AN: Been a bit busy and took a step away from this since I was focused on the new 'The Bad Guys - Bigger, Better, Badder'. I managed to make another chapter, and we're finally entering the circus rings. Enjoy!

Chapter 28

Despite feeling like I had nothing else to do, I decided to make an effort to ensure the house was neat and tidy. Sure, it wouldn't be necessary and already cleaned, but it would make a good habit since I didn't want to drag around. And truth be told, I think I was growing quite itchy from all that grudge I had been seeing.

Maybe it was from all that graffiti I had to scrap off multiple buildings. It eventually became repetitive to the point that I only thought a little of the paintings on the walls. It was fun observing random art made on the bricks when it lasted.

I should make things a bit cleaner if I want to stay clean. Should still take responsibility, even if I didn't have to do any work.

So I gave the floor a good vacuum, an excellent rinse and dry with the dishes left on the drying rack, wiped away the stains on the walls and tried tidying the newspapers back onto nearby shelves. These shelves weren't used usually, so placing the books right there was no wrong.

The dust and the cobwebs were at least taken care of recently, so I didn't need to worry about them.

Once the walls were purely white, I felt a little proud. My ruby beeped a happy melody after keeping the last few plates in the cabinet. The only thing that kind of sucked was the rotting soap smell from my hands and claws without my gloves. At least I got used to them after much janitoring.

I chuckled to myself. To think that I had been so worried about appearing out of touch that I was beginning to act more determined to keep a clean image. This could confirm that I immediately grew to have a fancy house like this.

"Nice plate crash right there," said the ruby randomly.

"What?" I said, turning around.

However, there were no glass shards on the floor. I looked down at my ruby.

"...strange," it said. "I thought I saw it."

"Was it from one of your virtual illusions?" I asked.

"My imagination becomes my vision," said the ruby monotonously.

I sighed, rolling my eyes. When I was thinking of asking if it was joking, I looked back at the numerous brochures I left on the kitchen table. From what I eventually found from the newspapers cluttered around the house. They appeared wrinkly and a little dated but fresh in design. Hopefully, they were reliable regarding what to learn about this city.

One brochure, in particular, was resting on top of them. The one that I planned to go to for tonight. A picture of a front entrance that looked like the combination of a water park and a circus. Complete with a red star on top of the building and the blue words 'Twinkle Park' sitting on top of the open front entrance.

I smiled. I remembered grinning over the delicate and vibrant map, the enchanting places of attraction and motif themes combined into this place. The ones that stood out were castle walks, space-themed rides and a yellow and blue circus right at the back of the castle. Seriously, the castle caught my attention. I wondered if it would have actual riches and gold in there!

The place didn't look too threatening. It looked like it was meant for the whole family. I might have visited concerts and house parties, but this kind of party I had never attended before. A break away from the chaotic side of the city. The circus would be out of sight tonight since I already knew what it was all about.

Exploring an amusement park would definitely enhance my city experience.

I nearly didn't notice my tail wagging in excitement until my ruby played a happy melody again. Chuckling slightly, I held my tail with one hand from underneath. I guess it would constantly sweep the floor when I arrive at Twinkle Park.

At that moment, I noticed my tail touching the door next to the fridge. I frowned. Turning around to face it, I could only scowl at its ancient look compared to the rest of the clean, modern house. I wish to cover its cracks somehow.

"May I place a coat of paint over it?" asked my ruby.

"I'm not sure if that would work," I said, randomly picking on one crack.

It came to me that after all the chaos from the previous day, I didn't use a day to reflect on Stone's secret hiding spot. This attic was out of bounds for me, but after the many hints he dropped casually, I could only wonder what he cooked in there. If we reached at the point of too late, he would reveal a secret, notorious plan much like Eggman's…

The sarcastic thought suddenly made me uncomfortable and I wasn't smiling. In fact, I could feel a bad gut feeling. Why did I suddenly think of Stone that way?

It wasn't out of nowhere. It felt like I knew it somehow from before. Closing my eyes, I heard my ruby growling in disdain. There was anger and disgust pointed to…Stone. When I opened my eyes, they shifted downwards to find a puddle of red spilling from the door.

I yelped, stepping back. But before I could assume, the blood glitched out. For a moment, it wasn't there anymore.

"W-Wait!" said the ruby, sounding alarmed. Too alarmed. There was clear panic in its growl. "I didn't mean to! I just recalled what Stone told us before."

I remained silent for a few seconds. Not only trying to progress what I briefly hallucinated but what my ruby was afraid of.

"And what's that?" I asked quietly.

"Is it really easy to sleep on the fact that someone died?"

"Eventually. I just think of it like being in a movie."

"He might have imagined such things in there. Or enact them in the attic. Don't you think so?"

"I might not enjoy the many deaths the Mean Machine caused, but some of them were well-deserved. At least…one of them 'cause I caused it."

"You don't think he's hiding something that's clear?"

Those memories I didn't even need to think hard. I was already reminded immediately. These words Stone said. And the ruby somehow remembered clearly as well. I looked down again. My fingers were trembling. Why did I feel so afraid already?

"How do you know it's not just messed-up shit in there again?" I said, practically spitting when I cursed.

"It had been on my mind and only resurfaced when we stared at this door," said the ruby. "It reminded me of the spy still around at G.U.N HQ. Strange they haven't found them. Yet. For like a few weeks."

I couldn't argue back as this was what I felt as well. It didn't come to my mind immediately, but I felt uneasy when I approached the door. Just how long might I have let the spy hide under our noses for this long when the evidence was right…here? Would Topaz know what Stone might have done here?

