Fantasy Cirque de Monstres (1941) second edition

[Sungwonc01]

Lucas shook his head no in response to Emmaline. He was still quite drunk.


"No no, I'm fine. It takes a lot more than this to kill someone like me. Its just..."


Lucas reared his head as sounds of commotion sounded off behind him. His fellow cirque members had begun fighting some unfortunate bar patrons. He smiled a little. He hoped that God would find some mercy for them as Kora certainly would not. He was tempted to just sit back and watch.


However before he could react, Emmaline lashed out and attacked one of them only to...


Shatter.


Lucas watched, dumbfounded, as heard the sharp crackle of glass in his ear. It didn't seem quite real to him. He was still in the alcohol-addled world of apathy. Somehow, he heard Kora's cry to help Emmaline to safety. Then it hit him. Harder than a derailed train.


He so desperately wanted to tear the man a new one, possibly even two. But he knew that continuing to fight would only make things worse. He decided to first get Emmaline to safety. Then take revenge.


He dove onto the floor to where she lay, but in his panic some of Emmaline's shards cut into his jeans. He started to bleed quite profusely.


He whispered hurriedly into Emmaline's ear.


"Emmaline can you hear me? I need you to head for the door. No matter what pain you feel now is nothing compared if you continue to stay. Do you hear me? You need to find the others."


He swallowed hard as he contemplated his options.


"I'll provide a distraction."


His voice had taken a sort of strange and foreign tone. Although you couldn't notice it right away, his eyes turned a subtle, darker shade of red.


@The Velveteen Rabbit

 

[The Velveteen Rabbit]

Her ears rung like the first sounds of a church bell, swinging back and forth endlessly. Although Emmaline's dress covered the part where her skin had shattered, the glass heart, the only thing keeping the doll alive, was clearly visible and vulnerable. It vibrated with a delicate hum. She felt a presence lean down beside her. Words flowed into her ears. The doll's mind rattled, making the words Lucas spoke distant and small. Emmaline slowly turned her gaze towards him in the middle of this chaos, staring at Lucas blankly. His appearance wavered in and out, becoming distorted. However, for some unknown reason, she could tell he was telling her to run. To get out of the bar.


With her conscious on lockdown and skin broken, she stood up. Her movements were slow and wobbly, but Emmaline managed to stand. The doll's feet crunched against the glass shards on the ground, crushing them into smaller pieces. She felt a numb pain jab at her chest, and she spiraled into a deep panic. Emmaline swiveled around and burst out of the bar before Lucas could say another word.


Like harsh spiders dangling webs across her skin, more cracks began to appear throughout her body. With each step, Emmaline felt herself begin to crumble from the pressure. White shards of glass dropped in a mysterious trail from the bar, to the cirque. She breathed heavily, unable to see where she was going or who she was near. Without warning, Emmaline's leg snapped in two. It shattered like a delicate vase, and she fell to the ground.


"C..." Emmaline's voice was small; a soundless whisper. Her call for the help of Cenzio and Palomar failed miserably. She outstretched a hand towards what she thought was the trailers, and tried to crawl towards them. More of her began to break off, piece by piece. Before she had completely diminished into a pile of glass, she heard two muffled voices. One high pitched, and the other very low. Shadows loomed over her, and the feeling of spindly hands gripped her broken body.


The two skeletons hauled her gently back into their trailer. Seeing Emmaline in such a... shattered state caused Cenzio to dive into a puddle of emotions.


"I told you we should have gone with them! Now look at her! My poor, sweet Babydoll..." Cenzio cooed in a choked voice at the doll laying on the bed. Palomar sat on the other side of the unconscious doll, a hand placed over her forehead. Emmaline's body was glowing an eerie blue glow from Palomar's touch. Slowly, nonexistent shards of glass became existent, and began to reattach themselves to her skin. Not before long, the doll had been put back together like a puzzle piece. Palomar removed his hand from her forehead and sighed, peeking out the window.


"Something must of happened... Where's Lucas?" He whispered to himself quietly.


