Phillis Circus: Funhouse

“Ouch, ow, ouch!” Eric screamed as he was sent jostled from his feet and cracking against the floor of the barrel shaped corridor as it swayed too and fro, his body knocked unceremoniously to the ground from Moira’s own spill. Syed had crossed before them and helped to avoid such a nasty fall, and Xandra too did a quick, lithe hop over the pair just in time. Moira’s expletives and Eric’s painful wallows continued for some time until Moira was able to be rolled out back onto solid ground.

“Stupid piece of fucking shit trash…” Moira mumbled and cursed as she dusted herself off, walking off in a foul mood and frightening other customers as she stomped off. Eric behind nursed a bruised cheek and swollen eye with a small sob.

“Oh, piss and bollocks,” Moira shook her head as she and the other three reached the funhouses maze, littered with a bevy of stairs ascending and descending to the funhouse’s multitude of floors, all accompanied with walls of disorienting mirrors and brightly painted walls. “They’re just trying to fucking piss me off, aren’t they?”

“Relax,” Xandra smiled. “If we keep calm and carry on, we’ll be able to get through without a problem. Eric sent his niece might be in here, so if we search extremely carefully then we might be able to find her-”

“BALTIIIII~~~!!!”

Too late. Eric had already raced off, taking down a flight of steps and disappearing behind a corner as he woefully searched for his niece. His screams seemed to echo and shift all about the bewildered Moira, Syed and Xandra, becoming louder and quieter, emanating from their to right, above and below. The useless sod had already obviously gotten himself lost.

“…he seems to remind me of a certain someone…” Moira frowned, although she couldn’t remember what his name was.

“Baltiiii!!” Eric continued to scream. “I’m here to rescue youuuuu-AGHH!!”

Eric suddenly felt backwards onto his rear after slamming his whole body and face roughly into one of the maze’s solid walls- this one having been trickily painted to look like an extension of the corridor itself. The funhouse was a devious ride indeed.

Phillis Circus: Horror Train

Trixie too was convinced that the ride had busted when something spoopy eyes crept up to the trio slowly, ever so slowly. Trixie's teeth chattered so loudly they almost echoed. Just when she was about to grab onto Lute's face again, the cart bolted forward and both guilders in the front row bumped against their seat. The prankster lolled her head as the ride pressed onward, trying to ease her dizzying vision.

The horrific ride continued on for some time with similar results (and continuously threatening glares back towards Lucien from Lute and Trixie), though it had reached its conclusion soon enough. Once they were hit with the outside breeze, the protection bars lifted and Trixie hopped out immediately. She laughed forcibly as she tugged Lute out with her while he was still caught unawares. "Hahaha! Ha! We- we did your dare, Lucy! We did it like pros! Super pros! Didn't we, Lu--"

"RROROOORORORO!"

"EEEEEEK!" A last-minute zombie manikin popped up from behind the trio's cart just before the horror house's exit, causing Trixie to scream yet again. She dashed down the steps and as far away as she could get before she tripped over. Trixie had managed to dash down to somewhere yet to be explored by the Pride, surmounted in more and more of those miniature tents. The fun house was just a walk away as well.

The clown sighed, his grouchy deadpan expression still unchanged. "Don't mind Duke. He does that sometimes." In response, the zombie groaned again and reeled back into his hiding spot.

---

Phillis Circus: Big Top

Thanks to Aria's magicry, the illusionist and swordswoman successfully snuck around the big top and into one of its multiple back entries with no obstacles. Though the duo had heard some rather loud noises emanating from the tent, the room they were currently in was void of people - only props and equipments lied about, some littered, some organized. Multiple rooms their area was connected to were blocked off by curtains. As the duo approached them, they could hear more noises - a voice, even. Particularly a male's, muttering sharply to himself.

The voice itself grew louder and louder, as did its accompanying footsteps. Just as Aria and Estelle prepared themselves for whatever was to come, one of the curtains burst open and a man wearing a pink long-sleeved shirt within a fancy black vest top stumbled forward. He fell flat onto his face, the baseball cap atop his head flying right off. He caught himself just as quickly and rose back to his feet, dusting himself off as he did so.



The young man looked the two girls in the eyes for a moment, before gasping and sweeping downwards for his cap. Then he looked the duo in the eyes again - though this time the panic was much more apparent. Worry lines etched along his eyes and forehead. "Nuts - please - please don't - ahgh, no I'm not running away, hah - hahaha! Why would you think that?? I'm just - I'm just finding a portapotty to puke in. Ate your nasty lunch too quickly and - nuts - please don't castrate me! I'll be ready for tonight's show, I promise! Chef's word!"

Light suddenly poured into the room from behind the trio. The curtains wafted open violently, and a tall silhouette filled the spot between where Estelle and Aria stood, landing on the firebreather. He gulped.

The overbearing figure wasted no time speaking. "And just what do you think you're doing here?"



"Nothing sir, sorry sir! I'm uh, I just uh, I just got off my lunch break and I'm--" the firebreather chattered before turning back around. "I'll be on my way, thank you sir!" With that he poofed behind the curtains in an instant, leaving nothing but a trail of dust.

Now that left the two clown-clad girls with red-coated ringmaster. The guilders turned to face him as he continued to speak, this time to them. His eyes were low and narrow, reflecting the seriousness in his regal tone of voice.

"And you two." Keeping his chin up, he eyed them top to bottom quickly, raising a brow. He had recognized that they were new faces - which worked in the guilders' favor, as many of the staff members tending to the attractions outside were also clowns. "We don't pay you louts to wander about. All meal breaks have come to an end by this time of day. Cease this lollygagging and return to your duty stations at once. Do not make me ask again."

With a distempered frown, he continued forward into the room and into a room different from the firebreather, his coattails dragging along with him.

Phillus Circus-Big Top

"Yep, I got you covered on that."

Aria gave a thumbs up to Estelle, before giving her own costume a glance and sigh. She had wanted to use one of those super pretty outfits the acrobats were always wearing or even an outfit like the ticket takers', but unfortunately only this kind of costume would be able to hide their identities completely with the baggy clothes and bright wigs. She hoped nobody else had the idea to investigate the top and bump into them.

"Nuts - please - please don't - ahgh, no I'm not running away, hah - hahaha!"

