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Tasha breathed a noticeable sigh of relief when Dominic told her he knew what he was doing with the art; granted it wasn't surprising, the man was a walking survivalist reality show as far as she was concerned. Lowering her phone from her chin she stepped a little bit closer; what she was about to ask wasn't exactly an every day favor. Hell, she hoped it was a once in a life time thing.

"Not exactly... You see there were some kids playing in the Silver Mine north of here, they went into a part of the mines that has been closed for a while due to it being deemed unsafe. Part of the cave floor opened up into a chasm and one of the kids fell down the shaft," she started to explain. This wasn't an uncommon occurrence; kids got into trouble, kids broke into a mines, kids fell down mine shafts. The had some crews in the area that could handle a basic retrieval. "The problem is that the kid has his leg impaled through a piece of broken off iron railing. If they move him he will bleed out. So the normal rescue crew can't do much. I don't know how to climb."

Granted, the main reason she didn't know how to was because Tasha was terrified of heights. The very thought of having to crawl into a mine and then drop down an open hole made her shake and sweat. Letting out a bit of a nervous sigh she tried to shake off the feeling before she continued. "I don't know the crew and my Hindi isn't good enough to be able to communicate quickly with them. I... well I trust you. I need you to go down there with me, help me get to the boy and then once I can patch him up and they lift him out, get me the hell out of there."

Tasha knew it was a lot to ask; especially of someone you just met not too long ago but she knew she couldn't get the job done with anyone else. Not something like this. It was one thing to be in the middle of an ER or OR and be working on someone to do everything you could to keep them breathing. It was a completely different thing to do it suspended from up above and hoping you don't fall to your death. Another visible shake and and trembling breath as she shook out her hands a bit.

"Let you bring that camera of yours. Who knows, maybe it will make a nice segment for you," she added, with a small smile, trying to lighten the mood and maybe entice him to go for it. "Please? I can't do this without you."

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Murphy stood there, half listening to what Tasha was asking of Dominic and half just staring at Owen. What in the hell was going on? Murphy and Owen had hung out several times but he had never gotten that vibe from the man before. He seemed goo-goo eyed at Murphy right now. Was his Gaydar off? Or was it something else? Whatever it was, as soon as it the birdies started chirping they were gone and Owen was back to acting like this normal self. "What was that about?" he wondered before shaking the thought away.

"Yeah, well don't give it to Tas. The way she drives and with her temper it will end up in the junk yard," he laughed; taking a half step back as Tasha shot him a look. "Aww hell, she gonna blow. Come on man, let's high tail it out of here," he joked as he slowly took a few steps back before turning to make his way out of the dining room area. "Meet you out front man, gonna grab my wallet," he called back to Owen before heading up to his room.

Murphy groaned slightly as he stepped over the splintered wood of his door and quickly grabbed his wallet out from under some of the plaster that had nearly crashed in on top of him earlier. This was ridiculous. Shaking his head he took the stairs two at a time and quickly made his way towards the front of the hotel through the courtyard. Spotting Desh with his clipboard doing something. "Desh..." he growled.

Desh quickly looked up and around frantically as he heard Murphy's voice, freezing in his place as his eyes fell onto a rather upset Irishman. "Oh my most illustrious guest, are you going out into our most magnificent city? he said, half choking on his words.

"Yeah and I expect that mess of a wreck you call me room to be fixed by the time I get back!" he snapped through clenched teeth as he took several determined steps towards Desh. Desh swallowed hard and nodded before acting as if he heard something.

"Yes, yes. Miss Ananya, you need me? Right away, my feet fly like I have wings to your call, excuse me!" he said holding up a finger to Murphy before turning on a dime and running towards the dinning room. "Ananya, yes, yes, how goes the morning breakfast?" he asked as he entered the dining room only to find that Ananya was nowhere in site. Quickly he turned and made sure that Murphy hadn't followed him.

Murphy rolled his eyes as he headed to the front of the hotel and leaned back against the wall near the front door; pulling out a cigarette and lighting it. Taking a deep inhalation from the cig he rubbed his brow; Desh better fix that room for him he thought as he waited for Owen.

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Location: Best Exotic Hotel, dining area.
Interacting with: Himself.

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As Tash let her story unfold, Alcander's jaw become more and more slack. His brow raised and he wasn't entirely sure if he had heard correctly. He was going to go up to his room and study his Hindi, but now he'd be thinking of this all day. It kinda got him crestfallen. Alcander had always been a man of doing and action rather than meaningless words, and here was an actual disaster that he would love to aid in and...Dominic was the better choice.

He suddenly felt a surge of selfish guilt as well. These kids out there hurt, and he felt sorry for himself. He took a deep breath, and let it out. He wished them the best, and Dominic too. He casually turned back around and reached into his shirt to kiss the cross upon his necklace. He couldn't really help he knew, but again, the thought would be stuck in his head all day now. He dearly wished he could help somehow. But he'd found out the hard way on more than one occasion that sometimes, you could be a burden even with a willingness to serve.

Alcander shrugged to himself, and decided that he wouldn't stick around to interrupt or intervene. He got up and put his plate and utensils in the correct area to get cleaned, and ran a hand through his black hair one final time. Owen and Murphy were conversing, and Tash spoke with Dominic. The sweet Ananya had left, and apparently Areum had as well. He'd need to figure out what to do with his day, and he made his way towards the dining room exit as he thought on that. "'Scuse me" he said casually as he waded past his hotel mates.

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The day had ran on longer than Cera had anticipated and she sighed as she walked out of the building at the end of her day. Her feet were aching and sticky, and her skin felt completely clogged up and filthy, so she was more than ready to head back home. She glanced down at her stained clothing and felt her face fall whilst her stomach clenched up at the uncomfortable memories flashing in her mind again. The cringe would have been clear to anyone that saw her. At least her teaching materials had worked out well and she was happy enough with her class so far but it was quite early to tell if they would remain this focused and engaged. If it weren’t for that one mishap this morning, the day would have been an unprecedented success.

Cera wasn’t the only English teacher that had been hired by the school. There were two others that had been given positions alongside Cera. She had “met” them just before the morning meeting that she was running late for. The first person she, quite literally, ran into was Janine. Cera had been in such a rush to get to the meeting room before 8am that she ended up hitting the poor woman with the door as she burst through. It had been an embarrassing moment but Janine was nice enough to laugh it off and shake Cera’s hand in greeting once Cera had calmed down enough to stop apologising every two seconds.

Janine was a woman who looked to be in her mid-30s with black hair that was tied up in a messy bun style. She wore airy, bohemian style clothing and looked like the kind of woman that would walk around barefoot at any given opportunity. She was smiley, bubbly and completely friendly. Janine put Cera at such ease during their first meeting that Cera was convinced that she was in for the best job of her life. That was until she met Hank.

Cera’s first encounter with Hank wasn’t pleasant. She had been so happy talking with Janine that she decided it was a good time to get some coffee for herself. She walked towards the kitchen area where a small group of three men stood, two natives and one foreigner like herself. She figured that this must be the third English teacher, and she was right. Opting to get her coffee first was her first mistake. She held the cup of hot java in her left hand and walked towards the group of men to introduce herself. Hank, however, had his back to Cera and didn’t see her approaching. Not announcing herself was her second mistake. He turned around exactly when Cera walked up behind him and smacked right into her.

You can imagine the screams of surprise, pain and anger that sounded out at that point when the coffee splattered all over both of them. Hank completely blamed Cera, his voice was raised so high that Cera could still hear his words ringing clearly even now, hours later. Of course she had apologised but that wasn’t good enough for Hank. His day was utterly ruined and he clearly couldn’t stick around with coffee covered clothing when he had classes to teach. He completely ignored the fact that Cera was covered worse than he was and he stormed out of the room. Cera didn’t see him for the rest of the day and she had had to explain what had happened during the meeting when the Principal had asked where Hank had disappeared to.

