This choice: Fang, the bully who loved to pick on him. • Go Back...Chapter #4Fang, the bully who loved to pick on him. by: ZZ   Fang. Even the word invokes fear, and was an unquestionably apt nickname for that particular wolf. Fang was, legitimately, a freak of nature. His height, strength, and power were nearly legendary, and in regards to species, unheard of. He quite literally was the biggest wolf on the planet according to verifiable records. Standing 7'10” tall, a full head taller than David even, Fang's muscle-laden physique made David look positively lithe. Like a black-furred mountain of herculean strength, Fang could never hide in a crowd with so much of him towering above it. Not that he'd ever want to.
Fang, as everyone referred to him(even his family, rumor had it), took narcissism to a whole new level. Numerous teammates told identical stories the hulking wolf spending, literally, hours in front of the mirror fawning over himself, flexing and posing to his own great delight. That the wolf had an ego was like saying the sun was “kinda big”.
With such an ego, and his total love of attention of all sorts, Fang relished the attention that was afforded him due to his imposing stature and frightening strength. Smiling or not, the elongated canines Fang possessed perpetually hung over his lower lip, adding a touch of feral to his fastidiously-groomed appearance.
If stereotypes could talk and walk, Fang would be a Jock squared. He participated, and dominated, every sport he could feel inclined to try, which was generally all of them. Academically, he was a non-entity, and could very well have been unable to count past the jersey numbers of his teammates. No teacher would dare fail such a star athlete (and nearly all were afraid of him physically) and so Fang skated through University on an unimaginable free-ride with numerous sports scholarships, with what could have very well been a 3rd grade literacy.
One might think that being small was an advantage when faced with such a gigantic person; with height so far above the canopy of people's heads in a crowd, it would be easy to sip through undetected. Nothing was farther from the truth.
Tyler never knew why Fang targeted him. Was it hate? Was it sport? Did Tyler's 5'1” somehow insult Fang's stature, or did the narcissistic wolf find the constant comparisons to someone so much smaller personally gratifying? Tyler thought it was the last one, but considering the reasoning behind what Fang did, if there was any, was a pointless exercise. Nobody could claim wolves were colorblind with how easily Fang could pick out a flash of purple and stalk it like so much prey.
Tyler had already sunk low in his seat, sliding the remains of his burger combo in front of him in some vain attempt at hiding. Maybe he wouldn't notice me, Tyler thought with hope. Maybe its my birthday after all and I'll get a free pass from torment? Fang was standing around his friends (all shorter than him) and let out a booming bark of laughter at some amusing statement. It was a laugh everyone could hear, and quite a few turned in it's direction before recognizing the source.
Hopes in the little purple dragon rose when Fang turned partially, his entourage of fawning adorers and jock friends moving with him. Tyler started glancing around, looking for cover in a path towards the doors; the table dividers equated to so many chest-high walls like from the games he played so well. A probable route was mapped out mentally, but motion caught his eyes for a split second.
Fang's head had turned to say something to one of his group, but in that casual motion it had frozen, eyes like searchlights beaming in Tyler's direction. When Fang's muzzle split into a too-broad grin, Tyler knew he had been spotted. There was no point in running; you can't outpace a giant, and doing so only made him all the more eager to harass you, as if attempting to avoid the bullying earned you extra rounds. No, Tyler had learned long before that if you couldn't avoid Fang entirely, you just had to sit through his tormenting.
Like the gliding of a steamship the black-furred behemoth began walking in Tyler's direction; everyone moved out of his way like he was a city bus, and being run over by him probably caused the same degree of injury. Tyler was sulking at this point, arms crossed and lips pouting as he semi-defiantly stared back at the approaching storm that was Fang. The wolf's tail was visibly wagging behind him as he casually yet undeniably grew closer and closer.
The strange headache returned to pound on Tyler's skull, adding insult to the oncoming injury, and the purple dragon felt anger rise inside him.
Just go bother someone else, Fang, Tyler thought in a voice that seemed to echo inside his own mind.
It took a second for the purple dragon to blink when he saw that the massive wolf was no longer walking. Fang had just stopped abruptly, and his entourage seemed somewhat perplexed as well with the way they hung behind him, not sure where he was going. The wolf's head rotated after that momentary freeze, scanning around before pausing; once more that grin bloomed on his large muzzle and he was on the move. But not for Tyler.
Afraid to take his eyes off the black-furred giant, his body swiveled to track Fang's progress further on into the food court, and then around towards the pizza franchise in the back corner. Behind the counter, Willard, an asthmatic rat who was a regular at Tyler's game shop, looked visibly panicked.
Within thirty seconds Fang was hanging with his crew in front of the frightened looking rodent, and most certainly torturing him with absurd orders, reneged requests, and all manner of ridicule.
Tyler's jaw hung open as he wrapped his mind around the encounter than never happened. It was unheard of. Unimaginable. Fang had just walked passed him like he'd not seen him; he had, of that Tyler was certain, but it was almost as if-...
...he'd gone to bother someone else.
It couldn't be. This was the most amazing...Impossible. Fantastic, but madness? All these jumbled doubts ran through he small purple dragon's mind in the blink of an eye. Tempted to take the opportunity to escape, Tyler hesitated and glanced around. He couldn't go without making sure, without testing it...if what had happened was real, he'd never forgive himself for not finding out. Looking around hastily, he spotted a Kodiak bear three tables down eating a burger. Trying to focus on that 'headache' and feeling it return, he thought as loud as he could at the bear.
You're done eating that. Throw it away.
Once more the words seemed to resonate inside his mind, and as he watched, the bear paused to contemplate his partially-eaten double-with-cheese. Swishing the bite around, the ursine swallowed, rose, and casually tossed the burger away into the adjacent trashcan. Even before the bear was walking away Tyler was nearly flailing in his seat and biting back a most immasculine giggle. His paws had to wrap around his draconic muzzle to keep from laughing, and he struggled to calm his racing heart while grinning so hard his face hurt. Maybe it was his birthday after all...and he had the most amazing present anyone could have ever wished for.
Tyler had the power to, somehow, influence other people's actions. He could suggest something mentally and they seemed to obey it, or at least take it into consideration. Was it just actions or could he change their perceptions and feelings, too? How far could he make someone go? Tyler didn't know if it was some new, permanent ability or something that would end when his birthday did, but he did know he wanted to do as much with it as possible.
With a new-found confidence and a devilish gleam in his eye, the short dragon swiveled in his seat, wondering how he was going to exploit this first. He decided to...  indicates the next chapter needs to be written. |
| Members who added to this interactive story also contributed to these: |
View Portfolio
Visit Notebook
Send Gift Points
Awards
Badges
Send Email
Community Newsfeed
General Discussion
Sponsored Items
Book of Trinkets
Static Items
Books
Groups
Interactive Stories
Audio
Campfire Creatives
Community Notes
Crossword Puzzles
Documents
Folders
Images
In & Outs
Madlibs
Photo Albums
Polls
Product Reviews
Quizzes
Survey Forms
Web Pages
Word Searches
More by this author