#nobody is going to read this but my nostaglia makes me post it regardless

[blairsanne]

In the Cards (3&4)

Big Wolf on Campus fanfic. Merton x OC. [Tommy also gets some pairings.]

Kalida and Merton spend some time alone, and Merton learns that she only likes happy-ending movies. Then the trio hang out together and study like good kids, eat chicken in the hearse, and try not to drown at the Factory. Typical night in Pleasantville.

Also on FF & AO3.

Chapter 3: Alone & Chapter 4: Circumpolar

After the incident on Friday night, Merton didn't hear from Tommy or Kalida the rest of the weekend. He spent the two days catching up on homework and trying not to worry about whether or not Tommy was going to come clean to Kali. Monday morning, he was surprised to see both of them at their lockers.

"Hey!" Tommy grinned lopsidedly. "Morning Merton. Hey, did you finish that lab report for Bio?" Merton tore his eyes from Kali. "What? Biology? Uh, yeah." "Did you get the question about myocardium?" "Of course." Merton raised a brow. "Need me to run you through it at lunch?" Tommy clapped his hands together. "Yes, thank you." He threw his bag over his shoulder. "I gotta go catch Brett before class." He ruffled Merton's hair on his way past.

Merton tried to fix his spikes covertly as he rummaged in his locker. "Um, Merton?" Kali moved to stand next to him. He tried to act casual as he turned toward her, the smell of her shampoo giving him butterflies. "Mm?" "I, um, made you this."

She held out a small black pillow with a symbol stitched onto the front in green embroidery floss. "It's a protection charm." "Oh." Merton took the small thing from her carefully, examining it. "You made this? Really?" He didn't know what to say. He'd never had anyone make something for him. "It's got good herbs and crystals inside, for protection." She fidgeted, looking down. "To, um, keep you safe. When you're doing… that stuff."

It was all Merton could do to not call her adorable, holding his hand over his heart. "Thanks. I'll keep it with me." She nodded and looked up at him hesitantly. "I won't tell anyone." The soft smile on his face made her chest burn. "But if you ever need help…" "You're not afraid?" "Well, I'm not… unphased." She rubbed her arm. "It just seems like a lot to take on by yourself." "It's not just me, there's also the wolf man," Merton was quick to add. "He really does most of the dangerous stuff. I'm more of a supporting role." "Still, I…" She tapped her foot anxiously. "I'm going to worry." Merton put a hand gently on her shoulder, holding the charm up. "Thanks for worrying over me."

---

At lunch, Merton leaned across the table toward Tommy. "So, after what happened on Friday, you know what Kali did this morning?" Tommy thought. "Confessed a deep fear of thunder genies?" "Perendi," Merton rolled his eyes. "And no. She gave me this." He held up the trinket. "A tiny pillow?" He sniffed. "Smells funny." "A protection charm. That she made."

"Wait, she made that? I never saw her doing anything like that." He slipped it back in his pocket and got quiet again. "And she told me she wouldn't tell anyone about Friday." "Who's going to believe her anyway?" "She didn't bring it up with you at all? All weekend?" Tommy shrugged. "She doesn't even know it's you, and she's already keeping it a secret. You should tell her the truth."

Tommy shook his head. "No way. We agreed. No telling my family." "But she's already half in the loop. Now I have to keep pretending that I don't know it's you." "That's right, Merton. Do this one thing for me." "What if she asks me outright?" "Just lie!"

"Tommy…" "C'mon, you're my best friend, right? You know you're the only one I trust with this." Merton sighed as Tommy batted his lashes at him. "Ugh, fine. But only because you pulled the best friend card." Tommy relaxed. "Thank you." "You really should tell her, though." "I'll think about it. Now help me with this homework before coach pulls me from the team."

