The beginning and the end

Their long coats and hair blew in the wind as they stood in the snow that had covered the ground earlier in the day; mourning as they stood outside the fairgrounds, staring at the ‘closed indefinitely’ sign that had been hung on the gates of their semi-permanent home. The Immortal Circus hadn’t been on a tour for a while, instead remaining in a fixed location; the reason they stayed being a large part of the reason they had now also been shut down.
A few months ago, one of the Vampires who worked there, a tattooed Malkavian, known for his paranoia and anger issues, had gotten them in trouble when he’d gone hunting in the nearby town and ended up killing the woman he’d fed on instead of just feeding from her.
People had already been wary of the Circus, saying it had a ‘creepy’ vibe coming from it and of course, when someone in the nearby town had been found dead, the Circus was immediately blamed. Though no one could prove it was anyone from the Circus, word quickly travelled and soon no one would come; the Circus unable to travel while they were being investigated. Soon they had no money left to even travel anywhere once they were allowed to again and soon they were forced to close down, bankrupt.

“Such a shame…” The Magician Kamiri muttered, shaking his dark head. “We could have been so much greater if he hadn’t messed it all up…”

The Ringmaster nodded, his long, blonde hair blowing in his face. “It shall re-open one day…” He said quietly, knowing his companion would hear it despite the wind; both men being Vampires. “And it will be greater than ever. It shall have more beings than just us few Vampires and the talented humans we allowed in, one day when more of the beings can work together without fighting…”

“Séaghdha… you mean the Fae and the Demons…?” Kamiri asked, sounding surprised, though the Ringmaster was often known to make prophet-like statements.

Séaghdha nodded. “Weres too… and Angels.”

Kamiri stared at his friend, a disbelieving look on his face. “So many species in one place…you really think it’s possible Sé?”

“Yes.” The blonde nodded. “Only it won’t be me who runs the circus when it happens, it shall be another who they all unite under. My time here, I fear, is over. I shall return when the time comes to reopen the circus, but I cannot stay.”

Kamiri nodded solemnly. “I suppose we part ways here then…?” He asked, frowning when his companion nodded. “It was a pleasure working with you.” He said, holding out a hand.

Instead of shaking it, Séaghdha suddenly hugged Kamiri, pulling him close before releasing him, smiling at the Magician. “It was a pleasure working with you as well my friend.”

“I only wish it lasted longer though; for an immortal like ourselves, those few years may as well have been a few days…”

Sé sighed, putting a hand on his shoulder. “A good run is better than a bad stand my friend. Be thankful we had a good run for the most part, until that damn Malkavian spoiled it all.”

Kamiri nodded, smiling a little. “You are right; it was good until he messed up. We should have known better than to hire such an uncivilised Vampire.”

“Well on the up side, we learnt from it, should we ever do something like this again.” Sé pointed out, always looking at things positively, even if he was upset. “Now I must be heading off, it will be daylight soon and I have a long trip ahead of me, so I shall bid you farewell. Saol fada chugat.”

Kamiri chuckled and shook his head, the Irish saying more like a joke to them both. “Long life to you too.” He grinned. Though he hadn’t lived in Ireland like Sé once had, he’d picked up some of the language from him, feeling the need to have known it while the circus had been over there, though he understood it better than he spoke it, unable to get his tongue around some of the pronunciations.

The two shook hands before heading off together as a fresh layer of snow started to fall around them; the Ringmaster and the Magician parting ways when they reached a crossroads on the path they were following.