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ask-marcus-cally-and-ari · 3 years

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Only Human

Chapter 15: Ride or Die

The trio had been allowed to wander while the Freaks discussed their next plan. Marcus, for his part, went looking for a cot or a bed. “I’m so f*cking tired.”

“We have a few spare beds in the medical ward,” a nearby intern piped up, looking up as Marcus passed her desk.

“Thanks.”

“My nephew talks about you a lot,” the intern added. “Jackie Ruez?”

“Our small forward. Nice guy,” Marcus smiled, sitting down. “I remember he didn’t know much English when he first started.”

“You and your friends tutored him, right?”

“That was all Cal. I just taught him basketball and Ari taught him how to paint.”

“He’s been painting a lot these days. “He went through 10 packs of watercolors in just three months.”

Marcus chuckled. “I remember swapping his acrylics with finger paint as a joke. He chased me all through school that day. I probably deserved it.”

“So that’s why he came home with paint all over his hands.”

“I had to wash my hair for an hour to get it all out.” Marcus smiled, and then sighed, a look of tiredness no teenager should have had on his face.. “...look, can you just... just tell him I’m okay?”

“Of course.”

“The last time I got in trouble, it was some kids from a nearby school who jumped me. My teammates tracked down each one, took some bats and metal pipes, and put them all in the hospital. In one night. I don’t want them doing anything like that now. They could get hurt, and on my mama, I bet those *ssholes would turn them just to f*ck with me.”

“You know, if you wanted you could ask Colonel Dyson to put them under HECU Protection. It’s like Witness Protection, just with a lot more security.”

“Yeah, I’d like that.”

The intern nodded and picked up the nearby phone. “Do you want to call him yourself or do you want me to put in the request?”

“I’d like you to do it. I want to call my team.”

“There’s a phone in the break room over there.” The intern gestured down the hall to Marcus’ right.

“Thanks.”

---

“Man, this sucks! Marcus is who-knows-where being hunted and we can’t do sh*t to help!”

A young teen, no more than 14, grumbled sourly to himself while kicking over a box of wood chips in an abandoned warehouse. Another kid, a few years older than him, looked up from their phone.

“I got a lead a few hours ago. From what I can gather, it looks like he was heading to HECU Headquarters. I don’t know if they’ve made it there yet, though.”

“What can we do? These are, like, supervillains! And we’re just teenagers!”

“We could track them. Cally has a bunch of brainiac friends. Get them together and have them start looking for those *ssholes,” a tall boy, likely 17, suggested.

“Maybe we should get some of Ari’s friends, too,” another kid added.

“Yeah. The more, the better.”

The kid with the phone sat up and started briskly typing away. “Guys, you’re not gonna believe this, but it looks like Marcus has some Freaks of his own. You guys know Spyper and Intelligent Heavy, right?”

“I think so. Didn’t Spyper get his head chopped off and put on someone else’s body?”

“Yeah, he got his body swapped around with Sny.”

“Hey, Wilson. Start finding more good Freaks. The more join up, the more chance Marcus has of getting through this. Have the brainiacs help.”

“I think Marcus is way ahead of us. I found some security footage of the road outside HECU Headquarters and just take a look at who’s with him.” Wilson showed the other kids the footage, where a handful of Freaks accompanied the Trio inside, including Count Jester.

“He got the clown with him?” a younger kid piped up.

“Apparently. Now all he needs is us-”

Ring! Ring!

“Huh? My phone!”

“Who is it, Jackie?”

“Unknown Number. Should I answer it?”

“Answer it, but don’t say anything. If it’s spam, they’ll hang up if they don’t hear anything.”

Jackie did. “Hello?”

“Jackie? It’s Marcus. Are you okay?”

“Marcus!” Jackie gasped. “Are you in HECU? We’ve been looking all over for you!”

“Yeah, I’m at HECU. Your aunt says hi.”

“Aw. How long have you been at HECU?”

“Jester teleported us here about an hour ago. Apparently they were tricked into holding us for the guy who wants to kill us, but that’s been sorted out, and they gave me a pet, so we’re cool now.”

“...I’m sorry, what?”

“Yeah, everyone trying to kill us is working for one dude.”

“Yeah that doesn’t sound bad at all,” Jackie winced.

“Tell me about it. Anyway. I’m calling to ask you not to do something stupid.”

“Whaaaat? Psh, nah, we’re not gonna do anything stupid. Right, guys?” Jackie said with a snide grin, winking at the rest of his team.

“You worry too much, Quinn. Chill.”

“Yeah. Rest easy, we’re not gonna pull some sh*t.”

“Alright. Stay safe out there. And don’t go near any emo Snipers you see.”

“Sure thing, man.”

Jackie hung up, still grinning. “So. Who’s ready to hunt an emo Sniper?’

“I’ll get the others. Viktor. Does your family still have all those weapons?”

“Yeah. Which ones do we need?”

“As many as you can get. Especially long-range. We did tell Marcus that we wouldn’t approach the f*cker, so sniping is the way to go.”

“There’s nothing quite like exploiting a loophole,” Viktor grinned, heading out of the warehouse.

The other boy nodded and dialed a number. “Hey, Olga? Gather the brainiacs. We know where Marcus, Cally, and Ari are.”

“Wait, really!?”

“Yeah. A buncha Freaks are trying to kill them.”

“WHAT!?”

“Yeah. Apparently”

“Holy sh*t... Alright, what do you need help with?”

“Hacking. We need you to track down as many Freaks as you can.”

“On it.”

“And get Ari’s friends. We need numbers.”

“Gotcha.”

Hanging up that call felt heavy, like the life-changing moment it would be for everyone involved.

“Should we have anyone over at HECU to keep an eye on Marcus?”

“No. Then they’d know what we’re doing and try to stop us. We gotta stay off the radar. Wear masks. Disguise our voices. Make sure nobody can identify us.”

“I had a feeling we’d need these!” another kid shouted from the bottom of the warehouse, pulling along a rack of all black disguises.

“Hey, you’re the theater kid, right? I knew you were useful for something.”

“Yep! I had these costumes ready for awhile but we never needed them. UNTIL NOW!”

“Awesome. Guys, get home. We’ll meet back here tonight.”

“Alright. Nobody die overnight!”

“Don’t jinx it.”

The theater kid knocked on the side of the warehouse on their way out.

---

“Thank you all for coming. As you know, a bunch of superpowered *ssholes have decided to kill our friends, and we, the students of Dade City High, cannot allow this to happen.”

As the student body president spoke, Viktor handed weapons to everyone in attendance.

“You are being given weapons now. If you do not know how to use them, Viktor will teach you on the way.”

“What’s the current plan of attack?” A younger student piped up among the crowd.

“We go to HECU. Its location is confidential, but our hackers have found it. We also have a van we stole from a junkyard and fixed to be our ride. You know, to make it harder to track.”

“How are we all gonna fit in one van?” Another student called from the back of the crowd.

“Like sardines.��

“Also, I have a trailer. We can use that for training and extra space,” added a rich kid.

“Couldn’t we just use an old school bus?” One of the engineering students pondered. “Wouldn’t take much to jumpstart it, and nobody would be suspicious of a school bus going through Evo City.”

“From Dade City? That’s two states away,” put in a chess club student.

“What about an activity bus? It’s not uncommon for students to go on field trips that take them across state lines,” another engineering student added.

“That works. You two go steal it. We can take both.”

The engineering students nodded and gathered up their bags before leaving for the school’s parking lot, their bags clinking with metal on the way out.

“Did everyone pack some clothes and supplies?”

“Yeah, but why not electronics?”

The rich kid spoke up again. “I got a cheap phone plan. Everyone gets a phone. This way our parents can’t track us.”

“And they can’t be tracked by anyone else, can they?” a skeptical student inqueried, looking their phone over.

“I was kinda hoping you tech whiz guys could take care of that,” the rich kid replied sheepishly.

The small group of tech students all glanced at each other before sharing a collective nod. “Give us 10 minutes.”

“Good.”

“What do we do once at HECU?”

“Find out where our friends are. By force if necessary.”

“And if any hostile Freaks show up while we’re doing that?”

“Why do you think I’m giving you weapons?” Viktor deadpanned, holding up his own gun.

“Ask a stupid question,” the class clown teased.

“I mean like, one of the really bad ones. Like Painis. I don’t even think our weapons would work against him.”

“Probably run. Or run him over.”

“Let’s pray that Freaks like Nightmare Medic or HOOVYDUNDY aren’t part of this whole thing.”

“Hmm... hey, I just remembered. I have an aunt that works at HECU.”

“Uh... who are you?” the student body president asked.

“Melissa James.”

“Oh no,” the student body gasped in unison.

“...is that bad?”

“Are... are you related to Anita James, by any chance?”

“Yeah! That’s my aunt! She taught me how to build bombs. And tasers.”

“Holy sh*t! You’re related to a mad scientist! THE mad scientist!”

“Yeah, she’s a bit... eccentric. But the point is, she could be our in. And get us better weapons when we get there.”

“Isn’t she under constant surveillance though? I heard she blew up HECU twice in the last three months. That’s not something you just leave unmonitored.”

“In the same three months, she built a weapon that can level cities, a teleportation device, an army of attack microbots, and a shield generator. We could use those against stronger Freaks.”

“Would she even let us use them?”

“She’s a mad scientist who needs her weapons tested, and I hear her boss won’t let her give them to HECU soldiers. I’m not worried.”

“Well…”

“What choice do we have, Todd? Do you want them to kill Ari? Or Marcus? Or Cally? We’re desperate, and beggars can’t be choosers.”

The student sighed. “Alright. Give her a call.”

---

RING! RING!

“Hello?”

“Hey, Aunt Anita.”

“Oh! Hi, Melissa! How are you?”

“Not good. My friends are in danger. I think you may have seen them. Marcus, Cally, and Ari?”

Anita paused, lifting her pen off her notepad. “...yes, they just came in earlier today.”

“Some friends and I are coming to help him out, and we were wondering about using your weapons to do it.”

“Hmm... Come around the back of HECU. I’ll keep the door unlocked for you.”

“Heh... thanks, Aunt Anita. Also, could you maybe not tell those three about this? We told Marcus we wouldn’t do anything crazy, and if he finds out we’re doing this, we’re gonna get our *sses kicked.”

“My lips are sealed.”

“Thanks.”

There was a nod, and Anita, the mad doctor who sent people running with a smile and a wave, hung up.

#only human #breather chapter #freak fortress #tf2 freaks #TF2 #dr. anita james #mad scientist

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dragonsofwyrmroost · 4 years

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Fablehaven Characters' Mini Playlists

Kendra:

- Somebody to Love by Queen

- Lost Boy by Ruth B

- The Fighter by Gym Class Heroes ft. Ryan Tedder

- I Hope by Gabby Barrett

- Can't Help Falling in Love by Haley Rhienhart

Newel & Doren:

- Who Do You Want to Be by Onigo Bonigo

- House of Gold by Twenty One Pilots

- Float On by Modest Mouse

- American Pie by Don McLean

- We Are the Champions by Queen

Vanessa:

- She's So Mean by Matchbox Twenty

- Seven Nation Army by The White Stripes

- Electric Love by BORNS

- Teeth by 5 Seconds of Summer

- Never Be The Same by Camila Cabello

Dale:

- Life is a Highway by Tom Cochrane

- This City by Sam Fischer

- Leave a Light On by Tom Walker (acoustic)

- Brother by Kodaline

- The Cave by Mumford and Sons

Seth:

- Complicated by Avril Lavigne

- All These Things I've Done by The Killers

- Geronimo by Shepherd

- Kings of Summer by Ayokay ft. Quinn XCII

- Monster by Imagine Dragons

Warren:

- This is What it Feels Like by Armin van Buren

- I Just Wanna Shine by Fitz and the Tantrums

- Bad Day by Daniel Power

- Second Chance by Shinedown

- I Want It That Way by The Backstreet Boys (just picture that scene from Brooklyn Nine-Nine)

Knox:

- Cool by The Jonas Brothers

- I Wanna Get Better by The Bleachers

- Weak by AJR

- Ain't It Fun by Paramore

- I Love It by Icona Pop

Ronodin:

- Back in Black by ACDC

- The Walker by Fitz and the Tantrums

- Ain't No Rest for the Wicked by Cage the Elephant

- Prayer of the Refugee by Rise Against

- My House by Flo Rida

Patton:

- To Show You My Love by Mike Schmid

- Stone's Throw by the National Parks

- Should I Stay or Should I Go by The Clash

- Best I Ever Had by Gavin DeGraw

- 99 Red Balloons by Lenka

Sphynx:

- No One Lives Forever by Onigo Bonigo

- Forever Young by Alphaville

- Renegade by Styx

- Human by Ragnbone Man

- Mad World by Tears for Fears

Bracken:

- Trojans by Atlas Genius

- Hello My Old Heart by The Oh Hellos

- Beautiful Day by U2

- From Now On by Hugh Jackman

- Hold Back the River by James Bay

Tanu:

- Have You Ever Seen The Rain? By CCR

- One Day by Matisyahu

- I Lived by One Republic

- Hopeless Wanderer by Mumford and Sons

- Try Everything by Shakira

Tess:

- Rockstar by A Great Big World

- Holding out for a Hero by Bonnie Tyler

- People Like Us by Kelly Clarkson

- New Soul by Yael Naim

- The Show by Lenka

Stan & Ruth:

- Safe and Sound by Capital Cities

- Enemy by Days of the New

- Broken Ones by Día Frampton

- Home by Machine Gun Kelly

- That's Life by Frank Sinatra

Lena:

- Wild Child by Enya

- Ocean Eyes by Billie Ellish

- The Scientist by Coldplay

- Between the Raindrops by Lifehouse

- Little Talks by Of Monsters and Men

Coulter:

- My Heart So Blue by Erasure

- Hurt by Johny Cash

- The Catalyst by Lincoln Park

- Swing Life Away by Rise Against

- Come Along by Titiyo

Raxtus:

- We Could Be Heroes by Alesso

- High Hopes by Panic at the Disco

- When I'm Gone by Three Doors Down

- Somebody That I Used to Know by Gotye

- Titanium by David Guetta

Calvin:

- There Goes My Hero by Foo Fighters

- Best I Can by Queensryche

- Hey There Delilah by Plain White Tees

- Keep Your Head Up by Andy Grammer

- Anna Sun by Walk The Moon

#fablehaven #dragonwatch #brandon mull #fablehaven playlist #sorry this took so long #more to come

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simplylove101 · 3 years

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2020 Horror Challenge: [34/?]

