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Closed Masque Carnivalia

Connor hung his head with a laugh when Celest told him where the hoodie was. "... Well, I doubt it'd do much good, now. Probably soaking wet now. No big deal, I guess." He saw Celest shiver, and scooted to her until his shoulder was pressing on hers. He tilted his head as Annie asked a question.

"Seven, I think. Let's see..." He lifted his fingers as he counted. "Celest, me, Logan, Tess, Ally, Kiara, and you. Yup, seven. Unless we're missing something, we're all good. The other four should be waiting in the... Well, dead forest. Unless one of them strayed off again, we should be able to find them easily."
 
Celest ceased her shaking as soon as she felt the undying warmth of Connor's body. She was tempted to cling to his chest and curl up in his lap to warm up her entire body, but the Lucario morph refrained from all of that and tensed a bit as she remained motionless. Her eyes wandered upon Connor's drawing underneath her own face, and blinked at it. Why was Connor so happy all the time? Maybe that was a trait that made Celest want to be with him: because he would always want to be with her, too. He was, for the lack of better words, alike Celest in that area. They both enjoyed each other's company greatly. By the way they locked lips numerous times it was pretty obvious.

"Well, I mean," Celest found herself leaning in a bit closer to Connor, "I... I would go with you if you wanted to go and get it..." She rested her cheek on his shoulder. "And, um... Connor, can I ask you something? Privately?" She was desperate now; she yearned to be alone with him for a while. Her red eyes were huge as she blinked at him, hoping he would agree.
 
"Well," Connor put a finger to his lip. "I figured I'd just grab it next time we happen to be over there." He shrugged a little. "It's not all that important, actually. It just popped back into my head." He removed his finger, and his lips made a popping sound. Celest asked to talk to him privately. He blinked at her a little dumbly. What needed to be said that was so private? He wondered if Celest might still have a problem with Annie. No, Celest had forgiven her, so everything was great, right?

In the end, it didn't matter. Connor nodded, and held up a finger to Annie, to say, 'be right back.' He went to the tent flap, and opened it to Celest. Next to his wonder if she was holding a grudge, he also wondered if she just wanted another kiss, another hug, or something like that, and was just too shy to do it around Annie.
 
Timidly standing near the tent as she walked out, she waited for Connor to step out as well as she began to speak. "See, it's... it's like this," she began quietly, motioning him to follow her somewhere. "... I'm still weary of Annie. It's because... Umm, well... That's what I want to tell you. Why I fear her..." She stopped as she looked back at him sorrowfully. Celest felt a strange need to tell Connor why she was like she was. Maybe because she could finally trust someone like him after so long? Maybe because she felt as though Connor wouldn't abandon her like her mother did, and stomp her dreams to thr ground? Whatever the case, she was determined to feel at least a bit of weight lifted from her shoulders, and she knew she could trust Connor with her deepest, darkest secret.

"... I want to trust you, Connor. I really do. And... It just doesn't feel as though I can strengthen that unless I tell you why... I'm like this." Celest slowly took his hand and pulled him off to another secluded tent, far from the tent Annie was in.
 
Connor followed Celst out, listening carefully. So this was about a secret? About why she was timid? He always figured that Celest was Celest, and that was it. He may have thought 'why?' a few times, but never expected those questions to be answered. She pulled him into another tent. This one had a mirror, and like most of the mirrors in the carnival, it was broken.

"You want to trust me? Sounds like you're worried I'll leave. I already told you I'm not going anywhere. So... What is it?" He lifted her hand and turned it over, comparing their wounds. His were much shallower. Not that he had had the time to make them identical.
 
[Yay, long sob story time!]

Celest didn't mind Connor inspecting her hand, and she took in a deep breath of air. "I'm certain you won't, but... I've been lied to. A lot." She looked at her feet and exhaled her breath. "... I used to be very close with my mother," she began, not caring to stress time before that. "She helped me see the best in the world for a long time... I... I loved her more than anything. I used to be so happy, Connor..." She sank to her knees, biting her lip.

