[IC] Cirque D'étoiles (1x1, FxM, MxM, FxF)

[xivyxx]

Ivory woke up the next morning to the loud voices of the carnies as they went about trying to get things set up again. They had started the night before, but there were still some things to put together. She groaned, not particularly inclined to get up, but she knew there was still that morning meeting Lucien wanted with everyone. She let out a heavy sigh, before she lazily got out of her bed. She didn't even bother to change her clothes, there wasn't really much point if she was probably going to head back here anyway. She simply brushed her hair, put on her cloak to block out that damn sun, and left her trailer, before heading over to Aurel's and knocking on the door.

"Morning meeting at Lucien's!" She called out. After a small moment of silence, she could hear Aurel's groggy voice from inside.

"I'll be right there.." He called out. Aurel had been wrapped in the blankets of his bed, a couple snakes curled up at his side, while one was sprawled out on top of him. "Ginger.. you're heavy.." He complained as he moved the larger, light-colored ball python off of him. He let out a small yawn as he got out of his bed, but made no effort to take the snakes with him. They could rest some more. By then Ivory had moved on to the next trailer, repeating the process with the others until she reached Cora's trailer, saving her for last.

"We're having another morning meeting Cora! I'm here to pick you up." She said to her. Part of her hoped this was the last morning meeting they'd be doing in a while. She quite liked oversleeping.

-

Lucien had already awakened and gotten ready for the day. He was typically an early riser. After all he had a lot of things to put together for tonights show. Even though they had Geralt now, he wanted to do things a little differently than they did when they came here the last time. He didn't want to make people pay to see the same thing twice. Glancing out the window, he could see Ivory going around waking up the others for the meeting. That was good, he had thought she might not actually wake up on time for it. The girl had a higher sense of duty than she usually let on.

His eyes trailed back to the paper he had been scribbling notes on. Prior to this, he had been looking over their financials, doing a test calculation of how much Geralt would have made during their last show, and honestly he still didn't like it.

"What a greedy man." He muttered, glancing over at the card he had been left with, picking it up and twirling it with his thumb and index finger. Well, he should have expected that much, in all honesty. The man was famous, and Lucien was using his name to bring attention to the circus. There was no way he had expected him to just accept five or ten percent, but he could have hoped, at the very least. He'd just have to make due. If the man really did bring such a drastic change to their income, then it would only be fair he'd get compensated for it. He only wished it had been approached in a different manner. He supposed he'd just have to see how much of an effect Geralt would end up having on their show, assuming he'd even partake in the one they'd have tonight. He had say he needed to 'perfect his technique,' and Lucien wasn't sure how much time that would take, though considering how arrogant the man was, he didn't feel it would take very long.

Earlier in the morning, he had told the carnies to clean up the trailer that had belonged to their acrobats. It was the third largest they had, considering it used to belong to two people. He figured Gerald was not the kind of person who would accept one of the ones they used for storage which were not as bit and he most certainly was not giving him the second largest. That one was.. not available. He hoped that would not give him any problems.

[FreckersFrog]

Illyana woke with a start. No dreams, just unease.

Two things were clear immediately: she was in her trailer, and her back was killing her. She had fallen asleep at her reading table, a book laying open in front of her, now with the addition of a large wet stain of drool. She looked down at it in disgust and disappointment, and slapped it closed.

Despite her efforts, and her newly moistened page, she had learned nothing new or useful in helping her get to the bottom of her unease with Geralt. She hadn't completely finished her research, but it was unlikely that she would find anything at this point. She would just have to learn whatever she could from the man himself, although this was what she had been trying to avoid in the first place.

Suddenly, she noticed the shaft of light that beamed through her partially open window and started into a standing position. "Shit!" she exclaimed, and moved so quickly that she knocked over her chair. She threw the blanket she had been wearing off of her shoulders and went about changing as quickly as possible. She hated to be late. Usually, she was up at Dawn with the carnies, overseeing things or reading or doing chores, or getting Cora ready...she couldn't believe she'd slept in. Come to think of it, she wasn't even sure exactly when she fell asleep.

In any case, she needed to get moving. By the position of the sun in the sky, she guessed it was already nearing nine, which was unspeakable. She hurried herself getting dressed so she could get started for the day as soon as possible. She needed to be ready for when their new member arrived.

