Chapter5: Final Pitstop

[ani]

XD Since all of us are mostly busy, we'll just wait till the others are ready to move on before we move the plot. But for now... ^.^ let's dilly dally shilly shally haha
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Vanesse stood up from the bed, still munching some candy. So that was where Polaris went off. Why is she banging the door? She blinked.

"Polaris! Quit fooling around, come on now." Vanesse grinned and guided her back inside. "We're starting."

~*~

It was just about curfew and the girls gathered around in the middle of the room sharing stories of any kind. Stardust sat on a thick blanket--borrowed from Jun--concentrating on chomping her heated rice bowl; while Vanesse was sharing some myth about a demi-goat named la chupacabra.

"...the end," Vanesse ended, scanning everyone's faces with a satisfied smile. She sighed at their reaction. "Yeah, yeah...I know it's lame..." She laid flat on her stomach and rested her chin on her pillow. It was that awkward silence again. It was one of the things she didn't want the air to be filled with. Tomorrow, nobody would know for sure what would happen. They were going to face those DoTNA again. They should be training actually, but she guessed that if the gems were on their side, they had the advantage. For now, it was time to relax and escape reality. Just out of the blue, a question suddenly popped in Vanesse's head.

"Hmm...so...do you guys have..." She smirked. "...you know? Boyfriends?" Her tone had curiosity written on it. The girls didn't seem like the type that would be avoided by guys.

[Blaze Sanaku]

OKAY GUYS IT'S THE WEEKEND AND IM FINALLY FREE

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Blaze sat cross-legged, stuffing herself with candy. She said nothing while Stardust was in the room. Stardust voluntarily hanging out with Blaze and Polaris was just... wrong.

What is she DOING here Blaze sneered, trying not to look at the pinkhead.

/Well it doesn't look like Stardust is enjoying it much either./ Deathstrike offered as Vanesse dove straight into a Cupacabra story. Blaze's attention span didn't last very long. She kept interrupting with comments like, "how many people did it kill?"or "I could take it on."

"Hmm...so...do you guys have...you know? Boyfriends?" Vanesse said immediately after her story. The question was like a joke for Blaze.

one was enough

"hah yeah, like I'd go for anyone at the Garden. Just look who's on our team. A pervert, a geek and a hyperactive weirdo. Great selection." Blaze rolled her eyes. She didn't know anything about Deo or Jax but she would find out their flaws soon enough.

[Polaris Lyn]

Polaris winced as she sat tailor-style on her bed, smiling at Blaze's rather accurate - if not cruel - descriptions of the men in their team.

"The hyperactive weirdo isn't bad," Polaris said, defending the blue-haired Sho. "He helped us with Bahamut, not like that stupid redhead hacker. He's about as useful in battle as jello."

[vanesse]

Vanesse's eyebrows lifted, surprised at the girls' reactions. Were they really that bad? Her grinned got wider.

"Uh hmm...right," was her reply. "I actually think the boys in your group are pretty cute. You just have to look at their good side and not the bad." She laughed. "And remember the saying? The more you will hate, the more you will love." It wouldn't hurt to tease them now, would it?

[Polaris Lyn]

"And remember the saying? The more you will hate, the more you will love."

Polaris blinked. "You really think so?" she asked, raising her eyebrows at Vanesse. "In our line of work," she gestured to Blaze, Jun, Stardust and Gemma, "that theory tends to get blown to shit. Hate usually leads to wars, you know. And SeeDs are at the front line. So we don't go for that hate is love thing."

She reached under her bed, pulled out a bag of dried cranberries, and ripped it open, taking a small cluster of the dried fruit and tossing it into her mouth. "Anyway, since you think the males of the team are so...what's the term? Um, cute. Then...who would you choose out of all of them?"

[Myacu]

Gemma, clad pale green flannel pants and a black t-shirt, had plopped herself onto the floor at the foot of the bed. She had been listening attentively to the other girl's share their stories for the past hour, but and yet to speak up for herself. Finally, as she popped open a bag of spicy jalapeno chips, courtesy of Jun, Gemma grinned at Vanesse's response to Blaze's rant.

"You have a point there Vanesse, though I have to say I prefer Trabian men much better."

[Jaime]

Jaime giggled as the discussion turned to guys. Cos which slumber party is complete without speculating on them?

"I dunno, maybe you girls have been spoilt for choice but they are easy on the eye. And if you have to face the same people everyday, wouldn't you prefer a cute face rather than an ugly one?" Jaime looked questioningly at the girls.

[vanesse]

"Trabia?" Vanesse looked at Gemma. She hadn't met any guy from Trabia, or maybe she had but didn't know it, but she did know where Trabia was. It was where the snow was. "Mmm...Trabia guys must be really cool," she answered.

/Cool...you don't by any chance meant, cold?/ Paridge interrupted.

"And...about the cutest." Vanesse turned to Polaris. Her question was who was the "cutest" for her. If she said "adorable" then Vanesse knew she had an answer for that. "I dunno, I guess they're equal?" she said, placing her chin on her hand. "Okay....Let's analyze them, shall we?"

