Chapter 13 – Beaches in Heat
"I knew this day would come sooner or later," Cravat grumbled as he slowly walked towards Lash-Out. He had an assortment of items in his arms, from snorkelling gear, to a parasol, to sun tan lotion, to 'that' kind of lotion, the works, for a day at the damned beach. Not that he wouldn't mind… er…. 'appreciating' their semi-nude bodies, normally he'd jump at the idea. But some days you just felt too lazy for any sort of activity. If it were up to him he would opt to stay at home all day and play the shit out of PSO2, but servers are down for the day. Ah well, it is what it is, he thought. Panty and Stocking were close behind. They were already wearing their swimsuits before they'd even left the church. Stocking's was a modest, blue-striped two-piece, though her top still strained against her assets, while Panty sported a pink bikini. She had a great figure, Cravat had to admit, but then thinking of other guys just ogling her, which they most certainly will, didn't sit well with him. He was a little protective of them, he guessed. Brief came hobbling behind the two sisters with more of their stuff, like a beach ball, the towels, and the food Garter prepared.
It had been a while since any Ghost had come up. So, to get rid of the boredom, they decided to go to the beach. Why? Cravat guessed God decided to throw in an obligatory beach episode into his life. He was pretty sure it was going to go as well as any other T.V. show in existence. Once they decided to go do something fun in the midst of all the blandness and boringness that would be the moment something of exciting would come up, probably a Ghost, the Daemon sisters, or both. Speaking of the Daemon sisters, Cravat hadn't heard from Kneesocks in a while. Well, not that he was hoping on it, but then it wouldn't have been too much to ask if she just sent him something like a death threat every now and then right?
Not that he cared, absolutely not. Why would he?
He mounted Lash-Out and revved the motor as he waited for the others to get onto See-Through. It took a while considering they still had to stuff Garterbelt's stuff in the trunk too. However the hell his entire hotdog stand fit in there he didn't know. After Brief helped Garter shove the last chair into See-Through's probable interdimensional trunk, the two of them got onto the back seat. The Anarchy sisters looked bored to death from waiting.
"Took you long enough," Panty sneered. Garterbelt fixed his overwhelming afro as he replied.
"If you whores tried to help it would've gone faster."
"Oh shut up afro-priest," she paused when she glanced at Brief in the rear-view mirror, who was also in his swim-trunks already, by order of Garterbelt. "Have you been you been working out Geek-boy? Last time I saw you naked in that Lingerie Ghost episode you had a lot more flab on ya."
Brief fidgeted slightly. He was putting on a little more muscle. He's been busy for the past two and a half months. "Maybe a little," he responded meekly. Panty blinked.
"Well whatever, let's go, Stocking."
Stocking revved See-Through after she turned the ignition. "And by the way afro-priest, we don't get paid to move your shit around. If it's not a Ghost, you can count us out."
"Bitches you be living under my roof, and you better be thankful that the lord almighty doesn't cast you two out for being such whores!"
Brief sat awkwardly at the back beside Garter, silently watching the other three start to argue their heads off. He gave a small wave to Cravat, signalling for help. The latter just grimaced. No can do, geek-man. As he turned his attention towards the exit ramp, Habit got on Lash-Out and held tight around his waist. He passed her a helmet and she put it on cautiously. He reached for his own and put it on. He's been feeling a little apprehensive lately. Sure, his skull wouldn't crack from a simple collision like that. He was an Angel after all. But then again, it never hurt to be a little bit safer than usual. He could feel Habit jittering behind him. He turned around and made both their helmets come in contact with each other so that she would hear him clearly. Something with vibration and sound and shit, because Science.
"I'll take it easy this time," he said playfully. She groaned. It was the first time since they'd arrived in Daten City that she got on Lash-Out with him again. Instead of fond memories, all she could think of were the possible mangled positions she would end up in. Cravat revved Lash-Out, giving Habit a scare.
"By all that is holy, Cravat I swear if you get me killed my one greatest regret will be not being able to haunt your sorry ass for as long as your afterlife."
Cravat just stifled a laugh. As soon as See-Through burst out the underground garage Lash-Out followed suit. The humdrum of the cars he passed was drowned out by Habit's screams of terror as she clung to him for dear life. She pressed her entire body hard up against his. This wasn't so bad, Cravat thought with an inward smirk. They had to get through the highway and pass by a roundabout section before they arrived at the beach. Habit was about to hate him even more soon. They passed by quite a few vehicles – and by passed by it meant hopped over/ blew aside/ stormed through – as they sped through the highway.
Aside from a few slipups, one of which needed Cravat to jump off of Lash-Out to catch Habit because she let go as he launched their vehicle skywards over a sixteen-wheeler, after which he nimbly landed back onto his bike, Habit in tow, and another in which he had to intentionally throw her over a truck transporting a bunch of cars, etcetera, they managed to get to the beach in one piece. Habit weakly stepped off of Lash-Out only to crumple down to the ground with her legs shaking from all that's happened. Cravat sighed as he patted her on the head. She groaned dejectedly as he picked her up and slung her over his shoulder.
"I-I'm nota piesh of baggash you knew…" she said shakily, her legs weakly kicking at him. He gave her a light tap on her behind, before raising her in front of him like a child.
"Be a good girl now," Cravat told her.
"Hmph…"
Garter recommended to them not to setup their spot too far from where he was currently standing, which was like a mid-point from the road and to the sea. As they tried to find a good enough spot Cravat noticed Garterbelt opening a luggage bag. In a few moments, the square baggage he was carrying folded out into a stall that said 'Charch Seaside'. Well shit, now that's something he hasn't seen before. As he turned around, the clouds covering the sun suddenly split apart like the red sea. It bombarded him with a healthy amount of UV radiation.
"Damn it's hot," he complained. It was late in May, so Summer was just around the corner. All this heat was making him feel a little light headed as he set Habit down on the beach towel under their staked parasol. "Feeling better?"
She didn't even respond. Well someone's being a little too unhappy about things, he thought. Meanwhile Brief ran along and gathered the items needed for Garter's stand, namely a few luggage bags carrying a fridge, a grill, and other such equipment.
"Where did you get all of those magic bags Garter?" Brief asked as he opened one, which turned into a giant, elongated table. Garter smirked as he got the frozen frankfurters out of the freezer.
"Nothing a Heaven's Express Black Card can't buy, my dear Brief."
The way Garter said the last part of that sentence made Brief just a wee bit uncomfortable. He shrugged it off and took his leave to find something else to do.
As everything else in the world sped by around her, Habit was busy pouting under the shade of the parasol. Stupid Cravat, stupid need for speed, stupid danger, stupid stuff, she mused. She continued to make a list of what she thought was stupid. She was pretty annoyed that Cravat didn't keep his promise of taking it easy.
