Room 508 to Baltimore, Friday Night

[spin_kick_snap]

Kathy studied herself in the mirror, frowning slightly. She had done a lot of stuff as Banzai, but trying to infiltrate the mafia in disguise was a whole new level of scary. If she messed up, the Ukrainians would know a lot more about her than she really wanted them too--like what she looked like, as just one exciting example. But this was an opportunity she couldn't pass up; they were recruiting locals under the guise of a motorcycle drag race, with the top performers invited to a very exclusive party--so exclusive that no matter how hard she tried, Kathy couldn't get the location. Over the past year, she'd managed to create a decent circle of street-level informants and yet no one could tell her anything besides what was 'public' knowledge: an illegal drag race, with plenty of money to be made from betting, and an excellent afterparty for the winners. That was it.

It was all very frustrating as hell.

Even the race itself was frustrating. If it had at least been a drag race with cars, Kathy might have been able to put her Driver's Ed experience into play...somehow. She was still lacking a car, but she would have at least known how to race. Ish. Maybe. But this was a motorcycle race, and Kathy had one hour of experience driving one of those from several years ago. That would get her exactly nowhere. If she had more time, she might even have been able to appeal to Parker or Eliot for help, but she'd just gotten the message that everything was going down tonight.

Kathy didn't often swear, but this whole situation deserved quite a hearty "God dammit!"

Her current plan was to dress like a biker bunny, head to where the race was going to take place, and hope to insinuate herself in the group that got brought to the party. Yeah, she could foresee no problems with that, sure.



[Primarily for one, but open to the roomie beforehand if she so chooses. Everything that happens after they leave the island is NFB for distance.]

Comments

[spin_kick_snap]

That was fine, that gave Kathy enough time to unwind her legs and try to stand under her own power again, sliding down his body until her feet his the ground. And if she needed a moment to make sure her legs worked properly, she'd hope he didn't notice that.

Or the color of her underwear (black, obviously) that she flashed before she had a chance to pull her skirt back down again after said slide.

[rebelseekspizza]

Dante opened one eye lazily and hey, hello there, panties, not a bad thing to get back to. "Fuck," he said again, but this time intentionally and with some slightly baffled appreciation. "...and hey, you're always free to bring your own strap-on."

That had taken him longer to think up than he was going to admit to.

[spin_kick_snap]

"I'll keep that in mind, should I ever decide to run out and buy one," Kathy told him and it was a testament to have thoroughly shaken she was that she didn't even blush when obliquely referencing a strap-on. That part of her brain was still rebooting. "Or when the island just straight up gives me a dick of my own for the day. Whatever."

And she was just going to take a moment to rest her forehead on his chest, just until her breathing got back under control again. Thank god they were going to Baltimore for important reasons. It would keep her from doing anything stupid, like mentioning she knew places in the city that rented rooms by the hour.

[rebelseekspizza]

Well, at least mission 'Get Kathy to stop living in her own head' had worked out well and put her in the right mindset. Dante wasn't much of a cuddler - or a hugger - but he could weather having a girl's forehead on his chest for the few counts it took him to regain his own breath.

"So," he said, finally. "Cab?"

[spin_kick_snap]

Very big of you, Dante.

"Cab," she agreed. She'd originally just planned to walk--well, run--since she was much faster than any car could go within city limits, but until her legs stopped feeling like they were made of rubber, getting a chance to sit down was a great idea.

She made a quick call to arrange for a taxi to pick them up on the end of the causeway. "So, umm..." she started. It was hard making conversation when most of her just wanted to crawl back and resume what they'd begun. She might no longer be in her own head, but she wasn't sure that letting her hormones do her thinking for her was a much better idea. "I guess that bruise will help sell things," she said, glancing at his neck. "Unless it'll heal before we get there? I have no idea how fast you do that."

[rebelseekspizza]

"I can control it, more or less," Dante said, shrugging one shoulder - the one closest to the area she was referring to it, more or less. "It won't go until I want it to."

Then he threw in a smirk, just so he could.

[spin_kick_snap]

"Keep it," Kathy said, voice dropping low for a minute. "It looks good on you."

[rebelseekspizza]

Dante tilted his head, the smirk never slipping from his face, and then waggled his eyebrows.

"I was planning to," he said.

[spin_kick_snap]

"Good. Then I won't have to give you another one," Kathy said easily, returning the smirk. "Unless I think you need a second one to match."

Or wanted to reinforce their cover. Whatever.

[rebelseekspizza]

"Still a whole lot more hours in the day, Kat," Dante said.

A cab pulled up near the causeway. "But there's our ride."

[spin_kick_snap]

"We're probably going to be busy for most of them," Kathy pointed out, though there was a lot more sway in her hips than usual as they walked to the cab.

She gave directions to the driver, having him let them off outside of a restaurant not far from where the chop shop was located. It made more sense to hit that up first than try to mug someone for their bike.

