FreckersFrog

Cirque D'étoiles (1x1, FxM, MxM, FxF)

Illyana watched as Ivory made her way over to the target to retrieve the object she sought. Seeing it like this made her chuckle inwardly, she should have expected this from Ivory, after all.

Though the transfer of the item to the table in front of her took only a few seconds, her anxiety about what she was about to do made it seem like much longer. Even now, she could feel the energy pulsing from the laminated paper. She rubbed her hands together, feeling the slight sheen of sweat on them as she did.

When the card was in front of her, she smiled nervously up at the dhampir as she set the card down and mouthed the words "thank you", though her throat was too dry for any sound to issue forth. Noticing this, the would-be gypsy cleared her throat. "Thanks," she said, finally, and glanced back down at the card. It looked to her like a crucible as it laid before her, but the unknown was too tempting for her to resist. She had to see whatever it wanted to show her.

"Just..." she said, never taking her eyes from the card. "Stand nearby, in case." Her eyes darted to Ivory briefly, but landed back on the card.

"I'll take it from you if things get too crazy..." Ivory responded, stepping closer to her.

The corner of Illyana's mouth pulled back into a grim smile, but otherwise she did not react. Eventually, she reached out with shaking fingers and took a breath in to steel herself.

As soon as her skin made contact with the material, a flood of images rocketed through Illyana's brain, faster than the layman could blink. She saw Ivory, standing alone in a sea of darkness. It was oppressively black all around them, but Illy could see the dhampir. She looked confused, almost scared, as her blue eyes darted around the space as if searching for a way out.

Movement drew Illyana's eyes, and her head whipped over and she saw a tall, lean figure striding toward them from the darkness. Illyana squinted, but she could tell before the light from nowhere touched him that it was Geralt, just in the way he moved. She looked back to Ivory and saw that the woman had seen him as well, but the confusion had not left her features.

Slowly, as Geralt walked toward them, the blackness around them transformed into a sea of tiny pinpricks of light, like stars. Ivory and Illyana both looked up, their mouths opening in aw at the sight around them, and the sound of Geralt's footfalls grew ever closer.

Illyana watched Ivory, as she was the subject of the vision, and tried her best not to look at the Magician. Her eyebrows knitted together when she saw a smile break out on Ivory's pale face, not forced, not sarcastic, but a genuine and true grin, her eyes alight with happiness. Out of curiosity, she looked back at Geralt and he was smiling in turn, not his usual wicked expression, but one that Illyana had seen earlier this evening, or something like it. It was soft, welcoming, warm...unlike the man she knew.

As he reached the dhampir, he held out a hand, as if for her to take it. Ivory's confusion returned then, and her face fell as she looked from the outstretched hand to the man's face. She reached out to grasp his fingers, her hand shaking, but she took too long...

Before they could make contact, Geralt's smile split his face into a malicious specter of a man. It looked like it might tear his head in two...then he turned on his heel faster than the naked eye could catch, turning his back to the dhampir who reached for him.

Fear and surprise danced across Ivory's features. She looked down at her hand, beginning to shake her head, her mouth forming some words of protest, and then she was simply...gone.

Illyana could hear distant laughter as the scene went completely dark before her, the stars all around blinking out one by one until she was plunged once again into darkness. At first she thought it was Geralt's laughter...but it wasn't, there was a growl to it, a grittiness that the Magician's clear and strong tenor did not possess.

Then her vision clarified and she was back in Ivory's trailer. Her heart was pounding, her brow drenched in sweat. She had pulled her hand from the card so quickly that it had fallen off of the table. She was shaking and short of breath, her eyes were wild, as if she had just run a marathon. To Ivory, not but a second had passed, but to Illyana it had felt like hours.

Cirque D'étoiles (1x1, FxM, MxM, FxF)

Ivory answered quickly, and Illyana flashed a small tense smile at her as she allowed her inside. The effects of Cora's giddiness had worn off, and now she was feeling a bit more serious, a bit more focused. The positive air of the evening had also left her energized, and she felt as though she could more easily take the psychic shock that she was about to subject herself to.

"Sorry to bother you, and yes, everything is fine." She paused slightly as she glanced around the trailer, squeezing her fingers with her opposite hand as was her anxious tic. "Would you mind if I had a look at that card? The one that...he gave you?" It was obvious what she meant, and she knew that Ivory was not unintelligent, but right now she felt the need to over-explain. Often this helped to ease her mind when she was feeling stressed.

