Author's Notes:
1: I DO NOT own Kuroshitsuji, it's characters or storyline. Kuroshituji, the story and the characters, is owned by Yana Toboso. I DO NOT own Hellsing or it's characters. Hellsing is owned by Kouta Hirano. I DO NOT own any of the music featured in my stories. I DO own Esmeralda 'Alan' Dornez. I DO own the art featured in cover images to my fanfictions.
2: Bold-italic phrases will indicate Esmeralda's/Alan's thoughts or the thoughts of others while in their point of view. When you see "..." it means that the point-of-view has shifted. When you see "***" it means that there has been a shift in time/a character is remembering a memory. The song representing the story is "Born Ready" by Dove Cameron from the Marvel Rising soundtrack.

1. The Hunter, Debut

Fucking hell! I cursed mentally while grabbing my head in agony. I heard a hissing sound coming from before me. "'I think this butler seems to have gotten lost.' Informed Oscar." I opened my eyes and saw a thin, green snake in my face. A red-tailed green rattlesnake... These snakes were quite venomous. My body became tense as I tried to push myself away from it, only, to no avail, as there was a wooden crate behind me. For the record, I'm not scared of snakes; I was startled because it was the first living thing I saw once my migraine passed. A man with white shaggy hair tilted his head, peaking from behind the serpent. His eyes seemed dull and almost lifeless but were a lovely amber color. I felt my unease slip away, however, I felt my heart pull a bit when I noticed scales on his skin. See, it's a rare medical condition, and I have no doubt that he has been ridiculed for it. "I think you're right, Oscar." He nodded in response to the snake. I couldn't stop myself from looking at him quizzically. He doesn't appear to be mad, so he must speak snake... Admittedly, the thought amused me; the only time I've heard such a thing was in the Harry Potter novels, however, Alucard would boast about being able to communicate with and control animals. The white-haired man extended his hand, which I didn't hesitate to grab. Once standing, I dusted myself off.

"Thank you." I smiled at him. I then extended my hand to him. "I'm Alan, Alan Dornez." The man looked away.

"N... Nice to meet you, I'm Snake, and this is Oscar." The snake bowed its head. "'Did you lose your master or mistress, Alan?' Oscar asked anxiously."

"Uh... No, actually, I'm currently without one." I rubbed the back of my neck. I didn't know what answer to give, honestly; I clearly wasn't anywhere near London, and without a phone or lift, I wouldn't be able to get back to the Hellsing manner.

"The c... Circus is hosting auditions." Snake nodded behind him, and, low and behold, an old-school circus tent was set up. "'If you're interested, that is.' Oscar suggested." If this circus heads to London, it may just be my chance to get back to the manor... I drew a heavy breath.

"Might as well," I shrugged. "Thank you, Snake. You too, Oscar." I smiled at them once more. "Do you mind leading me to where the auditions are being held?" Both Snake and Oscar gave a nod. They turned towards the tent and began walking towards it. From badass vampire hunter to lowly circus performer, what next? I sighed and followed the gentleman, and his snake, towards the entrance to the circus tent. As soon as we stepped in, Snake turned around to face me.

"'Break a leg.' Says Oscar." I hesitantly reached my hand towards the venomous green snake. The snake seemed confused for a moment before pressing his head into my hand. "As do I." Snake added silently, in shock to see his snake act so calmly to a person's touch. A small smile graced my lips.

"I appreciate the help." I drew my hand back and bowed. "Take care of yourselves." Snake hastily sped off before I could realign myself. When I stood straight once more, I noticed there was a small group gathered, and gasping, as they all looked up towards the roof; there was an adolescent boy walking the tightrope. I rushed over to where the crowd had gathered and saw that the boy seemed to be struggling to keep himself straight, on top of that, his face expressed pain. I tilted my head, however, my right ear twitched at the sound of something being shot through the air. I glanced to where the repeated sounds originated and saw a tall man with black hair adorning butler attire. My nose itched when I caught an unsavory scent. A demon. It had to be the butler, but normally his type of demon cannot leave Hell without making a contract with a human soul on the line. That's when it clicked; the boy that the demon butler was 'aiding' was the human he had the contract with. Once the boy made it to the other side and found his way back down, he was greeted by, I can only assume, the main cast of the circus.

