Defender

Chapter 11—Prom

Author's notes: Woah /wipes brow/ I'm finally back! I am SOO sorry for the super long wait. It took me longer than I expected, but I have a job now in which I do nothing for hours…so I have time to write. Lol Thank you all VERY much for all your comments. They were very encouraging, just knowing that someone was still reading. /many hugs for everyone/

Comments:

Daewen98: Ah, nah. Can't blame you for hoping. In fact, concidering the content of this chapter...but I shan't spoil it for you.

Brimseye: Welcome aboard! Thanks for all your wonderful reviews. /hugs/ Hope I haven't kept you waiting TOO long.

IceDragon3/broad grin/ Well, it wasn't soon, but it's here. As for keeping track of who sees what, it's not too hard. Basically, all the important people (expect Karen, of course) think he's a man. Those who see otherwise usually have cameo appearances. /shrugs/

Last-of-DES-ELUSE: Wow! You surprise me with how well you catch on. More so than you realise, I'm afraid. Heh. It's readers like you who keep me worried. (You know my secrets! Aaaah! lol) Anyhow, welcome to the club and thanks for reviewing.

DelphinePryde/grin/ Me too. Tee hee. And thank you!

Julie: Thanks for the e-mail /hugs/ Hope you can still find time to read. This chapter will probably remind you of a certain someone again. /chuckles/

.oO0Oo.oO0Oo.oO0Oo.

Karen stared at the envelope in her locker, wondering how it had gotten there and what sort of threatening message it was hiding inside. She wished Dreizhen was by her side, but he was dutifully waiting outdoors near the front entrance. With a sinking feeing, she slid the small paper off her textbooks and turned it over. A small drop of red wax covered the corner of the closing flap and a little "M" had been stamped in it. She broke the seal and slowly slid out a cream-coloured sheet of paper.

It was a formal invitation to the prom, signed by Aaron Moore.

Karen stared at the fancy printed letters and suddenly began to laugh. "That boy!" she tisked. "One day he hates me, the next he's inviting me to the prom!" Shaking her head as she walked away from the locker, she sought out Ellie and Amanda in the cafeteria to share the news.

"Well, that is something," Amanda laughed. "Sure takes a load off my mind, though."

"Oh?" Karen prompted.

"I was afraid you were going to hog Dora-chan to yourself. You know, since he is your 'bodyguard' and all that rubbish."

Karen laughed. "Actually, that works out. If you take him, though I think that would be very strange, then he can still be with me without Aaron getting all jealous and protective."

Ellie chuckled into her napkin and twinkled at Amanda. "You two are so silly," she commented, "fighting over a guy neither one of you can have. As for me, I prefer men who will reciprocate my attentions."

Amanda cocked an eyebrow. "And who do you have in mind?"

"Count D!" Ellie proclaimed.

"What!" both girls exclaimed. "Does he know about this?"

"No," Ellie laughed. "Actually, Max asked me."

"Aaron's henchman?" Amanda teased.

"The very one."

.oO0Oo.

"Gah!" Amanda cried in frustration as she flung a fourth dress down on the seat in the dressing room. "They don't make dresses that will cover my big rear anymore!"

"I rather liked the pink one," Karen offered from the adjoining room as she smoothed out the pleats in her current dress.

"But it was pink!" Amanda wailed.

"Maybe Dora-chan likes pink," Ellie offered, turning a little before the mirror in her soft yellow dress. "I'm coming out. Tell me what you think."

"Just a moment," Karen answered. "I'm trying to zip this…thing." Finally, she stepped out and smiled. "Oh, that's very elegant!"

"You think? It doesn't make my face look too round?"

"How could it?" Karen laughed. "There's not even any of it on your shoulders. Just leave all that to your hair."

"What there is of it," Ellie muttered. "I don't like the sequins."

"The sequins are fine. Amanda, tell her the sequins are fine."

"Sequins are out of style this year," Amanda answered in a weary tone. "It's all embroidery and ribbons now."

Ellie gave Karen a defeated look. "Well, that settles it. This store has nothing prom-worthy."

At that moment, Amanda stepped out of her dressing room, clad in her jeans and blouse. Taking one look at Karen's dress, she exclaimed, "Oh heavens, girl! Blue is not your colour."

"But I like this dress," Karen protested.

