Time is dead and gone

"Welcome to VOCA Circus!" The crowd cheered and clapped, excited. For today, they were going to see a monster.

"My name is Ringmaster KAITO, and I have an act for you today! The daughter of the Devil, the creature who crawled out of the sewers, the girl eternally doomed to Hell, singing her song of eternal sadness! In the meanwhile, please give a round of applause for our clowns, Betram and Bertie!"

Kaito bowed and ducked under the thick curtain dividing the performer's area and the stage.

Show must go on

He walked past the acrobat. He walked past the horse girl, and the fortune teller. Then, he reached a set of stairs, and he gripped the railing as if he was afraid of whatever was downstairs.

He looked around the place: musty, cold and mossy, a fry cry from the brightly colored and lit area of upstairsIt's time for our actLUKAAA! IT'S TIME FOR YOUR ACT!" He yelled at the only thing in the room: a cage containing a monster.

They all scream at me

"PUT THIS ON!" He tossed a piece of cloth to the thing inside, who wrapped the cloth around her eyes like she had done it hundreds of times.

Kaito unlocked the cage door, stepped inside and grabbed the monster's hand.

"Don't try to run." Kaito hissed, then he dragged her upstairs.

They cannot see

No one looked at her, and if they did, it was one of those quick, fleeting glances. Kaito grabbed her hands and handcuffed them together.

"Sit, and don't move." He walked away, leaving the pink-haired girl alone.

Luka sat down against the wall, and listened.

This curtain hides me
An amazing gift
So quick and swift

LUKA'S POV

After a while though, the familiar sounds were boring and I abandoned my task of distracting myself. Instead, I turned to my favorite thought: Gumi.

You were amazing

Tears started to come by the thought of her name, so I decided to just think of her below the neck. I couldn't bear to think of her face, even after all these months. Anyone could wear what she wore, really.

First, her boots. White with a mint tip. Then, her skirt. A bottom layer of white, a top layer of yellow and a thick orange part. Lastly, her top. A yellow tank top with a orange bust.

Then, I couldn't resist thinking about her face. Green eyes, like an emerald pool and flyaway, messy, shoulder-length hair.

By myself I can't

She loved carrots. I remembered, when, late at night, she would creep down from her room and slip food between my cage bars. Carrot soup, carrot juice, raw carrots and carrot candies.

"Goodnight, love. Sleep well." she would say before going back up.

A loud noise broke me from my thoughts.

They start to chant

"CIRCUS MONSTER! CIRCUS MONSTER!" The crowd yelled. They wanted me.

Someone grabbed my hand and pulled me up roughly. Probably Kaito.

"C'mon. Time to preform, my darling songbird. After the performance, if we're lucky,someone'll want you too..."

Why are you not here? Kaito let his words trail off, but we both knew what was going to happen. You would have killed him.

Kaito lifted up the curtain for me and I walked onto the stage, alone. The crowd cheered loudly at me, was I worth the price of admission?

Grinning at me

"Is she saying something?" The crowd quieted and their ears perked up. I was hit enough times to know my cue.

"Roar!" I said, but instead of it coming out like that, it came out like an actual roar- low-pitched and animalistic.

Screams came from the crowd.

I lay on my knees

"Don't worry," Kaito smiled. "She won't hurt you." Then he pushed me down into a kneeling position, and, once I was down, he clipped a collar onto my neck, which was attached to a pole.

Long ago, I had stopped feeling the shame and worthlessness of being put on display.

They want to hear me

The crowd cheered once again, pleased that the monster was put down.

"NOW, SING, DEMON!"

I opened my mouth, ready to sing my melody when I realized: I couldn't sing. My voice ached, from singing 15 hours a day straight, from yesterday and the day after that.

So I didn't sing. I COULDN'T.

Why can not 'he' see?

All I want is you, Gumi. Everyday, I dream about joining you and leaving this cursed life, but I can't. When I stick a knife in myself, all I do is come back to life again and back to hell.

Why can't I be reborn? To a different life, the one you're in? One when I'm not a freak?

The crowd's screams began fading away when I leaned my head in my hands.I knew I would be punished later, but I didn't care. Tears fell out of my eyes and dripped onto the wood.

I want to see you

A hand picked up my head and another one slapped me, leaving me breathless. The crowd made no more noise, probably sitting on the edge of their seats.

I heard the 'click' of my collar being released from the pole.

"Ladies and gents, we have a SPECIAL act for you!"

Someone grabbed my waist and lifted me up. I didn't try to struggle or put up a fight. Why bother?

I need to see you

Then, the hands quickly went down to clutch my feet, and I began spinning. I could feel it.

And then I was off, flying into the air. Even though I wanted to die, I didn't want to die this way! There is no scarier thing then being blindfolded, about to hit a wall.

The minutes were like hours, thick and soupy. Until I slammed into rock.

The pain... was explosive. I could feel the blood dripping.

I have to see you

Kaito's voice began to vanish, and the pain slowed to a dull throb.

Then I was walking in the dark. There was a pinprick of light, and with every footstep I took, I got closer. I knew I was dying.

Then I saw them. An angel was standing in front of the bright light, and Gumi was right behind her.

"Luka!" she waved to me with the happiest look on her face. She ran past the angel and grabbed one of my hands.

"NO! YOU ARE NOT GETTING AWAY FROM ME!"

I turned my head, and there was Kaito. A very angry Kaito.

