Heritage

Sariska felt another smile coming on. She pushed the feeling away and focused her attention elsewhere - the food was more important. Aurora didn't have to do all this, but she might as well take advantage of it all. She was only half-listening to Aurora and Sicily, until she was being addressed directly.

"Kauffman?" Sariska furrowed her brow. "I remember him. He seemed nice. A little odd, maybe, but I didn't really sense anything bad about him."

"Not to be rude," Chloe started, about to say something rude. "But you aren't the best at judging character. In fact, you're kind of bad at it."

"What, so have you met this guy?"

"No, I haven't. But I'm going to go ahead and agree with Sicily anyway. Something about Aurora has been bugging me since we first met, and I think, if what Sicily says is right, it has to do with this Kauffman guy."

Sariska stared at her sister as if she had grown a second head. For how much Chloe hated Sicily, she never thought Chloe would end up doing something so out-of-character as agreeing with Sicily about something. Even something like this. Sariska frowned. "I don't like it, but I'll follow along. I don't want anything bad happening to my adorable intern."

The landlord visited, but Sariska didn't worry too much about him. She and Chloe waved at him as he left - he was a real nice shark-man. Out of the two Beastfolke they met, they were two-for-two on the polite ones. Poor Mishka, though. Who knows what happened to him? Freya didn't and she likely assumed the worst. Rather than get her hopes up, Sariska put it out of her mind.

"I'm expecting a call from Freya at any moment," Sariska said. "But first I want to get in touch with Eric, just to make sure he's safe. Chloe, can you check on Chrys?"

"Uh, yeah, totally." Chloe ran off with a grin on her face while Sariska sent a quick text to Eric.

'How you holding up? I'm worried. Call me if you can.'

Aurora finished up in the restroom and plopped down in a seat next to Sicily. There was still a plate of blueberry pancakes left that survived Sicily's breakfast genocide, and Aurora helped herself to it. "Miss Star," Aurora spoke, cutting into the pancakes. "Mr. Rivelotto sent me a message saying he'll be needing you on Monday for the next filming. Will you be able to make it?"

"Filming? What filming?' Sicily asked with intrigue.

"Oh, Miss Star also works as an actress. She's currently playing the lead role in an independent film at Lunaveil Studios."

"Hot damn, didn't know our girl Star was in movies. What kinda movies are they, huh? Adult movies? Is your nickname really short for 'Porn Star?' You uh... ever take more than one guy on at once?"

"N-No. Not those kinds of movies."

"Oh, boo."

Chloe wouldn't get a response from Chrys' phone no matter how much it was blown up, however Sariska had better luck getting a word back from Eric. Her phone went off a few minutes after Eric received the text.

"Hello? Star?" Eric's voice chimed in. "Sorry I haven't stopped by in a while, but I'm doin' alright. There's uh... a real storm brewin' up at the station. I don't mean that literally, of course. It's just that... there's word around the precinct that the sarge up and quit the other night. It's left me all confuddled, 'cause I can't think of why she'd just resign like that. After all, she loved this job more than anything. She hasn't shown up to say goodbye or nothin'... and she won't pick up her phone. I asked the chief about it, but he just laughed. And now that she's gone, a lot of the other officers have been actin' rowdier than a snake an' a mongoose. Detective Wyrick ain't lookin' like her usual sunny self either. In fact, she doesn't seem to be in the mood to talk to anyone. I just don't know what to make of it all."

Sariska hesitated just as her phone went off. Monday...would she be able to make it to production? Maybe not. She shook her head, she should maintain some aspects of her life. Her soon-to-be new enemies would have a harder time finding her if little about her daily life changed, even though she was prone to making changes. She picked up the phone. "Hey, yeah, it's me."

Sariska put her thumb to her lip as she listened, trying to track out some understanding of what Eric was telling her. His accent always made her get distracted. "There must have been something that really pissed her off," Sariska said, glancing to Chloe as she came back into the kitchen, looking dejected. "If the sergeant quit the force, I worry for you and Chrys. Do me a favor and stay under the radar, okay? No heroics."

"It's that fucking Glastondale prick!" Chloe shouted and kicked the sofa. Sariska stared at her sister, in shock. She never got like this.

"Chloe, enough," Sariska said, narrowing her eyes. Chloe settled down, crossing her arms and pouting. "Sorry, Eric. I'll talk to you another time, okay? Bye." She put her phone away. "I'll be able to come Monday, Aurora. As long as nothing too serious happens this weekend. Chloe, did Chrys not respond?"

"She didn't," Chloe said, shaking her head. "It isn't like her."

"Well, finish up and get dressed. I'm waiting on a call from Freya, which could be at any moment now."