---

After school, Merton ran into Kalida again at the lockers. "Hey." He thought a moment, pointing her way. "Tommy has practice right?" She glanced over, rushing to shove her textbooks in her bag. "Yeah!" "Would you… want to hang out? I could give you a ride home after." "Oh, uh…" She closed her locker, looking away. Merton's heart sank. He could tell by her expression that it was a no. "I would, but-" "It's okay. I get it if you don't want to hang out with the creepy guy-"

"No!" She put her hand on his chest. "I just have my driver's test today, and Uncle Bob is picking me up, and he doesn't really like m- er, that is, I- I shouldn't keep him waiting." She started backing away. "But tomorrow? After school?" "Oh. Yeah, tomorrow's great." "Okay." Kali turned and waved behind her. "Bye!" Merton stood and watched her go, unsure what she had meant about her uncle. He'd always assumed that things were good in the Dawkins household. They seemed… overly good. But Kali's panic about making her uncle wait was making him uneasy.

---

The next day, Merton didn't see Kalida at the lockers in the morning. Or Tommy. It wasn't until lunch time that he had a chance to question Tommy about it. He slid into the seat across from Tommy and tried to force a casual tone. "Hey, where were you this morning?" "We barely made it to school in time for first period." "Why?" "Nothing important, Kali was kinda slow." He downed a carton of milk. "I saw her light on in the middle of the night. She said she was up studying."

"How did her driver's test go?" "Oh, good!" he nodded. "She got her licence." "So she can drive Betsy now." "Uh, yeah." Tommy raised a brow. "How do you know about Betsy?" "She told me about her camper the day I drove her home." He thought a moment. "Her first day of school?" "Oh yeah, I forgot about that." He bit into an apple, grinning. "You're a real good friend, Merton. Thanks for looking after her." "It's not a big deal," Merton smiled bashfully, pushing his food around. "She's sweet." "Yeah, she's a good kid."

"Tommy," Merton hedged. "Stop me if I'm overstepping, but Kalida said something odd about your dad yesterday." "Odd how?" "Well…" He tilted his head. "I may have misunderstood, but I think she's worried he doesn't like her?" Tommy's usual carefree expression faded and he looked away. "Tommy?" "I dunno what to say, man." "So I take it your dad really doesn't like her?"

"My dad…" Tommy sighed and leaned forward toward Merton. "My dad has a problem with Aunt Macy. Says he put weird ideas in his brother's head. He thinks she's…" he gestured, drawing circles beside his head. "He's been really strict with Kali, telling her she has to get certain grades to stay with us and stuff. Before she came to town he told me to keep an eye on her. Not like, watch out for her, but like, spy on her." "Tommy, that really doesn't sound like a good situation." "I know, man." He rubbed the back of his neck. "But Kalida's smart and she's getting the grades fine. It's not like I'm gonna snitch on her or anything." "You should talk to your dad about it." "I can't, Merton. I have a hard enough time talking to him about being out past curfew." "What about your mom?" "Oh, mom loves Kali. It's not a big deal." Tommy tore off another piece of apple. "My dad's just a bit of a hardass."

---

Merton got caught by T&T after school, delayed on his way to meet with Kali by being picked up, folded in half, and dumped in a trash bin. "Great. My favourite," he muttered as he pushed himself off the floor and dusted himself off.

When he finally made it to the lockers, he was disappointed to see that Kalida was sandwiched between them and Brett Johnson, who was speaking fervently about something to her. "Hey Brett," he called, a little too loudly, when he got to his locker. Brett turned toward him, then forced a smile. "Mr. Dingle." Kali slid away, then walked around Brett and stood behind Merton. She spoke quietly. "Are you ready to go?"

"How's your little club?" Brett asked, approaching Merton's locker. "Still trying to drum up members?" "The Gothic Fantasy Guild has more than the minimum number of members to be an officially listed extra-curricular activity, as the council is well aware." Brett patted Merton's shoulder. "That's just great, Merton." He continued to speak at Merton, but turned his gaze to Kalida. "The council is always encouraging students to pursue what they enjoy." "See you tomorrow, Brett." she offered. "See you in Chem." Brett nodded with a smile, then walked off.

