The rag tag group made it's way to the ferris wheel next. Reyna had always loved that ride; it wasn't too fast, it wasn't too high, it was just right. It was kind of hard to admit to herself, but she was having a very good time already, much more than she would have with the other girls or even alone. She kept her eyes forward, looking at the large blinking contraption that was their destination. The other woman came by her side and spoke kindly, "I want to apologize. I made a snap judgement earlier, based on the fact that you looked away from my son, and assumed you were just like a majority of this town is. Judgmental, despite the circumstances. I should know better myself, but...when it comes to Jackson, I'm...a bit blind. So. Sorry. I'm Amy" A sense of uneasy swept over Reyna as Amy finished her sentence, but she returned a smile. Her head bounced in a nod, the mass of curls bobbing along as she did. "I'm sorry if I offended you or Jackson. I don't blame you for being defensive over your son, I-I'd do the same too. I was probably just spacing off as usual." she lied, pausing, "I'm Reyna by the way, it's nice to meet you Amy." she mentioned. That she hadn't lied about. She was glad she had spoken up on the bus to the group. Her lips parted again, wanting to spill her guts to the woman, to explain everything- but she couldn't. The group reached the ferris wheel and Reyna pulled a ticket from her roll and handed them to the worker as the group started to get into the small line.

"Because Albino isn't exactly something kids really hear about. Most enjoy the rumors of a ghost or vampire coming to murder them in their sleep." Alver answered the mother of the group, as he gingerly took back his coat and slipped it back on. As he watched the two girls talk, he followed after Aaron, pausing only when he saw the little event that transpired between Aaron and some older guy. The pale boy was unsure what was going on between the two, but Aaron didn't seem comfortable. Still, Alver probably should pry and ask about it so he let it lie as he got into the line for the Ferris wheel. Looking up at the large wheel like rideable contraption. Frowning ever so slightly as his lavender eyes stared at it. He didn't like vehicles in general, and he had never been on some carnival ride. Only heard of them in books and such. Usually used as some romantic means in romance novels. Which he didn't quite get, since the bloody thing didn't look anything but romantic. Still, he felt he needed to at least try it at least once. So after getting his ticket and it was his turn to board, he had to duck under the door and crouch a little to avoid hitting his head. Sitting down in a seat, his hands gripped tightly to the seat as if to hold on for dear life on the handle that was braced in front of him. It felt like this was a trap... But he supposed it was just to keep riders safe.

Amy smiled at Reyna, glad to have her now. Now, it was only the Albino guy she needed a name for. Even if it was just one night, she liked having a name for people. She made sure she had everything, Jackson eager to get moving. She saw Reyna about to speak, and then stop. SHe didn't press. They all had their secrets, she supposed. Amy began to follow Aaron, with Galahad and Jackson. Jackson still stared about eagerly, taking everything in, and Amy decided that it was worth what could be considered crankiness tomorrow, to give him this. And how fortunate to have someone so interested in him, so happy to mess around with him here. Amy wondered, toyed with the idea, of asking if Aaron wanted to maintain a friendship with him. Or was that too weird? As they seemed to stop, Amy looked about, seeing that Aaron had pretty much crashed into someone. She frowned at the man's comments, and simply stared back at him when he looked over the group, Galahad barking. As the man walked away, taking a dig at Aaron, Jackson opened his mouth and yelled out "Meanie!" causing Amy to giggle. As they reached the Ferris Wheel, Amy tied Galahad up, knowing he wouldn't do well on the ride, and gave the attendant two tickets, following the others on board. She chose a corner, and before Jackson could sit, she had him on her lap, a tight grip on him for the moment, but he still clutched the side, and looked out with wonderment.

