Chapter 8: Prelude To Disaster.
Monday was the night of the Connaught Public School's Graduation Dance. Tristan and Jesselyn glanced eagerly at the clock, which was nearly 5 o'clock. Tristan was dressed in a black and red striped T-shirt, blue pants, and a gray short jacket. Jesselyn was dressed in a green sweatshirt and black pants.
"What's taking Ericha so long?" Tristan wondered looking irritated.
"She said she's putting the finishing touches on her hair," Jesselyn said. "I'll never understand teenage girls."
While they waited for their sister, Blaze sat on the couch with Geoff, watching a hockey game on the TV. While the Houndour witnessed some of the Pokemon in his world playing winter games, he was a bit intrigued seeing humans skating on the ice bashing into each other to get the black puke.
"GO SENS GO! GO SENS GO!" Geoff cheered. His shouting caused the little Houndour to jump back tumbling on the couch. "WHOO! YEAH!"
"Dad...DAD!" Jesselyn screamed out to her father, capturing his attention."Are you trying to make Blaze deaf?"
Geoff looked down at Blaze who was upside down on the chair. "Oh, sorry Blaze."
"No worries," Blaze replied as he positioned himself correctly. "So who are you rooting for?"
"The Ottawa Senators," Geoff answered with his eyes glued to the screen. "They're tied up against the Toronto Maple Leafs. If they get one more point, they'll make it to the playoffs!"
Blaze nodded slowly. He didn't comprehend what Geoff was saying, but he shrugged it off and continued to watch the game.
Sheila entered the living room, and turned around. "Come on out Ericha!"
"Hold on!" She called out.
After a few seconds, Ericha gradually stepped out, drawing the attention of everyone except Geoff. Ericha was dressed in a blue gown with little white flowers on the upper portion. The lowest section features a long, light blue skirt that brushes the ground somewhat.
"...H-How do I look?" She asked nervously, as she twirled once around.
"You look amazing honey," Geoff commented, while still watching the game on TV.
"Geoff!" Sheila firmly stated. The man turned to his wife, who motioned him to look at Ericha.
Once Geoff noticed his daughter's dress, he whistled. "Wow! You look amazing, sweetheart!"
Sheila rolled her eyes, while Ericha giggled. "Thanks, dad."
"If you're done showing off your wonderful dress, can we go!" Jesselyn exclaimed, looking impatient.
Ericha gave her and Tristan a strange look. "You are aware that this dance is solely for Grade 6 students?"
"We're not going to your stupid dance!" Jesselyn scoffed. "My teacher is throwing a pizza party upstairs in the library."
"Yeah~! We're holding a Super Smash Bros. competition!" Tristan beamed excitedly.
"Wow! That seemed like a lot more fun than watching guys chasing a puck!" Blaze's comment got a leer from Geoff. "Can I come with you guys?"
Tristan turned to her mother. "Yeah, can he come!?"
"Tristan!" Jesselyn growled as she jammed her elbow into his stomach. Wincing, the boy turned to her with a confused expression.
"Sorry Blaze," Ericha replied, a pained expression on her face. "It's way too risky for you to come with us. There's been an incident not too far from here, involving a gunman trying to rob a bus. So they send in policemen to guard the school during the dance, and if they caught you, then…"
"I understand," The Houndour replied while adding a soft smile. "Sorry, I got a little too excited there.
Ericha crouched to Blaze's level and caressed his head, causing the fur on his head to ruffle. "Don't worry Blaze. When we get home, I'll tell you everything about the dance."
"And the pizza party!" Jesselyn added.
"Don't forget the Super Smash Bros Tournament!" Tristan blurted out. "You'll see me coming home with a big trophy that has my name on it!"
The two older females giggled at his cocky ego, causing the boy to face them. "What's so funny?"
"I doubt my teacher would have a huge golden trophy just for winning a Smash Bros game," Jesselyn scoffed. She tries to hold back her grin, but fails horribly.
"You three better get going before the dance is over," Geoff reminded. Ericha's eyes widened realizing that it was quarter past five.
"Gotta go! Bye!" Ericha immediately grabbed her sibling's arms and dashed out the door.
"Bye~!" Blaze called out, hearing their feet stumbling down the stairs.
"Jeez, she really wants to see her friends that badly?" Geoff mumbled.
Sheila chuckled a little as she knelt down beside the animated dog. "Blaze, would you like to help me make some popcorn?"
"Did you say popcorn?" Blaze asked without looking at Sheila. After a couple of silence, the Houndour glanced at her, a puzzled expression on his face. "What is popcorn?"
Red and blue lights flashed furiously in the night sky as two police cars were stopped parallel at the rear cops leaned back against the little black fence, munching on doughnuts and keeping a close eye on the children as they entered the schoolyard. Ericha, Tristan, and Jesselyn were able to get by the cops without raising suspicions.
When they entered the school, they were welcomed by kids in the gymnasium singing Katy Perry's were snack tables in the hall that leads to the entrance of the gymnasium, which was dark with party lights and filled with students jumping around to the beat of the music.
