Post by Neon on Jan 23, 2012 2:21:53 GMT -5
((Double post. Be sure to read the last chapter!))
-Read before reading the chapter-
I am taking a lot of risks with this one. It was very very difficult to write. A lot of you will probably hate Bobby after this, and you're supposed to. He has a long way to go before he can recover from this blow to his already crappy reputation.
Before anyone gets after me about this, I will point out that I don't condone this kind of behaviour in anyone, regardless of the differences between them. Yes, this material is ideologically sensitive, but it's also a story and it's how the story goes. And, it is MY story.
-End pre-read-
Chapter Twenty-Nine
I watched the forest for several long seconds. Long after the sprites had left, I watched. But then, Bobby moved again. I snapped my gaze back up to him. He still clutched his left wrist in his right hand. I saw that it sported a gash two and a half inches long that already had a few beads of blood running from it.
Bobby had turned his glare down towards me. He looked absolutely livid. I flinched at the vehemence in his face, and took a few involuntary steps back. The wrathful expression was frightening.
Without warning, Bobby lashed out with his foot, giving the cage a swift kick. The whole thing slid backwards almost a foot, tripping me. I tumbled over a few times as the metal grid beneath me slid continuously. I took a few deep breaths when I finally stopped, pushing myself up gingerly with one hand. My injuries all stung.
After kicking the cage, Bobby had knelt down in front of it angrily. I stood cautiously, regarding him with some actual fear. He looked ready to break my legs.
"Who were those guys, Bowman?" he asked without hesitation. "Did you call for them somehow?"
I managed to turn a glare back on him. "No. I didn't call for them. They came on their own."
"A rescue party, huh. How cute." Bobby sneered. "I'll be ready for that next time."
I scoffed. "I don't know, Bobby, they seemed to get the better of you pretty well this time around. With just one sprite with one sword." I had to bluff there a little bit. I knew well enough that most sprites couldn't boast Scar's level of bravery. Especially not against something so formidable. The fear in their eyes had been more obvious to me than to him.
Bobby growled with frustration. "You little shit," he spat. "You're nothing compared to humans. When the trackers get here, your stupid little friend with the sword will be joining you in that cage." I almost couldn't keep eye contact with him, as scary as his anger looked. But I steadily continued to look up at him, my glare unbreakable.
Bobby swatted the cage once more with his uninjured hand before pushing himself up off the ground. I stumbled but did not fall, watching him as he stomped over to the bags. He sifted through one and produced the same first aid kit that Jacob had helped me with before. From it he drew a paper-wrapped item. Soon enough I saw that it was a piece of bandaging stuck to a flesh-colored strip of what looked like a kind of rubber; it had glue on the bandaged side, and Bobby stuck it to his wrist, covering his cut.
After he had bandaged himself, Bobby abandoned his first aid kit by the bags and returned to stand over my prison. He knelt with a whoosh of displaced air that pushed roughly through my hair. He crouched in front of me, his arms resting on his suspended knees. "You act tough, but you've got nothing on us. I'm surprised none of you got caught before now."
I rolled my eyes and crossed my arms, the picture of attitude. "If I am nothing compared to you, if sprites are nothing, why are you so hell-bent on proving it?" I countered him coolly. "You have to constantly say something as if I may have forgotten the last time you said it. Are you more insecure than you let on, or what?"
Bobby narrowed his eyes, but I saw the corner of his mouth twitch. That comment had gotten to him. "You're clever, but not clever enough. I've been at an advantage the whole time; I knew a lot about sprites before I ever saw you."
"What a coincidence, so did I," I retorted cattily.
He wasn't perturbed by my interruption, and continued confidently. "I know that you can influence plants when you concentrate. I know you can help them grow." His knowledge didn't bait me. Yet. "I know you were photosynthesizing before," he continued. This elicited a reaction from me. I flinched and took a step back, my arms falling to my sides. Bobby grinned, drunk off of his sudden power. "And I know that your frilly little wings never … grow … back!" he finished triumphantly.
