"Say it with me slowly, 'Fiji mermaid'," Ivan instructed, pointing to the small print on the placard.
"Fi... Ji... mer...maid..." I followed the man's finger while he pointed to each syllable and said the words with me, "f-Fiji... mermaid," I repeated myself a little faster.
"Good job! Now, your final challenge of the day..." he smirked devilishly.
"Oh g-god, there's m-more?" I whined.
Ivan chuckled, "Read the whole placard."
I sighed in exhaustion and defeat, but I obeyed the man. I asked for this, after all. I can't complain about something I ask for, it wouldn't make sense. Tom asked me what I wanted and I said I wanted a day to see the freakshow and not be a part of it; he obliged under the conditions that I was supervised by Ivan. This worked out just perfectly for me; Ivan is a bookworm and I knew the freakshow had a whole bunch of display cases with words on them. So, after telling him what TomCat was basically offering me, I asked Ivan to teach me how to read.
I wanted to be smart about my escape. Previously, I would've run off without a single regard for what city life is, but now that I'm older and a little more knowledgeable of how society really works, I'm going to take my time and think my plans through. Ivan stands by my plans wholeheartedly; he even suggested he go with me so my journey is easier. Of course, I would never turn down my most trusted friend, so I officially declared him as my partner in crime.
I explored the freakshow on my own for a while before Ivan had shown up, but when he did, he came prepared with a dictionary, a few pencils and some paper. He came prepared and because of that, I now stand in front of a large placard talking about the ten most paradoxical curiosities discovered by man.
My sentences were bad, and even I knew it. My stuttering got in the way many times if I spoke too quickly and Ivan, more often than not, had to correct a word that I mispronounced or simply couldn't say. This would've been ten times easier with some children's learning books, but alas, where would we find those in a circus? I would have to make do with the impossibly adult words that sounded more like a foreign language to me rather than formal English.
It took me ages to read the placard, all the while, guests passed by with curious demeanours and muttered to themselves about the odd schooling in the middle of the tent. I ignored them, intent on learning to read efficiently enough so I could learn the things that I so desired to learn about.
Once I was finished, I gave a triumphant sigh and Ivan clapped softly.
"Yay! I'm proud of you! Did you learn anything new?" he wondered as he pocketed the pencils and paper.
"Uh... the w-world is strange..." I answered, "M-maybe there's m-more we d-don't know?"
Ivan smiled approvingly, "That's very good! Maybe it's just me, but I'd say you learn rather quickly, Angel," I giggled as my cheeks began to grow warm from the compliment. I felt very proud of myself at the moment, and once we began to move on to look at other things, the words I saw seemed to jump out at me like shiny coins. I could read them and when I saw them, I happily sounded them out and said the words. Ivan's proud smile made me happy; I no longer felt like the helpless animal-child trapped in the cage. I felt human.
...
The next day, I didn't ask Tom to let me have another day to myself, though the request was tempting. I wanted to remain on his good side so he doesn't take back his deal in a fit of anger. Instead, when he came by to ask how I was doing and if I needed anything, I only asked for a plate of bread rolls and butter to keep me going through the day. He happily obliged and I happily ate my bread while practising how to write the alphabet on a pad of paper that Ivan let me borrow.
My plan for the day was to practice my writing and spelling. Ivan would help me but only when I desperately needed it. His method was for me to learn as much on my own after learning the basics. I'm not quite sure how it's supposed to be effective, as I'm still having trouble spelling "promenade,".
About halfway through the day, FatCat rushed up to our exhibit and asked Ivan to announce the freakshow. Naturally, the tamer was taken aback and had inquiries for the strongman.
"I would announce it, myself, but I have a show in just a few minutes. I can't find the master or Leopard and the only man I could think of that could do the job well enough for an hour or so is you," FatCat explained the situation quickly and breathlessly. It was so quick, in fact, that Ivan needed the poor man to repeat himself. After which, Ivan was completely aghast by the offer.
