Jesse & Jade #4

" Are you ready?" Kiku shouts from behind her bedroom door.

" As we'll ever be - lets see you, party girl!" Jennie and Jesse sit on the sofa with their feet up, face-packs on and hair in towel wrapping. Girls have to prepare early for the Big Party and they have only just let the hair stylist leave the apartment. OK, so Jesse wanted to keep him there for good and 'carve those buns into my memory' but Jennie reminded her that kidnapping was a federal offense and that a Grand Jury was unlikely to take sexual attraction as a plea.

Kiku swings the door of her room open and leaps out into the lounge. Jesse and Jennie sit stunned. Kiku has outdone herself. Her feet are adorned by imported purple Dr. Martens boots. She is wearing an amazing pair of baggy purple dungarees and a sleeveless white top. Bangles and bracelets jangle on her arms and her hair is glossy and spiked. And one more thing...

" A tattoo?? You've got a tattoo?" Jesse splutters in shock.

" Oh get real, 20-something wannabes. *Everybody* has a tattoo! Surely you've got one?" Kiku looks honestly stunned.

" Does this count?" Jennie lifts up her hand and shows the dead star-shape on her palm.

" Barely - I'm not sure birthmarks count. What about you, Ms Blonde Bombshell? Have you been under the needle?"

" Uhhmm...no. I..well, I ... It's just not me, is it?" Jesse looked pitiful trying to escape the interrogation of the teenager.

" Hey, c'mon Kiku. Can you really see Jennie with a roaring jaguar up her back? I don't think so! Anyway, what does it mean. It's Bandhesian, right?"

" Yeah - but I'm not telling you what it says, OK. Trust me - if I ever find another one of my people it'll serve it's purpose, as long as it's a 'he' and he's cute, if you get what I mean?" She fingered the black lettering on her shoulder and grinned. " So, apart from your aversion to body art, do I look OK??"

" You look stunning!" Jennie grins back at her and then looks at Jesse. The two of them blush and mumble to each other. Finally Jesse jabs Jennie in the ribs and she shrugs. " Look, Kiku, we were wondering...we realise that these parties can be really wild and well.. you know?"

" Know what?"

" What Jennie is pussyfooting around Kiku is whether you have any contraception incase you decide to get involved with one of the boys at this party." Jesse's face takes on a scary impersonation of her mother whilst Jennie holds her head in her hands.

" You mean ...sex?"

Jesse looks indignant. " Well, yes. I mean these parties can be pretty wild! I remember a frat party I went to at Gotham. There were these three guys and they.."

" Too much information! Way too much information! Look, I'm just going to a house party, not a roman orgy. Trust me - no guy is going to get to pick up a bat never mind touch any bases. I'm a quiet Bandhesian girl!" Outside there is the hoot of a car horn. " A quiet Bandhesian girl who's lift is here. I'll see you both later, have a good party yourselves and *please* don't wait up!"

" Have you girls got a ghost?" Libby Lawrence walks gingerly through the lounge, trying not to drag her dinner gown too near to the caskets of food that the caterers were unloading onto the buffet area.

" What?" Jesse screams from her bedroom as her mother approached.

" I said, does this apartment have a ghost? I'm certain there is someone else in that apartment with me, like another pair of eyes burning into me back." Libbie settles in the doorway of her daughters bedroom and shakes her head. " And of you think you're wearing that to this party, you're sadly mistaken!"

"Mother! This is the latest creation of the Francois Bertrand, the latest enfant terrible of the Paris fashion scene. I've been over to France three times in the last two hours getting alterations done."

" Darling, it's a few scraps of black material held together with pieces of string. If your father ever saw you wearing something like that.."

" I'm surprised you care what Dad would have thought?"

" Harsh dear, very harsh. Your father may have been a number of things but he did have an unerring eye for fashion - and that, Jesse Chambers, is not 'fashion'"

" You know what mother, I honestly don't care! This is my party and I'm a grown woman now and I will wear what I damn well please! Understand?" Jesse fumes at her mother as she smoothes the silk panel on the front of the dress. " And what on Earth were you going on about with ghosts? Surely you don't believe in that sort of stuff?"

"Jesse! Some of my best friends are ghosts!" She has a wry smile across her face now. " I assume you've tested that theory on the Spectre?"

