Swan Song

Dollhouse Part 3

"I told you he wasn't that bad!" gloated Alice as she, Lock and Rem made their way toward their first class.

"Please don't yell," chided her boyfriend, noting the looks they were getting.

"Actually, they're looking at me," said Lock. "I probably shouldn't have run out there, huh?"

"You think?" the redhead snapped. "That was really dangerous, you know. What if the Head Hunter had still been there, huh? You can't fight off an angel with a regular weapon, and I doubt you brought those, either. Seriously, Lock. Idiocy leak. Thanks for making me see that, by the way. I totally needed that. Really helps me sleep at night."

Her stream of complaints was cut short, as the Karma twins approached the group. "Sorry, lady Alice," Ted started, "but lord Sebastian insists that we keep you away from these two."

"Oh, come on," she replied, standing her ground. "We're in school."

"He was quite clear when he gave the instructions."

Rem tried to take a step forward, but Lock prevented him by putting the back of his hand on the older boy's chest. "Not here. Not in front of everybody." Then, he turned toward the twins, and moved the collar of his dress shirt, which were mandatory at the school, revealing a thin blue bruise. "Please remember that I know several things about you, Theodore. You can go ahead and tell Sebastian she never even looked at us the whole day."

"Like anyone would believe you," the twin countered. "You didn't report the incident right away. It's a bit too late for you to do a thing about it now."

"I'm about to be the preacher. Try me."

They stared each other down, with Chris trying to drag his brother away, to no avail. Rem looked ready to start a fight. Alice looked readier to start a right.

"Oh, come on. Just let the kitties play," said Lily, walking up to the group from behind her brothers, loudly enough for the entire hallway to hear her. "I mean, clearly they need to help Lock deal with his issues. Last night must've been... traumatizing."

Laughs and giggles surrounded them, making Ted smirk and move out of the way. "Quite right, Lily. They need all the time in the world for that."

On their way through the crowd, the trio managed to catch a few of the whispered works, such as 'freakshow', 'weirdo' and 'creeper'.

"They do know you're supposed to be catching the killer, right?" said Rem, glaring at everyone they passed by. "No respect for the preacher, either. Disgraceful."

Alice rolled her eyes at that last bit. "Just ignore them. At least we can be together now."

The rest of the school day was spent in a similar manner, not that Lock himself minded. Most of the bad reactions came from his two companions, whom he was used to calming down.

After school, the boys were forced to part with their red haired friend.

"Sorry I can't help," pouted Alice. "That jackass is gonna make me go straight home every day." She jabbed a thumb over her shoulder, indicating Lily, who had her arms crossed and a predatory smile on her face.

"You're a tough girl. You'll be fine," replied Rem, who still wasn't in her good graces.

"See ya, guys," she said, then turned around and walked away.

"Is she mad at me?" asked the clueless giant, making Lock sigh.

"You're hopeless."

"What?" Rem blinked. "What did I do?"