Chapter 20: Surprises
True to his word, the house was finished in a month. Jake rested his arm across his friend's shoulders as they stood before the transformed house in his newly landscaped yard at the end of another long day.
"It looks fantastic, Chance. We do good work!"
"I couldn't have done it half as well or as fast without your help, buddy. I can hardly wait to tell Ulysses and get us moved," the tabby sighed gratefully.
"Is he going to be okay with this? I mean, I thought he still was kinda divided about moving from the city at all," Jake asked, a little concerned.
"I've been softening him up for months...just dropping hints and suggestions about how great it would be to have a place that was safe and allowed Jeremy to just be himself. I'm fairly certain, at least by the emotional waves I would get from each time I mentioned it, that he's primed for this," Chance said confidently.
"Well that's great. However, I'm glad you listened to me about going out and buying tons of furniture. Ulysses might truly want to have a paw in decorating too."
"Yeah, I know but I think the bed I bought he'll fall in love with. His is really worn and doesn't hold the two of us that comfortably. And I couldn't resist about the dining room table since he only has that small kitchen table. However, you're probably right about the rest of it. He's had it for a long time now and is attached. I, on the other paw, don't want any of my furniture so you can get rid of it or we can leave it for the next poor saps that get the yard after we leave it finally. After all, except for the hangar, neither of us have any of our personal belongings there any longer," Chance said shrugging his shoulders.
"You're right! Leave it for the next guys, though it probably will be Burke and Murray again, no point in us being churlish, though, just because they left the place looking like a garbage dump when we got it," Jake said archly, amusement glinting in his eyes.
Chance just laughed. They turned away from the newly remodeled house and headed for their vehicles. "So what do you want to do tomorrow? Get started on the new hangar?" He asked as he climbed aboard his cyclotron.
"Yeah, now that this project is done, we really need to get busy breaking ground for it and I have an idea how to make the work go faster too," Jake said as he cinched on his helmet.
"Tell me about it when we get back to the old hangar," Chance said then started his engine. Jake gave a high sign indicating he'd heard him and agreed then climbed on his own bike and started it up with a loud roar.
Soon they both were a blur, racing down the road toward the salvage yard. One behind the other, they zoomed down the ramp into the hangar. Taking off their helmets and by mutual consent, they went upstairs to check if any salvage had been delivered. To their relief, the gate was still closed and the place was quiet. No junk today.
Going back downstairs, Chance changed clothes to T-Bone.
"So, tell me how you plan to get the new hangar built quickly...that's a lot of rock to dig through you know," he said as he dressed.
"Yeah I know, that's why I want to ask Professor Hackle if we can borrow Cybertron II. That thing is big and powerful enough to dig through all that rock and clear it much faster than we can with explosives and heavy equipment and much quieter so our new place isn't discovered while we're working on it," Jake said excitedly.
T-Bone paused in putting his harness on and stared at his friend in surprise. "Wow! You're right! That robot could have the biggest and hardest part of the job done in no time. When do you plan on talking to him?"
"Tonight! I'll just run out there and see what he says then we'll know what we're doing tomorrow," Jake said, grinning.
"Cool! I can hardly wait. I'll see you tomorrow then," T-Bone said with a pleased grin, then walked back out of the changing area and made for his bike.
Jake waved farewell to his friend then went to his work bench. There was something he wanted to finish before he went to see the Professor. He put in a call for dinner to be delivered then got to work.
In a buoyant mood, T-Bone raced through town to Feral's apartment building. He swung into the parking garage and parked his bike in front of Feral's space, the hummer was there indicating Uly was home ahead of him for once. Many of the other residents were arriving all around him as well. He strode to the elevator, nodding at the others waiting for the car. When it did, he politely let them enter ahead of him before getting on himself.
The residents had long since got over the novelty of having a superhero living in their building. They found him polite, helpful, and likable but they never forgot he was also a very powerful tom, one they were grateful lived in their building. All of them felt much safer with the two powerful males to protect them. They weren't going to be happy when they learned the two would be moving out soon.
"How is your son doing, T-Bone," An older she-kat asked warmly.
"He's getting into everything and growing fast," the tom said with a grin.
"Must be very interesting dealing with such an exceptional kitten and one that's another species as well," she commented curiously.
T-Bone snorted in amusement, "you can say that again. Even though Jeremy is only seven months old, he's more like two years old instead. It's a lot to get used to but he's a really smart and loving kitten and I'm a very lucky dad," he said proudly.
"You certainly are, have a good evening, T-Bone," she said as she got off on her floor.
"Thanks, you too," he said warmly.
