Heightened Tensions- Chapter Four

"It certainly has been a while hasn't it?"

            Him stood from the chair by the window, and leered viciously at Blossom, who had meanwhile pressed herself against the dresser as far back as she could possible go.

            It was interesting how she didn't scream.  She just peered at him from under the bangs that covered her face, her rose eyes very wide and shining, and her mouth hung open in surprised shock.  She was panting roughly, out of the natural fear that rose in every mortal he decided to pay a visit to.  However, unlike his other unfortunate visits, he was in Blossom's room for a much different reason.

            "There is absolutely no need for you to behave this way…" Him said casually, taking a few leisurely steps towards her.  She whimpered as he drew nearer, her eyes darting to the claws at his sides.  All he could do was smile.

            Yes, naturally she would behave as she was after their last encounter.  He'd proved to her that he was definitely a force to be reckoned with.  There would be no more adolescent disrespect from the three girls, especially from Blossom.  There would be no more snickering laughter at his direction, specifically at his rather different appearance.  She now knew it was not safe to judge a book by its cover.

            "I assure you, I'm not here to kill you…"

            Yet…

            She never took her eyes away from Him.  It was so peculiar how she could now stand so frozen by fear, yet she could easily take down anyone who tried to oppose her.  Then again, he wasn't exactly the same as a common thug she would encounter in the city.  He was much, much different.

            Blossom suddenly darted to her door, only to find that it wouldn't budge.  She jiggled the handle forcefully, trying with all her might to pull the sealed door, but it would never open, not as long as Him had control over it.

            "Perhaps you should just… relax…" he said, and he lifted a claw to touch her shoulder as he moved a few steps closer.  She spun around, her hair whipping through the air like an amber wave, bits of it dusting her flushed face.  Once she saw how close he was, she cried out and lifted her arms up in a defensive.

            Him stepped backwards, raising his arms up in defeat.

            "Fine, if you want to play hard to get… I'll bite…"

            Blossom narrowed her eyes, her shoulders heaving as she fought for air.  He watched the way her relatively small body moved in her panic, and the way her covered face reacted with each shuddering breath.  He found the overall effect quite appealing; something about her he had never taken the time to notice.

            Blossom did notice his eyes wandering and immediately gritted her teeth in anger.  Why did she not scream?

            "What do you want?" she sneered, her voice very low and harsh, yet shuddering in the fear she was now trying to hide.  He knew she was frightened.  He could practically feel the continuous thudding of her heart.  Yet now she seemed to have summed up some shred of bravery.

            "Is it so wrong to enjoy a visit with my favorite little super girl?" he said, smiling, inching a futile step closer to her.  She swung a tightened fist at him to keep him at bay, and he bowed back gracefully.

            "You're full of shit.  Now what do you want?!"

            Him didn't respond immediately, considering his words carefully.  He had to calm her down, or he wouldn't get anywhere with her.  She obviously didn't trust him now, which was perfectly understandable, but he needed to somehow get her to stop trying to throw a punch. 

            He moved back and sat down on the edge of her bed, folding his arms across his chest as he gave Blossom the calmest smile he could muster.  Her eyes widened as he took as seat, almost as if he'd done something completely inappropriate.

            "Get off my bed!"

            "I can't even take a seat now?  Surely you aren't that cold?"

            She didn't respond, but to Him's delight she did lower her arms to her sides.  Yet, she did keep herself as far away from him as she possibly could.

            "You do realize that you really couldn't fight me off even if you tried?" he said leisurely, once again surveying his challenge before him.  What he would give to earn all of her trust… but there was plenty of time for that in the future.  The way she awkwardly stood before him, her body tense, yet her face a mixture of rage and fear, made his own skin crawl with joy.  If she had relaxed so quickly, perhaps this would be much easier than he had anticipated.

            "If you honestly think I'm just going to lower my barriers to you, then you've got another thing coming-"

            "Oh, no, no, no, I wouldn't dream of that.  Although I feel most awful about our last little… encounter-"

            And he must have struck a chord; because he saw her eyes glisten over with a sudden onslaught of tears.  Her face grew very closed, and she instinctively wrapped her arms around her waist, leaning slightly forward as if she was purposely trying to make herself look smaller.

