The Dissident

[ninfeanicole]

_1_

I was always different. Always special. I, Serenity Mae, was always myself. I never acted like someone I was not. And yet, I still felt like a total fraud. No matter what way I look at myself, I will never truly fit in, not even with my closest of friends.

First of all, there is the fact that I am one of only three white kids in our little group. Then there is the small fact that I am one of the few unattached members. Since the end of freshman year. Next, there—

“Serenity Mae, would you care to answer the question?”

I snapped out of my little pity party and lifted my head up to see Ms. Icy. A low groan escaped from my throat as I let my head drop back to my desk with a loud ‘thud’. Ms. Icy was the meanest teacher one could ever meet, and she just loved failing anyone who took her. Especially those with the Mae name. No one really knows why she is the way she is, maybe she was not getting enough at home, none of us really know. All we do know is that she is the Queen of Ice. Hence, the name Icy.

“Miss Mae, don’t tell me that you were daydreaming again?” Did I mention she was very sarcastic? And maybe a little funny? “Perhaps a little trip to the principal’s office would help to keep you more alert?” Okay, make that very funny.

I rolled my eyes as I turned to gather up my things. Sometimes she can just make me so mad, I mean, how hard is it to not be so annoying? I mean, if we could, we’d change her name to Ms. Annoying, but alas, the name was firmly taken by our school librarian.

Miss Annoying was all nice and everything, but that was before you got to know her. Before you had to take her for media management. Now that is one boring, ADD, and just plain ditzy blonde of a teacher. She can be oh-so annoying, not to mention just flat out stupid and crazy. Also, did I mention blonde and ditzy? Good, I say it again, she is blonde and ditzy!

But not even she was as boring as this class was. And that is bad seeing as to how history is my favorite subject. Just goes to show how much that has to say about the all-mighty Ms. Icy who’s the one teaching. Thus, back to the original problem at hand. Ms. Icy, the oh-so boring history teacher. Word of advice, do not take her if you have a choice, especially not her honors class. Unless you want a nap. And you don’t mind chancing the rude awakenings and daily referrals. And the occasional detention. Then her class is perfect. But hey, this is me, so I stay for the chance to annoy the Queen of Ice.

“The only thing that’d keep me more alert is if ya stopped being so damn b*tchy and make the class more n’terestin and less of some old sold out snore-fest. Oh, I forgot though, this you we talking ‘bout.”

Whoops, did I say that loud?

Ms. Icy stood up, which was a mega big feat for someone her size– you know, the size of a whale. “What was that?”

I take that as a yea, I did. Good, because someone had to tell her the wonderfully wonderful truth instead of being all chickened out about it.

I stood smoothly and smiled as sweet as I could, “I said your hair looks nice.” Everyone in the class started laughing and Ms. Icy’s face turned an interesting shade of mottled purple, which does nothing good for her with that bright red hair of hers, for that was my number one signature line for whenever I wanted to insult someone. Or at least make them think I did. It was just so much fun to see their reactions. It always does good if you happen to run out of insults, because then they think you said something all big and bad and so unforgivable. And do I care what they think? Nope. I just like watching them get all upset because they think they lost the game.

Ms. Icy looked like she was about to scream now as she quickly straitened her jacket and spoke through clenched teeth, “Thank you for the compliment, but I would appreciate it if you would be so kind as to continue on to Mr. Furry’s office. Now.” She ground the last word out as she continued to glare daggers, and man am I ever tickled pink. She actually looks like a cherry and pig mix.

Go sploink-sploink!!

“Aye-aye, ma’am.”

~ * ~

“Is ROTC teaching students how to be cheeky now or something, or is it just in the genetics?” I looked up and smiled as I faced the assistant principal, Mr. Peacock, “Always fun to learn something new and mix it up with the old. Besides, what genetics are there to share? So, who else was sent up?”

Mr. Peacock was an older man, late thirties, who was already partially bald and practically blind, but he was a real sweetheart who would let just about anything slide. Except for you being late from lunch. Or to class. Then, he was like a bear that still had the plug up the butt four months after hibernation ended. Other than that he was a cool man. He was the main one who supported us in getting a soccer team going, even went so far last year as to get us an unofficial team through some park and trained us as best he could. Needless to say, he is my favorite teacher there is. What can I say, I am a big soccer person. You should just see my room; one wall is all soccer, another is the Marines a.k.a. Leathernecks (Hoorah!), then there is the drawing wall with my works of art, and finally is my writing area. With the character lineages and profiles pinned up, and a five-foot stack of binders of stories. Yea, I’m an even bigger writer. In one years time I’ve gotten thirty-two stories going. Yee-haw! Anyway, back to what we was originally about.

