~this was done as part of the April 99 challenge on the Hetskatters list. we had to have jelly beans, dye, a trip, a bunny costume, and beer in the story somewhere. It takes place a year or so before Connor finds Katherine in the alleyway~

A Lesson in Manners

As Katherine led the children out of her class room onto the playground, her early warning radar went off full tilt again. Doing a quick scan of the woods at the rear of the small private school she saw him leaning up against a tree watching her intently. He was back again.

Whoever he was, he did not give up easily. He had been following her now for several weeks, occasionally making thinly veiled threats or lewd suggestions while waiting for his chance to catch her alone. Which she had no attention of giving him, she thought gleefully to herself, no matter what his intentions were. She had about as much as she was willing to take from this cocky little rooster.

Tipping her head to one side slightly she reached out gently and took a sample of what the other immortal was feeling. Yes, he wanted her head despite the fact that he felt strangely attracted to what he thought of as a plain little mouse of a school teacher. That she could use to her advantage. She got the impression that he was very new to the game and looking to take his first head. He probably thought she would be an easy target because she didn’t carry a sword.

Humming happily to herself, she went about making preparation for the children to color the Easter eggs for the big egg hunt tomorrow morning. If she played her cards right, she might even manage to have a little fun while teaching this youngster a lesson he would never forget. As she prepared the dye pots, she also prepared some special surprises for her vigilant friend out there. Red, definitely. And this was a wonderful bright green dye that would decorate his nice white shirt nicely.

Giggling softly, she wandered around the play ground, talking quietly to some of the older students as she worked her way to the edge of the woods. So intent he was on watching her, he did not notice each one of those boys walk over and pick up something from the table before slipping into the woods and working their way behind him. Once the stage was set she turned and started walking straight towards the intruder, a stern expression across her face.

As expected, he immediately snapped to attention, not really believing that she would approach him in front of all the children. She stopped about ten feet in front of him and stood with her arms crossed and her foot tapping impatiently, looking over the top of the fake glasses she wore at him with a glare of disapproval. "And just what to you think you are up to?" she inquired accusingly, using the voice and look that had successfully quelled generations of rowdy teenage boys during her many years of experience as a teacher.

He squirmed under her fierce gaze and managed to look a little shamefaced for a moment, before regaining some of his composure and taking a step towards her. The first dye filled balloon caught him square on the back of the head and he staggered in surprise. He reached back with his hand and the look of horror on his face when he saw it was bright red was priceless. "Gotcha!" she thought, standing her ground and waiting for his next move. He took another step toward and two more of her surprises found their target.

By the time he had closed the distance between them, his dapper clothes were drenched in various colors of dye and he his face was snarled in rage as he rapidly lost any semblance ofcontrol that he had. That was when Katherine dumped the bag of jellybeans she was holding in her hand in front of her and stepped to the side When his foot hit the rolling beans he lost his balance and found himself face down in the dirt at her feet. Spitting dirt and pine needles out his mouth, he scrambled to his feet only to slip again and fall backwards this time, hitting his head so hard that the lights went out briefly. He woke up to the roar of laughter from a playground full of children gathered around him and the feather like touch of her hand caressing his jaw line.

"Tisk, tisk. You’re not very good at this are you?" Katherine smiled sweetly and offered him a hand to help him up. Grinning sheepishly, he took the hand and let her pull him to his feet, surprised at the strength in her grip. "What’s your name, boy?" she demanded. "Patrick. Patrick Doherty." Ahaa! Irish, she thought gleefully, now knowing exactly what buttons to push with this green lad who had the audacity to think he could stalk her. "Well Paddy me boy, is it not a good idea that we be getting you cleaned up a bit?" Katherine slipped easily into a lilting Irish accent that mirrored his own, a wicked grin on her face. "Me boys yonder will be more than happy to hose you off."

He shook his head no, grumbling under his breath which caused the boys to roar out in laughter. Katherine could not help but chuckle a little herself. He had such a woeful look on his face! She patted his cheek gently and whispered in his ear to meet her at Flannigan’s Bar later in the evening before turning her back on him and walking off. After that she ignored his presence completely as she gathered her class around her to start dying the eggs. He stood dumbfounded for a moment watching her in amazement before retreating with as much dignity he could muster with red and green dye dripping own his face.

Flannigans was a dark little Irish pub with a cracking good band that kept everyone tapping their feet to a series of lively jigs and reels. Patrick had come early for lack of anything better to do and had already downed numerous large mugs of beer while awaiting Katherine’s arrival and was well on his way to being happily drunk. It was when the band leader made an announcement that they were all going to blessed by a special visit from the Easter bunny Herself that he felt her presence, stronger than ever. For the first time since he had been following her it threatened to completely overwhelm him.

