La Catalina

[Naza Sutera]

"But see, I'd have decked hizzass," Amber said.

"Anyway," Amelia butted it to change the subject, "We were about to tune in to Fifth Element."

"Ooh, yesssss! I love that movie!"

[Arminius H O Fiddywinks]

"Super green." Korben proclaimed, grinning. "So, shall we?"

[Naza Sutera]

"Come on," Amelia said, "I just did us some popcorn." Leading the two guests to the living room sofa, Amelia picked up the remote and started the movie. While the opening scene started, Amelia went to the kitchen and opened the fridge. "Amber, you want a soda?"

"Nah," she said, pulling a SmartWater out of her purse. "I have water. Trying to be a little more health conscious."

[Arminius H O Fiddywinks]

Korben was sitting down in excitement. He loved The Fifth Element, as it was the first movie he saw in his life. He slouched back, grinning. As the scene turned to Egypt 1914, Korben grasped his soda can and took a sip. However, the can was only half full, after the devastating carbonated eruption moments earlier. Nevertheless, he enjoyed the refreshing beverage, and placed the cold can onto the coffee table. He sighed satisfyingly.

[Naza Sutera]

Amber and Amelia sat down as the film started and got comfortable. Amber kicked her wedges off and propped her feet onto the ottoman and got a handfull of popcorn to stuff into her mouth. Amelia took a grateful gulp from her soda as she took her seat next to Korben on the sectional. 

"I forget, how old is this movie?" Amelia asked.

[Arminius H O Fiddywinks]

"Heh," Korben uttered, thinking back to when he first saw the film in a movie theater when he was just a little boy. "Too old," Korben answered.

 

Meanwhile, in Town Square, Bohdan and Sven reached their condo and entered it on the third floor. "I'm gonna grab my bag and I'll be right back," Sven said. (Kurt has graciously allowed me to control Sven until he says 'Enough'.) 

"Very well," Bohdan replied. After a few moments of rummaging around the living room looking for his bag, he found it in a secluded corner near the window. Sven checked its contents, and upon finding that his medical equipment was contained within the bag, he nodded in agreement.

"Ok, Bohdan. I have my things. Let's go." The duo then stepped outside of their condo, where Bohdan closed the door and locked it. They proceeded to the elevator and selected the interface option labeled "Down". Upon the elevator's arrival, Bohdan allowed Sven to step inside first. Bohdan managed to squeeze in, although his head was making contact with the ceiling. Sven selected the option on the interface labeled "G" for ground floor. It was a quick, yet somewhat uncomfortable ride down. As soon as the elevator doors opened, Bohdan stumbled outside, breathing deeply and stretching his limbs and wings.

"Thank God," he said, relieved.

"You ok, Bohdan?" Sven asked, concerned for his giant friend.

"Yes, Sven. I am fine. Let us go to my car, yes?"

"Alright." The two of them went out from the condo lobby and into the rainy outside. They ran to the Aventador parked on the curb, which came to life when Bohdan neared it. The both of them hopped in as quickly as possible and closed the doors as soon as they could. Bohdan shifted the gear into drive, and away they went. After a few minutes and gallons upon gallons of rainwater dumped onto the Aventador, the two of them reached Sandor's modest Spanish-style home. When Bohdan, followed by Sven, left the Lambo and locked the doors, the duo approached the door. Bohdan tried to open it, but Sandor had locked it. He rang the doorbell twice. Putting his head against the door, he heard faint rustling and whispering.

"Sandor?!" he yelled, attempting to communicate to Sandor. Bohdan heard a faint, yet distinct "Open" from within the home, and he heard the door unlock. After turning to Sven in confusion, Bohdan opened the door. The lights in the kitchen and hallway, as well as the television in the living room, were all on. Bela was deactivated in the hallway, with Bohdan and Sven passing the robot by. As they reached the living room, they noticed Teresa putting her pants on frantically, and desperately looking for her shirt. Bohdan looked down and saw that he was stepping on Teresa's shirt. He picked it up, and held it in his hands, saying "Are you looking for this?" Teresa turned to see a hulking dragon holding her grey shirt with a smaller canine man standing beside him.

