The abandoned doll walked along the desolated streets of London. Snow fell on the ground, freezing all that lived. He once shivered in the cold but now he felt nothing.
Drocell was once human, but after that fateful night 5 years ago, he was a shell of who he was before. As a former butler to the famous puppet makers, the Mandalay's, his body was restored and his memory of the night removed. In theory, Drocell was still alive.
After Sebastian stole away Ciel into the shadow of night the manor, his master and family resided in, was burnt to the ground. All possessions and souls turned to ash. With nowhere to go and no-one to serve Drocell wandered the streets with nothing but sorrows. As he rounded the corner he noticed a picturesque poster advertising the Noah's Arc Circus.
"So I think to myself, 'living in a circus wouldn't be too bad, after all I am a living doll'." With that the puppet set off in search of said show.
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"The circus is so lively. I wonder if I would fit in." Drocell muttered to himself in his monotonous voice. There was many unusual people you would expect to see at a typical human circus, a tiger tamer, a snake man, fire eater, trapeze artists, knife thrower, tight rope walker and a ringleader. The atmosphere was overwhelming.
"Sorry about all this. The show is about to start so everyone is rushing. I'm Joker by the way, kind of like the ring leader." A young man with orange hair chuckled holding out a skeleton hand.
"My name is Drocell. I thought to myself, maybe I could join your circus?" His hand slid into the others as he gently shook it.
"Ah, another runaway? Of course you can, if you have any talent that is. We are like a family here and always willing to accept more." Joker replied with a soft smile. Drocell nodded at the first question and proceeded, "I reasoned that I am supposed to be human, however, recently termites have been falling out my ears. I also discovered that my body is made of wood, not flesh. So I thought I could be a target to your knife thrower as I have no sense of pain. I am also a talented sewer as I made all the dress for my master's dolls."
"All of us here at the circus have all had our hardships, I am sure you will fit right in. Dagger already has a target but you are in luck, our previous tailor just left, I am sure you would be perfect there. Must go now, the show is starting, meet me here after and we will give you a tour." He was off as the last word escaped his lips.
"And I thought to myself, 'he is a very benevolent gentleman and I wish to find out more about him'."
Drocell took a seat at the back of the tent to watch the performance.
"Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls of all ages, welcome to the Noah's Arc Circus! If you'll look here..." Joker began to juggle 4 multicolored balls but they all fell on his head, causing the crowd to break in to laughter. He cleared his throat and continued "...The whole circus is jostling for a chance to give you a fun show! Here we go! With the shot from the fire eating man, the show of the century begins!" Jokers' voice echoed around the tent along with the cheers and laughter of the audience and the roar of the fire eaters flame. The acts took it in turns to entertain the crowd, starting with the trapeze artists and ending with the tiger tamer.
Drocell met up with Joker in the previous spot and was shown to the tailor caravan. Hundreds of the show men and women's costumes lined the rails in sections of each individual, matching material where on the shelves on the opposite side and a shabby bed at the far end.
"We have so much of each outfit because at least one person rips at each show due to one reason or another. Your job is to make sure we never run out, for this we will give you food and accommodation for free. When you aren't working feel free to train with us, if you are really good we might let you perform in a show." Joker winked and turned to leave. "One more thing, dinners at 7 in the centre of the camp, for now make yourself at home." Then he was gone.
Drocell dropped on to the bed and sighed. "Then I thought to myself, 'I should practice making these garments as I have only made ball gowns before'." so he set to work.
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Seasons changed in what seemed a few days. Drocell enjoyed Jokers company and vice versa. They soon became inseparable, always together; it was them and everyone else. It was soon autumn again and as the fiery leaves fell to the ground, Drocell was on an errand. He was sent to pick up the latest fabric for the autumn outfits, after all seasons change as does fashion.
Within a few hours wandering in and out of various haberdasheries, it was time to head back.
"I wonder if Joker will be please with my choices" he thought to himself with a gentle smile across his face. As he rounded the corner, he smile was shattered in seconds. Orange and red stained the sky, fire and nature became one.
Screaming could be heard along with the deafening crackles of the flames. Drocell was forceful shoved to the side by the firefighters. The various materials spilled from the bag. Oranges, reds and yellows were everywhere. Fabric. Leaves. Fire. All dyed these colors.
Silence soon followed chaos. They had managed to put out the flames but it was too late. In the distance, Beast, Dagger, Peter, Wendy, Doll and finally Joker laid sprawled on the ground. Eyes wide with fear. Face covered with ash. Bodies left without a soul.
It was too much for the doll master. Seeing his friends and, possibly his lover, in that state was horrendous. Before going to the circus, Drocell thought he was incapable of loving someone. Joker changed all this. With his kind smile, soft words and warm heart, he taught Drocell how to feel that emotion he thought was so far out of reach.
All that was broken in minutes.
Once the firemen said the scene was safe, Drocell stumbled forward. The bag of fabric long forgotten. He fell in a heap at the sight of Joker up close. The first person he called friend, the first person to actually care for him, the person he loved.
Cradling his face close to his chest he sobbed. Not loud and over dramatic but softly and quietly. Drocell had never cried before, thought he was unable to as a doll should cry or show emotion. But he was no ordinary doll.
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2 years later he was stood in the cemetery in front of a specific set of gravestones. They were all given a funeral, many of the fans of their shows turned up and they were laid to rest all together.
"They will be performing to the angels now"
Drocell turned to face where the voice came from.
"I thought to myself, 'they didn't deserve to die like that. No one deserves a slow, painful death'."
Gently arms embraced him closer to the others chest. Soft, orange hair fell down to cover the others eyes, slow tears fell down his porcelain cheeks.
"Let's go, this place brings back bad memories." Joker replied taking Drocells hand in his own as they departed from the grave.
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Soon after the fire. Drocell managed to preserve Joker as a doll, as his master did him. All memories of the fire were wiped.
Unfortunately, the others were too far beyond repair so they were buried side by side, forever together.
Joker and Drocell still mourn for the others, Joker more as he is angry with himself for not remembering the fateful day his 'siblings' were taken. But the two lovers are happy with each other's company and have opened a small doll shop on the outer city of London.
And they lived happily ever after.