-------------------------------

Cora had been up all morning waiting for someone to come and get her. Every noise from the outside, every voice, every footfall or bump of her trailer excited her, but no one came. Finally, she had gotten fed up, slid out of her tank and dressed herself. It wasn't the hardest thing to do, and her clothes could stay wet for hours if she was out of the sun.

For the rest of the morning, she busied herself with trying to read on her own. She could make out a lot of letters now, thanks to Illy's help, and was able to discern a few words. After a bit of this, she just ended up confusing herself, so she resigned herself to her favorite pasttime: drawing. Illy had taught her this as well, and found that the mermaid was quite good at it. She had a hard time with people's faces and land-dwelling creatures, but she was beautifully artistic at rendering the creatures and landscapes of her home. In fact, nearly her entire trailer had been covered with etchings and paintings, when they could get paint, of undersea life. It was her "pride and joy" as Lucien had called it.

She was detailing an eel, hiding away in the darkness of it's den, when finally a knock came at her door. She immediately responded by dropping the charcoal stick onto the floor and rolling toward the door to fling it open.

"Finally!" She said, not caring who it had been that knocked. "I've been up since dawn, you know." She said to Ivory, slightly perturbed that no one had come for her sooner. She wore her trademark pout, but it only served to make her lips fuller and her eyes even more sparkling.

[xivyxx]

Ivory let out another small yawn just as Cora had flung open the door. It had startled her a little, but she quickly composed herself. "Sorry, I just woke up, and in turn, have also woken everyone else up. Aside from Lucien anyway, I'm sure he's also been up for a while. I'm basically nocturnal you know? It's way too early for me." She complained, before she moved out of the way so Cora could roll down the ramp. It was then she took the handles of her chair.

"You know you can leave your trailer even if no one comes to get you. I'm sure Akane wouldn't mind a morning visit from you." She commented. Considering she seemed to be all ready to go, she didn't see anything wrong with her doing that since they were still closed and there was no one else around. She felt the mermaid should have her own freedom to be able to do things when she felt like it, just so she wouldn't have to rely on other people to stop by to leave.

-

Aurel and Akane had left their trailers at about the same time. The fox seemed the most energized of the two. Both of them were wearing yukatas, something that Akane had introduced Aurel to after she had joined them. The snake had learned he much preferred this type of Japanese clothing. They were pretty loose and comfortable, and his snakes could wrap around his arms and still be comfortable. He appreciated the introduction, and in turn wore them often. It was one of the few things both he and Akane liked to buy when they were able.

"Good morning everyone!" Akane greeted as she caught up to Cora and Ivory. Aurel lagged a little behind, but he waved in their direction.

-

Lucien glanced over at his window again as he heard a bit of commotion. It seemed mostly everyone was already on their way. He put away his papers and placed them inside his drawer before he rose to his feet and headed to the door, opening it for them preemptively so they could just come inside, giving them all a small wave before he headed back to his desk and took a seat.

[FreckersFrog]

"Oh, I know!" Cora said enthusiastically, though her expression betrayed her unease. "Lucien told me that too, and Illyana..." She trailed off, twisting her fingers together in her lap as they moved across the sunny grounds.

It wasn't necessarily that she felt as though she couldn't leave her trailer if the others didn't retrieve her, she knew she was allowed and more than capable since she had figured out the door and the chair. It was more that she wasn't sure of herself on her own, out in the world. After all, she had no experience navigating the land world that she now called home, not alone at least. There was something about it that scared her. Not anything or anyone in particular, just the vastness of it, and the unknown. What if she got lost and couldn't find her way back, what if something bad happened and she was separated from the group? Would they know how to find her?

She had been lucky once, when Illyana had 'seen' her on that last day, would she be lucky again? It wasn't worth it to her to try. Just the thought of it now made her feel nervous, like she was exposed, drying out in the sun.

Just as she was starting to get really worried, the sound of Akane's voice brought her back to the now. She looked around for a moment, as if dazed, until she caught sight of her friends. She smiled, although it was a bit more strained than her usual chipper self, "Good morning!"

[xivyxx]

Ivory glanced down at Cora, taking note of the unease in her expression. She hadn't thought that stating this was that big of a deal but, maybe it was to Cora. Sometimes it was easy to forget that she was from a completely different place than them. Perhaps she would mention it to the others so at least the mermaid wouldn't be as lonely for extensive periods of time in the morning. She glanced back up as Akane approached them.

"Good morning." She responded.

