The shifter looked around at what looked like a small battle field then looked back down at his naked body and he sighed. There was blood on him. He was pretty sure it wasn’t his though with his luck some of it might have been his. He tired not to think too much about the pain his body felt. His wing, arm, ribs. Zek could fill him later. There was probably a good reason for all of this. It could be shared over a pint. His voice was a bit hoarse.

”Yeah... Wait! Hold up.” Carrick chimed in trying to get Zek to repeat what he just said, ”I did what to who!?!” where was Tiny? Carrick’s eyes darted around and he suddenly pieced everything together. At least what he thought was everything. He tried to kill Tiny? Was it his shifted form? Why Tiny? Carrick’s attention shifted to the crowds and his stomach churned. What did he do? Why can’t he remember!?!

”Wait really?” he got distracted again at the mention of his maybe-not-future-wife now. ”Store bought?” he asked having a look of disgust. How did that make her not a nice lady? It grossed the shifter out but it didn’t necessarily made her a bad person. Right?

Speak of the potential wife and they do appear! Carrick’s eyes glossed over a bit when he saw her and he started to purr. ”Hey. You see the show?” Carrick asked grinning, ”I did it fer ya.” he grinned with splotches of blood covering his pale body. But why was she focusing on Zek? Carrick was the jealous type and he turned his gaze to Zek. What did he do to upset his future duet singer?

The purring got louder with the new song and he developed a stupid grin on his face. ”Okay!” he said with a thumbs up. ”Anything fer ya darling. Can’t wait ta sing with ya.”

Carrick flashed his teeth in a grin to Zek. ”Sorry mate!” he lowered his body ignoring the pain in his body and lunged for his friend. Baring his fangs. ”Nothing personal right?” he swiped his hand that might have had longer nails than usual as his body already started to undergo another partial shift.

Crap. Crappity crap. Crip-crap-applecrap. Zek swiveled his head back to Catbird who yep. Already changing again. Zek blinked rapidly and smiled hugely because crapcrapcrapthiswasn’tgoodatall. “I feel like this is VERY personal now!” The dude was hypnotized, had wings, could grow fangs or whatever, and harnessed the power of Butt Ugly. That was hard to overcome with straight-up murder, so that would have to be his plan E.

Plan A was to just hit him with a ball and put him out of everyone’s misery for awhile. But his pockets were full of stuff and dying elephant people. Plan B it was.

“AAAAAAAIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII!!!!!!!” he shrieked as he launched himself into a dead sprint at the singer witch. “AAAAAIIIIIIII!!!!!” he cried as shoved a palm into her sternum and blew past her, his years of running to bases really kicking in.

”AAAAAAIIIIIIII!!!!!” he panicked as he went under the tent flap in the staging area hidden from sight of the audience, where the other performers had gathered as they awaited their turns. “AAAAAAIIIIII!” he gasped as he charged through a group of performers who were in his way, accidentally plowing through a firebreather who coughed up a fireball on a nearby bale of hay.

“AAAAAIIIIII!” he screamed as he grabbed a random tray of stuff and threw it behind him. At least he was out of the open now. That should limit Catbird’s flight advantage.

Right?

“AAAAAIIIIIIII!!!!!!” he shouted because he accidentally rammed a toe into a brick. “AAAAAAIIIIII!!!!”

There was a girlish scream that echoed out over the cheers and boos of the crowd Carrick was oblivious to everything other than the singing that was interpreted when Zek threw a palm in the singers gut then continued to run out. Carrick gave chase till he got to the singer and crouched on all fours his body continuing to start the shifting process. Tufts of hair sprouted along Carrick’s bare body until the skin was tight enough to pull.

Mismatched colored eyes studied the snake lady as she tried to get more air into her lungs so she could sing again. He wanted to hear it. Needed to hear it if he was going to do what she wanted him to do. “What are you doing!?! Killlll him!” Carrick’s tail answered in kind and flicked mischievously letting her know he was waiting for something. The charmer coughed a few times and then cleared her throat and belted out some sick lyrics for Carrick to stalk his prey to.

‘Chase! Hunt! Kill!’ Carrick thought as his body moved to the music and taking off after Zek following the path he had laid out by running through a crowd and then out of the tent. There was a fire somewhere, he didn’t know what to make of it other than it wasn’t his problem. Zek was his problem. His friend was being a bad friend and wouldn’t let Carrick kill him. Seriously, he thought Zek would have been happy for him and... whatever her name was.

They were out in the open, Zek stubbed his toe and Carrick managed to close the distance pretty quickly. Zek was screaming still and Carrick was growling as he chased after him. ‘Come on!’ thought Carrick. ‘I’ll make it quick. You’re being a bad friend!’ His glossed over eyes followed as he tried to open his wings to fly now that they were out in the open.

