((Aw. *hugs Maya*))

Nylat flicked her tail again, not saying anything, as Maya seemed to be a bit engrossed  in her own thoughts. When she laid down, the hybrid was unphased, and even closed her eyes contentedly. It had been a while since she'd actually had a chance to talk with Maya as a friend, rather than a conscience, and she felt that it was a shame that it had to have been on this subject. At Maya's simple request, she nodded a bit, and sighed.
"I was actually waiting for him--to apologise. It has been rough lately...I let my animal sides get the best of me. But I've had a chance to think. So I won't hold it against him."
She turned her head, opening one eye to let it rest on Maya.
"As long as you cheer up. With you being happy, its much easier for me. And you can't mope around for the rest of your life. You may not realise it, but you have an effect on everyone when you're upset."

((Mai gosh, I'm fail. I didn't post on the private. -Headesk-)) Dravius said nothing as Maya exited, looking into the wall opposite him. Sighing deeply, he set the drumstick on the snare, eyebrows furrowed. Dravius moved to the thin bed in the van, flopping down on it with a whoosh of breath. This day was just getting wordse as he picked up a black rubber ball and threw it at the ceiling, watching it roll away.

-------------------------

Break walked through the rain calmly, his violet eyes narrowed and cruel as he slunk towards the circus under a purple umbrella ringed with gold coins, jingling heavily. Spotting a girl flee from Wolfe's wagon, he smiled wickedly, brushing his white hair out of his face. Licking his lips with a black tounge of startling length, he crept forewards, watching the girl clamber up on top of another van.

Although that filthy animal next to her seemed frightening, she seemed broken and sad. Just the way Break liked people. Smiling wider, he put his foot inside the van's threshhold and vaulted his tall frame up, still managing to keep the umbrella upright. "Aww, did Wolfe break yout littlew heart?" Break cooed mockingly, gently stroking the blonde girl's hair, putting two fingers of the other hand on his lips.

[[oh gosh darn it Break. alert Yama of your presence... yesss.]]

"I... I don't really know. I'm not unhappy, it's just..." Spider paused, and took a breath, "I didn't know I had a sister." He watched Sh'Yama's sudden tense posture, and wondered how the woman could get any taller. But she somehow managed it, her back so straight you'd think there was a metal rod bolted to her back. "How should I react?"  He fidgeted with his sweater and stared at Kioko. "I don't know..." Was all he could say.

"Maybe... maybe we could go get some air? It's hard to think in all of this... crowded stuffiness." Spider stared at the door, wondering who this strange man was that was questioning his sister-- he was suddenly jealous that this stranger was getting more attention than he was.

- - -

Sh'Yama seemed visibly ruffled from Andrew's question. As if she were actually giving him attention on purpose! So arrogant. Snorting loudly, she pointed her nose in the air. "Heavens no." She said in response to Andrew. "I was just criticizing your behavior-- silently, might I add, and thinking of things of my past. You are so like many who instantly believe everything is about you. I just happened to be thinking, with my eyes looking in your direction." She turned appreciatively to Raphael.

"Yes, yes, the anti-social behavior! That is also what bothers me." It took an effort to cease speaking, and even then, she had to get one last sentence out. "But now, now it is a thing of the past! Eat your pancakes and there shall be no more strife between you and I." Turning a new plate. That is, unless he continued to be irritating. He just might find himself on the plate. She cleared her throat.

"I am Sh'Yama Blodwen, I am known by many names, but I am most fond of my real name. And "Wendy". And who are you?" She looked over her shoulder, suddenly worried that Spider might be upset he was ignoring him. He did look sad, but he was talking to Kioko... hopefully this man would stop questioning her so that she may speak to someone who was actually important.

- - -

Zinc had been talking to the wolfgirl, but she didn't seem to want to talk anymore. Not after the rain started. So he had taken to leaning under the eave of one of the vans, chatting idly with a performer. He wasn't yet aware of Sh'Yama's appearance, which was probably a good thing. Because he was aware of another. He had wandered pretty far from the food van, and he emitted a muffled snarl of shock and disgust as that-- that poof! That "Xerxes" walked by. Oh no, he wasn't going to let him start trouble again!

