ArchivedLogs:The Mysterious Mysterio

The Mysterious Mysterio
Dramatis Personae Kurt Wagner 1.0, Sophie, Faelan	2013-06-10 '
Location
Madame Web's World of Wonders is set up across 3 acres of land behind Harvest Moon Farms in rural West-Chester; it sprawls out like some garish parade across the rolling fields of grass, tucked away between the woods and the farmhouse. Half a dozen large, purple-and-white striped tents are set up -- for shows, food, bathrooms, and relief from the occasional shower -- with a massive ferris wheel (strewn with lights!), a tilt-a-whirl, chair-o-planes, bumper cars, a carousel, and funhouse all available. The grounds are also peppered with well-trained capuchin monkeys who will perch on your shoulders (and eat your food!). There are numerous game booths set up, as well as a nightly showing of 'The Mysterious Mysterio's Magical Mayhem' act, along with 'Kraven the Hunter's Animal Kingdom'. There's even a tent for what is politely described as 'Wonders of Biology' (but often gets snidely referred to as 'The Freak Tent'), where for a ticket price of ten dollars, you can see some of the oddities that Madame Web has gathered in her extensive travels. The fair grounds are buzzing with life when Kurt and Sophie arrive; children and parents are already milling around the carnival grounds, jumping around, playing games (ring-throwing! Frog-catapult! Basketball!) for terrible prizes, and screaming as they cling to a variety of rides (the tilt-a-whirl seems to be a favorite). There's cotton candy, funnel cakes, and deep-fried /everythings/. There is also a number of stares that Kurt -- unless he is covering every inch of himself! -- gets. More than a few families draw back at the sight of him, grabbing their children and slipping off to check out 'a different ride'. A few kids see him and look thrilled! But the adults keep their distance. No one's asking him to leave, at least -- and the carnival staff seems to genuinely not care. In fact, the ticketmaster even gives him a grin when he steps through! He usually /does/ cover up almost every inch of himself, even in the summer when the blazing heat threatened to combine with his fur pelt to an effect that is unpleasant at the best of times and downright /dangerous to his health/ at the worst. But here...here Kurt feels like he shouldn't /have/ to. After all in /his/ circus--not that terrible abomination of a thing that Jardine drug around the country--he never had to hide who or what he is. Jennifer told him that he wouldn't get arrested just for something he can't turn off. So the elf has taken a bit of a leap of faith--he's dressed smartly, as he often is, with his weird ninja-like soft shoes to accomodate his feet, a freshly pressed pair of trousers, a dark red vest and an equally crisp dress shirt with its sleeves rolled up past his elbows. He's even got some kind of pocketwatch on a fob chain for his vest. And sunglasses, more for the actual act of protecting his eyes from the sun than for /hiding/ them from anyone. As strange an occurance as it is, his tail is on full display, moving more than often enough to be /obviously/ not part of a costume, no matter /how/ elaborate. It is neither as good nor as bad a reception as he had hoped. No one has thrown anything at him yet, but Kurt is still, as always, a little dampened in spirits whenever he's reminded that people see his exterior first and start running in fear before he even gets to say hello. It's a terrible burder for such a /people person/, but he bears it. The ticketmaster, at least, gets a toothy grin. Sophie is dressed in her usual goin' out attire; a long, mottled-pink shirt-dress that goes down to her thighs, leggings printed with a purple galaxy pattern, bright blue Chuck Taylors and a /panda backpack/. Her hair is braided in pigtails so as to be slightly more manageable, and she has a fake teal hibiscus tucked into one ear. For a teenaged girl she's actually a little on the sedate side when it comes to THE CARNIVAL, and is actually a little tense before they enter; whether that's as a result of recent stresses or just the fact that it isn't something she gets super excited about remains to be seen! As the pair enter aforementioned carnival, she is in fact holding Kurt's hand - purely as a safety measure, she'll assure you - and gives it a little squeeze when she notices people being /jerks/. Because that is so not cool. Once they actually get into the carnival proper, though, she does relax a bit. Though she is still rather /calm/ about the whole th-- "They have /funnel cake/!" --or maybe not. "Or um. Wait I probably shouldn't eat anything if we're going to do rides. Do you want to do rides or-- I think they have shows? Carnivals have shows, right? I haven't been to one in forever." There are, indeed, shows! In the distance, a massive tent (probably the biggest out of them all!) announces itself -- by way of a flashy sign (complete with occasional sparklers that burst out!) to be home to 'THE MYSTERIOUS MYSTERIO'S MAGICAL MAYHEM'. There are also capuchin monkeys just -- running about! Darting, here and there; occasionally hopping atop of the shoulders of squealing, delighted children -- /apparently/ someone isn't worried about them running away. Or getting hurt. The monkeys seem to actually be behaving themselves! They're also dressed up in the most /adorable/ of little red uniforms, just like the carnival staff. Because -- they're part of the staff! Also, one of the rides -- the ferris wheel -- is currently down. Several people are walking away from it, eyebrows rumpled; some of the carnival personnel -- well, just /one/ of the carnival personnel -- is working to fix it. The man is, perhaps unusually, currently dangling from one of the metal spokes by his knees, upside down, oblivious to any danger it might pose to himself -- wrench in hand. Some people are just /watching/ this with wide-eyed wonder, because. Holy crap, dude's gotta have a death-wish. Wearing attire meant to blend in more with the general populace and not draw attention to the school, Faelan walks a few paces behind the others wearing for once a pair of black denim jeans that fit and not drag on the ground too much, and a black tee shirt, with the oh so witty saying of "Black Shirt with White Text". He's fairly quiet thus far, especially as eyes come glaring towards Professor Wagner, but the talk of funnel cakes does garner some attention. "Funnel cakes are good, but not too much powdered sugar. It gets on black things and stays there forever," he says with a serious nod. "Liebchen, I have had a lifetime of excitement at the carnival, but I will spend the entire week here if I'm allowed, so it is very likely I will get to everything. Whichever is your pleasure. Except, I think, the ferris wheel, it is looking slightly worse-for-wear at the moment." Kurt's eyes move to fix on the man dangling upside-down by his knees to repair it, his expression suspended perfectly between delight and worry. Sophie turns to look at Faelan, though her grip on Kurt's hand remains steadfast. "You shouldn't have worn a black shirt!" she admonishes, gently. "Though I guess you probably weren't thinking about that when you got dressed. But it'll wash out if you get any on you." Toying with one of her pigtails, she hums thoughtfully for a moment. "Do you want to do rides or a show or something first, Fae? I can't really decide. A show might be cool, though, since I guess every carnival pretty much has the same rides.." And there she perks up. "Which means we can get funnel cake first 'cause we won't get sick!" The fellow up on the ferris wheel is still working, oblivious to -- well, /anything/. Even the small crowd at the foot of the fencing that blocks the area off, all watching with held breath. As he works -- one leg untucks from the metal spoke, and suddenly -- flip! Up he goes, gripping the metal with one hand and /flipping/ himself up atop of it, in an unusual crouch -- then, sliding down the length of the angled spoke, down toward the center of the wheel where it emerges -- apparently to do more work! The man's movements are very unusual -- quick and darting, like a small animal -- he's caucasian, though his pallor looks -- a little greenish? Like he might be unhealthy. Hard to make out his face from this distance. Mysterio's Magical Mayhem, meanwhile, is apparently starting their next show -- someone is outside, announcing quite prominently that it's about to begin! The price of a ticket for the carnival pays for a free showing, so all are welcome! A small crowd is beginning to line up to gain entrance to the tent. According to the stories, Mysterio's magic is -- well, people have been heard to wonder why the hell he just works at carnival! Faelan's gaze is torn back down from the fancy flips of the fellow on the ferris wheel, and was about to respond before the hawker comes out to announce the show. "Maybe we should go see the magic show? Its just about to start, and we can get some snacks real quick to eat while it shows. People wont be looking at us much when they're busy watching the magic show right?" He gives a slight hopeful smile at that. "I mean, there may not be enough time to get the funnel cake, but popcorn or something." It's a very familiar pattern of motion, something Kurt isn't used to seeing from other bodies--and he can't quite help being a little puzzled and a little fascinated. His tail sweeps behind him, a low wide arc of slightly unsettled thoughtfulness. Eventually he brings his eyes back down to look at the students with him. "Ja, if you two would like, let's. Perhaps they will let you bring the funnel cake into the magic show?" It's hard for the elf to keep from stealing glances at the guy on the ferris wheel. Sophie's attention was, as well, caught temporarily by the guy on the ferris wheel! When