Now Hank might sound old, considering how he reacted to this accident, but he isn’t. Cera couldn’t quite place his age but he was somewhere between her age and Janine’s so it was a pretty broad number but based on the way that he had reacted to her mistake, Cera was sure he should have been in his late-50s. No one got that mad over an accidental coffee spill except mid to late 50 accountants and lawyers. It was ridiculous to her but Cera had just clammed up and said nothing to defend herself as usual. It was Janine coming over to help that even made her move from the same spot, her sandaled feet soaking up the puddle of coffee that was slowly cooling on the floor didn’t even encourage her to shift herself.

It certainly wasn’t the best way to start her working relationship with these people but at least she had made one friend that day. Hopefully Hank would cool off and realise he’d over-reacted and Cera could properly apologise to him. Maybe she’d bring in some cookies to win him over. That was her usual go-to so it might work, or it might make him madder. She had to try though. She didn’t want Hank to leave or ask for a transfer because of her social inexperience and awkward nature.

As Cera walked down the street a rickshaw driver flagged her down and greeted her enthusiastically. It was the same driver from earlier that morning. A smile flitted across her face as she realised that her idea of tipping well had probably worked. Hopefully her “fill Hank with baked goods” idea worked just as well. She climbed in the back of the rickshaw and he asked about the stains on her clothes. She decided to fill him in on her day and see what he thought of the situation as he drove her back home to the hotel.

By the time that the rickshaw brought Cera back home, she had made a second friend. Her rickshaw driver planned to take her to and from work each day she needed to be in the college building and had introduced himself as Harshad. So despite her rough start to the day, it hadn’t turned out quite as badly as she had thought. Now all she needed to make her day even better was to have a working shower in her bathroom and she could call the day a success. She bid Harshad a friendly farewell and made her way to her room and made checking her bathroom the first point of call. Halle-goddamn-lujah, the plumbing was working. She jumped right under the clean water, fully dressed, and let it clean the discomfort from her skin and clothes.

Today had been a pretty good day after all.

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Being at a loss over what to do considering he couldn’t speak the local tongue, Marc had made his way back to the hotel. He then spent a couple hours in his room trying to make sure no random bits of his ceiling were about to land on his head in the middle of the night like what had happened to Murphy earlier this morning. He checked everything out to the best of his abilities and then contemplated asking Cera if he could just move into her room and sleep in her closet. He chuckled at the idea of her reaction then decided that he had to do something more productive with his time than try to fix problems he wasn’t qualified to fix.

He needed to chill out, get some exercise in and then maybe do some practice for his acts. He then came up with the most brilliant and original plan ever that could combine the first two needs on his list! He’d go to one of the local swimming pools, surely no one would ever come up with that idea, right? Wrong. The pool was overcrowded by the time he got to it so there wasn’t much chance to exercise but at least he managed to get a cool dip in to clean the icky off of his skin with the water and then with the local showers.

Deciding to come back later in the day, Marc went for another little wander around the city. He happened upon a small market stall area again and almost turned 180 when he saw a stall with American style items being sold. He took a hazard guess that the stall owner might speak some English and he was right! They were able to converse enough for Marc to buy a smart as heck bowler hat before he made his way further out, finding a lovely little park area with a walkway running through it.

He figured this was a good place to practice as there weren’t very many people stopping along this way, most of them seeming to just be passing through. He began to do some warm ups and spotted a thin tree branch that had fallen from one of the bordering trees. He laughed as it looked a little like a bushy haired woman and then an idea struck him. He noticed the walls, the platform style stairs and decided he’d put on a short, silly show. He grabbed his phone and searched for the perfect song, Jack Johnson’s Bubble Toes. He grabbed the branch, placing it against the wall he was going to stand in front of. Once everything was set up, Marc placed his hat on the ground and fired up the music and began his performance.

It was less than two minutes long but he managed to gather a small crowd, most of them couldn’t speak English but that was the beauty of music and dance. People didn’t need to speak the same language to understand the message being portrayed. He made a tidy little sum that would do well for the drinking session that he had planned tonight with Murphy. He bowed, smiled and waved to everyone that was still around before making his way back to the pool.

The pool was quieter now and he spent some more time working out, stretching the muscles and just plain enjoying himself. When he climbed back out and made his way back to the hotel, he wondered if anyone would be around. He checked his watch and saw that it was just after 3pm, Cera would probably be back soon if no one else was free to chat. So with a smile, humming tune and fancy footwork, Marc made his way back to the Exotic Hotel with his wet hair cooling him off under the warm Indian sun.

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There wasn't much to Ananya's day. She arrived, sat down and was surrounded by her small group of friends all within the span of half hour. The classroom was barely filled, it being too early for many to arrive. There was still almost an hour for class to start, this hour usually spent by the medical students to simply relax and get into the zone - or to nap and catch up on sleep like some of the other students hanging around the back seats.

That hour, Anya spent talking to her closest friend, Mishti, in bengali. Mishti was also around from the same area of Calcutta, the two girls immediately drawn to each other from the beginning of the year and stuck to each other ever since. It was nice to have someone to talk to, Anya thought. Even back at the hotel, though her Hindi was still great but Bengali was her true mother-tongue, the language to make her feel at home. The language she'd grown up speaking.

And now, she had someone to share that love of language with. And not in the form of a lanky, dorky hotel owner that may or may not be known as Desh to some. It wasn't that Anya didn't want to speak to him, but it was how that she didn't know. If she could barely speak to Natasha (ignoring the obvious language differences) - someone who's pretty much her best friend out of the rag-tag group in the hotel, then how was she supposed to talk to someone she liked. A lot?

It didn't matter anyway, as the lecturer arrived to save Ananya from frying her mind too early in the morning. Notes were taken, questions were answered and the queasy students... well. Let's not get to that, shall we?

After waving goodbye to Mishti and turning the corner towards the Best Exotic, Anya was not surprised to see a goat simply grazing about the garbage as if it were hoping to find some sort of treasure. Her stomach grumbled - don't get the wrong idea, she skipped breakfast, she's not hungry because of the goat! - and an idea came up in the young girl's mind. Some members of the hotel were non-vegetarian, and not too long ago did Anya buy a recipe book filled with non-vegetarian dishes, truly Rajasthani stye.

Making sure that her bag was hung tightly across her body, she tied up her dupatta to ensure the goat wouldn't think of her scarf as a meal before she began approaching it carefully. There was no way she could capture the meal by herself, but what if she lured it inside? Desh, or any other guests inside could possibly help, right?

...right?

Well, you certainly need to hope so, because now there's a fucking goat inside the hotel, and it's gone wild. Hide yo' food, hide yo' glasses because there's a goat coming to fuck shit up.

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"You only have to ask me once, pretty girl. I'll go gather some supplied. Meet me by my jeep in about ten minutes if you can. We haven't got a lot of time to waste by the sounds of it" Dominic placed a gentle, reassuring hand on Tasha's right arm before offering her a gentle smile.

"No, we don't," she said with a slow shake of her head as she rested her hand over his; squeezing it gingerly. Releasing her from his soft touch he quickly grabbed a bagel from the table and hurried to his room to get ready.

Tas rushed with him, passed his room and darted up to hers. She couldn't help but chuckle to herself at the sight of him with the bagel lodged in his mouth. Zipping into hers she quickly changed from sandals to gym shoes; grabbed her medical kit and was back down the stairs shortly. Rushing all over a hospital had made Tasha feel like a master of parkour at times; oh well it kept her in shape.

With a bagel hanging from his bearded mouth, the Dominator began to stuff his black bag with everything and anything he had that he thought they might need. He had gone cave diving a few times in the past, though he had never been asked to do it to save someone's life. It's a good job he was the so called walking survival manual sometimes. It was also a good job that Dom brought spares of everything. He stuffed his bag with two of everything, helmets, torches, climbing harness, climbing robe, ascenders, descenders, cowstails and his go pro. Tas had never done this before, he was going to have to be especially careful helping her navigate the mine. This certainly wasn't how he planned on spending his day but then again, he was spending it with the gorgeous Miss Brinne and exploring some new territory. It was a win/win situation.

