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October was officially autumn, and autumn meant otsukimi. At least, it did to Lydia, who had been reading up on fall festivals. The idea of one dedicated to looking at the moon sounded so poetic, she couldn't help but want to participate. So she started planning a party, choosing a kimono to wear, and thinking of what foods to serve. This was the first chance she'd had since her birthday to throw a nice dinner. Maybe she could even serve it outdoors.

Her plans were brought to a swift end when she read about the lunar eclipse event. Not only would she be unable to see the full moon, but nobody would want to come to a her party when the entire city was celebrating. Sadly, she shelved her ideas. Maybe next year would be kinder for this sort of thing. If she even remembered next year; Lydia tended to jump from plan to plan, and couldn't always keep her thoughts in order.

In the meantime, she could always celebrate this eclipse her way. Even when it rained, she read, people still celebrated tsukimi. Surely the same would apply if the moon was obscured in other ways. So she dressed up in the kimono she'd chosen, packed a picnic with tsukimi soba and sushi rolls, and staked out a spot in the park. Of course, going out by herself would be pretty boring, so she made sure to invite someone who wouldn't question her odd tastes in parties.

The eclipse itself wasn't the focus of her picnic, so much as the food and the clothing, but she did dutifully watch as it happened. With her eyes screwed up, as she saw what looked like rabbit-pixies descend from the moon. Lydia blinked several times, then looked at the mochi she'd been nibbling on. "The rabbit in the moon," she mumbled. It was probably a result of reading all those lunar myths for her party preparations. Or eating too much mochi. Or something.

Shrugging, she turned to her companion. Asking about what she'd seen was probably a bad idea, so something safe. "Are you having fun?"

Arian wasn’t particularly impressed by the drunken red head’s antics, although he tried his best not to show it knowing full well that it would be rude.

It was hard not to stare at the red head, especially given his reaction to swigging the hot coffee, but Arian did his best, managing to give Harmony one of his slight smiles in return to her smile.

His smile faded at the other’s mention of magic and terrorists as he said quietly but simply “Walking around late at night on any night is pretty dangerous,” adding “I doubt the terrorists that the news talks about are the only ones out and about – criminals operate at night too” and then realised that Harmony had been speaking too and broke off awkwardly to let her finish.

Tara and Kent trudged through the park together, each taking care not to look at the other. It was awkward; while they had fought a lot when they were kids, they had both thought they'd moved past that. Recent events had proven that assumption incorrect.

Tara just wanted to be left alone. It was so cliche, but it was true. The fewer people who got sucked into her warped sphere of influence, the better. It felt like being a senshi was not just fatal, but a terminal illness. It killed you slowly, while worrying everyone around you, and there was nothing you could do to stop it. Worse still was the fact that it was obviously contagious. Laney and Dana had showed her that. It was too late for them, but maybe there was still hope for the others.

But not if Kent kept dragging her out in the open like this. She turned and glared at him, then remembered she was supposed to be acting sullen and looked away again.

Kent was confused, and hurt, and angry. Not a good mix in a normally rational person. He couldn't understand why Tara had put up such a fuss about going to an event she would normally have gotten into. He hated that she wasn't telling him anything, despite his patience and repeated insistence that he wanted to help. And he was annoyed, because she was taking her issues out on him, and that was enough to tick anyone off. Whatever the problem was, biting his head off wasn't going to help.

They stopped at the same time, at the top of a small hill. In unison, they sat, and stared at the sky, waiting for the eclipse to begin.

Kent looked at Tara, his emotions still unstable. They couldn't just sit here in silence all night, could they? He was the older one, the responsible one, so it fell to him to try and make things right. Yet again. "Look, Tara-"

"Shhh, it's starting!" Tara pointed at the sky, completely tuning her brother out. She couldn't bear to hear him try to apologize for things that weren't his fault, not again. And after a moment, she was truly enthralled. Despite knowing what she knew about the way the world worked, things that would make professors and scholars want to check into mental hospitals, she still loved this sort of thing. Seeing how the universe moved, and understanding how and why it did what it did, still thrilled her on the inside.