"Amazing!" Called a youthful, albeit playful sounding Scottish accent. "I never thought ye would actually walk the tightrope!" I followed the voice, though I seemed step-in-step and toe-to-toe with the demon butler. The man who I assumed was the one complimenting the boy had strawberry blonde hair, tied into a puffy ponytail. There was purple paint around the outer edges of his eyes, and along his left eye was a teal painted design which seemed almost like a teardrop. His attire seemed very cliche circus wear, full of color and design, but like Snake, he had something physically noticeable; his right hand was replaced by a skeletal hand. I had to hand it to the craftsman, it seemed to work the way the hand would, without the flesh and all that, of course.

"Then this cutie-pie passes, right ol' chap?" Asked a blonde haired boy, though part of his bangs was light brown. He stood behind the pubescent contract holder and patted his head. This boy was done up, just like the ringleader was; he had black around the outer part of his eyes, and red circles painted on his cheeks. His clothes also seemed like your typical circus stereotype with stripes and whatnot.

"Not yet." The ringleader answered as he pointed towards the auditionee. "This little fellow's missing something important," He then pointed to himself as he wore a massive, warming grin. "A first-class smile! Okay, let's see a great big smile~" The boy seemed to be frustrated at the leader's request; the biggest tell was his now white clenched fist. The demon butler seemed to find this ordeal greatly entertaining as he was snickering to himself. I can only imagine that the boy mustered every bit of strength to conjure the adorable smile that now graced his lips. Now that's a smile. I thought, giggling to myself. "Friends, lend me your ears!" The man called, gaining the attention of everyone in the tent. "We've a couple newcomers joining us today!" There were cheers among the people listening. "This is the rookie 'Black' - "

"I am Black. Nice to meet you." The demon forced a smile and addressed the listening ears.

"And this little one is 'Smile'." The butler began to chuckle once more as his master seemed to be upset with his new stage name. "Treat them well now, all right?"

"Come now, Smile, say hello to your seniors." The young boy glared towards the man in black.

"I look forward to working with you." The preteen spoke solemnly.

"Ah, how rude of me!" Chimed the ringleader as he made his way over to me. "Were you looking to audition as well, ol' chap?" A sad expression danced over this otherwise seemingly happy man's face. I waved my hands.

"It's no problem, really!" I defended while waving my hands. "Snake brought me here after informing me about the auditions, but if you're wrapped up for the day, I can wait!"

"We're circus folks, mate, we never leave a man behind!" A smile was worn by him once again. "What would you like to audition on?"

"Uh," I rubbed the back of my head nervously. "Anything, really." His smile grew into a grin.

"Beast!" He hollered, which gained the immediate attention of a beautiful young woman. Her black curled locks bounced as she stood.

"Yeah, Joker?" I'm slowly learning the names of the main cast. That's good, I guess. I mused the names I had heard today, memorizing them and their faces.

"Fetch Betty would you." The woman looked at him dumbfounded but decided not to question him, and took off. I tilted my head in curiosity.

"Betty?" I wondered looking back towards the man known as Joker.

"She's Beast's tiger. We've not seen anyone attempt beast taming. Methinks they're too scared." He chuckled. I felt a cold shiver claw up my spine and noticed the demon butler, stage named Black, glaring towards me. I rolled my eyes, and put my attention back on Joker.

"You think I can do it?" I asked.

"Don't worry, if something goes wrong, Beast will take care of Betty and Doc will take care of you." He beamed. Gee, thanks. I thought bitterly with a glare. Joker took my hand and lead me towards where Beast had taken off, only to see she had returned with a large tiger. That must be Betty. I remained calm and collected before stepping into Betty's massive cage. My eyes locked with hers. I am not Alucard; I will not use my powers to force this creature bend to my will. Beast handed me her whip.

"I refuse to use this as a weapon against this creature." I tossed the whip on the ground.

"You're mad!" Beast gasped. "Jumbo!" I heard someone begin to unlock the cage.

"Don't!" I yelled, never breaking eye-contact with the massive jungle cat. "I am in her territory; what she does to me will be justified." I held my hands as high as I could, only to have Betty stand on her hind legs and put her paws in my hand. It seems everyone witnessing this was surprised that I wasn't mauled by her, myself included. Betty then rubbed her furry head against mine, which caused me to smile. "Thank you, Betty." She backed away, setting herself back on all four legs, and lowered her head as if to bow to me. I heard a whistle outside of the cage and saw Joker smiling.

