Starting Again

Job Details:

Job Sign-Up: Page 14, Post Number 336

-The outskirts of Capital Crocus, early morning-

Wearing her casual outfit of purple short-sleeved t-shirt, black skirt, black thigh-high stockings, and white tennis shoes, Diana stood on the outskirts of Capital Crocus. She had called in a favor from her old client Mister Burke to temporarily store her clothing and other items in the guest room of his home in Shirotsume so that her possessions would be safe while she looked for a new home. The transfer had occurred without a hitch and now she could focus on finding a new home without worrying about her possessions being stolen while she was out apartment hunting. However, she did not want to abuse Mister Burke's generosity, so she would make the search as quick as possible.

Diana felt the wind blow her hair about as she was lost in thought. She had a lot to think about, but she kept coming back to one thought in particular. That thought was concerning her status in the world.

Today she was a legitimate Guildless mage.

Diana's former guild had disbanded and now she had to make her own way in the world again. While the thought of going freelance again was one that she had considered from time to time during her tenure in the guild, she had never taken that step because she had made a commitment that she was determined to honor because keeping one's word was just good business. Now that the guild was no more, Diana could take a certain measure of pride in knowing that she had honored the commitment to the end. Now she was free to move on with her life.

The first thing Diana needed to do was find some housing. Her first impulse was to find a modest apartment to rent, but Diana wanted to celebrate this new phase in her life. She also wanted a place for Ami, that faithful android who had been by her side through many jobs. She doubted that apartments would allow her to keep Ami without having to rent both rooms and that was an expense that was simply not sustainable. Besides, Diana did not want to deal with a roommate who may or may not be inclined to pilfer through her room in her absence.

Why bother with all of that when she could buy her own place outright?

With that in mind Diana began to look for a real estate office where she could look at houses to buy. She was going to pay a lot of money up front, but a big one-time payment was a lot more affordable than having to pay rent month after month. It was also worth it for the privacy Diana would have by buying her own place. Furthermore, Ami would have her own space and no one would question her being there.

-Six hours later, Capital Crocus-

After negotiating with a real estate company named Verdant Properties and buying a townhouse that the previous owner had vacated due to moving elsewhere in Earthland, Diana stood outside her new townhouse, which was located in the "good" part of Capital Crocus on Crown Lane. It was a gray two-story townhouse with a balcony overlooking the street. Ami was at her side.

"Wow! All of that is yours?" Ami asked Diana with an expression of wonder.

"All of it is ours." Diana replied, correcting her android companion. Ami looked at her.

"You have a place there too, Ami." Diana added. Ami smiled.

"Really? So I won't have to live on the roof or live somewhere away from you?" Ami asked. Diana shook her head.

"Yay!" Ami exclaimed. Diana smiled a little and looked towards the townhouse. For once Diana felt something approaching optimism.

So far Diana's new beginning was going well. She had secured a nice townhouse for about 1.5 million Jewels and it was located in a "good" part of town where crime was not much of a concern. Now the huntress wanted to go inside and see her new purchase.

"Would you like to go inside?" Diana asked Ami.

"Yeah!" Ami answered with enthusiasm.

"Very well then. Let us go inside." Diana said. She took the key in her right hand and approached the door. She placed the key in the lock and unlocked it, then opened the door and went inside. Ami followed her inside and once the android was inside Diana shut the door and locked it behind them.

-Inside the townhouse-

Diana turned around and found herself standing inside a foyer with faux wood flooring. The foyer opened up onto a modest living room and a mini-kitchen with an open "window" that allowed a full view of the living room. To the left of the mini-kitchen was a staircase that led to the second floor. As luck would have it, it was just wide enough for Ami to get through if she brought her wings in. There was a short hallway that led to what looked like a bathroom, but Diana would look at it later.

"Wow, Diana. I can't believe that all of this is yours!" Ami exclaimed.

"Me neither." Diana calmly replied. She was pleased with what she saw so far. Getting it all for 1.5 million Jewels was practically a steal, especially considering where it was located. She would need to provide furnishings for the townhouse and that would be an additional expense, but she did not mind. The only person she had to share the townhouse with was Ami and that was worth every Jewel she had spent to buy it.

"Ready to go upstairs?" Ami asked Diana.

"I am ready." Diana replied.

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-On the second story-

Diana reached the top of the stairs to look down a short hallway that opened on to the master bedroom. It was a medium-sized room that had a glass door that opened onto the balcony she had seen from the ground. She looked away from the bedroom and looked to the left and right, then decided to take a short walk to see what the rooms were.

Diana reached the midpoint of the hall and looked inside the two doorways. To the left was a small but serviceable bathroom. To the right was a small guest bedroom that would be perfect for Ami to have as her own. However, that arrangement might be a problem in the unlikely event that Diana had guests. She would have to find a way to resolve that problem soon.

Ami walked up to Diana and looked at the rooms.

"Wow! You have a bathroom and a guest bedroom too!" Ami said. Diana nodded.

"And you have a room of your own." Diana replied. Ami looked at Diana.

"My own room?" Ami asked with uncertainty.

"You can have the guest bedroom as your personal room if you would like." Diana replied. Far from being happy to have her own room, Ami looked concerned when she heard that.

"But what about your guests?" Ami asked Diana with concern. Seeing that her companion's concern was real, the blonde took a few moments to try and think of a stopgap solution to the problem.

"When I have guests, you can stay in the master bedroom with me if you want. Or you can stay in the living room. That is up to you." Diana offered Ami a choice in the matter. Ami smiled a little.

"I'll decide where to stay when the time comes, Diana. You don't have to spend too much on my room since I don't sleep in a bed. I don't sleep at all, really. Since it's your place, you furnish it the way you want." Ami informed Diana that since she did not sleep at all her owner did not need to make any special effort to buy special furnishings just for the android.

"Very well then. I will leave it up to you." Diana replied calmly, trusting in her winged companion's judgment. She turned back to the master bedroom and took another look at it. It was medium-sized and had an open closet door on the right side of the room that might belong to a walk-in closet, but she would have to take a closer look at it later. Right now she needed to get her belongings back from Mister Burke.

Diana produced her iLac from her pocket and looked for Mister Burke's number.

"I need to call someone. I will return shortly, Ami." Diana informed her companion. Ami gave a thumbs-up with her left hand.

