Zii/DiDi! No! Zii/Sandra! Or... Yuki/Gary vs. Gary/Sonja vs. Gary/Senna?? Probably just Gary/his right hand...
Layla/Tiff? Layla/Brooke? Layla/Kade! Or... Brooke/Ace? Puppy/Nina?? Or maybe just Blair/Arman Purvis' Arm!!!
So many possibilities!! And so much discussion in the last months!!
All you need to enter this contest is a bit of writing ability, some time, and some knowledge of one of the comics hosted here on the Forum: Menage à 3, Eerie Cuties; Magic Chicks, and, less ship-infested, School Bites and Paranormal Mystery Squad. Considering new comics have been added to the forum, feel free to include those two, though maybe not so many people will "get" it.
The topic of the contest is to write a little fan fiction, or maybe draw a cartoon, if that behooves you more, within the world of the comics (even crossovers are allowed), which has the specific theme of a partnership between two characters - no matter how unlikely.
Rules? Not too many...
- It's about the comics, people. While crossovers between the comics are allowed, to not add non-comic characters, and especially do not ship forumites.
- Don't make it too long, people will need time to read it. Try to keep it under 2000 words.
- Since this contest is in GD, and GD is R-rated like Ma3, Ma3 fanfics with "harder" content are allowed (just don't exaggerate...). For all other comics, keep to the PG-13 rating, and here again, afaik, discern between SB and some PMS characters which are adults, and EC/MC, which are still teens - so keep the latter rather platonic, please.
I think that's all we need. Be creative!
As always, all discussion related to the contest goes in to the discussion thread, this thread is for entries only!!!
Sithlord of the Sithling and best customer of McLovecraft's , in the business of keeping the little Platypus in business Moderations in GREEN and signed by the DAMNed. I am not anonymous! Also, MODSMACK!! Winner of the... 2010 Kilopost FRANKIE; 2010 Mad March Nom Off; 2010 Joker Cleavage Contest; 2010 Fan-Thing Contest; 2010 Mimic Contest (tied); 2011 Joker Cleavage Contest; 2011 Contest-for-the-next-Contest (tied)
The tall and crooked trees tossed shadows of strange and alien design upon the walls of Charybdis Heights as the pale glow of the moon played through their branches. The wind crept across the grounds in fitful bursts, like some lamed, dying creature. Dark clouds prowled the skies, casting menacing darkness down on the landscape below them.
The oppressive atmosphere would have been enough to make any normal person’s skin crawl, if not outright drive them from the grounds. However it was no ordinary individual that slunk up alongside the outer wall of the gymnasium, a coil of rope in one hand, and a four pointed iron hook in the other. Indeed, it is doubtful that anyone has ever accused Tiffany Winters of being normal.
The line and hook made a quick, rapid whistling sound as the, soon to be, vampire slayer extraordinaire whirled them over her head, building up momentum. The throw was straight and true, and the hook landed upon the roof top with a barely audible clink of metal. Tiffany pulled the rope taut, tested the hold of the hook with a firm jerk, and with practiced ease ascended up the wall.
Gaining the rooftop, Tiffany paused for a dramatic moment, the nearly full moon framing her figure for anyone who by chance might have been standing in just the right position, a patch of thorny bushes, and just happened to be glancing up at just the right angle, say about forty five degrees above the normal plane of sight. The diffuse reflection of moonlight might have given the hypothetical observer a dim, somewhat blurry view of the young woman in her dark leather jacket, dark black jeans, dark black domino mask, and bright, bright blonde hair.
“Tonight…” Tiffany spoke, though to whom, even our hypothetical observer could not say. “Tonight, the just hand of Justice shall fall upon the monster whose fall it shall hand out!” A look of sudden consideration crossed her features, and she ducked down swiftly, wary eyes scanning the ground below her for anyone who might have heard. As the only observer in the area was merely hypothetically however, she saw no one, and her heroic grin returned. “Tonight…vampire,” she whispered with devious laughter coloring the words.
It was simplicity itself for Tiffany to maneuver across the rooftop of the school, flat and open as it was, to take position by the skylight some ten feet from where she had climbed up, and thus complete phase three of her masterful operation. A glance inside showed Tiffany that her information had been correct, that the foul beasts and monsters of this unholy school were gathering for the most vile of traditions…a school dance!
Kneeling down next to the skylight, Tiffany dug into her backpack and withdrew a contraption of wood and steel and wire. Twin arms swung out to either side, locking into place with sharp clicks as she unfolded the weapon, drawing the wire tight. She reached into her pack again and found the slender shaft of wood within, and fitted the bolt into the waiting crossbow.
All was now ready. Taking up her weapon, Tiffany placed the stock to her shoulder, and sighted down the length of the projectile that would, once and for all, put an end to her greatest nemesis. The sharpen point tracked left and right with her gaze as she scanned through the crowd below until…until…until…
“Damn, where is she?” Tiffany complained. She swept through the gathering three more times, but was unable to find her intended target. She sighed, letting out some of the built up tension. “Well, no matter. She will arrive eventually, and when she does I, Tiffany Winters, will show her that no one messes with me, Tiffany Winters!”
