt good together, and life seemed perfect.
The adventure was over, or so I thought.
Aunty announced that we were all to meet for a final party to celebrate what had been, for me, an incredibly happy conclusion to a wonderful series of adventures. Albert had decorated the main hall with greenery, making it look like an enchanted forest, while hundreds of tiny, coloured lights cast a dream-like atmosphere over the scene. The food was abundant and served informally as we sat on rustic benches adorned with wildflowers. There were even a series of lilting tunes perfectly suited to the rural setting, and four or five couples spontaneously danced, causing great hilarity among their friends.
I was sitting huddled up close to Aunty, listening to the story of her early life in revolutionary France, when a sudden flash of light rendered me unconscious for a moment, or so I thought, but nobody else seemed to have noticed anything out of the ordinary.
I looked up and found that Aunty was no longer sitting next to me, but she was out in front and making a speech into the darkness of the undecorated part of the hall that we were not using for our party. She had her back to me, and I wondered to whom she was making her speech.
Then she turned and beckoned for me, Montana, and the two other betrothed couples to join her. We stood in a line beside her, holding hands, as she finished her address to what was an empty hall.
It seemed that she was coming to the end of her address, and I concentrated on her words.
"And so, we say farewell." I trust you understand from our frolic that three couples by my side were destined to fall in love, and even the mischievous spirits weaving their web of enchantment were unable to stop them. Even when opposed by magic, true love will always triumph, and it is the love professed by these young people in the celebration of marriage that our story ends."
She took a deep bow, as did everybody else, except for me, who was unprepared, but the hands that clasped mine on each side managed to pull me down.
"That's it for today," said Ernest dismissively. We will sort the epilogue out tomorrow."
There was a collective sigh from the crowd, and people broke into animated conversations with each other, moving from group to group around the room. A couple of people left. Everybody ignored me, and I sat alone on a bench.
Montana had vanished, and I started to think it was all a hallucination when I saw her walk back into the room. She was wearing tight blue jeans, and her long black hair hung down to her shoulders. Around her neck, she had artfully tied a red scarf that complemented her flawless complexion, and beneath her denim jacket, she wore an ethnic beaded blouse.
"All finished?" she said to the room.
"Sorry to rush off, but I am meeting friends for drinks. It went well. Don't you think? There is just the epilogue to sort out now. I can see that you have already started to discuss improvisations, but don't stray too far from the script. Michael is a stickler for authenticity. Bye then, I must go; see you at rehearsal tomorrow."
"Montana!"
I grabbed her by the arm and stared at her in amazement.
"Oh, dear," she said to the company in general. "Has nobody told him yet? Michael should have sorted this out. It was his idea to bring in a stooge. I never liked the idea; we are good enough actors without needing somebody to play it for real in an attempt to make it seem more authentic. This is the absolute limit. Just look at the poor boy. He doesn't know what's happening."
She smiled at me sympathetically.
"You can let me go now. Everything is going to be fine," she said, gently removing my hand from her arm. Can't somebody get him a cup of tea or something? I really must leave."
I couldn't just let her go, and I grabbed her by the shoulders.
"Montana, what are you saying? It's me, Peregrine; we love each other."
"Now, now, my friend. We don't want to lose control, do we? That was all in the play, and we were just acting. It's not real; don't you understand? My name is not Montana; it's Julia, and I have an appointment to keep. Now take your hands off me and let me go."
I could not do it. Fear that I was about to lose her forever made me grip her shoulders even more firmly.
"Montana, I don't know what's happened to you, but we can sort it out somehow. Try to remember who you are. Look me in the eyes; it's me, Peregrine. Cluan Cheap will never return; if that's what is bothering you, you are free from his fraudulent marriage contract, and we can be together forever."
"Get him off me!" Montana screamed. "Won't anybody help me?"
She began to struggle and squirm in my arms, and Albert hurried over.
"Thanks, Albert; maybe Aunty can give her a sedative, and we can get her to bed," I said. "If you would just help me get her back to her room."
To my astonishment, Albert stuck his scowling face into mine; it was very intimidating.
"Let her go, mate, right now, or I am going to have to make you."
. Without thinking, I loosened my grip, and Montana broke free.
"Uncle Albert!" I could not believe it.
"I am not your Uncle Albert. Did you not hear what she said? It was a play—make-believe. Now calm down, or I am going to have to throw you out."
It sounded like he came from somewhere in Earth Major, Liverpool, but wherever it was, his accent was completely different from Albert's.
"Thanks, Jerry," said Montana. "The boy has gone mad. Keep a good hold of him."
I turned back to face her.
"Sorry", I said to nobody in particular, "my head is spinning; is there somewhere I could go and lie down for a while?"
"Of course, dear boy," said David, who was smoking a cheroot and now talked in an affected drawl, "be my guest. My dressing room is just down the corridor."
"Tony!" Agnes shouted warningly.
"Oh, don't fuss," he said. "Come along, old chap, and let's make you comfortable."
I was happy to accept.
"Thank you. I appreciate your offer."
"No problemo", said Tony.
There was a single bed in David's room, and true to his word, he left quietly after ensuring I was comfortable. I was trembling with shock and curled into a ball. I struggled to fall asleep, hoping I might be dreaming and wake up to find everything back to normal. I couldn't sleep, but I managed to regain some self-control and try to rationally assess what had happened. I remember talking to Aunty, then the flash of light, my brief moment of consciousness, and awakening to find her delivering the epilogue to 'A Midsummer Night's Dream' to an imaginary audience.
How everyone had dispersed into groups, the shock of seeing Montana dressed in strange clothes, and her telling me that she was an actor in a play. Not only her, of course, but everybody, including me. If that were true, then Peregrine had only been a character, and I was an actor myself, but wait a minute; she said that I was a 'stooge'. What did that mean?