Furiously, he followed after him. He was disappointed that he was getting all wet and uncomfortable, but Zinc had good hearing-- and almost everyone in the circus knew what was going on with the precious butterfly girl and that stupid self-abusing idiot. And he, this... "man" was the start of all of it. Normally, Zinc looked out for himself, it was a good deal, not having to worry about other people. And he wasn't supposed to. But an aching heart made his heart ache and he wasn't going to let this buffoon drive the knife in deeper. He'd sooner cut his own head off.

"You! Get away from her, right now!" He wondered what resided in this fools nightmares. He wondered if he even slept. Zinc made a mental note to find the answer to these questions, and make sleeping as painful as possible for this jerk. It was pretty much the most he could do. Unless someone around here had a shotgun... in which case he could try to solve this problem in a much more violent fashion.

[[poor Spider. now Zinc has longer post time than he does. DDD;]]

"Ohhh, it's the cute little pirate." Break purred, looking down at Zinc with a slight snarl on his face. Break could tell that this one wasn't human, the stuff of nightmares. He still didn't want to let go of the broken girl, and he turned his face towards Maya, taking his hand from her hair and tracing her thin jaw.

"Why should I, dummkopf?" Break said with half-lidded eyes, spitting out the german word for idiot. That explained his slight accent, as he continued gently stroking the girl's golden hair. "Unless you plan to make me?" Break asked, a menacing note crepping into his smooth voice. He raised an eyebrow, hanging his bare legs over the edge of the van.

"Although I do not suggest it..." Xerxes trailed off, taking his long-fingered hands off of Maya long enough to make a generous hand gesture at the boogeyman below him. This pink-haired man was making him increasingly infuriated, with his self-justified proclimations.

Snarling slightly, Break went back to tugging lightly on locks of Maya's hair, purring, "You know, it isn't his fault. Even if you were the right gender, he would still keep you at a distance. Do you know why? Because he's mine..." His last sentence morphed into a low hiss, and his black tounge darted out licking his dark red lips.

Laughing loudly, so that it could be heard all over the grounds, Break moved away from Maya, sliding to the ground in front of Zinc. In fact, the laugh could even be heard from as far away as the food van.

"I'm Andrew Parker." He replied before standing up to throw his empty bottle of water away. "And I was just wondering... you seem to have taken some sort of... I wouldn't say 'liking' to me." He said as he dropped the bottle into the trash. He started to go back outside, feeling better and not liking the attention he was getting. "And no..." He stopped before going outside, his hand on the door, he wasn't going to respond but felt the need to do so.

"I don't believe anything is about me..." He looked out into the rain. "So, before you go and voice your opinions on my behalf.... you should learn a little about me first." He warned, stepping out into the rain. He was anti-social because she had spent his whole childhood trying to make his mother proud. And the only way to do that was to disappear, the reason he was 'annoying', 'bad', 'aggressive' was because after giving up on being invisible he acted out as a child. That being the only way to get his mother's attention that he so badly yearned for.

He was out in the rain once again, it rolled off of his leather outfit keeping his body dry and the exposed skin was instantly soaked along with his hair. He blinked, rain running over his face. For a few moments he just stood right there, letting the rain wake him up before he moved. He couldn't fall asleep... He crossed the grounds, walking carelessly through puddles as he went. 

He stopped when he heard a new noise, it sounded like laughing? He looked up, looking for the owner of the sound. He spotted the amusing male named Break that had left before. The one who was apparently causing some sort of trouble all over the circus that he hadn't bothered to listen to or get involved with. He just looked for a few seconds, not in the mood to watch for much longer, then continued on his way.

(( Sorry if its not raining anymore ^^ )) 

[[Ferro, Yama can't rip off Break's head until others have posted. My roleplay rules can't let me act without them. o-o
AND I LOLED! Zinc, not human, but a pink haired fruity pirate... the stuff of nightmares.]]

