Disclaimers: I do not own AFI, this is fiction and terrible at best.
The Story:
Amy and Heather laughed breathlessly as they ran down the dimly-lit corridor. There was trash littered along the ground, smashed beer bottles mixed with old flyers of past bands long gone. They slowed half-way down, clutching each other�s hands in their shared excitement.
Amy panted, staring wide-eyed at the end of the hall. �Oh, my god, oh my god, oh my god, Heather! We�re actually gonna do this!! This is so freakin� cool!� her voice ended in a faint whisper as she turned to her friend.
Heather wheezed painfully. She smiled to Amy as she dug into her pocket. She pulled out her inhaler and shook it. She paused and sucked in a puff. She held her breathe to make sure it worked. She grinned at Amy. �This is so awesome! You were totally right, Amy! I mean, I didn�t think we would get back here. There were a lot of girls back there trying to get in. And they were all dressed pretty!�
Amy paused momentarily. She gave a slight unsure look. But when she realized her best friend was watching her, it turned haughty. �Well? What did you expect? They were sluts. Didn�t I tell you the guys in AFI don�t like sluts? They�re so much more than that! God, did you see how that guy with the clipboard looked at those Goth girls with those skimpy dresses? Then he turned and looked at us. He knew we weren�t like THEM.� she sneered behind them.
Heather glanced also, then looked down at what they wore. Amy was wearing a dress of black vinyl, cris-crossed with straps and buckles. She had on purple and black striped socks poking out the tops of military style black vinyl boots. Heather wore black cargo pants and a black fishnet top on top of a black tank. She wore boots similar to her friend, but her socks were orange striped with black. Her arms were covered in cheap black gauntlets that laced up with shoe string on the underside of each forearm. Both girls had black lipstick that clashed with their pale faces. Their eye pits were darkened as well as the underside of their cheek bones, making them look like cheap-horror movie rejects. And since they were both avid Hot Topic shoppers, they also wore matching clip-on cat ears at the top of their heads.
Heather smiled up at Amy. �Yeah, you�re right. We are so rockin�.�
Amy nodded. �Yeah, we are. We�re the true Goths, those girls were just posers trying to get in to see Davey and Jade.�
Heather froze. �But didn�t you say you wanted to meet Davey?�
Amy rolled her eyes. �Well, yeah! I want to meet them all! But those girls showing their boobs prolly just wanted to try and make out with them.�
�Yeah,� Heather rolled her eyes also. �Like they don�t know that he�s Straight Edge. I mean, get a clue!�
�Hah! They prolly just saw how Davey was dressed in some rock magazine and bought tickets to the show. They prolly don�t even own ONE cd!� Amy laughed again.
�So true!� Heather nodded, then smiled. �I mean, they could at least down load off the �net if they can�t afford it! Guess they�re too stupid to do that.� she trailed off as they both heard voices from down the hall. Heather and Amy gulped air down even as their hands trembled.
They looked at each other. �Well,� Amy smiled weakly at her best friend, �here we go.�
Heather smiled also. �Yeah, here we go.� She touched her pocket to make sure her inhaler was still there, then followed alongside Amy as they started walking once again.
At the end of the hall was an open door. Laughter and music could be heard. Somewhere inside a light was on and it threw moving shadows into the darker hallway.
Amy was pulled to a stop by Heather. �Amy!� the girl whined low, �Amy, what if. . . what if they aren�t so nice? What if they�re mean? What if they don�t like us, or- or they th-think we�re just. . . a bunch of kids?� her bottom lip trembled and her eyes watered.
Amy patted her hands and made soothing noises. �It�s okay, Heather, it�s okay! It�s going to be all right! Calm down or you�ll have to get out your inhaler again! Okay? Calm? Good. Now look, you read the interviews, right? You heard what all the other celebrities have to say about Davey and the guys, right? They all say they�re the nicest guys in the world. Davey wouldn�t hurt a fly. Literally! He�s vegan, remember? And I read on the message board that he even made this one fan feel not so bad when she got all hysterical on him. So don�t worry! He�s human, just like you and me!�
�No,� Heather whispered low, �Amy, he�s Davey Havok! He�s. . . GOD!�
Amy�s eyes widened slightly. She nodded solemnly. �You�re right. He is.�
Heather touched her right arm. �You. . . remember what we swore, right?�
Amy touched her own arm, then nodded. �I remember.� wordlessly, the two friends each pulled back the cloth covering their arms. Underneath were white cloth bandages taped awkwardly to their skin. They peeled back a corner and bared their arms to each other, side by side. AFI was carved into their pale skin, the words in dark red of newly healed blood-scabs.
