Prom

## Characters Involved

* Finley
* Otis
* Kiemo
* Red
* Savannah
* Callisto
* Felicity Vireo
* Emory

## The Event

The event starts with Fin sneaking out to meet with Otis in the cafeteria for prom, wanting to see him despite believing that Emory\* will be present and watching. He decides he doesn't care and gets Otis' attention by whispering. He acknowledges when Otis questions why he's there that it is dangerous but he couldn't help himself. It wasn't healthy to give in to everything and reminds Otis that he doesn't care anymore. He's gotten a bit bolder about wanting to write his own story and fully plans on finding the courage to do just that. Fin explains that should Kiemo who isn't even there find out, Fin will just go ahead and claim he was spying on Otis, teasing that maybe that was his goal all along. After the fire and pool event, Kiemo's been more chill around Fin to some extent, though, of course, he still is more than ready to glance over Fin's shoulder at any given moment and remains suspicious of him. Fin agrees to mingle in order to get a bit of suspicion off of him but he'll hardly let it control him. Fin talks to Otis for a while longer before Kiemo steps into the area and notices them, his hackles rising. Around the same time, Red and Savannah appear together, their sibling bond stronger than it will be in later events. Kiemo notices Red and quickly flags him over. Kiemo is quick to vent that he's not enthused about the dance itself and finds it to be a waste of time for him too. Kiemo confirms that after the fire that had nearly killed Red and Fin, he had sent Fin on more researcher raids. He was not impressed with Fin's reluctance and hesitation, doubting his loyalties and capabilities more and more. Kiemo does not interrupt Fin at the dance at the current moment, instead electing to speak to his groupmates away from the prying eyes of the others.

With Red greeting him and bringing Savannah along to meet him too, Kiemo whispers in Red's ear that he knows about the outcome of the fire. He knows about Red's reluctance and chooses now to hold that over him. He also admits to knowing that Fin and Otis were the ones to save Red though it is questionable to how he was able to gather this information. Regardless, he reminds Red that loyalty needs to be proven more than once. He openly calls Red, Summer, and Emory his friends, holding more over them by doing so and intending it to be a control tactic over them as he meets Savannah. He tells them that he is a friend of Red's. He doesn't spend too much on the chat, more eager to watch his plans of making Fin and Otis prom kings in order to test Fin's true intentions than converse with Red's relative. Red seems pleased at the compliments Kiemo gave him while Savannah starts panicking. She remembers what Fletcher had said about Kiemo before and is alarmed by who the coyote is and pretends to be. She continues to be nervous as Kiemo is praised by her brother and Emory himself too. She fears what she heard is true and she is now face to face with a murderer. Kiemo doesn't seem to notice these reactions as he dives into his own paranoia as he watches Fin and Otis, believing Fin is trying to do this to usurp him and take Kiemo down. Kiemo tries to convince himself it won't be possible as he brought people to back him up but his concern remains. To alleviate some of the pressure, Red is moved higher in the rankings at this moment, Kiemo assigning Red to be his personal bodyguard should there be an issue. His exact reasoning for this is questionable considering Red's failures and transgressions before. He is hardly the best warrior either so Kiemo requesting such is surprising to Red as well. Kiemo brushes off Red's humility and continued praise, complimenting Red himself subtly and his exact intentions and whether they are pure or not remain unknown. Regardless, Kiemo warns Savannah not to cross him by mentioning what will happen should they do little and how the others are bad because they get in the way of them escaping. His words startle them and they quickly try to cover up any leaning to the other side they did. Red is worried Savannah just blew his chances with Kiemo as the coyote remains suspicious and he continues his conversations for a bit longer.

Meanwhile, Callisto is solving math problems and helping Felicity out at her dorm, helping her double check her work. Felicity doesn't seem excited about going to such a gathering, believing her work to be far more important than what a dance could offer her. She also finds the whole idea awkward and uncomfortable more than anything else. Felicity dismisses more of the discussion, instructing Callisto to work through her math problems and Callisto aims to do more than asked in order to impress her. Felicity's pressure on the subject seems to be because she has a difficult time separating her own schooling from the setting she is faced with, trying to justify the pressure she went through in order to normalize it. She does, however seeing Callisto look just as stressed as her, begins to relent and pushes Callisto less. They stay here and continue to do math throughout the night.

