Circus Grounds

[.David Talbot.]

"I thought you would be enjoying the show." He did not step into the moonlight for her to better see him, and his voice carried no hint of interest in what he spoke of. But his eyes...there was some curiosity in them that made them burn in the darkness. "Or was your sole purpose obtaining information?"
Allen did not, in all actuality, like Antha Mayfair. But he did not dislike her. Perhaps it was more that he did not trust her. He could find no logic in befriending or trusting a demon of a woman with so much unearthly power and such complete control over the heads of the city, no matter what their trade or influence range. So he would not get too close to her.

 

[XCandy and LunacyX]

"There's no need to be so cold, Allen," she said softly, diverting her eyes to watch the puddles on the ground. "I've already seen Julius Caesar. Not my favorite, I must say. Besides, I thought that perhaps the best time to ask for some information from you would be when everyone else is busy. Am I wrong?" She ventured to turn her eyes to the darkness, finding the cruel glow of his own eyes to lock to. "And seeing as how Vikteren has also found himself preoccupied, and I very much doubt that you would like to meet him, I took the opportunity." Thinking of Vikteren made her nervous. She didn't know why, but her mind started falling into something of a panic and she wondered, for the first time, if he was up to something hazardous.

 

[.David Talbot.]

"Perhaps." He hated to admit the perfect logic of her words, but he had no choice but to give in. "I suppose so. But alas, I've heard nothing of Sleet. He seems to be keeping out of the public eye these days. Your companion, however..."
How much was too much? Should he tell her what they said about her companion? What the vampires and witches went around gossiping about them? He chose the easiest route. "He's been spoken of often these last couple of days. Antha Evelyn Mayfair's mysterious new 'lover'." He scoffed. "There's debate about what to call him. The last word changes from person to person, depending on what they really believe."

 

[XCandy and LunacyX]

The only response that Antha afforded him was a cold smile, full of menacing promises and ill will. "Then I thank you for your time. Perhaps Klaus will know something more." It wouldn't be hard. After all, the fact that he isn't dead would be a step up from Allen's peculiar lack of information.
She didn't trust him, plain and simple, and it was fed by the fact that she knew him well.
When she left the cave, never having set eyes upon Allen's face, her mind was having spasms in her head. He might have known something important to her, but she couldn't pry far enough into his thoughts to retrieve it without breaking down such powerful barriers that he would be left grieviously injured. And the nerve of him mentioning Vikteren like that! It was clever if he wanted to get under her skin---she knew it might leave a mark on him, being associated with her that way, and he knew that she didn't want that.
She was so wrapped up in thought that she didn't even remember slipping. She just knew that one moment she was making her way down the metal stairs and then the next she was on her back, her hands gripping the railing high above her head to avoid sliding right over the edge to very certain death. There would be a bruise on her left leg, and two on her right arm, but she was otherwise unharmed.
In the end, all she wanted to do was sit there and wait for the show to end, when all the performers would make their way up to the cave. But the lights had just dimmed for the brief intermission, and all Antha could think about was the fact that she despised being mortal.

 

[Vikteren]

Suddenly there were hands reaching out to help her up, long slender white fingers and broad-palmed, with dark bruises on the wrists and forearms. The vampire had found her. His hair was disheveled and his eyes were a swampy, shadowed green , but he was there, and had at least tried to put on a smile, although it was a somewhat shaky one and did not suit his features very well at the moment. "You spoke to your contact, then?" he asked. "Was he any help at all?"

There is a dead man in one of the tents. I did not kill him. The words came fast and sharp into her mind, like a knife between the ribs. I do not think he was part of the circus's entourage.
It was the last sentence, more than anything, that had worried him most as he sought out Antha. He had not seen a hard, cold power like that, not channeled through a human body, since the last of the Delphine oracles. Acolytes had died in their training, he remembered, their bodies unable to take the strain. Fits, convulsions, had not been uncommon. But if this man was truly of their line, then why was he traveling with a circus of all things...?
Too many questions, none of them that he wanted to linger on. He shut down the thoughts and focused on Antha again.  