"You know what I mean. All of the ghosts we know are a bit more upfront about there spooky-hood. I couldn't see them doing the hidden voyeur thing, could you? You're probably just not used to the building. Don't worry about it."

Libby nods her head and turns away as the last of the caterers come into the lounge with a huge platter of seafood. "So what about the dress? Something more sensible maybe??". As she hears the almost explosive rage of her daughter screaming out of the bedroom she adds a little skip to her step. Good to know that she's still got what it takes.

Carlo's brother drops them off at the house, already booming with music and surrounded by a loose gathering of high-school kids, most of which Kiku has never seen before.

" So where are you from, Kiku?" Carlo had been pretty aloof during their ride, but Kiku reckoned that was a bit of teenage bravado in front of his brother. Anyway, it had given Kiku a chance to have a good look at him - not the worst fate for any girl as he was absolutely 100% hunk.

" I'm lived in a few places, but originally I'm from an island in the Pacific called Bandhesia. I don't expect you've heard of it though?"

" Can't say I have. Have you been to many high school parties?"

" Actually, this is my first, but I've seen every John Hughes film ten times so I reckon I can manage." She smiles her cute smile but he just looks blank. OK, so he's never heard of John Hughes. God bless the playstation generation.

'Nicole! Tom! So glad you could make it. Loved the film. Nice butt Tom, by the way..." Jennie looks stunning in an ice-blue gown, her hair dressed high on her head and glittery make-up on her shoulders. If she was honest with herself she had never thought that Jesse could pull it off. Jennie had been so busy with her movie part that she hadn't really contributed much to the occasion. Sure, she had got her little black book out and invited just about every star, critic, dilettante, producer and director she knew - and some she had forgotten about. She even invited the cast of the current film - which might have been a mistake but did make her feel a little less 'elite' - although only Llewelyn and the make-up girl, Katie, had turned up.

Jesse's organisation has been immaculate. The caterers were superb, and the choice of Vietnamese cuisine was just different enough to awaken even the most jaded palettes. Indeed, when the caterers saw the guest list they nearly had a fit but decided that it was a challenge rather than a problem. That would be that west coast philosophy... The quartet was a dainty distraction, as it should be, and the general ambiance of the affair was perfect.

Jennie looked over the room at Jennie, as her friend politely laughs at the joke of a TV anchorman, released from his desk for the night. This was really her arena. She revels in this sort of atmosphere, this sort of attention. It explains a lot about her reasons for running off here in the first place. She loves the limelight but on the east coast she was so overshadowed by Jay, Wally and the others. Here she can be the prima donna.

Some people would have looked down their nose at someone who needed that attention but Jennie has spent enough time as Jade to understand the 'hero' mentality and the sort of thing is does to you. She can especially understand the plight of the second- and third-generation heroes who have grown up with the 'hero-halo' since they could talk.

And the 'hero-halo' meant that Jennie was given responsibility for one more, less appealing aspect of the party. She was given the task of handling their neighbour Gary and his hero-worshipping friends. He was harmless enough, just a menace to the partygoers. You see, Gary, a programmer by trade, was also a hero-spotter. Hero spotters try to actually see as many superpowered beings as they can, akin to trainspotters. There is an international club and newsletter, the ubiquitous internet newsgroups and websites and even some public access TV! Of course, Gary's revelation that he was currently living below not one, but four female superheroes - whether they have their powers or not - had sent him into rapture and he now had half a dozen of his hero-spotting friends camped out at his apartment, watching to see who else might arrive. All of this had become apparent as Jennie had tried to explain to them that the party was invitation only.

Still they haven't made themselves a nuisance, so her 'chat' must have worked. Now, where were those delightful canapés?

High school parties. What would Kiku expect? OK, lets run through the checklist. Boys, and lots of them. Yes, we've got them. Every size and shape of high school boyhood was present. Even some of the so-called geeks were hiding out in the corner, so it couldn't be that bad. What's next? Girls. Yep. Lots and lots of girls dressed ... well, to be honest Kiku was quite pleased. Obviously the fashion police had been out in force and injected most of the seniors with 'clone syndrome'. It looked great on Christina but to be honest most of the girls were too far on the pizza side of GymWorld to pull it off. Kiku on the other hand looked good, hot even. Score one for Pacific individualism.

