{A/N: I own none of Heroes, or anything related to it; I just have my oc here, Arlae :D Hope you enjoy, reviews are gladly welcomed*}
A cross-word puzzle book rattled with the thunder in the sky. Partially gloved hands held the papers stuck together in both hands, and then a pencil was seen scribbling into the tiny boxes that were soon filled with words. A young woman sat on a chair, her feet up on the legs of the chair somehow. Her lips half-way open as if wanting to say something but didn't, a bored expression all over her face as she titled her head to the side. Her shoulder-length hair in mid-air as it skimmed on by over her shoulders. Her hair looked as if she hadn't run a comb or brush through it in days, but it smelled as if newly washed and dried, with perfumes and orange peach shampoo too.
Her painted thumb nail raked over the side of the wooden pencil as she sighed, tossing the flimsy papered book onto the table beside her. With a soft sigh she turned around, her eye-lids drooped as she stretched; soft crick-crack noises were heard as a squeak of joy was heard slipping from her lips. A breeze went through and her hair went in front of her face like a veil, a deep breath was taken in as she looked to the side once it wasn't as windy.
Edgar. She sighed softly again and slid from the chair, her belt nearly catching the cheap cover of the chair, scratching it but not really. She smiled gently as she could see the fast-footed man was now standing near by, chatting away with another of the Carnival's citizens. She could hear the jiggle of change in her pocket; she had to give that back to Samuel at some point too. She didn't steal it but the thought of going over to the ring-leader's trailer just made it hard to swallow for some reason. Arlae looked as if she were just grounded for something, that look of disappointment and frustration nearly showing now. She brushed her hair back, her fingers brushing against her earring, making it swing back and forth gently for a moment or two then go back to getting slightly stuck in a strand of her hair again. She turned around only to hear a familiar voice speak up, a shadow near a trailer at the carnival.
"Where you heading, Arlae?" The ringer-leader of the carnival asked her, his smile nearly haunting, that friendly expression that seemed to have a voice in the back of one's head, a conscience, telling you it was fake, a mask but that person was to busy slowly sinking into that friendly generosity anyway "Isn't it past your bed-time?" He chuckled softly, that grin only bigger, showing his nearly perfect teeth, straight across in-between his lips. He wore a light blue shirt, with casual pants, his nails painted black just like nearly all the time now. A jacket covered his shirt, and loomed over his shoulders. His two rings locked onto his thumb as he put back on his purple square glasses. She could hear the carnie music near by, that sound of the carasel and roller-coasters.
His stare seemed to send a zap down her spine but she made a small noise of an almost groan, like being caught sneaking into the house long past curfew. She suddenly felt her throat dry, and yet she stood confident, at least it appeared that way. Arlae tucked part of her hair behind her right ear, not even sighing in frustration as her earring got caught in her hair again. Her eyes wouldn't meet his, as his stare was intimidating and kind, both combined seemed not to make much sense to her. He tilted his head to the side as if studying her now, watching her kindly even though it wasn't meant to be that way. His smile dulled only slightly, as his lips were pressed into a curved line. Her mascara was starting to really aggravate her; she shouldn't have applied so much. Arlae was about to mentally scold herself until she heard a soft chuckle. Why did he have to chuckle like that? Really? Was it that necessary? His stare seemed fake though, while it was covered with kindness and generosity when it was really malicious underneath, but that could have just been her imagination at work too.
"I was just heading back to my trailer." She thought she had said it out-loud, until she realized she whispered it as he was nodding. Samuel walked over towards her, placing his hands on her cheeks then onto her shoulders. To be honest she thought he looked like he did usually at Lydia, at Edgar, at all his carnival family. The carnie music seemed to get louder in her ears; his words seemed to be even louder though, they blended much better together. Arlae wondered how people that were around weren't even noticing this but she nodded "I'm fine." Her words were whispered again
"Are you?" He asked in a concern tone. She didn't whether that was fake too or not. Her jacket scratched oddly enough against his as he seemed to get even closer. She took a step back cautiously, but smiled.
"Of course." Her breath was shaky. Usually she had more of a standing her ground attitude, more confident but lately old memories seemed to come into mind more and more throughout the days at the carnival. Her eyes glanced to the side as she could see the Sullivan brothers' logo on a crew-member's truck. Then her eyes were back on Samuel's as she felt his thumb that had his two silver rings on it brushing against her cheek, even though it scraped against her jaw-line before that without her really noticing. Had she zoned out so easily then? He did this to Lydia though, to Edgar. His two special friends, if they could even be called that now.
"Remember, the carnival is your family now." Joseph had told her once.