"But... I've never announced a show before!" he argued, to which I butted in. I placed my hand on his shoulder to grab his attention.
"You l-lead the t-ticket booth f-for the l-longest time. I th-think that q-qualifies," I informed. FatCat nodded in agreement with me and put his hands together to beg.
"Please! It'll only be an hour. I'll make a note of it so the master gives you a bonus," he offered. Ivan pondered the decision for a moment.
"What about her?" he asked, pointing towards me.
"I'm sure she'll be fine. She's old enough to know not to bite a child's fingers," FatCat responded. I shrugged half-heartedly and giggled. Once again, Ivan was silent for a period while he thought. Then, finally, he sheepishly agreed to the job.
"Oh, thank you! Thank you so much!" FatCat smiled and shook Ivan's hand enthusiastically, the strength and sheer force nearly yanking the small man out of his seat. The strongman hurried away back to his own tent before Ivan could ask any more questions, so he was unfortunately left with more questions than answers.
"It's okay, y-you got this. J-just b-be yourself but... louder and m-more energet-t-tic," I assured him. He sighed, completely discombobulated by the whole thing.
"What the hell do I even say!?" he ran a hand through his light brown hair and huffed.
"I d-don't know, just th-think of what L-Leopard m-might say and copy h-him,"
Ivan nodded, but he still wasn't content, nor was he confident. So, I gave him a few suggestions on what to say and how to act. He listened attentively to my brief teachings and, after a bit of planning and some rehearsal, the man finally stood from his chair and nervously took on the job. I'm not ashamed to say I was proud of myself for being able to give advice worth listening to. Ivan followed my suggestions and did his best to announce the freakshow as casually as possible.
I could hear his voice all the way in the back and it only grew more confident the longer time passed. I smiled with the knowledge that he was doing well and, just for him, I decided against biting off children's fingers.
Ivan told me a rather interesting story once he was dismissed from his post by Leopard, who returned after two hours rather than one as we had all hoped. He told me the man looked rather dishevelled and his makeup had been wiped off. On top of this, he sported two bluish-purple bruise marks on his neck and collarbone and became very defensive and agitated when Ivan remarked about them.
He followed up his story by saying, "Now notice that TomCat hadn't been seen while Leopard also hadn't been seen?"
The realisation hit me like a rogue elephant and my eyes grew as wide as saucers, "You don't think...!?"
"Oh, I definitely think," Ivan nodded slowly and knowingly, "Mr Brooding Smoker is a little too close to the ringmaster... after what you said when we saw those two behind the cage, it would make perfect sense... frankly, I don't know how to feel about it," he said. I thought about the possibility and yes, it did make sense. It would explain why Tom never fired Leopard when he went missing periodically because, secretly, Leopard was with Tom during those absences. But... why Leopard? Of all people! Why him?
"But, w-what if it i-isn't true?" I wondered.
Ivan pursed his lips, "That's a possibility... but a slim one... it makes too much sense to not be true..."
"Does it m-matter though?" I wondered. Deep down, I was glad for this to have happened, because if Tom is occupied with someone else, no matter who that may be, he's not occupied with me. His willingness to give me what I want and his greater interest in his love affair promised many good things for me.
Ivan shrugged, "Perhaps... we could use it against him to have our way easier," his devilish grin was something I had never seen before and I suddenly began to understand that there was a darker side to my innocent friend after all.
"Ivan!" I exclaimed in shock.
"It's a possible weapon we can use! I'm not suggesting it's our go-to!... Only if things seem dire," he defended himself. I nodded although I still eyed him suspiciously.
"Okay... I'll s-see if I c-can find out m-more myself... b-but only if th-things bec-c-come d-dire will w-we p-pressure him," I stated firmly despite my nagging stutter. Ivan sighed and rolled his eyes, there was a faint playful smirk that tugged at the corners of his lips. It was clear he saw bullying the bully into submission as a game to him. I enjoyed being mischievous with him, but I felt that threatening an already-unstable man wouldn't do us any good. I feared something terrible would happen.