Note: No, it's not remotely time for Halloween. But it was Halloween when this fic was originally posted in our FFN archives. So just go with it and enjoy the show.
Also, the mystery of the second kitchen is explained via flashback. Yay!
"Aaaaaaand, power!"
Emily snapped a plug in, and suddenly the whole room was filled with the glow of several tangled strings of fairy lights, that had been thrown haphazardly over the bookshelves. Clusters of fake cobweb were also dangling from various points around the room, and fake spiders had been thrown everywhere, along with the customary jack-o-lanterns, casting ominous grinning silhouettes on the walls.
Standing in the centre of the room, in the middle of a low table, was Harriet, her arms spread wide. This might sound like a normal pose, but it was made very difficult by the fact that the Society leader was dressed in a kangaroo costume, and had very short arms. As she turned to survey the illuminated lights, her tail knocked several bottles of coke and a neat stack of paper cups flying. Rhia and several other people dove to save them from an untimely date with the floor.
"Thank you Emily!" Harriet smiled down at her charge, who was wearing cut off jeans, and a striped shirt. A bandana was wrapped around her head, and she carried a sword in her belt, and an eye patch, which was currently pulled up so she could work properly.
"When do we get to eat?" Tyler whined. "I only ate one meal today so I could get in the mood for my costume..."
Harriet raised an eyebrow at the smallest Society agent, who dressed all in black, and was apparently being a stick figure for the evening. "Well that's your look out, isn't it? Have patience my dear underling. Food shall be served soon!"
"This was a really good idea Harriet," Marcus admitted with a nod, studying everyone's outfits from behind his shades – he had refused to dress up, stating that his usual outfit was enough of a costume as it was.
"Of course its a good idea!" Harriet tossed her hair. "I'm British! All my ideas are good! And it only took me two minutes to think of this one!"
FLASHBACK
"That's it!"
The Leader's cry caused everyone to look up from their desks, and crane their necks so that they could see over the towering piles of paperwork. Harriet was on her feet, and in two steps (one on the chair and one on the desk), she towered over everyone and puffed out her chest.
"I am locking all this paperwork in the third kitchen!"
There was a collective gasp from the Society agents. The third kitchen was a place none of them dared to tread. The plates and food in there had been abandoned for so long that no one could rightly imagine what kind of horrors had bred in that time. It was worse than the mutant spaghetti monster that kitchen two had produced, before the Great Kitchen Clean had come about. After that event, Rhia had claimed ownership of kitchen two, and declared it her own personal workspace. Kitchen three however, had never been touched, and most agents had forgotten where it was.
"We are going to take a break from work," Harriet declared. "And we are going to have a party!"
Silence rained. Several people put up umbrellas.
"What kind of party?" Miriku finally asked.
Harriet's eyes fell on the calendar on the wall, and her face split into a wide grin.
"A Halloween Party! And we shall all wear costumes!"
Another long silence, however this time some people were grinning widely.
"Harriet," Tash said suddenly. "I don't think parties are covered by the budget."
Several seconds later, Tash was running from the room, screaming as Harriet threw balled up bits of paperwork at her.
OOO
Beaming widely at her own genius, Harriet spun on her heel (this time, sending a platter of cocktail sausages flying with her tail) and addressed the gathered Society agents, all of whom were wearing costumes of various descriptions.
"My friends, relatives and dearest underlings-"
"You don't have any relatives here Harriet."
"Shut up Tash!" the leader cleared her throat. "I now declare, this Society Halloween party, open!"
As instructed, Ben pressed play on Harriet's laptop, sending music out into the room, and Rhia whipped off the covers on the plates, revealing trays of toffee apples, decorated cakes and cookies, and other staple party foods. Several members began to drool.
"Michael, your costume!" Claire warned, causing her boyfriend to blush at his hunger. The dark clothing and armour he wore gave him an imposing look, however drooling on it detracted greatly from this appearance. Two bat-like wings grew from the young man's back, and his teeth and claws had been lengthened and pointed.
"I can't help it," Michael protested. "Doing such complicated magic makes you really hungry..."
"Yes, but demons don't usually drool over sausage rolls and cake, even if they were made by Chef Rhia," Miriku pointed out, smoothing out her long white dress. Her bracelets clanked against her pharaoh collar. Michael raised a clawed hand in her direction and she smiled sweetly. "What? Its true..."
Claire hugged Michael from behind, taking care not to squash his wings. Her outfit was the polar opposite to Michael's, her own wings had pearly white feathers and were tucked neatly behind her back. She wore a dress of white and gold, with a golden halo above her head.
"I think everyone looks great," Tash said, as the three of them helped themselves to the aforementioned sausage rolls. She was dressed as a belly dancer, and the gold coins on her skirt, top, bracelets and anklet jingled every time she moved. "I'm impressed by the magic too Michael."
Michael pulled a face. "Claire wanted me to go as a bunny. I told her I'd never kiss her again." He looked around suddenly. "Speaking of kiss, where's your boyfriend, Tash?"
Tash gave a mild smirk. "Funny that you should mention dressing up as a cute fluffy animal..."
Right on cue...
"Tashy! Can I talk to you for a second?"
From the corridor stormed a furious looking Adrian, who looked as though he had been attacked by a five year old kid with a black sharpie. He had a black circle on his nose, and three black lines drawn across each cheek. But what was most surprising was his outfit...
Tash gave a wide smile. "Hello Emiushere. Good nap?"
The Librarian twitched and jabbed a finger at the white furred kitty outfit he had apparently been somehow forced into.
"Where did you hide my trenchcoats? And pants? Hell, where are the rest of my clothes!"
It was impossible for Tash to pull off an innocent face, particularly when she was struggling not to laugh – a struggle that was not helped by the fact that Michael seemed to be holding back hysterics and the corner of Claire's mouth was twitching.
"My accomplice has them – she hid your entire wardrobe."
The kitty ears were twitching more rapidly the more annoyed and impatient Adrian got. "And who was your accomplice, may I ask?"
Tash's smirk became more pronounced. "You shouldn't even need to ask – there's only one person who can hide stuff from you in your own Library. But if you want a hint, she's got big boobs, she can change her appearance at will, and she's currently laughing at you from over the video cameras."
No one had ever seen the Librarian's jaw drop so fast. "You... she... how did you find out about her?"
FLASHBACK
"Bloody hell..."
The words were muffled with awe as Tash stood at the foot of a towering mecha, blue and white in colour and with wings folded up neatly by its sides. It was so tall it filled the whole hanger. The overall effect was incredibly imposing. Tash gave a low whistle.
"I only came in for a spanner..."
"Oooh you looking for this?"
Tash gave a small, undignified scream and whirled around. For a wild moment she worried that Adrian had caught her breaking into his private hanger... before she realised that the voice was female and definitely not Adrian's.
