Fantasy A Little Night Music by TMaskedWriter

[Ramesh_Rocky]

Susan looked up and smiled. Colleen's hand didn't move away. The smile gave way to a less-painful realization than her last one.

"Thank you, Colleen. Damn, I'm sorry, I interrupted you with all that. You were telling me why the uniform."

"Oh, aye. Well, yeah, I've been a weekend guest a couple times now. It's nay like a relationship, more like she calls an' says she needs ta spend time wit' 'someone real,' an' it's like a romantic weekend getaway. Er, wit' someone who can make ye think ye're makin' love on the deck o' a pirate ship, anyway."

"Cloud in space for me."

"Hmm?" Colleen asked.

"Oh, nothing. So, she calls when she needs time with someone who doesn't either live in a castle or have an agenda. I can see that."

Susan recalled that the first time Helen ever called her, she'd said that she needed to talk to someone who 'completely despises' her. With what Colleen was telling her factored into things, she could see now that what Helen might really have been trying to say was "I need to talk to someone who doesn't care too much about my feelings.

"Aye. An' nae 'Those dumbass Hollywood Pretty Boys or Girls of the Minute; who can't find San Finzione on a map, while standing in a castle with a gift shop that SELLS maps of San Finzione!'"

Her impression of Helen had been better than Susan's. It gave Susan a chuckle. Colleen took a deep breath before continuing. One that Susan matched.

"Getting' off track agin, sorry. So, yeah, she mentions ya sometimes, but the stories she tells o' Troy an' Julie Equals..." Colleen leaned in closer to whisper into Susan's ear. The heaviness of it against Susan's skin letting her know that the secret she was about to reveal was a dirty one.

"The ones she tells in bed about 'em. I were in Seattle fer business, an' before I left San Finzione, The Countess gave me Troy's number. Said ta ring 'im up if I needed some fun. Then after all that's happened..."

Susan slid her arm around Colleen's waist the way Colleen had thought she was going to before. She leaned in to return the whisper.

"And with all the stress, you do need some fun, Colleen, don't you?"

"Aye," she breathed in response. "I'd packed me ol' uniform cause I thought it might be a giggle if I ended up calling. When this came up, I reckoned 'What th' hell? Maybe they'll be up fer it, an' I could use the giggle now too.' So I put it on."

"And you know what the four of us can do, so you were hoping for some of THAT kind of fun too, weren't you, Colleen?"

"Oh, aye," Colleen breathed as Susan began kissing her neck. "The Cou- er, Helena, tol' me I had to have a go on tha' cock."

"Well, Julie's using it right now; kind of why I took this little stroll. This was supposed to be a 'just us' weekend for them, figured they should at least get to play a little game. You know, like the kind you and Helen play. Maybe we should sit somewhere more comfortable and I'll tell you about it."

Colleen inhaled sharply and eyed one of the couches.

"Oh, no, no, no," Susan shook her head after picking up Colleen's couch idea. "You've been in one already, but I want to go see what a bed suitable for a Countess is like."

Colleen nodded and led Susan by the hand into the bedroom.

[Ramesh_Rocky]

A Little Night Music Ch. 10

"Then I remembered I'd been here in other dreams.
But usually, there was a water polo game.
And a girl who could talk with her eyes.
And she'd say 'Can you see what I'm saying?'
Then the horns kicked in.
And my shoes began to squeak."
-2NU, "Ponderous"

Lady Maria Louisa Francesca de San Finzione paced around her Great-Grandmama's study. Once Capitan Ortega had brought her and Stavro back to the castle, it was decided that it was the most secure place, since the dungeons were now off limits to all by order of La Contessa.

Ortega and the Ultimados were unaware of the secret passages in the study leading to La Contessa's bedroom, Jeanne's quarters, and an ancient escape tunnel, and Maria was seriously considering using the tunnel now.

"Why can I not be with her," Maria complained to the air. "I am doing nothing in here!"

Stavro stood from the couch and wrapped his arms around her.

"You are doing something, Maria," he told her. "You are being safe. Everyone needs you to be safe now."

She looked up at him with eyes ready to flood over at any moment.

"'Because Great-Grandmama might die.' That is the thing you and everyone are avoiding saying."

"Yes, we all avoid to say it because none of us want it to happen. La Contessa, she is a realist. She would want you to be safe too. And to be ready for the worst. You should play that disc."

Stavro jerked his head toward a stack of twenty Blu-Ray discs on the table. The one on top had a sticky note attached to it that read "Play this one first. (It's short.)"

Maria stomped her foot.

"No! I know what they are. They are her advice about being Contessa. Important wisdom that I may need one day, but this is not that day! She can tell me herself when she comes home!"

Stavro patted her head as she pressed it into his bicep.

"Maria, Emay Cardia, I am sorry that you must to face so many hard truths in one day, but you have been Contessa Maria de San Finzione since your Great-Grandmama fell unconscious." Maria looked up at him in surprise; no one having said those words directly to her yet.

From his tone, Maria had expected to receive a look of disappointment back, but instead saw the look of a man who completely believed in her. He continued.

"I hope that you will not need to be for long. And when she returns to us, I think the knowledge that her Great-Granddaughter was up to the task, will raise her spirits and help speed her recovery. I cannot make you do this, we both know what will happen if I try; and the only person who would be able to wake you is in surgery right now, so you must do this, Maria."

She nodded and loaded the top disc into the player. Stavro slumped back down on the couch. Maria saw sadness in his face and snuggled up next to him.

"Now something is bothering you." Maria said, taking the remote and turning on the giant TV.

Stavro thought while the TV was powering up before saying it.

"If you become Contessa and you need to marry a king or someone of your station, I will understand."

Maria laughed at that and gave Stavro a tiny peck on his nose.

"YOU are my king, foolish one."

She started the disc.

Contessa Helena de San Finzione's face filled the screen. Maria looked over at the computer on her desk and realized that was where this was filmed.

"Hello, Maria," Helena said with a soft smile, speaking Italian; the language spoken most around the castle and the one in which she and Maria usually conversed. "If you're watching this , something has happened or is currently happening to me, and it's your time to step up. I have every faith in you, Dearest One.

However, there are some important matters to discuss first."

She stood up from her chair and looked directly into the camera.

"To begin with, this thing that my friends and I can do, which I may or may not have been able to teach you by the time you see this. Hopefully, discs 15-18 will tell you all that I know; and you can always call Troy, Julie, or Susan for any help you need. None of us are able to control others over video; which is why we've always talked via Skype, so although I cannot command you here, I AM still able to trigger an implanted suggestion. Like this."

She fixed the camera with a gaze that Maria could feel through the television.

"'It is time for my Great-Granddaughter to become the woman that she was always meant to be.' That should release you from the protections I've placed in your mind. You no longer need worry about being moved against your will or telling others too many personal things about me. Oh, also, if I've met with my end, and 24 hours later, you hear two gunshots coming from the general area of the dungeon, don't worry about it. The less you know, the better."

Contessa Helena de San Finzione sat back down and lit a cigarette.

"Now, I'm going to operate on the assumption that you're watching this within 24 hours of whatever's happened, so that's where I'll start." She took a drag of her cigarette and looked at it. "God, I hope it wasn't these that got to me, cause that'll make the rest of these videos kinda sad. Anyway, let's begin."

* * *

[Ramesh_Rocky]

In the couch in her head, Contessa Helena de San Finzione and Suzy-Q were continuing their discussion.

"Then who was Raymond Chen?" Helen asked.

"Nobody," Susy-Q said as she slid closer. "A name out of the Hong Kong phone book; there's probably a couple hundred Raymond Chens. Statistically speaking, with that many, one of them has to be a pedophile or something, so you can take some comfort in the thought that maybe they got the right one."

"That's not much. Also, if the Elders wanted to placate me badly enough to commit a random murder, why would they send an assassin a couple hours later, much less one that's deaf so he couldn't hear my command?"

"Wish that clue light was still here," Suzy-Q said, looking around. "So, it's not the Triad either. But SOMEONE set up the human trafficking stop in San Finzione. Someone who can and would manipulate both you and the Elders into thinking this Raymond Chen was responsible. And the next afternoon, a deaf assassin makes a suicide run for you? That's altogether too much coincidence for one 12-hour period."

Helen took in what Suzy-Q was saying. If she really was some part of Susan psychically reaching out to her, she was a damn smart one. And totally hot in the Lara Croft getup.

