==========> Introduce the Prophetic Ten

"Friend?" Leatrix and Bane both asked. Frankly, Bane was more surprised and Leatrix more disgusted.

"I'm your friend?" Bane felt a warm fuzzy feeling in his stomach. "R-really...?"

Leatrix snorted. "What the fuck ever, you're both disgusting." She flipped her hair and trounced over to bother Harley instead.

Isare pulled Jasper into his breast, cuddling him. "Oh dear boy, I would never do that. I just want you to calm down and take some candy..."

Tef blinked, completely surprised by the exchange. Apparently his sarcasm skills were still horrible. He looked at Bane incredulously.

"...You honestly believe that?" he asked, his voice surprisingly devoid of annoyance.

Meanwhile, Harley predictably didn't notice Leatrix's approach; she was far too busy blabbering away to Euphraxia about stupid farm things, like cats and chickens and cows and manure.

Jasper freaked the hell out when Isare touched him. Elbowing him in the gut before delivering a powerful punch to his face; he got up and sprinted away so he couldn't touch him.

"I say stay away!!" he yelled, sobbing and hurling rocks. Unfortunately for Isare, his aim was excellent.

Bane frowned suddenly. "You mean you weren't serious?"

Leatrix pounced, tackling Harley to the ground so she could pin her down and, hopefully, spit in her face. Payback.

Of course, Isare being probably the weakest physically in the entire group, was not happy with his current injuries. Fortunately, losing his temper was practically an impossible.

"Mariette, can you help me?" He asked, nursing his jaw. "I need you to get me some herbs from my bag."

Tef sighed, shaking his head.

"I'm serious if you want me to be, I suppose. Just don't expect much to come of it."

Harley kicked Leatrix in the stomach without thinking.

"I'm sorry!!" she exclaimed, covering her mouth with her hands.

Jasper continued to throw rocks and dirt at Isare as Mariette looked up from her book.

"I'd be happy to," she replied. "Come with me under the tree, so he stops throwing things."

Fenrir swore; they were coming near his tree again. He glanced at the nearby trees, wondering if he could make the jump.

Bane nodded. "Okay, that's fine!!" He was so excited, his first friend...Without thinking, he pulled Tef into a hug.

Leatrix hissed. "You're such a whore, I should maim you!"

Isare followed her beneath the tree, sighing heavily. "I suppose I deserved that."

Jasper finally stopped throwing rocks as Isare retreated with Mariette. He collapsed onto the ground and sobbed some more for good measure. Why did all these people have to suck?

"That's what happens when you try to befriend idiots," replied Mariette without missing a beat. "Trust me, I've seen my father in action--Uncle's life is hell because he doesn't just ignore him. I've learned from his mistakes. I mean, just look at the fools over there." She nodded toward where Harley was being tackled by Leatrix. "Not something you want to get involved with. Now, what exactly am I looking for in your bag?..."

Harley stared at Leatrix in horror, not fully comprehending anything she was talking about.

"What does maim even mean?!!" she shouted back, forgetting that she should probably just push the girl off before continuing the conversation.

Tef flinched as Bane hugged him, wishing he was in Harley's position. At least he could handle that.

"D-don't do that!" he insisted, his cheeks pink. Bane was oddly warm; the thought made him uncomfortable.

As everyone quarreled and fought, Euphraxia had begun attempting to scale the tree. She had begun to think, and she wondered if the person they were seeking was up there. She supposed there was only one way to find out, so.

"Yes, yes..." Isare said quietly. "I don't find him to be an idiot. Perhaps a bit annoying, but a useful asset nonetheless."

Thus, Leatrix spit in her face and stood up, quickly retreating. Another defeat, but also a victory. Next time she'd be more careful...

Bane let him go, blushing himself.

"S-sorry, I just...I've never had a friend before."

Fenrir, who had been about to jump across, paused; the person coming up was a woman. He had always wanted to do it in a tree. He leaned nonchalantly against the trunk, knowing he'd look cool.

Mariette shook her head, sighing.

"Either way, he doesn't like girls," she muttered.

Tef frowned, not meeting Bane's eyes.

"Well, I have plenty of friends. You're nothing unique." He was struck by the falseness of his own words; nothing was true about what he had just said.

Euphraxia finally made it up the trunk, standing on a fairly stable branch. She was, however, surprised to find that when she looked up she saw a man.

"Oh, there you are!" She exclaimed excitedly. "You're the last one we need!"

Isare rose an eyebrow. "Come again?"

Bane looked away. "S-sorry, then..."

"You're not the last one I need, but you'll do," he replied coolly, not meeting her eyes. Real bad boys never looked a girl in the eyes unless they were fucking her.

Mariette blushed awkwardly.

"...Nothing. How bad does your face hurt? I can put together a simple pain-killer."

"Don't apologize for things that aren't your fault," scoffed Tef, crossing his arms. "...You annoy me," he lied.