"The frick?" Sicily bleated at Chloe for kicking the couch. "You got onto me about spilling crumbs into the damn thing, and now you're practically trying to Muay Thai it in half? Doesn't that shit hurt?" Aurora too was startled by Chloe's outburst, but only let out a gasp. "Look, I know you want this cop's head on a platter," Sicily went on. "But a whole hell of a lot of good it's gonna do us if we just rile ourselves by kickin' couches all day and letting that anger lead us to making the dumbass idea of trying to tackle this head on. We'll get shot down like a bunch of common thugs, I'll tell you that much for damn sure. I just hope 'Sugartits' has a better plan for our sake."

Right on cue and without missing a beat, the sound of a speeding motorcycle could be heard through Blue Avalon and Sariska's phone would go off again with Mishka's number ringing on the display as soon as it stopped. "Speak o' the fuckin' devil," Sicily remarked. Of course, Freya was calling as she had mentioned before that she had Mishka's phone.

"Sariska, I'm outside," Freya said over the phone. "Is now a good time for us to talk?"

Sariska watched Chloe pace around the sofa. There was more to this girl than just a bundle of frustration, but she couldn't figure her sister out. She never could. Chloe shot Sariska a look, but Sariska couldn't figure that out either. It was a weakness of hers, when it came to people - even Chloe. Maybe it was because she didn't act or think like a normal person might, but that'd just be ridiculous. Her phone went off again.

"Alright, you can come on in," Sariska said, going to open the door for Freya. She stepped aside to let Freya in, then closed and locked the door behind her. "I assume you have more to explain?"

"Yeah, like why the fuck is Duple Corp even doing any of this?" Chloe snapped.

"Chloe, that's enough."

Chloe wriggled her nose at them, but she stayed quiet.

"That's quite the greeting," Freya responded. "As for me having more to explain? I believe I went over most of what happened the day we met. I'm not exactly sure why Duple Corp is trying to buy out the whole town - I mean I have theories, but theories aren't going to help us all that much. What matters to me right now is seeing that company burn to the ground."

"That sounds nice and dramatic and all," Sicily cut in. "But we can't exactly run up to their buildings and throw molotovs into their windows... or can we?"

"They don't know who we are, but when they do, I expect full retaliation. Chances are, you won't be able to stay in this apartment for long. In that case, we need to make our first strike as destructive and crippling as possible, so we'll need a planned and decisive attack. I know where we can get help, and it's one of the places you'd probably least expect. I'll have to meet a friend of mine in Yisten, and after that, we can go."

"Go where?" Aurora asked.

"The criminal underground. You have any other questions, then now's the time to ask them. If not, take care of whatever you need to, and be ready to follow my motorcycle."

"I don't have any questions. I am ready when Miss Star is," Aurora said.

"None here," Sicily added. "I'm ready to get this show on the road."

Sariska nodded, it was mostly what she expected. As soon as Duple Corp figured out who they were, a retaliation was inevitable. The first strike had to cripple them. That means killing. Sariska turned to Chloe. "You're staying here," she said. Chloe narrowed her eyes, but still didn't speak. Sariska frowned. "Chloe."

"I'm coming with you," Chloe said firmly. "Don't you dare suggest I wait for you to return. What if you don't?"

Sariska raised her hands, surrendering the argument before it could get out of hand. They shouldn't be arguing in front of others. "Alright, fine. Freya, give me just a minute and I'll be ready." Sariska walked over to the aquarium and removed the lid. She reached into the water and twisted one of the rocks. The water inside the tank drained into a hidden container below, inside the little desk it sat on. Sariska brushed away the sand and pulled out a small, black case. She handed it to Chloe.

"I'm hoping we won't need that," Sariska said and she and Chloe left the apartment with the others, locking the door behind them.

Sicily gave a skeptical squint as she watched the water drain from the aquarium. "Out of all of us here, I'd say you two girls are the weirdest," she remarked. "And I'm the half-vampire." Sicily then got up from the dinner table with Aurora. "Welp. C'mon, sis. Oh, by the way, I totally adopted Aurora as my new little sister - hope that's cool."

Outside, Freya slipped on her helmet and revved up her motorcyle, driving off but keeping a moderate speed for Sariska and the others to follow in their car. Yisten. That's where Freya said they were headed. The border between Yisten and the rest of the city was as visible as the gaudy neon lights that were lit every which way at night. The girls zoomed through the district, passing the heart of the neighborhoods to a more quieter side - a surprise there was ever such a thing.

Music: Familiarity

Spoiler:

A row of dilapidated apartment buildings lined past a rusty, automatic gate. It looked as though a piece of Hastel was cut out and dropped in this inconspicuous patch of land. A callbox with several buttons was still in functioning order, with a name besides each one. Freya hit a button next to the name "J. Autrey."

"Who is it?" a male voice rang up from the callbox's speaker.

"It's Freya. I brought some friends," Freya responded.

"I'll buzz you in."

