Chapter 12
The trip to Mallory and Turner Security Services, Limited was---at least in Yuri's opinion---a hands-down success. Yuri smiled in satisfaction, nodding over to her Naomi, indicating with a toss of her head Svetlana and Maria, who walked two steps behind them talking quietly and in a most animated fashion.
"Hmm, Naomi…I think our little trip across the street did wonders for our two friends, no?" Yuri softly observed, grinning.
Naomi smiled, pleased in the change in both of her friends. "Oui, Madame…it did indeed!" she opined with a nod. "Did you not see that smile Svetlana gave Monsieur Mallory?"
Yuri sighed happily. "I saw, cheri," Yuri replied, feeling very happy indeed. She linked arms with Naomi, gratefully hugging the cheetah girl's arm to herself a moment. She then turned her gaze to her friend. "Perhaps, Naomi…just perhaps, Svetlana may have found herself a fellow who might prove worthy of her heart, hmm?"
Naomi nodded. "Perhaps, Madame," Naomi replied cautiously. "Monsieur Mallory…his is odd. He appears one thing…yet feels another, nes pas?"
"What do you mean, cheri?" Yuri asked, curious.
"Ah, I…I don't know precisely," Naomi admitted with an embarrassed shrug. "I can imagine him in battle, Madame…oh, but he would be truly frightening! But then…after we spoke with him, he was so polite, so nice. I could see he was a gentleman, as well as just how much he seems to care about our Svetlana, and…" Naomi faltered then. "Well, that man is an enigma, Madame…"
"Hmm," Yuri mused a moment. "An enigma, hmm?" Yuri then grinned. "How romantic, no? Our Svetlana's enigmatic lynx gentleman…"
"Hush, Yuri," Naomi cautioned, but did smile. "I can see that look in your eye, Madame. Leave those two alone. If they are meant to be together, they will find their own way."
"Very well, as you say, Naomi," Yuri said, placating her friend, then changed the subject. "I was more surprised with how bashful our normally unfazable Maria was around that handsome giant, Jack Turner."
"Yuri," Naomi cautioned again, seeing the route Madame was taking. "You are as bad as Kitty! If those two ask for our help…that is one thing. If they do not, I say leave them both be. They have had things hard enough in their lives, do you not think?"
Yuri blinked, then flattened her ears to her head in embarrassment. "Ah, most true, cheri," she admitted. She then seemed to struggle with herself a long moment. "Speaking of Kitty, Naomi…"
Naomi flicked her amber eyes to her friend, frowning. "Have you not been listening to a word I have said, ami?" she demanded. "Have you thought of the possibility that Jack does not feel that way toward our Maria? Hmm? Or that perhaps Sean is not interested in a relationship with our Svetlana?"
Yuri pursed her lips, and shrugged. "Ah, in that case, cheri…it would not matter anyhow. Kitty would not help them then," Yuri reluctantly replied.
"I shall believe that when I see it, Madame," Naomi replied, though she did soften her statement with a small smile. She then sighed, seeing that Madame seemed insistent on this matter. "I will tell you what, Yuri…do invite our Kitty along…but, if you do, I implore you to bring Carmelita along as well. That way, she will be a…er, shall we say, stabilizing influence on our oft-time rather impulsive friend." Naomi smiled, pleased with how politically correct she had phrased her last remark.
Yuri turned her thankful green-gold eyes to her dear friend, and then hugged her arm again in thanks. "Agreed, cheri!" Yuri acquiesced with a grin. "It shall be as you say. However, I think I should warn you that I have a feeling---call it woman's intuition, if you will!---that there will soon be two new couples in the making!" Yuri grinned over at Naomi, who snorted softly. "Would you care to wager on this, cheri?"
"Non," Naomi retorted softly. "I do not make sucker bets, Madame."
Yuri only laughed softly, her glorious green-gold eyes dancing merrily.
"Can you believe all that has happened today, my Maria?" Svetlana ventured, her big brown eyes shining with happiness as she walked along with her friend. "It is just like that Charles Dicken's book I just finished, nyet? Remember? 'It was the best of times; it was the worst of times', da?"