Tristan and Jesselyn ran upstairs as soon as they were able to get away from their older sister. Ericha was scanning the area for Curtis, Anya, or Ashely when she noticed someone she hadn't expected to see.
"Shermar!?" Ericha called out to the boy sitting on the bench. He didn't look as casual as the other students. He wore black jeans pants with a blue shirt.
"Hi Ericha," He greeted, not looking surprised.
"What are you doing here! Ericha asked. She became aware of how loud she was and moved closer to him to whisper. "I mean, you do know that Curtis is planning on humiliating you in front of everyone right?"
"I know," Shermar replied quietly. "My parents, on the other hand, didn't want me to be alone in the house when they went out to dinner. So, they ordered me to go."
Before Ericha could respond, she spotted her two best friends heading down the hall that leads to the stage. "Sorry Shermar, I have to go meet my friends, " Ericha quickly followed them, leaving Shermar alone on the bench.
Ericha noticed the two talking amongst themselves. "Hey, guys!"
Ashley and Anya whirled around and went down the corridor to the left as soon as they recognised her. Ericha seemed puzzled by their attitude as she kept following them.
When she arrived at the stairs, she spotted the two, along with Curtis, in the middle of the stage. The red curtains were closed so that neither the teachers nor the kids would catch them prepping for the prank.
"Hey, guys!" Ericha greeted again. However, Anya and Ashely didn't answer her while Curtis, who was pushing a big fan, noticed her and waved.
"Hey Ericha, you're just in time to help me push this thing," Curtis beamed. Ericha sighed and went over to Curtis to assist him in pushing the fan to the other side. Ericha was nervous because she could feel her two best friends gazing at the back of her head.
Glass shards littered the floor of the computer lab. Some black fur on the ground goes to a corner of the room, where Mizella and Remoraid are slowly waking up after hearing a stampede of footsteps outside.
"Mmng!" Mizella groaned as she sat up gently from her curled-up position. Her body was covered in claw marks, and there was a mound of black fur beneath her feet.
"AHH!" Remoraid's sudden outburst caused Mizella to let out a small shriek as a result. Looking somewhat alarmed, the fish Pokemon scanned the room for a second and then sighed in relief.
He held his breath, though, as he glimpsed Mizella's lethal crimson eyes. "You better have a good explanation for freaking me out."
"Wah! S-Sorry!" Remoraid apologized quickly. "I just had a horrible nightmare. I was in the forest, surrounded by those vicious Meowth and Persian imposter's. They have this fierce look on their eyes like I was sushi."
"You mean like that?" Mizella questioned. She pointed to the pair of eyes staring at them from the broken window.
"T-They're back~!" Remoraid comically cried out.
"Don't worry it's just one of them," As soon as she finished her sentence, many heads emerged from the windows. Their slit eyes were all staring at them.
"YAH!" Remoraid screamed with his voice cracking.
"MEOWRRR!" The cats hissed and started pouncing on the two.
While Tristan ran past the computer lab, he came to a halt when he heard commotion within the room. "What was that?"
"Hurry up Tristan!" Jesselyn shouted down the hall.
"C-Coming!" He hurried after his sister, ignoring the noises in the room. He didn't notice one of the cats face-planted into the door window.
The four were able to complete the prank's final touches. On each side of the stage, two large fans were concealed behind crimson curtains, and beneath them was a box full of pillow feathers.
Ericha rested against the back of the stage wall, exhausted from adjusting the large fan, and slid down until her butt met the floor. She wanted to lie down on the stage floor, but she restrained herself as she slowly turned to Ashely and Anya, who were on the other side of the platform, giving her short glimpses.
"Okay guys listen up," Curtis drew the girls' attention. "Because Ericha wasn't there for our brainstorming session, let's give her the lowdown on the prank."
"Whateves," Anya said without looking at Ericha.
"Alright," Curtis didn't witness the tension between the three girls. "I'll call Shermar up to the stage to accept his reward."
Curtis walks over to the corner of the stage where there's a thick, brown rope dangled out. "Then, as soon as I hand him the plastic trophy, I'll pull this rope, dumping 200 ounces of sticky green glue over him."
Ericha trembled when he approached the fan on the left side of the stage. "Next you and Ashely will switch on the fan and throw the feathers in front of it, sending them flying towards Shermar. Due to the glue all over his body, it should stick to him."
'"Finally, I'll pull this rope on the other side of the stage for the grand finale!" Her body stiffened as she heard that. Ericha moved her gaze to Ashely and Anya. Ashely merely looks down, while Anya gives her a dubious look.
"So any questions?" Curtis asked. The three females were having their own staring contest, ignoring him. They were silent for a few seconds before Curtis spoke again. "Good. Now if you girls need me, I'll be in the bathroom, draining out ten cups of Pepsi before they get on my pants!"
Curtis raced down the stage, leaving the three of them alone on stage, as the females watched him. One-half of the kids screamed like mad fans when they heard the song 'Baby' by Justin Bieber while the other half moaned.
Ericha couldn't stand the awkward quiet any longer and spoke out. "What the hell is wrong with you two?"
Her shout stunned the two, but Ashely kept her cool. "What are you talking abo-?"
