"Come see the newest attractions! The one, the only legendary cats of Asia!"yelled the ringleader. The curtains opened, showing off five young children for exhibition. The crowd booed, except a young Russian boy who was watching intently. One of the cats woke up.

The audience made a large gasp, admiring the Chinese boy. He was a beauty with long dark hanging past his shoulders, his golden eyes transfixed on those watching him. The boy was remarkably thin, but not too thin, almost having the curves of a woman. The oversized shirt was drooping off one of his shoulders.

Two dark cat ears, the same color as his hair, were formed at the top of his head, twitching at every little noises. From underneath his shirt,drooped a very bushy tail. He yawned, his very sharp,white canines showing. Clapping ran through the whole crowd, making the Chinese boy blush in surprise. "A-a-aru?" he squeaked, frightened by all the people. He dove under a blanket, afraid. "That was our exotic Chinese beauty Wang Yao!"

A Japanese boy, who was a little younger than the first, woke up slowly. He had pale white skin that went well with his raven black hair. Stoic brown eyes met the crowd. "The elegant Kiku Honda has decided to wake up from his mighty slumber." Upon hearing his name, the boy stood up, his shirt falling off his shoulders. It hung down to his knees, but you could see some of his tail, which was thin. "Konichiwa..."he murmured, bowing to the large audience.

Small "awws" took place withing the crowd. The other three were woken up from a loud banging noise. A Taiwanese girl stared out at the crowd, her brown eyes full of hatred. She had long dark hair, a flower placed into it. "Our brave, fierce Wang Mei!" She hissed at the ring leader, ears lying fat against her head. Her thin tail twitched in anger. Unlike the boys, she was wearing a pink and white dress that actually fit her.

A bushy eyebrowed Asian had his back against the gathering, not finding them interesting. "Our wondrous native from Hong Kong, Wang Kaoru!" A bushy tailed, bright eyed Korean started jumping up and down. "Da-ze~"he chirped with excitement. "And our youngest, little Im Yong Soo!" The curtains fell, making the audience groan,wanting more. "The next exhibition is about to start folks!"

Yao screamed in pain as the harsh whip hit his backside. "Teach your siblings and yourself how to do a good show!" spat the ringmaster. Tears ran down the Chinese boy's face as he started babbling in frantic Chines.

His siblings stood on the sidelines,trapped in their cage. Anger lit up in Kiku's brown eyes as he watched his older brother be whipped. Mei was crying in anger and pain as though she were the one getting the whippings instead. Kaoru, who didn't handle stress very well, started making himself bleed by scratching his arms. "Aniki! Aniki!" cried Yong Soo, trying to slide through the thin gaps between the bars.

After the whipping, the Chinese boy was thrown back into the cage. "Aniki!" cried Mei and Yong Soo, hugging their brother. Kaoru relaxed when Kiku put a hand on his shoulder. Yao was sobbing, his back in pain from his beating.

Knowing no one was going to be fed, the Asians settled down and fell asleep, except Yao who was afraid of the boss would try to hurt the others. He heard footsteps and sat up, ready to sacrifice himself if need be. Instead of the ringmaster, a violet eyed boy was staring into the cage. "Privet," murmured the Russian. Yao blinked, only understanding the language, but not knowing how to speak it all that well. "Can you speak English?"asked the boy.

Yao shook his head. "Oh! You can understand me, da?" The Chinese boy nodded. "Good. My name is Ivan Braginiski and I'm the only one in my family that knows how to speak good English. Do you know where you are?"

"America,"muttered Yao.

"Your voice is so pretty~ So you are Jao! I liked you the best. How old are you? I am ten." Ivan was ecstatic that he was making a new friend.

"Eleven."answered the hybrid.

"You'll be moving soon, but don't worry!I can send you letters!" Yao perked up, easily trusting the younger boy. "You try to learn better English, da? I have to go!Bye Jao-Jao!" Watching the boy leave, Yao murmured under his breath, "Bye Yiwan..."

Watching the circus pack up,Yao made sure his siblings were sleeping. He took out the book that Arthur had lent him so he could learn English. Smart, he was grasping at the language pretty quickly.. "Letter for Yao,"announced Francis, a normal human who worked as the circus's postal boy. The French boy winked. "I didn't know you made friends zis fast~"

"Me neither aru," replied Yao, ripping the letter open.

Dear Jao-Jao

I hope you like nickname I gave you since you are my only friend. I have been lonely,da? I will tell you about myself first. I have a mama and a papa. Papa likes to get drunk all the time and beat on us. I think it's because he misses Russia.

I have an older sister who is 16. Her name is Katyusha. She doesn't go to school, but works like Mama. My younger sister, Natalia, is only five, but for some strange reason wants me to marry her. I try to avoid her when I can.

I hate school. There are people who avoid me because I come from Russia. One of the main bullies is names Alfred who is an Amerikan. He calls me Commie. Doesn't he know that Russia is capitalist country now?

Sincerely,

Ivan Braginiski

Smiling at the boy's letter, Yao started on his own. His English should be enough for this.

Dear Ivan,

My english has ben getting gooder. Though I dont think Im using correct gramer or speling. I hope you ben doing wel. My family is only my siblings and I. I dont want to cal the others in the circus my family yet. Kiku is nine and he from Japan. I like him the best becuse he noes when wen to be polit to others. The girl was Mei. She hats all humans here. I told her that she must deal with it until she is old enuff to start own lif. She is only eight.

Kaoru noes how to speak english beter than I do since he hangs out with Artur. He is seven and can be a real pain. The youngest is Im Yong Soo. I dont think he noes any beter so he does crasy stuf. It anoys me. Also the bos says wel visit next year.

Wang Yao