FRODO AND THE FACULTY
Author's Notes : This is supposed to be just for fun. I have only just revisited Elijah Wood's movie "The Faculty" and while my mind was taken over, had the idea to write something humorous involving the Fellowship and the movie characters.
As I watched I was thinking, he gets into these roles where he is supposed to save everyone else and decided to take the fun out both.
This is a one off thing - just for entertainment and I hope that people who read this and think that the author has lost her marbles will still continue to read my other stories for LOTR which try and stick closer to the original story line.
The Fellowship can see and hear everything that is going on at the school, including making some interesting comments about the new image for Frodo and his use of colourful language. They cannot interact with him and he doesn't know they exist. Gandalf is only along as purely an advisor for the rest of the Fellowship on some of the more modern things about the human world that they encounter.
Where I can I have chosen a more appropriate method of using such colourful language - i.e. "F.k" and "Sh." where they are needed. I wanted to be mindful that a lot of people might be offended - others not and will make others up as I go along as needed.
I have exaggerated the personalities of all slightly but please don't be offended - just mean as a poke in fun at them all. You don't need to understand why it happens that Frodo is now a high-school kid, just believe it and read and ignore anything that doesn't usually fit our beloved hobbit.
The story begins after ROTK where Frodo is supposed to be famous for his deeds. Gandalf comes rushing in to tell them about Frodo's sudden disappearance and that he now dwells in a new world of humans that needs him to save the day again.
If you haven't read the first chapter or even if you have - it has had some changes done to it so you might want to go back and revisit it before continuing on with this chapter.
NEXT PART
For the Fellowship the remainder of the night was a long one. Casey didn't look like going to sleep for a long time and even took to drinking a few cans of soda to try and keep awake, hoping the high sugar levels would help some.
At about 4.30am though the battle was finally lost and Casey fell into a restless doze on his bed, whilst the TV still played in the background.
"Still avoiding sleep when he is scared isn't he," Merry said ruefully.
"So it would seem," Aragorn agreed as he watched the teenager's face. It would be calm in slumber for a few minutes, but then his brow would frown whilst he was remembering something or in the middle of a nightmare.
The little dog Sam had crawled underneath the boy's arm again and was sound asleep with his master.
At about 7.30, Casey's mother came into the room like she had done the previous morning, except this time she did wake her son in time for school.
"Casey," she said, giving him a slight nudge to his shoulder.
"Mmn," came the half-hearted reply from Casey, still with his eyes closed, hoping whatever it was would just go away if he ignored it.
"Casey you have to get up because your father is driving you to school today," his mother said firmly.
"What!" Casey said in answer to the statement, clearly awake now and annoyed. "Doesn't trust me anymore," he muttered angrily as he got off the bed and stomped off into the bathroom.
Casey's mother left the room without a word, knowing that the breakfast table was going to be like a war zone this morning. She had already made breakfast for her husband and her son. Time now to step aside so she didn't get caught up in what was evitable.
The Fellowship could see that Casey was clearly not happy about the whole situation. He didn't currently show any of the fear that he had felt the previous night about what might happen today. He was ticked off about being treated like a five year old.
"God Damn it if he wants to fight then I give him one," Casey said harshly as he put his sneakers on as he thought about his father. This was an entirely different new side of the ring-bearer that Aragorn, Legolas and Gimli were not accustomed to seeing.
The other three hobbits though looked at each other and knew what lay in store. Each of them were only too aware of how stubborn their darker haired friend could become if he wanted to.
"That's the Baggins coming out in him," Merry said to the group. "Seen it myself at Brandy Hall maybe once or twice too. Not a pretty site my cousin when he is mad at something. Pippin nodded his head in agreement, remembering facing a rather angry Frodo only once but not wishing to do it again anytime soon.
"Aye, once Mr Frodo sets his mind to something, there's nothing that changes it," Sam admitted.
Casey went downstairs and sat at the breakfast table, instead of coming right out and confronting his father though, the teenager decided to exactly the opposite and give his dad the silent treatment. He used his facial expression and eyes to relay whatever feelings he wanted to display.
When he sat down though, his father saw what his son intended to do and decided to go along with the mind games himself. He knew that his son could show incredible amounts of stubbornness if he had a mind to. Now it just had to be seen who would buckle under the pressure first.
Mrs Connor placed the full jug of orange juice between father and son and looked briefly at each of them as the sat opposite each other, waiting for the battle of wits to begin.
"Pass the butter please son," Frank Connor asked, knowing he didn't really want it but beginning the proceedings. Casey never said anything, nor did his gaze wander from his father. He felt around with his hand until the butter container was in his hand and pushed it towards his father.
This little charade kept going for the next twenty minutes or so, Frank Connor asking his son to pass various items from the table that were in reaching distance from himself.
Casey's grit and determination never wavered though, doing exactly what he asked without questioning but still staring down the man and waiting for him to admit he was wrong about the way he had unfairly treated his son the night before.
"Ready to go to school?" Connor asked calmly, noting the blue flash he got in return. He knew that his son didn't want to go to school for some reason today. He had no intentions of believing any of the story that Casey had offered as an excuse the night before. But still in the back of his mind he couldn't remember any other times when Casey had not wanted to go school.
Casey had hardly eaten anything again, much to the unseen scowl of Sam but quickly put his half-finished plate in the sink and followed his father out the door towards the car.
