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Cirque D'étoiles (1x1, FxM, MxM, FxF)

Lucien could almost sense Faolan's fury as he changed the boy's clothes, and he knew exactly why, because he shared that same anger. It seemed however that the boy hadn't really noticed, and honestly expressed his thanks to Faolan for getting him these clothes. He couldn't help but smile at that, and was glad that it had helped ease some of Faolan's anger.

"Do you like them?" He asked, in English this time.

The boy took a moment, trying to comprehend the words, before he nodded. "Warm." He responded. "an' nice.."

Lucien smiled a little sadly at this, because he knew the boy had probably not had access to any decent clothing, considering the rags they had basically found him in. While he would have probably chosen some garments that were a little different from Faolan's, it was the fact the boy liked them and that he was comfortable in them that mattered. It was around this time that the striped brown snake slithered up to wrap around his neck, settling in to seemingly take warmth within the jacket. He could clearly see the trust between the boy and his snakes.. it was honestly a little heartwarming.

"Ah.. I wanted to run this by you.. Snake.. it's not really too much of a name.. Would you like to change it? Now that you're away from that place, you don't have to go by that anymore.." He said in German, figuring this would be something the boy would need.

Snake knew that Lucien was right. It really wasn't much of a name but.. he hadn't really bothered with something like that before, because it was just what everyone ended up calling him. "I don't really know.. what kind of name I'd take.. Do you have.. an option?" He responded, causing Lucien to let out a pensive hum.

"Hmm.." He glanced at Faolan. "Do you want to help me think of a proper name for him?"

Cirque D'étoiles (1x1, FxM, MxM, FxF)

As soon as Ivory had recovered from the teleport, which hadn't taken long, she was quick to make her way to the side of the stage to make sure she'd get a decent look at Geralt's act. This was something she too was interested in, as it would allow her to have a bit more clues about him. This time around she hadn't been able to focus too much on the feeling of the teleportation.. mostly because she was more focused on the show itself. She didn't want her desire to figure things out to risk ruining anything. She was sure she'd have other chances for it, but right now she wanted to see just what that magician really had to offer. She had heard his mention of her but didn't react to it, simply holding back an eye roll.

Aurel was honestly surprised by the entire display of Geralt's act. He had heard of magicians and what they were capable of but.. this was clearly on an entirely different level. Even though he already knew it was real, he could really tell that there weren't any extreme tricks of misdirection, his magic was very real.

"He's really good.. The crowed clearly loves him.." Aurel said quietly as he watched. Honestly it was hard to keep track of all of the things the magician seemed to be able to do. "But.. I'm sure Ivory's not going to like what happened to her silks.."

Lucien had watched Geralt's show with just as much interest as the first time, trying to catch on to any of his new tricks. He could tell just how excited Cora was about all of this, and he was glad she was enjoying herself. Everything had been fine until the magician had decided to burn the silks, that made him furrow his brow a little. He was sure that Ivory would not be pleased with this, and he honestly wasn't either, even if it was for the show. When Geralt disappeared from sight, he hadn't even turned around when he had appeared behind them, not immediately, though he had grimaced when Cora let out a yelp. It had sent a sharp pain through his head, but he had quickly recovered before he turned to face Geralt.

"I'm sure they will, but I do hope you have replacements ready for those silks." He said. While he did not sound angry, it was clear that he was a bit displeased by his choice. He understood the concept of it, considering all the other performers made sure to get rid of their own tools and instruments for the next act, obviously Ivory couldn't do that, so he understood Geralt's need to remove them, but it was the way he had went about it that he had disapproved of.

Unfortunately he did not give the man much time to react as he had to go back out onto the stage to close the night, and thank everyone for coming. The applause was grand, and he knew that Geralt was right. The reviews would surely be amazing. He could tell how pleased the audience was as they began to take their leave and Lucien returned to his previous spot backstage.

