Disclaimer: The SWAT Kats are owned by Hanna Barbera and the Tremblay Brothers. I own the OCs.
I was expecting the planning to start in this chapter, but the story had other ideas.
MisaRae fixed the emotional mess that I wrote and made this actually into something worth publishing.
On another note, thank you all who review. You have given me the courage to start writing something completely original. I am now eight chapters deep in a novel. This is something that I hope to have published and launch my writing career.
Candice went wide-eyed at the sensation of Jones kissing her. It was a shock at first, but she very quickly warmed up to the idea, closing her eyes and falling under the spell of his passionate kiss. Her lips began to move in time with his, her hands moving up his sides until they came to rest on his chest. She felt so warm, so comfortable in his arms, as if she had been meant to be there all along.
Jones loved having Candice's paws on his chest and his lips on hers; he opened his mouth and let his tongue lick her lips, asking for entrance.
Candice complied and opened her mouth, allowing his tongue to explore hers, but only for a minute, before she took over being the aggressor and shoved her tongue into his mouth while moving her left paw down his lean but fit form to his taut butt, giving it a firm squeeze.
As much as he loved Candice taking over, they were in her office. His mind told him to back off and stop, since anyone could just walk in on them at any moment. He pulled his head back, looked into her golden eyes, and said, "That was intense." Then he remembered that his assignment was to protect her at all costs, and here he was, taking advantage of her. He placed his paws on her shoulders and said, "I'm sorry, Candice. I should have not kissed you. I have crossed a line. I will let the Commander know that I am going to recuse myself of this detail and wait for my replacement."
Candice was still reeling from their kiss. Oh, she'd been kissed before, but never quite like that. She would never have guessed that such passion lay beneath such a reserved exterior. It had practically radiated from him while he held her in his arms. She heard Jones say that he was going to have someone else take over the detail of protecting her, and she saw red. She grabbed the dense fur on his cheeks and forced him to look at her, before she said, "If you think that you are going to walk away from me, after kissing me like that, you have another thing coming, mister! If you didn't notice, I was kissing you back, after all, so I'm equally responsible. I am not sure why I kissed you back; although I am glad I did. As far as you recanting this detail, that is not going to happen. If you want to have this, whatever this is, turn into a real relationship, and then we need to let it develop and see where it goes. We, and I mean WE, can't do that if you are not around. Got that, Officer Jones?"
"Tim," he said.
"Excuse me?" Candice asked.
"My name is Tim, not Officer Jones," he said.
"Well, Tim, can your detail take you to an early dinner, or is that against the rules?" Candice asked.
Tim looked down at her and smiled before replying, "Yes, you can, Candice, and as you have requested, I will not recant my detail."
Candice released his fur and stroked his cheeks before she said, "Good. Now, do you think that you can sit there without sneaking glances at me while I work? It's hard to concentrate with someone staring at me all the time."
Tim took her right paw in his and brought it to his mouth in order to give it a gentle kiss. He then said, "it's not easy to look away from such a vision of beauty."
Candice gave his cheek one last caress before returning to her desk. She sat back down and crossed her long legs.
Tim took one last look at her shapely legs and gulped. 'This is going to be one long afternoon,' he thought.
By the time T-Bone and Callie's taxi arrived at her apartment building, it was 11 in the morning. Callie got out of the taxi first, paid the driver, and quickly walked to the trunk to get Chance's crutches and walker before making her way over to help T-Bone out of the cab.
T-Bone stood with her help and placed the crutches under his arms. He turned to her and said, "Thank you, Ms. Briggs."
Callie just smiled and patted his right paw. She led him into the lobby of the building and towards the elevator.
The doorman shot Callie a questioning look upon seeing her escorting one of the SWAT Kats into the building. He said as they got closer, "Good morning, Ms. Briggs, you look lovely, as always." He then turned to T-Bone and said, "I am sorry about what happened at the wharf. When I heard that the TurboKat went down in flames, my heart stopped. You and your partner mean more to this city than you probably know." He saw the duffle bag Callie was carrying, and then said, "I guess you will be staying as a guest of this building for a while. If you need anything, the building staff will be at your beck and call at whatever time of the day or night."
