Balder had woken sometime around fourth of the clock, so nervous he couldn't sleep. Costumes were still to be adjusted, makeup was still to be designed, dress rehearsal at midday, performance at twenty fourth of the clock. He chewed his pencil, staring at his notebook by the firelight. All the cargo crates and caravan had been removed from the big top itself and parked out the back. The seating had been sorted using stair shaped wooden blocks made by one of the friendlier carpenters in the city. The high wires and trapeze were up and the whole thing smelt ready. There were wick vendors ready to set up stalls outside for food, drinks and sideshows. Musician's had also been hired on, along with a couple who were able to work phosphor lamps to create some wonderful lighting. Clarabelle was fed..for now..and everyone seemed to be getting ready.

The ring master flipped through the pages, reading and re-reading carefully. It was going to be magical, he hoped. Vienda would never see this one coming. Out of the darkness, Winslow walked over to the fire.

"Balder, how long have you been awake man?" He asked softly, hunkering down beside him. Balder grunted.

"A while. Hard to sleep. I need another hand for the lighting it seems. I've talked to Calli about casting some of that flashy stuff she can do to add a little sparkle, but one of the spot lights is still...unmanned. Anyone else up?" The clown shrugged.

"I'm not sure bossman. We'll have to wait and see."

Calli plonked down by the fire. She'd been up for an hour, stretching and warming up. By nature she was a morning person and cheery with it to boot.

"Hi Balder, Winslow." She said, chewing noisily on an apple. "I am so looking forward today! Aren't you? I'm psyched!"

Calli's cheeks were puffed up with apple and her eyes were bright and clear despite the time.

"I love mornings!" She said after a particularly large swallow but before another particularly large bite.

Both the older men looked at her with dreary bloodshot eyes. Balder rubbed a hand vigerously over his face and shook his head.

"Good to see some of us aren't affected by the sheer terror of first show jitters. Calli, are you all ready for tonite? Costume is done? Make up sorted out? Hair..erm..did?" He looked to Winslow for help. The old clown grinned.

"He's just a little stressed Calli. Did you see anyone else on your way down here?" Somewhere from the black blue darkness, a sort of stumbling noise sounded, followed by choice swearing, upon which came Dorian rubbing his head.

"Clocking tent lashings!" He grumbled, dumping himself beside Calli. Staring into the fire, he looked a mess. Winslow reached over and slapped him on the arm.

"You ready boy!?" Dorian looked at him miserably.

"I was up all night. That costume you have me in is so fragile Balder." The ringleader paled and looked at him with horror, but the sword swallower waved his hand and shook his head.

"Oh lighten up Balder, its fine." Balder frowned at him and chewed viciously on his pencil.

"Its not fine Dorian! I still need an extra person to man that spotlight, and everyone is busy!" He snapped.

Tristaan wandered groggily from the dark towards the few by the fire, knowing there was still enough to be done to warrant waking early. With a yawn, he squatted on his heels next to Calli, smirking with a bit of bemused envy at her apparent exuberance over the given hour.

"You can love mornings enough for both of us, then." He teased before looking to Balder and the clown, "What's left t'be done while m'hands an' time still belong t'you, friends?"

Eriyenna still lay curled up on the small matress in her cart, sheet music still by her head where she fell asleep ammending and perfecting it into the wee hours of the night. She was awake, staring at the canvas of her ceiling, tapping a foot and humming quietly, one hand in the air swaying back and forth as if directing an invisible orchestra.

It was hard to sleep when there was so much music to prepare, and it was all too exciting to be tired.

Everyone else would be stirring soon. There'd be some final things to decide and setting up to do. Then, there'd be people arriving - Eri hoped it would be crowds and crowds of them, eager and excited despite all the unfortunate things that had happened in town this week.

"Stupid Vienda. I hope all of today's performances make up for all the madness." She sighed, reluctantly deciding to get up and get moving.

Out of the darkness came another stumbling sound, this one involving what was most likely the side of a wood crate and somebody's foot, and an equally choicy amount of swearing. A tired body came towards the firelight, barefoot, clad in a pair of striped cloth pants and a tank top. The girl rubbed her tired brown eyes, her mop of short brown hair sticking up in random places. It was the first time any of the other circus members had seen Jaqueline in her natural colors.

"Oiy! D'ye have to make so much noise wakin' up in the mor-mor-moooryaaaawwning? Some of us still wish we were asleep!" Jaq blinked in the brightness and tried to shake the fog away as she plopped down on the dirt floor next to Dorian.

