Chapter Thirteen:
Opposites Attract... And Sometimes Pummel Each Other
"Oh, Cynthia! Hey! Toldja I'd meetcha here!" a young blond girl called as she ran over to hug her friend.
Letalis grinned broadly, scoping out some of the guys on the swim team. "Oooo... they're cute..." she muttered to herself, happy she came. Giggling with Cynthia, they climbed up the bleachers to get a seat at the top where they sat gabbing happily.
"So your brother is on the swim team?" Leta asked, twirling a blond pigtail around on of her fingers.
"Uh-huh! Yeah, he's one of the good people I think," replied Cynthia, shrugging her shoulders. After they lost interest in conversation, both turned their eyes back to the swim teams. Leta began labeling them.
"Cute, cute, wouldn't date if you paid me, okay looking, dork. Oh! Nice butt on that one," Leta ticked off, studying each one from her perch in the bleachers.
"Hey, the meet is starting soon." Cynthia commented, checking her watch. Leta shrugged, and continued boy watching.
"Whoa, hey, whose the blond with the funky nose?" she the pointed out who she was talking about to Cynthia while nudging her with her elbow.
"You don't know? Jeeze Leta, you're blonder then I thought. Its Zach, y'know the kid that wears Billabong and stuff?" explained Cynthia, who happened to be a redhead.
Giggling slightly, Leta began twirling a pigtail once more as the blonde's conversation drifted up to the bleachers.
"No way, dude," the blonde said with a casual laugh. He stretched his arms over his head. "Ginger was the hottest."
"Dude, she was so skanky. She was so blowing Gilligan behind a palm tree. Mary Anne had that sweet girl next door thing going on," his dark haired friend mused. "You always go for the skanks, Zach."
Zach's face lit up with exasperation. "Untrue! Every girl I've hooked up with has been classy, Will." They both bent down and touched their toes. "Just like Ginger."
"Oh yeah? Selena Winters?" Will shot back.
"Ah ... that was at Mikey's keg; I was hammered out of my gourd. Default."
"Not. Dionne Johnson?"
"I never hooked up with her. That's my friend," Zach said with a small smirk lurking at the corners of his mouth.
"Oh yeah ... you guys are so close you kept each-other company in the dark room during Photo last year." Zach looked down and laughed a little.
"I forgot I told you that. Anyway, I'm reformed. I'm looking for a serious relationship," Zach proclaimed, folding his arms across his bare chest. Will looked at him with mock impressment.
"Well, I think I see your chance. Blond, third bleacher from the top, directly behind you," Will gestured with his chin. Zach sucked his teeth, and casually turned, like he was looking into the bleachers for his aunt and uncle. His emerald eyes breezed across the third row, and caught a glimpse of the blond with a redhead. He turned back to his friend.
Zach counted off his fingers. "Blond, check. Banging body, check. I'm getting nothin' on the skankometer. Deal?"
"Letalis Forma. She's in my art class. She's into it, so one would think 'artsie freak,' right away."
"But one would be wrong, correct?"
Will nodded. "Correct. She's actually got a Britney Spear-ish thing going on. A party girl."
Zach scoffed. "I don't know. Is she girlfriend material?"
"She's not quite up to our crowd, but her potential is at maximum."
"Hmm ... she's worth a look." Zach decided, as a shrill whistle pierced their plans. The meet was about to begin.
"Think I should ask him out after the meet?" Leta asked Cynthia, who only responded in giggling and nodding. Cynthia looked at her watch once more.
"Oh, the meet is starting! Go Brian!" Cynthia cheered for her brother.
Wade Salter headed for the first recognizable PH head he could find, which wasn't easy, as he never had time for socializing. "Has th' meet started yet..." He searched for a name. "Will? 'Cos I only jus' changed an' I couldn't find my way arou - "
The tall, blue-haired boy stopped dead as he saw the blonde figure next to him. He'd always had his suspicions, worries, and fears, none of them ever confirmed by this Albright but all of them valid. Wade had to swallow momentarily, attempting to get his usual easygoing cool back. He didn't need to acknowledge anything; the fading shines of burn scars on his chest said enough.
"Around," he finished.
"Just about, Salt," Will said, gesturing for the taller boy to follow him to the mass of boys that were conjugating on the left side of the pool. "You ready, big guy?" he asked cheerfully.
Zach's eyes were locked on the blue-haired kid. The scars on his chest were proof. The reason why a growing part of him wanted nothing more than to transform right now, in front of all these people, and finish the job he started. Because the truth was ... this guy knew his secret ... and he was more powerful. For now, the only thing he could to do was play his game.
"How you doin', Wade?" he found himself talking in a dangerously friendly voice. "Those are some nasty scars. What happened?"
Wade drew his eyes back to the former target, and attempted a smile. He made it, but it looked rather sickly, and his deep voice was even huskier than normal. "Doin' fine," he rumbled, then brushed a hand self-consciously down his chest. Zach could see burn-marks on that too, in the shape of fingers where Hyperion had burnt his hand. "An' these are nothin'. I jus' got a little - sunburnt."
"Sunburnt, huh?" Zach said, not bothering to hide a tone of disbelief. "You gotta be careful when it comes to the sun ... it can be dangerous ... "
The whistle sounded once again, and the first round of the meet began.
"Brian's up," Will said, taking a seat on the damp bench near the side of the pool. Zach took a seat next to him, and the two began to size up the competition.
Wade sighed and sat down beside Will. This was going to be a loooong meet.
"But Cynthia! I can't! I don't even know the guy!" squealed Leta, trying to prevent her friend from pushing her into Zach. "Besides, he's tired and wet, and I don't wanna get my clothes ruined!" she wailed as Cynthia gave her another shove forward. Glaring at Cynthia, the pretty blonde reached into her cute little pink fuzzy bag for a mirror. Checking herself over quickly and patting her hair, she replaced it. With a look of total confidence, she strode over to Zach. "Hey! Just wanted to congratulate you on a good meet an' all. I'm Letalis. Call me Leta." she introduced herself, smiling brightly. She then pretended she didn't know his name, for the sake of conversation, "What's yours?" she asked, twirling a pigtail around her finger again.
Zach looked slightly behind him; Will was toweling off, watching the scene unfold with a look of utter engrossment. "Zach," he answered, turning back to her. Damn, this girl is banging, he thought, quickly refocusing as soon as he remembered that he was only wearing a pair of speedo shorts. "What are you ladies doing tonight?" he asked, glancing over to Cynthia.
"Actually, Leta is throwing a party," Cynthia began, but was cut off when Leta looked at her with a look of pure shock.
"I am?" she asked dumbly, pointing to herself. Cynthia nodded, her dark eyes brightening.
"You can come if you want. Its today! Give Leta your number and she'll call you with the details," Cynthia continued, confidence and smugness tainting her voice.
Leta could only blink her violet eyes, totally confused. When she did tell Cynthia she was throwing a party!? Besides, she couldn't do it today, it was her sister's birthday. Oh boy, she was so dead. Leta giggled slightly. Great, ruin her sister's birthday. Perfect. Serves Maybelle right. "Yup, a nice big party. And you're friend can come too!" she added to Cynthia's scheme, referring to Will. "Gimmie your number, and we'll see ya there, huh?" she asked, as Cynthia fished around her bag for a pen and paper. Upon finding it, Cynthia handed it to Zach.
Will was instantly at Zach's side, offering no words, only a shy smile that he had learned early on girls went for. He threw a towel for Zach, and he dried off quickly before accepting the pen and paper. He was proud that he was acting so composed. This girl was about the hottest thing he had laid eyes on in a while. And "laid" was quickly becoming the word of the day for him.
"So is there gonna be a place at this fiesta where you and me can get to know each-other better..." Zach asked as he wrote down his info. He handed them back to her, their hands lingering at the touch for a moment. His skin was still damp and cold, and hers offered momentary warmth. Zach pierced her eyes with his own. "...alone?" he finished. Will's jaw dropped.
