The Black Ryder

[Kira & Lee Norris]

"Where's Steve when you need him?"
Lee sat up on his bed, frowning at Mike. "Okay- huh?"
"I wanna blow up something," Mike sighed. "Anything. It'd be such a cool power. All I can do is translate animal noises. What use is that?"
"You could always use it as a pick-up line," winked Brian. "Hmm... I can see it now... Your dog thinks you're as beautiful as a muddy field he runs in. How bout lunch?"
"Bad line," laughed Lee. "You can do better than that, Brian."
"I can, can't I?" he muttered thoughtfully. "Hmm... you're as thick as a bone? I love you like I hate bath-time?"
"Eh... no."
"Worth a shot," laughed Brian. "I'll just keep to old faithful."
Lee frowned. "Since when has, 'Did it hurt when you fell out of heaven,' worked for you?"
"It's his body that does it," Mike said sarcastically, throwing a pillow at Brian's head. "You wuss! Can't you duck?"
"Wuss that I am, it has to be a plus," Brian grinned, tossing the pillow back. "Really, I'm a little kittycat beneath the outter shell of... em... rippling muscles."
"Ooh, so you're sensitive, are you?" Mike rolled his eyes. "Jeepers, Lee, you've got competition!"
"Me?" Lee snorted. "Sensitive? Again- huh?"
"Nah... sensitive guys keep journals."
"And cry at chick flicks."
"But you're close, mate!"
"Very close..."
"How so?" Lee slid off the bed and hit the floor with a dull thud.
"You alright down there?" Brian asked, his face appearing over the edge.
"Ooh, no the pain," Lee muttered sarcastically. "I should maybe go cry and write a poem about it."
"Woah, you Carer!"
"Watch it," Mike bit in. "I take great offence at that."
"Yeah, 'cause we all know you're not gay, Mike," Brian said in a tone that almost suggested kindness.
Mike threw another pillow at Brian, which again hit him squarely in the face.
"Dude!"
"You're a 'nice' guy, then, Lee," Mike grinned, shoving Brian to the side to peer down at him on the floor. "Not sensitive. Nice. Girls dig either."
"I'll be sure to ask Ellie about that one," Lee smiled.
"Ellie told me!" Mike said stoutly. "She knows things..."
"Strange... abnormal things," Brian added, shoving the pillowcase over Mike's head, who squirmed and rolled off the bed onto the floor with a resonating thud.
"Welcome," Lee said sarcastically to him. "Us floor-folk don't see much of them pillow things."
"What else did Ellie tell you?" Brian said keenly, from the bottom of the bed.
"Something about how she feels fat in tracksuit bottoms," Mike muttered, trying and failing to get the pillowcase off his head.
Lee moved forward and took Mike's head in both hands, giving the pillowcase a good tug. "Tell me if I'm pulling your ears off, okay?"
"They're off already, you r'ard!"
"Low," Lee smiled. "You hurt me, Mike. You hurt me deep."
"Don't cry, Lee!" Brian laughed. "Unless of course you want to get off with Chloe?"
"Lee doesn't need to cry! He just needs to seronade her!" Mike laughed, then with a sudden war cry threw himself backwards. The pillow case remained on his head and Lee flew forwards with him. They landed in a heap about six beds from Brian, who was roaring with laughter.
"Never underestimate the power of superglue!"
"You didn't...?"
"No, you've just got a fat head. C'mere..."
Lee moved back and let Brian continue to pull at the pillowcase. By now, Mike was sullenly listing the people he was going to haunt after he ran out of oxygen. Lee laughed, getting to his feet.
"Anyone want food? I can go get us some from Matt."
"Go, go! I need energy for this!" Brian growled through gritted teeth, continuing to yank on Mike's head. "But I dunno how he'll eat it!"
"We'll cut a hole where his mouth is," Lee replied, leaving his dorm and heading out into the hall.
Suddenly, the grin slid off his face. Levi Ryder was moving up the hall, a little pink box in his hand. Lee felt his heart heave at the sight of it. He knew exactly who the little box was intended for...
"Hi," Lee said stiffly, hoping to skirt around Levi.
No such luck. Levi had come to a halt directly in front of him- and directly in front of his path.

[Madeleine Baudelaire&Russ Ford]