"You two are getting chummy," Merton remarked. "I guess. I take it you two don't get along?" "Brett's…" Merton hesitated as he shut his locker, then shook his head. "I don't know, he's fine I guess. I don't know him that well." Kali shrugged. "Anyway…" Merton brightened, remembering that they were going to hang out alone. "So, did you want to drive around? Or we could go back to the Lair?" "The Lair sounds good."

"Great." He led her out to the parking lot. "I was worried I creeped you out last time." She laughed softly. "Well, I'm a little curious about some of the stuff you've got lying about, but I feel confident that you're not going to chain me to the wall or anything." Merton shrugged. "No promises."

---

Kali dumped her bag beside the couch, then took another tour of the space. Without the context of a weird magic thing that needed dealing with, the room seemed a lot more… mundane. She was able to tell now that most of the weird things were props or fakes. She stood before a display of weapons. "Do you actually know how to use these?" "Most of them. But not that well." "Do you use them on magic things?"

Merton paused his pillow fluffing. "If I needed to. But usually Wolfy takes care of it." She walked over to his book collection and started casually perusing the spines. "And Tommy has no idea?" He hesitated. "Just Wolfy and me." "I wonder what he'd think," she murmured. Her fingers rested on a spell book for a moment before she decided she should probably stop pacing the room. She took a seat on the sofa. "So have you and Wolfy been dealing with these things a long time?"

Merton settled in beside her, rubbing his neck. "A few months now. Since right around the beginning of the school year." "Oh. That's not that long, then. You're so blasé about it, I thought maybe it was a family tradition or something." Merton laughed. "No, I'm the freak in the family." Kali sank into the cushions, rolling her eyes. "Tell me about it."

He furrowed his brows. "I thought you all got along?" Her eyes widened and she put her hands up defensively. "Oh, no, don't get me wrong. Tommy's great, and… everyone's great." She looked away, deflating. "I just spend a lot of time trying to fit in with them. It's tiring." He leaned closer. "What do you mean?" "Just, everything?" She ran a hand through her hair. "It's been a culture shock, moving here. My uncle's really strict, and banned me from even bringing some of my stuff into the house. I have to keep it in the camper." He frowned. "What kind of stuff?"

"Tools of devil worship." She rolled her eyes. "Literally candles, incense, that kind of thing. Says he won't have any of that hippie garbage under his roof." "Well," he put a hand on her knee and offered her a sheepish smile. "You can always bring that stuff over here." She snickered, leaning toward him. "Thanks. We can cast some spells together sometime." Merton licked his lips and smirked softly, aware of the shrinking space between their faces. "Make a little magic."

He leaned in slightly, closing his eyes, when suddenly his bedroom door banged open. "Freakzilla, mom says you have to make dinner tonight. Her and dad are gonna eat out- is that a girl!?" Becky gaped in the doorway as Merton ran a hand over his face. Kalida turned around, poking her head over the back of the couch. "Um, hi." "Kalida Dawkins!? Oh. Em. Gee." She bobbed up and down holding the phone against her chest. "I'll order pizza. Just go upstairs!" Becky backed out of the room and slowly closed the door. "And learn how to knock!" Merton called after her.

"Freakzilla, eh?" "Oh my god, you just said eh!" Merton pointed, grinning widely. "I thought that was just a stereotype!" "Don't be such a hoser." She smacked him with a pillow, sticking her tongue out. He laughed, pushing her over. "You're so cute with your canuck nonsense." "I make perfect sense!" She righted herself and started fixing her hair. "I can't help it if yankees are remedial." "Whoa, now, I might have to kick you out." "You better not." She poked at his side. Merton rubbed the back of his neck. "I should probably order that pizza. Do you wanna stay for dinner?"