Maria nodded sagely. "I know what you mean, tovarisch," she replied. "First we must deal with our worst nightmare---Ludmilla and Arkady! Bozhe moi! I thought things would end very badly for us all, my Svetlana." Maria then paused, and then her lips twitched into a smile. "Thankfully, that did not come to pass. Kharasho, da?"
"Da!" Svetlana nodded, her eyes thankful. "Very good, Maria." Svetlana then smiled cleverly, then giggled softly. "Then, we meet the boys, nyet?"
"Ah, yes…I was wondering when you would get to that, Svetlana," Maria replied with a soft chuckle. "I think Mister Mallory has left his impression on you, my friend."
Svetlana grinned. "Perhaps he has, so?" she countered. "Just like Mister Turner has left his on you, nyet, my friend?"
Maria blushed, looking away. Jack Turner indeed weighed heavily on the lovely Arctic vixen's mind just about now. "I…I do not know what you mean, Svetlana," she replied, holding her head high, even as the blush receded from her cheeks. "Jack is a charming man, da, I will admit…but, Svetlana, I am not interested in him that way."
"You liar," Svetlana retorted, giggling again. She sobered a moment later, and gave her friend a concerned look. "I am not saying you are in love with him, Maria," she pointed out. "I am simply saying that he likes you, that he seems interested in you. You are a beautiful woman, my Maria. What could it hurt to get to know him a bit better, hmm?"
Maria's face betrayed the inner conflict going on inside her beautiful head. Eventually, she sighed. "I…I suppose I would lose nothing by doing as you suggest, Svetlana," she conceded with a wry grin. "He is very handsome…"
Svetlana giggled again. "Da, he is!" she urged her friend.
"Svetlana, hush!" Maria laughed. "I am confused enough as it is!"
"Prasteetye, Maria," Svetlana then said softly, her grin still contagious. "I am sorry, my friend."
Maria took Svetlana's smaller hand in her own, and squeezed it. "No need to apologize, my love," she told her. "I am confused, da…but no one said I was unhappy to be!" Maria then turned to her best friend, her blue eyes intent. "What about you, Svetlana? You and your scary Mister Mallory?"
Svetlana frowned at Maria calling Sean 'scary'. "Comrade Mallory is not scary, Maria! Now true, his scar is a bit intimidating at first. I feel pity for him, you know. But, he is far too proud to accept such a thing…not that I blame him really."
"My my," Maria offered up. "Someone is very philosophical this day, da?" She grinned as she teased.
Svetlana frowned, then saw Maria's clever blue eyes, full of mischief, and laughed. "Now, it is my turn to cry 'hush', da Maria?" she pointed out. She then fell silent, thinking.
Maria now felt bad, mistaking Svetlana's introspection for sulking. "I am sorry, I meant only to---" she stammered her apology.
"Maria," Svetlana finally said, smiling…just before she leaned over to kiss Maria's cheek to assure her that she was still in her good graces. "This is…is difficult for me, nyet?" Svetlana finally managed.
"Da, I know," Maria replied, putting a comforting hand on Svetlana's small strong shoulder. "We two…we have not had much luck in affairs of the heart, da?" she added, just a bit ruefully.
"Nyet, we have not," Svetlana agreed, briefly squeezing Maria's hand between her cheek and shoulder. "Oh Maria!" she whimpered softly, softly biting her full lower lip in her anxiety. "What shall I do?" she then asked. "I am nearly certain that Mister Mallory shows an interest in me. Do you think so?"
"Oh, da," Maria told her, nodding her head. "Why else would he call you an 'angel', eh tovarisch?" She grinned…pleased that someone else could see just how wonderful her friend truly was.
Svetlana blushed, yet grinned. "I heard," she confessed. "He was so sweet." Svetlana smiled, feeling a nice feeling of warmth in her chest. But, her past soured that happy feeling just a bit, jading her surge of optimism. "Do you think he truly meant it though?" Svetlana hoped…oh, yes, she truly did hope that he did.
