Bubbles watched as Zeo went over to the wall and huddled there miserably. When she saw that several of the other women and Cole rushed over to comfort her she relaxed a bit. Then her cold anger ignited into a hot fury. And her expression grew even calmer. She looked at Tommy. He had calmed down now and he bared his teeth in a humorless smile as their eyes met and a silent communication passed between them. Not thoughts or feelings, simply that they recognized their mutual accord in this matter. Tommy moved a bit to hold the man out to her. "My dear grandmama taught me how to deal with brutes like you," Bubbles said silkily. "I'll show you..."
She smiled nastily and her intended victim paled and tried to back away from the look in her eyes. He had not liked her ideas at all. Bubbles raised her mirror and caught his eyes, invoked her own inner power with the mirror....And suddenly Kimmy bounded into their midst, yelling in the most atrocious manner. Bubbles side stepped quickly, and Tommy ducked to avoid her wildly swinging coffee mug. Before they could react further Kimmy had done her damage, and the man was out cold, a nasty bump swelling on his forehead. "Jerk!" Kimmy yelled as he crumpled to the ground, unconscious. "Hmph, hurt MY friends, will ya!" Slinging her mug back over her shoulder, Kimmy looked around at everyone, who did not say a word for a moment. Looking around again, she gave a little gasp and said, "Oops. Uh... I guess you got him already, huh? Gee, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to take away all your fun. I know! When he comes to, then you can torture him like he deserves!" She grinned and then gave the jerk a nudge with her toe. "Though, iffinya want, I can over caffinate him so he gets the runs," she offered, back to her cheerful self.
Bubbles pressed her lips together and reminded herself that Kimmy just wasn't herself right now. Kender blood would derange anyone. But all was not lost. She'd had his mind before Kimmy had done her damage. He would be hers still when he awoke. In fact...she need not even awaken him to do her work. It would be ever so much easier this way. Bubbles knelt, took off her glove, and put her hand on the mans forehead, her lip curling in disgust at the greasy feel of his skin. Silently she implanted her geas and her orders in his mind. When he awoke he might even think he had escaped her vengeance altogether. Until the first time he thought of hurting a women, that is. She smiled coldly. Finished, Bubbles tried to wipe her hand clean on the mans shirt, but it was so dirty she couldn't accomplish much.
"Allow me," Tommy said suddenly. She looked up to see him holding out a handkerchief to her. Bubbles smiled brightly, took the cloth, and stood up, her glove clamped under her arm for the moment. The cloth was damp and with it she finally got her hand clean. Such a relief to have the feel of that cretin off her. She raised and inquiring brow at Tommy. He looked disgusted. Nodding, Bubbles dropped the soiled cloth on the still unconscious man and pulled her glove back on. Turning to follow the rest of her companions, she found Hank and Diana still watching her and Tommy. Their looks were very appraising, but she could not tell what thoughts were going on in their heads. She looked back at them levelly for a moment, then raised her chin slightly. They watched her a moment more...did their eyes narrow a bit? Then they turned and left, going to the head of the procession.
Bubbles looked at Tommy. He shrugged. Then he held out his arm to her and she smiled coyly again. "Just a moment," she said sweetly. Making sure all the Young Ones had left, she turned again and jabbed the sharply pointed toe of her boot into the fallen man's ribs and nudged him ungently. After a few such taps he moaned and stirred, and blinked blearily. His visage darkened as he looked at Bubbles, and he lunged up off the ground, his face contorted in a snarl of fury, his hands reaching for her. He didn't manage even one step. He howled in agony and fell to the ground again and rolled around there for a few moments. Then he hopped up again. Stunning the watching crowd that had surreptitiously gathered around, he grabbed a nearby loose board, yanked down his pants, and proceeded to spank himself mercilessly, all the while chanting at the top of his lungs. "I'm a naughty boy! I'm a naughty boy! I did a bad thing! I'm a baaaad boy!" His expression was horrified, to say the least. The watching crowd erupted applause and whistles and catcalls that he finally got what he had deserved. A few tossed pennies his way.
