A Marionette's Dream
Three Years Later

March 20, 1895

“Come one come all! To see the most amazing doll of them all! The one the only, Arachne!” Lucas’s voice boomed over the crowd. We’re in Germany this year, thanks to my obedience I regained my mobility. I am now able to move freely, I contort my body like a spider’s and walks to the center of the big top. The little children were cheering, I grin a sharp tooth smile at them. I bend my head just enough so it can go under my right arm. All the children began to cheer louder.

I straighten my body and strut over to Lucas, my black and white dress was swaying as I walked. The sand floor of the big top tickled my bare feet, I place my pale cloth hand into Lucas’s and allow him to throw me into the air. I grip onto Adeline’s hands as I fly up, she is our trapeze artist. Both she and I swing back and forth on the trapeze swing. “Alright las I’m going to throw over to the other swing, are ya ready?” Asks Adeline and she makes the swing go higher.

I smirk at her and say: “I was born ready Addie.” She smirks back and tosses me over to the other swing. I wrap my right leg around the swing and proceed to swing upside down. I hold my arms out and smile at the children, they begin to cheer. “Scarlet!” A small voice called out my name. I looked around confused, “Scarlet! Over here!!” I follow the voice and gasp. Aidan’s in the crowd, I slip from the trapeze swing and begin to scream. “LUCAS!!!” I scream, I clench my eyes shut expecting to feel the ground but I don’t. I open my eyes to see Lucas’s face, he smiled at me. “It’s alright love, I got you.”

I cling to his black coat and search the crowd, I quickly see Aidan. He looks scared, I grip onto Lucas’s coat and whisper: “My brother is here.” Lucas’s red gaze scans the crowd, “Ah he seems well, where is your mother? I do not see her with him.” He replies quietly. I shrug my shoulders and squirm out of his arms, I walk over to where Aidan is sitting. I can hear Lucas call for me, but I choose to ignore him. I haven’t seen Aidan in three years, I want to talk to him. ”Arachne Stop.” I stop walking, I try to force my legs to move but they won’t. I glance at my wrists and see the silver strings.

I curse silently, I always forget about those damned strings. Lucas applied these to my wrists and ankles the day of my first performance. They keep me bound to him, I can move around of my own free will as long as he doesn’t tell me to stop. Lucas walks in front of me and glares, “You do not ignore me. When I speak to you, you listen.” His voice was dark. A shiver ran down my spine, he forces me to walk out of the big top by using the strings. ”Arachne go,” the string disappear. I move my arms and legs, I turn to look at Lucas. A dark aura is surrounding him, “I just wanted to talk to my brother.” I mutter.

“Oh and tell him what? That you’re a demon now? I don’t think that will work out too well.” He says sarcastically. I look down and clench my fists, I wouldn’t tell Aidan that. He doesn’t need to know that I am a monster. “Besides dear, you’d eat his soul before he could even say hi.” I stare at him blankly. “No, I wouldn’t, I love him, he is my baby brother I would never hurt him,” I reply angrily. He laughed aloud, his head was tilted back as he gripped his stomach. His laughter began to fade, he pretended to wipe a tear away.

“Oh dear, your demonic instincts are much stronger than your human ones.” He was using that matter of fact tone again. I look away from him, he’s right but it is worth a try. “I can try to control it, please Lucas let me see my brother.” I plead quietly with him. He sighs heavily and agrees, I smile and kiss his cheek gently. I run back inside the big top, I scan the crowd in search of Aidan. I finally spot him talking to another little boy, I run over to him and jump over the barricade. “Scarlet!” He yelled as he hugged my waist, I smile down at him and place my cloth hand on top of his head.

Aidan has grown so much, I tilt his head up and frown. There is a long scar along the side of his jaw. “Where did you get that scar?” I ask. He prods at it with his fingers, his brown eyes are filled with sadness. I grip his small shoulders tight, “Mummy...cut me...I broke her favorite vase.” Aidan’s voice was so quiet that I could barely make out what he said. That filthy slag dared to touch my brother, “Where is mummy Aidan?” I ask. He looked down as he replied: “Mummy was killed last year...one of the blokes she brought home killed her...I-I found her in the kitchen.” I pull him into a tight hug.