"It does look nice," Ellie commented.

"But it's blue!"

Karen sighed and smoothed out her pleats some more. "But I really do like it…a lot."

"What colour is Aaron wearing?" Ellie asked.

"I don't know. Probably the traditional black and white penguin attire."

"Maybe if you wore red? Red goes very well with black and white."

"Then we should all wear red," Amanda muttered. "I'm sick of shopping. The idiots who order for this store know nothing about fashion." Then, after a moment, she added, "That's it! I'm going Goth!"

"You're what!" Karen exclaimed. "You can't go Goth. That wouldn't even begin to match Dreizehn."

"Well, he can go Goth, too!" Amanda crossed her arms, settling deeper into her peevish mood. "Hey, wear the blue dress if you want. I guess I can get the pink one, since you like it so much. Really, though, I wish I didn't have to wear anything."

"Oh yes, I'm sure naked is in style," Ellie returned.

"That's not what I meant! It's just," she sighed deeply, "why can't I wear jeans and a comfortable top? Or if it must be a dress, can't the school uniform suffice? Dora-chan gets to wear his uniform."

"Dora-chan is hot in his uniform!" Ellie proclaimed. "I wouldn't want him dressed in anything else."

"You saying I'm not pretty in mine?" Amanda asked testily.

"Girls," Karen cut in. "I think it's safe to say that we've exhausted this store. If you don't want to get the pink dress, don't, and Ellie…do whatever you want. As for me, I'm trying Sears."

Amanda cocked her head in confusion. "But, I thought you were getting the blue dress."

Karen shrugged. "It makes me look fat."

.oO0Oo.

Karen stood before the mirror in her room. The reflection that looked back at her was resplendently attired in a dark purple gown with a gracefully swooped neckline, gossamer lace at the sleeves and delicate lavender and ivory embroidery travelling up from the floor in a floral pattern that reached for her waistline, but actually accomplished its goal in only a place or two. With her hair set in beautiful golden ringlets, she looked everything like a princess.

Amanda stepped up beside her and smiled. Her own dress was a light iridescent blue, open in the back, and decorated with breaded ribbons. On top of her curls she wore a smart little hat that trailed more ribbons down the length of her hair. Placing a white-gloved hand on Karen's shoulder, she proclaimed, "I think we're ready to go."

Karen nodded with a smile, walked across the room, and placed the repaired lid on the incense burner. There was nothing like filling the room with smoky fragrance while beautifying oneself for an elaborate party.

Amanda opened the bedroom door and smiled at Dreizehn who was waiting dutifully in the hallway. He looked at her and then at Karen, who was grinning from ear to ear at seeing his human form, and offered his arm to his mistress. Amanda pouted.

"Just until we get to Aaron," Karen whispered to her friend. "We haven't exactly found a way to explain to him that he's going out with you. I'm sure he'll figure it out when Aaron steals me away."

Amanda smiled weekly and resigned herself to whatever fate would be hers.

They walked into the living room where Aaron was patiently waiting. Karen dropped her hand from Dreizehn's arm and smiled charmingly at her date.

Aaron blinked back in surprise and admiration. "I declare," he said. "You ladies are lovely! Women always do have all the fun when it comes to fashion."

He eyed Dreizehn jealously and then held his arm out to Karen. "Shall we go?"

.oO0Oo.

As he pulled his black Porsche to a stop in front of the school building, he smiled at Karen.

"Thanks again for taking all of us," she said.

Aaron offered no reply, but instead, stepped out of the car and walked around to Karen's side so he could open her door. Much to Karen's surprise, Dreizehn had stepped out from his seat directly behind her and promptly opened her door before she, Amanda, or Aaron could protest. Bewildered, she took his offered hand and alighted. She cast an apologetic look to Aaron, hoping he would understand her meaning, but it was lost on him.

Fighting back jealous rage, Aaron promptly removed Karen's hand from Dreizehn's arm and placed it on his own. His glare said as much as his pursed-lipped silence did.

As Karen followed her date into the school, she heard the fourth car door open and looked back to see Amanda letting herself out.

"I guess a girl's gotta look after herself, be it two guys at once or none," her friend mumbled. Then she picked up her skirt and quickly followed Dreizehn.