Bubbles could not help herself. She burst out in delighted laughter. This was even better than she had thought it would be. She turned back to Tommy, who was nearly doubled up in laughter. "Ahem," she said amusedly. He straightened up and wiped tears from his eyes and held out his arm again, a silly grin on his face. Taking his arm Bubbles looked at him coyly. "I did so love the song you sang me before all this. Why, I haven't heard that in ages. Not since grandpapa sang it to me." And she giggled and winked at Tommy. His laughter roared in appreciation.
--Previous Message--
: Bubbles watched Zeo closely and knew she had to
: respond.
: "Zeo, I believe you have totally
: misunderstood the precept of Judge not
: lest ye be judged. That is an injunction
: against hypocrisy, not judging a person.
: You are not supposed to be judgmental
: against someone when you yourself are not
: living by the precept you are judging that
: person to have broken. The only way we
: would be guilty of judging lest we be
: judged is if we were going around
: accosting and raping people ourselves. If
: you are going to bring up that biblical
: injunction then you know very well that
: the bible is very clear that mankind *is*
: to judge wrongdoers." She looked at
: Zeo levelly and her calm gaze hardened a
: bit.
: "But know this. I will not let this man
: get away with mere what Tommy has already
: done to him. If we simply let him go then
: the pain and suffering and perhaps the
: blood of his future victims is on *our*
: hands, for not stopping when we could
: have." She looked back at the angry
: and defiant man. "If nothing else I
: will plant an injunction in his head. When
: so ever he tries to harm another woman, or
: even thinks about it, he will suffer
: paroxysms of agony. And only by never
: harming, or thinking of harming, women in
: any way can he avoid the pain." Her
: eyes were cold and hard. "But this,
: at the very least, I will do."
:
: --Previous Message--
: --Previous Message--
: It was pretty clear to Cole and the others
: that Zeo's attackers would have to pay,
: and the mentalist could see the valid
: points in the arguments for and against
: letting them live but he presented Zeo
: with another alternative. "Zeo, if
: you want to really make them pay then why
: don't you use this." With that Cole
: unties the small pouch attatched to his
: belt and presents it to her.
: "You can use my Mind Gem to make them
: feel a world of pain telepathically
: without really killing them. Hopefully
: that would serve as a harsh reminder to
: them should they even dare to think of
: assualting another woman. Or if you want,
: you could use it to telekinetically break
: every bone in their body. Personally,
: wasn't willing to go that far when the
: fight first started, but that's just
: me." Opening the pouch a little more
: the blue glow of the Mind Gem eminated
: from within as Cole waited to see what Zeo
: would decide to do.
: : *Man, where's SJR and her Supreme Lumber
: when you need her?* Zeo thought briefly,
: looking from Cole to Bubbles to Tommy and
: back.
: *Okay, so I've got options...let Tommy kill
: him, Bubbles turn him into a mindless
: drone, Cole cause him mucho pain real or
: imaginary, or just...let him go.* She
: clutched her hands together, tugging a bit
: on the silver fabric of her gloves.
: She felt...cold. Icy inside, like all the
: heat had drained out of her. She rubbed
: her arms, which had suddenly broken out in
: gooseflesh. While she saw the merits of
: all plans, she didn't know if she could
: pass judgement on this man.
: "Who am I after all," she
: whispered, "but another human walking
: this fragile globe. It is not for me to
: judge, lest I be judged in kind."
: But an even larger rule loomed in her
: mind, and she continued, "An ye harm
: none, do what ye will, but know this: :
: whatever ye do shall be returned
: threefold." Well, technically, the
: goon hadn't harmed her...but he and his
: friends had planned to. And while she
: didn't want to see him dead, and she
: didn't particulary want him following her
: around day and night...she wanted him to
: pay. She wanted him to remember this day,
: the price of his actions...
: "Cole," she finally decided,
: "how strong is that MindGem? Is
: there a way we could make him experience
: everything his victims experienced, from
: their point of view? I think if he went
: through that, he might not be so keen on
: hurting any more women." *It'd be
: even better,* she thought coldly, *if we
: could make it so he felt every pain he
: ever inflicted on another creature, but
: that's a little too far for today.*
: ((okay, so Zeo's having a little crisis of
: faith...her author's been having one for
: three years now, it was bound to show up))
:
: :
:
