|Circus Tent, Backstage|

"Today's show 's been goin' well, no?" Dagger commented to Snake, who was watching the main stage with him. Dagger's hand kept the heavy, red velvet curtain out of their way as they watched Joker and Star make their way through the tent. It was as if the both of them had been hit by a bolt of energy, and now their every gesture was somehow more supple. The two of them had found some sort of mental balance, enough to make them jump that little bit higher, or bend that little bit further. It was an amazing sight to see.

Behind them the crack of a whip could be heard. Dagger and Snake froze up, straightening their backs as they turned to the person who had caused the sound. Dark, chocolate brown eyes met theirs, and Beast appeared to be holding in a vicious snarl. Her eyebrows bundled up together in a frown, and she moved forward to also take a look at the stage.
Dagger took her hand as she did so, stopping her from pulling away the curtains. She would be up next, and she needed to calm down, if only a little. After all, working with a tiger was not easy, and if she didn't feel completely calm then she would be unable to control Betty. A loose tiger could kill several people before they would be able to subdue the animal.

"Let go o' me, Dagger!" she snarled, attempting to pull away her arm. Dagger held on, in a rare act of defiance against the woman he loved with all his heart. He didn't want her to hurt herself, and he had to protect her against herself. Her, and Joker and Star.

"Sis! Ye're lookin' lovely as always." He started off, with the forced smile on his face.

Beast grimaced, her face seemingly aggravated and at the same time disgusted.

"If I want to look at the stage, I'll look at the stage." She hissed, her hand moving towards her whip. Snake shook his head, pointing behind him. Joker had announced Beast, and she was supposed to go out now, to give a performance like she always did.

Dagger bit his cheek as he watched Beast's face turn into a seemingly calm state. Deep inside her feelings were in a turmoil, and different 'what if's' formed in her mind as she tried to keep from screaming. Her face was never good at hiding her feelings, never had been. Beast had been so quick to cry when she was little, so easy to worry about everything. As she had grown older, she had learn to keep any tears hidden from the outside world, instead spilling them in her pillow. For Joker, she had to be strong, and keep the strength that they would need. Even if Joker didn't confide in her about his worries…

… as if he'd ever confide his worries in Star! That girl didn't know the first thing about the sacrifices they made even now! Joker would never be able to tell her, because they all knew what her reaction would be. She would demand they stop doing it at once, and she would probably storm off to rescue any child she could. She wouldn't be able to see the higher good of it all. She wouldn't be able to understand why Joker wanted to protect his little sisters and brothers still left in the workhouse. Baron Kelvin kept them safe, but there was a price that had to be paid for that safety.

The price hadn't always been needed though.

There had been a time when the Baron hadn't thought it was necessary to kidnap children, a time when he been kind and hadn't needed anything of the sorts. She didn't really know what happened to them, nor had she any desire to know it all. Was it worse than the things she was imagining? The times she had returned to Father's manor had been scarce, and the times she had actually seen any of the children even scarcer. And yet she needed to help to recall the empty look in their eyes.

She shuddered, a sudden panic running across her shoulders and down her spine. How much longer would they be able to keep it up? How much longer until they aroused too much suspicion, until someone was able to put the pieces together and figure out that Noah's Ark Circus was always, always around every time a child had been taken away from its home? There had been no traces up until now, save for the trail of death they had left. The children were taken and their parents and anybody else in the house killed for good measure. But sometimes a parent hadn't been at home, out for business or the like. People that weren't at home weren't killed, and had the opportunity to search for their missing children. To conduct a search for revenge.
Beast's eyes met Joker's for the flash of a second as she stepped on stage. If they were found out, there would be no mercy. Joker would rather die than to betray Father. And she would rather die before she would betray Joker. She would try again to persuade him. Perhaps it would be easier to do so now that he had fallen for a noblewoman. She wouldn't mind using that love to stop him from going down this path. She needed to save him. She wouldn't be able to go on in a world without Joker.

|Backstage|

"Ye were amazing out there!" Joker said, putting his arms around Star's waist. He pulled her around, loving the way her eyes were sparkling at the moment. She put her arms on his shoulders, her long hair waving behind her in the twirl.

"I was amazing? You should have seen yourself! I've never seen you put on a show like that before! And that speech was just inspired!"

