The Cat and the Minx (Dominique)

[Catherine Nilson]

The television warbled and hummed. The flowers blooming from the walls sang along. I wonder what the couch tastes like. Cat ignored Red, because she had very important things to do, and tried to focus on the television. The people chattered incoherently. "Why did I even get an LCD screen tv," she mumbled to herself. If you hit it, it will work right.

DON'T LISTEN TO HIM

"I'm not gonna hit the fuc- huh?"

Don't listen to him because what if you try to hit the tv but then the flowers on the walls began to pulsate and writhe as if they were in pain, and Cat blinked. a portal opens up to another dimension or something and you fall in HAHAHA "Shut up you guys seriously." and you have to make new friends "Shut" HAHAHAHA "Up..."

Cat was getting nowhere bossing the voices around. She sighed and sat up. She wasn't going to punch the television or eat the couch. The vampire squinted through the haze and stepped outside. She avoided the elevator-- it made her nervous-- and crawled down the fire escape.

"The thing is," she muttered as she made her way through a river of staring eyes, some of them concerned, most of them disgusted, "I already know what it tastes like. BOYSENBERRY. Like on pancakes, now shut up. Don't you ******* start. I'm warning you, I will go in there!"

Go right ahead you empty headed *****, nothing but lots of hot air in here.

"Are you kidding me? What does that even mean, Red, I mean hot air, what are you, seventy? Nobody says hot air anymore. That idiom is useless on me. Find better ******* material."

LALALALALALALALALA

"Man. I can't even watch the tv for a week straight without you reminding me I need to eat blood and make you go away." Cat went to the back of a bar, where people were outside smoking. The short young woman wobbled up to one of the loners. He raised an eyebrow, smiled and started to ask if he could help her with something, when she cut him off.

"Hey, so, the thing is..." She grabbed him and bit into his face, then drank deeply. She almost drank him unconscious, and let him slump onto the ground in a stupor. Let them think he was drunk. The voices became a distant hum and she sighed and licked her lips.

What had she been doing? She was talking to Doc, who had mentioned something about Sparrow, blah blah blah, his mouth had moved just so, and words came out of them that she didn't exactly care about, then she remembered his voice clear as day. "Catherine, keep an eye on Minx."

"Man. Can't even bash someone over the head with a toilet anymore without having to watch them. ******* paladins, man. ******* paladins." It was true that Dominique was no longer a paladin. Cat was no longer a thug, but that didn't stop her from breaking and entering, and occasionally using her vampiric clout to destroy some rent a cop's miserable life. She headed to the convenience store where she'd found her in the bathroom before.

The door beeped when she let herself in. The cashier greeted Cat with a two AM smile and a forced "Hello!" Cat blinked at the cashier, then glanced sideways at the energy drink cans on the far north wall. Brave soldiers. She asked them, "Hey, so, have you seen this girl, really emo, kind of twitchy?"

The cashier blinked at the blond talking to the energy drinks and picked up the phone. Clearly a drugged out, homeless bum who didn't have any money to spend there. The police would sort it out. Something exploded. Remnants of the convenience store's only security camera rained like peanut brittle onto the human's head. His eyes were bulging out. His fingers tried uselessly to find the emergency call button as he stared at the barrel of a handgun.

The crazy person's green eyes seemed to look through the human. Her tone was casual, "...You... haven't seen a woman... matching that description have you...?"

"NO! No, I swear!" The human started to cry. This was not in his job description.

Cat blinked and holstered her gun. "Oh. Okay." She left as abruptly as she'd entered and vanished into the night in search of Dominique. Of her baby sister.

[Dominique]

There was a sense of victory in Dominique as her fingers in all their colorful glory turned the key in the ignition and the engine finally roared to life. Her denim gloved backside settled into the leather drivers seat while her hands opened up briefly to find the right grip on the steering wheel in front of her. Content with the feel of the custom wheel her fingers curled tight as if taking the reigns on a freshly broken beast. A roll of those ink adorned shoulders went back and the white tank with 'I do my own stunts' in black letters went with the motion of the curved body beneath it.

