Hey everyone, thanks again for reading and reviewing my story. The whole freak show idea came to me because I wanted to do something different. I also got the idea from the squeal that is coming out next Christmas. Supposedly Erik runs his own freak show because of his hate for the world and what happened on the night of Don Juan Triumphant. He then sneaks into the opera house every night to make love to the Christine doll that he has. Andrew Lloyd Webber just released the first act of it two weeks ago and had a party to show it to special guests by invitation only…..my one friend who lives in the united kingdom actually got invited and went with her father to see it and told me that it's very weird but brilliant. Any way enough about that, I'm definitely switching the plot so I'm not taking away ALW's Idea so for now enjoy the chapter. College has me doing so much work…….Journalism is just the most awesome major ever…….R&R and keep on reading.
Over the next few days, Erik rose every morning at the crack of dawn to continue repairing the remainder of things that needed fixing before any of his new workers would show up. It had become very late on the night he had finally finished everything and patched up the final tent that needed to be fixed. After putting his tools away, Erik drug himself sluggishly to his bed and plopped down onto it, causing Christine to awake from his side.
"Erik, you don't look so well. What time is it?"
"I don't know midnight? Maybe after one I'm not sure."
Christine unbuttoned Erik's shirt and removed it from his body before covering him up with the warm blankets that were ruffled up next to her.
"You know that you shouldn't drag yourself on like this. You work too hard and too long before stopping for the night."
"What choice do I have? Everything needs to be completed before my new workers arrive."
"Killing yourself isn't going to make anything any better."
"I've worked harder than this Christine, I'll be fine."
Christine removed his mask and placed it on the end table before kissing Erik goodnight and falling asleep herself. The next morning, Christine awoke to the sound of someone yelling outside. She lifted her head from off the pillow and noticed that Erik was still asleep beside her. Not wanting to disturb him, Christine threw on her cloak and quietly walked out of the room to the hall of mirrors to spot the shadow of a man standing there. In fright, Christine backed up, and gasped causing the man to turn towards her.
"What do you want?"
The man began to walk closer towards her, when Christine grabbed a stick from off of the ground and pointed it at him.
"Stay away you hear me!"
As the man's dark shadow came closer and closer to her, Christine backed up against a mirror and closed her eyes. Moments later she could feel the man's hot breath against her neck, and opened her eyes to see a disgusting sight. There in front of her stood a slouched over man no older than Erik with gruesome yellow teeth, short dirty brown hair and haunting blue eyes. Christine thought that he was a bum by the torn white shirt and muddy trousers that he was dressed in. She glanced down at his arms and saw that his flesh was covered in the most horrendous burns that she had ever seen. She had once thought that no one ever looked as bad as Erik but could now say that she was wrong….this man was more gruesome than a one eyed pirate.
"What do you want from me?"
The man sniffed her long curly locks and then took a few steps back.
"Curtis."
Christine became confused as to what the man was saying to her. Moments ago he looked as if he were going to either eat or rape her and now he was telling her his name? She just couldn't understand.
"Your name is Curtis?"
"Yes me Curtis."
Christine could tell that the man that stood before her was far from school educated just by the way he spoke and used certain words.
"What do you want Curtis?"
At that moment, Curtis quickly grabbed Christine's hand with one of his dirty clammy ones and drug her through the hall of mirrors.
"Let me go! Do you hear me!"
Curtis did not let go of her hand, and kept walking. Christine tried not to think about what was going to happen to her in a few seconds but couldn't help but come to the conclusion that she was never going to see Erik again. Once she made it to the open door way of the funhouse, Curtis stopped walking and lead her out to the old foggy fair grounds. Once the fog cleared, Christine became surprised as to what she saw. There in front of her stood a crowd of some of the most horrifying creatures she had ever seen up close. It was then that she realized that the freaks had arrived. Some were gypsies but most of them were of people with the weirdest amoralities known to man. Curtis turned to face Christine and pointed to the crowd that stood before them.
"Curtis comes with performers. Letter was sent to us to come. Work is what we were promised."
"Yes but you shall have to talk to the one in charge, and that would be my Erik."
Christine quickly walked back through the hall of mirrors, and to her room to retrieve Erik. Once she got to her bed, Christine leaned down and shook Erik to get up.
"Erik, Erik wake up."
A few seconds later, Christine heard the faint groan of his voice and the slow movement of his body from under the covers.
"What? What is it Christine?"
"There is a crowd of people outside."
Erik slowly sat up, and wiped the sleep out of his eyes.
"People?"
"Yes, freaks."
"They're here?"
"Yes."
