In which the huge spider8itch. Also I didn't go to the dinner thing last night but I felt like being lazy and figuring out why my Sims 3 games keep freezing at 10:00pm on the first Tuesday of every game.
Many thanks to Fabylou55, YaoiOverlord, LinkinPark X, thepeopleofthecrysis, Kerra-Chan, BlOo KiSsEs, obsessed01616, and Heki564 (especially! Both for details for Sollux's glasses and a last-minute prank idea!) for your reviews to the last act!
When Sollux's alarm went off the next morning, he couldn't figure out why he felt a strange and unsettling contentedness. He'd never actively dreaded going to school, but he also hadn't really looked forward to it. He fumbled for his glasses, and then he remembered. A smile broke across his face.
"Well, hello there," he said with a stupid grin, sliding on his red-and-blue glasses.
He showered and shaved quickly and dressed in black jeans, a shirt that was blue on the left ride and red on the right, his mismatched shoes, and a yellow zip-up hoodie. His anticipation toward getting to school had actually left room in his stomach for breakfast, so, having finished up the leftover pizza over the weekend, he wolfed down a bowl of Lucky Charms and headed out the door. He hit the button for the elevator and put his ear buds in. The doors slid open as he scrolled through his iPod, trying to decide what to listen to, and he heard someone say, "Whoa."
Sollux looked up from the screen. "Hey, Dave."
"Nice glasses," Dave Strider said with what almost passed for a smile on his face. His own headphones were looped around his neck and something that sounded like Skrillex was pumping out of them.
"Thanks." Sollux opted for Alkaline Trio as the doors closed in front of him.
He didn't think Dave continued talking to him, probably taking the hint that headphones on meant world off. Even though Dave seemed to be Karkat's friend too, he didn't have his annoying habit of talking to someone who clearly wasn't paying attention. It was a nice change of pace.
– –alkalineTwisted began pestering caligulasAquarium– –
AT: Good morning!
CA: uh
CA: do i knoww you
AT: Umm I hope so! We had a class together last semester!
AT: This is Eridan, right?
CA: uh
CA: yeah
CA: wwho are you
CA: wwhat class did we havve together
AT: Political science. I know it was ridiculously boring :D
AT: I'm Jane. I got your pesterchum handle from Feferi
CA: jane? jane crocker
AT: No not her XC I guess you don't remember me
CA: no not really
CA: uh
CA: so wwhat did you wwant
CA: cause gettin my handle from fef is all kinds a creepy
AT: Yeah, I know, sorry!
AT: I wanted to talk but since you don't remember me, that's kind of pointless so I'll just let you go
CA: wwell
CA: it just came out a the blue an all
CA: some wweird things havve been goin on lately
AT: Such as?
AT: I mean, if you don't mind me asking
CA: long story
CA: no offense but im not convvinced this isnt some elaborate prank
AT: Oh okay
AT: Alright well at least I know
AT: Have a good day
– –alkalineTwisted ceased pestering caligulasAquarium– –
CA: wwait
CA: wwhat
Eridan looked over the pesterlog and frowned. Something about it didn't seem right but this Jane had given up really easily instead of trying to convince him of her authenticity. If it was a prank, he figured the culprit (he suspected Sollux) would keep trying to talk to him, but that hadn't happened. Hmm. Well, he knew he had to get right to the bottom of this, so he sent Feferi a text. hey fef does sol havve a pesterchum account
Yep! W)(y, planning on stalking )(im? *wink wink* I can't do a winking face wit)( my smiley so t)(at will )(ave to do
no not evven. wwhats his handle
TwinArmageddons
Eridan bit his lip. TA. "Jane"'s had been AT. He didn't like the similarity. It was too suspicious, and besides, he didn't think Sollux would have been stupid enough to use his own actual handle for a prank like this. But now he knew Sollux's handle.
– –caligulasAquarium began pestering twinArmageddons– –
CA: hey fuck you asshole
TA: who'2 thii2?
CA: like you dont knoww
TA: no ii don't 2o you can fuck off
– –twinArmageddons blocked caligulasAquarium– –
CA: wwait
CA: wwhat
He furrowed his brow in confusion. If "Jane" really was Sollux, he was going all-out for this prank. If he wasn't... hey fef did you givve my handle to some chick named jane
Yea)(, s)(e was in our Political Science class last semester! I can't remember )(er last name but s)(e was really nice. W)(y, did s)(e pester you?
yeah just out a the blue all random an shit. you could a warned me
SORRY! It just slipped my mind!
He rolled his eyes and lifted his Thermos to his mouth. The coffee was still hot, but he finished it anyway. one last question. if sol wwas prankin me an you kneww, wwould you tell me?
Of course I would! I've never lied to you before, )(ave I?
No, she hadn't, but he'd lied to her before, so he figured he was about due for some like treatment. He left his Thermos in the car, reached across the seat for his bag, and headed inside the cafeteria building.
"How's your hand?" Aradia asked, tugging Sollux's phone out of his hand and grabbing him by the wrists.
"I'm fine," Sollux said, but didn't pull his hand back.
"Knuckles still look a little swollen."
"I'm fine," he repeated. "Where's KN?"
"Kanaya? I'm not sure." Aradia glanced at the other seats around their table; they were all empty save the ones she and Sollux occupied. "If they start hurting, go to the clinic."
"Fuck me sideways, AA, I'm fine."
She let go of his hand as his phone buzzed on the table. He picked it up. "Pesterchum again."
"Who is it?"
"caligulasAquarium." A small smirk crossed his face. "That would be ED."
"Eridan's pestering you? What the Hell happened?"
"He probably got my handle from FF, same as how I got his."
"That doesn't answer my question."
