Donner and Tilla walked over to the stand and saw a large wooden sign beside a table. "Travel With Us! The Helluva Hooligans Group, 18 souls an hour, apply today!"
Donner pushed his way to the front and saw a few imps filling out application forms.
"Salutations, good sir!" called the finely dressed imp behind the stand. "You look like someone in desperate need for employment."
"How did you know?" Donner asked with a grin and a sarcastic playful tone.
"Lucky guess," the imp admitted. "What's your name?"
"Donner."
"Well, Donner, if ya don't want to be a goner, perhaps you could fill out these here forms, if you have what it takes."
A few imps were taking pictures of the imp nearby.
"Who are you?" Tilla asked as she strolled up with her kids.
The crimson faced tall imp let out a charismatic grin of sharp red teeth. He wore an elegant black suit with a white collar and a long red cape. Gold trim laced the ends of his sleeves and long black pants covered his hairy goat-like legs. Black boots covered his hooves, with golden hearts at the tips. He had a thin black mustache, a thin black beard and a tall black top hat between his curved black and white striped horns. The horns were shaped a little like lightning bolts. In his hand was a fancy black cane with a gold lion head on it.
"I am Paimon Tarot Bardum," he spread out his arms in a flourish. "Entrepreneur, showman and founder of the most established circus for imps around the Rings! And no, I'm not an heir of King Paimon but I do have sponsors from the Ars Goetia."
"Most established?" Donner asked.
"Well, there were a few groups before me, but the performers got into drugs and fights and were disbanded. Plus, it's awfully expensive to host such events…unless you're lucky like me!"
"Not many imps start businesses on their own," Tilla remarked.
"My business was briefly seen by Lucifer himself!" Bardum claimed. "Sure, it's not as popular as Lu-Lu World, but why go to an expensive amusement park, when I can bring the amusement to all of you! Hahahahaha!"
"So, why all this?" Donner asked.
"We're a traveling circus that visits Greed, Lust, Wrath and Pride. In fact, we just came down from Pride to celebrate the founding of Imp City!"
"Imp City?"
"Yes, my dear," Bardum winked at her. "The imps originated down from Wrath and immigrated through the Rings in search of better lives. Those who wanted to make a living in Pride were eventually pushed back by sinners into the second circle and further circles in Pride. The sinners got the main capital while the imps were forced to adapt to their surroundings. Thus, the ghetto, crime-ridden city of Imp City was founded…a couple days ago in fact."
"Okay then," Tilla said, confused.
Bardum cleared his throat. "Now then! If you want a job, fill out those forms and come with me. There are lots of contenders already, so I don't have all day."
Donner and Tilla filled out their forms and followed Bardum inside the tent. Tilla pushed her toddlers forward. Barbie Wire and Blitzo looked around in amazement at the hanging lights. The two imps stood in line beside another imp, a lion demon, an elephant, and a snake wearing a pink tutu.
Bardum paced back and forth. "Alright contenders! You all put in your forms that you were experts in our acts. To sort out the frauds, we're gonna see what you can really do in person! For those with no prior experience, I'm gonna have a field day with you!"
Bardum leaned in menacingly toward Blitzo and Barbie Wire, the kids flinching away in their seats. But Tilla and Donner stood their ground, staring Bardum right in the eye as if to say, "challenge accepted."
Tilla had, in the past, done some flips, jumps and graceful movements during her nightclub job. And Donner knew some fighting moves he had learned from his father long ago. But, of course, this was all new to them.
"Bailey!" called Bardum with a clap of his hands. His looming brother walked into the light: a strong imp with well-toned muscles, black pants, and chains around his neck. He cracked his knuckles.
Bardum grinned. "Whip these fuckers into shape! No mistakes, ya brute!"
Bailey merely grunted at his boss. "Don't bite the dick that quenches ya."
0 0 0
"Test One: Ball Balancing!" Bailey barked. "Go!"