Tasha quickly ran outside to her jeep and had to smirk that her and Dom drove similar vehicle's; she found it even funnier that he had made sure to tell her to meet at his jeep. Seemed he was driving; she didn't blame him. She was a good driver, great even but being a passenger turned most white knuckled and green in the face. She wasn't exactly known for taking it easy behind the wheel. Going through her stuff she grabbed a bag, tossing it in the back of Dom's jeep before going to grab the rest.

Hauling everything into the back of his jeep with ease, Dom climbed into the drivers seat to await Tasha. What interested him more than anything was the look that she had given him before she had asked him to help her. Dom had grown to understand Tas in their time together at the Exotic. She had four faces and three of them were resting bitch face. The fourth was one that seemed reserved for special occasions, it was a soft face, a gentle face, it was her true face.

Tas came back and smiled to him as she rested two more bags in the back of the jeep. The idea of going down a mime shaft terrified the woman but seeing Dom there, ready to help her, she felt a little more at ease. He just relaxed her when he was around and she knew right now she'd need that calming effect he had on her more than ever today. This was the last thing she wanted to do today; or ever! But if she had to do it, she was glad he was there. "What not gonna let me drive?" she teased as she climbed into the passenger seat.

"Hell no, I've seen you drive. There's no way you're touching my car" Dominic smiled. Tas smirked over to him at his words. The situation they were about to head into was a dangerous one, he knew that, so anything he could do to make Tas feel better was his responsibility. He started up the jeep which kicked the stereo into gear. It was an old jeep but at least it had a cd player. Turning it up slightly but keeping it low enough for he and Tas to talk, Dom pulled away from the Exotic, listening intently for directions.

Pulling out her phone as it went off she looked the message. Was a few details and a map. Closing the message proper she left the img up and zoomed in as she leaned over to Dom to show him and point out where they were headed. "Alright, here's the gate around the mine; they'll let us in there. Here is the mine entrance. Some rescue is there ready but they're waiting on us," she said quickly before turning and looking at him. She hadn't realized how close she was when she leaned over; nearly shoulder to shoulder.

Wow she smelled good; "mind out of the gutter Mason" he thought to himself. He shook off his man thoughts and began to pay more attention to the map he had been shown. "I think I know where that is. We'll be there in ten"

"Sounds good to me," she said as she righted herself and leaned her head back against the head rest. She wasn't worried about the mine itself but the thought of having to drop down an open hole was there. She was terrified of heights, she was just glad Dom was there with her otherwise she doubted she could do it.

Dominator made sure the journey was a smooth one, mostly just to piss Tas off and show how he was a better driver. Once they had made their way to gated area, he waited for Tas to work her magic to get them in. There were guards at the gate but a quick exchange of words and they were let through; thankfully not held up long. Once through the gate, he parked the jeep near the mine shaft, he turned to Tas, placing one hand on the back of her seat headrest. "You ready?

Tas took a deep breath looking at the opening to the mine were there was am ambulance waiting as well as some rescue crew and the people that worked for the mining company. Something happened so of course everyone was there wanting to know what was going on and to see it. Turning her head, her cheek slightly brushing against his arm, she looked over towards Dom and shook her head. "Yes," she said quietly, nearly choking on the word, even though it was in contrast of her head shake. Seemed a new look was crawling into her features beyond the three resting bitch faces and the one happy one she had from time to time; this one was nervousness and fear.

Swallowing hard she let out a trembling breath as she undid her seatbelt; her hands shaking somewhat she cleared her throat. "Yes, ready to go," she said with a little more force; trying to push down the fear. Slipping out of the jeep she made her way to the back and grabbed her two packs. She didn't know what to expect when she got down there so she wanted to be prepared; and focusing on the her medical stuff to try to push the thought of dangling over the side of a mine shaft out of her mind.

Following his companion out and to the back of the car, Dom placed his large hands over Tas's as they trembled, holding them in place. "I got you down there, ok? Nothings going to happen to you as long as I'm there. We got this".

"Okay," she said with a nervous nod of her head as she squeezed his hand. He offered her the most reassuring smile he could muster before pulling his gear from the back of the jeep and logging the heavy bags over to their dive site.

He looked into the mine shaft with a analytical look in his hazel eyes. He scanned the area trying to make sure it was definitely safe do this while Tas did her thing with the emergency services. The place didn't look all that stable, then again Dom had done more dangerous things but this time, he had Tas with him and he had a little boy down there trapped; this time people were depending on him. The mountain man finally had to look out for someone else for a change and he wasn't sure what to do. In life, he was used to being the shoulder to cry on but on the mountain, in the danger zone he liked to call home, that's when it was just him, that's when he was free. Here, now, today, that had changed and he actually didn't mind.

Dominic made sure to empty the contents of his bag and began to set up, placing on his harness and other gear as well as making sure Tasha's equipment was secure as she made her way to him, "I'm going to cord us together ok? You'll be tied to my waist so that we're always connected down there. If at any point you don't think you can do something, tug on the rope three times and I'll help. You ready to fly?"

Tas lugged her bags over, looking at the entrance more than at Dom before taking a deep breath and following his lead; getting ready, her body still trembling as she cracked her knuckles repeatedly and nibbled on her bottom lip. Slowly she looked over to him, her eyes darting between his and the entrance. "How about I just scream?" she said trying to lighten the mood, her words slipping out between shallow breaths. Shaking her head she closed her eyes. "Sorry, bad timing. Yes, I think I'm ready."

Two of the rescue workers came over, explaining where they needed to go and handing Tas a map of the inside of the mine; which Tas quickly handed over to Dominic. She focused on what they were telling her about the boy and his injuries. The boy was miles back within the mine in an old closed off area. Once they reached the chasm they would have to drop down around around 60 meters to the boy. He was caught on a rough out cropping that was only slightly bigger than he was. They would need to get the child off the metal impalement and Tasha would need to stop the bleeding as best she could before sliding him onto a stretcher and the rescue crew lifting him out from above.

"Okay Yeti, get me in and out without falling to my death and I'll owe you dinner," she said as she picked up her bags. She tried to focus on what she had to do medically to help keep calm. Tasha waited for Dom to lead the way, her following behind him as the two rescue workers pulled up the rear carrying the rest of the supplies and the stretcher. She kept her eyes on Dom instead of the mine, she was glad he was there; she trusted him with this and he helped to calm her. She just hoped it would keep working once they had to actually start the hanging over a cliff part.

"Here we go" Dom took Tas's spare hand, her fingers lacing with his, and began to lead her into the darkness of the mines, using the torch on his helmet to read the map she had given him. The network of tunnels down there were astounding, they would definitely have to be on guard. This place stunk of evil, it was almost like a bad horror movie. Also strapped to Dom's helmet was his go pro, so at least if they all died down there it would be on candid camera. He could tell Tasha was nervous, the cold sweat of dread was evident on her hands. He needed to keep her distracted.

"You know, first time I ever climbed a mountain I was maybe, seven, eight years old? My dad loved hiking, it helped him clear his head you know? Running a farm is difficult, raising kids is difficult, so he liked to escape now and again. Well one day, dad decided to ask me and my sister JD to go with him on a trek. She said no of course, to busy with her head in a book but I said yes and he took me with him. It was freezing cold, you know winters in Minnesota are always fun. Erm, we got about three quarters of the way up and I decided to use the little Yeti's room, so I went behind a tree and I fell down a rockface. A fucking deer made me jump and I tumbled back. I broke my left arm and my collarbone and a severe concussion. My dad pulled me out, got me to the hospital and he asked me, Do you want to go up again kiddo? And I said yeah. There's something humbling about being at natures mercy, you know? To be free from everything in your life that could drag. It's just you, your thoughts and possibly bigfoot. I love it"

Tasha listened as closely as she could to what he was saying. He enjoyed this type of thing? At first she couldn't understand it but the more he spoke the more it made sense. She doubted she could ever find find something like this enjoyable but she knew where he was coming from. Her hand tightened some around his as she slipped slightly on some loose wet rock. Letting out a trembling breath she regained herself and kept going.