Andrew Parker. A simple name for a simply irritating person. She rolled her eyes at the word "liking" and was about to correct him, perhaps by saying she had an "unliking" in him, or perhaps "a profound and deep hatred bordering on tearing your limbs off". Negative emotions could be just as obsessive as positive ones. Whatever, she thought, that was enough attention for him.

Not even fat enough for a decent meal, either. "Heed your own advice!" She grumbled as Andrew left. "You speak such words, but do not give others the same treatment." She continued, once Andrew had left. Just like when someone has an argument, and the one says "shut up, everyone can have their own opinion!".

Because some how... that means anyone else's opinion is obsolete? If what the other person says is different from the others opinion... that is their opinion. Saying they need to shut up because everyone gets an opinion is unproductive and contradicts their argument. "And a hypocrite too!" She took on now an impression of Andrew's voice.

"And you seem to have taken some sort of liking to me. Because I am a special snowflake and the attention you're giving me couldn't be because you want to punch me in my stupid face, nooo, you must "like me"." It wasn't a very good impression, simply because her voice was so rich and deep, it sounded a bit odd for her to try and manipulate it into something a bit softer.

"Honestly. I don't "like" wussy pretty boys." She turned her attention back to Julian and Raphael. "You're much better candidates! What a silly man that Andrew is. It seems he distracted me...  I apologize for such behavior, and I thank you for your kind welcomes." Yama bowed again, and turned around to face Spider. "And, I am sorry dear... we have so much to catch up on and I am spitting like a cat at someone unworthy of my attention."

- - -

Pirate? What on Earth about him said pirate? What he was normally described as was far from "pirate"... unless of course a certain word was in front of pirate. Zinc thought that everyone believed this Maya to be weak, completely ruined by Dravius's little... "confession", but he had a feeling she'd rise up, and if he could be allowed the near-quote "more powerful than any of them could possibly imagine".

Zinc had faith in her. If only she had faith in herself. What was so special about that stupid boy anyway? As far as Zinc could tell he had a terrible hair cut, little regard for others, and was insufferably selfish without realizing it. And not to mention weak and stupid.

So many weaklings congregated here. Weakfest. The Wonderful Weakling Circus. He needed to get Spider out of here before he started moping about every little thing and writing bad poetry. 

This man was so disgusting. Zinc could just barf. Preferably in his direction, soiling his clothes. That would be amusing. Did Break find maggots frightening? He could put on a little show himself... what the painkiller did to his body was nothing compared to what Zinc could do to himself with his expansive imagination.

"I could, and you know, you don't scare me, stupid. Be as "big and threatening" as you want. All I see is a stupid overgrown child, with a dumb outfit. Your oh so evilness is so cliche I could file you for copyright infringement. And your comebacks are VERY lacking. Picking on little children might seem bad for a... let us say, ten year old, but here, you just look like a giant moron. And besides, I might knock you on your face again," He had a few more choice words planned for Break, but, decided to keep it to himself. There were ladies present.

Zinc grinned savagely at the memory of kicking Break in the head. That had been a feet. Literally. He had known a man that was 7'8", but that man had been an enormous, cuddly teddybear. Zinc never had a reason to kick him in the head. Trying it on this fellow was a new and wondrous experience.  Not everyone can say "hey, I once kicked a giant... in the head!" Add "he was a gay clown" to that sentence and you've got yourself an awesome conversation going.

Again Zinc made that "i'm going to puke" face. And started to really dislike people with picky preferences. "oh they're perfect in every way but they don't have the right equipment. );" Humans were insufferable. You wouldn't see Zinc getting picky about such a thing.

"Mine mine mine". He's just a big baby. He is a spoiled kid with a toy-- and though Zinc didn't really like this analogy, he figured it fit best, at the moment-- and it was a toy he didn't really like. But if anyone else tries to play with it it's suddenly his most favorite in the world.