Cirque D'étoiles (1x1, FxM, MxM, FxF)

Snake smiled at Lucien's compliment. "Thank you.. I am too." He told him. It was.. oddly easy to feel at ease around the man. His snakes had felt the same. His back felt a little sore but.. it was definitely better than before, and he could move with ease. Getting to go swimming too.. he couldn't remember the last chance he had really gotten to do that.

"The big one is back.." One of the snakes spoke up, causing him to shift his attention to the bushes where the man had loudly made their way to them. It seemed he was trying to maintain a bit of distance from him, and was trying not to stare to much.. was it to avoid scaring him? The man was intimidating but.. perhaps he wasn't so bad.

He watched Lucien look through the bag that Faolan had brought, and he pulled out some very nice looking clothes. At least.. nicer than he had ever worn.

"Here.. let me help you." He told him, before helping him change into the new clothing. There was.. even a jacket.. and it was very warm. Even when he had first joined the circus and he was treated better.. he had never received something so nice. He gave Faolan another look, hesitating for a moment. He and Lucien had pulled him out of a bad situation.. he felt.. he should at least express his thanks, even if the man was a little scary.

"T-Thank.. you.." He said in awkward English, his German accent clearly seeping through. He hadn't had too much need to put the English he had learned to use but.. maybe he would try.. it would be nice to be able to communicate a bit better.

Cirque D'étoiles (1x1, FxM, MxM, FxF)

Aurel gave Illyana an apologetic glance. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to startle you." He had hoped not being loud would ease her reaction but.. sometimes he forgot how easily startled she could be. He followed Illyana's gaze to Ivory's performance and nodded slightly.

"I've seen small drops, but not complete drops like that one.." He commented. Honestly it was impressive, he didn't think he could try doing anything like that, but he always respected Ivory's guts when it came to this kind of stuff.

"This whole part of the act is new.." It was when she disappeared into the silks that Aurel raised his eyebrows as Geralt came out of them.

"There was no redirection like with Akane's transition..." He muttered, a little surprised, but impressed by it.

Cirque D'étoiles (1x1, FxM, MxM, FxF)

Once he had finished healing the boy, they headed into the lake. He was honestly surprised how good of a swimmer the boy was, despite the resistance in his legs. He felt swimming would end up being very good for him in terms of getting the strength in his legs back, he'd make sure to keep that in mind for the future. When he was all cleaned up, he brought him back to camp, having given him one of his shirts and bundled him in a blanket for now. He figured Faolan would return with the shopping soon.

"So... Snake.. do you mind if I ask you how you ended up in that place?" He asked. "Do you have.. any family to go back to?"

Even now, the snakes were curled in the general vicinity of the boy, still not seemingly wanting to leave his side.

"I.. stumbled upon it.. back in Germany.. about.. four years ago?" He said quietly. "And.. no.. not really.. I was living in a forest on my own before then.. with him." He added, motioning to the snake that was curled up around his shoulder.

Lucien was surprised to hear that he was living all by himself. How did he survive? He would have been way too young to do so on his own.

"Your connections with snakes.. it's very impressive.. it's almost like you understand them."

At this the boy seemed to brighten up a little. "I can understand them.. actually.. I can speak to them too." He said with a smile. "They've always been my friends."

He hadn't actually expected for him to be able to do that but.. he supposed if he was some sort of serpentine like creature.. it made sense, though he wasn't even sure if he knew for himself what he was.. if he said he didn't have a family to go back to. They would have a lot of things to figure out.

"Well I must say that's very impressive, I'm glad that you've had friends at your side this whole time."

Cirque D'étoiles (1x1, FxM, MxM, FxF)

Akane shook her head. "Oh no need to apologize, I was simply focused on the stage." She said with a smile. It was a bit difficult to get used to his strange presence, but she'd manage soon enough.

"I'm happy to hear you're enjoying yourself, but there's no need to be so modest." She said, before following Geralt's glance to Ivory's performance. It was probably best she left him to it.

