Chapter 1
(End of summer, J Street Time)
It was just about closing time. There had been no customers today not so much as a window shopper and no clients so there had been plenty of time to rearrange the merchandise one more time, polish the silver, and dust the display cases. It had been one of those days that most people would have found achingly boring, but Jayna found a certain comfort in the mundane. It gave her an opportunity to pause and reflect on her life represented by the mass of accumulated treasures that filled her shop. She had even come to tolerate, while not enjoy, David's presence in the house. He rarely spoke, which was a blessing, and followed directions well.
She was a bit surprised by the sound of a heavy, hard-soled shoe on the stairs coming down from the living quarters. She smiled when she recognized the familiar cadence of Aquarius' steps. "I'm in the silver room." She called, putting the finishing touches on a huge Sterling samovar.
"How did you know it was me and not a customer?" he asked, entering the room. "Did you forget we have a date tonight?"
"First off, the bell on the front door didn't ring, second I know how you walk even if you are wearing new shoes." She gathered her cleaning supplies and wiped her hands on her bibs. "And I didn't forget. You're early." She turned toward him and stopped to assess what he was wearing.
"These aren't new," he said raising one foot off the floor a bit, "I just haven't worn them in a while." He had on a pair of stylish boots with a steel plate on the toe, leather pants, and a plain shirt, all in black.
"Ciela hasn't been home very long. I doubt if she's ready to go." She took the supplies to a near-by closet. "Michael isn't due for at least half an hour. Can you keep yourself amused while I get dressed?'
"Are you sure I can't help?" he asked, winking.
"I think I can manage."
***** Aquarius had been sitting in the kitchen several minutes, absentmindedly flipping though a magazine, when the kitchen door creaked open. From the silence of the approach, he assumed it to be David, and didn't bother to look up. After several more minutes of flipping pages, he heard a somewhat timid, and decidedly feminine, voice clear its throat.
"Hi Ciel..." He stopped in mid greeting, and raised an eyebrow at the sight before him. "That's a new look." He managed, and closed his mouth as soon as he realized it was hanging just a bit open. She was wearing a snakeskin patterned, dark green halter top that was just a little snug in the right places, and a pair of black jeans that were considerably tighter than what she usually wore. His gaze didn't quite make it to her feet but he assumed she was wearing shoes or boots of some type as well. What was probably the most interesting thing about the whole ensemble was the multi-hued snake that was coiled around her exposed right bicep. "Nice tat. When did you get that done?"
"Last week." She turned around slowly. "I was hoping Jayna was down here, she's not in her room." She paused, looking at Aquarius seriously for a moment. "Does this look ok? It's not too much is it?"
"No, I wouldn't say that." He had to fight the urge to grin. "I'd say it looks great, actually."
"Thanks. I wasn't even sure I was going to be able to work up the courage to wear it when I bought it. I just liked the color and the pattern."
"Well it fits you, and it goes well with the tattoo. One of Mike's, I guess?"
She nodded distractedly. "Yeah, one of Mike's. Are you sure I shouldn't go change?"
He raised his eyebrow again but said nothing more about the tattoo. "Sit down and wait for Jayna, then ask her what she thinks if you're worried. You still have plenty of time before Mike shows up, and I'm sure Jayna's gonna cook us a little something before we go. Carnival food's not the best in this or any other dimension, and one that travels up and down J Street? There's no telling WHAT you'd end up with. Probably dogmeat."
"The Aztecs used to breed the hairless Tepeitzcuintli dogs for food. It's not that bad, from what I understand."
"Yo quiero Tepeitzcuintli." He repeated the outrageously long name as best he could. "I'll stick to cow and chicken, thanks."
"Suit yourself. I guess I'd better not try to get you to eat tecuítcal."
"What's that, a breed of cat?"
"Nope. Basically, it's pond scum."
"Uh-huh. Forget I said anything. I can see why you like Jayna's cooking so much though."
She shrugged her shoulders as Jayna entered the room. "Well, aren't we colorful? Where did you get that? I never saw anything like that when we went shopping." Jayna stood in the doorway wearing a faded pair of bell-bottomed jeans with a macramé belt, a tie-dyed T-shirt with a ruffled lace shirt over that, a couple of strands of funky beads, and of course her infamous glasses.
