Salad Shooter

[Coffee]

Romaine lettuce. Check. Baby spinach. Check. Collard greens. Check. Kale check. Iceberg lettuce. No way! Coffee threw the head of iceberg back into the crisper, a look of disgust wrinkling his furry face. Cucumbers. Check. Onions. Check. Tomatoes. Check He carefully carried the tomatoes over to the table. He had thrown all the other goodies onto it but tomatoes were delicate. And now to make the perfect salad. I need one more thing. Salad Shooter! He'd discovered it the other day in a high cabinet and it was maybe his second favorite thing in this strange new world. He'd already set three bowls around the room as targets. Three bowls for three salads, tonight's, tomorrow morning's, and tomorrow afternoon's. Grabbing the salad shooter in both paws he hoisted it up, leaned it against the counter and dropped the romaine into it.

Then he ran across the room, dropped to his knees and with a mighty warrior yelp started shooting. The appliance quivering in his paws Coffee shot shredded lettuce across the room into the first bowl, then did a back flip in the air, landing the opposite direction so he could resume fire and send salad pouring into the second bowl. He then pivoted to get the third. By the time the head of romaine was gone, he had two salad bowls with perfect little romaine shreds in them and one that had some in it but a bit more on the counter beside it. The crowd goes wild. The mighty warrior has defeated two of the evil bowl monsters! Coffee cheered in his head, before putting down the salad shooter and hopping over to the third bowl to clean up the mess. He then returned to feed the baby spinach into his favorite appliance.

It's getting boring around here, the rabbit thought. I need action. Fighting imaginary enemies in the forest, like he had done all day, was decent training but was not exciting. His sparring sessions with Diesel and Hardlight were nice but he'd held back a lot. Maybe I should show them what I can do., he thought rubbing his chin with one paw. They might let me teach some stuff or maybe use the danger room I've been hearing about. But then again they might turn him back over to Mojo for the right incentive and then he'd regret having let them know his secrets. Like I'll be able to fight if my biggest opponent is spinach! He decided to trust Ms. Frost. He'd show them what he had.

In the meantime, the bowls needed to be filled and salad shooter was a lot of fun. After finishing the spinach he dropped in the cucumber and went flying across the room doing back flips, somersaults, and rolls to evade imaginary snipers, and ducking behind table legs and counter corners for cover. He then leaped up 4 feet in the air and rained cucumber down on the bowls below.

[Hardlight]

"I saw how you did that, very slick. I'm just lerning so much from you Veronika that I'm gonna be dangerus one of theses days." He took his tounge and touched the tip of it pointingedly to his upper lip."Oh wow, but did you see that guy?" Kevin said with stars in his eyes. "Teehehee, he's really hot- but I dunno, kinda stuck up or something." He giggled with Veronika as they came into the kitchen.

"Hot choculate is so not on my diet plan. Ian has me eating so much protien I feel like I'm gonna turn into a chunk of beef." He grinned at Coffe as he saw the little fuzzy man hoping around and making his salads. He did'nt ignore hime but since he did'nt "But you know, I'm bustin my hump working out and sometimes I feel like I have'nt gained a bit of size. Especully when Kris and Ana do that 'lets talk about real handsome guys' crap. It's like I dunno, maybe what Riker said to me has me wiggin out or something but he saw me with makeup on and said he did'nt get that I want to be a girl and it's got me all twisted and thinking about it."

He schruged and wondered what Veronika might think of him, but since he ran things by her alot because he did'nt have Loralie to talk to and was really open about who he was anyway he did'nt care if Coffee heard him, besides who would he tell anyway. "I dont want to or I did'nt want to but now I'm seeing stuff diffrently and it's like if I was a girl then that guy would have pay me some care and attenshun and Riker would like, I dunno mabey be open to being my boyfriend and stuff like that. I'm kinda confused Veronika, can you help me please?" He batted his doe eyes at her and smiled as he hoped up to sit on the counter and open the cabinet.

He was small by grown people standerds and found the mugs sorta too high up to reach so sitting there on the counter might have been rude, but it would a been worse to ask Veronika to do the work for him he thought. "OH- Excuse me please," he said to her as he realized what he had done "I know this is'nt polite, sitting on a counter, but it's what us shorties have to do right? Would you like a clean mug?" He pulled an extra one down from the cabinit for her just in case. "Oh hey, Coffee, do you want hot chocolate too? I'll getcha a mug, in case" and he did, grabbing a third mug before he hoped down off the counter.

