A/N Well, I hope you're still enjoying it! I will be adding chapter 3 hopfully within the week. Thank you so much for reading and for your reviews!

Chapter 2

The great tiger in front of him leaned closer to Erik. He closed his eyes, fully expecting to never open them on this earth again. So it came as a great shock of relief when the tiger nuzzled him under his chin, as if to say that they knew he was ok to help their fallen master.

He sighed as he understood and quickly realized that he wasn't sure what to do next. He knew she couldn't stay lying in the field all night if she had a concussion, but he wasn't sure he could carry her all the way to her tent. He was strong and knew that even though she wasn't skinny, he could still probably carry her. But the sleeping tents were on the other side of the camp.

But his worries didn't last long as the girl stirred and slowly opened her eyes. He could see the fear in them as her eyes focused on the white mask. He offered her his hand and she reluctantly took it as he helped her stand.

"Let me see you walk a straight line." He commanded her, taking a few steps back. The girl was obviously still shaken up from waking to see this mysterious man hovering over her and now asking her to do things that made no sense. She obeyed without question.

He stared directly into her incredible eyes to make sure she could focus. Her eyes were wide with still wide with panic, but she held his gaze. Staring straight into his stormy eyes. He almost felt like smiling at seeing she was fine. But instead of smiling a new kind of fear crept into his heart. He didn't understand why he was so relieved that she was ok. It scared him to feel this way. He was terrified that if he gave into them he would soon find himself trapped and unable to stop himself from caring for someone again. Anytime it seemed he would start to care about someone, something awful would happen to them. He was determined not to let that happen again.

"Go home and get some rest." He said suddenly. The harshness of his tone surprising even himself. "And try to be more careful. Don't you know these animals can kill you?" He turned and fled away. Feeling the need to hide in the safety of his tent. He had left too quickly for the girl to be able to say anything, but he felt as though even if he had, she wouldn't have said a word.

The girl was left standing in the field while the two tigers lingered at her feet. She tapped twice on her leg and they followed her contentedly back to their cage. After she had locked the door and was walking back to her tent as commanded, she looked at where the strange man had disappeared as the night engulfed him. She half-smiled at the thought of him helping her.

She had watched him intently almost every night in his performances. But she was always terrified when he saw her that he might get angry at her for staring at him. She had heard that he was a devil and could put curses on people. So when she had woken lying on the ground to see him kneeling beside her, she was afraid that he had cursed her and had come to kill her. But his eyes were what betrayed him. While they might appear to be threatening to anyone else, she could see the compassion in them. They were gentle. Too gentle to be that of a devil, or of anything that could possibly be considered evil.

She had noticed that he did not touch her. At least not that she was aware of. Too often had gypsy men taken advantage of helpless women. But he seamed almost nervous around her.

The girl turned and ran off to her tent. Her heart still racing from the excitement. She was almost sure she would have laughed and told her friends all about it if she had any friends. Or for that matter, if she could talk...

Erik reached his tent out of breath. His head swam with this new feeling. He hadn't meant to let her see him. But for some strange reason, he had wanted her to. He had wanted to see her eyes. And the feeling of her staring back into his was overwhelming.

He threw off his cape and stumbled into his bed of pillows, but sleep would not come and relieve him of his thoughts.

After nearly an hour of tossing and turning, he got up and retrieved a vial from a case of potions he had made. Growing up in a gypsy fair, he had learned to make potions for almost any illness from assorted "witches". They were always eager to teach the strange boy that had a passion for learning. He was even known to make his own potions. The lesser ones he would give to the witches to use in their shows. But most he kept for himself.

Within a few minutes of drinking the sweet tasting liquid, he could feel the effect of drowsiness overtaking him and he laid back down to be taken in by a field of ill-sorted dreams.