Mr. Peacock shook his head at me as he led me to his office, “You are the tenth today, and third block has just started. You and your buddies don’t seem to get along with Ms. Icy, Mrs. Grump, or Sergeant Perv. So tell me, what did you do today?”

“I complimented Ms. Icy’s hair.”

“Uh-huh. And what exactly did you say?”

“I said, ‘Your hair looks nice’.”

“Ah…the ever famous follow-up line. If it’s not that, than it’s because you go around saying ‘I’m Bonquesha’.”

“Well I am, I am Bonquesha Spinderella Cocoa. In my fun time. But hey, what can I say, I’m just uniquely myself. It’s not my fault if people don’t like my being myself.”

“Maybe they would like it if you were a little bit more calm with your uniqueness.”

“Ah, but it is better to be uniquely, and crazily, yourself then to try and fail at being somebody you’re not just so you can fit in and make others feel comfortable. Because if you did, you wouldn’t really be yourself now would you?”

Grinning like a fool and shaking his head, Mr. Peacock shooed me towards his door, “Next time I’m just gonna go ahead and suspend you Miss Mae.”

I could feel a smirk playing at my lips as I turned to face him, locking my hands behind my back, going for the whole innocent look, “But you said that last time. Plus, you never said which Mae.”

“This time I mean it. How many of you are there any way? Nine, ten? Just go on to your homeroom for now, we’re supposed to be having a short assembly today. It will be concerning certain people’s attitudes.”

I lifted my hands in mock surrender, opening my eyes wide, “Innocent! I am a good girl, I am.”
“Sure you are, tell yourself that enough and it may just come true. Now, be sure not to be late this time.”

I smiled as I stood, gave him an extra low bow with a sweep of my arm, and smiled innocently before I turned to leave. Waving over my shoulder as I reached his office door, I turned with a wide grin, “Thank ya for ya time, Mr. Peacock, see ya fourth block.”

“Hopefully not. Major ET won’t keep this up, eventually he’ll put you out.”

“Maybe, but then where would ROTC be without us Maes? Like he said,” My voice lowered to a low tenor as I screwed my eyes real tight and pulled my ears out while I made a funny face. “You and ya’ll’s little group are the backbone of the whole program, and without the foundation, the whole program will end up going up in smoke.”

With that said, I turned and hurried out of the room, making sure to stop at the front office entrance, turned around, and held my hands up high with a wide grin plastered across my face, “Thank ya’ll for your time, and Bonquesha Cocoa is outta here ‘till fourth.”

~ * ~

“Excuse me, teachers and students, but we need all twelfth grade students to come to the gym at this time. I repeat, all twelfth grade students are to report to the gym at this time.”

I quickly grabbed up my stuff, which consisted all of one writing binder, a pack of paper, my MP3 player, a sketchbook, and my coloring bag, and headed out the door, slipping off to the side before Coach Sexy could spot me. Even though I am no where near a senior, yet, I like to slip out ahead of time and meet up with my friends, though I do have to avoid certain teachers. Fake cough— Icy— fake cough— ET— fake cough— Annoying— real coughing.

Hiding in a corner, I watched as everyone was released from their homerooms, and waited patiently for the rest of my friends join me. Yea, that lasted all of like four seconds, and then I started pacing and twirling like a loon.

The first to arrive was my younger sister, Lecta, and our oldest sister Myst. Lecta was a petit girl with skin and eyes the color of dark chocolate, and her hair was a smooth black cut close to her shoulders. Myst, on the other hand, was a little rounder and had a light gold tan, piercing blue-green eyes, and dirty blonde hair that fell just below her shoulders. Please welcome white girl number two.

Next was our older brother, by adoption, and Lecta’s current boyfriend, Junior Fae who was well built without a lot of muscles, with skin a smooth light brown that caught many a girl’s eye. Then there was our baby sister, Sereneé. She and Myst are built alike, though they were complete opposites in looks. Where Myst was a tanned gold, Sereneé was a creamy chocolate color, and her eyes and hair were a dark shade of brown. Plus, Myst was the eldest while Sereneé was the youngest. Complete opposites in every way. Well, except for builds.