In the middle of absorbing all of this, I remembered the day I was told about Willy Walrus's unfortunate injuries.

In the midst of my confusion, I saw Stone standing there in the distance around the corner. He appeared so shocked that his eyeballs could pop out from their sockets. Mirroring my thought bubble of progressing this, he looked both left and right…

…and ran like hell, throwing papers in the air. Dust was left in his tracks from the blur of his feet.

And then, he meekly came back to pick them up.

He sped off again.

That was weird.

Weird, indeed, I thought to myself. And then, it came to me; why didn't I think of asking Stone what he did? I was easily angered by the thought of Willy being harmed when I saw he could still redeem himself. Stone looked suspicious when Topaz told me. And when never mentioned again, we continued like nothing was wrong.

The ruby sounded surprised. "Wait, you think that might have anything to this?"

I frowned. "Stone doesn't mind killing off those he believes deserve it."

"But killing off those on his side? Remember, Willy Walrus and the Weasel Bandits are members AND friends of the Lightning Bolt Society. Why would he want to kill them? And how?"

The thought of so made me feel sick. Enough to gain the desire to let all tension out of my mouth. I couldn't tell if I was just becoming stressed or panicky, but it was suddenly too much for me to take in.

Agent Stone, reformed, an agent of G.U.N, a traitor?

While he ticked off a lot of red flags, there was a tugging feeling that he wouldn't be afraid to harm those who were just 'mere obstacles'. That was what scared me the most. Would he see Topaz as one? The person who offered her house to? I'd seen them being pretty close.

And Stone could pick up the look of being the pushover to hide his tracks. At the same time, he was pretty open about his love for Eggman. So did the Lightning Bolt Society. But unlike them, Stone hid his deadly side by his cheeriness. A trick genius in play right here without any leads to prove his guilt. How much work had he done before to cover his crimes?

And thus, my mouth ran the logic of a criminal yet I was sullen in accepting this fact. "Spies could be backstabbers to their clients."

"Then that could mean the spy is still out there," followed the ruby. "Even if they're fired by that cult club, they would still want something valuable."

I nodded and imagined the puddle of blood again. It returned, still. It reached the tip of my shoe, but when I tried touching it, no droplets were produced when I lifted that foot.

"O-Obsidian!" gasped the ruby, shocked.

"It's fine, it's fine!" I reassured. "Just…need to be ready! Relax. It's for everyone's own good."

If the ruby couldn't talk, then I would have called it out for painting Stone as untrustworthy. However, it didn't seem pleased that I mustered up enough willpower to imagine him being this bloodthirsty. That confirmed we weren't fully taking advantage of each other's fears to create an unnerving scene. It was just how we assess the likely crime scene individually.

And, of course, I should imagine the blood! I would never flinch at the sight of it again. Not even the nightmare from earlier could stop me. I'm a wild jackal, after all. Sadly, when I stepped closer to the door, I could feel my fur puffing up from standing on this dried blood. My tail even wrapped my legs in needed comfort.

I shook my head, growling. C'mon, Obsidian, I scolded myself. You're visualizing this willingly. No need to be nervous.

The ruby itself decided to go along with this option and when I blinked, my vision turned green. Squinting my eyes, I tried seeing through the door. Only a small flight of stairs led to some kind of room. To my dismay, my vision of it was obscured by too many objects. The room seemed to consist of gigantic computer machines, some scientific fridges and garden tools.

Couldn't be possible for Topaz to leave these garden tools in there, right? I blinked again and my vision detected the visible rust on a nearby rake leaning against the wall. The rust was coated in yellow. But the fact it was highlighted in yellow indicated the experiments Stone did while I was asleep at night.

I looked down again and the puddle of blood was gone again. My ruby hissed to me and I complied with my wishes.

"No one is in there," the ruby then said.

A simple nod and a hand close to the doorknob…

A catchy song from out of nowhere. My first response was to look at my ruby. It stuttered, meek. My second response was to ruffle my jacket was…vibrating. Finding the source, I pulled out my phone and the image of the sassy-looking tiger appeared with the green call button.

And at the top of the phone, read '3:00 PM'.

My vision immediately returned to normal, and I was left dumbfounded, the built-up tension gone.

"Dang it, I forgot, didn't I?" I muttered.

The ruby groaned. "K-Know what? We'll…we'll come back to this again."

"Are you sure?"

My ears momentarily pressed against my scalp when the ruby reverberated in a loud, raspy sigh. It wasn't harsh and I knew it didn't mean to. It sounded a little upset to become so paranoid.

"Sorry, Obsidian," it apologized. "Maybe I got really scared as well. If anything we find tied to Stone, then we'll investigate."

It was backpedaling on suspecting Agent Stone as the spy. It felt awful. I could feel it. And it might have sympathized with the uneasiness of staring at this scratched door. Knowing that I might end up accusing Stone wrongly, I turned on my heel and let my worry go. Another talk could make me feel better from these unnecessary fears.

It felt strange that I was already ignoring my suspicions. However, when I heard Fiyero's voice from the phone, me and my ruby were rest reassured from the world that we weren't gonna miss out on anything. It would only be for one day.

"Hey, hey, Obsidian!" he said, already emitting a calm air of charisma from my phone's speakers. "Been a while since we've last talked."

"Um, hey there, Fiyero," I said, my free hand fidgeting awkwardly. This would take me a while to smile again after my near discovery. "What happened with your last text?"

"Oh, I was just at my job. I got in trouble with using my phone."