[Allure]

"Oh Kevin, surely you cannot think that can you?" Veronika said reaching up to gently pet Coffee's ears, her small soft fingers delicately stroking his ears and smiling at him gently. "Your fur is so shiny and soft Coffee! I knew you would use the vanilla conditioner I gave you! And you look so nice now," she cooed to him, her sapphire blue eyes looking down on him and dazzling him as she usually did. He may be an overgrown rat when he first got here, but with a few simple tips from the Russian Beauty and with the aid of her power, he now looked like a large adorable rabbit.

She gently stroked his soft fur and looked over at Kevin again as she hopped up on the stool. "You are absolutely perfect the way you are, and do not pay no mind to Ana and Kris. You know Ana's type of man, the rough Colin Farrell type, and you are more the... say Jesse McCartney. No less handsome, but just a different kind of handsome, that is all darling," Veronika said and gave him a dazzling smile. "Oh and can you make mine the Fat Free hot chocolate? Thank you!" She picked up a bunch of grapes and began to neatly pop them into her mouth, contemplating Hardlight's words, though she already knew what she was going to say. She knew that if she looked like she put serious thought into it.

Her gaze focused on Kevin and her lips formed into a soft smile. "Kevin, I do not think that Riker is the type that would take a girlfriend even if you were a girl. He just seems to not be that type, although I will admit that his new attraction and attachment to that new girl on my team is slightly disturbing. Either way darling, I think that it would be better to focus on a boy worthy of your attention and will like you for who you are and not for anything less. Do you agree Coffee?" She smiled at the rabbit and reached out again with the softest of touches to stroke his ears again.

[Coffee]

Coffee's sensitive ears and nose identified the two students before they even came through the door. Hardlight by his giggle. Allure by her scent. Hopping back from the door he quickly emptied the salad shooter into the nearest salad as the two entered. After they were inside he put the appliance down on the counter, patting it gently with his paw. Beaming at the sight of his friends, the large rabbit waited patiently for them to finish talking. He tried not to eavesdrop but with his finely attuned ears it was impossible not to capture every word. He felt for the boy. Being different and alone was hard. He doesn't need a boyfriend yet, the rabbit thought. He's a kit. He has to grow some first. Define himself for himself not for others.

"Yes," Coffee nodded his head vigorously to tell Hardlight he wanted chocolate. He hopped over to the boy. He then leaned against the counter with one paw under his chin in a thinker pose and waited knowing Allure would give Hardlight the right advice. She always knows what to say. She also knew exactly where to rub his ears. Most people rubbed too hard so it hurt. If he could blush under his fur he would have when she complimented it. Instead he beamed with pride, and gave her a little bow to thank her for the thoughtful gift.

As expected her advice to Hardlight was perfect. I would never have put it so well, the rabbit thought. He would have tapped out a blunt message, 'learn to accept you, not become another person for friends.' Allure got the same point across but by complimenting Hardlight and showing him how special he already was. Coffee was impressed as usual. Her opinion of the wolf boy was also one Coffee shared. Or more accurately, Coffee had a much more negative opinion of Riker than Allure expressed. He isn't worthy of anybody.

Coffee stood up straight and shook his head 'yes.' He also gave Hardlight a sympathetic look. A wise girl, he thought, he should listen. But it will be hard. The sympathetic look changed to a concerned one and then a contented one as Allure got the spot behind his left ear that was his favorite.

[Hardlight]

"Oh, oK Cofee- hot choclate it is!" he smiled as he went and got the two boxes of instant. "Sorry Veronika, oh wait there's one left." He shook the box and then pulled out the last pack. "Alright we're set. Two regular and one fat free." He buzzed around and got the skim milk out pouring it into a pot and setting it to simer on the stove. "I like to heat up the milk this way because, well even though we are getting out stuff out of those little packets at least the milk can be like, old fashony, right?" He smiled as he shrugged. Trying to put off the subject he had started, he bent down to look under the pot as he adjusted the flame.