Up until an hour ago the classic car the woman now sat in had been in a pool of pieces for the better part of a month while she had her focus swimming in the Chilton manual that went with the Pontiac Firebird. Verne's car had been falling apart and avoiding any attempts at total restoration. Of course she refused to let that be the case. The flawlessly designed beauty had a second life in her and she was determined to find it. The revving of the engine as she drove out of the garage and hit the open road was all the confirmation she needed. Shifting from one gear to another and the car racing faster in perfect timing increased her confidence the job was in fact a success as the black beauty was gripping the street beneath and owning each mile the was left behind in the rear view mirror.

A stretch of her bare inked arm turned up the new stereo system as the music pounded through the speakers having the windows vibrating until she sent them down and welcomed the night air to rush in to the back. Dominique had successfully restored the car and gave it a boost in power. Each improvement was noticeable as the engine growled and pulled back as she shifted down when city limits came to view. She pressed on the brake slowly as she came to the first intersection. The song was louder without the competition of the motor at work and for the moment she caught on to the latest Godsmack single lyrics and found '1000 hp' rather fitting as the traffic light turned in her favor and once again the beast she was proud to bring to life roared as she took off.

Driving through several blocks Dominique finally rolled to a solid stop in the empty lot of the gas station. It had some bad vibes for her ever since that blonde-whoever-chick that clung to Doc like emotional velcro took to doing the girly thing and followed her into the bathroom. Unlike the usual MO where one chick hands another lipstick, purse-size hair spray, breath mints or even a tampon because the unplanned caught the other female by surprise, this fractured barbie yanked out the porcelain throne from the floor and cracked her lights out and dragged her back to the lab from hell. The blur of that memory started up as she pulled the door open to be greeted with an annoying beep. She nearly stumbled over the broom that jumped into the path of her feet. The quick hop over it as it moved brought her out of the unpleasant recollection of why she would never trust a chick following her into public a bathroom again.

"Blonde. Think she was on the stuff they got on the streets now." The voice attached to the worn wood dowel that withdrew as she made a crunchy step into the energy drink aisle sounded shaken up. “The world is going to hell. I am trying to make a living not get killed.”

Dominique moved towards the back of the aisle and looked over the top of a shelf. Her dark eyes found the body sweeping the floors cradling a cellphone between its shoulder and ear. Immediately her eyes searched the corners of the ceiling and then the cashier area for monitors.

“I dunno. She was strung out I think. Needed more of whatever she was on? Was talking to the energy drink cans looking for a girl who was twitchy and emo. Think she was looking for herself? I need to move back to Florida with my brother.”

Dominique slid quietly around the back and came through the front. The body drifted to release the broom against a wall to climb up on a chair to work on what remained of what held the security camera up on the ceiling. Perfect timing. She pressed on the door and slipped out as the beep signaled she left without notice just as she had entered. Her right hand went quickly into her front hip pocket and released the key ring to jingle as she unlocked the drivers door and jumped in the drivers seat. The loud rumble of the engine coming to life was a relief and she backed out of the station and took the route back out of town that she used coming in.

Energy drinks. Jesus. Drugs were bad enough but tripping and talking to energy drinks looking for people...was rock bottom. Drugs, vampires and the world in general was going all to hell. What next? She ran her fingers through the long black hair that whipped at her face as the car increased speed into the darkness ahead. Maybe she was cold to the touch and absent a pulse but she still gave a **** about the decline around her. She had some hope left. It was what made a car come back to life just as she did in some backassward way as well.

The tree line and water of what she called home came to view and Dominique pressed the remote for the access to drive into the underground garage. The door closed promptly behind the car as it cleared and she set the security system before parking the Firebird back in its assigned spot. Climbing out of the car she paused with the door ajar in her hand. The gas station, energy drinks, blonde girl looking for someone. She narrowed her eyes as her lips bunched up tight as she contemplated the possibility. If it was her...why? Her head shook once as if it made it all more so unlikely while she closed the car door and set the state of the art alarm and security on the vintage muscle car. There was no reason for her to be looking for her. It couldn't be her. The elevator doors hissed closed and she didn't give it any more thought.