Aaron climbed in with the others with a smile, still feeling amused by Jackson's small but effective zinger at Dr. Saunders. Seeing that the pale guy was clutching his seat like a life raft, Aaron made a mental note not to rock the ride. After they were all inside, the ride operator closed the doors and double checked them. Soon, they were all moving lazily skyward, the ground getting farther and farther away. Jackson was looking wide-eyed at the scenery below them, and the sight of him made him feel like a kid again. Feeling a little whimsical and not caring who knew it, Aaron whistled a couple of bars from Giants in the Sky. It seemed appropriate. As they neared the top, Aaron decided to stare down at the world below them along with Jackson. The people seemed so small. They also didn't seem as rude and nasty from way up here. Up here they were just people...whose insults wouldn't reach their little group no matter how much they shouted. There was a certain serenity up in this moment, and Aaron wanted to be able to remember it. Searching the floor of their group's compartment, Aaron noticed a penny. No doubt left by a someone who had been contemplating throwing it off the ride. He picked it up and shoved it into his back pocket, deciding to put it to better use. Peeking out of the ride again, Aaron saw in the corner of his eye one of the other gondolas near them. In it was a couple kissing. Aaron looked away quickly, face turning red. He had forgotten ferris wheels were popular make-out rides. He started to think about the people on the ground again, and about Dr. Saunders. Saunders acted like people like Aaron shouldn't exist. As if he wasn't complete. As if he was lying, or needed to prove that he was the way he was. Nearly every question from the man was a test. 'How do you know if you've never experienced it?' 'Why are you giving up on yourself so early?' 'Is there some reason that you choose to be this way?' He frowned at the memory at that last one. Choice had nothing to do with it. Saunders wasn't the only one. The guys on the bus, the jerks picking on Reyna, not to mention the assholes who messed up the pale guy's coat and payed the price. Aaron had no doubt that Amy had caught her fair share of insults and judgements. The thought made him sick, especially for the kid's sake. No one should grow up having to see their mother be ridiculed. Suddenly Aaron turned to the rest of the group, not sure why he was asking such a forward question. He just had a feeling they all felt the same way. “Am I crazy, or is this town...not right? It's like everyone in it are...” Aaron remembered Jackson, and censored himself. “...meanies.”

Reyna crawled in with the group with a smile on her face, she sat on the outer seat next to the door. Looking to the group she shook her head softly. What a group. Jackson caught Reyna's gaze as she watched him look out into the world with such wonderment and excitement that only a child could. Tears began to form in her dark almond eyes as she quickly turned away from them and looked outside onto the fair as the powerful ride raised steady and slow up into the night's sky. She was just fine. Tears didn't last long with her, especially in public. Turning back she looked towards the three, studying them carefully. The pale boy looked terrified and Reyna felt bad for him. Perhaps he had been afraid of heights. A quiet chuckle escaped her lips. "How can a boy so tall be afraid of heights?" she thought to herself as the silence between them had been interrupted by Aaron. “Am I crazy, or is this town...not right? It's like everyone in it are...” Aaron paused, “...meanies.” Reyna cleared her throat, before speaking. "I think there are a lot of good people in this town, just misguided." Reyna truly believed this in it's whole entirety. She had been bullied by friends and family a like- but she still had good faith in them. She crossed her ankles over themselves. She hoped they didn't think she was naive or childish for her thoughts.

Continuing to cling to his seat, the tall pale man looked out the window, watching as as the mechanism raised them higher from the ground. Despite how uncomfortable he was with vehicles in general, including carnival rides, he didn't say anything or complain and just tried focusing on the pleasant view they had. Listening to Aaron whistling a tune, the lavender eyed man took a deep breath to calm his nerves. As Aaron suddenly asked a question about how this whole town was pretty much a bunch of assholes and the church girl spoke how 'misguided' they were, Alver couldn't help but give a grunt in response. In his opinion, misguided could just mean they are a bunch of idiots. "...Seems that way.... Their 'misgiided' ways seem to enjoy looking on those who are different. Apparently doesn't matter if it's by looks, personality or just who you are.. If it's off the norm, you might as well be considered rats that they want to use mousetraps on to get rid of them." Alver answered bluntly, his light eyes looking down at the land below. Watching as people scurried about in their own business.