Almost reluctantly, Celest continued. "But... But she was cheating on my father. ... With two different men. As soon as my dad found out... She left. I remember her cussing my father out before she left, and she gave me a scary smirk like the one Annie had... My world, my family, myself... I was essentially crushed, both psychically and mentally..." She clutched a ball of her yoga pants in her palms as her head bowed, her dark hair falling from her shoulders. "My father never really was a gentle man... He... He began beat me on a daily basis to relieve himself of the emotional trauma. He called me a slut, a whore... a nobody. He eroded who I once was completely... And replaced it with a big stupid loser who know finally realizes he was right all those years. ... I... I couldn't tell anybody what he was doing in fear he would kill me..."

Celest started to shake as she recalled all those memories. "And then, he started bringing home people he met at clubs. My older stepbrother began to come over as well... They... It all happened right down the hall from my room. And... on more than one occasion they tried to make me... make me go with them... I managed to escape that, though. The neighbors called the cops a few times when they heard me screaming at the top of my lungs. Dad hardly got arrested since he knew all the right ways to lie and deceive... Not to mention he had some pretty important and well-respected 'friends' on speed dial to back him up and make me look like the idiot I really am."

Celest felt tears swell at her crimson eyes. "And every time someone brought the thought my mother up... He would beat me. Intensely. He... He made me begin to destroy myself in the process..." She pulled up her sleeves to her turtleneck sweater and ran her fingers across the deep, mostly healed wounds on her wrists.

The girl turned away as the salty tears ran down her face, and her lower lip quivered. "Th-That's why it takes so, so much for me to like, let alone trust people. I always feel as though everyone is out to get me and hurt me... I hate it. I hate that feeling... Oh, please don't ever be like me, Connor. Please try to stay like you are. Because if you were like me... You'd want to spend every moment throwing yourself away..." Celest didn't feel like wiping away the moisture from her face. She slowly rose her gaze back up to Connor, her eyes puffy.
 
Connor listened to Celest's story with a steadily growing anger welling up inside him. How was this even possible? He hadn't thought that Celest had had that sort of life. He looked back at her, and cradled both her hands in his. "Well... Like I said, I'm not going anywhere. I'll still be me for another sixty to seventy years, at least. I don't intend to be anyway else." He thought about all of the times he'd decided to let things go because they were in the past, but he knew he'd have to visit Celest's father one day to kick his face in.

"And you know what?" He whispered to her ear. He moved back so he could see her face, and a determined smile crossed his face. "Once we're out, you're going to live with me. You won't ever need to see that bastard again, and he won't even get the chance to touch you." Connor let a determined smile sneak to his face. "He never existed. All that matters is you never have to even think of him again." True, at this point, his lips were telling him to let them rest. Not that he cared. He kissed her once more, his hands pulling her towards him by the shoulders, then wrapping around to rest on her back.

((OOC: More spit-swapping!))
 
[I've counted... At least five times now. Wooooooooow. x3]

Celest relaxed a bit as Connor pressed his fiery lips against hers, and as he wrapped his arms around her she rested her head under his neck. Her hands rested on his chest, and she released a shaky breath as she felt more tears fall from her face. Connor swore he would protect her, even go to the point of saying she wouldn't stay with her father anymore. He would take her into his own house, all for her. The thought made her feel even more affection for the Blaziken morph, but she continued to sob as she realized that she had finally found some one that actually cared about her.

Her eyes shut forcefully as Celest clutched his shirt. "I don't want to think of him nor my step-brother," she squeaked, crying a bit harder at the thought. "They are the ones I fear most. They... They don't treat me right..." More tears and her teeth clenched. "I'm afraid they'll do what they did to all the people they met... All the people they paid to be with. As sick as it sounds... I know they'll resort to it if they run out of money... That's probably why they haven't beaten me to death... Because I'm of some use to them..."
 