"At least he isn't going to use those ridiculous contraptions on his feet today," Gimli commented. The others couldn't help but agree that they too felt a little relieved that there was an alternative method of transport to be adopted today.
The tension in the car when they first drove off between Casey and his father was obvious, even to the Fellowship. There was no talk. Frank Connor drove the car. Casey sat in the front passenger seat, as close to the door as he could get as if to avoid any physical contact with his father.
But halfway through the drive, the atmosphere changed, almost as if Casey had put on a different set of clothes. He could sense they were nearing the school, and his actions and thoughts of rebelliousness were all forgotten about as a new feelings began invading his senses: fear.
Aragorn saw the look in the teenager's eyes and knew he had seen it before. Frodo had often tried to hide all of his feelings along the journey to Mordor, but unfortunately for him, his expressive blue eyes always gave away just exactly what he didn't want others to know.
The car now pulled up outside the school building and Casey looked out at it. He had seen this building so many times before, but today was different. Despite the normal crowd of students that could be seen on any other given day, there was also an eeriness that couldn't be described.
Casey looked back at this father to see if he might have had a change of heart. No such luck though he thought to himself as Frank Connor looked directly over the steering wheel as if ignoring any sad or pleading looks his son might give him.
"Please Dad, don't make me do this," Casey asked, uttering the first words he had spoken that morning.
There was a tone in his son's voice that almost made Frank Connor want to say to his son that it was okay not to go today. But they were only in his mind and never left his lips.
"Go on son. Come home after school, your mother is getting you into a doctor," Frank Connor said, a little uneasy about admitting the fact that his son might need professional help.
Casey's frustration and anger began to emerge once again at the hearing of going to a doctor. He knew exactly what sort of doctor they were talking about and it wasn't one that just took your temperature or measured you to see how tall you had grown.
"Fine, but mostly likely he will have to see me down at the morgue in a body bag," Casey said harshly.
"Son," Frank Connor started to say, trying to call Casey back to let him calm down a little before stomping off.
"Forget it Dad, if I don't come home at all today you will know that I am dead," Casey spat and got out of the car and slammed the door before starting to walk towards the building.
Merry and Pippin had both paled considerably at their cousin talking about his own death. They didn't like it one little bit and looking back at the shocked faces of the other Fellowship members, neither did any of them.
Casey was about halfway across the grassed area when he heard a voice from behind him, "Mr Connor."
When he turned around, he was surprised to see his father's car still parked in the same place and his fear began to grow again when he noted that Coach Willis had strolled over to casually talk to his father.
Casey paused for a few seconds and looked back with a feeling of helplessness. He had been angry at his father this morning about last night, but he still didn't want to see anything happen to him. When he saw his father and Coach Willis nod in his direction as they spoke about him in their conversation, Casey couldn't help but feel a shiver run up and down his spine.
"I am afraid that Casey's father is no longer human either," Gandalf commented to the Fellowship. "Casey can no longer rely on him for help."
Sam couldn't hide his feeling of relief that his master Frodo wasn't still seated in the car with his father when Coach Willis had approached.
"One by one they are getting to people like they did that nurse," Legolas commented. Not wanting to voice the unspoken one he thought how long before they try and get to the ring-bearer.
Casey seemed to be lost in his own thoughts as he started to walk through the front doors of the school. The Fellowship were relieved to note that nothing like the previous day had happened when he arrived.
The teenager continued to walk through the crowd of students, barely aware of their presence as he tried to figure out in his mind what he was going to do. He hadn't seen any sign of Delilah yet out the front and wondered if she had even turned up today. Couldn't very well blame her if she didn't.
Casey suddenly looked up at the right time and was confronted by a different looking Delilah than he was used to seeing. The girl who was forever known for checking her make-up and hair now had her hair pulled back in a ponytail and wore thick black framed glasses on her face.
Casey had to check twice that it was her. "Whoa, you look....," he tried to say, hiding the laugh he felt inside.
"Don't ..come on we have got to talk," Delilah said grabbing by his shirt sleeve and leading him into the senior boy's bathroom.
There had been some other boys present at the time that look at her kinda strange like when they entered. They had given a few raised eyebrow looks but left all the same, leaving Casey and Delilah alone in the room.
"Did you tell your parents what happened?" Delilah asked hoping that he had been able to get somebody to listen to his version of events.
"Are you kidding. Things at home are very different after last night," Casey replied, not wanting to go into full details of what had been said between him and his parents.
"How about you, did you talk to your mother last night?" Casey queried.
"No she didn't believe me. My mother drinks," she said, not really wanting to admit that secret to a great deal of people. "It was a nightmare too."
Casey and Delilah stopped speaking for a few minutes while they listened to a message being played out over the PA system.
"Would the following students please report to the principal's office immediately" the message said and then started rattling off a list of names.
"All the top people in the school," Delilah said as she heard the names and tried to place them in the school hierarchy.
"Now they want me," she said as she heard her own name called out over the microphone. This is all your fault. You dragged me into this," she said, not really trying to put the blame on him, but not being able to hide her fear about what was going on.
"Why isn't Casey's name being called then?" Legolas inquired, having listened to the girl's explanation for the roll call.
"I don't think they hold his presence in the best respect like we do in Middle-Earth," Gandalf said, noting the displeasure on the faces of the others at such a statement.
"We have to go to the police," Delilah said, grasping at straws rather than giving helpful solutions.