[XCandy and LunacyX]

For a moment, Antha did nothing. She did not speak, nor take his offered hand, she just sat quietly on the stairs, propped up on her elbows, her eyes watching his with an emotion that was hard to read. She couldn't imagine that her fears were correct, that he had gotten into something he shouldn't...
Quiet still, she took his hand and rose shakily to her feet where she stood staring at him in that same manner before, finally, everything hit her. "What happened to you?" she asked quickly, her voice drenched in panic, running her fingers gingerly over the bruises before turning her attention back to his eyes. "A dead man? Who? How? Are you okay?" The last question was the only one she really cared about, and in some deep recess of her mind, she found it funny. She hadn't quite realized how it made her nervous when he wasn't in her company and if she had, she probably would have imagined she was worried about herself. But she wasn't and she knew that now and it gave her the strong urge to embrace him, though she knew better.

 

[Vikteren]

+Rotting Lunacy+

For a moment, Antha did nothing. She did not speak, nor take his offered hand, she just sat quietly on the stairs, propped up on her elbows, her eyes watching his with an emotion that was hard to read. She couldn't imagine that her fears were correct, that he had gotten into something he shouldn't...
Quiet still, she took his hand and rose shakily to her feet where she stood staring at him in that same manner before, finally, everything hit her. "What happened to you?" she asked quickly, her voice drenched in panic, running her fingers gingerly over the bruises before turning her attention back to his eyes. "A dead man? Who? How? Are you okay?" The last question was the only one she really cared about, and in some deep recess of her mind, she found it funny. She hadn't quite realized how it made her nervous when he wasn't in her company and if she had, she probably would have imagined she was worried about herself. But she wasn't and she knew that now and it gave her the strong urge to embrace him, though she knew better.

Vikteren drew her into his arms briefly. He did not have time to explain, nor did he want to, in this place--so instead, he dropped his barriers, and let her have the experience as it had come to him. The words that the man had spoken, the power behind those cold and heartless eyes, grinding the bones of his hands and wrists together merely for the cruelty of it.
Then he realised that he still had her clasped in his arms, and drew away. "We should go," he said quietly. "If you did not find what you sought."  

[XCandy and LunacyX]

What he showed her did nothing to alleviate the panic that had welled up inside her head. Rather, she began to fear for him. The meaning behind this man's episode---for lack of a better word---could mean any number of things. Honestly, the things she had seen witches and psychics do sometimes bordered on pure horror, the things nightmares are made of.
For a moment she fought any urge she had, standing quite still, but very quickly she gave into it, ignoring the fact that he had moved away and throwing her arms around him, as if she could be a talisman to keep anything bad this might bring about away from him. "I still have to talk to Klaus," she said softly, the regret thick in her voice, "And Nicholas. He might know something about the old man."

 

[Vikteren]

+Rotting Lunacy+

What he showed her did nothing to alleviate the panic that had welled up inside her head. Rather, she began to fear for him. The meaning behind this man's episode---for lack of a better word---could mean any number of things. Honestly, the things she had seen witches and psychics do sometimes bordered on pure horror, the things nightmares are made of.
For a moment she fought any urge she had, standing quite still, but very quickly she gave into it, ignoring the fact that he had moved away and throwing her arms around him, as if she could be a talisman to keep anything bad this might bring about away from him. "I still have to talk to Klaus," she said softly, the regret thick in her voice, "And Nicholas. He might know something about the old man."

He hesitated, then gave a brief nod. "May I accompany you?" he asked softly, and it was token in understanding how much he had been unsettled by the man's actions, that he would ask rather than abruptly assume that he could, obviously, follow her wherever he pleased.  