Standing behind the now closed door, was a tall, incredibly buxom woman. She had long black hair, which was streaked with white and wore a dark blue trenchcoat. For some reason, Tash was getting a very Adrian-like vibe from her, and she took a harder look at the trenchcoat, the little green imp known as jealousy rising up for some unknown reason.
"Who are you? And why do you have one of my boyfriend's trenchcoats?"
The woman's eyes went a little wide, before a smirk crept across her face. Tash felt herself blush as she felt eyes roam across her body in a way that was anything but innocent. "So you're Tash? You're hotter than Adrian describes..."
Despite herself, Tash blushed. "So not hot...but you still haven't answered either of my questions."
"Ah, ah." The woman waggled a finger and put a hand on her hip, twirling the spanner in the other. "That's not nice…I asked first."
"Fine. Yes, I was looking for the spanner!" Tash reached for it, but the woman stepped back out of her reach and Tash's hand missed. "Hey!"
"My name is Phoenixia." The woman smirked and continued to twirl the spanner idly, violet eyes looking amusedly at her. "And that's not how we play the game, my dear. We take turns…you asked me a question and I gave you an answer…" She pointed the spanner at Tash. "So now I ask you a question and you give me an answer. Otherwise, you don't get the spanner you wanted."
Tash lifted an eyebrow. "And what's to stop me from just getting a different spanner?"
"That's against the rules, but I'll let you have a freebie…" Phoenixia smirked and gestured around them to the expanse of the hanger that was not taken up by the giant mecha. "Do you see another spanner around here?"
"Well, sure…" Tash glanced around and blinked in surprise. There were several crates along one wall, as well the door she had entered in. But there was no tool rack or box laying around, just an open tool case and the spot for the spanner was empty-meaning that it was the one in Phoenixia's hand. "I thought he had more tool kits around here…"
"Well, Adrian does." Phoenixia as she gestured up to the top of the mecha. "They are in the cockpit, but unless you want to walk eight stories worth of stairs…" She pointed to the metal stairwell that lead to the cockpit. "You're not getting another spanner."
The British girl sighed. Obviously she wasn't going to get the spanner until she played Phoenixia's game. "Alright, alright…what questions to you want to ask me?
Phoenixia smirked and she looked Tash up and down as she walked around her and Tash blushed, not used to having someone look at her like that. "You are hotter than he described…" She completed her circle and her smirk became one of someone sharing a secret. "So… is he good?"
Tash blinked. "What?"
"Adrian?" Phoenixia's smirk grew slightly naughty. "Is he any good in bed?"
"What… he… I… you… I mean…!" Tash spluttered and then regained her self, feeling her cheeks burn hotly as she blushed hard. "I don't have to answer that!"
Phoenixia's smirk grew more pronounced. "You don't have to… that told me all I need to know. I bet he leaves you tired, but oh-so satisfied when you're finished… and it takes hours for you to be finished."
"Oh, yeah…" Tash's eyes gained a slightly glazed look and her expression became vacantly happily until she snapped back to reality. "HEY!"
A laugh burst from the buxom woman and she headed for a crate, still chuckling and twirling the spanner in her hand. "You'll have to forgive me… I just couldn't have resist… well, I could've, but I chose not to… and to answer your question as to why I'm wearing your boyfriend's trenchcoat… it's not really his coat… it's a replica…" She hopped on a crate, sitting on the edge as she faced Tash.
Tash tilted her head. "He has more than one of the same coat…"
"Not exactly, dear…" Phoenixia grinned as she drew a leg up to her chest and clasped the knee and suddenly she was wearing a sexy red bikini, the top stretched so tight that Tash thought it would snap in half if she breathed to hard and her hair was suddenly a rich, honey-blond colour. "I'm a hardlight hologram, like in Star Trek or the like… there's a lot of higher-end complicated math and stuff, so I won't both explaining it…but since I'm a hologram, I can change my appearance at will…" She put a finger to her lips and looked thoughtful, as she was suddenly wearing a ball gown and her hair was a deep shade of pink that surprisingly matched the gown well. "Well, except my eyes… no matter how hard I try, they're always violet…"
"Wha…?" The British girl gaped at her. "You're a hologram, a computer program!"
"Uh-huhhhh.." The digital woman smirked and nodded. "I am… a totally sentient, fully functional computer program, completely independent from anyone's control. But don't call me an AI…." She frowned and waggled a finger at Tash. "That implies I'm an 'artificial intelligence' and that I'm man-made. Nothing could be farther from the truth." She hopped off the crate and walked towards Tash, pushing the Chief Agent's Jaw shut with a finger. "And do try to keep that closed. You wouldn't want to swallow a fly."
Tash flushed bright red in embarrassment and shifted a bit. "How…? Who…? What…? Where… I mean-?"
Phoenixia chuckled again and her outfit changed again, this time to a pair of jeans and long-sleeved black sweater and a pair of stylish glasses perched on her nose and her black hair drawn into a bun, a pair of loafers on her feet. "That's a lot of questions, but I'll be nice and count it as one…" She gestured to the giant mecha in front of them. "That, my sexy Tashy, is Adrian's Zord… the Phoenix Zord and it's where I was 'born'. It posses a synaptic uplink, which means you can control it with mind, at least to a certain degree. Thorough a…certain series of events when Adrian was linked to the Zord, I was born. So I was created from of him…except I really wasn't…" She folded her arms and pouted, Tash faintly flushing red as she realized how sexy Phoenixia made the action seem. "You know, I can download every song in existence, hack through any firewall or security program and I still can't figure out how exactly how I was created… oh, well, I guess all sentient beings have that problem."
Tapping the spanner on her palm, she turned and grinned at Tash. "Now it's my turn to ask a question." She looked thoughtful for a moment. "So… how long did you think you could keep your project secret from Adrian?"
Tash tried her best to look innocent, but knew she was failing. "I don't know what you're talking about…"
The other woman snorted in disbelief. "Yeah right… so those parts you've secretly taking from the supplies, all those nights sneaking around with Emily, the tired mornings, trying secretly look at blueprints when you're supposed to working… all of that is in our heads?"
The British girl struggled to not let her jaw drop again. She knew Adrian always had an uncanny ability to know where she was in the Library and somehow always knew more about what was going on in the Library than he really let on, but she had thought she managed to pull one over him finally… with a few key pets to the ears to help her on the way. "How did you know…?"
Phoenixia smiled and clasped her hands behind her back, her outfit changing into a skirted-schoolgirl one, complete with blue ribbon around her neck, hazelnut hair trailing to her knees rocking back and forth on her heels. "Adrian is good at learning things you'd rather him not know, but even he can't be everywhere…" Her eyes twinkled. "And I do get awfully bored around here some days…."
