xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Defeated Pazuzu's Easel Base (interior), 1:57 a.m. xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Walking down the stairs with his beastly allies following behind, Bernard continued to hold onto the crying baby, Merilo, as it screamed and drooled in his arms.

"I'm seriously hating this..." Bernard said disgruntled as the baby was practically ripping his ears off with the sound of its shouting and hollering.

"Can we maybe knock out the baby? Like slam its head against the pavement or something until it shuts up?" Corvus said as he flapped his wings with annoyance on his face.

"Hell no!" Bernard retorted as he, Vulp and Baurs looked at Corvus. "Have you ever dealt with a baby?!" He asked of the crow.

"Nope." Corvus bluntly said as Vulp shook his head left and right to signify a negative response.

"This is my first time seeing one." Baurs said as she looked at the child.

"It's definitely not your first time carrying someone though..." Bernard said as he looked at the unconscious body draped across Baurs backside.

Laying unconscious on Baurs was Claudia, following her defeat at the hands of Bernard and his team of creatures that lived within his body. As she was limp, a strand from Vulps tail was wrapped around her wrists to restrain her if she were to wake up and attempt to escape.

"You alright with carrying her?" Bernard asked with concern as drool and snot continued to come off his body from Merilo.

"I am but I am hoping this ends soon, given what she attempted to do to us all." Baurs said as voiced her discontent.

"Wow, did you just whine?" Corvus said with surprise.

"First time for everything." Bernard said with a light smirk as the baby continued to scream. "Oh for the love of- Vulp can you take this little nuisance or something from me?!" He said as he finally grew fed up with holding the child so Vulp obeyed his order and moved his tail over towards Bernard to grab the baby out of his hands.

Held in Vulps tail, Merilo begun to settle down and returned to its sleeping state once again. Noticing this, Bernard made an expression of disbelief as Corvus landed on Bernards shoulder.

"Pfff! Guess we know why she was crying now, huh?! Hahahaha!" Corvus said as he laughed while on Bernards shoulder.

"Sh-shut up!" Bernard said in embarrassment and anger.

"Can we please hurry?" Baurs said as she caught everyones attention. "The feeling of this insane woman on my back is frankly making me ill..." She complained.

"Yeah, we better go find the others. If I am gone for too long, they are going to expect the worst." Bernard said as Corvus flew off his shoulder and begun to walk through the halls towards the exit.

"Whatcha think is gonna happen if they find you gone for too long?" Corvus questioned.

"Well... My guess is Camilla is going to make me even more handicapped than I already am..." Bernard said with a cold sweat dripping down his face as the thought passed his mind with the other creatures growing worried at the possibility of what may happen to their magical benefactor. "Wonder how they are doing? Wherever they are..." He said as he continued to walk with the others proceeding to follow.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Defeated Pazuzu's Easel Base (exterior), 1:59 a.m. xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Sprawled about the front entrance to the derelict building were the many grunts of the Pazuzu's Easel dark guild, knocked unconscious from being beaten within an inch of their life's from the might and power by the Psycho Circus wizards; Camilla, Pietro, Anatoli and Marlene.

'"Whhhaaaa!"' Some of the still active members of Pazuzu's Easel exclaimed as a small tornado spun around, throwing the villainous painters and artists in different directions. As they hit the ground, the tornado dissipated, revealing Anatoli on top of his ball with a smirk on his face.

"Hahahaha! Woo!" Anatoli exclaimed as he stopped spinning as he stood on his ball. "So much better for my magic!" He said as he looked down at his ball as he flew upward.

"Hey! Quit screwing around!" Marlene shouted as she stood over a few unconscious bodies of the enemy with a cloth in one hand and a bottle of a mysterious purple serum in the other.

"Shut up! I'm happy I got my belongings back!" Anatoli complained as he flew over the battlefield.

As they bickered, Pietro lifted a pair of grunts by their throats in his Mass Muscle form and proceeded to chokeslam them into the ground, leaving craters behind. Coming from his blind spot, one grunt attempted to stab Pietro in the back with a knife but sensing his presence, Pietro swung his large arm backwards and knocked out the grunt with a single strike.

