Disclaimer: The SWAT Kats are owned by Hanna Barbera and the Tremblay Brothers. I own the OCs.
This time we get a better look into our newest heroine's life and what a life she leads!
MisaRae, I know I keep saying this, but I really couldn't do this without you!
Mark woke up to the sounds of Lisa getting sick in the bathroom. Being concerned, he got out of bed and went over to the bathroom's door before gently knocking and asking, "Are you alright Lisa?"
Lisa was in the middle of another dry-heave when she heard his question. As soon as she finished with her recent bout of morning sickness, she stood up, flushed the toilet, and said, "I'm fine Mark. But the next time we think of having another kitten, either you figure out a way to carry it, or go and take a cold shower. I'm not doing this again!"
Mark left the bedroom and went into the kitchen to get Lisa a glass of cold water, hoping it would calm her stomach down. As he filled the glass, he thought about the dream he had in the hospital where he and Lisa were in his back yard with their two daughters and their newborn son. He put the pitcher of water back in the fridge and picked up the glass from the counter before heading back into the bedroom.
Mark crossed from the bedroom door over to the bathroom, knocked, then said, "I'm coming in with some cold water for you Lisa." He turned the doorknob with his right paw, pushed the door open, and entered the bathroom. He then handed the glass to Lisa who took it from him, then said, "Thank you Mark."
She took a sip of the cold liquid, letting it soothe her throat. Then she noticed the state of her fiancé's dress, or in this case, lack of dress and said after she lowered the glass from her mouth, "Come on, really? I'm getting sick because I am pregnant and you are wandering around the apartment buck naked?"
"You know I sleep in the buff Lisa," Mark replied.
"Go put something on to cover up your lower half, I really didn't need to see that," pointing to his groin. "when I'm sick," Lisa said.
"You didn't mind seeing it last night," Mark said then smirked at her.
Lisa picked up a loofa sponge in her left paw and threw it at Mark.
"Hey, no reason to get violent Lisa," Mark said as he ducked out of the way of the flying sponge.
Lisa picked up a large bar of soap from the vanity and as she pulled her arm back to throw it at Mark, he said, "I get it, I'll wait until your done, then I'll take a shower so I can head to work."
After he left, Lisa lowered the soap and put it back on the counter. She then patted her stomach and said, "I love your father and so will you. But when is he ever going to grow up?" She left the bathroom and noticed Mark back in bed, watching some cartoon on the TV. "Hopefully he doesn't grow up too much. Move over Mark," she said as she ran over to the bed to join him.
Jasmine finished her morning workout routine in her living room. She was wearing her favorite red body suit and as she stretched out her legs in front of her too cool down from her vigorous workout, she remembered her kittenhood, growing up with her parents. She especially remembered how her father and mother dressed in dark form-fitting jump suits as they went to work. As much as Jasmine loved her parents, she hated that they were thieves-for-hire. Hence why she rebelled against the family business and joined the Enforcers. However, the disciplines her parents taught her, helped her excel in her career as well as being a very proficient gymnast.
The phone rang in her kitchen. She got up off of the floor, wrapped a white towel around her neck, went into the kitchen, picked up the wireless receiver in her right paw, brought it to her ear, and answered, "Hello."
"Jasmine, its mom. I was wondering if you can come to the house this weekend?"
"I'll come out if you and dad get normal jobs," Jasmine said as she wiped a bead of sweat from her forehead with the towel.
"Our jobs paid for your schooling, your apartment, your car, and your clothes young lady!" Her mother spat back.
"And you know mom that you're both are wanted criminals and I'm an Enforcer! I could arrest both of you and get a promotion. Your pictures are all over headquarters with the caption Wanted."
"How flattering of them to publish our pictures. Did they at least capture my good side?" She asked.
"Mom! You were wearing a mask, how am I supposed to know if it was your good side or not?" Jasmine asked as she leaned against the wall and crossed her right leg over her left.
"Good point Jasmine, did my tail at least look good?" Her mother asked.
"Like I looked at your tail mom," Jasmine said as rolled her eyes.
"I guess not, does that mean we can expect you?" Her mom asked.
"No mom, I'm not coming out to the house this weekend. I'm a rookie that means I get the shifts no one else wants." Jasmine said then looked at the microwave and saw the time. "I have to shower and get ready for my shift. Bye mom." She then pushed the off button and put the phone down.
