Femme Fatale
"Professor Ozpin!"
A thunder of raps against the solid wood door, Ozpin stumbled awake. Grabbing his cane as he wearily made his way to the door. Opening it to a group of disheveled students in their sleeping gowns.
"Professor Ozpin, someone's been killed!" His eyes widened.
"Take me to the body." He said calmly. The students led him to the outer balcony outside the dormitories.
The sun was just peaking out over the sea, its rays blinded him initially, the clouds rippled like waves, reflecting the ocean in its entirety. Ozpin's eyes glistened in the sky, however the one thing he could not see, was a body. The floors were flawless, a little wet from the previous night's rain. No blood, no trace of anything having been there at all. He looked at the small group of students, they were stunned, in complete disbelief of what was before them. Or, what wasn't.
"We swear Professor. It was right here!"
"I believe you, don't worry. It was probably some senior students pulling a prank, some rough welcoming to the school. Try not to worry about it." He ushered the students away and closed off the area. He pulled out his scroll, calling him was a precautionary measure now. The scroll answered almost immediately.
"Mr Grau, I think we found one." Ozpin waited for a response. A slow and long breath reached out from the other side. Taking in a raspy breath.
"Fear not, Ozpin. I've been training all my life to hunt them down, I'll handle it."
"Without a doubt Mr Grau."
"Any idea what type it is?"
"It recovered fast, much faster than the last one you killed." There was a pause...
"I've got a few theories. Wait for me to get to Beacon, I'll investigate as soon as I get there."
A click and the call ended. Ozpin looked at the cleanliness of the area, no mess, not even a single sign of struggle. Did it cover up it tracks? Not possible, it would need much more time to get that done. Did somebody cover up for it… He shaked off the thought.
Splitting headache, his head hurt more than it did on his 16th birthday. Stomach felt detached like acid was spilling out into his body, slowly dissolving and killing him. He was wearing the same silk pants, they had burn holes along the legs and knees. His knee felt weaker than the day it shattered. Holding his cane he hobbled himself back towards his dorm.
He knew somebody had killed him that night. Little did they know, such a frivolous thing like death could not keep him down for long. He looked down at his stomach, not even a scar, he'd come to expect such a thing. He'd died many times in the past year, he learned quite fast that his aura no longer blocked attacks. All it did was bring him back after his wounds took their toll.
Opening his dorm room door, Lulu jumped back in shock. Seeing the shirtless and groggy Marcus.
"Igor? Fetch me my towel, I need a hot bath to curl up and drown in." Marcus stumbled towards his bed and collapsed in it.
"Where were you, you were gone the whole night." Charles tossed him the black towel, grabbing the guy's wrist pulling him to his feet.
"You would not believe me even if I told you." Marcus cracked his spine, still feeling a faint ache from where it was snapped in half.
Kusuri was frozen solid. Her knuckles gripped the sheets of her bed with a ghastly strength. Skin going white as snow, like she'd seen a ghost. Her eyes carefully watched his own, his gaze caught hers and he lingered.
"Everything alright babe?" He stretched his shoulders, cracking his knuckles.
"I'm fine. How. How are you feeling?" She asked with a new found curiosity.
"Like death." He blinked his baby blue eyes then proceeded to walk with Charles out the door.
Lulu saw Kusuri watching him as he left.
"You okay?" Lulu said waving her hands in front of Kusuri's face.
"What?" Kusuri shook herself out her funk. "Yea, just… Intrigued now."
She watched him. No. Watched him was such a… passive description. More like, she studied him. Like the mantis, she analysed her prey's movements. How he'd use his hands to form pathetic grand gestures. Like a deranged singer; harmonizing in reverse. He walked tall, holding himself with a certain pride she would have thought a lion shared.
She admired how his ears twitched when he heard a severe sound. Not his normal ears, the black furred, pointed tipped, acute and adorable ones. How she wanted to cut them off and keep them in a jar. Just so she could stare at them a little.
She adored his cute, little nose. It moved in such a way when it smelt something, she wanted to capture that gestus and immortalize it. Watching his face move in such peculiar ways. It made her mouth water. Sometimes she would smell him, or the things he touched. Just to get a taste of that scent, expensive cologne he sprayed plentifully. She could sense him from the down the hall, but nothing beat it up close. It merged with his natural odor, quite musky; hints of sex.
But above all, she loved his face. His lips, how they curved to form such a smile, that the gods she studied would strike him down in jealousy. His face, angular, a stark contrast from that brute Charles. It had faint traces of femininity, like he'd adopted it from his mother. Then. His eyes. So blue, they actually glowed, and that is not an exaggeration. When the lights were off, she could see the faint glow of his pearlescent orbs, radiating a delicious light she could get drunk one.