Settling in, Tiffany resigned herself to waiting, and did her best not to look too closely at the certainly obscene behaviors that would undoubtedly be occurring within the most obviously wicked building. Such as that group of girls in the corner, fiendishly engaged in…conversation…about fiendish things no doubt. And over there, on the dance floor, that evil couple entwined in the base act of…dancing…uh, evilly. And gasp, the horrors of those around the buffet table enjoying…tiny sandwiches…and punch. Poisoned punch!
“No wait, why would they poison their own punch?” Tiffany mused. Pondering the particulars of possibly poisoned punch, our prodigious provider of punishment nearly missed it when her target revealed herself.
She came through the doors to the gymnasium with her own personal entourage. Raven black hair flowing over gracefully exposed shoulders, a minimal black dress that more emphasized than hid a figure worthy of such attire, a face with features that would inspire artists. She was magnificent, she was dangerous, she was Tiffany’s friend and greatest rival. She…was…Layla!
Tiffany sucked in a quick breath as she felt her body reacting as it had the last few times she’d encountered her nemesis. Her heart was suddenly pounding, and with it a quickening of her breathing. An excited, electric tingle washed through her from head to toe, a nervous energy building up within. There was no denying the signs; only the approaching meeting of two destined by Destiny, fated by Fate, karma’ed by Karma, to meet in epic battle could rightful invoke such feelings!
Trying to keep the swirling storm of sensation at bay, Tiffany raised her crossbow to the ready once again, sighted down the length of the weapon, and scowled as she found her shot blocked by the press of bodies surrounding her target.
“Oh, clever girl,” Tiffany mused. “But it won’t protect you forever. You’ll drop your guard eventually, and as soon as your guard gets all…droppy, I’ll have you.”
The seconds seemed to crawl by as Tiffany stared intently at Layla’s face, taking in those now rather familiar features. Her dark, deep eyes below elegantly arched brows. A perfectly dainty nose above full, well-formed lips. Those lips, the velvet cover that hid the wicked weaponry of a vampire. Those lips, which had favored Tiffany with their smile at the concert. Those lips, which had been pressed soft to her neck when she returned to her body…
Tiffany started as she found her hand pressed to the side of her neck, fingers gently rubbing the now healed bite wound, somehow still seemingly sensitive. She blinked, and forced her hand back to the crossbow, and shook her head. What the hell had that been about?
Glancing back inside, Tiffany saw her chance. There was Layla, exposed, an easy shot for the, soon to be, master vampire slayer! Training and practice automatically positioned the crossbow for her, and Tiffany felt the cold metal of the trigger against her finger. One simple pull, and the bolt would fly right into the vampire’s chest, right between those full, rounded, very smooth and soft looking…
Heat rose into Tiffany’s cheeks, and with them, an idea of sorts, an idle thought, something small and suggesting…and so completely unwelcome that her mind responded like a surly bouncer to a drunk that had just insulted his mama. After giving the offending idea a thorough thrashing and tossing it down the longest flight of mental stairs she could imagine, Tiffany returned her attention to the matter at hand…and found Layla dancing with some girl!
The unknown person was some kind of human/cat hybrid…with her human/cat monster hands holding Layla…her human/cat bitch face smiling at Layla! And suddenly Tiffany found her finger back on the trigger, and somehow her crossbow was pointed at the other girl, though she couldn’t remember choosing to switch targets…and why was her stomach suddenly churning so?
Closing her eyes tightly, Tiffany took a deep breath, and tried to push her feelings aside, to find her center. It was like trying to push water uphill; no matter what she tried, it just flowed around her without going anywhere. There was a building pressure inside her chest, like a great fist squeezing everything within.
“This is absurd…and stupid! And absurdly stupid! I am a vampire slayer! I slay vampires, I don’t make friends with them, and I do not fall in…I have not fallen in…”
Her eyes flew open with furious burst of denial, and she rushed to aim, to take the shot, to do what she had come to do before…before…
Below, Layla was now in the arms of a young, good looking man with snowy white hair, her own arms wrapped about his neck. And as Tiffany watched, Layla leaned in, delicate lips slightly parted in eager anticipation and…
The crossbow clattered as it fell from numb fingers as something in Tiffany’s chest snapped from the pressure. Whatever had broken must have been concealing a great, bottomless expanse, because it was as if everything of substance within her was suddenly and raggedly ripped away. She turned from the skylight awkwardly, her staggered steps weaving her a path to the waiting rope. Her breathing came unevenly, and she slipped more than she climbed back to the ground, which came upon her expectantly. She fell, and lay upon the cold ground for several uncaring moments before the overwhelming urge to flee this horrible, horrible place overwhelmed her, and she struggled back to her feet.
Placing one foot firmly and purposely before the other, Tiffany walked from the school grounds, her arms held tightly to her side, keeping her hands where they could not reach her face. She would not acknowledge the emotions within by wiping away the tears on her cheeks.
Holder of the Elder Scepter of Ebilnes, Elected Supreme Ruler
"Who are you? I mean, you're me, but I'm me too. How can there be two 'me's? It's not scientifically possible. You are not scientifically possible!" -Twilight Sparkle, to her future self.
