Disclaimer: I don't own the SWAT Kats. They are the products of the respective creators and I have no legal right to them.

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Jake Clawson slid out from under the car he had been working on for the last hour. He grabbed a rag from his belt and wiped his paws on the cloth. With his paws somewhat cleaner than they had been he sighed and wiped the thin sheen of sweat from his forehead and turned to inspect the car before him. It was an older, but still well cared for, car that had been brought in for a routine tune up. With another sigh he closed the car hood and turned toward the other side of the garage where his best friend and half-brother Chance Furlong was working on a second car.

When Jake had been twelve years old Chance's father Michael had adopted Jake and his sister Aliyah after their parents had been killed during the Megakat City riots. It still hurt Jake to look back on those events. Loosing both his parents in the same fell swoop had almost been too much for him to handle and it had forced him to grow up way too fast. If it hadn't been for Chance he probably would have ended dead in a gutter by fifteen.

The early years of Jake's life hadn't been easy. His family was not poor but nor were they wealthy. His parents both worked at Pumadyne Industries and they weren't home as often as Jake would have liked them to be. The lack of supervision had led Jake to spend a lot of time growing up by himself. By eleven he knew the ins and outs of the street life in the area where his family lived. He had excellent street skills but very few close friends. That had changed when he had met Chance Furlong. The older kat had quickly become his best friend and primary emotional support.

When Jake's parents had died it had been Chance and Chance alone that kept Jake from slipping into a world of drugs and alcohol. The older kat had stood beside him when he needed it most and Jake would be eternally grateful. Jake also appreciated Chance's father, Jake had been at a complete loose as to what to do until Michael had taken he and Aliyah into his home.

Just because he appreciated the older kat's help didn't mean he loved the kat by any stretch. Michael had tried to make he and Aliyah as much a part of his family as possible. He had tried to be a replacement father and Jake resented him for that, So much so that he had refused to allow his name to be changed after he had been adopted. Aliyah hadn't helped matters either. Aliyah had barely turned seven when their parents died and she had a much easier time adjusting then her brother did. She called Michael and his wife Hannah mom and dad despite Jake's constant attempts as a child to get her to do otherwise.

He had felt that his baby sister was abandoning their parents and he felt alone in his memories of his family. The worst memory of the past was the memory of his parent's funeral. He had found out shortly before the funeral that his father's casket was being buried empty because there was no body. This had led him to believe that his father wasn't dead and he had spent years looking for the kat only to come up empty handed.

Jake sighed again and patted the hood of the car he had finished before heading into the house. He made his way to the kitchen and grabbed a can of milk from the fridge. He used his claw to open the top and took a long drink before turning to head back into the garage. Much to his surprise he found Chance standing near the entrance to the kitchen.

Jake waved at Chance who looked him up and down for a second before speaking. His voice was full of concern. "Are you okay Jake? You've been acting kinda distant the last week or so."

Jake sighed "Leave it to Chance to figure out that something was up." He thought silently. Aloud he said "Nothings wrong buddy, I just haven't been sleeping well lately." It wasn't a lie; his sleep had been having more frequent nightmares recently. Jake pulled a chair up to the kitchen table and sat down, Chance quickly followed his lead.

"It's more than that Jake. Something more than a little lost sleep is bothering you. Come on bro, you can tell me." Jake looked down at the can of milk in his paw and sighed heavily.

"I don't want to talk about it. It's… I don't know personal and hard to talk about." Now it was Chance's turn to sigh.

"Please Jake, I want to help. I can't do that if you won't let me. We promised to always be there for each other." Jake swallowed past that lump that had formed in his throat. They had made that promise and it was times like this that he regretted doing so. Finally after several seconds of silence he managed to gather up enough courage to speak.

"It's been thirteen years, thirteen years since…" Jake choked back a soft sob. Before he could regain his composure Chance reached across the table and gently took Jake's paw.

"It's okay Jake, I'm sorry I pushed. I know how bad it hurt when it happened and I didn't mean to push you about it." Jake nodded as he was still unable to speak. He knew that Chance meant well but it still hurt to talk about what had happened. Time was supposed to dull the pain of the past but Jake didn't believe that. His pain had only grown deeper as the years passed. He also envied Chance for having everything that he had missed out on as a kitten.

He was pulled from his self-pity by the sound of a car pulling up to the garage. Before he could stand and head outside he felt a hand on his shoulder. "I'll take this on buddy. Why don't you relax for a while or something?" Jake nodded, grateful that he wouldn't have to deal with an annoying costumer. He stood and headed upstairs to shower and change while Chance headed for the garage.

Upon reaching the garage Chance was surprised to find his father exiting his car. "Hey dad." Chance called as he walked over. "Is something wrong with the car?" Michael Furlong turned to face his oldest son.

"Hi Chance." Michael looked down at the car in response to his son's question. "The cars fine Chance. I just got done at the office early and decided to drop by and see how you and Jake were doing. Where is Jake by the way?"

"He just headed upstairs for a shower I think." Michael nodded. Chance sighed and leaned against the truck he had finished earlier. "I'm worried about him dad. He's been distant lately and I think he's having more nightmares." Michael nodded. He had seen how Jake acted when he was depressed.

"Have you tried talking to him?"

"Yeah but he's reluctant to talk about anything."

"It's hard for him Chance, harder than I think you realize sometimes. Most kittens don't loose both their parents when they are twelve years old."

"I know that dad, but I want to help him. He's my half-brother and I feel useless when he acts like this." Michael patted Chance on the shoulder and sighed.

"You aren't useless Chance. All you can do is be there for Jake when he's ready to talk." Chance sighed in frustration.

"I know that but I want Jake to know that I'm there for him whenever he wants to talk and sometimes it seems like he doesn't realize that." Michael smiled at his son.

"He knows Chance, sometimes it just takes time for him to ask for help."

Okay that is chapter two, I hope everyone enjoyed and that you all want to review. If I were with you when you finished reading I would hypnotize you into reviewing but since I'm not I hope you decide to anyway. Thanks in advance to those who do.