Chapter 10

A few days later…

Evander and the others were stronger than ever and they were almost ready to begin their journey again through the other realms.

"Are you better now?" Evander asked Adeline, who was walking past.

"I'm better than alright now that Oberon has been defeated," Adeline said.

"We are rid of him for now. I do not believe Titania will ever let him out of her sight now," Evander chuckled. As they began to prepare, they were unaware that they were being watched from a familiar crystal ball.

In another realm…

"Evander…you sly fool. One day you will not be able to stop me. You will be moved from the picture and I will take your place." The deep angry voice whispered. Oberon angrily scratched his crystal ball and then heard a knock on the door. "Come."

The door creeped open eerily and a figure came inside with a devious smile. He wasn't as tall as Oberon but he had an outstanding physique.

"I am here." The voice soothed.

"I am not able to carry out my wishes, but if I cannot get what I want then I need you to finish what I started." Oberon smirked.

"And what are you wishes?" The voice replied.

"Follow Cirque Mystique; watch their every move. Report to me what happens to them," Oberon growled out.

"As you wish…," the voice responded.

"I knew that I could count on you," Oberon smirked, now picking up a chalice. "Cirque Mystique is about to enter into a place that they have never been. But until then…lay low."

The voice only chuckled because they knew what their duty was.

Meanwhile…

Evander stretched and looked at the sky. It was currently night and the group was finished packing and soon they would be heading to the realms farther to the west.

"Evander?" A voice asked. The ringmaster smiled and gave her a knowing look. "Are you ready?"

"Better than ready; I'm happy we got past the Golden Moon," Marina said, how hugging herself.

"Marina…do you need to go and spend some time with the other merpeople?" Evander asked.

"Well…," she started.

"I believe you do. You have been through a lot and you need to spend time with those you love," Evander said.

"Thank you!" She said, now hugging him and making him grunt. "When do I need to come back?"

"Before the new moon," Evander replied.

"Alright, I promise!" She grinned, now running to pack her bags. She was happy to go and spend time with Tide, especially after all of what he did for her.

As she ran to take care of that, Evander noticed that Adeline was looking into the distance. She had been quiet for the past few days.

"Adeline? Are you alright?" He asked.

"I'm fine," she said gently.

"Speak to me," Evander said calmly.

"Evander…it's alright," she said.

"Adeline…," he said, now turning her chin to face him.

"Hey!" She said in surprise.

"Speak to me," he said, now staring deep into her eyes.

"Evander, I wanted to know what Loki asked of you," she said.

"What do you mean?" He asked.

"I know he spoke to you because I remember hearing something about him wanting to see me in his realm then I dozed off," she said.

"Well, he did speak to me, but I think you should speak to him yourself, Adeline," Evander said seriously. "After all, it is your deal you will have to make with him."

She nodded and then concentrated as hard as she could. She called to Loki with her mind and after a few moments, he appeared in his more human-like form.

"Adeline…I knew you would be calling soon," he winked, now running a hand through his hair.

"Ummmm…Loki, I need to speak to you about something," she said, now looking at him carefully.

"Yes?" He asked.

"I want to talk to you about the deal," she said gently. Loki motioned her to follow him outside towards the river and he gave her a small smirk.

"Now what has you all frazzled?" He asked.

"I don't know if I'm ready…," she said.

"Ready for what?" Loki asked.

"For coming to your realm; I know you said that that was part of the deal," she said calmly.

"Yes, but not all at once, Adeline," Loki said, now giving her a small look of confidence. "You need to live with others and learn how they live. After all, you will need to know more in case you decide to stay in one of the realms."

"I know, but…," she started. Loki then walked over to her and gently nudged her head.

"I know you're scared…but trust me…it won't be that terrifying, Adeline, I promise." He said calmly.

"But I want to stay with Evander," she protested.

"Well, how about this…he can come and have Cirque Mystique to stay with you for some of the month and then you can have Evander personally stay with you the remainder of that month," Loki said.

"No, Evander won't want to stay away from the troupe," she said sadly.

"Then perhaps you can bring a friend to come with you," Loki offered.

"Maybe…Marina or Shell," she said to herself. Loki gave a small smile and ran a hand through her hair.

"You will enjoy yourself, Adeline; you will be safe and enjoy the wonders of other realms," Loki said.

"But she will be under my watchful eye the entire time," a voice said. Both turned and saw Evander walk in. "And she does not have to begin this stay until the new moon."

"Yes," Loki said.

But after a few moments, Adeline felt a sense of comfort come over her. She felt calmer and happier because she knew that Evander and Loki were really her guardian and friends. She would always be safe with them.

"Now don't think about that now…let's talk about that later because it is not meant to stress you out," he said calmly.

Adeline nodded and then began smiling as she saw Evander motion for her to follow him. As she did, she could tell that Cirque Mystique was finally getting ready to begin their journey once more.

"Are you ready to visit the rest of the realms? You have had quite an adventure," Evander said.

"I'm ready. I'm just glad you're alright, Evander…you almost died," she said.

"I know, but I needed to save you," he replied. "You are part of my team."

