After School Special?

[Anzeh]

My heart's a tart, your body's rent.
My body's broken, yours is bent.
Carve your name into my arm.
Instead of stressed I lie here charmed.

The cafeteria. Really, what had possessed him to come here after school? Why hadn't he gone to Nymph lake or back the the Auditorium, or perhaps back to his dorm to see if Illia was still chilling out there? He rubbed his eyes. He needed to study, to start on his homework so he would be free to wander around the place once it was safe. That would be quite a fright to the little humans for wandering out of bed.

It was really too bad there was no truth behind what the humans said about if someone saw a Barghest clearly then they would meet instant death. And it was also too bad that those that didn't see it clearly merely died a couple months later. If those rumors were true, then he would be able to get rid of his enemies so easily... not that he really had enemies, yet.

He tapped the table. It seemed that whenever he seemed to sit alone, someone would come and quench him of his loneliness. 'Or, at least,' he mused, remember the talk he'd had with Coyle earlier. 'Distract me from it.'

[ωΘĿƒ]

Coyle's ears flicked forward, but that was just for show. His tentacles were the real deal. They were the ones that could really hear things. Those were trained ahead of him as well, his primary front legs and his hind legs moving him silently through the winding hallways while his secondary front legs were tucked up under his chest.

It wasn't like he couldn't use his secondary legs. He could actually move faster with them, but he wasn't interested in speed today. As he traced his way along the labyrinth that was Chimera Academy, he had only one thing on is mind. Food.

He shoved open the huge cafeteria doors, skittering inside and immediately finding himself face first in one of the silver platters that they always kept out, even after lunchtime. Mmmmmm salmon. He liked salmon. Must have been a cat thing, and he was sort of a cat. Sort of... With a few extras added.

As he used his primary front paws to hold himself up and his secondary front paws to shovel honey glazed salmon into his face, he slowly became aware that there was someone else in the room with him.

Really? There usually weren't too many students in here after dark. Somethign about the halls being haunted by demons-

Oh right... He was the demon! He'd almost forgotten about that. Well, whoever this kid was, he obviously didn't know the rules of the school.

Rule No. 1 - Don't **** off the school demon

Sliding off the granite topped serving table, his mouth sill covered in disemboweled salmon, Coyle curled around the side of the serving table, glaring at the intruder.

He had been told his green eyes were something of a sight. They weren't red like you'd think an evil creature's eyes would be, but it seemed that was what made them worse than red eyes. They weren't red, they were green, and they still burned like hell if you stared at them too long.

Unfortunately, he didn't get the opportunity to stare. He recognized the intruder far too quickly, and found he didn't want to stare and scare the wits out of the kid. He'd already sort of done that earlier.

"Hey! I know you!"

Coyle clomped up to where Moss was sitting, then proceeded to groom the salmon off of his face and paws. Mmmmmmm salmon paste.

"Moss, right? What are you doing here?"
[/size]

[Anzeh]

Moss sighed, and twisted around at the sound the heavy double doors opening, he stared and stared, watching and waiting to see something appear, but there was nothing, and they closed back. His imagination began to run wild, but he shook his head. If it was something that wanted to attack him, then he could just run right?

A familiar smell began to waft to his nose. It was a unique smell, one that he couldn't peg to any other being. The was that smell, the one that was different, but not exactly fear-striking. He recognized it as Coyle's scent. But... where was he? There was also a fishy scent... oh god, salmon. He licked his lips. The food of choice for all bears.

Suddenly, he heard a voice, which surprised him so much he leapt off his seat and he pretty much backwards crawled across the room until his head hit the table. He was such a brave and powerful Barghest. Yes, that was definitely why he was rocking back and forth clutching his head.

His skin flickered on and off, body growing then shrinking then growing again, until it finally flicked off completely. A large bear/wolfish body had replaced his normal one. Low, rumbling growls came from his throat before his body returned to normal.