"Ain't that a sight?" He clapped. "Jumbo, can you let our new friend out of the cage?" The man known as Jumbo, who was not only giant in size but muscle build too, opened the cage and allowed me to exit. "Now, I think we'll name you 'Midnight'." A small smile crept across my lips. Midnight. I mused mentally. I like it. "Now I'll give ye a quick tour. Come with me." Black, Smile, and I followed Joker as we left the tent only to be lead to an alley of tents. "First, these are the tents ye'll be sleeping in. This is where the so-called 'second-string members' - the stage-hands, newcomers, and the like - live." He lead us to a tent so we could see inside. "There's usually two or three to a tent." I narrowed my eyes. So I have to share a tent with another person...? Ugh. "And that there's the dining tent and the tent that serves as our larder." He glanced towards us. "It's up to ye new folk to cook up meals too, so give it your best!" I didn't mind cooking, hell, I preferred it; I 'performed' enough with my job at the Hellsing organization. "The tent at the very back is the first-aid tent. And, from 'ere on back are the private tents of the main cast." From my peripheral vision, I noticed the demon's eyes intensify. I wonder what that's about. I decided to shrug it off.

"Private tents?" Smile wondered.

"Well... Once ye make it big, ye get a place to yourself. Oh, 'n one more thing..." I curiously followed his finger as he pointed to a specific tent. "That's Snakes' tent, so ye should stay away for your own good." He warned. "There are a great many poisonous snaked roaming free, so one bite, and off ye go to the other side." He sighed. "Snake and his slithery friends are still very shy, so newcomers especially should stay sharp 'round these parts." Eh, I thought. If it's my time to go, I can't fight it. I wasn't afraid to see Snake or Oscar again, nor any other snake friends he may have. "By the way," Joker's voice broke the momentary silence. "What's become of your right eye, Smile?" He asked innocently, and you could clearly see a reflection of sorrow in his eyes.

"Ah this..." Smile touched the eye patch. "There was an accident..." I obviously knew the truth, but it's not my place to share such information.

"How sad for someone so little to have had such misfortune befall him..." Joker's voice trailed. I too felt pained. I may not know what circumstances Smile had to go through to obtain the Faustian Circle but clearly, it was an act of desperation. He forced a smile and patted Smile's head with his skeletal hand. Almost instantly the old Joker seemed to resurface. He wrapped his arm around Smile. "Well, everyone 'ere's got their own issues, so ye'll get along just fine~"

"Like us, did everyone here join the troupe while the circus was making the rounds?" Black questioned from beside me. Joker turned and looked and him.

"For the most part, yes. But all of the first-string members come from the same town." He informed. "Guess you could say we're all childhood friends."

"Childhood friends...?" Black repeated.

"Family," I stated simply. Joker looked at me, and I shrugged. "When you know people for that length of time, and hardly have anyone else to support you the way you all do, friends very quickly become family." The ringleader bore a grin.

"That's right, Midnight!" He cheered. "Snake's still a rookie, though. He's a genius with his snakes, he is - Midnight can confirm this, I bet - and we were without a snake charmer at the time, so he became a member right quick." Joker seemed like he was in his happy place, and, honestly, it was delightful to feel that radiate off of him. "If ye join the first-string, ye don't have to help with prep, ye don't have to worry about fighting for your meals, and ye get your own tent. That's why everyone does their best to get to the top. To get to the first-string." Joker shook his head and lead us onward.

"Midnight." Whispered Smile. I slowed my pace so he and Black could catch up. "What brought you here?" I clenched my jaw. I don't wanna lie to the kid... I was facing a moral struggle internally. Fuck it.

"I don't know exactly," I answered honestly. "I could be cliche and say 'fate', but, to be honest, I couldn't say." Both Smile and Black stared at me quizzically. "What?!" I snapped. "I was hunting, and, the next thing I know, I find myself here!"

"A butler... Hunting?" The preteen seemed entertained as if he were holding a laugh back.

"First off, I'm not butler; I just like to dress clean. And second, hunting is how I survive." The two exchanged glances causing me to become agitated. "If you have something to say, just say it."

"What, exactly, is it that you hunt, Midnight?" Black asked though it seems Smile was going to ask something similar.

"Demons." I replied with a glare. My answer caused both of them to look at me in awe, but they quickly recovered; both were now wearing intrigued smirks. Before anything else could be said, Joker chimed in.

"And here we are! Training grounds." We entered the tent. There were countless people practicing their acts. "Newcomers train and train 'ere with the hope of debuting in an actual performance one day." A gentle smile hugged my lips; seeing all of these aspiring performers passion made my soul ease. "Ye must always start with the basics. Once ye've made quick work of your warm-ups, then - "

"Joker!" Called Beast's voice. She pushed her way through the drapes. "It's almost time!"