---

Kalida pulled the pepperoni from her pizza, settling in again on Merton's couch. She had called home and told Dean she was over at a friend's place studying and would miss dinner. Merton locked his bedroom door and joined her. "Wanna watch a movie?" "Okay." "I just got the Scream trilogy on DVD." "I don't really like horror movies." Merton nearly choked. "Oh." He pounded his chest. "I just thought, because you like Buffy-" "I don't like the violence." She winced. "It gets in my head and I can't stop thinking about people I know getting hurt." Merton nodded. "Happy ending movies, got it." He hummed. "A Knight's Tale?" "Oh, I love that one!" she squeaked.

---

When William went up against Count Adhemar, Kali pulled her knees up against her chest, hiding her face behind balled fists. Merton snickered under his breath. He reached around her and squeezed reassuringly. "Happy end, remember?" She whined and pressed her face into his shoulder. "I know, but it's so hard to watch." Merton held her close during the final minutes. As the credits scrolled up the screen, Kali finally moved away.

"I should probably get home. It's a school night." "Right. Don't wanna miss curfew." Merton got up and stretched, trying to relax. "And thus ruin any chance of doing this again." He put his hands in his pants. "Definitely don't want that."

---

On the short drive home, they talked about what other movies he owned that they could conceivably watch together. Kali took off her seatbelt and looked up the driveway. "Thanks for tonight." Merton studied her face in the dim light from the street lamp. "Any time." "I like hanging out with you." She turned to him, a soft smile playing on her lips. "I feel like I can just be myself." He nodded. "That's good."

He was just about to lean over and try to kiss her again when she swung the passenger door open. "Night, Merton." "Goodnight."

Chapter 4:

That weekend, Merton invited Tommy and Kalida over for a study party. Tommy was still hovering dangerously close to his minimum GPA to stay on the football team - and Kalida spent all her time studying anyway - so they brought their materials over to the lair Saturday morning.

Kali had a stack of English worksheets on the coffee table, and was sitting on the floor filling them all out. Merton was going through flash cards with Tommy on the couch. "Myocardium." "Heart muscle." Tommy grinned. "Epicardium." "The, uh, outside membrane." "Of?" "Of the heart muscle." "Endocardium." "The inner lining of the heart muscle."

Merton passed the stack of cards back to Tommy. "Okay, that's Bio. I think you'll be fine for the test now." "With how many times we just did that, I feel like Kali could take the test now." Kalida laughed. "I never took Biology. Once it switched to English in grade 10, I couldn't follow along." "Wait, you did biology in French?" Tommy gaped. "Yeah, everything was in French, except for English class. Until like grade 8. And then it was just French," she counted them out on her fingers, "Social Studies, P.E., and Science." Merton raised his eyebrows. "No wonder you're fluent." She laughed. "Yeah, but ask me to do long division the English way and you're out of luck." She went back to her worksheet.

"I didn't even know there was an English way to do math," Tommy fell back, stretching out over the arm rest. "Maybe that's why I suck at it." "You suck at it because you don't try very hard," Merton chastised. "Did you even bring your Math homework?" Tommy rolled his eyes. "Yes, mom." "Let's do that next."

---

By the time Merton was done helping Tommy with his math, Kalida had packed up her homework and was reading a novel quietly on the recliner. Tommy stood up and stretched. "I need a break. I'm gonna go take a run around the block." "Alright."

Merton tidied up the sheets they'd been working on, then looked over at Kalida. "How's your book?" She peeked up at him with a small smirk. "It's terrible. This teacher has the worst taste." He laughed. "Tell me how you really feel." He rubbed his shoulders and neck, sighing. "I'm gonna need to start charging him. Puts a real crick in my neck."

