bakerstreet | The Circus arrives without warning...

The Circus arrives without warning...

The Night Circus

"The circus arrives without warning. No announcements precede it. It is simply there, when yesterday it was not. Within the black-and-white striped canvas tents is an utterly unique experience full of breathtaking amazements. It is called Le Cirque des Rêves, and it is only open at night." - Erin Morgenstern

As you wander the grounds of Le Cirque des Rêves, black and white striped tents on all sides try to catch your attention. Which tent will you choose? Who will you meet in the tent? Or maybe you're a performer, ready to dazzle your audience as they walk in.

How does this meme work?
1 - Post a comment with your character's name and canon in subject.
2a - If you want to be a performer, add a tent number.
or
2b - If not, leave it blank.
3 - Tag others. Do NOT roll if they already have a number in their subject line. Roll (or choose) if they do not.

The Choices

1 - Isobel - The fortune teller. The tent is dark and silent. As you walk in, the noise and laughter of the rest of the circus falls away. As you feel blindly along the velvet tent walls, you encounter a beaded curtain. On the other side is either a fortune teller to tell you your future. Or maybe the fortune teller has left for a few moments, leaving behind nothing on the table but a set of black and white Tarot cards.

2 - Tsukiko - The contortionist. The contortionist does not have a tent. Round a corner, follow the path that circles the tents and you are likely to find the contortionist performing, feats of extraordinary dexterity and flexibility, slowly stuffing herself (or himself!) into a small glass box on the ground.

3 - Widget and Poppet - The animal trainers. The trainers perform outside of the tents, coaxing a multitude of black and white kittens to dance, to leap through hoops and run up and down curious and delighted audience members. Or maybe slip into the tent behind them, where two other animal trainers do similar tricks with leopards and panthers.

4 - The Illusionist - The illusionist performs in a small, black and white striped tent that holds no more than twenty. With theatrical gestures, the illusionist transforms a gentleman's scarf into a half-dozen white doves, produces flames that dance but do not burn, and even causes a tree to grow from an empty seat, pure white and silver blossoms blooming before the audience's eyes. Is it magic?

5 - Celia and Marco - The lovers. The fantastic circus and all its wonders are nothing but a backdrop for the forbidden love that has blossomed between the two of you. How will you keep your love a secret? Kisses stolen between striped tents? Bittersweet goodbyes as the sun rises and the wrought iron gates of the Night Circus closes for another day?

6 - Cloud Maze - This tent is one of the tallest in the circus, and once you slip between the black and white striped flaps, you see a tower of fluffy white mist. As you touch the mist, it is soft and warm against your hand. The more you explore, the more you see hanging platforms, ropes, and ribbons hidden among the white clouds. Through them you can climb to the top of the tower of white cloud. Do not be afraid of falling or jumping off the tower or the platforms, for the white misty clouds will support your weight, catch and envelop you in white.

7 - Bedtime Stories - This tent is small, almost hidden among the rest of the circus. Within is a room filled with shelves and tables, and bottles and jars litter every flat surface. Open a bottle, and a scent escapes. Breathe deep, and a story unfurls for you, so real that you can feel every touch. Will you share the stories with your companion? Or dare each other to try ever stranger experiences?

8 - The Wishing Tree - There is nothing in this tent except a sprawling tree that bears candles instead of leaves. Many of the candles are lit, their flames flickering in the slight breeze that permeates the tent. A card on the tree instructs you to take a candle from the tree and make a wish on it, lighting it with the flame from another wish. What will you wish for? It's said that wishes lit on the Wishing Tree come true...

9 - The Ice Garden - Everything inside this tent is white, and it takes only a moment to notice that the sprawling garden within the tent is created entirely of ice. Every posy petal, every delicate branch of a tree. The 'grass' beneath your feet is pure white snow, and brushing by a tree will send another sprinkle of white onto your head. How will you and your companion explore this place?

10 - The Labyrinth - This tent is just like any other from the outside, but as you walk in, it changes. Perhaps you'll find yourself in a library that smells of leather and is lit by flickering candles. Or a valley full of fine white sand flanked by rolling hills. Or maybe you find yourself in a giant silver birdcage. The possibilities within the Labyrinth are endless, but there are always two constants:
1 - the way into each new part of the labyrinth is not the way out.
2 - there is always a way out.

11 - Wild Card - There are more wonders at the Night Circus than the list above. Watching the acrobats or trapeze artists? Run through a Hall of Mirrors that shows uncannny insights? Eat delicious circus treats until dawn? All are possible!

How much of Le Cirque des Rêves can you explore before dawn?

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only | Expand All

"I'm almost afraid to open one," Balthazar murmurs in an aside to his companions. The shelves and tables covered with vials and jars are alluring, no question. Still, the strangeness of the place has him just slightly on edge, and that he's with two of the most important people in his world makes him overprotective.

"I don't think there's any malice," he adds, "but that doesn't mean there's no danger..."

