{YUI'S POV}
I take a deep, steadying breath. I've been traveling with Eon and the Happy Mask Circus caravan for several months—through Menad, Cojaca, and other kingdoms I've never visited before—but this is the first time I won't be behind the scenes.

I'm wearing my clown costume: white shirt with puffy long sleeves and ruffles down the midline to hide the buttons, as well as ruffles on the ends of the sleeves and the hem of the shirt.

White shorts with black pantyhose underneath that go all the way down into my practical walking boots.

A white hat that deviates into two points, with big puff balls on both tips. Rainbow polkadots cover all of my white clothes, and of course the big red nose that squeaks when squeezed, to my mortification.

My long blonde hair is in a single braid down my back, and a small pack tied to my waist holds spare change, extra balloons, and colorful string.

I'll be walking around, trying to sell balloons and encouraging people to visit the game booths and spend money between performances.

I'm closer now to Miho's home than I am to my own. Our latest stop is in Gatreca, one of the numerous small western kingdoms bordering the Zoral empire. I'm dragged out of my thoughts by a bell ringing, to indicate the grand opening of the Happy Mask circus.

I quickly paste a smile on my face to greet the oncoming swarm of people.

I walked the loop I was assigned to. My path intersects with where Mimi is doing her mime act. I try to catch her eye when I pass, but she's too focused on making her crowd 'oooh and 'ahhh'.

I make pleasantries with customers and even sell a few of the balloons floating lazily above my head. Today is the calm day, and the sun is still clinging to the horizon so it's light out even without the torches.

I feel... alive! I want to laugh and spin.

There's something freeing about nobody knowing who I am. Nobody has great expectations of me. They don't bow or treat me differently just because of the family I was born into. In the circus, we're all equal.

I notice a very young child ogling my last balloon with a green string. I smile and kneel down, getting on eye level so I'm less of a threat as I hold out my hand with the green-stringed balloon in it.

His eyes light up and he tugs on his mother's skirt. She looks down, then over at me when the child points. I grin and approach. The mom happily forks over a few coins and hands the balloon to her son.

"Don't let go now." The mother warns.

Of course, perhaps because he wants to know what will happen, or perhaps because our brains always want to do what they're told not to do, the little boy immediately lets go of the green string.

He let out a wail as his face scrunches in dismay. His mom gasps, but it flies away before she can react. I jump and catch end of the string right before it's out of my reach. I hand it back to the boy proudly.

"Tank you!" He says with a huge, toothy grin.

"Bye-bye!" I wave as they walk towards the main tent, past a group of clowns.

One of the clowns very obviously pretends to trip over his comically oversized shoes. He faceplants, but his red nose rolls out in front of him. I know from experience that this is not supposed to happen.

The clowns plays it off well, keeping his head down and exaggeratedly flailing. Another one plucks the first clown's nose off of the ground. He honks it, eliciting a laugh from some passersby.

The first clown—very carefully covering his face with an oversized glove to hide where there isn't any makeup—stands and teeters while flailing some more. He tries to chase the second clown.

They run in circles around the third clown in the group, who honks his own nose in return. The second clown takes off in a slow but exaggerated run down the path. The first clown tries to chase, but faceplants a second time, eliciting more laughter. He flails.

A hand reaches out from beside me, towards my face. I duck back instinctively.

"Aw, come on!" A group of young men came from the other direction and is now in a semi-circle around me. Their smiles make me shudder.

"We just wanted to see if your nose honks too." A different boy said, smirking.

I took a half step back for some space, but smile widely. "Would you like to buy a balloon?"

They close in slightly, blocking off my view of our surroundings, since they're all taller than me. "How much to honk your horn?"

"How about a balloon instead?" I offer, smiling.

What am I supposed to do? Has it escalated to the point where I need to physically defend myself yet? I've never been in this situation before. No one has ever dared approach me so brashly.

"Perhaps you're not hearing me..." One of the young men growls, reaching for my face.

I wince, squeezing my eyes shut.

"Oi, oi, what's going on here, gentlemen?" Someone asks. I open my eyes and breathe a sigh of relief. One of our security guards is standing between me and the rowdy group of young men.

"Tch." They grumble, rolling their eyes.

"Now, now, let's all be civil. I'm gonna have to ask you gentlemen to follow me."

They follow without complaint, probably because this particular security guard doubles as a strong man. He clearly has the muscle to back it up.

That sweet little toddler followed up by a group of jerks. You really see all kinds of people at a circus, huh? People loose their inhibition at places like this. It's like they're drunk on the lights and smells.

The rest of the night passes without incident. I'm pleased by the number of balloons I sold. My pouch clinks as I walk, full of coins.

I should probably report about my night to Eon. I haven't seen him, since he's been in the main tent and I've been outside. Incidents like this should be documented, especially in case one of the young men tries anything later.

He's doing paperwork inside a small tent that acts as his pseudo-office. I go in silently and pause. He looks so serious and different.

His quill moves lightning fast across the page, and his eyes move back and forth so rapidly I hardly believe that he's actually reading.

His mouth is curled down in a frown, which looks unnatural on Eon's face. Blood trickles from his nose.

Wait... blood?!