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[MELODY RAE OLSEN]

She had never seen Astrid before, and today had been the first time they had even ever talked. But still, Rae felt a closeness to the girl, one that she wanted to pursue. It was strange - the pink-haired girl usually was not one to form such quick bonds to people. It usually took months for Rae to warm up to others, not just minutes. Maybe it was because Astrid was the first person Rae had talked to in this place - her, dare she think it...kindness...had made Rae feel a bit more comfortable, a bit more relieved. Even for someone like Rae, the sudden shock of an entire world shifting upside down was difficult to endure, and it always helped to have someone else in the same situation.

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[»] I had reached the area where I had told Astrid to meet me - the northeast side of the park, behind the ferris wheel. I would be hard to miss, at least for the moment. My hot pink hair stood out like a sore thumb in the dusky atmosphere, cascading neatly over my shoulders. It was the only aspect of my appearance that I had given to Astrid for her attempt to locate me. Hopefully, it would be enough - there weren't many others here that seem to be as...unique...as me. However, Astrid already seemed to be closer to my type than that of others.

[»] I was dressed in almost all black - a short skirt that didn't even go to my mid thighs, and a black, long-sleeved hoodie. By the time Astrid got here, it would most likely be dark - just as I had hoped for. My pink eyes scanned the area casually, acting as though nothing was out of the ordinary. But in all actuality, I was searching - searching for a way in. I stood with my hands behind me, holding my left wrist with my right hand and playing with the ends of my sleeves. I began to slowly step backwards, forcing my body into the shadows. One foot followed the other, until I felt the cold metal fence on my outstretched fingers. I leaned gently against the cris-crossed pattern, allowing the back of my body to rest against it. I looked from side to side, allowing myself to see into the fence from the corners of my eyes. It was as if this was the "back stage" area - backup shops, supplies, and vehicles were parked on the other side of the fence, secluded from the rest of the park. It would be easy to make it through - there didn't seem to be any guards around. I then looked up above me, studying the top of the fence. It was only about 8 feet tall, and there were no additional barbs or the like to prevent people from climbing over. This was going to be easier than I thought! Hopefully, Astrid would be up for it as well - this would be...her test...in a way...to see what's she's capable of. Though I was interested in her companionship, I couldn't deal with a goody-two-shoes or someone who was afraid of a little danger, a thrill.

[»] Suddenly, there was a voice coming from somewhere behind me - it was deep, a man. I quickly turned and ducked further into the shadows, behind some large carnival storage boxes that resembled the cargo holds of an eighteen wheeler. This worried me - I could not hear what he was saying, but the mere fact that someone was back there would make our entrance more difficult. But hey, difficult was not always a bad thing. Finally, the man left in a small golf cart, causing the area to once more seem to be abandoned. It was a relief, though I would still need to keep an eye out incase something like this happened again. At least it was now rather than when we actually would make our move. I stepped out from the shadows, a bit farther from the dark comfort, and into a patch of yellow caused by a flickering parkinglot light. "Come on Astrid, where are you?" My voice was not angry, and not agitated, though I felt as though that's how a typical person would describe it. But, that was me - I was dry, blunt, and I didn't care at all about my attitude. Yet another test Astrid would have to go through - whether or not she could deal with me.

[ASTRID KOAL VUITTAN]

She had told Astrid to meet her by the ferris wheel. Walking through the parking lot of the carnival, she could see why. It was huge, lit up like fireworks. It ate the skyline, a large circle pertruding from the black shapes of buildings and mountains in the distance. The orange glow of the sun, like the color of a pumpkin, gave it a twilight feel. It was surreal... Astrid had never seen something like this. During her childhood, she was too transient to be able to go to the fair when it came to town. She was too busy constantly switching guardians, or causing trouble, to ever have time. It had been something she had missed out on as a kid, and now she hoped to get that back. A significant piece of her youth, right in front of her. A youth that she had missed out on when she was forced to grow up too soon.

Trudging through the lot, she was happy that she had chosen some warm attire. She was heartstopping. A pair of skinny jeans clung to her legs like a second skin. She was short, but had always been told she had the figure of a model. Her legs were assentuated by a pair of hot pink high heels, making her appear around 5'5" instead of her normal 5'3". Her torso was covered in a tight sweater-like top. It showed a bit of her stomach, just above her pants, and fell off her shoulders to expose them elegantly. The material was soft, and it was comfortable as hell. She would never get rid of it. This piece had nabbed her guys upon guys, like a good luck charm. Some people had four-leaf clovers, she had this outfit. Her hair, those platinum blonde tresses, were loose. They would occationally be picked up by the wind, and the pink streak showed brilliantly. Not to mention, it matched her shoes.

