| There was an alarm going off by her ear. Kitty was suddenly aware that she was late for school... She jumped upright and stopped still at the sight of Kurt blinking blearily up at her. Oh, right. She was indeed late for school. She'd missed about a third of her freshman year of High School by now. "Vas, liebe?" he said. He sat up and leaned back on his hands, stretching. The lean muscles of his body were a feast to her eyes. If only he knew how yummy he was. "I, uh, thought I was late for school," she said with a sheepish grin. "I haven't heard an alarm clock in months. Usually we're rousted awake by the guards. Now, c'mon sleepy. We have to get ready for work... I'd rather do that than go to the clinic, any day." "Nein," he said. "I set the alarm a half hour early...." He put his strong hands around her waist, and pulled her closer, kissing her neck. "Hey... didn't you get enough of me yesterday? I'm gonna be bow-legged." "Never," he breathed in her ear, and proved his words by doing a nice try at devouring her lips, his hands roaming down her back. His tail got into the picture then, sliding up the inside of her legs and doing naughty things where they met. She gasped, and relaxed into his loving touches. * * * They kissed again at the door of their quarters, and parted. She went to the elevator, and he turned the other way, to the garbage room at the stern. Kitty made her way to her workroom. Once there, she returned the soft greetings of her fellow workers and headed for Karla. The guard watched them for a while until they got thoroughly into the work. "Are you okay, sweety?" the older woman asked when he moved away. "I got worried when you didn't show up Saturday, and then they collected your things..." "Yeah. It's been a long weekend, though." She made a face. "Kurt and I fell asleep together Friday night, and our trainers woke us up Saturday morning." "Oh my God, Kitty. What happened?" Karla's eyes were round in surprise. "I got a pelvic, and we each got the third degree, and some brig time. Then..." She flushed deep red and moved a load of clothes to the dryer. "Then, they made us... have sex, in front of them." Karla's face expressed her shock, but she didn't say anything to that, she just went on with the mechanics of the job. "It was my, well, both of our first times. I was pretty sore, so they gave us yesterday off, and moved me in with him. I'm not complaining." She smiled. "Yesterday was fun." Karla chuckled. "So he made you a woman, huh?" "Many times. He's a randy blue goat, my Kurt." She winked. "And the tail..." "Oh, hush. You may get to live with your lover, and I don't understand THAT at all, but some of us have to wait for the Socials." "I... I'm sorry, Karla. I didn't mean to rub it in..." "It's okay. It's a good thing you're a cute kid, or I could start to get jealous at that whole 'I've been fucked silly' look about you." Kitty pretended to dump a soggy load on her, blushing furiously. "Mind you, I'm not saying that look's a bad thing... but if you keep it up, it could get annoying." "I'll try to remember. We know that there's something more going on, something sneaky, but we're just trying to enjoy it while we can "Good idea. There's no such thing as permanency here. You remember that, too." "I will." Kitty was quiet for a while. "You're my best friend here." "Besides him, you mean? I know, kid. I feel the same way." "I'm from Deerfield, Illinois, right near Chicago." "I'm from the capitol of Kentucky. Say, do you pronounce that Louis-ville or Louie-ville?" "Um... Louie-ville?" Kitty gave her a confused smile. "Nope, Frankfort. Sucker. People always fall for that one... "Why you... that was mean." Kitty glared at her, trying to suppress her smile. Karla gave her a wicked smile. "Did you have a pet as a kid?" "I had a cat. She was just about to have kittens." Kitty looked down, folding clothes. "Ah. Then you're used to dealing with fur, and tails..." Kitty gave her a blank look, and then shook her head, smiling. "Not like this though." "I'll bet... I used to have a dog when I was little..." * * * She had lunch in the dining hall. It didn't make sense to go down below just to have lunch with him, and then hurry back up for training. At least, not today it didn't. She changed into her fighting togs, and entered the big room. Kneeling as she always did, she recited the oath, and reported to Howards. "Stretch out, Hound. Show me how well you've recovered." "Yes, sir." Hedrick must have mentioned her limp. Agent Vaile wasn't there. Instead, it was the younger of Kurt's trainers. She felt an antipathy for him, well, more than she usually felt for an Agent. The man watched her as she stretched, with a predatory eye that made her uncomfortable. Like he was... checking her out. Howards nodded. "Good enough. I've a new assignment for you, from the General, since you've come to his attention. You're going to learn to phase another person with you when you walk through things." Okay. Yeah. Whatever. "Yes, sir." He tossed her a bag. Oof. That was heavy. "That's 50 pounds. Take it through those barriers over there, all five of them." She nodded, and walke through them all, and came back to him. He looked at her face, and grabbed her wrist to check her pulse. "Not even phased, huh? Heh." She hated people who laughed at their own jokes. "Take this one now." He gave her another bag. This one was twice as heavy. There wasn't much trouble taking this bag through the walls, either. She was having more trouble just carrying a bag nearly equal to her weight several yards to the start point than she was phasing with it. While phased, it weighed only a fraction of what it did when solid. Howards raised his eyebrows as he watched her stagger back with the bag, and drop it. "Guess we need to increase your weight training, but you're such a little thing... Brestin, you'll get her strength up. I'll