Tash blinked. "Adrian has his sentient computer program spying for him… somehow, this does not surprise me at all…"
"I'm not his, per se. I do have free will. However, Adrian is one of the few individuals in the multiverse I find truly interesting and he and I have been together for centuries and I really don't see that changing anytime soon." Phoenixia replied, still rocking on her heels and smiling. "And while I can't go everywhere in the Library, as I need holoprojectors to move from room to room, I can work through the Library's computers and keep an eye on things that way."
The green imp of jealously, who had been lounging in the back of Tash's mind, gleefully got over being ignored and pushed his way up front. "You've known him for centuries... and change your appearance… and you've been alone with him all this time…"
"So you think he and I…" Phoenixia stopped rocking on her heels and raised an eyebrow. "Once upon a time, it could have been… but that was several centuries ago. Any passion and romance we had has changed into nothing more than a strong platonic love." She smiled and Tash was surprised at how sincere and heartwarming it was. "Adrian loves you… more than anything or anyone."
"Oh…" Tash flushed red and played with her hair, decidedly embarrassed. "I just thought… I mean… I know, that with how long he's lived, Adrian could have past girlfriends and I promised myself I'd try to be understanding…" She flushed more and shifted sheepishly. "I feel so bad for being jealous…"
Phoenixia smiled warmly and cupped Tash's cheek, looking into her eyes and Tash was once again strongly reminded of Adrian. "Don't feel bad… it's a natural reaction. It would be more concerning if you weren't ever jealous. Just remember, you're the one who's driven his nightmares way." She suddenly smirked sexily and trailed her hand down Tash's cheek and arm. "Of course… if you need proof… I'm certain the three of us could get together and have some fun… he'd definitely make sure you knew you were number one in his life…" She smirked more and her eyes gained a twinkle to them. "And I know I could help with that… being able to change how I look certainly has it's advantages…"
Tash blushed really red, swearing her cheeks were on fire. "It's an interesting idea, but I really don't think I'm really ready or…" Then she glared a bit as Phoenixia started chuckling, obviously struggling to hold back full-blown laughter. "Would you stop that!"
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry… well, a little anyway…" The busty woman managed to regain control of herself. "And like you said, the idea's interesting… but I'm not to ruin a good thing by sticking my nose into it…" She cupped her breasts and hefted them a bit. "Well, these would probably beat my nose into anything… would you like to find out?"
"Stop making me blush!"
This time, Phoenixia burst out laughing, even as her outfit and hair changed back to the one Tash had originally seen her in. "Adrian is right! You are sooooo cute when you blush! And rather hot, too…"
"Nnnnnnnn…!" Tash growled/sighed and wondered if her face was going to say permanently blushed or she'd die from it first.
"She's definitely like Adrian… they just know how to nettle me!" she thought.
Phoenixia reigned herself in, still chuckling a bit. "Alright, alright… we've had enough fun…" The pair started for the door, the black/white haired woman still twirling the spanner in her hand. "I need you to me a favor, Tash… can you not tell the others about Adrian's hanger or me?"
"Well, sure…" Tash tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "But why?"
"It's just that in our experiences, both Adrian and I have realized that's it's a good idea to have some secrets stay that way. Gives one more options and an ace in the hole. Pluuusss…" Phoenixia grinned and twirled a lock of her hair around her finger. "According to Adrian, some of the Agents are bi and I'd be rather tempted to test that out… and he doesn't wanted love-tired Agents risking themselves on missions.."
Tash blushed and sighed. "Do you have to turn everything into innuendo, Phoenixia?"
Phoenixia stroked a length of her hair and looked deceptively innocent. "Nope… I just think it's fun… I'm just pure and chaste…"
The British Agent snorted. "Yeah… and I'm not crazy." She blinked as the spanner was suddenly thrust in her face and she took it, with a slightly confused look on her face. "Oh, thank you…"
"You're welcome…" Phoenixia smiled and gently pushed Tash towards the door. "And when you get the chance, tell Emily that I miss talking to her… she's really good with machines for her age and she and Adrian have that project, too…"
"Hey, you've met Emily? And what project? And why haven't we met you until now?" Tash squeaked as she was pushed out the door over her protesting questions and she turned back around, blinking in surprise as she found the door was no longer there. And she didn't remember how she got into the hanger in the first place. "Bwa… I'll never be able to figure this bloody Library out…"
OOO
"I will kill her..." Adrian muttered.
"Wouldn't that be a form of suicide, though?" Tash asked innocently, before stalking closer to her boyfriend, swaying her hips and causing the coins to jingle. "Don't be mad...I think you look great in this outfit..."
"Of course you do," Adrian scoffed, but he was finding it hard to keep his eyes on her face, when her hips were giving such a good show.
Smirking, Tash pressed herself against him. "Keep it on. For me?" She kissed him briefly. "Please?"
For a second, it looked as though Adrian would give in. Unfortunately, Michael could hold his laughter back no longer, and chose this moment to burst into loud hysterics. Claire and Miriku followed shortly afterwards, and Adrian's face went bright pink. With a small meow, he morphed into a fluffy white kitten, leaped onto the table, and then up again onto Tash's shoulder, and attempted to bury his face in her neck to block out the laughing.
"Dude... whiskers suit you," Michael choked out. Tash gave a giggle and took advantage of Adrian's embarrassment to snap a small violet collar around his neck.
"My kitten," she declared, picking him off her shoulder and cuddling him to her chest. "And now everyone knows I- ADRIAN! Get out from my shirt!"
For the bundle of white fur had wriggled out of her grasp, and slithered like a snake down the top of Tash's shirt, causing the coins to jingle merrily. Michael and Claire sank onto the sofa, howling with laughter, and Miriku had gone a strange shade of pink, and was doubled over clutching her sides as the co-leader collapsed into a giggling fit on the floor.
"Never underestimate the Super-Kitty!" Adrian thought to himself, before curling up in embarrassment. "I need a better name..."
OOO
Emily was struggling to her teeth into this toffee apple. The fruit was too wide for her to be allowed to take anything more than a nibble, and doing so left her lips and nose all sticky from where she had to mash them into the toffee in order to take a bite. What she really needed was a knife, but who had ever heard of cutting toffee apples up?
"Pizza?"
"No..."
Emily giggled as she heard Valerie's complaints, and she seized a plate from the table and ducked underneath the cheap paper table cloth.
"Burger? They're really cool! They've got little cocktail sticks with tiny plastic skulls on the end stuck through them!"
"No!"
Stacey and Danielle pouted, as Emily's head appeared from beneath the table. Terrie noticed her first, and gave her a hand up, shaking long blue hair out of her eyes. She was dressed in a grey shirt, and blue tie, with long black armguards, a short black skirt and thigh high boots. Emily frowned for a minute, before snapping her fingers.
"Miku Hatsune, right Terrie?"
"Right!" the older girl nodded, pleased that she had been recognised. On her other side, Valerie smiled at the presence of the ten year old technician, especially when she held up the plate she had swiped.