At first, Kent watched Tara, rather than the eclipse. He could see her eyes widen, taking on that old familiar glow they got when she was really interested in something. More than anything else, seeing the passionate person she'd been slowly dim and fade away scared him. Not just for her sake, but for his own. If someone as vibrant and enthusiastic as her could change so much, what hope did the rest of them have? What hope did he have?

But there she was, staring at the sky like she was five years old all over again. So maybe there was hope. No matter what had happened to her, and what demons she was battling, Tara was still Tara on the inside. There was still a chance for her, and just maybe, one for him as well. Satisfied with that conclusion, he finally looked up at the sky. The moon had already started to hide itself, and he had to admit, it was kind of cool to watch.

... wait. Was that a rabbit?

He glanced back at Tara, who was still staring, but who gave no indication of seeing anything unusual. Maybe it was some weird effect from all the stress of the evening. Shrugging it off, he went back to watching.

Tara was still enthralled, but she was also panicking. What was the deal with that flying rabbit thing? Why was it coming towards her? As it flew down to her level, she leaned back and tried to bat at it with one hand, but it just flew around and touched her on the forehead. And then, as soon as it had appeared, it was gone.

Kent, on the other hand, was still there, looking at her with raised eyebrows.

"Did you see that?" If he had, it was probably the end for him as well, but she had to know. She had no idea what the deal with the winged rabbits were, but they were probably bad news. Everything seemed to be bad news.

"See what?" Kent knew exactly what he'd seen, but that wasn't the point. Maybe Tara would finally open up a little, share something that was going on with her, if only to have her experiences confirmed. It was worth a try.

For a moment, it looked like it would work. Tara opened her mouth, then closed it, then opened it again. "Just, uh, the eclipse. It's really cool, isn't it? Y'know, I'm glad you dragged me out here."

So what if there were flying bunnies in her head? They didn't seem to have hurt anything. Kent probably didn't see them. All was right with the world, if only for the moment. That had to be enough.

"But if you try anything like this again, I'm taking the wheels off of your skates and hiding them someplace unpleasant." Really, she wasn't about to make him think that this tactic worked. Even if it did.

Was that it? Kent wanted to pressure her, to demand more details. But he couldn't bring himself to do it. She was happy, if only for the moment. They weren't yelling or arguing or pointlessly trying to ignore each other. He knew that trouble was brewing, and that one of these days they would have to hash out the issues that they constantly put aside. But it didn't have to be that day. Having a civil conversation was a small victory he was content with.

"Your objections are duly noted," he said, reaching into his backpack and pulling out a bag of popcorn. "Bribery usually gets better results anyway."

He ignored the handful of popcorn she threw at him. Someone had to be the bigger man. And besides, he was more interested in snacking on it anyway. In time, they both went back to watching the eclipse, and the bunnies were forgotten. If only for the moment.

As she sat down, Delilah wrapped her legs around her before smiling. "Wouldn't miss it for the world." She responded as they both looked up.

The sight was beautiful as it began and within moments, the white orb was completely blocked out. It was then that something caught her eyes. Blinking quickly, the pink dots started to move and dance before her. Was there something in the drink? Or was she just straining her eyes. About ready to just blow of the item, she realized that it had a form. A rabbit? With wings? Now that couldn't be. Nope. She was just seeing things flying towards her and reaching out and...

"Hannah, you just saw something too?" Delilah turned her head towards her friend the moment it disappeared, looking more confused than ever.

Though it had taken quite a bit of convincing, and maybe a little bit of whining and pouting, Evangeline had finally convinced her mother that they should stay for the events after the eclipse, as opposed to scooting her off to bed on time like usual. They didn't even HAVE to tell Papa, who would already be in bed by the time the got home. It was after all a big deal, an eclipse like this! And educational! She wouldn't get the whole experience if they left early. Plus everyone else was going and everyone would think she was a baby if she didn't get to go.

