Magicians and Fools

Caspa Al-Fateh · 12-03-2011, 05:53 PM

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It was not the easiest walk Caspa had ever undertaken, under the cloak of the overlarge sheet, and trying not to drop anything. The last part was the hardest: through a thick barrier of tree-trunks, into a well hidden circular clearing. A little circus tent, she thought, and her mind was just away on a happy thread of imagining the ideas and techniques they could maybe practice here when she realised Terra was on the ground - and she was about to step on her. Caspa halted screechingly, and the pig fell out of her arms. As she reached for it, the teacups toppled down too, followed by the spoon. She grabbed desperately to stop them falling onto the stomach of her feisty friend, and managed to grab the pig and two teacups, then with no room left in her palms she lunged desperately for the third and caught it inside one of the other two - and then, the spoon, by letting it fall into the top cup, only getting the receptable underneath it just in time to stop it reaching ground level. There was a tinkle then silence, and she gave Terra another embarrassed sidelong squint. She was doing nothing but blundering around like a fool today. That was what the preoccupation of having too many ideas did for you. Caspa raised the pile of teacups. "Um. I brought these." Obviously. "I like your coat. Nice long sleeves." Her own coat didn't have any sleeves at all. "What is that thing?" She tipped her head at the lamp.

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Terra · 12-03-2011, 06:44 PM

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OOC

Terra's eyes shot open at the sound of things collapsing. Twisting around she darted to the side, and watched as Caspa managed to catch everything. Terra had never seen anything like it before. Amused and awed Terra trotted over to the dog. Can you do that again? Terra began taking the things out of Caspa's arms, bundling them on the ground. If she could Terra wanted to learn how to do what Caspa had done. It had looked really amazing.

Caspa's next words distracted Terra from her wide eyed stare. Glancing back at her pile of stuff she frowned. I wasn't too sure what you wanted. I thought the cloak would be a good cover, since it doesn't have holes like my curtain does. As for that thing, I have no idea. It just looked like something we could use. Terra had really just grabbed it because it was shiny and looked like a great thing to hit people with if they got in her way. An actual idea of what to do with it hadn't formed.

Caspa Al-Fateh · 12-04-2011, 07:36 AM

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+5

Caspa wasn't one for clowning around deliberately, and it was a little embarrassing to continually blunder, but she didn't ever get flustered by minor mishaps. She had no pretensions to grandeur or grace... and in any case Terra had managed to get out of the way, so she wouldn't have been damaged anyway. Not that anything Caspa had dropped was dangerous, as she'd kept hold of the knives. Terra must have seen her stunt even while dodging, because she seemed impressed. The ivory hound sighed, not sure she could do such a thing on purpose without being under duress. "I can't usually catch more than three things before they hit the ground," she explained, not realising how strange such an exact number sounded until she'd spoken. "Umm, not that I go around dropping millions of things all the time. I just practice throwing my knives a lot." To show Terra she flicked them into the air one-two-three, then caught them all by the hilt, two in one hand and one in the left. "Pointless amusement really. Well, the knives have points." She did not laugh at her own joke, as usual leaving it ambiguous whether she'd meant it to be funny at all. She drove the knives into the ground and stepped over to look at Terra's booty.

Caspa liked the lamp-stand. She picked it up and found it was hollow, tapering towards the top, which made quite a good handhold. Certainly it was weapon-like, but it must also have other uses. While she was examining it, Terra was explaining. She hadn't been sure what Caspa wanted. "Neither am I," the hybrid said plainly, "but I am sure we can use everything here." She did like the cloak: maybe with some decoration it could become a true enchanter's garment, and it looked to be pretty baggy, very good for hiding things in: but then again it might just get in the way, so perhaps it was better used as a piece of fabric than a garment. "Try it on," Caspa encouraged, keen to see her collaborator dressing up. She'd left the sheet on the ground, the elastic at the corners rumpling it up into a strange billowy shape. Perhaps a fake cloud or a backdrop to make shadows through. She was sure they had the makings of an act here. It was just putting it all together. She dragged one of Terra's boards into the centre and put the teacups upside down on top of it in a neat line of three. "You could hide something under one of them and make sure no one can ever guess the right cup." That would take some very good deception skills, but Terra had time to practice and Caspa would be a very good dummy, having a face that was hard to read.