"I think he thinks I'm pranking him again."
"Are you?"
Sollux raised an eyebrow and smiled mischievously. "Not yet. But..." He sent a response to Eridan's verbal harassment and blocked him. "Always good to lay some groundwork."
"Care to elaborate?"
"Not yet." He looked over his shoulder, enjoying the fresh tint his glasses lent to everything. Something he hadn't realized the day before, something he found amazing, was that reflective surfaces seemed to take on an incredibly three-dimensional appearance, more than they did without the glasses. He'd get used to it, but for now, the whole world looked better behind these glasses.
He started playing Tetris and Aradia picked up A Clash of Kings to continue reading, but looked up after a few minutes to the sound of rapid footsteps. "Uh-oh, incoming," she breathed. "Danger, Will Robinson!"
Before Sollux had a chance to turn around and see what had Aradia so on-edge, a presence came over his shoulder and a familiar voice hissed, "I really expected better from you, Captor."
He recognized that voice. He recognized that scent. He recognized that annoying (and stupidly hot) habit of invading his personal space. It was definitely Eridan, come to harass him some more.
Sollux stood up and turned around, grateful suddenly for the three inches he had on Ampora. It allowed him to look down as he snapped, "Back the fuck up and get out of my face." When he tried really hard, he could overcome his lisp, and he did so now. Eridan was going to take him seriously, whether he knew it or not, and he didn't want him to be able to use a mispronounced word as fodder.
Automatically, Eridan took a step back, his eyes flicking back and forth from one lens to the other. Sollux could almost see the thoughts running through his head—red and blue mix to purple, purple is his favorite color, God damn it, what the fuck was I thinking?—just as well as he could see someone approaching out of the corner of his eye.
And then she said, "Eridan? Is that you?" and Eridan's face drained of color. His purple eyes went wide, terror evident in them, but he sucked in a deep breath and turned around.
Shit! He'd completely forgotten about her. Bad enough that she'd appeared out of nowhere—worse that she'd done it when he was caught practically ogling his rival. He'd gotten new glasses over the weekend with red and blue lenses and if he didn't know better, he wouldn't have had any idea that Sollux's eyes were two different colors and wow, those glasses looked really good and had he always been that tall?
And then she showed up and shattered everything with four little words and he had to scramble to get himself under control and he turned around and there she was, all long dark hair and a playful smirk with her arms crossed over her chest. Even with the patch over her left eye, a result of some childhood accident she'd never elaborated on, she'd always been gorgeous.
And apparently, she'd been busy, too, because her shirt was sleeveless black with a blue hoodie tied around her waist and her left arm from shoulder to elbow was a straight-up homage, a tattooed masterpiece of spiders, scorpions, and other arachnids.
"Hey, V-vris," he said, struggling to sounds cool and failing miserably.
Vriska's gaze flicked momentarily over his shoulder to Sollux before settling back on him. "Sorry, am I interrupting anything?" she asked, still smirking. Her lipstick was blue and it brought out the brown in her eye and her skin. "I mean, it seems like you and your boyfriend are in the middle of a fight."
"He's not my boyfriend," Eridan replied weakly.
"Oh, right," she said as if she'd just remembered that he was straight. She looked back at Sollux. "Vriska Serket. Nice to meet you. I like your glasses," she added.
"Vriska? I think I owe you a punch in the face, too," Sollux said.
Vriska looked shocked and hurt, but Eridan had seen that face before. It was an act. "For what?"
"For KN—Kanaya."
"Oh, I see. Be sure to hit my good eye," she said silkily. She peered around Sollux. "Hey, Aradia! Where is Kanaya, anyway? I miss her."
"Back off, spider-bitch," Aradia snapped, standing up. "You think I'd really tell you where she is?"
Vriska's eye widened. "I'm hurt. I've always considered her one of my friends!"
"You've got a really fucked-up way of treating your friends."
She shrugged and abruptly grabbed Eridan, turned him around, and slung her arm over his shoulder. "I won't deny it. Just ask this cutie!"
Eridan closed his eyes. His expression spoke of severe physical pain. Before he could stop himself, he said, "I can't believe I slept with you."
"Yeah, me neither!" she said cheerily. "I had such awful taste, didn't I? Well, that was three years ago—what can you do?" She gave an exaggerated sigh, completely ignoring Eridan's mortified expression, and let go of him. "Alright, well, I'm off to catch up with some old friends of mine. See you around, losers!" And with that, she sailed off, leaving the other three staring at the back of her Spiderman backpack.
There was a dead silence for a few moments until Eridan meekly slunk off to a table at the far end of the room.
"Wow. Is she always such a bitch?" Sollux asked, watching Eridan leave.
"As far as I've known her, yeah. She was awful to Kanaya, and I'm afraid she plans on ruining her life again. Looks like she's already started on Eridan."
"Yeah." Eridan set his elbows on the table and stared at the surface, completely oblivious to everything. Sollux felt a wave of pity for him. Sure, Eridan was an asshole, but Vriska seemed worse—not clueless to the kind of havoc she wrecked, but she reveled in it, found it amusing, went out of her way to hurt other people. At least when Eridan fucked with him, he expected to get as good as he gave. "Is it completely fucked-up to feel bad for him?" He turned around to meet Aradia's gaze.
She shook her head. "Not where Vriska is concerned. From what I've heard, all she does is hurt people. If she really was in a relationship with him—which I assume she was—then I don't doubt it ended badly for him."
Sollux looked back at Eridan. He was still motionless at the table, but almost caving in on himself. Even his hair seemed to be drooping. "God damn it," Sollux muttered. "Watch my backpack."
So... based on what you've seen of Vriska so far, does she seem okay?
