Chapter 9

Monday, October 30, 2045

Classes were becoming more enjoyable for Wendy and me. Most of the students had discovered that a little self-discipline and concentration would make Wendy's pheromones nothing more than an annoyance, and the fact that most teachers gave a nod and wink to public displays of affection between students known to be in classes with her actually brought a laugh to most students.

The school also was cheerfully talking about our football victory the previous week. We had finished first in our division and could look forward to our first playoff game in three years. Coach Davis had even broken a smile in the locker room as the team celebrated its best regular season finish in a decade.

In the last week I had established the east side of the fountain as my regular hangout during lunch and breaks. Wendy was always with me on campus, but what surprised everyone were the others who now formed one of the more popular social groups on campus. I found myself proud of my friends. Several teachers had stated that never before had a group of mixed students been so prominent in campus life.

Wendy was also finally catching up to the schoolwork. The transfer of classes had resulted in her stepping up in difficultly on a couple of subjects and several of us had been spending time at lunch in assisting her in catching up. She had been extremely impressed with Yvonne Masters, the biology teacher. Not only had Yvonne's teachings been the final piece in convincing Wendy that she was not an animal, but she had provided some ideas for calming exercises and activities, which Wendy greatly appreciated.

I was sitting and looking over the courtyard, when I noticed that everyone was quiet and looking off in the direction of the pure courtyard. I turned to gaze at the passage and my heart sank.

Standing at the entrance to the fountain courtyard were Darryl and several of his more aggressive and militant friends. I could see Allan whispering to Darryl, but Darryl merely brushed him away and shouted out. "I told you that I'd get my hands on the bunnygirl, Hector!"

I sighed and looked over the courtyard. Tristan, Irene, and Eddie were all standing and moving near me, as Wendy, Tina and Angela retreated to the fountain border. Most of the rest of the students were rapidly discovering that they had errands which required that they leave the courtyard, I could only hope that some of the errands would take them to Principal Smith.

"Darryl," I called back. "Why don't you return to your own area? No one here is interested in your petty dreams of grandeur. Besides, what would Gina say if she saw her boyfriend get in a fight?"

"Gina dumped me!" Darryl shouted. "She looked me in the eye and said that I'd embarrassed her and all pures when I got kicked off the team. It's all because of you, and that freak bunnygirl. So, I'll get my revenge now. You can get beaten down, proving that I'm stronger, and then I'll ravish the bunnygirl. After all, she wants it, isn't that what she's constantly showing?"

Tristan surprised me by speaking up. "Darryl, it's not like that, and if you thought about it, even you would agree."

Darryl was almost foaming at the mouth as he shouted back. "What do you know about it you hick? Ah, hell with talk." He waved at his friends, who stepped forward, several now holding up baseball bats. "It's time to end this!" Darryl shouted and then led his thugs in a charge.

Irene must have anticipated the charge because two of Darryl's friends ran into a blast of air and sprawled down, but a third thug got past her wind wall, and she was forced into the air to avoid being hit by his wild swings.

Two more of Darryl's friends pressed Tristan back, and forced him to the benches, leaving only Eddie and I left guarding the fountain and Wendy against Darryl and four others.

The distress this was causing Wendy had caused the air to seem almost thick with her pheromones. Eddie seemed completely unaffected, and my earlier experiences with their effects meant that I was able to keep my wits around me. This was fortunate, because Darryl and his friends struggled to keep their focus, and many of their attacks would arrive with little power as lust overcame anger and they turned towards Wendy.

That was only a small comfort though, because Darryl had picked up a bat, and when he kept focus was sending full power swings towards me. I was able to dodge most of his swings, but was still taking punches on my arms and torso when I ducked one of Darryl's attempts to hit a home run and ran my chin right into a rising uppercut from one of his friends.

The blow staggered me, and Darryl used my disorientation to smash my ribs with the bat, sending me into the water surrounding the fountain pool. I tried to raise my head and see, but my body finally realized that I had taken too much punishment, and I barely managed to roll onto my back without passing out.

The fight at this point was about over. Irene was kneeling on the roof of one of the classrooms, clearly exhausted. Tristan had one eye swollen closed and one of Darryl's thugs had him pinned against one of the benches in the courtyard. Eddie was not hurt, but three of the thugs where using their bats to force him into a defensive mode.

He was in no danger, but he was unable to attack.

It had not been a one-sided fight. There were several other students I did not recognize sprawled unconscious around the courtyard. I attempted to do a quick count, but the action of Darryl stalking towards me caused me to stop. At that moment I remembered Wendy, Tina and Angela and glanced around looking for them.

Tina and Angela were standing a short distance from the bench where Tristan remained pinned down. Tina obviously wanted to rush to him, but the presence of a bat- wielding thug caused her to stay away. I was unable to figure out where Wendy was until tears falling against my forehead caused me look up into her eyes.

Wendy was kneeling in the water and looking down at me. She looked almost heartbroken, and I started to reach my right arm up to touch her face when Darryl spoke again. "So the great Hector has finally fallen. The mighty isn't so mighty anymore."

"And now like Achilles you'll drag my body around the courtyard for the next twelve days," I managed to quip as I tried to get back on my feet. Angela gave a gasp and smiled at the reference as Darryl paused just short of the fountain.

"Damn you!" he shouted. "You've lost! Give it up and just lie down. After all, what I'm going to do to that little bunnygirl isn't something she hasn't felt before.

What's so special."

Wendy gasped and replied. "I've never." She then realized that the courtyard was now surrounded by what seemed like half the student body and looked down while blushing furiously.

Darryl gave a nasty laugh. "Well, in a few minutes you won't get to say that, and then my friends get you. You can't even blame them, your body causes it."

"That's right, blame everyone but yourself Darryl," I said, as I managed to lever my arms behind me and raise my head. "Nothing you do could ever be caused by your own decisions. I'd feel pity for you, if you weren't such a twisted, evil asshole."

Darryl looked at me for a moment, and then walked up to the edge of the fountain.

"What do you know about it, freak lover? You think I don't know about you? You attended the meetings for the pure human patrol like any other devout believer, but what do we see today. Some new girl with bunny ears shows up and you abandon the movement. And you pretend that you have done nothing with that freak. Every girl in the movement wanted you. Think the others didn't see that. Gina would have stripped naked and crawled across the courtyard for your attention, so what does this bunnygirl do that they don't? Perhaps she sweetens her nectar with sugar, is that it? Or is it that she likes to do it like a rabbit all night long? You and her both claim that she's so innocent, but we know that's not true."