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Summer vacation elapses, and sees their storefront doing one heck of a business in the Avalon with the help of their griffin employee. There is a suggestion box for new spells they should invent, some of which have to be long-term projects but others of which are converted into new product fairly promptly.
School starts up again. Darren and Bella are both skipping straight into twelfth grade. (Bella looked into just starting college early, but while she does technically have the sort of resume that can lead to that kind of thing, she can't exactly write an essay about how she saved the life of another person and this caused her to have Moral Character, let alone about how she started a small business - so skipping one grade it is.)
They apply to colleges. They both get into University of Washington and get sufficient scholarships to accommodate both going there.
Summer ensues again.
One afternoon, Bella is over at Darren's, and has fallen asleep - in purring fullform - across his lap on the couch.
shesepankh
shesepankh
Bella is unrelieved in her ignorance. "Oh god n-AAAAAAAAAAH -" panicked gasping, "AAAAAAAAAAAAH SADISTIC FUCK -"
"M- no, I can't -" the gentleman in the suit says, struggling, trying to feel around for the invisible knife and pull it away from his neck.
"M- no, I can't -" the gentleman in the suit says, struggling, trying to feel around for the invisible knife and pull it away from his neck.
morethanimaginary
Mhm, that's real cute, trying to find the invisible knife. What about this other invisible knife over here, this one that's ever so delicately moved to threaten some fingers from the hand trying to find the invisible knife?
"You can't? Are you sure? Because I can always ask your, hmmmm..." She slams the offending hand into the ground with her palm, knife threatening the pinky finger. "Talkative pinky finger, here. Look at it, pretty, isn't it?"
Does she draw blood? Oh yes, oh yes she does.
"You can't? Are you sure? Because I can always ask your, hmmmm..." She slams the offending hand into the ground with her palm, knife threatening the pinky finger. "Talkative pinky finger, here. Look at it, pretty, isn't it?"
Does she draw blood? Oh yes, oh yes she does.
shesepankh
"Hsst- look - I really - the boss'll," pants the fellow in the suit.
And screaming and screaming and screaming -
And screaming and screaming and screaming -
morethanimaginary
"Don't worry about your boss right now, just tell us -" Slice, that'll hurt, oops, clumsy her. "Where a person that can stop the torture on our lovely screaming sphinx is. Or you get to start putting her to shame."
shesepankh
The man in the suit yelps.
(But not as loudly as the sphinx.)
He doesn't talk.
She starts a panicked gabble through what sounds like it has to be the hundredth time of saying she thinks it was her mom, she thinks her mom didn't know, she doesn't have any aunts or uncles or live grandparents, she thinks that side of the family is some combination of English and possibly Swiss but not for generations and she doesn't know she doesn't know she doesn't know.
(But not as loudly as the sphinx.)
He doesn't talk.
She starts a panicked gabble through what sounds like it has to be the hundredth time of saying she thinks it was her mom, she thinks her mom didn't know, she doesn't have any aunts or uncles or live grandparents, she thinks that side of the family is some combination of English and possibly Swiss but not for generations and she doesn't know she doesn't know she doesn't know.
castmyown
And that is what finally causes Darren to snap.
"This is taking too long," growls Darren. "Invisibility's about up. She's in pain, we can't just -"
"This is taking too long," growls Darren. "Invisibility's about up. She's in pain, we can't just -"
morethanimaginary
"I have another idea," says Savannah, quietly. "Hey, man in suit. Last chance to squeal, or bad things happen."
morethanimaginary
"Invisibility's up in - how long?"
She turns the man over, to be face up, probably still spluttering. Good thing Savannah's not squeamish.
She turns the man over, to be face up, probably still spluttering. Good thing Savannah's not squeamish.
morethanimaginary
"Cool."
And then Darren gets to see the way she's prepping a knife - the saw-like one, the one that can cut through bone. Over the ribcage.
She's going to eat a heart.
And then Darren gets to see the way she's prepping a knife - the saw-like one, the one that can cut through bone. Over the ribcage.
She's going to eat a heart.
castmyown
"... Okay. Go, I'll - be invisible, follow after."
