Weeeell, and here I am! Starting a new fanfiction even when I still have another two ongoing ^^U But to the ones who might be reading the others don't worry: I don't plan to abandon them :)
Once said that, first of all I want to say thanks to the ones who supported the idea of doing this fanfic :) This story is situated in the same world than the Tales of Zestiria (ToZ) game, meaning that the cities and monsters that will appear are going to be the same as the ones that appear in the game. However, in this circus!AU seraphs don't exist and the same goes for the Shepherds, meaning that all the characters of the game are mere humans and consequently don't have any kind of power.
The story is also situated at the same time as the game (although there will be flashbacks at some point) so Sorey is 17 and Mikleo is 18. I've checked the ToZ wikia and it isn't mentioned the how old the rest of the characters are, so in this fanfiction I consider that Rose is 20, Dezel is 22, Edna is 23, and Lailah and Zaveid are 28.
Finally, as I've indicated in the tags, this fanfiction is going to be eventually M rated, but until that happens some chapters will have to pass, so to the ones who are expecting to have some smut involving Zaveid and Dezel, please, be a little patient :)
And that's all :) I hope you enjoy the first chapter ^^
"Welcome, Ladies and Gentleman! Once again, the Windriders are going to perform!"
"Tsk, why the hell does she speak as if there were a bunch of people watching us?"
"Dezel-san, please, don't speak so loud! The audience could hear you!"
"Lailah, there are barely ten people here and half of them have just come because it's cold outside. They aren't even interested in what we're doing"
Lailah exhaled a sigh before looking at Dezel. They both were at the backstage of the big top waiting that Rose announced them to do their respective performances.
"Dezel-san, that attitude isn't going to help. You should always do your best and…"
At that moment Rose announced Dezel so Lailah couldn't end the sentence, thing that he thanked because he was tired of hearing her repeat that almost every time that they performed.
"Okay…", he said with apathy, "let's do this useless show once more"
He could hear Lailah exhaling a sad sigh but he pretended not to realize it while walking lazily towards the stage, and although he couldn't see the expressions of the people who had come to the circus there were some things that he could clearly hear: the bored sighs of some children who were sitting in the third line, the non-stop gossip of some women who weren't even looking at the stage, and even the snoring of a drunk man who was sleeping while occupying more than one empty site.
Dezel clenches his fists around the pendulums that he had to use in his show. Damn, how the hell could he do his best when no one was paying attention?
"Dezel!", Rose was whispering his name from the backstage where she had just situated after announcing him, "come on, you have to start!"
Dezel exhaled a deep sigh, and he was about to do as Rose had just said but at that moment one of the women began to laugh with a loud and irritant voice about something that had nothing to do with his show.
And that was the final straw, so without even thinking Dezel grabbed his pendulum with force and with an incredibly fluid and rapid movement he threw it towards the place where he had heard the woman.
Of course, he threw it in a way that the pendulum just passed next to her without hurting her, but that was enough to make the woman began to cry with fear, the sudden noise causing the rest of the audience to finally focus on the stage. Even one of the kids who had been watching Rose's presentation with annoyance exclaimed an impressed 'How cool!' when he saw Dezel's movement.
"Ladies and Gentleman…", Dezel said with sarcasm while making an exaggerated reverence, "thank you for your extremely kind attention. Hope you enjoy the show"
And after saying that, Dezel began his performance, knowing that when the show was over certain person was going to have some things to say to him.
"DEZEL!"
The named one exhaled a resigned sigh while turning around. He had tried to sneak inside his caravan inadvertently but, as he had feared, Rose had been faster, catching him midway.
"Yes, Rose?", he said trying to adopt a calm tone that ended sounding more annoyed that he would have liked, causing the girl to get even angrier if possible.
"What the hell were you thinking?!", Rose exclaimed while grabbing him by the front of his black jacket, "damn, Dezel, if you had failed you could have hurt that woman really badly!"
"Tsk, please, have a little confidence in my skills", Dezel said slapping Rose's hands away, "there was no risk of hurting her"
Rose rubbed her eyes before speaking with a reproachful tone.
