Backpack? Check.
Books? Check.
Small rectangular tin with tobacco, Rizla and filters? Check.
Wait . . .
Where the motherfuck was his pencil case?
Scratching his badly dyed dark purple hair, he swiped a few empty Faygo bottles off the table. Huh. Gamzee Makara wasn't entirely sure where his pencil case could have gotten to in his messy little caravan - or if he'd even remembered to buy one. His short term memory was incredibly unreliable, given his recreational habits, but he figured the item would appear in his backpack in time for Monday morning. Things had a way of working out real sweet like that in his experience.
"Can't fucking up and expect shit to just stay put, now, can I?" he muttered to himself, pushing the backpack into the unknown mess of his abode for the moment before plodding down to the other end of his home.
Being a clown for the Dark Carnival was all he'd ever known, and he'd be lying if he said he didn't love it. The thrill of the crowd, the screams of horror and amazement when the show got into full swing; there really wasn't anything quite like it. However, his father was getting fed up with how badly Gamzee's education was going. A nomadic life meant he'd been mostly taught by private tutors that his dad had paid for (they made a fair amount of money,) but Gamzee would usually fail to follow through, either by ignoring the banging on his door or by being too intoxicated to really listen in the first place. As such, the circus had stationed itself in Newark city so that Gamzee could retake his GCSEs after his dad had 'convinced' the headmaster to let him in. It was rumoured to involve one of the many favours owed to the eldest Makara, but Gamzee wasn't one to pry.
A sudden banging on his trailer door slowly brought Gamzee back to reality, or at least close enough to go and answer it. He stuffed the bag of sopor he'd been planning to smoke into his back pocket. Sopor was his shit. A pretty strong strain of cannabis that was cut with a sedative and sold in block form. It was bordering class A in potency, but until the courts passed that decision, it was still a class B drug as far as the police and its users were concerned.
"What the motherfuck do you want?" Gamzee yawned, opening the door with a mind to strike up a conversation, though his disposition changed when he saw who it was. "Oh . . . Howdy doo-dee, Bro," he said airily, a dopey smile spreading to match his tone as he greeted his older brother. It went without much appreciation though as the tall mute rolled his eyes and started moving his fingers about in a flurry of signs.
:IF A SIN WAS EMBODIED WITHIN YOUR UGLY ASS, IT WOULD BE SLOTH. GET YOUR CARCASS OUT HERE, THOSE CLUBS AREN'T GONNA HURL THEMSELVES AND DAD'S GONNA UP AND KICK THE SHIT INTO YOU IF YOU'RE NOT ON THE MOTHERFUCKIN BALL:
"Awwh, Kurloz. You know that fucking ball ain't my strong point. Dad kicks my ass for just about anything. Guy's got his fucking nose right up in my business. Dude needs to smoke up some miracles and chill." Gamzee groaned, stepping out of the trailer and not even bothering to close the door. Kurloz looked down at Gamzee (which was impressive as Gamzee easily stood at 6 feet, Kurloz himself being taller still at 6'4") and flicked his sibling's temple as they began to walk.
:THERE WILL BE A CELEBRATORY ASS KICKING ON YOU IF THIS ATTITUDE IS THE SHIT YOU CHOSE TO BE PRESENTING TO THE GHB, OUR FATHER IS NONE FOR THIS NOISE YOU KEEP FUCKIN HIS SHIT UP WITH. ITS A SELL-OUT TONIGHT, SHIT'S GOTTA BE UP AND FUCKING BEYOND PERFECT. THAT STELLAR FALL YOU HAD LAST TIME YOU FLIPPED WAS YOUR OWN MOTHERFUCKIN FAULT. IF YOU WANTED TO HAVE A DATE WITH GRAVITY AND BROKEN BONES, THIS BROTHER COULD'VE ARRANGED YOUR STUPID SELF BEIN THROWN OFF THE TERROR WHEEL:
He had a point. Hell, he always had a point. Even if they occasionally ended up physically punching each other as a result of some of their squabbles, the two of them were fairly close. Gamzee figured their dad, aka GHB (so called because he was a 'Giant Hulking Bastard' of a man) would've been harsher on him if it weren't for Kurloz mediating for the two of them. Nevertheless, he usually endured a hell of a beating when he got out of line and the last fuck up he'd made had earned him the busted lip and black eye he was so elegantly sporting today. The Makaras were used to it, though, and thought nothing of it. To them, it was normal.