"Ugh..." Pietro strained as he felt some of his muscles begin to hurt.

"Hey, you alright?" Marlene said as she put another cloth of toxins over another grunts mouth and approached Pietro.

"I'm still feeling the injuries from earlier..." Pietro said as he rubbed some of his injured areas from his prior fight with the siblings, Tazo and Tiza.

"The healing balm I used isn't a fully restorative elixir, you shouldn't be fighting after having it applied..." Marlene said as she looked over head and noticed Anatoli, acting as a makeshift bowling ball, ran over a bunch of enemies with his ball at full speed.

"I'll be fine... It's just my old age..." Pietro said as he saw another grunt approaching and cocked back a fist to strike the grunt down to the ground.

"Old or not, I think you're doing just fine." Camilla said as Pietro and Marlene looked over towards her.

Standing atop a barrier box made from her magic, Camilla stood tall as she looked down to the inside of the box. Within the square shaped shield was at least two dozen of the Pazuzu's Easel men and women, unconscious and captured inside.

"That the last of 'em?" Marlene asked as Camilla jumped down from her box.

"Think so-" Camilla said until she was cut off as the trio looked upward and noticed something plummeted toward them. Stepping backwards, another member of Pazuzu's Easel landed face first on the ground as they looked up and saw a smug expression on Anatolis face. "Now we are good." She said as she looked down at the unconscious grunt.

"Oh yeah! Got the last one! I win!" Anatoli said as he danced around on his ball in midair.

"It wasn't a contest, y'know?" Pietro said towards Anatoli as he back down to the ground.

"Now that this has been taken care of, let's hurry inside." Camilla instructed as she quickly moved towards the front entrance.

"Someone's worried for their boyfriend." Anatoli remarked as Camillas face turned red in embarrassment.

"Shu-shut up!" Camilla said flustered as she turned back towards the others.

"Funny, this is different than earlier when you were acting cocky about the fact you two are bedmates." Anatoli joked in response as Marlene and Pietro had light chuckles forming from seeing Camilla acting weirdly.

"Well, this is different! I'm worried he is in trouble is all!" Camilla said as the others followed behind as they got to the door.

"After the slime demon disappeared, I'm assuming it is at his side somehow like the other creatures." Pietro explained as he slowly walked with Anatoli and Marlene.

"We don't know that. The big thing could have just gone to suck on Bernards heart or something..." Camilla said as she got to the door.

"Are you saying Bernard is dead?" Marlene questioned.

"No! No! I'm just... Fearing for the worst..." Camilla said with concern. "I trust that he is fine but... He hasn't fought another wizard like this since Chester and even then, he was at a disadvantage... And this might be even worse than that time.." She thought nervously.

"Then lets get this done and find him fast!" Anatoli exclaimed as the muffled sound of crying begun to appear.

Suddenly, as the door flung open close to Camilla, a certain individual stumbled outward and knocked Camilla to the ground. Straddling her, Camilla looked upward as Bernard was now on top of her in a mounting position as the others looked on in surprise.

"Gotcha! You freaking artist- Huh?!" Bernard muttered until he noticed he was over Camilla and not a Pazuzu's Easel artist like he assumed. Looking down at her with a surprised face, a smirking Corvus appeared with Baurs, carrying the unconscious Claudia on her back and Vulp, with the sleeping baby, Merilo, being carried in his tail.

"Good to see you're alive." Pietro said with a smug look on his face as he looked down at Bernard over Camilla, flat on her back.

"Uh!? Well, I- Uhm…" Bernard stammered as his face begun to turn red after looking down at Camilla, whose face was still surprised with his placement over her. "Uhh… Hi? Surprised to see you here?" He said, finally coming up with words to say, albeit nervously and confused.

"...Good to see you too." Camilla replied as her face turned from one of surprise to one of arousal and happiness at seeing her boyfriend alive and well.

