Nekosia, Justice Palace

The windows had bars over them, allowing into the large room unwelcomed sunshine. The atmosphere was dark, fitting the mood of those assembled. Sitting upon rows wooden benches, the most important nekos in all of Catapiran were waiting, heads down. Expressions of sadness and loss covered their faces. They each had in their heart a hole that could never be filled. Outside the Justice Palace of Nekosia, people were waiting for the judgement to be announced. A few of the more boisterous nekos were chanting they wanted justice. The whole population of Catapiran thought the same thing: they wanted reparation.

From inside the building, the metallic thud of the lock on the front doors being turned could be heard. A few seconds after, the massive Doors of Judgement opened. Circled by four guards wielding halberds, a very old neko shuffled slowly to the centre of the room. Her back was curved, forming a large hunch. Her limp was not helped by the pair of handcuffs encasing her wrists. Still, she looked to be determined to reach the place expected of her, which was directly in front of the judge.

While walking between the rows of benches, she received many, many looks: murderous glares, envious gazes, and cold stares. She ignored them all, and continued walking with the last of her dignity.

At the first row, she saw Queen Maria XI herself. She was looking ahead, her eyes lost in the void. Her presence shone above all others with her pale yellow skin.  Cool and aloof, she did indeed look like a queen.

One of the four guards opened a little barrier and stepped through. The old neko followed him and walked onto a small red circle that had been drawn on the floor. The guards, slowly and professionally, positioned themselves around the barrier.

The judge, a very old male neko, white furred and skinned, closed a book he was perusing and crossed his fingers, looking at the accused.

"Arminia Jirald, do you know why you are here?" the judge asked. The crowd was silent while the sounds of cameras taking pictures could be heard. The proceedings would be well documented for all to see.

"Yes," Arminia said, without any emotion.

"You are here," said the judge for all to hear, "because you have been accused of the murder of our dear princess, Flavia." The crowd bowed their heads in a show of respect. "After two and a half years of searching, we never found her body. We've asked you to tell us where it was, but you have withheld that information.  Here," he said, opening the book he had closed. "I have proof of your deep friendship with Princess Flavia. You two once had a discussion about Princess Flavia's future with her promised husband, who is sitting here with us today." Many gazes turned to Korky. His face was a carefully controlled mask of dignified sadness. The judge continued, "Here is your last chance to tell us where you have hidden Flavia's body. You will not be asked again."

Everyone in the room hoped she will finally admit the deed, but she quickly dashed any chance of that. "No."

The judge sighed, just like the rest of the crowd. "Well... the jury has already completed its deliberations. My authority would have allowed me to spare you, had you been more cooperative. But since you are not, I shall now render judgement. The jury is unanimous. You are hereby declared guilty of the crime of murder. Your sentence shall be," he paused deliberately for suspense, "...death."

Arminia did not react, other than to smirk a little.

"Do you have any final words?" the judge asked.

For the first time, Arminia lifted her eyes to meet his, and said in a very casual tone, "She needed freedom, and I'm happy she now has it. Who is the real murderer, do you think? Me, or this woman who sits so coldly upon her throne? A mother who never shed a single tear over the loss of her beloved daughter." She pointed Queen Maria XI.

There were hushed whispers among the crowd. The Queen felt a little ill at ease, but signalled for the judge to finish. The latter nodded and continued, "If that is all you have to say, then I declare these proceedings done.  As the presiding judge, I concur with the both the jury's verdict and sentencing." Giving her a sympathetic look, he added a personal note: "May you be forgiven in the beyond."

The guards once again made a circle around Arminia and escorted her to the exit. Following them, the crowd stood up and left the room.

***

"Nia, no!" screamed Flavia as she suddenly woke up.

It was early morning, the sun peeking mostly above the horizon. Flavia was sitting on a big branch, high above the ground, with a terror-filled look on her face. Her heart pounding in her chest, she slowly relaxed her death grip on the bark of the tree. It may have only been a nightmare; nevertheless, the princess was missing Arminia terribly. It was as if a part of her soul were gone. She wished so much that her servant could be here with her, enjoying the freedom of the wild. She wiped a tear away and brought her legs close to her chest, looking away at the far off horizon.