"Reese's Cups?" she offered, knowing that the healer could not resist the peanut butter chocolate cups. Sure enough, Valerie, who was dressed all in black, with a burgundy cloak, immediately took one.
"Thank you Emily," she smiled, popping the chocolate into her mouth and allowing a blissful expression to bloom. Her white contact lenses were temporarily obscured as she closed her eyes to savour the taste. "Much better than fast food..."
Emily looked at the table, then over to Valerie, and then at the Reese's Cups, and back again, thinking very hard. Finally she gave the plate of chocolate to the healer, picked up the fattest burger she could see (bacon, cheese and lots of barbecue sauce), and began to eat. A small moan escaped her as she took the first bite.
"You're missing out," she informed Valerie, who rolled her eyes.
"Don't talk with your mouth full," Monika chided. Emily blinked very slowly at her, before swallowing.
"I love the costumes guys," she added, blinking some more at Monika. "I didn't even know you could pull off dressing as a rainbow."
Monika giggled and bounced a little on the spot, causing Emily's eyes to water from the colour.
"Let's not stick you on the bouncy castle," Stacey suggested. She was wearing an elegant looking Chinese dress, and her hair was pulled back with two chopsticks speared through the centre. She was also fiddling with a camera, and was clearly fighting the urge to race around the room and snap photographs of everyone. True to the conversation, Monika was bouncy enough without the giant inflatable entertainment that had somehow been wedged into the room.
"It's not a bouncy castle, it's a bouncy jack-o-lantern," Emily corrected. "And don't ask me where Harriet got it from," she said quickly, as Danielle opened her mouth to ask just that. "I have no idea."
Danielle nodded in understanding. She was dressed in what appeared to be sixteen century formal attire – men's formal attire. No one had been brave enough to ask why she was crossdressing. "But if I were to guess, I'd say it was hired on the Society's budget?"
"You know her too well," Emily admitted, licking barbecue sauce off her lips. A loud shriek across the room caught the group's attention, and Stacey raced off, wielding her camera like some kind of weapon.
"What's going on over there?" Terrie asked, craning her neck and trying to see over people's heads (not an easy task even with platform boots).
Valerie pulled a face as she got a sense of what was going on over there. "At a guess, I'd say Adrian's molesting Tash... or possibly the other way around...but given that it was Tash who screamed..."
Danielle giggled loudly, and Stacey and Terrie both looked curious.
"How can you tell?" Stacey asked. "I can't feel it that strongly..."
"I know them too well," Valerie insisted. "Trust me."
"...he's... molesting her?" Emily's ten year old mind struggled to keep up with the conversation. When it finally clicked, she pulled a face. "Eeeew!"
OOO
"Umm..." Harriet paused in the action of taking a slice of pizza. "I hesitate to ask, but who are you?"
The fae turned slowly around, her own plate containing what appeared to be half the sushi that had been prepared for the party. "Umm... I'm Aster, Harriet-san."
Harriet resisted the urge to slam her face into her hand, but that would have involved an unnecessary waste of cider. "I know who you are, Aster. I was asking who you are."
She waved a hand at Aster's costume, which consisted of a navy blue skirt and blazer, black shoes and socks, a white shirt and a burgundy necktie. Her hair, which was normally tied up, was loose around her face.
"Oooh," Aster looked down at her clothes, and smiled. "I'm Tsuchimiya Kagura... didn't you recognise me?" she frowned. "We covered Ga-rei in my anime classes the other week."
Harriet could almost feel the metre ruler whacking against the back of her skull again and she took a sip of cider to soothe the ache. "Oh yeah... it all just came screaming back to me."
Satisfied, Aster took a good look at her superior. "What are you dressed as Harriet-san? Are you trying to be a demon?"
The leader's face morphed into despair. "No Aster, I'm a kangaroo!"
"Oooh... I see. I thought you were a demon because you were trashing everything with your tail earlier..."
"No I wasn't!" Harriet's voice had turned whiney, but fortunately for both of them, Aster had suddenly become very interested in the chocolate cookies (with spider webs drawn on them in icing), and so Harriet flounced off.
"Something wrong Harriet?"
The leader turned to see Jess, dressed as a ghostly Moulin Rouge dancer. Once again, her boobs were being heavily emphasised with the help of a corset. The force of her turn however, sent her tail sweeping under the feet of Karissa and Charis. Karissa, who was dressed as a ninja from Final Fantasy III, jumped clean over the tail, and landed softly back on both feet. Charis however, went sprawling ungracefully to the floor. Harriet turned to see the Quistis Trepe cosplayer on the floor.
"Oops! Sorry Charis."
"Harriet, have you thought about changing your outfit?" Jess asked, as the floored technician rose slowly to her feet.
"No!" the leader pouted. "It took me ages to find this outfit!"
FLASHBACK
"No... no... no!"
Emily kicked her feet back and forth in the air, turning the page of All Out Cricket slowly, as her mentor huffed and shoved the outfits back on the rail they belonged. After Harriet's initial suggestion to have a party had been voted on and carried at the weekly meeting, the Leader had decided her next task was to find herself a costume... predictably however...
"Argh! None of these are right!"
Emily sighed. "Harriet, the Library has access to millions of costumes, in various colours, and different sizes. Why is it taking you so long to find something you like when you can potentially go as ANYTHING?"
"Its because I can go as anything that I'm having trouble!" Harriet growled, kicking over a stack of headdresses, that corresponded to the outfits on this particular rail.
"Adrian is going to make you tidy those, you know?" Emily remarked casually, not looking up from the magazine. Harriet shot her a filthy look, and went back to pulling the costumes out and inspecting them.
"I wonder why Adrian even HAS all these outfits, anyway?" Emily asked thoughtfully.
"I don't know," Harriet called. "Undercover missions?"
Emily tilted her head to one side in further thought. "Even on those missions though he still wears trenchcoats. And even if he did use these for going undercover, what about the ladies clothes? And why in so many sizes?"
"I FOUND IT!" Harriet did not appear to be listening any longer. Instead she had pulled out, what looked like a large suit of brown fur. The closest thing Emily had ever seen to it was the hairy-brown suit worn by Hagrid in the Harry Potter movies. Then she got a look at the face in the bag and realised what it was.
"Are you sure Harriet?"
"Its perfect!" the leader was declaring, and Emily sighed and went back to the magazine.
"This will only end in tears..."
OOO
A lithe figure slipped into the room, approaching the desk and chair with a sway of her hips. Her long purple hair was being repeatedly tucked behind her ears in a manner which bordered on flirty. Seated at a desk, the only piece of furniture in the room, was a skinny young man, with vibrant blue eyes, and snow white hair. Both of them were impeccably beautiful.
"Did you do it?" the young man questioned. The girl bobbed her head for a reply, and the man chuckled.
"Excellent...then sooner or later, the Society shall come looking for us. And then we shall have our revenge!"
"You're very cliché-sounding, you know?"
