Royal Flush

The girl was drawing some strange looks in the local mall. For more than one reason, too. If it weren’t for the dozen bags strung across her arms, or the vibrantly pink pallet of her outfit, it would certainly be for the sheer fact that both her hair and eyes were a shade of pink one cannot achieve with typical dyes. Oh and the sheer lack of clothing the girl had. There were bits of cloth protecting anything illegal, of course, she wouldn’t be so bold as to go out naked. But as the sun beat down on the ground outside, she figured it would be nice to wear something nice and cool! Thus, her current outfit; a tube top that was trying its best to contain her prodigious bust, a skirt so short the slightest bend would reveal her underwear to the world, and a pair of sandals that hardly qualified as such.

Ai Kon, as she liked to be called, was immune to the stares; wait, that’s not the right word. Oblivious is the word others would use. She simply didn’t notice them, nor would she care if she did. Selfishness in a way, certainly, as the third such pile-up caused by a small breeze and men with wandering gazes. She had to take the stares sideways; the amount of bags she had prevented her from walking up it normally. By the time she reached the bottom floor, she was panting. Perhaps it was her tiredness that caused her lapse in judgement, but from the staircase she took off walking fast, failing to see the individual in front of her.

They collided hard (Ai much more solid than she appeared) and she dropped her bags with a gasp. Clothes in a wide assortment of colors, though all north of red on the color spectrum, spilled out and Ai let out a curse, a noise which sounded odd coming from such a cute voice. She stooped to pick up her clothes, and it was in that moment she noticed the little creature that had fallen to the floor. Another gasp, this one much more dramatic, and her hand leaped to her glossy lips, long nails painted with gems.

”Oh. My. Gosh. I am so sorry! I didn’t even see you there! Is your crab okay?!”

Jack hated the long periods of silence between doing things. He always had plans working, but it was as if a higher being was sitting on him and forcing him to sit still until it got the motivation to get off his lazy ass and let him do something.

Jack strapped Hannibals fish tank into the passenger seat of the car. He was getting pretty big, being a few months since Jack got him from a grocery store. He half remembered that he was doing something at that grocery store... but it seemed like a distant memory now...

Jack got into the drivers seat and changed his pumpkin head into his redheaded human form. Hannibal stared up at him. "Yeah, yeah. I know you don't like car rides." Hannibal stared up at him. "Well I can't exactly leave you in the Pit. That's bad for your health. Plus Mac keeps threatening you, and I can't really fight that fucker on his own turf...stupid demon bar..." Hannibal stared up. "Fine, I'll get you a goldfish or something to snack on at the pet store, as a treat for this. But don't expect a lot!" Hannibal stared. "Fine. 3 goldfish. But your getting the cheapo pellets this time." Hannibal raised a claw. "...okay, fine. I'll get you the fresh fish too..."

After Jacks conversation with his pet lobster, they were off. Or rather... they would be if not for the massive traffic jam that held up the highway. Jack blasted his horn, he screamed out the window, he even flipped a guy off. Nothing made them move. Well except for the guy that came over to beat Jack up, but when he transformed into a crying child with possessed eyes that resembled the mans dead daughter; he curled up into a ball and started sobbing about how sorry he was. Jack glanced at hannibal. "Don't judge me." Jack said in the haunting voice of the girl before transforming back.

Finally, Traffic cleared. Unfortunately, it funneled him and Hannibal directly into the parking lot of a mall. "Are you... FUCKING KIDDING ME RIGHT NOW?!" Jack got out of the car, grabbed Hannibals tank and stomped inside. He was going to get his revenge on this mall. But he wanted to make sure that Hannibal at least got pellets until he could get to the open air fish market.

He somehow managed to slam open the sliding doors, likely breaking the mechanics in the process and continued to stomp around looking for the pet store. Surely this piece of crap mall would have one... righ- FUCK! Hannibals tank went flying into the air as a pink haired girl gasped at the fact that her clothes went flying everywhere, while Jack tried to jump for Hannibals tank. He caught the tank, but... where was Hannibal?

He scanned the floor, and spotted him bunched up in a... Oh my god... It was so pink it hurt his eyes. For just a moment, his eyes flashed with green fire as rage overtook reasoning. But he let go of it fast and ran over to Hannibal. Picking him up and taking him into his arms. The crustacean seemed to be fine, though he did need to get back in his tank quickly. Another gasp.

”Oh. My. Gosh. I am so sorry! I didn’t even see you there! Is your crab okay?!”

