It seemed a foregone conclusion that the night on which a member of the family had been stolen away would prove to be a night which would also steal away the sleep of dear Tybalt. Yet, by some miracle, the man had managed to find enough peace to rest. That miracle's name was Etoile, who lay curled up at the foot of his bed like a kitten, ever reassuring, ever kind.
It was not nearly enough to ward away the mental cataclysm which rose him from slumber in the middle of the night. He rolled out of bed, looking this way and that, grasping at his head to make sense of what was going on. He had never felt something like this before.
Etoile, disturbed by his sudden awakening, pried open one of her heavy eyes to gaze up to her Papa.
"Qu'est-il arrivé?" she asked verbally, unafraid of accidental fallout from her abilities, since they were alone. She knew her Papa could sense things in people, but never had they been affected this strongly.
Tybalt panted for breath, then gulped, looking this way and that, trying to locate the source. His eyes bored holes in the wall.
"Did you find another?" Etoile asked.
"Non, ma cherie, I believe they have found us."
Just then, there was a knock at their door. Tybalt approached it with hesitant steps, his hands trembling. What awaited him on the other side? Sensing his fear, Etoile slipped clumsily from the blankets to scurry up to him and take his shaking hand. Taking a breath, he at last reached out and slid open the door.
He saw, gazing back at him, a small, eerily thin boy in raggedy suspenders, his miniscule hands roughened from toiling on factory floors. Their noses were assaulted by the stench of coal, oil, steam, and street scraps.
Before Tybalt could react, the boy spoke a name: one that Tybalt was sure he had shared with no soul aboard this ship. A name that predated the circus entirely.
Flinching, Tybalt grabbed the boy's arm and yanked him inside, shutting the door behind him. He stared sternly into the child's eyes. And then the boy spoke again.
"I will keep your secrets if you will keep mine."
"Who told you that name?" Tybalt demanded.
"I hold the annals of the future," the strange boy replied. "In them it is no secret."
Tybalt's eye twitched with unease.
"And what is your aim in coming here?"
The boy held a blank, empty gaze at the much taller man before him. There was a pause before he replied.
"You presume I had a choice. It was already decided for me. Tomorrow I will join your circus as the fortune teller La Voyantette, whether or not you and I desire it so."
Tybalt stumbled back, confused. He looked to Etoile for her take on the matter. One thing stuck out in her mind.
«La Voyantette is a girl's name, isn't it?» she signed.
As though the strange child understood what Etoile had signed, the voice replied, "As I said, I will keep your secrets, and you will keep mine. It is better for the circus to believe that Alix Rayne is only a cabin boy, and La Voyantette is the true star. You assign me to Etoile's room, as we are both ladies."
"Why?" Tybalt hesitated to inquire.
"It would be wiser to let time reveal that."
Etoile, protective of her Papa, glared at the mysterious stranger. Boy? Girl? It did not matter. Only one man was immune to her words. With a single utterance she would send this bizarre child away from them.
Tybalt thought deeply of what he should do. He set his hand atop Etoile's head, gently brushing through her hair. It was too late in the evening to be asking questions about fate.
"I will have Maria confirm what you have said, and then we will see what is to be done. Her room is--"
But the girl had already opened the door, walking in the right direction.
"I know," she answered.
-----
Rien answered the knock at the door with a tone of annoyance. As she slid it open, she declared, "Memphis, if you've come this late for something strange, I will--oh." She took note of the small creature before her, a ghostly pale child with no guardian in sight. Her voice softened, and she asked, "Hello there. Do you need some help?"
This stray looked not far from dead - if not in body, then in soul, reflected in her weary eyes. Alix answered, "Tybalt requests Maria's assistance."
"Oh. Alright, I will wake her, then." Though something was clearly off about the child, it was too deep in the night for her to concern herself. Maria was always better at this sort of thing, anyhow. And she would love to hear that Tybalt requested for her. So she went back in the room, to Maria's bedside, and gently shook her.
Groaning, Maria turned over and asked, "Pourquoi me secoues-tu?"