"Jesse McCartney huh? " He looked up from his little distraction to see Veronika's sinceer look on her face and he couldn't help but feel better. "I guess I can wait it out for the right guy, but I've just been noticing stuff more lately. Like how you girls get treated vs. how I get treated, like by that new guy. You know if I was a girl he would have pulled a groin muscle tryin to catch me but did he even hold out a hand? Nope. I like bein me, you guys know that, and I would still be me if I was a girl so it's not how others - well, I guess it sorta is, oh I don't know, but I do know that I like when I get attenshun. Like from Kris? But i just wish it was from one of the guys I was attractid to."

"So I like myself, and I like being a boy and working out and getting strong, but" he sighed "I'm just lonely I guess, and that'll make ya desperit, so I guess I'm geting close to there. But I should'nt give in and stuff I don't want my first time to be with somebody I don't even know. I was hoping it would be some body I trusted at least, and I'm not sure I trust Kris, or" he stopped there not sure he should say Chase's name. He would probably ruin things with him if he let it out. "I'm just, what's the words Cofee?" He tapped out some of the few words he knew, remembering them from the night they all watched Austin Powers together and Coffe did his cute rabbit giggle and taught them some of the phrases in code, 'Horny Baby'. "Right? And yeah that coat of yours looks silky smothe."

[Allure]

"Oh Kevin you are never alone! You have all of us, and myself of course!" Veronika exclaimed leaning forward and and giving him a light and friendly peck on the lips. She grinned at him and winked, her fingers still softly stroking Coffee's silky ears. "Besides darling we have all the time in the world to find that perfect guy. I certainly am in no rush. Why I plan on saving myself for several more years for that perfect alpha male that I deserve." A small smile danced on her face as her mind went back to the very man she had already chosen. Veronika was in no rush though, if she felt up to it, she could start her pursuit when she turned 17, or even 16 if she felt like it. Until then, she wasn't planning on showing interest in anyone really, and if she would, it would only be because she was bored.

Flipping her hair over her shoulder, Veronika glanced over at the stove. "Kevin do not forget to stir please, I do hate milk with that burnt taste in it," She reminded him gently as her fingers worked over Coffee's ears and head with a sweet light touch. When it came to small animals, she did love the cute fluffy clean ones, like bunnies, and squirrels and hamsters, only when they were clean though. When Coffee first got here, he looked like he was living in the sewage, but now he was just too adorable for words, and she loved to pet him. "You would agree that there is plenty of time for him to find someone right Coffee?" Veronika cooed.

"And by the way Kevin, it is ALWAYS easier for girls. Why do you think I get away with as much as I do? I am a girl and I have a pretty smile. I suppose its an old world thought on how girls are fragile and should be doted on and men are tough and can stick it out for themselves," she said with a grin and giggled. "It is like my mama said, no matter how modern the world may be, old world styles will still exist. And that boy there, had an older world feel for him. Many still do, the macho ones at least. Take it as a compliment though, it means he thought you were tough enough to take a fall." Veronika giggled and winked at him. "Just ask Coffee, he observes the people in this school as much as I do."

[Coffee]

Coffee giggled at Kevin's code, glad the boy could see thing a little lightheartedly and remembered some Morse. Coffee nodded his head "yes" in agreement with Allure. The school is so small. Many hutches have more. , he thought. There must be more like him somewhere. He just has to go there when he's grown.

He didn't agree with her next statement. Certainly she was right girls had it easier. She was very astute and also as a girl would know better. Well as somebody from this world she would know better than Coffee. But that wasn't what the rabbit thought Kevin needed to hear. Or so the rabbit thought at first. But when Veronika told the boy to ask him, suddenly Coffee wasn't sure anymore. He wouldn't have thought it originally but coming from her it just sounded more and more like the right thing the more he thought about it. That and telling Kevin that the other boy's behavior meant he thought the Acolyte was tough enough to take a fall was just brilliant. So he agreed.

