As Kitty walked away from her parents home, she meandered to a street that started to look more and more familiar. She sat down on a bench identical to the one in her dream. Had she really seen him? Was it true?
"Kitty!" Kitty whirled in shock and perhaps a bit of hope.
"Nath-Oh, hi there Jakob." She said slowly.
"Kitty!" He said, embracing her. "Oh, I'm so happy to see you! I've heard all about you in the papers!" He smiled. Kitty couldn't help but indulge in a moment of happiness with her old friend, who was looking much better. His burns had become mere discolorations, barely visible, his dark hair now thick and shiney, and he looks healthier than he had been in ages.
"Jakob," She smiled.
"Oh then, did you here about this Mandrake fellow?" Jakob said, sitting down, his eyes animated. Kitty froze. "This is that government guy that was chasing us! Can't believe he's gone, great news though right?" Kitty couldn't speak. "Ah, little lose though eh? Hey, wanna go get something to drink to catch up or whatever? Can you believe this? 'A great magical talent with a good heart and dedication, and more than enough potential to take him to the Prime Ministers seat..." Good heart? Can you believe?!" He laughed. "Hey, Kitty, you okay?"
"I-I'm, Jakob..." She tried to say, not sure whether to be happy, sad, or furious. "Listen, I need to go now...I'll talk to you later..." She said, pushing him away gently, before turning to get lost in the crowd.
"So?" Nathaniel asked, nonchalantly leaning over a wooden chair. Kitty recognized this place, it was her place of employment, The Frog, only a lot less full, darker, and containing a dead guy. "How'd the Mummy/Daddy reunion go?"
"Fine, why did you want me to go to them anyways?" She was wearing her usual work uniform, only the skirt seemed to ride a little higher than she remembered. "You still haven't explained why your here." She tugged on the skirt. "Does this look small to you?"
"Yes, I have." He said. "Its because you need me here. I thought we went over this, and I made some modifications to the original uniform, I think it looks much better."
"Need you?" She asked. "Thats awfully presumptuous of you, and if I remember, your judgement about people needing things can be awfully skewed." She scowled. "This is downright lewd, you can almost see my panties through this thing," She said, readjusting the skirt.
"Like I said, it looks much better." He replied. "What do you mean skewed?" He said, standing and tugging on his shirts sleeves.
"Like the government," She snapped. "Pardon me if I think that, what, 8? 5 year blunder wasn't your crowning achievement."
"Like throwing bombs at a bunch of buildings made things any better," Nathaniel snorted. "This Resistance thing was no more than a bunch of petty thieves who killed some imps and that was the end of it."
"Watch it, those people were my friends." She growled, flipping a switch. Instantly the entire place was lit from a hanging light fixture over the bar. "At least I had ideals, standards, and a set of morals, as opposed to you, a bunch of whiney slave drivers oppressing anyone who didn't have to good luck to be born magical."
"'Whiney slave drivers' is a bit of an overstatement, magic was used to build this city, help the people..."
"Do you really believe that, John?" She sniped. "Did you think magic, and your precious government was going to solve all the problems?"
"I...I did," He said, as if realizing something for the first time. "What was I supposed to think, Kitty? I wanted to believe in something, I needed to believe that my life could be used for something greater, for others." He smiled. "I suppose I should blame you for getting me into this."
"Me?! Don't you try to load this off on me!" She yelled.
"Your resistance? Opposition only can make my resolve stronger," He laughed. "But I suppose I should also thank you."
"Why?"
"When I saw you, I thought you were dead...I felt...something had gone wrong, I didn't know who I was anymore." He said. "John Mandrake, Minister of Information; seemed like an unfamiliar name. I thought, how could I be a part of a system that only works when those its supposed to serve are out of the way?"
"Was that all you felt?"
"What?"
"What? No, nothing." She said, becoming facinated with a candle on a table.
"Kitty." He said. "You have to enter the government."
"What!?" She said, looking up into his dark eyes, gleaming with seriousness. "No!"
"You wanted change, here's your chance to actually have a voice!"
"I-I can't!" She said. "I was going to travel..."
"So you can stand to fight for something, to see your friends die for it, and still not have to backbone to actually do it?" He looked at her. "You're a hypocrite, and a coward."
"Coward?! How dare you!" She said. "You're one to talk! I didn't see you running to solve anything!" She stood and started to walk towards the door, not knowing where she could possibly be going.
"I'm dead." He said, his words like a slap across her face. "You're still here, your dreams are still alive, you have potential." Potential, she had heard that word too many times today.
"Potential." She sneered. "Everyone just can't get enough of it, does describe you though."
"Me?"
"Yes, they all say, 'oh-Ms. Such and Such-suuuuch a shame about that Mandrake fellow,'" She said, drawling as best she could. " 'Really such a shame, dahling, he had such potential.'" She said, spiting every syllable of the last word.
"Who's saying this?"
"Oh you know, that bloody Ferrar for starters." She said. "What a bitch."
"Jane Ferrar?" Nathaniel said. "She's been talking about me?" He said, eyebrows raising.
"Don't get a big head, she's just a pretentious little git with a stick shoved up her-"
"And this bothers you...interesting..." Nathanial smirked and got up to walk over to her. Kitty bit her lip and glared. "So," He said casually, running a bored hand through is hair. "Jealousy? Methinks?"
"Get over yourself." She grumbled, standing up. "You barge into my dreams, give me advice I don't need...shorten my skirt to excessive lengths!" She said, 99 percent sure the thing had gone and hiked itself up another inch.
"Its a nice skirt," He said, much closer behind her than she had thought. Kitty's eyes began to sting.
"You shouldn't be able to just barge in like this, just when I'm getting over-" She stopped.
"Kitty?" Nathaniel asked, placing a hand on her shoulder.
"I don't even get what you could see in Farrar, dumb wolf-girl-thing." She babbled. "Don't be so shallow, she only good for those tight tops, and I know for a fact thats a push up bra..."
"Kitty," His voice had changed tone, Kitty noticed, it was lower, softer. "Kitty," he repeated. She turned to face him. His hand on her shoulder seemed to draw her nearer, even though they stayed at the same distance apart. "You are much, much prettier." He whispered, gazing softly over her face. Kitty blushed and looked down.
"You idiot," She cried, stepping forward and catching him in a hug. "Stupid magician," She said, trying her hardest not to cry. She felt a warm hand come up and stroke her hair gently. And for that moment, time seemed to stand still.
"Kitty-" He started.
"Don't talk," She mumbled, her head pressed firmly against his white shirt. "Please just don't leave," She started, hiccuping as the torrent of tears came. "Don't leave me," She sobbed. Kitty had never considered herself a weepy person, au contraire, she tended to be quite the stone wall. But, defenses forgotten, she felt like a child, helpless and scared against the world, but safe in his embrace. She was safe here. She was happy.
"Kitty," He said softly in her ear. "Listen to me, Jakob...he's..." He stopped and place a crooked finger under her chin, leading her gaze up to meet his. "Promise me you're going to say no,"
"What?" She said. "I don't under-"
"I know, I'm sorry." He said. "I'm sorry Kitty." Slowly, he leaned ever so slightly down and let his lips brush her forehead. And with that, it was morning once again.
Kitty sat up in her bed, and wiped away the moisture that had somehow formed around her eyes. And as her fingers brushed furiously at her face, she let them linger up to her forehead, where she swore she felt some trace or warmth.