A Roadtrip to Kill Us All

Jack watched her spell take effect and an evil grin spread as she watched him struggle, trying not to giggle and trying not to let her go, all while still managing to obtain the keys. Jack heard someone speaking but she could not hear more of the voice. She was too busy being flipped upside down, again, and given another ultimatum. He made a good point, but something distracted her.

She craned her neck and had Ari not been holding her, she would have fallen over from shock. Instead the keys dropped from her hand and she flushed red. What the HELL was Vito doing here.. looking as though he were joining them. No. Jack would not allow for it. She had swore to protect Chase from Vito, and now he wanted to be in a car with her for days..

Jack reached towards Ari and patted his shoulder. "P-put me down," she said in a distracted voice. She turned back to him, her face a little pale, but her eyes and her jaws set in an expression that informed him someone was about to get it. "I have to deal with a situation. You can have the keys."

Chase Moor was afraid of Vito; it simply had to be so after all that he’d done in order to frighten her. Logically, unless Chase had become some sort of psychopath, she should have been frightened by Vito’s sudden appearance…. and yet, she had responded so very calmly to Vito’s greeting. For a moment, he questioned himself – but for no longer than a second, as he feared that his sudden uncertainty would be seen upon his face. He would simply have to assume that Chase’s calmness was nothing more than an act, and that, in truth, her heart was racing unnaturally beneath her chest. “I knew you would,” Vito replied with a smirk, playing along to the best of his ability. “You wouldn’t mind sharing that cigarette, would you? I can feel a nicotine fit creeping up on me. Or have your preferences changed since we last met?” he continued, setting his bags on the ground just before the trunk of the car – which he looked at for the first time with wide, horrified eyes.

It was a monstrosity – something that did not deserve to exist, let alone be in the presence of Vito Dee Symons; its dull, blue paint was chipping from its oddly shaped sides, and the rust around the wheels only enhanced the fact that the tires were noticeably misshapen. The vehicle – nay, the garbage can - did not look as though it could start, let alone survive a week of traveling, and yet, upon returning his gaze to the trunk before him, Vito found that a bag that was labeled with Jack’s sloppy signature had already been stuffed inside. Leave it to Jack Dyllan to dig a car out from under the very bottom of a pile within a junk yard, and use it to transport their mix-match group for such an extended period of time...

Vito parted his lips slowly and tore his sore eyes away from the disturbing sight before him to look at Jack, “I drive a Phantom 6…” he told her, but the tone which he used to speak the words aloud made it unclear as to whether he was offering up his own car, or if he was attempting to make it clear that he’d never set eyes on any car more pathetic than Jack’s.

Things could potentially take a downward turn. It wasn’t until Ariel noticed Jack’s facial expression change that he looked over to where the others were gathered. Another person had joined them. Ariel narrowed his eyes a little and lowered Jack down onto her feet. At her request, he released her and took a step back, accepting the keys but not actually feeling rewarded. He found more entertainment out of teasing her than he did actually working for the keys. Nethertheless, Ariel thanked her with a smile and a few words before skirting round the front of the car. He’d have a look at the engine first before he plucked up the courage to see if the damned thing ran or not.

“Jack,” he warned absently as he opened the driver’s door. “If this flipping thing explodes then I’m holding you morally responsible, alright?” Ariel leaned into the car and flicked the switch that would release the bonnet. He pushed the key into the ignition and leaned out again, straightening himself up before walking down to the front of the car.

Ariel grabbed the lid and lifted the bonnet up. What he saw inside was better than the outer shell would have suggested. He had expected rust; and lots of it. What Ariel found instead was an engine in good condition. Satisfied, Ariel dropped the lid back down and walked back around to the driver’s side. He turned the key in the ignition and looked over the dashboard at the bonnet. The car gave a rumble and a crank but after a moment or two, the engine began to go. Satisfied, Ariel turned it off and took the keys out. He held onto them, wary of them being stolen, and wandered over to where Jack was.

