Leo Lupine had been little known around town, the grey of greys. The black blazer, white dress shirt and black slacks kind of guy. Ho hum and Hum drum were the best ways to describe his life. Leo made a simple habit of his days to get up, have a cold breakfast (whatever was available to his sleepy fingers), go to work, come home, play at being a television zombie, go to bed worn out, and start it all over again.
The life of Leo Lupine was most definitely classified as stodgy by anyone on the outside looking in. Mr. Lupine, however, knew quite differently. At work he was a hero, women would faint at his name, small children would make believe at being ' the great hero Lupine'.......someday. One day the world would read of his great adventures in cubicle 43b.
Leo's story begins on a mundane Monday morning as he was quietly dozing in his cubicle. Head slightly slumped, fingers on the keyboard, and a small drip of drool starting to collect on his bottom lip threatening at any moment to spot his new burgundy tie. Leo was startled from his sleep by a sound of distress followed by a great deal of complaining. He leaned a little closer to his cubicle wall, listening to decipher the nature of the neighboring cubicles crisis. One cubicle over from Leo started the advertisement department, while Leo's side was in the region of accounting. Leo was the King of the books, keeping track of what he liked to think of as the life-blood of the company, without Leo and his brave band of number punchers, well... the great M.H. Inc could never exist.
Leo leaned back, flexing his toes and yawning wide. He leaned a little closer to his cubicle wall to hear what all the fuss was about. It was definitely the voice of Herald, from the sales department. He could hear Herald complaining loudly to the others in sales. He and Leo were equals in this land, Herald was the over-seer of the sales that went on for M.H. Inc, they were the ones that traveled out, often strumming up business for the place. Leo and the others in the accounting section were always "in the know"about how things in sells were going, after all the numbers never lie. He was sure M.H. Inc was doing pretty well these days and things were looking up. Leo stroked his bony chin absently as he wondered what could be amiss. Herald seemed to be complaining about Mr. Grimsdale. No surprises there, Leo thought. Mr. Grimsdale was, after all, the boss of M.H. Inc. Leo stood from his seat and tip toed his way to the entrance of his cube, to hear a little better what was going on next door.
"I can't believe he would say that!" Herald yelped in an exasperated voice "We've been busting our butts all year for that over-stuffed ogre!" He turned to his co-worker "he wants us to up our production by 80% by next month, next month!!! can you believe that? or he's docking all our pay back down to minimum wage he says!"Herald's face flushed red with righteous anger, and grumbles of agreements sprang up around him from the wells forged by years of the 9-5 grind with no appreciation of any sort. Leo fumed inside. Mr. Grimsdale was always pushing them around, nothing they did could ever be good enough for that monster, and now, yet another irrational attack on his neighbors. It was only a matter of time Leo thought, before Mr. Grimsdale turned his greedy green gaze to them next, he had to do something.
Leo straightened his back, causing the uncomfortable arms of his dingy dress shirt to pull tight. "I cannot let this go on any longer," he thought "Now is my chance for action!" He took a deep breath puffing out his chest displaying the masculine array of rib bones beneath, and marched his loafers one cube over. Herald paused mid-whine, blinking at Leo. Leo licked his chapped lips and cleared his throat, stammering "I-I couldn't help but over hear about Mr. Grimsdale, and I think you should defiantly say something to him." Herald took a step back and paused a moment before he replied "Me? he has never listened to me about anything, why don't you go and say something to him about it Leo? He will listen to you." The others nodded in quiet agreement "He always listens to the 'facts' the 'numbers' over anything we can tell him about what really goes on here. Come on Leo," Herald pleaded "he can't argue with the facts, make him understand what's really going on out here!" Anthony, a little known co-worker, stepped up with increasing excitement. "Yes Leo, after all, you were the one that talked him into getting us a coffee maker in the lounge, explaining to him so brilliantly how the caffeine would increase productivity; and don't forget the time you convinced him to let us keep casual Fridays, so that our customers could see our 'fun' side." The others nodded in collective agreement.