The last to arrive was our elder sister, Lottie. Lottie and Lecta were almost exact twins, except for Lottie had darker skin and her hair was cropped close to her head. Both were really skinny, and obviously pretty. Uh, hello, all of us Maes are said to be very pretty, though each in our own ways.

You see, Mr. and Mrs. Mae adopted all of us at different points in our lives, and gave us the opportunity to start over. We each chose our own names, except for Junior, and started living out our lives. At the moment, there are only six of us; in order by age is: Myst, Moonie, Junior, me, Lecta, and Sereneé. The first was Moonie, who is currently visiting her older half-brother over in Loxley. Yea, we each still have outside family that we keep in contact with and visit from time-to-time.

Next, about four months later came Myst. For a while there it was just the two of them, then, about three, maybe four years later came Lecta, followed by Sereneé the next week. I came about three years later, a year and a half ago, making the second white in the family. About eight months later we all found out that Lecta and Junior were dating, though they have known each other for over five years now.

Three months later he became our brother, but he decided to keep his old name, and we decided to keep the whole adoption a secret. I mean, anytime you hear of two people going out who have the same name and address and siblings, you automatically think things like, ‘eew’, or ‘the closer the kin the deeper in’, or some stupid comment along the lines of keeping it in the family, and then a big mess breaks out. So yea, he is a Fae, not a Mae. Anyway, it was a good six more months before Lottie finished up the family. This happened last month. Now, we are all one big happy family. Plus the occasional visit from our various eleven half-brothers, three half-sisters, and the even more various, not to mention numerous, cousins.

Okay then, back to the current life. Did I ever mention that I have ADHD? Okay, well, now you know.

So anyways, once all of us were together, we remained silent as the halls slowly emptied. “Where’s Carlos?” I looked back to Sereneé and frowned. Carlos was one of her cousins who we found out about at the beginning of last year’s school year. “I’onno, I know I passed him on my way to second block. You think he went on to the gym?” Sereneé returned a shrug, “Maybe he went ahead with Leo, Ray, and Lee.”

“And if you were smart, you would all be getting your butts to the gymnasium too. The assembly started damn near fifteen minutes ago.”

Uh-oh, can you say ‘ghettie-ohs?’ Now we were in trouble. Major ET is one person who just loves messing with people, especially us Maes. After all, we are the backbone of his program. Yea, that’s just his excuse so he can be as hard as he likes on us. Okay, ignore the nasty image that just popped in head.

[ninfeanicole]

_2_

“Really?” I looked over to our unwelcomed newcomer innocently (hehe, I said comer), “I thought it was more like thirty.”

“Mr. Fae, if you would escort your friends on to the gym. And make sure Ian here makes it into the gym this time.” He pushed a boy towards us and smiled his annoyingly big smile as he pointed towards the gym.

Lecta let out a low groan, and I smirked as we passed by Major, “Told ya he had them sonar ears.” Everyone repressed bouts of laughter as we continued towards the gym, only to burst out laughing once Major was in the front office. At the gym doors the boy in front of us, Ian, hesitated, “It’s kind of quiet in there isn’t it? You think we in trouble or something?”

Everyone else stopped for a moment before I spoke up in a false cheery voice, “Yea. But when aren’t we? Besides, we won’t know till we go in and find out.” With that, I held the door open, letting everyone else pass before I followed suit.

There was plenty of noise to hide our late entry as we quickly slipped on down to the bleachers that housed the Junior class. Mr. Furry was in the middle of the gym, and boy did he look dead dog serious. Which really did not fit with what he was saying.
“Settle down now, settle down. Now, as I was umm…as I was saying, all of you have shown a good and p-positive attitude this whole week while the Grad Exams were going on, and you all made a tremendous effort on your uniforms and attendance, though the Seniors do need to work a little harder. You may have all already passed the Exams, but that does not mean that you can j-just s-skip out on classes.

“But as an award for you excellent behavior this week, we are going to have a small dance to-tonight, with our own Teehale serving as DJ. Now, while I don’t mind you all having a little fun, I don’t want to see no nasty dancing. That means no girls bent over, backing it on up, and no boys humping away at the air. And no ‘moshing’ as you all call it. So, I’m just going to close up now and let you go on home and get changed and get ready. The dance will start off at seven, so you all make sure to have some fun now, you hear? Go on now, school is dismissed, see you all tonight.”

