Kraus Bodenstein's Story

The girl's face was drowned in crimson color, and he had to admit that it was a nice shade against her slightly tanned skin. For a reason unknown to him, his own blood vessels broke under his cheeks, tinting them rose and causing a wave of confusion at the butterflies that tried to fly up his throat. Ezekiel glanced away, shut his eyes and furrowed his brow, cursing his teenage hormones or whatever people called them. So what if she was pretty? Who cares if she was vaguely interesting, she was a regular, human girl and well he, he was deformed, in all honesty.

His gaze switched back to a glare, though this time it was directed at himself. He didn't have time for feelings that were fitting of a school boy, romance was for the week and he wouldn't let fleeting attraction turn him into a flustered fool. Ezekiel looked back down at her as she cleared her throat, his eyebrows rising as the lock clicked and the door opened, no muscle headed boys walking in to give him a good beating. His mouth opened, wanted to ask her another question, wanted to know why she was risking her skin to play around with circus freaks, but then she answered him before he could make a peep.

"I’m trying to get you out of this joint.”

For a second he was sure his heart ceased to function, that the air from his lungs escaped through his skin and left him but a hollow shell without thought or comprehension. He could feel himself blinking, lost, surprised, perplexed. His lips pressed together and he examined her, looking for any reason not to trust her, to tell her to get lost and never bother him again. Yet, he found nothing, just a naive, benevolent girl who had just given him what could be an opportunity at a better life. A life without the beatings, or scraping up cigarette butts, or walking across a tightrope several feet in the air as people secretly wished for him to fall, splatter onto the ground below.

He inhaled, reminded himself of all those times he tried to escape and failed. Without his permission one of his hands rose, his fingers traced over his shoulder, brushing against material that hid scars to prove it. Ezekiel's mouth turned into a frown, fighting off an inner debate between trying once again, or avoiding failure. New hope kindled inside of him, but if it was stomped out for the hundredth time he wasn't sure how able he would be to get back up again. Despite every thought that told him this was stupid, a pointless, useless attempt at freedom, he smirked and nodded.

"Well aren't you a bearcat?" The winged boy teased, but it was lighthearted, almost admiring. He stood from his spot and climbed out of the cage, touched solid ground, and fixed a few of the buttons on his short sleeve, white button up. If you can't beat them, join them. If they were going to go down, they would do so together, only she would be driven away in a cop car and he would have to face the wrath of leather. That was fine by him, it wasn't anything he couldn't handle, nothing he wasn't used to. As long as he could get a taste of adrenaline, a piece of the outside world, then he would learn to live with the result given to them.

Ezekiel walked towards an opening in the tent and glanced back at her, expecting her to follow. "There are some other people I'm going to try and get out here." He said, not a request but a fact. He felt like he owed it to them. Sam, who was miserable here and remained closed off, and Kraus who was new here and had a chance to get away from Hell before he descended into the deepest layers. He might not be able to trust this girl yet, but he could at least try and get along, she did just break him out of what might as well be a prison.

"I'm Ezekiel." He decided on giving her his name, at least it would prevent them from awkwardly wondering what to call each other. Carefully he stepped out of the tent, glancing down the empty pathways before he reached out, grabbed onto the girl's wrist and pulled her along. Ezekiel didn't let go of her until they were outside of a small sized trailer, standing on the top of his toes he peaked over, looked between the bars of the window and whispered, harsh and demanding. "Sam, Kraus." He hissed, sounding angry even though it was only the nerves that was twisting his spine. "I'm getting out of here. Meet me in at the south end near the oak tree, if either of you don't make it in time I'll leave the both of ya'." He warned, paused before speaking again. "I'm unlocking your cage but we're splitting up, it's too dangerous to sneak around here with these goons hangin' around."

Suddenly he reached towards the girl, snatched the master key from her hands and shuffled towards the door, making sure no one was around before he unlocked it. "Don't be stupid." He muttered, hoping that the two wouldn't manage to blow this for him, and snuck back towards his savoir. "You're not a first time caper, are you?" Ezekiel questioned, wondering how she got a hold of the key in the first place, but didn't properly ask. "Lets keep moving." With those hushed words being spoken they were headed past tents and small trailers that held sleeping misfits and supplies alike. It was all going well, and he had the feeling that it was too good to be true. That it was, because the closer they got to another that group that planned their escape, they closer they got to Mr.Torture, who was looking for some skin to break.

Ezekiel looked back to her, a smile on his lips, and completely unaware that behind the upcoming corner was the devil himself.