"Today's the day, huh?" A random masculine voice was questions after promptly checking the time on the clock. He then peered over at his companion, who stood off to his side.
"Yep, it's the meeting before the start of the tournament." The other person agrees before they mention, "Can't wait to see who will be there."
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The three girls' entered inside of an abandoned factory warehouse, followed the posted arrow signs and arrived at their destination.
"It's good to see you three again, Utonium sisters." A feminine voice captures their attention before the sight of a teen age girl, with waist length loose orange curly hair in a braid, enters their line of vision.
"Kaylee," One of them politely greeted while her Second and Third rank immediately appeared at her side before the group stepped inside of the meeting area.
'They really should rent this place and buy new furniture.' Blossom inwardly considers.
She was sweeping the entire area only to find a large circular table with enough seats for each Top to have a seat.
The sight of the other Tops and their lieutenants captured the sisters' attention as they crossed the door's threshold and head toward the table
"Are we early for the meeting?" Bubbles was suddenly muttering, which was catching her two sisters' ears.
The blonde then earned a response from Buttercup, "Everyone's on time. All we need is…never mind,"
A teenage girl with medium length curly raven hair, obsidian eyes and tan skin leisurely strolls toward her seat first. She was clad in a white ¾ sleeves sweetheart neck top, white pleated skirt and a golden waist belt. Golden gauntlets adorned both of her wrists while light brown Gladiator sandals graced her feet.
"Good morning, my fellow comrades. We will begin the meeting as soon as every takes their seat." She politely greets and instructs them to have a seat.
"Here we go…" Buttercup miserably grumbled under her breath after she secured her seat at the table.
"Before we conduct the meeting, I was instructed to inform you that there were a couple changes made over the past several weeks. The Head of the Discipline Committee will now actively sit in on the meetings. They will strictly serve in a Parliamentarian position as well as maintain security detail for the tournament. I present to you…"
"Is…" Bubbles was speaking up when Blossom was adding, "…that…" and Buttercup finishing up with "…who I think it is?"
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"You two are up earlier than usual." A feminine voice suddenly interjected at the sight of the jet black haired and orange haired boys propped up at the kitchen's island.
"Barely got any sleep last night," The jet black haired one drowsily discloses once he notices that her eyes were on him.
A smile was stretching across her face before purposely implying, "Well when Buttercup is your date, you got to give her a run for her money Butch."
Butch deeply exhaled a deep sigh, chuckled at the comment and agreed, "Hm, you ain't lying about that Serena."
Serena then directs her gaze to the orange haired male, which prompts her to ask, "What about you Brick? Did you enjoy your Saturday?"
"Aside from the fact that a strange woman, name Sedusa, attacked Blossom and I yesterday, it was pretty uneventful." Brick disclosed as he opted to omit information about Flash out of the conversation.
'That's something Pinkie has to deal with on her own. I'm sure she doesn't want others in her business.' He was inwardly considering Blossom's feelings about the Flash's situation.
"Oh...what was that?! You were with Blossom yesterday?" The orange haired woman teasingly jeered at the younger orange haired teen.
This was news even for Butch's ears, which earns the response, "So did you find out why she was acting like a zombie all week?"
"A zombie?" Serena repeats as confusion sets in until Brick finally clarifies, "Blossom had been acting really strange during our Sports Fest week. Come to find out Bell and Flash found about us being in El Diable de Tridente and blackmailed her so they wouldn't expose us at the school."
Serena senses a shift in the atmosphere around the two before she honestly divulges, "She's a good girl with good intentions. I'm not surprised that she put other's needs before her own."
"She wasn't even the least bit surprised when I told her why we became a part of the group in the first place." Brick honestly comments as he focuses in on the surface of the island.
This time it was his turn to release a sigh and claims, "All I know is that I'm grateful for her silence."
"You should take her out on a date then." Serena promptly suggests before she mentions, "It'll be a good way for you to show her your appreciation."
A quiet silence settles in among the guardian and her dependents before a "Yeah I'll do that" serves as conformation.
'Maybe they are growing up…' She assumes until she sees the brothers starts to tease each other about their love life before it turns in to a wrestling match.
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The sight of Drake Pierce unexpectedly graced their sight as he was dressed in a red t-shirt, light washed jeans, black boots, a long brown cotton trench coat that was sleeveless. He retained his chains on his pants, earrings in his ear lobe as well as his rings on his fingers.
"Please introduce yourself." The raven haired girl was politely commanding, which was earning a nod from the brunette before he was opening his eyes.