he did that little flip, she let out a gasp and almost looked like she was about to try to run forward-- but then all is well. Well then! She lets out a little nevous laugh of relief, before ultimately turning her attention to Faelan. "If it's about to start we probably shouldn't stop, it always takes forever to get stuff when you're in a hurry." She's never going to get that funnel cake at this rate. OH WELL. Giving Kurt's hand one more little squeeze, she lets go of it to start towards the magic tent. Though she makes sure not to get too far ahead. For safety!! "C'mon we don't wanna miss the beginning!" Or she doesn't, anyway! The man on the ferris wheel is finishing up, now; with a hop and a jump -- he's clamboring down the main spoke, where there's a ladder -- dropping down the rungs, two or three at a time. There's a scattering of applause among the crowd at the base of the vehicle! But the man doesn't seem interested; he's just trotting on back on the other side of it -- and now other carnival personnel are stepping forward to test the wheel and bring it back into operation. Meanwhile, if the little group moves toward the Mysterio tent, they'll find the opening -- where you're expected to present either your ticket-stub or the stamp on the back of your hand (you get both upon entering!) to step inside; some members of the crowd mumble and shift away when Kurt approaches -- but no one throws or shouts or /points/ at him, and the ticket-taker doesn't seem to mind. The interior of the tent is dark -- a series of chairs set out for an audience of about fifty or sixty; it's just a bit over half filled -- with a stage set up on the other end, two burning lanterns arranged on either side of it, and a massive set of dark red curtains behind the stage itself. There's attendants at all four corners of the room -- and several signs -- one reads 'PLEASE BE SEATED', another reads 'PLEASE TURN OFF ALL ELECTRONIC DEVICES', and a last one reads 'PREPARE YOURSELF... FOR MYSTERY!' "Do we want seats up near the front or hidden in the back more?" Faelan asks as he follows through the crowd. "And I bet the worker on the ferris wheel does acrobatics for them. I've only ever seen Dr McCoy, or /you/ Professor Wagner, moving like that though." Seeing the signs, he silences his phone and turns off the buzzing, but wont dare turn it off in case he needs to hit the panic button at record speeds. "Oh, this is really fancy here. Its like one of those Cirque shows, but well, less weird." "I wouldn't be so quick to think so," Kurt says, his voice very distant as he watches the repairman's dismount. "At least for my circus, we had to practice always, all the time, every day before the show. We must learn new routines and reinforce the old ones and remember how not to fall and break our necks, ja?" He means acrobats, of course. "There was no time to repair any rides, and even if there was we could not risk being injured in a fall from such a thing when we were making money for the circus." His tail switches back and forth, restless. "But you are right, Faelan, he is missing his calling. Very few people can move in such a way." How strange. Still, he moves into the magic-show tent with the others, allowing them to decide what part of the tent they'll sit in. He pulls his phone out of his pocket with his tail without thinking, and then finds himself obliged to ignore getting stared at for it. "Maybe it was an emergency repair and he happened to be the right man for the job." Sophie says this a little dramatically, as if narrating for a movie trailer. In a world where ferris wheels break down...! But in any case, once the group is inside, Sophie pulls her panda backpack around to front, unzipping it to dig around and find her phone. Which she also silences, rather than turning off, because indeed, panic button. "I usually like sitting near the middle. Not so close that it's all in your face, but you can still see good." Once seats /are/ discovered, she arranges seating so that Kurt is sitting between herself and Faelan, and nestles her backpack in her lap, so that her phone is reasonably close at hand, just in case. The crowd is settling down in their seats now; once Sophie, Faelan, and Kurt have found a proper place to sit -- the lights in the room dramatically dim. And then there is a deep, rumbling crackle -- as if booming from the depths of a speaker. Very much 'Movie Trailer' voice, except with a hint of Darth Vader. Maybe more cheerful. "LADIES AND GENTLEMEN. CHILDREN OF ALL AGES. /WELCOME/," the voice rumbles, coming from -- every side of the room, it seems. "TO A WORLD OF MYSTICISM -- OF WONDER -- OF CHAOS -- TO THE WORLD... OF MYSTERIO!" *FWOOOM* -- Pale green smoke swirls across the stage in a whirling mini-tornado, sweeping close and tight -- and then, *WHUMF* -- the emerald tornado dissipiates. Revealing... uh. Whoa. The man now standing on stage is... he's, uh. Wearing a dark green suit -- a purple cape, thick and coiled around his throat, pinned to his chest via two 'eye' badges -- and... a large, completely opaque glass 'DOME' upon his head. Like a magical crystal ball. His arms are extended outward, as if to say 'HERE I AM!'