Donner and Tilla stood on large red and black striped balls in the center of the tent. Donner used his arms and tail to aid in balance. A couple of times, he stumbled and nearly fell. Circus music played from an old record player off to the side.
"You fall, you fail!" Bailey called.
The other imp walked on his hands on the ball, earning impressed looks from Bailey.
"Now that's an imp with skill!"
The snake with the tutu wrapped her tail around the ball and rolled around without falling. Unfortunately for the elephant, the ball popped under his weight, and he fell with a thump to the ground.
"Strike one, you're out!" Bailey barked.
"That's not fucking fair!" the elephant cried.
"Then maybe you should've lost some weight and practiced your flips," Bailey retorted as he watched the lion flip back onto his ball in approval. The elephant stomped out of the tent, shaking the ground. Tilla almost fell down, but Donner held her hand and steadied her.
"Let's impress these money-suckers," he said.
Tilla smiled in confidence as she let go of Donner's hand. She took deep breaths and stared straight ahead, not daring to look down. She rolled forward with the momentum, then tried backward. Donner and Tilla then held hands and jumped on the balls, doing splits.
"Time's up!" Bailey called, just before the two imps fell to the ground. He walked over to them with a glare. Donner gulped from his laying down position.
"Don't worry, you're still in," he said.
Donner and Tilla breathed sighs of relief.
0 0 0
"Test Two! Juggling for two minutes or more!" Bailey bellowed.
Bailey ate a red apple beside a Lucifer poster. Another winged imp that was part of the group leaped through hoops overhead.
Tilla held two small blue balls in her hands and took some deep breaths. Donner put a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Just imagine they are delicate plates that must not touch the ground or else you'll be grounded until it snows down here."
"Not helping!" Tilla hissed.
"Begin!" demanded Bailey.
Balls were tossed into the air and juggled around in circles. Tilla focused on the rhythm as much as she could. Toss, toss, catch, catch, toss, toss, catch, catch…
Donner stared straight ahead, imagining he was juggling the heads of his enemies. Bailey danced around to try and distract them, but Donner retained his steely gaze and concentration.
He needed this job. And Satan dammit, he was going to get it.
By sheer luck, Tilla and Donner were just able to break the two-minute mark before the balls fell from their hands. The lion wasn't so lucky; his balls bonked him on the head, and he growled in frustration.
"Better luck next time, kitty cat," Bailey mocked.
0 0 0
Bailey boomed, "Test Three: Balancing and Joke Telling! Start!"
Donner and Tilla balanced on a thin gymnastics beam while facing a cardboard audience of drawn monsters and imps.
"Did you hear about the hungry bank robber who wanted to eat money? He came to us and was like, 'I got your souls!'"
A laugh track was heard, and Donner bowed, retaining his balance.
"Very nice," Bailey said impressed.
Tilla's mind went blank. She tried to focus on balance while also coming up with a joke on the spot.
"Any day now, lady," Bailey remarked, tapping his foot.
Sweat beaded her forehead and she gulped.
"Um…did you hear about…uh…"
"Boo! No audience likes one who stutters," Bailey commented.
His remark almost made her fall off the beam. 'Relax, Tilla. Just think.'
Another imp stumbled on the beam as he said, "Why didn't the hell-chicken cross the road? Because…he knew there was no other side!"
A few chuckles here and there.
"I was wondering what to call Hellvis Presley's pet the other day. He then told me, 'He ain't nothing but a Hellhound dog!'"
"Ingenious," said Bailey.
"Yes!" the imp jumped for joy…and promptly hit his balls on the beam. He fell to the ground sideways with an "oof!"
"So that's what they mean when they say, 'Don't get too cocky,'" Bardum snickered at Bailey.
"Good one, sir!"
Bailey waved a dismissive hand at the imp.
The imp cried in pain and left the tent, holding himself.
"I've got it!" Tilla called, one finger pointed up. "Ack!"