Habit cringed. Taking it easy? Even back then 'he' promised that. Yeah, load of shit that did. No matter which one it was, they had trouble keeping their end of the bargain. He probably got a kick out of watching her scream and panic like that. It was… eerily similar to before, but much different. She much preferred the way it was now. She curled up defensively, a subconscious action where she covered herself with her hands as if someone was staring at her and she didn't want to be seen. She didn't like how things were back then. This was better… much better, she thought. She never thought of what happened all that time ago, up until Cravat mentioned meeting old-man Epik. Her anxiety was just amplified because of what happened in the laundry room back on the 17th of March. She couldn't forget that day. She wouldn't be able to, his eyes at that time, it was a lot more pure and joking, but it still reminded her of...
Cravat suddenly appeared out of the corner of her eye, walking up with something in his hands. He sat down beside her on their beach towel and offered her a pack of cookies. She hesitated a bit.
"It's my peace offering," Cravat said, a smile urging across his face. When she didn't take it immediately, he put on an apologetic expression. She hasn't been herself lately. Maybe I shouldn't have played around like that back on the highway, he thought. "I'm sorry."
God that's not fair, Habit thought. With that face she couldn't stay mad. With that face… same features, same expressions, but different emotions and thoughts behind it. He's always been kind and sincere. That was his stark and defining difference. She took the packet and stuck her tongue out at him.
"I'm still mad," she said. "But I guess this is a start."
That made Cravat smile a little. At least it was getting him somewhere. He realized they were still in their casual attire, and he offered to accompany Habit so they could both get changed. Cravat lifted a backpack over his shoulder and Habit brought her things which were inside a large paper shopping bag. They let Chuck guard their belongings and walked towards a row of changing stations to one side of the beach.
"I'll be back in a sec," Habit said after closing the door to her station. As he heard the click of a lock Cravat went to the station right beside Habit's. He changed into his white swim-trunks before stuffing the rest of his clothes into his backpack. As he got outside, his attention was immediately diverted by a cat a ways away from the changing stations. It was white as snow, with a coat as fluffy as a bag of cotton balls. It had sky-blue eyes that seemed to stare at him intensely. On its neck was a peculiar collar, in which where the tag would be there was a padlock and key. Must've run away from a weird owner, Cravat thought. He went over to see if it was friendly, and to his pleasant surprise it brushed up against him, purring to its heart's content. He picked it up, and it mewed at him adorably. You little bastard, you're not allowed to be this adorable, he thought humorously. It proceeded to paw him on the nose.
"If you wouldn't get crushed to death I would hug you so badly right now."
"Mew?"
OhmagawdIwannatakeyouhome- No, I must stay strong. Mental barriers activate! "I think I'll call you Feles," Cravat told the little fluff-ball of adorableness as he set it down onto the ground. It was the Latin word for 'cat'. By all means it wasn't that creative, but hey. I shouldn't get too attached to it, he thought as he gently stroked it behind the ear. He heard a commotion behind him, and someone shouting. That was definitely Habit's voice. He said his goodbyes to his little feline friend, who looked at him expectantly.
"Sorry, but I've got to leave," he called out. Now he was talking to cats. Brilliant. For some reason, he thought he saw the cat nod in response. "… Naaaah."
He went back to the front of the changing stations. He saw three guys surrounding Habit a ways away in a secluded spot. She had changed into a reasonable black two-piece, moderately showing her curves. Still, it was enough to attract three goons from out of nowhere to suddenly start hitting on her. They probably herded her to that secluded spot no less. This was also cliché, Cravat thought.
"C'mon baby, don'chu wanna have some fun with us?" One of them, tall and moderately built sporting an obnoxious-looking speedo. All things considered, he had his looks going for him, but his attitude could've used an overhaul. By the looks of it he was the 'pack leader' as the other two just stood there like idiots reinforcing his statement. Habit didn't move from her spot.
"I-I already said no, so please leave me alone," she responded. One of them, a shorter, medium-built guy with an earring on his right ear, tried to grab her arm.
"No, d-don't!" Habit squealed and she forcefully yanked it away, throwing the former off-balance. He bumped into Cravat, who brushed him off and sent him tripping into some sand. Cravat smiled at the trio.
"Everything alright here gentlemen?" he asked smugly.
"This isn't any of your business asshole, unless," the other guy, taller, more heavily built and completely bald, looked at Habit. "You know this pretty little thing here. You her boyfriend or something?"
"No, but I do know her," Cravat said calmly. "Habit, are you done teasing them already? I want to go swimming," he said. The other guy with the earring got up and grabbed Cravat by his neck.
"I think you should just run along and let us have some 'fun' with your friend over here."
"C-Cravat!" Habit called from her spot. As she tried to run to him she was blocked by the two remaining men.
"Oh no, we're not done with you yet," the pretty-boy-asshole smiled.
Cravat's face contorted into panic. "H-hey I get it man, just don't hurt-" Smack. Crack. That felt like the nose bridge splintering. Right into a tree. "Yeah I'm just fucking with you."
Earring-guy's face was implanted half-way into the bark of a Palm-tree. He slowly crumpled, with blood from his nose smearing the wood in a straight line downwards.
"Motherfucker!" Bald-and-brawny pointed a knife he got from his trunks at Habit's neck. She squirmed at the cold metal against her skin. Baldy's hand started to inch its way to Habit's chest. "You make one move and she gets it."
Cravat stood there and blinked. "Wow that's… that's pretty pathetic. With your muscles bulging like that you still need to point a knife at a girl half your size just to get laid?" He stifled a laugh. "Well, you probably don't get laid much. Maybe you shouldn't overcompensate so much."
Habit squirmed more. "P-please, don't do this-"
"Shut up, bitch," pretty-boy snarled. He turned to Cravat. "You're not in any place to diss us, you little shit," His hand roamed downwards from Habit's stomach. Baldy's hand was already tracing lines along her bust. "Now get lost, unless you want to enjoy the show."
Cravat leaned up against the tree he smashed earring-guy's face in. He smiled at them. "Oh I'll enjoy it alright."
Pretty-boy looked unnerved by the comment. This guy was messed up. "Lady, you have one sick bastard for a friend over there. What, you keep cock-blocking him or something? I'm surprised he hasn't jumped you yet."
For some reason the words stung Cravat like electricity. He didn't know why, but it just did. Something inside of him was reacting, something deep and buried. Before he could think about it anymore Habit was already starting to get her switches flipped, and not in the way you'd think that term was used for. A homicidal smile was creeping onto her face.
