Post by Deleted on Jul 20, 2013 18:49:01 GMT -5
Part One: This is a fierce bad rabbit.
I have made many books about well-behaved people. Now, for a change, I am going to make a story about two disagreeable people, called Tommy Brock and Mr. Tod.
Nobody could call Mr. Tod "nice." The rabbits could not bear him; they could smell him half a mile off. He was of a wandering habit and he had foxey whiskers; they never knew where he would be next.
Ana Valentine sits, half reclined on a black leather examination table, her long blond curls are piled on top of her head in a ballet type bun, and her usually tan-like skin is pale white, most unusual for her. Her blue eyes flicker between pain and annoyance as her body flinches and jumps under the touch of the young doctor stood beside her. The doctor himself is not Ana's usual Doctor and seems if anything, a little young. Stood to the side and behind the examination table, impeccably styled, eyes narrowed in a controlling, watchful way is Scott Savage. A small smirk breaks out on his lips when Ana finally loses patience and slaps the Doctor's hands away from her body.
Ana Valentine: Hey, Sherlock, I'm fucking injured... I think we all figured that out, now stop fucking prodding me or I swear to god I will ram that stethoscope around your neck so far up your ass you'll hear your heartbeat from the inside!
The young doctor looks a little abashed and extremely shocked as he puts his hands up and takes a couple of steps back, moving away from Ana. She slowly swings her legs around to the side and moves into a sitting position. She runs a flat hand across her midsection with a wince and glances at Scott, who looks at her with softer, concerned eyes for a moment. She narrows her eyes slightly and shakes her head looking back at the Doctor.
Ana Valentine: Don't bother binding, it doesn't work... Just run outside and get your prescription pad and we'll be out of here, ok?
The young doctor looks back between Ana and Scott a few times, and then swallows hard, gulping in a state of fear.
Doctor: Uhhh, I'm sorry Miss Valentine.... But I, I... I can't do that..... You're simply not fit to...
The young man doesn't get a chance to finish his sentence as Ana has jumped down from the examination table, locked her hand tight around his throat and is moving to then slam him up against the far wall, extending her arm slightly she pushes his up the wall and onto his tiptoes, she grimaces slightly from the pain, but holds the coughing and spluttering doctor there nonetheless.
Scott slowly strolls over to the two and places his hand on Ana's hand around the doctor's throat and she releases, stepping back panting heavily she watches Scott out of the corner of her eye. He rounds in on the Doctor in a slow, menacing way... The smile on his lips both threatening and strong.
Scott Savage: I believe the point my client is trying to make, is that she is more than capable of climbing over any obstacle.... Even in this, unfortunate condition.
Scott half laughs as the doctor starts to look between the two of them again; Ana seems to have regained her composure and is standing strong just behind him. The doctor nods slowly and walks out of the room, to fetch his prescription pad. As soon as he is cleared from the room, Ana half collapses, grabbing Scott's shoulder to hold herself up, she drops her head down and exhales sharply throwing her spare arm across her midsection to grab at the pain.
He turns his head slightly and looks at Ana, hooking a strong arm around her waist he pulls her back onto her feet and holds her there, taking most of her weight easily, she shakes her head back and refocuses, and the change in her eyes is immediate and apparent.
Scott Savage: Are you sure about this?
Ana Valentine: I've fought through worse... I'm sure you recall...
She half laughs and offers a playful wink, as she is referring to the attack that hospitalized her, performed by Scott, her now-manager and her now-teammate Waylon Cash.
Ana Valentine: I'll be damned if some little Irish cunt, Seth Lerch and Mr. Fair Leadership are taking me off any card... Ever.
Scott nods slowly, as he gages her ability to stand her removes his hand from her waist. The withdrawal is slow, making a point for his fingertips to brush over her bared skin as his hand moves. She smiles slightly and locks eyes with him, but the moment is interrupted by the door swinging open and the young doctor bustling in, waving two prescriptions in the air and carrying a syringe on a tray.
Doctor: I have a direct Morphine shot for now... Plus prescriptions for patches and Tramadol... I would ask that you please use these responsibly they are very strong drugs and...
Ana interrupts him, grabbing the prescriptions from his hands, she shakes her head slowly.
Ana Valentine: Do you even read your patient files...? Let’s get this done.
"I will bury that nasty person in the hole which he has dug. I will bring my bedding out, and dry it in the sun," said Mr. Tod.
Part Two. Once an Enemy, Now an Ally.
Mr. Bouncer would not confess that he had admitted anybody into the rabbit hole. But the smell of badger was undeniable; and there were round heavy footmarks in the sand. He was in disgrace; Flopsy wrung her ears, and slapped him.