The snake hissed evilly on the balance beam and swiped her tail in Tilla's direction. Tilla jumped over it like a jump rope, almost falling. She glared at the snake.
"What do you call P.T. Bardum on good and bad days?"
Tilla ducked as the snake swiped her tail forward at her. Tilla grabbed the green tail and promptly stepped on it. The snake hissed in pain. Tilla waved her arms and almost fell backward…
But she hung from the beam upside down with her legs, punching the snake's tail off the beam. She smiled at the carboard audience and answered with a wink, "One Helluva Boss!"
"Hahaha!" Bardum clapped his hands as Donner gave her a thumbs up from the side. The circus music joined in by ending on a victorious trumpet note.
The snake crumpled to the ground.
"Knock, knock," she groaned.
"Who's there?" Bailey asked, towering over her.
"Wood."
"Wood who?"
"Wood you let me try again?"
Bailey grinned and picked her up... "HA! No." …and promptly tossed her outside the tent. Her screams faded away.
Bardum and Bailey walked over to Donner, as Tilla hoped down from the beam.
"Well, congratulations, imps," Bardum praised. "What are your names again?"
"I'm Donner, this is my wife Tilla."
"Well Donner and Tilla, it appears you have proven yourselves capable of the basics. Now here's some more questions for you…"
'Not again,' thought Donner.
"As we are a traveling circus, we do move around the Rings. Are you willing to move at different times of the day and night? We will provide you with some places to stay and accommodations. If you don't mind sharing some rooms with some of our performers..."
"That's fine!" they both said, overlapping each other.
"You'll get to sleep in the same bed if you wish, and if you're good enough, maybe you'll get your own room."
"Okay then, just don't spy on us or anything," Donner said, narrowing his eyes.
"Why would I do that?" Bardum grinned widely.
A brief awkward silence.
Bardum hid a video camera behind his back.
"Anyway, you will be practicing with our performers daily, learning from your mistakes, working as a team, blah blah blah. But try not to make any mistakes during the actual shows or if you do, cover it up as best as you can. Myself and my associates are NOT responsible for any damage, injuries, or liabilities that may happen to you all, so just try and sue us…"
Donner tuned out the lecture.
"…so now that we have all that out of the way, what do ya say?" Bardum asked. His eyes glowed and his face became shadowed as he held out his right hand. He spoke in a low demonic voice: "Do we have a deal?"
Donner and Tilla stood frozen in fear.
The light suddenly came back onto Bardum, and he retracted his hand. "Just kidding, just kidding!" he laughed. "The looks on your faces was just…priceless! I'd never do something like that."
Tilla and Donner laughed nervously.
"But still, you need to sign this extra insignificant form here," he said casually, handing it to them. "To prove you won."
They did just that.
Bardum and Bailey made their way forward. Bardum turned back to them. "The fuck are you lovebirds waiting for?! We have much to do, chop, chop!"
Donner and Tilla smiled at each other and Tilla squealed. "We did it!" she whispered.
They followed Bardum and Bailey to a metal trailer decorated with posters and "Helluva Hooligans" in theater lights on it.
"Oh, one more thing!" called Bardum. "That form you just signed…it read in the fine print that everyone's gotta participate and cooperate for many years. Including your little twins! Hope that's okay!"
"Yes sir!" Donner bellowed excitedly at the same time Tilla cried, "Wait, what?!"
0 0 0
1984
"Keep going, Blitzo, you've got this sweetheart!" Tilla encouraged.
A 5-year-old Blitzo stumbled and wobbled on a large rainbow-colored ball. Flapping his arms, he fell backward with a yelp onto a nearby blue mat. Blitzo wore a blue outfit.
"Aw fuck," Blitzo grumbled, clutching one of his striped horns.
Tilla helped him up. "Don't be a Donner downer," she teased, tickling him under his chin. "If at first you don't succeed…"
"But I've tried so many times already!" Blitzo protested, slumping his shoulders. "Can't I take a break?"