[Doc]

Over the last week Doc had completed last stages of moving from the apartment and Eyrie to the house. He warned Cat that he wouldn’t be at the apartment much longer, and she had actually stopped by the house on Father’s day and brought him a Father’s Day present. He hadn’t been expecting it. It was a really nice leather jacket. Made of soft kidskin, not the hard tack leather that knock-off designers typically use. He could tell she spent a load on it.. unless of course she stole it. Either way it was a great choice.

He had taken to wearing it at night when he walked the city streets. He liked to stroll the city at night. It was a habit he developed when he was human and hunting for his next ‘experiment’. He found in his new role, it helped him keep an eye on the movers and shakers in the underworld of crime and gang life. Each time he donned the jacket, he remembered Cat’s face as he opened it. It was deadpan as normal, but with a hint of trepidation. As though she thought he might not like it. Foolish girl, she should know better.

The slight look of trepidation ate him. Not enough that he lost sleep. Or enough that he was distracted from everyday tasks. Mostly it only happened when he put the jacket on. But, that was enough to bother him. Doc has been giving Cat **** over the last few weeks about finding and watching her sister. Keeping tabs on her. Making sure she’s not getting into trouble. And Cat had taken to staying at Lyana’s more and more. He figured she was trying to avoid him. Especially when he mentioned the guest bedroom in the house was for Mouse, and that they could share. She looked pleased but a fake-type-of-pleased her surmised. The Cat of old would have pouted and glared at him. He didn’t want to break her spirit. He liked his cantankerous grumpy mood Catherine. He wanted he back.

So that was why he decided to buy her a car. She had bugged the **** out of him for a car for weeks and weeks until he threatened to blow her head off. Then she stopped asking. Now that she had stopped, he figured he would buy her a car. But he would pick it, and it would suit her. It wouldn’t the run of the mill sports car or muscle car most Vampires had, no. It had to be special. And then he found it. A 1971 Jaguar XK-E made into a Hearse. It was perfect for his wee little Necromancer.

Doc had texted Cat earlier, to meet him at the lab. When she finally showed up, Doc looked at her, and held out keys, and with no preamble said, “Bought you car.”

Cat’s reaction was not what he expected.

Catherine Nilson: “You remembered my Vampire Birthday!”

He hadn’t. Had it even been a year since he had turned her? Where did the time go? However, he managed to look magnanimous as he calmly nodded, and lied through his pointed teeth. “Yes. Yes I did. You probably thought I forgot.”

Cat was being more animated than he cared for, so he was ready to get rid of her now. “You should go take it for a test drive..” That should get her gone. Then he remembered the real reason he wanted to give her the car, so that she could tail Dominique around the city. He pulled his cell phone, “Oh.. before you go..” he texted a message to Cat’s phone, “That is your sister’s number… Have fun.” Said in such a way that really meant.. ‘ok.. leave now’.

[Catherine Nilson]

A few nights later, Cat sat in her new car and stared at her phone. She had taken to spending her every waking moment within the leather scented confines of the car, with hip hop blaring on the radio and the air conditioning turned all the way up. When it ran out of gas, she would only refill the tank on the good side of town with all the yuppies and gated communities. Still, the voices assured her that it would get stolen. Stolen or vandalized.

Cat had been a gangster before she had been turned into a vampire, and she knew what gangsters liked to do in their spare time. The moment one of them laid eyes on her precious new car, the gangster would follow her home and steal it while she was passed out during the day. Doc had suggested getting an alarm installed, but none of the companies were open during the day. She wasn't tech savvy enough to do it herself, so she was stuck.

She could always text Dominique, who happened to be a mechanic, but she had no idea how to start. She sighed and looked at the phone some more. She fashioned a few words, frowned, erased them, and tried again. She couldn't just jump into it, she had to be tactful. If she didn't ask nicely, she could **** up again, like the time she tried to feed Dominique blood when she wasn't ready. They hadn't spoken since.