Hand in hand with her mother, quite pleased with her small win, Eva trotted along with head whipping back and forth to see all that there was to be seen. Music pumped from different businesses whose doors were propped open, trying to tempt patrons with deals and specials related to the event. Other children ran rampant, apparently part of some sort of scavenger hunt, rolling in laughter and they ran around with their bags full of the items they'd gathered so far. A soft squeeze from her mom's hand drew her attention forward once more.

"We're going to the costume contest first right?" She asked, sounding almost alarmed that this might not be the case. That was ridiculous though. In the days before the eclipse, after dinner each night her mother had worked on carefully crafting her a 'costume' for the event, and it was beautiful! The dress was knee length and poofy. The bodice was a dark blue like the night sky, the fabric already kissed with silvery sparkles like stars. The skirt itself puffed out in tulle in multiple shades of blues and purples that also shimmered with silver sparkles. One of the tiaras from her dress up closet rest upon her head along with a few moon and star shaped barettes. Also from her dress up set a pair of purple fairy wings and a star and ribbons tipped wand finished off the outfit. Or so her mother thought. Much to her displeasure, Evangeline had decided to throw handfuls of glitter into the air above her to cover both her skin and hair in matching glitter like her dress. Evangeline was certain she looked fabulous. Her mother was only certain that she'd be scrubbing her daughter for days and vaccuming glitter out of the carpet for weeks.

"What's a moon pie!?!" She piped up suddenly, distracted once more from the task at hand by the man advertising the moon pie eating contest that would be starting up shortly.

"Well it's like.. a cake or cookie with marshmallow, dipped in chocolate."

"We just ate dinner a couple hours ago though Eva, you'll make yourself sick if you try to eat a bunch of them."

"But I don't want a bunch of them, I just want one Mama!"

"I just want one special moonpie. And then I'll gobble it up so it disappears like the moon in the sky!!" Want wasn't the word. Evangeline was quite certain she needed it. The whole world in fact might crumble if she could not gobble up the moon on the day that the moon was supposed to be disappearing. The little girl was practically vibrating with excitement and the 'supposed' urgency in her request. Luckily her mother was willing to relent and give in. Better to spend a couple dollars on an overpriced baked good then face a temper tantrum in such a busy and public place.

Drifting closer to her mom, humming in delight as she nibbled away at her treat, she allowed herself to be led through the crowds and towards the park. The passed groups of people gathered around bands. And happy children participating in games and events set up just for them. And people just.. milling around and having fun. It reminded Eva a little bit of the festival that Rapunzel went to visit in Tangled. Would they get to send a bunch of fire balloons into the air too at the end of the night!?

Before she could ask, the pair finally arrived to the small stage that held the costume contest and she was subsequently signed up for her moment to ham it up on the stage. Which she did with exuberance when her turn came, swishing and sauntering, making sure to show off how her dress twirled and how pretty her wings were. She even pretended to cast magic at the spectators and gave them a final little bow before skipping off the stage.

Eva only half paid attention to the others who competed, her attention more drawn to the moon that was slowly disappearing into the darkness. Even though it had been explained to her before she still wasn't entirely sure she understood how or why it was disappearing. But she had been reassured that the moon would come back, so she wasn't too worried, just interested. By the time the moon was nothing more then the tiniest sliver and mere seconds from being fully eclipsed Eva was already rubbing her tired eyes, trying to hide the yawns that were escaping her. Just a little longer!

Wait a second... were people releasing those fire balloon's? No.. whatever it was was coming down.. not going up? Straining her tired eyes she tried to make out what exactly it was. Bunnies.. with adorable little wings? She blinked and suddenly it was gone, but she was sure she saw it. Why didn't Smoochy and Flash get to have wings? Maybe Mama and Papa could get one so that they could have a new friend? But that was a question better left for tomorrow.