She blinked in surprise at the unexpected arrival of the guy in a cap- and a surprisingly familiar one. She narrowed her eyes, tilting her head in confusion. She was almost certain that she'd seen this person before, and yet she couldn't pin it down. He did have a distinct face... Hm.

Before she could ask, not that he would have recognized any of them thanks to her illusion, another man appeared. This one had a more regal air around him with a spiffy red coat to match, and Aria couldn't help but become a bit nervous. Was this the guy in charge of the circus? He turned his eyes on the two girls, and for a moment the illusionist swore he was going to call them out on their little ruse but instead swept away in a dramatic fashion with his coattails sweeping behind him.

So... he didn't realize that they weren't employees?

She let out a small sigh of relief before turning to Estelle. "Looks like our disguises are working fine. Do you suppose he was someone important?" He certainly seemed like it. "Perhaps we should follow him, or maybe we could go and 'man our posts' and chat with some other performers?"

Phillis Circus - Funhouse
“Baltiiii!!” Eric continued to scream. “I’m here to rescue youuuuu-AGHH!!”

"That is a nickname, right?" Syed glanced towards the other two. "She isn't really called Balti, right?" Who... who would name their child after a curry?!

Moira meanwhile sighed, rolling her eyes. This man was an idiot. Didn't he know... that he wasn't loud enough?! "BALTIIIIIIIIII!" she bellowed, loud enough to cause both Syed and Xan to recoil in pain. The yell echoed around the rooms. Well. If she didn't hear that, she weren't here. That was that.

"Any noise at a volume greater than 85 decibels can lead to hearing loss," the blond girl from the front suddenly appeared, poking her head around the barrel-like entrance. She said nothing more, however. She simply just stared at them with those wide pale eyes and made them feel uncomfortable. Syed shifted a little and gave her a small nod of thanks, but all that did was cause her to shift her unblinking gaze to him instead.



Moira flicked her wrist into the air and began to walk away from the entrance. Yeah yeah she got it. Well, the man had at first gone down... but now the sound of his voice almost sounded like he was up. And the guy sounded like he was now in trouble... somehow, so that was where she would go.

"Moira, wait, you know how when you're in a maze you can find your way out by always touching the wall on your left? Let's do-"

"No fuck that we don't want out we want to see everythin'," Moira interrupted, grabbing Xan's wrist and staring at one of the mirrors as they ascended the stairs. The strange angle it was at made it appear like the entrance area was now on one of the walls. Oh fucking hell this place was disorientating. And at the summit, they encountered a large cylindrical room with two exits - one they had just entered through, and the other straight ahead.

...At least, until the room suddenly span, sending the three of them tumbling once more to the floor. It was very brief, but it served it's purpose to disorientate them even more. "Who the fuck designed this shit?!" Moira exclaimed. No wonder this little girl might have gotten lost in here. She angrily stepped towards one of the exits, not really sure which was which anymore. "Fuck this- ARGH!"

And with that they went tumbling down the slide which awaited them at the other side, landing in a ball-pit somewhat awkwardly. Moira in particular sent balls flying everywhere as she landed face-first, while Syed desperately clung onto his hat before it was lost. On the plus side, at the end of this corridor of balls they could see Eric again. "Eric!" Syed called over. "Any luck?"

On the negative side, they were now just as lost as he was.

Phillis Circus: Funhouse

The funhouse was proving to be quite the challenge and Moira's and Eric's hollering didn't make it any easier. So, the girl's name was Balti? Syed reacted to that and curry? Xan couldn't help but laugh a little. "They could have been fond of the dish," she stated with a small grin. However, when the two began yelling even louder than before, the smile faded and a blonde woman appeared out of nowhere.

"Um, we're sorry for the noise...by any chance, have you seen a small girl--" Before she could finish asking, Moira began tugging her along and towards a maze. Well, it was possible the child was lost inside, though hadn't it been a few days? Still, she didn't want to assume the worst and Eric, seeing him so worried, it made her worry about the child too. Hopefully, she was alright and just lost. Because being kidnapped...well, that alternative wasn't good at all.

"She could have gotten lost here." Xan tried to sound optimistic and nodded at Moira's idea. "Eric, just keep calling here name." Wait, where had the guy gone? The room spun around and soon they were all disoriented and lost. The funhouse was proving to be more than she had expected. Whoever set up the puzzles really went all out.

The metallurgist got to her feet and looked around. "Eric, we should stick together!" It would do no good if they lost him too. Xan turned to face Moira and Syed, "they really went all out...do you think we should just keep walking?"

---

Phillis Circus: Horror Train

Not bad, hehe, not bad at all.

The scares were pretty well done and if not for his friend's reactions, he would have been genuinely unnerved. However, he was too busy laughing at them to feel frightened or worried. He couldn't believe they had fallen for his little scare and their reactions. It had been priceless.

The ride paused momentarily, as a pair of red eyes glared at them.

Lucien didn't even notice the eyes, he was too busy laughing his head off and wiping away at tears. "You two should have seen yourself, yeah? The look on your faces was priceless!" He stiffened up a little when Lute began expressing his worries but soon the cart was moving again and he was trying hard to stifle his snickering. "Sorry, sorry, but that was too funny." The safety bar lifted up and Trixie hopped out.

"C'mon! I bet there's a lot of other things to-- crap!" A zombie appeared out of Nowhere and Lucien leaped back. A scare at the end? Wasn't this just grand! These people really knew what they were doing. He grinned from ear to ear then gave Trixie a knock on the head. "Mhm, you two did it. This ride was pretty good," he paused to laugh, then offered to buy the two some ice cream later on.

Morris: Circus

The ordeal was finally over. Groaning, a pale Lute pushed himself out from within the ride after Trixie. Before he could even fully get over the entire experience though, a goon popped out of nowhere and-

"RROROOORORORO!"

Suffice to say, the virtuoso had enough and remained locked in his standing position. Trixie ran off somewhere and Lucien ambled over to his friend, but his offers to buy food were left unheeded. Lute had his hand clutching at the area above his heart and his eyes were wide and hollow; he had his mouth open like he was going to say something. After a few minutes of silence, some color returned to the man’s face and he wiped his brow as he straightened up.