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Terra · 12-04-2011, 07:11 PM

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OOC Showing off new table

Terra's sharp nature fell away, revealing the child underneath. She stared in awe at the dancing blades, her tail wagging wildly. If she'd attempted anything like that Terra would have been hurt, yet Caspa had done it as if it was nothing. Caspa's next words snapped her out of staring. With her nose crinkled Terra picked up the cloak. She didn't like clothes, as they felt awkward against her skin. The coat was even worse than most, covering her hands completely. Terra looked even smaller than she truly was, dwarfed inside the large coat.

She smiled at Caspa's challenge though. The trick that had been proposed was relatively easy for her. Hiding things in plain sight was the first thing she'd learned after learning how to hide herself. Reaching down to the ground Terra scooped up a small pine cone. With all the flair she could muster Terra presented it to Caspa, the sleeves billowing around her. Frustrated by the length Terra hopelessly tried to push them up before slipping the pine cone under one of the cups.

This is gonna be difficult. Terra grunted softly as she struggled with not knocking the cups over. The set up was finally completed though. With a smirk Terra looked up at Caspa's face. Now watch. Slowly Terra shuffled the cups around, making sure they could easily be tracked. With a swift flick of her wrist Terra moved the pine cone into her palm, not even pausing. It was more difficult popping it back into a different cup, but the movement was still smooth enough to be difficult to catch. Done with the shuffle Terra looked up. Which cup?

Caspa Al-Fateh · 12-06-2011, 07:40 PM

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3+ Rather gawrgeous!

Caspa didn't show that she'd registered Terra's delight, preferring to fiddle modestly with tucking her floppy hair back - unrestrained by plaits it was never out of the way - but the wagging tail had made her wonder: perhaps she did have a talent she could bring to the table. The slender coy-wolf trying on the coat was a funny sight, as she obviously disliked it. The swathe of cloth was perhaps a bit over the top, but it did add to dramatic effect. Still, it could do with fitting a little better, if it wasn't going to totally swamp the girl. If only they knew someone with sewing skills. Oh, but of course she did: the tailor, Strelein. She wished she hadn't thought of that, because now she would feel ridiculous to carry on avoiding the man. Caspa grimaced, knowing she would be ashamed of herself not to mention this thought. "I know someone who can sew. Maybe he could make that fit better, and add whatever decorations to it too. It does look good on you though," she admitted, a small smile lifting a corner of her mouth as she allowed Terra's gesture to draw her in to the scene of the planned attempt. While the cups moved, she just got closer and closer. She was surprised. They didn't seem to be going as quickly as she had envisaged. It felt pretty easy to keep track of the original cup the pine-cone had vanished beneath. She kept expecting Terra to do something like cross her hands or pretend to swap cups without moving one, but she never felt close to losing sight of the teacup in question. When the girl finally ceased Caspa looked disappointed and nodded her head at the centre one, the one Terra had originally placed the cone beneath. "You'll have to try harder. It's that one." She was utterly convinced of this - entirely wrong - fact.

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Terra · 12-06-2011, 07:56 PM

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OOC

So it looked like the cloak would be used. Terra was disappointed about that, hoping the size would discourage Caspa. Still, she was the one with the plan, so Terra would go along with it. She'd just have to get used to working around the clothes. Terra liked the idea of decorating it, eager for anything that would make it more bearable. Dressing it up might just do that.

Terra smirked at Caspa's words. Are you absolutely sure? Slowly Terra tipped the cup back, revealing the empty insides. She opened the other two as well, revealing the pinecone hidden inside the cup on the right. Pleased that she'd managed to pull the trick over the sharp eyed girl Terra dropped the empty cups back down. Look closely this time. This cup holds the pinecone.

Just as before Terra began to shuffle the cups around, her movements even more exaggerated. A child could have easily tracked the movements. With a swift flick Terra captured the pinecone and placed it under another. Her movements were better this time, smoother. The first time she might have been caught, but this one was perfect. Which cup?

