Flexible Thinking for a Modern Life: Chapter 8
Added 2020-01-12 19:08:12 +0000 UTCSummary: A commission series for Alfalfa. Iris Fleurs, the stretchy daughter of a slime mother and a human father, tries to live her best life and feel comfortable in her own skin. Teenage rebellion ensues.
CHAPTER 8
Whitaker Street was just off of the main boulevard of Agnes. It was a strange choice for a high school crush to arrange a meeting, considering its notorious reputation as the entertainment hub of the city. Bars and clubs flanked both sides of the street. Most of the venues were closed right now, leaving the area in silence.
"Hey, should we be here right now...?" Miguel whispered, glancing back and forth.
"Nothing's open yet," Sarah muttered with a shrug. "There isn't anything to see."
"...Think that's the jazz club mom and dad are always going to." Iris squinted, tilting her head. "Didn't think they'd come out here for fun."
"Nah, adults gotta unwind. S'like an adult playground." Sarah explained. "Like my dad? When he won that gold medal, he beelined straight to the first bar and chugged an entire-"
"Hey, guys, wait up a sec!"
Miguel grasped their shoulders, tugging them back to hold them in place. Sarah and Iris jerked to a halt, glancing back to Miguel with confused expressions. Well, Iris had one at least; Sarah was unphased as usual.
"What? What is it??" Iris whispered.
"We're here! 'Tween 10 and 12 Whitaker! Right? There's the big alley here..."
"...Crap, you're right!" Iris shuffled around, shoving the two so they were all behind the wall. Iris peered around the corner to get a better look.
"What do you see?" Miguel asked, leaning forward. "Is he there? ...Is he armed??"
"Why does it have to be a 'he'?" Sarah frowned.
"Y-you know what I mean!" Miguel stammered, trying to act casual.
"...Yeah, there's someone there. He's kinda tall... can't really get a good look because of the trench coat he's wearing."
"Trench coat??" Miguel questioned, trying to peer over for a better look.
"Think he could be on the basketball team?" Sarah wondered, tilting her head as she leaned further in. "...Nah, don't recognize them."
"H-hey, they wanted me to show up alone!" Iris hissed, pulling them back before going back to spy on the stranger.
"This is insane!" Miguel sputtered, folding his arms. "You're gonna go into a dark alley between a nightclub and a bar, and you're gonna hit up a total stranger!?"
"They have to go to our school, right?" Iris replied, trying to get a better look. "Besides, you have to admit... this is kinda exciting!"
"Iris." Sarah cautioned. "Your neck's stretching out again."
"C-crap, right. That might freak them out..." Iris bashfully retracted her neck, shuffling her body forward so she could keep looking.
"You can't seriously be considering this..." Miguel shook his head.
"...Yeah. Yeah, I'm gonna check it out. Mom's not around to say no, right?" Iris smirked, turning to her friends.
"We're saying no!" Miguel blurted, rubbing his forehead.
"...She'll be fine. Probably." Sarah shrugged. "Can't really talk her out of these things. Like the time she took up skydiving."
"Yeah! Exactly... wait." Iris blinked. "Sarah, what do you mean?"
"Eh. I figure we'll meet later. Enjoy your date or whatever." Sarah waved, taking Miguel by the shoulder. "There's an arcade up on Main Street, we're gonna check it out."
"What?? You're gonna leave her to die!?" Miguel gasped.
"It's Iris, dude. Practically indestructible. Remember the skydiving incident?"
"...How could I forget..." Miguel tugged at his collar. "S, stay safe, Iris."
"Okay, dad." Iris rolled her eyes with a grin. "I'll be fiiiine. You guys have fun."
Sarah nodded, before essentially dragging Miguel back down the road. Poor Miguel's eyes never strayed as he stared from afar, before the two of them turned a corner.
Iris remained silent, reaching into her pocket for the original letter she found in her locker. She reviewed it one more time, her eyes drifting between the handwriting and the figure in the trench coat across from her.
Iris took a bit of time to observe the figure. He seemed to be muttering to himself. Maybe he had a phone call?
"...Why's he staggering like that?" Iris' eyebrow perked up. "Is he drunk? It's way too early for that..." She stared, watching his movements - it was almost like he was struggling to maintain his balance.
