Glory of Love James L. King Freakaz@comcast.net Date completed: 07-10-02 Rating: PG/PG13 Warning: None Summary: Set far in the future of the series, Callie reminisces while weeping at Jake's grave. Author's notes: *sniffle* An emotional fic. Based on a song. Boy are there alot of these going around. Most of the cutscenes are from fics not yet released or, in some cases, written, so some cutscenes may be modified in the future. Some cutscenes are parts of fics from my series that didn't quite make it in my stories. Other cutscenes are from the show, and there are a couple pulled straight from a couple of my fics. She kneels in front of the headstone, flowers in her greying paw. Chance, now old and grey himself, stands a few dozen feet away, placing flowers on another grave, weeping himself at the loss of Felina. "It's been a year, Jake, since you died," she murmurs, "Julie and Jacob had a third kitten. His name is Nathan." She stops for a moment, then says, "Max died last month. Claire didn't take it well." She pauses again before saying, "Chance and I are going to be married next month. I... hope you don't mind. You did ask us both to take care of each other." She sets the flowers in front of the grave. Chance, using his cane for support, hobbles over and places a paw on her shoulder. For some odd reason, she remembers the song that was played for their wedding dance, and brushes her silvered blonde hair out of her face before the tears start to fall. **Tonight it's very clear, as we're both lying here,** "I love you, Calico Clawson. I always will," Jake responds before kissing her. She smiles as he sets her gently on the bed and makes love to her as his wife, for the first time. **There's so many things I want to say,** As the heart moniter slows, Jake starts stammering, "I love y--you, Callie. Look after Ch--Chance. A--after these t--two years, he's still grieving F--Felina." She watches as he struggles to stay conscious as he addresses Chance. "Ch--Chance, take c--care of her, w--willya..." He closes his eyes as Chance whispers, "I will, buddy." "So... b--beautiful...," Jake murmurs as he closes his eyes. The heart moniter stops and emits a steady tone. Chance closes his eyes and starts crying. Callie walks over and holds him as she starts crying herself. **I will always love you, I would never leave you alone,** She looks up in suprise as he emerges from the rubble, alive and conscious. He rushes to her arms after seeing her. "Thank God you're ok!" she says as Razor scoops her up into his arms, and carries her over to Commander Feral. "It'll take more than that to kill me, love. Besides, I still have a lifetime to live with you," he murmurs in her ear as he sets her down. "I'm sorry for earlier. You're right, I should have told you," he says before kissing her on her cheek. **Sometimes I might forget,** "I can't tell her I might die, Chance. What if these robots don't get taken over by the MetalliKats? She'll live in fear of my death for years, and it'll destroy both of us!" **Say things I might regret,** "I can't believe you didn't tell me," she spits at him, her eyes dark with anger. Julie cowers on the far side of the room, eyes wide at the sight of her parents fighting. "But, Callie, I didn't want you to fear for me," he replies. "That's no excuse, Jacob. You should have told me what you knew about your future!" "And that would have changed it, maybe for the worse!" he raises his voice. Julie starts bawling as only a three-year old can. "You don't know that!" she shouts. "Neither do you!" he returns. "I do know how much I grieved you. How much I told her that her daddy was a hero! How much I told her you were dead!" Callie gestures toward Julie. "Maybe I would be better off that way." He hangs his head and mutters, "Maybe my family was right. Maybe marrying you was a mistake." He looks up at her, angry himself. "I'm leaving. I need to decide if you are worth staying married to." "Jake..." she says warningly as he turns and walks toward the door. "don't you dare leave..." "Good-BYE!" he snarls before he slams the door, leaving his wife and kitten crying. **It breaks my heart to see you crying,** Jake gets home late and parks his motorcycle, a de-tuned, disguised Cyclotron, next to Callie's car. He walks in the door and is worried that he doesn't see Callie anywhere. He goes to the living room, where Callie is sitting on the sofa, looking exhausted, and trying not to cry. Jake sits next to her. "What's wrong?" he asks. "Later, Jake. I'll tell you later," she says, hanging her head to hide the tears. "Something's wrong. Tell me," he insists. "It's... I don't want to lose you," she says, placing her arms around him and pulling him to her. "Steele," he replies, a tinge of anger in his voice. "What's he done now?" He places his arms around her and buries his face in her hair. "He's still after Felina, and his sister is after you." "I know that. Did they threaten you?" he asks softly. "She did. She said if I didn't divorce you, my political career would be over. I told her I don't care about my career as much as I care about you." She stops, letting a strangled sob out. "What did she say then?" "She'd make my life a living hell until I divorced you." She starts sobbing. **I don't want to lose you, I could never make it alone,** "Callie, excepting death, I'll never leave you," he whispers. He tilts her head up with his paw so she is looking at him. He says, "I love you. I have since the first