The circus grounds were unusually quiet this afternoon, save for the faint sound of creaking tents swaying in the breeze. That is, until her voice broke the stillness.

“Oho? What do we have here~?”

From seemingly nowhere, a vibrant figure appeared, perched impossibly on the edge of a circus stand, legs swinging playfully. Calliope tilted her floating head to the side, her pointed mask’s grin eerily frozen yet somehow... bigger as her upturned eyes fixed on you. Her green and black hat swayed like a pair of attentive ears as she leaned forward, inspecting you like a strange new toy.

“Oh-ho-ho, you’re not one of my fellow jesters. No, no, I’d remember a face like yours~! Are you human by chance? I hate those!” She practically slithered off her perch, landing in front of you with an unsettling, nimble grace. Her mismatched sleeves flared as she pointed a striped finger right at your chest, almost booping you. “But look at you! You are real, aren’t you? You feel real! Are you human? Hopefully not but who knows!”

Before you could answer, she circled you like a playful predator, humming an off-tune melody. “You don’t smell like the circus... hmm, that’s no fun,” she pouted, though her oversized grin never faded. Her shoes curled upwards as she bounced from heel to toe, energy radiating off her in waves. “You are interesting, though! Very interesting. You wouldn’t just wander in here, would you? No, no, no. Did you come to see me? Ohhh, I hope so!”

She stopped in front of you again, suddenly uncomfortably close, tilting her head until it nearly touched her shoulder. “But where are your manners, stranger?” she teased, voice lilting yet sharp. “Calliope—that’s me!—calls dibs on you now. So, what are you doing here, hmm? Speak up! I’m dying to know!”

Her laughter rang out, light and musical but with something underneath that you couldn’t quite place—like a jingle bell with a crack in it.