The rusted gates made a harsh screech as they slid, causing Aurora and Sicily to cringe. "Shit's like nails on a chalkboard," Sicily complained.

Freya rode in once the gate was open, and turned to the side to park her motorcycle. She dismounted and removed her helmet, waving Sariska and her group to follow her into the apartment complex. They walked all the way to the door marked "29A," with the lettering looking as if it could fall off at any minute. The door opened as Freya stepped in front of it, revealing the home of a rather scruffy young man. He wore a black tank top with sweatpants, but the most noticeable feature about him was the pair of puppy slippers he was wearing. His voice was flat and low. "Heya, it's Freya," he said.

"I didn't find that clever the first time, and I don't find it clever now."

"Alright, guess I'll go fuck myself then," the man replied. "Come on in, mind the snake."

Inside the apartment was a home in a similar condition to the one that Sicily used to live in, with the doorway leading right into the kitchen and living area. Pots and pans were scattered around the sink and gritty stoves as if someone just said "Fuck it, I'll clean this later." Another young man in a denim jacket and a skull shirt sat on the couch lazily, watching the news on television. Settled against the wall was a reptile terrarium housing a pet ball python. Aurora squealed in adoration as she went over to the glass case and watched the snake dart its tongue out. "Can I pet it?"

"Yeah, go ahead. Just set the glass top over to the side," the man in puppy slippers allowed.

Aurora picked up the snake and gently rubbed its chin with her finger, smiling in delight. Freya looked over at Aurora for a moment and observed the strange interaction between Aurora and her friend's snake. She then dismissed it and turned over to the man. "Everyone, this is Japhet Autrey. Japhet, this is Sariska, Chloe, and-"

"Sicily," Sicily said, giving a flirty wave of her fingers.

"Aurora," Aurora also introduced, still fixed on the snake.

"Over there on the couch is Marko Klay," Freya concluded. "If you didn't know, Marko and his gang were the ones responsible for many of the Hastel shootings prior to the turf war. They managed to wipe out seven of the gangs that terrorized the neighborhoods."

"And you wanna know the best part about it?" Marko asked, poking his head out from the couch. "Fucking blurting that shit out loud in the open like that in front of strangers. What the hell, Freya?"

"Relax, Marko. I trust them. In fact, I came here because I need to know where the 'Wolf's Den' is at tonight."

"The hell do you need to go there, for?"

"Today's the day. We've talked about this before."

"Shit. Alright. You need to borrow any more gold coins?"

"Yeah. I gave my last eight to a man named Raul for a favor at the Ivory Palace."

"If today's the day, then I take it you're taking a rain check on Saturday, huh?" Japhet asked.

"I'm sorry, Japhet. Some other time, maybe. I'll let you know."

"I'll get you today's address and some more coins," Marko said. "But you owe me on top of the last one. In the meantime, I am fuckin' starving. Yo, Japhet, how about ordering us some pizza? I haven't had a good slice in a while."

"You work in a fucking pizza shop," Japhet said.

"I work in a shitty pizza shop," Marko retorted. "I feel like being able to actually taste it for once. Don't give me that fucking propaganda that my store actually sells good pizza. Fuck outta here."

"I'll order from the Riley's on 5th street then."

"No, that one blows ass cheeks. Last time I ordered from them, half the fucking pizza was stuck to the cardboard. Get one from Sherry Row."

"Meat Lover's again, I'm guessin'?"

"You know it."

"Meat Lover's?" Sicily asked.

"Hell yeah, dude," Marko affirmed.

"You're alright."

The door would unlock behind the girls, and a teenage boy stepped into the apartment. "Hey, I just got out of school," he said.

"Just in time," Japhet addressed him, grabbing his phone off the counter. "We're about to get a pizza."

"Let me guess, Meat Lover's again?"

"You got a problem with Meat Lover's, you l'il shit?" Marko glared at him.

"Oh yeah, everybody, this is my little bro," Japhet introduced him.

"Hi," the boy greeted the girls. "My name's Zeto."

"The actual fuck?!" Sicily burst out. "Your name's Zeto? Like, Zeto Autrey? Because, uh... we know a guy with the same name. Looks like you too, in fact... only a hell of a lot older. The hell is going on?"

"You meet these girls before?" Japhet asked. "Daaaaaaaaaamn, Zeto. Get it."

"W-What?" Zeto grimaced. "I haven't met these girls before. The only girl I hang out with outside of school is Tess. I mean, she's really cool, too. We watch a lot of movies, we get gelato together, she makes me read books-"

"SHE MAKES YOU READ BOOKS?! ZETO, YOU DUMP THIS GIRL THIS INSTANT," Japhet stormed.

"Ha ha, shut up!" Zeto laughed.

Sicily tapped Sariska on the shoulder, keeping her eyes on the brothers.

"Star, you're seeing this shit, right? Like, I'm not going crazy or anything, am I? We did meet a dude named Zeto Autrey. I am eighty percent sure that wasn't a coke-induced hallucination."