Leta giggled and turned bright scarlet all the way to her large ears. Cynthia laughed and gave Zach a forceful push, perhaps a little too forceful. But it was an accident. "Well, that was awfully fast," she smirked, and Leta could only offer a squeak in response. "We'll see you at the party. Leta'll call you," Cynthia said smugly, and began to drag a reluctant Leta off. "You got your cute guy, now I want mine! See that hot guy with the blue ponytail? Think he'll come?" Cynthia questioned, pointing out a oblivious Wade out. Leta nodded, her braided pigtails bobbing up and down.
"Uh-huh. He's a little to big for my tastes, but he is kinda cute in that kinda dorky muscle dude way," she commented, her boy-hunting skills going to work.
"Great," was all Cynthia replied, and began to lead Leta towards Wade. Once there, Cynthia did all the talking. "Hey. You're cute. Wanna go to Leta's party? She's the blonde chick. Gimme your number, I'll call you," Cynthia said quickly, without taking a single breath. A relaxed smile came over Cynthia's face as Leta squealed and giggled in her trademark fashion.
Wade was quite pink and towelling himself off from the race before as the two girls accosted him, and dropped the towel in surprise. "Um, party?" he managed. "Uh. I dunno."
The blonde helpfully picked up the towel and gave it back to him. Wade's fingers brushed with hers as he received it, blushing red; then, abruptly, he stepped back a little, clenching his hand tightly. The electric shock that she had given off was not the sort one read about in cheesy romance novels; it was the shock you get when touching a hot stove, or a live wire. It was definitely akin to one he'd gotten a short while ago, when -
Wade noticed Zach eyeing him from a little way off. His gaze dropped; had he noticed?
"Ummm," he felt himself stammer.
The blond had made over to Leta's side in one quick motion. He placed a casual arm around her neck, and looked at Wade intently. He had noticed the small step back he had taken. And standing next to this girl, he seemed to get a feeling that was almost the complete opposite of what he felt when Wade was around. She made him feel completely at ease, good even.
"What's up, 'Salt'?" he asked, a touch of mocking in his voice. "I haven't seen you at any of the swim team's parties so far." Zach made sure that his eyes were as piercing as possible before he ended with: "You scared?"
Wade stared for a long time before finally shaking his head. "Nah," he said quietly, evenly. "Not scared. Jus' prefer... to be with m'own kind. You should be w'your own kind, too." Wade gave a sharp nod of his head to Leta. "If y'know who they are. Anyway. I'm sorry," he apologized to Cynthia. "But I'm busy tonight, y'know. Thanks fer askin'." As he lumbered off, towel in hand, something perverse made him look over his shoulder. "See y'later, Zach." Then he disappeared into the crowd.
Leta face contorted to one of confusion. "Huh?" was all she could muster, and then threw a funny look at Zach. A slow realization came over her, her large eyes widening in surprise.
"Oh...Cynthia? Couldja leave me and Zach for a bit?" she pleaded. Cynthia, a little disappointed about losing her date nodded and walked off a bit. "Do you have a talking birdie too?" asked Leta innocently, obviously questioning if he had a guardian also. Since all she had seen so far was bird guardians, she believed that all of them were that way. Before Zach could say anything, Leta continued. "Y'see, I got this parrot that, like, talks and stuff. And not just 'Polly want a cracker', but like a real human. I'm not nuts, its true!" Leta then paused to take a breath, allowing Zach some time to state his opinion.
Zach's breath stopped short. His first instinct would have been to politely find a way to get several hundred feet away from this obvious loonie, had she not hit a familiar nerve.
"You have a ... guardian?" he found his voice asking almost of it's own volition. "Mine's an iguana." Zach had to supress the urge to take this gorgeous young girl into his arms, and never let go. He had been waiting for so long for someone just like him. He gave a paranoid look around, and got closer to her.
"We got a lot to talk about," he whispered. "Meet me at the front entrance in ten minutes. I gotta go get changed."
Leta nodded obdiently, and walked to Cynthia. Checking her watch, she gave out orders, "Okay, go get ready for the party and stuff, since it was your idea and all. My sister and my parents aren't home, they took Maybelle out because its her birthday-"
"Its your sisters birthday!? Ooooo, we can throw a surprise party?!" interrupted Cynthia, perky once more.
Sighing, Leta nodded. "I'll be there in a few. Later!" Leta called, as she sprinted to the entrance. Running was hard in her shoes, but she managed. When Leta arrived at the entrance, she checked her pink watch. Four minutes early. Good! Give her time to spruce up, as running had probably made her hair all icky. Grabbing a mirror from her bag, she checked herself over and found that she was presentable. Placing the pink framed mirror back in her bag, she waited a little impatiently for Zach.
Zach burst through the door, in the process of putting on his tee shirt. He carefully manuevered through the small crowd of spectators that were still hanging around after the meet, and emerged at Leta's side.
"Let's go for a walk," he suggested, leading her towards the empty basketball courts. "I'm not sure where to start," he said after a moment. "I was beginning to think that I was the good one." He noticed the curious look she gave him, and smiled.
"I know. This is so wack. Somehow I just know that you're on my side. P told me that there were others that were..." he stopped, trying to find the right word. " ... Graikos? You're one of them, aren't you?"
Leta nodded once more. "Yup, Aphrodita, or Aphrodite. Something like that. Your guardians name is P? Mine's Percy. Actually, that's his nickname, I forget what his real name is. Anyway," Leta stopped babbling to ask questions about Zach. "How did that guy know? I mean, about us being a Graikos and stuff? Its, like, not normal for other people to know about us Percy said. Didja tell him, or something?" she asked innocently, looking down at him as he was an inch shorter then her (at least in her heels).
Zach shook his head, crunching up his face in protest. "Hell no! He ... figured it out, I guess." He ran his hands through his hair, and then stuffed them into his pockets before continuing. "I fought him. He's a senshi too. Only he's a Romanus. Our enemy," he explained. "Anyway, he's not the issue. Have YOU found anyone else?"
Leta smiled brightly, glad to be able to answer a question for once. "Uh-huh! Lesse, there was Metis, who had a guardian named Perdix, or Perdis. Don't remember. And then there was Hephaestos, not the nicest person on the Earth," Leta then paused, taking in what Zach had just said about Wade. "Wait, he's our enemy? Wow...how many are there do you think? 'Cause we fought one too. Okay, erm, lastly there was one named Hades, I think." Leta looked thoughtful as she probed her memory. "Yeah. Thats it." she finished. "How many have you found?" she asked, her curiosity peaking. She didn't even know Graikos had guys, much less cute ones. Maybe there were more.
"Just him ... and one other," he trailed off. A flicker of pain crossed his face. He looked at Leta, and grinned. "I'm fine now though. I'm so happy there's more of us." He impulsively gave her a quick hug, and pulled back, a wry grin on his face.
"Don't we have a party to go to?"
The blonde giggled and twirled a pigtail around a finger, smiling a cute little girl fashion while bouncing up and down slightly in excitement. "Yup. Its not gonna be started for a while, as we are kinda still setting up and stuff, but you, like, wanna come over? You can help out, if you want," Leta offered, biting her lip cutely.
Zach smiled at the gesture. "Let's bounce."
The house was filled with the aroma of youth. Various faces of the school crowd slowly flooded the house. It was one of those parties that offered the rare chance for the social high school hierarchy to mingle and perhaps even break the chain. Music pumped through the veins of the very foundation, and voices mixed together in a incoherent wave.
Zach sifted through the crowd, with two full plastic cups in his hand. He nodded and greeted familiar faces, and soon emerged at a spot at a table towards the back. He took a seat next the blonde girl that was conversing with a group around her.
"This place is getting live," he commented, handing one of the cups to her. He held up his own.
"To new friends."
Leta gently clinked her blue plastic cup against Zach's and took a small sip. Maybelle had been quite surprised about the "Surprise Birthday Party", but had yet to come down. All the better. Leta had been merrily talking to Zach and her friends. And what was even better was that her parents weren't even around! They had flown up to Italy, and Maybelle was going to fly up and meet them there tomorrow (she wanted to spend the day with her little sister before she went). So the party good get nice and wild, if necessary. Sipping the cold drink once more, threw a pigtail over her shoulder, and hummed along to the music playing. Putting her drink down on the table, she grinned at Zach and shouted over the music, "You're single, right?"
