We're nearing the end of this arc. Thank God. I don't think I could ever write about a circus ever again after this. This arc wasn't supposed to take so long. But here we are... Thank you all for your patience. I hope to get into the action soon. I am also debating on if I should separate the arcs separate or together in this one fiction. Let me know what you think.

Honey took a deep breath. Oliver and Coco were behind her waiting for her to approach the cage. She was much less nervous than they were.

"Alright," Oliver smiled, hiding his nervousness. "So… you ready?"

Honey nodded. "Yeah, I think… I made him this. Just as a gift. Maybe he'd like a gift." She pulled out a bracelet made of things she found around the circus. Long blades of grass wrapped in straw to make a green and tan pattern. The green and tan strand was then twisted with another to make a bigger bracelet. It was then held together by some string that held the straw and haybales together.

"I helped her," Coco smiled, "We couldn't find anything really pretty so we did the best we could."

"Err…" Oliver smiled awkwardly. It looked hideous but he knew the thought was nice. Still, he wasn't confident Victor would care. "It's… nice. It looks nice… but I'm not sure he'd let you put that on him…"

Honey dropped her shoulders. He was probably right. "Well… I guess it doesn't hurt to try…"

"Sure, of course," Oliver smiled encouragingly. "Now, you remember what I told you?"

Honey nodded. "Approach slowly, always sound confident, and don't try reaching him without his permission."

Oliver nodded affirmatively and said nothing. He seemed to be waiting for something. "…And?"

"Oh!" Honey jolted as she remembered. "And don't forget to reward him when he co-operates."

"Yes, good," Oliver nodded. "Good… Welp, no time like the present since we're here. Go on ahead."

Honey took a deep breath and put on a confident face. She held onto their last interaction and hoped she could move forward from it. Only time would tell, it seemed. Coco and Oliver hid behind some equipment, out of sight, and Honey marched up to his cage, humming a chipper tune in hopes it would make her sound more confident.

"Hi, Victor," She waved. Victor lifted his head then sat up. He knew it was supper time. What made her nervous at first actually made her feel better this time. Understanding that he was really hungry made it much easier to face him when he looked down at her like that. "Aw, you're sitting already? You have such good manners. Hang on, I'll get you some food."

Oliver nodded approvingly. "Complimenting him, good good."

Coco continued to watch quietly but whispered under her breath. "You can do this, Honey."

Honey dug into the box and lifted some of the meat out of the box. Victor got ready to reach for it. "Ah aah." Honey wagged her finger. "You're supposed to stay seated. Sit." Victor didn't listen and moved his head, looking for a way passed the bars yet again. "Sit," Honey said again with more enunciation. He still didn't listen making her sigh. "Victor… If you want to eat, you need to let me feed you. You can't keep reaching passed the bars for it. You could hurt me. Is that what you want?"

The words seemed to pierce right through him. Victor's head backed away from the bars. He let out a low grumble and sat down. Honey smiled. "Good, Leafine." She placed the meat on the floor of the cage, despite being really nervous to do so. But she had faith in him that he wouldn't lung after the meat until she was out of the way. "There you go, you can eat now." Victor slowly took the meat and Honey watched with joy. Another successful feeding. And this time felt like maybe they were bonding just a bit more. "I knew you were a good leafine. The moment I saw you. Those circus people are the real meanies… Except Oliver. I think he's nice."

Victor stopped eating and looked at her. Coco smiled and Oliver arched a brow. "Hang on now, what's she doin'? Don't bring me into this." Coco giggled as she looked up at him but remained otherwise silent.

"I understand why he's scared of you. You did scratch his eye, but… I don't think you did it on purpose. Did you?" Victor turned away. He finished his food then turned around, so he didn't have to see her. Honey was supposed to take that as a sign to leave, but instead, she went around the cage so she could see his head. "It was an accident. I knew it!"