"Oh crap, she's enjoying this..." Bernard thought with a nervous look in his eyes as he noticed the flirty look she was giving him, prompting him to stand up off of her and lifting her up back to her feet. "E-everybody alright?" He asked as he looked behind everyone to see the carnage the other wizards did.

"Oh yeah! That was so stress relieving!" Anatoli exclaimed happily as he stood on his ball.

"Why's he so chipper?" Corvus asked as he flew closer to the group.

"He nearly lost his ball again during the fight so he's just enjoying hitting people." Marlene explained.

"Ahhh good to know- Whoa!" Bernard said as he noticed a large contingent of men in yellow and blue armor with symbols for the Fiore Kingdom on their shields and banners approach from out of the woods, prompting the Psycho Circus team to turn around and look.

As the Grand Magic Knights of the royal kingdom arrived, a lone knight had walked out of the army of men and came forward towards the group.

"We are from the Royal Kingdoms army, sent to dispose of the dark guild, Pazuzu's Easel. Are you the team from Psycho Circus that came before us?" The knight said as Bernard spoke up.

"Yeah, that's us and we took care of the situation." Bernard said as he pointed him towards Baurs who was carrying the limp body of Claudia Vanderheem and then towards Vulp who was carrying Merilo. "Other members of her group that was at the party last night are still inside, out like lights." He explained as the knight looked upward at the damaged and derelict building.

"This building... Was it like this before or after your assault?" The knight asked out of curiosity as he examined the outer area of the building.

"Huh? Why does that matter?" Camilla said in response.

"It's for the report we have to file." The knight replied.

"It was like that when we got here." Marlene answered as the knight looked around.

"So you beat these men out here, went inside and defeated the rest?" The knight said as he questioned the Psycho Circus wizards.

"Yeah?" Anatoli said as he sat on his ball.

"Very well. Men! Get inside and apprehend all criminals. Then remove all objects relative to them to be shipped to Era for the Magic Council to dispose of it!" The knight said as he turned towards his men as the soldiers begun to pick up the knocked out Pazuzu's Easel grunts while some moved inside to begin capturing the others that were inside. "We'll be taking care of the clean up then, this will be easier than normal it looks like." The knight said, displaying a rather relieved expression.

"Huh?" Corvus muttered.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Bernard asked.

"It's a long storied history of the kingdom cleaning up larger messes than this so it's nice actually... To see a surprisingly small amount of property damage I mean." The knight said casually as he begun to walk away. "We were also told to inform you that the Balsamicos wish to speak with you, Mr. O'Halloran so we will be leaving the return of the child to you as well." He said as he walked away.

"Me?" Bernard said with a raised eyebrow as the group looked at him as Claudia was picked up by the magic knights off of Baurs and had placed magic cancelling handcuffs on her as the other knights begun to emerge from the place with Tiza, Tazo and Dolph in tow.

As Dolph passed by in cuffs, he glanced in Marlenes direction, prompting her to stick her forked tongue out at him with a spiteful glare as he was taken away.

"What was that about?" Camilla said as she looked at Marlene.

"I'll explain later... But lets just say this; you're a lucky gal." Marlene said with an earnest smile as she looked at Camilla before looking at Bernard as he was talking with Pietro and Anatoli.

"Huh?" Camilla muttered in confusion as she turned her eyes towards Bernard.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Balsamico Castle, 3:56 p.m. xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Sitting on his ball with an impatient look on his face, Anatoli sat around next to a closed door in the Balsamico estate with Corvus perched on his head with his talons lightly digging into his head as Vulp casually paced around on the floor.

"Ouch! Get off me, you damn pigeon!" Anatoli complained as he swatted away Corvus from on top of his cranium after the crow dug his feet more into the wizards head.

"Who you calling "pigeon?!" You damn monkey!" Corvus complained back in response to Anatolis name calling.

"Hey!" Camilla said as she approached the others with Marlene walking next to her. "No fighting, this isn't a barn, you dolts!" She said as she folded her arms.

