lostcarnival | Get Ready For the Show

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Get Ready For the Show

Who: All the performers, plus any visitors
What: Time to get back into the swing of things! Nothing says "I've recovered from trauma" like learning how to plaster a smile onto your face for the crowds.
When: D1 - D5
Where: The Main Tent
Warnings: None.... Probably

As the saying goes, "All play and no work makes Jack forget how to do his job". On the bright side...

Over the radio, Joker makes a cheerful announcement for all performers to start getting back into the practice schedule with new arrivals to show up on the first day back from the moon. On the first day, he'll be lenient. No one has to be on time, but he does want them to at least make an appearance and token attempt at practice. After that, well... Show up, or you'll have an aggravatingly cheerful stage manager paying a personal visit. He bothers because he cares.

To those who have become familiar with it, the tent is outfitted with all off the usual practice equipment, and new faces will be in for a treat. There are the usual acrobatics equipment: silk ropes, the high wire, trapeze swings. Daredevils will find all sorts of things to threaten their lives with, although they'll soon find that there are magical safety precautions in place which stop the Big Tent from, say, getting set on fire. And the magician stuff? Well.... Don't hurt yourself there.

Out of the love of his heart, Joker will make sure there are bottles of water nearby, so don't be afraid to work up a sweat.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[ The problem with magic animals is that they're stupid. Strange had been working on some variation of 'make magical birds out of feathers' ever since he arrived at the carnival. The spell defaulted to chickens for at least a few months (not exactly his proudest moment) but Strange had now managed to turn the feathers into doves. It's as he's turning them back into feathers that Strange realizes wait, he had five birds but now he only has four feathers...that's not good. ]

Yuya, [ he asks, knowing that the kid's in here practicing as well. ] Have you seen—ah. There it is.

[ And Strange turns around to spot that dove just blinking at the two of them with a stupid bird expression on it's face. Strange sighs as he walks towards the high-rise beam. ]

I suppose I should be lucky that they're more magical constructs than actual birds. Otherwise, it might have tried to nest in your hair by now! [ Strange is laughing and joking but that bird...really isn't moving. It's just sitting on the high-rise beam like it's perfectly comfy and doesn't want to move. ]

Ha ha. [Yuya looks down at Strange with a dull expression. It's less funny only because Yuya's new pet has already decided his hair is something to nest in anytime it's out of its tank. He's not sure what it says about his hairstyle but he doesn't like it.

Yuya creeps a little closer, watching the bird as it refuses to move even when he's right next to it.]

Is that why it won't move? [Even if he touches it? He's going to try touching it, carefully pushing its round side with his foot.]

I think it's not moving because it's stupid, [ Strange simply responds, as if that solves everything. He's got a grand explanation for why he thinks that the magical birds are dumb as hell but really, now's not the time nor the place.

The bird gets nudged! And then looks over at Yuya's foot before looking back up at Yuya, blinking slightly. ]

Push it off with your foot! [ Strange calls up at Yuya. Because that bird is a bit too far away for him and there's absolutely no way that Strange is climbing up on the high beam in order to retrieve it. ]

What? I don't want to hurt it! [Nevermind it's a magical bird, what if it doesn't fly before it hits the ground?!

He gently nudges it again.] Come on, you can't be here--[Push, push.

The third push is about when the bird has enough, although not out of the fear and self-preservation Yuya would have hoped. Instead it rises and flies right up in Yuya's face for a moment. Yuya stumbles back, flailing it arms to try and keep standing as he takes a couple more steps backwards on the balancing beam.

The bird, clearly the victor, settle back onto its perch while Yuya tries to keep stable.]

It's not a real bird, [ Strange can't help but point out, sighing slightly as if that's the entire problem of the thing. He looks up at Yuya and the bird with a frown. He can try to dispel that thing from here but again, there's a bit of a distance between the two. The likelihood that he'll miss or that the bird might fly off in Yuya's face again is rather high. ]

It's a magical construct not a flesh and blood animal. Just... [ he has no idea what to do here ] Can you step around it?