Her neko ears twitched, telling her that someone was coming. She didn't react at all and waited for the tiny to draw close. She secretly hoped it would be a neera she could enjoy, but she sensed it was Ryan, again. She could always count on Ryan to listen to her problems. He was attentive and respectful. Kyle's sense of humour could also help sometimes.

"Flavia," said Ryan as he stepped on the branch she was sitting on. All he could see was her back, draped by her beautiful blond hair. Her tail was resting limply on the branch. "Flavia, I heard you scream. Are you alright?"

Flavia sat still, not answering Ryan. The latter sighed and stepped forward, determined to help his giant neko friend. "You know you can tell me what's wr-" He was quickly interrupted as her tail coiled around his waistline. It transported him into the air, passing beside Flavia's body, depositing him in front of her, on the other side of the branch.

"Whoa," he said as he stood up, looking at where he might have fallen. "It's a good thing you didn't drop me..." He stopped himself, as Flavia wasn't reacting at all. He looked into her eyes, their greenness turned red in sadness as she was looking away, resting her chin between her knees.

Concerned, he silently walked to her, a little smile of friendship on his face. Slowly, he climbed up and sat on her foot, waiting for her to speak. He also turned to look at the rising sun.

It wasn't the first time that Flavia was in a bad mood after waking up in the morning. Ryan was now used to it and knew how to deal with her. She had probably had a bad dream about her old life or dreamed about someone she really cared for. So he waited, rubbing his hands gently across the softness of her yellow fur. He wished he could have a sheet as soft as her fur.

"I... dreamed about Nia," Flavia finally said.

Ryan nodded to himself. Flavia had told him that `Nia' had been her only friend during her time as princess. The servant had always taken great care of her and for that, Flavia would always remember her. Sadly, she had been appearing in Flavia's nightmares, which was very hard for the princess to deal with.

Ryan looked upwards, only able to see her two hands bound together. They were shaking. "Another nightmare, eh? Tell me what it was about," he said with a very soft tone.

"It's just..." Flavia wiped a tear away with her index finger. "It was Nia and she had been condemned for my murder." Her voice was jerky.

"And she had been condemned to what?"

"Death," Flavia said, crying and drawing her legs closer to her chest, Ryan still on her feet. He almost fell, but kept his balance as he braced his two tiny hands against her skin. `Great,' he said to himself. For him, seeing Flavia this way was heartbreaking. He glanced around and began climbing her leg. He made it to her mid-calf before realizing there was no way he could reach her knees.

"Flavia," he said with a friendly tone. "Please, help me up; I want to see you." Instead of her hand, it was her tail again that did the job for her. It pushed Ryan's butt up and he managed to cling to her knee. He was now face to face with her. Well, face to top of head, because she had hidden her face in the space between her legs and chest.

Ryan sat and patted her hair. "Flavia, look at me please."

She didn't react. The tiny human sighed and became more insistent. When she finally lifted her head up, her cheeks and eyes were all wet with tears. "Ah Flavia," sighed Ryan in a tone that reminiscent of a father consoling his little daughter. "Don't you like your life here, with Kyle and me?"

"Mmmh," she moaned, unable to speak.

"It was only a nightmare. There's no need for these tears. Tell me you won't do anything stupid, ok?"

"...ok."

"There, there... tilt your head a little," he said, motion his hand to indicate what she should do.

Hesitantly, she did so. Ryan, with perfect confidence, pulled out a handkerchief from his pocket and attempted to wipe her face clean. It was a hard because just one of her tears was as big as his handkerchief. She giggled and closed her eyes in amusement. She slowly opened them again and looked at Ryan with a gaze filled with love.

"Thank you, Ryan."

"For what? I'm not done yet with your tears," he said as he pulled out another handkerchief.

"No." She laughed." For being here with me. For... well taking care of me." She grabbed his tiny body with her both hands and hugged him, stroking him on her cheek. Ryan smiled and extended his arms, trying to hug her back.