"No I am telling you they have got the police," Casey replied, the images of the police officer from the night before suddenly appearing in his mind.
"Well what else do we do then huh? Tell me because I don't even know what we are talking about here. Neither one of us knows what the hell those things are that we saw," Delilah said.
"They could be here for any reason, who the f..k knows," Casey responded, not having any more solutions than her.
"I am going to find Stan," Delilah stated, walking out of the cubicle and hoping the explain the situation to somebody else that might be able to help.
"Stan, why the hell Stan," Casey said as he followed her.
When the two teenagers reached the corridor, both of them paused for a minute to look at the long line of students running from the back of the school building all the way to the front office.
Some of them were the names called out over the PA system, but other than that it looked as though everyone in the school was lined up their except for a select few.
Casey turned around to see Delilah spotting Stan, the football star and dragging him off somewhere to tell him what had been going on. He couldn't shake the creepy feeling he got seeing the long line of students along the corridor.
Standing in the middle of the corridor wondering what to do next, when he spotted somebody else who was looking at the long line with just as much uneasiness as himself.
He knew that he should be doing the same as Delilah and trying to convince somebody else. Whether not the person he saw would believe him or not was another question. She wasn't your ordinary girl, but there was something else about Stokeley that drew his attention to her.
Stokeley had been trying to get a look at what was happening to all of the people lined up along the corridor. At one point she could get a good look at one of them sitting in a chair and the school nurse giving him what appeared to be an ear examination.
Her view was quickly obscured though as Ms Drake appeared from behind the door in the room and closed it to conceal exactly what was going on. This only made Stokeley think that something was definitely amiss even more. She couldn't quite understand it yet, but there was some weird sh.t happening here.
"Hey Stokeley, got a minute," Casey said, walking up to her. At first he thought she might just tell him off, but to his surprise she nodded her head, knowing that he was noticing the weird stuff too.
The two of them went to the school library and sat down in the very back of the room, hopefully out of ear shot from everyone else.
"So then we just ran," Casey finished, telling the girl the entire story of what had happened to him and Stan in the showers and then with Delilah in the teachers lounge. He told her about the police involvement and finding the body of the old teacher in the closet.
"There's definitely something going on here," Stokeley said looking around the room.
"What do you think is going on?" Casey asked plainly.
"I don't know Casey you tell me. I mean yeah all of that stuff sounds creepy and all. But will you listen to yourself, your talking as if you think there are aliens or something in the school," Stokeley said.
"Well how else do you explain what has been happening. All of the teachers are acting so differently lately and drinking all that water. It's just not natural or something."
"If you go telling people the same story you just told me they are going to think you have been rammed into the flag pole one too many times Casey."
"It's kinda cool though when you think about it a little more. That something like the Body Snatchers is happening right here," Stokeley said with a sly grin.
It was at this point that Casey knew Stokeley believed at least part of his story, no matter how much she tried to say otherwise.
"Okay, so let's say this is like the movies, what is missing?"
"Well in the Body Snatchers they were pod people but if that is what is happening where are the pods."
"There are no pods, at least not that I have seen. They were little slimy slugs or something coming out of Willis."
"In some others they were like parasites," Stokeley said, trying to give another possibility.
Stokeley and Casey walked out of the library together, in an attempt to meet up with Delilah and Stan. They didn't need to wait long though and the four of them now stood together in the middle of the corridor.
"I filled Stan in," Delilah said to Casey.
"I think Stokeley might be onto something," Casey offered.
"Really Delilah said with doubt in her words.
It was no secret that Delilah and Stokeley were absolutely worlds apart when it came to personality. They hated each other with a passion and what each other stood for. But at the moment they had little choice but to be thrown together in amidst the mess and chaos before they too became victims of what was happening at the school.
"Come on, let's talk somewhere else," Casey suggested and led the other three towards Furlong's classroom.
The four teenagers entered the room, expecting to see the creature that Casey had found yesterday still swimming around in the aquarium at the back of the room. As they came closer though, the aquarium was now completely empty but for the water that had been left behind.
"What did they do to it?" Casey said out loud, not really talking to anyone in particular.
"Maybe Furlong sent it to a university like he said," Stokeley said.
"Doubt it," Casey said, not being able to shake that this was all connected.
"Will somebody please tell me what the hell is going on around here," Stan said, looking at Casey for an explanation.
Casey looked at the two girls hoping they would jump in before him and tell Stan, but to no avail. They were both looking at him, waiting for him to speak first.
"Casey?" Stan said, not letting the teenager off the hook any time soon.
"It all started yesterday when I found this thing on the sports oval," Casey began, starting at the beginning of the story. "You saw what it did when it was put in the tank here when it suddenly grew teeth."
Stan listened but then shrugged his shoulders, still not grasping everything that he was being told and certainly not being able to draw any inferences from that to what Delilah had told him a short time ago.
"We think that aliens are trying to take over the school through the faculty," Casey said, taking as deep breath to say it all in one sentence.
Delilah and Stokeley looked from Casey to Stan, trying to gauge what his reaction was to such a statement.
"What is an alien Gandalf?" Aragorn asked, listening to the conversation.
"It is the name given to things of this world that are not understood or believed to come from other worlds," Gandalf explained. "Like some that he saw in those movies on Casey's TV."
The Fellowship nodded their heads in understanding, but keeping their focus on Casey and the other teenagers. They looked at the four of them in the room and knew that they were part of the new Fellowship that was to be formed to try and overcome this new threat.