Iris was starting to get second doubts about this whole thing. That was precisely why she had to steel herself and take the plunge. With a nod, she stepped around the corner, and approached the figure from behind.
"Hello?" Iris tilted her head, holding up her letter. "Did you write-"
"Is that her!? That's her, isn't it!?" Iris could make out a strange male voice, coming from a stranger place. Like it was near the waist...
"Shuddup, you're not supposed to talk! I'll do the talking!" A distinctly separate voice was whispering back, before turning to Iris. "...Hey there, pretty mama. You got my letter~"
"...Heeeeeey." Iris grit her teeth, trying to force a smile. "Wh, what's your name... big guy?"
"Oh, me? You can call me Tro-... uh, Troy! Yeah, Troy!" The man named Troy adjusted his trench coat, popping up the collar. He swayed back and forth uncertainly. "Been, uh, takin' a keeeeeen interest in you. Real close-eye on you."
"...You're not a student, are you?" Iris frowned, folding her arms.
"What!? Course I am! I just... puberty hit me like a truck!"
"Really? Your skin's, uh... grey. And old, and wrinkly. And you don't sound like a high schooler." Iris' eyebrow perked up.
"You're losing her, Trouble! You're trying way too hard to act cool!" The voice from below piped in again, the trenchcoat billowing once more.
"I know what I'm doing, you idiot! No one asked you for your opinion!" The figure jerked his head downward.
"...Okaaaay, this wasn't what I expected." Iris backed up a step. "I'm gonna guess you're some kinda drug addict, a-and I dunno how you got my information, sooooo... I'm gonna call the police and-"
"Wait, don't! The mistress'll kill us!"
"She's getting away!"
"Use your legs, idiot, I'm just the lookout!"
As Iris tried her best to put some distance between herself and the stranger, another unexpected argument broke out. Which was weird, because Iris wasn't a part of it. She made it as far as the entrance to the alley, before turning around to witness what was happening.
It looked like the man in the trenchcoat was losing his balance, teetering back and forth. Iris' jaw dropped as the figure tipped over, collapsing on the ground.
Just underneath the fabric of the coat, stubby, flailing limbs tried desperately to tear their way out of the resulting pile. Iris stopped what she was doing, eyeballing the strange sight that was playing out before her.
"...What the hell? A bunch of kids in a trench coat? ...W-wait, wait what?!"
Iris had to catch herself on a nearby railing, utterly flummoxed by what she was witnessing. These weren't kids she was dealing with; they looked scruffier, more monstrous than that. She was speechless - partly from shock, but mostly because they were still bickering and she didn't want to interrupt them.
"Ugh, you done and screwed it all up, you did!" Toil scoffed, brushing himself off.
"I screwed up!? You could barely stand up straight, what's the matter with you!?" Trouble spat back.
"You ain't wash your feet in weeks, man! That's a hostile work environment!" Toil staggered back, shaking his head.
"...What the hell are you guys??" Iris was astonished at the sight of the eerie, horned little creatures. Her inquiry was enough for the two to break it up, and turn their attention to the teenage girl.
"We're imps, girl! Read a book! There's, like, bajillions of us down in the Underworld!" Trouble growled.
"Gargoyles specifically, buuuut, yeah. Still got the whole fire and brimstone thing going." Toil stepped in front of Trouble. "Pay him no mind, he has no manners with girlfolk."
"...Wait, what? O-okay, hold up." Iris held her hands out, trying to get them to quiet down for a second. "So you guys are, like, demons? Like, unholy, nasty, evil little gremlins?"
"A-again, gargoyles, not gremlins..." Toil sighed. "Buuuut yeah. Fun stuff all around."
"...Ohohoho... deeefinitely the kind of crowd mom would disapprove of~" Iris snickered to herself, rubbing her palms together. "...But, hey, wait, what do you guys want with me? ...Because, you guys and me, it, uh, can't really happen. Romantically, or whatever."
Iris was taking the situation markedly better than she would've anticipated. She recognized that the demons had a marked size disadvantaged, and they spent far too much time bickering to really work out a plan.
"WHAT!? The letter was a ruse to get you out here, you daft girl!" Trouble sputtered, staggering back.