Caspa Al-Fateh · 12-06-2011, 09:05 PM

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When the cup was lifted, Caspa already knew that the pinecone wouldn't be there, but she had been certain until she'd seen Terra's reaction to her guess, and there was still a moment of breathtaking amazement to see that reality had been altered in a way that at first seemed impossible. She was about to claim that the cone hadn't been put under any of the cups in the first place, but then it was revealed. There must have been a clever movement while they were passing one another, but she had been convinced she could not have missed such a thing. Her head leaned in still closer, watching carefully. At one point she thought she saw the cup veer a little closer to the edge of the board, but it might have had something to do with how deliberately and slowly Terra was moving them. It wasn't possible for the coy-wolf to have tricked her this time. She'd been far too obvious in the movement of the cups, and Caspa had not taken her eye off the pinecone-containing vessel for a single moment. She tapped a long slender claw on the upturned base. "It's here." There was no tone of question in her voice, even though she'd been confused once already. She straightened, still watching the cup with eagle-eyes to make sure the other wolf didn't change the cone's position at the last moment.

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Terra · 12-06-2011, 09:21 PM

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OOC

Terra rolled up her sleeves, deliberately staying clear of the cups. There was no way she could hide the pinecone now. She opened up the cup Caspa had chosen, once more revealing it's emptiness. Grinning she glanced up at her new friend. Caspa was clearly puzzled over how the trick had been played, and just as clearly convinced there was no way the pinecone had been missed this time. Again Terra tipped the cups back, revealing the pinecone now sitting under the center cup.

That was enough of that trick for Terra. What else do you want me to do? She'd enjoyed that small taste of puzzlement, so similar to the thrills she got making trouble outside the pack. Terra hadn't thought much of the idea at first, thinking it would be a good way to practice and improve her tricks while not leavingj pack grounds. Now she was truly looking forwards to performing, though they'd need more than just the one trick.

Caspa Al-Fateh · 12-06-2011, 09:35 PM

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It seemed Terra had thought of something she had not anticipated. It wasn't a clever jumble of the cups, which was what would be expected. It was something else. Had she managed to use those long sleeves to cover up a movement? If so, it was very hard to see, which was ideal. Terra was clearly of a flighty disposition. She wanted to keep moving, keep trying out different things. Caspa liked to chew the same thing over and over, but she could see a way to turn it around and test the trickster in another way. Serenely Caspa picked up another pine cone, rolling it around in her fingers for a moment. "Can you guess which cup it's under? Don't look," she said commandingly. Reading other canine's body language would probably be useful for other tricks, if Terra had the ability. She put it under the left-most cup, then announced "Ready." She thought to herself, right, right, right, it is under the right cup as she looked at the other girl, checking that she was prepared to join in on this challenge. Caspa thought as hard as she could about the right-hand cup - to make the task harder, and to eliminate mind-reading, although of course such a thing was definitely impossible even for Terra - her head and eyes twitched and leaned slightly in the direction of the empty cup she was thinking of. Could she double-bluff: that was the question.

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Terra · 12-06-2011, 10:58 PM

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OOC

Obligingly Terra turned her head, waiting for the dog to finish preparing. Her ears twitched, listening to the slight movements of the tea cups. At Caspa's words she turned around. Carefully Terra studied the girl. She was clearly hiding something. Her whole body tilted toward the right most cup. She began to reach for it, and hesitated.

There was something more going on than she thought. If Caspa was truly trying to hide the pinecone, Terra felt sure she would have stood in a more neutral position. As it was anyone who could read body language knew she was pointing towards the right most cup. A protective stance, almost. It would have worked, if Terra hadn't seen her mother use the same thing.

As a puppy she'd been hidden in a den. There was another empty den nearby. Whenever predators came nearby, her mother acted overly aggressive about the empty one. Several of the animals had gone after the empty den. Terra had thought there was a treasure in there, so one time she'd sneaked in to find it completely barren, with the slight scent of coyotes. Her mother had explained that it was used to trick the animals away from her and keep her safe.

