#will perringer

[dragoneer99]

astarion is not that hot he's just perringer from that barbie movie

[hgihrepaeryster]

I’ve been really jonesing to get back into art lately, so I made a cover image for my short Reaper High story!

You can find it here!

[foetp]

It still bothers me there isn't a ship name for Britta/Jeff. What about Perrywinger? Or Perringer? Jeffritta?

[shayde-n-friends]

“Well...I went looking for a dance partner...and i certainly found one.” Roulette chimed, still holding Will’s hand.

Her ghost Spirit came floating over, nodding Goodbye to Shayde’s Ghost. She noted, the hand holding and it immediately clicked.

Roulette leaned over to Will and gave him a kiss on the cheek.

Will and Roulette!

((Roulette asking Will for a dance or Taking him to her favorite hang out spot!))

[rhbuzzkill-blog]

The first thing you hear from your phone when you answer it is a bright and cheery feminine voice. "Master Buzzkill? This is a call from the office of Kurtis Perringer, CEO of Baytheon Weapons and Industries. Mr. Perringer has a business proposal to introduce to you; as a result, this call is being kept in the utmost confidence. Shall I put you through?"

Buzzkill generally didn’t get phone calls very often. If he did, they were normally from very annoyed people he had pranked recently or family. He didn’t bother to keep his phone number exactly secret - if anything he enjoyed waking up at the brink of dawn to the infuriated yelling of someone else. Sometimes Genius Sanctum students messed with his phone or sent his number somewhere to receive really weird phone calls. A few people even tried to prank him back.

So when he received a phone call from some cheerful voice, he immediately assumed it was a prank. A weapon company wanted to do a business proposal with him? A supervillain? Maybe if he was the test subject. Still, he might as well see how far this prank went. “Sure, why not,” he answered, honestly amused.

[rosemorning]

didn't Kate Perringitis just drop an album or smthng

[hgihrepaeryster]

“Up” is Relative

Will could vaguely hear everyone around the campfire behind him laughing, undoubtedly laughing at some humorous recollection Blossom was telling about defeating a hideous monster or apprehending a super-criminal. It was an interesting mish-mash of canons and OCs at the campsite: The Powerpuffs themselves along with Jenny, Sheldon, Vega, and even Tootie representing the former; and for the latter, Nick, Shayde, Russell, Roulette, Xavis, Luca, Reita, and the young man that wasn’t sitting around the campfire with everyone else.

They were all so enraptured with each others’ fantastic exploits that no one had noticed Will slipping away a few feet and laying back upon the hill that overlooked the City of Townsville. It was his first time in this area, a universe he’d never seen before, and he was instantly taken by the sprawling urban metropolis. His eyes traced the skyline, trying to remember each and every feature, but there was just so much to look at.

Strange how superheroes always have that one city they need to protect. Jenny has Tremorton, and the Powerpuffs have this place. Gotta admit...it’s always a beautiful city that needs protecting.

He had just spotted a strange observatory in the middle of the city when he started to notice lights flickering out. It started in the suburbs around the edges of the city, but soon there was a wave of blackness that overtook the entire sprawl before him. He heard some commotion behind him as the others took notice.

“Oh, great.” Blossom grumbled.

“What’s happening?” Sheldon asked.

“Probably just Mojo Jojo trying another dastardly plot.” Buttercup snarled. “Time to go to work, sisters.”

“You need any help?” Xavis inquired. “If my tanktop had sleeves, I’d be rolling them up right about now.”

“Nah, I think we’re good.” Bubbles replied, cheerily. “Besides, this might take a while, so you shouldn’t have to wait up for us. Thanks for the offer, though!”

“Let’s roll!” Blossom commanded.

The beams of the three superpowered siblings streaked across Will’s field of vision as they flew toward the city in search of danger to defeat. They were so bright that Will needed to shield his eyes from the sudden intensity. As he lowered his hand, however, the first thing he saw was the field of stars above him.

It took his attention instantly.

“You guys go on ahead,” Jenny insisted to the others as they began to file out. “I’ll clean up our campsite.”

“Thanks, Jen.” Nick smiled in appreciation. “We’ll keep the portal open until everyone is back.”

Jenny nodded before getting herself ready for work. One hand turned into a bucket which immediately filled up with water; inverting it over the flames released a stream which instantly doused the campfire. Shifting both her arms into a broom and dustpan, respectively, she began sweeping up the hot ashes to prepare them for disposal. In order to make sure she got them all, she turned on her thermal vision and scanned the immediate area for embers she may have missed. To her satisfaction, there was none...but she caught a glint of someone’s body heat just over the crest of the hill.

I thought that was everyone. Who else did we bring? Xavis, Shayde...

After she buried the charred remnants of the campfire, she turned her attentions to the unknown individual, slowly and cautiously advancing upon the heat signature until she could finally tell who it was.

“Will!” She exclaimed softly as she knelt down over him from behind his head. 

How could I forget?!  She thought to herself silently. I was the one who invited him here anyway!