The air was freezing, but it didn't bother her much. She had always run a little warmer than most people. Air clouded in front of her lips, but she wasn't bothered. Stopping for a moment, Az took out a cig from the pack in her back pocket and lit it, then took a good drag. Taking a step towards the carnival, she used her liquid nitrate eyes to scan around. In the dim afternoon light, they almost glowed, giving her an almost etherial goddess-like presence. Exotic. Powerful. She didn't see anyone at first, but then a smirk crept onto her features. Damn... her screen name hadn't lied... pink was right. A girl stood a little out of the way, in a gray and black ensemble. It wasn't that which shocked Az... it was her hair! Bright pink, a color that merely held a streak in Astrid's platinum locks, consumed her whole head! That's pretty fuckin cool.. she thought, approaching the girl she was supposed to meet.

"Oi. I'm here now," she chimed, that glorious Russian accent slipping into her speech. She loved that accent, and her heritage. Her stance was casual when she stopped before the pink-haired girl. Melody, she had said her name was. This girl seemed to be pretty damn kickass so far. Which was weird, because Astrid didn't make friends with girls easily. Normally girl could be grouped into two categories for Astrid. The ones that hated her, and the ones that didn't know her. Which was pretty sad. This girl could prove to be a friend, in the end. Astrid hoped so. She needed at least one girl that didn't hate her. Taking another long drag of her cig, she blew smoke out her pretty little lips out to the side. Putting her fingers to grasp the piece sticking out, she flicked her thumb and the ash fell to the ground. Well... now what? she asked herself, taking in the fence and the area around them with a smile on.

[MELODY RAE OLSEN]

I turned around just as a girl in pink high heels stepped up to me. I smiled as the sound of a foreign accent flowed through my ears. I leaned back - looking up and down her entire body, from her shoes to her hair - nodding in approval. "Very nice, very nice...I love your accent, and the pink in your hair makes you...probably the most awesome person I've ever met." I smiled a bit, it was not like me to compliment someone or act this way, but I could feel it - Astrid and I just...clicked. My pink eyes, due to contacts, of course, watched as the girl flicked away her cigarette - oh, how I could go for one right now! But not yet, the thrill of adventure and rule breaking drove me more than my need for nicotine.

With a smile still on my face, I pulled up the hood on my dark hoodie, stuffing my pink locks in to hide them. I pulled the strings a bit, just to keep my hair in, but not enough to make me look like an eskimo. I then looked back at Astrid's high heels, and chuckled as I pointed my finger at them. "Those'll have to come off for now, unless you can somehow climb a fence with them." At this point, my body turned back towards the fence, and I scanned the area one more time before curling my fingers around the cold metal. The fence made alot of noise as I hoisted my body towards the top - and, perhaps I shouldn't have warn a skirt for this particular outing, if you catch my drift - but then again, I didn't really care. I swung one leg over the top of the fence, making sure not to catch anything on the sharp points sticking up off the metal. My other leg followed, and instead of climbing all the way down, I just jumped, landing with a thud inside of the carnival.

I stood upright, and dusted a bit of dirt from my legs, then walked over to the fence and looked through at Astrid. "Come on, someone may come by in a minute, so we gotta get out of this area as fast as possible. Here...throw your shoes over, I'll catch them." I prepared myself next to the fence - if she was anything like me, her shoes were a part of who she was, and if they were damaged in any way, there would be hell to pay.

As Astrid made her way into the carnival, I decided to ask now instead of waiting til later - "So, what do you want to do first?" I kept my ears poised for a response, but proceeded to dig through my bag once I brought it around to the front of my body. Why did I always keep so much crap in here? It was always so hard to find anything. Ah! There! Between my index finger and thumb, I held a shiny, silver card, with a black stripe on the back. I had the inside scoop for everything back home, and one thing I learned - almost all carnivals used the same sort of technology when it came to ride tickets. And, fortunately, I knew a friend who used to work for one of the carnivals, and all employees, past and present, were given special ride passes. These silver cards looked like all other ride vouchers, but they had an unlimited amount of "tickets" on them, so you could ride any ride you wanted. And, due to me being so amazing and gorgeous, this friend gave me his pass...so Astrid and I could ride anything, as much as we wanted, without having to pay a penny.