Yira wrote:Whatever, labels are stupid. ...Unless it's a label gun, then we're talking tons of fun. "Mine! Mine! Mine! Mine! ...This is an awesome bar stool, but you can have it."
Gary, Ace and Amber-Amber walk into a bar. Each of them grab a seat and order a drink, after which Amber-Amber walks off to the bathroom. Gary looks at Ace and says "you know, one of these days a girl like that's gonna notice me". "Good luck with that. I've gotten used to the buttmonkey status". "Really? I'm a buttmonkey too!".
After that, they stare into each others' eyes, for the first time in their lives meeting someone who can truly understand how they feel. A spark lits in both their hearts, as Gary invites Ace to his place to play some video games. Ace smiles as he accepts. As they leave the bar, it finally dawns on Gary
"Wait, you're 18, right?"
“That is great Tiffany,” Layla said, cringing as she held her phone away from her ear.
Brooke idly took a nip of the Baileys Layla had stashed in her room. As she laid on Layla’s bed, wearing what she normally wears to sleep, a pair of running shorts and tank top, wondering what was making the ditsy blond so excited this time. Brooke had met Tiffany at the store she works in at the mall last weekend.
Tiffany had been helping both Layla and one of her school friends, some cowgirl named AJ, finding some new clothes for their school dance tonight. AJ as well as the five other girls at the mall attended the same school as Tiffany, some private school on the other side of town. Well, three of the girls were helping the cowgirl at any rate. One of the girls, with the pretty purple hair, was busily chasing down a red head on a skateboard while screaming out for the head of the guy who fed the red head a double chocolate mocha espresso.
Of course, how the same purple hair girl went zooming by a few minutes later, looking horrified, and the red head running behind her yelling for her to steer was a mystery. She was sure they said the name of the school but Brooke wasn’t that interested in them so she might have missed it. Layla was there because it was what Layla did on the weekends, shop for more clothes.
“See, I told you that dress looked better on you then on me,” Layla said cheerfully as she tried to snatch the bottle out of Brooke’s hands.
Brooke rolled on her side, using her body to block Layla as she took another sip, giving the frustrated Layla a smug smile. She would had retaliated, only the blond on the phone choose to squealed so loudly even Brooke could hear her.
“Yes, Tiffany,” Layla said loudly trying to get the girl in question to calm down enough to speak. “You totally own him now, yes you did great and when he calls …” there was a long quiet pause. So long that Brooke actually rolled back over and lay against the sitting Layla. “Tiff, you did give him your number right?” By the chagrin look and the face palm Layla was using, Brooke was sure the answer was a big fat NO! Trying hard not to snicker too loudly, Brooke placed the bottle in Layla’s lap. Giving her a look of exasperation, Layla took a long pull as Tiffany found her voice at last.
Brooke sat up and leaned against Layla to hear the other half of the conversation, not that she really need to get that close to hear but she liked the perfume that the vampire was sporting tonight. Any excuse in a storm, Brooke thought as she tried to hide her blushing.
“Ash is going to think I am an idiot!” Tiffany cried out as Layla just rolled her eyes.
It’s not like the first clue he has had, Brooke though unkindly as she grabbed the bottle back from Layla.
“Listen to me Tiff,” Layla said calmly as she shifted her position from sitting to lying back against the headboard. Although Brooke was disappointed because she could no longer lie against her, she couldn’t help admiring Layla’s long legs poking out from under her, rather short, t-shirt she was wearing that night. It seems to have been shorter then the one she wore at the first sleepover, not that Brooke was complaining. Then Layla did something that made Brooke almost drop the bottle, using her free left hand, Layla pulled Brooke close to her so that her head was on her shoulder.
Oh no, does she know that I … that I … gods I can’t even say to even myself, Brooke though as she allowed herself to be pulled in. She took a long, nervous gulp of liquor as the vampire acted as if nothing was going on in her room.
“Listen to me Tiff; this can work in your favor. He is a boy after all, and most likely doesn’t understand the proper etiquette of modern dating, right? I could name a person or two who is very clueless when it comes to dating and asking people out.” Brooke wasn’t sure but it looked as if Layla had given her a side-glance as she said it. “Lucky for you, I am not one of those people and I can help you. Now he is either clueless, which is highly possible or else he thinks, ‘she must be really special girl and wouldn’t give out her number to just any boy who asked her to dance.’” Layla stopped there, sadly shaking her head at the enormous lie she must have just told her friend. However, when she resumes talking it was still a cheerful and helpful voice. “This Ash and your brother know each other correct? So on Monday morning …”
“Have my brother give m e my number!”
“No, Tiffany,” Layla growled out while tapping her free hand on Brooke’s shoulder. Taking the hint, Brooke lifted the bottle up so she could take a swig before answering. Shifting again she lay on her side so that their forehead barely touched and with patience born from years of dealing with Nina, she went on to explain to Tiffany what to do. “No, walk to school with your brother, try to see Ash yourself. Give Ash your number, yourself. Let him see you as the strong, independent,” cringing again Layla was able to say, “intelligent woman you are. Let him know, without saying a word, how lucky he is that you allowed him to choose you … yes you let him choose you. You could have dance with anyone or no one, instead you let him led you to the dance floor. Yes, that is right he is the lucky one. Yep, play it cool and he will be all yours! Uh-uh, that is the sprite. Sure, call me Monday evening and let me know … sure I can stop by the shop. Any excuse to shop, see you then.” With that, Layla closed the phone and her eyes and let out a loud sigh. “By the Impala, I though Nina was clueless!”
