Chapter Six:
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"You should try this one," Yuri said, holding a slice of pineapple pizza out towards Sora. Yuri's eyes flickered challenging towards Leon's across the table.
The booth's vinyl cushion squeaked as Sora leaned forward over the table and bit into the pizza. She closed her eyes as she chewed slowly. "It is good!" she said, nodding vigorously. A string of cheese hung from the corner of her lip.
Yuri set the slice down on his plate and then reached across the table with a napkin to dab at Sora's mouth. "You've got something here."
"Oh!" Sora cried out, grabbing the napkin from him, and wiping at her mouth furiously. "How embarrassing! Thank you, Yuri." She smiled appreciatively at him.
"So how is the show coming along?" Leon asked, gripping his fork tightly enough to bend the cheap metal. Unlike Yuri and Sora, he ate his pizza in a dignified manner with a fork and knife.
Yuri glanced at Leon's bent fork and smirked. He picked up his half-eaten slice of pizza and bit into it. "Layla is great, but the script and the score leave a lot wanting," he said with shrug. "I'd rather hear about what the two of you were doing in Montreal."
"The Cirque du Soleil hosted a ten-day event free to the public!" Sora said. "It was amazing! Audience participation was encouraged and it was so much fun for everyone — young and old."
"I've heard about that festival, but haven't a chance to attend myself," Yuri said, turning his attention to Leon. "I'm still shocked that neither one of you renewed your contract with Kalos."
"We wanted to devote more time to training together," Leon said. He sliced another forkful of mushroom and sausage pizza off his plate and brought it to his mouth.
"How does your pizza taste, Leon?" Sora asked.
"Would you like a bite?" Leon asked. He promptly prepared another forkful and held it just in range of her lips.
"Sure," Sora agreed. She leaned towards Leon and slipped the offered pizza into her mouth. She smiled at Leon when she finished chewing. "Another excellent sample."
"And it's a lot less messier with the fork," Leon pointed out.
"I am always learning from you," Sora said, her cheeks dimpling in pleasure as she laid her head briefly on his shoulder playfully.
"It's hard to believe that the devil on the trapeze finally found a partner he's sticking with longer than a few months," Yuri said. He smiled at Sora. "Though, I can understand if the partner was Sora. She's an amazing talent and a fun partner to work with. We'd have won the ICF if you hadn't been so distracted by that couple that had stolen our routine and gotten themselves hurt."
"You're lucky that she didn't get injured in that competition," Leon scolded. "You were the experienced partner, Yuri. It should have been obvious that Sora still needed strength-training in order to complete the Angel Maneuver."
"And yet the judges were still split in deciding whether she and I were victorious or you and your partner of the month," Yuri retorted.
"Her name is May and she worked hard. She deserved to place first at the ICF," Sora interjected. "And Layla also mastered the Angel Maneuver."
"Always so humble," Yuri murmured. "You really should learn to take credit, when credit is due."
An awkward silence fell over the group. "How old were you when you started Karate?" Leon asked, angling towards Sora on the bench they shared, his knee brushed against hers.
"In Japan, it's taught in the elementary schools. My father was a fourth degree black belt when he died," Sora said. "I had to discontinue my training shortly before I could test for black belt." She smiled brightly at Leon then Yuri. "But, it's okay, my calling wasn't martial arts, but the trapeze."
"You have that right!" Yuri said, holding up his glass of soda. "A toast!"
Leon and Sora lifted their glasses as well.
"To opportunity, continuing to evolve as artists, and good health!" Yuri said.
They clinked their glasses together.
"Kanpai!" Sora cheered.
"Santé," Leon murmured.
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"Even at night, it's so brightly lit," Sora said, awed by the city's illumination. Though the street lights helped visibility, there were still shadows and she gripped Leon's hand tightly.
They had declined sharing a taxi with Yuri back to their hotel. They wanted to properly enjoy sight-seeing by walking down the streets. And Leon didn't think he could be in Yuri's company any longer that evening without throttling his rival.
Leon kept his eyes sharp on the environment, watching for any possible mischief. He didn't want to worry Sora, but he was aware that tourists were excellent targets for criminals. Though, realizing that Sora was skilled in martial arts, maybe he shouldn't have been too concerned.
Sora yawned and leaned her head against his upper arm. "I feel like I could sleep for days!"
"It's the pizza," Leon said. "You're not used to eating food like that. All that bread makes you drowsy."
"That looks like a Shinto temple gateway!" Sora pointed towards a large red structure.
"That's because we're crossing through Chinatown," Leon explained. "Then we'll be going through Little Italy. We should have some gelato there."
"What's that?" Sora asked.
"It's like ice cream, except better."
There was a nearby flower stand full of daisies, roses, and carnations. "Hold on," Leon said, making his way towards the vender. He purchased a long-stemmed red rose and held it out for Sora. "For you."