Cat began to text. "Hi this is Catherine, your sister. Not really your real sister or anything just the same guy who did you know what did you know what to me too. I guess we have that in common right. Sorry about all that stuff I helped him do to you. I was wondering if you had the time if maybe you could help me install a burgular alarm system in my new car." She pressed send, then added "I'd pay you if you want" and pressed send again.

[Dominique]

Dominique was rather quiet since she arrived home. Her routine was usual and her surroundings dead quiet except for the serval cat she still had not named or the bull terrier named Dog that was growing like a weed. The stairs had become a race track and she gave up using the route upward altogether. Instead she used the push button and lift method. It was peaceful and her bare feet were spared the slices of the exotic cat claws while it sprinted in pursuit of the canine who could never seem to run fast enough.

Stepping off the elevator 'HOPE' held several business sized envelopes in its inked fingers while 'LESS' tossed the keys with dominant force to the distant glass bowl on the kitchen island. The numerous silver keys swirled around the middle and finally stopped. She shot a hand up then pumped her elbow back as if she just banked the winning shot and nothing but net was touched.

"Yes! She shoots and she scores!" That was all it took. the sound of her voice and the keys. Out of thin air the foreign feline appeared.

'Hello Kitty!' for some reason came to mind as it was air bound. Could she be any more adorable in her hyper moment taking on the world? That changed when its spotted warm pelt went sliding across the flat tiled surface hooking the keys out of the bowl with a lethal fish hooked shaped claw and was gone as fast as she appeared.

"Oh hell no!" Dominique dropped the envelopes leaving them in a trail of where she had been. "Get back here!"

The woman was running down two flights like the house was on fire. Dog cut in front of her and she nearly tripped over him if not for the quick reflexes to hurdle him as he went sliding through the freshly sealed wood floor. Great. That would need fixing after she claimed those keys back. Another flight of stairs and two sharp corners and there was the feline now called 'Hello Kitty' licking her stolen prize.

"Time to hand them over, pussy cat. What happened to chewing on catnip or mice or..." She looked over her shoulder to see Dog trotting up panting like he did something incredibly strenuous and needed praise. "...him?"

Leaning down and rubbing both animals firmly on the head she quickly grabbed the keys and pocketed them. Hello Kitty released a less than pleased sound at the loss of what she considered her keys.

"It was fun but you two can carry on from here." Leaving the two to plot their next adventure she made her way back up the stairs and that is when her pocket went for a dance signaling an incoming text.

Interesting. The one who introduced her to a bone jarring swirly like she had never had before. If Doc was Batman then this of course would be his girl wonder, Catgirl. Her thumb stroked the screen and pulled down the rest of the text to view. He did her too. It was kind of starting to sound like some dirty little secret you weren't supposed to talk about unless a therapist was in the room and taking notes.

Dominique was motionless for a few moments just looking at the screen. The woman needed a car alarm and an anti-theft system added to a new car. She was offering to pay for it to be done. Mini thought about the underground garage. Nope. Vita Bella was out of the question. However, this would give her a chance to see what the woman was doing talking to energy drinks and more importantly why she shot her in the shoulder not that long ago. A smile found her lips as she returned the text.

-I will meet you and the car wherever in town. I will take a look at it and see what I can do- The press of her inked thumb sent the message on its way and she slid the phone back in her pocket. She was not born yesterday or died the day before that. If Catgirl was anything like Doc it was a good thing she was opening up the lock box sitting at her hips and started pulling out her master blade as well as a few other gadgets.

[Catherine Nilson]

"Great, I'll be at the vacant lot behind the Metronome," Cat texted. She was so excited to equip her new car with an alarm system that would hopefully protect it from 'them' that she didn't stop to consider that meeting the other vampire might be a bad idea, especially in a vacant lot. Instead she sped off in that direction with hip hop blaring from the ancient speakers. She was going to have to get those speakers replaced. She'd get a subwoofer and turn the hearse into a Pimphearseobile.