�Forever.� Amy whispered, gazing steadily up at her friend.
�Forever, God and his Angels.� Heather breathed, both so much in awe over the other, themselves, and the moment that they didn�t remember where they were or what they were doing until they heard a loud crash in the other room.
Startled, the two stared stupidly at the open door. Laughter and shouting came out to them, but no one physically. Realizing the sight they would give anyone who came along, Heather and Amy quickly flattened out the bandages back to their skin and covered their arms once again.
Wordlessly, they took hold of each other�s hands and walked to the open door at the end of the hall.
****************************************
The party was full blown. Some celebrities, mostly musicians, and some �nobodies� lounging around to fill the place up. Heather and Amy were giving only brief glances, as it was clear they weren�t the only fifteen-to-fourteen year olds rushing about the room.
�Oh, my god.� Amy drawled snobbishly into Heather�s ear as they slowly made their way into the room. �Look over there, Heather! There�s that guy from that one band. You know, the one with the orange Mohawk? Ohmygod! Look at the skank he�s talking to! Can she be any more uglier? OH! And there! Look! Billy! He�s talking to Joel! Ohmygod!�
Heather looked and gasped also. The two friends shared a grin and continued on, both sneaking glances at the Good Charlotte guitar player when they thought the other wasn�t watching. Although both had a strong liking for Billy, it was considered uncool to actually listen to the band, since it was obvious they were �posers�. Well. . . according to the internet.
As Amy and Heather took slow steps and swung their heads about looking with interest at everyone at the party, someone finally took real notice of them.
Jade looked up from the magazine he had found on the table and noticed the two shy girls wearing the AFI wrist bands and the AFI Wings buttons pinned to their tops. He watched them for a few minutes, seeing their tentativeness and vulnerability in the large room full of roughneck partiers. He sighed when he saw the one with the fishnet top get pushed from behind and stumble to the ground. He tossed his magazine down and started forward.
�Hey!� Amy told the guy who was already walking away in disinterest, �you jerk!� she crouched down and started helping her friend up, getting help from another pair of hands.
Both Heather and Amy looked up gratefully, only to drop their jaws in shock. �Are you okay?� Jade asked, amused to no end at their expressions. He couldn�t help himself. They always looked so cute when they did that. Darned if he�d ever get tired of seeing it.
�Er, uh, yeah, she is.� Amy said for her star-struck friend. �Some guy just plowed into her.�
Jade looked around. �Yeah, that�s Smith. He�s my brother. Don�t worry, he doesn�t mean to be so rude.� He smiled at them charmingly. �So, what brings you two lovely ladies to a horrible place like this?�
Heather blushed furiously and said not a word. Her eyes watched the guitarist with glazed adoration, but skittered away when he looked directly at her. However, Amy was in her element. She gathered attention like honey, or shit, attracts flies.
Face burning also, she gave Jade was she thought of as a sultry look but only came out as a lowering of her eyes. �We were asked to come back stage. We were hoping to meet the band.� she smiled.
Jade�s smile came automatically. �Great! Well, you�ve met me. You want to meet Hunter and Adam? They�re in the next room.�
He watched as Heather turned wide eyes to Amy, and Amy turned wide eyes to Heather. Their moment was brief, but Jade saw it clearly. Amy cleared her throat and showed excellent control when she shrugged one shoulder in slight disinterest. �Sure, why not? I mean, they ARE a part of AFI, aren�t they?�
Jade�s smile widened to show part of his teeth. �For today, yes, they are.� What Amy didn�t notice but Heather saw too clearly was that Jade�s smile stopped at his mouth, never reaching his eyes.
�Come on then, this way.� Jade gave them an arched brow over his shoulder before leading them further into the crowded room. Heather grabbed Amy�s hand and gave a fearful squeeze.
Amy took the meaning of this wrong and smiled excitedly at her friend. �I know, awesome, isn�t it?� Amy whispered to her friend before Jade could glance back at them.