↳ “There was something at work in my soul which I do not understand.”

“And what of my soul? Do I have one? Or was that a part you left out?” Mary Shelley's Frankenstein (1994) dir. Kenneth Branagh

Plot: When the brilliant but unorthodox scientist Dr. Victor Frankenstein rejects the artificial man that he has created, the Creature escapes and later swears revenge.

Starring: Robert De Niro, Kenneth Branagh, Tom Hulce, Helena Bonham Carter, Ian Holm, John Cleese & Aidan Quinn

Finally, a movie that was not an intentional hate watch for me today! Yay lol Cuz as fun as that was (or at least was for one of those haha), it’s nice to watch a movie that you intend to enjoy. And you know what? Overall, I did. I sometimes have mixed feelings with Kenneth Branagh, because it feels like he tries so hard to be a modern day Laurence Olivier and I guess it works for him most of the time. Here it does, for the most part. He plays Frankenstein in the way that you would hope to expect - frantic and passionate and teetering his way towards madness. The man loves his dramatics. lol De Niro as The Creature may seem an unexpected choice with him surrounded by all these English actors, but it works for me. He does a fine job making you feel for him while also making us fear him. I feel like Helena Bonham Carter was kinda just mostly there as a plot device BUT the woman did a lovely job with what she was given as always. I’m not surprised to hear that Kenneth Branagh fell in love with her while making this. Also, both of her death scenes were highly memorable so that’s a plus. It feels a little long imo, coming at about 2 hours, but I will say Branagh was certainly making good use of it by being maybe the most faithful adaptation to Mary Shelley’s novel, despite any of the changes that he made to the story. It is interesting to hear that both the screenplay writer and producer Francis Ford Coppola both denounced the movie. I think I can get why, but I don’t think it’s a bad movie. For me, the pacing of it was definitely too fast for maybe the first 20 minutes or so. I was like “Can he slow this thing down a bit?” Lol, but once the story settles a bit, I think we do manage to see some more subtle, quieter moments like they wanted. It’s not a perfect film imo. It’s def not my favorite Frankenstein movie (The original is great & my love for Young Frankenstein is infinite) but it is certainly a good movie in my book. So, successful watch methinks!!

#mary shelly's frankenstein #horrorchallenge2020

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immysticalgarbage · 4 years

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Master of Fear and Man of No Fear

~(Me crying like a bitch when Scarecrow got killed in the final episode of Harley Quinn.)~

So far, throughout my blog, I have been posting Bane and Scarecrow stuff. I've shipped these two for a very long time and I will explain why.

Now, most would ship Scarecrow with Riddler or Mad Hatter, but despite their intellect, I don't see it working. Nygma is an egotistical megalomaniac that would annoy Jonathan and Tech...I rather not go down that rabbit hole...again. But you can ship whoever you want, just have common sense about it. I do view Crane and Tech being acquaintances ever since The Animated Series and Gotham. Just my opinion.

There is just this psychological aspect to Bane and Crane as a couple. Yeah, neither of them are lovey dovey bachelors, but they have something beneficial for one another. And let me get this out of the way immediately as possible, the relationship isn't full on romantic or sexual. Be real, Scarecrow isn't very romantic and he'll die if he sleeps with Bane. These complete opposites can possibly aid one another to make them more like human beings than just evil masked men.

I view Scarecrow as this tired scientist with anxiety on a rollercoaster in a downward spiral to mental and emotional suicide. His OCD worsened that makes him only care about his research. His work is the only motivating factor in his life and nothing more. His obsession to improve his toxin and wanting to destroy whatever symbolism and hope the Batman legacy stands for. This and his anxiety exacerbated to the point he won't eat or sleep. Just this emotionless doll with nothing else on the mind. Crane would only leave his office to get coffee and wash up before returning to research and failed plans that would only stress him out more. This behavior doesn't make him human despite what's behind the rags. A man beaten emotionally and physically, to only get back up just to continue his work. There's nothing wrong with improvement and learning from mistakes, but what Crane is doing is unhealthy. He has his moments of being sarcastic and spiteful. An example is putting on a British accent to spite Penguin after the whole Scarebeast situation. Overall, he isn't very emotional and hardly displays any besides exhausted or displeasure. He's not very social and takes most things too seriously. Even when people offer help to him, he would decline, and explain that there's no point in aiding him when it's either a distraction or not to be pitied.

Now comes Bane. I do not think of him as a moronic musclehead. He is a brawn and brain threat. I see this Bane as setting aside wanting to take over Gotham and trying to explore humanity as a whole. He may be brutish, but when he was in Peña Dura, there was this spark of innocence he carried in the form of his teddy bear Osito. Bane has a consciousness and isn't all about wanting to destroy and ruling Gotham. His mind started to change after seeing the innocence of Gotham and their struggles. A major goal of his is to put an end to his venom addiction.

The relationship itself is a bit complexed as to why would they ever be together. Originally, Scarecrow accepted Bane's assistance in order to use his venom for his fear toxin and get into the mind of one who hardly displays any form of fear. So Crane was being a bit manipulative at first until after realizing Bane shows genuine concern over the once respected doctor. He wants to get Crane out of his melancholic slump. Jonathan humored Bane in the beginning, assuming he would fail at his attempt, but he was wrong. So many years of never given any shred of affection, Crane gotten a bit softer, letting Bane continue his progress to help him while trying to help Bane kick off venom for good. They assist each other in ending their bad habits despite the complications.

Their relationship may seem cute on the outside, but there are scary times. Bane going into violent fits from withdrawal and Scarecrow having to face nightmares of his past that make him doubt every ounce of progress him and Bane made. These nightmares would hinder and push back Jonathan's effort, making him return to his stressed out state.

But progress isn't immediate.

#DC #Bane #Scarecrow #BraneShip #myart #gay #cryinglikeabitch #Mystic #banecrow

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krizaland · 5 years

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Romance isn’t very scientific Chapter 1 (Invader Zim Fic inspired by guilty-as-battery-charged)

So I was really inspired by this post by @guilty-as-battery-charged.

This was a really fun concept to work with!

Ms. Quinn belongs to @guilty-as-battery-charged

The Skool classroom was alive with the sounds of chatty students. Amongst the chatter was the sound of Zim electrocuting another student with one of his Irken gadgets. Of course, the students were none the wiser and continued to mill about. All except Dib of course.

Dib desperately tried to get the attention of his classmates but was met with insults and laughter. Zim giggled as he continued to torment his victim.

“Why do I even bother?” Dib sighed as he slumped down in his seat.

“Alright, settle down class!” Ms. Bitters barked as she slithered to her desk.

The students obeyed and the classroom went quiet. Zim quickly his ‘experiment’ under his desk and begun to twiddle his thumbs in an attempt to seem inconspicuous.

“In an attempt to enrich brats like you, the skool has hired a new English and Drama teacher.” Ms. Bitters grumbled as she gestured to the doorway.

The door opened to reveal a refined, sharply dressed woman with a book tucked between her arms. Her perfectly styled pixie cut complemented her fashionable yet functional glasses. Her button up blouse and pencil skirt were not only stylish but perfectly pressed. There wasn’t a single wrinkle in sight.

“Good Morning. My name is Ms. Quinn.” Ms. Quinn announced as she walked into the classroom.

“Alright, they’re your problem until lunch.” Ms. Bitters grunted as she slithered into the darkness.

“Ok then...Anyway, let’s get started with today’s lesson, shall we?” Ms. Quinn mused as she held up her book.

“Can anyone tell me what book this is?” Ms. Quinn inquired as if everyone should know the answer.

Dib’s hand shot up and wove around in the air.

“Yes, young man?”

“That’s Frankenstein right?” Dib asked nervously.

“Correct! This book is indeed Frankenstein by Mary Shelly. Can anyone tell me what it’s about?” Ms. Quinn inquired as she scoped out the classroom.

In an attempt to upstage Dib, Zim jumped onto his desk and flailed his arms in the air.

“Yes, strange green boy?”

“Frankenstein is about...um... A sad chicken man! Who eats rubber pants!” Zim stuttered as he sat back down.

“What? Goodness no! Nothing could be further from the truth!” Ms. Quinn grimaced as her eyes searched for another student.

Dib stifled a laugh as he rose his hand again.

“Ah you again! Maybe you know the right answer.”

“Frankenstein isn’t about a sad chicken man, Zim. It’s about a mad scientist who builds an evil monster out of corpse pieces.” Dib stated flatly.

“Also incorrect!” Ms.Quinn announced as she shook her head.

“While it is true that the book is about a mad scientist, the monster he creates is not evil but misunderstood!” Ms.Quinn corrected as she hugged the book for a moment.

“That’s typical Dib stink for you! He’s aways judging people! And spreading LIES!” Zim rambled as he twirled his wrist.

Dib shot Zim a glare but before he could open his mouth, Ms. Quinn stepped in.

“If you have something to say then you need to raise your hand.” Ms. Quinn reminded.

Dib snickered for a moment before quickly regaining his composure. As much as he enjoyed laughing at Zim, Dib didn’t want to get on another teacher’s bad side.

As the lesson went on, the students couldn’t have been more engaged! Ms. Quinn was one of the first teachers to actually make skool fun! Even Zim seemed invested in Ms. Quinn’s teachings. However, no one was more enthralled with Ms. Quinn than Dib. She was so intelligent and fun!

“Anyway, The reason why I’m brining Frankenstein to your attention is because the skool has given us permission to put on a play about it!” Ms. Quinn explained cheerfully.

The classroom murmured for a few moments before erupting into cheers and excited squeals.

“A play? Hm. Perhaps I can use this to my advantage.” Zim muttered to himself as he stroked his chin.

“Please come up to my desk to sign up for a part you’d like. I’ll choose the lucky students tomorrow.” Ms. Quinn instructed as she gestured to her desk.

One by one, each kid signed up for a role. Zim quickly scribbled his name down before rushing to his seat. Dib shot Zim a glare before writing his name down.

BRRRING!!

The lunch bell’s pounding shriek cut Ms. Quinn’s lesson short.

“Well, looks like our time is up class, see you tomorrow and be sure to read the scripts I gave you!” Ms. Quinn announced as she waved goodbye.

The classroom groaned as they watched Ms. Quinn leave.

As the rest of the day dragged on, Dib couldn’t stop thinking about Ms. Quinn. Dib started to wonder if she believed in the paranormal like he did. He let out a dreamy sigh at the thought of monster hunting with, Ms. Quinn.

Once Skool had ended, Dib couldn’t stop talking about Ms. Quinn, much to Gaz’s annoyance. Gaz let out a sigh of relief the moment she and Dib got home.

“Ah! Son! Daughter! How was skool?!” Professor Membrane chirped as he cleaned pudding out of Foodio’s back.

“Today was the best day ever, Dad! We got a new teacher named Ms. Quinn and she’s the best!” Dib nearly melted as he spoke.

“Good! I’m glad someone is finally teaching you in the ways of REAL SCIENCE!” Professor Membrane cheered.

“No. No. She’s not a science teacher, Dad. She’s the English and Drama teacher. The closest thing to science she talked about today was Dr. Frankenstein-” Dib began.

“DR. FRANKENSTEIN?! NONSENSE! I cannot believe the skool would allow someone to fill children’s heads with such scientifically inaccurate nonsense! THIS SHALL NOT STAND!” Professor Membrane interjected as he shot to his feet.

“But Dad it’s just-”

“No butts! I am having a conversation with this ‘Ms. Quinn’ tomorrow!” Professor Membrane insisted.

Realizing it was pointless to fight with his dad, Dib sighed and headed to his room to spy on Zim.