Will stirred from his focus upon the sky, realizing Jenny was speaking to him. “What’s up?”

“Since the Powerpuffs left, we’ve all decided to turn in for the night.”

“Oh, uh, okay.” Will muttered. “You all go on ahead; I’ll catch up with you later.”

“Everyone else is gone; it’s just the two of us now.”

Will’s heart lept up into his throat. Just...us?

“What were you doing over here, anyway?” Jenny asked. “I thought you wanted to hang out with everyone.”

“Well, yeah, of course!” Will said, somewhat defensively. “And yeah, that’s been great and all, but...I got a little distracted while looking at the skyline.”

“You mean the skyline that’s completely out of view right now?” Jenny noted sarcastically.

“Yeah, that one.” Will added, unaware of the irony in Jenny’s statement.

“I mean,” she clarified with a characteristic giggle, “why are you still here if there is nothing to look at?”

Will snapped his head toward her. “...nothing to look at?” He asked her incredulously. “After the city lights disappeared, there is everything to look at.”

Jenny cocked her head to one side. “Say what, now?”

“Lie down here next to me.” Will asked. “I’ll explain.”

Wait...did I just ask her that?

“Okay.” Jenny responded, still somewhat confused but willing to try it out. Since she was behind him, she decided the best way to go about it was to lay herself in the opposite direction from Will with her head almost right next to his.

“When I was 10,” Will began, “one of my favorite things to do was go stargazing. I would try to memorize all the constellations, watch satellites pass, and even - if I was lucky - see a shooting star go by. If there was ever a night that I was bored, it didn’t take long to cure it if I just brought out a blanket or towel, spread it out on the back lawn, and kept watch on the night sky. That all changed for me when I was 13, though.”

“What happened?”

“I had just taken a science class where we were talking about gravity. Something about that class stuck with me that night, so when I looked up at the sky, I didn’t feel like I was looking up anymore. I felt like I was looking down. The only thing keeping me from floating away forever into space was the gravitational pull of the planet. Think of it like...you spend so much time walking right side up that you lose your sense of perspective on how things really are. In space, 'up’ is relative. Earth is in space. We are on Earth. Therefore, we are in space, too.”

“I...” Jenny slowly replied. “...I can kind of see it. You start to feel like you’re on one of those rides at a fair where they spin you around and then release the lap bar, but the spinning force keeps you in place.”

“Right,” Will nodded, “but on a planetary scale.”

“What happened after that?”

“I was scared.” Will admitted. “I remember gripping the blanket tight, thinking that if I let go I would fall into the sky. I started breathing hard. I almost started to cry. But I shut my eyes and slowly allowed myself to sit up, bringing myself back to the familiar before opening them again.” He sighed. “It was a while before I tried it again, but after the first time the sensation was never quite as bad. The downside was it was replaced by another feeling.”

“What feeling was that?”

Will struggled to find the word he was looking for. “...I don’t want to say loneliness, but...more like insignificance. Such a massive universe and I’m only a small part of it.”

“Will...” Jenny rolled over onto her side so she could look directly at the human next to her.

“And when I saw the sky here,” Will continued, “I realized this is a completely different universe, yet it’s every bit as big. And it’s only one of however many there are that can be accessed in Reaper High, and-”

“Will.” Jenny whispered, placing a hand upon his shoulder.

oh god she is touching me

“You’re not insignificant.” Jenny insisted. “Not to me.”

Will could not bring himself to speak for a few seconds. “...you really think so?”

“I enjoy being around you. You clearly enjoy being around me, otherwise you wouldn’t hang out with us at lunch so much. You can make me laugh just about every day, and when I don’t feel like laughing you’ve been so supportive to me.” She pulled out a concealed drawer in her skirt (Yay, built-in pockets!) and removed a gold, music-note-shaped device. “Then there’s this.”

Will sat up slightly, slightly awe-struck by the sight of his old Musique: the one he gave to her at their second meeting. “You still have that?” He queried. “I figured you would have gone for the new special edition they came out with last week”

Jenny laughed. “First of all, that new one is $12,000; the last time I tried getting one that expensive, it did not end well for me. Second, it - what - has a built in cardiometer? I’m not going to need that unless I start doing this-” Jenny pounded her chest to the rhythm of a heartbeat. “-everywhere I go.” Will grinned and chuckled softly at the mental image of Jenny doing exactly that.

“But, most importantly,” Jenny continued, “is this.”

She turned the device over in her hands and, using a small flashlight from her fingertip, illuminated the name “Will Perringer” across the back.

She noticed that?

“This was personally yours.” Jenny explained. “You could have bought me one or something: I know you’ve been getting stuff for your other friends. But instead you decide to give me this Musique - incredible condition, deluxe edition, gold plating, and personally inscribed with your name, for Pete’s sake - without as much as a second thought. Sometimes, I think about what could make someone do that.”

“Jenny, you saved my life.” Will rationalized it the same way he did when he gave it to her.