Pretty boy turned around and saw Habit with that crazed expression on her face. It was a look of pure unbridled spite as her eyes narrowed towards her target. He was locked in place, trapped in her little web. "What the hell are you-"
Habit's hands worked like magic, disarming baldy's knife-hand in one quick motion. First thing you should probably do before you rape someone is to restrain their hands and feet. Of course, it was Habit so it wouldn't have mattered. She kicked pretty-boy hard in the stomach, making him reel backwards a few feet. Habit grabbed baldy's arm and judo-flipped him like he weighed as much as a pillow. As baldy's body made contact with the sand three well-placed jabs cracked both sides of his ribs and crushed his solar plexus. In an instant, he was out cold. As pretty-boy regained his balance, Habit was already dashing towards him. She speared him to the ground, kicking at his solar plexus as he fell back. As the now unfortunate victim tried to figure out just what the hell had just happened to him, he saw Habit looming over him like the grim reaper. She smashed her foot right into his Adam's apple. He coughed up some blood.
"W-what the fuck are you?" he stammered. Habit positioned a kick to his man-parts, and her foot collided with its target with deadly force. The guy's eyes rolled back into his head before he heard her voice seemingly echoing in the distance as his consciousness faded.
"I'm a nun."
Cravat had to cringe a little as he saw what had happened to the three asshats. There's Habit for you, acting like a victim before managing to rip your shit up. Habit's expression instantly reverted back to her normal bubbly disposition. They headed back to their little patch on the beach without any further fuss. He thought he spied Feles trying to follow them but whenever he turned around, the cat was nowhere in sight.
When they got back to their little parasol Chuck was nowhere to be found. Probably went to Garter, they thought. Panty and Stocking had set up their own station, on top of See-Through's hood. They were busy with their own activities. Well, busy as in getting ogled at by the rest of the beach's population. Panty was constantly being handed drinks while Stocking, holding onto her favourite stuffed cat, was given an endless supply of deserts. The crowd treated them like goddesses. Not far off, Cravat thought. They were Angels after all. Habit joined the other two on a whim, and suddenly she was being ogled at as well. Whistles of approval resounded all around them. Cravat sighed. There wasn't anything he could do about them being the center of attention. They practically relished it. Nothing to do but spur them on. He gave the three of them an approving wolf whistle, and the three of them beamed at him in appreciation.
Ah, youth. Or what could be considered as youth. How old were each of them anyway? Oh well, he dismissed the thought. Out of nowhere, a pair of arms grabbed him by the neck. Before he knew it he was smooshed up against two familiarly ample mounds of flesh, in laymen's terms, Stocking's breasts. Oh what raced through his mind at that moment. Would he need to apply suntan-oil on this holy maiden?
"Otakun, oil me up would you?" She purred. Habit took the moment to grab hold of Cravat's arm.
"That's not fair, me too Ravvy," Habit pleaded, no, demanded. It was a good day to rein-act embarrassing anime/manga clichés. Hoho, but no, they won't be embarrassing him this time around. He had other things in mind. Let's break the mold, shall we? He thought mischievously.
Panty called out to Brief, who was shuffling from See-Through's trunk and back to Garter's food-stall to drop off some supplies. "Geek-boy, on me, now," she demanded, adding a similar tone of seduction to it. Poor Brief was victimized like a deer caught in the headlights.
"B-B-But we're supposed to be helping Garter out with the church's food-stall…!" he stammered. Panty wouldn't let up though. She got on all fours before grabbing him by the arm, resting her head on his shoulder.
"Oh c'mon Geek-Boy, p-l-e-a-s-e~?" she whispered oh so sensually into his ear. That was that. Brief dropped everything he was carrying and put on a brave face. He looked at Cravat, and they gave each other nods of determination. Game faces, on! They each got a bottle from the bag the girls conveniently placed on the hood, and went to town. How the masses looked at them with fire in their eyes.
This next section is brought to you by, Misinterpretation. It's more inappropriate if you only hear what's going on.
"Here I go then Habit~"
"Nnnn… That feels nice… W-wait Cravat, not there…"
"Not where? Hm… are you sensitive here maybe…?"
"Fuwaa… geez control your… eek…!"
"You like that don't you? How about you Stocking?"
"Chyeah, like you're going to… Gyaa…! You ass, w-wait, stop… Oh god… N-ngyaa…"
"I still know your weak spots, you little masochist. How's it going Brief?"
"F-fine, but Panty keeps fidgeting…"
"R-right there…! Oooh… yeah right there… Teehee, enjoying yourself, Geek-boy?"
"Tch, you aren't faking those are you?"
"Of course not… Nnngg… oh yeah…"
"Go for the ears Brief, that'll set her off."
"Cravat, you fucker! Why'd you tell him?! Geek-boy don't you dare…"
"Like this…?"
"Hyaaaa….! N-noo, wait, you ass-hat…. If you just continue… after you did that… Oh god… Fucking hell, G-geek-boy… stop…! Ahnn…"
"Oh, what's this? But I'm just putting some oil on you, Panty, into every inch of you. How'm I doing Cravat?"
"I approve very much."
"I think we have to get their front too, Cravat."
"I like the way you think good sir. Alright… time to finish this."
"W-wait, what… Ah…! Gimme a break Ravvy, I'm going to…! N-nooo… ! "
"Fucking shit Otakun, I'm gonna g-get you… for… for… Ah… Ahhh… !"
"H-here's the finishing touches Panty…"
"Tch, y-you're in way over head if you think… this… this will… w-will… ah… n-no, not my ear, waah…! Hyaa… !"
The three girls tensed up before they slumped back and rested themselves on See-Through's windshield, slightly elated from their little session. Their bodies were glistening with sweat and sun-tan oil, and as they staggered to regain their breaths, the two triumphant maestros of oil-application stood smugly to one side. Panty didn't think Brief could be that assertive. She gave him props for that. Not enough to get into her standards though.
"Well that was refreshing," Panty said stretching her arms. Brief fidgeted a little, not daring to look at her in the eye. Well that was a quick mood switch. "Not bad, Geek-boy, but," she paused, before she got a pair of her underwear from a not-so-far bag. In a flash she had Backlace pointed right at Brief. "You try that again without my consent and I'll blow your brains out."
Brief stood his ground. "But you can't hurt me with that. You tried once before, remember?"
His statement caught Habit and Stocking off-guard. Did he have a death wish? What's more, Panty already knew that, didn't she? So why was she still threatening him like that? Brief took a hold of Backlace's barrel and aimed it at his head. Panty seemed ticked-off. What the fuck is up with you today? Feeling a little lucky punk? Man-handling me, now you're acting all cool and shit? I'll fucking kill you! She clenched her teeth and squeezed the trigger. There was no loud bang or explosion. The only thing she heard was something like a pellet harmlessly bouncing off her target.
"… Oh right. Can't hurt humans. Fuckin' A," she said disappointedly.
"Don't tell me you actually forgot about that. What are you an idiot?" Stocking scoffed. Panty scrunched her face in her sister's direction.
"Don't start with me you cow."
"Bitch, what you call me?!"
"Hey guys," Cravat interrupted. "I think that's a tidal wave."