"I'm glad to see you two got back alright last night! I tried to stay up but I ended up falling asleep." She said a little sheepishly before looking down at Cora. "Are you alright?" She asked, taking note of the bit of strain in her smile.

It was then that Aurel finally caught up to them, and began to join them on their walk to Lucien's trailer. "Good morning everyone.." He greeted.

"Oh you still look quite sleepy, Aurel. I didn't think anyone other than Ivory disliked waking up this early." She commented with a small chuckle.

"I usually don't, but Ginger decided to use me as a pillow last night. It made it a little hard to sleep." He said with a small chuckle. It wasn't like he really minded though. He appreciated that the snakes stayed with him even though they could easily go back out into the wild. They, like the circus, were also a part of his family.

Ivory simply smiled amusingly at the comment, finding no need to decline that. It was true after all. The fact no one would catch her up as early as dawn was a well known fact, unless she had some packing up to do. She much rather preferred getting that over with before the sun came up. When they reached Lucien's trailer, she moved around Cora's chair to pick her up as usual, before they heading inside with her.

Lucien raised an eyebrow as his troupe entered his trailer, surprised that Illyana wasn't with them. He greeted them good morning before tilting his head curiously. "Is Illyanna up?" He asked. About this time the girl was already up and about. Sometimes she was an even earlier riser than he was. Considering it seemed she planned to look into things last night, he really hoped she hadn't ended up pulling an all-nighter.

[FreckersFrog]

"Oh, yeah," Cora began, dropping her eyes to her lap for a moment at Akane, though she managed to keep her smile, "The sun is just really bright today!" She said as she shielded her eyes. The last thing she needed was for everyone to worry about her.

She was relieved when the group started moving toward Lucien's trailer again. Not only would it get her out of the sun, it would take the focus from her as well. They had more important things to worry about right now anyway, with the recruitment from yesterday. Now that she thought about it, she was very interested to hear if this magic man had accepted the offer or not.

She allowed herself to be lifted and deposited into a chair inside of the trailer. She greeted Lucien with a smile, which had regained it's usual brightness.

-----------

Just as Aurel was closing the door, Illyana came running up to the trailer and pushed her way inside. She looked a little disheveled, and was breathing heavily, her cheeks slightly flushed, but otherwise dressed and presentable. "I'm here! Sorry..." She said as she gasped and looked about the room. "I, uh...overslept." She said, and blushed even harder as her eyes dropped to the floor at her admission.

[xivyxx]

Lucien was just about to decide to go get Illy when she had pushed her way into the trailer. He shook his head slightly, knowing that if she had overslept like this, then she probably hadn't gotten the proper rest she needed. He didn't scold her though, considering everyone else was here.

"It's quite alright." He said, glancing over at her. "Considering you're usually up by dawn, sleeping in every now and then is not bad." He told her before turning his gaze to the others. He figured they were all curious about how yesterday had went.

"Well.. Geralt accepted our offer.." He started, his fingers subconsciously beginning to fiddle with the playing card he had been left with. "I assume he should be coming sometime today, though I am unsure if he will partake in tonight's act or not. It is a little last minute." Honestly he wasn't sure how 'rusty' the man had really gotten, or if he had been serious about it at all. He suppose he'd find out when he got here. It was then he let out a small sigh.

"He's.. an interesting character, I won't deny that, but his magic is real, and I think this will be incredibly beneficial for us. At the moment there aren't that many things about him that concern me, but I would like to advise you all to be careful anyway. He is a very smooth talker, and I feel it could be easy to get pulled in or strung along if one isn't careful. Quite the flirt, that one." He said with a small sigh. "Regardless, I'm sure you all will be able to make your own opinions of him with time. I'll be keeping my eye on him either way" He added. There was a part of them that didn't want them to be too alarmed by him. After all it wouldn't be enjoyable if you joined a circus where no one liked you or everyone was scared of you. Despite his somewhat bad impression, he still hoped the man could genuinely like it here.

[FreckersFrog]

Cora listened to Lucien's speech almost too enthusiastically. She was leaning forward in her chair, eyes wide, elbows resting on knees, and a faint but excitable smile on her lips. Despite Illyana's worry, she couldn't help herself but be curious, it was in her nature, after all. A smooth talking man who could also do magic? She couldn't wait to meet him.