Leo felt a little braver as the men talked, he stood a little straighter, confidence slowly building in himself as the battle plan rushed through his mind; followed by the terms of his victory. Leo promised to "see what he could do" about the situation. As the others cheered him on, Leo marched down the hall of cubicle towards the office of Mr. Grimsdale. Leo could hear the whispers and the creek of chair wheels across the plastic mats as people peered around the opening of their cells like skittish mice. Leo straightened his tie and swallowed hard as he reached for the door to Mr. Grimsdales lair. He cleared his throat and slowly opened the door, sticking his head inside he stammered, "M..Mr. Grimsdale, sir?" He could hear the excited whispers behind him as he stepped through the door, letting it slowly slide shut behind him, sealing his fate inside the demonic lair for the next few painful minuets.
Herald softly walked towards the water pitcher near the Boss' office. Placing his hand on the cups, he squatted just enough to see through the slits of the blinds in the office window. He could see Leo's mid section, standing near the desk and he could see the lower jaws of Mr. Grimsdale in their ever present expression of unadulterated blood lust. He saw claws go down on his desk, then hungry eyes ripping Leo apart. He gulped and turned away for a moment, his heart pounding, unable to look at what may insue. The rumble of Mr. Grimsdale's voice made him knock over the stack of cups. As he bent down to pick them up Herald caught a glimpse of Leo's stalwart gaze, filling him with hope and pride. Leo's finger went up to a point to deliver a direct blow to Grimsdale as he pointed to imagined facts in the air. Herald gulped as he saw a claw reach into the depths of its desk drawer, pilfering around for unimaginable instruments of pain. Herald couldn't stand it any longer, he squinted his eyes shut and turned his head away, waiting for at any moment, Leo's screams of pain to pierce the quiet office air. After a moment of no sound, he feared the worst, a quick quiet death perhaps? He had to know, He had to force himself to look... after all, he was the one that pushed Leo to go in there and solve their problems... He gulped, poor Leo. Peeking out with one eye, he saw it.. a calculator sitting on Mr. Grimsdale's desk, and there was Leo, still standing, perhaps even taller than before. Grimsdales grimacing face relaxes as he looked up from the calculator, Leo's hands dropped to his sides in relief. Herald thought his heart must have stopped beating for a moment. Mr. Grimsdale stood, and Leo turned for the door. Herald felt his heart kick start in a rapid beat, he quickly started running for his cubicle. He slid into his chair and stuck his fingers to his keyboard trying to look as natural and as un-concerned as possible.
Leo closed the door behind himself falling back against it with an exasperated sigh. His tie was loosend to one side and his hair was dishevelled from pushing his hands through it so many times during the course of the battle. He pushed himself away from the door with some effort, and began stumbling back to his cubicle.
Leo slowly walked down the long road back to his native land, his body felt foreign and numb to him, still reeling with the after effects of the battle. He hardly noticed the squeaks of office chairs shifting as he walked by. As Leo approached his cubical it all slowly started to settle in with a creeping smile across his chapped lips. He tested the waters, throwing his hands part way up, just about chest high, in celebration of his victory. It felt good, and the feeling spread through him rapidly, the next thing Leo knew, his whole body was joining in the awkward jig of celebration. Herald and the others crept around the corner of Leo's cubical, and seeing the dance of elation, were soon swept up in the joyous revelry of Leo's success. The unabashed office party continued on, well into their lunch break. Leo felt dizzy with celebration, just as he thought things were slowly winding down from their climax and he began to settle back into work Herald stuck his head around the corner and cleared his throat. "Leo?" he said. Leo turned in his chair with raised eyebrows feeling very powerful. "I brought you a little token of appreciation from myself and the others from Sales." Leo could feel a light blush in his cheeks, but he knew after all he had done, he deserved their admiration and the spoils of war. Herald brought the gift from behind his back. It was absolutely mesmerizing. Perhaps the most beautiful thing Leo had ever seen. The way the florescent lights glinted off the smooth surface like still waters. The sheer genius behind the craftsmanship. Leo reached out reverently, taking it slowly out of Herald's hands. He turned it in his hands, watching it with awe in his eyes, inspecting every angle. How did they get that spotless silver triangle to float like that above the slick black ebony base? Leo quickly pushed his other desk nick-nacks aside making a place of honor for his new trophy. Leo thought he may just cry.
