Thank you for participating in my Fan-Fiction Contest!
The sign out front lit up with a buzz, the name of the club shining in golden neon above the dark of the city sidewalk. The Sensitive Instrument. Lapis took another step forward, bouncing on the balls of her feet in anticipation. She had been standing outside for nearly an hour, but the line into the unassuming building was moving at long last.
Everyone around her was properly hoity-toity in their fine suits and cocktail dresses in a way that made Lapis in her old green jacket, and midriff top stand out like a sore thumb, but she hardly noticed any of the mocking glances or whispered remarks as she took a quick selfie with the guard at the entrance. The burly man watching the door raised an eyebrow and silently held out a hand as she approached. Lapis blinked at it for a moment, contemplating a high-five before remembering herself.
“Ah, of course!” Lapis withdrew a slightly bent membership card from her pocket and passed it over with a wide grin. She held her breath for a moment as he looked it up and down and cross-referenced it with the list he held. Several seconds passed and she hesitantly wondered whether it was too late to back out just as he abruptly waved her in.
“Enjoy your evening, Miss Lavorne…”
Lapis nodded before hurrying inside. That’s right, she reminded herself. It’s not Lapis tonight. It’s Laura Lavorne, Laura Lavorne… Don’t screw it up...
Past the dull entrance, Lapis’ doubts were forgotten as soon as she saw the gallery. There were multiple areas of focus on art and lavish dining, with crowds of eager people moving back and forth between them both. Lapis took a running shot on her phone, scanning the highlights quickly as she could. The room was massive. Ceilings held aloft with stone pillars and floors lined with glossy tile, but the real spectacle were the grand displays of sculpture-work. The pieces were elaborate and abstract, including dozens of marble statues posing in every manner and direction. But what made Lapis really perk up was the laughter emanating from every piece. Not the smug, casual laughter of the guests, but the hysteric and often frantic laughter of the ones that were there to entertain them. Whether said laughter was loud, muffled, or echoing within some creative means of containment depended entirely on the individual subject...
Eyes already going wide with wonder, Lapis was drawn to the closest interactive art piece. It was a reflective stone rectangle set into the floor, only several feet tall but nearly twenty feet long, and every other meter or so, a pair of bare human feet protruded from a pair of holes in the top, soles pointed skyward and unable to escape their confines. Guests were seated at benches alongside these elaborate stockades, sipping wine and busying themselves with the nearest pair of feet. Some caressed them while they mingled, as if they were petting a particularly docile cat, but most weren’t half so gentle. They were tickling them. Prodding soles like hyper-sensitive keyboards. Playing toes like the strings of a particularly frantic harp.
Lapis watched, transfixed for a moment, as a stylish raven-haired woman casually ran her long, glossy nails back and forth atop the dark-skinned soles imprisoned beside her. The woman was making small talk with a waitress, barely glancing at the feet she was so indifferently tormenting as their toes flexed and writhed in desperation.
Sensitive instruments indeed… Lapis smiled in admiration, craning her neck to hear the shrieks of laughter and unanswered pleas for mercy from beneath the stonework. Whoever the unlucky focus of the raven-haired woman was, they were clearly suffering greatly.
Well, when in Rome! Whether it was to blend in, or simply not wanting to be outdone, Lapis hurried to an unattended bench further down the line. Taking a seat, she found a slender pair of soles with pale skin and bubbly toes offset with jet-black nail polish and a shiny, black ankle bracelet.
Lapis giggled. “Look at you Goth Girl! All dressed up for me!” She gingerly threw an arm around the ankles, leaning in close to them as she smiled and took another selfie. The toes clenched and a demure squeak could barely be heard from within the stone beneath her as Lapis made contact. “Aw, are you nervous?” She cooed. Picture taken, Lapis pulled away and patted one of the feet reassuringly as it twitched beneath her touch. “Don’t worry. I’m gonna make you a star!”
Repositioning her phone’s camera beside her, Lapis dove in, wriggling her fingers up and down the wrinkled pair of soles. The feet sprang to life, feebly writhing with what little space they were allowed as a fresh bout of laughter ignited from within the stone, joining the frantic song of distant neighbors. Lapis joined in too, giggling along with her victim as her fingers expertly probed in between the stem of each and every toe. “Oh does that tickle? How bout here? Or here?!” As Lapis mugged for the camera she taunted with more fervor than everyone else at the exhibit combined, prompting a curious glance from her neighbor.
“Excuse me..?”
“Hm?” Lapis looked up, her fingers not slowing down in the slightest as she turned. “Um, yeah?”