"Hi, Mr. C," she said warmly. She was wearing her pants and a chest wrap, a very common and popular type of bra in Zoness, notable for only consisting of a single, thick, wide piece of cloth.

"Hello Teresa," Bohdan replied, rather confused. Sven was also completely gobsmacked. "What are you doing here?"

"Oh, I broke into Alex's house," she explained rather nonchalantly. "Saw that he was in bad shape, so I decided to remedy it with a little, you know..."

"Ahhhh, do not describe, please," Bohdan pleaded.

"Uhh, where's this guy with the fractured rib?" Sven asked.

"Over here!" Sandor yelled, waving his arm in the air from behind the couch. Sven walked over to Sandor, who was also wearing only his pants, which were hastily put on. Sven put his bag down onto the coffee table, and took out a scanner. After a few moments, the scanner proclaimed that Sandor sustained a fractured rib that was very close to breaking, as well as several bruises around the chest and lower torso area, and cuts on his forearms, that have since healed. Sven looked at Sandor with concern, but proceeded to attend to the most immediate injury.

Edited July 20, 2015 by Arminius H O Fiddywinks

[Naza Sutera]

"Gimme", Amelia said reaching across Amber's lap for the popcorn.

Amber raised an eyebrow and reluctantly passed the bowl. "Why, Amber, would you please pass the popcorn?" she said, implying that Amelia should be more polite.

"Yeahokaymmhmmgirl," Amelia said, dismissing her friend as she helped herself to the popcorn.

 

Meanwhile in Ibiza...

"...The home features Level 3 tile flooring throughout the first floor, and a gourmet kitchen with stainless steel appliances."

Derek took note of the grey tile flooring in the foyer and the dark-washed wood and wrought iron railing as he descended the curved staircase. Hanging from the two story ceiling in the foyer was an ornate but not too out-there chandelier. To the left was a formal dining room and opposite of that was a "flex room" which could be used as a study or formal living.

"How much for this one, with all the options?" Derek asked.

The smartly-dressed sales woman leafed through the paperwork on her clipboard until she found what she was looking for. "This model, The Monticello... It runs for about $580,000 with these options."

"When can we start closing?"

"When construction is nearing completion, which takes about five months. At that time we--"

"...I actually want to purchase this home."

"Oh!" the sales woman adjusted her glasses "Alright then, how about we return to the office and get started?"

[Arminius H O Fiddywinks]

While Sven was busy administering aid to Sandor, Bohdan and Teresa sat on stools at the kitchen counter, opposite of each other. Teresa was looking around at the house of her boyfriend. Bohdan was examining a bowl of fruit by his side. "I never took Alex for the rich snooty type," Teresa said.

"He is not," Bohdan reminded. "After that job we finished, we needed to settle down and cool off before moving again. So we decided to spend much of our money buying homes in La Catalina and living "normal lives". It has been hardest for Sandor."

"At least he has me," Teresa said.

"The both of you need each other," Bohdan replied. Teresa looked at Bohdan, seemingly in agreement, but then looked to Sven, watching as the canine attended to Sandor.

"If that meat Popsicle so much as tries to hurt Alex, I'm gonna break him."

"Do not worry, Teresa. He is a professional."

Meanwhile, in Amelia's house, she, Amber, and Korben continued to watch The Fifth Element. Korben knew all the scenes and the whole dialogue by heart, because he has seen the movie so many times before. He smiled as Amelia grabbed fistful after fistful of popcorn. He was not hungry.

Edited July 20, 2015 by Arminius H O Fiddywinks

[Naza Sutera]

Amber watched as Amelia stuffed handful after handful of popcorn in her face. "So, I thought you were going to eat healthier."