Snake looked away in an embarrassed manner when he saw the two of them act so lovey-dovey. It was the first time he had ever seen Joker put his face so close to another person. They were close enough to feel one another's breath on their faces. He closed his eyes when their lips brushed, and just barely managed to avoid seeing a kiss. Dagger on the other hand didn't seem to mind at all, as he just kept smiling and talking all the while, though he did cast a worried look behind him every now and then. He wanted to keep an eye on Beast, not that she needed it. Still, it helped to put his mind at ease, if nothing else.

Star didn't hear a word Dagger was saying. Her entire focus now was Joker, as she still couldn't believe the charismatic ring leader liked her. He rubbed his cheek alongside hers, a slight stubble scratching her as he did so. She didn't mind, as she slowly breathed in his scent. He smelled slightly sweaty, mixed with his cologne. It was a good, safe scent. She hadn't realized until recently just how attached she was to it. Now she couldn't miss it for the world. These past few days had been magic, just holding his hand had been enough to motivate her even further to do her best. She had been bursting with energy these past few days, and had gripped every chance to learn the best she could. She had even started on walking the tightrope again, under strict supervision of Doll. Just walking it wasn't good enough after all, one had to be able to perform a scale of stunts on it as well. And the girl was a very strict supervisor, not leaving one bit of Star's performance to chance.
Joker ran his hand past a bruise on her arm she had gotten when falling of the tight rope. His face didn't have an overly worried expression on it, but more a face that showed pride in her efforts. His prosthetic rested against her neck, as his green eyes pierced deeply into hers. Did he feel it too, the resounding beats of her heart as he was so close to her?

"Joker, there's someone 'ere to see Star!" Peter's voice called out, leading someone inside the tent. Joker let go of Star, looking backwards to see who it could be. He didn't see Star's eyes widening, but he could feel how her body stiffened at the sight of the aged woman.

"Grandmother…" she mumbled.

The old woman clutched her handbag a little tighter, before walking in. Her nose crinkled as she saw how messy the place was, as she walked forwards to Star. The woman had eyes that were the same dark grey as steel, and gave of the look that she had the same unbending character as well. As she walked closer, her only focus was on the young woman in Joker's arms.

"Valentine. It's good to see you are well, child." She said. The woman's voice had the gravity of someone who had been through a lot of pain in her life, and didn't expect things to change soon. Joker's grasp on Star's waist tightened as he imagined he could feel her knees buckle slightly. Star tightened her grip on his arm, looking slightly distressed as she did so.

"Grandmother, I…" she started, but her voice trailed off quickly. It was too sudden, too much for her to bear. She had not expected to see her grandmother again in her whole life. And yet here she was.

The woman focused on Joker now, her pupils slightly narrowing when she saw how he was holding Star. "Young man, I trust you have someplace where I can converse with my granddaughter in private? There are delicate matters to discuss that one should keep inside one's family."

Joker nodded, scraping his throat slightly. "Ye can use me tent, if that would please ye." He said, suddenly very aware of his rude his own speech was compared to that of the older woman. She nodded, stepping aside and pointing him to lead the way.

"It shall have to do, I assume. Go on then, boy. I have things to discuss with Valentine."

|Joker's Tent|

Star sat down on the bed, leaving the chair to her grandmother. Augustine sat down, casting a long and scrutinizing look on her, her eyes gliding up and down her body as she seemed to be chewing the inside of her cheek.

"Sit properly, girl!" she eventually commanded.

Star obeyed promptly, crossing her ankles properly and sitting up straight, instead of the slightly slouched way she had become accustomed to in her time in the circus. She looked the woman straight in the eyes, her jaw clenching as she felt her heart hammering in her chest. It remained silent again for a while, while the woman was observing her quietly. Finally she spoke again.

"I had been rehearsing several questions before I came to see you, to make sure you are indeed who my informer said you are. But now that I see you from so close, there is no mistaking possible. You have your father's trademark glare, and the attitude only a noble can possible attain. You are indeed your father's daughter."
Star's look hardened. Did Augustine know that she and Star had no blood relationship at all? George's mother had been her daughter, but Star had no true kinship to either of them. The remark she had just given about her being like her father seemed to reinforce this thought. The woman saw how Star seemed to prepare an answer, but gave her no chance to do so.
"How is George? After the fire I would have thought that you would have come straight to me with your brother."

"His health has improved, in part thanks to the doctor here. After the… incident, his health was far too weak to allow any travel, not to mention we lacked in funds quite a bit. We ended up being stranded in the city of Bath." Star remained quiet on just how they had managed to survive for all those years without anyone to take care of them. It was none of Augustine's concern, and anything she might tell the woman now might cause irreparable damage to George's reputation in her eyes. No matter what Augustine might think about her, George was still her family. She had to protect him at all costs.
The gray-haired woman nodded once. A smile never touched her face, and Star could detect no warmth in the woman at all, only a stubborn will to do what she deemed to be right. Would the woman now leave and let her be in peace together with George and her new-found family?

