Words... what do they all mean?

The lovely alierakieron directed me toward the second Zorro story in radio drama form (it apparently hasn't been in print since the twenties. Sad), in which Diego's fiancee gets to have a moment of Awesome while being accosted by the pirates raiding the pueblo.

Lolita: Bitch, please, the garrison is going to come ruin your party any second now.

Pirate: Haha, we tricked them into riding out of town looking for us!

Lolita: They'll come back when they see the fires.

Pirate: What fires?

Lolita: The fires outside the window.

Pirate: Ack, fire! What idiot torched the servants' quarters?

Lolita: MY SERVANTS did it. And by now the soldiers have seen it. Pwnd.

Pirate: Run away! Back to the ship!

Of course, they take her with them to be a damsel in distress, because otherwise we wouldn't have much of a story, but still.

Also, it doesn't happen often (for good reason), but I totally love whenever someone refers to Los Angeles by its full name. El Pueblo de Nuestra Señora la Reina de los Ángeles del Río de Porciúncula. Little nothingburger of a town with a name bigger than its population. Gotta love the Spanish.

"These turbulent times." Don Diego sighed. "I would they were at an end. A man has no chance for meditation. There are moments when I think I shall ride far out in the hills, where there can be found no life except rattlesnakes and coyotes, and there spend a number of days. Only in that manner may a man meditate."

"Why meditate?" Gonzales cried. "Why not cease thought and take to action? What a man you would make, caballero, if you let your eye flash now and then, and quarreled a bit, and showed your teeth once in a while. What you need is a few bitter enemies."

"May the saints preserve us!" Don Diego cried.

"It is the truth, caballero! Fight a bit--make love to some Senorita--get drunk! Wake up and be a man!"

"Upon my soul! You almost persuade me, my sergeant. But --no. I never could endure the exertion."

~The Curse of Capistrano, Johnston McCulley

He's so deliciously useless! All he needs is like a lacy perfumed handkerchief to wave in front of his nose.

Also:

Don Carlos was for getting a blade and going at once to the presidio and challenging Captain Ramon to mortal combat; but Dona Catalina was more calm, and showed him that to do that would be to let the world know that their daughter had been affronted, and also it would not aid their fortunes any if Don Carlos quarreled with an officer of the army; and yet again the don was of an age, and the captain probably would run him through in two passes and leave Dona Catalina a weeping widow, which she did not wish to be.

Why hello there, Mrs. Bennett! :D