Gently dipping his head down, Coffee reluctantly freed his ears from Allure's fingers. He would have loved to let her stroke his ears all day but he needed to concentrate on what he was going to tap. Holding one paw up in front of him to ask for silence so he could start, he began to tap his first words, slowly so Hardlight would understand. "You young." Pause. "School small." Pause. "Not a lot boys" Pause. "Who is as you." Pause. "World big." Pause. "Find there." Pause. "Lot boys is as you." Pause. "Good boy." Pause. "You find." Pause. "Love you." Pause. "As you." Pause. "No need" Pause. "as girl." It was a hard message to tap not just because Coffee still had a limited vocabulary, but because Kevin had even less code so most verbs and even words such as "like" were too much.

His nose twitching nervously as he hoped Kevin understood, Coffee finished tapping and waved his paw to show he was done. He then waited. Kevin had a better chance than Coffee did. There were other boys like him, he just had to find them, while Coffee didn't have another rabbit like him in this dimension, and there was no going back to the Mojoverse to get one either.

[Hardlight]

"Wow, slow down Coffee, two much all at once. I'm young and small and there's a world with a big boy to love- oh to love me? Needs as a girl?" He looked confused, but the way the bunnyman had tapped it was steddy and diliburate enouff with a mild look on his cute little fuzzy face, so Kevin had to giggle and smile at him. "I'm not sure I got all the words but you are probubly right, there's somebody for me who will love me how I should be loved, how I want to be loved, right?"

He grinned up at Veronika and then cought himself before he got lost in the moment and quick like a bunny he opened up a drower to root around for a wooden spoon. "Got it! Stirring!" he announced as he started to slowly stir the milk. "Yes I don't care for the burntedness flavor either, and you have to stir slow so it kinda thickens a little bit." He kept at it and started to hum a Lady Gaga song when he looked at Veronika and said. "That was a sweet gift, the sweetist. I bet theres like a ton of guys who woulda have loved that kiss, but I'm glad you gave it to me. I needed it."

"I don't think it's fair though. I mean, you are so very right, but the whole thing that girls get treated in a way thats all so special, thats not fair. I want an old fashiond guy who will open a door for ME and will give me HIS coat when it gets cold out and we ar walking in the blusturry air, and who will lay his jacket over a puddle for ME, but then he does'nt have to give it to me to wear cause it'll be all muddy. He can keep it then." He made a yuck face at the thought of wearing a muddy jacket. "And who does'nt think I'm tough enouff to take a fall, but knows I'm tough enouf and catches me anyway."

"You know what I meant thouh? I just want that kind of a special guy and I can wait. I really dont think he's here at this school. Not even one of these guys is that incredible. Riker, well he's just my favorite eye candy- wow I always had a thing for him, he's just so mmm, but he's not that kind of a guy. Ian comes kinda close but even he isn't like that knight in shining armor sort of a guy, and sure not for a little sister like me." He twitsted his lips up into a smileyish sort of a frown, sort of a mock sadness expreshion. "I want to be proud to be with him and for him to be with me and that's none of these guys here I don't think, so yes I will wait for the right man and when he shows up in my life it will be -what's the word?- EPIC!"

[Allure]

"Ah, true classic romance yes?" Veronika said with a giggle and hopped down from the bar stool to help him make the cocoa. "I do not know, I am very particular with my men. Being doted on is nice, but I like men with power and presence. An equal would be ideal, but that will be a difficult find indeed." She flipped her hair over shoulder glanced down at her perfectly French manicured nails, moving her small hand to admire it. "I do hold myself to a rather high standard, but I do love meeting it." Her voice was cut off when she heard Katana's voice echoing in the hallway. She rolled her eyes and looked down at Coffee shaking her head. "You finish you're salad and stay away from her Coffee, you smell far too nice to be near her," she said using a petite finger to rub that spot under his chin in a gentle and affectionate touch.

She went over to help Kevin, not wanting an excuse to deal with Katana in case she came into the kitchen and to keep her sucking up from getting to Kevin. "Oh I do detest her," Veronika said with slight scowl as she filled the cups with the cocoa powder. "I feel bad for you to have her on your team. She is just so rude and gross and, oh just everything I hate." True the Russian Beauty could have easily charmed Katana into her web, but the effort seemed wasted. She had no use for her, and apparently no one else did either. "I feel so horrible for you Kevin, the balance of your team is so askew and faltered." A picture perfect expression of concern reflected on her face, so sincere that one would not think twice.