He stared up at Break, gritting his teeth at his stupid horse laugh, daring him to try something. It had been awhile since Zinc pulled his nightmare voodoo-- scaring people was so pa.sse these days. Zinc flicked a drop of water from his cheek and glowered silently at Break. Was he trying to alert the whole Circus to his presence? Hopefully they would bring pitchforks this time.

[[it is amazing how i can post so much and accomplish nothing *thumbs up* and yeah. zinc's thoughts contain smilies.]]

He could help but chuckle, this was going to be fun. This... Sh'Yama whatsit had already filled the slot of his new source of entertainment though he'd only know her for an hour or so now. SHe had also filled the slot for 'annoying' but the amusement was almost worth the irritation.

"Why are women so difficult?" He asked himself as he went, going toward a random wagon. "I could almost say that I prefer men over them but then again the men around her act like women so whats the point?" Andrew spoke to himself as he went. He often spoke to himself, it kept the edge of insanity away from him. Kept him half a step ahead of it, as he danced around on the edge of some mental cliff.

He sighed, what was wrong with him lately? Images in his head when he thought, like back in the food van when he imagines himself jumping up and pointing at Yama. Or now when he imagined himself dancing on some cliff, he blinked. He had never had such visions before and they were annoying once he thought about it.

He walked up to the wagon he had got out of this morning and climbed back into it. He was the happiest he had been in a while to find that h=it was completely empty now and quiet. He went to a corner and sat down, letting his body relax. "Don't..... go to sleep." He reminded himself as he closed his eyes.  

"Well..." Kioko paused as she watched Spider playing with the hem of his sweater.  She always thought she would be ecstatic to find out she had a sibling somewhere in the world.  It had actually been a childhood dream of hers, to have someone who was as different as she was, who she could confide in and spend time around, without being treated like dirt.  Not that Kioko knew what finding a brother or sister was like in real life.  Maybe it was actually nerve-wracking.  Spider certainly seemed upset about it.  

"I don't know how you should act either," she continued.  "I don't have any siblings, as far as I know.  Maybe you're reacting the right way?  It's a pretty major thing to find a new family member, I think.  But if you want to step outside, I'll go with you.  I was going to go for a walk anyway, you could come with me."  

Before Kioko could get an answer, a mocking, hateful laugh drifted into the food van from somewhere in the Circus grounds, and the girls stomach twisted into a knot.  The malicious laughter reminded her of Break from the day before, and the unpleasant aura that seemed to surround him.  Remembering her own reaction to him, Kioko shivered slightly, and hoped no one noticed it.

"Um, yes you two probably do need to catch up, don't you?"  Kioko said hastily after Yama turned back to Spider.  Her unease was growing, and she wanted to get out of the van, away from everyone, so she could try to calm down.  "I'll give you and Spider some space, I don't want to be impolite and intrude on your reunion."  Kioko hurried out of the van, walking quickly, but without a destination.  She took several deep breaths, holding them for a few seconds before releasing them.

Some distance away from the food van, she began to calm down and walk more slowly.  Walking around the corner of one of the vans, Kioko stopped mid-stride when she realized one of the two men standing in front of her was the infamous Break, who appeared to be facing off with a tall, pink haired man.  "Oh no, no,"  she whimpered, hoping neither of them noticed her before she could turn around and leave.

((So much for it not getting worse. xD I was gonna have Raphael take some measures here... But I dun wanna take all the fun away from Yama meeting him. >3 Let's let Spiders sister have a go first. >D))

Maya smiled only fleetingly at Nylat, before looking off towards the sky. There was still a steady drizzle, though the clouds had lightened considerably. Maya closed her eyes again, listening to the hybrid in silence as she continued to speak. When Nylat turned her head to look at her, the slight movement it created caused Maya to look back at the hybrid. She blinked, then turned so that she faced away, the cloak falling to shade her face. "It's not that easy..." She mumbled under her breath.

The teen was just about ready to doze off when the sound of someone else clambering onto the van put a stop to that idea. She lifted herself onto her good elbow, the cloak falling from her head as she glanced over her shoulder. She shot up as soon as she realised who it was, her breath catching in her throat. Oh god, no. Of all times and places... Now?...

