Hey guys! DV here! And here is yet another oneshot. The paring is BarreLock(the name I made for Barrel/Lock pairing). I thought it'd be interesting to see this pairing with a very dark twist. This fic talks of abuse and mutilation. So if that bothers you, just don't read it.
Disclaimer: I own nothing except for Hardy and Damien.
Barrel sighed at the picture in his hand. It was of him and Lock. Both 14 years old and cuddling together lovingly.
Yes, they were together. As in boyfriend and boyfriend. They had promised to be together forever...
Till misfortune came along...
Lock went missing one day. They searched for a long time before giving up. After two years, it's still unknown whether he's dead or alive.
He put the picture away. Not wanting to relive bad memories. Then a colorful piece of paper appeared on the table before him.
"Hey Barrel.", greeted Shock, walking past him.
Barrel took another glace at the paper. "What's this?"
"Just a flyer. Maggie and I were out in town and some guys gave them to us. They were shouting out some weird stuff about 'deformity'."
He picked up the flyer and studied it. In big bright letters, it said: 'COME SEE THE DARK WOODS CIRCUS'. Below that it had a small list of what may possibly be the acts. Such as 'The One with Two Heads' and 'The Deformed Diva'.
It all sounded very strange. 'Must be a sort of freak show...' Barrel thought. "Are you guys actually going?" Barrel asked.
"No." answered Shock. "We're planning to watch 'Dark Shadows' tonight."
"Oh."
"This is gonna be awesome!" a stranger had exclaimed, walking past Barrel. He looked back at them and spotted the flyer in their hand. It was the the one Shock had received earlier.
Having no plans at all for the day, Barrel decided to check it out. "No harm in looking..."
He turned his head to follow in the direction of the stranger.
"Looks like this is the place..."
It was a large red tent. With a banner that had the words: 'DARK WOODS CIRCUS' upon it like the flyer. He could hear the excited chatter of the circus-goers inside. He took a couple steps forward and-
"Hurry up!"
He stopped in his tracks. Whipping his head around to see where the voice came from.
"Oh shut it!" another voice exclaimed.
'Where's that coming from...?'
"If we're late, it'll be on your head, Hardy!"
"We're not gonna be late. Now quit your bitching Damien."
Barrel's eyes went to an opening in the side of the tent. He could hear the unknown pair bickering from inside of it.
Curiosity took him over and he looked in. What he saw made him gasp in surprise.
The unknown pair were really a set of conjoined teenaged males. But by the stitching between the heads,it was obvious that they weren't born that way. The one on the right had wild neck-length hair that was a pale shade of orange, icy blue eyes, and deep burns on his face and shoulder. The one on the left had short black hair and a pair of eyes similar to the other. However, only one eye visible cause the upper right of his head was wrapped in white bandages.
Their costume was rather elaborate. It was patterned with black and orange stripes. Vertical and horizontal. Along with white frills and a deep neck line that showed off their stitching.
The bandaged head glared at the more scarred one. "I am not bitching!"
The more scarred one rolled his eyes. "Yes you are. Now let's go."
"Finally!"
The bandaged one looked to the cage in front of them. "See ya later."
"Wish us luck." the scarred one spoke.
With that, Barrel heard a loud sniffle followed by a sob.
Barrel watched as the conjoined twins left. Looking to see the cage they were speaking to. And saw that there was someone or something in it. He snuck in taking silent steps forward as not to startle them. Putting his head up, he saw the sign above. It read: 'The Deformed Diva'.
He shuddered. Thinking that it may be worse than the sewn up males he saw. He peered in through the bars and saw who it was. The 'Diva' was turned away, sobbing into their hands. They wore a lovely yet tattered red and black dress. Their hair was crimson red and short and their skin was pure white with a slight gray tinge.
Their sobbing turned into full on crying. The sound was heart shattering. Barrel actually felt like crying himself.
"Hello...?"
The being immediately stopped crying, their head shooting up at the sudden sound. "Wh-who's there...? W-where are you...?"
At the sound of their voice, Barrel could tell they were male. "Over here..."
He turned around. Revealing the front of his face. The bangs of his hair were up in a horned like style. Reminding Barrel strongly of someone he once knew. His face had horrid burns like the scarred twin. Tears streamed down his face from underneath his blindfold.
"Who are you...?" he asked in a frail voice.
Barrel swallowed hard. "I'm...Barrel..."