Erik quickly scrambled to his feet, and grabbed his mask from off of the end table before throwing on his jacket and wig to walk outside. Christine tried to help him get dressed as he paced the room searching out for what he usually wore. Seconds later, he and Christine were out the door and down the hallway to get outside. He ran to the small stage that he had rebuilt days ago and jumped up onto it causing the crowd to turn and face him.
"Fondest Greetings to you all. I'm glad that each and everyone of you could make it and I do promise jobs for all of you."
Erik began to silently count everyone that was standing in the crowd before continuing his speech.
"It seems that there is exactly fourteen of you, please tell me if I've missed any? I see five gypsies, five men and four women am I right?"
He saw the crowd begin to look around at each other before turning back towards Erik and nodding.
"The tents are back into the woods behind me. Each of you gets one for housing purposes and that is where you shall sleep. I'm not sure as to how many shows you've all been apart of or how others work but let me tell you this. My show shall have no mistreatment to any of you what so ever, nor will there be no imprisonment. Each night you shall line up down the cobble path and perform what ever talent it is that you do. Believe me when I say that I am all about protection and damn the person who throws the first stone. Everyone of you shall be paid all the same wage which will be forty franks a night. I want everyone to take a slight break to get settled in your new houses and then to form a line in the hall of mirrors. I want to interview each and everyone of you separately."
Erik then jumped off of the stage, and walked back to his room with Christine following him. Erik stood in front of the mirror adjusting his shirt before sitting down at his table and taking out some sheets of paper to write on.
"Erik, do you think this is the best thing to do?"
"Yes it'll be fine, now do me a favor and help me by letting in my first employee."
Clorinda then approached Erik and jumped onto his back playfully.
"Clorinda! Stop playing around and go play I've got work to do."
Clorinda let go of Erik and walked away as Christine opened the door to let the first performer in. Erik looked up and saw a young thin man with long hair standing before him. Erik held out his hand and shook the man's hand before watching him take a seat.
"So what's your name?"
"Gustavo, and yours?"
"Monsieur."
"That's not a name, what on earth is your name?"
"All that you need to know is that my name is Monsieur. You will call me by Monsieur and Monsieur only. Enough about me, tell me what your talent is."
"I swallow swords."
"And are you married?"
"No Monsieur."
"And where are you from?"
"Belgium, I was kicked out of the circus after a child tried to swallow a sword under my supervision."
"Well I'm glad to have you working here, good luck."
When Gustavo left, a family of gypsies entered and stood at Erik's desk. There was a bearded man dressed in a red vest and black shirt along with a woman dressed in a red dress with long black hair. By their side stood a small child no older than Clorinda dressed in a cap and red vest holding a monkey dressed in Persian robes. Beside the man stood a teenage girl dressed in almost the same dress as her mother. The man stepped forward, and shook Erik's hand.
"I'm Kasdon and this is my wife Esmeralda my daughter Alexia and my son Petri. We travel around the world stopping at fairs to dance and do magic."
"I'm Monsieur, I'm glad to have you working here."
"We're glad to be here Monsieur."
After writing their names down on the paper, Erik released them from the room, letting the next performer to walk in. As Erik looked up, he noticed an old woman with a beard standing before him. The woman stood before Erik and crossed her arms in confusion.
"Something wrong Madam?"
The woman had a seat and leaned in towards Erik.
"I would know you anywhere."
"Really? I think you have made a mistake madam."
"You might not remember me but I remember you….it's you the young Devil's Child."
Erik looked up at the woman in disgust and placed his pen down on the table. He stared at her, and realized in a second that it was the woman from the east, the one who performed at the freak show he was saved from so many years ago.
"If you have come here to mock me I suggest that you turn around and leave."
"I'm here to work Monsieur."
"Good, I don't need to ask you anything more. I know your past job as well as the back of my hand."
"You've grown up."
"That I have, you can leave now."
"I'm not finished Monsieur."
"Well I am, leave me be now."
"My name is Beatrice, Monsieur."
"I know."
Beatrice could tell that Erik was getting angry with her so rose to her feet to leave.
"I won't say a word Monsieur if you answer my one question."
"Which is what?"
"How did you escape the freak show those many years ago?"
"A girl saved me."
Beatrice nodded, and left Erik letting the next performer come in. The next few performers that Erik interviewed included a trapeze artist, a sword juggler, a woman that could stretch her body in all directions, a set of Siamese twins that were attached by the waist, a man who ate nothing but shards of glass, a man who could stretch his skin far distances and a woman who swore she was physic. The last one to come in of course was Curtis. He nervously sat down across from Erik, and looked at him.
"So what is your name?"
"Curtis."
Erik wrote down the name just as he did with everyone else that had come in to talk with him.
