Misfits (or up, up, down, down)

Frenzy (or The Nurse Had to get it out)

November 19th 1995

The Keeper of the Code

"C'mon you ice asshole. Stay the fuck still!" Arya shouted as loudly as she could, which she instantly regretted as the loud tone and peered out the door to make sure that her mother wasn't in the hall. With Gendry in the room the door had to be at least a 'crack open' according to her mother and Arya found this to be a huge pain the ass.

Sub-Zero used Sonya's distraction to his advantage. With deft skill Gendry's thumb slid down, forward and low punch in a row, and the ball of ice catapulted out of Sub-Zero's arms into Sonya's pixelated chest.

"Ohhhh!" Arya moaned in annoyance, "Gawddamnit."

The azure ninja ran toward the frozen femme fatale, ducked lowed, unleashed a mighty upper cut and the woman flew into the air. When she rose again to her feet, looking dazed, and Gendry knew what that meant.

"Finish Her!" the game announced.

Gendry gave Arya a look and she rolled her eyes in increasing aggravation. His thumbs nimbly punched in the finishing move. Sub-Zero grabbed the blonde, lifted her flimsy body over her head. His hands grew cold, her body froze, he lowered her viciously onto his knee, splitting her frozen corpse in two.

"Fatality," the game announced, "Sub-Zero Wins."

Mimicking his icy warrior Gendry raised one hand in the air and released an equally impressive battle cry. "Suck it!"

Suddenly Gendry sensed movement in the hall. Arya looked at Gendry and they both knew exactly what to do. With the battle over the game did not need to be paused so part one of Arya's objectives was completed. However, the Super Nintendo that currently held the incredibly violent game needed to be covered up with a blanket. This not being the first time her mother would intrude on their death match Arya covered the game system with a small Elmo blanket she had had since she was a baby. To Gendry's knowledge this blanket's only purpose now was to cover the Super Nintendo.

The foot steps moved closer. The parental wrath that would be felt if their digital fun was discovered would be huge. Most likely Arya would be grounded and Gendry would not be allowed into her bedroom any more...and that could not stand. Gendry reached for the TV remote on the small desk next to the bed. As the door began to open his thumb pressed into the INPUT button next to the power button and the TV flickered as it turned back to normal broadcast television.

A figure appeared at the door way and it was as they feared – it was Arya's mother. She entered with a a small smile, no upset to see the young boy in her Daughter's room, but she wasn't that happy either. Her auburn hair set perfectly in a bun on top of her head. A cream colored sweater with a cute embroidered puppy rested on her chest. She was tall and slender yet intimidating in her own way. Gendry could never really put his finger on why this woman caused so many people to dislike her. Maybe it was the harsh tones she used, the judgment she had for most people, or maybe it was the dog sweaters.

"Oh, Hi Gendry," she hummed softly entering the room and surveying the situation. Gendry sat on the twin size bed in jeans and a football jersey. His deep blue eyes and uncut shaggy black head of hair most certainly displeased the very kept Cat Stark.

"Hello, Mrs. Stark. How are you today?" Gendry asked politely...he did well with most people when he had to.

"I am doing okay, Gendry," Mrs. Stark replied looking at her daughter who sat on the floor. She was disheveled, red in the face, with her short brown hair out of place much like Gendry's. If she combed in the morning it was undone by their savage combat. A large gray Badgers hooded sweatshirt rested two sizes two big on her shoulders – most likely from her half brother Jon. She wore with it a matching pair of gray sweatpants. Her dress was for comfort and not appearance.

"Arya" she said with a cold tone to her voice "I heard some cursing from the living room."

"I wasn't swearing. I was just shouting at the TV. We were watching the cart chase from Temple of Doom and...I love that part." Arya's eyes scrolled down to the TV to see that the latest episode of The Sally Jesse Raphael Show was on. Today's issue "Help! My Daughter dresses like a Tramp and I can't stop her!"

As her Mother's eyes moved to the TV she snorted with disgust at the show currently on the TV. Gendry spoke up quickly. "Ummmm...the cart scene ended so we started channel surfing..." as he flipped to the next channel. Luckily the word "Tramp" was not on the next channel.

Cat looked back at the two, and was clearly not happy. "Well Arya, just keep it down." she said backing out of the room and closing the door back to it's semi-open place. The two waited a moment until they knew the red haired menace was gone.

"Geez, Gendry, fucking Sally Jesse?" Arya whispered harshly.