Oliver closed his firsts on whatever he was holding and shook his head. "Don't push it, come on back already! You might make him angry for goodness' sake."

Coco watched intently, hoping Honey was making the right choice. "Carful, Honey…"

"I don't know why everyone says you're bad tempered." Honey bravely put her arms on the side of the cage and laid her head on them so she could face him as if they were lying together. "Your actually really calm… but I can't help but fell like… maybe… you're just sad."

Victor's head lifted again as he stared at her. Honey lifted her head too but didn't jump back from the cage like she wanted to. He wasn't moving to lunge at her, so she took it as a sign to stay put for now. Oliver said be confident. So be confident! Trust him. "Do you ever feel lonely in the cage by yourself? Without any friends to play with? It must be frustrating having to stay in this cramped cage all the time…"

"No, don't talk about the cage!" Oliver face palmed. "Coco, go get her!"

"Hang on," Coco replied, "He doesn't look like he's getting mad at her. Maybe we should just trust her."

"Doesn't look like… He's a leafine. He doesn't make facial expressions!" Oliver sighed in defeat. "You know what? Fine. If she gets clawed, bit, or swiped, it's not my fault."

"Do you think it's okay if I visit more often? Would that help?" Honey asked having not received any kind of answer. Victor stared at her, unmoving. Honey smiled, taking it as a yes and came around the cage again to the meat box. Victor watched her intently until she opened the box again. "Since I'm in charge of feeding you now, I decide how much you get to eat. And I think you deserve some more. So here." She placed the meat on the same spot and smiled. "I'll see you tomorrow, Victor. Thanks for listening to me."

Victor stared at the meat then at her. His gaze followed her as she walked away. "Oh! Almost forgot." She washed her hands of the meat residue then filled a bucket of water and struggled to lift it so she could fill his water dish. "I can't… let you go… thirsty."

"Oh boy," Oliver tucked his head between his shoulders as he watched her struggle to even get the bucket up to chest level. "Er, maybe you should go help her now."

"But I can't lift the bucket either," Coco argued.

Honey struggled but got the bucket to her chest. It was already obvious that was as far as she'd be able to go, though. it didn't take long for her to start showing the signs of giving out. Suddenly, however. Victor slowly reached out and managed to hook the bucket handle with his paw and lift it just enough to lay the bottom of it on the ground of the cage. Oliver and Coco were both surprised. Honey didn't realize what had happened at first. She thought that Oliver maybe came out to help, but once she saw that large paw, she knew what he had done.

She wore a big smile then climbed up on the cage door so she could dump the water bucket inside. "Thank you, Victor." She reached in to pet him, but he recoiled like a nervous cat. She stopped and remembered Oliver's instructions. "Oh, sorry… Here, fresh water." She poured the old water out and replaced it with the new. "All done. I'll see you tomorrow, Victor…Bye."

She jumped down with the bucket, then placed it back next to the water barrel then ran to Oliver and Coco.

"Did you see that?" Coco asked her giddily. "Victor helped you with the water bucket."

"I know!" Honey said as she jumped into place. "I knew he was a nice leafine. And you said he's bad tempered." Honey looked up at Oliver then frowned suddenly. "Wait, hang on…" Oliver knew what was about to happen next. "How did you know to treat Victor? I followed all your advice. You wouldn't do any of that for a mean leafine, would you?"

Oliver chuckled. "I was gonna ask you the same thing. You said some things I would have left out, but… I guess Victor didn't react the way I thought he would… he's still the same old Victor, isn't he?"

"Same old Victor?" Echoed Coco.

Oliver grinned and motioned with his head. "Come on, I'll tell you on the way to supper… But keep it between us, hm?"

The girls looked at each other and smiled with a nod. "We promise."

Valerie and Rusty stopped at the branch bridge leading to the inn and sighed simultaneously. "We're finally back," Valerie sighed, "That took all evening…"

Rusty scratched the back of his head. "We wouldn't have taken so long if you didn't offend that snake person."

