FicWad

It was a bright sunny morning when Mr. H discovered his printer was out of ink. He had been creating his lesson plan for his English class and after about twenty-five minutes had attempted to print out some hand-outs for the next essay assignment he had planned for his students. However, nothing had spewed from the mouth of the printer except a loud whirring complaint. The orange 'Check Ink' light had promptly blinked on, causing Mr. H to die just a little on the inside.

Now, he was gathering all the paraphernalia needed to journey to a store and buy ink. In short, he grabbed his keys and wallet. Having placed both these items in his pocket, Mr. H walked out his front door and began down the halls of Boishington Academy reserved for the housing of the Academy's teachers. He walked until at he came to pass Suite 21, which P.E. teacher Mr. Brandy (also known as Mr. Bendy-Endy Straw by students) had turned into an office rather than a living space. It took him but a second to consider what he now put into action.

Mr. H turned back to the door he had just passed and, grinning wickedly, knocked on the door. A rustle of papers could be heard through the wooden door, followed by a series of thumps and a muffled curse. A moment later and Andrew Brandy appeared around the doorway, clothes disheveled and drool still clinging to the side of his mouth.

Looking Mr. Brandy up and down, Mr. H snickered at the image presented before him. "Becoming one with your paperwork again?"

"Shut up," Mr. Bendy-Endy Straw grumbled, rubbing his eyes tiredly. He yawned enormously. Then, with a sigh, he said, "What do you want Erick?"

Mr. H shrugged. "I'm out of ink and thought that perhaps you would want to join me to obtain the needed materials for my next lesson." A brightness lit his eyes, making them sparkle for the man in front of him in a perfect rendition of the Puppy-Dog Eyes, a specialty patented by canines such as himself. Being a demon of the German Shepherd origin seemed to have its obvious advantages.

Mr. Bendy-Endy Straw made an attempt to appear serious, but with those big eyes begging him to come along, he caved. "Fine," he said as he ran a hand over his smooth, hairless head. He pulled out the key to his room, closed the door, and locked it. Mr. H smiled up at him enthusiastically and if he were bestowed with a tail as many other demons were, it would be wagging furiously behind him at the moment.

As soon as the door was carefully shut and properly locked, Mr. H continued his walk down the halls to the entrance of the school. "Are we taking my car or yours?" Mr. H inquired to Mr. Brandy, to which he received a bland grunt. "Mine then," he decided. The walk to the car was actually quite short and soon they arrived in front of a Toyota Sequoia. For obvious reasons, Mr. H took the driver's seat and Mr. Bendy-Endy Straw took the passenger side.

The pair drove to the store with little conversation. Mr. H was easily distracted, which could prove detrimental to his operation of an automobile, thus, they kept their talk to a minimum. The drive to the store was timed at approximately fifteen minutes, give or take. Finally, the two stopped at their destination, a parking lot in front of a popular supply shop titled, "Ink and Paper". The funny thing about the store was its primary items for sale were paper and ink of all varieties (no surprise there), however it was not this that made it popular. On the contrary, it was the fact it sold not only office supplies, but all other manner of nick-nacks and useless wonders that made it onto the shelves at one point or another. One could find their ink for a printer and at the same time come across some old relic from the past. A bottle of vintage wine dated forty years; a jar of pickled plums on a shelf next to the copy paper; a brand-spanking new soft ball; a samurai sword once owned by a seemingly prestigious family; Ink and Paper had it all at one point or another.

The two sirs stepped into the air conditioned building, immediately greeted by signs proclaiming, "Once in a lifetime sale! Don't miss this chance!" followed by a list of items now forty percent off. Mr. H meandered through the store slowly, browsing aisle by aisle to find his precious ink. The store seemed to rearrange the placement of the ink meant for modern day printers quite often, while the paper remained in a permanent location at the front of the store; no one was really sure why that was.

At last, Mr. H found the aisle that contained printer ink and wasted no time in finding the specific cartridge necessary for his model. "Found it!" he announced to Andrew, who was currently observing a rather fine statue of a foot.

"What would you use this for?" Mr. Bendy-Endy Straw pondered aloud, already reaching out to take it in his hands. The thing weighed about what would be expected of a humanoid foot. Mr. Brandy stared at the bizarre object in his hands in blatant wonder. He held it up to the light as Mr. H came to look at the strange item; a foot of all things! Together, they closely examined their specimen, Mr. Bendy-Endy Straw turning it this way and that. Neither could think of a reason someone might create such a thing in the first place.

"I'm buying this," Mr. Bendy-Endy Straw declared abruptly. At the expression of shock on Mr. H's face, Mr. Brandy looked affronted. "What? It's interesting."

Mr. H held his hands up in surrender. "I didn't say anything."

Vindictively, Mr. Bendy-Endy Straw held the foot statue away from Mr. H and began to walk toward the cashier.

"Oh, wait!" Mr. H called to his friend. "I think I'll pick up some paper while I'm here." He jogged over to the aisle containing package after package of paper and paper-related items. He found a certain set he especially liked; it was a brand called "Streamline" and proved to be rather compatible with his moody printer's needs. Happily, Mr. Erick Humbergwattonstein, spun on his heel and returned beside his friends side, paper and ink in hand. The two proceeded to stand in line, where they had a brief conversation on the improvement of the roads near the University that resided on the other side of town.

Soon enough, the two checked out both their items, proud of both their purchases. "I think I'll put this on my desk," Mr. Bendy-Endy Straw informed his companion. Mr. H glanced down at the brown paper bag that now housed the statue.

"I suppose."

Mr. Brandy nodded his head vigorously, moving around the car to enter the large SUV from the passenger side. The foot statue would make a nice accessory for his desk, maybe even a lovely paperweight. Yes, he would find uses for this foot.

The drive home seemed much shorter than the one to the store and remained in virtual silence as always. After the vehicle was parked in the teacher's lot, the pair made their way up to the school through the courtyard, and began weaving their way through the many halls that made up Boishington Academy and were now bustling with students that had just awoken from their late slumber this fine Saturday morning. At last, they stopped at Mr. Bendy-Endy Straws Suite 21, where he had been 'working' that day (and the night before.)

Andrew Brandy nodded his head politely to the dog demon before him. "I had a lovely time," he said.

"Myself as well," Mr. H replied awkwardly. He looked around, shifting his eyes anywhere before saying,"Well, then. Farewell." He nodded back to Mr. Bendy-Endy Straw and started off toward his own room.

"Goodbye," Mr. Brandy called after him and closed his door.

Mr. H hurried into his suite and plunked his new supplies onto his little desk in the corner of his room. Sighing, he decided he needed breakfast and turned to the kitchen for nourishment. He retrieved an orange from the refrigerator and returned to his room. He plopped himself carelessly onto his navy blue bed and took the peel off. Once the peel was completely removed from the meat of the orange, he took a slice and popped the piece into his mouth. Smiling, Mr. H decided today would be a good day.