A/N: Congratulations to those who saw the references in the last chapter. Here's the second chapter of Hot Chocolate. See if you can find any more references in this chapter! :)

And by the way, some of you might just recognize somebody familiar here...

Thanks to Firehound427, Mildirk, Mord44, WolfOnFyre, side-fish, and Elyahu for reviewing.

Chapter 2: Going Down

Jewel flew through the evening sky, completely in bliss. She thought she heard somebody calling her name while she was on the road, but when she looked behind, there was no one. She had shrugged and continued flying low to the ground. She was approaching the most crowded area in the district.

Pelé Restaurant was a little roadside café in the most crowded district of Rio. It was a quaint little establishment that served simple, yet delicious Brazilian cuisine. Although largely unknown to tourists, it was very popular with many locals.

It was 7.36p.m., and the usual dinner crowd was starting to fill up the restaurant. A healthy buzz surrounded the people as they discussed the day's work, the weather, and most of all, Carnival. They slapped each other on their backs, laughing and joking heartily.

Lexus Quirk felt pleased with himself that he managed to find the café. He was a Californian, on holiday to escape his hectic workload. He didn't know where to go, but the city of Rio seemed to stretch its arms out to him. He had immediately signed up for the trip, much to the disapproval of his colleagues.

"I don't think you'll like Rio, Lexus." That was what they had said.

Well, so far it's been quite nice, he thought. The locals were very friendly, and very passionate about their country. People Lexus didn't even know would chat up a storm with him, and most would launch into their own little stories about their Cidade Maravilhosa.

He sighed, leaning back in his chair in sweet repose. He had chosen well; his table was next to the road, away from the clutter and noise within the restaurant itself. The lone candle on the table did its best to illuminate the darkening sky, producing a calming effect.

Watching the multitude of people walking the streets, he wondered why his life couldn't have been more like that. Relaxed, calming. His job and life in California was nowhere near this. He decided to push those thoughts away and focus on his holiday. He reached for a bun on the table, but before he could take it, he winced in pain.

His hand had been pierced by a thumbtack a two years ago, and although it was healing, it still hurt, serving as a reminder of what happened then.

Stupid animals.

Amazingly, he had been led on a wild goose chase by a cat, and a day later, he'd been bowled over by a dog, which was how the thumbtack had pierced his hand. He already hated animals to begin with, and with those two events, his loathing towards them grew even more.

Then, there was what happened a year ago...

"Sir? Your meal is ready." A waiter—a slim, well-trimmed young man—said, gracefully bowing and placing the plate of chicken on the table.

"Ah, thank you very much." He replied. A beep emanated from his phone, and he reached into his shirt pocket to pull it out. But when he did, a small silver necklace dropped out along with it and landed on the table with a soft thud. He picked it off the table, examining it.

He chuckled, suddenly remembering where it came from. It was a charm necklace, said to bring good luck to the holder. He'd bought it off an old peddler who claimed to 'know these things'. He decided to humour her, and bought it, since it wasn't terribly expensive. It was a silver chain, connected to a small empty metal compartment shaped like an ovoid.

He scrutinized it a little bit more, recalling her instructions. She said that in order for the good luck to happen, he needed to place something personal and valuable inside. He reached into his pockets, looking for anything that would fit into the compartment. He couldn't find anything other than the coins in his purse. Then, his hands brushed across the keys next to his wallet.

My keys? He thought about it. Technically, they were valuable because they were the ticket to his car and house back in California. Shrugging, he unhooked his car key from the key ring and dropped it into the compartment, shaking it a little, as if expecting something to happen. Nothing did.

"Maybe it takes time," he mused to himself. He hung it around his neck and picked up his fork and knife. But before he could take a single bite, he heard chatter from outside. There were excited voices talking. He craned his neck to see, but the crowd was blocking his view. He tried ignoring it by beginning his meal, but curiosity eventually got the better of him, and he stood up.

It was the biggest mistake of his holiday.

Before he knew what was happening, something blue crashed into his face with a startled squawk. He yelled, falling to the floor and thrashing his arms wildly. He could feel feathers rubbing against his skin, which gave him a pretty good idea what had just collided into him.

"What in the world?" he grunted.

Twisting his body so he was now on his back, he reached blindly in front of him and grabbed the bird forcefully, pulling it off his face. He was surprised to see a beautiful blue macaw in his hands. He remembered vaguely someone telling him about this particular species of bird. It was supposed to be an endangered species or something like that.

Still, he had little to no care for it as it struggled in his hands. Then, it clamped its beak down on his finger. He screamed in pain, releasing his grip on it. It flapped wildly, seemingly caught on something. Lexus could feel it too. Something was tugging at his neck.

Looking down slightly, he could see that his necklace had caught on its foot, preventing it from escaping. It flapped harder, and with a snap, a small part of the necklace broke, and the blue macaw flew free, with the necklace still caught on its leg.

Lexus could only watch in horror as the bird flew further and further, with his car flying away with it. He scrambled to his feet and took a swipe at the chain, but he missed it ever so slightly.

"Not again!" he cursed under his breath. "Why does this always happen to me?"