"Thank you. Hearing you say that, it makes what Razor and I do worthwhile. If you will excuse us, I would like to get some rest before I start another round of exercises."
"But of course," the doorman said.
Callie and T-Bone entered the elevator, and the doors closed behind them. She pressed the button for her floor. As elevator started its ascent, T-Bone said, "I hate being on these sticks and being a burden to the ones I care about. When we get to your apartment, I am going to try to walk again."
Callie turned and shot him an angry glare. She said, "Absolutely not! You are going to find a nice, comfy place to rest, and you are going to stay there until we go to Felina's. Unless you want to go now and see Jake, since they are probably there?"
T-Bone thought about it for a minute. He wanted to see Jake, but he also wanted to spend time alone with Callie. He answered, "Why don't we go to Felina's? That way, we can start preparing for this meeting before Ulysses gets there."
"Alright, but the same rule applies there. You are going to find a place to sit that tail of yours down in and stay there," Callie said.
They arrived at her floor and exited the elevator before making a right turn down the hall towards Callie's and Felina's apartments.
When they arrived at Felina's, Callie reached into her purse and removed a key ring that held the key to Felina's door. She inserted the key and gave it a quick turn to the right, opening the door. The first thing they heard was Tina's voice saying, "Come on, Jake! Katerina and I were just having a little fun. Just because you walked in on us having sex, doesn't mean that you have to be such a stick in the mud!"
T-Bone looked at Callie and asked cautiously, "What is she talking about? Katerina is, or was, in love with me not that long ago."
"That is right; you have been in the hospital, so you don't know. While Felina and I were out with Katerina , we met up with Callista and went shopping. That was when we met one of Felina's students. She and Katerina hit it off instantly, and I guess they both fell for each other, hard. It sounds like Jake walked in on them showing their love for each other," Callie said.
"Wait, so Katerina is into she-cats now ?" T-Bone asked.
"Yes, she is. Or at least, one particular one. Does it really matter?" Callie asked as she placed her paws on her hips.
"No, it doesn't. As long as she is happy with her choice, I am fine with it," T-Bone replied.
"Good, I would hate to say I am marrying someone who is not tolerant of another's mate choice based on gender," Callie said.
Jake took that moment to show his face. He turned, saw Callie and T-Bone standing by the front door of the apartment, and asked, "How long have you two been standing there?"
"Long enough to hear a she-cat telling you not to be such a stick in the mud, buddy," T-Bone replied.
"Ah, so you heard Tina. Wait until you meet her. She acts exactly like Felina. Although, she has these exotic markings on her that could make any tom, or in her case, she-cat, go for her. Katerina is going to have her paws full dealing with Tina, just as I do with Felina. Although, I think she will enjoy it, "Jake said He looked around the room, spotting a chair that wouldn't be too low for T-Bone to comfortably get back out of. He went over to T-Bone and led him over to that chair, making him sit down. He then asked, "How long are you going to be on crutches?"
"I have no idea. My doctor/ Physical Therapist mentioned something about a month, but I want off of them a lot sooner than that," T-Bone replied.
Callie was in the kitchen getting T-Bone something to drink when she heard him say that he wanted off of the crutches sooner rather than later. She said as she walked back over to him, "You will do as Dr. Earnheardt told you. I don't want to see you lose that leg because you are being a pig-headed tom!"
Jake quickly turned to face T-Bone and asked, "What is she talking about, you losing your leg?"
"The doctor told me that if the leg does not heal right, or if I do something stupid like re-injuring it, there is a very good chance that they will not be able to repair the damage and will be forced to remove it," T-Bone replied, before looking down at his damaged leg.
"Well, that is not going to happen, buddy. You are grounded until you have clearance to return to the skies, and that includes the salvage yard. If I see you so much as pick up a screwdriver, I will personally tie you to the lift so you can't go anywhere. Do I make myself clear!?" Jake exclaimed.
