Chapter Text
She’d never imagined this reaction to helping the odd traveling performers. Her eyes scanned the faces of her fellow townsfolk. She…She didn’t recognise them. Their faces twisted in fear and hatred. It was scary. “Come now. We’ve run the rest outta town. They escaped, but we KNOW ya took in tha one we hurt lass.” She swallowed thickly at the realization that the current mob of her neighbors…her friends, were indeed the ones who hurt the red clad man who was currently sleeping in her home. “We know ya mean well, lass. Always have had a soft heart, even for people that don’t deserve it, but those performers are monsters. True ones. They need to be destroyed before they harm anyone else.” She supposed they were right. It hadn’t been hard to see the missing people, or catch a glimpse of blood. But, were they truly evil if they were just trying to live? To keep their loved ones safe. Was it really her place…their place to judge. It didn’t matter right now. She wouldn’t turn someone over she had PROMISED to care for. No matter how justified. And another part of her wanted to prove the jaded man wrong. Humans weren’t inherently evil. She could never believe that. She took a steadying breath and shut her door behind her. He was healed enough. Hopefully he took whatever opportunity she gave him to run back to his family.
“I don’t have him here. You KNOW I don’t see patients in my home. I took him to my clinic for care.” She answered calmly. She started walking, “If it’s true what you say then I’ll have no choice. Let’s go.” They seemed skeptical at first, but followed her. She felt a heavy hand on her shoulder. “I know this is hard for ya lass, but it’s for the better. You’ll see.” She just nodded, her face grim. She led them to the clinic doors and opened it, staying outside as they swarmed in. “I usually put patients in the back to rest.” She called, waiting for the last person to enter the doors before slamming it shut behind them, knocking some nearby crates of supplies over to bar it. That wouldn’t hold long, but maybe it’d give her enough time…
She sprinted back towards her home, rushing in the door quietly, “Bilheteiro.” She was gasping the man's name, running to the room she had laid him down in. He was…gone. The room was empty except for the bed, neatly made, and a lone vanity. It was like…no one had been here at all. She felt a mixture of relief and disappointment. Now the question was. What should she do? She maybe had time to run, she knew this land like no other, but would she really make it? A lone woman, traveling alone? One that knew the old medicines? She was older as well. If she didn’t meet her end here it was likely… She took a calming breath and sat down at the vanity.
She slowly pulled out a picture her brother had sent of him and his family. She was meant to visit them in the Americas. Looks like she wouldn’t be making it. She pulled out a brush next, slowly running it through her curls, humming softly. Once all the tangles were smoothed, she pulled out a pair of sewing scissors from another drawer. She took a deep breath. It was said hair held a lot of memories, but it wasn’t like hers would matter anymore soon. Still the first cut was almost painful. The ones after that were easier. She bundled her tresses together and left them on the vanity. She could hear them coming now. She closed her eyes and folded her hands, saying a quick prayer, for herself, that death wasn’t too painful, for the circus, for her fellow townsfolk.
That was how they found her when they came rushing into her home. She didn’t struggle as they dragged her to the center of town where a makeshift pyre was being set up. She smiled wryly at the faces that greeted her. Some didn’t even have the courage to look at her. “Amelia Veras. You are hereby accused and convicted of conspiring with and helping demons kill and corrupt the good people of this town. For everyone's sake, and the sake of your own soul you have been sentenced to burn at the stake. Have ye anything to say?” She shook her head, wry smile never leaving her lips. “You’ve made your decision. I hope you one day see the truth and live to regret it.” A murmur broke out in the crowd. Someone threw something. “Witch!” She was dragged to the Pyre and tied. Someone, she couldn’t see clear faces with the darkening sky held up a lit torch. “One last chance. Just tell us where you’ve hidden him. Where the others have gone, you may be spared the flames of at least the next life.” She shook her head again. “So be it. May God have mercy upon you.”
The Pyre was lit. There was nothing at first, then a warmth. Fire spread quickly. She could feel it licking and burning at her feet and ankles before long. Acrid smoke flooded up around her filling her lungs. She coughed. If there was a merciful God let the smoke kill her now. No one listened to her prayers this night. The hem of her dress caught, the rest of it followed. She could feel her skin sizzle and pop. She screamed, her eyes burning with smoke and tears. Even now as nerves and flesh burned away and turned to ash she didn’t regret what she had done. She would make the same call over again given the chance. Although maybe she would have used those scissors to cut her own throat and spare herself the pain of this. Something whistled through the air just as she had that thought, and everything went black.
All that was left of her were fragments of bone, and ash. Though oddly enough, amongst the debris of the Pyre lay a knife shining.