. The audience, confused, bursts into scattered applause. Taking his seat, Faelan glances to the people around him, figuring he may as well know who is around him. "I hope this is good. And I'll get you your funnel cake after this I promise." He nods, then settles into the chair to get comfortable to see what sights will prevail. "I wonder what kind of magic it is. Like tigers, or making ladies disapear, or fancy sawing in half or whatnot." He seems to relax a little with the small dark surroundings, certain a show is safe. And as the man appears on stage to the big poofy smoke and weirdness, he applauds like the others, somewhat amused by the attire of the fishbowl head. Kurt does not volunteer what kind of magic he thinks might happen--maybe he doesn't have any idea. Instead, he tucks his phone back into his pocket once it's been silenced, pushing his sunglasses up into his hair with one big finger so that he can better see the stage. When Mysterio appears--well of course he claps, enthusiastically, a big fan of /anyone/ being brave enough to perform. Sophie is.. one of those people who's a little hesitant to start clapping. She apparently wasn't expecting quite such an appearance, but then, well. It stands to reason that Mysterio would be mysterio/us/. Regardless, she does eventually offer hesitant applause, then settles comfortably into her chair and sits back to watch the show. Probably, her enthusiasm will pick up once the show actually starts. "Magic," Mysterio informs the audience, his voice still rumbling with that mechanical, cheerful 'Darth Vader'-esque rumble, "is many things. But most of all, it is a matter of perception -- a trick of the light -- a series of clever little ruses. For example," he continues, as he steps off the stage -- clad in that rich, thick purple cloak -- and that unusual green suit, green tie, and pale jade shirt beneath -- "why am I wearing this unusual head garment? Is it because I wish to hide my face?" "Or," Mysterio conjectures, hands now reaching to grasp the sides of that 'fishbowl' -- and with a delicate click, he begins to lift it. "do I have a face at /all/?" The bowl rises off... exposing nothing. Mysterio is... headless. The orb in his hand -- surprisingly light! -- is handed off to a teenager in the front row. Who proceeds to /squee/. "Hold this, please," Mysterio tells them. Faelan blink blinks as the fishbowl head goes off to the audience member. Murmuring quietly to the side, he says "Its one of those weird magic shows then." He nods to himself as he settles in to watch the weirdness, his eyes instinctively glancing around the room. Mostly though his eyes look upwards rather than to the audience now, looking for the tricks for the show. Kurt has curled his tail around to hold it in his hands, so he doesn't bludgeon whoever is sitting behind him. Still, it tries to twitch every so often, spade flopping back and forth between his fingers, as his eyebrows lift. He doesn't say a word. If Sophie was the swearing type, /that/ would have produced such a cuss. As it stands, though, she lets out a little /shriek/ of surprise, instinctively gripping Kurt's arm. Just for a moment. Once she gets over that initial shock, she gradually releases her grip, with a deep blush that is, fortunately, all but invisible in the dark, and she whispers to herself, "It's just a trick. It's just a trick. Don't freak out." "All magicians," Mysterio continues, his headless body striding among the audience members, "are, at their heart, crooks. It is our job to trick you -- to deceive you -- to thwart your expectations. Because the sad truth of it is this, ladies and gentlemen: There /is/ no such thing as magic. And yet, here you are," Mysterio announces, now standing at the center of the audience -- arms extended upward. "And yet, here /I/ am. Or... am I?" The lights go out. For an instant; it's pitch black; a second later -- and the lights are back. And Mysterio -- is gone. Not a trace. Until... "For a few minutes, at least," his voice rumbles, now -- coming from the four corners of the rooms. The four attendants -- all four of them -- are now perfect duplicates of Mysterio, each standing, arms folded -- each watching the audience, glass bowls restored. "Maybe you /will/ believe." Starting a moment at the sudden darkness, Faelan relaxed when the lights came back on. He starts applauding with a smile as the figure reappears in multiple places. The fellow probably just was doing simple stage magic, but since he can teleport and go invisible himself the trickery isn't something he couldn't do himself, if he could do it well. He does however lean over to give Sophie a reassuring