"Yes. Yes, it is. So, you're saying someone was smart enough to persuade a bunch of Triad goons to set up a human trafficking way-station in San Finzione and tipped La Policia off. They passed the matter up to me and the Ultimados and we raided the warehouse and shut them down. Then in half a day, they managed to track down a deaf assassin who also happens to be suicidal and got him into striking distance of me. Why do the first part? To frame the Elders for my death?"

Suzy-Q wrinkled her brow and asked a question.

"Wait, who's Umiwama?"

Helen gave a look of shock and was about to say something before she remembered that however this worked, Suzy-Q seemed to have some kind of access to her thoughts.

"A girl I met in Uongo. Igazi wanted a demonstration of 'my witchcraft,' so he made me..." A bolt of realization hit her. "That's why they went to all the trouble! They wanted a demonstration!"

Suzy-Q scooted close enough to touch and gave her an excited look.

"RIGHT! They've heard the stories about Contessa Helena de San Finzione being able to control the wills of men, but they needed to know for sure. So, they created a situation that you couldn't possibly ignore; one where you'd show up in person and definitely make use of The Thing so they could see it for themselves. Did you see any cameras?"

Helen thought about it for a moment. She usually had to do stuff like this herself, and withe the Whatever creatures out of the way, it was new and exciting to have a partner to bounce her thoughts off of; even if she was only an imaginary version of someone Helen wished were this good a friend in real life. She answered.

"No, but then again, I wasn't looking for any."

"Right! You were ALWAYS a better criminal than Wade." That got a smile from Helen. "Setting up a slavery ring and then recording your own evidence of it would be so UNBELIEVABLY stupid that YOU wouldn't even think of it! Even with La Policia watching the crime scene, people this clever probably managed to get rid of the cameras by now. They watch the video and figure out it's something to do with your voice, and luckily, they happen to know a deaf killer willing to throw his life away that they can call..."

Helen cut Suzy-Q off and leaned closer, their tone becoming more conspiratorial.

"Wait... no. They didn't go to all this, then 'just happen to remember where I put this guy's business card.' They'd need him on standby. Whoever could do all this would have also thought ahead of time 'If I'm right about this, my guy's gotta be ready to strike the next afternoon.' He'd have to have been part of the plan from the beginning."

Suzy-Q took hold of her hand excitedly.

"Ooh, yeah! So, HE; we can drop the 'they,' it's more than likely A MAN at the root of all this." Helena nodded agreement. "Maybe he's heard enough stories about you to believe them, but he has the thought 'With that kind of power, why doesn't she just go on TV and proclaim herself ruler of the world?'"

"I think proximity has something to do with it," Helen said, suddenly aware of how close she and Suzy-Q had moved. "I've done it to large crowds over a microphone, and suggestions can be triggered over the phone or video, but not commands. He'd have reasoned that out too, but this guy's gotta be sure of everything first. He needs to test it, test me! That's what the warehouse shit was all about!"

They hugged for a second, then broke it just as quickly before Suzy-Q spoke.

"Ok, so he's found out we've got a Kryptonite. But then, why send a guy with a glass shank to kill you?"

"I've been thinking about that. I thought at first that it might be some kind of 'I'm on to you' message. Then again, misdirection is what gets this guy hard; so maybe that's what I'm supposed to think. I mean, between the A&E Biography and fuckin' Barbara Walters; my 'tragic upbringing' and Wade's 'death in a prison riot he just decided to start' is not exactly Classified information. Well, except Troy and Julie; All-Powerful Athiesmo be praised that I've managed to keep them out of things!"

"Right," Suzy-Q said. "So, fuck you, Copperfield. It ain't 'the long-lost sister back from the grave,' let's just cut that shit right now."

"Yeah. It's just as likely that it was simply easier to slip past the pre-tour security screening and not get picked up when they ran the wand over him."

"And if it broke," Suzy-Q added. "He'd still have a sharp, thick piece of glass to kill you with. I keep coming back to the word 'clever' with this guy; but yeah, I see it now. Ok, that brings us back to 'why.' Why not use a sniper or a bomb? And why move so soon after the warehouse?"

[Ramesh_Rocky]

Helen took a long drag of her cigarette and reached for the coffee cup of wine. Suzy-Q picked it up and handed it to her, their fingers brushing as it passed between them. Helen thought her touch was really nice, but took a drink and got back to the questions at hand.

"Good point. You don't go to all that and then just hurry up and press the button less than 12 hours later. There's a reason he had to do it today. A reason it had to be on the tour."

"So," Suzy-Q asked. "Who knew you'd be surprising the tour group?"

"Oh, enough people had to be in on my 'surprise' to know that I'd be there at that time. Can't think of anyone Jeanne might've told, but Maria probably said something to Stavro. Ramirez, Pierre, the servants, security... oh FUCK! I even told the fucking Triad goons too, back in the warehouse! He didn't need to find out about it! I GAVE him the time and location to hit me!"

* * *

Susan Bailey and Colleen Sullivan sat on the edge of the large bed in the Contessa Class suite. Susan moved closer to Colleen and started playing with the buttons on her uniform jacket.

"Ok, Colleen," Susan explained as she worked her way down the buttons. "You know how Helen can do stuff like make you feel like you're having sex on the deck of a pirate ship?"

Colleen nodded excitedly, watching Susan look up at her as she continued.

"Well, both of my dear friends in the next suite can do that sort of thing, and so much more. See, they played these little control games with it for years before they realized whom their hearts belonged to, and moved those games to the bedroom. I mean, just seeing it... that much love and trust between two people who can explore each other's minds the way other couples explore each other's bodies. That they both so freely share it with me makes me feel like more of a princess than Maria."

Susan emphasized the statement about exploring bodies by pulling Colleen's jacket off. As she started at the bottom button of her blouse, Colleen started from the collar to help.

"Now, the game they were playing when I left, Colleen, involves what Troy says is the secret of their marriage: Loving each other in every possible way; absolute, unquestioned trust; and a series of implanted triggers and suggestions that cause both of them to be aroused by each other's happiness and made happy by each other's arousal.

"Julie just got back from being away for five days. No big deal, right? Unless it's the first time that you and your constant, lifelong companion have been apart for that long since you became a couple. So, as you can imagine, they're both very happy to see each other."

"Aye," Colleen whispered, slipping her arms out of the jacket and removing her blouse. "An' I'm guessin' they're very aroused cause of tha'."

"Oh, yes, indeed, Colleen." Susan raised her arms so that Colleen could remove her shirt as well. She wore no bra underneath, and her breasts bounced free from the confining fabric before she reached to cup Colleen's already exposed mounds and tell her more.

"So, it becomes a circle of happiness and arousal between them that just keeps building and building!"

"Oh, ahh," Colleen uttered as Susan paused to give her now exposed cherry-colored nipple atop a breast like a perfect scoop of vanilla ice cream a kiss. "Tha' sounds real fun."

"Oh, it is, Colleen. They've done it with me too, and I can tell you it's amazing! Not just that, but with what they can do, they can take each other back to fun, happy, or sexy memories and cause each other to feel those things all over again. The cycle keeps growing bigger and more powerful with each remembered joyous moment."

She pulled Colleen close for a passionate kiss. Susan's hand started working its way up Colleen's inner thigh. Colleen shook her head gently to avoid breaking the kiss, and started undoing the zipper on the skintight jeans Susan wore.

"Nae," Colleen said, pushing Susan back onto the bed. She got up and slipped out of her skirt as she pulled Susan's jeans off. Neither woman wore underwear.

"Keep talkin'. I wanna hear more."

Colleen climbed back onto the bed and knelt between Susan's spread legs. She looked down at Susan's face and gave a polite "May I" nod toward her bare pussy.

Susan responded with a "By all means" nod and continued her story as the Irish lass lowered herself toward her waiting lips.

"So, right now, Colleen... ooh! Julie is riding the boy next door's cock, feeling it... uhh... thrust into her again... nnn... and again. Smiling and laughing... unn... like a kid in the park... ohh... Her best friend... ooo... pushing her on the swings!"

The edges of the bed were too far apart for Susan to reach, so she dug her nails into the blanket, grabbing fistfuls of it as Colleen's tongue rose up to meet her.

[Ramesh_Rocky]

"And Troy's fucking... fuck... pounding his best friend's cunt... nnn, fuck, like that, Colleen... Overjoyed like that... just fucking like that! Like that Christmas she... fuck yes... got him the RIGHT Doctor's Sonic Screwdriver!"

