Chapter 6

The next two days were torture for me, there was nothing to keep my mind off my awful dreams. The dream scared me and that is something I would not admit lightly to anyone. I needed to know if I could trust Darren. I needed to know if this boy would kill me without putting my life at any risk…

Yet it seemed that he would not last too long any way since he still had not had human blood. I kept out of Darren's way, not out of kindness—I was worried he would try and knife me. However, my inner voice was bugging me. My conscience seemed to tell me I was not doing the right thing about this. My chance came when I saw a familiar figure arrive.

Cormac Limbs, ((a man who could re-grow limbs)) had finally arrived…the show would start tonight…

It was a pure guess ofcourse that we would be performing, but Mr Tall is someone who always wants to be working, In fact I never have ever seen him simply relaxing. It is as though he is avoiding something in his life…that relaxing will make him think of something awful like a past memory. Ofcourse I have never spoken on it. I dare not too. I do not want to become enemies with him.

I had not spoken to Mr Tall since Mr Tiny arrived two days before but I too get the feeling that what Tiny had said before I had entered had also given Tall nightmares.

I went to see him about tonight's show and he sighed when he saw me, "Evening Larten…"

"Evening Hiberinus…" I told him, I could tell he was not his usual self but that did not stop me from asking. "Is the show going on tonight?"

He nodded, "It is indeed, I know how eager you are to get back on stage…"

I nodded to smiling weakly "eager indeed…" I muttered and sighed, "Hiberinus—I—well—What Desmond said to me—I wanted to ask—do you think Darren would—kill me?"

Mr Tall sat down and I at first did not know if he had heard me, I went to talk again but Mr Tall finally started speaking.

"The boy has guts…" muttered Tall, "more guts than I thought he had the first time we met at the Cirque…" he sighed and looked up at me, "but I don't think he would kill you unless you gave him reason too…"

I noticed Mr Tall's gaze it was sorrowful as though this news he was telling me and the question I asked were simple and boring, "Hiberinus…do you think I should test him?"

Tall looked at me, sighing again, "I cannot force you Larten, you must decide on how fickle trust between you are…but like I said, I wouldn't give him reason to kill you…"

I nodded and breathed deeply, "I will speak to you later Hiberinus," I said and he nodded in reply and I walked out, a plan of action forming in my head.

"Polish Madam Octa's cage and then clean yourself up you are going on with me!"

I watched Darren's expression as I told him part of my plan, his face had lit up like a Christmas tree, "you mean I'm going to be part of the act!" he said eagerly. I nodded seeing the delight on face made me feel worse about tricking him, but I had to know if I could trust him.

"It is a small part…" I told him, trying to make him less proud about his new role at the Cirque. "You can bring on the cage and play the flute when it is time for Madam Octa to spin a web over my mouth."

"Mr Tall normally does that doesn't he?" he asked and I nodded,

"Normally…but we are short on performers so he will be performing himself, and besides," I said with a smirk, "you are better suited to assisting than him"

Darren looked at me strangely and I wanted to laugh at his expression, "How so?" he asked and I gestured to the mirror behind him as I spoke. "You look creepier, with that pale face and that awful suit you like something out of horror film!"

When he looked into the mirror…his face was priceless…I stifled a snigger as he looked depressed at the look of his appearance, and I reminded him about my spiders cage whilst I went to practice. However, I was not practicing…I milked the poison out of Madam Octa's fangs…well enough so that after she'd killed the goat, if the spider bite me then I would only pass out for an hour or so.

I finished up milking the spider, just as Darren came back in the room, about 5 minutes before the show began, ready to start. "Sam and RV are going to be seeing the show" he told me as we got ready.

At first I was confused, then I remembered, Sam was the human in the nearby town Evra and Darren had befriended, and RV if I remembered rightly after Darren telling me yesterday was on of the NOP foot soldier.

I smiled, "That's good to hear…" I replied. "I am sure you will put on a good performance for them," I said, trying to hide how nervous I was about what could be my last few kind words with Darren, because if he does try to kill me, that means that I cant let him live much longer. No matter how much I care for the boy. If there is no trust between teacher and student, they should not be master and student to begin with.

It was time to begin, and we both went on after Truska, and as I started performing, I always kept one eye on Darren whilst he looked in the crowd. I saw both RV and Sam in the crowd, Sam looked around 10 years old, a face on delight and fear on his face at the presence of the spider and myself. Next to him was a rugged looking man with wide eyes…not alike Sam's whose were wide with joy, but wide with real horror…true horror. As the goat was killed I knew that the man was still stunned.

I turned my thoughts back to the spider-- I waited for the tingle of Madam Octa's legs crawling on my arms…. She scuttled down my shoulder, up my neck across my face, dangled from my chin from her thin line of strong webbing and then I did something that made the audience quiver in fear and then as I did before for Darren and for many other people. I threw my head back, the spider on my mouth, and Darren's test had begun.

I had hands by my side, nothing to defend myself, my mind begging Darren to not try and kill me…It was half way through spinning the web, I saw his pupils dilate for a reason I knew…he knew he could kill me now and get away with it. If he just played a wrong note, Madam Octa would be able to kill me, ofcourse, he hadn't known about my milking the poison…but that just made his decision either save me or kill me.

But he didn't kill me.

He played as well as anyone could.

He had past the test.

My mind was put to rest.

As we walked out, I knew I had to tell Darren about the test, I would feel guilty otherwise about betraying his trust. He looked as relieved as I was to be off the stage…the test had make him think deeper about what it was to kill anyone.

"You thought about killing me…" I said softly to the boy, who turned toward me playing dumb.

"What do you mean?" he asked, his face quite pale, because he knew that I knew that I could have died…that I had trusted him with my life…

"You know what I mean, it would not have worked…" I said. I stopped--and took a deep breath, "I milked her fangs before we went on, killing the goat took the rest out of her…"

Darrens look became a stare. "It was a test?" he said disbelievingly. His eyes were wide with hate by now, "I thought you were being nice to me!" he said, my face turned grave at the words. "And all the time it was a rotten test!" he cried out at me.

I sighed…trust was a fickle thing…Mr Tall was right…I should not have given him reason NOT to trust me…"I had to know…" I admitted, "I had to know if I could rely on you…"

His eyes were dark now, he tried going eyeball to eyeball with me…not that he needed to. His frown made me feel bad enough as it was with him trying to act older.

"Well listen to this!" he said angrily, "I didn't kill you last time, but If I ever get the chance again I'll take it!" he growled, and stormed past me out of the tent…I watched as he left and sighed.

I hope he understands that I only wanted to know the truth…I would have hated to live in fear of deceit…and for him vice versa…from then on I swore to tell him the truth…Or as much as I could.

Authors Note:

OMG! I don't believe how well this story is doing, I mean, I love writing it, since Larten my fav char, but almost 70 reviews! WOW! I mean, that's the most for any stories I've written, thanks to all of you have reviewed…I owe you all so much joy when I check my mail, they'll be more of the story soon I promise, but I've only done 3 more chapters of this and then I have to write a lot my chapters for a lot more DS books, so I'm spreading it out, I'm also really busy, over the summer is guaranteed that I'll do more writing!

A special thanks to Becki-Chan who started this story with the idea and the first chapter and to my friends and family who have supported me! Hope you like the rest of the book

Cheers everybody!

PS: If you like Darren Shan's vampire saga, read his other books LORD LOSS first of the DEMONATA SAGA now out in the UK It's great!