He gulped what was left of his beer, and looked at Leta with a mix
of innocence and surprise. "If by single you mean not currently
attached to anyone..." he said. "...then I'm single as hell."
"What Mr. Albright means," Will intervened from across the table. He paused, a glossy, drunked look in his eyes. Snapping back into reality, he continued. "He's not built for relationships. Hooking up is the best he can do for you, girl." Will chuckled, slamming his hand on the table. Zach turned an unearthly shade of red, laughing nervously.
"Why are you blowing up my spot, asshole?" he said, grabbing a cup from a passerby. He chugged it down, and looked at Leta once again. "He's just drunk. I'm human, ya know? I want a relationship, but I figure there's plenty of time for that shit. I'm young, and I want to enjoy it before I enter Viagraland."
Leta nodded her understanding, and then looked at Zach with a bit of concern. "Hey, don't drink so much. You'll, like, get drunk and stuff," Leta warned. Leta actually hated drinking, that's why she didn't really drink much of the beer that Zach had brought for her. It tasted bitter in her opinion, to bitter for her liking. Besides, it made your breath smell bad.
"Chill baby, I'm fine," he assured. He gave her a big grin, and peeked into her cup. "Lemme kill that." He snatched it, and guzzled it down in a blink of an eye. He wiped his mouth, glancing over to Will, who is in the middle of a good attempt at a table dance. Zach laughed, and then grabbed Leta's hand.
"Where's your room?" he asked innocently.
Leta jerked her hand back. "Hey! Cut it out! I don't even know you that well!" Leta protested angrily, regretting ever throwing this party. Looking at Zach with a hurt look, she accused him further, "We haven't even dated yet, and if your thinking what I think your thinking then I just lost all my, like, respect for you.". The blonde then continued, "You really needa stop drinking, it's, like, bad for you and stuff,".
Zach looked at her with disgust. "Oh really? Is it really, like, bad for me? Jesus, all I wanted to do is chill with you, and suddenly you think I'm out to get in your pants?!" he spat drunkenly. "Besides, why would I even TRY to get with a cocktease like you anyway?!" And with that, Zach crossed the line.
There was a low grumble like the sound of thunder and a calloused hand grabbed Zach's shoulder and yanked him up painfully. The cavalry had arrived as Leta's eyes filled with tears; Wade Salter. He had come to the party only after Livia had shrieked for an hour and was hoping Zach would be gone already, but now it was different.
"Y'lower than a piece of scum, Albright," he snarled, his face red with anger, voice a low hiss. "I wouldn' even -think- 'bout that girl like tha', an' she's on th'wrong team, an' here you are sayin' it to her face! God, m'just damned lucky Livvy made me go here." Wade stuck his face in Zach's, blue eyes stormy. "S'a laugh t'fight you. You ain't even any use t'your own team, let alone fightin' me."
Zach froze, caught up in the pure fury that was Wade Salter. His head spun once, and he felt a sick rush of fluid at the back of his throat. There was no doubt that tomorrow would be "one of those mornings". Nevertheless, he gritted his teeth, and his own eyes blazed with a fire that only the deepest contempt could achieve.
"Watch your mouth, Salter," he growled. He followed with a whisper. "Or I just might drop you off a higher building then last time."
Wade dropped the blonde; it wasn't from too high up, but it was still enough to send him stumbling. "How're y'gonna make me shake y'hand again?" he sneered - well, the best Wade Salter approximation of a sneer - and folded his arms.
Zach's head hit the back of the chair he was sitting on, and suddenly the lights were too bright, and the faces of the crowd of kids gathered around them melted together in blank expressions. No passing out, Zach, he yelled at himself. You didn't have that much tonight! Remember that time that you did that kegstand for thirteen seconds? THAT time you had too much. Get up and handle your business. He suddenly felt much more sober than he did as he rose to his feet.
"Still here," he laughed. "Now are we gonna get down to business, or are you gonna stand there and talk all night?"
Wade looked at Zach a long time before shaking his head. "I'm gonna go patrol," he said in a low rumble. "Y'choice or not whether I meet up wi'you, Albright."
With that, he melted into the crowd.
Leta watched Wade go with a sigh. It sorta sucked that they were enemies, he seemed nice enough. Looking to Zach, although avoiding his eyes, she began to inquire about Wade, "What does he mean patrol? Or meet up with him?"
Zach ran his hands over his face after watching Wade disappear. He patted the sides of his pants, checking to make sure he had his wallet and keys before he went after him. He then turned to Leta.
"He's going into the city to look for other senshi. I'm going after him, and finish the job I started," Zach answered coldly. He took a step forward, but turned toward the blonde once more.
"Sorry," he muttered before making his way toward the exit. With any luck, he could be on his trail in fifteen minutes.
Damn that bullying pig. Rayya sighed as she slipped behind a convenient tree just off the Hollins campus. Damn Julius for coercing her into patrolling tonight. Just because she didn't have any other plans tonight, didn't mean that she fancied running around looking for a fight in that skimpy get-up. If he hadn't offered to do the research on her World Politics paper... Frowning, she wondered how on earth he was going to turn the pages with his stubby little hooves. Oh, he'd figure it out, she thought finally. He was a smart pig.
Resigned to this course of action, Rayya tossed her ring skywards, muttered her transformation phrase, and soon found herself shivering in her Bacchus guise. If only she could've reached Gwyn/Fortuna, she would have at least had company on this trip. With a shrug, Bacchus trudged towards the center of town, keeping towards the shadows. It wouldn't do to be picked up by the cops while dressed like this, she thought. For some odd reason, there just didn't seem to be a plausible explanation for parading around town at midnight wearing a bathing suit and a see-through tunic. She giggled, amused at the scenario her mind called up in response to that thought. It was better than dwelling on a possible fight in the future, anyway...
An hour later, Bacchus slouched against a whole new tree in a whole new section of town. The moon silvered everything and the stars were particularly bright but Bacchus didn't even bother looking upwards to appreciate it. She was too busy calculating how much longer she would need to stay out to satisfy Julius' demand for full patrol. Suddenly, she heard a rustle in the nearby bushes and started, stepping back slightly into the shadows. Oh, great. Just what she needed. A visitor.
"Peekaboo, asshole!" a sly, confident voice echoed through the night air. A streak of red flew smashed through the small wall of shrubs, skidding to a halt about four feet from the startled dark- haired girl. Hyperion's face went from menacing to just plain stupid looking. "You're not Neptune..." he said impishly. He scratched the back of his head, and looked the girl up and down. She was wearing a toga. A short toga. He finally spoke up after he realized he had been staring at her legs for the past ten seconds.
"Can I just say how happy I am that two out of the three senshi I've met are hot chicks? I hope this pattern continues..."
Bacchus grinned, unconsciously sliding into a pose that best displayed her figure at the entrance of an attractive male. "If you're lucky, it just might," she quipped. Then she turned to study the smoldering hole near her feet. "Quite a bit of power you've got there," she observed with a nod, moving to touch the toe of her golden sandal to the edge of the hole. "Glad that didn't hit me." She giggled. "I think that would've left a mark."
"And who might you be?" Hyperion asked. He bit his lip before finishing. "I'm guessing by the toga that you're a Romanus...in which case, you can tell me where Neptune is..."
Aphrodite nervously poked her head from behind the bush that Hyperion had come from. "You two aren't killing each other, right?" she called, and without waiting for a response she stepped out of the bush. Percy was sleeping, as usual, on her shoulder as she had dragged him along in case either of them needed guidance.
Hyperion cracked a smile. She had followed him. Must not be too mad. "Well, well, well...Sailor Aphrodite, as I live and breathe!" the red-armored boy yelled heartily. "And with a ... bird on her shoulder ... uh-huh ..."
The feathered one stirred on Aphrodite's shoulder, jostled by the recent movement. Cracking one eye open and spotting poor Bacchus, the bird began quite a riot. "ROMANUS! KILL! Why are you two chatting!? She's the enemy!!!!!" Percy squawked madly, flapping most annoyingly around Aphrodite's head. She quickly snatched him out of the air and clamped his beak shut with her hands.