She grabbed hold of Colleen's head and pressed it down into her crotch, digging her heels into the small of Colleen's back.

"LITERALLY... FUCKING... EACH... OTHER... SILLY... FUCKFUCKFUCKFUCKFUCK!!"

Colleen grabbed Susan's ass with both hands and pressed her up to push her tongue even the tiniest bit deeper, tickling out tiny spasms and prolonging Susan's orgasm. When she was finished, she kissed her way up Susan's body to her lips. Their tongues brushing only briefly so that Susan could catch her breath.

Almost a minute passed as Susan's breath slowed to normal, stroking Colleen's face a while before breaking the silence.

"And they should be done with that now, if you'd like to meet them."

"Oh, Aye!"

They stood up. Colleen grabbed her clothes and also reached for Susan's. Susan gave an expression of gratitude. As Colleen picked up the jeans, two packets of almonds fell out of them.

Susan shrugged and gave an "Eh, what can I say?" look to Colleen. She replied with a look and wave that said "Eh, fookit,"and stuffed them back in before they left for the other suite.

[Ramesh_Rocky]

A Little Night Music Ch. 11

"I'll drink the moonlight from your hands.

I'll swim an ocean filled with sorrow.

No, lover, please don't go.

We can crucify tomorrow.

Let the sunlight feed the air.

Let it fill our lungs with lies.

We'll be memorialized by shadows,

but our loneliness will survive."

-The Swans, "Will We Survive"

*

Generalissimo Hernando Ramirez listened to the distant chatter of the reporters gathered behind the press line in front of the hospital. All other movable patients at Byroni Medina Memorial Emergency Medical Center had been evacuated to nearby facilities when they got word that La Contessa's helicopter was coming in, and the Ultimados had secured most of the building, but the administrator refused to shut down the emergency clinic, even for La Contessa.

The throng of reporters and cameramen were now in danger of impeding ambulance passage, and the administrator demanded the Generalissimo say something to make them go away or he'd have La Policia remove them.

An aide brought him a clean uniform; and, without questioning the unusual request, a carton of La Contessa's brand of cigarettes. The hospital had let Ramirez use a shower, but the day had still taken its toll on him as he found himself unable to do anything but sit and wait for Maisson's reports on her condition. Ortega had reported that Lady Maria... no, she was Contessa Maria now; had started seeing advisers and would call him for a meeting soon.

The Generalissimo tapped the little stack of four 3x5 cards containing the information he had to give the press. He looked out the glass doors at the podium that had been set up for him in front of the hospital entrance. The setting sun off to the side gave it a long shadow that caused him to picture the scene as a waiting gallows with a microphone where the noose should be.

The reporters stopped chattering as he walked out the sliding glass doors of the entrance. When the Generalissimo stood at the podium, he saw the setting sun as a brightness out of the corner of his right eye. He'd left his cover and sunglasses back inside, and his eye was now reminding him of the purpose of those two objects. Looking down at his cards helped, though.

"The hospital has informed me that your presence is interfering with the Emergency Center's other patients, and I am expecting to be called to a meeting at any moment, so this will be brief; and then you must leave," he said to the cameras and faces; a few in the crowd still holding notebooks and pencils, bless them. He continued.

"I will read the doctors' statements; about which, I am not qualified to answer questions, and believe I have time enough to take two questions on matters unrelated to La Contessa's condition." He tapped the cards into alignment and read from them.

"Contessa Helena de San Finzione was admitted at 12:45 Hours with multiple stab wounds in the right abdominal region. She had additional wounds to the right side of her chest and a cut on the left side of her neck.

"The cut on her neck was deemed superficial, having been stopped by this necklace, a birthday gift from the late Count Vincenzo de San Finzione, forever does he reign in our hearts."

The last part, he uttered sotto voce. Many of those in the crowd near Hernando's own age murmured back the devotion. In the last five years, it had become a mark of his generation. Those who'd been born in the latter half of Good Count Vincenzo's reign and who'd seen him as their leader all their lives; guiding San Finzione through times of war and peace; of strife and prosperity.

The generation whose family tables had become battlegrounds seven years ago over whether that Yanqui harlot was just after all the gold in the sweet old gentleman's crown and teeth; or that pretty, young, American girl had stolen nothing from their beloved Count but his heart and made the still-virile old man smile in a way that they hadn't seen him smile since Contessa Sofia was taken from us all too soon.

After Vincenzo's passing, the devotion came about amongst those to whom he'd always been "Their Count." Tone of voice was the difference in meaning it as eternal respect for Count Vincenzo or contempt for the so-called Contessa "American Jezebel Who Sexed Him to Death." Ramirez's had been the former, as had most of the responders.

The Generalissimo held up The Count's broken, but life-saving, gift to La Contessa; now in one of La Policia's evidence bags. Older pictures of the same necklace intact had become part of the clip rotation since the second hour of ongoing 'round-the-clock' coverage, when the media ran out of facts and started commenting on La Contessa's outfit at the time, instead. The image of Ramirez holding the bag with the broken necklace would soon follow it into the rotation. The clip would be in black and white and he would raise the bag in slow-motion.

Ramirez flipped his next card over and continued.

"She was admitted to surgery immediately, where she remains at this time. Doctors have reported intestinal damage; which they believe to be under control; and multiple lacerations to La Contessa's liver, which they are still working to save. A donor organ is on standby as a precaution. Her condition is still being described as critical." He struggled to keep himself from angrily hissing out the word "still."

As the sun's rays were fading, flashes from cameras began to burst from the crowd. Generalissimo Ramirez mused that this was the second time today that he was facing a crowd with flashing cameras. He turned to the next card.

[Ramesh_Rocky]

"The wound to La Contessa's... er... breast... did not pierce any vital organs; however, she did sustain hairline fractures in her left arm and shoulder from impact with the marble floor of the room." He swallowed before finishing. "During her struggle with the assassin."

As he turned to the last card, the scene played out in his head again. La Contessa stepping forward, the cart crashing into the support column, a flash brighter than any of the camera flashes, everyone turning.

Except him. The assassin. Everyone else heard what sounded like firecrackers going off, then he seemed to run at her in slow-motion. And the two Ultimados had come running to the scene because they'd heard the noise from a distance too far away to hear La Contessa's command. The thoughts coalesced as he read the last card.

"Lady Maria de San Finzione has been officially appointed Contessa-in-Reggenza until such time as Contessa Helena is able to resume her duties. She has been meeting with advisors in a secure location and is expected to call a cabinet meeting within the hour; which I must leave for soon, so I will take the first question."

He selected a reporter that he recognized. Ramirez already knew what the first question would be, whomever he'd picked. It was one of several on his growing mental list of "Questions La Contessa May One Day Force Me To Answer;" which he practiced responses to in a mirror or on occasion, compared notes with Capitan Ortega's own list.

"Generalissimo," the reporter spoke up. "You were standing right next to La Contessa during the attack. You had your weapon in your holster. Why did you not act?" Murmurs of agreement and "I was going to ask that" came from the throng assembled.

The word "act" caused the thought in Ramirez's mind to complete: Not act, RE-act. The assassin hadn't reacted to the noise because the man couldn't hear it! If the assassin had no sense of hearing, it would explain everything. He had something now, he just had to get through the next couple minutes. He got back to the question.

"The Bystander Effect is a known psychological phenomenon, as is the Mass Hysteria that causes it to sweep through a crowd. The training of La Squadra de Ultimados; which it was my proud honor to once lead and to now command, is the best mental and physical discipline that San Finzione's Armed Forces have to offer. However, any man who would stand before you and proclaim himself entirely immune to known psychological effects would be a liar or a fool. It can happen; it happened to me at the worst possible moment; and for my shame, I shall seek to atone by continuing to serve San Finzione and La Contessa until she deems otherwise. Next question. Yes, you."

The reporter he selected stepped up slowly. More details of the memory were coming in to Ramirez's brain. There'd been a shuffle to the man's step as he'd charged. The Assassin didn't SEEM to charge La Contessa in slow-motion because Ramirez could not stop what was unfolding in front of him, he WAS moving slower, and she was still so stunned that her power did not work that he was able to reach her and force her to the ground.

Ramirez thought "Difficulty moving the right side of his body... an injury, perhaps?" And he held the knife in his left hand. A deaf, left-handed assassin who chooses to work with a knife despite being handicapped? Interpol should not have too many of them on file.

