Author's Notes: inspired by Cheryl and O.G. Walton. Thank you O.G. for the wonderful description of the barker

There once was a Sentinel named Jim; he lived with his Guide named Blair in the land of Cascade. One day they went a walking down to the pier where they saw a carnival...

The carnival barker was dressed in a dowdy black tuxedo, with patches on its sleeves from years of over-wear. He sat outside a tattered red and white striped tent, where yellowed posters proclaimed a faded tribute to ex-carnival entertainers who had long since passed on.

"Balloons for sale! Magic balloons for sale! Buy yourself a dream!" he yelled to passersby from the old wooden stool he was perched on.

Blair, who had never discounted the powers of magic, was drawn to the man and to his balloons. The balloons were the traditional kind, tied to the side of an old battered helium tank. Not one shiny silvery metallic balloon among them. None of them printed with a superhero or a cartoon character. Just your basic colored rubber balloons, and yet they held a certain fascination for Jim's young Guide.

"Go on, Chief, you know you want one," Jim said with a smirk as he gave Blair a gentle shove toward the barker and his balloons.

Blair rolled his eyes at his best friend and Sentinel, all six foot of him, and built like a linebacker. Jim's ice blue eyes sparkled in the Cascade sun. Jim shooed Blair away then pretended to study the water so as not to embarrass his 30-something Guide who craved a 'magic' balloon.

"Just don't zone out on the water, Big Guy," Blair said Sentinel soft, and then mumbled something about silly Sentinels, as he turned to peruse the balloons. Jim chuckled from the pier's railing, knowing that Blair knew that Jim heard every word Blair had mumbled.

“Magic Balloons for sale! Buy yourself a dream!” the man shouted again to no one in particular.

“How much?” Blair said with a smile, the long dark curls of his windswept hair framed his face. His azure blue eyes spoke of wisdom and knowledge far beyond most men.

“Fifty cents,” the man replied.

“Fifty cents!? Then I’ll take all of them,” Blair said cheerfully and with enthusiasm. The man looked down on his luck. Blair wasn’t rich by any stretch of the imagination but he was a lot better off than the barker appeared to be.

“No can do, young man. I can only sell you one.”

“But why?”

“These are Magic Balloons, son. And must be used carefully. Humans aren’t used to handling such powers.”

The barker scrutinized Blair’s face and for the briefest of seconds thought he was looking into the face of a great grey wolf, a wolf with deep blue eyes. The barker then looked over toward the pier rail. Where Jim was standing a huge black panther paced, his tail swishing back and forth impatiently. He was ready to pounce at the first sign of a threat. The panther had ice blue eyes.

“Then again maybe you and your friend just might be the only ones who can handle the Magic.”

Blair looked over to Jim; he knew Jim was listening. The crashing of the waves and the cries of the gulls would not distract Jim’s concentration from Blair’s conversation with the strange barker. Jim gave Blair a little shrug and a nod.

“Tell you what, I’ll let you have two Magic Balloons, one for each of you. But I get to choose the color.” Blair was about to protest when the barker raised his hand. “Take it or leave it.”

Blair shrugged his shoulders then fished out a dollar from his pocket for his balloons. He expected two blue balloons. As an anthropologist, Blair knew it was human nature to subconsciously assign a color to a person. For Jim and Blair the color, more often than not, was blue. To go with their eyes, as they say. Blair was stunned when the man handed him one black Magic Balloon and one grey.

“Well, aren’t you going to ask me?” the man said.

“Um, ask you what?”

“How the Magic works,” the man said as if it was very obvious.

“Okaaay, how does the magic work?”

“Make a wish then release the balloon. If you can see the balloon burst, your wish will come true.”

“But that’s impossible; these are helium balloons. They’ll rise too high for anyone to see!”

The man looked past Blair over to Jim. Jim was glaring back, obviously displeased that anyone would try to dupe his friend. The panther with his ears lying flat against his head was baring his teeth. A mournful howl of a wolf was heard crying in the distance.

“Son, you only have to believe and the Magic will work for you and your friend.” Blair nodded then begrudgingly walked back to Jim holding his balloons.

“I’m sorry, Chief,” Jim said but not knowing what he was apologizing for.

