Circus of the Beast

2

The path was long and full of interesting little creatures that Keelia had never seen before. There were small blue birds that had wings glow with the brilliance of a night star above Keelia's head. She spotted insects that she would have assumed were ants, but their bright colours surprised her. They were marching in a line all the way back to their home.

Home, Keelia sighed.

A small chipmunk seemed to be leading the way to the sweet folk music the girl could hear. Keelia had been following this chipmunk for quite a ways now and watched as the little thing scurried up trees and down minty green bushes. The footsteps Keelia took left delicate glowing prints in her wake.

Keelia glanced to her side, observing a doe and her fawn watching intently as Keelia passed by. The doe had such magnificent hazel eyes that matched her fawn. Keelia couldn't help but gasp at the beauty of the glowing forest. Her hand brushed a tree trunk and she saw it glow to a nice warm brown, the color of caramel. Her fingers trailed along a violet petal and the color came to life.

Keelia had never seen such radiance in her nineteen years on the wonderful earth. She did not know such a place as gorgeous as this existed so close to her home. If only she could have had time with her family out in this place. It would have been quite enjoyable.

The sun had been long gone now, but Keelia wasn't afraid as she usually would have been. She felt peace in her heart, considering what had just happened back at her home. Her mother would have loved this place. She would have frolicked through the glowing blue and violet flowers that seemed to encase Keelia in their glorious light.

Keelia's attention was drawn to the louder sounds of violins and flutes coming just through a thick bush. Lights permeated through the shrubbery, but it seemed that the path had been closed off by it. The small chipmunk sat by Keelia's cold feet, looking up at her as if he was telling her to venture through the thick plant.

"I can't go through there," Keelia whispered to the small creature. "I would tear my skirts."

Keelia took a moment to look down at her clothing, and then sighed. It really didn't matter what she did to the gown now, it was completely ruined by mud and lake water. The chipmunk had been correct about going through the shrubbery.

She gave the little creature a laugh, "You think you're clever, don't you?"

The chipmunk appeared to nod and give a smirk in return if Keelia wasn't mistaken. What a curious thing? It was like the little animal knew exactly what Keelia had said and could understand the human language.

Without any further ado, Keelia hitched up the hem of her gown and pushed her way through the bush. The sharp needles sticking out of the branches scraped at her skin, causing the small wounds to sting. Keelia went on, refusing to have something as simple as a bush stop her from seeing who was creating such wonderful music. And they even might be able to provide help for her family!

Keelia made it through the plant, only getting caught for a moment or two within its grasp. The lights around her almost made her blind for a split second. But her green eyes beheld the glow before her. A large tent was set up in the distance. Its tarp had red and white stripes that reached all the way around the structure. Smaller tents of the same design were positioned around it, detailing snack shacks and carnival games to play.

There was a cage on the outskirts of the grounds that seemed like it could hold a very dangerous animal inside. She watched as people dressed in extravagant suits and jumpers escorted each other around and laughed with such angelic voices. Acrobats were walking on their hands and ladies were waltzing along with batons in their grips. But what caused the young woman to gawk even further was the fact that these circus performers were quite unique. Some sported antlers upon their heads, others had tails wiping out and tickling the back of their legs, among other things.