@Sungwonc01


(Sorry that was really long xD )

 

[Sungwonc01]

(Thats alright, this is probably even longer. Also Lucas making a REEEEALLY bad decision=drama! )


@The Velveteen Rabbit


Lucas watched Emmaline go through the door frame. As soon as he was sure she was gone, he closed his eyes as if contemplating something. What he was about to do was incredibly stupid and might jeopardize the cirque. But he didn't really give much of a shit. He shook his head as if warding away any thoughts of a conscience and set upon what had to be done, or what he thought had to be done. What that man did to Emmaline could not go unpunished. He downed the last of a forgotten drink left on the bar and sharply inhaled. He mumbled to himself,


"And now, the real work begins."


His expression suddenly changed to the same as the panicked and outraged that many in the bar possessed. Indeed, to them Lucas seemed like one of them. He immediately took note of the one who had caused Emmaline to very nearly completely shatter. An average fellow by any standard. Lucas felt a heat rise in his bosom. He then shouted,


"That glass whore cut me!" He gestured to his bleeding leg."Are we just going to let these people get away with attacking us? C'mon!"


He took the man by the shoulder and, along with a few others, went through the back entrance to catch the phantom menace. As they exited the bar into the night, Lucas thought he saw a flash of somebody cutting across the forest. Perhaps it was Emmaline, perhaps it wasn't. For a moment he wondered if what he was going to do was right, if Emmaline would see it as such. But he shook the thoughts off. It wasn't as if he was going to murder the urchin, just make sure he never hurts anyone ever again. After all, vigilante justice was the only justice for much of Lucas' life. He made sure to go the complete opposite direction as the flash.


He signaled to the rest of the group.


"I think I saw someone dart around the corner! Someone should go check."


The rest of the group murmured their agreement and the bulk of the group went around. Lucas clapped his hands around the shoulder his target. It was almost time. Just a few more moments.


"I think you should take a look at this."


Lucas directed the man's attention to something on the ground. Something small and distinctly fleshy. As the man examined it Lucas' eyes began to visibly glow, illuminating the darkness around them.


The man was at a loss for words. "Is that...a human finger?" He suddenly felt a need to vomit. Strong need.


Lucas' voice had taken on a tone of cruel humor. He laughed menacingly and without remorse.


"Close. The finger of a patchwork demon to be exact. My Edith was such a dear for letting me borrow it. I really must apologize to her."


The man turned around and gasped as he saw Lucas backing him against a doorframe. The scarlet eyes penetrating the darkness. He seemed to visibly shrink in fear. He stuttered heavily.


"W-Wha-What are you? Get away from me!"


"Funny. They'll be saying the same to you once I'm done here."

 

[The Velveteen Rabbit]

(Ohhhhh the drama xD @Sungwonc01 )


After patiently waiting by the trailer window for about 15 minutes, Palomar suddenly adjusted his collar and cleared his throat. Cenzio watched from the bedside as the skeleton began making his way out of the trailer.


"Where do you think you're going?" Cenzio exclaimed, a frown on his face.


"I can sense Lucas' aura from here. Something isn't right."


And then Palomar was gone, just like that.


Cenzio did not chase after Palomar, and instead stayed by Emmaline's unconscious side. His finger caressed her cheek lovingly, sighing to himself.


-------------------------------------------


The tall skeleton had burst into a sprint, his bones rattling together and creating quite a ruckus. The forest surrounding him was drowning in shadows, and it was almost impossible to make out Lucas' figure. Or anyone else's for that matter. But Palomar found him, with a beast of a man pinned up against the doorframe. Even from such a large distance, Palomar could see his glowing red eyes. He stopped for a moment, as if pondering whether or not he should intervene.


He seemed to make his choice very clear.


"Lucas! Remember your place." He called out, hiding in the shadows slightly. His creamy white skull was more visible then the rest of him. He was sure Lucas could see him.


"What would Emmaline think?" He finally said after a few moments of silence. Palomar's nonexistent eyes stared forward and directly at Lucas. His face was twisted into a worried frown.

