TRIGGER WARNING: The following chapter may contains scenes of the portrayal of grooming that may be uncomfortable to readers. A "****" will be invoke for the scene in question.
All characters from Disney and other properties are owned by their respectful owners. The OCs made here are written entirely for the story. Enjoy the fic.
Chapter 93: Nina On The Couch
Years ago.
At the Torsa Villa, a young Nina Fangs attended the reservation school.
"Alright, my students," spoke a young werecat witch woman who resembled an Egyptian Mau. She had gray fur with purple lines around, green eyes, and was wearing a black, yellow and white robe. "It's time to present your reports." She saw one paw raised up and the teacher looked toward that particular student. "Since your hand is raised up first, why don't you go first, Ms. Fangs!"
The young Nina Fangs looked so excited as she walked to the front of the classroom. "Thank you, Ms. Mao!" she said as she cleared her throat while holding up her paper. "After the coven system was formed, Emperor Belos chose nine different heads to lead the nine covens, each representing one of the main kinds of magic! Specifically, my report is about the history of the Beast-Keeping Heads!"
She jumped onto a chair. "The first Beast-Keeping Head was Scourge the Witch Viking! He was known throughout the Isles as a brutal warrior who was chosen by the Emperor to take on the most vicious beasts! He died fighting the Grand Serpent of Year 16 of Belos's rule!" She held up a picture of Scourge, who had a beast cowl around his head while giving a stern look.
"The Head Witch after him was Oso, the mighty bear biped who served as a peaceful diplomat, helping all beasts in need," Nina explained while holding up a picture of Oso. "After Oso there was Fara Craft! Adventurer witch who was known to explore temples, fight beasts, and look for artifacts!" Another picture showed a witch woman with brown hair and tanned skin who wore a green top with brown shorts and boots. She was holding a machete. "Then she went missing after one expedition with the Emperor's Coven that resulted in a lot of lives lost… which leads to her successor!"
She held up a picture of Eberwolf. "Current Head of Beast Keeping, Eberwolf the Hunter! An awesome demon who may look like a little gremlin, but they're a powerful and mighty beast! And… a personal hero of mine! Cause you know, I've met them before! Even got their autograph!" She showed off her poster of Eberwolf, signed by them. "But you know what these Beast-Keepers have in common with the other Coven Heads? They're witches and demons… but not one of them is a werecat."
The students looked at each other in confusion as Nina jumped up on a desk. "And that's where I come in! When I grow up and join the Beast-Keeping Coven, I will move up the ranks, and become the first werecat, and lycan, to be the Head of a Coven, and the Beast-Keeping Coven will allow me to change all werecat lives for the better! Can I get a paw up for werecat rights, everyone!?" She raised her paw up in front of her classmates, who all looked at each other and then at Nina.
What followed was a burst of laughter from the werekittens. Nina looked at them in shock.
"You? A Head Witch?!"
"What a bunch of hairballs!"
"How much from your litter box did you eat saying that?!"
Nina looked around, feeling overwhelmed. "S-Shut up! It's a good dream!" she told them but they continued to laugh at her. She tightened her fists as she jumped off the desk and rushed out of the classroom.
"Nina!" Mao said while turning to her class. "Everyone, calm down!" she shouted at them, before scratching the chalkboard, which caused the students to stop laughing as they cringed.
Outside of the classroom, Nina couldn't help but cry. She was holding up her paper. She looked at it before she crumbled it up with her hand.
"Nina?" spoke Mao as she walked towards the werekitten. "Are you okay?"
"No, I'm not!" Nina cried out. "I was so excited to share this with everyone! When I came back with Eberwolf, they inspired me to think about what kind of witch I want to be growing up. And I just thought that I'd help inspire them and get them to realize that we can do so much more around the Isles than just… hide up in the trees and not set foot outside of our reserves! Don't you know how awful we're being treated?"
Mao patted the werecat's shoulder as she sat down next to her. "Little kitten, I think this is very admirable."
"You… think so?" Nina asked her.
"It is your dream, Nina, and I think it is a beautiful one," Mao reassured her. "To not just accept the world as it is, but aspire to change it. I'm sorry that everyone in class laughed at you, they were wrong in doing that. They just don't believe that change is possible… but you do, which is why I want you to stick to your dream and see it through no matter what anyone else says."
Nina smiled and un-crumbled the paper in her hand. "You're right, I will follow my dream! And show everyone that a werecat can be a Head Witch!" she declared while pointing up at the ceiling.
At the reservation's temple, Nina was attending with her family. Unlike the one in Bonesborough, this temple was filled with cat hair and a few hairballs. The werecat shaman spoke to all.
"We are of the Titan's children, are we not?" he spoke with a nasally voice. "But we must remember our Emperor's words and the lessons we have taken from the Titan's inhabitants in order to live our lives as they are intended. Take Hotep Koff, for example." He pointed at the mummified corpse of a witch who was on display on the wall. "It was he who trapped us in our lycan forms, denying us our witch forms and the ability to hide amongst witches as one of them. Thanks to him, we are unable to hide our shame, for it reminds us why we must control ourselves."
Nina absently listened as she looked up to the mummified corpse. A lot of this didn't make sense to her. Not since… her neighbor was killed.
"And it reminds us… that we're the lowest amongst witchkind."
Yeah, that cemented it.
"I don't believe in the Titan's will anymore."
Her parents looked at her daughter in surprise, her mother speaking. "What… what do you mean, dear?"
"I said what I said, I don't believe in the Titan's will," Nina replied. "If we're considered the Titan's children just like everyone else, then why are we treated like crap? It sounds like bullshit to me."
"Honey, don't say that," her dad said with a worried tone. "You must be confused, the Titan-"
"I'm not confused, dad," Nina shoved off. "It took me some thinking, but I've just realized how messed up this is."
"It's not messed up, we're all living here peacefully, just like how Belos intended," her mom stated.
"Yeah, he intends to control us!" Nina countered. "Everyone is afraid to move outside of the Villa, and even when we joined Covens, we're still treated little better than wild witches! There are many bipeds that are similar to us, why are we the exception?!"
"There's a difference between bipeds and lycans, kitten. See, bipeds don't have to fear about going feral, even the beast-witches don't need to fear that," her mother explained.
"Even generations later, lycans are a danger to normal witches because of how inherently wild our ancestors were. If we don't suppress these instincts and tendencies, then we're no better than vicious beasts," her dad explained. "It's why we need Belos and the Titan, to save us from the wicked ways of our ancestors, who came to the Isles to spread their fever and blasphemy, hence why we're trapped in our current forms because it reflects who we really are. It is our punishment, to keep us from being normal witches or to deceive others."
"It's why it's important for us to remain civilized, while not getting any misguided delusions… like being a Head Witch," her mom finished which set off an ire in Nina's mind. "It's just better this way."
Nina didn't say anything. She just stared up at her parents while something inside her head just… broke. And slowly her parents began to change until they were no longer there for her. Instead they became nothing… but shapes.
Nina was at the park of her village, the Catground, when some werekittens walked up to her.
"Hey Nina, would you like to play with us?" one asked her in a friendly tone.
Nina looked at them and smiled. "Sure," she said as she walked up to join in on their little game…
But once she started to play, everything around her began to… change. The kids around her slowly became nothing but shapes and colors to her and the longer she played the more she felt… disconnected from everything and everyone around her.
Everything was now just shapes to her.
She gasped when she came to. She looked around and saw one werekitten on the ground, crying and bleeding. "W-What…" She backed away and looked down at her paws… her bloody claws.
Sometime later, Nina was alone in her room. She rocked back and forth on her wheel swing as she heard the door opening.
"Hey, sis!" spoke a girl that looked to be a year older than Nina. She had the same reddish fur as her and had blue bobcut hair and a pink spot around her left eye.
"What do you want, Cally?" Nina asked her.
"I just want to check in to see if you're okay!" she replied while walking up to her sister. "You're always cooped up in your room and I thought you could use some sunshine!" she said while opening the curtains.
Nina didn't budge. Instead, she just looked away. "Leave me alone…" she said, her dissociation was getting to her.
"Oh come on, don't be like that!" Cally pouted, but to Nina she was nothing but shapes. She could no longer hear what her sister was saying… and that was when she blacked out.
"AAAH!"
Nina's eyes widened as she found herself on the floor with blood on her paw again. She looked up and saw Cally on the floor, crying while covering her left eye.
"MOM!" Nina shouted.
Later at the reservation school, Mao was doing a lesson, but Nina had stopped listening. She could no longer see Mao or the other students. Feeling detached, she just started to see shapes again…
"NINA, STOP!"
When she came to, her eyes widened as Nina saw that the classroom was a mess. She found herself being restrained by Mao Purrsian.
"What…. What?!" Nina looked around and saw her classmates in the corner, terrified of her and in tears. Some of them were covered in scratch marks.
"Nina, Nina are you okay?" Mao asked her. But Nina didn't say anything, she just looked scared…
In the principal's office, Nina and her parents were now seated in front of the principal.
"I am sorry, Leo, Pam," the principal told them. "But your daughter has had too many incidents that the other tribes feel that she would be too much of a danger to the school if she remained. She just can't be controlled." He held up Nina's records and stamped on it. "It is… for the best for all of us that she doesn't attend here anymore."
Nina refused to look up, afraid that all she might see was shapes…
Nina walked through the village, looking around at her fellow werecats going on with their day. They saw her and turned away, avoiding her out of fear. She had never felt so alienated.
"It's the Fang's kid."
"Seriously, they really need to control their child."
"She's going to get herself killed someday."
Nina lowered her head while trying to ignore everyone. She didn't need them to remind her how wild she is. They were all nothing but shapes to her anyway…
Nina was spray painting the temple while keeping her hood up. In the process, she was spotted by werecats in ponchos.
"Freeze, in the name of the pawthority!" they declared. Nina turned around and raised her paws up as they saw what she had spray-painted on the temple.
BELOS EATS LITTER-SH!T
The cat cop gasped. "How dare you write that!"
"You are in so much trouble, young lady," his partner told her.
"Why don't you put me down like the scouts did to our own kind?" Nina asked bitterly while the two cat cops looked at each other.
Nina was a troublemaker. She had been expelled from her own school, she felt disconnected from everyone and everything. Most of the time she just spent her day in her room, hoping to avoid more blackouts.
She was walking to the kitchen when she overheard a conversation involving her parents.
"You think you could help her?"
Curious, Nina crept closer but stayed just out of the room so she could listen in..
"Why yes, I have heard about your daughter's problems," spoke a witch that Nina wasn't familiar with. He wore an orange robe and had an ear on his forehead. "You said that she has had these blackouts, and considering that she's not in school anymore, I believe that Glandus could help her with her problems so that she doesn't have these blackouts again."
Leo and Pam looked at each other before Leo responded. "I don't know, Mr. Fierce… taking her off the reservation… isn't that kind of worrying?"
"Don't worry, as a Beast-Keeping teacher of Glandus, I can pull some strings and having a werecat in Glandus could be a learning experience for the students," Fierce explained. "We at Glandus High are better equipped to handle someone like Nina. It's up to you, but think of the opportunities you could give your daughter if you agree. She'll be the first werecat to attend a public witch school."
Nina barely managed to hold in a gasp.
"Well, I guess Nina could use a change of scenery," Pam replied.
"Yeah, and honestly I don't think she belongs in the reservation anymore," Leo said, which made Nina's eyes widen. "Perhaps by sending her to Glandus she could work through her issues. Because here she just… isn't normal…"
Nina tightened her fists as she continued to overhear the conversation.
"You're probably doing us and Nina a favor," Pam admitted. "We just can't handle Nina around all the time, especially what she did to her sister, Cally."
"So yeah, we'll be glad to have her transfer to Glandus!" Leo said happily. The couple turned toward the door to the hallway after hearing footsteps. "Did you hear that?"
"Hear what…?" Mr. Fierce asked.
Unknown to them, Nina ran back to her room and crawled up into her hammock. She held her pillow, an angry look on her face as is streamed with tears…
On her first day of Glandus, Nina walked down the hallways while just trying to mind her own business. However, she still attracted a lot of attention as the other students looked at her. Some were shocked to see a werecat teen attending Glandus and she could hear them whisper about her…
"No way… is that a werecat?"
"I hear from my parents that they're kinda dangerous."
"I hear she's quite infamous at the Torsa Villa."
"Better watch out before she claws your eye out."
Nina just focused on finding her homeroom.
Mr. Fierce spoke up when he saw Nina come in. "Alright class, this is Ms. Nina Fangs, she is a new transfer student that will be attending Glandus High from now on," he declared while Nina just gave a small wave and a smile. "Why don't you find a pen, Nina?"
The classroom didn't have seats, only pens. As if the students were like animals. As Nina found a pen to sit in, a whip cracked down near her, which startled her.
"So we got ourselves a little kitten in our school, eh?" spoke an indigo snake biped demon with narrow yellow eyes, a muscular body, and spiked cuffs. He held up a whip while facing Nina. "The name's Silas Hissenger, and I'm here to welcome you and tell you how it goes around this school."
