First Web Serial Rights-2002 Miscellany Online 'Till It Shines Whakum It was a dark and stormy night, as it always is in stories like these. Trip Bently, child prodigy, sat at his computer, typing furiously. A window popped up angrily, blinking its standard blue and gray. He ignored it for a moment before reading it. A browser had opened, though he wasn't on the Internet. On the screen was one word: "Hello." Trip closed the window, but it reappeared just as quickly. A chat room, entitled "Business over pleasure" opened instead. A mysterious user, Laust451, had sent the message. Trip was eager to return to cracking open the secrets of Fogg Island, so he merely typed "What?" The message appeared on screen. Laust451 replied, "I have a business proposition for you. Interested?" It being the weekend, Bently had nothing else to do. "Sure," he wrote, "what?" "You can hack into secure files. I need some files that other people have. A man in a high place is hanging an obligation over my head to get these files, and I lack the knowledge. I know where to find them, but I can't break them." "And the pay?" "High. Very much so." At the word 'High' Trip's eyes bulged to the size of 1957 Nash Rambler hubcaps. Breathless, he responded. "How much is very much?" "Seven digits." Trip yanked an asthma inhaler from his pocket and puffed once, then once more. "Count me in," he typed. Fifteen minutes later, Trip was surfing the net, password-cracking program at the ready. The website server had the most formidable defense system Bently had ever seen. It had little to no content whatsoever, but after navigating around the numerous firewalls on the massive server, Trip wasn't giving up so easily. He initialized a file transfer program and broke through to the other side. A small movie clip appeared on screen. Bently watched, bemused. A famous cartoon character, Funny Bunny, was bouncing around the black 'Loading' in the center. A pair of lips appeared on the screen. The lips began to speak, and the room turned darker. Although the sound was muted, Trip could hear the female voice quite softly. "What on earth?" he queried the empty air. "Don't be alarmed, Mister Bently," the voice said, "I would like to offer you a business proposition." "I'm sorry, I'm already involved in some business, namely getting the files you're sitting on. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have work to do." The movie window expanded to fill the screen. "Okay, I'm delusional. I've finally being driven off the edge of insanity by a pair of lips on a computer screen. Things weren't going too well anyway." He tapped the volume and muted all settings. The lips kept talking. "You're not insane, Trip. Laust is." Trip closed the movie window. It stayed gone, but the room remained dark. "Don't be a fool," said the voice, "I'm giving you an opportunity to swindle Laust and come out ahead. Don't try to trick me." Trip backed out of everything and shut the computer down. The room remained dark. "Would you stop that?" said the voice. "Since I can't get rid of you, I'll have to listen. What do you want?" "What I want. I don't want anything, really." "Could you be a little more vague," Trip said, "Or at least give me something to talk to. It feels rather odd talking to thin air." A small teddy bear floated in front of his face. "Does that work?" "Close enough. Anyway, what are you after?" "Let me make it simple. Your life hasn't been going too well lately, and I'm giving you the chance to change it. I'll send you back in time, and you can live each day over and over until it's to your satisfaction. You keep your current memories, and all I ask in return is that you help me by swindling Laust. Sound interesting? Think carefully. I'm giving you a chance to change your destiny." Trip thought. There were too many things in the past few weeks he didn't like. This could be a lot of fun. "Okay," he said, "but how do I tell you I'm satisfied? I don't want to make a mistake and be caught out in the cold with things the way I don't want them." "All you have to do is set your alarm clock in the morning. The song will be the same each time you repeat the day. When you're satisfied, just sing the song from that morning. You'll be heading to the next day in no time. However, only sing before you go to bed. Otherwise, things won't be anything close to perfect, much less the way they are now." "Interesting. Well, how do I swindle Laust?" "Demand payment up front, and then give him the fake files I'll produce for you. They'll make his entire computer crash, and nobody will be the wiser." "Won't he be able to trace me, though? If he remembers my e-mail..." "He won't. Trust me. Now, shall we begin?" "May 18th sounds good," Trip said. It was currently the 23rd. Everything bad had started five days ago. The teddy bear began a strange dance. It seemed to be muttering under its breath. "Get up and do like the teddy does, Trip." "If