Desperately Seeking Someone

Chapter 1 – The Boy

The sun glittered on the freshly fallen snow, reflecting into Kenny's eyes like a million tiny diamonds. Too bad it was so bright… He was wearing sunglasses though so it didn't bother him much, although the boy next to him kept casting glances in his direction. He probably though he had a hangover again, and for once he was wrong. True, Kenny's head was hurting a little from the party at Cartman's last night, but not as much as Stan's must be. He smirked at the other boy as they trudged through the snow towards the school. "How'd you feel?"

Stan shook his head, his eyes squeezed shut. "Never. Let me drink. Again," he muttered through gritted teeth.

Kenny laughed. "Yeah right, like I'd want to miss seeing you like that again!"

"Dick."

"Asshole," he automatically retorted, knowing Stan knew he didn't mean it. Ripping on each other was just something they did, it never meant anything to them.

"Hey guys!"

Kenny looked up at the smaller boy jogging towards them, his bouncy red curls desperately trying to spring free from under his hat, but to no avail. "S'up Kyle, you ok?"

Kyle nodded, his cheeks bright pink from running in the bitingly cold winter air. "I'm ok, not great though. Not as bad as Stan!" he teased, his green eyes bright.

"Shut. Up." Stan put two fingers on the bridge of his nose and sighed. "Why are you so… bouncy?" he asked grouchily.

Kyle laughed. "Because I'm not an idiot who doesn't know when to say "No, thanks" to a drinking contest?" he volunteered.

Stan's head jerked up and he stopped in the middle of the street. "Huh? I had a drinking contest? With who?"

Kenny raised his hand. "Sorry bro. I owe you $10 by the way," he said casually and carried on walking, shoving his hand in the pocket of his parka.

Stan almost smiled. "I won?"

"No, I won. I bet you that you wouldn't throw up," Kenny replied, trying not to laugh at the look of utter astonishment on the other boy's face.

Kenny slammed his locker shut, encasing the books inside in darkness. Almost the end of another day… he reminded himself. Not that he was too eager to get home, his mom and dad kept screaming at each other, so much that Karen had taken to crawling into his bed in the middle of the night when their yells had started to shake her floor. Her only picture, a fuzzy one of her "Guardian Angel" had fallen to the floor and smashed. He would never forgive them for taking that tiny piece of hope away from her, but he would get her a new one, a better one, not just a crappy one from a newspaper. Besides, he was going out more and more, it was only a matter of time before a reporter got another snapshot of him. He sighed and turned around, heading towards the College cafeteria, seeing his friends already sitting at their freshman table with Token, Craig, Tweek, a few seats away from the girls at the other end. He rolled his eyes as he grabbed a tray and began loading it with food. Sometimes the boys still acted like it was them vs girls. That's why most of them were still virgins, although they would never admit it. As for Kenny…well, he didn't like to brag but he'd banged most of the girls there. Apart from Wendy, she was off limits until Stan got over her.

"Hey, Kenny," Stan greeted him as he slid down next to Token and placed his hands on the plastic surface.

"Hey," he replied, still lost in thought.

"Ay, fag, you want your pudding?" demanded Cartman.

Kenny shook his head and pushed it over to the overweight boy the other end of the table. It didn't sting as much when Cartman called him that any more. Mainly because Kenny wasn't gay, he was just…. Open. To everything, anyone. He'd thought about tying himself to a label, gay, straight, but decided against it. Maybe he was just Bi.

"Sooo, what does everyone think of classes today?" Token asked to break the silence. Kyle was staring at Kenny looking worried at his lack of response to Cartman, Cartman was busy shoving his face, Stan had his head on the table and groaning, Tweek was shaking nervously and having a mini-freak out, and Craig was…being Craig.

"I…nnnrrrgh….thought they w-were good GAH!" Tweek squeaked.

"If we could study Zhu Xi's theories on neo-Confucian concepts…I would be sooo happy," Craig said dreamily, staring at the ceiling and twiddling his thumbs.

There was a stunned silence, before Kyle shook his head and sighed. "Ok, dude. Kenny, what did you think of it?"

Kenny shrugged. "I agree with Craig." In truth he hadn't been listening to a word they'd said, but he was usually the safest person to agree with.

"You want to study Zhu Xi's neo-Confucian concepts?" Kyle asked, one eyebrow raised.

"….Yes. Really bad."

"Ok," Kyle repeated, looking away. "Are you guys going to that Freshman dance tonight?"

"Freshman dance!" Stan yelped, sounding like he was a cat that just got stepped on. His head jerked up from the table and dark eyes bored into Kyle's. "W-What Freshman Dance?"