At first there was no comment. Then out of the blue Stan began laughing. He found the entire notion to be utterly ridiculous but looking back at the faces of the other three, knew that they at least believed this as a plausible explanation.
"Aliens are taking over the school? Give me a f.king break."
"If you don't want to believe us Stan then go on and get the f.k out of here and take your little b.ch with you," Delilah said, knowing that Stokeley had undisclosed feelings for Stan.
"F..k you tit bags," Stokeley said in self-defence.
"Guys can we all just calm down here a little please," Casey said, seeing that emotions were running high and beginning to get the better of them all.
"How are they going to work together and survive if they can't even talk to each other?" Sam asked as he watched the cat fight between the two girls. It was quite uncommon back in Middle-Earth to see two ladies fighting, especially in the Shire where most tried to get along.
"Okay Casey, let's go alien for a second here," Stan challenged, trying to get his mind around the whole idea. "If they are in the school, why would they attack here first? Why now?"
"If you were going to take over the world, would to do it so that everyone stood up and took notice or sneak in through the back door?" Casey replied, giving his theory on why they had chosen now to reveal themselves and their intentions.
The other three were pondering this idea, unaware that two others were listening to the entire conversations about aliens and taking over the school as well.
Zeke and Mary-Beth walked into the classroom, but not before Zeke had made a god-awful noise that made Casey jump about six feet in the air.
Casey almost had a heart-attack and was still trying to get himself under control when he saw the others approach.
"Casey... the only person in this school who is an alien man is you," Zeke teased.
"Don't you go calling my Mr Frodo names," Sam said, not happy at all about what was going on. But as it would happen, Casey had scathing words of his own to say.
"F.k You Zeke!" Casey said.
"Oh Casey," Zeke said, now over acting and trying to make out as if the words had wounded him gravely. Casey couldn't help but feel a grin tugging at the corners of his mouth at the antics.
Before any further conversation could take place about aliens or anything else another voice addressed the six students from behind.
"What are you all doing in here. Shouldn't you all be in class right about now," came the question from Mr Furlong as he entered the room.
Zeke took it upon himself to speak on everyone's behalf, "Its like this Mr Furlong, see Casey here, thinks you are an alien." he said, thinking the teacher would take the whole thing as a joke.
"Really?" Furlong said, starting to laugh but then abruptly stopping and walking over to the door and closing the blind so that nobody could peer in.
"Oh thanks a lot Zeke, just throw me into the fire why don't you," Casey said, a little annoyed that he was getting the blame first.
"Is this true Casey?" Furlong asked, now walking towards him directly.
"The whole faculty actually," Stan added.
Stan and the girls had now taken a few steps back, noting a difference in the teacher's demeanour. Zeke was standing near the fish aquarium with Casey a few metres to his left, closest to Furlong.
"The thing I found yesterday, where is it?" Casey asked, thinking the teacher might be able to shed some light on the matter.
"I sent it to the university," Furlong said, pausing slightly as he spoke. Something about the man's changed behaviour made all in the room doubt what he said.
"Do they know what it is?" Stokeley asked.
Furlong just shrugged his shoulders in a non-committal gesture, not offering any better explanation.
The tension in the room was thick and making all nervous and uncomfortable.
"Well I hate to interrupt this little get together Mr Furlong, but I have got.....," Zeke said as he began walking towards the door.
Furlong reached out with an arm though and took a strong hold of the boy's shirt sleeve.
"If you would all just take your seats, this will all be over quite quickly," Furlong said, indicating exactly what he intended to do with them all.
Zeke tried to make a break for it but was hurled across the room away from the others by the teacher.
Furlong now walked up to Casey before he even realised what was happening and grabbed the lean teenager around the throat with one hand.
"I said now!" the teacher warned, using Casey as his bargaining chip.
Casey's eyes were wide with fear as he tried to use his hands to pry the choking grip from around his neck.
The Fellowship were horrified that their friend was being held in such a manner. They could see the teacher's fingers digging painfully into the boy's soft skin, causing Casey to gasp in pain.
Aragorn and Legolas wished they could do something physically to help Frodo but they couldn't. They were relieved though when it seemed that Casey's classmates were determined to prevent the teachers hurting him any further, just like they would have.
Zeke had a crude looking blade in his hand, raised over his shoulder in a threatening manner, "Put him the f.k down Furlong," he warned noting that the teacher was trying to make his grip even tighter so as to raise Casey's feet off the floor a little.
Stan could see what the teacher planned to do but wasn't quick enough as Furlong used all of the force in his arm and threw Casey across the room. The teenager landed against a filing cabinet against the back wall and his head caught the edge.
Casey gave a brief and startled cry as he was rendered unconscious before landing on the floor in a crumpled heap.
"Mr Frodo....Mr Frodo," Sam cried out in alarm as he scrambled beside his fallen master, unable to help him. Aragorn was trying his best to assist Frodo's condition without being able to physically take a look.
The girls even showed concern on their faces at what they had seen happen.
But they were now huddled together towards the other side of the classroom, trying to edge as far away from Furlong as possible.
Stan did actually reached Casey after he landed awkwardly calling out to him, but there was no response. Casey was lying on his side, facing the others, but his eyes were closed and he didn't move.
Stan shook the unconscious Casey a few times, "He's out cold," he offered.
TBC
Not very good but anyway.....