"I am not a man," Maria replied, "so, I cannot say for certain, my love. However," Maria paused, remembering back to the moment of their leavetaking. "However, his smile and the way he gazed so warmly at you…" She shrugged, grinning encouragingly.
Svetlana trembled, enjoying the shiver of excitement that thought caused her. She too thought she saw something in the scarred yet still handsome lynx's face, and amazing deep green eyes. Something that both entranced…and terrified her. "I…I don't know, Maria," Svetlana said softly. "Can I trust him with my heart? I…I do not think I could take it being broken again, my love…"
Maria put her arm around Svetlana's shoulders, drawing the tigress to herself, then leaned over to kiss her head. "It's is much like that American President once said of our homeland, da? Remember?" Maria prompted.
Svetlana briefly frowned, trying to remember. However, her jumbled feelings, and hopes, and dreams, and disappointments kept her from finding that elusive memory. "Nyet, I do not. Remind me, Maria."
"He said, 'Trust…but verify'," Maria offered up, smiling at her vulnerable friend. "Enjoy his attention, my Svetlana," Maria advised. "You deserve it. But, wait to give him your heart. Wait until you know he has given you his…and freely, all on his own."
Svetlana sniffed, then smiled. "How did you become so wise, my Maria?" Svetlana asked, just before she laughed softly, pressing her sable-haired head to her snowy-white one.
"We Russians…we are born wise, da?" Maria teased. "Now, you Ukrainians on the other hand…" A smile threatened to bloom on her lips any moment, and her sparkling blue eyes laughed.
Svetlana's brows drew down and she prepared to protest…when she realized that her friend's teasing was just what she needed. The pretty tigress giggled, and kissed her friend's cheek as a way of relaying her most heartfelt thanks.
Maria giggled in reply, and hugged her Svetlana tightly…glad that this small remarkable woman was her dearest friend.
It was then that Yuri and Naomi slowed, allowing the Russian pair to pull up beside them both.
"Ah so, mon amis," Yuri said with a smile. "It is good to see you both smile. Now, let us go home, hmm? I am dead tired, and want nothing more than to snuggle down under a thick warm blanket at home, and perhaps watch a movie or two."
"You know," Maria replied after a moment of thinking. "Madame, your idea sounds like a very good one," Maria observed. "Perhaps, we could then call Kitty and Carmelita over too…you see, and make it a girls' night out."
"Tres bien," Yuri murmured, then looked over toward her Naomi. "What say you, mon ami?"
Naomi frowned, not liking to have to rain on the girls' parade…but, she had responsibilities. "I see no reason why you should not, Madame, you two," she said breezily. "However…I am quite afraid that I could not join you."
"But, why not, mon cheri?" Yuri asked, her eyes concerned and disappointed.
"Think, Madame!" Naomi explained wearily. "Suppose you and our friends do spend all night watching movies and what not," she added, not quite able to keep the look of regret from her clear amber eyes. "When, the next morning, you awake and find yourself far too tired to go to work…just who do you suppose will have to ensure that work will continue on at C'est Sing?"
"You, tovarisch?" Svetlana replied, nodding in understanding.
"Me, oui," Naomi affirmed with a nod.
"That is so much nonsense, cheri!" Yuri scoffed, then grinned and kissed Naomi's cheek fondly. "What fun would it be without you with me, hmm?" Yuri thought briefly, then nodded her fair head. "I have it! I shall just call my Desiree and have her send an email to everyone…informing them that we all shall be off in a design meeting!"
"Ahem," Maria then added, clearing her throat. "That makes sense for you and Naomi, Madame Sing. However, how do a pair of accountants factor into a 'design' meeting, hmm?"
"Quite easily, cheris!" Yuri told them. "My drawings, and Naomi's exquisite instincts and talent with color are all well and fine, oui? But, they are nothing, if we cannot pay for them! Think, mon amis…you are perhaps even more important than Naomi and myself."
Maria blinked, then grinned, looking over at Svetlana, who grinned back. "We will bring our books with us then, Madame!" she teased.