write you up some goals to get her to." "Yes, sir. I'll work her real good." He smirked. "Um, sir," she said quietly, with a reluctant tone. He nodded at her to continue. "If I phase them over there to begin with, it doesn't matter how much it really weighs." He looked at her appraisingly, and nodded curtly, acknowledging her point. "Still, it would be better if you were stronger. You're not the twig you were when you got here, but Missions are heavy work." He gestured for her to come over, and gave her both the bags, steadying her when she stumbled. "Try it with these." She did, and got the bags the back to Howards. She frowned and dropped them, willing them to turn solid before they phased into the deck. They thudded to the ground. "So, the main problem is just picking up the weight? Okay... we can work on that. Load up your knives and take up your boffers. Brestin, give her a good workout." Putting her knives on was almost as well worn a procedure as the litany was. Howards liked her to be at her full fighting weight when dueling with the Agents. Brestin picked up his padded sticks and walked to the circle. "Come on at me, girly." She circled him and feinted. After the first exchange, she knew she was in for a hard time today. Brestin was very good at knife fighting, and he had weight, reach, and years of skill on her. He fought like the chalked boffers could do her real damage, and was trying very hard to deal her some. On her part, some of the edge of fear she'd had with Ox came back to her. There was something about his eyes, and the way he looked at her, making her feel like a piece of meat. She didn't like it, not one little bit. The cool calculation that had taken her then, of when to strike and where, was hers again. She leaned on it hard, and put everything else aside. This was the dance, the bullfight, the time to see whose blood would be shed, and she didn't mean for it to be hers. Then it was over. In a quick exchange he smeared chalk on her neck from ear to ear, and she'd lost. "Damn!" she muttered, irritated he'd taken her so easily. Howards clapped. "Nice job, girl. You put some real effort into that, but you haven't worked up a sweat yet. Keep her at it until you're ready to stop, Brestin." "Yes, sir!" he said. He turned back to her, and saluted with the boffer. "En garde!" And he charged at her with no further warning... She lost this one, too, and the next. The fourth match, she got him with a tricky stab to his side as she slipped by him. It seemed to annoy him, and he pasted her the next time, bulling her over with his size. The last match was a mutual 'kill'; she had her point in his throat, while he had his jammed in her chest. He nodded acknowledgement of her score, and backed off. She was sweating now, almost panting as she fought to catch her breath. "Couple jogs 'round the room," Brestin said. He went to the table to pick up the clipboard Howards prepared for him. "Then we go to the weight room." She padded around the training room. What had Karla told her? 'There's no such thing as permanency here.' Wasn't that the truth... She didn't like her new trainer, and less so all the time. She took off her knives and changed into her sweats in the locker room. In the weight room, he told her the new weights and reps, and Kitty bit back a groan. She started doing them, though. There was no other choice. He watched her closely as she worked the weights. She didn't think anything of it, at first. Vaile watched her, too, especially when her reps / weights were changed, to make she didn't strain herself. A Hound had to obey, but a trainer responsible for getting one hurt or killed without orders was in big trouble. They were considered valuable property to Shield. But Brestin... A dull flush marked her face behind the evidence of her exertions. It was where he was watching her that bothered her; her chest as she worked her pectorals and upper body. Her crotch when she used a machine for thigh splits. She could feel his eyes on her ass on yet another machine. There was a glint in his eyes. One she'd seen in Ox, and at the Socials. Naked, predatory, male interest. She'd never seen a look quiet like it on Kurt's face. He had a similar look, but it was always alloyed with his love, and constant adoration. This sort of look... made her feel that the male in question didn't care if she had a brain, or feelings, or a capacity for pain. It made her feel like an object. "So," he said. "You seem to have recovered from your... trauma on Saturday." He nodded at the lower part of her body. "Yes, sir." She did not want to have this conversation, but she had to answer. "Very strange, though, the way they set that fuzzy little monster to do it. If they wanted you 'trained' in that way, they could have gotten a... volunteer." Kitty decided that wasn't a question, and kept working at her weights. "'Course, if you want some more 'training' like that, I could oblige you..." His voice trailed off suggestively. She was hard pressed to prevent a shudder. She was disgusted at the very notion of this man thinking she could want him. Ew. She took a breath. "Ah, thank you, sir. But I think it's all I can do tonight to get these reps finished. Sir." He smirked at her. "Then we'll just have to work on that stamina, now, won't we?" "Yes, sir, Agent Brestin." Why her? She wasn't one of the really pretty ones. The beauties were never wasted on being Hounds. They were trained as 'comfort' for the upper echelons of Shield. She finished with her weight work and just sat at first. This was twice the work she was used to, and she was sore and tired. "Okay, Hound," he said. "It's time for a nice hot shower." That sounded like a good idea. She went to the shower room, and was partly undressed when she realized he'd followed her again. He raised an eyebrow at her when she froze, and she made herself continue, trying to ignore