"I will have you know, that Hannibal is a Maine Lobster, and the fact that you refused to even take notice of his plight before you made sure that your precious "fashion accessories" were okay, speaks very loudly of the kind of character YOU are!" Jack shouted, drawing the attention of a crowd. He felt a surge of Deja Vu. This was a bad day. He wanted it over. He wanted someone to punish. He just hadn't found a target...yet...

Oh dear. It seems they were drawing a crowd. And for good reason, too. She tried to urge the strange man in front of her to be quiet, but of course, he wouldn’t listen, especially since the embarrassment written on her cheeks nearly crushed her voice; it was coming out as nothing more than a barely audible whisper. Oh, to be seen like this! Her reputation would be ruined! Tank water soaked her shirt, revealing the equally-pink bra underneath. She crossed her arms across her breast in an attempt to hide her shame, but uh … it didn’t do much.

”Please, sir, I’m sorry! I-I didn’t mean to, I promise! L-let me buy you dinner, please?”

She could feel the panic tears leaping to the corners of her eyes as she pleaded for the gentleman to just, please, let her take him out to dinner. Her bags forgotten, she clung onto his arm with a grin; as she forced the sad feelings down, the nearby flowers bloomed, and despite the dramatic situation, the growing crowd couldn’t help but feel enamored with the young pink-haired girl. Even Jack would start to feel it; a tug at his non-existent emotions, like some external force was trying to make him like her.

”C’mon. Dinner with a cute girl? A guy like you can’t say no to that! You probably don’t get lots of dates!”

Her big pink eyes blinked up at him, slightly watery. The innocent tone she said the preceding system just went to show her naivety; she had no idea how that could be construed as insulting. She thought she was merely stating a fact!

Jack's eyes blazed with fury. "Are you... Are you coming onto me?!" Jack said, still angry. "First you attempt crustacecide, then you call me ugly, and now you're coming onto me?!" Hannibal stared at him. "Stay out of it Hannibal, I got this!" Jack yelled to his pet before dumping him in the tank on the ground.

"I will have you know, that I do have a girlfriend; and she is quite attractive!" Jack felt his skin melting back into the pumpkin shape. But he held it back... barely. He sighed and crossed his arms. There was something about her. Something that made it hard for him to resist her offer.

"Fine. Dinner is... Fine." Jack said turning to the crowd. "Don't you lowlives have anything better to do?! I'm making dinner plans with a lady here! Haven't you ever seen that before?!" God, Jack hated public areas.

She instantly perked up, pushing her chest into the mans arm. A giggle escaped her, the kind of high-pitched, utterly innocent noise that would send any red-blooded man blushing. The positioning of his arm was fortuitous as well, positioned as it was across her chest. It left very little to the imagination. Despite having no idea where they were going, she pulled him along, dragging him through the crowd and towards the doros on the outside.

”Oh, don’t be mad at them! Of course they’re staring, look at me, I’m beautiful. And all wet, I’d stare too!” She giggled, blushing slightly again. As they stepped outside, Jack would probably notice the line of roses following them, forcing themselves through the cracks in the sidewalk to bloom outwards, creating thorny bushes following the path of the girl he found himself trapped with. ”I suppose you’re not too bad looking, sorry for that, now that I get a good look at you I can see you’re kinda attractive! A bit grumpy looking, but all you need is a smile! Cuz you got great bone structure, a little smile, maybe a haircut! Ooh, and some eyeliner! You’d look great with just a dash of black!”

It was at that point, clear in the middle of the parking lot, that she seemed to realize she had no idea where she was going. She giggled again, a little embarrassed (the blooming flowers changing into posies as she did) before turning her gaze again onto her companion.

”So like, do you have a car? Cuz like, otherwise we gotta walk, which I’m totally cool with! But it’s suuper hot an I don’t really have walking shoes, they’re more like lookin’ shoes, y’know? But anyway, where do you wanna go? I’m totally in the mood for some Thai food, but I’m down with anything! Oh, do you like coffee? I could totally go for a low-fat soy macchiato right now, best thing to go with a day of shopping!”

She seemed totally oblivious to the fact that all her shopping was left behind.

”Oh, my name is Ai by the way! Ai Kon! What’s yours?!”[/color]

Jack rolled his eyes. "Do you just have a massive ego, or are you just oblivious to what you offer the world?" Jack said, carrying Hannibal back to the car. She commented on his facial structure pretty much the whole way out of the mall. Girly girls. Ugh. If she wasn't the symbol for everything wrong with todays youth... Suddenly, Jack began putting some pieces together.

He giggled, but unlike Ai's cute laugh, Jack's sounded unhinged. "I do in fact have a car, and don't worry about where we're going. I know just the place."

