Taylor Hebert: A Wormy Spin-off

Author's note: Ignore the source material. Everyone here is 18. Canon happened, but it happened when they were 18.

Taylor was had been banging on the walls of her locker for what felt like hours.

She had long become noseblind to the stench of the shit and trash that surrounded her, as well as the smell of her vomit from when she was first shoved inside. The locker was cramped, forcing her into an upright position. Her legs forced to the side by the textbooks and refuse around them. The thin shelf near the top scraped at the back of her neck. The coat hook just under the shelf dug into whichever side of her happened to be facing that direction at the moment.

Her entire body ached. The numerous cuts she had gotten throughout the day stung. And her clothes and hair had been soaked, dried, and soaked again with everything that filled her locker.

"Please...! S-hack-Someone! ...Anyone..." Taylor's voice didn't carry very far, as she had become far past hoarse several hours ago.

Taylor's agony was great. Some would say monumental. More than enough to obtain a parahuman power. The distinct, notable aspect of her world. But after all this time, nothing happened. No mystical ability came to save Taylor from her personal hell. Despite other versions of herself recieving one for far less.

Why is that, you ask?

Well, you see...

Meanwhile:
"I'M LATE!!" Queenie shouted to herself as bolted down the cubicle farm.

Queenie was not a regular office woman. While average to her coworkers, and especially the standards of the company, to the layman she was beyond human competence.

In Taylor's world, Earth Bet as it's called, people who greatly suffer are granted powers and become parahumans. This process is facilitated by Shards. An interdimensional spacefairing race of crystalline organisms that are able to grant these powers to an individual for a great purpose.

Queenie was one of these shards. Quite an important one, in fact. She was the Queen Administrator shard. A vitally important shard, as her duties extended beyond simply granting power to a chosen human, Taylor Hebert, but coordinating the countless other shards that resided in and around Earth Bet.

Obviously, she wasn't doing that. She was busy floundering about an appointment she was currently missing.

About 9 seconds after taylor has been forced into the locker, and 11271 seconds before she would have granted Taylor the power her situation deserved, a higher up at Harem Hotel Pictures LLC(depending upon translation) had noticed a deficit of winter interns. So he looked around, saw the shard Queen Administrator, and said 'good enough.'

Henceforth Queen Administrator was plucked from that multiverse, as if she never existed. She was then given a human form, adequate sapience, and a personality her new boss found easy enough to work with before sending her off to get his coffee.

Queen Administrator, now Queenie, worked as an intern to the very best of her ability for 8 long ---------. A timeframe that can be translated to somewhere between 6 hours and 13 eons. Even being promoted from coffee intern to data entry intern.

Queenie ran for her life under the cacophony of clacking keys and clicking mice. Briefcase swinging in her arms and mechanical halo bouncing atop her head. Terrified at the chronological blunder she had commited.

Yesterday as she was clocking out, her manager informed her that a meeting had been scheduled with not just her boss, but her boss' boss! The Department head herself! She was beside herself with worry. Had she fucked something up? Did she accidentally report a contestant had the wrong fetish? Had Four-Four-One been spreading rumors? Did they find out she ordered Little Miss to do her paperwork that one time, even though Little Miss technically outranked her?! AND NOW SHE WAS LATE!

'I'M SORRY! PLEASE DON'T FIRE ME!!!!' She cried in her heart as she skid to a halt in front of the floor's main office.

After fixing her tie, smoothing her skirt, and taking a deep breath, she turned the handle and walked into her 3 o'clock at 3:02.

"Um... Apologies for my tardiness, sir. You wanted to see me?" Queenie sheepishly said stepping into the room. To her suprise, her floor boss wasn't present. Instead, there was only the department head in the office, sitting in the chari next to the desk against the wall. Her peacock green suit and garrish tie/bowtie + boa combo flaunted the exact message she intended. Although which message, Queenie was never quite sure.

"Ah, good afternoon Queenie. Please have a seat."

"Y-Yes Mrs. Pompadorian!" Queenie yipped out as she quickly sat down, nervous as to why the department head had scheduled a meeting with her of all people.

"Now, unfortunately Mr. Bernadot was unable to make this meeting, as his sister called in dead and he had to cover for her. So it will just be us today." Mrs. Pompadorian said as she turned to the desk and picked up a thick packet. "You haven't been here very long have you?"

"No." Queenie answered, staying on guard for any of the curveballs that got Jenkins turned into dog last week. "I'm still quite new. Having only started 8 -------- ago. It's still technically the same day."

"Technically not, as well." Mrs. Pompadorian added with a musical tilt in her voice. "But despite your short time here, I can see you've really taken like a fish to water in our little family. Coffee to data entry before the end of your first fiscal epoch? Quite impressive."

"I- I have only been doing what's required of me." Queenie barely managed to hide her blush. "Why is my performance being brought up?"

"Because you're about to get a lucky break."

Queenie's blood turned to ice.