#invader zim #professor membrane #dib membrane

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spinnermason · 4 years

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What do you think about the ending of Hero?

okay i’ve thought about this for a couple of days now. i’m putting this under a read more just in case anyone comes across this in the tags and has yet to read HERO.

long story short – i liked it. there’s a bigger explanation as to why, though. don’t take my “i liked it” at face value.

i may edit this later for clarity, but i saw this in my ask and wanted to answer it before i stepped out for the night.

i think the actual written ending ending– how there wasn’t really a choice made and we ( the readers ) could infer what we thought had happened is both good and bad. like, i love being able to give my opinion on books and where i think characters are and what they would be up to, but i also like knowing that the end is complete–especially after reading the books for so long?? like, i appreciate what michael did with the ending, and i love his writing, but i also feel like it’s incomplete–which i know is how he meant it to be, so i can’t be too mad at that. if the book had a definite ending and i still felt this way, i’d have more words on the ending. but since it was open ended, i can’t really hate him for it? i don’t know if that makes sense, or maybe i just rambled too much about it all and repeated myself lol.

and this may also be controversial still, but i do think the ending of the series ( what was revealed to us about the whole story GONE SERIES SPOILERS / HERO SPOILERS AHEAD !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ) fits. i was mad about it at first, because i felt like i’d been reading a lie–that i put myself into, and got invested in, a story that was a lie for the last decade. but i can’t hate it, either. when i finished it i really wanted to be mad. i was, too. i immediately ran into my mom’s room and shoved it in her hands and went “you need to read this RIGHT NOW so i can have someone to talk to about it” because i was lost and hurt by the ending.

you have to understand, and i’m sure most of the people reading this right now can agree–GONE is a huge part of my life. i read the first book in 2008 when it first came out, and i was in middle school then. now i’ve graduated college and i’m out in the “real world”. i was roughly the same age as sam, astrid, and quinn when i originally read the books. and i felt like i knew them, like i could have been friends with them–in fact, in my mind i was friends with them. so getting an ending to HERO that ultimately erases what happened in the original GONE series was disheartening.

but, i’m a reader and a writer and i understand why he might do something like that. to create a world for so long and still be able to bring new twists and turns to it? i applaud him for it. i’m sure we all thought we knew everything about GONE and the FAYZ and the kids–but it’s not our world, as much as we love it and live in it through the writing. it’s michael’s world ( and we’re all just living in it ), it’s a story he created and cultivated and there’s so much to it. i can appreciate the twist to HERO–finding out that it was all an illusion created by some scientists in order to explore some “what ifs” in the universe. and i don’t hate it. i wish i had more of an explanation for it, if that makes sense? i wanted to see more of this world and understand what happened to it all. and maybe see things in the original series that would lead me to think that this was a possibility. and i’m beginning to reread the series ( i just finished GONE again ) to see if there’s anything that points to this even being something in his mind as he was writing.

#hero #hero michael grant #the gone series #[ && answered ]#anon

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jd-arts319 · 5 years

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Genesistale!!!!

Info:an Au where evolutions take place,the au's origin was currently unknown, but the monsters that lived there are called genesis monsters or evo monsters for short,the Au have been under locked & keyed for years now that not even the creator or the destroyer knew this Au,

The monsters in genesistale have power to evolve in their stronger form when in battle.

Story:a long time ago,humans & monsters live in peace,they have been.living in harmony in years until one day,a mysterious turquoise gemstone was found In the cave of Mt.ebott,the stone was studied by prof.w.d gaster along with the old mages,when they first experimented it on a plant,the results lead them to founding out the stone was a evolution stone,because of this discovery,Dr.w.d gaster & the old mages had talked about the stone in the matter,however a certain human who despised monsters for so long decided to use the stone against monsters & humans to ruining the peace,the humans & monsters band together to try & fought the now genocidal beast,but they are no matched towards the genocidal beast,until one of the monsters took the evo stone & Their a new beacon of hope have been made,seeing the monster evolve into a stronger ver.of Themselves,all the monsters took one of each piece of stone & evolved into their stronger forms along with the humans,they have defeated said beast,however the king decided that in order for all of monsters & humans to live in peace,he decided to ask the 7 wizards to trap the beast in the underground with all of the monsters including himself,the idea was successful but it leaves all the humans in grief & despair for their monster friends took the sacrifice for their sake.

Years had passed a unique human came into the underground & Their,the story begins....

Name:fana reine C.verdana/reine genesis

Age:16(Preiviou)-19(present)

B-day:June,30

Gender:female(GF)

Alias:rei,renny,genny

Relatives:Penelope genesis(step sister)

Personality:quite,calm,anti-social & socially awkward,aloof,reine acts like a normal sans but more active,she is also had long patient,hard to read,Nice,kind,earnest,cool,helpful,funny,rarely gets mad(be careful)

Likes:drawing,sleeping,singing(when no one is around),music,stargazing,night strolls,kids(sometimes)creating something.

Dislikes:he bullies,racist & discriminations,feeling alone,being misjudge,being centered on attention for too long.

Info:once was a human that fell in the underground & live with the sibling of skeleton she fused with,reine was only a human that lived a normal life,except with a bully who clearly hates her,she deals it in her own way until everything changes when she got lost in the Mt.ebott,meanwhle in the underground monsters lived peacefully with No human had fallen down since then,that is until another came & there things went downwards,leaving them to deal with a genocidal child,however things change another Human came & there escalated the two fighting but an unfortunate fate came,leading reine to die to the hands of the human while the said human died into the hands of the au's "sans" however the reset had cause her to be in a new timeline where she was experimented by a mysterious human who had found out she can remember the resets & experimented on here turning her into a half amalgamate,but that was put to an end when the genocidal human came again &.killed the scientist,another months had passed,she was almost having her normal life back,word"almost" when her bully(posessed by the genocidal human) came again & tried to kill her,only to be saved by "sans" who had used the evo stone to kill the human that posessed the bully,however the power was too much & it leads him to dying,reine who had been saved by "sans" was asked by him to fuse her soul with his body & take care of his Lil' sister,penelope, before he passed away,she agreed because she was indebt of him & there she is no longer a human,but an evo skeleton monster,with the promise in mind she starts a new life not knowing there is something the Au was keeping.

Abilities:(inhenced)gaster blasters,bones,Telekinesis,teleportation, Crystallokinesis,evolution,weapon summoning,code manipulation,(others unknown)

Name:Penelope gensis

Age:17

Gender:female

Alias:penny,lope,loppy

B-day:July,6

Relatives:Magnus(GT!sans),reine gensis(step sister)

Personality:(past)cheerful,quirky,kind,sweet,sisterly,(present)quite & stoic,now mellow & soft spoken but had terrifying anger(reine is wrost though),mature,& helpful.

Likes:cooking,gardening,Springs,kids,helping out.

Dislikes:some Au papyruses BS(some if the learn a lessons not to anger her),being reminded of he brother's death.

Info:the little sister of Magnus,penelope was grief stricken by the death of her brother,she used to be a cheerful girl,but the death of her brother hits her hard,she is now quite & mournful until reine came & she started to open up once more when she now mellow person who helped around the omega timeline.

Abilities:floral manipulation,blasters & bones,Telekinesis,teleportation,blue magic.

Facts

reine was actually came from me it's translate in two different languages mine is "reina" in Italian means "queen","reine" is the same in French.

She had a necklace given to her by sans before he died,that necklace was a genesis stone,it was unknown why "sans" gave her the peice of the real stone.

Penelope is the only female papyrus existed being Born as a female & not gender switch.

Reine had known the au's from the start,when she only saw them as her dreams.

Reine gets along well with the bad sanses & the good ones.

She met pj in a dreamscape when he was alone in the anti-void,the two met earlier than before.

Her real name is Fana Reine Charm Verdana,The name"Fana" came from my other oc,charm from my tumblr.& verdana was from my.oc.

Fana & reine are two seperate beings,one where fana had a different timeline while reine had fana's old timelines.

Reine was supposed to be "fana" but I changed them into separate beings.

Reine is me along with fana,I also have other au's ver.of reine but never much get into until now,available only are her fell & swap ver.but also her pj daycare ver.CT!Reine

She can be shipped as well as penelope.

She had a soul of time & evolution,while penelope had the soul of passion & happiness.

She had her hair still,she just hides them in a beanie underneath the hood.

Relationships:

Penelope:she & Penelope had a bit awkward & rocky relationships as siblings after sans death,but penelope soon slowly accepted reine as her new sibling.

Paperjam:she & him are friends from the start,where she was only 10 yrs.old &.only human,she & pj met in a dreamscape & had bonded each other becoming as friends,they still kept in contact on each other until she was 16 both had lost each others contacts,but the two will meet again in the near time,since the Au was underlocked & keyed until,she & Penelope found a way to get out of their Au & will soon meet each other again.

Bad sanses:she actually gets along well with the bad sanses,she helped horror with error to give them foods for his Au,helped killer with his emotions,helped dust with his power-hungry LV & EXP,helped nightmare with his personal issues,helped cross to restore his Au,& helped error with not only his hapephobia but also his other personal issues,she saw what the bad sanses really like inside,as she knew they care about each other deeply.

Chara's & some frisk's:she helped error with taking care of the chara's & some frisk's,she was Their big sister figure.

Good sanses:she had rather weird relationship with the three,she likes blueberry just fine she just finds him very....quirky,as for dream she saw him as a person who needs therapy....srsly is anyone gonna helped the golden boy? No?...ok,as for ink she saw ink as a toleretable soulless friend,yes she knew he was soulless.

Palette & goth:she loves the two as siblings & clearly shipped the two as her otp.

Tk:she likes to hang out with Tk & his papyrus along with their alternatives,both she & Penelope are Their funnester babysitters.

Abyss & his Team:

Abyss:her fluffy friend she adored & tease with but also the one who helped her with her soul.

Mecha:she sees as mettaton 2.0,but likes him for his funny yet seen attitude.

V:awkward acquaintances but gets along well.

Kin & beats:both bond over music & drawing.

Ganz(&Mel):she helps him with his mental state & sometimes talked to mel about him.

Most close relationship with Reine:

Penelope as her sister

Pj as her best friend(or boyfriend eh???*slapped by reine* :''''))

Error:duncle

Goth & palette:her cute otps

Tk & papyrus:her funnester bro's.

Ct!pj:her friend she is very much fond of...

Their au's counterpart:

Fell!Reine(Quinn)& swap!Reine(raina)

CT!Reine/Regina

Tk!Reine

Error!Reine/digit

Abyss!Reine/Novia

You can ship her with as:

Reine X pj!

Ct!Reine/Regina X Ct!Pj

(you can send some ship for her but I know no one will pay attention to them or either this blog anyway qwq)

Trivia:

All of their names are actually means "queen" just like mine,no really my secondary-name means "queen"in Italian.

She is basically oldest oc.

I shipped her with pj/Ct!pj even though she hates it ;)

Penny almost took after me as well as reine.

She had other au's ver. Like digit(error!Reine),Novia(abyss!Reine)

She likes to eat bread & warm milk to drink,she also liked ground meat burger,& her fav.drink is water or other flavor drinks,she likes the savory type of food than the junk foods.

Penelope is inspired by marcophanges from cell in delivery(I think)along with Reine.

Reine is inspired by Ania to skele!nia from @ania-da-pez

My 1st of liking undertale is @ania-da-pez ,along with @harrish6

Fana can be shipped but she is canonly shipped with Sean by my long time friend @rainbowdiamondsumaita so yeah,ads for me I cannot be shipped.

Reine is my real main oc/muse or mascot.

(you can ship my oc's if ya all want 😏(eventhoughsomeofthemwillneverfamousanywatnorwillbeshippedqwq)(

Genesistale,Reine & Penelope belongs to meh-

__________________-_-_____

#undertale #oc #lmao #undertale au #original & stableverse #inspiration #au sanses #undertale aus #fandmade #ocs #my ocs

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toynbeees · 6 years

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Time for some OCs!

I have so many, pls send help. Feel free to ask me abt any of them!!

Under a cut so I don’t kill u all lmao

Bioshock! (aka my absolute oldest OCs at uh. 5+ years) Loretta. She’s the only one I talk about but it’s only because I love her. Saved from being a Sister as a kid, she ended up splicing and running riot in Arcadia. Jo. He was Loretta’s favourite Big Daddy, but since he’s so old now he’s mostly broken and just drifts around Arcadia making sad whale noises :( Lauren is an ex-Sister circa Bioshock 2, who instead of going to the surface with Eleanor stays behind and is adopted by Loretta. Anna. Lauren’s closest friend since before they were Sisters, and stuck together once they were turned, too. Also “adopted” by Loretta.

Borderlands Quinn. Ex-raider, ass kicker, and all around asshole. She has the hots for Mordecai but won’t admit it. She also has a pet skag and stalker. Leo. Also an asshole but on a much more acceptable scale. He kind of unofficially joined the Crimson Raiders but can’t remember how. Sydney. They’re the most terrifying 12 year old anyone will ever meet. They were adopted by Leo after he found them stowing away on a bandit ship.

DA Inquisition Nadira. She’s basically a prophet that was given the gift of visions after she died and a compassion spirit felt bad for her. Don’t ask how because I don’t know :P Liv. Nadira’s best friend, and the one who sort of accidentally started a local legend about her. She’s also the blushiest baby of a Qunari ever. Myrae. Liv’s twin and the more serious of the two. She’s painfully anti-social but forces herself for the sake of the Inquisition.

Dark Angel (does anyone else know this exists?) Ambrosia. An over stressed medic who tries her best. She has a daughter named Sunshine but doesn’t know who the dad is. Angelica. She used to be a mercenary hired to kill shitty people like abusers and rapists. Now she’s a medic under Ambrosia’s wing. Gabriella. She’s a mechanic and supply smuggler on the side, and has been caught too many times. Has the hots for everyone and will make it known. Tamara. The daughter of a rich business man, Tammy ditched her family to help those in need. Using money stolen from her father’s company.

Fallout Hartley. Another one I mention sometimes! She’s a hardcore Commonwealth lady who will kill for caps. She lives in Croup Manor with a bunch of others. Atlas. Hartley’s sort-of boyfriend and also a super mutant. He signed up to the Institute’s FEV experiments not knowing what that meant. Idiot. Nixon. The resident ghoul genius, this kid can make anything from the most basic scraps. He even made his own synth with stolen tech. Tequila. The synth in question. Technically only four, she has the intelligence of a twenty year old. She’s agender but uses all pronouns. Carrion. Travels with their pet/bodyguard deathclaw named Lazarus. They were part of a vault experiment to infuse deathclaw DNA into a human.

Fullmetal Alchemist Andrea. She’s a young State Alchemist using the moniker ‘Lightning Alchemist’ for the way she uses alchemic tattoos to create weather-like effects. Rosie. A self taught automail and car mechanic. Rosie is extremely anti-social and often communicates through her brother. Evan. Rosie’s twin, although they look nothing alike. Although he works front desk at Central Command, State Alchemists terrify him.