"Oui! So it is decided then!" Yuri proclaimed to one and all. She opened her tiny purse and extracted her small cell phone, hitting a speed dial sequence. A moment later, "'Allo, cheri!" Yuri said. "Desiree, mon cheri? Ah, yes…I have scheduled a last-minute off-site design session. What's that? Non, cheri…no need. But, it shall be an all-day affair I'm afraid. Could you be an absolute dear and inform my staff? You will? Ah, cheri…you are too good to me. Oh, my Naomi, as well as Mademoiselles Umanova and Foloreva will be in attendance with me." Yuri waited, then added, "Anything else, cheri? No? Well then…adieu!" She ended the call, and smiled at them all.
"Madame, I do not think that---" Naomi began, softly protesting.
Yuri smiled at her friend, then pretended to scold her. "Naomi?" she softly growled.
Naomi sighed expansively, then grinned. "Oui, Madame," she apologized.
"You all now officially are excused from work tomorrow, my friends," Yuri told them. "Now, it is time to organize our Girls Night Out…or perhaps that should be Girls Night In, no?" She chuckled at her weak joke. "Now…Svetlana, please call our Carmelita, and ask---no!---make that convince her she should join us for tonight's fun…at my house, of course."
Svetlana grinned at the implied challenge, and dashed over to reclaim her cell phone from inside her handbag. "I am on it, Madame!" she declared, already dialing.
Yuri swiveled to turn her green-gold gaze upon the waiting Maria. "Cheri, could you be a dear and do the same with that rascal, Kitty, s'il vous plait?" Yuri asked politely.
"Da, I shall…at once!" Maria pledged, following in Svetlana's footsteps a moment later.
"Oh, and do not take 'no' for an answer, cheri!" Yuri added, eliciting a smile from Maria, who already had her cell phone to her ear.
Two hours later…at Yuri's chateau on Rue de la Mer…
"A bientot, cheris!" Yuri proclaimed, all smiles, as first a smiling Carmelita, followed by a grinning Kitty entered the stately front door of Yuri's home, standing to greet their friends in the large foyer. "I am so glad you both could make it tonight," she added, after kissing them both upon both cheeks in her ebullient greeting.
"Wouldn't of missed it, Yuri," Kitty cleverly replied, her blue eyes gleaming mischievously.
"Thanks for thinking of us, though," Carmelita added, giving the rascally Kitty an elbow to her ribs, which made her grunt softly. "Isn't that right, sport?" Carmelita's brown eyes were most insistent.
"Yeah yeah," Kitty retorted, rubbing her ribs with her hand. "Thanks," she added. "So…what's on tonight's agenda, girls?" she asked, curious.
"Madame suggested we have ourselves a…" Maria began, then faltered, verbally stumbling as she tried to recall the turn of phrase. "Ah, da! I remember now. A 'movie marathon', she called it. Does that not sound like fun?"
Kitty, an avid movie watcher, grinned enthusiastically. "I'll say! Very cool," she opined. "Um, so…how's this going to work, peeps?" As you can see, Kitty had her own way of phrasing things sometimes…
Svetlana frowned a moment in confusion, but got the gist of Kitty's remark quickly enough. "Ah, I see! Well, we four talked…and, it was decided that each girl will pick her own movie, then…we will watch all of them! That is fair, nyet?"
"Works for me," Kitty replied, nodding her head. She then grinned knowingly. "You kids are in for a treat…if I have my way. Trust me."
"Why is it," Carmelita replied with a weary sigh, "that I almost always regret it when she says that?"
Svetlana giggled, Maria chuckled, and Yuri and Naomi merely smiled and shook their heads.
An hour later, the six lovely girls descended upon the nearby video rental store, splitting up so that each could start their search for their movie of choice. Not surprisingly, it was Kitty who scored first.
There came a most familiar whoop of happiness from the side of the store, as Kitty snatched a DVD jacket off of the shelf with the same eagerness any other girl would give the Hope diamond! "Sweet! 'Cats the Musical'!" Kitty exclaimed, doing an odd little victory dance, one which embarrassed Carmelita, who just sadly shook her head.