Amy held Jackson lightly with one hand, knowing that Jackson wouldn't fall, but ready to grip him tight. Just in case. She took a few brief moments as they rode the Wheel to study her companions. Her eyes were drawn to Reyna, who although Amy couldn't be sure, appeared upset. She caught her looking away from Jackson, and Amy looked to her son. Despite the circumstances of his conception, she wouldn't change having him for the world. She kissed the top of his head, and looked back to Reyna. She reached out and took one of the younger girls hands, giving it a quick squeeze, before returning her hand to the light grip around Jackson. Jackson looked about, at the others as well, and then wriggled out of her grip. He trotted over to the pale boy-and just when would she get his name?-and happily climbed up on the seat, with a little bit of difficulty as his short legs squirmed for purchase. And then Aaron asked the question. Amy looked out the Ferris Wheel, listening as the others answered. "It's not so much if you are against the norm. Its...if you challenge the...norm. Its if you challenge the religion that this town is obsessed with...then you are considered wrong. It just seems that this town is uneducated, in the...realness of the world" She looked back to the group, eyes automatically falling on her son. "It doesn't matter to me. But I know it will effect how people see him"

Aaron listened to the responses of his carnival companions. As soon as they answered, he felt slightly embarassed, though not for any public shame sort of reason. Asking that kind of question just wasn't in his nature normally. Most of the time he was a bit of a child, thinking that everyone was good in their core and that it was just their teenage years causing them to act like jerks. With this group though, he had started thinking differently. Or maybe just thinking in general. So when Reyna gave her answer of good people being misguided, Aaron was silently admonishing himself. She was right, or course. There's was no reason to generalize an entire town full of people, each with different minds, personalities, upbringings and goals. Judging an entire population was just as wrong as how they were treated sometimes. Though, Aaron realized that the pale guy was right, too. Some people in this town were acted like jerks, plain and simple. Even the adults had their moments, like with Dr. Saunders. And some of the teachers. Maybe some people just never grew out of their jerk phase. Maybe some people just didn't know how to be decent people. Then, Amy offered her opinion on the matter, about challenging the norm and the faith of this town. That had merit too, religion probably played a big part of it. Not that religion made people ignorant, just about every group on the planet has their share of thick-skulled and hateful people. But with a town built on the foundations of their faith, where religion played such a big part in everyone's lives, it was bound to attract some crazies. When Amy mentioned Jackson and how some people saw him, it made Aaron sick again. Childhood was everything, not to mention the responsibility having to raise him in a sea of ignorance. Aaron never thought of himself as chivalrous and he still didn't, but everyone needed some help. Or at the very least, a friend. He made a mental note to ask Amy something when they were done with the festivities for the night. “I feel like it's about intent, too.” Aaron said as their seat drew closer to the ground again, bringing them back to Earth and away from their sanctuary in the sky. “People can say and do awful things with the best intentions. My folks are like that. They just want me to be happy, and they think that the only way I can be happy is if I conform to their idea of what makes people happy. But that's not what I want. I have my own ideas...” His thought trailed off. Aaron was silent for a moment before whipping his head towards the pale guy, asking, “Okay, just what heck is your name?”

"I don't remember reading 'Shun thy albino' in the bible nor have much choice in the 'challenge' matter considering I'm born this way. Unless I want to do the other thing that they look down upon, which is dying the hair. Makes me wonder which they would prefer at this point." Alver grumbled at Amy's reply but resumed staring out the window. "But maybe it's just a whole bunch of different reasons or excuses. Maybe they just want to feel better about themselves by looking down on others remotely 'off' even just a little. Maybe they think they are showing pity, or maybe they really are just a bunch of... Sour apples." The pale man said before glancing his lavender gaze toward Aaron as he spoke once more. Perhaps intent was indeed another factor, he himself could sort of relate. His parents had brought him up distant to others, hiding in the shadows. They were trying to do what's best for him, and he knew they loved him... But they still treated him as 'different' and something unusual. Could he hate them for that when they treated him differently but still loved him? As Aaron questioned the taller male of the group of a name, Alver simply blinked thoughtfully before innocently grinning. "Mhmmm a lot of names. Vampy, pale guy/boy, beanstalk, Ghosty, Mr. Starlis." he mused before looking to the blonde. "Why do you want to know?" Alver asked, genuinely curious. After all, this was the first time anyone bothered asking. It seemed so odd now having to be questioned on it. Most instantly came up with some sort of nickname and just called him that whenever they saw him. As a child, he got mad at it, but now he simply didn't care anymore. To have someone actually ask though... It was odd. To him at least.