A few hours later, Mark sat in the Squad room, waiting for the morning's briefing. He noticed Jasmine out of the corner of his left eye, being hit on by a few of his fellow officers. He left his seat, stood behind her, and listened.
"Come on Jasmine, let me take you to Phil's after shift. The drinks are cold and the music is hot, just like you," Rick said.
Mark roiled his eyes at Rick's lame pick up line.
Another male officer then said, "Don't listen to Rick, he wouldn't know what to do with a she-cat on the dance floor with an instruction manual. Me on the otherpaw knows how to show a lady a good time. Care to take me out for a whirl?" Damon asked.
"Guys, with lines like that. No wonder you both are still single," Mark said.
"Give us a break Mark. You are engaged to the hottest she-cat on the force so let us guys that are not chick magnets have a little fun," Rick said.
Jasmine turned around and saw her protector. Well mostly his chest until she looked up. Jasmine hated being short.
"Damon, Rick, Jasmine obviously doesn't want to go out with either of you, so give it a rest. Come and sit with me Jasmine and let these two cool off before patrol starts," Mark said as he led Jasmine back to the table he was sitting at and after they sat down, he turned his head to her and said, "Damon and Rick aren't bad guys Jasmine, they are just swayed by a pretty face. They will stop hitting on you once it gets through their think heads that you are not interested."
"Thanks Mark," she said. "Rick mentioned you are engaged to marry and I quote 'The hottest she-cat on the force.' Where is she this morning?"
Mark smiled at her then answered, "My future bride is at home, hopefully nursing a bout of morning sickness."
"She's pregnant too?" Jasmine asked in surprise.
"Yep, Lisa is about two months along. Would you like to see her picture?" Mark asked as he fished out his wallet.
"Sure," Jasmine replied.
Mark opened his wallet and found his favorite picture of Lisa. In the picture, she was wearing her Academy dress uniform and was holding her diploma in her paws. He looked down at the picture, then passed it over to Jasmine and said, "This is my fiancée, Officer Lisa Ericson."
Jasmine looked at the photo and recognized her face from a ballet she attended a few years ago. She asked, "Was Lisa a ballerina before she became an Enforcer?"
"Yes she was, I met her one night after her performance on my campus," Mark said then told her the story of how he and Lisa met.
"Wow, you are lucky Lisa agreed to go out with you after you put on that 'I'm all big and tough' routine," Jasmine said.
"I had to beg for her to go out with me that night Jasmine and I'm glad I did. Lisa has been my life ever since that night and in a little over a week, she will be my wife. I can't wait to look into her eyes and says those magic words that will bind our lives together," Mark said.
"Aren't you the sweetest thing," Jasmine said.
Felina entered the Squad room and commanded, "Alright, sit down and clam up. We have a lot to cover this morning before you go out and supposedly protect this city." She crossed over from the door to a podium, set her paperwork down, and scanned the crowd. When she didn't see Lisa sitting next to Mark, she asked, "Officer Samuelson. Where is officer Ericson this morning?"
"She's home sick ma'am," Mark replied.
"In that case, I need you to work a double today with Rookie Harper," Felina ordered.
"Who ma'am?" Mark asked.
"That would be me Mark," Jasmine spoke up and wiggled her fingers at him.
Mark head Jasmine's voice and looked at her for a second before turning his head back to face Felina and responding, "That will be fine ma'am."
"Good. Now listen up, there have been several break-ins lately at some High-Class houses just on the outskirts of the city. A security camera caught a glimpse of the perps just before they took it out. On the desks in front of you is a copy of the image the camera took.
Mark opened the folder and looked at the 8x10" photo of the perpetrators. He noticed they were wearing dark jump-suits and had matching masks to cover their faces.
"You will notice they are dressed to camouflage themselves during the night. Don't make any mistakes, they may look like costumed clowns but these two are pros and know what they are doing. Other than the image you have, there has not been another sighting of them period.
Jasmine took a look at the photo and her stomach dropped. She recognized her parents from the photo and now the entire force is going to be looking for them.
Mark noticed a change in her demeanor and asked, "You alright?"
"I'll be fine. I just need to make a phone call when Roll-Call is over," Jasmine responded.