Terra felt the same thing was happening now. Caspa was extremely focused on the right cup. That meant there was something else. Looking again she searched for where Caspa was avoiding. Sure enough, the left cup was being completely ignored. Confident Terra reached out and tapped on the left cup. This one.

Caspa Al-Fateh · 12-07-2011, 06:39 PM

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Caspa knew she should be a little outraged at how easily she'd been read. But instead she was simply pleased that Terra clearly had a natural talent for the art of deception. She wasn't going to give in straight away though: she wasn't totally a pushover. She pinned her ears back, again looking disappointed, shaking her head slowly as if rebuking the younger wolf. "Hmm," she muttered. "I suppose we'll have to try something else..." Oh, she did love dramatic timing, but she let Terra off the hook almost straight away, speaking with an unusual level of animation for the indignation she felt was genuine. "You could probably get that one right every time, but I look foolish enough in going about my normal business, I don't need to set myself up to be repeatedly fooled!" as she swept aside the correct cup, flicked the pinecone at Terra's nose and stood up all in one swift movement. "So let us try something less easy for you." Her eyes were haughty and playful, almost mischievious. "Tell me Terra. Where are your stealth skills most lacking?"

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Terra · 12-07-2011, 07:09 PM

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OOC

Terra blinked, surprised by the outburst. Automatically she responded to the higher ranking that Caspa held, her ears and tail lowering from their dominant position. She knew that Caspa wasn't trying to intimidate her, but the change in the usually stoic dog had startled her. Terra recoiled from the pinecone as it bounced off her nose. She rubbed at it sharply before glancing up at Caspa's words.

Where I'm lacking? This was a more sensitive subject than Caspa could imagine. Her whole life had been spent hiding her weaknesses, keeping them secret. Obviously some could be seen with just a glance in her small size and lean frame. Others were more difficult to pick out, something Terra had made sure of. Yet here Caspa was, asking for this information. It made her nervous, even though she knew the dog meant no harm.

Taking a breath Terra prepared herself to answer the question. I have difficulty in small controlled movements. Most of my tricks were learned in lupus form, so the delicacy required in using hands is more difficult. Terra nodded towards the cups. Moving the pinecone was fair difficult for me. It was only your focus on the cups' movements that kept it covered while I got used to the movement. Manipulating the cups themselves had been easy since Terra could do that without hands. I'm not very good at hiding my presence. My coat fights against that, tending to draw people's sight. I also tend to trip people's alarms. While Terra worked on relaxing people those who paid attention to those kind of things did pick up her false movements.

The last part was the hardest to admit. I can't manipulate my body language. It tend to broadcast what I'm thinking loud and clear. I can't misdirect people the way you and my mama can. It was a painful admission, as Terra knew that it was the body language that was the most important. Terra usually had to concentrate on feeling what she was doing to create the effect, and that meant she easily got distracted. That meant her tricks weren't always completed, abandoned in pursuit of the emotion she'd captured for her trick.

Caspa Al-Fateh · 12-07-2011, 07:27 PM

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The slight, faerie-light dog realised that her strange sense of humour could rub people up the wrong way very easily sometimes - due to her utter lack of expression, that gave no hint as to when she was making fun of herself. Terra had shrunk back, as if Caspa had aimed a rebuke at her. Caspa had no idea how to point out that she herself had been the butt of that particular rant. All she could do was pin her own ears back, aiming a sorrowful lick at the fox-marked face. She knew how hard she was to read, how mixed the messages she gave could be, but it was an insurmountable barrier as real as a language barrier for the white hound. It seemed by Terra's words that she had completely the opposite problem. Caspa considered for a moment: truth and honesty were virtues, and Terra should not be ashamed of something so intrinsically a good thing, and closer to pure natural instincts than many luperci were. But acting would come in handy when carrying out tricks, she could imagine. It was a dilemma, but she knew what her instincts were telling her, so she would have to hope they were right. "I would say these are good things. Your openness makes you look lively and interesting and distracts the eye from subtle movements. When I was watching the cups I had no idea when you moved your hand because I was too busy staring at them. That kind of thing doesn't require acting. But we could practice anyway if you wanted. For pretending, you just have to convince yourself that something is real." She bent and picked up the pig statue, setting it upright on the ground. "If you try and look menacingly at this ornament, it probably won't be very convincing. But if you truly picture it in your minds eye as your worst enemy or just a terrible monstrous beast..." quite a humorous thought, regarding the strange little statue - "its easier to feign. Could you growl at it as if you hated it?" Caspa was finding this fascinating, putting the master-trickster through her paces. She supposed she would have to take her turn sooner or later, with the amount of milking it she had been doing.