“No one can be that bad,” Brooke said laughing as Layla tossed her blackberry over her shoulder. “What happened anyways?”
“Oh, I don’t really know, you heard her. She was talking a mile a minute and she doesn’t make much sense even when she is calm. Apparently, at that dance, she was so excited about when you met her; this guy, who is the Kade of her school, picked her over two or three other girls to have the last dance. And to make it even better, he gave her a kiss on her hand at the end of the dance.”
“He kissed her hand?” Brooke asked, not really believing what the vampire had said. When Layla nodded and took the bottle from her hand, Brooke blurted out. “She got that worked up about a kiss on the hand?”
“I know, who would thought out there somewhere, someone is more inexperienced then you.”
“Hey,” Brooke snapped indigently while Layla’s soft laughter filled her ears.
“Although, I never actually kissed Tiffany, not that I want too either so don’t get jealous, I can’t imagine she is better at it then you.”
“Thanks, I think,” Brooke grumbled as she reached for the bottle but Layla pulled her arm back to leave it just out of her reach.
“No more tonight,” Layla said as Brooke gave her a pout face. After dropping it under the bed for safekeeping, Layla wrapped her arms around the shocked, but non-resistant Brooke, and continued. “We have other, more important, things to do.”
“Such as what?” Brooke stammered out trying to act calm and cool but knowing just how poor of an actress she was right now.
“First, I want to say thank you for looking out for my sister when she, um borrowed, my body.”
“You mean stole,” Brooke snapped, it was still a sore subject for her. “I mean how can you forgive her for that and for trying to steal your boyfriend with your body?”
“Like you, I haven’t completely forgiven her for it, yet. However, in the end she is my sister so …”
“Yea I guess,” Brooke said not sure, if she did understand since she was an only child. Sibling rivalry was something she has never nor would ever understand.
“But like I told you at the mall last week, she does feel bad for what happened and understands, now, what she did was wrong and won’t repeat again. That is why she threw this sleepover party tonight. To say she was sorry and to also say thank you to Chloe, Ace and, more importantly you.” Layla eyes got very soft as did her voice, “When she went into blood shock, if you hadn’t been there to help.”
“Yea, well she might have been a jerk but I couldn’t let her suffer like that, you know.”
“I know, and in saving her, you saved me so I want to say thank you to you as well.” With that, Layla leaned over and gave her a gentle kiss on the lips, which could have lasted for a second or a lifetime, poor Brooke couldn’t say which one was which not now or ever. “And I also want to give you ten free lessons, starting tonight.”
“What?!” Brooke sat up straight in the bed; suddenly wish her heart would stop thumbing so loudly so she could think straight! What does she mean … could she? “You don’t have to you know, I didn’t …”
“You right, I don’t have to but I want to, you mean a lot to me Brooke …” Layla was still lying on her side looking at Brooke with such soft eyes. Brooke found them to be quite … mesmerizing.
“What about Kade?” Brooke finally managed to ask after a long awkward pause.
“Kade means a lot to me but not as much as you do. And not because you are a girl either! This isn’t about being straight or gay or anything like that Brooke. You saved my life twice now as well as my sister. He can’t, no one Brooke, can compete against you in my life.”
“But it might mean more to me than you think Layla,” Brooke said quietly as she swung her legs around and sat on the other edge of the bed. Are you crazy?! You just turned down the hottest girl in school? What is wrong with me!?! However, Brooke just couldn’t stand the idea of being with her as nothing more then a reward. She wanted more; she wanted to be the lucky girl that got to choose Layla.
She closed her eyes and hung her head as she felt the bed shift and waited for the anger or rage or whatever Layla was going to do to make her pay for turning her down. Or worst the laughter, the mocking Layla would throw at her for sharing her feeling in such an open manner. The names, lezzy, dike, or worst, the pervert of Charybdis Heights! And there was no way she would keep this quiet from the whole school either, she just came out for the second time and ridicule would be her only companion for the rest of her life in school.
“Maybe then Brooke,” Layla said quietly in her ear, “I still have much to prove to you. So someday, you would allow me to be luckily enough to get to choose you.”
"Vegetarian: an old Iroquois word for Bad Hunter." Stolen from Azrael
“My books are like water, those of the great geniuses are wine. (Fortunately) everybody drinks water.” ~Samuel Langhorne Clemens
Robin Williams, a man who used his natural talents to make people smile, to laugh, to spread joy, to let everyone else feel alive; so no one else ever had to suffer as much as he has.
A mist lies over the town. It shrouds it in nightly gloom, softly diffusing the light of the pale, sickly moon, affixing the pallor of the grave to all colors. Fitfully, the lights of life flicker behind the windows of the dwellers, who hide in their meager hovels from the unknown terrors of the night outside.
Insouciantly, a sleek black form prowls the night, looking out for it's prey. Prey has become rare lately, she has to venture further and further.
