New Hopes (Open)

The circus was the greatest time in Skydancer's relatively short life. For months she had diligently trained, adapting her gymnastic skills to those of an acrobat and then learning the ins and outs of such acrobatics. In the gym, she had found acceptance among the other circus freaks, an acceptance she hadn't found easily anywhere else. Shen she had finally been told she was ready to perform in front of a crowd, she had been purely ecstatic. First there was a trial run, a couple of local shows in the city and then, the best news of all, the invitation to travel with them during their summer and fall tour and how could she possibly say no to such an offer as that? In moments she had packed up and left everything else behind her, to find herself in the circus.

The months Skydancer had spent performing had been like a dream. She wasn't the only mutant in her little troupe, although there weren't many. But, in the circus, it wasn't something that seemed to matter. Her small group of performers had become like a second family to her and through them she had learned a confidence in herself that she never possessed before. Or rather, that she never possessed since discovering she was a mutant. They were a band of freaks, mutant and non-mutant alike and she had come to cherish them.

All things must come to an end, however, and thus Skydancer found herself back in the city. It was with a bit of melancholy but also a bit of hope that she exited the taxi and began walking in search of a place to stay. The Mansion might still be an option, she figured, but wasn't sure if it was quite the right place for her just then. Just at the moment she had enough money to last her a good 6 months, she figured, before having to worry about steady income and, for a while at least, she wanted to see about surviving on her own. Things were looking up in her world.