"I hear ye!" Joker turned his attention back towards us. "Well, give it all ye got!" He gave us another goofy grin before following Beast. I glanced towards them, ignoring their muttering, and made my way forward. I unbuttoned my tailcoat and vest, placing them down neatly before analyzing the acts. I could do any of these things... I wasn't being cocky, either, I truly could; I've dodged bullets when I was tied up, I've juggled knives when they were thrown at me, I've had to run along electric wires, and I've had to swing from one building's windows to another with the help from curtains. I wouldn't mind doing some fortune-telling, to be honest... I mean, that's a skill that would come in handy here. Then again, it's only women fortune-tellers who seem to be most attractive towards circus-goers. I heaved a sigh. Maybe I can speak with Joker about it later... I was brought back to the realm of reality when Dagger had called.

"Midnight~ Come 'ere!" I sighed and made my way over. "Ye need to meet him, too!" Him? I tilted my head in wonder. "Hey! C'mon down 'ere fer a bit, Suit!" I followed his gaze and saw a man balancing the tightrope. He had medium-brown hair gelled back, and wore a colorful suit, like that of a clown. The most curious thing about him was his aura; he wasn't human, but he wasn't a demon, either. Curiouser and curiouser.

"I thought I sensed something unpleasant... It was you, wasn't it?" His voice was monotone but held a slight bit of annoyance. "Good grief." He muttered before sending the strange item he was using to balance himself heralding towards Black.

"I never thought we would meet again." Black stated simply.

"Goodness... What ever did you come sniffing around to devour this time?" Suit jumped down and turned his strange device towards Black. "You devil!" The pointed edge was aimed at his neck. "In this day and age, when there are rarely enough grim reapers to get the job done - " I stopped listening at this point, mentally analyzing the information I had just obtained. 'Suit'is a grim reaper... How interesting.

"I'll introduce ye. These're the rookies who joined today; the tiny one is Smile, the big one's Black, and our other friend is Midnight." Dagger grinned. "Yer all rising stars, so play nice now!"

"I do not, by any means, wish to make nice with a noxious beast." Snorted Suit before turning away and leaving. After some noise, Dagger grabbed Smile and went to practice.

"Midnight." I narrowed my eyes at Black.

"Yes, Black?"

"Do you intend to remain working for the circus in the long run?" I turned and faced him.

"What's wrong with being in the circus, Black? Oh wait, I know, being in a circus is a waste of your demonic abilities." I rolled my eyes. "Get off your high horse, asshole. Judging by your aura, you aren't as 'all that' as your ego illustrates you to be. Besides, it doesn't take a genius to figure out that you two are here for a specific reason, and I doubt it's 'cause your master wants to join the circus." A smirk painted Black's lips.

"You are quite the interesting human, Midnight. Perhaps we shall talk again soon." Once again, I rolled my eyes.

"Whatever, demon." I turned away from him and walked away. As soon as I was at a comfortable distance, I punched a crate. "What an asshole!" I growled. "'Human'!, hah" I snorted. "This human can send him back to where he belongs!" I sat on the crate, fists clenched. Alucard may have been an asshole, but he had faith in me from the beginning, even though I'm 'just a human'. I placed my head between my knees. "I don't want to be here..." I muttered. "I want to be somewhere I'll be welcome..." Like the Hellsing Organization, but, unless we head into London, my getting there isn't foreseeable.

"Someone giving ye a hard time, Midnight?" My head jolted upright and my eyes widened when I saw Joker looking at me with a solemn expression.

"Not really, Joker..." I sighed and leaned my back against the crate behind me. "I was kind of hoping to see you before heading back inside, though." A grin plastered his face and he sat beside me.

"What can I do ye for?" A faint blush rushed my cheeks.

"Well, um..." Coming out wasn't going to be easy. "I'm a girl." A laugh projected from his mouth.

"Is that it?" I puffed my cheeks only to have him push the air out of them. "I'm not surprised; ye have very soft facial structures, and, between us," He leaned closer causing my blush to darken. "Ye aren't the only one pretending." He winked.

"I also, kinda, had a favor to ask." I winced, worried about his answer, but he smiled warmly.

"Shoot."

"I wanted to offer my services by doing some tarot card readings with the guests." I shrunk into myself. "But, if you don't - "

"Would ye?! We were looking for a fortune-teller!" He cheered but I just sat there blinking. This was way easier than I expected... "We'd have to come up with an alibi for ye, though, since I take it I'm the only one ye've told?" I nodded. "I know! Midnight can be my right hand." He put his arm around my shoulder causing me to blush once more. "Now, I have to go assign tents." I began to stand. "No, ye stay 'ere. Ye'll be staying in my tent til we get you situated." I was about to argue, but he began walking back towards the training grounds. I heaved a heavy sigh. I guess I'm bunking with Joker...