The raven-haired woman watched Lapis’ fingers continue their dance for a moment longer before shifting to make eye contact. “Are you new here? I don’t recognize you...” The woman was short and slender, wearing a black cheongsam style dress and a matching choker with an emblem of a feather in the side. Her bangs partially covered her face and swept to one side. Beneath them her lips were painted red, and her dark mascaraed eyes narrowed at Lapis in curiosity.
“Oh, well…” Lapis swallowed, finally slowing to a stop in her tickle assault as she sat upright and tried to swallow her nerves. Play it cool Laura! Play it cool! “Yes! I am! But no, not actually! I’ve been here once or twice last year, but I was a bit of a wallflower! Maybe that’s why you don’t recognize me?” She distracted herself watching the pale pair of feet twitch with phantom giggles for a moment before pocketing her phone and turning to offer the raven-haired woman a stiff handshake. “I’m Laura! Laura Lavorne!”
The woman smiled. She offered Lapis a free hand as the other continued skillfully teasing the pair of feet beside her, not granting them mercy for even a moment. “It’s nice seeing someone fresh to the game…” she murmured. “So many people just go through the motions anymore…” She gave the feet at her side a bored glance as her fingers picked up in speed. The muffled laughter grew louder as she turned back to Lapis with an unbothered smirk.
“I know what you mean!” Lapis nodded. “But hey, you seem familiar with this place. Do you think you could give me the rundown?” She leaned in a bit, lowering her voice. “I’d love to see what the inner circle’s hiding in a place like this, you know…?”
The woman chuckled softly. A gentle, almost mocking sound compared to the raucous mirth she was forcing from her victim. “I certainly do… My name is Li Feng…The owner and proprietor of the Sensitive Instrument.”
Lapis’ eyes went wide. “Oh, really! Wow! Well, it’s nice to meet you! Lovely establishment! But on second thought I should probably...” Lapis quickly stood up, trying to think of an excuse to leave before she was asked a question she couldn’t answer.
“Wait…”
Lapis froze. The woman’s voice was gentle, but firm.
Li turned, and waved over a short-haired waitress before gesturing to the feet she had been attending to. “Please, keep this one company for me while I visit with a guest will you? I’d hate for her to grow complacent…”
The waitress nodded and diligently sat in her boss’s seat, her expression completely neutral as she mechanically danced both sets of fingers upon the helpless soles like hungry spiders. Their owner’s frenzied laughter continued unabated as Li moved to Lapis and smiled warmly. “Now then… May I show you around?”
“Uh well, of course! But…” Lapis couldn’t help but cast a nervous glance over the woman’s shoulder as the waitress filled her new role. Her serving tray forgotten in favor of the torturous task so casually laid before her. “Mind if I ask, why those feet in particular need double duty?”
Li covered her mouth with that same gentle laugh. “Oh don’t mind that… Just attending to a little sneak that wormed her way in here the other night without permission… Reporters right? Such a nuisance...” She placed an elegant hand on Lapis’ shoulder and directed her to the rest of the gallery. “Now shall we…? I love giving fresh faces a proper tour...”
Lapis swallowed, feeling a bead of sweat on her neck as she nodded. “Sure, why not?”
-
“And over there… we have the Plumed Maidens…” Li gestured to a series of translucent glass tubes, each of them lined on the inside with stiff feathers as a scantily clad prisoner was stood up straight and locked within, their arms bound behind their back as they tried to stay still while the plumes constantly brushed over their bare skin. On the outside, guests were free to steer and manipulate the feathers from the other end with long handles tied to the quill of each of them. This allowed them to coordinate their attacks, and keep each subject constantly on their toes.
Lapis watched as a young redheaded woman on the slightly chubbier side desperately tried to stand upright as guests chased the curves of her freckled belly with the tips of countless feathers. She shook from side to side, giggling shrilly and dancing in place as tears of mirth ran down her cherry-red face. Her midriff bounced as she failed to suck in her stomach trying to dodge another ticklish jab and she finally toppled over only to be met with the wave of feathers on her other side. She rolled desperately against the sides of the tube, trying to move in such a way that she could hide her stomach from the onslaught of tickly wisps, but they descended from all sides. The last sight Lapis caught as they passed was her howling in laughter as several of the feathers managed to slip into the curve of her already quivering navel, pumping in and out as her heaving belly pressed up against the glass.