Maya flinched only slightly when Break touched her, any other movement being impossible due to the fact she was, yet again, fighting that rigid fear that seemed to settle in on her whenever this guy showed up.

She automatically moved backwards when Break touched her skin, and she felt, quite suddenly, very cold... Her ex
pression didn't change, though Breaks last sentence caused her to drop her eyes, desperately trying to ignore the fact he was still playing with her hair. When Break did finally slip off the van, Maya remained where she was, her eyes on the van roof. Talk about dealing a finishing blow more than once, it served to do nothing more than bring every freaking emotion back in full force... She looked worriedly at Nylat. Great...

~~~

Raphael sighed, dropping back into his chair and leaning his elbows on the back, closing his eyes for a moment. He glanced towards Yama and Andrew, watching them with careful eyes, he was quickly running to the end of his line... And that was saying something for him. With another sigh, he watched as Yama ranted, masterly, he thought, before glancing in Andrews direction when the boy left.

Julian had remained silent the entire time. He wasn't really one for crowds, and this was getting just a little irritating, not that he'd say anything about it. He was pretty sure his voice would probably make things worse, besides... He wasn't really all that in the mood for confrontation. There'd been too much of that in the past day. He was about to take himself out of the van, when a laugh that caused him to glance sharply at the van door stopped him in the process of moving away from the food selection. Almost immediately, his eyes found Raphael, the Ring Master's ex
pression had completely changed. It was more than clear he recognised that laugh.

Standing up, Raphael made his way to the door, turning to look over his shoulder. "Excuse me. I have something rather urgent I need to attend to," Turning on his heel, he strode straight out of the van, his face like a thundercloud. Alright... He'd expected Breaks return, but not quite this soon... He felt rather than saw Julian follow him, and paused when he saw Kioko, his ex
pression softening as he came to a stop beside her, Julian on her other side.

In one single glance, Raphael read the entire situation, taking one step forward and leaving Julian behind with Kioko. He was relieved to see everyone somewhat safe. Nylat would take care of Maya, and for now... Dravius wasn't present... It left him open to deal with Break. Raphael's only true weakness was the safety of his members, and once he'd established they're safety... Well. He was more than willing to face Break, violently, if need be. The right illusions, afterall, could quite literally kill... Drowning, for example... Or even an illusioned shot to the heart. Tricking the body to an early grave was not a hard thing to do, not really. Though admittedly, Raphael had no desire to kill people through manipulating their own minds... Though Break was quickly proving to be an exception. Of course, he could always just lock the guy in an unbearable agony for a length of time, or some nightmare that could quite literally bring on insanity.

"You must be getting desperate," He said, his stormy eyes on Break, "7 years without a single sighting, and I see you twice in two days, I should be honoured," He glanced at Maya and Nylat, then over at Zinc, before strolling into sight, his blonde hair shading his eyes. When he glanced up, a sickly sweet smile resided on his face, his eyes and voice however, harboured a deadlyness that easily matched Breaks. "Your really starting to grate on my patience, Xerxes,"

((You know, I'd say someone should change back into their happy pants.))

Break broke into a smalie at the end of Zinc's tirade, brushing his long hair out of his face. "You are indeed right on all counts, although glowering like that creates wrinkles." He smiled wickedly, examining his fingernails. "I do wonder where my Wolfe is?" Beak asked, already distracted as he looked around, eyes resting on the dark van. "The poor dear might be sleeping. I shall wait for him, yes?" Break murmured, crossing his arms.

Break greatly hated this man, and he didn't truely hate most poeple, except for that insufferable Ringmaster. His lip curled just thinking of the filthy man, dragging his Wolfe all over to do respectable things. Wasn't stealing good enough any more? Popping open his purple umbrealla again, he looked down his nose at Zinc, smiling falsly.

"I think I shall try and figure out what you are." Break said, narrowing his eyes as he inpected the pink haired boogeyman. "You do have the air of nightmares around, so I think something to do with bad dreams. Maybe one of the monsters that hide under beds?" He laughed, putting a hand over his lips and tapping gently, seeming to think hard.