The look in his eyes frightened me when he said that. My heart sank, frozen with apprehension when he suddenly took the cage in his hands and lifted it from the ground. He tilted it back so that I fell roughly to the back wall, directly opposite the door. He unlatched the door and reached into the cage swiftly. I tried to shift away, but the holes in my floor impeded my escape and he snared me around the waist.
"Don't!" I yelped futilely as the human dragged me out of my prison quickly. "Leave me alone!"
"What, is our tough little friend Bowman scared?" Bobby teased. He dropped the cage at his side and adjusted his grip so that my arms were pinned in his fist and my wings hung free over the edge of it. My heart fluttered fearfully, even more so than when Jacob had first held me in his hand. Bobby's eyes gleamed nastily; he was on a huge power trip, one that might end badly for me.
Suddenly I was falling for a few seconds. Bobby had switched his grip so that I hung upside down by my legs. "I know you don't like fire, too." He announced smugly as he moved me to hang over the ashy fireplace. I almost vomited to feel the residual heat waft up to me from the few remaining coals. Bobby was toying with me!
I turned my gaze to him, no longer hiding my fear from him. "Okay! Please, stop this, I get it! You're the human and I'm the sprite. You've got the power now."
"What's this?" Bobby asked, mock surprise raising the pitch of his voice. "Bowman all the sudden realizes his predicament?!" I hated being spoken to like that, but had no return. He whisked me back closer to him, righting me in his grip again. I took a deep breath of relief. My head throbbed as the blood rush left it once more. I slumped slightly in the human's fist, eying him nervously.
Unfortunately, Bobby didn't seem to be finished proving himself, or he was just having too much fun playing around. He reached up with his free hand towards my back. Though I twisted and flared my wings about trying to avoid him, he gripped the bases of my wings in his first two fingers, forcing them back painfully. Once he held my wings securely, he released his other hand to let me hang freely by my wings. The pain to my shoulders was excruciating … the wings were strong enough not to tear off, but they ached and screamed with pain. I cried out as soon as he suspended me. Bobby, cruel thing that he was turning out to be, laughed at this as I tried to lessen the strain somehow, anyhow.
Neither of us was prepared for what happened next. Quite suddenly, a large mass collided with Bobby's side and sent them both crashing to the ground. The grip on my wings relinquished, and I fell the few feet to the ground, crumpling to a heap where I landed. I looked up to see that Jacob, having awakened at some point, had tackled his friend and now struggled with him violently. I winced as I heard the sound of massive fists hitting flesh.
"You think you can treat someone like that?!" Jacob roared passionately. I was surprised at his vehemence. He had Bobby pinned to the ground, his arm leaned onto his friend's collarbone threateningly and his other arm poised above, the hand in a fist. I felt too much pain all over to try to run, so I lay motionless watching the titanlike beings struggle for a few long moments.
"Get off! Get off, Jake!!!" Bobby growled. He didn't seem like much of a fighter against one of his own kind; he was no match for Jacob.
"The hell were you doing? You Goddamn psycho! You can't do that to a person, no matter what the fuck you think of him!" Jacob answered viciously.
The two remained like that for a long, quiet pause, the brown eyes and the blue gleaming with anger for each other. Then, defeated, Bobby turned his head away. Jacob scoffed and pushed himself back, releasing his friend. For a moment, Bobby laid where he was, averting his gaze.
Jacob turned from his friend, leaning over where he sat to look at me. I pushed myself up shakily, my eyes wary. My sore wings hung limply at my sides, quivering slightly. "Bowman, are you okay?" Jacob asked quietly. I saw through the corner of my eye that Bobby turned his head to look at me dully.
I nodded. "I'm fine." I was lying somewhat. I knew that my wings would be next to useless for the next several hours at least. But, thanks to Jacob, no permanent damage was done.