"Oh, you won't find this in the stores, at least not the one's you've been going to. Check out some of the Vintage clothing shops around, and maybe you'll find something like it."
"I didn't say I wanted to..." She smirked at Jayna. "How old is that stuff, to be considered 'vintage'?"
"Well, I wore this outfit on my last real date, before I met Aquarius."
"And that was?" Aquarius asked before Ciela could.
"Woodstock."
Aquarius managed not to laugh. She HAD warned him that it had been a while since she'd dated, after all. She hadn't been kidding. Ciela, for her part, had a blank look on her face, but wasn't talking, or asking further questions. "Jay, Az was wondering what you thought of her outfit. She was worried it might be 'too much'."
"It's a little darker than usual for you, isn't it?"
"I'll change..." She was out of her chair and almost out of the kitchen before Jayna grabbed her arm and guided her back to her seat.
"There's nothing wrong with it!!! Don't be so..." she shook her head. "It looks just fine on you. Michael will be here soon, and you're supposed to be helping me with dinner, remember?"
"We were just discussing Aztec eating habits, are you sure that's such a good idea?"
"Don't worry, I'm doing the cooking. She's just helping out. Nothing major." Within minutes the smell in the kitchen was far from pond scum. Aquarius sat and cut what he was given as he watched with admiration the lovely women before him.
It wasn't long before the door to the kitchen opened and David entered. "Michael is here for you." He looked at Ciela and stood, holding the door open. Az straightened her outfit as all eyes turned toward the door, where David stood alone.
"And where is he?"
"Out front."
"QUETZ!" Ciela stormed out of the kitchen. "You are insufferable!" She pointed an accusing finger in David's face, then rushed down the stairs and unlocked the door. She pulled the door open even as Michael shrugged pushing the silent doorbell.
"I tried the..." Michael was unable to finish as Ciela covered his mouth with hers, and wrapped her right arm around his neck pulling herself up to him, her left on his chest. His hands went to her waist and she pulled back smiling.
Then she realized what she just did... and liked it. "Do you think this is too much? I could change?" She stepped away from him turning as he followed and closed the door.
"You expect me to think after getting a welcome like that?" He smiled, having only kissed her twice before now it was a little shocking, especially since she'd initiated it. "That looks great."
"Are you sure because..." It was Michael's turn to silence her again with his finger. She smiled, kissed it, took his hand and led him upstairs. "Jay's cooking for us so we don't have to eat at the carnival. I can't believe David left you out there, but then, he is a little bit rude sometimes, and he doesn't seem to like you." She looked back and caught his eyes panning up to her face. "Were you listening to me?" She pulled him close.
"Of course I was."
"You were 'checking out my ass' weren't you?" He tried not to laugh too loud.
"What if I was?"
"Just making sure." She grinned like a Cheshire cat and pushed the door to the kitchen open leading him in.
****** "Don't eat too much." Aqua said, cleaning up his plate.
"Oh yeah, listen to you, you had thirds." Ciela said squeezing Michael's hand under the table for emphasis.
"I didn't have lunch. Some of us have jobs."
"Oh yes, paid to lurk. Some job."
"Well, there's a lot more to it than that, and it pays the bills. At least I'm not a walking billboard for my religion." Aqua smiled at her as he took their plates.
"Well at least I have one to advertise." She laughed as he headed towards the sink with the dishes.
"All right, all right, knock it off you two, or Michael and I will start getting jealous." Jayna said, placing hands on hips. "The way you two bicker sometimes people will think you were dating."
"Eeeeeewwwwww! What a thought!" Ciela made a face and leaned towards Michael, laughing.
"Yeah, laugh it up. Blondie, you don't know."
"And I don't want to find out." She smiled and nodded at Michael.
"Your loss."
"And my gain." Jayna said kissing Zan on the cheek quickly. "Can we go now, before we start sounding any more like a bad a sit-com?"
"We'll follow you on my bike, OK?" Michael put his hand on Az's back and guided her toward the front as Aqua and Jayna headed for the back stairs.
"I'll pull around front."
On their way down the stairs Ciela spoke, "Michael, what's 'Woodstock'?"
