Summertime in Paradise
I decided that in between writing some of my longer Pokemon stories, I would begin a series of small-ish stories based on and around certain special days (or times) of the year. This is the first, and as it is officially summertime in the UK (not that that means much!) I decided to write a summer love story about my favourite Pokemon, the pink and cuddly Jigglypuff. Hope you enjoy reading, and please review because it means a lot to me to know that people are reading my stories.
Chapter One: Hotel from Hell
I was escorted into the hotel like a celebrity. Me, a Pokemon, and one that most people avoided at all costs. But here I was, standing in the magnificent reception area of one of the most luxurious hotels in the Kanto region, located on a small island a few miles south of Cinnabar. You may wonder how I knew the location in such detail; I wouldn't have done if it weren't for the fact that the two guys who had captured me in one of those cramped human Pokeballs had been discussing it for the past hour. "They say that only the most rich and famous people stay here," one had told the other. I'd never been able to understand the human's obsession with money, it seemed worthless to me, and it shocked me even more to find out that there were places you could only stay at if you had enough of it. In the Pokemon world, we slept where we wanted, ate what we wanted, and talked to anyone we wanted. Now I had entered the human world, I understood their culture even less.
There was a reason for my capture, and for me standing in the immaculate surroundings of the hotel building. This hotel was no ordinary one. Pokemon were everywhere, cleaning the rooms, serving the meals, and even sitting behind the reception desk under the watchful eyes of a smartly dressed woman. And I… I was the entertainment. They had picked up my disability to send anyone to sleep. It wasn't something I was proud of; it was something I resented, and something that had led to me being abandoned by my family. I hated the idea of it being used to please humans. But it appeared I didn't have any choice, because if I refused to work, I was scared I might get a taste of the shotgun one of my captors had hidden on the floor of the backseat of his car.
As the man who had brought me here discussed me with the lady at the reception desk, I turned back to the door we had entered ten minutes earlier. The sun was bright and glowing, and everything appeared to sparkle, as if it were made of gold. My heart sank as I longed for it's light to shine down on me, to feel the warmth on my shoulders as I skipped along, oblivious of everything going on around me. The artificial lights and heater in the hotel were nothing in comparison. I gritted my teeth in annoyance as I was led by the rope tied around my middle around a corner and out of sight of the outside world. To the human I was just a Pokemon. I didn't have feelings, I was just something they could use for their own entertainment, and I hated them for it. As I passed other Pokemon carrying items back and forth from rooms, I began to wonder if any of them felt the same as me. They might not do, but somehow, I decided, I had to find out.
Ten minutes later I was led into a small room lined with even smaller wire cages. I cursed, more loudly than I had meant to, as I saw the state they were in. I was staying at one of the most expensive hotels in the region, and I had to make do with a filthy rusty metal cage. It showed how much they respected me and the other Pokemon who worked for them. I struggled the best I could to prevent them from placing me in the cage, but eventually, they won, and I was locked in and left alone in a matter of seconds.
"Rock a bye baby…" I began to sing. It was the only thing that comforted me when I was alone. "On the tree tops, when the wind blows the cradle will rock…" As I halted my singing, I felt tears in the corner of my eyes. I remembered singing back at Mount Moon with my brothers and sisters, running through the same song time and time again just to perfect our voices. Of course, eventually they all sent mother to sleep with their voices, but when I sung alone she didn't drop to the floor. I was a failure, and that was why they had kicked me out. I was the daughter of one of the most famous Jigglypuff tribe leaders around, and I couldn't even send anyone to sleep. I opened my mouth to sing again, but no sound came out, apart from a small whimper as I broke down into floods of tears. Then, I heard a voice.
"Are you OK?" The voice came from below me, and I looked down despite knowing perfectly well that I wouldn't be able to see who it was.
"Does it look like I'm OK?" His voice sounded so reassuring, and I immediately felt bad for being so harsh, but I usually sung alone, and it made me mad to think that someone had heard me.
"I'm sorry…" he trailed off. "I was just a little worried that's all, your singing was excellent and I wondered what it was about it that had made you so sad."
I smiled at the thought of someone describing my singing as excellent. I'd never heard anyone say that about my voice, my mother had never listened more than a couple of lines, when she realised she was still standing. I wiped a solitary tear from my cheek as my face widened into a weak grin. But I couldn't tell this stranger about my past, however much I had been longing to talk it through with someone.
