The apartment building at Washington Square wasn't the worst address when it came to living. It was a 25 stories high building filled with spacey apartments that cost a pretty penny. The combined salary of two T.U.F.F. agents was just enough to pay the rent and live a comfortable way of living. It maybe meant a few extra hours, but Dudley enjoyed this luxury, especially after his last apartment.
Back then he had lived in a rather nice apartment in a bad part of the city. It happened quite a few times that he woke up in the dead of night catching Snaptrap who tried to flee with his T.V. over the fire ladder. Also, the frequent visits of Sam back then had kind of ruined the place for him. So much so that he moved into Kitty's old apartment at the first given opportunity.
Kitty back then was first very reluctant about them moving together, it was a big step in their relationship and she didn't want to do it because of accommodation issues. But as soon as half of D.O.O.M. had met her in Dudley's apartment just wearing a slip, she reconsidered her reluctance.
And now after another year, they both decided to move to their new home. Dudley was smiling as he got out of the elevator. There was music audible in the hallway and it definitely came from their apartment. He felt excitement as he opened the door and entered the apartment. Inside the music was louder and Dudley realized it wasn't a recording.
Someone was playing guitar with a less-than-pleasing result. His first reflex was to cover his ears but he didn't want to be the grump who discourages the wannabe musician from playing. Dudley followed the sound of music into the living room where Keswick sat on the couch nodding his head to the music that was played by a male squirrel in a suit that was two sizes too big for him.
Short brown hair and a pair of glasses rounded the picture of the latest T.U.F.F. hire, agent Rick Lewis. Dudley liked Rick, the guy was maybe timid and reserved but he had a very pleasant character when you got to know him better.
"Uhm…Rick…" Dudley said tentatively.
"Yea…?" Rick looked up to him and he saw that his colleague already had left the isle of sobriety a while ago.
"Could you maybe be a little gentler with my guitar? I just have that one."
"Oh… sure… sure…" the squirrel dizzily said and started touching the strings a little more gentle. The sounds it produced weren't a lot better but at least they wouldn't harm his poor guitar anymore.
"Come on man that w..w..was my j..j..jam." Keswick complained from the couch.
"Ask him for his demo tape later." Dudley mumbled and left the living room towards the kitchen. He arrived there just at the right moment. Carmelita and Kitty were still sitting at the table. The second bottle of tequila was almost empty and the two women were just staring at each other sternly while each of them held a full shot glass in their hands.
"What exactly is happening here?" Dudley's question was more of an obligatory nature, he didn't really care why or what exactly they were doing. Kitty seemed to have fun which was important for him.
"No clue…" a voice, similar to Kitty's said and Dudley turned around finding the third Katswell sister leaning against the wall eyeing the spectacle. "I actually wanted to ask you, it seems like it has tradition."
"Actually no, this is new. When I saw the picture, I thought they were just drinking normally." He meant enjoying the view and smiling widely.
"Nah, they are far away from that." Katty had joined Dudley and her sister and they all stared at Carmelita and Kitty.
"I hadn't expected that from her…" Kerry said pensively.
"I know, she can hit a few back like you wouldn't believe." Dudley meant still smiling.
"I think she means Kitty escalating like that, she's mostly the boring one." Katty chortled and they all stopped for a moment as the women knock their drinks back and refilled their glasses.
"You probably need some kind of outlet from time to time." Kerry said and crossed her arms.
"And we are talking about Kitty so if the boredom is counterbalanced with alcohol we will see a third bottle soon."
"Could you not talk about her like that?" Dudley insisted as he raised his voice. "She isn't boring."
"Sorry Dudley, she is." Kerry meant and even managed to smile a little saying that. "I don't mean that in a meanspirited way, but she was always the stern rule book obeyer, that's not a very exciting quality."
"Yeah, I mean if someone would say 'hey guys let's do something crazy' her reply would be 'But only if it's allowed and we are home by 10'."
"Yet I see none of you two trying to drink Carmelita under the table." Dudley smugly grinned at them and then looked back at Kitty.
It had taken him just this moment of distraction to miss both opponents giving up their fight by letting their heads sink onto the tabletop. The light snoring both of them gave off also was a good hint that none of them would resume the fight any time soon.
"Clear tie I would say." Meant Dudley nodding approvingly. "Would someone of you do me a favor to bring Carm into the guest bedroom?"
"Can do that." Katty replied eagerly.
"Okay I'll help you w…" Before he could finish his sentence Katty had the vixen over her shoulder.
"She's heavier than I thought." Panted the cat as she slowly stumbled out of the kitchen.
Dudley watched her leave while nodding approvingly. At least that problem was dealt with, now he just had to bring Kitty to bed and gently kick out the guest that would, after an appropriate time, overstay their welcome. He was actually just expecting Keswick to be this guest.