And so here the games would begin.

Chase was terrified now. Jack had stopped playing around, and Vito stood right in front of her... to close for comfort, she could almost feel him touching her.. her mind flashed back to her memories of an alcohol induced night... a night where she had kissed this vile creature in front of her. Chase recoiled, and stared at him, slowly holding out her cigarette for him to take. She had a feeling Ariel didn't understand how serious his appearance was to Jack and Chase.. and Chase was shaking now, unable to hold back her fear much longer. She brushed a strand of hair out of her eyes again, and stared at Vito, her eyes glancing over to Jack, trying to show her how afraid she was at that point, without conveying it to Vito, though she had a feeling he knew already, how could she not be? Jack came over and stood right between Chase and Vito, and Chase felt her heartbeat quicken, it was obvious that Jack hadn't invited him.. so why was he here?! Chase wasn't sure.

Last Chase had seen of this man, Jack had chosen him over her and Andrew... and that had been that.. Chase had left, and the next time she had seen Jack.. Andrew had broken up with her.. and she was all alone in the world... no friends, no family... and now this man.. this man who had taken away her family.. her life, stood there before her, as though planning on going on the road trip with them. Chase was shaking with fear now, and she quickly moved away from Vito, pulling out another cigarette and lighting it with the tip of her wand, moving so she was standing by Ariel, and not having to look at Vito Dee Symons. Let Jack sort it out.. that's the smart thing to do..

Jack felt her feet touch the ground and felt the mood change. It had all been fun-loving and carefree, even if there had been a bit of a nervous excitement. But now, there was tension. Leave it to Vito to do that to a mood, to change everything that quickly. She was surprised she had yet to be given hell about being picked up and teased by a boy- Vito would have a field day with that later she was sure.

But right now, Jack had a promise to fulfill, a promise to protect Chase from Vito. He was still near her, eyes narrowed on her. Ari spoke to her from the car and she paused, nodding. It took a second for her to really process his words and she smiled weakly. "Okay, I accept that. My car's fine- ugly, but it won't kill us." She continued to walk towards Vito, muttering, "Maybe injure."

"Looking for me?" Jack called. She put an arm out and touched Chase's shoulder, before stepping forward, placing herself between Chase and Vito for the umpteenth time. She looked down at his bags. "Oh that's nice. You took your suitcases out for a walk. They look tired, might want to get them back home." She paused. His eyes had just caught sight of her car.

Why did everyone look at her car like that? Yeah, it was crappy, but there was worse out there, wasn't there? Sorry, she did not have money falling out her arse, that she had only needed a car for summers until now. She would get a new one eventually, but this was a perfectly functioning car and she thought her poor dear was incredibly underappreciated.

"You do have a Rolls Royce, don't you?" she asked. "I'm sure you'd love to take it for a spin, we'll leave you be." She heard Ari's voice and turned to Chase and Ari. "Yes, let's finish loading up." She turned and crossed her arms. "Good bye, Vito."

With a pair of quick, graceful fingers, Vito took hold of the cigarette that Chase held towards him. His expectations of the cigarette's quality were not high, and yet, as Vito brought his lips to the very place that Chase's had been just seconds prior, his distaste became evident by his facial expression; the smoke tasted of gas station...

Vito dropped the cancer stick on the ground, and began fishing his pockets for the pack of cigars that he'd decided to lug around with him, “I suppose I never took you for the type to accept second best – but then again, you chose that Thompson fellow over Jack here, didn’t you?” Vito asked, picking at the scabs of an old wound. It was interesting, the reaction that he was receiving from the pair of redheads before him; it was as though neither of them wished to start up anything, but at the same time, they both so desperately wished that Vito would turn around and walk in the direction from which he’d appeared – something which Vito would never do, unless he was given incentive. They were all standing, watching, and waiting, as though something was certain to blow at any moment. As though Vito was certain to blow.

