This pesky 1000 words threshold. I'm missing it again. Something I can include in my New Year's resolutions. Till then I'll claim Holiday Special.
So this is it, my last story for Ficlet Friday (in 2022). Don't worry. MagiKalwill return.
Circus MagicHoudini whimpered and darted out of the subway train as soon as the doors opened. Clark could practically sense his relief. To be completely honest, he shared it. Crowds made them both uncomfortable, which was absurd considering that his “magic tricks" attracted an ever increasing number of people. But he never performed in a confined space like in the subway train, where a slip in his control might well have disastrous consequences.
So Clark, too, breathed a sigh as he followed his dog out of the underground station and up the stairs onto the wide street outside. Houdini waited for him in a safe distance. Another whimper escaped the dog and he shook himself.
“I guess that means we’re walking back home.” Clark patted the dog’s head and immediately Houdini began wagging his tail.
Sometimes he wondered just how much the Setter understood of what he said. Most days, he would swear that his furry friend was psychic. Like today, when he had somehow managed to keep Lois Lane from calling an ambulance while his out-of-control hearing had forced him to the ground with a splitting headache. The billion softer and louder sounds of the city had coalesced to a deafening cacophony that had been almost impossible to discern. Houdini’s heartbeat alone was something he could latch onto and pull himself back.
Clark swallowed hard as he thought about what might have happened if it hadn’t been for his dog.
“You did a great job, today, buddy.” His voice was trembling with the trepidation he still felt.
He’d lost control right before the eyes of Metropolis’ best reporter and hadn’t even worn his costume. It could have become a nightmare. He needed to be more careful, if he didn’t want the world to know that there was someone with scary, superhuman powers who couldn’t control them. Either that or vanish back into the shadows and lead his life in seclusion. Though his life would be safer that way, he didn’t want to go back to this kind of existence, not at all. He didn't want to go back to that kind of loneliness.
"She's so beautiful," he said wistfully. "And when she touched me…"
Clark rubbed the hand she had shaken. It still seemed to tingle with the memory. But it couldn't be, he needed to forget about her. He really wished he could shake himself like Houdini and rid himself of such ideas.
The Setter whimpered beside him, as if he could sense his dark thoughts. Clark tried to smile for his sake, but he felt that his attempt was anything but convincing.
“We’re almost there.” He felt silly for saying that, because Houdini probably couldn’t care less where they were going and why.
Clark turned a corner of a street and then he saw it - a huge tent stretching out before his eyes and reaching high up into the sky. Red and white stripes marked the fabric and at the top of each pole there was a flag with stars and stripes flapping in the wind. Clark slowed his steps as he watched the impressive circus, his most recent assignment for the Daily Planet.
Though he was still a freelancer, he had somehow managed to impress his editor with the few works he’d turned in so far. And now he found himself with smaller assignments for stories like this one - a new circus in town.
Clark sat down on a park bench, watching the circus from a distance. Though the tent looked ready, the workers still weren’t completely done with the setup. As Clark lowered his glasses, he spotted some artists inside the tent, already practicing for their performance. A juggler, a clown and an aerialist He smiled to himself as he remembered seeing another circus, much smaller than this one, in a rural small town in the middle of Nowhere, Wyoming.
Clark scratched Houdini, who had rested his head on Clark’s upper leg.
His life had been quite different then, always on the move.
“Houdini, what are you doing?” he yelled. “We need to get away from here. There are too many people here with that circus in town.”
The dog barked and wagged his tail, rushing off in the opposite direction. Clark cursed softly. It wasn’t at all like the Setter to just dart off, not even to chase some rabbit. No matter how hard he’d tried to get rid of his companion, the dog had refused to leave. And over time, he had found that Houdini could somehow sense his coming outbursts of power before he himself noticed what was going to happen. They were still practicing on that, though. But it was already helping a lot when they were walking through more densely settled areas.
Like they were doing now - well sort of.
Which was exactly why he needed his dog back.
