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Cirque D'étoiles (1x1, FxM, MxM, FxF)

Lucien smiled a little amusingly, clearly having pulled Faolan away from his train of thought.

"Alright then. I'll leave you to it, but don't think about this so hard it keeps you from sleep, alright?" He teased a little, lightly running his thumb over Faolan's hand. Even small things like this.. he was glad to be able to do them again without having to hide.

"I think I'm going to sleep just fine." He had responded.

Aurel retained his smile as he went back down to drawing his picture, linking Lucien and Faolan's hands with his crayon before he moved on to the scenery around them. It looked just right.

--

The next day, Faolan had gone off to town to look into the trailers as he had said he would, while Lucien went about his usual tutoring duties. Aurel always listened in during these lessons, wanting to learn too as Lucien taught the other boy, but never actually spoke up to ask questions, not wanting to catch the other boy's attention too much, otherwise he usually kept his distance.

It was after they were done for the day and they had gone back to the trailer that Lucien decided to bring up a question.

"Aurel.. do you never feel like playing with the other boy?" He asked. Considering he probably hadn't really gotten the chance to play with other kids.. at least.. that's what he had thought at first. He remembered Aurel saying that children and adults didn't like him.. before the Circus, and he had wanted to indirectly inquire more about that.

Aurel looked up at Lucien at his question, and shifted his gaze back to the drawing he had started to work on. "No.. not really.." He muttered. "He would probably think I'm weird.. they always do.."

Lucien took a seat next to Aurel on the cot as he said that. He truly seemed to believe what he was saying. "What makes you say that? He's asked me about you before, I think he might want to try playing with you." He asked.

The boy averted his gaze, halting his movement and setting his crayon down. "I.. used to be in a place with a lot of kids.. none of them really liked me.. they would always tell me I looked weird.. the adults weren't any nicer... I was probably a bother to them.. that's why they left me.." His voice quieted as he spoke, causing Lucien to furrow his brow.

He told himself maybe he shouldn't ask, but he found himself questioning the boy's words.

"Left you..?" He hesitantly asked, before Aurel finally raised his head to look at him.

"In the forest." He responded. "But.. it's okay, cause that's where I met him." He said, raising his hand as the brown striped snake slithered down his arm. His time alone had been scary but.. he had enjoyed a different freedom when he had met the snake and his other friends. "Snakes have always been nicer to me than people.." He said.

"Not you and Faolan though.." He clarified, wanting him to know that they weren't included in this.

Cirque D'étoiles (1x1, FxM, MxM, FxF)

Lucien continued to dance with Akane as he gave the other pair the occasional glance. Things seemed to be going well at least. Once sure of that, he fully turned his attention to the kitsune.

"Did you enjoy your dance with Cora?" He asked, even though he already knew the answer.

Akane's big smile returned upon his question. "Oh yes! Very much.. thank you for encouraging me to go." She said honestly, unsure of whether she would have decided to do so on her own.

Lucien could tell just how genuine Akane's happiness was. He was honestly happy for her too, he just wondered if the woman had realized the difference between how she felt dancing with Cora, and how it felt like to dance with him. He decided to keep that comment to himself however, not wanting to make it extremely obvious to her. She seemed like she was thinking about it enough on her own.

Ivory was well aware what he meant, but she hadn't found a need to specify what her thanks was directed to, she didn't really want to either. The spin had allowed her to break eye contact with him, but she found herself locked in his gaze once again as they returned to their original position, with her still maintaining that subtle, yet very important, space between them.

She found his second compliment hard to respond to. Part of her just wanted to ignore it. Compliments.. weren't really something she was used to receiving. Catcalls on the street were common and easy to ignore. Normally found herself breaking conversation with any man who attempted it rather quickly, and considering how intentionally unapproachable she made herself, it wasn't really something she had to deal with often. Seeking an escape from having to answer him directly, and the awkwardness of the compliment, she glanced down at his clothes. Black trousers, black shirt.. basically black wingtips.

"Are you sure you don't just really like black?" She asked, considering what he had said the day before.

Cirque D'étoiles (1x1, FxM, MxM, FxF)

Lucien raised his eyebrows at Aurel's request, mimicking Faolan's reaction to his question. He hadn't really seen Aurel show any interest in this before.. part of him was curious if he was doing this for them but.. maybe he really did just want space to call his own.

"It's possible we could get a smaller trailer attachment.. but do you really not mind being by yourself?" He asked, making sure that this was what the child wanted. Granted he was happy about the possibilities their returned privacy would give them but, he wanted to make sure Aurel was completely okay with this before proceeding.