JULES
Author's Notes : This is supposed to be just for fun. I have only just revisited Elijah Wood's movie "The Faculty" and while my mind was taken over, had the idea to write something humorous involving the Fellowship and the movie characters.
As I watched I was thinking, he gets into these roles where he is supposed to save everyone else and decided to take the fun out both.
This is a one off thing - just for entertainment and I hope that people who read this and think that the author has lost her marbles will still continue to read my other stories for LOTR which try and stick closer to the original story line.
The Fellowship can see and hear everything that is going on at the school, including making some interesting comments about the new image for Frodo and his use of colourful language. They cannot interact with him and he doesn't know they exist. Gandalf is only along as purely an advisor for the rest of the Fellowship on some of the more modern things about the human world that they encounter.
Where I can I have chosen a more appropriate method of using such colourful language - i.e. "F.k" and "Sh." where they are needed. I wanted to be mindful that a lot of people might be offended - others not and will make others up as I go along as needed.
I have exaggerated the personalities of all slightly but please don't be offended - just mean as a poke in fun at them all. You don't need to understand why it happens that Frodo is now a high-school kid, just believe it and read and ignore anything that doesn't usually fit our beloved hobbit.
The story begins after ROTK where Frodo is supposed to be famous for his deeds. Gandalf comes rushing in to tell them about Frodo's sudden disappearance and that he now dwells in a new world of humans that needs him to save the day again.
If you haven't read the first chapter or even if you have - it has had some changes done to it so you might want to go back and revisit it before continuing on with this chapter.
NEXT PART
For the Fellowship the remainder of the night was a long one. Casey didn't look like going to sleep for a long time and even took to drinking a few cans of soda to try and keep awake, hoping the high sugar levels would help some.
At about 4.30am though the battle was finally lost and Casey fell into a restless doze on his bed, whilst the TV still played in the background.
"Still avoiding sleep when he is scared isn't he," Merry said ruefully.
"So it would seem," Aragorn agreed as he watched the teenager's face. It would be calm in slumber for a few minutes, but then his brow would frown whilst he was remembering something or in the middle of a nightmare.
The little dog Sam had crawled underneath the boy's arm again and was sound asleep with his master.
At about 7.30, Casey's mother came into the room like she had done the previous morning, except this time she did wake her son in time for school.
"Casey," she said, giving him a slight nudge to his shoulder.
"Mmn," came the half-hearted reply from Casey, still with his eyes closed, hoping whatever it was would just go away if he ignored it.
"Casey you have to get up because your father is driving you to school today," his mother said firmly.
"What!" Casey said in answer to the statement, clearly awake now and annoyed. "Doesn't trust me anymore," he muttered angrily as he got off the bed and stomped off into the bathroom.
Casey's mother left the room without a word, knowing that the breakfast table was going to be like a war zone this morning. She had already made breakfast for her husband and her son. Time now to step aside so she didn't get caught up in what was evitable.
The Fellowship could see that Casey was clearly not happy about the whole situation. He didn't currently show any of the fear that he had felt the previous night about what might happen today. He was ticked off about being treated like a five year old.
"God Damn it if he wants to fight then I give him one," Casey said harshly as he put his sneakers on as he thought about his father. This was an entirely different new side of the ring-bearer that Aragorn, Legolas and Gimli were not accustomed to seeing.
The other three hobbits though looked at each other and knew what lay in store. Each of them were only too aware of how stubborn their darker haired friend could become if he wanted to.
"That's the Baggins coming out in him," Merry said to the group. "Seen it myself at Brandy Hall maybe once or twice too. Not a pretty site my cousin when he is mad at something. Pippin nodded his head in agreement, remembering facing a rather angry Frodo only once but not wishing to do it again anytime soon.
"Aye, once Mr Frodo sets his mind to something, there's nothing that changes it," Sam admitted.
Casey went downstairs and sat at the breakfast table, instead of coming right out and confronting his father though, the teenager decided to exactly the opposite and give his dad the silent treatment. He used his facial expression and eyes to relay whatever feelings he wanted to display.
When he sat down though, his father saw what his son intended to do and decided to go along with the mind games himself. He knew that his son could show incredible amounts of stubbornness if he had a mind to. Now it just had to be seen who would buckle under the pressure first.
Mrs Connor placed the full jug of orange juice between father and son and looked briefly at each of them as the sat opposite each other, waiting for the battle of wits to begin.
"Pass the butter please son," Frank Connor asked, knowing he didn't really want it but beginning the proceedings. Casey never said anything, nor did his gaze wander from his father. He felt around with his hand until the butter container was in his hand and pushed it towards his father.
This little charade kept going for the next twenty minutes or so, Frank Connor asking his son to pass various items from the table that were in reaching distance from himself.
Casey's grit and determination never wavered though, doing exactly what he asked without questioning but still staring down the man and waiting for him to admit he was wrong about the way he had unfairly treated his son the night before.
"Ready to go to school?" Connor asked calmly, noting the blue flash he got in return. He knew that his son didn't want to go to school for some reason today. He had no intentions of believing any of the story that Casey had offered as an excuse the night before. But still in the back of his mind he couldn't remember any other times when Casey had not wanted to go school.
Casey had hardly eaten anything again, much to the unseen scowl of Sam but quickly put his half-finished plate in the sink and followed his father out the door towards the car.