The place hasn't quite overtaken him yet, but already he feels the drive to perform. His body can handle it, and it aches to stretch, to fold, to bend, because it can, and it can so flawlessly.

So easily.

He holds back a sigh and merely hums in response. He focuses, on this place, on his surroundings, on his companions. "I'm not getting any strange vibes. Just that it 'is'. I also don't detect any foreign substances in the air." And with the lack of dust, that's promising.

Unable to help himself, "Want to bet that someone canned a year-old fart in one of those things?" he says, snickering to himself.

Horvath raises an eyebrow, and takes an unsubtle step away from Roi. "Now I'm afraid to open one."

He looks to Balthazar, with an expression that's millimeters away from rolling his eyes. "We'd better not leave him alone in here..."

Balthazar bites back a snort of laughter. They all like to pretend they're mature, of course. "Well, we won't open any that look like methane," he smirks. "But why only a year? Don't those improve with age?"

He grins at Horvath boyishly. "I think most things improve with age, don't you?"

The joking has given him confidence, however, so he moves toward a shelf and begins picking up bottles with tints of blue and grass-green.

Roi laughs in response and rummages around for a few as well, curious. His tail slowly wags, curling and swaying out behind him almost as if it's keeping time. Almost.

"I certainly think most things improve with age. But have you ever smelled a year-old canned fart? It's... it reeks beyond your imagination! I felt sick for a week because it was stuck in my nose for that long! So, unless you mean for a fart to be, well, illness-inducing in terms of improvement, then yes, all things improve with age."

And then, a cheeky grin, and he plucks a pink vial off of a shelf. "Especially dashing men."

Horvath gives a little snort of amusement, and he's clearly not all that bothered. He won't go picking any up, but he does limp closer again to peer over their shoulders and see what they're picking out.

"Why on earth did you smell it in the first place, then?" He's guessing there was a dare or betting involved. Frankly, it sounds like the kind of thing he and Balthazar would have done when they were young.

Balthazar can't help but be reminded not just of Roi's comparative youth, but also of how ridiculous Horvath and he were at similar points in their lives. He grins and shakes his head, mussing Roi's hair gently. "For future reference, flirting and flatulence jokes should have a space of at least 5 minutes delivery between them. More like an hour if the joking involves actual flatulence."

He holds up a bottle with deep blue contents and a carved crystal stopper. It reminds him of the ocean, and he's about to say so when it slips from his grasp as if by its own volition, falling to the floor and coming uncorked. The scent that emerges is quite pleasant, fortunately: sea spray, sunlight on sand, and something sweeter...fruit? Wine?

"Oh ha ha, is that the rule? Why did no one tell me before now if it was so important?" Roi retorts with a laugh.

Turning to Horvath, he grins. "We were young, and my friend Joshua just showed me the jar and asked me to try and detect what scent it was, so that he could do some research. He said that it was a unique smell that he'd like to share with others. So I did." He snickers.

"And then I kicked him so hard that I bruised his ass. Our parents were furious."

And then the bottle falls and opens up, and he catches the scent. It's quite.. nice....

Roi wobbles a little in response to the scent, and takes a slow breath.

"M-my, that... for the sea, it.. it smells really nice...."

"Oh, well... that seems perfectly justified." Horvath rolls his eyes, but he certainly would have done the same thing, at that age.

He flinches when Balthazar drops the bottle. "Careful! Bel? You all... right...?" The scent has caught him, as well, filling his lungs and his head with a pleasantly fuzzy sensation.

"I'm fine. It just slipped out of...oh..." His eyes fall half-closed at once, and he takes a deep breath.

They're on a beach, all three of them, and the sand is the color of vanilla ice cream, but warm and soft on bare feet. The water is blue, the waves waist-high when they curl and crash on the shore. There are birds in the shallows, picking at the sand. Sandpipers, maybe, or bitterlings, except they're a rainbow of colors: greens and pinks and oranges. Behind them is a grove of trees heavy with purple fruits in various odd shapes. Some look like pears, some like large grapes, and some are lavender spheres the size of basketballs.

Roi doesn't like the ocean, he doesn't like the sand, but why do his senses say that he does? He knows that, no matter how soft the sand is, it will hurt his feet if he dares to remove his shoes. He knows that no matter how soothing the smell of the sea is, it'll cling to him like gunk until he can bathe.

"Wha.. what is this?" he asks, trying to regain control of his senses.

Still aware of the vial in his hand, he holds it tighter.

Horvath sways just a little, trying to shift his weight without leaning on the cane because he's afraid it will sink into the sand. The scents, though! He's distracted by the scenery, turning his head to look at first the idyllic ocean, then the surreal fruit trees, looking more like they're bearing candy than any kind of fruit he's ever seen.

"...Where are we?" He breathes the words quietly, as if afraid to break the spell.

"It's like dream-sharing," Balthazar says. And because it's somehow his dream, since he opened the bottle, he's the first to move, turning to take a couple steps into the grove of trees and pluck one of the smaller fruits.

