21 tightropes walked - dream vortex
Jan. 14th, 2010 12:20 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
freckleddoll[Slums. A deserted alleyway, dingy and dirty, not much to be seen but piles of refuse left lying around. And a small group huddled under a blanket, children, too young to be left on their own but alone all the same.
At a closer look there's more wrong with them than the dirt and hungry faces and torn scraps of clothing. A boy with one empty sleeve, and a boy and a girl with the remains of a leg wrapped in strips of cloth. An even smaller child with a partly burnt face being held by a boy too large for his age.
A dog runs around them, barking - Tiger, for those who'd recognize him, even though in the strange way of dreams, Doll clearly doesn't know him. The children are too miserable to pay him any attention.
And standing for a while in that alley, one will be able to hear the strain of circus music filtering in, perhaps even the reflection of bright lights.]
((ooc: the way the dream goes depends on what visitors do. Anyone welcome!))
At a closer look there's more wrong with them than the dirt and hungry faces and torn scraps of clothing. A boy with one empty sleeve, and a boy and a girl with the remains of a leg wrapped in strips of cloth. An even smaller child with a partly burnt face being held by a boy too large for his age.
A dog runs around them, barking - Tiger, for those who'd recognize him, even though in the strange way of dreams, Doll clearly doesn't know him. The children are too miserable to pay him any attention.
And standing for a while in that alley, one will be able to hear the strain of circus music filtering in, perhaps even the reflection of bright lights.]
((ooc: the way the dream goes depends on what visitors do. Anyone welcome!))
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
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Date: 2010-01-14 11:32 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-01-14 11:57 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-01-15 12:07 am (UTC)How's the view up there?
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Date: 2010-01-15 12:16 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-01-15 12:20 am (UTC)She sits on the wire when she hears Anna, waving down at her with a grin.]
S'pretty good!
[There's more activity all around them, knife-throwing and fire eating and animal taming, acrobats and trapeze artists and jugglers. But the only audience members are more children, dressed in the high class fashion of the time.]
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Date: 2010-01-15 02:07 am (UTC)[She's still crouching by the body, trying to get a better look without having to actually touch it and trying to block out all the extra clamor. She looks back up.]
Hey, Doll? I think there was an accident, here. [She motioned to the body.] Do you know what happened?
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Date: 2010-01-15 02:29 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-01-15 11:36 am (UTC)[She's very quick on her feet to climb back down again and rush to Anna, but draws back from the body on the floor, shocked.]
No, it ain't...it can't be...'e wouldn't...
[She shakes her head, turning her blind side towards the corpse.]
There's nothin'...there's nothin' there.
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Date: 2010-01-15 11:39 am (UTC)[they're standing in a circle around the one-armed boy, right in the middle of the circus grounds, and he's grinning and pointing to each of them in turn, handing out stage names.
Doll rushes up to him, pointing at herself.]
One fer me too!
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Date: 2010-01-15 05:46 pm (UTC)[Her voice is stern, but still kind. There's something here Doll doesn't want to face and Anna doesn't want to hurt her, but she has to ask.]
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Date: 2010-01-15 06:26 pm (UTC)[It's really not something she wants to face.]
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Date: 2010-01-15 10:04 pm (UTC)[Anna's trying to understand, if it's important enough for Doll to dream like this, it's important enough for her to learn.]
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Date: 2010-01-15 10:16 pm (UTC)[she sinks to the floor]
Guess I knew there was somethin' really wrong with it.
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Date: 2010-01-15 11:31 pm (UTC)...And doesn't Doll already have a name?]
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Date: 2010-01-15 11:48 pm (UTC)[he pats her on the head and grins] "'course it fits you. 'cause you're our cute little sister."
[She looks shyly pleased before running off to where some of the others are already setting up for the circus.]
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Date: 2010-01-16 12:08 am (UTC)Penny follows Doll quietly, not even sure if she's still a part of the dream. Whether Doll can see her or not, though, she wants to see more of her life. Is that invasive? Maybe, but she wants to see some happiness in her friend's dream.]
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Date: 2010-01-16 12:35 am (UTC)A tightrope has been set up close to the ground and she's taking her first few tentative steps across it.]
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Date: 2010-01-16 12:41 am (UTC)You're not afraid of heights?
[Not that this tightrope is high. She's thinking about the tightropes she's seen Doll walk across at the circus.]
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Date: 2010-01-16 01:13 am (UTC)[Luckily it's less than a foot from the ground, because very soon she loses her balance and falls. It's not easy when she's only got one eye to see with.
Her face crumples up like she's disappointed with herself.]
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Date: 2010-01-16 01:16 am (UTC)You didn't know - it's easy to miss things when we don't want to see them.
What did he do? Your father?
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Date: 2010-01-16 01:17 am (UTC)Are you okay? Did you scrape up your knees?
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Date: 2010-01-16 01:18 pm (UTC)[holding back a sob]
Could've been us...
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Date: 2010-01-16 01:30 pm (UTC)[someone else kneels next to them, one of the boys from the alley, still a little wobbly on his new prosthetic leg. He places a hand on her shoulder, gives her a grin and tells her not to give up before helping her to her feet again.]
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Date: 2010-01-16 11:13 pm (UTC)[Penny smiles at the boy, wondering which member of Doll's family he is.]
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Date: 2010-01-16 11:19 pm (UTC)But it wasn't you, and you didn't know. You're a good person, Doll.