Show Me Your Moves [Brittany]

Maria did the best she could to remain nonchalant about it. It was a little embarrassing to confess something like this to Brittany. But she didn't regret it, not at all. It was better to have Brittany gush over it than seeing her try too hard to pretend nothing was wrong. They were friends, right? And as a friend, she had a look of concern on her face as Brittany didn't seem to be alright from the pain. But, of course, it was her turn to be dumbfounded again. In a lot of ways they were pretty similar than she previously thought, that want to belong to something.

For Maria there was the Church, but even the dealings there she never felt that welcome. The Cadets weren't as bad, but she still felt horribly out-of-place with their mission to save. When Brittany finished, Maria finally chuckled to herself. Not so much out of amusement, but out of gratitude.


She happily replied to her while gently grabbing one of Brittany's hands with both her callused hands from helping her up previously, "You did, there's nothing wrong with that. Speeches aren't nothing new to me at Church. But yours is something really special to me. Really though... thank you. It means a lot... uh, BFF!"

If it wasn't an incurring theme by now, she always felt out of place. As if she were something truly alien. But to have someone address it to her for once in her life, there were no other words for her to describe it, but to be blessed. If anything, even if the pain on her path to be a Cadet was rough, at least she would have Brittany there. Just a little bit now, that path felt less lonely. And that's all she needed. "Do you need to take a break and get you some ice? I can stay around to help you practice more if you feel like you can."

Her lips allowed a surprised squeak to escape from her at the sudden approach Brittany attempted. But lucky for her, the endeavor didn't quite reach her just yet. Instead Maria's concerned face returned. That didn't look good. Cheerleading also seemed to be an activity that required so much trust in your teammates to pull off all these dangerous maneuvers. It was a similar concept to the Cadets, now that she thought about it.

"Well, um... Yeah! Free time to use is always good. I honestly could really use some myself. Just to have a breather for once... Anyway, we should get you to the nurse's office." Maria admitted with a sigh. It was getting hard to balance work between the Church and with the Cadets. It was only a wonder the Cadet lasted this long. With more responsibilities, it truly felt like she was beginning to drown from all these obligations. She gestured Brittany to follow her as she grasped the coffin's tassels nearby to drag it along with her. The concern on her face was still there, but she tried to smile it off to keep the conversation light. "Anyway, we should head to the nurse's office. Let's get that iced."

And even whether or not they would start to leave, Maria would be sure to hold the door open for Brittany should they exit the gym. But along the way, Maria had a question for her friend.

Maria shook her head in affirmation. None at all, even before the Church. Her entire life worked her to the bone. Whether it be helping her family managing and running the shop or devoting her training and errands to the Church, free time was a rare occurrence for Maria. When she heard of its existence, the girl didn't take too much thought in it or any kind of curiosity. She knew it was a time-waster and not something worth trying. At least, until now. "I... Mmm...  Ha ha... Sure! We can do that. I-I have some time off this weekend."

A day over at Brittany's apartment? Her home? Maria felt remarkably giddy, but she tried not to show it while attempting to retain her composure. Never once had she ever stopped by another person's home nor a friend's for that matter. Maybe a couple of times on an errand for Father Jorge's volunteer work, but that was part of business. Though a Psyche-Terrorist's domain was a completely different matter for sure.

When they arrived at the infirmary, it was empty while still having that faint sterile smell wafting in the air. There was no sign of the nurse at this very moment. Maria knit her brow together. Where could she be? She gestured Brittany to sit on the bed while reaching towards the small fridge where there was ice inside and gently began to press on her injured shoulder after wrapping the compress with some paper towels. Hopefully the nurse wouldn't mind, since there was a large store of them inside the fridge after all.


"There, that should do it. Just let it rest," Maria said just as she laid her coffin against the wall and sat at a near by chair. "So... what kind of video games are out there?"

Maria found herself shaking her head and sighing. She knew it was one of her friend's jokes. Being practically raised by the Church for the last few years, she didn't like the idea as she was too much of a goody-two shoes and all. But she found herself giving a knowing smile at her despite it. At the least she was glad that Brittany was taking it all in stride. "W-well... I'm glad you're doing okay. I can't just leave you alone seeing you get hurt. I'm sure you'll get better soon, so keep it iced."

Maria wondered how long it would actually take for that nurse to come. She wasn't specialized in any kind of medical knowledge, but hopefully the nurse had a better idea than she does on when that shoulder was going to heal. It would be saddening if Brittany had to miss out on her cheerleading activities. In the meanwhile, she listened to her explanation. It sounded awfully similar to her work in the Cadets. Demons, people with supernatural powers, and some kind of intrigue? Sorta? That sounded like her job. Why would she ever find any kind of enjoyment in what she already does as work? She continued to beam her smile, but her words came out awkward. "I... see. That actually sounds... fun? But I'm looking forward to it, Brit. After all, I--"


Maria suddenly froze in mid-sentence. Brittany could possibly notice in that split-second that something was wrong. There was a flash of panic on her face though not for long. The nun quickly blinked again, as if awakening from some kind of shocking reverie. Though she began to smile awkwardly... in a pained manner despite her trying to seem all casual as she continued where she left off as if uninterrupted.  "I-I would like to try some new things. Okay?"