"Didn't I warn you?" Carmelita remarked to the other girls as Kitty whirled and pranced. "Happens every single time."
Yuri was still searching the racks when her smiling friend Naomi approached, bearing a rental DVD jacket in her slender hands. "You've found your choice, cheri?" Yuri asked, smiling…interested in what movie Naomi now held.
"Oui, Madame," Naomi said, then blushed softly. She held out the plastic jacket for her friend to read.
"'Romancing the Stone', hmm?" Yuri read, arching one golden eyebrow.
"Oui, it is one of my favorites, Yuri," Naomi admitted with an adorable embarrassed smile.
"Finally!" Carmelita intoned with a nod of satisfaction. "Something with adventure, and action, and…a strong female lead." Carmelita lifted the DVD jacket, and smiled.
Svetlana, intrigued by Carmelita's description, leaned over to look. "May I see, Carmelita?" she asked politely.
"Sure, sweetie," Carmelita replied, nodding. "'Lara Croft: The Tomb Raider'. A classic. A strong woman, lots of action, and an exciting adventure. What's not to love?"
Svetlana nodded, looking forward to viewing Carmelita's movie. Now, she told herself, back to finding my own choice…
"Svetlana!" Maria then called out, laughing softly to herself. "Come here!"
Svetlana frowned a moment, then grinned, and ambled over to Maria's side. "What is so amusing, Maria?" she asked, curious.
"Look, tovarisch," Maria said when she could get her giggles under control. "I have found the perfect movie for me. Want to know which one?" she asked, her eyes clever, her smile broadening.
"Da. What is it, Maria?" Svetlana asked, a smile threatening to appear on her lovely face any minute.
"'The Russians are Coming! The Russians are Coming!'" Maria answered, breaking into a new fit of laughter. She wiped at her eyes, very pleased with herself, it seems.
"You Russians…you are crazy," Svetlana quipped, laughing, then moving off again to find her own movie for the evening. Surprisingly enough, she only had to scan the very rack she was in front of a few minutes before she found her choice. She moved back to where the others that had chosen now stood, waiting to rent their choice.
"Hey, Svetlana," Kitty greeted her as she stepped in behind her. "So, kiddo…which movie did you select anyway?" Kitty asked.
Svetlana held out the DVD jacket for Kitty to read. "'From Here to Eternity'?" Carmelita read, looking over Kitty's shoulder. She then frowned, surprised it seemed. "Um, Svetlana…isn't that a war movie?" she asked Svetlana.
"Well, da, it is," Svetlana agreed, softly blushing a bit. "But, it is also a romance," she carefully added…thinking about a certain warrior at that moment.
All of them took their turn in line, and paid for their choices. They then moved off to the side, and waited for Yuri, who still had not chosen a film as of yet.
"Yo, Yuri!" Kitty called out, impatient as always. "Need some help? C'mon…pick something…while the evening's still young, eh?"
Carmelita silenced Kitty's next line of protest with yet another well-placed elbow.
"Oof!" Kitty exclaimed. "Hey! Easy with elbows, Carmelita! Those things are like spears!" Kitty glowered at the now smugly smiling vixen beside her.
"A little while longer, cheris," Yuri called back, starting the next rack over. "Give me just a little while yet." She patiently perused the shelves, lifting one movie to read, then shook her head, and replaced it on the rack. She did this again and again. It was at the next rack, that she finally picked one up, read its description, then nodded her head. With a lovely smile of satisfaction on her lips, Yuri made her way over to the counter, where her friends waited, and placed her selection on the counter.
"Which movie did you choose, Madame?" Naomi asked, interested.
"A classic, cheri," Yuri assured her, taking her credit card back, and signing the sales slip for the woman behind the counter.
The woman, a rather pretty young pronghorn antelope, grinned. "Yeah, that's for certain," she remarked. "'The Three Musketeers'? Yep, definitely a classic, that one."
