This Means War

Ninja

Growing up in foster care, Ellie had managed to develop certain talents. She could sleep almost anywhere. She had no problems leaving her house for weeks on end with only her wallet and keys. She could go for extended periods of time with very little food. She could make friends with almost anyone while still remaining largely unattached. She could entertain herself using only her wild imagination for days while waiting to be pawned off onto another family.

Most of those talents stemmed from her never wanting to stay with whatever foster family she had been passed off to. Looking back, they meant well. She was just a stubborn and self centered child. It wasn't until she was fourteen and placed with the woman she came to call her mother that she began to settle down. She was firm, but loving. For the first time she felt like she belonged.

It was with her that she discovered her favorite talent. She was small and light. Her footsteps were nearly silent. She would accidentally sneak up on her mother all the time, usually resulting in screaming and swearing. She would also leave during lulls in the conversation, only to have her mother come scold her for leaving her to talk to herself for however long.

She had adapted to this in her everyday life, now announcing her presence to avoid giving her friends a heart attack. Today, she decided against that. Today, she was going to use her talents for evil. Sure, she was in a prank war with Sebastian, but who was she to not share the love?

Anthony was her first target. He was just sitting on set, sipping at his morning latte and minding his own business for once. Ellie fought her instinct to make a noise as the approached, simply looming over his shoulder, unmoving, unwavering. If he felt her presence at all, he gave no indication.

"So what scene is up first?" Ellie asked suddenly.

Anthony barked out a startled "fuck!" as he leapt from the chair, his coffee getting launched a few feet away and dumping on the ground.

"This is a Disney production sir. I'm pretty sure there is no fucking." Ellie laughed.

"Really girl?" Anthony grouched, pressing a hand to his chest. "I thought this was between you and Sea Bass!"

"I'm pretty sure I don't have any sex scenes with him either." Ellie responded innocently.

"Go sneak up on someone else." Anthony laughed, shaking his head and shooing her away.

Sebastian's first sneak attack was all to easy. He had his head in his phone. He was practically begging for it. She stood silently beside him, her eyes boring holes into the side of his head. She had no idea how much time went by, him goofing off on his phone, her staring at him silently. He finally locked the device and tucked it away in his pocket, looking up for the first time in a while, only to be met with a pair of eyes locked on him from only a couple feet away.

"Whathefuck?!" He gasped, stumbling back into the side of the makeup trailer.

"You good?" Ellie asked innocently.

"Yeah." He sighed, rubbing a hand over his face. "How long were you standing there?"

"I've been in this exact same spot for the last seven hours." Ellie shrugged.

"Why?"

"Your fear fuels me."

"You're going to be the death of me."

"Yes, the intimidating, formidable Winter Soldier is going to be scared to death by a glorified gnome."

The second attack was just as much fun as the first. Costuming had gone a little overboard lubricating his metal arm and gross ooze was beginning to accumulate at the seams. He was sat down, watching as they worked on his fake prosthetic arm. He didn't even notice his costar walk up beside him, phone in one hand, bagel in the other. She silently held out the bagel, stopping just inches from his face and froze, waiting for him to notice.

He finally turned from watching the people working on him, only to be met with a baked good inches from his face. "Fuck!" He yelped, jerking back and almost toppling the chair he sat on.

"Not hungry?" Ellie asked, offering the bagel again.

She wasted no time in posting the video, telling everyone of his crippling fear of bagels.

The third time had been more of an accident. She had stopped to reply to an email at the corner of the guest trailer. Sebastian just happened to be wandering by. He didn't notice her until he almost ran into her.

"Sonovabitch!" He gasped, jumping back and almost falling on his ass.

"Great to see you too, buddy." Ellie responded, never looking up from her phone. That was when she knew he was on edge.

The fourth time she decided to have more fun. She had scored some Pop-Its when she had gotten the fireworks for his wake up call. What better time to use them than now?

Anthony had seen her coming. He was talking to Sebastian at the time. Ellie held a finger to her lips to deter him from giving her away and held up the handful of tiny explosives in warning. Anthony shifted his weight further back, continuing to talk with his friend while also distancing himself from what he knew was coming.

Ellie stopped a few feet behind him and waited. It was important he suspected nothing. She wanted to wait until he was deep in conversation before she struck.

"I'm not too big of a fan of it though. It's too much bread and they over toast it so it just shreds the roof of my mouth. Who needs that in their life?"

"Such a diva. Throwing a fit over a sandwich." Anthony laughed.

"I'm not throwing a fit, I'm stating an opinion." Sebastian insisted.

"Well it sounds like you're growing a fit. It's too much bread!" Anthony mocked playfully.

"Yes, that's exactly what I sound like." Sebastian laughed.

"That's what you sound like to me."

"I'm just saying, they might do better business if they weren't essentially selling a loaf of bread and trying to pass it off as a sandwich."

"Yeah, I know what you mean." Anthony agreed. "It's just a disappointment when you get a giant hunk of bread with almost nothing in it."

"But that taco truck! THAT is amazing." Sebastian continued.

"Oh, you mean the one with that good hot sauce?"

"Yeah, that's the one! That one is amaz-" whatever he was going to say next was lost in his startled yelp as a handful of tiny explosives popped at his feet. He jumped back, his back colliding with something and toppling to the ground on top of it.

"You're heavy." Ellie groaned from under him, trying to wiggle free.

"Let's just call that payback for the tree." Sebastian sighed, dropping more of his weight onto her.

"I don't weigh nine thousand pounds."

"Neither do I."

"It feels like it."

"Maybe you should stop with the explosives." Sebastian suggested, still stubbornly refusing to move.

"Maybe you should stay away from the taco trucks."

"I'll starve if I do."

"Learn to cook, genius!"

"I do know how, Einstein, I just don't want to."

Their playful banter was cut short by Anthony jumping in.

"You're both idiots."