 

[Sungwonc01]

Lucas had been busy in the last few minutes. He slammed the man into the frame once more. Hard. A groan escaped his lips. The man was barely lucid. The Lucas now wasn't the Lucas known by the circus any longer. The alcohol and anger transformed him into something darker and more...agitated.


He heard Palomar's voice from across the distance. He let out a hearty grin.


"Oh my dear Palomar, you're just in time to teach this man a valuable lesson."


However Lucas frowned when he realized what Palomar had said. He faltered in his attacks for a bit. Could what he had been doing be wrong? But the memory of Emmaline lying shattered on the floor came back in full force, hardening his resolve again. The alcohol brought the worst out in him, bringing out his most bestial qualities and taking away his reasoning.


"I do know my place Palomar. Perhaps it is time you had learned yours."


He spat with some venom.


He turned back to continue but when he drew his fist, he heard the sounds of the group of men from earlier come closer. Not quite upon them but close.


He threw the unfortunate man down onto the ground. For now his Appétit for revenge was sated. His eyes started to dim and become less noticeable.


He whispered into the man's ear.


"If you tell anyone what happened here, I will come back."


@The Velveteen Rabbit

 

[Lady Luna Ravenswood]

Nora had departed from the others. She sensed Luca's energy change. She kept her distance and watched the exchange. When Palomar showed and Lucas calmed down she emerged from the shadows. Her own aura reeking of lust and desire. She was very close to changing into her own demon form. She looked at the duo.


"Such a fool Lucas.....forgetting to control yourself in front of humans. Threats don't work on human's they are horrible at keeping secrets."


She leaned down and looked at the poor human.


"Oh you poor thing....such a tragic event.....don't worry it will all be a distant memory...."


She rubbed the man's face and stared into his eyes. The man suddenly fainted.


"That's right...just sleep."


She stood up and looked at Lucas.


"Next time I will not save your sorry ass. I am partly to blame for this. Letting Emmaline be in a bar. I surely must be stupid."


She disappeared into the shadows again, reemerging with her hands wrapped around Marius's waist. She was back to her drunk self. Her demon body could handle twice of what she consumed tonight but, her human body could not.


"Lets...lets....go somewhere...moreeeee.....quiet....yes?"


(timeskip soonish??)

 

[Axeykins]

((sounds like a good idea))


"Somewhere more...quiet?" He cocked an eye brow curiously as he tottered side to side. He was absolutely drunk out of his mind....that vodka he ordered was a lot stronger than he remembered. "Just where....do you have in mind?" He slurred. Leaning in so his mouth was right next to her ear.

 

[The Velveteen Rabbit]

Palomar's frown deepened, especially when Lucas had spat such harsh words back to him. Before he could do anything else, Nora appeared. He watched silently as she took care of the situation, bringing the victimized man into an unconscious state with a simple touch. He didn't acknowledge her as she walked away, and instead chuckled sadly.


"Come on, Lucas... You can stay in our trailer tonight. I'm sure the first person Emmaline wants to see when she wakes up is you." He murmured, flashing a toothy grin at the now calmed demon and turning his back to him. The skeleton stalked back to the trailer quietly, hoping Lucas had decided to follow.


When Palomar returned to the trailer and had walked inside, he stood surprised at the doorway. Emmaline was sitting up on the side of her bed, staring down at the floor. A blank expression was plastered across her delicate face, but he could tell she was in a sorrowful state. Cenzio sat beside the doll, rubbing her back soothingly. When Palomar came into her vision, Emmaline leaped up.


"I-Is Lucas okay?" She asked in a small, frantic voice.


"Shouldn't you be worried about your own health?" Cenzio interrupted worriedly. But the doll payed no attention to him.


"He's more then okay. Please, sit back down, darling." Palomar said gently. Nodding, Emmaline sat down and stared back at the floor. Not saying a word.


@Sungwonc01

 

[Sungwonc01]

(Sorry for the XXL post! :\)


Lucas' heart slowed as he grew more and more calmer. In place of anger he only felt a sudden onset of weariness. His vision grew a little cloudy. Yet even in his jaded state, he frowned when Nora appeared from seemingly nowhere. He had neither the will nor the strength to argue with Nora.