Bobby sat up, and both Jacob and I turned to look at him. I took a few involuntary steps back when he looked down at me. "I … I don't know what came over me …" he muttered, some concern mixing in with the confusion on his face. "I'm—"
"Don't bother apologizing," I interrupted him, surprising all three of us with the force in my voice. "I can't accept it." I saw that Bobby almost glared, but instead looked resigned and nodded.
"We should all probably just go back to sleep." Bobby said after a pause. "Jacob, lock him back up—"
Jacob scoffed. "I'm not going to help you with that anymore." He stood up to his full height, and I had to crane my neck way back to see his face. "I'm going to be on his side now. Not yours. I'm going to do what I can to get you over this weird power-trip delusion you're on." With that said, Jacob took several steps back towards the tent. At first I worried that he'd leave me alone with Bobby again, but he stopped at the opening to watch.
Bobby watched him for a few seconds before looking back to me. I glared at him steadily. Then, he sighed and pushed himself up to a crouching position again. He retrieved the cage from where it lay, forgotten, on its side. He then reached out for me. I knew I couldn't fight him, but I wasn't going to be locked up again without offering resistance. His hand closed around me very gently compared to earlier. I struggled about the best I could.
"You think you'll win this," I snapped at him as he pushed me back into the cage.
"I don't even know," Bobby answered resignedly as he latched up the cage and set it on the ground slowly. "I don't know." I caught a hint of conflict in his voice. Bobby was suddenly at a crossroads. Perhaps this event would create enough doubt in him to give up the ideas his family had planted in him. One could only hope.
Bobby stood and followed Jacob to their tent, and went inside before his friend. Jacob, before going to bed himself, looked at me across the clearing. "I'm sorry," he mumbled, shamefaced.
I shook my head slowly. "I don't blame you anymore," I replied. "Thank you." And after that, he had disappeared behind the curtain and I knew the humans would be back to sleep soon enough. I sat in my corner again, and fell to dreaming myself.
~~~~~~~~
(c) Neon
This development is crucial. We now see that Bobby is capable of change, but whether he will or not is in the air. Also, we have a notable improvement in Bowman and Jacob's relationship.
I may have more comments later as I think of them.
((Next time I will update in a more timely fashion))
-Read before reading the chapter-
I am taking a lot of risks with this one. It was very very difficult to write. A lot of you will probably hate Bobby after this, and you're supposed to. He has a long way to go before he can recover from this blow to his already crappy reputation.
Before anyone gets after me about this, I will point out that I don't condone this kind of behaviour in anyone, regardless of the differences between them. Yes, this material is ideologically sensitive, but it's also a story and it's how the story goes. And, it is MY story.
-End pre-read-
Chapter Twenty-Nine
I watched the forest for several long seconds. Long after the sprites had left, I watched. But then, Bobby moved again. I snapped my gaze back up to him. He still clutched his left wrist in his right hand. I saw that it sported a gash two and a half inches long that already had a few beads of blood running from it.
Bobby had turned his glare down towards me. He looked absolutely livid. I flinched at the vehemence in his face, and took a few involuntary steps back. The wrathful expression was frightening.
Without warning, Bobby lashed out with his foot, giving the cage a swift kick. The whole thing slid backwards almost a foot, tripping me. I tumbled over a few times as the metal grid beneath me slid continuously. I took a few deep breaths when I finally stopped, pushing myself up gingerly with one hand. My injuries all stung.
After kicking the cage, Bobby had knelt down in front of it angrily. I stood cautiously, regarding him with some actual fear. He looked ready to break my legs.
"Who were those guys, Bowman?" he asked without hesitation. "Did you call for them somehow?"
I managed to turn a glare back on him. "No. I didn't call for them. They came on their own."
"A rescue party, huh. How cute." Bobby sneered. "I'll be ready for that next time."
I scoffed. "I don't know, Bobby, they seemed to get the better of you pretty well this time around. With just one sprite with one sword." I had to bluff there a little bit. I knew well enough that most sprites couldn't boast Scar's level of bravery. Especially not against something so formidable. The fear in their eyes had been more obvious to me than to him.