smile. Kurt's eyebrows go a little higher up on his forehead, somehow, as Sophie clutches at his arm. Fur goes everywhere for a split second, before the surprise fades and Kurt looks less bristly than before. "Easy, liebchen, easy, it is just a show." He reassures her, still eager to clap when he feels it's the appropriate clapping time. Maybe he's a little less awed by this than some others...but this is his childhool, so maybe this is the equivilant of grilled cheese sandwiches on a sick day, for the elf. Lights going dark prompt Sophie into gripping her backpack, briefly, instead of Kurt this time, but at least there's no more screaming. For the moment. She offers the teacher a halfhearted little chuckle and nods, looking around for the source of the voices and just murmuring, "Oh, wow," when she sees the duplication trick. It may be becoming evident that she either hasn't seen a magic show before, or it's been long enough since the last time that she may as well not have. "Is this a trick?" Mysterio asks the audience, from all four corners of the room. "It must be. Men in costume, trading places in the dark. A trap door. Fake shoulders. You concoct credible explanations to deny the one possibility you cannot allow: That magic /is/ real. And in doing so, you create an entirely new set of expectations -- expectations I can thwart." And then the lights go off -- again. A few seconds longer; in that time, Mysterio's voice rumbles. "For example. How is it that I'm sitting among you all?" When the lights come back on this time -- Mysterio is no longer in the four corners of the rooms. The attendants are gone; in addition, there is now -- two Mysterios. One sits beside Sophie; another towers beside Faelan. Arms folded, looking ahead. The crowd /squeals/; several people yelp. Some people are giggling and laughing; others are gasping and almost-panicking. Mysterio speaks, then -- directly to Faelan and Sophie. Their respective Mysterios leaning over -- their wrists flicking outward. A pack of fresh cards fan out, exposed separately to each of the mutants. "Pick a card," Faelan's Mysterio says. "Any card," Sophie's Mysterio says. When the two move to pick a card, the Mysterios respond in unison: "Oh no, not /that/ card!" There's laughter from the crowd -- all eyes turned toward the two mutants, intent and watching. Whatever their /second/ choices are, Mysterio does not complain! He does, however, produce a marker with his other hand -- emerging, as if by magic, from space itself! -- and hold it out to them. "Sign your card," Mysterio tells them! Faelan starts again, hand gripping his pocket a moment before he starts the breathing to relax himself. "Oh uh," he murmers as he tries to grab a card. Frowning as he's told not to choose the one he did, he brings his finger over to the far edge and tugs it out. Glancing at the card to see what it is, he pops off the marker cap and scribbles his name on it in the barely legible manner of young men. "Do you want the cards back now?" He isn't sure what the trick is going to do next, but he is trying to stay calm, and not make anything, or anyone, disapear from the attention and stress. And here is Kurt, stuck in the middle, all eyes very near to him. Of course, in the darkness...he's hard to see. Even those lamplight eyes, turned onto Mysterio with equal parts entertainment and maybe--maybe--suspiscion, even those are hard to see. He might as well be an empty chair, except for the part that Faelan and Sophie can still see him. Just in case, his tail snakes down out of his hands to wrap loosely around Faelan's ankle while he lets Sophie go back to grabbing at his arm, making sure to have a point of contact with both students in the event he decides he needs it. Oh hey, now is the time for shrieking again! Though Sophie's shriek this time is really more of a short yelp of surprise, one hand pressing against her heart as she protests, "You /scared/ me!" Still, she at least manages to chuckle a little, even if it is more nervous-sounding than amused. She picks a card! And her face falls a little at the /oh no/, the girl shaking just a bit. Once her second card is picked she looks at it, takes note, and accepts the marker. Only rather than signing her own name, out of a sense of some suspicion, she opts to sign a different one instead. Sophi/a/. They'll never see through her clever ruse. The marker is handed back over, and card offered as well. "Not at all!" Faelan's Mysterio informs him. "It's /your/ card, young man," he says -- Sophie's Mysterio holds his hand up as she offers her card, as well. The /markers/, at least, are taken! "But would you both be kind enough to hold it up for the audience to see?" And then the Mysterios are rising from their seats, moving back -- to the aisles! -- to walk toward the stage. Letting both teens keep their cards. "Put them in your pockets, for safe-keeping! Or, if you don't have