Catch a Grenade for ya[BRIGHT/OPEN]

[Larksing]

Fivel nodded to Kao, her green eyes pale with worry. "I'm alright." She replied. Flocked laughed, her head tilting back slightly. "You think you can defeat me with little seeds? How pathetic." Her body was slowly eaten away by black wisps of shadows, her whole being disappearing completely. Fivel leaned back into Kao, looking for some sort of reassurance. "We're stuck in her world now." she muttered. "You can't trust anything here."

She worried about what was to come. She didn't want her friends jurt, and she certainly didn't want her friends to end up like she had. Flock's voice boomed around them. "Let's make a deal." she said. "Whoever our little Fivel is with by the end of the hour gets to keep her." Fivel shivered and glanced back at Kao, waiting for him to answer. She knew he would say no, but she wanted to fight Flock. The look in her eyes reflected it as she stared up at him with her big green eyes. She didn't care how broken her wrist was. She wanted to kick Flock's butt.

"Kao?" she said.

WORD COUNT:227

[Fel]

While he is relieved that Fivel is alright Kao grinds his teeth together, frustrated that Flock won't even see him as a real opponent. Her insults chafe against his skin but he does his best to push it away and focus on what's important. "What do you mean, her world?"

He asks, he had really rushed in blind, not sure what Flock's gift is. He narrows his eyes at the sound of Flock's voice filling up the air around him while her body is seemingly gone. "I'd sooner make a deal with the devil." He growls back. He curls his hands around Fivel's arm and waste, he is progressively holding her tighter and tighter though he isn't meaning to hurt her. "This person is going to be with me."

He looks down at her, almost like he's trying to reassure himself that she's actually there and not some illusion. Kao smiles wanly. "You want to fight." He mumbles, unable to tell her a straight 'no' after hearing her say his name. "So stubborn, d-mn it. Do you realize that that's what I'm trying to prevent? Flock probably wants to fight you so she can hurt you again." He has to fight to control his voice on the last sentence but manages to get it out without to much trouble. Someone save me from myself. He thinks.

Words: 242

[waterfall]

Brooke stared at the Nurse's wicked appearance in horror. She was shocked, despite knowing that this encounter was inevitable. She thought herself foolish for not breaking the chains to at least release Fivel. brooke's wide blue eyes morphed into a fury filled glare. "Where's Haku?" she hissed, her voice shaking ever so slightly. She gripped Fivels hand as she sat and glared at Flock. The nurse looked so much more powerful from her view on the floor. So she stood up, dropping Fivel's hand. She was still a but shorter, but it improved her confidence. While she waited for the witch's reply, she tried to form some sort of action plan blue print in her head as the song of adrenaline pounded through her veins. Then a lightbulb lit up. She could use her sonic scream. She had never really tried it on anyone before but she mangaged to get the pitch so high, she managed to annoy her old neighbors bulldog. This time she would be sure to scream at a human pitch, and louder. But then a troubling thought occurred to her. She could wake up the whole school, or worse, hurt hear dear comrades ears. She could control sound waves, but only to an extent. She wasn't completely assured that she could control her scream to only affect nurse. 'Mental note to self: practice sound control.' She was able deliver whispers and soft songs directly to favored ears without breaking a sweat, but the scream was defi lately a risk. She bit her lower lip and shot Kao and Fivl looks of despair that screamed "What the fudge do we do now!?!?!?"

Word count: 276

[quest]

Nove glared at the nurse and felt power pulsating through his fingers. "You idoit..!" he seethed. "You think that you can just steal people away like this for your own greedy purposes?!" He ran at Flock before she disappeared, and tripped over nothingness. Something pushed him back next to Kao and Fivel, and he grimmaced, his eyes at half-mast, his back arched, his blue irises fiery with rage. Cloe appeared next to Flock. "You better not come closer." she warned. "Or next time I'll burn you."