Valerie tensed and ducked her head in shame. "I-I… know… It's just… I can't stand snakes. I didn't meant to scream at her; I just get so tense around snakes."

Rusty looked at the single ticket in his hand. "We only afforded two tickets…"

Valerie sighed sadly. "Yes… if things couldn't get any worse… Who do you think should go?"

Rusty rubbed his chin and hummed. "It's not like we'll be sneaking in. Maybe… Indy and Bluey?"

"Maybe…" Valerie hummed. But you actually have your class. It might be prudent for the both of you to go…"

"Yeah… I guess." Rusty and Valeire were quiet. Neither knew what to say or to suggest.

"Doh, Balderdash. We're overthinking this. Let's present the tickets and we'll discuss it with the rest. Come on," She motioned to the bridge and followed behind him to the inn.

The others were waiting in the two rooms Valerie had purchased for the night. One room for the boys, another for the girls. Valerie and Rusty gathered them all in the girls' room, but Bluey and Indy were absent.

"Where's Bluey and Indy?" Valerie asked as she looked over the circle.

"They're spying around the circus entrance," replied Chloe, "Bluey said she wanted to see if she could find anything, and Indy wanted to come along."

"Alright," Valerie began, "Here's the latest. We managed to only buy two tickets."

"Only two?" Bingo asked sadly.

"I'm afraid so, Bingo," Valerie replied with a similar tone. "As such, it looks like only two of you will be going."

"I think we should vote on who goes," Rusty suggested as he crossed his arms. "I think Indy should go. She needs to talk to the animals."

"If she can still," Chloe commented, "But I agree. Indy might not want to go, but she needs to be there. But if she doesn't want to, she shouldn't have to."

"I think so too. I'm voting for Indy," jack raised his hand. The others unanimously agreed.

"Very well," Valerie nodded. "Who else?"

"Why don't you go, Valerie?" Snickers asked.

"Ah," Valerie quickly shook her hands. "No no… not me. Rusty can attest to it, snakes shake me to the very core of my being." Rusty nodded rather adamantly as if everyone needed to know she was telling the truth. "If they have a baskaserp it's over for me. Besides, we barely have a shekel left. I need to go out and earn some more. Maybe I can hunt. And that goes for Rusty too."

"Huh?" Rusty looked up at her, confused.

"I've only been to Lillytown twice before and I hardly know the area. I'll need you to help me navigate while we're out in the forest."

Rusty nodded in understanding. "Yeah, okay…"

"Then what about Jack?" Snickers smiled. "He and Rusty pretend to be in the army a lot. He can do recon just as good as Rusty can."

Jack nervously scratched his head while the others agreed unanimously. "Well… maybe not just as good… but I'll do my best to make you proud, Rusty."

"I know you will," Rusty put a hand on his shoulder. "You'll do great. You'll see."

The door opened and Indy and Bluey walked though. "We're back!"

"Indy, Bluey," Chloe greeted them, "Did you find anything else out?"

"They're trying really hard to fill up the seats," said Bluey taking a seat in the circle.

Indy continued. "They put up a ticket sale and have people walking the streets to sell more. And they said that old people get in free. Grandads and grannies!"

"Well… that's unfortunate…" Valerie sighed in dejection.

"Yeah… if we had just waited a little longer…" Rusty dropped his shoulders and sighed too. "We only got two tickets girls. And we decided that Jack and Indy should go."

"What? Just two of us?" Indy asked with worry written all over her face. "And I don't even actually want to go. Maybe Bluey should go."

"We need you to talk to the animals," Rusty explained. "I wanted to go with you but we're out of money. Valerie and I have to get some more."

"How will you do that?" Indy asked.

"I suspect there's an adventurers board around somewhere," Valerie explained as she looked out the window briefly. "It's common to request an adventurer complete a task for some meager rewards. Rusty can help be complete some for monetary gain and there's always someone looking to buy some game from out in the forest. I haven't been to these parts much. I'll need Rusty's help to navigate."

