#the whole damn bathroom is covered in paw prints

[i-am-agent-washingtub]

The piss committee

[rosebudryot]

Taakitz Week Day 1: Fashion Disasters

Okay so I finished this in three hours without proofreading At All, so please excuse the mistakes! I’ve also never done something like this and this is pretty much my second ever finished fic so I hope it’s okay! it doesn’t exactly fit the prompt but here’s my submission for @taakitzweek !!! feedback is Always Appreciated!

     Kravitz reached up to smooth down his braids as the rift closed up behind him. He’d just finished up his day in the ethereal plane, and he had previously made plans with Taako to go on a date. They’d gone to the Chug n’ Squeeze before, though he had only recently begun to consider that a first date. He still felt somewhat bad for leaving so suddenly, but Taako had insisted that it was okay, and he believed him.

     Their second date had been at a location of Kravitz’ choice, much to his initial panic. Where did people go on dates, now? He couldn’t exactly replicate their previous date, and it was hard to pick a place that seemed enjoyable to Taako. Dating had still been called courting when Kravitz was still alive, for Queen’s sake, and dates hardly existed at all. You exchanged letters and then you were married, and that was mostly it.

     He approached Taako with his dilemma, and was met with a declaration that “Any place ‘s fine, as long as you show up, homie.” That was nice enough, but it didn’t really help him.

     Eventually, after much, much deliberation, Kravitz decided to bring Taako to see an orchestra. Their first date had been somewhere that revealed a part of Taako’s personality, so it seemed well enough that their second would do the same for Kravitz’.

     They had gone out to a relatively upscale restaurant afterwards, and Taako seemed to be enjoying himself. It was enough for him to agree to a third date, which Kravitz considered a success.

     All of that had led him here, standing in the common room of the reclaimers’ dorm. Most of the lights were shut off, and it seemed to be vacant. He was glad that he hadn’t accidentally transported himself into the same room as Merle or Magnus. Taako hadn’t mentioned anything about telling his coworkers about their relationship, and that was fine by him.

     It was a little worrying, however, that Taako wasn’t anywhere to be found either. He was usually sitting on the couch by now, waiting for Kravitz to arrive. Maybe he was just running a little late getting ready, and was still in his room.

     Another five minutes passed without an appearance, and then another ten. Kravitz quickly checked his pocket watch to confirm that this was indeed the right time and, yes, it seemed to be. Maybe he would just let Taako know that he was here, in case he had lost track of time.

     Taako’s door was shut, but Kravitz could faintly hear noise coming from inside. He knocked softly and waited.

     The door swung open to reveal Taako, looking distinctly not ready.

     “Oh, shit! Sorry, handsome. Forgot we were doing that whole date thing tonight.” His face was covered in some sort of green face mask, and his hair was pulled up in a very messy bun. He was wearing very fuzzy knee-high leopard print socks, and a seemingly just as fuzzy pair of pink shorts. His oversized t-shirt was cut crudely into a crop top and had the words “If you don’t like raw aggression you shouldn’t be working at Fantasy Build-A-Bear” printed in eye-searing pink font. The entire look was disastrous, but it didn’t seem to hinder Taako in the slightest. There was very little he couldn’t pull off, anyway.

     “Oh, um, that’s quite alright. We can reschedule, if you’d like?” Kravitz was admittedly just a tiny bit hurt that Taako had forgotten about their plans, but he knew better than anyone that time was hard to keep track of. It slipped past at alarming speeds when he was working in the astral plane.

     “Nah, don’t even worry about it, dude. You can come hang in here.” He stepped back to let Kravitz in and swept his arm to the side in a showy gesture.

     “That sounds nice. You’re sure that’s okay?” Kravitz hesitated slightly in the doorway before making his way inside.

     “Mi casa, su casa, and all that. I should warn you, though. I got stuck with the baby detective tonight. Dunno if that’s chill with you.”

     “That’s okay,” Kravitz paused for a moment. “Have you told him about us?”

     “What? Aw hells no. Kid’s like, two. He probably doesn’t even know what dating is,” Taako scoffs. “He’ll probably snoop around until he figures it out anyway. It doesn’t matter if I tell him.”

     Someone else spoke before Kravitz could reply. “Sir? Are you talking to someone?” The voice belonged to none other than the world’s greatest detective himself, Angus McDonald.

     Angus was wearing a near-identical face mask, though this one was a deep blue instead of mint green. His typical fancy-boy clothes had been ditched in favor of a much too large t-shirt with “Pan Camp” written across the front. (It was most definitely stolen from Merle.) The green shirt was tied in the front with a purple scrunchie in an effort to keep it from reaching his knees. His long pajama pants were patterned with paw prints. (Taako stole them from Magnus a long time ago, and had cast Reduce on them so they’d fit Angus.)

     Angus noticed Kravitz immediately. “Oh! Hello, sir. I’m Angus McDonald. What’s your name?” He stuck out a small hand for him to shake.

     Kravitz hesitantly shook Angus’s hand. He opened his mouth to introduce himself, but was once again interrupted. This time, by Taako.

     “This is my buddy Krav. He’s gonna come chill with us tonight. You needin’ something, Agnes?”

     Angus remembered his original reason for seeking out Taako quickly enough. “Oh, well, the movie ended, but I realized you had left, so I went to go find you. Then I found you here. I can go put on another movie, if you want me to.”

     “Yeah, go knock yourself out,” Taako waved Angus off, but followed him into the living room anyway. “Just none of that detective shit. We’ve been watching that all night.”

     Angus frowned, but quickly recovered. “What if-”

     “Nope, nuh uh. If you’re gonna start tryna make deals you can go spend the night with Garfield. My room, my rules, boychik.”

     He reluctantly accepted Taako’s terms and turned on a fantasy Disney movie instead.

     “You want a face mask, Ghost Rider? We got a gold one with a bunch of glitter and shit,” Taako turned to rummage through a pile of products on the table. “Whatcha thinking, Django? The gold one?”

     Angus considered it for a moment. “Maybe the blue one? It isn’t as flashy, though the gold would look nice with his skin tone.”

     “Right? That’s what I’ve been sayin’ this whole time!” Taako gave a victorious shout as he finally retrieved a small tube from the clutter. “Here we go!” He turned to Kravitz when something seemed to click in his head.

     “I totally forgot you’re in your fuckin’... three piece get-up. Come on, I’ll find you some clothes. Gettin face goop off of designer shit ain’t fun, lemme tell ya.” Taako set the small tube back down on the table and led the way out of the room.

     His room was less of a mess than Kravitz expected. Granted, it was still littered with various arcane artifacts and strange knick-knacks, but there was obviously a method to his madness. Taako marched up to a dresser shoved in the corner and pulled open one of the drawers.