pockets, just keep them, face down, against your legs, hm?" The Mysterio twins march back up to the stage, then -- one of them pauses, though -- turning to the boy who still has his glass head. "Oh, hm," he remarks, reaching down for the orb -- "I think I'll need that." Pluck! The boy looks saddened by the fact that he won't be /keeping/ it, but forks it over. The sudden snaking around his leg makes Faelan do a slight eep as well, before he notices it as Kurts tail. He does follow the instructions though and holds it up for the audience to see before he sits back down. Before shoving it into his pocket though, he does his own little disapearing act and makes it go invisible as its sliding out of sight. He watches the audience and the Mysterios far more closely now, not wanting additional ones to pop up all of a sudden. The elf, for his part, remains quiet, either entranced or thoroughly critical of the magic show in progress. "Oh! Okay," Sophie replies, when it is indicated she should keep her card. And she holds it up to show the audience, obediently, even lifting herself just a bit out of her chair to make sure it is completely visible! With that done, she settles herself back down, and slides the card into her panda-bear backpack, next to her cell phone. Which she also /subtly/ checks for on-ness. Just in case. And she slides her hand back down to hold on to Kurt's, again, just in case. Mysterio #1 has the orb; Mysterio #2 accepts the deck of cards from #1; with a flicker of the deck, they both disappear -- beneath his wrists, perhaps? Now that Mysterio #1 has a glass orb in his head, he seems to be shaking it. "Hm. Something seems to be wrong with this one," Mysterio #1 comments to Mysterio #2, who -- perhaps quite comically! -- proceeds to scratch his own giant crystal ball head. "Have you tried shaking it harder?" Shake, shake, shake. "Oh," Mysterio #1 comments, "I think there's something -- ah, here we are. The cards." He holds the crystal ball up for the audience to see -- a milky white cloud swirling inside of its interior. And as the audience watches, something emerges from within -- the view of... two cards! Pressed up against the interior glass -- both of them, the very same cards Sophie and Faelen selected -- with their names still signed on both! "But," Mysterio #2 comments, "if /those/ cards are /here/, then where are the cards /they/ signed?" "Maybe we should ask them," Mysterio #1 offers, helpfully! Faelan, being fairly pleased with himself to know at least that his card couldn't possibly be the one displayed, he reaches into his pocket for the one he placed there. The card couldn't be up on display if he made it invisible, so he stands and reaches into his pocket for the one he placed there, gesturing to Sophie to stand up as well. Blinking, Sophie goes digging back through her backpack to pull out her card. While doing so, she looks to both Faelan and Kurt and whispers, "Either this actually is magic or that guy has a /lot/ of powers." Once her card is found, she stands up with Faelan, raising her arm to hold hers up. Possibly not noticing that it is not the same one! Both cards are -- MYSTERIO! A picture of him, as the Joker; arms folded, fishbowl shining. No signature on them! The audience applauds; a few laugh, a few whoop. Mysterio #1 responds by gesturing to Sophie; Mysterio #2 responds by gesturing to Faelan. "Why don't the two of you," #1 says, "come up on stage?" #2 finishes. "Let's have a closer look at those cards, hm?" Both of them step apart -- to make room for the two teenagers! The fishbowl head is firmly placed down on the ground with a solid *THWUNK*. Going up on stage wasn't exactly a good idea, but refusing to do so would be almost more suspicious. Faelan gives Kurt a helpless look, offering Sophie a hand. "We may as well play along." Making his way up towards the stage, he feels eyes on him, and he hunches his shoulders in a bit being somewhat smaller in on himself. He keeps the card gripped in his hand though so it wont change again on the way. Sophie zips her backpack closed, pulling it up onto her shoulders, and /grips/ Faelan's hand with her hand that is not holding the card. Smiling a little nervously, she leans over to whisper, "I hope you have that thing under control if we need it." You know. The /thing/. Smile returning to her face, she follows him up to the stage, a little overly-quickly due to nerves. For a second, Kurt's tail tightens around Faelan's ankle, but he releases it a second later. "I will be there in a flash if you need me." He tells the sudents, his voice low, and for a second he looks like he's trying to figure out if he can slink through the shadows to be closer to the stage without being seen. "Magic," Mysterio #1 continues, as the two teenagers slink up on stage, "isn't real. And yet, it is -- it's --" "--everywhere," Mysterio #2 picks up, as Faelan and Sophie clambor up on stage. "Do you