Amy sighed softly as the Pale boy seemed to evade the question about his name, when Aaron asked it. She had been pleased when Aaron had asked, but this was just disappointing. She gave a shrug, looking out the window, before looking to the pale boy. "For myself, it would be easier for me to refer you by a name, even if it isn't a real name, rather than something like "the pale boy" or the "albino". Plus, it's more respectful, and better than that" She shrugged again, her eyes drifting to Jackson as the boy began to grow restless. She rose smoothly, and lifted Jackson into her arms, moving easily to open window. She pointed out that from up here, you could see far, and Jackson eagerly began to look for their house. She indulged him in that, knowing that it would occupy him for a time. She looked back over her shoulder, and continued. "And beyond anythinng else, I like kknowing peoples names. I like finding interesting names, and I like being able to call people by their names. But if you don't want to give us your real name, just give us a fake name." She said, and smiled brightly, returning her attention to Jackson, as the young boy eagerly pointed into the distance, at a random house,"is that it, Mommy?" What was the harm in playing along? "It could very well be! I should have turned the christmas lights on, so we could see it" She had never taken the lights down, deciding that they had been too hard to get up, they could just stay up. It was merely just some colourful lights, but they had thrilled Jackson.

Aaron smiled wryly as the albino listed off the usual names he was called. 'Beanstalk'. Aaron whistled again, the cart they were sitting in was slowing down. “It would put us on an even footing, I guess.” Aaron ventured answering the pale guy's question, tapping his hand rhythmically on the window. “You know all of our names, but we don't know yours. Quid pro quo.” You tell me things, I tell you things. Quid pro quo, yes or no. Too many movies...Aaron thought as his mind recalled the quotes. “Plus, if you don't tell us your name, I'm just going to call you Boo Radley.” Too many books, too...Their carriage finally came to a stop and the ride operator let them out back onto the earth. Aaron stretched as he stepped out, looking around. He wasn't sure where to go next. He thought maybe it was someone else's turn to pick where they were going.

Alver listened to the Amy's and Aaron's words, humming a little thoughtfully, though he did raise a white eyebrow at the male blonde. Obviously not understanding the referance. Alver had never seen a movie, nor really anything to do with television. So he didn't get a lot of movie references. But at the 'Boo Radley' comment, he actually let out a soft chuckle in amusement. Mhmm not a bad comparison if one thought about it really.

"Alright then. My name is Alver Starlis. Scary man of the town." he joked before getting off the ride and looking around.

".....I do not have much experience in... Festivities." He admited as he tried to think of things people usually did at carnivals in books.

Reyna had kept her lips sealed tight for the rest of the ride after her comment. Her feelings we're probably a bit overwhelming and bias when she really thought about it. She had never had it as bad as these people, no matter what she thought. No matter what she had really gone through. No matter how deep her pain engulfed her.

Her head bobbed up and down softly with a quaint smile spread across her lips. The banter between both Aaron and the other boy was amusing, but Reyna agreed with Amy. It's easier when you know someone's name, even if they never would speak or see one another again after this night.

"Alright then. My name is Alver Starlis. Scary man of the town." he finally admitted and Reyna made a mental note to herself to remember it, if anything- for the night.

The group exited the cart together and stood idle for a minute and Reyna's eyes widened as she saw an array of food vendors across the way. "Can we grab something to eat?" Reyna questioned, eyeing several things she would like to devour; like the cotton candy that was being spun into light airy sugary clouds of multiple colors.

"Al...Al...Alve...Alvy!" Jackson tried the name out, stumbling over the pronunciation and finally giving up, looking slightly frustrated at it, but then pleased at himself for coming up with an alternative. Amy smiled, and took his head as they left the ride, retrieving Galahad from where she had tied him. "You ain't scary" he looked up at Alver with wide, trusting eyes, and smiled brightly, a wide, childlike grin.

Amy smiled, looking about for something else to do, and when Reyna asked about food, she debated the wisdom of giving a two year old Cotton Candy. A small amount couldn't hurt, but then, she couldn't have the cotton candy herself. Not without her insulin. And Jackson had yet to be tested for diabetes. So, perhaps the first time she gave him large amounts of sugar, shouldn't be in a carnival.

She looked down at Jackson, and once more thought a small amount couldn't hurt. "Food sounds good. If I could find something suitable for Jackson, that would be great"

Aaron dug the toe of his shoe into the dirt for no apparent reason, saying, “Food sounds good. I'm starving.” He peered at the concession stands around them, a strange mixed aroma of sugary treats, fried food and popcorn washed over him. Well, there was always the usuals: cotton candy, kettle corn, fried dough, and corn dogs. The stuff that usually caught his eye though was the weird 'only at a fair' type of food: chocolate covered bacon, bloomin' onions, deep fried oreos, and finally one he was actually interested in.