Nove yelled out and charged again. Whenever Cloe tried to burn him, he reflected it with fire of his own. Cloe soon grew frustrated and cried out, too. She hit him harder than the first times and soon they were nose to nose, glaring each other down, pushing hard on each other, their weight nearly on top of each other, when Cloe pushed harder than intended and knocked Nove over. She pushed her hand forward and nearly burned him, but he grasped her wrist and kept her from touching him. His grip was solid, and she couldn't break free as he burned her. She jumped back with a cry and seethed at him, her eyes fiery.

[Larksing]

"Nove!" Fivel started to charge forward, but suddenly she had a dizzy spell and she fell back on Kao again, a hand to her head. What..? she thought. What's going on? This has never happened to me before! She glared through her fingers up at Flock. What is she pulling.

Flock smirked at her. "Well, Fivel. Aren't you going to tell him?"

Fivel glared at her.

Flock rolled her eyes. "Stubborn."

She disappeared with a strange wind-like movement. She appeared in front of Fivel, and grasped the girl's chin in her hand. "Our little Fivel has been spending her time in the most unbearble detention center imaginable." Fivel was too weak to move. Her green eyes were layered in pure hatred. "Her own mind."

There was another spark of pain in Fivel's brain, and she jerked her face away from Flock. Flock disappeared again and reappeared, her arm draped around Kao's shoulder. She spoke into his ear. "She's been invaded by a spirit, and when the spirit copies her DNA in the process, it copies her powers, too." She smiled venomously. "And wouldn't it be just awful if all of that power fell into the wrong hands, Mr. Montique?"

Flock pulled away from him and disappeared again.

Fivel began to build energy in the left side of her brain, where her power was stored. I'm ready for a fight. She thought. You've crossed the line, and now you'll pay.

||Words: 292||

[Fel]

He wants to help Nove but he's already get as much as he can handle protecting Fivel from Flock. With a free arm he points at Cloe in a half-assed attempt to help. A wave of flame surges towards Cloe but he doesn't have time to control how it hits or anything. He's pretty sure she'll dodge it. "Brooke... just help Nove or something." He yells, noticing how she was looking at him for direction. Kao catches Fivel, again. "Are you okay? Remember - we're rescuing you. You don't have to feel obligated to help because you've already done enough." He says gently, hoping that she'll understand.

He frowns, trying to puzzle out what Flock's saying. Normally he isn't this slow but lack of sleep is weighing on him. Hell, it feels like he's dragging a hundred pounds of lead weight every time he moves. Invaded by a spirit... he knows for certain that it's been Fivel talking to him... so where is the spirit? He looks down at her, afraid. How had he let this happen to her?

"Tch. You're a pathetic old lady. It probably won't even be long before you can't have kids anymore. F-ck off and go watch R-rated internet videos in some basement." He growls. "I'll burn down this whole school before you touch her again."

Words: 239

[waterfall]

Brooke felt like she was going to explode. This mad lady was driving her insane. To add to her stress, Nove and Cloe were at battle. That was the last straw. She pounced at Cloe with the agility and speed of a cheetah, grabbing at her neck. This was the anger Brooke attempted to kept hidden but this was too much. She ended up in between the Cloe an Nove. She extended her right leg and spun around, landing a stellar kick to the spirit's neck. Glaring with her fierce blue eyes, she sneered at her enemies. "leave my friends alone." Countless questions plagued her mind, like why Fivel didn't reach out to her. She wondered if their bond wasn't as strong as she thought. Still, Brooke's stance didn't waver. Her glare still flared. She turned towards the nurse sharply. "what is it that you want? What is your objective? What could we do in return for Fivel's freedom?" She then recalled Haku's pain and nightmares. "What have you dome to Haku?" She stated her last question with a smudge of more authority and worry. She started to feel shaky, but wasn't sure if it was visible. She was terrified.

Word count: 200

[Larksing]

Tobee covered her face with her hand, closing her eyes tight and pushing Kao back. "Get away," she whispered. "Back away, from me, Kao."