Svetlana paused a moment, and thought about Yuri's choice. She then grinned, thinking of Madame's aristocratic heritage, then her lovely chateau, and then burst into a fit of giggling. "Touche, Madame!" Svetlana said, bowing her head to a startled Yuri. A moment went by, then both the snow leopard woman and the little tigress burst into a fit of giggling.
"Maybe those two should of chosen 'Stir Crazy'," Kitty declared, but only after stepping carefully away from Carmelita and her deadly accurate elbows.
"So…havin' a movie marathon, eh ladies?" the antelope woman asked with a telling grin, as she eyed the large group of women.
"Oui, you could say that, cheri," Yuri answered with a smile of her own.
The girl just nodded, chuckled, and did her job. "Enjoy the evening, ladies," she said as a farewell as the six headed back out to their cars.
Back at the Sing Chateau, Rue de la Mer…
As Carmelita and Kitty worked on refreshments, Svetlana, Maria, and Yuri prepped the chateau's media room for their movie marathon. The girls moved a pair of plush recliners in to join the big camel-colored suede sectional. Thick, silky soft throws, as well as every available sleeping bag was carefully placed inside as well. The crowning feature of Yuri's media room was the seventy-two inch plasma screen television that took up the better part of the wall perpendicular to the double doors. It descended down from a covered slot in the ceiling. Below it, in a very modern looking oak, chrome and glass cabinet was her DVD player, and surround-sound stereo system.
"…and now the movie, folks!" Kitty announced, her eyes teasing, as she, followed by a frowning Carmelita, strode into the media room. Kitty held a tray that was filled with soft drinks of many types, whilst Carmelita bore a platter that had an absolutely enormous bowl of freshly popped popcorn, plus six individual bowls…one per lady.
"So…which movie shall we watch first?" Svetlana asked, her voice a bit excited, from where she lay beside Maria, bracing her back against the sectional facing the big TV screen.
"That's easy!" Kitty proclaimed, dashing before any one could stop her to nimbly slide her movie into the DVD player. "Oh, yeah…'Cats'! This is gonna be so sweet!" she proclaimed.
"Why me?" was all Carmelita could add, as she slid down to sit beside Naomi on the sectional, resting her bowl of popcorn on her lap.
Naomi grinned like a fiend, but said nothing, choosing instead to watch the raptly entranced Kitty stare at the screen, her large lovely blue eyes wide.
As 'Cats, the Musical' ended an hour or so later, Carmelita found herself wiping at her eyes. The movie had been strangely moving in its own way, and it seemed that everyone clearly felt that way. Well, except for Kitty, who simply nodded her head in satisfaction. "So…was I right? Or was I right?" she asked, grinning cleverly.
"Can the commentary, sport," Carmelita chided her, but fondly. "And put in the next movie."
Next, they had decided to watch Yuri's movie, 'The Three Musketeers'…I mean, she was gracious enough to host this whole thing, after all, wasn't she?
True to what the video rental woman had told them, the movie was wonderful. It had humor, romance, action enough to even satiate Carmelita, and was very exciting. "Good stuff," Kitty---their impromptu critic---remarked as she refilled her popcorn bowl before moving to select the next movie to be played.
Kitty looked at the remaining selections, then grinned. "Next on the ticket, ladies," Kitty told them, then slid the next mirror-surfaced disk into the player.
'Romancing the Stone' was her choice, and it was rather good. However, even better was how entranced Naomi seemed to be with her choice. Naomi, normally the cool, collected, and professional one, seemed to lose all those things when watching this film. She cried, she laughed, she gasped at all the right places, and sat silent at others, eating up every line.
Once the movie ended, Kitty grinned wolfishly. "So, Naomi…you, um, didn't seem to like that one, buddy. Something the matter?" she asked cleverly.
Naomi blinked, then chuckled at her teasing. "Hush, you little rogue!" she told her, shaking a finger her way. "I did tell you it was my favorite, did I not?"
The girls all laughed…even Kitty!