"SmartPop," Amelia said, naming that brand of supposedly healthy popcorn.

"You mean the popcorn that, instead of salt and butter, they put all kinds of chemicals, coloring, and preservatives to simulate the flavor?"

"Girl, look..." Amelia took a moment to think of something witty. "... Do like that song by Kendrick Lamar, and Chick, Don't Kill My Vibe."

[Arminius H O Fiddywinks]

"Moderation," Korben advised, tapping into his vast knowledge of medicine and health. He knew exactly what went into the popcorn Amelia was ramming down her throat, and it wasn't pretty. Nevertheless, he continued watching his favorite movie, albeit occasionally glancing at Amelia with concern.

Meanwhile, in Ibiza, Sven finished his work on Sandor, giving him painkillers. "Ok," the German Shepherd said. "This should help you cope with the pain." Sandor reluctantly took the bottle of pills, and sat back up. He looked at Sven suspiciously. Sven was extremely uncomfortably at Sandor's piercing eyes. Teresa got up from the stool, and approached Sven and Sandor. Bohdan also stood back up, and followed Teresa to the living room.

"So," she began, crossing her arms. "Is Alex gonna be alright?"

"He should be," Sven replied. Teresa nodded.

"Thank you Sven," Bohdan said.

"No problem," said Sven.

"Come, we shall go back to the condominium." Bohdan then proceeded to the door of Sandor's house.

"Sounds like a plan," Sven said, following Bohdan out. Once the duo exited the house and closed the door behind them, Teresa gathered the remnants of her clothes and put them back on. She stood by Sandor's side as he took a handful of pills, sitting on his couch.

"Bye Alex," she said. "I'm glad you're back." Sandor looked up at his girlfriend, and put his head against her leg. She caressed it with her hand, and left him via the front door. She closed it behind her. Sandor was now left alone, the television still playing.

"Off," Sandor said. The television then turned off. Sandor then looked at his combat knife sitting on the coffee table in his living room, a few feet from his couch. Sandor leaned forward, wincing, and grabbed it. He sat back, and examined the same knife he pulled out of the scabbard of a dead CDF soldier a few years ago. Sandor brought the knife close to his outstretched left forearm, and took a deep breath. However, he did not follow through, instead fighting back tears and wiping his eyes with his right hand. Then, he tried again. But he relented once more, lowering the knife and rubbing his eyes with his left hand, and lowering his head towards his knees. He then stood up, tears still in his eyes. He turned to his right, and saw a picture of his uncle, which was tattered and damaged with blade marks. Sandor yelled "Baszd meg!", and threw the knife at the picture. The blade met its mark, and stuck itself into the forehead of the picture.

Edited July 20, 2015 by Arminius H O Fiddywinks

[Naza Sutera]

After a while of enjoying the movie, Amelia had started an impromptu topic about the actress who plays the lead female in the movie. It started with her starring role in a movie series based on a video game franchise, then to some other projects, and down to her personal life and other endeavours.

"...And you know she started her fashion label back up?" Amber said.

Amelia, who was engrossed in her social media updates on her smartphone, perked up at this. "What? When?"

"Well, actually, who knows? I read it while leafing through one of the tabloid magazines. But it said that she wanted to take a break from acting and try her label again."

"She did do some cute clothes back in the day." Amelia actually remembers a couple of blouses she'd bought that were designed by Jovovich.

[Arminius H O Fiddywinks]

Korben was totally engrossed in the movie, and was completely oblivious to Amelia's and Amber's conversation about Milla Jovovich. He had a stoic demeanor on his face as he lazily laid back on the smooth, leather couch. He decided to take off his sunglasses, as they hindered the quality of the movie's picture. Although he was never comfortable with taking off his sunglasses in the presence of strangers, he was with Amelia, who at least understood him just a tiny bit. That was comforting enough for him. Korben placed his sunglasses on the coffee table in front of him, and continued watching the movie. His blue right eye and green left eye glowed, and they seemed to pulse, their hypnotic lights dazzling all who viewed it. Korben thought nothing of it, because he had lived with his eyes for quite some time.