     After shoving some clothes aside he finally emerged with a large black sweatshirt and long pajama pants. “Here ya go. I don’t really remember where I got these, but they should fit you. Bathroom is down the hall to the left.”

     Kravitz had followed Taako’s instructions and changed his clothes, folding his suit carefully and setting it on the sink countertop. His current outfit was, well, strange. The sweatshirt was comfortable enough, certainly much more so than his previous clothes. It said “I brake for binicorns!” on the front, though that was pretty easy to disregard. The pajama pants were lilac, and felt like fleece.

     He had expected worse, in all honesty. It was more color than he usually wore, but it wasn’t that bad.

     Kravitz exited the bathroom and made his way down the hall. There were hardly any pictures hung up anywhere. Compared to Taako’s bedroom, the rest of his dorm seemed to pale in comparison. The walls were much more plain, here.

     Taako whistled as Kravitz emerged into the living room. “Lookin’ good, Bone Boy! I shoulda got some color on you sooner!”

     Kravitz was grateful in that moment that he would actually need blood for it to be able to rush to his face. He accepted the compliment nevertheless, albeit awkwardly. “Um, thank you. I think.”

     The remainder of the night passed in a blur. Every time a movie would end Taako would put on a new one, trying to get Angus to fall asleep. This was somewhat hindered by the large bowl of chocolate-covered popcorn the little detective kept reaching for. Kravitz could see that Taako worked hard to maintain his offput attitude, even though he genuinely did care for the boy.

     Kravitz decided it was time to make his exit as Taako started to have to fight back his yawns. His ears were drooping slightly, and his words were beginning to slur a little more than usual. He continued to insist he was fine, but his consciousness was clearly fading.

     Kravitz tucked the large blanket shoved in the corner of the couch around Taako and Angus, who had fallen asleep slumped against the elf’s side. With one more fond smile over his shoulder, he manifested his scythe and cut a rift. The quiet hum of the portal filled the room as he stepped through, and he was off.

 Taako woke up several hours later with a cramp in his neck and a smirking boy detective sitting next to him.

   Angus was practically grinning now, and there was a mischievous glint in his eye. “I really liked your boyfriend, sir!”

“Oh, damn it, kid!”

[miraculouskpop]

MKP Series | Ladybug and Wolf

Chapter IIII: Wolf Boy Yapping 

Sehun stumbled across the room with his hands buried into his face. Or what felt like his face. Either way, he couldn't feel anything with his senses going into overdrive. A huge migraine invaded his space and amplifying every single cell inside his brain.

His senses are going insane.

Too many scents are invading his nose. Coming from different directions, different smells and it’s overwhelming him. Sehun blinked, but everywhere appeared fuzzy. It happened so suddenly- he, he's not even sure if he…- wait, did he? Sehun tripped over his own two feet and fell to the cold floor. His eardrums rattled when the dishes clanked and trinkets shuffled, and pressed a hand against his ear…- wait a second.

… W-where are his ears?!

Tufts of thick hair covered the sides of his ears, and as his fingers combed further, Sehun panicked. He couldn't feel his ears, just more hair. He’s not going crazy, is he? Oh damn, this is bad. And then, he remembered. “...A-Apollo?” He whimpered. And yet, all he can hear is the students outside the dormitory, and it sounded incredibly loud as hell. Footsteps, doors slamming, shouting, laughter, music and television playing throughout the rooms. He can hear it all. Sehun tried to stand, but the headache clamped down on his mind. Dang it! Ugh, who knew being a hero meant suffering in pain? Within that moment, Sehun regretted even acknowledging the old man. He must've been a creeper looking for young victims to seduce...

That old man had something to do with this.

"Apollo..." Sehun could hear his heart rattling against his chest, and suddenly, he blinked. Something's different. By something, Sehun meant that he's different. His midnight pajamas completely gone, replaced by what seemed like a costume. Sehun slowly, but surely stood, carefully trying to process everything. He looked down at his newly adorned grey gloves, metallic watch bound by his left wrist, white paw prints trickling from his hands to forearms. The gloves were connected to his entire suit made out of spandex, and Sehun quickly walked to the bathroom. Ignoring the headaches, Sehun desperately needed to see the truth. Or rather, the result. And honestly, Sehun didn't even need a light to witness himself in this entire getup. In the darkness, Sehun saw himself with clarity.  Eyes blazing with a passionate topaz hue, and his average black hair transformed into platinum blonde. Woah. He stood in shock, wondering if the young man in the dark gray mask was actually himself. He touched the harden mask protected around the edge of his face, observing the intricate designs of the curved mask. And then, the moment Sehun flicked on the lights- 

“Holy crap!” 

Ears. By ears, he meant seeing two animalistic, furry-ass ears perched on the top of his head. What the heck is this? Is this what Apollo meant by releasing his inner wolf? His ears twitched, and then twitched again. Dang it, why are his ears constantly twitching?! Ugh, stop it! Sehun pressed against his newly found animal ears, and felt incredibly weird feeling his hands above his head. A silver hoodie hung above him with a flowing cape flowing from behind, all attached by what seems to be a simple dog collar. Black streaks marked the sides of his waistline to his thighs, and Sehun couldn't help but to brush against the black utility belk. Entwined with the belt was a gray shawl, wrapped around his midsection and, well, supposedly the tail dangling between his legs.

"Oh my god." He whispered.

He's officially a superhero. Well, maybe not superhero, but he looks freaking awesome. "Apollo?" He called again, yet heard the tangled noises strangling his ears. 

My apologies.

A voice deep and brusque infiltrated his mind, nearly scaring the living daylights out Sehun. "Where the heck are you?" Sehun had no clue where the little furball went, and hearing voices inside his head creeped him out. 

As of current, I am apart of your conscious. 

Wait, what?!

"Why are you inside my head?" Sehun hissed. He felt incredibly embarrassed talking to himself, but he had no other choice. 

Actually, you do have choices. And I can hear majority of your thoughts, I just choose not to respond. Regardless, I am here to guide you to proper heroism and how to conduct yourself as a miraculous holder. 

Wait, so he can think to himself?

Precisely. 

Okay, this is weird. Well, whatever. So what now? I guessed I transformed into... This. Sehun still felt the headache throbbing from the back of his head as he returned to the kitchen. Everything still felt so surreal to him, turning into some wolf boy smelling different scents, mostly garbage and sweaty bodies. 

You leave the facility to experiment with your abilities. However, refrain from any unnecessary fighting. Then again, I honestly doubt you would be fighting anyone right now. 

Okay, but first he needs some medication...

Sehun walked towards the kitchen cabinet and whipped open the door. Only to find it completely empty. 

Damn.

I heard that. A hero must see the logic of the situation at all times for better improvement. Also, your headache will eventually fade as your body adjust to its amplified abilities. 

Okay, fine, whatever. Sehun snorted, walking towards the door to leave-

I wouldn't recommend that route. It's too public, and many will see you. The window will be the best exit.