After awhile, Savannah leaves Red to have a conversation with Kiemo about conspiracies and other matters. They suggest going and making sure Fin and Otis aren't up to anything in an attempt to escape Kiemo, but Red is suspicious this time. He offers to come along too. Savannah shakes their head, stating Fin would recognize him more than her and they go alone instead. Savannah arrives over by Otis and Fin and interrupts them, claiming they need to talk to the two of them. Kiemo watches this happen in judgemental silence. Instead of going along with Kiemo though and risking her life instead, she offers to warn the two of them, telling them what Kiemo plans to do. Both Otis and Fin believe this to be a trick but Fin's curiosity gets the best of him and he requests an explanation. Savannah gives him one and tells Otis and Fin that Kiemo planned to use Fin as leverage to get Otis on his side for protection's sake and essentially, he wanted to blackmail Otis while also exposing Fin's treachery. Both are not sure how to feel about this but Fin isn't surprised. Fin does promise to protect Savannah and not show Kiemo he's aware of his plans. Instead, he's willing to play along a bit. He accepts the title of prom king with Otis, the two trying to make the best of their night. He teases Otis a bit more before Fin takes advantage to do as Kiemo taught him, taught all his groupmates, to take control of their lives and Fin goes to find his own happiness and prove that he's not afraid of his tormentor. Making eye contact with Keimo, Fin ignores that Otis and him aren't technically more than platonic partners at this point and grips Otis' tie and pulls him into a kiss in front of Kiemo. Fin doesn't expect Otis to kiss him back, the gesture further infuriating Kiemo who immediately rants about it to Red. Fin is a confirmed traitor and now he'll take on the role of investigator himself. As Kiemo stalks off, Fin and Otis are left to dance with each other, circumstances left as far more complicated. Fin does, however, make his decision that he was postponing. Deciding that he loves and cares too much about Otis and himself to justify being apart because of Kiemo's grip on him, he officially starts dating Otis.

Kiemo later returns to check up on the scene, noticing Otis and Fin have gotten closer and he's even more set off. Kiemo approaches them, intending on confronting the people who have betrayed him. Otis doesn't let him start a conversation though, shielding Fin from him and ignoring him the rest of the way. This annoys Kiemo and he throws several underhanded compliments at the two prom kings under his breath, making a spectacle of the whole thing. Fin couldn't be more annoyed himself with the whole interruption. Kiemo tries one final time to get Fin alone, requesting that Otis go fetch some food while he chats with Fin. Kiemo keeps getting ignored and feeling dejected, leaves and sulks off to go rant to Red again.

He goes off about how rude Otis was to Red, explaining that the lion and zebra must be trying to double cross him. Kiemo can't understand this. In his opinion, he protected Fin, saved his life, and gave him a family at the school. Fin threw it away for Otis, a man willing to do anything to treat Kiemo like trash. Red suggests telling the researchers but Kiemo declines. Instead, he only promises that both Fin and Otis won't be as lucky as they were in the past. Kiemo is determined not be be betrayed again and not to look like a bigger fool. He promises that he won't die here and die without control over his own life, he won't die pathetic. Red praises this line of thinking and Kiemo is gracious. Kiemo vows to destroy traitors though, deciding he has no choice and today, two kings will fall. One way or another. He also hints at his involvement with Gagan's disappearance and seeming death before rambling to Red about how everyone has a weakness. He will find and exploit Otis' too. Arriving in the plaque room, Kiemo announces that he wouldn't mind staging another disappearance, showcasing the artifacts of the missing and the dead. Cynthia's and Morgan's are especially brought up which makes sense. One that does not seem to match is why Niccolo, who is living, has a plaque for himself. Kiemo's attention doesn't dwell on these for long as he steps toward to plaques in the back, both fashioned with crowns. Red is shocked at the sight but finds himself agreeing with Kiemo's conclusion. For the betterment of everyone else, they have no choice.

During this moment, Red chooses to ask Kiemo who Niccolo and Morgan are and why they upset Kiemo so much. He tells Red that Niccolo and Morgan were always stuffing themselves with anything to make them feel better, regardless if it was actually helping people. They let countless people die because of it and Kiemo holds a personal grudge. This implies it was about the dead people but something seems off about that. Kiemo continues by explaining how he has gone through traitors before, how his methods include getting in their heads and figuring out how to use it against them. How to survive, he must be able to think ahead. That is how he plans to destroy the researchers, using them when he needs and then he plans on killing Berris himself though he never states his full intentions. He just believes that to be part of their escape physically and mentally. They need to be free of him.