I got up with everyone else and started out the door, only to be stopped by a hand on my arm. Turning around, I looked at the boy who had a hold of me, and could not help the smile that graced my lips. It was one of my male friends, Tye, who might I say is fine as can be. He’s about three inches taller than my five foot four, a light chocolate brown colored skin, coffee color eyes, and a killer smile. Now, while he may not look all muscle bound, the boy still has some strength in him, which is good.
He smiled down at me as he slung his arm over my shoulders and walked me to my locker so I could get my books. “So, Sugar Cake, you gonna be up here tonight, or am I gonna have to kidnap you?” I smiled at his playfulness, ignoring his use of a nickname, and turned to him with a playful smile, “I don’t know, I may just stay home and watch some old movies.” He returned the smile as he bent down and softly kissed my lips, “How about you wear that cute outfit I heard Lecta and Lottie talking about, I pick you up at six-thirty, and we have some fun at the dance? We can call it a date.”
“Hmm…. It’s a deal, but you get to come up with a good excuse for Maj. about why I am not at Rifle or Drill.”
He let out a low groan before he finally grounding out an okay, and dropped a quick kiss before heading off towards the rifle range. And so you know, we are not a couple. He just happens to be one of my bestest friends who can get away with these kinds of things, as long as he does not take it too far. Which I know he would not do since I have known him for like six years now, plus the fact that his girlfriend, Phy, would kick his behind. Plus I am sure I could get my boyfriend Jay to make a special trip down here to do the same.

~ * ~

Everyone entered through the side doors and started making their way to the gym floor as the music started up. A strong beat traveled through the air as Tye guided our way towards the center, with Lecta and Junior close behind us, Sereneé and Myst having skipped out for work and Lottie was out on a date with her latest man, though she promised to show up later. We danced for a good little while, the beat of the music creating an easy tempo for us to follow. Tye is a really good dancer, and had yet to step on my foot, or lost rhythm with me. No matter how fast the beat is, and no matter how close are bodies are together. See, what I absolutely love about my boyfriend is that he does not get jealous if I dance or hang out with some other males. But that is just how much we trust each other. Plus he knows that I don’t do the whole hanky-panky effect since I lost my v-card freshman year. Yea, not a memory I like to have, and one he does not know the whole of. Only Sereneé and Myst. And my pen pal Asha on fanlib.
It was a good two hours or so before I had to move out of the throng of people, already having danced with ten of my more closer male friends and my sisters. It felt like it was a good hundred degrees as I made my way out of the gym and headed towards the moderately quieter bathroom on B-hall. I quickly splashed my face with some cool water, hoping to get my temperature down, and looked at myself in the mirror.
I was wearing a side shouldered black mini dress that was tight as sin down to my waist, where it was cinched with a silver belt, before it flared out into a loose skirt that stopped mid-thigh. Underneath this I was wearing a pair of form fitting faded blue jeans and a pair of two inch black heels. My hair was a waterfall of toffee that cascaded down to my waist, framing my slightly oval face that housed a pair of striking blue-grey-green hazel eyes, which were now darkened to a stormy blue-green, which rested underneath a pair of narrow arched brows, with a snub of a nose that fit just right, and a perfect pair of plump lips that formed a pleasant bow. And my normally pale white skin was tinted a slight pink from the heat.

But the most luring affect was the pretty good sized dazzling blue marble that hung in the mouth of a dragon which resided on a necklace with my dog tags, both of which resided upon my chest in plain view for all to see.

I gently touched the dragon marble before turning to leave. It serves as a kind of good luck charm for me. I quickly rounded the corner to the hall leading to the gym, but ended up smashing into a solid figure. The boy infront of me quickly reached out and steadied me before smiling, “I was wondering where you got off to. Did you get tired of everyone watching you?” I smiled up at him as I reached down and fixed my shoe, holding onto him for balance. “Nope, it was just getting a little cramped for a while, I may be a fan of fire, but I’m also big on the open spaces and fresh air. Tonight seemed like one of those fresh air times.”
He shook his head causing his blond hair to move to one side before grinning down at me with a sexy little smile, “You have enough fresh air yet?” I smiled and nodded before stretching up onto my toes and kissing him. The kiss was only meant to be a quick peck, but after all that pent up body heat and dancing and being so close to each other for so long, man, it is bound to get to you. The kiss deepened as he wrapped his arms around me, slowly backing me into the wall, and back around the corner, my hands making their way up to his shoulders, where one proceeded to make its way up into his hair. I could feel as a burning heat coiled its way through my body, which was now flush against his. My skin felt like it was on fire as he gently nipped my lower lip, his hand creeping slowly under my dress, only stopping when we were skin to fiery skin. He groaned low in his throat and I smirked before biting him back. The kiss dropped all playfulness and we were simply kissing, devouring each other’s mouths.

