Oreoskidz - I think Mercutio outdid himself on that!

Uh oh! The dinner party was a complete disaster, especially thanks to Mercutio. And now, we'll see the aftermath.

"What did you ask him that for?" exploded Benvolio.

"He was getting angry anyway" shrugged Mercutio "And I always wanted to know. Now I do"

"I think the answer was always pretty obvious, in fact, you didn't even need to ask" snapped Benvolio.

"The look on his face was funny though" snorted Mercutio.

"I bet he had enough of that in school...oh god, you don't really think my dad did all of those horrible things, do you?"

"Of course not. Your dad is nice. He's been good to us. He tried to take care of us all, and got himself in this mess" said Hermia "He paid for my ring"

"He was probably just trying to scare us" said Mercutio "Right, Allegra?"

"I don't know, Mercutio. I mean, you should take it seriously when people say they have been bullied. It can affect them in loads of ways and mess them up in the head..."

Mercutio reached down and wrapped his arms around her to comfort her. Allegra often told him of how her father had constantly called her stupid throughout her childhood and put her down, no matter what she did. He felt her lean her blonde head on his arm, and his heart melted.

"I'm going out" announced Benvolio, grabbing his wallet and keys from the side.

"Don't be long, I'm giving Eliseo a bath tonight and you know he likes it when you play with the squirty fish with him" said Hermia, kissing him on the cheek.

Benvolio stormed out, and Hermia turned to face Mercutio.

"Mercutio, go after him. I'm worried he'll do something rash"

"Benvolio, do something rash?" asked Mercutio.

"Well, you know what I mean!" scolded Hermia "You didn't help 'Oh, I drew a picture of Benvolio naked! Want to see?' Honestly, Mercutio! You embarrassed him. This was his only chance. In fact, you're lucky Norris the Llama hasn't gone out the window yet"

"It was never going to work. That man is crazy! No wonder Gabe the Babe is friends with him"

"Gabe the what?" asked Allegra.

"Babe" grinned Mercutio "He's a babe. Righty. I'm off Ben-ben-stalking"

Mercutio hopped out the house, and followed after his friend. Mercutio watched him drag his hands through his hair and pull at it, something he did when he was stressed. Benvolio twisted this way and that around the streets, and Mercutio shivered. It was cold now the sun had gone down, and neither of them had coats.

"Not so fast, Benny-boy!" Mercutio grabbed him.

"What do you want!" cried Benvolio, twisting away.

"A hug?"

"I don't want to hug you" snapped Benvolio "Asking him if it hurt...of course it fucking did! You shouldn't joke about stuff like that, guys are really sensitive about that!"

"Um, Benny said a naughty swearword!"

"Fuck! Shit! Cunt! Bollocks!" shouted Benvolio "There you go! Have a swearword"

Mercutio held his breath for a while, before bursting out with laughter. Benvolio held his breath for a while, and then he too burst out with laughter. He and Benvolio clutched each other as they laughed.

"Sorry" said Mercutio.

"It's ok"

"No, I mean it. It was insensitive. It's just, I was mad at him for saying that stuff about your dad. Your dad's all right! I mean, I know he favourites Beatrix sometimes and lets her obsess over Twilight all the time, but he wouldn't have done that! This is like, the 21st century, human beings are heading towards civilisation. In the Western world, we don't discriminate against religion anymore, unless you're some evil Nazi or something"

"I don't know, Mercutio, I don't know" sighed Benvolio. They leant over a wall, gazing down at the river. It was a deep midnight blue, and the moon glimmered up at them from it.

"Did he say stuff about Shylock when you were younger?"

"Just that Shylock was jealous of him. And he did make some Jew jokes, but they weren't bad. It was just like, you know, South Park humour"

"Perhaps he just didn't know better when he was a kid. Long time for them both to hold a grudge"

"Mercutio, you still prank call Tybalt when the feud ended, what, two years ago?"

"Yeah, but Tybalt's a dick head"

Benvolio shook his head "Right. I've got to think about what to do next. Reasoning with him didn't work. He's going to the courts to get his bond. I'm going to need a lawyer"

"How are you going to afford a lawyer?" asked Mercutio.

"I can't" admitted Benvolio.

"Not here, mate" grunted the police officer. Gabriel's eyes snapped open from where he had been resting on a pew.

"Oh...I'm so sorry. I'll just leave"

"You look young to be out like this" remarked his companion "How old are you?"

"I'm twenty" lied Gabriel, gathering his belongings and rubbing sleep out of his eyes.

"You don't look twenty. Are you sure?"

"Nineteen" Gabriel tried to hurry out, but one of them stopped him.

"Do you have any family you can call?"

"No. Please, let me go. I'm leaving already"

Gabriel barged past them, and headed back out into the night. The night was dead and cold, and he shivered on his way. Snooky continued to yowl at him, but Gabriel blocked it out. His mind was numb from tiredness, and he had barely enough sense when he banged into a group of yobs.

"Did you just hit me?" demanded the leader.

"Yes. Now get out of my way" snarled Gabriel. He refused to be intimidated by gangs. They thought they ruled the streets because they travelled in packs and scared old ladies? They didn't scare him.

"You talking to me?"

"Yes, I am talking to you. Now move!" commanded Gabriel.

"Oh, he's a cocky little lad. Or lady, should I say" sneered the leader.

"Or an 'it'" another of them laughed.

"Gender is more than what's on the outside and between the legs" hissed Gabriel. He tried to storm around them, but they shouted after him, catcalling and jeering. Gabriel turned back.

"Don't make me slap the smirk off your ugly face" he threatened.

"Oooh!"

"You heard me" hissed Gabriel. They continued to laugh, and so Gabriel went in for his favourite insult when speaking to chavs "At least I know who my father is!"

"Get him!"

Gabriel ran. Again. His legs were tiring. The rest and period of sleep in the church hadn't done much good, and he did not feel refreshed. They easily caught up with him. Gabriel used his suitcase to whack one to the floor, and then launched into a fight. He'd never been a good fighter, preferring psychological harm rather than physical, but he could defend himself with slaps and scratches. He was small and slender, and could duck from punches and squirm away.

"Put me down!" he hollered, as one picked him "Put me down, or I'll tell my father! You know who he is? He's Angelo Fulgencio, the Deputy of Verona! He'll have you rot in jail for the rest of your life! He'll sue the living backside off you!"

"Nice story, bro" chortled the gang leader "Has he got any money on him?"

"No, I'm broke" snapped Gabriel "So you've wasted your pointless life beating someone up, for nothing! You good for nothing low life shit!"

"All right, punch his face in!"

"Let me go!" howled Gabriel, struggling against the vicelike grip "Let me go!"

"Hey, you heard the lady! Put her down!" shouted a familiar voice. Gabriel was dropped, and landed awkwardly on the floor. He looked up, and Mercutio and Benvolio looked down "Oh, it's you"

"Thanks" breathed Gabriel "Thanks very much. Just what I wanted! To be humiliated in the streets! In front of Tin Grin and the freak. Although, which one is which I've never been able to tell"

"We did you a favour" protested Benvolio.

"Whatever" Gabriel tried to stand up, but he was faint from being mauled about. The lack of food, lack of water had taken it's toll, and he collapsed back down in the street. Mercutio and Benvolio watched him.

"Now what?" asked Benvolio.

"I guess we better take him home" shrugged Mercutio.

"I don't know what's gone on, but he has nowhere else to go, I guess" nodded Benvolio "Maybe we should call his dad. You take him, I'll take his stuff"

"Our second house guest tonight!" declared Mercutio, not so elegantly scooping the danseur up in a fireman's lift "Lucky us"