"Drake Pierce is my name. I'm from Cram Reform School and I look forward to being the newly selected head of the Discipline Committee." He properly introduces himself to the group.
Blossom was swiftly leaning forward to whisper in Buttercup's ear, "I wonder why Athena made such a drastic move?"
She earned a shrug of the shoulders from her sister, when Athena cleared her throat to announce, "Let's get this started."
"The Dragon Fist Martial Tournament will kick off tomorrow at noon. Teams will be required to report in at 9 am no later than 10 am or face the risk of being disqualified. Also, it will give the Discipline Committee time to conduct a Basic Rule Orientation for new fighters and to properly set up the room for the first round."
"Will we be able to bring weapons this year?" The question came from a girl with two curly ponytails held by floral barrettes that blended in to one large ponytail.
"Good question, Aubree. Drake…will the tourney allow the usage of weapons?"
"There are a couple of changes to that rule: one, any participant that plans to utilize a weapon should make it known at Registration. Also, both fighters must wield a weapon if the round has been approved by Athena, the Director and myself."
"Because there are an odd number of teams this year, the first round will consist of eight teams. Since Pokey Oaks High won last year, they automatically received the first bid to pass to the next round. We will randomly draw lots, except for those that wish to primarily use weapons. It will remain a one-on-one fight with five potentially active fights and one alternative. Each team can carry up to six 'fighting' members and one manager and a Student Representative."
"Sounds like nothing much has changed. Good." A short spiky brunette happily claimed as he leaned back in the chair.
"Well Jayden, there has been some revisions rather than a complete total change. We wanted to implement new rules without being too complex and complicated."
"…and before you even ask Chase," Athena was cutting a blonde boy with a golden band around his head off, "it will be at the hotel off of the beach."
"I only have one request," A red haired teen intentionally spoke up, which earned everyone attention. "Wayne's Research Institute would still like to handle the statistical and analytical data that will be collected over the length of the tournament."
"Just so you can discover our weaknesses, Ivy?" A teen with long curly purple haired, obsidian eyes and super pale skin assumed from the girl's, name Ivy, request.
"You should really drop the doom and gloom act." Ivy was calmly advising before including, "Anyway WRI has always been placed in charge of the statistical data of the DFMT. I always inquire at the meeting since it is proper protocol, Edward.
"I definitely appreciate your strict adherence to protocol, Ivy. As usual, WRI will compile the data as well as distribute the results to each of the school."
"Will there be the three additional days once the tourney has been completed?" A boy with ultramarine hair asked about additional days during the tournament.
"Of course, it will be like our own personal vacation." Athena answers before she poses, "Are there any more questions?"
"Ah yes Buttercup…" She was acknowledging the Top of Pokey Oaks High.
"I know that everyone in this room is aware that we aren't allowed to issue any hits during the tournament." The raven haired teen purposely brought up, which earned some eyes in her direction.
"Correct. We would like to only promote healthy yet safe competition among the schools."
"As Blossom would say it, hypothetically saying a hit were to have slip pass our ever so diligent Head of the Discipline Committee, are we permitted to remove or at the very least defend ourselves?"
"My boys and I will try and remain attentive at all time but to falsely promise guaranteed safety around the clock isn't realistic. I will allow self-defense until we have properly responded to the potential hit. If we aren't there within five to ten minutes, remove the threat yourself."
"Whoa…" Kaylee shockingly uttered from the decision that was rendered in favor of self-defense for the fighters.
"I think I like this new head." Jayden was admitting to his fellow comrades, who were nodding their heads in agreeance.
"If there aren't any further questions, we can conclude this meeting." Athena briefly waits to see if there were any more questions before she finally dismisses them, "Have a good rest of the day, everyone."
'Phew, glad that's over with…' was some of the thoughts that were unknowingly shared amongst the teenagers.
Buttercup noticed that Drake was called over by Athena after the others were dismissed from the meeting.
'I wonder how do they know each other?' She curiously wonders since Athena rarely converses with others, especially boys. Plus, they appeared to be rather quite chummy as they chatted with each other
Drake was quickly parting ways with the teen girl before loudly shouting out to the Utonium sisters to "Hold up a minute".
The three sisters somehow managed to halt at the same time but a few inches apart from each other with an expression of curiosity at the presence of the brunette.
"If you're about to ask me what am I doing here then Blossom you already know the answer to the question." He was coyly hinting after speedily approaching the sisters.
Soon realization dawned on the orange haired teen girl followed by an expression of awe that now graces her face.