Nina backed away, but Silas cracked his whip near her which startled her again. "First thing you need to know, each track is full of top students, and I'm Top of Beast-Keeping in the Top Sophomore five! Those higher up are the Top Three Juniors, and the number one Top is one Senior, the Queen of Glandus, Cana!" He leaned close to Nina, grabbing her by the wrists to prevent her from escaping him.
She looked toward the teacher, who was writing on the chalkboard. She expected him to help, but Silas just leaned in her ear as he hissed. "No one's going to help you…"
After school, Nina was ganged up on by Silas along with his other fellow classmates.
"You want to be a part of Glandus? You gotta perform an initiation for us." Silas told her while Nina, for the first time since coming here, looked scared. "Hold her down."
The students used their magic to bind Nina with rope while she began to holler. "Wait! Stop!" she cried as she was pinned to the floor while the students ganged up on her. "Stop! Let go of me, please!" she cried while her arms and legs were grabbed and bags were placed on her paws.
"Want some water, kitty?" Silas asked sadistically while pouring water on Nina's head while she was pinned down.
As she screamed and hollered, tears of humiliation streamed from her eyes.
Donna heard a tap on her window and when she walked over she saw who it was.
"Nina?!" Donna exclaimed, seeing her friend beaten up with ripped bags tied to her paws. Once she let Nina in, the werecat collapsed. "Oh Titan… are you alright?"
"I… I'm okay…" Nina replied, her voice hoarse.
"I'm going to get you a medical kit, alright?" Donna said as she rushed over to grab her medical supplies from her Healing Track. "I can't believe they did this to you at that school! Did you tell a teacher about this?"
"They… didn't give a fuck." Nina told her while Donna helped patch Nina up. "But enough about me, how's St. Epiderm going for ya?"
"Well, it's fine, I think I've already managed to make some friends. But I am still more worried about you," Donna said while Nina stayed silent, avoiding her gaze. "Nina?"
"I… just want to stay here for a while," Nina told her/ "Is that okay?"
Donna nodded. "Of course," she said as she continued healing Nina's bruises.
Things didn't go well for Nina during her first month at Glandus…
In class while she was taking notes, she got whipped in the leg which caused her to jump back. She glared at Silas, who just laughed at her misfortune.
"Ms. Fangs, I will not have you disrupt class!" Mr. Fierce scolded.
"But Silas keeps whipping me!" Nina pointed out, only earning a roar of laughter from the rest of the class which caused her to feel embarrassed, realizing how it sounded.
At the cafeteria, Nina had an encounter with Glandus's current queen.
"So you must be the werecat we've been hearing about," spoke an older teenage blond witch girl with blue eyes, a beauty mark, red lips, and a Glandus uniform with Bard colors. She was accompanied by her sister twin who, unlike her, had no beauty mark and looked more submissive. "I'm Queen Cana, and this is my lieutenant and twin sister, Bela."
"H-Hey…" Bela waved to Nina, but Cana smacked her across the face.
"Who asked you to speak, inferior twin!" Cana shouted at her before turning back to Nina. "I've never met a werecat before, but I have always wanted one… as a pet."
"I am no one's pet!" Nina declared, causing Cana to give her a smile… before zapping Nina with a lightning spell. "AAHH!"
"Who the fuck do you think you are, tramp?!" Cana shouted as she kept shooting lightning spells at her, causing Nina to scream in pain.
Gym was the worst. Coach Grease punched Nina in the nose, causing her to get a nose bleed.
"I thought you werecats were supposed to be wild and tough!" Grease shouted while Nina held her bleeding nose. "You think you could cut it around here? At Glandus, only the strongest survive and the weak die! Do you wanna die, Fangs?!"
Nina was in tears. She realized that her nose was broken and she couldn't stop the bleeding…
During another visit to Donna's home, the young witch girl found herself once again patching the werecat up.
"Why do you keep coming here with these injuries?" Donna asked her while Nina said nothing. "Have you told your parents about this?"
"It's not like they'd care…" Nina responded while looking down.
"Hey, listen to me." Donna said as she held Nina's face up, giving her an assuring smile. "Promise me that you will talk to your parents about this? I'm sure that they'll listen if you tell them that you don't feel safe in that school. Maybe I can go with you and help you out."
Nina looked down while her nose had a healing patch. "Y-Yeah… I'd like that."
Sometime later, Nina brought Donna to meet her parents at her home in the Villa.
"I want you guys to meet my friend, Donna Masterskull," Nina introduced as Donna waved to them. "She's from St. Epiderm."
"St. Epiderm?" Pam asked in surprise. "Wow, I didn't realize you were friends with a Masterskull!"
"I came here because I am concerned for your daughter," Donna responded. "A lot of students at Glandus have been picking and beating her and Nina doesn't feel safe there."
"Look, I don't mind if I join a coven early, but I don't want to endure anymore of Glandus's shit," Nina told them.
"But honey, I thought you'd like being in a school full of people like you," Pam said, which made Nina's eyes widen.
"Yeah," Leo responded, while turning to Donna with a cheerful expression. "To be perfectly honest, we're surprised our daughter has a friend who seems as nice and considerate as you, especially given Nina's history of violent behavior," he said happily, which Donna found a bit off putting. "You do know about that, right?"
"You should hear what happened to her sister, Cally," Pam pointed out.
"Mom!" Nina growled. "I said I was sorry for it!"
"Well Nina, if you can't take what Glandus is doing for you, then you shouldn't have started attacking people to begin with," Leo said while turning to Donna. "Listen Donna, has Nina ever hurt you?"
"No sir, she hasn't," Donna assured them. "Nina's always been nice to me, and-"
"Listen honey, I don't think you should be hanging out with someone like our daughter, considering your status," Pam said cheerfully while Nina just stared at them and Donna. "If Nina ends up hurting a Masterskull, it would bring more trouble for not just her, but our family as well."
"Yeah, I think it's for the best if you just… stop hanging out with her, for our sake and yours," Leo said while Nina started to dissociate.
There it was, her parents were beginning to become nothing but shapes again…
"Mr and Mrs. Fang, I don't think-" Donna then noticed Nina suddenly walking out of the room. "Nina!"
Nina ran into her room, locking it. She sat with her back against the door as she tried to not black out again. She was afraid, afraid of hurting Donna when she was like this. She didn't want to believe it, but her parents' words had gotten into her head…
What if Donna was too good for her?
It was something Nina was starting to consider. Were her parents right that she and Donna should stop hanging out? Was Donna better off without her? Was Donna really… safe with her?
Some time later, Nina marched up to Silas, who looked at her in amusement.
"I challenge you to a witch duel," Nina declared. "One-on-one combat."
Silas grinned gleefully "My, my, you finally want to challenge me, little kitten…? Bring it on."
Nina had a determined look. She knew she was gonna take down that snake…
It wasn't long before Nina laid face down on the floor, thoroughly beaten.
"BAHAHAHA! You didn't even last ten seconds against me!" Silas declared while cracking his knuckles as he and his entourage of students under him walked away. "Come on, let's leave this loser!"
Nina groaned, feeling once again humiliated. She had tried to challenge the Top Student, and she got almost killed for it. She was lucky that they spared her…
"Hey, you okay?"
Nina moved her head up and saw a hand reaching down to her. She looked at the hand with uncertainty and suspicion.
"Hey, hey, it's okay!" the male student told her. "You can trust me… because I am the-" He started to thrust, then side step, followed by a swing, a high kick, and a pose "Prince of Pop!"
Nina looked confused by his dance moves. "Huh…?" she asked, tilting her head.
"Allow me to introduce myself… the name's Tito Jackwitch," he introduced himself. "And you look like you could use a friend, kitten. If you wish to survive in Glandus, you need allies. More safety in numbers, don't you think?"
"Um… what?" Nina asked while Tito sighed.
"Look, kitten, here's the thing, okay?" Tito helped Nina up and brushed the dust off of her shoulders. "I want to be your friend, okay? When I saw you stand up and challenge Silas like that, I was inspired. I admired that gumption you have, it was brave of you. Stupid, but brave. And I don't want to see you get yourself killed trying something like that again, so I want to help you survive. Be your voice of reason."
"R-Really?" Nina asked him. "Wait… Jackwitch… I think I've heard of you…!"
"Yup, part of the famous Jackwitch Five!" Tito declared, throwing peace signs with his arms crossed "We split due to creative differences."
"What are you doing in a school like this?" Nina questioned.
"To get away from my fans, they wouldn't come to a place like this even if they could," Tito said. "So what do I call you, kitten?"
Surprisingly, Nina felt like she could trust him. She smiled at him. "Nina… Nina Fangs."
After that, Nina and Tito soon became friends. In one of their classes, the Bard student took notice of Nina dumping a dead bird on the table and preparing to make taxidermy out of it.
"What are you… making?" Tito asked her.
"Oh uh, this?" Nina asked. "Just a present."
"Ah, a present," Tito nodded. "To who?"
Nina brushed the back of her hair. "Well… it's for a special girl…"
"Ooh, tell me more!" Tito replied joyfully, clapping his hands as he sat down to listen.
Nina smiled as she began to tell him about her crush…
Nina had chosen a bad time to go to the restroom alone. Just as she was about to exit… a couple of students came in and blocked her way.
"Pin her down," spoke one male student.
Nina looked panicked as she tried to escape but suddenly one student summoned chains that clamped onto her wrists while another student shocked her with a lightning spell. "AAAH!" she cried as she fell down, the group pinning her to the wall. "No, stop! Stay away! What do you want!?"
"What do we want? To show you what we do to your kind," the guy said with a grin as Nina sensed what his intentions were.
"No… nononono LET ME GO!" she screamed as she struggled, knowing that they were about to do something awful to her…
"GET AWAY FROM HER!" someone shouted.
The lead student was grabbed from behind and curb stomped to the sink, breaking his teeth as he fell to the bathroom floor. His stunned gang tried to fight back, but the savior created an illusion to trick them into fighting themselves while she took them down one by one.
Nina couldn't see anything, she could only hear. She was hiding her face in the corner out of fear. Eventually, the sounds of fighting stopped and she heard a feminine voice speaking to her "Hey, are you alright?" The shivering werecat was crying as she looked up to see her savior…
"Come on, let's get you out of here," the green skinned witch with Illusionist sleeves said as she helped Nina out of the restroom. "Stella, help her out!" she said as Stella, in her Construction uniform, rushed over to help escort Nina out of the restroom "Hey, it's okay, we won't hurt you. Can you speak?"
Nina was still shivering as she shook her head.
"It's okay, you're safe with us," Stella reassured her. "My name is Stella Northstar."
"And I'm Emily Tricks," Emily told Nina. "You must be Nina Fangs, right? We've heard about you. Don't worry, everything is going to be okay…"
That was how Nina met Emily Tricks. And in the beginning of their relationship, they were friends…
Sometime later, the quartet of Nina, Emily, Stella and Tito were sitting at the table for lunch together. They all laughed.
"No way," Nina said while laughing. "They did that?"
"Yeah, it got my little brothers sent to a coven boot camp. Had to break them out with a song and dance number afterward!" Tito said as they laughed.
"You have the most interesting stories, Tito," Stella replied.
"Yeah," Tito nodded. "You know, when I grow up, I plan to go solo and become the greatest musician of all time, next to Raine Whispers and Harper Taboo! What are your guys' plans for when you grow up?"
"Well, I'm not sure what I want to be when I grow up, honestly," Stella admitted. "But I would like to explore my options… with Emily, of course." She turned to her girlfriend with a smile.
Emily blushed before she started to explain her plans. "My ambitions for after graduation is to join the Emperor's Coven, where I plan to become Lilith Clawthorne's successor as Head of the Emperor's Coven."
"Wow, now that's big," Nina replied. "Way bigger than my dream."
"What's your dream, Nina?" Stella asked her.
"Well, I want to be the first lycan to be a Head Witch, specifically for the Beast-Keeping Coven," Nina replied while looking down on her food.
"Actually, that's a pretty neat dream," Tito commented, which surprised Nina.
"You… think so?" Nina asked.
"Of course, Nina, it's really kinda inspirational," Stella said, smiling at her. "I say go for it."
"Yeah, if you're really determined to be a Head Witch, you could make a difference," Emily encouraged her.
"Wow… thanks guys, really," Nina said her friends.
It was then that something was thrown at their table, spilling their food, which splattered all over them. They saw a ball with eyes had been thrown at them and it was quickly grabbed by another one of the students.
"Haha! What a bunch of losers!" mocked one student.
"Yeah, like you guys think you could make it out of Glandus? We have a low graduation rate!" another replied as they laughed while walking past them.
It was like this for the four. Back then, they were considered the losers of Glandus. This was before they were at the top of the hierarchy. Before Emily was Queen…
Nina looked at the students that had mocked them as they met with Silas. Nina glared at her rival from Beast-Keeping, which Emily took notice of.
"Still on with the Silas problem?" Emily asked her.
"Yeah," Nina scoffed. "He thinks he's so big just because he's the top of the track. If only I can defeat him, and take his place, then we'll see who's top."
"Ooh, looks like someone's territorial," Tito commented.