She tossed the book at her bag and moved over to sit sideways next to him on the couch. "Turn around, I'll rub it." "Oh, uh, sure." He licked his lips nervously, but closed his eyes as her small hands smoothed over his shoulders. "Relax." She pressed his shoulders down, trying to reposition them. "You're really tense." "I'm not highly experienced with getting massages." "Well lucky you to have a sweet girl like me to help you out." She kneaded his tight muscles methodically. Merton let out a small pleased whimper, leaning into her hands. "You can definitely do this any time you want." She chewed her lower lip, trying to get him to make that sound again.

A few charged minutes later, Tommy walked back in Merton's exterior door. Spotting her massaging Merton's shoulders, Tommy tapped his chest. "Me next." Kalida laughed, drowning out Merton's sigh. "Sure, come sit down." Tommy settled on the floor in front of the couch and Kali switched to rubbing his shoulders. "Ohhh, yeah…" Tommy let out a long, pleased groan. Merton rolled his eyes and settled back against his seat, trying not to feel jealous. They were cousins, after all. "Kalida, why are you not giving me a massage every day?" Tommy continued, eliciting a laugh from her. "Because it makes my hands sore? You two are so tense!" She balled her hands into fists and started pummeling his back. "You gotta relax." "I could if you'd massage me."

Merton cleared his throat. "What should we do for dinner?" "Let's go out," Kalida interjected, stopping her massage to turn to Merton. "I haven't been anywhere but The Factory yet." "There isn't much else." Tommy whipped around. "We could eat at the Hungry Bucket." Merton pinched his nose. "Yeah, we could. Again." "What's wrong with the Hungry Bucket?" "Nothing." Merton shook his head, giving a look to Kali. "Tommy's a little passionate about their chicken." "I need a lot of protein. I'm a football player!" She laughed. "Well I'm game." "Let's get it to go, then." Merton suggested. "The ambience is a bit lacking."

"Oh, we can eat it in the back of the hearse up at the lookout!" Tommy stood up, excited. "It looks super cool at night, and Kali hasn't been up there yet." Kalida shrugged. "Sure, sounds good." Merton stood up. "Alright, children. Time to pile into the Merton-mobile."

--

Once they'd hit the drive through, they snaked their way up a mountain road. The waxing moon was the only light (other than their headlights) guiding their path, and Kali shivered as she looked out into the pitch black woods. "Aw, are you afraid of the dark, cuz?" Tommy wrapped an arm around her shoulder, his other resting on the seat behind Merton's head. "More like what's in it," she half-joked. The tree-lined path gave way to a grassy clearing, and Merton backed the vehicle up toward the ledge. When they hopped out, Kali stood at the edge of the cliff, looking out at the aerial view of the small town below them. "It's beautiful." Tommy nudged her and pointed up. "Stars are pretty nice from here, too." Her gaze followed his, but she was distracted by the sounds behind them.

Merton opened the back doors to reveal the large empty space within, already draped with blankets. "Wow!" Kali gaped. "You could sleep in there." Merton shrugged. "Thought about it a few times."

Tommy hopped in, holding the massive bucket of chicken they'd bought. "Best view in town, best people to share it with." Kalida climbed in beside him, leaving Merton enough space to sit on her other side. They were quiet for a few minutes as they ate, the faint sounds of the city below filtering through the sounds of the forest.

When Kalida was done eating, she turned around and laid on her back, letting her head hang off the back end slightly as she stared up at the sky. "The constellations are different," she murmured. Merton gazed upward. It was the same sky that he'd seen every year around this time. "Some of them must be the same. Ursa Major, Ursa Minor." She pointed, smiling softly. "Cassiopeia, Draco. All the circumpolar constellations." "Circum-what now?" Tommy squinted up at the stars. "That means they rotate around the north pole, so you can see them everywhere in the northern hemisphere." Tommy tapped her on the nose. "Nerd."

Tommy polished off the last of the chicken, and they spent a good hour up on the hill. They told camping stories and discussed their star signs. When it got cold, Kalida suggested that they get some dancing in at The Factory.