Aurel wasn't sure how they would have gone about giving him what he asked, but a separate trailer sounded like just what he wanted. He gave Lucien a small smile at his question.

"I'm used to it, but at the same time, I'm never alone, cause I have the snakes!" He said. "It gives them more room too, so they don't get in your way." He added, wanting to reassure Lucien that he was content with this. After the orphanage had abandoned him.. he had never been truly alone, since he had found friends in his snakes.

Lucien was relieved to hear that. "Then, we shall look into it." He said with a smile. The nephilim didn't really think this would be too much of a problem. They had money saved for this kind of situation, so all they really had to do was find an appropriately sized trailer for him.

"Shall I go look in town tomorrow? Or would you like to?" He asked Faolan, seeing that he was thinking deeply about this. It was cute when he was deeply into thought like this.

Cirque D'étoiles (1x1, FxM, MxM, FxF)

"Yes.. it was.." Akane responded, before pushing her chair back to the table and taking a seat beside her. Even though they were no longer touching she could almost still feel her coolness on her fingers.. it was.. strange.

Lucien was surprised Ivory had accepted, but he let go of her hand and stepped back to allow Geralt to take his place. He had certainly underestimated Ivory's tenacity, he'd be sure not to do that again. The Ringleader stepped toward Akane. Though he would have been fine with going back to watching from the sidelines, he didn't think that Ivory would like everyone's attention to be solely on them, if they were the only one's dancing. To remedy this, he figured he could ask Akane to dance.

He extended his hand toward the kitsune and smiled. "May I have a turn? I'm sure the other two could use some company on the dance floor." He told Akane, glancing over at Geralt and Ivory briefly.

Akane followed Lucien's gaze and nodded, rising to her feet and taking Lucien's hand. "Sure!" She said. The flush in her expression from dancing with Cora had yet to go away, but the kitsune did not feel nearly as conscious of Lucien as they stepped onto the dance floor together.

Of course Geralt hadn't hesitated in pulling her closer to him, but Ivory was more than ready to readjust their positions to one she was more comfortable with. While she was willing to allow him to lead, that was the most she'd let him have. She appreciated all the personal space she could get to herself.

This was the closest in proximity she had been to the man, but it was also the second opportunity she'd really had to observe him, the first time being when they had first met him. She felt like there was something different about his expression that she didn't quite understand. Was it less sharp? The smile he held was certainly not the same arrogant smile she had been expecting. It was... odd. Had it been the usual smile she would have taken it as him being satisfied with her acceptance but.. she couldn't tell what he was thinking, and that bothered her.

Ivory's expression didn't change much at his compliment, but she at least decided to at least give him a response. It would make the dance dull otherwise, not to mention awkward if she was just staring at him in silence.

"Thanks." She said, pausing for a moment. "Akane picked out the dress." Normally she would not have picked this sort of thing for herself. Her personal preference of comfortable clothing consisted of slacks and blouses for everyday clothing. It wasn't really the conventional type of clothing for women, but the fact some used it to work had at least made them a little accessible to her, with Lucien's help. Most dresses she owned were relatively simple and not attention-grabbing at all, aside from her performance outfits anyway. Despite her life as a performer, Ivory did not like being the center of attention in her everyday life, and for that reason she was thankful when Lucien stepped out into the dance floor with Akane.

Cirque D'étoiles (1x1, FxM, MxM, FxF)

Akane's tail's swayed slightly out of tune from the music for a moment as Cora stated that it was different. Part of that made her a little happy. She didn't want to be the same as Geralt.. she wanted this experience to be different for her.. in a good way. The kitsune's ears twitched when Cora raised her voice, smiling a little amusingly until her following words, which making her be the one to avert her gaze in the moment. Cora had complimented her appearance plenty of times but she couldn't help be more conscious about it now that she had her so close. In this moment, even though Cora usually felt so cool to her.. she was quite warm.

"Well um.. I'm glad.." She said, almost unsure of what to say for a moment. It was at that time that the song had finally come to and end. Akane hadn't moved immediately, for a while just.. enjoying having Cora in her arms like this.. she almost didn't want to let her go, but she also didn't want to push Cora too far. She knew maintaining this had required a bit of the mermaid's own strength, and she didn't want to tire her out, so reluctantly, she made her way over to her nearby chair, and set her down, eyes locking with her's for a moment at the closeness the kitsune didn't want to break, before she finally brought herself to fully pull away.

It was unfortunate the song had come to an end so soon, mostly because Aurel felt like Illyana had finally fallen into the rhythm of things, but he wasn't going to make her dance to another song, considering how much physical effort they had put into the refilling of the tank today.