He opened the car door to allow the girl into his car, and when she gave him her name, Jack smiled. "Jack. Jack O'Leary."

At his laugh, her face instantly lit up, the largest grin appearing on the girls face. She seemed oblivious to the insult, or rather like she didn’t quite consider it an insult. She only gripped his arm tighter, rubbing her face against it. He smelled like … well, she couldn’t quite tell. She buried her face further into his arm, her small nose like a rock as it burrowed into his skin. Hmmm … Old Spice, and pumpkin and … something metallic. She couldn’t quite place it, but it totally worked for him! She couldn’t help the giggle that escaped her mouth, which quickly turned into an excited squeal as he confirmed the fact that he had a car.

”Well, Jack,” She rolled his name around on her tongue, trying it out. Apparently deciding she liked it, she repeated it several more times, each time stretching it further. ”Jaack. Jaaaaack. Jjjjjaaaaaaccckkk.” She giggled loudly again, one pink-painted nail hiding her teeth. ”Okay, Jack- uh, where was I?” She paused for a second, finger moving from her lips to her temple as she thought. ”Oh, right! What are we waiting for? Move your tush, Jacky!”

Jack peeled out of the parking lot, he had put Hannibal into the passenger seat and they headed onto the highway.

After an hour or two of driving, Jack pulled off on a dirt road and after another brutal time where Jack said nothing, even if Ai attempted to speak to him. He finally parked the car, a little too quickly; as the car jerked forward and threw Jack into the steering wheel. Drawing blood. "Son of a..." Jack said, feeling his head wound quickly close up. That was odd. Head wounds usually took longer to heal. Whatever. He smiled at Ai, and he went around to open the door for her. He then waved towards the crumbling shack of a building that he had brought them to.

Ai was slightly hesitant, I mean, who wouldn't be? But Jack assured her that it was safe and a lovely place for a picnic.

When Ai entered, the entire house was dark. Despite the multiple holes in the ceiling that would've been visible from the outside. Suddenly, there was a light from behind her. A dim glow, almost as if from a candle inside of something... like a... Jack o' Lantern.

For the first time since she met Jack, she felt a bit uneasy. They were far from the city, something that always made her upset - Ai hated the country. On the flip side, car rides made her tired; it wasn’t long before she found herself dozing off, the softest of snores coming from the petite girl. Not a word was said between the two of them for the hour or two it took to get to the destination, Ai gently laid against the window using her hair as a pillow; there certainly was enough of them. She certainly didn’t notice the way the car slowly warped and changed, the dents, scratched, and broken bits flashing pink before healing. By the time they reached the destination, his car was brand-new, fixed before his very eyes.

”Oh, are we there?”

She woke, pink eyes fluttering open, and she yawned, revealing perfectly even, perfectly white teeth. She covered the yawn with a perfectly manicured hand, shaking her head lightly as she finished. Looking out the window, she gasped softly. So many dead trees! That couldn’t stand! Ignoring the unease that still ate at her insides, she threw the door open and ran out. Standing in the center of the clearing, she closed her eyes. A deep breath left her, and suddenly she was surrounded in a corona of pink energy. Her hands formed a circle over her heart, and an orb formed within her fingers. And then suddenly, she swung her arms out, the pink aura bursting outwards.


But instead of a wave of energy, it turned into small, fluttering creatures. As one flew past Jack, he would see them as butterflies. This swarm of magical insects flew off, each one landing on one of the dead trees. As soon as they touched the branches, they turned into a rain of pink particles, showering over the tree. Within moments, the trees returned to life, crooked trunks straightening and flowers blooming. But Ai wasn’t done. As they entered the house, Ai frowned and looked around, hands on her hips.

”Well this simply won’t do.”

Humming to herself like a Disney princess, pink energy bloomed from her hand, covering the holes in the ceiling and walls. Just like the trees outside, they were ‘healed’, in a way, the energy turning into the materials needed to repair them, and with the magic of her energy, they were seamlessly restored. And more than that, her very presence was restoring the cracks in the floor. The ground outside suddenly burst into flowers as she walked by, covering the area in the scent and sight of their beauty. Seemingly in response to this, there was a flare and a sense of evil energy; Ai turned around, here eyes widened, and …

She grinned?

[color=hotpink]”Oh, good!”[color] She clapped her perfect little hands together. ”You have powers! Just like me! Hi!”

Jack was confused. Most people would've been terrified by the revelation that they were dragged out to the middle of nowhere with a stranger, but she... Did she just fix his trees?! He spent a long time fixing those! As soon as she was in the house, Jack burnt the leaves off with some precision fireballs. It took him a few moments to return to the house. He slammed the door, only to find that the pink energy was "fixing" his house! Damn it! He wanted it to look good and scary! Not good!