Ana Valentine and Scott Savage are sat out on Ana's decking, it is apparent the Morphine is already kicking in for her, as she is curled up comfortably in an almost catlike way, on the decking chair that Waylon Cash has been sat in just a week-or-so ago. Scott is sat in the matching chair, which has been pulled right up beside hers and his feet are kicked up onto the table. His head is lent back slightly in a relaxed way and Ana is watching him in an almost forced-casual way. Scott turns to look at her and slides his sunglasses down his nose.
Scott Savage: Is there a problem Miss Valentine....?
Ana Valentine: No I.... I'm just trying to figure it all out.....
Scott Savage: Figure what out?
Ana Valentine: How it all got to here.... from all the way where it was....
Ana Yawns slightly and stretches, her entire body reacts to the stretch, every limb lengthening, every muscle taut as though the stretch ripped through her entire form. Scott watches this slowly with a small, tight smile on his lips.
Ana Valentine: It's interesting, is all, the progression of people... Or lack, thereof.
Scott Savage: You’re thinking about your match?
Ana Valentine: Yeah.... Former-Genesis members... Is it, supposed to get at me? I just don't trust Eric at all... Something about this whole thing feels off....
Scott Savage: Well, after last week with his stipulations ensuring that none of us could do a thing to help you... And then he goes that step too far, always a step too far...
Ana holds a hand up to slow Scott's rant and she laughs very gently and turns her face so she is looking directly up at him. She remains very quiet for a moment as though in study of his form, and then smirks.
Ana Valentine: We'd have done the same thing given half-a-chance. Am I pissed that his little bitch did a number on me over a title no one wants or cares about? Sure.... Do I think Lerch just wanted the match as an excuse to get his grubby little hands all over me? Definitely.... Am I really mad at Eric for changing the stips....? No....
Scott laughs himself and shakes his head.
Scott Savage: Sometimes, even I’m a little shocked by the... unconventional way you look at things...
Ana Valentine: I hate Eric Price, I wait for the day when I can do to him every single thing he deserves, and his very existence on this earth makes my skin crawl with disgust and hatred.... But there is no denying he's smart... He knows how to get what he wants and, to a degree, I respect that.... The rest of me just wants to take what’s on the inside and rip him apart until it's on the outside....
Ana's face screws up slightly in a picture of hatred and determination.
Ana Valentine: And, if that means taking apart every single person he is stupid enough to book up against me or any of us... Then so be it...
Scott nods slowly, he lies a hand on the arm of Ana's chair next to her and leans forward with a dark smile on his face, he whispers something in her ear which cannot be heard by the cameras and Ana smiles slightly, as he continues to whisper it spreads into a grin, she glances up at him again, her eyes hot with fire.
Ana Valentine: Sometimes, secrets can be the things that eat you from the inside.... Question is, is it worth the risk?
At home in the rabbit hole, things had not been quite comfortable.
Part Three. Once upon a time there were these little Rabbits....
'Now my dears,' said old Mrs. Rabbit one morning, 'you may go into the fields or down the lane, but don't go into Mr. McGregor's garden: your Father had an accident there; he was put in a pie by Mrs. McGregor.'
Ana Valentine sits cross legged on a grassy bank, the bright yellow sun beams down and lights up the blades of grass. The bugs and ladybirds and the small creatures of the field move about her form as though she is not even there. Instinctively, she feels that she is smaller, not as tall as he once was. Her form feels lighter, as though she were made from air and nothing more. She turns and watches the animals run across the fields, their actions free, as though in celebration. A small commotion catches her eye and she squints in the sun as though to try and get a closer look.
In the distance, are two figures, they also look as though they are smaller than they should be, though they do not appear to be made of air in the way that Ana is. She has the foggiest feeling she is in a memory, only the memory is distorted inside itself. The images in the distance become clearer, as though she had moved closer or put on glasses, only she had performed neither action; their voices carry to her ears on the wind and she sighs softly, closing her eyes, losing herself in the not-quite-a memory.
'Now run along, and don't get into mischief. I am going out.'
Standing at the entrance to a tree in the woods are Polar and FPV. Ana narrows her eyes slowly as she watches Polar walk off into the distance and then simply evaporate into the air. She sits perfectly still; almost scared to breathe, for a moment she cannot remember why she mustn’t let him see her… Why they no longer count one another as friends, just as she begins to doubt her own feelings of foreboding, a familiar voice carries through on the breeze, to her ears only.
Scott Savage: Remember Ana, we are your only friends now… your only family. No one cares for you like we care for you... He is not your friend, and he never was. Tell me, what has he done to show that he gives even one second of his time to caring for you.
