This is a story that begins with a strange phenomenon all over the world taking place: a small, but slowly growing number of children hit puberty and, instead of turning into ordinary young men and women, turn into clowns.
The condition has been studied by various doctors and biologists, and so far, nothing is known about the cause, or if a cure is possible. The changes happen slowly and gradually, as a part of their adolescence, and they fully look like clowns by the time they reach adulthood. For lack of a better term, researchers have named the condition ‘Clown Syndrome.’ The traits of this condition are as follows:
In girls, the first sign is when they get their first period. Instead of the usual rotten nasty odor, their menstrual fluid smells sweet, like cotton candy or bubblegum; they also feel giddy or elated instead of the usual bloated cramps. This is followed by the following traits which are the first signs to be noticed in boys:
Skin complexion slowly changes, either fading to a creamy white or a pinkish or orange flesh tone. In the latter case the patches of white develop around the eyes and mouth. This is followed by markings like a clown’s makeup, usually red, black, blue, or orange, appearing on their faces and becoming more pronounced as they mature.
The metabolism slows down, resulting in those afflicted usually becoming rather plump. Regular exercise helps to stabilize weight gain, but very few clowns are slender or muscular.
The body hair of those with clown syndrome falls off, while the hair on top tends to become thicker, and changes to unusual colors such as blue, purple, green, neon yellow or a combination of such. Nearly half the boys, especially if they have a family history of baldness, become partially bald halfway through puberty.
The most radical changes to happen, and that puzzles researchers the most, is with the noses and feet. A touch of red appears on a child's nose that slowly spreads over the end while the nose inflates to a perfect sphere, ranging in size from a golf ball to a plum. What really puzzled researchers is that when squeezed, the nose gives of a loud HONK! like a bicycle horn. The feet grow to large sizes typically size 17 to 28, and toes often become rather wide.
Clown Syndrome doesn’t just affect the appearance of its subjects, but their subconscious as well. They speak in silly voices, punctuate their words with guffaws and giggles, and end their sentences with honking their noses. They’d use exaggerated hand gestures and waddle like penguins-although that can be attributed to their weight gain and big feet. Those with white complexions seemed more intelligent and could even act serious if they concentrated, while the others, referred to as augustes, hoboes, or bag ladies(the latter two depending on gender) generally were less serious and more zany acting.
As the number of children with Clown Syndrome grow, society acted in various ways. Some are accepting of it, others simply ignore what is happening as best they can. People with coulrophobia live in terror of clowns. Some with Clown syndrome embrace what they’ve become, wearing colorful clothes and acting like clowns. Other hide it, sometimes with makeup or radical plastic surgery and withdrawal from society. Whatever the long-term effects of this condition on human society, time will tell.