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She hadn't known that the reason they needed auditions so badly was not just to fill up back up spots. The teen had had no idea that a few of the leads in the holiday performance had actually become sick or injured very soon before production and replacements were needed asap. She hadn't known how much work or time had been put into this show when she and Mareike had signed up.

Most of the applicants had been practicing to understudy in this show anyway – backup dancers and whatnot. The majority hadn't just been walk-ins off of the street. And yet, two demon-angel spawns had managed to come in and wow the judges with their personality, beauty and talent. Mareike's fire and passion and just general badassery had won her one role. Ebony's softness, grace and beauty had won her another.



With the show so close, they had only one month to learn moves and motions for multiple roles that others had had months to learn. Mareike had an easier time of it since she was diligence, but Ebby worked her a** off, cutting out most other activities from her life that weren't vital. The two practiced together frequently, often having to play off each other as their solos were close to each other in the performances. It had turned out that the show was to go on from morning till evening the next day, with breaks in between and several large productions happening. They were lucky enough that their chorus duties were early in the day and their solos were later in the evening.

Practicing with Mareike was like magic to Ebby. The girls worked off of each other well, being such good friends. She could trust that Mare would let her fall during some moves, and Mare could trust that Ebby wouldn't take advantage of the situation. They practiced in their homes, at the CdL facilities, and sometimes even when just out and about. It was during one of these, that things changed, for both the better and worse.



The people directing both of their solo sections had seen the two spawns practicing together and were amazed. They were newbies, but they were hard working and the way they worked together was just amazing. It was something that just worked so well, the pair had had to rush off to ask Allen – the head director – for a small change in the show.

The two girls had been approached later with a very interesting proposition. They would have one more piece in this production, but with a catch: the two girls would be doing a duet piece. The show itself was a holiday mix, featuring bits on the different holidays celebrated at that time of year, the religious versus secular parts of the holiday and a rather grand piece about the good and bad parts of the season. Ebony and Mareike would be performing in the last two.



The girls had to work ten times harder now. They had minor chorus duties, their solo pieces and now a duet to learn and so much less time to do it. Ebony had had to just stay permanently at Cirque for the last few weeks, just working whenever she was awake, and sometimes even eating while she worked – she stopped doing that after nearly choking during a dance section however.

Around the time they were told that they could perform a duet together, the girls had had another bombshell dropped on them: the majority of Cirque de la Lune's performances were done almost nude. The actors generally wore little more than body paint and a few minor garments over their privates so they weren't totally exposed or liable to get in awkward situations while performing. Ebby had never been comfortable nude around others, and now she was to do so live on stage in front of millions of people.

To make things worse, Mare was to be wearing armor like items for her performance, but in the duet scene the younger girl was to strip her of the armor in a figurative gesture. It wasn't at all bedroomy or disturbing – more like literally tearing away the shields she kept around herself to keep others out and keep from loving. It was to be a very beautiful and powerful piece but it did require a lot of practice.



It had been a lot of work but somehow, the two had made it through the weeks towards Christmas and learned what they needed to. Now, there was only the show to be conquered.

She woke up alone in the waiting room. Mare was not the type who would sleep the full time given, whether she should or not. The purple skinned teen wandered slowly out towards where she was supposed to wait for costume and makeup. A young woman was there to wait on her and gave the girl some tea, letting her sit and relax since she was up more than an hour early before she was due to be woken.

Ebony sat in the chair, just watching the snow out of the window, a placid look on her delicate features. After a time, she stood, quietly starting to sing her lyrics and move to music that no longer needed to play for her to follow. The lyrics flowed softly as she twirled and moved, her body taking care with each motion.



The woman who was to help Ebony returned again after a time, this time bearing what was to be the base for the girl's costume: a top that was to wrap around the girl's upper portions to keep her ample breasts from flying every which way, and a set of boy shorts that were to keep her lower half protected. The girl carefully stripped down to the nude, carefully putting on the garments, her assistant having to adjust the top.