"Yeah! Our boss wanted to see you! ...And now I just need to get over the sting of rejection a bit..." Toil groaned, kicking the trenchcoat.
"Oh thank the goddess." Iris let out a sigh of relief. "...Wait, your boss? What's this about?? I'm not dead yet, you can't take me to the devil or whatever!" Iris was getting ready to run off once again - she figured with a good head-start, she could put some good distance between herself and these runts.
"No, no, our boss is a succubus, not a devil." Toil pointed out carefully. "She's more into the finer points of seduction, bedlaying, aromatherapy and whatever."
"Yeah! She's our Mistress, Kamika Malagic, and you better get to treating her with respect!" Trouble pointed her out.
"But... I-I don't get it. What's she want with me? Why do you guys care so much? Seems like a lot of effort to set up a date..."
"Nobody's going on any dates!" Trouble snapped back.
"The Mistress was reeeeeeeal keen on your, uh, flexible abilities. She wants an exhibition in her dungeon, and to meet you face to face."
"...'Abilities'?" Iris tugged at her collar. "I... I dunno what you're talking about-"
"The thing at the track meet! Don't tell me you're gonna play dumb about that too..." Trouble grumbled. Iris blinked, staggering back.
"...Have you little twerps been spying on me!? You don't go to our school!"
Toil raised his hand to interject. "Actually, I attend weekend classes to try and finish my G.E.D."
Iris didn't have a response for that. She simply took another step back. "Okaaaay, here's how it's gonna go down. This ain't what I signed up for, so, uh, it was nice talking, uhhh..."
"I'm Toil, he's Trouble." Toil pointed out helpfully. Iris nodded, giving a thumbs up.
"Toil, Trouble, I'm just gonna... leeeave now." Iris tried to pivot and get the hell out of there...
"You two take far too long to perform a simple task."
A cloaked figure apprehended Iris from behind, bringing a rag to Iris' face. She gasped as she was assaulted with a powerful, overwhelming odor, her eyes widened. Her legs turned to jelly as she tipped backward, right into her assaulter's arms.
"Oi! Double Double! We had this under control!" Trouble shouted, hopping up and down indignantly.
"And I suppose your plan was to let her tire herself out?" Double Double retorted with a roll of his eyes. He slumped the now-unconscious Iris over his shoulder. "It's a wonder the Mistress ever trusts you two with any jobs at all."
"We work twice as hard! Cuz there's two of us, you see." Trouble grimaced.
"It's not like she pays us anything. But I guess the exposure's alright." Toil shrugged.
"...Right. Let's be away. The mistress is expecting us."
With a bounding leap, Double Double cleared the diminutive duo easily, disappearing into the dark recesses of the alley within. Toil and Trouble exchanged annoyed glances.
"Showoff..." They muttered under their breath.
---
Iris had no idea how long she was out for. The next thing she knew, she was stirring awake in a place she hadn't seen before. Her dazed eyes fluttered open, trying to take in her unfamiliar surroundings.
She was on top of a bed. The bed was lined with satin bed sheets, and surrounded by pink candles, their flames gently lapping. The air was filled with a gentle aroma, like lavender and cinnamon. The latter of which flared up her nostrils a bit, it was rather intense.
Iris sat up to take a look around. It seemed like she was in some kind of repurposed warehouse. Piles of silken bedsheets and cushy mattresses were piled up in a mountain dominating the center of the room. It commanded her attention. What was that doing there? She felt the urge to climb to the top.
The bedsprings underneath her squeaked with her movement as she motioned to get up and back on her feet.
"Iris, Iris, stay a while! You've had a rough time of it, haven't you??"
A sultry voice cut through the haze, and Iris froze up, her head jerking back and forth. Where did that voice come from? It sounded like it belonged to a woman...
"Hello!?" Iris called out. She squinted, trying to peer through the pink fog.
"Over here~"
Iris could feel a hand poking her cheek from an unseen angle just behind her, and it was enough for Iris to panic, tipping over and sprawling across the ground. She bounced upon impact, her rubbery body flattening briefly upon impact. She turned over to get a better look at her captor.
"...What the hell???"
Iris was stunned at what she was seeing. There was a woman leering over her, but not just any woman. She had a devil's wings gently extending in both directions, a devil's tail that wagged playfully back and forth... she had an intimidating aura about her.