They all went silent upon seeing one of the oddest things you could see at a beach: a rather large car was surfing on top of a tidal wave headed towards them. Out of nowhere Cravat heard a sinister organ play, like there was someone playing background music in his head. He'd heard this tune before. He had a good feeling he knew who were riding on top of that tidal wave. The wave crashed and sent the crowd around them hurdling back up the sandy shore along with Panty, Stocking, and Habit, while Cravat and Brief managed to latch on to See-Through to prevent themselves from being swept away. His musings were answered with a refreshingly familiar face as two figures stepped off of the familiar USUV. He recognized that pony-tail, that graceful gait, those curves… oh, she was in a swim-suit too, an inviting black two-piece. Her sister on the other hand seemed a lot bolder, as her curves and ample chest, which he realized could rival Stocking's, was supported by a black, sling bikini.
"Daemon sisters," Cravat sighed. "I fucking knew it," he said with an unexplainable grin on his face. He reached for his neck… but then realized his weapons were in his backpack. Shit, not good.
"Dear sister I advised you not to let G-Sting learn Surf. It causes too much of a mess," Kneesocks' polite and familiar voice called out. She noticed Cravat's presence and went up to him. When she noticed that he was readying his fighting stance, she put a hand in front of him, signalling him to stop. "As much as this meeting warms me, I'd rather not engage in hostilities right now Cravat. My dear sister and I are on vacation."
Cravat was a little sceptical. "Really now?" he asked, scanning her from head to toe. No he wasn't trying to see if she was lying or not. She just really looked good in her outfit, but he made it seem like he was figuring her out. Brief absent-mindedly stood there beside Cravat. Scanty suddenly walked up to him and eyed him like a child in a candy store.
"Why hello~ there. I don't think we've met," She said happily.
Cravat, Brief, and Kneesocks had a deadpan expression on their faces. Brief scratched the back of his head.
"Uh, you seriously don't remember?" he asked. Scanty looked puzzled.
"Why whatever do you mean?" she insisted ever so innocently. Brief sighed. She seemed to have a really bad memory. That or he just didn't make much of an impression on her when they tried to kill him all that time ago. Then it hit him, the tidal wave had managed to slick Brief's hair back. The guy looked like a million-bucks, his determined teal eyes and near perfect bone structure drove some of the women passing by to swoon.
"I'm the one who you tried to decapitate, you know, on the roof of Daten High? Mass-production Ghosts? Am I ringing any bells here?" the boy asked, exasperated. Then he saw his reflection on See-Through's hood and realized his situation. He ruffled his hair back to its normal, messy state. The girls passing by were obviously against it and stormed off in a huff.
Scanty blinked for a few moments before she reached a state of realization. "Oh… oh that was you! Oh dear me, terribly sorry for that incident, it was nothing personal, just demon things to take care of," she stretched her hand out in anticipation. "I'm sorry if we'd gotten off on the wrong foot. My name is Scanty."
Brief looked at her hand, unsure of what to do. He looked at Cravat, who was just as apprehensive as he was. Cravat looked at Kneesocks, who didn't flinch nor falter. If there was one thing he knew about Kneesocks, it was that she didn't joke around, whether it was small formalities like this, acting like a member of the student council in the past, or when she was trying to kill him a few times over. He sighed and turned to Brief.
"Take it, I don't think they mean harm," there was a quick pause and a sideways glance. "For now anyway."
Brief remained silent for a moment. He took Scanty's comment about him with a grain of salt and stretched out his own hand. "Alright then. I'm Briefers Rock." Brief shook Scanty's hand at once. He wasn't expecting it to be smooth and soft, like her flushed red skin wasn't just for show. He had a little trouble letting go. He had to admit, she was mesmerizing. He now also understood why Cravat had a sort of obsession with Kneesocks over there. She was radiant too, in her own right.
Before any more words could be exchanged Panty and Stocking, covered in some seaweed, came waltzing up to the Daemon sisters. They were not happy. Not one bit. The Daemon sisters' expressions changed. Disgust filled their every emotion at that moment. The Anarchy sisters shook the seaweed off and took a stance against the two Demon girls.
"I thought I smelled something rotten. I thought a dead animal had started to rot, but it's just those moron Angels again," Scanty said, her expression barely showing any emotion but a burning fire shone through her eyes. Kneesocks put on a face of mock surprise.
"Are you saying our lungs have been insufflating the same air as them? How abhorrent."
Panty was easily angered by their arrogance. "What the fuck are you bitches doing here? Finally decided to show your sorry little faces after all this fucking time?" she barked. Kneesocks shifted her stance slightly, and her gaze made it look like she was looking down on the Angel sisters she considered as mere insects.
"We should be asking you the same question," she started. There was a lot of bite to her words, nothing like how she was talking to Cravat a while ago. "The point of a private beach is to keep dirty little cretins like you out."
Stocking furrowed her brows. "You own the beach?"
Panty would have none of it though. "Fuck that, you can't just claim a beach you whorenocerous."
Scanty smirked ever so slightly. "Your offensive name-calling is charming at best," Fastener staked a sign-board into the sand that said: KEEP OUT, OCCUPIED BY DEMON SISTERS. How subtle, Cravat thought. Scanty began to continue. "We'd just purchased this area not too long ago for the sole purpose of our vacation," Fastener scampered on top of the sign and rolled out a legal looking document. Scanty flashed her fangs in seeming triumph. "Do you understand? The law is on our side and that doesn't leave you two toilet Angels with many options now does it? You may leave now," Scanty suddenly grabbed hold of Brief by the arm, wrapping her own around his and clasping his hand.
Kneesocks proceeded to snatch Cravat and wrap her arms around his waist, leering over his shoulder. Cravat was immune to that kind of treatment by now, but alas, Brief's mental faculties slowly degraded until he was reduced to a blubbering fool, the poor boy. Not that he was complaining though.
"M-M-Ms. Scanty?!"
The elder Daemon sister smirked as she proceeded to hold Brief against her body. "You have our permission leave the boys though, and that other silly human girl. Now go on."
Panty burst forward and punched - yes punched - Brief out of Scanty's clutches. "Bitch if you want to make us leave then you're gonna have to use force," she shouted in Scanty's ear. Scanty ignored her and went to see if Brief was alright. He seemed fine, but Scanty just couldn't fathom how time and time again these so called 'Angels' kept disregarding human law and safety for their own personal benefit.
"What is the matter with you, you insufferable wench?!" She helped Brief up, who was slightly woozy from the Angel's hit, but he recovered quickly. After you've been abused by an Angel so much you could barely notice it any more. All around them the crowd suddenly started to get into it and urged the cat fight on. Assholes, the lot of you, thought Cravat. Scanty turned to the raging blonde. "Honestly it's like talking to a brick wall. Being unable to understand such basic rules like this, it was foolish of me to think that we could be civilized about this."
