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Post by Madeline Parker on Jul 7, 2011 1:23:48 GMT -5
Madeline sat at a small table in the Great Hall, backpack dropped lazily on the chair next to her. The chair directly across from her made for a decent footrest, the one next to it having wandered off some time ago to further crowed an overstuffed table of friends. But that was alright. The girl was quite content to take up then entire table to herself. And she was doing a fine job of it.
Three plates were laid out to her left: an untouched salad, a picked at meal of a hamburger and french fries that were a little too greasy, and a plate of brownie crumbs. It was clear where the girl's priorities lay when it came to having a good meal. But that was beside the point. She would finish the rest of the food... eventually. Just as soon as she figured out the solution to a rather complicated problem.
Given the number of texts, notebooks, and papers spread across the table, most passerbys assumed she was in the middle of some major research project. But a closer look would reveal that she was doing the farthest thing from homework. An elaborate, hand drawn map of the school was laid out directly in front of her, a number of in-progress sketches sitting sporadically on top of it. Maddie was up to her usual tricks, plotting Silas Academy's next big prank. But it was harder than it looked. Always wanting to outdo herself, at the moment she was coming up short. At least if anyone tried to join her she could lie and say she was doing a report on the school's architecture. The last thing she needed was to be busted before her fun even had a chance to start.
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Post by Danny Larkin on Jul 7, 2011 21:06:25 GMT -5
Danny had already finished his lunch - a burger, fries, a second burger, a salad, a third burger, three sodas, and four cookies - and was still hungry. It happened from time to time that he would eat nearly his own weight in food and just never fill up. Something to do with his metabolism being heightened by the wings, his mom said. He didn't care what caused it, he just wished it didn't happen. It usually left him in a bad mood, and then he'd feel like he had to fake being in a good mood so he didn't bring everyone else down. Danny had seen what people did when they thought someone else was to blame for their bad mood...
Shaking himself abruptly from his dark thoughts, Danny piled all his trash onto a tray and stood to go dump. As he straightened, however, he caught sight of a familiar blonde sitting in the corner. His attention already gone from throwing away his trash, he shifted it all to one arm, scooped up his bag in the other, and made a beeline for her table.
"Hey." Danny flashed a smile at the girl, snagging a nearby empty chair and dragging it over without asking for permission. He continued to speak as he draped the bag over the new chair and dropped his plate onto the table, right on Maddie's work. "My name's Danny. I saw you out on the grounds earlier, but I don't think you were there for all the introductions. Mind if I sit here?" He slid into the chair, still without waiting for permission, and glanced across the mountain of papers strewn across the table. "Wow. What is all this stuff?"
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Post by dom on Jul 7, 2011 21:43:46 GMT -5
A floating corndog made its way toward the blonde, bits of it disappearing every few seconds until all that was left of it was a floating stick. It was then flung towards the trashcan, with great accuracy, where it got lodged into a pile of left over mashed potatoes. "Yessss!" The voice of a triumphant boy hung in the air, although the source was unseen. Nic then proceeded to make his way to the table where Maddy sat, now in the company of an unknown male.
The chair next to the one Danny was seated in appeared to move on its own accord as Nic pulled it out. "Hey Maddie," he called as he noisily plopped down in the chair and scooted closer to the table. Still unseen, he turned his gaze to briefly observe the older boy who sat next him, before saying with a casual nod of his head, "Waddup?" Satisfied with his introduction, he turned to look at Maddie's most recent project.
His eyes closely studied the intricate and near perfect replica of the Academy's blueprints. Yes!! She's going to pull a big one! Excitement filled his unseen expression as he leaned across the table and whispered, "Maddie! You're going to let me in on this one right? You know how long I've waited to finally be in on a big one. I'll do only as you say and stay out of the way the rest of the time, I promise. Pleaaaaasseeee." As he pleaded, the boy began to materialize. He was now halfway out of his seat and hovering over the table, his deep blue eyes still glued to the multitude of sketches and plans below him.
