Tripod Beware

PART ONE

The dressing room was devoid of people. An old brown leather couch, a swivel chair seated before an old-fashioned wooden dressing table, and another chair in the corner with a guitar case leaning against it furnished the space, yet it still seemed empty. An eerie silence loomed over the room, but it was instantly broken as the door swung open and three hyped up Tripod boys bounded in, slamming the door behind them. The whole wall shuddered and swayed precariously as though it was about to collapse, but the boys were too distracted by their own excitement to notice the possible danger.

"We killed 'em!" exclaimed Scod as he slipped his guitar into its case, clicked it shut, and carefully propped it back up against the chair. Yon nodded in agreement with a slight grin of satisfaction and immediately began stripping out of his green Star Trek-like outfit.

"Did you see those three hot chicks down the front? They wanted me

so

bad!" Gatesy remarked enthusiastically. Yon sighed and shook his head at his friend's naivety. He really did think too much of himself – he wasn't

that

good looking! It was just the make-up he put on that covered up the fact that he was a bloody ugly bastard!

"How do you know they weren't looking at me or Scod?" Yon asked, grinning as Scod stopped undressing out of his matching blue outfit and shot him a puzzled frown. Scod didn't usually get girls idolising him like they did with Gatesy, or even Yon, so it was a bit unusual for him to mention Scod in that context. Gatesy was now standing topless in the middle of the room and he turned to Yon with a disbelieving smile on his face. He threw his matching purple top at Yon, who caught it and immediately threw it back at him.

"Yon, Yon, Yon…" Gatesy murmured, shaking his head slowly "Will you just admit it? I'm the one the girls drool over. I've got the looks and the body," he smiled smugly, flexing the muscles in his chest and arms to prove his point "They want me, not you two puny little midgets!" he chuckled lightly. Scod and Yon never took anything Gatesy said seriously anyway, because he rarely ever meant it, so they were used to shrugging off his name-calling and remarks.

"Well you never know mate, maybe they want the one with the brains or the musical ability. Looks aren't meant to be as important these days, so it's very possible that they weren't looking at you." Yon had a point and he knew it, and he would stick by it no matter what Gatesy retaliated with. Gatesy simply raised his eyebrows in amusement and continued getting changed.

Scod was already dressed and ready to go, and he stood beside the door watching the exchange between his two friends. He never could work out why they enjoyed arguing so much, but figured that they were just freaks.

"So what're we gonna do tonight fellas?" Scod asked, interrupting their argument, which had continued until well after they'd finished getting changed. Before they got a chance to answer, there was a quiet knock at the door.

"I bet that's those girls coming to see me now!" Gatesy grinned triumphantly, bounding ahead of Scod to get to the door, Yon following closely behind. Upon opening the door Gatesy's grin grew even wider and Yon's mouth dropped open. "I told you!" Gatesy said smugly, smiling lecherously down at the three girls standing in the hall.

The one in the middle was shorter than the other two, but seemed to be the leader of the group. She had long slightly wavy blonde hair down to her waist and emerald green eyes. She wore a black long-sleeved see-through lace top over a black singlet top, a tiger print skirt and knee high Doc Martens. The one on the left was slightly taller, with shorter black hair, wearing a pair of body hugging denim jeans and an ankle length leather jacket over a low cut black top. The one on the right was the tallest of the group with long reddish-brown hair, wearing purple flared jeans, a light blue singlet top and matching blue Converse sneakers. The two on either side of the one in the centre both had deep chocolate brown eyes and they looked quite similar so Gatesy wondered if they were sisters.

"Hi boys," said the leader, batting her eyelashes at Gatesy. He was practically drooling over the beautiful creatures standing before him, but chose the one in the middle to seduce that night. He looked her over slowly and she smiled up at him.

"Good evening ladies," he crooned, not taking his eyes off the gorgeous blonde, "Is there anything we can do for you?"

"We just wanted a chance to meet you up close and personal," she replied suggestively, reaching out and running a finger down Gatesy's hand where it rested casually on the doorframe. He shot her a half smile and she dropped her arm to her side once more.