Stocking went next to her sister and looked like she was ready to make the first move any second now. Kneesocks let go of Cravat and went to her sister's side. Cravat signalled Brief to get out of the line of fire before he was injured any more than he was. The latter simply nodded before stealing a quick glance at Scanty. Cravat and Brief joined Habit, who at the moment had found a bag of popcorn and watched curiously at the transpiring events. "Really now?" he asked Habit, who just shrugged innocently.
The two pairs of sisters had a stare down, before Panty spoke up again, regaining some of her composure. "If you grovel at our feet right now, we'll consider forgetting this little shit-fest ever happened and we can all move on with our fucking lives."
Scanty stood her ground. "I think it would be better if you monkeys were taught a lesson in humility. Obviously, we will not be engaging you in armed combat for we came here to relax in the first place," a glint appeared at the corner of her eye. They all had puzzled expressions on their faces when she uttered her next statement.
"But we Demons have just the activity to settle a score such as this."
-0-0-0-0-0-0-
Volleyball. That was the answer to all beach related problems. It was so obvious he didn't even realize it himself. Absolutely brilliant. Actually no, what the hell was up with this? Last time he checked he wasn't sucked into Dead or Alive: Xtreme Bitch Volleyball.
That was a pun.
Both the Anarchy and Daemon sisters headed to the volleyball court in one part of the beach. Cravat noticed the crowd seemed to adore Scanty and Kneesocks more. Kind of like what happened way back when at school. They wouldn't take very kindly to that, he reckoned. As he followed near the end of the crowd, Brief and Habit were walking alongside him. Despite the circumstances, he remembered how Brief stood up to Panty for the first time not too long ago. He gave the red-head a pat on the back.
"What is it?" he asked, regaining his balance. Cravat's 'pats' were like getting hit by a skillet.
"I can't believe you finally manned up to Panty. I still have to back down even if she doesn't threaten me," Cravat said light-heartedly. "Did my advice over these past few months finally get to you?"
Brief laughed a little. Over the calm of no-Ghosts and no-Daemon sisters they'd gotten to be close friends. Cravat always told Brief that if he ever wanted to get a chance with Panty he'd have to step up his game a little. It took all of his being, but he managed what he had to do.
"I just got a little fed up with her attitude. Can't believe I didn't have the stones to do this sooner," Brief paused. "You think she hates me now though? Could've been why she knocked me so hard…"
"Psh," Cravat scoffed, before his voice became a whisper. "The more she's frustrated with you, the more she's sexually frustrated with you. Well, Stocking was like that in my case anyway. Angel women think weird I guess," He glanced at Habit slightly. "Of course there are exceptions to the rule. Then again, she's a normal human."
Upon hearing that Habit punched Cravat in the arm.
"Stupid, unbelievable, asshole, stupid," she kept repeating. She pouted, and, upon calming down after Cravat stroked her hair, she turned to Brief. "I hope your gaming with Cravat hasn't been in the way of practicing what I taught you," she said. Over the calm period Brief also didn't only hang out with Cravat. He'd gotten lessons from Habit on how to fight Ghosts and Demons and whatnot. He's had this crazy notion if he manages to save Panty from a dire situation she'd fall for him head over heels. Cravat always told him that it might've been futile, because if Panty couldn't handle something, they'd all might as well be dead then and there. But Brief wouldn't let up. In the two and a half months of nothingness, Habit taught Brief in some basic martial-arts, weapon-use, and the 'yes's and 'no's when fighting Ghosts. He managed to get the hang of it, one way or the other. He couldn't single-handedly take down a Ghost, but he was probably good enough that by now he wouldn't be a mere nuisance.
Probably.
As the three of them managed to get to the spot on the beach with the volley-ball court, Brief appointed himself as the referee, seeing as no one was volunteering. Even if the crowd wanted to see the match, no one dared to be the score keeper. If either of the pair sees a wrongly accused judgement they would be turned into ash in less than a second. Habit went ahead to find a spot to watch from the crowd. Cravat took a quick glance at the volleyball court. Seems normal enough, he thought. Then again, if he'd learned anything from both the Anarchy and the Daemon sisters, they always had a way to un-normalize something, even a simple sport like volleyball. As he was about to follow Habit deeper into the crowd, someone grabbed his hand and dragged him off to one side. It all happened so quickly that he didn't even manage to resist. Whoever had him was pretty strong, holding his hand like a vice. The hands were soft though, and he already had a feeling who it was. He was thrown gently (how that made sense he didn't really know either) into a trunk of a palm tree away from the peering eyes of the noisy crowd before them.
"Hi there Kneesocks."
The younger Daemon sister fidgeted slightly. For all that bravado she put up during their confrontation with Anarchy sisters she was flustered quite easily. "You know I felt your face heat up when you were hugging me back there."
She put her hands in front of her. "You know I blush easily," She said with a straight-yet-reddening face. It was one of the most adorable things he'd seen. Not as adorable as that cat he'd found earlier, but hey, it ranked pretty damn close. If he knew she wasn't going to stab him with her scythes the moment he tried, he would've wanted to pinch those cheeks. She still lunged at him with both scythes though. It materialized so quickly that he didn't realize she'd setup her stance already by putting her hands out. She cleaved the Earth in two as her scythes made contact with the ground. He'd barely side-stepped that blow. "I apologize for not sending you a message as of late. There was a lot of paperwork that needed to be done during the months it took to finally purchase this beach."
"You couldn't have just, I dunno, make your dad snap his fingers and get you the beach?" he joked. He reached into his trunks' pockets and his Ghost Kiras materialized. He had retrieved them before they started to move just for an occasion like this. Kneesocks went on the attack again, and he blocked both of her scythes, using his retracted whips like daggers to clash with the handles, extending his arms far enough to prevent from puncturing an artery.
"Don't be foolish, my sister and I wouldn't bother father with something so trivial," she said, like it was an everyday occurrence. He grit his teeth as he tensed himself. It took a lot more effort than normal to be able to push her back into a stand-still, and even then he could feel his feet scraping against the sand as he was ever so slightly being pushed back. He forced her off of him and lashed out, sending two tethers of light streaking towards her. The both of them stood their ground with Cravat unleashing an onslaught of whip strikes and Kneesocks deflecting each and every one of them.
"Wow, really not giving me any room here are you?" he asked rhetorically. If this fight were drawn out any more people might start to take notice to it instead of the half-naked women stretching provocatively for a volleyball game. He retracted his whips quickly and stabbed forward. Kneesocks prepared to block, but the blow never came. It was too late when she realized his whips had gone into a rift in reality and had teleported themselves behind her. The light-trails wrapped around her scythe-handles. This was the first time he'd used that teleporting trick since their scuffle on the roof of Daten High. Cravat pulled hard, sending Kneesocks crashing into him. They hit the sand hard enough to send a wall of sand cascading all around them, though the sound it made was something akin to a pitiful 'Foomf!'. White sand beaches. Pretty nice for soft landings.
