Geralt had spent the last of his time in Las Vegas relaxing. His intention to visit a gambling house had been pushed to the side in pursuit of other activities, but overall he had enjoyed his time there. Maybe by the time he made his way back, the city would have a little more to offer him in the way of diversion.

He'd kept to himself for the drive to their next destination, steering clear of Ivory and of Lucien. The former because he did not want to remind her of why she disliked him any time soon, and the latter because it just wasn't time yet. He needed the man to feel his absence, to know what it would be like to loose him. Maybe then Lucien would change his tune just a little and be more open to Geralt's advances. That or reject him outright, and honestly either was preferable to The Magician right now. 

His positive attitude also remained for the travel and for several days after they had arrived. Even though he had made no headway with Lucien, the progress he had made with the others in the troupe had kept him motivated just enough not to let his mood sour. He even spared some time for Akane, mostly because of how eager she was and how willing she had been to share with him. He had learned quite a bit about her personally and about her abilities, which was more than payment for him. Unfortunately, he hadn't had time to extract anything about Cora during his time with her, but he had those plans in the works for a later time. Even Geralt's parasite had made itself scarce during these days, only appearing to him when it had something particularly witty to say. Overall, he knew it was just a reminder of the thing's presence. It would come back to torment him the second it sniffed his disinterest.

Illyana's spirits were very high as well. Leaving Nevada had her feeling the most hopeful she had in a very long time. She had more energy, smiled more often, and even went out of her way to interact with everyone during her daily duties. The closer they got to California, the more light she felt. So light, in fact, that she had put her research into Geralt entirely on hold for the time being. She knew that they would need all of her energy for the task at hand. She took to spending her evenings and nights meditating, putting her feelers out to see if anything bounced back. Nothing was yet, but she was confident that if they kept heading south, she would find something eventually. She had to, there was no other option.

Cora had remained in her usual mode of operation for the duration of the travel as well. She had been glad to see and hear that Akane was practicing with Geralt's help, mostly because she could see how happy it made the Kitsune to be able to manipulate her powers more successfully. She discovered since the night of their dance that she only wanted Akane to be happy and safe, so she decided that would be her job outside of working hours. Whatever she could do to ensure the Kitsune's happiness, along with the others in the troupe, was what she had directed her energy towards, and that, in turn had made her that much more bright to be around.

It was only a matter of time before everyone's positive attitudes faded. Geralt, through his many years living with the creature who shared his body and his mind, knew that it would not stay silent for long. That, accompanied with Winter's quick approach had The Magician bracing for storm clouds. Nothing stayed this good for this long...something was about to break.

The morning after the troupe arrived in Barstow, everyone was raring to gets things set up and have the "show on the road". They had practiced setting up in every condition, and had gotten quite quick at it. The trouble was, they had arrived too late the previous night to begin, so the carnies and troupe members had been up bright and early building and setting everything up. Due to parking arrangements, Geralt had ended up next to the Big Top, which was one of the louder activities the carnies engaged in.

Tired, The Magician had been forced to leave his trailer at the crack of dawn. Dark circles loomed heavy under the man's eyes and a solid frown had settled on his lips as he exited and made his way across the grounds. At least they had set up the mess area enough for him to entertain himself with a cup of coffee. As he approached, a sweet smell touched and tantalized his nostrils and he raised his eyebrows. As he moved around a truck that had been parked nearby and laid his eyes on the mess area, he discovered its source. Lucien was up, the fuzzy morning light glowing around him like a full-body halo. Geralt couldn't help but be reminded of how beautiful he was and was suddenyl struck with the full force of his desires for the man.

[i][color=crimson]Now, of all times, really?[/color][/i] He thought to himself, then mad his way to the coffee pot. Lucien's back was too him, but he knew the man could sense his presence. He turned toward him as he worked, pouring himself a cup as he did so, [color=crimson]"Good morning, patron. Hard at work already, hm? You're making the rest of us look bad, you know."[/color]