Dravius was laughing himself by the time Maya wrapped herself around his arms, panting slightly, sides hurting. "I know butterflies don't just happen to crawl around someone's face, trying their hardest to get them up." He teased, and laughed some more, adding, "And I'm sure she wasn't the only one who wanted a good morning kiss, huh?" he nearly fell over as Maya let go of his hands, and grinned as she started wriggling back and forth, sitting back with an "uff!", still grinning hugely. "What a way to wake someone up. Having an insect crawl about their general person." He huffed teasingly, shaking his head, trying to dislodge the heaps of plant that had lodged themselves into his hair.

The tall male flopped down on his back again, arms stretched above his head. He was still panting slightly, then sat back up and raised an eyebrow. Pulling a pocket watch out of his pants pocket, he glanced at it, then grinned at Maya. "Well, we both need to get changed. It's almost ten. We have to go meet someone, yes?" He got to his feet and kissed Maya on the cheek, walking back towards camp. "I'll meet you at your van, 'kay?" He called back, waving a hand vaugely back towards the girl.

Dravius' van happened to be close to where he had left the camp, and he hopped inside quickly, looking around for a second, before ducking into his closet and rifiling around for a minute or two, humming a quickly paced tune. He pulled out a pair of old, army green pants, full of pockets as per usual, and pulled them on quickly, tugging off his formal shirt to exchange it with a deep black one, with over-long sleeves and a stylized blue Gemini sign printed on the front. One pair of old shoes later, Dravius grinned, looking forewards to meeting Maya's mom. She was sure to be a rather nice person, if her daughter was anything to go by. He smiled wider, running his fingers thorough his hair to dislodge the last of the gras.s, then stared at the white tips that dangled in front of his eyes. Might as well fix it. He trimmed the last of the white off of his locks, looking rather satisfied with the result.

"It's not my fault they like your face," Maya laughed, pausing at the Co-Master's following words and snorting quietly, her face amused. "And I got one." Sticking out her tongue, the butterfly pushed herself onto her elbows as Dravius sat back, then sat up herself once she had enough room to do so.

She shook her head, still smiling a little as the dark haired male carried on talking. "She was my closest solution at the time." The young woman replied with a quiet laugh, waving a hand vaguely at the white butterfly, which had returned and was now fluttering around in their general area; It was looking, if possible, rather pleased with itself. Maya went to watching the little creature's dizzying display for a moment, then raised her eyebrows at Dravius' statement like question.

"Meeting someone?" She asked, blinking as he kissed her briefly on the cheek before heading off towards the Circus. "Oh. Alright?" The blonde watched him leave, frowning after him a little. Of course, what the Co-Master had been referring to eventually became somewhat obvious, and Maya's ex
pression became a tad concerned. Damnit. She'd completely forgotten.

Glancing townward, she idly noted that she actually didn't seem to feel as worried as she had been yesterday about the whole thing, but still... Nnn. Just looking at the place was making her nervous. Sighing, the butterfly pushed herself to her feet, eyes still town bound as the resident butterfly started showing off in front of her face. She was momentarily distracted up until the point the little animal decided to perch itself on her shoulder, before going back to frowning slightly at the nearby town.

Well... She couldn't really go back on her word, not to Dravius. And she had promised. Sighing through her nose, Maya immediately stemmed any following negative thoughts, before following in the Co-Master's footsteps and heading back to camp, being sure to take the Co-Master's forgotten fedora with her. It didn't take her too long, and she had to admit she was rather surprised by how quiet and calm the area was, although it probably made sense considering last night's events. All the tables and lanterns had all been taken down and packed away, either late last night or early this morning, leaving the Circus camped in it's original field. There was little trace of the party left over, save for the couple of members who had gone too far with the alcoholic punch, of course.

Shaking her head, Maya reached her van without actually meeting anyone besides the few members busy with preparations for the day, slipping inside and letting out an explosive sigh as she closed the door behind her. She looked quickly over the dress she currently donned, noting the rather obvious gras.s stains that now resided over the material. It was probably a good thing she hadn't really come across anyone then, no doubt they'd be asking questions.

Smiling a little to herself, Maya placed Dravius' fedora onto a nearby chair, then immediately changed, opting for a pair of white shorts and a strapped dress top in a faded lemon colour. The four corners of said top were extended in length, creating a flowing, fluttering sort of edge that almost reached the bottom rim of the shorts she wore. Quickly using her fingers to run any gras.s out of her hair, she slipped on a pair of simple sandals, then made her way back outside, being sure to leave the van door open as she sat herself on the stairs.