"OK! I'll be waiting right here!" Ami assured Diana as the latter went back downstairs to make the phone call.

-Diana's townhouse, the second story, five hours later-

After a four-hour wait the delivery van sent from Shirotsume with Diana's belongings had finally arrived an hour ago. It had dropped off Diana's belongings and she had put them in what was confirmed to be the walk-in closet in the master bedroom for the time being. She would have to find a way to return the favor Mister Burke had done for her, but she would deal with that later. Now that the issue of securing her belongings was taken care of, Diana could turn her focus back to purchasing furniture for her new home.

Diana had already spent a hefty sum on her home. She did not want to go overboard with her purchases and draw the wrong sort of attention, but going cheap was not something she wanted to do either. She wanted the expensive townhouse to look presentable and she would get furniture that made it look presentable. Besides, she wanted to enjoy the fruits of her success for once.

But first she needed to find a good furniture store.

Then Diana thought about the mini-kitchen.

It did not have any appliances in it except the kitchen sink.

Diana frowned. In addition to shopping for furniture, she would also have to shop for appliances too. She had been so focused on buying a decent home that she had forgotten about the need for appliances to furnish said home once she acquired it.

Furnishing this place was going to be very expensive and time-consuming. She should have known what she was getting into when she went looking for a place to live. At least this place was hers and hers alone, so she could furnish it at her pace. Since she did not enjoy sleeping on the floor, her first priority was buying a bed for the master bedroom... or a couch for the living room. Diana was not terribly picky about which one she purchased firsst just as long as she did not have to sleep on the floor.

It was time to use the Lacrimanet to look for a furniture store that could bring furniture to her new home. Diana turned to her iLac and used the Lacrimanet to begin searching for furniture stores in Capital Crocus.

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-Diana's townhouse, the first story, six hours later-

After a lengthy Lacrimanet search, Diana had located a furniture store located in downtown Capital Crocus named Upscale Home Furnishings. According to the Lacrimanet site, the store's claim to fame was that it boasted a small selection of home furnishings that were made by hand by master craftsmen instead of churned out in factories. Lacking a car or other form of transportation, Diana had walked there with her purse on her right shoulder.

Once she got to Upscale Home Furnishings Diana looked at everything on the show floor before making her selections. She even visited the section that contained the vaunted handmade furnishings the site had so proudly touted. Naturally the handmade furnishings cost a lot more than their mass-produced counterparts, so Diana stuck to the factory-made beds and bought two single beds for 60,000 Jewels apiece. One would go in the guest bedroom and the other would go in the master bedroom.

After purchasing beds Diana purchased a brown leather couch for the living room for another 75,000 Jewels. Once she had made her selections Diana paid in Jewels for her furniture and got her receipt, then set out for home. She found a deserted side alley where no one could see her and used her teleport ability to get home before the delivery van could arrive at her front doorstep.

Two hours after purchasing furniture the delivery crew had arrived. They put Diana's new couch in her living room and carried the beds upstairs, placing them exactly where she specified. The crew had even assembled the bedframes for her and put the matresses on them. Once that was done the crew left and Diana had a few basic pieces of furniture to make her new home look a little less empty.

"Wow, Diana! I bet that couch cost you a lot!" Ami exclaimed, running her left hand up and down the left arm.

"It cost me 75,000 Jewels." Diana calmly replied with the exact figure.

"It was worth it, though. I now have a leather couch for guests. Or I can sleep on it if all else fails, which I might have to do since I have not yet bought bedsheets for my new beds." Diana added. Ami looked at Diana.

"It's approaching late afternoon, Diana. If you hurry you can go buy bedsheets for the beds and curtains for the master bedroom!" Ami reminded Diana that the day was not yet over and that she still had a bit of time before sunset. The huntress realized that her companion was right and got her iLac to do a bit of browsing for a home goods store. After a ten-minute search Diana found a store named Crocus Home Goods that sold curtains, bedsheets, comforters, pillows, and other things that Diana needed. It was in downtown Capital Crocus, so Diana might be pressed for time when it came to getting back before nightfall.

"I have found a store named Crocus Home Goods that I will be going to. I will be back as soon as I can, Ami." Diana informed Ami of where she was going. Ami nodded.

"OK, Diana. Be careful out there!" Ami bade Diana a safe trip. Diana waved and turned around, walking for the front door with her purse slung on her right shoulder. It was going to get a little bit lighter before the day was over, but it would be worth it to both get some bedsheets so that she would not have to sleep on the couch and to ensure the privacy of her master bedroom.

-Diana's townhouse, the living room, three hours later-

Entering her home with two shopping bags containing bedsheets, pillowcases, comforters, and other necessary items for two single beds plus a set of blackout curtains for her master bedroom and some tools necessary to install the curtain rod, Diana was well-prepared to make up both her beds and set up her new blackout curtains.

"Hi Diana!" Ami greeted Diana. Diana nodded back at her android companion and walked towards the stairway, taking the bags upstairs. Ami followed behind her owner and the pair went upstairs to begin putting up the blackout curtain.

-Diana's townhouse, the second story, two hours later-

It had taken a lot of work and repeatedly consulting the instructions that came with the curtains, but Diana had finally set up her blackout curtains over her bedroom window. Now no one could see her when she went to sleep or moved about in the room. Diana opened and closed the curtains a couple of times to make certain that the setup did not collapse on her whenever she used it tomorrow morning. Thanks to the clear instructions she had followed, Diana's installation work held and the curtains remained on the rod.

Now she needed to make up her bed before using it. She grabbed the package containing white bedsheets for her bed and frowned when she learned that she would need to wash them before using them. Diana did not have a washing machine yet... or electric power... or running water, for that matter. Diana wordlessly tossed the package back onto the bed and frowned.

"You don't look very happy, Diana. What is it?" Ami asked Diana. The blonde turned to face her companion.

"I need to wash these bedsheets before I use them. Unfortunately I do not have a washing machine yet." Diana replied with more than a little disappointment on her voice. Ami walked over and patted Diana on the right shoulder in a gesture of sympathy.

"It's OK, Diana. You can take care of it in the morning." Ami assured her. To Diana's surprise her skin crawled only a little when Ami patted her on the shoulder. Maybe that was because she trusted Ami.

"You are right, Ami. I will deal with it in the morning. Until then I will just sleep on the couch." Diana replied. Ami smiled a little.

