Hello. Fluff. Enjoy.

NOTE: As you people are probably aware of, Nana and Husky are usually the same age. But, Husky is born in March and Nana is born in October, so in the period of time in which this story takes place (June) their ages happen to differ. I did research, folks ;)

Ages:
Cooro: 14
Husky: 14
Nana: 13
Senri: 19

"This is going nowhere."

"What do you mean, Husky?"

"I'm not having fun, you're not having fun – why are we here?"

Cooro stared at his friend, who was sitting on the side of the main town fountain, one thin knee propped up under his chin and the other dangling over the water. Cooro flapped his arms in protest. "I'm having fun! You just don't like it here because it reminds you of the circus!"

Husky sighed. "I didn't want to come."

"I know, but Nana talked you into it."

"She threatened to knock me out and put me in a dress again!"

"So it's a good thing you came quietly."

"But, Cooro…"

He stopped complaining because the other boy was grinning stupidly at a pretty girl going by. But she was holding a jelly pastry, and Husky wasn't sure which his friend was interested in.

But this was kind of fun, if he tried to forget the circus. Young people of all ages were laughing, dancing. Clowns juggled neon colored bowling pins while people clapped to the beat. Tame lions roamed the crowd with young girl tamers sitting on their backs. A man was doing magic tricks (while his young apprentice poked his quick hands into the pockets of the entranced crowd members and drew away with watches and wallets). People were dressed in masquerade costumes.

Far away, Nana was sitting on Senri's shoulders so she could see the show going on. She was high above everyone else, with her brown-blond hair tossing in the breeze. The show was a love story act, not a very good one, but all the same appealed to the girl, who was enraptured. Senri watched with quiet eyes, not smiling but yet not unhappy.

Nana's new soft pink dress fluttered in the breeze.

"I don't know why Nana always needs new outfits," Husky grumbled, hopping off the fountain and walking next to Cooro. They passed brightly-decorated shop windows and bumped around people wearing cocktail masks. "She's just a kid like us. I mean, I don't care about that kind of thing. I don't get obsessive."

The next store was a jewelry shop. In the window sat a large blue gem on a velvet pedestal. Husky stopped short and impulsively pressed his face to the window, his nose squished against the glass. People inside turned with horrified expressions and Cooro laughed.

"You were saying?"

Husky pulled back red-faced. "I thought I saw someone I knew in the shop."

Cooro's grin didn't go away.

"Well, it's not as if you don't have problems as well, bird-boy!"

"I'm normal," protested the smiling +Anima.

"Oh really? Look over there." Husky pointed to a vendor with a red cart standing at the side of the road.

Cooro's brown eyes widened beyond belief and little hearts appeared in his pupils.

"CANDY APPLES!" He rushed over to the stand and drooled. Husky watched with interest as Cooro searched his pockets for money, and, finding only a few pillah (not nearly enough for a caramel apple), slyly stared off into the distance. The apple-seller followed the boy's gaze, looking away. Cooro quickly tried to shove a bushel of candied apples into his pockets and found them too small. Literally stuck with a handful of apples and a time-limit, the boy put the apples down the front of his shorts.

"Where's Cooro?" Nana asked from Senri's shoulders as the tall man wandered over to the fish-boy. Senri picked the little girl off his shoulders and set her down next to the silver-haired boy.

"Oh, he's stuffing apples into his underwear," remarked Husky indifferently with a wave of his hand.

"He's what?"

Senri nodded sagely in acceptance of this odd behavior while Nana started shouting at Husky. "Why do you let him do these things? He's stealing food!"

"Look who's talking, Ms. Phantom-Thief-Nana."

She curled her hands into fists.

Cooro wandered over and saw her distressed face. "What's wrong, Nana?"

"Husky was telling me the most ridiculous thing! It's not true though-"

While she was explaining, Cooro pulled a caramel apple from the front of his pants and took a bite. Nana stopped in mid-sentence and gaped.

"COORO! I thought you said you wouldn't steal anything anymore! PUT THOSE BACK!"

Cooro peered down his pants. "I don't think he'd want them anymore."

"Cooooorooo," Nana cried. "You are disgusting! At least go pay for them."

"Stupid girl, he can't tell the man he stole his food!"

"Husky, shut up! We're not thieves; Haden and Margaret gave us money to buy things. Cooro, where is yours?"

