It was supposed to be just one guy pissing in an alley, but he had buddies who came to look for him. Zdinarsk managed to handle them with some bruises and a hurting cheek. Spitting out taste of blood she whistled while making sure no-one else was coming. The nearby bar meant easy drunkards but also eyewitnesses. It could be quite profitable with a risk. At the pedestrian street nobody even glanced at their direction however and if they did, they quickly looked away. At this time of night most people were intoxicated and not really caring what shady things happen in dark places. You never know though.

Hearing Andíla coming out of hiding, the teenager gestured at the unconscious men: "Come on, check their pockets, hurry."

Andíla went through them, looking for anything valuable. Emptying their wallets, taking cards and cash as also jewelry, she pocketed everything with quick fingers. Shutting her backpack and putting it on, the little sister took Zdinarsk's hand: "Ready."
The older sister nodded and they left. Avoiding crowds and putting as much distance as possible to the crime scene she led them into metro station. There they went into public restrooms and occupied one of the stalls. "Okay, what we got?"
Andíla pulled out the cash with a smile: "Almost sixty bucks!" Excited Zdinarsk patted the girl's head with a smile: "Nice! Good job." They could eat at a diner tonight. That's worth of getting punched.
Díla's grin faltered while watching Zdinarsk's beaten face. "Are you okay? Does it hurt Zeezee?"
"Hm? Oh, yeah, I'm okay," she grinned despite of the pain. Her cheek hurt, it would properly swell and get purple but worrying wasn't Andíla's job. "What do you wanna eat tonigh'? Anything you want."
"Chicken nuggies!"
"Again? We ate that last time."
"I like nuggies..."
Giving up, Zeezee nodded: "I like them too." It was at least cheap.

The older sister took the money and put the stack into her pocket. "Let's wash up before going."
Cleaning her face with cold water Zdinarsk grimaced. She had a shallow cut, as one of the damn assholes had a ring on when punching. Hopefully the jewelry would be worth something. Would be nice to have couple of nights at motel, with a shower and all. It was getting cold at the streets and they had to leave their previous place because of other homeless people. It was just two of them and Díla wasn't big enough to fight, so the big sister avoided conflicts with big and dangerous groups.
...That robbery could had gone horribly wrong. She had been so scared when those two came out of nowhere.
Zdinarsk tried not to think about it. She and Andíla were safe and now they would get food. Everything was fine.

When she stepped towards the door, Díla tugged her hand. "What?" Her sister looked with such seriousness, that Zeezee thought something was wrong.
"Do you need to pee?"
Laughing at the question before she could stop herself, the older sister answered: "No, do you?" Andíla shook her head but with hesitance.
"Alright... Though, maybe I should go, just in case?" To that, she got a nod and this time Zdinarsk managed not to giggle: "Let's see who can go fastest? Okay, ready, set... Go!"

Although mugging people was dangerous, she didn't see any other choice. No trustworthy would hire a teen without a guardian's permission and she couldn't leave Andíla alone to work. Just one more year and she would be adult. Then she could properly take care of them. They wouldn't get separated like the social workers had planned.

Z-Dog looked at the clone, that was like a na'vi version of young Andíla. Same expressions and same red hair. It was hard not to get overwhelmed by the nostalgia. To run and take the child into her arms, to comfort. She had to keep reminding herself that this was not her sister. It was just a clone who looked like Díla. It wasn't even a human. The recom kept her distance to the situation by standing at the background and letting others to handle it. Even if it did make her guilty how this whole thing was caused by Andíla.

Quaritch approached Spider and the clone, taking sip from his mask while figuring out the situation. She wasn't dangerous, just scared. This shouldn't be difficult to resolve. He told everyone except Lyle and Z-Dog to leave. Mansk lingered a bit before going with the others.
"What's going on," Spider spoke with such distrust that stung. Miles knew it would mean trouble if his son would get mixed up into this. Not to mention how their relationship was still fragile, son not fully trusting his father and the father unsure how to handle his son. "Nothing bad is going on," he tried to assure the boy, glancing at the clone with a smile. She flinched behind Spider. "She's gonna be sent to the Omatikaya clan and Norm," he shrugged: "Does that sound so awful?"
The young man didn't buy it and snapped: "Why doesn't she have kuru then? What did you do to her?! And where is her sister?"
Z-Dog tensed up.
"Sister?" Quaritch frowned, seemed thoughtful and then crossed his arms over his chest. "She doesn't have one. The kid's all alone. Which is why we are taking her to the clan, to her own kind. That's nice, isn't it? Now go. We'll talk about this later."