"Well you've come to the right place," he said, his eyes glinting mischievously. Scod noticed that Yon was still standing frozen in shock with his mouth hanging open and he gave him a sharp poke in the ribs with his elbow, causing him to gasp in surprise and glare at Scod before turning back to the girls. The middle one was quite stunning, but he knew that she'd already been chosen by Gatesy so he opted for the one on the left. He smiled coyly as she grinned at him and pushed past Gatesy to enter the room and stand before Yon, who turned to face her as she moved. The other two followed her inside and moved to stand together again. "I'm Gatesy," he continued "And this is Yon and Scod," he added as an afterthought, gesturing vaguely in their direction. The one on the left waved at Yon and he blushed, sending a small wave back.

"I'm Lucille," said the girl who Gatesy had his eye on.

"I'm Jade," the girl on the left piped up, looking Yon straight in the eye until he looked away awkwardly.

"And I'm Jen," said the third, going to sit next to Scod, who had been sitting on the couch studying her intently ever since they'd entered the room "Hey Scoddy," she grinned, patting him on the knee. He smiled widely at her and looked back at his friends, who were already completely absorbed in hushed conversations with the other two girls. Gatesy had his arm around Lucille's waist and brought his other hand up to stroke her thigh lightly, moving up further and further with every slow smooth stroke. Yon was speaking so softly that Jade had to lean right in to hear what he was saying, but they seemed to be quite taken with each other. Scod turned back and began having a quite pleasant conversation with Jen about music, but before they even got the chance to move onto a different topic, Lucille interrupted.

"What do you say we go back to my place now?" she announced, turning away from Gatesy quickly and raising her voice to get everyone's attention. Jade and Jen nodded automatically.

"Oh yeah," Gatesy murmured huskily, slipping his hand up the back of Lucille's top and running it across her smooth skin "I think that'd be a good idea." She shivered under his touch and stared deeply into his eyes with an unreadable gaze, then hastily rose to her feet and pulled him towards the door impatiently. 'Ooh, this one's gonna be good!' he exclaimed to himself.

"Come on! Let's go!" she ordered, and the other girls reluctantly got up, closely followed by Scod and Yon, Lucille leading the way out the door.

PART TWO

The night air was surprisingly cold despite it still being summer, and Scod was glad that he'd decided to bring his jacket just in case. He and Jen hadn't stopped talking since she'd come up and sat next to him in the dressing room. They had so much in common; they liked the same types of music and she even played the guitar and the drums. He hoped this wouldn't just be a one-night thing, because he really liked this girl. It would be fun to hang out with her and maybe have a bit of a jam one day. Suddenly he realised she must be freezing wearing that skimpy little blue top. He looked over and sure enough she was hugging herself and rubbing her arms trying to keep warm. Quickly he slid out of his jacket.

"Here, you wear this, it'll warm you up," he said, holding the jacket out for her, and she slid her arms into it.

"Mmmm," she smiled, wrapping the huge jacket around her slim figure and snuggling into the warmth that had been transferred into it from his body "Thanks, but if you get too cold tell me, okay?" she asked gently, slipping her arm around his waist and rubbing his back. He nodded and put his arm around her shoulders, pulling her in closer.

Yon took a sidelong glance at Jade as they walked along the footpath in pairs. 'She's so gorgeous. What does she want with me?' he asked himself. Their hands kept brushing together every few steps, causing his breath to repeatedly catch in his throat almost every time they touched. She looked up at him and smiled gently and his heart missed a beat. There was just something about her – she was different to other girls. Finally he took the initiative and tentatively slid his fingers across the palm of her hand, holding his breath, waiting for some kind of rejection, but instead she copied his movements until their fingers were intertwined. She smiled up at him again and he sighed, his head swirling with thoughts and feelings that all mixed together to form an indecipherable blur. Yes, there was definitely something about this girl!

Gatesy slid his hand down over Lucille's buttocks and pulled her to a stop, kissing her ardently and grinding his body into hers. Her arms automatically came around his back, her tongue exploring his mouth. He sensed the urgency behind the kiss grow and his body began to heat up rather rapidly. He heard a tiny moan escape her lips, but then suddenly she paused and pushed him away gently, looking him straight in the eye, before continuing walking. He quickly caught up with her and slid his arm around her shoulders. He was getting desperate. Every time he made a move she began to respond, but then stopped. Why was she trying to play hard to get? At first he had thought it was fun, but now he was getting sick of it. He didn't want to play games anymore – he wanted her – now. How far away was this girl's house anyway? It seemed like a lifetime! He couldn't wait much longer.