Rusty nodded. "Otherwise… I'd go with you Indy… Sorry."

Indy huffed as she sat down. "We don't even know if my power will work. I don't know why it happened before. I didn't even get my class from it. It just happened then stopped."

"She kept trying all day," Bluey frowned. "None of the animals would talk to her."

"Well," Valerie smiled, "Maybe it'll work tomorrow. You can try it when You talk to Beauty. I'm sure she'd like it if you tell her everything you've learned."

"And if you need help. Indy, I'll be there," Jack smiled. "I'll do my best to help you."

"And me and Valerie will earn enough to buy more tickets!" Rusty added, "Everything will be okay."

"I hope so…" Indy said looking at the ground and hugging her knees. Somehow, she wasn't very sure.

The next day, Honey had made a lot of progress with Victor. After breakfast, she got him to follow commands and talked about random things on her mind. Coco even joined her this time feeling he was less of a threat than before. Oliver continued to watch from the distance and was quite impressed by how quickly she was bonding with him. She offered the charm she had made earlier, but Victor didn't seem like he was ready for that. Taking his paw away before she could even wrap it around. But with all said and done, Victor fell asleep, they cleaned the cage, then fed the other animals.

During lunchtime they had fed the other animals, but Oliver had stopped them from feeding Victor. He sat them down in the mess tent, in a lonely table as to ensure they were far from earshot.

Oliver set his bowl of soup down and sighed then sat down. The girls did the same. Oliver took a few bites of his soup hummed and nodded a content nod then swallowed and smacked his lips. "The food always gets better when its near show time."

"Mmm," Coco smiled with a hum. "This soup is really good!"

"Yeah," Honey agreed, "Usually it needs a lot more salt, but this is great!"

Oliver chuckled. "The mess tent won't be just for staff anymore. Customers gotta eat after all. The surrounding tents will be used as attractions. Both all of our beasts will be displayed and contribute to a few acts in the small tents. Some of the stands have local businesses. They'll sell their own products and give the circus a cut of their profit. That's usually how the boss runs things. At any case, we get to test the food. An ol' circus act tradition." Oliver gave a bright smile and dug into his food again.

The girls smiled back, and Coco continued to eat. Honey, however, hadn't moved her spoons since her first bite. She stirred the soup, lost in her thoughts about Victor. She wouldn't find peace with a good meal unless Victor ate. But here she was, feeding herself when she should be taking care of him.

"Oliver, why aren't we feeding Victor? Shouldn't we feed him first before we eat?"

"Mm," Oliver smacked his lips and wiped his face with a sleeve. "I've been meaning to talk about that…" Oliver leaned in, putting his spoon in his soup and stirring it as he whispered. "you and him are… gettin' along well and… I wanna try somethin' different." He leaned closer. "I have this gut feeling we don't need to feed him the sleeping draught…"

Coco sunk in her seat, but Honey straightened her back and leaned closer. "What should we do?"

Oliver inhaled sharply and sucked some meet from between his teeth and he went to take another bite of his soup. "We'll try the big step tonight… today… I want you to try brushing him through the bars. Not while he's asleep. Awake… If all goes according to plan… I think we can let him out of the cage tonight."

"B-but… what if he runs away?" Coco asked nervously.

Oliver bobbed his head to the side like a shrug. He scratched just under his eye patch, lost in thought. "…Well, if things go well, with the brush, I'm sure he won't. This is exactly how I did it back in the day."

"But you said it took you a long time to be friends like that," Coco countered, "Honey only spent a couple days with him."

"I'm ready," Honey nodded with determination, "Just tell me what you want me to do."

