Whee! Second chapter! I'm so happy about this fic... XD Like that wasn't completely obvious.

This chapter is dedicated to my very best friend, Kitty Tashimono, because she's awesome and deserves a chapter dedicated to her. She's the most wonderful friend in the world and I am SO lucky to have her I still can't believe I do sometimes. Kitty, I hope you enjoy this chapter. smile>

Disclaimer: Same as the one on the first chapter, I'm too lazy to type the whole thing again. XD

Enjoy!

Chapter 2

Kitty arrived in her black sedan promptly at seven the next morning. Kurry had just finished her meditation routine when her friend knocked on the door. Letting her in, Kurry bade her to make herself comfortable and dashed off to get dressed. Fifteen minutes later both were out the door, chatting amiably. 'I want to stop at the coffee shop first, if you don't mind… I've got to get Skuzzie his coffee,' Kurry said as they pulled away. Kitty nodded. 'Sure, as long as I can come in and say hello to the guy. Haven't seen him in ages.'

'Of course.'

It only took a moment to obtain the coffee since the line-ups were surprisingly short that morning. Pulling into the spot reserved for visitors, Kitty and Kurry dismounted and the latter lead the way into the office.

As always, Kitty couldn't help being a little mischievous and she whispered something to Kurry before hiding behind the door. Trying to keep her smile hidden, Kurry entered casually and set the coffee on Skuzzie's desk.

'G'morning Skuzz, how did you sleep?'

'Pretty good,' the other yawned. 'Not much going on today, really. I'll let you know if anything comes up.'

Kurry nodded. 'Thank you. Oh, by the way, I think there was a package for you outside the door.'

Skuzz frowned. 'Really? I must have been completely out of it this morning… missed it entirely.' Leaving his cup, he stood and went to peek out in the hall.

Next second there was a shout of surprise as Kitty pounced him. Kurry burst out laughing at the look on her friend's face. Quickly getting over his shock, Skuzz returned Kitty's excited hug and grinned. 'Well well, if it isn't Miss Smarty-Pants come to visit me!'

Kitty snorted and rolled her eyes. 'Ha ha Skuzz, very funny. It's not MY fault my half-brother is a genius…'

Skuzz hugged her again contritely. 'I know mate, I'm just teasing ya. How've you been?'

Before she had a chance to answer, Ryou poked his head in the room. 'Hey Skuzz, I got those reports you want...ed…' His voice trailed off and his eyes widened as he caught sight of Kitty. Kurry raised an eyebrow, about to prompt him to continue, when she realised that her best friend had also gone silent. Skuzzie looked between the two for a moment, coughed slightly and grinned. 'Um, you were saying Ryou?'

Snapping out of his stunned state, Ryou blushed heavily and tried to pick up where his train of thought had been so abruptly cut off. 'Um… uh… the reports… yeah, I got those Dirkham reports you wanted…' He absently handed the papers to Skuzzie, but his eyes still hadn't left Kitty. Kurry suppressed a grin herself as she stepped forward and linked her arm through Kitty's.

'Ryou, this is my best friend, Kitty Tashimono. Kitty, this is Ryou Bakura. He's new on the force.'

Her words had the effect of jolting Kitty out of her shock and she quickly put forth a hand. 'Um… hi,' she said quietly, suddenly shy. Ryou turned faintly pink again but shook her hand cordially. 'Hi.'

Skuzzie looked like he was about to burst from holding in his laughter. 'Thank you Ryou, that'll be all,' he said formally, though his lips were twitching like mad. Kurry made to lead her friend out of the room, since she seemed unable to move under her own steam. Ryou followed somewhat dreamily and said, 'Nice to have met you Kitty.'

'Likewise, Ryou.'

Once the white-haired cop had gone, Kurry braced herself for the explosion she knew was coming, even as she heard Skuzzie lose control in the office behind her.

'Oh…my…GOD, did you SEE him? He's adorable! And he's got a British accent! Why didn't you TELL me there was someone new on the force?'

Kurry sweatdropped. 'Um… you didn't ask?'

Kitty sent a reproachful glare at her best friend. 'Come on man… let me guess. You were so wrapped up in your work that you didn't even notice how gorgeous he is?'

Kurry laughed aloud at that. 'Alright, alright, I noticed. He's very cute.'

Kitty gaped. 'CUTE? Try delectable!' She feigned a swoon and leaned against the wall. 'Kami… did you hear his voice? Did you see his hair? That was awesome hair. Bet it's really soft too…'

Kurry's eyebrows shot up at that. 'Whoa mate, you hardly know the guy. I hardly know the guy! Breathe, Neko-chan.'

'Alright, I'm breathing.' Kitty mocked hyperventilating and grinned. 'But honestly… whoo. Man. I might have to find a reason to come by the station more often.'

Kurry laughed. 'Well, it's not like a police station is the best place to hang out… why don't I find a reason for all of us to go out somewhere or something? I think I could arrange some sort of deal.'

Kitty's eyes brightened considerably. 'Are you serious? Thanks man!'

'No problem, my friend. Go have a fun morning and I'll see you later.'