"No, not at all, you were doing very well toward the end." He said, before beginning to follow Illy back toward the table, however, seeing Geralt ask Ivory to dance had given him pause. What a.. bold move.

Lucien raised his eyebrows as he turned slightly to face Geralt, surprised that he was actually asking for Ivory's hand to dance.

"She certainly is. I don't mind at all, however it is not my choice to make." He said, his eyes shifting to Ivory. Knowing how much distaste she held for the man, he fully expected her to say no to his request.

No was exactly what Ivory wanted to say. She was looking forward to heading back toward the table and simply dedicating herself to watching for the rest of the night. There was no way that Geralt wasn't expecting her answer. Part of her felt surprised that he had even tried asking, but at the same time she should have seen it coming, based on their previous interactions. There had been no actual issue with him dancing with Cora, if anything the mermaid had quite a bit of fun, so there was technically no reason for her to say no, at least, in the eyes of other people. On the sole fact she knew the answer Geralt was foreseeing Ivory decided to accept. He could consider this her contribution to his 'welcome party.'

"Fine." She said, releasing Lucien and offering her hand to Geralt, making sure to meet his gaze directly. She had no intention of running away.

Cirque D'étoiles (1x1, FxM, MxM, FxF)

Aurel did not hesitate to nod at Faolan's request.

"I won't tell anyone!" He exclaimed. The boy owed Lucien and Faolan a lot.. if that was the best thing he could do for them, then he would do his very best to keep their secret. He wanted them to be able to be just as happy as they were trying to make him. Honestly it was a little sad, to have to hide in this way. This whole time, were they having to hide because he was around? He felt.. a little bad for having imposed on their space.. and yet they hadn't ever made him feel like a bother or asked him to leave...

"This is important to me too! I want you two to be happy." He told them, meaning every word.

The hesitation Lucien had felt before had almost disappeared completely upon hearing Aurel's response. His grip on Faolan' tightened in return. He was.. happy, that he would not have to hide his relationship with Faolan from Aurel anymore. It would give them more freedom to be with each other again, to an extent. While he had missed the physical relationship they had.. being able to do simple things like holding hands or leaning against him were things Lucien had thoroughly enjoyed. This.. was just as important to him as it was to Faolan.

"Thank you, Aurel.. for being so understanding. Please, if there really is anything that you want, don't be scared to ask us, no matter how minor you think it might be." He told him. Both Faolan and he had experienced lives in a cage.. but in different ways. It was one of the reasons why saving Aurel had been so important to him. He had wanted to give this child his best chance, and this was a choice he would never regret making. Lucien wanted to make sure that Aurel didn't feel like he had to hesitate before asking them for things. He knew that he typically did not ask for much, but he was unsure if that was because he didn't want to bother them, or if he really didn't want anything from them.

Aurel retained his smile as Lucien responded to him, but then became thoughtful. He honestly didn't have anything that he wanted.. he was very content with everything he had.. but then he thought of Lucien and Faolan. He figured that they would never tell him that he was being a bother to them, his snakes had never overheard them complaining about it either.

"Can.. I have my own room..? er.. space?" He asked, unsure of how to really go about asking that. Maybe if he could get it, they'd be able to spend more time together?

Cirque D'étoiles (1x1, FxM, MxM, FxF)

Akane let out a small laugh. "It's quite possible." She said. Her cheeks had remained flushed as Cora had wrapped her arms around her neck. This wasn't the first time they had been this close to each other, after all the two hugged and were very close in the times they would hang out.. but it was different this time. Akane could feel that. She felt particularly aware of everything.. the contact of their bodies.. the sea salt smell of her hair.

It was Cora's exclamation that snapped the kitsune out of her trance. Their eyes met as Cora lifted her gaze to meet her's, and it was upon her response that Akane fully relaxed, glad she was enjoying this.

"I just.. saw you with Geralt and I really wanted to dance with you." She said a little sheepishly. Cora had always been one to blush really easily.. but the flush in her cheeks was being maintained. Perhaps it was the alcohol? It was likely she looked the same. She had almost forgotten that she had drank, solely focused on the woman in her arms.

"Well.. you're the most beautiful dancing partner I could have asked for." The words slipped out from her almost naturally, captivated by Cora's gaze. It was really.. the most aware she had been of the mermaid.. but she liked this. She liked holding her like this in her arms.

Aurel had held back a flinch as Illyana had already stepped on his feet. He had expected it, so it hadn't really caught him by surprise. He simply smiled at her.

