#Listen I know I'm into some weird shit as far as puppets are involved

[shesclearlya3]

Aw~Imagine this! The reader came with Dandy when he buys the freakshow (them being his trusted loving friend) and defends him as the freaks are beating him up! (I'm sorry you feuled my Dandy fire and now I cannot be stopped!) ~signed yet again your Dandy loving anon~

here you go, lovely

______

You knew that Dandy always had dreams of being in the limelight. Ever since you were kids, he insisted on daily performances with his puppets or acting out scenes with just the two of you when you were older. He always had a deep love for theatre and acting, which soon rubbed off on you.

He had been obsessed with the local Freak Show in Jupiter; he had taken you a few times, mainly to gawk at the conjoined Tattler sisters. You always thought it was cute, seeing how his eyes lit up throughout the show and his pure excitement after the fact. 

Dandy had all of the money a young adult could only dream of. While you both were close friends, you never expected that he would actually buy the show from Elsa Mars, a thin blonde who had her own dreams of being in Hollywood. While you were convinced it was to get close to the Tattler sisters, you didn't question it. Dandy seemed to be the happiest you had ever seen him. 

It was only days into his recent investment when you noticed that his fellow performers weren't as welcoming to him as they were to you.

As far as you could tell, most of them liked you. You were always kind, and you had a genuine interest in their daily lives as performers. You had some great conversations, and you started to learn the ins and outs of running a carnival. 

It was a muggy afternoon when you sat in the front row in front of the stage, quietly observing as Dandy attempted to practice his newest routine, Anything Goes. It was one of Dandy's favorite musicals, and he adored Cole Porter.

While you never had many criticisms of Dandy, you knew that not a whole lot of people would be flocking to see him perform. While Dandy looked like a motion picture dreamboat in your eyes, and in the eyes of many, you knew it was not enough to boost ticket sales. His singing voice was okay, nothing too spectacular, but there was something there. 

Dandy was growing increasingly frustrated as time ticked by, and you were becoming anxious as it seemed that the crew was always messing things up. They would start the music too early, interrupting Dandy's opening monologue, or the music would skip, or the lights weren't the correct shade or position Dandy wanted them to be. 

"No! No! No!"

Here we go-

"Turn it off!"

Here it comes-

"I told you a million trillion times, the blue light, is for Night and Day, blue symbolizes night! For Anything Goes, I need the MAGENTA light to accentuate my spirited rendition-" 

There it is

"I'm surrounded by amateurs." 

You stood up, listening as the crew mumbled to themselves, once again fearing a Dandy tantrum. Dandy rolled his eyes so hard you could see the whites of his eyes. He glanced down at you as you approached the stage, your hands behind your back. 

"I want y/n to be in charge, all of you are terrible at your job!" Dandy exclaimed, gesturing to your now red face as the other performers slowly started approaching from the tent entrance. "She understands my impeccable taste."

You wanted to ask him to leave you out of it, but his attention was quickly captured by Paul, who was leading the pack.

"Flipper boy! Did you hang the banner in clear view for all to see?" Dandy asked, stepping down from the stage, grabbing your arm and pulling you along. 

"Yes, sir, just as instructed," Paul responded.

"Good, good," Dandy said, "How many tickets have we sold?"

There was an awkward silence as the foursome in front of you looked at each other. Dandy was smiling, releasing his grip on you, yet you stayed close. Your presence always comforted him. 

"As of this time, none..." Paul said warily. "Quite yet."

The smile instantly wiped off Dandy's face as he stared at them in disbelief. "You haven't sold a single ticket?"

"We've only put the banner out half an hour ago!" Paul said, "The town just hasn't gotten wind of your new act." he said, his words striving to be encouraging and maybe even patronizing in the slightest. 

"Give it some time, Dandy," you whispered to him, giving him a gentle smile when he looked at you, "We'll be selling tickets in no time."