"What do you want me to do, then? Just sit on my butt and watch everyone I care about go out there and risk their lives while I sit around and rot? I don't think so, Jake. That is not how I was raised. Go ahead and try to keep me contained in one place. Let's see how you do. My leg might be shot, but these arms are still very strong, and I will use them to kick your tail if you try to keep me down," T-Bone replied.
Callie walked over to T-Bone and slapped him across the face. She yelled, "Are you that stupid?! You heard the doctor! If you don't do exactly as she says, I will make sure that your life is not a pleasant one!" As she spoke, tears of anger and frustration flowed from her eyes. She then grabbed his shirt by the lapels and yanked his upper body forward so that his face was mere inches from hers before she said, "Can't you get it through that thick skull of yours that I love you so much, and seeing you like this hurts me more than your leg hurts you? I want you to listen to what the doctor said so we can go for long walks on the beach, have romantic picnics in the yard, and most of all, run around and play with our kittens." Callie wrapped her arms around his neck and buried her face into his left shoulder as she sobbed.
T-Bone removed his mask so Callie could see his eyes clearly. He placed his right paw on the back of her head and stroked her hair tenderly. He said softly, "I want those things too, Callie. I can't wait for our kittens to be born so I can be the father that I always wanted to be. I also want to spend time with my beautiful wife and be the husband that she has always dreamed of." He gently pushed her off of his shoulder so he could look into her eyes, and said, "I'm sorry if I made you mad. That is the last thing I ever want to do. I just don't know how to sit still and let others do things for me. I was always taught that was a sign of weakness, and I always had to be strong or other cats were going to walk all over me. I guess I am going to have to learn how to let others help me when I need it." Chance pulled her back into a tight hug and said, "I don't ever want to be without you by my side, Callie. Ever."
Meanwhile, Tina and Katerina had finally dressed and left the bedroom. As they entered the living room, they both saw Chance and Callie in a deep and loving embrace. Katerina placed her right arm around Tina's slim waist and pulled her close. She said to her, "There was no way that I could have competed with their love for each other. Although, I am glad that I lost. Otherwise, I would have never found you my, ga-LOOP-ka" She kissed Tina after she spoke, then asked, "Shall I tell them what we have talked about?"
Tina looked into Katerina's beautiful eyes, and replied, "Go right ahead, my love."
Katerina lifted her head and said, "We have decided that we are going to move in with each other. If that works out as I expect, we are going to find a house and live out our lives together. Now our only concern is where to move to. We need to be close to the academy, but also close enough to the salvage yard in case SWAT is needed."
Chance looked over to Katerina and asked, "What are you talking about, Katerina? You are a member of SWAT, but your girlfriend is not! Why did you even mention SWAT in front of her? Are you trying to blow our cover?"
"Not at all, Chance. My girlfriend IS a member of SWAT. I want you to meet Sniper, aka, Tina Cassidy," Katerina replied.
Chance could not believe what was hearing. Since this whole mess with Dark Kat started, Katerina had become Havoc, and now, this Tina has become Sniper. He turned his head to Callie and asked, "How much of this did you know about?"
"Pretty much all of it. Tina was going to find out about us sooner or later, especially if she is dating Katerina. Felina made the decision that it would be better if she knew sooner. According to Felina, Tina is one heck of a shot with a sniper rifle, hence her codename," Callie replied.
"I guess I am alright with her decision as long as Jake is. Then again, the toms that we fight are going to have a very hard time concentrating on what they are doing with all of you females running around in your uniforms. I have to say that you ladies are going to cause quite a distraction," Chance said.
Tina placed her paws on her hips, cocked them to one side, and said, "Well, if we are going to cause such a distraction, I guess then we are going to have to get you and Jake similar uniforms to ours so the females who are into that sort of thing will have something to distract them, too."
Chance looked at her and thought, 'Callie is right. Tina acts exactly like Felina does. No wonder they are friends.' He then said, "I don't think so, Tina. We don't have the bodies for uniforms like yours."
