Worlds Build

Mr. Demi

"Alright, Abbie, try moving your leg," I said while feeling around his thigh.

 The boy did so without complaint, but nothing happened.

 "Can't say I wasn't expecting that," I said while jotting down some observations.

 After I was done doing that, I turned to the boy, his golden gaze capturing mine as soon as I did, "Now then, mind telling me why you decided not to tell me of this... condition, before it got like this?"

 The boy broke the gaze as he looked away in shame and embarrassment, seemingly caught up in his active thoughts.

 After a second of silence with no answer, I reached my blackened hand around before snapping my fingers a few good times, drawing him from whatever thoughts he may have been having.

 He looked back with confusion for a fraction of a second before realizing he hadn't answered.

 "I'm sorry, sir. I just didn't want to worry anyone, so I kept it to myself."

 The flash of guilt said otherwise, but I was hesitant to push further, as sometimes the truth was better left undiscovered.

 Sighing, I shook my head before continuing, "Right, well, now isn't the time to worry about that; here, give this to Ms. Circle when you get the chance, she should be able to get you a partner willing to travel with you," I said while ripping a note out of the book I was jotting thing down in.

 The boy took the note with renewed hesitancy and what looked like dread. I wondered what that was about; maybe it was just fear, a common reaction of many of the older and newer students.

 I ignored the stray thought saying this was something different and went for my phone, aiming to dial my coworker to let her know of this new development, with her temporary ward. A development that happened not long after the cruise incident.

 However, it would seem the action was unnecessary, as the office door was all but thrown open by the aforementioned character, her obsidian gaze radiating with frustration, confusion, and what looked to be fear, something that was rarely, if ever, seen on her specific person.

 It was a neck twister, but I could tell by how her gaze locked onto mine, that she was going to have privacy one way or another; I chose to leave, as even if it is my job to stay and inform her of this development, said job didn't have being thrown out of a window in its description.

 Picking up my stuff, I gave a nod of acknowledgment before stepping out, my hovs clicking hard against the tiled floor as I made my way to the teacher's lounge.

 On the way, I passed Zip, the dragon girl whose interest in music had skyrocketed near the middle of the school year; I saw this as an opportunity to share my passion with someone as enthusiastic as I, and took her on as a personal student.

 Her talent under my tutelage had seen massive improvements in most of the areas I had struggled with when I was her age, and it was only increasing by the day; truly a natural-born genius.

 "Oh! Mr. Demi, I was just looking for you," she said while trotting over, her scaled tail tapping the floor in what looked to be excitement.

 My eyebrow quirked as I questioned, "And why would you be doing that?"

 She seemed sheepish but answered, "Well, I wanted to see if you could help my friends learn to play some instruments."

 I couldn't stop the look of distaste from appearing on my face at the mention of her friends.

 She quickly put her hands up in defense and pleaded, "It's ok, you don't have to worry about them doing anything stupid, I'll make sure of it."

 The girl meant well, I could tell, but it was Oliver and Edward here, both of the worst students in the school when it came to behavior; I had half a mind to toss the plea aside, but the face she was making was doing work on my logical side.

 It wasn't long before I caved to her sunflower draconic eyes, the orbs widening with joy a she ran off to tell the two trouble makers; it felt like I just sold my soul to the devil, and that left me somewhat miffed.

 Sighing again, I continued on my path to the lounge, a new goal of acquiring coffee firmly set in mind as I walked. I needed more lifeblood to help me keep up with the chaos-incarnate that was this school.

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Zip

 Dashing my way through the near-endless halls, I eventually made it to my destination, a door leading to a small room, its size just big enough to fit four or five people.

 It was something I found near the beginning of school, with the faculty seemingly forgetting its continued existence, something I took great advantage of as I turned it into a hangout area for me and my friends.

 The process of cleaning it wasn't hard, more time-consuming than anything, with Oliver, Edward, and me having to scour up some cleaning supplies to wipe everything down, lest we inhale what looked to be years of dust and grime.

 But after that, we put a table and some chairs in there to make it comfortable.

 The room had housed us throughout the entire year, and hopefully the rest as it had really grown on me.

 Making my way inside, I drew the attention of its two other occupants.

 Edward smiled as he watched me with intrigue, "You seem unnaturally happy: something happen?"

 I didn't get to respond as Oliver piped in.

 "Watch it, she'll throw you down the stairs with her version of excitement."

My honeyed eye twitched in annoyance as I pulled a pencil from my pocket and threw it at him, its eraser hitting him in the forehead with a soft thud.

