Warning: Mop Under Pressure

“My little girl has become a real trailblazer. I’m so proud of you.”

Waves crashed eternally. The dimly shining stars of a dark sky glared with no beacon moon. The shape of a hand reached from the water. Countless times Zenobia had formed a liquid imitation of her body only to drown.

“Another perfect essay. Have you ever thought of becoming a speech writer?”

The vast ocean roared to life. Waves grew into cascading tsunamis as thunder without lightning clapped overhead. The world shook like an earthquake. A rotting, burning ship’s mast rose from the violent sea. The form of a young woman, entirely liquid, was bound by thick ropes. Zenobia screamed but only gurgles escaped. Her form melted.

“I don’t think there’s anything stopping you from becoming Student Council President. There’s not one person in the entire school who doesn’t like you.”

With a crash, her form landed back into the murky water suffocating with dirt, hairs, and dust. For yet another of countless times, Zenobia experienced water filling desperate lungs. She kicked. Her arms punched the water compressing her liquid from. It squeezed her intentions until only rage could push back.

“MVP for the championship game is pretty big. Not many girls are smart, friendly, and athletic. I was wondering if you didn’t want to catch a movie sometime with me?”

The pitch darkness of her night sky glowered with pulsing red energy. So much potential drowned repeatedly in this watery hell. Zenobia gasped for air while clutching her throat. Dirty water filled desperate lungs.

"You'll always be my best friend, right?"

The fight with Lilly in the library was her last normal memory. It replayed so many times, every time she drowned like this. One thing stuck after eons drowning in this ocean: Lilly never acknowledged her apology.

It was received with silence.

-----

The cork sealed the rim of the star patterned bottle. Grabby took deep breathes. The bottle clanked back on the shelf, to the very back behind the bronze bull statue.

“I told you not to touch! I said point to the thing you’re interested in and I’ll explain it! Or you deaf or just stupid!”

A slight flame huffed out of Darius’s nostrils, “Is this all you have? None of it is what I expected,” A claw swooped down to catch the imp by the collar, “You’re holding out on me.”

Blue work pants flapped as the narrow legs inside kicked. Grabby waved his hands in desperation. The red pupil glowed larger, “I’ve done no such thing. This is my entire stock. I don’t have anything else for sale.”

“For sale?”

“Yes, nothing else for sale. And nothing else. I don’t have any more magical items to offer than what you see here.”

He opened his fist, “Fine. I’m going to look at some books.”

Grabby dropped but quickly hopped back upright. Dust patted off his backside as he adjusted his jeans, “Fine. Fine. Fine. But I only have normal books.” There was that one not so normal book in his cleaning closet that he wasn’t going to mention, “I’ll come with you.”

“You don’t have to babysit me. I’m not going to steal anything. You said yourself there isn’t anything of value to take.”

“I didn’t welcome you into my shop. You barged in without my permission claiming you’re with the Sealing Commission,” Grabby pointed up at him, “I’m inclined to think you’re a big fraud. The Sealing Commission would find nothing of interest here.”

Darius leaned down. Another burst of flame exhaled through his nostrils. The puff of smoke against the giant eye made it squint hard, “Do you really want me to show you how much of a fraud I’m not?”

Claws pushed out defensively in front of a chubby body, “No, no, I believe you. But it’s still my shop. I have the right to be here. The kitchen is off limits because there was a sinkhole and it’s under reconstruction.”

The dragon’s hands went into each of the six pockets of his coat. He left the storage room and looked over the shelves of the large library, “How did an imp like you come to own such an impressive building. Surely not by selling trinkets like I just saw.”

Grabby tensed as he followed behind, “I-” He wanted to argue but thought better of it, “This building is family property. We worked hard to found this business and keep it debt free. It’s not like I’m wealthy. I’m a respectable business man.”

“No family?”

The tips of Grabby’s dull black claws touched, “Not yet. It’s not like I’m not working on it. I’ve got time you know!”

“A real shame.”

Grabby muttered something under his breath about dragon rules being too oppressive for him to prosper. Darius ignored it while browsing through the books.

There were ordinary books, mostly non-fiction in this section. He pulled a dusty red book off the shelf titled: History of the Second World War. The gap between books exposed the ajar door to a well-lit maintenance closet. The history book slid back on the shelf.

A coy smile grew as the energy Darius pinned to this location once again caught his sense. It was active again. A slight vibration shuddered the entire maintenance closet as he approached.

Beads of sweat rolled down the back of a thick purple eye-lid, “That’s just a cleaning supply closet. Let me close it up. I have dangerous chemicals in there.”

The keychain jangled as Grabby separated it from his pants. Where was the key to the supply closet? Why was it open in the first place!? Jorseph! He danced his way in front of the visitor.

“Staff only!” he screeched.

“Out of the way, imp,” Darius swatted him across the hall so that he went tumbling down the aisle.

Burning bulb swayed as the room vibrated. The light possessed a flickering red aura. A mop sat in the rusted bucket. The red aura glowed the fiercest around its handle. Murky water sloshed at the bottom.

“That’s no ordinary mop,” Darius said.

The door kicked back open. Grabby burst inside, “That’s just an ordinary mop! Don’t touch it! It’s too dangerous. It hasn’t been cured!”

The giant pupil shifted sideways to check the shelf. Grabby jumped. The satchel with his spellbook was missing. It too was still in the process of being cured of human will.

Darius wrapped his claws around the handle. Heavy aura flowed through his middle-left arm into his chest. He lifted it from the murky water.

“You’re the one who called out to me. I can feel it.”

“Put it back this instant!” Grabby screeched.

“Hold liquid,” Darius twirled the mop. None of the water in the soaked mop head left the fabrics, “Good girl. So strong willed, yet you know when to be obedient. You like being praised, don’t you? You thrive on it. And it’s been so long. Well, no worries, I’ll give you all the praise you can earn.”

Grabby growled as he tensed to jump at Darius. A glow flickered in the tall dragon’s eyes, “Release.”

The mop swung like a katana. High-pressure murky water with rage filled aura formed an arc.

Grabby screeched. The blade of water sliced off the tip of his eyelash as he dodged backward. The back of his eye hit the floor.

Screaming vibrations of a buzz saw cutting through concrete followed the iron door creaking from its hinges. The first shelf of books in front of the closet burst asunder. Pages crackled into multiple explosions.

Grabby shifted backwards towards the shelf as the top half of the door collapsed with a metal clatter. With his back against the shelf, he trembled with his gaze fixated on the mop.

“Good girl. You excel at anything, no matter what situation you find yourself in.” A satisfied smirk shifted the dragon’s snout to reveal gleaming, threatening, teeth. Gold doubloons clattered against the cement floor, “I found what I came for. Any objections?”

The mop head pointed forward. It encroached upon the giant eye. Tiny beads of sweat emerged from every centimeter of exposed skin.

“No, n-n-n-no objections!”

A firm kick struck the bottom half of the metal door in the center. The singular hinge failed as the iron plate slid forward. With the mop resting over his shoulder, Darius walked out whistling quietly.

The fat pile of gold doubloons glistened amidst the wreckage.

“Th-th-thank you for your b-b-b-business!”