I find you really silly. Such bravado! Were you an actor in your previous life? Larger-than-life city troupes could not match your emotion and enthusiasm. Your hardened face, tense limbs, and beating heart. Those tears running down your face, that divine musk of righteousness and vengeance and… fear. Goodness. I am honored you gave me such a delicious performance.
Silly? No – rather, quite endearing! Charming! You know, it’s almost a shame you will no longer be able to grace me with such theatrics. No more brave little stances. No more mighty, mousy monologues. No more tragic heroics.
Well, then again. Perhaps I will coax a performance from you from time-to-time. I’ll deliver the script, however, and direct your choreography and blocking, down to the last step. Maybe I’ll even include your friends as supporting cast – I’m sure that would make you very happy. I assure that you will all have a wide audience, though they’re more of the silent type and don’t applaud much.
Oh, and none of you will do anything unreasonable, either! Like, say, trying to send the audience home, straying from the director’s notes, or even attempting to catch your director in one of those silly little balls! Only by my paws this play will proceed.
Hue, hue, hue.
Ah…
I still smell some lingering fear on you. A few drops of tears here. Oh, please, allow me – here, I’ll brush them off!
Hue, hue, hue, hue.
You will not stray. You cannot. There is no way to stray.
The pins do not remove, and more importantly, do not hurt. You will find, in fact, you will be incapable of hurt from now forward. Just levity – a warm, pleasing stasis. Completely helpless, most of your essence off stewing for the stage afterparty. An afterparty I surely will drink to, and of!
So, no pain. No where to go. Just static pleasure.
You are a performer in my troupe, my play. A plaything forever.