 After I was satisfied with the damage, I relayed the news, "Well, before Oliver interrupted, I was going to say I managed to get Mr. Demi to agree to help you two learn how to play the instruments you were looking into."

 The reaction of both varied.

 "Wow, Zipie, you work fast."

 My face heated at the pet name, but I did well to stave off my embarrassment, lest the teasing shift from Oliver to me. 

 And speaking of which, "Why though? I don't exactly recall ever wanting to actively learn guitar, especially this close to the end of this school year."

 Grinning, I continued while rubbing the back of my head, "Well, with summer break coming up, I thought it'd be a good idea. I know we can't exactly meet up together while outside of school without some serious restrictions, so I figured if we could do something that involved going back to school, we'd be able to hang out some more, and learn how to play music in the process."

 Edward gave a hum of acknowledgment while nodding along, and even Oliver somewhat; we all were put on tight leashes with that mass murdering terrorist running around, even if said terrorist had stopped their usual killings.

 Sure, there were times when one or two people disappeared without reason, but I had a feeling it was just because they were stupid and that it had nothing to do with them.

 Oliver continued, "Alright, I'll bite, when do we start?"

 Despite my friend being an absolute pain at times, getting his approval always felt nice.

I grinned as I ripped both of them up from their seats, before starting to drag them toward the music room, "We start right now, actually."

 Oliver cried out in regret as he complained about my draconic DNA, saying something about me being a monster that couldn't play nice, while Edward, the stupid yet cute looking porcupine boy just laughed; I didn't say anything as he properly took hold of my hand while I dragged him, as the feeling left butterflies in my stomach.

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Edward

It was nice, things like this.

 We were scattered around the room full of instruments and parts, each looking for the thing we wanted to play; it didn't take long for Zip to find a piano, with Oliver finding the guitar pretty fast as well, but I was having some trouble finding a violin, its sleek and fancy looking form evading me like at every turn.

 However, with the help of Ms. Demi, we were able to track the thing down, with its beauty resting under a drum set near the back of the storage room.

 Afterward, we took the instruments back to the music room. How did Mr. Demi get the piano out? I had no clue. It was left in the room while Oliver, Zip, and I just made our way over to the classroom, only to be met with Mr. Demi's grinning face as he stood waiting with the piano sitting just behind him.

 It was mind-boggling and literally sent Oliver into a blue screen as he tried and failed to comprehend the action.

 The look was funny for a second, but I snapped him out of it by poking him in the side so we could start the lessons.

 "Don't squeeze it like that, Edward, and bring it a bit further up while resting your cheek on it."

 Listening to Mr. Demi, I could immediately feel the difference, as I wasn't so focused on holding it as I was playing it.

 "Thanks for the pointer, Mr. Demi," I said while tossing him a little grin, my purple gaze flickering with some gratitude.

 The teacher merely grinned back and went over to help Oliver.

 As I played, I'll be it, terribly, I also listened for Zip, her fingers dancing over keys with grace that painted a beautiful melody; it was like I was back in her backyard again, listening to her younger voice sing its heart out.

 The memory had me both ginning with remembrance, and scowling with anger; she used to sing a lot, being able to go hours upon hours of just singing her melodies, but some idiot thought it could be funny to mess with her drink, spiking it with something that irreversibly damaged her vocals, leaving her a depressed and angry mess.

 It took a lot of work and coaxing to get her to open up to me, and I could still remember the day she broke, wailing into my shirt as she scratchily voiced her anger and dismay; it really hurt to see, and sparked my protective streak.

 There was a reason they never found who did it, and there was a reason they found a distant cousin of hers mutilated on the side of the road; I was the reason.

 Her voice was somewhat back to normal now, but she still couldn't sing or talk for hours at a time with her vocal cords aching in pain.

 The dark thoughts made the quills hidden in my hair twitch in irritation, the many razor-sharp and barbed hypodermic needles flinching under my restraint as they yearned to kill the bastard again.

 I wouldn't have been opposed to the action, but they were already dead, so there was no point in dwelling on the idea.

 Turning my purple gaze to the left, I watched with a silent smile and a growing blush as Zip smiled, her lips split in a tight yet curved line like the ones she used to sport when she sang; she was content, happy to have found something just as joyful as singing.

 My gaze was eventually caught as her honeyed eyes caught my purple orbs; her playing stopped as she blushed and looked away, seemingly embarrassed now that she knew someone was watching.