"Even if there wasn't any risk, because of what you've done we've probably lost all the audience that has come to watch us today"
Dezel snorted.
"You're right: to lose an audience who gives a shit about what we do is something terrible…"
"For goodness sake, can't you keep a proper conversation without being sarcastic?!", Rose exclaimed with frustration.
"Yes, I could if the conversation was worth it", he snapped back with the clear intention of keeping walking but he found himself unable to do so because Lailah had just arrived as well and was blocking his way to his caravan, "step aside"
"Dezel-san…", she said, and damn, the disappointment in her voice was even worse that Rose's anger, "please, you really have to change that attitude"
"Look, Dezel…", Rose said, and now her tone didn't sound angry anymore, just sad, "I know how you feel. Really. And believe me when I say that I would also like that things were as they used to be before but we can't change what happened. Now our only chance to keep the circus alive is not to give up. Getting all depressed is not going to help: all the three of us have to work on this. Together"
"Yes, Rose-san is right", Lailah said, "and we don't have to forget what we were taught: we always have to do our best while performing, without caring about being watched by one person or by thousandths"
Dezel let out a deep breath before exhaling an empty laugh. Damn, there was no way that he could forget that motto after all the times that Lafarga said it to them. But considering the situation the Windriders were in, those words that had always cheered him up now were just causing him frustration.
"We've been 'doing our best' during five whole years", Dezel finally said with a dark tone, "and our results couldn't be worse, so sorry if I fail to see the point in 'doing my best' every fucking time that we have to perform in front of people who couldn't care less about what we do"
After saying that Dezel finally managed to pass Lailah, and although he could hear Rose calling his name he purposely ignored it before entering his caravan with a slam.
"Leave him alone for now", Lailah said with a soft tone when seeing that Rose had the intention of following him inside, "I'm sure that Dezel-san knows that he is mistaken. He just needs some time"
Rose was about to protest but at the end she nodded, although her face was showing a worried expression.
"Okay", she said with a whisper, before drying her eyes rudely when feeling some rebellious tears about to appear of them, "but damn, he is too selfish: he is not the only one who miss them!"
"No, he is not", Lailah agrees, "but remember how close he was with Lafarga. And well…also with him. Of course it was hard for us to lose them… but for Dezel-san it was even worse"
Rose exhaled a deep sigh before nodding again.
"You're right as always, Lailah", she said with a tiny smile, "I'll talk with Dezel later to fix things. If there's something that I don't want is to lose anyone else because of a stupid fight"
Lailah smiled reassuringly.
"I'm sure he doesn't want that either. Come on: let's go to get the big top ready for the next show"
Rose finally laughed when hearing Lailah's enthusiastic tone.
"Yeah, let's go!"
An hour later Dezel was still locked up in his caravan, lying on his bed with his arms crossed over his chest.
He clicked his tongue with annoyance when a wave of guiltiness assaulted him because deep inside he knew that he had just acted like a jerk with Rose and Lailah, but sometimes he couldn't stand the women's untiring optimism.
Dezel exhaled a sigh. Five years. Five long years had passed since that incident happened, and during all that time the Windriders hadn't been able to prosper.
Yes, it was true that Rose, Lailah and he had managed to keep the circus afloat until then even when they were just three people, but still it wasn't enough. The benefits that they obtained were lacking, to the point that some months they had barely enough to eat, and the only way to attract some visitants was to sell the tickets at embarrassingly low prices. After all, most part of the people preferred to go to see the great and famous 'Circus of the Calamity' that Lord Hedalf had managed to open thanks to Symonne's assistance.
Dezel could feel his blood boiling from anger just for the memory of that horrible woman.
Damn. If it hadn't been for her, the Windriders wouldn't have been reduced to the pathetic circus that it was right then.
And Lafarga would still be alive.
And probably, he wouldn't have abandoned them.
Dezel hit the wall next to him while growling with frustration. What the hell was his problem? He had decided that he would take revenge, that he would destroy Symonne and her spectacularly famous circus, and in order to do that he had to make sure to recover the glory and fame that the Windriders used to have. After all, that had been the last promise that he had made to Lafarga, and consequently he had to be focused on that instead of losing time thinking about useless things.
