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Miriam shuffled uncomfortably, looking at the woman sat across the desk from her, the gentle scratch of a feather pen filling the silence as the flickering of the lantern set upon the desk revealed the beady eyes of the rats behind her, watching silently. The Gnome at the table paused her writing, the unnerving smile never dropping from the womans face as she raised her head to look across at Miriam, each of the rats doing the same, moving their heads to look to her. Taking a shaky breath Mirian fiddled with her hands, small tears gathering in her eyes as she looked into the soulless eye of the woman, the unnerving smile stretching into a sharp grin she assumed was meant to be comforting, but instead simply unnerved her more.
“You had a request?” Harper spoke in a perfectly even tone, the rats chittering as she spoke, almost mimicking her voice.
Taking a shaky breath Mirian spoke, “Yes, I, I wanted to join your circus ma’am, my home chased me out for being a freak, I thought I’d fit in here.” she tried to stop her voice breaking, but she couldn’t, the claustrophobic feeling of the darkness and the unempathetic stare of the woman across from her doing nothing to sooth her nerves.
“I know, I have heard, but what about you is special? So different you think here would be your place.” Harper carefully placed the feather pen in its holder, never breaking eye contact as she did.
“My magic, it’s strange, they didn’t like it, they said it was too-” The ringleader cut her off, “Demonic? Fey? No matter, I’ve seen it all already,” Miriam had the sinking feeling Harper meant much more in that sentence than revealed at the circus, “A warlock then? We’ve many here, what’s your talent? I know what you can do, but enlighten me anyway.”
“How-”
“Don’t waste my time with questions you know the answer to.”
“Yes ma’am, I’m sorry, I specialise in summoning and possession of a kind.” Miriam held her breath as the woman cocked her head, she couldn’t decide if the twinkle in her eye was dangerous or curious.
“A charmer then, I don’t think we’ve many charmers, we’ve two currently.” She paused for a moment, Miriam felt a little light headed as Harper stared into her eyes.
“Very well, you understand contracts, read as much as you please, and sign the dotted line.”
“But I don’t have a pen?”
“I’m not asking you to sign in Ink Miriam.”
Miriam gulped, she knew what the woman wanted, her eyes flicked over the contract before she reached for the sharp spike beside her, she could see how it was stained red from these contracts. At least she’d be safe.
As the crimson liquid inscribed her name onto the contract the lantern flickered briefly, the glowing eyes that stared back at her made her gulp. What had she signed her life away to this time?