Mad Max (my BOYS!) Spider. He used to help the Organic Mechanic, but blood bags don’t cut it anymore and he’s close to death. Post-movie he has a raging crush on Capable. Crimson. The shittiest, most infuriating man on earth. He’s an excellent driver, with many battle scars to prove it. Cable. He’s Crimson’s lancer. Given his name by the way he wears cables as jewellery, and the fact he was burned by an electrical fire. Hammer. He was born to Joe and a Milk Mother, though thrown to the Wastes. Now he’s a brutal lancer that uses his bulk to his advantage. Lagarto. He’s Hammer’s driver, although at only 4′11 he has to prove himself constantly. Crimson’s boyfriend, though the relationship doesn’t last. Cepheus. Cepheus was named after a constellation he found in a book. Entirely deaf since birth, but one of the Imperators’ most trusted Warboys.

Mass Effect Camilla. A Commander of a ship, a true leader, Cammy is a force to be reckoned with. Especially since she looks after four krogan kids, a human, and a salarian. Garst. Cammy’s ‘husband’ and an excellent soldier class. He used to live on Omega before Cammy picked him up. Hayley. Cammy and Garst’s adopted kid, Hayley is a bit of a wild child. She has a pet varren named Pickles, though no one knows how she tamed him. Chanyi. Hayley’s girlfriend, and an angel of a quarian. Her mother died on Omega and Garst took her in.

My Hero Academia Akari. Akari’s Quirk gives her incredibly strong empathy and the ability to influence emotions. She feels bad using her Quirk, though. Riko. Riko can rapidly grow bones from her limbs, snapping them off and fashioning them into weapons. She loves grossing people out. Takara. The daughter of a Pro Hero and a scientist, Takara is overpowered as fuck. She’s also horrendously arrogant about it.

Trollhunters Roisin. A teacher at Arcadia Oaks High, she accidentally got involved in Jim’s troll nonsense. She has a crush on Blinky, the madwoman. Una. Roisin’s kid sister, Una is actually a Krubera changeling that ditched the order because she loved her human family too much.

XMen Alina. Nicknamed ‘Songbird’ for the way her voice can put people to sleep - or cause brain haemorrhage. Her choice. Bethany. Definitely wants to bang Hank McCoy and is overly defensive about it. She teaches English at the mansion - and her nephew goes there too. Daisy. She literally got into a fist fight with anti-mutant protesters, which ended in her nearly dying. She still thinks it was well worth it. Lydia. She’s a nurse in training and ends up helping the mansion after an attack. She can induce hallucinations but prefers to use it to soothe people. Hayley. Literally Rapunzel, with meters of prehensile hair as strong as steel. She’s barely five foot and has never hurt a soul, but she can threaten. Cassandra. A lingerie model with a killer body, Alina uses it to take the attention away from the enormous eagle wings attached to her back.

I’ve Been Dreaming! (My first original project!) Delinna. Although not literally a demon, the red skin and horns have earned her species that nickname. Poly dating Red and Keavyn, who she loves a lot. Red. Extremely round and extremely shy. His name is actually Allistair but he goes by Red due to his bright auburn hair. Carisey. Delinna’s little sister, and a right troublemaker. She’s at college mechanical engineering, and is scarily good at it. Keavyn. He has his own Youtube channel where he posts gaming and ghost hunting videos. Once tricked Red into a ghost hunt and regretted it. Claire. She’s blind, and her eyes literally look like space; complete with tiny planets. She doesn’t know how, but sometimes her dreams are prophecies. Josh. A boy with too many eyes and not enough patience. Amusingly he’s dating Claire, and he’s all too aware of the irony.

Gator Land Khadija. Her father is basically a mad scientist that created loads of sentient “monster people”. Khadija is now best friends with all of them. Sebastian. Is he alligator or human? Both. Although he’s painfully shy it doesn’t stop him from wanting to live as a human. Or from crushing on Khadija. Coco. She has no mouth and a geode for a stomach. It’s unknown if she’s more living creature or more gemstone. Cloud. A fluffy skull-headed boy who’s fur changes colour with the seasons. He kind of looks like a humanoid cubone. Sonnet. A shy fish boy who loves poetry and fantasy novels. He will cry if you say anything mean to him.

#ocs

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fardell24b · 3 years

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Quinn’s Code - The Lab Mouse, the Geek and the Convention

Instalment 6: The Lab Mouse - the Geek and the Convention

Monday, November 21, 2005

Lawndale High School

The sophomore Biology class was in session, with Lawndale High's head Science teacher, Janet Barch, teaching.

“And like a husband going home to his noble and self-sacrificing wife, the rat keeps returning to the food box. That is, the positive reinforcement.” She then turned to her misandry. “Huh, if only men could be more like rats. Oh, sure, they come home at first. You feed them, you wait on them, and then, after twenty-two thankless years, they just up and leave. No note, no phone call, no nothing!” She slammed the ruler on the desk. “Just... like... that!”

“I wonder why he left,” Daria Morgendorffer said to her friend, Jennifer Burns.

“Now, before I divide the class into teams of two, who can give me another example of reinforcement?” Ms. Barch paused. “Fine, class. Ignore me... just like he did! Kevin?”

“Uh?” Kevin Thompson drew out.

“Shut up, Kevin,” Ms. Barch said, her misandry at full intensity. She turned to Daria. “Daria? Reinforcement?”

“Hmm...” Daria began. “To make a child stop crying, a mother might say, ‘That's it! I'm sending you to El Paso to live with your real father.’ Whenever the child gets upset, the mother might wave an airline ticket in her face, or maybe even frame it on the wall by the clown picture. The ticket stops the girl from crying, or showing any emotion... ever.”

Jennifer looked at Daria. 'Is that right?'

“I like the way you think. Kevin... Daria will be your lab partner.”

'Uh, oh!' Jennifer thought.

“What!” Kevin's girlfriend, Brittany Taylor, shrieked.

“You two will design a maze, and condition Kevin,” Ms. Barch said, then she quickly recovered from her almost faux pas. “I mean, condition a mouse using positive or negative reinforcement.”

“But babe, we've never been separated on a lab project before! What'll we do?” Kevin wondered.

“Pass? “ Daria asked.

Jennifer chuckled in amusement.

“Brittany, Charles will be your partner.”

“But Ms. Barch, I'm a cheerleader!” Brittany squeaked in protest.

“Give me an 'R.'” Charles Ruttheimer III, aka Upchuck, said suggestively.

“I really like doing mazes. Those ones on the back of cereal boxes are cool,” Kevin said.

“Well, now I am excited,” Daria said.

“Shut up, Mack!” Ms. Barch said.

Michael 'Mack' Mackenzie raised his eyebrows in surprise.

“Ms. Burns will be your partner,” Ms. Barch said.

'Cool, I can deal with that.' he thought.

“Cool,” Jennifer said.

“So, now Kevin's my lab partner,” Daria said at lunch.

“Next best thing to working alone,” Jane said.

“Oh, no. He likes mazes,” Daria said.

“I'd swap if Ms. Barch would let us,” Jennifer said.

“Mack's not that bad,” Jane said.

“I'm not complaining. I've worked with him before, although that was years ago,” Jennifer said as she started to reminisce.

4 years earlier

Younger Jennifer and Mack working on a project in Jennifer's living room...

They were collaborating on a design for a future city.

“So we put the hospital here?” Mack asked.

Jennifer merely nodded.

“Cool,” Mack said. He drew the hospital, slightly embellished.

Jennifer gave a thumbs up.

“So, should there be a park near the hospital?”

They continued their work.

Present

“Good times,” Jennifer said quietly.

“Cool,” Jane said. She turned back to Daria. “Maybe you could get a wind up toy to distract him,” she said.

“His wind-up toy is working with Upchuck,” Daria said.

“That is definitely unfair for her,” Jennifer murmured.

“Certainly,” Jane said.

Kevin came up to the trio. “Hey, Daria. Mind if we do the maze thing at your house? My cable's broken.”

Daria began to get a calculating look on her face.

'She's up to something,' Jennifer thought.

“Sure,” Daria said.

“Cool!” Kevin said.

Jane looked at Daria. “You have a plan, don't you?”

Daria shrugged.

“Of course you do,” Jane said.

Helen Morgendorffer clicked off the TV. “Daria, I heard you're working with Kevin Thompson on a science project. He's quarterback of the football team, isn't he?”

Daria remained silent and looked at Quinn.

“Brittany was crying in the girl’s room,” Quinn said.

“Isn't he?” Helen asked.

“Yes,” Daria said.

“Science is fascinating. Tell me all about it, honey.”

“I can't. I signed a confidentiality paper. The other scientists would be mad,” Daria said.

Helen sighed. She turned to Quinn. “Oh, forget it. Quinn, how was your weekend?”

“It was awesome! Cindy and I totally pwnd all the guys in Halo and Age of Empires, and then the rest of the games were pretty even...”

Helen interrupted. “Daria, please tell me about the project.”

Daria sighed. “It's about how behavior is affected by positive or negative reinforcement.”

“Sounds super,” Helen said.

“Like... say, you have a friend who responds to everything you say with, "‘That's great!’ This insincere reply is the same whether you saved a life or killed a bug, and thus becomes ‘negative reinforcement,’ causing you to withdraw from that person or persons,” Daria said.

“Wow. That's fantastic!”

Daria rolled her eyes.

“Maybe if you and Kevin work well together, he'll associate you with feeling good and want to include you in his circle of friends,” Helen said.

'I don't think so, Mom,' Quinn thought.

Daria just ignored Helen.

“Maybe I'll help with the project. I'm into science,” Quinn said.

“Quinn, that's great!”

“Quinn, I don't need your nerdiness in doing my project,” Daria said.

“Dar-i-a! I've told you many times. I'm not a nerd! I'm a geek! There's like a rather large difference,” Quinn said with annoyance.

“Not from where I sit,” Daria said.

Helen sighed, recognising the start of one of her daughters' many arguments.

However the doorbell rang interrupting the belligerence.

“Door!” Quinn said as she went towards it.

The phone rang.

“Phone!” Helen said.

Quinn opened the door. “Hey, Kevin,” she said.

“Hi, Quinn. Hey, Daria, I'm ready to start this maze thing,” Kevin said.

“I'll be helping, Let's go,” Quinn said.

“Sure,” Kevin said.

However, Daria had a distraction in mind. She turned on the TV. “Look, Kevin: the Pigskin Channel. Great big guys slamming into other great big guys. Fun.”

“Cool!” Kevin said.

“The Pigskin Channel! Classic football games 24 hours a day -- every day, all this month.”

“I guess it's just you and me. Got your saw and sandpaper?”

“Sure,” Quinn said. She looked at Kevin totally engrossed in the Pigskin Channel. 'There's no way I can get his attention away from that without turning off the TV, or changing the channel.'

“Good play!” Kevin said.

Daria and Quinn entered the garage from the dining room. “So you have a plan for the maze?” Quinn asked.

“Of course,” Daria said.

“Good,” Quinn said.

Daria went over to where she had placed the pieces of wood.

Mack pulled his white Valiant up in front of a small two story house, with a ramshackle yard. He got out, walked to the door and knocked on it. Jennifer soon came to the door. “Hi, come in,” she said quietly.

“Hi, Jen, could we start on the project tonight?” he asked.

“Sure,” Jennifer said. She led him towards the garage...

Tuesday, November 22, 2005

Once again, Kevin Thompson arrived at the Morgendorffer's house. “Hi, Kev, my man,” Jake Morgendorffer said as he met Kevin at the door.

“Hi, Mr. Morgendorffer, is Daria home?”

“She's here; she's up in her room. Daria! Your friend is here!”

“Cool!”

Daria was up in her room, and on the phone. “So you and Mack, have been friends a long time then?”

“Since early grade school,” Jennifer said.

“That's a long time,” she said.

“I guess so,” Jennifer said.

Daria then heard her father call out that Kevin was there. “Daria! Your friend is here!”

“Sorry, I have to go, Kevin is here,” she said.

“Good luck.”

“Thanks, bye.” Daria hung up and then went downstairs.

“Hi, Kevin,” Daria said as she came down the stairs.

“So, am I helping with the maze thing, or watching the Pigskin Channel?”

“Watching the Pigskin Channel.”

“Are you sure, Daria?” Jake asked.

“I don't need his help,” Daria said as she turned on the TV.

“Oh,” Jake said.

Daria then headed towards the garage, out the front door.

Quinn entered the living room from the kitchen, carrying snacks for her friends. She saw her father and Kevin watching a football game on the TV. 'Isn't he supposed to be helping Daria?' She had helped Daria with building the maze the previous night but she didn't want to do it again. “Kevin?”

No response.

“Kevin!”

Still no response.

“Kevin!”

Again, no response.

Quinn changed tack. “Daddy?”

“What is it, Quinn? I'm watching this game.”

“Why is Kevin watching the TV and not helping Daria?”

“She asked him to,” Jake said as he scratched his chin.

“Of course she did,” Quinn realised.

Jake turned back to the TV. “Wait a minute, I don't remember that!”

“It happened, Mr. M.”

Quinn sighed.

Quinn re-entered her room and placed the platter of snacks on the table next to the computers.

“Oh, that Daria!” she exclaimed.

“What's up with her this time?” Kristen Bell asked.

“She's not allowing Kevin to help her with the lab project!”

“Did she give a reason?” Cindy Brolsma asked.

“She says that he would interfere with what she's doing and give her a bad mark!'

“Maybe you could ask her if she could find him something he can do and still contribute to the project,” Cindy said.