"Analyze?" Stardust butted in out of the blue. "Why do we have to analyze them? The guys in the mission are all good for nothing and unattractive. Period." The pinkhead looked at Jaime once she spoke. "It didn't matter how horrible they look. We don't have a choice either way."

"Anyway..." Vanesse ignored Stardust. "Sho's blue hair is really eyecatching...and I guess that pilot, Jax isn't too bad either. I feel sorry for his airship though. I always thought the hacker was cool, but he did destroy the airship. I hope those two are on good terms..." She placed a candy on her mouth. "And lastly, that blonde guy named Rayden reminds me of a famous rocker. I don't think he's perverted at all." She stuck out her tongue.

[Polaris Lyn]

Polaris listened to Vanesse's pensive explanation with a raised eyebrow. As soon as she was finished -

"You have a real knack for misunderstanding me." Polaris' voice was it's usual neutral, low tone, her expression one of mild interest. Nobody but Blaze could probably tell that Polaris was starting to get interested in the conversation. In fact, most people would probably think that Polaris was patronizing Vanesse and mocking her. "I didn't ask you to analyze why they're cute. I asked you about who you would choose to...date."

Even as she said the final word, her voice sounded dry, sarcastic...annoyed. < Dating is for...damsels in distress. And female SeeDs are anything but. >

[ST]

Vanesse's mouth was contorted into an 'o' at Polaris's question. It didn't take long till she came up with a reply. "That, will be a secret." She grinned. "You guys never told me your crushes, so I think it's fair if I disclose mine too," she ended, chuckling right after.

And so, the night continued and hours had passed. The girls finally had to retire for the night.

~*~

And for the finishing touches, Hadrian taped the dead fish on the sturdy door that had a number "817" on it. People could call him a sore loser and all those crap, but nobody throws a freakin' dead fish on Hadrian D'arcell. Curfew had finally come. He was going to have payback one way or another.

/I feel sorry for, Hadrian./ CQ whispered in his thoughts.

Clutching the permanent marker, Hadrian stepped back to get a good look at Polaris's door. There in the middle of the door is Killer's corpse, plastered on it. There were disjointed drawings of a flower bed with a gothic cross, and a deformed, brattish cartooned face of Polaris around the fish. The text saying, "MY NAME IS POL, AND I LIKE TO THROW DEAD FISH, HEAR ME ROAR" was written in big bold text for everyone to see. Hadrian bit his tongue from erupting into a laugh. He didn't have to hack Garden's main frame to get her dorm room, he didn't have to steal someone else's Sharpie, and he didn't have to steal the stupid fish as well. It was like everything came to his favor for this--that was enough proof that it was meant to be.

That's what you call poetic justice, CQ, he thought as he quietly walked away snickering. It was all planned out. Nobody knew where his freakin' dorm was, and he already rigged his info in Garden's main frame. How could she get back at him? She didn't even have any evidence.

/I feel sorry./

If she suspects me, I'll deny it. It's like she has a video to frame me. He swerved on the corner. This was a good night indeed. He couldn't wait to get to his room and have a good laugh at Polaris's reaction the next morning.

~*~

Torqueo tractus per malum undo Repleo suus moenia per cruor quod poena

As Hadrian strode along the empty hallway, his vision suddenly shook in a split second, just like a heartbeat. He stopped and creased his forehead. He was probably getting sleepy.

Aduro suus aer per spiritus of ira
Haud subterlabor ex victus abyssus

Striding further, the sensation happened again, and this time, it became persistent. Hadrian rubbed his eyes and saw the corridor distort into a hazy swirl. He picked up his pace and arrived in front of his room, but the door seemed to be soft and his hand couldn't touch the surface.

Torqueo tractus per malum undo Repleo suus moenia per cruor quod poena

Hadrian shook his head, tension was starting to well up inside his mind. Whatever was going on, he didn't like it.

Aduro suus aer per spiritus of ira
Haud subterlabor ex victus abyssus

"F*ck," Hadrian cursed as he clutched his head, a terrible migraine coming to him.

Torqueo tractus per malum undo Repleo suus moenia per cruor quod poena

His heartbeat began to run wildly. He was caught between the lines of wariness and confusion. The long, empty corridor seemed to be changing appearance. His eyebrows wrinkled, unsure if what he was saying was real. The nice clean floor of the hallway was shifting from a gunk covered path back to the smooth ivory floor.

Aduro suus aer per spiritus of ira
Haud subterlabor ex victus abyssus!!

The walls would change from a porcelaine white to a wall made of dirty flesh. Hadrian stumbled on his feet. The gunk seemed to cover his shoes.

Torqueo tractus per malum undo Repleo suus moenia per cruor quod poena

A sudden putrid smell filled his nose, and Hadrian covered his mouth to keep himself from vomitting. Even the toughest soldier couldn't stand the smell of this rotten flesh. There was something terribly wrong going on here.

Aduro suus aer per spiritus of ira
Haud subterlabor ex victus abyssus!

He could even hear a voice. It was the sound of a woman chanting, and a woman screaming. He didn't know if he heard it physically or psychologically, but the voices just kept getting louder, louder and louder. Until suddenly, every lights in Balamb Garden died, and the whole place was swallowed by darkness.