... Wait.

You want him to jump out of the window?! "Are you freaking serious right now?" The least thing Sehun needs is broken bones, a ruined face, and death looming over him.

Of course! Did you honestly think I will allow yourself to be exposed? You must be stupid. 

"No way in hell I'm doing that! Apollo, you must be joking. I can't even walk two feet without a headache, and you're asking me to jump out of a window?" Don't the furball know how deep that fall is? Having the audacity to call him, Oh Sehun, a natural genius, stupid? The teenage tsked, feeling less interested in this entire idea. He might as well ditch this whole ordeal and call it quits.

Sehun, that is the first step in testing your new abilities. Risk is absolutely necessary! How can humanity prosper without curiosity and experimenting new ideas? We would still be in ancient times had it not been for risk! Well, and wars, death, devestation and other forced situations. You must place yourself in uncomfortable situations to truly understand-

Okay, he gets it. Geeze, no need for an hour long lecture. Sehun grumbled to himself, treading towards the tiny window and peered from it. Down below looked really low, and maybe a good twelve foot drop. His stomach lurched, and Sehun didn't deny the fear crawling through his skin. Should he really be doing this? After all, he might be hallucinating from diet restrictions and excessive vitamin consumption. Damn, he can feel his heart getting jittery again. Too far, too deep, and not enough reassurance. The newly transformed hero felt uncertain, eyes gazing down the possible death of the ground. "I-..." He stopped himself, afraid of speaking what he genuinely felt. Fear.

It is alright Sehun. I am here with you, and I will protect you.

Although it was a sappy statement, it was enough to push Sehun. He released a sigh, and without further notice opened the window. His heart leaped inside his chest when the fresh wind smacked his face, the midnight moon shining its light upon him. Oddly, his headache went away along with the brewing fear, and the teenager climbed over the window. His combat boots dangling from below, Sehun threatened Apollo with death if the little furry didn't rescue him.

And then, Sehun jumped.

He fell so quickly, Sehun was certain he'd die right then. The drop did horrors to the young boy, and Sehun nearly screamed.  His stomach churned and twisted, did a barrel roll and became a meme. He's going to die! But before Sehun landed to his death, something unexpected happened. Gravity shifted, the harsh wind becoming lighter and stomach softening from its cries.  It felt like soft pads beneath his feet, and without realizing it, Sehun landed carefully onto the ground with a gentle thud. 

. . . 

Still resting on his knees, Sehun stared at the ground in shock. "W-wha... What just...?" He couldn't bring himself to believe it, and everything happened so suddenly-

He fell from a window, and had survived! "Oh my god!" He's alive! And not smothered into the dirt! This... This is amazing! Apollo then told him how he needed better faith. Sehun stood tall and proud of his accomplishment, eager to explore the midnight town with his abilities. But before Sehun could dwell further on his excitement, a unique scent captured his nose by attention. No, it wasn't the intensity of the mowed grass and crisp emission of smog. The spoiling dumpster ten feet behind him and different smells of the human body all intermingled with musk, salt and grossness. At least, on this property it is...

No, it smelled incredibly... What's the word for it? Sweet. It smelled sweeter than lavender. A flowery touch to vanilla, maybe? Regardless, it really freaked Sehun out. Nowhere on this masculine, male-ridden property had feminine qualities whatsoever: no flowerbeds, no perfume, no trees, no girls, so where could this smell be coming from? Apollo inquired to follow the smell, and Sehun couldn't help but to agree. 

Run. Follow it. 

Sehun's instincts yapped at him to follow the scent. Don't allow it to fade away. He can't allow it to fade away- he must follow it! The teenager tried to control himself, but it felt incredibly difficult withholding his growing urgencies. It grew inside his gut, expanding further as Sehun stood his ground. But eventually, Sehun crumbled to his instincts and ran.

Running. Faster than Oh Sehun could ever imagine. Faster than a human being, wind fighting against his entire body as he sped through the fields into the neighborhoods. His abdomen clenching and body unaccustomed to this unusual experience. An adrenaline rush coursing through his veins as his feet pushed past normal speeds. No human being can run twenty five miles per minute, and when Sehun jumped he found himself soaring high above the post lamps. 

This feels amazing.

The inner child locked away was freed. Freedom! The chains completely broken, and for the first time in Oh Sehun's boring life, he laughed.

[irish-nlessing]

Merry Christmas Abby

Series page

Niall dragged his tongue across the last envelope and collapsed back into his couch cushions. He reached over to scratch at Abby’s belly earning a muffled groan and languid stretch from the pup.  

“Yeah cheers Abs, you’ve really helped a lot here.  See if I stick your mug on the card next year.”  

Abby nuzzled further into the plush blanket she was curled up on, her paws tucked under Niall’s thigh.  The Christmas cards had been his management’s idea, putting Abby on them had been Niall’s.  Tara had argued that putting his dog on the card meant they weren’t technically a business need and that’s how she got out of sealing 250 envelopes shut.  After that loophole Niall had set a calendar reminder for himself that next year he was going to spring for the peel and stick envelopes, cost be damned.

After the envelopes were stamped, sealed, and stacked in a box Niall shuffled through the few extras he had left over.  He ran his fingers through the dark fringe of his hair and tugged on the ends as he mulled over the tiny thought flickering in his brain.  He hadn’t seen Cate since his birthday.  The last time he walked away from the newsstand he had been determined to ask her out the next time he saw her.  An impromptu trip to his house in LA to write and a few radio shows in the states had side lined that plan.  Now, here he was, nearly three months later with not even a Cate-sighting to speak of.  

How would he manage to get a card to her anyway?  He didn’t know where she lived, didn’t even know her last name.  He could probably get Tara or someone on his team to find out for him but that would invite….questions.  “No fuckin’ way.  Not happening.”  Niall shook his head and spoke into the empty room.  If he really wanted this to happen he was going to have to bite the bullet and hand deliver it.  He swallowed harshly and grabbed a wayward sharpie marker from the coffee table.  He scrawled across the back of the card, “Dinner soon?” and then left his mobile number is his loopy handwriting.  He stared at it briefly trying to decide if it was the right mix of casual and interested.  He shoved the card back in the envelope and hastily  printed her name on the back in large black letters.  “Well let’s see if I can pull this off without getting papped and turning the whole thing to shit.”

He stood up and gathered the box of cards, his wallet and grabbed his coat from the closet.  The sound of the metal clasp of Abby’s leash clanging off the hook on the door had the dog up like a shot and scurrying around the couch until she was sliding to a stop at Niall’s feet.  Her tail brushed back and forth frantically while her tiny white paws clicked and clacked in excitement against the hardwood floor.  