“Well, let’s go look for Trixie, then,” Lute murmured evenly and set off towards the tent where the prankster went. As they walked to it, he noticed the garish fun house and winced. That was what they needed, not some horrible, life-altering jumpscare cornucopia. “Hey Trix, where you at? Lucien’s buying ice cream!” He cupped his hands around his mouth and yelled, with Delilah bringing his voice to higher volumes so that the girl could hear them faster. No reply, just a few stares from some of the passersby. “Hey, let’s split up and look for her. I’m not so sure which tent she went to, so we could cover more ground by splitting up,” The virtuoso nodded at Lucien before walking off on his own. A few ways from a colorful tent with a odd pattern, Lute picked up a peculiar sound. Or rather, sounds.

"Maybe she went that-a-way," He mumbled to Delilah and headed towards that direction, and as he turned the corner he saw, well, a neat but somewhat threatening row of circus animals. Yes, most were caged, but...

Phillis Circus - Funhouse
Moira simply struggled against the ball pit of hell. Oh god damnit what was this shit why did kids like playing in these?! She remembered taking her son to one when he was just a little dot, and he spent most of the time sinking and being trampled on by the bigger children. Until she got involved, anyway.

And she was still banned from that play area to this day.

At least Xan seemed to be doing fine, standing upright like a boss. Damn. This girl was well practiced. Or maybe just had better footwear. Probably the latter.

Despite his call, Syed had been searching among the balls too. Had everyone had a bad experiance with a ballpit before? Wait no, this was Sy. He was probably just doing his paranoid teacher thing again.

"I don't think she's here," Moira hissed as she struggled some more. And then finally, she had managed to pull herself free and onto solid ground. "She ain't answered or anythin'. No way she didn't hear us." She leant over to remove the ball that had been speared by her heel. "Fuck it."

Syed shrugged. "You can't be too careful, and you can't assume everyone is as loud as you. I mean, I don't think she is here. But she still might be, and we are looking for clues too. And trying to get more prizes, apparently."

"Well woop-de-fuckin'-do there's no clues or no kid here, who'd have guessed! There's nothin' dodgy here at all!" Moira span on the spot and began to charge towards Eric, only for...

PANG!

She recoiled, holding her nose as she bounced off the clear plastic wall. Aw shit, you kidding me?! It even left a pretty good image of her make-up imprinted upon it's previously invisible surface. "FUCK IT!!!" she screamed furiously. "I'm done!"

And with that she began charging instead to the right. This time, Syed insisted on touching his fingers on the left-hand wall as they walked. It would be no use if they encountered any more spinning rooms, but it should be useful to help them get out otherwise.

Eventually.

Phillis Circus: Big Top

Estelle was left speechless after her and Aria’s encounter with both Crispin and Vance Phillis, watching the pair’s exchange and the latter’s cold and threatening reception towards them. The manner in which he moved, looked and spoke was unnerving, and it certainly had a clear effect on Crispin, making him haul himself away from that spot to dash off somewhere else. After Vance turned his attention towards Estelle and Aria, it had made the swordswoman want to do the same as well, leaving her stunned and unable to know what to think, before he sauntered off without waiting for a reply.

"Looks like our disguises are working fine.” Aria breathed a sigh of relief after the danger had passed. “Do you suppose he was someone important? Perhaps we should follow him, or maybe we could go and 'man our posts' and chat with some other performers?"

Important was an understatement. Someone who dressed like that and carried such an air of superiority was one thing, and the ability to actually make people follow his demands such as the youth in the cap did was another. There was no doubt that man was someone. The only question was who?

Estelle had a nagging feeling weighing down on the back of her mind. Like the strange man in the cap and pink shirt that had popped out on them, the other man in the regal red coated ringmaster’s outfit… seemed familiar. Estelle had definitely seen him somewhere before, but she knew she had never spoken to him. A man like that felt like someone you wouldn’t forget. Who was he?

With a narrowing of her eyes, Estelle looked away from where Vance had vanished to, and turned her eyes in the direction of Crispin’s departure.

“We could probably check him out later,” Estelle mused aloud. “I think we might be able to do a bit better talking to the other guy. C’mon, if we’re quick, we might be able to find him again.”

With a nod from Aria, the pair began to follow after Crispin. Like the red ringmaster, the other man felt familiar to Estelle too, although she couldn’t remember where. He was, at least, not as threatening as the other. Hopefully they could coax some new information from him.

---

Phillis Circus: Funhouse

Eric sobbed profusely. It didn’t matter how far he ran or searched, there was no sign of his precious niece anywhere inside the fun house. Tears welled up and streamed down his cheeks with abundance, and a thick stream of snot started to trail from his nose and over his lips.

Oh, what had happened! Where were you, little one? Were you safe and okay? Please, by the gods, let his wonderful little niece please be okay!

“Oh, well, hey, would you look at that. We’re finally out of that shithole.” Moira placed her hands on her hips and nodded in satisfaction as she and the rest of her group broke out of the perplexing and irritating maze that was the funhouse. She lifted one hand up and over her face to shield her eyes from the sunlight above.

“I told you we should have just stuck to the left the whole way through,” Syed smiled, before feeling slightly guilty for the feeling after still seeing Eric sobbing.

“Oh, quit your belly achin’” Moira grumbled, kneeing the man in the rear. “We’ll find her, so just pipe down, huh?”

“Yeeeargh!”

A sudden scream broke out from nearby, one that threw up all of the quartet’s fears and agitation at once. They spun around, following the source of the voice that emanated from a short distance around the side of the large funhouse. A look between all three members of the Pride yielded a nod of understanding, and they immediately began to dash forwards, leaving a confused Eric follow desperately in their wake.

“Hey, was it just me or did that scream sound like…” Syed began to murmur, and Xandra nodded back.

“Yes. It sounded like…”

“Lute!”

Skidding to a stop around the corner, the trio discovered the virtuoso slowly backing away from a mighty, impressive lion. Alongside it, other large animals, including a gorilla, bear, elephant and panda, drew closer in a circular formation around him, as if making to surround him. He was quickly running out of places to retreat to, and the animals stalked ever more diligently towards him.

“G-g-guys?” Lute’s trembling eyes widened as he saw them.

Phillis Circus: Funhouse

"I don't think she's here either," the metallurgist frowned. Wherever Eric's niece was, she really hoped the child was safe and that this whole thing was a misunderstanding. But then again, nothing was ever that easy, especially when it came to the Pride's missions.

The poor man was sobbing and Moira looked like she was about to start yelling again.