She then surprised him by walking out on the stage and stepping up to the microphone. The crowd around him jumped to their feet while whistling and shouting their appreciation of her. The young immortal swallowed hard and stared with open mouth at her. He was used to seeing her in her school marm guise, dressed in plain white shirts with either a dark skirt or jumper and her hair pulled back in a tidy bun. The girl up on the stage looked nothing like that any school teacher he had ever known. She was dressed in a skimpy white slip dress, white hose and heels, a pair of white bunny ears on a headband in her golden hair which hung down in waves over her shoulders. She twirled around so all could see the puff of a bunny’s tail attached to her firm little bottom. The young immortal could not help but join in the rowdy welcome, all thoughts of taking her head completely vanishing as his hormones took full control of him. Now he just wanted her, a fact that did not escape her notice as she acknowledged his presence with a nod of the head and a wonderful smile that threatened to melt him into nothingness where he stood.

She waited patiently for the uproar of the crowd to subside before starting to sing. Song after song, she wove her spell. Some of the songs made her audience laugh and sing boisterously along with her, while others drew the homesick Irishmen back to their homeland till there was not a dry eye in the place. Many was the pint raised in her honor when she finished her set and stepped off the stage. Laughing sweetly she approached his table and sat down beside him, removing the ears and laid them on the table in front of him. "You’re wonderful!" he exclaimed. "I’ve never heard singing the like of that in all me life!" "I’ve had lots of practice", she said, dismissing his praise with a wave of her hand.

He gulped as she crossed her legs, revealing a great deal of a shapely thigh encased in white nylon. He could not help but reach out and run his hand up her leg and under the hem of her dress. Katherine watched him with an amused expression on her face for a moment before reaching out and tossing her glass of ice water in his face. He stood up, sputtering angrily. "Sit down and behave!" She said quietly, with a ring of authority that made him instantly obey. "You are a punk kid with precious few manners. Have you not had a teacher to teach you any then?" Katherine asked, the sting of her words softened by the gentle expression on her face.

"Yes" he replied bitterly, "But someone took his head before I learned enough to be any good at this crazy game we play."

Katherine reached out stroked the back of his hand gently in sympathy, an act that sent shivers up and down his spin. "There are alternatives, you know"

"You mean hide like a coward on holy ground some where? I can’t do that!" he exclaimed, thumping his fist so hard on the table that his mug of beer bounced, spilling some of its contents. Katherine just shrugged and smiled sadly at him. That was his decision to make.

"Then you will be needing another teacher then. If you like I think I can arrange that." Katherine stood up to go, but stopped when he reached out and placed his arm around her waist and pulled her to him. "Can’t you teach me?" He asked hopefully, but she just laughed at him and ruffled his hair. "I don’t think that would be a good idea, Paddy me boy, not a good idea at all." Katherine shook her head, laughing softly.

"I’m sure a woman of your experience would have a lot to offer a young man like meself", he replied eagerly, his hands lowering to grab hold of her bottom. In response, she tilted his chin up and gave him a short but very intense kiss that left him gasping for breath before reaching back and firmly removing his hands. She gave him one more pat on the cheek that was just short of being a firm slap . "I will keep you in mind then. Maybe if you learn to behave yourself in a couple hundred years we might have some interesting times together. But right now the answer is no."

" Are you married or something? Is that why?" He asked, a desperate plea in his voice. "Something like that. I will find you a teacher who will teach you better manners than to hunt down unarmed women. There is a nice kid hiding deep inside you, Patrick Doherty, and you might yet be a decent man given half the chance." With that she turned and walked away. A few feet away she stopped and turned back to face him, fingering the small pewter cross necklace she wore, lost momentarily in reflection as she remembered the immortal who had made it for her a long time ago. She sighed deeply, pushing aside regrets. The choices she had made, right or wrong, could not be changed now.

"You never asked me my name, Patrick Doherty. Wouldn’t you be wanting to know the name of the woman you were hoping to lure into your bed?" When he nodded his head, a look of pure mischief spread over her face. Her little lesson in manners was about to draw to a close. "My name is Katherine. Sister Mary Katherine. You just tried to seduce a nun, you silly amadon!" With that she plucked the bunny tail off the back side of her dress and tossed it to him as he sat openmouthed in disbelief and shock.

Laughing merrily, she turned and strode out of the bar, happily humming a tune to herself as she went her way into the night. Maybe I’ve been hiding among the sisters too long this time, she thought to herself, I enjoyed playing with this randy youngster way too much! Maybe it was time to leave her safe haven again and go back out in the real world, game or no game. She could not help but wonder if her friend the Captain still was hanging out in his house on Hudson Street. She walked on with a bouncy skip to her step, smiling contentedly to herself now that her decision was made. They definitely had a lot of catching up to do!