Dudley had picked Kitty up and gently carried her to their bedroom. He had to admit he wasn't quite sure if she was sleeping or unconscious. Just the snoring after he laid her down was the only deciding indicator.
"Ah, so you want me to stay up tonight, cool." He whispered giggling and then covered her with the blanket. "I'll get you some more water later." Softly he laid his lips on her cheek and gave her a goodnight's kiss before adding. "Happy birthday intoxicated cutie."
The door behind Dudley fell shut and he closed his eyes angrily. Couldn't he even leave him alone for a few hours?
"Listen, I am over the thing with the testament, you got me?"
"Uhm…Pardon?"
Dudley twirled around and looked into green eyes that were as confused as his. "Catastr…Kerry! What are you doing here?" he tried to bring his voice back down to a whisper-like level to not wake Kitty.
"I wanted to talk to you…" The cat walked to the edge of the bed and slowly sat down on Dudley's side. "By the way what testament?"
"Long story…" He meant and sat down next to her. "What's wrong."
"There is something on my mind lately since… you remember last family gathering?"
"That one in October, right?" Dudley tried to remember, he had been to a few of these Katswell gatherings now and forgot these as fast as possible. Nobody wanted to be there including the hosts.
It was one of these traditions that was started generations ago when family ties were stronger and genuine interest wasn't yet replaced by almost complete indifference. Especially Dudley didn't want to be there, he was the only dog amongst cats and they had always shown him that they liked the lack of his kind.
The only ones he could speak to were Kerry, Katty, and Kitty of course. Even though these conversations always had been shaped by the fact that criminals and law enforcement sat at one table and talked. Dudley always wanted to ask what kind of deal Catastrophe and Rabies had so that he never had to show up.
"Yes back then Katty had that obnoxious guy with her."
"Oh yeah this Avery guy." Dudley remembered he hated that guy. The whole demeanor was so arrogant and especially latently aggressive against him.
"Exactly he… look what I want to say it is…" She took a deep breath. "I saw him and you in the little alley behind the venue."
"Uhm…" Dudley started sweating, he hoped Kerry hadn't heard or seen too much. "You heard our friendly conversation?"
"Friendly?" Kerry laughed but then toned down her volume quickly. "You threatened to murder him if he ever comes close to one of us again."
"No you must have mis…" Dudley knew his tries were in vain as he looked into Kerry's eyes. "Fine yes, you got me, him leaving that night and their breakup was my fault. What do you want now? Get me reprimanded or something?"
"No, you get me wrong." She gesticulated soothingly. "I am actually glad about that… I saw how touchy he was towards Katty and also started that shit towards us." Kerry sighed once more and her gaze wandered to the ground. "The problem is just the way you talked to him… It triggered something in me and I can't… shake it off…" she took a deep breath. "I think it's 17 years ago, god that sounds so silly…" She laughed nervously. "I met this guy, his name was Jason and he looks a lot like you… I feel so stupid but, I mean this can't be you…"
Dudley felt Kerry's nervousness and amplified it by a factor of ten. He knew what was coming. He stood up and checked outside of the room. No one was near the door but just to be sure he locked it. Like hunted prey, with his eyes opened widely, he looked at Kerry who met his gaze. She looked shocked at him, his behavior was better than any answer he could have given.
"But how…"
"Shh, quiet." He said and pointed at Kitty. "This has to stay a secret."
Kerry stood up shocked and walked over to him. "Okay but still, how?" She whispered. "Weren't you like 10 years old back then?"
"Look, it's complicated… do you remember this whole ordeal with the Petropolis bomber two years ago?"
"Your face was all over the news, yes." She nodded.
"Well, a day or so before that was my funeral…"
"Pardon me what?" Kerry seemed profoundly confused. After all, Dudley looked too alive for a corpse.
"Yes it… ah dammit I need to start from the actual start but…" Dudley walked around the bed and looked at Kitty. She still seemed fast asleep. Just to be sure he gently poked her shoulder. The reaction was grumbling but no awakening.
"Okay, sleep tight Kitty." He walked back to his side of the bed and sat down on it, Kerry did the same.
"Okay, I try again… I sometimes work for an… exotic person. He had a special job for me which led me into a research facility to destroy something."
"That sounds like a rather terroristic thing to do for a T.U.F.F. agent." Kerry's voice sounded skeptical but she also leaned closer to Dudley. "Who is that guy?"
"Believe me you don't want to know… for the sake of simplicity, call him Sam."
"That sounds goofy for someone who sends you on such missions." Kerry meant still bewildered.
Dudley chuckled a little, she didn't know how good it felt to have this name for him. It took away a little of the distance, of the aloofness the advisor exuded. Dudley remembered feeling less scared after they chose this name.