Break was distracted from his inpection by Raphael striding over, and his smile turned as empty as a waiting coffin. "Indeed I am. I want Wolfe back, so I have come to get him, my dear Ringmaster." Break sneered, then added after a few seconds, "By my experience, you don't have much patience when it comes to me to begin with, which I veiw as rather unfair."

"I do wonder when my Wolfe is going to emerge..." Break trailed off, looking at the dark wagon not too far away. "Maybe I should go and get him.." He pondered, tapping his sharp chin. That intolerable ringmaster was getting angrier by the seconds, Xerxes could tell, and he turned back, waving a hand while saying, "And please, call me Break. Xerxes sounds so harsh. Break flows much easier off the tongue, don't you think?"

<~><~>

Dravius sat up abruptly once cold laughter that matched the rain ochoed through his van, and almost immediatly goose bumps popped up in lines across his arms and face, the hair on the back of his neck standing up. Taking a deep breath, he opened his door slightly, poking his face out tentively. He wasn't sure about dealing with Break right now.

After seven years, nothing, and then twice? Dravius bit his lip, Break must be determined, because nothing really held the man's attention for more than a few minutes unless it was soreley wanted. Shivering at the thought that Break wanted him that bad, he stepped tenatively out of tha van, keeping out of Break's line of sight as the white haired man snarled at Raphael.

Who was the man with the pink hair? He looked extremely angry, and although his hair was the weirdest shade he had ever seen, he could tell it wasn't dyed. Weird....he shrugged, as he crept up next to Kioko, his thin face even paler than usual, drawn and his jaw clenched. Break still didn't seem to be noticing him,  his limited attention span fixed on Raphael.

(( Crap. I'm just going to kill them off here and now. ))

Silverbane leaned against the tree, watching Alto's aura. She took her blindfold off and flinched at the bright aura's of the world. She sighed and closed her eyes. When they reopened, Alto was in front of her. She flinched. "Let's go." He whispered hoarsely. He turned and dragged her deeper intot the woods and farther away from the circus. He smiled gently at her and handed the air a knife. It stayed aloft. He handed a knife to silverbane as well. "Thank you." Was all he said. He wasn't running away. He knew that, as long as he lived, he was a danger to others. There was no cure, and there was no such thing as control in his case. It was the only option. The knife flipped in the air, Ghost Sara gazing sadly at it in her hand. She sighed and, without a pause, stabbed Alto in the heart. He froze, eyes wide. But then a content look came on his face and he tumbled backward, only to sag against a large boulder that Sara's blood had crusted on. Slowly, he died, his head against his chest. But as he slipped away, He smiled softly.

Silverbane let out a small cry of sorrow when his aura vanished and blended in with the earth. She knew why he had given her a knife. She took it, and very slowly, she stabbed herself in the heart. She had the same disease as Sara. Her life would of ended tomorrow. She realized the symptoms of the racking caughs. She leaned against Alto, sinking into a warm ebony. Slowly, her dimming eyes closed and she left her breath to the air. For the first time, before she died, she saw her aura. It was pure silver, the rarest of colors. She smiled and then everything vanished into warm darkness.

 ~

The air stirred slightly at the p*censored*ing of Alto and Silverbane. Birds stopped singing and the animals stopped to take in their deaths. But it was only a few moments before the world started again. The two lifeless beings sat at the base of the stone covered in dry blood from another. A smile on each their faces and their hands clasped tightly. 

((Okay... Short post. Must then wait. :> Pfft. I love this tension. >3))

Julian's hand was, unconsciously it seemed, running over the handles of a number of sharp, glinting daggers. My god, he wanted to throw one at that guy. All of them even, it wasn't possible for him to miss, never, not unless something delibrately got in the way of his target... All he'd need to do was aim for the heart. He grimaced slightly. No...  Raphael was probably best suited to deal with this... Though if all else failed, he was going to throw that dagger, or rather... Daggers.

With a flcikering glance, the dark haired Sword Master calmly watched the oncoming Dravius. He spoke in a voice that was barely audible, and very tense.  "This may prove to be your battle in the end, you know," He looked back towards the Ring Master and Break. "Or so Raphael believes,"