Tina raked her eyes over his torso and saw how muscular Chance actually was. If she was not into females, she would have walked over to him and ripped his shirt off so she could see his chest. She replied, "You have the body of a superhero, Chance. All you need are the tights and a cape, and you will be all set."
Callie envisioned Chance wearing a very form-fitting costume and she licked her lips. Chance definitely could pull off wearing something like that.
Chance turned to Callie for a little support. But instead, he saw his fiancé looking at him like a piece of sushi. He asked, "You are not siding with her, are you?"
"I don't know, Chance. You would look real good in tights. All those fine muscles of yours bulging and leaving nothing to the imagination. You would be a she-cat's dream come true," Callie said as she let her eyes roam over his body.
"I'll tell you what, honey. Once I get better, I will wear an outfit like that, but only for you. No way would I wear something like that out in public," Chance replied.
Callie let her right paw drift over his left arm, feeling the well-defined muscle under his fur and said, "I am going to hold you to that, Chance. However, I reserve the right to take a few pictures and share them with the rest of SWAT. She smiled at him warmly, the look in her eyes letting him know how much she appreciated his physique before she turned serious "Anyway, once Felina gets back from wherever she went, we need to start planning how to protect my grandmother from whoever is threatening her."
Felina returned to the apartment just as Callie finished speaking. She placed the bags in her paws on the kitchen counter, then turned and saw Callie with her paw on Chance's arm, while Tina and Katerina looked on and Jake still giving Chance a stern look. She asked, "What did I miss?"
Katerina replied, "Not much. Just Jake walking in on myself and Tina in a very compromising position again. Then Chance and Callie arrived, and we were discussing Chance modeling a superhero costume for us."
"Oh, what was the outcome of the last one?" Felina asked.
"Not you, too! Is there a she-cat here that does not want to see me almost naked?" Chance asked.
"Unfortunately for you, no. We all want to see you naked," Felina said, and then chuckled to let Chance know that she was just teasing him, before saying, "I just saw my uncle looking for a parking spot, so he should be here soon."
Ulysses found a spot not that far from Felina's building. He parked his car, got out, and went around to the other side in order to let Callista out. She said, "Thank you, dear," while Lisa elbowed Mark in the arm.
Mark got the hint and got out of the car, then went around to the other side to let Lisa out.
After Lisa got out of the car and Mark closed the door behind her, she wrapped her arms around his neck and said, "See that was not so hard. You deserve a reward." Lisa stood on her tiptoes and kissed Mark.
Mark took that opportunity to place both of his paws on her hips and return her kiss.
Callista just watched as the two young lovers kissed in front of her. Her mind reached out to theirs, and looked into their future. The vision she saw was both of them in the backyard of their house, with Mark holding his two daughters while Lisa played with their baby son. Callista smiled as she thought, 'I can't wait until Callie has her kittens. I miss holding a young kitten in my arms.'
Ulysses saw that Callista was deep in thought. He placed his right arm around her waist and asked, "What has you so engrossed, my love?"
Callista looked up at Ulysses and replied, "I just saw their future, and they are going to be very happy. I can hardly wait to hold Callie's kittens in my arms. I miss having a little one around."
Ulysses pulled her to him and said, "I missed having my own kittens with Adara. I did help raise Felina and her brothers, although it is not the same as raising your own kitten. I do admit, holding such a tiny form in my arms felt real good, especially when they look into your eyes and smile for the first time. Felina never really smiled at me, even when I tickled her. She would giggle a little, then bite my finger. She would always smile after that. I should have known then that she was going to be a handful."
Ulysses looked over at Mark and Lisa, who were still kissing. He cleared his throat and said, "We should head up."
Mark and Lisa stopped kissing and turned to look at Ulysses for a minute before letting each other go. Lisa then said, "Lead on, Commander," before taking Mark's paw in hers.
Ulysses took Callista's left paw in his and walked towards the doors of Felina's building. He reached out with his left paw and held the door open for all of them before letting the door close behind him.
The doorman asked, "Ladies and gentlemen, can I help you?"