Aaron blinked away the twinkle in his eye as he announced to the group, “I'll meet you guys by that table.” He gestured to an empty table that stood a good distance away from the crowd traffic. “I'm gonna get me some gator.” With that he took his leave and strolled towards the alligator stand where, unsurprisingly, there wasn't much of a line.

“You wanna try some alligator?” The cook asked Aaron as he approached, shouting over the sound of sizziling reptile meat. The smell of the sauce the girl was working with was enough to keep Aaron interested in eating a green thing that lived in muddy water.

“Oh yeah. I've never had it.”

“You want it on a plate or a stick?”

The question tripped him up for a second before he thought, Oh, what the hell. Might as well go full on weird. “Stick. I wanna eat like a caveman.” He grinned at her, thoroughly enjoying his night at the moment. “Oh, and a small orange pop too.”

“You got it, hun.” She smiled toothily back at him, flipping the meat around and gathering the stuff she needed to make his food. It wasn't a long wait, and soon she handed him his stick and drink. As he pulled out his wallet to pay, she winked at him and said, “Your money's no good here, sunshine.”

“Oh...okay. Really?” Aaron looked up at her, surprised at generosity.

“Yep. Enjoy the gator.”

“Okay, thanks!” Aaron said, raising his gator stick in the air, as if he was tipping his imaginary hat. As he practically skipped over to the table, he stopped suddenly in his tracks, disturbed.

Wait, that wasn't...was it? Was she flirting?

Aaron looked back at the stand to try and get another look at the girl, but she was already back to work. He spun back again, blinking through the confusion.

Or was she just being nice? Yeah, probably. No big deal.

He shrugged it off and continued his trek towards the table, which was empty for now. Plopping himself and his impaled dinosaur meat at the table, Aaron eyed his food, wondering what everyone else had chosen to eat.

At the Priest's daughter's suggestion, the tall pale man nodded in mild agreement. Food wouldn't be so bad. Then he looked down to the little boy of the group who tried his best to pronounce Alver's name before simply settling on a nickname. Not really minding it and just finding the little boy quite adorable, Alver gave a soft smile and gently reached down and ruffled the boy's hair.

"You're a kind lad." he said before standing straight again as Aaron was the first to go and get something to eat, saying they should go and meet at the table.

It was odd, yet Alver felt a bit relaxed around these people he hardly knew. Most pretty much younger then him. Scanning the food stands for something to eat, he settled on a Cheesedog stand. It wasn't often one saw these things. A corn dog with the filling just cheese instead of meat. Though he did pause to watch Aaron to see how he faired. Alligator? Odd. But was more interesting was the fact the woman seemed to be quite kind toward the blonde boy. Alver couldn't help if it was a attempt to flirt, especially when someone of a business just gives away their profit. Then again, he wasn't a expert in relationships and he doubted things worked out in reality like they did in books.

Like everyone else, the woman at the stand with cheesedogs gawked at him, seeming unsure what to make of the the giant white man. Still, he asked for a Cheesedog and paid for it and she gave it to him gladly before he moved on and got some cotton candy as well. He liked sweets. Finding Aaron, the tall man sat down beside him, deciding to allow the females of the group to sit together.

It made girls uncomfortable to sit next to strange men right? Especially big ones.

Flicking his lavender eyes to Aaron, Alver hummed a little. "You're quite the charmer it seems." he mused as he witnessed Aaron's behavior before casually taking a bite of the Cheesedog.

Amy pursed her lips, studying the options available to eat. Something that Jackson wouldn't get everyday, but that wouldn't be a test of his sugar resistance. She walked down the stands, Jackson's hand curled around Galahad's collar, the toddler looking about, eyes wide, a gaping grin plastered on his face. It made Amy's heart swell with happiness, and she smiled.

Her eyes traveled over the stands once more. The corn dogs so popular at carnivals seemed to be the only choice. Alligator was not an option, at least not for her, and while the cheesedog did sound alright, she doubted Jackson would be interested in it without the meat. So she walked over to the stand, and got three corn dogs.

