Work Text:
The air was cool and crisp, like any other time when fall was near.
It made the eighteen year old's lungs hurt at times when he tried to breathe in the fresh air.
The brown and orange leaves that fell from their branches, only to land onto the sidewalk of passing people.
Who would casually drop these flyers, some just crumbled them up and tossed them aside, not even looking for a trash can.
Jace Valentine stood there, his brown hair tucked underneath his light gray beanie that covered his ears, his hazel blue eyes on the flyers as he made himself kneel and pick any he found up, before tossing them aside.
His heart was already racing from the crowd of people this morning.
If he didn't pick up his pace.
He knew he would be late to work.
And that would only get him a scolding from his boss, Nathaniel.
Jace didn't even want the job.
One of the tenants at the apartment he stayed at, told him the cafe needed another helping hand, and they wanted Jace to work on his social skills.
Some would think that should be what his parents would want.
But the thing is?
His parents died three years ago.
A car crash, cliche and typical.
The eighteen year old wouldn't say that out loud.
But it's part of the reason his social skills crashed and he was now an awkward mess who didn't know how to talk to others.
He kept his mouth shut and he looked the other way.
Even at his parents funeral, the so called ones that were supposed to be his family?
Tossed him aside, no one wanted him, they would murmur and whisper saying he was too much to deal with.
Fifteen years old and being told that?
Kills you more than you realize.
Jace has lived in this town his whole life, and once his parents died, he inherited everything from them.
It wasn't much, but it kept him off the streets for the next few years.
He just knew he didn't want to live in that house he grew up in.
There were too many scars.
Too many broken memories of being screamed at.
Sure.
He loved his parents.
And sure.
He missed them at times.
But deep down?
He hated them.
There had been so many times his mom or dad would mention how much of a burden he was to them, financially.
He remembered one night his mom told his dad she wished she could take it back, to terminate the pregnancy.
It wasn't like Jace asked to be born.
If it has been his way?
He would have been content not being born, better yet.
He would have been happy being born as a clam or something.
Jace dusted off his hands before hearing a commotion across the street.
It made his chest squeeze him painfully.
There was some man yelling at one of the circus workers.
He wanted to have a voice.
He wanted to run over there and tell the man to stop being mean.
But Jace was a coward, he was spineless, he had no backbone to fight back an argument with.
Maybe that was his fault for not trying to be better.
It made him hurt for the one being harassed, he hoped someone would speak up and defend the other.
But from where he was standing?
Absolutely no one was offering a helping hand to make the man stop.
Tears formed in the teens eyes, he blinked them away and rushed to the cafe, not wanting to be late.
Jace walked inside the cafe, brushing off the cold air and tried to soak in the warmth.
Immediately Nathaniel was walking over to the brunet, his arms crossed.
"You got here just in time, it's busier than usual." He told Jace who walked over to the counter, grabbing his apron and put it on.
He wasn't a big talker, which probably seemed crazy to some for him to work in a public area, only for him to be quiet.
"I-Is it because of cold?" Jace managed to get out, turning to Nathaniel who nodded.
"Most likely, but start as soon as you can, Carol's running late and I've been covering for her." He said as Jace nodded.
Did that mean he was covering her entire shift?
The brunet walked over to the bar that had the readied orders, he walked over to the different tables, receiving thanks and warnings about the circus.
But Jace wasn't worried about that.
He was worried about Carol and that guy from earlier.
His thoughts kept falling back and wondering if someone had finally helped the other, or if someone else from the circus had to intervene.
Jace's eyes fell to the flyers the customers were mentioning, he heard Nathaniel grunting nearby as the eighteen year old turned his attention to the older male.
"I'm sick of those flyers hanging around here, don't let anyone hand them out, and when you have a minute? Clean up the scattered ones." Nathaniel told Jace who held his breath but nodded.
He knew Nathaniel was his boss, but it felt like Jace was running around doing everything while Nathaniel just hung back and watched him do it all.
The door bell jingled and another customer walked in.
Jace caught sight of a dark blue suit and he sucked in some air, he had to work on his people skills or he was going to get in trouble.
"W-Welcome in!" His face was hot feeling the mans eyes on him.
"Thanks, I'd like a strong, hot coffee." Jace scrambled behind the counter to get the customers order, his heart wouldn't shut up and his face was burning up.
