Mimosa slithered out on to the playground, clutching her OreDS tightly to her chest, the excessive amount of keychains clanking and clattering together as she found a nice, comfortable spot to sit in under the sun's rays to keep herself warm. It wasn't an entirely unpleasant day, but Mim would much rather be fully enveloped in her fantasy worlds, playing her video games then doing school work. Perhaps that's why her grades were lacking. She was barely passing any of her classes right now, but luckily Mimosa had rather lax parental units. Aerilon and Likais were far more interested in themselves than they were interested in what their kids were up to. The only one that Mimosa risked disappointing was Laviticus. But Laviticus was living his own life now, spending as much time with his boyfriends as he could.

The very idea made Mimosa's skin prickle, a chill rolling over her.

She never expected for her brother to end up like their dad. There was something far more secure and comforting in monogamy. What stability was there with having multiple partners.

With a small 'hmph' of sound, Mimosa flipped open her OreDS and flicked on the power, fantastical music playing from the speakers.

--

Mad Maddie was on a rampage again. He had been terrorizing almost every student he'd run across today, threatening and teasing them until they cried. Madeline was feeling quite smug, taking pride in the pain he caused others. He had been talked to on numerous occasions about his hurtful actions, but it only fuelled Maddie. It made him more crafty, made him far more manipulative and better equipped to take advantage of people.

And Maddie locked on to his next target.

A purple and black snake girl was sitting rather cutely playing on her undoubtedly expensive OreDS. Madeline almost felt sorry that he would have to take it away from her. She was, after all, rather adorable to look at. Madeline loved crushing that innocence.

Sauntering up to the girl, Maddie's mouth split in to a wicked, predatory smile, exposing his serrated teeth. He had only caught a small glimpse of the girl's pale pink eyes before Madeline snatched the OreDS from her hands.

”What's thiissss? Madeline hissed menacingly as he flipped the contraption over, inspecting it, playing with the controls.

--

2

Mimosa blinked lucidly. She had seen brown hands reach out and snatch at her OreDS. Why ... ? Slowly she lifted her head, peering up in to the face of the culprit. The boy seemed very interested in her OreDS. Had he never seen one before? Poor kid ... he had likely never known the joy of such a magnificent companion.

Instead of reacting, Mimosa folded her hands in to her lap and waited. She wanted the boy to experience the same sort of joy she felt for it. It was the only thing that brought her joy, the only thing that sparked an interest or a passion. Clearly, it was that way for other children, right?

--

Madeline's smug expression faltered. Why wasn't she reacting? Instead of shouting at him, crying, or pleading with Maddie to return the stolen goods, the child was just ... lamely sitting there. Her eyes were naturally large and waiting, though the expression on her face was quite devoid of feeling. She looked ... blank, absent, uncaring.

How could she not care! This ... this thing was expensive! She had no reason to be sitting there so dumbly and just ... waiting for the item to genuinely be stolen.

Maddie's brows furrowed, making his face suddenly look much older. His lips pressed together, forming a rather cranky, thin line.

”Don't you want it back?” Madeline tried to encourage the girl to say something, anything that could lock her in to a conversation.

--

3

Mimosa simply shook her head slowly. The naiad hardly had a chance to even play with her OreDS yet. Why would she want it back? Mimosa waited patiently, her eyes slowly blinks closed as she settled in to the new presence. The child's energy was a bit spiky, but Mimosa was used to that. There were a few kids in her classes that seemed quite menacing. This boy, in comparison, was nothing to the vibes she felt from the others. It was almost comforting, that's how incomparable it was.

--

Giving a sharp, angry grunt of sound, Mad Maddie tossed the OreDS back at the girl. She hadn't responded, hadn't reacted at all. How was he supposed to have his fun with a girl who was deader than a reanimated corpse? It angered Madeline, but it bored him even more which made his anger fester.

”Why don't you care!” Madeline almost shrieked at the girl. He was downright furious with her lack of response. Is this how the other kids felt when he tried to tease them? Was she teasing him? Did the child have any idea who he was? Madeline was the big guns on the playground, the real deal! At least ... wasn't he?

--

4

Feeling rather lethargic didn't help Mimosa's reflexes any. She fumbled with her toy, struggling to catch it, but eventually she managed to get a grip on it. She was moderately relieved, but it never showed on Mim's face, much to the apparent frustration of her new comrade.

”Why are you upset?” Mim asked, tucking her OreDS back in to her satchel after turning it off. She didn't want to risk it getting wrecked, especially if other people were going to be touching her wares.

--

Why was he upset? Was he upset? Yes, Madeline was incredibly upset! How was he supposed to feel satisfaction or feel superior if his victims refused to play their parts? ”Of course I'm upset! You're entirely dead inside! Can you even comprehend basic nightmare emotions?” Madeline anxiously pulled his long hair back, winding it up like a spiral and tied it back in a messy flop of a bun, little pieces sticking out all over. It was something he did whenever he was trying to get a 'better look' at a situation or a person. What drove this child? Did they have any ambitions? How was he supposed to pinpoint their weaknesses if they didn't show signs of any? Who raised this girl? That was something that Madeline desperately wanted to know. They clearly had parented wrong.

--

5

Well, that was unnecessarily harsh. Mimosa wasn't quite sure what she had done to warrant such sudden aggression, but she didn't particular care either. The naga hybrid began to gather up her things, scooping her bag in to her arms, uncoiling her tail and started to slither away. She could feel the eyes of the other freshling watching her, examining her as she escorted herself back inside. Her heat lamp sounded quite lovely, and Mimosa would much rather the company of the soft hum of her lamp than the instability of her new so-called friend. ”I'll see you tomorrow.” was all Mimosa said before she disappeared from sight.

--

Madeline gawked as the naga hybrid just up and left. He wasn't done talking to them, and ... they said 'see you tomorrow'? What did that even mean?! Was it a threat? Was it something that Maddie should actually take to heart? His natural sense of paranoia was starting to settle in, starting to make him fear for his safety, starting to --

Maddie started to feel like he was suffocating. Gasping for air, from his sudden panic attack Madeline clawed at his throat. His skin was dry and starting to crack. He had to get back inside and hop in to his tank right away. If he didn't want a really rough skin condition, it was probably a good idea to retreat. The calming water would also help soothe his anxious heart and give him a moment to collect himself and figure out what exactly went wrong with this particular encounter.