"Quiet, you dumb bird!" she squeaked back. Percy could only manage a forlorn squawk in return.
"That's why I don't bring my guardian with me on patrol. They're so fussy at this age..." he whispered to the toga girl before walking over to Aphrodite's side. "Now I think you were about to tell US where YOUR teammate is?"
Bacchus blinked, complete blankness settling over her face. "Um, teammate? I have no clue what you're talking about." She shrugged and stood straighter. "I don't know any Neptune." A crease appeared between her eyebrows as she studied the suddenly less friendly face of the young man and the puzzled one of the girl. Damn guardians are all over the place and none of them can keep their mouth shut, she thought. This is so very -not- good. They're not Romanus... Bacchus adjusted her posture again, assuming a more steady stance. "And I don't know you guys either but the bird is as bad as my pig," she tried lightly.
He stepped toward Bacchus, until their noses were almost touching. His blank, pupiless eyes stabbed hers. "Couldn't really care less about your "pig" ... I'll ask you once more ... where is Neptune?"
Bacchus frowned, irritation finally penetrating her general haze of good-will towards the world. "I... Don't... Know... Any... Neptune," she said slowly and softly. "If I did..." She took a step backwards and folded her arms. "Well, I'm not sure I'd say. You seem like you're just hunting him, her, whatever down to the ground."
Hyperion sighed, and cracked his knuckles.
"I believe you. But ... you ARE a Romanus. So maybe I can do something to lure your would-be teammate out of hiding," he said with a devilish smirk creeping at the sides of his mouth. In a flash that mirrored his entrance, his red armored hand was at her throat, pinning her against the nearby tree. A brilliant aura flashed around them, as he lifted his other hand towards her face, extending his index finger.
"Betcha your face doesn't like concussive rays of light," he whispered.
Percy squwaked his approval, as Aphrodite had long since released him. "Oh, good show there!" he trilled, flapping his wings and clacking his beak in approval.
Aphrodite acted quite the opposite. "Wait, wait, Z-, I mean Hyperion! I mean, we out number her, and like, its not fair. Maybe we should wait for this Neptune dude to show up?" she squeaked, moving to stand near him. He was beginning to freak her out, to be frank. He was so violent. "Come, Hyperion, like, lets wait a bit, K?" she suggested, looking at him with hopeful purple eyes.
Percy looked about enraged as a bird could. Puffing his feathers up, he shouted at Hyperion, "Don't listen to her! She's a Romanus, its your duty to kill her!"
Bacchus's eyes, also violet but not at all hopeful, crossed as she tried to focus on the hovering hand. She wasn't a physicist but she was pretty sure that solid light beams slamming into your face at point blank range wouldn't do anything towards winning a beauty pageant. She bit her lip and shifted her gaze to meet her aggressor's pupiless one. Slowly, it dawned on her, staring into those cold eyes, that there would be no talking her way out of this one. This one was out for blood. Hers or Neptune's, it didn't seem to matter. Growing fear shone in her wide eyes and she tried to pull out of the iron grip. "Please," she gasped. "This isn't fair. Just let me go, okay? You want a fight? Let's do it fairly at least." Her slim hand appeared inches from the side of his head, glowing slightly white. "Please?" Silently, she added a prayer that he didn't hear her knees knocking or call her bluff.
Hyperion squinted, let out a growl, and with a quick spin, flung the girl to the side, towards the ground. As he was tossing her, he heard the faint zing of energy whoosh by his ear, and he noticed her hand was flickering with white light.
"Fair, huh?" he growled, folding his arms, and expanding his aura around him. "You gonna take a shot, or what?"
"Hey you two! Cut it out!" Aphrodite demanded, stepping between the two. Glaring at both of them, she stooped down to offer a hand to help Bacchus up. "You're acting like babies, grow up," she said distastefully, frowning slightly.
"Are you out of your mind?!" Hyperion screamed, his aura flaring with his temper.
Percy's eyes hardened as he watched the scene unfold from his perch on Aphrodite's shoulder. "Oh no you don't," he protested, and suddenly bit Aphrodite's ear, hard.
She leaped back with a squeal, retracting her hand. "Oh, OW!" she squeaked, putting a hand to her ear and almost knocking Percy off. Sniffling cutely, she turned her face to the side to talk to the bird on her shoulder. "Listen, that really hurt!" she added, and rubbed her ear slightly. Then she looked at Hyperion and Bacchus with a look of defiance. "I say we forget this happened and leave, huh?" she suggested, and moved back in between the two.
Bacchus raised herself to her knees slowly, a hand coming up to massage her neck. That guy, Hyperion, had gripped her pretty hard. She decided firmly that she much preferred his sweeter colleague, the tall blonde girl. "That sounds fine to me," she answered softly as she carefully stood and brushed off her outfit. Then she looked down at her right palm and frowned at the still glowing flesh. It had never done that before. Why was she still charged for attack? She shook her head and looked up at the others again. "I don't want to fight."
"That sucks," Hyperion said, pointing another finger at Bacchus, and sending a small ray of light directly into her solar plexus. It would be just enough to send her reeling a bit. This was getting played out. He wanted to fight Neptune, not some chick in a toga.
Bacchus staggered back a step, clutching her stomach. That hurt! she thought in surprise. Like the time I... She shook her head to clear it. Stay focused, she thought. He's really out to fight. Anyone. Slowly, she straightened upright and raised her right hand, a glowing ball shimmering into sight above the palm. "I really, really don't want to fight you," she whispered sadly. "And it's not just the unfair advantages." A faint smile appeared on her face. "It's this whole humanist thing. But, I guess if you insist..." Even as she went into the wind-up for her attack, the regret shone clearly in her eyes, visible even to the impatient Hyperion and the fidgeting Aphrodite. Then, suddenly, she called out "The Morning After" and lobbed the ball of light towards Hyperion, aiming for his stomach in a returned favor sort of gesture. As it impacted, she wondered if she should have fully charged it; even if she didn't want this fight, he did...
Hyperion cried out as the light seethed into his midsection. Suddenly, a stab of white pain shot through his skull, and his stomach starting doing Tae-Bo. The world around him spun and became surreal. What the hell was THIS? This was like a really bad ... hangover?
"Don't let her ... " he yelled at Aphrodite, pausing as something hot crept up his throat. " ... GET AWAY!"
Aphrodite squeaked and jumped back almost a foot. "Ewww!" she squealed and shut her eyes tightly, turning her face away. She didn't exactly want to see Hyperion lose his lunch. She clutched her stomach as she felt about ready to lose hers also. The thought was nauseating in its own fashion.
Bacchus stared in fascination, thoughts of running off temporarily forgotten. She hadn't even super-charged that one and the guy was turning all sorts of interesting shades. No one had ever gone that green and white at once! Suddenly, as a particularly bizarre noise escaped her would-be attacker, the concept of running away reared its head again. It was a sure bet he wouldn't be happy when he sobered up. Quietly, she began edging her way towards the bushes.
Percy too had turned his beady eyed gaze away from Hyperion, although didn't feel as nauseated as Aphrodite. Healthy enough to turn around to check on Hyperion and spot an escaping Bacchus. "GET BACK HERE, YOU COWARDLY ROMANUS!" he screeched, flapping off Aphrodite's shoulder (whose eyes were still tightly clenched), and dived towards Bacchus. "Coward!" he cried once more, as he circled and flapped down at her, diving again.
Letting out a particularly girly screech of surprise, Bacchus covered her head and dodged the dive-bombing bird. "Get away from me!" she yelled. "Just 'cause I don't want to fight doesn't mean I... Ow, damn! Knock it off!" A random yet lucky swat of her hand glanced past Percy, sending him slightly off-target.
"....DAWN!!" a desperate voice cried. Hyperion managed to fire a barage of light beams. The effects of Bacchus' attack were wearing off quickly, and he had just enough concentration to focus an attack. The rays shot blazed through the air, straight towards the girl. This time, they were a lot more powerful.