He felt overwhelmed between doing this and doing that.
He closed his eyes only for a minute before rushing over to the man in the dark blue suit, still holding the flyers he picked up a moment ago.
"Here y-you are, sorry about the wait." Jace was careful sitting the cup down, as the man watched Jace for a moment.
"Thanks, it's really cold outside." He replied.
Oh no.
Jace was horrible with conversation, not to mention, he was awkward as hell.
The eighteen year old looked out the window, watching the wind blowing.
"Mhm." He wanted to step aside and go back to doing anything else that didn't involve, small talk, he was bad at it.
"What's with those flyers?" The man looked in the direction of the papers that Jace held, he flinched before also looking down.
"O-Oh, someone was handing them out, I'm just picking them up." He replied quietly.
"How rude to do that in a place of business, right?"
This man kept on, and it was making Jace want to shrink even more.
He offered a nod in response, desperately wanting to turn around and leave.
"If you want, I can take them for you, I'll toss them out when I leave, no big deal." The man told Jace who blinked now, confusion on his face.
"Oh-"
"I was gathering some paper for recycling anyway." The man was quick to add.
Jace was hesitant before he nodded, handing the flyers over to the other.
"T-Thank you."
The man smiled softly.
"No problem, dear." He replied and the nickname made Jace blush as he took a small step back.
"Um, do you need anyth-"
"Do you like the circus?" The other suddenly asked Jace who was thrown off by the question.
"T-The circus..?" He repeated thinking about it.
He's never gone.
Not once.
Jace's expression of confusion only made the man chuckle softly.
"You're not too old if that's what you're thinking." He told Jace who blushed.
"Oh n-no that's not it, I've never been before." He confessed.
The blue suited man blinked before reaching into his pocket to pull something out.
"Really? More reason for you to go." He offered a pink ticket to Jace whose brows knitted and he took another small step back.
"O-Oh no, thank you, but um.. I can't accept something like that." He told the man who smiled at him.
"Don't worry, I already went, I was thinking about going again, but I'll be leaving town soon." He told Jace who could feel his heart beginning to race again.
"I.. I don't-"
"Come on, just take it, they're for tonight." The man pushed and Jace finally nodded.
"Okay.. I guess I'll take it." He took the pink ticket from the man who smiled at him.
"Thanks for your time, I'll let you get back to work." He said taking a drink of his coffee.
Jace placed the ticket in his pocket before scurrying away from the other.
Trying to breathe from that whole encounter.
He didn't expect the man to be pushy about it.
But he guessed it would be a waste to turn down a free ticket.
The rest of the shift seemed to fly by, because before he knew it.
It was just him and Nathaniel waiting for the last customer to leave.
Which didn't seem to be too long from now.
"As soon as they leave, go ahead and close up everything, we're closing early." Nathaniel told Jace who paused wiping down the counter but he nodded.
That would just give him more time to go check out the circus anyway.
"No problem, l-leave it to me." He tried to sound confident as Nathaniel paused but he smiled softly.
"You're doing great, Jace." He told the eighteen year old who tensed up and his face flushed red as tears appeared fast in his eyes, but he brushed them away and focused on cleaning.
As soon as the last customer left, Jace wasted no time getting everything cleaned up for tomorrow's shift.
He stretched before locking up the cafe and looked up at the sky growing dark.
His nose was red from the cold.
He pulled his jacket to him closer as he hesitatingly made his way to the circus.
His heart pounding hard against his chest.
Jace walked up to the person who he assumed was the Ticket Taker.
He was quick to notice that the suit seemed similar to the mans from earlier.
"Hello there, visitor! May I punch your ticket?" The Ticket Taker opened his hand to take Jace's ticket.
He was nervous but nodded pulling out the pink ticket and handed it to the other.
"Oh! That ticket gives you special access." He smiled.
"Please, come this way." He told Jace who was cautious, but he quietly followed after the other male, trying to ignore the attention some of the other workers of the circus were giving him.
Jace swallowed before following Ticket Taker into the pink tent.
He felt a sudden feeling of fear pierce through his entire body.
It was dark in here.
There was nothing happening.
"U-Um sir-"
He went to look for the man but instead?
Jace was letting out a pained cry at the feeling of something connecting a heavy blow to his head.
