Fourth Floor Common Room, Friday Evening

[furnaceface]

Well, this was it, then, wasn't it? Once again, they'd reached the last relative day of peace and quiet before the new students shuffled in and workshops got back into full swing. Jono's week had been an eventful one already, between his impromptu jam session with the slightly insane girl who had tried to smash her guitar on the floor on Tuesday,

Comments

[shes_got_legs]

Ariel was getting really bored and fighting off a terribly maudlin spell about this whole kissing thing, not to mention having to deal with a seriously annoying mermaid in white with wings (why would a mermaid have wings? It didn't make any sense, but there she was, on her shoulder, being very annoying and telling Ariel she should go and find someone to tell her father about what she'd done, because he was probably just worried sick and she should settled down and be a good princess and behave and go to her lessons and blah blah blah). The other one in red with the horns wasn't so bad; she kept suggesting that Ariel go to all the shops and find some stuff for her collections, they wouldn't mind, they were just sitting there, and they should sit somewhere where they'd be more appreciated, which was tempting, but Ariel understood about money now and, while she was sure it was a very fascinating place, she did not want to spend a newbie picnic day filled with potential new kiss candidates sitting in a cell at the Trooper Station, thank

[shes_got_legs]

Officially brilliant.

And a little bit psycho.

Ariel instantly gained a grin, lifting her hands with her fingers pinched together and then pulling.

The winged mermaid on her left let out a scream of horror; the horned one on her right matched the silent cackle of glee in Ariel's head.

[furnaceface]

Jono's own winged counterpart was looking a little faint.

//I was thinking maybe we could just tie them up with a bit of thread,// Jonothon himself replied, possibly a little wide-eyed. //I've got a bit of a thing about takin' people's body parts off, luv.//

[shes_got_legs]

But they were mermaids! At least hers were. What did a mermaid need wings for? Ariel looked imploringly at Jono for a moment before sighing, acquiescing to his usually superior logic. And immediately started looking toward the drawers. So where was the string?

Her winged mermaid was reminding her that it wasn't nice to tie people up, either.

The horned one was telling her to light the winged one on fire.

[furnaceface]

The horned Jono and the winged Jono both were considering the useful attributes that fire could potentially hold when faced with a sheer drop out a fourth-floor window.

//There's probably something in there, yes,// Jono decided, making his way relatively swiftly toward the drawers before Ariel could change her mind and start wing-plucking. Not that he didn't have faith in her, but... //If nothing else, I suppose we could just tape them to a wall and leave them behind.//

He'd suggest taping their mouths shut, but he'd be presented with some technical difficulties, in that regard.

[shes_got_legs]

Ariel had, admittedly, slightly checked out. She couldn't help it; she was thinking of matches. Why didn't she carry any on her? She really should. She could only think of how fantastic it would look, to watch two flaming balls of annoying dropping from such a great height.

She did acknowledge Jono's new suggestion, though, with a bit of a disappointed frown. Where was the pizzaz in something like that?

[furnaceface]

Jono didn't even have to look over his shoulder in order to guess what look she was probably giving him, right them.

//It's humane,// he pointed out, rummaging through the drawer. //And, you know, it isn't murder. I have a bit of a thing about murder. Right up there with plucking th'body parts off of people. Even ones that don't make any sense.//

He wasn't really one to talk, in that area.

He straightened up and turned around, a small ball of twine in one hand, a roll of Scotch tape in the other.

//Choose yer weapon, luv.//

[shes_got_legs]

The angel screamed the twine the twine the twine!

The devil shouted tape! tape! tape!

Ariel reached for the roll, biting her lip as the angel wept in dismay about how Ariel never, ever listened to her.

[furnaceface]

Clearly the angel didn't know good fortune when she came across it. The tape would be sticky and annoying, but at least there was no chance of a hanging, with tape.

... Tempting as it was.

//Which, I suppose, leaves me with th'twine.// Jono's shoulder-warmers rejoiced. //Ever tied up a very, very tiny person before?//

[shes_got_legs]

Yes, but pulling it off...

Ariel shook her head no. She'd untangled a fellow fish or two from some fishing line, before, and unwrapped a lot of boating rope, and there were those plastic pop ring things, but never tied anyone up bef--

Oh, waaaaait. There was at least two times with Sebastian. Now she remembered. Ariel shrugged a shoulder, transfixed now with the tape, and absolutely marvelling at the sharp, ripping sound it made when she took one end of it in her fingers and then yanked...

[furnaceface]

And Jono watched. And Jono wondered if maybe he'd managed to create a monster...

//Please, be gentle?//

It was a lost cause, and he was well aware of that fact.

[shes_got_legs]

And to that, Ariel just gave Jono a look. A look to suggest that perhaps Jono was being a little naive here. Or, at least, a look that wondered if maybe JOno didn't have to deal with half of what she was listening to right now.

Those little things on her shoulders were not being at all gentle to her ears, especially the one who was now putting very colorful descriptions of things Ariel didn't even know she could do with her body parts that could be examples of how she could not be gentle, so why in the flying fish fin should she be so kind?

[furnaceface]

//I think I know which one you've been listening to,// he sighed, turning his eyes toward the ceiling. //Fine, fine then. But no disembodied limbs, you understand? I don't want to find out that I've gone and stepped in it.//

[shes_got_legs]

Ariel's head bobbed up and down and her hands lifted in a promise of no bodily harm.

Intentionally, anyway. She wasn't going to be blamed if someone squirmed too much and just happened to get a little bruised.

[furnaceface]

Jono eyed her for a moment, giving her the most skeptical look he could muster before he relented, shrugged, and made a swift grab for the slower looking of his two tagalongs. The little devil was none too pleased about the whole situation, especially once Jono started winding the twine around its arms.

//Now, this would be easier if only he'd stop squirming.//