“I’ve saved plenty of lives.” Jenny retorted. “But if I’m lucky, I’ll just get a ‘thank you’ out of the mountain climber I just saved from falling to his doom. Not that many have been willing to give something like this up; in fact, I can count them on...well, one finger.” Jenny extended her index finger to prove her point, and then pointed it into Will’s chest.

“You deserve better than that.” Will insisted.

“And you deserve better than to be left alone like this.” Jenny shot back, a bit more insistently than she’d let on before.

A brief pause took over, with only the wind supplying any noise to fill the gap before Jenny sighed.

“I’ve heard things.” Jenny finally said, softly. “Not good things. Things which make me worry about your safety when you’re alone. And I’m not the only one, either; everyone who knows you has had their lives made better because of it.” She gently touched his shoulder again. “I’m not going to force you into making promises, but I’d like you to know you don’t need to run away if you are feeling so small or worthless. You can always talk to me.”

Slowly, her arms wrapped around him as she pulled him in for an embrace.

“It’s what friends do.”

Will could feel the tears start to rise, but held them back as best as he could as he allowed his arms to reciprocate the hug. “Thank you, Jenny.” He whispered, feeling so secure and satisfied in her touch.

It was a while before Jenny loosened her grip. “Let’s head on back. We had a campfire started for a reason, after all; it’s kinda chilly for you to be out here much longer.”

“Yeah, good idea.” Will added, starting to realize he was developing a shiver. Whether that was actually from the temperature or from the adrenaline of ohmygodshejusthuggedmeicandiehappy, he had no idea, but he was definitely looking forward to his warm room as they headed back toward the portal together.

[hgihrepaeryster]

The many emotions of Will, as made by @ask-flaming-fish27! Thank you again!

[hgihrepaeryster]

After that, I don’t remember much apart from my rush to get out of the crossfire. I could hear Blossom muttering under her breath as she left, “I am NOT a cinnamon roll.” 

Let’s be honest, though; she’s totally a good and pure cinnamon roll.

[Drawn for @croxovergoddess and her obsession with this ship; it’s also my first attempt at drawing my own OC. I hope you like this dumb little sketch comic thing!]

[hgihrepaeryster]

An Awkward Introduction

Holyshitholyshitholyshitholyshitholyshit...

It was her. Up to now, there’d been some doubt in Will’s mind as to whether or not the robot girl would actually have a need to come to this school; after all, she could probably look up whatever it is she wanted to from the internet.  Yet there she was, sitting at a lunch table with what could only be a bunch of other heroes: the same smile; the same eyes; the same pigtails.  She looked so calm and happy here, so different from the way she was the last time they’d met.

He started to have second thoughts, even as he stood only a good ten feet away from her and her friends.  What would she think of me?  Would she even remember who I was?  Would I just be a reminder of the terrible fights she has to endure?  With each thought, he took a trembling step backward.  I was stupid to even try.

Something brushed against his ankle.  Losing his balance, he fell hard onto his back, barely escaping a nasty knock on the head.  Laughter ensued around him.  He couldn’t even bring himself to try again.  It wasn’t long before he’d dashed out of the cafeteria and curled up around the corner, trying desperately to control himself.

What a first impression.  He imagined.  You don’t have any business with someone like her.  She did her job, and that’s all; she doesn’t need losers like you “thanking” her just so you can get close to her, you pervy, selfish a-

“Um, hello?”

A fingerless hand was waving in front of his face.  He looked up and saw a big-eyed blonde trying to get his attention.  She reacted when he snapped back to reality.

“Oh!  You are conscious!  We were starting to get worried that the fall may have hurt more than we thought.”  She said.  “Don’t worry; we’ll keep an eye on the Krust cousins to make sure they don’t hurt you again.”

Will sputtered a bit in response.  “Thanks...I-I didn’t even realize that’s what happened.”

“That’s the problem with new kids, I’m afraid.”  The girl replied.  “No matter who they are, they make easy targets for the bullies.”  She helped him up off the floor.  “I’m Bubbles.  You probably saw me over at the table with my sisters.”

“Yeah, I was...”

I was only trying to introduce myself to someone I have no business being with.

I was going to force conversation on a robot girl even though she’s way out of my league.

I was stalking a super-heroine who has the ability to annihilate every atom in my body from a distance of 400 yards.  Smart!

I was busy letting a single meeting with XJ-9 determine my feelings toward her for the rest of my natural life.  Probably my unnatural life, too.

“I was just trying to say “Hi” to someone sitting with you.”

Sure.  Let’s go with that.

“Oh!” Bubbles squeaked with excitement.  “I can take you back over if you’d like!”

“Well, now, I don’t know if I-” Will was cut short when XJ-9 herself came around the corner.

“Everything okay, Bubbles?”  She asked.  “Everyone else was starting to get worried.”

“All good!” Bubbles reported.