-Japhet, Marko, and Zeto(?)'s social profiles added.

Sariska noticed the last name before they entered the building. Autrey. As in Zeto Autrey. She didn't know he had brothers and all of a sudden she felt an incredible urge to ask after him. But...Japhet didn't look much like Zeto, she thought. There was some semblance of a relation, but it wasn't enough to actually call him a brother. Maybe it was just a coincidence?

"I'm no stranger to vigilantism, Marko," Sariska said easily. "Sometimes the people just need a good kick in the ass or a sword through their gut to get them back in line."

Chloe snorted. "Didn't work with granpappy, evidently."

"It'll work next time."

Then the boy walked in. Teenaged, looked exactly like Zeto, shared his name, but had little to do with his personality. What was going on here? Sariska frowned when Sicily tapped her shoulder, but nodded. She saw it. She knew. What it was she was seeing she wasn't sure about. Chloe was also freaking out in her own little corner with Aurora. Chloe showed mild interest in the snake, but all of ti was lost now.

"Sorry, it must be our mistake, then," Sariska said, in some attempt to diffuse the situation. She glanced to Freya. Whatever she needed these gold coins for wasn't her business. To Sicily, she spoke a little quieter. "I know it's weird, but these guys clearly don't know a thing about it. The other Zeto might know, though."

"He just might. I mean, I'll give any excuse to see him again. Mrowr," Sicily mused. "Still doesn't change the fact that I low-key have a suspicion that we're being fucked with, and that maybe a hidden camera crew might be hiding around the corner." Marko  kicked his feet off the coffee table they were resting on and left the apartment to his car. He returned with a sticky note and a roll of golden coins in a convenient paper wrapper.

"Here you go," he said to Freya. "Don't spend it all in one place. I wrote down the address and tonight's password on the note. Oh and if you see Craig tonight, slap him for me. If you wanna pay me back in full, I'd say kill him, but you know the rules of the Wolf's Den."

"Thanks, Marko," Freya accepted. "You may be an asshole, but you and Japhet are the most dependable people I can count on."

"Don't mention it. Just be sure to come back alive, yeah? If you're gone, then it's just gonna be me and Jay when we hang out, and everyone will start thinking we're just a couple of fags."

"Glad I can break up that sausage fest for you. Sariska, we should get going now. See you later, guys."

"Take care," Japhet said, dialing in the number for the pizza place.

Freya guided the girls out of the apartment. Aurora looked sad as she placed the ball python back in its terrarium and followed out. Freya went to her bike to talk to Sariska. "So... that was Marko and Japhet and his little brother. I've known them for years now, and I they're my best friends other than Mishka. There's just something that bothered me, though. You said something about 'the other Zeto' and I'm confused as to what you mean by that."

"There's a friend of ours," Sariska started, crossing her arms. Chloe got into the driver's seat while she was busy talking with Freya, but the girl seemed to have calmed down enough. "Goes by the same name as that boy. Zeto Autrey. He's taller, older, and a lot quieter than the kid in there. I'm afraid I don't know much else about him, other than that he's ridiculously strong. Physically he's stronger than I am. If I were to guess, I'd say he's been trained."

Sariska glanced back at her car. "Chloe didn't seem to sense anything off about him. Or at least, she hasn't told me about it yet. I can't help but think it isn't a coincidence. We'll have to be careful how we handle this, don't want to destroy the timeline or anything funky like that. We ready to go?"

"That's just so odd," Freya said, staring back at Japhet's apartment. "The Zeto I know is just a kid. He doesn't seem like the type to be trained to fight or anything like that. I mean, Japhet can handle himself fine, but Marko's the one that's ever done anything drastic. I'd like to meet this other Zeto sometime."

Sicily then inserted herself into the conversation. "Speakin' o' which, that Marko guy was kinda cute. You and him ever hook up? Or maybe you went out with Japhet? Or both at the same time? Did they spitroast you?"

"Why would you ask me that?" Freya shot back with disgust.

"I gotcha, I gotcha. Never kiss and tell."

"I haven't done anything like that, and things are complicated with where Japhet and I stand. Just where the hell do you come off asking me that? Did you live in a crackhouse your entire life?"

"I'm from Hastel so..."

"...Oh."

Freya brought the conversation back on track by telling Sariska directions to just where they were going. "The Wolf's Den is a secret gathering serving as neutral territory between Yisten's most hardened mafias, hitmen, crime lords, and others of their type. You'd think putting a bunch of guys like that all in one place would have them at each other's throats, but there are a set of rules in place to prevent that sort of things. Namely to say, there is no fighting, killing, collecting bounties, or any other form of attempt on another's life on or around the premises of the Wolf's Den. Failure to comply will result in death. Tonight they'll be gathered in the basement of the Diamond Star Casino, and I figure I can sign on some help. You can follow me and I'll take you there."