“I will think about it,” Quinn thought. 'If only I can find a way to ask her that won't lead to an argument...'

“Anyhow, you're ready for the convention this weekend?” Kristen asked.

“Yes, my Ichigo costume is almost ready,” Quinn said.

“Crossplay?” Kirsten asked.

“No, Kristen, Tokyo Mew Mew, not Bleach!” Quinn said with a nervous laugh.

“Sorry,” Kristen said as Cindy laughed.

“So, are you coming?” Quinn asked.

“Certainly,” Cindy said.

“I'm coming,” Kristen said.

“It's going to be great!”

Wednesday, November 23, 2005

Kevin arrived at Schloss Morgendorffer a third time. “Hi again, Kevin, watching the Pigskin Channel again?” Jake asked.

“Of course, Mr. M,” Kevin said.

“Cool,” Jake said.

Quinn had seen Kevin park his Jeep from her bedroom window. She grabbed her cell phone.

Jennifer and Mack were in Jennifer's garage, training the mouse. Jennifer's phone rang. Jennifer dropped the mouse in surprise. “Where did it go?” she asked.

“I'll look for it whilst you talk,” Mack said.

“Thanks,” Jennifer said. She pressed the answer button. “Hi.”

“Hi, Jennifer?”

“Yes?”

“It's Quinn.”

“I know, what are you calling about?”

“It's about Daria, and Kevin. She's not letting him participate in their lab project!”

“Have you talked to her about it?” Jennifer asked; she didn't want to broach the subject with Daria.

“Not yet,” Quinn said.

“Talk to her about it; see if she could give him something for him to do.”

“Yeah, Cindy said something similar.”

“Good. Anyway I have to go, the mouse is being difficult.”

“How can a mouse be difficult?”

“You don't want to know, bye.”

“Bye.”

Jennifer put the phone in her pocket. She turned to Mack. “I'll help, don't want it getting into my food...”

Quinn hung up after her conversation with Jennifer. 'I guess I would have to talk to Daria after all,' she thought as she went to her closet to get out her so-far-incomplete costume for the convention.

Brittany finished filing Upchuck's disgusting magazines. 'I don't want to touch them ever again!' She went back to the Rutthiemer's garage.

“Ok, I have finished filing your magazines!”

“There are more chores I have in mind for you, otherwise...”

“Ooh!”

Hours later, Jennifer collapsed into bed, exhausted. She and Mack had been unable to find the mouse...

Friday November 24, 2005

Kevin arrived at Schloss Morgendorffer a fourth time (as Daria didn't want him over on Thanksgiving). “Hey, buddy, let's watch a re-run of Superbowl XXXII!” Jake said.

“Sure, thing, Mr. M.”

Quinn entered the garage from the dining room. She saw Daria training the mouse. “Daria, we need to talk.”

“About what, Quinn?”

“Could you possibly find something for Kevin to do and still contribute to the project?”

“No.”

“What do you mean, 'No'?”

“Exactly what I said, Quinn. There is no way in which Kevin can contribute in a meaningful way.”

“You're underestimating him.”

“I'm not!”

“Surely, if he can be a quarterback, he can follow simple instructions!”

“He would mess it up!”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes! Damn it! Remember, I'm in some of his classes, and I observe that he's incapable of taking in the simplest of information!”

“All I'm saying is, give him a chance!”

“No!”

“Yes!”

“No!”

Daria and Quinn continued arguing.

After a few minutes the two sisters stopped their argument. “What is it to you anyway?” Daria asked.

“Kevin deserves to be treated better than the way you treated that duo back in Highland.”

“He is being treated better!”

Daria watched Quinn leave the garage, heading back towards the living room through the dining room. 'Now I have to find a way to include him,' she thought. It wasn't often that Daria conceded that Quinn was right.

Elsewhere, Brittany was tired of running errands for Upchuck. “Ooh!” She entered the Rutthiemer's garage. “Okay, I shined your spoon collection, filed your disgusting magazines and finished your shopping.” She pushed some of the shopping into Upchuck's arms. 'I wanted to do my own shopping on Black Friday!' “Can I go now?”

Upchuck put the shopping down on a bench and took out a jar of honey. “I'm sorry, Brittany, but I specifically said I wanted the honey that comes in a bear, not a jar.”

“Ooh! You, you... weasel!”

“"And remember, Kevin, it was the week that you two had broken up, so I don't think you should be too angry with... Back-Seat Brittany."”

“Ooh!” Brittany stalked away. 'This has to stop! Kevie isn't staying at the Morgendorffer Temptresses house any more!'

Over at the Burns Residence, Mack and Jennifer were still searching for their mouse.

Brittany approached the Morgendorffer's house as the sun was beginning to set. 'I will sneak in, grab the mouse and then get away,' she thought.

Brittany came up to the side of the house and looked into the garage. It was empty. The mouse was just waiting in the maze for her to grab it! She tried the side door, next to the window. Locked! She edged along to the sliding door and looked into the kitchen. Perfect! The kitchen was deserted. “Yes!” She said. She then heard a noise above.

She heard Daria saying “Who's there?”

'Oops!' Brittany thought. She leaned against the kitchen door, so as to not be seen by Daria. 'Of course her room has to be on this side of the house!' She waited a few moments before opening the kitchen door.

She opened it a bit. It made a noise, as the ball bearings did their thing. “Eep!” She stopped. After a few moments she restarted opening the door. Slowly and slightly lifting it so as to not have so many bearings making noise...

Having opened the door a quarter of the way, she then tried to slip into the house...

However, there was a problem: Her chest. Or more accurately, the large amount of padding in her bra. “O-ooh!” 'Of course!' She then pushed the door open further, a few bearings rolled. She paused, no noise, other than that of the Pigskin Channel in the living room. 'Right!' she thought. She squeezed through. There was pressure on her chest, but no worse than what she had subjected herself to at the beginning of puberty.

Brittany; having squeezed through the door, fell sideways into the kitchen. She quickly put her leg out and ended up doing the splits next to the table. She quickly got up and looked around the kitchen. 'Now, which door goes to the garage?' she thought. She tried the first door. Dining Room.

Second door. Downstairs bathroom, and stairs down to the basement. “OK...” She went back to the Dining Room. She then saw an extra pair of doors opposite to the kitchen. Brittany smiled.

The cheerleader entered the garage. She grabbed a box which lay near the door and approached the maze. “Now don't say a word,” she said. She grabbed the mouse, which bit her hand. “Ouch! You icky, little... animal!” She trapped the mouse in the box. “Now, you Morgendorffer Temptresses. You are going to need a new excuse if you want to drag my Kevin over here now.” She quickly let herself out via the side door...

Daria came downstairs to investigate the noises that she had heard. She saw the sliding door slightly open. 'Uh, oh!'

Daria ran into the garage, she saw that the side door was open, that one of the boxes was missing and that the mouse was no longer in the maze. “Oh no!”

Quinn was playing Guild Wars when Daria slammed open the door to the room. Quinn turned from the computer. “What is it, Daria?”

“The mouse is missing!”

“I'm surprised as you are, Daria.”

“You're saying that you had nothing to do with it?”

“Exactly,” Quinn said.

Daria could see that Quinn was telling the truth. “Great! Now I have to ask Kevin.”

Quinn smirked as she turned back to the online game. She knew that Daria was in for a tough time.

Daria came downstairs and flicked off the TV in the middle of a play. “Hey! I was watching that!”

“I have some bad news, Kevin.”

“What's so bad that you had to turn off the TV?”

“Listen, our mouse is gone.”

“What?”

“Without the mouse, we fail, and we won't have time to train a new one.”

“Bummer, I wish there was something I could do, but what?”

“Did you take it?”

“What? I haven't been in the garage!”

“I see,” Daria said.

Brittany arrived home and carried the box with the mouse in it to her brother's bedroom. As always she dreaded entering that place, with its weird smells and weird décor. She opened the door slowly and walked over to where her brother was sitting at his desk. He got up making the chair fall back. “Hi, Britt!” Brian Taylor said.

“Don't let this mouse out of your sight, okay?” Brittany asked as she handed Brian the box.

“Sure,” Brian said in an unnerving tone.

“Look after it!” Brittany said as she turned and left the room. She didn't notice the evil smile on her brothers face...

At the Burn's house, there was a clattering as Mack dug through bits and pieces of old furniture in the garage.

Jennifer sighted something running out from behind an old television. She leapt for it and grabbed it. “Yay,” she said.

“You've got it?”

Jennifer nodded.

“Finally,” Mack said in relief.

Jennifer placed it back in the maze. “But now we only have the remaining three days to train it!” she said.

“True, but I bet yesterday was tense,” Mack said.

“We had Thanksgiving at a relatives house,” Jennifer said.

“That makes sense.”

“Yeah.”

Daria re-entered her room. 'I need to find out who took that mouse.' She opened her closet and took out a notebook. 'Time for investigating,' she thought.

She started writing out a list of suspects.

Brittany Taylor

Charles Rutthiemer

…

Later that night, Quinn put the finishing touches on her convention costume. “Done!” she said.

Saturday, November 25, 2005

Early in the morning, Cindy and Kristen approached the Morgendorffers house. “This is going to be a great convention,” Cindy said.

“So you say,” Kristen said. She had heard Cindy and Quinn go on and on about it for the last week, along with Quinn's complaints about Daria's treatment of Kevin.

“You are going to enjoy it, just wait,” Cindy said as she pressed the Morgendorffer's doorbell.

“Of course,” Kristen said with a sigh.

Quinn heard the doorbell as she came down the stairs. She drew the coat around her as reached the bottom and went to the door.

“Hello, Cindy, Kristen,” she said nervously.

“Hi Quinn, you're ready?” Cindy asked.

“Yeah,” Quinn said, running her hand through the chin length wig, and still showing nerves in her voice.

“Show it,” Kristen said with a smirk.

“OK, but I'll put the coat back on until we get there,” Quinn said. She dropped the coat to the floor, revealing a Mew Ichigo costume, complete with a replica of Mew Ichigo's weapon, hanging on Quinn's right hip.

“Cool,” Kristen said.

“Very cool,” Cindy said as she pulled the door closed behind her.

“Um, yeah. I'm not used to showing this much skin,” Quinn said.

“Well, there shouldn't be too much trouble at the convention,” Kristen said.

“True, but I hope that Upchuck wouldn't be there.”

“I wouldn't worry about that. Apparently he has been annoying Brittany all week,” Cindy said.

Quinn picked up her coat and put it back on. “Yeah.” she said. “Let's go.”

Daria knocked on the door at Jane's house. After a few minutes, Jane answered it. “Daria? Don't you know what time this is?”

“Time to search for the lab mouse whilst there is plenty of weekend left,” Daria said.

“Couldn't you have gone to Jen's first?” Jane said with a yawn.

“You're closer,” Daria said.

“True,” Jane said as she moved aside to let her friend in.

Ten minutes later, after Jane had put some caffeine in her system, she pondered the situation that Daria was drawing them into. “So, you want me to help you and Jennifer get the mouse back from Brittany even though you're not entirely sure that it was Brittany who took it?”

“Yes,” Daria said.

“Let me get the polaroid and I'll join you,” Jane said.

“Good.”

“If nothing else, I can stop you from getting too 'rash' with her.”

Daria grumbled.

Quinn, Cindy and Kristen arrived at the convention.

Lawndale County Bi-Annual Anime Convention 2005

They got out their tickets as they came to the door.

“Quinn Morgendorffer.”

“Here.”

“Cindy Brolsma.”

“Here.”

“Kristen Bell.”

They entered the main hall and saw that a great many people had already arrived. “I didn't realise that Anime was this popular in Lawndale,” Kristen said.

“I think most of the people may have come from Oakwood, Middlebury or other nearby towns,” Cindy said.

“That would make sense. They may have come from Baltimore too,” Kristen said.

“Yeah,” Quinn said as she doffed her coat and handed it to Kristen.

Kristen took the coat and put it on. She said aside to Cindy. “She's going to be a center of attention, isn't she?”

“I don't doubt it.”

They then approached a nearby Astroboy exhibit.

Laughing, Quinn, Cindy and Kristen rounded a corner. “Hi, Jenna,” Quinn said.

“Hi, Quinn. That's an amazing costume,” Jenna Schwartz said in admiration.

“Thanks. I made it myself.”

That took Jenna aback. “Wow, you sew really well,” she said.

“I'd like to improve though, part of the costume itches.”

“It's still rather good,” Jenna said.

Quinn smiled.

Quinn, Cindy and Kristen came to a makeshift booth. “Tatiana?” Quinn asked.

“Hi, Quinn, Kristen, Cindy. Would you like copies of my fan fiction?” Tatiana Olivova asked, holding out a stapled printout of fanfic.

“Of what is the fanfic?” Quinn asked.

“This is a Ranma fic in which the Saotomes never go to Jusenko, but the Tendos do,” Tatiana said excitedly.

“Ranma, no way!” Kristen said, slightly creeped out.

“Let me guess, Akane is hit with the reverse of Ranma's curse?” Quinn asked, wariness and scepticism showing in her voice.

Tatiana glared at Kristen before answering Quinn. “Yes! How did you guess?”

“I've started to read fics like that before. It's hardly original,” Quinn snarked.

“Oh, then this,” Tatiana said, putting the AU Ranma fic down. She picked another, smaller, fanfic paper up. “A one shot One Piece fic set shortly after the Alabaster arc.”

Quinn took it. “It had better be well written,” she said.

“I have a beta reader,” Tatiana said in response.

“Good,” Quinn said.

“You have other One Piece fics?” Cindy asked.

“Yes,” Tatiana said, she handed Cindy another fic. “An AU from the Alabaster arc, in which Chopper doesn't join the Straw Hats.”