“That’s a relief.”  Jenny grinned, extended her arm about twice its normal length toward the cafeteria, and gave her table a clear thumbs up without leaving her spot.  “Poor guy must’ve taken quite a stumble.”  She turned to him in order to see for herself, and this was the first time their eyes met each other since the incident that brought them together.  Even if she didn’t have the world’s most advanced facial scanners - which she did - it’s more than likely that she could have recognized Will from his expression: the same look of downright terror that he shared between being nearly crushed to death and locking sight with someone he was infatuated with.

“Say...I remember you!”  She said brightly.  “You’re the one that was trapped in his house!”

“I-I was?”  Will asked.  “Er, yeah.  Yeah, I was.”

“Well, fancy seeing you at Reaper High!”  Jenny gently grabbed him by the shoulder and gave him a playful shake.  “How are you doing here?”

“Uh...uh-bout as well as anyone else could on their first day, thanks...” The word seemed to stick to his tongue, reminding him of his debt.  “THANKS!  Thanks...I mean, uh, thanks for saving me that day.  I never got to tell you that.”

“It’s bound to happen, especially in an emergency situation like that.”  Jenny rolled her eyes.  “But there’s no need to thank me; I was just doing my job.”

“No, I insist!”  Will retorted, almost as though this was some sort of moral dilemma that needed to be rectified.  “I’ve got to be able to repay you for it in some way...”

Before Jenny could say another word, Will began to search through his pockets, starting with his coat and vest.  There’s got to be something.  Anything.  Just so I don’t have to feel indebted to her anymore.  His search wasn’t satisfied until he felt something in his pocket.  Metal. Would she like something metal?  She’s made of metal.  Wait, is that racist?  Speciesist?  Robot-ist?  Whatever, it’s something; just give it to her.

With a flourish, Will pulled his hand out of his pocket and revealed...

“...a Musique?!”  Jenny gasped.

Fuuuuuck.  Will thought.  That was a deluxe edition Musique that he waited three hours in line to buy.  It had his entire music library on it, along with all the alarms he needed to wake up each day for class.  He even had it engraved in his name.  Too late now, though. If this didn’t cure him of his survivor’s guilt, nothing would.

Bubbles was staring at it as though it were an impossible object.  “A Moo-what?”

“A Musique!”  Jenny repeated.  “They’re only the greatest music-player-slash-walkie-talkie-slash-food-processor that money could buy!  And is this...it is!  The deluxe edition!”  She reached for it, but stopped herself just shy of touching it.  “...I don’t know if I’d be willing to accept something like this.  This is way too valuable.”  She thought back to the time where she tried to steal a limited edition Musique that was to be sold for charity.  That was one of her darkest moments.

Will’s face went from nervousness to surprise to determination in the span of Jenny’s sentence.  Firmly, he grasped Jenny’s wrist, guided her hand palm upward, and placed the Musique upon it.  Clasping it within both of his hands, he responded to her concern with his most carefully chosen words. “You...you gave me...the gift of life...when I was in need of it most.  Nothing can be more valuable than that.  Thank you, Je-”

The world had no time for this display of gratitude, because as soon as he got to say her name, the bell rang to let students know class was about to resume.  Cursing under his breath, Will pulled out his map and started off toward his next course, leaving behind a startled Jenny and Bubbles.

“...well, that was nice of him!”  Bubbles said, after a beat.  “Hopefully he’ll grow into this school.”

“I haven’t seen a new guy that hasn’t so I’m sure that...” Jenny stopped.  “Aww, cogs, I didn’t catch his name!"

“I’m sure you’ll run into him again.”  Bubbles reassured as the rest of her sisters showed up to drag her along to their next class.

Jenny waved goodbye to them before turning her attention back to the Musique.  She turned it over in her hands, and was stunned to see the name “Will Perringer” etched into the back.  She smiled softly.

I’m sure I will.

[hgihrepaeryster]

Journal #1

At the suggestion of my counselor, I’ve decided to start recording my thoughts in a journal. I’m never good at this sort of thing, so please bear with me.

One of the things I’ve noticed about myself is that it’s far easier for me to get along with my instructors than with most of the other students. Maybe they’re accustomed to seeing the screw-ups every year, but at least I feel like I have people to talk to now.

My meetings with Iroh are going best of all. As cryptic as his answers can be at times, I feel comfortable and safe in that office; he’s also such a quiet guy in general, compared to most of the student body. I’ve told him about almost everything I’m comfortable talking about.

The only exception (besides obvious personal stuff) is regarding how I’ve felt about Jenny. I try to go out of my way to avoid her - to prevent myself from growing attached - but on the rare occasion we do meet, I have to beat it into myself that we can never be together in the way that I’m thinking of.

I hear a lot about her through the grapevine: how she saved this town and that; how she helped so-and-so out during their argument with such-and-such. In a school that’s focused so much on heroes, that sort of thing shouldn’t be out of the ordinary. Once in a while, though, I hear about her and Sheldon. They’re not an “item”, per se, but they hang out enough that they’re getting attention from the gossip crowds. Sheldon’s love for her is public knowledge, of course, as are his strange ways of showing it.

“I heard he once stole her blueprints and looked over them like they were some kind of nudie mag.”

