Home Sweet Home?

"Well here it is. It's 140 galleons a month and i'm going to need your first and last months rent if you decide to take it. Feel free to explore. I'll be in my apartment when you make your choice." The grumpy old land lord told Armelle before he left her alone, except for Cassie, to take a look at the apartment.

Armelle was pretty sure what her choice was going to be as soon as she stepped into the place. It pretty much sparkled, what with the super clean tiled floor and the shiny stainless steel kitchen. Not to mention the name 'Pad a Terre'. It was pretty fateful. "Oh my gentry Cassie, this place is so amazing!" She called out as soon as the old man was out of earshot.

"Can you believe this place is called Pad a Terre? That's the house I was in back at school."

The redhead wondered what her new friend would think of the place. Another thought intruded in her mind, what would Veronique think of the place? Also, what would she think of not being the first one to see it. They had spent so much time apart that their relationship was hard to guess about sometimes. Living together had helped, but still, who knows?

Strange. Terre was a house that Jacques had mentioned. Something about unrequited love or some nonsense. Maybe if Cassandra associated with a former Terre long enough, she could adopt some of those traits and become quite the woman Jacques wanted. It would take a bit of work though, Cassie wasn't an actress enough to take on another persona so quickly. Time would tell.

"This is quite a find. So beautiful, and two bedrooms!" Cassie was frankly impressed that such a place was so easy to find. When she had been looking around for an apartment of her own, she had had no such luck. Of course, she probably had a smaller budget than Armelle and quite a lot less patience for grumpy old landlords. Cassie clung to her purse and wandered around, looking at the furnished rooms with envy.

Turning back to Armelle, Cassandra smiled. "You're quite lucky to have found this. Now you just get yourself a man and you're in the clear!"

A man? Armelle mused that thought for a moment. She hadn't had a real boyfriend since Jacob, and that was way back in her sixth year. Sure there had been Jacques... But they had never really dated. She a cared for him greatly but everything changed after that one horrible day. He pushed her away and she let him. Armelle could never be the girl for him; she was far too unstable herself to help him. No matter how much she wanted to.

But that was neither here nor there. Armelle a philosophy she lived by, and that was to live every moment like it was her last. And that included not being tied down to a man. So she shook the thoughts of yester year from her mind and focused on the present. "My dear, Armelle Champney does not need a man. All she needs are her friends. Speaking of which, I wonder what Veronique will think of the place. It will be a shame not to see her every day; her house is all the way in Nice!"

It was true; Armelle was going to miss seeing her best friend every day. She was going to miss someone to talk to all the time. Silence killed Armelle and she dreaded the fact that her place was going to be oh so quiet when she moved in. That's when the idea hit her. It was perfect! Armelle had instantly bonded to Cassie and the former Terre was usually a great judge of character. Plus, if Cassie was on a man hunt then that was sure to mean that she would be sticking around for a while.

"Okay, Cassie, I have a question for you. You are totally free to shoot me down but... do you have an apartment to live in and if not, do you want to live with me?" The words came flooding out of her mouth before she could stop them and even more were to follow, "I mean, you don't have to but this place is amazing and you seem like a really awesome person. Plus I could totally use the help with the rent. It could be fun!"

The rent idea hadn't occurred to her until right before she said it. Sure, Armelle did have the money after her mom died but it would still help her pocket book if there was someone else to help out with the rent.

Had perfection come at last? Cassie was still on the prowl for her own particular man, but Armelle seemed to answer her prayers. Staying alone in some shack of an apartment would not be acceptable, but the Australian girl was not about to impose on her brand new friend for a place to live. Yet, Armelle was the one to pose the question and Cassandra had absolutely no objections as the former French girl had already agreed to assist her with her quest to find Mattie.

"Armelle! That would be so wonderful!" Cassie had a fair amount of money stashed away from her inheritance and such. Her parents were still sending her money too even if she had left the island to pursue a life of her own with all the money she was supposed to receive. Paris was an expensive town, so she was sure that Armelle wouldn't mind someone helping pick up the cost. After all, she was the one who had proposed that she stayed with her. The ritzy hotel she had been staying at would miss her faithful business, but they could manage without her constant room service needs and the like.

With a flick of her wand, she luggage temporarily vanished into nonbeing and she magically checked out of the hotel without having to meet with the owner. Honestly, the man was a bit too horny and too old for her taste and she had a goal anyway. In her opinion, it was love and she would pursue it to no end. Jacques was just afraid and she would find him and claim him for her own.

"When shall we move in?" Cassie was beyond excited. She had found a new good friend and a place to live. The two would make a wonderful cavorting pair!

"We move in as soon as possible!" was Armelle's reply. She was so happy that Cassie agreed to her proprostion. Armelle always thought that she would be roommates but Ronnie when she was younger, but people had to go their seprate ways. As seprate as Paris and Nice could be anyways; besides, there was always floo. "I'll meet you here tomorrow, I need to go back to Nice for tonight."

Armelle felt bad for abandoning her new friend but things had to be taken care of ar Veronique's. For a concellation prize she gave an idea "Hey, I have to go to a wedding in a few weeks, do you wanna come? You might find your man there, who knows. Oh! And feel free to move your stuff in tonight."

After she got an arimitive answer on the wedding idea Armelle apparated back to Ron's house to pack and say her goodbyes.