"Spider?" the girl said, afraid of being left alone with the adults. He looked over his shoulder at her, and felt it wouldn't be right thing to do: "No, sir. I'll stay with her."
Sighing, ears turning backwards, Quaritch controlled his temperament. Damn this kid was stubborn.

Wonder from who he got that from...

Not wanting to cause fight between the father and the son, Z-Dog finally stepped forward. Glancing at her leader, getting approval nod, she approached the kids. She looked from suspicious Spider to the mask holding clone, then at the fruits. "How about we all go together and maybe eat something good?" The boy didn't let down his guard but the girl, maybe sensing the tension, looked at the blue woman. Seeing Z-Dog's cool haircut and tattoos, she asked: "We gonna eat orna?"
Spider shortly laughed, correcting her: "It's pxorna'."

The odd group walked backed in awkward silence. Quaritch and Spider sulking, Z-Dog being conflicted by the clone, the girl being scared and Lyle? Lyle just wanted everyone to chill. If it weren't for the colonel he would had swapped places with any other recom. He kept his mouth shut though, as any good soldier. He didn't wanna make the situation more miserable.

At the observation room there was medical people. They were different ones from the duo who failed to look after the clone. Which was good because the colonel was very disappointed in them. He would talk with them later.
The clone was cooperative, doing as asked and sat quiet on the bed. She kept an eye on everything that was happening around. Her tail moved restlessly, smacking something or someone now and then. The girl would apologize every time and held her tail, before it would escape her grasp to move around again. She tried to keep calm and still so this would be over sooner. Even though it was almost painful how the clip on one of her fingers kept squeezing.
"Now give me your hand, good. We're gonna take a blood sample, to check your sugar levels. You're gonna feel a little prick."
"Okay," the child mumbled and watched how the person in a hazmat suit took her hand and put a device over her index finger.

The clone screamed when the needle pierced her skin. Everyone startled from her strong reaction. She kicked the nurse away, sending them to the floor. Despite being a child, the clone with na'vi DNA was as tall as adult human. Holding her hand against her chest she laid on the bed in obvious agony. Crying and screaming, body shaking and curling into a ball. Just the word hurt didn't describe the pain she was experiencing. It was everything that she could feel, prickling pain, almost making her blind with whiteness and there was no escaping it.

Lyle with Z-Dog hurried to help the medic staff restraining the clone. Quaritch held back his son as Spider wanted to help the girl. Her screams were upsetting. Even more so as the young man thought his father had been doing something horrible again. Miles had said they wouldn't have any secrets anymore and RDA wanted peace, but seeing they had a mutilated na'vi child, father not telling him anything, Spider was angry.
"Let me go!"
"Easy, she's okay," Quaritch tried to calm the boy and hold him without hurting accidentally.
"Like the hell she is!"

"Back off!"

Z-Dog's snarl sent everyone except the girl into a pause.

The recom woman held the child protectively against her crouching form. She glared at anyone standing too close. Eyes blazing and tail whipping she made sure nobody was approaching the kid before she looked down at her. The clone was almost hyperventilating, crying and bawling against Zdinarsk. She couldn't handle it, hearing the clone's cries and pain, she just couldn't handle it. "I know it hurts," she mutters and rocks the kid in her arms: "I know, it soon goes away, I got you." At least the clone stops from breathing so fast, and screaming.
"It hurts," the girls whimpers in broken voice.
"I know it does," Z-Dog answers calmly. The big sister persona slipping on like familiar cloth. "It's gonna pass, just let it go. I got you."
"I want my sister," the girl cries, holding her hand against her chest and wanting the pain go away: "I want Zeezee!"

Ears against her head, Zdinarsk feels deep pain and sorrow for hearing all that. Nobody else called her Zeezee, except Andíla and sometimes Mansk.

"I'm here Díla," she answers back. "I'm here, I got you."

The clone was too distracted to wonder why the blue woman called her by that name, or was it some other odd word that Spider used.