The birds soared and glided above the Acropolis through the "stellar" night. The carnival's joyful and upbeat music was playing the whole night. Citizens, youngsters, students, and even pets enlivened the park where everyone dwelt.
The festival included everything; rollercoasters, funhouses, Ferris wheels, bumper cars, balloon races, cliffhangers, and many other rides found at the carnival.
They had grub and drink stalls, ball games, and various material and virtual arcades. There were markets with hats, headdresses, and plushies that attendees could attain by testing their skills in those games.
There was a towering statue of the goddess Phalris in the hub of the central area, a fountain reinforcing it, and the water pouring into the air like a massive cascade.
Timothy bit the sweet foam. He ambled next to Aurora, his sisters, Tarot and Kheer, who attended the carnival while Alpha became more curious than anyone else. She loomed over every booth or game and bested everything she tried, "Yeah! Who's the best? It's me, Alphaaa!" The person who was the least excited about the festival became the most fascinated and did her best to compete with other individuals and battered them in competitions.
She bumped her car into another "driver" and triumphed in the first attempt.
"I sense she'll scare other attendees from the carnival since she doesn't know how to restrain herself ~ not even in various rides..." Kheer announced in disbelief and shook his head in disappointment, "She's very "competitive" when it comes to activities. Who knows how long until she'll arrange a challenge to herself to win in every sport and activity." Cassidy mulled, chewing into the nuggets she purchased from a food stall while her sister sipped strawberry juice with cream with a straw.
Timothy examined the surroundings and determined to clutch Aurora's wrist, racing into the distance, "Hey. Where are you going?" He pulled her in front of a booth and got welcomed by a gentleman, "Welcome to Marble of Arts game! Use the blower to bungle the marble into the mark and win one of the prizes!"
Timothy paid for the tokens so that he and Aurora could play the game, and both acquired five marbles and a blower through which they would bombard the targets. "You want me to put this into my mouth and blow the marble into the target?" Aurora raised the blower and looked at it befuddled, "Exactamundo! Hit the target with those five marbles to earn at least 150 points, and you'll win your desired prize!"
Aurora shrugged with her shoulders, "What do I have to lose other than money?" She neared the straw to her lips, inhaling it before putting it into her mouth and finally blowing into the blower. The marble flitted forward and hit the target's center, "Ooh, what an amazing shot of 50 points!" Timothy looked at her perplexed, "Have you done this before?"
As casually as she could, Aurora gave him a brief glimpse, "Nope, never in my whole life." Timothy didn't believe her comments and unfunnily skimmed at her, doing the same as Aurora did with the blower.
He took in as much air as he could, then blasted the marble through the blower's hole, but as he did so, he unwittingly breathed out blazing fire, which charred the target to a crisp and fried the man's face and hair.
While Aurora watched the man and the target while covering her lips, Timothy felt embarrassed and squirmed in discomfort, "Sorry..." Aurora struggled to contain her laughter as he smiled awkwardly and giggled. Her cheeks puffed up from her inability to do it, and they soon began to heat up. She laughed as loudly as she could while shedding tears of joy from her eyes.
The man jerked his head to the side, wiped the ash off his face, and hoofed aside, "Congratulations! Name and choose your prize!" He hollered with his palm aimed at the border behind him. They could choose from a selection of medium-sized plushie animals available to them.
-
Tarot's eyes flashed in excitement after he crossed a food stall dealing different fruits. And, of course, wherever there were peaches, Tarot would cling around and purchase as many as he could. He bought an entire sack and waltzed through the carnival, passing by hundreds of people.
His eyes locked onto a scary funhouse that had its doorway shaped like a mask of a puppet, "I've never seen anything like this. Everyone, let's go through that thing!" Timothy and his companions gazed at Tarot, who pointed at the structure and decided to near him. "Are we sure this is a good idea? Kheer doesn't handle scary stuff well." Aurora responded, directing everyone's attention on Kheer, beaming confidently, "Aw, don't be comical. I can handle it totally well!"