~~~

Raphael's face remained impas.sive as Break spoke, raising an eyebrow at the white haired males reason for being here. Naturally... He knew. The mere fact that he had shown up in quick succession meant only what Raphael had feared. He wouldn't leave them alone unless he had Dravius. Of course, if the Co-Master somehow managed to override Breaks will with his own, he'd be free of this idiots control permenantly, so Raphael guessed... And then, of course, if that failed, there was always death...

He snorted quietly. "Mm, and you won't be getting him, not without resistance, atleast," And it was true. Every single member of the Circus would fight for Dravius if need be, without even being asked. The Co-Master was loved by all there, and that was probably the one thing Break would never understand nor even comprehend. Despite what Dravius believed, his compas.sion was a form of love, and he did understand it, on a basic level... It was far more than Break understood, and that was enough.

He glanced once again at Zinc, figuring, despite whatever that guys intentions were, they had something in common here, a common enemy, if you will. His eyes eventually focused back on Break. "Sorry, Xerxes, but Break is too tame for you," He smiled, the ex
pression as cold as an arctic wind, his eyes darkening. "Alright. I think it's about time we ended this little game. Your existance will continue to bother me unless this is resolved." He dropped his smile, his face becoming both determined and deadly to the point of murderous. "Permanently."

((Hokay... I THOUGHT it was going to be short..."

[[don't know if I can keep up gah. Raph can do whatever. I mean. Yama would get full after a little while. then she'd get sleepy. and you know a sleepy person doesn't quite punch as hard as they need to.]]

"I don't get wrinkles." Zinc said, without a change of ex
pression. Unless wrinkles would scare someone, in which case, he could have many. That was another comeback from Break that would shame Zinc's grandma. If he had one. He waved his hand at Break, as if he were impatient. "I am something you can not even comprehend, so don't even try." Something to do with bad dreams indeed. But then, Zinc never really hurt anyone. 

Sure. He was something frightening. He could be, anyway, and was, a majority of the time. And though he may be the monster under the bed, he was the least of peoples problems.  "Monsters are real, but they're not in your dreams." He murmured, thoughtfully, staring coldly at Break. If Yama had been present, he would have warily addressed her with this quote.

 - - -

Sh'Yama's apology seemed to slip out of Spider's mind. What was that awful laugh? He stared in panic at Kioko as she said she was leaving, and almsot reached out a hand to stop her, the words "don't leave me" dying on his lips. His new sister was scary, Spider had to admit, but that laugh didn't sound good at all! Was this the strange person that had shown up yesterday? Spider had avoided that... he hadn't wanted to be near all of that shouting, and he hadn't liked the air around them. 

What was that? Sh'Yama's lip curled back, exposing her teeth. Something important to attend to? Neither he or the Julian fellow seemed very happy. Everyone had left the van, and it was just her and Spider standing near the pancakes. Spider was shaking, and Sh'Yama looked at him in concern.

"What was that laugh? Do you know? No? I did not mean to scare your friend away... perhaps we should go and find her. The stench that is now infecting the air is... making me uneasy for her." Sh'Yama didn't like the laugh. It sounded like a laugh she would make. If she were a woman, lame, and arrogant.

She ducked out of the food van, her eyes sweeping around and stopping on the small crowd around a van a few vans away. Sh'Yama grabbed Spider's hand and lead him to the crowd, even though his heels were practically sinking into the ground in refusal. Yama paused, and turned to stare penetratingly at Spider. "Something is wrong, dearheart. These people have taken care of you-- even though for just a little while. I need to see if I can help. You must be brave and thankful, too."