The boy grinned sheepishly. "I went to a fried dough stand, a cotton candy stand, a sausage stand, and a buffet place."

"You should have seen him scarf down that sausage," Husky muttered.

"I'm glad I didn't."

"I can't go over there," Cooro protested. "I can hardly walk!" To demonstrate he waddled a few steps, looking quite uncomfortable.

Nana sighed. "Senri, you have some money, right? I'll go pay for the apples."

Senri nodded solemnly and handed her a bag of gillah. She looked uncertain.

"Husky," the girl whispered in his ear. "Come with me."

"Why?" he asked loudly.

She blushed. "The apple-seller is scary-looking."

"Fine. You two" – he pointed to Cooro and Senri, and then to the stone fountain behind them which somehow was supposed to depict a jester riding an invisible elephant – "Don't leave this spot. We'll be right back."

They walked away, and Cooro looked at Senri. "Are you thinking what I'm thinking?"

Senri nodded. As a sign of friendship Cooro gave him a candied apple, which Senri held out from his body like a dirtied diaper.

"Let's go."

The bird and the bear wandered off into the crowd to find something entertaining to do – and maybe to give the bat and the fish some time to talk.

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Or argue. "I told you he wouldn't like us!" Husky growled, tugging caramel out of his silver hair as he ran through the crowd, Nana clutching his other hand so that they wouldn't get separated by the cackling jesters, masked bird-men, and giggling spectators. They finally paused in an alley, out of the hubbub.

Nana had tears in her eyes as she stared at her flowered summer dress, which had spots of caramel on it. "I didn't know he'd throw his caramel spoons at us!"

"How would you react if some cute little girl came up, gave you money, and said 'This is paying for the apples we stole.'?"

"I would probably be thankful!" she cried, then froze in place and slowly raised her head to stare at Husky. "Wait… You called me cute!"

He blinked and reddened. "It was a metaphorical situation! I wasn't talking about you."

"I bet you were."

"No!"

"Yes."

"You're the last person I'd call cute."

"You're so cruel!"

"It's the truth."

She stuck out her tongue at him. "I'm going to go find Cooro and Senri!"

He followed her as they weaved through the crowd. Streamers flew and people cheered for an act on the next corner, which was a flamboyant dance group. Another wave of carnival-goers dashed by, threatening Husky's line of vision.

"Nana! Where are you?"

"Right here," she yelled, and twisted her way through the crowd. They were shorter than anyone else, but that made it kind of secluded, like they were actually alone in the crowd. They linked hands and kept moving, finally locating the street fountain where they were supposed to meet the other two in the group. There was the invisible elephant: but no Cooro or Senri.

"Damn it!" snarled Husky. "They're gone!"

Nana glanced around with big green eyes while Husky paced by the fountain.

"Argh! I should never have let them out of my sight! The two dumbest friends together, what was I thinking?"

Nana glanced at him. "So I'm smarter than Cooro and Senri?"

"I didn't mean that!"

She smiled a little. "Can we go over there? I want to see what's going on."

There was a crowd of people surrounding a door. "Sylvester's Magic Show!" the sign read. "Opens at 6PM."

Husky's blue eyes flickered to the large clock on the church steeple, which read 5:55. The sun still had at least two hours left over the horizon. Margaret was coming to pick them up in the wagon a little after midnight, a rare late curfew. All four of you must be at the town entrance by 12:15. Haden and she had been lenient on this special June Carnival night.

"Ooh, a magic show!" squealed Nana. "Husky, can we see it? Please?"

He swallowed. Circus acts were not something he enjoyed after being trapped in a giant bowl like a mutant goldfish on display. He examined the poster again. It was cheap enough.

"I guess. It's inexpensive and it's less than two hours long…"

She started to push her way through the taller adults towards the door. "That leaves plenty of time to find Cooro and Senri before midnight!"

"Bat-girl, I really don't want to go see a circus show!"

"Come on, Husky!" Her arm appeared out from the mass of people and grabbed his cloak collar, pulling him into the building.

He followed her, muttering under his breath the top ten reasons why he hated girls. Suddenly the doors opened, and he was caught up in a flood of people rushing into the theater.

"Nana?"

He saw her wheat-colored hair disappearing under the swarm of people and used his pokpok-stick to force his way through the crowd towards her. "Naaaaanaaa!"