"Generalissimo, do you think that Lady Maria will be able to fulfil the role of Contessa?"

The question shook him out of his train of thought. He replayed the question in his head to make sure he'd heard correctly. He fixed the reporter with a serious stare before answering.

[Ramesh_Rocky]

"Contessa-In-Reggenza Maria de San Finzione has been prepared for this task her entire life, and has been aided by the guidance of Count Vincenzo and Contessa Helena throughout. I have every confidence in her."

The phone in his pocket vibrated.

"The meeting is being called now. I have no more time to give you. Please leave and go report your stories, as your equipment is interfering with the hospital's emergency business. Gracias."

The reporters began packing up their equipment. Generalissimo Ramirez's driver had brought his staff car up the hospital's main drive, and as he speed-walked toward it and pulled out his phone.

The message was, as he expected, Contessa Maria calling in her top staff. He confirmed that he was en route, then placed a call.

"Get me Interpol," Ramirez told his secretary as he got in the vehicle. "Call me back when Luc Allaine is on the line."

The driver made for the castle.

* * *

Half a step ahead of Ramirez, Helena and Suzy-Q discussed the issue while talking on a couch in her head. If not for the television studio setting and their outfits, the two of them might have appeared to onlookers as idly chatting neighbors; provided Lara Croft's neighbor wore a Chinese qipao dress around the house.

"OK, so they knew how, when, and where to hit you. This must be part of the plan too. Not us talking, nobody could've seen that; Susan still hasn't even noticed me gone. I mean, there's a reason it had to be now. He had to make sure you were dead, or at least in the hospital by now. Why? What did you have planned after the tour stop?"

Helena had to think about that.

"Hmm... nothing, really. Had a meeting, something earlier canceled and it got bumped up to before Noon, so my plans for after were a cup of cocoa and some hot sex with Jeanne."

Suzy-Q gave her a look. A look that told Helen that she'd just missed something there. She picked up on it and ran the thought through her head again.

"I had no plans... because the afternoon meeting got bumped up! I wasn't supposed to be at that meeting!"

The look on Suzy-Q's face became a smile.

"That's it," she said to Helena. "So, what happened at The Meeting That Shouldn't Have Been?"

Helena was about to open her mouth when Suzy-Q raised a hand.

"Before you even think 'that's classified,' I think you already know what the real Susan would say to that. I'm here to help, really."

Helena nodded and took a puff of her unending cigarette before speaking.

"We discussed how everything's a go for the Air Finzione launch. And this year's wine harvest."

Suzy-Q looked around before answering.

"I don't see Troy here, so we can rule out any James Bond plots right away. Nobody's going to go to all this to blow up some planes or poison the wine supply. That's not something they'd 'need you out of the way' for, anyway."

That gave Helena a small upraising of the lips and a little snort.

"Ok, yeah. They're not after the emeralds in my tiara for their superlaser. So, after that, it was just me and the Top Secret guys, we talked about The Elders and Raymond Chen for a moment; but that just makes the idea that they're behind this even more stupid. Why go through with the whole charade with him if they were going to hit me 12 hours later?"

"Yeah, they're out of this, though it also explains why they sent a hand instead of a head, because then you might say 'Hey, that's the wrong Raymond Chen.'"

"Right," Helena answered. "So that just leaves..."

They said the word together.

"Springheel."

* * *

[Ramesh_Rocky]

At a table in an outdoor café outside the San Finzione Marketplace sat an old woman dressed in black, drinking her wine and watching the world go by under the now-lit streetlamps.

How long the Yia-Yia had been there, none could say. Children who saw her and asked their grandparents about her as they walked past long ago now had grandchildren of their own who would ask them how long she'd been there. And like their own grandparents, they had no answer to pass on to the little ones who would one day be asked the same question in turn by grandchildren of their own.

It was a gathering of young people she was watching now. Everyone was young to her, though. College students, maybe. They were gathering in the marketplace near the café, and she could see a lot of them now. She watched them carefully. Her long life had taught her that when that many college students gather together, something idiotic usually happened next.

People that age eluded her. As they had for a long time. Possibly because they never changed, but they always imagined they would.

She'd seen young street hoods grow up to become businessmen in suits, stammering about how someone needed to do something about all these street hoods. Always longing for some mythical better day when they'd been the bully instead of imagining themselves as victims for no longer being allowed to bully others. Always promising to change the world and ending up becoming it, despite all their vows not to do so, unlike their fool parents.

She got a little concerned when they started taking out signs. Young people holding signs didn't usually end well. But some of them also had candles, and young people holding those tended to end... not well; better, maybe. Signs meant they were mad about something; candles meant they were sad about something. Whatever got them so outraged must be sad too.

She shouldn't assume, though. All young people weren't like that. That one girl who'd been coming around lately, she was quite nice. She couldn't recall her name, but people who approached the girl when she came to the café to sit with her called her 'Tessa,' so maybe that was her name. The Yia-Yia had thought that Tessa was American, but her Greek was... eh, adequate. They could talk.

Tessa wasn't like those youngsters who seemed to be organizing into a group now. They looked like everyone younger than herself; always busy, on their way somewhere with something too important to stop staring at on their phones or taking pictures of themselves and everything around them. Tessa wasn't like that, though. She carried a telephone like all of them, but she was polite about it.

Tessa would stop by now and then, always unexpected, and always offering to buy the next bottle. Or sometimes she'd bring a bottle of something even better from home to share with the Yia-Yia. She always accepted Tessa's kind offer graciously, even though these fools seem to have forgotten to charge her for anything in quite a while.

Sometimes, Tessa even bought dinner for them both; and stayed for hours, wanting to hear more stories about her life and the things she'd seen. The girl was always a polite listener; and when she'd ask a question, was patient while the Yia-Yia searched her old brain for the answer. Sometimes, Tessa would even get dessert if the story turned out to be a naughty one.

She asked a lot of questions when the subject of cooking came up, as if the poor dear's mother had taught her nothing of the kitchen. But then, a girl who looked like Tessa was going to marry well enough not to have to worry about cooking.

But their visits were often too brief. People would come up to Tessa and ask questions or ask Tessa to sign things or want to take their picture with Tessa. Sometimes, a group of nice young men would come and take people away if they started being rude to Tessa, which happened more often than the Yia-Yia would have expected. Was Tessa a movie star from Hollywood, maybe? She was certainly pretty enough to be.

In fact, Tessa looked like the woman on some of the signs the young people were holding up as they seemed to have gotten into their formation. Phones were being put away and candles were being lit; little wind guards placed around them, so things were getting serious now. Things HAD to be serious for young people to put away their telephones.

But it couldn't have been her. Tessa didn't try to look fancy like the woman in the posters. That woman had on an emerald tiara and held a gold scepter. She was trying to look fancy, like some Baroness or Duchess.

.As the young people started walking by her in the street... Was the hospital that way? She'd never been there before... she could see one of the banners they carried more clearly as it passed through the clearer part of her vision:

[Ramesh_Rocky]

FOREVER DOES SHE REIGN IN OUR HEARTS


Oh dear, had something happened to young Vincenzo's darling Sofia? She hoped that wherever Tessa was, she was ok. This seemed like the kind of thing that would worry her. Perhaps she was in that crowd of young people. Tessa was very respectful, and whatever this was, it seemed to be an act of respect.

Those young people didn't seem so bad now; they really were different from the others somehow, and so, she had to be involved. Well, sometimes, young people really did get busy, so maybe she hadn't had time to talk.

She considered going into the crowd to see if she could find Tessa when the waiter came and refilled her wine glass.

Yeah, why change a good thing now?

[Ramesh_Rocky]

A Little Night Music Ch. 12

"Can you hear me, you peers and privy councilors?

I stand before you, naked to the eyes.

I will destroy any man who dares abuse my trust

and swear that you'll be mine.

The Seven Seas of Rhye."

-Queen, "The Seven Seas of Rhye"

Julie Andrews; no relation and/or affiliation whatsoever to Dame Julie Andrews, strutted onto the stage, wearing a white lace teddy to the crash of thunder at the opening of Concrete Blonde's "Bloodletting (The Vampire Song)," looking around occasionally, acting like someone might be stalking her onstage. When the tolling bells gave way to a beat, she bobbed her head to it, no longer seeming to care that someone might be following her.