My stomach started to grumble, I cling to him. ‘No don’t get hungry now, please.’ I think as I cling to Aidan’s small body tighter. “A-Aidan I have to go...b-but I want you to stay here. I am g-going to come back for you okay?” I say quietly as I release him. He nods. I hop back over the barricade and run out of the big top. I run to my tent and search through my black trunk. I search through it desperately, I breathe a sigh of relief when I replace the bottle I’m looking for.

The beautiful white light inside it beckons to me, I pull the cork out and let the sweet soul flow into my mouth. I swallow it and savor the taste. A child’s soul is so sweet and so pure, I lick my lips and tilt my head back. “I see that you got hungry.” Adeline’s soft Irish tone caught my off guard. I look at her and smile, Adeline’s red hair is almost as bright as fire. She’s got the sharpest green eyes I’ve ever seen. She is a succubus, we ran into her last year in an Irish pub. She was trying her best to seduce Lucas.

“So that was your brother yea?” She asked, I nod and place the empty bottle back inside my trunk. “Yes that was Aidan...I’m afraid that he is an orphan now...our mother was murdered last year,” I say quietly. Adeline places her small hand on my shoulder and gives me a small smile. “Why not bring him with us? I’m sure Lucas wouldn’t mind.” I scoff and stand up. “Bring my mortal brother with us? A band of demons running a circus to steal souls, he wouldn’t live Addie.” I reply. She shrugged and said: “Why not get Lucas to make him into a doll like you?” I shake my head. There is no way in hell that I’d ever hurt my brother like that.

“Addie I have to go...I promised Aidan that I’d meet up with him.” I say as I quickly leave my tent. There is no way in hell Aidan would go with me, I’m a monster he’s scared of monsters. “Scarlet! I want you to meet someone!” I blink and look up to see Aidan standing next to a little boy. He looked about three, I give him a small smile and bend down. “Why hello there, what’s your name?” The little boy hid behind Aidan, my brother chuckled and said: “His name is Benjamin but I call him Benny. He’s my foster brother.”

A wave of confusion washes over me, “Your foster brother?” I ask. Aidan smiles wide and nods, “A nice family adopted me when mummy died the coppers took me to the nearby orphanage.” Dread fills me once more, I left him to deal with that? To...To deal with an orphanage? Of all places an orphanage! “Did they hurt you at that place? If they did I’ll kill them!” I yell. Aidan jumped back in surprise, I take in a breath and close my eyes. I need to control my anger.

“They didn’t hurt me Scarlet...but you did.” I heard Aidan say softly. I look at him with astonishment. “How did I hurt you?” I ask offended. He narrowed his brown eyes at me and said: “You left me alone with mummy, you didn’t care that she was hurting me. Y-You left three years ago and never looked back!” A knife of pain stabbed me right through my stomach, he thinks I abandoned him. Tears swim in my eyes as I stare at him.

“A-Aidan...I-I didn’t want to leave you...but I had to! I-If I didn’t you and I both would be dead right now!” I yell. I heard him growl slightly as he took a step closer to me. “How would we be dead!? How!?” He yelled right back. I pick at the stitch on my left wrist, I have to tell him. No, I need to tell him. “W-When you were four...y-you was dying, y-you were dreadfully ill. The...The nice doctor that healed you was a demon by the name of Lucas Kane...” I trailed off. My throat was getting dry, I take in a breath and continue you. “Before...he would heal you, I had to make a deal with him. The deal was...that within the next year he would come get me...and well...make me into this.” I whisper as I jester to my body.

“So...you’re a demon now?” He asks quietly. I play with a piece of my yarn hair, I just simply nod. Aidan grabbed onto the little boys hand and glared at me. “I don’t want to ever see you again, you’re dangerous.” He says sharply as him and the little boy walk away. My world crashes before me, why did I tell him? I shouldn’t have done it. I fall to my knees and watch my brother walk away. A single tear slips down my cheek, I wipe it away and chuckle. “I haven’t...cried since the day I became this.” I whisper. A big hand is placed on my head, I look up and see Lucas. “Come now Arachne, we have to gather some souls.” I nod and stand up. Ripping the souls from these brats will make me feel better. I scoff, I can’t believe I cried over a mortal.