Be Your Own Hero

The Party

It was a nice summer day and everyone was having a great time over at Mark's house. They were all in his backyard hanging out either in the pool or at the side with the food or playing games together. Everyone was there.

Mark and Amy and their friends, Ethan, Tyler, Katheryn and Pam, the Iplier egos and Sean and the Septic egos. Even Anti and Dark were there much to almost everyone's distaste. They were off in a corner, though, by themselves like a couple of emo teenagers refusing to be social out of spite. They were too stubborn and prideful to talk to the others. Well Anti was, anyways.

Chase and Henrik's kids were all messing around playing silly games together nearby. Kallie was trying to get her brother, Sammy, and their cousins, Olivia and Noah to set up a prank with her but she was having a hard time encouraging them. This was the only source of entertainment for Anti and he watched with a very small smirk on his face every now and then at the girl's mischievous personality. It nearly reminded him of himself.

Moving his eyes along the yard, Anti spotted Chase and Stacey. The two had fake smiles on their faces as they held each other laughing with the others as someone said a joke. Every once in a while, however, Stacey would glare at Chase and they would 'bicker' about something. They were pretending to be happy together but Anti knew the truth. Stacey hated her husband's choice in career and the two had been arguing and going off and on with each other for months now, keeping it all a secret from the kids.

'That's just bad parenting, lying like that and pretending everything's fine when it's clearly not' he thought to himself but then again he wasn't a parent so he couldn't judge.

Anti's eyes drifted again and landed over to Mark having an animated conversation with Wilford. Amy was next to him and they all looked happy talking together. Anti could feel Dark bristling next to him. It was obvious he hated it when the other egos got along with Mark so well. Anti knew for a while that Dark's primary objective in life was to kill Mark but if he really wanted to end his life, couldn't he just do that whenever he wanted, really? He had so much power. What was stopping him?

He kept glancing around and he saw Henrik over with his wife smiling and laughing with a group of Ipliers including Dr. Iplier. Dr. Iplier had the running joke of 'You're dying' and Anti had to suppress a snort every time when Henrik looked like he wanted to roll his eyes at his friend.

Anti's eyes wandered around again and met Marvin's. The glitch narrowed his eyes at the magician but the other wouldn't look away. Anti may have nearly killed him months ago if Jackie hadn't been there to save him but now that Anti was corporeal, the magician seemed to strike a hint of fear in him since his magic could effect him now. Anti swallowed and was the first to look away, nonchalantly acting as if he lost interest. He could practically FEEL Marvin's smirk from the corner of his eyes but he ignored it.

He was then suddenly locked into a strange stare-down with Jameson and Jackie. Anti's snarl came back when he saw them but they didn't seem effected. They merely smiled and waved at him. They waved at him! How dare they!? Jameson was always super nice and could never truly hate anyone so he'd give him that but JACKIE!? Jackie may be the good guy but he hated Anti! Why was he smiling at him!?

Little did Anti know, Jackie had seen Anti looking at the kids with that rare 'gentle' smile. Plus since Anti had been corporeal, he seemed to stop messing with them as much. Well . . . . in a life-threatening way, that is.

Plus Sean had encouraged them all to try and give Anti a second chance since then, not that Anti knew that, and Jackie and Jameson were among the two that were willing to give that chance.

Chase was weary about it but he didn't have anything to add on the matter. He was really indifferent. Anti had caused him a lot of pain and grief before much like the others, even putting his kids in danger sometimes and that was a little hard to forgive. Perhaps that was partly why Stacey and him were 'bickering' today? They had no idea Anti was going to be there, after all. Anti felt that strange feeling in his chest again that he hated so much. He couldn't place it but it hurt and he felt a lump form in his throat sometimes.