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Terra · 12-07-2011, 07:55 PM

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OOC

Terra perked up at Caspa's praise. It was hard to picture honesty as a virtue, since it could get in the way of survival. Caspa was older though, so Terra supposed she knew best. After all, Caspa seemed quite healthy, in no danger of her life. Then again, Caspa could manipulate her body language. That made it difficult to swallow. Terra knew she had faults as a trickster, ones that only time could help her fix. After all, she was barely over a year old. It was amazing that she could do as well as she could.

Glancing down at the pig statue Terra burst into laughter. What Caspa was asking her to do seemed nigh impossible. How could she pretend the pig was scary? Everything about it screamed humor. She looked up to see if the dog really meant what she said. It seemed that it couldn't possibly be true, appearing scary to such a little thing.

The look on the baroness's face told Terra she was dead serious. Sighing she drew herself in, and studied the statue. Opening her mouth she let out a pathetic little growl. It sounded more like someone who'd been beaten into submission, or like she was playing with a puppy. No one would take her seriously with such a sound. Terra wouldn't be bested by this though. She'd already revealed her flaws to the tall canine. She wasn't about to make it worse by making it look like she couldn't improve.

Terra glanced at the statue again, trying to imagine it as an enemy. Nope, it just wasn't going to happen. There was no way the coyote could picture the statue as anything other than it was. Still, she had to try. Reaching into herself Terra tried to find a source of anger. There was nothing. She was just too untouched by the world. Frustrated Terra growled, displeased by her lack of progress.

Caspa Al-Fateh · 12-08-2011, 08:23 PM

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She liked it when Terra laughed. It gave her cause to draw her brows together even more seriously, glowering at the other wolf in a comic inversion of her mirth. Inwardly, Caspa was amused too. The pig was ridiculous in appearance, with large wide eyes and a grinning face. Terra, despite the sounds of mockery was ever-tractable, readily attempting to follow Caspa's latest suggestion no matter how strange. It was this willingness that made her so easy to practice with. She was almost too compliant, though: Caspa didn't really feel like she knew best, just because she was a year older. She would have been happy to follow Terra's lead sometimes, and operate as equals for the most part. Of course, she didn't expect she could really command the coy-wolf, especially not in anything she didn't want to do, and that was how it should be.

Contrarily though, she wanted to scold her when the first excuse for a growl made itself heard. It sounded like a kitten trying to purr, Caspa thought. She had definitely uncovered a weak point. Terra had little-to-no aggression in her heart whatsoever. Or did she? The next moment, a real rolling rasp of a growl sounded in the slim woman's chest and made Caspa sit bolt upright. It was more frustrated than angry, but it was much better. "That was good," she encouraged. "Just remember that feeling and use it any time you want to act threatening." She picked up the pig now, studying it idly, turning it in her hands. "This is a strange thing. Almost strange enough to growl at without any imagination required. I wonder what we could use it for."

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Terra · 12-08-2011, 09:58 PM

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OOC

Startled Terra glanced up. She hadn't realized she'd growled. Feeling a little proud of herself Terra sat tall, ears and tail held high. The small coyote watched as Caspa picked up the pig. She smirked at the idea of people growling at it. Quietly an idea formed in her mind. It could be used quite fiercely, though I don't suggest children see that. A demonstration? Terra glanced up at Caspa. She would need her help to perform this trick.