"Not until you can balance like your sister," boomed Donner's voice as he stepped into the living room. He wore a green shirt with gold trim on it and black pants. His tail swished slightly from side to side. The apartment walls had pink and white stripes on them.
"But I can still do it!" Blitzo protested.
"Without holding onto the wall or a railing?"
Blitzo went silent.
"Thought not."
Blitzo brushed off his blue shirt and turned to his mother. "Being in the circus is fun and all, but wouldn't it be amazing if I could get dressed up and be a star on stage?"
Tilla smiled as Blitzo imagined himself in front of a microphone, singing along while wearing a cowboy costume.
"Ha!" Donner barked, jutting Blitzo from his daydream. Tilla gave her husband a glare.
"Look at Barbie, son," Donner said to Blitzo. He saw his sister in a white dress with pink stripes on it. She had already mastered balancing on her rainbow ball on one foot. She gently lowered her foot and moved on her ball with the tips of her toes before landing flat on the mat in a heap.
"Oops," she said with a goofy grin. She looked at Blitzo. "Keep tryin' bro!"
Donner looked at him. "If ya can't even balance on a ball and look at an audience directly, how'd you ever expect to be in a career like musical theater?"
Blitzo lowered his head, tears spiling out.
"No time for cryin' boy! Show the crowd what you're made of and get back to practicing."
"Don't be so hard on them!" Tilla chided. "Just give them a fucking break!"
In frustration, Donner punched a hole in the wall with his red fist. Everyone fell silent. Tilla had a trembling, fearful look.
Donner turned to a flinching Tilla. "How else will they learn in time? It's all about skill, survival and success. It is the only way, and you know it. Do you want us to get fired?"
Tilla glumly shook her head.
Donner cleared his throat, satisfied. Then he added to his children, "Our top priority is our circus. We have a lifelong devotion to it." He pointed at a black heart-skull shaped mark on his forehead. Tilla, Barbie and Blitzo all had gotten the same black mark tattoos on their foreheads, showing they were part of the circus. "Don't forget that."
Donner shared a look with the kids and left the room. True to his word, Bardum had given the family an apartment to temporarily stay at before they would have to travel around for shows. Bardum had promised Donner that if his family were continually successful in shows when the twin had matured, he would be promoted to ring master.
"You already display the traits of a fine entrepreneur," Bardum had said to Donner.
"I was a businessman at my last job," Donner mentioned with pride.
"Perhaps if your children perform well in shows once they become teens, you'll be able to take over. No pressure or anything…except that my biggest sponsor is Lord Mammon himself."
Bardum leaned in slightly toward Donner, red eyes pulsing with a demonic glow. "And you know he'll expect only the best."
"Y-yes sir."
Ever since then, Donner had expected high standards from not only his kids, but his wife as well. Every day, Donner got more devoted to their circus acts, while Tilla became stressed. Child-rearing and practicing tricks became hard work for her.
To the kids' surprise and delight, Donner ended practice early. He mentioned for the kids to follow him as evening arrived. Gone was his temper, replaced by temporary kindness.
"Who wants to help me with our special treat?"
"Me!" Blitzo and Barbie trilled at the same time.
"Wait here. We'll be ready in a few minutes," Donner said to Tilla.
Tilla sat in her dark blue outfit and watched as the kids raced ahead.
In the kitchen, Blitzo and Barbie shared smiling looks. Donner sat in a chair at the table, a covered object in front of him. He winked at the kids as they arrived.
Barbie Wire pulled a slip of paper from her pocket. "This is gonna be great!" she whispered excitedly to her brother.
The lights were turned off before Tilla stepped inside.
"Surprise!" all three shouted as the lights turned on. Donner stood and lifted the cover, revealing a black cake with "Happy Birthday Tilla" in red icing covered by a plastic dome. A red pentagram with a small heart in it was decorated off to the side.