"Husky!" She grabbed his arm and pulled him towards her again, and for a moment it was as if she was going to hug him, but then she hissed, "Give the guy the money."

Husky looked up and saw a large ticket-collector standing above them. He quickly pulled out the right amount of gillah and handed it to the man – said man pointed to a staircase. "We have empty seats on the balcony, if you hurry."

They hurried and got front-row balcony seats, to the side of the stage.

"This is a great spot!" Nana whispered in awe.

People filed into the theater and the lights dimmed. The girl started to fidget and sing to herself.

"What's wrong now?" Husky groaned, seeing her green eyes shining from the darkness of the balcony.

"I'm scared of the dark," she whispered. "You know that!"

"Well, what are you going to do?"

She put her head on Husky's shoulder and hugged him tightly as a response. He flushed in anger and something he could not put his finger on.

"I'm not your teddy bear! Get off, bat-girl!"

She didn't retreat fully, keeping her head on his shoulder, but then her eyes lit up as she got an idea. Dark shapes popped from her back and she sighed with relief.

"You can't just use your +Anima because you're scared of the dark!" Husky hissed quietly. "Put it away!"

"Stop being such a control-freak, Husky."

"Someone might see you!"

"My wings are hidden by the seat's back, and my ears, if anyone can see them in this darkness, look like a costume."

She looked up and Husky rolled his eyes.

"I saw that."

"How did you see that? Echolocation doesn't tell you the shape of a guy's eyeball!"

"Having a bat +Anima doesn't impair my sight or anything."

"Well excuse me, I thought-"

"Will you girls shut up?" a man from a few rows above them snapped. "The show is starting."

They were quiet for a few moments as a man in a black suit walked onto the stage and started to perform complex card tricks. Nana was smiling.

"Hey, girl," She whispered in Husky's ear. "You were speaking too loudly."

"I am not a girl!" he hissed, pushing her off his shoulder. "It was dark; anyone could have made the same mistake with Cooro."

She smirked. "I wonder where Cooro and Senri are, anyway."

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"Do we have enough left?" one cook asked the other.

"I don't know! The food is disappearing like it's being dumped down a trash chute!"

They peered out the glass window of the kitchen door and watched a hyperactive young teen pile a ninth helping of food onto his plate.

"Maybe it wasn't such a good idea to run this as a buffet," sighed another cook. "We're going to be broke before morning."

"Can someone help, please?" a waitress cried, running into the kitchen. "This strange guy, he has paid already but hasn't eaten, has just been staring at the kitchen door for a half-hour now. I think he wants something… But be nice, I don't think he's all there."

The cooks peered out the window and spotted a handsome man dressed in a kimunkle outfit with an eye patch staring at them as if he were trying to explode their heads using mind powers.

"I think the poor soul believes he has the force."

They motioned for him to come inside. He shuffled up to the door and pushed it open.

"Would you like food?" asked one cook.

The man nodded and walked to the tub of raw meat, pulling out a piece.

"There's that same beef out on the buffet rack, but cooked. You can go get some of that," suggested a cook kindly.

The man glanced at him with a gray, unconcerned eye and took a big bite of the meat. The kitchen staff gaped.

"…Or you could just eat raw beef."

He licked his lips, made a funny face, and said "Salt."

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For the next act, Sylvester saw sawing a beautiful girl in half.

"This is going to be so exciting!" whispered Nana.

Husky smiled for the first time during the performance, and possibly his whole life. "One less girl in this universe. Yes!"

Her eyes widened. "No, Husky, they don't actually cut her in half!"

"I don't know," he said with a yawn. "I'm hoping for lots of blood."

"Nooo!" she shrieked in his ear, half-using her ultrasonic powers. "BAD Husky!"

He felt dazed and slumped over in his chair as the people above them snarled at them. "Nana, what the hell?"

"No one is going to get hurt," she said firmly. "That's not funny!"

Husky was still dizzy when Sylvester shouted something to the crowd. It was along the lines of: the beautiful young girl who had the job of being cut in half had run away at the last stop on the road. Sylvester was going to pick the most beautiful girl from the audience to be his assistant for one show until they found (and possibly pieced back together) the old girl. The assistant would also be rewarded for bravery with a large sum of money.

As the searchlight spun over the crowd Nana tried to look pretty, and to her and Husky's surprise, it rested lazily on the front row of the balcony where they were sitting.