The butterflies that had resided inside overnight began to make their way in little groups to the open door, eventually taking off to either explore the surrounding fields or settle themselves elsewhere throughout the camp. A few of them seemed to decide that actually flying anywhere took far too much effort and simply chose to sun themselves on the roof of Maya's van. The little white creature that had accompanied the young woman back now sat on the door frame, slowly opening and closing it's wings in a blissful sort of way.

Maya spent a short while simply watching the sky, then leant herself lightly against the door frame as she awaited Dravius' arrival; Closing her eyes and basking in the sun's warm, morning rays. Her wings were slightly extended, the blanket of heat and light touching them also, creating a blazing medly of burning reds and oranges. The black rim almost seemed to shift, and the little white areas stood stark in contrast to the other, striking colours. It really was a rather stunning and beautiful thing to see, alongside the many other shifting shades of the surrounding, happily fluttering butterflies.

Dravius shook his head once more, coughing slightly, before getting to his feet and sighing. He got the impression that Maya really wasn't looking forwards to this particular meeting, but it couldn't hurt, as long as he could take what Maya had said about her mother at face value. He shrugged to himself, reaching into the softly gleaming wooden box in the corner, pulling out a vial of marbled ink, rolling it back and forth between two fingers. He had a rather blank look on his face, then blinked and tucked the ink into one of his longer pockets, running his fingers through his hair, to brush it back from his face. Blinking quickly, he slipped out the door with a slight sigh, looking towards Maya's van, grinning crookedly once again, then stopping for a moment to simply look at the girl, her wings seeming to absorb the light, then starting forewards again, chewing absent-mindedly on his lip.

Dravius eventually stopped next to Maya, a bit disappointed that his shadow stopped most of the display, feeling the heat on his skin, although it wasn't the most enjoyable experience, considering he was wearing heavy clothing. Pushing his sleeve up enough until the ends of his fingers poked out, then gently touched Maya's shoulder, cloth of his dangling sleeve rasping against the softer material of her top. "Ready?" He asked quietly, blinking lethargically. He was also smiling lazily, keeping the tips of his fingers on her shoulder, black cloth casting a stark contrast with Maya's light skin.

((Posting again 'cause I need to get another character out of bed. :|))

Dravius took his hand away from Maya's shoulder, smirking a bit at the girl's huffing. He turned his head to follow her movement, shaking his head at her question. He seemed muted, at least for him, arms hanging at his sides, although there was constant movement of the cloth near his hands, due to the fact that he was picking at bits of skin around his cuticles. Dravius didn't seem to notice that he was doing it at all, until he noticed Maya wanted to hold one of them, and relaxed his digits, if only to twine them through the butterfly winged girl's. He smiled down at her, rubbing his bad eye with a cloth-covered hand. It seemed to be bothering him, although he said nothing about it, just kept vaguely rubbing at the corners of it.

Dravius took his hand away from his face as Julain approached, a slightly worried look coming over his face as the swordmaster came closer, brows furrowing deeper and deeper as Maya and Julain's conversation took place. He didn't really need to say anything, as somehow Maya had said one of the only things he was worried about. It wasn't the circus, it could be run by someone else for a while, rather it was his oldest friend, and he began shifting his weight from foot to foot nervously, then waved weakly when Julain left, hands in his pockets with shoulders slightly hunched. "Ah, so do I..." He sighed queitly, looking just as, if not more, concerned as the young woman next to him. "I always hate seeing him all...pas.sed out..." He wiggled his fingers a bit, cracking his knuckles before running his fingers through his hair quickly. "We should probably go. Um. I mean, so we can get back quickly." Dravius seemed torn between wanting to see his friend, and knowing that it would just be watching Raphael in pain and not wanting to be anywhere near. He sighed and bit his lip, rubbing the side of his arm slowly.

Nylat leapt back up in her tree, sniffing around a bit. The scent of deer was still strong in her nose, but she could tell at least that no one had been nearby. Though she was relieved, she also felt a little left out. After all, had no one noticed her absense? Usually, a member leaving was a big deal, and a member disappearing was usually worse. She didn't want to sound conceited--even to herself--but she honestly just wanted someone to try and come find her. She was sure that, at the slightest urging, she'd go back. She hadn't been thinking straight the night before. And right now, she was feeling really alone. She sat on her branch and watched the Circus as the people flitted about, getting ready for that night's performance. She whined a little and slumped slightly, but shook her head. She must be strong. Until they moved on or until someone came by. That was it. She'd rejoin them under only those circumstances.

She sighed and leapt down from the tree, starting to pace in a circle around the base. She continued this, not even glancing up at the Circus, just walking around and around the tree. It wasn't long before the gr*censored* was flattened and starting to give way to dirt she'd pawed up. After a few more trips around, she stopped and flopped onto her side, her back against the tree. She'd never truely known how boring being a loner could be. When she'd first escaped them, she'd met up with Raphael and Dravius not long after. And, since, she'd been with them. So she was bored out of her wits.