[Yuya, who talks to spirits inside of trading cards, isn't terribly placated by that. It looks and acts like a real bird, so he's going to treat it like one.]

I can, but it still can't stay here... are you going to come up and get it? [Someone has to more the bird. Maybe Yuya can just grab it.]

I'm not an acrobat, [ Strange points out, as if it's the most obvious thing in the world. So that's a no, Strange is not going to climb up to get the bird because he will literally break his neck in the process. ]

Are you sure you can't nudge it off with your foot?

[ kick that magical bird, Yuya ]

I won't. [It's less a matter of can't, and he scrunches his nose. And what's stopping the bird from just flying to another beam if he kicks it off? Strange probably can't dispel the bird from far away or he would have, right? So somehow it needs to get to his level.]

I'll bring it down! [Sure, he can do that. It's a small enough bird. Yuya takes another step forward and then leans over slowly, bending his knees as he does until he's in reach.

And then tries to grab the bird in both hands as quickly as possible.]

[ Turns out the bird is just as stupid as Strange says it is. When Yuya picks it up, the bird flutters any free wings slightly, but only makes a slight attempt at escape. A few seconds later, it looks around, calmly laying down in Yuya's hands. Though, the birds does look up at Yuya, absolutely silent, but giving the kid a look like 'okay! now what?' ]

You're doing wonderful! [ Strange hollers, from the floor. He is absolutely no help. ]

[Yuya stares right back into its beady eyes, frowning a little as he absently pets its feathers.] You're awfully calm... what'd you even fly off for?

[Well, if it's decided to stop being disobedient... Yuya carefully tucks it against his chest with one arm, holding the other out for balance as he slowly stands back up. He shoots Strange a quick thumbs up before he walk his way across the rest of the beam to the supporting platform.

From there, he just has to get down the ladder, which involved firmly pressing his feet to the outside rungs and sliding down it with one hand for support instead of climbing down, like a normal person.]

[ It probably flew off because it just saw the rest of it's magically created bird brethren vanish from existence. Who knows, though.

Strange gives Yuya a thumbs up in return, watching as he scales the high beam and over towards the supporting platform. ]

Once you're on the ground, if you'll hold it still for a moment, this should be over quickly.

[ Strange walks over as well, though he can't help but frown a little when Yuya just slides down the ladder instead of climbing down like normal people do. Buddy, you know he doesn't have healing magic, if Yuya busts his head open being a show-off there's nothing Strange can do. ]

Okay! [Yuya does it with all the confidence of someone who doesn't think they're going to slip and crack their head open, making it to the bottom in a few seconds. His grip tightens as his feet his the ground, and then he lets go and turns to Strange.]

Uh--here. [He adjusts his hold to carefully grip the bird with both hands, wings folded to its body, and holds it right out for him.]

[ With a little nod at Yuya, Strange briefly mutters something under his breath. He taps the bird on the head and poof! It's now a single, solitary white feather. Despite the fact that Yuya did all the work, Strange looks a little smug and a lot relieved at the fact that the bird's not a bird anymore. ]

Thank you. You certainly got it down faster than I could have. And now, might I have the feather back?

[ And he extends his hand, offering it to Yuya. ]

[Yuya twists the feather between his fingers before he drops it into Strange's hand now that it's not a bird.] You used to do that spell with chickens, right?

[He definitely remembers seeing the chickens around.] Do they not have to listen to you even though you made them?

[ As he takes the feather, Strange pockets it. Yuya gets a little nod: yep, that was the chicken spell, just fine-tuned to hell and back. ]

It depends on other factors—after all, they're more magic than actual birds. How much I've practiced the spell, how complicated it is, the number and shape of the birds, things like that. Five's a good number, but the shape's more complicated than chickens. [ for some bullshit reason. ] I'll need to practice a few more times so I can call them all back easily.

[Well, Yuya can see why doves are probably a better show than chickens. He nods absently as he listens to Strange's explanation--he knows no better why they're more complicated than chickens, but any difference in routine can take practice.]