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Post by Madeline Parker on Jul 7, 2011 22:55:43 GMT -5
There was an old saying, one that went something like "everything that can go wrong, will." Maddie couldn't remember the exact words, but it really wasn't all that important. What mattered was that her lovely little lunch had just been rudely interrupted, twice, and she was trying to refrain from doing something rash. Her fist clenched around her pencil, teeth gritting to keep her from from completely losing her cool. Her foot had been displaced from its chair-rest, and her gaze had yet to leave the papers being smothered by flyboy's tray. If any of them were bent or ended up with food stains on them, there would be hell to pay!
"Dominic," and here she used his full name, words ground out between teeth so tightly clenched that her jaw was starting to hurt. "Shut up now! And remove this idiot from my stuff." It was an order, not a request. It was taking all of her inner strength to keep her voice level, albeit clipped. She refused to look either boy directly in the eye, something that was safer for the both of them. If the blond could be unnerving when she was smiling, there was no telling how murderous she could look when displeased.
In Maddie's book, there were two things you never did. The first was touch her things. It was a pet peeve of her's. Everything she owned was something she held as sacred, especially her papers. Every thought, plan, and stray idea was charted in some notebook or on scrap of paper, and her drawings and blueprints were treated like a rare Renoir. Just the idea of something getting wrinkled and ruined was enough to make her skin crawl. And the other? That was discussing her work in public, of course. She was not one to risk a good prank going wrong because the wrong person overheard. The last thing she needed was to get caught, and the easiest way to prevent that was by keeping mum, something her darling little lackey often seemed to forget.
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Post by Danny Larkin on Jul 7, 2011 23:18:17 GMT -5
Danny heard the voice behind him, but when he glanced over his shoulder, there was no one there. He continued searching determinedly for the source - which was harder than it sounds, given that they were hardly alone in the room. Eventually, he gave up and turned back to the blonde. Who still hadn't looked at him. He leaned forward to try and get her attention, but was arrested by the return of the voice, now right beside him and greeting the girl.
It even said hello to him. After a second of staring at the chair that he knew the voice was coming from, he leaned on the table and frowned at Maddie. "Am I crazy? I mean, you hear the voice, don't you?"
The voice's whisper about the "plans" was not quite as quiet as the boy seemed to have meant it. That is, Danny heard it quite clearly, and he frowned slightly. "A big one"...what was that supposed to mean? He remember one of the other girls saying something about Maddie being big on pranks. Could that be what all the papers were? Danny glanced quickly at the table once more and couldn't help the small, appreciative whistle that escaped him. This would have to be a huge prank. Like...earth-shattering. Well, okay, that was an exaggeration, but still...
"Are you seriously-?" His question was interrupted by Maddie's order to the boy that had slowly materialized at Danny's side. He was several years younger than both Danny and the blonde girl, but seemed to have made some sort of connection to Maddie. Danny turned slowly to face Dominic full-on, not feeling too threatened by the smaller boy.
"Really? This seems a little unfair. In my favor, naturally." He leaned conspiratorially toward Dominic as soon as he was done speaking and hissed loudly, "Are you really going to what she says after she talked to you like that?"
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Post by dom on Jul 7, 2011 23:43:35 GMT -5
The second he heard his full name leave her lips, Nic quickly sat back in his seat, his mouth tightly shut as he stared at her with his big, innocent blue eyes. He winced slightly when she ordered him to shut up, but he was getting used to her edgy ways. The second part is what suprised him the most. Take care of THAT guy? Has she even seen him?! He slowly turned his gaze to look at the older boy, the much taller and muscular, older boy. Nic was hesitant at first, turning to look at Maddie with pleading eyes, but her gaze was still set on her work. My woman will get what she wants!
At that moment Nic jolted out of his seat, "Of course I'm going to do what she says!" As he shouted this, his developing vocal chords failed him and his voice squeaked at the end of his sentence, taking a deep blow to his ego. He lost all sense fearlessness and opted for a less forceful way of carrying out Maddie's orders. Clearning his throat, Nic proceeded to carefully pick up the tray of food Danny had plopped onto Maddie's papers and placed them in front of the chair he had just occupied, away from any of Maddie's work. He then stepped back and gestured for Danny to take his seat instead. Please don't punch my face in, please don't punch my face in, I need my handsome face or Maddie won't like me any more.