The idea was simple. The pig would be the focus. Terra, instead of being the light of the show, would be doing tricks to please the pig. The crowning achievement would be a wound, where the pig drained her until she collapsed. Of course, Terra would need Caspa's help for this, moving to where Terra wished and backing her up.

The whole line of prattle and maneuvering rolled through her head. Convincing someone to be afraid was fairly easy, especially considering how spiritual several of the canines appeared to be. Terra herself had no spirituality, but she was just as vulnerable. After all, she'd turned tail and thread when that thing had appeared. Terra still didn't know what it had been, and she was embarrassed at abandoning the female who had accompanied her.

Caspa Al-Fateh · 12-09-2011, 06:43 PM

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Fiercely? What on earth had Terra thought of now. First they had been designing a show of magical trickery, and sleight of hand, and then a game of guessing, then a dramatic acting performance - and now it appeared this was to become a horror show. Or possibly, judging by the look of that pig, a comedy. Caspa's eyes shone in anticipation. She was enthralled by how unpredictable life around Terra was turning out to be. And there was no question it would make for a fabulous performance. But this was serious - she had been warned. A level of ferocity unfit for a child's eyes. Caspa let her face become sternly resolute, as if a soldier on the verge of battle. She put the pig on the ground, then stepped back in a swift movement as if afraid it might bite. Her shoulders squared as she faced her red-hued comrade across the glade, weight shifting from side to side, a limber white-furred sapling in a magician's breeze. "A demonstration will certainly be necessary. I am ready when you are." Whatever happened next, it could not fail to surprise her for she had no idea what to expect.

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table image credit to Burksy@flickr

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Terra · 12-09-2011, 07:15 PM

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OOC

Terra stepped up, waving Caspa away. What have you done? Her voice rang with fear, as raw as anything that could be imagined. How had she managed it? She'd just drawn on the feeling that had filled her when she'd seen that unnatural creature in the woods. Cowering Terra picked up the small pig statue, and placed it on the board. Her head dipped in submission to it, Terra whirled around on her companion.

Don't you know what the price is for offending him? Her words were a hiss, just on the edge of hearing. It called people to lean in, as if hearing a secret. Terra opened her mouth to speak yet again, then flinched, as if scolded. One eye turned back to the statue, ears focused on it. She nodded slightly, shivering in the cold breeze. Normally Terra wouldn't have let the breeze effect her, but the shivering helped with the performance.

She bobbed her head shortly, as if having agreed to something. Turning back Terra glanced at Caspa. He has agreed to spare your life if we please him with a show. Will you help? Each word was designed to draw Caspa in. Even as her paw reached out for the baronness, Terra's eyes gleamed in anticipation. This would be one great show.

Caspa Al-Fateh · 12-11-2011, 07:15 PM

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Perhaps this is a good ending point?! If so, there will have to be more some time <3

Suddenly, she was dismissed, and her ears would have flattened if they could have. Her friend wanted her gone: it was obvious, in the movement of her hands, the tone of her voice. But wait - the accusation was unfounded. What had she done? Nothing at all. So she could not be so unfairly treated, and would hold her ground. It seemed Terra had begun to act, but Caspa, unsure where the line was drawn in reality, found herself reacting to the girl as if she was behaving with genuine intent. She shrank back, a strange gesture from the elegantly poised Eastern-bred hound. Her hands spread before her, apologetic and pleading for understanding. Her lip trembled. Terra wasn't looking. She was moving in on the statue which had suddenly assumed immense proportions, dominating the scene and making a terrible threat towards the very person who had retrieved him from his lonely shelf. Caspa let out a low growl, but only the faintest of noises, as if fearing to allow her rebellion to actually be heard aloud. But it seemed she was to be spared after all. She hadn't expected their talents to be put under this much pressure so soon, but it seemed they had no choice, and she could already feel the thrill of the show jangling in her nerves. Everything they had done so far would knit together somehow, and it of course it could not be perfect, but surely thrilling enough, intoxicating and provocative for its wild unpredictability. She inclined her head, and placed her paw in Terra's. And then, the show began.

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table image credit to Burksy@flickr

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