The next few days at the M.H. inc. were relatively uneventful. Everyone went about their daily lives, happy but completely unaware of the turmoil that was heading their way via the interstate and a minivan. Little did Leo know, that his victory had angered the company supervisor, and she was, this very Wednesday, on her way to take vengeance of the rebellious kingdom. Leo felt a little depressed to find the next week at work almost completely back into the normal routine of things. Apart from the occasional pat on the back, the M.H. Inc. had quickly slid back into the bottomless revene of stagnant mundane life. Coffee stained shirts, saddle sores from work stations, and complete mental exhaustion were once again the growing haze over the life of the hero Leo Lupine.
As the days rolled on, Leo could sense a rising anticipation around the office, a bit of static electricity in the air. Leo tried to keep an ear to the carpet, as it was, seeking new adventure and hero status for himself, something to knock the yawn out of his day. Leo did not have long to wait. He never expected such a gruesome act to happen right under his nose. Before he even knew, the lethal act was done. No one was expecting it, it was just another sleepy office day when the devastating news came to Leo. Cindy, the quiet blonde, three cubicles down in Sales had been the victim of the mortal attack. Cindy had fallen victim to the supervisors hungry, vengeful claws. Cindy was gone for good, Leo's heart felt both sick and enraged at what had transpired. Cindy had been....let go. He could hardly wrap his mind around it. What was she doing here? The M.H. Inc. had always been a family owned business, Mr. Grimmsdale was the youngest son. He had only heard of the supervisor making trips from her retirement home on very rare occasion to check up on her sons. Why now? Why Cindy? Mrs. Grimmsdale was most assuredly an elderly woman to be feared. The stories of her heartless acts were only to be outnumbered by her wrinkles. Leo could feel the blood running cold through his veins. He could overhear the mournful goodbyes in Sales as Cindy's box was packed and her treasured office items handed out and divided among her closest friends to remember her by. Cindy made the best coffee....Leo slammed his hands down on his desk, this calls for serious action. He stood from his chair, rubbing the sting from his hands, wishing he hadn't slapped the desktop in his unbridled righteous fury. But pain, pain was the cost of his rage and this stinging sensation was only the beginning and he knew this was child's play compared to the pain he would rain down on the greyed head of Mrs. Grimmsdale. He approached the gathering of Sales employees and met their frightened faces with a visage of grim resolve. "This will not go on" Leo stated. "we will not allow another soul to slip through our fingers." The others nodded in tearful agreement. "What are you going to do Leo?" Herald asked in dismay. Leo's face became solemn "I'm going to make the color chart and confront Mrs. Grimmsdale with the facts." Many bowed their heads in silence. Leo clapped Herald on the back, grabbed his briefcase, and clocked out for the day, heading home to prepare for the battle that would soon ensue.
Leo went home and sat down in front of his computer wielding a mighty size soda and some soggy fast food fries. Seconds turned into minuets and minuets turned into hours and hours turned into a color chart of projected sales undulating in the soft breeze of his ceiling fan. Stacks of paper spilled across the room are the casualties of the creation of his ultimate weapon. Leo leaned back in his chair, stretching his arms over his head with a crack. He rubbed his tired eyes and smiled to himself with a sense of victory. Stumbling down the hallways, Leo collapsed into bed falling asleep instantly, deeply asleep, feeling perfectly drained from the efforts put forth this night.