Bacchus turned at the cry and her eyes widened. In the split second before the light hit her, she thought ridiculously, "This is gonna hurt." She had never in her life been more correct. The attack slammed into her stomach, sending her sprawling backwards with a muffled oomph. She squeezed her eyes shut tight, determined not to cry. Even if it felt like someone had dropped a safe on her midsection. With a whimper, she curled into a miserable ball and concentrated on breathing. It was so hard to do. She felt like she was on fire, every inch of her aching. But he wouldn't stop, she knew instinctively. She had to move. To get out of here. Shaking, she brought her hand up again, concentrating deeply. If she could just get something else out... A purple light formed in her hand and she squinted as she tried her best to aim towards Hyperion. "Bacchanal Frenzy" escaped her lips in a hiss of pain and the purple ribbon shot towards him, wavering slightly as her concentration wavered.
Hyperion was once again on his feet. The streaming shot of power sailed toward him, but not fast enough.
"So ... sorry," he said, jumping up. The attack flew through the space he once occupied. He landed, wobbling a bit. He was actually surprised with that move. He casually sauntered over to Bacchus, his aura once again flaring healthily.
"I should blow you away," he growled, holding his hand out in front of him.
"Can't we just make up!?" wailed an unhappy Aphrodite, as she stomped her foot in a childish manner. "This is, like, stupid! Nobody is winning, can't we just, like, leave?" she pleaded to Hyperion, whimpering slightly. "I mean, we don't wanna hurt her...do we?" she finally asked in a quavering voice, the last bit to Percy.
Percy squawked. "Of COURSE we do, she's a Romanus! Its our job to kill her off!" he then nestled his neck into his feathers. "Hyperion there has the right idea, let him control the situation. You could learn from him," snorted the bird arrogantly, and if he had the lips he would've been smirking.
Bacchus turned her violet eyes towards Aphrodite, tears threatening, pinpoints of fear and nausea flitting through them. "Thank you," she whispered weakly. Then her gaze shifted towards Hyperion and she squinted against his aggressively flaring aura. He was so bright. So handsome. Like an avenging angel. Why did he want to hurt her again? What had she done really? Had she been bad? She screwed her eyes shut tightly. Great, she was hallucinating now, traces of early Catholic upbringing scouring at her with guilt. Painfully, she forced her eyes open. If this was it, she'd be damned if she was going while thinking about religion. With a whimper, she raised her head to look at Hyperion again and brought her hand up. If she could just focus for another attack... Just something to help her get away...
"ARE YOU SERIOUSLY THINKING ABOUT ATTACKING ME?!" he shouted at her as she raised her hand. "I'm going to kill you, and you're still trying to fight?!" It was hard for him to process. If the roles were reversed, he was pretty sure that he'd be begging for his life. But not this girl. The light from his aura shone upon her face, her eyes wanting to squint, but still staring up at him with eyes full of fearful defiance. I can't kill her. I won't take her life. It isn't fair.
"It isn't fair, is it?" Hyperion thought aloud. He put his own hand down, and looked down at her with a mix of pity and defeat. His aura blew out. "You got heart. But you're Romanus. I'm sorry."
He bent down, and whispered. "Good night." And jabbed her in the face hard enough to knock her unconscious.
Zach!" Aphrodite cried out angrily, forgetting to call him by his senshi name. "You hurt her really bad!" she added, running over to check on the fallen Bacchus. "Your so, like, mean!" she sniffled, giving him a rather pitiful glare.
Percy, who had returned to Aphrodite's shoulder, looked happily at Hyperion, almost beaming. "Good job, that'll teach those terrible Romanus a lesson!" he cawed, clacking his beak to show his satisfaction.
"You both are so mean!" wailed Aphrodite, getting more upset by the minute.
Some people say that to use the line 'streak of lightning' is unrealistic. However, Aphrodite and Hyperion were treated to the fastest streak of blue lightning in Romanus existence as, out of the trees where he'd been strolling, Neptune Knight came barrelling into the area - madder than a grizzly and with a pointy fork to boot.
"HYPERION!" he boomed, and he practically choked on the words with his anger. Neptune shoved his triton forward, butt-first, giving his nemesis a nasty blow in the chest to make him stumble back as he stood guard over Bacchus' body. "Coward," he spat. "Lily-livered evil cowardly bastard, when I come late, y'decide to pick on little girls, eh? Decide that y'gotta show off?"
"Well ... it's been a long time ... and here you are ... without flowers ... OR chocolates," the red-armored warrior choked out, a smile spreading across his face despite all.
He took one step forward, triton brandished, the points disarmingly bright and shiny. "Well," he hissed softly, trying to get his breath back so that the words didn't fall all over themselves with the force of his anger, "I don' like people who hit people when they're down, an' I don' like people who hit girls, an' you just did -both-."
Hyperion's breath suddenly took a coffee break, as he bent over slightly, trying to get it together. Here he was. His arch-enemy. The memories of the oceanic attacks flooded his head, and one question rose above all else: How would he beat this guy this time?
"Well why don't you cry about it ..." he said, and with speed and agility that was well above human limitations, slammed his left hand on the ground, hoisted himself upwards, and extended one leg right into his opponent's weapon. It didn't fly out of his hands like he had wanted, but it did get the points out of his face. He followed through with a spin as he landed, the same leg swinging around, and robbing Neptune of the ground he stood on. Hyperion stood tall once again.
"...saddlebags?" he finished. One could do no better than to quote Jim Carrey at a moment like this.
Neptune was ready for it this time. Not losing too much breath as he fell back, he rolled, managing to get to his feet in as little time as possible. "Tell y'girl t'go away," he hissed through clenched teeth. "I don' want her t'get hurt."
Aphrodite gulped nervously. "Um, instead of me, like, leaving, could we just _not_ fight?" she offered, grinning slightly. Finally realizing that neither Neptune of Hyperion were going to give in, she grabbed Bacchus hand, and with a grunt, began to drag her off into the bushes.
"What are you doing!?" chirped Percy in anger.
"I don't, like, want her getting hurt, y'know?" Aphrodite let out a sigh of relief as she dropped Bacchus arm. "She's, like, heavy even though she, like, looks thin," panted Aphrodite, as she peeked out from behind the bushes. Maybe she could make them fall in love, that could get them to stop fighting. Aphrodite couldn't prevent the giggle that bubbled up from that.
"What is it?" snapped a very disappointed Percy.
"Nothing, its just, like, a thought," replied Aphrodite, nervously watching the enemies once more.
"A thought? You? Pshaw," squawked Percy, settling down glumly into his bright plumage.
If Aphrodite heard him, she gave off no sign.
"Yeah right," Hyperion bounded backwards, regaining a defensive stance a good distance away. "Like you'd miss a chance to hurt one of my people." Those words felt strange on his tongue; the reality was that they were both the same, just born on different sides. This felt remotely ... racist?
"Not when they're a girl," Neptune retorted, triton grasped tightly in his hands. "This is between you'n me, not me'n her. An' it wasn' between you an' that girl either, until you made it."
Hyperion shook his head, and snickered. "You still don't get it, do you?" he said, clenching his fists. "I didn't do anything!! That's just it! We've been meant to kill each-other since we were sucking a bottle! And here you come, mister knight in shining-fucking-armor, going against your own INSTINCT, and still thinking we can all get along!" he screamed at him, the emotion welling up in his voice.
"You think I WANT to attack someone for NO reason other than that they exist?! You think this shit is FUN?! HUH?!!" his voice pierced the night. "I knew from the moment we shook hands ... that there was nothing I could do to change this. That's a dream, Neptune ..." Hyperion glanced absently toward Aphrodite. His aura flashed to life. "...and it's time to wake up."
"FINE!" Neptune practically screamed, eyes blazing, features twisted with a mix of despair and anger. "So help me, God!" He drove his triton into the earth. "ENGULFING WHIRLPOOL!"
Pushed beyond all limits... the ground rumbled dangerously and a crack zigzagged it's way towards the red soldier. It widened enormously in merely a second, water bubbling and rushing up to claim Hyperion; it threw him around within the water, dunking him and slamming him against the sides of the crack, before Neptune pulled his silver fork out of the earth and jerked it up. Hyperion was tossed backwards and out of it into the thicket of trees as the crack closed again, as if it had never been.
