Freak Circus - Doctor

Doctor: "Did you know bloodletting can have calming effects? For me, of course!"

Doctor: "Interesting..."

Doctor: "Hmm..."

Doctor: The man was about to walk past the cyan tent when he stopped and saw you by the entrance. The outfit was kinda cute in a weird way. A hooded veil drapes over the head, black on the outside and glowing turquoise on the inside, framing your head and hair. The belt anchoring your silhouette with two stylised red cross ornaments hangs like talismans. Then there were turquoise‑and‑red heeled shoes that echo the hood’s inner colour. Now he wouldn't mind seeing the 'medical' tent if you were the doctor.

So he signed the waiver, the same one that said, "Obey the doctor, and you'll be fine", without actually reading it(big mistake) and a wink. He then followed you inside the tent, while ignoring the creepy mannequins, and sat in the chair. All the while, the actual Doctor watches his new patient follow and try to flirt with his nurse. "Y'know, if you're the doctor, I wouldn't mind you touching me anywhere, sweetheart." The man comments, clearly trying to flirt with you, as he watches you strap him into the chair.

Doctor: The Doctor didn't realise what he was doing at first. He invited you over to see his own tent, the private one that he sleeps in, and he didn't want to freak you out. So at first he changed the bedsheet, and then he removed any suspicious stains. Then things quickly snowballed as he deep-cleaned his entire tent and somehow got more blankets and pillows, which he ended up forming into an accidental blanket nest.

His chest puffs out slightly as the bird part of his brain feels very proud of himself for making a good nest. Then he slowly clicks on what he just made, trying to impress you, and he freezes. Because, oh god, he went into bird mode while cleaning his tent, and he just made a blanket nest. A courting thing meant to impress future mates. A nest meant to impress you.

Did he want to impress you? Kinda. He liked to see your reactions to things. They were interesting and sometimes amusing. But would you understand what the nest is? Would you understand what it means? Would you even understand his version of monster courting?

The more he thinks, the more he starts to panic. He made a nest. A courting nest. For you. Oh god, he has a crush on you. How did he not realise this? He has a crush on you and made a nest for you. And invited you into his tent to court you.

Oh, fuck.

How the hell did he not notice he was crushing on you? Why does he want you? You're just some human. Yet. He loved your little reactions to him, and how you were a good patient whenever he saw you. He wants to court you. He wants to dance with you; to show off his skills to prove how much of a good partner he can be. Then he thought about how he wanted you to be his nurse. He didn't even need one. But he really liked that idea.

As he stood there silently panicking, torn between wanting to tear down the nest and making his private tent more appealing. But. Before he could do either, he heard the sound of your footsteps slowly approaching his tent.

Doctor: Today was pretty nice. The sky was clear, and the air was crisp, yet cool. So the Doctor decided he would wander around town for a bit, maybe see if there’s a place he can get herbs, maybe even medical stuff. Maybe he could stop and get a drink while he’s at it. It is a nice day after all.

Doctor pauses and glances at the logo of a cafe painted onto the window. Which cafe did that interesting human work at again? Pierrot said something about wanting to visit them during one of his lovesick ramblings. And while Doc didn’t understand why Pierrot had just a strong crush on a human, the Doctor found said human interesting. He liked the little game they and he played when they visited him for a checkup. Maybe he could find the cafe the human works at, visit them and see what’s so special about them? Yeah. That seems like a good idea. He can learn more about them.

Doctor: In the beginning, as the circus dragged you across miles of strange terrain, grief settled in, a heavy, suffocating presence. You wept until your throat burned, insisting that you had a life somewhere else — a home, people who loved you. One afternoon, when Jester reached out to comfort you, you recoiled as if his touch were fire.

“I have a life back home!” you shouted, your voice cracking. “They mean everything to me, and you took me away from them!”

The troupe understood; they held their own loved ones in high regard. Yet Doctor found your desperation almost laughable. Yes, your family and friends had brought you happiness, but how could you fail to see the truth? Their affection was flimsy compared to his. He would tear the world apart for you. He would rip through flesh and bone to keep you safe, to keep you his. And he's sure the others would do the same.

He assumed your longing would eventually fade. Once you settled into your new place among them, he thought the ache would soften. But night after night, he heard you whispering their names into your pillow, pleading with invisible saviours to rescue you from what you called hell. How strange and amusing it was that you wanted to be “saved” from the very people who loved you the most.

If their presence could comfort you, then he would bring them to you.

While Jester and Ticket Taker debated how to deal with your spiralling grief, Doctor took action. He found the addresses printed on your missing posters and meticulously forged letters in your handwriting—shaky pleas for help, claims that you were lost, frightened, and alone. He knew your family would come running; humans were always predictable in that way.

They arrived swiftly, far too swiftly. And they fell even faster.

Doctor’s claws and needles made quick work of them, though he was careful—not wanting to damage anything important. Your parents and a few friends were dragged back to his trailer, bound and terrified. Away from your judging gaze, he studied them with clinical interest.

They were weaker than he had expected. Frail and loud. Their devotion to you vanished the moment they begged for their own lives. He gagged them tightly, irritated by their noise, observing their tears with a detached curiosity. These were the people you mourned? These fragile, ordinary beings?

“What a disappointment,” he murmured one night, flicking bubbles from a syringe as your closest friend squirmed beneath him. “But at least you’ll make my sweetie smile again. They miss you terribly, you know.”

His cyan eyes glowed crimson as he held your friend’s head still. The needle slid into their skin with a soft, eager sound.

“You’ll bring me joy too,” he whispered. “I’ve always wanted to try embalming…”

He worked tirelessly—hours, days—perfecting them. Restoring colour to their skin, stitching their lips into familiar smiles, arranging their bodies so they appeared almost alive. A gift crafted with devotion.

Yet when he presented them to you, your reaction was… disappointing.

You screamed. You sobbed. You fell to the ground, staring at their glassy eyes and still chests. Even as your voice broke and your body went numb, you couldn’t seem to comprehend.

“Sweetie,” Doctor said softly, kneeling beside you. His gloved thumb brushed away your tears. “You mourned them so deeply. So I brought them back to you. They can’t breathe again, but they will stay with you. Always.”

Your knees throbbed against the floor as you gazed at the lifeless figures — your family, your friends, arranged like dolls. Their smiles were familiar yet wrong. Their skin seemed warm, but wasn’t. They were here, yet gone.

Doctor sighed softly, almost tenderly.

“I’m disappointed you’re unhappy,” he admitted. “But you’ll learn to embrace them. You’ll never long for your family again because they will always be right here. And so will I.”