[I actually have a hard time imagining Logan running, just because how awkward he is. Anyone else?]

Eventually, Logan burst through the edge of the forest. He saw the camp off in the distance, and then continued running off in the direction he came from, not toward the fire, but toward his cage. He knew it would be a slow process, but with any luck he could get back to his cage before anyone found him. The dark that was coming would help him, because of his color scheme. His large feet thumped against the ground as he "ran". He really did hate his new form. It did virtually nothing for him, except maybe he could get an awesome job as a professional ketchup bottle opener. Like that would happen, though. He would probably die here, a lonely freak. That sounded nice, dieing. Yeah, then no one could come to this wretched place and gawk at his misshapen body. Unless, of course, the put his body for display. At least he couldn't hear the taunting, then. And maybe they wouldn't put his body up if he mutilated it enough in the process. That seemed like a good idea.

Finally, Logan saw the silhouette of his tent. It would only be a matter of time until he was alone.

[wow, am i the only one who thought the ketchup thing was really dorky? I'm little surprised i came up with it]
 
Celest lifted her head as the sky darkened just a bit more. She expected the rain would fall heavier when she saw this, and she let go of Connor and broke away from him, staring at the few drops of water falling on the ground outside their tent. She thought of a lot of things: Connor, herself, the rain, the others... And then the thought of Logan popped up. Celest tried to remember where she last saw the deformed man, and sighed deeply. She felt sorry for him; he wasn't the fastest runner in their group, seeing that his legs were all trunk-like and heavy. Not to mention water was probably not good news for a Rock type.

Turning back to Connor, the Lucario morph took his hand. "I think we should go find Logan," she said softly, her voice barely audible as the rain fell harder and faster again. She looked back out the tent and slowly dragged Connor with her as she closed her eyes, focusing on Logan's energy through her aura vision. It seemed as though he was heading back to his tent, which was not too terribly far from the tent they were in currently. Opening her red eyes again, Celest wiped the tears from her face and quickly step-hopped toward the apple green tent with her fingers still tightly interlocked with Connor's.
 
Connor smiled. "Tell your whole family to go to hell." The rain began to pick up, and Celest suggested they find Logan. Connor wondered why she decided on him instead of Ally, Kiara, or Tess.

In a very strange role reversal, Connor found Celest pulling him out of the tent, and begin... Running? No, not running, but whatever it was that she did. Hopping. Maybe. Connor held tightly to her hand in return, and sped up so he was alongside Celest. The rain was making his hair heavy again, and he once more wished he had a pair of scissors to cut it. This long hair thing was something he couldn't deal with.

The rain was cold enough, on top of everything, to almost make his teeth chatter. We need a tropical... Monsoon or something. Better yet, an arid desert. I'm sick of water.
 
Celest smiled vaguely at Connor as he picked up his speed, and, as usual, didn't pay attention to what was in front of her. In an instant, she was flat on her face after loosing her footing on some slick mud, but the Fighting Carnie soon jumped to her feet as the mud on her silky vest washed off from the rain. She pushed loose strands of hair out of her face as she pressed on, careful not to hold Connor's hand this time, and slowed to a stop as the blue-flagged tent was towering over her.

Celest had sensed Logan's aura to be in here last, or, at least, was heading here. Looking back at Connor, she clasped her hands together behind her back and felt the rain lighten again. Staring up at him like a child with huge red eyes, she asked a simple question. "... Do we go in?"
 
Logan rushed into the tent and went directly into his cage. It was strange, actually wanting to be in it, secluded and concealed. Now, Logan thought, how should I go about mutilating my body? He looked at his hands, and then his feet. Suddenly, it occurred to him. He could just eat some of his body parts! Not instantly deadly, but still painful. He was kind of hungry, after all. Logan ogled his hand with hungry abandon and slowly brought it to his mouth, placing it in. He bit down lightly, just teasing himself. He reconfigured his hand, moving it so that just one finger was in danger, and he bit down a little harder. He could kind of feel it now, a slight twinge of pain in his hand. He sat like this for a little while, until he decided it was time he stopped kidding himself.

