Chapter 1: Words that Whisper on the Wings of Birds
Don't fall. Breathe. Peregrine perched precariously on the back of a series of chairs stacked thirty-five feet in the air. Around her the crowd was alive with catcalls and cheers. Some urged her to fall and tumble to her death, others called out to hold out to the end. A mischievous smile crossed her lips before creeping back behind her jesters grin. She jerked to the side as if to fall, tearing a collective gasp from her audience.
As a senior hand balancer in the Shining Star Circus, Peregrine was allowed a few leniencies when performing. However, balanced with her hands on the chair and her feet on her head a death drop's height from the ground was not where the ring master preferred she take those leniencies. Charlie the strong man, who was currently acting as her catcher, briefly furrowed his brow while retaining his stage smile. She waggled her eyebrows back at him. In this silent communication he was warning her not to take risks and she was reminding him he was not her keeper.
The crescendo in the music around her signaled the finale of her act. With great care she returned to a standing position on the chair. A golden ribbon tied her hair into a large bun at the nape of her neck. On either side of her Reign and Doblin swung lazy arcs on their trapezes. The two brother's caused her no end of trouble in and out of the circus act. Master of pranks, Reign was the source of many snakes in the toilet, plastic spiders in the bed, and a rubber cockroach poised to jump out of the fridge. Shorter than his brother he had brownish red hair and a light tan that brushed his skin. Doblin, on the other hand found much amusement in leering at the female staff in the circus. Even now he was eyeing her backside with an appreciative stare. Doblin did not make wearing a skin tight leotard any easier. She only hoped he couldn't get a good view through the glare of many colored the sequins that adorned it.
Peregrine's heart was beating quickly with excitement. This was the hardest trick in their repertoire, but they made it look like their easiest. The goal of the trick was to have Doblin flip from his trapeze, snatch the ribbon from her hair and land safely in the grasp of his brother Reign. As easy as the trick looked they were all thirty-five feet in the air and a single misstep could send them tumbling to the ground.
Peregrine trusted the brothers with her life. She prepared for the stunt by moving into a standing split with her head straight ahead and her arms curved behind her like wings. She bobbed her chin slightly to signal that she was ready. Peregrine heard the trapeze speed up with soft whooshing sounds. Her gaze was focused and she remained perfectly still as heard Doblin leap. A piercing red laser beam from the audience nailed her in the eyes, causing her to jerk her head up away from the intrusion. Instead of snatching the ribbon from her hair Doblin's hand connected with the side of her head. Her focus shattered like porcelain and she tumbled over the edge. She couldn't breathe, her hands clawed through the air grasping for purchase. The ribbon snagged on the chair and her long silver hair cascaded out like ethereal butterfly wings. She was falling, as fear seized her mind a thread of panicked words wove through the darkness.
I don't want to die.
Peregrine was falling fast. Her instincts for survival overrode all other thoughts. She kicked out one of her legs and hooked one of the chairs in the tower. The chair jerked loose from the tower sending the upper chairs scattering into a rain upon the floor. Peregrine was tumbling now smacking against chairs sending them flying every which way. The platform holding the tower came at her in a rush, she tried to flail away but her shoulder caught the edge and smashed against it with a wet crack. The ground was the last stop. She closed her eyes and braced for the impact. At once all momentum stopped as Peregrine was snatched from death by a pair of oversized arms.
"Peregrine! Speak ta me lass!" Charlie's gruff voice made her eyes open warily. She wasn't dead, but she knew that as soon as the adrenaline started to fade she'd be in a world of pain.
"Nice catch." She breathed, wheezing a bit as she tried to catch her breath. "Im hurt Charlie, Im unable to walk and in a few minutes I'll be screaming in pain." Peregrine knew the audience needed to be assured everything was still rosy in their world. She would bear the fires of pain long enough to smile and wave.
Charlie hoisted her up on his shoulder so she wouldn't have to stand then grinned wide and waved at the audience. Peregrine followed suit and even blew a few kisses to her fans. With quick precision the next set of acts started and Peregrine was carted out of the ring on Charlie's shoulders.
As soon as she was out of earshot of the audience she sobbed and moaned with pain. Her body was on fire, every nerve screamed out in pain. White hot brands stabbed her shoulder, at best it was dislocated. She didn't want to think about a worst case scenario. Her mind was already beginning to turn off and she didn't even make it inside the flaps of the medical tent before she slipped into darkness.