"Ah, introductions are in order. I'm Kamika Malagic. Did my little helpers talk about me at all?"
"...A-a little bit." Iris stuttered. "Wh, where am I?"
"Ohhh, just a little home away from home. Come on, let me help you to your feet." Kamika smiled, lowering a lithe hand to Iris, inviting her to take it with a nod.
"...Iris. Iris Fleurs." She blinked, taking Kamika's hand and helping herself back up. She wobbled slightly, still very out of it.
"Oh dear oh dear, Iris, take a seat, lie down, right over here." Kamika fussed over Iris, helping her back to her bed. "By the way, I'm so dreadfully sorry about the rude introductions my little helpers gave you. I already gave them, ehem, a firm talking to."
"It's fine, just..." Iris looked around the room. "...What's this about? Are you kidnapping me or something...?"
"What!? That's not... hahaha!" Kamika laughed, shaking her head. "My oh my, those fools really made a mess of our first introductions... you must be thirsty, what would you like to drink? Soda, smoothie, sparkling wine?"
"..W-water's fine." Iris' mouth flattened, her hands clutching the bedsheets.
"...Hm. Dull choice, but okay." Kamika didn't seem all that impressed. She reached for a small cooler by Iris' bed and pulled out a small bottle of water, handing it to Iris.
Iris held it in her hands, examining it on all sides. It looked like one she'd find at any corner store or grocery. And the seal was unbroken... it seemed okay. Twisting it open, she swung it back, gulping its contents down in a single swig.
"...Sooo... if this isn't a kidnapping, what's this about?" Iris reached into her pocket, pulling out her secret letter she pulled from her locker. "This is yours, right?"
"Why, yes, that's my perfect handwriting. But don't misconstrue this. I just want to get to know you better, that's all!~"
"...So you send a bunch of henchmen to kidnap me?" Iris perked her eyebrow up. "That's not a super friendly move to make."
"Oh no no no, you misunderstand, Iris, dear. This isn't a kidnapping, you can leave whenever you like! In fact, the door's just over there..."
Kamika pointed down towards the front of the warehouse, where a large door could be raised and lowered to allow entry of trucks and personnel.
"Of course, you'd have to go back to your boring household, with your irritating, fussy mother, but hey, if that's how you wanna live your life..." Kamika shrugged, folding her arms.
"...What do you know about my mother??" Iris turned to Kamika, a little surprised.
"Ahh, long story, she and I go waaaay back. She's always been something of a humourless killjoy..." She tilted her head, rising to her feet to pace back and forth The click of her high heels echoed throughout the enormous building. "...But I suppose you of all people would understand her better than I do. You're her daughter, after all."
Iris lowered her head. "...We had a fight recently. About, well..." Iris glanced over to Kamika. "...Tch. I guess it's not much of a secret anymore, is it?"
"Mmmm, I had a feeling..." Kamika shook her head. "Contemptible woman, really. She's always hated her own revolting body, but that hardly means she has to go about and shame her own daughter as well." Kamika folded her arms, clicking her tongue.
"...Yeah. I'm not even allowed to relax in my own house..." Iris rubbed her shoulder.
"...Well, I have a proposition for you, Iris, dear!~" Kamika bounced up, wringing her hands together as she leaned towards Iris. She had a toothy grin on her face, she could barely hide her excitement.
"...I-I dunno. I shouldn't go signing contracts with demons, or whatever. I like having ownership of my soul..." Iris tried to put some distance between her and Kamika, to no avail.
"Oh, no contracts here! I'm not here to put you under my boot or anything... I want you to trust me." Kamika backed up a step. "I want to give you a place to be free. A new home, as it work~"
"...A home??" Iris glanced around the warehouse. "...Really?? This place is kind of a dump..."
"...I'm going to ignore that slight for the time being." Kamika's eyebrow twitched momentarily as her smile. She extended her palm. "Give me your hand."
"..I... o-okay." Iris nervously extended her arm, only for Kamika to suddenly shift to her side. She grabbed Iris gently by the wrist, and pointed her arm forward.
