I'm so sorry for such a late update. It's hard for me to find time to work on this so please be patient!
4
"What was that all about, Shusei?" Tanaka interrogated. Tanaka caught up with Shusei, who was in his tent, after the show.
"I'm sorry. I wasn't feeling good." He answered simply. Shusei is aware that his answer won't suffice, but he was too tired to try explaining further.
"You are disgraceful! You think you could pull one over on me? You left out your act! Not to mention that your attire is atrocious" Referring to Shusei's wrinkled jacket.
"I'm sorry." Towards the end of the show, Shusei was supposed to have done an act in illusions, but skipped it completely.
Tanaka growls, "I don't have time for this."
Shusei bowed his head in an attempt to look apologetic.
Before he knew it, Shusei was on the ground with a sharp pain running through his jaw. He looked up at Tanaka who's holding a fist in the air.
"Don't you dare disobey me again. The minute you become worthless to me, I'll get rid of you." He didn't bother to stay any longer and left the tent.
Shusei doesn't get up immediately. He opens his mouth a few times to make sure he was okay. Sore, but he was alright, aside from the punch and the fever. He slowly gets up and takes off the jacket and hangs it nicely over the coat rack, although with it being wrinkled, he's not sure why he bothered. He should be heading out to his booth right now, to read fortunes and predict the futures of the clients. Instead, he walks over to his cot and rests, unaware that he was being sought after by a cirque attendee.
...
Hostuma continues to walk quickly through the circus. He can't explain his frustration or anger at not being able to find the boy he's searching for. Hotsuma stumbled upon the area where all the performers are selling merchandise and putting on mini shows for the crowd. All the booths are filled with the actors and spectators, all but one. He looks up at the sign above the empty booth:
Fortune Telling
He walks slowly over to the booth.
There isn't much inside. Through the dim lighting, he could make out a small, square table, two chairs on one side and one chair on the other. And on top of the table, lays a crystal ball.
Could he be the fortune teller?
He stands still inside the booth, distracted by the thought of the boy being a fortune teller.
Hm! Probably just a fraud that tricks people into throwing money at him…
The thought of that boy scamming innocent people irked him a bit.
Suddenly, a cold hand falls on Hotsuma's shoulder, holding him firmly in place. He turns around expecting it to be Kazuki or one of the others, but it was a man he doesn't recognize.
"I'm sorry, sir. Our Fortune Teller seems to be ill." The man with white hair said.
"Oh…it's alright. I was just looking." Hotsuma said, feeling uncomfortable in the man's presence.
"Good. I hope you enjoy the rest of your time at the Cirque." He grins.
Hotsuma nodded.
The man lit a cigar and nodded back. He walked away leaving Hotsuma alone, still inside the fortune telling booth. Hotsuma kept his eyes on the man until he was out of view.
After a moment to let his heart settle from the shock, Hotsuma shook off the meeting with the man and continued to look around the booth. There wasn't anything interesting inside or anything to give away the owners identity. He decided he was only wasting time in the booth and walked out, when a small little box caught his eye. He picked up the box and opened it.
Inside the box is a set of tarot cards. Hotsuma laughs and picks up one card to look at it.
"The Fool?" He read aloud, unaware of the cards meaning. Hotsuma knows nothing about the cards so he places them back in their box and puts it back down.
He never lets the box go and instead of returning it, he places it in his pocket. Hotsuma looks around guiltily, making sure no one saw what he just did.
He steps out of the booth trying his best to act casually and continues to look for the boy.
Hotsuma walks through the crowd of people looking in the background for anyone wearing a green coat with golden trim. After running around in circles and no sign of the boy Hotsuma walked off to the side, out of the way of people, and sat down. In irritation, he threw his head backwards and let out a sigh.
He opened his eyes.
And painted above him on one of the canvas walls was a portrait.
Brown haired boy. Green Jacket with golden trim. Fake smile.
And underneath the picture was a name.
Shusei Tanaka
But Hotsuma felt a sense of familiarity with the name. Has he heard it before? Maybe on television? Or in a magazine?
That can't be it. This show is considered illegal after all. It would not be advertised on television or published in some magazine. Maybe someone else he is acquainted with has the same name?
Hotsuma got up, reenergized now that he has a name, so now there should be nothing stopping him.
...
Shusei was unable to fall asleep. The performer's tents were far away from the main events but it was still too noisy to get restful sleep. The echoes of laughter are enough to drive him insane.
Instead of staying around any longer he decides to leave the camp grounds until most of the people left, even though he isn't feeling well. He walks to the opening of the tent and sticks his head out. No workers are in sight, so he takes a step out of the tent and starts walking towards the borders of the grounds. Despite his illness, he hops the barricade easily and quickly gets out of sight. Shusei doesn't know where he's going or what he will do when he gets there. He just has to be alone.
...