"I have complete control over my emotions my queen." He said this last word with some heat. "Whether I choose to exercise it is my own choice."


He shook his head at Marius being taken with Nora, denouncing it as one of her conquests.


He watched Palomar walk away and considered his invitation. He started to slowly walk back to the cirque grounds. However Lucas suddenly remembered what he said earlier. About what Emmaline would think. He admitted to himself, quietly and in his thoughts, that what he had done might not have been the most sensible. In some way he felt some guilt for what he had done, only if Emmaline would look upon him unfavorably.


He looked at Emmaline's trailer for a significant while. Eventually, in a moment of shame for what he had done, he strode away to his own trailer.





Edith spent the entire night cleaning up after the act. She disapproved of the entire cirque going to out to get intoxicated. In fact, it provided no end of annoyance that Lucas decided to run away from to the bar. It was therefore reasonable that she was pissed when she saw Lucas in passing.


"You have some nerve young man. When my shift is over I'll-"


Lucas avoided Edith's gaze and walked on past her, offering a vague apology.


"Edith I'm sorry, I really am. But I need some time to myself."


This gave Edith pause as Lucas had a look of ambiguity as he walked by. He noticed he was walking away from Emmaline's trailer. Utterly confused and worried, Edith went up and knocked on the door, determined to find answers.


"Cenzio? Palomar? Would you mind opening this door?"


@The Velveteen Rabbit

 

[The Velveteen Rabbit]

The sound of knocking caused Palomar, Cenzio, and Emmaline to look up all at the same time. Their first assumption was Lucas had decided to check up on the doll. But when Edith spoke up, their assumptions sizzled to a small ember. Palomar was the one to open the door, and stared down at the demoness with a weary look on his face.


"Please come in, Edith." The skeleton said, stepping aside so she could get by. Emmaline still sat on the bed, looking sad and lost in her own thoughts. Her sapphire glass eyes were glazed over, and she didn't even look up as Edith entered her trailer. As if she couldn't snap out of a certain trance.


"Something happened at the bar. We found Emmaline out in the forest... C-completely smashed to pieces! We don't know who did it!" Cenzio exclaimed worriedly. He hugged Emmaline and brought her closer. She didn't react to his touch. Palomar nodded gravely, leaning against the wall and crossing his arms.


"Lucas was attacking a man outside of the bar. My best guess is that the same man pushed Emmaline and caused her to break. I had never seen Lucas so... angry." He said all of this almost to himself. The two skeletons looked up towards Edith at the same time.


"Have you heard anything?" They asked in sync.


(It's okay xD Large posts are never a bad thing!)

 

[Sungwonc01]

Edith sat on the edge of her seat as she listened intently to the duo. She also regarded Emmaline with a look of concern.


"No, I haven't. My Lucas walked by a moment ago however. He seemed ready to collapse where he stood."


Edith hung her head sadly. She stared wistfully out a window.


"I was afraid that this would happen again. You see, Lucas is not one to take offenses lightly When he becomes agitated he..."


Edith paused.


"Changes."


Edith turned to one of the skeletons. Although she knew them by name she could never distinguish between them.


"This isn't like him. He isn't one to risk something like this. He must of been drinking beforehand or..."


Edith glanced at Emmaline. she lowered her voice.


"She really is that special to him."


@The Velveteen Rabbit

 

[The Velveteen Rabbit]

Palomar, being the closest to Edith at the moment, heard the demoness whisper those words under her breath. The skeleton felt a warm happiness grow inside of him, but he kept it concealed. His face continued to frown deeply. Before he had time to say anything in response, Palomar heard Emmaline speak up.


"Where is he?" The porcelain doll murmured quietly. When Edith did not answer, Emmaline glanced up at her. The doll's eyes were light blue pools of nothingness. Not a hint of emotion. Her facial features were blank and unmoving, as if her inhuman side was beginning to show. She looked as if she could become stiff at any moment and never move again. Like what a glass doll is supposed to do. Cenzio looked utterly surprised, and for once, he kept his mouth shut.