“I'm not that familiar with One Piece. I wouldn't appreciate it,” Cindy said.

“Oh,” Tatiana said. “Good point.” She accepted the One Piece fic back from Cindy and soon handed her another fic. “A one shot Sailor Moon fic set in the first season,” she said.

“That will do,” Cindy said with a smile.

“And you Kristen?” Tatiana asked eagerly.

“I'm only familiar with Pokemon,” she said sheepishly. She glanced at Quinn. “And half the first season of Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex.”

“Oh,” Tatiana said. “I'm afraid I don't write fic for the former. And I haven't printed out my Ghost in the Shell fics.”

“That's ok,” Kristen said, relieved.

“By the way, Quinn. Your Mew Ichigo cosplay is quite convincing.”

“Thanks.”

Quinn, Cindy and Kristen took their leave from Tatiana's booth. “She's actually rather good,” Cindy said as she glanced over the fanfic that she had been given.

“Really?” Quinn asked.

“Well,” Cindy said slightly uncertainly. “Her writing's good at least, and her characterisation of Usagi.”

Kristen pondered “Then again, it's not that hard to characterise Usagi correctly.”

“Not true,” Quinn said. “There's more to her than her tendency to burst into tears.”

“Quinn's right,” Cindy said as they turned a corner and came to a Ghost in the Shell booth.

“Cool,” Quinn said as she noticed that booth...

At the convention, there was trouble! “What do you mean it's bad. It's well written!” Tatiana objected.

“Look here,” a Yu-Gi-Oh! Fan, (or fanatic) said, pointing at a place in one of Tatiana's Yu-Gi-Oh! fics. “This is completely out of character!”

Tatiana grabbed the paper out of the fan's hand. “How is it out of character. How is it out of character?” she asked.

“Kaiba would never act altruistically towards Yugi in that manner!”

“Oh, that! It's been established in this series that his parents didn't die when he and his brother were children,” Tatiana explained.

“It's part of a series!? I thought it was a oneshot,” the fan said. He looked the beginning of the story over again.

“No, it's in a series.”

“It doesn't say it's in a series.”

“Well, it is. The rest of it is on fanfiction.net if you want to have a look.”

“I don't want to have a look!”

“If you don't like it, give it back,” Tatiana demanded. She made a move for the paper in the fan's hand.

“NO! I'M NOT!” The fan's shouting brought the attention of nearby convention goers, including Jenna and Koichi.

“That won't end well,” Jenna said in embarrassment. Koichi nodded.

The fan grabbed the fic papers on both side and started ripping it up. “HEY!” Tatiana exclaimed. She placed her hands on her hips. “Do you know how much printer ink costs!” she objected. The fan continued ripping it up.

“I know, its a complete waste of ink, and paper!” the fan said, as he scattered the pieces about. “Let's see what else you have here...”

“Oh no you don't!” Tatiana growled as she stared the other person in the eye.

“I will!” the fan said as he grabbed another fic...

“What?” Cindy said, confused.

“What?” Quinn asked, turning from a fan artist's booth.

“Look!” Cindy said pointing.

Quinn looked in the direction where Cindy was pointing, and saw Tatiana struggling against a security guard whom was escorting her out of the convention. “Oh dear! Looks like someone didn't like her fanfics,” she said.

“Most likely, but why is she the one who's being thrown out?” Kristen asked.

“She overreacted?” Cindy wondered.

'That's likely,' Quinn thought.

Tatiana was pushed out of the doors of the convention center. “You can't ban me from Lawndale Anime Conventions for life!” she exclaimed.

“Not for life. Another four years. Until you're an adult,” the security guard said.

“This is outrageous! I wasn't at fault!”

“No, but you caused a disturbance.”

“It still wasn't my fault!” Tatiana objected with her arms crossed.

Tatiana sat boredly outside the convention hall. 'This is tedious!' she thought. She wished she had a yo-yo or something. She had already re-read what remained of her print-outs many times. “I shouldn't have been thrown out,” she murmured for the umpteenth time.

Mack's full Valiant pulled up pulled up outside a modestly sized white house with a clean yard. Daria, Jane and Jennifer had enlisted Mack and Lisa Fisher on their search for Brittany and the mouse. Brittany hadn't been at Lisa's house, nor at Angie Zammit's or Nikki Dowlings.

They noticed a few other cars. “Donna's older brother seems to haven't gone back to College yet,” Lisa said.

“Thanksgiving may not have been enough,” Jane said with a shrug.

“I guess so,” Daria said.

Lisa rang the doorbell. A modestly dressed middle-aged blonde woman answered the door. “Hi, Mrs. Bolton, is Donna home?” Lisa asked.

“Yes, Lisa. She's up in her room. Come in and I'll get her,” Donna's mother said.

“Thanks,” Lisa said.

“The others can come in too,” Mrs. Bolton said.

“Cool,” Jane said. As soon as Donna's mother had turned, Jane lifted the polaroid and took a picture.

Lisa glared at Jane. “That's not a good idea,” she whispered as she stepped inside.

“For use in an artwork,” Jane explained.

“I guess so,” Lisa said, uncertainly. She had heard from various other classmates that Ms. Defoe considered Jane to be very good.

A minute later, Donna entered the living room. “Hi, what brings you here, Lisa, Mack?”

“Actually it was Daria,” Mack said.

“I was wondering if you knew where Brittany is?” Daria asked.

Donna looked uncomfortable. “Brittany? Actually, she's in my room,” she admitted.

“She is?” Daria got up and headed to the stairs where Donna had come down.

“Wait, Daria,” Jane said. She and Jennifer also got up.

Daria waited at the foot of the stairs for her two friends to catch up. “Wait, which room is yours?” Daria said when she realized that she wouldn't know which room Brittany would be in.

“I'm not telling you,” Donna said with her hands on her hips. “I'll go get her.”

“I'll wait,” Daria said as she went back to her seat.

Donna returned to her room, where Brittany was gazing out the window. “Brittany? What did you do to annoy that Daria girl?”

“Annoy her!” Brittany squeaked. “She was stealing my Kevvy!” She paused. “Why?”

Donna gave her a look. “You may have been worried about Upchuck, but she's here.”

Brittany sat down. “Tell her I'm not here!”

“She's already knows that you're here,” Donna said.

“You told her, didn't you?”

“Yes.”

Donna came down. “Brittany doesn't want to see you,” she said to Daria.

“She doesn't? Then I'll stay here until she changes her mind.”

“If Brittany doesn't want to see you, she doesn't want to see you.”

“I'm still staying here. Go and tell her that.”

Jennifer placed her hand on Daria's shoulder. “I think that is not a good idea.”

Daria was stubborn. “Maybe not, but she entered my house and took something that wasn't hers. I would rather talk to her, than involve the police.” She turned back to Donna. “Tell her that too.”

Donna sighed. “Would you really do that?”

“Only if I had no other choice,” Daria replied.

Donna thought for a moment. “I will tell Brittany that.”

“Good,” Daria said.

Brittany saw Donna come back into the room. “Is she gone?”

Donna gave a sympathetic look. “She won't leave until she talks to you. She also said that you took something from her house and that she would go to the police about it if you don't talk to her.”

Brittany's eyes opened wide. “The Police? Eep!”

“What did you take from the Morgendorffer's house?”

“A mouse. But it was so that Daria would stay away from Kevin.”

“I see,” Donna said. 'Brittany, Brittany, Brittany, he's not worth it,' she thought.

Brittany looked down. “Kevvy ignored me!” she said forgetting to say that the Pigskin Channel was responsible, not Daria.

“Still, talk to Daria.”

Brittany sighed, and got up. “I'm ready.”

Brittany came down the stairs after Donna. “I'm here, Daria. I'm not sorry that I took that stupid little animal!”

Daria's voice was low. “I know why you would take it, but I'm not after Kevin.”

“You are!”

“I am not. You can have him. He's only over at my house because Ms. Barch put us together on the science project. The same reason why you're working with Upchuck.”

Brittany twirled her hair in thought. “That's true. I would still have the problems with Upchuck though,.”

Daria, Jane and Jennifer exchanged a look. Why would Brittany still have a problem with Upchuck if they weren't working together? “Right,” Jane said with an eyebrow raised.

Daria turned the conversation back to her intent. “I would like that mouse back!”

“I don't have it here!” Brittany projected.

“Of course not,” Jennifer murmured.

“I know you wouldn't have it here. I hope you didn't let it go,” Daria said, her face in Brittany's.

Brittany glared back. “What do you think I am? Stupid? I gave it to my brother!”

Jane stepped next to Daria and looked at Brittany. “How do you know that he didn't let it go?”

Brittany twirled her hair again. “He had better not, the little creep!”

“Now. I'll give you a deal...” Daria began.

Brittany interrupted. “What sort of deal?”

Daria shot back. “...You give me the mouse back, and you can have Kevin back.” She paused. “If we go to your house now.”

“Upchuck might be there!”

“That would be the least of your worries,” Daria said as she gave a disconcerting smile.

Brittany flinched. “Oooh! We don't have to go now!” she said as she brandished a fist. Daria responded by grabbing the cheerleader by her shoulders.

“Um, Daria, you don't want to do that!” Lisa warned.

“We are going now,” Daria said.

“No!” Brittany said, and promptly twisted Daria onto her back in a martial arts move. Daria leapt up and was promptly restrained by Jane and Jennifer.

“You're good,” Daria said stubbornly.

“Brittany, I think it would be wise to accept Daria's request,” Donna said. She didn't want the stand off happening in her living room to go on for much longer.

Brittany then began to twirl her hair more intently than before.

Mack's Valiant and Donna's Hyundai Elantra pulled up outside the Taylor mansion. Mack, Jane, Jennifer and Daria emerged from the Valiant. Brittany, Donna and Lisa from the Elantra. Brittany looked around nervously. 'He's not here,' she thought.

“It looks as if no one's home,” Jane said.

“I agree,” Jennifer said.

“Time to go in,” Daria said.

“Follow me,” Brittany said.

Brittany opened Brian's door to find the creepy room deserted. “Here's not here,” She said after a moment.

“Is your father or step-mother home?” Daria asked.

“You're not going to tell them!” Brittany said.

“I might,” Daria said in response.

“O-ooh! I'm not going to say if they are or not!”

“Are they or not?”

Brittany remained unwilling to tell Daria if her father or Ashley-Amber were home. “Daria, I think it's best not to bring her parents into this,” Jane said.

“Why not?”

“Brittany might accuse you of slander or something. Not in so many words of course,” Jane replied.

“Of course.” Daria turned to Brittany. “I'm not going to tell them, but they may know where your brother is.”

“I think they're here,” Brittany said.

Brittany's father didn't have a clue, but Ashley-Amber told Brittany that Brian was seeing one of his friends.

“That's disappointing,” Jane said after Brittany had come downstairs and told them

“We're not going to try to go around Brian's friend's places are we?” Donna asked.

“The places he hangs out at; creepy,” Lisa said with a shudder.

“Some are creepier than Andrea's,” Donna said.

“And you would know this, how?” Jane asked with a raised eyebrow.

“I had to accompany Brittany there to pick him up once,” Donna said.

“And she had a sleepover at Andrea's in middle school,” Lisa said.

“Never again,” Donna murmured.

“Right,” Daria said.

“Brittany, there would be an address book somewhere?” Jennifer asked quietly.

“Yes,” Brittany responded.

“You know where it is?” Daria asked.

“Yes,” Brittany replied.

After Brittany had copied the details for Brian's friends as described in the address book (which they had borrowed from Steve), they left the Taylor residence heading towards the closest of those addresses.

Back at the Convention Quinn came back to Cindy and Kristen with a signed Manga. “Yes!” Quinn shouted. Kristen put her hands over her ears. “Cool,” she said sardonically.

“What is it? Cindy asked excitedly.

Quinn pointed to the katakana phrase on the cover of the manga. “Saibakanada no toraburu,” she said.

“Huh?” Cindy asked.

“Loosely translated: Cyber-Canadian Troubles,” Quinn said. “It's cyberpunk.”

“Oh, so it's like Ghost in the Shell, except in Canada?” Kristen asked.

“Wait, how can you read it if it's in Japanese?” Cindy asked. 'She would have mentioned it if she knew the language,' she thought.

“I understand some symbols. Besides, Koichi knows it,” Quinn replied.

“Cool,” Kristen said.

Having not found Brian at other places, the Valiant and the Elantra pulled up in front of a run down townhouse in Lawndale Flats, a public housing estate on the north-eastern edge of town.

“Still think that place in Texas is worse?” Mack asked.

“Yes,” Daria replied, having mentioned Highland earlier. She opened the door.

The young lady warily opened the door a crack, ensuring that the chain lock was in the correct position. She saw a large group of teens just outside. A girl with long auburn hair was glaring at her. “Hello, how can I help you?”

“Is this the Mankin residence,” the auburn haired girl asked in a monotone.

“Yes, it is,” the young lady said timidly.

“Is someone named Brian Taylor here?”

“No comment. Who's asking?”

“I'm his sister!” a very perky blonde said in a high pitched voice.

“Oh, but not everyone can come in, only about four of you at most. There isn't much room.”

Brittany, Daria, Jane and Lisa entered the Mankin's rather spartan (and tiny) lounge/dining room behind the young mother. They could see that there wasn't much in the way of chairs.

“Cal, Brian's sister is here,” Ms. Mankin called.

“Coming, Mom,” was the reply. The sounds of a ruckus in the bedroom came through the wall.

“Would you like anything?”

“Soda would be nice,” Jane said. Lisa and Brittany nodded.

“Water would be fine,” Daria said.