"OK. I'll be down there shortly!" Ami said. Diana nodded and began to walk out of the master bedroom to go down the stairs and go to the living room to sleep on the couch. Furnishing a home was expensive and there was still a lot that needed to be purchased before this townhouse could be truly called a home.

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-The next morning, 8:00 A.M.-

Sitting on her couch in her pink Earthland Eagle t-shirt and blue jean short shorts because her normal casual outfit was dirty, Diana had used the Lacrimanet to browse at a washing machine and dryer to go into her small laundry room, which was to the right of the front door. She had also found the offices for utilities and planned to have them turned on soon. She just wished that she had more to wear than short shorts. Maybe she could get away with wearing the same skirt she had worn yesterday because she did not want to walk into a place of business wearing short shorts.

Diana set the iLac down and went to change into the black skirt from yesterday and put on some new socks. Her first order of business was to get water and electricity running to the place. Once that was accomplished she would go pick out a washer and dryer so that she could wash her clothes and bedsheets. The third step was to get a refrigerator so that she could keep some bottled and canned drinks in her home for herself and for guests. The fourth step was getting an oven to cook meals so that she did not have to eat out all the time, but she did not know how to really cook for herself.

Diana frowned.

She was going to have a busy day ahead of her and she might as well get going. Diana got up from the couch to change from short shorts to skirt and put on her shoes, then start visiting places she needed to go.

-Diana's townhouse, six hours later-

It was early afternoon when Diana finally returned home from going to the water and power departments and getting water and power, going to an appliance store and picking out a good mid-range washer, dryer, and refrigerator, and getting home in time to receive delivery of said appliances. Now Diana needed to get some laundry detergent for her clothes and bedsheets, towels for her bathrooms, and some food and drinks to put in the refrigerator.

The wait at the water and power departments was a lengthy ordeal because both departments were short-staffed. It took one-and-a-half hours of waiting at the water department and two hours of waiting at the power department, but she managed to get both amenities flowing into her home. She had also purchased decent mid-range appliances like a washer, dryer, and refrigerator; they were all good models that did not break the bank and that was what Diana was looking for right now. Diana stood in the living room looking at her new stainless steel double-door refrigerator through the window and felt a sense of pride.

She had bought it with her own money and now it was hers.

She then took it one step further.

This entire house and everything in it was hers.

Diana took a few moments to appreciate what her years of saving had just accomplished. Instead of blowing her money on a trip to Crescent Island and getting little out of it other than a sunburn and a gaping hole in her savings, she had spent that money on something that would be hers for life... or so she hoped. At any rate, she did not have to rent an apartment and she did not have to share this space with a roommate. That was a big win no matter how one looked at it.

After allowing herself a few moments of pride Diana plotted her next outing. In that outing she would prioritize buying bath soap, laundry detergent, and bathcloths and towels. After those four must-haves were procured Diana would buy food and drinks. Food and drinks were not as high a priority because Ami did not need to eat or drink and Diana could get take-out food a few days until she finally got everything sorted out. She hoped that she could get it sorted out soon because she was spending a lot more than she had anticipated making this house a home.

Now it was time to go spend still more money in yet another shopping trip. Maybe soon she could stop hemorrhaging money and begin saving some for a trip to Crescent Island in the distant future. But first she had to go shopping for basic household necessities.

Diana looked up the location of her nearest big box store that sold a little of everything and found one that was about a forty-five minute walk from her home. There was still plenty of daylight, but regardless of whether it was day or night it was not going to be a quick walk. Diana had better get going now to make the most out of her trip... and to get home while there still was daylight. Ami walked into the living room as Diana was preparing to leave for yet another shopping trip.

"Going shopping again, huh?" Ami asked Diana. Diana nodded.

"Yes, Ami. I hope that this will be the last major trip I have to make for awhile." Diana replied.

"Don't worry about anything, Diana. I'll be protecting your house while you're gone!" Ami said as Diana left the house to go on another shopping trip. Diana hoped that this would be the last one she would have to make for awhile. Her pocketbook was beginning to become lighter than she would like and her feet were starting to kill her.

Maybe she should look into buying a car some time soon so that she did not have to walk all over Capital Crocus. She could also put things in the back seat or in the trunk of the car so that she did not have to carry her purchases all over Capital Crocus.

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-Diana's townhouse, three hours later-

Diana strugged to get inside the front door of her home, but somehow she managed to pull it off. Diana managed to get her house keys and put them into her right hand and unlock the door while carrying bags full of bath soap, bathcloths and towels, and two bottles of laundry detergent. That was a balancing act that she did not want to repeat again for awhile. The blonde shut the door behind her and Ami walked up to her.

"Wow Diana, you sure bought a lot of stuff!" Ami commented on the number of bags Diana had brought in. They totaled fifteen. How Diana managed to buy them, walk home with them without an accident, and open the door to her house was nothing short of a minor miracle.

"Yeah." Diana said laconically as Ami took the bags containing the four bottles of bath soap off of Diana's hands. The blonde was exhausted from the effort, but she had gotten almost all of her home needs taken care of. Everything except for food and drinks. That could wait until tomorrow.

"I'll take these upstairs for you." Ami said. Diana nodded.

"OK. I will be there shortly." Diana said, taking the two bottles of laundry detergent to the laundry room. Now that she had laundry detergent she could finally wash her clothes and bedsheets... later. Right now she wanted something to eat, but she was not sure what she wanted to get. She would have to consult the Lacrimanet to see if there were any good restaurants within walking distance.

-In the living room, three minutes later-

Diana had finished putting the laundry detergent away, so now she was going to sit on the couch and look for restaurants that were nearby. But first she had to take the bathcloths and towels upstairs, then open their packaging and sort them out so that she could wash them. Diana looked longingly towards the couch, then forced herself to go upstairs with the bags of bathcloths and towels.

-Upstairs, in the master bedroom-

"I already put the bath soap in the bathroom for you!" Ami informed Diana as the latter walked into the master bedroom.

"Splendid." Diana commented as she walked to the bed and set down the bags she had carried upstairs. Her hands were tired from carrying shopping bags from the store to her house and she wanted to take a break from carrying anything for a bit.

"I looked in the bags of bath soap and couldn't help but to notice something, Diana. Unless I'm mistaken, I don't think that you bought shampoo." Ami reported to her owner. Diana mentally went over her purchases at the big box store. She realized that the android was right and frowned.