"The TV goes back to the last channel that was on. I didn't know it was going to be that." he replied turning the TV back to the Super Nintendo.

"Why are we even here?" she spat out quickly joining Gendry on the bed. "You have a big screen and a PlayStation...and not my mom. I couldn't think of three better reasons to be there."

"It's Saturday and the my dad is there. Probably using the big screen." Gendry sighed.

Dad is home drinking and I'd rather not be there.

Arya seemed to understand the situation didn't go any further. "Let's go again. And this time no Sub-Zero. He cheats." Arya said with her most stern voice.

Gendry chuckled at the girl next to him. "It isn't cheating. It's called knowing how to play the game."

"I play the game just fine thank you very much." Arya said well raising her body to the bed and sitting cross legged.

"Playing the game isn't button mashing. Half the time it looks like your character is having a seizure." Gendry said as he mimicked Arya furiously playing the game, his fingers mauled the controller and his body flailed about.

"Does not!" Arya rage-fully responded as she playfully shoved the boy.

"Does so...fine I'll be Johnny Cage. And I will still kick your ass."

"No you fucking won't. Shang Tsung and I are going to bend you over and show you who's boss."

"You haven't unlocked Shan Tsung yet though" Gendry said with a sly grin. He knew that Arya needed him to unleash the darkness of her chosen warrior.

"Just do it...Unless you don't think you can handle him?"

"Oh, I can handle him," he replied and began his ritual. He muttered along as he entered the all powerful Code. Up-Up-Down-Down-Left-Right-Left-Right B, A, Start.

"You know," Arya started, "knowing that doesn't make you cool...it just makes you a bigger nerd than me."

"Jealous." was the boy's response.

"Fuck you Baratheon."

"You truly make your mother proud with that mouth my lady."

"Again - fuck you Baratheon."

Gendry laughed. Growing up with two older brothers she gravitated towards had quite the effect on Arya. Jon, a son from her Father's first marriage, was even more vulgar. Rob, her other brother wasn't much better, and at the pace Arya swore she would lap them in a couple of years. Arya and Gendry loved to play games together, it was how they meet several years ago. Gendry's father had moved back to Grafton to be a manager at Baratheon Insurance, the company his father started, and Robert would once again make the strongest Worker's Compensation Insurance Carrier in south-eastern Wisconsin. His father actually talked like that sometimes.

Gendry was ten and was suddenly in a new place without anyone. He had his brother Eddie, he was five, but that wasn't exactly what he needed.

Ned Stark, Arya's adoring father, excited to see his old friend return home, was all to happy to bring his pack to Robert's new home. His wife Cat, prim and proper. His son from his first marriage Jon who was 15 at the time. Rob his first child with Cat. His eldest daughter was Sansa who was born in her mother's image. The youngest was Brandon, five at the time, was awkward and quiet like Gendry. And then there was Arya. Unlike Sansa she looked nothing like her mother and possibly did not know at the time what prim and proper meant.

Lunch was quite an affair. Robert told stories of his and Ned's childhood which grew increasingly embarrassing. Ned tried to cut him off at his fourth beer but the large man would hear nothing of it. When it was decided that the boys would play football Gendry made an excuse that he had a headache and asked his mother if he could go inside. He could tell his father wasn't happy but he couldn't take this many people plus his drunk father.

Once inside he found his Genesis and plugged in Sonic 2. He thought he would have a pretty good chance to complete about five levels before his father noticed again and would call him back. As the TV proclaimed "SEGA!" he noticed the small figure at his door. It was Arya looking out of place but staring intently at the TV.

"I was looking for the bathroom." she spurted out.

"Oh, down the hall, on the left." Gendry said and turned back to the game.

"Can I play Tails? I play with Jon all the time." she asked quickly. Gendry had never played this game with another person.

"Oh sure." Gendry responded, lifting the second controller to the girl.

"Cool!" she exclaimed bopping her way over the boy who sat on the ground in front of the TV.

As the game started something occurred to Gendry. "Didn't you have to use the bathroom?"

"Didn't you have a headache and have to lay down?" she coolly replied.

"Fair enough," he said as began to speed through the Emerald Hill Zone. Gendry would never find out if Arya actually had to use the Bathroom or not. But he was glad that she was his Tails.

But that was then, they had grown up since then, and this was serious business. This was Mortal Kombat. With their characters set it was time to square off. It was the Hollywood action star Johnny Cage vs. the dark necromancer Shang Tsung. Gendry would not allow evil too prevail. Not to mention that Johnny Cage's energy ball move was basically the same as Sub-Zero's freeze move.