 I took solace in the fact that she wouldn't have minded if it were anyone but me; having a relationship with her was the best thing that could have ever happened to me, and as predatory as it may have sounded, made me excited for the day I could bed her, a day that hopefully would happen this summer.

 My thoughts were interrupted a she spoke with a blush, "You know, you can always take a picture if you like staring that much."

 I was a pro when it came to dishing out teasing taunts, and a master when it came to receiving them, so this was nothing but child's play and an opportunity.

 I loved how she faltered and started sputtering with a cherry blush as I got down on one knee, phone in hand.

 After a few angle adjustments, I quickly snapped the photo and looked on with love as it showed her captured in the sun's falling rays.

 My love reached my lips as I walked over to peck her on the cheek.

 Her draconic tail was all but pulverizing the carpeted floor as her brain finally gave out. Fainting in place as her limp form was caught in my arms.

I chuckled as I took a seat next to her, letting her head fall on my lap as I gently continued my practice.

 I ignored the red orbs dancing with teasing menace at the edge of my purple peripheral; Oliver was going to wring me and her for ever drop this situation had, and I couldn't say it was undeserved with how much we were wringing him.

 Another chuckle, and I was focusing on the instrument.

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Oliver

Watching those two loved-up idiots was like watching a movie; you never knew what was going to happen next.

 But just like a movie, you fail to pay attention to what you're doing as you press a little too hard on a string to have it snap and whip you just under the eye, leaving you with a nasty gash that'll most definitely leave a scar when it heals.

 So now here I was, walking to the nurse's office with Mr. Demi so we could get the wound stitched and cleaned; I was familiar with cleaning wounds, so I wasn't too excited for that part.

 Edward and Zip had been left in the classroom, with one practicing and the other sleeping, so it was just the teacher and me.

 The trip was relatively quiet, and it didn't take long for us to get to the empty room, which for some reason smelled of mixed anger and lust; sometimes I wanted to curse my DNA for the unnecessary information on people's sexual urges.

 The smell wasn't strong, so it meant nothing actually happened, but it was there, meaning one or the other got a different kind of heated during whatever argument they were having.

 "Alright, Oliver. Please take a seat here," Mr. Demi said, making his way to one of the many locked cabinets.

 Taking a seat on the bed, I ignored the scents and just focused on applying pressure to my gash.

 Cleaning and bandaging the wound didn't take long, as I was out of the office in less than thirty minutes, but I made sure Mr. Demi would never talk about how I screamed when the alcohol was applied.

 As I walked the ever-growing halls, I made sure to tell Edward and the now-conscious Zip that class was being cut short. Not long after, they took off, both hand in hand, as they walked home; I was not jealous, nor was I lonely. 

 However, I didn't immediately make my way home in tandem, as I had forgotten my bag in class; not a major problem, but one that could place me on a few people's watchlist if turned into the wrong people.

 However, now I was wishing it was because maybe I would've hurried my as up so I didn't have to be caught up in another tangled web of disasters.

 Crawling out of the cubby I was hiding in, I thought with a blank face on what I should do with the new information I had just gotten, because I don't know about you, but trying to use her very sexual relationship with Abbie as blackmail could backfire heavily.

 I looked at the spot they were sitting in, the seat of which reeked with pent-up sexual tension that was barely kept on a leash.

 Sighing, I spoke to know one, "I swear to Alice, if I learn one more god-forsaken secret about someone in this blasted school, I'm going to rage."

 Still, even as stupidly odd Abbie was for his choice, I couldn't help the inkling of respect that now taints my image of him; no longer was he the scardy cat dambass. No, now he was the brave dambass who's getting it on with the most intimidating teacher in the school, and making headway with it if the open teases he was whispering into her ear were anything to go by.

 Though I would admit, if they weren't so blinded by their lust, then they would've spotted my scent the moment they stepped in the room; I was arrogant, not blind, and I knew for a fact that outside of bloodhounds, those two had some of the sharpest noses in school.

 That wasn't even mentioning Ms. Circle's insane level of hearing, as I was sure it was only the lust rushing through her blood that kept her from hearing how my heart hammered in my chest.

Groaning, I made my way out of school, electing to deal with this... thing later, probably next week if at all possible.

 "Come on, Oliver, just three more weeks and then you won't have to deal with so much secrecy, you can do it, I believe in you."

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Ms.Circle

/Just after sending out Mr. Demi/

My obsidian eyes glared as I snared Abbie's golden gaze, reluctance dancing in the puddles of gold that were his iris.

 "So, are you just going to sit there and stay silent as I wonder why the fuck I had to hear from your classmate about your sudden yet not so recent condition? Or am I just going to have to beat it out of you?"