"Oh... hey, Coyle, what's up?"

[ωΘĿƒ]

Colye's tail flicked back and forth, not showing any surprise in how Moss had floundered backwards and hit his head.

Hmmmm flounder was good too...

Anyways, it wasn't the first time, and it certainly would not be the last time he would see people afraid of him. That's just how things went with him. Either you were afraid, or he allowed you not to be afraid. It was a privilege, not a born right.

"Ah well I don't sleep so I eat while everybody's out cold. They always leave food out for me and everything."

He turned around, looking at the huge platter of lightly seared salmon and the bucket of still-warm milk. Hmmm. Maybe he was a cat. He really hadn't picked a specific form when becoming tangible in the first place, but maybe since he looked like a cat, he had the characteristics of one too.

"But back to my question. What are you doing here? This happens to be part of my nightly rounds, but technically speaking kids aren't supposed to be out of dorms this late."

Well... technically speaking, he wasn't allowed to talk to students at night either - something about there being not witnesses or whatever - so they were both "technically" breaking the rules. As far as Moss knew though, only he was to blame. Wasn't it nice when newbies didn't know the rules?
[/size]

[Iƪƪia]

It was quite a difficult question that Illia was faced with. During the course of the day, she had decided to stop by a few of her classes - well, just 2 to be exact - which proved to be a bad decision, as both classes chose that day to really pile on the homework. She was a senior. She wasn't supposed to do any real work. Didn't they know that? And so the question now became, should she actually do that work? Or should she just blow it off completely? Obviously, doing her homework would be the right thing to do, but she didn't want to. And so instead, she had been wandering around the school after curfew for the better part of an hour. So she liked to prowl around in the darkness. Maybe it was a cat thing.

Now finding herself in front of the cafeteria doors, she shoved the doors open and stepped in. Apparently, she wasn't the only one breaking curfew. Tipping her head, she watched them for a short while. She knew one of them. Oh, yes, she knew him. But the other one... Wait, just what was that thing?

Illia had never seen that type of creature before. Was it even a mythical creature? Well, it must be... But what the hell was it? Hm... Just maybe it was that "school demon" that she had heard so much about. That was entirely possible. And after all the things she had seen in this school, that assumption was a relatively easy one to accept. Well, whatever. Moss seemed to know the demon... If that meant anything.

With a shrug, Illia trotted over to the table, perching herself on the edge rather than taking a chair.

"Well... Good evening."

Glancing at both of them, her sights lingered on the demon-like thing. So if it was the demon, did that mean that all the stories and stuff that she had been told about it were true? Possibly, however she had never really payed attention to them, so it didn't matter anyway.

[Anzeh]

Moss bit his lip and mentally swore. He had completely forgotten about the curfew. Well, if he was with the school demon and a senior he wouldn't get in trouble, right? Right? Oh who was he trying to fool, of course he would get in trouble! He would get in a world of trouble, and he had a feeling that Coyle would get in trouble too.

"I was heading to my dorm but got sidetracked by hunger and came here but got lost in thinking and never left." Knoei placed his head in his hand. Damn it all to hell. He was planning to keep a nice clean record with the school so he could get away with doing some crazy crap later on in his school career. But... his record was relatively unhurt compared to those of some other students. He turned to Illia and grinned.

"Why good evening Illia. I'm glad that you still have your wits about you." A soft smile graced his normally lecherous features, making his words only harder to decode. He believed in her ability to play the game though. She'd figure it out eventually--just give her a minute or two.

Moss picked himself up off the floor and into another chair. "I'm already out of bed. Might as well not sweat it too much."

[ωΘĿƒ]

Diverting absolutely no attention to the new arrival, Coyle waited patiently for his explanation. Oh, out of bed for food, hmm? Common enough excuse. He's sure heard it enough throughout the hundreds of years of students he'd been through. That was about the most common, other than they "got lost." Of course, most of them were lying. Moss wasn't lying, and that made things a little more original for him. In fact, only after Moss had greeted the new arrival did Coyle deviate from the subject of Moss's being here. By then, he had found a much more interesting subject to dwell on.