"I look forward to it!" She said, before stepping away. Giving the man a small wave, she ran off toward the other side of the stage, peeking around for a moment before shifting into one of the carnies. It was the least conspicuous appearance. With that, she walked out off the side stage and went to stand beside the audience so she could get a clear look of the stage for Geralt's performance.

It was around that time that Aurel returned after getting all of his snakes settled, and had approached Illyana.

"It seems like I made it just in time.." Aurel said quietly.

Cirque D'étoiles (1x1, FxM, MxM, FxF)

Akane's tails twitched as she heard Geralt's voice and pulled back from the curtains slightly to look up at the man. Honestly she had almost forgotten that he was back here, since the others usually watched from the other side.

"Oh! Geralt." She said, wasting no time in shifting back to her human form and straightening out her dress a little, before lifting her mask and throwing him a smile. "Why thank you!" She was unsure if she should explain it or not, but decided she'd do so if he asked her. It wasn't really the time. She didn't want to distract the man too much knowing he went after the dhampir, but she supposed they had a bit of time until then.

"I hope you enjoyed the shows so far, I can't wait to see yours." It was something she was very excited about, considering it would be the first time she'd be able to see it for herself. She was sure it was the same for some of the others as well. Hopefully Aurel would be back in time to watch it.

Cirque D'étoiles (1x1, FxM, MxM, FxF)

Lucien let out a small hum. Yes.. he supposed that made sense. It was likely he was at least half human but.. he wasn't sure what the other half was. Perhaps the child himself could tell them.

He reached out to place his hand on top of Faolan's, and gave him a small smile. He knew this was not enough to alleviate whatever Faolan was thinking about but.. he decided to let it go for now. Honestly part of him hadn't even considered what having a child around would entail. Their alone time would be.. severely cut off, but he was trying to shift his attention away from that. Surely.. they could figure something out.

The rest of the drive was quiet, Lucien tried to stay awake to keep Faolan company in his drive, but on occasion he would doze off. Despite that, his hand was linked with his beloved's not wanting to let go of it as they drove off toward the next town. He was awoken by their stop. Faolan had parked the trailer in the middle of the forest, where they decided they could get proper rest for the remainder of the night.

When morning came, they talked about how they should proceed. It was decided that Faolan would head to town to get the boy some fitting clothes and other necessities, while Lucien remained behind to get him cleaned up in the nearby lake. It wasn't like they could take him into town looking like this.. it would bring questions. They set up camp, and Faolan left to town, leaving Lucien with the boy.

"Can you swim?" He asked him, causing the boy to nod.

"Yes.. I can.. swim well.. I just.. haven't done it in a while.." He muttered. The snakes had spread out now that they were in the forest, most likely on the hunt for prey, however, Lucien noticed that the striped brown snake the boy had stuck to him closely. It was clear he was the closest with this one.

"Do you mind if I take a look at your legs? I want to see if I can do something to help make it easier to walk.." Considering the weakness he clearly had, he wasn't sure if it was from fatigue or from lack of usage, but he'd at least give it a try. The boy agreed, and Lucien began to take a look. It seemed he had feeling in them just fine, they simply had no strength. With that in mind, his hands began to emanate a warm glow, The boy was clearly surprised, but didn't say anything at first, until he was done.

"That.. you did that with my head too right.. what.. is it? I can move them a bit better..." The boy was in awe, clearly by what he had done.

"It's.. just a little thing I can do, to make people feel better. It's my special skill, but it's also my secret, don't tell anyone, okay?" He knew this was dangerous to reveal, especially to a child.. but he really had no choice in the manner. He was sure no one would really believe him if he tried to explain it.

"O-Okay.. I won't.." He said, his eyes still curious.

"I'm going to try to help you stand alright?" He told him, reaching for the boy's hand. He grasped it, and tried to help the boy to his feet. His legs still wobbled, but they at least didn't completely give out on him like before. He helped him make his way to the shore of the lake, and helped him take a seat near the edge. It was upon placing his hand on his back that he saw the boy flinch.

