Hey guys ! Earlier update 'cause I'll be too busy tomorrow. Hope you enjoy !

Chapter 3
The traveling circus

He was feeling bad. He was feeling really bad. He had not known such guilt in years, but still it was drowned under the thrill of adventure, prohibition, and this surge of freedom.

He had kept the circus ad on him and had waited to go back to the farm in the evening so he could think it over. The village wanted to keep the secret of what had happened to the pond, they didn't want rumors to spread about a curse or the 'ice demon'. So going to see the circus was risky, and dangerous. Then why did he want this so bad ? To commit the forbidden ? In try to escape, if just for one night, this cold and hostile mood he had been living through since the accident ? Or simply just for fun, to prove himself he was still alive ?

He didn't know why exactly, only that he had taken the risk. And here he was in the forest, at the beginning of the night, walking the path heading from his village to Burgess. He was wearing the same outfit as usual, the same pants ripped at the bottom, the same strippes around the calves to try and keep the pants in place, the same a-bit-too-large shirt, the same hooded cape to hide his face. But what was making him feel so guilty was the handful of coins he had stolen from Jonathan, along with the dye for clothes he had taken from Mary's belongings in try to make his hair look a natural color.

He was afraid of the following day. He was afraid Jonathan would notice the missing coins – if the boy managed to not spend everything at the circus – and he was afraid the dye would not wash off. This brownish color had turned his hair almost back to their original color, and he knew looking that much like their supposedly-deceased son was not going to please the couple. He was fearing a violent reaction from Jonathan, and he didn't want to see Mary's heartbreak. It was because he was scared out of his mind of the following day, that he decided to fully enjoy this night.

When he was younger, on several occasion he had accompanied his mother to the city, so he knew where to head, even if the forest was dark and gloomy by night. It didn't took long for him to cross it and follow the city's lights, however he didn't need to enter it as he saw people leaving it to follow another path to the woods. A distant music was playing, and other lights piercing through the trees. It had to be the circus.

A large smile spread on the boy's pale face, before he swiftly followed a five-person family on the path. The kids seemed to be roughtly ten to twelve years old, except for the younger who was six at most. He felt his heart sink as he compared the excited giggle of the girl to Emma's own laughter. She also had the same way of pulling her mother's hand in try to go on an adventure.

The boy lowered his head and slowed down his steps so he could put some distance between this family and him, hoping that would be enough to sooth his nostalgia. His thoughts roamed so much he ended up loosing the group. He sighed and told himself it was no big deal, he didn't need them to find his way to the circus. He just had to follow the lights.

So he kept on walking the path, slowly growing back to enthusiasm and thrill as the music was getting louder. Soon, two tall torches came into view, marking the entrance of the circus judging by the signs they were lighting up. His smile came back to life and he quickened his steps to enter, but someone stepped in to block him.

The young woman, who seemed in her early twenties, was not much impressive. Granted she was taller than the boy, but she was not very large. Okay, she was clearly larger than the skinny boy, but she was far from bulky. Her long braided blond hair reeked fish oil and her smirk didn't seem a good omen.

''Hi kiddo, you seem young for a circus like this. We don't do child price.''

The pale boy felt a bit relieved this woman could be part of the circus troup, for a second he had thought she just wanted to mug him or extort money from him. Still he didn't like her last statement. He knew he had juvenile traits that made him look younger than he was, but still he was seventeen. He was not a child anymore. By the way, he would turn eighteen in a couple of months, even if he knew noone at the village would throw a party for his birthday. His parents would light up a candle but it would only be to honour their dead son. Ignoring the stinging pain these thoughts was waking up, he clenched his fists and focused back on the present.

''I'm not a child.'' He muttered.

''Good,'' the blonde snickered as she presented him a jar full of coins. ''If you insist, kid, it's four copper per entry.''

''Oh, the entry… Of course…''

''If you don't have money-''

''I do, I do.''