"I don't understand," Dandy said, almost ignoring your words completely. "You must have done something wrong." he accused, now glaring at Paul and the others, their faces also becoming void of any emotion. 

Paul tried to assure Dandy that it would be alright, his words similar to your own. You were about to pitch in again, but Dandy was mad.

"You think you're so smart. You don't know anything, you stupid freak."

"He's only trying to help," Eve said.

"Oh, shut up, you ugly cow!" Dandy responded, causing the girls to gasp in disbelief. You knew they were in for it now.

"Dandy, come on, stop-" you said, taking his hand, only for him to step forward, dropping your hand as if you caught the plague. You loved him, you understood him, but you wanted to avoid this argument at all costs.

"-I'm in charge here, and I say it's your fault. No one's coming to the show because you are boring. The town has had its fill of your mediocre oddities. You're done. You're yesterday's news." Dandy said to them, going on about his new ideas for their acts. 

"-Don't you touch her!" Paul shouted suddenly, and you saw him shove Dandy away from Penny. She stumbled back, watching them in fright. 

"This is my show! I'll do whatever I want!" Dandy retorted, getting right in Paul's face.

"Stop this!" you said, taking a few steps closer, but was knocked to the floor as Eve stepped forward, punching Dandy directly in the nose. He fell over and, in the process, knocked you on your ass. You lost your breath, hitting the hard dirt, and you winced as a tuft of dust rose in the air and causing you to choke. 

Penny had gasped, rushing forward to help you up, but the others held Dandy down as Paul spat in his face. 

You didn't want to do it, but you found yourself breaking from Penny's grasp, almost shoving her as you scrambled to your feet.

"Knock this shit off, all of you!" you said, glaring from Barbara all the way to Penny, who had just placed her foot on Dandy's hand. 

"y/n, I like you, but please keep your mouth shut!" Paul said, looking you up and down as you brushed the dirt from your clean clothes. "This doesn't concern you."

"Anything involving Dandy concerns me." you breathed, brushing your hair out of your face as the others stared at you. From below, Dandy was breathing heavily as blood slowly started trickling from his nose. You could feel his gaze burning into you. 

"With all due respect," Barbara pitched in, "You babying him only makes it worse. It's really weird."

You knelt down, cupping Dandy's cheek in your hand as you maneuvered his head around, checking for further damage. He was still fuming but allowed you to touch him, his eyes fluttering shut. You pushed their legs off him, telling them to back off, before helping Dandy to his feet.

"How I treat him doesn't concern you!" you glared. "It doesn't concern any of you."

"y/n-" Dandy began.

"No, I'm not going to just sit around while they beat on you!" you said.

"How does a nice girl like you end up with rubbish like him?" Paul asked, and the others nodded in agreement. "He is a rude, selfish, entitled child."

"He might be all of that to you," you said, standing your ground as they all looked at you with distaste. "But not to me. Dandy is different; he's different like all of you. That doesn't make him defective, or any less of a human than the rest of you here." 

The others watched quietly as you reached into your bag sitting on the chair, before pressing a handkerchief to Dandy's bleeding nose. He gave you a solemn look, holding it for you as you deduced that his nose wasn't broken, thankfully. 

"You say all of you want to be respected for things you cannot help. If you knew any of the shit Dandy went through growing up, or the things that were going on before he was even born - before he was even a thought to this world, then maybe you'd show a little shred of sympathy."

You realized you were tearing up during all of this. Dandy was becoming upset, seeing you distraught over him. 

"I treat him as I see him as someone who never had a chance at a normal life."

You gave them all one last glance, before gathering your stuff and grabbing Dandy's hand. He allowed it this time, holding you tightly as you led him out of the tent. You could feel their eyes follow you out. You could hear them start to talk amongst each other as you disappeared from sight.

"I love you, y/n," Dandy sniffled, wincing slightly at the pain in his nose.

"I love you too," you said, looking up at him with a small smile, “Don’t irritate it too much. We need to get you fixed up before curtain call.”