CHAPTER 4: Sticks and Stones . . .
"Hullo? Oh, Mummy!" Cye answered excitedly. "Yes, Mum, everything is just fine. Yes . . . okay, alright . . . you do? . . . yes, yes . . .I'll ask, here, hold on a moment, Mum." he put the phone down for a moment, "Mummy and Auntie want us to come over for dinner tomorrow. Does everyone want to come?" Cye didn't wait for an answer, "Yes, Mummy, we're all coming. Yes all the boys, and Mia . . . and Mia's house guest, Katrina. Yes . . . no Mummy, I don't think Kat and Mia are lovers. Yes Mum. Yes Mum. Yes Mum, I'll say hullo to them all for you. Yep. Ok, ciao Mummy! I love you!!" CLICK.
Cye sat down at the table with a happy look on his face. He imagined how perfect his mother's dinner would be and how much fun everyone would have. It took him several moments to recover. Needless to say he received a few dirty looks from the other inhabitants of the house.
The rest of the evening seemed to pass without incident. Well, or not. It turned out Kat was on a strict vegetarian diet and she would only eat plants that died of natural causes. Unfortunately, her first meal with the group was roasted lamb. Vanessa had never used a fork before and made quite a mess. Kat insisted that Sugar Baby be allowed to sit at the table. Kat also insisted that she be served red wine with her "salad". Sadly, Mia had just installed a white carpet in the dining room and several members of the party were totally uncoordinated. Mia spent three hours trying to wash out the stains form the carpets.
"I don't think it's working. . .hee hee . . ."
Mia looked up, trying not to glare, "Thanks for stating the obvious Kat."
"No problem . . . hee hee. So, where's a good place for Sugar Baby to sleep? My little muffin love needs his own bed . . ."
Mia sighed, irritated. "Listen Kat, I didn't know you had a dog and I happen to be allergic to them. If you'll notice, my eyes are nearly swollen shut from your little "Angel cupcake" shedding and drooling all over the place. Sugar Baby is sleeping outside."
Kat stared in horror, "OUTSIDE?! Mia, you kid me, no?! You are my best friend Mia!! Sugar Baby is like my child!! You would not send a child out in the cold, Mia!! Not my poor Sugar!! No Mia!! You kid me, please!!"
"No Kat. I kid you not. Either that or he sleeps with Whiteblaze. Your choice."
The expression on Kat's face was one of confusion. It had happened upon her face many times that evening. She looked at Mia with that blank expression. "What is this Whiteblaze thing?"
"A tiger."
"Eeeeeekkkk!!!! In the house?!" Kat started to wobble.
Mia looked at Kat, her face growing hot with rage, "Yes, in the house. He's Ryo's pet. Now, Kat, please, just let me clean the carpet in peace!!!"
Kat blinked several times before catching Mia's "subtle" hint. "Oh . . . you want me to go away?"
"Yes, just, go watch Teletubbies or something . . . .PLEASE!!!"
"Ok." Kat said is her vague way and wandered out to the living room where Ryo and Rowen were battling eachother at Pokemon Stadium. Kento was just as enthralled, watching from the couch. "What is this we are playing?"
"Pokemon," Kento said from the sofa. "It's like the best game since Tomb Raider. We beat that in like, three hours though."
All of this went right past Kat. Wandered the house further. She found a beaker circuit system on one of the walls in the hallway. She decided to push a few random buttons. Suddenly, the entire house went black. Someone screamed and a thump was heard. A similar scream was herd from the bathroom and a similar thump soon followed.
"Noooooooo!" Ryo's voice carried through the house.
"I didn't do it!" Rowen called at the top of his lungs.
"Oohhhhh....." a moaning sound came from the bottom of the stairs. "My leg! Help! I think my leg is broken!"
A few moments passed in the dark. "Someone help me!" It was Sage.
Scampers were heard and several smaller thumps were audible. "My eyes! I'm blind!"
Cye burst from the upstairs bathroom, running blindly. He tripped over the rug at the top of the stairs and soon went crashing onto Sage below.
It was a cacophony of painful yelping for the next 45 minutes, when the ambulence arrived and carted Sage and Cye to the nearest hospital. An electrician arrived about ten minutes later and solved the power problem for only $5.
It was nearly midnight before everyone was home again. Sage had been right, his ankle was broken. Cye suffered temporary blindness while he was shampooing in the shower. After flushing his eyes, his vision was restored. His wrist, however, was another story. He'd dislocated it somehow during his fall.
With Sage and Cye knocked out by the prescription painkillers, the house had a spooky aura about it. Mia was extremely tired, as was everyone else, so, it was decided that the power outage issue would be discussed the next morning.
