Baltimore, Monday Night

[spin_kick_snap]

Dante and Kathy's evening out in Baltimore--she was a little hesitant to call it a date, per se--couldn't have come at a better time. A night out not thinking about the weekend was pretty much exactly what the doctor ordered. And if not thinking about the weekend happened to include a long motorcycle ride through Baltimore at speeds other people might consider 'unsafe' ('insane' might not have been entirely incorrect, either), a stop at the bar for some drinks, and the promise of much more excitement to come, well, then who was Kathy to argue?

"So, where to after this?" Kathy asked, feeling flushed and warm from the drinks and company in about equal measure. "I could show you some of my favorite places around Baltimore, but most of them are just, like, places that it's fun to ambush drug dealers and stuff."

[NFB and for one please!]

Comments

[spin_kick_snap]

"What, that wasn't the plan bef...oh fuck." Dante was not doing her eloquence much good, though he was making her body sing. "Trade you...time on my knees...for time on yours."

[rebelseekspizza]

Dante smirked - of course he did - and let go of her.

Only so he could walk around and kneel down in front of her, though.

"What, like this?"

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Kathy wavered as Dante let go, at least until her legs remembered they were supposed to stand on their own. Thank you, unnatural balance, for keeping Kathy upright.

"You look good like that," she told him, eyes dark. "I wouldn't mind seeing you like this more often."

She slid her leg over his shoulder, letting her heel scratch its way down his back. There was a reason she'd worn heels tonight and it wasn't because they were fun to run around Baltimore in. "Tempted to just sit on your shoulders," she said, running her fingers through his hair. "At least until it's time to show you how really flexible I can be. Ezra appreciated that trick, if I remember correctly."

[rebelseekspizza]

"You'll have to show me sometime." She had her own heel to blame for the way his voice sounded shaky just now.

Not that it kept him from sliding his hand onto her hip as he leaned up just so. Because fucking bless Kathy's short skirts, that was what.

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To blame? More like to thank.

"I'm pretty sure you'll be seeing it sooner rather than later...." Kathy's own voice was hardly steady, what with Dante under one of the shortest skirts she owned, worn specifically for that reason. The muscles in her thighs jumped in anticipation. "Think you can hold me up?"

She asked the Nephilim.

[rebelseekspizza]

"I'll be fine," Dante said, and hey, that was actually faint amusement coloring his voice again.

He pressed his mouth against her panties a second later. Felt right.

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Felt better than right. Felt amazing and Kathy was ready for a lot more of that, only without any cloth in the way. "Dante," she started--

--Only to be interrupted when the building across the street practically exploded in flames, several of the windows on the tenth floor shattering outward from the heat and pressure. Screams erupted from both the building and the street below as shattered glass rained down. Kathy lost her balance from the whump of hot air that blasted out towards them from the inferno.

[rebelseekspizza]

And maybe in another universe, Dante's reflexes-- no, Dante's expectations wouldn't be so low, and he might have given himself the luxury of freaking out for five seconds.

Not so, though. His hand shot out immediately for Kathy's, his head swiveling over towards the source of the explosion.

"What the fuck?"

[spin_kick_snap]

Kathy was grateful for Dante's strength; the hot air was shoving against her with the force of a gale and she would have had to fight to not be pushed backwards if he hadn't grabbed for her. "I don't know!" she said, raising her voice to be heard over the roar of flames. "But--Dante! That's an apartment building! People are living there!"

Though they wouldn't be for long if they didn't get out immediately.

[rebelseekspizza]

"Fuck's sake," Dante growled. "You want to get in there?!"

Of course she did. She was Kathy.

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How was this even a surprise? He would literally have to drag her away and onto the bike if he wanted to keep her out of there and she'd fight the entire time he did. She was already twisting her hair out of the way and tracing out the easiest path to the building that didn't require going down to the ground, where people were already crowding.

"I'm not going to let people die if I can save them," she said absently. She pulled her shirt off and wrapped it around her face, wishing she had water to soak it in first. "There could be kids in there. Old people. The handicapped. People could be hurt and scared and trapped. I don't abandon people."

You should probably pay attention to that part, Dante. It would be relevant in the future, no doubt.

[rebelseekspizza]

Oh for-- this shit was not on them, damn it. So sue him for hoping Kathy had something resembling a survival instinct left. "You're nuts," Dante snapped.

He wasn't moving, though. Because if she was rushing in there, he wasn't abandoning her, which-- sigh. Thanks for volunteerring him, universe. He curled up his upper lip, dropping his coat so he could pull the same trick with his damn shirt.

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"Maybe so," Kathy said, "but I'm still not letting anyone die who doesn't have to." She glanced over at him and couldn't help but smile. He was complaining, sure, but he was clearly getting ready to come along.

See? She knew you were a decent guy, Dante!

