Chapter Five: Russell, The Lion
Two-Bit was awakened rudely by the telephone ringing. He rolled over, cursing, and answered the phone.
"What?" he snapped grouchily. "Two-Bit?" a voice said tentatively on the other line. It took Two-Bit a moment to figure out who it was.
"Ponyboy?" he said, surprised. "What are you doing, calling me early in the morning on a Saturday?"
"Whaddya mean, early? It's four in the afternoon!" Two-Bit glanced at the clock and then out the window. "…Oh," he said sheepishly.
"Yeah," Ponyboy said. "Anyway, I'm at the movie house. Can you come get me? Soda and Darry are both working."
Two-Bit sighed, pretending to be annoyed. "Alright, I guess I can be spared," he teased. Ponyboy saw right through him and said, "Thanks, Two-Bit," gratefully.
Two-Bit sighed and went to get dressed. At least Ponyboy used his head this time, Two-Bit thought. He could've gotten jumped.
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Ten minutes later, Two-Bit was driving along, whistling to himself. He picked up Ponyboy and started to drive him home, telling him some wild story and trying to concentrate on the road.
"…So then, I was telling Steve, 'Man, that chick's so dumb,' and then he's like—" Two-Bit stopped abruptly when Ponyboy grabbed his arm.
"Two-Bit! Look!" Ponyboy yelped, pointing out the window. Two-Bit looked where Ponyboy was and his eyes widened. He hit the brakes very hard, very suddenly, and they screeched in protest.
Two-Bit stared for a moment, battling with himself. He figured he had a few minutes. The Curtis' house wasn't too far from here. He started driving again.
"She's got it under control, kid. No point making trouble where we're not wanted."
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Carmen was walking through town, just exploring, something she hadn't had a chance to do since she got here. There wasn't much else to do on a Saturday afternoon.
She stopped for a soda in a drugstore. I really can't remember the last time I had a soda, she realized with shock. Man, does it feel good to have one after such a long time.
She finished her soda, paid for it, and stepped outside, continuing on her way. This day has been normal so far, she thought.
Too normal, she decided. Something has to happen. And what do you know, something did happen.
A tall, lean boy stepped out of an alley in front of her. He had golden hair and eyes to match, reminding her of a lion. Her heart caught in her throat and she stopped dead in her tracks.
For a moment they just stared at each other. Finally, Carmen regained her voice. "Russell?" she said softly. Hate burned inside of her, and she could feel her rage bubbling just below the surface.
Russell smirked. "Carmen," he said with satisfaction. "I thought I'd find you here." Carmen's delicate face was set with anger. "Of course," she said bitterly. "You're a Finder."
"Yep. It was no problem to track you down," he said, grinning in a way that made her sick.
"You're nothing more than a hound dog," she said through gritted teeth. "A hunting dog, that serves the hunter and does nothing but chase their prey all their life."
Russell's smile quickly faded to a look of contempt. "Let's end this, here, now," he said. Carmen ignored him and demanded, "Who sent you here?"
She had a pretty good idea, and Russell proved her right. "Your dear old dad," he replied. "I may be a hound dog…but it's worth it for what I get paid."
Carmen rolled her eyes. "Oh, I am so sure," she said. "Go to hell!" she screamed. Any mortal would have taken it as an insult. But a sorceress like Carmen meant it quite literally.
The winds blew and the ghouls of the devilish dead howled, reaching their bony arms for Russell. But suddenly, it all stopped. Just like that, without any warning.
Carmen looked around, bewildered. "What happened?" she blurted. Russell laughed scornfully. "Not bad, Carmen. But you underestimate me. I've been learning a bit of wizardry myself, from your father, no less."
"Oh," Carmen said, with mock realization. "No wonder. You don't need to go to hell, you come from there." It was a horrible comeback, but Russell took it personally.
"You'll pay, Carmen. For everything. Everything you ever did to me," he threatened. Carmen was about to ask what he was talking about, when she stopped.
She remembered. Oh, man, did she remember. It was because of Russell that her father had found out about her obedience.
