Another chapter is here! Gomenasai! I was having a major writer block for this uwaaa so that's why I took quite a while... T^T

Thank you Laurelei, alysson. montez.9, marine peron, two guests and especially BeautifulLini for the reviews! :) Many thanks to all for faves and follows, it means a lot to me! There are only a couple more chapters to go before this fic ends. Until then, please stick with me all the way, ne? (=^･^=)

~ Chapter 11 Unaware Danger ~

Nike was lost.

Her legs kept moving forward despite having absolutely no idea where she was in this chaotic place. But she has to move along with the crowd. No, she was forced to. Those people behind were pushing her forward roughly as they grew even more excited to see the circus. Her womanly strength couldn't be matched to the strength of the hundreds of people.

She really hoped that she could find Livi quickly before the show starts. After all, she really wanted to watch it with him.

"Hey, move faster!" Someone behind snapped at her slowness and she cringed.

"S-sorry, eek!"

Her feet shuffled forward and she accidentally tripped over her own feet. She fell forward and landed on her knees, scraping her palms on the floor as she tried to brace for the impact. Even though she has stopped, the others were still moving past her. Someone's leg hit the side of her head and another stepped on her hand.

"Oww!"

She grabbed her injured hand back and clutched it to her chest painfully. It was stinging quite badly. She sat there helplessly as more people moved past her and she received a few more hits.

A hand shot out from somewhere and grabbed her uninjured arm. She didn't have any time to react before that person began pulling her out from the throng quickly. She felt herself landing straight into somebody's broad chest and she looked up curiously, only to find herself locking eyes with an unfamiliar person.

"Who are you?"

~ oOo ~

"Dammit, how am I going to find her in this crowd?" Livi muttered in exasperation.

He ruffled his hair in frustration. Swept in by the crowd, he now found himself standing at the bottom of the stairs and very close to the stage. It was a big, circular platform with props already laid out properly. Surrounding the stage were the audience's seats. At this moment, many were scrambling to get the best seats so as to catch a great view of the performances later.

Nike, where was she? Was she safe? He was starting to get worried, not because he didn't trust that she couldn't take care of herself, but because he disliked any pervert approaching her. And Nike tends to be quite slow when it comes to noticing their stares.

Well, to be honest, he was a pervert too. However, he was an exception of course. He wasn't anyone else, he was her husband. Surely it was alright for him to get be worried?

Right, he thought. I have to find her quick.

But it was easier said than done. He tried scanning the crowd to catch sight of her, but it proved to be impossible. The people were moving continuously and there has to be like hundreds, no wait, over a thousand people in this circus. There were just too much movements for his eyes. It would probably take him a while to find her. Sighing, he decided to try walking around to find her. There was no point standing there and wasting time. He was sure that she was somewhere close by and trying to find him too.

"Excuse me, will you like to buy some candies?" A female voice from behind stopped him. He turned around and found a teenage girl dressed in a short, blood red circus dress with heavy makeup. Her blond hair ended right at her shoulders in bouncy curls. She was smiling at him charmingly while holding a vendor tray filled with sweets.

"Err, no thanks," he replied disinterestedly and looked elsewhere. His mind was concentrated on finding Nike and he was about to walk off when the girl stopped him once again.

"Hmm, is something troubling you? Do you need help?" she asked concernedly in a very sweet tone. A worried frown creased her forehead. "You look really unsettled."

He didn't look at her as he reply because his eyes were too busy scanning the crowd again. "I'm doing fine. Just looking for someone..."

"Ah! Perhaps you are looking for your companion? Well, it is really easy to lose someone in this crowded place..." She nods understandingly. "In this case, please allow me to help you! I can get a couple of my friends here to help you search for her. By the way, I'm Cathy. What's yours?" she asked curiously.

"Edgar," he lied.

"It's really nice to meet you!" she curtsied. Before he could react, she stepped closer to him and let her hand pat his arm assuringly.

"Don't worry, we'll find her in no time. Hai, Edgar-sama?" Her red lips curved into a kind smile before skittering off to find aid. He just stood there impassively, realizing that he didn't had any time to reject her offer. She didn't have to go out of her way to help him.