you say so." Trip got up and mimicked the teddy's dancing pattern. "Face to the East!" said the bear. "Face to the West!" It said. A small pounding began in Trip's skull, like the beating of a bongo drum. Turning, he saw another teddy with darker fur and a red bandana rolled and tied around its head beating a set of bongos in a wild rhythm. The pounding grew faster and faster. It became difficult to stop dancing. "Super time warp!" cried the bears. The pounding grew louder, like the raging thunder outside. Trip was sure he would be discovered, until everything went black. - = - It was morning. Trip's alarm clock blared with old rock and roll. He awoke gradually, glanced at the calendar, and realized. It was indeed May 18th. The song, "Dance to the Music," drew to a close, and Trip killed the alarm clock. "Oh, boy," he said. "This can't be real." He kept thinking that while he got himself dressed, ate breakfast, and boarded the bus to school. Belgian waffles had tasted real enough, but school would be interesting. He made it through the first three hours of high school without any difficulty, before lunch struck. Since springtime had hit, picnic tables had been set up outdoors. Ten-foot trees dotted the landscape. "Hey, Lou," he called, greeting his friend. "Save me a seat." Trip circled the table without any difficulty, and plopped into a chair. Louis Gutherson was roughly six feet tall, give or take a few inches, and was incredibly slim. His coke-bottle glasses made him look rather eccentric, and often appeared to be thicker than he was. Fortunately, they weren't. "Trip," Lou said, "I've been thinking that maybe we could hook my laptop up to your cable modem. Use a network card and whatnot." Trip realized that this wouldn't turn out good, so unlike the original May 18th, he replied simply, "Sorry, Lou. I don't have a router. Can't make a network without a router." "I've got a router at my house," Lou said. "It wouldn't be any trouble to bring it over." "Still, I can't," Trip said, "I don't want to tempt fate." With that, he pulled a greasy pack of cards from his pocket. Shuffling them expertly, he dealt five-card draw to the table for the rest of lunch. Putting all three decks of cards back in his pocket, he crumpled his lunch bag and tossed it negligently into the trash barrel on his way out. The remainder of his day went incredibly smoothly. As soon as 10:00 p.m. rolled around, a small teddy bear appeared in front of his face. "So," it said, "How'd it go?" "I think today was fine, but I don't know any effects of my choices. Could you fill me in?" "Lou thinks you're a coward, but he'll get over that eventually. Not much else, really." "Thanks. See you tomorrow," Trip replied. As he turned out the light, he began to sing in a low voice. "Now all we need is a drummer, to make it easy to move your feet..." He immediately fell into a deep slumber. - = - Trip awoke the next day to the patter of rain on the windows and the light, airy sounds of "Fire and Rain" by James Taylor. "How fitting," Trip remarked. As usual, everything went perfectly, and nothing needed changing. However, this time, Trip remembered to study for the calculus test and not waste time gaping at the new computer displays online. As he turned out the light, again he muttered, "I've seen sunny days and I thought they'd never end." Immediately he fell asleep to the pitter-patter of raindrops on the windowsill. - = - The radio heralded the morning of the 20th with a perfect song for the day. "I feel good," the radio said. "I knew that I would." Trip managed to make it through two hours before something cracked. The calculus test the hour before hadn't been a problem. However, the fact that Trip's Senior Prom was two days away was definitely a problem, given that Trip had no social life to speak of involving the opposite sex. He pondered the problem throughout third hour, accidentally flubbing a question when called upon by his teacher, Mister Lezard. The man had taught Chemistry for most of his rather long adult life, and had now become half-deaf. He was so irritable that he handed out detentions like the Easter bunny handed out chocolate eggs. Few people ever served them, however. Lezard had a tendency to forget things frequently. "Pardon, Mister Bently? Sleeping with our eyes open? I think not. You owe me a half an hour, payable anytime in the next five days." The class continued without much occurrence, as did the remainder of the day. The game at lunch was changed from five to seven cards, but otherwise nothing was altered. Evening came, and evening led to ten o'clock. "Interesting," said the teddy bear's voice out of nowhere. "Do you mind?" Trip asked, "It gives me the willies when you do that." "Sorry," the bear apologized, appearing in a puff of purple smoke. "So, anything you wanted to know?" "How'd I do on the Calculus test?" "78%. Would you like to try again?" "Definitely. I don't