this is a really rough draft of a story about a dream i had. it was amazing but comes and goes in bits and pieces so i'm trying to take it slow and roll with it.    

            Accueillir des Amis, au Cirque de la Nuit... ..

the wind howled and whipped up the girl's short, dark hair. ink crawled across her skin as she suppressed a wave of powerful, Dark energy. "not yet," she said aloud. "save it for the show." she sat atop a large cage on wheels that had once been bright and colorful; but that was a very, very long time ago and now the faded pictures seemed eerie and morbid -- and false. the things in the pictures were scarily different from what inhabited the cages now.

watching the dark figures slowly trudge around the fairgrounds, the girl could easily tell who were Sombres and who were spectators. the Sombres (Les Artistes as Siberio the ring master called them, or simply performers in Cirque de la Nuit) walked along in an odd way, most leaning to one side slightly or slouching, and looked malicious, dangerous, dark, and like they had something to blackmail you with. the spectators, or Des Aveugles, walked around timidly, on edge and for good reason. Siberio capitalized on fear and disgust and usually did well. the performers always did more than their best because they knew what it was like to be bound by Fire and beaten senseless for reasons pettier than not making enough money.

the show was starting in an hour; Siberio made everyone get ready at least an hour and a half before the show, and he would be angry, but she could not go on without seeing someone first. after all, she had waited this long, so what was five minutes?

so she waited.

"Schuyler! Schuyler Grey come down from there!" "Schuyler! Schuyler Grey come down from there!" a gorgeous girl with dazzling blue eyes and long, blonde hair called to her. Schuyler jumped down from her cage and took the girl in her arms, and they faded out in a column of smoke. in a second they were some place small and dark; probably the locked up ticket booth. Schuyler kissed the girl and for a second the girl kissed back, but then she came to her senses and pushed her as far away as possible in the three by three space.

"Schuyler, not now! don't you know the show is about to start?" Schuyler frowned deeply.

"the show starts in an hour, Jaq."

"he doesn't care!" she closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and held Schuyler's face in her hands. "you know that. you were supposed to be there a half hour ago."

"i haven't kissed you in two weeks. he always knows, and maybe if i was better about hiding, or walked quieter...Jaqueline..." she didn't know what else to say. partners were forced in the circus -- mostly to make new breeds and freaks -- and anything other than that was strictly forbidden. for some reason, some Sombres weren't allowed to be with anyone at all; Jaqueline and Schuyler were two of those. they were lonely and needed eachother, and out of need they found love. the fact that they were practically meant to be together didn't change the rules though, and they had to find secret places to steal away to in the dead of night. so theirs was a true and forbidden love in a cruel and dangerous place, but they simpy refused to be apart.

instead of talking, Jaqueline pulled Schuyler tight to her and pressed her lips to her neck. they didn't want it this way.

but sometimes you can't control your fate, and the future was all they had.