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Description
It had been a little over two weeks since you had officially joined the circus. Leaving your home and your possessions behind had been a difficult decision, but as the days went by, you were more and more glad that you'd made it. Adjusting to life on the road had definitely been the hardest part, however. The waking up early, walking the streets to pass out fliers and never getting a full moment of rest were all things you were still struggling to get used to. These things had gotten easier as time went on, but when you had been offered the chance to sleep in this morning, you excepted immediately. Honestly, you could have slept the whole day away, had you not heard Joker gently singing your name at the entrance to your tent. Too asleep to move, or even open your eyes, you barely managed to mumble out an answer. “You can come in. I'm not awake yet though.”

“You can keep on sleeping as long as you like.” Tiptoeing into the tent, so as not to wake you up any more than he already had, Joker quietly placed a small tray of food next to you. “I'll just leave your lunch here.”

“Thanks.” More than ready to go back to sleep, it took you several seconds to realize what he'd said. Sure it couldn't really be that late, you jolted to a sitting position. Still terribly groggy, you blinked back the haze that filled your eyes and looked up at him. “D-did you say lunch?”

“Mhm. I did.” A wide smile warming his expression, Joker lovingly ran a hand through your tangled mess of hair. “You've already missed breakfast.” His smile growing slightly, he continued toying with your hair as he spoke. “You missed lunch too, but I managed to sneak a little something in here for you.”

“Thanks, again.” Embarrassed that you'd slept as long as you had, a tiny sigh escaped your throat. Of course, if Joker didn't stop running his fingers through your hair like that, you very well might fall asleep again. “I must have been more tired than I realized.”

Brows furrowed apologetically, he nodded. “I warned you that it was going to be hard work.”

“Yeah, but only after I agreed to join.” Needing to wake yourself up, despite the fact that you could have easily gone back to sleeping, you stretched your arms over your head and yawned. “That was pretty sneaky on your part.”

“Details, details.” He teased. “If walking around from sunup till sundown is too much for you, we could work on getting you an act.”

At this point, the idea wasn't as absolutely unfathomable as it had once been. It would have been a nice change of pace, but the idea of performing in front of such a large crowd still made your head spin. “I've said it before, but I just don't think I could handle being in front of so many people.” Lifting the tray of food to your lap with a shrug, you began nibbling at your late lunch. “Besides, I don't have any circus appropriate talent.”

“You're in front of people every day when you're out drumming up business for us. Which you've been doing a bang-up job of if I do say so myself.” Grinning proudly, he shot you a flirty wink. “And I'm sure we can find something. Just put your mind to it and you can do anything.”

“That's sweet, but it's also wrong.” As soon as the words had left your lips, Joker began staring at you with the most pleading expression you'd ever seen. In a way, the look on his face reminded you of a puppy, silently begging for table scraps. Unable to even look at him without feeling guilty, you gave in to his unspoken pleas. “Fine. I guess we can try a few things, but don't hold your breath.”

“Good!” The pitiful look that had made you agree already gone, Joker scrambled to his feet and hurried to the tent's exit. “Then finish your lunch and meet me out back.” Gone before you could even think to respond, Joker left you to finish your meal in peace.

“This isn't going to end well.” Though you were already sure any efforts you put forth today would be fruitless, you finished eating, threw on your clothes and headed off to find Joker. Even if today's efforts were all for naught, you were still glad the two of you would be able to spend some time together. You had thought that joining the circus would have given you ample time to spend with him, but as it turned out, that wasn't the case. Both of you were always busy with something, so maybe “finding you an act” was really just a way for him to spend time with you while making it look like the two of you were working. Knowing Joker, you wouldn't have doubted it. Though you weren't even sure if your speculation were true or not, the very idea caused your heart to flutter wildly in your chest. Needing to put these thoughts aside before someone caught you daydreaming, you took a sharp breath in and turned the corner. As expected, Joker was already ready and waiting for you when you finally made your way to the back of the circus.

The moment you came into view Joker's face lit up, something that caused your own face to grow warm with a blush. “There you are.” Taking both of your hands in his, he eagerly tugged you towards the training area. “I was starting to think you'd run away from me.”

“Not yet, but after seeing all this...” Just looking at all the different training equipment was daunting enough, but the thought of trying them made you want to give up immediately.

Sensing this, Joker did his best to reassure you. “Don't be nervous.” Smiling a toothy, adorable smile, he placed a hand on your cheek. “I believe in you.”

“That makes one of us.” Now blushing even worse than before, you placed your hand over his and took a deep breath in. Just when you had gotten your heart to calm down, he had to go and do something like this. “So, where should I start?”

Though it was obvious he didn't want to, Joker forced himself to take a step away from you, allowing you to start your training. “Wherever you like, love.”