On the bright side, Syed's plan was working and the exit was in sight now. Xan gave Eric a comforting tap on the shoulder, "try not to worry. We promised we'd find her and if she's not here, there's a chance she could be somewhere else, right?" She mustered up a smile and hoped he would cheer up a little. "Maybe, she's somewhere, eating cotton candy, right? What do you say? Let's take a deep breath and focus on looking, alright?" She sounded as if she were talking to an upset child and maybe in a sense, she was doing just that. Xan was about to say something else but stopped when they heard a familiar shriek.

Lute? She arched an eyebrow at the frightened virtuoso. Xan took a step towards where Moira and Syed were but recoiled when she noticed what was going on. There were so many animals. Lute was surrounded by them too. She backed up a little, a mixture of concern and fear evident in her expression. "Lute...don't make any sudden movements."

These were circus animals. They were trained, so it'd be okay...right? Well, if things got out of hand then Moira could handle it, hopefully.

---

Phillis Circus: Horror Train

Eh? Before he could say more Trixie and Lute just up and left.

The summoner feigned hurt and crossed his arms over his chest like an upset child. "Fine, I'm not sharing the ice cream with any of you. See how you guys like that." He spent a few moments sulking before he walked off on his own. Hm, maybe he'd go look for the others.

He stopped by an ice cream booth and ordered a chocolate twirl. Ah, it almost felt like they were on vacation. But oh yeah, they had to keep their eyes peeled for the missing people, yeah? He narrowed his eyes into slits and looked around for anything suspicious, though at this point he was looking pretty suspicious himself.

"Pssst," he stood by a lamp post and managed to catch a little boy's attention.

Lucien looked right and left as if he were a detective in some book and then he motioned for the child to approach. The little boy looked at him warily but eventually made his way towards the summoner. The child titled his head to the side, "um, do you need anything, mister?"

"Yeah, yeah, do you come here often, kid?"

"I'm not supposed to talk to strangers." He twiddled his thumbs.

Lucien shrugged then gave the child a grin. "It'll only take a minute, so you come here often, yeah?"

The child bobbed his head up and down.

"Have you seen anything suspicious--" Lucien froze when he felt a tap on his shoulder and he spun around to see an angry looking woman with a scowl on her face. "Uh...hey there, I was just asking the kid here about the several attractions..."

He didn't even have time to finish his sentence. The woman seized the child by his hand and began stomping away. "How many times have I told you, Johnny, don't go around talking to strangers, especially ones who look so suspicious."

The summoner deflated. He looked suspicious? How dare she! He was cute and innocent looking for as far as he knew! He puffed out his cheeks in annoyance then stomped away. "Yeah, well...you're pretty scary yourself, lady."

Phillis Circus

Ack! What the?!

Syed immediately recoiled at the sight of poor Lute flanked by such a particularly dangerous array of animals. Had... had he been found out?! Was the circus now setting their animals on him?! Was this it?! Or was this just Lute getting picked on again? "Lute, what happened?! What did you do?"

His eyes immediately began darting from one animal to the other, his mind forming stratergies and plans on the best way to deal with this. He didn't want to do anything magically, as it would be a flashy and noisy beacon that they shouldn't be here. But it's better to be prepared, just in case.

Geez, he couldn't decide whether animals loved or hated the poor guy. It was a fine line.

Moira meanwhile didn't bother thinking about it. Sod that. Sure, Xan had some good advice. The sort of advice you give someone with one of those fire-wasps on their head, but good advice all the same. But as far as she was concerned, it weren't enough. "Ey!" she yelled, striding up and dragging the somewhat reluctant mage along with her. "I wouldn't eat him, he's a bit skinny. Ain't worth the work chewin'. OI! Look at me!"

Syed muttered something about how he was sure pandas and elephants didn't eat meat if he remembered right, although he was easily drowned out by his partner. While she certainly didn't like the look of that lion, she strode past the elephant and into the circle, before standing in front of Lute. Syed stood at his other side, looking thoroughly distressed at what they were doing. Goodbye world. It was nice knowing you.

"I wrestle bears for a hobby. Bring it," she hissed. "Nobody's touchin' my mate on my watch."

Phillis Circus: Outside the Horror Train

Following Trixie's flee from the Horror Train, Lute gave chase before giving Lucien himself a chance to recuperate and follow. In a faux fuss, the summoner bought himself some ice cream before speaking to a little boy with hopes of obtaining some information. Of course, it didn't exactly go as planned as a woman swept her child up and left Lucien. As the summoner stomped off, something petite and feminine suddenly careened into him, causing his ice cream to fly right out of his hand.

"Ooph! Heeey! Watch where you're-- oh, oh no, I mean I'm so, so sorry, Mister!"

This thing squeaked with a tone even higher than Trixie's. Was that even possible?



The girl had fallen onto her bottom upon the crash, but immediately jumped back to her feet in a comical fashion. She frantically dusted down her dress, cape, and hat. "Sooooorry! I'm in a wee bit of a rush!" She tugged viciously on the male figure behind her before pressing onward. "Come on, Maxie-Moo! Let's go, hurry, hurry, hurry!"

Not long after the girl's disappearance, Lucien was crashed into a second time by another petite and feminine figure. She flopped onto her bottom in the same manner as the girl before her.

"Ooph! Heeey! Watch where you're-- GASP, Lucy!" The girl jumped back to her feet and tugged on Lucien's wrist the same way the earlier girl tugged on the man behind her. "We gotta follow after them! I heard the girl mention stuff about preparations for tonight's show or whatever blah blah blah. Maybe we can find some clues from that!"



As usual, the prankster thought nothing of repercussions that would come from being caught. All that mattered to her was that they progressed. After all, the reason they rode on the Horror Train was to help plan their timing with seeing this one girl or something... right? Right? Trixie's ugly pixie wings glittered with anticipation. As she expected, the girl and the boy behind her led the guilders straight to the Big Top - where Estelle and Aria were already inspecting.

Trixie shushed Lucien and dashed behind a nearby tent. She peeped out from the side to spy on the duo in the meantime.

"Come on, Maxie-Moo! We gotta make sure everyone's ready for tonight!" This time the girl was behind the boy and was pushing on his back to force him inside one of the curtained exits. The side of the tent was blocked off by a small, extended fence and a sign that read "Employees Only." As the girl and boy reached it, she pushed him over without hesitation before jumping over him. Then she yanked him right off and continued dragging him to the tent. Trixie recoiled from the boy's pain.

"Remember the last time we screwed up? Big Sis force-fed us spoiled milk and locked you in the portapotty for a whole hour. Now get your booty in there before it happens again!!"