"Funny, the year before my mom died was full of hospital visits. Dad couldn't stand the place but the sicker she got the more I wanted to know. The more the cancer attacked her, the more I needed to know. Stuck with me I guess. First time I opened a chest up to get a heart to start beating once again, held it in my hands everything else faded away. It was just me, my thoughts and that heart. Never knew true clarity until then. We might have different ways of finding that part of us, but guess we're both needing something to help us find it," she rambled on. Her eyes darting about as she spoke, and her breath broken.

As they came to the drop Tashas grip tightened hard on Doms hand as she looked over the edge before quickly pulling back, the color leaving her face as she went flush. The child was at least 100 feet down with what looked like endless darkness below him. They weren't lying about the ledge, it was barely enough to hold him, the impalement seemed to be what was keeping him from toppling off the side.

"Oh God," she stammered, choking on her words; she would have to be suspended next to the boy to operate. How in the hell she wondered to herself as she dropped her bag by her feet and stared blankly at the ground beneath her feet.

Dom looked into the chasm and let out a sharp breath. 100ft, he had done it before but never in a situation as important as this one. He looked at Tasha and saw the primal fear in her eyes. Man vs Nature definitely was not her comfort zone. Placing his hands on either side of her arms, he looked her in in the eyes and smiled "You got this ok? I will be with you all the way" Tasha could only nod slightly. He moved his hands to her waist and made sure her harness was secure and the cord connecting them was tight. "I'll come down with you until we get to the ridge and then I'll lower you to the kid. If anything happens, I can pull you up straight away" The craziness of the situation was not lost on Dominic. He had come to India seeking adventure and fun for his documentary, now here he was in a life and death situation with a little boy at stake.

Taking a deep breath she grabbed her bag and slung it over her shoulder, the longer she stood there the harder this was going to be. "Can you lower down and stay next to me? Steady me while I operate?" she asked as she stepped over to the ledge. The rescue workers kneeling down next to the edge, slowly lowering a bag of gear down near the boy and getting the stretcher ready to lower when she was ready for it.

"Okay, um, now how the hell do I do this?" she asked nervously. He'd have to lead her because while the woman was a whiz in an ER, spelunking was as alien to her as breathing with gills.

*Part 2 Coming Soon

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Location: Best Exotic Hotel, dining area.
Interacting with: Himself, Jaya, @Salrynn@Aewin

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Al slipped past the group and made his way into town, opening up the buttons on his shirt and letting the warm air and sun warm him up from the inside. The grecian stepped back into the hub-bub of daily Indian life, traversing crowds and farm animals, keeping his distance from traffic. He smiled at himself as he walked, leaving his fellow hotel mates behind. He was doing what he did best, he thought with a certain melancholy. Doing things that were of no import to others but, he enjoyed them. And at the end of the day, he knew it was what was important. Suddenly he had an inspiration. He found his way into a familiar neighborhood, and decided he'd go visit a friend.

A small store connected to an abandoned apartment loomed along the street, ramshackle but sturdy. It was right across from a local food mart. Half the time Alcander walked in and no one else was in there, which explained how excitable the owner was if Al presented any kind of business. Paraphernalia were stacked behind the big windows, just below the John Wayne and Terminator 2 poster covers. Al stepped into Jaya's junk shop.

The owner of the store, Jaya, was at the latter half of middle age. He had a wrinkled but happy face, always. Alcander enjoyed hanging out with him. In fact he loved doing that with many of the locals, like Ananya. He found how different they were amusing, but not in a mocking way. It was quite endearing how polite and unapologetically themselves they often were.

"My fiend, Al! Yes! Yes! Come in!" he said, making his way out of the back counter and heading over to Alcander. The thing about Jaya was that he could be a bit handsy. He grabbed Alcander by the shoulders as he spoke. "Yes yes. Good morning to you, friend!" he said, and placed his arm around Alcander's shoulder, presenting the store to him as if Al had never been there before. "Many things! Many things for you today!"
"I'm not made of money, Jaya." he said, pulling away and smiling. "No matter! No matter! Always glad have you here. Help me english, yes yes." Jaya answered.

The room was filled with what most people would consider junk. Shelves along the walls and shelves for makeshift aisles were stacked full of various trinkets, movies, comics, books. Most of it was extremely outdated, as if Alcander had walked back into the 1980's. Jaya's words slipped into Al's ears as he started to survey the room. He never thought he'd think it, but he needed to take Jaya's example. He'd thumb through his language dictionary when he made it back to the hotel.

As he waded through the piles of things, he found a particularly old spiderman comic from the 1960's. He reached over and held it gingerly. It looked like it could sell for an huge price back in the states. "How have you been, friend Al?" Jaya asked him as the young man put the comic down. He walked around some more, dark eyes gazing to and fro nonchalantly. "I have a birthday coming up." he replied. "Oh, friends to celebrate with?" Jaya asked. "Maybe a few." he said, not even sure if he was telling the truth with that statement. "I have pretty girl for you. I introduce!" Alcander smiled to himself. "I'd rather get a discount on something here..."
"Ooooooh" Jaya said, shaking his head. "This I cannot do. You see friend, when a man owns store-"

As he spoke, Alcander took another step, but before his foot hit the ground, he saw something within the pile of 1970's action flicks. "What?" he asked aloud. That was odd in and of itself. He was often inquisitive but never vocal about it. But now... he reached forward, lifting up a copy of the 2013 Riddick movie. Region 1 DVD. It wasn't even opened yet, made in this past decade and everything! "Jaya, where'd you get this?" Al asked, interrupting the man who seemed to be talking more to himself than Al. The owner made his way over. "Oh, this new."
"How did you get this?" Jaya hesitated, looking for the word. "...Borrowed."

"What? You borrowed this?" Al asked incredulously. "Man came in store week ago. Told me he borrowed this from friend, sell it to me." "Who was it?" Jaya shrugged. "Never seen him before." he replied, then beamed. "You like? 200 Rupees, just for you."
Alcander knew that this thing had to have been stolen, but he doubted Jaya did it. He got the vibe Jaya would do most anything for more Rupees, but theft wasn't something Al expected exactly. He'd get it for himself, but he seemed to be out of Region 1 DVD players. "I might be back for this." he said to Jaya. The owner nodded his square head. "Yes yes, you come back!" he exclaimed. Despite his mellow mood, Al couldn't help but converse a bit more with the bubbly store owner before he made his way further into town.

Once he grew tired of walking, he decided to relax a bit and headed back to the hotel. He found himself in his room before long, deciding to sit next to the ledge that overlooked the small gardens and plaza, taking out his English to Hindi dictionary and studying it. After a few hours, he felt like he had two things down straight. "Namaste aap kaise hain," as well as "Achchha aap kaise hain." He repeated them over and over to himself, closing his eyes and feeling the breeze of the day, the waves of his black hair swaying in the breeze. Suddenly his stomach broke the calming sound of the breeze. He put the book down and made his way downstairs to run straight into a...

"Goat." he said outloud. His face twisted up in confusion as a goat gently bumped into his hip, before baying and running amok once more. Areum and Ananya he saw scrambling to get it. "Hey!" he called to them as they ran around. "What's going on?" Hands in his pockets and shirt unbottoned, he'd look completely relaxed if not for his incredulous expression.