"Woodstock was a music festival back in the '60's, they had another in the late '90's, but it was nothing like the original. It was a cultural milestone. Why?"
"Jayna mentioned it, I was curious." Michael opened up the saddlebags and pulled out two helmets he offered one to Ciela who was already wearing a sleek golden one. "Don't need it, sorry."
"What did I tell you about all that apologizing?" he grinned, putting the extra helmet back in the saddlebag.
"Oops." she grinned back "Old habits die hard, I guess?"
"Well, I'm glad to see you two are back on amicable terms at least."
"Yeah, me too."
Chapter 2
Mike pulled his bike in next to Aquarius's already parked car. Parking places were few and far between, leaving them a long walk to the fairgrounds and the carnival itself. Blaring music carried out to them as they approached, along with a cacophony of sounds; laughing children, animals outside the large circus tent, screams of people who enjoyed being scared out of their wits on the thundering roller-coaster. Ciela instantly understood why Jayna had fed them before they left the shop, as a mixture of smells assaulted them as soon as they entered the fairgrounds. There was the sickly sweet smell of cotton candy combined with smoke and the musty smell of boiling peanuts, and the resulting odor was somehow both inviting and nauseating at the same time."Where do you want to go first, Ciela?" Michael waved his hand in front of her face jokingly. "You still with me here?"
"Yeah, just looking around. There's a lot of people here." She backed up a few steps as Jayna and Zan continued walking ahead of them, not noticing that she was now slowly going in the opposite direction. "Maybe this is a bad idea..."
Michael sighed loudly in response, drawing Jayna and Zan's attention back to them. "It's ok, you two go on ahead. We're fine." He moved over to Ciela's side, quickly putting an arm around her waist. "It's fun. I promise." She squirmed slightly but stopped backing up. Ahead of them, Aqua and Jayna had taken Mike at his word, had already rounded a corner, and were now out of sight. "I'm not big on crowds either...but this is fun, remember?"
It was her turn to sigh loudly. "Just a little freaked out, it's no big deal."
"Yes it is a big deal. You told me you weren't having any more panic attacks."
"Backslide?" She laughed half-heartedly. "Really, I'm fine. Nothing to worry about, really. It just surprised me is all."
"That's all?" He moved around in front of her and fixed his gaze on her. She nodded. "Ok then, so what do you want to do first?" He didn't move from in front of her or take his eyes from her face, waiting for her to answer. Instead of answering, though, she moved off in a seemingly random direction, barely avoiding a pair of children as they ran, screaming, towards the tilt-a-whirl, followed closely behind by a pair of harried parents.
"Okay. We can go that way." He caught up to her in several long strides, and was surprised to find her trying to hide a mile-wide grin behind one hand. "Are you trying to tell me I worry too much?" She laughed a little bit at him, nodding. "So what caught your attention over here anyway?"
"Promise not to laugh?"
"Maybe."
"No fair! You're supposed to say you won't laugh, not 'maybe'!" She protested, then grabbed him by the elbow and guided him towards the line leading into one of the larger tents. "I never got to see the circus when it came to Mexico City. The Foundation wouldn't let any of us leave for any reason, and especially not for something silly like that."
"It's not silly...you are allowed to have a life, you know."
"Oh, don't start. You're going to start sounding like Jayna again."
"Well, maybe she's right. Wisdom of the Ages and all that." Ciela glanced at him quizzically. "Do you know how old she is?" She shook her head. "Well, let's just say she's been around a while." He paused for a second. "I think she bought half of the stuff in her shop when it was new."
"Oh now come on. I know you're kidding." She looked up at him, laughing, and noticed he had a serious expression on his face. "Some of those things are a thousand years old! I hope you're kidding." She looked over at him again as they finally entered the tent. "You are kidding, right?"
"Ask her yourself, maybe you'll get a straight answer out of her."
"Maybe I will." She grinned. "You do know that Jay probably didn't 'buy' most of that stuff..."
"Oh, I know, I just didn't know if you knew." He sat down on the low wooden bleacher, laughing, as people, almost all of them with children in tow, filed in and quickly filled the tent. "Why are we talking about Jayna, again? I thought we were here to have fun, not talk about Jayna and Zan?"
Any further conversation was halted as music blared to life, the ringmaster began his spiel, and the first of the clowns came out to the center of the ring.