The next morning was filled and quickly vanished with Leo's morning routine. Once at the office, Leo made his way to his cubicle, his deadly weapon sheathed in the briefcase by his side. His baggy, yet hawk-like eyes, scanning the horizen for any sign of danger. It was a day like so many days before, yet horribly and fantasticly different. Leo slowly sat before his computer, revrently placing his briefcase on the desk. His fingers softly skimming the clip locks ad his eyes beheld the unseen, visions of anticipation for what is to come. Leo carefully unlatched his case, retreiving from its pho-satin depths his means to an end. He drew forth the color chart of projected sales, encased in a sparkling clear plastic sleeve. The static between the paper and the plastic made his fingers tingle with the entombed power comtained beneith. The prismatic clolors of truth seemed to glow beneith the flourecent lights. Leo could feel the excitement coursing through his veins. His heart pounded, he could hear his own breath comming faster, almost panic'd with excitement. This must be how all the renoun hero's felt in the moments before their historic acts of greatness Leo thought.
Suddenly, Leo felt watched. There was an uneasy feeling of exposure to his back. He quickly stuffed the color chart back into his briefcase, hear pounding, he turned to his computer screen rapidly deploying many applications, trying to look as if he hasnt knowticed the preasence, trying to seem studiously engrossed in his work. Leo turned a bit to the left side of his desk, reaching for a disheveled stack of papers while stealing a glance over his shoulder. Leo took a deep breath. He hadn't counted on confonting anyone this early in the game, Leo forced himself to twist a little farther and look. He sighed and offerd a relieved smile to a sheepish Herald standing in his doorway. Herald looked pale with worry, he twisted his fingers together and stared down at the floor. Leo cleared his throat, straightning his papers and laying them back down on his desk. Herald started at the noise, and looked back up at Leo. "Leo...I...." Herald blanched, "I just wanted to make sure you were ok with this. I mean afterall, your job is pretty secure, you are just doing this for us." Leo managed a good natured laugh to try and put Herald at ease, but inside he was terrified too. "Of course I'm sure Herald, someone has to stand up to these monsters. If you wish to help then just, well just wish me luck Herald." Herald's eyes seemed to brighten instantly, and he left Leo's doorway empty.
Alone again Leo took a deep breath. Herald's face had put an edge to Leo's own fears. He turned in his chair, his gaze settling on the hovering pyramid, sittin alight on top of his desk, just by his computer. Leo settled back into his chair. Watching the slow spin of the pyramid, mezmerizing him, instilling in him a quiet calm. This was his one chance to gain the esteem and awe he had always wanted. This was his one chance to prove to the world what Leo Lupine really was. Leo was awoken from his dreams of grandure by the sound of voices behind him.
Herald was elated he had finally found something he could do to help Leo. It put his soul at ease no matter how small the task. Herald went from one cubicle to the next, rallying the troops. "Let's go see Leo off" he said "Lets show him our support by escorting him to the supervisors room, so he knows we appriciate what he is doing for us." Everyone awoke from their sleepy daze infront of their papers or their computer monitors, their books or their phone calls, and rose to the occasion. Herald lead them back to Leo's cubicle, the rally of people behind him, yawning and rubbing there eyes, were to him a multitude of greatful soilders, come to see their hero off. Offering their strong moral support to Leo's spirit. Herald stood in the doorway and grinned as Leo's surprised face turned to greet him. Leo's unremarkably fine brown hair, hanging dishevled against his forhead. Leo stood, blinking. "I've brought the troops to wish you luck Leo!" Herald blurted. "We want you to know how much we appriciate you sticking your neck out for us." Leo could feel the swelling pride in his chest, he thought it may just burst. Leo put on his most serious of faces. "I thank you. I thank you for your support, it enboldens my heart." Leo lifted his chin. "I want you all to know, what I do now, I do for the good of all people at M.H. Inc. not only that, but for the good of all people like us, who work the nine to five and get nothing but abuse and unwarrented attacks from the threats like Mr. and Mrs. Grimmsdale." Leo's voice rose a litte, even startling himself "It ends now!" The groggy soilders behind Herald blinked and nodded in agreement, a few, inspired by Leo's speech joined in with a resounding "yea!"