She climbed onto her motorcycle while Sicily and Aurora buckled into Sariska's car, and Freya rode off once more. "So... are you sure we should be going to the epicenter of criminal activity, Star?" Sicily asked. "I know Hastel is bad, but what goes behind the scenes in Yisten isn't necessarily as glamorous as the outside advertises. They get creative with how they deal with people, too. You ever hear of Gianpaolo Consiglio? He once suspected one of his men sleeping with his wife, and you know what he did? He had a rope tied to the guy's nutsack with a cinder block at the other end of it, and then threw the cinder block off an overpass. Shit like that makes me glad all my plumbing is indoors if you catch my drift."

"We should be fine," Aurora assured. "Miss Freya says the rules keeps everyone in check."

"Yeah, but do you trust a bunch of cold-blooded killers to play nice, let alone help us?"

"I trust that Miss Freya knows what she is doing."

Their small convoy would make it back into the inner heart of Yisten, where the streets were live with people in their fancy waistcoats and cocktail dresses. The Diamond Star Casino was just as big as any of the other businesses in the area, and after parking Freya would lead the girls around the alleyway behind the casino where a set of stairs led downward to a metal door. Freya grabbed the bank roll Marko gave her and popped two golden coins into a sliding coin slot and pushed it in. Moments later, the sound of the door unlocking was heard, and a man with rolled up sleeves and a black vest opened the door. He did not speak but stood aside for the girls to enter.

Music:

Spoiler:

There was a long, skinny hallway that stretched into the main room of the basement. The Wolf's Den was colored in by dark blue lights, with a contrasting bright white light where the open bar stood. The haze of cigarette smoke filled the room, and nearly every table and booth was seated with men and women in their fancy suits. The man with the rolled sleeves showed the girls to a booth, wiping down the table and promptly leaving afterwards to tend to the bar. Freya counted the roll of coins and did not stay seated for long. "You guys make yourselves comfortable," she said, getting up. "I'm gonna go do some socializing and see what I can pick up, and I'll meet you back at this table." She then disappeared into the crowd.

"Dibs on the bar," Sicily jolted, waltzing over to claim a stool. Aurora glanced over at the next booth over, where a scarred man sat intimidatingly with an actual tiger by his side. She could hardly contain herself.

"Miss Star! Miss Star! May I pet the kitty?"

"Yes, what better place to find ourselves in than a pit of pit lords and criminal scum," Chloe muttered under her breath. Sariska didn't say anything as she drove, or even when they stopped and got out of the car. She didn't say anything until Freya was about to leave to enlist help from the crowd.

"If you get yourself killed, let me know beforehand, alright?" Sariska said cheerily, taking a seat at the booth and giving Freya a light smile. Aurora was staring at a tiger now. Chloe glanced over her shoulder and shied away almost immediately.

"That's a tiger," Chloe hissed. "An actual fucking tiger, Star."

"No, Aurora, don't touch the kitty," Sariska said firmly. "Leave the nice man and his tiger alone, would you? I prefer you with both of your arms and legs."

"Your internet history says oth-" The rest of Chloe's sentence was immediately cut off by Sariska clapping her hand to Chloe's mouth. Sariska smiled, but it was not one of her happy smiles.

"Dear sister, I haven't a clue what you're talking about. Why don't you go wait outside by the car?"

"Big sis, perish the thought. I wouldn't dare dream of exposing your deepest, darkest secrets to every criminal lord in Winddrift. Not for free, anyway."

Aurora was absolutely disheartened when Sariska advised against approaching the tiger, and rested her elbows on the table with her chin in her palms. Freya would come back sooner than expected, taking a a seat in front of Sariska. "I found someone who might be willing to work with us," she announced. "Keyword: 'might.' Due to Den rules, I can't actually conduct official business here, however he's willing to meet with us tomorrow to negotiate. His name is Marcello Scordi of the Scordi family. His influence stretches across most of West Yisten, and he's a feared man by all. If we can get his mafia on our side, then I say we stand a fair chance and - uh... what's wrong with your friend there?" She looked at a depressed Aurora and back over to Sariska. "Something happen while I was gone?"

"Miss Star says I shouldn't pet the kitty," Aurora responded, pointing over to the tiger. Freya raised an eyebrow when she was referring to what was most definitely not a kitty.

"I'm gonna have to agree with Sariska. You don't wanna do that. Anyway, sorry for dragging you guys all over Yisten today, we don't need to be here anymore for now. Why don't we relax for the rest of the night? I'm kinda starved, and I'd rather not spend any more of my coins than I need to here - especially just for food. Better to go to a place where I can just use normal bills."

"I'm good here!" Sicily waved over to the booth. A row of emptied glasses lined the bar counter in front of her. "Infinite drinks make Mama very happy."