"Here we are," she announced solemnly, stopping outside a beautiful old two-story house. It was so big, it was an understatement to just call it a 'house' – it was more-like a mansion.

"Wow," breathed Scod as he and Jen reached where the other two couples were standing "This house is amazing! Is it yours?"

"Yeah," Lucille replied "My grandmother passed away two years ago and left it to me."

"God, I'd love to have a place like this!" he exclaimed, unable to take his eyes off the exquisitely picturesque structure. It was his dream home. Ever since he was a kid he'd seen houses like these and become enthralled by their size, shape, their style, the mood they gave off – eerie yet superbly elegant. The thought that he was about to actually go inside one of these magnificent buildings was mind-blowing.

"Hmm," she murmured disinterestedly "Come on," she said, grabbing Gatesy's hand. Upon opening the gate it let out a startling screech, causing Yon to jump back in surprise. Jade gave his hand a reassuring squeeze and led him along the path and up to the doorstep after the others. He looked down at their entwined fingers and smiled. He couldn't believe his luck. She was the perfect girl in every way and he had to physically pinch himself to convince himself that it was real – he wasn't dreaming.

Gatesy watched Lucille unlocking the door and eagerly reached out to open it, pushing her inside in the hope that they could get down to it straight away, but the girls seemed to have other ideas.

PART THREE

The door slammed shut behind them and Scod stood stunned, his mouth hanging open in awe at the beautiful architecture of the old mansion. They stood in a massive ballroom. Deep crimson drapes trimmed with gold lined the walls, and a huge crystal chandelier hung elegantly down from the intricately plastered and painted ceiling. At the opposite end of the ballroom was a wide staircase leading off in two different directions at the top, and then walkways running all the way around the walls to join above the entrance doorway. In the centre at the top of the staircase was a huge painting of a creepy but dignified looking man in a black tails suit. He had dark slicked back hair and a curled moustache, and his eyes were so dark and mesmerising that Scod couldn't take his eyes off them for a moment. Hallways also led down behind either side of the staircase on the lower floor. On the left wall was a doorway leading to the dining room and to the right was an identical entrance leading into what looked like a study or sitting room. It was as though the whole house had been frozen in time and nothing had changed since the day it was built. Scod took his arm from around Jen's shoulders and slowly walked further into the room, turning in circles and drinking in everything around him.

"Wow! This place is incredible!" Scod mused aloud.

"Want me to show you around a bit?" Jen asked, linking her arm through his and leading him towards the staircase.

Lucille watched as they turned right at the top of the stairs, and then she turned to Gatesy. His eyes lit up as she sent him a slow seductive smile and reached up to play with the collar of his shirt, then turned and began walking towards the steps, glancing back at him as he quickly jumped to action and bounded after her. Finally! He was going to get some! They went in the opposite direction to which Scod and Jen had gone and she led him towards what he presumed was a bedroom.

Yon felt Jade squeeze his hand and he turned to look at her. She smiled sweetly at him and he felt himself blush. He still couldn't believe she was interested in him. She was just too perfect. She was almost unattainable, but for some reason she seemed to have let him cross the barrier. Now that the other two couples had left, silence filled the enormous room. He suddenly felt the desperate need to fill this gap before it became awkward.

"So," he began nervously, bouncing slightly on the balls of his feet "What are we going to do?"

"Are you cold?" she asked, looking at him curiously. She must've thought he was bouncing because he was cold, but it was actually just a habit he had. He did it a lot when he was nervous or uncomfortable.

"A little," Yon replied, noticing the slight chill that lingered in the air for the first time.

"Why don't we go into the study and light the fire? That'll soon heat you up." He smirked and felt his face flush with warmth once again as he nodded in agreement. She gave his hand another squeeze and then led him into the next room. Two walls of the room were made up entirely of bookshelves filled with thousands of old books. He wondered if anyone would ever get the chance to read them all, or who would even want to. She let go of his hand and went to stand in front of the fireplace, bending over and looking into the flu. "Uh…do you know how to do this? I'm not quite sure. Lucille usually lights it when we're here."

