Late Start? (Open)

Maria's eyes grew slightly bigger when he said he worked at a zoo, and passed time in a forest hanging out with animals. She had so many books on animals, maybe he could help her choose a pet! She always wanted a panda, but Senty wouldn't let her have one! They weren't that hard to feed! If not maybe Nea could convince Senty to let her get a male and female rabbit. She always wanted to figure out what people meant by, "Breed like rabbits" not to mention bunnies were so fluffy! What could possibly go wrong! When he turned to address Naomi, she would turn back to the show while Sentinel did the same, but he kept listening to their conversation. He said that his fox was a daredevil too, did that mean the animal shared that trait with the owner....then again it could just be a personality trait of the fox. He was so busy pondering this, he didn't realize he was called on till Maria nudged him. "Senty! Come on we got picked for the next act!" She would say pulling on his hand, and almost dragging him out of the seat from surprise.

At this point Maria's guardian was a little concerned the first act involved two lions, what would this one involve? Would Maria be in danger? No, he would keep her safe, just like he was designed to. Though not knowing what they were doing was still concerning, what if they had to balance on a tightrope? Sentinel would undoubtedly fall, he would do his best, but he had never had to balance on such a small surface. Maria...what if they didn't have a net and she fell...there would be no way for him to save her! Wait...no they wouldn't do that...such an idea would leave the circus liable for damages. At this point Sentinel's mind was racing through scenarios as he followed Maria to the center ring of The Big Top. He had convinced himself that the circus was full of rational actors that would not put Maria in harms way.

......then again this was the place where men put up make-up and did incredibly silly, though sometimes funny, actions to entertain people. ....What had he gotten Maria in to? He should have not brought her today, but now it was far too late. They had made it to the center ring, and Maria at Cuore with absolute admiration. Sentinel would speak for the two since Maria was too busy admiring the big circus star/green haired fairy-tale princess, her mind wasn't quite sure where to place Curoe yet. "How can we assist the show today?" The android would ask with his usual formal tone.

She would give Nea a large smile when he asked for her name, “I’m Naomi. It’s nice to meet you, Nea.” She would look down at the fox in her lap, “You too, Tsume.” She watched as the two people sitting next to Nea got up to go to the stage, “That little girl is so cute.” She was no longer upset that she hadn’t been chosen to go on stage. It was partially because that little girl looked so happy to be helping Cuore, but it was mostly because Nea said she was cool, “You really think so?” Her eyes would light up with joy at those words. She couldn’t help but feel good when he said that, “If that’s the case, then I guess I must be cool.” She was happy to have someone say that for once. It made her feel better about everything.

She would turn her attention back to that stage, “Hi Jessie!” She would call out as loudly as she could with the other voices. This time, the animal was a seal. Something much more tame than a lion, and it was so chubby looking. She wanted to poke it and use it as a pillow. A giant walking pillow that smelled of fish. On second thought, maybe that wasn’t the best idea. She still wanted to poke it though, “Hey, Nea, which is better: lions or seals?” She need to know which one was better to go up to and pet, because she would most likely would not give up until she did. She pet the fox a in her lap a little more, “Of course, Tsume is the absolute best.” She was starting to become attached to this little thing. He was just so cute. The two people on stage would be separated and told to throw a ball back and forth. Was that really something special? It seemed like a strange request. Naomi was at least hoping that the little girl could throw the ball the entire distance. At least a seal was something she probably wouldn’t be afraid of.

''It's nice to meet you too, Naomi.'', Nea would say, returning the smile, chuckling a bit when she addressed Tsume too. Looking at Sentinel and Maria as they walked to the stage, he grinned a bit, hearing Naomi comment on Maria being cute. She was a nice young girl, alright. Turning back to Naomi when she responded to him saying she was cool, he would give another smile. ''Mhmm, of course you are.'' She seemed a bit excitable, but so far Nea liked her. After all, he was quite outgoing himself.

Back on the stage, another animal was introduced, this time a seal by the name of Jessie. Nea caught himself a little too late to yell with the crowd, but that was fine. Seals were really cute. He wondered what this act was going to be about, when Naomi asked him which animal was better. ''Hmm, That would depend on preference, but seals are generally more friendly to approach, however they can only live near water. Lions are cool for looks, but they aren't the easiest task to handle. But, I think it's up to you which you like more.'', he would respond. He found all animals good on some note. No animal in his opinion was better than other, just different. He would grin when she said Tsume was the best. She really liked him, huh? Then again, she seemed to like cute things in general, so it made sense. Turning his gaze to the stage again, he would just about catch Sentinel and Maria as they were given balls and told to throw them at each other. Interesting. Was the seal going to jump up and do something with the ball as they threw it, or? Either way, he was curious as to what it would be this time. Tsume would snuggle in Naomi's lap, yawning a bit, showing his pink tongue, all the petting making him slightly sleepy.

