GEPETTO MONOLOGUE

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my dear friend - no, no, don’t interrupt, I insist - you have a face I trust immediately

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Which is rare. I trust almost no one. Terrible habit. Keeps me safe.

3.

But you…you’ve got that look. Open. Curious. Just a little bit lost. Which is perfect.

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Perfect for opportunity, I mean. You see, most people go their entire lives without anyone recognising their… potential.

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I recognise it instantly. It’s a gift of minje. Did you ever hear the tale of the fishwife and the wasp?

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Oh, it was dreadful business. Tiny thing, really — just one wasp, but furious, absolutely furious — and this poor woman flapping about with a haddock like it was weapon.

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That was me, that was. The calm one, not the fishwife. I stepped in. Very calm. Very brave. Saved her from the bees. Wasps.

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The point is this. I have a way of improving situations. Stick with me, and I’ll show you how things really work.

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Where the doors are. Which ones open. Which ones shouldn’t, but do anyway, if you know the right knock.

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And all it costs is a little trust. Which, luckily for you, you’ve already given me.