Cirque Periculum

Chapter 6.2

The trip to the actual site was incredibly monotonous. It seemed to take forever to pack everything onto the trucks and shuttles that awaited them. Connor was surprised at the fact that the circus bothered to do this at all when he knew perfectly well between Meridian, Mr. Summertin, and the various other gift-holders, they could get all of their supplies to the camp on their own.

With everyone loaded it took another forty-five minutes to get to the site. Connor couldn't help but laugh when they pulled up to their destination. Completely fenced in, the lot sported a sign on the fencing facing the road, dubbing the place "The Flower Mound," but there wasn't a single flower in sight.

"Why don't they plant flowers in there?" Connor asked Riley, who sat next to him in the shuttle. Adam was on the other side of her.

"I think that's where their state flower grows naturally. I don't know why they couldn't mow once and awhile though. Look at how long that grass is," Riley said.

Connor looked at the other side of the street. A shopping complex stretched across, including a Sonic and a Panda Express. Both places are ones Connor had heard of before, even though he had never been to one.

"Anyways, now the fun begins," Riley moaned as the shuttle came to a stop.

"It's going to take forever!" Adam exclaimed.

Adam was right. An hour later everything was sitting in piles on the other side of the fence. After the trucks and shuttles drove away, Mr. Summertin gathered everyone together at the top of the mound.

"You all know what to do, I just want to tell you thank you ahead of time," he said loudly. "As soon as Mr. Barge and Adam set up the barriers, you may begin work. We will meet back together for dinner at sundown."

"Adam, what barriers are you setting up?" Connor asked.

"Oh, I kinda forgot I was doing that," Adam said. "We're putting up boundaries that will prevent anyone driving by or anything from peekin' inside and seein' us use our gifts."

"That makes since," Connor said.

"It would be pretty disasterous if somebody saw anything floating around or something," Riley said. "Anyways Adam, you better go find Mr. Barge. Connor and I will catch up with you when you're done."

"Have fun," Adam said before running off.

"We're going to go help wherever we can," Riley said, pulling Connor back down the hill. As they walked three separate bands of light passed by over their heads. As they worked the sun set over their heads.

The tents came up much quicker than they did when it was just Adam and Connor setting them up. Connor noticed the setup was very similar to what it was in Greenview. The tents were set up in such a way to leave paths between them all. The ticket booth was placed by the front metal gate and two old fashioned oil lampposts were staked into the ground along the edge of the whole fence. The rest of the lampposts were placed evenly through the alleyways. Connor watched as the same performer who got rid of the weeds willed the flowers to grow and wrap around the posts, covering them with vibrant violet and red blooms.

Though he'd never admit it, Connor spent more time watching than actually helping. He was so enthralled with all of the magic going on and wondered how it went unnoticed by the people on the street just a few hundred feet away. It seemed so glaringly obvious to Connor, what with Meridian flying around stringing lights and Amanda setting up one-hundred foot tall metal poles with telepathy. He couldn't understand how one would miss that.

Connor wandered over the hill and down to where it flattened out. That was where the performer's tent was being set up by Amanda and the circus's strong man, Largo. He would stand the poles up while Amanda flew others up to connect them. Meridian soon flew in and staked them down from the top.

Riley and Adam showed up at Connor's side holding handfuls of Snickers and other wrapped candy.

"We just got back from Tom Thumb," Riley explained, handing him a Cow Tail.

"How come you didn't invite me to come with you?" Connor accused, feeling a ping of jealousy.

"We couldn't find you, and Mr. Summertin told us to hurry back with the onions and tomatoes he asked us to buy," Riley said, unwrapping a Twix and biting it in half.

"It was weird buying all that food," Adam said through a mouthful of chocolate. "We didn't even steal one thing!"

Connor wrinkled his nose. That did seem strange to him. The last time Connor had bought something honestly, he had stolen the money he had bought it with.

"Hey kids! Come help us with this thing," Meridian shouted from the bottom of the hill. Riley and Adam ran down, but Connor simply kicked off the ground and flew to where Meridian was floating twenty feet off the ground.

"We're about to put the canvas over the poles, so go down where Largo is so you can help guide it over the top," Meridian said when he reached her.

Connor nodded and glided down to the strong man and the fortune teller. Adam and Riley were out of breath when they reached them. Together, the five of them unrolled the massive red and purple striped cloth and flew it over the skeleton of the tent. Connor flew to the top and found the hole in the cloth as instructed and slipped it over the short pole that was placed at the highest point in the structure. The others guided the edges past the ropes holding up the poles and staked the ends into the ground.

When the job was finished, Connor flew to the top of the hill for a better view. Even with the other tents on higher ground, the performer's tent could still be seen above the points of the tents. Lights and flowers were now stringed between the tents and most of the tents were open and being filled with carnival games and other attractions. The white letters on the fence spelling out THE FLOWER MOUND was covered with a red banner advertising Cirque Periculum.

Mr. Salem called Connor down. "If you're done gadding about I could use some help lighting the oil lamps," he said with a sneer.

Connor grudgingly floated down to the nearest lamppost, but couldn't figure out how to light it. Mr. Summertin must have seen his struggles because he came up and showed him the key to turn. Connor lit it successfully by flying to the top of it and lighting his finger on fire.

Beats matches, he thought as he flew around to the others.

By the time he finished, the sun had set and the cirque whirled to life. The serene yellow glow from the lampposts, the noise of carnival games coming to life, and the smell of fried food filled Connor's senses. It seemed so much nicer than it had been in Greenview, but it may be because of the general wealth of their audience. Most of Greenview had always struggled for money, but this city seemed to be full of wealth. Many of the cars lining up outside on the street and Tom Thumb's parking lot would never be caught dead in Greenview.

After everyone finished their jobs the sun was completely set and the only light was from the street lamps and the various lights from Tom Thumb next door. Banners were draped over the fences all around the perimeter. Red and purple flowers grew at the base of the fence, making the mound look more like its title. Every possible barrier and protection was set up, and if Connor looked close enough at the banners and tents, he could see runes that Mr. Summertin had taken the time to draw. Connor wiped his brow, smiling at how big of a difference they had made on the Flower Mound. It looked like it was ready for an audience.

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I'm super excited for the next chapter! If you enjoyed setting up camp, please vote! Also, I live for criticism, so make sure to comment if you have something to say! Thank you! :)