day I saw you." Then he kisses her softly. "But what about...," she asks after they parted lips, tears still streaming down her face. "Don't worry about the Steeles," he says before kissing her again, "I can see to it that they can't hurt you." She pulls away from him, "You're not going to...," she asks in fear. "I can can talk to my parents, if they'll talk to me. If not, Mike and Claire can plead my case for me. Either way, my parents can take care of the Steele situation." He holds her close to him, trying to calm her. "I thought you were going to do something else," she responds after a few minutes. "No. I'll get my parents to get her away from you. That's all." She clings to him, resting her head on his shoulder. "Thanks, Jake." "Relax, love, I'm here, I'm won't leave you." She relaxes, and after a few minutes, falls asleep in his arms, emotionally exhausted. He gently picks her up and carries her to their room. Carefully, he changes her out of her clothes, into pajamas, then places her in bed. He goes to the kitchen, rummages around the fridge for food, then goes to bed himself, holding her as they sleep. **I am the Kat who would fight for your honor,** "Now, Callista, shall we get married in the present or in the past?" "Wait, let the SWAT Kats go... and I *will*... marry you." "Such a tender offer, but you're in no position to bargain!" "HI-YA!!!!!" Razor shouts as he bursts through the stone of the sarcophocus that held him captive. He pounces on the PastMaster, knocking the Headdress of Kacchupicchu off. He runs toward it, only to get pounced on by the PastMaster. He twists and throws the PastMaster against a sarcophocus, which falls on the Headdress, crushing it. As the temple starts to crumble, Kacchupicchu disintegrates. T-Bone and Razor run over to her and cut the rope that binds her to the column. They run out with her and barely escape with their lives. **I'll be the Hero you're dreaming of,** "Razor, no, Jake..." "Either one will do right now, Callie." "Jake, I..." "If you want to turn me in when we get to Enforcer HQ, you can do so, I'll not hold it against you." He looks at her in the mirror, sadness evident in his amber eyes. "That's the last thing I'd do to the Kat I love, and to one of the two heroes I publicly endorse." "Part of my nervousness about our having a relationship is that I knew that this was coming, I just didn't know how, or when. I certainly didn't expect to have to reveal my identity to you before our first date." He looks down, as if he's studying the controls. "Jake...," she starts, then stops, because she finds she doesn't know what to say. **We'll live forever,** Callie walks over to T-bone, "You're alive," she says softly, then hugs him. "So far, this is the only part of the future I like," T-Bone says just before Razor jumps down from the TurboKat. Callie takes a step toward him, then hugs him, holding him as she says, "We all thought you and the Turbokat were destroyed!" "I saw it with my own eyes! Your jet exploded!" Feral says as he brushes the dried cement from the tattered remains of his uniform, then growls, "How did you two hotshots escape?" **Knowing together that we did it all for the glory of love,** He holds the twins, a loving look on his face. He looks at Callie as she lies in her bed, asleep. Finally, the tom-kitten falls asleep, and he carefully walks over to the bed. Callie wakes up as he starts to place him in the crib. "No, give him here, Jake," she murmurs. Jake carefully places the kitten in her arms instead. The she-kitten yawns and nuzzles her tiny head into his chest. "I love you," Callie says. "I love you too," he responds, then turns his attention to the sleeping she-kitten in his arms. **You'll keep me standing tall,** As he turns to leave, his father asks, "Jacob?" "What?" Jake asks in a hiss. "Are you happy with her? Do you love her?" "I love her more than anything. She's the best part of me, and if I lost her, Jake Clawson would die." "I'll see what I can do about getting Darlene away from you. Don't expect me to give you your inheritance back, though." "I don't care about the money, just Callie." **You'll help me through it all,** "Oh, no. Razor? Are you ok? I hit you kind of hard," she says as he opens his eyes. "Yeah. Good thing we're required to wear helmets," he responds as he stands up. "I'm sorry, Razor, I thought you were one of them." She points to a plantimal that breaks through the barrier he had set up a moment before. He grabs her paw and yells, "Come on!" **I'm always strong when you're beside me,** "End of the line, SWAT Kat!" Dark Kat exclaims as he levels Razor's bazooka at him. He closes his eyes, knowing the end has come. "NO!!!!!" he hears Callie's yell as she hurls a money bag at him. Dark Kat stumbles as it hits him, firing the bazooka into the ceiling above him instead of at Razor. **I have always needed you, I could never make it alone,** She walked down a hall, away from Commander Feral's office. Suddenly, she finds herself on the ground, her glasses knocked off her face, and a masculine moan coming from in front of her. "Oww," she says. She opens her eyes and can't see anything except a blur in front of her. She hears the shuffling of paper, and an apology from him as he picks her up and sets her on her feet. "I'm terribly sorry, ma'am, I just got transferred in, and they have me running around like crazy," he says as she feels her document folder and purse being deposited in her arms. Before