He rummaged under his cape in search for his purse. The blonde eyed him, blased, and even forced a yawn to rush him. After finding and counting the coins, the boy felt bad as he realised he didn't have enough. Among those he had taken from Jonathan, there were only three copper, and as much silver.

''Huh… Can we maybe trade ?''

The blonde lifted an eyebrow and just shook the jar in reply.

''I don't give change, but silver will do.''

''But you just said it was four copper per entry, one silver is worth ten ! You have enough change in this pot to-''

''Yes.''

It was hard to imagine one word would contain so much meaning, but this woman managed to. In just one word, she made it clear she had enough money to give change, but was not willing to do it. Her smirk widened and the boy realised that, despite working for the circus, she was still aiming to extort money from him. He rolled his eyes. Well, at least there was less chance Jonathan would notice one missing coin – even silver – than four. The worst part was that he knew his father would have gladly given them to Emma and him so they could see the circus. But that time was done.

So he gave in and dropped the coin in the jar. The blonde snickered and stepped aside, mimicking a bow.

''Have fun, kiddo.''

He barely managed to bit back a curse. After all, he had came to have fun, not troubles. So he decided to forget this mishappen and took a deep breath before making his way to the tall tent where cheers and applauses could be heard. The show was starting, visibly, he could only hope not having missed much.

He ran as fast as he could to reach the tent at the end of the path, surrounded by torches and lantherns which seemed to mystify it in the night. He entered and spotted the crowd surrounding what lookd like a circle traced in the dirt. Logs had been cut and placed all around it in rows, used as seat by the sparse audience. By the other side of the circle were hanging reddish curtains, certainly leading to the backstage.

A woman was standing in the middle of the circle, speaking loud and clear to greet the public.

''Welcome tot he Hooligan Circus ! Welcome all to the most amazing night of all your life !''

The boy didn't wait longer and swiflty made his way so he could find a seat as close as possible. The first row was complete, so he resigned on second row but tried to find a place behind someone shorter than him so he could see the show. When he finally settled behind a couple in which the man was a head taller than him – it was the least bad place he could find – he leant a bit on the side to look at the speeching woman, and marvelled at her appearance.

She was tall and slim, elegant, and her face was radiant despite a few wrinkles and greyish hair adorning her dark-auburn braids. The braids were uneven but still beautiful, and so long they were hanging behind her back, falling down to her knees.

Her clothes were humble but different from the ones that could be found at Burgess. It was made of leather, green whool and a dark fur was wrapped around her right shoulder and her waist, kept in place by a belt with celtic patterns. Her pale skin was clearly not used to the sun and gave her some noble and delicate flaw. As her eyes, it was filled with kindness but authority at the same time.

''Ladies and gentlemen, it is with greatest pleasure that we present you our artists tonight. Starting with Snotlout, the strongest man of the world !''

''Snotlout, Snotlout ! Oi, oi, oi !'' A man shouted as he pushed through the curtains.

The hooded boy watched him in amazement. The dark-haired man didn't seem tall, he barely reached the woman's shoulders, but he was nothing if muscular. The thickness of his arms and the widst of his shoulders were living up to the title. He took a few minutes to stroll around the stage, showing off his muscles and basking in the public's praises. He seemed a bit full of himelf and really enjoyed the cheers, to the extend the woman had to discreetly prompt him to start his act.

The young boy got impressed more than once, especially when the man broke a log with his bare hands. He ended his act by carrying the ringmistress on his shoulder, lifting her as if she was a feather. She seemed amused while he was roaring this praise he seemed to want the public to chant. The boy joined in the other spectators, clapping and chanting and cheering.

''Snotlout, Snotlout, oi, oi, oi !''

The bulky man flexed his arm and kissed his biceps before winking to a group a young women swooning at him, then he disappeared behind the curtains.

''Now presenting Astrid and Eret, our talented knife throwers ! Beware their perfect aim !''

