Megan Skye Makes a Friend (Part FINAL)

Part of The Sordid Tales of Kamika Malagic
All characters © Trixie “AltrixWrites” Mills
---
The harsh evening sun had disappeared for the day, replaced by the gentle glow of the moon. Dusk had fallen awhile ago, and in the cozy confines of their home, Megan Skye and Plucky enjoyed a peaceful slumber. Megan dreamed with the same smile she bore throughout the day, while Plucky’s vase sat in the corner, the octopus sleeping within. It had been a long day for the both of them, but it was filled with wonderful memories, and in the deepest part of their rest, they could only imagine what further adventures awaited them.
...Yet the ever resentful Kamika Malagic would not have it. One look at the good times they were having earlier was enough to enrage her; who did Megan think she was, showing off those tentacles in front of her like that? She wanted what Megan had more than anything, and when Kamika wanted something, she would stop at nothing to ensure that she got it. But she wasn’t going to dirty her own hands; that was the gargoyles’ job, after all.
Her instructions to her minions were very clear; infiltrate Megan’s home and abduct Plucky for their Mistress. Each of them understood the plan, but executing it was another matter entirely... For Toil and Trouble, anyway. Double-Double did most of the planning for their more complicated plans, and even accounted for the occasional hiccups the other two were more than likely to cause.
Things were set into motion near the front door. Double-Double’s logic was that entering through the bedroom window was the fastest way to get caught, so sneaking through the household was their best option. This strategy was met with mixed opinions; Toil favored his silent and stealthy approach, while they both had to convince Trouble that barging in with reckless abandon was the worst possible idea.
Besides, it was this furtive approach that allowed Double-Double to do his best work. Ninjas are experts at covert operations, utilizing their dark camouflage, quick wits, and fast reflexes to achieve their goals, but it is also imperative for them to be prepared for any situation as well. Fortunately, Double-Double was more than prepared to deal with the front door; using his tiny sword, he gently thrust it into the lock, maneuvering the gears within until the lock undid itself. Then, he carefully turned the doorknob.
Once the door swung open, the gargoyles made their surreptitious entrance. They crept through the living room, slinked their way underneath the dining table, crawled through the kitchen - with Trouble stealing a large pot lid for good measure - and slid against the walls of the hallway until they reached their target. For all the thought Megan put into her general home security, the same foresight didn’t apply to her own bedroom, and as such, Double-Double was able to crack open the door with ease.
At last, they came across their quarry; Plucky’s vase sat upright in the corner of Megan’s room. But Double-Double would not allow them to stomp in just yet; one wrong move could alert both Megan and Plucky to their presence. So for the moment, he had Toil and Trouble on stand-by while he got to work.
Double-Double was fortunate that Megan was the kind of person to clean after herself; aside from the shirt that was tossed aside earlier in the day, not a speck of clothing or other debris remained on her carpet. This made it easy for Double-Double to sneak in with delicate, cat-like movements, which, while they looked subtle and graceful in his head, looked no different from someone walking around on their tiptoes.
When he arrived at the vase, that was when he began the arduous task of moving it out of the room. He pushed with all his might, intending to slide the vase along the carpet... but for all his struggling and straining, he was barely able to move the vase even one inch forward.
Toil and Trouble looked at the sorry display, then looked at each other. If Double-Double kept this up by himself, Megan and Plucky would both be wide awake by the time he had vacated the room. Trouble had his hands full at the moment, however, so all he could do was give Toil a shrug of his shoulders.
With a tired, weary eye roll, Toil ambled into the bedroom and tipped the vase over himself. Double-Double lost his balance and immediately tumbled to the floor, and was about to chew out Toil when he noticed the larger gargoyle dragging the vase out of the room himself. Left with nothing but his own embarrassment, Double-Double picked himself up off the floor and snuck out of Megan’s room.
The trio gave the room one last look, just to make sure the sleeping Megan was none the wiser, before softly creaking the door shut. Double-Double wiped his brow out of relief, and took a moment to observe their ill-gotten prize.
...He was not expecting there to be a pair of glowing eyes from within the vase. Panic overtook him, and in the blink of an eye, Double-Double grabbed the pot lid out of Trouble’s hands and slammed it over the hole. Toil, in just as much of a panic, kept a free hand holding down the pot lid, but could feel Plucky hammering both the vase and the lid from within. Their entire heist would be over if Plucky escaped!
But, now that they were outside of Megan’s room, nothing was stopping them from leaving. In a mad dash, they scrambled out of Megan’s house, with Double-Double locking the door behind them.