Sora took the flower and sniffed its pedals. "It smells nice." She smiled up at him. "Thank you, Leon."
Leon cleared his throat, embarrassed. "So, how about we find that gelato now?"
They continued to explore the streets of New York until their feet ached. By the time they made it back to the hotel, Sora was practically asleep.
She kicked off her shoes at the door by habit, but otherwise stumbled to bed and laid down on it fully dressed.
Leon stared down at her. "Aren't you going to change into your pajamas?"
Sora grabbed the pillow and covered her face with it. "Nope. I'm just going to go to sleep right now."
"I see." Leon walked towards the rack holding up his suitcase. He stripped off his shirt and folded it up to tuck inside the dirty clothes sack within the top compartment. As a seasoned traveler, he understood the importance of separating clean from soiled clothing. He glanced over towards Sora to see if she noticed him stripping. She hadn't twitched a muscle and was now snoring softly.
Leon rubbed his forehead and chuckled quietly. Even when she wasn't trying, Sora amused him. He grabbed a fresh pair of boxers, pajama bottoms, and his toiletries. He walked softly on the pads of his feet to the bathroom, but his caution was needless. Sora was out like a light.
He took a long, leisurely shower, taking extra care in washing and conditioning his hair. He spent another few minutes applying his moisturizer lotion and then taking care of his oral hygiene. He was an athlete and he did everything in his power to keep his body in perfect condition.
He slipped back out of the bathroom, pausing at the doorway to make sure the light didn't fall over Sora. Her face still buried under the pillow. He sat on the edge of the bed, the mattress dipped slightly under hie weight. He gently pried the pillow off Sora's face and tucked it behind her head.
"I donwanna go to school today," Sora mumbled, a lock of hair fell into her mouth.
Leon brushed away the rose-red colored hair and Sora licked her lips.
Sora's eyelids fluttered open. "Is it morning already?"
"You can go back to sleep," Leon assured her. He pulled the sheets and blanket to tuck them under Sora's chin. He moved to the other side of the bed and slid inside the covers. With a heavy sigh, Leon turned his back towards her and faced the wall. Otherwise, he would be tempted to snuggle against her adorable partner.
"Hmmmm." Sora's warm breath fell upon Leon's neck, jarring him awake. "You smell so nice."
"You would too, if you bothered to take a shower before bed," Leon answered.
"I did," Sora protested. "Well, it wasn't before I got into bed, but I did a little while ago. I borrowed your body wash. Hope you don't mind."
"If the alternative was cheap hotel wash, I'm fine with it," Leon said with a smirk.
Ice-cold feet brushed against Leon's leg, lifting his pajamas up. He shifted his leg away from her immediately in shock. He looked over his shoulder to glare at her, but his words vanished from the tip of his tongue. She wore short pink cotton pajama bottoms with pink bunnies — which was fine. However, the low-cut pale purple camisole top was almost more than he could handle.
Sora burst into hysterical laughter, tears springing to the corners of her eyes. "The look on your face when I touch you with my feet! Oh gosh!"
With an annoyed growl Leon grabbed his pillow, buried his face under it, and turned his back towards Sora.
It wasn't long before those ice-cold feet brushed against him again, slowly warming as their body-heat mingled.
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As promised, Yuri and Layla waited downstairs in the hotel lobby at eight-thirty in the morning. Sora squealed at the sight of them and ran towards Layla to hug her mentor eagerly.
"Careful, I have a performance tonight. I can't have you bruising my ribs," Layla teased. She awkwardly patted Sora's shoulder and met Leon's gaze, her eyes narrowed in distrust. "Let's get going." She stepped back from Sora. "We'll be taking the subway." She looped her arm through Sora's and started for the door, leaving Yuri and Leon behind.
"As usual, we're left watching from behind, trying to catch up to our talented partners," Yuri said with a lopsided grin as he stared at Layla's backside.
The train took them through Brooklyn, to its southwestern peninsula. At each stop, dozens of people would exit their train car while dozens more boarded. Once they reached Coney Island, a mass exodus happened. It seemed plenty of other riders were in route for the famous amusement area.
"There are over fifty different rides and attractions here," Layla said. Her shoulder bumped against Sora's casually as they walked alongside one another. "I've only been able to make it over here once, back in April when it re-opened after the winter break."
"I've been a few times," Yuri said. "My dad took me here when I was a kid. Dad told me that before Kaleido Star, he worked part-time at Deno's Wonderwheel Amusement Park the summer after his junior year in high school."
"It doesn't look like it's open," Leon commented. He curled his hands into fists at his side and resisted the urge to yank Sora over towards him. He didn't like walking through the streets of New York City with her out of arm's reach. Though, she was only two feet in front of him walking next to Layla and Yuri, he was anxious.