"Evander?" She asked.

"Yes?" Came the calm reply.

"Would you ever consider going back to Earth and performing?" She asked.

"Actually Earth is one of our stops before we reach the new moon season," Evander smiled. "And I believe it will be good for you to visit your Earthly home."

"Why?" She asked.

"Because it is still your home; maybe not your permanent one anymore, but still your home," Evander said.

"I agree! How about we go and do a performance on Earth and then go and visit the realm of the Chimeras. They are at peace with the dragons now and so we can perform there now," Colossus said. "I think we need to go and have fun somewhere."

"Yeah considering what we all just went through," a centaur said.

"And being chased by Oberon," a fairy answered.

Evander nodded and looked at his map. He would be letting the others know soon enough about where they would be heading to next. It would either be the realm of the Chimeras or the Kitsunes.

"It may be the realm of the Kitsunes; they have wanted our attention for a while now," Evander said.

The others nodded and went to prepare themselves for the upcoming journey. As she did, Adeline looked into the distance and smiled happily. She was just happy that they were finally back together and they were going to enjoy performing again.

"Are you alright?" A voice asked. Adeline turned around and she saw Evander walk over to her and gently touch her shoulder. She turned and gave the ringmaster a hug and then made him look at her square in the eye. She wanted nothing more than to ride a shooting star with her guardian and end this journey on a positive note.

"I'm more than alright!" She grinned

"Now come and enjoy this realm! This is the shooting star realm! You are going to be able to shoot across the galaxy as part of the show," Loki winked.

"Really?!" She said in surprise.

"Really…," Evander smiled, now helping her up. "Now come! Let's go perform!"

A few minutes later…

And what a night it was! Everyone dressed in dark blue pantsuits that were covered with silver stars. Even Evander wore a dark blue navy ringmaster suit.

"COME ONE, COME ALL, AND COME AND SEE CIRQUE MYSTIQUE!" He roared happily. And with those words, he rose his hands and the centaurs and minotaurs began prancing around the ring! The top of the tent was open so that anything could fly out if need be!

Adeline gulped because her turn was coming to ride on a shooting star! Yes, a real shooting star!

"This is gonna be crazy," she whispered to herself.

"No, it won't," a voice said from behind her. She turned and grinned as Loki touched the top of her jewel. "You will have a fantastic time."

"You think so?" She asked.

"Of course. After all, this is the shooting star realm," Loki winked, now seeing Evander turn and put a hand out towards them.

"Adeline the great! Come forward, my dear!" He called. Adeline nodded and then walked towards the ringmaster. The entire crowd cheered and cheered until the room got silent. Evander then closed his eyes and then pointed to the ceiling. "Shooting star, come!"

And the entire crowed gasped as a shooting star shot into the room and whirled around and around and coated the room in silver and gold dust! It was a beautiful sight! After a few seconds, the star stopped on the ground in front of Adeline and Evander. The star then changed to where she could get on top of it!

"Climb on; I will ride behind you," Evander soothed, now helping her get on. Adeline nodded and swung her leg over the side of the star. Once she was on, she closed her eyes and lifted her hands up.

"Shooting Star! Rise! Take us to the heavens!" She cried out, making the crowd cheer. And within seconds, the shooting star slowly lifted and began to fly around the tent. It then lifted and soared out the top of the tent! And at that same moment, the fairies let the tent fall and the crowd was now sitting in the warm outside air. They all smiled and cheered as Adeline guided the star everywhere in the sky.

"Evander," she said, now glancing over her shoulder.

"Yes," he asked.

"This was definitely an adventure I will never forget. Thanks for letting me still be a part of you all," she said quietly.

"You are family, Adeline, and nothing will change that. And always remember that no matter what, I will always be here to protect you," he whispered, now gently hugging her from behind. Adeline turned gently and hugged him back, now feeling magic soaring through her veins!

"Thank you, Evander. I love you," she whispered.

"And I love you too, my young one," he said, now hugging his charge a bit tighter. He was truly now seeing her more as a daughter than a young girl that was part of them. "And now…you can end the show as I do…,"

"Really?" She asked in excitement.

"Yes, go ahead," he smiled. Adeline laughed in glee and felt happy tears fill her eyes! She still had a lot to learn about Cirque Mystique but there was more wonder that was on its way in the future and the future looked bright. And after a few minutes, she took a deep breath and yelled in glee!

"Come one, come all!

Come take a peek!

Come and see Cirque Mystique!

Our show has now come to an end

But do not fret,

We are round the bend.

It is now time for us to take flight

For now we will go

And to all a good night!"

And with that, Evander whistled and Loki guided the rest of the shooting stars to surround the audience and the troupe with happy magic and glistening moon dust! The journey for now was over, but there was only beauty on the horizon!

guestsurprise's words: TA-DA! I hope you all enjoyed this sequel! It was a joy to make! I am very pleased how this sequel came out! ;) As you all know, I am full of surprises XD

To guestsurprise: That you are, Amiga. :) And what a story this is! :)

To everyone else: Please leave guestsurprise a review, but no flames!

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