There was a harsh bite to the air as Niall rounded the corner of the quaint block where Cate had her newsstand.  He’d dropped the box of cards off at the post box and nad tucked the card for Cate safely inside his jacket. The cafe he loved so much had long since stacked up their patio chairs and there were festive snowflakes pasted in the windows. Niall could see three or four people perusing the stand and caught a flash of red from Cate’s heavy woolen hat popping out from behind a stack of papers. He couldn’t help but smile to himself at her rosy cheeks and long brown waves poking out from underneath the droopy hat. He scooped Abby up and tucked her into his jacket to pop into the cafe. Technically there were no dogs allowed inside but with her bundled in his coat he didn’t think anyone would say anything.

The barista behind the till smiled brightly when she saw him and shook her head lightly when she saw the furry white and chestnut tail sticking out the bottom of his coat. “Well well well long time no see!”

Niall chuckled and shrugged casually.  “Nice t’be back.  Missed this place.  Can I get uh, an Irish Breakfast tea and a hot chocolate please?”  He fumbled with his free hand for a tenner and slid it across the counter.  “Keep the change.”

The barista smiled as she slid the two drinks across the counter.  “Cheers Niall, thank you!”  She furrowed her brow slightly and observed, “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you have two drinks to go Niall.  What’s the occasion?”  Niall’s head jerked up and he could feel Abby’s tail thumping against his leg impatiently.  A hot prickle of sweat cropped up across the back of his neck.  Without meaning to his eyes flicked to the window where Cate was crouched in front of her stand rearranging one of the displays.  He looked back at the barista to find a knowing smirk on her face.  She pulled the cup of hot chocolate back towards her and popped the lid off.  “Cate likes extra whip with a drizzle of caramel on her hot chocolate.”  She fixed up the drink and slid it back across while Niall stared at her, mouth agape.  “Go on then, good luck!”  Without another word she shooed him away from the counter and spun around to grab a wash rag.  Niall swallowed harshly and maneuvered Abby to the ground quickly and grabbed the two cups.  They stepped outside into the cold and Abby shook out her fur and snuffed up at Niall, waiting for him to move.

“Don’t look at me like that.  M’gonna do it…just gotta take a minute ok?  Christ you’re pushy.”  He stretched his neck and checked for cars, then tugged lightly on Abby’s leash.  She trotted easily next to him, her head held high and her tongue lolling happily from her mouth.  Cate looked up from behind the counter at the sound of Abby’s jangling tags.  Her face broke into a wide smile and Niall felt a warmth bloom inside his chest at the sight.  She leaned forward and rested her chin in her hands.

“Hey stranger!  It’s been a while!” She stood up straight and clapped her mitten-covered hands together.  “To what do I owe the pleasure?”  Niall smiled sheepishly and commanded Abby to sit.  Her fluffy bottom plopped down immediately onto the sidewalk.  Niall praised her and then held out the paper cup of hot chocolate towards Cate.

“Hadn’t been to the cafe since I’ve been home.  Wanted to see if you were working today.  Brought ya something to warm you up.”  Niall was convinced that he saw the red in Cate’s cheeks deepen at his words.  His confidence was bolstered by her blush.  

“Niall that’s the sweetest, thank you so much!”  She brought the cup to her lips and her eyes fluttered shut at the sweet warmth of the cocoa.  She let out a satisfied moan and Niall’s knees almost gave out.  He decided then and there to make it his mission to hear that sound again.  He reached in his coat pocket and pulled the envelope out.  He could feel the tips of his ears heating up just outside the flap of his grey paddy cap.  Her eyes sparkled back at him as she placed the cup on the worn counter.  Niall held out the white envelope for her to take, his eyes darting back and forth between his hand and her furrowed brows.

“Uh, here.  Brought ya a Christmas card.  I didn’t know your address and I didn’t want t’be a total creep and try to find it and I figured it would be nice to see ya anyway so yeah, here I am with it.”  Niall finally managed to shut his mouth and stop the word vomit currently flowing out of him.  Cate had her lip tucked into her mouth in a terribly disguised ploy to stop herself from giggling at him.  She slid her finger under the flap and pulled out the thick cardstock.  At the sight of Abby in the Santa hat she let out a squeal and a delighted coo.  

“Niall!  This is the cutest thing I’ve ever seen!  I’m impressed you got her to sit that way.  Honestly, this is so adorable I think my heart hurts.”  Niall let out a breath he’d been holding as she pushed back and came out the little side door of the newsstand.  Without hesitation she wrapped her arms around Niall’s neck and gave him a hug.  He was stunned for a beat then managed to wrap his arm around her back, careful not to spill tea down her coat.  His eyes closed for a moment trying to commit the smell of her hair and the feeling of her body to memory.  

As she started to pull away he managed to stutter out, “On the back, uh, there’s a-”

“Cate!”  

Niall’s words were cut off by a deep shout from the nearby corner.  A tall, dark haired man was waving and jogging towards them.  Niall watched as Cate’s eyes lit up as the man got closer.  She immediately exited Niall’s space and took with her all the warmth Niall had been feeling up to that moment.  The man reached Cate on the sidewalk and immediately wrapped his arms around her in greeting.  He reached into the pocket of his parka and pulled out a small leather case.  “You left your glasses on the bathroom sink when you left this morning.  Thought you might need them.”

Niall’s face suddenly felt blazing hot.  It occurred to him that if she was to turn over the card at this moment and see that he’d basically asked her out and left his number, it was very possible that he would die of sheer embarrassment.  He took a step back, tugging the leash to get Abby to follow him.  She cocked her head to the side and held her ground, keenly aware that she hadn’t received her customary biscuit from Cate.  Niall dropped his voice to a low whisper.  “Abby!  Come on.”

Cate’s eyes shot up and she grabbed the man by the elbow and pulled him over.  Niall knew he was caught out.  There was nothing left to do but stand here and take it.  He steeled himself for the inevitable let down.

“Niall!  Meet Giancarlo, we live together.”  Niall automatically shuffled his tea to his other hand and stuck out his palm for a handshake.  Giancarlo leaned in and gave him a firm handshake with a nodded, “Cheers mate”.  Niall could only nod robotically, the tight feeling in his chest taking over his entire body.  Cate had knelt down next to Abby to scratch behind her ears and she looked back up at Niall, obviously aware of how his demeanor had shifted.  Her eyes searched his face and he did everything in his power not to make eye contact with her.  His gaze kept flicking to the card in her other hand and she finally caught on to where he was looking.  To his absolute horror she chose that exact moment to flip the card over and see his words scribbled on the back.  Her lips twitched for a split second and then her eyes shot up and went between the two men in mild panic.  She stood up and grasped on to Giancarlo’s sleeve, tugging him closer to where she was standing so he could see Abby clearly.  

“Giancarlo, this is Niall’s dog Abby.  Doesn’t she look exactly like Scout?”  Giancarlo’s eyes widened and he laughed.

