Circus of Horrifying Wonders

1) Blades Drowned in Flames

The spotlights began dancing around the little arena, a slender young woman came cartwheeling out into the light. She finished this act with a spinning leap kick- landing with a blade in her hands which wasn't there before- the crowd cheered, there were the occasional, "I love you!" or "You go girl!"- not too long after this girl's entrance followed a tall young man, he was pale and lanky. He looked like an angel sent down to save the world, in his hand was an open lighter which he blew across; sending a line of fire two feet in front of him. He ended it with a smile, the crowd cheered louder. "We present to you," Wheeler's voice slithered from the speakers, "The fire breather and blade eater!"

Miles stood stalk still with anxiety as he peered up into the crowds, they all looked so happy and so normal. They didn't know the truth, but he did, he could feel tears welling up in his eyes as his hand holding the lighter trembled. "Hey," Veronica broke him from his thoughts, "You got this, I believe in you." they gave him a smile which he returned with a nod. Miles grabbed an unlit torch and used the lighter to create a small flame, he closed the lighter and stashed it away before looking up to the crowd to make sure they were paying attention. The boy gave Veronica a swift nod and began blowing the flame, Veronica whipped out a knife from thin air and held it in the fire- as if they were trying to drown the blade- they gave Miles a reassuring smile and mouthed the words, "Good job!"

"Thank you." he mouthed back.

The flames ceased and Veronica held the blade before their eyes, the blade was releasing smoke due to the fire. Veronica swiftly turned on her toes like a ballerina and hurled her blade across the tent to hit a target. Right smack in the middle, a perfect bullseye. The crowd cheered violently and some threw actual roses down to the arena, Miles felt a rush of adrenaline flow over him and he took the torch and swallowed the flame whole. Veronica looking at him with wide eyes, the crowd chuckled softly at this, "Dude!" Veronica mouthed only to be waved off by Miles. Veronica shook it off and began running to the target where the knife was lodged in, they did a cartwheel again- picking up a rose- and reached the target. She yanked the knife out and did a flip into the air, tossing a rose into the stands, everyone was amazed- even Miles himself.

Veronica took the blade and hovered it above her mouth, the pointy end facing down which made the atmosphere go from excited to concerned in a millisecond. She stuck out her tongue and dropped the blade, it slid down her throat and she closed her mouth as if she were swallowing it whole. The crowd screamed with horror as Veronica let out a small hiccup, she opened her mouth to show that it was unharmed- there was no blood, no cuts, nothing- this caused everyone to gasp and whisper amongst themselves. Miles watched as Veronica bowed their head and coughed up the knife, the crowd's applauses couldn't get any louder, Veronica showed the knife to all as they spun around. They placed the point of the blade on their tongue and began to balance it while walking to Miles, the boy watched her in awe as she circled around him- he didn't notice that they placed a rose on his head, nor that he was staring- Veronica gave him a wink and flicked her tongue sending the blade upwards. They grabbed the knife swiftly and sent a hand down on it- you'd expect there to be blood but the girl was unscathed- she removed her hand only to show that there was no knife there, nor injuries. Miles clapped and flashed her a small smile, the crowd followed his gesture. Veronica stopped the crowd and pointed to the boy, gesturing that they too cheer him on- which they did- after that the two took a bow and disappeared into the world behind the curtains.

"You're up next," Veronica plopped down into a chair with a sigh, "Break a leg, Riley!" they smiled to a young boy, a few feet taller than them. Riley smiled back with a nod and patted Miles's shoulder before he waltzed out the curtains. Veronica, or Ronnie, took a metallic water bottle sitting on their vanity and took a large swig from it. Miles made his way to her, she didn't notice him due to his silence. 

"U-uh, y-you did good out there," he fidgeted as he avoided eye contact, "T-the crowd adored you, Ronnie." he scratched the back of his neck as Ronnie's gaze bore into his soul. The girl stood up and made her way to him, he flinched with anxiety- a reflex of his- as he noticed his friend was now in front of him.

"You did amazing too," Ronnie smiled and ruffled his hair, "I didn't know you could swallow a flame that size whole!" they grinned, Miles looked down at his feet with embarrassment, a slight blush forming on his cheeks. He was about to say something else but Mr. Escabond entered the room.

"Intermission in five," the man peeped, he was a giant compared to Ronnie, "Ronnie, you're on concession duty."

"Aye-aye captain!" Ronnie teased and got up, "Well, I'll see you soon." they grinned to Miles before leaving.

"Miles you have a break," he stared at the boy, "Don't stress out too much kid, you did great." and with that Escabond was gone, leaving Miles standing in the middle of the room as members of the circus whizzed by him in a hurry. There were the occasional conversations floating around, he heard the twins, "Shelly ate all the peanuts!" He heard Ms. Wheeler, "Has anyone seen Wendy?" He heard the soft murmurs of David, he seemed to be talking to the circus lion. "Look, Kara," David shook his finger as if he were punishing the poor lion, "You need to be ferocious or people won't by the act!" Miles giggled to himself before walking away from the scene, David intimidated him- the thought of this sent Miles back into his memories of when he first got here, but that is a different story for another time my dear readers- Miles left the tent through the back door. The cool evening air brushed against his skin, he smiled in delight and began running happily.

---

In the tent, Riley entertained the crowd by juggling various objects; from knives to bowling pins to torches and tomatoes. He would occasionally do a little spin kick, maybe dropkicking one of the items he juggled into the air. This always amazed the crowd- since when has Escabond and Wheeler never amazed a crowd?- his act was only 2 minutes. The boy took a bow and tossed a tomato to the ground, the object burst into smoke and once it cleared Riley was gone, but in his place stood Peter Escabond. The crowd whistled and clapped, Escabond did his best to settle everyone down- this took a minute or so- before speaking, "How is everyone enjoying the show?" he took off his large top hat, the crowd whistled and cheered gleefully, "I'm glad that Escabond-Wheeler and Company is able to entertain your weary souls this night, but we must take a short little break and let you and our performers rest up and get ready for the big finale!" He went on about where the restrooms were located, where to get water, merchandise and food. Ronnie drowned out everything as they waited for customers. 

Out in the moonlight, Miles jumped into a tree and laughed as he made himself comfortable, "What a night," he placed his chin in his palm, from his perch he gazed at the stars as he thought about his life before he was recruited to Escabond-Wheeler and Company, "I wonder if they're still searching for me...."