~Of The Sky~

~Chapter One: Étoile de Tir~

Allie stood in the middle of the sidewalk, looking forward at what might be, at last, an opportunity. The sign over the doorway read 'Cirque du Ciel'. Under it, in tiny lettering, was a translation. Circus of the Sky. This was for those foreign to Montreal, where French was a big thing. She had come here seeking the best - and only - job opportunity she could find. Over her shoulder was a small bag containing all of her worldly possessions. In her hands she clutched two items being rapidly crushed- a letter and her résumé. Realizing that she was putting wrinkles in her papers, Allie quickly stopped twisting her hands back and forth, and smoothed out the documents.

Opening the folder one last time, she looked at the top of the page. There lay a picture of a young woman, wavy black hair flowing over one shoulder, green eyes staring piercingly at the camera. Under the picture was a caption. Name: Allegra Conte. Allie shuddered slightly and made a face. What kind of horrible, twisted fate had led her parents to give her such a ridiculous name? They had told her that it meant some cute phrase in one language or another, but she had taken it as the effects of too much wine at her father's It's-finally-over-with celebration. She rolled her eyes, then let them wander to the paper again to continue reading.

Age: 18. Um, give or take a few years. Heh. Well, the job offer had said eighteen to twenty, and she wasn't about to pass this up. Height: 1.5 m. So short! Weight: 43 kg. At least that was something to be happy about. Occupation: Vocal Artist. Hopefully.

As she closed the portfolio, Allie sighed. Everything was neatly in place. Just as it had been the last time she had checked, five minutes ago. As she looked once again at the pale white envelope held tightly in her trembling hands, she thought back to the chain of events that had led her to this doorway.

Her parents had died in an accident. At least, that's what the government said. They had refused to even admit that anything of the sort had happened. It all started with a plane crash. Allie's parents were on their way home from another crazy trip. Called it their second honeymoon. Her family had never exactly been very well off, and the debts after the accident were just too much to keep up with. Allegra had to auction off the house she had lived in all her life, and most of her stuff. Hence the small size of the bag she was carrying. With all the government people lurking around trying to cover everything up, along with her . . . well . . . not technically being eighteen, Allie had decided to give herself a break and quietly disappear to somewhere she could get a job and wouldn't be recognized. Where she could start again. And the first steps to doing that were inside that building.

The building in question was a regular brick house. Oh. Except for the large multicolored mural on the side, and the pounding foreign music coming from inside. And just what was inside? Inside that building was the center of a fantastic show of actors and acrobats from all over the world. Each person different from the others. They had come together as street performers from this city to begin a tradition of reinventing the term "circus". They put on theatrical performances that captivated audiences everywhere, and had even caught her attention as a child. That was before everything had gotten complicated, and the program from that show, kept safe in a box under her bed, was a memory of - well, it's hard to explain.

'It's like a get out of jail free card, in a way.' Allie thought. She could leave her home, go far far away, travel, and sing as a profession. What could be better? Plus, she had the experience. She'd been singing professionally for a couple of years, a welcome source of income. And music was the heart of any theatre, right? So she'd have no problem getting a job? Yes? Okay, so she didn't hear any of the little voices in her head agreeing with her on this one. But she had sent in a video, just like the directions she had received had said, and they did send her a letter asking her to come to Montreal, so that must mean that they'd liked her! If so, than why was she so damned nervous?

Anyway, how was she going to get anywhere if she didn't at least gather up the spunk to knock on the door? Allie lifted her hand, clenched it into a fist, and - froze again. Just when she thought she might as well start scrubbing dishes somewhere, the door swung open with a bang.

"HIYA!"

Allegra looked around, totally baffled. What the heck was going on? Inside the front hall was a small girl who looked to be about twelve. Her pink pigtails shone brightly in the afternoon sun. And what was she doing? Oh that was plain. She was just holding a pair of nun chucks and TWIRLING THOSE THINGS AT A MILLION MILES AN HOUR POSSIBLY FAST ENOUGH TO KILL SOMEBODY!

The girl giggled. Her cheeks folded up to form cute dimples and her bright blue eyes sparkled. "Geez, you're really funny! Didja know that? I won't hurt you, y'know. I've been doing these things for years!" she said, switching the whirling chains of doom to her other hand. "Anyway, Dominic says that ya gotta go see him when you get here. You are Allegra, right?"

For the first time in several seconds, the thoroughly bewildered teen was able to speak. "Call me Allie." 'Oh, great first impression. Why don't we let her know that we're scared of the whirling chains of doom, and then correct her on how to say our name. I must seem like a complete idiot.'