Illyana listened, as usual, to Lucien's explanation without comment. Although she knew most of the information already, her expression made it clear she was listening carefully. She understood his unease about not mentioning everything he knew about the man, including the information he had shared with her last night. There was no need to alarm anyone, not just yet. Let them decide on their new member on their own, they were smart enough to make their own decisions.

Halfway through the conversation, Illyana saw the card between Lucien's fingers, and she tilted her head as she watched him fiddle with it. She blinked several times as she looked at it, and as soon as Lucien finished speaking, she spoke up, "Where did you get that? Did he give it to you?" She blurted out, having stowed her usual composure.

[xivyxx]

Ivory remained silent as Lucien explained everything to the rest of them. She didn't like the fact he was keeping a few things back but, it wasn't like she didn't know how. Lucien wanted this all to work out, and she knew that would be unlikely if everyone ended up hating him. Still, she was wary, and she wasn't the only one.

Aurel's expression reflected a little worry. The man had always been wary with strangers, considering he didn't have very good experiences with them. The people at the circus were the first people he had ever felt comfortable being around. The idea of having a stranger among them was scary, but he trusted Lucien. Aurel planned to keep a bit of a distance at first, until he could see for himself that the man could be trusted.

Akane's expression reflected Cora's. She was excited about this new member of theirs. After all, the last member they had found had been Cora, and she had turned out to have become her closest friend. She understood Lucien's worry, but she wanted to give the man a chance. Hopefully they would all be able to become friends. The circus was always a lot more lively with more people.

Lucien glanced at Illyana as she asked about the card he was holding. Honestly he hadn't even realized he had began to fiddle with it. "He did, it was in my pocket when we left his home." He said, seeing no need to hide it. He figured it had simply been a little trick of his, he just seemed like that type of man.

"I found a card in my pocket too. The Ace of Spades, been using it as target practice." Ivory spoke up, a bit of amusement in her tone.

[FreckersFrog]

Illyana stepped forward at Lucien's answer, not aggressively, but she had her eyes on the card. "In your pocket...?" She asked. This was far from proof of Geralt's powers, but it would help to reinforce his validity if he had left each of them with a reminder of their visit with him. Suddenly, a wave of information hit her; not a reminder, a marker...

"Would you mind if I...had a look?" She asked, and held out her hand for the card before Lucien had a chance to respond.

Lucien looked down at the card in his hand, shrugged, and handed it over, "Not at all."

Illyana took the card, and as soon as her fingers made contact with it, she let out a sharp gasp and dropped it to the floor. Her other hand flew to her forehead, which had been obscured with her hat, as usual. "Ah..." She moaned, and hunched a little as a wave of nausea and a throbbing headache appeared in her system. She laid her fingers against her forehead and could feel the eye twitching and rolling in its socket under her closed eyelid.

A flash of something; Lucien and a man...Geralt, standing close together, their faces merely centimeters apart. A slick smile spread itself across the magician's lips as he leaned in, his hand hidden behind his back.

She took a step away from Lucien, clearly in pain, her eyes shut tight. As quickly as the fit had appeared, the vision left her, but the nausea and migraine remained.

[xivyxx]

It seemed Illyanna had taken a clear interest in the card. He didn't particularly mind giving it to her if she wanted to take a look. He hadn't thought there was harm in it. At least, until she touched it. Quickly Lucien had risen to his feet, concern flashing in his expression. Ivory had been at Illyana's side in seconds, hand on her back as she lead her to one of the nearby chairs. Everyone else was as equally worried.

"Illy, are you alright?" Lucien asked as he quickly made his way around the desk. He knew that she had gotten a vision. This was how they usually went so he was fairly used to it, but it never eased his worry, since he knew how they affected her. Aurel had quickly went over and poured her a glass of water, hoping it would help. Lucien refrained from asking what she had seen, wanting to make sure she was okay first.

[FreckersFrog]

Cora started at the sight of Illyana's jolt, and cry of pain, and leaned forward in her chair, reaching out for her as Ivory lead her to sit down. She scooted herself closer to Illy, laid a hand on her back and leaned in. She wasn't sure what to say, but she knew that look of pain. She desperately wanted to comfort her friend, and subconsciously began humming quietly, almost on instinct.

Illyana sat, hunched in the chair for a moment as her head throbbed and her hands shook. She felt the troupe gather around her and knew they were concerned. In the grand scheme of things, this had been a small occurrence. She had received bigger, longer visions before in the presence of her friends, but few with this sharp pain. It had to have been the physical connection of the card on her skin that had caused this violent of a reaction, when she was doing a reading with clients it almost never effected her in this way.