“And here, we have The Statues. A simple name, but it’s what stuck…” Li stopped in front of what looked like a line-up of stone statues, each depicting a person in a state of dance or surrender. But on closer inspection, each figure had been completely hollowed out, and a person of adjacent size had been sealed within. The nearest was posed like a ballerina balanced on one foot, torso leaning out over the air and arms stretched to either side. The woman trapped inside could barely move an inch within her stone shell, but openings had been made in random spots all throughout. Well… not too random… Lapis mused. The lower half of her face could be seen for one, as well as the hairless skin of both underarms.
They watched two people (a couple apparently on a date) begin digging their fingers up into the girl’s armpits as the exposed half of her face glowed red with laughter and cried out in exertion. “P-Please!! AaHAHAH!! Not There! Stop! Stop!-HahahA!!” If the woman was trying to lower her arms, the statue gave no sign of wavering.
Another statue was posed to present someone balancing on their hands, leaving both feet jutting out in front of them with nothing but their soles bared as people took turns teasing them. Here and there staff members passed by wielding feather dusters, paying special attention to exposed soles and naked bellies as if they were working hard to clean an actual centerpiece, all while ignoring the laughter and threats from whoever was trapped within.
And yet another dais depicted what almost looked like a parody statue of the Greek Titan Atlas, portraying a well-muscled figure holding up the entire world on their back. Yet despite the image’s show of strength, the tall, muscular woman locked within laughed in sheer hysteria, unable to even speak as a young, skinny blonde girl with a dreamy expression playfully prodded at the single hole that had been drilled in the stone torso to expose the hyper-sensitive navel beneath. The hole was barely big enough for the girl’s finger to slip in and corkscrew back and forth, but judging by her victim’s ceaseless laughter, it was all she needed to work with… The muscular woman’s head was exposed as she watched her assailant, shaking her head in wild protest as her messy hair stuck to the tears of laughter streaming down her cheeks. But the blonde girl didn’t even look up, focused purely on the warm little divot her finger was probing and whatever mirth she could mine from it while she had the chance.
In any other scenario, Lapis would have been mapping out her surroundings and setting up more camera footage of every event she passed. Maybe even interviewing the ballerina over there about how she ended up here and which of the couple currently strumming her underarms was the better tickler?
But that was before she ran into the owner of the club in the first five minutes of sneaking in... What are the odds of that kind of rotten luck?! Lapis cursed the timing of it all as she ran her finger over the phone in her pocket, sneaking her camera up for a peek whenever she could. Just then Li stopped to monologue about a pillar they passed. Even this column of the club’s foundation had some unlucky occupant buried within… The tips of their toes peering out at eye level as Miss Feng drummed her fingers across them as they squirmed up and down.
Lapis curled her own toes, imagining herself ending up in there as well before the night was over. “Miss Feng? Do you mind if I use the restroom..?”
“Of course dear…” Li lifted her free hand and gestured to a plain door off to the side of the gallery. “Right there. I’ll wait for you here…”
Lapis smiled and hurried inside, grimacing as soon as it was clear there were no windows or back exits. I guess I have no choice… Lapis groaned before locking herself in a stall and dialing a familiar number.
The line immediately picked up. “Where are you…?”
Lapis winced. “Heeey Veraaa...!”
“Where. Are. You.” Vera’s voice was not amused. Even less so than usual.
Lapis rubbed her temple, closing her eyes. “So you know that shady mafia nightclub you talked about the other day? The one you were planning to go undercover in, for your work?”
The line was silent for a moment.
Lapis cleared her throat. “The one you said I couldn’t look into or help you with, no matter how exciting it all sounded?”
“I’m familiar…” Vera’s voice was a tired growl.
“Well, I miiiight have….”
“Stay there. Don’t move. I’m coming to get you. You’re grounded.”
Lapis blinked. “You know I’m not twelve anymore…”
“Grounded.” The line clicked.
Lapis sighed and pocketed her phone. “Okay… Fair.” She sat up and left the bathroom, nearly bumping straight into Li standing right outside the door. “Whoah-!”
Miss Feng smiled. “I apologize. I didn’t want to miss you on your way out…”
Lapis nodded, giving her an awkward finger guns. “That’s A-Okay! Just needed to freshen up! But we can get back to that tour!”
“About that… I’m afraid I checked the guest registry, and something came up…” Feng’s smile didn’t waver as she cocked her head innocently to the side.
Lapis swallowed. “Oh? Well that’s alright! If you’re busy, I don’t want to waste your time! I supposed I’ll just…!” She began to take a step away, when she felt a surprisingly firm grip on her shoulder. Turning her head she saw two waitresses had appeared at either side of the bathroom door, their eyes fixed on her from behind.
