Hey all, cute little mini-chapter for you. I was going to write more but
this chapter demanded to stop where I stopped it. I'm going somewhere over
spring break with no internet access but I will have my laptop so I might
get a lot of writing done. In any case, here's some more story. Funny how
this whole thing is going exactly the place I didn't want it too...
~*~*~*~*~~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
"I'm volunteering, Swing me out of an airplane," Chris stared at her lap, fighting back tears. This was insane.
Jake coughed, sending bursts of pain through his body, "What? No Chris. You can't-"
"Don't tell me what I can and can't do. I can handle this."
"But its not just the getting in that I'm worried about," Jake protested, "I can't let you do it."
"I'm not asking your permission."
Jake turned franticly to T-bone, "You wouldn't let her. I mean you couldn't...Chance," he called him by name, "please don't say your actually considering this!"
"No, I'm not. I'm way past considering. If she's willing to go, I'll take her up there."
"You can't be serious," Jake gasped, "We, no, YOU can't put her in a position to get killed by the Pastmaster."
"If you would KINDLY not talk about me like I'm not here," Chris growled, "Besides, I took care of you two pretty well didn't I?"
"That doesn't count," Jake said, thinking back to the day she had almost turned them over to Feral, "You snuck up on us."
T-bone sighed, "Jake will you drop it? She doesn't have to have anything to do with the Pastmaster. She just needs to sneak by him, which shouldn't be hard."
"But-"
"Jake I'm doing this with your blessing or without," Chris cut him off, "I'd like to do it with but if your going to be an asshole about then I'm going to go without a second thought. Let me decide what I can handle."
She stood up and went outside. The screen door slammed shut behind her.
The SWAT Kats exchanged glances then T-bone stood and went downstairs to the hanger.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Chris leaned against the make-shift coral and scratched Horse through the bars. She heard the Turbokat take off behind her but didn't turn to look. She fought back tears as she scratched behind Horse's ears. A lump was begging to form in her stomach. She felt sick just thinking about what she had just volunteered to do.
She heard the door bang shut but again she didn't turn around. She heard the clank of metal against metal as a buckle on Jakes flight suit clanked against the metal pipe coral when he leaned against it right next to her.
"T-bone went to scope out the tower. He wants to find out how much of what the Pastmaster said about what was booby trapped was true. Could turn out that it's easy enough to get in through a bottom window."
Chris nodded and mumbled an absent, "Yeah," even though she didn't think that would be the case.
"Listen," Jake said, "the device that holds you onto the rope, its totally fool proof. It will never break. You could hold a tank with it. The whole process is perfectly safe." It wasn't though and they both knew it. The system was good enough, but if the wind picked up or something interfered with the jet or...or what?
"What you wanna do," Jake continued, "Is shoot the window out with your gun. You could bother with glass cutters and stuff, but that would take time and..."
"... me not fainting," Chris finished his thought. Shooting the window would be faster and she wouldn't have to spend so much time being...she didn't even want to think about where she'd be.
Jake gave her a few more tips and finished, "You'll fit into one of my flight suits I think. You'll have my helmet on too and I'll be right there the whole time to talk you through it on the walky-talky," he took a breath, "Are you sure about this?"
She turned to face him, but could only see his dim outline in the darkness, "No. No I'm not sure about this at all."
"You don't have to-"
"I said I wasn't sure about it, not that I wasn't going to go," She was trying to sound angry, or tough.
He noticed she was shaking, "Cold?" he asked her.
"No. Yes. Oh god, I don't know. It's not the kind of cold you can fix with a jacket."
Jake felt like he should do something for her, put his arms around her, be some sort of support. That's what Chance would do. Jake wasn't Chance though, and he did nothing.
They stood there for a long time, watching the turmoil on the horizon.
"It's kinda pretty isn't it," Chris said absently, nodding at the purple light shining in the sky.
"Yeah."
"Looks sort of peaceful from here. Like art almost. Hard to imagine that way over there there are kats, kittens even, who are fearing for their lives right now. One of them could be getting pulled out to be killed right now."
Jake was amazed at how distantly she could make this observation, saying it as if untouched by any emotion what so ever. He stared at the horizon.
Chris turned to look at him. He was pretty messed up right now. Broken ribs, bruised all over... he would probably like nothing better then to go to bed, maybe take a hot bath. And here he was...standing out here with her.
The hanger opened and the Turbokat landed with a loud rumbling noise that cut through the quiet of the night.
