"So, which color looks the scariest? Black?" Katrin asked her.

"My hair? Cody says the really bright white is the freakiest," said Rafferty.

"Let's see it," said Katrin.

Rafferty changed her hair to a white that shimmered in the moonlight.

"That's perfect. Keep it just like that," Katrin said.

They sat outside Marion's house. The wait for Emil was taking longer than expected. Katrin produced a couple of cigars, insisting that this counted as a mission, and B Hall protocol must be followed. Rafferty accepted one, and thought she choked her way through it slightly better than last time.

Katrin asked her about how she grew up. It was something Rafferty hadn't talked about in a long time.

"Your mom sounds cool," Katrin said after a while.

'It's complicated," said Rafferty.

Whenever Rafferty tried to ask Katrin about her family, Katrin would change the subject.

Rafferty was snuffing out her cigar stub when three men staggered toward the house. They were drunk. They were loud.

"Ok. They're here. I'll be good cop. You can be bad cop. I think you'll do better with bad cop," Katrin said.

"Wait. What's a cop?" Rafferty asked, trying and failing to keep the desperation out of her voice.

"I don't really know. I read it in a book once. I think it used to be an expression. It just means that I'll lay things out for them, and you do the threatening," said Katrin as she stood up.

"Ok," said Rafferty.

This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

I think.

The guy in the middle was the shortest, and the loudest. That was probably Emil. His hair was too long, and falling in front of his eyes. Rafferty didn't think he looked nearly tough enough to sell drugs and guns.

"Hey, boys," said Katrin. "Can we talk a minute?"

"Wow. Look at these little birdies. This day just gets better and better," said Probably Emil.

"Do you know who I am?" asked Katrin.

"Yeah, you're that hot God fighter chick. I saw you, like, a couple of months ago. And you've brought a less hot friend," he said.

What? WHAT?

"All right. I'm just going to put it out there. We've heard that you three gentlemen are considering a new business, and we'd like an opportunity to discuss that with you," Katrin said.

Katrin laid it out. You do the threatening.

One of the other two men stepped forward. He was a little unsteady.

"Look-" he began.

Rafferty's bracelets shimmered as she punched him in the face. She didn't put her full force behind it, not hardly, but he still jumped in the air before landing hard on the ground.

Katrin clearly wasn't expecting that, and actually laughed out loud. Probably Emil let out an indignant, drunken yell that wasn't quite Hey!

"Now see, I'd be willing to go over the ins and outs of this with you, but Rafferty here has strong feelings about this new business, as in, you won't be doing it," said Katrin.

The third friend, whom Rafferty had named Ted in her mind, pulled a knife from his back pocket. Rafferty drew her sword and slashed in one motion. He looked down at the stub of a knife in his hand with a bewildered expression on his face.

"Next time it's your fingers, Ted" said Rafferty.

"Damn," muttered Katrin.

I'm bad cop.

'Ted' backed away, then turned and ran.

Emil was the last man standing.

"You can't do that! You're not allowed!" he yelled, jabbing his finger toward Katrin.

Katrin grabbed him by the collar, and shoved him toward Rafferty.

"Take him up," Katrin said.

Rafferty hooked her arm under his, and planted her left foot. She kicked her planted foot with her right foot, and stamped the ground and pushed. Together they soared straight into the air, the houses beneath them growing smaller then larger. Emil screamed all the way up and all the way down.

Right in my ear.

It wasn't the smoothest landing, but how was she supposed to land soft if he was going to insist on doing all that squirming?

Rafferty was having way more fun that she probably should have been. She let her prey go, and he stumbled toward Katrin. The Pride of the Abbey leaned over, putting her face right in his, sporting an expression of mock seriousness.

"All right. I think we're all in agreement then. Remember, one of us is here every month," said Katrin.

He tried to run, but tripped over his own legs, crawling as fast as he could until he regained his feet. Rafferty didn't think these guys were going to be a problem anymore.

As they walked back to the Hunters' cottage, Rafferty was feeling pretty good about herself.

When they got to the door, Katrin stopped and spoke.

"Ok, I've been thinking about it all the way back, and there's something I need to tell you. I wasn't going to say anything, but I've decided I have to," she said.

What did I do wrong? I talked to Marion, even though you totally KNOW her. I was bad cop. I was a great bad cop. Corcoran stays a nice place for LB. Everything went great, and I'm feeling good, and now you've got SOMETHING TO SAY. Maybe Blaspheme's right, and it is just all about you, and—

"What?" Rafferty asked, interrupting her own thoughts, trying not to snap.

"When you jumped—"

My jumping?! You're going to criticize my jumping?! You try jumping with a wriggling drunk!

"Yeah?" Rafferty said, irritation creeping into her voice as she braced for the critique.

Katrin pointed to Rafferty's thigh.

"I think he pissed on you."

'Oh,' said Rafferty.