[XCandy and LunacyX]

Reluctantly, she released him, looking up at his face with an unreadable expression on her own. How to make him understand? "Of all the places you could be," she finally said, her voice a little unnaturally soft, "I would prefer you to be at my side." She was talking about the present, of course, but also she was assuring him that he did not have to ask to accompany her. If he would prefer to be on his own, then so be it, but he didn't need to ever ask to accompany her.

 

[Vikteren]

+Rotting Lunacy+

Reluctantly, she released him, looking up at his face with an unreadable expression on her own. How to make him understand? "Of all the places you could be," she finally said, her voice a little unnaturally soft, "I would prefer you to be at my side." She was talking about the present, of course, but also she was assuring him that he did not have to ask to accompany her. If he would prefer to be on his own, then so be it, but he didn't need to ever ask to accompany her.

He felt his heart clench at her words, and for an instant, an expression flitted over the vampires face that had not been seen before. Mingling hope and uncertainty, and for the briefest of moments, a crooked smile. Not one of the brilliant, rakish grins that his kind cultivated to attract and seduce, but a smile that he did not have to force. Something true.
Then it was gone, and he inclined his head to her, as a servant or watchdog might do, but not a lover, and very rarely a friend. "As you wish," he answered quietly.  

[XCandy and LunacyX]

It was hard for Antha to really read his expression at first, which was still mildly new to her. It seemed only he could do it; maybe he was a type of unpredictable she did not know existed and therefore had not had the time to study. But regardless, she knew it was something good, and it lightened her mood like a touch of gentle air relieving some of the pressure off of her chest, her heart.
She realized quickly that she had set her hopes too high in thinking that perhaps he wouldn't be typical of himself for once. But that simple little movement, the obscenely servantile words, and it all fell back upon her. The sheer shock of it brought a very slight wince to her face, sent her clutched hand up over her heart. The stress was building, too fast and too full of gruesome unknowns, and it was tearing on her. That much she could not deny.
Of course, that didn't mean she had to submit to it, stand there and let it be witnessed, let it prove it existed. If she was going to worry over him fear for him, then at the very least she couldn't let it grow out of hand. So she swept past Vikteren, polite and detached, and descended the stairs, very careful of her steps. There was no rush. In that way, she made it to the ground safely and walked into the thick, enveloping darkness of lush forest. Foreboding, true, but it was not dangerous to the witch girl and so she wouldn't let it deter her from her plans. Mostly because the only thing she knew at the moment was that she had to talk to Klaus. Nevermind that the show was still going and that he would not be free for a space of time. They would speak that night---that was all that mattered.

 

[Vikteren]

+Rotting Lunacy+

It was hard for Antha to really read his expression at first, which was still mildly new to her. It seemed only he could do it; maybe he was a type of unpredictable she did not know existed and therefore had not had the time to study. But regardless, she knew it was something good, and it lightened her mood like a touch of gentle air relieving some of the pressure off of her chest, her heart.
She realized quickly that she had set her hopes too high in thinking that perhaps he wouldn't be typical of himself for once. But that simple little movement, the obscenely servantile words, and it all fell back upon her. The sheer shock of it brought a very slight wince to her face, sent her clutched hand up over her heart. The stress was building, too fast and too full of gruesome unknowns, and it was tearing on her. That much she could not deny.
Of course, that didn't mean she had to submit to it, stand there and let it be witnessed, let it prove it existed. If she was going to worry over him fear for him, then at the very least she couldn't let it grow out of hand. So she swept past Vikteren, polite and detached, and descended the stairs, very careful of her steps. There was no rush. In that way, she made it to the ground safely and walked into the thick, enveloping darkness of lush forest. Foreboding, true, but it was not dangerous to the witch girl and so she wouldn't let it deter her from her plans. Mostly because the only thing she knew at the moment was that she had to talk to Klaus. Nevermind that the show was still going and that he would not be free for a space of time. They would speak that night---that was all that mattered.