((And I has nothing to type for Kanec. And Daniel's waiting on Zyano. >.> <.<))

Upon Julian's departure, Maya had resorted, yet again, to chewing gently on her lip, keeping her eyes firmly focused on the general area in which the dark haired male had vanished. She only pulled her attention elsewhere when Dravius' voice was heard, turning her face so that she was able to look up at him.

"I know what you mean," She responded, glancing back towards where Julian had disappeared and uncrossing her arms, allowing them to simply fall at her sides. Shaking her head, she focused again on the Co-Master, smiling slightly. "You know... He's forever telling us it's normal and that it's not an issue to be so conerned over. Doesn't really stop us from worrying much though, does it?" The young woman asked, finding Dravius' hand again and and proceeding to lace her fingers through his. "He'd probably get more of a result from explaining it to a brick for all the good it does him."

She sighed quietly through her nose, then went to watching Dravius with a little frown. It wasn't hard to detect how torn the young male seemed to be over the issue, and seeing him like that wasn't at all pleasant for Maya. She much preferred his smile to his severe look of concern. "I'm sure he'll be fine," She murmered, smiling in what she hoped was a reas.suring sort of way, and gently nudging Dravius in the ribs with an elbow. "And alright." She added in response to Dravius last statement, sounding a little unsure.

Inhaling deeply, she tugged lightly on the Co-Master's hand before she could consider going back on her word, throwing a genuine smile at him as she started walking towards the Circus boundaries. No doubt this impending family meeting would distract Dravius somewhat from the concern of their Ring-Master's condition. It was certainly distracting her, anyway, and they hadn't even left the Circus grounds yet.

The weather, still very warm, almost convinced the butterfly-winged teen that removing her cloak was an excellent idea, though she pretty much flung that thought out of the window straight away. They weren't too far at all from town by the point, and Maya point blank refused to remove anything until she reached the safety of her mother's house. Or, better yet, the absoloutely mas.sive back yard she sincerely hoped was still there. Surrounded by a rather tall wall, it was perfect for a day as beautiful as this when you were trying to remain inconspicious. Or attempting to keep a pair of blazing butterfly wings under wraps.

Sighing at a barely audible volume, the butterfly continued to keep her fingers firmly linked with Dravius' as they walked through town, the blonde trying her best to mentally map where they were supposed to be headed. Well. It wasn't like she got out that much as a kid, and after eight years, her memory of the layout was a little hazy. Still, she recognised most of the major landmarks that pinpointed their location, and was able to essentially direct herself that way.

Eventually arriving on a rather wide, sparse looking street, Maya paused, shifting her cloak a little further over her shoulders. She seemed to contemplate something for a minute, then carried on walking, her ex
pression set. The houses here were few, and spaced out so that each had a huge amount of garden surrounding it, and open field beyond those. Any number of brightly leaved trees and other foilage lined the road, currently blazing with colour due to the current strength of the sunlight.

