Ten
Misprint woke up with a jolt, her face pressed into the lines of his chest. Vivid memories flicked across her mind, and she could taste her own blood on her lips.
She shut her eyes tight and shook him slightly.
"Spot." She said, her voice colder than she had ever heard it herself. He only shifted slightly, pressing her closer against him. She shivered violently. His skin felt like frost. "Spot, wake up now."
He groaned and stretched, elegantly, like a cat. "What is it, Mis?" He drawled sleepily.
"I want you to take me home." She said, her voice sounding small and lost in the chill and spaciousness of the room.
"What? Leaving so soon?" he smirked, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes, then brushing her hair back from her face. She flinched at his touch, and then pulled away. His long fingers brought about the cuts on the insides of her thighs.
"Whadda you think?" She snapped, grabbing her tank top and straightening it, to pull it on. But she stopped, staring at the hem in horror. It was torn open, and blood stains all over it. She gulped back her tears, which she knew had no doubt already spilled over that night anyways, and pulled it on. She dressed fast, holding back sobs, while he lay in bed and watched her.
"Mis, there ain't no need to hurry." He glanced outside. "It's two in the morning."
"I'm going back to my dorm." She said firmly, shakily brushing her hair back from her face and running her fingers through it to spike it up. He sighed, pulled on his pants, and stood, wrapping his arms around her waist and pulling her towards him. She winced as his arm brushed against a cut.
"I'll walk you." He said softly. She shook her head and tried to push him away. "Mis, don't be stupid." He rolled his eyes and leaned in to kiss her, but she jerked her head backwards.
He felt a slight twinge in his heart when she turned her face away. She was acting as all the others had, they had despised him at first as well. But they had warmed up to him. But he could sense the ice in her. And it wasn't melting.
His long fingers wrapped themselves around her shoulders, and pushed her backwards, not too harshly, but enough to make her stumble.
"Fine." He growled. "Walk home. Get mugged. See if I care." He turned his back on her and reached for a pack of cigarettes on the bedside table. Misprint felt a spark in her stomach, felt her brows furrow.
"Yeah, why not. Since I've already got rape under my belt." She spat, before she could stop herself. He paused, then glanced over his shoulder in what seemed like a nonchalant manner, even though his eyes flashed with something she couldn't decipher in time.
"Guess it's no good telling you that I went easy on you this time, huh?" He murmured, pulling a cigarette out of the box and wrapping his lips around the end. "Seeing as…y'know…" His lips twisted into a mocking smirk. "It's your first time and all."
"Easy." She repeated, emboldened by the mildly gentle response. "Great. That's just great. If that's an easy first, I can't wait to feel the second."
"I was thinking of this as more of a one night stand." He lied easily, grabbing a lighter from the same table and flicking it open. The moment the flame clicked on, something sparked again in Misprint's stomach, and her fingers tingled. Heated. She stuffed them into her pockets and frowned. He took a deep drag, smiled, then reached over, fluidly grabbed the belt loop and pulled her towards him. "But I guess a second time can be arranged…"
Misprint felt her stomach contort, as his hands circled around her waist and pressed her torso against his. The cigarette was too close for comfort, hovering before her lips. She twisted her head away, strained her neck, and pushed her tingling hands against his chest.
"Let go." She ordered. He laughed through the cigarette and dragged her towards the rumpled bed, the scent of smoke and blood making her head pound. "Spot, I said…"
"Comon, Mis." He shifted the cigarette over to the corner of his mouth and pulled her down on top of him, immune to her hands, which were beating at his shoulders and scratching at his chest in an effort to get away.
"Spot!" She yelled, trying to push herself off. He caught the movement, and easily flipped her over, pushing her into the covers and straddling her, the cigarette hovering over her face, the smell making her sick. She choked and twisted her head away. The same panic that pulsed in her stomach the night before was starting to return, throbbing in her wounds and making her throat twist up into a corkscrew. He smirked at her again, before removing the cigarette with two fingers and holding it lightly above her face, tracing the curves of her eyes in the air.
"You'll have to excuse the bad pillow talk…" he murmured lightly. "But you were a real wildcat last night."