“Nah, that’s so he could more easily make new gadgets for her. Now, what those gadgets really do is anyone’s guess...”

“Ten bucks says he’s working on a ‘smoothbore jackhammer’ for her as we speak.”

“Or a ‘replica socket port’ for himself.”

“Honestly, though, he’s a pretty good guy. For a stalker.”

I stay out of these discussions. I don’t like getting involved, especially when it’s regarding someone’s bad reputation. Regardless, I’ve seen his behavior: the way he follows her around like a lost puppy; the way he stares at her when she’s not within talking distance.

It reminds me a lot of me.

What business do I have of intruding on their relationship, romantic or not? Should I consider myself a morally superior person just because I have different standards? She seems to tolerate him well enough, despite his faults. Maybe there’s something in him the rest of us just don’t see, so no one else has any right to judge.

At any rate, it’s something that I know I need to put out of my mind. There are more urgent matters at hand, like making sure I can defend myself against the rough atmosphere of this school. The fainting incident was a breaking point for me. I’ve got to learn to toughen up.

When I brought this up to Iroh, he still expressed concern over my self-doubt. He said that I should first work around my Phy. Ed. schedule so that it can become focused on things like meditation and yoga. “If you truly wish to change your outer self,” he said to me, “you must change your inner self first.”

What if there isn’t an outer self left to change by the time I’m done?

[hgihrepaeryster]

NAME: Will Perringer (Formerly known as “Retsy”)  AGE: 16 YEAR: 10 (Sophomore) MAIN HALL: Music Hall In terms of personality, he's not exactly the most forward person in the world and prefers to keep to himself most of the time; he uses the arts to get out of his shell, though, whether it's physical media or performance-based.  He's got a small circle of friends, but he wants to branch out among the Canon toons in order to meet Jenny.  She saved his life once, and now he's harboring more than a little bit of a crush on her. He can be a control freak at times, and that's why he tries to reign himself in when it comes to interactions between people.  He also looks down on himself a lot, an old habit he's trying to kick. He's willing to take others into consideration, but this can often play against him when someone is trying to take advantage of his genuineness.  Just don't outright piss him off.

[hgihrepaeryster]

Fun fact

Will’s dad is named Kurtis, and he is the CEO of weapons manufacturer Baytheon.  Their motto is “Explosions with Purpose.”

[hgihrepaeryster]

Will’s Backstory

My dad is kinda loaded. Working in the weapons industry will do that for you. I honestly don’t know that much about Mom; she and Dad divorced when I was three, and I don’t get to see her much.

Dad and I moved to just outside the Tremorton area not long after my 15th birthday. Since Dad’s line of business hinged so much on planetary protection, he wanted to figure out why so much was happening around such a dinky little town. It wasn’t a capitol, nor was it a major industry town or military area, but alien attacks and supervillain appearances were more than fifty times the global average. He was surprised the place was still standing when we showed up, let alone thriving, but that was why he was there.

Our house, like all our houses, was huge; that was to my father’s taste, not mine. The biggest surprise about it, though, was that Dad had a safe room of his design installed near the center of the house for us to use in case an incident happened. It wasn’t that big - only just enough for my father and me - but it had everything we could possibly need for a whole two weeks, from food to water to a tiny bathroom area. He taught me every single detail of how to survive any sort of situation, and did his best to comfort my anxieties. “Those walls can withstand a point-blank blast from an ion cannon.” He said, with his usual grin of pride in his creations. “I was there when they tested it.”

Like the rest of my life, I had to take care of myself 90% of the time. Dad was off somewhere constantly: attending weapons technology demonstrations; grilling his employees to work harder on the next prototype; or reading through the legal paperwork of his latest contract. The money was only half of it, though; he cared about me - still does - and wanted to make sure I lived a comfortable life.  (It’s his way of trying to make up for not understanding the way I feel about myself.) So when the call came that he had to attend a convention in Washington, DC, I wasn’t surprised. Saddened, maybe: I’ve grown tired of being alone so much, but I don’t know how to go about fixing it half the time.

He’d been gone for a day and a half when the news reports started to hit, and that’s the first time I’d ever heard of the Cluster. I watched in utter disbelief as the events unfolded on the TV, and then slowly moved to the window. The sky above Tremorton was blotted out by swarms of what I now know are Cluster drones, massing like clouds of gnats around lampposts at night. Giant dropships shaped like hornets appeared out of portals, and began to eject more drones into the air, along with larger fighter ships. I watched the laser fire burst down onto the city below, and then the formations of vessels began to spread over a wider area. I panicked and ran to the safe room as quickly as I could, locking the door solidly behind me.  I felt ashamed of myself for running and hiding, but it didn't help the fear go away; it was sixteen hours before I could do anything other than curl up into a ball.