She looked out at the audience, barely visible since all lights in the room were on her, and found the shape of the man she would be marrying in eighteen hours.

Troy Medina sat up front, a black plastic cape around his neck, and a big plastic medallion that Susan and Brenda, her two friends who'd participated in the first half of her show, had placed around Troy's neck with their fangs. The two nude women flanked him, pressing their bodies close to his and running their fingers through his hair; occasionally, gently turning his head so that Julie was the main focus of his vision.

The guitars joined the drums. Julie mouthed to the boy next door and her best friend for life "I want to fuck you forever, Master."

Troy mouthed back a "Fucking love you, Mistress," to the girl that, the next day, he'd fulfill the promise he'd made at the age of four to marry. He raised his hand toward her like Dracula in an old movie and said "Sleep!" Julie mimed her head being knocked back as if hit by something. When the song screamed, she looked back at him with unbridled lust as it kicked into high and she began her routine. She lost sight of him as all the lights turned to focus on her.

Contessa Helena de San Finzione entered the bar through the kitchen door. She'd bought the hotel earlier that morning, she was allowed everywhere. A Versace gown and her tiara made her stand out a bit in the t-shirt & jeans crowd that had gathered. Julie's invitation had said Casual Dress, and except for the tiara; which she'd brought as a whim, the $2000 outfit WAS casual for her.

Helen hadn't even expected the invitation. It took a while to get to her. So long that she was thinking of sending them a toaster next week, with a snide note about "I guess mine must have gotten lost." It turned out that Julie hadn't put her private mail code on the address; so the invitation got sorted into the castle's regular mail; and had only been found at the last minute. Since she couldn't get mad at Julie for the error being on her end, she decided to channel those feelings into the perfect Wedding Prank.

As Helena walked toward Troy, she saw Julie's dance on the stage, slipping the straps off her shoulders. The song got to the part about a crack in the mirror and a bloodstain on the bed. Julie's number was obviously a scene of her being seduced and turned by an invisible vampire, probably Troy.

Helen spotted a guy filming the routine on his phone and stopped. She took a card out of her purse and handed it to him, looking him in the eye.

"Keep filming and take this," she commanded him. "When it's over, email the video to the address on this card. Then tear up the card, delete your video, and forget you made it. I can't blame you for wanting to stroke to Julie later. Hell, that's what I'm going to do with your video; but this shit can't hit the internet, and you don't look smart enough to keep it to yourself. So, go ahead and remember every detail of her performance, but not the things I've told you to do. Forget I was here, too."

"Oh... ok, Helen," he nodded, and Helen realized she'd gone to high college with the guy. Dated him once or twice too. Nobody worth remembering. She also didn't correct him on the "Helen."

Being back in Anchorage, she knew everyone would call her Helen except Julie, so it wasn't a fight worth having. She could be Helen again until she got on her plane home. She left Nobody and approached Troy as Concrete Blonde informed the room that they were going to have a drink and walk around because they had a lot to think about, oh yeah.

[Ramesh_Rocky]

Troy was too busy watching Julie's number and being pawed through his clothes by the two naked women flanking him to notice Helen's approach. She'd caught part of their number through the kitchen. A damn hot 3-girl scene that she couldn't have been the only woman who had to fight to not jump on stage and make it four or more herself. Just like she was fighting the urge to go up there now and play the Vampire role in Julie's strip-pantomime. She was seeing legs of all gender crossing and uncrossing when she turned to him and spoke.

"Hello, Troilus," Helen said, causing Troy and the two women on his knees to turn to face her. "Thanks for the invitation. How've you been?"

Troy spent a moment searching for words. Helen smiled, knowing she'd caught her ex-boyfriend off guard. It was a real smile that remembered how it'd been that first time, with a man she honesly loved beforehand. The Troy Smile. One of her top ten favorite; three of which had been permanently retired. Over the speakers, Concrete Blonde insisted that nothing was there in the shadows down the hall; before insisting that something was, in fact, in the shadows down the hall.

"Um...er... Hi, Helen. Susan, Brenda, this is Contessa Helena de San Finzione, my first girlfriend."

Her name and title came out of his mouth just as the line "Oh, you were a vampire, and now I am nothing at all" came up in the song. Helen smiled, extended a hand to Brenda, then to Susan.

"I'd claim to still the best, if I didn't know how good Julie is too. Well, both of you would've had to know before that amazing scene as well."

Troy put an arm around the lighter of the brunettes. Was that one Susan?

"Susan picked the 'Brides of Dracula' theme," Troy said, confirming that she was. "We're all digging it. I didn't expect to see you until the ceremony." He turned 3/4ths of the way toward Susan and tried unsuccessfully to casually say to her. "Susan, hon, this is Helen. Julie and I have TOLD YOU ABOUT HER before. A couple of times."

Susan nodded solemnly. Concrete Blonde told the room that they had a lot to think about again; and Susan recalled Troy's comment about knowing only one other person who could Do What They Do, and Julie saying how they didn't want to teach Susan the secret until everyone agreed that she was entirely ready, because "We've... made a mistake before."

Susan had some psychological and emotional issues. The only relationship she'd known before joining Troy & Julie's was an abusive nightmare; and the aftermath needed to be dealt with before the three of them could seriously discuss the matter. Troy hoped she'd picked up the "I'm sorry that the person whom, from what little we've told you, you have every reason to think of as The Boogeyman; is here in the flesh, before either of us were ready" tone in his voice.

"Oh, how could I miss THIS," Helen said, lighting a cigarette so Troy wouldn't see that she, at least, got that message. "Making that girl your Best Man too? Sappy, but I knew she'd make this party 'The Place To Be.'"

"I'm pretty sure there's no smoking in here." Susan spoke up. The lightning crash in the song timed with it, in a way she couldn't have possibly planned.

Helen stared into her eyes. Troy tried to break the standoff by getting his head between them and speaking to Susan first.

"Susan, Contessa Helena de San Finzione has diplomatic immunity. She smokes when and where she wants." He turned back to look Helen in the eye. "One of the more annoying ways she establishes dominance wherever she goes."

"Now now, Troilus. It's a wedding, a time for pranks and fun! But yes, I'm afraid for this next part of MY prank, some of that dominance is going to be required." She gave all three a look that caused them to miss Julie exposing her right breast to the crowd. The crowd hooted for Julie and sang along with the song; informing Concrete Blonde that they, too, had the Ways and Means to New Orleans.

"Let's all go up to the Honeymoon Suite together," Helen told them. "I have a surprise of my own planned."

As the three of them stood and started walking toward the entrance, Helen got a good look at Susan's body. She suspected that most of the men in the audience were too busy focusing on her face, tits, and pussy to get a good look at the rest of her. Even in the dim lighting; this close, Helen could see the less-than-a-year-old scars and burns on the "unimportant" parts of her body. The upper arms that showed signs of repeated old bruising, because that was a "safe" place to grab hold of a woman when you wanted to shout something horrible in her face. Where they can be covered up with a short-sleeved shirt; because someone might ask a woman about fresh, visible bruises.

Helen unconsciously touched spots on her own arms that the best cosmetic surgeons had removed all trace of, but she never completely stopped feeling. She stopped them as they got to the door, before it opened out into the light of the lobby.

[Ramesh_Rocky]

"Wait," Helen told them as she removed Troy's cloak and wrapped it around Susan. "Susan, when we get back to the suite, why don't you just curl up like a kitten on the bed and forget all of this? Just be a good kitty and enjoy a nice kitty nap on the bed until Troy or Julie wakes you to play."

Susan nodded with a blank smile and wrapped the cloak around her body, her breath starting to come out in little purrs as she began to forget why it mattered that she felt like a sleepy kitty who needed to find a good napping spot.

Helen stroked her long hair and went to see how Brenda was doing. Brenda's erect nipples were the first thing she noticed. A glance down, and Helen noticed the shiny wet stream down her thigh. Helen's eyes traced back up her body, to those stiff nipples on top of D-cups to the glazed, lusty smile on Brenda's studious-looking face and dreamy expression in eyes that weren't behind sexy glasses at the moment, but looked like they ought to be. Helen admired the long hair that she could only imagine looked amazing exploding out of a bun down her back and shoulders.

"You know what I'm doing to you, don't you?" Helen asked.

"Yesss," Brenda slowly breathed out, visibly relaxing. "And it makes me so fucking horny..."

Helen spotted a girl with a long ponytail. She reached for her head and started taking out her hair tie. As the girl turned and looked ready to strike, Helen spoke.