"Oh, you guys!" Tilla exclaimed in happiness. "How wonderful! Thank you!"
"Devil's food cake, your favorite," Donner said with a wink. Tilla giggled in delight. Everyone soon forgot about the previous incident.
Donner removed the cover and lit the red candles. They sang:
"Happy birthday to you
Happy birthday to you
Happy birthday dear…"
The kids sang "Momma!" as Donner sang, "Tilly!"
"Happy birthday to you!"
They all clapped as she blew out the candles. Donner cut pieces for each of them.
Blitzo and Barbie Wire skipped over to their mother and gave her the piece of paper. She took it and smiled warmly. It was a small card with a misspelled "Happy Bertha Moma" written in pink letters on the front. Inside were drawn stick figures of Blitzo and Barbie riding on horses and throwing confetti on a happy Tilla.
"Aww, come here my little implings," Tilla cooed, pulling Blitzo and Barbie in for a hug. All their pointed tails wrapped around each other before retracting back out. Their eyes closed in bliss.
"I love you so much, momma!" Blitzo smiled and laughed.
"We surprised you good, didn't we?" Barbie asked.
"You sure did," she chuckled.
After they enjoyed cake and hamburgers, Donner called, "Let's not forget pictures!"
Donner held a black rectangular camera in his hands. He positioned the kids in front and Tilla in the back beside the striped wall.
"Okay everyone, say 'Hell yeah!'"
"Hell yeah!" They smiled with open mouths as the camera clicked. The picture showed a smiling Blitzo and Barbie Wire holding their "Happy Bertha Moma" card for their mother in their hands. Tilla stood with a small smile in the background, a gray streak in her long black hair. A red skull necklace was around her neck.
0 0 0
1987
Before long, Blitzo, Tilla, and Barbie Wire were now practicing with other younger members of the circus. They were training under a large tent in the Greed Ring.
Besides balancing on balls, the twins learned flips, low tightrope walking, juggling, shooting arrows, throwing plastic knives and animal taming. Tilla was there to give extra encouragement, while Donner looked on.
"You'll be able to interact with the larger animals, the fire rings and the higher elevations as you evolve," their female ram instructor told them. "You must be prepared for anything. Any act, any trick demanded of you on the spot."
Blitzo soon mastered balancing on the ball…but was dismayed when Barbie got her first bullseye in archery. Every day seemed like he was playing catch-up with her. Barbie hung upside down on a hanging bar swing, arms swinging down. Blitzo made the mistake of looking down and fell with a flop onto the blue mat below. He seethed when Barbie blew raspberries at him upside down.
"Come on, you're twins!" the instructor joked. "Why can't you learn at the same pace?"
Blitzo and Barbie Wire quickly got used to a sort of chaotic routine. They'd wake up early for breakfast with the other members, travel on the road and go to a tent to practice. After bathroom and water breaks, they would watch the performers do stunts closely, learning about safety measures. Then they'd have loud rowdy meals with the crew before an early bedtime.
Every day was different, and every act posed a new set of challenges.
0 0 0
One day, Blitzo, dressed in dark blue suspenders behind a colorful cart, was busy making balloon animals for the younger kids. He made a red dog for a boy imp, a snake for a girl and even managed to make a balloon imp for a baby.
A young girl imp thanked Blitzo for her balloon animal and handed him two small plastic horses, one a pink unicorn, the other a blue horse.
Blitzo's eyes shined as he took his gifts. "They're so fuckin' cute!"
Blitzo made horse noises and kissing sounds as he nuzzled the toys closer. Suddenly, a large hand swiped the horses away.
"Boys don't play with ponies," Donner deadpanned to him, tossing them into a nearby trash can. Blitzo sniffed after the toys clanged to the bottom.
"Focus on your training, Blitzo."
Donner strolled away toward Bardum.