"Cut the act," Ericha harshly interrupted. "You two have been giving me the cold shoulder since I got here! It's like you think I've betrayed you gu-."
"You did betray us!" Anya finally snapped. "You've been abandoning us since that loser walked into this school!"
"His name is Shermar," Ericha gritted her teeth.
"That's proving my point!" Anya argued louder. "Why are you being so friendly to him? He adores baby shows like Pokemon and is always writing odd stories about them as well as other stupid cartoons. That proves that he's a los-."
"SHUT THE HELL UP!"
If the volume on the radio wasn't on high volume, everyone would have averted their eyes to the stage, noticing three shadows on the curtain. Ericha breathing heavily as she stared sternly at Anya who was shocked by her outburst.
Feeling that she has power over her best friend, Ericha continued. "Why can't you just leave him alone!? Ever since he came here, you three made him your primal target! He hasn't even done anything to you!"
"...W-Why the hell are you sticking up for him?" Anya questioned, trying to shake off her shock. "When he first transferred here, that loser reported the teacher on all of us!"
"No, he didn't!" Ericha argued back. "He was only asking for a towel to wipe himself off after the entire school doused him with water balloons!"
"We were just having a little fun with him," Anya defended.
"That's a load of bull~!" Ericha barked. "Every scheme you and Curtis devised following that event almost got Shermar expelled or arrested! And, while I was shielding him, I was also trying not to inform the teacher about you three because we are great friends!"
"Are we?" Anya asked coldly, taking a step closer to Ericha. "Because I don't remember being friends with someone who hangs out with a Poke-freak!"
"Well, I would rather be friends with a Poke-freak than a jerk!" Ericha angrily yelled back.
"STOP IT YOU TWO!" Ashely stepped between them and pushed them aside, fearful that fists might fly.
Ericha turned to Ashely with a sorrowful look. "Ashely,how can you go along with their pranks like that? Don't you remember when Curtis told everyone at school that you and your family are working in a gun shop?"
"Y-yeah," Ashely hesitated to answer. "...Curtis' words affected me deeply, but you and Anya assured me that he didn't mean them."
"I…know, and I regret it," Ericha frowned sadly. She didn't want to bring up that Ashely has a crush on Shermar. "Even so, you think that making others miserable is just a joke then?" Ashely was going to say something, but she didn't. She began anxiously fidgeting with her thumbs.
"Leave her alone!" Anya butted in when she noticed Ashely's thumb fiddling. "She has nothing to do with the fact that you're hanging out with some pathetic loser who deserve to have no fri-"
SMACK!
Anya was interrupted as she felt a searing sting coming from her cheeks. Ericha's unexpected action stunned her and Ashely.
"I dare you to say that again you cow," Ericha threatened. She walks away from the two, giving Ashely a regretful look.
"That's right, loser! Go to your loser pal!" Anya shouted.
Ericha ignored her and kept stomping away until they were out of sight of her. She felt a twinge of regret for abandoning Ashely, who had also been a victim of their bullying in the past.
Ericha entered the lobby and began searching for teachers, but she couldn't find any. She was about to speak to the cops outside but decided not to because one of their pranks caused the cops to lose faith in her.
Ericha went upstairs since she remembered Jesselyn's teacher was hosting a pizza party there. She was thinking about her connection with Anya as she climbed the stairs. It was difficult for her to forget the good times she had with Anya, but the cruel things she and Curtis had done to Ashely and Shermar over the years gave her reason to end her friendship with her.
When Ericha opened the door to the second level, she heard a loud crashing sound, as if someone had just thrown a computer on the floor. She moved her gaze to the computer lab door, carefully shutting the door behind her.
She crept to the center of the corridor, flinching when she heard the identical sound followed by a cat meowing. Ericha was perplexed by the commotion and peered at the computer lab door. 'A cat? How did it get inside the computer la-.!'
BOOM~!
A tremendous beam ripped open the door, causing Ericha to scream as it impacted the wall. Fortunately, she was not in the path of the beam.
Ericha took a hesitant step back, stunned, till her back touched the wall behind her. She spotted a swarm of terrified cats fleeing from the room.
"That's right, you better run! I've got more where that came from!" Through the dust cloud, she heard a faint but clear voice. It was then followed by a loud smack sound.
"Idiot! You almost hit me with that Hyper Beam!"
"Hey, I told you to duck, didn't I?"
"Next time say that before you charge up!"
The blond girl had no idea what was going on. She remained silent while her heart pounded out of her chest. When the dust cloud dissipated, Ericha's eyes widened in surprise as she noticed a cartoon-like dog-girl carrying a strange-looking fish inside a jar.
"Jeez, those Persian knockoffs were so annoying," Mizella growled, massaging the claw marks on her cheek. "Especially that orange striped one."
"At least you weren't inside their mouths." The fish mumbled under his breath.
The Pokemon heard the fish's remark but ignored it when she spotted the shivering blond teenager staring at her. They exchanged mute glances. One set of eyes was menacing, while the other appeared to be on the verge of wetting her pants.
To Be Continued…