Chapter Text
--Scene 1--
You collapse into the sawdust, vision swimming...
Through the haze you see Charlie, sauntering toward you with a vicious grin...
Her hair drags behind her, writhing with movement...
"Espèce de bouffon..."
She leans in close, breath cold against your face...
"You stumble into my web, and pretend to be shocked?"
A spider skitters across your chest. You try to flinch but can't move.
"Get comfortable, mon ami..."
--Scene 2--
You crawl just barely breathing... You're almost to cover...
Then that's you hear it- singing, high and sweet, but so wrong...
"The itsy bitsy brawler had wandered off to scout..."
Charlie drops from above, landing on your back with a sickening CRACK!
"Down came a Charlie who knocked the brawler out~"
She flips you over with a foot, studying your broken expression with delight. You try to scream but only manage a wheeze!
"The scout was no more fun and the brawler cried in pain..." She taps your nose with the tip of her shoe...
Then she leans back, spreading her arms theatrically...
"But the itsy bitsy brawler was never seen again~!"
--Scene 3--
The pain is throbbing... Above you the sound of silk unfurling with a soft whisper...
Charlie descends gracefully, spinning down the cord of hair. She lands beside you without a sound...
"Ah, silencieux maintenant..."
She kneels down and grabs your chin, lifting you up to meet her gaze...
"There is no reason to be sad, mon chéri..." A spider crawls from her hair onto your forehead...
Then, she smiles with all teeth.
"The Carnival always has space for more clowns..."
Sirius (Bizarre Circus)
--Scene 1--
The lights above in the circus tent flicker... they then snap dim...
Darkness swallows the room. Then, a single spotlight snaps on...! There he stands, half his face hidden behind that elegant mask...
You try to move, but your body won't respond..
Sirius tilts his head, watching you struggle... He then calls out...
"Frightened of your own shadow!?"
His voice is smooth, but powerful.. It oozes with a kind of old-world showmanship...
"How tragic. To live your whole life beside someone and never truly know them!"
He takes a slow step forward. Behind you, your shadow moves independently, curling like smoke.
"Allow me to properly introduce you."
He raises one of his gloved hands from underneath his cloak. Your shadow rises with it...
--Scene 2--
You lie defeated beneath a torn Brightest Starr banner, old posters peel from the walls. There are new faces, and unfamiliar names...
Sirius stands before them, above you, adjusting his gloves... He speaks out...
"You know nothing of this park. Nothing of those it built up only to be cast aside. And yet..." He looks down at your pitiful face. "...you come forth so confidently..."
A pause. A tilt of his masked face... then turns his attention to the posters...
"You do realize bravery, without knowledge, is just foolishness?"
Then, his eyes are softly closed, Sirius then comes closer, His form now clearer, from the shadows.
"Allow me to bring you to your proper place. Where Starr Park puts everyone it's finished with."
He reveals his gaze to look down at you one last time.
"In the dark."
A pause.
"...with the rest of us..."
--Scene 3--
The room is cold. Dust hangs in the air. You were defeated by something you couldn't even see...
Then, the feeling of something behind you? No... someone else...
You spin! Nothing...
You turn back, He appears there. Watching...
Then the darkness grows. He steps through it He stands over you, his mask curled into a calm grin...
"Shocked, I presume?" His voice is soft. "It's understandable. My absence has stretched on for far too long..."
He kneels down and reaches out to yours... His hand is cold.
"But this is no shadow. This is no stage trick. This is no Illusion."
He leans closer.
"I assure you. I, am very, real."