think--" "--these two might, in fact, be magicians?" #1 asks. "/Are/ you a magician?" #2 asks -- oho. /FAELAN/. "Do you know any tricks?" "I bet he does. But I bet /this/ one," #1 says, standing beside Sophie, "knows a /better/ one." The audience is getting into it, now; they are focused on Sophie and Faelan -- as the two Mysterios move forward -- to -- very gently! Place a hand on their respective shoulders. #1 on Sophie's shoulder; #2 on Faelan's shoulder. Shaking his head on being asked the question, Faelan is very much in the negative category. "No no, I don't know any tricks sir." Whatever happiness on his face before is now very much stage fright, and of course there was totally /no pressure at all/ from Sophie. "Just here for the show." He shakes his head and hopes that nothing terribly bad will happen as he looks to Sophie, and tries to keep her within range. Kurt tenses, and drops into a crouch, head no longer visible above the crowd, if it ever was. He begins to eel around people, slinky and nimble as always, careful not to touch anyone to alert them to the presence of the fuzzy elf they probably couldn't otherwise see. He means to get himself as close to the stage as he can manage without actually getting in the /light/, eyes never leaving the figures on the stage. Needless to say he's ready to bamf at a moment's half-thought. Sophie is /not/ letting go of Faelan's hand any time soon, no sir. And the question just gets a wide, faked smile from the girl, who answers, "No, sir, I'm just a kid." See? She's all teenagery and everything. Anyone standing /close/ to her can pretty easily see her eyes darting around nervously around that smile. She's just doing her best to assure herself that she might be overreacting. "No magic here." "Goodness, gracious," Mysterio #1 says, "this is worse than I thought! They don't--" --- "--believe in magic!" #2 finishes. "Children who don't believe in magic; who don't even believe in themselves! Well, /I/ certainly believe in them, don't I?" --- "Yes," #1 responds, "you most certainly do. As do I! But the audience may not believe." --- "Oh? Hm, good point. Maybe they think that these two are part of my act." --- "They /could/ be!" --- "Well, maybe they are. Are you two part of my act?" It's getting -- downright impossible to tell which one is speaking, anymore. They flip back and forth so rapidly -- and their voices emerge from all over the place. Kurt goes, apparently, unnoticed. The audience has all their focus on Faelan and Sophie; the two teenagers have the hot white spotlight on them. All the attention right there! Which might be why nobody notices... the monkeys. Very /silently/ sneaking. Under the audience's feet; about a dozen, really. As stealthy as can be. Shaking his head vigorously again, Faelan looks to Mysterio. "No not, not in the show. I think I'm actually allergic to magic. Confidence is bad for me." The bright lights make it impossible for him to see out into the crowd, and not seeing Kurt he looks for the exits, which he can't see either. "Yep, definitely not part of the show at all." Either he's really good at acting, or he's rather too nervous for stagebusiness. "Oh, no, I believe in magic!" This might actually be a genuine admission on Sophie's part, even though she is a little /old/ for that. Or maybe she's using the term in the sense that the Mysterios obviously are, at least from her perspective. "I'm just not-- magical." To be fair, her chosen sparkly garb kind of undercuts her point a little bit, doesn't it? "And me and my friend," she squeezes Faelan's hand in an attempt to be reassuring, "are too shy to be in the show," she directs this last bit to the audience. They're just here for the... sudden terrifying scrutiny, apparently. "Hm. They /say/ they aren't part of my act," Mysterio states. "Well, maybe they /should/ be." --- "They're certainly very lovely children, aren't they?" --- "Oh, yes. Why, they're the most interesting children I've ever seen. /Nothing/ else in this room is quite as interesting," Mysterio informs them -- and the audience -- "as these children." There is a peculiar, barely understood effect carried by those words; a ripple that flutters through the audience, through Sophie and Faelan, through Kurt. A sudden /focus/ -- on Faelan and Sophie. Anything -- everything -- else seems to become... irrelevant. A distraction. Which might be why those monkeys can afford to be so suddenly brazen -- their tiny hands slipping forward into pockets, jackets, jeans, purses -- drawing out wallets, rifling through them for credit cards. Driver's licenses. Each monkey is dressed in black; each has -- oh, /God/ -- a small camera strapped to their chest. Quickly rifling, snapping pictures. Backs and fronts of all the cards. Before quietly -- quickly! -- reassembling these things, putting them /back/, even as Mysterio continues to prattle on and on. "But if they're going to be part of our