A Random Meda-Short. Usual disclaimers apply.
Main Characters: Samantha, Spyke, Sloan and Erika
Pairings Warning: Possibly mild hints of Ikki/Karin
~ * Hedged * ~
It was a perfectly normal-seeming afternoon for the Screws as they walked along and tried to figure out what to do for the rest of the weekend. At least, until Spyke noticed the pair of legs that were jutting out of a bush. He stopped short and stared at the limbs, then at the rear end they were attached to, hot pink pants standing out clearly against the fresh green leaves.
"Gee, Boss, I've never seen that kind of flower before," he commented.
"That's not a flower, baka," groaned Samantha, whapping Spyke on the back of the head absently.
"Samantha? Spyke? Is that you?" a very familiar voice piped from the bush.
"Huh?"
The Screws peered around the bush and saw Erika there – or at least, another part of her. The junior reporter's head and one of her arms was sticking out of the other side of the hedge, while the rest remained buried in the dense shrubbery. Her precious camera was sitting on the ground nearby, just out of reach of her one free hand. Several twigs were tangled in her messy brown hair, and her face was not only a bit scratched up, it was also a light shade of scarlet.
"You don't know how good it is to see you!" she exclaimed. "(Though I wish you didn't get to see me like this…)"
"Erika?!" the leader of the Screws said in disbelief. "What the heck happened to you?"
Erika's embarrassed blush intensified.
"I kinda saw Ikki with Karin, so I decided to follow them and see what they were doing. I figured it might turn out to be a lead to another great story."
"You mean you were jealous and spied on them," Samantha corrected.
"Hey, there's a huge difference! …Anyway, I was trailing them, when Ikki turned around real fast. I didn't want him to see me just yet, so I dove into the bushes and… well…"
"Got stuck?"
"Yep." Erika smiled nervously.
Spyke looked confused. "They left you here? I can understand Ikki doing that, but Karin…"
"She was the one who told Ikki to leave." Erika grimaced. "She said it would 'teach me to respect the privacy of others' or something stupid like that. And Ikki actually listened to that little hussy…!"
"What about Brass? Isn't she normally…"
"The TRAITOR left with them! She said, 'Miss Erika, don't worry, I'll bring help once I'm certain you've calmed down'."
Erika thrashed around, kicking her legs and waving her one free arm vainly. The Screws wisely stepped out of her range until she stopped squirming. She then smiled up at them, a bit too happily to be normal.
"But, anyway, I'm glad you're here. Now will you be so kind as to DO something about this?"
Spyke and Sloan bit back their laughter and looked to their boss for answers. Samantha stood regarding the girl for a moment, arms crossed, green eyes narrowed in thought, then smiled slowly.
"Sure thing," she agreed.
"Great!" chirped Erika, pleased.
Samantha stepped forward and knelt, and Erika reached out eagerly as the other girl reached out. However, instead of taking the reporter's hand, the Screws leader bent and picked up the fallen camera, then straightened up and stepped back.
"What are you doing?" demanded the stuck girl.
"What does it look like?" Samantha smirked, before raising the camera in front of her. "Recording this moment for posterity."
"What?!"
Erika started kicking and thrashing again, screaming protests and insults, as Samantha continued to take photos. Spyke and Sloan exploded into helpless laughter, and stumbled after their boss as she circled around the helpless reporter, still snapping pictures until they were back behind her again.
"Well, I think that's enough," Samantha decided after finishing off the roll of film in the camera. "Let's go get these developed, boys."
"What about me?" wailed Erika, still kicking and flailing.
Samantha completely ignored her, and walked off with a noticeable spring in her step. Sloan slapped Erika on her rear, prompting a yelp from the girl, before following the Screw leader. Spyke, however, did not follow, instead hanging behind and just watching as Erika gave up her useless squirming again.
Suddenly he grabbed one of the reporter's legs, and Erika bit back a surprised gasp as she felt a slight tug on her foot. Was he going to actually help her…?
"…Hey Erika. Question…"
"What, Spyke?"
A faint tug on her other foot, but this time Erika felt something slip off. With a start, she realized she no longer was wearing her shoes.
"…Are you ticklish?"
Erika paled.
"BRAAAAAAA-AH-HA-HA-HA-AAAASSS-HA-HA-HA…!"