"Fuck you." She spat, turning to look at him again. She caught sight of the cigarette and let out a frightened breath, her face flushing slightly. Her hands felt as though they were on fire, pulsing with a fervent heat. He smiled, tracing her face in the air, lingering on the contours of her lips. He let the cigarette float closer and closer over her mouth, until she could feel the putrid stench of it against her skin. She whimpered, and tried to push her head back into the bed as far as it would go.
"You should learn to relax." He told her softly, watching the way the red tip drew fiery lines in the semi-darkness. "Besides." He smiled gently and leaned in, his breath echoing in her ears. "You'd look real pretty with a few burns here and there…"
"Don't!" She blurted, her hand shooting up and grabbing at his wrist. To both their surprise, she held fast, her fingers tightening until they throbbed. Spot jerked his hand backwards, but her fingers remained tight as ever, as persistent as ever. He glanced at her with a look that resembled perplexity, and tried to press his hand forwards towards her face, but she resisted, pressing back just as strongly.
Spot's mind curled with slight apprehension. How was she holding him off? How was it that a teenage girl had an equal amount of strength as her vampiric captor? He could feel the tingle against his skin, flowing from her hand, a fiery determination that made him feel tight in his chest, made him want to lean down and capture her lips in his and never let her go. With a last, irritated jerk, he freed his wrist, his fingers feeling numb against the cigarette.
"Let me go." She said, ever ounce of fear wiped from her voice. "You've had your fun. I want to go home."
"Fun." He smirked. "You don't know the half of it."
"Put out the fucking cigarette and let me go."
"Comon, Mis." He wheedled, trying to regain control. His fingers caught the hem of her shirt and slid it upwards over her stomach. The skin felt smooth and cool. He could almost feel the burn of the cigarette just by thinking about it, and it made him feel as though touching every inch of this girl would never be enough.
"I said no…"
"You've said no enough times tonight." He said, almost snarling. With an air that was quite unlike his old elegance, he shoved the cigarette towards her face until it nearly hit her lips. She could feel the concentrated burn, and suddenly felt cold all over. The tingling was gone. "It's either you or one of your friends. Understood?"
Misprint raised her eyes to his, and saw the need in them. It made her feel strange inside her stomach, to realize that he was doing this because he wanted to feel her, not because he wanted her to feel him. It would have been a nice feeling, were it not for the cigarette poised dangerously above her lips. She sent him her meanest glare.
"Understood." She hissed. He smiled, jerked the cigarette away from her and placed it between his lips again.
"I'll walk you home." He repeated, lifting her shirt higher and lowering his face to her stomach.
+
Shade peeked around the corner, and seeing that the bony, sharp figure of Mrs. Mayen wasn't in sight, sighed in relief. She hated the woman, and getting Jack down to her dorm room might have been complicated if she had been in the vicinity.
"Quick." She hissed over her shoulder. "Before that old battle axe figures out you're here."
"She really that bad?" He asked absently, as they jogged down the empty hallways.
"You don't know the half of it." She smirked.
Shade pushed open the door to the room, then turned around, as though she was a game show host, and flung her arms out. "Welcome to our lair!"
"It's rivals a junk yard." He scoffed. She rolled her eyes.
"Yeah, but I've learned to live with it." A silence passed as he stood awkwardly in the doorway. She grabbed an Archie comic off a pile of CDs, tossed it at him, and put her hands on her hips. "I thought it was rude to lurk in doorways." She said cynically. He raised his eyebrows, then closed the door behind him. The Archie comic dropped to the floor.
Shade stretched out across her bed, grabbed her walkman, which she and Misprint had hooked up to a pair of computer speakers, and pressed the play button. She was still pretty disdainful of the boy who sat uncomfortably on a chair across from her, and didn't feel the need to be some kind of host. He had wanted to go to her dorm, well here it was. She didn't even want to consider the other meaning that sentence could possibly hold…
"How long have you and Misprint lived here?" He asked casually, as a slow Sloan song began to play.
"Since ever." She replied, not breaking her gaze from the screen. "We're orphans."