"You and George are to report to my manor in this town tomorrow, at elevensies. I will have no refusal. Make sure to dress in a more suitable attire, we have things to discuss as adults. I do not need to remind you that you are responsible for your brother, but you might need reminding that I, as your oldest living relative, have every responsibility for the two of you. I also expect you to leave your… friends here. If they must they may come and fetch you in the afternoon, at exactly four thirty. I would like to settle everything today, but I have other pressing matters to attend to, not to mention that you might need to have some time to get everything in order as well."
Augustine got up, smoothing non-existing crinkles out of her dress as she did so. Star rose as well, though she was unsure how she should react to the woman's behavior. It had been so long since she was expected to be civil at this level.

Augustine paused at the tent's exit, Star nearly bumping into her. "It is good to see you alive and well child. I can not guess what sacrifices you must have made in this time, but do keep in mind that your return to your home world will require even more sacrifices."

She opened the tent flap. Star could see Joker and Dagger walking around, before Joker walked towards Beast, who needed his assistance. Star thought she could guess what sacrifices her grandmother was talking about. She needed none of it. The older woman said nothing more, but walked off, towards a coach that was parked just outside the circus grounds. A shiver ran down her spine as she thought about it, before clenching her fists in a defying way. She would not give up her way of life now.

|Beast's Tent|

"What did ye want to talk about, Beast?" Joker asked, adjusting his hat in the mirror. Beast sat down on the bed, giving off the air of a person who was tired of going over the matter again, but who was stubborn enough not to give it up either.

"About yer relationship with Star-"

"We've been over this one before, 'aven't we? I won't give 'er up, Beast."

"That's not wot I want to talk about! I want to talk about Father."

Joker didn't say anything, though his eyes narrowed when he heard Beast say that.

Beast continued. "'Ow do ye think he'll react when 'e finds out ye're foolin' around with a noble girl, eh?"

Joker looked at her in the mirror, their eyes meeting in the glass. "Star isn't a child. Father won't 'ave any interest in 'er."

"What if the two of ye end up havin' a child together?"

Joker froze up, his fingers suddenly balled into fists. "Wot about it? The child won't be a noble one. Father won't 'ave any interest in it."

"It's mother will be. Are ye tellin' me that Father won't be least bit intrigued in somethin' as rare as that child? More importantly… if Father tells ye to hand the child over, will ye obey him?"

Joker said nothing, looking in the mirror. He hadn't even considered the possibility that he and Star might even have children. Would he be able to hand over the child of the woman he loved to Father, knowing full well what would happen to it? Would he be able to see his own child be used for base entertainment, as he watched other children be used when he was at his Father's home?
"That's somethin' that's years away from now, even if it will ever happen." He answered at long last.

Would he be able to do something like that for all of his brothers and sisters at the work house?

"And it's still somethin' that ye should take into consideration. Star ain't a girl who will be able to give up her own kid like that. 'Ow do ye think she'll react? I don't think ye'll find her smilin' so much when ye do somethin' like that." Beast told him, slightly raising her voice. Joker HAD to stop doing what he did, it was the only way to save him. They would all die, if kept on this path. Maybe not today, or tomorrow, but certainly soon.

Would he be able to defy his Father?

"Father wouldn't ask that!" Joker lashed out, still believing in the man that had saved them. What was the suffering of the few, when so many more were saved? The man that called him son wouldn't ask him to give up his child like that. A child he had with Star would be cherished by Baron Kelvin, as a grandchild, or another son or daughter.

But what if he did?

Joker could read the question in Beast's eyes, and felt it reflected in his own self. What if Father did ask it? Would he be able to comply? He shook his head, clearing the thoughts away. Father wouldn't. He just wouldn't. He raised a finger towards Beast, making sure she was listening to him.
"Ye aren't to speak about this to Star. She doesn't need to know. Promise me."

Beast said nothing.

"Promise me, Beast!"

A tear slid down her cheek, and yet the dark-haired woman managed a smile. "I will, if only because now I know that even for her ye won't betray Father."

Joker said nothing, stepping out of the tent in a fury. He did not like the talk he had just had one bit. It had raised doubts and fears deep inside him, in a way that he did not like one bit. When his eyes landed on Star, he bit the inside of his cheek.

What would he do, when the time would come?