The first thing he realized when he came to his senses, beside the salt water burning his eyes, was the sharp piece of branch scraping against his temple. He brushed it away with a soaking, armored hand, and felt a blaring pain shoot through his body. Hurts to move, Hyperion thought groggily. Rage swept those emotions away, as he shook himself free, falling to shaking, agonized legs. He glared at Neptune with an ancient hate. A deep-seated loathing that, unbeknownst to him until that moment, he had been holding back. This man was the enemy; a Romanus. It was time to embrace the truth he had put forth. The time for hesitating was done.
Without a trademark, witty reply, the senshi of sunlight embraced his namesake. He pulled his aura up to its full height, it's most dazzling power. He stood like a supernova, and stretched his arms outwards. Six small pillars of pure iridescence reached forth for Neptune. The world went white as they met their mark.
Neptune held on fast to his triton, holding it as if it were a lightsaver, managing only through strength and will not to cry out as he came away from the attack burning like he'd been set on fire. Charred and burnt flesh could be dealt with later; pain was nothing at the moment, unimportant, undesired. Though it hurt to move his joints, the blue-haired knight wrapped his hands tightly around his weapon and charged, triton held like a staff, pushing into Hyperion with everything he had and gasping with held-back pain.
"N ... no! No way!" a voice from inside the fiery star cried as Neptune edged closer. He reached deeper inside, trying to draw out as much power as he could, suceeding in raising the intensity only a fraction. He still came closer.
"Aphrodite!! HELP!!" Hyperion cried desperately.
""I, I..." stammered Aphrodite, squeaking in fear. Gathering what small courage she had, she ran forward, slipping through the narrow strip of space left between Neptune and Hyperion. As there wasn't much room, Aphrodite had to give Hyperion's arm a slight push to get between the two, making Hyperion lose his concentration. "G-go, like, away!" she blurted, trying to hide the fact that her knees were knocking from fear. Neptune was a lot more powerful then her, plus he had that pointy thing. She would be easy prey for him. She gulped, and smiled weakly. "Please?" she added, as Percy looked depressed and moped on Aphrodite's shoulder.
The blue-haired knight blinked for a moment, some of the madness going out of his eyes. He retreated back a few steps, holding his triton away so it couldn't hurt her.
"I ain't that far gone that I would hit a girl," he muttered, staring balefully at Hyperion. "Your girl's smarter'n you."
"Doubt it," Hyperion said through clenched teeth, shooting the blonde a scornful look.
Then, before he could react to the pain and go for the red-armoured Hyperion once more, he sped off into the woods, scooping up Bacchus from behind the tree like she weighed nothing and cradling her tight as he attempted retreat back into the night, running blind.
Hyperion cursed under his breath, not able to reach a louder tone because it hurt too much to talk. He tried to get to his feet, but slumped to his knees, growling in frustration. He had exhausted his power. He looked up at Aphrodite once more.
"You're not even gonna try to go after them, are you?" he asked as the world around him began to darken. "Some senshi ... you ... are," he muttered before succumbing to unconsciousness.
Aphrodite looked concerned as Hyperion slumped to the ground, afraid he was dead. "Is he, like...?" she didn't even bother finishing her sentence as she caught Hyperion breathing. The breaths were shallow, but they were there. "Oh, like, good!" she muttered, and then gave Percy a look. "Like, now what?"
Percy clacked his beak. "At least he fought. He's right. You are an awful senshi,"
Aphrodite looked hurt, but said nothing.
Percy, ignoring how he insulted Aphrodite took command of the situation. "We need to look him over. Aphrodite, your eyesight is better then mine, so thats your job." ordered the bossy bird.
Aphrodite looked indignant. "No way! I, like, don't wanna get dirt and blood, like, all over me!" she protested, but did as she was told. "He looks kinda hurt...should we, like, take him to the hospital?"
Percy shook his head. "Not in his transformed state, besides, how could we make a story up about this? Gods know you don't have the creativity, and I'm to tired. Lets just wait here to see if he revives. If its really bad, we'll have him return to civilian state and then we can take him to the hospital."
"But it IS really bad!" mumbled Aphrodite, but she kneeled down and sat on her ankles anyway. Not like she could come up with something better.
Darkness. Just swimming through it but it was so strange. Wasn't there supposed to be a light at the end of this tunnel? That's what all of those late night shows said. Go towards the light, my child. It was warm at least. Warm and almost supportive. Like the darkness was listening to her, cradling her tightly. She wasn't sure that she wanted to leave this place. Even if there wasn't a light that she was supposed to follow. She felt safer than she had in years. Nothing was going to hurt her. The darkness wouldn't let it, she knew instinctively.
Suddenly, there was a jarring sensation throughout her entire body and she felt as if she were falling. Away from the darkness, back to earth and light. She wasn't sure if she wanted to go there. Fate was offering no choice, however. Physical sensation rushed back, reminding her of the aches and bruises she had temporarily left behind. She wanted to moan but the prospect of performing the necessary motions for vocalization were too daunting. Instead, a sigh of faint air escaped from between her full, bruised lips.
Rayya Veritas opened her eyes again slowly. "Oh, God," she breathed.
The first thing she saw was a pair of dark blue eyes set in a burnt- brown face, then a soft white cloth as cuts and grazes on her face were gently mopped with warm water. The burns on her arms and legs had been bandaged up and something cool applied to them, dulling the burn; they still hurt but not half as much.
"'Wake now?" a deep voice murmured quietly. She appeared to be inside, somewhere warm, lying down. "Don' move, I'm just gettin' the arnica for those bruises."
"If this is..." Her first attempt at speaking failed utterly with a cough and she shut her eyes to concentrate for another go. After a second, she opened them and refocused on the face above her. A pained smile curved her mouth automatically as she repeated softly, "If this is what is known as awake... Yeah, I guess." She shifted slightly and winced at the movement. "Am I dead yet?" she asked ruefully.
"Nah. Not yet." He grabbed the little tub of arnica and began delicately dabbing it on the livid bruises on her arms, where she'd been flung against the tree. "Not if I can help it, anyway, y'know. Gotta stick together. Both Romanus." Wade beamed at her sunnily.
Rayya winced as he brushed a particularly tender spot and suddenly reached up to grab his hand, his words penetrating her brain with the discomfort. "Romanus?" she repeated. With some difficulty, she struggled upwards, bringing one of her arms back to lean on the elbow. She squeezed his hand tightly, gratefully. The more aware she grew, the more she realized how lucky she was. She had no idea when or how this young man had found her but she didn't much care. Hell, if she could get fully upright without experiencing the urge to faint, she'd kiss him from sheer gratitude. Instead, she contented herself with squeezing his hand again and smiling as sweetly as her bruised mouth would allow. "Thank you so much, whoever you are."
He blushed pinkly and squeezed her hand back weakly, then wiped the arnica over her other arm, obviously very shy. "Name's Wade, Wade Salter, or Neptune Knight, but call me Wade, o'course. Sit back down, don't wanna hurt yourself." Wade wiped his arnica-sticky fingers on a cloth. "I brought you here when I found Hyperion over you..." his face darkened, but with great strength of will, it soon cleared. "What's your name?"
"Rayya. Rayya Veritas." Obediently, she leaned back again. A faint smile still hovered on her lips as she added drily, "The much-abused and apparantly naive Sailor Bacchus. And Hyperion is the bus that hit me, I assume." She nodded to herself and then, finally, looked around. "And where am I, anyway?"
"My house. Was the closest place I coul' think of." He blushed again. "Sorry," he said lamely. "I jus' didn't wanna leave you out in the open, y'know, would've been wrong."
Rayya reached for his hand again and squeezed it gratefully. "Thank you, Wade," she murmured. "You're sweet." She beamed up at him, her usual glow's effectiveness somewhat dimmed by the bandages and bruises. "It's nice to know that chivalry isn't dead." A muted giggle escaped her then. "And that we've got our very own knight-in-shining-armor on the Romanus team."
His blush could have lit an oven, and he stood up; only when he towered over her could she see how absolutely immense she was. "T'anks, 'ayya," he stammered. "Pretty name - for a pretty girl, o'course," Wade added, as charming as he dared, and then turned away to wash his hands free of final gunk. "Wanna drink of water or somethin'? S'always good t'keep your fluids up, an' you jus' got badly kicked around, so you won' be as good as you shoul' be right now. An' when you feel better I'll drive you home, hokay?"