"Um…The Freshman Dance?" Kyle asked, laughing uncertainly. "You know, the one they have at the beginning of every year here? The one with the formal affectations?" Kyle sometimes used big words just to piss Cartman off.

"AY! Fucking Jew, speak English, would you?"

Kyle smirked. "Just because you can't string two sentences together, fatass!"

"AY!"

"Cool it, guys. Seriously," Token said in his usual calm, be the level headed one tone.

"That word doesn't even work there…" Craig muttered, and Tweek giggled. He carried on staring at the ceiling but couldn't stop a smug little smile creeping over his face at the sound.

"Shut it, Craig." Token glared at him. Sometimes it was hard for the others to remember that Craig wasn't just clever, he was a genius. "Why does it matter, anyway?" he asked Stan, trying to get off the subject of what words did or didn't work.

"B-Because!" Stan sounded like a balloon with air rushing out of it, all puffed up and angry.

"Dude, just ask Wendy," Kenny said suddenly, making all the others stop and stare at him. He ignored them and stared up at the other boy with his chin rested on his hands.

All eyes rolled from the blond to the brunette, breaths held. Stan opened his mouth like he was going to argue, but couldn't hold Kenny's azure gaze long enough. He nodded and stood up, taking a deep breath before stomping over to the girls' end of the table.

Kenny rolled his eyes. That guy was crazy to do it when he was hungover, at least he'd got over his tendancy to barf all over the raven-haired beauty whenever he went near her. Then again…He was looking at little…barfy. Kenny's eyes snapped up to keep careful watch over him. One sign of nausea, and Kenny would tackle him like a pro-footballer. Even if it meant getting vomit all over his one good parka, because that's what good friends did.

"W-Wendy?" Stan grunted at her, his hands balled into fists at his sides.

"Yeah?" she asked, looking up and innocently licking her tootsiepop. She blinked her bright, sharp, purple eyes and smiled around the sweet. "What's up?"

Kenny could see Stan shaking as his crush ran her tongue over the lollipop. That minx… She knew exactly what she was doing, and how it looked. He thought better of her, he really did.

"Um…I…Uhhh…." Stan stammered and gulped nervously.

"What? Come on, say it!" Wendy said in her usual commanding tone, breaking her cute-yet-sexy demeanour for a moment.

"Would you like to go to the Freshman Dance with me!" Stan blurted at her, then turned bright pink.

The tootsiepop hung in the air just below Wendy's lips. She looked at stunned as the other girls did as all eyes were fixed on them. "Huh?"

"Please don't make me say it again…" Stan groaned, one hand moving towards his stomach. Uh oh… Kenny half rose out of his chair, ready to leap over the table and at the other boy at any sign of weakness.

Wendy blushed to the roots of her hair and nodded. "Ok," she said in a strange, high-pitched voice, and looked away to hide her grin.

Stan let out the breath he had been holding the entire time. "That's gre-!" he began, but his face paled as a look of terror crept onto his features. "Gotta run!" he yelped, and bolted for the door.

Kenny sighed as he got up and followed him, Kyle jogging behind him to keep up with his long stride. At least he hadn't barfed on her… he thought as he opened the door to the boys' toilets. He could hear Stan puking his guts out in one of the stalls. He leaned nonchalantly on the side of the door. "Well done, bro," he congratulated him, whilst rolling his eyes as a fresh wave of nausea overtook Stan.

"I did it! I really did it!" came the muffled response that echoed slightly, letting Kenny know his best friend had his head in the toilet bowl.

"Yeah, you really did it," Kyle confirmed. "And she said yes. I'm so proud of you." He gave a sideways grin and shook his head at Kenny as they heard him throwing up again.

"Yeah! She did!"

"And you didn't throw up on her," Kenny pointed out. "Atta boy."

Stan opened the door of the stall, making his way over to the sick to wash his face and mouth out. He placed his hands either side of the sink and looked up into his own eyes. "Yeah…" he breathed happily, then burped.

"Here." Kenny offered him a stick of minty-fresh gum to chew. "But you should really go home." He turned to saunter out of the bathrooms, waving over his shoulder. "You gotta get ready for your biiiig date tonight! Who knows, maybe she'll even put out?"

"Kenny!" Kyle yelled at him as Stan's face froze, and he dashed back into the stall. "You bastard!"

Kenny laughed over the sound of Stan throwing up again. "Couldn't help myself, dude! See you tonight!"

What was he going to wear? That was such a girly thing to worry about. Like whether or not his shoes would match his bag, for fuck's sake! He growled at his reflection in the cracked mirror. "Karen!" he yelled from inside his bedroom, not looking away from the person in the mirror.

"Yeah!" She trotted in clutching the new picture to her thin chest. He smiled when he saw his own, masked face staring back at him. If only he could wear that. Purple really was his colour….