want to waste this opportunity." - = - 20 hours later, Trip collapsed on his bed. Lezard, noticing that he had answered correctly, had riddled him with questions like a machine gun until the bell rang. The teddy bear faded into the foreground. "Well, this is fun, isn't it? Lezard thinks I'm some sort of guy without a social life, giving me a detention so that I can 'make new friends.' How did I do on the test?" "Pretty decently, I'd say. If you call 102% pretty decent." "Thank the Lord. Now where am I going to find a date for Prom? I've got one week from Friday, and my folks are forcing me to go, date or no date." "Why bother? There's no real point. You spend a few hours in a crowded, hot, smelly gymnasium being 'romantic' and wake up the next morning with a migraine and a profound lack of aspirin, except for the little kid's stuff, which isn't strong enough to be worth what you pay for it." "My, aren't we being a bit cynical. Bad experiences?" Trip said. The teddy bear swore at him. "Goodness me. Teddy bears shouldn't even know what those words mean. Seriously, though, where can I find a date?" The teddy bear continued to curse under its breath for a few minutes before calming down. "Let's see," it said, "I don't personally think she's your type, but that Autumn girl seems to have a thing for you." "Anybody else? Another synonym for Autumn is Fall, and my name's Trip. I don't like people pointing at me with outstretched legs." "Point taken, but aside from that, I see nobody else to help you. Sorry, kid." "Wait," Trip said, "I'd like to clear a few things up. First off, who are you, anyway?" "You don't need to know my name." "Well, if you're female, you could be my date." The teddy bear laughed for a few minutes, much to Trip's continuing embarrassment. "I don't know, kid. I wouldn't go there if I were you." "Seriously," Trip said, "Your voice, by all means, is female, and judging by the quality of your voice..." he trailed off. "Look, kid, I'm trapped as a teddy bear, and I most certainly cannot be your prom date. The female voice is a self-created facade due to the fact that various people happen to think I'm female." "Very well," said Trip, lying down, "I feel good," he sung under his breath, "I knew that I would." The room reeled into blackness. That night, Trip dreamt a strange dream unlike any other. Our hero's eyes did open upon a beautiful spring day. The trees were bursting forth in bloom, and a beautiful girl did sit upon a park bench, reveling in nature's wonders. Light and cheery was the heart of Bently, for he had found a perfect date for the dance to end all dances. "Prithee," Bently did inquire of the girl, "Wouldst thou perchance have a date to yon celebratory dance?" And Bently did marvel at the words which poured from his throat, for indeed, they were not his own. "I wish I did, for methinks said dance would be rather exciting," said the girl, her pale skin glinting in the sunlight. "Wouldst thou, fair traveler, chance to have accompaniment? For 'tis my thought that we couldst accompany one another, and be joyous in the celebration." Yea, Bently did wonder how this lovely girl's thought could be so close to his own. "It doth seem a goodly plan to me," spake Bently, "Shall I pick thou up at six, gentle soul?" The girl did nod, and wrote down on a scrap of paper her address. Indeed, the heart of Bently was full with this thought, and as he walked away, he heard music playing triumphantly in the background. - = - The alarm clock roused Trip from his nocturnal reverie. "I will survive," it blared softly, "As long as I know how to love I know I'll stay alive," Trip never liked the radio station's occasional 'Disco Day,' but what could one kid do against the forces of disco? Then he looked down. Clutched in his hand was a square of paper. On the paper, an address was written in a rather dainty handwriting. "You have got to be kidding me," Trip muttered. The day passed uneventfully, until Trip saw the girl from his dream sitting at his lunch table. "What the hell?" he asked the air. "This never happened last time I went through the 21st." "Actually," said the teddy bear in his head, "You were too busy brainstorming ways to fix Lou's laptop to notice." "Hey, Trip!" Lou exclaimed, "Look what we found. She's a new transfer student, come to Spenser for her last few months of High School. We've taken her under our wing, right guys?" The remainder of the table nodded in assent. "I must admit, all this hospitality is overwhelming." The girl said. Her voice had a rich, almost musical quality to it. "Don't worry about it," replied Trip, "These guys are just glad to be getting out of here and on to better things. I'm Trip. Trip Bently." "Tessa. Tessa Alundra," the girl replied. "Pleased to meet you." "The pleasure is all mine, believe me." Trip said. He finished his lunch quickly, left Lou and the rest of the guys with his cards, and followed Tessa to where