"Damn it." Diana muttered in frustration. She would have to go back to the store again first thing in the morning. This was getting old really fast.

"Don't worry, Diana. Everything will be OK!" Ami assured Diana. The blonde took a deep breath and slowly exhaled.

"I hope so, Ami." Diana replied. She was slowly putting together her household, but she was forgetting key things that she should be remembering like buying shampoo to go with her bath soap. At least those were small mistakes that she could remedy with a trip to the store.

-The next day, 10:00 A.M.-

Clutching a single plastic bag containing two bottles of shampoo, Diana arrived home from the big box store. She also had looked at purchasing some bottled water, but the store had run out and would get some more next week. She also could not find any good snack foods, so instead of wasting money on things she would not eat Diana just decided to wait and eat at restaurants. Diana was tired of going shopping for awhile, so she would just do without bottled water and drink tap water.

She had been forced to wear her pink Earthland Eagle t-shirt with blue jean short shorts since her favorite black skirt was too dirty to wear a third day in a row. Virtually no one cared that she was wearing a pink t-shirt with short shorts and tennis shoes while she shopped. Now that she had both shampoo and bath soap she could take a shower, then wash her favorite casual outfit so that she did not have to go everywhere wearing short shorts.

Diana went upstairs with her bag of shampoo to go get a shower before washing her clothes. She hoped that she had some spare clothes she could wear while washing her meager wardrobe.

-The living room, 11:35 A.M.-

Dressed in her purple long-sleeved t-shirt and blue jean short shorts, Diana had taken a shower and had managed to find clean clothes to wear until she could get the mainstays of her meager wardrobe washed and ready to wear again. She had put her clothes in the washing machine, put in some detergent, and had turned it on. While she waited for her laundry to finish Diana sat on the couch in her living room.

Diana saw Ami walk down the stairs from the second story and wave at her once she reached the bottom.

"Hey Diana, are you going shopping again today?" Ami asked. Diana shook her head.

"I hope not. I have had enough shopping for awhile." Diana replied. She hoped that she could spend at least one day at home without having to go shop somewhere for something she had forgotten during a previous shopping trip. This time she was pretty sure that she had gotten everything she could possibly need for a few days.

At least she thought she had.

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Having done all the shopping she intended to do for the time being, Diana planned to sit around a few hours and wash her clothes and bedsheets. Once she took care of those chores she might go get something to eat or go do something like go to the mall or go to the movie theater.

Or at least that was the plan before someone knocked on her door.

"Who's that?" Ami asked Diana. Diana looked at her android companion.

"I do not know." Diana replied. Ami had a wary look on her face.

"Did you invite anyone to see your new house? Did you invite that Aliarey chick I met several months ago?" Ami asked Diana. Diana shook her head.

"No, Ami. I did not invite anyone to this house. No one I know knows that I have purchased a house." Diana informed Ami that she had not invited anyone here. The blonde was starting to get a bit wary herself. Who could possibly be knocking at the door?

Had The Shadow Collective tracked her here?

Or was it Mordecai looking to finish what he had started in Fat Monsterland?

The knocking continued.

"Are you gonna get the door?" Ami asked Diana. The blonde hesitated for a moment before giving her answer.

"I will get the door." Diana replied in the affirmative.

"Be careful, Diana!" Ami warned her owner.

The blonde then began walking towards the door. When she reached it moments later she hesitated for a moment. She then unlocked it and opened the door to find a black-haired young woman looking at her. The young woman wore a midriff-baring red tank top and short black skirt with white tennis shoes. She looked sort of familiar, but the huntress was having trouble putting a name to a face.

"Oh hey Diana! I didn't know you moved into this neighborhood! I saw someone who looked like you holding a bunch of plastic shopping bags enter this house the other day and wondered if that was you!" The young woman said to Diana. Diana's eyes narrowed. Diana had just learned how the stranger knew she lived here, but how did the stranger know her name?

"I'm Amber, remember? I'm Catherine Corvinus' friend! Remember when we all went to Boomslang that time?" Amber asked Diana. The huntress recalled a day where she met Amber at Capital Crocus Mall and went with her to Boomslang that same night along with their mutual friend Catherine Corvinus. When she recalled that meeting and put a name to a face Diana relaxed.

"Hello, Amber. I did not expect to see you here." Diana calmly greeted the raven-haired young woman. Amber wordlessly reached out and embraced Diana in a tight hug. The blonde's skin crawled until she was released moments later.

"I live in this neighborhood, ya know. My parents prefer the suburbs 'cause it's kinda quiet there, but I've gotta live in the city because of my job. My parents are rich, so they bought a townhouse just for me." Amber explained how she ended up in Crown Lane. Although she did not expect to see her here, Diana was glad to have at least one friendly face in the neighborhood.

"I just moved in yesterday." Diana told Amber when she had moved into the neighborhood. Amber smiled.

"Welcome to Crown Lane, Diana!" Amber "officially" welcomed Diana to the neighborhood and hugged the blonde again. Diana's skin crawled until she was let go.

"Thanks." Diana thanked Amber for the warm welcome to Crown Lane. Amber smiled widely.

"No problem, Diana." Amber replied. Diana wondered if Amber was going to ask to come inside the house, but so far the conversation was not heading in that direction. Diana would do everything she could to keep the conversation away from that subject. Her home was nowhere near ready to be shown to anyone.

Amber looked at Diana for a few moments and looked like she wanted to ask the huntress something but then decided against it for some reason.

"I was gonna ask you if you wanted to go to the mall or go to a movie tonight, but I've gotta work tonight. I might ask you another day, though." Amber revealed that she wanted to invite Diana to spend time with her before realizing that she had to work tonight. Diana was not terribly upset by that. She needed to ease up on spending Jewels because she still had basic necessities to buy like food, drinks, silverware, plates, drinking cups, and so on and so forth. She also might want to get a television as well, if only to keep up with the news.

"Very well then. Perhaps another time." Diana said hopefully while wearing the mask of politeness she had worn for years, slipping back into it with ease. Truthfully she was not too upset about Amber having to work because she was not looking forward to spending time with the raven. Diana just did not know Amber that well and was wary of her.