"First with Frostbite, and that was just a disaster. And now Katana? Oh that is just awful. She has awful manners, and oh the lies she will tell. It is sad how desperate she is to get on your friend Haven's good side. I am betting that she will tell all these lies about the Paragons just to get you all to trust her. That is awful is it not Kevin?" She looked up at him with her bright sapphire eyes, eyes that mirrored any expression she wanted them to whenever she wanted. "I know you would never fall for her fake act, why you are too smart for that. I just worry sometimes that Ian, dear boy that he is with such a big and trusting heart might think her act true, and maybe even Gavin. They are dear friends you know, not as close as you are to me darling, but friends still." Her expression became sincerely worried and sad as they made the cocoa, adding extra marshmallows in the cocoa. "I just hope you and your team are not led on like we were with her time and time again. She is truly a horrid creature, and I would hate for your team to be sucked into that like we were." Veronika sighed worriedly and stirred the cocoa slowly.

It was a game to her, but no one would ever know. The simple fact was that she did not care for Katana and she had never had any use for Veronika other than amusement. It would be harder to maintain that amusement with her no longer being a Paragon, but Veronika was nothing if not cunning, and the poison worse than that of a Black Widow lived in her secretly sadistic and deprave mind.

[Coffee]

Coffee chuckled a little at Hardlight's use of the word "epic." He'd seen it before in a children's story for the Alphas. It fit here in a strange sort of way. Good, he thought. Now he just has to convince his heart. The rabbit was perceptive enough to know that no matter how confident the little Acolyte sounded now, it would take time for him to truly believe his own words.


Sighing slightly Coffee moved away from Allure to go pick up a Salad bowl. As he did so he gave her a look that clearly showed that he found the idea of going near Katana disgusting. He normally did not like to think badly about people but he had to agree with the Paragon. Katana was worse than useless. At first he'd pitied her. She was broken like too many of his fellow gladiators in the Mojoverse. Gladiators who had survived combat but gone to pieces inside so they were in a constant state of crisis. Reacting the same to a nearly lethal strike as to a mouse in the dark.


But Katana was worse than these. She had good surroundings and good people to help her heal but she didn't. She just attacked everyone. It made the rabbit angry. He was good at hiding anger but it still showed. It showed with a glint in his eye and his chewing his salad a little too hard. His teeth grated. He didn't see how the Acolytes could possibly be fooled into liking the girl or believing anything she said. Allure's worrying too much, he thought. But one should worry about friends. He decided to keep an extra eye on the Acolytes.

[Hardlight]

"Oh man" Kevin made a face and poked his finger into his mouth like he was going to make himself throw up. "Oh, believe me I know about her. Remeber when I closed her into that giant egg of a light sculpt? It was a big night for you and stuff, but you remeber that? She was bad news then and even thouh she is always goin into those seshuns with Ms.Frost, and she totally uses them as an excuse for missing classes and homework and all- sheesh, and all that time in with her and she hasn't gotten any better? Well, not that I can see at leest." He shook his head as he put the pot int the diswarsher.

"You know?" he made sure the stove was off and he blowed on his hot coco as they all turned to start walking. "I am really kinda pissed at what hapened to my team, I mean it was a really good team and then Lorelie bailt on us and then we get that- that- that whatever she is. Is it fair?" He frowned as he placed a hand on Coffe's head and rubbed between his ears. It helped him to calm down and he shared a look of distatse with the bunnyguy over the smelly girl. "Nobody even asked us all how we felt, and I would have said for us to keep Frostbite, she was just upset and all but now you guys have her and I mean it you got the better part of that deal. Please give her a chance, I just- I don't know what I was so upseted before over. I guess feeling abandened or something, but she's realy great and I should know."

"She just has like whatchacallit, abandenment issues of her own? I think. It's like she took that breakup way to hard and it's from something else totally, like an ex from before Ian or I dont know, but I think you guys will be realy rough on her and like" he took a few silent steps as they all started to head back into the recroom "maybe could you go a little easy on her for a week or two, as a favor to me? I still love her even if she was an ass, and she asked for all she got- I know, I get that, but it's still hard to be without her. Ya know? So, could you give her like some time to adjust or something? If she has to be on another team at least I hope it helps her and stuff."