The brunette swiftly motions a finger for them to remain quiet and confesses, "I've been meaning to tell Midori about my new gig too but she hasn't been answering any of my calls."
"Has Butch told you anything yet, Buttercup?" He then abruptly poses to the raven haired chick out of the group, who merely shakes her head no.
An "hm" slips from his lips when he advises for her, "You should go talk to Butch first before we meet back up again."
"It's not like we're dating." She was muttering the first part before speaking up, "Fine! I'll go talk to the musclehead then."
"That means we…I mean I get to see Boomer today!" Bubbles happily squealed as she cheerfully clapped along at the idea of being able to see her boyfriend.
'I so didn't want to go see that idiot today either.' Buttercup grumpily thought when she noticed that the Blossom dialed a number on her phone.
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"So what are the plans?" Lucas was happily posing while pacing around the room upon his arrival back inside of the gaudy mansion.
Argos instantly cuts his eyes over at his comrade when he alleges, "Fortunately for you Lucas, no one has figured out that you sent Flash to the hospital?"
"Are you still harping on about that?! That's old news." He annoyingly waved his friend off before he proceeded to repeatedly punch the large punching bag.
"Nevertheless he was a human being. You had no right to beat him inches within death." Argos admonishes his actions toward a defenseless Flash.
A "humph" was emitting from the young man as he was interlacing his fingers behind his head and crossing his legs at his knees.
"Argos, is right." Prince eventually chimed in, which earned a "tsk" and a roll of his eyes from Lucas.
"What are your plans now, Ms. Bell?" He then directs his focus back on his employeer, who currently paints her toenails.
The platinum blonde was gently dipping the brush inside of the bottle when providing an answer to his question, "The DFMT and the complete overhaul of the council as well,"
"Are you out of your mind, Bell?" Prince astonishingly exaggerated since the DFMT and council is a well-respected tradition that maintained balance of powers between schools.
"You never noticed?" She was quipping while carefully gliding the brush tip against the bed of her toenail before adding, "It's the perfect opportunity. Besides, why do you sound so scared?"
"The DFMT is a whole different realm! They're some really dangerous people." He proceeded to explain why her plan sounded ludicrous.
"You have no idea, especially the bitch that is the Head of the Discipline Committee is a real monster. That woman's track record is absolutely ridiculous!"
"I'll increase your pay." Bell simply disclosed since she knew that those three could be bought at the right price.
"You got a deal!" The three were happily chiming in at the sound of more dough being deposited in their bank accounts for this new dangerous mission.
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'It looks like she's in.' Drake inwardly noted as he motored up to the curb of Midori's and parked his car in plain sight.
He was leisurely ambling over to the side of the house, scaling up the trunk of the tree and checking out her bedroom.
His eyes caught sight off movement as a smile started to creep up on his face until the sound of her mother prompted him to conceal himself.
The older woman peers left then right, shakes her head along with a sigh and utters, "I swear…"
Drake noticed that she entered in the room, reached for an item, started to fold and said, "She didn't even clean up before she left."
'Wait…she's not here?' The brunette was shockingly thinking to himself as he was searching for specific items that she usually have along with her.
A "damn" slips from his mouth once realization dawns on him before he wonders just where the girl could have gone.
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"I'm not surprised to still see you here, Ivy." The raven haired girl posed to the red haired girl after she approached her.
"We do have to iron out the rest of our agreement." The red head promptly explains her presence even after everyone else left.
"You're right. We are in charge of making sure everything runs smoothly, huh?" She was muttering to no one in particular with a far off expression on her face.
Ivy then removes a pair of cat eye glasses from her pocket protector, settles them on her face and answers, "You were elected to your position for a reason. Trust me, it isn't as bad as you think it is."
"I just wondered how the previous Head was able to do it." Athena considered aloud with her chin now in the middle of her palm.
The other teen was typing away on the keyboard all while explaining, "She was actually quite similar to you and Buttercup. That chick was strong but delicate and never hesitated to spare her opponents along with a helping hand."
"I think I still have her information somewhere…" Ivy suddenly mentioned while she specifically pressed a few keys, turned the screen toward her and declared, "Ah here we go…"
"Tia B. Gardner?" The raven haired woman read the name of her predecessor off of the screen.
"Yeah," She said after she returned her sights on to the screen and revealed, "Just like you, she unanimously acquired each and every one of the Tops votes to be elected as the Head of the Council."
"I'm sure you will be able to lead such a rowdy group of teenagers like us." Ivy was honestly disclosing with a small smile to convey assurance.