Allowing her mother to scoop her up, Eva laid her head carefully in the crook of her mother's neck, trying hard to stay awake even as her eyes drifted closer and closer to sleep. In her dreams her and her winged bunny friends danced and flitted around the park eating moonpies.

The streets were going to be filled with people tonight. Ever since the first advertisement Corey Boone had be plotting and preparing the best way to cut his little piece out of the pie. They'd have a ton of things offered out of them, both buy the city and other businesses. So he needed a good catch or a good sale to draw people. The newly finished black light mini golf course might be a good start.

He had begun advertising a few days ahead of time. Special discounts on families and groups trying out the brand new mini golf course. Special 'pitch black' sessions scattered throughout the night's normal laser tag games. And even a five tokens for $1 instead of the regular four. He didn't bother with food sales, knowing quite well the sheer number of places that could and would outdo him when it came to festive event foods or deals.

The hours of the Arcade were extended to stay open until the sun came up, so he'd round up extra employees for the night, preparing for what would hopefully be a busy night. It was always a craps shoot though, and he could only cross his fingers and hope he'd done enough.

The night started with most of the regulars. People who had no interest in the eclipse events or who were escaping having to hang out with their parents. But slowly and surely new people began to trickle in, most looking for a way to entertain their children while they waited for the scheduled events of the night. Corey was front and center, greeting customers and guiding people towards what they wanted. Games were this way, golf that way.

Early on they were doing pretty well, though as the night crept on and the competition for attention grew the crowds also began to fade. They weren't dead by any means, and with luck they'd still pull out of a profit for the night, but it certainly wasn't the blow out success that the arcade owner had hoped for. Maybe after the eclipse they'd have more success however, he wasn't sure how many other businesses were toting stuff to do and remaining open until almost 6am.

The closer it drew to 9pm, and the eclipse, the more scarce his patrons became, which was to be expected. After speaking to the employees he was leaving in charge for a moment, Corey made his way out onto the streets. He probably wouldn't make it all the way to the park in time for the eclipse, but there were plenty of people that were just milling around the streets anyway. Chatting with one for a few minutes in fact landed him a festively themed cocktail.

Chatting with aquintances and strangers alike he wouldn't have noticed the actual moment of the eclipse had it not been for a group of slightly tipsy girls yelling and pointing in drunken excitement. His eyes drifted upwards barely glancing at the eclipse, but they paused at.. something else? His eyes strained trying to make out the strange sight. It looked like something was falling? But.. not really even that? It was like a slow and subtle drift. And as it came even closer he grew even more confused.

Maybe... it was something the city had set up? You know, like fireworks? Maybe it was a neat holographic show or projected image? If that was the case that was actually pretty damn neat and he had to wonder how much that kind of spectical would cost. But it was quickly gone and he was left simply to ponder. Finishing off the drink in his hand, Corey turned back towards the direction of his arcade. He'd have to ask around about the light show tomorrow. But for now he had a job to get back to. Hopefully a soon to be busy job.

Leora wasn't really venturing out for the Eclipse viewing party, why would she? The Bed and Breakfast her parents run had been hosting an eclipse special, including an outdoor dinner in the garden for all of the guests. Which meant Leora was working. She was dressed as usual, ruffles and ribbons and lace galore, which was just fine for what she was doing, serving tea and snacks to elderly couples in the garden, the meal having been completed and the patrons of the B&B resting comfortable under light blankets and throws.

With a sigh the young woman swept back up onto the patio, switching out the empty teapot for a fresh one, returning the smile her mother gave, knowing that she was grateful for the help. The B&B did steady business but there ere completely booked, something that was almost unheard of. On top of that the girl who was supposed to help with this particular event had called in "sick". Which Leora strongly suspected was not true. The girl was known to flake on occasion, and instead of putting for time off for a day she knew probably wouldn't be approved, she just played hooky.

