Chapter Thirty-Eight - Kittens!

“The NA Ministry of Child Protection prides itself in providing only the very best care to the children in its charge.”

--Statement from the NA Ministry of Child Protection, 2031

***

Gomorrah did a fine job landing right next to the sidewalk leading into the hotel and shutting her car down as if she had no intention of moving from that spot.

I didn’t mind. It meant less walking. I’d been doing some thinking on the last bit of the trip back. “Hey, Gomorrah,” I asked.

“Yes?” she asked.

“Can you give me and the kid a minute?” I nodded to the back of the car where Katallina was sitting pressed up against her dog.

Gomorrah glanced back, then nodded and stood up, leaving the Fury and shutting the door behind her.

“Um,” Katallina said. She didn’t continue with that thought.

I took a deep breath, then turned so that I could see behind as best as I could. “We need to talk, just a little.”

“About what?” Katallina asked. She sounded wary. And weary. I could understand both.

“You don’t have any close family, right?” I asked.

She shook her head. I didn’t remember exactly how old she was. Thirteen? Fourteen maybe? Older than most of the kittens, but not all of them. Junior’s age, more or less.

“I... look, I know what that’s like. And no, I’m not being some asshole adult pretending to sympathize. I’m an orphan too, you know? So, uh, yeah, I’ve been there. And when I was there I was flung off to some shitty orphanage with no choices. Well, I could have left, but that was a non-choice. Look, I don’t want that to happen to anyone, but I’m just me, alright?”

“Okay?”

“Fuck, I’m bad at this,” I muttered. “If... if it was up to some of the people I know, I think they’d just hand you over to the government. Maybe some would make sure you ended up in a nice orphanage, but it’d be the same mess, you know? Only with nicer bars in your cage. I ain’t keen on that. But I’ve kinda been assuming stuff.”

“Assuming what?” She was petting her dog, the big lump drooling merrily on Gomorrah’s leather seats.

“That you’ll just do as I say, I guess. So I’ll lay it out for you, alright?”

She took a moment before nodding, her thumb rubbing at the side of her gun. “Alright.”

“I’ve got these kids. The kittens. There’s a bunch of them. Nose, and Junior, the Twins and... yeah, a few more. All little shits. All orphans, like me. They’re family, you know? Not by blood, but by circumstance.”

“You want me to be one of them?” Katallina asked.

I shrugged. “I’m inviting you, I guess. I’m not the boss. I call them my kittens, but that’s like saying, uh, my country, or something. But yeah, I won’t make you do anything. You want to get emancipated and run off with some cash to figure things out, that’s on you. You want to be sent to some governmental place, that’s up to you too. I kinda robbed the people that kidnapped you a bit, and some of that cash is rightfully yours. It’s not retirement money, but it’s a good amount.”

Katallina shoved herself off the seat and started scooting to the door. “I’ll see,” she said.

I shook my head and pushed the door on my side open. Was I a magnet for snarky little shits? Did I deserve it? My eyes narrowed. I totally deserved it. Dammit all.

I stepped out of the Fury and stretched my fleshy limbs while taking a deep breath of the kerosene-filled air inside the hotel’s hangar. Gomorrah was waiting by the door, arms crossed, feet set, and looking like someone really done with the world around her. The people around her were purposefully moving towards the furthest door from where she stood.

Maybe I could ditch the cat theme and go full nun. I was sure people would leave me alone then. Also, Lucy had a thing for serious women in uniforms.

I picked my helmet out of the Fury, then grabbed Whisper from the back and slung it over my shoulder opposite my Icarus. I was starting to have a nice collection of things that could blow things up. I almost forgot to grab my newfangled grapple system too.

Katallina and her dog waited awkwardly next to Gomorrah until I ran over. “You’re going to leave your car parked there?” I asked.

“Who’s going to move it?” Gomorrah asked.

It was a fair point.

We moved into the lobby where I noticed a fair number of people looking our way. It was still a bit strange to be the centre of attention like that, but as long as they didn’t try anything I didn’t particularly care. Katallina started walking a bit closer to my side.

We moved past one of those little stand-up signs that say ‘No Pets Allowed’ then stepped into a free elevator.

“You mentioned that you have a big family?” Gomorrah asked.