"I don't suppose there's any way we can try to do this subtly?" she asked. "I'm not exactly dressed for fighting an entire gang of car thieves."

[rebelseekspizza]

Dante gave her a look. "I could?" he offered.

If she wanted subtlety, she should've brought Ezra.

[spin_kick_snap]

Ezra hadn't stopped by her room, now had he? And Kathy didn't even know if Ezra knew how to ride a motorcycle.

Also, this whole evening sounded like effort, so he might not have been interested in the first place.

"I'm not sending you in alone to fight my battles for me," Kathy said, frowning. "Besides, it's not like we can just snatch the first bike we see. We have to make sure it works, that it's fast, that you can handle it..." She sighed, twisting her ponytail up into a bun. "We're gonna have to take out everyone in there."

[rebelseekspizza]

See, there was another tick in the 'differences between Dante and Ezra' box - Dante didn't mind effort, as long as it involved adrenaline. Or nudity. Or both.

Either way, now he was shrugging again. "Won't be that hard," he said. "Fuckers won't see us coming."

Hey, maybe he'd punch a hole in the wall instead of using the door.

[spin_kick_snap]

Well--half a tick. Ezra generally didn't mind effort so long as it involved nudity.

And for once, Kathy wasn't a figure in blinding white and eye-catching rainbows, which would help with them being a little more inconspicuous. "So, plan?" she asked. "I've got a couple of mini-flashbangs in my purse if we want a decent distraction."

Ahh, the wonders of AP Chemistry.

[rebelseekspizza]

"I figured we'd find the part the bikes are in," Dante said, "Punch a hole in the wall, then punch whatever comes at us."

Beat. "Until we're out of bad guys."

This was more or less how his life usually shook out.

[spin_kick_snap]

"I do a lot less damage with punching than you do," Kathy pointed out. "And I'm a lot more prone to injury. I don't even have the usual protection of my gi tonight. I can outrun knives and stuff, but not bullets."

And was really okay with never having to test out Barry's promises of how bulletproof her gi was at not-point blank range.

"Hopefully they'll just have, like, tools and chains or whatever. Ooh, I've always wanted to get into a chain fight. Okay, really I always wanted to learn how to chainfight, but getting into one would also be fun."

[rebelseekspizza]

"Plus hey, those flashbangs are cool," Dante mused. "I could do the punching, you could hit 'em with one of those and free them of whatever chain or gun or whatever they came in with."

And if she got shot at anyway, well, she had a meat shield?

He paused. "...Heh. Free them of their chains."

[spin_kick_snap]

"That's a reference I don't think I'm getting," Kathy said. "But anyway, that works for me, so long as you make sure not to look when the flashbang goes off. If I yell, 'Now!' close your eyes."

Because even knowing that Dante could take two to the chest didn't mean she was comfortable watching watching him get hurt, dammit. She was a hero and heroes never let their friends suffer if they could prevent it.

[rebelseekspizza]

"All right," Dante said easily. "Hey, look, we've got a plan."

He nodded down the street. "Now which one of these is the place?"

[spin_kick_snap]

Kathy pointed at an unassuming concrete building, whitewashed over with a crisscross of chains over a rusty loading bay door. The door looked like it hadn't been opened in about twenty years.

"That one," she said. "The chains and the rust are pretty decent camouflage, it took me forever to figure out which building it was. The chains aren't actually attached to anything, though and the rust is all on the front, not around any of the moving parts." She worried at her lower lip, teeth flashing white in the darkness. "But the building is made of concrete. We're going to have to find a different plan just you punching our way in."

[rebelseekspizza]

"Nah."

Dante was already moving. Okay, concrete: not his favorite thing to punch. Even his strength had limits, and this was going to hurt. And maybe scratch his favorite pair of fingerless gloves. If only he had a convenient rock-covering he could summon for them.

He slipped around to the side of the building and found what looked like... well, there probably wouldn't be a wall behind this wall, right?

[spin_kick_snap]

Likely not!

Kathy followed him on catlike feet, her heeled boots not making a sound even on the gravel. "Are you looking for another way in?" she asked softly. Sure, he'd said 'Nah' to her question earlier, but maybe she'd misinterpreted? After all, this was bloody concrete.

[rebelseekspizza]

Dante slipped off his gloves and shoved them in his pockets - they were really nice - and cracked his neck, rolled his shoulders.

Then he pulled back his arm and hit the wall with all of the force he could produce. Chunks of concrete came loose from the top of the wall, crumpling down; large cracks spiraled out from where his fist had hit.

Okay. One more. (And repress that wince.)

[spin_kick_snap]

"Holy shit!" Kathy yelped, forgetting to be quiet. But then, punching the concrete was hardly a quiet prospect, either, so it likely didn't matter much. "Dante! Is your hand okay?"

Yes, yes, he could heal--look it was still surprising, okay?