Kitty chose Maria's movie next, and then sipped at her Fanta, with a contented smile on her face. An hour later, six grinning ladies sat as the lights came back up. Maria grinned over at Svetlana. "Those crazy Americans," she laughed. "Though, for once they did portray us in a very nice light." She laughed then. "Oh, I love that fellow who yells, 'Everyone to get from street!'" she hooted softly.
Carmelita stole Kitty's thunder by beating her friend to the player, and slipped her movie into it. Svetlana sat agape, watching as the heroine, a tall shapely jaguar woman, beat the bad guys, won the day, and oh---by the way---didn't break a single claw along the way! As the movie finished nearly an hour and a half later, Svetlana burst out in ecstatic applause. "Oh, that was so good!" the little excited tigress proclaimed. "Thank you, Carmelita!"
"Eh," a pleased, yet embarrassed Carmelita replied. "It was my pleasure, really. Hey, I liked it too, Svetlana." She grinned, and Svetlana promptly giggled her appreciation.
"How's about we take a break, huh?" Kitty, much to everyone's surprise, suddenly announced. "You know, stretch our legs, use the bathroom, that whole thing?"
She got no argument from her friends, and the player was paused.
Once they filtered back in, Kitty stretched her svelte frame until she was on her tiptoes. "Well, we've only got one more movie, folks," Kitty pointed out. "Which is good, because it's nearly ten o'clock. We should try to get into bed before one in the morning."
"Oh, why?" Svetlana asked, settling back down on the floor in her spot.
"Hey," Kitty pointed out, "Just because all of you have the day off, some us have to actually work for a living."
"Kitty, please," Carmelita snorted. "Your meeting with the Chief isn't until ten o'clock, kid."
Kitty blushed. "Yeah, well," she groused. "Some of us need more sleep than others." They all knew Kitty was not what you'd remotely call a morning person.
"Do we need to bring anything, Kitty?" Maria then asked, looking over to the blond-haired vixen.
"Nope," Kitty told them with a smile. "Just the cute little you's…"
Maria chuckled. "I know this is 'punishment' of a sort," she pointed out, then shrugged, "but, I find myself pleased to be able to help."
"Da!" Svetlana threw out a moment later. "Myself as well."
"Hey, I know the Chief is happy with your arrangement," Kitty explained. "Woo, is he ever! I guess that's because he's under so much pressure from the Interpol brass, the poor guy."
"Sorry, Kitty," Carmelita huffed, her brown eyes flashing. "But, I don't feel all that sympathetic toward the Chief's plight, sport."
Kitty blushed, then shrugged. "I know, Carmelita. But, even so, I don't evny the guy. I mean, all that pressue…and on top of that, he doesn't want another what he calls a 'Carmelita Incident' so, he doesn't yell and berate us like he used to. With no way to vent, that only makes his stress level even worse! I swear, if things keep up like this, his job is going to kill him!"
Carmelita smiled, nodding. "Yeah, by the way, Kitty…now that a few months have gone by and still none of the rocket scientists you work with haven't figured out just who I am yet…why don't you just conveniently 'figure out' who I am, and report it to the Chief?"
"Er," Kitty began, then frowned. "Well, now…here's the thing: he's pretty much already figured out that I'm sort of dragging my feet on the Cooper case, you know. I mean, he hasn't come out and said anything yet, mind you, but I've never kept my feelings from him on that subject, you know."
"D'uh!" Carmelita replied, smiling. "Heck, sport…the whole Division knows that!"
Kitty grinned. "Well, that being said…if the Chief ever cottoned to the fact that Paris' newest Master Thief was my best friend…well, then…you know he'd pull me off the case, and give it to someone else…someone a bit more, er…shall we say, impartial."
That only made Carmelita's smile more cat-like. "You know, that might not be such a bad idea, Kitty," she mused, grinning at the thought of the fumbling Inspector Gaines trying to track her down.
Kitty sighed, knowing precisely what Carmelita was thinking. "Before you get all giddy, bud…you ask Sly, Carmelita. Ask him just how it feels to be on every front page of every newspaper in town." Kitty shook her fair-haired head. "Not a picnic, girl…trust me." She then turned and looked intently into her friend's determined brown eyes. "I know one Inspector Gaines is a laughable threat, Carmelita…but, factor in a hundred of 'im, and well…" She shrugged.