Anya jolted upright. Fuck. When was the last time she’d had a dream that real feeling? She supposed that was what she got for slipping down the research rabbit hole. She looked down at the family tree she had gotten in the mail, along with a few other of her parents' things. She had noticed that there was some great aunt or another that she shared a striking resemblance to. She had been looking to see if she could find anything about the mysterious woman. She’d been burned as a witch. It was likely just like many of the other poor accused she’d been innocent. Still, she couldn’t find anything on the woman. Only her ultimate end. It was incredibly frustrating. She glanced at the clock. Maybe she’d try for a deep dive later, for now she had to go open her shop.
She got up with a sigh, stretching. She winced as she heard several pops and cracks. Oof, falling asleep on her desk hadn’t done her any favors. She walked towards her bathroom stripping out of yesterday’s clothes as she hopped in the shower. Felt like the hot water was out again. Ah well. After she made sure to dry and brush her hair. She’d have to touch it up soon, her undershave was getting a little shaggy, and the lavender was starting to fade to white. For now she just scraped her hair back into a ponytail, and got dressed in a tanktop, jeans, and boots combo. A comfy classic. She grabbed an apple for breakfast, then slipped on an old military jacket she had thrifted, and a small black backpack and headed out.
She was glad she threw the jacket on. It was unusually chilly outside. As she started spacing out, making a mental list of things to do today she heard a commotion. She peaked around a corner to see a small crowd gathered. There was a man dressed in clown attire sitting on the ground, looked like he was bleeding through his mask. Flyers for a circus were scattered around him. A man was screaming at him. “Go back to whatever hellhole you climbed out of freak!” She blinked at the hostility. What in the seven hells?! “Did you hear me?! Get out of our town!” Shock gave into a protective sort of rage as the yelling man stepped aggressively to who she assumed was a performer for the recent circus that came to town. Without much more thought she lobbed the apple in her hand towards the yelling man's head, jogging towards the scene right after. “Who the fuck-” She very obviously inserted herself between the yelling man and performer. “Oh terribly sorry. My hand must have slipped.” Her voice was saccharine, with just the edge of something sharp to it. The man was rubbing his head. “What the hell?! Where do you think you get off-” She flicked her hand dismissively towards him. “Depends on who my partner is for the night, but we're not talking about me right now asshole. What do you think you're doing assaulting some poor person just doing their job?”
She didn’t step aside as the man aggressively gestured to the performer behind her, “The only job he has is working for the devil!” Her face went blank as she stared pointedly at all the fliers on the ground. “So the devil has resorted to handing out flowers. Wow…sad. What has this world come to?” She deadpanned. She heard a few snickers in the crowd around her, and her lips curled into an easy smirk. It was hard not to outright laugh at how red the man was turning. “YOU!” The man took an aggressive step forward, fists clenched. She subtly slid into a self-defense position. “Careful, you keep this up I will call the cops. All these witnesses here. Doesn't look good for you.” She threatened lowly. “Screw you. I hope you get taken.” He spat at her, before storming off. The rest of the crowd started to dissipate as well. “Yeah, yeah, such a great and courageous person.” She grumbled out under her breath before turning her attention to the performer on the ground.
“Hey are you alright? Need some help?” She asked, leaning down and offering a hand up. She helped him to his feet, blinking in shock. “Woah, tall drink of water ain’t ya?” She purred at him, before looking around. She crouched and picked up some of the flyers spilled on the ground. “Here ya are, and I’m sorry you got harassed. I don’t know why anyone thought that was ok.” She tilted her head when she didn’t really get a response. Then she noticed what looked like blood on his mask. “Oh! Hold up a sec.” She rummaged around in her backpack till she found a first aid kit, pulling a bandage free from it. “Here ya go.” She tilted her head curiously as she gently took the bandage from her. She hiked her backpack back onto her shoulder, “If you got a head injury I’d go to a doctor to get it checked out just in case ok?” She smiled genuinely when he nodded his head. She was about to excuse herself when an idea popped into her head. “Oh!” She rummaged around in her pocket and pulled out a card for your shop. “Ya run into trouble again feel free to come by my shop. Offer's open to your co-worker as well if ya wanna tell them.” Was he blushing? Heh, cute. “I gotta head off now, you be careful ok?” She waited till he nodded before taking off towards her shop.
When she got there she noted the windows were plastered with flyers for the circus. She huffed out a laugh, and carefully moved the flyers from the windows over to the brickwork, taking in any extra to leave on her counter. Her usual clientele would more than probably be the type to be interested in the circus. She moved to the back and started opening everything up, checking her calendar. Oh! Looked like she did have a couple of appointments today. Cool, she’d actually be able to keep her hands busy. She went about setting up her station, then worked on some last minute tweaks for one client's design. She wasn’t sure what the other wanted, but she supposed she’d find out if they kept their appointment.