"Quick," Gumi hissed. "Let's go,before he gets to you." I walked towards Gumi when I saw her staring at me sadly.

I looked down and realized I hadn't moved.

Gumi wrapped her arms around me.

"Goodbye, Luka."

I pulled her closer. "Goodbye, Gumi. This isn't the last time we'll see each other... I promise!"

A sudden flash of light blinded me.

What happened to you?

I woke up.

I sat up and noticed I was still on the stage. Nothing felt different except for a faint headache.

"KAITOOOOOO!" I yelled. A few minutes, the blue haired man came.

"Yes, my dearest Luka?" he sneered.

"WHAT THE HELL happened in that tunnel?" I was mad. At him. How dare he take my love away from me?

I could imagine his eyes narrowing. "First of all, don't talk to me like that. I'm your Master and I just saved your life. Second of all, those people were attempting to bring you to the Underworld. So there."

I lowered my voice. "Master, is my head alright?"

He laughed. "Of course it is, thanks to my get back in your cage, mutt."

He grabbed my hand and led me up stairs. For a second he stopped, and I heard a 'click' of my cage lock. Then, he roughly shoved me.

"Alright."

He ripped my blindfold off and leered at me. I must admit, he was handsome- with his boyish smile and his short hair.

The light played havoc on my eyes, so I squinted and backed away.

"Oh, trying to run away, darling?" Kaito came even closer and put both of his arms above my head, trapping me.

"Stop..." I squirmed under his glare. Gumi, why aren't you here? Because I knew what he was doing. And I didn't like it.. not one bit.

"Stop!" he screamed in a high pitched voice. He laughed for a second.

"Luka, what are you?" he asked.

I knew the answer that he wanted, and that was true. "A monster."

"And monsters don't have rights." Then Kaito put his lips to mine. I tried to break away, but he held my head in place.

Finally, he gasped "You like it.. huh?"

I said nothing. He needed to leave. Kaito stepped back, away from me.

"Here.. I have a present for you." He smiled and took a balled piece of fabric from his pocket. He tossed it to me.

"Oh, and I also have this." He left the cage for a second and came back with two bowls.

Then, he set them on the ground.

"You need to sing." He locked my cage and left. I just couldn't bring myself after she died.. I can't let my heart soar again, or my mind sharpen. The only reason I could sing is because of her.. my melody was happy because she was in my life, but also sad because we could never be near each other.

After I heard his footsteps on the stairs, I said to myself, "You aren't Gumi." What else could I do?

Then I unballed the fabric in my hands: A mint dress. It was beautiful.. but beautiful things aren't meant for people like me.

The sadness, and the misery was crushing me.. so I sang. In my head only, though. The music played in my head, and I stretched out on the floor and listened. I could still hear the circus going on. My own Nightmare.

But my mind wandered to the person I hated most in the world: Kaito. He was a cruel man, a tyrant if you will, and a pervert of the worst degree.

I silently plead to whatever God was out there to not let Kaito get to me.

Why did you have to leave, Gumi? You were always there for me, back when we were both singers for the circus, back when we went to Hell and back together every day. Eventually you did the thing I never could.. and you weren't a monster anymore.

I hated to sing. Once upon a time, I liked it, enjoyed the feeling but now I don't. I only sing blindfolded and angry for a cruel audience.

I adjusted my position so I was sitting, slumped against the cage bars and I opened my eyes to darkness. I should have known Gumi would leave me someday,all good things never last. But I was too blinded by love to open my eyes, we both were.

I remember the last time I ever saw her. It was before our act, we were to sing a duet. At the last moment, before we went on stage, she looked at me, like as if she was trying to remember my face, then she said "Bye." Before I could say anything, she took my hand and ran to the stage.

Then I remembered two other missing performers: the lions! Rin and Len, the half human, half lion kids were always fun, with their energy and playfulness. Where did they go?

I was jolted out of my memories with roars, and then I was jolted into a blur of colors, sounds, smells... what's happening?

Then everything stopped and I saw where I was: the performer's area. I tried to scream, stand up, do anything, but I couldn't! I was paralyzed, forced to watch whatever was unfolding in front of me.

Gumi's voice, high pitched and clear came floating from the stage. "I will never forget you, darling, ever~~, I will never forget the memories we had together, never~ever~~!" This was the duet we had sung together. Then we both came out, and Master grabbed my hand, pulling me away.

This was it, I realized. I was watching Gumi's death. I was going to learn who killed her. I can't- but I must, my eyes won't close, my mouth won't move.

The lion twins, Rin and Len came bounding up to Gumi. "Hiya Gumi-san! Can we play?" Gumi threw them a gentle smile. "Sorry guys, you knew the rules."

Rin and Len were dangerous, they could hurt someone. But they loved Gumi, they would never harm her!

" . !" They dropped on their haunches and surrounded her, hatred distorting their features, their eyes red.

"Will I still see you, Luka? I have to.." She spoke her thoughts out loud and slowly began moving back, trying to escape.

But as soon as she blinked, they pounced on her. All I could hear is the thud of Gumi's body falling to the ground. Then I heard nothing, thrown back into the whirlwind of senses,

I looked up and noticed I was still in my cage, alone, without Gumi. The sadness ripped me apart, and I sobbed loudly, mourning her.

I never see them
I despise them so
Lying so useless, they start to holler
"Hey, get up you worthless Circus Monster!"