Jacks head exploded with pain as it cracked and shifted. Bone transforming into plant matter, and skin transforming into the tough fibrous quality of that of pumpkin skin. His eyes transformed into glowing orange orbs, like will-o-wisps in the middle of his head. His tongue becoming vine like and less muscular.

He stared at Ai, ready to pounce on her at the slightest scream. But she paid him no mind for almost 3 seconds. This annoyed him. She turned around and started to give him the reaction he wanted. His body stretched unnaturally and he raised his clawed hands in the air.

And she grinned.

Jack was confused. Why did she smile? Was he not scary enough? Fine then. "...You have no survival instincts at all, do you?" Jack said wrapping her in his arms like a snake trying to crush its prey. "I'm going to teach you why fear is important..."

In her short life, she had only been scared a handful of times. Like in the 2nd grade, when some jerk boys from her class dropped a beehive on her. She ran around batting them off her, screaming at the top of her lungs. Or a couple years later, when she thought her father died in a car crash. She cried for hours until she got the phone call saying he was okay. Needless to say, fear was not an emotion she felt often; a side effect of her pampered life, yes, but also a matter of her personality. She simply didn’t get scared. She was too upbeat, too happy all the time and wondering at the state of the universe to let something like danger and common sense get in her way.

But now, as Jack curled his fingers like hooked claws, flames flickering in the pit of his twisted head, she felt fear. A tendril of it curled from her belly, twisting around her brain and making her flinch backwards. Out of instinct, she threw her hands, as if to shield her from some terrific blow. Finally, it seemed, she was starting to understand. This was a mistake, a horrible, terrible mistake, Vaguely, the words of her father came to her; “One of t hese days, your naivety will get you in trouble.” It seems today was that day.

”Ah … um … J-Jack? What’s … the meaning of this? What’s this feeling?”

She touched her stomach with one hand, fingers splayed across her midriff as if confused. This had never been felt before, this curling, mind-numbing terror sweeping its horrible gaze across her. Oh, it was just starting, but the mere sight of Jack in all his terrible glory - and, because of that, the gravity of her situation - had kickstarted the one feeling she was unfamiliar with. Perhaps it was this, or some other, more mystical reason, but as he gazed down on the terrified girl, she began to … change. Just her appearance, it seemed at first, her pink hair turning bright yellow at the tips, and the pink of her eyes having a strange, yellow tint to it. But then, he would notice another change; the feeling of love and joy that followed her twisted, corrupting itself. Instead, a vague feeling of obsession surrounded her, as if she was the most precious thing in the world and you’d do anything to keep her, even harm her if it came down to it.

Aisha grunted, grasping her head with both hands as the changes worsened. With a panicked sort of grunt, she flung herself away from Jack, deeper into the house in a vain attempt to escape. She ran like a frightened animal, tripping over herself in her rush and desire to get away. Darkness clung to the edges of her vision, a weird sort of darkness, tainted by yellow and pink, and she pressed her back to the wall, chest heaving wildly. She wanted to curl into a ball, or to run and scream, or to fight back- and her indecision left her frozen in place, watching the herald of her death.

Jack cackled and rose, twisted and lengthened. He raised clawed hands, as his already cracked face spread wider, threatening to crack in half as the flames boiled down his chin. He stared into the girls pink eyes and howled. "Fear!" A question answered with such malice and contempt that it stripped the paint from the walls as it came out. He leaned back and laughed, as hands rose from the floors to claw at Aisha's legs as she ran.

He wanted her now. For some reason, his heart began beating so much faster. Not out of the attraction he felt before, something else... Something... Dark. Obsession. He liked it. He was the fear that she felt. He was the feeling of fear that Ai felt as she dashed like a frightened rabbit through his halls. If this is what love was, then he wanted more.

He floated through the floorboards and rose right in front of Ai. The man floating there momentarily, brushing a pink hair from her face before he sniffed it, and ripped it free of her skull. ”Something to remember you by.” He swung his scythe then, bringing the wickedly curved, nearly unbreakable blade into her side, watching it slide through her flesh. He sniffed the lock of hair, and closed his eyes.

F̖͖eá̜r̰͙͍̪.