"Feed him like you usually do," Oliver replied, "Get the meat, and don't use the draught. Then tell him that. Let him know you trust him… should be simple as that…" Oliver smiled but it quickly weakened, and he added a quieter, "should be…"

Coco gave Honey a concerned look. "I guess he hasn't hurt you so far… But only because he was too tired from the sleepy medicine. With him awake, he could go back to being mean."

Honey looked at her soup and then back up to Oliver. "I trust him. I'll do it."

Coco moaned and tensed. "I hope it works…"

Oliver shrugged. "It'll work… it'll work." Oliver looked up and smirked passed the girls. There, at the entrance, was Mackenzie, making his way passed the tent flap. He sighed and fixed his collar then walked up to the mess counter. "Well, there's a face we haven't seen in a bit."

Honey and Coco turned around and both their faces lit up. "Mackenzie!"

Both girls stood up from their chairs, happy to see their friend. Mackenzie looked over with a vigorously wagging tail. "Honey! Coco!" The embraced in a group hug and held each other tightly.

"We were so worried about you," Honey said after pulling away.

"You look handsome!" Coco commented, examining his formal wear and tie.

Mackenzie itched his collar and rolled his eyes. "Urgh, you think it looks good. It feels awful! This collar is too tight!"

"Oh, I know a trick that will make it feel better," Coco smiled as she started to fix his tie. "I sometimes have to do this with my ribbons. When I wear them for fancy events anyway." Coco gave the tie some slack, folded some edges so it looked tight in the front, then took a step back to examine her handy work. "There. How's that?"

"It feels good," Mackenzie smiled, "Thanks."

"Your welcome," Coco blushed and put her hands behind her back as she rocked on her tippy toes.

"So how is working as Donna's assistant?" Honey asked with a giggle. "Pretty boring, huh?"

Mackenzie frowned and didn't answer. His shame from yesterday began to weigh on him. He looked at the ground and his demeanor changed. The girls both frowned.

"Mackenzie, what's wrong?" Coco asked, placing a concerned hand on his shoulder.

Mackenzie didn't answer. Not for a minute at least. "I… I don't like being her assistant. She feels… wrong. I don't know why. I-I…" Mackenzie shivered. "I'm supposed to be getting her lunch… don't distract me!" The change in demeanor scared them. Mackenzie tensed and shut his eyes in regret. "I mean, I have to go… I'm sorry… It was nice talking to you… but we have to get back to work. Bye."

"But…" Coco reached out for him, but he was already gone. "Aw…"

Honey rubbed her arm and tucked her tail shamefully. "Sorry, Coco… I shouldn't have asked…"

"It's okay," Coco replied glumly. "Why do you think he acted like that. He looked like he did something wrong…"

Honey shook her head. "I don't know… maybe Donna is making him do bad things…"

"Do you really think so?" Coco asked worriedly.

"Wouldn't put is past 'er," Oliver said, surprising the two girls. The girls looked up at him and sighed in relief. "Sorry. Your soup's gettin' cold. Come on." The girls returned to their seats and Oliver looked at Mackenzie with squinted eyes. He leaned in after making sure no one was sitting nearby. "Thing you need to know about Donna, she's strange. I don't know why, don't know how but she give me a shiver every time she enters the room. Mackenzie has to live with that now… partially my fault I guess…" Oliver scratched his neck, "But I'm sure it'll pay off. Look, Mackenzie took care of the three 'a you all together. He can take care of himself. Just… trust that he can. Hm?"

The girls nodded reluctantly. But Coco looked back to see if he was still there. But he had long disappeared with a gilded tray.

Bluey, Bingo, and Chloe ran around the market looking up and down at the wears. Bluey hummed at the many glass wears in a random booth then passed them up for another to look in another booth.

"What are we looking for again?" Chloe asked, searching up and down around the market.

"Glasses," Bluey replied then gestured with her hands, "A big pair of glasses."

"Um… will these do?" Chloe asked as she pointed at a pair of oversized spectacles.

Bluey stared at them. "What? No. Who needs a pare that big anyway?"