And definitely, he couldn't lose time thinking about him.
After spending some more moments lying on his bed Dezel finally stood up with renewed determination. Although he hated to admit it Rose was right: protesting and getting all depressed wasn't going to fix anything. They had to find a way to make the Windriders prosper. And although Lailah had been right when suggesting in several occasions to hire more people it wasn't that easy. After all, who was going to want to work in a circus in decadency…?
"Dezel-san!"
Dezel jumped in surprise when the door of his caravan opened suddenly and Lailah entered without bothering to knock.
"What happens?", Dezel asked with worry, knowing that it had to be something important because, unlike Rose, Lailah always respected his privacy so there was no way that she assaulted him like that without good reason.
"Good news!", she exclaimed, her tone excited, "two boys had just asked to let them join us!"
If Dezel wasn't blind, he would have opened his eyes at his maximum with astonishment.
"What? Is it some kind of joke?"
"No, it isn't!", Lailah said while grabbing Dezel's arm with both of her hands to drag him out of his caravan, "come on, they are waiting for us at the big top"
Without leaving him time to reply Lailah began to describe the boys.
According to Lailah, one of the boys, Sorey, was extremely cheerful, the kind of boy that would immediately get along with Rose. He had specialized in the art of the sword and was able to train certain animals, but he was also willing to learn everything that could be needed to work in the circus.
The other boy, Mikleo, was less cheerful than Sorey and seemed to be more disciplined. He had specialized in the training of aquatic animals and was able to do any kind of juggling with his staff.
"They both seem to be really agreeable", Lailah continued. By then they had almost reached the big top, "although I also think that Sorey-san is the one who really wants to be here and that Mikleo-san is just accompanying him"
Dezel snorted.
"Well, as long as they both work hard I don't care if one of them just wants to be here because of his boyfriend"
"Dezel-san", Lailah said with a certain reproachful tone, "please, try to refrain yourself from making such comments: you could make them feel uncomfortable. Besides, they have been the first ones in quite a while that have wanted to join us so we should be grateful"
Dezel exhaled a sigh while remembered what he had just said to himself about stopping protesting so much.
"Okay, you're right", he admitted causing Lailah to smile before patting his arm softly.
"I have a good feeling about this", she said with a reassuring tone, "I'm sure that with those boys we'll be able to save the Windriders"
Dezel decided not to say anything because although Lailah's instinct had proven to work in several occasions he didn't want to let his hopes up so soon. After all, he had learnt by the hard way how much it could hurt when certain hopes were destroyed.
When they entered the big top Dezel could hear Rose speaking very animatedly with one of the boys, so he immediately deduced that he must be Sorey.
"Oh, they're here already", Rose exclaimed then while approaching Lailah and Dezel, "Sorey, Mikleo, this is Dezel, the third member of the Windriders. He is an expert in manipulating pendulums and he used to be a tightrope walker"
"But that was a long time ago", Dezel said unable to prevent certain rudeness in his tone, although it seemed that the boys hadn't minded because they immediately introduced themselves.
"Nice to meet you, Dezel-san", Sorey said, and his smile could be heard in his voice, "my name is Sorey and this is my friend Mikleo"
"Thank you very much for allowing us to join you", Mikleo added with a polite tone, and since there was silence Dezel deduced that the boy was offering him a hand, so he extended his arm without hesitation to accept the handshake. After all, although he couldn't see he was perfectly able to pinpoint the exact location of the others thanks to his extremely sharpened hearing.
"Don't thank us yet, kid", Dezel said with a serious tone, "there are a couple of things that we have to know before admitting you"
"Although I'm sure that you'll be able to join without problems", Lailah added with a happy tone.
"Yeah. Besides, we can't be very picky since no one wants to join us", Rose said with a nervous laugh while scratching the back of her head.
"Okay, sounds fair", Sorey said with a confident tone that impressed Dezel, "what would you like to know?"