“Yup,” I said. “You’ll like them. Well, one or two of them. There are so many that statistically there’s bound to be one that doesn’t annoy you.”

“That’s not reassuring,” Gomorrah said.

“You’ll like Lucy,” I said. “Uh, are you into women?”

Gomorrah slowly turned to stare at me. “What?”

“It’s an innocent question,” I said.

“I’m literally a nun.”

I shrugged. “That would just make it kinkier. Anyway, if Lucy pinches your bottom just tell her not to. She can get handsy, but she’s nice. If any of the kittens ask you to give them a weapon, don’t. If they’re annoying, just threaten them. Uh, make it look serious though, because I’ve been weaning them off fear for a long time now, and they’re pretty... fearless.”

”Christ,” Gomorrah said. “Are they people or feral dogs?”

“They’re poorly raised children,” I said. “I was pretty much the only one around that wasn’t insane.”

Gomorrah stared so hard I could feel it through her mask. “God, watch over my soul.”

“The kittens aren’t really religious,” I said.

“I can’t imagine,” she deadpanned.

I patted her back, then when the elevator door opened, started out into the corridor. We still had guards stationed by the doors, and the place still looked way too clean for the likes of the kittens to be staying there.

Katallina’s head was on a swivel, and the dog... was doing dog stuff. I don’t know.

I could just make out the kittens talking on the other side of the apartment door, they were talking over a television playing some sort of cartoon, if I had to guess. Someone was doing something in the kitchen, and I decided that I had enough spying on the kittens for a day.

The door unlocked as I reached for the handle, and I stepped in with a yawn. It was only mid-day but I was ready for a rest already. “Yo! I’m home. And I brought guests.”

“Shut up! TVs on,” Nose shouted back. He didn’t even turn away from the flashing colours on the floor-to-ceiling screen.

I glared, then stared at the TV, connected to it through my augs, and flicked it off.

“Hey!” came a chorus of whines.

“Myalis, can you ping all the kittens and tell them to come over here? Be as creatively threatening as you want.”

With pleasure!

“I have the feeling that being here is a mistake,” Gomorrah said. “Why is this place more fearsome than breaking into a mercenary base?”

“Because kids are scarier than neckbeards with guns,” I said. The kittens, spurned on by Myalis’ threats, gathered up in the... I didn’t know what the huge room that encompassed the kitchen, the living room, and an area with a piano was called. I looked over the sea of little shits, then narrowed my eyes. “Where’s Lucy?”

I didn’t alert her. I suspect that sending threats to your girlfriend would cause some issues.

“She’s sleeping, dipshit,” Junior said.

“Oh,” I said.

Daniel wobbled into the room and then came to a stop next to the island in the middle of the kitchen. “Hey,” he said. “Nice seeing you alive. That the girl you were trying to save?”

“Yup. Gomorrah, Daniel, watch over the kittens, I’m going to go wake Lucy up,” I said as I took off. I pretended that I couldn’t hear Gomorrah’s ‘what?’ even though I’d picked it up plenty well.

“So, are you a nun, or is that just some cosplay, because if it is just cosplay, you got an Instagram or something?” Daniel asked.

I left it up to Gomorrah to decide whether or not to choke him.

I went over to the master bedroom and carefully opened the door. It was well oiled, and didn’t so much as squeak.

Lucy was on the bed, partially covered by a blanket and hugging a pillow. She was in jeans and a t-shirt, and looked like someone that had just flopped down for a quick nap. I couldn’t help but smile as I shuffled over and took off my coat, then the holster beneath. I sat next to her and started to run my hands through her hair.

She had wavy hair that always got tangled up if she didn’t take care of it. It was beautiful, but a bit messy, and high maintenance. I would never tell Lucy that it suited her very well.

“Hey,” I said.

Lucy groaned and buried herself deeper into her pillow. “J’ust eat whatever,” she said.

I snorted. Did she think I was a hungry kitten?

She blinked and looked up to me. It took a moment for recognition to flash in her eyes. And then she shoved her head back down. “It’s good you’re back; wake me up later.”

“Really?” I asked.

She sighed, yawned, and rolled over onto her back. “Fine,” she said. “How was... everything? What time is it?”

“Who cares?” I asked. “Uh, we have guests.”

She blinked some more. “We have guests?”

“Yup. You might wanna get up.”

“Dammit all,” she said. But she did get up.