Staring at herself in the mirror, Ebony felt strange. This would be the last time that she'd see herself like this for a while. She already looked so different – her legs and arms had become stronger from all of the dancing practice, and her waist had slimmed a little when she'd started to eat a proper diet – nutritious things instead of just whatever takeout the family got or what she cooked. Her previously pink hair had been bleached white so as to allow for coloring in this show and the pink had been removed from her feathers. Looking at the soft, nervous teenaged girl, Ebby felt strange. Quietly, she made one request of her assistant – take a picture of her, one last photo of her as she was before she went further and become something else. For already, the teen knew this show would change her forever.



With the photo taken, the teen allowed herself to be taken into another room. The 'under clothes' she wore were carefully painted to match her skintone flawlessly, blending in so as to make her soft body look totally bare, but with a lack of definition that took away the feel of nudity. It was weird to look at herself in a mirror, moving a little and watching her body move as it should, as if there were nothing on, nothing more than a second skin.

After that, she was to be airbrushed a bit, icy blue accents being added to her purple hued skin. It felt like she was being blown along her sides with a large spout of wind, but another look in the mirror, showing the tracks of blue down her sides showed otherwise. Her body was now two toned, but it wasn't very neat. But this was only the beginning.



Several different people surrounded her then, young woman with soft paint brushes who added flecks of white and soft hues of purple and blue to mix the tones of her skin with the paint, making the wintery accents seem like true crystal or ice coating her skin. The soft pink of her cheeks was hued with a darker color under her cheek bones and soft paints and powders being brushed over her face to brighten the pink to a delicate red.
Next, when the paint on her body was dry, she was sat in a chair and women carefully did her makeup and took care of the rest of her features. Her nails were painted, her horns were painted a bit shined brightly. The girl felt almost like Mulan as a brush painted color to her soft plump lips and her eyes were made up. Different tools were used to lengthen the look of her thick lashes and make them sparkles, and before too long, the teen looked nothing like she had before.



They had not finished primping and poking her, a lady carefully dusting blue powders into Ebony's white hair, using gel to make the color stay and fluff up the short cut layers, leaving her with a soft feathery look to it, that matched her wings now, which had had blue accents put on them as well.

Accessories were simple at most – gold jewelry here and there, rings on her ankles and wrists, a few white and gold feathered accents too. Looking in the mirror, she looked and felt like a Christmas angel. Glittery and shiny, sparkly and shimmery, soft and beautiful, icy yet warm and holy. She no longer looked to herself like a lust and kindness spawn – she was a creature of beauty, found only in dreams and fairytales, tales of winter holidays and creatures that were found only in the holiest of places.



At least she was done. Her assistant took another phtograph of her – a during the process of change, she called it. For while Ebby looked different, she wasn't quite yet. But now, she felt prettier and somehow, that gave her a tad more confidence. She wasn't a girl in costume, but this creature they'd made her into, and she would show the world. Walking carefully to the stage through back stage halls, she was able to see Mareike's whole performance calmly and while waiting for her own.

Now it was her turn, and the purple skinned teen stood slowly and gracefully, walking towards the stage. She started out hidden behind a white curtain with fake snow falling before her. As the background music of carolers began, the curtains were drawn back and she danced out, singing of the beauty of the season.

People dressed like normal shoppers and holiday goers, wearing the garbs of different religions or none at all danced in lines along the stage. Ebony spun between them, spreading her wings to blow the sparkles and fake snow lightly over them, or pulling them in close as she slid between the people, singing about the unity and wonder of the season, holding hands with individuals now and then to dance a step and then going back to her solo dancing.



At times, the lines would freeze at her word and she'd spin to the end of the line, then dance her way across, hands brushing the chests of the people, who had stood straight and lowered their heads when she commanded. As her hand brushed them, they would look up and their plain coats and shirts were open or torn open to reveal a golden heart upon a white or bare body. These people would then dance around to the music, the others in the line joining as they were touched.

