Disclaimer: I do not own the Phantom of the Opera or anything that goes with it.
Hey guys! Thanks for the reviews; I hope you are enjoying my story. The last part of the 1st chapter got cut off, so that's why my first chapter ended a little weirdly, so now I'm continuing right where we left off. Sorry! Please keep up the reviews! - QKeys
NOTE- (I was not sure of Madame Giry's first name, so I made one up.)
Chapter 2- Not an Animal
The boy then felt the other side of his face. This side was much bumpier and gashed, but the boy figured it was from being hit all the time. What else would it be? Slowly, the boy put his sack back on his head, still wondering what about him everybody hated. What did I do? The boy thought for the millionth time. Suddenly the boy heard noises. He heard his master shouting out for people to come and see the demon. He heard gypsies beckoning people to have their fortunes told. He heard many people shuffling into the tent. The circus was opening. The boy sadly turned his back to the entrance of his tent. As wet hot tears slid down his face, he started to play with his monkey puppet. His harsh thoughts broke open inside his head. Here we go again he thought sadly.
Charlotte Giry hurried along the streets with her friends, her cheeks pink with excitement. "Oh I can't wait!" Said one of girls. "I've never been a carnival before!" All of them started whispering excitedly, and their walking pace quickened a bit as they neared the fair tents. Once they reached the carnival, they stopped, a little afraid. "Come in!" the gypsies beckoned from inside the tent. The gypsies were dirty and smelled foully, with strange clothing and black decaying teeth. Captivated by such strange people, the girls slowly filed into the tent.
The girl's eyes went wide as they gasped in wonder as they stared at all of the strange and interesting people that were showing off. "Come see the Devil's Child" the strange gypsies beckoned, "Come see the one from the East!" The excited girls quickly stepped inside the tent's opening. As Charlotte stepped into the tent, she started coughing; the air was so thick and dusty. A horrible odor filled her nostrils and made her sneeze. She squeezed her way to the front of the crowd, ignoring the protests of the people she was cutting in front off. But what she saw when she got to the front made her stare in disbelief.
There in the middle of a tent, was a cage with a humane inside it. A humane! Not some vicious wild animal, but a small boy, no older then seven. The starving boy sat in the middle of the small cage, his back to the audience, with a sack over his head. Charlotte curled her fingers around the cages bars, her eyes refusing to look away from the pitiful creature. Just then, the boy looked behind him, glancing at the people who were staring curiously at him. Behind the sack, His eyes traveled around the room until they saw Charlotte. For a minute, the two just stared at one another, until Charlotte finally had to look away. She stared down at her shoes, not able to hold in the cold wet tears that were slowly slithering like snakes down her pale pink cheeks.
"STEP RIGHT UP! STEP RIGHT UP TO SEE…THE DEVIL'S CHILD!" As the people shuffled into the tent the boy felt many rude stares on his back, but he continued to play with his toy. The air was suddenly thick with voices talking about the boy. He tried to ignore it as much as he could, but it was hard. He looked behind his shoulder to see how big the crowd, and caught the eye of a young attractive girl who was staring intently at him. The boy stared back, and for the first time did not think that she was staring out of repulsion. It was something else, something he couldn't quite name. Suddenly a strong hand grabbed his arm, yanking him back so he would face the crowd. "Off with the sack" he growled. The boy did not move. "Off with it!" He yelled, hitting the boy hard on his stomach with his club. Pain shot through the boy's stomach, making him feel sick, but still he did not take of his mask.
"Have it your way then you bastard." The boys master yanked harder on his arm, causing the boy's whole stomach to be exposed. The master then started hitting the boy's stomach with his club, over and over again. The small tent exploded with laughter. The boy looked up at the people around him, and he saw a sea of cruel, stupid faces, and as he looked into their eyes, he realized what they thought he was; nothing more than a beast a stupid, wild animal.
"Ladies and gentlemen!" his master roared. "I present you with…The Devil's Child!" The boy's master twisted the boy's body so that the boy's face was facing the audience, and then yanked the boy's sack of his head. The boy watched as the audience gasped, their eyes wide with disgust, and then as they began to laugh slowly at first, and then faster and faster, until it was almost a howl. "He's revolting!" The boy heard them say. "He's not even humane!" "He truly IS the Devil's Child!" Satisfied, the boy's master threw him back to the ground. The boy tried, he truly tried to hold in his tears this time, just this once. But he could not.
As the tears once more sped down his cheeks, he thought to himself over and over; Why me? What have I done? WHAT AM I? The boy picked up his sack from the ground, and as he slid it over his head, felt a new feeling seeping into his mind. The feeling was anger. It grew slowly at first, and then faster and faster until the boy felt he was going to explode with it. Suddenly, the boy's brain was bursting with thoughts, furious things that were swirling around his mind, so he almost couldn't think. I hate this! The boy thought. I hate this life! I hate everyone! I hate God! Just then, He heard a noise, disturbing him from his thought.
There was his master, on his hands and knee's digging his fingers into the ground to collect a coin or two. Just then, the boy knew what he hated more than anything in the entire world, and it was right in front of him. Overcome with fury and hatred, the boy spotted a piece of rope that was used to tie him up, lying in the corner. Quietly, the boy moved towards the piece of rope until he had it in his fingers. Slowly, the boy crept towards the revolting man, until he was right behind him. Right then the boy almost backed out. But then he thought about the countless days how he was constantly beaten, humiliated, and starved, and all for a few coins. The anger flew back into him in an angry rage, and before the boy could even think, the rope was around the disgusting man's neck, and the infuriated boy was pulling with everything he had. "Ackhhh" the man choked, "Leeee gooooo!" he sputtered, coughed, and spit, until the man was finally silent, and his head felt limp in the boy's hand. Breathing hard, the boy finally let go of the rope, letting the man fall to the ground with a sickly thud. What have I done? The boy thought, his mind going blank with confusion. Different thoughts were swarming into the young boy's mind, some were thoughts of horror, and other thoughts were off a sweet feeling of revenge. A wonderful, evil feeling of finally doing something about his miserable life. Just then he hears a small gasp. He quickly looked up and in shock saw the same girl who was staring at him before, still in the doorway, a shocked look in her eyes. The boy then turned to ice. He was an animal frozen in the headlights, caught red-handed of his first act of crime.