Two people entered the stage. The woman had thin arms but they were sculpted like stone, her rounded face was graceful but threathening with her scowl and piercing eyes. Mid-long blond hair was hanging in a braid on her back. The man was tall and large, he had a lot of muscles but it was obvious Snotlout had more (judging by their height). His tan skin, jet black hair and darker eyes proved he was not coming from the same region than the others, and certainly not from Burgess.

The boy then wondered where this circus was traveling to, how many places they had visited, if they had already explored the whole world or were wanting to. This kind of life had to be wonderful, always on the go, noone to tell you how you have to behave, noone to know your past or be afraid of a supposed curse… He was so deep in thoughts and daydreaming he missed the two firsts throw of knifes. He could only see the result. The man had placed himself in front of a wood-board painted with a target, a knife was jabbed next to his left ear while the second one had stabbed an apple balanced on his right shoulder.

The young blonde woman, Astrid, threw three other knives scaringly close to her teamate, including one in-between his legs, before they exchanged their spots. The following throws were as impressive, stabbing violently the wood, so close to the woman it was a miracle she had not been scratched in the process. It was dangerous, but no accident occured. It was obvious they mastered this art. Torrent of applauses and cheers filled the tent when the two performers bowed and left.

Other shows followed, there was a redhead man juggling with flaming hoops, a raven-haired woman dancing with a long inflamed staff, making it twirl around her. The spectators were halfway between hysteria and wonder when the ringmistress came back to the stage to present the following act.

''Thank you so much for this warm welcome, dear public. We have one last performance to present to you, but I would rather warn you first. This one is dangerous and will require your participation. It is important you stay afar and avoid any sudden movement.''

Some whispers began in the crowd around the boy, he heard a few words and understood people were excited about this show. The couple in front of him was almost writhing in anticipation. The ringmistress opened up her arms wide and smiled.

''And now, please welcome our dragon tamer, Horrendous !''

The boy held his breath without his control. It was the dragons' turn, he couldn't believe it. Actually, he couldn't believe he would see real, living, flesh and bones dragons. He had always thought they were just legends, even if many stories were talking about them, some of them pretending a lot of them were living in the northern territories. While the circus' ad was clearly mentioning dragons, the boy had expected it to be creatures looking like dragons, not real dragons.

When the curtains opened up to reveal another performer, the man surprisingly wasn't living to the title of dragon tamer. Like the other performers, he seemed to be in his early twenties. One could say it would take someone as tall as Eret and as strong as Snotlout to tame a fire-breathing, flying creature, but the young man who had just stepped in was nothing like this.

He was tall, not as much as Eret, but still, but he was more like the lanky type. Still, looking closely, his frame was athletic and strong enough to make a skinny boy like the white-haired one, jealous. The tamer's unruly hair made him look rebelious, the torches shining in his auburn hair. His face was dotted with an impressive among of freckles, and his eyes looked a lot like the ringmistress'. Actually, his whole face did. The hooded boy could have wonder if they were related, if only he was not gaping at this young man. His heart had strangely started to bounce and beat faster, as if he had run without moving.

When the dragon tamer started to speak, his voice surprisingly soft but still clear, a bit nasally, he instantly caught the public's attention.

''Welcome all ! The following act is extremely dangerous, it can even cost lives, so I'm asking you to not try and reproduce it ! The gods gifted me with this gift, and I have practiced for years. Now, please keep in mind our ringmistress' warnings : keep your distance, stay calm, no sudden moves and no loud noises.''

Then the dragon tamer starter his show, and the young boy didn't loose a second of it. The curtains opened up wider and a cage came in, pushed by Eret, Snotlout and Astrid. The three seemed barely strong enough for the weight of what was hidden inside the veiled cage. When the device found its place next to the tamer, he pulled at the slightly smoking fabric and unveiled the creature.

The cage seemed a bit small for such a huge beast, bumping its sides against the bars while roaring and grunting. All the spectators could really see of it was its huge size, red scales adorning black stripes, and two big ember eyes. The beast wiggled, bumping so hard the cage nearly toppled over. Horrendous waited for it to tire itself before cautiously stepping closer, lifting a hand and presenting his palm.