"It's OK," I replied abruptly. "I'll be fine."
"Good. Because I'm sure if your face is as pretty as your voice those tears won't do it any good at all." I blushed despite myself. I was partly embarrassed by the lovely compliment, and partly because I felt so attracted to whoever it was below me, and I knew how stupid it was.
"So… what are you doing in here?" I asked absentmindedly.
"I'm tonight's entertainment," he replied solemnly.
"You are?" I replied. "I'm doing the same tomorrow."
"Horrible isn't it?" he sighed. "They sit there drinking and laughing with their friends while we stand on stage looking like complete fools."
"I've… never done it before," I replied, my voice shaking at the prospect of what was ahead of me.
"Then let me give you a few hints. Do your thing, and then get out of there as quickly as you can. It's easier than hanging around." He said this in an extremely matter-of-factly tone, and although I believed every word he said, I was still worried.
"But, doesn't that mean you've failed? Don't they hurt you?"
"It's in their best interests to keep us healthy," he replied, reassuring me immediately. "If we're ill then we can't entertain."
We talked for over an hour after he had lifted the worries I had right from my shoulders, me looking down at him, even though I could see nothing, and him looking back up at me. It was strange, because although we were invisible to each other, I felt as though I was staring right into his huge bright eyes, and I felt a form of comfort as I lay down on the cold hard floor of the cage and closed my eyes to sleep.
I had never been a romantic Pokemon. That was why it surprised me when I realised I was passionately kissing another Jigglypuff. The kiss was soft and tender, and although I was thoroughly enjoying it I knew it had to end at some point. I pulled away, not wanting to prolong the moment any longer, and as I did so I realised I was staring into the eyes I had been imaging I was looking at when I had been talking to the Pokemon below me earlier. He was slightly larger than me, and his eyes were sparkling blue rather then my own emerald ones. He had the warmest smile on his face, and my heart melted just by looking at it.
"I love you," I said softly, out of the blue. I was shocked by my openness, I was usually a shy Pokemon, but somehow, being around him completely altered my personality, and I felt comfortable and safe for the first time in my life. I reached out to kiss him again as he told me he loved me too, but as I did he seemed to retreat further away from me, and no matter how hard I tried I couldn't get to him. I felt like I was reaching to the moon, but no matter how far I stretched I couldn't hold the beautiful glowing sphere in my hand. And yet somehow I couldn't stop trying, because hope was what was keeping me going, and as long as I had that then I wouldn't give up.
I awoke; confused for a moment about where I was, before recalling the events of the day before. I sat up slowly, my body aching all over from lying in such an uncomfortable position. As I stood up, regularly shifting my weight from one leg to the other, I heard rustling from down below me. The Pokemon below me was awake.
"Hi," he spoke softly as I purposely moved around to let him know I wasn't asleep. "How are you this morning?"
"Nervous," I replied. I hadn't realised that I was until then, but deep down I was terrified about the ordeal I was going to go through tonight. I couldn't imagine standing on a stage in front of humans singing with the voice I had learnt to be ashamed of.
"Try not to be," he whispered back. "They laugh at you if they think you're scared."
"They… laugh?"
"Yeah, none stop," he said solemnly, "That's just one of the many pleasures associated with the job."
"What are the others?" I asked cautiously, not sure if I wanted to know.
"If they're impressed they throw coins at you, if not they throw tomatoes. I always prefer to be hit by tomatoes, coins flying at high speed can really hurt."
"So you… do badly on purpose?" I asked.
"I'd like to, but if I don't do well then my master… our master, shouts at me. I know it's not the same as physical punishment but it still hurts." His voice became low, and I could almost sense the grief in his heart, and I felt bad for asking so many questions. Maybe I was pathetic, as my parents had told me before they had packed my bags for me and sent me on my way. I had cried that day, wept enough tears to fill the ocean, and it hadn't made any difference. Yesterday I had done it again. Did that make me pathetic?
"Do you think I'm pathetic?" I murmured quietly. I was partly hoping that he wouldn't hear it, because I realised what a stupid question was, but another part of me hoped that he would, because for some reason the reassurance I needed, I could easily seek from him.
"Pathetic?" My heard skipped a beat as I realised he had heard my question. "Why would I think that? I think you're great, and I know that sounds silly because I've only ever spoken to you from down here, but I get the feeling you're really special."