Hal was trying to sleep in, himself. He wandered in more disheveled than usual- rubbing sleep from his eyes and yawning, he leaned over to Calli,"What's got 'is clock woun' up so tight?"

Calli kept on smiling around her piece of fruit.

"Morning Dorian. I can help you with your costume if you like, we had to do a lot of that stuff back with the Crows." Calli waved at Tristaan and Jaq as they arrived at the fire. "I'm surprised, actually, back home nearly everyone got up before sunrise. It was a good time to practice routines and light spells. Singing is always good in the morning too. I thought it would be the same everywhere."

Calli leant back to look Hal in the eye as he spoke.

"I think balder is just a little jittery." She whispered. "None of us have performed together before and he needs a lighting person. Are you interested? You should tell him."

Calli wasn't nervous yet. She stuffed up before and badly but this was in her blood. It was all she'd done since she could walk, she was almost impatient to get on stage. There was nothing like being in front of an audience. It was like floating on a cloud or riding at breakneck speed, like turning into something else.

She was probably going to cry after the show ended and the adrenaline wore off.


((I am not a morning person, though I wish I was))

Hal had no read interest in running lights. He wasn't interested in much of anything at this hour but breakfast. But he groggily nodded to Calli and stumbled up to Balder. He stretched and scratched his ribcage in a drowsy state, "Hey, if you need summat lemme know, 'k?" he looked around,"where's bre'f'st?"

Balder smiled at the man and thought about it. What could Tristaan do for him? Lights? No, he needed a strong fellow like Tristaan for later.

"I'll need you later, during the show. I want you to sit in the front row, if you have any friends you've invited they can sit with you. If you see something go wrong, or someone waving at you like they have just caught fire, make your way around to the back of the arena."



Dorian looked at her and chuckled.

"I see I'm not the only one who found the lovely things stored around the back of the tent!"



The brown haired boy grinned at her and nodded.

"How can I refuse an offer like that, pretty girl wants to help me with my outfit?" His eyebrows waggled, managing to be flirty at this ridiculous hour.



The ring master looked up at the boy and stared for a moment. What did he say? Summat? Someone for that? Right!

"Yes boy! Brilliant! Your my lighting boy! As for breakfast, let's get some started. Calli, think you can go to the crates out back and grab out the eggs, garmon, bread and mushrooms? We'll need a hearty breakfast and a good lunch to get through tonite. And where is Taegan?! Can you throw something at him whilst your there, thats a good girl."

Calli's teeth flashed as she giggled, one hand coming up to cover her mouth. She was getting a little more used to Teagan and Dorian being so, what was the word? She thought it was complementary.



Calli stood bolt upright, flicking off a smart salute at Balder.

"Yes Sir!" She said, turning on her heel and hopping over the log she'd been sitting on.

She skipped over to Teagan and Dorian's shared caravan, humming brightly under her breath. She rapped on the door with her knuckles before cracking it open.

"Hey Teaagggaaannn, Balder wants you up." She used her index and middle fingers to clasp around her nose and block off her sense of smell. "Alioe, it stinks in here! What did you do, Teagan? Come on, get up! I need help getting out breakfast."

Her voice became a little pouty towards the end, a tone she knew annoyed the hell out of her brother. It was usually enough to get him up. It was helped by the fact that she wanted out of the room, she wasn't sure they'd ever even opened a window in there.


((Mind me presuming they share a caravan? I can change it to tent or something else))

There was silence from the darkness. Mostly. For a second. Then there was a loud snore followed by mumbling.

"No..no mother...I don't wanna feed the chickens...Clara...she isn't that...little. Its...the foxes..pink..hingles..." The boy continued snoring. Calli would have to work harder to wake him up.

Calli waded further into the room, delicately stepping past the debris with the grace of a dancer and the disgust of a teenage girl.

"Teagan!" She said, voice hitting higher pitches and needliness. "Get uuppp!"

She used her free hand to shake his shoulder, looking next to his bed as she did so.

"TEAGAN!" She shouted. "Is that a dead rat? Ew ew ew!"

"Wha..huh? Potatoes!" The boy said as he sat up. Rubbing his eyes, he turned his head and looked at Calli for a moment, then shrieked, grabbing at the sheets and making sure they covered his bottom half.

"Calli! What the clock are you doing in here?" He looked down at what she was making horrible sounds at. The rat was dead alright. He'd caught it last night, meaning to give it to Clarabelle, but with all the practice and sewing and more practice, he'd thrown it in the caravan and forgotten. Making a grimace, he leaned down, picked it up by the tail and hurled it out the open door.