"Yeah. Me too." He shrugged. She glanced up at him, but quickly looked back when she saw he was staring at her. She shifted uncomfortably, and closed her eyes, focusing on the music. She wished Dutchy were sitting across from her, either that, or Chaos or Bumlets. Someone with whom she could chat with easily. But Jack was a hard nut to crack.
"Why'd you wanna come up here anyways?" She asked uncomfortably. His eyes lifted from the floor and caught at hers.
"I thought that much'd be obvious." He said, with a little smirk.
+
Spot and Misprint paused outside the tenement. She wormed her fingers out of his grasp, and glared at him.
"You can go now." She said hotly.
"I said I'd walk you."
"Spot, I think I can make it to my room without getting too roughed up." She rolled her eyes. He smirked.
"Strange. You weren't able to make it from the dance floor to the alley without getting…" he raised his eyebrows. "Roughed up."
Misprint whirled around and pushed through the doors, dearly hoping Mrs. Mayen wasn't standing on the other side.
She slammed the door behind her, and pressed her self against it, as though she could stop him bursting through it. But there was no response. She pushed away from it and ran her fingers through her hair. What the hell had just happened to her?
She didn't want to think about it, because she knew the memories would come back. So she turned and walked numbly up the stairs, wincing as the fishnet dug into the cuts on her legs. Why had she put them back on?
The hallways were dark and shadowy. She stiffened at every creak in the floor, in a kind of dulled panic. She pulled her key out from the pocket of her capris and shoved it into the lock, turning it one way and tugging at the knob. But she had locked it.
It had already been unlocked.
A brief wave of dread swept over her, until she realised that Shade must have gotten back early. It gave her slight relief, but not much. By the light streaming from under the door, she could tell her friend was still awake. She looked down at her torn tank top and bloodstained legs. How was she going to explain that?
Misprint had learnt and seen a lot of strange things that night. But nothing prepared her for what she saw when she unlocked the door and pushed in.
Jack had Shade pressed up against the wall of their dorm, his hands on her ribcage, under the fabric of her shirt. The top hat was on the floor, and her hair was messed and static, as though he had run his fingers through it. Her black lipstick was smudged, and her hands were hastily tugging at the fabric of his shirt, trying to pull it over his head.
"Uh…" Misprint stammered. They didn't hear her. Misprint paused in contemplation. She didn't want to break this up. All Shade had ever wanted was happening. But she also wanted bed, and sleep, and a sudden, violent loss of memory. She knew that the latter wasn't going to happen, though.
"Guys?" Misprint asked in a choked voice. She cleared her throat. "Guys!" They still didn't answer. She sighed, slammed the door behind her, probably a bit too louder than was wise, and yelled. "HEY!"
Shade pulled away in annoyance and slight fear, but relaxed in somewhat of an annoyed state when she saw it was Misprint. She was too dazzled to take in her friends appearance.
"Mis…not now…" She groaned. Jack glanced over his shoulder at her, and sighed.
"I'd love to leave you two to this…" She began.
"Whassa matter?" Shade rolled her eyes. "It had better be a matter of life or death."
"Just about." Misprint said, her voice scaling higher than normal.
"I gotta get back to my dorm." Jack said, to fill up the silence, sounding resigned.
"But…but…" Shade stammered.
"It's just that…"
Before he could even reply, Misprint heard the door knob rattle. She leapt forwards just in time. She avoided getting hit by the door that burst open, but didn't avoid what was coming.
Mrs. Mayen was standing there, looking almost like an angry bull, her eyes taking in the scene. Misprint winced, and Shade hastily pushed Jack away. But it was too late. The woman may have been cruel as all get out, but she wasn't stupid, and she wasn't making incorrect conclusions at the state of the situation.
"I thought I heard someone coming in." She sneered. "What is going on here?"
"Uh…we're practising for a play." Shade burst out. Misprint rolled her eyes over to her friend.
Good one, Shade, she thought cynically. We're practising for a play at two in the morning..
"I find that very hard to believe, Alyson." She said, raising both eyebrows. Before Shade could reply, Ms. Mayen snapped out the next order. "Jack Kelly. Back to your dorm room this instant. You are all suspended from your classes for three days. To make up for lost time, you will complete your school work in detention."