"At least he isn't going to use those ridiculous contraptions on his feet today," Gimli commented. The others couldn't help but agree that they too felt a little relieved that there was an alternative method of transport to be adopted today.
The tension in the car when they first drove off between Casey and his father was obvious, even to the Fellowship. There was no talk. Frank Connor drove the car. Casey sat in the front passenger seat, as close to the door as he could get as if to avoid any physical contact with his father.
But halfway through the drive, the atmosphere changed, almost as if Casey had put on a different set of clothes. He could sense they were nearing the school, and his actions and thoughts of rebelliousness were all forgotten about as a new feelings began invading his senses: fear.
Aragorn saw the look in the teenager's eyes and knew he had seen it before. Frodo had often tried to hide all of his feelings along the journey to Mordor, but unfortunately for him, his expressive blue eyes always gave away just exactly what he didn't want others to know.
The car now pulled up outside the school building and Casey looked out at it. He had seen this building so many times before, but today was different. Despite the normal crowd of students that could be seen on any other given day, there was also an eeriness that couldn't be described.
Casey looked back at this father to see if he might have had a change of heart. No such luck though he thought to himself as Frank Connor looked directly over the steering wheel as if ignoring any sad or pleading looks his son might give him.
"Please Dad, don't make me do this," Casey asked, uttering the first words he had spoken that morning.
There was a tone in his son's voice that almost made Frank Connor want to say to his son that it was okay not to go today. But they were only in his mind and never left his lips.
"Go on son. Come home after school, your mother is getting you into a doctor," Frank Connor said, a little uneasy about admitting the fact that his son might need professional help.
Casey's frustration and anger began to emerge once again at the hearing of going to a doctor. He knew exactly what sort of doctor they were talking about and it wasn't one that just took your temperature or measured you to see how tall you had grown.
"Fine, but mostly likely he will have to see me down at the morgue in a body bag," Casey said harshly.
"Son," Frank Connor started to say, trying to call Casey back to let him calm down a little before stomping off.
"Forget it Dad, if I don't come home at all today you will know that I am dead," Casey spat and got out of the car and slammed the door before starting to walk towards the building.
Merry and Pippin had both paled considerably at their cousin talking about his own death. They didn't like it one little bit and looking back at the shocked faces of the other Fellowship members, neither did any of them.
Casey was about halfway across the grassed area when he heard a voice from behind him, "Mr Connor."
When he turned around, he was surprised to see his father's car still parked in the same place and his fear began to grow again when he noted that Coach Willis had strolled over to casually talk to his father.
Casey paused for a few seconds and looked back with a feeling of helplessness. He had been angry at his father this morning about last night, but he still didn't want to see anything happen to him. When he saw his father and Coach Willis nod in his direction as they spoke about him in their conversation, Casey couldn't help but feel a shiver run up and down his spine.
"I am afraid that Casey's father is no longer human either," Gandalf commented to the Fellowship. "Casey can no longer rely on him for help."
Sam couldn't hide his feeling of relief that his master Frodo wasn't still seated in the car with his father when Coach Willis had approached.
"One by one they are getting to people like they did that nurse," Legolas commented. Not wanting to voice the unspoken one he thought how long before they try and get to the ring-bearer.
Casey seemed to be lost in his own thoughts as he started to walk through the front doors of the school. The Fellowship were relieved to note that nothing like the previous day had happened when he arrived.
The teenager continued to walk through the crowd of students, barely aware of their presence as he tried to figure out in his mind what he was going to do. He hadn't seen any sign of Delilah yet out the front and wondered if she had even turned up today. Couldn't very well blame her if she didn't.
Casey suddenly looked up at the right time and was confronted by a different looking Delilah than he was used to seeing. The girl who was forever known for checking her make-up and hair now had her hair pulled back in a ponytail and wore thick black framed glasses on her face.
Casey had to check twice that it was her. "Whoa, you look....," he tried to say, hiding the laugh he felt inside.
"Don't ..come on we have got to talk," Delilah said grabbing by his shirt sleeve and leading him into the senior boy's bathroom.
There had been some other boys present at the time that look at her kinda strange like when they entered. They had given a few raised eyebrow looks but left all the same, leaving Casey and Delilah alone in the room.
"Did you tell your parents what happened?" Delilah asked hoping that he had been able to get somebody to listen to his version of events.
"Are you kidding. Things at home are very different after last night," Casey replied, not wanting to go into full details of what had been said between him and his parents.
"How about you, did you talk to your mother last night?" Casey queried.
"No she didn't believe me. My mother drinks," she said, not really wanting to admit that secret to a great deal of people. "It was a nightmare too."
Casey and Delilah stopped speaking for a few minutes while they listened to a message being played out over the PA system.
"Would the following students please report to the principal's office immediately" the message said and then started rattling off a list of names.
"All the top people in the school," Delilah said as she heard the names and tried to place them in the school hierarchy.
"Now they want me," she said as she heard her own name called out over the microphone. This is all your fault. You dragged me into this," she said, not really trying to put the blame on him, but not being able to hide her fear about what was going on.
"Why isn't Casey's name being called then?" Legolas inquired, having listened to the girl's explanation for the roll call.
"I don't think they hold his presence in the best respect like we do in Middle-Earth," Gandalf said, noting the displeasure on the faces of the others at such a statement.
"We have to go to the police," Delilah said, grasping at straws rather than giving helpful solutions.