"The rides don't open until noon," Yuri said, glancing briefly over his shoulder at Leon. "However, we wanted to get good seats for the showcase. It's at the MCU Park stadium."
They passed a museum on the way. Old posters for freaks of nature and skillful fire jugglers and acrobats were displayed on the front of the museum. One showed a woman in nineteen-twenties regalia taming a lion with a whip. Sora paused to read over the posters more carefully, holding up their progress.
"The history of Coney Island is pretty colorful," Yuri said. "The city constantly fought with the amusement parks to try and preserve the beach. It was incredibly popular for day-trippers, but it had a lot of trouble after World War II."
"I think everyone had a lot of trouble after that," Leon added. His eyes were drawn to a poster of an acrobat from Paris balancing on a high wire with a long narrow pole in his arms. His name was Francis Oswald. His heart skipped a beat in his chest at the realization that it was an advertisement for his grandfather.
"Leon! Did you see the name of the acrobat?" Sora asked breathlessly. She turned towards him with an excited gleam in her caramel eyes. "Do you think you might be related to this Francis Oswald?"
"He's my grandfather," Leon murmured. "I had heard he traveled around the world performing in his youth, but I hadn't realized he came to America."
Sora reached for Leon's hands and squeezed them, her smile brighter than the sun. "That's amazing!"
Leon swallowed hard and smiled faintly at Sora. From the corner of his eyes he could see both Layla and Yuri staring at him in disbelief. He cleared his throat and gently extracted his hands from Sora's grip. "I looked this place up on wikipedia while we waited this morning. There was a big fire that destroyed one of the three major amusement parks around the time after World War II."
"And ever since it's been a battle between the amusement parks and the real estate developers trying to build hotels and high-rises," Yuri said. "Hurricane Sandy a few years ago didn't help, but we tourists still come out here! It's our duty to keep this place alive!"
"My father would say this place is a lost cause," Layla said. She took a deep breath. "But then, he has no real sense of adventure. After the showcase, let's go by Steeplechase Plaza. I want to ride the carousel."
"Of course," Yuri agreed. He reached for Layla's hand and raised it to his lips to kiss her knuckles. "You'll look ravishing on a golden-maned stallion!"
Layla blushed fiercely at Yuri's comment.
The stadium was open, a small fee was charged at the doors for the showcase. It was a good thing they showed up early. A quarter of the seats were already full. Yuri led them to a spot near the center front with a good view. A few of the martial artists were warming up on the interlocking rubber puzzle mats positioned in the field's diamond.
Sora leaned forward in her seat, staring intently at one of the martial artists on the right.
"Is something wrong?" Leon asked, his lips brushing against her ear.
"I think I recognize that man." She turned towards Yuri. "Are there programs that list the name of the martial artists?"
"I'll find out and bring one back if there are," Yuri promised. He leaned towards Layla and kissed her cheek. "I'll return shortly."
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Sora squinted hard at the somewhat familiar man on the right. It was unlikely that he was her old friend, but it was possible. As if he could sense her watching, the dark-haired martial artist looked up. He straightened abruptly as recognition struck him too. "It is him," Sora whispered. She raised her hand and waved. "Kei!" she shouted out.
A grin swept across the man's face. He stood and started towards them. His long, ink black hair was swept back in a low pony-tail. He was leanly muscled and fairly tall, at least a hundred and seventy five centimeters in height — tall for a Japanese man. He had clear gray eyes that lit up as he drew close to Sora. She remembered those gray eyes well from years of sparring together on the mat.
"Sora-chan! I can't believe it's you!" Kei said, holding out his hands. Sora took them and was swung up into a fierce hug. "What are you doing here? Last I heard, you made it big in some circus in California!"
"I'm taking a break with my partner," Sora said with a breathless laugh when Kei set her back on the ground. "Kei, this is Leon — my partner. And my mentor and friend, Layla," she said pointing towards them in turn.
"I thought I was your mentor!" Kei teased. He reached out and tugged on a loose lock of Sora's hair.
"Did you train in martial arts together?" Leon asked, standing stiffly and looking down at Kei from his superior height.
Sora glanced up at Leon, uncomfortable at the menacing gleam in his lavender eyes. She tucked her hair behind her ear, out of Kei's grasp.
"Yeah," Kei answered, his eyes never strayed from Sora and they twinkled with genuine happiness. "I'm a few years older, but for two years she was my student. I was so disappointed when you were unable to test for your blackbelt, Sora-chan. You know Master Shintaro would have waved the fee for you."
Sora smiled. Missing the test was a sore point for her. She had wanted to apply for blackbelt, but she hadn't felt she deserved it. It wasn't in her heart to teach martial arts and it felt like a betrayal of her father's memory to achieve the rank without the intention of progressing. "I appreciate that, Kei, but martial arts wasn't my destiny."