            "If you aren't here to kill me, then what is it?" she said quietly, her eyes in his direction, but he had the sneaking suspicion that she wasn't really looking at him.  No matter.   That gave him more freedom to gaze at her without making her uncomfortable.  She really was quite a stunning creature, and almost for a second he wondered why he would ever consider killing her, not when there could be so much benefit from keeping her alive.  But then again, there was plenty of time for him to change his mind about tearing her down once and for all.  A lot could happen in the amount of time he intended to take.

            "You're right, I'm not here to kill you.  I don't even want to hurt you anymore.  Do you know why?" he said, softening his tone, yet unable to take the natural edge away from his voice.  She rose her eyes to him once again, and the anger was almost gone from her eyes, replaced by a distant sadness.  He saw this as his chance to get a little bit closer to her.  He wanted to give her the impression that he was willing to be gentle, if only she'd let him move just a few steps closer…

            He almost thought she'd react irrationally again, because her posture suddenly stiffened, and she got that angry look in her eyes again.  He froze in response, arranging his face into something of pity, waiting to see what she'd do.  She didn't move, but he didn't want to throw her into self-defense mode again.

            "Please don't make this hard for me Blossom.  I only want to talk…" and he moved closer to her, he was now an arm length away, and could almost feel her beneath his skin.  She jerked her arm quickly as if she was going to jab him in the face, but he grabbed her arm in his claw.

            "…You're about to make me very angry… you don't want to make me angry do you?  Not when I'm so willing to be civil with you?"

            Blossom was trembling, tears falling from her cheeks like delicate little jewels.  They were very close to one another, so close that he could feel her ragged breath against his neck.  He suddenly realized he liked being close to her.  His advantage in height, while minute, gave him a sense of superiority and control over her.

  He looked down on her, and let go of her arm, not wanting to let that little motion throw her off.

            She just looked up at him, not saying a word, letting slight whimpers escape her throat.  She obviously thought he was about to hurt her.

            "Are you willing to listen now?  I'm not going to hurt you…" he breathed, letting his eyes lock with hers.  She nodded her head shakily, her body still trembling so much he could feel it against his own body.  Her actions, though slightly predicted, still puzzled him.  He expected much more resistance than he had gotten, and he had at least expected her to start screaming in terror, but she hadn't.

            Fear was a fickly thing.  Perhaps she'd been too shocked by his mere presence that she had forgotten to cry for help.  That was common with some mortals, so paralyzed by their own fear they had easily succumbed to his whims.

            "I find it quite intriguing that someone with so much power…" he said, raising a claw to wipe the tears from her cheek.  She flinched violently when the corner of her eye caught sight of his claw near her throat, but otherwise didn't budge.  "…Can become so afraid… of little old me.  You weren't so afraid of me when you were a child.  Now why would you be now?"

            "Because you tried to kill me," she sobbed quietly, her tears becoming steadily stronger.  "I was foolish when I was younger.  I was too confident… I underestimated you…"

            "Yes, that's very true…" Him said, nodding.  He leaned his claws against the doorframe on either side of her, not wanting to let her escape.  "You realized you aren't quite as invincible as you had thought?"

            She once again didn't respond, because she was too busy trying to squirm away.

            "I'm not letting you go until we… talk…" he said, simultaneously lowering his face to her.  She twisted her head away and scowled.

            "And this is your idea of talking?" she choked, her eyes holding that angry fire from before.

            "I'll be perfectly honest with you," Him said softly, drawing his face away just slightly so that he could see her own.  Under these drastically different circumstances from before, he was seeing her much differently while in her presence.  It was true that she hadn't changed a bit since he last saw her, but in this very intimate of settings he found himself almost attracted to her.  Perhaps it was the fear in her that excited him, or perhaps it was who she was.   Either way, this emotion in him was something he hadn't expected.   

            "I like you, Blossom.  I like you a lot, In fact-"

            "I feel so honored." She said blankly, yet her voice barely above a whisper.  Him cocked his head to the side good-naturedly and narrowed his eyes just slightly.

            "Why is it that every time I want to have a conversation with you, you develop a rather sassy little mouth?"

            She looked at him fiercely, but didn't say a word.  He could tell she was very uncomfortable being so close, but he didn't intend to let her go, at least for a while.  Now that he knew he enjoyed it, he wanted to savor this moment forever, lest he never get this savory chance again.