“Yeah she does - spitting image actually.  I haven’t thought about that dog since we were what, eight?  Remember how mad Mrs. Malone used to get at us for trying to get her to learn the wrong commands?  God, I thought Granny was going to go apoplectic every time she yelled at us for it.”  Cate let out a rolling laugh while Giancarlo bent down to scratch at Abby’s ears.  Niall’s jaw was hanging open in confusion.  Cate stood up in front of him and smiled.  Niall searched her face for answers, his heart pounding in his chest.  Giancarlo stood and gave a little wave to Niall, with a “nice to meet you” and a “see you at home” to Cate before he turned and loped off down the sidewalk again.

“Giancarlo’s my cousin.  And my flatmate.  We used to spend afternoons at our Granny’s flat after school.”  Cate tucked her lip into her teeth again and smirked at Niall as her words found purchase in his brain.  The tension seeped from his body and his entire body relaxed.  His face felt hot with embarrassment and he cleared his throat.

“I thought….I thought you and he were…together.”

Cate giggled and pressed her palm to her forehead.  “I kinda figured.  Thought I should probably clear that up after I saw your note.”

Niall smiled and toed at an invisible crack in the pavement with his boot.  “Yeah about that, uh, no pressure, just thought it might be nice or whatever if ya want-”

“I’d love to have dinner with you.  I’ll text you with my number.”

Her words spilled out, cutting him off mid sentence.  

Niall broke into a wide smile, and nodded enthusiastically.  “Yeah brilliant.  Um, definitely do that.  And yeah, let’s do something soon.  Maybe Thursday?”

Cate scrunched one eye shut as she thought, then nodded.  “Yeah Thursday is good.  How about Japanese?  I know this great sushi bar by my flat.”

Niall thumped his hand against his heart and let out a laugh.  “Ahh Cate, a woman after me own heart.  Next thing you’ll tell me is you like to golf.”

Cate crossed her arms and chuckled, giving her shoulders a quick shrug.  “Well not to toot my own horn, but I can get around a green pretty handily.  Nothing like you Mr. ‘I play off nine’, but I’m not bad.”

Niall’s mouth dropped open and he said the first words that came to his head.  “Christ Cate, might have t’marry ya.”  He immediately wished he could fall into the center of the Earth as the words left his mouth.  He was going to cock up the entire thing before it even got off the ground.

Cate just laughed, her head thrown back and her dark waves falling off her shoulders.  She tipped forward on her toes and poked at Niall’s chest lightly.  “Let’s get through the first date, shall we?”  She left him with a flirty wink and spun to walk back into her little stand.  Niall was using every cell in his body to control himself from jumping up and pumping his fist into the air in triumph.  Instead he gave her a cheeky wink and started to walk off down the sidewalk.  Before he turned he looked at her pointedly and shouted, “Enjoy the cocoa.  I’ll be waiting for your text - see you on Thursday!”

[thepeanutbutterwizard]

A.C. Pines - Chapter 3: An Unforeseen Adventure

Chapter 2      Chapter 4

Heyo!  I’m finally posting more of this!  Hope you enjoy!Dad!”  Alex slid across the linoleum floor of the kitchen in her socks.  With a small ‘oof’ she collided with her father and pulled on his arm.  “I finished my homework!  Can I go for a walk?”  Her headband had slipped crookedly, letting her tangled curls obscure one eye.

Dad cocked an eyebrow down at her.  “Ya got yer knuckle dusters?”

“Yep!”

“Jacket?”

“Yes.”

 “Yer watch?”

“Yes Dad.”

“Ankle tracker?”

“Daaaad.”  Alex half-groaned, half-chuckled.  “Can I go now?  Please?”

Dad ruffled her hair fondly, then carefully adjusted her headband.  “Alright, ya got half an hour before dinner, Sixer.”

“Thanks Dad!”  Alex cheered and gave him a quick hug before dashing toward the door and pulling her shoes on.

“Just remember ta stick to the paths!”  He stuck his head out of the door and called after his ten-year-old daughter.  “And if it starts to rain come right back!”

“I love you Dad!”

Alex pulled her soaked jacket tighter around her shoulders, but it didn’t do much against the pouring rain or the chilly breeze.  Her glasses had long since been rendered useless by the rain, so she had tucked them away in her pocket.  Her boots squished in the mud, sinking ankles deep and making every step difficult. 

The girl kicked at a rock with a growl and slumped onto a hard stump.  Alex had been wandering through the Gravity Falls woods for as long as she could remember; she knew this place like the back of her hand.  It should be impossible for her to get so lost she had been wandering in the woods for more than an hour.

And yet, here she was.  Soaked to the bone, shivering caked in mud almost to her knees and more lost than she had ever been.  Alex pulled her knees to her chest and screwed her eyes shut.  If she could just calm down and focus then maybe she could figure out where she was and how to get home.  But the wind picked up, blowing down the neck of her shirt and sending a trembling shiver down her spine, and she was getting a headache from clenching her chattering teeth together and she just couldn’t think!

Something snuffled at Alex’s bangs.  With a small yelp she jumped, almost toppling off of the stump.  A heavy pair of paws rested on her knees, keeping her off of the ground, but not letting her go anywhere either.   A large fox was staring her down with amber eyes.

Her heart jumped into her throat as the animal leaned in close, sniffing at her face and head inquisitively.  Alex held her upper body as still as possible, while she strained to get her legs out from under the foxes paws.  Her gaze darted around, looking for any way to escape, when something caught her attention.  The fox had four large tails bobbing around behind it.

Alex gasped as the fox-creature licked the side of her face.  The creature nuzzled her neck like an overly affectionate pet, and with a laugh Alex shoved the creature away as best as she could.  “Quit it!”  The creature pulled back and gave a happy-sounding chitter.  It shook and sent droplets of water flying everywhere.  Alex squawked and held a hand up against the spray.  “Hey, what was that for?”

The creature gently bit down on Alex’s forearm-not hard enough to hurt her- and pulled her to her feet.  It tugged her toward the forest for a few feet before letting go and darting ahead.  Alex watched the creature vanish into the bushes with a small, curious scowl.  A moment later the creature reappeared and yipped at her.  If Alex didn’t know any better she’d swear the creature looked annoyed.  It darted behind her and nudged her toward the forest.  “You want me to follow you?”

The creature gave an unmistakable nod before darting off again, this time with Alex hot on its heels, but it wasn’t long before she was falling behind the creature.  It sprung over mud puddles and rocks that grabbed at Alex’s shoes and tried to send her sprawling.  “Wait-wait up, would ya?”  She gasped at the creature.  It looked over its shoulder at her, slowing just long enough to give a taunting look before it shot ahead even faster than before.  “Hey!”