"All right then. I'll catch you later, Diana. It's nice to have you in the neighborhood!" Amber said to the blonde before waving goodbye and walking away. Diana waved goodbye and shut the door, then locked it. She felt a little bad for not inviting her acquaintance to come inside and look at her new home, but that feeling quickly faded.

Diana was going to invite new people into her life on her terms and her terms alone.

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Diana had just walked away from the door when she heard footsteps a short distance behind her. She turned around and found Ami looking at her.

"Who was that? Someone trying to sell you something?" Ami asked Diana. Diana shook her head.

"An acquaintance of mine I met several months ago. As it turns out, she lives in this neighborhood too." Diana replied calmly. Diana was not sure where exactly to place Amber on the list of people she knew. Amber was not an enemy, but she was not a friend either. She was a casual acquaintance at best, but she could become a friend... if Diana let her.

"Oh. OK!" Ami cheerfully replied, letting the matter drop now that her curiosity was satisfied. Suddenly they heard beeping coming from the laundry room.

"The washing machine must have finished its cycle. I had better put my clothes in the dryer." Diana said and entered the laundry room without further delay. As soon as she had finished putting the laundry in the dryer she would wash her bedsheets next. She really did not enjoy sleeping on the couch and wanted to sleep in the bed she had paid a hefty sum for.

-Four hours and fifteen minutes later, the master bedroom-

Diana was standing in her walk-in closet hanging up her clothes with the help of Ami, who was holding individual articles of clothing while the blonde put them on some plastic hangers she had bought at the big box store two hours ago. Despite her intention not to go shopping, Diana had been forced to go shopping because she really needed some clothes hangers. Ami had thoughtfully draped her dried clothes across the couch so that they would not get wrinkled while Diana was out and about buying still more necessities. Diana had returned roughly two hours later with not only enough plastic clothes hangers for all her clothing but also a case of bottled water and a box of canned Cherry Charge sodas so that she finally had some drinks to put in the refrigerator.

While she was there Diana had also looked at the televisions that were in stock and she had gotten a couple of ideas. One of them was a 60" flatscreen for about 40,000 Jewels and the other was a 72" flatscreen for about 60,000 Jewels. Diana did not need a huge television because she was not going to watch it all that much, but if she was going to spend the money on one, she might as well get one worth watching.

Diana hung up her purple long-sleeved t-shirt and turned to Ami for another item to hang up. As it turned out the android had nothing else to give her.

"You've hung everything up, Diana. We're finished with this chore!" Ami informed Diana. The blonde was pleased to hear that. The bedsheets were either already finished washing or were very close to being finished.

"Splendid. I will go downstairs and see if the bedsheets are ready to be dried." Diana said to Ami and walked out of the walk-in closet to go downstairs. Ami followed Diana out to help her with putting the bedsheets in the dryer.

-Downstairs, six minutes later-

Diana and Ami had finished putting the bedsheets into the dryer and were now waiting for them to dry. That would be roughly an hour from now, so the pair exited the laundry room and Diana shut the door behind them. They now stood in the living room with nothing to do but look at each other.

"Hey Diana, I noticed something when we were putting those sheets into the dryer." Ami said to Diana.

"Oh? What might that be?" Diana asked her android companion.

"You didn't get pillows when you bought bedsheets, did you?" Ami asked the blonde. Diana realized that Ami was right and frowned. That was yet another item she had forgotten to buy during her shopping trips. She would have to make another trip to buy them. Diana took a deep breath to focus on what she had to do.

Tonight Diana would have to make a list of everything she did not have, then write it all down. Once that was done she would prioritize what she needed to get right away and what she could delay buying. Once the priority list was finished she would get up early tomorrow morning and buy one or two of the items she needed the most, then go from there.

It was a good plan, but Diana knew from experience that plans had a way of being derailed by unanticipated difficulties. Still, she needed to make a list and try to get a little more out of her shopping trips. Once her bedsheets were dry and they had been put on the beds she would make the list.

Putting a house in order was a lot harder than Diana had imagined it would be.

[Post Word Count: 824]
[Total Word Count: 6,536/11,000]

-The next day, 3:25 P.M.-

Last night Diana had made a list of everything she needed to buy as soon as possible and everything she wanted to get but could safely delay buying until a better time. At 9:00 A.M. this morning she had went on a shopping trip to get all of the priority items like pillows, pillowcases, food, and more drinks. Diana had made it back home around 1:15 P.M. and had secured most of what she needed.

She had gotten pillows, pillowcases, hand soap, bath soap, and food at the big box store. She had gotten comforters for both beds at Crocus Home Goods. After getting the comforters she had went back to the big box store and purchased more bottled water, canned drinks, and toilet paper so that she did not run out of those essentials any time soon. It had been a pain to haul everything home without a vehicle, but she had not hauled everything home in one go. She had made trips home after each purchase because without a car or Ami to help her there was no way in Earthland she could haul it all home herself.

Now that she was finished shopping for the day Diana looked around her living room to see what she needed in terms of furniture, which was not a whole lot. She "needed" a television to watch the news on and she "needed" a kitchen table and chairs to have somewhere to eat so that she did not have to stand up and eat in the kitchen. She also "needed" a coffee table for the living room. Diana could get the television at an electronics store and she could get the kitchen table and chairs and coffee table at Crocus Home Goods.

Diana had gotten most of the "gotta have" essentials today, so she was going to take a day or two off from shopping and make another list of what she had to have. She already knew of a few items she had not gotten from the big box store today. Two of the most important items were plates and silverware. Having food would not do her much good if she did not have anything to eat it on and utensils to eat it with, after all.

The blonde was glad to be finished with the must-have items because the cycle of going out and buying items only to discover that there was something she had forgotten was getting old really fast. She was going to stay out of the stores for awhile so that she did not spend any more money than she had to. However, that would be easier said than done.

Diana's musings were interrupted by a knock on the door and she frowned. Ami came from upstairs and spoke to Diana.

"Hey Diana, I heard a knock on your door. Did you hear it?" Ami asked Diana. The blonde nodded.

"I heard it, Ami. I will answer it shortly." Diana replied. She was not keen on having guests and she was especially not keen on having uninvited guests. If she really wanted privacy she should have just bought a mansion in the outskirts of Capital Crocus, but that would have cost over three million Jewels. Diana could easily live with her situation if the worst problems she had were being unable to buy everything she needed in one shopping trip or having to put up with people constantly knocking on her door: it helped that her situation was pretty good to start with.