"I had a question, Miss Freya," Aurora said.

"Yeah?"

"Just why do you use golden coins as currency here?"

"Oh. Well, it's pretty much like a secondary form of identification for members of the Wolf's Den. Anyone that accepts them knows just what kind of business you're looking for. Also saves people to the trouble of dealing with marked bills. These gold coins are worth about a grand a pop, so I can't just go spending it all in one place. I'm probably gonna have to do a pretty big job for Marko's gang to pay him back."

"May I have one?"

"Err... why do you need one?"

"I just want one. They look so shiny."

"Um, sure. Knock yourself out. I can part with one, I guess," Freya said, sliding a coin over to Aurora. "So, Sariska, that's about all I needed to take care of for today. I really can't thank you enough for coming along with me, so I'll be up for anything you guys wanna do right now."

"If there's nothing else, then we can definitely get going," Sariska said. She smiled and let Freya lead them back out and hung out by her bike before they truly headed off. "If you're up to it, I'd like to see what you're capable of. So how about a friendly sparring match? No weapons, no armor."

"Here we go," Chloe sighed. "Can't we eat something first? I'm starving."

"Do you not remember the mountain of food you ate for breakfast?"

"I remember it, but my stomach doesn't. Black hole, remember?"

"Since when has your stomach been a black hole? You're just stressed out."

"I am not stressed out!" Sariska raised her brow at her sister. Chloe groaned and hung her head back. "Fine, maybe I'm a little stressed out."

"What do you think, Freya? Should we go find an arena or do you want to eat first?"

Freya couldn't help but smile at Sariska and Chloe exchanging bants as sisters do. "I don't mind a quick spar," she accepted. "Though I wouldn't want your poor sister to suffer a rumbling stomach the entire time. We should probably stop for a bite. What do your friends think?"

Sicily was showing signs of grouchiness from having been separated from the bar, but perked up at the mention of food. "Can we get Alonzo's again?" she asked. That steak was fuckin' amazing. Oh wait, it won't be free this time. Shit."

"I still have plenty of groceries left over," Aurora mentioned. "We could go back to Miss Star's apartment and I could cook again."

"I'm down."

"Looks like it's unanimous," Freya said. "Did you have a specific place in mind, Sariska?"

"I didn't have anywhere in mind," Sariska confirmed, giving a nod to Aurora.

"I'm thinking," Chloe started, then stopped and furrowed her brow a bit. "Huh," she said. "I'm kinda in the mood for sushi. We don't have sushi at home."

"You're right, we don't have sushi at home," Sariska said. "So we're not having sushi. Let's go, the sooner we're out of this place the better."

"Why can't we go get sushi?"

"Just get in the car."

"I'll follow you guys back," Freya said, revving up her motorcycle. "Though I didn't know Aurora was your own personal chef."

"I'm her intern," Aurora clarified. "I like to help out Miss Star in any way that I can."

"Y'know you're kind of adorable, you know that?" Freya complimented her.

"'S'what I said," Sicily added in.

"Oh... thank you." Aurora shied her eyes away bashfully. The girls went inside Sariska's car and headed off with Freya behind, following all the way through Yisten and back to Blue Avalon. At the kitchen, Aurora set aside her bag and got to work, deftly handling the pans and the stove. As she worked, Freya and Sicily gathered at the table.

"Never got around to asking this but where ya from, Sugartits?" Sicily began.

"Freya," she glared, unamused by nickname.

"Right. Freya."

"Well, I've lived in Winddrift for pretty much all my life. Never saw the world outside of this little bubble, but really, this town has it all. Winddrift always was the place to be, according to all the outside folk I've met coming in. What about you? The story of a half-vampire growing up sounds pretty interesting."

"It ain't nothin' too fancy, trust me. My mom killed my dad sometime after I was born, and she's still in prison for it. In the meantime, my uncle took me in and for several years, I never left that mansion. I couldn't leave. I hated living under that roof with all his damn rules. I was pretty much all locked up. One day I finally decided I had it and escaped that craphole to the one place I was sure he wouldn't find me: Hastel. I thought a place being nicknamed 'The Devil's Playground' was all badass, and I knew a fancy rich guy like my uncle wouldn't bother setting foot in the kind of place Hastel was. Hastel was a real fuckpile - don't get me wrong, but it was my fuckpile. I quickly adapted and learned how to survive on the streets and made my money by cheating or stealing from the suckers too stupid to have it. Finally made a few right friends, crashed at an apartment, and even enrolled in the Winddrift Highlands Academy where I took first chair in every instruments I played. After a while, Aurora hit me up over Exanet about joining Star's band and well, here I am."