Misprint stared at the ground. She was too tired to fight back, and try and provoke the woman, even though it was their favourite activity.
"The principle will certainly learn of this." She was sniffing.
Alyson felt her racing heart calm down. Her heart rate had been going way too fast anyways when Jack kissed her. But this wasn't exactly the best way to end that little session. She sighed and pushed her hair back from her face. Jack glanced over at her, and as their eyes met, they shared a secret smile, unbeknownst to the raving keeper. Shade tried to catch Misprint's eyes, but she was staring so determinedly at the floor, Shade had no chance. She furrowed her brows. Something was wrong with her friend, it didn't take a genius to figure that out.
"A'right, a'right, I'm going." Jack said, raising his hands in the world known "I'm arrested" gesture. He exchanged another brief look with Shade, a smirk, and then followed Ms. Mayen out of the room.
Shade smiled, and then collapsed onto her bed, a dreamy look in her eyes. Misprint smiled, for her sake, and then made a beeline for the bathroom.
"Ain't he wonderful, Mis?" She called.
"Yeah." Misprint's voice replied. Somewhat absently, but Shade was too lost in her dream world to care. "It was quite a wonderful predicament you got the both of us into."
"'Ey! You helped!" She snapped. "He's…he's a really good kisser."
"Great."
"I know. And he said we should get together later on. He's dumped Amy for good."
"Fantastic."
"Ain't it? I'm so glad. She's such a…"
"That's great, Shade. Really."
"Well you should talk!" Shade laughed. "Where were you all night? With Stephen?"
"Shade. Shut up." Misprint said, through gritted teeth.
"Comon Mis. Spill…"
"OW!" Misprint yelled. She quickly bit her lip to stop the noise, but it had already escaped. She had peeled the tank top from her skin, but had unknowingly ripped open a scab. There was a deadly silence from the next room.
"Mis? You okay?" She asked, her voice suddenly intent with concern. Misprint hastily closed the door.
"Just fine!" She called, slightly panicky, trying not to let it show.
"You don't sound like it."
"I jus'…stubbed my toe." She said lamely.
"Yeah. Right." Shade knocked on the door three times, but Misprint only slid the bolt back into place. "Mis? Seriously, whassa matter?"
"Nothing!" Misprint yelled, but her voice was choked by dry sobs.
"Open the door." Shade ordered in a quiet voice. Misprint swiped at her eyes and looked down at her body. There was no way she could conceal this. She squeezed her eyes shut and slowly wrenched the door open.
She kept her eyes shut, in her safe little haven. If she couldn't see Shade, Shade couldn't see her. Unfortunately, her childhood theory proved very wrong indeed. She could hear Shade's sharp intake of breath as her eyes brushed over her friend, looking suddenly pale and small in the bathroom. Her bra was stained with blood, and there were bloodstains and scars decorating what seemed to be every inch of her torso, dancing down her arms and legs. Worst of all were the vicious, angry red burns that had been twisted into the skin along her rib cage, following the contour of her body, like a string of pearls.
"Oh…Christ…" She murmured, moving to the cupboard and yanking it open. She pulled out the bottle of Bactine. "What happened?"
"I don't wanna talk about it." Misprint mumbled, wrapping her arms around her stomach. They brushed against the long scar across her abdomen. Shade gritted her teeth, grabbed her friends shoulders, and turned her around once. She understood immediately. The vampiric bites on her throat were fresh, and carved into the small of her back were two, jagged letters.
S.C.
+
Spot pulled on his black shirt as he descended the stairs. His thoughts were as indifferent as ever, as he swung into the common room. His men were perched in their various places, but they were subdued. He arched and eyebrow.
"What's goin' on?" He asked suspiciously. It was just then he noticed Rosie, Trip, and Skull missing. And Flo. This made him a little bit anxious. When those three, combined, were missing, he knew there was trouble. And not the good kind either.
"Flo's in trouble." Scratch finally replied, tossing her hair over her shoulder. "Rosie's gone to find her."
"Flo? In trouble?" Spot smirked. "Gimme a break. That kid can worm outta trouble faster than any of us can." His response was met by dully bored stares.
