The Circus (WIP)

This chapter still requires a lot of work on my part.

Charlotte’s Perspective:

Time passes slowly as the anticipation for going to the circus mounts, Sasha and I have been eager and Papa and Mama have both gone about their days as usual, when we where told we would be going to the Circus, Mama brought out and old poster she had where her mother stood at the center and in the same colors and style as Papa’s painting that he destroyed of Death.

A woman in a black short gown, a white bow on it’s hip, and black tight pants that reach just below the thigh. Black heals and two large jagged horns sprouting from her head. Her hair black as well in two tails down either side of her neck and painted white skin, highlighting her green eyes. Two thin stencil like wings extend from her back.

Behind her on the poster, the large skeleton of whites with an arm out stretched, reaching for her. Mama tells me it’s a little story for the final act, of a woman who fights death to reclaim her own life. But it’s something I must witness because it’s the Circus’s finest act.

The day comes when we go to the big top when Papa realize we’re there to see their grand show...something I think he was hesitant about showing us, and arguing with Mama.

“I thought we had discussed one of their little shows, not this act…”

“You want them to have your same experiences with the Circus, and before…anyway the act has been drastically altered so that nothing like what happened to my mother happens again.”

“What happened?” Sasha asks and I forgot she wasn’t around when Papa told me about her and Papa grows silent while we wait in the car, just outside the big tent as herds of others people enter it.

“My mother who you are named after Charlotte ended up dying…”

“He won’t have her…we can’t see it, I won’t allow it.”

“Eustace, spending your days hold up in your study won’t do you any good, stop being afraid to live.”

“We’re not having this conversation in front of them…”

“Kids, come along, we’re going to go enjoy the show, your Papa can stew.”

“Muriel…” She is already leaving the car. Leaning her head inside. And hold open the passenger seat so that I can leave.

“Join us, it’s just an act, and it was your idea in the first place to take them, I chose which one was likely to give them the greatest enjoyment.” She doesn’t wait for his answer and closes the door while we get out as well, Papa reaming behind as Sasha is stuck inside the car with him, he has to leave his size and hold open the seat for her to get out.

He grumbles as he slams his door and walks forward, ahead of us, while Mama follows and us behind them.

“It’s okay Papa, you can close your eyes if you get scared.” Sasha says with kindness, but gets the look of fury from him as Mama scolds him.

“I will not have your tantrums ruin today’s mood.”

“Tantrums?” Papa shouts, as many others look our way.

“Papa,” I got up to him, leaning on his arm as he uses his cane. “I want to know your experiences…I wish to help you.” I say, but I wonder if that is truly want I want to know about, or even if I can experience that, it doesn’t seem fair for only him to have such a miserable experience and I’m left out.

He bits his lower lip as he stares at me, ruffling my head with his free hand as he stares at Mama and Sasha who’s gone to hid behind her.

“We’ll have fun today.” He says so though gritting teeth but then adds, “we’ll talk about my tantrums later Muriel.”

I smile as we’re lead inside with the rest of them all. We walk by an updated poster, the Mistress of Death is now on one side, while the Skeleton giant is on the other, still reaching an arm out, but both weld scythes. Green fire ablaze around them, while hordes of black skeletons dance. Chains are used to outline the frame of the poster and black obelisks from the two poles that hold the tent up. The Mistress of Death on one of the high platforms attached to the poles and with one hand reaching out, pointing at Death.

Papa pauses to stare at the poster, holding back the rest of the line before Mama pushes him and he continues forward. “Things seem different then what I remember.”

Mama smiles, “They are, everything is safer then how it was preformed during my Mother’s act.”

Inside it’s dark, as we find our seats and Papa buys us some peanuts to eat while we watch. It’s not long after we take our seats that a screech of bird echos in the tent and all falls silent while the ring master has a spot light on him, a black man in a purple tux leaves the shadows and smiles at us, “Welcome to my grand circus of wonders and fantasy. The screech of a bird echos as lights shine from above as the entire circus canopy lights up and a large bird—man in costume begins flapping his wings and flying around while girls in leotards swing from trapeze and hang from swinging hoops, starting off with a bang to entice the audience. The shadow of a large bird flies over us as it screeches again and my Papa pouts.

Sasha laughs as large wolfs like dogs enter, all of them pure black and he controls them all as they run around the ring for our entertainment, barking and howling on command, while shadows of animals large and small dance about on the tent canvas, like a motion picture which gets the crowed riled up.