As soon as they entered the gym, a very loud redhead in a perfectly white, lace-covered gown came bustling forward. "Amanda, Karen, darlings, I want you to meet Joshua, the mayor's son. I've been friends with the mayor's family and the chief of police, too, for several years now, so it was only customary for Joshua to ask me out, even though he doesn't go to school here. Isn't he quite the hansom catch?"

"He doesn't hold a candle to Dreizehn," Amanda replied tersely. She grabbed her date's arm and clung on protectively.

"Well!" Claire looked the German soldier up and down before answering. "At least my date talks to me." Then she snubbed her nose and flounced away.

"Oh, the hateful little floozy!"

"Don't let her bother you," Karen comforted. "You know she's always like that. In fact, I'm surprised she even found a date what which how the boys must have fought. It's a wonder any of them are left."

"Thanks for the sentiment, but," she sighed, "she has a point."

Karen started to give another sympathetic reply, but Amanda cut her off with, "Oh, there's Ellie. Doesn't she look fabulous?"

Ellie floated across the floor toward them, her ivory dress sashaying around her legs and letting the intricately beaded embroidery sparkle in the lights. Her hair was neatly tied up in thin gold ribbons that cascaded behind her, giving the illusion of the long hair she wished she had.

"You made it!" she greeted.

"Yah, where's Max?"

"Oh, around somewhere. Probably wherever Aaron is."

At the mention of her date's name, Karen looked quickly around her and discovered that, indeed, Aaron was nowhere in sight. Only her girlfriends and Dreizehn stood around her, just like always. With a sigh, she shrugged and suggested, "Why don't we find a table and sit down before Claire finds us standing around here like a bunch of losers?"

.oO0Oo.

The girls sat idly chatting about whatever came to mind and occasionally commenting on what they thought was the prettiest dress on the dance floor when Karen suddenly spotted a familiar face. She grabbed Amanda's arm and pointed discretely across the table. "Look! There's Orcot."

"Who?"

"The detective that was at my cousin's house. The one who let me get my stuff?"

"Oh, that guy? Huh! Wonder why he's here."

"I don't know, but he's got a nice-looking date."

"I'd say. Must be nice to actually be a full-blown woman if you have to wear a ball gown."

"What are you two whispering about?" Ellie asked.

"Orcot, the cop guy, is over there dancing with some chick," Karen answered.

"So he is. I wonder who she is."

"Only one way to find out."

Ellie gave her friend an incredulous look. "You first!"

Karen chuckled. "Heh! On second thought…."

"What? You don't like the idea of just walking up to him and asking what his date's name is?" Ellie teased.

Karen cast her friend a look, which faded into a smile when she caught sight of Aaron walking toward their table.

"How are the prettiest girls in the room?" he asked, resting his hands heavily on the table between Karen and Amanda.

"Fighting boredom," Karen answered with a smile. "Wondering where our dates ran off to."

Aaron returned her polite smile and stood up straight, striking a pose and running his hand through his immaculate hair. "I was just making my rounds, asserting that my date and her friends are the loveliest ladies this evening. Couldn't dance with anything less, after all."

"Dance?" Karen echoed, doubtfully. "I don't know about you, but I haven't been doing much of that this evening."

"Well, allow me to remedy that!"

Aaron shifted his weight forward a little and extended his arm. Karen smiled and accepted his invitation with a short laugh. He took her into the middle of the dance floor just as the trombonist started up a lively solo. To Karen's mild surprise, her vain and egotistical boyfriend was actually a very good dancer. It was easy to follow his lead and, in a few minutes, she was completely relaxed with nothing to worry about except not tripping over her skirt and keeping her shoes beneath her feet.

As the trombone solo came to an end, Aaron pulled Karen close to him in a final spin. The song melded into a slow waltz, with a melancholy violin and a lazy keyboard creating the harmony. Aaron held his partner close and resting his chin on her shoulder.

"What's that military guy to you?" he whispered in her ear.

Karen started and tried to pull away, but he held her firmly in place. "Where'd that come from?" she asked incredulously.

"From watching you two relate. Is he really just your bodyguard?

Karen stopped mid-step and this time Aaron allowed her to step away from him. "In case you haven't noticed," she answered a bit icily, "Amanda is the one with the major crush on Dora-chan. To me, he's no more than Lizzy is to you."

