Break Up And Dance Off

A short time later, Carmen stepped outside the family caravan, she had barely shut the door when Ryo glommed onto her arm.

"So Baby," Ryo smiled. "where are we going?"

Carmen peeled Ryo off of her.

"You can go where ever you want," Carmen said, bristling. "just leave me out of it!"

"What!" Ryo cried.

"I'll spell it out for you," Carmen replied. "we're through, I am breaking up with you!"

"Why, Baby," Ryo said. "we're perfect for each other!"

"Why," Carmen snorted. "because I have had it with your jealousy and clinginess, thanks to Brother, I see you for who you really are! I want a man that trusts me and isn't so jealous that he would actually wish something bad to happen to someone he doesn't even know!"

"You mean like your dream guy," Ryo asked Carmen. "or your big brother?"

Ryo looked half stunned and half insulted.

"Good bye, Kasanoda," Carmen said, without another word she headed off toward the costume tent.

"YOU'LL BE BACK," Ryo yelled angrily. "I'M THE BEST THING THAT EVER HAPPENED TO YOU!"

Carmen didn't even look back.

Two months from her breakup with Ryo, Carmen was busy in the big top rehearsing her act for the show that night.

When Lisa entered the big top tent in one of her casual outfits.

"Carmen," Lisa said. "we don't have to perform tonight, besides, Rafael requests your presence inside the trailer."

"If it is about my second trial, I'm on my way." Carmen said to Lisa, following behind her.

Upon arrival inside the trailer, Rafael was sitting down and waiting to chat with Carmen about his second trial, Rafael was also bouncing Risa on his knee.

"Sis," Rafael said. "the dance off, your second trial is coming up in three days!"

"Yes I know, Brother." Carmen said as she took her shoes off.

"Well," Rafael said urgently. "have you even chosen a dance yet?"

"Yes, Rafael," Carmen replied, she lowered her voice. "I'm working on my own version of the traditional clan dance."

"Well, why haven't I seen you practicing and why are you whispering?" Lisa asked Carmen.

"Because I know Lavinia," Carmen replied. "she's obsessed with winning and would do anything to make it happen, including ripping off someone else's dance steps, and Mirabel is worse than I am at dancing!"

Lisa looked up at Rafael.

"She's not wrong about Lavinia," Lisa said. "that girl is headed for trouble!"

Rafael nodded.

"I fear you're right," he said then he turned to Carmen. "now, the dance off will be held on neutral ground."

"Where is that, Brother?" Carmen asked.

"It will be held in the high meadow near Eagle Crag in the ancient stone circle." Rafael replied to Carmen.

Carmen knew the place, several generations earlier, some romani friends of the Regnery ancestors had gotten permission to build a ceremonial circle of stones in the meadow and use it for their trials whenever they needed it.

Carmen was brought out of her musing by Lisa's voice.

"Besides Lavinia and Mirabel, you will also be dancing against, Rachel, William, and Taran." Lisa was saying.

"You better put in a great deal of practice Carmen," Rafael said. "Rachel, Taran, and William are all very good dancers."

"I will, Brother," Carmen said. "don't worry!"

Carmen raced off to a quiet location to practice.

The three days went by like a flash of light.

Until the night of the dance off came.

Backstage, William Olsen saw Lavinia putting glue on the floor where Carmen was supposed to dance.

"Hey," William snapped, making Lavinia jump a foot off the ground. "what do you think you're doing!"

"What does it look like I'm doing," Lavinia retorted, pouring more glue. "I'm making sure that Carmen's dance will really be a spectacle!"

"But Carmen's shoes will be stuck to the ground," William said warningly. "she won't be able to move!"

"Uh, yeah, that's the whole point." Lavinia snapped, rolling her eyes.

"But that's cheating!" William cried.

"Look," Lavinia growled, beginning to lose what little patience she had. "you know as well as I do, that Carmen is already an accomplished dancer, so there's a good chance that she could win tonight, if he does, the rest of us will have to wait until the next full moon to take this trial again!"

"So," William said, shrugging. "why is that a problem?"

Lavinia pointed to herself, "My mother told me that she'd buy a horse for me when I passed my trials and I don't intend to wait another month!" she snapped.

"Carmen and her family aren't stupid," William insisted. "they're going to know what happened!"

"They'll know what happened, but they'll never be able to prove who did the dirty deed," Lavinia smirked. "and, you won't say a word unless you want Carmen's brother to find out who stole his Circus of the Year plaque from the wall in his trailer!"

William hung his head, he hated being blackmailed.

In the middle of her dance, Carmen's shoes had become stuck to the ground.

Despite this hardship, Carmen still won passage to her third trial.

It was just as Rafael had suspected the moment he saw his sister stuck to the ground.

"Who did this?" Rafael cried.

"I don't know," Carmen said, scowling in Lavinia's direction. "but I could make a guess!"

"So could I," Lisa scowled. "but to charge her under clan law we'd have to be able to prove it was her!"

"I know, I know." Carmen said continuing to try to move her feet furiously.

Once Carmen was finally freed from the glue, it was time to go back home to the camp.