Great so the gangsters get attracted to it, what a swell idea, Green remarked. Cat attempted to focus on the road while images of the rudest youth Canada had to offer breaking into her precious car flashed through her brain. There they were, scratching the paint when they tried to break into it. Then busting a window, which made Cat gasp audibly and speed up. They would have to rip open the paneling to get at the wires. Then they would surely take the car on a high speed chase, causing the cops to riddle it with bullet holes. Then the car would crash into the river, only to be swept away forever.

And Doc would say, "I'm very disappointed in you, Cat, this is why I don't give you nice things," and Cat would go to her room, but Sparrow would be in there taking her place, and Sparrow would say something to the tune of "I painted the walls black, I hope you don't mind."

"NO!" Cat shouted as the scene played through her head. She pulled into the lot and hunched down with her fingers on either side of her head. "Shut up shut up shut up shut up!"

[Dominique]

Dominique released her form to sink down into the seat of the recent customers convertible 1971 Pontiac GTO. Business was picking up and keeping her hands and mind busy. The pampered black calf skin custom bucket seat cradled her small of her back and hips as she settled back. There was a heat that raced up her spine from the contact of her cold skin to the warm leather as it came to meet the surface of the seat. It felt so good she waited until the sensation filtered through and the feeling was gone. Being cold to the touch as a summer stream after midnight had it's perks. You find an appreciation for what you took for granted or annoying before. Hot leather seats, warm rain landing on the skin and frigid snowfall that actually melted on your skin. It reminded her there was always something colder than her pulseless body.

The turn of her inked wrist with HOPE gripping the key head nice and tight sent the engine turning over like an angry bear being prodded to wake. The continuous loud rumble of a better than ever engine signaled it was ready to be unleashed and perform. Just what she savored hearing. That sound woke every part of her body. For some it was the first scent of a fresh cigarette licked to life by the flame of a lighter beneath it. the attention getting first scent was rich, instant and full of promise stimulating the senses of the one needing the fix beneath the burning paper. For Dominique it was a few particular sounds. The buzz of an ink gun ready to kiss her skin, the sound of an modified engine that was handled with care beneath her hands and of course predictably the sound of a voice dangerously close to her ear saying her name. Who didn't get a rush from that?

Concrete Jungle by Black Label Society filled the car and within seconds she was finding that the car would not refrain from reaching top speed on the straight section bringing her back into Harper Rock. The engine growled as she shifted back down in the gears and rolled in slowly to the Wickbridge area and took the turn by the Metronome. The glow of the streetlights skated across the windshield and finally as she guided the car to a complete stop she spotted the car that Doc's sidekick and girl wonder was texting about. The shock of blonde inside the otherwise dark car gave her the idea the woman was either waiting awhile or didn't care to stand outside.

Pulling the keys from the ignition of the car under her and popped the drivers door open and set the sole of her pink Nike on the ground. It was a burst of bright color compared to the dark ink that was permanently fixed to her skin covering her right leg from the top of her thigh down to the tip of those toes beneath the running shoe. The other was bare and now free of the car seat she was sitting in. Two feet covered in neon pink and a set of black running shorts with a white runners tank shirt with JUST DO IT across the front covered the raven haired female as approached the modified Jaguar that resembled a miniature hearse. It was the first time she had seen one that was not in an auction catalog or on a net page. Her eyes skate the car as she stepped forward.

The tip of her thumb traveled the length of her jawline while debating what would be needed to install the systems the woman had mentioned. It was all business and that she was certainly used to but there was a volatile history not to be ignored in the past that had this woman and Doc meeting on less than cordial terms. Dominique was not one to be unprepared from that point on. She was once and she paid dearly for it. It was blood drained from the vein and behind her now. She learned a valuable lesson. Always be ready. And at that moment like any other she certainly was.

The holster at the small of her back was out of view as was the master blade sheathed beneath the hem of her shirt. She knew very little of the female sitting inside of the car other than she was Doc's right hand and couldn't be trusted any more than the man that had taken their lives and filled it with the sentence of eternal darkness. Her head cocked slightly then finally inclined when she reached the drivers side of the door. Her brown eyes watched the woman with a steeled focus and waited. It was her move. Dominique was more than ready for whatever happened next.