Jake noticed her looking at him, "What?"
Chris shrugged, "Nothing," she took his hand, "Come on, lets go inside."
~*~*~*~*~~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
"I'm volunteering, Swing me out of an airplane," Chris stared at her lap, fighting back tears. This was insane.
Jake coughed, sending bursts of pain through his body, "What? No Chris. You can't-"
"Don't tell me what I can and can't do. I can handle this."
"But its not just the getting in that I'm worried about," Jake protested, "I can't let you do it."
"I'm not asking your permission."
Jake turned franticly to T-bone, "You wouldn't let her. I mean you couldn't...Chance," he called him by name, "please don't say your actually considering this!"
"No, I'm not. I'm way past considering. If she's willing to go, I'll take her up there."
"You can't be serious," Jake gasped, "We, no, YOU can't put her in a position to get killed by the Pastmaster."
"If you would KINDLY not talk about me like I'm not here," Chris growled, "Besides, I took care of you two pretty well didn't I?"
"That doesn't count," Jake said, thinking back to the day she had almost turned them over to Feral, "You snuck up on us."
T-bone sighed, "Jake will you drop it? She doesn't have to have anything to do with the Pastmaster. She just needs to sneak by him, which shouldn't be hard."
"But-"
"Jake I'm doing this with your blessing or without," Chris cut him off, "I'd like to do it with but if your going to be an asshole about then I'm going to go without a second thought. Let me decide what I can handle."
She stood up and went outside. The screen door slammed shut behind her.
The SWAT Kats exchanged glances then T-bone stood and went downstairs to the hanger.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Chris leaned against the make-shift coral and scratched Horse through the bars. She heard the Turbokat take off behind her but didn't turn to look. She fought back tears as she scratched behind Horse's ears. A lump was begging to form in her stomach. She felt sick just thinking about what she had just volunteered to do.
She heard the door bang shut but again she didn't turn around. She heard the clank of metal against metal as a buckle on Jakes flight suit clanked against the metal pipe coral when he leaned against it right next to her.
"T-bone went to scope out the tower. He wants to find out how much of what the Pastmaster said about what was booby trapped was true. Could turn out that it's easy enough to get in through a bottom window."
Chris nodded and mumbled an absent, "Yeah," even though she didn't think that would be the case.
"Listen," Jake said, "the device that holds you onto the rope, its totally fool proof. It will never break. You could hold a tank with it. The whole process is perfectly safe." It wasn't though and they both knew it. The system was good enough, but if the wind picked up or something interfered with the jet or...or what?
"What you wanna do," Jake continued, "Is shoot the window out with your gun. You could bother with glass cutters and stuff, but that would take time and..."
"... me not fainting," Chris finished his thought. Shooting the window would be faster and she wouldn't have to spend so much time being...she didn't even want to think about where she'd be.
Jake gave her a few more tips and finished, "You'll fit into one of my flight suits I think. You'll have my helmet on too and I'll be right there the whole time to talk you through it on the walky-talky," he took a breath, "Are you sure about this?"
She turned to face him, but could only see his dim outline in the darkness, "No. No I'm not sure about this at all."
"You don't have to-"
"I said I wasn't sure about it, not that I wasn't going to go," She was trying to sound angry, or tough.
He noticed she was shaking, "Cold?" he asked her.
"No. Yes. Oh god, I don't know. It's not the kind of cold you can fix with a jacket."
Jake felt like he should do something for her, put his arms around her, be some sort of support. That's what Chance would do. Jake wasn't Chance though, and he did nothing.
They stood there for a long time, watching the turmoil on the horizon.
"It's kinda pretty isn't it," Chris said absently, nodding at the purple light shining in the sky.
"Yeah."
"Looks sort of peaceful from here. Like art almost. Hard to imagine that way over there there are kats, kittens even, who are fearing for their lives right now. One of them could be getting pulled out to be killed right now."
Jake was amazed at how distantly she could make this observation, saying it as if untouched by any emotion what so ever. He stared at the horizon.
Chris turned to look at him. He was pretty messed up right now. Broken ribs, bruised all over... he would probably like nothing better then to go to bed, maybe take a hot bath. And here he was...standing out here with her.
The hanger opened and the Turbokat landed with a loud rumbling noise that cut through the quiet of the night.
Jake noticed her looking at him, "What?"
Chris shrugged, "Nothing," she took his hand, "Come on, lets go inside."