Mama’s story of the Warrior and the Witch seems to have inspired this performance as I feel as if I understand the story already. Mama enjoying the fun, Papa remains astute, one leg over the other as he rubs his bad thigh as if it’s giving him trouble but he remains watching as do we all.

 As the hour passes, the first act is over, showing us a wide variety of animals, birds and wolves mainly, but near the end, they brought out some clowns that acted as if they where enticing a mermaid in a large pool of water that rose out of the center arena. She had such beautifully flairs on her costume which reminded me of the Betta Fish I rode, and my Papa glared at me upon my laughter at the mermaid, but I hushed quickly, still enjoying the spectacle all the same.

We have a short intermission in which I remained behind with Papa while Sasha and Mama went to use the ladies room.

“Do you understand this Charlotte?” He asks and I look at him.

“What do you mean?” I asks and he stares at the clowns that are moving displays and setting up the final act.

“This is entertainment, our world doesn’t have any fun of it’s own, so we have to make the fun for ourselves, it’s not natural.”

“But we can have fun Papa, I am enjoying myself.”

“We are paying these simpletons to entertain us, to degrade themselves for our amusement. Have you seen me laugh once?”

I shake my head, and he points, “They are just doing their job, as is everyone in our world, there is no fun or excitement, no fantasy or dream that can ever come true because all of us are only doing our job which we’re meant to do. We’re nothing more then slaves to this world.”

Mama and Sasha reunite with us as I loose more faith in my Papa, but all the while, I still long to help him, somehow to return that fun back into his life, he’s lost so much, that he needs that enjoyment, he needs that fun but how, how do I give that back to him. My own paintings that I’ve begun doing aren’t nearly enough to show him the wonders of our world, the magic that I see, the creatures that prance within my dreams…

The Ring Master comes forward and starts narrating events that sound strangely like the legend that my folks shared with Sasha and I, a man and a woman in love, a witch and warrior. We come to a scene as the Ring Master speaks of the woman visiting the man’s home as they are having a celebration of their trades. A live white tiger is brought out and release into the ring as it circles the actors, a puff of smoke comes as the Ring Master says that the tiger has foods thrown at it, and people hitting it while it’s chained up. The puff of smoke fading as a man in a tiger’s costume is standing in while the other actors or throwing things and poking him. He’s acting like he’s trapped when the witch rushes from her seat with the warrior and tells them that they are being cruel to it. Another actor then goes up to the tiger and beats it over the head with a foot, it lies down as the Ring Master announce that the tiger died.

We’re all on batted breath as the Ring Master then continues to story, the witch having taken pity on the tiger cast as spell, shape shifting into the tiger. It roars loudly as it stares down the person who kicked it. The Ring Master tells us how the tiger attack those closest and as the man in the suit swipes at the first man, he hit’s his chest as streamers fly up of red colors as if blood and he falls to the ground.

The story continues on from there, the tiger escaping then turning back to the witch, the warrior gives chase only for the witch to turn her back on him, in a fit of rage he then kill’s her, which is when the grand finale begins as now the witch is in a battle for her own body, to save herself, she must defeat the warrior who loves to war, the very embodiment of death.

Large plumes of green fire erupt from the center stage as the final act begins. A white skeleton soars over the crowed to awing spectators as it comes to land with green fires obscuring it’s landing position as a thunderous boom echos in the tent and out reaches a large hand controlled by men in full black costumes like a large puppet. It’s only the upper body of this large skeleton, but still menacing.

There are shocked expressions and cries that come from younger children within the tent but still excitement all around as from high above on the traipse the Mistress of Death appears with a smile and picks up her own scythe from leaning against the high pole.

What follows is a back and forth war between the two, she would swing down and swing her scythe while it would bat at her with it’s large hands as hordes of black skeleton warred around them, sometimes they’d follow her lead, sometimes they’d follow his, and she’d try to reclaim her life represented by a woman lying on a pedestal high above the chaos. Pretending to have faint.

As the act wraps up, flaming green skulls rain down around us, although merely illusions as white skeletons enter the fray, giving the large skeleton encouragement to help him take away the woman's who’s fighting for her life’s soul away, but she finally strikes the skeleton down hitting it squarely in the forehead as the bones from the skeleton fall to the ground and the she can soar back up to where her body lies and reclaim her life in as green fire erupts and now the woman wears white clothing, her horns gone and wings gone, she has freed herself.

It’s awing as people begin to clap and the shows lights turn back on, my Papa already leaving as she’s bowing from where she’s just finished.

“Come on girls, we’re going home, shows over.”