As this happens, Savannah starts following Red and Kiemo only to meet with Niccolo for the first time. Ally appears to be Niccolo's second-in-command and they are discussing what to do about their rebellion. Savannah expresses interest in knowing more and Niccolo reluctantly fills them in with some details. Niccolo clues into his past with Kiemo a bit before stopping himself, explaining that Kiemo worries him. Niccolo explains that he fully plans on becoming a further leader with Ally's help. They clearly trust each other a great deal and are among the last from the first group of experimented students. Niccolo inquires about Red, Kiemo's newest and most loyal member after Savannah brings him up. Niccolo quickly becomes on edge as he receives more information, the man remembering his time he was walking home and saw Kiemo arguing with another person. He doesn't let himself remember further. Niccolo instead promises sanctuary for Red without questions asked, citing that he knows how persuasive Kiemo is. Because of this, Niccolo gives Savannah a mission to track down some of their allies to deal with Kiemo, Zakra being on this list. Savannah brings up Otis and Fin as possible allies and Niccolo is suspicious of Fin at first but allows Savannah to at least talk with him and ask him about recruitment. Savannah promises to return to Niccolo and Ally in an hour, leaving to get Fin. They tell Fin about the rebellion idea and Fin is surprised at this prospect but agrees with it, partly because he'd get to live his superhero fantasy. Fin goes with Savannah to track down Kiemo and Red for an hour, believing that an hour isn't a lot of time and he's curious enough. They venture down to the plaque room and Savannah recalls coming there with Chaison once. Savannah explains that the room has plaques on it with different names on it but only some are crossed out. It's pretty suspicious and they approach the room carefully.

Fin comes to the conclusion on the way over that with plaques with the names of missing people on them, Kiemo must be the one responsible for everything. The names of the missing, why would Kiemo want to go there, why would he have done everything Fletcher knew and believed to have happened if he was innocent. Fin believes Kiemo is responsible for the fates of the missing and suspicious now more than ever, Savannah and him rush to investigate. They enter the room and quietly start to sneak around and observe their surroundings. They can see Kiemo with his back turned to them, Red right beside him, neither seeming aware of their presence. Fin quickly ducks behind one of the pillars with a plaque on it, Savannah copying him. Kiemo seemingly scents them, his claws heard clicking as he dares to approach. The sound worsens though as Kiemo pauses, transforming further into something more beastlike as he slashes at a plaque, raking each pointed digit over a name. Fin can't quite catch a glimpse of who it belongs to yet. The lights begin to flicker as Kiemo stiffens, his motions stopping as he listens. He growls, revealing a knife while swinging his head, watching for further movement as he asks the intruders to reveal themselves. He states that it would be rude to mark out another name so soon and it'd be a tragedy. He doesn't want to go through more effort than he needs. Fin grips his own knife, preparing himself to fight should he need to, peering around the pillar to see Kiemo. He is far more beastial, his eyes small and narrow as they dart across the room. His pelt his longer, furrier and bristling while his movements are like a predator as he is stuck in constant jolts and twitches of his body. His jaws start clicking every few steps as Red announces that he can hear the intruders. Savannah thinks about how she typically likes fighting but now with Kiemo here and how he is behaving, she feels deeply unsettled. They couldn't feel more exposed despite everything.