''It's okay.'' He said, his voice so soft the hooded boy felt like melting.

He wondered how it was possible to have such kindness and compassion in one's voice, and adressing it to a creature that seemed that wild and ferocious. Although… looking closely at the dragon, the boy thought he could see another kind of behavior than fury and barbary. He saw something more like discomfort and a bit of fear. Though that fear disappeared from the yellow eyes as they landed on the tamer's opened hand, now that close to the cage the dragon could have easily biten it off if he had wanted to.

Much to the public's astonishment, the dragon and the tamer stared at each other, then the beast lowered its head, closing its eyes, allowing the young man to rest his hand on its snout. A common gasp echoed among the crowd, all captivated in a mixture of horror and wonder as the tamer opened up the cage.

He freed the beast, which stepped calmly out of it, following the hand still resting on its snout. Once fully out of the cage, unveiling its huge stature – giant in length, width and wingspan – Horrendous lowered his hand, guiding the creature to lay on the ground, where it remained obediently. The way the beast dropped its head almost looked like it was blased.

Horrendous then flashed a smile and allowed the crowd to applause lowly, calmly enough not to scare the beast. And the show was not over, because the tamer climbed on the dragon's back and made it took off. They swirled above the crowd, taking use of the tent's height, before landing back at the stage, where the cage was being put away behind the curtains. By the end of the show, Horrendous even made the dragon bow, the beast seemed to enjoy the praising cheers following.

Then, all of a sudden, Horrendous flashed the brightest smile and asked with a lot of enthusiasm :

''Now who wants to pet a dragon ?''

Instantly, the public fell silent and froze in fright. Everything was soundless and unmoving, save from a young hooded boy who lifted his hand without the slightest hesitation, almost bouncing on his seat.

''Oh, me ! Me !''

However his smile vanished as he noticed everyone had turned to him, wide eyed and shocked. He tensed and shrunk on himself, checking his hood by reflex as he worried someone had seen his unusual hair. Until he reminded himself he had dyed it in brownish chestnut. When he met the astonished gaze of the tamer, he realised this reaction was not due to his unusual-but-still-hidden appearance, but to him volunteering with such excitement. Where everyone was reluctant and scared, he had almost begged to volunteer. It was a shock for the crowd, and a pleasant surprise for Horrendous judging by his smile. It looked like he was expecting nobody to want and come near the dragon.

''Come here, then,'' the tamer claimed. ''Let's see if you're still as brave up close to the beast.''

His tone was full of teasing, still his smile was saying how pleased he actually was. The boy felt his heart skip a beat and didn't wait to join the stage. However, he suddenly felt nervous as he found himself in front of Horrendous. Granted the young man was lanky and seemed thin from afar, but up close it was clear he was working out. More than the boy had suspected at first. Up close, the boy could see his forest green eyes sparkling, along with constellations of freckles dotting his sunkissed cheeks and nose.

The auburnet was taller than him, to the point the ice blue eyes were aligned to a pair of thin lips surrounding slightly crooked teeth. Above all, the boy was so close he could smell the tamer's scent. It was peculiar, Horrendous was infused with the smell of pines, of fresh leather, and some smoked smell that surely came from the dragons. Mixed with the warmth coming from the tamer's body, this smell made the boy a bit dizzy and tainted his face with a light blush, though he tried to keep his composure.

Horrendous seemed completely oblivious of it and gave him a welcoming smile, extending his hand for a shake.

''What's your name, kid ?''

Once more, the boy winced at being called like that, so he frowned a bit as he shook this hand, and marvelled at how warm it felt compared to his.

''I'm Jack.''

His own answer stunned him. It had been so long he had not heard his name, it had fallen into oblivion after the accident and had been replaced by so many mean names, but still it had came out of his mouth effortlessly, as if he had never forgotten it. The name seemed to come back from the dead, spreading an odd warmth in his chest. He tried his best to hide these inner thoughts and stay focused. He didn't want to attract attention by reacting this weirdly to his own name. So he squinted his eyes and smirked before adding :

''And I'm not a kid.''

