With the jailing of Dr. Viper and the death of Dark Kat the city had finally gained a measure of peace. The SWAT Kats used the time to catch up on their work in their garage and update the Turbokat and other gear.
As for Feral, the enforcers thought he'd been injured. No one but a few medical personnel and Felina knew the real story. The Commander remained in the Medical Ward of Enforcer Headquarters for a few days and ordered to go into therapy.
Felina had the kitten autopsied and, as too often happens in still births, nothing could be found wrong with it. That knowledge didn't help Feral's grief nor did the small, discrete funeral, ease his pain.
His niece was worried about him. Despite therapy, her uncle was still depressed. Speaking with his therapist, Felina was told her uncle had more than just the rape and the dead kitten to deal with and it would simply take time for him to get better.
The few encounters the SWAT Kats had with Feral during this time, showed them an uncharacteristally subdued and remote kat than the one they used to spar with. On top of that, he seemed to be actively avoiding them as if he were too ashamed to face them knowing they were aware of something very damaging about him. The fact they hadn't said a word, didn't seem to help him pull out of his deep depression at all.
T-Bone didn't know why it bothered him so much to see that haunted look in Feral's eyes. Time had not erased but deepened it. He knew Felina was concerned too by the many looks she threw her uncle when she thought she wasn't being noticed but T-Bone had.
On a roof top late one night...
'I should see a shrink myself,' T-Bone thought ruefully as he settled down with binoculars for another night's watch from a rooftop that had an excellent view of Feral's apartment across the way. From his perch, he could see the Commander clearly through the balcony doors of his living room, pacing about.
He sighed and shifted a little to get more comfortable. "Razor would tell me I'm crazy spending night after night bird dogging Feral but I can't shake the image of that tormented face from my mind. God knows why I care about him at all. Yeah, I'm crazy alright," he muttered. He sighed again and focused his attention on his target.
What his observations had shown him was a kat too tormented to sleep, who paced restlessly around his apartment until exhaustion forced him to lay down, fully clothed only to wake screaming hours later. He would wrap his arms around his chest as he sat in the center of his bed rocking desperately, trying without success, to comfort himself.
T-Bone watched for a week and came to a decision. He simply couldn't bear to watch this train wreck about to happen any longer.
Near midnight the following Friday, he slipped into Feral's apartment from the balcony door. The apartment was in darkness but there was enough light for him to find his way to the bedroom where he found the big tom sprawled across the bed, partially clothed. Sighing, T-Bone stripped down to his skivvies and mask and carefully laid down beside the sleeping tom.
It wasn't more than an hour later, when Feral began to moan and thrash around. T-Bone boldly wrapped his arms around the big body just as Feral screamed. The tabby hugged the Commander tightly and spoke soothing nonsense into his ear. Feral struggled and sobbed for several frantic minutes before finally slumping in exhaustion. T-Bone continued to hold and rock him as the dark tom's body relaxed. Only then did the tabby lay Feral down, spooning him from behind.
For the rest of the night, T-Bone nursed Feral through two more nightmares until dawn arrived and the dark tom finally fell into a deep, restful sleep. Sighing gratefully, the tired tabby joined him. By midmorning, T-Bone woke much earlier than he ususally did and carefully moved away from the still sleeping dark tom.
He quietly puttered around the apartment, cleaning, doing the laundry, even running out and getting a few things from the store. He'd brought some clothes and changed into Chance for the store run and changed back in a storeroom before returning to the apartment.
He checked on Feral and found him still asleep so he fixed himself a light meal and made another, storing it in case the Commander should waken and be hungry. He'd already contacted his partner and told him he was helping a friend over the weekend. Which wasn't really a lie.
Feral never woke all day and by evening, T-Bone closed the apartment once more then climbed back in bed with Feral and fell asleep. It was some time after midnight when T-Bone was awakened, his heart in his throat by the sounds of Feral's scream. He pulled the struggling kat tightly against him again and nuzzled the sweating face, murmuring soothing noises while caressing him. It took longer this time for Feral to return to himself and calm again. He whimpered and twisted for more than half an hour before finally sinking back into deep sleep again. T-Bone sighed and collapsed beside him.
It was dawn when sobs awakened T-Bone. Feral was curled in a ball and was sobbing. The tiger tabby moved carefully off the bed and made for the bathroom and, after using the facilities first, he found a wash cloth and wet it with warm water. He moved back onto the bed and gently began to wash the tear stained face whose eyes were closed and arms were wrapped around himself. He sighed but didn't waken. T-Bone set the wash cloth aside on the night stand and lay back down pulling Feral into his arms again.