I wished he could have seen the smile that appeared on my face the moment he finished his speech. I had been brought up to believe that because I was different to my brothers and sisters I was less special than them, and leaving my parents had done nothing to change this view, as I had never had anyone I trusted enough to believe tell me that it wasn't true. Now this male Jigglypuff had come into my life and without even seeing me had formed an opinion of me, and I believed it immediately, sensing a notion of sincerity the moment he began to speak. I had seen a cartoon once while travelling through a huge human city, and it had shown a devastated area, dull and grey, with torrents of rain falling, making it look all the more in ruins. But when it ended and peace and happiness had been restored, the clouds broke and the sun shone through. That was how I felt at that moment. The tears I had shed in the past represented the bad part of my life, and the grin on my face now represented how my life had been transformed by one simple moment.
"What are you thinking?" the Pokemon below me asked, and I felt my heart leap once again.
"I'm thinking that you've just made me the happiest Pokemon alive." I replied, unable to wipe the smile from my face.
"Glad to be of service," he said, but I hardly heard him; weariness had finally taken over my body and soon I slipped to the ground and fell into a deep and dreamy sleep.
When I was finally awakened by my master slamming the door of the cage below me I had no recollection of how long I had been asleep. It was obvious that he was not in a good mood from the moment I heard him speak.
"You had better perform better than that tomorrow you wretch!" To begin with I was confused, as I assumed he was speaking to me, but then I heard whimpering in the cage below me and realised that my friend had already done his nights entertainment. Now it was my turn. During the day my nervousness had slowly subsided but now I realised I was shaking, and I knew that by the time I arrived on stage, I would be terrified. I just hoped that my master didn't notice, or I would be in for some verbal punishment as well. A moment later, the door of my cage was opened and I was pulled out by the scruff of my neck, much to my annoyance, and literally thrown into a cage even smaller, which he closed and held in his arms.
"Good luck," I heard my friend whisper. I attempted desperately to get at least one glance of him, but the room was dark and all I could see was a faded silhouette of him in the cage below the one from which I had been taken. A tear came to my eyes as I noticed that the figure was shaking, he was even more terrified than I was.
Half an hour later I was standing by a door leading to the stage. Through it I could hear hundreds of humans talking among themselves, and that did nothing to calm my nerves. From what I could hear there were hundreds of them, and to me they sounded like a rowdy and uncontrollable herd of Tauros'. I could feel myself visibly shaking as I heard the voice of the shows host.
"And now, hoping to enchant you with her beautiful voice, I welcome to the stage, Jigglypuff!" That was my cue. My master had been repeating it to me over and over again for the past half hour. What he didn't know was that I had got it the first time, and by the five hundredth (and I can be accurate, I was counting as he was speaking) I felt like using my pound attack on him. Shivering violently with fright, I made my way across what seemed like a huge stage to a small podium with a microphone on a stand. As I stepped up onto it the only think that made me feel even slightly better was the thought that my friend had been standing here only an hour earlier.
"Rock-a-bye baby, on the tree top," I began to sing, although I was struggling to do so because I was shaking so much. Of course the humans would never understand the true meaning of the song, as all they heard was me repeating my name over and over again. It sometimes frustrated me that I couldn't communicate with them properly, but I realised it was probably best that they didn't get to hear what I thought of them. It reminded me of standing in front of my mother and trying as hard as I could to send her to sleep. Maybe it was better this way, I thought for a moment, because at least these humans accepted me for who I was, and didn't want me to be like every other Jigglypuff. I almost stopped singing at that point, as I realised what had just crossed my mind. I wasn't grateful to these humans art all, and it annoyed me that I had been for even a moment. Whatever my family had done to me, they were my family, and I wasn't going to let them be replaced by a species who only wanted me for their own entertainment.
"When the bough breaks, the cradle will rock…" As I continued the song, repeating it over and over again, loud cheers erupted from the crowd, and as I came to the finale, I felt something hard hit the side of my head and topple to the ground, making a clinking sound as it hit. I knew immediately that it was a coin, and I began to understand what my friend was talking about when he said he'd prefer them to hate the performance.