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Murphy looked over to Owen and chuckled some as he put the cigarette out on the bottom of his boot and flicked the butt into the trash before pushing off the wall. "Oh you know you're looking forward to this," he said as he began walking down the street with Owen towards the dealership. "Taking out some bikes through these crazy streets. Not worrying about if that engine of yours is going to hold up or if the chain will slip. Opening it up and going full throttle. Zipping through traffic like a mad man."

Murphy elbowed Owen slightly out of jest as he continued to walk. He felt this was going to be fun even if either one of them didn't buy one today. It would be nice to get a bit of a break from the lessons he was constantly giving at the hotel. Granted the gig paid well enough and gave him freedom on days like this when a student had to run off and tend to other stuff. Why not taken advantage of it and have a bit of fun that didn't include a bar? Wow, did he really just think that? Shaking his head slightly he shrugged at Owens question.

"Not really sure. Passed by it a couple of times at night during my bar hopping. The ones they have out in the windows at night seem to be at least within the last couple of years and in new condition. It does seller older used ones as well on top of the new ones. Either way, should be some fun. Maybe not as fun as swinging in that hammock of yours but still fun," he said wrapping an arm around Owens shoulder and giving him a shake before letting go.

The walk didn't take long and sooner than later they were at the dealership, rows of bikes at their disposal to peruse. "Now, this is what I am talking about man. A lot better than what Dom and Tas are up, down in some mine shaft right now. See any that catch your fancy?" Murphy asked as he walked between the rows of bikes slowly, trying to figure out if any of them caught his own personal interest. "So.. other than runs, anything you're looking for? You know before the sales people start falling on us like rapid dogs."

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Securing both of their lines against a stiff rock wall, Dominic made his way back over to Tasha. "Of course I'll come down next to you. Just do what I do ok?" Tasha nodded with a quick bob of her head and swallowed the dry lump in her throat. "Al..rii.ght," she stammered. With a deep breath, Dom slid himself down onto a thin ledge below and then turned with his back to the chasm. "Just step down here and we'll take it slow"

Turning and following Doms lead she went down slowly and as overly cautiously as she could; muttering a slew of curses that sounded more like a drunken Yosemite Sam than human. Once she was down onto the ledge, Dom placed one hand on Tasha's back and began to slowly abseil down the rock wall. Tasha leaning back a bit against his hand as they descended slowly; she felt much more sure about the large hand covering the small of her back than the wall or the rope or any other piece of mine or equipment right then.

The wall was sturdy enough where they were but the mountain man knew that it wouldn't take much for it to weaken, so they had to be extra careful. Dom made sure to keep a hold of Tas as they continued their descent into the darkness. "See, its not so bad right? You're pretty good at this. Wanna come on my next trek?" The best thing he could do now was make sure Tasha was comfortable and not nervous and talking more than he usually does seemed like the best option.

Tasha shot him a wide eyed look. "Are you nuts? You're nuts and I'm nuts for being here and this whole situation is nuts. Seen that movie Avengers Age of Ultron? You know how Hawkeye was there, with Scarlet Witch and he's going on about how the city is floating, things are attacking, nothing makes sense and he has a bow and arrow? Yeah, that's us right now. I'm dangling over a ledge, held up by a piece of string, the Montanta Yeti as my guide and about to perform surgery. Yup, nothing makes sense," she rambled on and on; looking at the wall and then him, back to the wall.

But it didn't matter; Dom had done his job. The rambling kept her mind busy and his touch calmed her enough that they were down at the child before Tasha even realized it. In fact she hadn't. She was still rambling when they reached him.

"You're welcome. Now save a life, Tasha. Make this story even better" Dom motioned to the boy they had now reached. Tasha finally shut up, slowly looking over to the boy and then back at Dom. Uh, right, thank you," she said nervously as she reached back and took his hand off her back and placed it on her hips. "Keep me steady." Her voice was calmer as she looked back towards the boy and she began to focus. He had done his part. He had gotten her in there safe and sound. Now all they had to do was save the boy, wow, never thought he'd think that to himself. Once he was out, they could easily get back up and out of the mine, back to the Exotic and get drunk with their new family. This would be one hell of a story to tell when they got back. Dom looked over to Tas, now he would get to see her do her thing just as she had seen him do his. They were an odd pairing. An ice cold doctor and a bushy beard Minnesota farm boy but they had gotten there safely and no one was dead. Maybe they weren't too different after all.

Tasha took a deep breath, looking at the boy and then the wound. Reaching out she took the boys hand. "Ham aapako yahaan se baahar nikalane ke lie ja rahe hain. Yah dukh hoga , lekin aap is bach jaega. Aaj ke baad, koee phark nahin padata ki aap ke lie hota hai kya aap isake maadhyam se praapt kar sakate hain pata chal jaega. Aap kahate hain ki aap is se bach gaya hai, to aap kuchh bhee jeevit rah sakate hain," she said in a soft reassuring voice as she squeezed his hand and smiled at him. The boy nodded in understanding and Tasha had never been more thankful for Murphy's lessons as she was right then, especially considering she was pronouncing it with an Irish/Hindi accent which seemed to amuse the child even through the pain.

After the quick exchange Tasha went to work, doing what she did. Reaching over to the bag that the two rescue workers had lowered down she began to pull out what she needed, setting up a make shift IV and placing an oxygen mask over the boys face. Pulling gloves out of her pocket she slipped them on before she got to the nitty gritty of the reason they were down there. Everything faded away from around her; Dr. Brinne was in her element now. It didn't matter the blood, the location, nothing else mattered but the procedure. Carefully removing the boys legs from the rusted iron that had impaled his leg she cauterized and sutured the wounds as best she could, ever calming the child and pausing when she needed to reassure the child. Sweat beading on her temple even in the cool of the cave as she worked as fast as she could without putting the child in more danger. The only thing that kept her anchored to the world outside of her own mind was the feel of Doms hands on her hips; keeping her grounded while she hung there.

What went by as mere minutes in her mind was in truth well over an hour of her just tunnel visioned on the work before her. It wasn't until she and Dom had managed to get the boy on the stretcher that was lowered down to them and secured that she began to feel the fatigue but she still remained focused as ever, forgetting where she was. Surgery made the world fade away for her. She leaned back against Dominic gently as she watched the boy get lifted out of the mine shaft and heard the rescue workers quickly carry him towards the exit to the awaiting ambulance. Once he was out of sight was when things finally came crashing back in around her and she looked down at her gloves hands dripping with the childs blood. The steady hands began to shake again as she pulled the gloves off and her body began to tremble against Doms; the fear setting back in.

"You did amazing Natasha, you just saved a boys life"

For the hour that she was working, Dominic was in awe of Tas. She was so cool, calm and collected. As she did her thing it was almost like she had entered another world in her minds eye, it was fascinating. Though an hour long operation, Dom would definitely have to get his friend Kip back in the states to do a bucket ton editing done on the footage he was going to send over upon their return to the Exotic. All Dom had to do for the entire duration of their stay in the mineshaft was hold onto Tas, something he certainly wasn't going to complain about. He could feel her tremble against him as the boy was raised into the sky, almost like he was ascending to his personal heaven. Dom wrapped an arm around Tash's chest; he didn't know if it was appropriate but it felt right for the moment they now found themselves in, "I've got you, I promise. I am so proud of you. When you're ready....get on my back, I'll carry us back up and out of this pit of hell"

"No, we did Dom," she said quietly as she dropped the gloves out of habit, her hands coming up and squeezing his arm softly; she felt comfortable with his arm around her. She knew she couldn't have done it without him there; there was no denying that in her mind. Letting out a shaky breath as she turned to look at him, her hair moving against his face and getting lightly tangled in his beard. Reaching up she brushed it away. "Sounds good," she said nervously, placing a quick but soft kiss to his cheek before she moved to try to climb onto his back.