- - - 

Spider paused, staring widely, and then nodded his head quickly. He almost ran ahead, and stopped next to Kioko and Julian. He looked at Kioko anxiously, not liking her scared ex
pression. Friends don't let other friends be scared. Alone, anyway. He hadn't been paying attention to who everyone else was paying attention to, and finally looked up. His jaw nearly dropped, his eyes widening to the size of quarters.

How could anyone be so tall?! Defensively, he found himself creeping in front of Kioko. It was probably the bravest thing he had ever done. For a moment, he was confused. Was it a man or a woman? But, he decided, after hearing him speak, it must be man-- even despite his strange obsession with another boy. 

His eyes focused on Zinc. What was he doing here? How could he be here? Spider thought he was stuck in the dream world... and then remembered Barbie Q and how her eye had been almost magically fixed. Was this man real or not? Spider shook his head. It didn't matter at the moment. For now he listened to Raphael, glad he wasn't the one on the reciving end of his threatening words. 

- - - 

Zinc was staring in worry at Spider, why couldn't he have stayed in the van, where it was safe? He was about to stomp forward and drag him back to the food van, but his eyes shifted to stare in shock at Sh'Yama as she stepped past him. Oh no-- how could she have... but then... did that mean Em hadn't? Completely befuddled, Zinc could only stare at her in growing apprehension.

- - -

Sh'Yama didn't know what was going on, or why. All she knew was that this too-tall freak-show was worrying her new "family". She was ridiculously proud of Raphael's threats. He had it under control, she thought, but if need be she would act in his defense. Permanetly... yes, she could help with that. Sh'Yama stared coldly at Break, her eyes looking him up and down. Xerxes?

An "X" name, huh? She wondered if that was a ti
tle or just his given name. Sh'Yama had a ti
tle. Her name was Xyama, though many rarely knew that, considering how it was pronoucned. The "X" was a message to all that she was a member of the Blodwen family-- a very powerful member. She doubted this "Break" or "Xerxes" or whoever he was had any special ti
tle.  

[[BREAK GONNA GET SERVED.]] 

((Aww. -Sniffles- Made my eyes water, Wolf. And you know, Break is kind of asking for it.))

Break giggled slightly, focusing on Spider, behind Raphael. "And what is thisss?" He purred, tilting his head. "What a cute little hybrid!" Break clapped his hands slightly, peering past everyone else to look intently at Spider. Peeling his slightly creepy gaze away from the boy, pouting at Raphael's words. "What, does he belong to you? I don't recall giving him to you to keep. He's not free."

Smiling slightly at Raphael's threat, Break shrugged and said, "Alright. We can resolve it simply. Give me Wolfe, and I shall leave with him. I will not bother you any further." Sighing theatrically, he waved his hands in the air, his thin eyebrows arched. "It doesn't seem too difficult to me!"

Break looked back at Spider, "I could just kiss you, if I didn't already have Wolfe." Brushing back his hair again, Break looked at the sky. His attention was already off of Raphael, looking all around for something the occupy his attention.

<~><~>

Dravius bit his lip at Julian's words, nodding shortly. He closed his eyes and sighed as Break made a remark about Spider,his eyebrows furrowing deeply. Moving upwards to stand next to Raphael, crossing his arms and saying flatley, "Leave, Break. I don't wish to leave." His eyes were worried, as Break's face turned from slightly murderous to about to scratch someone's eyes out.

"Is that so?" Break asked coldly, his purple eyes narrowing into slits, and he hissed quietly, his lip curling. "Once I touch you, I'm guessing you'll be singing a different tune..."

Andrew listened to the conversation for a few minutes until his curiosity nearly threatened to smother him. He traveled to the end of the wagon and sat on the edge and rested his back against the wall, watching the scene and pulling a knee up to wrap his hands around.

He cocked his head to the side, Was Break back to take Dravius? Thats the reason everyone was so tense? Andrew could sense a dark vibe coming from him much like his own but different. The situation was exciting to say the least, full of dull emotions and tension, it made him was to draw some blood. 

He sighed, blinked, and continued to watch the show quietly.