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The ringmaster of the Circo nelle Stelle tilted his head to the sides, popping the joints in his neck as he surveyed the empty big top. The huge tent seemed to rise up and reach for the stars that the circus was named after, and small fairy lights painted the likeliness of constellations in the night sky when the lights were dimmed. During showtime, this was a place full of action, daring, feats of miracle and grace and beauty. But for now, it was simply an empty, albeit impressive but still empty, tent save for himself and the several unused props and tools lying around.

Rehearsal would start soon, but not too soon. Until then, the one-legged ringmaster would be left to his own devices within this huge tabernacle. This time would not be spent sitting and waiting for the other members of the troupe to arrive for practice, Icarus was never quite one for dumb idleness. (This was not to say that he was not a lazy creature, for when it came to procrastination of work, his unfortunate underlings and assistants would find it quite a different case)

Well, there's still a bit of time before anyone arrives, they probably won't see... The brunette mentally reasoned and scanned the perimeter of the tent once again. It was best if the other troupe members didn't walk in on this. Taking a deep breath from up on the platform that lead to the high wire, he made sure that check that the safety net below was as secure as it could be. He certainly didn't want another accident. Setting down his crutches, he spread his arms out for balance, and closed his eyes, envisioning himself in another moment in time.

He felt the heat of the stage lights, the melting make-up on his skin, heard the cheer of the crowds and the blare of the music. He took a tenative hop forward, standing on the absolute edge of the solid platform, and opened his eyes, concentrating on the thin cable before him. There was no need to be frightened, even if he fell this time, there was something down there to catch him. Regulating his breathing, the handicapped man braced himself for failure as bends his knee in readiness. He hears the music in his head, and the melody of the violin is climbing higher and higher until it reaches that high F, and-

Icarus had learnt how to do a front flip when he was only four years old. He remembers that the older members of the circus he was born into drilled him for nearly 3 hours on end until he finally got the hang of it, but the skill has never left him ever since that day. Muscle memory kicks in, and he jumps into the air, spinning forward as he does. However, with only one left leg propelling him and no right, the direction of the jump is off, and he lands a bit too far to the side, and his foot slips again- just like that day- and the ex-tightrope walker falls from the high wire once again, far too reminiscent of a night many years ago.

The ringmaster promised himself he wouldn't make a noise, that he wouldn't let others know that he was doing something as stupid and dangerous as this, but as the fall begins to affect his senses, something in his stomach flips and he can't help but let out a short scream of terror. Nonononotagainnotthisagainhelpmehelpmei'mfallingidon'twantto-

Luckily, the safety net is set up right, and he lands in the middle of it safe and sound, bouncing slightly. He lets out a sigh of relief, and slowly realises that he's fine, that nothing's happened, sitting up, he wipes the cold sweat on his brow and lets out a shuddery sigh. Maybe trying to tightrope walk again wasn't the best idea.

Rolling off of the net and landing on the floor, Icarus gets up onto his foot and looks about.

Shoot. I've left my crutches up there.

--

[[OOC: I'm so sorry for the delay in reply! I hadn't realised someone had posted here! I'm so sorry!]]

Meldellevo grimaced as he stepped out of the tent and into the glaring sunlight. He lowered his gaze, holding up a shaky arm to shield his eyes. Dimly, he recalled a time of his childhood where he would fear shadows and adore sunlight, running in the streets and basking in the gondolas, his jet-black hair bleaching to a dark blue-black, his skin emanating the famous Santo Paolo golden glow.

He glanced at his gloveless hands. Long gone was that dark tan. Now he favoured shadows and resented light, every ray an affront to his sensitive epidermis. His pale skin almost shone white in the overwhelming sun, and his eyes began to water. He squeezed them shut as the doves fluttered around him, letting the tent flap ripple back into place. He raised his leg into the air to take a step, wobbling and trembling in fatigue, the grass crunching wetly beneath his boots. He felt a slight tug on his clothing and opened his eyes to see the doves swirling around him, grabbing his sleeves and hems to support him. Their soft grey eyes seemed at once reproachful and compassionate, and with their help, Meldellevo managed to stumble over to the main tent.