"Modern distractions," muttered the ruby, but it didn't say that out loud to Fiyero.

And just like that, it got me giggling. After seeing many rookies using their phones at the training grounds, it didn't come to me as a concern or a surprise.

"If you're gonna get distracted, then you must conceal it better than letting your enemies know," I joked.

The tiger huffed a little in a way of saying touche. "That's one way to put it. First, what do you want to talk about?"

"Why are you asking that?"

"Why are you curious to know?"

"I'm up for anything. You?"

"Well, yeah. I can talk about anything." A creak on his end. Possibly a chair he was leaning back against. "Don't have anything planned aside from a giant blow-out party over celebrating the jocks winning their first match in this amazing tournament!"

"That's nothing?" wondered the ruby.

"Wait, OK, that IS something," lampshaded Fiyero as if responding to the ruby.

By the sound of things, Fiyero must have had these parties constantly. I knew that Molly told me he had too many parties that could have affected his school grades. However, I didn't expect him to continue this as an adult. And when I first saw him, I thought he was as neat as a fiddle.

"How many parties have you hosted, Fiyero?" I asked.

'Every month, 10 days out to someone else's places, 10 days held at my house," explained Fiyero. He sounded too casual. "My parents are fine about it; they used to have wild Friday parties. We have many maids to help clean the house. My job for the upcoming one is to make sure that none of them use alcohol as an excuse to stink up the bedrooms again."

I shivered, not liking what that meant. Even my ruby buzzed in disgust.

"Didn't that already happen more than a week ago?" I asked.

"Yes," said Fiyero. There was a slight pause, his tongue clicking in sheepishness. "And that turned out not to be good for my reputation from the school council. Don't worry, I'll try to work better on that one! What about you~?"

My face burned by the way he said that. Now, I couldn't tell if he was being flirty or just teasing me. But it seemed to affect me and then the ruby, beeping away harmonically.

What should I really say? Nearly about to look into a creepy backyard? I didn't want to touch on that. I didn't want to feel awful again about what Stone might be doing. So, instead, I decided to go with just telling Fiyero what I did before I faced the cracked door.

"Just cleaning the house for a bit," I said, leaning against the kitchen table. "Don't want to keep it dirty for too long."

Fiyero hummed-no, purred in intrigue. And I noted that it wasn't a flirty purr. It was one of good interest. "That's actually a good thing. I like keeping the furniture and the floors neat and stable."

"It feels a little crazy to me. Nowadays, I'm checking every corner here and there. Is that a good thing as well?"

"Nah, not really. I can relate as well. I mean, I did learn the hard way of not checking over things that could cause a trainwreck in the wall."

The ruby muttered something inaudible, probably about the attic door next to the fridge.

"I'm actually planning to go somewhere soon," I said, looking back at the brochures. "I had already adjusted to most of Central City. I quite enjoy my stay. And there are some things that are surprising to me."

"Like what?" asked Fiyero. "It's a simple life out here."

"Well, maybe things parallel with my previous life as a mercenary. You know, like seeing these kinds of…"

"Parallel?"

"Mmm, maybe being rough with weapons? Watching graphic things like on this phone? Full-out horny-"

"Just knock it off," said Fiyero gently. "It's just that. It's ultimately harmless."

"Is it?"

"Life's not a movie, after all. I mean, if anyone claims that they become a sociopath after watching too many movies, then they're out of their mind. Why blame art when they just don't have a clear mind? That's so 80s to me."

I raised my eyes in surprise. That actually made a lot of sense. And to be clear, I was starting to see all these casual mentions of violence and questionable content weren't really as serious as I believed them to be. I had to really remember what Pam told me. Even if it was scary for me.

The ruby didn't exactly speak, but it whispered to me that Fiyero didn't seem to have a clear mind himself from the drinks he took.

I thought to myself that it was his own choice to hold wild parties with so many theater performances to please the crowd.

"Must be a wild trip back then," I remarked. "Anyway, there's one place I would really like to go to. Twinkle Park."

As I picked up the Twinkle Park brochure, I could hear the normally cool-headed Fiyero laughing and squealing in glee at the mention of the place. Never before had I heard him chirp like this. He must be delighted that I would be going to that place. And he shared my childlike curiosity as I stared at the beautiful cartoon map of the place.

"Oh man!" said Fiyero. I could imagine the wide grin on his face. "I loved Twinkle Park as a kid! Back then, I used to try to sneak onto every ride possible. There was this one time when I went on an exclusive waterslide and came out fine despite looking like the slide could break 10 bones in my body!"

"Ouch," whispered the ruby nervously.

"Sounds like an adventure!" I said, fascinated. That would confirm the kinds of places that would be both friendly and exciting. "And it looks pretty cute. It's a castle!"

Fiyero hummed in surprise. "While not my usual cup of tea, its castle is really pretty. I'm surprised that it's even historically accurate."

"Well, I find that the magic and power happen in there. There's usually a king, a queen and a fat pot of gold! The feast and the knights, you could marvel. It's like living a dream!"

The ruby suddenly felt shy and so did I a second later. I was smiling away from the fantasy of living in a castle, remembering it would have been a child's dream. Yes, even children growing up in the desert to be bandits were told about fairy tales set in a castle. I felt flustered from saying all of this since we were grown-ups, but the gentle laugh from Fiyero was affectionate.

"Fair point," cooed Fiyero. "Maybe getting to wear a crown made from gold with a red cloak would be cool. If you don't mind, I have a suggestion. Tonight's Scrumptious + Rambunctious Circus! I watched last year's one and it got me on the edge of my seat!"

