"I haven't got a bloody Buckley's chance with this get-up on!"

The face staring Jakobi back in the mirror looked like an image straight out of a dream injected with something Jackson Pollock might find inspiring. Streaks of fluorescent green and blue paint adorned his face and body in some gaudy warpaint fashion. The bat wasn't sure if the nerves were starting to get to him or what - but then again, why wouldn't they? After all, he had only a limited amount of time before flying out in front of a crowd of about a hundred people and singing- oh, bugger...

Gia and Stefano, standing behind Jakobi, grimaced as the small furry body lurched forward to empty the contents of his stomach. Guess the nerves had finally hit their mark. "Is-a not so bad, Jakobi!" Stefano encouraged with a lighthearted shrug. "Sure, it-a gets a little, how you say, over-whelming, but-a the performance-" here, the sea lion gave his flippers a loud, passionate kiss. "Mwa! Fantastico!"

Gia agreed with a thin smile. "Si, Jakobi. You forget-a all about the people there, and are soon swept up in-a the flow of the night!"

The way the two described it, it sounded like poetry; their expressions were passionate, but at the same time, reminiscent. "Why," Stefano continued. "I-a remember my first time on-a the stage!" The sea lion folded his flippers together in an almost prayerful position.

"I was but-a un adolescente, and-a I did the juggle! I-a came out from-a the curtains like I was-a on wings! And-a the crowd! She loved it!" Here he swept both flippers out in a grand gesture. "From-a that time on, I knew! I was-a to be un esecutore!"

There was such whimsy on the sea lion's face Jakobi felt his own worries lift. But only temporarily. Soon enough, the gravity of what he was about to do came crashing back down upon him and his shoulders sagged, as if he was tired of all the weight. "It's jus'… I dunno…"

"You will-a get used to it!" Gia sounded reassuring. After all, why wouldn't she? She'd been this way before, back when she joined the troupe. "And-a your act will be a short one, mio amico. No need-a to feel the flutters." She winked sympathetically.

Jakobi chuckled. It was nigh impossible to be bogged down when one was surrounded by Gia and Stefano. Then again, not that he wished himself to be bogged down. More than anything, he wished for all the world that he was problem-free. That he didn't have a pressing, urgent matter that needed immediate attending, which would probably mean life or death to those he loved…

The bat shook his head, almost too violently. "Okay," he mumbled. "I c'n do it, I'm gunna be okay."

"That's-a the spirit, Jakobi!" Stefano clapped. "Now! To places! The show must-a go on!"

Right… Lights on, curtain up, break a leg. Jakobi winced. He fervently prayed he would not break a leg. Or anyone else's for that matter. He hopped down from the stool he was seated upon and glanced up at the two bigger creatures with a small grin. "Hey, thanks. I'll… get through this. Good luck t'you, too."

Stefano beamed and saluted smartly. "The show must-a go on, mio amico!" He and Gia retreated then, dipping out the curtain of the small dressing room. Jakobi watched their silhouettes before they were swallowed up among the dozen others flitting across. He sighed and plunked down on his haunches, still working on that psych-up.

The song was luckily one he'd been able to choose. A song he'd heard many times flying over settlements, and even on the ferry ride over to rescue his family. Apparently, poachers could have decent taste in music while also being despicable beings. Jakobi's lip curled in a snarl. Well, he'd show them. He'd find his family and snatch them right out from under those monsters' noses, just as they'd done to him! And then they'd be safe. Totally safe. Oh, Jakobi would never, ever let anything like this happen again.

"Places, everyone!" Alex's voice drifted into his thoughts. Jakobi shot up, swallowing nervously and twisting his wing membrane. He slowly slipped out from under the curtain, finding himself almost directly in the path of the big lion. Alex seemed a mite startled, but he flashed a grin. "Big night, Jakobi! You'll do fine,"

Jakobi nodded slowly with a grunt of what he intended to be agreement. Alex stooped to be more at the bat's level – this wasn't exactly possible, but at least now he didn't appear so enormous. "Okay, so you understand the routine? The hoop act goes first, and then the cannon act with Stefano and Marty. You'll go up to the rafters at the top and wait. Your act comes in at the finale, after Melman's and Gloria's tightrope-walk."