"Help. Me," he pleaded and sat down on the bed, hearing the old, rusted springs grate and jangle in protest.

Her small, pinched face lit up. "Ok, well, you're getting the colours all wrong," she decided, placing her picture carefully on the dresser and looking him gravely up and down. "Try…." Her fingers moved over his clothes as she searched his meagre closet. "This," she said, throwing a pair of black pants over her shoulder. "Aaaannnd…. This!" A black shirt came sailing towards him, he barely managed to catch it before the hanger jabbed him in the eye. "Aaand this!" This time he didn't look up fast enough, his arms still full of shirt, and he was hit in the face with a black blazer. "Oh, whoops!" Karen giggled.

"Really? All black? What am I, a fucking crow?" Kenny asked as she tiptoed towards the door.

"Just get dressed, I'll be back in a moment," she told him sternly, and walked carefully and quietly to her own room across the hall.

Kenny sighed and tugged what he was wearing off his head, throwing it onto the bed next to him. He could barely hear Karen moving around in her room. Damn his stupid parents… He growled as he loosened the tie violently. Whenever sweet, wonderful, gentle Karen made so much as a peep his dad would fly into a furious rage, and his mom would yell bloody murder at the top of her lungs as Karen sobbed in the corner, nursing her bruises. Then Kenny would come in, bringing with him a strange, deadly aura of threatening calm, and scoop her up in his arms, carry her to bed and tuck her in. Later he would visit and terrify his parents as Mysterion, making sure they wouldn't do it again. But they always did. At least Karen was comforted by the almost nightly sights of her Guardian Angel. He jumped as his little sister walked back into the room, holding a red tie in her hands. "Where'd you get that?"

She shrugged. "Places," she answered, meaning she'd either stolen it or fished it out of a dumpster. Not that he cared, it looked clean. "I didn't steal it," she said, sounding hurt.

"I know you didn't, K," he replied and shot her a smile as he did it up around the black collar, turning the stiff material down over it and straightening it nervously.

"Thanks, K," she said and hopped onto his bed, watching him with her calm grey eyes that seemed too big for her thin face. "So… Meeting any cute girls tonight?" she asked, grinning cutely as she swung her legs.

Kenny turned and pounced on her, sweeping her up onto his lap and tickling her. She screamed and kicked out, unable to escape his hug. "Not as cute as you, little angel!"

"What's that RACKET!" came the roar from downstairs.

Karen pressed her fingers to her mouth, the laughter being taken over by sheer terror as the brother and sister heard the ominous footfall on the stairs.

"I'll take care of this," Kenny told her and placed her carefully on his bed, stroking her hair before turning to the door. She seemed to barely be breathing.

"I thought I told you kids to keep the fucking noise down!" his father yelled at him, standing just outside the doorway.

Kenny stood like an unmovable statue, blocking his entrance into the room. "Leave Karen alone," he growled, glaring at his dad. His blue eyes seemed to double in the intensity of his glare, practically burning under his eyebrows.

His dad looked him up and down. "Don't you talk to me like that," he retorted furiously.

"I said, leave us alone."

The father and son stared each other down for a while. Kenny refused to drop his gaze. He'd seen Death so many times he was on her personal speed dial. He'd hung out with devils and demons and God knows what else, he wasn't afraid of a puny little man who was too much of a coward to even make a move. Finally his father dropped his gaze, snorted and stomped back downstairs. Kenny turned back to Karen with a big grin on his face. "Ta da!"

Karen was trembling on the covers, although she did her best to hide it. "T-Thanks, Kenny," she stammered and threw her arms around him.

He held her tightly. Since their brother had left, the two of them were all each other had in the world. And he wasn't going to let anything or anyone hurt her. Not now, not ever. "Hey, it's ok," he soothed her, hearing the all too familiar sound of her sobs. "Do you wanna sleep in my bed tonight? It'll make you feel safe, and I promise I won't be back late."

"Can I?" Karen leaned back and stared at him with watery eyes. "Really?"

"Sure!" Kenny smiled and tapped her nose. "Whatever you want, angel." She lay down and wiggled under the holey, ragged but clean covers, and he tucked her in and kissed her on the forehead. "Back soon, promise," he said, stroking her mousey hair away from her forehead. "Here, I'll put this by your bed, ok? Then he can watch over you while you sleep, and nothing bad will happen." He put the picture of Mysterion on the battered bedside table.

She held out her hand, the fingers curled back leaving her littlest one sticking up. "Pinkie swear?" she whispered, sniffing.

He locked fingers with her. "Pinkie swear." He got up and turned off the bare lightbulb that hung from the ceiling. "Goodnight," he said quietly, closing the door behind him.

"Goodnight," Karen whispered rolled over and closed her eyes. "Mysterion."