Blitzo glumly continued making balloon animals.
"Hey, hey, you're pretty good at this!" chirped a voice.
Blitzo turned around. Behind him was another imp around his age wearing a white clown outfit with red buttons on it. He wore a red and black striped jester cap and had a red clown nose on his face. Black dimple spots were on his cheeks. He had the same crimson face, eyes, and black mark as Blitzo. His asymmetrical striped black and white horns curved backward.
"Hey, thanks," Blitzo said. "Much easier than making your behind sore from acrobatics. Fuck that noise."
The imp boy snickered. "I like you already!"
He jumped with a flip and landed in front of Blitzo.
"I'm Fizzarolli!" He eagerly shook Blitzo's hand.
"Blitzo," he greeted. "You practicing, too?"
"Sure am!" He let go of Blitzo's hand. "I can't wait until I turn 13! Then I'll be able to perform at a real show with the professionals."
"Heh, that's the goal," Blitzo replied with a hint of uncertainty.
"Hey, don't worry if ya feel like you're fallin' behind. Just keep workin' at it and you'll be a pro in no time!"
Blitzo smiled, happy to have found a new best friend.
Tilla was happy, too. "Aw, look at you two! Just as cute as always!"
"Urgh, Momma," Blitzo made a face as Tilla pinched his cheeks. "No!"
"Sorry," she said, playfully booping Blitzo on the nose. "One quick picture and I'll get out of your hair." Then she chuckled as she held up her camera. "Oh right, you don't have any!"
The camera flashed and Blitzo and Fizzarolli stood in their outfits against a yellow background. Both boys were winking, Fizzarolli with his forked tongue part-way out. They were arm in arm like brothers. After the picture was taken, the two raced off.
"Stay out of trouble!" Tilla called. "And be back in time for the show tonight!"
But Fizzarolli led Blitzo on a fun, pranking adventure. As Fizzarolli snuck around and unlocked a cage full of sleeping hell-monkeys, Blitzo drew a mustache on the face of a sleeping imp. Blitzo grabbed a cowboy hat with horn holes and put it on his head. They met back and gave each other a high five and snickered.
Barbie wandered over to them, wearing a black and red striped dress.
"This is my sister, Barbie Wire," Blitzo introduced.
"I'm Fizzarolli," he introduced as they shook hands. "Your brother and I were finishing up pranks. Wanna join us?"
"Sure," Barbie grinned. She spotted a grumpy looking smoking imp who always flipped off all the rookies who arrived.
"Careful around him," Fizzarolli whispered.
She scooped up spiders from a nearby crate, snuck behind him and placed them in his pants and underwear.
Barbie raced back to the boys. "I'll keep a look out for mom and dad."
Looking down, the male imp suddenly screeched and screamed as he danced around frantically. "Ants in my pants! Ants in my pants!"
"Actually, those are spiders," Barbie Wire smirked as he screamed even louder.
"The show's gonna be great tonight!" Fizzarolli grinned.
"Thanks, Fizz. This was such a great idea!" said Blitzo.
Later during the show that night…
"Who thought this was a great idea?!" Bailey yelled as half a dozen hell-monkeys screeched and chased after him in the arena. A few elephants stomped into the arena, knocking aside performing imps like bowling pins. Bailey whirled toward the formerly sleeping imp, who now stood nervously on a podium.
"Did you let the animals out of their cages?!"
"No, sir, it wasn't me!"
The imp noticed the audience laughing and pointing at the drawn mustache and glasses on his face. "Fuck me" was written on his forehead. Bailey stared at the imp with crossed arms. "What's that on your face?"
"What's what on my face?" the imp asked. Then he looked into a nearby distorted mirror on the side wall and screamed.
"Shit! Get this marker off!"
One of the snake trapeze artists got distracted and let out an opera sound as she flipped in a circle from one swing to the next. A bear balancing on a tightrope plummeted into a safety net. "Whoa!"
He squirmed as he tried to free himself from the tangled rope. A dragon, who had been juggling fire sticks, coughed up flames that spread onto the ground. Two winged imps doused the flames with pails of water. Around a pole on a high podium with a banner reading "The Sensational Succubus Imp," Tilla glanced around, expressing concern and suspicion.
Bardum chuckled nervously as he stood in the spotlight. "All part of the show, folks! Just wanted to add some…chaos to the mix!" His top hat flew off his head. "Whoa!"
"Who did this?" Bailey muttered to Donner.
"You think we're gonna get caught?" Blitzo whispered to Fizzarolli and Barbie Wire.
"Not a chance!" Fizzarolli replied.
The trio were laughing under their breaths in the stands…until the shadow of Donner hovered over them. They looked up in fear at his glowing face.
"Howdy, partner," Blitzo replied nervously, dipping his cowboy hat over his face.
0 0 0
Blitzo, Barbie, and Fizzarolli sweat and groaned as they scooped up animal poop into pails under the watchful eyes of Bailey and Donner.
"Why did Satan torment me with such reckless, destructive, blasphemous children?" Donner glowered.
"So, I'm Blitzo's brother, right?" Fizzarolli joked.
"Silence," spat Donner. "I seek to help build a legacy in show business and your only thought is to amuse yourselves by tearing it down!"
"It was just a few pranks," Barbie said.
"Well, those 'few pranks,'" Tilla added, arms folded, "Could've put our fellow performers in danger!" Then he muttered under her breath, "Though the monkey one was pretty funny."
Donner gave her a look of disbelief before continuing. "Have your mother and I taught you nothing?"
"You taught us to...have fun?" Barbie asked.
"The circus is not just about 'fun.' It is a big responsibility, one that could make or break our family in the future. It is about time you learned the true meaning of responsibility."
He stared down at Blitzo. "Especially you, Blitzo."
Blitzo softly gulped.
"Get back to work," Donner said. "Come on, Tilla, you still have part two of your Succubus Imp act." Donner sang, "Horns of a succubus, face of an imp, who in hell is she? Not a wimp!"
"That slogan will be stuck in my head now," Tilla sighed, eyes tired.
Blitzo looked longingly at his mother who gave him an apologetic look before she was led away.
Blitzo muttered out loud. "Why does papa blame me for everything?"
"All of us are in trouble," Barbie said with a shrug, straining with a shovel and wrinkling her nose. "Maybe he has more expectations for you."
"Unfair expectations," Blitzo glowered.
"Hey, none of us like it either," Fizzarolli mentioned. "We'll just have to be more careful."
"Don't worry, Blitzo," said Barbie. "Once we work through our problems, we'll all be famous someday. Our parents will be so proud of us! You'll see."
"I sure hope so," Blitzo said, as he focused back on his grueling task. He and Fizzarolli glanced over at a bold green poster with Mammon's smiling face. He was a jester with a white face and sharp white teeth. Dollar signs surrounded him on the sides. He wore a black and yellow jester cap with bells and three pointed sides on it. The caption read in bold letters: "Ruler of Greed says: Go For The Green and Live Your Life!" The bottom message read, "See Mammon's Stunning Performances on TV!"
"When I grow up, I'm gonna be just like him!" Fizzarolli declared, admiration in his eyes. "I'll be rich and famous, and he may even get to see me perform!"
"Good luck with that happening," Barbie mentioned with a roll of her eyes. "We can barely make ends meet. Being in the circus with a kind of new family is better than the world out there, at least."
"I'll have to agree with sis on that one," Blitzo added, eyes downcast. "Our parents…they're depending on us. It's not like there's a better way to live around here…"
Something inside Blitzo wasn't quite sure what to believe. For even as he interacted with his circus crew and enjoyed himself, Blitzo still had vivid dreams of singing his heart out on stage to a clapping crowd.
