Your POV:
I currently sat in the cage, thinking. I figured that once everyone left we'd be let out and be free to roam, but apparently not. It was freezing, and I was hungry. I had to eat the popcorn those people threw at me!
The twin's cage was put back beside mine earlier, but they wouldn't talk to for some reason. They might be scared or something. It was freezing, and apparently Emory didn't care if they caught a cold, since they are still only in shorts. They sat beside each other, hugging to keep warm. It was honestly sad to watch.
"Hello, Bear!" Abraham greets, appearing in front of my cage.
"The boss said to make everyone dinner." He opens the cage door and walks over to me with a small plate in his hand.
"Sorry it might be cold now, but I scraped together what I could for you."
"That's all right. Thank you." I take the plate from him with a gracious smile. He smiles back before leaving. He bites his bottom lip before locking my cage door with a key. He frowns and looks up at me with sad eyes.
"Why'd you lock it?" I ask with a raised brow.
"Boss said he didn't order you to sing today. You aren't allowed to leave the cage for three days," he says in a meek voice.
"What?" I blink in surprise.
"The bossssss isss picky," one of the twins state.
"Don't improvissse," the other adds.
"Don't disssobey," the first finishes. I frown at this.
"I'm afraid that's all the food you'll get for three days too. I'm really sorry." Abraham had tears in his eyes, feeling as though I'd hate him for this. "If I don't obey him, he'll hurt me."
"That's alright. I understand." I give him a comforting smile in hopes to relax him. He nods before walking away, most likely to his own cage.
"Hey, mishka?"
"What?" I turn my attention to the two boys.
"Did you think of namesss for us yet?"
"No. Not yet." I thought a bit, desiring to look at them again. "Would you mind if I saw your faces?"
They flinch at my question and held the hem of the sack tightly.
"N-no!" They shake their heads simultaneously. "We hate being ssseen."
"Oh, I'm sorry for asking. It's all right, you don't have to if you don't want to."
They released their grip and un-tense.
"If you don't like being seen, then why are you performing here?"
"Bossssss won't let usss leave."
"He isss mean asss hell."
I let out a light chuckle.
"At firssst we thought it would be fun to join," one starts.
"But, we were wrong," the other finishes.
"Now, bossssss isss really mean."
"He usssed to be nice,"
"Until Emily came."
"So, Emily is the reason he's like this?" I hum in thought. This information was useful to my investigation.
"If you lisssten carefully, you'll hear ssscreamsss from a tent all the way in the back."
"It makesss usss ssscared."
"We think he'sss torturing newcomersss."
"You're lucky that you only got locked up."
I frown.
'I might have to check that tent out when everyone is asleep.'
"Why do you both whisper when you talk?"
"Bossssss saysss we talk too loud."
"He shut usss up quick."
"That's sad. He shouldn't silence you like that."
"Yesss, but there'sss no way out."
"Ssso we mussst obey."
"Don't anger him, mishka."
"We don't want you getting hurt."
"I won't get hurt, I promise.
They grew quiet, and I hear snores not long after. I smile lightly.
'Good. They're asleep.' I glance at the other cages around me. The one on my left was the boy with no face. He sent chills up my spine whenever I looked at him. Across from me was a bearded lady, who was fast asleep. Beside her was a man with four arms. Behind me was a sword swallower, but his swords were taken away after the shows.
'I'll help these people. There's no guarantee they'll be happy wandering the streets or that anyone will help them after. Maybe I could make a home for them? Then they'll have a place to go. It wouldn't be too big a problem to solve.' I hear faint screaming like the twins mentioned earlier.
'Time to get out. It looks like everyone around me are asleep.' I turn into a jumping mouse and hop towards the 'Tent of Torture' as I am going to call it. I got inside and found that it was filled with empty cages.
'Something smells rotten.' I sniff the air, trying to pinpoint its origin.
'It smells familiar.'
Suddenly a woman screamed loudly, scaring the hell out of me, followed by the sound of a whip.
"Stupid, stupid, stupid! It isn't working, Emily!" Shouted a familiar man, who was throwing a tantrum like a child. The area was lit by a single candle, but it was enough to show a familiar woman bleeding with lashes all over her body.
"Momma! Momma!" A little girl screamed. She was familiar as well.
'Wendy?' I frown angrily.
"Shut up, you swine!" Mr. Emory snaps at the child.
"Look, dear! It's working!" Emily points out. Wendy's mother's body began to form long, solid spikes, which protruded from her bleeding wounds. My eyes widen in shock as she passed out. My eyes narrow.
'Magic perhaps?'
Emory laughs hysterically.
"Excellent! Now, bring me the girl."
The familiar strongman pulled the screaming girl to the chains that sat beside her mother. Emory forced her to drink what looked like ink before flipping a page in a black, leather book.
"Oh! I think this will suit her just nicely! Don't you think?" Emory shows the page to Emily and the strongman. The strongman grunts in agreement. I turn my attention back to the mother. Her eyes were glazed over, looking similar to the strongman's brown orbs.
'Strange? Did he create the strongman?'
Emory chants a few words:
"Qrok qefp klojxi zefid fkql x jlkpqolrp ybxpq. Qrok ebo ifqqib klpb fkql x pklrq. Qrok ebr phfk mfkh. Exvb ebo bybp qrok yixzh xp zlxi. Jxhb qefp ifqqib dfoi fkql x ptfkb."
My mind immediately deciphered the words as the girl's nose formed into a pig snout. As she screamed in pain, she let out a few squeals along with it. Her ears became pointed, her teeth turning uneven, while her blonde hair began to turn pink as well as her skin. Her sapphire eyes turned pitch black, and a curly tail popped through her dress.
"Wonderful!" Emory claps excitedly as the girl collapsed.
'I'm gonna get this guy! Not now, though. I'll have to get him tomorrow. For now I have to keep following him.'
"Throw the girl into a cage. I have no use for the older one. She doesn't look strange enough."
I frown as the little girl was tossed into a cage. He came back to take the mother away from the tent. I follow them to another tent filled with all sorts of weapons. He takes a knife and sets it beside her on a table. Mr. Emory snaps his fingers.
"Wake up!" He orders. The woman's eyes snap open, and her head shot up.
"What are your orders, master?" She asks almost robotically, like she was reading from a script.
'Master?'
"See that knife?" He asks, pointing to the sharp object. Her eyes dart to it before meeting his gaze again.
"Yes, master."
"Cut off your hand," he orders with a sickening smirk.
"Yes, master."
She took the knife and chopped her hand clean off without hesitation or a struggle. My eyes widen in shock as Emory laughed.
"Now your foot."
"Yes, master." She slices it off with a wince. Tears fell from her emotionless eyes.
"Does it hurt?" He asks, smiling with fake concern.
"Yes, master."
"Do it to the other one."
She nods and does it without a complaint. She winces again.
'What the f*** kind of sick s*** is this?!'
"Now, slit you're throat. End it."
"I'll die if I do that, master."
"Yes, I know. You disobeyed my order."
"What order did I disobey, master?"
"I told you to slit your throat. Now do it to please your, master!" He demands with a wide smirk. I clench my little, mouse fists.
'He's only doing this so they will obey him?' I glare at the man with pure hate.
'I wonder what he'd do if I disobeyed him again?' I smirk wildly.
'You like playing God, Mr. Emory? How would you do playing against one? Lets see if you can keep up.' I scamper back to my cage. On my way there, I passed the mermaid tank. I stop to stare at it for a moment. She was awake and watching me intently. I tilt my head when she motioned for me to come closer. I do as she asked. She made a motion of 'zipping her lips' and smiles at me.
'Wait! Does she know?' I smile at this and give a curt nod before continuing on my way. I change back to the form I was previously in and sat down the moment I got there.
"Where did you go?" One of the white-haired male's asked.
'Wait! What!?'
"What do you mean?" I turn to them, but they remained silent, as though they never said a word.
'Are they all his creations? No, it can't be. The ones I saw him make had dull eyes that looked similar to Drossel's glass ones. I must pay close attention to the eyes, then, if that's the case.'
With this in mind, I lean my back against the bars of the cage and close my eyes, feeling drained. It wasn't long before I slipped into sleep.