"Yeah, yeah. I'll fucking practise with you now if you shut the fuck up and take me to the ring. Fuck, Bro, stitched lips didn't fucking keep you off my motherfucking back, did it?" Gamzee growled, shoving Kurloz roughly.
Kurloz smirked a bit as he returned the gesture, nearly toppling Gamzee over. Common folk were always shocked to see a man with a wholly-stitched mouth, and it made most avoid Kurloz entirely when they were out and about. The mute didn't seem to mind this at all. If anything, it was the people who came up to him and stated how 'unique' and 'cool' it was that seemed to irritate him most. Gamzee recalled one time Kurloz had punched a lad with lip piercings for thinking that the stitches were a similar thing. Why he had stitched his lips though? Well, no one really knew. A bizarre night out two years ago had resulted in the mime getting incredibly intoxicated and he'd very nearly harmed his ex fiancée. What happened afterwards was left in mystery. Kurloz had left Meulin at her house, and then the next day, he'd showed up at the circus, lips sewn and very hungover.
GHB had smacked Kurloz around the head hard enough to give him a mild concussion before telling him to make use of it. As such, Kurloz became the greatest mime the world had ever seen.
:MAYBE WE OUGHT TO DO EVERYONE A FAVOUR AND DO THE SAME FOR YOU. LITTLE BRO NEEDS TO WATCH WHAT SHIT HE SPOUTS.:
Gamzee rolled his eyes, half-tempted to snap his brother's fingers off to avoid reading his snarky signs. "So aggressive, man. You'd be better off just chilling the fuck out too."
:I'LL CHILL THE MOTHERFUCK OUT WHEN YOU'VE UPPED AND GOT YOUR SHIT TOGETHER. MIRACLES NEED TO FUCKING WORK THEIR MAGIC ON YOU BRO IF YOU'RE EVER GOING TO MEASURE UP TO DAD. THIS SHIT WON'T RUN IF HE GETS FUCKIN BACK IN THE SLAMMER. LEAST YOU GOT YOUR FUCKIN PAINT ON, HONK HONK:
That stitched smile was nothing less than creepy, plastered on his face, but Gamzee could still see a small hint of pride. Makaras belonged at the circus like fish belonged in the water and GHB had made the Dark Carnival one of the best. It had been intended that Kurloz would suceed him someday, with Gamzee as his second in command. The eighteen-year-old clown wasn't really sure if he wanted all that responsibility, though. All he wanted to do was perform and waste away in his trailer getting stoned.
He gave a dark laugh as Kurloz mentioned the facepaint that the two of them were rarely seen without. "Don't get your fucking hopes up. I passed out last night wearing this shit."
Kurloz chuckled regardless, the noise rumbling in his throat, and gave Gamzee a light smack on the back of his head as they entered the large purple tent.
:READY TO PRACTICE MAKING THE SPOTLIGHT YOUR BITCH?:
Gamzee grinned and stuck both his middle fingers up. "Honk honk, motherfucker."
The fact that Mituna was currently holding tissue under his bloody nose as they waited for a taxi was testament to how difficult their evening had been.
"MY NOSETH HURTH" he grumbled, still looking watery-eyed and grouchy. Sollux rubbed his temples in annoyance. Everything had been running so smoothly earlier. He'd gotten up in the morning, found the full kettle Almeis left for him as usual, and they'd both had tea. Then breakfast, then some time playing video games, and he'd even managed to convince Mituna to have a bath without too much fuss. However, everything had come undone later in the afternoon.
Almeis's typical work day usually ended in the early evening, but today he'd needed to stay late. He had called home and told Sollux to order some pizza in, and for some reason, Mituna had decided this meant they weren't going to the circus. He'd thrown one hell of a tantrum as a result. Sollux knew the smorgasbord of tears and obscenities left little room for reason. He was far too familiar with them to even try. He'd let Mituna throw his tantrum and speak to him once he'd calmed down.
Why Mituna got so upset over this, he'd never understand, but once he'd explained they were still going out, the damaged man had gotten overexcited, which was another problem in itself. He'd rushed around the house, wanting to go see the circus as soon as possible, and had somehow, in his rush to get ready, managed to misjudge the stopping distance between himself and the wall. Sollux's ears were still ringing from how loudly Mituna had cursed and wailed post-impact.
"This is what you get for flipping your shit over the slightest thing. Fuck . . . Maybe we should get you back on meds. At least you were easier to handle back then." Sollux groaned, ignoring Mituna's sad expression behind the bloody tissue.
"I'M SORRY."
"You don't know what you're even sorry for, Mitz. You're just saying that because I'm pissed off. You were such a fucking brat today" he snapped.