@Sungwonc01

 

[Kiyoko Tomoe]

"To my trailer we go." Sayuri said playfully to the unconscious Sisceal, carrying him inside of a trailer about a minute later. It was pretty dark, though Sayuri was sure they were in the right trailer. She couldn't be any more wrong though. Instead of her unused trailer, she'd ended up in the trailer of a certain person, who would be very angry at them if he knew they were there. Sayuri was too drunk to tell the difference between her trailer and Paul's trailer though, which would be a really bad thing for them. At least, things would be bad for Sisceal. Sayuri on the other hand, made these kinds of mistakes all the time, being mostly used to the following horrors by this point.


@Axel1313 (Possibly @Lady Luna Ravenswood *hint hint*)

 

[Axeykins]

"Oooh....my head..." He mumbled groggily as he came to. It was too dark to tell exactly where they were, but at least he remembered who he was with. Somewhat. "Where.....guh...where are we?? Is this that surprise you were talking about earlier?" He smirked, cocking his head to the side lazily. Oh if only he knew where they were right now....he would not be smiling at all.


@Kiyoko Tomoe

 

[Sungwonc01]

Edith looked a little surprised as the doll spoke her first words since Edith had arrived. She paused thoughtfully as she tried to remember in what direction Lucas was heading.


"I seem to recall that he was headed in the direction I was leaving. My best gurds would be that he was headed for his and my trailer."


She shook her head.


"How could this happen? If the humans catch a whiff of this they'll certainly come down harder than they have before."


@The Velveteen Rabbit

 

[The Velveteen Rabbit]

In silent, and slow movements, Emmaline walked out of the trailer and closed the door lightly behind her. She didn't say a word. Palomar and Cenzio watched as the doll left, frowning. Palomar seemed to break the silence after collapsing onto the couch, picking up a cigar, and lighting it between his teeth. He threw the lighter to the side and breathed in the smoke, causing the tip of the cigar to glow brightly. The skeleton exhaled through his nostrils and chuckled to himself.


"I wouldn't worry too much, Edith. The humans are too oblivious to know what is really going on." He murmured, staring off into space.


"Besides..." Palomar began, glancing out the trailer window behind him. Emmaline was trudging away into the darkness, disappearing.


"... we would be gone before they even realized it."


----------------------------------------------


Emmaline's blue gaze scanned the trailer area quietly. Her feet led her towards Lucas' trailer, slipping through patches of darkness as she did so. It wasn't long before she found him. His back was to her, and Emmaline was sure he hadn't heard her approach.


"Lucas?" She called softly, stopping in her tracks a few feet away. Her eyes were finally full of emotion, a sorrowful yet sympathetic look on her delicate face.


@Sungwonc01

 

[Sungwonc01]

Edith sighed heavily. Despite Cenzio and Palomar's reassuring words, she was unable to shake these dark premonitions about the future.


"Maybe once these humans would have leapt at their own shadows. But they are no longer the drooling neanderthals they once were. They have learned much."


Edith made a move up to leave.


"I really must go. After all, a maid's work is never done. But you would do well, Cenzio and Palomar, to heed my words."


She vanished through the doorway, as wordlessly as she came.


Lucas was quietly tending to his swords when Emmaline saw him. He always occupied his hands with work when his mind was troubled. He clutched his head lightly, he had a considerable hangover from the night before.


Yet he turned suddenly and weakly smiled at Emmaline's voice.


"Ah, my dearest Emmaline! I'm afraid you catch me at a rather unflattering time..."


Indeed, he was still dressed in his pajamas and had not shaved yet for the day.


@The Velveteen Rabbit

 

[The Velveteen Rabbit]

Emmaline managed to hold back her embarrassment as she realized he was still in his pajamas. Her face continued to frown slightly, in a both worried and sad way. The doll blinked before finally taking a small breath in, and beginning to speak.


"Is... everything alright?" Emmaline asked quietly. She glanced down at her feet and then took a small step towards him.