"These two are very slippery and if you do see them, call for backup immediately. Don't try to take them on by yourselves," Felina said. She started to gather her paperwork from the podium then looked over to Mark and said, "Officer Samuelson, as much as the female officers liked seeing you half-naked, please keep your shirt on. My uncle and I are trying to run a reputable squad. Dismissed."
Jasmine had to laugh at Mark's expense.
Mark turned to her and asked, "What's so funny?"
"The lieutenant calling you out for having your shirt torn off of your body. Although I do have to admit, you are built like a Greek God," Jasmine said.
Mark flexed the muscles in his arms and chest, causing his shirt to become very tight to his upper body just to show off. This caused several female officers to swoon on their feet.
Jasmine shook her head then said, "Let's go Mark before the lieutenant finds out that you are acting like a male dancer in a club."
They left the Squad room and as Mark went to his patrol car to run the start of shift checks, Jasmine ducked around the corner and pulled out her phone. She dialed her parent's number and waited for someone to pick up.
"Good morning daughter, what do we owe the pleasure?" Her father asked.
"Dad, you and mom were seen while on your last job. I don't know what you have planned for the next few days but I suggest you both hang low," Jasmine said.
"We have two jobs planned over the next five days that we have already been paid for Jasmine, we can't not complete the job," Her father said.
"Just be careful dad," Jasmine said.
"We will, I love you," her father said.
"I love you too dad, bye," Jasmine said before she put her phone away and joined Mark at the car.
The morning and afternoon went relatively smoothly. They had to pull over a couple of cars for speeding and somehow pulled Parking duty on the Main Street. However, it gave them a chance to get to know each other better and by the time their dinner break rolled in, they were acting like old friends.
After dinner, they were patrolling one of the higher-class areas of the city, they were about to pull into a Coffee shop for a refreshment, when the radio beaconed, "Car 41, proceed to 2375 Elm for a Signal 41."
"What is a Signal 41?" Jasmine asked.
"Burglar alarm activation," Mark answered as he picked up the mic and said, "Car 41 responding."
They arrived at a large white mansion with tall iron gates lining the front walk separating the street from the property.
Mark looked out of his window at the property that even made Callista's look small. He then noticed several cameras lining the fence every one hundred feet and said, "Who would be dumb enough to try and rob this place?"
Jasmine felt a pang in her gut when she realized her parents might have something to do with the break-in. She replied as she texted her parents to get out of there, "I have no idea."
Her phone pinged and she read the response, 'We will be gone by the time the Enforcers show up.'
She typed back, 'We're here already.'
"Who are you texting Jasmine?" Mark asked.
"One of my friends," she lied and put her phone away
Mark entered through the open gates and parked at the top of the large circular driveway.
They got out of the car and examined the large mansion in front of them. Then Jasmine asked, "Where do we start?"
"You head to the right and I'll take the left," Mark said as he pulled out his gun.
"Alright, we meet in the foyer, if we find out how to get into this place," Jasmine said before she turned around and started her search.
Mark walked around the left side of the mansion and found a window, slightly ajar. He pushed the window the rest of the way open and looked inside. Mark saw the beam from a flashlight in the hall and said, "I've got you." He removed the portable radio from his belt and said, "Unit 41 to quarters, burglary in progress at this address. Send backup."
"Roger unit 41, backup requested," the radio answered.
Mark put the radio back onto his belt and entered the mansion through the window.
Jasmine was not having the same luck. She searched her side of the mansion completely and found no sign of entry. She removed her phone from her pants pocket and texted her parents again, 'My partner has probably figured out how you two got in by now and is searching for you. GET OUT OF THERE NOW!' Jasmine waited patiently for their reply and when her phone pinged, she read, 'You mean that hunk of a cop? Your father is built but your partner surpasses even your father. Please tell me you are dating him and make your mother happy?' Jasmine rolled her eyes at the phone, then typed back, 'NO MOM! I'M NOT DATING HIM! HE'S ENGAGED!' Her phone pinged again and Jasmine read, 'Too bad Jas, you and he would make great looking kittens. Got to go, Mr. Hunky Cop might have found us.'
As Jasmine cursed at her mother and put her phone away, she then heard a crash of something very expensive breaking on the other side of the window she stood in front of. Jasmine tried to open the window and found that it easily slid open. "This is why you are getting robbed. Stupid rich folks, you relied too much on the security system that you didn't even bother to lock your windows." Jasmine planted her paws on the window sill and flipped herself through the window and landed on her feet inside the room. She then ran through the mansion to find the source of the breaking glass, or whatever broke.