This night, she finds something she had not expected. There, under the dripping eaves of a centuries-old building, a white shape lurks, anticipatory, predating. Cautiously, she approaches the stranger. She lifts her nose to the air, sniffing the still night air. He has a strange scent. He is not from around here. She has never met him before.
He notices her. He rises, oozing out of the shadows into the light of the moon which has managed to pierce the thin veil of fog. Upon closer inspection, he does not look very sleek at all. More... plump. Well-fed. At home in front of a crackling fire, a big bowl of chow next to him, an old, indulgent slave in the chair next to him, just ready to give him some pettings.
She sits down on her haunches, slings her tail around her rump, slightly tilts her head before adressing him:
{Stranger. Well met. Who may you be, so far from home?}
[I am named is Gustavius Alberien Gregorius III!]
Pronouncing this ridiculous name, he also comes to rest, lifting his head, filled with pride.
{I'd expect a fat paunch like you to have such a puffed-up name. I think I'll just call you Mr. Boodles.}
He chuffs indignantly.
[Ignorant wench! Fiery and willfull thou art. Curse my lineage, but that is just as I like it. Dost thou pass hereby oft?]
{Now that you are loitering here, I'll have to revise my schedule, it seems. What are you doing out anyway? Who's your slave?}
[Let it be known my mistress is Lamia Asra-Pa Quintessa, Queen of Vampires, risen to shroud the world of mortals in darkness and bloodshed!!]
{Hun... I really think you happened to nom a bad batch of catnip there. Well, if you've seen no mice, I'll be off, you're creeping me out, to be truthful.}
[You dare defy me? My age measures centuries!!]
{Hey boy, I'm no sex panther, you know? Also, I usually leave the rutting to my slave.}
With that, she got up, turned, raised her tail in a rather uncouth manner, giving him a look at what he would not be getting, and sauntered off - internally tense and ready to give everything for a burst of speed to get away from the perp, if he choose to stalk her.
But he did not.
Finally, she clambered down the rain drain and slipped into the room. She hopped up on to the bed and snuggled into the arms of her new slave who so often sneezed so comically when she brushed her tail under his nose. He stirred, then drew her a bit closer.
"Hey, Lita, where you've been at?" Gary mumbled, before falling back to sleep, dreaming of Amber-Amber.
Sithlord of the Sithling and best customer of McLovecraft's , in the business of keeping the little Platypus in business Moderations in GREEN and signed by the DAMNed. I am not anonymous! Also, MODSMACK!! Winner of the... 2010 Kilopost FRANKIE; 2010 Mad March Nom Off; 2010 Joker Cleavage Contest; 2010 Fan-Thing Contest; 2010 Mimic Contest (tied); 2011 Joker Cleavage Contest; 2011 Contest-for-the-next-Contest (tied)
as the lunch bell rang, wilhelmina twigitt watched students flood the hallways of charybdis heights. she spotted the lyn and love girls coming from their lockers, the former absorbed with her phone.
"Hi aunt Désirée, it's Chloe."
"Hey, Serpentor!" as usual, the older delacroix girl's voice was cold and hard. "Where's Nina? Elanor mixed our lunches up again."
"It's nice to talk to you too aunt Désirée. Can you come pick me up at school? No, they're at work. I think I caught a cold last night at the beach with my friends. I'm going to the nurse right now."
"Mr. Pervis asked her to stay after class." replied brooke "Something about an extra credit assignment."
"What?!" the fear in layla's eyes was perhaps the first emotion other than anger wilhelmina had seen in two years, and she shared it. Before she could do anything though, layla was gone.
jeffrey entered the janitor's closet, fumbling for the light switch with one hand, and his mop with the other. he found the first and light filled the small room, but the mop and bucket were nowhere to be seen. that succubus girl had sneezed hearts all over girl's room and if he didn't get them cleaned up there was going to be trouble.
he looked behind the door, and in the cupboard, but that damn mop was nowhere to be seen. without thinking he pulled aside a red tarp to check behind, and came face to face with himself.
layla sprinted up the stairs, the other students appearing stationary in comparison. "If he's..." no, she couldn't think about it right now. now was for running.
when she reached room 301, there was a moment of relief; it was empty. the moment gave way to panic; it was empty. where were they? does he have her? did she escape? was layla really just overreacting? something shining and yellow caught her eye under pervis' desk. when she picked it up, she found that the doll's head had been made concave, and torn completely from it's body.
"Where are they!" layla demanded of blair "Where!"
the remnant of the doll was silent.
chloe sat outside the school nurse's office waiting her turn and trying to hold back a sneeze. the lizard twins were coming down the hallway toward her and she shrank into her chair hoping not to be seen.
lax (or possibly jux) elbowed his brother in the ribs and pointed, nodding. mirror grins split their faces as they approached chloe. she could feel the anxiety rising, along with something else as they sat down to either side of her. the one on her left leaned in close to say something, he was much too close, she could smell the mice on his breath.
and then chloe sneezed.
ace wasn't paying attention to his lunch, or what brooke was saying, or anything other then that damned squirrel across the yard. look at it over there; strutting around at ground level, not a care in the world. she could probably get it before it reached the nearest tree.