It was at that time that I flipped to another page on this brochure to find a description of last year's circus under the same title. I felt like I had seen this look last night for a brief moment, but my memory was fuzzy. But as I stared at it, I remembered I wasn't interested in seeing the circus.

It would be a saturated version of these shows I had seen in the desert. Some acrobats, jesters, lion tamers and a ringmaster who cracks their whip as if conducting an orchestra. Combined with doing my own acrobatics when on missions and seeing deadlier things than being shot out of a cannon, the circus show might feel…predictable.

Now, it might really have me on the edge of my seat. But I didn't want something too exciting after the previous adventure. I would rather go on a water slide than watch someone doing a spiky magic trick.

"I'm not sure about this one," I said honestly. "I've seen circuses before, but don't want to see a stunt that I might have already done. And these kinds of shows might be too…exciting? I'm going with something a bit calmer. If you know what I mean."

"You can probably save someone if they fall off a tightrope," pointed out Fiyero. "On fire."

My ruby hummed in agreement and this prompted me to give in. "I'll give a think about it. You'll be seeing it?"

"Nah, not really, actually. I don't mind, but I'm not interested in this year's theme."

And that was when I suddenly had an idea. Usually, the places I visited were mostly me being dragged along for the ride or people asking me if I wanted to join along. I was choosing to go to Twinkle Park. With Fiyero on the phone, it made me wonder if he would…like to go there. With me. I suddenly felt heavy, nearly overcome with emotion.

My face was heating up. I tried calling the ruby for advice, but it remained silent. It must have felt shy as well. Is Fiyero alright with spending the night at a kiddy amusement park? It looked fun to me, but would it be for him? An adult tiger who finds entertainment more in parties and drinks and tuxedos?

These fearful worries got me choked up. I felt too hot, embarrassed, and my tail wagging in forthcoming glee.

However, I didn't really want to wait. And I wouldn't get to know Fiyero if I considered…being a 'thing' with him. I might not really know what a relationship would be like until I experience it, especially if I like men.

Being the proud mercenary I was before, I took a deep breath and puffed up my chest. Moment of truth. Despite my burning face, I was able to muster up enough confidence to say the next few words I might regret.

"Before I could go out to buy tickets, would you…" I hesitated. I slapped myself. This was no time for weakness. "...like to come with me?"

Fiyero didn't wait to think about it. "Well, when it comes to amusement parks and shows, the only things I would engage with are eating a lot of corn dogs, making fun of holes in prize plushies and pointing out ride flaws…" He trailed off, seemingly going into deep thought. It was only when I began worrying that he cheerily agreed. "Fine by me! I'll pay for the tickets!"

My ruby made a high note in surprise, matching my surprise with his immediate response.

"Are you sure about this?" I said.

"Yep!" confirmed Fiyero without hesitating. "It's been a while since I interacted with the games and the rides. Consider this like a date!"

If my face wasn't on fire, then it was. My free hand immediately squeezed my tail. "A-A date?"

"Or 'hang out'. Or a 'social', but that would sound more for youths. Anyway, I can pay for the tickets. These are pretty expensive."

I was still recovering, but I had enough thinking space to question. "And why shouldn't I pay them?"

"I'm rich."

"Duh," grumbled the ruby in my head.

"Take it as a pragmatic thing. I won't let you sell a coffee machine to get all that cash."

"...oh."

Of course, I would desperately think of selling one of Stone's inventions to a black market. But that might be the ruby. This thought felt more buried in my subconscious. I wasn't fully happy that I wouldn't be paying for this, but Fiyero was surprisingly alright with paying.

And when I thought about it further, I started to feel more grateful since I might have been unprepared when doing the deed. I got to see his kind side again.

As I sat there in gratitude, I could feel my rosy cheeks warm in a blissful blush. A date with a tiger I know have a crush on. I don't know anymore if that would sound crazy. With the advantage of making a voice call, I rubbed the back of my hair shyly. I hope that this would make a great hangout for the two of us. This experience could show me what else I would love about him besides his looks.

My wagging tail became much faster, ignoring its heavy weight. My ruby was already beeping happily, overjoyed. I heard my heart pounding in my chest, beating at an upbeat rhythm.

I tried talking, but it came out as a high-pitched squeak. I covered my mouth and I heard a laugh from Fiyero. Blushing, I tried speaking again without stuttering.

"Thank you, Fiyero," I said, grinning in lovestruck. "Thank you…you don't need to."

"No problem!" said the tiger optimistically. "One last thing, have some thoughts on if you want to see the circus. Tickets are nearly gone and the general admission will run out soon. I'm fine either way, but think if you want to see this circus."

"Understood!"

Despite not being fully interested in Twinkle Park's nightly circus, I didn't stray away from doing my research. It took me quite a while to figure out how this 'web browser' worked on my phone, but I found some images and reviews at the amusement park. Nice that they were at least generous to newcomers planning to go.

When I read some of the reviews, they compared Twinkle Park to 'Disney Land'. I had no idea what that really meant until I looked it up. And from what I found, this could really explain why Twinkle Park attracted a lot of families. In most shots, you would see children running around, carrying balloons, pointing and smiling at the cute mascots welcoming them.

It gave the impression that these amusement parks would make children happy. A huge stray away from any dangers that might come into the city. Getting to live their fantasies. Such resources to build these kingdoms were rare or expensive to buy. While some of the reviews had some complaints about what was not perfect, I found these amusement parks just nice getaways to live and enjoy.