Carrick managed to get airborne but must have forgotten his wing was still pretty messed up because when he left the ground he lost control almost instantly and flew into one of the food trucks, this one full of propane tanks. There was a loud crash and an angry roar as he tried to find his way out of the metal box that was a food truck.

Zek’s scream cut off with a blink as Featherbrain slammed into a food truck.He could’ve sworn there was a metal imprint of Craxton’s body on the other side of it. He grinned. “Well that should take care of that,” he said to himself. Then he started hopping on one foot.

“Owie, owie, owie, owie!” These little booties were not made for protection! Zek decided he needed to rethink his choice in footwear. Granted, they were given to him free, but honestly, most things in life were free as long as you chose the moment nobody was looking. Which reminded him.

He glanced back at the food truck. Was that rattline? It was definitely roaring. Zek decided that maybe that wasn’t enough. Zek dropped a couple of balls and his giant stuffed animal prizes appeared on the ground. Then he flicked out a few golden lights and two more food trucks vanished.

“OMPH!” he groaned as stabbing pain lanced through his skull and the world started spinning. Ohhhh yuccck that wassssn’t funnnnn. He wibbled and wobbled and threw a red ball at the food truck and a second food truck fell on it. He threw another ball and the second food truck exploded into existence in front of the truck.

“That….oughta do...it,” Zek slurred before tripping backwards over a barrel.

Carrick’s beast form was smoking, if you mentioned it to him in his human form he’d say all of his forms were smoking, smoking hot. In reality though with his current ability he was only able to hold onto a single form so many times throughout the day without over exerting himself. With the proper motivation he was able to pass the limit by two shifts today. Hence why his the fur was smoking, that and the fact that he just narrowly avoided being crushed by a food truck while being in another food truck and being set on fire from the third that appeared.

Okay, so maybe the third food truck had a little to do more with the smoke rising from his body. A wing had caught an ember and his fur caught a few flames. Carrick growled loudly at the sight of the flames and started to roll around. Stop drop and roll wasn’t a thing to Carrick’s beast form but it was one of those rare times where his human thoughts managed to leak into his other form. ‘Stop. Drop. Roll!’

His shifted form did. Luckily the embers were put out and his initial track his brain was running on shifted. He didn’t hear the singing any longer. Was it the explosion rupturing his ear drums? Also he was in his human form again. When? Carrick stood up looking back at the flames of one of the food trucks. It was the elephant ear cart and his heart sank. ”Awww... was gonna bring the Princess an ear.” she was too sheltered from the world. Everyone needed fried dough loaded with sugar.

Carrick sighed and looked down, he was naked... again. This time covered in soot now as well instead of just blood. Meaning he wasn’t as reflective as he normally was. The shifter looked around confused. There was no way he upended on truck ontop of another and then set a third one on fire right? He looked around, ”Whoa! Anyone else see that?” he looked around confused to as why he no longer heard the singing. The ringing in his ear prevented him from hearing anything else so he was yelling.

”Zek?” yelled Carrick trying to pop his own ear drums by moving his jaw around. Why did it hurt? Why did everything hurt? Should he just leave? His wing opened then closed. It was gonna be a long walk back to the mansion where was his phone?

Birdcat started shouting. Zek winced at the noise. He decided that maybe it was best for him to, you know, not respond. ‘Cause the way he was feeling, he wasn’t sure he’d be up for throwing another truck at the dude. Not when things kept wanting to spin spin spin.

So Zek did the only logical thing. He rolled a ball across the ground to capture his prized stuffed animals and then crawled into the barrel he’d tripped over. It had fallen on its side and smelled like oranges and old peanuts. It wasn’t the worst thing he’d smelled that day.

“I think I’ll just hide out in here fer a bit,” Zek told the barrel. It was such a nice barrel. “You a nice barrel,” Zek told it, patting it lovingly.

By this time, screams began emerging from the big top as people finally got over their shock of...what had happened actually? So much, so quick! Until they started smelling something burning. No, scratch that. A lot of things burning.

And a rich guy who, in addition to having fallen when the snooty-box collapsed, was now puking up his guts due to kerosene poisoning.

But everyone was more distracted by the fire. No, fires. One from backstage, one in one of the prep tents where the prodigal gryphon-boy had been kept, one in the center of the ring near where the Ganesha had fallen and that was it. Completely manageable. The Ringmaster could be heard ordering people about. “Larry Zoo! Get that hose over here pronto!” and stuff like that. They could handle it.

Then there was a boom, like the sound of a food truck exploding. Immediately after, a second one exploded, and then, possibly because it felt left out, the third one blew up as well.

Burning shrapnel flew everywhere and the shockwaves knocked a bunch of stuff down and sent a barrel full of a power-drunk clown spinning down a path.