The car was empty by the time he reached his floor at the top of the building. He stepped out into the quiet hallway and made for their apartment. Through the door, he could plainly hear Jeremy burbling rapidly to his mother about his day. A smile tugged on his lips as he opened the door and waited for the small body to charge him.
He barely had time to close and lock the door behind him before a small missile raced across the floor and leaped into the air. Chuckling, T-Bone caught his excited son, giving him hugs and kisses.
"Daddy...daddy...!" Jeremy shrieked and kissed his dad back while hugging the tom's neck tightly.
"Hi sport, how's my little guy today?"
Jeremy exploded into excited chatter which T-Bone could barely follow. He just let his son rattle on, saying an occasional "...yeah...really...that's great..." whenever the kitten took a breath. He walked into the bedroom and saw his mate just pulling on a polo shirt over his head. He wore black slacks, his feet bare.
"Hi love," he said warmly, giving his mate a heated kiss.
"Hi yourself. How was your day?" Feral said, smiling.
"Great and successful. I have a surprise for both of you after dinner. We're going out for a drive so I can show it to you," his mate said as he placed their son on the bed so he could strip down. Since he planned on going out again, he only pulled off his harness, mask, gloves and helmet and left them on the bed, wearing only his g-suit.
"What is it?" Jeremy and his mother said at the same time causing Feral and Chance to laugh and Jeremy to giggle.
"Well, it wouldn't be a surprise if I told you right now. You'll just have to wait...so what's for dinner?" He asked, beginning to walk out of the room.
"Humph, I have no idea yet," Feral grunted. He never planned dinner so it was always a surprise based on whatever was in the fridge at the time. He followed his mate, Jeremy already having climbed off the bed and running after his dad.
"Well let's just see what we can throw together then," Chance said pawing through the fridge while Feral went to look in cupboards for sides.
In a little while, they were sitting down and eating a tossed together meal of eggs, left over steak, potatoes, and sausage with a side of steamed corn. They talked about their day then when they finished, cleaned up the kitchen, put the dishes in the dishwasher (with help from Jeremy) then got ready to leave again.
T-Bone quickly put his things back on, Jeremy grabbed his coat and shoes from the small dresser in his parents room and asked his dad to help him put them on as Feral put his own shoes and jacket on.
"There you go sport! All ready to go!" T-Bone said, picking up his son to carry him out.
Ulysses held the door open and they all piled out, locking it behind them. T-Bone placed his excited son into his car seat then took the driver's seat while Uly climbed into the passenger side.
Jeremy made excited noises as they drove through the city then out of it onto the highway for several miles before turning off on a little used and paved road heading off into a heavily forested area. Feral noted the sign that spoke of a housing area called "Hidden Pines".
He remembered reading about it a long time ago. It had been a development touted to be the rich Kat's playground but poor funding and management failed to bring in the buyers the developers hoped for and it had fallen on hard times. Many of the homes had been left abandoned. He wondered why on earth Chance was going here.
They drove for another twenty minutes before T-Bone turned off on a barely seen (because of the trees), newly paved road that ended in a very nice home. He could see in an instant, the yard had been just landscaped and the driveway and sidewalk were newly laid. The house also boasted a new roof.
His heart began pounding wildly. 'He couldn't have?' He thought in a daze as he climbed out of the hummer after T-Bone parked and shut off the motor.
He barely heard his son's excited voice as he stared around him in bewilderment. He whirled suddenly and stared at his mate. "What is going on?" He demanded.
"Welcome to our new home, love!" T-Bone smiled broadly. Jeremy was stunned speechless, uncertain what his father meant.
"Come on! Don't just stand there gawking...let me show you around!" He said firmly, carrying Jeremy to the front door, unlocking it then stepping inside.
Feral hurriedly caught up with them and stared open mouthed at the interior as he stood on the threshold.
"Wow! Daddy...cool!" Jeremy shrieked, taking off to explore as soon as his father set him down on his feet.
"Jeremy, don't get into anything!" His mother said automatically as he continued to look over the nice living room.
Though bare of any furniture, it was stunning with its big fireplace and the view of the bay through the window of the dining room. He walked inside, closing the door behind him, then going over to the dining room table. It was made of maple and had four padded chairs with a wooden highchair at one end.
Looking to his left he saw a nice sized kitchen with gleaming new appliances and oak cabinets. He heard Jeremy shout happily somewhere down a hallway leading off the living room to the right. Turning his head to his mate, he frowned, "this is our new home...how can that be?"