What could that tone in Moss's voice mean, hmmm? Could it be? Possibly?

"You know each other well." Coyle snickered, tentacles slithering in an eerily animated fashion, making them look like two long gape-mouthed snakes. He paused abruptly, all motion stopped. Then, in an instant, there was nothing but the form of a crouched boy where once a huge black furred monster perched.

The boy got up, still wiping salmon from his face. Damn. Could never get it all out! He swiped a napkin from one of the table dispensers and scrubbed his face thoroughly. Yep. That got the last of it. He tossed the napkin on the floor, ignoring it from then on out.

"Soooo" He cocked his head, looking at the new girl - Ilia. "I'm guessing it was hook line and sinker with you, wasn't it? And he thinks me the dangerous one."
[/size]

[Iƪƪia]

Illia only smiled back at Moss, her eyelids drooping slightly. She blinked slowly in her favorite, alluring manner. Strange that she was still able to have an enjoyable time with him. Even simply listening to him talk was entertaining. However, another voice diverted her attention before she was able to respond.

Now that Mr. Demon was in his human form, Illia was certain that she had seen him around school sometimes. So he was really the oh-so-frightening demon, was he? Interesting.

Though, she didn't have much time to consider this after listening to his words. Hook, line, and sinker? She glanced back at Moss, contemplating this. Well... She was lured into some sort of trap... But, on the other hand, she kinda let herself be baited. But she still wasn't one of those girls. Was it so wrong to want to have a little fun once in awhile?

"Well, I suppose... In a way..."

[Anzeh]

Hook, line, and sinker? He shook his head and chuckled. Come now, Coyle, you give me far too much credit. It was a fairly easy catch. An interesting and well-played game, but a quick capture and a willing incarcerate. Of course, he didn't dare say these words aloud, but he knew that the other could hear him.

She was going with it too. Well, maybe it was okay. He did like to hear that he was good at his favorite game. Sure, maybe it was conceited and self-centered of him to think about it that way, but who wasn't like that sometimes? He needed his ego stroked. And sometimes something else as well. His lecherous grin came to his face instantly. One didn't need mind-reading powers to guess what he was thinking.

"Okay, fine, you got me there..." Moss said with a gentle chuckle. He had to admit, it was interesting to have the two people he had gotten... um... there was no word to describe their relationships that applied to both parties... perhaps "chummy" was what he wanted. Anyway, it was interesting seeing the two people he had gotten chummy with talk to each other. It was like watching a silent movie... only there was sound.

Moss twisted his head on his shoulders, hearing his neck crack a bit. Once he had done this, he felt so much less on edge and far more relaxed. He suddenly found himself able to melt away the problems right now--that tended to happen when he cracked that vertebrae. Of course, he felt too numb to really move his body. But now, something was bothering him.

"Uh, Coyle... what do you usually do with the students you catch out of bed?"

[ωΘĿƒ]

To this, Coyle only smiled. Yes, he could hear that. He had to admit, of all the boring, selfish things people thought, it was fun to finally pick out a mind that had some juicy bits to it. It's like flipping through tv channels.

Boring. Boring. Boring. Seen it. Soap Opera. Boring. Boring. Ooooooh!

Once you tuned in, you wanted to prep for the marathon. Illia was a good sport about it too, which was a lot more than you could say about most women. Vicious, backstabbing little things they were. He knew. It might be the reason he didn't like hitting on girls anymore.

Well... He didn't pursue as much... It was still fun to play the part.

Moss seemed to get comfy with the situation, then asked him a very funny question. He liked questions. They were fun to answer.