“Whee whee wheeeeeeeee!” Zek cried.

”Fer **** sakes!” Carrick shouted as he turned and ran the exploding food trucks. Fires were one thing but he knew to avoid danger when he was close.... okay obvious danger that had a direct link to his untimely death. He wasn’t about to deprive the world of looks and talent such as his. There was so much mor he wanted to do. Like sign a record deal then immediately screw over said label for a better deal or....

Carrick dropped to the ground as a piece of metal zoomed by where his head was a second ago. The shifter started to laugh uncomfortably as he rolled avoiding something on fire landing next to him. He needed a drink to process how everything transpired. Maybe Zek could fill him in. Zek... where was that clown.

”Send in the clowns!” Carrick belted out as he looked around avoiding former friends as the rushed all over the place turning off burners and moving anything flammable to a new location. Most of them ran past Carrick with so much as a ‘why are you naked again?’ Maybe they were just used to it now.

After some walking around he saw the barrel first then heard Zek’s shriek of joy as the barrel barreled towards him. He was tired and sore and his body ached but he managed to jump and find himself on top of the barrel. Well that was something he could cross off the list. Carrick managed two steps on the barrel before being launched in the opposite direction while the barrel ran into a fence post at the entrance.

Carrick face planted and gave the world a view of another moon that night. Spitting out some dirt he pushed himself up. ”My phone!” he picked up what he thought was his phone. It wasn’t. It was his flask, or rather Tiny’s flask. Carrick wasn’t about to ask how and why it was out here all this way from the now on fire big top as the surrounding tents erupted into flames. Carrick spat up some more dirt and stood opening the flask and taking a whiff. Yep, only Tiny drank straight Gin.

After a look of disgust from the drink he washed out the dirt and blood in his mouth with something he thought was even more foul however he wasn’t about to go back into the big top to ask for something else. ”My cigar!” he shouted aloud as he stood watching the place burn down. Tiny had the best cigars.

The barrel of laughing Zek rolled faster and faster. At one point there was a quic thunkthunk as something landed on the barreled but after that the spinning just intensified. “Wheeweeeweeeweeweeeeeeee!” he yelled out as he made tracks and the world then.

Then the barrel smashed into a fence post and halfway rebounded before it completely shattered and ejected its harlequin contents all over the ground. Utterly discombobulated, the power-toxicated clown lay flat on his back, yet with his face still stuck in the dirt as well.

“Owwwww,” he moaned into the mud.

It was a good couple of minutes before he started picking himself up and he nearly fell down again. The world kept tilting. Zek tried tilting his head to keep up with it, but once he got his head nearly upside down, he fell again.

“Groooaaaannn,” he moaned, begrudgingly pulling himself to his feet again. Enough of that. Zek formed light in his hand and dropped it. A super-stuffed bean bag chair appeared, just in time for Zek to fall onto it, lazily staring out at the twisting, burning world around him. THe sirens in the distance melded delightfully with the rampant screams and shouts of people and the snap, crackle, and pop of so many things burning down.

This was fine.

With flask in hand he slowly opened the flask and took a swig only after pouring one out for the big top. He hadn’t remembered much of what a happened. He remembered Tiny from the night before. He was tough. He could never beat Carrick in a fight (what the shifter keeps telling himself) but there was no way a fire would be enough to get him. Carrick also knew that him and Tiny didn’t do goodbyes so if Carrick just left Tiny wouldn’t hold it against him.

”Have you seen my clown?” Carrick asked a passer by who was also in full clown garb but was busy running with an overflowed bucket. He didn’t head towards the fire he ran away from. Carrick loved the commitment of staying in character.

The shifter spotted a flash of light and he followed it back to it’s source. It was a good seat to watch the show and by show he meant fire of a circus. The shifter walked through a cloud of smoke as the wind blew and it reminded him he was naked still. He was on the look out for clothes but didn’t find anything. Not that people had a tendency to leave clothes lying around in the middle of a circus... or a fire.

After a few minutes of searching with the ringing still in his ears he finally tracked the light source back to the cause. Zek in a bean bag chair. Carrick yelled his name, ”Zek!” he pointed to the fire, ”We got ta get out of here man! Cops!” it was an alright television show worse to be on it though. He was still supposed to be under house arrest and now he was naked and covered in blood and soot. This was not the place for the shifter to be.

”Zek! Let’s go!” the guy was watching the show and Carrick looked back and spotted Larry Zoo walking next to the snake charmer. Carrick suddenly remembered why he thought she was attractive. She could sing. They were heading right for them. The spurs Carrick imagine were clicking with every step.