"Edith told me you were upset..." She whispered, looking back up to him with sad blue eyes. Despite being smashed to pieces and not at all sober, Emmaline had no signs of a hangover or even grogginess from last night. But her face was sunken, as if she had not gotten sleep for weeks. The wind was blowing just steadily, causing a few strands of Emmaline's white hair to linger in the breeze.


@Sungwonc01

 

[Axeykins]

"Helloooo? Is anybody here? I appear to be lost..." It wasn't that large of a circus, but somehow the large demon had managed to get lost amongst the mess of trailers behind the tents//he was never any good at directions// It didn't help that it was so dark out now either, but surely there must be some circus member around that could help him find his way around this place.

 

[Taelonthesands]

Daphne sat on the couch that connected to the Large window of her trailer. She sat with her legs scrunched up against her chest as she stared through the glass of the window at the sky. Daphne was looking out for her family who had left and gone to the bar. She was always worried everytime someone left the circus grounds, always imagining the worst situations they could be in but would never dare leave the grounds out of her own fears. Then when her family would return Daphne would almost always accidentally strangle them from her bear hug when they returned. Daphne knew that the way she worried always concerned her family. They always told her that they would be fine and she could relax, but Daphne never listened to them. The last time she ever relaxed, she lost one of the most important people of her life. Daphne sighed and thought back to that time, they had been so happy until that day. They were so happy until the hunters came. If only she had been able to leave ear-


Daphne's thoughts were interuppted when she heard a smooth melodic voice not to far from her window. "That voice," she said to herself "I know that voice but he's gone he couldn't be...could it?"


Daphne turned the latch connected to her window pane and pushed open the window to where Daphne could stick her head out. She looked in the direction of the voice but didn't see anyone. Daphne wondered if she had just imagined it. Hesitating, Daphne responded "Hey... over here!"


@Axel1313

 

[Axeykins]

"Hmm?" The voice caught his attention right away. It was familiar, but how? He had to find the source. "Hello!!" He quickly headed towards the direction of it and found the one trailer with the lights still on. "Oh! Thank goodness! Excuse me, but I am horribly lost back here, could you possibly help me out?"


@rosamortelle

 

[Sungwonc01]

Lucas paused to stop and think for a minute. He was not sure if Emmaline quite realized what he did last night. Palomar saw what he did and even tried to stop him, but he didn't tell Emmaline? Curious indeed.


Lucas looked at Emmaline with a weary and exhausted look.


"Its less that I'm upset, more that I am ashamed at myself."


But Lucas handwaved it away.


"But you obviously don't want to hear the dronings of a bitter demon..."


@The Velveteen Rabbit

 

[The Velveteen Rabbit]

"Bitter?"


Emmaline repeated softly. She took slow steps towards him. Without warning, the doll pulled him into a tight hug and rested her head on top of his shoulder. Her arms wrapped around his neck.


"Palomar explained to me a little bit about what happened last night. Between you and that man..." She murmured quietly into his ear, closing her eyes. Her gentle embrace tightened slightly.


"Is that why you are ashamed? Because you were afraid of how I would react?" She released herself from him and slowly brought her hands down to his. Emmaline blinked shyly before grasping his hands in hers. The doll stared at their hands entwined together, unable to fully wrap her head around what she was feeling in that moment.


"You were merely doing what any man would do... for a woman he cared for." She whispered. Emmaline glanced back up at him and let a soft smile dance across her lips.


"Is that really something you should be ashamed of?"


@Sungwonc01

 

[Sungwonc01]

Lucas looked at Emmaline with a look of confusion. He had expected her to treat him with more wariness.


"Perhaps ashamed isn't the right word.."


He sat down on a bench going through his thoughts.


"Perhaps careless? Humans are not renowned for their silence. It would have behooved me to act with more...professionalism..."


@The Velveteen Rabbit

 

[The Velveteen Rabbit]

Emmaline frowned and stared down at her feet. She released her hands from his, and entwined them together. She fumbled with her fingers nervously.


"S-sorry." She blurted, realizing her actions towards him weren't the right ones in this situation. Emmaline took a small step back as he sat down on the bench.


"I-I can leave you alone if it will help give you time to think." The doll murmured, glancing back up at his weary face.


@Sungwonc01