Once in the shadows of the towering construction, he leaned his body against the cool wood of the stilts, his face pressed into the smooth canvas, his bright blue eyes closed. The entrance was on the other side of the massive tent, and Meldellevo decided to recuperate in the shade before venturing further. The doves lighted on his shoulders and head, their cooing calming his nausea. However am I supposed to get through rehearsal? Meldellevo wondered bitterly. The doves fluffed up and waddled about on him in response, their tiny feet little pinpricks on his shoulder.

We'll think of something came Luciano's gentle voice as the doves hopped off of him and disappeared in a swirl of eerie blue light. You just muscle through and get us there, soldier.

Suddenly, there was a short but pronounced scream from inside the tent that made Meldellevo start, his heart beginning to pound. His eyes snapped open, and he began to jog towards the other side of the tent. He pushed through the still-flopping flap and blinked, his eyes adjusting to the vastly different lighting. The tightrope walker (Iris chided Luciano. Come now, pay more attention, she's been here for a couple months already.) was peering bashfully at the area beneath the safety net. Squinting, Meldellevo made out the distinctive shape of a person with one leg.

His sluggish mind began putting two and two together, and he rubbed his temples tiredly. "Sir, are you all right?" he asked. "Where are your crutches?"

((I'll make a post style sooner or later... heh... hope you don't mind me jumping in...))

"Such a foolish boy." Came a low seductively evil voice from a few meters away in the large tent. The owner of said voice was the Tarot Reader of the circus: Mrs. Puppett.

The red clad woman sat idly in the visitor's stands on the top row, watching the whole "show" from afar with a smirk on her pale features. She had actually not witnessed the whole of Icarus' "performance", for she had been in her tent, scribbling away on a rusty colored piece of paper in her scratchy, tiny handwriting to her husband, who was now residing in a small town by Durem, Gaia. The thought of maybe being able to visit her lover someday made her smirk a little softer, but the softness faded when she once again focused on the other acts a few meters away from her, all worrying over the handicapped Ringmaster. She could never understand them, but she never really tried to. Mrs. Puppett almost always showed up either late to practices or not at all.

The truth of the matter was, Mrs. Puppett had little to no sympathy for any of the acts, and would probably be the first to be blamed if one got hurt in any way.

Of course, it probably would have been her anyways, so she didn't mind the accusations.

So, when she came in to see the Ringmaster Icarus fall all on his own made her laugh. "Such a foolish, foolish boy." she spoke once more and stood, walking gracefully down the steps, like a lioness about to rip its prey to shreds in a matter of seconds.

Mrs. Puppett reached the bottom of the stands and sauntered over to the group, albeit keeping respectable distance between her and the others. Specifically Iris. It was never anything personal against the child herself, she was sure Iris was a perfectly respectable kid, but Mrs. Puppett disliked other females. Any of them. They disgusted her, and all she could see in them was the face of her Goddamned mother, forget personalities. She gave Iris a cool stare before returning her gaze back upon Icarus, speaking no more words.

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Meldellevo, the ever-reclusive illusionist had joined Iris and reminded her once more of the strange amount of extremely handsome men. One day, she'll get so distracted of all the bishounens that she'll forget about the heavenly stars. As Icarus said everything so nonchalantly, Iris couldn't help but believe him. She isn't a very bright girl despite all the lies she can tell. Her head bobbed up and down as she trusted his words and followed the excuses and pathetic logic. At the mention of the crutches at the top, her head followed up the pole to the tent's tarp ceiling. As she saw the rope, she imagined the ringmaster falling down to the net, her eyes returning back to the ground and Icarus.
From no where, Iris grabbed an arm of his and shook it. "You have to be careful! Or else you'll end up like the story-book Icarus!" She said with good intentions, not knowing of how exactly he had lost his leg. She had always assumed it was some sort of accident, as only crazy people would cut off their own legs on purpose. Though, she also doubted that one could drown from falling off the tightrope, but then again, anything was possible.

