Wow, wasn't expecting that big of a response, especially for that first chapter, it being rather slow and told through the POVs of minor characters. I guess Bleed isn't as hated as I initially thought. Anyways, thanks for all the reviews/messages/hits! Each one is a whip lash to make me write faster. Enjoy chapter the second!

Chapter 2: Devil's Got a New Disguise

1997

For once the studio was quiet. There were only two of them, but even so it should have been loud, Ash thought. The silence was making him a bit nervous, but Burger didn't seem like he wanted to talk or play games so Ash kept to himself. The clock on the wall read twelve-fifty.

"So…if Derek doesn't show at one, d'ya want to go get something to eat? Then we can go check on him?" Ash asked finally. They called their singer's apartment a few times but kept getting busy signals. "C'mon. I'll buy. We can go to that new Indian buffet down the street." Ash urged, wanting his friend to cheer up a little.

"…Nah. You know what that stuff does to my digestion." Burger sighed, not looking up from his bass which he had been tuning for the last hour.

"I know what food does to your digestion." Ash joked, glad to see a smile tug at Burger's lips.

"True." The lightened mood grew gloomy again in a matter of seconds. Burger glanced at the clock, then at Ash. "Maybe we should go over to Derek's. See what's holding him up."

Eager to get out of the too-quiet studio, Ash hurried up from behind his drum kit and started for the door, Burger following. When his hand reached the knob, the door flew open, nearly smacking him in the face. "Derek!"

The missing singer stood in the doorway, looking a bit worse for the wear. It looked like Derek hadn't slept-his hair was un-brushed and matted, dark circles were under his eyes and he wore none of his usual makeup. Derek blinked at his friends, who looked expectantly at him. "What?"

"We were going to go check on you…" Ash explained, concern in his voice. "Are you okay?"

"Do I look okay?" Derek scowled when Burger and Ash shook their heads. He brushed by them and slumped down on a nearby chair. They followed and sat down as well. Derek's irritated expression turned into one of sadness. "He took all his stuff from my apartment…"

"Bleed?" Ash clamped his mouth shut as Burger elbowed him and Derek's face contorted. "Sorry, I-"

"We're never going to mention that name ever again!" Derek snapped, though his anger wasn't aimed at his friends. "As far as I'm concerned, he never existed!"

"Right." And as far as Ash and Burger were concerned, they were glad to not ever mention their ex-guitarist again.


Up until now, the 'You-know-who Never Existed' policy worked out all right. There were a few incidents, but those were few and far in between. But now, You-know-who was in their garage, and was apparently staying for an indefinite amount of time.

Ash watch warily as Derek paced, looking livid, while Bleed followed his steps closely. He and Burger sat on the couch watching the two Brits trying to talk over the other. Experience told them it would be hard to get a word in between Derek and Bleed, so they merely kept backup just in case things turned even more sour.

"-what were you thinking, coming here?"

"I thought after six years it'd be safe to apologize!"

"You thought wrong!"

"Guys?" Bleed looked pleadingly at the pair on the couch, unable to wear Derek down. Ash and Burger gave him stony glares in return. "Come on! I'm really sorry!"

"Bleed, you suck." Ash usually never really had anything negative to say in general. But having Bleed in front of him was too much. Seeing him again just dredged up too many bad memories.

"Yeah, go away." Burger crossed his arms, joining the group evil eye they were giving their former friend.

Bleed sighed harshly and rubbed his face, frustrated. "What do I have to do to make you lot listen?"

"Nothing." Derek frowned, realizing his answer. "Because, we aren't ever going to listen to you. So, why don't you save us some misery and leave?"

"Uh-uh. I'm staying. That kid said I can stay tonight so I am." Bleed met Derek's fiery look with a stubborn one.

"Fine! Do whatever you want! Just don't expect anything from us." Derek hissed between clenched teeth. He stepped up to Bleed, letting his full height stand over him. "But you're out of here in the morning. Even if we have to drag you-"

"Guys?" Tripp's voice made them all jump and jerk their heads around.

"What?" There were variations of irritation in all their voices.

Tripp shifted uncomfortably and slowly edged his way back out of the garage. "Uh…pizza's here."

"Oh. Sorry, kid. We were distracted." Derek's tone became considerably less harsh. He forced a quick smile and backed away from Bleed. There was a moment of uncomfortable silence until Derek began heading for the door. "I'm going out for a walk."

"You're not hungry?" Tripp frowned as Derek brushed by him.

"I lost my appetite." Just as Derek shot Bleed a nasty look, his stomach growled.

Bleed coughed loudly which earned him another glare. "Ahem…sorry."

"…Shut up."