"Oh...I once knew someone by that name..." he said. "He was my boyfriend two years ago...and I loved him with all my heart..."
Barrel's black eyes widened. 'Could he...? No...that's impossible!'
"Well...what's your name...?" Barrel asked.
"...It's Lock..."
Barrel's eyes got bigger. He slowly reached through the bars and carefully untied the blindfold.
And if his heart would've stopped beating if it already weren't.
The mystery boy had bright yellow eyes. Eyes that once shined beautifully. Filled with happiness. Now replaced by sadness and pure misery.
"Lock..." Barrel whispered.
This time, Lock's eyes widened and he gasped. "Barrel..."
The green-haired youth didn't hesitate for even a second. He kneeled down and held Lock through the bars. Lock was a bit surprised, but then wrapped his arms around Barrel's neck.
After a short while, they parted. "I can't believe you're still alive..."
Lock looked down. "Well I wish I weren't..."
Barrel frowned. "Well...what're you doing here...?"
"It wasn't my choice...They took me..." Lock explained.
"Who took you...?"
Lock bit his lip. "This circus...they...they kidnap children and...mutilate them..."
Barrel raised a brow. "But...besides the burns, you look normal..."
With a choked sob, Lock stood up. Making Barrel stare in horror at what they'd done.
Lock's legs had been replaced...with horse legs...The skirt of his dress put apart to show them off.
"H-how did this happen...?" Barrel stammered. Unable to take his eyes off Lock's legs.
"It was two years ago when we were still together..." Lock began. "I was walking back home when I suddenly felt a sharp pain in my arm and saw that it was...a tranquilizer...I then woke up in this cage. Wearing a dress and a blindfold. I felt something was wrong with my body and took the blindfold off. I looked down and saw that my legs had been torn off...with horse legs sewn in their place..."
"And...that's what happened...?" asked Barrel. Completely horrified.
Lock nodded. "And did you see those boys that were sewn together...?"
"Yeah..."
"That's Hardy and Damien..."
Barrel remembered now. Hardy and Damien were fraternal twins that he, Lock,and Shock knew. And like Lock, they too disappeared at 14.
"They were out in the forest when they were taken. Their heads were torn off their bodies and sewn onto one...Over time, Damien went insane...he thinks this place is wonderful and good fun...But Hardy's still sane. Only he and I know the evil of it all..."
Barrel put a hand to Lock's burned cheek, caressing it softly. "What can I do to get you out of here...?"
Lock gasped. "Barrel, you'd have to be out of your mind if you think I can just leave!"
"Well how come?"
"Once you're made a part of the Dark Woods Circus...you can never leave..."
Barrel couldn't believe what he was hearing. "Has anyone at least ever tried?"
Lock nodded. "Yes...but they're always caught...it's not too late for you though. Leave! Quick!"
"Not until I get you out of here!" Barrel held Lock's hands tightly. "I lost you once, I won't let it happen again!"
Sighing, the mutilated devil said. "You don't understand Barrel. If the ringmaster catches you here, he'll-"
Barrel pulled Lock forward and kissed him,cutting him off. And for second,everything felt like it did two years ago.
Pulling away slightly, Barrel whispered, "Trust me on this..."
Letting a few more tears slip out, Lock nodded. "Okay..."
"Now, where's the key to this cage?"
"There." Lock stated. Pointing to a rack that held various keys.
Barrel walked over to it before stopping in front and frowning. "Which one? "
"The one that has a bat shape on it..."
He looked and studied each one carefully. Looking for the bat.
"Found it!" Barrel exclaimed victoriously, walking over to Lock's cage and unlocking it. He then held his hand out to Lock.
Reluctantly, Lock took it and stepped forward. Then he was fully out of his prison.
"Now let's get the hell out of this God-forsaken place."
Barrel guided Lock out the opening and through the woods.
"Here we are..."
They looked out at the view. It was of Halloween Town. Only a short while till they could return to their home.
Lock smiled happily for the first time in two years. "How I've missed it all..."
"And we've missed you. Now let's-GAH!" Barrel exclaimed suddenly before seeing everything go black.
"BARREL!"
Barrel awoke on a cold, hard surface. His mind felt fuzzy and very blurry. The last thing he remembered was helping Lock escape and feeling a sudden pain. Upon moving, Barrel found that something was restraining him from it. And there was something in his mouth that stopped him from calling out. He then realized that he was hog-tied and gagged.