“Actually, I’ve already found you, Jaquellene,” Vito responded, though Jack was not the focus of his attention; during his reply, he’d reached over towards Chase, and he'd held his cigar in front of her for her to light in the same way she'd lit her own cigarette. “Be a doll, would you?” he asked her, his dark eyes dancing with excitement. He certainly enjoyed having the gang back together – or, most of the gang; that arrogant, son-of-a-b*tch hadn’t joined them… though Vito was certain that the blonde who’d previously been dangling Jack above the pavement by her ankles would fill those shoes quite nicely.

“It was rather rude of you to expect that I’d hear word of our trip in some other way than an invitation. Did you run out of paper? Or are you frightened that I’ll shag Clara in the back seat while you’re not looking?” Vito spoke icily, though his lips seemed to convey an entirely different emotion; the corners of his lips had begun to curl upward into an amused grin, as though he he’d said something humorous.

“My suitcases?” Vito asked, having momentarily forgotten about them, despite the fact that they sat mere inches from his feet, “Yes, feel free to move them to the trunk at any moment,” he added, ignoring Jack’s wisecrack entirely; he’d come mentally prepared for the Jack’s endless supply of verbal abuse and witty remarks. “Though I am not certain that the abomination is capable of holding much more than what you’ve already stuffed inside of it…”

Vito dragged his eyes in an over-dramatic, circular motion, and stopped them when they fell on Chase, “She is always so difficult, isn’t she?” he asked her, though, in truth, he did not care for the female’s opinion of Jack; to Vito, only his opinion mattered when it came to his companion.

Very suddenly, Vito took a step closer to Chase with an expression of mock enthusiasm, as though he was sharing a scandalous piece of gossip with a friend, “Has Jack gone and snagged herself a boy-toy, or is Blondie over there yet another male prostitute?” A chuckle escaped Vito’s lips and danced about Chase’s ear; he was having quite a bit of fun, teasing the child.

Chase watched as her cigarette fell to the ground at his feet, and she bit her lip. She had paid good money for those cigarettes, and he had just dropped it on the ground, she frowned and then looked up to see he was holding out a cigar for her to light for him. She grumbled, and lit it with the tip of her wand, frowning at him as she did so, her wand hand dropping to her side, but her wand staying in her hand defensively. She frowned again, and stared at the ground, why must he hurt her like that? He was enjoying himself way to much... "Having problems with money recently Symons... don't expect you to understand that.." She said softly, her eyes glancing up at him before she leaned against the car again. Chase's head jerked up when he said something about shagging her in the backseat, and her face grew beat red.

How dare he.. how dare he?! Chase's hand clenched around her wand, and small yellow sparks flew out of the tip. Whenever he said Clara, it was like someone had taken her heart and ripped another piece off of what little was left, Clara had been her little sister.. who he had killed.. who she had used as a fake name when she had snuck into his bar to talk to him. Chase stared at the ground, her face red, her eyes downcast, unable to look up at anyone in the group. Chase frowned and glanced up, her eyes locking with Vito's and she whimpered slightly, looking away as fast as she could, but suddenly he took a step towards her, and she jumped back a step, nearly falling over in her haste to get away from him, but he was just being an idiot, something about her getting a boy-toy.. Chase frowned and looked at Jack pleadingly with her eyes. She was so scared she was shaking, and yet he stood there, right next to her, his mouth inches from her ear. "Leave me alone.." She whispered and took a stumbling step away from him, her wand still clenched in her hand, throwing a desperate look at Jack, and her eyes slowly lowered to look at the ground.

Vito was having a ball, which meant Jack was either pissed, frustrated, upset, tormented, or a pleasant combination of all four. It was mostly pissed and frustrated with a bit of tormented for extra, added spice on top, just to make things worse. She watched him as he took Chase's cigarette. She glanced at Chase, terrified brown eyes meeting warning green eyes. Jack shook her head, telling Chase to shrink back, stay away, that she would fix this.

