Rhythm of the Storm (2/?)
Dedication: This is still dedicated to the taunting rat-bastard Nick who is still crazy enough to talk to me on a regular basis. And to my bud Alan, my partner in crime and self-proclaimed Kimber-Stormer fanboy!
RHYTHM OF THE STORM (2/?)
The sound of vehicles pulling up outside interrupted Stormer's story, bringing a frown to the blue-haired musician's face as she stood and moved toward the window to see who it could be. As far as she knew no one was aware of her cabin's existence, building had only been completed for a few months and she didn't officially move in until a few weeks ago as it was. Hell Jerrica was the first person she had actually invited to her little retreat in the mountains. Now it seemed she had more company then she could shake a stick at, as she pushed aside part of the curtain to look outside her eyes widening as she saw a familiar black van with the word 'Misfits' painted on the side next to the Holograms' trademark Rockin' Roadster. "Er... Jerrica?" Stormer questioned arching an eyebrow as she watched both bands pile out of their respective vehicles, "any idea on why our bands decided to follow you?"
"Huh?" Jerrica asked coming up beside her to take a peek out the window as well. While she had been curious about Stormer's insistence on holding their little meeting in such a remote location, she had honoured it. Out of all of the Misfits, Stormer was the only one she was willing to give the benefit of the doubt to, while she did think the request strange she knew that there was probably a valid reason for it. And after what she had been hearing from the keyboardist the trip had proven more then worth wild. "Er... no, I left LA alone like you requested," she said after a moment turning to give Stormer a confused look.
Releasing the curtain she had pushed aside, Stormer frowned a bit as she watched the two bands give each other the once over outside, "great... they either think I've kidnapped you or you've kidnapped me!" she said under her breath.
"Probably a little of both," Jerrica replied with a slight smirk, "should we go and invite them in?"
Shaking her head after a moment, "might as well... they are going to get tired of giving each other dirty looks and come pounding on the door sooner-or-later," Stormer said rolling her eyes a bit. "You'd think our bands didn't always get along or something," she commented ruefully a hint of sarcasm in her voice as she moved toward the front door.
"Who? The Misfits and Holograms? Everyone knows our bands are the best of friends... won't hurt one another for the world," Jerrica replied dryly, her eyes dancing with a hint of laughter. While it was true at one time both bands couldn't be trusted to be in the same building without some kind of altercation taking place, over the years they did calm down. Both sides growing up, as it were, and forming an unspoken truce of sorts, verbal sparing was fine - and damn near tradition - but the dirty tricks were long gone. However there was still that underlying hint of mistrust, like this would be the day the truce got broken and it was back to the juvenile antics once more.
********************
Kimber Benton was the last to climb out of the Rockin' Roadster a bit unsure about following Jerrica. While she did want to know what was going on with Stormer and why her best friend seemed so insistent on meeting with Jerrica in private, a part of her was screaming that she was invading Stormer's privacy and that she shouldn't be here. This was her best friend here, the person that knew her better then just about anyone, sure no body seemed to understand their friendship in the first place. Which was just fine by Kimber, it was nice to have someone outside the 'family' - as it were - that she could confide in without fear of it getting back to Jerrica. Not that she had anything against her sister, she loved Jerrica always would, but with Stormer... she was just Kimber Benton best friend and fellow composer. She wasn't the little sister of the President and CEO of Starlight Music or the youngest Hologram, the semi-irresponsible one that everyone looked out for.
The front door opening brought Kimber out of her thoughts as Jerrica and Stormer stepped out onto the porch to regard both bands with matching arched eyebrows and questions in their eyes. 'What have they been doing in there? Practicing sequenced facial expressions?' the thought inexplicably passed through Kimber's mind as the two folded there arms silently demanding an explanation for their band mates' unnoticed visit.
"Well..." one began.
"Is there a reason you're all here?" the other finished, causing Kimber to cringe bit. Not from fear but more out of being a bit wigged out, there was just something infinitely wrong with her sister and best friend seemingly completing each other's sentences like that. She was pretty sure they shouldn't be doing that and the way the two were mimicking each other's posture and stances was just weird.
Stormer stiffened a bit, giving her head a small shake as she suddenly shifted, changing her position and putting her hands on the railing of the porch to lean against it. 'Damn... get a grip Stormer... you're channelling Jerrica,' she told herself firmly realizing that she had been mimicking the blonde's mannerisms subconsciously, 'how the hell did I get so intoned with her anyway?'
(I don't know... but I'm willing to help you find out.) A voice said in the back of her mind, causing Stormer to stiffen once more, her eyes hardening as Astral stepped out from behind Aja and Shana where she had been previously hidden from view.
"Astral," Stormer said in a tight voice, trying to keep her pounding heart under control, "I see the gang's all here," she added with a nervous smile and a small humourless laugh.
