Chapter 2-New Members

August 1988

After another month, the Misfits were finally finished with their latest album-which bombed. Dave was in his office with the foursome and he looked miffed-to put it mildly. "You girls totally screwed this up!" he yelled.

"Don't look at me…it was the slop Stormer was writing," said Pizzazz, who was leaning against the wall, studying her nails.

"And who was playing that 'slop,' Pizzazz?" Stormer shot back.

Pizzazz went and stood in front of Stormer, who had been quietly sitting in one of the chairs in Dave's office. "Either you shape up or you ship out," she snarled.

"I have news for you, Pizzazz-for all of you. I already am shipping out. As of right now!" Stormer stood up and pushed Pizzazz aside.

"And where are you gonna go?" Dave laughed.

"I've already been invited to join the Stingers," said Stormer. With that she sailed out the door.

"You won't be missed!" Roxy called.

"Fine by me!" Stormer called back.

Pizzazz sat in the chair Stormer had been occupying and put her feet up on Dave's desk. "Stormer-a Stinger? This should be good," Pizzazz chortled.

"Who's gonna write your songs now?" Dave whined.

"How hard can it be?" Roxy asked.

"For someone just learning 'ow to read…'arder than you think, yank," Jetta put in.

"I'll hire someone to write stuff," said Dave. "Because if I don't, I don't see the Misfits lasting much longer."

Stormer met up with Minx and Rapture at the House of Glamour a little while later. Roxy had been here before, after she'd found that winning lottery ticket, and according to her, one got quite the pampering in this place. A redheaded woman named Samantha greeted them.

As Samantha worked on Stormer, Minx and Rapture were making suggestions. "Get rid of that make-up she has on," Minx said. "That green eyeshadow has to go."

The blue dye was removed from Stormer's hair, revealing her natural blond color. The make-up she usually wore was removed, replaced with something more conventional and similar to that of Minx and Rapture-salmon-colored eyeshadow and red lipstick. Stormer relaxed and just allowed Samantha to do her thing. Truth be told, she was getting tired of this look anyway. She was in the mood for something new.

Samantha finally held up a mirror so Stormer could see, and her blue eyes widened. Her hair was still fluffed out, but now blond. She could easily pass for a sister of either Minx or Rapture. "I-I like this look," said Stormer.

"You definitely look like one of the Stingers," said Samantha.

"We also got you some outfits that'll coordinate with ours," said Rapture.

"She looks great!" Minx said to Samantha. "Here's a nice, huge tip. Now let's take her over to Riot's and show him our newest member!"

Stormer got into her car and followed Minx and Rapture to the gated community where Riot and Jem lived. She'd never thought that she'd be doing this-leaving one band for another-but being a Misfit meant living in misery. Pizzazz was out for herself, not caring whom she could hurt in the process. Roxy wasn't much more than a thug, and Jetta liked stirring the pot. Then there were the spats between Roxy and Jetta.

Also, Stormer knew a sinking ship when she saw one. It was time to get off.

Once she and her new bandmates were through the gates, they drove up to Riot and Jem's house and pulled into the driveway. They got out of their cars. "I have to admit I'm a bit nervous," said Stormer.

"What for? Jem's a friend of yours," said Minx as she tossed her long, straight hair back over one shoulder.

"I'm just not used to my new look."

Rapture rang the doorbell. Soon Jem came to the door and let them in. Her pregnancy was fairly obvious now, as she was seventeen weeks along. "Stormer…?" she asked, her deep blue eyes widening.

"Yeah, it's me," Stormer said as she and the other Stingers went inside.

Riot emerged from the rehearsal room and caught sight of Minx, Rapture, and Stormer. He stroked his chin thoughtfully as he studied Stormer. "Perfect," he said. "Welcome to the Stingers, Stormer." He shook her hand. "Craig will be over soon, and we'll go over paperwork."

Jem paused for a moment. "Jem?" Stormer asked.

Riot looked over at his wife. Jem placed her hand over her baby. "I-I think I just felt the baby kick!" she said. She smiled. "Maybe our child is expressing his or her approval…there it is again! Well, let's all have a seat and wait for Craig."

They went into the living room. Riot and Jem sat down on a loveseat together, and the others sat down on the couch. Rapture turned on the television.

"Where did you get your makeover?" Jem asked Stormer.

"The House of Glamour," Stormer replied.

"They did a really good job," Jem nodded.

The doorbell rang. "I'll get it," Riot said as he gave Jem a kiss on her lips.

Moments later, Riot brought Craig and Video into the living room. "Let's get down to business, shall we?" Craig asked the Stingers.

Riot led them into the home office, leaving Jem and Video in the living room.

While the Stingers were going over contracts with Craig, Jem and Video sat in the living room. "So you and Craig are serious?" Jem asked.

"I think so. Sometimes I almost feel like I'm taking him away from Aja somehow…but it's been eight months since-since the crash. It's not like we had feelings for each other when Aja was still alive."

"I understand," said Jem. She sighed. "We all have to move on at some point."