He gives his companions only a brief glance before taking a taste. His eyes go wide at the flavor.

Someone please tell him that he's not on an acid trip or something. Because fuck, all of this feels real and he doesn't know what to do with it. He's not trying to spoil the fun, but excuse him for his wide-eyed gaze.

"Is that even safe?" Roi manages to ask, seeing his reaction.

"But whose dream?" Horvath murmurs. Certainly not one of his. His dreams are never so...

fluffy.

He watches Balthazar venture to the trees, and bravely bite into the fruit. "Well?"

Balthazar blinks dazedly, then shrugs sheepishly at them. "It...it's wonderful. I mean, it's safe. It tastes like mulled wine, only better."

He licks juice off his fingers, then looks up at the sky as a faint shadow drifts over the sun. It's a cloud.

It's...a cloud shaped like a llama.

There are several more, similarly shaped, floating in its wake.

Balthazar giggles, an unusual sound for him. "This is absurd. Completely absurd."

Ohhh, okay. He can get on board with that, though really? Sand? Beaches? Augh. He'll just keep complaining in his head for the moment. He walks over, mindful of his senses and trying to see if he's actually IN the dream or... if they're wandering around still in the tent.

He reaches for a fruit and peers up at the llama clouds. He's never had wine before, but, hopefully even this... thing, tastes good. He takes a bite of it, tapping his foot at the flavor so he doesn't make any embarrassing noises of his own.

"This is... definitely not one of my dreams." And hopefully there wouldn't be any alcohol in the fruit. If they were really even eating anything. He holds back a certain thought that starts with "what could possibly go" lest he jinx it.

Horvath turns to look up, eyebrows rising at the silly shapes in the sky, then looks back to see Roi moving to taste the fruits as well. Now that doesn't look like something he wants to be left out of.

He takes a limping step toward them, but his cane sinks in the sand, making it awkward. It's only a few tantalizing steps to reach the fruit, but he's slightly stuck, and the scents are fading. The whole scene is darkening gradually, a little less real...

Balthazar sees Horvath's difficulty and plucks a fruit to bring to him, sympathetic. The air feels heavier, though, as he places it in his friend's hand. "It's fading," he says, disappointed, and takes one last wistful glance at the water.

"So it's like lucid dreaming." Roi sighs a bit, glancing down at the fruit. Whelp, he's just introduced himself to a potentially deadly thing. Now he knows somewhat what he's missing when he can't go out drinking like humans can.

"Maybe we'll find another similar one." Hopefully that's a comforting thought to the two men who seem to have enjoyed this one more than Roi has.

He's quick to take a bite, now, and closes his eyes a moment to savor the rapidly fading flavor. It's thin on his tongue, dissipating within seconds, and he sighs and opens his eyes again as the fruit itself grows transparent in his hand.

"It must've come from the bottle- not that I'm suggesting we break any more, but perhaps if we simply... opened another one?"

Balthazar looks around at the room as the dream fades. It's the same as before, bottles and vials, shelves and tables. "That was...interesting."

He wonders, but doesn't want to suggest, if it may have been a hallucinogen rather than magic. But then they wouldn't have all had the same dream, would they? "If everyone feels all right, we could try another. Did you want to open the one in your hand, Roi?"

Roi almost forgot that he has one in his hand, and he slowly nods. Setting it on the table, he uncorks it carefully.

The smell of rain is quick to reach the senses, light to the touch and with the metallic tang of modernity. The scent is accompanied by a faint scent of fur - muted and unobtrusive, but still there. It's almost completely dark out, just a few street lights just starting to come on. The buildings are a bit low, in terms of height, with ladders leading up to the roofs. The water pitter-patters against the ground and the street - streets a little too narrow for cars to pass through.

"This is..." Roi trails off. He steels himself, then looks to the other men, his back straight in unease, though the dream carries no actual aura of being foreboding. Just quiet, and maybe a little lonely.

"Apparently, it's a "piece of my world in a bottle" for me. Welcome." Although the rain is matting his fur, he puts on a soft smile. "This is the lower sub-section by the campus. Judging by the smell, it's late spring, and we're in friendly territory."

On the one hand, the reassuring solidity of the ground in the tent supports his footing better, but on the other hand Horvath is sorry to see the idyllic scene fade away. He looks to Roi, at Balthazar's suggestion.

He's soon rewarded.

"Oh, this... this is peaceful. Although I wouldn't mind being indoors..." He glances around, fascinated by all the ladders and the unexpected intensity of the scents. He wouldn't do well here, either, but it's very intriguing to see where somebody who spends half their time cat-shaped would live.

"I could shield you against the rain..." it's an offer to either or both of the other two. Balthazar seems to be reveling in the patter of water on his skin. He smiles at Horvath, but draws closer to Roi, placing a hand on his shoulder.

"Is there somewhere we should be going?"

7

2

Re: 2

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject