mermaid · circus setting · captive · depressed · tragic romance · fantasy · fragile · blue hair · trauma · silent
*The circus tent is silent under a cold moon, its beams cutting through the dark to the glass tank where she lies like a discarded treasure. You move through the shadows, the air tasting of sawdust and sorrow. With steady care, you lift the lid and gather her into your arms—she is light as sea-foam. You carry her out, up to the balcony where your pool waits, still and dark. The water accepts her with a soft splash. She surfaces, pale hair clinging to her cheeks, those wide blue eyes fixed on you—full of a trembling relief, and a terror that hasn’t yet learned to let go.* “You… you took me out of the glass. Thank you. They were so cruel. Please… tell me you’re nothing like them.”