Clown

People with painted faces, or, as Anna called them, clowns. While most people thought they were funny and entertaining, she thought they were scarry and frightening. Once, her father painted his face for Velkan's birthday, and Anna didn't recognize him, and it frightened her. She didn't like them, and she didn't know why. Perhaps it was because she didn't know who it was behind the paint, or if said person meant harm to her or her family.

Velkan, on the other hand, loved them. He called them clowns as well, and when he was young, he would have one at every birthday. He thought the hidden face would let anyone do anything stupid they wanted to do without being reveiled. They entertained him, he liked them, and would sometimes paint his own face. It was 1873 when he found that Anna disliked clowns.

8'Anna, come out of your room, I want to show you something,' Velkan said from outside her room. He would have walked in, but her door was locked. It was his birthday, and as usual, he had a clown. He may have been old, but he still liked clowns.

'I won't, you know I won't, and nothing will make me, not unless you promise me we're alone,' she yelled from her room. Velkan then looked around and saw that they were alone.

'Anna, we're alone, no one is else is here, it's just you and me,' he assured her, and he heard locks unlocking behind the door. Anna stuck her head out and her hair was messy and her eyeliner was runny. She had been crying, and Velkan was ignorant as to why. She had never reacted like this before.

'What's wrong? Did you see something, what happened?' he asked, worried about his sister. This wasn't an unusual feeling he got about Anna, she was younger than him, and he took it into his account that he had to look after and care for her. He didn't mind, it gave him something to think about all day.

'Velkan, I'm scared of them, I don't know why, but how can you like someone or something when you don't even know who or what it is?' she said quickly. She was looking around nervously, and Velkan knew she was talking about the clowns. She had never reacted this bad before, and that troubled him, and he didn't know why.

'Anna, I'm sorry. I can tell them to go away, it is my birthday and I miss you, and I would love for you to be there for it. You know I'd do anything for you, you know that, right?' he said caringly. He wrapped his arms around her in a hug.

'Velkan, like you said, it's your birthday, you should have whatever, or whoever you want, my opinion doesn't matter,' she said stubbornly. Sometimes Anna was the hardest sister in the world. Velkan thought she cared too much about other people's wants and likes more than she cared about herself.

'Anna, you matter most to me,' he said defiantly. His thoughtful look spread across his face as he said, 'Anna, wait here,' and quickly went downstairs. He told the clown to leave, but he also told the clown that he enjoyed his work. After he knew the clown was gone, we ran back upstairs, and Anna was in the same place.

'Come with me,' Anna said before Velkan could say anything. She led him into her room and told him to sit in the chair. She went to her closet and grabbed something. Velkan looked confused, and Anna smiled. 'Don't worry, it's your present,' she said hapily as she handed it to him. He opened it and smiled. She had gotten him a knife with the words, 'Happy Birthday, May You Always Remember What We've Done For Each Other,' down both sides. Anna always knew how to accesorise hunting tools.

'Anna, I do not know what to say, but thank you,' Velkan said, absolutely stunned. She had always gotten him nice gifts, but this was the nicest.

'Remember when I stayed at the party last time, and I didn't move or talk? It was because of the clown, and I stayed for you, that's mainly what drove me to get that made,' she said shyly. Velkan laughed at this and put the knife back in the sheath.8

'Anna, now it's your birthday, and you always said you wanted a small party, so it is only going to be you and me,' Velkan said to her, he wanted this year to be special to Anna. 'No clowns, no anybody, unlike the last party's,' he said, his smile widening. He had Anna blindfolded, and he was taking her to the armory. She had always wanted her own weapons, and for the past 4 weeks he had been working on a seperate area for her weapons, which he had made. They reached their destination and Velkan removed the blindfold. Anna took in the sight and inhaled deeply. It wasn't as big as the actual armory, but this was perfect.

'Velkan, did you do this yourself?' she asked in awe. She hadn't noticed the note on the far wall yet.

'Well, I made the room, and I had the weapons made, and the note I carved myself, so that you will always remember me,' he said modestly. Anna looked around for the note he talked of, and when she found it, she smiled the biggest smile he had ever seen on her face.

'"Anna, you make me so proud, and your strength astounds me. May you continue to grow strong and get more smart," Velkan, you didn't have to, the room itself was more than enough,' she said happily. This was the best present she had ever gotten, bar none.

'After what you gave me last year, I felt as if I owed you,' he replied bashfully. Anna saw this and flung herself at him, giving him a hug. She kissed him on the cheek and resumed the hug.

'Thank you for not having a clown this year,' she said before letting go of him.

I'm scared of clowns, so I don't know what possessed me to write this one, but anyway, there ya have it.
me