"Yeah... well we got concerned, not like you to pass-out like that," Roxy said, the white-haired musician noting the look that was passing between her band mate and the magician. 'What's this?' she thought wondering why Astral's presence seemed to bother the keyboardist so much, 'I'll bet my best guitar that Astral's apart of all this - or she knows more then she's letting on.' She thought her eyes narrowing a bit. 'One way or another I'm not leaving here until I know what's going on... and heaven help Astral if she's involved and its something that could hurt Stormer,' she thought with resolve. Granted over the years Roxy hadn't been that much of a friend to Stormer, using and abusing the keyboardist's good nature time and time again, but Roxy liked to think those days were behind her. That she had grown beyond being a petty little 'follower' that liked to use others simply because she could. Now she was taking her music a lot more seriously, all the Misfits were actually or, at least, they were trying to. Granted they did fall into old behaviour patterns, sometimes trying to bully Stormer into things, but Roxy had been good about catching and stopping herself from acting on them.
"Hey Stormer... whose place is this anyways?" Kimber suddenly asked eyeing the front of the two-story cabin, the place was huge made of heavy timber and glass that just screamed wealth and high craftsmanship. 'Whoever owns this place has lots of money and took a lot of time in having it built,' she thought noting how the second story balcony wrapped around the building, 'the view from up there must be breathtaking.'
"Actually... I do," Stormer said blushing a bit as all eyes turned to her, "started building it a while after the Kimber-Stormer album... used the royalties to have it designed the way I wanted it," she explained looking at her feet for a long moment before returning her gaze to the others assembled in front of her, "the land I inherited from my father's estate when he died." She finished with a shrug like she was talking about the weather, although she could almost see the wheels turning in her own band mates' minds. She didn't need her 'talent' to know what they were thinking, it was practically shining in there eyes and Pizzazz's next words proved her correct.
"So you're telling us that you've been holding out on the band? That you're actually rich?" The green-haired lead singer said arching an eyebrow at the keyboardist. 'I'm not jealous,' Phyllis 'Pizzazz' Gabor told herself, 'I'm not... I'm just annoyed that Stormer hasn't bothered to mention owning this place before; I mean come on! We could have been up here recording or something instead of being stuck in LA working on stuff.' She tried to rationalize although a part of her was screaming that 'she' was the one that come from money not Stormer and that if any Misfit should have a beautiful and expensive remote cabin in the mountains it should be her.
"No... my mother's side of the family is rich... but that's not where I got the land from, all of this was left to me by my father... I just didn't have any funds to put anything on it until I did that album with Kimber." She explained giving Kimber a shy smile before turning her attention back to Pizzazz.
"So you didn't get a thing from your mum's side of the family?" Jetta asked, opening her mouth before really thinking over what she was about to say.
"My Grandmother... the matriarch of the family is still alive... I don't inherit a thing until she dies," Stormer replied through clutched teeth gripping the porch railing in a near death grip. Sometimes Jetta could be totally tactless and down right rude on occasions, but deep down the British Saxophonist did have a good heart, or so Stormer liked to tell herself. "But you'll excuse me for not wanting her dead... I happen to like having her around." The keyboardist replied dryly, a hint of steel in her eyes as they bored into Jetta's. While it was rare that Stormer lost her temper, when she did it was a sight to behold, one that her band mates had learned long ago to avoid at all costs.
"Idiot!" Roxy sneered smacking Jetta on the back of the head with an open hand.
Absently shaking her head as she fought to control her temper, 'steady Stormer or you'll start projecting,' she told herself. "Well since you ARE here... and it IS getting dark, you might as well spend the night... come on. I think I can put all of you up for the night," she said with a slight smirk pushing herself away from the railing and turning to disappear into the cabin leaving the others behind. This wasn't how she planned to show off her cabin to her friends and band mates, this was suppose to be her place far from the hectic music and recording world. Somewhere she could go and just be herself without having to pretend to be the 'rock star', where people left her alone, with the Misfits rising on the charts and in popularity the way they were, she was finding it harder and harder to find time for herself. It had actually been harder for her, with the way the Kimber-Stormer album went up the charts a few years back and the way it still sold well even now.
She hadn't lied when she said the royalties from that album built the cabin; her savings had never looked better because of it, it was just complicated. She knew that the album was not a favourite topic of conversation among the Misfits; even now they cringed almost collectively at the mention of it. But lately there have been some stirrings from reporters making noses about another Kimber-Stormer album. While apart of Stormer would love nothing more then do to another album with her best friend, if anything to see if they could recapture lightning in a bottle - as it were - another was reluctant. Especially now... the blue-haired keyboardist wasn't fooling herself, her little secret was going to come out sooner or later. 'And when Kimber discovers what you are?' a little voice questioned in the back of her mind, 'when she learns all about your little talent... you think she is going to want to have anything to do with you?' the voice nagged.
