Looking down at his pirouetting roommate, Anton smiled at her display of affection. “Yeah, I missed you, too, Lics. Even though, y’know, I wasn’t gone all that long,” he stated, while chuckling. Her purring only increased in texture and volume.<br/><br/>He noticed how Stella received the same kind of attention from Tesla. The difference between the two kitties, of course, was that Tesla was about the size of an Abrams Main Battle Tank, more or less. He would have a much easier time of crumpling either human than Licorice could ever hope to. His Persian, on the other hand, was comparable in size to a John Deere lawn mower, and not the riding models, but the push type.<br/><br/>“Oh, I have indeed noticed the sparks between the two,” he said, agreeing with her assessment of the mutual feline fancy. “I would love to have seen what kind of litter these two produced. Alas, we’ll never know, as she’s already been spayed.”<br/><br/>Funnily enough, though by no means surprising, at Stella’s reference to the terms<i>hungry</i>and<i>food</i>, her Maine Coon bolted for the door. Standing vigil, Anton was amused at how the male cat seemed to think that just by mewing, the door would magically swing open. It was clear to hear Tesla’s frustration at not getting his way. Or more likely, at Stella’s obvious sloth-like “speed” at opening the door for him.<br/><br/>“As are you, Stella,” he said, returning her compliment of being good company. “And thanks again for the invite. Your chicken dish was most scrumptious, and although I don’t do dessert as much as I used to, those pears were to die for,” he said.<br/><br/>Anton’s upstairs neighbor then turned to leave, and as she did so, she stated, “And I can’t wait for this weekend.” It was then that a 200-watt light bulb lit up his gray matter. “Oh yeah, before I forget yet again, how do you like your steak?” He smiled, continuing, “Because, y’know, we here at<i>Chateau de Kostaki </i>cook to order.”