�Amy. . .� Heather whispered anxiously. But the noise was too great to make her be heard. Anyway, Jade lead them now to a door at the back of the room.
He stopped before opening it and looked at them. �Hunter and Adam are in here. Davey�s might be in here, too, but try not to ask him anything just yet, okay? He�s trying to rest his throat from the show tonight.�
Amy and Heather nodded dutifully. Jade gave another of his ghost-smiles and soundlessly opened the door. The three of them stepped in.
The room was a sharp contrast from the one they had just left. This one must have been the guy�s resting room. In it were two long couches covered with white sheets so they couldn�t see the original pattern, one long dresser with large mirror against one wall and a table with three trays of veggie sticks and fruit.
Adam Carson sat on the opposite couch, immersed in an old and tattered volume of Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, his legs crossed and foot twitching back and forth unconsciously. Hunter Burgan was at the food table, trying one thing after another only to spit it out into a napkin in disgust.
�Fuckin�. . .� He cursed finally, �when the hell are we going to get some REAL food? This is shit! When�s he getting here? That fucker is taking his time on purpose, I know it!� Adam only grunted in answer.
Jade cleared his throat, getting their attentions. �Well, since you�re waiting for your food to arrive, would you mind, Hunter, Adam, meeting two of our loyal fans in the meantime? I found these two lovely girls getting bothered by Smith. Don�t you think we could treat them better in here?�
Adam stared at the two from over his book and didn�t say a word. Hunter, however, froze only briefly before discarding his napkin and his thought of the buffet table. He walked over to the two. �Ladies!� he grinned excitedly, �what on earth brings you two to a rattrap like that? How dare that bastard Smith treat you like that! He�s no respect for women, I tell you! He�s obviously gay.� He managed not only to get an arm around both Amy�s and Heather�s shoulders, but to lead them toward the couches.
Heather was meek and shy as usual and Amy fell under Hunter�s charisma almost instantly. �Can I ask what lovely names you ladies are called?� He asked, eyes overflowing with slick charm.
�Uh, oh, er,� Amy blushed. She hadn�t wanted it to go this way, but there was no changing that now. She straightened and gave Hunter the same look she had given Jade earlier. �My name is Amber Stone. My friend is Lady Silence.�
Hunter grinned widely at Heather. �I like it! It suits you!� Heather blushed and hung her head. �Aw, come on, now! Be friendly! Look, Adam. Lady Silence is shy!�
The drummer smiled faintly and placed his marker into his book before shutting it. �I like the shy ones.� he said quietly, then reached up and took Heather�s hand. �You can sit here with me. I won�t bite, I promise.� he gave her his own gentle smile and pulled her to sit beside him. Hunter took Amy to the other couch across from them.
�So,� Hunter said conversationally to both girls. �Do you two lovely ladies live nearby? Or did you travel long to get here?�
�Oh, uh, we live in the next town.� Amy nodded assuredly. �Our pa--. . . I mean, our friends gave us a ride. We�ll hitch a ride with them to go back.�
Hunter nodded. �And have you graduated or are you in college yet?� Heather snickered into her hand as both she and Amy blushed.
�Er, we�ll graduate this coming year.� Amy lied blatantly. She figured why not lie? What could it hurt? Besides, what if they didn�t want to talk to high school freshmen? What if they lost interest or asked them to leave? Behind them, Jade smiled faintly and went to the dressing table to check his eyeliner.
Hunter listened to Amy, then simply smiled. �That�s great! Bet there aren�t many like you at your school.�
�Huh? Oh, no.� Amy shook her head. �Me an� Lady Silence are pretty much the only ones there. The rest are posers. They try and be Goth but they don�t understand that it�s a choice of life, not a fashion statement.�
�So true.� Adam nodded seriously. Ever since he had pulled Heather to sit with him, his hand still remained clasped in hers. She stared down at it in both happiness and awe.
Jade came then, bringing two green bottles. �Thirsty, ladies? Have a drink.�
Amy saw Heather�s eyes widen slightly as she saw the label on the bottle. Amy smiled up at Jade. �Sorry, we�re Straight Edge. We don�t drink.�
�Good for you!� Hunter said cheerfully. �But don�t worry, they�re non alcoholic. Drink up! We are.� he and Adam picked up their own bottles from the floor and took swigs. Amy quickly took one from Jade and drank to sooth her parched throat. Heather was reluctant, but when Jade smiled at her and winked, she hurriedly took it. Jade stood there and stared at her until she took a timid sip. He smiled and walked away. When his back was turned, she gulped.