About an hour late she was leaned over some cause back, humming idly as she worked on inkling lines into his skin. Only pausing to wipe away any excess ink. She took note when he started sweating and shaking a little bit. She paused. “You doing ok? We can take a little break if you need. I have some snacks and water.” She offered gently, grinning when the man confirmed. She set her tattoo machine aside and slipped off her gloves, helping the man sit up. She went over to her little mini fridge and pulled out a water, and a little snack pack and handed it over to the man. “Just for the record you’re doing really well. After our break I’ll go ahead and finish up the line work, then we can set up for your next appointment yeah?” She smiled when he confirmed and left him alone for a moment to go deal with upfront while he snacked.
She was surprised to find a woman actually waiting there, they were looking for her piercer though. “Ah, She’s actually out of the shop today gorgeous but…one sec.” She reached under the counter and pulled out a card to hand to the woman. “Ya still wanna get in contact with her today this is her card. Know she takes clients in home sometimes.” The woman took the card, and she noticed that she still lingered. “There something else I can do for you gorgeous or are ya just enjoying the view?” She joked with a wink. “I-oh-um.” She was blushing, cute. “I saw the flyers.” She gestured, “Do you really think it’s wise to advertise such a controversial show in your business? It could bring you trouble.” Her smile stayed frozen on her face, though it no longer reached her eyes. “Mmmm most people think the business I’m in is pretty controversial, and aside from that, that’s faaarr from the worst thing I’ve advertised in here.” She said almost boredly. “Now if you’ll excuse me I have a client to get back to.” She added dismissively. She actually watched to make sure the woman. Tch. What was wrong with people recently? Ah well. She took a swing from the water she had hidden under the counter, before heading back into the back to see if her client was ready to finish up for the day.
It didn’t take too much longer to finish the outline, she outlined the care instructions, and also gave him a pamphlet just in case. “You’re already paid up, so feel free to come to your next session once the outline heals. And if you have any concerns about the healing process don’t be afraid to call me or come back in kay?” She waved as he exited the shop, then got around to cleaning up her space. Had to keep it tidy and clean, didn’t want to risk ANY of her clients getting infections. It was as she was cleaning that she noticed something on her front window? What? She moved closer. It…looked like someone had breathed on the glass and drew hearts. Her lips twitched into a soft smile, as she gently touched the window where the drawings were. “Cute.”
She didn’t go out to wipe the marks away. It was a lot better than some of the things that ended up on her window. The last edges of light were fading from the sky when her next appointment came in. A nervous looking young man, and a bigger guy. She’d been busy sketching when they came in. A strange man she had met with mysterious purple eyes. She couldn’t seem to get the details quite right. It didn’t help that she hadn’t actually SEEN any details. She quickly shut her sketchbook and stowed it under the counter. “How can I help you gentlemen today?” She purred, leaning on the glass of her counter slightly. “Uhm, Can I use your bathroom real quick?” The smaller of the two asked her, shooting a nervous look at the man next to him. “Feel free, just around the corner.” She opened the hatch the led to the back of her shop and gestured to where the restroom was. The other man had started to follow but she had closed the divider with a smile. “Think he can manage the bathroom by himself, don't you?” She asked sweetly. “Why don’t you tell me what you’re getting today while we wait for him to come back?”
The man grunted and threw a piece of paper on the counter. It was a herculean effort not to let her eye twitch. “It’s for him.” She stiffened immediately when her eyes saw what was on the paper…a barcode. “Mmhm.” Any warmth on her face or in her voice instantly faded. She pushed the paper away from her with one finger as if it were a particularly disgusting insect that had found itself on her counter. “I’m afraid we don’t do those kinds of tattoo’s here. I’m going to have to ask you to leave.” Her smile was all teeth, as she met the man's gaze. He met her glare, “Fine, just let me-” She locked the divider, “No. You will leave now.” She stated firmly, tense, waiting for the man to move.