She had her own place that was bought and paid for. She had her own money and could easily make more by working as a freelance mage. She had a faithful companion who would stay by her side no matter what. It was safe to say Diana was in a better place than a lot of mages.

However, it was no crime to want more. Provided she obtained what she wanted through legitimate means it was no crime to want more out of life. She could work to get that mansion on the outskirts of the city and not feel guilty for wanting it even though she already had a good thing going.

The knock sounded again and this time Diana got up to answer the door. She approached it as Ami hung back to watch Diana in case this was the prelude to a home invasion. Diana unlocked the door and opened it to find a familiar face standing on the other side.

"Hey Diana! How's it going?" Amber asked Diana. Today the black-haired young woman was a little more modestly dressed: she was wearing a white t-shirt and short black skirt with white tennis shoes.

"It is going all right, Amber." Diana answered in as friendly a manner as she could put on for the unexpected visitor. She had not been expecting Amber to visit again so soon, but today her house was in slightly better shape than it had been yesterday. She actually had a few drinks in the refrigerator to share with guests and had hand soap for the bathrooms, so if Amber wanted to go inside Diana's home the blonde was somewhat prepared to be a hostess.

"Great! Listen, there's something I wanna talk to ya about. Mind if I come in?" Amber asked Diana. The blonde nodded.

"Certainly. Come on in, Amber." Diana gave permission for Amber to enter her home. Amber entered and Diana shut the door behind her.

[Post Word Count: 918]
[Total Word Count: 7,454/11,000]

-In Diana's living room-

Amber now stood in Diana's living room along with Diana and Ami. The dark-haired young woman looked around the place for a moment and spotted Ami standing near the entrance to the mini-kitchen. The raven's curiosity was palpable as her eyes settled on the android.

"Hey Diana, who's your friend over there?" Amber asked Diana while pointing to Ami. Before the huntress could respond the android answered the question herself.

"My name's Ami!" Ami replied cheerfully.

"Are you a friend of Diana's?" Amber asked Ami.

"Yeah. Diana and I have been friends for a little over a year now!" Ami answered the question. Amber gave the android a small smile.

"I'm Amber. It's nice to meet you!" Amber replied before waving at Ami. Ami smiled and waved back at Amber. Diana was surprised to see that Ami was becoming assertive enough to answer questions herself, but it was a pleasant surprise.

Now that her curiosity about Ami was satisfied, Amber turned back to Diana.

"OK, so you know my friend Catherine Corvinus, right?" Amber asked Diana. The blonde nodded.

"Yes, Amber. I know her." Diana answered. Diana had met Catherine several times in the past. They had worked together on behalf of Mister Burke twice and they had visited Boomslang together at least once. Their last meeting was a trip to Lakefront Animation Studios where Catherine had worked as technical support and Diana had been unexpectedly pushed into auditioning as a voice actress.

"I haven't been able to get in contact with her at all. I've called her iLac and I've texted her. I haven't heard a single word from her. It's been a few days and I'm starting to get worried." Amber said with a measure of concern. Diana folded her arms across her chest.

"Do you think that Catherine is just asleep?" Diana asked Amber. The raven shrugged her shoulders.

"I don't know, Diana. I know that she does a lot of computer repair work. I also know that she's really into computer gaming. She stays up real late doing both of those things. But it's not like her to not answer me when I call or text." Amber replied and gave a little insight into Catherine's personal life. Diana recalled Catherine's living room having quite a few empty pizza boxes and boxes for computer parts scattered throughout the room. She also recalled the time Catherine had told her about the work she had done on upgrading her personal computer.

"Would you like me to go by her place and see about her?" Diana asked Amber. The raven nodded.

"Yeah, that'd be great. I'd go to her house myself, but I got called in to work tonight, so I've got only a few hours to get ready before I have to go." Amber explained why she had not gone to check on her friend. Diana would gladly go check on Catherine because she did not have anything pressing to do. Ami could take care of things here while Diana was out on that errand.

"Is there anything else I need to know before I go to Catherine's house?" Diana asked Amber. The raven shook her head.

"No, but I would like your Lacrima Identification Code before I go. I'd like you to text me the moment you find out how Catherine's doing." Amber replied before requesting Diana's Lacrima Identification Code. Despite her misgivings Diana decided to give it to Amber because she had just started a new life and she needed to learn to start trusting others if she wanted to have more than just acquaintances in her new life. Amber seemed like someone who could be trusted with her code.

Diana got her iLac off of the couch and made the exchange of codes with Amber. Once that was finished Amber reached out and hugged Diana, causing the blonde's skin to crawl until she was released.

"Well, it's been great, but I'd better get going. Thanks for doing this for me, Diana!" Amber said before turning towards the front door. Diana followed and let Amber out, then shut the door and turned back to Ami, who had been standing near the entrance to the mini-kitchen the whole time.

"I take it you're gonna go to town again soon?" Ami asked Diana. Diana nodded.

"Yes, Ami. Catherine is a good acquaintance of mine and I want to see if she is doing all right." Diana answered. Ami gave a thumbs-up with her right hand.

"OK! I'll watch over your house while you're gone!" Ami assured her. Diana nodded.

"I will be leaving in a few minutes." Diana informed her android companion. She had wanted to wash her pillowcases this afternoon, but that chore would have to be put on hold until she got back from checking on Catherine. Diana did not mind the delay, though. Catherine was a good acquaintance of hers and helping her would not be a problem.

[Post Word Count: 826]
[Total Word Count: 8,280/11,000]

-Capital Crocus, outside Catherine's house, two hours and twenty-five minutes later-

After leaving her home in the care of Ami and navigating the busy streets of Capital Crocus on foot Diana had finally reached Catherine's house after a lengthy walk. She was here to honor her promise to Amber to check on the black-haired computer expert's well-being. After catching her breath the blonde located the doorbell and pressed it. It rang and she waited patiently for Catherine to answer.

While she waited for Catherine to answer the door the huntress began to mentally make a list of everything she needed to buy for her new house on future shopping trips. There were quite a few items she needed to buy before her shopping would be finished, but last night she had made a list of priority items to facilitate the decision-making process. One of the most important items was plates to eat her meals off of. Another essential item was silverware to eat with. A third must-have item for the kitchen was drinking glasses.