Ana’s eyes narrow again as she watches FPV slowly walk around the tree, scuffing his toes in the dirt like a bored and petulant child. He straightens up and looks about, as though making sure no one is watching him. As he does so, Ana considers hiding, only there isn’t enough time for her to make that decision. It was then that she realized, she was not visible to him… Perhaps she was indeed made of air? Everything still seemed so fuzzy; she could barely trust herself anymore.
Then the voice came again.
Scott Savage: All of the good boys and girls are off performing their tasks… Franky would do well to stay out of places he doesn’t belong…. He would do well to follow the rules, just this once… but will he, Ana? You know he won’t…. For someone so very good, he can be a very bad little bunny.
But Peter, who was very naughty, ran straight away to Mr. McGregor's garden, and squeezed under the gate!
As though following him on the wave of a whisper, Ana is able to still see Franky as he turns and runs into the forest, the trees thicken and then become sparse until there are no trees at all and we reach a clearing. The clearing is surrounded by a tall, high fence, clearly marking it as private properly. It occurs to Ana, that the clearing is as familiar as it is akin to the edge of Waylon’s land.
She opens her mouth as though to shout at the would-be trespasser, but something stops her; perhaps she in fact has no voice at all? Perhaps she cannot be heard, as well as seen? It is simply impossible to tell, because there is no one for her to ask you see…
Ana continues to watch as FPV begins to climb the tall gate surrounding the land, he makes it to the top quickly and easily and simply jumps, landing on his feet on the other side of the gate. When Franky arrives on the other side, he begins to fool around with some of the things on the land, pulling the brake cables from the truck parked up by the side of the gate. As he turns the corner, he sees Waylon Cash. Waylon has his back turned to them and is busying himself with something out on the land.
FPV stops in his tracks, he looks about as though sure Waylon will not see him. His cockiness is proving to be his downfall though, as Waylon quickly spots FPV on his land, he stands slowly… Everything slows down in such a drastic way for a moment, Ana begins to panic, and she looks around, so confused by all she is seeing… Her own mind lost inside itself she is not sure that even she can hear herself anymore. As though sensing the near loss, the familiar voice pipes up once again.
Scott Savage: Franky never listened… Clearly the petulant child of the bunch, you have nothing to fear Ana. He is not a good boy like they want you to see, he was never your friend Ana. Why care for him? There is no worry left within your heart for those who never worried after you… Save your effort for those that deserve it, rather than wasting it on an ingrate like him. He is just like the rest of them and now, now he is going to get what he has coming.
Ana calms herself as she listens to the voice on the wind. Everything seems clearer again, she finds herself thankful for Scott, not just for the past, but for the present… Without his guidance, even in this not-a-memory, she would be lost. She looks back on the scene before her, the two have begun to scrap, they fight between them, locked in a hard grasp of one another, the fight seems almost slow and comical to her eyes, as though it were not a real fight at all, but the kind you see clowns perform at a circus, where none are hurt.
It quickly becomes apparent to her eyes that this is not the case when scarlet streams of blood smear Waylon’s hands. FPV hits the ground hard and Ana can see that the blood is trickling down his face. It moves like a snake through the grass, filling the contours and lines of his face. Ana is acutely aware that she feels to need to look away.
Waylon moves to stand over to FPV, he lifts his large, heavy boot as though to end it all. But, FPV is Wiley and quick and he evades Waylon quickly, evading capture he darts across the land and disappears as though into the mist.
Peter sat down to rest; he was out of breath and trembling with fright and he had not the least idea which way to go.
Ana finds herself watching as FPV runs back through the forest, around half way he stops and flops down by a tree. He pulls his knees up to his chest and rests his face on them, catching his breath her puts a finger in the blood still flowing from his lip. They both look at the blood, with very different emotions.
FPV looks down at the blood with a face that is almost resolute, Ana feels as though she can feel as he does, as though she can understand the thoughts flowing through his mind better than she can her own. She watches as he becomes angry at all that has just occurred, she fights the need to laugh, suppressing it deep down in her chest as she looks at the blood herself.
It then occurs to her, that she feels a satisfaction at his pain. She enjoys the sight of the thick red blood that flows from his lip, at the browning blood that has dried about his face. She wills him to cry, to break at the pain, knowing all the while he will not do so.