him. She finished stripping, and went into the tiled shower area, and started washing. The walls around it were four feet high, just tall enough to mount the showerheads and soap dishes, as well as provide a modicum of modesty. That faint protection was no help at all when he stepped right up the wall and watched her. She started to try to hurry through it, but he stopped her. "Take your time, Hound. Mustn't neglect your hygiene, right?" Despite herself she kept an eye on him from her peripheral vision. He was moving a little oddly, behind the wall. His right shoulder rose and fell with a rhythmic motion that gradually sped up. It hit her suddenly, what he was doing. The pervert was jacking off, practically in front of her. The worst thing about the situation was that if he ordered her to do anything... she'd have to do it; no question, and no recourse, either. He grunted softly, and smirked again. She turned away as he finished, and walked out. Just when she thought the place couldn't get any worse, she was proved wrong. She leaned against the tiled wall, and slid to the floor, huddled in on herself. She was still in the spray of the shower, and she stared at the swirls pouring into the drain. If he did more than hint at his interest... and why the hell was he interested in her? If he took it farther... Damnit, she was thinking in circles again. She clutched her left hand to her breast, and drew strength from Kurt's love. He wanted her, and loved her, and that was all that mattered. She got back up and washed again, feeling soiled from Brestin's eyes on her. She hurried through the rest of her shower. It was almost time for dinner, and she didn't want to be late. She had dispensation from the General to eat with Kurt at the Missions dining room. It was mixed genders, unlike the normal ones, and the food was pretty good. She didn't have a rank card yet, but part of the General's experiment was that they were to spend a lot of time together. The named Hounds tended to ignore her, or stressed that she was a mere trainee while they had code names. Kitty didn't care, as long as she was with Kurt. She leaned on the wall outside, unable to enter until he used his card for them both. He came slowly up the hallway, hands in his pockets, and his tail twitchy. He stopped when he reached her, and looked in her brown eyes. Dull confusion and discomfort in his golden eyes was replaced by concern when he saw the distress in hers. "Katzchen?" he said softly. She shook her head. "Later. Maybe. It's just... training as changed." That wasn't all that was wrong, but it was all she wanted to say for now. He nodded, and took her arm. "Mine, too. Sucks, doesn't it?" She laughed. Did he learn that from her? "You have no idea." By the time dinner was over, they were almost back to normal. She felt the weight of another burden in her life, but with Kurt beside her, she could handle it, and them some. On the way home, he put an arm around her. "You're limping again." "They nearly doubled my weights regimen. So, yeah. The... uh, other reason I was limping doesn't bother me anymore." "It didn't seem to be a problem this morning, liebe. I'm very glad." He smiled as they left the elevator. "I bet..." she smiled. "I told Karla what a randy blue goat you are." He snorted. "Goat? I thought I was an elf, mein Katzchen." "That, too." She sighed when the door closed behind them. "I just want to soak in the tub, mess around, and sleep." "If Saturday is any indication, you'll be tempted to skip the middle step." She gave him a heated look. "Oh, no chance of that, love. Tonight... I need you." "Sounds promising. You get undressed, and I'll draw your bath." She kept hold of his arm as he started to leave, and he turned to her. She kissed him, lingeringly, with all the feeling and affection that was in her expressed by her kiss. He blinked when they came up for air, a tender smile on his face. She traced the smile with her fingers. "I love you, Kurt, with all of me." "I love you too, Katzchen." He embraced her, holding her close. She clutched her arms around him, taking comfort from his presence. When she leaned back, he went to the bathroom ahead of her. She undressed in the bedroom, and followed him in. She soaked in the hot water, watching him as he watched her. "Aren't you going to ask me what's wrong?" He stroked her cheek. "No. You know you can talk to me about anything. When you're ready to, you will." "Thanks, love. I don't want to talk about it tonight, I think. I need to chew on it some more." "It doesn't look like it tastes very good," he said. "You're right about that. Well, I'm done here. Go turn down the bed?" He leaned down to kiss her, and then helped her to stand. "I will await you," then he slipped out. She didn't want to tell him about Brestin. It would make him angry; maybe angry enough to try something stupid. And the trainer hadn't really done anything, yet. She sighed. So, why did it feel wrong not to tell him? She came into the bedroom, and found him sitting on the bed. She turned off the light and made her way in the dark by the beacons that were his eyes. She encountered the edge of the bed, and moved down into his arms. He didn't seem to be in any hurry to turn his attentions to the intimate, and neither was she. Eventually they did come together, and that was quiet, too; peaceful and loving. They held each other for a long time, just sharing the warmth of their contact. His breathing finally began to setting into the gentle rasp of his sleep. She snuggled closer to him, rubbing her cheek of the soft fuzz of his chest, and her fingers moving lightly through the softness of his fur. His tail came up, and rubbed along her lower back, and she smiled. Even in his sleep, he returned her caresses. Marrying him was the best thing she'd ever done. Chapter Sixteen Back to Main Page Back to Fanfics Back to Series Index |