The sound of Cora's humming cut through her thoughts. The second she began to comprehend the music of it, she felt calmed and her headache immediately began to subside. After a moment of listening, she almost felt drawn in by its beauty and felt her muscles relax of their own accord. She kept her eyes closed, lulled by Cora's sweet voice.

But Lucien's voice interrupted the humming, and she slowly returned to consciousness. "Hm?" she asked as her mind clarified again, "Yes, yes, I'm alright." She glanced at the water Aurel handed her, and took a sip. "I just need a moment to...process." It seemed that studying the card would not be necessary after all, and with that much psychic energy, she wasn't sure she would be able to anyway. There was not much interpreting she would have to do from this vision, anyway. It was clear enough; Geralt was interested in Lucien, on several levels, which proved Ivory's theory from the previous night, but he also had ulterior motives.

Like Lucien, she was unsure how much of this she needed to share with the group. She would tell Lucien, of course, because it directly concerned him, but she didn't want to alarm anyone else. However, this new knowledge did make her very curious about Ivory's card. She would have to ask if she could take a look at it, once she was back at one-hundred percent.

[xivyxx]

It seemed that the calming sound of Cora's singing had managed to calm Illyana a bit, for which Lucien was relieved, he stepped back to give her some space, before glancing at the others.

"Perhaps it's best if I call this meeting, to give Illyana some time to recuperate. I did not have much else to add. While.. it might be a lot to ask, I was hoping to ask you three--" He motioned to Aurel, Akane, and Ivory. "--To attempt to use a different routine from the last time we came to Graston, to give the people something new. It's fine if you don't, but I know some of you practice more than one." He said.

"I think.. I could probably manage it.." Aurel said, the kitsune quickly nodded in agreement.

"Yes! I've got a couple others to try, so no worries!" She exclaimed.

Ivory's gaze drifted from Illyana to Lucien, and she simply nodded. This wasn't a problem for her, she always had more than one up her sleeve. Honestly right now she was more concerned about Illyana, but she knew that Lucien also wanted privacy so she could ask Illy what she had seen. While she too wanted to know, she decided she'd just ask her on her own later.

"Oh oh, Cora! You should come hang out at my trailer! You can give me your opinion on one of the new dances I came up with! It will help us pass the time till our new arrival gets here!" Akane exclaimed, already heading for the door. "Feel better Illy!" She called out. Ivory walked up to Cora to pick the mermaid up, giving Illy a small nod before she took the mermaid back outside to her chair. Akane was quick to begin to push her toward her trailer. Aurel briefly glanced at Lucien and then Illyana, before he too bid his farewells and left the trailer to head back to his own.

Once everyone had gone, Lucien closed the door to his trailer and then headed to his desk, picking up the card from the floor and placing it on top of it before he took a seat on the edge. "Sorry to rush everyone out, I just figured it would be better this way." He said.

[FreckersFrog]

Cora leaned back as she saw Illyana had recovered, but kept a hand on her back. She was glad she could help, even if it was only a little.

When Lucien called the attention of the others, it drew Cora's attention. He wasn't speaking directly to her, of course, she didn't really have a "routine" per se. But she was excited all the same. She often got to watch her friends rehearse an practice, and sometimes if Lucien wasn't busy and her stall was closed, he would take her out to see the other's shows.

At Akane's suggestion, her eyes brightened considerably and she couldn't help but smile widely. "Oh, yes please, I'd love to see you dance!" In fact, dancing was one of her favorite things to watch. The way that the body moved, especially when she watched Akane and Ivory, reminded her of her sisters back home. She only wished she could get up and dance with them.

She made sure to wish Illyana good health before they left, "Let me know if you need me, Illy, okay?"

Illyana nodded in response as the others filtered out of the room, smiling weakly at Cora before Ivory carried her out. Once they were alone, and she felt a little more stable, she turned her full attention to Lucien.

"I agree, although, I am sorry to have cut another meeting short..." She said, her eyes finding the floor once again.

[xivyxx]

Lucien shook his head. "No no, it's quite alright. I said everything I needed to say. They could use some time to relax before they have to begin getting ready for their shows. Hopefully, that will be the last morning meeting we'll have to have in a while." He said. If everything ended up going well, there would be no need to hold any others. He tried to avoid concerning anyone as much as he could, and never really called them unless it was absolutely necesary. Sometimes he preferred to talk to some people individually. It was easier to state their opinions in those circumstances.