The innocence of a child. That was exactly what prevented her from feeling any embarrassment for acting as young as little Aure. Even if Aure or Steed didn't show any affections or held any for her, Iris adored the two of them. Hell, she couldn't even tell that Steed was actually a puppet instead of a real boy. Though, she did have some preferences to Steed over Aure as one is obviously far more talkative than the other.
After a moment, she released her grip from Icarus's arm at the mention of tricks and the tightrope. "Oh! Some of the acrobats taught me a few flips, so I'm considering using them on the rope during practice." Any mention of her dream caught her attention immediately and away from everything else.
Just as well, insults were easily noticeable to almost always oblivious Iris. She looked up to see Mrs. Puppett sitting MANY meters away on the top bench, literally looking down upon them all. With such poor eyes, she did her best to preserve her hearing and could hear the condescending remarks about Icarus. She could see a blurry visage of Mrs. Puppett's glare, but could feel the atmosphere chill a bit and assumed nothing quite so pleasant, and just as well returned a stuck tongue and a raspberry as a finishing touch.
Before Iris could add any verbal words as well, Aure and Steed came bursting into the scene, distracting her once more. "Steed! Aure! Come here! Come here!" She waved her hands and patted a seat beside the ringmaster on the small wooden podium where he had moved to after leaving the safety net.

[[Lalala...]]

The ringmaster couldn't help but smile at Iris' scolding, especially when she warned him that he would end up 'just like the storybook Icarus'. A small touch of irony here and there always made life more interesting. Glancing at Meldevello, he saw that the illusionist had begun to climb the ladder up towards the tightrope ladder. Icarus couldn't help but let out a small sigh of relief that both of them had either been oblivious to, or at least couldn't be bothered to object to, his flimsy and pathetic excuse. He wasn't always that terrible of a liar, but honestly what with how much they had already seen, there weren't many ways to explain oneself. As expected of the exuberant tightrope walker, Iris was already off again, gushing about the latest trick she learnt from one of the acrobats,  and how she planned to incorporate it into her routine. Sweet little Iris, as cheerful and enthusiastic as always. 

All of a sudden, a sultry feminine voice came from the direction of the spectators' stands. "Such a foolish boy." Turning his head towards the origin of the voice. Unfazed by the condescending remarks, Icarus chuckled and smiled up towards where the woman was beginning to stalk down the stairs towards the ring. "What an honor to have you with us for once, Mrs. Puppett," he commented, tone polite if not the slightest bit clipped to those who listened closely. "Have you decided to join our humble practice session at last?" The red-clad Tarot Card reader hardly ever came to practices, and truth be told, the amputee doubted that she was missed by anyone. She was certainly dangerous when she was present, and Icarus had quite valid reasons to believe that she was anything but mentally stable. 

As soon as he had said this, a blur of vibrant red hurtled into the big top, screaming if they were late. This crimson ball of energy happened to be Aure Rosseau, the resident puppet master and her companion, Steed. Only 7 years old and already an orphan, he thought sadly. The child had attempted to use her puppet to pickpocket him on the streets, but had lost concentration when a metallic ringing sound had been produced from kicking his prosthetic leg. Thus her talent had been discovered, and- determined not to let such an adorable little face and amazing talent go unrecognized- he had promptly invited her to join the Circus on the spot. Mr. Tristis hadn't been very pleased with him for that, but eventually things had smoothened over. Smiling as the Aure worriedly asked Iris if they were late, Icarus gently greeted patted her on the head and greeted them both. "Aure, Steed. How nice of you to join us. Don't worry, you're right on time." Turning to find that Meldevello had successfully helped him retrieved his crutches, Icarus accepted them with a nod of gratitude ("Perfect timing, Meldevello.") and stood up with an air of energy and authority, tapping the ground with a crutch to gather everyone's attention. "In any case, most of us are here now, so let us begin practice while we are waiting for the others, shall we?" He announced.    

[[OOC: Ringmaster Icarus gained achievement title 'Lolicon'. -shot-]]

(( OOC: La la la… Lets pretend that my other post said that Aure/Steed spot Icarus sitting by the bench, rather than the net… I failed at reading there, oopsie. xD ))

Feeling her “master” petting on Aure’s head and the news of them being on time had made her very happy and relief. She couldn’t help but put on a smile, both her hands cups her face, knees together, feet apart, and let out a small giggle. Steed on the other hand, jumps about a foot into the air, his right hand above his head, the left knee brought up to his chest, and yelled “ALRIGHT!” as if he just gained victory over some scuffle with a bigger boy. After he lands on his feet, both Aure and Steed turn to face each other and held each other’s hands in celebration. "We're not late!"