"Don't worry about it, I know what I signed up for." He teased, doing his best to lead her properly as to avoid as many of the attacks of her feet as possible.

"That's true, it's not that bad." He reassured, glad to see that Illy was appearing to ease up a little. She had definitely been pretty tense lately, hopefully it would help her relax.

Ivory caught that look of nostalgia from Lucien. It was rare for her to see him like that.. and while it made it curious, she decided not to ask and had instead gave Akane and Cora another glance. "Seems like they didn't need our guardianship after all.. they seem to be doing just fine." Ivory said with a small smile. It was clear the two were lost in their own little world.

Lucien followed Ivory's gaze to the two, a smile tugging at his lips. "Yes.. they certainly are." He was happy that it had worked out for them. Maybe.. this situation would help give the two a little push.

Cirque D'étoiles (1x1, FxM, MxM, FxF)

Lucien was relieved to hear Faolan speak up. There had been a part of him that had struggled because he was unsure how much Faolan really wanted him to share.. and also this whole situation was just difficult to approach in general for him. They had always understood each other, never would he have thought they would have to explain this to someone else, even less a child. He was quiet as Faolan explained, relaxing as Faolan's hand touched his own, wasting no time in linking his fingers through his. He turned to look at Faolan, the love he felt for the man beside him reflected in his eyes.

Part of Aurel.. could relate what Faolan was talking about. He had suffered at the hands of being different for a lot of his life.. and that had brought him to the Circus.. where he thought being different could keep him safe.. only to end up with him being pointed and laughed at.. He lowered his gaze, sad that Faolan and Lucien felt the need to hide so they could avoid enduring the same suffering... It wasn't something he wished on anyone.

"I think... get it. Other hatch--" He interrupted himself. "Children.. and adults didn't like me very much... because I looked different.. and they were really mean to me because of it.. I thought the circus could change that but.. I was wrong.." He said quietly, before finally lifting his gaze. He could see the way Lucien looked at Faolan.. he could tell they cared about each other. It was a look he had seen before.. but only now did he truly understand what it meant. No one.. had really looked at him in such a way before, not even like a parent looked at a child.. because it wasn't something he had come close to experiencing.. at least until now.

"Is that.. why you two are so nice to me? Because you know how it feels to be.. special?" He asked.

Lucien turned back to Aurel as he spoke, his expression softening at his words. It seemed that.. there was some sort of past about Aurel that they weren't aware of. He spoke of his experience with other children as a separate entity from the circus.. but he didn't feel like it was the right time to ask him about it. Instead, he gave the boy a warm smile.

"We knew from the moment we saw you that you were special.. but that's not the only reason we treat you this way. Every child deserves a chance to be happy and grow up with the freedom to make his own choices. You deserved that chance just as much as anyone. We wanted to give that to you, Aurel." Lucien explained.

Aurel smiled back at Lucien's words, but it faded slightly at his next thoughts. It was.. sad that Lucien and Faolan had to hide.. He wanted them to have freedom and be happy too.. was that not possible?

"Is there any way that I can protect you too? You both have done lots for me.." He asked. Lucien and Faolan seemed really strong.. he didn't know if there was anything he could actually do for them, but if there was, he wanted to try. The two of them.. and his snakes.. they were really all he had. He wanted to do his part too.

Cirque D'étoiles (1x1, FxM, MxM, FxF)

Akane's smile widened as Cora's cool hand met her's, and her tails swayed happily to the rhythm of the new song that had started playing, just as slow as the first. She was grateful for Geralt's assistance in positioning Cora in her arms. Her cheeks reddened at feeling her be so close to her, but she securely wrapped an arm around her waist, actually a little surprised at how light Cora was. She had tried carrying her before and had always thought she was a bit light, even though she struggled at times.. this time was different.

"I figured I would need to be taller to do this." She told her with an innocent smile, now matching the mermaid's height. One couldn't' really tell when Cora was sitting down, but she was much taller than she appeared. Feeling their bodies pressed closed together like this.. Cora's normally cool temperature felt so.. warm against her.

"Are you lighter?" She asked her, tilting her head slightly as she finally began to move to the music. This took a lot more focus than she thought, and she knew she probably didn't look as graceful as Geralt had when he had done this but.. she was determined to do her best to make sure Cora had fun. For a moment she had turned to the others, calling out to them as she hoped they'd join in on the fun. It was upon turning her gaze back to Cora that she noticed the mermaid wasn't really holding her gaze, which was a little odd.

"This.. is okay right?" She asked, wanting to make sure this was okay with it. She had been so preoccupied with her own feelings that she wasn't sure if Cora was just going with the flow.. or if she had actually wanted to dance with her.