She vaulted over a dead log, and felt anger rise in her.  ‘If it didn’t want me to keep up, why have me follow at all?’  With a growl Alex caught her second wind and ran even faster, branches whipping past her.  She slowly started to gain ground; with an excited holler Alex fell in step with the creature.  It gave a sharp turn and Alex skidded through the mud to keep up.

A noise up ahead caught Alex’s attention.  A voice, loud and gravely and full of worry, echoing through the forest and calling her name.  Dad!  She turned toward the sound of his voice, almost tripping over a tree root.  Alex skidded back onto the path, breaking through the shrubbery around it.  “Dad!”  He was down the path a little bit, a yellow raincoat on instead of his suit coat, and he was so worried Alex could practically smell it on him over the scent of the pine trees and the rain.

“Alex?”  He gaped as Alex sprinted down the path and leapt up toward him.  He drop the flashlight he was holding to catch her.

“Dad, Dad, you’re never gonna guess what I saw!”  Alex pulled at his shirt,  “It was so cool there was-”

“Alex, sweetie, slow down, I can’t understand what yer saying!”  Dad held her out, inspecting her closely for injury.  “What happened?”

Alex tried to blow her wet bangs out of her eyes.  Her hair band must have fallen out somewhere in the woods.  “I kinda…left the path.”  She sheepishly admitted, avoiding looking at her father in the eyes.

“Sixer…”  Dad gave a tired sigh.

“A gnome jumped me and stole my watch!  I ran after him to get it back!”  Alex protested.

“And did ya get it back?”

“…no…”

Dad gave another sigh.  “Well, at least yer okay.  But yer covered in mud!  What did ya do, roll in a puddle?”  He tugged at the sleeve of her jacket.  She had mud caked up to her elbows, splattered on her face and hair, soaked into her pants and her socks.

“No.  But your never gonna guess what I saw!”  Alex chirped, cheering up.  Dad picked up his flashlight and started walking back to the Shack.

“What?  What’d ya see this time?”

“There was this fox out in the woods, but she wasn’t any normal fox!  She had more than one tail!”

Dad glanced at Alex with a weird look on his face.  “A fox with extra tails, huh?  That’s pretty cool.  How’d ya know that it was a she?”

“I dunno.  Just looked like a she.”  Alex talked about how the fox had helped her find the path again while they walked.  Dad made Alex take her shoes and socks off on the porch, before sending her to the bathroom for a shower.

TIME BREAK

Stan crept silently out of Alex’s room.  He had had to read a few chapters out of one of her book to get her to fall asleep after her little ‘adventure’ in the woods.  Alex had been reading things on her own since she was about five, but she still liked listening to him read.  Made him think of back when he was a kid and Ford would read out loud all the time.

He swung by the kitchen to grab a drink of water before heading to bed himself.   He wanted to catch an hour or two of sleep before going down to work on the Portal.  He looked out the window and caught the slightest bit of movement on the edge of the woods.  Stan stuck his head out of the back door and flicked on the porch light.  He caught sight of red-brown fur in the bushes, and a lithe looking fox stepped out and onto the edge of the light.  One, two, three…only four tails; Stan sighed and bit his lip.  She gave a small nod that Stan returned before she darted back into the woods, tails bobbing behind her.

He gave an irritated groan when he got into his room and saw his wet, muddy suit lying where he had left it on the floor.  He bundled up his clothes, giving a little groan when he saw all of the muddy paw prints on his white shirt.  Raising a kid was even messier than being one, if Stan’s memory served correctly.  Then again, he didn’t think his memory had been good in years.

Ah, well, mud washed out.  The way Alex looked at him like he was the greatest thing in the whole damn world was worth anything that he had to do for her.  Stan’s small smile faltered a bit, and he grabbed a picture frame off of his night stand.  It was taken the week after Alex was born; one of the happiest times of his life.  He had shown off his amazing wife and his wonderful daughter to anybody in earshot.  If only those time could have lasted longer…

But, no point dwelling on the past.  That had become Stan’s mantra.  Don’t dwell on lost brothers and missing wives and doomsday machines and motherless girls.  Can’t do anything about that.  All he could do was try and make it through tomorrow.  That was all he could do.

Bet nobody picked up on my oh-so-subtle hints about Alex’s mother.

[adashofniallandasprinkleoflunacy]

HARRY WITH DOGS HARRY WITH DOGS HARRY WITH DOGS HARRY WITH DOGS HARRY WITH DOGS HARRY WITH DOGS HARRY WITH DOGS HARRY WITH DOGS HARRY WITH DOGS HARRY WITH DOGS HARRY WITH DOGS HARRY WITH DOGS HARRY WITH DOGS HARRY WITH DOGS HARRY WITH DOGS HARRY WITH DOGS HARRY WITH DOGS HARRY WITH DOGS HARRY WITH DOGS HARRY WITH DOGS HARRY WITH DOGS HARRY WITH DOGS HARRY WITH DOGS HARRY WITH DOGS HARRY WITH DOGS HARRY WITH DOGS HARRY WITH DOGS HARRY WITH DOGS HARRY WITH DOGS HARRY WITH DOGS HARRY WITH DOGS

okay but picture this: habenaro with a puppy!!

YALL ARE LUCKY I HAD THIS IN MY DRAFTS FROM MONTHS AGO

Just imagine having a dog with harry.

I don’t want to be cliche but a golden retriever bc Harry loves his hair.

“How does he get it so shiny though?”

And giving the dog baths together. It’s a huge mess because the bugger doesn’t like it and one of you has to get in the tub with him and hold him down while the other shampoos his hair.

It’s Harry’s turn to hold him down and he’s sitting in the tub with his arms wrapped around the dog’s torso (let’s call the dog Diggle).

He’s in an old Nickleback t-shirt and running shorts and he has his hair held back with a bandana and he’s all wet, shirt ticking to his chest and covered in golden hair from how much the puppy’s shedding.

“Diggle, stop it. Mommy just wants to wash you so you don’t stink up the whole bloody house.”

Harry’s holding Diggle down and the dog’s grumbling and shifting around the tub all restless while you lather the oatmeal shampoo into his hair and of course it’s oatmeal because, “It’s good for his hair! I asked the vet…and my hairdresser…and DoggyDayCare.com…”

And since Harry’s so damn extra he went and got a custom made shampoo for the dog, where he stood in front of the lab and picked out the ingredients, leaning on one leg more than the other so that his body’s tilted as he has his an arm across his chest so he can rest the elbow of the other on top of it. He pinched the rosy skin of his bottom lip between his thumb and index finger, deep in thought as he picked out coconut, oatmeal, and lavender oil to mix into it. It has the dog’s name printed on it along a pic of him under the gold cursive and Harry’s very pleased with himself, to say the least.

