"Little Marie, I think it best that we leave. I would not have you here unchaperoned and I realize now it was a mistake to leave my family unattended for so long. We must prepare for our evening performance." Colette's hands twisted in her lap. She'd gotten what she came here for, in a roundabout way. Jacque knew she was here, knew she was with la Vapeur. She knew not how, but she felt icy tendrils of fear creeping through her. No telling what he--or his employees--would do to her beloved Cirque. Or her.
Still, she needed to protect her family, and if she were within her own camp, she would probably be safer. She chided herself for ever venturing out of the camp. This was exactly why she hated stepping out, exploring the town. It was too dangerous, too terrifying.
"Marie?" She repeated the girl's name, but then the ringmaster was stepping out into sight, and for the first time in many years, Jacque's eyes latched onto Colette's.
She gaped like a fish.
The man was thin, small. Wiry. He wasn't French; she assumed he was Eastern European, and he spoke with a thick accent from a land far off, but she knew him only as Jacque and nothing else. His moustache was twirled at both ends, his coattails were long and nearly swept the ground as he waved his arms, bowed, and cried out to the crowds. He was a riveting speaker. The crowd gasped and swooned as one being as he drew their attention to the high wire that was set up in the center of the big top.
The acrobat routine was coming up, and Colette's heart lurched. She couldn't bear to see these men perform under names they hadn't earned, hadn't created. They'd stolen the names and couldn't hope to fill the shoes of their predecessors. Her pride flared, at odds with her fear. She wanted to stay and watch, wanted to turn and run.
The colours were so familiar. That beautiful blue that had set off Auréle's complexion so well. He was darker than she, and more brooding, more ponderous. Her brother, her guardian. Right until the day he died...
She reached down, snatched Marie's hand urgently. "We have to go."
((Spiffy, in my mind when Colette and Marie return to the circus, they find that the acrobats have already been and have caused a ruckus. Up to you as to what damage they have already caused--AND, if you don't like that idea, feel free to create another one! :D I love this thread, but it'd be nice to return it to main camp so that a few more RP'rs can participate? Maybe? Possibly? ))
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