Flock's laugh echoed around the abyss. "Haku.." she said. "Was it like this, Miss Jenson?"

The abyss filled with deep choking cries. "I didn't!" the voice yelled. "I didn't.. I didn't.. please!"

Fivel shuddered with anger. Haku, too... she thought. That's enough, Flock. You stop here!

Fivel spread her fingers apart, not moving them from her face. Her eyes glow bright blue, her pupils slowly darkening, and then splitting into three circles, the three grouping around the original. Flock stopped laughing for a split second, snarling at Fivel. "The Matsubai." she mumbled, her eyes narrowed. "Alright, Baptiste, this is finally starting to get interesting."

Fivel glanced back at Kao. "Go! You have to go. I don't want any of youse to get hurt."

Flock scorched electricity at Fivel from a distance, the light flashing and hitting her straight in the chest. She screamed and fell over, hunched over in pain. Smoke rose from her as she laid there, trying to catch her breath.

[WORDS: 234]

[waterfall]

As Brooke was surrounded with darkness and Haku's voice called, a tear ran down her cheek. For a minute, she was trapped in that abyss. It was Fivel's scream that awoke her. When she saw her friend laying there on the ground, struggling to catch her breath, she sprinted towards Flock. She was behind her in a second. She kicked the nurse down to the ground and planted her right foot on her back, restraining her from getting up. "WHEN WILL YOU STOP THIS?" Brooke screamed so loud, it echoed. She then glared towards Fivel and Kao. "Fivel, why do you have to suffer all the time? It's not fair! It makes us feel like you... you don't need us." More tears escaped, making her hair cling to her face. "Well I don't care if you don't need me, because I need you. I know I'm being selfish but deal with it." Inside, her heart was breaking. She felt the same way with Haku. Why did her friends have to suffer but she didnt? Was it because they are more powerful? Well. It wasn't fair. She pressed her foot down harder into Flock's spine and bent down, grabbing the nurse's hair to turn her head and look her straight in the eyes. "And you. You didn't answer my question. What do you want." She demanded an answer this time.

Word Count: 229

[Fel]

Kao's green eyes darken when Fivel tells him to get away. Somehow he'd always been dreading hearing her say that, the unavoidable affirmation of his fears that she doesn't want him any more than the rest of the who damn world does. Shivers twist down his back, they only get worse when Haku's voice shatter the air of wherever-the-hell they are. He had felt a grudging admiration for that kid, back when he had been around.

Then the situation changes, Fivel along with it. Kao sees Flock sense the change, and he knows that if it's bad enough to give Flock pause then it's a heck of a lot of power that's she's got. "I'll die before I leave." He promises, his voice a rough whisper with no weight. Then... his stomach turns to lead and iron, hollow as hell. Fivel... no, she didn't get hit by lightning. He is just imagining things because Fivel is solid, real, human. It's impossible that something like that could happen to her when his fingers can still remember how her skin feels and he can still see her laughing in a garden with the sun glinting off her hair.

His legs carry him foreword like they're being dragged by something beyond human reason. He drops to his knees next to her and gathers her up in his arms. This is the second time today, the fricking second time! "Fivel... Fivel..." Words fail him so he does it on impulse. He lightly presses his lips to hers, hoping that it's okay, and that this won't be the last time, and that when he breaks the kiss he'll be able to see the thoughts behind her eyes flickering back at him in that unreadable way that they have about them. When he opens his eyes and leans away, it feels like the air tastes sweet and heavy. First kiss, who had known it would be like that? The thought is nothing more than an errant swirl of emotion that passes just over his head. "You've got to live now, see?" He mumbles, not knowing what else to do.

(impromptu kiss! -laugh-)

Words: 370

[Larksing]

Fivel weakly opened her eyes, her breath shaky and shallow, her eyes a bit unfocused. Still, when she looked up at Kao, she couldn't help the far-off look. "K..Kao.." she could only say, as her tounge was majorly tied. Also because she got struck by lightning. Also because she had just been kissed by someone she'd wanted to confess her love for as long as she was in the wretched dungeon under the office. But mostly just because she was tounge tied.