"Not this time." Harlem said softly.
+
Flo screamed out in agony as Hornet slid another knife along the skin of her arms. Holy water dripped slowly onto her burning flesh. Pain shot through Flo like ice in her blood. Hornet slit her wrist and filled a wine glass with her scarlet blood. He brought the glass to his lips and took a sip of the potent liquid within. He sneered down at the torn girl and placed the glass on a table near him. There were scars all over her small form. She no longer looked child like and innocent, but battered and abused. The scarring and pain on the surface was pale in comparison to the tearing and scaring of the holy water that had been poured down her throat.
"Flo, my dear little girl." Slade's voice was smooth and satin "Why don't you tell us Spot's weakness? Then we can feed you, release you . . ."
Flo licked her parched lips, the offer was tempting, and she had lost so much blood. Flo's eyes fluttered closed, in her mind she saw the fresh blood pouring over her lips and into her veins. The young girl shook her head she wouldn't betray Spot. Never.
"Not a chance." she snarled. She resented her loyalty to Spot when Hornet, wearing a thick leather glove, pressed a cross to her bared stomach. Flo screamed and shrieked as burning pain drove all other thought from her mind. Her tortured body was writhing in agony as she slowly lost her mind from wave after wave of pain. Hornet's laughter echoed in her mind. She thought of the others, of Rosie to keep herself sane. Of Skitch and Killer, who were even now probably making out in the lair.
"Flo," Slade's voice grew stern, he didn't want to call on the power he had denounced so long ago but if all else failed . . . "Flo, I want to know his weakness now."
"Common goily." urged Hornet "You do want the pain to end, don'tcha?"
"I won't betray Spot and the others." Flo's voice sounded surer then she felt and she was glad for that. Hornet backhanded her across the face. Smirking he stabbed a thumb tack into the tip of her finger, wedging it between her finger nail and the skin. Again Flo cried out.
"For fuck's sake girl, tell me already!"
Hornet smirked and wedged her mouth open holding a vial of holy water before her. Flo's body already screamed with agony and she knew she couldn't take any more. Sobbing she told Slade about Misprint. Slade smiled at her and nodded his head, he gestured to Carver who poured the holy water down her throat. Flo's screams echoed through the empty warehouse. All of a sudden, they heard the sound of the door bursting open.
"You shouldn't pick on little goils." admonished Rosie. Flanking her were Skull and Trip, two of Spot's best fighters. Slade snarled up at her.
"How did you find us?" His voice was a feral growl. The beautiful vampire only laughed, her voice echoing.
"Didn't you know blood calls to blood?" Rosie cocked her head to one side "I turned her. I gave her a charm to call on me, though she didn't know she had it. I felt her call me."
"Bitch," snarled Carver who threw himself at her. Rosie's red hair glinted like blood as Carver impaled himself on her raised stake. Rosie shook her head and Trip moved to untie Flo. The large vampire cradled the girl gently in his arms and hurried out the door, Skull with him to watch his back.
"Sorry to spoil you plans." Rosie dropped a quick curtsy and was gone before Slade could speak.
+
Mondie awoke suddenly, feeling a burning pain at the top of her head. She winced, and wondered if it had anything to do with the knock to the temple, which was throbbing sickeningly at the side of her scalp. But this pain…it felt more like fire.
She groaned and pressed her fingers to the wound, checking for blood or scars, but felt nothing. Only her skin underneath her thick brown hair. She thought briefly of buzzing for the nurse, but realized that it wouldn't make her feel better at all. Probably even worse.
The only person she wanted to call was Mush.
It took her a long time to get back to sleep.
+
"Rosie?" Flo asked. Her lips were thick with pain, and the stars above her hurt to look at. They seemed so bright, like millions of miniature suns.
"Yeah?" Rosie asked, not even looking down at her, cradled in the minions arms. Her brown eyes were scanning the streets warily, her stake clutched in her hand. Rosie could be quite vicious when she wanted to. Flo knew that first hand.
"You really gave me a charm? To keep me safe?" She asked hopefully. Only now did Rosie steal a glance at her face. The eagerness in it made her smirk.