Looking around, Barrel saw that he was in...a cage...? A cage with a large tarp over it. And he heard voices.
"What the fuck were you thinking! Trying to escape?" It was obvious that was Damien's voice.
"Hey, don't yell at him!" No mistake that was Hardy.
"Shut the hell up, Hardy!"
"You shut the hell up, Fuck Face!"
"Jackass!"
"Cunt!"
"Motherfucker!"
Mixed in with their bickering was Lock's crying.
"Oh God, just kill me now!" he wailed.
"ENOUGH!" A deep, unknown voice yelled.
And all commotion ceased. Broken by the sound of footsteps.
"Lock...Lock..." they stated in a clearly disappointed tone. "What you did tonight cannot go unpunished..."
"N-no! Please sir!" Lock begged. "I promise I'll never do it again! Just please don't-"
"Quiet! Now hold out your arm!"the cold voice commanded.
Lock started to whimper silently. It was then followed by a great wail of pain.
"As for you two..."
"Sir! Please believe me when I say we had nothing to do with this!" exclaimed Damien.
"But he was on your watch, was he not?"
"Oh, come on! We were performing at the time!" Hardy said back.
"Shove it, Hardy!"
"Why's don't you shove it?"
"Stop fighting and stand still!"
The two obeyed. And like Lock, they too began to cry out in pain.
The voice chuckled sadistically.
The tarp of Barrel's cage was removed. He struggled to sit up. Once successful, he took in his surroundings.
He was back in the area he found Lock. Outside, he could see Hardy and Damien writhing in pain. Upon a looking more closely, he saw that Hardy had a new burn. On his chest. And Damien, who was shooting daggers at him, had a fresh one on his shoulder. When he heard weeping, he turned to see Lock who was back in his cage. Crying and holding his now burned arm to his chest.
"Hello there..."
Barrel felt chills up his back. He looked to see a tall man in a macabre cirus outfit with a tall top hat. His eyes were cold and full of evil. Like his smile. The man took the gag off Barrel, allowing him to finally talk.
"Who the fuck are you! What did you do!"
The man simply laughed again. "Why, I am the ringmaster of this circus...And those three needed to be disciplined...For they had disobeyed me..." He smirked. "But I am impressed at your determination to rescue this young lad..." He said, gesturing to a still crying Lock. "However, I can't let any of my wonderful performers leave...This circus would be nothing without them..."
Barrel rolled his eyes. "So why am I here? Do you plan to kill me for trying to take him?"
"Now why in the world would I do that...?" the ringmaster asked. He kneeled down and studied Barrel while still smirking. "When you're just what I'm looking for...?"
Barrel looked down at the platter in front of him. It was piled with bloodied, torn off arms. Grinning, he leaned toward it and took in his mouth. He bit down hard, ripping off a large piece and chewing it. The blood ran down his face onto his already blood stained straight jacket.
He did the same to other arms until they were reduced to nothing but bloody bones. Which he proceeded to lick clean.
As the audience cheered, he felt a tug at his leash that was attached to his collar. He stood up and walked away with Hardy and Damien holding his leash.
They guided him backstage. But stopped in front a certain someone's cage.
"Hey honey..."
Lock pulled off his blindfold. "Hey...I could tell by the applause that you did great out there..."
"Nah, you're much better at this than I am." Barrel insisted.
Hardy took out Lock's key and unlocked his cage. The devil walked out, prepared to perform his usual singing routine.
Before he left, Barrel planted a sweet kiss upon his lips. "Break a leg out there."
Lock smiled grimly. "I'd very much rather..."
Snickering to himself silently, Barrel was guided back to his cage where he rested. And the sign on it said: 'The Beast That Eats Everything Cold'.
As Lock began to sing to the audience and Barrel napped, Hardy and Damien stood in the shadows. For once, not arguing.
"It's good they have each other..." Hardy stated.
"Yes it is..." Damien agreed. "After all...we will continue this circus...forever..."
I honestly cannot tell if I've written a happy ending or a sad one...But still, this was inspired by the video and song, 'Dark Woods Circus' by the great Vocaloid's: Hatsune Miku, Kaito, Kagamine Rin, and Kagamine Len. Here's a link: watch?v=OsjTBdiPq8o
I certainly hope you enjoyed it. Please leave your thoughts in the form of a review.