That wasn't the kind of language Harem Hotel used. Not for it's own employees at least. With the sole exception of whatever demon, spirit, lesser diety, or whatever manner of supernatural middle management when they wanted to haze a worthless intern. Showbiz didn't do 'lucky breaks'. It ate people alive.

"W-wh-what d-do you mean..?" She quivered.

Mrs. Pompadorian continued, Queenie's fear seemingly unnoticed as she flipped through the packet.

"You see, the board has been getting a little worried about the sorts of people we have hosting nowadays. As the show has been getting more and more popular, the hosts had to become bigger and brighter to match. To the point that if it keeps going, we're going to need to have #^@*>@& host a season just to keep escalating. And unfortunately, even a second of His time is worth far more than we can ever afford."

She begun lazily spinning around in her chair.

"Not only that, but they're worried we're losing the general audience as well. Harem Hotel isn't just meant for the elite like supreme deities, ultimate magicians, or the Rothschilds. It's meant to be enjoyed by everyone. But we're just not sending that message if we keep having Richie Rich as our host."

Mrs. Pompadorian threw the packet on the desk with a thwap. "Which brings us to you!" She beamed.

"You... you can't be serious..." Queenie was lost for words. Not daring to even consider the possibility, it was utterly asinine.

"Oh but I am! We want to reach a lower income audience. But we can't just pick any old hick! We need to keep some standards. Otherwise the entire format would fall apart. We did some internal scouting, and you're a shoe-in! Not only have you gained a promotion in near record time, but even before your employment you were managing the destruction of millions of species across your local dimensions! It's early work for sure, but we can tell you've got what it takes!"

Queenie jumped to her feet. "B-But how would I do anything?! I can't even alter reality! Only influence the physical world using hyper advanced science! The show would run away from me instantly! I'd embarrass myself on multiversal television!"

"Relax, relax" Mrs. Pompadorian made a soothing gesture with both her arms. "Management will handle that. Besides, you won't be given a prime time spot."

"I... I don't understand. I didn't know we had another timeslot."

"We don't, but even though the board thinks this direction is the overall safest one for our shareholders, we still have to tread carefully to not rock the boat. Point is, our current schedule of the regular Harem Hotel will continue unchanged for the time being. Instead, you're going to be hosting a smaller, spin off series on our new streaming service."

"We have a streaming service?" Queenie's mechanical halo tilted with her head.

"We will in about 2 hours." Mrs. Pompadorian said as she looked at her watch. "The idea is that we can use the streaming services to... focus test different ideas or changes to the format before fully committing to them."

"So I'm being banished to Nicktoons? Already?" The intern sagged.

"Don't think about it like that!" Mrs. Pompadorian shot up from her chair. "Look, this is a wonderul opportunity for someone so young. Only 3 and a half million and hosting your own season? Why, that's in the realm of being a prodigy. Besides, even if you're going to have less time, budget, and initial audience, this is still your season of Harem Hotel. You can do whatever you want with it. In fact, this whole thing is about experimentation. Get as wild as you want!"

Queenie slapped her cheeks. "You're right! I need to take this seriously! This is my moment."

"That's exactly what I wanted to hear darling. Now, your season begins in two hours the second the streaming service goes live. That will be enough time to prepare I'm sure?"

Queenie shot into a salute. "Of course Ma'm! I promise I'll deliver!"

With that delcaration, Queenie burst out of the office. Mrs. Pompadorian watched her go, thinking; 'I wonder which Denny's she'll end up working at.'

The intern sped through the cubicles with a hurried determination.

There was so much to do! She had to get the castle prepared. Think of a gimmick. Prepare the challenges. Item shops. Plus a few dozen others.

And that's not to mention who the master would be! The single most important part of any season of Harem Hotel. That single role decided so much. Who the slaves would be. What the tone would be. Even if there were any unexpected plot twists.

Her mind was racing at a million miles a minute. And eventually, she settled on someone. A person who was, at least to her, unfinished business from ancient history.

Back To Where We Were:

Taylor didn't know how long it had been. All she knew was that the lights in the hallway had been turned off. It was getting cold. She didn't have anymore strength to call for help.

She would never escape. She would die in this prison. Emma and the rest of the hellspawn who did this to her would probably get off scott free and laugh. Taylor let out one last quiet sob, before falling unconscious.

Then, all of a sudden, she was falling.

Her body sailed through a black abyss, but she didn't wake up. Her mind and body were too exauhsted.

Minutes passed as she fell, before she suddenly crashed into the ground.

"AHHHHHGGG!" She screamed in agony as she was jolted awake.

But just as quickly as the pain arraived, it dissappeared. Leaving her feeling... fine. In fact, the aches and soreness she had been feeling from being trapped in her prison all day were gone.

Taylor slowly climbed to her feet. Warily looking around. She saw... a hotel lobby? A nice hotel lobby. The kind of lobby she and her dad definitely can't afford.