The word was painted yellow and pink in front of her trembling eyes, a word she never wished to so thoroughly have painted on her subconscious. And yet here it was, suffusing her, filling her like it was her entire purpose. It warped her. Through the cracks in the floor, flowers still grew, but they were dark, just as twisted as the aura that was pouring off her in a single, continuous wave. It had become a visceral thing now, and from the woodwork came all manner of living creatures, desperately crawling towards as if their life depended on it. Her entire body shook like a leaf in the wind, every inch of her uncontrolled. It was as if the control of her body was taken away from her. She couldn’t run, she couldn’t hide, there was nowhere she could go-

And then he was there, and for some reason she wasn’t as scared anymore.

No that wasn’t correct.

The fear intensified, yet at the same time, it felt as if it fit, as if a puzzle piece was clicking into place. Her eyes, now bordered by the yellow of his fear, were focused on him; though terror filled them, there was almost a certainty in them, as if her confused brain knew this was the way things had to be. Even the image of the scythe raised menacingly did little to change this; she simply sagged against the wall, as if waiting for the inevitable. And as it swung, a gift to her, she finally screamed as the blade split her side. Blood poured from the wound for only a brief moment, the wound healing almost as soon as it was delivered. Her healing factor, it seemed, was still in effect.

”J … a … ck …”

There was pain in the voice, obviously, and horrifying terror. But there was also an almost sexual keening in the single, stretched-out word. It was desperate, and wanton, forcing her hand to stretch out like a scorned lover. But instead of pushing him away or trying to beat against him, it instead curled into his carved features, as if to caress him. The gentle, all-too-human hand of hers pressed flat against his cheek as if to plead with him. Tears burst into existence, flowing into rivers down her cheeks.

”Jack … please … make it stop ...”

Jack crawled in close to feel her breath across his shoulder as she was struck by the weapon. His vine like tongue whipped out as her exhalation of his name sung from her lips. The appendage rolled lovingly over her ear as she did so, leaving a trail of thick slime behind.

"Broken already, my little china doll?" He said as his hands reached just above her navel, and the claws there began a long scratch all the way just below her neck line. "I do so enjoy easy playthings..."

Suddenly, a thought struck him and he looked at the wound his blade had created. It was completely healed. He swung his head around the cabin. Unnoticed by the serial killer, woodland animals had begun moving toward Ai in a desperate wave. Even the floorboards were beginning to show with black petunias, deep purple roses, and piss yellow daisies.

He looked back at Ai and his pumpkin face frowned, and one eye grew slightly as if an eyebrow would've been raised. "What..." His face twisted in surprise, and then coalesced into a wicked grin. "Oh... A special plaything, aren't we?" She placed a hand on his face, and... sympathy rushed through him momentarily.

What was he doing? Why even do this? Then, he shook it off. That was just the demon talking. "Make it stop? But why would I do that?" Jack grinned as his body twisted around her once again, and he stared into her eyes.  

"We've only just begun."

Broken … yes, she could feel it, the dark tentacles curling around her head, twisting and warping and corrupting her in ways no polite lady could possibly stand. The way he spoke, breath like worms crawling against her skin, made her feel sick; it was as if he was her property, her little play thing. Yet, as she wanted to curl away, get away from the horrid voice smelling of sulfur and rot, something corrupted inside her was thrilled at the words. It hissed in satisfaction, wrapping it’s jagged claws deep into her psyche, whispering it’s twisted joy.

He wantss you. He needsss you. Can you feel it? His dessssire?

And she could. Gone were the flickers of love within all living things, the wisps of joy that signaled life around her. Now, she could feel their desire, their obsession, ghostly tendrils of rose-gold stretching towards … her? Yes, she could feel it. The animals, the insects, all living things, and … Jack, too. Somehow, someway, she had become the target of their obsessions, she stoked their desires and became, to them, everything important in the world. It terrified her. The fear in her hair and eyes spread, taking over even more real estate; soon, she would be more blond than not.

As streaks of yellow reached the base of her scalp, her outfit changed. Born of her pink energy, it would, of course. Black and yellow instead of the white and pink, the dove wings on the collar changed to the leathery image of a bat. It was a complete transformation; even the way she held herself changed. The utter confidence and ignorance faded, replaced by something much darker, a sort of psychosis that suggested though she was terrified of him, Jack might also be the most wonderful thing in the world.

”Jack …”

Her words were more sure now, less a frightened scream and more the cracked cry of a mental patient. The pumpkin-headed demon wrapped around her, body twisting supernaturally, but Aisha embraced it. She didn’t recoil, nor did she try to escape. It was, to her, a hug from a lover to another. A deranged giggle escaped her lips, and she wrapped her arms around him. Despite her appearance, she was … strong. Very strong. Judging from the way she was squeezing him, this little girl would have little problems moving entire vehicles with her bare hands.

”Oh Jack! I knew you loved me!”