He grabs the dog’s face gently, turning him so that they’re face-to-face and he growls back all mockingly, scrunching up his nose and baring his teeth. And the dog starts wagging its tail because even he knows Harry’s a sweetheart who couldn’t hurt a damn fly. He licks across Harry’s nose and cheeks and Harry just splutters and crinkles his whole face in disgust. “We’re gonna have to brush his teeth, too. Killer breath, Dig.”

Diggle takes this moment where Harry and you are sharing a fond smile to weasel out of Harry’s arms and jump over the brim of the tub, taking off out of the bathroom door, leaving you and Harry shell-shocked.

“Fuck, I just washed the carpet yesterday!”

Harry’s struggling to get up, gripping the rim of the tub with sudsy hands and his feet are slipping and sliding across the ground, long legs tangling and he’s muttering curses under his breath as he tries to exit the godforsaken lavender-scented sink hole.

You help him out, wrapping your arms around his sopping torso as he throws his own around your shoulders, getting you all drenched and soapy and apologizing softly. “Sorry, pet. But if it’s any condolence, wet dog smells amazing on you.”

And then your both running around the apartment, arms flaying as you try and steer Diggle into a place where the other can catch him. The dog’s got you running circles around the coffee table in the living room, as well as slipping and sliding across the wooden floor of the kitchen as you try and corner him.

Harry falls a couple of times, once on his ass really hard and he rolls over, groaning and gripping his behind and, “Fuck, I think I broke it. Can I break my ass? I broke my ass.”

You’re a laughing mess because his hair is standing up everywhere and he has suds on his forehead and cheeks and Diggle comes over to sniff his butt, curious to why Harry’s fondling it and Harry practically hisses. “Oi! This is your fault!”

You take this chance to launch yourself at the menace, missing him by a hair, ending up on the ground next to Harry.

He slowly sits up, wincing and “This is not what I meant earlier when I said we should shower together.”

He helps you up, pressing his hand to his knees and standing there for a second, face squished in pain. “Jus’…give me a minute, yeah? My bum’s on fire.”

Harry tries to sneak up on Diggle by crawling across the ground quietly, but doesn’t succeed. Luckily, he ends up getting a new idea.

He limps over and grabs Diggle’s favorite toy– a plushy of the bird from the movie Up– and waves it in the air, squeezing it so that it squeaks.

Immediately, you hear bounding steps coming towards the living room. The one thing about Diggle’s bird plushy is that he doesn’t like anyone else touching it. Ever. And right now, Harry’s made himself a prime target.

The large dog skids into the room, big brown eyes locking on his toy as it is held high in Harry’s hand. The next scene seems to unroll in slow motion.

Diggle takes off at full speed towards Harry, tongue out and flapping in excitement. Harry’s eyes widen and he holds his arms out, the toy still in his hand, realizing his mistake too late. “Diggle, no–!”

He ends up getting his words shoved back into his mouth as the golden retriever slams into his chest, toppling him into the ground and grabbing the toy in his mouth, tugging it from Harry’s fingers. He proceeds to stay on top of Harry as if celebrating his win, his hair drooping down and dripping water all across Harry. He’s wagging his tail and shifting his paws against Harry’s chest and your boyfriend really doesn’t look amused at all.

“Dig, please! Off now, c'mon! Your getting hair in my mouth!” Harry’s trying to push him off but the dog simply dodges his flying hands, dropping the toy right on Harry’s face.

He let’s out a muffled grunt as the plastic makes contact with his nose, flinging it across the room and croaking, “Fetch!”

Diggle takes off towards his prize and Harry sits up, looking like he just went three rounds with Chewbacca and lost. He’s covered in matted dog fur and his shirt is all wrinkled up and he looks really pissy, which makes you start snickering.

“S'funny, is it now?” He slowly pushes himself to his feet, slugging it towards you. “Real hilarious?”

“Yeah,” you nod, watching as a cluster of bubbles slides down the side of his face. “It really is.”

“Yeah? How about now!” He lunges forward and grabs you by the waist, tackling you to the floor and tickling at your sides.

You try to wrestle him off you but he simply straddles your hips, pinning your hands above your head and biting at your neck playfully, giggling up a storm on your account.

“Gonna have to help me wash off all this hair.” Harry smiles down at you, wiggling his eyebrows suggestively and kissing your nose, his hair flopping across his forehead.

“Yeah?”

“Mmhm. And I’ll gladly help you wash some other places, too.”

[ghozt1ng-blog]

Mysteries of the Q Files

Chapter 8: Tracking

The autumn air was nice and crisp as Naomi walked along the dirt road where Samantha had been kidnapped. She wouldn’t admit it to Trick, but she was getting a sense that there was something off with the town. It felt so much better to be out here in the woods than in town. It did not make a ton of sense to her, because she had always considered herself more of an urbanite. However, unlike Trick she didn’t think it was due to people acting and looking like they might still be in the 80s, or some hellish version of the 90s. No, there was an odd feeling in town, like something was trying to crawl under her skin.

Naomi set aside those confusing thoughts, they wouldn’t help her with her current task. She was going to try and find out just where the lichen had come from and where it went after taking Samantha. It helped considerably that the FBI agents had been willing to bring her along after she had lent to them her considerable brain and deduction skills. At the school she and Agents Miles and Conturbatio had looked at the remnants of the girl’s bathroom where Carly had been kidnapped. The smell of burnt hair was long gone, and Naomi figured it was a smell that followed the wolf around wherever it went. The wall had not been torn open so much as collapsed and pulled down. That was an odd thing to realize. Furthermore, the wolf had dropped from the nearby school theater to land next to the bathroom.

She had discovered this by paying attention to the noticeable indents of wolf paws in the cement. The beast probably weighed a ton by the looks of how it smashed the cement down hard enough that cracks sprang from the imprints like spiderwebs. From what Naomi could figure from how the rubble lay about, spray patterns of rocks, and the paw prints, the lichen had jumped down from the theater, pulled down the wall, snatched up Carly and then leaped back into the air. Agent Miles had said that the theory might be plausible, but Conturbatio acted on it immediately. He went up himself to the theater’s roof and inspected for paw prints. He found plenty of what looked like claw marks and another set of paw prints.

“So our perpetrator is someone who can transform at will,” he had told them afterwards. “And they most likely used the theater as both and entry and exit point. This might confirm your suspicions of the animal being a lichen, Naomi.”

She had beamed with pride at that comment, albeit more internally than where the agents could see. No use in showing what you were really thinking to others. It made you a terrible analyst, and in Naomi’s experience most people couldn’t interpret emotions very well either. That’s what made Trick a fun anomaly to be around.  

“How could this lichen though know that Carly was indeed there? If Carly was even its target at all,” Agent Miles asked.

“Trick said that we had to find a bathroom with the best wifi access,” Naomi remembered. “He asked me based on the map I had which place would get the best reception. Just going off of wall width and stationing of most practical wifi receivers, this was the only place in a reasonable distance from her class.”