A large bullfrog picked the spectacles up and put them on then eyed the little girls. He stood a whole seven feet tall and six feet wide. "Hmm?"

"Oh…" Bluey scratched her head and pushed Chloe away so they could continue searching. "You would think a pair of glasses could easily be found in a shopping place this big," Bluey huffed.

"Why do you need a pair of glasses?" Chloe asked with an arched brow, "You see just fine without glasses."

"I don't need glasses," Bluey replied, "It's for a disguise."

"A disguise?" Chloe asked tilting her head. "What disguise?"

"Grannies and granddads get in free," Bluey replied as she picked out a piece of cloth and put it over her. she hunched her back then walked slowly as she charged her voice. "That means I could get in free. Ooh, that's a loverly gown."

Chloe giggled and looked around to grab a cloth of her own then put on a granny act of her own. "Ooh, I like that gown, Marg."

"No, it's Janet," Bluey corrected with her normal voice.

"Oh, Janet," Chloe corrected herself. "Excuse us, young man," Chloe slowly approached the booth owner. "Have you seen a little pup in these parts?"

"Yeah, she's spry little yougin'" Bluey added, "Little red heeler, with a lot of energy."

"Oh, I don't reckon I did, miss," The skinny frog replied as he scratched his head. "But if I happen to sees this little doggy, I'll be sure to let you loves know… Hey, hang on. Are those my sashes?"

The girls giggled and took them off, "It worked! See?" Bluey put the cloth on his table. "Sorry, we were just borrowing them. We wanted to pretend we were grannies."

"Yeah, they are very lovely though," Chloe smiled. "Did you make them?"

"Oh?" The frog leaned on his counter, "Why, you had me fooled. I thoughts you looked loverly in them though. What's say, me darlins? I could give 'em to you cheap. Half price for yous. Only ten shekels it is."

"Wow, that is cheap," Chloe smiled then frowned. "But… we don't have any money with us… sorry."

"No money?" The frog asked. "Aw, that's a shame in't it? Well next time then. Don't forget me when you need your granny disguise again, ey?"

"We won't," promised Bluey and she and Chloe left.

"Goodbye," Chloe waved her hand. "He was very nice."

"A lot of the people are nice here," Bluey smiled. "I wonder why the circus people are so mean then."

"Mm mm?" Chloe shrugged.

Just then they noticed giggling in the distance. Bluey recognized it immediately, "Oh, there's Bingo!" Bluey and Chloe ran to catch up with her and saw her playing in the lamp shop again. Chasing the colorful fish back and forth in the aisles of the shop. "Bingo, there you are!"

"Hi," Bingo waved.

"I thought you were helping us find glasses," Bluey crossed her arms and smirked as she scrunched her brow.

"I was, but then I saw the fishes again," Bingo giggled as a big, flat fish swam in front of her, and tadpole-like fish were nibbling at her toes. Although they were doing nothing to her, her brain tricked her into feeling the fish. She giggled obsessively and nearly bumped in to the shelves, bumping instead into the old frog.

"Ooh," The old frog turned over and laughed. "Well, if it isn't the little girls and my lamp bearer again."

"Oh, sorry," Bingo apologized and ran to Bluey's side.

"No harm done, dear, no harm done," The old frog laughed. "Tell me, how's my little lamp bearer. Have you taken care of it, my dear? Has it helped you through a dark place?"

Chloe straightened her back. "Me?"

"Yes, dear," The frog laughed, "Did you forget while you were away? Such is the way of illusive magics like these. Turn a blind eye and you might lose even what's real." She stretched out her walking stick and poked a lamp Chloe had not realized was by her feet. The little baby fish around it scattered so they could catch up to the lamp then circled it again in a straight a line.

Chloe gasped and picked up the lamp then watched the fish try to continue their pattern around it. "How did you do that? I thought you disappeared and took the lamp with you. It made me think you weren't real!"