As my master led me off stage I took one last glance at the humans in the audience. Their insane grinning made me sick. I was being exploited simply for their pleasure. Somehow, I had to get away before I became just like them
I decided that in between writing some of my longer Pokemon stories, I would begin a series of small-ish stories based on and around certain special days (or times) of the year. This is the first, and as it is officially summertime in the UK (not that that means much!) I decided to write a summer love story about my favourite Pokemon, the pink and cuddly Jigglypuff. Hope you enjoy reading, and please review because it means a lot to me to know that people are reading my stories.
Chapter One: Hotel from Hell
I was escorted into the hotel like a celebrity. Me, a Pokemon, and one that most people avoided at all costs. But here I was, standing in the magnificent reception area of one of the most luxurious hotels in the Kanto region, located on a small island a few miles south of Cinnabar. You may wonder how I knew the location in such detail; I wouldn't have done if it weren't for the fact that the two guys who had captured me in one of those cramped human Pokeballs had been discussing it for the past hour. "They say that only the most rich and famous people stay here," one had told the other. I'd never been able to understand the human's obsession with money, it seemed worthless to me, and it shocked me even more to find out that there were places you could only stay at if you had enough of it. In the Pokemon world, we slept where we wanted, ate what we wanted, and talked to anyone we wanted. Now I had entered the human world, I understood their culture even less.
There was a reason for my capture, and for me standing in the immaculate surroundings of the hotel building. This hotel was no ordinary one. Pokemon were everywhere, cleaning the rooms, serving the meals, and even sitting behind the reception desk under the watchful eyes of a smartly dressed woman. And I… I was the entertainment. They had picked up my disability to send anyone to sleep. It wasn't something I was proud of; it was something I resented, and something that had led to me being abandoned by my family. I hated the idea of it being used to please humans. But it appeared I didn't have any choice, because if I refused to work, I was scared I might get a taste of the shotgun one of my captors had hidden on the floor of the backseat of his car.
As the man who had brought me here discussed me with the lady at the reception desk, I turned back to the door we had entered ten minutes earlier. The sun was bright and glowing, and everything appeared to sparkle, as if it were made of gold. My heart sank as I longed for it's light to shine down on me, to feel the warmth on my shoulders as I skipped along, oblivious of everything going on around me. The artificial lights and heater in the hotel were nothing in comparison. I gritted my teeth in annoyance as I was led by the rope tied around my middle around a corner and out of sight of the outside world. To the human I was just a Pokemon. I didn't have feelings, I was just something they could use for their own entertainment, and I hated them for it. As I passed other Pokemon carrying items back and forth from rooms, I began to wonder if any of them felt the same as me. They might not do, but somehow, I decided, I had to find out.
Ten minutes later I was led into a small room lined with even smaller wire cages. I cursed, more loudly than I had meant to, as I saw the state they were in. I was staying at one of the most expensive hotels in the region, and I had to make do with a filthy rusty metal cage. It showed how much they respected me and the other Pokemon who worked for them. I struggled the best I could to prevent them from placing me in the cage, but eventually, they won, and I was locked in and left alone in a matter of seconds.
"Rock a bye baby…" I began to sing. It was the only thing that comforted me when I was alone. "On the tree tops, when the wind blows the cradle will rock…" As I halted my singing, I felt tears in the corner of my eyes. I remembered singing back at Mount Moon with my brothers and sisters, running through the same song time and time again just to perfect our voices. Of course, eventually they all sent mother to sleep with their voices, but when I sung alone she didn't drop to the floor. I was a failure, and that was why they had kicked me out. I was the daughter of one of the most famous Jigglypuff tribe leaders around, and I couldn't even send anyone to sleep. I opened my mouth to sing again, but no sound came out, apart from a small whimper as I broke down into floods of tears. Then, I heard a voice.
"Are you OK?" The voice came from below me, and I looked down despite knowing perfectly well that I wouldn't be able to see who it was.
"Does it look like I'm OK?" His voice sounded so reassuring, and I immediately felt bad for being so harsh, but I usually sung alone, and it made me mad to think that someone had heard me.
"I'm sorry…" he trailed off. "I was just a little worried that's all, your singing was excellent and I wondered what it was about it that had made you so sad."
I smiled at the thought of someone describing my singing as excellent. I'd never heard anyone say that about my voice, my mother had never listened more than a couple of lines, when she realised she was still standing. I wiped a solitary tear from my cheek as my face widened into a weak grin. But I couldn't tell this stranger about my past, however much I had been longing to talk it through with someone.