She wasn’t prepared when he reached over the counter for her, grabbing her arm. They were in a stand off. Suddenly the lights flickered and went out. “What the fuck?!” She used the distraction to pull out her pocket knife and stab the man's arm. “ARG! Fucking Bitch!” She rushed over to where her phone was stashed. She pulled it out, “Last chance to leave, before I call the police, asshole.” She threatened. There was silence as they both sized each other up in the darkness. “You’ll regret tonight bitch.” She watched as he left, waiting a couple more minutes to make sure he wasn’t coming back, before sliding her hands along her walls, trying to pretend very hard like she didn’t feel eyes on her. Was just the tension from before. She tried to justify to herself. She found a lightswitch, and when that didn’t work she found the breaker and reset it, breathing in relief as the lights came back on. She heard the bell to her shop ring but ignored it, making her way to the bathroom. She knocked gently. “Hey, you ok in there?” She asked her voice soft. No response. No noise. She turned the knob, unlocked. “I’m coming in ok?” She entered slowly…There was no one there. The little window opened near the top of the room answered where he went. She didn’t think he’d been that scrawny, but clothes could cover a lot. She sighed, she hoped he’d come back, or at least find a place to get help on his own.
She moved back to the front, “Hey, Sorry I-” She cut herself seeing the tall clown from earlier. An easy smile came to her face. “Well hello there. Good seeing you again. Is there something I can help ya with?” She asked pleasantly, moving over to her counter and leaning on it again. She blinked as a paper flower was handed out to her, delicate petals painted red. The the wiff she caught of the paint was weird. “Oh! Is this for me?” She smiled as she nodded, taking it delicately from him. “Well thank you, I’m flattered.” Her eyes softened a bit. When was the last time someone had given her flowers? She frowned a moment later as she looked up at him. She put her hands down on the counter and reached towards his masked face where there was blood. Again. “Did someone attack you again?!” She opened the divider, “Please come back, let me treat it for you.”
It wasn’t a few moments later that she had him sitting in her chair, gently cleaning away the blood while he smiled happily. Or..she assumed he was. “Two head injuries in one day, you really should go see a doctor.” She commented idly. “I’ll be sure to do so my lady.” She blinked, surprised as he spoke. “Oh, so you can talk hmm?” she teased lightly. “I am normally not permitted to in public, but I figured with just us it would be ok.” Her smile curved into something flirtatious, “Ohhhh, well your secret’s safe with me.” She said putting a finger to lips. She threw the cloth she cleaned his head into a bin marked ‘biohazard.’ Tilting her head, “Speaking of, What’s your name?” She asked as he stood from the chair. “Ah, I am Pierrot, my lady” She rolled his name around her tongue a couple of times. “Beautiful name.” She complimented, noting the way he blushed. Cute. “So you are a silent performer are you? I’d love to see you perform.” She commented idly, as they moved back to the front of the shop.. “That’s part of the reason I’m here, my lady.” She looked as he held something out to her. A circus ticket. “Oh! Are you sure its ok to give me this?” She asked. She’d checked the ticket prices when she had some free time. They were expensive. “Yes, my lady. I would love nothing more if you took it.” She very gently plucked the ticket from his hand. “Thank you Pierrot. You’re very sweet.” She gently ran a hand down his arm. She tried to hide the smirk at the way he shivered.
Like all good thighs though, the night should come to an end. “Much as I’d like to stay and talk with you all night, I should close up and get some rest.” He nodded as she led them both out of her shop and locked the door. “If you would permit, my lady, could I walk you home?” She tensed, just the smallest bit. He’d been sweet up till now, seemingly harmless. Still…she wasn’t quite sure she was comfortable with a stranger following her home just yet. Besides just because he seemed sweet didn’t mean he was…She had learned that the hard way. Then there was she didn’t know if that creep from earlier was around somewhere. She didn’t want him to get hurt, AGAIN, because of her. Still an outright no, could be dangerous as well. Instead she took his hand in hers. “I’m sure you have better things to be doing, and besides I’m a big strong girl. Can take care of myself.” She leaned down and brushed her lips against his gloves knuckles. “I do appreciate the offer though…my lord.” She breathed, flicking up her gaze playfully to meet his. Ah. His blush was so cute. She straightened, “It was really nice having you stop by, Pierrot. Feel free to do so anytime, especially if ya need to get away from any jerks. And I’ll see you tomorrow.” Her voice dropped an octave or two near the end as she stared up at him. Golden eyes, and silver hair. Was he made of stars? She was distracted from that thought as he touched her hair gently, leaving a kiss on one of the strands he had picked up. Woah. Been awhile since someone had been able to make her blush. “Till tomorrow, my lady.”
She let out a huff when she finally made it back to her apartment. She pulled her hair down out of its ponytail. She glanced around. Her apartment was small, but it was cleaner than her last place, it felt like home. Thinking of the last place…She wondered if the bloodstain was still on the floor. She shook off the memories for now. She changed into a pair of sleep shorts and a different tanktop, before checking the locks on her door and the one on her small balcony. Old habits died hard. It wasn’t long after that, that she collapsed into bed, curling herself around one of her pillows and falling into a deep sleep.