"Don't let it get to yer head, kid." She advised, twirling the stake between her fingers.
+
Gemini woke up, subconsciously burrowing deeper into her warm cove of covers. The day was cold, and the boarding school wasn't big with the extra heating. The missing pane on her window definitely contributed to the ice in the air.
Finally hauling herself out of bed, she relinquished the heat that she had stored in her body, and crossed the room, grabbing a towel off the back of a chair. This she stuffed into the gap between the glass and wood, and hugged her arms to her torso, feeling the warmth being slowly drawn out of her. She was weary, and would have loved nothing more than to sidle back to her bed and collapse into sleep.
But she had answers to find.
She pulled on a pair of baggy blue jeans and a sweatshirt, then brushed her hair back into a ponytail. Small strands of hair that escaped the elastic stuck up from her head like springs in a broken mattress. She wrinkled her nose and tried to smooth them down.
Her slightly bent wings and clothes were folded on a chair. She liked the memories that were attached to them. Well…she thought soberly of Mondie, blood trickling from the wound on her temple. Some of them. She thought daringly of sneaking past Mr. Kloppman and visiting Blink, but she had more important issues to deal with.
Like what had happened last night.
She sighed and pulled on her running shoes. They were covered in signatures and symbols drawn in cheap blue pen ink. They were her personality all over again. Just like almost every other thing she owned. She pushed the door open and strode down the hallway to Shade and Misprint's room, blissful in the wake of the fact she wasn't wearing the standard kilt-and-tie that she had grown so wearisome of.
She paused in front of their door, and listened in for the tell tale sounds of life. None were evident, and she wondered if she should come back later. But, on second thought, she figured she deserved answers. So, deciding to brave the wrath of the girls early morning natures, she raised her fist and knocked firmly three times on the door.
There was still silence from inside, except for a muffled yelp. She smirked slightly, then knocked again. She noted a few suppressed thumps, and then a curse. Gemini rolled her eyes. They were obviously not morning people. She couldn't blame them.
The door scraped open and she saw Shade standing there, hair tousled and eyes angry.
"Gem?" She asked, her stance softening slightly. Shade and Gemini hadn't been all that familiar with each other, but she wasn't about to get too angry with the girl for waking her up early. She couldn't blame her. After the events of last night, she must be damn confused. However, she was antsy to let her in. It would mean Misprint's return to consciousness, something she wasn't aiming for at the moment. She was bound to be unlike her regular self, snippy and defensive.
"The one an' only." Gemini answered lightly. Shade began to wonder if the girl could even remember what had happened. She was certainly acting as though it had just been a fun filled night, and nothing more. "Sorry for waking you."
"No problem." Shade said distractedly. Her brain was still trying to start functioning fast enough to process information. First and foremost was the fact her best friend was sliced and diced by an infamous vampire gang leader, second and almost foremost was the fact that Jack had his hands up her shirt, and third was chocolate. Gemini's words weren't making much sense, muffled by a huge pile of memories. "Can I help you?"
"I was just wondering if we could talk." Gemini said softly. Shade tensed. She remembered. She spoke gently enough, but there was real meaning under her words. Shade's eyes flicked back to Misprint, who was still in the confines of slumber, or so it would appear to the untrained eye.
"Uh…can it be later? Misprint's having a bit of a hangover." She lied valiantly. Misprint hardly ever was drunk. "I don't want her to wake up and…y'know. Bite your head off, or something."
"Oh…Sure." Gemini said easily. Shade's eyes were distracted. It was obvious she was hiding something. It bugged Gemini, she figured she had a right to know. Whatever had happened had almost killed Mondie. But she shrugged it off. "I'll go visit Mondie in the infirmary."
"Good idea." Shade said, a little to eagerly. Gemini really wasn't in the mood to press for answers. She raised her fingers in a little goodbye, which Shade returned, then promptly had the door slammed before her.