"It's OK," I replied abruptly. "I'll be fine."
"Good. Because I'm sure if your face is as pretty as your voice those tears won't do it any good at all." I blushed despite myself. I was partly embarrassed by the lovely compliment, and partly because I felt so attracted to whoever it was below me, and I knew how stupid it was.
"So… what are you doing in here?" I asked absentmindedly.
"I'm tonight's entertainment," he replied solemnly.
"You are?" I replied. "I'm doing the same tomorrow."
"Horrible isn't it?" he sighed. "They sit there drinking and laughing with their friends while we stand on stage looking like complete fools."
"I've… never done it before," I replied, my voice shaking at the prospect of what was ahead of me.
"Then let me give you a few hints. Do your thing, and then get out of there as quickly as you can. It's easier than hanging around." He said this in an extremely matter-of-factly tone, and although I believed every word he said, I was still worried.
"But, doesn't that mean you've failed? Don't they hurt you?"
"It's in their best interests to keep us healthy," he replied, reassuring me immediately. "If we're ill then we can't entertain."
We talked for over an hour after he had lifted the worries I had right from my shoulders, me looking down at him, even though I could see nothing, and him looking back up at me. It was strange, because although we were invisible to each other, I felt as though I was staring right into his huge bright eyes, and I felt a form of comfort as I lay down on the cold hard floor of the cage and closed my eyes to sleep.
I had never been a romantic Pokemon. That was why it surprised me when I realised I was passionately kissing another Jigglypuff. The kiss was soft and tender, and although I was thoroughly enjoying it I knew it had to end at some point. I pulled away, not wanting to prolong the moment any longer, and as I did so I realised I was staring into the eyes I had been imaging I was looking at when I had been talking to the Pokemon below me earlier. He was slightly larger than me, and his eyes were sparkling blue rather then my own emerald ones. He had the warmest smile on his face, and my heart melted just by looking at it.
"I love you," I said softly, out of the blue. I was shocked by my openness, I was usually a shy Pokemon, but somehow, being around him completely altered my personality, and I felt comfortable and safe for the first time in my life. I reached out to kiss him again as he told me he loved me too, but as I did he seemed to retreat further away from me, and no matter how hard I tried I couldn't get to him. I felt like I was reaching to the moon, but no matter how far I stretched I couldn't hold the beautiful glowing sphere in my hand. And yet somehow I couldn't stop trying, because hope was what was keeping me going, and as long as I had that then I wouldn't give up.
I awoke; confused for a moment about where I was, before recalling the events of the day before. I sat up slowly, my body aching all over from lying in such an uncomfortable position. As I stood up, regularly shifting my weight from one leg to the other, I heard rustling from down below me. The Pokemon below me was awake.
"Hi," he spoke softly as I purposely moved around to let him know I wasn't asleep. "How are you this morning?"
"Nervous," I replied. I hadn't realised that I was until then, but deep down I was terrified about the ordeal I was going to go through tonight. I couldn't imagine standing on a stage in front of humans singing with the voice I had learnt to be ashamed of.
"Try not to be," he whispered back. "They laugh at you if they think you're scared."
"They… laugh?"
"Yeah, none stop," he said solemnly, "That's just one of the many pleasures associated with the job."
"What are the others?" I asked cautiously, not sure if I wanted to know.
"If they're impressed they throw coins at you, if not they throw tomatoes. I always prefer to be hit by tomatoes, coins flying at high speed can really hurt."
"So you… do badly on purpose?" I asked.
"I'd like to, but if I don't do well then my master… our master, shouts at me. I know it's not the same as physical punishment but it still hurts." His voice became low, and I could almost sense the grief in his heart, and I felt bad for asking so many questions. Maybe I was pathetic, as my parents had told me before they had packed my bags for me and sent me on my way. I had cried that day, wept enough tears to fill the ocean, and it hadn't made any difference. Yesterday I had done it again. Did that make me pathetic?
"Do you think I'm pathetic?" I murmured quietly. I was partly hoping that he wouldn't hear it, because I realised what a stupid question was, but another part of me hoped that he would, because for some reason the reassurance I needed, I could easily seek from him.
"Pathetic?" My heard skipped a beat as I realised he had heard my question. "Why would I think that? I think you're great, and I know that sounds silly because I've only ever spoken to you from down here, but I get the feeling you're really special."