Cirque D'étoiles (1x1, FxM, MxM, FxF)

Faolan's entire body tensed as he watched the girl's legs wobble and give out beneath her, and he would have rushed forward to help if Lucien had not gotten there so quickly. It was clear that whatever was going on with this child was serious, and the look on Lucien's face confirmed this as he made his way over to them. Faolan stepped out of the way and put a hand on Aurel's shoulder to guide him. The lad was conscientious, but he was curious and worried, and the Irishman wanted to make sure he understood the gravity of their situation.

After Lucien passed, Faolan guided Aurel onto the bus and followed suit, then quickly closed and locked the door. He glanced at the girl as Lucien laid her on the couch, it was clear that she was in a very bad way. Her skin looked worst of all, bright red and angry from overexposure to the harsh light of day. Her collapse had been a result of utter exhaustion and probably dehydration...

In order to not hover, he busied himself with checking their surroundings. Though his instincts, which were rarely wrong, told him that there was nothing to fear from the outside, he had to be sure. This was a dire situation, and had come as a surprise and Faolan was not looking to be caught off guard again today. He paced the walkway of the bus and looked through all of the windows, closing the ones that were open and drawing the curtains he had installed for privacy. He doubled-checked that the door was locked and did one final glance about, there was no movement outside and no one on the road...they appeared to be safe, at least for the moment.

He made his way back to Lucien's side just as he was checking the girl's forehead. He stopped dead in his tracks when he noticed that Lucien was lifting her eyelid...the one on her forehead, to inspect the eyeball beneath. He raised his eyebrows, completely taken aback, and heard Aurel voice his very thought. He had never seen anything like this before...what were the odds that this child would also be special in some way? Nearly zero, or so he thought...

He pushed these thoughts way for the time being, they weren't important as long as this girl's life was in danger, and it was clear now that she had not been faking. Though she appeared to be sleeping, the expression on her face did not appear restful and even almost looked...pained.

"No, we're alone." Faolan answered his beloved's question with no hesitation. Now that so much time had passed and he felt not so much as a tiny hair raise on the back of his neck, he was sure that they were safe. There main priority would be getting this girl to the nearest town and finding out what had happened to her. They would get on the road soon, just as soon as Lucien had done some healing, it would be much harder for him to perform in the bus if it was moving as it was loud and unsteady.

Cirque D'étoiles (1x1, FxM, MxM, FxF)

Though Geralt had been slightly annoyed that he was not able to win the game in front of Lucien, he could not help but continue to be impressed by Ivory. At least the win had gone to someone he respected, anyway. Akane and Cora were definitely feeling the effects of the liquor, but no one seemed worried about this so he didn't feel the need to comment. As long as everyone was having fun and could remember his welcome party as an overall success, he was satisfied.

Illyana had consented to playing cards, but was less interested in actually winning, so she was knocked out of the game pretty early on. Though she disapproved of Akane and Cora's drinking, the mermaid's infectious happiness was definitely having an impact on her, especially given her proximity and how sensitive she was to the auras and psychic energy of others. Under normal circumstances, she would distance herself from this influence, but she was among friends, for the most part, and felt relatively safe.

Once the game was done and Cora had said her goodnights, she made her way back to the lake, reminding herself to find some other neat things for Ivory and hand them over in the morning.

Geralt parted ways with everyone as well, dispensing pleasantries, but lingering especially on Lucien. If he had known the man a little longer, he would have suggested a night cap in his trailer, but thought better of it. He may actually even sleep this evening if he didn't tarry too long. He gathered his belongings and spirited them away, and as he made his way to his trailer he stopped when he noticed a large brilliantly white feather on the ground. Knowing where it had come from, he crouched to retrieve it and smiled before tucking it into his vest pocket.

Illyana had other plans, however, and the card game had reminded her of something she had been meaning to ask Ivory about. Once she was sure everyone, especially Geralt, had settled in for the evening, she left her trailer and approached Ivory's. She knocked quietly, knowing that the dhampir was still awake.

Cirque D'étoiles (1x1, FxM, MxM, FxF)

Faolan's brows lowered as much as they possibly could as he surveyed the scene and listened to Lucien speaking towards the girl. He could hear what the Nephilim was saying, but did not hear a response from his quarry. Because he smelled and sensed no other presence in the area, he was no longer worried that this was a scam, unless her accomplices were hiding very well. He would be sure to stay on high alert until he was sure there was absolutely no danger.

He noted what Aurel had said. Even if this was no scam, something felt very off about all of this...

The girl's mouth closed and then opened again and her eyes bulged like a fish drowning on oxygen. She was confused and obviously frightened, but her legs felt so weak and her skin was on fire, she felt as if she had been dipped in tar.