He finds another scroll for that, and starts getting on making that happen.
morethanimaginary
Savannah hasn't ever ripped a man's heart out from his chest before. She hopes she doesn't screw this up because it's not done very neatly. It's - actually very messy, there is blood everywhere.
Then she gets the entirety of the heart out of the corpse. She looks at it. Savannah takes a deep breath, and then she starts eating.
She's pretty sure this is supposed to taste disgusting. It doesn't. It's delicious.
"... Head rush," she half-laughs, after she's done. "Woo, that's fun."
Then she gets the entirety of the heart out of the corpse. She looks at it. Savannah takes a deep breath, and then she starts eating.
She's pretty sure this is supposed to taste disgusting. It doesn't. It's delicious.
"... Head rush," she half-laughs, after she's done. "Woo, that's fun."
morethanimaginary
"Tsst. Figure of speech. Didn't just get the form, damn, no wonder Perytons took ages to get discovered."
Then she stands, covered in blood, and she shifts.
She ceases to be a she, and ceases to be covered in blood. Her clothes are an exact copy of the - set the fellow was wearing when he died. She pats herself down, stretching a bit to get used to - everything. It's a very thorough shapeshift. Walking's going to be fun. How do men do it? Whatever, she'll adapt.
"I think," she says, sorting through the vague flashes of memory that she's getting from the man (she didn't get everything), "that I can just walk in there and get her out."
Then she stands, covered in blood, and she shifts.
She ceases to be a she, and ceases to be covered in blood. Her clothes are an exact copy of the - set the fellow was wearing when he died. She pats herself down, stretching a bit to get used to - everything. It's a very thorough shapeshift. Walking's going to be fun. How do men do it? Whatever, she'll adapt.
"I think," she says, sorting through the vague flashes of memory that she's getting from the man (she didn't get everything), "that I can just walk in there and get her out."
castmyown
Darren twitches. Not that she could see, he's still invisible.
"- Okay. Do. I'll back you up."
"- Okay. Do. I'll back you up."
morethanimaginary
"Mhm."
And then Savannah turns and - oh, that's lovely, she knows how to walk like him, too. In an eerily accurate facsimile, she walks towards the source of the screams, smile and all.
And then Savannah turns and - oh, that's lovely, she knows how to walk like him, too. In an eerily accurate facsimile, she walks towards the source of the screams, smile and all.
shesepankh
It's a bit of a maze in here.
But she's still hollering, so eventually -
there she is, still in fullform, deprived of her medallion, chained to the floor by each paw, looking like she's fallen off a few cliffs in rapid succession - broken wings, bruises and cuts everywhere. It looks like she's been declawed on three of four paws and one of the guys is wiping blood off a - thing. The other one has her hair in his fist and is getting in her face and saying in a low, level voice:
"If there's one of you there's more. If you're such a magic hotshot there's teachers. Where are the other sphinxes?"
"I don't know," she sobs, and he kicks her hard in the ribs with a sick enough thuck noise to suggest that there's metal in his boot.
But she's still hollering, so eventually -
there she is, still in fullform, deprived of her medallion, chained to the floor by each paw, looking like she's fallen off a few cliffs in rapid succession - broken wings, bruises and cuts everywhere. It looks like she's been declawed on three of four paws and one of the guys is wiping blood off a - thing. The other one has her hair in his fist and is getting in her face and saying in a low, level voice:
"If there's one of you there's more. If you're such a magic hotshot there's teachers. Where are the other sphinxes?"
"I don't know," she sobs, and he kicks her hard in the ribs with a sick enough thuck noise to suggest that there's metal in his boot.
morethanimaginary
Savannah doesn't flinch at the brutality. She doesn't even look surprised, though underneath the coating of the businessman she's plotting ways to kill every person in this room.
"The boss is getting impatient," she says, in his voice. "I've got a better idea. Give me some alone time with her? I've got something better."
"The boss is getting impatient," she says, in his voice. "I've got a better idea. Give me some alone time with her? I've got something better."
shesepankh
"She's still got claws on one foot," objects the guy with the instrument in his hand.
Bella whines miserably on the floor.
Bella whines miserably on the floor.