"She always hated sparring," Kei said, finally looking away from Sora and at Leon. He rolled his shoulders back and seemed to assess the glower Leon had for him. The glower of a Frenchman wasn't something anyone wanted directed at them.
"She never has liked competition," Layla said, hooking her elbow through Sora's and pulling her back just a little distance from the two men.
"Well, I've missed you, Sora-chan. If you ever have time, you should come back to my dojo," Kei said. He smiled directly at her, seemingly ignoring her friends. "I took over most of the classes for Master Shintaro last year. I'll be heading back after the showcase in a couple of days."
"Sure," Sora agreed.
"Ashita nani ka shimasen ka?" Kei asked, fluidly switching to Japanese and excluding the non-Japanese speakers from his question.
Sora rubbed the heel of her hand against her sternum anxiously. It was hard to ignore the interest in Kei's lovely eyes. It was both flattering and discomforting. She knew he liked her two years ago, but after she left for America, she hadn't given Kei a second thought. "Leon and I will be flying to Japan tomorrow actually," Sora answered in English, not wanting to exclude her friends from the conversation. She flashed Kei an apologetic smile. "Maybe we can meet up later. I'll be home for a few weeks."
"I need to go backstage and finish preparing for the showcase. It was so good to see you, Sora." He nodded at Leon and Layla. "Nice to meet you two. Enjoy the show!"
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Leon's stomach churned. He shouldn't have been upset that Sora crossed paths with a friend from her homeland. She was a sweet, kind, pretty, talented woman. Of course, she had friends before him! He hated not knowing whatever it was the Kei asked him. He vowed to invest in Rosetta Stone and learn Japanese as soon as possible. Or maybe he could ask Sora teach him and he could teach her French.
Yuri arrived moments after Kei left with the program. "Did I miss something?" He looked between the three of them and smirked. "Leon looks constipated."
"I'm sure it's just the displeasure that you found your way back here," Leon assured him blandly.
"Sora knows one of the martial artists," Layla explained.
"Ah," Yuri said, taking his seat. He leaned back past the women and sent Leon a pitying look.
Leon snorted. He wasn't constipated and he certainly didn't need Yuri's pity. He was just annoyed that Sora's old friend was a handsome, athletic man. It wasn't like Leon was competing with Kei for Sora's affection. He had simply grown accustomed to being the center of Sora's attention. They were costars and partners. There wasn't room for some martial artist to screw things up. Leon liked the status quo and he was never known for his ability to share.
Cool fingers slid over the back of Leon's hand until Sora gripped his hand and squeezed it gently. He stared down at her, surprised at the gesture. "This has been a very exciting adventure, Leon. You were right about taking a break from the circus."
Leon used his free hand to trap her hand between his. "We still have a lot to accomplish on this journey."
An older man in a gaudy red and yellow uniform walked up and down the aisles of the stadium selling giant pretzels and cotton candy. Sora's eyes widened at the sight of the snacks.
Leon released her hand and waved the man over. He leaned down towards Sora, enjoying the smell of her orange blossom shampoo. "Which did you want? The pretzel or the cotton candy?"
"I've never had cotton candy!" She smiled up at Leon, her eyes sparkled with a childlike excitement. "Is that what the fluffy pink stuff is?"
He nodded. "We'll take a cotton candy and a pretzel," Leon ordered. "And a bottle of water, please." He exchanged the proper funds with the seller.
"Oh, that stuff is terrible for you," Layla said with a frown.
"If you're sharing, I'll take some of that pretzel," Yuri said.
Leon broke the pretzel in half and passed it down. He bit into the remaining half, grateful that he bought the water once he realized just how salty it was. Though, if Yuri wanted some water, he'd have to buy his own bottle. "What do you think?"
Sora closed her eyes and chewed slowly. She swallowed and Leon's throat went dry, unable to draw his eyes away from the sight. Her eyes snapped open and she grinned. "It's so sweet and it melts in my mouth!" She plucked off another chunk of the cotton candy.
"Don't try to eat the whole thing," Leon warned. He felt a pang of sadness as he remembered the first time he and Sophie shared a cotton candy. He and his sister had both devoured the sweet candy and unused to processed, sugary foods they had both felt sick to their stomachs shortly afterwards.
Sora twisted her neck to glance behind them. Leon followed her gaze. A couple with their two young sons sat behind them. "I'm sure I can find someone to share it with," Sora assured him.
"I'm sure you will," Leon murmured, unsurprised by her friendly nature.
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A/N:
."Ashita nani ka shimasen ka?" = Japanese for "Would you like to do something tomorrow?"
.seventy five centimeters = sixty-nine inches in height