gotten the best of her.
She decided to call it a night. When her blood pressure finally calmed, and her racing pulse subsided, she headed home to the safety and comfort of her room.
This is going to require a bit more planning than I thought. But those boys will be sorry.
I will make them pay for what they did.
81
The Nine Lives of Felicia Miller
13
“Granny, I need to ask you something and I want a straight answer. Can I only turn into a housecat? Or can I turn into any cat I want?”
The old woman smiled knowingly. “A cat is a cat is a cat, my dear.”
Felicia smiled back. Imagining herself tearing Wally to shreds with the massive claws of a puma.
“But…” the old woman continued, “You will have to grow into your power, one step at a time. You didn’t get to high school without passing through kindergarten first, did you?”
Great. It figures there’d be a catch. “How do I do that?”
“Practice makes perfect. When you’ve grown comfortable in the skin of a pussycat, and mastered the sights and smells and instincts of a feline, you’ll find it easy to move up… to a bobcat… then a lynx… maybe even a lion someday.”
Felicia’s eyes went wide. “And a Siberian tiger?”
The old woman laughed. Her eyes sparkled with delight. “First learn to be a pussycat.” She stroked Felicia’s hair tenderly. “My little wild kotka.”
81
The Nine Lives of Felicia Miller
14
Wally shoved the hapless freshman against his locker, pinching the smaller boy’s nipples until he yelped. “What’s for lunch today, Sammy?”
The freshman offered his brown paper lunch bag, too scared to speak. Just wanting the pain in his nipples to go away.
Wally shook the bag open with one hand and gazed at its contents with disgust. “Jesus, dude. Your mom can’t cook for shit. Tomorrow I want a fiver so I can get whatever I want in the lunchroom. No more of these goddamned liverwurst sandwiches.”
He loudly hocked a lugie and spit it into the bag, then handed it back to the boy and slammed him into the lockers again, harder this time for good measure.
As the boy rebounded off the cold steel and ran away, Wally turned and found himself face to face with Ruta. She had a strangely smug look on her face.
“What the fuck do you want, freak-o?” he snarled.
“I just want to warn you. You better be prepared.”
“Prepared for what?” Wally tried to act cool but inside he was starting to sweat a little. It wasn’t Ruta’s words so much as her attitude. Nobody ever dared act this cocky towards him. Especially not some bitch he’d already humbled in a major way.
Ruta smiled cryptically and walked away.
What the fuck? Wally thought about chasing her to demand an explanation. But he watched her duck into the girls’ room and knew it would be pointless to wait for her to come out. If she had anything more to say she would have said it. She’s probably bluffing anyway. Silly cunt. Trying to fuck with my head. But as unperturbed as he pretended to be, the seed was planted and Wally’s concern was sprouting.
In the girls’ room, Ruta slapped ten with Felicia, who stood grinning like the cat that ate the canary. “The ball’s in your court now,” Ruta said. “Go get ‘em, tiger.”
***
“What the hell did she mean?” Sparrow asked nervously. “Prepare for what?”
“How the fuck do I know?” Wally said gruffly.
“You think Felicia’s gonna squeal about what we done? Oogie said he saw the two of them talking the other day.”
“She won’t squeal if she values her miserable life. Just be at my house tonight after dinner. And tell all the other guys to be there. No exceptions. We have to get our stories straight. Just in case.”
“In case o’ what?”
Wally scowled and swatted his pencil-necked pal on the side of his head. “Stop asking stupid questions. Just spread the word them I want them there. That’s all they need to know.”
81
The Nine Lives of
She decided to call it a night. When her blood pressure finally calmed, and her racing pulse subsided, she headed home to the safety and comfort of her room.
This is going to require a bit more planning than I thought. But those boys will be sorry.
I will make them pay for what they did.
81
The Nine Lives of Felicia Miller
13
“Granny, I need to ask you something and I want a straight answer. Can I only turn into a housecat? Or can I turn into any cat I want?”
The old woman smiled knowingly. “A cat is a cat is a cat, my dear.”
Felicia smiled back. Imagining herself tearing Wally to shreds with the massive claws of a puma.
“But…” the old woman continued, “You will have to grow into your power, one step at a time. You didn’t get to high school without passing through kindergarten first, did you?”
Great. It figures there’d be a catch. “How do I do that?”
“Practice makes perfect. When you’ve grown comfortable in the skin of a pussycat, and mastered the sights and smells and instincts of a feline, you’ll find it easy to move up… to a bobcat… then a lynx… maybe even a lion someday.”
Felicia’s eyes went wide. “And a Siberian tiger?”
The old woman laughed. Her eyes sparkled with delight. “First learn to be a pussycat.” She stroked Felicia’s hair tenderly. “My little wild kotka.”
81
The Nine Lives of Felicia Miller
14
Wally shoved the hapless freshman against his locker, pinching the smaller boy’s nipples until he yelped. “What’s for lunch today, Sammy?”
The freshman offered his brown paper lunch bag, too scared to speak. Just wanting the pain in his nipples to go away.
Wally shook the bag open with one hand and gazed at its contents with disgust. “Jesus, dude. Your mom can’t cook for shit. Tomorrow I want a fiver so I can get whatever I want in the lunchroom. No more of these goddamned liverwurst sandwiches.”
He loudly hocked a lugie and spit it into the bag, then handed it back to the boy and slammed him into the lockers again, harder this time for good measure.
As the boy rebounded off the cold steel and ran away, Wally turned and found himself face to face with Ruta. She had a strangely smug look on her face.
“What the fuck do you want, freak-o?” he snarled.
“I just want to warn you. You better be prepared.”
“Prepared for what?” Wally tried to act cool but inside he was starting to sweat a little. It wasn’t Ruta’s words so much as her attitude. Nobody ever dared act this cocky towards him. Especially not some bitch he’d already humbled in a major way.
Ruta smiled cryptically and walked away.
What the fuck? Wally thought about chasing her to demand an explanation. But he watched her duck into the girls’ room and knew it would be pointless to wait for her to come out. If she had anything more to say she would have said it. She’s probably bluffing anyway. Silly cunt. Trying to fuck with my head. But as unperturbed as he pretended to be, the seed was planted and Wally’s concern was sprouting.
In the girls’ room, Ruta slapped ten with Felicia, who stood grinning like the cat that ate the canary. “The ball’s in your court now,” Ruta said. “Go get ‘em, tiger.”
***
“What the hell did she mean?” Sparrow asked nervously. “Prepare for what?”
“How the fuck do I know?” Wally said gruffly.
“You think Felicia’s gonna squeal about what we done? Oogie said he saw the two of them talking the other day.”
“She won’t squeal if she values her miserable life. Just be at my house tonight after dinner. And tell all the other guys to be there. No exceptions. We have to get our stories straight. Just in case.”
“In case o’ what?”
Wally scowled and swatted his pencil-necked pal on the side of his head. “Stop asking stupid questions. Just spread the word them I want them there. That’s all they need to know.”
81
The Nine Lives of
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