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Post by Madeline Parker on Jul 8, 2011 0:10:29 GMT -5
A series of numbers ran through her mind, a poor attempt at keeping herself calm. Every time Danny opened his mouth, she found the boy more irritating. Then again, she found Nic irritating most of the time as well, but he was at least a useful irritant. The younger boy was completely under her spell, and he made a wonderful scape goat when she needed one. Flyboy was doing nothing but get on her nerves, especially if he was going to keep trying to pry into her work.
Slowly and methodically she gathered her papers together, stacking smaller ones on top of each other and carefully laying them into a manilla folder. They would be clipped into the appropriate binders when she got back to her later. Then she moved onto the large map and anything else that had been trapped under that horrible tray. The map was thankfully unharmed, shielded by an unfortunate pulley schematic that was now sporting an angry blob of unused ketchup. Meticulously creasing the map along pre-folded edges, she gathered all of her belongings together and swiftly hid them away in her bag, minus the one casualty. That particular paper was slid in front of her, hands folding themselves just below it as they rested on top of the table.
Finally Maddie looked up at the two boys, fixing Danny with a level glare. Whatever he had been thinking or guessing at when Nic nearly spilled the beans would be promptly dismissed. A professional prankster, Madeline always had a backup plan. "My art professor docks points for sloppy papers. Care to ruin any more of my homework?" A warning look was shot towards Dominic. So long as he kept his big mouth shut, maybe she wouldn't have to kill him later. As for Danny, her devious mind was already working on the proper formula for a perfect dose of revenge.
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Post by Danny Larkin on Jul 8, 2011 0:30:59 GMT -5
Danny tried hard not to laugh when the boy's voice cracked. It probably wouldn't have occurred to him normally, but the sudden strike of puberty on top of the boy's indignation was just too much. He did manage to squash it down to just a funny sort of noise in the back of his throat, though.
And immediately felt guilty as he watched the bravado drain out of Dominic. The guilt mixed with confusion as the boy shifted the placement of Danny's tray, and then motioned for Danny to sit in the vacated seat. After a second of staring between the empty chair and the boy, Danny shook his heads slowly. "I'm not...taking your seat, Kid. Smells like a trap to me. Plus, I don't really like that she," He jerked his head at the blonde that was systematically collecting her stuff, "is ordering us around."
And speaking of "her," Maddie had finally finished picking up her stuff. Danny wasn't sure where it had gone only that it wasn't on the table anymore. He shifted back around to face her, still smiling as charmingly as he could. (In reality, this smile came off more as an oblivious sort of goofiness than charming.) Maddie was sitting with her hands folded beneath a spoiled sheet of paper, giving Danny a dirty look. She sort of looked like a cop, ready to grill a guilty suspect, and Danny began to figure out that he might have done something wrong. Even so, he couldn't resist answering her questions with a cheek, "Sure, what else have you got?" The disregarded food at her elbow caught his eye and he nodded at it, adding, "And are you going to finish those fries?"
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Post by dom on Jul 8, 2011 0:53:22 GMT -5
Nic stood quietly and watched as Maddie packed up her papers. Practically able to see the anger exuding from her being, Nic began to disappear again, not feeling comfortable with the idea of Maddie looking him in the face. At first he didn't understand why she was so angry at him and thought he was being treated unfairly. He's the idiot who put his food on her stuff, why am I dragged into this? Pouting, he continued to rake his mind, trying to find out the reason why he was faced with her wrath along with Danny.
When Danny declined his seat, Nic shrugged and plopped back down in his seat. On any other day he would have walked away and left Danny to deal with Maddie. But he really wanted to know more about this new plan she was planning. Oh crap! Nic felt his stomach drop as he realized what he did wrong. I'm not supposed to talk about these things in open places like this. I'm actually not supposed to talk about it at all unless Maddie tells me I can.