He brought up Andrew and Jack could have punched him. Instead, she said, "No, he was chosen over you. How's that feel, by the way?" To be put underneath Andrew would kill a bit of Vito's soul, Jack was sure. He held out his cigar for Chase to light, but Jack would be damned if she would let any interaction happen between the two. She opened her mouth to tell Chase not to, but she lit the wand anyway.

He asked about the invitation and she began to speak over him, "No, the plan was for you to never know- shut up, Vito." She would not have him talk about the Clara Bow incident. There had been some weird line that had been crossed that night. Jack and Chase never spoke of it, because it was an odd situation, and neither wanted to ruin the friendship they were rebuilding. And Jack did not want to hear of it from Vito.

Jack said in a low voice, "I'll tell you where you can put your suitcases-" but suddenly, he cut her off and stepped towards Chase. Jack immediately stepped between, gently pushing Chase aside and putting her arms up, pushing Vito away. She ignored the quip and said, "You will stay away from Chase. No compromise on that, Vito."

Thaor apparated to a muggle park in London. He had chosen different places to spend his days lately. He figured the chances of him running into wizards in a muggle suberb was quite unlikely. He was walking to the bathroom when he heard it. The voice of the only person on earth he wish'd he could find, and have a one on one conversation with. Jack Dyllan. Thaor spun on the spot, and quickly located her. She was with several friends next to a car that looked like it had been through world war I and II. Thaor casually walked to a park bench and sat down, facing the group. He needed to catch Jack when she was by herself.

Keith, initially, had not wanted to come on this road trip.

First of all, he still wasn't quite over the whole fight/whatever thing he had had with Jack over Keith's Korner. Jack may be a naturally loving and forgiving person, but Keith held onto grudges like they were going out of style. He prided himself in it. It was a very useful skill to have, the ability to hold a grudge. Just when the person you hated though that you couldn't possible remember that...bam!

Yes, Keith was quite a fan of grudges.

But that was only one reason. Second was the fact that it was a road trip. As in, stuffed in a tiny car for hours on end. Keith knew how well that was going to end for him. He'd be bouncing off the walls until someone forcibly put him down. Luckily he had both an ipod and a portable game system. Pokemon. The perfect tool for long car rides.

The third (but not final) reason was that James was coming along. Now, Keith didn't hate James, but he couldn't wrap his head around how James and Jack could've ever become friends - let alone good enough ones to go on a road trip together. And James was still a "stick-in-the-mud-authority-figure", something Keith was coming to loath more every year he came to Hogwarts.

And last, but not least, there was dog boy. After learning he would be accompanying them, Keith had spent a good twenty minutes writing up a Keith's Korner article titled: Protips to survival (Or, why not to stick yourself in an enclosed space with a psychopathic killer) he had immediately flushed it down the toilet - not because he regretted it, but because it contained language so foul that Hogwarts would never allow it to be printed.

Oh right, and there was Chase. Good old Chase. The only problem Keith had with her was that she had been stupid enough to get herself knocked up at 17 (and by Eli no less, the girl obviously had no common sense) so he wasn't really relishing the idea of spending that much time with someone possessing nothing but air between their ears.

Keith dragged himself out of his thoughts long enough to notice that they were all arguing over who would drive. Keith didn't trust Chase (idiot) and certainly didn't trust wolf boy. James would've been ideal, but he wasn't volunteering. And Jack...well, Keith trusted Jack to an extent, but there was nobody he trusted more than himself. Unfortunately, Keith realized, his legs were not long enough to reach the pedals. Curses. His arch nemesis, body structure, had foiled him once again.

Then Vito had joined in the party, and Keith had simply lost it. The little man in his brain that stopped his thoughts from coming out his mouth had thrown his hands in the air and left when he saw the poltergeist show up with packed bags, and Keith was using the opportunity to vent.

"Oh wonderful!" He said with cheery sarcasm, clapping his hands together. "I mean, we've already got one psychopath on this little adventure, why not add another?" He rolled his eyes. "Maybe we should just curse ourselves right now, save everyone some trouble."