“Houdini!” he shouted again. “Now’s not the time to chase after some beautiful lady. Get back here, buddy.”
He whistled, but his dog ignored him. Clark became nervous. Gritting his teeth, he set for a brisker pace, one that was still slow enough to appear human. He could only hope that his powers wouldn’t go all out of whack now. If he got hold of that dog, he’d fly them as far away into the wilderness as he dared, no matter how much Houdini hated flying.
He shouldn't have come here. But he'd wanted to earn a few bucks helping with the harvest, chopping wood, whatever opportunity presented itself. He wished he could go back to traveling. The United States was so big, but sometimes they felt too small for him.
Maybe he could head for Canada. Fewer people. More loneliness. It would be a long hike.
Clark sighed.
He missed his parents.
He missed people.
But it couldn't be. "Houdini, get back here."
The Setter briefly stopped in front of the blue and white circus tent, then headed straight for a group of dogs that were quite obviously part of some performance. One after the other jumped on a pedestal and then through a ring their trainer was holding out. Houdini barged right in and stopped the training quite effectively.
The dogs greeted each other, started sniffing at their respective rear ends and quickly became a wad of fur.
The dog trainer raised his brows. "He's your dog?"
Clark blushed. "Yeah, sorry about Houdini." He whistled once more and immediately, the Setter lifted his head and rushed back to his master. "It won't happen again."
A smile spread across the dog trainer's face.
"Hey, Houdini, who'd have thought?" He winked at the dog. "You can obey after all. Want to join the group, do you?"
Houdini stood stiff at Clark's side, his lips already twitching as if he wanted to bare his teeth.
Clark looked down at him and laughed. "I don't think he's interested. Again, sorry for disturbing you."
"Oh, don't worry about it," the trainer replied. "These guys were in for a pause anyway. Are you coming to the premier this evening?"
Clark shook his head. "No, 'fraid not. We need to get going. We've got a long ways ahead of us."
"Well, your loss," the trainer shrugged.
Clark waved goodbye and clicked his tongue. Houdini followed him with a last wistful look at the other dogs. Clark, too, felt a pang of sadness. He'd still been a child when he'd last visited a circus. But it was too dangerous to sit in a tent when his heat vision might go crazy any moment. That could only end in disaster.
This time, he took the shortest way out of the city.
When they were at a safe distance from the tent, Houdini stopped and looked back at the circus, barking at Clark.
"What do you want from me?" He said with a hint of exasperation. "We can't go back! You know why."
Houdini barked again and stood his ground.
"You mean watch from here?" Clark mumbled.
He looked around. They had already reached the fields. There were no houses close to him, no people likely to pass him by during the show.
His heart fluttered with sudden excitement.
Clark swallowed. "I guess we could do that. But it wouldn't be right. We're no paying guests."
Houdini barked a third time and laid down in the grass.
Clark's eyes drifted back to the circus and the ticket office. He reached into the pocket of his pants and fumbled out his last twenty dollar note.
Then he sat down beside Houdini. "You're right. Just because we don't buy a ticket doesn't have to mean we can't pay. But I'll need to find a job soon if we're going to do that." That evening had been magical. Clark had watched the show, hundreds of yards away from the tent. As soon as the sun had set, there had been two fire-breathers welcoming the audience under a sky full of stars. Another man had juggled burning torches, catching them fearlessly. Almost as if his hands were invulnerable. Trapezists had seemed to fly through the air. And as he stared, amazed, awed and completely mesmerized, a crazy idea had formed in Clark's mind.
He blinked to shake the memory and looked down at Houdini, who had closed his eyes in delight. Though they needed to get to work, Clark couldn't quite bring himself to stop stroking the dog. Sometimes, he truly wondered if the Setter was psychic. Had he led him to that circus on purpose? He supposed not. Houdini had probably only been interested in the other dogs.
Still, he couldn't help but wonder.
"What do you say, Houdini? Time to let our readers experience some circus magic?"
The dog barked and jumped to his feet. This time Clark was only too happy to follow.
