Chapter Twenty - Pitbulls and Tacos


    <strong>Chapter Twenty - Pitbulls and Tacos</strong>


    <em>Youre still worried about the gays?</em>


    <em>Dont you think Lord has given us bigger problems to deal with?</em>


    --Unknown cardinal during the vatican incursion of 2037


    ***


    Cat! Lucy screamed from the dining room upstairs. Theyre here!


    Got it! I called back. I was in our bedroom, which was currently bedless . Wed have to rough it for the night, but I figured we could manage one night without anything morefortable than each other and a few nkets. My armour stood tall and imposing in the corner of the room, with most of my gear leaning up next to it.


    We were going to be having dinner, I probably didnt need to be bulletproof to endure some take-out.


    I ran downstairs, swore as I almost tripped on Tim who was using the bottom step as a seat, then eyed the main room where the rest of the kittens were making a mess. Wed ordered enough junk food to feed a small army and the kittens were doing their best to eat their way through it all.


    To be fair, Lucy and I had never really ordered food with a full wallet before. We just kept adding more and more things to the order, half spurred on by our own hunger (I couldnt remember thest time Id actually eaten) and half by the heady feeling of being rich enough to ignore the checkout price at the bottom.


    Yall behave, I said over the noise of so many brats and one dog gathered in one room. My cat mecha were lounging here and there, watching over the kittens or being used as mobile benches to sit on.


    I got some affirmatives, but the kittens seemed too busy to give much of a shit.


    Shaking my head, I ran past them and to the front lobby area. Gomorrah and Franny were waiting on the other side. I was relieved to see that they were in somewhat more casual clothes. I opened the door and grinned at the pair of them. Hey! Wee to the Cat Castle! Come on in!


    Gomorrah rolled her eyes, which was nice, I didnt often get to see her unmasked face, then she gestured Franny in ahead of her. Hello... Cat?


    Yeah?


    Franny chuckled. I think shes trying to figure out if she should call you Cat or... whatever your real name is, Franny said. You know, is this business or fun?


    My real names Catherine, so Cat works either way. No one calls me Catherine though, thats like two sybles too many. I shut the door behind them, leaving the colder air outside. So, will it be Gomorrah tonight, or Delh.


    Delh, please, Gom... Delh said.


    I nodded as I looked the two up and down. Franny was in skinny jeans and a band shirt for a group I didnt recognize. Her hair was up in a big red ponytail and she had a grungy army-surplus sort of coat on. Very casual-punk looking.


    Delh on the other hand was done up in a ck dress that stopped just below the knees and that had ace-covered cut-out on the front. ck heels, dark makeup, some eyeliner. I didnt know you were into the goth look, I said. I was feeling a little underdressed, maybe. Clean sweatpants and an oversized t-shirt were maybe too casual.


    She isnt, Franny replied. She just doesnt know how to dress herself if its not in a habit.


    Franny, Delh said.


    Iughed, then pointed deeper into the house. Wannae upstairs? Lucys setting up the table now. I asked Rac and she found it somewhere downstairs. I decided not to ask too many questions.


    Because youre afraid of knowing too much about your little friends questionably legal activities? Delh asked.


    More like I can admit to not knowing if one of our neighbours shows up asking about their table, I said.


    We crossed the room with all the kittens, reaching the staircase surprisingly unscathed by the clowder of shitstains making a mess of the living room.


    This ce sure is unique, Franny said as she looked around. I thought the exterior would be a sort of one-off gimmick, but I guess the inside needs to be strange to fit everything.


    Its a bit weird, yeah, I said.


    How are your defences? Gomorrah asked.


    Not perfect, I said. Still need to talk to Longbow about his AA gun above. Racs made some little turrets that were starting to ce around, but we dont have full coverage yet. Its going to take a couple of days at this rate before the entire towers a kill zone for any lower-level models. Longer before we can make it really dangerous. Hows the church?


    Better than here, I think. The nuns back home all have weapons training and we have a decent armory. I set up a few towers with methrowers and some more traditional gun emcements.


    Sounds nice. I might get someone to train the kittens in using guns, that might be a good skill to have.


    You could likely use the training yourself, Delh said.


    <em>Theres a skill package for that.</em>


    I huffed, but they werent exactly wrong.


    Gomorrah, Franny! Lucy cheered as we finally made it upstairs. She weed our friends with open arms, pulling Franny into a hug, then giving Delh a squeeze too. We have food! Come on, sit. We dont actually have chairs because Cat cant think that far ahead, but we do have some park benches. Just dont ask where theyre from.


    Whats for dinner? Franny asked.


    Burgers! And fries, poutine, milkshakes, soda, uh, we have doughnuts and three kinds of pizza too. And hushpuppies. Fried cheese bites. We have a whole box of coffee. Lucy frowned at the table. Im missing a couple of things.


    Like a doctor? Delh said. This all sounds like a quick way to end up hospitalised.


    Oh right! Sds! Lucy pped. We have those too. Proper American sds, with more meat bits and bread and cheese than lettuce.


    Lucy pulled the two along, then gestured them towards a bench. It was a very small bench, with barely enough room for two people to fit onto it, and only if they didnt mind bumping hips while they sat.


    I nced at the bench, then up to Lucy who gave me a knowing wink.


    I nodded to her as I went around the other side and sat across from the girls. Lucy, it seemed, was keen on ying matchmaker some more. At least she seemed to be a bit subtle about it. It could all be excused away, and it wasnt like getting the two to sit close together was starting anything.


    Grabbing a stic te, I started adding junk to it, which seemed to be the signal for the others to do the same. Delh was the only one showing any sort of restraint. The rest of us were more like a pack of rabid animals tossed into an over-full dumpster.


    Oh, sweet potato fries! Franny cheered as she grabbed a fistfull, opened a burger, and smushed them in.


    Delh watched the rather disgusting disy, but she just smiled fondly.


    I nced at Lucy. Shed seen it too, and we shared a nod.


    So, Franny, Lucy said as she chewed on a ketchup-dipped fry. Youre from the same church thing as Delh, right? Is it, like, a fancy orphanage?


    Huh? Oh, yeah, and no, its not an orphanage. Its more of a boarding school, I guess. You stay there for like, nine months of the year, with a few vacations and breaks here and there. The rest of the time you spend with your family.


    Lucy nodded. Thats neat! Are your groups big? Or was it just like, the two of you?


    Were... thirty-ish in our year-group, Franny said. She nced at Delh for confirmation. Delh and I have been together for a while though.


    Wait, Lucy said. I thought you two were just friends... oh, did you break up? Im sorry. Didnt mean to stick my foot in my mouth.


    Break? Uh, no, no, its not like that, Franny said. Sheughed, but it sounded forced.


    So, its more of an open rtionship kind of thing? Lucy asked.


    No, were not gay, Franny said.


    She couldnt have convinced a kid that candy was good for them with that tone.


    Delh, next to her, shot me a re that bounced right off the ativeyer made from my willingness to start shit.


    So, how long have you two known each other? Franny asked. She took a bite out of her burger after firing her question off. It didnt disguise the bit of red on her cheeks.


    I smiled and leaned over to Lucy who turned my way. We kissed, just a quick, chaste thing that still left me licking my lips to taste the saltiness of what shed been eating.


    Delh and Franny had both stopped mid-bite to stare, and both resumed eating with the same start when they noticed we were done. Oh, its been, uh, a while? Lucy asked. Do you mean when we started dating, or when we first met?


    Uh, Franny said.


    The poor girl, shed gotten Lucys attention. At this point Lucy wouldnt let go until the two were happily married. She was like a pitbull with a box full of tacos in her mouth.


    ***