Kiemo takes his time mentioning how the intruders must be here to assassinate him, to take an opportunity to destroy him. He finds this comical in the moment, remarking how he is the scavenger but he's been a predator so many times. He's killed so many times and so many different ways. He claims it's difficult to do everything alone though and sighs that sometimes you've got to knock a few kings off the chest board of life. That is what he is to do. As the clicking of Kiemo's jaws stop, he hears a sudden crash and prepares to attack, jumping even to do so before stopping himself. Fin's lessons from Kiemo enter his mind as he aims to distract Kiemo. Savannah, however, thinks about becoming the distraction themself so Fin can manage to escape. She pops up from her hiding spot, voicing that she stumbled here and will leave should Kiemo want. The coyote's eyes lock on her, his patchy fur still bristling. Kiemo isn't surprised by Savannah being there though. In fact, it seems like he was messing with them the entire time. He glances at Red, remarking that Savannah was disloyal all along and Red must've known about this. He judges Red bringing her to his attention before and explains her disloyalty falls on him. Kiemo turns his attention back to Savannah, explaining that he never wants to be lied to. He hates liars and he hates people ruining his reputation. He has no choice but to make them the next name to get erased. He instructs Red to kill Savannah or he will make Red disappear himself. Red snarls, angry Savannah appeared to ruin everything and attacks them without hesitating. Red is quickly dealt with by Savannah though, them anticipating their brother's every move. Kiemo is upset by this though he watches the fight in mostly silence. He judges Red through cold, slitted eyes, his own muscles stiffen and his body making no attempt to aid Red. He just watches, surprised when Savannah calls him cruel. Kiemo remarks that Savannah doesn't know what he's planning or has planned. She hasn't gotten in his head yet and has already lost because of that. Kiemo stresses that no one has him worked out and he's a trickster that seized his moment before anyone else knew such a chance existed. The Kiemo everyone knows too is just the one he wants them to see and this has worked beyond perfectly for him.

Eventually Kiemo goes into a tangent about Chaison finding the place and being dedicated to it because it was what housed Cythnia's belongings and plaque. Chaison is revealed to be the primary caretaker of the place and Kiemo just drops in to keep the record and perhaps, do whatever channeled this morphing into a more beastly form. Kiemo feigns some grief over Cynthia being gone but also strongly implies that the researchers asked for Cynthia to be taken and Kiemo obeyed them in exchange for an unknown something. Kiemo doesn't explain what and sets his sights on Fin, remarking that there's more fun in nothing being the way it seems. Kiemo stops the fight between Red and Savannah before Red can be further harmed, expressing that he wants to know how Savannah would do against him. Kiemo seems further interested in this outcome as he smells Niccolo on them, the smell enough to make him more upset and demand a battle. Kiemo stressed that there won't be a rematch available as he plans to set Savannah free from this place and kill them in order to do so. He assures her she'll have a nice pedestal when she goes and then attacks. The attack doesn't land though as a thud occurs, Kiemo turning to realize Fin struck him with his hooves. Kiemo didn't expect that and snarls, ignoring Fin's pleas for Red to turn against Kiemo too. Kiemo, understanding what is happening and unable to defend it, attacks Fin as Savannah fights with Red again. Kiemo realizes Fin is a traitor and calls him out for it, knocking Fin on his back but Fin kicks him again in his stomach. Kiemo staggers, immediately bleeding internally and he reaches for Fin's ankles, crushing them beneath his grip as Fin pleads for Savannah to flee. They don't.

Otis meanwhile races to help, knowing Fin and Savannah were gone for too long. He arrives quickly and immediately takes note of Kiemo. Kiemo, wanting to take out his anger at everything, his paranoia, and his grief when it came to Summer, eagerly wants to attack Otis and treat him like he did with Gagan. Secretly, he misses having Gagan around and doesn't know what to do in his absence. Kiemo shoves Fin to the ground again and rises, greeting his newest rival. He points out Otis and his first meeting and how he warned him then. Kiemo also taunts Otis, assuring him that when he's done with his quarry, they'll still be more than enough for the lion. Otis is extremely angry and pins Kiemo to the closest wall, slamming his fist into Kiemo's gut-the same place Fin kicked him. Fin tries to save Kiemo though from further torment, knowing they need to escape or things will get worse and stumbles over to Otis, persuading him to stop with the last of his strength. Really, this is more about saving Savannah, Red, and himself over Kiemo. Otis, however, is too upset and gently shoves Fin away, not wanting to be stopped. He snaps a bit at Fin, arguing that he shouldn't be defending Kiemo when he deserves it. Fin knows he does but is thinking of their survival at the moment and wanting to escape the torment. Kiemo, however, decides to realize when he's been beaten, commanding Red to follow him as he retreats, glaring at Otis as he does it. Kiemo is implied from future events to have retreated in part because of his promise to protect Red because he didn't defend Summer as he should've from Gagan.

Otis, Savannah, and Fin are left to lick their wounds alone and see that the plaque with the crowns on them before was meant for them, the recent claw marks and scraps of some of their belongings indicative of what was to be their fate that day.

\*There is a retcon in this event where Summer is dead and was replaced in timeline with Emory