The nephilim's eyes drifted toward the window. He had already sent some carnies to take to the streets of the city to do some advertising. There were a few minor changes he had added so some people could be more encouraged to come even though it was a second visit, he could only hope it was enough. Until Geralt showed up, he couldn't really advertise him as a part of the act. He had to know what the magician would want to do first. With that thought in mind, his gaze went back to Illy.

"Is everything alright?" He asked, not wanting to be blunt in asking what it was she saw. After all it was more important for him to know whether it had been anything alarming or just a normal vision.

[FreckersFrog]

Illyana nodded as she felt herself coming fully out of her daze. She had another sip of water, "It should be a busy night..." she said, half listening.

Every time she thought she may be coming around to the idea of Geralt joining them, something else made her reset her feelings to their default. It was clear he was bad news, and the energies she was receiving were definitely try to tell her something more. For her, visions could be vastly different depending on the situation. She'd often had ones of this kind, sudden bursts of strong emotions as she touched an object. Occasionally, when clients asked her to contact the spirits of the dead, which she couldn't really do, she would offer to read from one of their loved one's possessions and interpret a message based on the burst of emotional energy she experienced. This was similar to that, but far more intense.

At Lucien's next question, she looked at him as if she had forgotten his presence, "Hm? Oh, yes...I'm fine. Just...you said that card appeared in your pocket after you left? Did he ever get close enough to leave it on the two of you?" Lucien was kind and accommodating, like Illyana herself, and often sacrificed his comfort for the "greater good", which, in this case, would have been accepting uncomfortable proximity with Geralt so as not to offend him. Ivory, on the other hand, would never do this, especially given her reaction to the man. Illyana doubted that this had been simple sleight of hand, but she needed more details before she could rule it out.

[xivyxx]

Lucien certainly hoped that would be the case. A busy night was exactly what they needed. It seemed that Illyana had been in deep thought, considering the way she responded to his question. At least it appeared the vision wasn't bad, or she would have already told him.

At her question, he glanced back at the card. "I'm not sure when it ended up there, in all honesty, I simply noticed it when I was changing last night, but I would assume that's what happened." He paused. To an extent, he supposed he did have a chance to get close enough, considering his very.. approximate handshake.

"...He did with me, but not Ivory. She kept a relatively good distance from him, so I don't think he would have had a chance. " He thought back to the little trick he had done. "Honestly, I wouldn't be surprised if he did make them appear out of nowhere. We did get to see a bit of his magic at work. They aren't simple tricks, I can assure you the magic is real. It makes me a little curious to know what else it is that he can do but, he doesn't seem to be the type of man who'd give me a straight answer." He muttered with a small sigh. Lucien figured he would just have to wait and see.

"Ah.. by the way.. he did ask how we found him. Honestly.. I wasn't expecting to find Geralt the Great living in a small little apartment that would normally be very hard to find if not for your directions. I didn't tell him how, of course, but I don't think it would be too hard for him to figure it out once he meets you and see's what you do.. I just figured I should warn you ahead of time. I know the man unsettles you.. If it makes you feel safer, stick to me or Ivory. I've already talked to her about keeping an eye out for the others as well." He wanted to make sure Illyanna knew that she could come to him for anything, however small. He was not planning to disregard her feelings on this situation in the least, and hoped to do his best to make her feel better about it.

[xivyxx]

Akane lead Cora across the clearing to her trailer. She paused upon arriving, and entered her trailer to grab the plank she kept there to help roll the mermaid's chair up into it. If she was going to be there a while, she figured she'd let her keep her chair around. That, and she didn't want to risk dropping her in an attempt to carry her inside. It was in these situations she wished she was as strong as Ivory was.

The kitsune set down the plank before she rolled Cora inside, closing the door behind her. "Make yourself at home!" She exclaimed. Akane's trailer for the most part was pretty well kept. The outside of her trailer was a light blue, a similar color to her fox-fire. Throughout it there were some patterns and petals of cherry blossoms, flowers that reminded her of home. The inside was neat, with a few Japanese paper lanterns hanging from the ceiling that she was ecstatic to have been able to get her hands on. She had a small desk, and on top of it lay the fox mask she wore for her performances.

