much to the annoyance of Garas, but Mari had reasoned that he was just a kid, and shows like this were designed to draw kids in, and that they already had enough money to last them a few more weeks. He had enjoyed it mostly, the colourful costumes, the acrobatics and the animals, that was the best bit. The clowns were pretty awful though, quite freaky actually.
   The tight-rope walkers had been a sight as well. Balancing on that thing must have been impossible, but they had managed it. Apparently is was something to do with the rod they had been holding. He took the mop with both hands and weighed it up in his hands. He held it slightly off centre and it felt fairly balanced as he held it out in front of him. Yes, he though, it could work, possibly. He picked up the bucket again and moved to the edge of the roof, as a loose tile gave way and fell to the floor below. He felt it was some time before he heard the clatter below.
   He gulped, put the handle of the bucket between his teeth, held the mop out in front of him and stepped out onto the line, he took a few wobbly steps forward and stopped.
   Sometimes, it's only when you start doing something, that you consider every possibility and view it from every angle. Thomas was doing this, suspended over the air, hands still clutching the mop in front of him tightly. His mind started to think treacherous thoughts, such as, 'This rope looks pretty thin doesn't it?', and 'There are quite a lot of birds and pegs on this line', and 'You look like a bit of an idiot don't you?'.
   He moved slowly, putting on foot in front of the other. He didn't seem to be falling off, the pole idea must be working. As he moved closer and closer to the centre, the line wobbled more and more with each step. On the bright side, this got rid of the birds, and on the not so good side, his brain was screaming at him to stop and the birds fluttering around him didn’t help. He couldn't stop, obviously, but this made it even worse.
   He steeled himself, and took another few steps, the rope still wavering underneath him. He really hoped no one would look up, he did look like a real madman with the outstretched pole and the bucket in his mouth. He but his foot down again and then drew it back quickly, he had stepped on a peg, and it felt quite spiky. He grunted with the bucket between his teeth and started to wobble as he tried to steady himself after drawing his leg back.
   Then he heard the line start to sag.
   Freezing, eyes wide in fear, he slowly turned his head and looked behind him. The