"No I am telling you they have got the police," Casey replied, the images of the police officer from the night before suddenly appearing in his mind.
"Well what else do we do then huh? Tell me because I don't even know what we are talking about here. Neither one of us knows what the hell those things are that we saw," Delilah said.
"They could be here for any reason, who the f..k knows," Casey responded, not having any more solutions than her.
"I am going to find Stan," Delilah stated, walking out of the cubicle and hoping the explain the situation to somebody else that might be able to help.
"Stan, why the hell Stan," Casey said as he followed her.
When the two teenagers reached the corridor, both of them paused for a minute to look at the long line of students running from the back of the school building all the way to the front office.
Some of them were the names called out over the PA system, but other than that it looked as though everyone in the school was lined up their except for a select few.
Casey turned around to see Delilah spotting Stan, the football star and dragging him off somewhere to tell him what had been going on. He couldn't shake the creepy feeling he got seeing the long line of students along the corridor.
Standing in the middle of the corridor wondering what to do next, when he spotted somebody else who was looking at the long line with just as much uneasiness as himself.
He knew that he should be doing the same as Delilah and trying to convince somebody else. Whether not the person he saw would believe him or not was another question. She wasn't your ordinary girl, but there was something else about Stokeley that drew his attention to her.
Stokeley had been trying to get a look at what was happening to all of the people lined up along the corridor. At one point she could get a good look at one of them sitting in a chair and the school nurse giving him what appeared to be an ear examination.
Her view was quickly obscured though as Ms Drake appeared from behind the door in the room and closed it to conceal exactly what was going on. This only made Stokeley think that something was definitely amiss even more. She couldn't quite understand it yet, but there was some weird sh.t happening here.
"Hey Stokeley, got a minute," Casey said, walking up to her. At first he thought she might just tell him off, but to his surprise she nodded her head, knowing that he was noticing the weird stuff too.
The two of them went to the school library and sat down in the very back of the room, hopefully out of ear shot from everyone else.
"So then we just ran," Casey finished, telling the girl the entire story of what had happened to him and Stan in the showers and then with Delilah in the teachers lounge. He told her about the police involvement and finding the body of the old teacher in the closet.
"There's definitely something going on here," Stokeley said looking around the room.
"What do you think is going on?" Casey asked plainly.
"I don't know Casey you tell me. I mean yeah all of that stuff sounds creepy and all. But will you listen to yourself, your talking as if you think there are aliens or something in the school," Stokeley said.
"Well how else do you explain what has been happening. All of the teachers are acting so differently lately and drinking all that water. It's just not natural or something."
"If you go telling people the same story you just told me they are going to think you have been rammed into the flag pole one too many times Casey."
"It's kinda cool though when you think about it a little more. That something like the Body Snatchers is happening right here," Stokeley said with a sly grin.
It was at this point that Casey knew Stokeley believed at least part of his story, no matter how much she tried to say otherwise.
"Okay, so let's say this is like the movies, what is missing?"
"Well in the Body Snatchers they were pod people but if that is what is happening where are the pods."
"There are no pods, at least not that I have seen. They were little slimy slugs or something coming out of Willis."
"In some others they were like parasites," Stokeley said, trying to give another possibility.
Stokeley and Casey walked out of the library together, in an attempt to meet up with Delilah and Stan. They didn't need to wait long though and the four of them now stood together in the middle of the corridor.
"I filled Stan in," Delilah said to Casey.
"I think Stokeley might be onto something," Casey offered.
"Really Delilah said with doubt in her words.
It was no secret that Delilah and Stokeley were absolutely worlds apart when it came to personality. They hated each other with a passion and what each other stood for. But at the moment they had little choice but to be thrown together in amidst the mess and chaos before they too became victims of what was happening at the school.
"Come on, let's talk somewhere else," Casey suggested and led the other three towards Furlong's classroom.
The four teenagers entered the room, expecting to see the creature that Casey had found yesterday still swimming around in the aquarium at the back of the room. As they came closer though, the aquarium was now completely empty but for the water that had been left behind.
"What did they do to it?" Casey said out loud, not really talking to anyone in particular.
"Maybe Furlong sent it to a university like he said," Stokeley said.
"Doubt it," Casey said, not being able to shake that this was all connected.
"Will somebody please tell me what the hell is going on around here," Stan said, looking at Casey for an explanation.
Casey looked at the two girls hoping they would jump in before him and tell Stan, but to no avail. They were both looking at him, waiting for him to speak first.
"Casey?" Stan said, not letting the teenager off the hook any time soon.
"It all started yesterday when I found this thing on the sports oval," Casey began, starting at the beginning of the story. "You saw what it did when it was put in the tank here when it suddenly grew teeth."
Stan listened but then shrugged his shoulders, still not grasping everything that he was being told and certainly not being able to draw any inferences from that to what Delilah had told him a short time ago.
"We think that aliens are trying to take over the school through the faculty," Casey said, taking as deep breath to say it all in one sentence.
Delilah and Stokeley looked from Casey to Stan, trying to gauge what his reaction was to such a statement.
"What is an alien Gandalf?" Aragorn asked, listening to the conversation.
"It is the name given to things of this world that are not understood or believed to come from other worlds," Gandalf explained. "Like some that he saw in those movies on Casey's TV."
The Fellowship nodded their heads in understanding, but keeping their focus on Casey and the other teenagers. They looked at the four of them in the room and knew that they were part of the new Fellowship that was to be formed to try and overcome this new threat.