 I was pissed, livivd even, but more then anything, I was worried.

 Walking over, my prosthetic took hold of his jaw as I forced his face closer to mine.

 "What, cat catch your tongue? Speak dammit!"

 He didn't struggle, didn't complain, just waited until I was done speaking.

 Slowly, but without hesitation, his hand came up to soothe the metal, something that, as stupid as it looked, actually gave me a faint sense of calm, leaving my grip to falter just enough for him to pull me down onto the bed with him.

 The action stunned me, of course, as he didn't have the strength to do this previously, my grater muscle mass making such a thing nigh impossible.

 The bed groaned but held firm, truly showing the care the school put into durable equipment.

 Looking up at Abbie, who'd since taken up post on my stomach, I couldn't help but sigh in relief as his golden gaze no longer showed the reluctance it did a second ago.

 Now, it bore determination, and some dread; what did he dread? I didn't know, but I'd probably find out in a second, hopefully.

 However, it would seem it would have to wait, as almost immediately after he started apologizing profusely, and that wasn't even an understatement, as the only thing I heard for the next few moments was words of sorrow and regret.

 Not really knowing how to deal with this kind of behaviour, I just gently pulled him into a hug, awkwardly rubbing circles on his back while trying to think of something to say, something to interrupt his growing self-distan, his anger for himself infecting almost every word of apology.

 Luckily, I wouldn't have to say anything, as his voice ceased not moments after my mock comfort, the action seemingly calming him enough that he was able to think of something other than the disdain he had for himself.

Unfortunately, I quickly came to regret my successful comfort as the next words he spoke sent my heart flying, fear shooting through it like a bullet.

 "I... I could be dying."

 My brain froze as I tried to comprehend the words he just spoke; said freeze only lasted a few milliseconds as my processing center caught up.

 "Hu?"

 The reluctance was back in full force, but he continued anyway, "My genes, or DNA, come from a species of wolf that isn't so kind to their young, with the young needing to go through a process called 'Pack Pruning', a natural procedure that has a very high risk of death, with it being the cause of most of its species nigh exstinct numbers. The process is painfully slow, taking up to two months of nonstop decay before the body of the pup will even begin to recover, something that, while not as dangerous, has its own risk, and it was these risks that I wasn't willing to share with you for this very reason," he finished before laying a hand on my thundering chest.

 I wanted to refute him, to say that no, I could handle it, that I could understand and accept the risks, but I couldn't, because even the most logical side in me was an utter mess.

 I tried to speak, to stutter out some words of reassurance, to tell him that it was going to be ok, that he wasn't going to die, and that he wouldn't have to worry because I had a solution to help him, but none of that was even remotely whispered, as only a deep hateful scowl slept on my lips; it was just like all those months ago, when I was chasing that Alice clone, and the feeling of inability I felt after I found out it was a clone.

 I was seething, rage nearly overtaking thought as I continued to look at the ceiling past Abbie's head with the wrath of a thousand suns.

 However, my rage was almost smothered when his gentle lips met mine, not one full of lust and yearning, but one full of love, compassion, and reassurance, like he wasn't talking about his possible death mere seconds ago.

 After breaking the kiss with a satisfying pop, he gazed down with nothing but pure joy, "Ms. Cir-... no, Tanya, I don't know if these words mean anything, or if you'd even care, but... I love you, and I promise that under that blanket of love, I will preserve and flourish, with the thought of your open arms waiting for my inevitable success serving as the kindle to my flames of determination; I will not let myself fall, for not myself, but for you, the thoughts of you passing over with me becoming an unstopable driving force to keep me going, to force me to grit my teeth in even the deepest of pains, I will-."

 "Abbie," I said with a voice teetering between crushing dread and overwhelming love, "You're doing that thing again."

 The boy, who'd been forced to stop his near-endless lines of love, looked away in some embarrassment before rounding his head back with a blushing smile just as big as my own, his voice popping up again.

 "I was. And for good reason, too, because now look at you, all cherry-faced with a pleased grin spread across your beautifully pale face; it's like my words flipped a switch in your overly worried noggin." 

 My blush depended on the call out, but I wasn't one to take things sitting down, so it shouldn't have been a surprise when I bit back.

 "Careful, any closer to the left and you'll flip a switch that'll have you wishing for death," were my words as I whispered into his ear.

 The shiver the sentence sent up his spine was satisfying to feel, but not as much as seeing his gaze filled with curious lust.

 He pondered on something for a moment before he spoke, "Is there any way I could flip this switch intentionally?"