Not even a second to process what just happened, before his consciousness was lost, and everything was black.
"Take him to the back."
When Jace felt himself coming to, his head was pounding and everything felt fuzzy.
He went to move but the fear he felt earlier, thickened fast.
His arms and legs were tied and when he went to cry out, he found his mouth was also taped.
Keeping the smaller male from making a sound or an escape.
"Looks like he's awake, he's pretty." He heard someone say, the voice sounded familiar.
There were tears forming in his eyes, what was happening right now?
He was inside of what seemed to be a cage, and he was surrounded.
By five other guys.
Jace wanted to scream.
He wanted to cry.
He wanted to beg for his life.
"Let's begin." The one in blue had his arms crossed.
"Anyone interested in this one?" He asked the other four.
Jace felt the tears falling, what were they going to do to him?
What had he done so wrong to be treated like this?
He was a nobody.
He kept to himself.
He avoided conflict and confrontation.
So why..
Why was he in such a terrifying situation?
"No." He heard the one in red reply.
"Then I'm out too." The one in green agreed which earned a soft glare from the one in red.
There was a long silence between the last three.
"There are two options before the decision is made." The one in blue brought up, his eyes on the ones in purple and the one in the red and black hood, as if they hadn't made up their own minds yet.
But now the ones in red and green were also beginning to seem like they were second guessing their own answers.
Jace was trying to quiet his own cries as his entire body trembled.
Were they going to kill him?
What were the options?
He didn't want to die, even if his life seemed pitiful and pathetic.
He still wanted a chance at living.
"We can either relocate him." The one in blue glanced to the others, but a smile full of malice intent spread across his face as the others matched his expression.
"Or we can devour him." He suggested.
Devour or relocate?
Why did both options sound horrifying.
He wanted to run but knew he couldn't the moment the one in purple moved forward, walking past the other four and stood in front of the cage.
His eyes were lavender and piercing.
Jace couldn't breathe as more tears fell.
The purple clown pulled open the cage door and with no warning, his clawed fingers were grabbing Jace's jaw with force and ripping the tape from the brunet's mouth who let out a whimpered cry.
"A decision was made on your part, a poor one might I add, and these are the consequences, so now you are being given a choice, human." He glared softly, the force he held on Jace's jaw tightened and the eighteen year sobbed.
"I-I don't want to die." He cried.
"Whatever I-I did, I'm sorry." His face was hot and his head was pounding.
"I'm sorry, p-please.. I-I do anything." Jace's head was spinning as more tears fell to the point his entire body ached.
"I-I didn't mean to not do nothing.. I-I just got scared, I know my decision was p-poor but please." Jace sobbed sitting there.
"Please don't kill me." He begged crying.
"Pierrot."
Jace flinched hearing the one in front of him call for another.
"This was the human who failed, correct."
It was hard for Jace to breathe, he wanted to throw up, his bloodshot eyes were met with golden ones who stood behind the purple clown.
"Yes, Jester."
"And your opinion of him?"
"I do not want him harmed." The one known as Pierrot replied softly, but there was a look of uncertainty in his expression, like he wasn't fully sure just yet.
"So you're choosing devour?" The one in green smirked softly with his arms crossed.
"I think it would be interesting, better than just killing him, the poor thing has done nothing but cried since he woke up, the poor human." He said icily.
Jester's eyes scanned over Jace, thinking it over for a moment before grabbing a handful of the brunet's hair and forced him out of the cage, ignoring the eighteen year old's cries, that he tried to muffle himself.
Jester tossed him forward.
"Devour or relocate." He looked at the other two.
The one in blue let out a soft sigh.
"I can sense the misunderstanding here, but what's done is done, and there is no returning him.. after all, the last thing we'd want is him running to the police." He thought it over.
"I'll go with devour." He said.
Jace's heart was pounding hard against his chest.
They were going to eat him?
"Doctor, what is your decision?" Jester looked the one in the hood, he let out a hum as his cyan eyes fell on Jace.
"Devour is my vote, I'd like to see what this little specimen can endure." He grinned.
The hold Jester had on Jace's hair tightened for a moment, before he was pulling the brunet to his feet even though he could not run.
"Then it's settled, devoured, but don't worry little thing." Jester gave a rather wicked grin.
"Your life is being spared."
"For now."