Valencia

3

"We aren't normal," Mercutio stated. Victor though this was obvious, but he let the twins continue.
"The audience is so used to fake magic that they can't distinguish it from the real thing. We perform right in front of them and they think nothing of it, they see us as we are," Malvolio finished. Victor was intrigued. He hadn't considered for even a second that what he was seeing was no sleight of hand. His brow furrowed.
"Prove it," he said. The twins cracked a smile.
"I personally have the ability to create clouds and fog." Mercutio closed his fist and when he opened it, a soft ball of vapor swirled in his palm. "My brother has water manipulation." Malvolio created water in his hands and let it drip through his fingers into the dirt below.
"We haven't honed our skills quite yet, but it's still a great deal of power," Malvolio said, evaporating the water left in his hands. Victor nodded with wide eyes.
"Does... does everyone in this place have powers like yours?" Victor asked.
"No one has powers exactly like theirs. And not everyone has powers. Some of us have strange things about our bodies, 'freaks of nature' he calls those ones," Miguel responded.
"He?"
"'He' is the man who runs the circus. We're only allowed to call him 'The Ringmaster.' He takes in runaway children with powers, and in return, we make money for him. It could be better, but it certainly could be worse," Malvolio explained.
"Thank god it isn't," Mercutio finished. That's when Miguel's eyes shot wide.
"Wait. He knows now. He won't let Victor leave," he said solemnly. Victor cocked his head.
"You mean I'm stuck here? My parents will be sick with worry, I can't just-" Miguel put his hand to Victor's mouth. He was silenced immediately.
"Don't worry. We can sneak you out. We just have to wait until midnight. Can you handle that?" Miguel asked, staring directly into Victor's eyes. Victor's breath hitched, and he nodded gently. Miguel smirked. "Good. Now, while you're here, we might as well introduce you to everyone else. You two stay here, I'll show him around," Miguel said to the twins, taking Victor's hand and leading him out of the tent. He dragged Victor over to a comically tall tent and pushed through a small crowd inside. He pushed aside a few curtains and stepped into another dark area behind the set. There was a separate tent connected to the tall one, which Victor figured he was currently in. It was dimly lit, yet comfortable and fine. Pieces of white fabric of varying shades were littered about the tent. At the back wall, a cracked mirror with a girl in front of it. Her brown eyes saw the two boys at the back of her room and she spun around to face them.
"A gentleman knocks on a lady's door before entering, no?" She said in a very strong french accent, fixing her tight blonde bun idly.
"Very true, but you must know by now that I am no gentleman," Miguel quipped.
"That is quite true," the girl laughed. "Who's this, Miguel?"
"I'm Vic-"
"He's Victor Hawkins. He's an honorary performer." The girl looked wary.
"Does he know?" She asked. Victor nodded. She sighed a bit. "I'm Odeie. I walk tightrope. I'm rare here as I have no powers, but I'm here for my own reasons," she said. She stuck out a white gloved hand, which Victor shook lightly. She smiled. "You seem stiff, no?" Victor laughed a bit.
"I suppose I am. All of this is very new to me. It's very nice to meet you, miss."
"And you, monsieur." Miguel stepped between the two.
"Very nice to see you two getting along, but we've got to get going if we want to introduce him to everyone before midnight. Sorry for the rush, Odeie," he said, lightly pushing Victor outside of the tent. The crowds had left- Victor assumed the circus had shut its gates. "So, Vic, who have you seen here other than the twins, Odeie, and myself?" Miguel asked, walking through backways of the circus.
"Well, there was this old woman. She had a crystal ball and a butterfly."
"Ah, that's Madame Charani. She's like a mother to all of us runaways. She's been part of this circus for as long as I can remember. Who else?"
"Well, a knife thrower was here. His name was-"
"Luca Vargas, he's our resident troublemaker. Other than me, of course. He's kind of a loose cannon. Not to mention quite intimidating. But if you know him, you know that he always means well. He's been like my big brother for years," Miguel smiled.
"I haven't met anyone else."
"And I'll fix that. Here, come on." The pair visited a large tent that was sealed from the front. Miguel pawed at the each fold of the fabric until he found a slight gap. He held it open for Victor to step in, then he soon followed. A large group of performers sat at wooden tables, chatting and laughing. Miguel ran to one of the tables and casually stood on top of it, kicking the wood to get everyone's attention. Everyone stared up at him, waiting for him to speak. Victor could tell that this kind of thing happened a lot with how no one was questioning his unconventional standing point.
"Hey all of ya! I've got someone I want you to meet!"
"Did you finally get a girlfriend?" A voice called back and laughed. Miguel chuckled.
"Come on Naja, you know I don't- ah nevermind. His name is Victor, he's the one over there trying to make himself invisible," he said. All eyes were on Victor now. He wasn't sure if he was feeling excited or terrified. Maybe both, he decided. He also decided that he liked that feeling. He waved slightly. A girl stood up and walked over to him. She had dark skin and long black hair, and she wore red silks with golden bells. She smiled and hugged Victor hard, lifting him off the ground.
"Aye, welcome! Victor, was it?" She said, putting him down. "You are always welcome here, brother. I am Naja. I am very happy you have joined us!" She smiled warmly. Victor smiled back.
"I'm very happy too." The rest of the group made varying noises of "hello" and "welcome." Miguel brought Victor around to each person, each of them greeting him with open arms and bright smiles. That is until they approached Luca. He was swirling a glass mug of water in the air, studying the way the lights flickered off the liquid.
"Sorry if I'm out of it today, Miguel. I've been having, er, how's the word..."
"Rough, difficult, troubling?" Victor offered.
"Troubling. That's it. Thank you... Victor, was it? Yes. I've been having troubling thoughts," he sighed, running a tan hand through his copper hair. He had black diamonds painted on his cheeks, a detail Victor hadn't noticed before.
"Did he catch you again?" Miguel whispered. Luca averted his black eyes from Miguel's gaze. Miguel sighed. "Luca, you've gotta be more careful. You know what happens when he catches you. What happened this time?"
"I was trying to practice, and I threw a knife outside of the fence. I wished to retrieve it, so I tried to open the gates. And, well..." He pushed up the sleeve of his jacket to reveal lashes and scars on his forearms. Victor had to hold back a gasp.
"God..." Miguel whispered. "That's the worst I've seen it. Do you know if he's done this to anyone else?" He asked in a serious tone. Luca took a swig of the water and sighed.
"I have my suspicions. Odeie has been wearing gloves more often, have you noticed? And Dorian seems down," he said. Miguel looked up at Victor.
"Speaking of Dorian, Victor, why don't you go talk to him? He's the young one at the end of the table. I have some things to take care of with Luca," Miguel said. He phrased it like a question, but his eyes said it like an order. Victor nodded and walked the length of the table until he saw a small boy tapping his small hands at the table. He had ridiculously large ears that were almost, no, that certainly were mouselike, and large blue eyes. He looked up at Victor and gasped, revealing small buck teeth.
"Hiya monsieur! I'm Dorian! And you're Victor! Monsieur Miguel told me that," he happily bubbled. Victor found him positively adorable. "Come sit with me sir! Pretty please?" Victor sat with him.