"Eh, how will I know when they're finished?"

"Oh, you'll know; the music will change. Y'know, give you a cue," he winked. "I gotta say, Jakobi, I liked the choice," he straightened then, and then moved out to get ready.

"Thanks," Jakobi replied, somewhat weakly. Well, great. Now his audience had moved from merely supportive to expectant. Oh, he really hoped he didn't let Alex or Stefano or anybody else down! They all had high hopes for his performance! Himself, he didn't have to worry about, for he wasn't exactly sure what he expected of this. Well sure, he hoped he could get the right notes out, he hoped he remembered the words, too. But most of Jakobi's hopes rested elsewhere, in the wingfolds of the most beautiful she-bat and two of the most beautiful pups. Jakobi sucked in a breath of cool night air as he scuttled over to the side, to the rafters to wait.

The evening passed by amid flashing neons, wild cheers, and wide-eyed wonder as Jakobi watched the performances unfold seamlessly below. The most incredible sounds assailed his ears: Boom! Crrrack! Pop! as the fireworks lit up the tent with their dazzling display of colors! The bat's jaw dropped watching Vitaly the tiger as he defied any known physics with his hoop act - really, the bat didn't even know how that could be possible, but there it was, and he still wasn't sure what he'd seen.

Next came the cannons, and Jakobi grinned widely seeing Stefano and Marty sail effortlessly through the air - the glowing neons made it appear as though the creatures exploded from sheer darkness, with only their bodypaint visible. Jakobi wondered briefly what would have occurred had he not laughed earlier during rehearsal; would he even be here, now? Up on a rafter, waiting for his musical cue? Perhaps. Even he didn't know how to answer that. Funny how fate works, the bat mused.

One by one, the acts came and went, interweaving among each other seamlessly. It was truly amazing to watch; everything had a sort of flow, and even when one act ended, the next picked up right where the previous had left off. Jakobi felt more than a little underprepared for such artistry. Calm down, will you?

The bat's jaw dropped towards the end of the evening as a pair of small lemurs appeared, dancing on the shoulders of a burly bear zipping around on a Ducati of all things! Jakobi shook his head to make sure he wasn't seeing things: a sea lion and a zebra being shot out of a cannon? Believable. A lion and a jaguar doing trapeze? Believable. A tiger leaping through an inch-wide hoop?... Up for debate. But this... Jakobi chuckled nonetheless. Guess I'll have to get used to... whatever that is. The surprise wasn't over there. Melman and Gloria's tightrope act was absolutely breath-taking in the sense that Jakobi felt if someone even breathed, one of the animals would fall and plummet.

And then the bat froze. The music slowly transitioned over from loud pop to soft indie rock, which gradually built up in a crescendo into brisk indie rock. Jakobi gulped. Here goes nothing. At the next downbeat, he spread his florescent wings and dived sharply downwards just as the words came in. What followed was like a dream it seemed so surreal.

It started with a low light.

Next thing I knew, they ripped me from my bed,

And then they took my blood type.

It left a strange impression in my head.

Jakobi heard things as if he was underwater. He was singing, he was sure of it, and loudly. But for some reason, he felt as though he were floating on a cloud and no really here at all.

You know that I was hoping

That I could leave this star-crossed world behind,

But when the cut me open,

I guess I changed my mind.

Jakobi was tilted at forty-five degrees, sailing within feet of the astonished crowd's faces.

And you know I might

Have just flown too far from the floor this time,

'Cuz they're calling me by my name!

And they're zipping white light beams

Disregarding the bombs and the satellites!

Jakobi felt his voice swell louder and louder, perfectly in sync with the music.

That was the turning point.

That was one lonely night!

The star maker says "It ain't so bad!"

The dream maker's gonna make you mad!

The spaceman says "Everybody look down,"

It's all in your mind!

The chorus overlapped with "Oohs" and "Ahhs". Jakobi's heart pounded not from nerves this time, but from sheer pride.

Spaceman fits this dude so well, it's uncanny ;)

R&R