�See?� Hunter smiled at Amy, �feel better? Bet all that moshing out front wore you two out!�
Amy nodded, eyes half-rolling. �Oh, yeah. It did! We usually don�t at concerts, what with all the hardcore guys out there, but we had to make an exception this time.� She grinned to match Hunter�s.
�Yeah?� Hunter said, �this your first concert?�
�For Heath� I mean, Lady Silence, it is.� Amy blinked rapidly at her mistake and hurried on, �but for me it isn�t. I saw you guys in L.A. last week. But I got there late and didn�t get to the meet and greet in time.�
Heather looked around the room. Where was Davey? Shouldn�t he be here, too? Where was he? As if called by her thoughts, the lead singer opened the door they had come through and shut it behind him with a quick snap, startling both Amy and Heather.
�Ah, Davey.� Jade said, stopping him before he could walk away. He turned him to face the two girls. �We�ve two new friends. Amber Stone and Lady Silence. Ladies, please meet Davey Havok.�
Heather caught her breath and simply stared. Amy managed a smile and gave a small wave. Davey, however, looked from one to the other distantly, almost as if he wasn�t really seeing them. After a few moments, however, life seemed to come back to him. He smiled faintly, eyes closing slightly and wrinkling at the corners. He nodded to the two but didn�t say anything.
Jade smiled as he looked at the girls. �This is Lady Silence�s first concert, Davey. Miss Stone went to the one in L.A., but we didn�t get to meet her then. They�re both in high school, about to graduate this year, too!� Davey gave a sideways look at Jade, then peered closely at each girl.
Oh god, Heather and Amy both thought at the same time, he knows we�re lying! He can see it!
Amy straightened and tried to look more mature and Heather cringed and tried to shrink into the couch. But Davey simply smiled and nodded. He turned and went to the mirror and began brush out his hair. The two girls watched him, not knowing they were being watched by the guys. Hunter gave Adam a glance, motioning to the almost full bottle in Heather�s hand. Adam nodded.
�Lady Silence,� Adam whispered to her, catching her attention, �you�re not drinking! Is it bad? You know, if you don�t get liquids in your system soon, you might pass out from dehydration.� he nodded to her knowingly.
She smiled and whispered. �Oh, that�s right.� she took another swig, drinking even more than last time. Amy saw her and drank more of her own, now half-way down. Hunter grinned at her.
�Good.� he nodded. �That�s the last thing we want. You know, when we first did a show, back in the day, there were a lot of times when we�d get back stage and just pass out! We were so exhausted and worn out because we were sweating so much!�
Adam looked at Heather carefully. �Do you read, Lady Silence?�
Her eyes widened slightly and she smiled. �Yeah.� she nodded. �I love reading!� she saw his book. �You�re barely reading it?� her voice was low and sheepish.
Adam looked down at his book, also, then grinned. �Oh, no! This�ll be the hundredth time I�ve read this one. I�m just reading it again because part six isn�t out yet. Doesn�t that just suck?�
Heather nodded vigorously, meaning it. On the other couch, Hunter was wowing Amy with a story from when they had first started out. �. . . and the security guard stops us and says, �hey, I thought I told you fuckers to hit the road�. And we were like all, �listen, motherfucker, we�re the fuckin� band! You try an� kick us out, there ain�t gonna be no show, bitch!� And he kept bitching at us until the bastard�s boss came out, the club owner. He saw us and asked us what the hell we were doing still in the parking lot. We were supposed to be on ten minutes ago! We told them what the jerk-off was doing to us, and he just looked at the guy, then said, �you�re fired�. Ha ha ha! That fucker stormed off looking like he got fucked over big time!�
Amy shared in with his laughter, then took another drink from her bottle at Hunter�s insistence. �Get more liquids in,� he told her. Across at the other couch, Adam had gotten Heather to finish her own bottle.
Jade sat down beside Amy, getting her attention. �Hey,� he asked her, �what do you think is your favorite song we played tonight?� his eyes looked tired but he still had that grin.