Oh well, he shrugged. If this could help find Nike in a shorter time, he would gladly accept the help humbly.

~ oOo ~

"Who are you?" Nike asked again, her wide eyes never leaving the stranger. Staring right back at her was a pair of topaz-brown eyes belonging to a guy who was not much older than her. Probably around nineteen? Besides, he was wearing strange clothes - a long-sleeved white and black striped shirt with a jabot and a black pants. Heavy makeup donned his face too. His eyes were mysterious and dark with those purple eyeshadow and thick eyeliner. She felt that his appearance was...weird.

"Are you alright? Are you hurt?" he asked anxiously. His blond hair fell over his forehead as he glanced down slightly at her in concern. When she still looked confused, his frown carved a deeper ravine across his face. "Did you hit your head? Are you alright?"

"A-ah! I'm fine! Thank you very much for being a big help by getting me out of there," she thanked him earnestly. Everything happened so fast and hence, that was why she seemed so out of it. However, she was very grateful to him for pulling her out from the chaotic mess out there. Who knows what else would have happened if she continued to stay there?

Meanwhile, his topaz-brown orbs shifted from her face to her bruised hand, which was starting to show a slight blue-purpuish color. "Oh no! You delicate thing, you're hurt!" He picked her hand carefully in his to inspect the bruise. Nike's eyes widened in response to his touch.

"It's alright! It's not hurting that much..."

At the moment, there was one thing that she was hyperaware of - their proximity. He was way too close to her that it was making her uncomfortable. Her eyes blinked a couple of times before she hurriedly pulled her hand and herself away from the arms of a stranger. She knew that this guy was just being kind but frankly, it was an extremely alien feeling to have a male besides Livi to be this close to her for obvious reasons.

However, the guy didn't seem to notice her discomfort and continue to smile at her. "Your hand is gonna be all swollen at this rate. We should apply medicine quickly. If you don't mind, please come with me and I'll get some medicine for you," he smiled worriedly. Without waiting for her agreement, he grabbed her arm in a split second and dragged her along with him.

"W-wait! I can waaaaaalk-" Her steps were clumsy as she tried to keep up with his fast stride. She nearly tripped a couple of times but he pulled her up and supported more of her weight each time, his steps never faltering.

What is wrong with this guy? she exclaimed in her mind. He's kind but he doesn't LISTEN!

He brought her out of the huge circus tent through a small hidden exit that seemed to be for authorised personnel only. "Are we sure we should be walking here?" she asked worriedly and glanced around. They were walking to the area behind the circus tent, where it seemed to be the resting place for the performers. Canvas sleeping tents were pitched in orderly rows. She noticed a couple of the workers did not pay much attention to them as they walked past. The clothes that they were wearing were similar to the ones that this guy was wearing.

"Don't worry, my lady. I work here as one of the performers so it's alright," he assured her. "So stop worrying about trivial stuff. We need to tend to your bruise first."

Oh, so that's why he's wearing those clothes... Baka me.

"A-alright." She kept quiet and allowed him to lead her to one of the tents. He pushed open the flaps and guided her in. It was dark inside but it soon brightened up when a candle was lit. "Sorry," the guy apologized. "It's a bit small in here. Can you take a seat at one of the beds and wait there? I'll get the medicine."

He held the lit candle in one of his hand and proceeded to light a few other candles in the tent as well. As Nike waited, she took the chance to get a quick look around. Surprisingly, the tent was able to fit two beds, a dressing table and a couple of rattan storage boxes for clothes. It wasn't really that small and seemed just right for two people to sleep in. Aside from this kind stranger, another performer must be the owner of the other bed.

While he was searching through the contents of a storage box, she decided to start a conversation.

"Earlier, you said you're a performer right? May I ask what is your role?" she asked curiously.

"I'm a trapeze artist," he replied casually. He dug deeper into the box and he pulled his hand out suddenly, holding up a small tin box. "Found it!" He walked over to her and kneeled in front of her while opening the tin box to reveal a greenish ointment. He coated the ointment on his index finger and began to rub it at the back of her hand where the bruise was.