Rayya nodded, forcing herself to sit upright on the couch. "A drink of water would be great, thanks," she answered. Her movements stretched the bandaging and she grimaced, automatically tilting her face downwards so Wade didn't catch it. She had a feeling that it would upset him to no end. Her clothing caught her eye then and blushed slightly. She was still in that blasted bathing suit. Summoning her concentration, she morphed back into her street clothes, mildly surprised to find herself in a halter top and flared jeans. Oh, that was what I was wearing, she thought distractedly. It felt like hours had passed since she had left her dorm room. Oh, her dorm room. Better tell him that... With another faint grimace, she stood and wobbled into the kitchen. Then she leaned against the wall and studied her rescuer as he got her drink. Pretty cute, she thought. Big guy, too. Plus an absolute angel. Smiling sweetly, she moved to stand near him, taking the glass from his hand. "Thank you," she murmured. "I owe you my life." She leaned back against the counter. "And I'd be very thankful for a ride. I don't think I could walk six feet with the way I'm feeling. Like I've been hit with a truck, you know?"
He smiled at her wryly and closed a cupboard. "Don' I know it. Last time I scrapped with Hyperion I ended up fallin' off a buildin'. Don't thank me any - glad to do it, an' it's nice to meet you, y'know? I'd show y'to Livvy, but I think she's sleepin', an' I wouldn' wanna wake up the twins."
"Twins?" Rayya blinked up at him. Maybe she got hit harder than she thought. She thought she heard him say twins. They surely can't be his. "Brothers?" she asked hopefully.
He beamed with maternal pride. "Yup! Danny'n Simon, fourteen. Won't wake up - they can sleep through anythin'."
Rayya nodded, wishing very much to hop up to sit on the counter but not quite daring. "And Livvy is your guardian, right?" She smiled sweetly. "I'm saddled with one of them, too."
"Really?" he asked curiously. "Met s'more Romanus but not ones with Guardians, y'know?" He turned around and poured himself a glass of water, sipping it with relief and leaning against the sink. He patted the sideboard, obviously psychic. "Sit up here if y'want. Don' recommend standin' after you got beat up... Have y'met any other Romanus?"
"One other so far." Thoughtfully, Rayya brushed a hand lightly over the counter. Then she looked up and grinned at Wade. "Her name is Gwyn, Sailor Fortuna, and she's a total blast," she elaborated. "Maybe a bit loopy but that suits me just fine." She giggled. "Not Julius, though. He's my guardian." The thought of Julius made her head swim, however, and she frowned, her sides suddenly aching again. Oh, brother, is he going to be pissed at me, she thought. She glanced down at the counter again and then nodded to herself. "And you're right," she murmured. "Sitting is a very good thing at the moment." Somewhat unsteadily, she braced her hands against the counter behind her and hoisted herself upwards. Unfortunately, she misjudged her current strength level and one of her arms buckled. With a small gasp, she flung the arm out in attempt to steady herself.
Wade caught her firmly and hoisted her off the counter as if she weighed nothing, setting her down on the floor and propping her up with one arm. "Hokay," he said firmly. "You ain't in a position to even sit anywhere. I'm gonna take you home now. Can y'walk?"
"Should be able to so long as it's not uphill," Rayya giggled, characteristically unabashed by her slip. She beamed up, way up, at Wade. While the fight had knocked some of her sense loose and put her physical self through the wringer, it was clear that it hadn't come close to curing her of the curse of the chronic flirt as she leaned back against his arm. "Thank you, oh knight in shining armor," she added with a sweet grin.
He blushed again, a charming magenta colour, and opened the door to let her through out to a parked car on the lawn of what was obviously his house. The sky was pinkish - it must have been very early in the morning - as Wade keyed open his car and very gently helped her inside. "Where d'you live?" he asked shyly, getting in the other side and strapping himself in securely. "This bag of bolts'll get you there, just lead the way."
Rayya pulled her own seatbelt over her shoulder and buckled it, adjusting it across her chest as she replied, "Do you know Hollins University? I live in one of the dorms there when I'm not at my dad's apartment." She smiled. "I think it's best to take me to the dorms the way I'm looking now."
He nodded quickly. Obviously Rayya was older than he was, or she was just awful smart. "Yeah, I know the place, definitely. I can get y'there."
Rayya smiled and pointed ahead. "Let's go, Sir Wade. My pig and my bed await."
Crimson-faced at the idea of anything to do with the word 'bed' and a pretty girl, Wade drove on.
Hyperion dreamed. Nothing that was coherent, or that made even a little bit of sense, but those dreams that flash in your mind's eye, keeping you company while you sleep. Flashes. The sun. A fish. A girl. A sword. They soon melted back into the darkness.
His eyes opened slowly, his body echoed with an ache that only the most strenuous efforts bought about. He didn't know if he had been out for minutes or hours. It was still relatively dark. His senses were still sharp, so he knew he was still in his armored form. His fingers found solid ground, and he slowly hoisted himself up into a sitting position. He looked around, and saw Aphrodite staring at him.
"How long have I been out?" he asked groggily.
"Not too long!" chirped a cheerful Percy, while Aphrodite continued to sit on her ankles, giving Hyperion a uncomfortable look.
Aphrodite fidgeted slightly, and twirled a pigtail. "You okay? You need, like, a doctor or somethin'?" she inquired, her brow creased in concern. She relaxed her face quickly though, not wanting to get wrinkles.
"I'll be alright," Hyperion mumbled, reintroducing his feet to the ground. Fortunately, they seemed to get along. Hyperion looked around, and ran his hands through his hair. Neptune was long gone. Damn it.
Percy flapped onto Aphrodite's head, his favorite perch. Aphrodite tried to snatch him off, but the lovebird dodged her hands. Finally she gave up, and Percy began rattling off. "Good fight, that cowardly Romanus running off, ha. Bloodthirsty beasts, I tell you," crowed the bird, clacking his beak to show his approval of the fight.
"No shit," he said with a nod. He avoided Aphrodite's worried gaze, his frustration still seething around the edges. "Don't you think it's kind of pathetic that your bird guardian seems to be more of a fighter than you?" Hyperion didn't bother to pull any punches with this girl. He had expected his first teammate to be willing to rough someone up. It sucked that she was nothing but a prom princess in a costume.
Aphrodite looked hurt, and tugged uncomfortably at the end of her left pigtail. "I'm sorry, but, like, I didn't wanna. They didn't seem, like, too bad. That Bacchus chick, like, didn't wanna fight. And you and that Neptune guy, well, like, I didn't wanna interrupt 'cause you two were so, you know," mumbled Aphrodite, shifting her gaze to the ground.
Percy beamed at Aphrodite's discomfort. "Hah, Hyperion has a point. You do need to get into the action!" urged Percy, gloating mentally.
Aphrodite muttered a soft, "Whatever," in response, fidgeting with her pigtail more then ever now.
"Whatever?!" Hyperion was shocked by the girl's sheer apathy. "That was my ass on the line," he yelled, pointing to the spot where had fought Neptune.
"I needed your help, and you didn't do anything! If you're not gonna fight, then go home. All you're doing is getting in my way," he said. He tried briefly to focus in on Neptune's energy signature, but was met with silence. He was long gone.
Aphrodite glared at Hyperion, her look mingled with hurt and anger. "Hey, what was I, like, suppoused to do!? If I made you two fall in, like, love, which is all I can do, that woulda been weird! So don't go, like, yelling at me for stupid stuff. Its not like I could do much!" she shouted, standing up.
Hyperion arched an eyebrow. She was even more beautiful when she was angry. "Fall in love?! That's your power?! What ... I ... " he stammered. He felt kind of stupid all of a sudden. Even grateful.
"Maybe if you didn't, like, wanna fight so much he wouldn't have kicked your ass!" she added, speaking without thinking. Not only had she been insulted numerous times by a bird, but now Hyperion was getting on her case. She was not going to take it. Focusing on herself before she had transformed, she was soon back in her normal clothes. "You can either, like, apologize, or you won't get, like, any help from me!"