"Depends who you ask." Coyle cackled merrily. "Middle schoolers are still little kiddies, so they think I eat them. Freshmen are gullible, so tell 'em anything you want and they'll be eating right out of your hand. Sophomores get smarter. They think I put a curse on their little souls, and Juniors think I plague their nightmares. Of all of them, Seniors have the best one. They think I follow them idly down the hallways, mixing all the corridors up until they get lost in an endless maze. Then they finally get spat out into a little room where I torture them to death."

He thought about it all, happily. Such diversity of fear, it was hilarious! He had made his way back over to the granite-topped counter, and leaning against it, he'd started to scoop down salmon again.

"What I really do though? That depends. Tuesdays are Freshmen's fears. Wednesday's Seniors. Monday's Sophomore, and Thursday and Friday are Middle School and Junior. I get weekends off, so I just scare people then."

He shrugged, wolfing down a chunk of salmon.

"It would have been much better if they hadn't come up with all those elaborate scare tactics. I'm not too good at making my own."
[/size]

[Iƪƪia]

Illia only nodded at Coyle's explanation. Yes, she remembered hearing those horror stories. Of course, that never stopped her from breaking curfew. All the stories had ever provided her with were a little amusement. Nothing more. Certainly nothing that made her feel the need to rearrange her schedule so as not to be caught in the demon's clutches.

With a sigh, she further leaned back on the table. Staring up at the ceiling, she began to wonder just what kind if power this demon possessed. If he was really as strong as he seemed to be, then it might be advantageous to have him as an ally. It wasn't as if Illia was ever in need of help. No, she could take care of herself just fine. Then again, if you could become even stronger, why pass the opportunity up?

"Hm... Sounds interesting," She said simply, looking down at him again.

Then again, if someone was really that strong, what would possess them to create allies? Well, that didn't really matter to her. She couldn't be certain about what went on in other creature's heads. It wasn't as if she could read minds.[/color]

[Anzeh]

Moss couldn't keep a rather odd look off his face. I look of shock and maybe slight terror, or perhaps it was humor. One couldn't be sure... maybe it was some weird mix of all those emotions that gave birth to the rather odd look that was on his face. Perhaps.

He shook his head to clear it. It was actually rather cool that he got to mess with the student's mind and well-being like that. It made him almost wish that he could mess with them like that. But Coyle was the school demon and he wasn't--he was the school Barghest, since he had not smelled another like him yet. He was probably the school pimp as well, but he didn't mind it.

Since all the other guys were too high-caliber, he didn't have to worry about having to compete with anyone, and he could make his rounds around the school as he pleased. He stroked his chin, because something was bothering him. What? He thought that he should invest in something, something rather important if he was going to continue the way he was going.

He suddenly remembered that Coyle could read his mind. He shrugged, it wasn't as though it mattered. What could he do other than say stop? And why in the hell would he listen?

"The way that sounds, it seems that the good stuff goes on at night. And all the tame students around here miss it." Moss glanced casually towards Illia, and grinned, this time showing his teeth, slightly pointed, looking a little like bear's teeth. His stomach rumbled. Damn, he'd never gotten that food he came here for... But it didn't matter. He could go to bed with an empty stomach--he'd just have to get here early tomorrow and get some breakfast. Or a lot of breakfast. More likely the latter though.

[ωΘĿƒ]

"Oh, that it does!" Colye chimed, holding up the skeleton of a meat-stripped salmon. "Of course, there are always the students that don't follow the rules. They come out despite the risks, and you'd be amazed the trouble they cause!"

He cocked his head, tossing the salmon into a trash bin behind him.

"But don't ask me. Illia knows a lot more about it than I ever could. She's one of them. Doesn't give a rat's ass about the rules and traditions."

Conveniently, he left out the part where he doesn't do his job strictly up to par. Maybe he was just a bit of a lazy demon, but it wasn't like he worked all night. Usually, if he'd reached the kitchen he was done for the night. He had other things to do besides taunting students, after all. There were so many wonderful places to visit and things to see. Chimera had its own glossary of secrets to prowl with, and as much as he did love eating people, it was fun just to stalk around the old stomping grounds too.