She sneered slightly. Talk about your morning amnesia. She stuffed her hands in her pockets and sidled down the hall. Even though Shade had said nothing, her fears were slightly alleviated. Nothing was terribly wrong, not to her knowledge or responsibility, at least, and Mondie was definitely going to live through whatever the hell had happened. And Blink had kissed her. The last was a shining memory that was tenderly being replayed in every cell and sensory nerve she had in her skin. She smiled, feeling warmer already, even though the temperature was the same as it had been a few minutes ago.
She was grateful for the fact that they had the day off. It hadn't come easily. It had taken a hell of a lot of debate, since Halloween wasn't exactly the greatest Catholic holiday to observe. After all, wasn't it those pesky Pagans that it had originated from anyways? Gemini grinned. She really had nothing against other religions, even though the priest was constantly preaching against straying from your faith and yadda yadda yadda. She couldn't exactly say she paid the best of attention in church.
She walked into the main building and headed down to the infirmary, wondering if Mondie had even awakened. She wasn't usually a morning person, but it was as though she was on an infallible sugar high. Her steps were kind of jerky and uneven, but she wasn't sure if it was from exhaustion or the fact that she was still carrying the essence of some of the magic she had possessed last night.
She knocked on the door of the sick room, hesitant this time. She didn't want to wake Mondie up. She knew Shade would have been indignant that Gemini had no hesitation in waking herself up so readily, but she figured what Shade didn't know couldn't hurt her. Fortunately, she heard Mondie's voice, a little dampened by sleep call; "Who's there?"
"It's me. Gem." Gemini replied.
"Come on in. Whaddaya waiting out there for?" She yelled grumpily. Gemini smiled and pushed the door open. She knew her friends crabbiness was because of the morning. True to her instincts, Mondie was looking pretty wiped out indeed. "Feelin' okay, Monds?" Gemini asked, going to sit by her bed. The cat hair band was placed on the bedside table, and her hair was spread out on the pillow the same way it had when she had fallen backwards onto the floor in the haunted house.
"Do I look like I'm having the time of my life?" She asked, rather cantankerously, but then her features sifted into a silly smile. "Actually, I'd be lying if I said I wasn't."
"What happened?"
"Mush." She replied happily, closing her eyes. Gemini laughed.
"So the date was a success, I take it?"
"Except for the fact that I got knocked out, yes." She smiled. Then it shifted into a frown as a spasm of pain crossed her face. "And this incredibly dappy pain in my head."
"Your temple?" Gemini asked sympathetically. Mondie shook her head, her eyes more confused than irritated.
"Nah. Two spots." The places she pointed out were the same ones her "cat ears" had been. Gemini shrugged.
"Weird. It'll probably disappear in the next half hour or something."
"Maybe I'm bleedin' from the inside." She said thoughtfully. Gemini stiffened.
"Don't say that."
"I was only jokin', Gem." She laughed. Gemini couldn't help but smile again. It was good to see her let up, especially after the intensity in her voice a minute ago. But in a few seconds, she was back to business.
"You talked to Shade yet?" She asked, dropping her voice to a whisper, as though there were people around to hear.
"Well, technically yes. But I didn't learn anything."
"Oh." There was a silence. Gemini swallowed, then pushed forth with a plucky question.
"You got any of your own theories?"
"One…but it's whack." Mondie grinned, but in spite of her foolish air, her eyes were troubles.
"How so?'
"So in the way that it deals with fictional creatures. Like dragons. And unicorns."
"It didn't sound like you were marvelling at a unicorn in there." Gemini said sternly. Mondie rolled her eyes.
"Seriously Gem. I think…I don't know what I think. But…" She sighed. "They really reminded me a'…"
A sterile sounding voice made them both jump.
"Did I say I was allowing visitors?" As though she was a ghost, the nurse emerged from the shadows, her curls impeccably in place. Gemini guiltily jumped to her feet and wondered how much the nurse had over heard. The last thing she needed was for Mondie and herself to be carted away to a mental ward.
"Sorry ma'am." She said in her most innocent voice. "I was just checking to see if my best friend was alright." Mondie tried to hold in her giggles. Gemini's voice had never sounded so virtuous. The nurse didn't soften.
"Out." She clucked, shooing Gemini away with her hands, as though she was a puppy. "Out, out, out!" Gemini turned and was able to exchange a look with Mondie before the door was shut in her face.
