Revolution (29 page)

Thinking about it, he decided that he would
be contacting Farrell and it would be soon. However... listening to
the shower water run, he decided that the safety of the world could
wait a couple of days. A heartbeat later, Anastasia came back
wearing a pair of yellow shorts and a yellow blouse. “Get dressed,”
she ordered. “I’d like to take a walk.”

“Uh-oh,” he said. “I don’t like the sound of
this.”

She gave him a look, which meant
comply or
get slashed.
A second later, he changed his mind.
Make a
commitment and carry on through.
There was no need to be
afraid, not any longer. Excited by the possibilities of being with
her and just being, he threw on his clothes and joined her in a
walk down the hill.

A few cars passed them by, slowing down long
enough for the occupants to gawk, but no one yelled out any
insults. After a leisurely stroll, they reached the bottom of the
hill and walked into the convenience store. The same two large men
who’d gotten their butts kicked the first time lounged against the
counter.

Once they got a good look at Harry and
Anastasia, though, they stood upright, and shock appeared on their
faces. Apparently, they weren’t the types to watch news. Harry
jerked his thumb at the door. “I suggest you guys use it.”

Instantly, a wet stain appeared at the front
of their trousers and they took off through the door, stumbling
over each other as they went. The same snotty clerk as before sat
at the cash register, leafing through a magazine. He didn’t even
appear to have noticed his backup’s departure. “Yeah, what is it?”
he asked, eyes on the page.

“Service,” Anastasia stated, rapping her
knuckles on the counter.

When the man didn’t respond, she extended her
claws and slashed the magazine in two. That got his attention. He
dropped the torn halves and his manner got all self-righteous at
first. “What in the hell...”

When he saw her, though, he did a double
take. “What... what’s going on here? Is this for real?”

She leaned in closer and beckoned him with
her forefinger. His eyes grew wide. “If you say one word about
kittens or cat food,” she said in the sweetest of all voices, but
with a hint of iron underneath, “guess what’s going to happen?”

He gulped and nodded respectfully toward
them. “Can I get you something... Miss... or is that Ms.?”

Anastasia winked at Harry. “I’d call that a
good start.”

The End

J.S. Frankel was born in Toronto, Canada, many moons
ago and managed to scrape though the University of Toronto, earning
a BA in English Literature.

In 1988,
he moved to Japan in order to teach ESL and taught anyone who dared
to enter his classroom. In 1997, he married the charming Akiko
Koike. Their union produced two sons, Kai and Ray. Frankel lives
with his family in Osaka where he teaches English by day. At night,
he strives to write the best Young Adult novels possible and
continues on until the wee hours of the morning. He is the author
of
Catnip, Catnip 2: Rise of the Transgenics, Death Bytes,
Twisted,
and the
Lindsay/Jo
trilogy.