Flock laughed and missed the couple by inches, only intending to scare them.

Fivel shook with such a sum of rage and fear that she nearly yelled right then and there. Instead, she calmly- sort of- stood, her weight equal. Her eyes glowed again, her pupils retaining her strange state. When she blinked, her eyes flickered like lighthouses on the shore long off. She clenched her fist so tight that she nearly broke the skin, her short finger nails like a straight edge knife.

She glared at the nurse. "That's it.." she said, her voice shaking. "You can hurt me. You can torture me, throw me into a pit of snakes, eat me alive, and beat me over the head until I'm lifeless. But come inches away from hurting Kao or Brooke, and I'll kill you until your soul is so punctured that you can even drift to the gates of hell."

Energy surged to life around her head, deafening the silentness of the perimeter-less abyss. Silently, she spoke her curse, the momentum building with every second she continued to stare Flock down. Flashes of memories soared in her mind, memories of laughing with Brooke, when Kao brushed back a strand of her hair in the garden, the glint of his eyes when Lance claimed her, when he tore off his shirt (which still confused her), his childish way of complementing others. The anger built up inside of her and suddenly, with her articulated, strong way of doing it, she let it burst.

"Get out of my head!" she yelled, the energy exploding into a cascade of shimmery rain, showering down on the abyss.

The abyss warped, almost. Fivel felt her feet fly out from under her, and she was falling. She saw Kao near her, and she called out to him. "Kao!" she cried trying to reach him but failing, all of them hitting the ground with a loud thump, including Flock.

Fivel blinked. Where have I taken us? she thought. I must've hit more powerfully than I had intended. To somewhere completely different than before. It was a house, with fancy decorations and elegant looking furniture. A news anchor spoke on TV, speaking of yearly savings. He mentioned the year 2000, and Fivel did a double take. I took us.. back in time..? she thought. How is that even possible? She put a hand to her head.

|WORDS: 548| NOTES: See what I'm getting at with the setting here? Hint: We're visiting one of our protagonists in the past. They're in this thread.| MUSIC: WASN'T LISTENING OT ANY..|

[Fel]

(hah, nice plot twist)

The relief is... the feeling of the sun coming over the horizon, rain falling on the desert, falling into a soft bed with him muscles warm and sore, but not in a bad way. He laughs shakily. She said his name! He wants to ask her to say it again, it sounds so nice, but there's no time. When she stands up he stands just behind her, there for support. It's painfully easy to see that she's not going to let him take any more hits for her. If worst comes to worst... he intends to die before she does. Until then Kao decides to let her have her way. He smiles wryly at her speech, in a twisted way he is proud of her for being able to stand up to Flock like that. If only it wasn't necessary.

And now he's head over heels, literally falling through nothing. Where's the earth! He thinks, panicking. He can't fly, he needs the earth to stand and without it... He's just about to use his fire manipulation to propel himself upwards when he lands on something solid. His face is pressed against a pillow that smell like... huh, that's what his house smells like because his mom is almost addicted to that perfume. He's lying stomach-down on some couch that's not really big enough for him. Ungracefully, he rolls off and stands. Doesn't he know this place.

"Fivel." Kao says slowly, his voice oddly empty. "What are we doing in my house?" The crimson walls are barely visible through all of the paintings or various pleasant sceneries and cookie-cutter children with flowers and dogs. The television is on, and Kao catches the beginning of a story about his father, just elected, before he presses one finger into the Off button with almost enough force to break it. Enough of that. He thinks. If his father's election is just being announced then it's pretty clear what day it is. Upstairs, there are some footsteps and someone turns on the radio. It's a good, expensive radio, and the song echos through the house like it's coming in through every window.