"I'M SORRY AGAIN . . ."
A moment or two passed and Sollux began to feel a bit guilty. He hadn't meant to snap at Mituna, but sometimes dealing with him was so stressful that things slipped out. But it wasn't Mituna's fault. Cooped up in the house with so much energy to burn, it was little wonder why Mituna had these outbursts. Even skateboarding in the garden didn't seem to help anymore. Sollux had hoped that Mituna would be a bit more fulfilled when he started working with Almeis. He wasn't entirely sure how it was going to work, but he figured Almeis had thought it through, so he wasn't worried.
He lightly papped Mituna's shoulder and removed the bloody tissue. It seemed that the bleeding had stopped for the time being, and there wasn't too much of a mess.
". . . Sorry for being a dick, Mitz" he said quietly, using a fresh tissue from his pocket to wipe up what he could of the dried blood.
"ITH OK." Mituna grinned, moving towards Sollux in a very haphazard attempt at a hug.
Mituna's hugs were a rare treasure, as most times, he did not like being touched. Touching was a special privilege reserved for a few. The only other person apart from family members that Mituna had ever had any physical contact with was his ex-girlfriend Latula. She had been a nice girl from what Sollux could remember, and Mituna had been pretty happy about the relationship, despite the fact that he'd barely ever kiss her, let alone go any further. In the end, they'd drifted apart and their relationship ended. Almeis and Sollux didn't blame her, though. Everyone has needs.
"The taxi will be showing up soon. Are you warm?" He asked, checking that Mituna's yellow hoodie was on properly, along with his dark brown beanie. The September weather clung to the humidity of summer, but there was still a definite chill in the air from what he could feel. Mituna was so prone to getting sick that Sollux wasn't going to risk it.
"YETH."
"Good . . . Let me just check you've got everything in your bag."
"YETH," he repeated, turning so that Sollux could access the backpack he was wearing.
Inside was a change of underwear, some trousers, a spare top, numerous wallets, Sol's gameboy (he was certain this circus was going to bore the shit out of him, might as well level grind), a bag of lollipops, and finally, his phone. A change of clothes was essential as sometimes Mituna was a victim of unfortunate incidents where bladder control failed.
It never failed to break Sollux's heart. Not because it was sad, but because Mituna would be horribly quiet and ashamed, something that was not in Mituna's character at all. He was rarely ashamed of anything that he did. Thankfully, Sollux always made sure Mituna went to the loo before they went anywhere, and made sure to take him to the bathroom when they went out. Still, accidents happened, and so he was certain to be prepared.
"Sweet. We're all set to go, Mitz" he smiled, papping Mituna's back. "I'll take the bag when we get to the circus though. I'll be fucked if I let any fucking chavs try and nick it."
"YETH."
"Er . . . are you listening?"
"YETH NO."
". . . Alright . . . Dark Carnival. What sort of shitty name is that, anyway?" He mumbled to himself, watching as the taxi pulled up. "It'll be boring as fuck, I hope. Then I can laugh at KK for saying it was scary as shit. What a dick."
Mituna looked at Sollux, then to the taxi and back again. "WILLTH YOU JHUSTH GETH INTHE FUCKINGHT CAR SO WE CAN GO?"
When they arrived at South Common, Sollux had felt like openly weeping at the sight of the seemingly endless queue of spectators.
"ITH IS LIEK A BIGTH PEOPLE SNAKE," Mituna observed, pointing at the winding line.
"Yeah . . . I don't think we need to get into that line though." Sollux muttered, trying to find a ticket stand.
Thankfully for both of them, Almeis had the foresight to make sure they were to be seated in the disabled section due to Mituna's special needs, and Sollux made a mental note to thank his eldest brother later. Mituna's aversion to touch also meant he didn't like being seated close to others either, and if Sollux was honest with himself, it was probably the best thing about going to events like these with his brother.
After a few minutes of wandering about trying to find their entrance proved fruitless, Sollux finally considered asking one of the stewards for direction. He spotted a green eyed female with long hair and a hi vis jacket and headed towards her, assuming she was part of the staff. Her glittery green cat ears made Sollux assume she must have been a circus worker as well, before he patted her arm lightly.
"Er, excuse me. We're in the disabled section, but I'm not sure how to get to it" Sollux said. Mituna clung to one of his arms, looking fairly shocked to see her attire.
"SHETH A CATH" he said, in a whisper that couldn't have been any louder if he'd tried. Sollux aimed a sharp nudge into his brother's ribs to shut him up and received a yelp of pain in response.
