Sorry for wait (insert lengthy description of going-ons of author induced invariably for readers boredom) anyway, Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
A Cat's Tale
By: Catty Engles
Edition Thirteenth: Banter
The skull twists into a razor smile, glaring down at me, "One may think. You can call me, for simplicity's sake, Red X."
The voice is all wrong, tough, smooth, and confident to the point of ruthless. This can't be Robin. I try to say something, opening my mouth but my tongue refuses to cooperate; the overwhelming taste of copper once again passes over me.
"Tastes like you've been sucking on a bunch of pennies, huh?" Red X is leaning against the grating to my cage, his stance looks mockingly sympathetic and his tone conversational. I'll have to watch out for this guy, he knows how to play his cards.
"Chloroform." I mumble, working my tongue though it feels thick and lethargic in my mouth.
He claps his hands together slowly, twice, "Congratulations, you win a Kewpie doll."
I scowl, standing upright and stalking over to him, stiff-legged, "Look, X, I don't know what you've done to Starfire, but if she has so much as a scratch on her, my lawyers are going to sue you until money comes out of your-"
"Whoa, whoa, whoa, what happened to Starfire?" He backs away holding up his hands defensively.
"I don't know, you're the criminal mastermind, not me!"
"I'm not a mastermind; I'm a mercenary, paid to do what I do best. Steal things."
"Like me."
"And, sweetheart, I've enjoyed nothing more than stealing you in the history of my dirty, dirty record." Acknowledging me, he inclines his head graciously above crossed arms. Correction, he knows how to play his cards good, when, where, and how, but, for some reason, I feel like he has a few aces up his sleeve. Yeah, let's just call it a gut instinct. I know my own kind when I meet them.
"So, what do we do now?" I ask, sitting back down in my cage. If I keep him talking, maybe I can wheedle some answers out of him.
"That depends on what I want to do, and what I should do." He throws a meaningful glance in my direction. I'm flattered. My captor is hitting on me. "What we're going to do is wait for Mr. Boss-man to show up, what I want to do is anybody's guess."
I lean back on my hands, throwing my chest forward and readjusting my hips, "Then what's stopping you?" If he opens the cage, maybe, just maybe, I'll have a chance of escaping.
"No can do, I've got a gig to pull off, and anyway, I don't like having an audience." He cocks a thumb over his shoulder, and I squint to see what he's pointing at.
Dust motes float across the feathery rays of light thrown upon the statue of a girl. Her arms are outspread, eyes open, and mouth wide, like she's in the middle of an incantation … or screaming. The statue is in painstaking detail, even from this distance I can pick out individual strands of hair.
"Who is she?" I whisper, mesmerized by the effect the girl statue has on me. It's almost as if she's been frozen in time rather than chiseled out of stone.
"That's Terra." X doesn't seem put off by his demotion from captor to tour guide. Actually, if the circumstances were different… way different, we could have really hit it off. For the first time in a while, I don't have Robin constantly on the brain. "She was a Teen Titan."
I jerk up, "Wait, what? A Teen Titan?" I didn't know about this…
"Yeah, sure, Terra worked with them for a long time, until they betrayed her." Shivers crawl up and down my spine.
"Betrayed?"
"They pushed her away, forcing her to take refuge with a madman, who indirectly made her that."
"You mean, that's a…" The thought is too horrible to finish, X takes the honors.
"Girl? Yes. Terra was entombed by her own power over the earth."
Red X has given me no hints that he has any reason to lie to me, and seems to enjoy telling the story. The telltale liar's signs aren't present either. No shifting of weight, fidgeting, but I can't be sure about blinking. Is he really telling the truth? Could the Titans have kept such an enormous secret from me? Could they have driven such a beautiful girl to … that? Would they do it again?
The last thought chills me. This could be my fate. If they did this to her… I'm almost a Titan…
"She had the power over earth?" I try to keep the conversation light, though X has most decidedly noted my stricken expression.
"She turned herself into rock, did she not?" He jeers.
"I'm not joking." I shoot at him with a look that could wither magnolias.
"I'm not laughing." He shoots back, grinning a grin that could power New Hampshire for a week.
Bested, I sit back against the cold bars of the cage, cross my arms, and study him. He is the quintessence of flippant. I am a hostage, though I feel like a recently insulted dinner guest slighted by a host who will do nothing but smile. Like my alter ego dinner guest, I am perplexed and not just a little perturbed by X's competent but facetious manner. I intend to tell him as much. Whoa, weird metaphor, funny what stress does to one's mind.
"You know what your problem is?" I query, gathering my wits about me.
"I only have one?" He goads.
"You take everything in stride."
"I consider that a strength."
"And I, a weakness."
"And I care about your opinion?"
"You wouldn't ask if you didn't."
He nods, maybe even smiling behind the mask, not admitting defeat, but simply capitulating round one. Then, surprisingly, he speaks, "You know why you're here?"
"Bait for the Titans. Been there, done that."
"Didn't learn your lesson, did you?" I scowl at him, dropping into silence rather than raise to the bait. He lets the words linger, then with a gentler and more sympathetic tone he says, "Kid, I like you. To put it kindly, you've got spunk."
"May I ask what it would be unkindly?"
"See, kid? Spunk."
"Don't call me kid."
"Baby."
"Jerk."
"Half-pint." He smiles at my frustration, obviously enjoying word-dueling with me. I can't blame him, in spite of myself, I'm having fun.
"Catty, I'm working for a man high on the economical ladder, and you are in his way."
That description would definitely fit Ashley, "Why are you telling me this?" I know I shouldn't look a gift-horse in the mouth, but I'm a reporter, it's inborn.
"Because, I know you, Catty."
Realization comes back for an extra round and strikes another hard blow, "How did you know my name?"
"I've been tracking you for longer than you'd care to think." I blink, definitely not caring to think about what X has seen me doing, "You're in big trouble with the boss-man."
"Who is-"
"Not consorting with the enemy, are we?" A gravelly voice accompanied by multiple pairs of footsteps interrupts me.
I gasp, twisting in the voice's direction and come face to face with Ashley Chamberlain… but he has company.
Still rough around the edges, but the story will be winding down in the next 3-4 chapters so thank you for hanging with- I have more fics in the furnace, and will probably ask an opinion about which to write, though all are impending and I may just tack them all on… nah maybe not- are you reading this? Stop, go review.
A Square: Thanks horsegirl, but I don't think our school offers entomology. I'm taking etymology- study of words the previous is the study of insects. No choice vocab in that class. I'll submit to your request, check my profile, they'll be there. Thank you one who is red of hair for reading this humble piece, and forgive me for taking advantage of your horrendous spelling.
Neko-chan: Thanks Neko, your support in and out of school means much!
Keystone: Urgh, this story… okay so it was late when I wrote that chapter and I was contemplating weird literature, it just kind of seeped in… Well thanks for continuing to read even though… yeah.
D-I-WaRrIa: Why is your pen name so hard to write? Anyway, yeah thanks for the suggestion, I'll keep that fresh in my mind but I'm considering a different tangent though I'm glad you give enough time to try and improve my story, touched really am.
RobinRox13: Thanks again!
All American: Thanks baby sister.
Grumbumble: Gawrsh you make me smile, pal! I love it when you love it- warm fuzzies for everyone!
Spazzfire: LOL, gosh thanks for that, I got this review when I was feeling crummy, and you cheered me up, thanks again!
Blackshield: Sorry 'bout commas, grammar escapes me. Glad you're still reading.