By myself there was a bit more space but it only made me feel so alone, being encapsulated from the world in a steel box, which was a bad time to realize that there was no way to reach anyone outside either. There was an alarm system that let emergency services know I was locked up, but they were so busy dealing with the rest of the invasion I knew it would be a while before anyone showed, if at all. There was enough food for me and Dad to last for two weeks, which meant I had four weeks worth for me in this situation. Still, I rationed it very carefully; there's no telling how long you're going to have to deal with this situation.

The only real form of communication was a radio receiver tuned in to the emergency frequencies. They were all abuzz with reports of the devastation that was being laid upon Tremorton, with Cluster drones taking humans as captives and destroying all sorts of public landmarks. I figured it was only a matter of time before they came for me, especially when the radio cut off one day in the middle of a transmission and was replaced with Cluster propaganda.

“Your freedom is a plague upon the universe. We are here to set it right. Comply with all orders and you will be spared. Any information regarding the location of subject XJ-9 will be rewarded; any subject caught aiding her will be terminated on sight.”

It was several days before the radio surged back to life again; the announcer was incredibly excited, the first positive emotion I'd experienced since this whole thing began. "She's back!"  He announced. "XJ-9 is here to save the day!"  I still had no idea what XJ-9 was, but I didn't care; if it meant an end to this invasion I was all for it.

No sooner did the announcement air, however, than the action began to increase violently outside. I could barely hear the blasts; instead, I was starting to feel them. As though someone was slamming a giant sledgehammer against the wall, begging to be let in. I began to worry about some sort of breach, even though I knew it should be impossible. Shattering a pane of glass, I retrieved my father's laser rifle: one of his developments from working with Skyway Patrol. My hands were quivering and my pulse racing as I aimed it at the entrance to the room. I expected to be swarmed by drones any minute.

Everything shook very violently for a moment and then - in a surreal moment - started to fly around, as though the room had somehow gone to space for a moment. Almost as soon as that happened, it stopped, and I was sent into a wall. I was barely able to bring up my arms to protect my head before impact; it hurt like hell, but it didn't seem to do any lasting damage. Everything had come to rest upon the same wall, so it was clear that the room itself had been toppled over somehow. There's nothing safe about this safe room anymore, I thought. Crawling my way over to the door, I found enough strength to unlock and push it open.

The house that used to surround me was now almost completely gone, and in its place was a pile of burning lumber, concrete, and what used to be furniture. The safe room - formerly on the first floor - was now in the basement area. As I rolled out of the room, I saw what had caused the destruction: a crashed Cluster fighter ship, smoldering in defeat. It was laying halfway into the cellar space, its rear end poking out above the ground. The sounds of combat continued in the distance without it.

A new sound drowned out all others, and I only had enough time to see the creaking and cracking of the beams above me to realize I should have stayed in the room. A large portion of the house collapsed over me, and I closed my eyes so that I didn't have to watch my own fiery death coming down. While I did feel an impact, it wasn't strong enough to hurt me; when I opened my eyes, I found myself pinned beneath a large concrete slab over my chest. The only thing that saved me from getting instantaneously crushed was the spaceship, which was close enough to soften the impact, yet there wasn't enough room to escape. More of the house was crumbling away around me, embers almost landing close enough to singe me. Even more terrifying was that the slab was slowly starting to slip off of the ship, putting more pressure against my ribs as the seconds passed by. I could barely muster up the strength to breathe, let alone call for help. All that escaped my mouth was a pleading whimper that couldn't have possibly been heard by anyone.

After the most terrifying few seconds of my life, I heard a sudden roar of jet engines closing in on my position. In the sky outside, I spotted a streak of blue and white come nearer and nearer until it had landed next to me. That's the first time I saw her.

She was unlike anything or anyone I'd ever seen before, her six-foot-plus stature towering over me as she touched down. Before I could even notice them, she spun around and gave a couple quick blasts of a laser gun - wait, was that her arm?! - at a swarm of Cluster drones that were pursuing her. They all burst into scrap metal, peppering the environment with their remains. She looked at the ship that had crashed into my house, likely to make sure it had been disabled, before quickly taking notice of me. Her pigtails, which moments ago had been rocket thrusters, perked up in shock, and she covered her mouth with a hand as she gasped.

"H-help..." I whispered, not able to do much more. My ribs were really beginning to hurt.

In response, she rammed a single arm beneath the concrete and flipped it over with one fell swoop. I took a relieved breath of fresh air, and the sigh of relief turned into a cough. Her eyes seemed to scan me for a moment before she spoke.

"No broken bones...no ruptured organs...the worst you have is a nasty scrape on your arm. No biggie!" I hadn't even noticed, but when I raised my right arm to see the damage, the robot girl had already turned one of her own into a tube and plunged the injured limb inside. Whatever was in there must have been amazing, because the whole arm felt numb and started to heal before my eyes. What was once a deep laceration that would have probably taken twenty or so stitches to heal was gone in a matter of seconds. My eyes widened at the sight, but my chest was still so sore that I could barely utter one word - "How-" - before coughing again.