“I hope we ain’t interrupting anything?”

He quickly broke off the kiss with a silent groan and backed away a little, keeping our bodies in contact. I looked over to the small group that stood in the center of the hallway, having just rounded the corner and running into us. The group consisted of Lecta, Junior, Lottie, a boy I assume is her date, and Raven, the third white girl in our little group. Raven was Myst’s like best friend, though we all gradually grew closer. She was like a lighter and happier version of me, only with more of a pear shape and longer, lighter, hair. She kind of reminded me of a hippie. Though you would never believe when she opened her mouth. Then she was Sarcasm Central.

I smiled at them as I moved my hand from the boys hair onto his shoulder, “Ya’ll remember Jay, right? And you didn’t interrupt nothing much. Besides, I can’t get laid ‘till Lecta. No offense, but she needs it way more than me. Why don’t ya help her out Junior?” I looked over to said Junior and my smile grew as I tried my whole ‘innocent’ look. This got a laugh out of everyone as me and Jay broke apart, making sure to interlace our fingers as we joined the group. See, while Lecta and Junior are neither virgins by a long shot, they decided back when they started dating, that in order to keep the complications down, they would both become celibate until they married. Needless to say, we love to give them hell for it.

I laughed and joked with them as I led the way back towards the gym, holding the door open for everyone else. And what met us was probably one of the most freakish things ever.

The gymnasium was completely silent, which was a first and a really creepy thing to behold. Even the music was off. I mean, no one was ever this quiet, not even during the pledge or the whole ‘a moment of silence’. And, was it me, or did there seem to be way more people than what there usually was. Way more than twice the normal amount. There were people everywhere; scrunched together in the bleachers, on the stage, against the walls, and they still managed to spill over onto the gym floor.

As I came to the front of the group, I noticed that everyone was staring at a white man in the center of the gym floor. He was tall and lanky with unusually long blonde hair that reached to his waist with a beak of a nose and a pair of striking green eyes that were cold enough to make Ms. Icy look all warm and cuddly. And that is a dang near impossible task, for that woman is way colder than her name.

Even stranger though was the man’s clothing, and I just could not see how no one was laughing, I mean the man was wearing a green and gold dress robe that reached mid-calf, and his gold shoes were curled up at the ends. He strait up looked like a character that just stepped out of an Aladdin movie. The only thing messing the picture up was the hair, all he need do was either cut it some or wrap it up all turban style.

And he was looking right at me as I stood at the front of the group. Anyone want to say creepy-freaky?

The air was thick with tension as everyone turned to look at us newcomers, and I forced myself to put on a bright smile, looking the stranger strait in the eye, trying not to cringe at how cold they were, “Sorry we late, but we kinda got lost.” A slow smile spread across the man’s face, a smile that made the hair on my arms stand on end, and when he spoke, it was in a soft, seductive purr that was mixed with a strong, heavy accent. Kind of like a sexier version of the dude from Braveheart, only more natural sounding. It was sexy as hell, yet it still managed to remain cold. “It was so nice that all of ye could join us. We were actually waiting for ya. Now, everyone here today is linked together because they have each ran into a person that we are looking for.

“You see, a friend of ours has disappeared, and she is a verra important person where we come from. And we cannot leave here until we have her. But there seems to be a problem. Many as a matter of fact. We are unable to just spot her in a group; she is verra skilled at disguises. And we cannot exactly pinpoint a person all of ye have seen. It is not likely that she will just come forth–” I stepped forward, keeping aloof as I carefully studied the area, trying to look unobvious as I spoke, “What do you mean by ‘we’ and ‘us’? Where are the others, and who exactly is you?”

The man’s smile widened, but otherwise he appeared at ease, “My name is Maxim Landrey, as for my men, they are all around. Ye do not need to worry about anything else. Yet.” At his words, over a dozen men seemed to just appear around the gym, two of which were on either side of Lottie. Maxim’s smile faded as he turned to look at his other specters, “As I was sayin, our little friend will not just come forth, therefore we are going to have ta force her. Starting with the lovely lass here.”

[ninfeanicole]

_3_

“Starting with this lovely lass here.”

