Xanatos was engrossed in a video game as Evyl Obi
clomped down the main stairs, down the hall,
and paused at the common room door. Maul, who was
enjoying the novelty of a few minutes peace with a
good book, looked up to find Obi waiting in the
doorway, a towel wrapped around his head like a
turban.
"And to what do we owe the honor of the Mojo Jojo
impersonation today," Maul said quietly,
turning the page and pretending not to care. Evyl
glared, then frowned, then got a mischievous glint to
his
eyes and grinned. Maul sighed, glancing up over the
edge of the book again and knew what was coming.
Obi assumed ‘the pose’.
"I have just used all the hot water taking a shower
so nobody else may take a shower with hot
water because I have taken a shower with hot water,
and it is impossible for anyone else to have taken a
shower with hot water," he paused for dramatic effect.

"Because I have used it all." He finished, grinning.
Maul sighed, then applauded politely.
"Actually, I think that’s the best one you’ve done so
far," Xanatos said, still focused on the game.
He jerked his entire body to the side, punching a
button furiously.
"Left, left, left!" He cried. "Go left, you damn
stupid.... Aagh! Condammdable Battle droids!!" he
shouted, then threw the controller to the side as his
character died a grisly death. He stood and stormed
away a few paces, fuming. "Your turn," he snapped at
Maul, who looked up, then back at his book. Xan
blinked.
"Do you actually mean to tell me that DethMaul
doesn’t want to fry more of his brain cells on
computerized mayhem and violence?" Xan asked,
mock-incredulous. Maul glanced up with a glare, then
set
his bookmark in the page and looked up at him.
"I’m on a twelve-step program," he said, then sighed
at Xan’s expression. "What? I’m not
allowed to be intellectual for once? I happen to like
this book, and I’d rather finish reading it than burn
my
brain cells at the sacrificial Lucasarts altar. All
Right?" he snapped defensively, then stood, heading
for the
door with his book.
"What are you reading, anyway?" Xan asked, snatching
the book from him as he passed.
"Hey!" Maul protested. Xan jerked the book further
away and squinted at the title.
"I Sing the Body Electric?’ since when are you into
classic Sci-fi?" Xan asked, only to have the
book snatched back off him with a snarl.
"It’s a good book! Try reading something other than
comics once in a while," Maul growled.
"Woah, woah, woah. Some comics are damn good
reading!" Obi protested, then realized he was
also defending Xani.
"Like what?" Maul demanded.
"Like, ummm, Tank Police, Dragonball, and the X-men.
Especially the new Ultimate series. Wolvie gets to
shag Jean Gray. Very cool...." Evyl said, then
blinked and backed away at Maul’s glare. Maul hated
the
new version X-men.
"Um, then there’s Witchblade, and the Darkness...."
he trailed off. Yet another set of comics Maul
didn’t like.
"Ooh! And then there’s MonkeyMan. I’ve never read
it, but the guy who does it is really, really,
really cool...." Evyl trailed off, the distinctive
glazed look of a MetaGoddess Moment on his face.
"He’s appearing at a convention in Pittsburgh soon,
and he’s a really good artist who deserves a
break in the business....." He said in a
near-monotone, then abruptly shook his head and looked
around
stupidly.
"Umm, what was the question again?" he asked, the
normally semi-sane vacant look back on his
face. Maul just sighed and shook his head.
"You see? This is what reading nothing but comics
will do to your head. Read something with
words once in a while," he said, then thwaped Obi over
the head with his book and walked out the door.
Evyl blinked stupidly, rubbing his head.
"Comics have words, why’d ya think they pay the
writers so much," he pouted, then looked up at
Xani, who simply looked at him patiently, then
thwacked him across the back of the head.
"Don’t ever try to defend me again," he said, walking
back to the couch and picking up the game
controller. Evyl pouted, then sniffled and walked out
of the room.
"Fine, see if I help you the next time a double of
Qui-gon decides to pay a visit," he muttered,
heading for the kitchen. He paused, listening closely
as he heard the faint sound of running water upstairs.

He grinned evilly.

-------

Exar Kun walked into the common room, frowning.
"Would you have any idea why I heard Obi
singing ‘Flushie, flushie’ to the tune of 'Ride of the
Valkyries' as I passed him in the hall?" he asked Xan,
who was busy trying to avoid another
throng of battle droids. Suddenly, a scream came from
upstairs, and a giggle from the hall bathroom.
"Who the bloody hell took all the hot water?!?!?"
Ulic screamed from the upstairs shower. Evyl
appeared in the doorway to the common room, a towel
wrapped around his neck like a cape, and the other
still firmly turban-wrapped around his head.
"Mojo-Obi has taken /all/ the hot water!!
Muahahahaha!" he cackled, then bolted for the basement
at the sound of footsteps upstairs. Kun shook his
head, and Xan just stared. Maul appeared at the door,
looking at them strangely.
"Anyone want to borrow my Powerpuff Girls baseball
bat?" Maul asked, smirking. Kun frowned,
silent. Maul lifted an eyebrow at him.
"I’m thinking," Kun said after a moment, trying to
weight the pros and cons of beating some sense
into Obi- or what little sense he had left out of him.
Xan was silent a moment longer.
"Can’t we just sell him to a pet store?" he finally
asked.
He was answered by a final cackle of ‘Muahahahaha!’
and the basement door slamming, then
locking shut.
"Or an asylum," Xan added.

----