She wasn't exactly sure how to make the maneuver and ended up screwing it up. Trying to use the ledge the boy had been laying on her foot slipped against the wet stone; her thigh catching on the remains of the iron rod, gashing it open and her knee slamming against the rock. "Son of a bitch!" Grabbing her leg out of reflex she dropped down a bit, her rope lose so she could move behind Dom. She screamed again, this time out of pure fear as she clung to Doms waist. "Get me up, get me up, get me up!" she stammered as she buried her face against his stomach.

"Jesus"

Dom knelt down onto the tiny ledge and took Tas's hands into his, looking down at her wounded leg. "Not stealing your thunder, hun but that gash doesn't look too bad. I'll get you up top, we'll get it strapped and to make sure I'll carry you out of the mine ok?" Dominic didn't really wait for an answer as he slowly turned, while keeping hold of Tasha's hands and draping them across his broad shoulders. Once her fingers were locked together, he stood up to his full height and grabbed the thighs of her long legs, some of her blood dripping onto his finger tips as he wrapped her legs around his waist. "I've got this Tash, you just relax ok. You've done your part"

"I'm sorry about that," she said embarrassed as her arms tightened around him. She felt like an idiot. The cut wasn't bad but the fear had made her act stupid.

The Minnesota farm boy triple checked that the doctor was secure before beginning his 100ft ascent. Luckily his equipment was strong enough to hold both their weights as he began to climb. The ascenders he had brought were helping them get up quicker but Dom was still doing most of the work. As they were in the middle of traversing a dangerous ledge, the Dominator began to sing. "I wish I, could do better by you, cos that's what you deserve. You sacrifice, so much of your life, in order for this to work. Whilst I'm off chasing my own dreams, sailing around the world, please know that I'm yours to keep, my beautiful girl" With the last word, the two reached the top of the rock face, Dom gently placed Tas on the floor and smiled "I know, I suck but it kept your mind from wandering right? Ok let's get this leg sorted and get out of here"

Tasha held tight to him as he brought them out of the abyss below. She couldn't help but smile slightly as he sung. He might not have had the best voice in the world but it was his; something she never minded hearing, it came all too infrequently. He wasn't exactly known for being a man of words. He said what he needed to say quickly and then went silent. The song though did make her mind wander though; she wondered why that song.

"Yeah, something like that," she chuckled slightly as she slid her legs from around his waist and sunk down to the floor. "Oh thank God, solid ground. I don't know whether to kiss it or you," she said before she realized what she had said. Blushing slightly she cleared her throat. "Um, could you hand me my bag?" she asked as she motioned over to it.

Dominic let out a light chuckle before handing Tas her bag. The woman was allowed to have a little freak out moment given what she had just done. Though her wanting to kiss him....well that was a bit awkward. "Right, lets get out of this pit and back to the hotel, I've had enough of this darkness for one day"

Tasha went through her bag, smirking somewhat as she did. "Enough adventure for one day?" she said with a faint smile as she patched herself up. The gash would heal, her knee was what would be sore for sometime. Shoving everything back away she looked over to Dom and held her hands out to him. "Ready when you are."

Making good on his promise, once Tasha was ready Dominic scooped her up into his arms as she wrapped her own over his broad shoulders and rested her head on his chest. "M'lady" He chuckled as he began to move forward towards the exit of the mines. This was one adventure he never expected to find himself on. He hoped the boy would be ok and he hoped that his camera had picked up everything so Kip could turn it into documentary gold and he also hoped Tas was alright. She was shaken but still calm, the good doctor was a strange one but in the best way possible.

Once they were outside Tasha breathed in deeply and let it out slowly. Glad to finally be done with the situation. The ambulance was gone, having taken the child to the hospital so he could be properly taken care of and workers were now moving to get the mine closed back off.

As Dom set her down she took his hands gently and looked up at him. "Listen, I couldn't have done that without you, any of it," she said in a very grateful voice, squeezing his hands softly. "I don't think I'll ever understand how you can do things like climbing and hanging off cliffs not scared senseless but I'm glad you do. You're a pretty amazing man Mr. Mason and I feel very lucky to know you." She meant what she had said, she knew she couldn't have done anything without him next to her through it. Anyone else she would have frozen completely; he calmed her for some reason.

Slipping her hands from his she laced her arms over his shoulders and pulled herself close to him; giving him a gentle but lingering hug. Pulling back slightly and looking up at him, she gave him soft smile; her fingers lightly grazing over the back of his neck. "Thank you."

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Tasha undid her seat belt and stretched out her back some as she lifted her arms above her head. The day had certainly turned out differently than she had suspected. It was supposed to have been a peaceful day out in the sun, just reading. Instead she had gotten roped into wandering through a silver mine and hung over a black abyss to help a child out. Not exactly her idea of a rousing good time. Well, maybe the surgery she performed was, she lived for her work in the ER but the whole spelunking part not so much. Everyone had some irrational fear, hers was obviously heights.

Looking over towards Dom she smiled faintly. If it hadn't been for him she knew she could have never even climbed down over the edge much less been able to stick it out to complete the surgery so the boy could be lifted out to safety. It was odd. She had been called to help on other rescues before in odd places back in the states but she always froze solid. This time, even though the fear was still unbelievably thick running through her veins, she was still able to do what was needed to do. That was a first and she hoped the last time she was called into something like that. If it ended up that she had to again, least she knew one person now that could get her through it. Granted he wouldn't always be around now would he? He had his documentary to do so he could be off to his next destination at anytime and her contract with the hospital would be up in three months. Why did that thought sting so much?

The faint smile on her lips faded and she cleared her throat. Thanks again, for everything." Climbing out of the jeep and limping over to the back so that she could retrieve her things. Slinging her bags over her shoulder and stacking up the boxes she pulled them out of the back of Dom's vehicle and dumped them back into her own; only keeping her main bag with her as she returned over to him. Taking a bit of a breath she tucked her hair behind her ear.

"Listen, I meant what I said. There was no way I could have done anything to help that child without you being there with me. I owe you. If there is anything you need. Anything at all, just tell me. No questions asked." she said in a sincere voice as she bit her bottom lip lightly. Turning she began to make her way back towards the hotel; limping as she went. Reaching the opening to the hotel courtyard she rested her hand on the peeling paint of the archway and looked back over to Dom, forcing a slightly smile before she continued on her way.

As she stepped into the hotel courtyard she was blindsided by a goat of all things. It scurrying between her legs, it's horns knocking her in the rear end and before she knew it the poor doctor was looking up at the sky from the flat of her back. "What the fuck!!!" she screamed as she rubbed her rear end.

"Sorry my most illustrious guest, truly sorry" Desh said as he dashed by. "Our uninvited guest has run into our dining hall my goat catchers! Corner him before he destroyes my grand hotel"

Tasha just lay there looking up at the sky, still not sure if she should move or just lay there and play dead at this point.

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When he’d returned to the hotel, Marc went directly to his room to get some fresh, non-wet clothing. He stuck some music on and danced around as he changed and cleaned his room up from the random pieces of roof and wall that had crumbled off and dusted his room with fine and chunky particles. It was because of his music that Marc was unaware of what was happening in the hotel.

Downstairs was a different story. Having had a rough day and thankfully being brand new cleaned. Cera had changed into a dry white tank top and some khaki shorts, her stained, wet clothing lay on her floor at the foot of her bed. She was debating what to do when she could suddenly hear Ananya and Areum outside her room and… was that a goat that she could hear baying?! Hesitation struck her then, the anxiety of what she might be facing if she opened that door hit her. Maybe she’d just stay in her room?

By the time that she had made her mind up on what to do, the noises had moved on from outside her room. Her shoulders relaxed and a sigh of relief followed their descent. That made things easier. Wandering to her kitchen area, Cera began pulling out her baked goodness that she’d made for everyone. It was a wide assortment and she moved to place the boxes on her bed. Right as she made to set them down she heard Tas shouting from somewhere outside of her window in the courtyard. Fumbling the boxes, Cera’s bed was then covered in cookies, cakes, brownies, doughnuts and, most importantly, crumbs.