Some nights she would lay there. Just watching him. Taking in the ways he tossed and turned, rubbed his knees and began to sweat, like the nightmare he was trapped in brought back memories of his injury. She wanted to stroke his hair, as she cut off his fingers, asking him what was wrong. Why his leg hurt so? Could she make it better? Amputation often severed the pain associated with the limb! She'd make it painless, kiss the pain from the bloodied stump, using his vital fluid to brighten her lips. Make them even more red, just for him.
She licked them at the thought. She lusted for the idea of holding his severed head to her breast, caressing the black locks and tugging on the pink of his ears. How tasty a vision.
"Lulu, what are your opinions of our leader." She asked, coiling her slender fingers around the red pen. With a strict hand, guided by disciplined accuracy, she crossed out a word on her page.
"I know we probably should no more about him. But he's quite mysterious. I've asked him some personal questions, but he's very vague in his answers." Lulu responded, going back to her highlighting.
Kusuri rolled her tongue in her mouth, pressing it against her cheek. He didn't look the type to be hard at work, but there he sat; head down, nose pressed practically to the paper. She liked to guess that he was just 'waiting for the right distraction'. But there was conscious tick in the curls of his cheeks. Something that had an itch to learn; keening for knowledge.
"I'm bored." Kusuri rolled her head back, waiting for someone to speak. When nobody responded, she lulled her head forward, to look at the other three. "Anyone hear me? I'm bored. Let's go do something!"
"Kusuri, if we don't do our homework. Well, we're gonna have plenty to do in detention. I hear Professor McPhee is fond of holding people till late at night. Not something I'm too keen on experiencing." Charles flicked a pencil at her, Kusuri caught it mid air, then snapped it in half.
"When we finish, I'll be happy to go get dinner with you." Lulu smiled patting Kusuri's shoulder. The redhead resisted the urge to spit.
"Sounds lovely. You two going to join us, or are you just going to keep pretending we don't exist?" She clenched her jaw, notioning towards the boys, mostly Marcus.
"I can't stomach the cafeteria food. I'm getting a delivery from Olive Garden later, I can order more if you guys want, isn't an issue." Marcus spoke without lifting his head.
"Olive Garden? Your joking right? They don't deliver." Kusuri called out his supposed bluff.
"Joking? Afraid not love. The owner is a friend of my fathers, they make exceptions for friends." He chuckled twirling his pencil in his finger, leaning backwards he stuck his tongue out at Kusuri.
"If you're offering. Why not? I don't mind eating in." Charles leaned back, taking a slow drawn out breath.
They existed in a courteous dark silence in a crushed down rage. Neither of the four speaking, just resuming their work. Kusuri clicked her tongue every few seconds, Lulu made little squeaks when she got something right, Charles rubbed his nose periodically, and Marcus sat there blank faced; scratching away at his notebook in a new fashion. Kusuri noted how the strokes had changed from their regular fluidity into broader strokes that crossed multiple lines. Like he was drawing.
Kusuri jumped him, wrestling the sheet of paper from his clutches while straddling his chest.
"What have we got here?!" Kusuri beamed, beginning to look down.
"Kusuri! Get off me! Give it back!" He futilely threw his arms up trying to grab hold of the paper.
"I didn't know you draw, it looks like your books covered in them." She traced her fingers over the pencil marks. She flipped the pages back, the older ones had been colored in. "They are so pretty. Are they dresses?" She asked looking down at him. His cheeks flushed red in embarrassment.
"... Yes… I find it calming alright!" He burst, his hands came to rest, as he finally gave into submission.
Kusuri saw the long red hair flowing down one of the pictures. Kusuri untied her hair from her loose ponytail, letting it flow wild and free over her shoulders. She showed him the picture pouting her lips.
"Drawing me with clothes on. I'm almost disappointed." Kusuri teased "I like this one." She pointed to the bright crimson one, he blushed, it was one that he considered quite risque.
"I'll… Have it made for you." He was blushing profusely and avoiding her gaze. Kusuri ground her hip into his abdomen, she slowly lifted herself off of him. Charles was giving them the stink eye.
"You know this is a public place right?" He said, clearly not impressed.
"Spot yourself a voyeur ay Chucky?" Marcus clicked his tongue, finding his feet.
"Pervert." Kusuri added, toying. She walked behind Charles and started massaging his back, not a moment later she pinched the nerve under his shoulder blade. He tensed, grabbing her hand and twisting it behind her back.
"Watch yourself Kusuri. Wouldn't want to break that arm of yours." He pushed her forward, and Kusuri circled him like a shark. She sat next to Lulu, who was sitting in silence. "You've been quiet sweet thing. What's racing through that beautiful mind of yours." Kusuri poked Lulu's temples making her squeak.
"Oh me! I've just been studying! There's so much about your world I don't understand." Lulu looked to the scroll. "Like this. How does it work exactly!" Charles stood up taking his out.