“That’s okay, Big Guy. It’s not like I paid a lot of money for them,” Blair said with disappointment in his voice.

“Chief...”

“Not to worry, Jim. The real magic is in how we live our lives and not what we wish for. But still...”

“Shall we try it?”

“Try it? You mean the magic?”

“Yes, the magic. Let’s make a wish and let them go.”

“Jim, that may work for you, but there’s only one of us with Sentinel sight and I know it’s not me.”

“I think I have a way to get around that.”

“How?”

“You know when we were in the blue tinted world, we merged. I think that maybe if we concentrate you can see through my eyes.”

“Do you really think so?”

“It’s worth a shot. Besides, Incacha did pass onto you the ways of the shaman. Shamans can see things on a different plain of existence.”

Blair stared incredulously at his friend. “You know you’re full of it, Jim.”

“Hey, it got you to stop brooding over a silly balloon, didn’t it?” The best of friends laughed out loud. “Let’s try it.”

“Okay, what should we do?”

Jim thought for a moment then positioned Blair at the railing, looking out at the sea. Jim then stood directly behind him, his arms ready to encircle Blair. Jim’s six foot frame towered over Blair’s five foot eight one. Jim could comfortably rest his chin on Blair’s head on the soft bed of curls.

“Ready, Chief?” Jim asked as he took the black balloon.

“As I’ll ever be. So what now?”

“We make our wishes then release the balloons.”

“Jim...”

“It’ll be all right, Chief.” Jim heard his friend and Guide sigh.

The Sentinel of the great city encircled his Guide and Shaman of the great city. They made their wishes then released the Magic Balloons. The balloons soared through the sky, Jim watched as the balloons reached the upper regions of the atmosphere before bursting with a pop that he alone could hear. Blair tightened his grip on Jim’s arms as in his mind’s eye, seeing through his Sentinel, Blair too could see the balloons burst.

Blair shuddered with exhilaration. Jim stood frozen to the spot, zoned.

“Come back to me, Jim,” Blair said gently as he turned within his Sentinel’s arms. “Time to come back. The balloons are long gone and we get our wishes.” Jim blinked a few times as he came back to his Guide. “Welcome back, Big Guy.”

“Sorry about that, Chief.”

“Don’t be sorry. It was to be expected, but Jim, it worked! I saw the balloons through your eyes. This can open up another whole new chapter in our Sentinel study. What if we’re on a stakeout or in total darkness. Maybe I can see through your eyes again and, and...Jim, we have to set up some tests.”

“Enough, Darwin. I’ll admit this has some possibilities but right now I have a headache. I think I strained something staring at those balloons.”

“Okay, Jim. You’re right, we should go home. Besides, I think it’s getting cold.”

“That’ll happen out here when the sun’s about to set.”

“Very funny, Big Guy. Har, har. Keep your day job, Shecky.”

“Let’s go home, Chief,” Jim said, ignoring the jibe. Jim took Blair’s hand in his and began to walk toward the street.

“Um, Jim?” Blair said as he looked down at their clasped hands.

“Yeah, Chief?”

“What did you wish for?” Blair asked as he tightened his grip on Jim’s hand.

“Apparently the same thing you did,” Jim answered casually as if they walked hand in hand all the time. Even though this was their first time.

“You okay with this?” Blair asked his best friend, his Sentinel, his soon to be lover.

“Apparently, so,” Jim answered his best friend, his Guide and soon to be lover.

“Jim, do you think we should thank the Balloon man?”

Jim and Blair turned to look back at the barker’s tent. It had disappeared. The only evidence it had ever existed was the sea bleached old wooden stool.

“Uh, Jim?”

“Don’t say it, Blair. Let’s just go home.”

“Okay.”

Hand in hand, the Sentinel and Guide walked home to their loft. Behind them the panther and the wolf frolicked along the pier chasing Magic Balloons, as a smiling carnival barker dressed in a dowdy black tuxedo, with patches on its sleeves, watched. Jim smiled to himself as Blair babbled away about the tests in their future.

Then the Sentinel cocked his head as if to listen. "Balloons for sale! Magic balloons for sale! Buy yourself a dream!" The vision of the panther, wolf and the barker faded into the sea mist.

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