"I'm sorry, did I hurt you?" He asked worriedly.

"N-No.. it's okay.." Despite the boy's response, Lucien couldn't shake his worry. He convinced the boy to be honest with him, and honestly he hadn't been expecting the reason behind his pain. Upon removing his shirt, Lucien was met with a terrible sight. Long lashes trailed across his back, in no pattern in particular. Some looked old.. some much newer, still clearly not properly healed. It was clear from this sight that the boy had been whipped on more than one occasion. He felt nauseated, and the anger that followed this discovery was hard for him to contain. How could that ringleader have done this to a mere child? A lot of the things he had seen and heard made sense now, but it was sickening for him, to think that man would have been willing to go so far for his greed.. to hurt him like this. He clenched his fists, his jaw tensing. Lucien was almost regretful that they had not ran to that ringleader on the way out. While not one for violence, even he wanted to give him a piece of his mind.

He shook his head, trying to calm himself as to not scare the boy.

"Do you mind.. if I try to make this better?" He asked him, waiting for the boy's approval before he slowly began to heal the more recent lashes. The boy squirmed a little, and he saw the snake hiss at him out of the corner of his eyes, but he made no move to lunge at him. It seemed he acknowledged his desire to help. It honestly hurt to see the boy hold this many scars. Faolan had.. plenty of experiences in his life, leading to all the scars he had now but this boy.. he was so young.. and already held so many. It was upsetting, frustrating, but it only made Lucien's desire to protect him stronger. It was clear this boy hadn't really been able to have a proper childhood. He.. would do his best to change that.

Cirque D'étoiles (1x1, FxM, MxM, FxF)

Both Lucien and Ivory caught this exchange, and saw the flash of the card Geralt had given the Siren. Lucien was curious, considering the cards they had received. Was this a.. thing he liked to do? He wasn't particularly worried, considering nothing had happened with his own card. Even now it simply sat in the drawer of his desk. Part of him still wanted to ask, but he did not think he'd receive an answer.

Ivory didn't say anything, but she definitely took note of the card. This was probably something Illyana would want to know later. Now that she thought about it, she still had to give the fortune teller her own card, but she believed it best to do after this town visit was over, just in case it was too much for her.

--

The rest of the day was quite peaceful, with the others taking part in practice for the big show tonight. Lucien paid close attention to the amount of people that were showing up for the big show. The difference was clear, but it wasn't completely outrageous in comparison to the day before. About.. fifty percent higher, if he had to guess. Lucien was fairly good at remembering faces, and he could see some he recognized. Returning patrons, which was very good for them. Satisfied, he headed toward the Big Top. Cora had just arrived with Ivory, and he smiled as he approached. Cora was wearing a beautiful, elegant, dark blue gown, with shimmers that would shine nicely against their lighting. Ivory had put her hair up in a bun, in such a way the state of it's current dampness could not be seen.

"Elegant as always, I am honored to accompany your beautiful singing tonight." Lucien said with a small bow and gentle smile, causing the Siren to giggle. "I see Ivory worked hard on your hair, it looks beautiful." He complimented.

"I do my best." Ivory said with a smile. She knew how much Cora enjoyed this show, so she tried to do her best to make her shine, not that she needed any help with that. Cora could shine just as brightly without this getup.

Lucien saw a carnie out of the corner of his eyes motion a thumbs up, the crowd had settled, and they were ready. The stage had everything set up already with Akane's tools, Aurel's snakes, and Ivory's knives but they were covered with a dark cloth that was hard to see, and not distracting, as the light would be shining on Lucien and Cora throughout the entirety of the performance. Everything had been placed strategically, so it wouldn't get in anyone's way.

Lucien came out onto the stage to greet the excited crowd, giving them his large, charismatic smile.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, boys and girls, welcome to Cirque D'étoiles!" His voice echoed loudly throughout the tent.