"Shut up and go administer the spell... the quicker they figure out what is going on, the quicker you and I can have our fun."
Also, the mystery of the second kitchen is explained via flashback. Yay!
"Aaaaaaand, power!"
Emily snapped a plug in, and suddenly the whole room was filled with the glow of several tangled strings of fairy lights, that had been thrown haphazardly over the bookshelves. Clusters of fake cobweb were also dangling from various points around the room, and fake spiders had been thrown everywhere, along with the customary jack-o-lanterns, casting ominous grinning silhouettes on the walls.
Standing in the centre of the room, in the middle of a low table, was Harriet, her arms spread wide. This might sound like a normal pose, but it was made very difficult by the fact that the Society leader was dressed in a kangaroo costume, and had very short arms. As she turned to survey the illuminated lights, her tail knocked several bottles of coke and a neat stack of paper cups flying. Rhia and several other people dove to save them from an untimely date with the floor.
"Thank you Emily!" Harriet smiled down at her charge, who was wearing cut off jeans, and a striped shirt. A bandana was wrapped around her head, and she carried a sword in her belt, and an eye patch, which was currently pulled up so she could work properly.
"When do we get to eat?" Tyler whined. "I only ate one meal today so I could get in the mood for my costume..."
Harriet raised an eyebrow at the smallest Society agent, who dressed all in black, and was apparently being a stick figure for the evening. "Well that's your look out, isn't it? Have patience my dear underling. Food shall be served soon!"
"This was a really good idea Harriet," Marcus admitted with a nod, studying everyone's outfits from behind his shades – he had refused to dress up, stating that his usual outfit was enough of a costume as it was.
"Of course its a good idea!" Harriet tossed her hair. "I'm British! All my ideas are good! And it only took me two minutes to think of this one!"
FLASHBACK
"That's it!"
The Leader's cry caused everyone to look up from their desks, and crane their necks so that they could see over the towering piles of paperwork. Harriet was on her feet, and in two steps (one on the chair and one on the desk), she towered over everyone and puffed out her chest.
"I am locking all this paperwork in the third kitchen!"
There was a collective gasp from the Society agents. The third kitchen was a place none of them dared to tread. The plates and food in there had been abandoned for so long that no one could rightly imagine what kind of horrors had bred in that time. It was worse than the mutant spaghetti monster that kitchen two had produced, before the Great Kitchen Clean had come about. After that event, Rhia had claimed ownership of kitchen two, and declared it her own personal workspace. Kitchen three however, had never been touched, and most agents had forgotten where it was.
"We are going to take a break from work," Harriet declared. "And we are going to have a party!"
Silence rained. Several people put up umbrellas.
"What kind of party?" Miriku finally asked.
Harriet's eyes fell on the calendar on the wall, and her face split into a wide grin.
"A Halloween Party! And we shall all wear costumes!"
Another long silence, however this time some people were grinning widely.
"Harriet," Tash said suddenly. "I don't think parties are covered by the budget."
Several seconds later, Tash was running from the room, screaming as Harriet threw balled up bits of paperwork at her.
OOO
Beaming widely at her own genius, Harriet spun on her heel (this time, sending a platter of cocktail sausages flying with her tail) and addressed the gathered Society agents, all of whom were wearing costumes of various descriptions.
"My friends, relatives and dearest underlings-"
"You don't have any relatives here Harriet."
"Shut up Tash!" the leader cleared her throat. "I now declare, this Society Halloween party, open!"
As instructed, Ben pressed play on Harriet's laptop, sending music out into the room, and Rhia whipped off the covers on the plates, revealing trays of toffee apples, decorated cakes and cookies, and other staple party foods. Several members began to drool.
"Michael, your costume!" Claire warned, causing her boyfriend to blush at his hunger. The dark clothing and armour he wore gave him an imposing look, however drooling on it detracted greatly from this appearance. Two bat-like wings grew from the young man's back, and his teeth and claws had been lengthened and pointed.
"I can't help it," Michael protested. "Doing such complicated magic makes you really hungry..."
"Yes, but demons don't usually drool over sausage rolls and cake, even if they were made by Chef Rhia," Miriku pointed out, smoothing out her long white dress. Her bracelets clanked against her pharaoh collar. Michael raised a clawed hand in her direction and she smiled sweetly. "What? Its true..."
Claire hugged Michael from behind, taking care not to squash his wings. Her outfit was the polar opposite to Michael's, her own wings had pearly white feathers and were tucked neatly behind her back. She wore a dress of white and gold, with a golden halo above her head.
"I think everyone looks great," Tash said, as the three of them helped themselves to the aforementioned sausage rolls. She was dressed as a belly dancer, and the gold coins on her skirt, top, bracelets and anklet jingled every time she moved. "I'm impressed by the magic too Michael."
Michael pulled a face. "Claire wanted me to go as a bunny. I told her I'd never kiss her again." He looked around suddenly. "Speaking of kiss, where's your boyfriend, Tash?"
Tash gave a mild smirk. "Funny that you should mention dressing up as a cute fluffy animal..."
Right on cue...
"Tashy! Can I talk to you for a second?"
From the corridor stormed a furious looking Adrian, who looked as though he had been attacked by a five year old kid with a black sharpie. He had a black circle on his nose, and three black lines drawn across each cheek. But what was most surprising was his outfit...
Tash gave a wide smile. "Hello Emiushere. Good nap?"
The Librarian twitched and jabbed a finger at the white furred kitty outfit he had apparently been somehow forced into.
"Where did you hide my trenchcoats? And pants? Hell, where are the rest of my clothes!"
It was impossible for Tash to pull off an innocent face, particularly when she was struggling not to laugh – a struggle that was not helped by the fact that Michael seemed to be holding back hysterics and the corner of Claire's mouth was twitching.
"My accomplice has them – she hid your entire wardrobe."
The kitty ears were twitching more rapidly the more annoyed and impatient Adrian got. "And who was your accomplice, may I ask?"
Tash's smirk became more pronounced. "You shouldn't even need to ask – there's only one person who can hide stuff from you in your own Library. But if you want a hint, she's got big boobs, she can change her appearance at will, and she's currently laughing at you from over the video cameras."
No one had ever seen the Librarian's jaw drop so fast. "You... she... how did you find out about her?"
FLASHBACK
"Bloody hell..."
The words were muffled with awe as Tash stood at the foot of a towering mecha, blue and white in colour and with wings folded up neatly by its sides. It was so tall it filled the whole hanger. The overall effect was incredibly imposing. Tash gave a low whistle.
"I only came in for a spanner..."
"Oooh you looking for this?"
Tash gave a small, undignified scream and whirled around. For a wild moment she worried that Adrian had caught her breaking into his private hanger... before she realised that the voice was female and definitely not Adrian's.