Madeleine had lost it.
It was what Levi had been hoping for, but now that it had actually happened, it left him feeling bemused and slightly vulnerable. His Head had lost her touch.
It had been a gradual thing, really. It had started with the break-up with Lee. Madeleine's temper had become a lot sharper, and she'd lost a lot of her sense of humour. Usually, at the front of the hall - and even Levi would admit this - she played the part of the Head perfectly. Fearless, in control, sassy, even-tempered but inspiring adherance to the rules. Everyone respected her.
But now, she was losing not only her touch, but possibly even the respect that she'd earned with their last victorious battle.
He didn't know what the word was, but whatever. At first, it was hard to notice unless you were watching carefully. But in training today, after meeting Lee and Chloe in the gardens yesterday, Madeleine was noticably upset.
Well, not upset, but she was quiet, and didn't use her authority at all. And it didn't help that she kept flicking nervous glances at Lee. Then, afterwards, Daniel Ford had asked her if she was okay - and the look on her face sent him running.
Literally.
It needed to stop. A bad Head meant trouble for the rest of the school.
Trouble for the entire side.
So, Levi had decided, it needed fixed. While it was good for him that Madeleine was losing her touch a little, it wasn't what they needed at this moment in time. At all. Especially after the rumours going around that the man "in charge of" Macy when she had been kidnapped had been mysteriously killed...
It was bad timing - so he was going to cheer Madeleine up a little - hence the present in his hand - and he was going to get Lee out of the equation, for good.
He closed the door to his dorm and walked down the corridor to find Madeleine in the common room, when he spotted Lee.
A slight smirk spread across his face. Perfect timing.
Lee's face was unreadable. "Hi," he said stiffly.
Levi smiled. "Hey," he replied, stopping. "Enjoy battle training yesterday?"

[Kira & Lee Norris]

How was he supposed to answer that? It was a little strange for him, actually. Kira had stayed up late last night writing up plans for her Spies. Ever since she stood on that stage... He hadn't quite been able to place his finger on it, but soemthing had changed. Suddenly, she seemed more confident- more authoritive- and whenever she was talking about her... 'job', for want of a better word, something in her tone changed. She sat up a little straighter, her eyes grew a little brighter, and she spoke boldly, and forcefully.
Madeleine had gone just the opposite way.
For some reason (and Lee didn't like to think what) Madeleine seemed to have lost any grip on authority she had. Madeleine had been... well, everything Kira had become. But now... she was definitely losing it. It was subtle- the slight droop of her shoulders; the darker shade of blue her eyes reflected; the paler shade of her skin; the slower, shuffled walk...
"It was good," Lee said boldly, smiling in what he hoped was a friendly way. "Really good."

[Madeleine Baudelaire&Russ Ford]

Levi matched Lee's smile.
"That's good," he said coolly. "But... well, Maddie seems a little... distracted," he finished delicately.
The word was loaded with meaning, and Levi somehow knew that Lee would get the right one. He also hoped to throw him with the diminutive of Madeleine's name. Though, after yesterday, she'd asked him not to call her by it, Levi couldn't see the harm in using it to use it when he was trying to annoy her ex.
The harm to her, anyway.

[Kira & Lee Norris]

Maddie?
"I haven't noticed," Lee frowned. "Are you sure?"
Levi was a pig. He just needed to keep telling himself that. Levi belonged in a twisted fairy-tale... He could see it now...
"Kiss the prince and he becomes a frog!"
It sounded like a great little story.

[Madeleine Baudelaire&Russ Ford]

Levi arched an eyebrow. "So, you're that detatched from her that you can't even notice when she's upset?"
It was a deliberate sting - and he hoped that it would make its mark.

[Kira & Lee Norris]

Lee's face was a frozen mask.
"You're her boyfriend. Isn't it your job to worry about that?"

[Madeleine Baudelaire&Russ Ford]

Levi smirked. "That's why I'm talking to you, Lee. I think it would be better if you weren't there at Battle Training."

[Kira & Lee Norris]

Lee's frown deepened. "What?"
That wasn't fair. He wasn't going to let Levi get in the way of this. He was going to battle.
He was going.
He had to.

[Madeleine Baudelaire&Russ Ford]

"Because she doesn't want you there," Levi lied fluidly. "I'd have thought even you could see that."

[Kira & Lee Norris]

Lee's heart stopped beating. Just for a second.
"Why not?" Lee asked quickly.
Too quickly. He cleared his throat.
"I mean... as Head, shouldn't she know how to become emotionally detatched from me? I know we dated and stuff but... surely you're meant to be helping her get over me?"

[Madeleine Baudelaire&Russ Ford]

Levi laughed delightedly. "Get over you?! God, you're arrogant... No, Lee, that's not what this is about. I don't know exactly why she doesn't want you there, but be rest assured that that is not what it is. I'm pretty sure you just ... remind her of things she doesn't want to think about. And a distracted Head is disastrous for the entire school."

[Kira & Lee Norris]

Lee didn't answer. That had sounded arrogant. He hadn't meant it like that. He'd just... he'd been trying to get to Levi. Or something. But this guy was like Madeleine's knight in shining armour... and that armour was impenetrable. It was exactly the kind Lee had longed to build up around himself.
But he failed. He was no 'black rider'.
"Care to be more specific?"

[Madeleine Baudelaire&Russ Ford]

Levi grinned.
"Well, come on, Lee, it doesn't take a genius to work it out... she doesn't want to remember what you two did. What you had. She's moved on now, and she's only just realising..." He pulled up and smiled at Lee. "Well, who am I to tell you what she thinks? If you want to know, ask her yourself."
He'd never ask. Levi knew that.

[Kira & Lee Norris]

He'd never ask. Levi knew that.
That's why it was such a triumph for him.
"I don't care," Lee said stiffly. "I'm going. If she doesn't want me there, she can tell me herself, not sent you running like her little servant."