Arthur slowly opened his eyes and found himself in an unfamiliar bed. He looked down at the hospital gown he was wearing. His wrists were bandaged and connected to some IV tubes. A heart monitor steadily beeped next to him. The sunlight streaming through the window to his left hurt his eyes, making him squint and look away.

He had a pounding migraine and his vision was blurry. He could barely make out the silhouette of a woman entering the room.

"You're finally awake. You were unconscious for a week," the lady mentioned. "My name's Loretta. I'm with the Gotham Child Welfare Division."

Arthur felt nervous about being in a place that was foreign to him. He had no idea how he ended up there, or why.

"Where am I?" he asked.

"This is Gotham General."

"Where is she?" he asked.

"You mean your mother? She's not here."

"Can I see her?"

"I'm afraid not. But don't worry; she's going to get taken care of for a while, in a different hospital." Her statement confused him. "Do you remember anything that happened?" she asked. "You were injured pretty badly."

"No. My head hurts. Why does it hurt so much?"

"You were hit on the head very hard. But we caught the man who did this to you, and he's going to be in jail for a very long time."

At the moment, Arthur couldn't remember a single thing. He couldn't even remotely recall what his perpetrator looked like. All he knew was that he was in excruciating pain. His head relentlessly throbbed, and the skin on his back stung from the burns. And he was all alone.

An overwhelming sensation overcame him for the first time. His whole body convulsed as he burst into a wild fit of laughter. He didn't know why it was happening, but it felt like some sort of release. The beeps from the heart monitor sped up.

"Arthur? Is there a reason why you're laughing right now?" the social worker asked.

He couldn't respond. The laughter grew so strong that his breath caught in his throat. He coughed violently.

"I'll be right back," Loretta told him. She got up and walked into an office right across from his room.

After calming down, Arthur peeked across the hall and saw her speaking with three other doctors. She was shrugging her arms and shaking her head in a state of utter confusion. She came back a few minutes later.

"The doctors are giving you some pills," the woman explained. "Normally, a parent or guardian would have to be here to approve these for you, but…" she trailed off, leaving her statement unfinished.

She handed Arthur two bottles of antipsychotics. "Take one of each in the morning every day." She also handed him a bottle of aspirin. "Take this one as well to help with your pain. You'll be staying here for a few more days to recover, and then we're going to put you in foster care."

"What's foster care?"

Ten months passed since Arthur's injury. Arthur currently sat at the back of a bus, riding to school with other students.

He felt isolated from the other adolescents in front of him. They didn't have to live in foster homes with strangers like he did, because they had actual families to go home to. This was something they constantly teased him for.

School continued to be a tough challenge for Arthur. No one treated him better just because of his situation. If anything, it was like the other kids found something new to tease him about.

Aside from being unable to make friends, it had been nearly a year since Arthur had contact with his mother. He wondered why she never answered his phone calls. The 12-year-old wondered what she would say to him if he could talk to her right now.

The bus came to a stop and the children occupied the aisle to leave. Arthur moved down the aisle as well, but was suddenly knocked flat on his face. He looked behind him and saw a smug boy sticking his foot out. Everyone surrounding Arthur laughed at the shenanigan.

* * *

During class, it was hard to focus on anything. His brain was in too much of a fog, so he didn't bother listening to the teacher's lessons. Instead, he chose to scribble notes in his textbook. Currently, he was writing:

Got tripped on the bus today. Everyone laughed and they were happy but I was not.

Before Arthur knew it, his English class was already over. The bell rang and the students scurried off to lunch and recess. Arthur stayed in his seat with his eyes glued to the note in his book.

"Arthur?" his teacher called. "May I speak to you for a minute?" she asked.

"Sure." His voice was deeper due to recently hitting puberty.

"I'm just a little concerned about your lack of participation in class. You're not supposed to write in your textbook. What are you writing in there, anyway?" she inquired.

"A joke."

"A joke?"

"Yeah. I'm gonna be a comedian one day."

"Oh, I see. Well if you're going to become a comedian, then you'll have to learn how to perform onstage."

He nodded.

"There's a class play coming up with some of the other students. Why don't you join us?" she suggested. "It'll give you some practice with speaking on a stage. Besides, you might make some new friends."

"I'll think about it."

* * *

Arthur arrived back at his foster center after school was over. He walked through the entrance and caught a glimpse of a familiar figure standing by the front desk. It was Penny, who was currently speaking with one of the employees. She turned around and gasped at the sight of her son.

"Happy! I've missed you so much, darling!" she exclaimed. She ran over and knelt down to cup his face in her hands. Arthur stood still, unable to react to her. She almost felt like a stranger after having no contact with him for so long.

"Mom?"

"Yes. I'm here, my dear. I'm glad to be back now. I'm so sorry for leaving you. It won't ever happen again."

"...Okay."

"Let's go home."

* * *

Being back in their old apartment felt strange, yet comforting to both of them. They took seats on the opposite ends of the living room couch. An awkward silence passed between them.

"How have you been?" Penny asked.

"Alone. I've been alone, mom."

"Oh, I see. How's school?"

"Same as usual."

"Anything exciting or important coming up? A field trip? A talent show?"

"I'm gonna be in a play. I'll be able to practice performing in front of people."

"Happy, that's wonderful news! Now you can do what you were born to do."

"Yeah. I want you to come see me."

She grinned. "I'll be sitting in the front row. I promise."