End Part 2.
Dedication: This is still dedicated to the taunting rat-bastard Nick who is still crazy enough to talk to me on a regular basis. And to my bud Alan, my partner in crime and self-proclaimed Kimber-Stormer fanboy!
RHYTHM OF THE STORM (2/?)
The sound of vehicles pulling up outside interrupted Stormer's story, bringing a frown to the blue-haired musician's face as she stood and moved toward the window to see who it could be. As far as she knew no one was aware of her cabin's existence, building had only been completed for a few months and she didn't officially move in until a few weeks ago as it was. Hell Jerrica was the first person she had actually invited to her little retreat in the mountains. Now it seemed she had more company then she could shake a stick at, as she pushed aside part of the curtain to look outside her eyes widening as she saw a familiar black van with the word 'Misfits' painted on the side next to the Holograms' trademark Rockin' Roadster. "Er... Jerrica?" Stormer questioned arching an eyebrow as she watched both bands pile out of their respective vehicles, "any idea on why our bands decided to follow you?"
"Huh?" Jerrica asked coming up beside her to take a peek out the window as well. While she had been curious about Stormer's insistence on holding their little meeting in such a remote location, she had honoured it. Out of all of the Misfits, Stormer was the only one she was willing to give the benefit of the doubt to, while she did think the request strange she knew that there was probably a valid reason for it. And after what she had been hearing from the keyboardist the trip had proven more then worth wild. "Er... no, I left LA alone like you requested," she said after a moment turning to give Stormer a confused look.
Releasing the curtain she had pushed aside, Stormer frowned a bit as she watched the two bands give each other the once over outside, "great... they either think I've kidnapped you or you've kidnapped me!" she said under her breath.
"Probably a little of both," Jerrica replied with a slight smirk, "should we go and invite them in?"
Shaking her head after a moment, "might as well... they are going to get tired of giving each other dirty looks and come pounding on the door sooner-or-later," Stormer said rolling her eyes a bit. "You'd think our bands didn't always get along or something," she commented ruefully a hint of sarcasm in her voice as she moved toward the front door.
"Who? The Misfits and Holograms? Everyone knows our bands are the best of friends... won't hurt one another for the world," Jerrica replied dryly, her eyes dancing with a hint of laughter. While it was true at one time both bands couldn't be trusted to be in the same building without some kind of altercation taking place, over the years they did calm down. Both sides growing up, as it were, and forming an unspoken truce of sorts, verbal sparing was fine - and damn near tradition - but the dirty tricks were long gone. However there was still that underlying hint of mistrust, like this would be the day the truce got broken and it was back to the juvenile antics once more.
********************
Kimber Benton was the last to climb out of the Rockin' Roadster a bit unsure about following Jerrica. While she did want to know what was going on with Stormer and why her best friend seemed so insistent on meeting with Jerrica in private, a part of her was screaming that she was invading Stormer's privacy and that she shouldn't be here. This was her best friend here, the person that knew her better then just about anyone, sure no body seemed to understand their friendship in the first place. Which was just fine by Kimber, it was nice to have someone outside the 'family' - as it were - that she could confide in without fear of it getting back to Jerrica. Not that she had anything against her sister, she loved Jerrica always would, but with Stormer... she was just Kimber Benton best friend and fellow composer. She wasn't the little sister of the President and CEO of Starlight Music or the youngest Hologram, the semi-irresponsible one that everyone looked out for.
The front door opening brought Kimber out of her thoughts as Jerrica and Stormer stepped out onto the porch to regard both bands with matching arched eyebrows and questions in their eyes. 'What have they been doing in there? Practicing sequenced facial expressions?' the thought inexplicably passed through Kimber's mind as the two folded there arms silently demanding an explanation for their band mates' unnoticed visit.
"Well..." one began.
"Is there a reason you're all here?" the other finished, causing Kimber to cringe bit. Not from fear but more out of being a bit wigged out, there was just something infinitely wrong with her sister and best friend seemingly completing each other's sentences like that. She was pretty sure they shouldn't be doing that and the way the two were mimicking each other's posture and stances was just weird.
Stormer stiffened a bit, giving her head a small shake as she suddenly shifted, changing her position and putting her hands on the railing of the porch to lean against it. 'Damn... get a grip Stormer... you're channelling Jerrica,' she told herself firmly realizing that she had been mimicking the blonde's mannerisms subconsciously, 'how the hell did I get so intoned with her anyway?'
(I don't know... but I'm willing to help you find out.) A voice said in the back of her mind, causing Stormer to stiffen once more, her eyes hardening as Astral stepped out from behind Aja and Shana where she had been previously hidden from view.
"Astral," Stormer said in a tight voice, trying to keep her pounding heart under control, "I see the gang's all here," she added with a nervous smile and a small humourless laugh.