Bobby growled with frustration. "You little shit," he spat. "You're nothing compared to humans. When the trackers get here, your stupid little friend with the sword will be joining you in that cage." I almost couldn't keep eye contact with him, as scary as his anger looked. But I steadily continued to look up at him, my glare unbreakable.
Bobby swatted the cage once more with his uninjured hand before pushing himself up off the ground. I stumbled but did not fall, watching him as he stomped over to the bags. He sifted through one and produced the same first aid kit that Jacob had helped me with before. From it he drew a paper-wrapped item. Soon enough I saw that it was a piece of bandaging stuck to a flesh-colored strip of what looked like a kind of rubber; it had glue on the bandaged side, and Bobby stuck it to his wrist, covering his cut.
After he had bandaged himself, Bobby abandoned his first aid kit by the bags and returned to stand over my prison. He knelt with a whoosh of displaced air that pushed roughly through my hair. He crouched in front of me, his arms resting on his suspended knees. "You act tough, but you've got nothing on us. I'm surprised none of you got caught before now."
I rolled my eyes and crossed my arms, the picture of attitude. "If I am nothing compared to you, if sprites are nothing, why are you so hell-bent on proving it?" I countered him coolly. "You have to constantly say something as if I may have forgotten the last time you said it. Are you more insecure than you let on, or what?"
Bobby narrowed his eyes, but I saw the corner of his mouth twitch. That comment had gotten to him. "You're clever, but not clever enough. I've been at an advantage the whole time; I knew a lot about sprites before I ever saw you."
"What a coincidence, so did I," I retorted cattily.
He wasn't perturbed by my interruption, and continued confidently. "I know that you can influence plants when you concentrate. I know you can help them grow." His knowledge didn't bait me. Yet. "I know you were photosynthesizing before," he continued. This elicited a reaction from me. I flinched and took a step back, my arms falling to my sides. Bobby grinned, drunk off of his sudden power. "And I know that your frilly little wings never … grow … back!" he finished triumphantly.
The look in his eyes frightened me when he said that. My heart sank, frozen with apprehension when he suddenly took the cage in his hands and lifted it from the ground. He tilted it back so that I fell roughly to the back wall, directly opposite the door. He unlatched the door and reached into the cage swiftly. I tried to shift away, but the holes in my floor impeded my escape and he snared me around the waist.
"Don't!" I yelped futilely as the human dragged me out of my prison quickly. "Leave me alone!"
"What, is our tough little friend Bowman scared?" Bobby teased. He dropped the cage at his side and adjusted his grip so that my arms were pinned in his fist and my wings hung free over the edge of it. My heart fluttered fearfully, even more so than when Jacob had first held me in his hand. Bobby's eyes gleamed nastily; he was on a huge power trip, one that might end badly for me.
Suddenly I was falling for a few seconds. Bobby had switched his grip so that I hung upside down by my legs. "I know you don't like fire, too." He announced smugly as he moved me to hang over the ashy fireplace. I almost vomited to feel the residual heat waft up to me from the few remaining coals. Bobby was toying with me!
I turned my gaze to him, no longer hiding my fear from him. "Okay! Please, stop this, I get it! You're the human and I'm the sprite. You've got the power now."
"What's this?" Bobby asked, mock surprise raising the pitch of his voice. "Bowman all the sudden realizes his predicament?!" I hated being spoken to like that, but had no return. He whisked me back closer to him, righting me in his grip again. I took a deep breath of relief. My head throbbed as the blood rush left it once more. I slumped slightly in the human's fist, eying him nervously.
Unfortunately, Bobby didn't seem to be finished proving himself, or he was just having too much fun playing around. He reached up with his free hand towards my back. Though I twisted and flared my wings about trying to avoid him, he gripped the bases of my wings in his first two fingers, forcing them back painfully. Once he held my wings securely, he released his other hand to let me hang freely by my wings. The pain to my shoulders was excruciating … the wings were strong enough not to tear off, but they ached and screamed with pain. I cried out as soon as he suspended me. Bobby, cruel thing that he was turning out to be, laughed at this as I tried to lessen the strain somehow, anyhow.