music

The younger twin pushes one hand through his bangs, which are getting to be to long. Well, since he's here. "Ms. Fivel!" Kao says grandly. "I bid you welcome to the place where I've grown up. There is food in the kitchen, brought freshly from Europe, choice dresses upstairs in the rooms, and if you wish there are thousands of books in the library!" He spreads his hands widely, faking grandeur. "However, there's already one tasteless old lady here so that thing will have to leave." He points at Flock. Mentally, he's trying to think of what to do. Get Fivel safely out of the house? Hide her in his old room? Then again, there is always the option of completely changing the past... but... it twists his brain in knots to imagine what might happen if he does that. There's no telling if his life will be changed for better or worse... It's better to watch this day unfold out.

Words: 557

[Larksing]

Fivel stuttered. "I-I don't.." she blinked. "This is.. your house?" She was astonished at the fact she had done something so strangely relevent. Her face a dusky red with blush, she looked away. No one blushed as obviously as she did. Ever. And she knew it, too.

Kao made a joke about the tour and she laughed, her cheeks flushing even more. God, Fivel, get a grip. Then she realized that Flock was almost literally right next to her and she jumped in fright, not expecting something like that at all.

From what she could tell, Flock looked like she was knocked out dead cold. Fivel relaxed her shoulders, which had grown stiff since she'd spent so much time in the cell under the nurse's office. She could finally breathe without being afraid of the rouge nurse. Lightly, she kicked Flock's head and leaped next to Kao in nervousness for what might follow. Afraid, she inched nearly all the way behind him, until she gazed out from behind it. "Should we kill her?" she asked, unsure.

[Fel]

Kao glances at Flock's unconscious body. It would be so nice to just do what Fivel suggested. Slowly, he walks over to her and stops next to her head. "If I kill her, then no more problem." He mumbles and then reaches down to hold her head up by the hair. It must hurt, but since she's out cold she shouldn't feel it... He can kill her right now, set her on fire, watch her burn into dust that someone will vacuum up later. His blue eyes turn from Flock to Fivel. He considers for a moment giving Fivel the choice. Then it would be as simple as carrying out orders, if she tells him to kill Flock then he can't imagine doing anything but that.

Still, somehow he knows that if he makes Fivel choose then that would be bad. It would be like pushing all the responsibility on her. No. "But I don't think she should die. Better to live and suffer. Come on." He picks Flock up, and then starts to walk towards the back of the house. No one should be outside at the moment, if he remembers correctly, then his dad is going to be gone for a while and his mom is upstairs. Once outside, he can find a way to trap her in some underground cave until they can figure out what to do with her.

Words: 230

[waterfall]

Brooke followed them silently, stunned with surprise, and unable to completely comprehend what happened. Her steps were silent as she observed her surroundings. The atmosphere was pleasant, but a wave of exhaustion and relief overcame her. Her knees wobbling and her head heavy, she could barely keep her eyes open. She maintained her ground for about 2 minutes before collapsing. She was always awfully weak. Despite the tornado of questions that swarmed in her brain, her mind was at rest. The situation at hand was over, but she had a feeling that this was only the beginning.

She had a dream. It was a terrifying horrific dream. There was so much darkness that surrounded her. It resembled what Flock had demonstrated of Haku's nightmares. Squinting, Brooke could make out two shadowy figures, one female and one male. They were far from where she was standing "H-h-hello?" She called, walking towards the figures. She got close enough to see that the girl was Fivel, and the guy was Haku. She was filled with bliss which formed into tears of joy, and she started to sprint. The faster she ran, the farther the seemed to get. Then they turned away from her. Confused, she turned around. She saw Flock, but the nurse was about 20 feet tall and holding strings. She was horrified, but not by the sight of Flock. She was petrified by what was on the other sides of the strings. It was Brooke. She was the menace's puppet.

Word Count: 251
Note: I've decided that I'm going to have Brooke be on Flock's side at first, and maybe join the resistance later. I still have to think about the details though so I don't really know for sure