Logan bit down, full force. His new beak-like teeth went straight through his skin and bone with a satisfying crunch. The warm blood in his finger flowed into his mouth as he chewed, and his hand was still bleeding quite a bit. It was odd, he decided, to eat one's own finger, because not only did it not hurt much at all, but it was strangely satisfying as well. Not wanting to make a mess, Logan ripped the sleeves from his shirt and wrapped one of them around his hand. This would work, he thought, just slowly eat myself to death. Not only would he not have to hunt for food, he would be achieving a goal, too. He swallowed, and looked at his now wrapped up hand, wondering what his feet would taste like, not that he would be eating them right now. Logan licked his lips and stuck the stub in his mouth. He treated it almost like a morbid lollipop, licking it thoughtfully as he savored the taste of his blood. When he was done, Logan sat back against the bars and tried to sleep.
 
Annie's blood began pumping faster when the two went for alone time. She had been in the middle of asking relevant questions. And they had the nerve to just try to leave her. Well, that was just rude and uncalled for.

She waited with her chin resting on her knees, tracing the shape of her toes in the dirt for a few minutes. She thought she heard feet, and poked her head out. They were leaving now! "Hey!" She shouted, grabbing her heels and jumping to her feet. "Hey, where do you think you're going!?" She chased after the two of them, and was unable to keep up with the Fighting and Fire Carnies. She was able to see a spectacular fall, but other than that, it was a pretty hopeless chase. It turned out, luckily, they didn't change direction hardly at all, so after just a bit more running, she caught up to them.

"What's the big idea, ditching me like that?" She demanded to no one specifically. "Learn some self-restraint, you two." She flipped her wet hair out of her eyes, and set her heels on the ground. "What's so interesting in this tent, anyways?"
 
Connor managed to catch himself when Celest fell, and felt a little bad for not having tried to catch her. In the end, it was alright, though. They arrived at the tent, and it was silent on the inside, or at least it sounded silent next to the rain. Celest asked him if they should go in. "That we shall." He responded. He took a step towards the tent flap, but no sooner did he raise his arm to move it did her hear Annie. He had forgotten about her. He turned his head slowly, wondering if she was ready to punch him again.

He heard her question and glanced from his feet to Celest's feet, Celest's face, the lip of the tent, his own shoulder, then back to his feet. "Well, Cel says Logan's inside, so we were gonna' pop in and say 'hi.' Not much more to it than that. I don't think so, anyway." He shrugged, and took hold of Celest's hand as he turned and peeled open a section of the tent flap, poking his head inside the dark space.

"Yoohoo, Logan! We're a little wet out here, mind if we slip in? You are here, aren't you? Cel said you were, but I don't have Aura vision, so I don't know. Oh! And we brought a new friend! She's supposed to be a psychic, but she's kind of straightforward for that."
 
Celest shrunk back from Annie as she neared the two, quickly sidestepping behind Connor. She glanced back from him and her as the Blaziken morph explained what they ran off for, and then he popped his head into the tent after taking her hand. Taking in a deep, shaky breath, Celest looked through the other flap.

She blinked a few times before shutting her eyes. The fuzzy blue scene returned, and she looked around the large tent. Finally, the vision glazed over a figure near the cage. Celest opened her eyes again, oblivious at the moment to what Logan had done to himself, and nodded to Connor. "He's here," she whispered. She took a small step into the tent, and felt her arms shaking again. The Lucario hugged herself ltightly and quickly stepped back by Connor, not fancying the idea of going first.
 
Kiara stood still, with her head still up using water gun on the rain. She couldn't hold it anymore, so she stopped, and in an instant, rain gushed on her. "Sorry abou-" she started, but stopped when she saw she wasn't where she should have been. She was in a forest, close to a cave, next to Tess, but now she was in a plain. Only grass was there, and nothing any farther.