Horrendous chuckled at that before releasing the boy's hand, not making any comment on how cold it was. Something shone in the green eyes, something the boy couldn't explain.

''Fine, Jack. What do you think about dragon ?''

''They're incredible ! Especially this one. It's the first time I see a flesh and bone dragon but there's even more impressive than I thought they would be.''

He wanted to come closer to the dragon, but said beast met his eyes and growled lowly, efficiently stopping him in his tracks. Horrendous got amused but placed a hand on his mouth, visibly trying to hide his smile and stay serious.

''If you really think so, then it would be my pleasure to help you pet this one.''

The boy looked back to the tamer, a wide smile lighting up his pale face while excitement and joy were growing back inside of him. The auburnet noticed it and chuckled again, Jack found the slightly nasally sound charming and calming, but he didn't have much time to appreciate it as Horrendous turned to the dragon.

''Stay where you are, Jack.'' He said over his shoulder. ''I'll bring him to you. Huh… You should remove your hood, the dragon will feel more at ease if he can see your face.''

The boy tensed by reflex, before reminding himself he had dyed his hair. Granted he had hidden the weirdest trait of his uncommon appearance, but he was still as pale as death and still having unusual ice eyes. He felt the weight of the public's stare on his back as well as on the tamer and dragon. He felt more and more self-conscious, but still obliged. After all, Horrendous was right : the dragon must be wary of his hidden face, but wouldn't he be even more of his icy gaze ? He tried to convince himself the tamer was going to make sure everything would be alright.

He took a deep breath and lowered his hood. The lack of gasps or horrified scream from the crowd reassured him about the credibility of his dye, and helped him gather his courage. His heart was racing in his chest, he tried all his might to contain his nervousness and focused on Horrendous and the dragon. Maybe he could forget his discomfort if he imagined there was only the three of them in this tent ? Soon, his gaze left the beast to wonder on the young man caressing it to sooth it.

Horrendous was more mature than Jack, that for sure, still he didn't seem older than twenty years. Twenty one at most. Surely the maturity was due to his lithe muscles and the few scars adorning his chin and hands. Looking closely, Jack noticed there was something odd with his boots. Actually, it was not even a boot the tamer was wearing on his left foot. He didn't even have a left foot, but instead some piece of metal, leather and wood which seemed to replace a missing foot. The boy wondered what had happened to his leg before blushing harder as his eyes wondered by the tamer's butt.

He quickly averted his eyes as his heart decided to make a few loops. As he managed to focus back on the dragon, he noticed it had pressed its snout against Horrendous' palm, who was smiling at him over his shoulder. Jack marvelled at how this simple smile managed to ease down his embarrassment and nervousness. He even found himself smiling back.

''Now present him your palm, and close your eyes. You have to show him that you're not a threat, and that you trust him.''

The boy nodded and obeyed. Despite himself, his heart rate quickened as he closed his eyes and was surrounded by darkness. The feeling of cold grew around him as grim memories were trying to creep back. The biting cold, the pressure of water all around him, forcing its way through his nose and mouth, in his throat and lungs. His body tensed and his shoulders went rigid as fear was slowly folding its cold claws in his flesh. He completely forgot where he was, it felt like going back through time to this tragic moment when his life had been completely turned over for the worst. For a second, he swore he was back in the depths of that frozen pond.

Until the feeling suddenly vanished. The cold got wiped away by a warm aura coming near him. Instantly, the tension left his body, he almost blenched as he heard Horrendous' voice speak to him, very close, just to his left.

''Do you trust me ?''

Jack softly blew the breath he had held without noticing, then nodded as a reply, whispering 'yes'. He smiled faintly as he heard another chuckle from the tamer, the warm breath tickling his temple and ear.

''Good. Don't move and, above all, don't start, okay ?''

''Okay.''