“That was what lead you here,” Miles asked with a sense of confusion.

“Brilliant,” Conturbatio breathed. Naomi felt like his nickname of the Sphinx was fitting him more and more. “This requires an intimate knowledge of the victims, their surroundings, and more. I think Trick is right that whoever did this was close to these girls.”

By the time he had returned from the roof, it was confirmed that Carly was indeed the girl who was missing. The agents looked a little concerned at that. Naomi did not feel so much concerned as elated. She and Trick were actually hot on the trail! At least… They were starting out on the right foot. She knew that with some more data she could put them right where they needed to be. That brought them to the scene of the first kidnapping.

Though the paw prints were a little more worn than what Naomi would have liked, there was a lot to tell from them. The officers who had escorted the two agents and Naomi to the site of the party pointed out the bush where Ashley and Alex said they first saw the monster. Behind it were the prints and Naomi’s confirmation of the creature’s awesome jumping ability.

“Look here,” she said, gesturing to the indents in the earth to the two agents. “There is a very slight skid mark, but there nonetheless. That compounded with the fact that the dirt is built up a little more on the paws’ left side. Finally, the indents are just as deep, if not deeper than those we found at the school. The lichen jumped to get behind this bush. And it jumped from somewhere among those trees.”

“I know that we’re trying to be correct with our terminology and everything, but can’t we just say wolf? I keep thinking we’re talking about a kind of moss,” Agent Miles complained.

“The lichen was able to jump up to the roof of the school’s theater,” Naomi continued as though Miles hadn’t interrupted. “Which is probably near four stories high. If these prints are anything to go off of, and the distance of those trees there, the lichen probably launched itself from the middle of the tiny grove.”

Agent Sphinx motioned to one officer and told him to go searching and then he said, “That is fascinating, and might help us eventually uncover the wolf’s identity. However, our most pressing matter should be finding out what happened to those two girls. Naomi, where do you think the wolf went? The police couldn’t figure it out.”

The remaining officer, who looked more like he should be a mall cop than someone out working a beat, harrumphed at Conturbatio’s statement and made to walk off.

“Officer, I’m going to have to talk to you after a second, so don’t go,” Naomi told him. The man gave her a startled look and tried to edge away, but the Sphinx called him back. “Now when I follow what remains of the tracks, it’s a good thing that the lichen is so heavy that its tracks are not too damaged by the blunderings of the local police. They stepped everywhere. Also their dogs… But here, there’s a scraping and it looks like the lichen flew off from here, and northward.”

“Erm… We needed to give the dogs a chance to pick up the scent,” the man mumbled apologetically.

Naomi ignored him for the most part. “Judging by the distance and that the lichen is marked by the smell of burning hair, it makes sense that the dogs would have a had a hard time following the it. Is there a stream or any kind of water over that way?”

“Well… eh, there is a streamlet that breaks into three,” the officer admitted. “The hounds did pick up something, but we also think that the water might have covered the tracks. Honestly, we thought that the whole story was too farfetched. I still think it is… But the bathroom… The school....”

“The unbelievable can be hard to accept when it comes knocking on our front door,” the Sphinx said. “But just because we have a hard time grasping it does not in any way undermine its reality. No, here I think we have something concrete to go off of: The beast is very strong and it plans its attacks. This means that it might be even more dangerous than just some ravenous beast. It shows real intelligence, which I think we can also take some comfort in.”

“How’s that,” the officer barked.

“Because there is a greater chance that the girls might still be alive,” Conturbatio insisted. “Otherwise, it would have just killed them messily on the spot like any kind of wild animal. But we need greater vigilance if we are going to catch it.”

“I’ll make sure that we get pictures of everything around here and take some samples,” Miles said. “I’ll send what we get back to HQ for testing and analysis, see if they agree with Ms. Naomi here.”

“I think that’ll be  a complete waste of time,” Naomi answered.

“A waste or not, that is the procedure for proper investigations, and we won’t be allowed to continue this one if we break protocol,” Miles sniffed.

“She’s right,” the Sphinx said, getting out a camera. “Let’s go and see if we can find any other tracks.”

As they walked through the woods Naomi asked the policeman, “Sir, can you tell me when the school was built?”

“Why would you want to know that?”

“I think it might be helpful to the case.”

“Fat chance of that,” the man almost sneered. “Look miss, I don’t think you should be out here. This is highly irregular after all. This whole case makes my skin crawl and I still think it’s somewhat hoaxy.”

“Please answer her,” the Sphinx said as he snapped some shots. “I find her to be a great asset to this case. Her observations are refreshing and she might be onto something, even if you can’t see it yet.”

The officer now looked thoroughly disgruntled but he finally said, “The school was built in the early 60s, height of the Cold War and everything. It was small and quickly became outdated. In ‘87 it was given an overhaul and finally completed in ‘92. That’s how we got the new theater and everything. Especially the gym. Damn fine gym, that one.”

“Was there anything peculiar to the original design,” Naomi asked.

“Not really,” the man mused. “Except that since it was built at the height of the Cold War it was supposed to weather most of a nuclear blast. Ha! That’s before people smartened up and realized that a nuke doesn’t take no prisoners!”

“Doesn’t take any prisoners,” Naomi muttered. “Well, that might explain a few things.”

“You’re a really odd girl, you know that?” The policeman said with a sideways glance.

Once Conturbatio and Miles had taken all of their pictures and they had located extra paw prints in the woods, they were off towards the town again. The officers stayed behind to chase for more prints leaving the house. Both men looked disturbed at the notion, but dutifully went out in the woods. Naomi lounged in the back of the car as the Sphinx drove.

Miles suddenly asked a question. “Naomi, why did you decide to come along on this case? I understand that Patrick is a troublemaker and felt bored or needed to prove something, but what about you? You are a good student, you don’t cause regular problems, so why start now?”

Naomi thought about it for a moment and then replied, “Why do you want to know?”

“Just so I can better understand all of this. Understand that all of this goes against protocol and by all rights any other agent would have you locked up for interference.”

“So why haven’t you?” Naomi fired back.

Agent Miles groaned, but the Sphinx answered, “I wanted to see what you had to contribute. I know that both you and Patrick are problem solvers in your own ways, and that you wouldn’t come here just because. I had a hunch, and it paid off.”

“I haven’t done anything because as you just heard it from the horse’s mouth, he thinks your antics are cute,” Agent Miles pouted.

Naomi chuckled a little and then fell silent. After a few more minutes she answered the question.

“Trick said that I needed an adventure. I had him try to convince me that this could be one, and he did an adequate job. And so, on my own hunch, I came with him. I want to put my knowledge and skills to the test in an impossible situation.”

“And you’re sure it’s not because you like Trick,” Miles suggested.

Naomi gave her a flat stare through the rearview mirror.

I am so sorry for the late posting!!!