Secret passageways, for one. They could be hours of entertainment. And the old bones and artifacts he found hidden deep down where they used to keep the old faults and torture chambers... Such ripe, bloody history to relive through his memories. He - after all - had been here when they still used the torture chamber on kids. In fact, if it hadn't been for some parent's complaint, they would still be open and waiting today!

Seriously, who complained about a little lost finger? Kids lose all kinds of funny digits and this one mom gets all worked up over her wittle baby's pinky? What a joke...
[/size]

[Iƪƪia]

Glancing back at Moss, she returned his smile with a captivating one of her own. Turning back and reaching forward she grabbed a chair and pulled it closer to the table, before resting her feet upon the back of it. Stretching out slightly, she stifled a yawn. She hadn't realized how tired she was... But that made sense. After all, she hardly got any sleep last night. Her thoughts pretty much directed entirely toward her lack of sleep, she nearly missed Coyle's mention of her unlawful nature.

Well, if he knew about the trouble she'd caused then why didn't he come after her like those stories said he would? Talk about lethargy...

Well, it didn't matter to Illia. The tame consequences of detention wasn't exactly enjoyable, but if there was something she wanted to do, that wasn't going to stop her. Even now that she knew there really was a demon walking these halls it didn't matter. His torpid nature only served to strengthen her feelings.

"Well, I never have been a traditionalist," She replied with a shrug.

Ah, what time was it, anyway? She could probably fall asleep right now, but if it wasn't late enough, then she would have to force herself to remain awake. She really disliked getting up early, even if she was awoken by her own volition. Yes, she'd have to stay awake for at least another hour before getting some sleep.[/color]

[Anzeh]

Moss stretched out and rolled his shoulders. Maybe he could sneak off to do something fun before going to bed. Actually, on second thought, maybe that wasn't a good idea... hm, but on the OTHER hand...

God, his on thoughts were annoying him! He clasped his head and willed those stupid, indecisive thoughts away, letting them be replaced by a couple more interesting thoughts. Like, when he was going to pick out a new target. No, he was going to keep Illia, have her until she became bored of him and then find another toy. Maybe even keep a toy on the side for rainy days when he couldn't have what he wanted from her for whatever reason.

He wondered how he would be able to manage that. He had done it before in the past, it was true, but never with someone whom so obviously had an amazing sense of smell, and one that could most likely smell his unfaithfulness. He wasn't stupid. Unless he could mask the scent with some sort of cologne (which he never wore by the way--he happened to know that many guys couldn't tell when enough was enough and ended up burning out a girl's nostrils instead of turning them on in any way, shape or form).

But then again, for his purposes, maybe burning out her nostrils was the way to go. After all, how could he be accused of cheating if she couldn't smell another person or mythical creature's scent on him? It didn't exactly give him diplomatic immunity or anything, but it did, of course, make him feel better. It had to be one of the most flawed plans ever to grace his thoughts, but whatever.

Moss stood up off his chair and began to stretch his tired and stressed muscles. He hadn't started his homework, but... hey, wasn't today Friday? That meant that today was the day that Coyle was supposed to plaguing people's nightmares. More importantly though, that meant that he would have then entire weekend to finish all of his homework.

So many generic thoughts, they were beginning to annoy even him.

A flash of flickering red, the crack of a giant oak tumbling down, birds fluttering and squawking in terror, animals in a panic everywhere...

Knoei shook his head, touching his forehead with a single, icy cold finger. Why were his hands so cold? Why was he shaking? Not because of that silly, pathetic little memory, surely?

His head snapped up. Maybe he was hearing things, maybe he was jumpy and paranoid. His guarding walls were completely shattered whenever that damn memory reared its ugly head. "Is someone coming?"