Leora strongly suspected the girl would be let go. And that suited her just fine, she couldn't stand the other woman anyway. Scarcely a year older then Leora, she had a horrible and annoying habit of calling her "girl" and talking to her as if she were a child. Just because she looked young didn't mean she was a simpleton.

She adjusted her frilly apron, a matching set that went along with the one her mother wore, and the slightly more masculine one her father wore as he tended the fire pit in the garden were vacationers snuggled around toasty and warm, and glanced at the sky, waiting for the eclipse. Normally celestial events fascinated her, but lately her life had been so busy and crazy with other things, that the date had almost gone unmarked in her mind until she was asked to help out with the B&B by her parents.

Finishing serving another round of tea and pastries, Leora decided to take a well earned break, settling herself graceful into one of the white iron garden chairs that most people had skipped over, for they were rather uncomfortable. She settled her skirts around her, and folded her hands in her lap, watching the people in the garden, trying to suppress a sigh. Its not like she had terribly busy social life, or important plants. But she wouldn't have minded seeing Aluminite again. Yes their first meeting had been a traumatizing experience... but... still.... She would have liked to see him again.

She let herself relax a little bit, leaning back in her chair, when the gasps of the patrons in the rest of the garden startled her out of her revere. People were pointing, and muttering about a star shower, shooting stars? Meteors? Something, little orbs of light floating across the sky in a manner that was much to slow for an actual shooting star. And then suddenly, one of them was right in front of her, touching her face with a tiny paw. It looked like a little winged rabbit, cute, like something she would have on her bed with the rest of her stuffed animal collection.

And then suddenly it was gone. Leora looked around, but it seemed everyone had been to busy eyeing the floating lights to notice the one who had strayed beside her, showing its tiny fluffy form before disappearing.

She didn't mention it to her parents, or the patrons, or anyone... What was she supposed to say? And they probably wouldn't believe her, but she had seen and experienced so much in the realm of the bizarre lately that she just tucked it away in her mind. She would ask Ilmentite about it later, maybe he would know something. The rest of the night passed in a daze, her mind preoccupied, a smile plastered on her face until it was sufficiently late that her parents let her excuse herself to bed, allowing them to handle the rest of the cleanup.

She would make it up to them, get up early and help with the morning breakfast rush that took place every morning, but for now, she felt drained. She chucked it up to exhaustion, and the sheer insanity of her life lately, but she couldn't help but feel as if that something had been taken from her.

Arian nodded quietly to the large blond, who departed taking the drunken red-head with him.

About to say something further, he was distracted as at that moment his phone started to ring. With a slightly apologetic look, he pulled out the cell just as the number rang off, recognising the number as being the one belonging to his cousin. There was a message from Orah on the phone too.

"I have, to get going myself" his voice was was slightly rueful as he spoke to Harmony, adding, "That was my cousin."

He didn't rush off immediately though, first setting down the pastry and half-drank coffee that he'd been slowly sipping down carefully first so that he could rummage in his bag. Fishing out a piece of paper from his notepad he carefully wrote down his mobile number before offering the paper Harmony. "But maybe we could catch up some time."

He picked up the coffee and pastry again, adding "And thank you for these" and then he was off himself to meet Saffy as they'd earlier promised.

He managed to send a text back to Orah before he got there though, juggling typing it with munching on the pastry that Harmony had given him.



And then he was at the restaurant and Saffy was there looking a little exasperated and as the evening progressed Arian ended up putting thoughts of weird bunny things out of his mind.



-- Arian fin --

Alistair huffed and rolled his eyes, standing up. "I promise, love, it won't be that bad. I'll even be sure to take you somewhere with really nice food, so you forget all about the dressing-up thing." He offered the blond a hand. "We've seen the eclipse, no? I think we'd do well to head home, before things get any weirder."