The young boy did as he was told and remained perfectly still. He didn't have to wait for long before something warm and coarse pressed against his palm. Even though he had never touched a dragon before, nor even seen one in flesh and bones, he knew it was the creature's snout.

He made sure to keep a steady breath and not to move, then felt the snout press harder against his hand. His fingers slowly closed around it, he could feel the heat radiating from the dragon along with vibrations coming along a soft noise it made.

Before Horrendous could allow him to open his eyes, he did so and met the dragon's gaze. The big ember eyes were staring back at him, pupils wide and rounded making it look more cute than feral. It made him smile, and even more as he noticed Horrendous' hand was gone. The tamer had brought the dragon to him and estimated there was no danger to let them both together. He was still standing next to Jack, slightly behind him, but he was giving them their moment. Jack could still feel the young man's heat behind him, giving him chills along the back and the arm. His heart beat faster, filling his whole chest with warmth unknown for years.

''Do you feel it ?'' Horrendous asked in a whisper.

Jack looked at him, puzzled. He was not sure what the tamer was talking about, but his eyes were shining and so full of emotions, and hope. The light from the torches and lantherns was flickering in the green irises, making this gaze more intense. Jack was rendered speechless, it felt like Horrendous was inspecting his whole soul, searching for something. As the boy was not answering, the tamer insisted.

''Do you ?''

''I…''

A quick look at the dragon proved that Horrendous was talking about it, so Jack focused back on it, while it was still staring at him. For a moment, he dove into the amber yellow, which he found less intimitating than the tamer, but just as intense. He got astonished as he realised they also were full of emotions, and intelligence. He realised the creature in front of him was more than a beast, an animal, it was an intelligent and sensible being.

''Wow…'' He breathed, smiling. ''Hi.''

The dragon slowly blinked and let out another vibrating sound. The lack of reaction from Horrendous was a good sign, still Jack could still feel the gaze weight on him. Remembering the tamer's question he had left with no answer, he tried to put his swirling thoughts into words, and that came out as a whisper.

''I feel… His strength, his intelligence… I feel… I feel some kind of… connexion. A soul.''

He cast a curious glance to the tamer to check his reaction, and saw his green eyes light up, just before he flashed a bright smile. He seemed more than pleased with Jack's answer, then stepped back and turned to the public, opening his arms wide in a gesture that reminded Jack of the ringmistress.

''The dragon has been tamed !''

The spectators cheered anew, visibly flabbergasted by the success of the act, as if they had been expecting it to go down. Horrendous bowed and focused back on Jack, a huge smile on his face as he made a gesture towards the crowd, inviting him back to his seat. The boy hesitated and looked back to the dragon, he still had his hand on his snout. He met his eyes and, for a second, he swore he had seen sadness in the amber eyes.

Horrendous softly took his hand off the dragon, who straightened his head and long neck and found himself so tall both young men in front of him had to lift their head to look at him. Jack's jaw dropped in wonder and the dragon seemed to take it as a compliment because he warbbled. The tamer smiled and patted his flank, then turned to the crowd and lifted Jack's hand in triumph. More cheers errupted, then Horrendous pulled at Jack's wrist to prompt him.

''You can go back to your seat. Thank you for volonteering.''

The boy's heart skipped a beat as he sensed the genuine gratefulness in the tamer's voice, making him smile.

''Thank you for letting me pet him.''

Horrendous smiled back and, in this moment, Jack felt like another connexion had just formed, this time with the auburnet. For a second, he thought he saw the green eyes shift lower on his face, but he convinced himself it was just his imagination. Because there was no way it had really happened. And even if it did, that wouldn't lead anywhere.

Even if the tamer could happen to like him this way, he would certainly change his mind once he learnt what Jack was, once he learnt about his curse, once he learnt he was potentially a demon having possessed a drowned body in a frozen pond. This thought broke his heart and killed his mood. As he let go of Horrendous' hand to go back to his seat, the lack of warm aura gave him the feeling of diving back into the freezing depth.

35