Freaks and Fortune

I stomped back to the equipment shed, dragging the shovel and wheelbarrow behind me. I forcefully shoved them back in to their places, becoming frustrated when a large broom and dustpan was blocking their way. I kicked the wheelbarrow, blinking sweat from my eyes.

"What are you doing now?" a familiar voice demanded, suddenly appearing behind me.
"I'm cleaning up!" I shouted, trying to keep my voice from breaking. I suddenly became very emotional, stress welling up behind my eyes. "You keep asking me the most random and obvious questions! I'm cleaning up! I'm cleaning up!"

The Elephant Acrobat's large hand fell down upon my shoulder. He twisted me around and I was met with his enraged face. His oddly dyed hair once again distracted me.

"If you're going to be slamming things around, then I'd prefer you'd do it at a safe distance from my elephants," he said sternly. "If there's even a chance that one of them would get spooked - "
"Relax," I muttered.
"Relax? Relax?" he scoffed. "Any one of these creatures could kill you in a matter of seconds. I've seen-"
"Look," I interrupted. "I'm having a bad day. I don't need you and your lectures to make it worse."

He narrowed his eyes to impossible slits and I was slightly afraid.

"I got tricked," I tried to explain, wanting to placate him. "By one of those Freaks."
"A Freak?" he asked, raising an eyebrow. "Which one?"

His demeanor had completely changed. There was a slight spark in his dark eyes and he seemed like he was holding back interest.

"Uh... Well, he had a leather jacket and suspenders with-"
"Cal!" he muttered in a dark tone.
"Cal." My voice matched his perfectly.

I forced the doors of the shed closed, wincing when I heard something crash inside.

"That fire-breathing son of a bitch!" he growled.
"Fire breather?" I asked, wiping my sweat-mangled bangs from my forehead.
"Yes," he hissed. "Apparently it's funny to get drunk and then blow fire at an elephant."

He cocked his head to the side, his hair glowing orange in the dying sun. The gold and red that twisted through it looked almost royal in comparison to his dark skin. A fleeting smile broke out across his coffee lips and I caught a glimpse of brilliantly white teeth. His hardened exterior seemed to falter for a second.

"You hate Cal Orion," he observed, nodding. "Good."

I was secretly pleased at the mild form of acceptance. Quickly, I leapt into the conversation, eager to take advantage of his momentary softness.

"What's your name?"

He looked surprised, but he leaned forward, suggesting genuine interest.

"Ravi Hastin," he said, hesitated, and then offered his hand.

My blood was beating dully, as if my veins had suddenly gotten smaller. I opened my mouth to tell him my name, but I was interrupted by a shriek coming from the arena behind me.

Ravi's hand dropped like a dead weight and he leaned over the stone wall to get a good look at what was happening. His shoulders tensed. A man was backed into a corner, scared stiff by a wildly stomping elephant.

"Shit," Ravi cursed. "Coming, James!"

He turned away from me without a backwards glance. His black shirt clung to him from the humidity and he ran a hand through his hair.

"Ravi!" he shouted up to the elephant. "Down boy! Down!"

The elephant ignored him, trumpeting loudly and romping around with a panicked look in it's eye. This elephant looked to be the oldest and droopiest of the eight, but that didn't stop him from causing chaos.

Ravi looked around wildly, and he spotted something that made his dark face flush crimson. He flung an accusing finger towards something in the corner. I realized that he was pointing to the man who'd called out, the one that the elephant had gone crazy over.

"What's in your hand?" he shouted over the noise of the elephant. "What the hell is in your hand?!"
The man looked down and winced at the cellular phone clutched in his shaking hand.

Ravi's eyebrows knitted together, simultaneously trying to soothe the elephant and scream at the man.

"You know that cell phones look like tasers!" he accused, trying to place a gentle hand on the elephant's flailing trunk.
"I-I'm sorry!" the man, apparently called James, whimpered in the face of the Acrobat's fury.
"You know that Ravi was mistreated before my father took him in!" he shouted at James, who hid his face in his hands.

"Get out of here!" Ravi ordered, his voice straining. "Now!"

The man pushed his phone into his pocket and blazed out of the arena and up the concrete stairs. He whipped through the bleachers and brushed past me, eager to get as far away from the boy and his elephant.

Now all that was left was the soothing. The Acrobat talked in a calm manner to the elephant.

"Hey... No, it's okay. Come on... It's okay."

I moved away from the shed to get a better view, heading towards the front row of bleachers.

The elephant calmed down to the point where he was just nervously pacing instead of running on the rampage. The boy hopped up on his leg and rubbed what looked like his giant knee joint. This caused the elephant to raise his leg. Ravi grabbed hold of the loose, yet tough skin and hauled himself up onto the elephant's back.

He straddled the elephant's neck and leaned forward, resting his chin on the top of the elephant's head - who was so calm that it looked like he was going to fall asleep.

"You okay now, Ravs?" he asked the elephant, who snorted in response.

The boy slid off the elephant's back and landed gracefully on the ground. He took to absentmindedly stroking it's trunk until he was interrupted by a very tall and thin man with a mane of white hair.

"Ravi?" he asked.
"Hello, Father," the boy answered, his eyes falling to the ground.

I blinked, confused for a second. Which one was Ravi? Elephant or boy? Both? Both, I finally decided.

"The cages are clean and it's time for you to transfer the elephants back for the night."
"Yes, sir," he replied, nodding sharply. "I was just calming down - Omph!"

Elephant Ravi had just knocked human Ravi flat on his face by smacking him dully in the butt with his trunk.

I giggled as the human Ravi picked himself up off the ground, brushing the dirt from his clothes. He was turning around to playfully scold the elephant, but he stopped when he heard me. His eyes widened in surprise at first, and then squinted in fury. I had seen his softer side. Completely unacceptable.

"Shoo, errand girl!" he shouted, waving his arms at me. An elephant trumpeted in the distance, seeming to encourage him. "Go bother someone else!"

I gasped and tore out of the arena, not even looking back when I heard his father scold him for being rude.

"Ravi! Such disrespect for a nice young lady!"

-_-_-_-

"No way!"
"Sure, he's my best friend. Been best friends since we were kids."

I was standing outside of the Time-Card Booth, staring openmouthed at Anthony. I had been complaining to him about Ravi, my boss, and I'd noticed that he had been wearing a deep scowl.

"But... But you're so nice!" I protested.
"Ravi's nice, too!"
"No, he's mean," I protested. "He's overbearing and bossy!"

Anthony sighed in annoyance.

"He just... uh... loves what he does, okay?"
"Not okay! He's a meanie who's obsessed with elephants! I just don't see how you and him can be friends!"
He shrugged. "Opposites attract?"

"All day long: my elephants this, my elephants that."
"Oh, cut him a break. He's so dramatic, you know?"
"Trust me. I know," I growled.
"You hang out long enough with him and, eventually, he'll warm up to you."
I snorted in disbelief.
"Who knows? Maybe a girl cute as you will finally make him get off his ass."
I rolled my eyes and Anthony winked.

He leaned back in his chair and punched in my time card. His sandy hair flopped forward into his eyes and he used his sleeve to shove the bangs back.

"Knock 'em dead, Ivy-kins!" he shouted to me as I walked off towards the Elephant Arena.