"I think I win this round," Cravat whispered. One arm held Kneesocks gently towards him while the other had a Ghost Kira pointed at her neck. Her scythes lay planted into the ground a ways away from them. "That's three for me and four for you," he smirked. Kneesocks fidgeted under his grip.
"I suppose it is. I did not expect you to use 'that' again," she said, referring to the teleporting whip manoeuvre.
"I've been practicing," he replied. He hadn't thought of using that technique since he almost killed Kneesocks with it before. It was like tapping into a power that wasn't his own, something that was tugging at him from deep inside. Even in those few seconds that he had managed to pull it off, he felt a darkness encroaching on him, like it was saying 'I'm taking over soon, have fun while it lasts'. Shaking the thoughts off, Cravat felt Kneesocks' face heat up while her head lay on his chest. He decided to stop teasing her and released her from his grip, to which she sprang back almost instantly and started to dust off. She kept a straight face all throughout despite her again steadily reddening complexion, which just made it more humorous for him. He collected her scythes, which reverted their form, and handed them back. She tied these to her ponytail so that they would stay hidden again.
"Oh that's why there was something weird attached to your scrunchy."
"Indeed."
They heard a whistle and the crowd from not too far off started roaring like mad men. Brief had signalled a five-minute prep time before the match officially started. The two combatants turned to each other.
"Time for your volleyball game," he said plainly.
"Indeed…" she repeated. She got up on her tiptoes and kissed him on the cheek before turning around and heading for the court. She stopped mid-way, turning slightly so that his eyes caught hers. "It was nice trying to kill you again. It was very… nostalgic, for lack of a better term," she finished, and she continued to the court.
This was the most complicated relationship that I've been in, Cravat thought to himself. A lot more complicated than Stocking that's for sure. Seriously. He was surprised at himself that he played it cool until the end. Hell to the yeah-uh, he thought. But now he was just getting more and more confused. Did Kneesocks… like him in that way? Or was it like, an infatuation with something she was eventually going to kill? Wow relationships really get you thinking, he mused. He knew his expression had gone from 'totally poker-face' to 'finicky-idiot' by now. "Damn, damn, damn, damn," he kept repeating. "Wow this is complicated. Urgh."
As he got back to the crowd Habit noticed that he was a little bit off. He just replied the weather was getting to him and proceeded to watch the volleyball match. It started off innocently enough, a few insults here, a few taunts there, some ass shaking from the Anarchy sisters to rile the crowd a bit (Hey, what could you do about them). Eventually the first set ended with the Anarchy sisters winning. As soon as the second set started, that's where it started to get… rambunctious. As fast as they were winning the Panty and Stocking started losing horribly, the ball just inching out of their reach, slamming them in the gut like it wanted to, and generally being un-hittable as soon as it crossed over to the Angel's side.
"What the fuck's going on?!" Panty shouted, getting up from being smashed in the face. "You bitches can't go from sucking one minute then suddenly you're all Olympic-level shit the next!"
Scanty and Kneesocks didn't look fazed by the accusations at all. "You two primal-hillhacks simply cannot keep up with our rapidly improving skill-level," Scanty taunted, smirking with pride. Kneesocks swatted another spike-serve.
"You mens-smeared skanks asked for this…!" Panty muttered under her breath. She'd already noticed something wrong with the ball that they had been using for the past few sets. She decided to take matters into her own hands. The moment it was in range, Panty materialized Backlace and shot at the ball. Wherever she was hiding it, it wasn't in her ponytail like Kneesocks, Cravat thought. He dropped the subject entirely, not wanting any revelations to dawn on him. The ball had deformed itself to evade the gunshots, and as it hit the ground it turned back into Fastener, who awkwardly made an exit from the court.
Panty butted heads with Scanty through the volleyball net.
"Are you lacking in any sort of intelligence, you mindless dollymock?! Don't try and bend the rules just because you're losing!"
"This coming from a yeasty hag-troll who had to use her retarded pet rat to start winning?!"
Their insults went back and forth while Stocking found something of use in Chuck as the latter walked innocently by the court. She quickly grabbed him and fashioned him to fit the occasion. "Ball's up, bitches!" She shouted as she spike served their little pet. Kneesocks jumped into the air and slashed at Chuck once. The poor dog was however sliced not only in two, but twelve pieces from that single swipe. Scanty and Panty started to question each other's heritages loudly and insultingly as Kneesocks finally snapped and decided it was game time. Her serve was charged with such demonic power that it flew right between the Anarchy sisters in the blink of an eye.
"We'd been going easy on your pitiful selves because we knew you were hampered down by your horribly proportioned physique and your miniscule IQs, but I think it's time to play for real," the younger Daemon sister taunted. She met Cravat's gaze, whose expression just spoke of an exasperated 'seriously?' while mouthing 'what about your rules?'. Her face flushed but she held her chin high.
"Of course," Scanty continued. "This is no longer just a means to get you off our property. The losers would have to be punished even further," she paused for effect, looking at the crowd around them. "The failing team will have to strip in front of the crowd."
Instantly the crowd around them cheered and hollered their approval. Cravat found himself indecisive about the decision. Sure if the Daemon sisters won Panty and Stocking would strip, but that was something they were probably ready to do anyway… probably. If the Anarchy sisters win and the Daemon sister had to strip though… knowing Kneesocks and her personality… stripping front of a crowd would be mortifying for her. She would be all shy, and blushing, and fidgety…
And in front of everyone. No way in hell he was going to allow that. But then what could he do about it? This was their fight. Should he just butt in and carry the two sisters off in hiding? He wouldn't be able to do that without a distraction. Why would he even try in the first place? Why was he going to go out of his way for that? Damn all these feelings swirling inside his brain. Stupid synapses and neuron discharges that made his brain send signals that made him feel what he was feeling. Stupid complicated feelings.
While he'd been having a moral argument with himself he'd already missed half of what was going on. Back and forth the demonic and angelic powers surged throughout the area, all concentrated on that volleyball. They shouted names of their 'attacks', invoking sigils, signs, and whatever the hell else to augment their serves, spikes, and returns. Brief frantically tried to keep up with the speed of the match, while Habit watched like a cat following a laser pointer. Back and forth Cravat could feel the power escalating, almost exploding, until the scores were tied and finally, when he thought that that the Anarchy sisters were about to lose it all, Stocking managed to save the ball and sent it flying high above their side of the court. Panty jumped and cocked her arm back, smirking as a wave of joy plastered itself on her face.
"Repent, bitches!"
Her spike resonated throughout the area and created a heart-shaped crater in the sand as it landed hard between the gawking Daemon sisters. They stood there for a moment before it registered in their heads.
"This means…" Scanty muttered.
"… we lost…" Kneesocks finished. The crowd started to roar.
