[Fiction] Christmas 2016: Doing Something Right

[Warren Verona]

The dark angel Revenant soared at a low altitude through the gray skies of Chicago. The hail and snow assaulted him from all sides but he continued to press on keeping just below the cities skyline his arms clutched tight to himself as he cradled a Christmas surprise.

Winter snow is a-blowin'

I can't see where I'm goin'

I hope I don't fall on my way to her hall

Flyin’ in a winter wonderland

He sang quietly to himself to the tune of ‘Walking In a Winter Wonderland’ as he flowed through alleyways and swooped gracefully between semis and their massive cargo trailers. And within moments found himself landing ankle deep in wet slush at the doors of Violet’s apartment building.

Step by step he climbed the stairs, forbidden to land on her balcony since he caught her during one of her famous pajama lip synching concerts complete with dance routine one early Sunday morning some while back. The whole time he fidgeted with the item tightly bundled up in his eufiber duster. “Quit!” he complained, ducking his head into his coat as continued to race up the steps of the vacant, echoing hallways.

Eleven flights of stairs later Warren found himself standing outside the door of the woman who had come to be know as his best fiend, and gained herself the street rep of being the only woman that if disrespected could call on an evil most petty thugs and pushers could never dream to imagine in even their worst nightmares. Revenant liked it that way.

He raised his hand, and prepared to knock on her door. Rather proud of himself that he had picked out, and customized, a gift he knew she would absolutely love. Poor Warren didn’t have much luck when it came to women and ‘doing something right’. Small little things that he took too literally and often either ended up embarrassing himself, in Velvet’s case, or saying the completely inappropriate thing and the completely inappropriate time and screwing up any hopes for a friendship, as in Chloe’s case.

But not today! Oh… no… not today. He had it all figured out. A gift so exquisite Velvet would melt like putty in his arms. Stick a fork in her… she’s done, score one for the dead guy!

With a enthusiastic grin upon his lips he knocked rapidly on her door.

[Velvet]

[Author's Note: This takes place after Christmas in Memory Gardens]

"No, mom, everything's fine. ... I wish I could've come out there, too. ... No, nothing special, just takeout. ... Oh, you did? Did you like it? ... Good! You've been wearing that coat for twenty years, I thought you could use a new one. ... It's hard to get away in the evenings, but what about if you came down here? We could have-"

At that moment, a series of sharp knocks rang out through the apartment. Although still not as well-furnished as it had been before she'd been forced to clean it out for cash, she'd managed to reclaim a few of the treasured items she'd sold to friends and it was at least comfortable enough to live in again.

"Someone's here, mom, I need to go. ... Merry Christmas to you, too. Love you! ... Bye."

She clicked the phone shut, lifting her head to glance first at the door, and then the television which currently featured Rudolph making his way through some place called the 'Island of Misfit Toys.' With a lazy grumble, she half-rolled off the couch and slunk barefoot across the carpet to the front door. Despite Warren's horror stories about peepholes and what happens if you look through them at a "hostile" on the other side, she peered out into the hall.

"Oh," she mumbled through the door, "Hi. One sec, just let me undo the bolt." ('Bolt' was perhaps a misnomer, as it included a deadbolt, lock, and chain, and likely would've also included high-tech laser-guided artillery if Revenant could have talked her into it.) As she unfastened the decidedly low-tech security precautions with one hand, the other hiked up the pink and black pinstriped pajama pants that had begun slipping down her hips during her brief walk to the apartment entrance.

"Morning, Sunshine," she offered as she opened the door and stepped back to allow him inside. "Didn't expect to see you today."

[Warren Verona]

Warren stood in the doorway of who could have been Aphrodite herself. She wore for her comfy black silk pajamas, the ones with a cute pink pin stripe pattern. Since she wasn't expecting any company today the matching top was only buttoned up halfway. As always, even when hardly putting any effort into looking glamorous, she looked perfect.

He looked... well... like he always did: a nineties action movie star throwback. Well, a very wet one anyway. The heavy snow had stuck to his hair as he flew the Chicago skyline had long since melted saturating his black hair into long wet strands. His bare chest was covered in moisture and his duster was also pretty soaked.

He kept his back to her, but not before she caught him sneaking a peek at her slightly opened pajama top. His subterfuge was about as honed to perfection as a child trying to steal a cookie from a Chips Ahoy package by tearing through the crackling container. She instantly noticed he was attempting to hide something from her simply by refusing their traditional hug. "Oh, uh, day off. Sean and I have been busting our asses lately, so Jager said to take the day off and spend time with our..." His voice dimmed, and the next word was little more that a mumble. "Families."

He raked his hand through his wet hair, pushing it all behind him as he turned around to face Violet who had just shut the door and was walking to plop back onto the couch. She didn't bother locking it this time, she rarely did when Revenant visiting. "But hey, fuck it right? I got a day off." His grin was fake and his mind echoed the tell tale colors of impending depression later that he would no doubt attempt to drown away with alcohol. "So, I figured I would take some time and drop off the present I got for you." His grin shifted to a genuine smile devoid of a clue. He felt like he was child again as he stood there with the person he cared the most about in the whole world anxious as a hell to see the look on her face when he handed over his gift for her.