'"Ye-yes, ma'am..." Anatoli and Corvus said in fear of angering Camilla.

"Still in there chatting?" Marlene asked as she looked at the door.

"Yup, where were you two?" Anatoli said as he looked at the girls.

"We were seeing how Pietro was doing. I reapplied more healing salves to his body and then he went to bed for some rest." Marlene explained.

"Then the two of us had a little chat." Camilla said as her eyes glossed over in Marlenes direction as Marlenes face turned red, confusing the chimp-like wizard and the Celestial Spirits. "What have you guys been up to?" She asked.

"Checking on Bernie, he went in there with the old pucker-lips and his daughter after giving them back the baby." Anatoli explained.

"It's been about fifteen minutes since then and we can't hear anything through the walls being thicker than a bowl of oatmeal." Corvus grunted as he stood on the ground with Vulp next to him.

"What are they talking about?" Marlene questioned.

"No clue." Anatoli said as he shrugged his shoulders. As he replied, the doorknob to the room turned slightly as the others turned around to notice that someone approached. Opening the door quickly, the sounds of loud and angry screams echoed at ear shattering decibels as the others were surprised by the insane shouting.

With swift movement, Aceto Balsamico had quickly ran out, whilst carrying her child and shut the door behind her, cancelling out the deafening noise that was coming from the room. Breathing a heavy sigh and turning her head to notice the bewildered Psycho Circus wizards and the Celestial Spirits, she approached them with an exhausted expression.

"Hello, I am sorry you had to hear some of that." Aceto said embarrassed.

"What the hell's going on in there?!" Anatoli said as he stuck his pinkie in his ear to try and get the ringing noise in his head to stop.

"...Do you really want to know?" Aceto said with a tired expression as everyone nodded in response. "I'm sorry, I tried to help but it looks like my father isn't going to budge..." She explained to the confusion of everyone.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Camilla replied.

"Mr. Bernard won't be receiving the payment we originally offered for his services." Aceto said with a regretful expression.

"What?!" Corvus said, drawing everyones attention. "Are you kidding me!?" He said as Vulp looked on wide-eyed.

"What made him change his mind?" Marlene asked.

"Well... There's certain factors involved with my fathers decision making..." Aceto said.

"Like?" Camilla questioned.

"We had surveillance Lacrima active during the raid the Pazuzu's Easel guild did yesterday and looking back at the footage from the Lacrima... We saw Bernard giving them the child and then proceeding to wreck the place to make it look like the battle was worse than what actually happened." Aceto explained.

"Yeah but... They were threatening us while we were stuck!" Anatoli said.

"I know and Bernard mentioned that but my father was angered when he saw the damage to the party room nonetheless." Aceto said. "Plus he said; "you didn't even perform either! You didn't do what we hired you to do!" And stuff like that..." She continued.

"...Well... Yeah, Bernard didn't do any of the routines with the creatures he had came up with." Camilla thought with an embarrassed expression.

"So after that, Mr. Bernard and my father are currently having a shouting match with eachother and I think are on the verge of tearing eachothers throats out..." Aceto said embarrassingly.

"...Do you want me to calm down Bernard?" Camilla said with a raised eyebrow.

"And by "calm down," she means make out wi- Blurgh!" Anatoli said jokingly before Camilla elbowed him in the head to shut him up.

"Thank you, please do- Oh?" Aceto said before the group noticed the door opened behind them and out came Bernard with a disgruntled and angry expression. "...Are you both done?" She asked as the volatile Bernard looked at her.

As the others looked on, Bernard felt a soft sensation hit him in the side of the head as he noticed Count Balsamico threw a throw pillow at him.

"That was for giving my granddaughter to some crazy painters, you jerkwad!" Count Balsamico screamed in an agitated manner as Bernard glared at the small man.

"If I hadn't done that... You'd be worm food, you lemon sucking crone!" Bernard shouted back in frustration.

"Like hell I would give you a cent for causing us so much grief!" Count Balsamico said.

"If it wasn't for me, that baby would've been encased in a bunch of paint and clay!" Bernard shouted.