Everything seemed to still as he spoke the words. I was rooted to where I stood as the men on either side of Lottie grabbed hold of her. There was nothing I could do. It was like my mind was just wiped clean. There were no thoughts, no feelings, no nothing. It was like I lost all of my senses and was nothing more than an empty void. I did not like the feeling.

Lottie started to fight against the attackers, screaming her head off. Everyone else in our little group broke free of their trances and quickly jumped forward, only to be blocked as some more men popped out of nowhere. I just stood there, looking around. How could everyone just sit there and watch as all of this went on?

These men were practically dragging Lottie, others were physically restraining the rest of us, and everyone else just sat there watching. Not even blinking. No one was offering to help, not even the teachers or the parents that were here. How could they be so heartless, so uncaring, as to just sit by and let all of this happen?

A strangled cry of frustration escaped from me and I finally broke free, quickly ducking down so no one would see me. I slipped past the guards that were restraining my family, and quickly ran towards the two dragging Lottie. Out of the corner of my eye I saw one of the steroid cronies heading for me. I quickly slammed on my brakes, watching him fly by me, before jumping over his legs and dashing towards Lottie. Now, Serenity does not run, but at this moment, I was running like Hades himself was at my back.

I quickly rammed into the guy on the right, taking him by surprise enough that he lost his hold and stumbled to the ground. The other guy quickly stopped as he realized he lost his buddy. Steroid Guy One quickly got his feet and knocked me down before trying to sit on me. Lucky me, my half-brother likes to wrestle a lot and tries the same moves. I quickly wrapped my legs around his waist, turning so my front was to his side, and squeezed with all of my strength.

He tried to jam his elbow into me, but I quickly maneuvered so it hit air, and wrapped my arms around him in a L-shaped headlock, blocking his airways. He continued to struggle as I applied more pressure, at the same time as I squeezed my leg muscles tighter. He was just starting to lose strength when Steroid Guy Two came up behind me and grabbed hold of my hair, wrapping it securely around his fist. He quickly jerked my head back, and I could feel as a few hairs were ripped free, roots and all, and resentfully released Steroid Guy One.

Steroid Guy Two quickly yanked on my hair again, forcing me to my feet, before he used it to sling me away from him. I slammed into Lottie at full speed, knocking us both down and sending me through a loop as I fought to regain my breath. When I looked back, it was to see both men advancing towards us, with fire burning in their eyes and their auras the most menacing I had ever seen before. Ignoring the pain in my chest and back, I made myself stand up and quickly grabbed Lottie up by her arms, forcing her towards the crowd of people who were still just standing and watching us with anxious looks.

A hand wrapped around my free wrist in an iron grip and I let out a low growl as I pushed Lottie towards the onlookers, barking off an order to her, “Stay here, and don’t move.” An arm wrapped around my waist like a steel band and lifted me up off of the ground. I let out a low squeak of protest and started kicking out, trying to get him to lose his hold, but his grip was unwavering. If anything, the only thing I managed to do was get him to tighten his old to a bone crushing grip and the added hold his friend gained on my legs.

I screamed in rage as I continued to struggle, but it was to no avail. They carried me over to the ringleader, Maxim, and threw me to the ground. I swore that I could hear my ribs scream as they received more bruises, and my legs felt like jelly from Steroid’s grip. The man needs to lay off the steroids for a few days, maybe even a full year or two. I pushed my self up into a position that resembled sitting, using my arms to brace me up, and glared up at Maxim.

He had the gall to look down at me and smirk. I snarled at him and pulled my pocket knife from my boot, quickly slashing out at him, “Keep smiling all you like, but if ya keep being all haughty, then I’m gonna have ta cut ya.” He kept the smirk in place as he smoothly sidestepped my slash. Reaching down, he snatched the knife from me and tossed it into the air, catching it by the handle before sliding it into his robes. “I’ll keep this handy.”

With that, he turned his back to me and slowly walked around the gym. A group of the Steroid Guys was suppressing Lecta and the others, whose eyes were steadily looking back from me to Maxim. I slowly shook my head at them and looked behind me to see the two men who had carried me earlier. No luck escaping then. I looked back to Maxim and waited as he continued to circle the area. After a few seconds of silence he stopped and dropped his smirk, “Now that the disturbance is over, let’s get back to what I was saying. Now, while our little friend is adept at hiding, she can never refuse a damsel in distress. So my little friend, ye may hide all ye like, but keep in mind, the longer ye hide, the longer the lass here will suffer. And ye ken that I’m verra skilled at inflicting pain.”