act," Mysterio #1 complains, "they should be capable of a magic trick, shouldn't they?" --- "Yes. So let's teach them one." --- "Which one?" --- "Why not our disappearing act?" --- "Oh, I don't like that one, it's boring." --- "Hrmph. /Fine/, then. Why don't we show them how to turn into a bird?" --- "Oh, /that's/ a good one. Children, are you ready? Repeat after us..." "No no no no no." Faelan shakes his head at the turning into bird comment. "I'd rather disapear please? It would be far more terribly convenient." He looks to Sophie at that, hoping she'll back him up on it. He looks slightly hopeful that the man will take him up on the offer, and clings more tightly to Sophie's hand. His gaze passes through the darkness again, looking for where Kurt might be, really hoping he wont need to do anything drastic. Sophie does indeed nod and back up Faelan's claim. "Y--Yeah! Disappearing sounds a little less, um, dangerous? If we're birds we wouldn't be able to go on any rides after the show!" She laughs nervously, /gripping/ Faelan's hand. Fortunately, the girl isn't strong enough to cause any damage, otherwise the boy might have to visit the med lab after all this. Suddenly in all of this, there is a voice from the darkness just off-stage. It speaks in a broad, strident German tenor, clearly accustomed to speaking to audiences and crowds--even if maybe no one is paying any attention to it at all. He doesn't care. "I am afraid, Herr Mysterio, with all /due/ respect to your /very fine/ show of magic and mysteries, that disappearing--" There is that familiar sound of inrushing air, the tent fills slowly with the scent of sulfur and.. ...Kurt appears just behind the two students, reaching out with both of his hands to clasp the place where Sophie and Faelan hold hands. He makes sure he has good contact with them both, raising their hands over their heads as performers often do. "--is more my speciality! /Thank you/, everyone, so /much/ for your indulgence, but it is time we took our leave." Nightcrawler does his best to guide both children in a showman's bow, but whether or not they follow his gesture, his grip tightens and they BAMF!, leaving the stage full of purple-black smoke and the scent of brimstone. The trio reappear outside, a few yards behind the Wonders of Biology (or whatever) tent, a foot or so off of the ground. Kurt, at least, makes the landing lightly, but the trip probably wasn't as easy on either of the children. "Oh, well, if you /insist/ on disappearing," Mysterio #1 says, "we'll happily recon--" Oh. There's a Nightcrawler on stage. Both Mysterios turn, slightly, to watch him; well, it's hard to tell because. FISHBOWLS. Right. But neither make a move to stop him -- and once he bamfs, out of view -- well, the audience, predictably, starts to applaud. Because for all /they/ can tell -- that's just the end of the show! Outside the tent, behind the WONDERS OF BIOLOGY exhibit, there are -- fortunately! -- very few people to observe the sudden appearance of the three mutants. Someone in the distance glances their way, frowning -- but instead of presuming TELEPORTATION, they just presume, OH three people are there that's weird -- and keep walking. Otherwise, the fair grounds are -- well, exactly as you'd predict. Still teaming with people! No signs of malfeasance. Blinking wide eyed at the sudden appearance of Kurt, Faelan's almost falling over is turned into a somewhat vagueish bow with the hands of the professor, and then suddenly he's outside on the ground. "Owww," he groans getting back up. "I think I prefer it when I do it. Less pain on the end point." Wincing slightly, he offers Sophie a hand in case she's taken it worse since it wasn't even close to her power set. "I think we should get out of here. And maybe get a funnel cake for the car ride home." Sophie looks nothing if not relieved when Kurt appears on the stage, and she even manages to join him in the bow, which is her last bit of comfort before the sudden BAMF out of the tent. She manages to stifle a yelp when she lands on the ground, one hand reaching out to grab Kurt's arm for support as she doubles over, holding her stomach with the other hand. "Oh /jeez/," she murmurs, eyes closed. "Don't talk to me about food right now." "Ja, ja, I know, nobody likes to go for a ride when it is me who is doing the carrying." Kurt mumbles to the children, holding out both hands and arms to help them up or help the /stay/ up as the case may be. "I am told the dizziness and the upset stomach fade very soon. I would like a funneled cake but not if you are both going to be chucking up on it." It's a telling day, indeed, when as cheerful as he seems Kurt's stress level gets high enough that his command of English starts to slip. "In either case I think Faelan is right, perhaps that is enough carnival for one day. At the very least I cannot imagine I made myself popular with the magician in this moment."