"What's important now is to get you out of here." She replied, picking me up.  "You're going to be okay now.  I've beaten them all back." I heard all sorts of mechanical adjustments as she converted herself into some sort of jet-robot; she was soon lifting off of the ground, and I watched in disbelief as the house my parents had spent several million on continued to fall apart into dust behind us. All of the town was below us, with several other buildings turned into smoking debris. The only thing I could do was look at this robot - this hero - that just saved me, as she concentrated on her destination: the Tremorton High football field, which had been converted to an emergency medical center.

She touched down as gently as a feather and laid me down on a cot outside a tent. She told the doctors she'd get as many more as she could, and then turned to me, placing a calming hand against my heart.

"You'll be feeling better in no time." She said with the sweetest smile I'd ever seen. I nodded, but before I could say another word, she was gone.

------

My father came back a few hours later. He'd been worried sick ever since he saw the spaceship crash on the news, and he came straight home afterward. It was a tearful reunion, but considering the fact that it could have gone a whole lot worse, it was still a happy one.

The longer the conversation went on, though, and the more I told him about what happened, the more he seemed to change. He went from relief to resignment to a subtle, underlying anger the more I said. I don’t know what it was, but at the end he just got up and took a deep breath, as though holding himself back. We were about to talk about living arrangements when his phone went off.  He took a look at the caller ID and immediately began to perk up. The conversation would be considered kind of jovial were it not for the atmosphere in which it took place, surrounded by destruction and wounded. When he hung up, he gave me his grin of pride.

“I’ve got just the place for you.”

[hgihrepaeryster]

Egyptian Honey: the Aftermath

So...here I am in the nurse’s office. Lucky me.

All I’ve been doing since I woke up is replay the incident in my head. I was supposed to be bonding, dammit, and instead I wound up pissing off the guy I was trying to bond with. At least I still have the money he gave me. $120, like we agreed. I’ll give him this; he’s straightforward. I don’t know if I can work up the courage to face him again for future payments, even if all he’s doing is giving me money.

Why did I even try getting along with him, anyway? Sure, we’ve got similar interests, but it takes more than that to make for a long-lasting bond. Of all the people I go out of my way to talk to again, the first one I choose is the one who openly takes joy in manipulating people and hurting them.  Maybe I’m a masochist, or - more likely - I’m just an idiot.

Then again, it was the Predator showing up that threw me off. I was already semi-comfortable being around Buzzkill, so if that thing hadn’t shown up I would’ve probably been fine.

What was it that pissed off BK again? Wait, it was...for God’s sake, I called him Bumblebee Man? I mean, I get that being nervous makes you slip up a lot, but what the fuck was I thinking?! The guy is standing right there, and I confuse him for a character from the Simpsons?! Je. Sus.

i don’t know why my dad decided to sign me up for this place, but if I don’t get my act together I’m going to get killed one way or another. For now, I’m just going to let this ice pack work its magic on my sore, sore head. Hope Russell can help catch me up on the work I’m missing in class.

[hgihrepaeryster]

A Meeting with Iroh

[Warning: depression, self-loathing, and self-harm are discussed in this story.]

Taking a deep inhalation of the steam floating above his tea, Iroh sat at his plain wooden desk and looked over his paperwork. There was one last student scheduled for today, and it was one he didn’t recognize. Meeting with new students was both a delight and a sorrow, as they each carried with them new baggage that needed to be sorted out. Then again, that’s why he was posted as a counselor at Reaper High.

“Your four o’clock has arrived.” Ms. Bellum’s voice notified him over an intercom.

“Very good,” Iroh responded. “I am ready for him.”

Will entered cautiously. The only thing he’d gotten used to at this school was how there was nothing you could get used to. When he realized how genuinely beautiful the atmosphere was in Iroh’s “office,” however, he was genuinely in awe; lit by dozens of candles, there were two chairs and a sofa set across from Iroh’s desk, all made out of a deep, rich wood that shared the same color as Iroh’s burgundy robes. A small fountain in the corner murmured with flowing water, an apparently natural formation against which the room seemed to have been built.

“You must be William!” Iroh greeted with a smile as warm as the flames. “Please sit down and make yourself comfortable. Would you care for some tea?  Lemongrass and chamomile: just the thing for addled nerves.” He offered the mugful he’d just finished making.

Will didn’t normally care for tea, but so long as it was being offered, he was willing to accept. The aroma wafting through the office was quite wonderful, as well. “Yes, thanks.” He replied, accepting the mug as it was passed over to him. Sitting himself down in a chair, he watched as Iroh brought up another mug, filled it with water from the fountain, held it over a candle, and with a wave of his hand caused the flame to engulf the entire bottom of the cup. It wasn’t very long until the water bubbled from the intensity, at which point the old man allowed the flame to die down (the candle had melted halfway down from the heat) and dipped a silk bag containing more herbs into the boiling liquid.

“I am Iroh.” The wizened one began, setting the tea aside to cool as he reached for paper to take notes. “My responsibility is to see to the well-being of those who need it most, and to give students paths where they may see none. You have been here for only so little time, so I can understand if this is an overwhelming atmosphere for you.  Hopefully, I can be of some assistance in helping you navigate it.”