she sat on a park bench. He sat down next to her. The young girl sighed, resting her cheek on her hand. "I can't believe it," she said. "I show up at a new school not knowing anybody one day from Senior Prom. Bad luck, I guess. My parents were so excited about my graduation and all, and I can't even go to Prom. Have you seen how much tickets cost? A hundred dollars! It's highway robbery to charge that much. It's the same price for one person as it is for two." "Ludicrous, isn't it? It's a crying shame, too. You're a beautiful girl, and you don't have anyone to go to prom with. Well, that's the way it goes." Tessa laughed, a musical sound like the pealing of a bell. "What's so funny?" Trip asked. "You're the first person I've met here that's actually complimented me directly." "I don't get it. Why do you find that amusing?" "Don't you get it? What you just did is about the same as asking me to prom." "It was?" "Yes, you dunderhead, and I accept. I like you, Trip Bently. I think you'll do just fine." Tessa then pulled a small, honey-colored bear from her purse. Trip's heart stopped altogether for a few seconds. Spots flashed before his eyes until he remembered to breathe. "What do you think, Riley? Will this guy work out?" She looked at the bear seriously. "What happens if the bear doesn't like me?" Trip said. "We won't delve into that. Riley says you'll do fine, and I agree with her." Tessa smiled. "Six o'clock, then?" "Agreed." Tessa took out a square of rose-colored paper and jotted down her address and phone number. She gave it to Trip, who was literally saved by the bell. Everyone scrambled to his or her next class. When he arrived, Trip plopped down in a seat, relieved. Pulling out the first piece of paper, he found that they were identical. An announcement came on at the beginning of the hour. Principal Carl Spanner took the PA. Behind his back the various pupils called him C-Span, due to his unemotional way of speaking. "May I have your attention, ladies and gentlemen," said C-Span, "This is the last call for tickets for Senior Prom. Should anyone who is not a senior attempt to attend, there will be repercussions. If you need a parking permit, please see Ms. Wilkes in the counseling office. That is all." The day dragged on, and ten o'clock rolled around once again. Trip turned off the light and sat on his bed in silence. Riley appeared in the air in front of him. "So," Trip asked, "How'd I do?" "Well, she's very impressed, I'll tell you that." Another teddy bear, darker, with a red bandana around his head appeared beside her. "Ya mon. Da li'l miss be very pleased. So pleased she don't seem to be gettin' any sleep, like." It spoke with a lilting Jamaican accent. "Timothy, will you please be quiet? I'm trying to have a conversation with the man." "Sure I will, Riley. I'll be quiet just as soon as you come back to help calm miss down. 'Till then, I'll be sittin' right 'ere, playin' me drums." Timothy sat and began to play, which was fine, until he began to sing. In a rather off-key voice. "Trip, I'll be back tomorrow. Things will work out fine. I think..." With that, Riley vanished. Timothy, however, had had his eyes closed and didn't notice her departure. Only when Trip cleared his throat did Timothy stop drumming, open one eye, and look around. Standing up, he bowed and vanished. "Oy vez," Trip muttered, before softly crooning to himself, "I've got all my life to live, and I've got all my love to give," before drifting off to sleep. - = - "Uptown got its hustlers," said the radio the next morning, "Bowery got its bums." Trip roused himself, turned the radio off, and headed to school. The day was uneventful, except for the usual outdoor lunch with Tessa, who turned out to be rather adept with five-card draw. Thus, the week was concluded. Trip got home, finished his minimal homework, and started playing Fogg as quickly as he could. He had to catch up. Everything had to be exactly the way it had been before tomorrow or he wouldn't be able to swindle Laust. Ten o'clock rolled around, and Trip had barely made it to the mechanized realm he was currently in. He saved three times before closing, just to make sure. He turned off the light and lay down in bed. "You don't tug on Superman's cape," he said, "You don't spit into the wind. You don't pull the mask off the old Lone Ranger. And you don't mess around with..." he fell asleep - = - "In the middle of the night," remarked the alarm, "I've been walking in my sleep." Trip groped around in the darkness for the off switch. The radio turned off, but Trip hadn't touched it. He sat bolt upright, looking around furiously. Power outage? No, the nightlight was still on. The light shone upon a chocolate furred teddy bear, red bandana rolled over its head, bongos slung at its side. "Ya, mon," said Timothy, "Time to rise and shine, now. Don't want ta let Riley down now, do we?" "What," Trip asked the teddy, "Are you doing