"Yeah... well we got concerned, not like you to pass-out like that," Roxy said, the white-haired musician noting the look that was passing between her band mate and the magician. 'What's this?' she thought wondering why Astral's presence seemed to bother the keyboardist so much, 'I'll bet my best guitar that Astral's apart of all this - or she knows more then she's letting on.' She thought her eyes narrowing a bit. 'One way or another I'm not leaving here until I know what's going on... and heaven help Astral if she's involved and its something that could hurt Stormer,' she thought with resolve. Granted over the years Roxy hadn't been that much of a friend to Stormer, using and abusing the keyboardist's good nature time and time again, but Roxy liked to think those days were behind her. That she had grown beyond being a petty little 'follower' that liked to use others simply because she could. Now she was taking her music a lot more seriously, all the Misfits were actually or, at least, they were trying to. Granted they did fall into old behaviour patterns, sometimes trying to bully Stormer into things, but Roxy had been good about catching and stopping herself from acting on them.
"Hey Stormer... whose place is this anyways?" Kimber suddenly asked eyeing the front of the two-story cabin, the place was huge made of heavy timber and glass that just screamed wealth and high craftsmanship. 'Whoever owns this place has lots of money and took a lot of time in having it built,' she thought noting how the second story balcony wrapped around the building, 'the view from up there must be breathtaking.'
"Actually... I do," Stormer said blushing a bit as all eyes turned to her, "started building it a while after the Kimber-Stormer album... used the royalties to have it designed the way I wanted it," she explained looking at her feet for a long moment before returning her gaze to the others assembled in front of her, "the land I inherited from my father's estate when he died." She finished with a shrug like she was talking about the weather, although she could almost see the wheels turning in her own band mates' minds. She didn't need her 'talent' to know what they were thinking, it was practically shining in there eyes and Pizzazz's next words proved her correct.
"So you're telling us that you've been holding out on the band? That you're actually rich?" The green-haired lead singer said arching an eyebrow at the keyboardist. 'I'm not jealous,' Phyllis 'Pizzazz' Gabor told herself, 'I'm not... I'm just annoyed that Stormer hasn't bothered to mention owning this place before; I mean come on! We could have been up here recording or something instead of being stuck in LA working on stuff.' She tried to rationalize although a part of her was screaming that 'she' was the one that come from money not Stormer and that if any Misfit should have a beautiful and expensive remote cabin in the mountains it should be her.
"No... my mother's side of the family is rich... but that's not where I got the land from, all of this was left to me by my father... I just didn't have any funds to put anything on it until I did that album with Kimber." She explained giving Kimber a shy smile before turning her attention back to Pizzazz.
"So you didn't get a thing from your mum's side of the family?" Jetta asked, opening her mouth before really thinking over what she was about to say.
"My Grandmother... the matriarch of the family is still alive... I don't inherit a thing until she dies," Stormer replied through clutched teeth gripping the porch railing in a near death grip. Sometimes Jetta could be totally tactless and down right rude on occasions, but deep down the British Saxophonist did have a good heart, or so Stormer liked to tell herself. "But you'll excuse me for not wanting her dead... I happen to like having her around." The keyboardist replied dryly, a hint of steel in her eyes as they bored into Jetta's. While it was rare that Stormer lost her temper, when she did it was a sight to behold, one that her band mates had learned long ago to avoid at all costs.
"Idiot!" Roxy sneered smacking Jetta on the back of the head with an open hand.
Absently shaking her head as she fought to control her temper, 'steady Stormer or you'll start projecting,' she told herself. "Well since you ARE here... and it IS getting dark, you might as well spend the night... come on. I think I can put all of you up for the night," she said with a slight smirk pushing herself away from the railing and turning to disappear into the cabin leaving the others behind. This wasn't how she planned to show off her cabin to her friends and band mates, this was suppose to be her place far from the hectic music and recording world. Somewhere she could go and just be herself without having to pretend to be the 'rock star', where people left her alone, with the Misfits rising on the charts and in popularity the way they were, she was finding it harder and harder to find time for herself. It had actually been harder for her, with the way the Kimber-Stormer album went up the charts a few years back and the way it still sold well even now.
She hadn't lied when she said the royalties from that album built the cabin; her savings had never looked better because of it, it was just complicated. She knew that the album was not a favourite topic of conversation among the Misfits; even now they cringed almost collectively at the mention of it. But lately there have been some stirrings from reporters making noses about another Kimber-Stormer album. While apart of Stormer would love nothing more then do to another album with her best friend, if anything to see if they could recapture lightning in a bottle - as it were - another was reluctant. Especially now... the blue-haired keyboardist wasn't fooling herself, her little secret was going to come out sooner or later. 'And when Kimber discovers what you are?' a little voice questioned in the back of her mind, 'when she learns all about your little talent... you think she is going to want to have anything to do with you?' the voice nagged.
End Part 2.