The snake lady opened her mouth and Carrick pointed to his ears. ”I can’t hear ya darling!” and he shrugged. Shame though maybe she was finally able to give him a chance to duet. The flashing lights told him it was not a good time to be singing so he turned back to Zek, ”Mate! We don’t want ta be here when the cops get here!” he reached down and grabbed Zek by the arm and hefted it over his head. ”Don’t forget yer chair bud.” he said as he looked over his shoulder and spotted the snake lady yelling at them then Larry Zoo running towards them wielding a... Lasso. Of course Larry Zoo had a lasso.

Zek watched without observing as Bloody Boy emerged out of the disaster zone that the circus was rapidly descending into. He winced as the flash of an exploding food stand lit everything up. “Ohhhh,” he moaned as the light stabbed into his eyes. He reached into his jacket and pulled out a pair of sunglasses for protection.

With the world thus endarkened, Zek did not more as his mind-whammied pal approached. “Make it quick,” he said as he let his head roll epicly back. Better to be murdered by the Beastie Boy than deal with this migraine. And stuff didn’t stop tilting! It was really messing with him.

Zek went limp-noodle in preparation for death when he finally realized he was being spoken to. “Wazzat?” he slurred, blinking in non-comprehension. “Bad boy, bady boy. Whatchu gonna do,” he asked idly. So many pretty lights everywhere! OH hey, he could make lights too!

He made a couple of yellow lights in his hands and then they faded. He just made more. He dropped one on accident. “Oops,” he giggled and then started making more and dropping them, each one vanishing seconds after hitting the ground.

Then more people were approaching or whatever. Finally Birdcat loamed over him, ready to slaughter him. Zek was grabbed by his arm and yanked up and….was forced into a comrade-like side bro-hug? “You...bad at...killing,” Zek pointed out. Then he grinned. “Oh, I know that guy!” He pointed at the spurred-on guy. “Barry Poo! Hey Barry! Great show tonight! Really rode this guy hard!” He cocked a thumb at Birdcat, but when he turned to look at his pal, the world swam in circles again.

Okay, he wasn’t doing that again. He dropped a ball on his chair and giggled as it flashed away.

Then he looked at who was with Garry. “@#$%@#$@^#$%# you, and your little #%^$#^$ too,” he said.

Then he flicked a light at the woman.

A clown car suddenly appeared an inch above her and Jerry’s head.

“Merrriccckkkk, Merrrrrriicccccck, our ride’s here!” he said, feebly poking Birdcat and pointing at the car. Key were still in the ignition and everything. “You drive, ‘kay?” he said.

Then his eyes caught sight of something, glistening in the ash that was starting to fall.

“Oooooo!” he whispered reverently. “I want!”

Another light flicked. The cotton candy stand was his. “One second,” he told his blood-bro. He made the stand appear again. “Get some snacks for the road,” he mumbled as he made two cotton candies. He vanished the stand right after.

“M’kay, we can go now,” he said, handing one of the cotton candies to Featherbutt as he tried meandering over to the car.

>>> “You...bad at...killing,”

Zek’s voice was muffled and Carrick wasn’t sure if he heard all the right words but he didn’t have time to argue about his grilling skills. The were subpar but he practice. It wasn’t often he grilled. His stomach growled in response as he spotted a few flashing lights curtesy of Zek who seemed worse than him now. Was he in a fight as well or did he just drink a ton? Either way Carrick ‘O Conner did not leave friends to fend for themselves when the police arrived. It was one of the few qualities he inherited from his father that he actually admired.

Carrick eye’s lit up when he watched the clown car appear over both Larry and his future Ex-wife. Carrick started to wheeze from laughter when the both disappeared under it. It wasn’t a massive car but Larry deserved it. His sides still hurt a bit from the spurs. If Larry actually did try to lasso them he was going to get a beating, then again neither he nor Zek seemed ready to put up much of a fight.

”That was the most comical scene I’ve ever witnessed.” Carrick sighed and hefted Zek up a bit and then turned back towards the exit of the circus. The one that wasn’t swarming with police or firefighters. ”Gonna have ta find me some clothes soon here.” the shifter said loudly his hearing now just coming back to him.

”I’m not getting in there.” he said sternly, ”Can’t drive and I don’t do small metal death traps.” Zek either forgot about his fear of small places or didn’t hear him any other time he avoided small cramped places.

Grabbing the cotton candy he found a small moving blanket and wrapped it around his waist while Zek tried to stumble over to the car. Now wrapped up and covered more than he was a second ago Carrick took his good arm and one armed hefted Zek up again helping him walk. ”Come ‘on. Let’s go find us a place that’s serving. I need a few pints after this night. Especially if I’m going back into lockdown.” he took a bite of the sugar on a stick and then took a swig from Tiny’s flask.

”No one’s gonna believe this happened.” he said as they exited the circus grounds the big top still blocking out the sky with smoke and flames behind them. ”Crazy, never seen something that big just go up in flames like that.”