They sat in the carts and got ready to enter the funhouse.
Finally, they pushed through the eerie and dark events and ventured deeper inside. Trinity, Aurora, and Timothy looked cheerful as they entered the funhouse. Cassidy was over-excited, and Alpha appeared bored, while Tarot and Kheer were scared down to their last breath.
As soon as they left the funhouse, Kheer and Tarot clutched one another out of fear, shivering in their heels and peering forward with widened eyes like owls. "I believe I may have doused my pants." Tarot cried as Kheer nodded slowly, "Let's go change," Timothy and the girls were left behind as they fled on tiptoe.
While allowing Trinity to speak for everyone, Alpha followed them while keeping her hands in her pockets "The carnival will continue for a little while longer. Let's make the most of the remaining time and find out what else it has in store for us." Everybody agreed and followed the invitation.
They relished every second of it, and soon the carnival's finale drew near. Once everyone grew exhausted and drained of energy, it was time for them to return to Kheer's place.
-
They were on their way to leave the carnival, depleted of sleep and peacefulness. Kheer led them through the city's murky streets while Timothy and Aurora walked behind them.
She held the stuffed kitten they earned from the carnival and hastily halted Timothy in his tracks, "Tim..." He turned, looking at her in silence and confusion, asking what her matter was. "I..." She slightly swayed her view to the side, away from him, breathing in and out.
"You're leaving tomorrow, right?" He nodded, trading a friendly face, "Yeah. My intention was to bring Chiaki to someone who could teach her about her soul-linking potential. Of course, we got a bit sidetracked, but I'm happy everything worked out."
She gathered the courage to speak to him and looked him directly in the eyes, "I know I was rather persistent, and I'm sorry. You changed my life for the better and decided to help me despite coming here for an altogether different reason. You didn't see me as a burden as many other people did. And for that... I couldn't be any more grateful."
Timothy neared her, setting his palm on his hips while radiating at her with a lovely smile, "Don't thank me, Kate. I'm happy for you. You didn't deserve to go through all that pain. You didn't deserve to have a horrible mother. And now you don't need to worry about it anymore. If you ever need help, make sure to call me. I'll pick up the phone right away. Besides, I intend to keep my word."
He watched the dynamic and colorful lights mirroring inside her pupils, ensuring to make her feel as comfortable as possible. "I wish you could stay here a little longer, but I know that's impossible. But when you do leave, I hope we'll meet each other again. I want to share everything with you when that happens. I hope that's not too much for me to ask."
Timothy smirked at her, shaking his head in refusal, "Of course not. I'd love to hear your stories once we meet again. But, please, Kate. When I leave, promise me to be more careful. Don't overwork your body like you're used to doing. I understand you need to finish the academy, but I don't want to see you suffer anymore. It doesn't just make me mad, but it also worries me. Can you do that for me?"
Aurora watched him with spherical lips and finally smiled in response. She tipped her palm on her chest and settled with his proposal, "Yeah, I'm sorry. I'll try to schedule schoolwork and free time equally. But before you leave, there's one last thing I want to do."
Timothy grew baffled, "Hold this for me, please..." She handed the plushie into Timothy's arms and impatiently grabbed her camera, "Smile for the camera!" She caught him off guard, but before he could smile, she snapped a photo of him, almost blinding him.
"Thanks. I wanted to remember you since my other picture got drenched and ruined." She showed him her tongue, shutting her eyes and beaming cutely.
Timothy clapped the plushie into her chest, "You better treasure that one picture deep in your heart if you don't want to see me angry. Now, hurry up, and let's catch up to the others."
She nodded, "Of course, I will." As she spoke, she noticed Timothy turning around.
He strolled serenely off in the distance, keeping his back to Aurora, who smiled as she saw him move away from her.
Her vision, however, sank to the ground, and her smile vanished. Around her eye sockets, tears formed. She took a glimpse at the image she had just taken and exhaled deeply.
"Thank you. I'll miss you, Tim."
Outer beauty attracts, but inner beauty captivates...
To be continued...