By Bob A.
Robin, Brett, Mahree, and Shawn were ready to move in to
their new home. The problem was, they did not know where their
new home is- their mothers [Raven, Amanda, and Melani
respectively] would not let them see, or even find out, where their
new house is until it was complete. Not that they had time to do
more than present their mothers with a list of selections- Robin
was busy splitting his time between VS training and Government
House, Shawn was taking more extensive VS training, having
successfully qualified for Blood Rose status without training
[only the third person in VS history to ever qualify], and Brett
and Mahree were immersed in Government House, where Brett
was qualifying for his eventual new job- that of Prime Minister, in
about a year and a half.
Then, one day in mid-January 2114, the kids arrived back at
Brett's house [where they had been staying, because it was
closest to New Hope], to find that most of their belongings were
gone, and the rest packed into Shawn's Hummer. Robin's Jeep
and Brett's town car were gone. A note said that it was moving
time- their new home's address has been loaded into the
Hummer's navcomp. Eagerly, they got into the hummer.
Calling up their destination, Shawn studied the map. "Hey,
has anyone heard of Sabra Manor?" he said, with a little
confusion.
"Sabra Manor? I haven't. Display the map." Brett told him.
Shawn worked the navcomp controls, and the map projected onto
the windshield.
"Hmm. Take the B3218 to the A116, then to the M1 South,
through New Hope, to exit 14W, then south on the A59 to
Southeast Bay Strand, then left to the first drive. Distance from
here is 42.8 miles. This wasn't on the list, was it?" Robin asked.
After everyone else said no, Robin continued, "Looks like
our mothers have sprung another surprise on us. Are we one to
turn a gift house down?"
"Of course not!" Mahree said. "Let's get started, brother. At
least, it's on the shore, and we can all use a swim- we've all had a
long day." Shawn put the hummer in gear and started driving.
An hour later, they pulled into the driveway leading up to
the manor. Shawn had been taking good-natured needling about
his ultra-cautious driving style, but, he drove the speed limit the
whole time. They all saw the manor standing on a bluff
overlooking the ocean.
"Barnacles! I wanted one on the beach!" Mahree pouted.
"Relax, Mahree, there is one at the foot of the hill." Brett
told his lifemate.
"Knowing my mother, there's more than one surprise in this
place." Robin said.
Pulling into the spacious garage, they found their other cars
there, plus a sturdy old long bed pickup. Raven was there to greet
them. "Just leave your bags in the car- we'll get them later." She
led the curious foursome down an underground passage to the
basement of the manor, fifty feet away.
Raven showed them the basement, which held a small
holosuite, power plant, utilities, and a spiral ramp that led down
to another passage, which went to the boathouse on the beach.
The boathouse passage also contained a waterway, six feet wide
and six feet deep, that led to the sea. The ramp concealed an
elevator, which led up to the manor.
The ground floor contained a full kitchen, living area,
workout room [with two showers- one fresh water and one salt
water], library, offices, dining area, and a receiving room. The
kitchen also led to a large outdoor patio, which overlooked the
sea. Upstairs, there were six bedrooms, each with an attached
bath, a small room which was set up as a shrine to Poseidon, and
two small private offices. The whole house was furnished with
antiques from Raven's capacious storehouses, but, the kids were
told that there was room for them to redecorate, if they chose.
There was also a small guest apartment above the garage.
"The house is fully wired in, and, the transfer booth is in the
vestibule. This is a gift from all of us, to you, because we care."
Raven said proudly. "You are off until noon tomorrow, so you
can get settled. Call any of us if you have any questions."
"Do we have to do our own housekeeping?" Robin asked. If
there was one thing he despised, it was housework.
Raven smiled. She knew her son, and was expecting the
question. "We considered making you do your own housework,
but, you four are going to be too busy to do so. So, there are four
Zedd units here to take care of the cooking and cleaning."
"Oh, well, I can do the cooking." Shawn said, deadpan. The
others immediately began making retching noises, because, if
there is one thing Shawn could not do, it was cook.
Shawn looked at his housemates. "Well, I can always make
sushi- I can't burn that." he quipped. That sent the others into
gales of laughter, even Raven.
After Raven hugged them all, she flicked back home. Three
of them went back to the car to get their bags, but Shawn
immediately began prowling through the house, looking into
every corner and closet, checking the place out. He takes his role
as bodyguard to the future Prime Minister very seriously indeed.
Two hours later, his inspection complete, Shawn finally
unpacked and moved his belongings into his room. He then went
to the sea for a swim and a meal. [He preferred to eat while in
shark form, only eating socially while in human form.]
When he returned, it was almost midnight. He found his
housemates in the living room, with the 3DTV on, all sound
asleep. Brett and Mahree sound asleep on the loveseat, and
Robin on the floor, his 6'10" frame a large tripping hazard. The
wreckage of a large meal was strewn on the tables. Shaking his
head in disapproval, he managed to rouse everyone and send
them off to bed.
Shawn then cleaned up the living room, putting the dirty
dishes in the sink for one of the Zedd units to clean and put away.
He consulted his senses- all was calm and quiet, with just the
noise of the surf coming in to the house. Satisfied, he then crept
silently to his room and reached into his closet, where, hidden
from prying eyes and noses, was his vice- a carton of Milky Way
bars. Taking a handful, he went downstairs and tuned the 3DTV
to a classic comedy channel. "Good- an old Marx Brothers
movie- I need some new material." he thought to himself as he
settled himself on the floor.