Lucien guided Ivory to the dance floor as the two watched the interaction between Akane, Cora, and Geralt. The Magician had gracefully left the 'stage' to the two women, which had impressed the nephilim. The man really was quite observant.. he was sure he had noticed the feelings that were stirring between the two women. The fact he hadn't decided to not get in their way made him feel like maybe Geralt wasn't as bad as he had been made out to be. He placed a hand on Ivory's waist, but maintained a respectable distance from her as the two began to dance.

On occasion Ivory would glance over at the two women as they had started doing the same. For a moment she had been worried that Akane might actually be struggling with this but.. surprisingly she seemed to be managing just fine. It was.. odd, considering she had seen her struggle with carrying the mermaid for too long in the past. Had.. Geralt done something? No... why would he? Perhaps making herself taller provided the kitsune with some extra strength? She wasn't sure.

"I'm very impressed with the fact you can avoid stepping on me when you're so focused on something else." Lucien commented a little amusingly. He had noticed Ivory being particularly watchful today, it was also part of the reason he had asked her to dance. He was hoping it would also help her relax a little.

"Of course. I do this for a living, you know?" The dhampir responded, having no problem with moving to the rhythm of the music. "So I guess dancing is something you can add to the incredibly long list of things you can do?" She asked with a raised brow.

"I certainly can't argue with that." He said, before letting out a chuckle. "I suppose you can. I used to have a lot of time on my hands." He said, a hint of nostalgia in his tone, which quickly disappeared as fast as it had come.

Aurel had let out a small laugh, a little surprised that Illyana had actually said yes.

"I think I'll be okay." He told her as they made their way to the dance floor, and mirrored the way Lucien was holding Ivory.

"My feet are ready." He joked. As he began to move, he tried to make a good attempt at guiding Illyana properly, considering dancing wasn't really her thing.

Cirque D'étoiles (1x1, FxM, MxM, FxF)

Lucien was almost relieved to hear his response, because it meant that he hadn't been the one to slip but at the same time.. he hadn't expected that to be something they had to look out for. They had always been careful about Aurel potentially seeing him, but it had not occurred to him at all that the snakes were also to be a concern. From the way the snake was reacting it seemed like he could understand the extent of their conversation. He had truly underestimated the intelligence of those reptiles. The nephilim tried to focus on the task at hand. He couldn't simply answer Aurel's question without knowing what he meant by those words. It was best to avoid telling him the truth if it was possible.

"Well.. what do you know about kissing.. and the like?" He asked him.

Aurel glanced at his snake as Lucien asked this question. He had the explanation he had given him in the past, when he was growing up, and then.. what he had seen when he had come more into contact with humans.

"Well.. I've seen people do it at the circus.. and sometimes our visitors would do it as well.. it doesn't seem like something you do with just anyone? My snake said the humans who do that make hatchlings together." He said, pausing for a moment.

"Are you two going to make hatchlings together?"

Lucien's face flushed a little at the boy's comment. He.. clearly knew what it meant.. even if he wasn't really going about his explanation in the most normal way. Those snakes.. surely did attempt to explain things to the boy, in their own way. It seemed like he couldn't really avoid answering him. Plus.. if he had figured them out at this point.. it was important that he knew he shouldn't tell anyone about it.

"No.. that's not possible for us. Hatchlings are what you call reptilian newborns, the human term would be babies, or children. I'll explain why when you're a little older but.. yes.. we are.. partners." He explained a little hesitantly.

Aurel nodded at this piece of information. Children.. right.. he had heard that before, hatchlings was just easier for him to recall, because that's what his snakes called it. He was confused with Lucien's reasoning. Honestly having to wait until he was older to have him explain things made him a little impatient. He wished he could grow up faster.

"I see! I'll draw you holding hands then." He said, about to go back to his drawing.

Lucien was surprised by such a.. simple response. There was no negative reaction from him.. no disgust. Had no one.. ever discussed this with Aurel before? He thought it was likely, as it didn't seem like anyone at the circus went out of the way to teach him anything. It was a bit.. relieving to know that this was not something they would have to struggle with, but there were still other things he had to address.

"Ah.. well.. even though we are partners.. there's a lot of people who aren't as.. understanding about how we feel about each other.." He said hesitantly, unsure of how to approach what he wanted to say. Even though he seemed to be perfectly okay with this, he was still a child.. he wasn't sure what he should or shouldn't tell him yet.

Aurel was confused by this response. "Why?" He asked, not quite understanding the reason. Wasn't this normal?