---

In the confines of Kamika’s garage, the gargoyles finally set the vase on the concrete floor. The pot lid that Trouble stole was still left over the hole of the vase, but had been hastily taped to its base. All the while, Kamika looked on at the jar, grinning triumphantly.
“Ihihihihihi~! Fine work, boys!” she praised, an act which she rarely if ever did. “And here I thought it was gonna take all night long.”
“Well it almost di-” Toil was about to say before Double-Double elbowed him in the stomach. Double-Double could handle a lot of things, but he would absolutely not allow anyone to make him look bad in front of his Mistress.
“So... what now?” Trouble asked. “We’ll just have ‘im here for the night and then give ‘im back before mornin’?”
“‘Give him back?’ Are you stupid?” Kamika asked with a repulsed look. “There is no way I’m gonna even entertain that idea! I’ve got what I want, and now it’s mine to keep!”
Kamika knelt before the vase, pressing her cheek against it.
“Heehee~ I can already imagine it,” she giggled. “He just needs to take one look at me, and then that little cephalopod will be allllll over me! Touching me where I want, getting his slimy tentacles onto my skin, all the twisting and wriggling...”
Kamika’s mind was overflowing with dirty thoughts regarding Plucky’s tentacles. Simply entertaining these thoughts was enough to make her shiver and salivate.
“Ahhhh, I can’t hold it back any longer! I need that sucker right now!!”
With no regard for personal safety or decency, Kamika hastily ripped off the tape, tossed the pot lid aside, and peered into the murky depths of the vase.
“Come to mama!!” she demanded.
A large, slimy red tentacle burst from the vase and socked Kamika square in the jaw.
“OWW!!!” Kamika staggered back, gripping her jaw. That wasn’t supposed to happen, was it? She glanced over to her minions, who were just as befuddled as she was, then back to the vase. The rebellious tentacle lingered, poised to strike at anything that dared to approach.
This would be the moment where any villain takes a moment to assess the sudden turn of events, to properly plan for what to do next and then ensure whatever just happened wouldn’t occur again. But nothing sent Kamika Malagic into a blind fury faster than when things didn’t go according to plan.
“HEY! What’s the big idea?!” she snarled, marching towards the vase. Unfortunately, her rash attempt to control the situation was in vain; not only did Plucky’s tentacle dodge her hands, but it went the extra mile by wrapping around her wrists, binding them together.
“What the-?!” Kamika did her best to wrestle her hands free, but Plucky’s grip was stronger than it looked. Another tentacle soon rose from the vase, slapping her multiple times across each cheek, before the tentacle that bound her picked her up and sent her careening into the wall.
“Mistress Kamika!!” Double-Double cried. Seeing his Mistress sprawled out on the floor awoke in him a great anger. He took out his blade and pointed it at Plucky. “I shall teach you not to make a fool of us!”
With a mighty war cry, he leapt into the air, intending to slice through Plucky’s tentacles. But before he could, a third tentacle sprung forth to punch Double-Double in the stomach, making him drop his sword in the process. Toil and Trouble froze, watching Double-Double dangle in the air, while Kamika was only now getting back to her feet.
“What are you two doing?! GET HIM!!!” she shrieked. Between the loudmouthed, angry succubus and the dangerous, angry octopus, the two gargoyles weren’t sure which was scarier at present.
Nevertheless, they rushed forward, doing their best to grab Double-Double out of the air. Not only was this completely unsuccessful, but the tentacle soon threw the ninja into Trouble, knocking them both back into the wall. Unfortunately for Plucky, this left an opening for Toil to exploit as he grabbed the tentacle.
“Gotcha!” he declared, but Plucky would not give up just yet. The two other tentacles that were exposed wrapped around Toil’s arms, and with enough concentrated effort, he hurled Toil over his vase and slammed him onto the concrete floor. Needless to say, he was making short work of this gaggle of demons.
“THAT’S IT!!!” Kamika screamed, having had just about enough of Plucky’s rebellion. While the octopus got onto his own legs, Kamika stomped back over to him. “When I get my hands on you, you are in so much trouble!!”
Plucky whipped around to glance at Kamika. This was the first time she had ever even seen the eyes of Plucky, and as they glared daggers into her soul, she could feel trepidation welling up in the pit of her stomach.
Before she could even react, Plucky wrapped his tentacles around her ankles, and used all his strength to repeatedly pound her body to and fro on the ground. Every time Kamika attempted to get back at him, she would be thwarted by the sheer force Plucky used to toss her around.
After a while, Kamika clutched her head in agony. Seeing as his opponent was about to throw in the towel, Plucky decided it was time for the finishing blow. Holding the wicked succubus over his head, he used his tentacles to spin her round and round in the air, like a lasso about to come down on its target. Once enough speed was built up, Plucky tossed Kamika through her roof and sent her flying and screaming across the night sky.
While the minions could only panic and chase after her, Plucky had other business to take care of. He wandered out into the night and looked next door; thank the stars that home was within reach.
He took mostly the same path that the minions had took; from the front door, he slithered through the living room, scuttled under the dining table, scooched past the kitchen, and scurried through the hallway before he opened the door to Megan’s room.
There, he would find his friend, still sleeping peacefully in her bed. Plucky looked at her fondly; someone like her only showed him kindness and understanding, while that other wicked lady saw him only as a tool for her own use. Not only was he thankful that Megan would never treat him like that, he was glad to have made his way back home in the first place.
Closing the door behind him, he squirmed over to the corner of the room and resumed his slumber as though nothing had ever happened.