"So, what do you think of all this? Are you excited to meet someone new? It's not everyday we get a new member." Akane asked curiously, wanting to know how the mermaid felt about it. Despite all the warnings, she couldn't help but be excited. Part of her hoped that all this had been an overreaction, and everything was really going to be okay, but she supposed she'd have to see.

[FreckersFrog]

Illyana listened intently to all the Lucien described, her brow furrowed in concentration. Given what she had just seen, and having heard Ivory's assessment of the situation, she didn't doubt that Geralt could have slipped this card to Lucien without him noticing. Ivory, on the other hand, she wouldn't let the man get within arm's reach of her if she could help it, much less close enough for him to touch her. Even if he did, she would have noticed, Illyana was sure of that.

She had been anticipating that the man's magic was real, it had been said that he had been on stage for more than a hundred years. Some believed that he was a magician's ghost from the 1700's, plying his trade even in death. Some believed it was different men, taking of the mantel of Geralt the Great to keep the mystery alive. Illyana knew neither of these were true. She was sure that the Geralt she had seen in the vision, the one that Lucien and Ivory had met, was indeed the original.

That reminded her...

She was about to interrupt, reach into her pocket and show Lucien something she had found the night before, but he had not finished speaking. She listened intently once more, and nodded when he was finished.

"I wouldn't be surprised if he knew about me already, or guessed. If his magic is real, then he has to be familiar with...gifted...people, given that he is one. Besides, you don't live as long as he has with magic and not know something about the supernatural..." She trailed off, but then met Lucien's eyes again, "I trust you, I know neither of you would let anything happen to me. Just...given what I felt from that card," she nodded toward the object, "It's best if I don't make skin contact with him. There's no telling what could happen with that amount of energy."

Illyana had experienced very intense visions in the past, ones that had left her nearly catatonic for days. Once, she touched a man who had killed seven children, and was forced to witness all of his crimes firsthand, all within the blink of an eye. That had left her laid up for almost a week before she was able to interact, walk, and take food again. The offender had been turned in, of course, but that did not erase what she had seen just from a simple touch. A man like Geralt, she feared the repercussions of doing an active reading on him, if she hadn't she would have already known whatever they needed to know about him.

"That reminds me." She said, and fished something out of her pocket, a folded piece of paper. As she unfolded it, she spoke, "I didn't find much of anything last night. A lot of my research was based on things I already knew; where the magic could come from, how he has access to it, the different schools, that sort of thing. But, I did find one thing while I was looking through some old newspapers." She took the page and smoothed it out on the table before Lucien. "When I had the vision, the first time, I knew I had seen him somewhere before..."

It was an old printing of an advertisement. It showed a man, a magician, arms and fingers spread wide as cards floated between them. Large words at the top read Geralt the Great and at the bottom: Six Performances in the month of June, six cities at six in the evening. and a list of dates and city names. Piercing eyes stared at Lucien from under the brim of a top hat, and a confident smirk painted handsome lips. It was a face he had seen before, the very same face that had greeted him last evening at the door.

This was indeed the same man.

[FreckersFrog]

Cora had been happy to spend the afternoon with Akane. The two had become fast friend since she'd joined, and had spent a lot of time together. Cora had found herself a kindred spirit in the Kitsune; both women from faraway places who had lived vastly different lives before coming to Cirque D'étoiles. Cora had shared stories of undersea life, and Akane had told tales of her life as a fox. It was interesting, to say the very least. Mammals were certainly interesting creatures.

She wore a big smile as Akane rolled her up into her trailer, Cora helping by pushing the wheels with her hands. She breathed in deeply as she entered the Kitsune's room, it always smelled so pleasant in here.

"Thank you!" She said, giving the girl a toothy grin, then wheeling herself into position in the corner, so as to be out of the way.

"Hm..." She said, tilting her head as she considered the girl's question. "Well, I'm excited, of course! This Geralt person sounds like he's very interesting. Illyana and the others said he does 'magic'? I'm honestly not all that sure what that word means, maybe we missed it during study?" She chuckled nervously and blushed, her pale cheeks flushing a cherry-blossom pink. Illyana had spent a lot of time with her and the dictionary over the past year, teaching her what words meant and showing her pictures when she couldn't visualize. Animals had been her favorite lesson, learning about all of the creatures that didn't have fins. But Illyana told her that some things came with time, so she would learn as she went. She supposed that this was one of those times.