“Right.” You nodded. “Here goes nothing.” Deciding it was best to start off with something easy, you tried your hand at knife throwing. After a few moments of hitting everything but the target, you were sure this wasn't for you. Your attempt at juggling was so bad it might have actually been entertaining to anyone watching, but again, you decided to move on. Fire-breathing was out of the question, as was anything else that involved fire, so you didn't even attempt those things. Your attempt at a few basic magic tricks weren't bad, per say, but in a circus setting, there was no way the audience would have been able to see what was going on. Beast refused to let you anywhere near her animals, and you didn't want to go anywhere near Snake's pets, so both of those acts were promptly tossed aside. The last thing you could think to attempt was the tightrope. And while it was only a miniature version of what would be on stage, you hesitated to even try it.

Cheering you on, as he had through every single act you'd attempted today, Joker called up to you. “Don't look so scared. You're only a few feet off of the ground.”

“I know, but still...” He was right. Even if you fell from this height, the worse injury you could get would be a bruise. For some reason, however, what was probably only three or four feet off of the ground seemed like thirty or forty feet. All too aware that there was no real danger in what you were about to do, you ignored your rapidly beating heart and stepped onto the tightrope. That first, unsteady step was the only one you managed to take before losing your balance and slipping off of the rope.

Before you could so much as think about screaming, Joker caught you, breaking your short fall. “At least you stuck the landing.” Now holding you tightly in his arms, he started to chuckle.

Thoroughly embarrassed by your mounting failures, you weren't sure if you wanted to laugh, or bury your face in his shoulder and hide. “I think that's enough for today.”

“Giving up already?” Clicking his tongue at you, Joker feigned disappointment. “I should have known. I suppose a high-class lady such as yourself really isn't cut out for circus work after all.”

Even when he was pretending to scold you, Joker still found a way to throw a compliment your way. “I don't know about that high-class part, but other than that, you're right about me not being cut out for this.”

“Maybe in time, it'll come to you. If not, at least keeping you around will give the customers something pretty to look at.” Winking again, Joker held your body even closer to his, making it clear that he had no intentions of putting you down any time soon. “But for now, how about you and I go back to the tent? You're probably pretty worn out from all that practicing.”

“Yeah.” Flushed from his playful teasing, but more than ready to move on and accept defeat, you gave a firm nod. “That sounds like a good idea.”

Enjoying your flushed appearance far more than you realized, Joker placed a short, sweet kiss on your cheek as he carried you off to the tent. “You know, I was hoping you'd say that.”

Description
It had been a little over two weeks since you had officially joined the circus. Leaving your home and your possessions behind had been a difficult decision, but as the days went by, you were more and more glad that you'd made it. Adjusting to life on the road had definitely been the hardest part, however. The waking up early, walking the streets to pass out fliers and never getting a full moment of rest were all things you were still struggling to get used to. These things had gotten easier as time went on, but when you had been offered the chance to sleep in this morning, you excepted immediately. Honestly, you could have slept the whole day away, had you not heard Joker gently singing your name at the entrance to your tent. Too asleep to move, or even open your eyes, you barely managed to mumble out an answer. “You can come in. I'm not awake yet though.”

“You can keep on sleeping as long as you like.” Tiptoeing into the tent, so as not to wake you up any more than he already had, Joker quietly placed a small tray of food next to you. “I'll just leave your lunch here.”

“Thanks.” More than ready to go back to sleep, it took you several seconds to realize what he'd said. Sure it couldn't really be that late, you jolted to a sitting position. Still terribly groggy, you blinked back the haze that filled your eyes and looked up at him. “D-did you say lunch?”

“Mhm. I did.” A wide smile warming his expression, Joker lovingly ran a hand through your tangled mess of hair. “You've already missed breakfast.” His smile growing slightly, he continued toying with your hair as he spoke. “You missed lunch too, but I managed to sneak a little something in here for you.”

“Thanks, again.” Embarrassed that you'd slept as long as you had, a tiny sigh escaped your throat. Of course, if Joker didn't stop running his fingers through your hair like that, you very well might fall asleep again. “I must have been more tired than I realized.”

Brows furrowed apologetically, he nodded. “I warned you that it was going to be hard work.”

“Yeah, but only after I agreed to join.” Needing to wake yourself up, despite the fact that you could have easily gone back to sleeping, you stretched your arms over your head and yawned. “That was pretty sneaky on your part.”

“Details, details.” He teased. “If walking around from sunup till sundown is too much for you, we could work on getting you an act.”

At this point, the idea wasn't as absolutely unfathomable as it had once been. It would have been a nice change of pace, but the idea of performing in front of such a large crowd still made your head spin. “I've said it before, but I just don't think I could handle being in front of so many people.” Lifting the tray of food to your lap with a shrug, you began nibbling at your late lunch. “Besides, I don't have any circus appropriate talent.”