As she rounded the corner into what appeared to be a Sitting room, she saw her father fighting with Mark. Their paws were clenched tightly with the other's and Mark had a snarl on his face as he put some muscle behind his attack.
That was when Jasmine was tackled to the ground and flipped onto her back so she could face her mother.
Her mother leaned is close to Jasmine and said, "Make this look good daughter, or your partner will be able to put two and two together rather quickly. He is quite smart for one with all of that muscle."
As her mother drew her right claw back to strike her, Jasmine pulled her feet to her chest, planted them on her mother's ribs, and pushed her off of her before she went on the attack herself.
Her father noticed his wife getting tossed by his daughter, then yelled, "Phyllis!" And tried to get away from Mark who held onto him tightly.
"You're not going anywhere until re-enforcements arrive," Mark said.
Phyllis repeated the same move Jasmine made earlier, tossing her daughter across the room. However, Jasmine tucked herself into a ball, flipped out of the toss, and landed on her feet. She sprung off of the balls of her feet and charged at her mother, bringing her back to the ground with a dull thud. "
Phyllis hit the wood flooring hard. As she breathed hard, Jasmine landed on top of her, pinning her paws to the wood flooring. "Did you have to hit me so hard?" Phyllis asked.
"You are the one who pushed me mother, now stay down!" Jasmine said low enough so only her mother could hear her and cuffed her mother's paws together.
Jasmine's father noticed his wife was caught by their daughter as he fought against the much stronger tom. He said to Mark, "You put up a good fight lad, but its time for me to take my wife and leave you." He then swept Mark's right leg out from under him, making Mark not only let him go, but brought him down to the hard wood floor.
Jasmine heard her father speaking, then Mark hitting the floor. Her father started to run towards her mother so he could pick her up and try to get away.
Their daughter leaped from her mother, did a handspring, and vaulted over her father. After she landed, she crouched down and swept both of her father's legs out from under him, bringing him down hard.
"Ugh," her father said as the air left his lungs when he hit the floor.
"You have the right to remain silent! I suggest you use it!," Jasmine proclaimed. She looked over to her partner to make sure he was focused on her mother before she leaned forward and whispered to her father, "I'll find some way to get you out of this."
As Jasmine fastened the pawcuffs on her father, he whispered back, "Don't worry, we'll be out of jail by the time morning comes."
While Mark was helping Phyllis to her feet, Phyllis cooed, "My my, aren't you a handsome and strong tom. If you let me go, I can make it very worth your while."
"Sorry ma'am, not interested," Mark said as he lifted her from the floor so she could stand on her feet.
Phyllis made sure to let her fluffy tail brush against his right thigh, then said, "Too bad, you know; I have a daughter that is about your age and she is quite the looker. I can make sure you have a good time with her."
Jasmine listened to her mother try to get Mark to let her go. But when she said she had a daughter, she turned to her mother and yelled, "MOM! I already told you he in engaged! Drop it already!"
Mark's head shot around to face Jasmine, then asked, "She is your mother?"
Jasmine cursed under her breath for revealing a secret she hoped would never get out. But with her head held high, she replied, "Mark, meet Howard and Phyllis Harper, aka, my mother and father."
"Jasmine, you have to be joking, you're an Enforcer and they are.." Mark started saying but Jasmine finished his sentence by saying, "The two most wanted criminals in MegaKat City. My parents have made a living selling their services to some very wealthy clients in exchange to large sums of cash. They have been doing this for as long as I can remember."
"Jasmine, I hope you see the problem with all of this," Mark said as he went over to Jasmine with her mother in tow. "The higher-ups are going to think you were working with them and used your influence as an Enforcer to make it difficult for us to catch them."
"Mark, I swear I had nothing to do with their occupations at all. Why do you think I became an Enforcer? I don't like what they do nor do I want to help them in any way," Jasmine said.
Mark picked up Howard from the floor with his free paw, then asked, "You are ok with your parents going to prison then?"
"No I'm not ok with it Mark," she answered. "They are my parents and I still love them. But I know what they have been doing is against the law and they must pay for it."
"Jasmine dear," Howard said. "We will be fine. I have a small team of very good lawyers on contingency just in case we somehow got caught. We'll be out on bail by tomorrow."