"I understand your feelings, Nina," Emily told her, patting the werecat's back. "We all want to beat our rivals… but if you want to beat Silas and have the advantage against him, I know someone from the Beast-Keeping Coven who could tutor you."
Nina turned to Emily. "Who?"
Emily gave a smile. "Let's just say, she's like a sister to me…"
Emily had led Nina to outside of an undisclosed warehouse, where she knocked on the door. Opening it was Sonya.
"Emily?" Sonya asked before noticing Nina. "And who's this furry little friend of yours?"
"Sonya, this is Nina Fangs from school," Emily introduced. "Nina, meet Dr. Sonya Mera, she's a specialist in Beast-Keeping research and biology. She was in a circus once."
"Ooh…" Nina said while looking at Sonya with curious eyes.
"Nice to meet you, Nina," Sonya responded in a friendly manner. "Why don't you come in?"
"So what do you do around here, Dr. Mera?" Nina asked as they entered Sonya's lab,
"Please, call me Sonya," Sonya replied while looking at Nina. "And I do all sorts of experiments here. But you know, I've always been fascinated by lycan witches. They're a fascinating breed, especially the werecats."
"Oh um… thanks," Nina responded, not sure how she should feel about that.
"Oh, sorry, mind my manners, I don't mean to offend you in any way," Sonya reassured her. "Though I will admit that the latest generation of werecats are a bit too… tame for my standards and they represent so much missed potential."
"Well, I'm not the most tamed werecat according to my peers," Nina responded. "I'm quite infamous there at the Villa."
"Hmm, yes, I've heard the rumors," Sonya replied.
"Emily mentioned that you could help me get stronger, there's this top student I want to beat and I've been wondering if you could help me with that?" Nina asked.
Sonya gave Nina a smile. "All I can say is… what do you need?"
****TRIGGER WARNING****
And so, Nina started her training. She started with the basics, such as running on the treadmill while hooked to a speed monitor.
Then she went to the weights, where she tried to lift some up while Sonya studied her limits.
Another test was for her swimming capabilities… Nina definitely struggled during this one…
Next was Nina being set up in a pen against a beast. The werecat was ready to face whatever was behind the gate. But to her disappointment, her opponent… was a little rabbit demon.
She scoffed. "Really? You want me to tackle this little guy?" she asked before the rabbit demon roared and jumped onto Nina. "YAH! AH! THIS IS NO ORDINARY BUNNY!"
Sonya wrote down notes while she watched Nina fighting various beasts. She saw Nina getting squeezed by a giant horned snake. Then she watched the werecat wrestle with a tri-armed bear. Then she watched a different colored Slitherbeast that kept throwing her down like a rag doll.
"Interesting," Sonya said as she watched Nina's training. She had gotten so many ideas that she bit her lip…
Over time, Nina would come back after school to improve herself, which would include punching a large chunk of meat in a meat locker that Sonya had for her beasts. She began to make progress, all the while getting more comfortable around Sonya…
"Hey," Sonya said to Nina at one point. "I got you a little treat."
Nina saw Sonya throw a bag to her and she looked at it. "Catnip? Wow, that tom cat across the trees has some, I've been wondering what they smell like?" she asked as she smelled the catnip. "Mmm, wow… I can see the colors…"
After one high trip, Sonya also gave Nina more junk. Like fish, which Sonya eagerly munched down. "Mmm, you've brought the best fish I have ever eaten… where did you get it?"
"Oh, you know, from connections," Sonya said while also handing Nina a bag of candy. "Want some sweets with that?"
Nina was living the life, hanging out with Sonya after school and training with her. She even listened to some killer music that she wished she had back home, playing it as loud as it could me. Better than that dumb old drum set her mom gave to her…
"It's all fake, you know?" Nina asked at one point. She was venting while she and Sonya sat down, Nina eating some more fish that Sonya had brought her. "Like, my folks always have this weird happy smile that is clearly forced!"
"Yeah, it's kinda creepy if you ask me," Sonya said with a nod while drinking her apple blood.
"The werecats need to stop being so self-loathing all the time," Nina states while looking down. "Like, how is it our fault for something we can't control? I mean, can't you be civilized and wild at the same time? We don't need to be feared, we just need respect. Be treated like equals like other witches and demons, you know? But sometimes I feel like I am the only werecat that thinks this…"
"I am sorry to hear that, Nina," Sonya responded sympathetically. "If only the Emperor's Coven treated you werecats better, Nina. If only your parents see what kind of greatness you have…" She brushed Nina's locks from her face while placing her hand to her cheek. "So… wonderful… is it okay if I… pet you?"
"Um… sure" Nina nodded as she let Sonya pet her, making her one of the few that she would allow...
"You're a beautiful girl, you know that, Nina?" Sonya asked her with her friendly smile. "Donna should notice you more if she sees how strong you are…"
At that point, Nina had started to trust Sonya. And from all the training, the werecat had shown improvement in her skills. To the point where she managed to knock a beast out by punching it.
"Yaaah-Augh!" Nina winced, shaking her hand while Sonya comforted her.
"Well, you've shown some improvements with your health and skills," Sonya responded, showing Nina the results. "And I believe you may be ready for this…"
Nina looked at her in confusion. "What's 'this'?"
"Nina, what I'm about to tell you is that… I want you to let me make some… advancements to your body," Sonya suggested. "It will help you more easily become the Top of Beast-Keeping and reach your full potential."
"Hmm… do I need my parents' permission for this?" Nina asked her.
"Do you want your parents' permission?" Sonya questioned.
"Hmm… probably not," Nina said with a shrug. "I absolutely don't see how this could go wrong… experiment away, doc!"
And so, Nina was in a black sports bra and shorts as she found herself inside a tank. Once the water filled the tank she put on a mask to breathe into as patches started to hook onto Nina and insert needles inside of her skin.
"HMM!" Nina screamed.
"Don't worry, this is all part of the procedure," Sonya reassured her as she grabbed a lever… and pulled it down.
Nina screamed in pain, feeling the electricity surge through her body as the needles were connected to some tubes. The tubes had some kind of orange liquid that was now pouring into the werecat's body while Sonya checked on the werecat's readings.
The liquid flowed into Nina's blood… affecting her muscle tissue and her bones.
It was as if Nina's body was being magically enhanced. Her DNA was restructured, her fur shifted colors…
"Nina… are you okay?"
The werecat teen slowly opened her eyes and rose up with a gasp. She found herself on a bed as Sonya handed her some water.
"Drink this," Sonya said as Nina drank the water. "How do you feel? Anything different?"
Nina finished drinking the water. "I… I don't know," she said while raising up her hand… which now had tentacle fingers. "What the… whoa…!" she said while her hand turned into a tentacle. "H-How do I change it back?!"
"Just keep calm, and think of changing your arm back," Sonya suggested as Nina closed her eyes to stay calm. Eventually, her hand changes back to normal. "Now open them."
She opened her eyes and saw her hand was normal again as she got off the bed. Nina had never felt so… new before. She looked down on her legs as they changed into cheetah legs. "Whoa… this is just… wow! Thanks, Sonya! I don't know how I could repay you!"
Sonya smirked as she patted Nina's head. "Don't worry, you have paid me enough as it is..."
****TRIGGER WARNING END****
"Hey, snake-face!"
Silas turned around to see that Nina had called him out. "What did you just say, little puss?"
Nina gave a confident smirk. "I challenge you to a witch's duel, again!"
The snake biped couldn't help but give her a cocky smile. "Well, if you wish to have another ass-whooping, I'll give you one!" He held up his whip, ready to make this an easy win...
Once the match was set, the two fought on the fields outside of Glandus. Silas lashed his whip at Nina, who dodged it with a sudden burst of speed. This surprised the snake demon as Nina demonstrated her incredible speed while dodging his attacks. But he wasn't going to let her win this with some lucky dodges. He swung his tail to hit her, but she jumped over it and gave him a kick to the chest, surprising him more.
"What the...?!" Silas said in shock, seeing Nina pounce down.
"Surprised?" Nina replied with a smirk.
"Lucky hit!" Silas declared as he threw out his whip some more. But Nina managed to grab his whip and pull it from him. "What?!" Nina then launched herself at him, her arms raised up as they changed form. Sila's eyes widened as he saw her grow gorilla arms, with fists punching him down to the floor.
"HAHA!" she cried out as she pounded Silas down to the floor. She then picked Silas up, her new changing abilities giving her the advantage as she threw Silas across the field. The snake demon managed to get up, but he struggled to stand up straight. "What's the matter? Tired out, Hissenger?"
Silas spat out blood. "You think... you can just-" But he was suddenly met with a kick from Nina's horse legs, stomping him into the wall of the school building. Nina then grabbed Silas's body, lifted him up in the air, and smashed his head down to the ground, knocking him out.
The students who have seen her witch duel were shocked, especially since they had just witnessed Top Student Silas Hissenger defeated by the very same werecat he had picked on.
Standing on top of his bloodied body, Nina raised her paws. "Who's your top student now!?"
And this was followed by cheers as Nina Fangs was made the new Top Student of Beast-Keeping.
On her way to the Masterskull estate, this time without injuries, Nina was eager to tell Donna about her accomplishment. She looked excited as she started to climb up to the window of Donna's bedroom. But when she climbed up, she noticed others in her room.
Donna was accompanied by her friends. Tina, Veronica, Beocrow. and Tyrone were all chatting with Donna, laughing and enjoying themselves. Donna was in bed with a bandage around her arm while Veronica handed her a drink, indicating that Donna may have been sick or something and her new friends came to check up on her.
Nina couldn't help but feel… threatened. She hid out of view while thinking about Donna's new friends. She always knew that Donna would make some new friends after being adopted. After all, Donna was just that likable. But these friends of hers… they were friends that Nina didn't think would like her that much.
The werecat left before Donna could even notice her.
Back at the reservation, Nina sat on a tree branch, watching the sun set over the skyline of the trees. She was all by herself… until someone called her name.
"Nina? Nina Fangs?" She turned to see a black-furred werecat with green eyes, black nose, and whiskers. He wore an orange hoodie with green pants and was carrying a guitar case. "Is that you?" he asked while jumping from branch to branch.
Nina narrowed her eyes at her fellow werecat. "Do I… know you?"
"Yeah," he nodded. "Casey Whiskabee from the Whiskabee Clan, the fish catchers. We go way back to the reservation school, I remember you in Mao Purrsian's class."
Nina's eyes widened. "Oh… Casey! Oh fishsticks, I almost didn't recognize you since back then you didn't have whiskers."
"Yeah, that's me," he replied. "I remember how you'd always have paint all over your own fur. You still do that?"
"Not anymore!" She chuckled. "Wow, look at you with your guitar. Are you still going up as an indie bard?"
"Yeah, I decided to create my own Penstagram account to share my music to the Isles!" he revealed while sitting beside Nina. "How have you been, by the way? I hear that you're going to school off the reservation now. How's that going?"
Nina sighed. "Well, it was tough… but I made it up to the top of my class!" she boasted proudly.
"Top of your class? Wow…" Casey replied with an impressed look. "You know, I'm honestly impressed by and jealous of you at the same time, Nina."
"Oh? What are you jealous about?" Nina asked.
"Well, I've always wished that I could just… leave this place," Casey admitted with a sigh while looking up at the skyline, his expression changing to being serious.
Nina looked surprised. "Really?"
"Yeah," he nodded while looking down. "This place is full of fakes, you know? I can't stand this whole Titan's will shit and the self-loathing that our kind has. The grown ups are practically the worst to deal with around here. It makes me sick just by living here…"
Nina was very surprised that Casey had these thoughts, realizing that he was not so different from her. "Yeah, me too." she replied. "The Titan's full of shit."
Casey scoffed. "We probably live in shit…"
The two then looked at each other… and started to laugh.
And so, after school Nina started hanging out with Casey. For a while she stopped heading to Donna's, instead enjoying the company of her fellow werecat.
"No way," Casey said in disbelief. "Glandus has a Saltstar attending there?!"
"Yup," Nina responded, laying on the branch while eating a snack. "His name's Cain and, well, he's not much of a talker. But he's already Top of Construction on his first day after beating Barty Grumbles. And he always wears that helmet of his…"
Another time had them hanging out at the Catground when it was empty.
"Did you hear that Mao Purrsian made it to the werecat council body?" Casey asked.
"No way!" Nina replied, surprised that her old teacher had made it up in the world. "I'll say congrats to her if I get the chance."
At one point they hung out at the Newt Burger establishment on their reservation.
"So no one has heard from Bela?" Casey asked after hearing about what happened to the previous Glandus Queen and her twin sister.
"Yeah," Nina responded while drinking her shake. "Like, nobody has seen Bela since she snapped and cursed her sister with the plague. Though, I did hear rumors that Bela went straight to the Forest of Fear…"
"Fuck… that's heavy," Casey replied, shaking his head.
In the trunk of Nina's tree home, she showed Casey where her old drum set was stored.
"You kept the drums?" Casey asked. "Thought your mom got rid of them!"
"She kept it in storage." Nina said as she picked up her drumsticks. "Feeling like playing, rockstar?"
Casey smiled while holding up his guitar. "You know it," he said as the two started playing their instruments, making some sweet music together.
When the two stopped to take a break, Casey brought out his notebook to show it to Nina.
"Check this out," he said as he showed her one of his songs. "This is a song that I've been working on."
"Whoa," Nina said as she read the lyrics. "This is pretty good, Casey. The words are very meaningful…"
"Yeah." Casey replied while looking at Nina and placing his hand over hers. The two were quiet for a moment before Nina saw him start to lean in.
"What are you doing?!" Nina exclaimed, holding his notebook up to his face.
"Oh… sorry, I-I thought that… we're alone and I've… misread the room…" Casey stammered while scooting away. "I guess… I kinda like you, Nina. Like, like-like you."
Nina's eyes widened. "Oh… oh Casey, I'm sorry," she said awkwardly. "It's just… I'm gay."
"Oh… sorry," Casey responded, feeling dumb for not thinking about what her preferences were. "Guess that saves you from being kidnapped, huh?"
"Please, like I'd let anyone kidnap me," Nina replied, referring to the old werecat habit of kidnapping their ideal mates, though there was a certain girl she did wish to kidnap someday…
Later, Nina and Casey were at the usual tree branch again.
"I've thought about running away from here a lot. But I don't know where I would go," Casey muttered.
"There are some places far from Belos's reach, at least from what I've heard," Nina responded while drinking her ghoul-aid.
"I don't think I would make it that far," Casey admitted, as he turned to Nina. "By the way, there is something I have been meaning to ask but I wasn't sure if it was appropriate or not. Do you… still get black outs?"
"They are… under control now," Nina said with relief in her tone. "Glandus actually helped, since I'm now surrounded by a group of friends that help support me and they along with Glandus have given me something to focus on. It keeps me… grounded. I still can hurt people, but only the people I want to hurt."
Nina's eyes were blank white. She blinked as her eyes returned to normal, but then she saw the state of her prey. "Oh shit."
Boscha was unconscious, her body covered in scratches and her face bleeding. Nina looked down and saw her own hand. Her claws were piercing through Boscha's stomach and was pinning Boscha's body to the wall. She retracted her claws and Boscha's body fell limp as Nina stepped back.
"Oh Titan… oh fuck, shit, shit, shit!" Nina cursed, starting to panic as she realized that she lost control. "I didn't mean… it wasn't supposed to happen…"
"And… that's about it."
Now in the present, Nina was shown sitting on a couch, facing Julia Traveler. She was in Dr. Traveler's office. The werecat girl was silent after having explained everything to Dr. Traveler.
"So… am I crazy or what?" Nina asked her, looking tired.
"Well Nina, from what you have told me, it sounds like as a child you have suffered from a dissociation disorder, which is when someone feels detached or separate from the world around them. They may see objects changing in size, shape, and color. They may see the world as lifeless and foggy. Everyone experiences dissociation differently, but what you described is called derealization," Julia explained.
"Derealization? Is that… bad?" Nina asked her.
"It's treatable," Julia reassured her. "Often it is a reaction to severe trauma, stress, or emotional abuse, which prompts the child to detach from their surroundings as a way to manage it. The main treatment to dissociation like yours is psychotherapy, a form of talk therapy that would teach you ways to share your experiences and discuss good strategies like distracting oneself with activities and grounding oneself in reality using their five senses, like listening to loud music, to handle your episodes. Unfortunately, there is no medicine for dissociation."
"But my episodes were like, years ago," Nina claimed.
"So you haven't dissociated recently?" Julia asked, which caused Nina to fall silent. She hadn't told Traveler about Boscha. "Tell you what, I recommend that we schedule regular sessions and I can give you my contact information."
"I guess… that can help me out," Nina responded while looking down to her own hands.
"And would you like to talk about how your week has been going, Nina?" Julia asked her. "It's alright if you don't want to, though if you have had a rough time talking about it can make you feel better."
"No, it's fine," Nina said with a sigh. "For starters, some more of Glandus's students transferred to Hexside and, well, I tried to reconnect with them…"
Earlier that week on Hexside school grounds, Nina spotted some of her old classmates from Glandus. Seeing some familiar faces, she walked over to them.
"Hey, buddies, what's up?" Nina asked as they all turned to her. "Hey, new school, new beginnings, I know that we've all had some bad blood but it doesn't mean we can't start over!" she exclaimed, raising her hand up. "So… whatta ya say, guys?"
The students looked at each other, then they turned to Nina as one spoke for them. "Uh yeah, listen Fangs, this may not come as a shock, but we don't really like you."
"Um… okay, wow," Nina said. "At least you're honest…"
"We were only afraid of you," another added. "And maybe you used to be like, the big cat on campus, but now with that collar on you to keep on a tight leash, we feel safer about not having to associate with you."
"It would be petty of us to gang up on you and give you a taste of your own medicine, but we're smart enough to not take that chance. Rather, we just want to move on with our lives away from a bully like you," a third student said as they walked away from her.
Nina's ears dropped and she looked down at the spot where they had been standing. She sighed before she looked around and saw Batters walking by. "Hey Batters, um… no hard feelings?"
Batters turned to her. "No hard feelings? You threw me across a hallway! You're a bad kitty! A really, bad kitty cat!" he shouted as he continued to walk away.
"I know that I shouldn't be here," Nina said to herself.
She was in front of a house where she rang the doorbell. Opening it was Glinda, who looked at Nina with a blank stare.
"Hey, Stella," Nina waved to her, trying to look friendly. "Look, I'm not here to do anything, but I just want to say-" But before she could say anything else, the door was slammed in her face. "Right…"
"I haven't seen Tito since right before the Glandus War began," Nina mentioned while laying on the couch. "He's still in the Conformatorium, and I do know that Cain was paroled by the Construction Head and that he's been doing community service since then, but I haven't tried reaching out to him yet. Especially since I know that we were never really friends to begin with." Her eyes narrowed as she continued. "And I also haven't seen Emily since the Glandus War… but I'm definitely not ready to see her again." She gripped the furniture, scratching it.
"I would agree with that," Julia responded. "So you have not had any luck with her old classmates, but how are you doing with your new classmates?"
Nina looked up at the ceiling and sighed. "They're… okay."
Nina was going through another day at Hexside, walking down the halls while receiving stares. The usual, at least nothing had changed.
"There have been some negatives and some positives. For the negatives…"
After grabbing her books from her locker, she turned to see Luz pinning Amity to the lockers, the two making out much to Nina's disgust.
"Get a room," she grimaced while walking to her class.
Nina opened the classroom door and a bucket of water splashed over her causing some of her classmates to laugh at her. She only gave a sour look while some took pictures of her on their scrolls.
In the Beast-Keeping Class, she enters a pen to feed a unicorn with spider legs. The unicorn's horn shot a web which stuck Nina to the wall. Rupert walked over, helping to get her down.
Later, Nina was walking down the hallway until popping out from the broom closet were Luz and Amity, who were busy making out in front of her. "Really?" she questioned as she just walked around them as she left them be. "Don't blame me when Faust catches you two…"
Nina spotted Boscha walking with Gavin, Angmar, and Cat. The werecat hid herself under her cowl as she turned around and nervously started going in a different direction. While walking, she spotted Amelia. Nina tried to talk to her, but the Regal girl simply ignored her, making the werecat sigh.
Later while reading a book in the library, she saw a red dot circling around the table she was at. Nina tried to ignore it, but her cat instincts got the better of her as she chased after the red dot, thus creating havoc around the library while the green, bloodhound biped student who did it snickered while holding the laser pen up.
"Honestly, compared to Glandus, the pranks at Hexside are harmless…"
Nina opened her locker, which was filled with tongue. "Oh haha, I got the tongues, play on words, real mature!" But as she grabbed one of the tongues… she realized it wasn't fake.
"Okay, mostly harmless… but then there was this one time…"
Nina was minding her own business, eating her own lunch at a table in the cafeteria while listening to music. Some illusionist students were behind her.
"Okay, on a count of three, we spook her and see her get shocked!" one of the illusionists told his classmates. "One… two…"
"Guys, enough!" spoke up Gus who walked over to them. "Would you guys just leave her alone, alright?"
"You're defending her?" asked a yellow furred illusionist. "Why? She kidnapped you!"
"I've already made my peace with it and her," Gus told them. "And getting her back isn't going to change anything. Just cut her some slack, alright?"
This did not go unnoticed by Nina.
"After everything, he stood up for me," Nina said while in a sitting position. "I ain't a huge fan of illusionists right now… but the Porter boy is… alright." She looked up to Julia. "I have sensed that he's going through some stuff right now, but I haven't said anything to him because I feel like it's not my place."
"Well, Augustus has been visiting me," Julia confirmed.
"That's good," Nina nodded before she continued. "Now onto the positives. Skara's not in all of my classes, but there is someone in my classes who doesn't have a problem being paired with me..."
Whenever Skara wasn't available, Nina paired with Dusty and sat with him at the same desk. In one of their classes, the two had a small squid-mouse in a box as Dusty held up a carrot.
"Now Nina, pay attention as I help this squidrat get its nutrition," Dusty said, only for the squidrat to jump onto his face, biting him. "YAAAHHH!"
Nina winced as she saw Dusty trying to get the squidrat off while waving his arms around. But at the same time, the werecat couldn't help but find this amusing.
"Dusty may be one of my few classmates that are okay around me. And after seeing all the punishment he's taken, I have to admit that I'm impressed by his determination."
One time, Nina had to pull Dusty out from an Abomination of Puffer's after falling in to catch a small beast trapped inside. Once they got it out, the beast then started to maul Dusty, making Nina and Puffer sweat drop.
Eventually, the two started hanging out whenever Skara was not around. Either it be during her Bard classes or Flyer Derby practice. Sometimes Nina and Skara hung outside of the Beast-Keeping pens during their free time, playing card games.
"Bam," Nina said as she placed a card down. "Headphonox blasts away your Arachichanga, thus blasting off your up points!"
"Oh man," Dusty said in shock. "I had no idea how good you were at Keepa'Beasts!"
"Played it all the time back at the reservation," Nina mentioned with a confident look, impressing Dusty.
Later while walking down a hallway with Dusty, Nina noticed the trophy case where she spotted an old class photo from decades ago. "Huh, now that's weird," she said.
"What is?" Dusty asked.
"That old picture, one of the students looks exactly like you," Nina pointed out, pointing at a student in the photo that resembled Dusty standing next to a teenaged Bump. This made Dusty freeze up.
"Well it's not!" Dusty suddenly exclaimed. "That's not me! I can't be! I'm not immortal!"
Nina looked at him strangely. "I know."
"Okay," Dusty said as they walked away.
Later, they were hanging out together while Nina was reading a book. "So where was the last fatal duel in the Ribs fought?" she asked.
"Oh, Lungon Bridge!" Dusty answered. "I remembered it was a nice day… which I know because… I used to have a… time machi-"
"Maginet?" Nina asked him.
"Maginet! Yes, sireebob, a maginet! Good old maginet!" Dusty replied, trying to not act suspicious.
Later, Dusty was reading a book as Nina walked over to him. "So are you gonna spend a hundred years on that book-"
"No! If I did, I'd be dead! I'm not immortal!" Dusty argued.
"I'm not arguing with you." Nina replied in a deadpan manner.
"Alright! I'm immortal!" Dusty admitted to Nina, setting his book down after the confession. "You're not gonna say anything about it, are you?"
"Nah, I don't really care, honestly," Nina shrugged while holding up a crystal ball with game controllers. "Just wanna know if you'd like to play a crystal ball game while I wait for Skara's derby practice to end."
"Oh, then sure!" Dusty replied.
"Besides Dusty, I found some other people who are okay with hanging around with me."
Nina was walking down the hall when she heard someone cry out.
"One of the lockers went mad!" a student cried out. "Someone put their lunch in it and now it's on a rampage!"
The students in the hall cleared out as Nina was forced to avoid them all, dodging them as she tried to make her way to her class. She saw another student fall over as she jumped over them. She even had to bend over backward to avoid a fireball that had been thrown down the hall. Thanks to her flexibility and reflexes, she was able to dodge every student and object that was thrown at her.
She eventually spotted the locker, which had sprouted legs, as it ran up to try to attack her. However, Nina just jumped high up over the locker beast and delivered a kick to the top of its head, knocking it out as it bit its own tongue. The locker fell down, ending its rampage. "Least that's over…"
"Amazing!" someone shouted.
Nina turned to see Tyler, who was looking at her in awe. "The way you jumped up and avoided everyone and I've never seen anyone leap over the lockers like that!"
"Yeah, um… thanks?" Nina responded.
"Do you like, play any sports by any chance?" Tyler asked her.
"I'm not really looking into playing any sports…" Nina admitted.
"What about cheerleading?" Tyler asked her. "I'm in the Hexside cheer squad and I think someone with your reflexes and flexibility could be a great addition to the squad! I could definitely put in a good word for you about joining."
The werecat was surprised that this oracle boy wanted her to join his squad. "Really? You want me in your cheer team? You do know that I'm a werecat and from Glandus, right?"
"Yeah, but I don't have a problem with you," Tyler said honestly. "If anything, I think you're pretty cool. What's your name again?"
"Nina Fangs," Nina told him.
"Cool! I'm Tyler Skullovitch, by the way," Tyler said as they shook hands. "It'd be so cool to have you on the Banshees cheer squad!"
"I'll… think about it," Nina replied.
"Great!" Tyler said. "And if you don't join, it's cool! So what can you tell me about yourself, Nina?"
"Uh, well… for one, I used to live at the Torso Villa, but after the Glandus War I moved in with Skara's family," Nina told him. "Mind you, I'm a bit of a trouble maker."
"Oh, like Luz Clawthorne," Tyler replied. "Say, do you know her?"
"… Yeah. I fought her about two weeks ago…" Nina told him. "In front of the whole school? Sort of clash, ended in a tie?"
"Oh yeah, I think I've heard about that," Tyler replied, causing Nina to look at him weirdly. "Sometimes I forget certain things and don't understand much about everything that is going on around me. Must be from all the head bumps I keep getting."
"I see," Nina said, starting to get the guy. "And how often do you get these head bumps?"
"Oh, you know. Every now and then," Tyler responded as they continued to chat.
In one of their Beast-Keeping classes, Nina told Skara about Tyler's invitation to attend the squad meet-up.
"You got invited to join the cheer squad? That's great!" Skara said excitedly. "You should definitely go!"
"I knew you'd say that," Nina said. "But… I don't know, I never saw myself as a cheerleader before."
"You should at least give it a shot," Skara encouraged. "You get to show your school spirit, cheer during sports games, wear cute uniforms…"
Nina arched an eyebrow. "How cute… are they?"
"Cute enough to, maybe, catch some eyes," Skara suggested. "Like, imagine gaining attention from a crush you know who would check you out in a short-skirted cheerleader uniform."
Nina imagined herself in a Hexside cheer outfit and Donna turning her head to her with heart shaped eyes. "I...I guess I could give it a try…" she said quietly.
At the track and field outside of the school, Nina followed Tyler to the meet up where she saw his fellow squad mates.
"Oh, hey Tyler," Eve said while in uniform before noticing Nina. "N-Nina?!"
"Hey, Eve," Nina waves to her, recognizing the goth girl.
"Oh, you two know each other?" Tyler asked.
"Yeah, I remembered her old gang solving a case back in the Villa," Nina said while looking at Eve. "I just want to say… about that night when I kidnapped you-"
"Hey, it's fine, it's fine," Eve reassured her. "I mean… I've had experience…"
"So no hard feelings?" Nina asked.
"Nope," Eve told her. "Come on, let's get you to meet the rest of the squad." She led Nina to meet up with the other squad mates. "Attention, everyone! We have someone interested in joining!"
Louis and Ginger, an illusionist with red hair, noticed waved to her nervously. "Um… hi?"
"Hey, um… Tyler invited me here to see if you had an opening available," Nina said before suddenly a dark-skinned witch girl with pink, puffy hair and blue eyes, wearing a banshee costume, popped up in front of her. A surprised Nina was shocked by her collar. "YAH!"
"Hi! Welcome to the Banshees Squad!" the girl said in a bubbly and happy tone while showing her fangs. "I'm Andrea Pinkjoy, from the Bard Track. I am also the school mascot! It's so nice to see a new face around here!" she said while shaking Nina's hand. "I see you've met Tyler and Eve already, so let's introduce you to the rest of the squad! Our illusionists are Ginger and Louis! There is also Naila, Roger, Gina, the School Spirit, Matrica, and our cheer captain, Tamme Wishbone!"
Sitting in a folded chair was a witch girl around Nina's age with shoulder-length raven hair with green highlights tied into a ponytail, light-purple skin, teal eyes, and a long pointy nose. She was wearing sunglasses, and a yellow and blue Hexside cheer uniform with black leggings and yellow tennis shoes.
Nina was able to sense her… intensity. She cleared her throat. "Nice to meet you-"
"So you're interested in joining the cheer squad, are you?" Tamme interrupted while sucking on a sucker. "Never had a werecat in our team, but Tyler's vouched for you." She got up and walked around Nina. "Listen up, Fangs, I'm in charge and I take this job seriously. The Banshee cheer squad is considered a family business, my grandfather cheered for it, my mother cheered for it, my older brother cheered for it and now the honor goes to me. But this isn't about me, no… but I want to know… do you have what it takes to join the cheer squad?" She forced Nina to face her as she took off her sunglasses and stared into her eyes.
"Um… I guess?" Nina asked nervously.
Tamme stared at Nina for a while before she made a decision. "Well then… I guess, if we can let Eve, the walking disaster, stay in the squad, then I can give you a chance." She raised her hand up for Nina to shake.
"Thanks," Nina said as she shook Tamme's hand. "Um, where do I start?"
"Man, if Tito could see me now, he would probably ask 'Hey kitten, why didn't you join the cheer squad back at Glandus?' and I'll be like 'Well I didn't know I had those options!'" Nina said with a chuckle. "But yeah, I plan on meeting the squad again next week."
"It is good that you're coming out of your comfort zone a bit and opening yourself to new experiences," Julia responded.
"Yeah, turns out it's not all that bad," Nina replied with a mutter. "Well, if you don't count Pinkjoy's surprises…"
"So how's living with the Brookes going along with you?" Julia asked her.
"Oh, where do I start?" Nina asked while leaning back.
"Calypso is someone I'm not a fan of, given her background. I tend to test her patience."
Calypso walked in to find Nina sitting on the fridge, eating sardines. "Get down from there, young lady," she told Nina.
"This is a sweet spot, go away," Nina replied.
"Don't make me-"
"Make you what? What are you gonna do about it? Turn me into a rug?" Nina challenged, only for her to be magically levitated off from the fridge and placed in a chair. "Meow!" she cried as she was made to sit still and was moved to the corner.
"If you're gonna act like a child, you get a time out in the corner," Calypso scolded her. "Ten minutes."
"This is so embarrassing!" Nina growled before feeling the zap of her collar. "AAAH!"
"Then there's Scabrina, aka the creepiest little girl I've ever met."
Nina was about to enter the bathroom when she sees Scabrina at the door. "You wanna go in?"
"No, I'll wait," Scabrina replied while hiding a shovel and bag.
Nina gave her a suspicious look. "If I come out and see you go in and not come out with something inside that bag, would that not happen if you go in first?"
"Maybe… not?" Scabrina asked innocently.
"…Well, I am just going to go outside in the yard," Nina said while avoiding the little girl.
"Slasher, despite having the most edgiest name, acts like some corny-ass sitcom dad."
"Hey Nina, you won't believe this!" Slasher said after reading from his scroll. "The Fleas are on fire this season and they're going up against the Griffins! Looking for a friend to watch so… would you like to watch the game with me?"
"I have more important stuff to do than watch some boring old Ringball game," Nina dismissed while passing by.
"Okay, maybe next time then…" Slasher replied awkwardly, while Nina just ignored him and walked to her room.
"At least Skara's tolerable. Honestly, she's helped me out quite a bit. Like when she helped set up a mirror that could reach the Villa…"
"Alright," Skara said as she tapped in the contact information for Nina, who sat in front of the mirror. "This should get you connected to your family."
"Thanks for doing this for me, Skara," Nina replied to her.
"Hey, it's no big," Skara replied with a smile. "Now, all you have to do is recite the spell for whomever you wanna contact."
Nina nodded as she looked into the mirror. She recited the spell. "Mirror, mirror, on the wall. I wish to give the Fang Tribe a call…"
As the mirror rang, it dinged as her parents popped up on the screen.
"Nina!" Leo and Pam cheered, seeing their daughter. "It's been quite a while!"
"Mom, dad, hey!" Nina shouted with a smile. "Sorry that I didn't get to reach out to you guys before, after all the… you know…"
"Oh we understand, Nina." Pam replied happily. "We're just glad that you're doing well after these past few weeks!"
"Yeah, the twins told us that you're doing alright with the Brookes!" Leo said cheerfully.
Nina nodded with a smile. "So… how are the sibs? I'm sure that Ralph and Buttons, the twins, and everyone else is worried about little ol' me."
"They're doing fine and are all relieved that you're okay," Leo told his daughter.
"But of course, there's the matter of you not attending Glandus…" Pam added in concern.
"Don't worry, after some strings were pulled, I'm at Hexside now," Nina mentioned. She briefly looked down. "I know that I'm far from the Villa, but… I just miss you guys. You're my family and… I take that for granted sometimes, I think."
"We miss you too, Nini!" Leo said as Pam nodded.
Nina then thought of something. "Say, how about you guys come over to the Brookes' place to visit at some point? I'll even ask Calypso for the greenlight so we can bring the whole family over!"
"Hmm, we'll look into it," Leo said with a nod.
"It is so nice to speak to you again, honey!" Pam said, which made Nina brighten up.
Nina fell silent after talking about her conversation with her parents.
"Are you alright, Nina?" Julia asked her in concern.
Nina sighed, looking down at the floor while fumbling with her fingers. "When I saw my parents for the first time in over two weeks, I just… kinda forgot all of our past issues," she admitted while flicking her own nose. "I was just… happy to see them again. Because I missed them and that call did give me hope that everything would work out, that everything would be okay." She kept herself composed as she took a deep breath.
"Do you wish to change the subject?" Julia offered.
Nina nodded. "Let's talk about my parole, and what Calypso had me do…"
Calypso had brought Nina to the headquarters of the Beast-Keeping Coven. Nina followed Calypso while looking around the coven, seeing all the beasts coming and going before she spotted Rupert.
"Hey, Nina!" Rupert waved to her while feeding a griffin. "Solved my riddle yet?"
"Not yet, Mr. Colt," Nina replied while turning to Calypso. "So what are we doing here, oh great Head Witch Brooke?"
"We're here as part of your parole," Calypso said as she levitated a shovel and bucket over, handing them to Nina. "You're going to be doing some labor work, starting with cleaning up the pens."
Nina gave a deadpan look. "How thrilling…" she said sarcastically as she saw Sunny walking up to them.
"Hello Nina, hello Head Witch Brooke," Sunny said with a saddened wave.
"Are you alright, Sunny?" Calypso asked in concern.
"Yes, Head Witch, just that… got some stuff in my mind," Sunny replied while Nina could tell that the aide had some dried tears on her face.
But then, Nina's ears picked up. She smelled a familiar scent as she turned around and gasped. "No way…"
"Hello, Nina," spoke Mao Purrsian, who appeared in a black and yellow poncho and a white long robe. She had yellow rings on her wrists and ankles, a blue sash, and a golden headband. She appeared to be frowning. To her left was a panther werecat with black fur and blue eyes. He was wearing gold bracelets and a blue jacket with red pants. To Mao's right was an elderly singapura werecat dressed in a purple robe, a headdress over his head, a clock necklace around his neck, and a staff in his hand.
"Mao!" Nina said excitedly, running up to her old teacher. "Oh my rabies, it's so good to see you! Or should I call you Lady Mao!" She turned to the two with her. "And you two are…?"
"Jageera Kipling, Mao's bodyguard," the panther werecat, Jageera Kipling, spoke.
"Clockwork Cab, her right-hand aide," Clockwork Cab introduced himself.
"Yeah, nice to meet you," Nina said as she turned back to Mao, who gave her a stern look. "So um… how have you been, Lady Purrsian?"
But Mao still wasn't smiling. "Do you have any idea what you've done, Nina?"
Nina's ears dropped. "Um… okay, if this is about the Glandus War-"
"This isn't just about the war!" Mao yelled, which startled Nina. "You know, I once vouched for and supported you and your desire to be Head Witch. I encouraged you to pursue that dream because I had high hopes for you once! But now all I'm hearing is that you got involved with some criminal organization that traffics witches!"
"I didn't know what Tricks was really involved with, alright!" Nina responded defensively.
"You didn't know, or you didn't want to know because you saw her as an alpha, and you do what you're told, no questions asked," Mao pointed out.
"Yeah, well… the werecat community worships Belos like an alpha as well!" Nina pointed out.
"This isn't about us, this is about you!" Mao shut her down while towering over Nina. "Now because of your actions, you've painted werecats as feral and dangerous to the rest of the Isles!" she scolded angrily before she calmed herself while looking at Nina "I'm very, very disappointed in you, Nina. I don't even know if you would be worthy as a Head Witch…"
This punched Nina in the gut like a ton of bricks. She stayed silent as she watched Mao turn around, Jageera and Clockwork walking with her.
"Geez, don't you think you're a little harsh on her, Lady Purrsian?" Jageera asked her.
"She's lucky that I'm not Belos…" Mao hissed as she turned to Calypso. "We will be waiting at your office, Head Witch Brooke."
Calypso nodded, while turning to Sunny. "Lead them to my office, Sunny." Once Sunny left with the werecats, Calypso turned to Nina, who just looked down at the floor. "Nina… are you alright?" She didn't get a response as Nina walked past her and headed to the pens with the shovel and bucket, dead silent.
Nina looked down. "What Mao said… really hurt me, because I know that she's right. I've made werecats look bad, and it was a mistake for my parents to send me to Glandus in the first place. Sure, they helped me with my black outs, but its environment was heavily toxic and I let myself sucked me into it… I'm just a fuck up."