The old frog lady cackled and sat down next to her counter, looking at the front of her shop. "Illusion magic is all about one's perspective. It is not like ordinary magic where you cast a spell or a command an element. Illusion magic is simply making others believe that your power is at work. Some believe so much in your power that even what is real disappears before their very eyes. And what isn't blocks their very path. In a sense, it is the use of another's own ability to wield magic that a truly skilled illusionist takes advantage of. Take your lamp for example. You believed so much in my magic than when I wanted to disappear from your sight you believed so much that I could, that I did. And those thoughts extended to your lantern. It was always with you, little lantern bearer. You simply need to trust that it is. Then it will always exist."

Chloe looked at her lamp but frowned. "I… don't understand. If this lamp is real, then how did it disappear when you did?"

The frog smiled. "Think on what I said. You are a bright young girl. I have a feeling it will come to you when you need it to."

Chloe started at the lantern again and the shop fell silent. Bluey looked back and forth at the shopkeeper and the Chloe then filled the silence. "Well… I guess we better be going. We still need to get ready to go to the circus tomorrow."

"Ooh, the circus," The old lady laughed, "I hear grannies get in free… I might just go and see for myself, this circus."

"Oh," Chloe bounced and put her lantern aside. "Bluey is looking for some glasses to complete her disguise. Do you know where we might find some?"

"Chloe," Bluey pulled Chloe to stop her. "Don't tell everyone."

"Don't tell everyone?" the old frog cackled. "You want to pretend to be an old woman so you can get into the circus free? Is that is?" She laughed again and stood up. "That's quite a mission, my little friend."

"We're really trying to sneak in," Bluey said in her defense, "Not to see the show. It's for a good reason."

"Yeah, the circus kidnapped some animals, and we promised to get them back," Bingo said to help her justify the deed.

But the old lady simply turned around with her big smile and approached them after picking something off a desk. "Oh, no need to explain yourselves to an old woman, dearies. I suppose I could let go of my spectacles if it's for a good deed." She handed the spectacles over and smiled. "Here, use these."

Bluey accepted the pair of silver-framed spectacles and looked up at her. "Are you sure? What if I break them? Are you sure you don't need them?"

"Feh," the old frog waved her hand. "I haven't needed those in a long time, dear. Not since I was your age…" The old frog quietly laughed to herself. "Make use of them, however you need. You might find them to be handy for your disguise. You'll see."

The old frog walked through her shop and a large fish swam in front of her. she disappeared before their very eyes, and Chloe's lamp was gone with her. The girls stared at the aisle she walked down in wonder. Chloe looked down at her hands as she thought of her words.

"'It is the use of another's own ability to wield magic that a truly skilled illusionist takes advantage of…'"

"Huh?" Bluey asked, turning to face Chloe.

"It's the only thing I remember she said," Chloe replied, "She said to think on her words, but that's all I remember."

"Maybe that's all you need," Bingo smiled.

"Well, maybe," Bluey shrugged, "We got the glasses, come on! Let's go!"

Mackenzie lifted the gilded tray on the counter of the scullery. Some of the mess tent workers were washing dishes inside. There were buckets of soapy water, stacks of dishes and bins of cutlery all organized inside. Mackenzie huffed and wiped the sweat off his head as he leaned on the counter.

A dishwasher took his trey and scoffed at the pitiful sight before, with a bit of an arrogant smirk. "What's got you so strung up?"

"Donna's made me run all over the circus! I haven't gotten to sit down yet." Mackenzie wiped his face and took a deep breath.

The dishwasher had immediately lost the crease in his lips and sucked in sharply. "Ah… take as much time as you need." The dishwasher continued to work, leaving him alone. Mackenzie sat on a stool the dishwashers used to take breaks on. He knew he'd have to get moving soon. Donna was not a patient master, and she'd be very cross if he didn't come back soon.