Burning with anger, he snatched up the dinner knife off the table and ran in hot pursuit after the blue macaw.

I'm not letting it get away.

Evening was not an easy time for Rafael. Actually, no time was ever easy for Rafael. Not when he had 17 hyperactive children to take care of. He was panting, trying his best to prevent his children from killing themselves. It sounded like an overstatement, but he knew better. When left alone, they could probably tear even metal apart. He had yet to test that theory though.

"Sofia! Stop chasing your brother! Carlos, get down from—" he couldn't finish before Carlos jumped straight into his eye.

"Ow! What did I tell you about the eye!"

"Rafael!" He turned as Blu burst into the clearing, looking totally spent. He was trembling, as if he'd just gone through a tornado.

"Blu! My good amigo!" Rafael greeted. With 6 children dangling from his head, he walked over to Blu and patted him on the back. "What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be at Linda's?"

"It's Jewel." His eyes looked distant, clouded with worry. As a close friend, Rafael knew something was definitely wrong.

"What happened?"

Breathing heavily, Blu explained the situation. Rafael listened as intently as he could with his children jumping around his body.

"Okay, I understand. But Blu, I can't just leave my children alone here."

"Well, can't I just—"

"That's a great idea! You can take care of them while I'll go look for Jewel."

"Wait, what?"

"Don't worry, you'll be fine. I'll meet up with Nico and Pedro, and we'll look for Jewel together."

"Then, that means—"

"Alright kids, uncle Blu will be taking care of you for now. Listen to him, alright?"

"Wait a minute," Blu said, backing away slightly. "Rafael!"

"Don't worry Blu, I'll be back soon! Just stay here and make sure they don't kill each other."

"Them? What about me? Rafael!" but Rafael was already gone.

Blu gulped nervously, a cold sweat running down his head. He slowly turned to face 17 curious, grinning faces.

"Blu!" they chirped, swarming over him.

"AHHH!"

Meanwhile, back at the bookshop, Linda paced around nervously, waiting for Jewel. She stopped for a moment, staring out the window towards the forest.

Did I just hear Blu?

She shook her head.

I'm probably just imagining things. She went back to pacing around the room.

Tulio burst into the treatment room loudly, knocking over some old newspapers in the process.

"Whoops." He reprimanded himself for being so careless. He forgot that there were still some injured birds resting in the adjacent room. Thankfully, nothing appeared to have been disturbed.

He strode steadily but quietly through the deserted room, wondering why there wasn't anybody around. He decided that they probably went out for a quick bite; it was dinner time, after all.

Reaching the medicine cabinet, he unlocked it with the key in his pocket and slowly pulled it open. Rows and rows of bottles lined the shelves, some filled with liquid, others filled with pills. He ignored them and went straight to the bottom shelf. A stack of papers surrounded several boxes of files. He pulled out the stack of papers, flipping through them quickly.

A loud clang reverberated across the room. He wheeled, seeing nothing but the empty expanse of space. He shook his head. It's nothing, he thought.

He suddenly spotted what he was looking for. He reached out and grabbed the bottle of pills, which was clearly labelled. Still, he examined it thoroughly, just to make sure it was the right one.

Satisfied, he tucked it into his coat pocket and left the treatment room, locking the door behind him. He never noticed the other human shadow in the room.

Jewel felt amazing. The more she flew, the more her body seemed to react positively. Her unexpected encounter had sent her heart racing the fastest she'd ever felt. She'd only felt that way once before, when…

…she paused mid-flight.

When I was falling with Blu.

A little part of her head twisted itself inside her, sending a small sharp sensation through her mind. She shook it off.

A loud drum beat caught her attention, sending a shiver of excitement up her spine. The music seemed to call out to her, calling out to her Brazilian blood. Like in a trance, she flew towards the source of music: The Branch.

She landed in the middle of a cheering, dancing crowd of birds. She seemed to fit in perfectly with them. Before she knew it, she was moving her body to the rhythm. The crowd seemed to move as one, and she was a part of it. With every beat, she felt her mind lifting off.

Everybody moved collectively as one. Their heads bobbed, their tails shook. They laughed, they cheered. They were having the time of their lives.

Jewel raised her wings, shifted her feet, and cheered with the dancing crowd. Everything was perfect.

Then, it all came crashing down.

It started as a muted warm sensation, but it slowly evolved to something more. Something seemed to manifest inside her head, giving her a massive headache. She stumbled across the floor of bodies. The throbbing in her head was growing in intensity now with the pounding of the music, and she tried to move away from the noise. But she couldn't get through the mass of birds in her way.

What's happening…?

She tried to call out for them to move, but her voice was drowned out by the volume of the samba music.

"Blu…" suddenly, she remembered. Everything started coming back to her: the drinking, the 'high' feeling she felt…everything was tumbling messily around her mind.

With a flare of determination, she pushed blindly through the crowd, who did not notice her plight. A multitude of birds passed her eye as she floundered about, looking for a way out. Suddenly, a rush of cool air greeted her face, and she was outside.

The discomfort was almost unbearable now. The world was spinning, and Jewel struggled to find her bearings.