"Well, first of all: why do you want to join the Windriders?", Dezel asked while crossing his arms, "after all the 'Circus of the Calamity' is the most important circus right now, the logical thing to do would be to want join them instead of us"
"That's simple", Sorey said immediately, managing to suppress Dezel once more, "our friends had talked us about your circus so well that Mikleo and I want to join it no matter what"
"Besides, although famous we've also heard some things about the 'Circus of the Calamity' that we haven't liked one bit"
Dezel heard Rose exhale a surprised gasp.
"Okay, who are those friends of yours?", she asked with an enthusiastic tone, "I really want to kiss them right now"
Sorey begun to laugh.
"Don't worry, you'll meet them. They had some things to take care of but they should be here in no time"
"Oh, and they looked also interested in being accepted as well", Mikleo added.
"Really?!", Rose exclaimed at the same time that Lailah exhaled a high-pitched cry.
"See, Dezel-san?! I told you: my instinct told me that things were going to get better!"
Dezel didn't say anything. He didn't know why but something has been bothering him since the moment Sorey mentioned his friends…
"What do you think you are saying, Mibo? I haven't said anything about wanting to join the Windriders again, baka"
Dezel, Rose and Lailah's mouth fell opened when hearing that annoyed voice coming from outside the tent.
"Again…?", Rose repeated, her tone a mix of surprise and expectation, "no way…"
"Edna-san?", Lailah asked with a voice that came out a little muffled, indicating Dezel that she had her hands over her mouth.
After a brief silence Dezel could heard a sigh before some soft steps resounded in the suddenly silent place, indicating him that someone had entered.
"Good grief. At the end that idiot is going to be right when saying that you can't do anything without us"
Yes, that voice couldn't belong to anyone but Edna. However, before Dezel could ask anything about why the hell she had returned Lailah and Rose ran towards her to hug her, causing the girl to exhale another annoyed sigh although Dezel could clearly detect some relief on it.
"Oh, Edna-san, I'm so happy that you have come back", Lailah said, her voice trembling because of the emotion,
"We've missed you a lot!", Rose agreed, "and not just us, Dezel too, but he is too stubborn to admit it"
"Oi!", Dezel exclaimed, making Lailah and Rose laugh, and he was about to lie and deny what they had just said when Edna spoke again.
"B-But you should know that I haven't returned because I miss you", Edna said, her embarrassment evident, "I-I've just come back because that idiot was going to stalk me until I accepted"
Dezel frowned.
"That idiot?", he repeated.
And then he heard the ruffling of the big top again, indicating that another person had just entered, and Dezel was pretty sure that his heart literally stopped for a moment when hearing those heavy steps that reminded him of certain someone who he had been desperately trying to forget during the last years.
No. It couldn't be…
However, before he could even finish his thought, the newcomer approached him incredibly fast to enclose a couple of naked and strong arms around him, making Dezel automatically open his mouth to protest.
But the offended reply never came, because at that moment the stranger did the last thing that Dezel could have been expecting.
He kissed him.
And although in any other situation Dezel would have immediately reacted by pushing the perverted man away this time he found himself unable to do so. Because the lips that were assaulting his mouth at that moment felt familiar, painfully familiar, and the way his stomach tightened and his heart beat crazily inside his chest were, as well, sensations that he thought forgotten. Sensations that he hadn't expected to experiment again.
And when the stranger finally spoke Dezel could feel all his body suffer a shudder when hearing that unmistakable rude voice that several times in the past had spelled his name between labored breathings, the mere memory causing Dezel to suffer an involuntary shudder.
"It's been a while, Dezel-chan"
Dezel gulped, and when he spoke he only managed to say one word, spelled in a hoarse whisper.
"Zaveid…"
I know that there are several things in this chapter that can be confusing but don't worry: they'll be explained eventually :)
I don't exactly know when the next update will be because as I've said I wouldn't like to let my other fics abandoned, specially my ToX fic which I'm about to finish. However, I hope to be able to update once a month at least :P
Hope you have enjoyed the start ;) And please don't hesitate in commenting! It would be greatly appreciated and I'm always opened to suggestions~! ^^