"I see some familiar faces in the audience tonight, I am honored that you have come to see our show, some of you for the second time, but I promise you what you're in for tonight is nothing like you've seen before! New songs, new dances, and a completely new act of the mysterious man I'm sure you've all heard of, Geralt the Great!" Cheers echoed through the crowd, and Lucien retained his smile, giving the audience a small bow.

"Sit back and enjoy yourselves tonight! As we open our night with our beautiful chanteuse!" He told them. The lights dimmed, and in that instance the piano was pulled onto the stage by the pulley system Ivory had put together for it, with Cora already sitting proudly and elegantly on top of the piano. Lucien bowed, and took his place, before the soft music of his playing began to fill the room, followed by Cora's beautiful voice. He maintained the perfect mindset for it this time around, the balance between letting Cora's voice carry him and not allowing himself to lose completely to it. His emotion seeped through just enough, and he could tell with the occasional glance that his intention behind the song had been made clear. The pleasant expressions of the audience was enough to bring a smile to Lucien's face. Their cheers was enough to show their love for the song before the lights dimmed once more, and they left the stage as Aurel quickly replaced them in the dark, he threw off the black cloth that covered the basket his snakes were in, and with that the music changed, and his performance began, the soft, slow hypnotizing music filling the air as he and his snakes moved with the rhythm of it.

When Akane's turn came. Aurel reached for one of the other cloths that covered her tools as his song slowly came to the end. He tossed it high into the air with small flair. The light shifted from him to the corner of the stage, where Akane cartwheeled to the center just in time to catch it and set the wicks aflame, to which by then Aurel had taken his leaves with his snakes.

All of this was meticulously planned, with the right lighting and misdirection, they could pull these kinds of things off quite well. Because Akane's show was so flashy, transitions were easy, because eyes were on her almost immediately.

Ivory had moved to stand behind the curtain she would be coming out from when her turn neared. By then Lucien had already taken Cora away so she could get a clear view of everyone's performances, since he knew how much she loved doing so. Throughout her act, some of her tools were tossed elegantly off stage when she was done with their usage, where a carnie would catch it to put it away, to have less to get in the way of Ivory's own performance.

It was done smoothly, and by the end Akane only had her fans. She spun in an elegant circle, and flames followed suit as she became completely surrounded in large, blue flames. With the audience captivated by the sight, Akane quickly shifted into her fox form, grabbing hold of the fans with her tails before dashing off stage with incredible speed. Ivory was quick to come out to take her place, and Akane quickly turned to control her flames so the dhampir would not come to harm, causing them to completely dissipate, and allowing Ivory to begin her act.

This had been a hard practice for them, because it required Ivory to have complete trust that Akane would not allow her to get burned. Honestly she was happy the dhampir had that much faith in her, and she did her best to make sure she could safely enter the stage even when she was surrounded by flames. Despite the uncomfortable heat, Ivory knew that Akane would not let her down.

Akane smiled as she watched Ivory begin her act as she set down her fans. Her fox form was unlike a normal fox's. It was much larger than the average fox, more lean, with her fur being just as bright red as her hair in human form. Her biggest defining feature was the fact that not one, but two long flowing tails with whitened tips that were swishing from side to side behind her as she watched Ivory's act.

Cirque D'étoiles (1x1, FxM, MxM, FxF)

Lucien was glad to see Faolan relax, but the man hadn't necessarily answered his question.

"He can't speak it well, but he picked up some words at his time at the circus. I assume if this place originated in Europe he was exposed to a lot of different languages.." He muttered. "I can teach him though, so he can communicate with you better.." He told him, before letting out a small sigh, and lowered his tone.

"I know that.. this decision was rushed.. but I will do my best to make it work. When we near the next town I can ask him a bit more about himself.. and what he wants to do.." He muttered. "Do you have any idea what he may be? He clearly has a strong bond with his snakes.. Just this once, I think the name of that attraction may have been adequate."