            "No matter.  I find it rather appealing in a female."

            "What?" she breathed.  She obviously knew what he was getting at, and she didn't seem to like it in the least.  "Get away from me."

            "Oh, always so rude to me… but that's what I like about you… in fact… that's why I've decided not to kill you at all." He said lightly, taking in her live scent.  "You're much more interesting alive-"

            Blossom finally managed to squirm away from him by ducking under his arms.  She moved to the other side of the room and stopped by the window, where she turned and watched Him suspiciously.

            "You aren't making any sense…"

            "Well, to put it simply, I'd much rather be a friend to you.  In these hard times in your life, you seem to need it now more than ever-"

            "I don't need your friendship-"

            "Oh?  Is that right?  Would you rather I did kill you?  Right now?"  And he raised a hooked claw into the air, letting the pale light gleam against its surface.  He smiled maliciously, and Blossom jumped back, almost falling through the thick curtain that hung from the ceiling.

            "No!"

            "No what?  You don't want to die after all?" Him said, lowering his claw back to his side.  "Ah, I see.  Of course you don't want to die.  Nobody does…" and he trailed off, wondering if he should gush his deliciously wonderful secret to her.

            "Well… except for…"

            Blossom stopped cold, confused.  She was waiting for him to continue.

            "Nah… I suppose you wouldn't care…" he said joyously.  Blossom didn't really react, but her expression changed into something he really couldn't read: somewhere between confusion and anger.  Did she know what he was talking about?

            "What are you talking about?"  Apparently not.

            He turned his back to her and began surveying the room.  It was definitely very Blossom: full of pink and delicate, elegant-looking frill.  Certainly nothing he was accustomed too, but it was something he could get to liking.  Her faint scent hung in the air, something no human would ever notice, but something that he could catch.  He liked her scent, and wondered what she would smell like is she was caught in his arms.

            "So then… how are your sisters?"

            "Wh-what?" she stuttered.  It must have seemed odd how he had suddenly changed the subject so quickly.

            He turned back to her and caught her gaze.  Already he could see the gates crumbling.  She would be easy to conquer.

            "How is Bubbles?  Just as rambunxious as ever, I imagine?"

            "Um… she's… fine…"

            "Good, good…" and he began moving around her room, examining the various objects that littered the shelves and dresser-tops.

            "She won't think too highly of you being in our room-"

            "Oh my, is there any way to get privacy these days?" he said, poking at a vial of yellowish liquid on her dresser.  "What is this remarkable little potion?"

            "It's perfume-" she said forcefully, and she stomped towards him and snatched the vial out of his reach.  He drew back in dismay.  "-and don't touch it…"

            Do you realize what you've done?

            She had moved so close to him without even thinking.  He could easily grab her right there, and she didn't even seem to have been thinking about that possibility.  Yes, the walls were crumbling already.

            He straightened and looked down at her, keeping his gaze soft.  She looked up at him, her face mildly calm, yet she seemed to have faintly realized that she was just a bit too close.

            "How is… Buttercup?" he said silkily, letting his voice lower just slightly.  She looked up at him faintly, at first no sign of emotion on her face.  Soon he could tell that something about this subject bothered her, because she looked away, forlorn.

            "Uuummm… fine…"

            "Is it really that bad?"

            "How could you tell?"

            "I know many things, Blossom.  And I'm guessing that things aren't so great with Buttercup?"

            Blossom moved away from Him… and turned her back to him… that was interesting.  Now she was just being careless.

            "Well… they aren't, but-" she started, and he knew she was about to scream that it was none of his business, but he stopped her.  He swooped over to her and looked at her eagerly.

            "Having a little tiff are we?"

            "Um, yes, but-"

            "Do tell!"

            "I don't really think I should be discussing this with you-"           

            "Nonsense, what are friends for?"

            "Who said we were friends?!?!"

            "You obviously trust me enough… to turn your back to me…"

            Blossom put her hand to her mouth as if she was suppressing a scream, but she never made a sound.  She looked totally crushed, and had obviously realized what a grave error in judgment she had made.  She turned her shocked gaze to Him, her eyes very wide.