Kiara started to panic. She'd be there to rot, and no one would find her. A rational part of her brain registered something; it wasn't raining anymore. The sky had become a beautiful light blue with puffy white clouds dabbed around the blue sky. Kiara started to walk around, hoping she could find her way back. After walking for about ten minutes, she started to not want to leave; she felt compelled to stay at the gorgeous scenery.

She reminded herself to keep on going, to get back to her friends. There were Celest and Conner, the two lovebugs and were a Lucario morph and Blaziken morph respectfully. There was Ally, the mysterious Mismagius morph, who didn't really seem as much as a friend as the others, but was nice nonetheless. There was Logan, the...well, Kiara forgot what morph he was, because she never really paid attention...Logan was the clumsy and dorky one, but he didn't deserve to be made fun of because of it, because he was still pretty nice. Then there was Tess, the Bayleef morph, that was Kiara's best friend out of the others. Tess cared for Kiara, and even asked if Kiara was alright, even when Tes was hurt. Kiara immedietly felt bad getting lost from her.

Kiara reminded herself about this over and over and trudged on. This was not enough, because after 40 minutes, she wanted to stay. She felt too influenced by the scenery to leave, despite reminding herself of her friends.

She then tripped and fell face-first on the grass. Surprisingly, she started to cry. She didn't want to leave, but she knew she did. She missed her friends, but that wasn't enough to get her to leave. She cried and cried at the choices she could not make. She cried so much and for so long, she ran out of tears to sob, which was bad, considering a Squirtle morph like her should have lots of water. Her eyes blurred with the tears left behind in her eyes. Suddenly tired, she allowed the tears to blur her vision, which helped her lull to sleep.


((Kiara doesnt know about Annie, so she didnt include her in the list.))
 
Tess looked around. "Kiara?" she called, "Where are you?" There was no answer.
"KIARA!" she screamed.
No reply.
Worriedly, Tess poked her head out of the cave's entrance. She was immediately assaulted with cold, wet drops. Tess shook her head, flinging off water, and squinted through the rain. "Kiaaaraaa!" she called out into the forest. Only silence greeted her.
Tess sighed. Alone again. She returned to the cave and sat down, scuffing at the floor with a large green nail.
 
[C'mon, you guys, throw me a frickin' bone here...]

Celest looked back up at Connor, her eyes big and childlike. She slowly took his hand and pulled him an inch into the tent, implying she was not going to go in alone. She vaguely looked back at Annie as she took another step into the tent, and her grip on Connor's hand tightened. She closed her eyes again, seeing the aura vision again, and she saw Logan.

Only this time did she scream, though. In an instant she had fled back out of the tent, her eyes bewildered and frightened as she painfully thought back to what she saw. ... Blood. On him. And... His hand seemed like the cause. In the vision, mostly everything was blue, but it seemed as though blood kept its color...

Celest shook her head forcefully, trying to rid her mind of the agonizing image she saw, but couldn't help that her breath was short, desperate intakes of air. The color left in her ivory face had been completely drained, and she felt nauseous from seeing the self-destruction of someone other than herself. Sure, she could take seeing her own blood, but blood from someone else... The thought made Celest's stomach churn.
 
Kiara woke with a start. She started to called out to Tess, but realized she was still in the scenery. She cried some more. All she wanted to do was leave this wretched Carnival. But...no one would recognize her as a Squirtle morph. She lost her blond hair; a blessing, considering blound hair does not go with a blue turtle head.

She stood up, still not wanting to leave. She then reminded herself about her friends, and that helped her trudge on just a bit more. It didn't work as much last night, but she did get a bit of the way through. Suddenly, a bright light appeared before her. The exit!

She hesitated. Did she really want to leave? In this place, there wouldn't be any terrible surprises. But she did want to see her friends...In the end of this conflicting situation, she decided to leave through the light.

For a moment; nothing. After the light faded, it was as if the life inside of hr had faded alongside with the light. She appeared right in front of Celest and Connor, then passed out.
 
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