Mark replied, "Yes, we are here to see Lieutenant Feral. Can you let her know that we are here?"
"And just who are you?" the doorman asked.
"I am her uncle, the lovely lady to my right is her future aunt, and her friends," Ulysses replied.
"Very well, you all can go up. She is on the eighth floor, apartment 4," the doorman said.
Lisa said, "Thank you," then took Mark's arm in hers.
They all walked to the waiting elevator and entered it.
As the doors closed, Callista asked, "Lisa, remember how I said I was over 500 years old?"
Lisa turned to her and replied, "Yes, I do."
Callista smiled and said, "I am also a sorceress, and so is Callie."
"That can't be true. There is no such thing as magic or sorcery," Lisa said.
"No? Then how do you explain this?" Callista said as she disappeared, and then reappeared in front of Lisa.
Lisa was so scared that she grabbed hold of Mark's arm very tightly, clinging to him for dear life.
Mark instinctively placed his arm around her in order to make her feel safe and secure again. He said, "I have you, Lisa. There is no reason to be afraid anymore."
Callista reached out to place her paw on Lisa's shoulder, but Lisa shrunk away. Callista dropped her paw and gave Lisa a warm smile instead, masking her hurt, and said, "You have no reason to be frightened of me, Lisa. I would never think of using my powers on you."
"But you are evil. All magic is supposed to be evil," Lisa said, not letting go of Mark.
"Trust me, Lisa, I am not evil. If I was, Ulysses would not be marrying me. I have helped out thousands of cats over the years. Just ask any of the other Enforcers on the force. They will tell you that I was always there when they needed something, or if they needed me to help with anything, I was always willing to do whatever they needed. Now, if I was evil, would I do any of those things?" Callista asked.
Lisa relaxed and let go of Mark. She replied, "I guess not. I am sorry I acted like that. This whole business of magic and sorcery is new to me, and I was taught that all magic was used by the devil. I guess those teachings were wrong."
"Not exactly, Lisa. There are some very evil magic users out there, some of which want to harm my family. That is something I cannot allow happen. Hence, the meeting tonight. We are all going to come up with two plans. One is to make sure that nothing happens at the meeting I am going to attend tonight, and the second is to find a way to put these sorcerers out of business permanently," Callista said.
The elevator doors opened, and Ulysses led them down the hall to Felina's apartment in complete silence, while Lisa and Mark contemplated what they had just learned.
Mark knocked on the door to Felina's apartment and waited for someone to answer.
Callie heard the knock, got up, and went to the door to open it. She opened the door, and the first thing she saw was Mark, followed by Lisa, and finally the commander and Callista. She moved aside and let them in.
As they entered, they saw a strange tom sitting on the couch, as well as Felina setting a tray with drinks down, and Tina and Katerina standing on the other side of the couch, very close to each other.
Ulysses entered and closed the door behind him. As he approached the group, he said, "I have some news." He took Callista's paw in his before he said, "I asked Callista to marry me, and she said yes! We are engaged to be married! She has finally made my life complete again after all this time."
"Congratulations, Ulysses! It's about time you found some happiness, and I can't think of a better she-cat to be your wife," Jake said.
"She is what I have been missing for all these years. Now that I have her back in my life, I don't want to let her go," Ulysses said.
Callista turned to Ulysses and brought his paw to her lips in order to give it a kiss. She then said, "You have no idea how much I love hearing you say that, Ulysses. I have wanted to be your wife since before you were shipped out." Her gaze fell to the floor. She closed her eyes for a second, then she lifted her head, opened her eyes, and said, "After you left, I met Steven and fell for him. We had a very short courtship, and a very happy marriage. He gave me a daughter that I loved more than anything; at least, so I thought before she gave me a granddaughter." She looked over at Callie as she stood next to Chance. Callista continued, "I loved spending every waking moment with her since the moment she wrapped my heart around her tiny fingers. Then my husband passed very suddenly, and I was devastated. Although, I still had my daughter and granddaughter to keep me going, and they showed me that I was not alone."