Kitty paused to give her best friend a hug. 'Hey, you have a good morning too. Call me later and we'll have lunch or something before I have to get back to work.'

'Sure. See you later.'

Smiling fondly as she watched her friend leave, Kurry waved once more and returned to her office. She intended to take Marcus and go shooting in the afternoon, but in the meantime she still had built-up paperwork to do. Sighing, she felt the rush of adrenaline that usually signified a heavy working session and fervently hoped that she would be done everything by the end of it.

Several hours later, Kurry sat back from her desk with a gasp. 'Finished!' she cried out to no-one in particular. 'Finally!' She surveyed the pile of completed work for a moment, trying to remember if there was anything else she needed to do. Finding her workload satiated, Kurry put everything into her outbox and heaved a huge sigh. At least I got the boring stuff out of the way, she thought. Now I can focus on the festivities on Friday, and fixing my shooting. The thought reminded her of Marcus and she decided to go see if he was free for the afternoon.

She found him in the lounge, taking a lunch break with Neil. Not realising she'd worked past noon, Kurry went to the fridge and dug out her own lunch. Neil waved her over and she moved to sit with the two men.

'Yo,' Marcus greeted her around his sandwich, swallowing hastily.

'Hey,' she replied, unwrapping her sub. 'I was looking for you… I want to know if you want to come with me to train in shooting this afternoon, and as often as we can from now on. I've been told I have a habit of shooting to the left, so I want to fix it.'

Neil made an odd noise into his soda, but said nothing. Marcus' eyes lit up. 'Really? Awesome. When are we going? Can we go now?'

Neil coughed. 'Um, maybe you should let the poor girl finish her lunch first, ne?' he gently admonished the younger officer. Marcus swallowed and looked down at his food. 'Sorry,' he mumbled. Kurry sent Neil a look that said don't be so hard on the poor guy and said, 'It's alright. We'll go once I'm done.'

The meal finished, Kurry chucked her wrapper in the garbage and stood. 'Give me a minute to lock up my office and I'll be right with you,' she told Marcus and left. Marcus was about to follow, but Neil caught his arm.

'Don't push it with her, alright?'

Marcus stiffened a little. 'What are you talking about?'

'I've seen the way you look at her, but there's some stuff you don't know about. I'm telling you, don't push it. Just trust me, alright?'

The younger officer eyed Neil warily for a moment, then sighed. 'Alright. D'you think she'd tell me though?'

'I don't know,' Neil said. 'I mean, I only know because I was there. And it's not my place to say, so don't ask,' he added when Marcus opened his mouth. 'I'm just warning you, tread carefully.'

'Okay, okay. We're just going shooting, jeez.' And with that Marcus followed after Kurry.

The corners of Neil's mouth twitched at that, then he sighed and picked up his mug again. It's not her fault it happened, I just don't think she's ready for another one yet, he thought, draining his coffee in one swig.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

'Ow…' Marcus hissed, rotating his shoulder wearily as he stood from where he'd been cleaning his gun. 'Remind me not to do this for an entire afternoon ever again.'

Kurry smiled at him from where she was perched, polishing the outside of her firearm with a soft cloth. 'I'm going to be a little cliché here and say 'No pain, no gain' my friend. If you don't want to get shot first, you have to be able to disable a criminal from at least 300 feet and you can't do that without practising.'

'I know, I know, but I won't be able to shoot if they have to amputate my arm due to muscle seizure either,' Marcus groaned.

'You should have stretched a little first, I think. Try that next time.'

'Okay.'

They were silent for a moment, then Kurry snickered almost silently and said, 'Hey Marcus?'

'Yeah?'

'Don't ever shoot for an entire afternoon again.'

A confused look crossed the young cop's face, then he burst out laughing. 'Okay, thanks for reminding me,' he chuckled. Kurry grinned and slipped her Smith and Wesson back into her purse. 'That was a good day's work,' she sighed. 'How about doing this every Thursday evening, hm? We'll both be keen shots by the end of the month.'

Marcus grinned. 'Awesome. I'll be there.'

Since Kurry didn't have her car yet, Marcus offered to drive her home. They were just pulling up in front of Kurry's apartment building when suddenly Kurry turned to Marcus and gently gripped his arm.

'Just promise me one thing. If you're going to learn to shoot, don't forget that it's not the only answer. If you have to let a criminal go, if someone is in danger, or you have any other means at all to bring them in, don't use your gun. It's not worth the repercussions sometimes.'

Feeling a little uneasy all of a sudden, Marcus nodded warily. 'Uh, okay, I'll remember that. Thanks.'

Kurry smiled, a little distantly perhaps, before thanking him and getting out of the car. Marcus sat for a moment after she left, puzzling on his superior's odd behaviour. Guess Neil was right, he thought as he finally pulled away. She did have something happen to her in this business. I wonder what though? Knowing he wouldn't be getting an answer anytime soon, Marcus resolved to put it out of his mind until a more opportune moment, but some part of him still burned with curiosity for the unknown event that had made the female in question untouchable.

END OF CHAPTER!

Stay tuned next time for the beginning of the adventure…