There was a wicked glint in his eyes as he turned back to me. A cold chill ran up my spine as he slowly advanced towards me, and I could feel as fear began to bubble up inside of me. But I refused to let it show, I have never shown anything other than happiness, and the occasional amount of being upset, to my friends, and that is not about to change now. I bit down on my tongue as he advanced towards me, forcing myself not to cringe as a slow, malicious grin spread across his face. His eyes sharpened and I could feel energy rippling through him, giving his aura a distinct edge of excitement. He was actually going to enjoy this.

Maxim came to a stop infront of me, crouching down to my level. He reached out with one of his hands and gently forced my head up so that our gazes met. Again I held back a flinch as I locked eyes with him, seeing into the dark and evil depths of emerald, and I made sure to match him stare for stare. His grin widened and he switched his hold on me, gripping my chin between his thumb and fingers, forcing me to my feet.

Once on my feet, he started backing me towards the stage area. My guards, now dubbed the Steroid Twins, followed behind Maxim and both of their eyes held a glint of humor and excitement. They were looking forward to this. It even seemed as if they hoped they would be able to get in a few hits. My stomach did a little flip and I fought to keep down my lunch, but at the same time wishing I could just spit it up all over the three of them.

Maxim tightened his grip on me and lowered his face closer to mine, “I really hate to mar such a beauty, but I really must have what is mine. Hopefully, my little friend will show up soon, that way I won’t have to mark ye overly.” His grip loosened and he gently traced a cold finger down my cheek, slowly bringing it over to rub across my lower lip.

Now or never I always say.

I grinned up at him, staring into his eyes, and gently sucked his finger into my mouth. His smirk grew and I could see as his eyes darkened a notch with what I was hoping was lust. I smirked in return, slowly pushed his finger out of my mouth and whispered huskily, “It might be a little fun to be marked by a sexy man, as long as I get to mark him back. Now, I don’t mind the company, but I would very much mind to be interrupted.” I slowly nipped the tip of his finger before pulling it back into my mouth, sucking on it hard. A slow smirk tugged at my lips as I sucked a little harder, waiting until I heard a slight hitch in his breathing. His breath hitched ever so slightly, and he was watching my mouth work with hooded eyes.

I slowly moved my body closer and reached up, making sure to move slow enough so as not to startle him, and forced his head up so his eyes met mine. As soon as our eyes locked, I grinned full on, and with one final suck, bit down onto his finger, making sure it was my canine teeth that connected, and using just enough force to break the skin. A sweet, yet tart, taste filled my mouth.

Maxim quickly jerked away from me and slapped me across my face hard enough to make my knees buckle. He then lashed out with his other fist and sent me sprawling. The Steroid Twins advanced towards me with mixed feelings and quickly forced me back to my feet. I slowly gained my feet, staying bent over long enough to regain my breath. There was a coppery taste in my mouth now and I could feel a loose tooth or two, and my left cheek was already swelling up, which suggested a cut or two from one of his many rings.

Once I regained my breath, I looked up and met Maxim’s gaze. He was looking down at his finger in interest before slowly sucking it into his mouth. Once done, he lowered his hand and looked over to me. He was fuming big time. Slowly, he reached up and brushed a strand of his hair back, then started walking towards me. He quickly reached out and grasped my chin in a bruising grip, “You are a clever one, ye are. But I will not allow myself to be lured in by your wiles. At least, not yet. Once she has revealed herself, I think I shall take ye with me as my own little pleasure toy. Do you think you would enjoy that? Then, when I have done with ye, I will pass you onto my men here. They too deserve a little relaxation every one in a while. What do you think lads?”

I looked up at my captors and flinched as they both looked down at me hungrily. I am in so much trouble now. I slowly swallowed my fears and turned back to Maxim, glaring daggers at him. He responded with a small chuckle before he thrust me away from him, into the awaiting arms of my two captors. “String her up.”

My head jerked in his direction, but he was already walking away, “Do what ye want, just keep her alive long enough for our little friend to show herself. If she doesn’t show, you can do what ye please.” The Steroid Twins started to laugh as they forced me back towards the stage. I glanced over my shoulder one last time. Maxim continued walking, about half of his men falling into step behind him. He was just nearing the crowd of people when he and his men suddenly just vanished.

