Condensation

"Yeah. Ellis comes with me and you go with Gerald."

Chorale huffed. "Okay, let's go." When Concerto reached the town they had been in previously, he took extra care to be entirely in human form. He'd made that mistake once before. Never again.

"I think so," yelled Daolan. "Yeah, we do!" Herate shouted back. "Want me to go open it?"

"There's no need to be insulting, both of you!" insisted Chorale. "I'm an adult, and Concerto would have been a help."

"What do you mean, rely on Val?"

Chorale looked over, then plastered a shocked expression on her face. "Where'd Concerto go?" Then she burst out laughing. Wow, I feel ridiculous lying. "Yeah, he left last night. He told me he had some stuff to do."

I mean, sometimes you trust people who aren't worthy of it. (*cough*) I'll endeavour to always be trustworthy, though. (I mean, I kind of want to be an elim, but it'd be hard. My Pi doesn't like docs.)

Vivace shifted back into a human, thoroughly refreshed. "We're in... Vivace's cave, remember? And you really don't know what it's like to wake up without a hangover? That's... kind of sad, actually."

"Sounds good. I'll... just put it in my other pocket, shall I?"

"Well, we could do a Secret Santa sort of thing, or everyone could get presents for everyone! I think I'd prefer the first option so that I don't forget anyone, but the second option works too." Aria beamed, already planning.

Chorale stretched and yawned, blinking the sleep from her eyes.

"That would work. Two teams of two."

Andante tried it again, but this time she spoke louder. This will work.

Once everyone else had fallen asleep, Concerto opened his eyes. He always had been good at acting, although being motionless was harder now. It was surprising that they had let him sleep just outside the cave. Sloppy. He grinned and stood up, padding softly across the clearing. Before he left, he turned back to see Chorale one last time. Her spot - it was empty. Vivace heard Concerto get up and rolled her eyes. Men could be so predictable. While he was looking away, she got up and moved behind him, barely avoiding his gaze as he turned back to look at the cave, then froze. She grinned and grabbed him from behind, quickly getting him into a hold. "Stop right there," she hissed. "You think I'm letting you leave?" Concerto groaned silently. Of course she had been awake and keeping an eye on him. He decided it was best to trust her. "Vivace, let Chorale out. There's something she needs to know." Vivace, surprised, released the hold. "You know? You... you've known all along." Concerto rose and spun to face her. "Yes. I've known her all my life, she hasn't changed much. You need to work on your acting. Let her out now, and maybe I won't tell her how to control you." Vivace glared at him and let Chorale beat her down, back into that eternal blackness. No sight when you don't have a body. Chorale smiled ruefully. "Thanks, bro. What do you need to tell me?" "The reason you can use your powers. I need to go, there are some things I need to do. But someone else needs to know this and I think you're the best choice." Chorale gasped. "You - you don't think..." she trailed off. "No, and I'm hurt to hear you don't think I can protect myself." He grinned and lowered his voice further. "I'll be fine, but I might not be back for a while. To create an Amal who still has their powers, you need to find an extremely rare animal. It doesn't matter which animal as long as they have amber eyes. This is a recent mutation, and I still don't know why it works. It does, though. I've been working to get them out of others' hands, and you need to keep doing it. If they get their hands on them..." he shuddered. "I don't want to think of the consequences. Don't tell anyone." Chorale nodded. "I promise. Are you sure you have to go?" "Yes. It's vital. Stay safe, keep moving. Keep yourself out of Kade's hands and you'll be fine." He smiled, baring his teeth in a sudden grin, and slipped into the underbrush. Moments later, he was dashing through the forest as a cheetah. The speed was exhilarating, one of his few joys left. Tonight, he had work to do. Chorale stepped carefully over to the cave and lay down, changing to a clouded leopard to sleep. She drifted off imagining that she could see Concerto speeding through the forest, intent on his moral duty. A smile tugged on her lips and she finally slept.

OH MY GOSH SO MANY FEELINGS!!!!!!!! I'm so glad I joined this, thanks to Mat! Yes, I was AnonRBer. I was so excited after I said that and then Quinn PMed me... I was afraid to tell you in case it kept you from trusting me when trust was vital. I had so many plans, I was so sad(and yet so happy) when I got elim-killed. First time! Good job, elims! Good game. Vapor tells me that the only reason I got elim-killed was so that the RBers couldn't communicate without revealing themselves. It was pure luck that they ended up killing the other RBer instead! I felt so devious, I think I PMed like half of the people and I got... two of the elims right. Vapor and Gears. TJ claimed to me at some point after Quinn had told me that he claimed to her, and that was about the point that I PMed Gears saying that I thought they were TLR and that I needed more evidence to protect them. I only ever RBed once and it was wrong, though. I thought Whysper was an elim(I really need to stop thinking they're 'too nice') and RBed them. Special thanks to Quinn for being so awesome to RP with! And trusting me! Somebody and I did a bit, it was fun.

Hiiri and Noche silently slipped away. They ended up in a random room, listening through the floor yet again. It had been fun, but silence was great too. "That's a relief. So, what's next? Christmas?" Aria smiled deviously. "Christmas is my favorite."

"There's not much that's worse than dead, but I'll take your word for it. Will my father be expecting a report?"

"Sounds eventful! Are you all okay?" Herate walked over to Daolan, inspecting him carefully to make sure.

"I'm sure I could find the right illusion, but if you want to, that's okay."

"Yeah. So, how was your Thanksgiving?" Allegra asked, smiling.

"Let me guess, it's permanent." Herate sighed. "Most magics are."