W h y was this happening. Wasn't it bad enough that Ringer had apparently shown up with a bunch of explosives, determined to face off with two fae who could eat her face? Was she really going to try and use him as a living shield while she collected all her junk? Because there were definitely two of Mab and Grimalkin and only one of him, and while he could reasonably hope to stave off one of them, he definitely would not be able to prevent the other from doing whatever the hell they wanted in the meantime.

Left with no other alternative, Heiji did the only thing he thought might have a reasonable chance of this encounter not ending horribly: he stalled.

"No, they won't. But think about it. Do you really wanna kill her now? I mean, you could do it, but it'd just leave a mess and get everyone on high alert. And wouldn't that be a little too easy a death for someone who used the bane on you? One and done? 'Cause it seems to me like it'd be a lot more fun to stalk your prey. You know, follow her around, show up when she least expects it, do a little terrorizing? Make a little game of it before you decide to end it for real?"

Cats... liked games, right. They liked playing with their food, right.

Heiji resisted the urge to slap a paw over his face."Cats have excellent hearing; how d'you think they always know when you're gettin' out the Purina? You show up there and he's gonna use you for kitty litter. What you should be doin' is remembering your promises, so hurry up and scram!"