***** "I do believe you had fun in there, Miss Jarras." The pair exited the tent and turned towards the midway. "Let's go...this way." He draped one arm loosely around her shoulder and guided her towards the rides.
"How about we check out the roller-coaster? Are you scared of heights?"Ciela opened her mouth to comment but ended up laughing instead as several of the clowns rushed past in a flurry of seltzer water and whipped cream, horns and floppy shoes. "Don't they ever quit? I've never seen anyone with that much energy before in my life."
"I'm sure it's part of the act...they go out into the rest of the carnival between shows and try to drum up business."
"Oh, go ahead - ruin my fun." She scowled at him, laughing a little bit when she looked up and noticed he had matched her expression. "And for your information smart guy, I fly. If I were afraid of heights, I'd be in big trouble." Michael returned her laugh as they walked on. Ciela wasn't afraid of flying but she had to admit to herself that being hurtled around in a tiny little rickety roller coaster was something else. Of course, there was something to be said for new experiences...
Chapter 3
"Think they'll be alright?" Aqua asked as Jayna slipped her hand around his arm.
"If they aren't, it's Michael's problem, not mine. I'm here to have fun with my boyfriend not baby-sit a warrior." Aqua laughed at her comment. Maybe it was just his imagination but she sure seemed to have more bounce in her step today. "I'm serious, they both need a day off. We all do."
"I'm still reeling from the 'boyfriend' comment." It was her turn to laugh. "That's the first time you've said that."
"What do you want me to say?" Jay asked and Aqua looked away and began rubbing his chin humming. She hit his arm laughing. "I'm not going to talk like that here."
"Later?"
"Oh you." She laughed. "You are such a perv."
"I prefer to think of it as being an adult."
"Yea, well I know what definition of 'adult' you're thinking of. C'mon, I want to look at the vendors, if we get lucky we might find something worthwhile."
"Just what I need, more T-shirts." Jayna pulled his arm and they began cruising the rows of dealers, and their shoddy, cheaply made goods meant to entice the young and fiscally foolish. Incense, fake silver jewelry, colorful plastic toys, and bogus artifacts from many different cultures were everywhere. Jayna found much to laugh and shake her head at. Inexplicably, by the time they were finished Aqua found himself holding more than one bag.
"How are we going on any rides with this crap?"
"Not all of this is crap."
"Anyway..."
"Here." She sighed, opened her macramé purse and stuffed all of the bags into it. "Happy?" Aqua shook his head and thought better about commenting on a woman and her purse, lest he get hit with it. They wandered on, "So what's next rides, shows, or games?" she asked. "It's your turn to decide."
"Well, are you as interested as I am in seeing what constitutes a freak show on J Street?"
"Whoa! Uh, that's a scary thought. I guess since I drug you through the dealers against your will... Lead on."
Aquarius made a beeline for a brightly colored tent with a large crowd out front. A barker was loudly promoting the 'wonders' to be seen inside, for a slight fee, of course. Once they were close enough to see the panels painted on the side of the tent Jayna realized that this wasn't going to be the kind of sideshow she had seen in the past. There were no hints of bearded ladies or two-headed baby pigs in a jar.
************ Jay and Aqua staggered out of the freak show area and walked past the chain-smoking tattooed fellow who was guarding the exit. It took them both a few minutes before they could speak again. "I understand the concept of torture, but why would anyone willingly do that to themselves?" Jayna asked. Aqua turned to say something to Jayna, but was abruptly cut off.
"ZAN!" A young scantily clad woman leapt into his arms and planted a very passionate kiss on his lips. He brought his hands up quickly and attempted to untwine the woman's legs from around his waist and set her down on the ground. Jayna raised one eyebrow and took a couple of steps back. "God, you look great baby! What happened to your e-mail? Everything I send gets bumped back."
"My ISP crashed. I've had problems..."
"Oh, no big deal lover..." The mysterious girl went on and on. Jayna looked at her and wondered how she breathed. The girl reminded her of something she had read about anaerobic respiration.