Scott Savage: You feel that? That blood lust rising in you? Hold onto that Ana… They want to laugh at you, to doubt you… It is your job to teach them that you are not a joke. You are capable of so much more than any one of them has seen. Franky is supposed to be your friend, and he was… but he didn’t see that in you, even now he doesn’t. He laughs at the idea of facing you in the ring… he thinks you're a joke, but your blood boils with the desire to spill theirs… Hold onto that feeling Ana, because I have a feeling you are also… A very, bad, bunny.
Peter never stopped running or looked behind him till he got home to the big fir-tree.
Part Four. This is a Tale about a tail
Riddle me, riddle me, rot-tot-tote!
A little wee man, in a red, red coat!
A staff in his hand, and a stone in his throat;
If you’ll tell me this riddle, I’ll give you a groat.
After a few moments of what feels like sleep, Ana opens her eyes to find that she is still in the forest. Her brain seems both more and less fuzzy than it was before. As though a part of her is returning to her normal self, but another part is wandering through whatever the forest is, light as air and lost within itself. She sighs slightly and shakes her head roughly, half expecting to hear her own brain rattle inside.
Scott Savage: Shhhh… Look, an overconfident adventurer is about to learn that things are never what they seem….
Though the voice has no corporeal form she is now certain the voice is Scott’s and she smiles slightly at the memory of him for a moment, before she realizes that she can no longer trust what is a memory and what is a fantasy… Her eyes trail in the direction she instinctively knows the voice wants her to look and she immediately spots Tek, hopping about from one foot to the next like an over-excited toddler, before the door of John gobble, who now apparently lives in a tree.
Gobble sits in the doorway to his home; he is both small and grand... He fills the doorway of his home, but pays no attention to Tek who continues to prance about in front of him, reciting the same little riddles, trying to grasp his attention.
After a few moments, Tek wanders off to gather some items from around the tree. Gobble disappears back into his home, for a moment Ana thinks he may have looked straight at her, when she remembers that she cannot be seen. She laughs a little to herself as she watching him retreat and closes the door, shutting out the childlike screeches from Tek.
The man in the wilderness said to me,
'How many strawberries grow in the sea?'
I answered him as I thought good—
'As many red herrings as grow in the wood.
Tek once again begins to hammer on Gobble’s tree. He prances around it, slamming his hands against the trunk and yelling his riddles, even including the answers in some attempt to entice Gobble from the tree. Ana feels her temper begin to rise, the angrier she becomes, the more corporeal she starts to feel, her feet feel heavier, the grass beneath her feet becomes existent, she begins to notice the sensation of the breeze flowing through her curls. As her hands begin to ball in anger, she can feel the touch of her fingertips to her palms. Suddenly though, a panic washes over her as she realizes the more she becomes, the less she is connected to the voice.
The fear in her lifts the air back through her body, all feelings and sensations leave her once more and she remains present in the moment, the voice returning to her ears as she watches Tek hammer against the tree.
Scott Savage: Calm down now… John can handle this worthless nare-do-well. Always thinking he’s more than he is, always thinking he knows better… Tek believes himself to be big and tough; he doesn’t even belong in the same airspace as you… What is he in comparison to the great Ana Valentine? Nothing…
Ana watches as the door slowly opens and Gobble comes out, he doesn’t even look at Tek, his distaste for such an impertinent individual obvious on his face. He sits in his doorway once again and watches as other creatures in the forest bring offering to him, for protection and thanks, all respecting that he is, indeed, the most powerful creature in the forest and they must show respect to use his land.
All the while Tek continues to jump about, climbing across the other creatures, disrupting them in their business, vying for attention he has not earned and does not deserve.
Old Mr. Brown turned up his eyes in disgust at the impertinence of Nutkin.
Slowly, Gobble turns and looks on Tek with disdain. He collects up all of the offerings and turns, taking them back into his home. He forgets though, to close the door behind him and Tek darts inside. Only to then make a very quick exit running all the way. He runs back out after grabbing what looks like a scaled down version of one of the tag titles from within Gobbles home.
The creatures gasp and scatter in fear, not wanting to be mistaken as party to this act. An eerie quiet falls over the forest as Gobble slowly leaves his home, stepping out into the forest to hunt down the mischievous Tek.
Scott Savage: What an ego-maniacal fool… He just doesn’t understand Ana. He doesn’t understand that he cannot defeat us, he cannot stand against us. Tek is nothing, not even so much as a blip on our radar. He is forced to stomp his feet and scream and shout just to get anyone to pay even the slightest bit of attention… What makes him think he could ever stand toe-to-toe with gods like us.
Gobble and Tek stand opposite one another, neither making a move as they stare on another down, squaring off in threatening form. Ana watches with a casual interest, unsure as to why Tek would try and bait her teammate in such a way and as to why Gobble would entertain such a pathetic attempt for attention.