here." "It's Saturday, and mister Riley sent me to make sure you don't mess up, now." "Oh, boy." Trip said. He tossed Timothy the TV remote. "Find yourself a movie or something while I get dressed." "Ooh ya, mon. Cable." Trip took care of business before returning to his room. There were roughly eighteen hours before he was supposed to be on the computer to talk to Laust. He lay back on his bed, only to find it occupied. A muffled voice called from beneath, "Ey, mon! Get off me, now." Trip leapt from the bed. "Sorry, sorry, sorry. I didn't see you." "This be why I don't like brown sheets, now." Eighteen hours passed more or less uneventfully. The time was spent on the unsurpassed comedy of Saturday morning cartoons and old Columbo movies. Trip reluctantly turned off the TV and walked over to his computer. He booted up Fogg and proceeded to continue. "Hey, mon. What kind of music be this?" Timothy walked over to the speaker and turned down the volume. He sat down and plugged his bongos into the input jack on the computer, before beginning to play a slow, lilting melody. "I didn't think you could do that." Trip said in wonder. He opened a jukebox program and hit record. This was too good an opportunity to pass up. Just then a window opened. It was a browser window, even though he was not online. He closed it. It opened again, this time bearing the heading "Business over Pleasure." "Hello," said Laust. "What," replied Trip, trying to imitate the previous conversation as closely as possible. "I have a business proposition for you. Interested?" "Sure. What?" "You can hack into secure files. A man in high places is holding an obligation over my head, and I lack the technical knowledge to get the files he wants. The pay is very high." Trip smiled in the darkness. "How high?" "Seven digits." "Count me in. Oh, and just one more thing. I require payment in advance." "Done. 478-3924" This was unexpected. "You try to give me my prom date's phone number as payment? Listen, when you said seven digits, I thought you meant cash. Not a phone number." "That wasn't a phone number, you dolt. It was the number of the transaction I just made that put seven digits worth of cash into your bank account." Trip pulled up a window to check. Sure enough, his bank account was at new heights. Fifteen minutes later, Trip was through the firewall. "Okay, mon. Take the bottom three files instead of the top three," said Timothy, "Rename them to the files Laust wants, and give 'im what he wants, mon." Trip e-mailed Laust the files, shut down his computer, and tucked himself into bed. This time, Timothy backed the song up on his bongos. "I've been searching for something," Trip said, "Something sacred that I lost. Though the river is wide, and it's too hard to cross. In the middle of the night." - = - It was another dream, of that Bently was certain. He was surrounded by golden light, and teddy bears of both honey and chocolate shades. "Indeed, said a honey-colored bear, "Thou hast changed thine destiny, at least for a time." And the heart of Trip Bently was full, and the taste of victory on his tongue was sweet, sweet indeed. - = - Prom went off without a hitch. From the 23rd of May on, Trip Bently had it made. Nothing went wrong, and everything was perfect. He even got married two years later, as two teddy bears, sitting on top of a velvet pillow, served as the ring bearers. As the wedding march played, some swore they heard bongos among the orchestra. The service then reached the breaking point. "If there is anyone among us with a reason why these two people should not be joined in holy matrimony, let them speak now, or forever hold their peace," said the presiding authority. The gargantuan doors slammed open, revealing a man whose eyes burned with cold blue fire. His hair was blond and straight, ending abruptly two inches below his shoulders. Augmenting his pale skin and northern European looks were his clothes. They were fashioned of the darkest fabric imaginable, covered in some places by plates of black armor. The armor extended to the floor, and he carried in one hand a large pole of black wood. With a wave of the free hand, the room became foggy, and every wedding guest fell asleep in the pews, as did the priest, best man, and the entire wedding ensemble, excluding the groom. Trip caught Tessa as she crumpled to the ground, laying her gently beside the pillow. "Who are you, and what do you think you're doing?" Trip hollered. The man waved his hand, and Tessa's limp form rose a few feet above the ground before floating toward his palm. Trip attempted to catch hold of Tessa, and was rewarded with an electric shock. "You ripped me off," the man cried, "Now I'll deprive you of the happiness you would have gotten." There was a bright flash of light, and a small man stood between Tessa and the staff-wielder. The new arrival was bald,but the little hair that remained was a pale gray. His eyes