She ignored that, not entirely sure what he meant anyway. "You have a royal summons, so you need to come with us. So, get down from there and I'll introduce you to everyone."

"Tell me." Isare insisted, rather forcefully.

"S-sorry..." Bane said again. "I-I mean...no, wait...d-does that count, can I apologize for that?"

"I have a royal summons for you too," Fenrir replied, glancing at his nails. "What a coincidence."

"You tell me how bad your face hurts," replied Mariette irritably. "The nerve--never ask a lady about her personal business. Didn't your mother teach you anything?"

"Stop," replied Tef vaguely but forcefully.

She just stared at him, confused. "Can you just come down from there? It's really hard to talk to you from up here."

"You tell me first." He replied, completely ignoring her second comment.

Bane opened his mouth to apologize, then quickly shut it again once he realized that was what he wasn't supposed to be doing.

"I said, I have a royal summons for you too," he repeated. "It's from the Kingdom of My Dick, and it says you should get on your back as soon as possible."

Mariette glared at Isare.

"I said, it's personal. Why does it concern you? You aren't interested in me." He voice held a surprising lack of bitterness.

Tef turned away from Bane, sighing. Talking to him was bad; hating this guy was too difficult.

"If you tell me, I'll stop asking." Isare said truthfully.

Bane, on the other hand, just stood there awkwardly. Finally, quietly, he asked, "What do friends do?"

Something clicked in Euphraxia's mind. Yes, this was the situation in which she had been taught to yell that one word!

"Rape!" She exclaimed, not really sure what it meant, but she did know that it was what she was supposed to yell whenever someone used words like, 'dick' or 'penis' or 'sex' around her.

Everyone looked up at the tree. Fenrir, swearing aloud, jumped to Euphraxia's branch and clamped his hand over her mouth.

"God, bitch, save the screaming for the fucking!" he hissed, trapping her against the tree with his body. "I'm trying to lie low, here. Now if you want a bit of lovin', just be very quiet and let me give it to you."

"Was that Lady Euphraxia?" Bane asked, suddenly quite serious.

Euphraxia, who was currently trapped in said tree, was not particularly happy about this creepy man touching her. Naturally, she struggled and squirmed and basically made a ruckus, until the supposedly stable tree branch they were standing on came crashing to the ground.

Fenrir glanced around. Shit; even if they were horny before, they sure as hell weren't now. He glanced at all the girls, then at Euphraxia, still in his arms.

Shrugging, he picked her up and made a dash for it.

Of course, pretty much no one was going to let that happen. Surprisingly, even Leatrix stepped in to help. She, along with Bane and Nyx, both chased after him.

Isare, who was in no shape to run, tried to think of a quick solution.

Euphraxia pretty much screamed her little head off about the whole situation.

Fenrir was pretty fast, but in the end it was Harley who got him; she tackled him with the brutality of a football player as he tried to dash by her. He glared as she pinned him to the ground and tried to wrestle Euphraxia from his grasp.

"Whoa, whoa, bitch," he said, still holding on. "No need to be jealoussss." She punched him in the face and he finally let go.

"Miss, are you alright?!" she exclaimed, helping Euphraxia to her feet.

Leatrix, however, got to him next. "You disgusting piece of shit." She snapped, attempting to claw her way to him. Luckily, Bane held her back before she did much. Not that she could do much damage anyway, but Bane was afraid she could.

Euphraxia sighed in relief, hugging Harley tightly. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have done that...But don't hurt that man too badly, we need him."

Harley just smiled dreamily; Euphraxia was totally hugging her.

"Huh?" she asked, not really paying attention to anything else.

Meanwhile, Fenrir got to his feet and walked toward Leatrix.

"Look, babe, you don't need to be jealous either--you've been the least trouble, so I'll be extra sweet on you, kay?"

Mariette crossed her arms, scoffing.

"What trash," she said to Isare.

Tef glared at the newcomer from beside Bane.

"Disgusting. Sir, what kind of man are you?"

Fenrir turned around to wink at the both of them.

"The kind of man who'll fuck you girls for no charge, princess." The pink haired one had a deeper voice than he'd expected, but man was she cute.

"I said not to hurt him!" Euphraxia said, breaking away from Harley. "We need him."

However, pretty much no one was listening.

"Well, I have met some people in this lifetime, but man, this guy..." Nyx replied, adjusting his hat. He had no right to talk, really.

Bane didn't like him, but he had to keep Leatrix restrained. It wasn't all that hard, luckily for the new guy, he supposed. Frankly, she kind of scared.

"LET ME KILL HIM, HE'S A FILTHY WHORISH PIECE OF SHIT LET ME JUST RIP HIM TO SHREDS!" Leatrix screeched, still attempting to claw his face off.

"...this man will cause more trouble than Leatrix and Nyx combined." Isare noted.

Fenrir licked his lips, standing less than a foot away from Leatrix.

"Come on, girl--you can be first. I'll be gentle, too~"

"T-tef, should I let her go...?" Bane asked, above Leatrix's shouting of profanity.