Julia looked at her with sympathy. "Nina, you're not a fuck up… you're just a kid," she pointed out. "But it is important that you have realized this, because it does mean that you can do better in the future."
After hearing that word 'future', Nina thought back to her visit to the Healing Clinic…
At the Healing Clinic, Nina sat in the waiting room, Slasher and Calypso accompanying her. She was signing some things on a clipboard when she heard her name called out.
"Nina Fangs, the witch doctor would like to see you now!"
Nina went into the patient's room, where she's now in a gown. Coming in was an elderly woman with light-brown skin, gray curly hair, blue eyes and rectangular glasses with pigment skin. She wore the blue robe Healing Coven uniform.
"Good tidings, Ms. Fangs," she spoke. "My name is Dr. Hail Whispers, I'll be your doctor today."
"Whispers…" Nina recognized the name. "You don't mean that you're-"
"Raine Whispers' mother? That's right!" Hail replied to her kindly. "I am saddened that my progeny's gone missing, but I have hope that they will turn up soon."
"Oh, well… you have my condolences, ma'am," Nina said to her.
"Thanks," Dr. Whispers responded. "Now then… let's get started on your check up, shall we?"
And so, Nina had to go through her check up. She couldn't say why, but it felt quite different from her check ups at the Villa and the ones from Sonya…
Her weight, height and other measurements were taken, Dr. Whispers being nothing but kind to her through the process.
"Now, they want me to strap you so that I can check on your mouth, eyes, ears and… other parts." Dr. Whispers told her. "But I can assure you that this is a normal procedure between doctor and patient. Just want to make sure that you're still in top health. Do you understand?"
Nina thought it over and gave the doctor a nod. "I consent."
After going through that and one blood test, Nina was now in Dr. Whispers' office with Slasher and Calypso.
"Alright, looks like everything's in order, Ms. Fangs," Dr. Whispers said while looking at the results. "You're in good health for a were-witch your age, though I would advise introducing some more protein to your diet."
Nina shrugged. "Well, that wasn't so bad."
"However," Dr. Whisper said as her expression changed and she brought out one file. "There is one… concerning matter that we need to discuss. Something that you should know."
This worried Nina along with the Brookes. "What? I thought I was fine," Nina said.
"It is nothing life-threatening," Hail reassured her. "You are still in good health, but… let me break this down for you. Do you remember getting stabbed in the womb?"
"Yeah, thank Emily for that," Nina said sarcastically. "How is that an issue? I'm not crippled or anything."
"You're not, but… when you were stabbed through the womb, your uterus was also damaged. The Healers did their best to treat your wounds, but…" She fell silent as Slasher, Calypso, and Nina gave worried looks.
"What? Just spill it!" Nina demanded.
"I'm sorry, Ms. Fangs, but… you're infertile."
Nina's eyes widened at the news. "No…" She stood up, shaking. "Nononono, you have to be joking, right?"
"I'm so, so sorry, Nina," Dr. Whispers said as she handed Calypso the file, allowing her and Slasher to see the x-rays and test results.
"No… this can't be possible…" Nina was upset. Very upset as she punched the wall.
"Nina…" Slasher said as he and Calypso got up.
"Leave me alone!" Nina shouted as tears leaked from her eyes and she started to cry. "AAAAH!" she cries, which causes her collar to shock her until Calypso spoke up.
"Temporary shut off!" she said, causing Nina's collar to shut down.
Nina fell to the ground, crying and breaking down over the revelation that she couldn't get pregnant. She would never have children…
Nina was in tears, Julia handing her a tissue to blow her nose into.
"I'm so sorry, Nina," Julia said sympathetically.
"It's just not fair, man," Nina said as she sniffed. "But I brought this to myself…"
"You know, there are ways for you to have children with magic," Julia suggested.
Nina nodded. "There is... but for lycans, it's a hard process. It requires specific permissions that I don't have and I would not be able to deliver them myself." She wiped her reddened eyes. "I hate Emily even more now," she snarled in anger. "I want her dead…" She turned to Julia, angry tears on her face. "I'm sorry, it's just… I'm so angry about Emily so much-"
"It's alright," Julia said. "Take your time."
Nina wiped her face. "After I learned about my infertility… there was only one person that I could think about seeing… one person that I thought could make everything better…"
Nina was in her bedroom, laying on her bed feeling numb. All she could do was whimper and hold her stomach. Opening the door, Skara checked in on her.
"Hey, Nina… are you okay?" she asked the werecat. Nina didn't respond and Skara continued. "I'm just checking you in. If there's… anything you want that could help you feel better, let me know."
Nina thought about that offer. There was one person she thought could make her feel better. Someone that Skara could help her get with…
"Skara…" Nina spoke to her. "I need to see Donna."
Somewhere in Bonesborough, Nina was shown sitting on a bench in the park. She looked around, feeling anxious.
"I-I don't know if she's going to be here or not," Nina said nervously while wearing a red button shirt with black pants.
"I'm sure that she will," Skara responded. "I told her we would meet up here."
Nina nodded as she continued to look around. She heard someone clear her throat and she turned to see someone she recognized immediately. "Donna!"
"Nina…" she responded to the werecat, who scooted over so she could sit next to her.
"Donna, glad that you can make it!" Skara responded as she looked at Nina, giving her a thumbs up. "I'll just… look for a not dog stand if you guys are hungry, be right back!"
The bard girl left, leaving Nina and Donna alone.
"It's… been a while, you know?" Nina asked Donna with a smile. "Look… about what I've texted to you before… during the school war… I meant it," she admitted honestly. "I have loved you for years, but I was never brave enough to say it. I know that we're no longer as close as we're used to, and I know that things have been awkward between us since the war… but I still want you." She placed her hand over Donna's, holding it. "I want to be with you…"
Nina gave a hopeful expression, looking at Donna's hand and then to her… only for Donna to pull away her hand from the werecat's.
"No," Donna told her while turning away from the werecat and looking at the ground.
Nina was shocked by the rejection. "No… but why?"
"I'll tell you why," Donna told her, standing up. "Because of all the awful things you've done over the years, all the people you've hurt. The assaults, the beatings, the clawings, which includes hurting your own sister, not to mention how you kidnapped Gus Porter and enabled Emily's tyranny at Glandus! Please tell me that I'm wrong! Please tell me that all of these terrible things that I have heard about you aren't true!"
Nina looked down. "They're not…"
Donna shook her head. "I had no idea you were this bad… you are not the girl that I was friends with and I just don't feel that way for you!"
The declaration shattered Nina's heart to pieces. It was like she was hit by a sledgehammer.
"So… you don't… feel the same way?" Nina asked her.
"I don't," Donna hissed at her with a glare. "I don't know what made you think I'd ever go out with a bully like you."
"Then why did you even bother to save me then?" Nina demanded, trying to keep herself from breaking in front of her.
"It's because of the little girl that I once made a promise to," Donna told her while turning away, her arms crossed. "I'm sorry, Nina… and goodbye." She left the spot, leaving Nina at the bench in silence.
Coming out from the bushes, Skara was shocked and sad as she saw Nina tear up. "Nina… I'm so sorry." Skara ran up to the werecat, sitting next to her. "I just… wanted to help."
Nina was crying, she didn't yell at Skara or anything. She just cried her heart out. Skara hugged the werecat, which Nina allowed. Skara petted her hair in comfort, all the while Nina cried on her shoulder. Skara felt worse when all she wanted was to help Nina.
"I don't blame Skara for what happened," Nina said while her face was covered in dried tears. She was holding a stuffed monkey. "Her heart was in the right place, and that… I needed to see Donna after all this time." She looks down while hugging the stuffed toy. "It did hurt to have my heart broken like that… but I know that Donna had no obligation to return my feelings for her. I am not entitled to have Donna, especially since we haven't been close for years… I even wonder if I actually loved Donna after everything that had changed or if I just loved the memory I had of her, the memory that I placed on a pedestal." She sighed, shutting her eyes. "But her rejection still confirmed what I had feared for a long time… that I wasn't good enough for Donna. That, combined with the news of me being infertile, put me in a very bad place."
Back at the Brooke home, Nina laid on her bed, unresponsive. Her hair was unkempt while she hid her face in her pillow. Donna's rejection had completely wrecked the werecat. She had replayed that moment over and over in her head, which only made her upset. She was already starting to dissociate…
"Nina."
Hearing the voice of Slasher, Nina didn't move. But Slasher shook her. "I need you to get up from bed. We're going on a little trip down to the beach."
And so, Slasher brought Nina down to the beach, where he had some mats set up for them.
"What are we doing here?" Nina asked him, crossing her arms with an unsure look.
"To help clear your mind," Slasher responded, looking up the shore. "When I was your age, I struggled with my beast side. All these… wild feelings are unpredictable for us lycans, but it can also be manageable. And I've learned some techniques to cope with my situation, with painting only being one of them."
Nina narrowed her eyes at him. "You don't know what my life is like."
"That's fair," he said as he sat down, legs crossed. "But I still want to help you, Nina. If you would give me the chance."
Nina looked down and thought about it before sighting. "Alright," she said as she down facing Slasher, legs crossed.
"Now then… close your eyes," Slasher said as he shut his own eyes.
Nina did the same. "Okay." And in the darkness, the only things she could hear were her deep breaths and the waves...
"Here in the darkness, everything's okay… listen to the waves, and everything fades away… Here comes a thought."
Nina opened her eyes and realized that she and Slasher were no longer on the beach. Instead, they were in a red reflective room. She looked around and at Slasher, who was still in position and facing her.
"Take a moment to think of just flexibility, love and trust," he sang. "Take a moment to think of just flexibility, love and trust…"
The two turned to see a young Slasher Brooke in his Hexside uniform back when he was a teen.
"Here comes a thought… that might alarm you, what someone said and how it harmed you."
The young Slasher was walking and looking around while hugging himself in fear.
"Something you did that failed to be charming, the things that you've said are suddenly swarming."
Nina was surrounded by music notes that transformed into butterflies. They swarmed around her and then around the teenage Slasher.
"And oh… you're losing sight… you're losing touch…"
The teenage Slasher chased the butterflies around as he started to transform...
"All these little things seem to matter so much- that they confuse you…"
Nina witnessed the teenage Slasher transforming into a werewolf.
"That I might lose you…"
The teenage Slasher stopped, seeing the reflection of his beastly side.
"Take a moment to remind yourself, to… take a moment to find yourself," Slasher continued to sing. "Take a moment to ask yourself, if… this is how we fall apart?"
Nina looked at the teenage Slasher as he waved his hands. The red reflective room turned orange.
"But it's not, but it's not, but it's not, but it's not, but it's not," Slasher and his reflection sang. "It's okay, it's okay, it's okay, it's okay, it's okay…" The crying teenage Slasher calmed down, wiping his tears as he took deep breaths. "You got nothing, got nothing, got nothing, got nothing to fear… I'm here, I'm here, I'm here."
Nina looked at the teenage Slasher raising his hand up towards his reflection who grabbed his. The butterflies flew around them in harmony.
"Here comes a thought that might alarm me," Nina sang as she and Slasher turned to a reflection of Nina and Donna meeting up. "What someone said and… how it harmed me…"
She saw Donna turn away from the reflection of Nina, who knelt down while in tears.
"Something I did that… failed to be charming…the things that I said are suddenly swarming!"
Butterflies swarmed around the reflection of Nina as she saw reflections of those she hurt: Boscha, Amelia, Gus, Stella, Dusty… it made the reflection of Nina turn into her inner beast.
"And, ohh… I'm losing sight…" Nina reached out, seeing the images of her werecat peers, including Cally. "I'm losing touch… all these little things seem to matter so much…"
A young Nina launched herself towards Cally, followed by a slash that dispersed the butterflies.
"That they confused me… that I might lose me…" Nina's growing fears of losing herself with these blackouts caused the reflection room to shift to yellow.
It was then that both Nina and Slasher began to sing. "Take a moment to remind yourself, to take a moment to find yourself. Take a moment to ask yourself, if this is how we fall apart?"
They look at the butterflies flying overhead, the reflective room becoming more colorful. "But it's not, but it's not, but it's not, but it's not, but it's not. It's okay, it's okay, it's okay, it's okay, it's okay. You got nothing, got nothing, got nothing, got nothing to fear… I'm here, I'm here, I'm here." The young Nina took a deep breath while looking at her beast side, holding its hand. "And it was just a thought, just a thought, just a thought, just a thought, just a thought… and it's okay, it's okay, it's okay, it's okay, it's okay… we can watch, we can watch, we can watch, we can watch them go by."
The young Nina and the teenage Slasher along with their beast sides looked up at the butterflies, as they turned into harmonic music notes.
"From here, from here, from here…" the two sang as Nina took over. "Take a moment to think of just flexibility, love and trust. Take a moment to think of just flexibility, love and trust…"
Nina opened her eyes to find herself back at the beach and she looked at the shore with a calm look in her face.
Coming back home, Nina and Slasher found Skara, Scabrina, and Calypso waiting for them.