Looking almost more edgy by the minute, Maya bit her lip, then came to a stop outside a house right at the end of the street. It was a pretty looking thing, bright and cottage like, with an obvious, rather large amount of space residing behind the residence. The butterfly winged girl simply stood, her ex
pression nervous, tinged with apprehension. She really had never expected to see this place again.

~~~

Having done his part and let Dravius know of Raphael's current situation, Julian immediately set to work organising the construction of the ticket booths for lack of anything else to do. That, and he'd also told the Co-Master he'd take care of it. Besides, a rather large group of towns people had already gathered beyond the grounds, having being informed by the flyers that tickets would be available today, so the quicker it was up and running, the better.

Luckily, with the Majikus being what it was, and it's members being what they were, the compartments were set up within mere minutes just outside the boundaries. Three members of the Circus were at this point instructed to do the selling, and Julian flitted off to go check on the main perfomance tent and it's facilities. Sure, he hadn't really offered to do this part. But no harm in as.sisting, he supposed.

After swiftly ensuring everything was in pretty much in order, the Sword-Master exited the Circus tent with his hands in his pockets, turning his face skyward and closing his eyes to the glare of the sun.

Opening them on a whim, the dark haired male glanced beyond the Circus tent, spotting Nylat a good distance out. Had it been anyone else, she probably wouldn't have been spotted from here. Julian's eyesight, however, was exceptional, even when compared with the other members of the Majikus. Watching her in silence for a minute, he exhaled slowly through his nose, then practically disappeared from where he stood.

He reappeared suddenly just above Nylat, standing on a branch and leaning an arm against the rough bark of the tree, watching the Circus from this vantage point. He had, naturally, noticed the hybird's seeming air on arrival. There was something bothering her, that much was certain.

"It's a pleasant place to view beyond the chaos." He said, glancing down at the hybrid, before returning his gaze to the milling members in the distance. "Is there a reason for you to be all the way out here, looking rather sorry for yourself?"

[[I'm sure they wont mind Momo. They let me stay around. <w<

Nylat your mystery ticket keeps confusing people. Pony, it's just a link to our RP.

Also new character because I wonder how long I can go before ripping Spider back out of the ether.]]


Zephyr mumbled something unintelligible and looked sideways at Ana. To his surprise there was a tiny trace of a smile. He beamed immediately, and pushed his index finger into her podgy cheek. "AW. Look at that cute wittle shmilllee!" He cooed, continuing to poke. Anaconda's small smile turned to a furrow-browed frown, and she slapped Zephyr's hand away. "Stop that." The girl grumbled, and crossed her arms. Zephyr pouted, "But you looked so cuuuute." and poked her under the ribs. A teeny tiny "Hee" escaped her lips before she initiated another stinging slap.

Pausing for a moment, Zephyr's eyes got a little wide as he stared at her. "Are you ticklish?" He asked innocently. Anaconda's eyes shifted to glare at him. Her mouth was a thin hard line, and barely moved as she said "No."

From the stump that had their breakfast plates sitting on it, DeeDee swiveled his head around to look at them and clicked his beak. After moment, Zephyr started to smile. The smile slowly turned into a grin, and Ana started to look worried. "You are! You are! Heeee!"

There was no stopping him then.

His shoes were nowhere to be found. With a rather confused and irritated huff, Florence stared blearily at the gra.ssy ground and wondered where in Valhalla they had gone. What had he done last night that resulted in missing shoes, of all things? Certainly, it wasn't the first time something like that had happened, but he had to wonder. At the moment he was just glad that he could see Circus tents and that he hadn't awoken in a desert five hundred miles away. Florence ran a hand through his thick and dusty hair, putting it in a more dignified state. As he walked toward the circus tents he tucked his shirt in, and mourned the loss of some buttons that had disappeared from his coat.

Something he realized a bit later was that it was not blood on his head, but a cake of dirt and what he could only as.sume was fruit punch. Florence decided not to dwell on how that had happened, either. He noticed the activity around the main tent and wondered. Was there a show scheduled? Raphael really was bonkers. Sure have a crazy party where everyone ended up waking up in the field with no shoes on and then put on a show. Okay, maybe he was the only one that woke up in a field, but still, he had some recovering to do. Not that he needed to do much in the show. Throw a few pies. Upset some children. Not really hard work.

Florence was wondering about the show and looking around for his van when he spotted the love of his at this moment. That rugged mysteriousness. That tall, dark-haired, muscular adonis. He wondered where Mr. Broody had been, hadn't seen him all day yesterday. And of course someone with a deep and unsympathetic reputation, he wouldn't be caught alive at a party of any sort. Maybe he should say hello. Something smooth... "Hey Julian, do you have any raisins--" And he was gone. Flash step. Had he reached Bankai or something? He was like a freaking ninja. How the holodeck did he do that? Well he wasn't in the most presentable of appearances anyway, maybe it was for the better.

Barefoot and dirty, Florence continued on his way, humming. When he made it to his van he came upon something so shocking, that he took a step back. Ana was laughing her little head off, to the point of tears nearly springing out of her eyes. At first he was confused. Had she finally gone bonkers? And then he saw the other person-- the culprit, and he grit his teeth a little. Now, he didn't know how old Zephyr was. But he knew it was much older than Ana. He also didn't care about any of that wishy-washy unicorn business. Nobody tickled his brothers cousins... daughter... niece? What was she again? ... It didn't matter!