[Zaphyr Stone]

Rain beat mercilessly against the windshield as Jolene punched in the code to gate as fast as she could. Quickly shutting her door, she rolled her silver Jeep into the posh complex, the moving truck close behind her. Following the curving road, she pulled into her parking spot and stepped out, leading the truck to a loading zone by her building. As the movers climbed out to set up, she walked up to them, keeping her hoodie close about her.

"I'll get the door open for you guys. It's going to be on the second floor, number sixteen eleven." she instructed the grizzly brown rat.

Pulling up her hood, she hurried down the path, hopped up the stairs, fished the silver key out of her pocket, unlocked the door and stepped inside. The accommodations were spacious and luxurious, an open concept floor plan with stainless modern appliances. She smiled at the space she now had all to herself. She could most definitely see this as home.

She opened her bedroom door and briefly inspected the place for anything out of the ordinary before the movers showed up and began moving in her furniture. She didn't have much yet, a simple sofa and small-scale entertainment center for the living room and nice-looking but affordable "some assembly required" bedroom furniture, but it was all hers. She knew she could upgrade with time.

Once the sofa was placed, so took a seat and directed the men which boxes went where.

[Arminius H O Fiddywinks]

As Bohdan and Sven entered their condo, Bohdan noticed the heavy shuffling of furniture and the conversations of movers. The commotion next door, however, failed to catch the attention of Sven, who was elsewhere in the condo. Bohdan elected to find out what was going on. After all, he did not want this noise disturbing him or Sven throughout the night. He headed next door to uncover the truth. Bohdan knocked on the condo's door, patiently waiting for its occupants to answer.

[Zaphyr Stone]

Jolene almost didn't hear the knock on her door over the noise of movers arranging furniture and hauling in boxes. She yawned softly, not realizing how comfortable she had been on her couch, and got up with a stretch. Ambling carefully past the men, she weaved through the cardboard towers and opened the door to a very tall and formidable-looking dragon. She was sure he heard about it all the time from other people how large he was, so she skipped that line of thought and smiled amiably.

"Hello, may I help you?"

[Arminius H O Fiddywinks]

"Yes," began Bohdan, looking down onto Jolene. "My name is Bohdan, and I am living next door," he said, pointing to his room adjacent to Jolene's. "And, I was wondering when this whole... moving process would be finished. It is causing quite a commotion."

[Zaphyr Stone]

Jolene's ears perked up pin-prick straight, eyes wide in mild alarm.

"Oh! Oh god, I'm so sorry." A soft blush dusted her muzzle, "Of course, it shouldn't be that much longer."

She stepped outside and closed the door behind her and held out her hand in polite greeting. "I'm Jolene. It's a pleasure to meet you. I'm sorry again if I've disturbed you. I tried to come earlier in the day, but I hit a few snags. They should be done soon."

[Naza Sutera]

Amelia finished off the popcorn and sat on the couch like a bag of sand, with her legs propped on the ottoman. She took notice of her can of soda next to her foot and began reaching for it, unable to get to it as she was too lazy to lean forward. "....Ughhhhhh, I can't reach it!" she whined.

Amber looked on and shook her head. "Girl, you are just... I can't even."

Sitting back against the backrest, Amelia asked, "You can't even what?"

"I just can't even!"

Amelia was about to ask again what Amber "couldn't even" when she just happened to glance in Korben's direction. Then she double took, noticing a strange light coming from his eyes. "...Um... Korben?"

[Arminius H O Fiddywinks]

Bohdan did his best to gently shake Jolene's hand in a most awkward manner. "It is nice to meet you, Jolene," Bohdan stated with his soft voice, which had a gentle yet noble Ruthenian accent. He smiled. After finishing the handshake, he said, "It is fine, Jolene. Welcome to La Catalina."