“Thank you,” Will smiled softly. “I was recommended to come see you by Ms. Bellum not long after I got here.  She said you could have some insight into my...problems.”

“I may,” Iroh nodded. “First, I must know what these ‘problems’ are. Take your time.”

“Okay...” Will shifted in his chair, taking a sip of tea. This wasn’t his first experience with a counselor, but it was never easy to explain himself. “I’ve had a long history of self-deprecation. Over the past couple of months, it’s been getting worse and worse, and ever since I came to this school five days ago, I feel like it may be impeding my ability to work.”

“How so?”

“I focus on my faults almost all the time, even when I should be focusing on schoolwork or other things. I keep beating myself up over my mistakes. I’ve tried branching out; Ms. Bellum set me up with meeting a few other students at a picnic, which was...nice? I guess? But it’s still hard for me to admit to any good qualities in myself, and even when I do I have to diminish them.”

“Why?” Iroh questioned.

“I don’t want to be seen as egotistical,” Will answered, “or believing myself to be anything more than I really am. I’ve seen people at other schools put on airs to get popular, but here it’s even more intense. The Krust cousins, the Delightful Children from Down the Lane, Princess...I fear becoming like them so badly.”

“Doing so at the cost of your own livelihood does not help you.” Iroh replied. “Putting yourself down will never pick you back up.”

“I don’t see any other way to go about it, though.” Will sulked. “All I’m doing is being honest about myself.”

“What sort of things do you believe about yourself?”

Will’s mind was quickly filled with examples. He had trouble choosing, though that was mostly because of the hurt each one carried.

No one should ever have to love me; that would be too cruel to them, to let them get hurt by all of my shortcomings. If I really cared about them, I’d do my best to stay out of their way.

What the hell sort of business do I have getting attracted to Jenny? She’s way out of my league and already has a boy with a crush on her that she tolerates - maybe even likes - so why bother giving her another person to worry about? I’m already enough of a creep without having to add “infatuated perv” to the list, yet here i am.

I’m so worthless. When Dad was my age, he was getting advanced placement courses. I’m barely passing my basic requirements. And he’s made himself a multi-billionaire while all I do is live off of his livelihood. What a spiffing example of a self-dependent human being.

I get frightened by the smallest things. I’m a natural klutz. I have nothing redeeming in terms of skill. Socially I might as well be some sort of alien stranger to humans, yet even the aliens here tend to have better social lives than I do.

And for all the pain I’ve caused myself over the years, the one thing I know is that I deserved every single moment of it.

“Talk to me, William.” Iroh requested, concerned. “What are you feeling?”

“I feel...like I don’t deserve any help.” Will finally admitted. “Every bad thing that’s ever happened to me is because I deserved that instead.”

Iroh looked very serious as he continued writing this down. “What makes you so deserving of poor fortune?”

“I...exist?” Will shrugged.

“That’s a very poor reason.” Iroh stated plainly. “Everyone exists; does that make them eligible for this same treatment? Do you suppose I am not deserving of happiness?”

“Not at all!″ Will denied, fervently shaking his head. ”I wouldn’t wish this on anyone else!”

“Then why wish it upon yourself?”

“Because...” This gave Will some genuine pause, until he thought back to his comparisons to the “popular” kids. “...because it’s better than the alternative.”

“You are mistaking one alternative for all alternatives.” Iroh corrected. “There are many paths to happiness, but none of them involve inflicting so much hatred upon yourself. It’s nice to be aware of your ego, but in many ways the ego is what motivates you to survive; throttle it into extinction, and you are throttling the rest of yourself as well.”

“So what do I do?” Will asked. “Keep myself alive by feeding myself ‘You’re a good person’ and other bullshi-” He covered his mouth to keep from saying a curse in front of a faculty member.

Iroh gave a wry grin. “Regardless of the truth of such a statement: even the most beautiful, pleasant-smelling flower can do with some strong fertilizer. At any rate, from what I see in you, I see a strong desire to be a good person. It simply needs to be manifested in a healthier way than putting yourself down.”

“I don’t know how else to do it, apart from hurting myself like I’ve been doing.”

Iroh looked up. “You mean emotionally?”

“Yes..” Will said, trailing off slightly.

“And physically?”

After a pause, Will nodded quietly. He’d never admitted this to anyone before, not even his father. “When I’m at my absolute worst. Not often.” He buried his head in his hands. “Yet too often.”

“With what intent?”

“It’s like to...to knock myself into my senses.” Will began tearing up. “I don’t know if I can describe it that well. I’m the one that’s sick here.”

Iroh gave a nod of somber recognition. “An explanation isn’t quite that important. What is important, however, is that I am here for you even if it seems like no one else is. If you find yourself in such a situation that you need to do such a thing, consider talking to me as an alternative.”

Will took a deep breath. “I will.”

Iroh got up and placed a gentle hand upon the young man’s shoulder.. “Together, we can conquer this darkness within and bring you to the light you deserve.”