Calamitous (Kaylor)

39

A/N This was kind of hard to write because it's all just setup for what I've got planned, but anyway, here it is. Also, I was dumb and forgot that Frostbyte and Lily are technically the same person, so just pretend they aren't.

"Well that can't be a good sign," Karlie said dryly.

"You think?" Taylor shifted to try to get onto her knees, her restrained arms impeding smooth movement. She moved over closer to Karlie, settling against her girlfriend's side. They sat in silence for a few minutes, looking out into the black that surrounded them.

"I hope Mom doesn't take it too hard," the blonde said after a moment. Karlie turned to her, upset.

"Oh, babe, no. You can't give up that easily," she said. "We could still get out of here." Taylor sighed sadly in response.

"I wish I could share your optimism." They lapsed into silence again, only for Karlie to break it with a chuckle.

"What?" Taylor asked.

"I'm sorry," the detective laughed, "but I don't have a cookie to give you." Taylor's eyes widened as the realization dawned on her, and let out her own little spark of laughter.

"That's okay. Seeing you alive is enough," she said.

"Well, I don't know about seeing, but..."

"Oh, just shut up and hug me." Karlie, taking her advice, reached out and wrapped her arms around the smaller girl, holding her tightly.

"I wish I could hug you back," Taylor complained. "Wait." She sat up straighter, startling Karlie. "Please tell me you know how to pick a lock." Karlie rolled her eyes in response, but realized that the blonde probably couldn't see her.

"Of course I do; I'm a detective," she scoffed. "But it's not going to do us any good now. That lock isn't pickable. It's got a combination. And on top of that, we have nothing to pick locks with."

"Let's worry about that lock later, and deal with these cuffs now," Taylor said. "I hid a few bobby pins in my hair. Can you feel around for one and try to get these things off me?"

"Doing it in the dark is a bit of a tall order, but I'll give it a try." Karlie moved forward, reaching for her girlfriend's head.

"That's my eye, Karls."

"Sorry." She finally found Taylor's hair and began running her fingers through it, luckily finding a pin quickly. She scrabbled around until she found the cuffs and began to attempt picking the lock. She bent the pin and inserted it, poking around for the mechanism inside. Taylor sat patiently, and minutes later the lock clicked open and the cuffs dropped off.

"Oh thank goodness. My arms were going numb," Taylor groaned, moving her arms out of the uncomfortable position and rubbing them vigorously.

"Now what?" Karlie asked. Taylor opened her mouth to answer, but hesitated.

"I think I hear something," she said. "Footsteps in the hallway, maybe?"

"Now that you mention it, you're right," the detective answered, "and I think they're getting closer." The sound was getting louder and louder; someone was obviously approaching the door.

"Shit! Help me put these back on," Taylor said, frantically scrambling to locate the cuffs in the dark. Before she could find them, the door burst open. A figure entered the room, holding a small flashlight aloft. Neither of the girls could tell who it was.

"Cat?" the person spoke. Taylor perked up immediately.

"Frostbyte? Is that you?" Karlie let out a sigh of relief at the woman's confirmation.