[Velvet]

"A wha?"

She blinked, obviously thrown off-balance by the abrupt shift from 'melancholy' to 'mischievous.' First he was sneaking glances at her chest, which was mildly gratifying, as it at least provided a reminder that he wasn't completely oblivious... Then he was glum about his lack of a family, which was also gratifying in a sense, because it demonstrated that he did care and did wish for more in life than what he had.

Suddenly, though, he's giddy about giving me a present? What'd he do, roll a street vendor selling edible thongs?

"You got me a present? Really?" she asked. Then, with guilt lacing her voice: "But, Warren, I didn't get you anything, that's not fair!" Her lower lip shifted into a half-pout as her brows knit together almost sulkily.

[Warren Verona]

Don't do the lip. Don't do the lip. Please God do dot the lip... Her lower lip shifted into a half-pout as her brows knit together almost sulkily. Son of a bitch... she did the lip!

"Hey! C'mon Vie, don't be like that." He pleaded. "I'm not the holiday type anyway, so it's not like I'm missing out on anything. But, ya know... you're more... normal than I am, so I thought I'd get you a little something to show you that, well, while I may not show it all the time... I do still... ya know... care about ya an all that. Even on Christmas, the one time of year I loathe more than anything."

Swiftly he spun away from her again, the secret pocket in his eufiber that he was using to keep the gift safe, warm, and dry split itself open and permitted him a firm grasp on it. With a repeating spin he thrust out his arms and presented Velvet with her Christmas gift.

The lil bugger was only about 6 weeks old. A small shorthaired kitten with the biggest Vivi had ever seen on an animal that small. Quickly she noticed the other oddity... it was purple with a pretty onyx black bow wrapped around its neck neatly. "His name’s 'Ravager'." He said with a measure of enthusiasm that she had never quite heard in him before.

mew Was all the worried little thing could to attempt to live up to his not-yet-earned namesake.

"Go on. Hold him." He nudged the little kitten closer to his waiting new master. "It's short for 'Ragager of Worlds, Destroyer of Souls' but they said that wouldn't fit on the adoption certificate. So I had to shorten it."

[Velvet]

"Ravager," she repeated, staring blankly at the tiny little ball of (purple?) fluff that trembled pitifully in Revenant's grasp. Its huge eyes were still a cloudy shade of greyish blue, and it peered up at her with a mixture of pathetic hope and apprehension that silently begged, "Please, save me."

Instantly, a multitude of excuses crowded into her mind. She was never home. What would she feed it? Where would she keep it? She didn't know anything about cats... Hell, she couldn't keep a cactus alive, as her mother would be only too happy to attest. A kitten would just make a mess everywhere, destroy her furniture, get underfoot, and-

"Mew?"

Oh, fuck me. I'm so screwed.

With a mental sigh of resignation, she admitted defeat and reached out to take the shivering little beastie from Warren's cool hands. As she brought it up to her chest she could feel its tiny heart racing through the thin silk of her shirt; cradling it gently, she instinctively brought up one hand to support its feather weight as it squirmed and tried unsuccessfully to find purchase in the fabric of her top.

"Ow," the confused nova protested, gingerly removing one tiny starfish paw and its claws from the delicate material. "Warren," she began, looking up from the violet-furred creature trying to scale her shoulder, "He's adorable, but I have to ask..."

Her gracefully arched brows furrowed into nearly horizontal lines as she peered warily up at her visitor and asked the one question burning brightest in the forefront of her mind.

"Why is he purple?"

[Warren Verona]

He had an answer prepared and was already talking before Velvet's heart had a chance to complete a beat. "Ah!" He raised his index finger in exclamation, as the spirit of giving possessed his soul. "See... he was white. But then I got to thinking, cuz, you know... I do that from time to time. I thought: "Vivi needs someone to look after her while I'm not around, and what better than her own attack," He gazed for moment at the shivering scared lump of mind numbing cuteness. "Uhh... kitten." He finished.

He walked to the kitchen but remained in eye contact the whole time, as best he could. "But, I also got thinking that you also like purple, you know, it's sort of your... uhh..."

"Trademark?" Violet helped him.

"Yeah! Trademark. But they don't make purple kittens." The refrigerator door opened and he reached in retrieved himself a beer. "Trust me, I looked." He amended as he twisted off the cap. “So, I look up 'how to make a purple cat' on the OpNet. You know, cuz I know how much you like purple, a purple cat would just be totally kick ass."

He walked back into the living room, speaking as he went. "It just so happens that grape kool-aid powder, when mixed with a slight bit of water and shampooed into the fur will dye a cat's fur. So, viola! Sevnteen packets of kool-aid later, I had a purple cat for ya." His grin was wide and proud, as if he seriously had no idea how wrong shampooing kool-aid into a cat's fur was. "Pretty cool huh?"