"Thanks, Ivy. So how about we get started?"
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The sound of a fist knocks against the door, which signals to the boys that their guests were presently outside of their door.
"Aren't you going to answer the door?" One of them groaned until the sight of Serena fumbled with a jacket in an unusual hurry motion.
"I got it. I have to go make a grocery store run." She was abruptly announcing as she was readjusting her shoes so that the heel of her foot were easily slipping inside of the boot.
The orange haired woman eventually opened the door and cordially greeted, "Hi girls, how are you?"
"It's been a minute hasn't it, Serena?" Blossom was the one to address the woman in front of them first.
"Well...when you're raising three idiot boys, who are totally oblivious to women's feelings, then we often time go without seeing each other." She purposely places the blame on her dependents' lack of knowledge of the opposite sex.
"Come on in." Serena was excitingly encouraging whike quickly stepping out of the way for the girls to enter inside of the apartment.
"What the hell?!" Butch eventually uttered at the sudden sight of three teenage girls, who presently stood in the middle of their living room.
"Language," The older woman sternly advises him with a wag of her index finger at the jet black haired teen.
"What are you three doing here?" Brick was unintentionally questioning, which was earning a rude response from his guardian, "That isn't how I taught you how to greet your guests."
"Welcome to the Shaw residence." The two teenagers politely greeted their guests after they received the death glare from Serena.
"I need to talk to you." Buttercup promptly speaks up with one of her hands on the side of her hip.
"That's what a significant other says when they are about to break up with each other." Butch jokingly mentions with a raise of his eyebrow.
She was visibly rolling her eyes at before calmly explaining, "But we aren't dating, idiot."
"For now…" He softly snuck in but was ultimately silenced from Blossom's voice, "Same here, Brick."
"Since it seems as if everything is good here, I need to head to the grocery store." Serena cheerfully chimes in prior to her departure from her apartment.
A couple of hours later…
"You're pretty quiet over their Bubbles. What's bothering you?" Blossom inquisitively probing to her sister as she was slidding and securing the seatbelt across her body.
The blonde then peers upward at her other two sisters when she eventually reveals, "Well when Boomer and I were at the movies, we were attacked by Fuzzy Lumpkins. We started to fight and I blacked out."
Buttercup roughly slammed on the brake at the name when she loudly exclaimed, "Fuzzy! What was he doing in Townsville?"
'So that's why those birds flew away from the park.' Blossom inwardly recalled how the birds frantically scattered from a loud roar.
Bubbles was merely shrugging her shoulders when shaking his head and admitting, "Your guess is as good as mine."
"Now that you mention Fuzzy, Brick and I fought with Sedusa at the park." The orange haired sister disclosed her encounter with an old foe from their past.
"Sedusa? I wonder which rock did that slimy snake crawl out from under?" Buttercup quipped with a roll of her eyes at the sound of that makeup obsessed manic.
"There's something else too." Blossom quickly speaks up since she fails to mention something else that was important.
The raven haired sister cut her eyes over at her sister and teasingly alleged, "Like what? The fact that you and Brick kissed and made up?"
"Wait…what?!" She was nervously stuttering from the accusation as a slight bright blush was surfacing on her face.
"Oh look…Bubbles she's blushing." Buttercup encouraged her sister to join in on the teasing, which was instantly hushed from her declaration, "That's beside the point. Flash was put in the hospital by Bell!"
A strange silence overcame the other two in the car as Buttercup maintained her focus on to the road at hand.
"The twit wouldn't even dare lift a finger for him. Are you sure it was her?" The raven haired sister downplayed since she always viewed Bell as harmless as a gnat.
Blossom was shaking her head in disbelief befor adamantly proclaiming, "I plan to figure that out once I can locate her."
"I say we go and bother Midori. It will distract me from the meeting."
"Good point,"
4444
Just as soon as the day started, it abruptly came to an end. Yet to a select few high school students, they were ever so anxious to begin the next day…a day that would surely bring about excitement and adventure. Why? Tomorrow was the official kick off day of the annual high school district Dragon Fist Martial Tournament.
A collection of six students, which consisted of a Top, Second and Third, along with three other students recommended based upon the evaluation of the principal and Top at that present moment had to be chosen.
Students from across the district will compete in a hand-to-hand or weapon contest as the best ascend one step closer to the final stage: the championships.
Only one school can reign supreme at the end of the tourney, so who will it be? Current reigning champions Pokey Oaks High School or will another school usurp their current hold?
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06.10.18 Major editing edits