Standing behind the now closed door, was a tall, incredibly buxom woman. She had long black hair, which was streaked with white and wore a dark blue trenchcoat. For some reason, Tash was getting a very Adrian-like vibe from her, and she took a harder look at the trenchcoat, the little green imp known as jealousy rising up for some unknown reason.
"Who are you? And why do you have one of my boyfriend's trenchcoats?"
The woman's eyes went a little wide, before a smirk crept across her face. Tash felt herself blush as she felt eyes roam across her body in a way that was anything but innocent. "So you're Tash? You're hotter than Adrian describes..."
Despite herself, Tash blushed. "So not hot...but you still haven't answered either of my questions."
"Ah, ah." The woman waggled a finger and put a hand on her hip, twirling the spanner in the other. "That's not nice…I asked first."
"Fine. Yes, I was looking for the spanner!" Tash reached for it, but the woman stepped back out of her reach and Tash's hand missed. "Hey!"
"My name is Phoenixia." The woman smirked and continued to twirl the spanner idly, violet eyes looking amusedly at her. "And that's not how we play the game, my dear. We take turns…you asked me a question and I gave you an answer…" She pointed the spanner at Tash. "So now I ask you a question and you give me an answer. Otherwise, you don't get the spanner you wanted."
Tash lifted an eyebrow. "And what's to stop me from just getting a different spanner?"
"That's against the rules, but I'll let you have a freebie…" Phoenixia smirked and gestured around them to the expanse of the hanger that was not taken up by the giant mecha. "Do you see another spanner around here?"
"Well, sure…" Tash glanced around and blinked in surprise. There were several crates along one wall, as well the door she had entered in. But there was no tool rack or box laying around, just an open tool case and the spot for the spanner was empty-meaning that it was the one in Phoenixia's hand. "I thought he had more tool kits around here…"
"Well, Adrian does." Phoenixia as she gestured up to the top of the mecha. "They are in the cockpit, but unless you want to walk eight stories worth of stairs…" She pointed to the metal stairwell that lead to the cockpit. "You're not getting another spanner."
The British girl sighed. Obviously she wasn't going to get the spanner until she played Phoenixia's game. "Alright, alright…what questions to you want to ask me?
Phoenixia smirked and she looked Tash up and down as she walked around her and Tash blushed, not used to having someone look at her like that. "You are hotter than he described…" She completed her circle and her smirk became one of someone sharing a secret. "So… is he good?"
Tash blinked. "What?"
"Adrian?" Phoenixia's smirk grew slightly naughty. "Is he any good in bed?"
"What… he… I… you… I mean…!" Tash spluttered and then regained her self, feeling her cheeks burn hotly as she blushed hard. "I don't have to answer that!"
Phoenixia's smirk grew more pronounced. "You don't have to… that told me all I need to know. I bet he leaves you tired, but oh-so satisfied when you're finished… and it takes hours for you to be finished."
"Oh, yeah…" Tash's eyes gained a slightly glazed look and her expression became vacantly happily until she snapped back to reality. "HEY!"
A laugh burst from the buxom woman and she headed for a crate, still chuckling and twirling the spanner in her hand. "You'll have to forgive me… I just couldn't have resist… well, I could've, but I chose not to… and to answer your question as to why I'm wearing your boyfriend's trenchcoat… it's not really his coat… it's a replica…" She hopped on a crate, sitting on the edge as she faced Tash.
Tash tilted her head. "He has more than one of the same coat…"
"Not exactly, dear…" Phoenixia grinned as she drew a leg up to her chest and clasped the knee and suddenly she was wearing a sexy red bikini, the top stretched so tight that Tash thought it would snap in half if she breathed to hard and her hair was suddenly a rich, honey-blond colour. "I'm a hardlight hologram, like in Star Trek or the like… there's a lot of higher-end complicated math and stuff, so I won't both explaining it…but since I'm a hologram, I can change my appearance at will…" She put a finger to her lips and looked thoughtful, as she was suddenly wearing a ball gown and her hair was a deep shade of pink that surprisingly matched the gown well. "Well, except my eyes… no matter how hard I try, they're always violet…"
"Wha…?" The British girl gaped at her. "You're a hologram, a computer program!"
"Uh-huhhhh.." The digital woman smirked and nodded. "I am… a totally sentient, fully functional computer program, completely independent from anyone's control. But don't call me an AI…." She frowned and waggled a finger at Tash. "That implies I'm an 'artificial intelligence' and that I'm man-made. Nothing could be farther from the truth." She hopped off the crate and walked towards Tash, pushing the Chief Agent's Jaw shut with a finger. "And do try to keep that closed. You wouldn't want to swallow a fly."
Tash flushed bright red in embarrassment and shifted a bit. "How…? Who…? What…? Where… I mean-?"
Phoenixia chuckled again and her outfit changed again, this time to a pair of jeans and long-sleeved black sweater and a pair of stylish glasses perched on her nose and her black hair drawn into a bun, a pair of loafers on her feet. "That's a lot of questions, but I'll be nice and count it as one…" She gestured to the giant mecha in front of them. "That, my sexy Tashy, is Adrian's Zord… the Phoenix Zord and it's where I was 'born'. It posses a synaptic uplink, which means you can control it with mind, at least to a certain degree. Thorough a…certain series of events when Adrian was linked to the Zord, I was born. So I was created from of him…except I really wasn't…" She folded her arms and pouted, Tash faintly flushing red as she realized how sexy Phoenixia made the action seem. "You know, I can download every song in existence, hack through any firewall or security program and I still can't figure out how exactly how I was created… oh, well, I guess all sentient beings have that problem."
Tapping the spanner on her palm, she turned and grinned at Tash. "Now it's my turn to ask a question." She looked thoughtful for a moment. "So… how long did you think you could keep your project secret from Adrian?"
Tash tried her best to look innocent, but knew she was failing. "I don't know what you're talking about…"
The other woman snorted in disbelief. "Yeah right… so those parts you've secretly taking from the supplies, all those nights sneaking around with Emily, the tired mornings, trying secretly look at blueprints when you're supposed to working… all of that is in our heads?"
The British girl struggled to not let her jaw drop again. She knew Adrian always had an uncanny ability to know where she was in the Library and somehow always knew more about what was going on in the Library than he really let on, but she had thought she managed to pull one over him finally… with a few key pets to the ears to help her on the way. "How did you know…?"
Phoenixia smiled and clasped her hands behind her back, her outfit changing into a skirted-schoolgirl one, complete with blue ribbon around her neck, hazelnut hair trailing to her knees rocking back and forth on her heels. "Adrian is good at learning things you'd rather him not know, but even he can't be everywhere…" Her eyes twinkled. "And I do get awfully bored around here some days…."
Tash blinked. "Adrian has his sentient computer program spying for him… somehow, this does not surprise me at all…"
"I'm not his, per se. I do have free will. However, Adrian is one of the few individuals in the multiverse I find truly interesting and he and I have been together for centuries and I really don't see that changing anytime soon." Phoenixia replied, still rocking on her heels and smiling. "And while I can't go everywhere in the Library, as I need holoprojectors to move from room to room, I can work through the Library's computers and keep an eye on things that way."