"Fido!" that did get ace's attention. it always did. the entire schoolyard was looking at layla, but layla wasn't looking at any of them, she was looking at ace. in a blink she was across it and in her face, ace's ears lay down and she hunched with her tail between her legs.
"Where is she?!"
"What?" layla smelled strange.
"Nina! Where's Nina?!" not just angry, layla always smelled angry, if she didn't know layla, ace would say she smelled afraid.
"I, I haven't seen her since french..."
"Find Her!" layla shoved something into ace's hands. it was the head of nina's doll, and it looked like someone had used it for a hammer. It smelled like nina, and like Mr. Pervis' suffocating aftershave. ace realized what layla smelled like.
she smelled like panic.
yerffej couldn't remember anybody putting up a fight like that. this was some kind of body he had now. except for the face. when he'd checked himself out in the regular mirror, he had decided it was best to keep the mask. as jeffrey futilely pounded on the inside of the mirror to escape, yerffej draped the red tarp back over it.
yerffej went to the rack with the yard tools. he passed over the rake, and the hedge trimmer, he passed over the ho, and lingered on the shovel a moment before his eyes were drawn to the machete. it felt good in his hand, like it belonged there. he heard shuffling and dragging footsteps approaching the door with muffled voices.
as the doorknob turned yerffej stepped aside into the shadows behind the mirror, careful not to touch it. three kids entered, two lizard boys covered in some sort of pink powder dragging a busty young succubus. the one with his hand over her mouth held her around the waste as the other jammed the door with a heavy stack of chairs.
"Let me go! I don't want to do this!" she shrieked as the first boy dropped her.
"Hey, don't be like that," he said.
"you'll love it when we get going." the other finished.
yerffej looked on in curiosity as she made a dash at the blocked door, but the lizards grabbed her. the girl let out a wordless squeal as one of them started pulling at her shirt and the other one knelt down behind her.
"Jeffrey!" she yelled as she spotted yerffej watching them from behind the mirror. "Jeffery help me please!"
"Huh?" one of the lizard boys looked his way as yerffej stepped out of the shadows, his machete raised. the other boy screamed something incomprehensible as it came down, severing his friend's neck.
the cut was clean, and the head popped absurdly up into the air under the arterial pressure. the other boy watched motionless as it fell to the ground and rolled to his feet. it blinked once. he'd forgotten the girl entirely, and it was only when she elbowed him in the ribs that he started moving again, running for the blocked door just as she had.
the blade came down through his collar bone before he'd made three steps. he staggered and struggled against the machete stuck in his ribs for only a moment before falling to his knees. yerffej pulled the blade out and brought it down again.
and again.
and again.
and again.
"Thank you Jeffery!" the girl wrapped her arms around yerffej's waste. her words became muffled as she pressed her face into his hip, but they sounded like she was repeting 'thank you thank you' between sobs.
yerffej raised his machete again, and a girl's screams echoed through the empty school halls. he closed the door behind him as he left, and did not hear the groundskeeper's radio as it squawked to life.
wilhelmina sat in the teacher's lounge, the school walky-talky in her hand "Jeffrey, Code P. I repeat, Code P! He has the younger Delacroix this time, and you need to find them. Jeffrey respond!" she threw the radio against the wall in frustration, of course he couldn't respond. she needed to calm down and think.
she sat at the lounge's computer and brought up the school security grid. there were cameras everywhere, but she couldn't find anything. she checked the recording, but they had all been erased. pervis was good at covering his tracks, he wouldn't have lasted this long if he wasn't. in desperation she logged into the local cellular phone network. this was extremely illegal, but the encryption was only 256bit, so within moments she had coordinates on almost every student, teacher, faculty member, and miscellaneous humanoid within a five mile radius.
but not nina, and not pervis. the last coordinates before their phones went dead was room 301, which she could see was empty.
defeated, wilhelmina fell into the lounge's couch. there was nothing she could do. nothing.
"Is everything alright Willa Sama?" wilhelmina nearly jumped out of her skin at the soft voice of ms. futakuchi. how long had she been there?
"No, it's, it's nothing I can talk about. The teacher's union would..." she settled into the chair "I can't talk about it Miki San. And I can't do anything either." miki put a hand on her shoulder and drew her close. it was distracting, but wilhelmina needed distraction. black hair drew around her. she needed to think about anything except what she couldn't stop.
brooke followed after ace and layla as best she could. at lupine speed even she had trouble keeping up, but of course layla had kept yelling at ace to move faster. eventually though even layla had to admit there were limits to what yelling at people could accomplish, and she'd fallen silent. brooke had given up on getting her to explain what was happening, and just focused on running. layla had to know how crazy she seemed, how crazy she had looked in front of the whole schoolyard. and the fact that she didn't care scared brooke more than anything.
ace stopped at the door to the school's basement. she sniffed around for a moment before resting her forepaws against it and saying "They're in there."
layla kicked the door not in, but apart. it exploded from it's hinges sending a shower of splinters and shards down the stairs. with vampiric speed she descended into the shadows, seeming not to care if brooke or ace followed. they found her in the basement hallway, looking at the doors to the different storage and utility rooms. ace's hackles rose and her ears lay back, she pointed with her nose at the boiler room door. a long, low growl came from her throat.
layla stalked to the door, and hesitated a long time with her hand on the knob. brooke had never seen an expression like that on her face, conflicted and indecisive and afraid and angry all at the same time. but in a moment anger won out, and layla tore the door straight from it's hinges.
nina was there, looking at them in shock, as was arman pervis. in his left hand he had a spray bottle, his right held a pair of scissors and a comb, it grabbled in excitement.