"Aha!" shouted Sylvester. "We've found her! Please come down to the stage!"

Nana gasped. She shook her head.

"Nana, get up!" Husky whispered.

"Husky," she hissed, glancing at him. "It's not me."

"What do you mean?"

"Husky, he's talking to you."

Husky's jaw dropped and he pointed to himself. "Me?" he mouthed to Sylvester.

"Yes, you!" he roared up to the balcony. "You have exquisite beauty, my lady!"

Husky turned a brilliant shade of red. Nana stared at him.

"You were picked for a beautiful girl and I wasn't?" Then she thought about it for one second more and started to laugh hysterically.

"Ah… Ah…" Husky tried to say something but no words came out. Sylvester tapped his foot.

"Don't worry, you won't get hurt! And you recieve 3000 gillah!"

"Um, I'm not, I'm- It's a mistake- Ah…"

"Come on down, pretty girl!"

Something inside him snapped.

"I AM NOT A GIRL!" roared Husky like a lion with rabies. The whole theater was dead-silent, except for the sound of Nana's girly giggles. Then, suddenly, the whole room erupted into laughter. People screamed and gasped and hiccupped and in the midst of it all Husky sat under the spotlight, furious and beet-red, clutching his pokpok-stick so hard that his knuckles turned white.

"Well then," Sylvester finally said. "We'll just take the pretty girl sitting next to you. I safely assume she is not also a muliebrous boy?"

"I'm a real girl!" Nana yelled, her eyes angry.

"Well please come down to the stage, then."

Nana looked scared. "Husky, will they really cut me in half?"

The boy didn't answer because he was too busy trying to squeeze under his seat. Only his skinny bottom and legs showed.

Nana yanked him out. "Husky be brave! Face your destiny!"

"To be humiliated?" he whined, hiding his face in his silver cloak.

Nana didn't answer, as she had run down the steps and was already on the stage, nervously peering out into the crowd. Sylvester nodded with approval and took her aside, then loaded her into a box and whirled it around a few times. Nana looked sick, but whether it was from being spun like a top or the thought of being cut in half Husky did not know.

"Here is Nana, an authentic girl, to demonstrate for us the wonders of being cut into two separate pieces and surviving!"

Husky poked his head out from inside his cloak and watched. Nana clenched her jaw. The boy realized slowly as the colorful lights flashed over her pretty face that she actually was a valid candidate in the beautiful-girl search.

Sylvester's huge bodyguard-type man raised a saw and brought it down to the wood. Then he sliced the box in half with a few quick strokes. Husky suddenly forgot his embarrassment and at the same time forgot to breathe. Nana was completely cut in half – legs sticking out one end and head sticking out the other. She smiled in a frightened way.

Husky stood up instinctively and bent over the railing, something raging inside.

"NANA!"

"Sit down and shut up!" somebody shouted from the seat above his. "Your girlfriend is fine. It's just an act."

The thin boy spun around and hissed, "She's not my girlfriend!" and then sat down again, his heart pounding. There was no blood. They were putting Nana together again. She was fine. Was she?

The two pieces of the box came together as Sylvester said some sparkly words and wowed the audience, but Husky could only stare at Nana. They opened the box, and miracle of miracles, she was whole again. Husky could breathe again.

After a long moment Nana slid back into the seat next to him, face pink and happy. In her pocket she shoved a bag of coins and winked at Husky. "We're rich!"

Any other day he would have ignored a wink from his friend, but now it stung him. She frowned.

"Are you okay? You're as white as a ghost."

"I'm usually white as a ghost," he said quietly.

"Okay, how about: 'You're as white-green as a goose's shit after it ate marshmallows?'"

Husky made a face. "That sounds like something Cooro would say, not you."

"Well I'm sorry."

"No you're not."

"Okay, okay! I'm just kind of excited. I just got a lot of money! Why are you upset?"

"I was just a little worried, I guess."

"Worried about what?"

He bit his lip. "Nothing, really."

"Tellllll me."

"Fine," he sighed. "You are my friend, and it is a bit disturbing to see a friend be cut in half, so I was, in short, worried about you."

She blinked. "You were worried about me?"

"Yes, stupid girl. I was worried about you."

This is the first chapter of three!

Review, my little readers. Review and you will please the great candy apple god. So review.