She'd had no warning of this, no vision, she didn't even know if anything that was happening now was real. She had been walking and walking and walking for so very long...she just wanted to sit and rest, close her eyes and fade into unconsciousness. But she coudn't, she had to keep walking until she found who she was looking for. She had to see her again, she just had to, no matter what it took.

She wanted to say all of this to the man, to tell him everything...there was something about him that was calming. But she was scared still and knew that adults were not to be trusted. Around the man there was a bright golden aura, like pure sunlight reflecting from a mirror. She hated the sun, but this light was not strong and harsh and hot, it was cool and comforting...maybe she could lay down in it.

All of this flashed through her mind in an instant, and she took a small step back, her legs worked on their own. She opened her mouth again and a small sound, somewhere between a gasp and language, escaped her before her eyes rolled back in her head and her entire body went limp.

Cirque D'étoiles (1x1, FxM, MxM, FxF)

Geralt laughed aloud at Ivory's reply, and the smile that lit his face remained for the rest of the evening. At Lucien's suggestion, he raised his eyebrows and glanced over at the man. He opened his mouth to protest, but couldn't bring himself to do so. He did quite enjoy being the center of attention anyway.

The Magician rose his glass with the rest and smiled around at everyone, lingering especially on Aurel, before offering his own "Prost."

"Cheers." Illyana joined the group, raising her nearly empty glass of juice and offering a small smile to the table.

"Kampai!" Cora echoed, a little later and louder than the rest, and smashed her glass against Akane's hard enough that a little of her drink dribbled down the side of it and onto her fingers. She didn't seem to notice, or didn't care, because she let her own grin wash over the entirety of the gathering.

After all had sipped from their glasses, Geralt and Cora a little more than the others, they set their glasses down. "Thank you all, very much," Geralt began, "I feel truly embraced by you, and I cannot wait to see what the future has in store for us." He glanced around the table, but let his eyes linger on Lucien for a moment.

After a pause, he clapped his hands loudly, "Well," he said, "I'd say about now is as good a time as any for a game of cards, eh?" He looked around expectantly, hoping to pass a bit more time before the party ended.

Cirque D'étoiles (1x1, FxM, MxM, FxF)

Faolan's eyebrows had furrowed on hearing Aurel's comment. He leaned forward a little over the wheel and squinted a bit harder, but still couldn't quite see what he was talking about. There were some undefined shapes on the side of the road, nothing moving that he could identify. Nonetheless, he trusted Aurel's vision over his own and let his foot off the gas a little. Though the bus could not move very quickly, it could still achieve a good 45 miles per hour on the highway, and the Irishman did not want to miss whatever they were pointing out.

The alarm in Lucien's voice was what caused him to break, more than anything. There was no hesitation and slowly the bus ground to a halt on the side of the road. As they got closer, Faolan did take note of something moving and the splotch did look to be person-shaped. Once he'd opened the door for Lucien to step out, he reached for his glasses and put them on. Everything clarified, and he looked over his shoulder and out the window to see what was happening. Now, he could see the small figure walking along several yards behind them. He still couldn't make out much from here, but the person did look very small, child-sized, in fact. Normally, he would not want Lucien to investigate this alone as he had heard of some desperate scams to pull unwitting drivers from their vehicles, but he also did not want to leave Aurel alone on the bus. Lucien could not be harmed, and he was smart and weary, so Faolan trusted him not to put himself in danger.

The girl, who had not noticed the bus stop, nor had she reacted when the man walked out to the side of the road, had been staring at the ground as she slowly forced herself to move forward. She was limping, and her arms swung limp like the leaves a willow at her sides. Her hair and clothing were coated with dirt and oil, and her skin was a bright almost fiery red. Her breathing was labored and shallow, her eyes were dry and itchy and sunken. She wore a simple dress, almost tattered, and a backpack that looked nearly empty. There was a scarf wrapped around her head, and oily curls of orange hair exploded out from beneath it. She looked like the walking dead.

She only reacted once the wind had carried the sound of his call to her ears. Startled, she immediately stopped in her tracks and looked up at the man with wide, scared green eyes. He was clean and tall, with dark hair and strange, but kind eyes, but she felt as though her heart had stopped. She'd heard the words and knew that she understood them, he was speaking English, but none of it had registered. She rose her arm slightly, as much as she could, as if to shield herself. Her lips parted, but her throat was so dry and her lips were so cracked...she couldn't speak, and she didn't know what she would say if she could.

