And so later on that night, Shawn made his way into the closet. It was different this time. The pressure of school and Mom and acting and Bobby vs. Ralph was gone. The freedom of summer had replaced those worries and taping for the movie wasn't supposed to begin for at least several more weeks.

Still, there was a growing sense of worrying exploration. The discordant feeling that Shawn was entering into something that was scary and unknown. This wasn't something that Shawn felt, per say. They may not have been his feelings at all. But rather, an external feeling that seemed to press upon his mind. Like fingers probing. But worse than that, it was the possibility that whatever Shawn was getting into, may have been better left unexplored.

And so Shawn stared vacantly at the Circus before him. The sky blood-red. Orange clouds a smear across the horizon, flags on the big-top tents hanging lazily in the slight breeze. The smell of stale popcorn and old taffy filled the air like a rotten funk.

Shawn had managed to broker peace in his household, but he knew it'd come at a cost. And this was him paying it. He looked at his surroundings, fear gripping his heart. But it was far far too late to back out now. He tried to remember where the Bearded Woman was supposed to be, and started to head in that direction.

A crimson darkness bled out from the sky. The sky always seemed to be red in this world. Or wherever the Circus seemed to pop up. And as Shawn continued to walk, it seemed that things were starting to pick up somewhat in terms of activity.

Sure, the Circus still seemed to be empty. But now the rides were moving, even though they had no operators, no patrons. Where there was once silence, now a jaunty accordion tune played out from nowhere and everywhere at once. He passes a popcorn machine, kernels crackling and the smell of fake butter filling his nostrils, even though no one was there to purchase any. In one gaming booth, a few pinball machines and other, older, penny-arcade games were lit up with lights, the games seeming to play themselves as if some old ghosts were out for a night of fun and had stopped by to play but were invisible to everyone else.

Shawn spotted a familiar figure approaching.



"Hey sweety. Need some ink?" the Tattooed Lady asked him. She was smoking a thin cigarette and holding the almost ludicrously long filter with one gloved hand. There was something effeminate and refined it the way she held it, the thin wisp of smoke coming out of the end and curling into the air.

Shawn recognized the Tattooed Lady from the last time he was here. He tried to act as respectful as he could - he didn't want to end up like the others. "No thank you, ma'am. Thanks for the offer." He didn't want to mention his task - there were clearly politics at work in the Circus, and he didn't want to risk the Tattooed Lady turning out to be opposed to the Fortune Teller for one reason or another.

The Tattooed Lady gave Shawn a knowing look. Like she had some kind of secret or knowledge that was funny to her. Like she knew something Shawn didn't know.

"Suit yourself darlin'. We'll see each other again than. Some other time." And she passed on by, walking down towards Side-Show Alley.

Shawn gave a respectful bow as the woman passed. No particular reason why, it just seemed like something she'd like, and he most definitely did not want to be on her bad side. Once she'd passed, he continued on his way.

Passing along and downside the hill, Shawn saw a new structure he hadn't seen before. A lopsided tent read: Freak-show Tent. There was a small crowd of flies--a swarm--buzzing around outside. Inside the tent, someone was humming.

Shawn tried to peek inside the tent before walking in. It'd make sense if he could find a Bearded Woman inside the Freak-Shawn tent, right?

Shawn peaked inside the tent. There was a funny smell. Like mayonnaise when a new jar is opened. Maybe a little spoiled.

The tent itself was bright. There were three large pedestals and rows of cages. Some were opened. Others had mirrors. A few were draped with leopard skins or some other strange, wild animals furs.

"Tra-La-La!" A high pitched voice sang out. Shawn saw, it was, in fact, a bearded woman.

Shawn tried to ignore the smell and moved back a little so it wasn't obvious he had been peeking. Then he cleared his throat and called into the tent. "Hello? I'm here to see the bearded lady?"

"Oh my goodness, sweeety!" The woman got up, large beard dangling from her face. She came upon Shawn, as if to hug him. Large big arms spread out wide.

Shawn awkwardly accepted the hug, afraid of what might happen if he refused. "It's nice to meet you, miss."

"Let me tell you sweety!" The Bearded woman said after a bear hug of an embrace. Shawn saw that the woman's body was fat, littered with skin tags around her armpits. Voluptuous breasts bounced as she pranced about the room speaking.

"You're new sweety. You're a bright, fine strong boy, aren't you? You look happy. Energy is that amazing feeling that comes to life inside of you when you're happy and believe in yourself." She said.

Then she paused and looked sad.

"I'm so fat. Aren't I? I spent my childhood eating. The only exercise I got was trying to twist off the cap of a jar of mayonnaise." She lamented looking sad before brightening up. The random thoughts kept coming on. A barrage of stream-of-consciousness.

"When I lost my weight, I went and bought about 15 different types of underwear to see what would look good on my new body. It's exciting!"

"I think you look fine, miss." Shawn rattled off the compliment without particularly thinking about it. It didn't even register as a lie to him, it was just part of meeting someone; open by saying something nice, first impressions are so important.

It was clear that the lie was just what the doctor ordered. As if every moment in Shawn's life--all the lies really-had made it easier for a person just like him to get by in a situation like this. Shawn didn't have much time to think about this, the Bearded Woman already back at it, blasting him with another barrage of thoughts made into words.

"That's so sweet of you! No matter what a woman looks like, if she's confident, she's sexy. If something doesn't look right, throw some glitter on it, that's what I say, sweety." the words coming out in a lispy drawl: Ssssweeeeety. There was something masculine about this bearded woman, but somehow feminine. Shawn got the sense that his father wouldn't approve of this person's mannerisms. Like the time that Dad saw Shawn watching Pee Wee's Play House. Dad had shut off the TV at that time, simply saying: 'A man shouldn't behave that way.'
This message was last edited by the player at 02:48, Tue 11 Apr 2017.

Shawn was a little confused by the Bearded Woman's antics, but it didn't make him particularly uncomfortable. Except in the baseline sense that she was a part of a murderous demon circus, he supposed, but he was getting better at suppressing that dull terror. Besides, he'd spent time on Hollywood sets, and people there acted weird all the time. He'd just learned to be patient and not to judge. "So, umm, miss, the Fortune Teller sent me here to see you, it sounded like a pretty important errand." He automatically phrased it to convey a hidden compliment, implying that the Bearded Woman must be held in high regard by the Fortune Teller to be trusted with such a critical task.

The woman frowned. A frown that deepened. Creases formed on her jowls and her face went slack with worry, disappointment.

"It was a one time thing!" She complained. "At least I can say that I'm honest. I ask for one favor years ago, and I have to keep paying and paying? I want to upset people, I want to make people think, I want to keep people interested. That's what the Freak House is about!!!" She yelled suddenly. It was a mixture of anger, but also of unjust sadness.

"Male performers have been doing this for years - pushing the envelope - and the minute a woman does it, everybody freaks out."

It was clear that she wanted Shawn to somehow explain this injustice. In this way, the Bearded Woman was acting more like a child than a...than a....a Freak?

"That does seem unfair." Shawn's look conveyed sympathy, though he wasn't sure  what favour the Bearded Woman was talking about. Was it the beard? He wondered if it'd be rude to ask.

"You're damn right it is!" The Bearded Woman said, language getting a little foul for the environment in which Shawn was raised. Then again, Shawn was in an evil circus so perhaps it fit.

As if on queue, she followed it up with a loud burb. "burrrrrrrrrp." And then, she said

"Excuse me. What I'm trying to say is that the Beard is what made me special. It made me more than just a fat woman. The fattest woman. And so that's what I asked for. And now she's making me pay all over again! No way! No way! I already paid the Fortune Teller!" She said.

"I won't do it!" She cried, folding her fat, pasty arms in defiance.

That little statement got Shawn's full attention right away. Failure was not an option right now, not if he wanted to keep existing. He tried to play it cool. "Umm, are you sure that's a good idea? I don't think we want to make the Fortuneteller mad, right?"