With that, the duo disappeared behind a curtained entrance. Trixie looked back to Lucien. Her smile widened suddenly, reflecting Lucien's familiar cheshire grins. "Let's follow them."

She wasn't going to take no for an answer.

---

Phillis Circus: The Big Top

“We could probably check him out later,” Estelle mused aloud. “I think we might be able to do a bit better talking to the other guy. C’mon, if we’re quick, we might be able to find him again.”

Without further hesitation, the guilder pair took off after the capped young man, in hopes of obtaining information from him. As they ventured further into the big top, voices arose from behind curtained walls, though they were not all that loud nor many. The setup of the tent itself was similar to that of a maze; there was no real sense of direction, especially with rooms being visibly cut off with curtains. Many were mere corridors or connectors, while others had boxes and mobile shelves of sorts with various goods - equipment pieces, food, first aid kits, and the like. Even others led to dead ends with mirrors and clothes spewed about.

The duo popped into one of these dead ends and were met with a brunette wearing nothing but her undergarments. She spotted them in her mirror and, covering herself up, screamed at the 'perverts' to get out.

With a little more trekking, the guilders soon wound up at the entrance to a room that was much more wide and spacey than any others they had been in. Interestingly there were some unkempt sleeping bags littered along one of the walls. A handful of performers were scattered throughout the room, using the small but decent amount of equipment to prep for their performances.

A juggler balanced atop a unicycle juggled with pins while riding in circles; knives were clustered together nearby him as well. Two contortionists stretched seated in front of a mirror. An acrobat practicing along the hanging trapezes flipped off upside down, spinning in the air before she landed atop a tightrope on her feet. She then walked along it before jumping back on another trapeze. A few other performers remained seated, one of whom had their knees pulled to their chest with her face buried within them.

And the capped boy was there too, with some kind of burnt stick in one hand. With the other, he was snapping his fingers; small flames sparked with each snap, like a cigarette lighter. He looked around as calmly as he could, though nervousness was still etched in his eyebrows.



Unnoticed, Estelle and Aria watched the handful of performers from behind the curtains. Though something else soon caught their attention - the curtained exit at the other end of the room slowly pulled open as well, and two familiar faces poked through to peek around just as they did.

Trixie and Lucien.



When one of the clowned guilders waved at them, Trixie's eyes widened as she slammed the curtains shut (as quietly as she could) and pulled Lucien away from sight. From within their empty room, the prankster gripped onto the summoner's arms, threatening to shake him. "Eeee! They saw us!" she whispered snappily. "They know we're here!" Then she began to pace. "What do we do, what do we do!?"

Morris: Circus

Oh Gods, okay, this wasn’t a bad situation.

“I’m very friendly! I’m a, uh, vegetarian! Nope? Well, coo coo, oink oink- agh!” Lute dropped the impersonation when the lion bared its teeth at him. “How could a panda and a gorilla coexist in the same establishment!?” The virtuoso yowled in response and skidded off to the side, only to have his exit route blocked by an elephant. Hey, what the hell? “You’re supposed to be on MY side! Elephants are peace-loving creatures, aren’t they!?” Surrounded on all angles by varying animals that look none too friendly, one can only imagine the relief Lute felt when the other members of the Pride came in out of nowhere.

“Y-yeah, I’m not gonna move, especially when that lion’s blocking my way,” The virtuoso nodded at Xandra’s advice and stared hard at the ground. Didn’t they say that looking straight into an animal’s eyes is a sign of aggression? That probably wouldn’t be a nice move for someone in his position. “I didn’t do anything, they just pounced on meeeee!” He wailed when the lion growled and jumped back, crashing into the barrels right behind him, “go away, I don’t like you either!”

Thankfully, Moira and Syed came to the rescue and practically formed a barrier between him and the approaching beasts. Though he was concerned about their wellbeing, standing in front of him against those sorts of animals, he couldn’t hide that he was a bit relieved. “Okay, um… HELP! We’re gonna get eaten here!” Lute did what he probably did best and hollered, jumping up and down with his hands cupped around his mouth in an effort to see past the hulking outline of the gorilla. Lucien would sure be useful in this situation if his summons could talk to other animals. "An animal tamer would REALLY be appreciated right now!!!"

Phillis Circus: The Big Top: Partioned Backroom

“Waa… what are they doing?” Estelle asked, her lips pursed into a tight pout. “Where are they going? That was Trixie and Lucien, wasn’t it?”

Estelle’s arms quickly folded across her chest, as she leaned her weight onto one side of her body to emphasise her pouting. Along with her pursed lips, her cheeks puffed up in a familiar manner to Trixie’s own whenever the prankster got cross. Estelle had been pretty nice and polite and enthusiastically waved when she saw the duo from across the curtained room, but the pair had vanished as soon as they saw them. That wasn’t particularly friendly, was it?

Unfortunately, even though Estelle had suggested their disguises to Aria, she was too dense to actually remember them and connect the dots with them and the reason for Trixie and Lucien’s panic. In her mind, she just connected it to being rude.

“Hmph!” Estelle muttered. “Let’s see what those two are doing, and if they’ve found out anything!”

“Ah… wah! Estelle! Wait!” Before Aria could warn or protest, Estelle began walking forwards, directly into the proverbial lion’s den, and in the middle of the bevy of circus performers. Aria hurried after her, trying to stop her friend as well as make sure she didn’t step out of the boundaries of her illusion, but this was too much, too soon…!

Flipping off one of the trapeze rings and gracefully landing on the balls of her feet again with a sharp, delicate pivot back again, the blonde tressed acrobat atop the tightrope outstretched her arms to secure her balance and watched over the rest of the room’s occupants with a quiet gaze, taking it all in as she silently monitored the rest of the performers as usual, making sure everyone was practicing as they should. Naturally, her eyes fell atop the two curious and unfamiliar clowns running across the room. Isabella said nothing, merely quietly watching, and continuing her practiced routine across the rope, cartwheeling and dancing further along it to keep up with the twosome.



“Es…telle!” Aria continued, gasping a hushed whisper as she tried to call her friend to stop her. Her eyes ran across the room of performers. Some hadn’t noticed them, but others closer to them on the ground floor began to look at them like Bella had, wondering what the two clowns were doing. “You need to wait righ-ah!”

