Barry's Old Warehouse, Warehouse District, Friday Afternoon

[spin_kick_snap]

Kathy had been a busy little bee over the last few days and, finally, all of her holiday shopping was over with. And rather than attempting to wrap everything at the house, where anyone could wander in and spoil themselves for their Christmas (or birthday!) surprises, Kathy had brought all of the presents to the warehouse to wrap in peace and security. They'd stay there until the household managed to get a proper Christmas tree set up and decorated and then she'd bring them home and stash them under it and at last the house would be ready for Christmas.

Maybe they could go out and get a tree this weekend, if Dante got back from Limbo City by then? She was hoping they could decorate the tree together, as a household, with mulled wine and Christmas carols and tasty treats because bribing her housemates with sugar was a tried and true method.

Just a few more presents and her wrapping would be done. And then maybe she'd go get whatever insane holiday drink the Perk had concocted over the last week and then go bug Eliot for another guitar lesson or something.

[Open for all your BDE folks!]

Comments

[spin_kick_snap]

"B-But--" and how she hated that tremor in her voice, hated that she was letting him know that he'd gotten to her. "She's still here. And I'm still here. Fighting. That's more than some others."

[rebelscreams]

"She had to write what she's fighting for on her arm on sharpie because otherwise she keeps wanting to know if we're here on a date," Dante said.

Idly.

[spin_kick_snap]

Well maybe you should take her out on a date, Dante. Ever think of that?

"I--what?" Kathy asked, confused. "Sharpie?"

And then the pieces all fell into place, he could watch the understanding come together in her eyes.

"But she's still here," she said. "Willing to fight. Even if she had to check her goddamn notes each time, she's here to help. Surely that says something!"

[rebelscreams]

"Yeah, that I should be making sure she's safe, instead of stalking the girl she used to be," Dante said, his fingers clenching in his pockets. "Like I said, this was a mistake."

[spin_kick_snap]

"Then why are you here?" Kathy asked, voice hard. She was coming to a decision. "If coming to see me was such a mistake, why's you even bother?"

[rebelscreams]

"Because I wanted to."

[spin_kick_snap]

Kathy really wished her Dante was around to act as a translator. Because now she was seesawing back towards sympathy, rather than anger.

"If I didn't know any better, I'd say you just like fucking with my emotions," she said, taking another step closer, looking up into his eyes.

[rebelscreams]

"I never said a word to you," Dante said, rolling those eyes. "You're the one who came out here."

[spin_kick_snap]

"Because I saw you on the roof." Kathy said, rolling her eyes. "I thought you were my Dante, back from Limbo City. I thought that you'd want me out there."

[rebelscreams]

"Yeah, but that doesn't make this my fault," Dante shot back.

[spin_kick_snap]

"You know what?" Kathy said, throwing her hands up, "forget it. You do whatever you're going to do. I don't know why I even bothered arguing with you in the first place. You do your thing and I'll do mine."

He'd already alerted her to the danger. If he wanted to fuck off rather than deal with her, that was fine. That just meant one fewer person to argue with when she went out to fight anyway.