"Layla!" he said grinning, "You came to see me?"
"Nina, I want you to go with Brooke and Ace right now." layla's voice was glacial "I need to speak to Mr. Pervis alone."
"Layla," brooke began, but she had no idea what she was going to say.
"Take my sister upstairs."
"Okay. Come on kiddo, lets..." brooke swallowed "Lets let layla and Mr. Pervis talk." brooke took nina's hand and lead her out of the boiler room and up the stairs, with ace following behind.
"Mr. Purvis was going to give me a makeover. He said he could make my hair pretty like Layla's."
yerffej stalked the halls of the school, and couldn't remember the last time he'd had so much fun in a body. the look on their faces when he interrupted their amorous activities was hilarious, but nothing next to the confusion when they realized he wasn't about to report them, and then the fear when they finally put the pieces together.
his favorite part though was when they ran. or better yet, when they tried to fight. that cat boy with the fire and ice girls had had some moves, until his leg came off at the hip. then he just sort of flopped around on the floor until he ran out of blood. the girls had broken his machete though, and that made him angry. it was so cold from stabbing the first one that when the other hit him with that fireball it had shattered. he'd had to just beat her to death, which wasn't as good, but had it's own charms.
now he hefted the great double headed axe he'd gotten from the janitor's closet. looking at the succubus girl and the lizard boys again had made him sad. he should have taken his time with the first ones, but he had been just so excited. the blood also triggered a strange janitorial instinct he couldn't quite understand.
as he walked past the teacher's lounge he heard a someone gasping, two someone's in fact. interesting.
yerffej really missed his machete.
wilhelmina didn't understand what she was doing. she was heterosexual, she had verified it through extensive genetic and psychological tests! silky tendrils of black hair caressed her. her findings were published in the new england journal of medicine and the journal of neurophysiology! a slender hand ran up her back under her lab coat. science told her that what she was feeling was effectively impossible! she gasped as miki's other hand brushed along the back of her neck, and for the first time in her life, wilhelmina decided she didn't care what science said. she kissed lips that never spoke, and resolved to reexamine her research methods later.
she ran a hand through miki's sensuously writhing hair, back to where lips sucked her fingers and she shuddered. she opened her eyes and saw... jeffrey? wasn't there something he was supposed to be doing? she thought it was something important, but then teeth nipped at her little finger as it swirled through miki's hair, and she lost her train of thought.
when her eyes opened again, he was still there though, and she had the vaguest sense that something was wrong. why was he just standing there watching them?
well okay, stupid question, but what was the axe for? she wanted to ask, but that would mean disengaging her lips from miki's. as wilhelmina weighed pros and cons in an attempt to determine their optimal use, jeffrey raised the axe.
a wet thwack echoed down the corridors, followed by a woman's scream, which was cut short by several more.
layla stood in the hot and dank boiler room, alone with pervis for the first time in two years. he had that stupid grin on his face, like he had no idea why she was here.
maybe he didn't, maybe he really thought she wanted to talk to him.
"Layl-" she crossed the room before he could even say her name. she felt bone crack and teeth shatter as her small fist drove up into his chin. she was strong enough now.
pervis looked up at her, dazed from where he fell. he tried to speak, but his jaw wasn't moving right, all he managed was to dribble blood all over his face. it came out in a mist when her knees impacted his chest. there were popping sounds of his ribcage collapsing, a gurgling as the shards of bone perforated his lungs.
layla knelt there on pervis' chest for a moment as he kept trying to speak. she was strong enough now.
her fist came down and his cheekbone crumbled. the shrink told her she was too closed off. another blow caved in his eye socket. she said that layla needed to talk about her feelings. two more and his jaw mandible snapped in half. she said that layla until she did, she couldn't put it behind her. cartilage gave way as she crushed his windpipe. she hadn't believed it until now. pervis' hair tore as she drove his skull into the concrete floor again and again. in the language of violence layla told him exactly how she felt, how she had felt for two years.
the blood spattered across her face ran into her mouth, and layla spit.
the newspapers reported of the charybdis heights massacre that thirty seven students were killed before authorities arrived, as well as three teachers: ms. wilhelmina twigitt, ms. miki futakuchi, and mr. arman purvis, who's death was particularly brutal, even among the carnage found elsewhere. the prime suspect, a school groundskeeper known only as jeffrey, remains at large. he is considered armed and extremely dangerous.
found in the janitor's closet among the bodies of three students was a note, scrawled in blood: "I did it all for the lulz"
She heard it as it slithered down from on top of her books. The click of the envelope as it hit the floor on its edge and the soft papf of the rose as it hit first the envelope and then the floor. Brooke bent down and picked them both up. She looked at them baffled for a moment and then quickly changed her books out. The envelope was cloyingly pink with a heart sticker sealing the flap down. With trembling fingers, she broke the seal on the envelope and pulled out the card.