His fears were confirmed when she used the "homework" ploy to cover up the mess Nic had left for her. Nic felt guilty that she now had to try to convince Danny that it was her homework. Feeling the need to apologize, the invisible boy piped up, "I'm sorry Maddie... That your going to lose points now... because of the mess about your homework." He hoped that she caught his underlying message about his big mouth causing issues all of the time. After apologizing, Nic sat quietly, waiting to be addressed by Maddie.
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Post by Madeline Parker on Jul 8, 2011 1:43:13 GMT -5
Did he just seriously ask her for her food? Incredulous was not one of her favorite looks, but it was the one currently plastered all over her face. Okay, so maybe Maddie was being a little unreasonable. Maybe she was being a little over dramatic. Maybe she should try to be nicer and make a friend for once. Or she could let her inner drama queen give the boy exactly what he wanted... The later was always so much more fun!
Removing the half eaten hamburger from the plate and dropping it rather ungraciously on the empty dessert one, she picked up the one with the remaining fries. Then she put on that signature smile of hers, the one that spelled danger because it made her look just a little too innocent. Closing her eyes, she fixed Danny with what was possibly a more unsettling gaze than her last one, voice annoying sweet as she let him have the fries. Or rather, she whipped the plate in his direction, sending the fries flying while not relinquishing her grip on the plate. "Would you like the salad too? It has extra dressing."
She was utterly pleased with herself in that moment, perched in her chair like a proud peacock. She would have remained like that too, had Nic not started babbling again. Really, how hard was it to understand a simple instruction? "Shut up." "Don't talk." "Be quiet." The sentiment was sweet, but he was digging himself into a hole. "Nicky, stop taking." The look she shot him was one that meant they would talk later. Hopefully by now he could read her well enough to take the hit and drop any further discussion.
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Post by Danny Larkin on Jul 8, 2011 13:01:23 GMT -5
Danny watched curiously as Maddie's face shifted through several emotions in the span of a few seconds. She seemed finally to settle on a smile that, though it looked innocent enough, made Danny worry a little. He watched as she moved her burger and picked up the fries, her smile even sweeter.
The tiny part of Danny's mind that wondered if she was going to throw her fries was so outweighed by the certainty that she wouldn't actually do something like that in the cafeteria that he just remained slumped against the back of the chair while she held the plate. Meaning, when she did waste the food by chucking it at his head, he only had time to flinch back a little before they all connected. This was followed immediately by a squirmy dance as Danny leapt to his feet, trying desperately to catch a few of the fries that were starting to work their way down his shirt.
Maddie's snarky question about the salad was met with a dirty look and a muttered rude word. He finished fishing the fries out of his shirt and threw them on the table, not taking his eyes of Maddie as he did. "You really have no heart, do you? Here I - a poor, starving boy - ask you for food...and you throw it at me. Seriously?" |
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Post by dom on Jul 13, 2011 0:23:19 GMT -5
The invisible teen sat watching Maddie and the older boy go back and forth taking jabs at each other. Nic already knew how it would end; Maddie was always the one to finish these, and Danny seemed too nice to drag it on to the point where Maddie got really serious. It seemed like Danny was just trying to have a little fun. Nic was beginning to grow bored as their feud dragged on and let out a small sigh as he considered heading outside to look for something else to do.
His attention was brought back to Maddie and Danny when he felt something smack him in the face. "Hey!" He yelped in surprise as the fry that hit his face fell onto his lap. Confused, Nic looked up to see Maddie with an empty plate and Danny covered in fries. The boy broke in laughter as he became visible again, amused with the look on Danny's face. I totally did not see that coming!! Maddie must be in a really sour mood. The laughter fled him and Nic immediately quieted down, not wanting to draw her attention to himself by being loud.