“Oh don’t leave just yet… After all, the issue is concerning you Miss Lavorne. You see, we couldn’t find your membership listed on the registry. Old or new... And yet, you mentioned already visiting us last year, did you not?”
“Is that right..? W-Well, I might have misspoke! I was actually the guest of a guest last time and...” Lapis frantically turned her head side to side as the two waitresses closed in on her, pinning her arms behind her back.
Li Feng’s smile finally faded, and she narrowed her eyes without amusement or curiosity. “I dislike being lied to miss. And in my own club? That won’t stand…”
Lapis shivered as Li moved closer, her pointed heels clicking on the tile floor. “W-Well, we could take a seat then! Maybe-AAHH!” Lapis squawked as Li ran a single finger down the front of her midriff, digging her fingertip into her bare abs just enough to make her whole body jolt with a single tickle.
“I don’t know who you are…” Li continued, voice calm. “But by tomorrow, I’ll know everything about you…” Her hand moved again, two fingers wiggling, this time on either side of the rim of Lapis’ navel as the girl’s whole midriff twitched with the hilarious sensation of it.
“Wait-D-Don’t-Hahah!!” Lapis shook with forced mirth as she tried to force the grin off her face. The waitresses holding her didn’t budge as her hips began to jolt from side to side.
“I’ll know where you came from…” Li’s fingers fluttered up Lapis’ jacket and played within her armpits, causing her to shriek and throw her head back. “I’ll know what makes you tick…” Her hands moved in opposite directions now, one running a fingernail up Lapis’ neck while the other took a firm grip of her waist. “And I’ll know exactly what kind of art piece to lock you away in…”
Lapis was all sputters and frantic giggles before bursting out into full laughter as Li was suddenly playing her abs like a banjo. “GahaHOD-No-PFFT-StAHAahAHAA!!”
“And together, we’ll make such sweet music…”
Li’s taunts were soft and distant as tears of mirth spilled down Lapis’s cheeks. Her face was hot, her body limp, but she was forced to stay upright as this woman’s fingers played with every nerve across her sensitive bare skin. If other guests heard her pleas for mercy, they ignored them. No surprise there... All Lapis could do is laugh as every alarm bell in her head seemed to be going off all at once.
And then it stopped. Lapis’ eyes went wide, still wet and blurry as she gasped trying to catch her breath. Then she realized an alarm actually was going off. A fire alarm, blaring overhead as Li Feng and her waitresses stared up in confusion. Ceiling sprinklers went off at random, and soon there was chaos. People moved about frantically as the staff tried to control them.
“Calm them down!” Miss Feng looked about, and called out over the crowd, her friendly facade dropping as people scurried for an exit. “There is no fire!” she cried.
But there was smoke. The four of them looked down in surprise as a metal sphere landed beside Feng’s legs, spewing up a dark jet of fog, and obscuring their little corner of the club.
Lapis coughed, her vision obscured, but she felt a jerk to her side as the two waitresses were torn from her. And soon she was being pulled (practically carried), towards the exit in all the confusion. At first she resisted, but hearing Miss Feng still calling out in frustration far behind her, she breathed a sigh of relief.
Stepping out of the smoke she saw her caretaker, Vera. “Oh thank god…” Lapis sighed as they stepped out the front door together, hopping over an unconscious bouncer, and moved towards the parking lot and a familiar car. “How’d you get here so fast..?”
“Call it intuition when I saw my forged membership card missing…” Vera murmured, reaching the door and pushing Lapis into the front seat. “What were you thinking?!”
Lapis crossed her arms with a pout as Vera moved in beside her and started the car. “Well, I knew that you were going to infiltrate this place for your whole spy business shtick and I wanted to scope it out for you first…”
“Yeah right…” Vera scoffed. “You were just looking for footage to put online again weren’t you…?”
“Can’t it be both…?” Lapis murmured. “I really did want to help you if I could! But you never let me get involved with your new agency work! And I thought hey, if I just went on my own first and managed to blend in….” Her voice trailed off as she averted her eyes.
“Save it… We’ll talk about this at home…” Vera turned to the road, clearly fuming in silence.
There was a long quiet between them as the club disappeared in the rear view mirror. Lapis rubbed the back of her head before sliding her phone over on the dashboard. Maybe despite it all, there’d be some useful footage there? Camera audio of her laughing herself silly aside...
“Thanks by the way…” Lapis murmured. “For coming to get me…”
![[Contest Winner] Lapis' RnR](https://sf.ib.metapix.net/thumbnails/medium/5565/5565453_KitlaValkyrie_contest_riri_noncustom.jpg "[Contest Winner] Lapis' RnR")