Mondie tuned out as the nurse started throwing rapid chatter at her as she took a pair of gloves and pulled them on. She instead thought of Mush. She wasn't surprised when she woke up and he wasn't there. The nurse obviously hadn't allowed him to stay any longer. Mondie wouldn't have minded.
"Just tilt your head slightly, dear." The nurse was saying. She was examining her scalp carefully, as though she was checking for lice. Mondie stiffened as her fingers brushed over the recently acquired sore spots. "Hmmm. What's this?"
"What's what?" Mondie asked, her tone curious.
"Are you sure you were only hit on the temple, dear?" the nurse asked, prodding gently at the bruises.
"Ow." Mondie muttered under her breath, as the nurse fired repeated pokes at her scalp. "Ow. Ow. Ow."
"I know this may hurt…" The nurse began. Mondie rolled her eyes. Yeah, just a little, she thought accusingly.
"Ow." She added.
"You seem to have these two bruises here."
"I noticed. I don't know where they're from."
"Well isn't that the strangest thing…"
"Ow." She groaned. "Could you stop that please?"
"They look like they're growing…"
"Ow. Ow. OW!" She yelled, squeezing her eyes shut tightly, as though someone was trying to pore acid into her eye sockets.
"Stop squirming, dear." The nurse admonished gently. Mondie pulled away and rolled over onto her side. She couldn't be bothered with two bruises. They could have easily been acquired when she was being moved to the infirmary, or when her head hit the floor. It wasn't out of the norm. She tried a last question.
"Can Mush come in to see me?"
"Mr. Meyers? No. Too much excitement is bad for you in your condition." She said firmly. Mondie shut her eyes. This was going to be hell in the worst form possible.
Gemini ambled out into the cool morning air. The wet leaves were spread across the lawn like clumps of butter on toast, and the blades of grass sparkled with rain. It must have poured while they were sleeping. She was about to cross the lawn to the girls tenement when two hands shut off her vision.
"Guess who." A familiar voice said mischievously. Her heart slowed slightly. It was safe to assume the girl was just a little jumpy. Her shoulders sagged as she fell back on a muscular chest.
"Blink." She groaned. He finally let her see again, and circled his arms around her waist. "Don't look at me."
"Why not?"
"I look like shit. I just woke up." She protested. He grinned and planted a kiss on top of her head.
"Comon." He promised. "We'se gonna go find Mush, then we'll make Shade talk."
+
Shade had stumbled back into her bed and fallen dead asleep the minute she had closed the door. The lack of sleep she had been getting was definitely taking a toll on her body, and the need for slumber was irresistible.
Misprint heard her friends deep breathing, then pushed herself out of bed. She quickly ran her fingers through her hair, pulled it into spikes, then slid on her sneakers and made for the door. She glanced back once more at her friend to make sure she was still oblivious to her escape, then tiptoed into the hallway.
The walk to Stephen's dorm was a hard one to make. If she wanted to avoid Kloppman's questions and possible instructions, she had to climb up the side of the building.
She was really up to that, what with all the cuts across her back.
She climbed the fire escape, and hoped Racetrack wouldn't mind if she took a slight detour through his room. If he was sleeping, too bad.
She had heard Stephen talking to her all night, soothing her. And she had desperately needed to be relieved of some of her pain at that point. He told her he felt what she felt, and that she wasn't alone in this. And it helped. Not much, but it helped slightly.
She loved Shade. She reflected softly to herself as she climbed the fire escape. She loved her with all her heart, and would hate for anything to break them apart. But she couldn't possibly explain this feeling she got whenever Spot touched her. Even when it was just to tear her skin open, she needed it, as much as Shade had once needed the nuke. And she knew if she was deprived of it, there was no withdrawal. Throughout the years that they had known each other, shared secrets, shared hopes, shared downfalls…this was the first time she found she would not be able to confide in her and get the understanding she needed.
Only Stephen could fulfil this.
There was no way she could get evidence that Stephen had dealt with Spot. But she knew. And she wanted to talk with him. She felt like he was the only person on the earth, currently, who could help her.