"I" (Writers of Kern A-Z Blog Challenge)

By Kehlee - Inspired by our trip to the Great Western War.

“You’re a hack!” The man in the top hat said as knocked his chair backwards and stood to leave.

“But sir!”

“But what? This is horrible!”

“You can’t leave, we’re not done yet.”

The man didn’t respond and he stepped towards the exit.

“But sir, you have to pay!”

“Like hell!” He answered over his shoulder. “You’re a scam! You don’t deserve a penny!” He ripped open the flap at the front of the tent and stormed out.

Igor the Illusionist laid his head down on the table and listened to the brief sounds of the carnival outside before the tent flap swung shut to silence the room. It sounded nothing like it should have. He heard the agony of unpaid rental fees, the disappointed customers who shunned his magic, and the cries of children who were pulled away by their mothers, afraid to venture near his tent and the disarray it was in. He swore the carnival owner was out to get him. He had to raise prices twice this year to cover the rent, he had no money to fix his tent, and he was given the worst locations at the back of fairgrounds. At this show, he wasn’t even placed on a walkway where customers would see him. He was in the middle of the dirt field behind the broken Ferris wheel that wasn’t operating this week.

How am I supposed to make a living with everything going to hell? I hate this job. I hate this carnival. And I hate my life. He pounded his hand on the table, scattering a mess of playing cards.

The tent flap opened and Igor lifted his eyes at the sound.

“Not now kid, I’m done for the day. I’m tired.”

The kid just stood there with an excited grin on his face.

“Come on, go, get out.” Igor stood from the table and walked around to shoo him away. But the kid somehow smiled larger at this movement and reached into his pocket. He pulled out a quarter and held it up in an outstretched arm, between his thumb and index finger, as if it was a reverent treasure he was proud to show off. 

“Let’s go kid; I don’t want your quarter.” 

The kid didn’t move.

“Fine! One trick, okay? Then you’re out. I want to get some sleep; there’s a lot on my mind right now. I don’t have time for these silly tricks.” Igor reached down and plucked the quarter from the boys hand and laid it in his own, palm up at the boy’s eye level – his other palm waiting just below it. “You see? It’s heads right?” The kid nodded. “Now, if I flip it over…” He quickly flipped the hand with the quarter over onto his other, making a loud clapping noise when his palms met around coin. “…it somehow stays heads.” He pulled his hand away to reveal the quarter still facing upwards, as if it didn’t flip. It was the stupidest magic trick he could think of, simple and quick; anything to get rid of this kid.

But he was wrong. The kid’s eyes lit up in astonishment and he reached out and took the quarter from the magician’s hand to inspect it. He flipped it this way and that to ensure it wasn’t tampered with in anyway. It was still his quarter, he was sure of it. He was amazed and giggled in excitement. He held the quarter out in his palm, offering it back to the magician, an expectant gleam in his eye.

Igor felt a small smile tug at the corner of his mouth. 

“Fine.” He bent down and lightly gripped the kid’s upturned hand with his fingertips, to steady it. With his right, he waved it in a magical flourish above the kid’s hand before bringing it down to swipe over the quarter. The kid’s hand vanished from view underneath the magician’s larger one. It was a smooth gesture, evenly moving across the kid’s hand without touching it and when the kid’s hand was revealed again, the quarter was gone from his palm. The kid’s jaw dropped in wonder. Igor continued his right hand’s flourish and plucked the quarter from behind the boy’s ear.

The kid laughed openly. He hopped from one leg to the other in an excited dance, clapping his hands. It looked as if he was having the time of his life. The smile on Igor’s face was spread wide now, he couldn’t hide it. He was feeling the excitement too.

“Alright, one more, okay? I really need to get going.” He stood and backed away a few steps from the boy. “This one’s a little different. Stay back, I don’t want you to get hurt.” The kid nodded. Igor reached into his pocket and pulled out a rose. He gestured it towards the little boy and then lifted it up to his nose and inhaled its scent in an over-exaggerated manner. The kid laughed. Igor smiled and raised the flower up over his head before arcing it around in a large circle in front of him. He swung it like a sword; the movements fluid as he slashed it across his body, and down towards his feet, back up over his head. He was engulfed in a storm of rose petals as they were shaken loose from the stem and with a small flash of light, he vanished into thin air.

The kid gasped. The petals fell like feathers to the floor and where the magician used to be, was only empty air. The kid looked around at the tent. It was empty. He looked under the table, and behind the man’s chair. Empty. The looked behind the hanging curtain at the back of the tent into the magician’s quarters. Still empty. Where could he have gone? As the boy turned back around, the flap at the front of the tent opened and the magician stepped in and posed like a superhero with his hands on his hips.

“Are you looking for me?” The excited pleasure in Igor’s voice was audible.

The kid laughed and cheered and ran across the tent. He opened his arms and wrapped them around the magician’s legs and robes in an enthusiastic hug. Igor looked down at the boy stunned. He’d never received a hug from a customer before. He didn’t know what to do. Gingerly, he placed his hand on the kid’s back and lightly squeezed. 

The kid backed away and looked up at the magician with tears in his eyes. “That was the greatest thing I have ever seen.” He rushed in again for another hug. Igor accepted it with open arms, smiling and kneeling down to catch him. There a hot ache in his own eyes as he felt the happiness flood over.

“Thank you, kid. You have no idea how much that means to me.” The embrace ended and the boy held up the quarter. Igor laughed. “No, you keep it.” The kid’s eyes became excited again and he nodded before running out of the tent. Igor stood and watched as the flap swung shut again. He marveled at the emotions flowing inside.

This is why I do it. He thought. This is why I’m a magician.

He walked over to the table and gathered up the deck of cards and arranged them neatly in a corner. He re-tied a loose cord that was hanging from one of the poles holding up the tent. He looked down and dusted off his robes and straightened his bowtie. He stood up taller, happier, and exited the tent with a prideful flourish to gather more customers. 

“Igor! The Illusionist! The greatest show on earth! Come and see! Come and see! The wonders of illusion-ry!”

 "I is for Igor the Illusionist"