Next? Music. Well, there was some music but Kiku hadn't quite managed to get up-to-date on all the latest stuff so she would have to let that one go. After the music? The food. Munchies mainly which was good because she couldn't have handled an abortive attempt at a barbecue.

Of course there were things that she hadn't expected. She knew that there would be some beer but not this much! How did they get this stuff? Kiku wasn't sure what to do. On the one hand she didn't want to be a prude in front of her new friends but she used to work with the Justice Society and this was way out of order. Maybe she should say something.

Don't be stupid girl! The beers were nothing compared to the rather pungent aroma she could detect assaulting her nostril from upstairs. Kiku wasn't an idiot and she had lived long enough on the street not to be that shocked by drugs but still - this was a high school party, not a dope den. Then again, at least it was 'only' dope. She had seen a whole lot worse!

The one thing she seemed to be missing out on was the boy-girl party thing. Carlo disappeared with a load of friends as soon as they had walked through the door. Hey, she understood about these things - nothing to heavy on a first date, how guys didn't to be all sloppy in front of their friend etc. - but she had been stood here now with this rather dubious smelling punch in her hand for half and hour and she was beginning to lose places she could rest her eyes without falling on a couple doing a passable facehugger impersonation.

" Uhhmm...Hi Kiku?" She jerks around to see the rather sheepish face of Vince, glancing nervously behind him.

" Hey Vince! Good to see you." In truth, Kiku could do without the attentions of the gangly student but at the moment, anyone who could relieve the boredom is welcome.

" Great party, eh? You here with Carlo?" He still looks nervous, almost panicking, but then again, that's just Vince.

" Him? Yeah, he had some stuff to do, people to see. You?"

" Me? Oh no, I just dropped by .. I mean, I was coming here anyway but I.. she.. well, you know how these things go?"

Actually, Kiku didn't but she could give a pretty good guess. This was pretty disappointing - wonder how the 'other' party is getting on?

The evening was moving into night and all of the guests had arrived. The man known as Llewelynn was pleasantly surprised with the turnout and the huge array of gold and jewels that were being flashed around. He had planned to make his move at the premiere of the film, but these things being as they are - the film being B-movie fodder at best and the Fates offering him this prime chance - who was he to argue.

It had been such a classic plan, he wished he could have shared it with someone before he started. Actually, he wished he could have shared it with someone so that they could have told him what an idiot he was for considering it in the first place but that was beside the point. He is the Monocole and he is above petty rivalries!

You see, as The Monocole, you rarely get those invitations to celebrity events. Convicted criminals and ex-members of the Secret Society of Super Villains are just are not welcome. However, these gatherings are just prime for a bit of robbery for the opportunist thief. The question had always been how you got into them? The answer was a simple piece of deception, a new identity, three months wearing a truly ridiculous costume and being told to 'feel the tyranny' by someone who obviously hated soap and patience.

Now he was here and he might as well get on with it. The Monocole slips a hand into his rather dapper evening coat and produces a small disk of glass, slipping it in front of his left eye with consummate ease. Showtime.

Turning to face his host, he lets a blast of energy loose form the eyeglass and floors Jesse. She is the only one here with superpowers, so she is the one that he knew he had to eliminate. The young heroine takes the full force of the blast and falls to the ground. Around her, stunned partygoers scream in terror. The Monocole unleashes a few more warning blast whilst he holds his hands in the air, asking for silence and watching Jennie with an eagle eye. It would be just his luck for her to manifest some new power in the middle of all of this. Something like what? Plant control*. Oh be sensible man, nothing as utterly senseless as that would happen!

"Ladies and Gentlemen! Thank you for your attention. The slightly older ones amongst you may recognise me as The Monocole. If you do, thank you for making an old man feel as if a lifetime of law breaking has meant something. For the younger members of our little gathering, needless to say my demeanor, lack of gravity defying armaments and bare flesh makes you feel confident that I am some aged supervillain .. what do you call it? Wannabe? Rest easy in the assurance that I am a very, very bad man and should not be trifled with. Now, if you will all be good enough to turn over your jewels and other finery onto that table there, I can make my escape and you can get back to your food. Delightful dips by the way. I do so like it when a robbery is well catered. I'll recommend you to my friends."