The Dark but secretly really flamboyant and not mysterious or cool at all Clown, walked right up over there and grabbed Zephyr by the tail,  and the back of his shirt. He hefted the short little weirdo up, and began to shake him violently. "Whhaaaat are you doooing?!" He shouted, sounding somehow angry and amused at the same time. Anaconda immediately ceased her laughter, sat up straight, and brushed the wrinkles out of her dress. There was not a hint of laughter left on her face. Florence ceased the shaking to stare at her in wonder, and Zephyr joined in, still giggling over being shaken like a small tender animal in a vicious creatures maw, he looked over his shoulder to stare at Ana.

"..."

"..."

"..."

"Rrrk."

Ana's face worked for a second, and then she busted out laughing, screeching with so much laughter she put her hands over her face in embarra.ssment. After a moment, Zephyr joined in, and Florence cracked up too.

As his Human and the Others started to bellow that weird sound and roll around on the ground, DeeDee stared at them with all the shame and disappointment a raven could produce.

There was a snort and a mumble of what might have been "Don't call me Daisy" as another occupant of the food van woke up. It had been pretty quiet that morning, and she had still been tired... what time was it now, she wondered? Hopefully not past noon. Oh she hoped not. Blinking dazedly, Red's eyes focused enough to watch Selvai rip his bacon in half like the breakfast food in question had personally insulted him. With a stifled yawn the woman leaned back in her chair, rubbed a kink out of her neck and gave the two at the table a polite nod in greeting, before standing up and going to refill her mug of now cold coffee.

Not wanting to interrupt their pleasant early morning breakfast, Red stood there next to the coffee pot and stared at them. Completely, utterly silent, not even making a sound when she sipped her coffee. This might have been unsettling for them, but Red never seemed to realize this or just ignored it. Her thoughts drifted to the show. She had a list of missing things that needed to be found, and she figured that would take up most of her morning. Still, despite how many times she's told them, many members don't get it that she can't find something just by a name. Even with a deion it was hard work... she'd just have to do it the old fashion way for most of the things on the list.

Kirk was good at deions though. Red wondered why she hadn't gotten back to her on the missing pocket watch. Red had discovered where it was, but it wasn't a very heartening answer. A bit confusing actually. The watch didn't exist. It was so confusing that Red had to sit down and really think about it. Because there were traces. So many traces, but they all ended. It was like following a path in a hundred different directions that all stopped at nothing. She wasn't sure what to make of it. Perhaps Kirk could have enlightened her... funny, she hadn't seen the woman around. Not that that was uncommon, but her generator hadn't been running these past few days.

Redemption took another drink of coffee.

"Pfff." Dravius snorted quietly, raising an eyebrow for a few seconds. "Normal is one thing we can safely a.ssume none of us are." He added, looking at the palm of his hand and sighing. He went on studying the lines in his palm for a few seconds, until Maya began nudging him, waving a hand weakly at the joint. "Alright then..." He trailed off, following the girl's gentle tugging, spacing out just a little bit as he walked along, looking at the trees, and a bit later the tall buildings of the city, yawning hugely every so often, rubbing and eye as he walked level with Maya, looking at the minor discomfort Maya was in, due to the weather, and supposed that cloak couldn't be very well ventilated. The Co-Master waved to a few people on the street, although he knew presicely none of them. It seemed polite to wave anyways.

 It was just a little creepy to see all of the old streets Dravius remembered quite well, eventually just putting his hands in his pockets and looking around, studying faces and looking at all the storefronts, not sharing Maya's single-minded directive. He would have been happy meandering to her mother's house, not charging to it. Shrugging, he blinked surprisedly, as they had apparantly arrived. It was a very nice house, one floor with the look of a house old, but well-maintained. The door was an off-white, and Dravius got the impression that it was once painted pristinely, but had deteriorated a bit with age. He shifted a bit from foot to foot and looked at Maya, free hand still in his pocket. "Well, you going to knock?" He asked, tilting his head to the side and smiling crookedly.

((I'll add the evil guy later.))

Having been perfectly content where he was, eyes closed and his breathing even, Zyano took a good while to even notice the sensation that crawled around his neck. A low, quiet growl vibrated through the giant hybrid's neck muscles. It wasn't a particularly aggresive noise, but it was irky enough to get a point across.

Eventually managing to control his irritable awakening, he opened his amber eyes, immediately focusing on the field in front of him. Having slept pretty much where he had been situated last night, he was greeted with a more or less empty field, only a couple of straggling members walking around in his vision. Lifting his head, slowly, he eventually managed to focus his gaze on the kid currently sat astride his neck. Great. Clearly he hadn't got the point last night.

Prevented from doing, or saying, anything due to Erik speaking up, Zyano watched the red-head in silence. He wasn't in a very forgiving mood, partly due to the fact he had this... Human offspring, hanging from his neck. He really was not used to such contact, and it was beginning to show.

"I have no idea. Perhaps you could try behind a van." He responded darkly, before standing himself slowly on all four legs, and slipping his head out of the human child's grasp. Taking a couple of steps away, he fought back another quiet growl, then sat on his haunches as Erik chose to introduce himself to the kid. Well, whatever. He'd probably get on well with the kid... If, of course, he learned to keep his distance.