Thinking of those three items brought to mind some more kitchen-related items that she needed to buy at some point.

She needed dish soap, sponges, washcloths, drying towels, paper towels, oven mitts... the list of items she needed never seemed to end.

Diana's pocketbook was going to have a sizable hole in it after she had bought everything she needed for her new home.

Diana set those thoughts aside for the moment to focus on her current task. She listened out for the sound of the door being opened and when it did not seem like it was going to open Diana rang the doorbell a second time, then stepped back and waited. A few more minutes passed and Catherine had still not come to the door.

Diana was started to get a little concerned for Catherine's well-being, but it was not time to panic just yet. The blonde waited a few minutes more before approaching the door and knocking on it. After knocking on the door she stepped back and waited again.

Six more minutes passed and there was still no response. Catherine should have already arrived to get the door by now. Diana was starting to worry when she heard the door being unlocked and saw a familiar face.

"What? What is it?" Catherine asked Diana while shielding her eyes from the sunlight with her left hand. The black-haired young woman was wearing a wrinkled blue DJ Dynamo t-shirt and black gym shorts and her hair was messy. She looked like she had been asleep until she was awakened by the doorbell and the knocking on the door.

"Amber sent me to check on you. She told me that you have not answered her calls or text messages in a few days." Diana told Catherine the reason for her visit. The raven blinked.

"Amber tried to call and text me?" Catherine asked the blonde. Diana nodded.

"I need to go find my iLac. Want to come inside and wait in my living room while I go look for it?" Catherine asked Diana.

"Yes, please." Diana replied. Catherine motioned for Diana to come in and Diana went inside the house. Catherine shut the door and locked it behind Diana.

-Inside Catherine's house, the living room-

Diana entered the living room to find the coffee table loaded with empty pizza boxes and there was nowhere to sit on the couch because it was filled with empty boxes of computer parts. The wall to the right of the couch was stacked with more boxes of computer parts that were roughly knee-high. It was safe to say that Catherine had not done any cleaning lately.

"Sorry about the mess, Diana. I've been pretty busy lately. You see, I've been doing a lot of work for Lakefront Animation Studios. They must have been impressed by the tech support I did for them last time because they've been asking me to help out there. I'm trying to juggle that and my computer repair job plus my freelance work." Catherine apologized for the mess and told Diana some interesting information. The huntress decided to follow up on what she had just been told and asked a question.

"Was that work why you did not answer Amber's calls and text messages?" Diana asked Catherine in an attempt to find out if the work was related to her not answering her friend. The raven nodded.

"Yeah." Catherine answered wearily. She then looked towards the back of the house.

"Speaking of calls, lemme go get my iLac and let Amber know I'm OK before I forget all about it. I'll be back in a few minutes." Catherine said before turning around and walking towards her room while Diana remained in the living room. Diana watched Catherine walk around the corner and out of sight. Diana then began the wait for her acquaintance to return with iLac in hand.

[Post Word Count: 824]
[Total Word Count: 9,104/11,000]

-Catherine's house, three minutes later-

Diana had settled in for a long wait, but it did not take Catherine very long to return with her iLac in hand. The trip to and from her room had only taken a little over three minutes.

"Hey Diana, I found my iLac. I saw all the text messages and missed calls from Amber and there were a lot of them. I meant A LOT of them. I'm about to let her know that I'm OK. I'll also let her know that you came by to see about me." Catherine informed Diana and began to type out a text message. The huntress watched the raven and heard rapid typing sounds coming from the iLac, then heard a soft DING when the text message was sent. Once that was done Catherine lowered her iLac and spoke to Diana.

"Thanks for coming here to check on me, Diana." Catherine thanked Diana for coming to her house to check on her well-being.

"It is no problem, Catherine. Amber was concerned about you and sent me to see how you were doing. I am glad that I could help both of you." Diana said to the dark-haired young woman. While her response undoubtedly made her sound like she was only here because Amber had asked her to pay a visit, Diana had come here of her own free will. She had chosen to honor her promise to Amber with no expectation of reward for doing so.

"Well, I won't hold you up any longer, Diana. I know that you're a busy person and that you've got better things to do than hang around here all day. I've gotta go work in a few hours and I need to sleep, so I'll see you later." Catherine said to Diana. The huntress took that as her cue to leave.

"Very well then. I will see you later, Catherine." Diana bade farewell to Catherine and turned to walk towards the door. She opened the door and stepped outside. The moment she exited the house the door was shut and locked behind her. Now that her work was done Diana faced a lengthy walk back to her house, but she was used to traveling long distances on foot. Remembering her promise to Amber to let the latter know how Catherine was doing the moment Diana found out, the blonde pulled out her iLac and dashed out a quick text message.

It seemed redundant to do that after Catherine had sent a text message of her own to Amber, but Diana had given her word and was going to keep it. Once the message had been typed and sent Diana put away her iLac and began the walk home.

-Two hours and twenty-five minutes later, Diana's house-

Having arrived back at her home after a long walk through a very busy Capital Crocus, Diana was now standing in her living room. She sat down on her couch and pulled out her iLac to see if Amber had responded to the text message she had sent earlier. Diana searched her Inbox and did not find anything. She also did not find any phone calls she had missed, so she assumed that Amber had learned everything she needed to know from Catherine's text message.

Diana set the iLac down on the left side of her couch, then stood up and walked towards her refrigerator to get something to drink. Diana had just taken eleven steps towards the mini-kitchen when she saw Ami coming from upstairs and stopped to greet her.

"Hello Ami." Diana greeted her android companion. Ami waved back.

"Hey Diana! Was Catherine OK?" Ami asked Diana. Diana nodded.

"Catherine was fine, Ami. She had just been busy with work lately and had not answered Amber's calls or text messages." Diana replied.

"Oh, OK! I'm glad that Catherine was OK in the end!" Ami expressed gratitude for everything turning out fine. Diana too was glad for the positive outcome. Even though she did not quite consider Catherine a friend despite interacting with her a few times in the past, the huntress considered her a good acquaintance and did not want anything bad to happen to her.

"Now that that's over with, what are you gonna do now?" Ami asked Diana.

"There are still plenty of household tasks that need doing, like putting the comforters on the beds and putting the pillowcases on the pillows once they are washed. Then I have to put soap and toilet paper in the bathrooms." Diana replied with a list of things that she needed to do before she could call it a day. There was still much that needed to be done. However, now that she had kept her promises to Amber, Diana could refocus on getting her house in order both metaphorically and literally.

