Chapter 3 – Klaus
Margali smiled quietly to herself as she carried Kurti through the circus troupe, and watched as the performers practiced their various acts. "Look Kurti," she said quietly, as she pointed to the various performers, "all of these people work for me." She indicated where the acrobats were rehearsing their routines, where the clowns were practicing their timing, and where the sword-eaters were busy polishing their swords. She quietly explained to Kurti that the circus was almost never still and silent, as there was always something that needed to be done, whether it was rehearsing for the night's performance, or looking after the many animals and children that travelled with the circus troupe. She explained that almost everyone, from practically the youngest to practically the oldest, had to contribute to the effective running of the circus, and told Kurti that even Stefan had to perform simple fetching and carrying tasks. Margali explained that the circus simply would not survive unless just about all of its members were prepared to contribute to its upkeep.
Margali sighed quietly to herself, and examined the circus critically for a long moment. She could not deny that circus life could be harsh sometimes, as she saw young Klaus dutifully shovelling horse dung, while three other youths teased him and laughed at him. Margali sighed again and shook her head angrily. Klaus Schneider had joined the circus when he ran away from home, just over three weeks ago. He had confided in Margali that he had always considered that there was a certain mystique about joining the circus, but then he admitted that he had quickly discovered that circus life could actually be surprisingly hard work. Klaus was currently muttering curses under his breath, and Margali noticed, as she looked down at his hands, that they were covered in blisters. One of the other boys suddenly grabbed his shovel, and pointed it at him accusingly. "Look at Klaus here," he said jeeringly, "he runs away from home in the hope of finding fame and fortune, but instead ends up covered it dung!"
"Give that back, Hans you're not funny," said Klaus, pointing towards the shovel.
Hans leaned on the shovel and grinned at Klaus mockingly. "Make me," he said.
Margali came up behind Hans, and tapped him angrily on the shoulder. He turned around, and nearly jumped in fright when he saw little Kurti in her arms. Margali grinned at Hans meaningfully. "I would suggest that you return that shovel to Klaus, right this minute, in order to avoid getting into serious trouble with the person in charge of this circus," she told him sternly.
"Right, yes, sorry," Hans said, looking down and handing the shovel back to Klaus, "I was just teasing him, no harm done, sorry."
"Very good," said Margali, and then turned her attention to his two companions, "Haven't you got any work to do?" she demanded.
"Right, yes," one of them said, and a moment later, both of them had vanished into the crowded circus. Margali turned her attention back to Hans; "And that goes for you, too," she added, "and if you haven't, I will be more than happy to find something valuable for you to do."
"Right, sorry Margali," he replied, before running after his two friends.
Margali sighed again, and turned her attention back to where Klaus was smiling at her uncertainly. "Thank you," he said gratefully.
"Just ignore them, they're just looking for someone to tease," Margali told him, as she examined him thoughtfully. There would always be those who would run away from their old lives, and hope to make a new life by joining a circus troupe. Indeed, Margali's own great-grandfather had done exactly that, if the tales her own grandfather had told her were to be believed. Mostly, people ran away and joined a circus after there had been some sort of row or conflict within their own families and home environments. These people nearly always returned back to their old lives once they came to realise that circus life was actually a lot of hard work, rather than being nothing but trapeze artists and applause. However, there were also those who joined the circus in order to escape from abusive or neglectful families. People from that sort of troubled family background hardly ever complained about having to contribute to the upkeep of the circus, and usually became, in time, vital and productive members of the circus troupe.
Then there was Klaus. Margali was not quite sure what to make of his history. Klaus had enjoyed fifteen years with a loving and accepting family, that was, until his mutant power had manifested. Klaus had discovered that he was able to change into the form of a wolf, and the moment he did so, his anti-mutant family had disowned him. From what Margali had gathered, there had been a huge row, and Klaus had been thrown out of his house. His parents had apparently told him that they never wanted to see him again, and so Klaus, clearly stressed and confused, had run away and joined the Szardos Circus. Klaus was, however, still not used to circus life, and Margali had to admit that she was unsure if he would ever learn to adjust to living and working within the circus environment.
Margali looked at Klaus worriedly. "How are you?" she asked.
Klaus shrugged, and sighed. "I'm fine, I guess," he said uncertainly, and then indicated his shovel, "I guess I'm just not very good at this," he admitted.
Margali nodded understandingly, and put a reassuring hand upon his shoulder. "Hans and the others have known nothing but circus life," she told him quietly, "they do not appreciate how difficult it can be, at times, to adjust to a new way of life."
Klaus gave her a small smile. "I am trying," he told her sincerely.
Margali nodded again. "I know," she assured him, "the sad truth is; all circus folk need to be productive and work hard, if the circus itself is going to survive. This is not a charity, if the circus does not earn enough money, we don't eat; it is as simple as that."
Klaus looked at her worriedly. "It's not as bad as that, is it?" he asked uncertainly.
Margali sighed, and gave him a small, reassuring smile. "No, not yet," she admitted, "we're managing to earn enough to cover cost and food, just. We could probably afford to have one bad show, two at the most. If it gets much worse, I will have to get rid of people from the circus, and I really don't want to let anyone go. Everyone within this circus more than carries their own weight."
"Except me," Klaus muttered guiltily.
"It can take time to adjust," Margali assured him, and then indicated the pile of dung, "believe me, you are not being punished, even if it may seem like that, sometimes. I will not ask you to do anything that I have not done myself. The sad truth is, not every aspect of circus life is glamorous."
"I know that now," said Klaus, giving her a weak smile.
Margali smiled at him again, and indicated Kurti in her arms. "I need your help concerning this little one," she told Klaus, "I seem to have discovered a mystery. I believe that the nose of a wolf might help me to solve this mystery."
Klaus grinned happily, clearly feeling suddenly elated that his mutant power might prove to be an asset rather than a liability. "Of course," he said, "I'd love to help." He grinned at Margali mischievously. "Whatever you want me to do, it has to be better than shovelling dung," he said.