"I'm Maria!" The young girl would say excitedly when the microphone was lowered so she could speak into it, then she would go back to idolizing the green haired fairy princess. Her guardian would simply give his name, "I'm Alphonse." He didn't give his project name as that might sound a little strange. The last thing he wanted was to attract unwanted attention toward him and Maria, who knows what criminals or dangerous individuals are in the crowd? He watched the performer rub Maria's head, a sign of affection apparently Maria's youthful innocence managed to get a 'D'aww' from another person. When the lights went out Maria looked up toward Sentinel, "I wanna be a pretty fairy princess circus performer when I grow up." At that point Maria knew what her future would be, it was obvious to her. Sentinel stopped himself from sighing, yep he should have seen this coming. Her youthful admiration has gotten the best of her again, but that can be a good thing...right? It was good that she had dreams. At least that is what a psychology book had told him.

When the lights came on Maria and Sentinel were greeted by a large tank of water and two stepladders on either side. A seal would emerge from underwater, and both Maria and Sentinel joined in the greeting. Maria would gladly accept the hand that her idol had offered her, while Sentinel hesitated for a moment before loosely taking her hand. Sentinel noted that Maria was handed a red ball at her station with the instructions of what to do. Appearantly this aquatic animal would help them during the show, while Sentinel was unsure how it would. After all it couldn't fly or anything, did it even understand the concept of the game? Maria however, would nod at her idol, "Leave it to me!" She said before waving to Senty, telling him to get ready. Her guardian nodded and got ready to catch the red ball, Maria would throw it with all her might! The red ball soared a few feet over the pool, but there was no way it would make it to Sentinel without a little help!

She was watching the seal on stage playing a game of catch with the other two. Naomi was lost following the ball go from person to person. Honestly, she was starting to get dizzy from all of it. When Jessie jumped over Alphonse so he wouldn’t get wet, her mouth would open in awe. That was the most impressive thing she had ever seen since the lions jumping over Nea, “Seals are so cool. How do they do that.” She was looking at Nea for answers as if he were the number one source of information on the creatures. She knew which one she wanted to pet now. Lions may have been fluffy, but seals did better tricks. That smell though. She could only guess they were giant fish. Giant land-walking fish that ate other fish. So… sharks. She thought about that statement for a moment, “Are seals like sharks?” She knew the answer without having to really ask. Sometimes stupid stuff really did come out of her mouth. Her attention was distracted by Maria suddenly missing. As the lights fell on her and Cuore, Naomi let out a loud cheer. The circus was definitely worth passing through the sun.

Well, wasn't this impressive? The seal was pretty good, with how it jumped up, hitting the ball. Although, Nea had sort of expected that one, the trick with buckets and water was something new. He would bet those two up there were glad to not be completely soaked through. 'That was funny...' Blinking a little in thought, he would look over to Naomi when she asked her question. He wasn't sure which part exactly she meant, but he would try to answer to the best of his abilities. ''Well, seals have quite strong fins, so they could swim fast to avoid bigger animals that would hunt them. Therefore, if they use those, they can jump high, doing stuff like this.'' He tried to explain it simply, so it would be easy to understand. Seals sure could to some cool stunts.

When she asked about the similarities between seals and sharks, he would tilt his head a bit. 'Uhh..' How to answer that. He would wait until the cheering passed, Maria now up there with Cuore, before trying to give an answer. ''You see, no not really. Seals are mammals, just like lions, only they live in water. While sharks are much more like actual fish.'', he would say, eyes focused mostly on the stage, waiting to see what would transpire next. To be complete, sharks weren't fish either, but that wasn't entirely important. What mattered was that those two were nothing alike, even if they lived in a similar environment.

Sentinel watched as the ball went from Jessie to Cuore, and was suddenly redirected toward him! He didn't expect such an elaborate path, but caught the red ball nonetheless. He then threw it back to Cuore, and the ball went the reverse route all the way back to Maria. The young girl had a bright smile on her face as she tossed the ball around, obviously quite happy about playing a game alongside her idol. However, after sometime Jessie would launch into the air, and come crashing down splashing water everywhere....including Sentinel's legs. Oh well, he was fairly waterproof so that amount of water wasn't all that threatening. However, Cuore made a comment about how he wasn't wet enough, and then asked the crowd if they wanted to see something impressive. Maria of course did, and that made Sentinel happy. She was having the fun that she so desperately desired. He just wanted to shelter her from the darkness of the real world, sure she would have to face it, but just not yet.