Groaning, Cera walked to her bedroom window and opened it up to see what was going on. No sooner had the warm gentle breeze began to filter in than a goat jumped in through her window! It bounced off of the window sill and knocked into the side of Cera, sending her flying into the side of her armchair where she read at night. “What ‘eh hel-!?” Bewildered, Cera watched as the goat bleated in her direction before running rampant in her room!

It discovered her coffee covered clothing on the floor and began to chow down before it realised there was actual food on the bed! It ran around the room, gathering momentum for itself before bounding right for the baked goodies strewn over the bedding. With a quick skip and jump it was on the mattress, bouncing between mouthfuls of delicious treats. “How in ‘eh heck did a goat get in the hotel?!” It was clear that Cera was completely out of her depth and in a panic. Her screams could be heard from all around the courtyard, corridors and neighbouring rooms both around and above.

Marc wasn’t sure exactly what he had heard as he was dancing around but he decided to turn his tunes down and that’s when he heard it. What in the hell was going on downstairs? Marc quickly made his way down, dancing around Cander standing at the bottom of the stairs with a weird look on his face, and knocked on Cera’s door. “Yo Cera! Open up! What’s going on?!” His fist pounded on the door as he listened to Cera switching from screams to whimpers.

“Marc! There’s a bloody go—“ Her words got cut off when an almighty BAAAAAAAAAAAAH rung out and a thump could be heard inside the room. “Why the hell have you got a damn sheep in your room, Cera?! Hold on, I’m coming in!” Marc stepped back and readied himself to kick the door in. He’d seen this done on TV and in movies hundreds of times. It couldn’t be that hard, right? He ran and kicked at the door, just below the handle (granted he’d been aiming FOR the handle) and the door caved into the room, banging loudly against the wardrobe that was situated behind it.

The scene inside was ridiculous and it took all that Marc had not to laugh. Curled up on the chair, her legs tucked up and her face buried in her knees was Cera. She was watching on in horror as a goat was bouncing on her mattress, eating a cookie of all things. There was chewn up clothing half hanging off of the bed at the corner and everything on the bedside tables had been knocked over on the surface or was now lying on the floor. “Why ha-have you got a goat on your b-bed?” His words stammered as he tried to control his urge to laugh.

The goat was having a rare time and looked like it was dancing. Which made Marc smile even wider. Cera glared at Marc and pointed at the goat. “This ain’t a laughin’ matter, Marc! Get this god damn Mr Clops out of here!” Her face was red and her voice was stern but it only lasted a second before she slumped back into the chair, hugging her knees. “Please jus’… jus’ get it out of here! It’s god damn cloppin’ and bleatin’ is gonna drive me insane. Please Marc, help…” Her eyes were dry but it was clear she wasn’t comfortable being in such close proximity to the goat.

“Okay! Okay… Lemme think…” Marc had a half-eaten protein bar in his pocket and his phone in the other. A stupid, but fun, idea crossed his mind and Marc grinned. He turned on Spotify and found a song. It had nothing to do with what was going on, but he hoped the beat and movements would entice the goat to follow him.

Readying himself as the beat built up, Marc began dancing the signature dance of Gangnam Style and got closer to the goat before waving the protein bar near its face. The baked goodies were all gone at this point so it didn’t take much convincing to get the goat out of Cera’s room and into the corridor and back out to the courtyard before the song had ended. Cera hesitantly got up and followed them out of the room, unsure how to react to the ridiculousness of what Marc was doing. The goat bounced along after him, seeming to be enjoying itself? She was just glad to have it out of her room and she knew she now owed Marc one for helping her out. She closed the now busted up door over and made her way out into the courtyard just behind them.

Right as Gangnam Style finished Marc’s Spotify randomised the best song in the world for what was going on in the hotel right now. Benny Hill’s theme tune rang out in the courtyard and Marc fell to the ground laughing, tears falling down his eyes as his fists pounded the ground at the utter hilarity of the situation. The goat was now running around the courtyard bouncing off of anything that it could as it avoided capture.

Cera couldn’t help but laugh as the song began and she watched what was happening, it was just completely ridiculous. Just as she walked further in Cera noticed Tas laying on the ground of the courtyard and wondered how the goat had managed to floor her. She walked forward, laughter still causing her shoulders to shake, and leaned over Tas. “Goat get ye too, huh? Here, lemme help.” Cera held her hand out to Tas to help her get back up off the ground.

The goat was still content cleating as the little bastard continued to bounce around. Marc was not going to be helpful anytime soon. God this was going to be fun.

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Location: Best Exotic Hotel, Courtyard
Interacting with: Himself, Hotel Residents, Mr Clops/Goat/Djali

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“It’s a goat load of trouble!!!” He heard Areum exclaim, and Alcander gave a burst of a chuckle at the joke. He swayed to the side as Marc passed him by, and the entire situation evolved pretty quickly before his eyes. There was a bunch of commotion in Cera's room, not to mention music. Suddenly the goat, followed by Marc and eventually Cera went out of the room and straight into the courtyard.

Alcander walked out and followed them, the light wind causing his hair to fly into his eyes. He reached up and pushed it out of his vision, and suddenly the vision of the bouncing goat was accompanied by an apt theme song. He shook his head, but couldn't hide his grin. He liked India because of how different it was from the states, but this right here was probably a rare situation everywhere. He stood blocking the doorway just in case the goat decided to fly back in, but it seemed pretty content to buck and bleat around outside. Cera seemed to be helping Tas, and Marc was currently dying from laughter along with Areum.

He smiled at his new friends. Suddenly, he had a thought pop into his head, and he remembered something he had upstairs. He decided to give one last, lingering look to the courtyard, before sprinting up the stairs and into his room. He grabbed the apple by his bedside, and stomped downstairs as quickly as he could, leaping down the last 4 or 5 steps of each flight of stairs. The apple was going to be old in a few days anyway. He took a quick bite out of it, not only because he loved apples but because it would bring some fresh smell to the goat's nose. He made it back out into the courtyard, unbuttoned shirt and hair flowing.

"Hey Djali!" he called to the goat. He wasn't sure if anyone would get the reference, but as long as he got the goat's attention... "Heeeey c'mon. Éla edó kai na párei tin apólafsi~" he teased, a sly smile on his face as he approached where the Goat was heading, tossing the apple from hand to hand. The fifth time it fell into his right hand, he presented it before the goat and held it there before he was sure he had the crazy creature's attention. "Théloun to mílo?" he asked. Hey, his mother tongue seemed to be working. The goat's ears perked up and it baa-aa-aahed at him.

Alcander casually tossed the apple behind the goat, and the cute little thing promptly turned, leaped for joy and pounced upon the apple, gumming it greedily. It took two seconds before Alcander was upon it, and it took two more seconds for him to realize that might not have been the best plan. Essentially holding the goat in a full nelson, lifting it unsteadily off the ground, Alcander's mouth poked out of coarse fur that filled his vision and tickled his bare chest. "Hey! Areum! Ananya!" he called, trying not to breathe in fur. "Can't hold him for long! Can someone get a leash or something!?" he yelled. Honestly, the goat was heavy and wriggling in his grasp. In about 10 seconds he'd be flat on the ground, short a goat as well as an apple. He had not really thought this through, and he laughed at how he kinda fucked himself over.

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There was a burst of laughter, and Anya stopped in her path to regain her composure. Not even two minutes after chasing the poor goat around the crumbling hotel was Anya joined by Areum and eventually Alcander and the rest of the tenants of the Hotel except for a certain few.

Ananya was either going to be killed, or she'd be exterminated for bringing the goat inside. Or hearding the animal in without properly securing it with something. The goat ran inside Cera's room, wrecking havoc everywhere and causing chaos and Anya could only die on the inside as Desh dashed about trying to order the staff to grab the goat. 'Yeh nahi marega to phir mereko mar dalega.' The girl thought. Areum's scream as she sang along to... something before more laughter errupted from the sweet Korean girl. Anya knew she was missing something, though the music did seem oddly fitting...