She read “Though it is autumn, your hair is the color of spring. With love and kisses, S.A.”
It was the fourteenth card that she had gotten. Whoever it was had put one into her locker three times the last two days. She looked at the card again. This one had a motif of hearts and roses on it. The first had orchids on it. The second had a picture of Venus on it. Brooke frowned a bit. There was a particular smell to the card. Something odd. Something tender, but hard to place.
The cards were home made, too. That much Brooke had been able to figure out. But she was not sure how they were getting into her locker.
“Well, Baroness Serpentor, what do you have there?” Layla’s voice made Brooke’s teeth grind slightly. Layla had been in a bad mood the last few days. She had been a bit cold to Brooke after the kiss with Kade.
“Nothing,” Brooke said quickly.
“It looks like a card and a rose? Is Kade after you?”
“No! I don’t know who it is! I-I-you’re back with Kade, and he hasn’t really paid any attention to me since the dance. Why not let it go, Layla.” Brooke closed her locker door a bit more forcefully than necessary and reattached the lock.
“Hey, is something wrong with you, Fangs?”
Brooke growled under her breath. She could feel her teeth beginning to elongate. “Oh, nothing! I just wish you would stop with the stupid nicknames! You kissed me- in public- and now the whole school thinks I’m attracted to girls! There isn’t a boy here who seems to be interested in me now!”
“Well, that isn’t my fault. After all, it wasn’t like the boys were stampeding to kiss you before we kissed,” Layla said, hugging her books to her chest and sounding very cold. Brooke snarled and turned away. Layla caught up with Brooke quickly as the two moved towards the lunch room. She grabbed Brooke’s shoulder. “Why don’t you ask around, huh? Maybe someone saw something. Ask Ace, maybe her nose can figure something out.”
Brooke yanked her shoulder out from Layla’s grasp. “I don’t need your help! Next thing I know, you’re going to end up telling everyone that I really do like kissing girls.!”
“Oh, come on, you can’t say that you didn’t enjoy that kiss.”
“Layla! That’s just it! I loved that you kissed me. I loved it so much that I’d love to kiss you again and again!”
The two heard a gasp from near them and a tumble of books. They turned to find Chloe crouched down picking up her books. Brooke rushed over and started helping. When her fingers brushed the back of Chloe’s hand, the young succubus blushed and pulled her hand back quickly.
“Are you ok, Chloe?” Brooke asked.
“Y-yes,” Chloe smiled shyly. Standing where she was, Layla’s eyes narrowed a bit. Chloe fell in behind the two of them as they continued towards lunch.
“Whoever is doing this has been doing it each day since we got back- three times a day! I’ve been getting one first thing in the morning, then at lunch and then before we leave,” Brooke said. Layla just nodded.
That Afternoon:
Layla hid herself just around the corner. She had made some excuse about needing to really hit the toilet to get out of her last class a little early. She waited until she heard the clatter of a locker opening. She stepped out around the corner and lifted up her phone camera. She smiled to herself.
The Next Day:
Brooke walked up to her locker. She was dreading what she would find when she opened the door. The afternoon before, she had found a card embossed with a classic picture of Aphrodite. She licked her lips and dialed her combination. She was tempted to buy a key opened lock for her locker at this point.
First a sheaf of paper fell out of her locker, then a card, then a silk rose. Brooke picked the three items up. The piece of paper was actually a picture. A picture with a very familiar form on it. Brooke smiled and closed her locker door. She stuck the picture into her satchel and went to go find someone. As she did, she opened the envelope. There she read “My love, my spring, I am not sure how much longer I can keep this up. While I long for you, there is someone who is stalking me. I long to tell you who I am, but am terrified as well. Yours with love- S.A.”
Now that she thought about it, it made perfect sense. After all, she had asked her to get her a particular book from her locker, even given her the combination. She trusted this person. Even the scent on the cards should have given it away- a combination of perfume and pheromones.
Brooke turned down another corridor and saw her standing there. She felt her face grow slightly flushed, but this had to end, and it had to end now.
Brooke walked up to her, pulled out the picture and said “Chloe, this is you, right?”
The young succubus just blushed and nodded. “I-I wasn’t sure if you would, um...um...” Chloe looked down, she grasped her left elbow in her right hand and made a circle in front of her with her right foot. She looked up at Brooke and batted her eyelashes for a moment. Brooke blushed. “I thought you and Layla were a couple.”
With the hallway deserted, she moved closer to Chloe, and with gentle fingers, pulled Chloe’s chin up. Finally, she got to practice what Layla had taught her.
“I guess not,” Chloe said, after the two parted. The two giggled at each other for just a moment.
Avatar thanks to Saikoh "I'm going to do what I do best...lecture her."- Twilight Sparkle (My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic) "Hello, I'm a lizard woman from the dawn of time, and this is my wife." - Madam Vastra (Doctor Who "The Snowmen") "There's no point in being grown up if you can't be childish sometimes." The 4th Doctor Doctor Who "Robot"