Now, is it me, or is this starting to look more and more like some Sci-Fi movie? I mean hot, sexy bad guy, with even hotter and buffer evil little henchmen. Come on, why can’t a girl get a break and have all the hot, sexy guys be on the good side? Damn…

The steroid twins jerked me to a stop in front of the stage, where one kept a hold of me while the other motioned for his buddies to bring something forward. After a few seconds, there was a clearing in the crowd and about six men emerged. Carrying a huge-behind crucifix. They continued walking towards us, where they placed the cross onto the ground. Steroid Guy One shoved me forward and I stumbled towards the cross. I swallowed down my fear, yet again, and gave what I hoped was a happy smile, “Please do not tell me that ya’ll are Christian, because if so, you have a very bad way of showing it. Don’t you know that only the holy should be crucified and all of that?”

One of the guys who had carried the cross stepped forward and grabbed my legs out from underneath me. “Shut yer mouth wench.” His voice was gravelly, and it held a twinge of the same accent as his master, only it was not as sexy on him. I think I shall call him Brute, he sure has the attitude for it. The Twins tightened their grips and held me in place as Brute *****ped me of my jeans and cutting off my dress, slashing it from waist to shoulder. Damn, I really liked that dress to.

Once my outer clothing was tossed aside, and I was left standing in a pair of matching midnight blue bra and panties, Brute grabbed hold of my legs, lifting them up from underneath me.

Together, the three of them managed to force me down onto the cross, where the twins each held out an arm and Brute continued to hold down my legs. I struggled as much as I could as another man, dubbed Thor (you’ll see why in a moment), began tying down my limbs.

Once the restraints were in place, Thor stepped back and held out a hand where another of his buddies placed a bundle of braided thorns. A slow smile spread across his face as he advanced towards me and I gulped down huge gulps of oxygen, fighting to stay still. No offense, and I really do not want to sound like I am just giving up, but whether or not I fight will change nothing except for the depth of those thorns. Sorry to say, but I would prefer them not to go all the way through. The things looked a good inch long, and I so do not want to see if they hurt as much as they look.

The Steroid Twins slowly hoisted up the crucifix, with me being the main attraction, and Thor came to a stop infront of me. He quickly separated the thorns into five groups and reached up to wrap one around my throat. It is bad enough that my necklace is trying to choke the life out of me, having got all turned around, but now I have the added affect of a thorn choker. So sweet of them to give me such a wonderful gift.

One of the thorns lightly pricked my skin, and I could feel as a small drop of blood seeped down to rest on my collarbone. I refrained from swallowing, and carefully opened my mouth to speak, “No offence or anything, but you do know that the whole thorn mess was reserved as a crown? Like the kind that goes on top of the head?”

Thor looked up at me and grinned, “Aye, but this is much more fun. It causes more pain, and I like my pain.”

“Then how about we wrap you up in a little thorn cocoon that way you can have the pain, meanwhile I can sit back and enjoy the show as I beat you with a bat, slowly driving each and every thorn into your stupid little body.” My voice rose until I was practically shouting the last bit, but I ended up stopping. For one, I received a rather nasty prick from one of the longer thorns, plus the small fact that Thor decided he wanted me to meet the back of his hand.

Once he established that his hand was stronger than my face, he went back to wrapping the thorns around me. One bundle was wrapped around my legs, from ankles to low mid-thigh; two more were used on my arms, from palm to biceps; and the final bundle was used to wrap around my ribs, from right under my breast, down to where my waist started to curve in.

Anyone want to say ouch?

Good. Now, anybody want to trade me places? No? Okay, but you do not know what you are missing out on.

[NightHawk1]

whoa how long did it take you to type this
awsome story

[ninfeanicole]

first ch. only about three hours.....second and third took three months....
my parents dont like the writing, so they like to either lock me outta the comp..or take its power cord......they even went so far one time as wiping the memory drive....yea, they suck...majorly..

[ninfeanicole]

ok, if anyone still looks at this, i am finally going to start back working on it. to start things off, i redid a scene in ch.2 with serenity's boyfriend, the real guy i based him on is kinda bad for that shot, so i invited one of my online friends to hav a part.....now, the reason behind the starting up again is because i am thinking of making a sequal, well the sequal is a given, but the special thing about the sequal is that it will serve as a sequal to this and A Formidable Love . For more on that, you'll have to either wait and see or simply ask for my story synopsis. hope ya'll enjoy.

[AnimeisAwesome7]

wow so long looks good