I am so sorry for the delays, everyone. An old hag was complaining that I didn't kiss her buttachen in a playbill, so I've been putting up with her attitude for the past few days. It sucks when your own mother acts more like an angst-ridden teenager than you do...
This is just a bit of down-time for Gryffin. I mean, after a hospital trip, dying, and PWN-ing Shifty, she kind of deserved a break. Here is where you almost get a sense of what kind of place she's come from. I can't imagine that Ivo was the kindest of masters.
Oh, and, by the way, Evil Flippy is a real pervert. I never knew he could be so crude.
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By the time Gryffin arrived at Splendid's house, with Splendid in tow, he had fallen asleep and was snoring softly. Gryffin flew them back into the window and set Splendid in a chair while she found a light switch and clicked it on. She didn't know what to do with Splendid, who didn't seem to want to wake up. What does one do with someone who is asleep? She knew that whenever she was asleep, lab assistants would always wake her up with some loud, unexpected sound, and then laugh as she looked around in panic. Something in her gut told Gryffin that she wasn't supposed to do that.
She took Splendid into his room and placed him carefully on the bed, covering him with an old quilt that was folded up neatly next to the pillow. Splendid shifted slightly and groaned, drawing his knees up to his chest. Gryffin gently laid her hand on his flushed cheek and felt that he was burning, so she got a wet, cold washrag and placed it on his forehead. He sighed and a faint smile lit his face.
"Thanks..." he whispered, his eyes opening a slit. Gryffin smiled back, then gently patted his hand.
"You're welcome," she answered softly. "Is there anything else I can do for you?" Splendid closed his eyes again, snuggling down into the sheets.
"No...you've done enough..." he breathed. In the next instant, he was asleep again, his chest slowly rising and falling. Gryffin stood there for a moment, thinking.
"Splendid?" she timidly asked. He didn't stir. "Is it okay if I go explore the forest?" He still didn't answer, but slept on. Gryffin tiptoed out of the room and shut the door behind her, wondering if he would mind if she stepped out for a little fresh air. She needed to think about what had happened to Shifty.
Gryffin flew out high over the treetops, admiring the night sky and the moonlight on the leaves below her. She was slightly worried about what would happen if Splendid woke up and found that she wasn't there, but the woods were too beautiful for her to stay concerned for long. When she looked down, she saw dense forests alternating with open fields and rolling hills. The wastelands of Mobus were nothing in comparison to the woods.
To her delight, she soon came upon a lake hidden deep in the trees. She didn't know how to swim, but she wanted to get a better look at the water. It looked like a shiny black sheet of glass; unmoving but welcoming, drawing her in. She landed on the shore and looked around. All was still and quiet, and there wasn't another soul in sight. No one could see her.
She untied her sash and slipped her robe off, leaving it on the shore as she waded into the lake. The cold water felt good against her bare skin, and swimming came to her quite easily, despite her large wings. She let herself drift under for a while, then her wings snapped open and she leapt up, flying about a hundred feet before diving straight down. She laughed as she plunged back into the water, bubbles erupting around her and getting caught under her fur. She soon tired of this and began to float on her back, staring up at the sliver of a moon above her.
A sudden sound in the bushes made her snap back to attention, every muscle drawn tight like a ready bowstring. She saw a pair of dark green eyes appear in the shadows and a low, gutteral growl met her ears.
"What are you looking at, you pervert?" she snapped, hoping she could scare whoever it was away. "You must really go out of your way to spy on naked girls." The eyes blinked and dissapeared, and she heard the sound of light footsteps as the intruder sped away. Gryffin sank back into the water, sighing, putting them out of her mind, for now.
Evil Flippy stalked away, wondering if he could find an easier target. He was trying to put as much distance between himself and that freak of a girl as he could.
"She's a fuckin' psyco..." he muttered. "Talking to me like that...doesn't she know she'll get murdered?!" Flippy sniggered.