“You're in front of people every day when you're out drumming up business for us. Which you've been doing a bang-up job of if I do say so myself.” Grinning proudly, he shot you a flirty wink. “And I'm sure we can find something. Just put your mind to it and you can do anything.”

“That's sweet, but it's also wrong.” As soon as the words had left your lips, Joker began staring at you with the most pleading expression you'd ever seen. In a way, the look on his face reminded you of a puppy, silently begging for table scraps. Unable to even look at him without feeling guilty, you gave in to his unspoken pleas. “Fine. I guess we can try a few things, but don't hold your breath.”

“Good!” The pitiful look that had made you agree already gone, Joker scrambled to his feet and hurried to the tent's exit. “Then finish your lunch and meet me out back.” Gone before you could even think to respond, Joker left you to finish your meal in peace.

“This isn't going to end well.” Though you were already sure any efforts you put forth today would be fruitless, you finished eating, threw on your clothes and headed off to find Joker. Even if today's efforts were all for naught, you were still glad the two of you would be able to spend some time together. You had thought that joining the circus would have given you ample time to spend with him, but as it turned out, that wasn't the case. Both of you were always busy with something, so maybe “finding you an act” was really just a way for him to spend time with you while making it look like the two of you were working. Knowing Joker, you wouldn't have doubted it. Though you weren't even sure if your speculation were true or not, the very idea caused your heart to flutter wildly in your chest. Needing to put these thoughts aside before someone caught you daydreaming, you took a sharp breath in and turned the corner. As expected, Joker was already ready and waiting for you when you finally made your way to the back of the circus.

The moment you came into view Joker's face lit up, something that caused your own face to grow warm with a blush. “There you are.” Taking both of your hands in his, he eagerly tugged you towards the training area. “I was starting to think you'd run away from me.”

“Not yet, but after seeing all this...” Just looking at all the different training equipment was daunting enough, but the thought of trying them made you want to give up immediately.

Sensing this, Joker did his best to reassure you. “Don't be nervous.” Smiling a toothy, adorable smile, he placed a hand on your cheek. “I believe in you.”

“That makes one of us.” Now blushing even worse than before, you placed your hand over his and took a deep breath in. Just when you had gotten your heart to calm down, he had to go and do something like this. “So, where should I start?”

Though it was obvious he didn't want to, Joker forced himself to take a step away from you, allowing you to start your training. “Wherever you like, love.”

“Right.” You nodded. “Here goes nothing.” Deciding it was best to start off with something easy, you tried your hand at knife throwing. After a few moments of hitting everything but the target, you were sure this wasn't for you. Your attempt at juggling was so bad it might have actually been entertaining to anyone watching, but again, you decided to move on. Fire-breathing was out of the question, as was anything else that involved fire, so you didn't even attempt those things. Your attempt at a few basic magic tricks weren't bad, per say, but in a circus setting, there was no way the audience would have been able to see what was going on. Beast refused to let you anywhere near her animals, and you didn't want to go anywhere near Snake's pets, so both of those acts were promptly tossed aside. The last thing you could think to attempt was the tightrope. And while it was only a miniature version of what would be on stage, you hesitated to even try it.

Cheering you on, as he had through every single act you'd attempted today, Joker called up to you. “Don't look so scared. You're only a few feet off of the ground.”

“I know, but still...” He was right. Even if you fell from this height, the worse injury you could get would be a bruise. For some reason, however, what was probably only three or four feet off of the ground seemed like thirty or forty feet. All too aware that there was no real danger in what you were about to do, you ignored your rapidly beating heart and stepped onto the tightrope. That first, unsteady step was the only one you managed to take before losing your balance and slipping off of the rope.

Before you could so much as think about screaming, Joker caught you, breaking your short fall. “At least you stuck the landing.” Now holding you tightly in his arms, he started to chuckle.

Thoroughly embarrassed by your mounting failures, you weren't sure if you wanted to laugh, or bury your face in his shoulder and hide. “I think that's enough for today.”

“Giving up already?” Clicking his tongue at you, Joker feigned disappointment. “I should have known. I suppose a high-class lady such as yourself really isn't cut out for circus work after all.”

Even when he was pretending to scold you, Joker still found a way to throw a compliment your way. “I don't know about that high-class part, but other than that, you're right about me not being cut out for this.”

“Maybe in time, it'll come to you. If not, at least keeping you around will give the customers something pretty to look at.” Winking again, Joker held your body even closer to his, making it clear that he had no intentions of putting you down any time soon. “But for now, how about you and I go back to the tent? You're probably pretty worn out from all that practicing.”

“Yeah.” Flushed from his playful teasing, but more than ready to move on and accept defeat, you gave a firm nod. “That sounds like a good idea.”

Enjoying your flushed appearance far more than you realized, Joker placed a short, sweet kiss on your cheek as he carried you off to the tent. “You know, I was hoping you'd say that.”