~~~

Having been mostly absorbed with watching the door of the cottage, it took Maya a moment to realise what Dravius was suggesting. "What?... Oh." She blinked, turning to the Co-Master to to half frown, half pout at him. Oh, sure. easy for him to say. He wasn't the one having to go face his mother after eight years of not seeing her.

Inhaling slowly, she turned back to the door, letting go of Dravius' hand as she did so. "I... Guess." She added, slowly making her way up the path that ran through the front yard. As nervous as she still very much was, there was also a small, niggling excitement there. Arriving at the door, the butterfly took a moment to simply look at the door frame. There was a small over growth of ivy, the green splashed against the sand coloured stone, the colour full of life in the the bright morning sunlight.

Holding her breath, the young woman held hand out to the door, hesitating only a moment before hitting the wood lightly with her knuckles. She threw a somewhat unsure smile in Dravius' direction, then crossed her arms behind her back and waited. The time it took for the door to be answered felt like an age to the young blonde, and she had a good deal of trouble stemming the explosive emotions when it did.

The woman who answered was blonde, like Maya, though the shade was slightly darker, the strands tied back. Her eyes were blue, a very simple blue, and her ex
pression was slightly confused. She had been on the verge of asking what it was they wanted, before she seemed to realise something, her ex
pression more than just a little stunned.

Maya had been stood with her breath still held, looking both expectant and apprehensive, more the latter, as the woman in front of her extended one hand to very gently touch her cheek. "Mayanna?" She murmered, her voice both slightly awed and brimming with emotion.

"Hi... Mom..." Maya murmered with a small smile, before being pretty much *censored*aulted by said mother. The two clung to eachother for a good while, before the older woman held the butterfly's shoulder at arms length. "You, my little butterfly, have a lot of explaining to do." She paused, glancing over Maya's shoulder to look at Dravius for a moment. Despite being completely overjoyed to see her daughter after all these years, she couldn't quite help noticing the look of that dark, imposing male.

"First off..." She murmered, returning her gaze to Maya. "Who's your friend?"

The butterfly-winged teen blinked, still slightly taken aback by the entire situation, before glancing quickly over her shoulder. "Oh... Uhm. He's..." She paused, looking slightly stuck, before shaking her head quickly and stepping back so that she stood next to Dravius. She gently laid one arm across his back, resting her spare hand on his torso. "His name is Dravius. My... Uhm. Boyfriend..." She added, half stating, half asking, blushing furiously despite the situation. Well. She hadn't exactly put it that way previously, but how else was she to explain that to her mother?... Still. It was kind of weird to say it, (Though admittedly she was smiling a little, feeling a tad proud about the statement) and glanced up at Dravius with a somewhat apologetic ex
pression. Just in case she'd said something he'd have preferred her not to have mentioned, before proceeding to introduce the other. "And this is my mother... Lucia."

Nylat had climbed back into the tree and now flicked her tail, yawning, appearing much like an oversized bird, the way she was crouched in the tree. Due to this percarious perch, anyone else would have fallen when Julian suddenly appeared out of thin air, it seemed, on the branch above her. But Nylat, being used to it, just looked up at him. "Hello Julian. I should have expected you to find me first." She flicked her ears back slightly at his question, looking back at the Circus. "Its..." She jumped to the ground and glanced back up. "...Its a long story. Most wouldn't get it. Its sorta...an animal thing, ya know?" Her ears went flatter than they were and she growled in the back of her throat and glared at the ground. "I mean...I could probably try explaining if you really wanted to know. But its...its difficult to explain. Augh!" She hit her head against the tree with more force than needed, causing it to shudder, a crack appearing where she'd hit it. She sighed, her head resting on the bark, and flicked her tail in agitation.

~~

Daniel glanced over at the weird man, almost unwilling to answer him, but the fact that he seemed to be friends with the dog made it a little easier on Daniel to talk to him. And, due to the fact that Daniel had not been raised around people most of his life, he didn't quiet know how he was weird, only that he just seemed a bit off. Just then, though, the large dog he was currently attached to decided to get up and Daniel stood on his own, crossing his arms behind his back. When Erik introduced himself, he tried his hardest to set it in his mind, but it was no use. He'd forget soon. When he asked his name, Daniel flashed his a sharp-toothed smile. Aside from the filed points, Daniel would have looked just like a normal 8 year old who was acting innocent after stealing from the cookie jar. " 'Mname's Daniel. Good to 'eet you, Erik." He turned toward Zyano, still grinning, but more out of joy. "And w'at be your name?"

Dravius snorted slightly at Maya's pouting, following a few steps behind the cloaked girl, both hands in his pockets. She certainly looked nervous, and he kept shifting his weight from foot to foot, chewing gently on the corner of his lip, studying the doorway and the surrounding wall along with Maya. Dravius grinned back at the young woman, but she had already turned back to the house right after smiling. He shrugged and waited for the door to be answered, all other sounds of the city seeming to dim a bit, as all of the tall male's focus was solely on the small, clean structure.