"Eh? Oh! No, no, no no! It's not that. It's just... I j-just remembered something... Father Jorge needed me... I'll be right ba--"The smile felt almost artificial as it continued to remain on her face. She could begin to feel the cold sweat beading on the back of her neck. Her excuses were lackluster and there really wasn't much of a way out. She hurriedly began to stand onto her feet and swiftly begin her departure, as if to flee. But the moment she took a step, the Cadet fell to her knees with a hard slump. Then the rest of her body followed.


She groaned in pain while curling into a ball with the dome of her head touching the floor. Her teeth clenched together, as if threatening to break each other. Everything didn't feel right, nothing ever did. Brittany would notice black markings vein-like markings beginning to appear on her bare skin as her tattoos began to glow a concerning red... and the scent of blood beginning to waft from her as wounds began to slowly tear open. Maria couldn't even begin to move, but she began grasping towards the coffin she laid on the wall. Yet, no progress could be made when she couldn't even touch the cover from where she sprawled.

It was... pathetic. It took all she had to not scream from the pain as she began to writhe. Maria loathed to show this side to anyone, especially Brittany of all people. Brittany had her own worries. The worries of a normal person who didn't need anyone like the Psyche-Terrorists or the Cadets to taint it. But here she was, struggling to even get up and her friend of all people had to witness this sudden pathetic show of weakness. Why was this happening now of all times?


It hurt so much. Every nerve in her body burned in agony. She could feel the familiar vicious slashes that tore her open again and again and again in ad nauseam. After a moment of trying to do it all on her own, Maria shakily and reluctantly pointed towards the coffin in defeat and hoped Brittany would be able to understand. Inside the coffin would be the secret the Cadet hoped she never needed to show to her friend. In the back of the cover was a kind of compartment that was easy to open and inside would be a case of full syringes...

T̨̛͞h͢͢͞e̕͢͡ s̸̀cr̵̨e̸̕͟a̷m͠s̕.͟͢ ̸̨̧_

______________________T̷͡h̕͡͏e ̛s͡ḩr̷̢҉i͡l̛͜͝l̢̛̀ ̀͡s̵̀c̴̴r̨͡eąm̨s̢.̶̨͞ ͜

                                                ________________________________________th̕è́y͏ ̷͟e̡͜cho͡e͟͞d t̵ḩ͟r̸͝ó̕u͘g͏̷h̶ ͘͝h̶͞e͞r̷̛.͡ ́̕


___t͜҉h̡́ę̧͝y c̀͡o̶nd͝͠e̡m͏̷͡n̨҉̨ęd̛͜ ̵̛h̨̀͟e̛̕r͏͘.


_______________________________________________th̀͝e̷͠ b̶͘͜lood̡͘ ̨͠͞b͝a̢p̷͟͜t̡҉iz̧͡e̸̵͟d ̕he͜r̸͟ ̴́͡to̵ ͠à͟͟ ͏̨͡w̷͢͢ho̷͞l̀͢ȩ̴̧ ̡͞n̸e͞w̨̢͢ ̨͞w҉҉o͠ŕ̶ļd̛ ͢͝

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_______________________i̵̛t ̴t͞a̸s̨̡t̵͡e̵d͟ ̶̀͝s̶͡ò͞ ́s̷͟ẁ̧e̷e͝t̴͜.̨̨.̡́.

She loathed herself. Loathed herself from detesting the very fact it came down to this. The screams coming from Brittany were expected, but it made her feel even more helpless. It was a horrid feeling, one she promised to herself to never experience again. But here she was in the middle of an empty school infirmary. The helpless Cadet couldn't even form any more words from her lips. Instead, she continued to twist and gnarl as her frayed nerves continued to sear through her mind and her eyes began to roll up...


And her consciousness began to fade... Brittany truly was on her own. Though within the coffin, there was a ringtone coming of a church hymn in a happy tune. If Brittany navigated towards it source, she would find there was a separate compartment inside that nestled near the weapon. It was easy to open and in it was a cellphone ringing. On its identification screen was the name: Jorge Fallaci.

It all seemed to be another day for the crusty old priest. But perhaps it wasn't all too similar. For once Maria asked him to help pick up the groceries when school ended. While on one hand it was a pain in the ass, he also wanted to leave this stuffy church and it was nice to help out the poor dutiful nun. Hell, he can't just have her do all the work on her own. When he arrived at the school's gate. He expected her to be here by now, but she wasn't. How rare, normally she was punctual. He waited for a few impatient moments before finally dialing the number.

"Hey Maria, I'm here at the scho--" he began before falling silent. This wasn't her. And she's crying. It was a stark clear indicator something horrible is happening. And his gut feeling didn't fail him here to much misfortune. The priest began to run into the school. "Deep breaths. Don't touch her, you'll end up hurting yourself. Tell me where she is right now. Isn't the nurse here?"

Convulsions, already? But her condition wasn't supposed to be triggered until hours after school. There was a deep feeling of a pit forming in his abdomen. This wouldn't be the first time, but it was indeed new that it occurred this early. Yet with a young girl already going through a horrible event in her life, the priest already remained composed. Yet, terse.