Fractals

Fractals Chapter Forty Three (NC-17)
Disclaimers Apply

A/N Goddess Foxfeather, Queen of Mad Plotbunnies, BUSIEST WOMAN ALIVE ™, Prophetic Muse, Hamster Witch and Uberbeta… *sends throat lozenges* InterNutter, TC, Maxwell Pink and Dracena are wondermous for archiving/hosting! :) ProPhile: You’ll get more smut soon, I promise. Morgan: *poke* Readers/Reviewers: *sigh* I live in a flood zone, so if you suddenly go chapterless for a few days this week, it’s because I don’t have internet on the ark.


“What are you doing?”
The red haired girl jumped and tried to smile. “Um, looking around!”
Kurt spread his arms and blocked her exit from the room. It was dark in the hall, making him hard to see except for the glow of his eyes. “In the dark?” he asked quietly. “What are you doing?”
Jenny glanced left, then right, looking for escape before she replied. “Just, you know, seeing what’s up…” She began edging backwards but froze as she put her bare foot down on someone’s booted foot.
Sam sighed and nudged her forward with his knee. “Now tell the truth. Why’re you peeking into closed rooms?”
Jenny’s mouth opened and closed a few times as she looked up at Sam and then levelly at Kurt. In a slight whine, she replied, “Well, I was bored, you know? I just wanted to get to know everyone and figured…”
Kurt’s eyes narrowed and in inhaled deeply, seemingly trying to stay calm. “Do not insult us with lies.” His hand shot out and he grabbed her left wrist and shook, hard. Jenny yelped but could not stop the small camera hidden in her sleeve from flying loose and smashing against the wooden floor.
“Kurt, come on! We’re ready to… Oh.” Kitty stopped in her tracks as she phased up through the floor, staring for a moment before she remembered she was still ankle-deep in the hardwood planks. Stepping free, she frowned. “What’s going on here? You’re new…”
Sam rolled his eyes. “We caught her snoopin’ around and takin’ pictures of all the closed up rooms down here.” He nodded in the direction of the security room. “A lot of pictures.”
Kitty’s eyes followed Sam’s glance then down to the camera on the floor. Kurt was still holding the girl tightly, but Jenny was no longer struggling. She looked—not ashamed, Kitty realized—annoyed. “Why?” she asked, bending to pick up the camera. She saw the foot coming a second before it would have hit. She phased and continued her task, standing up to find Jenny now pinned against the wall, her eyes wide and mouth open. “Missed me,” Kitty said, raising a brow. “Kurt, the camera doesn’t look too damaged. I can find out what she was looking for but…” She paused and glanced at Sam. “What’s wrong? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”
“Snake,” he said plainly, as if he were asking her to pass the butter. “Near your right foot.”
Kitty was about to tell him that he had terrible timing for his jokes, but Kurt’s wide eyes made her think twice. Jenny, Kurt and Sam were all fixated on a point near her feet, frozen. Kitty bit her lip and looked down, inhaling sharply when she saw the black snake coiled up, waiting patiently. It was not even trying to move and in fact ,she thought, it looked like it was asleep. Stepping back carefully, she said, “Okay, Sam…pick it up!”
“Me? Why me?” He tightened his grip on Jenny. “Just cause I grew up on a farm doesn’t mean I have some Mutual of Omaha1 thing going on!”
Kitty glared and gritted her teeth, reaching gingerly for the snake, pausing twice before even getting close. “Nice snakey snakey…gooooood snakey…” The snake did not move. She cringed as she wrapped her fingers gently just behind it’s head and lifted it, letting it dangle from her fingers as she suppressed the urge to scream and faint. The snake wiggled limply, seeming very tired. “Poor thing,” she said shakily, “I think it’s sick…”
“Can you let me go then?” Jenny demanded, not moved at all by the plight of the indoor snake. “My hands are going numb!”
Kurt snarled. “No. We’re taking you to Beast.”
Kitty held the snake as far from her as possible. “Good, he can take this, too! It’s looking at me!” She edged closer to Kurt. “I”ll hold her if you hold the snake!”
Sam sighed anew. “Girls… I swear…” he said wearily, shaking his head.
“Fine.” Kitty grabbed his free hand and laid the snake across it. “I’ll take your place then.” Checking to make sure the broken camera was still in her pocket, she smiled sweetly at Sam. “After you.”
Jenny narrowed her eyes and let Kurt and Kitty start leading her down the hall towards the elevators leading to the basement levels. She waited until they stopped for the doors before she made her move. She dropped to her knees, loosening their grips on her and then rolled back, away from the trio. Kitty gasped and started after her, but Jenny made it to her feet before the other girl could reach her. It only lasted a few seconds but Jenny did not make it far as Kurt teleported in front of her, blocking her exit yet again. Jenny scrambled backwards, bumping into Kitty in the process. Kitty grabbed her arms and spun her around to look her in the eyes. “What are you doing?” the dark haired girl demanded. “Are you insane?” Jenny shook her head and started to wriggle free again, but Kitty grabbed the front of her shirt. There was a very faint pop and Jenny blinked out of existence. “Oh, hell…”
Jimmy Olsen stared back. Kurt’s jaw dropped and Sam dropped the snake. There was a moment where time seemed to stand absolutely still and then, Jimmy bolted. He pushed Kurt aside and disappeared up the hall at a gallop, leaving Kitty clutching the broken necklace in her hand, staring. Sam reacted first, racing after Jimmy, becoming a blur of motion that the other two knew would end in something expensive breaking. “Go!” Kitty said belatedly. “Help Sam!”
That was all Kurt needed to hear. He vanished in a blink, leaving Kitty standing, stunned, in the hall.
“I see you’ve found our little gift,” a voice whispered in her ear. She gasped and turned, trying to see who was there. “Now, Kitty… you know you can’t see me…” Hands skimmed over her arms and finally, one closed over her mouth. She felt as if she was choking. “Poor little snake… such a trite thing for me to be but oddly… appropriate, no?” For a moment, something shimmered in front of her, a figure of a man, but it went by so fast she could not discern features much. “Come along, Kitty. I have something to show you.”


1 Old nature show where Merlin Olsen would travel around, looking at wild animals and sending Jim, his hapless assistant into to do the hard stuff.