Estelle finally stopped in her tracks, surprised by the sudden shriek from behind her. Turning in confusion, she saw the clowned façade Aria lying on the floor, and a new pair of people having emerged from a side entrance in-between the curtains, accidentally having collided into the illusionist. One of the two, a blonde haired girl with a large floppy magician’s hat and a dark matching robe, rubbed the arm which had smacked into Aria.

"Ooph! Heeey! Watch where you're--”

“Tammie, don’t tell me you walked into someone again.”

From beside the magician girl stood a man in his late twenties, one hand ringed around Tammie’s, the other clutching onto his pained stomach from where it had suffered a rough climb over a particularly pointy metal fence not a short time earlier. Dressed from neck to toe in a form fitting black and violet outfit, the man wore dirty blonde, dishevelled locks and a pair of red tinted goggles draped around his neck. Estelle and Aria instantly recognised the pair as the two who had been sitting on one of the ferris wheel’s main support beams, having been firmly entrenched in… in…



“You okay, ma’am?” Max asked, letting go of Tammie’s hand for just a second to offer it to Aria. The other firmly remained clinging to his stomach.

Phillis Circus: Animal Cages

“Okay, um… HELP! We’re gonna get eaten here!” Lute’s shrill pitched yelp escaped into the air. Just in front of him, a glimmer twinkled in Moira’s eye.

"I wrestle bears for a hobby.” She hissed. A slight smirk crept up her lips at the thought of the challenge ahead. "Bring it. Nobody's touchin' my mate on my watch."

"An animal tamer would REALLY be appreciated right now!!!" Lute utilised the abilities of his and his familiar Delilah to amplify his shout as loud as he possibly could, hoping against hope that his desperate plea could reach the ears of someone who could help. Xandra, from behind the perimeter of the encircled animals also turned her head sharply from side to side, whilst keeping a wary eye on the dangerous beasts. A part of her wanted to jump into the fray as well, to protect Lute just like Moira and Syed did… whilst another part kept her back. A part that made her feet remained rooted to the ground. She told herself it was to protect the civilian, Eric, but… that wasn’t simply it, was it?



“OH MY GOD!!” Eric’s voice loudly shot out above the group, even above that of Lute and his amplified voice. “WHAT IF THEY ATE MY NIECE?!”

And it was with that that all of the animals moved at once. A flurry of limbs, paws, fur and teeth launched forwards at all angles in unison. Bears, pandas, rhinos, gorillas, giraffes, lions, elephants, panthers and more… moving at a speed far too quick to avoid or resist. One on one, Moira might have stood a chance at knocking back and keeping at bay. But all at once…!

A loud crash echoed again throughout the circus. Locked with horrified grimaces, Xandra and Eric stared in dismay at the carnage that laid before them, and the savagely torn and shredded bodies of their three companions and the grisly fate that had overtook them…

As each of the animals about them, pinning them to the ground, affectionately licked their hands and faces.

“St-ha, ha- stop- ha! HA! HAHA! Stop that, you shits! Hahaha!” Moira’s body wobbled to and fro as the lion and bears pinned her to the ground and tickled her most sensitive areas with their tongues. Lute and Syed too were completely trapped and left helpless, reduced to a giggling fit by the assortment of animals atop them. The sparks that accidentally shot off from Syed’s body didn’t faze the rhino’s tough hide whatsoever.

“What… what are they doing?” Eric asked, his eyes blinking in disbelief as he towered over Xandra’s shoulder.

And then both of them were shocked by the sound of a big, burly voice in a foreign accent belonging to a large, muscular man towering over both their shoulders.



“DAHAHAHA! Aren’t they all so precious?” Abram laughed jovially, patting both Eric and Xandra’s shoulders in a mighty slap that could only be defined as a little too friendly.

“Ah… ow…” Eric winced in pain.

“GREETINGS, LITTLE FRIENDS, AND WELCOME TO BIG, MIGHTY FUN CIRCUS!” Abram laughed, his moustache bristling and his mighty pecs rippling. “These be all Abram’s children, and they look happy to see you! Don’t be scared! They no bite!”

Phillus Circus-Big Top

Aria peek around the curtain in fascination, watching as the performers rehearsed their acts in preparation for the show that night. Now she was really hoping that they would get a chance to see the performance after the job was done; it would be so fun, not to mention that some of the guys were actually pretty cute. She stifled a chuckle, but when Estelle flailed besides her she turned in time to see a familiar prankster looking rather spooked before whipping shut the curtains. Was that Lucien behind her?

“Ah… wah! Estelle! Wait!”

She tried to stop Estelle from marching into the ring, but unfortunately the girl moved too fast and she had to quickly follow after. She couldn't imagine how suspicious two clowns skittering across the training ring looked, and she really didn't want to know. From the number of stares they were getting, however, she was sure that they were garnering much more attention than they were wanting.

"Estelle! You need to wait righ- ah!"

Someone slammed into her from the side, but luckily she was able to hold onto her magic this time. Looks like all that training was paying off after all. She sat up, rubbing her behind on which she had landed.

[/i]“You okay, ma’am?”[/i]

She blinked up at the two people, rather surprised to see that they were the two who were... She snuck a glance at Estelle, inwardly grinning when she realized that the girl had suddenly stiffened. Clasping the offered hand she lifted herself up before taking a step back. Hopefully they wouldn't be able to notice that they weren't regular performances now that they were so close; hopefully the clown makeup would take care of that.

"Ah, yes, I'm fine." She held up her hands with a smile, trying to seem nonchalant. "Should've watched where I was going." She eyed the hand on his stomach, wondering whether to ask about whether he was alright but she was hoping to not get caught into a long conversation. They didn't have any backup stories and while they could make one up on the spot it would be full of holes, especially if they had been at the circus for a long time. "I apologize and uh, I really need to get going." She stepped back, amicable smile still on her face and nudged Estelle towards the curtains where Trixie and Lucy had disappeared behind. "Excuse us please~"

Phillis Circus - Animal cages
Moira couldn't help but squirm under the animals' unrelenting licks. "Argh, fuck off!" she laughed. The little shits had figured out that she was ticklish behind her knees! ARGH!

Although she did better than her partner. Syed looked borderline catatonic, staring with wide, horrified eyes at the horn of the massive rhino which stood over him. How was he not dead? How was this thing not at least crushing him? What... what was going on?!