"Good evening, Taylor." She jumped at the voice behind her. Spinning around, her eyes landed on a woman. Her were a deep, ocean blue and her purple hair was done in a large pony tail snaking down her back. She was wearing a small smile and oddly warm expression that should have put Taylor on edge. There was a small robotic ring floating above her head.

A few seconds passed as Taylor's words caught in her throat. She wasn't sure what to make of the situation. Her mind was strangely blank, she had been freaking out a moment ago. So why did she feel so calm?

"Do you like the outfit?" The woman asked, picking up the conversation. "It's much more comfortable then the shabby intern suit I was wearing earlier. I even got to use a bowtie!"

"I... I think that's just a regular present bow..." Taylor said distractedly. The lady's entire outfit, even though it covered everything, was made obscene by how tightly it hugged her every curve and divot of her blessed figure.

"Oh but that's intentional! The extra ribbons on the bottom lead the eye to my clevage. Tricks like this have been broven to boost ratings by at least 2 percent!" Queenie excitedly explained as her hand traced the bowtie down her breastline.

"I- uh-... ratings?" Taylor sputtered.

"Why of course! Welcome to the set of Harem Hotel: Middle Edition! We need to keep the ratings up if we want to keep this show going!"

"H-Harem? Is... is this a sex thing?" Taylor asked nervously.

"Of course!" Queenie beamed. "Not just that, it's your sex thing! You've been cast as the Master! The main character! The star of the show!"

Out of the many, many issues Taylor could have taken with the whole situation, she only had the brain power to focus on one.

"Why me?"

Queenie scratched the back of her head nervously. "Ah, that. Well, I guess you could call it a... powers thing."

"Powers! I'm a parahuman?" Taylor pearked up.

"No. Definitely not. See, you were supposed to become one while you were in that locker. That was my job, but I kinda... changed careers at the last minute so you got lost in the shuffle. But now that I'm the host, I'm repaying the little clerical error by giving you a harem of willing slaves!"

"I-I... What!?" Taylor sputtered, and before she could organize the endless thoughts jumping around her head, Queenie cut her off.

"Oh goodness, would you look at the time! I've spent too long catching up!" Queenie's distress was barely hidden as she began sprinting around the room.

"Places! Places! Are we green on the set? What about transformation suites?! Somebody get me a report!" She shouted to the seemingly empty room. A clipboard manifested in her hand, which she looked at for a brief moment before throwing it over her shoulder as it poofed into mist.

After a very hectic minute or two, Queenie skidded to a halt in front of Taylor. "Look, I'll explain a little bit more later but right now I need you to but on your winning-est smile because we're live in threetwoone-"

"Wha-" Taylor was cut of as a deafining jingle blasted from everywhere around her.

"Hello dear viewers! My name is Queenie Admina, and it is my great honor to welcome you all to the brand new series Harem Hotel: Middle Edition!" Queenie announced to the empty room with a beaming smile. Taylor wasn't sure who she was talking to, as she didn't see any cameras anywhere.

"...What does the middle stand for?" Taylor couldn't stop herself from voicing the question.

"Why thank you for asking!" Queenie whipped around to face Taylor, her performance not missing a beat. "It stands for middle class! This special companion series of Harem Hotel will be available on our streaming service every Thursday at 10am! Our goal here is to expand the Harem Hotel horizons, trying new and exciting methods of debauchery! While also brining the show back to it's middle class roots so as to not alienate our more humble audience. Hence, the name middle class!"

Taylor idly thought to herself that she was definitely not middle class, but decided to keep that opinion to herself. She didn't want to disparrage her father's hard work on what was apparently national(?) televison.

"And now that it's time to introduce this season's master. Everybody give a big hand for Taylor Hebert!" Queenie waved her arms in Taylor's direction as if she was showing her off. A cacophony of applause came from nowhere.

Taylor stood stock still, suddenly far too nervous to move.

"Smile or something!" Queenie whispered after a moment.

Taylor did her best, and shakily forced her mouth into a grin that, while she couldn't see, she would definitely refuse to look at in the mirror.

After a moment, the applause died down and Queenie leaned towards her.

"Now Taylor, tell us a little bit about yourself? How do you feel about getting your very own harem of devoted slaves?"

"U-uh... I..." Taylor sputtered, not expecting to have to talk. But she pulled herself together after a moment. "My name is Taylor Hebert. I'm eighteen years old, I turn nineteen june. I attend Winslow High. ...I enjoy reading. And I... don't want any slaves...?"

Queenie turned away from Taylor and supposedly towards the audience. "Aww! Look at that everyone! She's so shy!"

Taylor's face gained an offended blush.

"But don't worry Taylor!" Queenie turned back to the embarrassed master. "Every normal person starts out this way. After a few days you'll learn to appreciate the fact that you're the MASTER. You deserve everything that could ever be given to you! And especially the lives and bodies of your soon to be slaves."Queenie spun to face an empy portion of the hotel lobby. "In fact! We can't have a master without a harem! So let's bring these lovely pieces of property on down!"

Queenie snapped her fingers.