I woke to a warm fuzzy presence on my chest, kneading my breasts. I smiled, and reached out to pet Pepsi, and sighed at the sound of her quiet purring.  “Good morning, Pepsi.”  I said.  “How’s my baby girl?”

 

Pepsi stopped kneading, and turned around, licking my nose in the process.  “Meow!”  She pronounced, and I realized again she could understand me – but I couldn’t understand her, not completely.

 

“Hey baby… You want to play?”  I said, tickling her sides, and rubbing her tummy.  I got my answer a few moments later when Pepsi rolled over, presented her belly, and began grappling my hand and wrist, biting my hand, and using her rear claws to slash me…  It was a form of roughhousing I called ‘hitting her murder button’ and she seemed to love it, especially now that she couldn’t hurt me.  I growled in mock fierceness as we wrestled – my hand versus a full body grapple by Pepsi, and we played until she got tired of it – and let go – running off the bed and out into the apartment like a shot.  Silly cat, I thought.  What’s gotten into her?

 

I could hear Krissie puttering in the kitchen.  I wondered if Pepsi went to see her or not – there weren’t a lot of places she could go, really.  Just my room, Krissie’s room and the kitchenette and bathroom.  I got up, and looked out the window.  It was a gray November day, with a grey overcast sky.  From the movement of the trees, it was a bit windy and it looked chilly.  The small breeze of air coming in through the window confirmed my suspicions.  Not a bad fall day, I thought.  Pretty soon we’ll be in the six months of winter. 

 

I walked out to the kitchenette – Krissie was making some pop tarts in a two slice toaster, and had poured herself a glass of orange juice from the fridge. 

 

“Good morning, Karen.”  She said, brightly.  “When did you get in last night?”

 

“Some time after 1am, I think.”  I replied.  “Did you have fun shopping?”

 

“Yeah, but probably not as much fun as you had on your date!”  She smirked impishly.

 

“I did have a good time.  How did you hear about it?”  I asked.

 

“Well, we got back around 8pm, and everyone was doing their own thing, and Ellie got us together to play some Cards against Humanity, which I won, I might add.  You and Mal were the only ones not in the dorm.  People noticed.  That’s all.  That and Mike said you two left in a cab together, all dressed up.  It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out the rest.”

 

“Wow.  I didn’t know it was so obvious.”

 

“I wouldn’t worry about it.  Ellie spent half the shopping trip chatting up Cliff.  He eventually noticed, I think.  They disappeared shortly after the card game.  I came back to the dorm room, and found Pepsi on my bed, so I played with her for a bit, and she left and I guess went to your room.  I’m glad she’s not scared of me.”

 

“Me too.  Did you hear she snuck out of the room yesterday to go hunt Jessica?”

 

Krissie giggled.  “Yeah.  It was super cute.”

 

“Yeah, it kinda was.  I’m glad she was sticking up for me.”  I opened the fridge, and grabbed some department store lemonade I had brought from my apartment, and poured a glass.  “You see anything nice at the mall?”

 

“Yup!”  Krissie replied.  “I got a pair of winter boots, and some new books to read, and I got some extra clothes to top me up.  It was fun.  Have you gone shopping, you know, since you turned into a girl?”

 

“Yeah, once or twice.  It was fun, but I had to be frugal with my money – until I get a paycheck, I’m a bit short on cash.”  I replied.

 

“Well, when we get paid next, we should totally go to the mall together and do some shopping!”  Krissie suggested.  “It might be fun, and I can tell you all the shops that have good clothes for people our age, and all the shops that will dress you like my mom.”

 

I laughed.  “Thanks, Krissie.  It sounds like fun.”

 

“So what did you and Mal do on your date?”  She asked. “Did you have fun?”

 

“Yeah.” I said. “We had a lot of fun.  We went to a pub, had a light dinner and some drinks.  We talked a lot – oh geez, for about an hour and a half at least, about our pasts and each other, and then we did some dancing and had a pretty good time.  I discovered I can get tipsy, but I don’t think I could get drunk unless the booze was something supernatural.  I think my fortitude is too high for regular booze to affect me much.  We took a cab home, and said goodnight, and I went to bed.”

 

“No good night kiss?”  She laughed, teasingly.

 

“Yes and no…  I kissed him on the cheek.  That’s it.” I said.  “No sordid tales to tell.”

 

“Do you like him?”  Krissie asked.

 

“Yeah, I do.  The problem is, is that I also like another guy I’ve known for years, and I really need to figure myself out before I go much farther with Mal.  I don’t want to lead either one of them on.”

 

“Who’s the other guy?”  She asked, nibbling on one of her pop tarts.