"You want me to have this. You look better without it, you don't even like this one."

The girl nodded and grinned as she helped Helen remove it, looking the wrong direction to see Troy's concern. Helen pulled the last loose hairs off of it before handing it to Brenda.

"You get to make this walk naked. I order you to put your hair in a bun while we head up to the suite. I'll want to see you take it out at some point too. Up we go now."

Brenda moaned, and they walked out to the lobby on the first use of the line "Oh, you were a vampire, and I may never see the light."

As the only one of them able to voice an opinion, Troy spoke to Helen while they went up the elevator. Susan leaned her head on his shoulder and began trying to nuzzle him standing up.

"Back there," he said. "That was very Helen Parker of you."

Helen spun around, a look on her face that said a slap was coming. It shifted as she turned, as if someone had come up and surprised her, and right as she turned around to slap who or whatever it was, registered that it was Troy and stopped immediately. She made it into a mock pout instead.

"Oh, POOH! I'll go give it back afterwards. I just need to use it once. Possibly a second or third time if it goes like I imagine."

"Ok. I know you've got something weird and probably overly-expensive planned, Helen," Troy said, stroking Susan's ear. "And ladies, I can assure you that none of us are in any danger. I mean yes, Julie and I make some jokes; maybe some particularly mean ones in Julie's case. It's just because we both really love Helen, though; and whatever she's got planned, I'm not worried for any of us."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," Helen responded. "You are safe on Octopussy's island, Mr. Bond. C'mon, Troilus! And as for Julie's mean jokes, you forget that I'm a card-carrying member of the Helen Is A Big Poopyhead Club too! God, you're making me feel like I should be hiding behind a rock, and holding a rope tied to a giant boulder; and the boulder's on a pulley, pointing to a bulls-eye in the road. Signs and arrows pointing to the pile of 'Free Troy Seed' beneath it!"

Troy gave her a look that started both of them snickering after "Free Troy Seed."

"Ok," he got out between snickers. "Well, one funny thing: Round about now, Julie is probably on her knees, thrusting her hips as she spreads her pussy open with one hand and alternates between pointing to it and the chair where she thinks I'm still sitting with these two." More snickers began filling the elevator car. "Some other guy's probably... taken my chair. And he's looking... straight up Julie's twat..." Helen started to giggle at 'twat.' "And thinking she's offering it... to him!"

The snickers exploded into laughter as the door opened and they made their way into the hallway, where a pair of bellhops holding boxes were waiting outside the Honeymoon Suite.

"Damn, now I'm kinda tempted to call this off... Just go back down there... and see if some dumbass... doesn't get that all of that... was meant for YOU..."

[Ramesh_Rocky]

"Shit, it would almost be WORTH it..." Troy replied, having accepted that he was going to end up doing whatever Helen told him to, and that fighting back would only cause Helen to escalate. "To see some fucker... try to lay a hand on... Colonel Tom Andrews' only daughter... just to SEE what she does to him!"

"What if it's some girl? That's... a whole different story! Hey, Troy... You remember Mrs. White?"

Helen unlocked the Honeymoon Suite door with her new owner's passkey. They continued talking, their laughter dying away; letting the men with the boxes go first, as they walked inside. Helen looked at Troy, resigned to his fate, but not at all upset about it. He smiled at her. The Helen Smile. Whatever else happened, everything was worth that to her.

"Mrs. White's here?" Troy asked.

"So's Mr. White. They've aged quite well, ya know. Mmm... both of them. But "Bloodletting" is just about ending now, so here's what's happening." Helen said as she started to close the door.

* * *

"I'd never heard that part of it before," Julie Equals said, sipping the coffee that had been made after Susan and Colleen got the machine in their suite running. "Dammit, now I wish someone else had taken your chair too!"

"Neither had I," Susan Bailey responded as the four of them sat around the coffee table in their suite aboard the Air Finzione SST. The pilot had announced that they would be landing within the hour, so they decided to sit where the seatbelts were in the Contessa Class suites aboard Air Finzione. "I mean, I'm still pissed off at her for it, but it explains a couple of things." Like why at breakfast the next morning, all I wanted was a plate of kippers and two glasses of milk."

They all laughed.

"Well, why'd ye all go along," Colleen asked with a sip. "I mean, you coulda stopped her, Troy, nae?"

Troy patted Julie on the knee with his right hand and left it there as he responded.

"I could've tried, but not likely. Helen took to Doing What We Do better than I did. All of the women in my life have, actually."

"Oh, ah, tha's something I've noticed. You call it 'Doing What We Do,'" Colleen paused to finish her coffee. She also seemed to be trying to drop more of her native accent as they got closer to the destination; "switching to the work one," as she put it. "the Countess calls it 'The Thing,'"

Troy responded.

"I guess that's just... well, her thing. As for me stopping her, there are degrees of how forceful we can be with it, and it's hard to put to numbers..."

Julie interrupted him with a playful shove.

"Oh, fuck that, Math Boy! Like all these years, you would have been content to sit back and not try to quantify or measure What We Do? You are Troy Equals, my Math Boy; I know you've sat down and worked the numbers!"

"Ok, ok," Troy admitted. "Well, since the four of us are the only ones I know that can do it, there's no real system of measurement. If we're trying to pin things to... I'm a comic nerd, so let's say 'power levels;' I'd have to say I'm near the bottom. It'd be this lady," He patted Susan's thigh with his left hand. "Then me, then Helen, and up at the top is the woman whom Helen describes as 'The one whose legs you spend so much time between that your mail gets delivered to her pussy.' And I expect this one to surpass me too."

He looked at Susan and patted her thigh again for emphasis.

"Ok, ok," Susan said, standing up and walking over to Julie, sitting on her other side and placing a hand on her other knee. "I was hoping to finish my coffee first, but all right; spread 'em, Julie."

Everyone laughed again, then Colleen motioned for Susan to get back to her seat as the Fasten Seat Belts signs around the suite lit up.

* * *

[Ramesh_Rocky]

In Helena's head, she and Suzy-Q had come to realize why the assassin had to strike at that time. It was a word that Suzy-Q had picked up from the access she seemed to have to Helena's thoughts while on the strange voyage in her head: Springheel.

"Wow," Suzy-Q said, upon learning what Helena knew of Springheel. "This is some Area 51, Stargate SG-1 shit here! How do you even know about something like this?"

Helena answered with a drag of her cigarette.

"Unlike some countries'" She paused."Oh, let's say 'leaders,' I GO to my intelligence briefings. And I don't put Putin on speaker."

"Ok, that's fair. But that's what all this is about: you weren't supposed to BE at the meeting where you started asking questions about Springheel. You, Ramirez, and the Minister of Intelligence and his people were the only ones who had seen the Springheel video. All they'd been able to tell you was that the video wasn't a fake. But at the meeting, you showed it to your Science Expert and told him to have his people look into it. You asked people who could give you answers!"

"Fuck," Helena shouted as a gear shifted in her head. "If keeping Springheel quiet is this important to him and he's fucked up at this stage of the game, he'll be out to put a stop to that! The way I'm starting to feel that his head works, he probably planted a bomb in the Ministry of Science before any of this began!"

Suzy-Q gave Helen another hug. This time it was deliberate and lasted longer.

"Yes, those people are in danger and you need to evacuate the building. But first you'll have to survive surgery and wake up."

"Yeah," Helena mused as she looked around. "In the movies, this is where I'd wake up and tell Ramirez to do it right now. I... er... don't seem to be waking up, though."

"This isn't TV," Suzy-Q replied. "Your body's probably still in surgery and under the anesthetic. Not a lot we can really do now except wait and hope you come to in time."

Helena shrugged and sighed.

"That sucks." She thought for a moment. "Well, while we're waiting, wanna see my castle?"

Susan gave a nod-shrug that said "Eh, why not."

Helen concentrated. The room started shimmering again, into her study.

* * *

Julie and Colleen walked down the stairs to the waiting limousine. Troy stopped Susan before descending the stairs.

"Hey, just a second, Susan."

She stopped and turned around. He wrapped his arms around Susan's waist, hoisted her up an inch, and gave her a big kiss.

[Ramesh_Rocky]

"Thanks for keeping us together back there, Princess," he looked into her eyes and told her. "It didn't go unnoticed, by either of us."

Susan wrapped her arms around his neck and gave him a peck on the lips back.