Forcing herself to focus on the present, she turned to Russell angrily. "Alright, Russell," she said. "I know you're here on account of my dad. But this is a big city," she gestured around, "And you'll never find me again. Not if I can help it."
Russell just grinned. "What makes you think that?" he mocked. "This," Carmen said simply. She took a deep breath, shut her eyes, and took a running start…
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Two-Bit dropped Ponyboy off hastily and drove like the wind back to where he had seen Carmen facing off with that weird guy.
He parked on a side street nearby and ran over. He stopped short at the sight before him. Uhhh… Two-Bit thought. What exactly is going on?
That was definitely Carmen…for a second. Until she turned into a panther. And that was definitely the guy he seen earlier…until he turned into a lion. Shapeshifters. The word drifted slowly across his mind.
Then they were human again. Two-Bit almost laughed out loud as he saw sweet, delicate Carmen snarling and holding the guy in a headlock with one hand and a hammerlock with the other.
Carmen spotted Two-Bit and yelled to him across the street. "Two-Bit!" she shouted desperately. "Forgetting spell! On him! Just point your wand and say Oblivio! Hurry!" she added as the guy growled and struggled.
Two-Bit hastened to do what she said. Immediately the guy got a strange, dreamy look on his face and stopped struggling. Carmen released him and he gazed up at her.
Two-Bit jogged across the street in time to hear him ask her, "Who are you? What am I doing here?"
Carmen rolled her eyes and hoisted him up to a standing position. He staggered drunkenly and almost fell over.
Carmen pulled him back up, only to give him a hard shove into the street and say, "Go to hell!"
The guy staggered into the street and vanished with the wind and howling of the desolate ghosts.
Two-Bit turned to her and demanded, "Tell me what's going on. NOW." So Carmen did so, immediately. The whole story.
Two-Bit stared at her with an open mouth. "So now your dad is gonna know where you are?" he groaned, his disappointment evident. Carmen shook her head.
"Nope," she said happily. "You saw what just happened, didn't you? You modified his memory. He barely remembers who he is, let alone what just happened. Plus I sent him to hell," she added triumphantly.
"So you won't have to leave?" Two-Bit said joyfully. Carmen shook her head no. Two-Bit exploded with exuberance.
"YIPPEE!" he shouted, leaping into the air and twirling Carmen around. "Okay, okay, contain yourself," she scolded.
Two-Bit stopped, but not because she told him to. "Wait. What exactly did he mean, 'everything'? What was he talking about?"
Carmen sighed. She should have seen that coming. "Remember when I told you my dad wanted me to do something, and there was no way I would ever do it, and I told you that if you ever ordered me to tell you I would kill you?"
Two-Bit nodded. He remembered that very well. "Well," Carmen continued. "That applies to this too. There are just some things that you can never find out."
Two-Bit nodded. He was dying to find out, but Carmen looked as thought she meant it. "Okay," he agreed.
Carmen changed the subject. "Well, congratulations, Mr. Wizard," she said. "You just cast your first real spell."
Two-Bit stopped. He grinned widely. "Yeah," he said. "I did, didn't I?"
"Yep. I'm proud of you, Two-Bit," Carmen said sincerely. Two-Bit laughed, but on the inside, he was feeling very weird. He had never felt like that before. Was it…could it be…? Nah. It couldn't be.
Could it?
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It was late at night, and Carmen was tired. But she couldn't sleep. She was worried.
Two-Bit was new at wizardry, and she didn't know how long his memory spell would last. If she was lucky, it would last long enough to remain permanent. But it was very unlikely.
And then Russell would remember, and tell her father, and he would come after her. He was sure to come after her if he knew.
He would kill her mother. He would kill her, after he had used her. And he would kill Two-Bit too. She couldn't let that happen.
Tossing and turning, these thoughts churned in her mind. She finally fell into a fitful sleep, punctuated by weird dreams of lions and switchblades.
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I hope you liked that chapter more than I did. Review and tell me what you think. I'll update as fast as the reviews come. : )