This reminded her of how she was brought into the carnival in the first place, of how Samuel had been there right when she turned back around, when she was looking for her mom. He had been there for her. He told her the carnival was going to take care of her, that they wouldn't leave her like her mom did. That's what he told her but Joseph had been even more welcoming. But he seemed to have an expectation of her and Samuel's new-found friendship, as if just waiting for Samuel to ruin everything, so he could be there to fix it all, put a bandage on it and make it all better.
"You're not unhappy with me?" She looked at him as if not expecting that, her lips parted but no words came out. Unhappy with him? She didn't understand and the roller-coaster rider's screams of excitement weren't really helping her at all. The Ferris wheel turned around and around, the lights flickering off of things; it was starting to bother her eyes. His expression grew more concern, a genuine expression on his face or at least it appeared that way "With the carnival?"
"No, of course not." Her eyes wouldn't meet his again but she knew he nodded. She smiled, nodding "I'm just fine, really it's alright." She hugged them quickly, her expression faltered then went back into place as she looked at him again, and he smiled back. Arlae turned around; her expression frazzled again as she walked towards her trailer, feeling Samuel's eyes on her for a few moments then she opened the door to the rectangle trailer and knew Edgar was looking. With a small noise of the door closing behind her, she turned to shut the curtains in front of the screen-door. She half expected to see Samuel there, the ringer-leader lurking but instead there wasn't anyone really, not even Edgar.
She sighed softly, closing the flimsy curtains and turned around. Why was Samuel treating her like she was Lydia now? But then he seemed to act kindly to most of the carnival's citizens. She tugged at her hair and finally sighed in frustration as she started to pick her earring out from her tangled hair now. Oddly she felt pressure on her shoulders, as if hands were there again and she shrugged in discomfort. Samuel always had to be putting a hand on her shoulder or smiling whenever she was around. Maybe he was just a hands-on kind of ring-leader. She laughed softly, as she slipped off her jacket. It fell onto her wrinkled blanket covered bed.
Arlae fell onto the bed then with another sigh of relaxation as she grabbed a pillow, hugging it as she laid there for a few moments. Her job at the carnival was usually giving out prizes at one of the prize-games booths, and she'd smile and give away a big prize or a slinky, whatever they won really. She just did that every so often, but mostly she was just around the back-stage carnival living place. Her expression didn't show a smile, but an almost boredom was she turned to lie on her side, still holding the pillow in her arms. She brushed back her hair from her face, staring at nothing in particular now.
Her nose twitched slightly as she could still smell that cheap cologne Samuel was wearing. It had seemed as if someone had been smoking too but she wasn't sure, that's just what she seemed to inhale from the fabric of his jacket when she hugged him. That one particular question though asked, was running through in her thoughts now. Was she loyal to the carnival? Better yet. Was she loyal to Samuel? She wasn't with him in a relationship, not sexually or even platonically too, at least not lately. She was just friends, or could she even call it that now? Samuel seemed more interested on finding out who would be in the carnival family soon. Now it just seemed to be all about Samuel, didn't it? She sighed softly, yelling in frustration only to hear a knocking at her screen-door. She leaned back against a pillow; her eye-lids slightly drooped as she looked at the shut fabric over the screen-door.
"Are you alright, Arlae?" Edgar's voice was heard, and she smiled gently only to frown a moment later, shrugging as she lay there, as if he could see her through the door and fabric or something.
"I'm fine." How many times had she said that tonight?
"You didn't look all that fine earlier." She sat up then on the bed, her mascara-smeared eye-lashes brushed against her cheeks for a moment then she looked back at the front door instead.
"And when did you become my father, Edgar?" She asked in that half-amused voice, almost sarcastic as she heard a soft sigh. The brunette pulled her legs up to her chest again, placing one arm across her knees as she glanced to the side, waiting for him to leave again. He'd ask if she was alright but wouldn't stay long at her trailer front door.
"When did you start picking Samuel over friendship?" He asked, usually he would have said the carnival over friendship but instead he spoke differently. Yet there were a lot of things that were referred to as usually. A few steps and she knew he was walking away from her trailer now. A frown was over her lips now, shrugging as she got up from her bed, stretching again. He was wrong. He had to be. She wasn't going to let Edgar get to her, not now.
"I'm not with Samuel." She whispered softly, glancing back as she looked back at the door-way "I'm not with him, Edgar!" She yelled only some-what loudly, not seeming to care if someone had heard her but ran a hand through her hair in frustration again. Edgar shouldn't have pried like that; it wasn't any of his business anyway. Shrugging back on her jacket she looked back at the front door. Arlae took a step back as she wobbled slightly, placing a hand on her forehead, her eye-lids shutting only to re-opened a moment later.
"Ow." She whispered, as a head-ache wasn't really what she needed. Brushing back her hair she looked back at the door-way "Edgar, why do you have to be right sometimes?" She asked softly as she could feel strongly on emotions running high in the carnival now, all around in her now large carnie family. See, if Peter had been here at the carnival with her, he would have been able to give her advice.