 

“A friend from work – a young man in his mid twenties named Eddie Hunt – short for Edward.  I’ve known him for about five years – ever since he started at Precision Telecom.  We became friends, and he joined a RPG gaming group I run, and we’ve been hanging out and friends ever since.”

 

“Does he like the new you?” 

 

“I… Yes, I think he does.  He said so, in not so many works.  I think he’d like for us to date.”

 

“Wow!”  Krissie laughed.  “And you have like no idea what to do, don’t you?”

 

I smiled wryly.  “Pretty much.”

 

“Would you like some advice?”  Krissie asked.

 

“Sure!”

 

“Maybe take this Eddie on a date and see if you have a good time too.  Maybe then you’ll have a better idea of what to do?”  She smirked.  “Besides, everyone says the best person to have a relationship with is your best friend.  Maybe you’d have more fun than you did with Malcolm?  It’s worth a shot.”

 

“Thanks, Krissie.”  I replied.  “I just might do that.  I need to call him and Shelly anyway.  I might have to reschedule some plans.”

 

“Cool.  I’ll leave you to it, then.”  Krissie took her empty plate to the sink, and headed into her room.  “Good luck!”

 

“Thanks, Krissie!”  I called out, and took a moment to finish my juice.  I think I just had a session of girl chat, I thought, laughing.  It was kinda cool.  I’m glad I got Krissie as a roommate and not Jessica.  I wonder what her problem is?

 

I returned to my bedroom to find Pepsi had taken my spot on the bed and was curled up in the warm spot I had left when I got up.  She’s so cute, I thought, and sat down in my desk chair, and dug through my purse for my cell phone.  I was still getting used to needing a purse.  I missed pockets.

 

I checked the time – it was 7:45am.  I’d better text instead of call, I thought. 

 

• Hey Dorkus – I mean Dorkus Maximus – are you up?

 

• Hey! You remembered!  Yeah – just having breakfast.  How’s it going, Karen?

 

• Not bad, but also bad. Most of the people here are pretty nice, but there’s one who’s a definite bitch.  She made yesterday very uncomfortable.  I’m just gonna have to be polite and work with her as a coworker.  No big.  I don’t think I’m going to be free to run the D&D game today though. 

 

• No worries, Karen. I figured as much.  Shelly took a rain check, but says next time you’re free we’re going to kick the shit out of your dungeon!

 

• As if.

 

• Her words, not mine, oh Mistress of the d20’s.

 

• Mistress of the d20’s? What are you smoking, Eddie?

 

• Hey! Still working on the new nickname, since I can’t call you ‘old man’ anymore!

 

• Okay.  You get a pass on the Dice Mistress.  Not sure what to think about that one – keep trying.

 

• Will do. Things okay otherwise?

 

• Yeah, I guess. We’re doing a team building exercise today that should take till around 3pm or 4pm to finish.  After that, my time is my own until Sunday – then I’ve got to go to church and hope they don’t lose their minds about my change.  Did you want to hang out this evening?  I’m not doing anything.

 

• Sure! Did you have anything in mind?

 

• Well, we could either do some video games and order pizza, or we could Netflix and chill, or we could go out.

 

• Go out? Like to dinner?

 

• Yeah, or whatever you think might be fun. I’m trying to figure out what I like now, and I thought we might want to do something different.

 

• Um… Wow! Awesome!  When do you want to meet?

 

• How about 5pm or so at your place. Oh – I learned to fly yesterday, so I totally have all of Power Girls powers.  All I need now is her costume so my clothes don’t keep shredding.

 

• You can FLY!? Holy cow is that awesome!  5pm is great. I would totally pay money to see you wear her costume.  For real – I think you’d look amazing!

 

• Thanks, Eddie. See you at 5pm then.

 

• See you then!

 

I smiled.  At least Eddie was still Eddie.  I hope I didn’t surprise him with the idea of going out tonight, I thought to myself.  It is what he wanted, isn’t it?  What did I want?  That, I thought, was an interesting question too.  As I sat on the edge of my bed, I thought a moment about what I wanted.

 

I want someone to spend time with – both as a friend, and as a romantic partner.  I’m tired of being alone.  I want someone I can relate with, and have something in common with.  I want someone trustworthy, who I can rely on.  I want someone who will be there for me when I need them, and who will let me be there for them, when they need someone.  I want someone to laugh with.  I want someone to grow old with. 

 

At some point during the making of my list, tears started welling up in my eyes, and began to roll down my cheeks.  I was struck with feeling of sorrow and sadness, and I didn’t know why.  I couldn’t explain it – but it felt like loneliness just snuck up on me and hit me with a 2x4.  I sniffed, and wiped the tears away, and got control of myself.  Stupid hormones!