"It's a what?" Faolan said, his voice slightly raised as uneasiness settled on him. He didn't like this...He stood and exited the bus as well, standing next to Aurel and sniffing the air, glancing about. He could sense no other people around, and the uneasiness in his gut was not coming from their surroundings, but from the girl herself. He sharpened his gaze on her and Lucien but kept his distance for now, knowing that he would only serve to complicate things if he joined his lover before her.

Cirque D'étoiles (1x1, FxM, MxM, FxF)

Even Illyana's good mood could not be negatively impacted by Geralt's presence, it wasn't worth it. Though the laughter had died down and eventually her smile faded, a sparkle remained in her eyes as she looked across at the two men that had joined them. Looking at Lucien, but addressing both of them, she said, "Of course not, you'd have to be uninvited to crash a party, after all."

"You are very welcome, my dear." Geralt smiled over at Akane and Cora as well, as he mouth was full and she could not issue a proper thank you at the moment. Then his eyes flashed to Illyana and he was quite surprised to see that her expression had not soured at his presence. Ivory's either, for that matter. This told him that there had to be something bigger at work than just a good mood...but it was best not to dwell on it now. He'd thought it would take much longer for either of the two to accept that he was among them now, but maybe this had been just the ticket for it.

He chuckled lightly and took a sip of his drink, nodding as he set it down, "Exactly right, and it is my welcome party, or so I was told. I'm glad to see everyone in such high spirits, even if you're not partaking of any." He swirled the dark amber liquid in his glass and took another small sip as he watched Aurel's exchange with Ivory.

He couldn't help but tilt his head at this, seeing the way her eyes lit up and how intensely she was studying the stones...well, it was not anything close to what he'd expected of her. She really was like no other woman he'd ever known...

"More tools for your plan for world domination, I imagine?" he asked playfully, watching as she picked some rocks up and looked at them more closely. He knew that the young woman was handy, especially if she had come up with the idea for Cora's tank, but he had no earthly idea of what these stones could be useful for.

"Thank you, Geralt!" Cora shouted a little too loudly as she lifted the glass to take a sip, "It's yummy!" she said, licking the liquid from her lips.

Geralt looked back over at her and let out a short but loud ha. "You too are welcome, tautropfen."

Cirque D'étoiles (1x1, FxM, MxM, FxF)

Faolan glanced over his shoulder to Lucien and nodded in agreement to his suggestion. Usually, Aurel was quite quick to decide, using the landscape as a big factor in every choice. He was glad for Lucien's input this time, as they had been on the road for several days and Faolan was looking forward to some work, but most of all a shower. They were at the tail end of a rather nasty heat wave and the days they had spent driving and camping had certainly taken its toll on the three of them.

"Right it is." Faolan echoed, smiling up at Lucien before releasing the break and turning the bus onto the road to the chosen path.

It was a bright, clear day, but it was rather warm as the late-afternoon sun beat down on the metal box the three of them called home. Faolan was dressed in a tank-top and had the window down, the warm air blowing his hair back from his face as he drove them onward. The glasses he had used since Lucien bought them for him four years ago were sitting on the dash, he found them more useful at night and when he needed to see long distances, and besides, they gave him a headache if he wore them for too long.

If he had been wearing them, he may have seen the lone figure trudging along the side of the road, but alas, from here it looked like another blotch on the landscape.

Cirque D'étoiles (1x1, FxM, MxM, FxF)

Illyana continued to laugh, and the act even intensified as more joined in. The "joke" she had made, if it could even be called that, hadn't even been clever, but for some reason it had really set her off. She supposed she was due for a good laugh, she had hardly found much reason to in the last few months, so she let it take her until she felt moisture gathering at the corners of her eyes.

Cora continued to laugh, but allowed the music of her giggle to die down with the rest as everyone slowly caught their breath. She looked around the table at everyone's smiling faces and was so glad to see them like this. It reminded her of home, and that made her even more happy.

Just as everyone had finally quieted to a couple of spaced-out chuckles, Aurel walked up and started the whole thing again. This time it was Cora who began laughing at his comment, only because he really had missed nothing at all. Illyana, upon seeing the mermaid's face light up once more, could not hold back from breaking out into rib-aching giggles once more and soon the whole table was laughing again.

It was then that Geralt and Lucien arrived, drinks in hand. The Magician paused for a moment to look around the table, and although the laughter had once again begun to subside at his presence, his arrival did not cause it to silence completely. He made his way to Cora and Akane and set their drinks in front of them, then waited for Lucien to sit before he took a chair himself.

As quiet once again settled over the troupe, the Magician couldn't help but comment, "Look here, Lucien, it seems that everyone had been having a grand old time without us. We must do something to fix that..." He took a sip of his own drink as he noted the cup of juice that Illyana was grasping between her pale hands.