She was almost as tall as Zan, with short blonde hair. Her ears were pierced all the way up and around with a couple earrings dangling down past her bare shoulders. Her eyebrows and nose were also pierced. The girl's bodice had to be two sizes too small, judging from the way her breasts bulged out of it. The skirt she wore was little more than a belt with fringe. Her ability to walk on the gravel of the fairgrounds, criss-crossed as it was with cables and hoses, in stiletto heels that practically had her on point, must have been her super-power. The girl tried to keep one hand on Aqua even as he fought to keep removing them.
"It's nice to see you again Sherri, but I'm here with someone." Aqua indicated Jay.
"Oh, you're working?" She barely glanced in Jay's direction. "Hi, I'm Zan's fiancé." Sherri held forward the diamond on her left ring finger.
"No." Zan said taking off his shades, as Jayna raised both eyebrows.
"Oh? You're rolling? That's cool too. She's awful young you kinky bastard. Listen, why don't you bring her over?" Sherri stepped even closer to him and began feeling him up. "I'll roll a couple, we can catch a buzz and see if she fits into that leather Girl Scout uniform you..."
"Sherri!" Zan took her probing hand by the wrist and twisted it painfully. "Listen..."
"Ohhhh, you always knew how to make it hurt soooooo good."
"OK." Jayna said raising her hands. "There's a lemonade over there with my name on it." With that she exited the scene mumbling, "and I thought the freak show was over." Once she was sipping her sugary drink and munching the crumbling elephant ear, she watched as Zan kept trying to extricate himself from the blonde maniac. Finally she kissed him goodbye and wandered off. Zan took a moment to wipe his brow and compose himself before walking over to her. Jayna really looked forward to hearing this explanation.
"How can you eat after that sideshow?" he asked.
"I ate after Laconia. The sideshow was gross, but not that bad."
He had no idea what she was talking about and decided to let it slide for the moment. "I'm sorry about that, about her."
"Your fiancé?"
"Sherri and I haven't spoken in close to two years. It's a long story."
"That's OK. I have all the time in the world."
Aqua reached forward and broke off a piece of the pastry, and sighed heavily. "Sherri and I started dating in high school, our junior year. She was everything I thought I wanted, beautiful, flirtatious, sexually adventurous, and a bubbly personality. You know the old saying 'be careful what you wish for'?" Jayna nodded. "She just kept getting freakier and freakier. She had a couple of bi girlfriends she liked to share with me, and I was all for that. We found out she liked it a little on the rough side and we explored bondage together, I was all for that. Then she started getting into tattoos and piercing, that was OK with me, I didn't mind. Wasn't my thing, but I didn't mind."
"But then she started talking about other guys and wanted to me to explore my 'feminine side' sharing them with her. I wasn't cool with that. Then she started exploring other guys, behind my back at first, then in front of me. I packed the day I came home and found her in bed with two guys and one of her girl friends. She saw me and introduced me to her new friends and invited me to join them. I said I had to work late and just stopped in to grab a couple of things. She said she'd keep them warm for me. We've seen each other maybe twice since then. I've tried to explain that it's over but she doesn't get it. If I went back to her place tomorrow she'd take me back and never say anything about it. I was young and foolish. I thought I wanted Hugh Hefner's life, to live like a porno star. I was wrong. If Sherri could have focused on me and not everybody else..."
"Yea. Sometimes fantasies are better off staying fantasies." Zan was surprised to see that Jayna appeared to be more amused than upset. He figured the best course was to get the whole thing off of his chest.
"I found that I wanted to come home and spend some quiet time with someone, just one somebody. Not to be 'on', and not to live a constant party. I guess that sounds awfully self centered."
"Compared to a guy who only thinks with his crotch, not really." Jayna scooted over on the bench to make room for him to sit beside her. "Not all men want to stay Peter Pan forever. Sometimes they grow up. Sounds like that happened to you."
"I never really thought of it that way, but I guess you're right." He said, taking the offered seat. "I just got tired of being another face in the crowd." She managed a weak smile. "Jay, she doesn't mean a thing to me."
"I know. In those pants everybody here could see if she did."
"Ha, ha. She was right about one thing though. You are looking very young today."
"Must be the clothes. Is that a problem?"
"Not at all..."
"Oh, by the way, what did she mean about the leather Girl Scout uniform?" Zan flushed red and looked at his watch.
"Look at the time! I haven't even won you anything yet!"