Are you making a lot of changes to your show? [Yuya's thought about changing some things. Duels have more than tricks going on, and he wants to come up with something that's equally exciting for the carnival.]

I'm making some, [ Strange explains, with a little nod. ] I'm confident enough with fire that I can use that for a few tricks. And then, of course, I've figured out my smoke entirely. If I make the pathway ahead of time, I can even float through a specific mirror as smoke.

[ The grin on Strange's face and the smile in his voice tells Yuya that he will ramble on about magic for the next half hour if Yuya lets him. ]

What about you? Starting some new tricks on the high wire or something of that nature?

Something like that! [He points up at the hanging bars around the balance beam.] I think it's more exciting if I jump back and forth between the trapeze bars and the beam.

[He spins his finger for emphasis.] I can cartwheel across it, or if I get it right I'll do a back flip!

[He sounds excited by the prospect, like flipping around in the air isn't terrifying.]

[ Strange, rightfully so, thinks that's absolutely terrifying. ]

Are you sure that's safe?

Sure it is! There's all sorts of magic safety in the big top if we fall or something, that's why you don't hear about anyone getting hurt.

[He waves his hand.] But part of the excitement is that it doesn't look safe. It's daring! I do this while dueling all the time.

[Well, less extravagant, but the idea is still there! Who knew a card game had so much activity.]

[ For all that he isn't a father, Strange is straight up in worried dad mode as he looks over at Yuya with a bit of a frown. Alright, so it's true he hasn't heard about anyone getting hurt...and it's true that there's probably magic safety nets or something like that. But for Jonathan Strange, a man who can't run or climb worth a shit, the fact that Yuya is doing things like jumping from the trapeze to a beam is still a bit worrying. ]

If you say so, [ Strange remarks, with a frown. ] Though any duel I've heard of doesn't involve jumping around. It's much safer if you use pistols.

[ For all that Strange has heard of duel monsters in passing, he still doesn't really know much about it...and also defaults to '1800s honor type duel' over 'children's card game type duel'. ]

[That gets Yuya to laugh, loudly for a moment before he puts his hands to his mouth to stifle it. Once he gets it down to giggling, he responds.]

No, no. We're not shooting at each other! Some duels area played on large fields with action cards you can play that turn the game around, but you have to grab them first. So if you know how to get around obstacles, you're a lot better at using them.

[He puts a hand to his chest, puffing up a little.] As an entertainment duelist, I want to make every duel fun and special! That means making every play exciting, including getting action cards.

[That definitely equates to backflips off of high places, he doesn't make the rules.]

[ Strange...still doesn't entirely get it. Alright, so it's a card game, but action cards? Large fields? How could you even see the cards to begin with? Yuya certainly seems proud of himself but Strange just looks a bit confused. ]

If you're playing on a large field, how could your opponent see what card you would play to begin with?

With my duel disk--uh, it's a lot easier if I show you.

[He can see he's losing Strange, and a month in Portland doesn't mean he's going to be savvy to future tech--especially tied to a hobby not everyone has.

He holds up a finger for him to wait, then dashes around the backstage. He returns shortly with the red device in his hands. Strange might recognize it from when he barged into Yuya's trailer before.

He clicks it on, attaching it to his arm and causing the yellow holographic blade to materialize.] This! They connect wirelessly so you can see each other's plays and make them appear in the field. It's all based on--you know what a hologram is? It's that.

[He hopes Strange knows what a hologram is out that's a whole other explanation and he's way less equipped for that one.]

[ Though he still doesn't know the function of the weird red arm thing, he at least knows it's Yuya's weird red arm thing. Strange watches, frowning still as some yellow thing materializes out of nowhere. And right then and there, Strange is resigning himself to the fact that this is going to be one of those things that he just won't ever really know how it works.

Still, he's paying attention, watching Yuya intently as he demonstrates the duel disk. At least he knows what a hologram is. Thanks, various digital worlds. ] It's like an illusion, isn't it? But made by technology.

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