"Hullo? Oh, Mummy!" Cye answered excitedly. "Yes, Mum, everything is just fine. Yes . . . okay, alright . . . you do? . . . yes, yes . . .I'll ask, here, hold on a moment, Mum." he put the phone down for a moment, "Mummy and Auntie want us to come over for dinner tomorrow. Does everyone want to come?" Cye didn't wait for an answer, "Yes, Mummy, we're all coming. Yes all the boys, and Mia . . . and Mia's house guest, Katrina. Yes . . . no Mummy, I don't think Kat and Mia are lovers. Yes Mum. Yes Mum. Yes Mum, I'll say hullo to them all for you. Yep. Ok, ciao Mummy! I love you!!" CLICK.
Cye sat down at the table with a happy look on his face. He imagined how perfect his mother's dinner would be and how much fun everyone would have. It took him several moments to recover. Needless to say he received a few dirty looks from the other inhabitants of the house.
The rest of the evening seemed to pass without incident. Well, or not. It turned out Kat was on a strict vegetarian diet and she would only eat plants that died of natural causes. Unfortunately, her first meal with the group was roasted lamb. Vanessa had never used a fork before and made quite a mess. Kat insisted that Sugar Baby be allowed to sit at the table. Kat also insisted that she be served red wine with her "salad". Sadly, Mia had just installed a white carpet in the dining room and several members of the party were totally uncoordinated. Mia spent three hours trying to wash out the stains form the carpets.
"I don't think it's working. . .hee hee . . ."
Mia looked up, trying not to glare, "Thanks for stating the obvious Kat."
"No problem . . . hee hee. So, where's a good place for Sugar Baby to sleep? My little muffin love needs his own bed . . ."
Mia sighed, irritated. "Listen Kat, I didn't know you had a dog and I happen to be allergic to them. If you'll notice, my eyes are nearly swollen shut from your little "Angel cupcake" shedding and drooling all over the place. Sugar Baby is sleeping outside."
Kat stared in horror, "OUTSIDE?! Mia, you kid me, no?! You are my best friend Mia!! Sugar Baby is like my child!! You would not send a child out in the cold, Mia!! Not my poor Sugar!! No Mia!! You kid me, please!!"
"No Kat. I kid you not. Either that or he sleeps with Whiteblaze. Your choice."
The expression on Kat's face was one of confusion. It had happened upon her face many times that evening. She looked at Mia with that blank expression. "What is this Whiteblaze thing?"
"A tiger."
"Eeeeeekkkk!!!! In the house?!" Kat started to wobble.
Mia looked at Kat, her face growing hot with rage, "Yes, in the house. He's Ryo's pet. Now, Kat, please, just let me clean the carpet in peace!!!"
Kat blinked several times before catching Mia's "subtle" hint. "Oh . . . you want me to go away?"
"Yes, just, go watch Teletubbies or something . . . .PLEASE!!!"
"Ok." Kat said is her vague way and wandered out to the living room where Ryo and Rowen were battling eachother at Pokemon Stadium. Kento was just as enthralled, watching from the couch. "What is this we are playing?"
"Pokemon," Kento said from the sofa. "It's like the best game since Tomb Raider. We beat that in like, three hours though."
All of this went right past Kat. Wandered the house further. She found a beaker circuit system on one of the walls in the hallway. She decided to push a few random buttons. Suddenly, the entire house went black. Someone screamed and a thump was heard. A similar scream was herd from the bathroom and a similar thump soon followed.
"Noooooooo!" Ryo's voice carried through the house.
"I didn't do it!" Rowen called at the top of his lungs.
"Oohhhhh....." a moaning sound came from the bottom of the stairs. "My leg! Help! I think my leg is broken!"
A few moments passed in the dark. "Someone help me!" It was Sage.
Scampers were heard and several smaller thumps were audible. "My eyes! I'm blind!"
Cye burst from the upstairs bathroom, running blindly. He tripped over the rug at the top of the stairs and soon went crashing onto Sage below.
It was a cacophony of painful yelping for the next 45 minutes, when the ambulence arrived and carted Sage and Cye to the nearest hospital. An electrician arrived about ten minutes later and solved the power problem for only $5.
It was nearly midnight before everyone was home again. Sage had been right, his ankle was broken. Cye suffered temporary blindness while he was shampooing in the shower. After flushing his eyes, his vision was restored. His wrist, however, was another story. He'd dislocated it somehow during his fall.
With Sage and Cye knocked out by the prescription painkillers, the house had a spooky aura about it. Mia was extremely tired, as was everyone else, so, it was decided that the power outage issue would be discussed the next morning.