 

I’ve been alone too long, I thought.  It’s time to change that.  I got up, and went about the business of getting ready for the day.

 

 

*              *              *

 

 

The small cafeteria the MRT was assigned was fairly full this morning – everyone was present, even Jessica, and most of my fellow officers to be were chatting, eating and in general just relaxing.  As I entered, Ms. Potter – I mean Nadine – waved me over.

 

“Good morning, Nadine.” I said in greeting.  “Is something wrong?”

 

“No, Karen.  Nothing’s wrong, and it’s good to see you too.  Sit.  We need to talk, about yesterday, and how we’ll move forward on the accident at your office building.”

 

“Oh.” I said, more serious.  “Okay.”  I sat and  listened to what she had to say.

 

“First off, I need you to know we – the RCMP and the Federal Government – need to put this matter before a judge to rule whether the event you told me about was an accident or not.  This means you will be charged with manslaughter – but it’s up to the judge and crown attorney, with additional testimony from myself and an RCMP superintendent, as to what happens next.”

 

“Um… Am I going to be hauled off and finger printed?”  I asked, worried. 

 

“God, no.  That’s on TV.  It’s like whenever there is an officer related shooting.  The officer is charged, the case is reviewed, and the officer is either cleared – to go back to duty – or he is not.  We have to do this for two reasons.  One is to know if you are going to be able to become an RCMP officer – because if you are convicted, you can’t be an RCMP officer.  The other is to protect you – so that this horrible event can’t come back to bite you in the future – you’ll either be completely exonerated, and we’ll move on, or the judge will rule against you.  I have every confidence that things will be fine.”

 

“Do I have to go to court with you?”  I asked.

 

“No.  I’ll be there most of today, with the Superintendent, dealing with the Crown Attorney and Judge, presenting evidence and your case, plus the information you told me yesterday.  I’m very sure that you’ll be found not guilty – that the deaths will be ruled an accident – and you’ll be able to join us on the MRT.  I just want you to know the process.”

 

“Thanks, Nadine.  So what do I have to do?”

 

“Really?  Not much on my end.  On your end, concentrate on the team building exercise Dominic is going to be doing later today.  Just relax.  It’ll be fine.”

 

“It’s kind of hard to relax, if you know what I mean.”

 

“I do, Karen, but this is a normal part of the process.  We need to clear you, exonerate you, if you’re to join us.  So that’s what we’re trying to do.”

 

“Thanks, Nadine.”  I said, gratefully.

 

“You’re welcome.  You might want to get something to eat – I think Michael and Cliff are going up for thirds – you might want to get something before it’s all gone!”

 

I chuckled.  “Thanks.  I will.  Will you let me know how it goes?”

 

“Yes, of course.  In fact, it’s time I left for the courthouse.  I’ll see you later today or tomorrow, Karen.”  She grabbed her purse, and tray, and prepared to leave.

 

“Bye!” I called, and relaxed.  What Nadine had said made sense.  I felt more assured by that conversation than I had in a while.  I got up and headed to the Cafeteria line.  Time for breakfast!

 

Mike was in his human form this morning – he was tall – maybe 6’ 2” and weighed about 185 pounds, so muscular and fit, without being the nine foot tall taloned beast man I had met the day before.  He was cute, without being handsome, and he had a shock of black hair on his head that offset his blue eyes nicely. 

 

“Morning, Mike, Cliff.  Sleep well?”  I asked.

 

Mike nodded.  “Pretty good.  You?”

 

“Yeah, pretty good.”

 

“I slept well.” Cliff responded.  “I slept damn well.”

 

“Cool.” I replied.

 

“How was your date last night?”  Mike asked.

 

“Um… Pretty good.  Mal and I had some drinks, did a little dancing, and mostly talked about ourselves.”  I smiled.  “We had a good time.”

 

“Cool.  Mal’s dormed with me, so I heard a bit about it from him this morning.”  Mike smiled a little slyly, and spoke in a mock whisper.  “I think he likes you.” 

 

I blushed a bit.  “I kinda liked him too.”  I replied.  “Now are you going to get some food, or do I have to shoulder my way past you?”

 

“No Ma’am.”  Mike laughed, and the line moved forward.  Eventually I had some breakfast – eggs, bacon, toast, jam, a bowl of fruit, and a big glass of orange juice.  I went to sit down, and was a bit surprised when I saw Jessica waving me over to her table.

 

I paused.  Is this another trick, so she can upset me? I wondered.  Is she trying to apologize?  I didn’t know, but I decided to give her the benefit of the doubt one more time.  And if she pissed me off, I would deal with that, then.  I waved back, and she started in surprise as I walked over.  Huh?  I guess she didn’t think I would do it.  I wonder what she wants?

 

I walked over to find out.