The young man peered around Maya to view the woman standing in front of her. It was obvious that they were related, with the same slim structure, and the shapes of their faces were almost identical. He flashed a crooked, sharp-toothed smile as the older woman flung herself at Maya, feeling his smile grow, then relaxed his face quickly as he noticed Maya's mother looking at him, managing to look unintentionally sulky. He was slouching quite a bit, hands stuffed into his pockets, eyes half-lidded.

Dravius straightened up to his regular half-hunched shoulders, waving weakly for a second to the older woman. He was a bit confused as to why Maya looked ever so sheepish about calling him her boyfriend, and touched her gently on the shoulder, before shoving his sleeves back so that they bunched up above his elbows, and stepped forewards, saying slowly, "It's very nice to meet you, Ms. Vielle." He held out a long-fingered hand, offering it to shake, and smiled crookedly at the woman in front of him.

Julian had turned his attention back to the grounds of the Circus when Nylat chose to respond to his question, and glanced downn at the hybrid to listen in silence. "Naturally." He responded modestly to her first statement, returning his gaze elsewhere as she continued to speak.

"I have time." He said, yawning a little, and looking back at Nylat with slightly raised eyebrows. "An animal thing, hm?..." It was pretty obvious by the hybrids mere tone of voice she certainly wasn't happy. He had to admit he was curious to find out what was bothering her. It wasn;t like Nylat to get huffy for no reason. "Perhaps... You should try to explain it anyway." He suggested, throwing out an arm to balance himself when Nylat chose to charge the tree down. "Perhaps... Talking about it anyway will help a little."

~~~

"Oh." Lucia replied to Maya's somewhat flustered answer. My goodness. She really had missed a lot. Well, that was normal, after eight years... But still. It was rather upsetting to think about all the things she'd essentially missed with her daughter's growing up. Not least the difference in appearance, which, in all honesty, was almost unbelievable. Shaking her head a little and sighing slightly, Lucia chose to take another look at Dravius, who was currently holding out his hand to her.

Sheesh. He really was tall. And his scars had not exactly gone unnoticed, not that he was a bad looking lad. The older woman, however, shook his hand without even a seconds hesitation. Well... Having a daughter born with wings had hardened her to these... Peculiarities, she supposed. Besides, Maya had mentioned in the only letter she'd ever sent about the Circus, one she'd written shortly after leaving. So Lucia had some sort of knowledge of the place and the people who were supposedly living there.

"It's nice to meet you, also, Dravius." She replied, smiling warmly at him before glancing between him and Maya; The latter now stood a little behind having let go of the Co-Masters waist when he moved forward. "How long?" She asked, seemingly genuinely curious, focusing her gaze up at Dravius again.

Maya ran a hand over her face, then shrugged. "Uhm... It's... A recent thing... A few days?..." She and her mother shared a long look, then Lucia simply laughed. The sound was hauntingly like Maya's, only more mature in tone. "Alright. Why don't you both come in?" She suggested, using one hand to open the door. Maya smiled fleetingly at her, then pushed Dravius gently in his back, walking into the house after him. The door led immediately into the main room, with a light wooden floor and light wood furniture. The sunlight streamed through the window, leaving a bright yellow glow on the wooden floor. The room itself was cosy and clean, and very homely.

"Uh... I missed this place..." Maya murmered, slipping over to the large window and looking out of it at the spacious street outside, eventually realising she still had her cloak on. Slipping it from over her shoulders, she placed it over the side of a cream, almost white coloured seat by the window, and looked a little alarmed as her mother pulled her lightly to the middle of the room.

"You, sweetheart, have certainly changed." Lucai said, again holding Maya gently by the shoulders and looking her up and down. Then, with a strangre ex
pression that was a cross between amused and dissaproving, took a lock of Maya's hair in her fingers. "Did you dye your hair?..."

"What?... No." Maya replied, actually laughing a little. "It was... Uhm... Uh." She paused, frowning a little, then sighing explosively. "A... Week long... Puberty." She muttered.

Lucia cracked out laughing, and wrapped her arms firmly around her daughter. "Oh, dear, I've missed you." She snuggled her cheek against the butterfly's hair for a moment, before pulling back and looking slightly cofused. "...Wait... A week?"

Maya could only smile weakly at this, doing a funny little half shrug before being hugged again. "I missed you too, mom."

Pulling away, Lucia looked at Maya for a moment, then raised a hand slightly. "I'll be right back." She said, throwing a smile at Dravius too before leaving through a doorway that led to the kitchen. Maya, having watched her go, flopped heavily on to the nearby white coloured sofa, her ex
pression contemplative as she looked at the square of bright sunlight against the floor.

 ~~~

A Circus.

Really. A Circus. A Circus?...