Percy rolled his eyes. "Leta, it isn't like you were helping much anyway," Percy pointed out, still enjoying his fifteen minutes of fame.
Leta ignored Percy, too busy feeling guilty for yelling at Hyperion to notice he said anything.
"Shut up, bird," he said, already tired of the guardian's mouth. He followed her example, his armor melting away in a wisp of light. He felt bad for her; she was pretty much useless in a battle, and here he was condemning her because of it. Zach rotating his arm slowly, a dull pain still roaring through his upper body.
"I'm sorry," he said after a moment of silence. "You did your best ... thanks." Zach smiled, holding out his hand to her. "I'm in an extraordinary amount of pain, so the quicker I walk you home, the faster I get home and collapse again."
Leta's pouting face transformed into a bright, toothy smile. She took his hand with her own delicate one, fingers painted a light pink of course, and shook it gently, not wanting to injure Zach anymore by making him move much. "Sorry I yelled and, like, stuff."
"Don't worry about it," Zach said softly. He rubbed the top her hand with his thumb.
Percy looked on in disgust, upset that his attention and "admiration" had disappeared into nothingness. "Well," he began, shifting feet on Leta's shoulder. "If you two lovebirds, no pun intended towards myself, mind moving along. I'm quite tired and hungry." grunted Percy, ruffling his feathers unhappily.
Zach laughed a little, and scratched the back of his head. "Alright ... let's go."
Leta took her hand away hesitantly, her smile a little more conserved as she rocked back and forth on her heels and toes. "I think my house is that-a-way," she gestured in the direction.
"Lets just go," grumped Percy, nestling his head deeply within his soft colorful feathers.
"Okie!" squealed Leta, as she began to walk back to her house, pausing to wait for Zach.
The blonde boy nodded, and grabbed her hand once again, and began the walk back home.
"Erg." With a small gasp of discomfort, Rayya leaned against the hallway's wall and dug in the pocket of her jeans. Thankfully, it took only a few seconds to find the key and pull it out. Extending a steadying hand outwards towards Wade, she hobbled over to insert the key in the lock. Before opening the door, however, she knocked weakly three times and called, "It's me so you'd better be behaving." She paused, then looked up at Wade with a smile. "Should be clear now," she announced as she opened the door and dragged him with her as a temporary and somewhat reluctant crutch. "Come on in for a minute please," she added.
Obviously shy and quite nervous, Wade mutely skittered into the room like a frightened grasshopper. "Nice place," he said weakly. "Need help gettin' into bed and stuff?" Realizing what he just said could be mistaken, he immediately blushed to nuclear heat and stumbled over his words. "That is - t'say - if you're still hurtin' I could help you aroun'- and stuff - "
"And where the hell were -you-?" A strident voice suddenly cut the stumbling Wade off and he and Rayya spun to see the small black pot- bellied pig sitting on the floor. Unbelievably, he was managing a very parental frown. He fixed a withering glare on Rayya. "And who the hell is this? Some sleazy frat boy you picked up in the bars? You were supposed to be home hours ago!"
Rayya groaned and swayed slightly towards Wade tiredly, leaning on his arm for support against her guardian's tirade. "Julius, please, not now," she whimpered. "And just be nice. This is Wade. He's one of us." She wrapped a small hand around Wade's forearm affectionately.
The blue-haired boy stared in abject shame and bewilderment at Julius before nodding violently. He'd never seen one other than Livvy before, and this one seemed almost as loud (and more aggresive) than her. "'Ayya was in a bad fight," he said loyally. "But she was really brave, y'know. I'm Neptune Knight. Pleased t'meetcha." He gave his widest, most nervous grin, showing a lot of teeth.
Julius glared at the tall boy. "And I'm Julius," he growled. "And I believe I was talking to Rayya."
"Oh, will you just stop it already!" Rayya frowned, her usual sunny mood disappearing fast in the face of Julius' hostility. "He was wonderful to me, okay? I almost got killed on that damn patrol you sent me on. I was out cold, ready for whatever. Wade found me, saved me, and took care of me." She hoisted her shirt, showing a bit more than she meant to in her growing anger, and pointed to a bandaged wound. "He fixed me up. Now just be nice to him, dammit, you evil pig." Her outburst over, she sagged against Wade, emotionally spent.
Too worried to care about the flesh or the angry porcine companion, Wade quickly hoisted Rayya up firmly and shook his head. "Should be in bed, 'ayya," he scolded miserably. "So dumb, should've gotten you here sooner... don' fight, hokay?" He looked down at the pig. "She was up against the worst Graikos I've ever come across, an' that's no fun and games. He was gonna kill her, y'know? Strong thing. Y'can argue in the mornin'." He firmly hauled her up into his arms. "Let's get y'to bed. Wish Asa was here," he fretted. "I'm still not sure if you're all right. Those burns Hyperion gives are awful..."
Rayya shook her head. "No, really, I'm okay," she insisted softly. "I'll be fine."
"You'll be..." Julius toddled over and stared up at his charge, cradled in the young man's arms. He had no idea that she had been hurt. Not like this. How could he have been so cruel to her at a time like this? "Oh, Rayya, I..." He fumbled for the words and just couldn't find the right ones to make up for his judgement. Finally, he nodded, "You'll be just fine, girl."
"I know I will." Smiling faintly down at Julius, Rayya wrapped an arm around Wade's neck. "I'll get some rest and I'll heal. Right, Wade?"
Wade beamed. That was more like it. "O'course! Your guardian's gonna look after you - an' so am I, if you need me," he decided firmly. "Where d'you sleep?" He refrained from saying the word 'bed'; it made him nervous.
Geez, what an innocent, Rayya thought fondly. Already she thought he was the sweetest thing she'd met in a while and he just kept on proving it. How she got so lucky in the friends department she'd never know. "I sleep in my bed, silly," she responded with a soft laugh. She pointed to the messy pile of sheets and pajamas. "Over there."
He obediently set her down, clearing away and folding the pajamas out of sheer habit, smoothing out the sheets that she lay on. Wade had done the same thing a thousand times, so it was as natural as breathing to do it now. "Jus' rest now," he instructed. "Call me when you feel better, hokay? An' call me if you feel worse."
Rayya nodded. "Of course." With a faint grimace, she stretched towards her nightstand and grabbed a tablet and pen. "Better write down your number, though." She grinned infectiously. "It'll save me from sending Julius next door to my neighbors with a note attatched to his back, requesting the loan of their phone book."
Julius nodded. "It's a heavy book," he explained unnecessarily.
Wade grinned and scrawled down his name and phone number after a few moments of searching for a pen. He wrote in large, rounded letters. "Here ya go," he said timidly. "Livvy'll prolly wanna meet you and Julius when you feel better, so don' be afraid t'call, hokay?"
"I won't." Rayya grinned at him, slowly and carefully reaching down to push off her shoes before pulling up the sheets a bit. "So you've only got yourself to blame when I put you on speed dial."
He petted her hand and drew the sheets up a little more, then nodded. "See y'around, 'ayya." He moved to the door before adding, "Get well soon!"
Then he was gone with the thump of the door.
Rayya sighed and settled back against the pillows. "Nice guy, very," she commented to Julius. With a wriggle and a grimace of pain, she tested her limbs and contemplated removing her jeans before falling into a delightfully comatose state. Nope, hurt way too much. A giggle escaped her as she finished the thought with "and I don't know Wade well enough to get his assistance for that."
"Just go to bed, girl," Julius said, interrupting her thoughts. "Get your rest and leave that boy alone."
Childishly, Rayya stuck her tongue out at her guardian and turned carefully onto her side. "Won't. Good night, Julius, dear. Sleep well." Within minutes, she had entered the sweet bliss of sleep.
After a second's hesitation, Julius moved towards her and tugged the sheet higher on her. Damn her, he thought. Still trolling for dates with major wounds. When would she open her eyes? Sighing, he curled up on her floor. He knew he should reserve judgement on this Wade but... Well, Rayya was his, wasn't she? His responsibility. It took him a long time to get to sleep that night.