Before she could comment further on their timing, she got distracted by Meldellevo descending to the floor from above (Aure’s the one facing toward the safety net). She tilt her head to aside, staring at the “magic” that’s going on in front of her. Magic is something Aure consider as advance form of her psychic ability since it can manipulate anything around the wielder, whereas, her power being only limited to her puppet. Jealous of his skills/talent, she promises herself that she’ll train in her own powers just so she can someday manipulate the Illusionist himself. This is for the best for her and her Ringmaster, and no one is to mess around with the two of them (or three, if you count Steed as another person). That’s how life goes, right, the controller and the controlled? She should avoid herself from getting on his bad side until then.

Noticing his owner’s eyes looking elsewhere, Steed turns around to find himself distracted by the crutch in the Illusionist’s hands. Steed’s body tensed up (well, not like he can, being a puppet and all, but he could imitate a defensive pose), wondering what the hell Meldellevo’s doing with Icarus’ what Steed/Aure considered as Icarus' life supporting tool. This crutch is just as important to Icarus as Steed being to Aure’s puppet. To have the two separated, they’re both are nothing but a sitting duck. The two of them gave the Illusionist hostile stares until he handed the crutch over to their Ringmaster. Realizing that it’s nothing out of ordinary for Meldellevo to help their Ringmaster, the two of them gave an apologizing look before start questioning themselves as to why Icarus’ crutches are above the stadium in the first place.

The condescending remark from Mrs. Puppet’s reply immediately caught both Aure’s and Steed’s attention, making them completely forget about the crutch. Amputee Ringmaster? AMPUTEE Ringmaster? Steed zipped around to face her with both hands in fist, body slightly crouched. Ready to pound on her, he growled “…What did you just say?” Aure looked at Mrs. Puppet with only cold eyes since she now had most of her mind’s focus inside of Steed. After hearing Mrs. Puppet’s second comment about using other people for practice, Steed stood upright before patting a fist into a palm of his hand, and popped a few knuckles. “Oho~ You are so asking for it now.” Being a puppet that he is, the few fingers that he popped floated in front of his face, ready to shoot forward whenever necessary.

(( OOC: Steed… I mean, Aure, what are you doing...? Icarus just said to get ready for practice... Well, not this type of practice. Lol.))

Icarus couldn't help but let out a small sigh of exasperation at Mrs. Puppett's offer to practice on the other circus performers. Just when he thought there was hope that she would cooperate for once. A small voice in the very back of his consciousness wondered why a part of the circus' budget hadn't been put aside to purchase a set of practice dummies for the woman's rather life-threatening (on their part, not hers of course) acts, before remembering that the budget was one of the many documents at the bottom of the pile on his desk that he had yet to deal with. He would have to manage that, wouldn't he? ... Perhaps later. Turning his focus back to the matter at hand, the ringmaster was startled to see Steed and Aure challenging Mrs. Puppett to a fight which seemed to be, most shockingly of all, on his behalf.

Eyes widening in fear for the childrens' safety, the brunette was just about to step forward and mediate the conflict, but Meldevello beat him to it, offering himself to train with the Tarot Reader. Icarus sighed once again, this time from relief, and made a mental note to thank the Illusionist somehow for all his help as soon as he recieved the chance, which meant without procrastinating.

With the aid of his crutches, the ringmaster moved over to where Aure was and placed a hand on her shoulder as Meldevello had. "Calm down, you two, there's no harm in stating the truth," He rebuked gently. It was true that he was both an amputee and a ringmaster, and even though the woman had obviously meant to address him as such in a condescending manner, he had grown quite immune to such quips over the years. "No need to jump so quickly into a fight, alright?"

Now that the girl was hopefully placated, he looked up to where the Illusionst and Tarot Reader were facing each other. "I suppose this works. Meldevello, Mrs. Puppett, please be careful. We wouldn't want either of you getting hurt, would we?" Inwardly, he was thanking the dark-haired man for his sacrifice, and praying that Puppett wouldn't end up killing him. It wasn't that the ringmaster doubted the Illusionist's skills, it was just that they needed him alive, and not just for his act. Though calm, Icarus' tone of voice spoke volumes for what he didn't need to say out loud, and this time the hidden message was quite clearly 'Please try not to tear each other to pieces. The resulting legal paperwork and cleanup would be an absolutel nightmare.'