"OK, let's get going then!" Ami said to Diana. Diana abandoned her plan to go into the mini-kitchen for something to drink in favor of finishing the chores she had started earlier. Together the pair went upstairs to resume work on the numerous chores that had been interrupted by Amber's unexpected visit.

[Post Word Count: 860]
[Total Word Count: 9,964/11,000]

-Two hours later, in Diana's bedroom-

It had taken a lot of time and effort, but Diana's house was finally in order... for the time being. She had stocked the bathrooms with hand soap and toilet paper. She had put the comforters on both her bed and the guest bed. She had just finished putting the pillowcases on the pillows.

Diana had completed all of those chores later than she had intended, but at least they were now finished. However, her work was not yet complete. She would need to buy still more furniture and appliances before her shopping would finally be finished, but taking steps towards making her house look more like a home gave her a sense of accomplishment. The fact that she owned her home outright made her feel even more accomplished.

Owning her own home was perhaps her greatest achievement in life.

This was something she could be genuinely proud of.

This was an achievement she could openly boast about... if she were the boasting type.

"Now that we've done all of those chores, what do we do from here?" Ami asked Diana. Diana turned to her android companion and made eye contact with the latter.

"There are still household items I need to buy, but another shopping trip can wait until tomorrow." Diana replied.

"What kind of things do you need to buy, Diana?" Ami asked the huntress.

"A television, plates for the kitchen, silverware, drinking cups, a kitchen table..." Diana began to list everything she had not yet purchased. If she kept thinking about it she could find still more to buy, so she had to limit herself to only what she needed the most. Diana did not really "need" a television, but she would like to have one because she wanted to be able to keep up with the news and the weather without having to consult her iLac while at home.

"Oh, OK. Are you gonna buy a vehicle so that you don't have to haul everything home by hand?" Ami asked Diana a rather good question. That was something she had not considered buying. Diana would have to add that to her mental list of items to buy at a later date.

"I honestly did not think of that until you asked me, Ami. I will have to buy one in the future." Diana admitted that her android companion's question had been something that she had not considered until it had been brought to her attention. Diana would have to look into getting a vehicle at some point to make her shopping trips easier and less time-consuming. Walking to and from stores with her purchases was both exhausting and dangerous. Doing so left her open to attack from local hoodlums looking for easy loot.

Diana would have to seriously consider getting a vehicle. She had a need for one, but there were a couple of issues to consider before she went to the nearest car dealership and bought one.

First, she needed to pick the vehicle that best fit her needs. A "soccer mom" van was practical; it had a lot of carrying capacity, but she did not want one because it was as far away from stylish as one could get. A sports car was sleek and stylish, but it would be very expensive and a prime target for thieves. A pickup truck had carrying capacity, but that was not exactly her style. A motorcycle had no carrying capacity and had no enclosed cabin, leaving her exposed to the elements whenever the weather was bad.

Second, she needed somewhere to safely store her vehicle. The townhouse did not have a garage or a driveway, so her vehicle would have to sit out in the open, exposing it to both the elements and thieves. Diana should have found out whether it had a garage before buying the townhouse, but that was her fault for not thinking far enough ahead. She would find a way to solve the problem, but that could wait for another time.

"I will have to give what kind of vehicle I want a lot of thought before I go out and buy one." Diana said to Ami.

"No problem! If all else fails, I can go with you and help you carry things home!" Ami offered to accompany Diana on shopping trips to help her carry her purchases home. Diana shook her head.

"As much as I would appreciate your help, I need you to stay here and protect my home." Diana politely refused Ami's offer. Ami looked mildly disappointed for a moment before becoming her usual cheerful self again.

"All right then. Let me know if you ever change your mind!" Ami said. Diana nodded. She would have to keep that offer in mind if she ever needed a helping hand on a shopping trip and there was no other option. Diana could always call Angela for help, but requesting her assistance would put her in the brunette's debt and Diana did not want to be in anyone's debt for anything. She likely owed Mister Burke a favor or two for him storing her possessions while she went house-hunting... if she owed him, she would have to take care of those debts first before owing someone else anything.

[Post Word Count: 882]
[Total Word Count: 10,846/11,000]

-Diana's bedroom, the next morning, 9:00 A.M.-

Wearing her purple short-sleeved t-shirt and blue jean short shorts, Diana stood in her bedroom. Moments ago she had made up her bed, which was finally complete. It had bedsheets, pillows, and a comforter. Those items made the bed feel "complete", not to mention much more comfortable to sleep on than the living room couch.

Having made up her bed, Diana walked out of the room to go to the living room. She needed to decide whether to go on a shopping trip for a television or wait until a better time. She was wanting to go shopping, but she was also wanting to get back to work and start earning back what she had spent on the townhouse, the furniture, the appliances, and everything else. Diana was not sure what she wanted to do first... she could decide after she went to the kitchen to get something to drink.

-The living room, 9:02 A.M.-

Diana walked down the stairs to find Ami standing in the living room. Ami raised a hand in greeting to Diana, who returned the gesture.

"Hey Diana! Are you gonna go shopping today?" Ami asked her owner. Diana shrugged her shoulders.

"I do not know yet, Ami. If I do go shopping, it will be for a television." Diana said calmly. She would buy that first so that she would have that "essential" appliance in her house. After that she might go buy some plates, silverware, and drinking glasses for the kitchen. Or she might just call it a day and go home to begin the process of finding a service provider for her new television.

The blonde was off to a decent start in her new life as a genuine freelance mage, but it would take some time for her to get used to owning her own home and being responsible for its upkeep and furnishing. Still, the fact that her home was hers gave Diana a sense of pride and accomplishment that she had not felt in quite awhile. In fact it had been so long that she had forgotten the last time she had felt a sense of pride and accomplishment about anything.

"Let me know what you decide to do!" Ami said. Diana gave a thumbs-up with her left hand and walked into the kitchen, then opened her refrigerator and fished out a bottle of water. She twisted off the cap and drank from it while looking through the kitchen window at Ami.

There was still a lot of work to be done before this house was completely furnished, but when the work was finished the result would be something that she could be proud of.

[Post Word Count: 452]
[Total Word Count: 11,298/11,000]