The vampire followed her closely, a shadow's span behind her steps, and kept his senses alert. He was not immune to her displeasure; he had seen her face fall at his words.
But though it might hurt her, he could not change it.
Vikteren had long ago grown used to the vacant perusal of his thoughts at his master's whim; absently, he tugged the mental barricades back into place and held them, hard. To anyone examining his mind, he would be a perfect blank.
He was falling into his old habits, he knew. A servile gesture, an obedient turn of phrase--for that, his sire had trained him for months on end. Like a good and faithful dog. And now that he owed a debt to Antha, now that he followed at her heels, they were coming back, little by little.
A part of him wanted to reach forward and gather her into her arms, kiss her and tell her that it was not her fault, but his own, when he saw that brief illumination leave her face. Part of him wanted to give her the kiss which would make her one of his kind.
And part of him wanted to dash his head against the nearest blunt object. It was that kind of frustration that feelings so often inspired.  

[XCandy and LunacyX]

The path ended at the main tent, which was still glowing within, shimmering and flaring into life, but she did not follow it to the end. Rather she stood just inside the last layer of dense trees, watching it. It would still be a while; the tale of Julius Caesar was a long one. So she stood, leaning aginst the nearest tree, hidden from sight, tense from the pressure that dwelled somewhere very deep in her chest.
Her fingers touched the back of her left calf tentatively, the large bruise that was blooming into full, colored life. Just another token of the fact that she was mortal, that she was fragile and soft. The thought added just enough pressure to her body that she had to draw the pack of cigarettes from the pocket of her coat.
The first drag was long, slow, and it didn't help as she had hoped it would. "You don't have to make such an effort," she said softly, pausing to trace her lips lightly with the tip of her tongue. The taste of the cigarette was strong, fresh with the first drag. "If I wanted in your mind, I would find my way in. There's no point in wasting your energy on so many barriers; I don't want to see anything you're thinking now." Her voice had a hint of menace in it, the type that usually meant revenge, but mostly it was pained. Not hurt, just...pained.

 

[Vikteren]

+Rotting Lunacy+

The path ended at the main tent, which was still glowing within, shimmering and flaring into life, but she did not follow it to the end. Rather she stood just inside the last layer of dense trees, watching it. It would still be a while; the tale of Julius Caesar was a long one. So she stood, leaning aginst the nearest tree, hidden from sight, tense from the pressure that dwelled somewhere very deep in her chest.
Her fingers touched the back of her left calf tentatively, the large bruise that was blooming into full, colored life. Just another token of the fact that she was mortal, that she was fragile and soft. The thought added just enough pressure to her body that she had to draw the pack of cigarettes from the pocket of her coat.
The first drag was long, slow, and it didn't help as she had hoped it would. "You don't have to make such an effort," she said softly, pausing to trace her lips lightly with the tip of her tongue. The taste of the cigarette was strong, fresh with the first drag. "If I wanted in your mind, I would find my way in. There's no point in wasting your energy on so many barriers; I don't want to see anything you're thinking now." Her voice had a hint of menace in it, the type that usually meant revenge, but mostly it was pained. Not hurt, just...pained.

There was a sharp tang of leaf-mold in the air, cooled by night's fall.
If anything, the barriers hardened at her words. It was not that she would seek to find his thoughts; it was that he did not trust himself to saturate the air with his own. The barriers were as much a haven as they were a fortress. Or a prison.
He didn't consider it energy wasted. The vampire had made it a habit long ago, so much that whatever reservoir he tapped to conceal his thoughts barely took notice that it was being drained; barely remembered that there had been a time when it had not been.
He found his own tree, a few steps away from hers. The roots mingled beneath, and the branches twined together overhead, but their trunks were solid, distant, immobile, and he watched the ember cast a blush upon her pallid cheeks. The vampire rubbed the purpling bruises on her wrists, unconsciously mimicking her actions.
Abruptly, a "Thank you," fell from his lips.