Alcander - the saviour, in her opinion - managed to tame the beast with a fresh apple before pouncing on the goat and holding it in place. "Can't hold him for long! Can someone get a leash or something!?" Alcander yelled against the goat's body, and an idea (this time a good one, I swear!) popped up in Anya's mind.

She pulled off her dupatta, tying one end into a make-shift leash and she bolted to the goat, going on her knees to tie her dupatta around the goat's neck to keep it in place. Anya tried to ignore the fact that she was now simply in her kurti without the dupatta around men. It was scandalous to say the least, but Anya knew that Desh would appreciate the goat being contained without bringing the entire hotel down. "T-thank you f-for the help-" She tried thanking Alcander, her grip on her dupatta tight. As long as the goat didn't suddenly run away as soon as Alcander let go, then Anya was sure her thin cover would hold as a temporary leash.

Slowly, Anya got up from her kneeling position beside Alc and the gost, trying not to startle the poor thing as she gently tugged the creature's - now known as Mr Clops by Cera - leash. "Chalo bakara, tu ne meri vaat lagadi." she muttered to the goat.

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Well that was an utter waste of time, kind of. Owen left before they really even got started but Murphy didn't let that get him down. He took several out for a test ride and by the time he was done had ended up purchasing one of the bikes. It wasn't brand new but it wasn't a heap of junk either. The bike was at most five years old, a custom build and was no rice burner. He as happy and spent much of the afternoon just weaving in and out of the busy traffic of Jaipur before he finally decided to make his way back to the hotel. Parking outside he strolled into the courtyard, ready to tell everyone about his newest purchase but that seemed like it would have to wait.

"Bugger me, what the bloody hell happened here?" he asked dumbfounded. The place was a wreck, lounge furniture upturned and on the ground lay a rather beat up Tasha with Cera standing over her. Tasha took Cera's hand and slowly sat up, cringing a bit from the pain in her knee, her thigh, and now her back side.

"Fuck yeah it got me, little brute tried to ass rape me with his horns," she grumbled as she eventually got her to feet and dusted herself off. "There's a goat loose in the place..." Shaking her head she rested her hands on her hips and took several long and deep breaths, the damn thing had nearly knocked the wind out of her.

"A goat?" Murphy asked in a surprised voice. Tasha nodded and pointed over to the rest of the group that was dealing with the goat. "A goat... what, thing decided he didn't want to be roasted goat curry this evening?" he laughed.

"I'd gut that thing right now if I felt better," she hissed as she teetered over to a chair and righted it before plopping down into the cushion.

"Goat do all that?" Murphy asked as he looked at the bruise that covered the entire area of Tasha's knee and the wrapping around her thigh.

"No, the cave did that. Goat just knocked me on my ass," she said, trying to shift slightly in the chair to get more comfortable but hissed between her clenched teeth in pain. Murphy nodded slightly before looking over at Cera.

"Can you go get Tasha some ice from the kitchen? Think I better get her up to bed from the way she looks, meet you up there?" Murphy asked and Tasha gave him an odd look. "What?"

"I'm fine right here thank you very much," she snapped slightly. The last thing she wanted was to be carried up to her room like some drunken damsel in distress.

"Tough tits lass," he said scooping Tasha up in his arms. Tasha smacking him upside the back of the head and kicking her legs.

"Put me down you big putz!" she yelled. Murphy just chuckled and shrugged a bit before shifting her in his arms and tossing her over his shoulder, ass in the air as he turned and began to head out of the courtyard.

"Keep it up and I'll tan yer hide like me pops used to do mine when ever I threw a hissy fit," he laughed. Tasha turned beat red in the face but stopped kicking, a furious look still on her face though. "That's a good little firecracker."

"I, you, Mother fucker!!!" she grunted.

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As Cera helped Tas get up off the flat of her back, Marc continued to roll around laughing and it took him a good while to get up off the ground, his fingers wiping away tears of sheer unadulterated joy from his eyes. He walked over to where Areum was still laughing and gave her a smile before hooking his arm around her shoulders, giving her a side on hug. “We need to dance Gangam Style at the bar tonight. I can’t believe we didn’t think of it before!” He gave her a gentle and playful little shake as he held her with his arm. It was a very peculiar looking sight to see the two of them side by side considering there was almost a full foot difference in their height.

Whilst he stood beside Areum, Marc watched as Alcander wandered in behind them before darting off again for a moment. When he returned he had an apple and a glint in his eye. He watched on as Alcander successfully tried to trick the goat whilst speaking to it in a mystical moon language (which Marc probably presumed was his native tongue). Then he watched as he man handled the poor animal and lifted it from the ground. Well that was rude, the poor little goat was just having some fun.

Ananya was soon quickly in the mix and she successfully managed to leash the little fella. Marc recalled the name that Cera had yelled about the goat earlier and felt a little sad. Poor Mr. Clops, he was going to end up in tonight’s dinner no doubt. He watched as Ananya led the little guy away with her scarf. He felt bad for Mr. Clops but he didn’t think that there was much that he could do. The little guy’s fate was in Ananya’s hands now.

Marc glanced over and saw Murphy walking into the courtyard with a look of utter confusion plastered on his face. “Yo Murph! You missed the fun!” He gave a wave and then turned to Areum. “You are coming out tonight, right? CANDER! ANYA! You guys too, right? We all need to go out!”

Marc’s phone had been cycling through music as the scene continued during his laughing fit and was now playing Meghan Trainor’s – All About That Bass and he heard Tas shouting profanities at Murphy. Turning around and seeing the scene, Marc couldn’t help but snort as the song came on exactly at the moment where Murphy snatched up Tas and threw her with her ass high in the air. He was gone yet again and fell about laughing, his body slumping to the ground as it no longer held the strength to keep him. His fists pounded on the tiles and he struggled to breathe.

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Grasping Tas’s hand, Cera helped her sit up and she gave her a sympathetic smile. She really did look beaten up, Cera wondered what a doctor could possibly do to get so battered. She glanced over to the entrance to the courtyard when she heard Murphy’s voice. A bashful smile started to show but she did her best to control it. That’s when her stomach took hold and began to tell her that she felt sick. She knew it was just the anxiety but it didn’t make it hurt any less unfortunately.

She listened to the exchange between the two and kept silent, she didn’t want to interrupt but the mention of a cave raised some questions. However, just as she took a breath to speak Murphy spoke to her and all thoughts left her brain momentarily. She gave a general nod and gulped down the nerves as she ran off to the kitchen as she heard Tas giving Murphy an earful.

Cera ran into the kitchen and almost knocked one of the kitchen staff into the sink as she darted past. “Main bahut sharminda hoon!” She waved to him as she darted between some other people that were working away in the kitchens.

She reached the freezer and began to gather ice into a bowl before grabbing a few small towels to put them in. She darted around the poor soaking wet boy she’d just knocked into and handed him one of the three towels she’d grabbed.

She held a grimace as she spoke, one eye scrunching shut in embarrassment. “Yahaan. Paanee ke lie. Main phir se maaphee chaahata hoon.” Bowing her head slightly, she made off for Apartment 12 where Murphy had no doubt escorted Tas by now. She gave the group a glance as she darted past them, smiling to anyone that caught her eye and ran up the stairs to the third floor.

As she reached the room she knocked on the door twice before stepping inside. She had the bowl of ice in her left hand and the towels were draped over her right shoulder. They were already beginning to melt so she walked over to where Murphy had placed Tas and put the bowl down on the nearest surface. She grabbed handfuls of ice and put them into a towel, bundling it up and offering it to Tas. “That looks sore. What was that I heard ‘bout a cave earlier?” She raised a quizzical eyebrow towards Tas as she awaited the story.

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