"You heard your fans, you skanks," Panty taunted. The crowd was in a frenzy, chanting for the Daemon sisters to strip. Cravat couldn't bring himself to move. He was too fixated on Kneesocks. Her lithe fingers slowly snaked around the straps of the bottom of her two-piece, inching them slowly down her legs, ever so slowly, so teasingly, bringing out a small bottle…
Small bottle? Cravat snapped out of it and realized Scanty had gotten one as well while under the guise of untying her sling. The Daemon sisters threw the bottles into the air. The bottles flew over the ocean, and Scanty shot at it with her revolvers, spilling the bottle's contents into the sea. A moment of silence followed, before ghosts of gigantic sea creatures began to flood the beach before anyone had any idea what was going on. Instant Ghost Fluid. Nasty stuff. A giant Ghost-topus had wrapped its tentacles around the general female populace. A Shark Ghost began terrorizing the crowd, which had already dispersed in the chaos. The Anarchy sisters cursed and shouted at the Daemon sisters as they managed to escape and headed towards G-Sting that was about halfway in the water. Cravat, not knowing where his emotions had suddenly surged from, lashed and shouted out at Kneesocks.
"You broke your rules!" he exclaimed, pointing accusingly. Kneesocks was stunned for a moment, before being pushed inside the car by her sister. Cravat turned his attention to the chaos behind him. A few of their luggage bags were sprawled open. Habit had already started chopping some sushi up with her hatchets. Brief had acted quickly and calmly and assisted her with throwing knives and handing her more weapons. He ducked, rolled, kicked, and slashed at Ghosts that he could, stumbling here and there but getting back on his feet. Guess it was a good day for some field-training. The Anarchy sisters were unfortunately temporarily out of commission. Stocking was being molested by a giant octopus, moaning about how good it felt every now and then. Despite knowing her tastes, it was still kind of unnerving, and downright wrong. Panty had been stripped of her clothing by Evil-Ghost sea anemones and starfishes, while the Ghost of a small sea-snail had latched onto her ear. Yep, that would bring her down in an instant. Cravat readied his Ghost Kiras and rendezvoused with Habit and Brief. They would need to break through quite a few sea creatures to get the Anarchy sisters.
"Alright you guys, we're on our own here," he said, stabbing at a Ghost Dolphin's blow-hole. He thought he heard an explosion in the distance, but it was probably nothing. "Think you guys can keep up?"
Habit smiled at Cravat before grabbing another hatchet by her teeth. Three in each hand and one in her mouth. Kinky. Brief grabbed hold of a broadsword (he insisted on getting something simpler than throwing axes) and stood by their side.
"Aye aye, Cap'n," he said, slightly pushing his hair out of the way, once again revealing his teal-colored eyes. Cravat didn't get to see Brief's eyes much, but when he did, he could see a lot of fire in them, a certain spark of determination, like he was ready to take on anything no matter what. This time was no different. He always felt oddly jealous of this, though he didn't know exactly why. Cravat straightened up and shifted his stance slightly. Fighting on the beach in his swim trunks with two of the best people he knew. He started regretting not wanting to go to the beach at first.
"All right, let's do this shit."
-0-0-0-0-0-
Not to bore anyone with the drawn-out fight with a hundred sea creatures or more, suffice to say it took a while. Despite that they'd managed to get the Anarchy sisters some clothes while they lay knocked out from either pain, pleasure (for Stocking anyway), or frustration. Brief helped fix the Church's seaside stand with Garter, who had disappeared during the course of the volleyball tournament right up to the moment a Whale-Ghost smashed his recliner to smithereens (along with some money Cravat was pretty sure didn't come from selling some drinks and big black franfurters) while Habit picked up the salvageable weapons she had thrown around. Cravat went around the shoreline to look for any other stray Ghosts that may have gotten away from them. Twelve heavens all in all for their troubles. Not great, but not bad, I guess, Cravat thought. He looked back and saw that he was getting a little further away from the others but you couldn't be too safe with clearing out the Ghosts.
He ended up behind a rocky outcrop that extended into a small alcove that was well-hidden from the rest of the beach. He could hear noises coming from inside the alcove and he readied his Ghost Kiras just in case. He entered the clearing, slowly pacing around each rock formation and checking the stalagmites or stalactites for signs of Ghosts, until he reached what seemed like the end of the path. There he found two shapes, one curled up, and the other seemingly sitting on a rock. He rushed forward giving them no quarter. The one on the rock was closer, so he lashed his whips out and grabbed hold of the Ghost. The Ghost struggled, and Cravat pulled with all his might. Normally the pressure would rip right through Ghosts, but instead he managed to pull his target right towards him, and it crashed into him. He fell over backwards, and the figure landed on top of him bound by his whips and unable to move.
"Kneesocks?"
"I would think this means we're even now," she said plainly. "Four to four."
Cravat got up to his feet and helped Kneesocks up as well, untangling her from his whips. "That was more of an accident though," he said sheepishly.
"I had let my guard down, which was foolish of me. Had it been one of those boorish sisters that had come here I would not be standing here right now," she said, a hint of bitterness edging her words. Cravat clapped her on the back.
"They're out cold right now because of that little show you put on earlier, so you can relax a bit," he reassured. He decided to play with her a little. "You know, despite you and your sister losing and not being true to your rules but hey what can you do," he looked around and didn't see Scanty anywhere. The smell of burnt leather also seemed to linger in the air. He looked at Kneesocks and scanned her from head to toe. He didn't see it at first because of the dim lighting of the cave, but he noticed some black scorch marks all over. "What the heck happened to you? And where's Scanty?"
Kneesocks lead him to the rock she had been sitting on. The other curled up mass that was beside her was a knocked-out Scanty, who had even more scorch marks all over her. Kneesocks sighed. "My sister had unfortunately pressed G-Sting's self-destruct button. Fastener is currently acquiring another means of transport while I tend to my sister's ineptitude."
He looked at her skeptically. "Self-destruct button," he said, like it was the most unbelievable thing in the world. Kneesocks merely nodded. "Who the hell would put a self-destruct button in their own car?"
Kneesocks scrunched her face up. She had a hard time trying to make logic of that decision as well. He wanted to pinch her cheeks again. In fact he did.
"Phleash shtop, thesh sishuashun iff cfliché I know…"
Well if she was that depressed to not slice him in half when he invaded her personal space she must've felt pretty down. Scanty stirred slightly.
"Sulfuric… dollymock… Angel… bitches…" she said groggily. She was drooling, so she was probably in no danger. An explosion would at most knock a Demon or an Angel out. Kneesocks sat down beside her sister and started to fix Scanty's hair up a bit.