Yuri nodded. "Kitty is correct, cheri," she told Carmelita. "You do not want any more press than is absolutely necessary. Brr…I still have nightmares about what will happen when the members of the press figure out that I am pregnant. Mon Dieu! It is bad enough already, mon amis. There are rumors that I have a secret admirer, and---aiee!---the paparatizzi are everywhere with their infernal cameras!" Yuri then closed her eyes, and groaned. "Sometimes, cheris…sometimes, I dearly wish that I was just a simple Yuri Sing, not a fashion diva, not a celebrity…just a plain woman."
"Do not say that, Yuri!" Naomi exclaimed. "Think of all the good you have been able to do! Think---!"
Kitty cut Naomi off, grinning. "Hush, Naomi. She won't…it's gotta be those mood swings kickin' in is all. You know how pregnant ladies can get," Kitty explained with a smile. "Oof!" Kitty then exclaimed a moment later as a very accurately hurled toss pillow screamed in to take her in the head, knocking her back to sit down beside Naomi on the sectional. Kitty, her hair now missed by the pillow strike, blinked owlishly. "Whew! You got one heck of a pitching arm there, girl," she remarked, running her fingers through her mussed hair. "Maybe they should sign you up for the big leagues, sport!"
Naomi smiled knowingly. "She would not accept, Kitty. Take a look at the fireplace over there, ami." She pointed to the large mantel over the marble fireplace.
Kitty looked over at Yuri´s fireplace and whistled softly in surprise. There were, well, dozens of trophies---big and small---set upon the mantel. "Holey smokes!" Kitty gasped. "Tennis?"
Yuri nodded. "Well, cheri, my backhand has always been top notch," Yuri explained with a grin. "Come, my friend…we must watch our remaining movies, or we will never get to bed this evening…"
"Here we go," Kitty announced a moment later, sliding Svetlana's DVD into the player. "Sit back, relax…and enjoy the show!"
Over two hours later, Svetlana sat softly weeping as the movie winded to an end. "Oh…" the crying tigress wept. "That was so romantic. Oh, that poor couple."
"Shh, Svetlana," Maria soothed, stroking her hair.
"Oh, don't get me wrong," Svetlana hastened to add to her friend, wiping at her eyes. "I enjoyed the movie…very much."
"Yeah, I can tell," Kitty teased. "Why I---oof!" Damn! Carmelita strikes again. "What did I tell you about those elbows, lady?" she demanded as she rubbed her aching ribcage once more.
"Your mistake, sport," Carmelita proclaimed loftily. Kitty glared.
"Why, would you look at the time!" Yuri remarked, looking at the stately grandmother clock against the nearby wall. All rigth girls time to for all of us to retire for the evening, no? It´s after midnight already." Yuri stood. "Leave this as it is, cheris. Now…off to bed…march!" Yuri pointed imperiously toward the stairs leading upstairs.
As the girls moved to march up to their beds, Yuri and Naomi hesitated at the door, then as Kitty passed, they drew her back behind the concealment of the big wooden door. "Kitty, cheri…what is your schedule like tomorrow? I---oh, and my Naomi, of course!---"
"Non!" Naomi opined steadfastly. "Do not include me in your machinations, Madame. You know my feelings on the subject." She folded her arms defiantly across her chest.
"Fine," a slightly exasperated Yuri sighed, then continued. "I find I am in need of---shall we say?---your special skills, nes pas?"
"My skills? What sort of---oh! Don't mind me, go on," Kitty asked, waving at her to continue.
Yuri smiled and nodded at the door where Svetlana and Maria just had walked out. "As if you had to ask, you rascal! Your matchmaking help, of course," Yuri replied with a smile.
Kitty´s grin gave her all the answer she needed.
"All right, Yuri," Kitty said wanting to hear everything. "Let's hear it. Spill!"