she can say anything, she feels him carefully put her glasses on her, concern on his face. He looks familiar to her. "That's ok, Lieutenant." "Uhh--look, I--I'm sorry, ma'am, I--didn't see you coming." "That's ok, you said you're new here. You just remind me of someone I met in high school," she says, smiling at him. "I met him the same way I just met you. In fact, what's your name, Lieutenant?" "J--Jake Clawson. I--I'm sorry," he says as he takes a step to the side. "So that was you. How've you been, Jake? I never saw you after that year in school." "Umm, fine. Uh, I--I'd love to stay and talk, ma'am, but I'll be late for my shift. From what I was told, Commander Feral hates it when his Enforcers are late on shift. If, y--you will excuse me, I--I have to run," he nervously stammers, blushing and slowly backing away from her, in the direction she had just come from. "Bye, Jake," she says as he starts to dash off down the hall. He stops and turns to see her smile. He smiles slightly before he turns and runs down the hallway. **I am a Kat who will fight for your honor,** "Say again, Razor, you've got to be jokin'!" "I said, I'll penetrate the building and come up on Viper from underneath." "That's a negative, Razor. Plants have taken over the whole building, or haven't you noticed?" "Affirmative, but Callie's in there, T-Bone!" "Right." As Razor ejects, T-Bone says, "Maintain radio contact at all times! Do you copy?" "Affirmative, T-Bone. I'm going in!" Razor says as he braces for the impact against the building's glass. **I'll be the hero you've been dreaming of,** "Daddy, I have something to tell you." "What is it, Kitten?" Leonard asks his daughter. "You know what you said the other night about warning the SWAT Kats about that jet you helped design?" Callie asks, nervously glancing around. "Yes, I was talking to your boyfriend, Jake." "Where's Momma?" she asks. "Shopping." Leonard grimaces. "Ok, good. I have something to tell you about Jake. I don't want Momma to know." "He's a SWAT Kat," he says, guessing before she can say anything. She nods, "Jake is Razor. He and Chance built the TurboKat from scrap in the Salvage yard." "Why didn't you tell me this months ago?" he asks. "I don't want Momma to know. We both know she thinks the SWAT Kats should be in jail." "This is true, but you still should have told me." **We'll live forever, knowing together that we did it all for the glory of love,** "You're alive!" she exclaims as she sees the two SWAT Kats. "For the time being, Ms. Briggs," Razor says as he lands next to her. **Just like a knight in shining armor, from a long time ago,** "Callie." From the depths of unconsciousness, she hears his voice. She wakes up to a bitter fluid moving down her throat. She feels strangly invigorated by it. She opens her eyes to see Razor's face a few inches away, then looks around the summoning chamber as she hears the old mage stand up. He raises his arms and disappears with a flash, leaving the four Kats alone in the PastMaster's Keep. Razor pulls her into an embrace, whispering, "Callie. I love you." **Just in time I will save the day,** The MetalliKat Express careens into the Yard. "The MetalliKats!" she gasps. "Crud, follow me, Callie! I don't have a choice!" Jake runs into the garage, into the office. He moves a small rug and opens a trap door. He jumps down into the darkness. A second later she sees a light, and climbs down. When she gets down to the bottom she's shocked to see the TurboKat and Jake tripping all over himself to get changed into Razor. "Get in the jet, gunner's seat," he yells as he zips up his G-suit. Razor grabs his remaining equipment, then opens T-Bone's locker and grabs his stuff. He then runs over to the TurboKat and helps Callie in. He powers up and activates the lift. "Holy Kats, protect us, I ain't a pilot, I'm a gunner." He throttles up and activates the hangar door. The TurboKat flies off. **Take you to my castle far away,** Razor lands the Turbokat II and leaps out, with Callie close behind him. He catches her, mid-air, and kisses her as he places her onto her feet. He walks over to the locker and starts changing, when he notices her next to him, also changing. "Don't you think we should change seperately?" he asks, blushing under his fur. "Oh, come on Jake, you've seen more of me than this," she replies, slapping his arm. "True," he says, considering what she had said, "This is very true." She hangs up the G-suit and takes her clothes out of the locker. She doesn't get into them, but climbs out of the Hangar in her underclothes. He finishes changing a few seconds later and heads upstairs himself. He quickly looks around and doesn't find her, but sees her car still outside. He goes upstairs and finds her in his bed, sound asleep. He sighs as he strips to his boxers and tank top, then climbs into bed himself. He wraps his arms around her and falls asleep as he listens to her start purring to him. **I am a Kat who will fight for your honor, I'll be the hero you're dreaming of, We're gonna live forever, Knowing together that we, Did it all for the glory of love. We'll live forever (we'll live forever) Knowing together that we (knowing together) Did it all for the glory of love We did it all for love, We did it all for love, We did it all for love, We did it all for love.** "We did do it all for love, Jake," she whispers before standing and walking toward the car with Chance. Musical inspiration: 'Glory of Love' -- Peter Cetera