Amy smiled. �Oh, that�s gotta be The Leaving Song Part II. That was bitchin� how you ducked the same time Davey kicked over your head. You guys plan that?�
Jade laughed and smiled an original one this time. �No, we didn�t. Honestly! That was a spur of the moment thing! Wasn�t it, Davey?� they both looked at the man sitting in front of the mirror. He had wrapped his hair into a bun and was using a moist towelett to wipe off the make-up coating his face. He glanced up at them but went back to his face again.
Jade sighed. �He�s just moody right now, babe.� Jade assured her quietly. �He gets like that after shows.�
�It takes a lot out of him, doesn�t it?� Amy asked in quiet awe. �I mean, those songs you two wrote together. They must mean so much to you guys.� Jade looked at her pitying expression for a few moments, then smiled at her, tracing his hand along her jaw.
�Don�t worry, babe. It�s nothing we can�t handle. Oi! Where do you three think you�re going?� Jade said to Adam, Heather and Hunter as they were about to leave out another door.
Amy turned wide eyes at Heather. The girl blushed innocently. �Oh, uh,� she spoke quietly, �Adam was going to show me an� Hunter his magazine collection. It�s in the next room. We weren�t going far.�
�Yeah, just the next room.� Adam assured them, then grabbed Heather�s hand and led her away. Hunter made them a comical, jovial face and hurried after.
�Those jokers.� Jade said, shaking his head and smiling faintly. �They�d better behave themselves.� he looked at Amy. �Not like we aren�t. Right?� he ran a hand on her cheek again.
Amy felt herself trembling under the steady gaze of the gorgeous man beside her. She felt the couch move beside her and saw Davey now sitting close to her, eyes going to her dress with a critical look. She knew she should be a little worried about his attitude, but for some reason, she felt. . . calm. Easy. Not worried about a thing in the world. Actually, she felt more like falling than anything.
She made no noise as she sank back into the couch, head resting on the back. Jade gave a small chuckle. �I love it when they do that.� he smirked across the girl to Davey. The singer gave a wry twist of his lips and said nothing.
�Wh-what�s. . .� Amy whispered, then took several deep breaths. Her eyes fluttered to stay open and her lips pulled back to bare her teeth. �I feel. . . funny. . .�
�Ah, yes, Amber.� Jade nodded seriously, his whole manner masking his humor. �That would be the anesthetic taking effect. See, we want to play. And if we wanted to play with you still sober, well, there�s no way we could stop you from leaving or screaming your silly little head off, right? Of course right.� he moved to stand up on his knees. Davey inched closer still.
Jade looked down into Amber�s face, hands caressing in a loving manner. When he saw her eyes staring at him widely, he pulled back his hand and slapped her a few times. Davey, meanwhile, began undoing the straps to the top of her dress.
�Oh, look, Davey,� Jade muttered disgustedly, �little Amber thinks we�re going to rape her! The little tramp. Always about sex, isn�t it?�
Amy heard Davey give a dry chuckle. He brought his face up to her view. �You whore.� he whispered hatefully, �you think we�re sick fucks who get off raping fourteen year olds? That one of your sick and twisted fantasies? Getting off on being fucked by guys you don�t even know just because they look good in make-up and jump around on stage? You�re such a slut, Am-ber.� he glared at her with contempt.
Amy�s breathe was starting to slow, but her heart beat was racing erratically. This wasn�t happening. . . this COULDN�T be happening! This wasn�t right. . . Jade and Davey wouldn�t do this. . . would they?
Suddenly, Amy remembered her friend in the other room. She was with Adam and Hunter. What if she made some kind of a noise and they came to check on her? Adam and Hunter wouldn�t let Davey and Jade do this to her, right? No! They�d make them stop. This wasn�t right. They wouldn�t hurt Amy or Heather. . .
Her leg felt like lead but she forced it to kick the empty bottle on the floor, anyway. It flew with a crash to the other side of the room. Hunter came rushing out of the room, wiping his mouth. �What�s going on? Everything all right, guys?�
Jade and Davey didn�t stop. �Yeah, the slut just kicked a bottle. How�s her friend?� Jade glanced up briefly while Davey got the top of Amy�s dress open, exposing her chest. Hunter grinned, catching Amy�s eye. �She�s great! Haven�t had better in weeks!� his teeth were stained red and his tongue glistened scarlet as he spoke. He turned and hurried back, closing the door on the sound of a muffled whimper. Heather. . .