Hotsuma looks through a few more attractions and began to notice the crowds were dying. The cirque must be closing soon; he doesn't have much time left. He curses when he remembers Kazuki and the others. He completely forgot about them. It was too late to worry about them now, they probably already forgot about him.
Hotsuma reminds himself to apologize when he sees them again.
Instead of wasting his time he runs up to the nearest performer. It was Steele, the sword swallower. He was putting away his swords and getting ready to close his booth.
"Hey!" Hotsuma said. He comes off rude even when it's unintentional.
"Can I help you?" Steele asked, used to dealing with people of all kinds.
" Uh…" How does he put it? "I'm looking for Shusei, where can I find him?"
"He should be in the Fortune Telling booth." Steele replied, his hand waving in the appropriate direction.
"It's empty. He isn't there."
"Well, then I'm sorry. He must be busy." Steele was paying more attention to his swords than Hotsuma.
"But it's important! I have to-"
"Important business with a Fortune Teller?" Steele raised an eyebrow.
"No! It's not like that. It's just…Is there anything you can do?!" Hotsuma short fuse was burning fast.
Hotsuma's tone got Steele's attention. The blond boy looks serious and Steele wasn't the kind of person to just let someone in need be left behind. He locked up his swords and faced Hotsuma, "You won't leave me alone until you see him, will you?" It was a rhetorical question, "Alright then, follow me."
Hotsuma doesn't allow a triumphant smile to appear on his face. He follows a few paces behind Steele, who led him to an area where patrons weren't allowed.
Steele stops near a line of large tents, "See the tent at the end. That's Shusei's." He pointed towards the last tent, with its lights still on, "Make it quick though, you shouldn't be back here."
Hotsuma nodded, "Thanks." He added quietly.
Steele waves and walks back to clean up his station. Hotsuma blushes, embarrassed at having to have Steele escort him to Shusei's tent. Hotsuma knows how irrational this whole situation is.
Hotsuma looks to the tent on the end.
How can anyone live here?
He walks quietly towards the tent. He passes by the other tents and can see silhouettes of the people inside them. He slows down to silence his footsteps. He can't afford to get caught now.
Hotsuma stops at the last tent.
So Shusei's there…
Hotsuma holds up a fist like he was prepared to knock and holds in a pathetic laugh. Instead he grabs hold of the fabric of the tent and pulls it aside just enough to look inside.
It's empty.
Surprised at not seeing anyone, he pulls the fabric harshly out of the way.
He's not here!
Hotsuma abruptly steps inside, hoping he missed him.
Nope.
The tent is small. Just a bed and some shelves.
"Damn it!" Hotsuma hissed. He looks around the room, curiously. He knows he should feel bad for snooping, but it doesn't stop him. He sees it as an opportunity to learn more about the boy. Hotsuma walks over to the shelf where a couple of books lay. He picks one up and is surprised to see that it was a book on philosophy. Another one was a novel he doesn't recognize, but judging by the size, it's a little over his head.
Seems like a smart guy…
Underneath the pile of books was a sheet of paper. Not having learned much about him through the books he reads, he reaches for it.
Sheet music…
Hotsuma looks around the room, expecting to see an instrument to accompany the sheet music. The music looks complex and Hotsuma wonders if Shusei could really play this.
He sets the paper down on top of the books. There was nothing left to look at besides some clothes in the corner. The whole place looks run down and Hotsuma doesn't want to stay any longer, especially if Shusei isn't here. He checks his cell phone and realizes it's almost one o'clock in the morning. He remembers overhearing someone in the crowd mention that the cirque will be here another few days, with another show tomorrow night. Rather than staying here, acting like some stalker, Hotsuma decides to come back tomorrow, and next time, he won't lose sight of the ringmaster.
...
It seems to be a ritual now. After every show, Shusei needs to be left alone. After hearing the cheers and laughter he needs silence. That's not something that can be found within cirque grounds.
Every other performer and stage hand knows they won't find their ringmaster after a show.
Shusei isn't aware of the time. All the work he must do for the cirque made him able to work hard off of very little sleep, but that combined with his fever, has taken a toll. He was able to get through the show, but just barely.
The walk back to his tent was uneventful. Everyone else was asleep and it was dark, but he never has any problems navigating through the dark. The only light left came from the small lamp from his tent that he leaves on.
He walks in and stops.
Something seems off, though he doesn't know what at first.
Nobody comes into another's tent without asking. Nobody but Tanaka.
He walks over to his desk and picks up the sheet music that was lying on top of the books. He remembers leaving it underneath the books.
Who came here?
As much as the thought of someone coming in his tent bothers him, he doesn't have the energy to get angry. He sets the books down as he had them earlier and falls into his bed.
He's only got a few more days to go before they're on the road again. Tomorrows the last show, and hopefully, Shusei has time to rest.
The tarot card "The Fool" is sometimes seen as a warning that significant change is coming. Another interpretation is that taking risks or confronting fears.
Thanks for reading!