"A pet?"

She smiled. "Well, a silent friend at any rate."

Aaron smirked and took her around the dance floor again. "I'll let him know you equated him to a dog."

.oO0Oo.

When the song ended, Karen looked up at her date and asked, "Can we just talk for a while?"

"While we dance?" Aaron hinted, hopefully.

"Um, no. I was hoping we could sit down."

A warning light went off in Aaron's head, which he noted, but forced himself to reply calmly. "Okay. Want to get drinks first?"

"No thanks. I really just want to get this over with."

Aaron stood still and stared at his date, no longer able to mask his alarm. "What's this about?"

"Can we just sit down? I'd rather not do this in the middle of the room. And I think you'll agree when you figure out what it's about."

"Karen, stop playing games with me. If you want to talk, talk."

His date sighed. "Look. See the man over there dancing with the lady in the blue dress?"

Aaron glanced over his shoulder and scanned the faces in the general direction that Karen pointed.

"No, over to the right a little, almost behind you. Oh, never mind. Just start dancing with me and you can turn and see him."

Aaron took his date's hand and did as instructed. In a moment, he asked, "Black hair?"

"Uh, no. The man is blonde. The lady is…uh…brown I think? Can't remember."

"Okay, I see him. What about him?"

"He's a cop and he's within hearing distance. Now, do you still want me to talk right here?"

Suddenly, Aaron guessed her topic of choice. "Do we have to do this now?"

"The sooner, the better," she answered.

"Fine, whatever." He took her arm and escorted her none too gently to a table off in one corner. He sat down and looked up at her frowning face. "What?"

"You are such a gentleman," she groused.

"Well, you're the one who insisted on this stupid conversation," he defended.

"Yah? Well, the least you could do is pull out my chair, or should I get Dora-chan to do that, too?"

Aaron glared, but dutifully stood up and pulled out the offending chair.

When he was seated again, Karen began. "I want to talk about us."

Relief washed over the boy, followed closely by vexation. "That's all!"

"And your cocaine," she finished in a quieter tone.

The dread returned full-force. "Is this going to come between us?"

"Maybe," she answered, honestly, "but it doesn't have to."

"Well, if you're all worried about it, don't be. I don't use the vile stuff." He leaned back with his left arm draped over the back of his chair, trying desperately not to loose his I'm-too-cool-for-my-girlfriend demeanour in the face of said girlfriend's accusing gaze.

Unaffected, Karen continued her cross-examination. "Then why do you have it in your room?"

"What it matter? I said I don't use it. That should be enough."

"But it isn't."

"Why not?" Aaron demanded, anger leaping into his eyes. "You don't believe me?"

"No, I do…I guess. I don't know if I do. But that's beside the point. The point is that you have it and just possessing it is a crime."

"Is not!"

"Oh? Then why don't we go ask Orcot?"

"Who?"

Karen sighed. "The cop guy I pointed out to you earlier?"

"Oh, him. How do you know that guy anyhow?"

Karen threw him an icy glare. "You're dodging the question."

"Well, I don't want to talk about this."

His date studied him for a minute and, satisfied that he was not going to relent, stood up. "Then, I guess it will have to come between us," she proclaimed.

"Karen, sit down!" Aaron commanded, standing to his feet and nearly upsetting his chair. The girl looked askance, arrested by his tone, but didn't move. "If you must know, I'll tell you, but sit down."

Obediently, she sat

As Aaron sighed heavily, Karen noticed that, for once, he curiously wasn't posing, or messing with his hair, or trying to be cool in any of his ridiculous ways. He was just the regular Aaron Moore that she had seen for a split second that one time she came to his house unannounced. With a private chuckle, she wondered if he ever answered the door so cavalierly again.

He sighed again and finally began. "The deal is this: the guys I hang out with, namely Max, Philip, and Enrique, use that stuff from time to time along with a handful of other guys to help them study. It supposedly keeps them awake and clears their minds and whatnot. When they first started buying it, they naturally wanted me to join them…which I did. Well, sort of. I bought the stuff, but I never used it."

"Why not?" Karen asked, honestly intrigued.

"Well, you know my hobby is research. I just figured I wouldn't need it. I've filed away all sorts of useless information and had long developed my own system for remember such odd titbits. When they started using drugs to help them study, I made it a personal challenge to see if I could, not just keep up with them, but actually do better on my own."