"Look, it's going to be tough, but we can get over to the eleventh floor balconies," she said, pointing out the route she'd planned. "Go in, get the people out. Hopefully the fire department is already en route."

[rebelseekspizza]

"Better be, 'cause this is their fucking job," Dante said. He took a deep breath.

Then he dashed towards the edge of the roof and leaped, feet finding purchase against the air for leverage before grabbing him a spot on the balcony.

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Kathy wasn't going to argue with him about it, not with him leaping into the fire already. Instead, she was just a few paces behind him; she couldn't cover as much distance in a single leap as he could, not without building up a lot more speed than she had right now.

She darted across the edge of the roof until she could dive over to the next building. That one had a stone gargoyle long enough that she could use it to leap across the street. That put her at the building next to the one on fire, but crossing that distance was negligible.

Seconds later, she was joining Dante on his balcony, the air already thick with black smoke and almost too hot to breathe. "Stick together or split up?" she asked, trying not to cough.

[rebelseekspizza]

"Stick together," Dante said. "If shit comes crashing down--"

Aw, crap. That was most definitely a crashing down kinda noise going on inside. "C'mon, go get your hero on already so we can get out of here quick."

[spin_kick_snap]

Kathy didn't wait for him to finish talking. If there were crashing noises coming from inside the building, it meant the fire was destroying the building's structural integrity. Which meant they needed to get people out now.

She sent up a silent blessing for the people who decided that they could leave their balcony doors unlocked, yanking the sliding glass door open hard enough that it bounced back on its tread slightly. The glass was already hot enough to blister her fingers, but she didn't stop, running right into the apartment.

It had the same basic apartment layout that Kathy had grown up in, enough that she could find her away around, at least. She pounded through the living room and down the hall where the bedrooms would be. There were two, both occupied. "Dante, in here!" Kathy called. "I need you!"

[rebelseekspizza]

Dante gritted his teeth. He was already right behind. "I got the left," he said, taking off without waiting for her to respond at all. The sooner they got this done, the fucking better.

"It's too damn hot in here," he snapped.

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"That's why it's called a fire and not a good time," Kathy muttered to herself, ducking to the right and into the room of a teenage girl around Sarah's age. Kathy had a moment of horror realizing what would have happened to her if they hadn't been nearby; the smoke had already knocked the girl unconscious. Hauling her up in a fireman's carry, Kathy staggered out towards the balcony.

Dammit, why couldn't she be super-strong as well as super-fast?

"Where to?" she called, coughing more loudly now in the smoke. "Balcony?"

[rebelseekspizza]

The crashing hadn't been something structural. Or maybe it had, and there was worse going on, but-- Dante found himself shoving a huge bookcase away from the bed.

It'd been pinning both parents in the room. They didn't look in great shape.

Dante winced, darting forward, ignoring the scorch of flame against his arm as he lifted both of them up like they weighed nothing.

His response, as a result, was delayed. "Balcony!" he barked, as he walked back out into the hallway.

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Kathy was already halfway through the living room by the time he came out, figuring that fresh air was probably the best thing they could do for the residents, at least until ambulances arrived. The air around the balcony was still hot and smokey, but nowhere near as bad as in the house proper.

"Are they still breathing?" she asked, adjusting her grip on the girl. "Do they need CPR?"

[rebelseekspizza]

"I think they are?"

Fuck, Dante didn't know. He could kinda see the guy's chest move, at least. "I dunno. You wanna stay here, or move 'em to the roof?"

[spin_kick_snap]

Making it out onto the balcony, Kathy gently laid the girl down and checked the pulse of her parents. Slow and thready, but there. "They're good," she said, relieved. "I don't think they should stay here, not with the fire right below them. But I can't carry her and bounce, I'm just not strong enough. Can you bring them to the roof okay?"

She just wasn't built for this and it sucked!

[rebelseekspizza]

"Yeah, I can," Dante said. He walked to the edge of the balcony, still holding on to the parents, and judged the distance to the next roof. "Yep."

He put his foot on the fence, then pushed himself upwards.

Threw Kathy a grin. "Catch you in a second," he called.

He hurled himself forward, bridging the gap with ease (and a little cheating). His feet touched down on the next roof a few moments later, and he set both parents down.

[spin_kick_snap]

As soon as Dante was off the balcony, Kathy was running back inside to do something incredibly stupid. She didn't need to be told just how dumb it was--the line between incredibly and suicidally was pretty blurred with this one.

But she had to check the tenth floor. Had to make sure that the people down there were either all right or beyond saving. And they didn't have time for her to argue with Dante about it.

She paused just long enough to liberate a towel from the bathroom, shoving it into the toilet to soak it and wrap it around her head and lower face. Then she was diving off the eleventh floor balcony and down to the tenth.

The force of the flames had taken out the glass of the balcony for her, giving her a free way in. All she had to do was dash into hell.

This was gonna suck.