Now, standing at the end of a long line, I could see the appeal of the babbling of children and their parents wearing colorful clothing. At first sight, I saw no purpose in having rows of rope instead of a single, straight line to the entrance, but judging by the size of the visitors, I could understand why they had to keep them all in there.

So many kids. Smiling and chatting away. Most of them were pulling on their parents' shirts, asking if they could go to a particular spot. Half of the requests were asking for ice cream. I chuckled a little at that sound. They probably just want candy in Twinkle Park. They had no worry about the limitations they would receive later on in life.

My eyes were directed back to the front entrance. Up this close, I wondered if this had any futuristic elements since they included space-themed attractions. Maybe only the sign at the top of the door. Squinting my eyes, I noticed people in these glass-covered corridors at the top of the gate, taking pictures of what was contained in these grounds.

One kid pressed his face against the window and stuck out his tongue.

On instinct, I stuck my tongue out. This time, he didn't seem to notice me.

I searched the waiting crowd. It came to me that there wasn't a single adult who didn't look like a parent. Where was Fiyero? I began feeling nervous since I stood out from the chipper-looking visitors. Surely, I didn't look too bad, did I?

I checked back on what I was wearing. The green, rough-looking denim jacket I had been wearing for a long time. Combat boots in green camouflage. A green bandanna wrapped around my head. Black leather gloves. I'm a hardened war veteran entering a friendly holiday location. Remember when I told myself that no one would bother me?

It looked like I was in the wrong zone because of how I dressed.

Hissing a little, I thought back to what I should have worn. I knew from the start but felt too comfortable in these robes. Maybe just a baggy purple sweater would do…

"Obsidian, Fiyero is here," chirped the ruby.

When I found the tiger crossing the streets from behind, I suddenly felt less bad about my appearance. Or shocked by what he was wearing. A combination of both could be possible. It was my first time seeing him wearing casual clothes and he somehow appeared sharply groomed.

Taking the colors from his suit and tie, he wore a white baggy hoodie with a black hood and black numbers printed on the hoodie. The hoodie seemed to have its sleeves ripped off, judging by the torn fabric from where the sleeves used to be. The lack of sleeves exposed to his loud striped arms.

A pair of black fingerless gloves rested upon his hands and a tight white belt wrapped around his waist with a black buckle. Finishing the look were a pair of black combat boots, sturdy compared to his hoodie.

Initially, I thought I was seeing a stranger. He was hopping around as he crossed the road. Energetic. The sight of Twinkle Park must have dazzled him in awe. While I didn't see him sliding in smoothly, I did recognize the brown dreadlocks, only now tied up in a loose ponytail.

My heart was already beating faster. I knew what I would imagine underneath that baggy hoodie. Coming to think of it, I didn't expect the tiger to wear something that huge to conceal his build. This hoodie could be more for someone at least two inches higher than him. The hoodie made him look awkward, but his cheerful skip defined him as a literal party animal.

"Hey there, Obsidian!" he said when he got close to me. "Can I hold your shoulders?"

A weird response, but I shrugged with a smirk. "Squeeze them tight."

I actually didn't expect him to shake me by my left shoulder. Fiyero was pumped. He wasn't acting like a gentleman from the day I met him. Right now, with only a baggy hoodie, he was acting a bit wilder. Complete with a wide smile that showed his sharp yet slightly round canines.

"A desert mercenary about to witness the brightness of a circus, eh?" he said giddily.

I laughed, my tail playfully brushing up into his face. "Yep! Though, I didn't expect that many kids around here."

Fiyero shrugged, taking a step back. "We came to the right spot. I can't wait to try that water slide again." His yellow eyes shifted to my jacket, his tail curling in curiosity. "Not a bad jacket, mate."

My ruby suddenly coughed and it turned a lighter shade of green. That was when Fiyero noticed it stuck on my chest. He leaned forward with wide, inquisitive eyes.

"Whoa! Are you half-god?" he asked.

"What? No!" I said. "It's just a magical ruby attached to me. It's all good. It's friendly."

Damn it, I forgot to tell him that I had the Phantom Ruby prototype on my chest. It came to me the irony of me hiding it during a wild teenage party and then being open to show it at a kids' theme park. Despite not showing it before, Fiyero was strangely alright with it. He suddenly became more interested in it than the grand Twinkle Park before us.

"Hmm, so the rumors are true," he said, giving me a knowing smirk. "You must have picked up some real good booty."

"I'm not some kind of cheap emerald for you to buy," growled the ruby in my head.

"It said that it's not a piece of plastic emerald," I said emotionlessly.

"Oh, sorry, little one," said Fiyero. "May I pat it?"

The ruby took quite a while to give me approval or not. But when it did…

"Answer unfulfilled."

"Sure," I decided to say.

Fiyero gave what could look like a cat smile and carefully petted the ruby with one finger. His sharp claw touched it, but he was gentle in not accidentally scratching it. The ruby stayed inactive until it turned into a deeper shade of green. I couldn't access how it was probably feeling now. Hopefully, it wasn't angry.

While he was observing my ruby, I found myself observing his arms. Quite thin like mine. His stripes probably stood out. On the left arm, the stripes were thin. On the right arm, the stripes were thicker and more irregular than in straight shapes. Eventually, all these black stripes were jagged, giving the appearance of tattoos.

Briefly glancing back at his face, I could see the adorable little fangs poking from Fiyero's mouth. He really stood out as well from the civilians of the city. It reminded me that he was still a fierce-looking tiger. Some might say he came from the wild. Guess there was no point in feeling bad about myself at this rate.