"I can explain that. The Dust battery that's located in this segment here…"
"Yea! But how does it make people's faces and voices appear? What magic does it use to do that?" Charles was stunned, he took a long breath.
"Oh you haven't seen anything yet. Have you ever seen a… television?" Charles smirked. Lulu's eyes widened.
"What's that?!" She said in awe.
"I'll get the food. You get the video games." Marcus and Charles fist bumped. Charles grabbing Lulu and Kusuri, Marcus running out of the room.
They were in a place 2nd Year Students referred to as 'The Rec Room'. It was a dorm that had been turned into a room students could relax and unwind. A television and gaming system had been implemented, as well as a large assortment of chairs, beanbags and sofas. The rule was each graduating year group had to contribute to the room and buy something for the next generation. So every year the room got a new instalment.
Lulu was sat on a beanbag front and centre, her eyes wide as she stared at the moving television. She held her her scroll between her hands, without any knowledge of what to do with it. She pressed what looked like a circle on it, a man on what they called the TV moved. She dropped the controller in disbelief.
"How did he do that!?" She screamed in excitement, picking it up again. She pressed a different circle and he did a punching motion.
"His movements are linked to your scroll. When you press a button he does an action, each of the different shapes performs a different action." Charles said, he was being fed an oversized pizza slice by Kusuri. Marcus sat quietly behind Lulu, eating his salad.
"Shall we place a bet?" Kusuri said to Marcus, he smiled at the idea.
"100,000 Lien Lulu wins?" Kusuri coughed as did Charles.
"What makes you think I have a spare 100,000 just lying around?!" Kusuri laughed at the idea. "How about 100 Lien?" Charles propositioned, Marcus began laughing at the very idea.
"I can't buy a car with that!"
"Why would you need a car? Don't you have people to drive you around?" Kusuri toyed, mocking Marcus' posh accent.
"I crashed the last one. Its easier to just buy another then get it fixed." The other two sat in silence as he said the words.
"Rich brat." Charles coughed taking another bite of pizza.
"Fine, I'll match your 100,000 Lien bet. But we make things interesting, the other has to do whatever the other wants for a week." Kusuri's eyes lit up, as did her opponents.
"Deal." The two shook on it.
Marcus put his salad aside and began whispering something in Lulu's ear. She looked confused at first but quickly nodded. Kusuri started massaging Charles' shoulders.
"If you win Charles I'll go on a date with you. Boost your street cred."
"Ewww! What makes you think I want that!" He screeched.
"Fine! Just win so I can take him on a date!" Kusuri had little love hearts in her eyes.
Charles was focusing on the screen. A 2D fighting game. No way he could lose. Lulu had never even seen one of these before today. She didn't even know the controls. There was no way he could succumb to her. 3. 2. 1. The fight started.
Kusuri took a deep, heavy breath. "Charles." She was giving him death eyes. He sat in a ball, holding his knees to his chest. Tears flowing freely down his face. Lulu was cheering wildly, while Marcus did a short victory dance.
"You were right! I just pressed every button as fast as I could and it worked!" Lulu hugged Marcus, who hugged her back.
"I think you owe me 100,000 lien." Marcus laughed hysterically. Kusuri growled showing Charles one last look of complete hatred.
"I'll contact my agent." Kusuri said, storming out of the room.
"She'll get over it… Hopefully." Marcus stuck his tongue out
"Hopefully before that weekend field trip. Hate to have her pissed at me on an island getaway." Charles taunted picking up the containers. Throwing them swiftly in the trash. "Come on Lulu, it's late and we have class early tomorrow. Leave Marcus to wonder how screwed he is."
The two of them left the class, and Marcus sat there. Thinking, it had been little over twelve hours since he was murdered the other day. It took him a good couple of hours to regenerate. The thought that really pestered him was why? It was what, a single day? Only one day in school and he'd already been killed. Who had he pissed off so gravely that day, he thought he was laying pretty low. Unless… No… It was someone on his team… The notion seemed ridiculous but none the less, it persisted in the back of his mind like a parasite.
He walked outside, stumbling without his cane. Wandering the halls after dark was forbidden but nobody was around to really enforce it. Teachers couldn't patrol every night, so unless he was quiet, nobody would find him. He turned a corner and he saw the most peculiar thing. A light, in one of the teachers rooms. He hugged the wall, inching a little closer. Till he heard voices. A boy and Ms McPhee. They were hush and he couldn't figure out what they were saying. He resisted the urge to get closer, and that paid off. One of his classmates, a tall boy, with navy blue hair, walked out. His head a mess and he was fixing his tie. A long slender hand curled around his chin before poking his cheek. He stumbled away in a drunken lust Marcus was all too familiar with. Was Professor McPhee sleeping with students!?
He didn't want to open up that can of worms. He turned tail quite fast and hobbled away quickly. Not wanting her to find out he'd seen. People can do scary shit when backed into a corner.