I need to get back…to Tulio…to Blu…

She opened her wings and launched herself off the ground. The moment that happened, the pain in her mind intensified. She cried out, spiralling towards the ground, which she could not see. There was an impact, cracking of wood, and a horrible stinging sensation that shot through her wing.

She had landed onto a stack of broken wooden crates.

Breathing heavily, she looked at her right wing. It was bloody, with splinters sticking out in several places. She whimpered, realizing she was unable to move at all. Her injury, combined with her spinning head, didn't give her any hope of leaving the dark alley.

All alone, Jewel lay bleeding in the darkness.

Lexus stormed through the streets, his shirt completely drenched with his sweat. His was sweaty, sticky, and angry. Needless to say, it wasn't a good day for him.

When I find that bird, I'm going to break its neck, he seethed.

The knife was still clutched in his hands, and he felt it slipping slightly due to his sweaty palms. He stopped walking for a moment to wipe the knife on his pants. On the ground, he could see his reflection in a puddle of water. His dark brown eyes were tired, a reflection of his life.

A low rumbling caught his attention, and he looked up, as a man riding a motorcycle drove past him in the opposite direction. He was worriedly looking around for something, but Lexus didn't know what. Something about the helmetless man caught Lexus' eye.

That man…isn't he Tulio Monteiro? That…ornithologist guy.

Lexus remembered reading an article about him the day before. He was on the front page of the newspapers, although Lexus didn't have time to read the article in detail. He wondered why such a prominent figure was scouring the streets. Perhaps he was looking for something. He shrugged, gripping the knife in his hand tighter.

Then something caught his eye.

He squatted down next to the puddle. There was a blue feather on the ground, and it was distinctly familiar. He picked it up, twirling it around.

Yes, it definitely belongs to that bird.

He stood up, tucking the feather into his shirt pocket. He was close. He could feel it.

Blu hardly flinched now. Well, he couldn't move most of his body as the kids decided that he was a perfect trampoline for them to jump on. His mind wandered off to Jewel. He couldn't stop worrying about her. Rafael had assured him that he would find Jewel quickly, but somehow, in Blu's gut, he could feel something was wrong. Maybe it was the constant jumping that was rearranging his insides.

He gulped, trying to shake it off, but he couldn't. The feeling was strong, strong enough that he knew he couldn't stay and just wait. He turned to the children, who were staring at him with curious looks on their faces. They wondered why he wasn't freaking out like all the other birds who played with them. It was probably because of the head trauma.

He took a deep breath, hoping he wasn't going to regret this.

"Kids, do you want to go into town?"

"Yes!" they cheered, jumping up and down jubilantly…on him.

"Well, if you want to go, you'll have to get off me first," he wheezed. They climbed off him, and he slowly stood up. The moment he did so, he fell straight back down again face-first into the dirt.

"Why aren't we going yet?" They whined.

"Wait, just…give me…a moment…body…painful…"

"No!" one of them yelled. He hopped over and ripped out a healthy portion of Blu's feathers.

"Alright! We're going!" He shot up immediately and flew towards the centre of the city, with all 17 of them flying close. He gulped, knowing that if Rafael or Eva ever found about this, they'd probably kill him.

It was 8.29 p.m., and the sun had long since set. The lights had come on all around town, but they were not strong enough to light the sky up like the sun could. Blu knew he was running out of time. The longer he waited, the more chance there would be of Jewel getting into trouble. She could be captured again, or worse.

He shuddered, trying not to think about that particular thought.

"Uncle Blu, what are we looking for?" One of the kids, Sofia, asked him.

"Jewel. We're looking for Jewel," he said hollowly.

"Where is she?"

If I knew, kid, I'd already be there, Blu thought sadly.

"Maybe she's at The Branch?" one of them offered.

"Yeah! Everybody goes to The Branch!" another one piped up. It was hard to tell who was talking with 17 identical faces around you.

"Look, kids, I know your father likes to go to the club, but it doesn't mean that she'll be—" he stalled midsentence.

The Branch. We danced together there. It was lively. It was exciting.

"Blu?" they asked.

"Come on. We're going to The Branch."

Jewel was drifting in and out of consciousness. Her wing had gone numb; she didn't know whether that was a good or bad thing. She kept murmuring words she did not understand to herself, in an effort to stop the throbbing.

Why? Why is my head hurting so much?

She started to see things. She saw a dark figure walking past the alley. The silhouette stopped, backtracking. She couldn't see the person clearly, but something in her gut started churning.

He looked familiar, somehow. But in her state of mind, she couldn't place it. She only knew that it wasn't good when the figure approached her calmly, looking into her eyes.

Without a word, the figure put his hands on her and lifted her off the stony floor, with the necklace still caught on her leg. She didn't even have the energy to struggle or resist. The last thing she saw was a glimmering metal object in the figure's right hand.

Then she passed out.

A/N: The next chapter will be the last. If you have the time to review, please do. I'd appreciate the comments, advice, and criticisms that you may have, because it will benefit me as a writer, which will let me write more better quality stories for people to read. It's a win-win for everybody, right?