I wished he could have seen the smile that appeared on my face the moment he finished his speech. I had been brought up to believe that because I was different to my brothers and sisters I was less special than them, and leaving my parents had done nothing to change this view, as I had never had anyone I trusted enough to believe tell me that it wasn't true. Now this male Jigglypuff had come into my life and without even seeing me had formed an opinion of me, and I believed it immediately, sensing a notion of sincerity the moment he began to speak. I had seen a cartoon once while travelling through a huge human city, and it had shown a devastated area, dull and grey, with torrents of rain falling, making it look all the more in ruins. But when it ended and peace and happiness had been restored, the clouds broke and the sun shone through. That was how I felt at that moment. The tears I had shed in the past represented the bad part of my life, and the grin on my face now represented how my life had been transformed by one simple moment.
"What are you thinking?" the Pokemon below me asked, and I felt my heart leap once again.
"I'm thinking that you've just made me the happiest Pokemon alive." I replied, unable to wipe the smile from my face.
"Glad to be of service," he said, but I hardly heard him; weariness had finally taken over my body and soon I slipped to the ground and fell into a deep and dreamy sleep.
When I was finally awakened by my master slamming the door of the cage below me I had no recollection of how long I had been asleep. It was obvious that he was not in a good mood from the moment I heard him speak.
"You had better perform better than that tomorrow you wretch!" To begin with I was confused, as I assumed he was speaking to me, but then I heard whimpering in the cage below me and realised that my friend had already done his nights entertainment. Now it was my turn. During the day my nervousness had slowly subsided but now I realised I was shaking, and I knew that by the time I arrived on stage, I would be terrified. I just hoped that my master didn't notice, or I would be in for some verbal punishment as well. A moment later, the door of my cage was opened and I was pulled out by the scruff of my neck, much to my annoyance, and literally thrown into a cage even smaller, which he closed and held in his arms.
"Good luck," I heard my friend whisper. I attempted desperately to get at least one glance of him, but the room was dark and all I could see was a faded silhouette of him in the cage below the one from which I had been taken. A tear came to my eyes as I noticed that the figure was shaking, he was even more terrified than I was.
Half an hour later I was standing by a door leading to the stage. Through it I could hear hundreds of humans talking among themselves, and that did nothing to calm my nerves. From what I could hear there were hundreds of them, and to me they sounded like a rowdy and uncontrollable herd of Tauros'. I could feel myself visibly shaking as I heard the voice of the shows host.
"And now, hoping to enchant you with her beautiful voice, I welcome to the stage, Jigglypuff!" That was my cue. My master had been repeating it to me over and over again for the past half hour. What he didn't know was that I had got it the first time, and by the five hundredth (and I can be accurate, I was counting as he was speaking) I felt like using my pound attack on him. Shivering violently with fright, I made my way across what seemed like a huge stage to a small podium with a microphone on a stand. As I stepped up onto it the only think that made me feel even slightly better was the thought that my friend had been standing here only an hour earlier.
"Rock-a-bye baby, on the tree top," I began to sing, although I was struggling to do so because I was shaking so much. Of course the humans would never understand the true meaning of the song, as all they heard was me repeating my name over and over again. It sometimes frustrated me that I couldn't communicate with them properly, but I realised it was probably best that they didn't get to hear what I thought of them. It reminded me of standing in front of my mother and trying as hard as I could to send her to sleep. Maybe it was better this way, I thought for a moment, because at least these humans accepted me for who I was, and didn't want me to be like every other Jigglypuff. I almost stopped singing at that point, as I realised what had just crossed my mind. I wasn't grateful to these humans art all, and it annoyed me that I had been for even a moment. Whatever my family had done to me, they were my family, and I wasn't going to let them be replaced by a species who only wanted me for their own entertainment.
"When the bough breaks, the cradle will rock…" As I continued the song, repeating it over and over again, loud cheers erupted from the crowd, and as I came to the finale, I felt something hard hit the side of my head and topple to the ground, making a clinking sound as it hit. I knew immediately that it was a coin, and I began to understand what my friend was talking about when he said he'd prefer them to hate the performance.
As my master led me off stage I took one last glance at the humans in the audience. Their insane grinning made me sick. I was being exploited simply for their pleasure. Somehow, I had to get away before I became just like them