Chương 77: Chaptet 77 [Intimidation maybe?]

Phil was in the kitchen, the kettle already going. Luka was in the centre of the cleared space, a dome curving up around him from the floor to just above his head. He held it a few seconds, let it drop, waited a few seconds then cast it again. Sam was on one of the couches pushed against the wall checking his UI; he wanted to see what it had on his progress with the knives. Parmo was laid on the other with his arm over his eyes. From down the hall, Leo's shower was still running.

A moment later, a knock came at the door. Sam closed his UI and got up. He opened the door and Rika was already past him, wings up, head up the stairs. He stepped aside on instinct with a smirk.

"Make yourselves at home I guess," he said. Shai followed, shaking her head once at where Rika had been a second earlier.

"Sorry about her," she said. Torren came in behind her, chuckling at Rika's entrance.

"She's a ball of energy. Hasn't stopped telling us her theories on the movie since we left the house."

"Well, I think she's going to be disappointed," said Sam.

"Everyone's knackered." Up the stairs, Rika burst into the front room. Sam and Luka turned to look at her.

"Right," Rika said, to the room in general.

"Two Towers. Let's do this!"

"Tomorrow," Parmo said, without moving.

"What? Why tomorrow?"

"Because it's four hours long and I'm already falling asleep." He didn't take his arm from his eyes.

"You want to be properly awake for it. We all do. We can do something else today." Rika opened her mouth. Looked around the room. Phil had appeared in the kitchen doorway with a mug. Luka had let the dome drop and was flexing his hand slowly. Sam had gone back to the couch and was making no effort to look helpful. She kept going anyway.

"We could start it now and finish it tomorrow."

"We're not splitting it across two days, Rika. Heresy, am I right Sam?"

"Yup. The inquisition will hear about this."

"I have no idea what you two are talking about. Why can't we watch it?"

"Because we're not." The bathroom door opened. Leo came out still pulling a t-shirt down, towel over his shoulder, hair damp. He heard Parmo talking and registered the room a second later. The trio were here. Shai was looking in his direction. He finished pulling the shirt down. She gave him a small smile and looked back toward the couch where Parmo and Rika were still going. He let out a breath. Well, she seems good. Thank god for that.

He draped the towel over his shoulder and leaned against the wall, watching the two idiots continue their argument. Sam glanced at him from the couch, raised his eyebrows, then went back to looking at his UI.

"Fine," Rika said, dropping onto the arm of the couch near Parmo's feet.

"Fine. Tomorrow. But we're watching it properly and I'm not waiting any longer than that."

"Okay fine. Tomorrow," Parmo agreed.

"So what are we doing today?"

"Nothing. I'm going to lie here and have a well deserved nap." If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. Rika looked at him for a moment. Then around the room. Then back at him.

"I want to see the other DVDs. Phil said there were lots to choose from."

"Ask Phil."

"Phil's busy, you're not."

"Sam then. He's just sitting there."

"Sam's busy," said Sam.

"Luka—""Get up," Rika said.

"You're showing me where the shop is."

"Pick someone else."

"Brandon." Parmo opened his mouth. Felt a hand close around his wrist. Then he was upright, arm no longer over his eyes, standing in the middle of the room blinking. He looked down at Rika, then at his own feet, trying to work out what had just happened.

"Did you just..." She was already heading for the door. He looked back at the others. Luka was grinning. Phil had retreated to the kitchen. Sam laughed and looked back at his UI. Parmo looked at where he'd been lying two seconds ago, shook his head and walked to the stairs.

"Fine," he said.

"Whatever." He followed her out. The door closed. Phil came back through from the kitchen with two mugs and handed one to Shai without being asked. Luka walked over and sat in the space Parmo just left. Torren watched the door for a moment with a quiet smile.

"She's stronger than she looks," Leo said.

"She's beast-kin. We're built differently," Shai said, and took a sip of tea.

"Good to know."