A few weeks passed. Today was the day of Arthur's play. He spent plenty of time rehearsing his lines in preparation for this moment. The show was getting ready to begin at any minute. The auditorium was full of fellow classmates and eager parents of the students who would perform.

Backstage, Arthur paced back and forth while taking a few anxious breaths. He felt a large amount of pressure to succeed. If he did well and made everyone happy, maybe he could finally earn their respect and make some friends. He definitely needed his mother's encouraging presence right then.

He peeked through the curtains to try and spot her in the audience. He looked at the front row of people, but didn't find her. He scanned his eyes all the way to the back of the room, but she was still missing. Maybe she was just running late.

The curtains drew, signifying the start of the show. The audience clapped.

A boy portraying the narrator spoke. "Once upon a time…"

More minutes passed with no sign of Penny. Arthur bit his lip and fumbled with his hands. His lines were about to come up soon.

"Follow me, sister!" a classmate named Jimmy spoke. "I've found a magical forest where all the creatures talk, and they can make your dreams come true!"

"I can't wait to see this enchanted land, brother," a girl named Sarah replied. "Look, a smiling tree! I wonder if it can talk to us. Hello, great tree! Is it true that this forest can really grant all of our wishes?"

Arthur, dressed in a green poncho and brown pants, knew it was his turn to speak. "Why, yes! Of course! I…"

He froze. The spotlight shone on him brightly, beckoning him to make the best of his moment. But he couldn't ignore the disappointment he felt from his mother's absence. It shattered his confidence, causing him to forget his lines. He couldn't speak.

"Get off the stage!" A random kid from the crowd shouted.

A shoe was flung from the voice's direction and hit Arthur's face. The crowd erupted with laughter.

Arthur stared at the spectators before him, mortified with embarrassment. He was once again the subject of people's amusement, but not in the way he was hoping for. If this is what it took to make people happy, then he no longer wanted any part of it.

Arthur jumped down from the platform and ran out the school's back doors.

Immediately following the unfortunate event, Arthur sprinted out of the building. His surroundings of the outdoors became a blur as he hurried through the streets. He didn't know where he was going, but he just wanted to escape. His steps grew more frantic.

Roaming the area, Arthur kept running until he made it to the outskirts of the city. He had run for miles, so he was on the verge of passing out from exhaustion. He staggered alongside a dirt road with train tracks.

Stopping for a breath, the exhausted adolescent collapsed to his knees. Arthur clenched his eyes shut and clutched at his hair. He did not know how to process his emotions.

Arthur thought back to the audience from just a short while ago. It felt like the entire world took pleasure in seeing him suffer. He couldn't even rely on his mother to support him. His string of negative beliefs spiraled into a path of darkness, leaving him hopeless.

Tears dripped from the young boy's eyes. He let out a couple of crazed sobs. His ragged breaths morphed into hysterical laughter. He screamed so hard that his throat started to hurt.

The sound of a train starting up nearby shook him from his episode. Without hesitation, the boy ran over to the tracks and hopped onto one of the open boxcars. Wherever this train was taking him didn't matter. He just wanted to be taken far away.

Arthur sat down on the wooden floor and eventually fell asleep during the bumpy ride.

* * *

The next morning, the sound of the train's horn woke Arthur up. The ride came to a screeching stop. Arthur hopped off the train and aimlessly walked through a dense forest. The trees were colored with rich autumn tones. He stepped into several muddy puddles along the way, unable to avoid getting his feet wet. He was hungry, dirty, and drained.

After walking for miles, Arthur heard faint music playing in the background. He followed the source of the sound and was subsequently led out of the woods. He could tell he was getting closer to some sort of community, for he heard the voices of many people. He climbed to the top of a hill, and gasped at his discovery: It was a carnival.

A sign above the entrance read:

ANNUAL TRAVELING CARNIVAL: PURCHASE TICKETS HERE

Arthur certainly had no money for a ticket, and disappointment settled in as he saw a long line of people happily traveling inside. He circled around the fenced perimeter unnoticed, and crawled through a loose opening in one of the gates.

He had never been to such a place before, so he stopped for a brief moment to take in his marvelous surroundings.

There were festive balloons all over the place. Colorful lights adorned the ferris wheel, carousels, and several other rides. Large crowds of children with their parents occupied most of the space. The delicious smells of funnel cakes and cotton candy made his stomach growl.

He looked around in a slight panic for something to eat. A man standing by a trash can discarded a half-eaten hot dog. Arthur went over to the trash and grabbed his newfound meal, snatching a tossed cup of cola as well.

To his right was a red and white striped tent. Out of pure curiosity, he seamlessly blended into the crowded line to sneak inside. He took a seat on the bleachers with the rest of the audience.

The lights dimmed down. A male voice blared through the overhead speakers:

"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the Annual Circus Extravaganza! Feast your eyes on the world's most talented performers and enjoy the show!"

Arthur sipped his drink and watched as spotlights pointed to the center of the arena. Trumpets, piano notes, and cymbals harmonized to create whimsical music. Acrobats flew through the air on trapezes while tightrope walkers accompanied the act.

Various clowns on unicycles peddled to the center. They impressed the crowd by juggling bowling pins. A clown with a green wig drew the most attention, being at the front of the group. The green-wigged man skipped around in his clunky shoes while honking the others' noses. He used silly props to amuse the people.

Arthur was fascinated to see how one man could captivate the crowd, making them laugh with him instead of at him. It gave Arthur hope. He wanted to join the clown and receive the same praise; to earn an encouraging and validating round of applause.

"One day," he promised himself.