Brian and his friend Cal emerged from the bedroom. “What are you doing here, Brit?” he asked.

“I would like the mouse back,” Brittany said.

“She took it from me,” Daria explained.

“It's not here!” Brian said with a disturbing smile.

“What's going on?” Ms. Mankin asked, wanting to know what exactly was going on.

Jane turned to Daria, who then explained, with some commentary by Lisa...

“Let's see if I have this straight, Ms. Barch assigned Brian's sister's boyfriend to Daria, which caused Brian's sister to get jelous? And she then tries to stop her boyfriend from spending time with Daria by stealing the mouse from Daria's house? Is that right?” Ms. Mankin asked after some thought.

“Yes,” Daria replied.

“Pretty much,” Jane added.

“It's rather stupid,” Ms. Mankin said.

“I agree with that,” Daria said.

“If only...” Ms. Mankin said briefly before stopping.

“I realize that now,” Brittany said, with a slight shake of her head.

“So, Brian, where is the mouse?” Ms. Mankin asked, wanting to get to the point. 'I hope he hasn't done something to it...' she thought.

“Not here!”

“Clearly!” Ms. Mankin said with her arms over her chest, and glaring at Brian. He smiled. 'He's creepier than ever!'

“It's at home!” Brian said.

“It's not in your room!” Brittany said.

Brian smiled again. “It's in the basement.”

'There's something strange about the way he's smiling,' Daria thought. “We definitely didn't look there. Let's go,” she said.

“I agree,” Jane said.

“Sure,” Brittany said.

“You want to take Brian with you?” Ms. Mankin asked.

“Yes,” Brittany said.

“Bye, Cal.”

“Bye, Brian,” Cal said quietly.

The group left the townhouse. “So, we have Brian?” Mack asked.

“Yes, the mouse is apparently in their basement,” Lisa said.

“Let's go,” Mack said.

“Sure,” Donna said.

The two cars then arrived back at the Taylor's mansion, after driving across Lawndale, 20 minutes later.

Brian and Brittany went down to the basement. Shortly afterwards, Brittany emerged from the basement carrying a box, the same box that she had taken from the Morgendorffer's garage. “It's in here, Daria,” Brittany said.

“I wonder why,” Jane said.

“Good,” Daria said as she snatched the box away. She opened the box and looked at the mouse. “Of course.”

“What?” Jane asked. Jennifer repeated her question with an enquiring look. Daria showed them the mouse. “Oh! That creep!”

“He obviously did something,” Jennifer said quietly.

Daria closed the box.”Thanks for your help,” she said to Mack and the cheerleaders.

“You're welcome,” Mack said.

“Time to go,” Daria directed.

“Sure,” Jane said.

However, when Daria opened the door, she found Upchuck on the doorstep. “Ms. Morgendorffer, I know Brittany's here.”

“What is it to you? I'm sure that you have your project well in hand.”

“Indeed I do, but I need some input from her. Ms. Barch will fail us otherwise.”

Daria could see the truth in that statement. However something was 'off' about Upchuck's demeanour. “What aren't you saying?” she asked.

“Who cares? Let's go,” Jane said.

“Wait, Jane. Something's up,” Jennifer said.

“Probably,” Jane said after a little thought.

“Brittany doesn't want to see you, Upchuck!” Donna said.

“True,” Upchuck admitted.

“Kevin wouldn't like it when I tell him what you have been doing,” Daria said.

“That big lug? The worst that he would do is try to pummel me. I have taken karate.” Upchuck adopted a karate pose for emphasis.

“I guess...” Jane began.

“What do you have on her?” Daria asked, interrupting Jane.

“What?” Jane asked.

“What?” Upchuck echoed.

“It's obvious that you have something on her,” Daria said.

“Feisty!”

“What is it, Upchuck?” Jane said.

“I'm not saying!”

“Give it to me!” Brittany said, emerging from one of the side rooms.

“No!” Upchuck said.

“Yes!”

“Whatever it is, hand it over,” Daria said.

“Even if I wanted to, it's safely at home,” Upchuck said.

“Go there,” Daria said.

“No, Daria. Brittany, I will tell Kevin, if you don't come now.”

“So that's it,” Jane concluded. Jennifer nodded as she came to the same conclusion

“That's what?” Daria asked, confused.

“They cheat on each other, some of the time. He's caught Brittany at one of those times,” Jennifer whispered to Daria.

“Oh, then go and tell Kevin, Upchuck. Just leave Brittany alone,” Daria said.

“It isn't the usual type of cheating.”

Daria turned to Brittany. “It isn't an adult, is it?”

“Of course not!” Brittany answered, squeaking higher than usual.

“It's a teen, but not someone from Lawndale,” Upchuck said, placing the emphasis on the town's name.

“O-ooh!” Brittany had had enough. “So what if it's the Oakwood quarterback!”

Donna was shocked. “Sam Stack? But he's Kevin's biggest rival!”

“I know,” Brittany said in embarrassment and shame.

Donna saw the expression on her friend's face. “I won't tell him.”

“So, it comes out,” Daria said.

Donna shot a look of annoyance at Daria. “Thanks, Donna,” Brittany said.

“Now, it's time to go,” Jane said.

“Yes, I need to figure out what to tell Ms. Barch on Monday,” Daria said.

When Quinn, Cindy and Kristen left the convention for the day, they found that Tatiana was still sitting outside. “Why are you still here?” Kristen asked.

“I had planned to be at the convention all day,” Tatiana said. Her voice showed a mixture of boredom and exasperation.

“So? There's are other things to do in Lawndale,” Cindy said.

“Not many!” Tatiana answered.

“Those options are still available,” Quinn said.

“I guess so,” Tatiana said.

“How are you getting home?” Cindy asked.

“My sister is picking me up,” Tatiana said.

“That's ok then,” Cindy said.

“We can wait, keep you company,” Quinn suggested.

“No need to do that,” Tatiana said.

“Oh, OK.”

Later that night, the Morgendorffers were having their usual dinner of microwaved lasagne.

“How was it at the Convention, Quinn?” Jake asked.

Quinn started into her description of events...

“...And then Tatiana was thrown out,” Quinn said as she continued her description of the convention.

“Well, she caused a disturbance. That's what happens when obsessions get out of control,” Helen said.

“I guess so,” Quinn said. She considered that it was a possiblity that Tatiana was obsessed.

“How was your day, Daria?”

“The usual,” Daria said, deciding not to give anything away. (She hadn't been able to get the mouse to respond to any stimuli. It had just lay there, shaking. She knew she had to out Brian to Ms. Barch somehow, but without naming him.)

“You must have done something. I notice that Kevin isn't here, watching the pigskin channel,” Helen said.

“Yeah, where is he?” Jake asked.

“Jake! Let me ask!”

“Sorry.”

“He has finished his part of the project,” Daria said.

“Are you sure?” Helen asked.

“Of course he has,” Daria answered.

“I know that you went somewhere today,” Jake said.

“I go somewhere every Saturday,” Daria said. 'At least since we moved here.'

“I suppose,” Helen sighed.

Sunday, November 26, 2005

Quinn, Cindy and Kristen arrived at the convention for the second day. Quinn was wearing the Ichigo outfit again. “What do you think will happen today?” Cindy asked.

“It probably will be as exciting as yesterday,” Kristen said.

“What make you say that?” Quinn asked.

“Tatiana is here,” Kristen said, pointing her out.

“Tatiana? Weren't you banned for four years?” Quinn asked.

“I was, but it's not fair!”

“You think you could change their mind by being here?” Quinn asked.

“Possibly!” Tatiana said.

“I don't think it would work,” Kristen said.

“Sorry,” Cindy said, as they went in.

Tatiana sighed.

Daria, Jane and Jennifer were in the garage, with the mouse. “It's hopeless. He hasn't touched his food,” Jennifer said.

“I know what to say to Ms. Barch,” Daria said.

“The truth?” Jennifer asked.

“Without mentioning Brian by name,” Daria said.

“Good,” Jane said.

“So, what are you saying to Ms. Barch?” Jennifer asked.

“You'll find out tomorrow,” Daria said. Jennifer nodded.

“But what'll happen to the mouse?” Jane asked.

“I have no idea what Ms. Barch will do with it,” Daria said.

“True, maybe one of our classmates?” Jane asked.

“But which student would want a traumatised mouse as a pet? It wouldn't be worth it,” Daria said.

'I guess so,' Jane thought.

Monday, November 27, 2005

Ms. Barch's class was in session. “Brittany, Charles. You're up.”

Brittany and Upchuck carried their cage to the front. It contained a hamster tube leading to the cheese.

“We started with...” Upchuck began.

Ms. Barch interrupted. “Shut up, Charles. Brittany, did you go with negative or positive reinforcement?”

Upchuck gulped. He hoped Brittany would read from the cue card that he had given her.

Brittany took out the card that Upchuck had printed out for her. “We used positive reinforcement to train the mouse to find the right way to the food in the center of the maze,” she said. Unfortunately she sounded dull.

Ms. Barch took the cue card off Brittany. “Who wrote this?” she asked.

“It doesn't matter,” Brittany said, knowing that if she did tell the teacher that it was Upchuck who wrote it, that she would fail.”

Ms. Barch came to that conclusion anyway, but didn't want to fail Brittany. It was the best that she had done since she started at LHS the previous year. “OK, Brittany, you get a B-.”

“That's a relief,” Upchuck said.

“Not you, Upchuck! You get a D-!”

Upchuck groaned.

“Daria and Kevin.”

“In conclusion, this mouse -- through no fault of my own, Brittany -- was repeatedly abused by a ten-year-old boy. As a result, the mouse's primary response to everyday stimuli is fear. Similar reactions also occur in humans. Take the mugging victim, beaten with nunchuks in an alleyway. As he, or she, recalls the attacker's face -- his scraggly goatee and cheap, dangly earring -- she learns to hate and fear all men, regardless of age, race or taste in jewelry,” Daria said as she concluded her presentation.

“Really?” Kevin asked.

“Don't interrupt, hateful scum. Excellent job, Daria. You get an 'A.'”

“All right!” Kevin celebrated. Too soon...

“Not you, you man. You get a 'D.'”

“All right!” Kevin said. It was still his best lab grade ever...

Kevin met Daria in the hallway after class. “You know, Daria, I really liked hanging out at your house and working on the maze thing.”

“Yeah, the week just flew by. It was like you were hardly there.”

“Thanks.” Kevin paused. “Hey, Daria?”

“Yes?”

“I'm having a big party Friday, and I want a lot of cool people there. Could you...”

“Yes?” she asked with slight hope.

“...ask Quinn if she could make it?”

“No, Kevin, you can ask her yourself,” Daria said in reply.

“Um, OK.”

#brittany taylor #charles ruttheimer iii #daria #daria morgendorffer #fan fiction #helen morgendorffer #jake morgendorffer #jane lane #janet barch #michael 'mack' mackenzie #quinn morgendorffer #the lab brat

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lilspice05 · 3 years

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It’s Superhero Time !

Hey, Hey favorite people in the whole wide world and my amazing lil Spicers It’s been a whole week since we last talked and it kinda a sad day as this is my last blog of this season. But, don't you worry my little nutmegs and cinnonmoms, I will be back after a short break. Sit back and relax, cozy by the fire with a cup of hot cocoa while I am away for me! I decided that for this week's blog and to leave all you guys off with an amazing ending till i'm back. I’m going to be creating my very own superhero for you guys and gals and bring back some joy to this crazy year. Now we all know or have an idea what a superhero looks, sounds, and acts like right? Today I plan on switching things up a bit and showing you all something different. Adding my own bit of spice into the mix! Well hopefully this will be like no other hero you've ever seen before and will enjoy what i'm about to bring to life.

Now my lovelies let's take a full dive right in, like when the Joker and Harley Quinn did into the water while Batman was chasing them in Sucide Squad. This is no regular superhero, this is WolfGirl. WolfGirl is a different kind of story as she is a Marvel Superhero and is not quite an Avenger yet as she didn't start out as the best person or even a hero. It all started back in 1943 at this mansion like home in Wallkill NY, a small town where everyone knows each other and being different is frowned upon especially since she was on the weather side of society. That’s when everything started to change for this 5 year old hero. Amanda Zale was the child of Colleen and Lance Zale. Life was not easy for her as she was the youngest of five with a very abusive mom who was so concerned about what society thought of her and a hard working, wealthy dad that was hardly around. Which is why she only got along with her older brother as he was the only one too seem to care about or for her. It was supposed to be them against the world for life no matter what. Unless it was to give her parents or siblings something they wanted as their intentions were to use her to get them ahead in life. She was a shy, cute, strong, and independent child. Who sometimes gets in trouble for her curiosity. She had learned that she is not like all the other children in the world. Especially when it came to her four siblings Victoria, Edward, Elizabeth, and James who is the oldest and the many children in her town. She noticed she was different because her nails would grow when thought about, her eyes could change colors even helping her see at night , she could shift into any animal but her favorite was a wolf, and was able to look into people's minds showing them a different reality. She even learned how to show them their worst nightmare. You see Amanda abbitlies came not only from natural ability from a special gene inside of her but were enhanced after she was sold to a scientist called Dr. Flint. A very evil man that was working for Hydra and some to this day says he still does because of the chemicals he used. He discovered that the cells that are rare and doubled in certain children react differently and poor little Amanda discovered that at a young age. After she was sold to this horrible man by her parents. They had no problem in making the decision since she was a burden to them. It was then, without warning, when she was taken out of Wallkill and taken to this weird base or abandoned homes in the middle of nowhere with children running around. Only a few and even then they were not like her. She met a young boy named Jacob which happened to be the doctor's son in this awful and scary place. They thought they were inseparable as he was really her first and only friend. Quickly they became best friends, but she grew up faster than other children that have bought here before. Her maturity stemmed from everything she was put through, growing up dealing with so much, she had no other option rather than to grow up and face reality. This pleased the doctor and she quickly became his favorite and eventually the only child as she was forced to stay away from everyone else. She even had to sleep in a different building in this concrete room like a prisoner. Being alone caused her to stick to her studies learning how to fight, run fast, control people's minds, and getting chemicals pumped through her body to enhance her abilities the way the doctor wanted. This caused her to have a few scars on her back, arms, and chest as some of the experiments backfired. She did all of this till she hit the age of 16 at only five and half years later being brought to this horrible place. This was possible because she froze at this age due to the fact her genes and cells would regenerate everyday to help her heal and become the strongest. She then continued these studies and tests for the next few years becoming one the best killer in her generation. She then became a secret weapon for Hydra. She then was sent on many missions for most of her life to try to kill many members of Shield and was very successful killing many agents and leaving many others in mental trauma. She even killed one of the original leaders of Shield in hopes of finding the original serum that made Captain America who he is. Slowly after a decade of doing this for Hydra she started getting pretty well known for her work and was hunted especially by shield and many government officials. Which led Hydra to leave her on her own and abandoned the project she was involved in tossing her into the streets.