At first there was no comment. Then out of the blue Stan began laughing. He found the entire notion to be utterly ridiculous but looking back at the faces of the other three, knew that they at least believed this as a plausible explanation.
"Aliens are taking over the school? Give me a f.king break."
"If you don't want to believe us Stan then go on and get the f.k out of here and take your little b.ch with you," Delilah said, knowing that Stokeley had undisclosed feelings for Stan.
"F..k you tit bags," Stokeley said in self-defence.
"Guys can we all just calm down here a little please," Casey said, seeing that emotions were running high and beginning to get the better of them all.
"How are they going to work together and survive if they can't even talk to each other?" Sam asked as he watched the cat fight between the two girls. It was quite uncommon back in Middle-Earth to see two ladies fighting, especially in the Shire where most tried to get along.
"Okay Casey, let's go alien for a second here," Stan challenged, trying to get his mind around the whole idea. "If they are in the school, why would they attack here first? Why now?"
"If you were going to take over the world, would to do it so that everyone stood up and took notice or sneak in through the back door?" Casey replied, giving his theory on why they had chosen now to reveal themselves and their intentions.
The other three were pondering this idea, unaware that two others were listening to the entire conversations about aliens and taking over the school as well.
Zeke and Mary-Beth walked into the classroom, but not before Zeke had made a god-awful noise that made Casey jump about six feet in the air.
Casey almost had a heart-attack and was still trying to get himself under control when he saw the others approach.
"Casey... the only person in this school who is an alien man is you," Zeke teased.
"Don't you go calling my Mr Frodo names," Sam said, not happy at all about what was going on. But as it would happen, Casey had scathing words of his own to say.
"F.k You Zeke!" Casey said.
"Oh Casey," Zeke said, now over acting and trying to make out as if the words had wounded him gravely. Casey couldn't help but feel a grin tugging at the corners of his mouth at the antics.
Before any further conversation could take place about aliens or anything else another voice addressed the six students from behind.
"What are you all doing in here. Shouldn't you all be in class right about now," came the question from Mr Furlong as he entered the room.
Zeke took it upon himself to speak on everyone's behalf, "Its like this Mr Furlong, see Casey here, thinks you are an alien." he said, thinking the teacher would take the whole thing as a joke.
"Really?" Furlong said, starting to laugh but then abruptly stopping and walking over to the door and closing the blind so that nobody could peer in.
"Oh thanks a lot Zeke, just throw me into the fire why don't you," Casey said, a little annoyed that he was getting the blame first.
"Is this true Casey?" Furlong asked, now walking towards him directly.
"The whole faculty actually," Stan added.
Stan and the girls had now taken a few steps back, noting a difference in the teacher's demeanour. Zeke was standing near the fish aquarium with Casey a few metres to his left, closest to Furlong.
"The thing I found yesterday, where is it?" Casey asked, thinking the teacher might be able to shed some light on the matter.
"I sent it to the university," Furlong said, pausing slightly as he spoke. Something about the man's changed behaviour made all in the room doubt what he said.
"Do they know what it is?" Stokeley asked.
Furlong just shrugged his shoulders in a non-committal gesture, not offering any better explanation.
The tension in the room was thick and making all nervous and uncomfortable.
"Well I hate to interrupt this little get together Mr Furlong, but I have got.....," Zeke said as he began walking towards the door.
Furlong reached out with an arm though and took a strong hold of the boy's shirt sleeve.
"If you would all just take your seats, this will all be over quite quickly," Furlong said, indicating exactly what he intended to do with them all.
Zeke tried to make a break for it but was hurled across the room away from the others by the teacher.
Furlong now walked up to Casey before he even realised what was happening and grabbed the lean teenager around the throat with one hand.
"I said now!" the teacher warned, using Casey as his bargaining chip.
Casey's eyes were wide with fear as he tried to use his hands to pry the choking grip from around his neck.
The Fellowship were horrified that their friend was being held in such a manner. They could see the teacher's fingers digging painfully into the boy's soft skin, causing Casey to gasp in pain.
Aragorn and Legolas wished they could do something physically to help Frodo but they couldn't. They were relieved though when it seemed that Casey's classmates were determined to prevent the teachers hurting him any further, just like they would have.
Zeke had a crude looking blade in his hand, raised over his shoulder in a threatening manner, "Put him the f.k down Furlong," he warned noting that the teacher was trying to make his grip even tighter so as to raise Casey's feet off the floor a little.
Stan could see what the teacher planned to do but wasn't quick enough as Furlong used all of the force in his arm and threw Casey across the room. The teenager landed against a filing cabinet against the back wall and his head caught the edge.
Casey gave a brief and startled cry as he was rendered unconscious before landing on the floor in a crumpled heap.
"Mr Frodo....Mr Frodo," Sam cried out in alarm as he scrambled beside his fallen master, unable to help him. Aragorn was trying his best to assist Frodo's condition without being able to physically take a look.
The girls even showed concern on their faces at what they had seen happen.
But they were now huddled together towards the other side of the classroom, trying to edge as far away from Furlong as possible.
Stan did actually reached Casey after he landed awkwardly calling out to him, but there was no response. Casey was lying on his side, facing the others, but his eyes were closed and he didn't move.
Stan shook the unconscious Casey a few times, "He's out cold," he offered.
TBC
Not very good but anyway.....
JULES