When the line was completely changed, the girl danced along the stage, her chain of free and good people dancing along after her but exiting the other half of the stage after she'd led the whole line in a circle. The next lines came out, a group of children singing or playing instead of shopping or working. And the whole thing repeated, her line now about the innocence of the holidays.



As the children left the stage, the girl danced alone in the center, going down on one knee and looking up, hands folded as if in prayer, her soft voice beginning the words. However, as she did, the music changed and dark clad people in black masks rushed in from both sides of the stage, adults and children, circling her and accompanied by awful sounds.

They danced and seemed to mock all that she sang of, ripping and fighting each other instead of uniting and celebrating. The circle of angry bodies converged on her, completely blocking the girl out in the middle. It seemed she would be drowned in the bad parts of the season, but as she was nearly lost, something changed.



She spread her wings, the people all falling back away from her, stunned, as a spotlight fell from the heavens and the girl flew up, raised mostly by strings that were attached by the group surrounding her. Her wings were wide and higher than the cold music, her own starting to overtake it using the darkness as a back beat, she sang of the light of the world, the hope of the season.

This part of the solo cast away the backups and she was lowered, dancing away from the hookups and singing powerfully, now with a faster and dancier beat. The dark hearted people were kneeling and shielding their faces, but she reached out to touch them, turn them towards the light, and the black suits were torn open to reveal white suits beneath with soft red hearts with gold outlines upon their chests.



After the holes were torn in their uniforms, Ebby took the hands of each person, helping them up as they removed their mask. Like the previous ones, these dancers followed her for one round before going off stage. And there in the center the girl was left, singing to the crowd as the music died down, one last beautiful note being sung as the curtain closed and she was hidden from them.

Back stage, Ebony half collapsed on the couch, feeling exhilarated and amazing. That had been wonderful, and so beautiful. She hadn't felt the lights or the people staring at her. It had only been her, the music and the other dancers. The character she had been was real now and was who had been there, doing the deeds, not just a girl pretending to. And as she took another sip of tea, the girl knew she couldn't be happier.



The night was near over. She lounged on the couch and just stayed there, as the other acts closed and she awaited the finale. Afterwards, she'd get to see some friends and loved ones and get to go to dinner, then bed. But the hardest part was over and now, she was sure of how it was.

It'd been a few days since the show and she hadn't gone home yet. The teen had been thinking very hard on how she felt about this whole situation. How she felt about performing, how she felt about being away from how, about working, about being on her own. It was all so strange and different and yet so wonderful.

After a few days of considering, she'd finally gone to see about buying the apartment for real. Her mother gave her the money and if she was signing on to be a full time worker, it would be in her best interests to stay. She'd been contacted about becoming a full time cast member after the success of the Christmas show – as had Mareike – and Ebony had accepted. Now the teen was to start her own life in her new home.



As she packed up her things, Shiraz and Absinthe hadn't wanted to let go of her legs. Kahlua'd even occasionally poked his head out of his room to ask if she had everything and if she needed any help. The teen hugged her siblings repeatedly, as well as her mother and uncle, feeling strange parting now. Everything was so very new and different, and while not as scary as she thought, it was definitely surprising.

She'd taken one last picture the day she had settled fully into the apartment. The full set was up on her walls now – from beginning to end, the old Ebby to the new. It made her smile to see how she had grown, just in one month. Sitting in her room, she felt freer than ever in her life and so very grown up. The smile wouldn't leave her face, not even if she tried to remove it.



There wasn't due to be another big show for a while. Cirque did events for New Year's but not another huge show for Ebby for a while. She'd have to take some classes here and there and get a job at Cirque for between shows, but life was looking good. And for the first time in a month, she had time to herself again. And she snorted, thinking maybe she should go see Charna and Enki and give them some Christmas presents – after all, she hadn't been able to visit again for the holidays, being so busy.