Nutkin made a whirring noise to sound like the wind, and he took a running jump right onto the head of Old Brown!...
Then all at once there was a flutterment and a scufflement and a loud "Squeak!"
The other squirrels scuttered away into the bushes.
Ana watches as Gobble makes his attack, the two scuffles for a few minutes, the belt forgotten and discarded on the floor. Ana laughs a little as Tek tries to fight and scramble away, his actions serve no purpose as Gobble drags the petulant little shit into his home, never to be heard from again.
Scott Savage: Tut tut, what a silly little squirrel indeed. There will always be those who try to oppose us, who think they can do more. They think they can be the ones to save everyone from us…. They will suffer the most and they will suffer longest. Tek is no threat, Tek is not even worthy of your thoughts Ana… You are worth so much more, and I...I will be the one to guide you to your true destiny, my Very, Bad, Bunny.
Part Four. She was a good little girl.
Once upon a time there was a little girl called Lucie, who lived at a farm called Little-town. She was a good little girl
Ana was crying, the tears were spilling down her cheeks hot and fast. She could see them, but she could not feel them. Because the Ana who cried was not Ana now, but another Ana, one who still looked as though she had some goodness left in her, one who still believed that she could do right…. Oh what a silly Ana stood before her, crying and frightened…. What had she lost? Perhaps her marbles?
Ana decided to nickname her Goodie, it made her head a little straighter. She watches as Goodie makes her way across the farmland they apparently now stood on. Ana noticed almost immediately that the voice was gone, she cannot feel the calming and comforting presence around her…. Yet she doesn’t panic, it’s almost as though she knows he will come again soon.
Whilst Ana has been deep in her own thoughts, Goodie has already started to make her way out of the farm, she stops to ask a few of the animals questions, sometimes directions, sometimes for whatever it is she has lost. The actions of the girl are not clear to Ana, this seems to be the most distant not-a-memory of them all and part of her hopes this means she will wake-up soon.
As goodie makes it a great way up the hillside she believes she has spotted exactly what she has lost, she begins to pick up the pace, moving faster and faster until she is running flat out. She scrambles up the hill as fast as her legs will carry her, going up and up and up until the farm is so far below her it looks as though it were the villages of an ant farm.
As she keeps running, she passes many things she does not care to stop and survey. Namely, a small bubbling brook and spring, which are surrounded by small pink and red flowers, on the bed of the brook are small items she cannot quite make out.
Tired of chasing her counterpart, Ana stops to review the items on the bank of the brook. A glimmering golden cane holds her focus for a moment or two and she feels a tug inside of her, as though something were stirring within, perhaps reality… home.
But there was something else—a door! Straight into the hill; and inside it ---
Not quite knowing how she found herself there, Ana is stood before a door carved into the hillside, right behind Goodie, who is cautiously knocking on the door. The door slowly opens, but inside it is empty… Ana steps in behind Goodie and closes the door with a thud, before she can take a moment to be surprised that she was able to shut the door, goodie jumps and turns, looking directly at Ana.
It is only then that Ana realizes she can feel, the floorboards beneath her feet creak and give under her weight, the tiny rooms stuffy oxygen clogs in her lungs and her blond curls stick to her neck with sweat from the running and the now quickly rising panic.
Goodie: Who are you?
Ana Valentine: I, am you….
Goodie looks a little shocked, she stares into the dark eyes of hatred framed by Ana’s soft blond curls, the perfect pout pulled into a cocky smirk, her lean, shapely body tense and ready to fight at any second. Goodie sadly shakes her head as though she feels this is what she lost.
Ana laughs and steps right up close to Goodie, as she notices the softness in her, the want for goodness, and the willingness to be everything, for everyone but herself, she scowls in disgust.
Ana Valentine: I take it back, I’m not you… I used to be… Pathetic and desperate… Wanting so much to be loved, to fit in… You make me sick!
Ana pushes against Goodie, who almost immediately evaporates into nothing, to show only a mirror in her place. Ana surveys herself slowly and a smile spreads across her lips. She nods in approval as she turns away from the mirror and looks for an exit, the voice carries one last time on the breeze.
Scott Savage: Once upon a time, you were your own worst enemy… You stood constantly in a state of self defeat, just to give everyone else what they wanted. That is a skin you have shed now Ana… that girl is a girl you must leave behind entirely if you are to follow me. You have no allegiance to the two men who have been put up to face you this week. You needed to see this, to understand how far you have come… And now you do.
Now some people say that little Lucie had been asleep upon the stile — But I have seen that door into the back of the hill called Cat Bells.