"And you did?"

Aaron scoffed. "I made sure I did! I promised myself that if drug addicts could do better at remembering stuff they didn't care about than I could about stuff I did care about, that I would give up research and waste my life in some drug-induced dreamland. Hopefully overdosing in a year or two."

Karen chuckled. "Well, it's good you succeeded. But…do you keep buying it from them to keep up the charade?"

"From time to time. Philip is now our primary dealer. Well, I guess he kind of always was, but I wonder if he hasn't stopped using it. Not that it matters."

"Dealers often don't use their own poison," Karen mused. "But that still doesn't answer why you keep it in your room? I mean, yah you buy it to keep suspicion off of you, but why not throw it away? What if your mom discovered it?"

"That's why I keep my room a mess, remember? And I do throw most of it away."

Karen sighed and shook her head. "But why keep any of it in your room?"

The boy smiled and returned to his it's-all-about-how-cool-I-am attitude. He opened his mouth to reply, but then suddenly deflated. "Oh good Lord! What is he doing here…again!"

Karen glanced over her shoulder and started to laugh.

"Dreizehn, darling," she cooed in a honey thick voice, "you're supposed to be staying with Amanda. She's your date, not me."

True to his nature, though, the Doberman came to a stop a behind his mistress's chair and stood straight and tall, seemingly oblivious to her words.

Karen turned back to her date. "I guess we better find Amanda and return Dora-chan."

.oO0Oo.

Amanda looked up glumly from her seat at the table. "Hey," she greeted the trio, lackadaisically waving her hand in a single arch.

"I brought Dora-chan back," Karen announced, cheerfully.

"That's okay. You can keep him."

"What?"

"I officially broke up with him," Amanda explained. "He has eyes only for you. She waited for Karen to return to her seat and then continued. "He was sitting there like a good little soldier, but he never stopped watching you. The whole time you were dancing and then when Aaron dragged you off to that table…all I had to do was look at him and I'd know where you were. Then, I finally had enough and told him that we were through and he could go if he wanted. And the weirdest thing is, he chose right then to get up and walked over to you."

"Well…I don't know," Karen began slowly. "He's probably a little clueless, yet. Still caught up in his habitual guarding and not really realising that he's supposed to be doting on you."

"Maybe so, but the fact remains, he's obviously not interested and so I might as well let him go."

"Have you asked him for a dance? That would probably get him distracted enough."

Amanda gave her friend a slow flat stare. "She says after repeatedly reminding us that he doesn't speak English. 'And before you ask, no, I don't know German.'" She ended her mimicry with a pert flick of her tongue.

Karen returned the gesture without hesitation. "I was just trying to help."

"Thanks, but no thanks."

Just then, Ellie returned, flushed from exercise on a fast dance floor with Max in tow. She flopped down into her chair and promptly began to gush. "Oh my goodness! You wouldn't believe how good a dancer Max is. I've never done swing before, but he just took me spin after spin until I was nearly dizzy! Even on the slow dances he was so graceful!"

The boy in question sat quietly beside her, revelling in her praise and hiding his smile behind his hand to keep himself from commenting on how embarrassing she was at the moment.

As Ellie prattled on, Karen let her gaze wander until she caught sight of something that seemed very out of place. It was someone, to be exact, complete with a deep indigo robe sporting a spiralling dragon embroidered in a garden of Chinese blossoms. The little long-eared bat on his shoulder cried, "Q!" and flew into the air a little ways, pointing in her direction.

.oO0Oo.oO0Oo.oO0Oo.

Last notes: Well, all my Petshop books are on loan, right now, and I couldn't remember the lady cop's name or her hair colour. That is why Karen and Co. are never formally introduced and why Karen can't remember the lady's hair colour. /sheepish grin/ Hope I covered my own inadequacy creatively enough that you aren't suffering any adverse side-effects. lol
BTW, the reason Aaron keeps some of the cocaine in his room is to serve as visual proof that he uses the stuff in case his friends ask while they're visiting. Stupid? Yes, but oh well. He's still in high school. You can't expect him to have the world's problems solved already. lol The reason he didn't tell Karen was b/c I wanted to keep you guessing for as long as possible…and mostly just to annoy Julie.