"What is your talent Curtis?"
Curtis didn't say a word and just sat there looking down at his creepy deformed boney fingers.
"Your talent, what is your talent?"
"Curtis doesn't have talent."
Christine stood beside Erik and listened to what Curtis was saying. She could tell that Erik had already had enough of talking to people for one day due to his frustrated tone of voice.
"Well if you have no talent then why are you here?"
Christine didn't want him to scare Curtis so stepped into the conversation.
"Curtis, what did you do before you came here?"
"Curtis was a slave, put in a cage day after day and punished."
After hearing that, Christine could tell that Erik had calmed down a bit.
"Punished how?"
Curtis lifted up his sleeve, and revealed the burns on his arms.
"Fire hurt me Monsieur."
Erik placed his pen down, and ran his fingers through his hair.
"Fine, you can stand at the gate and let the people come in and collect the money. Does that sound like something you could do?"
"That would please Curtis very much."
Erik nodded, and wrote the job down next to Curtis's name.
"You can go now, we start tomorrow night."
"Thank you sir."
When Curtis had left, Erik stretched and rose from his seat before Christine re approached him.
"That was a long tedious day Christine."
"I know, but you have a great deal of performers."
" Yes, and tomorrow shall be even longer."
"I'll help out too Erik."
Erik looked around the room, and noticed that Clorinda was no where in sight.
"Christine, where on earth is Clorinda?"
"She was upset and left a little while ago."
Erik through on his cloak and walked down the dark hall of Mirrors to go find his daughter. Outside the sun was setting and the once sun lit area was becoming dark and cold. Behind the stage Erik could see the tents lit by candle light with some of the gypsies horses grazing close by. Not seeing Clorinda anywhere, Erik decided to take a walk back into the woods to see if that is where she had gone. Once he was back where all his performers were, Erik had no idea where to go. He looked behind him, and saw Petri the gypsy boy sitting outside of his tent with his monkey.
"Have you seen a little girl pass by here by any chance?"
"Yes Monsieur, she walked right by and straight on into the woods."
"Thank you."
With that, Erik walked on into woods to try to find his daughter. There had been too many times where she had run off and wound up in trouble. As he walked a little deeper into the woods, a rough river stopped him from stepping any further and realized that it had also stopped Clorinda as well. She was sitting on one of the rocks beside the edge of it. Making sure not to get angrier with her, Erik took a deep breath before approaching her and had a seat beside her. As soon as Clorinda noticed him sitting down beside her, she turned away from his sight.
"Clorinda, what's wrong?"
Clorinda didn't answer him, and just stayed as she was without speaking a word to him.
"Look Clorinda, I had a lot of work to do today. Some day's there just isn't any room for horse play. I can't be your father all of the time."
Clorinda turned towards him with such anger.
"You're not my father Erik! You act like one when you feel like it! I don't expect you to be my father but the least you could do is be my friend."
"I'm not supposed to be your friend Clorinda, I'm supposed to be your role model."
"Just face it Erik, you're a baby sitter for my mother when ever she doesn't want to be bothered with me."
"That's not true, I care about you very much Clorinda."
"Then why is it that you don't spend time with me?"
"Look, I promise to try harder ok."
"Promise?"
"yes."
Clorinda smiled, and got to her feet.
"Come, let us return to your mother. She'll begin to worry if we're gone long."
"Can I ride on your shoulders?"
Erik picked her up, and placed Clorinda on his shoulders before walking back through the woods to get back to the funhouse. When they arrived, Erik noticed that Christine was fast asleep so motioned Clorinda to be quiet.
"Come, you need a bath and then you need to get to bed yourself."
After bathing Clorinda and drying her off, Erik placed her night gown over her head and helped her put her arms in the sleeve. As he was doing so, he felt a very painful ace localize in his chest. He turned away for a second to set himself straight before continuing.
"Something wrong Monsieur Kire?"
"No I'm fine."
As Erik was fixing her night gown, he felt the pain again, this time in the distorted side of his face, causing him to turn away again.
"Monsieur Kire, what's wrong?"
"Nothing, I'll be fine. You just get your sleep."
After tucking Clorinda in bed again and feeling the horrible pain again he walked over to his mirror and unbuttoned his shirt. As he looked down at his distorted flesh, which covered his ribs and noticed that it was very red and inflamed. He then removed his mask and looked at his distorted skin to notice that it was also red and inflamed. He just didn't understand what on earth was going on with his body but ignored it and through on his night clothes before turning in for the night. All night long he tossed and turned with the same burning pain irritating him all through the hours, depriving him of sleep. He closed his eyes and ignored it, hoping that things would be better in the morning…..
More to come soon!