Can't stand up to a girl half our size? he asked, laughing. And here I was thinking everyone tried their best to stay out of your way.
"You shut up!" Evil Flippy snapped back. "If I wanted, I could go back there and kick her ass, right now!"
Then do it.
"No."
Why not? Chicken? Flippy chortled and began to make clucking sounds. Evil Flippy's face turned red.
"No...why do you care, anyways? Besides, she was completely naked!" he spat. His face burned. He could face over a thousand soldiers and destroy them all without so much as blinking, but he just couldn't bring himself to fight a nude girl, no matter how weird she looked. He stopped and glanced back. Maybe if he was really quiet...
No. No fucking way. There is no way in Hell... Flippy said, and Evil Flippy rolled his eyes.
"Fine. Perfect. Whatever. You win, Goody-Goody." he spat angrily, drawing his Bowie knife from his jacket. He could hear Cuddles and Giggles whispering somewhere up ahead. The silly things, don't they know it's dangerous outside at night?
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Gryffin slowly pulled herself out of the water and got dressed again. She honestly didn't want to leave the peacefull lake and the glittering sky, but she had to get back and see if Splendid was okay. More importantly, she had to find out if he was angry or not. A sense of dread had begun to form in her stomach, and she tried to steel herself for the storm that was sure to come.
She landed back in the study, shaking and dripping on the cold floor. Her heart lurched unpleasently when she saw Splendid curled up in a chair, a book in his lap. Gryffin made a tiny squeak, and Splendid looked up and smiled as if he was about to go back to his book, but then he stopped. He slowly took his glasses off, folded them up, marked his page in the book, and put them both to the side. Then he got up and made his way over to her. Gryffin stood where she was, terrified.
"So," Splendid said in a calm voice. "You've been out." Gryffin nodded, too frightened to move. Splendid cocked his head to one side. "Are you okay?"
"P-please..." Gryffin whispered. "I won't do it again...I promise..." Her eyes had begun to glow blue again, and Splendid stepped slightly closer.
"What are you talking about? I'm confused..." he said, then realization dawned on his face. "Oh, Gryffin." Gryffin looked into his bright blue eyes, tears welling up and spilling over. "Look, you're not a peice of property anymore. I don't want you to feel trapped up here, okay?" Gryffin shuddered, wiping her eyes.
"But what if I try to escape?" she asked. "Don't you want to be sure that I won't try to leave?" Splendid shrugged.
"Escape what? I'm not holding you hostage here."
"But...aren't you my owner?"
"You don't have an owner anymore," Splendid replied, patting her shoulder. "You're a free woman, Gryff." Gryffin smiled at him, her eyes fading back to their normal pale grey color.
"You're so nice to me, Splendid." she said. "Thank you." Splendid grinned back.
"Oh, forget it," he said, acting embarrassed. "I'm going to bed. Good-night, you silly thing." Gryffin laughed and, to Splendid's surprise, gave him a hug before he walked back to his room.
She was feeling much better, it was true, but she was faced with yet another moment of confusion. If she was free, does that mean she was allowed to sleep on the couch? After thinking for a few moments, she decided to sleep on the rug in front of the fireplace, just in case. She curled up and closed her eyes, smiling as she fell asleep.
It's an oddly intriguing fact that in one day, Gryffin had laughed and smiled more than she ever had in the twenty years she spent on Mobus.
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Can you possibly imaguine not being allowed to sleep on a bed? Jeeze...
And Evil Flippy is such a pervert! Spying on her while she's skinny-dipping...the dirty bastard...
"HEY! You do realize I can read, right?!"-- Evil Flippy reading on in outrage.
I had something about Furbies on here, but thanks to some sort of typing glitch, they're gone. Also, why the fark does this website keep erasing my spaces in between text in bold and italics?!? It makes me look like an idiot who can't use a damn keyboard!
Next chapter might be a bit late. That's honestly out of my control; I'll be baby-sitting a sugar-glider for my Aunt Linda.
Cheers!