"I can do it myself!" Nike grew nervous and attempted to take the ointment but he blocked her with his other hand. "I'll do it," he said firmly. "You can't do it on your own. Stay still and let me be the gentleman, alright?" With that being said, he went back to working on her hand. No words came out of her mouth as she knew that he wouldn't give in. Hence, she gave up and tried to relax instead.

"A trapeze artist? What's that?" She went back to asking questions.

"Eh? You don't know what that is?" His head looked up and his warm eyes stared straight into hers. He cocked his head to the side in curiosity. "They are those circus performers who fly around and do stunts in the air with only metal straps supporting them," he explained.

"Wow! They fly around!?" Nike was stunned by his words. She tried to picture how it looked like in her head and all she could think of were birds. "Isn't it...dangerous!?"

He chuckled at her shocked expression. "That's why we are trained from young. No matter how dangerous it is, we have to do this for a living." He shrugged casually. "But of course, we performed with caution. One wrong move and we get injuries. Or worse still, we die." He stared at nothing as he spoke those words as if they were insignificant. And something in his eyes caught Nike's attention.

He snapped his head back to her suddenly. "Oh right! I forgot to introduce myself! I'm Leo and I apologize for my rudeness earlier. I just can't stop myself from helping a girl who needed help." His trademark kind smile appeared once again. "Here, I'm done." He stopped rubbing her bruise with the ointment and bandaged up her hand properly.

"Thanks, and please don't apologize!" Nike held up her other free hand to stop him. "I really appreciate your kindness. If you hadn't pulled me out then, I would have been stepped on a couple more times and turned into some inedible pancake."

"And I'm Nike," she added on. "Nice to meet you, Leo." She smiled back at him.

"It's a pleasure to meet such a pretty lady like you. This must be your first time coming to a circus, right? You didn't know about trapeze artist."

She scratched her head in slight embarrassment. "Yeah. I actually came from a faraway place and moved here recently. I didn't come alone today, I actually came with someone else... AHHHHHHHHHH!" She started shrieking as she remembered something and pressed her hands against her cheeks in horror.

"What? What? What's wrong?" Leo grew alarmed and grabbed her arms to calm her down.

"Crap!" She groaned loudly. "I forgot about him, oh no. What do I do now? I need to find him quickly. He must be worried!" She stood up immediately and started to make her way out of the tent if it wasn't for him grabbing her arm and stopping her. She stared up at him in confusion.

"I'll help you search for him," he said. "It's faster for two people to search for your friend instead of one, right? Moreover, I'm more familiar with this place."

His words were more than reasonable and she could really use his help to search for Livi. But Nike was a little embarrassed to ask for his help the second time. She didn't want to cause anymore trouble to someone whom she has just met. As she pondered, she glanced up at Leo and noticed him giving her an earnest look conveying that he really want to help her.

"Don't you have to perform?" she asked.

He shook his head. "I won't be performing in the first circus show. I'll be involved in the second one so I have some free time now," he grinned. "Come on, let me help you again. Alright?"

Sighing, she decided to give in. She gave him a meek smile and agreed to accept his offer.

"Good, come let's go." He gestured her to walk first in a very gentlemanly manner. Nike said a word of thanks and stepped out of the tent with him following closely behind. Since she was walking ahead, she didn't seem to notice how Leo dropped his smile and slowed down a little while staring at her back. His lips moved in a small whisper that was audible to no one but himself.

"I was going to come and get you, but surprisingly, you decided to come to our lair first."

Me: Guys it's alright to type your reviews in non-English languages because I've my own translator. :) But honestly, English will be better... :P

Livi: She's talking about me, the prodigy who speaks many languages. *smirks*

Me: Eh? Since when? O_O I was actually referring to something else...

Neil: I think she's actually talking about me...

Bardo: IT'S ME! She's talking about ME! *stands proudly and flips hair*

Mira: You useless guys, she's talking about me. *spread her arms out widely* Come to Nee-chan, darling!

Livi: OUT! GET OUT, ALL OF YOU! Nobody beats me in translation and YOU JUST BETTER REMEMBER TO PAY ME! Hai?

Me: *scratches head* Tell me again how did things end up like this? O_O And I'll try to update the next one soon!