The green imp of jealously, who had been lounging in the back of Tash's mind, gleefully got over being ignored and pushed his way up front. "You've known him for centuries... and change your appearance… and you've been alone with him all this time…"
"So you think he and I…" Phoenixia stopped rocking on her heels and raised an eyebrow. "Once upon a time, it could have been… but that was several centuries ago. Any passion and romance we had has changed into nothing more than a strong platonic love." She smiled and Tash was surprised at how sincere and heartwarming it was. "Adrian loves you… more than anything or anyone."
"Oh…" Tash flushed red and played with her hair, decidedly embarrassed. "I just thought… I mean… I know, that with how long he's lived, Adrian could have past girlfriends and I promised myself I'd try to be understanding…" She flushed more and shifted sheepishly. "I feel so bad for being jealous…"
Phoenixia smiled warmly and cupped Tash's cheek, looking into her eyes and Tash was once again strongly reminded of Adrian. "Don't feel bad… it's a natural reaction. It would be more concerning if you weren't ever jealous. Just remember, you're the one who's driven his nightmares way." She suddenly smirked sexily and trailed her hand down Tash's cheek and arm. "Of course… if you need proof… I'm certain the three of us could get together and have some fun… he'd definitely make sure you knew you were number one in his life…" She smirked more and her eyes gained a twinkle to them. "And I know I could help with that… being able to change how I look certainly has it's advantages…"
Tash blushed really red, swearing her cheeks were on fire. "It's an interesting idea, but I really don't think I'm really ready or…" Then she glared a bit as Phoenixia started chuckling, obviously struggling to hold back full-blown laughter. "Would you stop that!"
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry… well, a little anyway…" The busty woman managed to regain control of herself. "And like you said, the idea's interesting… but I'm not to ruin a good thing by sticking my nose into it…" She cupped her breasts and hefted them a bit. "Well, these would probably beat my nose into anything… would you like to find out?"
"Stop making me blush!"
This time, Phoenixia burst out laughing, even as her outfit and hair changed back to the one Tash had originally seen her in. "Adrian is right! You are sooooo cute when you blush! And rather hot, too…"
"Nnnnnnnn…!" Tash growled/sighed and wondered if her face was going to say permanently blushed or she'd die from it first.
"She's definitely like Adrian… they just know how to nettle me!" she thought.
Phoenixia reigned herself in, still chuckling a bit. "Alright, alright… we've had enough fun…" The pair started for the door, the black/white haired woman still twirling the spanner in her hand. "I need you to me a favor, Tash… can you not tell the others about Adrian's hanger or me?"
"Well, sure…" Tash tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "But why?"
"It's just that in our experiences, both Adrian and I have realized that's it's a good idea to have some secrets stay that way. Gives one more options and an ace in the hole. Pluuusss…" Phoenixia grinned and twirled a lock of her hair around her finger. "According to Adrian, some of the Agents are bi and I'd be rather tempted to test that out… and he doesn't wanted love-tired Agents risking themselves on missions.."
Tash blushed and sighed. "Do you have to turn everything into innuendo, Phoenixia?"
Phoenixia stroked a length of her hair and looked deceptively innocent. "Nope… I just think it's fun… I'm just pure and chaste…"
The British Agent snorted. "Yeah… and I'm not crazy." She blinked as the spanner was suddenly thrust in her face and she took it, with a slightly confused look on her face. "Oh, thank you…"
"You're welcome…" Phoenixia smiled and gently pushed Tash towards the door. "And when you get the chance, tell Emily that I miss talking to her… she's really good with machines for her age and she and Adrian have that project, too…"
"Hey, you've met Emily? And what project? And why haven't we met you until now?" Tash squeaked as she was pushed out the door over her protesting questions and she turned back around, blinking in surprise as she found the door was no longer there. And she didn't remember how she got into the hanger in the first place. "Bwa… I'll never be able to figure this bloody Library out…"
OOO
"I will kill her..." Adrian muttered.
"Wouldn't that be a form of suicide, though?" Tash asked innocently, before stalking closer to her boyfriend, swaying her hips and causing the coins to jingle. "Don't be mad...I think you look great in this outfit..."
"Of course you do," Adrian scoffed, but he was finding it hard to keep his eyes on her face, when her hips were giving such a good show.
Smirking, Tash pressed herself against him. "Keep it on. For me?" She kissed him briefly. "Please?"
For a second, it looked as though Adrian would give in. Unfortunately, Michael could hold his laughter back no longer, and chose this moment to burst into loud hysterics. Claire and Miriku followed shortly afterwards, and Adrian's face went bright pink. With a small meow, he morphed into a fluffy white kitten, leaped onto the table, and then up again onto Tash's shoulder, and attempted to bury his face in her neck to block out the laughing.
"Dude... whiskers suit you," Michael choked out. Tash gave a giggle and took advantage of Adrian's embarrassment to snap a small violet collar around his neck.
"My kitten," she declared, picking him off her shoulder and cuddling him to her chest. "And now everyone knows I- ADRIAN! Get out from my shirt!"
For the bundle of white fur had wriggled out of her grasp, and slithered like a snake down the top of Tash's shirt, causing the coins to jingle merrily. Michael and Claire sank onto the sofa, howling with laughter, and Miriku had gone a strange shade of pink, and was doubled over clutching her sides as the co-leader collapsed into a giggling fit on the floor.
"Never underestimate the Super-Kitty!" Adrian thought to himself, before curling up in embarrassment. "I need a better name..."
OOO
Emily was struggling to her teeth into this toffee apple. The fruit was too wide for her to be allowed to take anything more than a nibble, and doing so left her lips and nose all sticky from where she had to mash them into the toffee in order to take a bite. What she really needed was a knife, but who had ever heard of cutting toffee apples up?
"Pizza?"
"No..."
Emily giggled as she heard Valerie's complaints, and she seized a plate from the table and ducked underneath the cheap paper table cloth.
"Burger? They're really cool! They've got little cocktail sticks with tiny plastic skulls on the end stuck through them!"
"No!"
Stacey and Danielle pouted, as Emily's head appeared from beneath the table. Terrie noticed her first, and gave her a hand up, shaking long blue hair out of her eyes. She was dressed in a grey shirt, and blue tie, with long black armguards, a short black skirt and thigh high boots. Emily frowned for a minute, before snapping her fingers.
"Miku Hatsune, right Terrie?"
"Right!" the older girl nodded, pleased that she had been recognised. On her other side, Valerie smiled at the presence of the ten year old technician, especially when she held up the plate she had swiped.
"Reese's Cups?" she offered, knowing that the healer could not resist the peanut butter chocolate cups. Sure enough, Valerie, who was dressed all in black, with a burgundy cloak, immediately took one.