The worker giggled to herself and winked at Mituna as she grinned wide enough to show the elongated canines she was equipped with.
"You bet I am! I'll take you pawesome guys over to the tent. You know we totally sold out tonight apart from the disabled area! It'll be like your own VIP box!" She grinned as she started walking towards the huge purple tents, eerie and foreboding in the distance as shrieks and screeches of laughter sounded out from behind them.
"You'll need to show your tickets, though, and ID. Can't have any little kittens sneaking in with the big cats, now, can we?"
The cat puns would have been funny if she wasn't speaking too fluidly for them to be an act, as well as the fact that she was speaking very loudly. Sollux was wondering if those canines were the result of dental surgery as Mituna stared at her jacket.
"WHY THE GLOWTHY YELLOW? YELLOW CAT?" He frowned, pointing at it.
The girl looked at it and then to Mituna.
"Our steward wasn't feline very well so I stood in for him. Poor Droog, he got hit real hard with heat stroke. Anyway, see that booth there with the little kitty cat? Just go wave your ticket at her and she'll lead you right in" she said, pointing to a girl who looked like a smaller version of herself.
Sollux wondered if they were perhaps twins, but as he approached the shorter haired girl, he realised she was too young for that to be so. When they got closer, he realised she was probably a few years younger than he was. A big shiny badge in the shape of a paw print told Sollux her name was Nepeta, and Mituna was already waving at her enthusiastically.
"WE CAMTHET TWO SEETH THE FUCKINGSUCRISSHITHWEIUHR!"
"Mitz, calm down . . . Er, he means we're here for the circus. We've got disabled seating and the . . . other cat- I mean, girl, told us to speak to you?" he said, pulling off the backpack and starting to open it up.
"I'll get you cats seated when I've seen your ID and your tickets!" she beamed, smiling at Mituna as he babbled on about how rad her ears were and asking why he hadn't grown any. Nepeta giggled and rolled with it. The way she spoke about her cat ears was so passionate, anyone would have thought she really was a cat girl. But Sollux knew better. He pulled out the things she had asked for. "Here" he said, passing them over.
Carefully reading the tickets, she smiled and nodded in approval.
"Meowtuna and Pawllux, alright! I have to tell you some information first. The disabled section is ringside, and if you need the toilet during the show, we have marked out a pawesome little trail for you in pawprints to follow! You won't be able to miss it! The show is about an hour and a half long without intermission. Are you ready to go and see the show? We'll get you in before everyone else so yowl can get settled!" she beamed, handing them their things back.
The three of them walked past the booth and into the darkness of the tent where the house lights barely gave away how the interior looked. It was a typical circus setup, the huge ring in the middle, with a tightrope strung across the two poles. It was like they had walked into a different and much darker world; however, as Sollux noted, the place was decorated with fake bones, skulls and various other supposedly scary things. Mituna didn't seem creeped out at all, however, as he was staring at the line of pawprints that lead to their seating area. It was like a little box that had been stuck in front of the rest of the seating, and aside from one or two chairs out of place, it was clearly intended for wheelchair users.
"Here you go, guys! Enjoy the show, okay?" Nepeta grinned, giving them a wave and then walking off.
Once she was gone, they sat down and got as comfortable as they could. Sollux was very grateful that Mituna wasn't the type who would run out in the middle of a show. He was much happier to sit back and watch as visions of possible incidents made his stomach flip. No: he was very, very grateful Mituna wasn't the type to do that, where large crowds and strange places were concerned. Had it been a more familiar place, Sollux would have had more of a reason to worry.
"I'M EXCITEDHT PAWLUCS." Mituna grinned, bopping up and down in his seat as he watched people starting to fill the rest of the seating.
"No, we're not doing that. Its Sollux or Sol, you have those two options and that is it" he snapped, cursing that stupid cat girl. His brother sniggered and stared at the ring, bored already, watching the tent begin to fill.
Soon enough, the entire tent was filled to the brim with spectators and the buzz of conversation was starting to grate on Sollux's nerves. He was never the type for these sorts of outings, and after making sure Mituna wasn't too unsettled by the rise of activity, he reached towards the backpack, pulling on his lap and opening it.
"Look, Mituna, this might take awhile, so I'm going to just play on my G-" Sollux began, but was cut short by the tight grip Mituna had on his arm as the lights suddenly cut without warning. A startled silence fell on the crowd in momentary shock before a voice started to speak out from the darkness.
