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Hester and Jen's act was composed mainly of Hester singing and Jen dancing, occassionally trading off, and sometimes singing or dancing together. They were two very beautiful young girls, and Hester obviously had at least a little elf in her. It seemed to captivate all the young men in the crowd the way they danced in their flowing gown-like costumes. But it seemed almost too soon that their performance was done, and they both slipped off of the stage to the applause.

Terak sprang back onto the stage, clapping his performance-worn hands and beaming, "Beautiful! Beautiful! Two of the finest ladies yet to be found. But next up we have a great feat of skill and strength. Gren, our strongest and most able-bodied performer, with one of the most brave, or foolhardy, ladies I've ever known!" He did a quick somersault backward and disappeared off the back of the stage, allowing Gren to make his way onto the stage.

Gren was a giant of a man, more than likely part gian at any rate, and well muscled. He wore a plain linen shirt, unlaced around the neck, and regular brown trousers. It was either because he didn't need to look flashy to attract attention, or because a man of his size could find no colorful costumes. Either could be true, but neither answer really mattered in the time that followed.

Caprice took a breath, then jumped up on the side of the stage and did a short series of handsprings to the center, having shed the long flowy parts of her costume in favor of the streamlined garment beneath them. The pinks and oranges rendered her a bright flurry of color as she reached the middle of the stage, only to be promptly scooped up by Gren and tossed into an aerial somersault. She hadn't done this act in a while, but her body remembered. It lent itself naturally to the twisting and turning in mid-air, and she tucked her body in as she came back down. Gren caught her once more, and she extended her body again to use his arm as a sort of bar to spin around.

It took only a flick of that same arm to send the feline girl skyward again, this time spinning like a top, stretched out from head to toe, then tucking in on herself and coming back down on her feet, only to execute a backflip. The large man grabbed her ankles and swung her in nearly a full circle, and tossing her above him once more, where she tucked back into a ball and fell toward the stage to be caught in Gren's arms. He flipped her out of his grasp backward and she landed on her feet, stepping to the side for a moment as Gren picked up three moderately sized ale kegs and began to juggle them effortlessly. This break was to showcase his strength and skill, as well as to give Caprice a short break before going back into the difficult routine...

Xirai was extremely impressed with the show Caprice and Gren were putting on. The man's skill and speed were impressive for someone so large. He was also very impressed with Caprice's gymnastic skill. Watching her was like watching a bird in flight.


Kireen watched the two acts silently, but she was impressed as well. There weren't many performers who could do so well, and she knew it. I'll have to go meet them, I think. The whole troupe. She thought as Gren began juggling the ale kegs.

Xirai was extremely impressed by the whole performance, and clapped as loud as anyone in the audience at it's conclusion. He had known Caprice was a good acrobat, but this was truly spectacular. As the giant of a man brought Caprice down from the stage, Xirai waved cheerily. "That was amazing! I knew you were good, but I didn't expect that!"

Keeping Caprice upright wasn't much of a task, she didn't weigh much, so Xirai carefully guided her to a nearby tree where she could sit down. "Well then, let's get you sitting down, missy. There's no sense in you falling over and injuring yourself after that act." More than that, though, Xirai wanted to make sure she didn't fall over and injure herself because he cared about her.


As Caprice and Gren stepped off the stage, Kireen got up and flitted around the audience to join them. As she arrived, Xirai was just helping Caprice sit down without injuring herself. Looking the big man up and down, she decided she could trust him, and spoke. "That was fantastic!"

Kireen turned to face Gren, then changed her form into a female replica of Xirai, with golden fur instead of white. "I am not a fox. I am a dragon." She said, simply. Looking the man up and down. "And you... You are larger than any human I've seen before... But you're quite fast with your hands despite that. Very impressive."


Only glancing at Kireen for a moment, Xirai laughed. "You'll want to be careful with her, Gren. She can be feisty. I'd know, she's my sister." Turning back to look down at Caprice, he smiled warmly. "Well you did a wonderful job of it, and I'm looking forward to hearing that song. I always liked music."

Xirai smiled to himself, then followed Caprice so he could watch from near the stage. He just couldn't get enough of watching the little woman. He wasn't sure what it was that drew him to her, but whatever it was, that pull was strong.


Glancing at Gren's hands, Kireen giggled. "I can imagine how you wouldn't. That girl doesn't look like she weighs much more than a sack of grain does." She liked this Gren, he was a good man, and she could tell he intended to stay that way. "Is that the only act you do with the troupe? Or do they have you juggling other people?"

Xirai watched as Terak moved on stage, and began the slow dance that clearly illustrated just how deeply the pair had been in love. He knew the dance had come about from long practice, and deep compassion, and he couldn't hold that against Terak. Reaching out with his mind, he lightly touched the minds of both Caprice and the Mummers' leader. 'It's alright. I don't mind. I understand how you used to feel, and I'm happy.' The thought passed to the two of them as it formed in Xirai's head. 'Just make the crowd happy.'


Kireen had noticed the dancing couple now, too, but she was not so calm about it. She made her way angrily to where Xirai was watching from near the stage, but when she tried to ascend the couple of steps to tear the two apart, Xirai placed a hand on her shoulder. Glancing at her brother, she saw a single shake of the head. "But she..." Hissed Kireen in a whisper. Another shake of Xirai's head, and she grumpily sat down to wait for the performance to end.

Xirai blinked, then looked over at Gren. "Thank you. And I will. I just hope the weather holds out long enough." Pulling his sword out of the ground, Xirai moved right up to the edge of the stage, and forced his mind to empty. He forced himself to concentrate harder than he ever had in his life. Barely, just barely, he could feel the flow of magic there, and he reached out to grasp it. To mold it's strength to his will. With a surge of effort, he forced it to act on his wish, and a flare of white fire appeared, floatinga foot above the middle of the stage, surrounded by glittering shards of light. Using the crowd's amazement to his advantage, he moved onstage quickly, and got behind the flame, which was large enough to conceal him from view until it vanished. Holding his sword before him in both hands, he readied himself, and the flame vanished in an instant, taking the glittering shards with it. That was something he could not have done normally, but letting his emotions go had given him the strength to control magic's flow. Now, as the crowd's eyes focused on him, he began a slow series of excercises, twirling the weapon about himself in both hands, covering every angle, but moving slow enough that the blade remained visible to every eye there.


As the motions continued, Kireen watched from the spot she had stayed after Caprice's act. She knew what Xirai was doing. Working his way through the basic forms, and decided to give him some help. Her anger was enough at the moment that grasping for magic was easy. Focusing on Xirai, she pushed with her mind, and two flickering flames, a foot tall appeared above the stage on either side of her brother. Their light glinting off of his sword as he went through the forms.