Until it started licking him too, and it turned out Syed was pretty much ticklish all over. Welp. He tried his best to recoil from it all, sparks jumping up all over as he gasped for breath through his laughter, but the rhino just wasn't fazed. He couldn't think straight, he couldn't concentrate. This... was probably the most surreal moment in his entire life.

Which at this point was saying something.

“GREETINGS, LITTLE FRIENDS, AND WELCOME TO BIG, MIGHTY FUN CIRCUS! These be all Abram’s children, and they look happy to see you! Don’t be scared! They no bite!”

Moira turned her head towards the noise, which was about as much as she could do at this point. Only to be greeted by the sight of... possibly the most attractive man she had seen in ages. The world seemed to slow to a standstill as her eyes drifted down to those tensing pecs. Look at them. Just look at them.

She could almost hear the sound of a harp chiming in the background. Dis guy.

The berserker blushed ever so slightly behind her freckles, becoming somewhat lost in her own world. Now this guy was a man's man. Taming vicious beasts with his bare hands, the somewhat sexy accent. She couldn't help it. "Well... hello," she said loudly over the contented noises the animals were making, her voice subconciously a little smoother than usual as she started batting her eyelashes. As she lay pinned to the floor in not the most attractive manner. "Name's Moira. I'm single."

Syed made an odd strangled noise in protest to her words, now feeling brave enough to gingerly pat the rhino's horn with his one free hand in his poor attempt to get it off him. It was the best he could do when he could barely even breathe through the tickle-laughter.

Morris: Circus

“Who’s the cutest panda? WHO’S THE CUTEST PANDA!? Yoouuu are!” In contrast to his previous actions earlier, the virtuoso was now enthusiastically rubbing his cheek against the nearby panda’s head. It let out a soft grunt and bumped its nose against his cheek. “Awwww, you like me dontcha? I like you too!” Who thought that this circus would be a petting zoo as well?

From her place, Delilah had no choice but to watch and sigh as Lute cooed at the panda whom he had now nicknamed Pandu. ‘Sometimes I think you’re bipolar. Terrified of shit one second, cuddling it the next,’ She muttered. The virtuoso, true to her observation, was oblivious to her remark now that the elephant had its trunk resting down on his head like a scarf.

“DAHAHAHA! Aren’t they all so precious?”

“Yeah, theyyy areee!” Lute sat up and proceeded to intone ‘squish squish squish’ noises under his breath as he poked the elephant’s trunk as it was now ruffling his hair. “Hi, Abram! And, uh-,” He noticed the odd look Moira had on her face and stared at her. Oh wait, could she be…? Oh. Ohhhhh. Yeah, better not intrude. “Hey Syed, you think you can get up? Xan, sir Eric, could you, uh, help us?” The virtuoso poked his head over Pandu’s head at their other companions and waved. While he was doing so, Pandu bumped his shoulder with a paw and the young man turned to look at the ground. Apparently he fell on a bunch of… leaves? Is this bamboo? He did crash into some barrels earlier… Lute pulled it from the ground and offered it to the bear, who grunted appreciatively and sat down on the ground, allowing him enough space to stand up and look about. Pandu was, for the most part, now more engrossed in its meal.

Phillis Circus: Big Top - Partioned Backroom

"You okay, ma'am?"

"Ah, yes, I'm fine. Should've watched where I was going. I apologize and uh, I really need to get going." Aria stepped back, amicable smile still on her face and nudged Estelle towards the curtains where Trixie and Lucy had disappeared behind. "Excuse us please~"

"Wait a second, you!" the girl from behind Max piped up, pointing an indignant finger at the two clowned guilders. "Who are you gals, 'n what're ya doing here?" She placed both hands on her hips. "You don't look familiar at all. You new?" She gasped. "Oh, you must be new! Huh, they're new, right, Maxie-Moo?" And before Estelle and Aria could react, Tammie linked arms with Aria and pulled her close. "I'm Tammie, what's your name?"

"Ohhh Tammie - wait a sec - they're uh, they're with me."



The firebreather had suddenly spoken up, catching the quad's attention immediately. He chuckled with a tinge of nervousness as he approached them. "Yeah, they're new, they're new. Um - Sammie brought them innnn... just this morning! And right now, they're actually, uh - supposed to help me with something. To test something. You know. For tonight's show."

Tammie raised a brow at Crispin. "Like what?"

"You'll see it tonight! It'll be awesome! The sibs, they'd love it! Hah - hahaha! Haha, haaaa..." He went from a jovial expression to one of sudden remorse, now looking down to the side. "Can we please get back to our rehearsal now. They were already late with coming here."

The magician girl pouted her lips - "Hmmm..." - then gave the firebreather a double thumbs up. "Okay! Sounds good!" Her tone of voice dropped an octave, as her thumbs up turned into finger pointing again. "But you better show it to me before the show starts tonight! Anymore screwups from you and I will not hesitate to--"

Crispin's expression lit up again, smiling wide and proud. "Thank you, thank you, and thank you!" With a dumb faux bow, he gripped onto both Estelle's and Aria's wrists (the burnt fire stick still in one hand) and dragged the duo along with him into a nearby room, blocked off with a curtain like the others. He went further down the rooms, despite whatever protests the girls may or may not have given, until he reached a dead-end private room, with its three walls decorated with various equipment and costumes. Of course, a mirror stood at the end opposite to the entry curtain as well.

Once inside, Crispin dropped the girls' wrists and turned to face them, panting heavily before straightening himself up and catching his breath. He chucked the stick behind him. "Okaaay, so you two are new, right? Did Sammie hire you, or did she hire you?"

---

Tammie stood by, watching as the curtains Crispin dashed through fluttered back into place. She pouted playfully at this, crossing her arms now that they were all out of sight. "Oh, boo. That sucks. I'm never gonna get to hang out with the newbies at this rate." She then stretched as she turned around, facing Max and the rest of the practicing performers behind her. "Ah well, back to work I guess! ... ... Heeeey, everyone?

"Where's tonight's star?"

---

Phillis Circus: Big Top - Eastern End

"Um... why aren't they coming after us?"

Trixie and Lucien both blinked at one another then shrugged. "Eeeyeah, let's go before they catch us again..." The prankster wandered over by the exit curtain they came through. She tugged it open to peer outside only to spot performers approaching the tent from outside. Immediately she closed it and turned back to Lucien. "Oh omelets, we can't go out! Um, um - Lucy, quick, this way!" Trixie was not taking no for an answer - she did not want to get caught a second time.