The kitten abnormally huge blue eyes looked up at Velvet, the little coward shuddered even more and buried its head as best he could into her body. "I think he likes you." Warren stated, smiling as he took a sip from his beer.

[Velvet]

There was nothing sensual or alluring about Velvet's reaction: she stared, open-mouthed and slack-jawed, as Warren casually tossed the bottle cap into the sink and completed his explanation. It wasn't that she was incapable of speech, but rather that every thought she had broke rapidly down into incoherent obscenity. Several times, in fact, she valiantly made the attempt to form the words, but succeeded only in sputtering unintelligible, broken syllables.

"Yuh-"

"Wa-"

"Bu-"

"I know, I know. Speechless, right?" Revenant nodded sympathetically, patting her shoulder. "S'okay. Take your time."

Finally, she couldn't take it any longer, and the words forced their way out on their own.

"Warren, you... You dyed a kitten purple... with seventeen packets of Kool-Aid... because someone on the OpNet said it was a good idea?" she asked incredulously, staring at Revenant in disbelief. "What the-" She paused, glancing down at the kitten balancing on her shoulder, and covered its ears with one hand. "What the hell? Do you realize how crazy that is?"

[Warren Verona]

Wha? How... how could this be? Apparently the Grim Giver of Grape Goodies had failed in his attempt to please the perky plum Persephone that stood before him. He had it all figured out; the plan was perfect! How was it suddenly all going wrong now?

"Vie, how is that crazy? People dye their hair all the time. What’s wrong with dying a cat?" He quickly raised his finger to prevent her from chiming up before he was done. "And don't say its cruelty to animals. He was kept warm, and safe, and did not hurt him at all. I was very careful. What's cruel are people who dress them up in little frog outfits, and lame ass sweaters with reindeer patterns and light up noses." He defiantly shook his finger at her a few times. "That my dear, that is what is crazy."

He set his beer down on her coffee table. "Look, I just thought you'd like it, you know, considering you like purple. I'd wash it out, but... it's kinda permanent. I can shave him if you like."

[Velvet]

The urge to slap that smug, defiant expression off his pale face rose temptingly in the back of her brain, followed quickly by the realization that it likely wouldn't faze him in the least. She settled for giving him a glare that could've melted lead, or at least the skull that passed for it, and slumped down into a nearby chair.

Velvet accepted that she wasn't going to win this argument, and just nodded instead, gently stroking the kitten's head with her fingertips.

"All right. I'm not going to argue with you. It's the thought that counts anyway, right? He's perfect, even if not quite what I expected. Honestly," she admitted, a wry grin forming on her lips, "I assumed you'd have bought me edible panties or something. A purple kitten was the last thing that would've ever crossed my mind. And..."

She sighed, still more than a little exasperated but struggling not to let it show.

Her free hand waved expressively as she continued, "And the execution leaves a bit to be desired, with the Kool-Aid and all, but... on the whole... It was incredibly sweet of you, Warren. Thank you."

[Warren Verona]

Score. He thought to himself. The exhilaration of giving her the gift made way for the calm wave of happiness he felt every time he saw her smile. The corner of her mouth twisted into a wooed smile as the little kitten mercilessly nibbled on her fingertip only to break away a moment later and lick them gently as if to say 'I'm sorry, I hope I didn't hurt you.'

Slowly he walked over the side of the chair and hunched down, balancing on the tips of his feet. He rested one arm on the arm of the chair and with his free hand stroked his index finger from side to side on the little munchkin's head. "his is the beautiful lady I told you about." 'Ravager' bobbed his head back and dodged the finger, attacking it for a moment. Velvet giggled warmly and even the hardened heart that lay still in Revenant’s chest demanded that he give the ball of cuddly goodness a proper affectionate smile. "You take good care of her, kay?"

mew The fierce guardian replied.

Warren made eye contact with Velvet, an honest expression of friendship shown behind his eyes. "Merry Christmas Vie." His smile grew wider, but a hint of embarrassment, like a school boy with a crush, quickly made him look back at the kitten who was still nibbling away at Warren's finger.

[Velvet]

"Merry Christmas, Warren, and thank you," she replied, leaning over to brush her lips affectionately against his pale cheek before settling back down in the chair. "I guess he'll just have to be 'Ravager of Fingers and Destroyer of Small Things' for now," the violet-eyed woman quipped dryly, watching bemusedly as the runt who'd merely shivered before suddenly attacked with every ounce of kittenish ferocity he could muster, assailing his foe with milk teeth, blunt claws, and general confusion. In fact, his strategy for victory seemed to revolve around hanging bodily from Revenant's hand with all four feet and gnawing ineffectually at the nova's calloused skin.

"I still wish I had a gift for you, though... I'll try to think of something appropriate, and don't," she added, raising her voice to cut off his protest. "Don't think you're getting out of it. You got me this fierce little beast, so now I'll need to find something equally charming and twisted." Her grin, slightly crooked and perfectly natural, was a reminder that although she might have forgiven the Kool-Aid dye for the sake of the gift and the season, she had certainly not forgotten.