With an audible grin in her voice, Rien answered, "Monsieur LeGrande demande votre aide."
At that, Maria tore off her sleeping mask and donned her robe, scrambling to ready herself. Quickly, she lit a lantern, fixed her hair in the mirror, and in her haste, nearly bowled over the child standing in the doorway.
"Ah--" she vocalized, before exchanging glances with Rien, who nodded.
"I hear Monsieur Tybalt is calling for me," she said finally to Alix. "I should have known it was to take in another cute lost kitten. Come along, we will go to him together." At that, she stretched out her hand for Alix to take.
It was not an easy thing to accept such a gesture, however. An uncomfortably long time passed before the child at last placed a worn hand in Maria's. There was no grip to it; the whole of this stray's frame felt limp and on the brink of collapse. Maria could sense things, too, and she could tell that there was pain in this child. A warmth flowed from her hand in an attempt to soothe it.
"My name is Maria. What should I call you?" she asked, escorting her back to Tybalt's quarters.
"Alix," she answered simply. That she was far from well was obvious to the naked eye, but what had transpired to steal the light from her eyes was as yet unclear.
"What a lovely name," she commented, bringing the lantern closer to get a better look. Unkempt hair, gaunt skin, long lashes, and an expression with not a speck of joy. She was less a child than a phantom.
"And such beautiful lashes," she added, but it washed off of her like water off a duck's back. Alix reacted to very little; Maria had seen unconscious patients more responsive than her.
At last they reached Tybalt's door, which slid open by Etoile's little hands. Maria signed her greetings to Etoile, and they entered, Etoile shutting the door behind them.
Immediately discerning Tybalt's distress from his pacing, Maria signed to Tybalt, «Monsieur? Do you know this child? What is going on?»
«No, but she knows me,» he signed in return.
It would have been easy to assume things based on that response, but Etoile signed frantically to Maria to explain more clearly. When things had settled down, Tybalt elaborated.
"She claims I will assign her to room with Etoile after you confirm a delicate matter. And she does not want others to know she is a lady; for what purpose, I do not know. But she...possesses knowledge I cannot explain. It is unreasonable of me to impose upon you at this late hour, chère Maria, but this was an urgent matter."
His words were sweet and beautiful as honeysuckle, but they were drawn out by an anxiety that Maria had rarely seen in him. She resolved to help settle this matter. But surely Tybalt could just say no? She did not understand why it was being spoken of as an inevitability. Nevertheless, she resolved to help.
"Ah, so the petite Monsieur is a Mademoiselle," she remarked. "Détourne le regard s'il te plait," she asked Tybalt, then said to Alix, "Pardon me for a moment."
As Maria confirmed the matter, Etoile could not help but notice the girl's complete lack of response. Alix held as still and lifeless as a doll. Malnourished and unmoving, for the briefest of moments it was like looking into the past. In an instant, Etoile saw herself reflected back - the girl she had been before she met Tybalt. But this girl had no one.
"She is telling the truth," Maria assured Tybalt. "But why would you assign her to Etoile's room?
"I have not. But according to Alix, it has...already occurred? But it has yet to transpire... I do not understand it myself."
Etoile leapt forth, taking Alix's hands in both of hers. Feeling the roughness of her palms, she raised them up and displayed her own, which still bore scars from ill treatment in childhood. She hoped it conveyed her message: We are the same.
Then, Etoile turned back to Tybalt and Maria, signing with determination, «She can stay with me.»
Tybalt scratched at his head, unsure of what had just happened. But rarely could he change Etoile's mind when she was so intensely convinced of something. Though he did not see what she saw, he did trust her judgement.
"Very well. It seems La Voyantette's assessment was correct. She and Etoile will be roommates. Do you have any other questions before I leave Alix in your care, Maria? I imagine Etoile and I have some matters to discuss."
"Many, but in my years of following you, I have learned that some questions are better left unasked." Maria gestured for Alix to follow her, saying, "Come along, my nouveau petit ami, we will go find you something warm to eat."
With that, Maria ushered Alix out of the room.