The charity shop had the smell of old things donated by people who'd run out of space for them. Parmo had been in here twice before. He looked over at the shelves full of DVDs. They were lucky streaming and technology had left DVDs behind, it meant there was loads to choose from. Rika was already pulling things off the rack before he'd fully got through the door. She held up the first one. A bus on the cover, flames, the title across the bottom.

"Speed," Parmo said.

"A bomb on a bus. If it drops below a certain speed it explodes, killing everyone on board. One man has to stop it." Rika stared at the cover.

"That's it? That's the whole problem?"

"Yeah, it sounds weird but it's pretty good." She put it in the crook of her arm. The next one she held up had a castle on the cover, people in heavy clothing arranged in front of it.

"I think this one's a show about nobles," Parmo said.

"Politics, betrayal, people stabbing each other in the back while wearing expensive clothes."

"Nope." Rika put it back without looking at it again.

"I live on the border for a reason. Why would I want to watch that." She kept moving. A cooking show went back the second he explained it. Something about competitive baking that he couldn't fully justify to himself let alone to her. He grabbed it anyway, Torren would love it. Then she stopped. She was holding a DVD with people on the cover in bright spandex, arms crossed, chins up, names printed underneath in bold. Wolf. Saracen. Panther. Hunter. She looked at the cover. Then at Parmo.

"What are they wearing."

"It was a different time."

"What is this." Parmo took a breath.

"It's a show where members of the public competed in physical challenges against professional athletes. The athletes played characters and had weird names, the crowd cheered for them. It was very popular." Rika looked at the cover again. At Wolf specifically, who was doing nothing to make the spandex situation better.

"Why are they standing like that."

"No idea. Intimidation maybe?"

"In those clothes?"

"Yeah, it's pretty weird when you think about it. It was kind of the norm for stuff like this back then." She turned it over, looked at the back, turned it back to the front.

"I want to watch this," she said.

"I thought you might." It went into the crook of her arm with Speed. She pulled out the next one. Two people on the cover, a beach behind them, soft colours, a woman laughing at something the man beside her had said. 50 First Dates across the top.

"50 First Dates. It's a romantic comedy, the woman forgets the man when she goes to sleep so they keep having their first date. Not sure if you'd like it."

"Why not?" Rika said.

"I like romance." Parmo looked at her.

"You look surprised."

"A little."

"Why?" She looked at him with genuine curiosity.

"Why do you think I'm so invested in Shai and—" She stopped. Her hand went to her mouth. Parmo looked at her.

"What do you mean?" he said.

"Nothing. I didn't say anything."

"Did Shai say something to you?"

"No. Of course not." Rika turned back to the shelf, suddenly very interested in the DVDs.

"I've just seen the way he looks at her. That's all." Parmo was quiet for a moment.

"Yeah," he said.

"He's pretty obvious about it." Rika looked at him. He looked at her. Her hand landed on the next DVD along. She pulled it out and held it up. Two people on the cover, muted colours. She couldn't read the title.

"What does this one say?" Parmo looked at it and went still.

"Nah, not that one, put it back," he said.

"Why, what is it?"

"You wouldn't like it. It's boring."

"What kind of film is it?"

"A drama."

"About what?"

"People." Rika looked at the cover, then at him.

"People doing what?"

"Just." He reached for it.

"Put it back." She held it slightly away from him.

"What does it say, Brandon." Parmo looked at the cover then sighed.

"Fifty Shades of Grey," he said. Rika repeated it back to him, completely neutral.

"What's grey got to do with anything?" Parmo opened his mouth. Through the shop window, on the pavement outside, Davan and Sara walked past. Close together. Not touching, but the kind of not touching that meant they wanted to be. Parmo's hand shot out and put Fifty Shades back on the shelf.

"Come on," he said.

"What? You haven't explained—""I just saw Davan and Sara sneaking past."

"Ooooh, yeah let's go. I wonder where they are heading?" They left the charity shop, sweat trickling down Parmo's back. Next time, one of the others can come along. I can't keep getting stuck having to explain this sort of thing to her.