"Being able to do this since you were kids... I once told Helen that I didn't think the word 'danger' entered your lives much. I sort of guessed that 'crisis' wouldn't be one that comes up a lot, either. Glad to be of service, Good Sir Knight."

Troy smiled. Pet names were something new that they were trying. Because of her abusive past, some of the more common nicknames for Susan carried heavy psychological baggage. Troy and Julie had been aiding her in getting professional help, occasionally helping by Doing What They Do.

"Tell Sue I said thanks, too."

Susan slipped her arms from around his neck and placed one of his around her waist and the two of them began to descend the stairs.

"Not getting much from them today, I think all of them are worn out," Susan told him. "They've had a long day. Shit, it's NIGHT now!" She gasped the last as her phone adjusted to San Finzione time and it was now ten in the evening.

"And when we reach the bottom of these stairs, you're going to set foot in Europe for the first time. I'm happy to share that with you, Susan. Welcome to San Finzione."

They smiled and reached the bottom. Ahead of them, Julie and Colleen had gotten into the back of the limo and the driver was holding the door for them.

They stopped for a moment. Susan took a deep breath. Troy did the same. Susan spoke first.

"Thought it'd smell different."

"You thought you'd smell European foods as soon as you got off the plane, didn't you?"

She nodded.

"Is it racist that I expected to smell pizza?"

"My first trip was to Greece. I was expecting pastitsio."

They laughed as they got into the limo.

[Ramesh_Rocky]

A Little Night Music Ch. 13

"I'm your only friend.
I'm not your only friend.
But I'm a little glowing friend.
But really, I'm not actually your friend.
But I am."
-They Might Be Giants, "Birdhouse in Your Soul"

Contessa-In-Reggenza Maria Louisa Francesca de San Finzione stood in the secure meeting room in Castle Finzione. Night had fallen, the lockdown lifted, and tourists released two hours previously.

Stavro had been unable to contact his parents during the lockdown, due to a signal jammer being activated to prevent any unauthorized transmissions in or out of the castle. He didn't want to leave Maria, but he needed to look in on them; and he would not be able to stay with her for the top-level meeting in any event.

He promised to return as soon as he made certain they were all right. Stavro refused the offered limousine home and back; as he didn't care to take advantage of Maria's status for himself. When Capitan Ortega and Sgt. Pappas; the Ultimado who'd tried to grab Stavro before linking up to form Maria's human shield with him, offered to take him in apology and gratitude for his assistance in the park, he accepted.

A pair of Ultimados flanked either door as the older men and women came filing in. Each of them approached La Contessa, shook or kissed her hand, and muttered assurances of prayers. Maria would nod, and then they'd go to the pitcher, pour themselves a glass of water, and hold it while they talked amongst each other. Maria might have thought it the world's most boring cocktail party if the group of people weren't supposed to be her top advisers. Her mind played over the words on the video that her Great-Grandmama had left her.

"If you haven't had your first official meeting with your advisers yet, call it now." Helena took a long drag of her cigarette before continuing. "They're going to underestimate you. They underestimated me. The ones who didn't see me as Vincenzo's trophy wife, a gold digger, or a genetically engineered CIA Sex Assassin; check that one out sometime, there's still conspiracy sites about it; saw a 23-year-old girl whose strings they thought they could pull.

"Some might show you disrespect. One guy even told me to my face that I was 'just there until a true San Finzione heir is crowned.' You've met Salvatore; the old fellow who works in the castle gift shop, putting the little plastic replicas of the tiara on the little girls' heads. I like the way he grumbles when I come in and bend down and ask the little girls if they're the true San Finzione heir. He's a far better tiara-fitter than he ever was Minister of Natural Resources, anyway. Smack that shit down with no hesitation." Another long inhale of her cigarette before continuing.

"Now, unless I've taught you The Thing already, I'm afraid it's going to be worse for you. They just thought I was a whore, but to them, you're Little Maria! You're the baby girl they remember toddling around the castle; the one who came up to them and sat on their knees. The one whose Great-Grandpapa would give her piggy-back rides in the garden." She sniffed a little. "Who looked so cute and so brave saluting your parents' coffins as they rolled through the marketplace." Helen leaned forward and held her head in her hands before saying the next part.

"The one rumored to be the young personal maid who engaged in secret rendezvous with La Contessa. That won't help matters at all, and it's my fucking fault, and watch disc 3 for my apology in full.

"This means that gaining their respect will be an uphill battle. I bet at least three of them will make empty offers of 'If there's anything I can do.'"

Maria had heard the offer seven times already.

"Here's what I'd do if I couldn't do The Thing, but not if it's Ramirez; HE wouldn't be late without a damn good reason, and I'm pretty sure he'll be your biggest ally in there. Trust your own judgment, Dearest One, but here's what Orson Welles would do on the first day of a new movie so everyone knew not to fuck with him from Day One..."

Maria looked around the room at the men and women in suits. La Contessa's advisors, and now hers. Generalissimo Ramirez and the Prefect of La Policia entered together.

"Who is not yet here?" Maria asked loudly enough to get everyone's attention. The conversation took a moment to die down as everyone looked around the room. "It does not matter."

She turned to the Ultimados at the door.

"Seal the room," Maria told them. "I called this meeting forty-seven minutes ago. Anyone not yet here is fired!"

The room stopped and turned around. Even the Ultimados were stunned by the words that all of them were hearing in the voice of dear, sweet Lady Maria. Some wanted to tell her that it would be a big mistake. Her mouth opened again before anyone else spoke.

"Did your Contessa say 'please?'"

Ramirez immediately stood to attention and saluted.

"No, Contessa. Nor do you have to." He turned to the Ultimados with a stern look while pointing to Maria. "You answer to myself and to La Contessa de San Finzione. Your Contessa has just given you an order. Must I do so as well?"

[Ramesh_Rocky]

The Ultimados saluted and exited the room, joining the pairs that were already flanking the outsides of the two doors, to turn away latecomers as the doors to the room sealed. Ramirez nodded to Maria; she smiled back.

Maria walked to her chair at the head of the table, and all the others assembled except the Generalissimo went for their own seats. She pulled the chair away from the table to sit but stopped before doing so; forcing everyone else, including those who'd already begun sitting, to stand back up.

"Nobody sits until La Contessa sits," Helena's instructions had told her. "Remember that. Some of these people are old and have bad knees. It's cruel, it's petty; it's an advantage, and a quick way to remind everyone who's in charge. Use it!"

Maria leaned against the chair and armrest and spoke again.

"A few of you served my Great-Grandpapa." She paused while a chorus of forever does he reign in our hearts went around the table. "And all of you have served my Great-Grandmama." The odd murmur went around the table. "You all know me, too. I have memories of sitting on some of your knees, being given candy when you came to do business with Great-Grandpapa. We would all like to have his guidance now."

She sat. The others took their cue. Generalissimo Ramirez finally walked to his seat by her left side and took his chair. Maria continued.

"If Great-Grandmama were to walk through that door right now, I would happily give this seat back to her. I am to be fitted for La Contessa's tiara in the morning, in case I am needed to serve permanently. I would love nothing more than to cancel that appointment; however, I can assure you that when that little girl was not running through the castle, she was being taught by two of the greatest rulers that San Finzione has ever had. Taught her whole life to serve the people of San Finzione as well as the ones who will forever reign in all of our hearts. I hoped it would be many years before I needed to do so, however, make no mistake; if this is my time, I am prepared to face it."

Everyone around the table nodded silently. Maria's usual smile, tempered with the seriousness of the task ahead, returned.

"What can you tell me? We'll start with the Prefect of La Policia."

The Prefect stood to attention and saluted his Contessa.

"Forensics reports fragments of glass and the plastic stopper of a vial found roughly where the assassin was standing. Whatever liquid it contained had evaporated. The fragments are being sent to the Ministry of Science for further analysis. Identification on the body names him as Carlos Jimenez of the Basque region. An airplane boarding pass indicated that he arrived in San Finzione six hours previously. We believe the identification to be a forgery, however, are checking hotels to get a possible CCTV trace."

La Contessa nodded. Ramirez leaned over and whispered to Maria.

"The Minister of Science is currently sequestered with a number of his people on a special project for your Great Grandmother, Contessa. This is why he was unable to attend. He very possibly has not even heard the news about her."

Maria turned to him.

"Thank you, Generalissimo. While we are talking, what do you have to report?"

Ramirez stood to give his report properly.