Leo shoved his fist into his briefcase, pulling out his color chart. All eyes were on Leo, some gasps swept through the crowed at the beautiful yet horrible sight of the armed, enraged accountant. Leo shoulderd his way through the small crowd of people. They made ways for him instantly, some Leo even saw dropping their eyes to stare at the floor out of reverence as he passed. Leo marched down the row of empty cubicles, as the others followed with quicked footsteps. The short prossesion all came to an abrupt halt infront of Mr. Grimmsdale's office, where there supervisor had taken up residence as she planned and plotted her most vile deeds.
Leo's head was swimming. He was at once excited and terrified. He turned to look behind him as he felt an odd draft.When he turned he saw his soilders quickly dissapearing back into their cubicles, only Herald remained, but he too seemed on the bring of flight. Herald solemnly placed his hand on Leo's shoulder giving it a tight squeeze. Leo gulped and tried to collect his thoughts as he put his hand to the door handle, and decended into the murkey depths. The air inside seemed rank with the smell of musk and moth balls. Behind the desk in a haze of cigarette smoke sat, staring, Mrs. Grimsdale. She sneered. After a series of racking coughs she demanded of Leo "whadda'ya want?" Leo gatherd his strength and rightious fury, he produced the color chart from his side and laid it with practiced skill on the presentation easle. Mrs. Grimsdale squinted at it through thick glasses. The glasses held on ther liver splotched nose by a horribly gaudy gold chain draping through her blue gray hair, down to her hunched shoulders. "I have come to make my case against the current actions being taken in this company, the downsizing of the sales department, according to my figures, will in no was help alliviate the current situation of M.H. Inc." Leo rested his steely gaze on Mrs. Grimmsdale, he was, this time, most sure of himself. Mrs. Grimsdale cocked a bushy eyebrow and cackled a raspy laugh laced with mucas. "Boy, your silly arguments mighta' worked on my son here, but you'd be mistaken if you think I'm so easily won away from my money." Just at that moment, Leo reached inside his shirt pocked and produced his trusty P-3 (Presentation Pointer Pen). With one stoke of his hand he extended it to its full length. Mrs. Grimmsdale jumped as Leo struck the tip down on the color chart indicating a graph making a loud "smack!" The next grouling half hour was a daze to Leo, he almost rememberd a whirlwind of papers about the room, the nosey click, click, click of numbers being punched on a calculator with Mrs. Grimmsdales practiced fingers. With each "smack!" of his P-3 the numbers came slower, and Mrs. Grimmsdale sank farther and farther down into her chair. Leo was lost, he had lost himself that day, deep within the lust of the battle. It was over in what seemed to him like moments, glory pulsed through his vains as he looked down on the face of his vanquished foe. Mrs. Grimmsdale agreed with a somber nod of her head to "stick it out" and keep on the noble soilders of the sales department. As a token of his voctory Leo emerged with a hand full of shreaded two-week knowtices for what would have been, the unlucky employees. Leo had saved them, not only had he saved them, but he had also saved their families from what he was sure would have been, a most terrible fate.
Parading down the isle of cubicles, everyone came out to greet Leo as he waved the shredded papers over his head. They slapped his back and gave cries of joy, thanking and congradulating him at every turn. Leo had never felt so proud in his life. The following days of the week Leo never paid for a meal, there was always someone waiting outside his cubicle when lunch break rolled around ready to whisk him off for a all expenes paid lunch, be it at a 4 star resuraunt or the local chinese buffet, it was all up to Leo's discretion, he was afterall, now a hero. Leo thought he could see in the eyes of the children on the street, admiration as he passed on his way home. He has saved M.H. Inc, he was sure everything would work out for the best. His name would be written in the history of the small town, rememberd forever for his most brave deeds. Herald thanked him a daily basis for what must have been almost a solid month Leo thought. Slowly, things began to settle in back to normal, as normal as things can be when your a local hero.
Leo was once again called apon by another friend later that year as the M.H. inc plunged into financial trouble. Leo faught bravely, but in a coperate take over, Leo lupine, our hero was lost.
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