            "You see?!  I didn't attack you, now did I?"

            She dropped her hand and let her face soften.  Yes, yes… now he had her.

            "Now do you trust me?  I'm telling you the truth, Blossy."

            "What did you call me?" she asked, surprised.  Clearly she wasn't called that very often, and he knew only the most intimate of relations knew her by that name.

            "Oh… isn't that what you mortals call… a snickname?"

            "It's nickname," she corrected, but he was surprised to see she was actually smiling.   It was a smirk at best, but it was a nice overall effect anyway.

            "Now-" he said, taking a seat on the edge of her bed and patting the spot next to him with his claw.  "-come take a seat and tell me all about your troubles."

            "The floor is fine, thanks," she said quickly, dropping her body to the ground like a stone.  She was watching him suspiciously.  Such a pity, it would have been nice to sit next to her on the bed too.

            "Allright then.  What's wrong with your sister?" he asked, folding his arms across his chest.  She was watching him strangely.

            "She's angry with me… because… I have ice breath and she doesn't…" she said softly.  Him nodded thoughtfully and rubbed his chin.

            "Oh yes… I remember this one…"

            Blossom suddenly leapt up and began pacing the room frantically, throwing her arms into the air with gusto.

            "It's as if she thinks I do it on purpose!  As if I suddenly gained divine powers and said 'Don't give Buttercup any special ability!' which is completely untrue and stupid, and it isn't my fault she hasn't developed anything unique to her.  She's partially mad at Bubbles too, because she can talk to animals, and she's really mad at me because every one thinks my ice breath is just so super cool, and it isn't my fault I have it, so why does she act like I did something wrong, and-"

            "Oh my… why don't you slow down, you're giving me a headache-"

            "I would give her a special power if I could… but I can't… and she's just jealous…" Blossom said, breathing heavily, turning to look out her window onto the city that stretched out in the distance.  She folded her arms across her chest and went silent, her shoulders rising and falling with calming breaths.

            She did it again, she turned her back to him without even realizing it, and Him decided to take advantage of this.  He stood and moved over to her, and let his claws rest on her shoulders.  She tensed at his touch, but she made no other response.

            "I know how frustrating this must be for you.  Certainly Buttercup is overreacting about it," he said softly.  Blossom relaxed and took a deep breath.

            "I'm worried about her."

            "Oh?"

            "Because she does stupid things when she's angry."

            "Well… I wouldn't worry too much about that… she wouldn't do anything stupid." He said, unable to suppress the small grin that came.  It went by unnoticed by Blossom, who continued to stare at the flickering lights of Townsville in the distance.  If only she knew what he knew… but he could use that to his advantage later, when the time was ripe…

            "And you know what else?" he breathed, lowering his face down to her neck, letting his mouth hover over her ear.  She tensed again.   "I don't want to see you upset over this… your sister will settle this on her own." He lowered his claws just slightly onto her arms, and he let his lips dance lightly against the skin on her neck.  She gasped and drew away just slightly, turning her head in his direction in surprised fear.

  Now was not the time.  He had to stick to his plan… and perhaps if he was lucky he would be able to have a little fun later… but not now.  He found himself hoping that she would soon let all the walls fall to dust.

            But she was about to pull away, completely terrified by his very forward actions.  He didn't want to throw her off so soon.  Perhaps if he gained more of her trust she would be more willing to go farther later on, but that was something that remained to be seen.

            "Blossom!" There was a voice outside the door.  She jumped and spun around, simultaneously pushing Him away.  Bubbles was pounding up the stairs, heading for the room, and very soon she'd throw the door open.  What an awkward situation that could turn out to be.

            Blossom looked at Him fearfully, unsure of what she should make of what had just happened.  She was about to say something, but he stopped her.

            "I bid you goodnight."

            And in a whirling burst of smoke he disappeared, leaving Blossom completely alone and confused.

            His plan didn't change.  He still intended to gain her trust, and then kill her after her mind was left so fragile and beaten.  He would use Buttercup to his advantage, to earn Blossom's friendship by helping her in her time of turmoil over her sister and what was yet to come.  Yet something came about that he hadn't expected.  He mused at little harm it would do to take full advantage of her in the end to his own pleasure, battering her even more with shame and regret when the time came to take it all away.