Almost as if he knew that he was getting something too, Galahad looked up at her eagerly with his bi-coloured eyes, that matched hers. He gave a small bark and she chuckled, holding out a dog to him. He immediately pulled it off the stick, and had it gone in seconds. Probably not the best food to give a dog, but tonight was a night to live a little. She led Jackson and Galahad, now licking his muzzle, to the table, where she tied Galahad's leash and settled Jackson in her lap when she sat down.

She took out his water bottle, and set it in his reach, before handing him the corn dog. He took as big a bite as his small mouth would allow, and then seemed to make exaggerated "Mmmmmm" Sounds. Amy smiled, and bit into her own corn dog. She studied the alligator. "Does that actually taste good?" She asked, one arm loosely holding jackson as she ate her corndog.

Cotton candy had been Reyna's choice of food that night, she didn't feel much like truly eating- so the sugar rush would have to suffice. Picking a bright blue one she paid the man with a smile, before ripping a piece off and slipping it between her lips. Melting slowly, she let out a soft sigh. Delicious.

Scanning the area she re found her group (They were not hard to miss) and rejoined them just as Amy sat down with her trio of corn dogs. Reyna gave a light chuckle watching Galahad take the corndog in one swift bite. Her eyes traveled across to Jackson as he too savored the corndog, delightfully making sounds to let us know that it was good.

"Does that actually taste good?" Amy asked Aaron.

Just noticing that he was eating something different than everyone else, Reyna raised her eyebrow. She had tried alligator before but it definitely wasn't something she'd go out of her way to get. She listened joyfully of the conversations going at the table while she plucked slowly at her cotton candy.

"You're quite the charmer it seems." Alver said to Aaron as he sat down next to him. Aaron could feel his face turning red at the knowledge that Alver had seen that little interaction with the gator girl. The man's strange lavender saw right through him.

“Not by choice.” Aaron mumbled, thought about it for a moment, then mumbled further. “...I mean, I didn't mean to...y'know...I-I think she has just being nice.” In an effort to stop his own embarrassed rambling, Aaron took a bite out of gator stick.

Rescuing him, Amy asked, "Does that actually taste good?" Aaron chewed thoughtfully, his eyebrows raising in slight surprise. “It's actually pretty good. It's...chicken-y, but chewier, like steak. Gamey.” He summed it up before realizing that he was talking while eating.

Peering at this strange little collection of people again, Aaron noted to himself that this night felt like a special moment in time. How long had all of them been living in this town together and yet never really spoke at length? The town wasn't that big, and yet they had never spent any time together like they had tonight. How many of them went to the same school he did, trudged through the same halls, walked over the same tile floor, hell, even shopped at his convenience store? And yet never once had they met properly. A gaggle of outliers brought together by a youth night and a request from a pastor's daughter. It felt prophetic, and it felt right.

Wanting to remember this moment as well, Aaron broke off a piece of the stick he was eating off of; one at the bottom, untouched by food, and stuck it in his pocket along with the penny from the ferris wheel. Curious, he eyed Alver's stained jacket and asked, “Do you always get treated like that? People throwing stuff at you?”

"Riiiiight. Though I don't many people with business stands that are fairly unpopular to give away food just to be nice. It's fine though, just means your naturally charming." the pale man said in a nonchalant manner as he took another bite of his Cheesedog, his lavender eyes watching Aaron before glancing around to examine people and the group members.

As the others soon joined them, the girls of the group sitting across from the boys, minus Galahand and Jackson, Alver listened as the mother asked Aaron about the gator. Whom prompty explained what it tasted like. By description, it actually made the pale man curious as he absently bit into a piece of cotton candy as he listened to Aaron talk. It was actually nice being with people. A odd thought the ghostly man believed would never cross his mind. Yet, these people seemed nice enough, it was too bad there wasn't more people like them.

It was then, Aaron asked Alver about more occurrences like the one earlier. The lavender eyes flicked to the blonde boy then to his stained shoulder.

"Yeah pretty much. If they aren't avoiding me in fear that I'll suck their blood or something, they usually do something like that. When I was little, it was mostly paint buckets, now it's paint guns, church crosses, garlic or food." he answered before taking another bite of his food. Chewing slowly, he swallowed and sighed a little before looking to the rest of them.

"What about you three? People always teasing you like that?" he asked.