Meanwhile, in Amelia's home, the movie continued, and Korben still sat comfortably beside Amelia and Amber. He barely noticed Amelia's cries for assistance, as he was too enthralled with the film. Korben vaguely recognized Amber being unable to comprehend something Amelia was doing. What that something was was beyond him. However, he did register his name being uttered. Korben turned to Amelia, his eyes now casting their full luster onto her face. "Yeah?" he asked, wondering why Amelia called out his name.

[Zaphyr Stone]

Jolene could feel the power in his handshake. His gentleness was a fine mask around what was something fearsome and potentially dangerous, and yet his kind smile instilled confidence in her. He was someone she could trust. She nodded graciously.

"Thank you, I'm happy to be here finally. This place is amazing. The brochure doesn't do it justice at all." she looked out at the pristine neighborhood, "If the weather is nicer tomorrow, I'll probably go for a walk. You know, see what there is to see. Recommend anywhere for me to start?"

[Arminius H O Fiddywinks]

"Well," started Bohdan. "I would start right here, in Town Square. There are so many activities one could do, like watch a movie, eat out, or shop. There is also a multitude of parks in Mercedes, a neighborhood a few blocks away. The avenue connecting all of these neighborhoods is very beautiful: it is lined with Septimanian Palms from the equatorial regions of the planet, which blossom around this time of year into beautiful bright-blue ---" Bohdan then stopped himself, worrying that he was boring. "Ah, I am sorry. Sometimes, I get carried away with my speaking." Bohdan then unzipped his wet jacket, revealing a plain white t-shirt which highlighted his muscular physique.

"Anyway, where was I?" he questioned himself out loud.

[Zaphyr Stone]

Jolene giggled, placing a hand over her mouth politely. It was so strange to see someone with such a menacing exterior get carried away with conversation and even embarrassed by it. Strange, and kind of cute. 

"Septimanian Palms?" She smiled in amusement, "Actually I wouldn't mind seeing them myself. Where I grew up there were no trees or any kind of foliage for that matter."

She gave a mild carefree shrug, "So the avenue seems like a good starting place then.

[Arminius H O Fiddywinks]

"Yes, yes it is," Bohdan said, nodding his head. The hood draped over it was still dripping water, and a solitary drop splattered onto Bohdan's snout from the middle. He wiped it with his hand. "So, I will see you around, yes?" he asked, smiling. His wings were still soaking wet, dripping with the rainwater. His jacket now shimmered as the hallway's lights struck the water still on it.

[Zaphyr Stone]

"Of course!" she smiled cheerfully, "We are neighbors after all."

"Ah, ma'am," came the gruff voice of the rodent mover as he stepped out with a clipboard, "We're all set here. If I can get you to sign a few things for me?"

"Oh, great," she nodded, relieved they had finished quickly.

She took the clipboard and clicked the pen top to start scribbling her signature on a myriad of sections, the mover explaining what each one indicated. With a shake of the wrist to loosen it back up, she returned the pen and signed paperwork to the man. "Thank you so much. You guys did an amazing job."

"Anytime, ma'am," he tipped his hat to her as his colleagues walked out with dollies, mats and ramps and stepped carefully down the wet stairs, "Good luck in the new place."

She waved them goodbye before returning her attention to what she imagined was a very patient Bohdan. "Well, looks like the noise won't be a problem for you and your roommate now."

[Arminius H O Fiddywinks]

"Well, that was quick," he remarked. "Like I said, welcome to La Catalina. We shall be in our condominium if you need us." Bohdan folded his wings and turned towards his condo door, being careful not to hit Jolene with his flight-capable appendages. He opened the door, and turned to see Jolene on last time. He smiled and waved, and went back inside, closing the door. Bohdan leaned against the door, and sighed. "I think she and I will be excellent friends," he said to Sven, who was sitting on the couch.