--

They pushed through the crowd. Merton leaned over to Tommy. "I don't think there are any tables." Tommy pulled Merton along. "Guess you'll just have to join us on the dance floor, then!" Kali joined in, hooking arms with Merton to playfully force him into the fray. The three danced together as a group for a few songs - Merton a little more awkwardly than his partners.

A senior girl from Kalida's English class started dancing near Tommy, catching his attention. As the crowd grew and closed in around them, Kali moved closer and closer to Merton. He was careful to keep his hands off her. When the music slowed, he realized that he could no longer see Tommy in the throng.

Kalida reached up to hold Merton's shoulders, resting her head against his neck. He swallowed and held her close, his hands on her hips. "Relax," she whispered. The way her breath tickled his skin made him shiver. "Y-yeah, I'm very relaxed." Kalida closed her eyes. Though it could hardly be called dancing, rocking back and forth in his arms made her cheeks burn.

Merton was enjoying their embrace until he felt something seeping into his shoes. He looked down to see water was flooding the dancefloor. "Whoa." Kalida pulled away, but was pushed into him as the crowd started moving away from the entrance. "Another monster thing?" "Probably."

They let the throng press past them, finally revealing a blue-skinned woman covered in scales and seaweed. Waves crashed through the entrance behind her. Merton rubbed his chin. "Bipedal mermaid?" "Don't mermaids drown people?" Merton pointed at Kalida with a whimper. "Maybe we should go." The mermaid glared, fixing a glowing gaze upon him. He turned, holding hands with Kali as they trudged toward the exit. The water was now at their knees, and they looked up to see that the back door now appeared to be taped shut by kelp. "How do you kill a Mermaid?" Merton squeaked.

Tommy jumped down from the stage area in werewolf form, blocking the mermaid's path. "Hey water lady, go back to the ocean!" Despite his battle stance, he was slowly backing toward his friends as the mermaid shot various forms of sea life at him. Kalida leaned against the back door and took a deep breath, studying the creature. "The shell in her crown is glowing. Maybe that?"

"Oh, like in Disney's animated classic The Little Mermaid!" Tommy called behind him. "What happened?" "Well, some say it was the film that brought Broadway to cartoons with its Academy Award winning musical score-" "In the movie, Merton. What happened in the movie?" "An evil sea witch trapped the mermaid's voice in a shell. When the shell was broken, so was the spell making the witch look pretty." "I don't think this is the exact same thing," Kalida interjected, pushing the wolf man out of the way as a swarm of sea stars were launched their way. The weight of the creatures sticking to her knocked her over into the water. Tommy felt a surge of frustration and lunged through the air, knocking the creature into the growing pool.

Merton helped Kalida up, and started peeling the echinoderms off of her. "You protected Wolfy," he gushed. "He's the muscle, right?" She winced, clawing at the sea star on her neck.

Suddenly the thrashing in the water stopped and Tommy stood up, holding the broken crown in his hand. The sea creatures and kelp turned to water, and the lake inside The Factory quickly dissipated. At Tommy's feet lay an unconscious teenage girl. Sopping wet, Kalida sighed in relief and leaned into Merton. "I'm starting to think this place is cursed." Tommy turned to Merton and Kalida and gave them a nod before darting out of the building.

The girl on the ground sat up, holding her head. "What happened?" Kalida rushed over. "Hey, we got caught in a flood. Are you okay?"

---

After making arrangements for the girl - who seemed to have amnesia of the whole ordeal - Merton and Kalida finally made their way out into the parking lot. Tommy rushed over to them, still damp. "There you are! Can you believe it? A water main burst down the street!" "I'm so glad you're safe!" Kalida hugged Tommy tightly. "It was awful, The Factory totally flooded and we couldn't get the door open. We had to hide on the stage 'til enough of it drained." He hugged back, raising a brow a Merton. "I'm glad you're okay." He mouthed that's a good lie. She's amazing, Merton mouthed back.

---

Chapter 5 here.

Chapters: 1&2, 3&4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17