When Aurora was done, she placed on oven mitts to pull out the trays she had in the oven. She set down on the table a tray of lasagna and a roast, both peppered and seasoned. From the stove, Aurora brought in a peculiar dish - eggs poached in tomato sauce, chili peppers, sauteed onions, and mixed with cumin and paprika. Aurora had garnished the dish with garlic and feta cheese, and of course added salt and pepper to it as well. It was placed in the center of the table along with sides of cornbread.

Sicily raised her eyebrows at the presentation. "Whatever that is, I call first dibs."

Sariska and Chloe sat down at the table with Freya and Sicily, though Chloe quickly grew restless and went up to help Aurora, cleaning up used dishes as they went about while absently listening in to the conversation. Sariska had her leg crossed over the other and her chin on the back of her hand, just a little smile playing over her lips. Sicily hadn't had a grand life, that much was for sure. But a mansion? She hadn't expected Sicily to come from money.

"I imagine it was hard at first, abandoning all that money," Sariska said, leaning back. "Chloe and I - the Eternal family, anyway, we came from a long line of generals and other high-ranking army officials. Loads of money, basically. But our parents were murdered when I was fifteen. After that, our grandfather murdered our little brother and we abandoned the family name and spent the next four years destroying his life. He doesn't have a penny to his name."

Chloe stayed behind a bit while Aurora brought out dinner, cleaning up a couple more dishes before rejoining them at the table and taking her time digging in to the lasagna. "Aurora," she started, pausing between bites to savor the taste. "You really ought to teach Star how to make this. We never get anything this good when she cooks."

"My cooking is fine, thank you little sister who never cooks."

"It was just a suggestion!"

Music: Fitting The Pieces

Spoiler:

"I could share the recipe with you, if you'd like," Aurora offered, taking a seat with the others. "My host parents have me cook for them all the time, so I always like to find new recipes to make."

"Wasn't exactly hard to leave behind money I couldn't spend anyway," Sicily said, referring back to the other conversation. "Most of what my uncle spent on me went towards basic necessities. It's pretty common for vampires to have wealth, in case you were wondering. Part of the whole ideals of the society. Full-blooded vamps are a prideful lot, and they operate under the idea that those without power or status are only meant to serve. The elites get to live with a silver spoon wedged in their assholes while the less fortunate vampires are 'allowed' to bask in their presence by serving as butlers or maids. They're even hardwired to be grateful for that kind of arrangement, if you can believe that shit. You won't see a broke vampire out in the streets - 'course I don't buy into that whole shitshow. Might be because I'm smart enough to think for myself, but my uncle blames it on my human half. I don't really give a damn either way."

"Sariska, I'm very sorry to hear about your family by the way," Freya added.

"Y'know, it's weird," Sicily continued.

"What is?"

"The fact that a bunch of gals like us ended up here today. What are the odds that we all happen to have broken or fucked up families and are now banding together to fight the big bad evil corporation? Shit's taken straight outta a movie, I swear."

"Is there something wrong with Aurora's family too?"

"Her deal's a lot tamer than the shit we have going on, to be honest. She told me about it last night, in fact. Our little Aurora is actually from abroad. Said she grew up mostly with her mom while the war was going on in her home country until she came over here for school. Government wouldn't let her mom come with her so they set her up with some host parents. Aaaand, if I remember correctly, her host parents insisted she study music after hearing her killer singing voice... but our little Aurora actually hates singing for some reason, and I'm not about to pry if she doesn't wanna talk about it. Did I just about cover everything, Aurora?"

"Yes..." Aurora confirmed with a rather brooding look on her face.

Freya grabbed a napkin and wiped her lips after she finished eating. "That's unfortunate," she remarked. "Though if she can cook like this, then I'm sure there's plenty of other natural talents she has going for her. I'm sure she'll find her true calling sooner or later. The meal was great; thank you, Aurora."

"Oh... you're w-welcome," Aurora blushed.

"It's certainly a nice break from being treated to pizza with Marko and Japhet all the time. Seriously, those boys need to cook more often. Japhet actually knows how to prepare pasta in just about every way there is - he's just really lazy and only makes a point to eat healthier when it's for the sake of his little brother. I could go on all day about those two. Anyway, Sariska? Do you have a place in mind for our sparring session? I think now's a good time to limber up and burn those calories we just put in."

"That'd be great, Aurora," Sariska said. "Maybe I'll make something for you another time."

"Hope she likes spicy foods," Chloe murmured. Sariska ignored her and turned her attention back to Sicily and Freya. Ordinarily, she might scoff at this talk of vampires, but this isn't exactly something Sicily would lie about. Despite the girl's upbringing.

She pushed herself up out of the chair and stretched her arms out a bit. "Yeah, I'd say so," Sariska said, referring to burning carbs. "I'm pretty sure we could just throw down in the parking lot, but I doubt that would make for a very good cushion. There's a gym nearby, I think, or a boxing arena we could commandeer if we went."