As the Monocole laughs at his own joke, Jennie senses an opening and dives across a table, ready to throttle him. She might have lost her powers, but she used to be a Green Lantern and she knew a thing or two about smacking villains around with her fists. Before she gets across the table, she is plucked out of the air by a barrage of laser blasts and flies backwards.

" Those would be the reaction-lenses I've been placing around the room all evening. Lovely little gadgets, tied to the DNA don't you know? Amazing what you can get under your nails on a film set, eh? Now, where were we?" He gestures to one group of terrified celebrities to start the collection.

Behind him, Libby Chambers sits quietly waiting for her moment. No-one does that to her girl and gets away with it!

To say this had all gone wrong was an understatement of absolutely Kryptonian proportions. She had finally managed to lose Vince and find Carlo, which was great, but her date had just started an altercation with some older boys after one too many 'brewskis' and things had got loud and violent. Kiku could have handled that - she'd seen the antics of drunken men before when she was on the street and all she would have had to do was call a cab and leave.

However, about twenty seconds ago, one of the older boys had decided to pull a gun and well - guess what? So did Carlo! From what she had gathered, the reason why her jock tormentors had been so petrified of him was his rather scary status as the schools head drugs dealer!

This gem of information was of little consequence now that she was hiding under a coffee table as the bullets were flying around the house and the other students were screaming and diving for their lives.

Kiku was never a hero to be honest, more a victim of circumstance. Still, she had developed an instinct, one that had saved her life on more than one occasion. " Say you wouldn't like to give me a break?!"

Nothing. A shot ricochets off the fridge in the kitchen

" Say you get your butt down here and save mine!"

Nothing. Another bullet splinters the leg of the table that she is hiding under.

" Cei-u! Cei-u! Cei-u! Look you pink streak of nothing, I was good enough for you for a year and a half until that little foul mouthed nobody came along. You want swearing, I can do swearing! You want ludicrous dreadlocks? I'm Bob friggin Marley!! He might be the seventh son of the seventh son, but I'm the last pure blooded Bandhesian on the planet and I need the help of a Thunderbolt! Now what Cei-u just start playing the game, Oh Great Cerise One!!"

A few of the nearby students are stunned by Kikus apparently insane rant into mid-air but then the air in the room crackles with discharged ozone and all of the lights in the block flicker on and off. The air in the room seems to shake and pulse, sucking in and out like a huge heart. Suddenly there is a loud pop and the room is filled with a shocking pink light and the spiky form of Johnny Thunder's Thunderbolt!

The chirpy magical spirit grins from ear to ear. " Hi Kiku! How can I help?"

Kiku crawls out from under the table and waves up at the T-bolt. " Hi T-bolt, about time you turned up." She turns to the warring teenagers, who have stopped fighting and are staring at her. She folds her arms and with the T-bolt floating behind her, she grins a wide and wicked smile. " Oh boy are you guys going to get it now!!"

Jesse and Jade#5 - So, Jesse (she's the one with the superpowers, remember?) and her best friend Jennie (who used to have superpowers) are unconscious and her mother (who is too dignified to use her superpowers) is being held hostage by the Monocole (who should never have been allowed near superpowers.) Meanwhile Kiku (who used to have superpowers but got them misplaced..) is in a shoot-out protected by the Thunderbolt ( Who is like superpowers incarnate)! I think it's time for the men to arrive, don't you??

Well, the lettercol still hasn't received any mail, but I've had a couple of comments on line and apparently quite a few of you really like J&J! I'm so glad - honestly - because this is quite a departure from my normal fanfic material and I thought it was a bit risky.

Anyway, before I get onto the meat of this little rant, just an invitation to all of the readers out there to please drop me a line and tell me what adventures you would like the girls to get up to and what ways you think the book could improve?

Now the rant: DC Comics Suck! It's official. I am flabbergasted that they have canceled Stars & STRIPE! In a industry that seems obsessed with a cycle of 'huge, worldshattering' storylines, retcons, makeovers and revelations, this book stood out as one with fine storytelling and excellent characters. Sure the artwork was a little hit and miss sometimes, but the style fitted the story and the characters. What amazes me is that DC can shelve this book and yet plow so many resources into the tedious and repetitive Batman and Superman family of books - without investment in expanding new markets all we will be left with is the lowest common denominator of books. It's not good business and it sucketh badly! ( Oh, and don't think I have a downer on DC - Marvel are as bad!)

Neil