This is a rewrite of a previously published work. There is a lot of new content in it, but it is not wholly new content. There will be new chapters coming.
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I stood there, staring, slack-jawed, at the woman who had been a house cat just a few heartbeats ago.
She had the blue eyes of the cat that had broken into my room days ago; the cat that had stalked followed me everywhere for the last few days. The blue overtook everything except the thin slit, which grew slightly thicker when she looked at me. Her skin was a little darker than Emilia's, and just as soft. She was beautiful, but the way she held herself had a predatory feel to it. Deadly, but not in the same way that Carmella held herself; in a way that I couldn't quite comprehend. I suppressed a shiver, realizing how vulnerable I had been. She had been following me around for a while, and I had just accepted it. I thought we all had.
We had not, apparently. Carmella had her sword trained on the woman. Some movement behind her caught my eye. It was the swishing of a fluffy, white tail. I followed it with my eyes. That's when I noticed that two snowy white ears were protruding out of the locks of her hair. Like a Tabaxi, but not quite as... animalistic. Weird. Her dark skin was flawless and hairless outside of her eyebrows and her hair. And the fucking tail. She was looking at me and not anyone else. She finally spoke, in a thick accent that reminded me of Ahmed, "P-please do not let them hurt me, Johann."
"Y-you know my name," I said thickly. Her face screwed up in confusion.
"Of course, she knows your name. At this point, she's had a chance to map the entire castle. There's been food going missing," Meryl said, her hand extended with the dagger I had given to her squeezed tightly between her fingers. There were bright pulses of purple magic pumping through the tendrils I had etched into the weapon. She can use it as a wand? And she's pointing it at this woman. At this cat. This is bad.
"Food?" I asked, glancing directly at her. My mind was racing, trying to catch up with everything that was happening. None of this makes any sense. The cat is a woman who stole food. I tried to think my way through the problem. Maybe I hit my head during the sparring session.
"She's a spy, here to steal our secrets," Lady Carmella put in. "Maybe rekindle the old war with the main continent."
"What!?" I asked, standing up between them. They looked at me as though I was stupid. Which was how I was feeling, but her being a spy also didn't seem right to me. "Wait a minute. Okay, sure, she lied, kind of, about being a cat, but does that make her a spy? She hasn't hurt anyone."
"She stole food," Emilia reiterated, searching my face for something. I frowned.
"That's more my fault than anything. I'm not used to having a pet. I forgot to feed her... Wait... Uh. pet seems..." I paused, thinking through the implications of what I'd just said, my eyes meeting the mysterious woman for a moment. I thought I saw her lip twitch into a small smirk. "Whatever. I didn't know at the time. I didn't provide food. So if she did steal it, that's on me." I took a breath before continuing. "Was there anything else taken?"
"Not that we know about," Meryl added reticently, not lowering her dagger. "But she's had ample opportunity to get at the country's secrets."
"I have not, though. Honest! I didn't come here to steal anything." The woman spoke in a desperate, almost yowling voice. "I'm here to seek asylum!"
"You never petitioned me for asylum," the queen spat back. It wasn't in her courtly voice, but I could tell she was keeping herself on a leash. Which, given the dagger glowing with magical energy, was probably for the best.
"I... I thought this might be easier," she said, pouting at me. "You are a nice man." She continued, directing her attention to the women. "He gave me food and is pretty cute and fun to play with." She paused, considering me again. And then the women around me. "Then I saw how he treated all of you. I thought this might be a comfortable life."
"You were just going to live as a cat in the castle?" I asked incredulously.
"I am a good cat," she said indignantly. I stared at her, bewildered that she thought that could possibly be the issue. "And I wasn't going to do it forever. Just until I found a way to broach the subject."
"Of you being a person." I spoke slowly. Deliberately. Trying to get across just how insane this situation was. "And not the cat I thought I'd accidentally adopted."
"You really didn't know?" Meryl asked. "She obviously wasn't an ordinary cat."
"I've never met an ordinary cat in my life! All cats are weird little balls of fur and chaos!" I exclaimed back at them, gesturing towards the woman as though it proved my point. The three women all started laughing at me, their stances breaking. I looked back, and even the catgirl looked amused at my foolishness. I dropped my hands to my side and sighed, my face reddening. "Okay. Fine. I'm an idiot. I get that. As though I should know a magic cat from a regular cat from a catgirl."
"So," Queen Meryl began after a moment, taking a step closer to the woman, who had not moved a muscle. She looked like she was strong enough to leap at the queen if she wanted to. Though, that'd certainly be a death sentence. I took a step closer too, standing next to Meryl. I'd lowered my weapon, but I was still ready if she tried anything. Not to mention what Carmella and Emilia would do if she did anything to Meryl. The image of her burning a man to death came to mind. Or what hell she'd rain down on the interloper. My heart sank. I don't want to watch a woman die today, but I don't know what to do. As if pulling the thought from my mind, Meryl said, "What should we do with her?"
"If she stole some food," I began, then hesitated. "I don't know. Killing her seems extreme. It's not like we're exactly hurting for food around here."