"Thank you Emily," she smiled, popping the chocolate into her mouth and allowing a blissful expression to bloom. Her white contact lenses were temporarily obscured as she closed her eyes to savour the taste. "Much better than fast food..."
Emily looked at the table, then over to Valerie, and then at the Reese's Cups, and back again, thinking very hard. Finally she gave the plate of chocolate to the healer, picked up the fattest burger she could see (bacon, cheese and lots of barbecue sauce), and began to eat. A small moan escaped her as she took the first bite.
"You're missing out," she informed Valerie, who rolled her eyes.
"Don't talk with your mouth full," Monika chided. Emily blinked very slowly at her, before swallowing.
"I love the costumes guys," she added, blinking some more at Monika. "I didn't even know you could pull off dressing as a rainbow."
Monika giggled and bounced a little on the spot, causing Emily's eyes to water from the colour.
"Let's not stick you on the bouncy castle," Stacey suggested. She was wearing an elegant looking Chinese dress, and her hair was pulled back with two chopsticks speared through the centre. She was also fiddling with a camera, and was clearly fighting the urge to race around the room and snap photographs of everyone. True to the conversation, Monika was bouncy enough without the giant inflatable entertainment that had somehow been wedged into the room.
"It's not a bouncy castle, it's a bouncy jack-o-lantern," Emily corrected. "And don't ask me where Harriet got it from," she said quickly, as Danielle opened her mouth to ask just that. "I have no idea."
Danielle nodded in understanding. She was dressed in what appeared to be sixteen century formal attire – men's formal attire. No one had been brave enough to ask why she was crossdressing. "But if I were to guess, I'd say it was hired on the Society's budget?"
"You know her too well," Emily admitted, licking barbecue sauce off her lips. A loud shriek across the room caught the group's attention, and Stacey raced off, wielding her camera like some kind of weapon.
"What's going on over there?" Terrie asked, craning her neck and trying to see over people's heads (not an easy task even with platform boots).
Valerie pulled a face as she got a sense of what was going on over there. "At a guess, I'd say Adrian's molesting Tash... or possibly the other way around...but given that it was Tash who screamed..."
Danielle giggled loudly, and Stacey and Terrie both looked curious.
"How can you tell?" Stacey asked. "I can't feel it that strongly..."
"I know them too well," Valerie insisted. "Trust me."
"...he's... molesting her?" Emily's ten year old mind struggled to keep up with the conversation. When it finally clicked, she pulled a face. "Eeeew!"
OOO
"Umm..." Harriet paused in the action of taking a slice of pizza. "I hesitate to ask, but who are you?"
The fae turned slowly around, her own plate containing what appeared to be half the sushi that had been prepared for the party. "Umm... I'm Aster, Harriet-san."
Harriet resisted the urge to slam her face into her hand, but that would have involved an unnecessary waste of cider. "I know who you are, Aster. I was asking who you are."
She waved a hand at Aster's costume, which consisted of a navy blue skirt and blazer, black shoes and socks, a white shirt and a burgundy necktie. Her hair, which was normally tied up, was loose around her face.
"Oooh," Aster looked down at her clothes, and smiled. "I'm Tsuchimiya Kagura... didn't you recognise me?" she frowned. "We covered Ga-rei in my anime classes the other week."
Harriet could almost feel the metre ruler whacking against the back of her skull again and she took a sip of cider to soothe the ache. "Oh yeah... it all just came screaming back to me."
Satisfied, Aster took a good look at her superior. "What are you dressed as Harriet-san? Are you trying to be a demon?"
The leader's face morphed into despair. "No Aster, I'm a kangaroo!"
"Oooh... I see. I thought you were a demon because you were trashing everything with your tail earlier..."
"No I wasn't!" Harriet's voice had turned whiney, but fortunately for both of them, Aster had suddenly become very interested in the chocolate cookies (with spider webs drawn on them in icing), and so Harriet flounced off.
"Something wrong Harriet?"
The leader turned to see Jess, dressed as a ghostly Moulin Rouge dancer. Once again, her boobs were being heavily emphasised with the help of a corset. The force of her turn however, sent her tail sweeping under the feet of Karissa and Charis. Karissa, who was dressed as a ninja from Final Fantasy III, jumped clean over the tail, and landed softly back on both feet. Charis however, went sprawling ungracefully to the floor. Harriet turned to see the Quistis Trepe cosplayer on the floor.
"Oops! Sorry Charis."
"Harriet, have you thought about changing your outfit?" Jess asked, as the floored technician rose slowly to her feet.
"No!" the leader pouted. "It took me ages to find this outfit!"
FLASHBACK
"No... no... no!"
Emily kicked her feet back and forth in the air, turning the page of All Out Cricket slowly, as her mentor huffed and shoved the outfits back on the rail they belonged. After Harriet's initial suggestion to have a party had been voted on and carried at the weekly meeting, the Leader had decided her next task was to find herself a costume... predictably however...
"Argh! None of these are right!"
Emily sighed. "Harriet, the Library has access to millions of costumes, in various colours, and different sizes. Why is it taking you so long to find something you like when you can potentially go as ANYTHING?"
"Its because I can go as anything that I'm having trouble!" Harriet growled, kicking over a stack of headdresses, that corresponded to the outfits on this particular rail.
"Adrian is going to make you tidy those, you know?" Emily remarked casually, not looking up from the magazine. Harriet shot her a filthy look, and went back to pulling the costumes out and inspecting them.
"I wonder why Adrian even HAS all these outfits, anyway?" Emily asked thoughtfully.
"I don't know," Harriet called. "Undercover missions?"
Emily tilted her head to one side in further thought. "Even on those missions though he still wears trenchcoats. And even if he did use these for going undercover, what about the ladies clothes? And why in so many sizes?"
"I FOUND IT!" Harriet did not appear to be listening any longer. Instead she had pulled out, what looked like a large suit of brown fur. The closest thing Emily had ever seen to it was the hairy-brown suit worn by Hagrid in the Harry Potter movies. Then she got a look at the face in the bag and realised what it was.
"Are you sure Harriet?"
"Its perfect!" the leader was declaring, and Emily sighed and went back to the magazine.
"This will only end in tears..."
OOO
A lithe figure slipped into the room, approaching the desk and chair with a sway of her hips. Her long purple hair was being repeatedly tucked behind her ears in a manner which bordered on flirty. Seated at a desk, the only piece of furniture in the room, was a skinny young man, with vibrant blue eyes, and snow white hair. Both of them were impeccably beautiful.
"Did you do it?" the young man questioned. The girl bobbed her head for a reply, and the man chuckled.
"Excellent...then sooner or later, the Society shall come looking for us. And then we shall have our revenge!"
"You're very cliché-sounding, you know?"
"Shut up and go administer the spell... the quicker they figure out what is going on, the quicker you and I can have our fun."
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