"Years passed, and my daughter became distant because she was focusing on her life with her husband. A few months later, I received a letter in the mail. I opened the envelope and read the letter. It said, 'Dear Callista, We have been trying to get you to join our little group for years. There are not many of us left in the world. We should stick together. Just imagine the power and wealth that we could obtain if we worked together. We would be unstoppable! We could take over the city, then the country, and finally the world! You could be a queen again. Doesn't sound wonderful, having every cat out there groveling at your feet? Now, I understand that you have lost your husband recently. My condolences. Though from what I have seen, your daughter is the spitting image of you. Such beauty should be worshipped properly, not rotting in a grave. I hope you understand what I am saying. Either you join us, or your lovely daughter will perish.' I threw the letter away, of course."
"Then one day she was crossing the street with her husband, and they were killed by a drunk driver. I found out later that it was not an accident, but an attempt to get me to see things in another light. Well, I didn't take that suggestion too well. I found out who had assassinated my daughter and paid them a visit." She turned her attention to Lisa before she said, "Lisa, you only saw a tiny sample of my powers; let me tell you, those cats who ordered the hit on my daughter felt the full force of what I could do." Callista balled her paws into tight fist and looked over to Callie before saying, "I was so blind with rage that I leveled an entire city block with just a thought. I then had to make the most difficult decision of my life. The only thing I could do to protect the one person I loved, who still had a chance at life, was to fake my own death. Even if that meant leaving her all alone. I knew she would be devastated when she found out that I had died, but it is what I had to do in order to keep her from suffering the same fate as her mother and father." Callista broke down in tears as she finished her speech.
Ulysses wrapped his arms around her and said, "It's alright, my love. All of that is in the past. You have your granddaughter back in your life, as well as a new fiancée who loves you more than anything."
Callista looked up into his misty eyes and asked, "Ulysses, why are you crying?"
"For some reason, I felt the pain in your heart as you told that story, Callista. It makes me want to hold you and protect you and your family with every fiber of my being."
Callista returned his tight embrace. She then turned her head so she could lay it on his chest and hear his heart beating, and closed her eyes. Callista let herself relax as she listened to his heartbeat, and let out a light purr of contentment that only Ulysses could hear.
Ulysses heard that purr, loud and clear. His body started to respond, and she felt it. She opened her eyes and looked deeply into his. She reached up with her left paw and stroked his cheek before saying ever so softly, "Remind me to do that when we are alone, and I will take care of that big problem for you."
It was now Ulysses' turn to blush, since he knew exactly what she was referring to, and he was looking forward to having some time alone with her after this meeting was over.
Callie grabbed hold of Chance's right paw tightly as she listened to Callista. She remembered when Callista had told her why she had to disappear from her life. However, she had not known the whole reason why Callista had to fake her death, as well as the cause for her parent's death. She watched as Ulysses held Callista in his arms, trying to comfort her. Callie also saw Ulysses blush after Callista said something to him that no one else could hear. Callie then asked, "You never told me the whole story about my parents' accident, Callista. Why?"
Callista broke free from Ulysses and walked over to Callie before placing her right paw on Callie's left cheek. She stroked Callie's cheek and replied, "Your powers were just starting to emerge. You would have not been able to handle them properly if you let your emotions get the better of you, Callie. Using magic is not just about using your mind to control your powers. Magic also relies on a great deal of emotion from the user, and if your emotions are not in control, your powers won't be either. Back when your parents died, I was in such a state of rage that I could not control my powers. Hence why I took out an entire city block with just a simple thought. Even though I have had several centuries' worth of training and learning to control my powers and emotions, I let my emotions get the better of me, and that was the result. You have barely begun your training. If I had told you exactly how your parents were killed, Callie, you would have lost control and more than likely killed yourself. That was something I could not and would not allow." She hugged Callie as soon as she was done speaking.
Lisa heard every single word Callista said. She had no idea that the Deputy Mayor had gone through so much in such a short time. She took Mark's paw in hers and said, "If these cats are as evil as you say, what is the plan to put these cats down.. permanently?"
End of Chapter