Amy was slapped a few more times by both Jade and Davey, making her cry and wail softly. �Stop,� she whined weakly, �no. . . leave me alone. . . don�t. . . don�t do this. . . please. . .�
Jade sighed. �You know what? Shut the fuck up already. You�ll be dead in a few minutes, anyway. Won�t do you any good to keep talking like this. It�ll just pump more adrenaline into your system, and that�ll keep me an� Dave up half the night! So shut up and relax. You won�t feel a thing, whore.�
He patted the top of her head patronizingly, then began stripping her dress off of one arm. He frowned as he came up to her bandage. He tore it off and grunted. �Well, well, well.� he showed Davey. �Will you look a this? One of our true fans.�
Davey grunted and rolled his eyes. �How sadly pathetic! That looks like they used blades off of broken plastic disposables. I mean, look at that! It�s not even deep! They probably had to work at getting the line of blood to come up. It�s sad, really.� he paused, seeing Jade positioning his mouth over the three scrawled letters.
�You�re so poetic.� Davey muttered, smiling at his friend. Jade smirked at him and bit into Amy�s arm. Davey, meanwhile, pulled out a butterfly knife and opened it expertly and with ease. He measured the surface of Amy�s chest briefly, before looking up at her. �You know,� he told her as she lay there in agony of Jade�s mouth, �they say that humans are animals. That they evolved from monkeys. Personally, I don�t believe that. I mean, how could they? They don�t have tails, they�re much taller, and they have a different cranial shape. Sure, evolution made changes, but why didn�t the monkeys change as well? Why did they stay the same?�
Amy didn�t answer. She couldn�t. She was powerless under the drugs in her system that only slightly numbed the pain of her arm as Jade tore in again and again with his teeth, digging for more of her blood and flesh. Davey ran the tip of the blade across her skin, making it sear in flames as a line of dark blood spilled out. �See? Humans CAN�T be animals! They�re much too smart. But, what do I know, right? I�m only a musician. But you, miss Stone, you can ask God. Ask him why he let two fuckers like us do this to you and why our two friends are doing the same thing to your friend in the next room. Ask him why little teen girls such as yourselves need to throw yourselves in danger every night as you put on your make up and trashy clothes. Ask him, you whore, ask him why he raped you and fucked you up even before you were even born.� he paused, then brought the knife down to plunge into Amy�s chest. He gave a great wrench downward that tore open the girl�s chest with a wet, sickening sigh as the air escaped one punctured lung.
Davey did some digging and cutting around until he came up to what he was looking for, the heart. This he cut free and pulled out, dripping precious blood and other liquids. As he feasted quietly, Jade dropped the mess that was Amy�s arm and moved to dig his face into the open chest cavity. Davey watched him pig out, Chewing on the heart flesh thoughtfully.
�Jade?� he asked at last. �Do you think humans are animals?�
Jade ceased his slurping noises and brought his head up with a satisfying moan. His face was covered in blood and bits of tissue and bone. He looked at Davey sideways. �Davey, you seriously need to lay off this, already. You�re spending too much time thinking on it. It�s driving me nuts!�
�Just answer then!� Davey said, mouth full but eyes pleading with Jade urgently. �Tell me what you think. Are humans animals?�
Jade looked down at the dead girl�s corpse and sighed. He shook his head and looked at Davey. �No, I don�t think humans are animals. They�re almost as stupid as they are, but they�re too far away to even be considered. Happy now?�
Davey nodded, smiling faintly. �Yeah, thanks Jade.�
Jade looked at his friend as he continued eating the heart. �You�re really worried about not being a vegan, aren�t you? It worries you that much?�
Davey nodded slowly. �Yeah, but,� he chewed and swallowed, �not just that. I don�t want to lie to people, you know, about eating animals.�
Jade shook his head. �Don�t worry about it, D. These little sluts deserve it for trying to come on to us like that. This one especially. Besides, how do they expect you to get protein on a vegan diet?�
Davey paused, then smiled. �Yeah, you�re right. Want some?� he handed over the meat and Jade gladly ate.
******************************