"Enough of your excuses, just get out of my home!" Count Balsamico said as he slammed the door to the room in Bernards face. Glaring at his friends and Aceto, all of whom begun to look in different directions in an effort not to deal with Bernards incredibly angry state, he proceeded to look at Vulp and Corvus.

"Congrats... You guys don't have to perform today..." Bernard said with a twitch in his eye as Vulp and Corvus looked at eachother.

"Uh-huh..." Corvus said with a nervous tone. "You gonna be alright?" The crow said as the others turned back to look at him.

"Vulp..." Bernard said as he looked at the fox. "Can I ask you a favor to bite off the counts lips?" He said to the surprise of everyone as he asked Vulp to violently maim the count.

"Excuse me! Mr. Bernard!" Aceto said as she tried to calm Bernard down.

"What?!" Bernard shouted with rage in his eyes.

"I know you have a problem with my father but if it's any consolation, I would like to remind you that there won't be any issues with the Magic Council over your actions." Aceto said as the others looked at her.

"Huh?" Anatoli muttered.

"Oh, I know what you're talking about." Camilla said. "Bernard using that old train pass from the royal family and lying to the Magic Council to get jurisdiction on rescuing her and all that stuff with the kidnapping right?" She said as Aceto nodded.

"Correct, I asked for some leniency from the representative we spoke with after Merilo was taken so if anything, at least I can offer you that much." Aceto said as Bernards irritable expression softened as he sighed.

"...Ugh..." Bernard said as he slumped his shoulders. "Greeaaatt… Back to being "Broke Bernard" and living off Camillas handouts like a doofus..." He thought with a defeated attitude.

"One more thing, I am willing to give you all a lift home in a private carriage so you can all reach Hemlock by nightfall." Aceto said as she rocked her baby in her arms.

"That would be nice actually." Camilla said as Aceto proceeded to leave the room to go get assistance for the others as she and Marlene approached Bernard. "You think you'll be alright?" She asked her annoyed boyfriend.

"Before we pack, can we go find the counts bedroom?" Bernard said with his head down. "I want to take a piss on his pillows..." He said as he raised his head with a twitch in his eye, prompting the others to smirk at his bad joke.

"Sorry but no, I kinda want to leave now too." Marlene said as she looked at Camilla. "Anatoli, go help Pietro pack, I'll go get my and Camillas things."

"Awww! Why do I have to mess around with the old timers clothes?!" Anatoli complained.

"Oh just shut up and do it!" Marlene said in response as she pushed him off his ball to get moving.

"Yo Vulp, lets head back to the room we were staying in with the kid. At least one of us can leave a hot dump on a pillow. Hehe." Corvus said with a mischievous smirk as Corvus flew away with Vulp following behind, leaving Camilla and Bernard alone.

"Hope it's a large one..." Bernard said with a bothered expression until he turned his attention to Camilla who was giving him a suspicious look in her eyes. "What I do now?" He asked, expecting something negative to come out of her mouth.

"Huh? Oh, it's nothing. Just thinking about things." Camilla said.

"What kind of "things?"' Bernard questioned.

"Like how my boyfriend managed to encourage the other girl who liked him and somehow managed to still be a good friend to her." Camilla said with a small smile on her face as Bernards eyes widened after realizing what she meant.

"D-did Marlene tell you what happened?" Bernard said with a minor blush on his face.

"Yeah, she did." Camilla said as she noticed Bernards nervous expression. "Oh calm down, I am not angry." She said with a reassuring tone.

"...Really? I've heard most girls frown upon hearing these kinds of things." Bernard said as he scratched his face.

"All you did was give her a hug and told her what she wanted to hear from someone she cared about." Camilla said. "In a way, I'm kinda impressed." She continued.

"Impressed by what?" Bernard said confused.

"Well, for acting like a man. But for also finally calling me your girlfriend. Hehe." Camilla said with a mischievous smirk as Bernards eyes widened.