"I want you to reach out, and touch that far wall with your palm." Kamika instructed Iris
"...Over there? It's, like, fifty feet away!" Iris blurted, shying a bit from such intimate, physical contact with Kamika.
"Truuuust me." Kamika grinned. "I have faith in you~"
Iris didn't have a response for that. She took a deep breath, and began to focus inwards. As if mentally unlocking a latch in her body, she felt her arm began to extend all on its own.
Kamika beamed, watching Iris' noodle appendage stretch further and further along the entire length of the warehouse. Iris stared with astonishment herself as it crossed the halfway point. The pleasant tugging sensation in her body was a recurring feedback look. It told her that this was real. That she was real. That this was a thing she was capable of.
And it was so effortless. Reaching further and further, the length of her arm curving into a gentle arc, she gasped as she felt her palm hit the far wall, the rough sensation of her skin upon concrete surging up the entire, exaggerated length of her arm.
"I... I did it! I've never... that's more than five times longer than anything I ever tried at home!" Iris laughed, the vibrations of her body running down her arm;s full length like a string on a guitar.
"Yesss... and you're capable of so much more." Kamika hissed with elation. She was more than impressed, drifting from Iris' side to run her finger along Iris' smooth, taut skin; it sent shivers down Iris' spine.
"You're rather like your mother. So much untapped potential, and no way to tap into it..." Kamika lamented. "...How do you feel?"
"A... amazing! S-so tingly, and energized, and... I... I wanna..."
"...You have the whole warehouse to work with." Kamika grinned. "Enjoy yourself to your heart's content! Find your limits, and surpass them. Mi casa es tu casa!~"
Iris stared at Kamika, astonished at what she was saying. Iris was being invited to push herself, and find the limit to her abilities. She wondered briefly if she had any, looking at the sheer length her arm had stretched effortlessly.
...But Iris could no longer contain herself. She had to find out.
Once again, she focused internally. A vibrant energy coursed through her limbs, pulsating with power. It surged within her, eager to snake its way out and be unleashed; with a mental nod, she controlled its flow throughout her entire body.
And then she began to grow, and expand, and stretch in all direction. Her neck began to extend higher and higher, up into the rafters above. Her head gently bumped against the ceiling, before finding a pipe to snake around.
Her body slumped over to the ground from the additional weight, her legs losing their definition as limbs and instead coiling infinitely into endless piles of herself. Her arms reached for opposite sides of the warehouse, and wrapped around anything they came into contact with, if only to make use of as much space as possible.
For fifteen minutes, Kamika watched as Iris stretched endlessly all over the warehouse, as streams of skin-coloured, ropey appendages decorated the warehouse like party banners, her elongated torso plainly baring her midriff as it wrapped around her bed frame. Kamika even lost track of where Iris' clothes were in the chaos of it all... but at least they were useful for covering up Iris' private parts.
"...This. This I can work with." Kamika smirked to herself. Billowing her wings, she flapped up to the rafters, trying to find where Iris' head had wound up.
"Ohhhh...~" Iris moaned, her head dangling from a pipe her neck had wrapped around. It swayed back and forth, her long hair reaching for the ground below.
"How you holding up, kiddo?" Kamika flew up to Iris' head, holding it in her arms.
"It feels amaaaazing... just taking a break." Iris muttered with a grin. She blinked, looking Kamika all over. "...Why're you upside down?"
"...I'm not, it's..." Kamika shook her head. "You keep this up, and you'll fill up the whole warehouse."
"...Really? But I'm not done yet..." Iris pouted.
"Well, I got a much better idea. How about we take it to the streets?" Kamika grinned. "The city's a helluva lot bigger than one dinky old warehouse."
"...Woooow." Iris was immediately enamoured by the idea. "Can we do that? That sounds amazing, I-I want in!!"
"Heheh! Had a feeling you would." Kamika beamed. "...But first you gotta pull yourself together."
"...Crap, right." Iris looked down upon her handiwork. "...I really got everywhere this time, huh..."
Iris felt a slight tinge of shame in the midst of her pride. She wondered if her mother would approve of this.
...She absolutely wouldn't. It was a good thing, then, that she wasn't here. Iris got excited just thinking about how tonight was gonna go, and all at once, her coils upon coils of her body tightened at once in anticipation.
This was going to be so much fun...
---