"Okie dokie! By the way, I'm Mairi. You better remember that, because if you stick around here, you'll be seeing a lot of me."

After a few minutes, Allie was walking down the hall behind - what's her name? Oh yeah, Mairi. That's when it hit her. 'Stick around? OH YES! That means they need me here! Oh God, I take back whatever I said about this job! Holy crap do I need the money!'

They sped past several doors, Allegra taking a moment to peer into each of them. Within she saw what seemed like classes going on. But there were no desks, and some of the people in the rooms were definitely not doing schoolwork. By the time Mairi stopped, Allie was so absorbed in her thoughts that she ran right into her, toppling the other girl over.

"AH! Oh my god I'm so sorry, I was just thinking about all the stuff in here and it's all so different and please don't send me away I really need this job so plea-"

Mairi laughed. "Look, don't sweat it Sherlock. I'm not all that delicate and all. I mean, think about it. I am nineteen and I do work here as an acrobat. Or contortionist. Whichever you prefer."

Allegra's eyeballs nearly popped out of her head. "There is NO WAY in HELL that you're NINETEEN FRIKIN' YEARS OLD! You look like you're about TWELVE!"

Her companion sighed, and hit her over the head with her nun chucks. "Look, kid. Get used to it. Everyone here is a bit - different. So are you. You just haven't quite found your way of showing it yet." She turned to look at Allie. "So are you . . . oh. Are you okay?" Mairi waved her hand in front of Allie's lovely swirly eyes. "Um, you might want to get off the ground now. The boss is expecting you."

Almost immediately, the birdies stopped flying around Allie's head and she sat straight up. Then observing her surroundings, she found herself seated on an obviously expensive carpet in front of a massive wooden door. On it were intricate carvings depicting the sun, the moon, and the rest of the sky. Going closer to examine the pictures, she found here eyes drawn to a small shooting star in the border. Running her fingers over it, she felt the delicate grain of the wood. And a slow, drawn-out creaking quickly brought her back to reality. The doors, less than an inch away from her nose, were swinging open. As Allegra squinted into the bright sunlight pouring out from the room, a silhouette appeared in the doorway.

"Bonjour Allegra. We've been expecting you."

Allie stood looking at the tall figure of a middle-aged man, who obviously held some importance. Authority was crackling in the air around him. But his eyes were a soft gray, and kind. Swallowing her embarrassment, Allie stuck out her hand, and though the moment was somewhat awkward, she managed to greet him in turn.

"Hello sir. And as everyone here seems to mysteriously know my name without my introducing myself, I think it only fair that you tell me what I'm doing here."

A soft chuckle reached her ears. "I am Dominic. Have you found yourself yet?"

Allie managed an extremely elegant, "Huh?"

The man, now identified as Dominic, smiled. "On the doors. This is the Cirque du Ciel. Everyone has their place in the skies. Some are just more apparent than others. But we've decided that it's your turn to join us. Would you like to come see what you'll be doing here?"

"Yes sir. I'd like that very much."

"Than come right in."

Stepping past the outstretched arm gesturing her toward the doors, Allegra made her way into a huge gymnasium, where hundreds of eyes were watching her every move. The same gentle voice from behind here whispered again, softly.

"Bienvenue à la famille."

Welcome to the family.

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A/N: Okay, I'd just like to thank everyone who's read the story thus far, and forgive you for not reading the author's notes. It's alright. Nobody really does. But I'd like to clarify a couple things.

Yes, this story begins in Canada. Can you deal with that? I hope so. Because it already has, and I'm not changing it. Yes, they speak French sometimes, but I'll try to translate when I can. I apologize to those who speak French, my grammar is horrible. Anyway, this story is inspired by an actual circus out of French Canada, called Cirque du Soleil. I went to one of their shows and was inspired to write a story about a young woman struggling to earn her place in the company. Therefore, I disclaim everything that is necessary to disclaim, but the characters and the plotline are mine! MINE ALL MINE!

Ahem. But once again, thank you for reading, and please take the time to review if at all possible. I need some tips on writing. I really need to improve. Flames accepted, but please give a reason for your displeasure. I'll try and fix it, but if I don't . . . well, tough luck for you.

I'll try to have the next chapter up by next week. Hopefully. Sorry if it isn't. I'd just like you all to know that I'm writing this for my own pleasure and am very convinced that I'm probably gibbering to nobody out there. But that's okay. The voices in my head don't mind!

Anyway, I'll leave you now. Don't forget to click that little button down in the left-hand corner now. Reviews are very much appreciated.

-FuuHououji

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Lesson of the Day:

Never trust a kid with nun chucks.