Calm gave way to trumpet blasts while stacks billowed from the revving locomotive, as steel clashed against steel. The depot now a blur, Puck charged along side an open boxcar, grabbed hold to the door latch, and hoisted his lean frame inside. The boy settled himself in a corner of the empty container, his dark hair matted, and he dripping with perspiration after laboring to hitch his first ever train ride.

Though he had no money, very little rations, and no more than a pillow case-worth of worldly possessions, Puck beamed in satisfaction at his heroics. What other boy would have had such courage, such flair for adventure? And this was just the beginning.

As evening drew nigh, he wondered if he was missed. Had anyone from St. Luke's Home for Boys bothered to notice his absence? Had Reverend Giles alerted the police? Was there a search party in place? Did his childhood chums, Buddy and Charlie, come knocking only to find him long gone? Probably none of these things, he thought to himself, as rumbling noises erupted from his stomach.

It had been hours since he'd last eaten—half a peanut butter and honey sandwich at the orphanage. He'd saved the other half for his trip. Hoping to quell the hunger, Puck retrieved the saved sandwich from his sack of treasures and took a huge bite. Half a sandwich was hardly enough for a famished boy, but it was all that he had, so it would have to do. When he was done, Puck pulled a jacket from the makeshift goodie bag and stretched it over his upper body to shield him from the cooler breezes whipping about the car. Now surrounded by darkening skies, he lay there and imagined what tomorrow would bring until he succumbed to dreamland.

***

A single, long whistle blast woke Puck from his sleep. It was daylight, and it could mean only one thing: the train was approaching the station. Before anyone caught wind of his presence aboard, Puck had already planned to abandon the boxcar. By the time the loud screeching of wheels filled the air, Puck had ditched the slowing freight. With the sack tossed over his shoulder, the boy approached the outskirts of town. Small shops lined either side of its main street, and the place was crawling with locals. The townspeople seemed a rather friendly bunch, nodding as he drew near before wandering into the General Store, its jingling door alerting the older gentleman behind the counter.

"Son, you look lost," said the man. "Where are you coming from?"

"Chattanooga, sir." Puck approached the counter and took a seat.

"Chattanooga? You're an awful long ways from there now. Where are you headed?"

"The circus."

The burly, but friendly man released a chuckle or two. "Son, there ain't no circus around these parts, hasn't been for years. I'm afraid you'll be disappointed if you made our town your destination."

"No, sir. Not exactly. I don't really have a destination. I guess I'm sorta chasing after the circus."

"Well, you'd probably have better luck if you had more to go on, son. You can't approach things like this blindly. This world's a big place. Narrow down your search is all I saying. You understand?"

Puck nodded. "Yes, sir. How can I narrow down my search?"

Just as the storekeeper was about to answer, the loveliest creature Puck had ever seen approached. She had to be at least ten or so years his senior with the prettiest brunette hair and blue eyes. And when she smiled, her dimples lit up the room.

"Hi there, Uncle George, who do we have here?"

"I'm sorry, son, I didn't get your name," he addressed his young visitor.

"I'm Puck."

She extended her hand. "Hi, Puck. I'm Charlotte."

"Nice to meet you, ma'am."

"Oh, good heavens, I'm no ma'am. You're making me feel old and I'm only twenty-five," she replied, winking at the teen.

"Nevermind her, lad. She's always teasing."

"I'm just leaving anyway. Nice to meet you, Puck. Hope to see you around the store again."

"Yes, ma...I mean, sure." The girl disappeared out the door and the two resumed their conversation.

"I'm sorry, son, now what was I telling you? By the way, can I get you something?"

Puck lowered eyes. He hadn't the courage to admit that he had no means to pay for a single item in the store. "N-no, sir."

"When was the last time you had a bite to eat?"

"Last night."

"Then you must be starving. Now, don't you worry about money, boy. You're my guest. You're having dinner tonight with me and Charlotte, and not another word on the matter, understand?"

"Yes, sir. Thank you, sir."

"In the meantime, have yourself some of these jerky sticks."

Puck reached into the jar and grabbed a handful. Having come all this way to find the kindness of strangers was a new experience for a orphan kid from Tennessee. Buddy and Charlie would never believe the things he'd already seen and done on just his first day as a runaway. What more could the small town of Alberta have to offer?

With the store completely free of patrons and entrance locked, George Clemens began performing his routine after-hours closing duties. What made today so different from all other closings was that he had himself a helper. Rather than have Puck sit idly, he put the teen to good use, having him help sweep and tidy up the place for tomorrow's business.

Puck walked over to the counter behind which George stood tending to the register. "Sir, can I ask you something?"

"Sure, son."

"Well, what did you mean earlier when you said I should narrow my search."

"Oh, yes, yes, that." George stopped fidgeting and looked the boy square in the eyes. Puck leaned against the counter to listen. "Well, son, Alberta is a small town. If you're gonna chase that circus of yours, then you'll be wanting to head to a large place like New York or Boston. I betcha they'd have a circus, but let me ask you, Puck, why do you want to go to the circus anyway? You're an older lad, surely you've been to the circus before?"

"No, sir, but I've seen posters."

"How's that possible?"

"I'm an orphan, sir. I haven't seen much of anything. And I don't just want to go to the circus, sir, I want to be in it."

"Be in it? As what?"

"I want to be a juggler."

"Oh, well, that's a fine ambition, I suppose, but shouldn't you try to get your schooling done first?"

"I'm not much for school, sir, and it's not much for me. I'd rather do something that excites me."

"Hmm, I see."

"Yes, sir. See, I was never really good at doing anything. I was never good at school or sports or music or art. Then I saw this movie about a traveling circus when I really young. There were lion tamers and trapeze artists, cyclists and knife throwers, but it was the jugglers that stuck with me. Ever since then, I practiced juggling stuff. At first, I was pretty awful at it then I got better. It's the one thing that I'm actually pretty good at now. So, I figured that maybe I could join the circus and finally do something that I really loved doing, something that I was good at."

"And your mind is pretty set on this, huh, son?"

"Yes, sir, it is."

"Well, in that case, how would you like to help me around the store for a while? Earn a little extra money so that you could buy you a bus ticket to get you to that circus some day?"

Puck nodded in excitement. The thought of getting to the circus was all he'd ever dreamed. And having money, his own money, well, that was enough to make any boy in his position accept such an offer. "Do you mean it, Mr. George? Do you really mean it?"

"Calm down, lad. Yes, I really mean it," George said, smiling. "Now finish sweeping up, boy, so we can go home."

Home. The word sounded so magical. Puck had never had a real place to call home, having bounced around from orphanage to orphanage until he came to St. Luke's seven years ago. While Reverend Giles had done his very best to be a father figure to him, there could be no substitute for having a real family or a real home. A place where he'd have his own room and own things. A place where there was a yard and dog. Puck never knew what it meant to have any of those things. Every kid wanted that. Every kid wanted to be safe and loved and wanted.

And given the news that the Reverend had dropped on everyone a week ago, Puck believed that he had made the right decision to strike out on his own and find his place in life, one that would last.

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[AUTHOR'S NOTE]

Please be sure to let me know what you think? Do you want to hear more about Puck's adventures and what happens to him in Alberta?