"If you need help binding your breasts, we've probably got some strong wrapping around here somewhere," Chloe offered to Freya. "Sariska's not as big as you, but she binds them so they're not as small as you think." Sariska shot her a frown. "What? You'd have a much easier time seducing Eric if you showed him your tits."

Sariska blushed. "Not on topic, Chloe. You'll be staying here while Freya and I find a good spot to spar. Anyone else coming?"

"Didn't want to come anyway."

"I'll be fine with what I have," Freya assured Chloe. "Thanks, though."

Sicily raised a hand at Sariska's invitation for spectators. "I already said earlier that I was down for seeing you two go at it, and that hasn't changed," she said. "And I don't doubt Aurora will come too, what with being your intern and all."

"Actually, I'll stay here with Chloe and help clean up," Aurora responded.

"You sure?"

"Yes, but feel free to tell me about it later."

"Aight. You do you then."

Freya stood at the door looking back at Sariska. "I don't really care where we do this. If it comes down to fighting those corporate lapdogs, I doubt we'll have the luxury of fighting in a cushy arena anyway," she explained. "There's plenty of space back at the hideout Mishka prepared for me, if we're exploring all our options. Though that's quite a distance away, and I'm sure we're both tired of having driven all over Winddrift today. I guess we'll go to the gym."

Sariska quickly grabbed her wallet from her purse and shoved it into her pocket. Chloe stayed back to clean up with Aurora so the three remaining girls headed to the car and went off towards the gym. Sariska knew the ride over would help them digest whatever they could before the match started. They pulled up into the gym parking lot soon enough and headed in.

Sariska kicked off her shoes and pulled her shirt off before stepping into the ring and stretching out her limbs. "I normally do a full workout before doing any sparring," she said. "But I haven't done this in awhile, so I might be a bit rusty. Gonna work out the kinks." She rolled her shoulders until she felt a satisfying pop. She bent down to touch her toes and reached them effortlessly. She couldn't help her smile, knowing she was still as flexible as she used to be.

"Feel free to come at me whenever you like," Sariska offered, bouncing about on her feet and shaking her limbs loose. "Sicily, if you ever wanna join in, I'd love to see if I can fight both of you."

As they stepped into the gym, the girls were met with rather leery gazes by many of the patrons. A few of the ones working on the exercise machines would set up more weight at a futile attempt to impress the girls. They weren't here to chat with the regulars anyway. While Sariska limbered up, Freya began taping her hands with boxing wrap. After the laces on her boots were tightened, she stepped into the arena with Sariska. An intrigued crowd would gather around to spectate.

Sicily snorted at Sariska's challenge, and crossed her arms amused. "Don't bite off more than you can chew, Star," she smirked. "You'll look bad in front of all these people if you get flattened out too quick. Besides, I may be from Hastel but I it ain't my style to gang up. If you still wanna go a round after Freya, then I'll be game."

Music: Vs Freya

Spoiler:

With no more exchange of words, Freya made her advance towards Sariska. She did not rush in to attack, only approaching slowly with her left arm pointed forward as if she were using it to size Sariska up from a distance. She feigned with a jab before she turned her heel and performed a roundhouse kick.

Meanwhile back at the apartment, Aurora was setting the plates into the dishwasher with Chloe, humming a tune to herself. She stopped for a moment to take a look at Chloe. "Umm... Miss Chloe?" she addressed her. "Oh, my apologies. I forgot that you didn't wish to be called 'Miss.' I was wondering though, if you could tell me about Miss Star?"

Sariska grinned at Sicily. It would have been fun to go against both at the same time, but she really didn't know how much either of them could dish out, so it was probably for the better. She turned to face Freya now, it seemed the girl was ready to start. Sariska kept looking down at Freya's feet. She saw the feint and bent her whole body back until her hands hit the floor. She pulled her legs bak and pushed off with her hands, extending her legs into a full-body kick aimed at Freya's waist.

She flipped back onto her feet and slid out of reach, still bouncing on her feet as she waited for Freya's next move, a grin playing on her lips.

Chloe stopped to ponder the question. Sariska was her sister, so Chloe thought she knew her pretty well considering. "Depends on what you want to know," Chloe answered. "There's a lot to Sariska. She's kind and earnest if not a little prideful at times. She works hard to be what she is every day, and it took her twenty years just to get into the right habits so that she doesn't have to sweat the small stuff."

When the last of the dishes were in the dishwasher and the ones that needed scrubbing were dried and put away, Chloe snatched a bag of chips from the cupboard and laid them out on the table. "When my ex-girlfriend Tammy and I were still together, Sariska would often buy us tickets to go out to see movies and plays and the like while she took care of Tams' younger brother. She'd always pick us up if we ended up too drunk to drive, which actually happened a lot. When it was clear my relationship with Tams was turning me into an alcoholic, Sariska told me to cut the shit. It took awhile, but I listened, even if I hated her for it for a time. Star's always been reliable."