"How exactly did you hurt yourself, dear?", asked Aunt Maya as she rubbed some healing balm into her nephew's side. Pavitr winced in pain and replied, "Falak and his gang jumped me again." It wasn't a complete lie that Pavitr told, just a convenient ruse. He didn't want to tell Aunt Maya and Uncle Bonzu about the fight he had with Falak or the discovery of his newfound powers. Luckily, his sore side provided cover up for his first attempt at web-swinging. Uncle Bonzu sighed, shook his head, and stated, "You know, this really irritates me. I've worked hard to give my family a good life, and I know that Pavitr works hard to be successful in school, and yet he's punished for it by that Falak Thaman. All that little punk's accomplished in his life is beating on kids for their lunch yuans." It was no secret that the Thaman family had their share of problems; the father was considered the laughing stock of the community for his ludicrous attempts to get into the Fire Nation parliament. As a result of this, Falak had been been tormented relentlessly in his youth by the bullies at school. This in turn made Falak into a bully himself and Pavitr his number one punching bag.
Pavitr did feel sorry for how Falak turned out, but he did feel that Falak let too much of his past define who he is now. Pavitr shook those thoughts out of his head and turned his attention on to what to do with his newfound spider powers. I can't just sit around the house with them., Pavitr inner monologued to himself, There has to be something I can do with these powers. Something great. Suddenly, Pavitr's thoughts were interrupted by a knock outside and a cry of, "Mail call! Mail call!" In came Stan the Postman, who said, "Evening, Prabhakars! Just thought I'd drop by for one last load of mail before I turn in for the night." Uncle Bonzu came over to take the post from Stan and said, "Thank you kindly, Stan. You have yourself a good night." Stan chuckled and replied, "Too you as well, Bonzu. Excelsior!" And with that, Stan left the Prabhakar house and made his way home. Aunt Maya adopted a look of puzzlement and asked, "Excelsior?", to which Uncle Bonzu replied, "That's just how Stan is, Maya. Pavitr, would you mind bringing the mail to the kitchen table?" Pavitr nodded and took the mail from his uncle; as he walked into the kitchen however, he noticed an advertisement sticking out of the top of the stack. Shuzumu's Flaming Circus., Pavitr read, Most popular entertainment for Fire Nation families. Includes such spectacular acts as rope walkers, acrobats, and plate jugglers. Also features the largest collection of rare and exotic animals in the Fire Nation. New acrobats are a must. Weekly payment of 50 gold pieces per show. Next performance will be held in Dit-Koh Village.
Pavitr's eyes lit up when he read that part of the advertisement. Dit-Koh Village? That's not far from the island! And 50 gold pieces per show? That's a lot of money!, Pavitr said to himself. He then slinked up to his room, closed the door, and looked at the advertisement again. With that kind of money I could start my own business! Buy a never-ending supply of bubble soap! Rent a small island to fish from on weekends! Pavitr sighed and looked at the door, where he could hear his aunt and uncle having a conversation together. Or I could use it to pay back Uncle Bonzu and Aunt Maya for all the years they've taken care of me. Yeah, that's what I'll do. I'll sneak out later tonight and catch the next ferry to the mainland.
Pavitr had slipped out of the house while Uncle Bonzu and Aunt Maya were asleep, taking great care not to wake them. Although with Uncle Bonzu's snoring, I could have marched out of there blowing a tsungi horn., Pavitr mused to himself as the ferry made it's way across the bay. Along the way, Pavitr had seen an uncommon sight. A massive column of light had erupted from the distance many miles away. "I wonder what that light was all about?", Pavitr asked himself out loud, "Whatever it was, it was powerful enough to set off my spider sense. Spider sense? Hmm, I like that. I'll keep it." Over the hill, Pavitr saw a massive tent that was being put up by several large men. Acrobats were warming up for the evening performance and animal trainers were leading beasts to their pens. Pavitr was so amazed by all the activity around him that he didn't hear a young female voice cry, "LOOK OUT!" The first thing Pavitr felt was a dainty foot colliding with his face which sent him into a topspin backwards where his head then impacted with something soft and yet firm too. The smell coming from it was intoxicating as well, so Pavitr rubbed his nose further into it savoring the sensations.
A throat being cleared brought Pavitr out of his daze as he looked and came nose to nose with a blushing teenage girl. Pavitr then looked down and saw that the thing he had landed on was her toned stomach. He immediately jolted back, falling off the girl, and stuttering, "Oh my gosh! I'm so sorry! Here, let me help you!" He held out his hand for her to take, which she did, before gaining an devious smirk and sending Pavitr rolling back onto the ground. She planted herself firmly on his chest and said, "Now we're even. What's your name, cutie?" Pavitr had never gotten this close to a girl before, so he squeaked out, "Pavitr. Pavitr Prabhakar." The girl giggled at his shyness and said, "Ty Lee." She then got up and offered him her hand, which he took. She pulled him up and asked, "So what brings you to the circus, Mr. Prabhakar?" Pavitr pulled out the advertisement, which was tucked into the waistband of his pants, and showed it to her. "I'm here for the acrobat auditions.", he explained, to which Ty Lee looked him up and down and said, "Not like that you're not. Didn't you read the small print on the advertisement?" Pavitr held it up to look at it again, squinted his eyes, and sure enough, there it was. In very small print was written, Colorful costumes encouraged, and Pavitr let out a groan of disappointment and asked, "Does this mean I can't audition for the circus?"
Ty Lee smiled kindly at him and said, "Don't you worry, my new friend. Lucky for you, I, Ty Lee, the greatest acrobat in the world, am the one in charge of the new acrobat auditions. Before we do anything though, we need to find the right look for you. Follow me this way to the costume tent. We'll find you a good wardrobe." However, before she could lead him to do so, Pavitr grabbed her hand and said, "Wait! I want to show you what I can do first. Maybe that will give you some ideas for a look." Quick as a flash, Pavitr back flipped onto a nearby tree and stuck to it. Next, he shot a web-line onto one of the circus tent flagpoles and stuck the other end to a branch. Pavitr ran across the web-line like a tightrope to the flagpole and stood on it by the tips of his toes in a crouch. Then he shot two webs at two buildings and used them to catapult himself back to the spot where Ty Lee stood. Once he landed, he asked, "Can you handle a contender?" Ty Lee just stood there, jaw dropped and unable to make of the amazing spectacle she had just witnessed.
Next Time: Clothes Make the Spider