"Back to the matters at hand. The thing I destroyed was a portal device and I got sucked into it. When I woke up I was in 1998."
"I might repeat myself but, how?!" She asked a little louder and got shushed by him.
"I am not a scientist, I can just tell you what happened. Well, the first person I ran into was the little version of myself, that brought me to my parents' house and well, you know the rest."
"Okay…" Kerry looked at him and then started smiling. "Ah, okay, you got me, good one. You must have heard that somewhere and now you made up that story."
For a moment Dudley thought about just rolling with it pretending it was a joke. He remembered who had seen him and never recognized him.
He had had a run-in with every Katswell woman except Katty. If he let Kerry think it was a joke, she might start telling the story to Kitty or her mom. He was afraid that more suppressed memories would escape the Katswell family's subconscious. He needed to be genuine and he needed a promise from her.
"We met when I accidentally kicked a rock against your head." He sternly said and Kerry's giggle died instantly. "I was frustrated with no way home so I kicked that stone. I think I first thought you were Kitty and…" he stopped, Kerry looked at him her face the living expression of shock.
"It was really you…" She breathed while her heart was racing. "I thought I would never find you I… You don't know how much that…"
"You pretend like I have saved you…" he gritted his teeth and looked away. "I was too late for that."
Kerry's hands gently touched his cheek and turned him back towards her. Dudley expected some words but instead, she just looked at him. She said nothing as she slowly moved closer to him and laid her lips on his. The kiss didn't have the same passion as the ones with Kitty, but it had a certain sincerity that Dudley had never felt before.
It felt unmasked and free and unburdened from the weight of a thousand lies. His mind got lost for a moment in this feeling before he broke the kiss and moved away from her. Shocked he looked at her while she blushed.
"I just wanted to say thank you for what you have done for the three of us…" her hand gently caressed his cheek. "After he was gone, we could finally breath again."
"Kerry I can't…"
"It's okay." She gently moved her hand back. "It's your decision to tell them, I won't give away your secret."
"Do I have your word?" he whispered with sternness filling his tone.
Kerry nodded. "Yes, it'll stay in this room."
Dudley took a deep breath. It maybe was crazy but even letting out this little secret felt good. Finally, he could tell someone what happened without them calling him crazy. And even if the advisor more than often told him that secrecy was a key part of the things they did, letting Kerry in on a few things wouldn't be that bad, would it?
"I've been doing things like that for 5 years now… although after the thing with the atom bomb, things got calmer." He rubbed his hands over his face and groaned. "The things I had to do for Sam… I mean I stole things that shouldn't exist. I seduced people, extorted them… There is a greater good behind that I hope but often the work is so minuscule and compartmentalized… You just do the smallest thing so that it triggers a chain of events or prevents it."
"That sounds frustrating… How do you even, schedule that all without Kitty noticing?" Kerry knew her little sister, usually, she wasn't easy to fool.
"Lies on top of lies on top of lies…" He pressed his now shivering hands vigorously on his face. "This whole thing is a tower and it's about to fall, I feel it. He returned and…" Dudley's hands moved off his face and he crossed his arms. But the gesture looked more like he held himself tight. "…he told me that Kitty will get involved." His whole body was shaking now and his usually black nose had almost lost its color.
"Wh…What does he want from her?" Kerry asked distraught about Dudley's intense reaction.
"As far as I understood it isn't his decision, she's part of it, on which side is unclear." Dudley gritted his teeth, and anger flared up in his eyes. "I have spent so much effort to keep her out of this and now… I rather die than have her go through this all."
"Isn't there another way? I mean I could take her place." Kerry suggested insecurely.
"You would do that for her?"
"For you." She said blushing.
"Kerry I… I think this is beyond us to decide." He sighed and shook his head. "Anyway… it felt good to talk about that… I have your word, right?"
Kerry nodded and the two of them stood up. "I better go and tell the guests it's time to go."
"Speaking of that… Katty and I…"
"Just take the couch, no worries." He said and hold the door open for her. Kerry giggled as she walked through it and Dudley gently closed it again to not wake his girlfriend.
Kitty's sleep was light that night, the noise around her had made it hard to sleep soundly. She caught a few things that were said and as the door closed she sat up in bed and looked around confused. Was it a dream or had Dudley and Kerry been here? And what was this other nonsense
Dudley said? And most important of all, did she hear a kiss?
Kitty looked around and realized how dry her throat was. Next to her bed stood a glass of water she had already put there this morning. She emptied it and also took the two painkiller pills that were laying next to the glass. You never knew how these Katswell parties would end.
She lay back down on her pillow and closed her eyes, these things could wait until tomorrow. She needed her sleep now.
-Author's note: Well folks, so much for the start, hope you liked it so far, I will go over to a little slower posting rythm after this chapter. As always, tell me what you think, leave me a review, and stay tuned :)-