Neither of us was prepared for what happened next. Quite suddenly, a large mass collided with Bobby's side and sent them both crashing to the ground. The grip on my wings relinquished, and I fell the few feet to the ground, crumpling to a heap where I landed. I looked up to see that Jacob, having awakened at some point, had tackled his friend and now struggled with him violently. I winced as I heard the sound of massive fists hitting flesh.
"You think you can treat someone like that?!" Jacob roared passionately. I was surprised at his vehemence. He had Bobby pinned to the ground, his arm leaned onto his friend's collarbone threateningly and his other arm poised above, the hand in a fist. I felt too much pain all over to try to run, so I lay motionless watching the titanlike beings struggle for a few long moments.
"Get off! Get off, Jake!!!" Bobby growled. He didn't seem like much of a fighter against one of his own kind; he was no match for Jacob.
"The hell were you doing? You Goddamn psycho! You can't do that to a person, no matter what the fuck you think of him!" Jacob answered viciously.
The two remained like that for a long, quiet pause, the brown eyes and the blue gleaming with anger for each other. Then, defeated, Bobby turned his head away. Jacob scoffed and pushed himself back, releasing his friend. For a moment, Bobby laid where he was, averting his gaze.
Jacob turned from his friend, leaning over where he sat to look at me. I pushed myself up shakily, my eyes wary. My sore wings hung limply at my sides, quivering slightly. "Bowman, are you okay?" Jacob asked quietly. I saw through the corner of my eye that Bobby turned his head to look at me dully.
I nodded. "I'm fine." I was lying somewhat. I knew that my wings would be next to useless for the next several hours at least. But, thanks to Jacob, no permanent damage was done.
Bobby sat up, and both Jacob and I turned to look at him. I took a few involuntary steps back when he looked down at me. "I … I don't know what came over me …" he muttered, some concern mixing in with the confusion on his face. "I'm—"
"Don't bother apologizing," I interrupted him, surprising all three of us with the force in my voice. "I can't accept it." I saw that Bobby almost glared, but instead looked resigned and nodded.
"We should all probably just go back to sleep." Bobby said after a pause. "Jacob, lock him back up—"
Jacob scoffed. "I'm not going to help you with that anymore." He stood up to his full height, and I had to crane my neck way back to see his face. "I'm going to be on his side now. Not yours. I'm going to do what I can to get you over this weird power-trip delusion you're on." With that said, Jacob took several steps back towards the tent. At first I worried that he'd leave me alone with Bobby again, but he stopped at the opening to watch.
Bobby watched him for a few seconds before looking back to me. I glared at him steadily. Then, he sighed and pushed himself up to a crouching position again. He retrieved the cage from where it lay, forgotten, on its side. He then reached out for me. I knew I couldn't fight him, but I wasn't going to be locked up again without offering resistance. His hand closed around me very gently compared to earlier. I struggled about the best I could.
"You think you'll win this," I snapped at him as he pushed me back into the cage.
"I don't even know," Bobby answered resignedly as he latched up the cage and set it on the ground slowly. "I don't know." I caught a hint of conflict in his voice. Bobby was suddenly at a crossroads. Perhaps this event would create enough doubt in him to give up the ideas his family had planted in him. One could only hope.
Bobby stood and followed Jacob to their tent, and went inside before his friend. Jacob, before going to bed himself, looked at me across the clearing. "I'm sorry," he mumbled, shamefaced.
I shook my head slowly. "I don't blame you anymore," I replied. "Thank you." And after that, he had disappeared behind the curtain and I knew the humans would be back to sleep soon enough. I sat in my corner again, and fell to dreaming myself.
~~~~~~~~
(c) Neon
This development is crucial. We now see that Bobby is capable of change, but whether he will or not is in the air. Also, we have a notable improvement in Bowman and Jacob's relationship.
I may have more comments later as I think of them.
((Next time I will update in a more timely fashion))