Post by EVA on Aug 21, 2014 18:55:57 GMT -5
private writing references. c: please to not steal. thank you!
For most people, the circus was a place of wonder. Nowhere else on Earth could one see humans swing through the air or shoot fire from their mouths. There were spectacular displays of strength and oddities, people from far off lands with narrow eyes or stretched necks. Children would save their pennies for months and travel for hours to the next city in order to slip inside this mysterious world for a few hours. They’d talk for weeks following about the daring show put on by the lion tamer and try to figure how that beautiful woman could have actually swallowed a sword. These memories would hang in their minds until the next year or so, when the circus would make it’s way around the country again.
Charlie never had to wait, though. For most of what she could remember of her life, she’d been living alongside the people that entertained the rest of the world. She woke every morning to breakfast cooked by a contortionist and spent her days grooming and caring for the various animals that showed off their talents. It certainly wasn’t a center-stage position in the traveling show, but she didn’t mind this in the least. Charlie preferred her work, actually. Being behind the scenes was the least stressful for her because it allowed her to stay quiet for most of her day… Not that she really had a choice in it all.
When Leonard Sells found her at the train station, the little blonde girl had been standing at the edge of the platform with her hand stretched out. Unable to rouse the courage to beg for change, she quivered while the masses passed her by without a glance. He watched the child for a while, wondering where her parents might have been. After all, such a fair little girl couldn’t have just been deposited in such a dirty place.
“Where’s your poppy, dove?”
He received no words in return from the girl. She looked up to him, doe-eyed and frightened. It was evident that she didn’t have any information on the matter. At first, the man found it odd that she didn’t respond. He ushered the girl away from the train and to the benches alongside the building. Here, he sat and leveled himself with the child, continuing to question as to why she was alone. She stood with her eyes focused on the man’s shoes, and eventually worked a sigh out of him.
It was impossible to leave her there. She was scrawny, and by the looks of her tangled hair, she hadn’t seen a tub in a while. The plump man stood and offered a hand to the girl, though it took a moment for her to accept the stranger’s kindness. The Sells Brother’s Circus had just picked up a new member, though he wasn’t sure what he could do with such a young thing yet.
Sixteen years passed from that day, and Charlie expressed her admiration for her father-figure often. It took months for her to open her mouth and confide in the man who, by that point, had assumed she was unable to speak. Despite how long she’d been with the circus, the girl still found it difficult to speak to most of it’s members. They understood though, and gave the girl her space. Most of the performers were able to avoid her altogether provided that they didn’t have to pass the animal’s tent, and they liked it that way. Charlie had been the apple of Leonard’s eye and he worked tirelessly to protect her from the dangers in the world. Early on in her time there, a man had been sent away from the circus, fired from his job and evicted from his home there for teasing and taunting the girl. From that point on, many of the performers saw it easier not to befriend the odd, silent child.
It was Friday afternoon when Charlie finally began towards the animals tent. There would be a show late that evening after the sun went down, and the horses would need their tails and manes braided. She wore her own blonde hair in a loose ponytail down her back, glad that the fall weather permitted her to do so. Her torso was covered in a plain white shirt that tucked itself into a brown skirt, which stopped midway to her calf. It wasn’t her favorite outfit but she was smarter than to wear anything nice into the tent where the animals slept.
“Good morning, Earnest.”
Her voice was soft as she greeted the first large Clydesdale, waking him from his afternoon nap. He snorted excitedly to the familiar woman, pressing his nose against her stomach and waist. Surely, somewhere in those clothes, she’d brought him a treat. Charlie patted the horse’s forehead, producing the biscuit from a pocket in her skirt and letting him nibble it up before pushing his boxy head away.
With Earnest’s snack tooth now satisfied, she hitched him to the post nearby. He began to resume his napping, letting his head hang low and making it easier for the particularly short girl to reach his dark mane. Charlie drug a comb through the hair first, freeing it of tangles before wetting it with a pail of water by the hitch and beginning her work. While he nimble fingers weaved the hair together and into an intricate pattern, she talked to the animal. It was much like someone would talk with a new friend - casually, with short sentences. She discussed the weather and her upcoming birthday with one of the only people she could… The animals in the Sells Brother’s Circus.
