Baccano! - Volume 20 - Chapter 1.1

Digression

193X In the restaurant-bar Alveare

“Hey, hey, Isaac?”

“What is it, Miria?!”

“Have you ever seen a circus?”

“Of course I have! I went to the circus when I was a kid. Just once! I think!”

“You ‘think’?”

“Well, I remember there were all sorts of animals doing all manner of who-knows-what, but I can’t remember if it was a circus or a zoo. But that’s peanuts, my dear; don’t worry about it!”

“Done and done!”

“So what about the zoo, Miria?”

“You mean the circus, Isaac. Um, well, Firo says his friend used to be in a circus! He says he can walk a tightrope and jump through a flaming hoop and throw knives—and that’s just the beginning!”

“Amazing! I’d expect no less from Firo!”

“Firo’s amazing?”

“Of course he is! Having friends with those extraordinary talents means you can learn how to walk a tightrope anytime. So if Firo set his mind to it, he could walk a tightrope or jump through a flaming hoop whenever he wanted! If we threw knives at him, I know he’d be able to catch them in an apple on his head!”

“Woooow!”

Alveare was the same as always, including Isaac and Miria’s conversation. And Firo’s protests.

“What the hell are you saying?!” he shouted, exasperated.

Isaac’s and Miria’s eyes widened in surprise. “What?! You’re not amazing, Firo?”

“You’re not?”

“It’s not a question of whether I’m amazing, all right…?” Firo gave them a thousand-yard stare.

Isaac and Miria responded with smiles. “Don’t worry about it, Firo! You don’t have to be amazing; Miria and I like you just fine!”

“Yes, it’s amazing that you’re not amazing! You’re the cat’s pajamas, Firo!”

“…Uh, yeah, well, I’ll take the goodwill at face value,” Firo said, now fully lost.

From behind him, Ennis joined the conversation. “The circus…?” She was a homunculus, created by alchemy, who also happened to be a friend of theirs.

“Oh, you interested in that stuff, too, Ennis?” Firo asked.

“I was just wondering: Does everyone enjoy those sorts of things?” she asked with surprising gravitas.

“Huh?” Firo stared.

“I’m sorry, Firo. I know the word, but I have no ‘memories’ of actually seeing a circus, so I can’t really imagine what it’s like… What about it is enjoyable?”

“Oh, uh… It’s, well… Good question.” Her earnest inquiry had taken him off guard.

His boss, Maiza Avaro, had been listening in from a seat at the counter, and he threw Firo a lifeline. “I imagine a big part of the appeal is seeing someone overcome the limits you’d always believed in.”

“What do you mean, limits?”

“Well, first-rate acrobats and trained animals go beyond the limitations we assume humans have. There’s a certain exhilaration in seeing something truly new and unknown.”

“Oh… Yeah, you’re right. Say someone shows you the biggest pumpkin you’ve ever seen—you’d probably go ‘Whoooooa!’ or somethin’.”

Expanding on Firo’s example, Maiza continued. “Yes, when they see something that far surpasses their expectations, humans often exclaim in wonder. Or in fear.”

“Yeah, when it’s a bug that’s too damn big, what you feel sure isn’t wonder…,” said Firo.

From behind the counter, the restaurant’s proprietor spoke up. “All right, fellas, don’t start talking about giant bugs in a restaurant. You’ll have the customers thinking about cockroaches!”

“Please don’t say that so loudly, Miz Seina!”

“Why do you suppose people loathe cockroaches so much?”

“Ennis! She just said not to talk about it!”

As they watched Firo and the others get noisy, Isaac and Miria went on with their own discussion.

“Hmm. I don’t really get it, but I guess he means the bigger, the more impressive! Or scary!”

“Yes, that’s amazing! And scary!”

“If you got as big as a building, Miria, I think I’d be more impressed than scared!”

“Really? Yaaay! Thank you, Isaac!”

The two had vanished into their own private world, but Firo had overheard them. “…The scariest thing to me is how simple your brains are,” he said.

“Not that I really mind it.”