"Is it breakfast time yet?"

"Balder wants you up!" She said, eyes closed as he dealt with the rat, missing the fact that he was naked.



"Oes!" Calli said with an inflection that indicated this was obvious. "I have to go get food but Balder told me to get you up as well! When was the last time you opened a window in here?"

Calli shifted from foot to foot, unwilling to keep both down for any length of time.

Kynth was lying on top of the caravan. He'd been up rather early, quite nervous for his first major performance.
He'd been up for a lot of the night, practicing the swinging and rolling, grabbing and loosening of the whip. He didn't want to fail.



Breakfast... Hungry..
His stomach rumbled, anticipating the soon-to-be breakfast.
He slid off the caravan and landed lazily. He strolled over to the group and sat on the floor. "Mornin' all! Have a good sleep?"

Taegan shrugged, not sure what the fuss was about.

"Its to cold to open the window. I'll come with you but unless you want to take our friendship a little further, I suggest you get out so I can get dressed." He waggled his eyebrows at her and grinned.

---



Balder looked at Kynth with a thoughtful face.

"Sleep? What's that?" He chuckled and looked over at the caravan.

"Calli! Is that lazy kenser up yet?!"

Calli went bright red. She looked down for a moment and then looked up again.

"I-I'll be outside." Then she jumped over the debris on the floor like a gazelle outrunning a lion.



Calli looked over at Balder, obviously confused and still very red.

"He's up alright!" She shouted.

Then she ran off to get the food.

Taegan grinned after her, waiting for the girl to be out of the caravan, before scrambling out of bed to find pants..and possibly a shirt.



Balder looked at Winslow in confusion, then at Dorian, who was holding his sides and trying not to guffaw out loud. Raising a questioning eyebrow at the boy, Balder sighed.

"You two will scare that girl out of here, mark my words!" He hoped Calli and Taegan wouldn't be long. During breakfast he planned on making a speech.

Calli jumbled back with a box heaped with food and a frying pan hanging off one arm.

"I'm back!" She said jubilantly before looking about to make sure Teagan wasn't lurking behind her.

How embarassing!

"Excellent, excellent. Bring it over here Calli, there's a girl. Let's get some of this started on the fire, I want everyone to have a big hearty meal." Balder said, standing up to his full height. Taegan was making his way over from the caravan, pulling a vest over his bare chest. The ring master looked around at the ones gathered here. He was still missing Eriyenna, Tristaan and Tavien. But it was important to start now. He cleared his throat, holding the sides of his own black vest and stepping back so he was standing on the small crate his behind just occupied.

"All you! Attention to the front!" He boomed in his full arena voice. The ones who weren't at the fire should be able to hear him now.

"Tonight is a special night. We are going to be performing, as one, for the fine city of Vienda. It is safe to say, Vienda has never seen a show such as ours, and I want the people to remember us. Today, I urge you to eat, sleep when you can before tonight, and try to make sure your ready." Pausing he looked over them.

"We can make this, one of the most spectacular things Anaxas has ever seen. All we need to do is work together. As a troupe. As a family. Come now, get the grub while is hot!" With that, he got down off his crate and started cutting up garmon, throwing it in the pan ready to be fried. Winslow pulled out a cloth wrapped dough and stuck it into the fire, cooking a damper for the morning bread. Dorian and Taegan found the eggs and buried them in the edge of the fire to hard cook. The four men looked at each other over the flames as the rest of the troupe bustled around, sharing a smile between themselves. This was more than they had ever expected. It was fantastic.

Despite her groggy state, Jaq smiled at Balder's speach. "I'll drink to that!" she exclaimed. "Erm, that is, if I had something to drink...heh."

The smell of food woke her stomach, and the oncoming thrill of the day's activities woke her neural impulses; the girl grinned happily.

She was home!

The smell of food was more than enough motivation to finally stir Eriyenna out of bed. There was still much to be done as it was. With a yawn and a stretch, she wandered into the gathering in time to catch the end of Balder's speech, her blue-eyed bander padding along hungrily behind her. It made her grin; it was lovely to have a family who enjoyed the same things she did.

The purple-haired witch's grin turned into something sheepish and apologetic once she realized that she was very much not on time. Stepping to hover near Jaq without sitting, she offered quietly, "Oes, I think all our hard work will definitely pay off tonight. The folks here, especially, need to see how benny the rewards of workin' together really are."