"LADIES AND MOTHERFUCKING GENTLEMEN, BOYS AND GIRLS . . ." came a husky, vicious sounding voice over the speakers. The entire tent was silent as the lights began to rise on the ring, lighting it up and spinning about. There was a figure in the middle - that much was clear - but who or what it was wasn't revealed until the spotlights suddenly shone on one spot.
Stood in the very centre of the ring at the attention of the crowd and spotlight was a tall man in a skeleton suit with wild black hair, his mouth apparently stitched closed as he mimed and gestured, whilst the voice began to speak once more.
"WELCOME TO THE DARK MOTHERFUCKING CARNIVAL, BROTHERS AND SISTERS. YOU WILL BE AMAZED, HORRIFIED, SURPRISED AND PULLED INTO A WORLD OF MIRTHFUL MIRACLES AS WE SHOW YOU WONDERS AND TERRORS FROM AROUND THE WORLD. SO, SIT BACK, ENJOY THE SHOW AND TRY NOT TO SCREAM."
The mime seemed to turn on the spot and look their way, so Sollux looked at Mituna, expecting him to be freaked out and ready to bolt, but was surprised to see his brother was utterly fixated on the performer, an unreadable expression upon his face as he stared unblinking and in awe. Sollux was about to ask what was wrong when there was a loud bang from the ring, and he turned back to see the mime had disappeared in a flurry of purple smoke. In his place, several other performers cartwheeled out and started doing various contortions and other things. The show had gotten off to an impressive start, and Sollux just knew that Mituna would find this amazing, turning once more to look at him. He wasn't smiling.
"Mitz?"
His brother simply looked confused, as if looking for something, and Sollux really had no idea what that something could or might have been. He decided he was probably just a bit confused at what was going on and paid it no mind, settling back into his seat to watch the cartwheeling performers.
The show resumed regardless of any confusion from Mituna, and the two Captor brothers watched on as there were points of amazement and horror, such as the blue man who lifted up both of the cat girls on one arm, as well as several other impossibly heavy items, a tightrope act, acrobats, some really gory magic tricks that made Sollux want to vomit a few times, a trapeze artist who scared everyone shitless by pretending to fall to her death, all strung together with a light show that could only be described as 'an epileptic acid trip'. The crowd oohed and ahhed in all the right places. and screamed right when they were supposed to, and even Sollux himself was dragged into the atmosphere of it all. Glances back at his brother though showed him that Mituna was still looking for something, like he couldn't concentrate on anything at all, but before Sollux could make sure if he really was okay, Mituna's eyes widened with the next act as indigo smoke filled the ring once again.
Once it faded, creepy carnival music filled the tent, and the forms of several clowns appeared where the smoke had been, each doing their own thing and of all shapes and sizes, but the ones that gained the most attention were the lanky mime from the start who was somehow balancing a similar looking clown on his hand, showing an impressive display of strength. The clown being balanced was sporting a hazed look, a black eye that was obvious even under the thick paint and juggling several clubs. He had a Capricorn sign on his shirt, and just as Sollux was wondering why that was, he saw the clown in question shoot him a wicked grin as the clubs were juggled. How these two performers were doing this trick, Sollux didn't know, and he gasped as the clown backflipped off the mime, landing perfectly on his feet and cartwheeling off to do some other tricks.
Anyone who looked at Mituna would see that his eyes never left the mime for a second, soaking in each movement and such like a sponge, although he looked more like a deer caught in the headlights than anything else. The ensemble of clowns performed various acrobatics and some particularly hair raising flips as well as juggling various things. There was naturally a few funny moments before the entire show came to a finale with some fire breathing and pyrotechnics that ended with the two main clowns blowing fireballs so close to the crowd that it might have been breaking a million health and safety rules at once. As it came to an end, they all took a bow to a huge round of applause that was so noisy, Sollux didn't hear the scrape of a chair next to him. After a short encore performance from the cat girls, there was another applause before the performers left and the house lights came back up, brightening the area up vastly as Sollux slumped back in his chair. He hadn't realised that he'd been sat on the edge of his seat. It took him a few minutes to adjust to the lights and the buzz of people starting to leave as his head was still spinning a little from the flashing lights he'd been subjected to for the last hour and a half. It had been a hell of a show after all, and he was grateful he'd been able to see it. Almeis probably would've enjoyed it, so he figured he'd stay awake to tell him about it when he got home. For now, though, he seemed to have come back down to reality and was ready to go.
"Woah, that shit was really intense, wasn't it, Mitz?" he said as he picked up the bag to get ready to leave, before he realized his brother was no longer next to him.
". . . FUCK!"