After being on the run for so long and being alone for so many decades thinking of her family, mistakes, and wishing she could see her brother again. She started using her powers for common crimes like stealing, cheating, and fighting to survive the harsh streets of New York City. It was these city streets that made her who she really was. It was this environment that made her want to be a part of it all. Seeing all of the corruption and madness tear her society apart, she figured why try and fight it all when I can just join them and be a part of all the madness. Taking action, she told herself was the only way to survive. One day though she ended up picking the wrong person's pocket. That person was no other than Tony Stark himself and she ended up stealing one of his bands that has his next prototype for his big suit and also some secret files showing many heroes around the world. Not knowing she started to walk away and Tony saw her with it and started chasing her. She quickly thought on her feet and used her powers to show Tony a reality that the bracelet was still in his hand. While she slipped away going back to her home, a beat up old warehouse. Slowly after that she is found by not only Tony but also Steve Rogers aka Captain America and they were not happy. She tried using her many tricks and she was almost successful in escaping but they caught up to her and asked where her parents were, where she lived, and did she know what she stole. Naturally she lied as she was trained to. However they caught onto her lies as she looked beat up and lost. They decided to take her back to the Avengers building and give her food, clothes, and shower. When she came out she looked around in amazement but with her guard up. As she was used to everything being so dark, scary and she didn't trust them. This is the part of her story that she has a change of heart, but it's not the reason you think. As she walked those halls she stumbled upon a picture she knew. One familiar face she knew from her days in Hydra. Someone she looked up to as he became like a brother to her when she was training for missions. That person was Bucky Barnes, a soldier brought in after falling off a train. She stood there frozen starting at this picture and this is when Tony and Cap realized why she was able to do what she could. They asked her to stay with them and not wanting to go back to that warehouse she decided to stay and overtime she started to really trust them especially Cap. He told her all the stories about Bucky and she told him what Hydra did to them. She started to really trust again and even would go on missions with them. Wearing her brand new suit that Steve helped her design because her old ripped up clothes didn't keep her safe. It was all black with red lines going through to help her control her transformations. She also wears a necklace with a shape like a bullet charm at the end holding a piece of rock in it. Her brother James gave it to her before she was taken away. She also has these gloves with special made nails to fit over her anytime they grow. All of this helped her realise that life can be rough but if you keep on fighting everything will eventually be ok. This is why she always makes sure all the kids around the world know this message and that they will always have someone to protect them. That is why to this day she has taken Morgan Stark and Peter Parker under her watch after Tony gave himself to save the world. She feels responsible to make sure they are always protected since the two men that gave her a better life are now gone. They become the siblings she never had. Knowing that if she ever would die that she would leave behind a legacy of it is your choice whether to be good or bad in the end. So don't let others push you to the wrong decision, always listen to your gut, Even if it means leaving all that you know behind.

With that being said this is where I end this story about my superhero and pick up another one somewhere else after my break or even in my life. As life is really an open book and we can only take it one chapter at a time so be your own hero. I hope this gives you guys and gals the entertainment, joy, and we'll need distraction as it has for me to write it for you lovies. As I also hope that maybe this blog post or the few others I have written help you discover your own talents or maybe even help you write your story. In real life or imagination and remember you can do anything if you put your mind too. Nothing is impossible and like Stan lee said “ If you are interested in what you do, that keeps you going.” Also please my lil Spicers don't forget to take care of yourself. You can't be a hero for others if you are a hero for yourself first. Always eat, drink, sleep, stay safe and smile. These are important things especially this time of year and in this year that we all sadly call 2020. So please mask up because even heroes wear them. Better safe than sorry! I love you all and will see you when I get back.

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choices-and-more · 6 years

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An Assassin’s Latent Desire to Love - Memoirs from Estela’s Personal Journal

This ES fanfiction is told from Estela’s point of view. This fanfic also makes use of all available Premium Choices in the entire game.

Book 1

My name...my name... is Estela Montoya. I am from the city of San Trobida in Colombia. My mother was Dr. Olivia Montoya, a scientist working for Everett Rourke. I never knew my father, except that he abandoned me and my mother right after I was born. I was raised by my uncle Nicolas in the family business of killing dictators. To me, we were more like freedom fighters rather than rebels. We were expected not to show any compassion or fear of the enemy.

When I was fifteen years old, my mother was transferred to The Celestial, Rourke’s prized jewel in the island of La Huerta. After she discovered that he was conducting illegal activities, she was fearful for her life and begged my uncle to retrieve her.

I learned about my mother being killed by Rourke, and thus, with help from my uncle, I forged papers in order to enter Hartfeld University. I intended to take Rourke’s son, Aleister, hostage, for me to get close to Rourke. Later on, I found that ten students were randomly selected for a prized trip to La Huerta. I was one of the lucky winners - or maybe it wasn’t luck. Something must have intervened, but I don’t know what.

On that day, I met Taylor.

I was gazing alone at the stars, when all of a sudden, he came by. He asked me if I wanted some company. I hesitated to answer, but did not turn him down. I told him to stay and we watched the stars together. After a while, I left, but I reminded him that he was a kind, honest, and good person. I knew that he was right when he was telling everybody that he did see something, and that he was angry at Raj for not believing him.

As he went to explore the island together with a few friends, I stayed behind, as I was looking for clues regarding my mother’s death. I slashed open a painting of a sailboat. I quickly managed to hide before i was caught.

As he was coming back after exploring the island, i admired him for his vigilance, as he punched Craig, mistaking him for the creature that he saw the night before. Sure, Craig was a little mad, but at least both of them didn’t scream.

Taylor and his group had already talked about leaving the island, but I am resolved to stay due to unfinished business. He wanted to help me, but I told him not to get involved. Still, he doesn’t seem to care, as long as he helps me in any way he can. At first, I was doubting him if he was speaking the truth.

Then we learned that the plane was destroyed. We don’t know who went in and broke the hangar’s padlock. Taylor went to retrieve the lock, but as soon as the plane’s gas tank was about to catch fire, I went in and dived for him. Whether it was out of a mere impulse or a reaction, I saved his life either way. Taylor was wondering why I did that. I don’t know why myself, and that puzzled me.

I managed to bring everyone back to the resort, all in one piece, but now I have to return to my mission. Taylor wished me well and bade me to take care of myself. Since then I laid low from the rest of the group.

Regarding Taylor, I already expected the fact that he and Quinn were just right for each other, as they had been frequently seen together. Besides, I always wanted to keep my life wholly atypical. Quinn had this charisma and kindness – traits which I could and should never have. I always wanted to live the life of an assassin. I told myself that this was just a fleeting moment which will soon pass. I was not in any way competing with Quinn. After all, we’re two entirely different people.

I had heard rumors of a giant crab that had been roaming about, as if it was guarding the island. That king-size crustacean attacked Sean and his group, but I arrived in the nick of time to save everyone. Thanks to Taylor’s quick thinking, we managed to drive off the crab. However, I was not convinced that the crab was killed, so I went ahead to finish it off. He later accompanied me and offered to help.

While we were pursuing the crab, Taylor was suddenly bitten by a snake, and he was feeling delirious. I managed to suck the venom out of him. He soon recovered quickly, and we were on our way. All of a sudden, we were pursued and attacked by the giant crab. Taylor used my spear to bring down the boulder which crushed the crab’s powerful armor. As I was observing its remains, I found an amber arrowhead which somehow penetrated the crab’s armor, while my spear couldn’t even leave a scratch or dent.

Before we left for the La Huerta Observatory, we had to rest first. Taylor asked if he could sleep beside me. I was debating internally whether I should let him, but I did so anyway. We needed to get warm, after all. He was just worried that someone, or something, might attack us. I told him not to be as I will keep watch over him and the rest of the group.

As we ventured into the observatory, we noticed that it was no ordinary research facility. It contained an interrogation room of all places. In one of the lockers, I found a mysterious device, which I reluctantly showed to Taylor.

While inside, our group managed to find the hologram known as IRIS, which was Rourke’s artificial intelligence computer. We learned that we are now trapped within the island, in a time bubble, and no one will come for us.

As we all returned to The Celestial with IRIS, I wanted to destroy the hologram as it belonged to Rourke, but Raj stood in my way. Taylor agreed with me, but in the end I chose not to have IRIS destroyed.

We left for the marina where Rourke’s yachts were located. Most of the boats were destroyed, except for a speedboat which Jake and Sean boarded. Taylor joined them on the boat, and as they were on their way to call for help, they were attacked by a giant sea creature. The said creature had the power to summon lightning. Taylor huddled with Jake and Sean and they worked together to bring down the sea creature. The beast was gravely injured, and I was cheering for Taylor. He had proven himself to be a leader.

Later on, he, Jake, and Sean were pursued by a group known as the Watchers. One of the Watchers, the man in the lion mask, had mind-melded with Taylor, who witnessed something really bad. He was about to surrender when Craig came by and rescued them. They retreated back to The Celestial, and soon we had to prepare for war.

As a former soldier, I had extensive knowledge of martial arts and self-defense techniques. Jake had more of an avant-garde style, while Sean and Craig provided the muscle. Unfortunately the latter two have insufficient self-defense skills, leaving me and Jake as the only ones who can defend themselves with our bare hands. Taylor wanted to learn some self-defense as well. Initially, Jake was coaching him, but sadly he was not much of a teacher, which is why I taught both of them. Taylor chose my defensive technique, but he even made me blush when he said our sparring was just like dancing. I wished I could have taught him more.

We also learned a terrible secret - Aleister had been lying to us all along. Though he claimed he was not a spy, he admitted that he was the son of Everett Rourke. His full name was Everett Aleister Rourke the Second. I had already known that from the start, but the entire group was surprised.

I hadn’t thought about it, but Taylor, whom I had already believed to be with Quinn, would drop by to see me. While I was practicing my self-defense skills, he came by to visit me that night. At first, I was a little wary about why he invited me. I could have asked him, ‘Aren’t you supposed to be with Quinn?’ but I held my peace. I accepted his invitation and joined him.

As I went up to his room, my mind and heart had been racing very fast, too many times. He was offering me his hospitality, but to me there was more to it. Why does he care so much about me? What traits, attributes, or qualities do I possess which no one else in the group have?

Maybe I should have known it by now, but when we fought off the giant crab, I kept thinking of him. Going back further, I even saved him from the exploding plane. He made me feel something which I never felt before, and I was about to learn what that was.

All of a sudden, my body was trembling, even shaking a bit. I felt very uneasy while talking to him. Gathering my inner strengths in one piece, I finally had the courage to tell him: I want him to kiss me.

I thought he was doing it simply because i asked him to. He was reluctant at first. I was flinching a bit when he first pressed his lips to mine, but I soon gave in. Yet, it was not enough. I wanted another, and he kissed me longer. This time it was more passionate. His lips was very soft, yet I was being sucked in so hard. I want more of him.

He pulled off his clothes and I caressed his body. For the first time in my life, my hands have been used not to kill, but to touch and soothe. He undressed my hoodie and shirt off and tugged down my pants and underwear. He started making love to me, and I returned the favor tenfold. We ended up having a steamy rendezvous that very evening. He was so beautiful. I just couldn’t resist him. He was giving me both pain and pleasure - but more on the latter. At last, it came to me what I was feeling this whole time - I love him. And he loved me back.

I haven’t felt that way before, but it was just so good. Finally, I admitted everything about my secret to him. Taylor was more than a friend - he’s the reason why I’m here.

On that same night, a Watcher came crashing and I tried to fight him, and it was again the man in the lion mask. We grappled each other, but I was mortally wounded and passed out. However, thanks to a divine intervention, I was resurrected. Taylor and I had to end our tryst as we had to split up. We gathered everybody and met at the security office.

As the Watchers came by, we were trapped, and I have decided to make use of the device I found at the observatory. It was a time travel gun which I fired at some of the Watchers.

Taylor then gathered the rest of our friends as we made a break for the rooftop of The Celestial, right after rescuing Raj and Grace. Jake discovered some parasailing gear but it was not enough for all of us. Sean and Craig offered to stay behind along with Jake, but Taylor overruled them. He had a brilliant idea - he took the portal gun from my waistband and used it to go forward. That was truly clever of him. Unfortunately Diego was caught and taken by the Watchers.

Right before Taylor used the portal gun, he told me that it is already the end. I told him that we’re only starting, and our relationship will know no bounds.

#playchoices #choices fanfction #endless summer #estela montoya #taylor x estela

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