"I have been with Contessa Helena most of the day. Tenente Maisson, one of the Ultimados who dispatched the assassin; was a field medic who has recently obtained his degree. I contacted the Ministry of Medicine and got his medical license application expedited through the process. Dr. Tenente Paul Maisson is now part of La Contessa's medical team and is keeping me updated. I am presently awaiting a call from an old friend with Interpol who may be able to help identify the assassin."

Maria took in the information and nodded.

"Thank you, Generalissimo. You may be excused if that call comes during the meeting. Let's hear from the Minister of Intelligence now."

The man stood.

"The usual groups are claiming credit for the attempt on La Contessa's life. We are checking up on all credible leads. Based on the assassin's seeming knowledge that she would be appearing on the tour today, we are investigating any possible security leaks as well. Intelligence channels have reported no indication of a follow-up attack, but we are still monitoring for the possibility."

Maria nodded and gestured for the man to sit again.

"I will be expected to address The People soon," Maria said to the table. "I will be asked questions, I must have immediate answers. Most will probably be about La Contessa, so you're each going to give me one question that is likely to be asked about how the situation affects your ministry, and then you will give me a concise answer. Starting with you."

* * *

[Ramesh_Rocky]

Suzy-Q and Helena sat on the couch in Helena's study in Castle Finzione. Rather, they were in a place in Helena's mind that took the form of her study while surgeons worked to save her life in the real world.

They had concluded that whomever had tried to kill her was also going to blow up the Ministry of Science soon. However, because Helena was still in surgery and under anesthetic, she had been unable to wake from her current state to warn anyone. So, they had nothing to do now but talk.

"Well, hey," Helena said, picking up a cup of cocoa just the way Propappou always made it from the coffee table. Susy-Q picked up one that was waiting for her as well. "Since it looks like we've got some time here, and this is too good an opportunity to pass up; I HAVE to ask you: What does Susan really think of me?"

Suzy-Q closed her eyes and thought for a moment while sipping her cocoa. She opened them and set it down before speaking.

"Well, she thinks it's a bit funny that The Great Contessa Helena de San Finzione seeks the approval of a diner waitress. She hasn't worked the diner in about a year, but still feels like that's who she is a lot of the time."

That gave Helen a smile. She repeated Suzy-Q's gesture of taking a sip of cocoa and then setting the cup down.

"Julie and Troy love her, especially Troy. That alone means I already sort of love her too. I like talking to her. When you're Contessa, nobody ever just CALLS you on your shit like she does, you know? Not without an agenda. And her only agenda is caring about them, so it's refreshing. Even if it weren't for Troy & Julie, I'd like her for that alone. So yeah, I'd genuinely like to be her friend. I'm aware that I was stupid and selfish and fucked that up and would love nothing more than to make it up to her."

Suzy-Q went in for another hug. She didn't move back after.

"That's the kind of thing to tell her, then. Which reminds me, I wouldn't advise telling her that I was here, or about me at all. My friends and I are sort of an 'I'll let you know if and when I'm ready to' thing with Susan. You're starting to grow on her, but if you told her now..."

Helen completed the thought for her.

"There'd no way she'd believe I never put spies on her, I get it."

Suzy-Q raised an eyebrow. "The way Susan does," Helen thought.

"You've never put spies on her? Not counting Rob and Eric, I mean; she gets why you did that, by the way."

Helen gave Suzy-Q a tiny experimental kiss. The kind that could be written off as "Sorry, I thought that was really cute and was kind of in the moment there" if it turned out to be a problem.

It wasn't. When Helen tilted her neck back, Suzy-Q's had remained stationary, as if waiting for her to answer the question before passing judgment on the kiss.

"No," Helen whispered, close enough now that anything other than a whisper would be more awkward than the kiss failed to turn out to be. "I wouldn't. Not on her, anyway." Helen took a deep breath. "This one night, I was at a party; everyone was coking up and good ol' 'Parking With' Parker failed the Trial of Peer Pressure yet again, so when I got home, I might've had some coke-fueled idea and had Chad tracked down. He seems to be taking Troy's advice to heart, so I called them off."

Suzy-Q cocked her head, still moving it neither forward nor back, then returned it to the previous position with a new smile.

"Hey, Susan's got all the same reasons you have for not being big on booze and drugs, but she can't plead innocent to having a few and Doing What You All Do to kick off the odd lesbian orgy herself." They both giggled at that. "But yeah, too soon for that story as well. In time, she'd probably file that one under 'genuine yet Helen-like effort to be nice,' like the Ultimados, but she's not there yet."

Helena was about to say something when Suzy-Q spoke again.

"Oh, that reminds me; thanks for the Batman advice. I feel like you should have something back for that, so, do you know what 'special name' Julie picked up when she and Troy tried X together?"

Helena didn't know and gave her head a small shake. Suzy-Q told her the name. Helena's cracking up at it started Suzy-Q doing the same, and they fueled each other's laughter, keeping it going longer than either thought it should have. After a while, Helena's eyes became fixed on Suzy-Q's large breasts bouncing up and down inside Lara Croft's boob shirt.

Suzy-Q's laughter was at its peak when she noticed that Helena was staring at her bouncing tits. Her nipples began to stiffen, seeming to Helena like they and the look on Suzy-Q's face were trying to close the gap on the five second head start that her thoughts had on them. When the laughter died away, they each had a hand on the other's waist; Helena's moving up toward the breasts that fascinated her so, and Suzy-Q's moving down, causing a ripple through the sequins of her dress and making the dragons encircling her own breasts as they battled the invisible creature seem to move and shift from black to emerald green.

"So, ah..." Suzy-Q finally whispered into the silence. "Speaking of opportunities too good to pass up... er... you know, while we're stuck here... Eh, screw it, wanna fuck?"

Helena's hand reached its destination and began to explore through the fabric. She answered in-between sighs as Suzy-Q's hand found the slit in the side of her dress and began slowly exploring for another.

[Ramesh_Rocky]

"As long as you promise... not to pull that... stupid dream trick... where we're going up to my bedroom... and get sidetracked somehow."

Suzy-Q pressed her lips up to Helena's. They parted and her tongue slid out, requesting permission to dock. Helena granted access, and docking procedures commenced. Suzy-Q broke the seal.

"Your dragons are green now. This is still your head, and you're still Contessa Helena de San Finzione here."

They stood, and Contessa Helena de San Finzione led Suzy-Q through the secret passage up to her bedroom.

* * *

"Wow," Julie Equals said, looking out the window of the limousine. "Troy, look, she's still there!"

Troy Equals, her husband, looked out her window at the Yia-Yia, illuminated by a streetlight and drinking her vino. They both waved, even though there was no way the old woman could have seen them through the tinted glass.

"You know her?" Susan Bailey asked, also looking out a window at the Yia-Yia.

"We met her last time we were here," Troy explained. "We should stop by again if we get the chance."

The limousine made its way slowly toward the hospital. Because Colleen now lived in San Finzione for business, the driver had delivered her to long-term parking at the airport. They'd said their goodbyes and promised to see each other again during their stay before proceeding into the city.

Troy, Julie, and Susan continued looking out the windows at the sidewalk and hospital lawn where people stood holding candles and signs. Susan tried to read the ones that she could, but English was the only one of San Finzione's four official languages that she knew. A few signs amongst the others were in a different language altogether.

"Let's see," she said. "English, Italian, French, Spanish... What's that other one?"

"Swahili," Troy replied as the limo turned onto the hospital drive. "San Finzione's Uongoian community is very supportive of La Contessa."

They pulled up to the main entrance. Because the Ultimados had standing orders from Contessa Helena that, should they come to San Finzione, under no circumstances are these personal friends of La Contessa to come in contact with the press; the reporters had been pushed out past the vigil. The entrance of the hospital had also been darkened to discourage tele-photography for the limousine's approach, and a security canopy covered the walk from the car to the main door. Troy motioned for Scappa, Helena's chauffeur, not to bother getting the door and stepped out.

He turned to help his wife out of the car. When he turned back to Susan and offered his hand, she wouldn't take it.

"Susan, hon?" Troy asked, looking at Susan's face. She was concentrating on something distant, focused on it. Troy turned and saw nothing but the sliding glass doors of the hospital at the end of the long, white tunnel, the universal red-on-white crosses on either door. He looked back at Susan, discomfort growing on her face as she tried to will her foot to continue its journey that final two inches to the ground.