[@Old Amsterdam]
Once he’d received the cards back, the comedian stood stock still for several seconds, glancing between the woman who was showing him genuine kindness and the laughing man his Stand had gently slapped earlier. It was almost comical, the way his gaze switched between the two like a rabbit caught in headlights as he put the pieces together. Not so much the fact that the laughing man was by now beginning to collapse on the ground with laughter or whatever had afflicted him, a whooping laugh that indicated he was probably starting to exhale more than he inhaled.

But the whole time, the funnyman’s expression gradually turned to an annoyed frown, and eventually he muttered ‘Sure, you can be the cliff, or you can be the rocks. But say you’ve been trying to become a cliff?’ he explained. ‘Trying to build yourself up, achieve your life’s goal, but then whenever you give it your all, those rocks just start pummelling you in the head, knocking you back down...’ There seemed to be a very personal component to what he was saying, and it didn’t take much thought to consider that maybe it had something to do with his work as a comedian.

‘What do you do about that, then?’ he asked, petulant and almost whining a little. ‘You don’t know what that’s like, do you, being pummelled with rocks all your life for doing what you love... what right do people like him have to crap on that sort of dedication?’ Apparently, he’d at least partly convinced himself that he was still in the right here. Even that seemed to waver quite a bit, though; a little more persuasion could well be enough to ensure he did what Laurie wanted him to. Soon would probably be preferable, considering what was going on in the background.

[hr]

[@ProPro]
There wasn’t much else to consider. The woman’s speech continued in the background as Leonard jogged away from the gathering, drawing cheers from the other bystanders. It wouldn’t take him especially long to return to the entrance he and Mieke had come in by, and if she returned in due course, they could be off within a few minutes.

[hr]

[@knifeman]
As Mieke fell to the ground in shock, the smaller of the two performers glanced in her direction, only for his eyes to widen with apparent shock behind his sunglasses, followed shortly by his larger partner. Immediately, the tone and pace of their conversation changed, becoming much more rapid and concerned, yet even more incomprehensible than before, though at least one gesture was made in Mieke’s direction.

Abruptly, the leader leapt into the pool, apparently to retrieve his fallen comrade, whilst the bigger individual climbed down ponderously from the top of the van and began walking into the crowd, staring intently at everybody he passed, especially as he drew closer to Mieke’s form.

‘Excuse me, miss?’ he uttered politely with the same thick accent as his partner in a deeper tone, looking down at Mieke with a not unkind, but quite focused expression. ‘Whilst I appreciate that what you’ve just seen might be upsetting, I assure you, it’s all part of the act. That said, I do need you to stop crying. You’re, uh... you might get somebody injured...’

As he trailed off, he tried his best to draw Mieke’s attention discreetly to what was happening around her. It seemed that her Stand had manifested of its own accord, and was now crying in tandem with her - leaving floating crystals in its wake around the girl, sharp as razors, or so it would seem. And who knew what they’d do if they touched anybody? If one paid attention, one might also hear the buzz of her phone, indicating a couple of messages received.

[hr]

[@LemonZest1337][@Lugubrious]
As the man observed the one-sided dialogue between Arthur and Hogan, his expression slowly turned from concern to interest, and even showed hints of being quite impressed at Arthur’s last line.

‘Huh. An animal show, eh?’ he asked. ‘That’s pretty cool, yeah... an’ this guy Hogan, he’s gonna be part of it? Honestly, animals have never been my thing too much, but I guess a ‘gator would need to be trained for a show, no matter its size. I won’t keep ya, then,’ he obliged, turning to walk away, the rest of the crowd following suit once they realised nothing fun was happening. ‘I hope this show a yours is a good’un!’