"I-I didn't use the term "girlfriend!" I just said- I mean, I-" Bernard stammered and struggled to respond to the overly confident young woman.

"See you on the ride home." Camilla said with a wink towards him as she walked away, prompting Bernard to put his hand on his face.

"Today really sucked..." Bernard said to himself.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Carriage Trail, 5:14 p.m. xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

With the sun going down on the horizon and a horse drawn carriage following a trail with a certain group of Psycho Circus wizards in the back with their luggage, the group proceeded to converse amongst themselves.

"...You know, I'm really regretting doing this now..." Bernard said with a tired expression.

"Hey, don't be such a downer. That baby would have been an art project if it wasn't for what you did." Camilla said as she sat next to Bernard.

"Reward or no reward, you've earned proper experience as a wizard." Pietro said as he sat across from the pair with Marlene sitting next to him as Anatoli stood in the middle, trying to balance on his ball.

"Would've been better if we got some cash from that- whoa!" Anatoli said as he struggled to maintain his composure. "I mean, we aren't charity workers, y'know?" He continued.

"For once, I agree with you." Bernard said as he looked at Anatoli.

"You should agree with me more often! We could have been doing something more worthwhile than coming out to try and entertain nobility!" Anatoli remarked as the others, besides Bernard, rolled their eyes.

"If it wasn't for us, the Magic Council would have never found that child before the dark guild did something horrible to her. It was a worthwhile experience regardless." Camilla explained.

"Easy for you to say..." Bernard said as Camilla turned her head towards him. "You weren't the one who lost a chance at three million Jewels..." He said sullenly as Camilla placed an arm on his shoulder to console him.

"Speaking of money... What day is it?" Pietro said as the others looked at him.

"I think it's a Tuesday- Oh man!" Anatoli said loudly as the others realized.

"The next Ultimate Carnival show is in a few days!" Marlene said loudly as Bernard put his head down at the realization.

"Great... Another night I make no money..." Bernard said with a defeated expression once again.

"Hey, why don't you put your creatures in the show?" Marlene suggested. "You can finally try those routines you worked on."

"Good idea actually." Pietro said in agreeance.

"Not like Bernard will make any money from their involvement but at least his work will be shown to others." Camilla said reassuringly.

"Man!" Anatoli complained. "We should have brought home one of those sculptures you mentioned the crazy art chick had." He said as he looked at Bernard. "More monsters could have put more crazy stuff to entertain people for the show! Like a floating candle wax creature that breathes fire or a big golem made of clay!"

"He already has a golem, remember?" Marlene said in response to Anatolis suggestion.

"And why a firebreather?" Camilla questioned.

"I thought Nole and Andy were working on a fire breathing act?" Pietro said.

"Yeah but it would look cooler from a monster that looks like a candle or something!" Anatoli retorted.

As the others talked amongst themselves, Bernard sat in the carriage, staring into space as he was lost in thought.

"...More creatures... More ideas... Claudia had the numbers advantage..." Bernard thought in his head as he was beginning to form ideas. "Oh holy hell... I'm starting to agree with Anatoli on things..." He thought with sweat dripping down his face at a bizarre realization.


And with that, the day is saved! Thanks to- Oh wait... Nevermind. Bernard didn't get a cent for it. With Pazuzu's Easel defeated and the Magic Council having arrested the members of the artists guild, all seemed well for our heroes but fate had other plans. Thanks to surveillance Lacrima that revealed the full extent of Bernards plan to the Balsamicos, the count was royally angered by his actions and forgoes the deal between Bernard and the family, leaving him with no money in his pockets. With the next Ultimate Carnival around the corner, the group prepares for another show! But what mind be running through Bernards mind after the battle with Claudia and Anatoli's suggestion. Who knows? I don't, I'm just a narrator! Stay tuned for more!

Authors Note: (Finally. Finished. With. This. Arc! Jeez, this was a long one... Welp, until next time folks and I will leave you with one spoiler for what happens in the next story arc: A character from the main series makes a long awaited return to the FT universe. Who is it? The answer, may surprise you. :)