"Yeah I know how," he answered, walking over to stand beside her. He began to put some wood from a pile sitting against the wall into the fireplace and once she seemed sure he knew what he was doing she went and got a beanbag from the corner of the room and plonked herself down into it.

Gatesy followed Lucille into the room and closed the door behind him with a click. He turned around to face her but found that she had walked across the other side of the room and was now sitting at the stool in front of a intricately decorated dressing table and mirror. He grinned and sidled over to where she was, sitting on the bed behind her. Lucille got a lipstick out and ran it over her lips, slowly and smoothly, Gatesy watching her every move. She looked at him in the mirror as she pressed her lips together and put the lipstick back in her bag again.

He licked his lips, feeling the desire beginning to rise in his body. His eyes dropped to rove over her body as he slipped his hand onto her hip and leant in to drop kisses along her neck. Lucille reached her hand back and gently stroked the back of his neck, pulling him closer, and she leant back with her eyes closed. In the meantime Gatesy let his hand roam down her leg and slip under her skirt. He paused slightly before sliding his hand up the inside of her thigh. He sucked on her earlobe lightly and smiled when he heard Lucille's sharp intake of breath.

Scod put his arm around Jen's shoulders once more as they leisurely walked along the hall. He grinned as he took in every tiny detail of the house. It was absolutely amazing. He'd never been in a place so beautiful and elegant, and he knew this would be an experience he'd never forget.

"I can't believe I'm actually here. This place is just so…incredible!" Scod exclaimed. Jen opened the first door and they walked inside. He stared in amazement at the king sized four poster bed, complete with all the trimmings.

"Yeah it's a pretty good house. Luce is thinking of selling it soon. She's sure to get a lot of money for it."

"What!?" he gasped, turning to gape at her "Why would anyone want to sell a place like this? It's perfect! I tell you, if I had the money I'd buy it myself for any price she wanted!" Jen smiled and continued taking him through the rest of the rooms on the right hand side, then all the way around to the left, missing the last room before they came to the staircase again. Scod was about to ask why he couldn't look in there, but then he heard a muffled moan coming through the door and he instantly knew the reason, stifling a giggle as they continued on downstairs once more.

The fire now burning away happily, Yon turned back to Jade as he pulled up the back of his jeans where they had slid down a little when he had been crouched down in front of the fireplace. She smiled up at him from where she was seated and he returned the smile before regarding the beanbag quizzically.

"Come on!" she urged, patting the bag beside her. He shuffled awkwardly for a moment and she got up and took him by the hands, pulling him gently towards the beanbag until their backs were to it. "Ready?" she asked, grinning at his confused expression "Go!" she yelled, and before he knew what was happening she had grabbed him and they were falling backwards. He let out a loud yelp as they fell into the beanbag, Jade almost landing in his lap they were so close. Once they had stopped falling Yon looked up and their eyes locked. She smiled at him gently and slipped one hand onto his leg. His breathing and heart-rate quickened as he stared at her in amazement, and then finally he brought a hand up and stroked the hair back from her face before leaning in and tentatively bringing his lips to hers.

PART FOUR

Jen began to show Scod through the downstairs rooms, answering any questions he might have and smiling politely at his comments. These rooms were just as impressive as the upstairs ones. All the curtains throughout the house were a deep blood red colour and trimmed with gold and the rooms were equipped with antique mahogany furniture. As they entered the kitchen her watch beeped. She looked at it and frowned.

"It's cold here. Let's go to the study," she said quickly. Scod frowned. He was a bit disappointed that he wouldn't get to see all of the house, but he nodded his head in agreement. It was getting a little chilly, and he didn't want her getting cold just because of him.

Gatesy pulled Lucille in and kissed her deeply, his tongue searching her mouth as he cupped her breasts in his hands. He leant down and took one in his mouth, swirling his tongue around the hard nipple, and Lucille eliciting a soft moan of pleasure. She ran a hand down his bare chest and into his partly open jeans. Gatesy shuddered and bit his lower lip as her hand closed around his throbbing erection and she began to stroke lightly up and down the shaft. He was just beginning to run his hand down her body when her watch beeped. She groaned in what sounded like annoyance and slid off him, then began getting dressed again.