T-Bone walked to his side and wrapped his arms around his huge mate. "Razor is how. He realized, rather belatedly, that he could sell his designs for some of his unique weapons to other countries and make a bundle. He wanted us free to do what we wanted with our lives so he was determined to make you and I happy by finding this place, buying it and the acreage beside it, then buying a smaller place of his own up the road from us. He and I have been working on remodeling and repairing this place for the past three months. It was a mess but salvageable."
"That's incredible!" Feral said in stunned amazement.
"Oh and that's not all. He's also bought our new hangar's property and we're going to get started tomorrow working on that so we can close our old one. And the best news...he's going to pay off our debt to the enforcers by the end of the year," T-Bone said, hardly able to contain his happiness.
"Oh love...that's...that's just wonderful," his mate floundered to say. That Jake had decided to do all this for them was incredible.
The tabby hugged his mate and kissed him hard leaving them both breathless after only a few moments. Feral's face was flushed and he felt incredibly heated. The joy on his love's face made him feel warm and happy. He was surprised and feeling a little stupid that he hadn't thought of Razor's very lucrative abilities and how those could translate into this wonderful surprise. Even more importantly, this new fortune would release them from the debt he hadn't meant to saddle them with and allow them to focus on their desire to keep the city safe while finally having free time for themselves when they weren't. It meant, though their lives weren't necessarily safer, they were less stressed trying to make ends meet while they were flying around at the same time. Perhaps Razor could now find himself someone special...that would be nice.
"You've surprised me alright. Show me the rest of our new home," he urged his mate.
Grinning, T-Bone pulled Uly toward the hallway that seemed to have swallowed their son. It was the first room down the hallway and it had been painted a light purple (Jeremy's favorite color) with gold drapes on the window. There was a big kitten's bed against one wall, posters of Jeremy's favorite heroes (including one of his father and Razor), a dresser low enough for the kitten to get his own things out with a small rocket shaped lamp on it, a small desk, a bookcase, and the large toy box Jeremy was already busily digging in. The toys and books were all intellectually challenging and just right for a smart kitten.
"Razor was responsible for selecting most of these toys...being a genius himself, he kinda had a better idea of what would keep Jeremy amused and keep pace with his learning curve," T-Bone murmured in Uly's ear, while smiling at his son.
"I have to thank him when I see him again. This is a godsend," Feral sighed in relief, so very pleased to see his son so happy. "Jeremy, you need to thank your uncle Jake for all these neat toys."
Jeremy paused with a book in one paw and a cubic kind of puzzle in the other and smiled at his mother. "I will mommy. Lots a toys and books for me!"
"Yes they are. I take it you really like your new bedroom?" His father asked.
The kitten whipped his head to stare at his father, his mouth forming a huge 'O' of surprise. He had heard this was their new home but he hadn't really understood what that meant. "This my room? But what about my bed and stuff?" He asked worriedly.
"Well your bed will be stored and all your things and ours will be brought here," T-Bone explained.
Jeremy's face scrunched up in confusion. "Why?"
His father sighed a little but said gently, "because we needed a bigger home...see here you have a room of your very own and there's a yard with swing set for you to play on outside. So, are you okay with this and are you going to help us move?"
Jeremy thought about it for a moment then a big grin spread across his little face. "Yeth! I like my new room better than old one! I help!" He said seriously then put his toys down and jumped up to run to his father, throwing his arms around his legs and hugging tight. Tilting his head up, he gave a toothy grin. "When can come here?"
"We'll have to wait until the weekend. It will take all day to get it done, " His father told him, chuckling.
"Good! Can I play before go to old home?" He asked staring back at all the new toys, wistfully.
"Of course, sport! I want to show mommy the rest of the house, you go ahead and have fun!"
"Yeah!" Jeremy cheered, giving his dad another squeeze before letting go and returning to his toys.
Smiling, pleased by his son's willingness to change homes without a complaint, T-Bone pulled on his mate and tugged him down the hall...pausing to show him the bathroom that would be Jeremy's and guests.
At the end of the hall he opened the door leading into a large bedroom. He stepped aside to let his mate in first.
"Well, what do you think love? I got us a new bed that was more roomy for us," T-Bone asked, concerned Uly might not like it.
Feral stared at the enormous sleigh bed then walked over to it and sat down. He was silent a moment before giving his mate an ecstatic grin. He lifted his arms, beckoning his mate closer...grinning back, T-Bone walked over and was immediately pulled down on top of his mate. He was smothered with multiple butterfly kisses that showed him just how much his mate loved the bed.
"Thank you, love. Even not having seen everything yet, I can tell you I love it!" Uly murmured in his mate's ear. "Now why don't you close our door and we'll consummate our new home properly, hmmm?"
His body flushing with heat suddenly, T-Bone quickly climbed off the bed and hurried to lock the door.