Feral awoke to sunlight streaming through a small gap in his curtains and a warm body pressed against his own. He laid still as shock ran through him. Who could possibly be in bed with him?
Before he could roll over to find out, a male voice spoke quietly.
"Good afternoon, how are you feeling?" T-Bone asked gently looking over Feral's shoulder.
Feral jerked up and turned to stare in shocked surprise. "What are you doing here?"
T-Bone lay quiet, not wanting to upset Feral too much. "I've been watching over you. I can't explain why but it disturbed me to see that haunted look in your eyes. Though I know you've been getting therapy it just seemed you needed something more. Observing you for a week, I knew I couldn't stand to watch you suffer any longer and not do something to help you. No matter what I felt about you as an enforcer, as a fellow kat I can't bear to see anyone in so much pain. So here I am." He said his gaze serious. He carefully sat up and gently reached out a paw. Feral jerked back.
T-Bone lowered his paw to the bed and eyed Feral cautiously. "I've been keeping you company while you slept, trying to make the nightmares shorter and the grief more bearable and to comfort when you needed it. You finally look more rested. This is Sunday afternoon by the way." T-Bone said quietly.
Feral continued to stare at the SWAT Kat. His mind was having difficulty grasping the fact that this annoying tom had been with him nearly all weekend and his only reason was to try to comfort him. Shaking his head in confusion, he struggled from the bed clothes and ran for the bathroom shutting the door hard.
T-Bone sighed, got out of bed and got dressed. 'That went well.' He muttered sardonically as he headed for the kitchen to fix a meal for them both.
In the bathroom Feral stood holding the sink and trembling. He looked up and stared at himself in the mirror. He saw a face he didn't recognize. A face with haunted eyes and a body that had lost weight. But he also realized he felt rested for the first time in weeks. He studied his face again and saw he needed a shave. Unable to deal with the enigma of a SWAT Kat helping him he thought perhaps doing normal things would help him regain his equilibrium. He moved to the shower and turned the water on.
When he emerged from the bathroom some thirty minutes later, he felt immeasurably better. He went to his dresser and pulled out some sweat pants and decided against a shirt for now. His nose picked up the scent of food and he followed it to the kitchen. T-Bone had laid out a simple repast to encourage Feral to eat. Fruit, roasted tuna sandwiches and hot chicken soup with cold glasses of milk. Feral blinked at him warily.
"Come...have a seat...you haven't eaten since Friday." T-Bone coaxed waiting for Feral to make the next move.
"I don't really understand what you're up to SWAT Kat." Feral said tightly then sighed, "But it does smell good and I am hungry...surprisingly."
"Good! Your recent weight loss doesn't look good on you." T-Bone said simply and pulled a chair out to sit after Feral did so first.
Feral kept glancing at T-Bone suspiciously throughout the meal which was eaten in silence. To Feral's surprise it wasn't uncomfortable. When they'd finished, T-Bone collected the dishes and placed them in water he'd prepared in the sink and began washing them. Feral watched him in puzzlement. They didn't speak as T-Bone completed his task. He dried his paws and turned to lean against the sink and stared back at the Commander.
"Do you want me to leave?" The tabby tom asked softly.
Feral shook his head distractedly, "How bad was it? I don't remember very well." Feral asked hesitantly not certain he really wanted to know.
"Bad! I can't even begin to imagine your pain and grief but I can see it's cost on you." He said shaking his head.
Feral looked away embarrassed and stared down at his paws. "Sometimes I wish I could have the courage to let the psychiatrist just dull the memory so that it doesn't hurt so much but I loathe the idea of someone messing with my mind. My therapist tells me that it will fade when I accept it or find something better to replace it. I said 'When will that be, when I'm a shadow of my former self?' she had no answer to that." He said bitterly.
"Actually that makes sense to me. Unfortunately, you have to reach outside yourself to do that and I don't think you're ready." T-Bone said mildly.
"Thanks you Dr. T-Bone." Feral said acidedly.
T-Bone just looked at him and Feral found himself unaccountably blushing in embarrassment at his churlish behavior.
"Look! Thank you for your concern and for helping me get some much needed rest but I'd like to be alone now, please." He said in a much more subdued voice.
"Sure no problem. But I'll be watching you and count on me returning if I see you starting to droop and look like death warmed over again." T-Bone warned him lightly then left the kitchen.
Feral heard the balcony doors open and then silence. He put his head in his paws and sat there in the silence of his apartment for some time.