"Mr. Harper, I don't think so," Mark said. "This place has more cameras in it than the treasury. So I'm quite sure they have every single move you and your wife made while on this property recorded. As much as I hate breaking up a family, you two are going to be heading to prison. Come on, your ride to Central Booking is probably here by now."
Mark and Jasmine lead Howard and Phyllis out of the mansion to the awaiting Corrections van. Mark handed them over to the Corrections officer who sat them down in the back of the van.
Once they were seated, Phyllis turned to her daughter and said, "Your partner is very good Jasmine, you can learn a lot from him."
The doors to the van closed and then drove off.
Mark went over to Jasmine, put his left arm around her, and asked, "You ok?"
Jasmine was looking at the pavement where the Corrections van once was parked and answered, "I'm not sure." She looked up into his eyes then asked, "Can we head back to the Precinct then go out for a drink? I can use the company."
"I don't see why not," Mark responded. "Let's go."
They returned to headquarters and changed back into their civilian clothes.
Mark was waiting in the lobby, leaning against a wall for Jasmine to change her clothes when Felina came up to him and said, "Good job today officer Samuelson. We have been trying to bag those two for years. With the evidence we have collected from their house, those two are going to be put away for a long time."
"Thanks lieutenant but at what price?" Mark asked.
"What are you talking about Mark?" Felina asked.
"Those two perps are the parents of our newest rookie and she is quite upset that we broke up her family. I'm taking her to Charlie's to talk to her and hopefully cheer her up," Mark answered.
"They are Jasmine's parents? Why wasn't any of this in her file?" Felina asked.
"Do you really think the Academy would have her Jasmine in if they knew her parents are two of the most wanted felons in MegaKat? She told me on while on scene that she didn't want anything to do with their business and went to the academy to rebel against them," Mark answered.
"I guess not," Felina said. "Why don't I go with you and see if we can make her feel better. Jasmine has a lot of potential in that small body of hers and I want to see her flourish as an Enforcer. I would hate to lose someone like her because her parents happened to be wanted criminals."
"Thank you Lieutenant," Jasmine said.
They both looked at her and Mark had to cough. Jasmine was now wearing a short and tight-denim skirt with a red t-shirt that was a size too small for her. She also had a small pearl stud in her navel.
"You're welcome Jasmine and I meant what I said. Give me a few minutes to give out my orders to the overnight shift, change into something more comfortable, and we can head out, my treat," Felina said before she walked away.
Jasmine looked at Mark and between the denim jeans that were semi-formed to his legs and the matching polo shirt that was tight across his upper body and showed off his arms quite nicely, she swore she was staring at one of her favorite characters from the trashy romance novels she liked to read before falling asleep.
"Is something wrong Jasmine?" Mark asked.
"No, nothing is wrong Mark," She replied. "Seeing you like that just reminded me of one of the heroes in the books I read."
"Oh, and exactly what type of books do you read that has heroes in them that remind you of me?" Mark asked and flashed a smile.
Jasmine smiled back at him, knowing she had found a friend that she could trust and answered, "Not the type of books that you would read Mark. Possibly Lisa might, but definitely not you."
Mark left the wall he was leaning against and went over to Jasmine. He towered over her by about a foot and looked down at her before he swept her up in his arms and said, "You mean those little romance novels where the handsome hunk of a tom sweeps in and carries the beautiful maiden away to some tropical island where they fall in love."
"Mark, put me down!" Jasmine ordered.
"Nope, your handsome partner is going to carry his new partner over to Charlie's for a celebratory dinner, once the lieutenant gets done chewing out the night shift," Mark said.
Jasmine wrapped her arms around his neck, then said, "Remind me to kick your tail for this. I'm never going to live this down for as long as I serve in this precinct."
Felina returned to the lobby to see Jasmine being cradled in Mark's arms. "I hope Lisa doesn't get word of you holding another she-cat in your arms Mark."
Mark shifted Jasmine into his right arm while he went over to Felina. He then picked her up with his left arm and said, "Lisa has nothing to worry about. She knows I'm in love with her alone. But, since Charlie's is just across the road and I didn't get my workout in, I'm killing two birds with one stone, sort of. You both are as light as a feather to me. Let's go."
Mark walked out of the precinct with a lady in each arm and across the four-lane road to Charlie's bar and grill.
End of Chapter