Pigs’ Ears Don’t Make Silk Purses: Fandango’s Story Starter Challenge#125

“There’s no cure for a beast like me,” Victor said, a sardonic smile on his face. He stood there looking at himself in the mirror, pride and arrogance emanating from every pore. He straightened an imagined wrinkle in his left trouser leg and laughed at the fiery red-haired woman who thought that love would transform him into a decent human being.

She knew he was the ringleader of a group of ruffians. Still, she believed that a bit of the soap of understanding, lathered deep into his psyche with the perfume of kindness, would alter his criminal tendencies and magically create a kinder, gentler person. But she was wrong!

Instead, he gloried in his wickedness and lack of compassion for the victims of his crimes. He couldn’t express empathy or concern for others.

She gathered her belongings and walked out the door. As his laughter followed her down the street, she smiled at the knowledge that every dancer eventually pays the piper.

Fictional story written for Fandango’s Story Starter Challenge #125. The prompt is in bold print. We were to write prose or poetry from it. The Fandango One Word Challenge prompt is Fiery. Ragtag Daily Prompt is Express. The Word of the Day Challenge prompt is Ringleader. The Daily Spur prompt is Trouser. The Three Things Challenge #M529 is Soap, Lather, and Perfume.