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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.
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shesepankh
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."
castmyown
"Fun?!" Darren hisses, tinge of panic in his voice. "How the hell can you -"
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.
morethanimaginary
"Not going to matter," laughs Savannah, not because she wants to laugh but because her - peryton instincts are telling her it's what the businessman would do. "Trust me, I've got something special."
There's a heavy dose of menace to her voice.
There's a heavy dose of menace to her voice.
shesepankh
"Uh, sure," says Guy With Instrument.
Guy Without Instrument kicks the sphinx again and then follows his co-worker out of the section.
Guy Without Instrument kicks the sphinx again and then follows his co-worker out of the section.
morethanimaginary
"Hey. This is a jailbreak. Do me a favor," says Savannah, in an undertone, "and start pretending to freak out for me, okay? Dare, got anything for the chains?"
castmyown
"Maybe," murmurs Darren, all worry and concern and barely contained anger - he touches a part of Bella that is not injured, gently, lovingly. "It's us, Bella."
He starts trying to see if he has any scrolls for breaking chains, one hand buried in Bella's fur trying to offer some measure of - of comfort.
(Fuck they hurt her so bad, he wants to cry. He wants to burn down the warehouse and then cry.)
He starts trying to see if he has any scrolls for breaking chains, one hand buried in Bella's fur trying to offer some measure of - of comfort.
(Fuck they hurt her so bad, he wants to cry. He wants to burn down the warehouse and then cry.)
shesepankh
Bella inhales sharply when spoken to, eyes going wide, and - freaking out, right, okay, she doesn't have to reach hard for that, she bursts into loud miserable tears.
castmyown
Darren leaves the hand in her fur where it is, and then finds a spell that can be aimed to get rid of the chains. He murmurs the chant, and then -
Nothing?
"... Vana, I think there's something here preventing magic."
Nothing?
"... Vana, I think there's something here preventing magic."
morethanimaginary
"Mmm. Makes sense. Lemme look, I'll find something."
Savannah starts investigating the area for key-like things, or, conversely, something that will cut through chains.
Savannah starts investigating the area for key-like things, or, conversely, something that will cut through chains.
shesepankh
There's a key on the little tray of grotesque instruments.
Bella sobs, either unable to explain or not willing to break up the audible freakout for it.
Bella sobs, either unable to explain or not willing to break up the audible freakout for it.
morethanimaginary
Savannah takes the key. She also pockets some of the more useful grotesque instruments - she's still plotting murder. Also torture, now, because they need to know who was responsible for orchestrating this.
She starts unlocking chains.
She starts unlocking chains.
castmyown
"It's okay," soothes Darren, softly, because he can't just leave his girlfriend to freak out like this. "We're here, we're getting you out."
shesepankh
I know, Bella mouths silently, and then she produces a credible wail to keep the torturers from wondering what's up.
castmyown
He smiles, just a little - she can't see it, because he's still invisible. He murmurs, "I love you."
morethanimaginary
And - click, there goes the last of Bella's chains.
"My vote - kill all but one, keep that one for interrogation, figure out who's in charge of this shit and then make sure this never happens again."
"My vote - kill all but one, keep that one for interrogation, figure out who's in charge of this shit and then make sure this never happens again."