But with the little time he had, he fixed his tie so it would hang a bit looser. Despite Coco's trick to discreetly loosen it, Donna managed to see through it and tightened it back up. she was so particular with how he looked she seemed to inspect him every time he came back to her tent. First it was his shirt, then it was his vest, then his tie. Suddenly his satchel was hanging too loose, then she wanted his pocket watch stored in a certain way. He was wondering when she'd give him a hat just so she could fix that too. He'd feel more like a dress up doll than an assistant had she not made him run around the circus grounds with errands to do.

"Urgh," He growled as he gripped his ears. "I knew this was a bad idea. I should never have listened to Oliver!" He hid his face in his arms. On the bright side, he got to see Honey and Coco again. They were a sight for sore eyes. Especially since he still didn't know what happened to the others.

Rusty and Jack were the first to come to mind. They were his best friends. He hoped they at least were together. They'd have a good chance of surviving. But who else was there? Snickers, he thought. It was hard to forget the sausage dog. Then there was Chloe and Indy. Of course, he couldn't forget about Bluey and Bingo!

"Bluey…," Mackenzie said her name under his breath. All he remembered about her was how she begged him not to leave her behind. "Please be okay, Bluey… wherever you are…" Mackenzie stood up. He was already late. He was sure of it. He needed to go now. He tightened the tie, straightened his clothes, and stepped out if the tent. He walked the circus grounds seeing the last of the set up had been completed. The vendors were now setting up their shops, getting ready for the big day tomorrow. Mackenzie stopped at one. A family of beavers were setting up their stand with several wooden and leaf items. Stumps and logs that looked like they were for backpacks, a leafy bag that looked like a purse. Some twigs they managed to secure together that looked like fancy baskets. He couldn't help but think about how his mother would have loved to shop there. She loved arts and crafts like this.

Mackenzie sighed again; remember the times his mother would shop in the wood centered stores. The ones with bent branches that formed chairs. Stained tables that were made custom made from tree stumps. Or tree trunks refashioned into clothes storage. It drove him and his father crazy how she became so obsessed with the style. Him most of all since she'd spend hours in one store. Even though they were supposed to be grocery shopping.

That's how he got lost… Mackenzie looked back and stared at the booth again. A beaver child was pulling away from its mother, trying to see the rest of the circus, but she held onto him tightly.

"Benjamin, stop pulling!" She scolded calmly as she held onto his hand.

Mackenzie, stop pulling.

"Mom! But I wanna see the rest of the circus!" The child groaned as he tugged again.

But I want to go to the playground!

Mackenzie tensed as he saw the beaver boy pull harder. He almost got free.

"You know you can't wander off. I need to keep an eye on you. If you get into trouble, we'll lose our spot!"

You can't go to the playground. We won't be here very long. I'm just going to check out the love chair in here and we'll go soon. Okay?

Mackenzie watched closely. The mother let him go… "Just stay right there. Where's my abacus?"

Hang on, Mackenzie… Oh, no. Where's my phone?

The beaver boy huffed. Mackenzie knew that look. He saw him slyly look around while his mum was distracted. Then he took his chance. Mackenzie gasped and saw him running his way. He wouldn't let this happen again. The boy almost ran passed him but Mackenzie managed to grab him just in time.

"Hey! Let go of me!" The boy screamed.

"No, stay with you mum," Mackenzie scolded softly, "You shouldn't run off like that."

"Benjamin!" The beaver mother stomped over and took hold of him by the wrist. "Thank you, young man," she sighed in exasperation. "I told you to stay put! If you do that again, I'll leave you home tomorrow, then you won't see the circus!"

Mackenzie watched as the boy was berated and dragged away. He wondered what would have happened if only someone had stopped him. How much would have been different? Would he still be… him? Mackenzie rubbed his hands together, dwelling on the thought for a moment, but remembering he also had somewhere to be. Donna was bound to by irritated by how late he was now.