After having apolgized to Maddie about her "homework," being ruined, Nic wasn't expecting a response from her at all. When she called him "Nicky," a nickname that only Maddie could get away with calling him, Nic took her orders to heart and vowed not to make another sound unless prompted to by her. He also caught the look he gave her and understood that she just wanted him to drop the subject and that they would get back to it later. Nic was hoping that the two would wrap up their little food fight soon so he could finally learn what Maddie had up her sleeve. A frown fell on Nic's face when Danny stated Maddie's lack of a heart. Just not for you. Maddie has pleeennttyy of heart for me.
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Post by Madeline Parker on Jul 15, 2011 23:27:19 GMT -5
Her blood seemed to simmer beneath her skin, temper threatening to biol over. The only reason she hadn't made a bigger scene was because she knew Danny would eventually get his just desserts. She would personally see to that. In the mean time, to make another irrational action would draw more unwanted attention than they already had. A teacher sitting down to lunch had caught her eye as well. If she was to continue this argument further, there was no doubt it would end in detention. Maddie did not do detention.
So instead she slid her chair back, choosing to ignore the heartless comment. Heartless was not something she considered herself. Maddie could be (and often was) ruthless, but buried deep inside the drama queen was a heart full of fiery passion. She was not above using her talents to help out her friends, especially when someone dear to her was wronged. Besides, if she didn't have some sort of heart she never would have let Dominic tag along all the time.
Grabbing her bag from the seat next to her, she stood up. Her eyes were like ice as she stared down at Danny, wicked smile still on her face. "Go ahead. Laugh now. Because pretty soon you're going to regret the day you met me." It was a promise she would not break. Because as she turned and walked away (passing Nic and tugging on his sleeve to get him to follow) she was already plotting exactly how to get her revenge on the latest nuisance in her life.
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Post by Danny Larkin on Jul 19, 2011 0:20:09 GMT -5
Danny's smile slid off his face at the cold look Maddie gave him. For just a split second, he was six years old again and about to be thrown down the basement steps. His throat closed up and his breath lodged hard in his throat, nearly choking him. He was mere moments away from causing a scene, and he couldn't stop it.
It was Maddie's movement as she stalked away that snapped him out of it, and he grabbed the table as inconspicuously as he could, shifting his weight on to it as he breathed deeply. He knew she had said something to him before she left, but he also knew hadn't heard a word of it. Somehow, he thought that probably meant he was in for a very nasty surprise in the near future. Still, he tried to think optimistically, what's life without a little thrill factor?
Maddie's tug on Nic's sleeve did not go unnoticed, and Danny shot a smirk at the younger boy. "Better go, there's a good boy." The jab was probably unnecessary, but he couldn't resist. Even as he spoke, he sank back into his chair, breathing slowly to settle his heart. As soon as the boy had followed Maddie, he pushed out of his seat, scooped up his own bag, and hurried out the room. |
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Post by dom on Jul 24, 2011 2:11:43 GMT -5
An inaudible sigh left the young teen's mouth as he slumped in his seat, growing really impatient with the quarreling of the two older students and anxious that Danny would piss Maddie off even more. Dude, if this guy makes Maddie even more mad, she might not even let me in on her newest prank! She might not even tell me what its about at all! Ugh! This guy is ruining my life! Nic was now glowering at Danny, wishing the guy would just give it up already and quit taunting Maddie.
Everyone should know by now not to mess around with Maddie, this guy is just trying to put himself at the top of her shitlist. I bet she's already getting ideas on how to get her revenge. The tension in the air between the two was almost tangible and Nic really just wanted to get the heck out. Just as he was about to excuse himself, Maddie confirmed his guess that she was planning further revenge and a devious smirk fell on his lips as he looked at Danny.
When Nic felt the tug on his sleeve, he immediately stood up. As he was pushing in his chair, he heard Danny's little insult and he turned around with a smile on his face. Obviously the guy didn't quite understand the gravity of the situation he just put himself in. "You better enjoy your life as it is now for as long as you can." As he said this, Nic faded away from sight and added with an ominous tone, "Daaaarrrkk and terriiiibbbleee tiiimmess awaaait youuu...." With a taunting laugh the invisible boy left the table and followed quickly after Maddie.
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