"Jem…just curious…have you ever heard from Rio?" She kept her voice down, likely so there was no chance Riot could hear.

"Last I heard he moved to Mexico last year," said Jem. "Video…after what he did…it made me see him for who he was and what he's capable of. Sometimes love-or what you think is love-can be so blind." She leaned forward. "I admit Riot can be a bit self-absorbed at times, but he's really changed in the last year. When his mother got sick…we got to know each other…we sat up all night and just talked. I understood him. The arrogance, the egotism…it's mostly a façade. He's not like that with me because he knows he can trust me with anything. He's confided in me quite a lot, more than he has with Minx and Rapture."

"He certainly seems to be a lot friendlier since he married you," Video grinned. "I can tell he loves you." She rested her elbow on the armrest of the couch and put her chin in her hand. "So what does he think about becoming a father?"

Jem laughed. "I think he's still a bit overwhelmed at the idea. He won't admit it, but he's been reading those books. He wants to find out if we're having a boy or a girl, so he knows how to decorate the nursery."

"Just do something in neutral colors," Video suggested. "What if you have a boy…then a girl? It'd save some time and money."

"I never thought of that-I'll have to run that by him. I think it's a good idea, because we plan on having at least two."

"So Riot actually wants to be a father?"

"Something about children being a reminder of our love," Jem said. "You have to admit it does sound rather romantic."

Video laughed. "I hope he realizes that there's more to being a father than that!"

"Especially since he's not the one carrying this baby," Jem added.

"All right, it's official, Stormer is now a Stinger," Craig said as he gathered the papers together. "And there's no issue with her continuing to use the stage name Stormer, I already looked to see if there were any clauses in the old contracts forbidding it."

"Minx and I write the songs, usually," said Rapture. "But we'd be glad to let you have a go at it once in a while."

"It's okay, just if you want me to," said Stormer. "I love playing music."

"So were the Misfits upset when you left?" Minx asked.

"It's pretty hard to tell with them. They have no one to write for them now, unless they can come up with someone else."

"I think their group is on borrowed time," said Riot as he leaned back and studied his wedding band.

"I agree with that assessment," said Craig.

"I think I feel sorry for them," said Stormer.

"Don't," said Craig. "They used you, and pretty well abused you…they didn't care for you. They tried to make you into someone you're really not."

Stormer, admittedly, did have a few misgivings about the Stingers. But when she reflected on the past year, she realized that Riot seemed to be a lot nicer, not as arrogant, and Minx and Rapture had more or less followed suit and reformed quite a bit. Jem had a good influence on them, whether they wanted to admit it or not. Rapture, thankfully, was getting bored with New Age things. Her latest thing was wanting to be an illusionist, though the Stingers came first. It was something she practiced on the side. Stormer had to wonder if it had to do with the duel of magic she'd participated in with Jem's friend Astral, whose teacher had been a student of Houdini's.

She also felt like something of an outsider, since Riot, Minx, and Rapture were all good friends with each other. Then again, Stormer reminded herself, Rome wasn't built in a day. She was sure she could get to be good friends with her new bandmates. At least she was now in a group that didn't have all the brawling and in-fighting.

Three weeks later, the Stingers, along with their new member, debuted on the Lin-Z TV show. Jem watched from the wings as her husband and his band performed one of their newest numbers. She could feel her baby kicking, and she smiled and laid her hand on her belly. "Yes, Robyn, that's your daddy," she said to her unborn child-whom she and Riot had just found out was a girl.

Riot was singing a ballad that Stormer had helped write. Occasionally during the song, he'd turn his attention to Jem, as if to let her know he was singing to her. She smiled and blushed whenever he did this. Any fears about his becoming disinterested in her due to her pregnancy had long since been demolished.

When the song was over there was thunderous applause from the studio audience. Jem too as applauding, her hands getting sore from doing so. She found herself wondering if her and Riot's daughter-named Robyn Kimberly Llewellyn-would inherit musical talent. After all, the child's two grandmothers, parents, and aunt all had musical talent.

"That was really good," Lindsay Pierce enthusiastically as the foursome sat down on the couch. "Stormer…I imagine it's quite an adjustment, going from the Misfits to the Stingers."

"But one I'm happy to make," said Stormer. "I still surprise myself a little when I look in the mirror."

Elsewhere in the area, specifically the Gabor mansion, the remaining Misfits were watching the interview. "That Stormer makes me so mad," Pizzazz fumed as she took the remote and turned the television off. "I want revenge so badly. I want to bring the Stingers down and kill two birds with one stone."

"At least Jem isn't a threat anymore," said Roxy. "But that's because Eric managed to get rid of the Holograms."

"Maybe we can get Clash to help us out," Pizzazz said, a grin slowly spreading across her face. Constance Montgomery, known as Clash, was Video's first cousin; their fathers were brothers. She was a Misfits groupie who was great with make-up and disguises, and who wanted to be a Misfit. The problem with that was she couldn't sing.

"I think she'd be more than happy to help," Jetta agreed.