"Nina," Skara said as she walked over to her. "How are you feeling now?"
Nina looked at Skara. "I feel… better."
"Slasher did help me feel better," Nina admitted. "Though, it didn't completely erase my pain and heartbreak. But… I understand it wasn't supposed to."
"These things take time to heal," Julia told her. "You are not expected to just get over it, but as long as you're surrounded by others who care about you, you'll get better."
"Yeah, I think I know what you mean," Nina said with a nod. "As for Skara, she was committed to helping me. Especially… when my family came."
After getting special permission from Lady Purrsian and the Emperor's Coven, the Fangs were brought to Bonesborough by airship. The family headed over to the Brooke home. Waiting for them was Calypso and Slasher.
"Welcome to our home, Fang Family!" Slasher welcomed them.
"Yay, Uncle Slasher!" West and Winter ran to climbed up Slasher, who laughed at the playful werekittens.
"Oh we just want to say thanks for inviting us over," Leo commented politely.
Calypso notices Pam's pregnancy. "You must be expecting soon…"
"Yes, give it a few months and I'll be having triplets!" Pam responded happily, though she was nervous around Calypso… and Slasher.
"I should note that we werecats are well aware of Calypso's family background. As for Slasher… yeah, the old cat versus dog thing and all."
As they entered, they see Nina who was in her casual wear along with Skara. West and Winter ran up to hug Nina.
"NINI!" they cried out as they hugged her.
"Nice seeing you little scratchers again," Nina replied genuinely.
"Nice seeing you, sis," spoke Ralph as he along with Buttons and their other siblings smiled at Nina.
"Ralph, Buttons, Itchy, Max… Cally." Nina turned to her older sister, who smiled at her.
"Hello, Nina," said Cally, whose left eye was missing with the faded scar over it. She was wearing a long pink dress. "I'm so glad that you're okay," she said kindly.
This warmed Nina's heart as she smiled at her sister. "Yeah, same to you too."
And so the Brookes and Fangs gathered in the dining room, with some of the younger kids like Scabrina and the twins at the kids' table.
"So what kind of work do you do, Leo?" Slasher asked him.
"Oh as a tribe leader, I'm just part of the reservation council," Leo responded. "I'm mostly in charge of events for us werecats to have! Even rope in the family to help!"
"Yeah, I would help write plays for the students to act out at our own small outdoor theater," Ralph said as he ate.
"Yeah, and I just sing for the shows," Cally replied.
"Sing? You must be talented," Calypso commented.
"Yeah, Cally's the best singer in the tribe." Pam said while patting Cally's head. "She's like our star child."
"Of course she is…" Buttons muttered dryly. "Right, Nina?"
"Um… I guess," Nina replied. The siblings knew that out of them, Cally was the favorite in their parents' eyes.
"Say dad, maybe you could offer Cally a record deal of some sort," Skara suggested, which surprised Cally and Nina.
"Yeah," Slasher said, nodding to his daughter's suggestion. "Cally, would you be interested in a singing career? We can make a single record for you."
"Oh, wow that's… a wonderful offer, sir." Cally replied.
"Cally, that's something you don't need right now," Leo told his daughter, shutting down the idea. "You still have to help out with the tribe. You know you can't just leave the reservation for some music career."
"But… I might be interested…" Cally said.
"Cally, listen to your father," Pam told her daughter. "Besides, we can't be as lucky as Mr. Brooke is."
This made Slasher feel awkward. "Um… I don't think I consider myself lucky…"
"Oh but you are, Slasher," Leo mentioned. "I mean, you have this wonderful home, a beautiful wife who's a Coven Head, and who could afford this thirty-inch silver mirror?" Leo pointed out.
"Yeah, you're the luckiest lycan in Bonesborough." Pam added.
"Well, I wouldn't call myself lucky," Slasher continued. "In fact, I know what your situation's like. I've been there before…"
"No, I don't think you do, Mr. Brooke," Leo told him while Nina noticed the contempt in his eyes despite her father's usual joyous smile. "You get to hide your shame, while we can't. You get to live comfortably amongst the witches and enjoy your status and the favors of the Emperor's Coven."
Slasher looked apologetic. "I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to come off as flaunting."
"Oh there's no need to apologize," Pam reassured him. "That's just the way things are."
The atmosphere was much more awkward after that conversation. Nina looked at her smiling parents and the awkward Brookes while her siblings looked on in silence.
"Ohohokay," Nina said, clearing her throat. "So um… you guys wanna know what Hexside's like?"
"Why yeah, how is Hexside, Nina?" Cally asked.
"And how does it compare to Glandus?" Buttons asked.
"Well it's less grimdark and medieval, and less toxic," Nina explained. "I mean, yeah as a Glandus transfer I haven't really won my classmates over, but you know, it's not that bad."
"And Nina is thinking about taking Bard as well, since she has shown how good at the drums she is!" Skara added.
"Oh, she did?" Pam asked. "Hope she wasn't too loud, used to wake up the whole reserve!"
"Yeah, I was feeling a little… nostalgic about it, well that and I just wanted to show off my music talents to Luz Clawthorne," Nina admitted, remembering how she used to play drums with Casey. "Say, you guys know Casey? How's he been?" The moment she asked that question, silence fell. "Guys? What… what happened to Casey?" Nina was getting worried. "Is he alright?"
"Nina… we don't know how to tell you this, but…" Ralph looked down.
"Casey's been missing for a few weeks now," Pam revealed.
Nina's eyes widened in shock. "What?! What do you mean he's missing?!" she demanded. "Why haven't I heard of this before?!"
"Word hasn't left the reservation," Cally confirmed sadly.
Nina looked very upset, which Skara noticed. "Nina, are you-"
"No, I am not!" Nina stood up. "Apparently Casey has been missing for just as long as Amity, Willow, Gus and Eve have been missing. Four witchlings go missing and everyone in the Isles hears about it! But a werecat goes missing and I don't hear about it for weeks! How the fuck can I be alright about it?!"
"Nina, don't worry about it," Pam told her daughter. "Look, if it makes you feel better, a lot of the werecats think that he may have just decided to run away like he always talked about."
"No, I'm not buying that." Nina told her. "If Casey had run away, he would have found some way to tell me. Hell, he could've located me anywhere in Bonesborough!"
"I was told about Casey before by Lady Purrsian." Calypso revealed. "She did consider the possibility of him running away, but she did think that there was a chance that he could have been kidnapped… or taken by the Tarot Guild."
Nina's eyes widened at this and she and Calypso shared a look.
"Well!" Leo cleared his throat. "Maybe we've already been negative enough as it is."
"Of course," Pam said in agreement while turning to the Brookes. "And we just want to thank you again for taking care of Nina. We're so glad that she's doing well."
"It's no problem," Slasher replied kindly. "Nina's been adjusting well."
"Glad we left her in good hands…" Pam responded.
Nina turned to Calypso again with a reluctant look. "So… Calypso, when do you think I might be allowed to return to the reservations?"
But before Calypso could respond, Leo cut in. "Oh it won't be necessary for you to return!"
Nina, her siblings and the Brookes looked at the Fangs parents. "What?" Nina asked in confusion.
Pam began to explain. "Well sweetie, it's just that… well, you've had such a hard time fitting in and staying out of trouble at the reservations and since the Brookes are doing such a good job taking care of you and with the triplets coming soon… it's best for everyone if you don't come back."
"Don't… come back?" Nina's eye twitched as she hit her paws on the table. "ARE YOU SHITTING ME?!" she yelled, startling everyone especially when she was shocked by her collar. "AAH!"
"Nina, calm down…" Ralph tried to say.
"No, I'm not calming down!" Nina shouted despite her collar shocking her. She gritted her teeth while glaring at her parents. "You know, I thought things could be different! I thought that after all the hurt I've been through, getting beaten, assaulted, and stabbed by those assholes at Glandus, you two would have realized how fucked I was there!"
"Nina…" Skara tried to reach out, but Slasher prevented her from doing so.
"I was hurting," Nina snarled at her parents. "And I was a child! But instead of helping me, you two sent me away to Glandus just so that I would be someone else's problem! Because rather than punish me yourselves, you sent me to Glandus to be punished instead since you're too weak to do it yourselves! And you are doing it again! Preferring to leave me as someone else's problem. Well sorry if I am inconvenient!"
"Honey…" Leo raised his hand up in fear as Nina just glared at him and Pam some more.
"Do you know that I overheard what you said that night?" Nina asked, her tone calm now. "That I wasn't normal…"
Her parents then decided to get up from the table. "Alright, I think this dinner's over," Leo said as he walked away, avoiding a confrontation.
"We're just gonna take our leave," Pam replied as she left with her husband. "Come on, kids, let's just go."
Nina's siblings all looked reluctant to leave. They were silent with their own thoughts while Nina looked at them. She sensed their reluctance and she sighed. "Nice seeing you, guys," she said as she walked out of the dinner room.
"I'll help escort her family back to the airship," Calypso said as she got up.
"Alright, we'll go talk to Nina," Slasher said as he and Skara went to find Nina.
Scabrina turned to West and Winter. "It was nice meeting you two. I hope we can be friends in the future."
"Yeah," Winter nodded. "We'd like to be friends with you too, Scabrina."
"Wish we stayed a lot longer," West said as Itchy and Max took the twins.
Slasher and Skara found Nina in her room, sulking. "Nina… do you want to talk?" Slasher asked her.
Nina was wiping away her tears, crossing her arms as she responded. "I was just fooling myself back there," she said with a scoff as she turned to them, showing her tear flooded eyes. "I-I thought that they would have come around, but… they're still the same." She sniffed, the emotional werecat in turmoil as she looked at Slasher.
"I'm so sorry, Nina," Slasher responded apologetically.
"No, it's just-" Nina tried to say as her voice shook. "I mean, who needs them? I can just… make my own tribe and maybe adopt some kids in need of a place, if I could. I… I'll show them that I can be a Head Witch, so they will regret not having me around." She tried to keep herself together. "How come they don't want me around?" She then lowered her head and cried as she started to have a breakdown.
Immediately, Slasher went up to hug Nina and comfort her. Skara did the same as the two hugged the teenage werecat. Nina was surprised by the action and she just… hugged them back.
"…I haven't spoken to my family since that dinner," Nina admitted while looking down. "And I've come to realize that I misjudged Slasher. Even though he isn't like a tough, badass werewolf and is instead kind of lame at times… he's the good kind of lame. He cares for me and doesn't treat me like a burden, which is more than I can say for my parents right now. He and Skara, they're both really trying."
The next day, Nina, Skara, Willow, Viney, Cat, Dusty, Bo, and Matt helped set up 'missing' posters of Casey Whiskabee.
"So what's Casey like?" Skara asked Nina, curious about her old friend.
"Well, he's a bit of an emo," Nina responded. "We used to go to the same reservation school together before I was expelled. We also used to hang out after school for a time after I had been transferred to Glandus. He's into indie music and we used to play our instruments together. I remember he tried to kiss me once."
"That must've been awkward," Skara said.
"Yeah, but I let him down gently," Nina replied while placing the poster up.
While they continued setting up posters, Skara spoke up. "So… how are you feeling right now? About the whole… Donna situation."
Nina stopped, looking down. "I… don't know how I could move on," she admitted. "I was obsessed with Donna for years and I don't even know a thing about dating. Like, I can't even ask a girl out on a date like a normal person, instead I leave dead things on their doorstep as gifts." She thought about it and shook her head. "It makes sense that Donna threw those away, no reason to keep them."
"Well, maybe I can help you," Skara offered. "Like, I could help you find a girl that you like. Do you have any preferences, like what kind of girls do you like?"
Nina thought about it before she turned to Nina. "Well… I do have a thing for healers…"
At Hexside, Nina was feeling nervous while walking back and forth. "I don't know if I can do this… what if it's too soon?" she asked Skara.
"Well, maybe it is, but Nina, I don't want you to keep feeling sorry for yourself about Donna," Skara admitted, patting Nina's back. "And since you have no dating experience, this would at the very least be a good learning experience for the future."
"You think so?" Nina asked her.
Skara nodded. "Hey, as your wing-witch, I'm here to help you put yourself out there. A way to help you move on from Donna. Besides, you're not asking someone to be your girlfriend or partner for life, it's just a date and even if it doesn't go anywhere serious, you can still have fun and sometimes that's all a date needs to be. Right now, you deserve a little fun."
"I… I think I understand," Nina replied with a nod as she took a deep breath. "Okay, here I go."
The werecat went down the hallway toward the girl that she intended to ask out… Lambi, who was at her locker.
Lambi noticed Nina. "Hey Nina," she said kindly.
"Hey, Lambi," Nina responded with a friendly smile. "So um… how's classes?"
"Oh it's pretty good. How are yours?" Lambi asked.
"Pretty much the usual," Nina responded before cutting to the chase. "Um, okay… I have a… question for you."
"What do you like to ask?" Lambi wanted to know while Nina did her best not to look nervous.
"Would you go out with me?" Nina asked, which surprised Lambi.
"Oh, that's surprising," Lambi admitted. "But… yes, I would like that."
"R-Really?" Nina asked while flustered.