---

Morning soon broke over Sytry Street, with the birds’ gentle chirping greeting the day. People were getting up and either going to work or simply taking in the brisk air. The sun shone down like a lens flare gone haywire, and things seemed to be generally peaceful.
Not so for Kamika Malagic; she could only sit on her porch with an ice bag over her head, nearly every part of her body aching from last night. The minions didn’t fare much better, but at least they managed to avoid the brunt of punishment from last night. Double-Double was in the process of providing ice bags for every last one of them, including himself.
“I can’t believe it,” Kamika grumbled. “I try to get that octopus to have a little fun with me, and he treats me like this?! Some friend he turned out to be!” Her attempt to be furious was offset by the ringing pain in her head, causing her to wince during her venting.
“Did you really expect him to behave any differently after we basically kidnapped him?” asked Toil, who was holding an ice bag on his aching back.
“Hey, couldja stop speakin’ so loud? I can still feel my head ringin’,” Trouble complained as he continued pressing his ice bag against his head.
“There is always another time, Mistress,” Double-Double stated as he rested his bum on his own ice bag. “We shall make the attempt again at your discretion.”
“Forget it,” Kamika growled. “I don’t want that thankless slimeball near me anymore. In fact, next time I see him, I’m gonna-”
“Kamika! Hey, Kamika!”
If Kamika’s migraine wasn’t already bad enough, Megan’s abrupt shouting was liable to make it worse. She turned and scowled at her neighbor, who was busy waving with a gigantic smile on her face.
“What do you want?!” she snapped.
Undeterred by Kamika’s anger, Megan leaned her torso over the fence.
“You’ll never guess what happened the other day!” she said excitedly. “You know how I wanted something new and exciting to spice up my place?”
“No,” Kamika said flatly, wanting to drop the conversation as quickly as possible.
Unfortunately, Megan had already told her about that, so she wasn’t about to let the conversation die out.
“Well, I happened to find this really neat looking vase, and I was only gonna take a quick look. But as it turns out, there was an octopus inside! Can you believe it?!”
Double-Double could see Kamika seething with anger, which told him an intervention was in short order.
“Megan, I appreciate the enthusiasm, but-”
“Hold on, lemme introduce you!” Megan ducked back behind her fence, then pulled out a familiar green vase and showed it off to her neighbors. “Say hello to Plucky~!”
Kamika and her minions shrank back in terror. They could recognize the red tentacles and glowing eyes anywhere, and right now Plucky’s eyes were practically sending death threats to them.
“Isn’t he cute??” Megan asked. “He’s a little shy, but he’s so sweet and really fun to have around! We should all have a playdate sometime!”
“Get that miserable pile of filth away from me!!” Kamika yelped with a mixture of anger and fear.
Megan blinked in confusion, but then went right back to smiling.
“Aww, c’mon, Kamika,” she said playfully. “I bet you two would get along great!”
“Oh, is that a fact?” Kamika may have not felt well at that moment, but she would always tell when someone was mocking her. Or at the very least, she was exceptionally good at making herself believe that any comment towards her was filled with mockery and derision.
Putting her ice bag down, she tread over to Megan and Plucky, staring the octopus square in the eyes.
“So, you really think you can handle me, do you?” she asked with venomous contempt in her voice.
Plucky immediately punched her in the face and knocked her to the ground. If last night wasn’t enough proof, then today was only another confirmation of Plucky’s unyielding will in the face of evil.
Megan, however, was not happy with what just happened.
“Hey, that wasn’t very nice!” she spoke, looking at Plucky with an angry pout. “Looks like we need to teach you some manners, mister!” Plucky’s anger immediately subsided and gave way to surprise; as it turned out, Megan’s position as head of the house did more to rein him in than anything.
As Megan walked away with Plucky in tow, Kamika laid on the ground in defeat. Frustrated that she let an octopus get the better of her, and even more irritated that she couldn’t teach Megan a lesson, she could only resign herself to her fate.
Double-Double placed her ice bag back onto her throbbing head.
“I suppose this means we won’t be getting a pet anytime soon?” he inquired.
Kamika could only groan in response; she was so sick of hearing about pets lately that her only course of action was to drop the subject for the rest of the day.
And so ends another sordid tale of Kamika Malagic.
THE END