"She had not taken the defeat very well. She kept going on and on about how she would devise a plot and pay them back tenfold and whatnot…"
Cravat already knew that Kneesocks cared for her sister very much. Despite all the fighting and the combat with the Anarchy sisters, plotting to take over all of humanity, and any other Demon-esque related things that they did such as buying out a beach just to spite their adversaries, the way the sisters treated each other was like they were the only ones they had left in the world. Okay so sometimes it bordered on incestuous but it wasn't his place to comment on it. For some reason he felt like their father didn't really pay much attention to them because of his work. Probably common in a lot of the more fortunate families.
It dawned on him though. If the Daemon sisters were Demons… then that would make the mayor of Daten City…
"Cravat?" Kneesocks' voice knocked his thoughts off track. It was more of her tone that smacked the train aside though. She sounded serious. "Were you truly that upset?"
He blinked. "What?"
Kneesocks got up and stood in front of him, meeting his gaze. "Before we'd escaped on the beach, you shouted at me."
It took a while before it registered in his head again. "Oh, when you guys escaped when you lost."
"Yes."
"Well not really, though you did break your rules," he said the last part jokingly. But Kneesocks regarded him for a moment, before holding the straps of her top. Cravat stood puzzled. "What are you doing?"
"I will keep true to our word, but I will not allow my sister to be shamed as well," she said with conviction. "The agreement shall be fulfilled and you will be the sole witness."
Cravat stood scratching the top of his head while regarding Kneesocks, whose hands had stopped from taking her top off. She was looking at him as if testing to see if he would actually allow it. "You really don't have to, I mean what's done is done."
"No I insist. But only for you."
Her tone wavered with the last few words. There was a secret message in there, I just know it, Cravat thought. "I'm sure the world won't end if I let this one sli- And there goes your top."
The piece of fabric fluttered to the ground as Kneesocks covered her bust with one hand. She looked serious, albeit slightly flustered. Her face was getting redder again. Cravat could feel his face starting to heat up too. He awkwardly covered his face with one hand and turned around. "Yeah I'm just going to look that way until you put your clothes back on."
He's seen women naked before. Stocking barged in and out of her room naked these days without a care in the world in the mornings whenever she took a bath after the whole temper-tantrum-sexy-times incident. Panty walked around the house naked for the hell of it. Habit he's seen in a swimsuit at the least. So why was he feeling awkward with Kneesocks? Just another naked body… Heck, her being in a swimsuit barely left anything to the imagination. But he really couldn't bring himself to do it. He heard another rumple of clothing. She was definitely not dressing up.
"I am being true to my word," she said. She was getting closer. He heard her stop behind him. "I do not mind if it's you. Turn around," she coaxed. She started to shiver. The cave was damp and being naked wasn't helping. "I'm cold."
"Maybe you should put some clothes on then," he called out. Kneesocks got fed up with his indecisiveness. She walked right up behind him, held him by the shoulders, and spun him in a complete 180. And there goes the full-frontal. He could've stood there and have an internal monologue on how she looked heaven-sent (or was it hell-sent in this case?) and many other flattering adjectives that he could pull out from his brain-thesaurus but his mind voted against it. Just get it over with already, she's going to get sick if she stays that way.
"I see you now, happy? You should really get dressed."
"I'm cold," Kneesocks repeated, now looking up at Cravat with pleading puppy-dog eyes.
Foul play, my dear Kneesocks, foul play. "Okay, no, that's not fair, you don't do that. You're not allowed to do that."
"It is within my right as a human being to want the warmth of another person in order to achieve self-preservation and prevent death by hypothermia and it is also well within my rules to act differently according to certain situations to acquire what I desire," she explained plainly. Cravat was looking at her, his expression told her he was really struggling to get the message. She felt her face heat up again and decided to say what she felt as simply as she could. With a sigh, the words escaped. "I just want you to hold me."
Cravat instantly went through an entire repertoire of internal monologues and questions that had formulated into his head at that very moment, which includes but is not limited to: So is this going to make us a thing or not? Wow I can't believe I just thought that. This is some forbidden love type of shit right here. It's really happening? Wowzers. I'm thinking too much. Dayumn.
"Exactly what does that mean… exactly?"
"Well," she paused. "Do not get the wrong idea. I will not say you are my entire world, you are not the light of my life, your smile is not what I live for, or any other similar dramatic clichés that many would believe one should feel about a speculative significant other," she started, looking him straight in the eye. "But I find your company refreshing," she finished. Their eye contact was so intense that she felt his gaze just piercing right through her. Then after a few more moments the silence finally broke.
"Okay," he shrugged.
"Okay?" she asked.
"Okay."
"That's all you have to say?"
Cravat moved forward and held her close. This was different from all the other times before, where she held him in a choke-hold, or when he held her and threatened to puncture an artery, or when she pinned him down with a scythe a few inches to his neck, or even the first time he'd managed to pin her down with a whip strike threatening to run her heart through. Ah, nostalgia. This time he held her close sincerely, gently, caringly. He didn't hold on tight, but he held on enough. Only now did he manage to realize how small she really was. Kneesocks' arms were slack at her sides, he knew she was on her tiptoes so that her head rested on top of his shoulder. He could even feel her heartbeat like this, since he was pretty much almost naked himself.
"I don't think there's anything else to say. At least, for now."
He loosened his embrace on her slightly so that he could rest his forehead on hers. His face was a little askew to hers due to the horn though, but he didn't mind. He smiled at her. She smiled back. She looked lovely smiling like that, a far cry from her normal almost emotionless expressions. They shared a quick kiss on the lips. Nothing fancy, nothing carnal, just something sincere for the both of them. When they parted, she let out a small sneeze. The sheer intensity of his 'I-told-you-so' expression made her want to stab him with her scythes.
"Now will you get dressed?" he asked as he let her go.
"That would be wise," she agreed.
Once Kneesocks had gotten dressed she pointed at Cravat. "I will allow our duel to be shortened to a race to five. The next time we duel, it will be to decide who will be the dominant one in this relationship."
"Oh come on really?" Cravat asked, finding the notion a little ridiculous. She held him with a serious gaze though, so he knew she was serious. No way he was losing next time. "Fine."
Kneesocks sat back next to Scanty. "I think you'd best go back now. You have quite a way to go if you truly want to have a chance at dominating me."
"You make it sound so sexual," he laughed. Kneesocks' face reddened once again. Before she could retort he was out of the alcove and heading back towards Habit and the others. The sun was slowly inching it's way west as the afternoon went on, and he regretted thinking sitting in front of console would have been better.
By all accounts, it was a pretty good day at the beach.
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Author's Comments: SOOOOO, I'm not dead just yet :D Anyway, made this chapter longer to sort of kind of make up for going AWOL. I've got the rest of the story planned out so long ago but I just can't get my hands to type. Anyway, I'm really sorry for disappearing, but when I saw people still following the story after so long I got motivated to continue again, so thanks for that push. Until next time guys :D. Also, Kneesocks' short speech near the end I based off of a comic from xkcd. Credit goes to xkcd guy XD