Tripp strummed his guitar absently, feeling exhausted. He was still a bit jittery with excitement but he was also somewhat nauseous with all the tension in the house. Anyone who was familiar with Iron Weasel, knew about Derek's crazy temper. After a year, Tripp didn't even bat an eye when the Brit would get snippy or start yelling about something silly because it was almost always nothing serious and Derek would be in a better mood the next second.

But Bleed's presence really had all three of them in horrible moods. Seeing Ash and Burger on edge and angry was weird. And Derek was genuinely furious, even moreso than the time Tripp crashed his motorcycle. They all acted normally towards Tripp, but it was forced. It was a odd comparison, but Tripp was reminded of when his dad would still come around and put the entire household in an unnatural strain.

There was a sudden knock at the door, shaking Tripp from his thoughts. He grabbed his guitar case to put the instrument away. "Yeah?"

"Hey." Bleed leaned in the doorway and nodded at Tripp. "You don't have to put the guitar away on my account."

"Uh, I was about to get to bed anyway. I have school. Tomorrow. In the morning." Tripp fumbled over his words and winced inwardly. Last thing he wanted Bleed to think was that he was some sort of babbling fan boy. /Stay cool, Tripp Campbell. This may be your only chance to talk one-on-one with your idol. Don't blow it./ "I need to brush my teeth." /Crap!/

"Yeah, that's pretty important." Bleed grinned easily, showing off his own white teeth.

Tripp relaxed a bit and made a calculated stretch and yawn combo. "So, what's up?"

"Nothing much. I just wanted to say thanks before I leave tomorrow. It really beats sleeping in the car." Bleed edged his way into the room and leaned back against the wall. "Very cool of you to have blokes like me crash at your house."

"It is pretty cool. But that's just the kinda guy I am." Tripp hoped his voice wasn't as high pitched as it felt. He plucked a string on his guitar out of nervous habit and wondered if Bleed would sign it. "I, uh…it's sucks you can't hang around longer. It would've been cool if we could jam some more."

"Yeah…hopefully those guys will forgive me someday. You make stupid mistakes when you're young, you know?" Bleed's face looked regretful for a split second before slipping back into a smile. "Oh, well. At least I'm taking a break from living in my car."

"I can talk to the guys if you want." Tripp offered. He had a vision of touring with the original Iron Weasel lineup and grinned. "I bet if you give them a few days, they'll chill out."

"Nah. I don't want them getting mad at you too," replied Bleed in a morose manner. "Thanks anyway, mate."

/Mate? Are we buddies now? Awesome!/ Tripp hoped his excitement wasn't too obvious. Despite his awe of the fact his life-long idol was hanging out in his bedroom, he felt bad for Bleed. He was obviously hurt at his former band mates cold attitudes and wanted to make amends. Tripp racked his brain for a moment, strumming his guitar in a thoughtful manner. "I got into a big fight with my best friends before. I mean, there was a moment I thought we weren't going to be friends anymore."

"Yeah? So, what d'you do?"

"Well, for instance, I bought a giant test tube and filled it with my friend's favorite chocolate as a gift." At Bleed's strange look, Tripp shrugged. "He's kind of into science-y stuff. The point is, sometimes doing something nice helps a lot."

"Something nice, eh?" Bleed appeared lost in thought for a moment before snapping back to attention. "I'll think about that. Thanks."

"Yeah, no problem." /Bleed's taking my advice!/ Tripp's elation died down a bit as Bleed stepped backwards out the door. "Uh, g'night!"

"You too." Bleed replied absently as he sauntered off.

"Things got pretty heavy for a minute, huh?"

"Yeah, tell me about it-" Tripp froze and looked under the bed. "Izzy?"

"Hey. You know, you seriously need to clean under here" Izzy crawled into the open and stretched. "But, look! I found like, eighty-nine cents down there!"

"Seriously?" Tripp rolled his eyes and rubbed his eyes, feeling a bit of a headache coming on.

"Eighty-nine cents is dime away from a chocolate milk in the cafeteria." Izzy defended. She smiled suddenly and a dreamy look came across her face. "Do you think Bleed likes chocolate milk? Maybe that'll make him feel better."

"Not what I meant. Anyways, I don't think milk is going to solve anything." Tripp sighed and flopped onto his back. "I wish the guys would forgive him or something. There's just a ton I can learn from a guitarist like Bleed."

"Uh-huh, yeah. On the bright side, if the guys still hate him, you can be his best man at our wedding." Izzy said, in what Tripp supposed was probably a consoling tone.

"…I'm going to bed, Izz. You should go to your own house."

"Okay. Night, Tripp. Oh, hey-do you know where Bleed's sleeping?"

"Go home!"

We're moving along a bit now. Next chapter promises excitement, thrills and epic romance. Not really, it's filled with moping. Sloppy, angsty moping. I think.