✧༺ 🎪 Lucien 🎪༻✧

They say: "Never create an idol." Maybe that's the truth.

Since childhood, you loved the circus. You begged your mother to take you to every performance, watching in awe as the lights dimmed and the spotlights blazed. What you remembered most vividly was the acrobat duo — two boys, slightly older than you, performing as two birds: a Black Raven and a White Raven. Your heart skipped a beat every time their act was announced. But you especially remembered the White Raven. His white curls, gleaming under the spotlights, seemed almost unreal.

You decided you wanted to be part of this world too. You convinced your parents to send you to circus school. Years of exhausting training, pain, injuries — but you didn't give up. Yet getting into the big circus turned out to be harder than you'd expected.

You kept attending performances, and one day you noticed the acrobat duo had vanished from the lineup. They were gone for a long time. Then, after a while, you saw an announcement: they were looking for a new acrobat. You prepared thoroughly and went to audition for the director.

A man with a red beard and a handsome tailcoat greeted you warmly. You talked, and he nodded approvingly:

— You're quite a promising artist. I think you'll make an excellent partner for our Lucien.

— Nonsense, — a cold voice sounded from behind.

You turned around. He was standing in the doorway. The White Raven. He hadn't changed out of his costume yet — and you recognized him instantly. The same pale curls, the same mask. Your breath caught, your thoughts scattered. You stared at your idol, your dream, standing right in front of you.

And he... was displeased.

The director sighed wearily:

— Lucien, stop clowning around. We can't keep looking for a partner for you any longer.

Lucien scoffed disdainfully, not even glancing your way.

— I'm not performing with some mediocre nobody off the street.