The duo took off to the next room over, and into the next and next, until they were met with a long corridor. "Ooh," Trixie squeaked in a whisper, "Maybe this leads to a different way out!"

They continued running down it - only for Trixie to halt suddenly, throwing her arm out to the side to stop Lucien abruptly as well. Her nose twitched. "Someone's coming, someone's coming!" she squeaked again, looking back to Lucien with frantic eyes. There were no other rooms within reach aside from the ones on either end of the corridor. "Eee! Um, um, um! Hide, hide!"

The options for that were few. However, there were some metal shelves lined along parts of the wall behind them. While some had boxes, blankets, and the like, the spaces on the bottom of a particularly large shelf was vacant. Trixie quickly huddled Lucien inside, no matter how uncomfortable, and flopped a large blanket over them, pulled from the shelf above them. Once it covered them, she shifted it to the side to make more folds and creases.

Soon enough, footsteps passed by, and a voice murmured to himself.



When he passed out of the corridor and into the next room, Trixie remained where she was, holding onto Lucien as well. "...you think we're okay now?" she whispered.

---

Vance continued outside of the big top through the entrance Trixie and Lucien had come through. Immediately the performers who were making their way to the big top stopped and stepped to the side to allow the man through. He waved them away with a flick of his wrist before carrying on forwards - towards the animal cages. Without hesitation or even batting an eye towards the guilders all around him, he strode right up to the big laughing man - completely ignoring whatever flirtation was going on between Abram and Moira.

"Abram," he said, "The others are currently preparing for tonight's performance. Perhaps you could assist with setting up the center stage."

A semi-collab with Rexy-woo



Phillis Circus: Big Top

Estelle pulled her wrist sharply from the boy’s grip as soon as they reached a stop, retracting it close to her chest and gingerly rubbing her wrist. The strange and mildly creepy man had gripped Estelle’s wrist in the same hand as the one holding his burnt out fire stick, making the entire escort somewhat less then pleasant.

She looked up, eyeing the man with narrow, suspicious eyes. He looked familiar… but from where? Was it a good thing, or a bad thing? Who on Ddaear was he, what was his business and… where had he taken them?

Estelle inspected their surroundings, her eyes gazing over the brightly coloured curtains enclosing the space off from everywhere around, and the general privacy of the area, including the mirror set in one corner beside the walls decorated with equipment and costumes. This… this certainly looked incredibly weird. What was this guy’s deal? What did he want with them? Did he… did he manage to guess who they were, and what they wanted? Or was it something else, something as equally sinister or-

"Okaaay, so you two are new, right? Did Sammie hire you, or did she hire you?"

“…hire us?” Estelle’s face scrunched up tightly as she looked at Crispin with an unamused expression. “What do you mean by that? Are you some kind of pervert or something?” The swordswoman’s fist rose high in the air above him. “If you’re planning on trying something to us mister, you’re in for a rude awakening, because we’re not just going to sit back and take whatever disgusting, creepy things you’ve got in mind you sick whacko-”

“Woah woah WOAH!” Crispin’s hand waved frantically in the air between himself and the two clowns. “It’s nothing like that, I swear! I, I, I… just… y’know...”

“Know what?”

“Did you join the circus, or did you join the circus?”

BAM

“What the butt was that for?!” Crispin yelped as he rolled about on the floor like an infant, his hands nursing his sore, reddening cheek. A small wisp of steam rose from Estelle’s fist.

“C’mon, Aria, let’s get out of here…”

“Nononono wait don’t leave me, don’t- yow!!”

The hand that had been waving up in the air to stall Estelle and Aria suddenly met the ground again in a loving embrace as Estelle stomped it on her way to walking away from Crispin’s ‘private room’.

“Oh my mom’s going to kill me…” The poor youth sobbed.

Phillis Circus: Animal Cages

Eric and Xandra watched from a distance, the helplessness with which their companions so cruelly and horribly suffered beneath Abram’s animals and their maniacal torture. Honestly, it was excruciatingly hard to bear watching… especially Moira’s face and the strange expressions in which it was contorted. A mixture of laughter from the animals’ tickling and her attempts to appear sexy towards Abram did not make a pretty combination.

“Now Sasha! Olga! Elana! Let our guests be able stand again. They no need bath no more. Except maybe small runty guy. Is good joke, da? Ha! Ha! Ha!” Abram jovially laughed, walking over towards where Lute laid and scooping him up quickly and plopping him back on his feet, slapping his back with a hearty smile and almost launching him back down onto the ground.

“You guests all be here for grand circus show, da? It be most amazing show of all. Not one to be missed! Grand highlight, and is where Abram and his girls be performing! You be coming, da?” Abram stroked his moustache with one gigantic finger, and grinned.

Suddenly… footsteps approached from behind, surprising Abram and making the beefy, muscular man turn on the spot.

"Abram," Vance said, addressing the man before waiting for any pleasantries or other acknowledgement. "The others are currently preparing for tonight's performance. Perhaps you could assist with setting up the center stage."

“Oh, Vance! Humblest apologies! Abram got briefly distracted. He’ll be going to Big Top right now! Helping set up is no big problem whatsoever!” Abram laughed over and over again, flicking his hands towards his animals and pointing his fingers towards the tops. Unanimously, all of them obediently obeyed and began to slowly saunter their way towards it. Abram placed his hands on his hips and nodded in satisfaction.

A short chuckle escaped Vance’s lips, as the ringmaster continued his walk. He patted Abram’s broad back, then took a sly step out of the burly man’s reach as he attempted to do the same in return, knowing just how uncomfortably powerful the Beast Tamer’s pats could be. The man continued his walk throughout the circus’ grounds, to round up any other straggling members of the performers and escort them to the Big Top.

“I humbly apologise, friends,” Abram bowed deeply in front of Moira, Syed, Lute, Xandra and Eric. “But Abram must be going now. Much to do and work, da? Hope you all have fun time at circus. Main performance be starting in a short while… still sometime to relax and have fun around circus before it starts, but you no miss big performance, da? Much regret if you do!”

With that, the giant Abram laughed again, and turned to walk off, in the direction of the Phillis Circus’ largest tent, leaving the quintet behind to stare in silence. Finally, Eric blinked himself free of his dazed reverie, and began to walk forwards again, his eyes darting between the fanciful, multi coloured tents. He still needed to find his missing niece!