For most people, the circus was a place of wonder. Nowhere else on Earth could one see humans swing through the air or shoot fire from their mouths. There were spectacular displays of strength and oddities, people from far off lands with narrow eyes or stretched necks. Children would save their pennies for months and travel for hours to the next city in order to slip inside this mysterious world for a few hours. They’d talk for weeks following about the daring show put on by the lion tamer and try to figure how that beautiful woman could have actually swallowed a sword. These memories would hang in their minds until the next year or so, when the circus would make it’s way around the country again.
Charlie never had to wait, though. For most of what she could remember of her life, she’d been living alongside the people that entertained the rest of the world. She woke every morning to breakfast cooked by a contortionist and spent her days grooming and caring for the various animals that showed off their talents. It certainly wasn’t a center-stage position in the traveling show, but she didn’t mind this in the least. Charlie preferred her work, actually. Being behind the scenes was the least stressful for her because it allowed her to stay quiet for most of her day… Not that she really had a choice in it all.
When Leonard Sells found her at the train station, the little blonde girl had been standing at the edge of the platform with her hand stretched out. Unable to rouse the courage to beg for change, she quivered while the masses passed her by without a glance. He watched the child for a while, wondering where her parents might have been. After all, such a fair little girl couldn’t have just been deposited in such a dirty place.
“Where’s your poppy, dove?”
He received no words in return from the girl. She looked up to him, doe-eyed and frightened. It was evident that she didn’t have any information on the matter. At first, the man found it odd that she didn’t respond. He ushered the girl away from the train and to the benches alongside the building. Here, he sat and leveled himself with the child, continuing to question as to why she was alone. She stood with her eyes focused on the man’s shoes, and eventually worked a sigh out of him.
It was impossible to leave her there. She was scrawny, and by the looks of her tangled hair, she hadn’t seen a tub in a while. The plump man stood and offered a hand to the girl, though it took a moment for her to accept the stranger’s kindness. The Sells Brother’s Circus had just picked up a new member, though he wasn’t sure what he could do with such a young thing yet.
Sixteen years passed from that day, and Charlie expressed her admiration for her father-figure often. It took months for her to open her mouth and confide in the man who, by that point, had assumed she was unable to speak. Despite how long she’d been with the circus, the girl still found it difficult to speak to most of it’s members. They understood though, and gave the girl her space. Most of the performers were able to avoid her altogether provided that they didn’t have to pass the animal’s tent, and they liked it that way. Charlie had been the apple of Leonard’s eye and he worked tirelessly to protect her from the dangers in the world. Early on in her time there, a man had been sent away from the circus, fired from his job and evicted from his home there for teasing and taunting the girl. From that point on, many of the performers saw it easier not to befriend the odd, silent child.
It was Friday afternoon when Charlie finally began towards the animals tent. There would be a show late that evening after the sun went down, and the horses would need their tails and manes braided. She wore her own blonde hair in a loose ponytail down her back, glad that the fall weather permitted her to do so. Her torso was covered in a plain white shirt that tucked itself into a brown skirt, which stopped midway to her calf. It wasn’t her favorite outfit but she was smarter than to wear anything nice into the tent where the animals slept.
“Good morning, Earnest.”
Her voice was soft as she greeted the first large Clydesdale, waking him from his afternoon nap. He snorted excitedly to the familiar woman, pressing his nose against her stomach and waist. Surely, somewhere in those clothes, she’d brought him a treat. Charlie patted the horse’s forehead, producing the biscuit from a pocket in her skirt and letting him nibble it up before pushing his boxy head away.
With Earnest’s snack tooth now satisfied, she hitched him to the post nearby. He began to resume his napping, letting his head hang low and making it easier for the particularly short girl to reach his dark mane. Charlie drug a comb through the hair first, freeing it of tangles before wetting it with a pail of water by the hitch and beginning her work. While he nimble fingers weaved the hair together and into an intricate pattern, she talked to the animal. It was much like someone would talk with a new friend - casually, with short sentences. She discussed the weather and her upcoming birthday with one of the only people she could… The animals in the Sells Brother’s Circus.