 My grin turned mischievous as I bit his ear, the action of which sent a soft shudder bounding out from his vocals.

 "Just say my name, three times."

 His golden gaze became hazy as his lust took control.

 "Tanya."

 I pulled him closer.

 "Tanya."

 Grinding began.

 "Ta-Tanya."

 And just like that, everything ceased, and he was left absolutely gobsmacked as I spoke my next words.

 "Great, no more sex for the next two weeks."

He bordered the lines of absolute horror and great tragedy as his brain registered my words, his cries of dismay serving well to improve my mood some more; he'd learn not to keep things from me, and I was going to make sure of it.

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Nyx

 Walking through the paved streets, I appreciated how thorough my fellow horror was when it came to marking their territory, with almost every building in my sight housing just a sliver of their scent.

 It would have been a spectacle that I would've taken my time in looking at had it not been for all these monkeys walking around, and it would have been made even better had my kin's scent been further away from the other horrors' domain.

 But unfortunately, that seemed to be an impossibility, as their scent only grew stronger the closer I drew towards it.

 My dismay was palpable when I got closer, as a large school building made itself known to me, the scent of which I was searching for, lying inside.

 The sun was setting, so it shouldn't be long now before the school was let out, and it was merely just a game of patience.

 However, as I waited, I thought of how much of the gene-seed she inherited; were they as tall as I? Did they obtain the monster's strength of mine? Or maybe the speed? There were countless things they could have gained from it, and that fact made me all the more excited to see them.

 My mind flickered back to my gene-seed creation and the instinctual knowledge of what it was, how it was supposed to be used, and when.

 The gene-seed was something that came about through belief, religion, and cults.

 Back in the days of old, everyone in those three groups, no matter how little or how much belief they had, participated in a mass sacrificial ritual, slaughtering town after town and using the corpses to build a great construct of gore.

 The thing they built, its monstrous, grotesque form filled with tormented souls of the dead, was their version of a summoning portal, something that they believed, if done properly, would bring about the gods they believed in, the beings they worshiped.

 It was a massive gamble that could have failed drastically and painted them as crazed lunatics, but the gamble paid off, and what they brought forth was reality shattering.

 After that, the world began to change and shift, fiction no longer stayed fiction, with creatures like me once depicted in ancient myths now able to walk the real world as our beings were brought to life by the drive of belief.

 No longer were myths confined to just myth, as they now walked the world with their creatures, acting on the urge that depicted their original concept, with a fine example being me, the creature many know as the Wendigo, a creature said to lurk in the woods and mutilate any that went inside.

 Now, there were many descriptions of what I looked like, some ranging from an infectious virus that turned people into mindless cannibals, all the way up to an unknown deity said to have cursed a random stag to hold his image.

 However, since there was already an iteration of the Wendigo in the world, none other could spawn, and that rule was set for every other folklore entity as well, there were no known exceptions.

 But this was beside the point; the gene-seed was an organ that sat in many, if not all, the entities born from folklore. It was an organic way of spreading belief, used to turn creatures into beings that looked almost the same as the folklore entity that implanted it.

 It was a tool to make what were essentially its own children, with the only difference separating them from actual children being the fact that it wasn't born from a female's loins.

 After the creature it was implanted into was fully matured, the seed would've activated, transforming them into something that looked like them; the transformed creature would then go on to act on its seed-implanted instincts by doing what it thought would be best to spread the original entity's legend, midless slaughter, at least as far as I knew; there weren't really any cases that suggest any other method the gene allowed.

 But that leads me to why I'm here today, as while yes, I vaguely recalled implanting a seed somewhere around here, but with no activity from it for almost a hundred years, I figured the creature I planted it in had just died; so color me surprised when I felt its activation almost months into the past.

 So either the creature it activated inside was something paradoxical, or it was lurking in a time fracture; either way, I was going to find it, and I was going to take it.

 It had been a long time since I had any kin, and my forest was starting to grow abandoned, so I wasn't ashamed to admit I was growing somewhat lonely, and it also helped that they'd probably need help dealing with whatever feature they gained from me, new or old.

 I didn't particularly care what they thought of my subsequent adoption, as I'd give them no choice in the matter, well, that's a lie, they'd get to pick between two different options of abduction, willingly, or with force.

 The chime of the school's bell signaled the school's official closing time, leaving me to wonder why the kin I was looking for had not left its walls.

 I sighed as I realized what I'd have to do.

 "Welp, let's get this over with," were my final words as I slipped through the front doors.