"Sure, I think it would be nice. Do you have anything in mind?" Lambi asked her.
"Well, there is the Bonesborough Brawl," Nina suggested. "I'm not thinking of participating for… obvious reasons, but I was interested in watching and it would be nice to have someone with me."
"Then it's a date," Lambi accepted with a smile as they heard the bell ring. "I'll see you later, Nina!" she said while heading to class.
"Yeah, later!" Nina replied as she waved. She then leaned back on the locker, feeling numb with relief. She looked back at Skara, who gave her a thumbs up.
"I haven't forgotten how kind Lambi was to me at the temple," Nina replied with a smile. "She made me feel more… comfortable. I do want to get to know her better and this date will hopefully give me a chance. And afterward… we'll see where things go."
"How are you feeling about it?" Julia asked her.
"Anxious," Nina admitted. "It's going to be like, my first real date… ever! But I'm also optimistic that this will go without a hitch!"
"Congratulations on this bold step forward, Nina," Julia said.
"Thanks, Ms. T," Nina responded. "Though, there is still one thing that I am worried about…"
Nina walked down an alleyway, where she spotted someone waiting for her.
"I… got your message," Nina said to… Sonya.
"Were you followed?" Sonya asked her.
"No, it is just me," Nina responded.
"I'm… sorry that you didn't hear from me earlier," Sonya said while walking close to Nina. "I had to lay low for a bit."
"I know," Nina replied, stepping back a little. "I've heard… the Tarot Guild has been busy lately."
Sonya looked at the werecat in concern. "Nina, how are you doing-"
"Cut the crap, Sonya," Nina coldly snapped at her, glaring at Sonya while brushing off her advances. "While I knew that you were involved with illegal shit… you never told me that you were a part of a trafficking ring!"
Sonya looked surprised at the werecat's coldness towards her. "Nina, let me explain-"
"I don't want to hear it!" Nina shouted at her. "Bo, Eve, Amity, Willow, Gus… my classmates, Skara's friends and girlfriend were victims of the Tarot Guild!"
"But we have nothing to do with their disappearances, honestly." Sonya said but Nina wasn't having it.
"What about Casey Whiskabee?" Nina demanded. "Did the Tarot Guild take him as well?!"
"S-Sonya, you have no idea what you're talking about… this is just a misunderstanding," Sonya claimed, seeing Nina's anger as she noticed her collar. "Wait… shouldn't you get shocked by that collar?"
Nina gave Sonya a smirk. "Well… about being followed." Suddenly appearing out of thin air was Calypso, along with the coven scouts who appeared on each side of the alleyway, blocking Sonya's exit.
"Dr. Sonya Mera, you're under arrest for illegal experimentation, trafficking, child endangerment, etc." Calypso said while a snake appeared around her arm, ready to attack. "Come with us quietly."
Sonya backed away. "No…" She turned to Nina. "You set me up! Why?!"
"Something I should've done a long time ago," Nina told her.
"Then you won't take me!" Sonya blasted a flashing light, blinding the guards. She kicked Nina into the approaching scouts and guards while running past them.
Sonya rushed out of the alley while thinking of how to get out of this town… only to get jumped and pinned down by a pair of talons. "AAH!" she screamed before her face was slammed into the ground, knocking her out.
"So you must be Emily's bitchy sister," Luz commented while Calypso and the scouts rushed over.
"Thank you Luz, for helping us out," Calypso told her.
"Hey, figured that you guys might need some of my invisibility glyphs," Luz said while looking down on Sonya. "And anything to take down one of the Tarot Guild's cronies."
Nina looked at Julia as she explained. "I told Calypso everything after the Tarot Guild was busted by Eda the Owl Lady, Skara's friend Bo was rescued, and details about the extent of their trafficking operation became known. It made me realize that Sonya must have known as well." A look of disgust was evident on her ace. "I never knew what kind of shit she and Emily were in up until that point, none of Glandus knew. When I told Calypso about it, I promised to let her know if Sonya ever reached out to me again. Luz was more than happy to help out, especially when I told her about the connection to Emily."
"You did the right thing, Nina," Julia told her. "Especially since based on what you've told me about Sonya, it sounded like she may have been grooming you."
"Yeah, I never realized it until I was told that the things she did to me was inappropriate," Nina said while looking down, guilt on her face.
"There have been a lot of kids your age and even adults that have been in similar situations like yours before, Nina. It's not your fault for being groomed, Sonya manipulated and used you for her own selfish gain. But it's a good thing that you escaped from her."
"Yeah… though, she's still a threat…"
While inside the coven wagon, Sonya was in chains until she heard the wagon come to a stop. She heard some grunts and screams before seeing the doors being ripped opened… by Lupe.
"Early bail," Lupe said as he freed Sonya.
"Sonya is still at large, so I have to watch out for her," Nina explained. "But I don't think Sonya would risk coming after me anytime soon, especially since the Emperor's Coven now knows her face and name. And not to mention that Casey is still missing…"
"It has been a rough week for you, Nina," Julia commented.
"Yeah," Nina agreed. "Though, despite everything… I do feel more comfortable with the Brookes now than I did before. I… know that I don't really deserve any of this. I should be rotting away in the Conformatorium and when I accepted a parole to save my own skin, I just played along while not really appreciating the fact that I had been given a second chance. But now… I can't pretend like I'm not grateful, not anymore." She thought of Skara and Slasher, of the compassion they had shown her. "Not after everything that has happened. I do actually want to use my second chance to be better."
"You're going in the right direction then," Julia said as she reached for something. "Nina, I want to give you something that will help you as you move forward…"
Nina saw what Julia had pulled out. It was a box and when Julia opened the box, Nina's eyes widened. "Is that…?"
"A Palisman," Julia confirmed while showing a small, red shishi Palisman with a pink, swirling mane and tail. "This one has been looking for an owner for quite some time, so I think he'll be good for you as an emotional support and therapy Palisman." She brought the shishi Palisman up to Nina, handing him to her.
"Um… thanks, Ms. T," Nina responded as the shishi looked up to her. "Does he… have a name?"
"He doesn't, but he wishes for one," Julia said.
Nina looked at the shishi. "For a long time I have desired to be a Beast-Keeping Head, to make the lives of other lycans better. But lately, I haven't been giving my kind the best image… so right now, I just want to start making the right choices. I don't want to be the girl I was then, cause right now I want to move forward… and gain my independence." She looked at her Palisman, raising it up closely. "I wish to give you the name… Tugs. How do you like it?"
The shishi looked excited as he licked Nina's nose, making her laugh.
"Then Tugs it is," Nina said to her Palisman.
Nina went over to Lambi's apartment, wearing her casual clothes. It consisted of a black t-shirt with red fangs print, a black skirt that reached to her knees, and ripped gray toeless leggings.
Lambi came out while wearing a white dress with a purple ribbon waistband, pink leggings, and white flats. "Hey Nina, I'm glad that you're here."
"Yeah, and um... you look pretty in that dress," Nina commented which made Lambi blush.
"Thanks, and I like your look too," Lambi said. "So, shall we go?"
"Yeah," Nina responded with a smile as she and Lambi headed off to go on their date to the Bonesborough Brawl.
Seeing Lambi holding as they went, Nina found herself smiling. Because right now, with her, Nina felt… at peace.
Okay, so, this chapter… may be the most fucked up we ever written.
First thing to mention now, the Bonesborough Brawl won't happened in the next episode. The events of this chapter and the next few will overlap with each other. Originally, we had a lot of ideas for Nina's arc, but rather than split them so they're scattered across a bunch of chapters, we decided to have one chapter focus on everyone's favorite werecat with the framing device being Nina speaking to Julia.
This chapter explores some heavy and sensitive topics around Nina, such as her having dissociation, which as Julia explains it, is the feeling of being detach from the environment and the people around you. Hence why Nina is prone to see everything as shapes. This has been taken some liberties inspired by the game Night in the Woods, especially basing the new OC, Casey Whiskabee, based off of Casey Hartley from the game.
We've also explored the other topic that came with the trigger warning, that is: grooming. Now, a lot of you are familiar with it up to now, but here's to clarify in the case for this chapter and Nina's situation: grooming doesn't just mean forming a relationship with a minor with the intention of pulling an R. Kelly on them. In this instance, it means that Sonya formed a relationship with Nina in order to convince her to illegally experiment on her.
And of course, the Fangs. Specifically, Nina's parents. We know that at the beginning, some of you thought "Oh I'm sure that Nina's parents will come around"… J. Jonah Jameson is laughing at you right now. Leo and Pam Fangs are pretty much the stepford smilers with self-loathing issues that they project onto Nina. Those two are absolutely spineless cowardly asshats to the point where they bailed on dinner to avoid confrontation. Their treatment towards Nina is the fact that since she's an athiest who's prone to blackouts, they consider her the unfavorite.
They make Helga Pataki's parents look better in comparison. Hence why the title of the chapter is a reference to one of the greatest Hey Arnold episodes.
Now let's talk about Nina herself. Originally, she was just going to be a Glandus antagonist. Like a story arc enemy the heroes face off and she would have been sent to the Conformatorium at the end of the arc. But because of the readers are interested in her, and her relationship with Skara, and because we enjoyed writing her, we've decided to have her stick around after the Glandus War in order to continue developing her character. And now… this chapter has pretty much cemented her as a part of the main cast, especially since she's going to have a large role in future storylines.
Also to talk about is Nina going on a date with Lambi, as well as the fallout between her and Donna. It wasn't really planned out at first, as we do consider Nina and Donna going to get together at some point. But then I asks the question "does Nina have a soft spot for Healers?" which brought Buck the idea of Nina actually dating someone else than Donna. So yeah, that's how Lambi came in, as someone that Nina could go on a date with. Part of the reason is that Buck wanted to subvert single-target sexuality, which is when someone is attracted to only one person. Buck thought Donna rejecting Nina could lead to some interesting storylines for them both. He thought it would be more interesting if Nina and Donna's storyline wasn't as straight forward as "they talk and get together". That would be more interesting if their relationship arc was more complicated and messy, especially in contrast to the other romantic arcs in LC.
It's also probably the more realistic, especially considering how little screentime Donna and Nina actually shared in the present day due to them drifting apart, all the awful things Nina has done, and the fact that we have never made it clear whether Donna has romantic feelings for Nina or not.
OC discussion:
-Cally Fangs is the nice sister of Nina, a year older, and if Nina's hypothetical VA is AJ, than Cally's would be Aly, as a way to reference to Aly and AJ back when they had a short music career. Cally is basically like the Olga to Nina's Helga.
-Mr. Fierce is Glandus's Beast Keeping teacher before Ms. Heinous succeeded him. What happened to him? Let's just say Professor Serkis wasn't kind to him at that one teacher's lounge.
-Silas Hissenger is an expy of Tung Lashor, a villain from She-Ra and the Princesses of Power and the Masters of the Universe franchise.
-Cana and Bela are Total Drama expies of Amy and Samey(aka Sammy) as shown that Cana, like Amy, is the more abusive twin to their fellow twin sister.
-Honestly, when I look at Night of the Woods' Casey's missing poster, I assumed he was a black cat until realizing he's orange. Casey Whiskabee is a black cat for that reason, which also double downs on the metaphor…
-The green bloodhound biped is definitely a Muttly reference.
-Cheer Squad introduced, such as Andrea Pinkjoy who's an expy of Pinkie Pie.
-Tamme Wishbone is pretty much the intense cheer-captain. Like imagine in those sports movies there's always this harden coach, Tamme would be that kind of coach and captain of the Hexside Cheer Squad.
-Mao Purrsian's official appearance is here, as she's in the Healing Coven along with being leader of the werecats.
-Jageera Kipling is a take on a mixture of Bahgeera, Pantho from Thundercats, and T'Challa. His last name is a shout out to Rudyard Kipling, the writer of The Jungle Book. He's from the Construction Coven.
-Clockwork Cab is a parody of Jaga, the wise mentor of Lion-O from Thundercats.
-The call out lines Mao gave to Nina were direct reference from Stakar Ogord to Yondu from Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2.
-"Here Comes A Thought" was a song from Steven Universe to use for Nina, along with Slasher as a duet.
-And of course, Nina's line at the end of the dinner scene is a direct reference to the famous tearjerker moment from "Fresh Prince of Bel-Air" with Will asking Uncle Phil the famous line "How come he don't want me, man?" follow up to the iconic hug.
Now for the reviews:
Crosshot: You may be right, as Nina does have a thing for nurses…
Shuffollower: Pretty much what Donna says to Nina who doesn't deny them. Cat picked bard after showing her compassion for it, illusions to help pick a hairstyle, potions to make good hair conditioner, and plants for when using organic herbs for hair care. Nina's jabs at Emira and Viney will be revealed soon, she just know something between them..
OMAC001: No comments
arsenal: That would lose the purpose, honestly.
Matteso: 1) As you see here, he doesn't bother. 2) Yup. 3) We never did. 4) Yeah, and Nina shows no entitlement about it.
Franco Almiron: Actually it was from an animatic Buck suggest.
61394: Stay tuned.
Ultimate-drax: Thanks
Next chapter, a very special Donna episode…
