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Chapter 12 - No Secret Agent

I slunk across the floor, tapping every stupid creaky board on the way, and slipped out through the open door. The sweet scent of the forest wafted around me and the clouds above us rolled past, aided by a gentle breeze that tickled my whiskers and ear hair. Leiren stood ten feet from the cabin beside the chopping block with his back turned to the door. His head was tilted back and he admired the dark sky above us.

I trotted over to his side and plopped my butt down. We sat there for a minute or two admiring the view and the smells.

“You seem to have been through a few hardships, young cat,” he mused without taking his eyes off the sky.

“Meow,” was my reply.

He smiled down at me. “But you are happy?”

I turned my head so one of my eyes settled on the door. I could just barely make out the end of Eastwei’s bed. “Meow.”

“I am glad to hear that,” he commented as he eased himself onto the chopping block and draped an arm over one bent knee. “I would gladly hear your tale, my furred friend, but I am more a hunter of animals than a listener.” I stiffened and the hairs on my tail puffed up. He chuckled. “You have nothing to worry about. I do not hunt for sport but to survive and protect.” He looked me over. “You are in search of your purpose, are you not?”

My eyes widened and my tail shot up. Who the heck was this guy?

His eyes twinkled as he studied me. “You are as open a book as young Eastwei. I can see why he would allow you at his side when he has given that pleasure to so few others.” He stretched his legs out and sighed as he turned his sights on the cloudy sky. A few breaks appeared and faint moonlight shone on the woods around us. “I wonder when he will fetch himself someone to stay by his side until the end of his long days. I had heard he fancied a goddess he has known since she was but a babe.”

I didn’t need three guesses to know who he was talking about. A hiss and snarl escaped me.

Leiren lifted a playful eyebrow at me. “You appear to disapprove of that match.”

I swatted a paw full of extended claws at the air in front of me and spat at the ground.

My host chuckled as he lifted his gaze to the sky. “I see. You are a most playful creature. Is that not correct, Lord Eastwei?”

I stiffened before I whipped my head around. Eastwei strolled from his standing spot only five feet behind us. He stopped to stand at my other side, leaving me in the middle of the two.

“I would call her troublesome,” he commented.

My ears drooped and I slouched forward.

Leiren leaned down and patted my head. “There is no need to be so downcast, my furry friend. He is only worried about the trouble you went through to follow him.”

I cocked my head to one side and cast a suspicious look at him. “Meow?”

Our host’s eyes twinkled. “You wonder how I knew you had followed him and he had not brought you?” He brushed a hand over my coat and wrapped his fingers around something. I yelped when he yanked hard on something stuck in my fur. He held it up and revealed a sap-covered twig only half an inch long. “Lord Eastwei would never have allowed such filth on you if you had traveled with him, and Lord Pampir is damaged while Prince Yushir is untouched. That can only mean you two followed without the knowledge, and protection, of the other two.”

I wrapped my tail around myself and swatted at the twitching tip.

“Well, what is done is done,” Leiren commented as he stood and turned to us. “Now we should get back inside and stoke the fire for our sleepy friends.”

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We slipped back inside and found Yushir and Pampir face asleep on their beds. Leiren moved over to the fire and dropped another block of wood on the hungry flames. Eastwei stopped in the center of the room and magicked up a majestic bed with lush silken covers and plush pillows. He settled in and laid his head on the pillows.

I put my paws on the sheets and peeked over the top. Eastwei’s eyes were closed and there was an empty spot beside him. I adjusted my paw position to jump up but I froze when I saw the dirt left by my pads. The rest of me was no less filthy. There was no way he’d want a dirtbag like me beside him. I flattened my ears against my head and eased myself down.

“Come up here.”

My ears shot up and I stood on my hind legs to look over the bed. Eastwei’s eyes were open and aimed at me. They flitted between me and the empty spot beside him. “Here.”

I held up one dirty paw to show him the error of his kindness but the effort proved too much for my weak balance. I toppled backward and flopped about on the floor. So much for cats always landing on their feet.

Eastwei leaned over the edge of the bed and I froze. The smile on his lips was more than just a faint echo of the gesture. There was a full and true smile there. The lord slipped his hands under my front armpits and lifted me onto the bed where he lay me by his side.

“You are rather clumsy for a cat,” he commented.

I’m still getting used to this body! I protested.

Any ire from his teasing quickly melted as he stroked my back. I purred and rubbed my face against his hand. He lay down and closed his eyes and I gladly curled up beside him.

The morning came all too soon and its bright light streamed through the windows and shot straight into my eyes. I squeezed them shut tighter and buried my face into my paws.

A chuckle came from above me. I peeked out and saw that Leiren stood over me. “You must arise, sleepy cat. Breakfast is nearly finished and your friends will soon leave.”

I lifted my head and noticed that the other beds had vanished. The front door was open and the three figures of my comrades shone in the bright light. Leiren set a bowl of milk in front of me. “Drink and come.”

I lapped up my breakfast and hopped from the bed. The fancy furniture vanished the minute my paws hit the floor. I started a bit and the hairs on my back stood on end.

“You are rather unused to creation magic, young cat,” Leiren teased from his place at the door. “Hurry now.”

He stepped outside and I trotted after him. My host closed the door behind us and we joined the others at the chopping block.

“And there is the unfinished business of the turtle clan to discuss with my uncle, as well,” Yushir mused as he turned his attention to us. “We wish you good luck with your mushroom hunting. The heavens and their fresh air await us.”

“Yes,” Pampir spoke up as he rubbed his nostrils with one finger. His voice sounded as puffy as his red snout. “Away from all these. . .these-achoo!” He shivered and wrapped his arms around himself. “Away from all this harsh dirt and all this pollen.”

Leiren smiled and bowed his head. “I wish you all the best and may we see each other again soon.”

Pampir and Yushir bowed their heads before their magic surrounded them. They zipped off in colorful clouds of light, one dark blue and the other brown, and were soon lost in the distance.

Leiren turned to us and gestured toward the mountains at our backs. “Shall we?”