He was drawn from his thoughts when the circus star told him to trust her and watch Jessie. Why did he have to watch the seal and trust her? The former was simple the seal was in the pool, but why was it coming toward him? He watched the seal sail through the air and block a torrent of water that was descending on the android. Sentinel was impressed that the animal was able to do such a thing, and returned the wave when it landed. However, when he didn't see Maria at her post, he began to worry. Until a few gasps and pointed fingers guided his eyes to the middle post near the top of the tent. Maria would be all smiles, and would happily take the green bead that Cuore handed her. She would thank the star repeatedly, while her eyes spoke of childish idolization. The young child would gladly accept the hug, and in turn gave the star a Grade A Supper Dupper Maria Hug, before returning to Sentinel. She had placed the bead in her hair and smiled at her guardian.

"Did you thank her?" He would ask, and Maria nodded, "Good, I'll get you more cotton candy before we leave." He would say rubbing her head before they returned to their seats. The young girl skipping with twice the energy she had before going up and being a part of The Biggest Top.

As the other two returned to their seats, Naomi would watch with a little bit of envy. She had wanted to help with the performance too. Oh well, she couldn’t get everything she wanted. She would definitely true though. She watched the rest of the acts come on, hoping one would need another volunteer, but there was no such luck. She just wanted to have a little fun on stage. The show was over before she knew it though. It was just a little upsetting. She still had one plan of attack though. Cuore was still standing at the center of the ring, letting others go up to her. Naomi was going to be one of them.
 
“Thank you for letting me take care of Tsume for a little bit.” She would gently move the tired fox back over to Nea and give him one last pat on the head before taking off. She would skip her way down to the ring. Her eyes would widen as she got closer to Cuore, “How do you do all those really cool tricks?” She looked like a normal person to Naomi, but there must have been a secret to all of those tricks, “Are you magic?” Of course that was her first reaction. She quickly realized how crazy that sounded, “Nevermind. I just wanted to tell you that you were great.” She wished she were better with words. She meant to say more than just ‘good job’, but it was all she could manage.
 

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The rest of the show went by rather quickly, with Cuore flawlessly directing the performances, and Nea was almost sad when it ended. But, it had been fun, and he was really glad he had come here today. He had also met some nice people alongside the cool view, which was a big plus. ''Sure thing.'', he would nod with a grin, when Naomi returned Tsume to him. For a few moments, he would watch as the girl skipped over to the stage, apparently wanting to talk to Cuore. Nea would consider it for a moment, as he had nothing else to attend to today. 'Why not...'

He would walk over, a little while after Naomi, holding Tsume, who was half asleep in his arms. ''She's right. It's not easy to perform like that. I'm sure everyone enjoyed today's show a lot.'', he would say cheerfully, as he made his way over to the two, hearing Naomi say Cuore was great. He could spare some time for conversation after all.

Rest of the circus acts passed by in a blur for Sentinel, for some odd reason he felt a bit tired. Maybe it was because Maria now had a new career plan, and would probably practice for a long time. Sentinel would not allow her to neglect her studies in order to be a circus star. Maria on the other hand already had the green beads in her hair quite proud of her new artifact that she would treasure for a long time. She made role models so easy, it was a blessing being young and innocent. Sentinel had done a good job keeping her safe, and somewhat sheltered from the evil that lurks in the world. The show would come to an end, and Maria would tug on Sentinel's arm, pointing to Cuore, "Come on Senty! I have a question I want to ask her!" She would say to him, her guardian gave her a soft smile and got up and the two would return to the ring.

When it was their turn Sentinel would speak first, "Thank you for allowing us to participate in your show today. We really appreciate it, one of us far more than the other." The android would say giving the circus star a nod of appreciation. After he was speaking Maria would ask her question, "What did you do to become a circus star? I want to be one too!" It was evident that the show had quite an impact on her, either that or her youthful imagination got the best of her.....one of the two.

Naomi would look down at her own outfit when Cuore complimented her. There was a red mass spreading over her cheeks and the bridge of her nose, “Thank you. I like yours too.” She didn’t know how to feel. She wasn’t used to people complimenting anything about her, and now she was getting one from Cuore. It was like the childish side of her brain had found a kingdom made of chocolate and she didn’t have to share it or worry about cavities or stomach aches. In other words, her brain had shut down from joy. Nea had also joined the ring, along with the other two who had helped out the show. She would giggle with joy. Most of the stars for today were gathered right in front of her. This was better than chocolate.
 
She saw the microphone slip out of Coure’s hand, to which she stretched out her own in an attempt to catch it. Her hands were faster than almost every other part of her body, but that didn’t mean she could keep it from hitting the ground. She felt her fingertips touch the surface of the microphone, to which she pulled it into her palm. She held it up to Cuore with another blush on her face, but an even bigger smile, “Sorry. This is yours.” She understood the clutz factor. She had her moments, after all. She would wait for the microphone to be taken from her hand, then turning to the others, “You were all really cool too. You all stood on the stage and it was like a spell.” She looked down at the child, “You were the absolute coolest though. You were so brave and you had the entire tent looking at you.” She cleared her throat, “No offense to anyone else.” Kids had to stick together. Kids at heart counted too.
 

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