were a bright green. He was clad in a green robe that draped to the ground, leaving his cork sandals and feet exposed. "I wouldn't go there, if I were you," he said, in a voice dripping with malice. "She's staying with me, brother." "Very funny, Wily," said Laust, "But I was always the better man at fighting." Looking over at the pillow, he saw that the honey-colored bear was missing. "Fighting dirty, you mean?" said Wily. "You only win because you cheat. I always play by the rules-" "And you always lost," Laust interjected. "The time for talk is over. Let's dance, brother." The room near Laust filled with darkness, seeming to pull at the space around it. While Laust was distracted, Wily grabbed Tessa and ran out the back door of the church. Shaking his head rapidly to clear it, Trip rose and followed, snagging Timothy and the rings from their pillow. Timothy blinked his eyes, and clambered to the top of Trip's head. "Timothy," Trip said, "What the hell is going on?" "Don't talk, mon. Run!" Timothy replied. He unstrapped his bongos from his belt, and began a sharp tattoo. Trip could feel his legs moving faster than ever before. The two of them passed Wily, who handed Tessa over to Trip. Stopping, Wily turned around and began chanting. Trip ran for a few feet further before stopping. Timothy broke off the melody in mid-beat. "Okay," Trip said, grabbing the bear and holding him in front of his face, "Now will you tell me what's going on." Timothy remained silent, then made a small gurgling noise. Trip removed his thumb from the bear's neck, and set him down. There was a flash of light, and Timothy was replaced by a tall, dark-skinned man. The new Timothy was bare to the waist, his well-defined muscles glinting in the sharp sunlight. His bongos were slung across one shoulder by a length of rope. "Okay, mon. Wily is the real name of the bear that we knew as Riley. The voice changed because Tessa thought he was a girl bear. Do you follow me, now? Wily has a brother named Laust. The swindle you pulled was just furthering some deep-rooted sibling rivalries. Laust doesn't understand that Wily was behind it, and now he's after you. Got it? Now, on top of that, Wily and Laust were schooled in magic by their father. Their uncle was a run-of the mill human, and Laust hated the man. He killed the uncle, and every decendant since. Tessa is the last, mon. Wily is a hereditary guardian, each firstborn child becoming the new future, right mon? Now, Wily's teddy bear form was a form of disguise. Since Laust is here, there's no need for that disguise. I'd imagine only one of them is going to come out of this alive. Do you understand the importance of that?" "Nobody tries to hurt me, and they sure as hell don't play the coward and attack my wife-to-be." Trip muttered. "Timothy? Is Laust immortal?" "No, mon. Just cursed himself so he could kill every one of his uncle's decendants." Trip grabbed a large piece of steel piping from the ground, and walked around various buildings until he reached Laust's backside. Laust was currently occupied firing various magics off at Wily, and probably wouldn't have noticed a nuclear holocaust. Trip crept up behind him, and caught him a smart blow to the back of the head with the pipe. Laust crumpled to the ground. Wily walked over, tossing a fireball lightly in one hand. "Can I kill him? Please? He's been getting on my nerves for so long..." "No. I've got a better idea." Said Trip, bending down and whispering in Wily's ear. Wily smiled, and began to grin from ear to ear. "I like it," he said, "Let's do it, shall we?" Just then, Tessa moaned. "Maybe you should get back to the chapel. Everyone else is probably curious where we went." Timothy popped back into bear form, and sat on Trip's shoulder as he carried Tessa back. Wily, in bear form, shortly appeared on the other shoulder. "Done," he said. As soon as Trip walked back in the door and set Tessa down at her place, everyone snapped back to their stiff poses. "Is there anyone who would object," said the priest, "Anyone? Anyone? Okay, I now pronounce you man and wife. You may kiss the bride." A calypso version of the wedding march began to play. Laust woke up on the street, with a headache he didn't want at all. He lifted a hand to his head, rubbing the lump on the back. "Bently," he muttered, "you're going to pay." He saw the 'hand' he had lifted. He hoisted himself up, and looked at a discarded mirror, which seemed a lot larger than it should have been. On second thought, he was a lot smaller. Also a lot fuzzier, and a lot less heavily armored. His body was now covered in cream-colored fur, his ears sticking out of the top of his head. Anyone walking through the street at that moment would've seen a cream-colored teddy bear, standing unaided, looking in a mirror, with a look of unmistakable rage on its tiny face. Laust, however, fell upon his knees and buried his head in his adorable new paws.