"Hey did I tell you what happened?" Arya asked quickly as the game began.

"No, what?" Gendry responded out of reflex as Johnny Cage leaped into the air to engage his foe.

"Ohh, just a couple of months ago I had my first period." Arya said quietly and began to grin.

"What?" Gendry responded again. Still a reflex but more the reflex of getting hit in the face or being dunked into a frozen lake. Johnny Cage was distracted, Shang Tsung moved in, and began to unleash a flurry of attacks. There was no rhyme or reason to the onslaught just a storm of kicks and punches. Gendry took a moment too recover but Johnny had already been hit multiple times.

"Oh yeah. It was kind of rough. The first morning I woke up and there was blood in my bed. I mean, there wasn't like a horse head next to me or anything, but still, pretty gross."

Gendry was beginning to catch on that she was going to distract him, but It didn't matter what she said. Johnny Cage unleashed his first energy ball and the demonic warlock was hit in the face. He followed this up with a three hit combo ending in a leg sweep to bring the wizard to the floor.

Knowing more was needed Arya continued. "She I went to Sansa but she had actually ran out of tampons" she said flatly. "So we took a couple from my mom to get me through the day."

Gendry was intrigued by this detail. "Why not talk directly to you mom?"

"Would you ask your mom for a tampon?" She answered back.

Her tactics were working to slow Gendry. He could not block the sorcerer's attacks nor could Johnny unleash his own combos.

"Can't say I've thought about it," Gendry said as Johnny ducked quickly to deliver an uppercut. She wouldn't win this way.

"Well...you see. Tampons come in all sort of different sizes. And the one I grabbed from my mom was a 'heavy' day tampon." Gendry winced at the word 'heavy'.

"I should have known it would be a problem when it was so hard to get it in...but I wedged the son of a bitch up there, and went to school."

Johnny cage was again weakened. The words 'heavy' and 'wedged' assaulted Gendry's mind and left his warrior defenseless. The mindless frenzy from Arya and her spell-caster could not be stopped. Arya knew it was not over yet as she still had to finish him.

"So I am in Algebra and I can tell that something is going on down there. I go to the bathroom and you know what Gendry, you know what it looks like?" she asks innocently.

"What?" He dumbfoundly replied.

"It kinda looks like I ate mouse."

"What?!"

"There is just this white tail like thing hanging down." Johnny Cage is motionless as Gendry is rocked by this mouse revelation.

"So I go to pull the mouse's tail and it won't come out. I tug and tug and it won't come out. Finally I decide to go to the school nurse."

Shang Tsung delivers the final blow. Johnny Cage stands dazed on the catwalk stage they fought on.

"Finish him!" the game bellows. Gendry is more interested in the nurse. "The nurse had to get it out?" He asked out of concern and sick interest.

"Maybe," Arya says coyly. Her warrior lowers himself and lunches a punch into Cage's jaw. He is flung air and screams as he falls to the bed of spikes beneath them. Gendry is both angry that he is defeated and concerned that his friend had to go to the school nurse to remove a feminine hygiene product.

"Did that really happen?" He asked. Without the game he can be truly curious.

"Maybe," she answers again. "Want to go again? We need a third round tie-breaker."

"Yeah, tie breaker. I win the last six and now we need a tie breaker."

"Shut up motherfucker or I tell you about how the nurse had to use tongs."

At that moment Gendry knew that Arya was a dirty rotten cheater but he wouldn't trade her for any one else.

AN: I hope you enjoyed. The tampon story is gross and totally made up. I would say the biggest conceit of this chapter, and the ones that follow, is how clever Arya and Gendry are. But they both smart little kids who are love talking about dirty stuff. Their age in this story is only a year apart just to be clear.

A note on Gendry. He will be slightly OOC as the story goes on. Most of the time I read fanfics where Gendry is an auto mechanic or something like that. I think that fits but I wanted to do something different. Gendry will be a quiet nerdy kid to compliment the super vulgar Tomboy Arya.

Since this is a modern AU, they aren't in Westros. Because I didn't want to strain myself it's Wisconsin – cus that's where I grew up. Although I didn't grow up in "Grafton" but it is a real place.

Updated note: I just recently re-edited this chapter. I don't believe how rusty I was in my writing when I started. But I will say it gets better and now I have a beta to make sure I don't miss words I think I wrote. So, give it a shot.

Coming up next: Teenage Arya and Gendry in Abandon (or the mouse of study hall)