"You look pretty handsome in this hoodie, Fiyero" I randomly said.

A deep blush covered my muzzle when he looked up at me with a bewildered look. I swore I saw a slight blush on him. Thankfully, he just smiled and rolled around his shoulders.

"Ha!" he exclaimed proudly. "I just really like this jumper. Some say it's becoming old, but at least it hasn't split into two."

My eyes looked back at the ripped fabric from the armholes. "I get the feeling you just ripped the sleeves off to show your stripes."

"In my defense, they were slowly coming out from their strings. I cut the knot."

"It doesn't look that old to me. You kept it nicely clean."

Fiyero smirked. "I know. Your jacket isn't bad as well. From G.U.N?"

"No, no," I said, brushing my shoulder. "I got it from a mall. It reminds me a lot of nature."

"That's a good point. Though, it seems a little too thick. Would you feel too warm in this?"

"Well, you're talking to someone who has chest fur wrapped around his neck all his life," I pointed out, rubbing my chest fur.

Fiyero nodded. "Ah, I see then. Tropical!"

The line was beginning to move, so the two of us followed, guarded by the rows of red lines. Fiyero took this in stride. Not only familiar, but he looked like he was walking over a red carpet. He kept a confident smirk, his ears raised high, his tail curled delicately. Meanwhile, I kept looking around at the people in this line.

I was about to look at the people behind us when I heard a loud cry. My first reaction was to spin around and grab my taser inside my jacket.

But it turned out I didn't need to worry. It was coming from a baby, safe in her mother's arms. The father was sweating, seemingly struggling to find a milk bottle from his backpack. A pacifier, two books and a diaper fell right out from it. The mother was weary but sang a soft lullaby to her irritated baby, screaming away.

I had no idea why the baby was crying away when she was going to have a good time. Until my ruby whispered to me that she was probably hungry. Ah, that would make sense. But the parents appeared shaken and panicking a little. They must have packed a bit too much in there. Perhaps a few kisses on the baby's forehead to soothe her?

The line moved and Fiyero's tail suddenly grabbed me by my bandanna, pulling my head away from the sight. I was then met by his half-lidden eyes and frown.

"Hey, don't stare at the baby," he said. "You'll make the parent think you love the baby."

"…what?" I said, confused.

Fiyero looked embarrassed. "OK, just kidding! Just kidding. Well, it's more of 'don't give the parents a hard time'. It's rude to stare at them."

"Oh, sorry."

But it would be hard to unsee when you have a baby screaming at the top of her lungs. To my surprise, aside from some tense parents, the rest of the children didn't seem to bother. If anything, they just looked a little annoyed by the noise. There were no dares to look at them.

"Hey! Move, please!" squawked someone behind us.

Looking back, it came from a crow who appeared younger than me. Behind him, a cyan-furred…bear? I couldn't tell since he wore a fedora and a bandana around his mouth.

"Oh, sorry," I said without thinking.

I didn't need to wait long when the line moved again. All of a sudden, Fiyero and I were closer to the front entrance.

Well, this was weird, thought Scott. But at least there were still animal families in this line. He couldn't tell if the black-furred canine in front of him was a fox or a wolf. And why did he have a green diamond on his chest? It couldn't be this huge to make a necklace.

The crow decided not to bother. This guy seemed alright. The line moved again and so did the canine and his accompanying tiger. Scott smiled a little. When he looked back at the masked Dave, he didn't seem to be smiling. His eyes were wide and filled with alert. He was staring directly at the black-furred canine blabbering away happily.

"Holy crap!" he whispered.

"What?" said Scott. "What's wrong?

Once the canine wasn't looking, Dave quickly pointed at him. "Agent Obsidian!"

This shouldn't be a massive shock to Scott.

"That's him?!" the crow squawked nearly loudly.

Dave immediately squeezed him by the shoulder to shut him up and this one hurt compared to Fiyero's rather playful shake on Obsidian's. The crow could only watch, trembling, as Obsidian was too busy staring at the front entrance. Scott pretty much looked like anyone else. Meanwhile, Dave confronted Obsidian no less than a fortnight ago, so Obsidian would recognize him in a heartbeat.

The jackal looked like cupcakes and rainbows. At least he got a nice smile. But when he opened his mouth to reveal the tiny canines inside, it reminded Scott that he was STILL a robust and well-trained mercenary. Scott barely had any professional hand-to-hand combat skills, even if he had some self-defense knowledge.

Scott was scared. Really scared.

"And that gem on his chest…" he squeaked, taking a few steps back. "We're so dead. We're dead meat!"

Dave recovered and blocked Scott's path just before he could run off. "Don't panic! That's what they want us to do."

"B-But he's a former mercenary!"

"Maybe, but he's just a himbo. Guy's dumb enough to love this saccharine playground. Just stick to the original plan. He doesn't seem to be on duty."

Dave might not have caught up on this, but it couldn't be possible for G.U.N to arrange a last-minute plan for Obsidian to patrol Twinkle Park. This was coming from last night when the jackal was stabbed a few times. And the tiger he was with didn't look like one of the rookies he was told about. There was no evidence that they wouldn't need to worry about him.

The line was suddenly quick and all filed right into Twinkle Park. Scott and Dave made it their priority to find the circus tent. It didn't take too long to find it, but they noticed that Obsidian and Fiyero were in front of them along the way. Why were they going in the same direction?

Obsidian appeared highly wonderstruck by the massive tent at the back of the castle. It nearly matched last year's image, but this time, it was in blue and yellow stripes instead of the usual red included. More balloons decorated it and inflatable sweets stood behind it, indicating this year's theme.

What was missing was the huge crowd. But that could be due to the front entrance being closed off and guarded.

Still in the standing crowd taking pictures, Dave got close enough to hear the jackal and the tiger spotting the closed ticket booth.

"Damn," muttered Obsidian, his ears drooping. "They sold out already?"

"Told you so," remarked Fiyero.

"Hey, I wasn't sure about it, Fiyero."

The tiger shifted awkwardly. "OK. Sorry. Maybe we can wait for Part 2."

"I think I made up my mind. I don't think I'll see the circus."

"Fair enough." Before Dave could analyze where they would go next, Fiyero suddenly stood on his heels as a trail of smoke came into his vision. "Mmm! Corndogs…wait, that's K-Dogs!"

Obsidian turned to him with a tilt of his head. "K-Dogs?"

"Let me show you!"

Both Dave and Scott sighed in relief when Fiyero grabbed Obsidian by the hand and dragged him to the faraway corndog stall. The jackal was no longer interested in the circus tent. That would give the two members of the Lightning Bolt Society more time to raid and plunder.

"OK, so he's not gonna be in the circus tent," said Dave, patting the crow on the back. "It's just you and me, CoolBoy19."

Scott groaned. "My name is Sc-"

"Let's go in. They should be waiting for us."

There were two more guards at the side door for the employees, but they were allowed to come in once Dave showed the email Agatha sent to him.

When Scott entered, he suddenly felt warm.

Popcorn warm.

How much popcorn was cooking inside? But as they travelled through the glowing yellow corridor, they arrived in a more solid room that suddenly felt like the backstage of a rock show.

Dave and Scott couldn't tell if the performers applying makeup could be considered clowns. Sure, this theme was more about candy and the kitchen setting, but none of these clothes resembled jesters or clowns in any way. The shapes of the leggings, skirts and masks looked more like classy fashion. Or a drag queen show.

Only the little jingle bells hanging from their clothes and diamonds printed on their sleeves or leggings were the only indicators of a circus theme.

The prominent color palette in this room was orange and hot pink, suiting a tasty and excitable tone for the Scrumptious + Rambunctious Circus. Yet, these performers were surprisingly calm, looking a little bored as they applied eyeliner, lipstick and blush powder to their faces. Not even the heaviest costumes nor the freakiest-looking animal performers stole the attention.

One of the male performers was wearing a revealing costume. A black, see-through singlet that presented a neat, impressive amount of chest hair, orange straps rolled around his arms, black jeans with cuts to show his hips and studded orange boots.

Dave tried to see if there were any circus patterns on him, but the only thing closest to that was a pink diamond painted over his right eye.

"Places, everyone! Places, places, places!"

All the performers gave odd looks to their ringmaster entering the room. They all appeared nearly half-done but not too hyped yet. In comparison to Agatha, they were all professionally calm.

The circus director retained her mixed outfit excel that they matched the orange and pink colors shared by the performers. With the red replaced by pink and the dark purple replaced by orange. She was even wearing makeup, sporting orange eyeshadow.

"Crackerjacks," uttered Agatha, slightly surprised. She shook it off before waving her finger around, marching through the room. "OK! We're nearly ready. Everyone, finish what you can! Enough with the seriousness, put your game faces on! I need someone to fill in for the Scene 7 act. Move the props for Scene 9 to Scene 6 and Scene 6 to the corner of the stage. We need more fire near the audience. Lattes are just nearby, so pick one up, everyone!"

Quite a busy woman, thought Scott. On the first image, he thought she would be just a cheery but deadly director. Here, she was probably talking at the speed of a motorcycle without taking a breath. No wonder why she managed to work for this circus despite her past. She must be THIS hardworking.

The only question would be where this leaves Obsidian.

The performers finally started talking, slowly making their way out. Agatha only stopped in her strut when she noticed Dave and Scott waiting patiently.

"Oh, hi there!" she said with a friendly smile. "Roger! Scott!"

"Finally, someone who knows my real name," crowed Scott.

"Thanks a lot for providing us with this opportunity," said Dave, acting as the affable and seemingly gentle Roger.

Agatha beamed, offering a handshake. Dave took it first and didn't expect her grip to be loose when he held her hand. Not tight or crushing. It surprised him. Though Agatha had been here for a while…

"And thank you for offering to help out," said Agatha. "Just for some introductions, my name is Agatha!" She made a courteous bow, her hat nearly touching the floor. "Former member of the Jackal Squad, successor of T.W. Barker and the youngest director to ever lead the Scrumptious + Rambunctious Circus! I'm guessing that you knew we're going on the scrumptious side."

"Is this a new theme you're going for?" asked Scott.

"Not really. But we got innovative and maybe a bit too much for the kids. Anyway, I'm unsure if I'll be able to give you all the important details for tonight. I'll need to be there to see if the performance will go well. You two would have probably seen the email I sent."

Dave nodded but Scott was left in the dark.

"While you would need to see for yourself, I think I should just let you know the basics as security guards. Had some trouble with break-ins during performances. Too many people couldn't help leaking themselves. The security system's still functional but needs to be updated soon. Lights can be turned on at any point, but all the backstage lights can be turned off in the security room."

Cue the light randomly flickering when Agatha opened her mouth. She looked up, concerned.

Dave was grimacing under the mask.

Scott's eyes widened.

Agatha eventually waved it off. "Don't worry. Thought it was a ghost. There's no such thing as ghosts. Add to that the dead only interact with those who killed them."

"Wait, what?" said Scott.

"A bit of warning. The electricity isn't good for tonight. We have a lot of generators and have been using as much power as possible for the show. But sometimes, the backstage could have a blackout randomly. It's fairly simple. Just keep your eyes on the monitors and make sure no one gets in!"

"Piece of cake," muttered Scott.

It would be one if it weren't for the creepy animatronics Agatha kept here.

The jackal's watch beeped and she jumped a little. "Oop! That's my cue. But do you need a tour?"

"I think it should be fine, Agatha," reassured Dave. "We can handle it from there. You gave clear instructions."

"OK then. But if unsure, each of you stand by the stage entrances and watch. That's the best way possible when the cameras are down."

With this information clear, Agatha turned away and ran off to join the spotlight. Exchanging anxious looks, Dave and Scott departed from the makeup room and went right through another hallway, hoping to find the security office. They didn't need to check around here since they wouldn't stay for long.

That would backfire as a head hiding underneath a nearby table stirred and oversaw the duo.

Agent Stone stepped out from his hiding spot, pulling his legs out from the mini compartment he found in the table.

He slowly peeled off his shades, revealing his disappointed and tired eyes. They were dull from finding out another obstacle in his sight.

At this rate, he might as well call backup to arrest those two, but it might not be worth the risk since this would only disrupt the show tonight.

Out of all days, Stone would now have to face two incompetent robbers while investigating Agatha. If they found anything dangerous, then who knows how many innocent people could get hurt tonight?

With a sigh, he resignedly stood up and followed after the two.

And unfortunately for Stone, the backstage was like a maze. Multiple hallways with different rooms to take breaks or check on the machinery or leave any storage behind. Stone took a wrong turn while the two misfits arrived at the security office.

Dave and Scott expected it to be a small office. They were surprised it comprised two doors connected to two hallways on each side. At least it looked like a happy room. The walls were coated in red, yellow and blue stripes, reminding them of the crazy, colorful circus about to start. A desk rested near the wall, holding a few monitors displaying footage from the live cameras.

Or at least seeable footage. The live videos they could see were grainy. Unclear quality that left them uncertain of who they might see through these halls.

"OK, from what I can see," said Dave, sitting at the desk. "We have the whole place to ourselves, but the cameras might provide footage of us."

"I thought we have an invisible hideout," pointed out Scott.

"True, but we don't want to make Agatha too determined to find us. At least we smash these monitors to cover our tracks. We need to head for the storage room that would hold all the prized machines and animatronics she built over the past few years."

"That simple, huh?"

"Not yet. One of us would need to remain here to keep watch." Dave already got onto pressing a few buttons on the keyboard, prompting different images of the backstage rooms flickering on the monitor. "From here, we can monitor any room in the circus, including our two favorite heroes."

Just too bad that the camera was pointed at the inactive Sonic-EXE and Akrasiel standing idly in an unknown room. Scott could have a heart attack at this point. The low lighting complete with their uncanny, shiny black eyes didn't settle his nerves. He expected them to move, but they only stared at the invisible wall before them.

"What's better is that we have reinforced metal doors here!" continued Dave, picking up a remote with a red button. "They thankfully don't use up all the energy in this place. Watch this!"

He pressed the red button and the magic came to life. Scott flinched when he heard a hiss. Both metal doors were beginning to close, locking them inside the office room. A series of clicks and whirs echoed in this silent room, confirming they might be stuck here for the night.

Scott suddenly felt claustrophobic. In this room where only red, yellow and blue bleed from the walls, he could go crazy. From this brightly-colored room to the gritty image of the animatronics standing in limbo.

On the other hand, Dave was laughing in response. "See? Now, this is awesome! And helps to protect one of us in case we're attacked. However, if I'm serious, this is a waste of money. Whoever else stealing from this place wouldn't be as tough as we are."

Scott nodded with a slight smile. But when he looked back at the monitor, his smile faded away and his mind gradually shut down.

Sonic-EXE is gone.

AN: There are a lot of revisits in this chapter and I feel like I should address one or two loose knots so that the story can proceed.

As we're close to the final act (maybe it would begin next year, ha ha ha), I decide to return on suspecting Agent Stone. He has been off the hook for way too long, something Obsidian notices. And thus, he nearly falls into going into his secret liar. What he doesn't know is that Agent Stone still has this file he recovered from Mystic Jungles a long time ago…

Do you think Agent Stone might be the true spy or not? That's the question.

I should explain more about having Obsidian and Fiyero going to Twinkle Park. This was yet another scrapped idea I had for the Forces United sequel story. In fact, the very earliest idea was having Belt (my version of Gadget the Wolf) going there with Molly on a wacky date! Looking back, I'm not so proud of it and then, I want to reuse it correctly.

It feels like the perfect time to have Fiyero back in the show. And I want to expand on his character a bit more, hence his change in attitude when wearing his sleeveless hoodie. He could probably take the look of a rebellious jock at this point, especially since he's a little book dumb. It even helps that he would have more development with Obsidian.

And yes, the whole office room is based on Five Nights at Freddy's. Only that Sonic-EXE and Akrasiel definitely look like they can kill the animatronics acting cute in the movie. Not only Dave and Scott will have to battle them, but Agent Stone as well.

Good luck to them trying to call Obsidian for help since he has his tickets for the love train already!

Thank you for reading this chapter! If you enjoy this story, be sure to follow or favorite this story, so you can get updates about this story. If there is any feedback or constructive criticism you want to share, let me know in your review. It would be nice to hear open thoughts to know what to improve.

Until next time, keep on rocking!