What the hell. He hadn't expected this. Not at all. Vayne had been thinking more along the lines of crawling the streets in the dark, ripping limbs of people and stealing. But this?... This was stupid. To think he had ended up here of all places. What in heaven's name was Break's "favourite" doing hanging around with that flippin' lot?

Not that it mattered. It was very likely Wolfe'd be out of there very soon anyway. Whether he wished to or not. It had only been a few short days ago Vayne had, rather unfortunately, stumbled upon that city trash can that contained- Ugh. He couldn't even think it. Poor Master Break. Sucked for him. Sucked for all of them, really. Now there was little to no direction for the street performer's little group of... Slaves, he supposed you could call them. Ah well.

It was the scent over the body that had caught Vayne's attention. He knew that scent. Very, very well. Belonging to Master Breaks one and only Wolf. That damn kid who couldn't feel anything. Well, pain, anyway... What a stupid ability. Just because he could go and steal without any hiccups not needing to worry about being shot and the like, he rose to the top of the food chain, so to speak. Vayne had hated him with a pas.sion. And that feeling was simply intensified as of now.

Sat on a tree bough a good distance above ground, Vayne sat with his legs crossed, elbows resting lightly on his knees, tall frame bent slightly in order to keep his balance. His long, dark brown hair was tied back rather loosely, a few strands falling over his cold brown eyes, his tongue curved lithely over a couple of his top, rather sharp, fang like teeth. He'd found the Circus a few hours ago, having followed the scent that belonged to Wolf. He was way out of eyesight of anyone in the Circus, having not had much time to decide what to do. Besides, it wasbest to keep way out of the way for now...

Vayne, as much as he wished to tear Wolf apart, was intensely curious as to why the guy suddenly saw fit to snuff out Breaks life, and what the hell he was doing hanging around in a Circus. Hell, maybe he'd try and sway him back... He was rather valuable... Though, Master's death could never be forgiven. Not really. Wolf needed to pay for that little mistake. So much for being Masters favourite...

A growl escaped Vayne's lips. Alright. Question him first, then kill him... Of course. He'd need to find a way to get Wolf away from that place. The fanged man could tell by scent alone that that place was... peculiar. It didn't smell normal... Besides, what he'd seen and heard around the nearby town led him to believe that running in there with no plan was dangerous. What with all the... Abilities, they seemed to have.

No... Best chance would be to lure Wolf away from the Circus first. Then, and only then, could Masters death be avanged, after a brief questioning, naturally. Of course, first... He had to figure out a way to do that, get him away from there. And he would...Eventually.

No doubt in hell.

Nylat flicked her tail, shaking her head, for the most part unaffected from her headbutting the tree. She sat, glancing back up at Julian. "You'd best get comfortable." She stood and started circling the tree as she had earlier. It took her a few minutes to start talking, and even as she did, it was slow and drawn out, as if it were hard to explain. And, in a way, it was. Instinct is not an easy thing to explain.

"For starters, its more of a... a conflict of the species, you may call it. My more dominant canine state of mind is telling me to kill that hybrid--that's what this is all about, you may be able to guess--but the more peaceful cat state of mind present in me is telling me to just forget it and be on my merry way. Make it none of my business. You know, stay solitary like cats are. The fox aspect of me is agreeing with staying away as well. So, as you can see, that provides enough conflict with those two species alone. Then there's the civilized human bit of me that's telling me to at least accept the fact that I'm probably stuck with him here. Completely contradictory with my wolf side."

She sighed, and her tail started flicking in the manner of an agitated cat as she continued circling the tree. "The wolf bit of me is somewhat happy to find someone else like me--you know, pack instinct. Wolves depend on each other. Then there's the human bit of me that, in wolf terms, says I already have a pack, and he's an intruder. Human and wolf mixed is what gives me my over-protective instinct of the Circus. So, most of me is saying to kill him, the rest to not do so. Fortunantly for him, the more civilized bit of me has been supported more so recently."

"Which brings me to my next point. I have spent just short of half of my life with Raphael. I was still there when I was at an impressionable age. I was told to be aggressive and embrace the instinct to kill. Since that was when I was being taught my habits and developing my personality, I sometimes find it a bit difficult to supress those feelings. Thankfully, they arise usually while I'm hunting. Rarely around the Circus and its members. It's just. Ugh!"

She flopped on the ground, sighing and closing her eyes. It was hard for her to explain everything to someone who didn't feel the combat inside as much as she did. It was an everyday battle. Some days were worse, and some were better. The internal conflict was horrible--worse than that of any human's imaginations--and it dictated her mood greatly. The worse the conflict, the worse her mood. It made her sick to her stomach sometimes.

((Fail. But the music being played made me lose my train of thought halfway through. And I'm outta time anyways.))