She scooted backward and rested her back against the tree trunk. She put Ryan on her shoulder and asked, "Will you stay with me, Ryan?"

The human grabbed a lock of her hair to keep from falling and answered, "I will always be there for you."

Flavia giggled. "That's not quite answering my question, but I'll take it as a yes."

They sat there, looking at the still rising sun, which had almost fully revealed itself.

***

"Hey, where you two have been?" asked Kyle as he saw Flavia climbing, cat-like, down her tree with Ryan, the latter's shirt held snugly between the princess' fangs. She gently set Ryan on the ground and glanced at Kyle with a teasing look.

"Having sex." She winked at him. The astonished gaze Kyle gave her made her burst into laughter. "Come on, silly! We were just sharing some time together."

"Better than sex." Kyle smiled. "Ehm," he said more seriously. "Our food reserves are almost gone."

"Aw, not serious!" Flavia pouted as she leapt over to their reserve - a tiny wooden structure where they were keeping all their fruits, vegetables and such. She growled and came back towards them. Kyle and Ryan were already arguing about where they would have to go get their food.

"And I say it's better to go in that direction" Ryan pointed at his right, the other hand on his hip.

"You say that way because that's where the food you like is. I say it's better to go in that direction," Kyle pointed behind him. "That will offer us a greater variety of food."

"Ah," an annoyed Flavia interrupted, "will you two quit arguing? Your princess orders both of you to go down to the river, 'kay?" she said with a firm tone.

"Yes, ma'am," Kyle responded in a teasing tone.

"Of course, Flavia," Ryan said, looking at her with love in his eyes.

Kyle sighed at his hopeless friend and asked the neko, "And you? What'll do?"

"Ima go hunt some neeras." She licked her lips. "So..." She quickly swished her tail and took off like a streak into the forest. Before disappearing completely from their sight, she said, "See you soon, guys. Don't kill each other!"

And she was gone. Ryan was still starring in the direction she had run. Kyle shook his head and hit his friend on the shoulder.
"Hey!" Ryan rubbed his shoulder.

"Come on, let's get going before you get it in your head to go running after her," Kyle said, wrapping his arm around Ryan's neck and walking towards the little river. "Man, you got it bad for her."

***

Flavia was walking to each one of the traps she had set. They were supposed to catch yummy neeras. Sadly, none had fallen in them. However, she was not upset with her lack of a meal. Having some free time without being around Kyle or Ryan was not necessarily a bad thing.

Ryan was always telling her soft words while Kyle was always looking at her feminine parts. Ryan was always giving himself a quest to find a flower that could match her beauty. Flavia was always accepting the flowers with a smile, but wasn't smiling at all when Ryan came near to dying after he picked a highly poisonous one. Fortunately, it hadn't killed him, but the little human had been unconscious for days while Flavia and Kyle fretted over him. She had been angered at his carelessness and then heartbroken at the thought he might not survive. The only positive part of the bad luck for Ryan was that Flavia took very good care of him during his ordeal.

Flavia arrived at another trap, walking on her four paws very delicately. This one was quite particular. When a neera would pass close, it would step on a fine wire that would break. Once it broke, a very scary figure that appeared to be a hanged neera would fall down from tree. The real neera, scared like hell, would flee from it. Then a cage would immediately trap the poor neera, along with the false hanged one.

When Flavia noticed that the trap was still waiting for a neera to come, she sighed and turned away, heading towards yet another trap. In total, there were twelve traps. Nine of them had been crafted by Ryan. He had become very adept at creating them during their time in the wilderness.

Suddenly, mid-way to the next trap, her neko senses alerted her that something was amiss. Her tail stopped swaying while her cat ears lifted up and swivelled. Danger. It filled her senses. She sniffed the air. It came from the river. Strangely, it smelled... virile. She shook her head and ran as fast as she could on her four paws towards the scent.

During her run, a thought stuck in her head. Ryan and Kyle were at the river. `Oh no! I hope nothing bad has happened to them.' She increased her speed, passing through their `house.' She called this place her house even though it had no roof. Nevertheless, it was home. It was where she and her two tiny friends were living now.

She stopped a short distance beyond her house, sniffing at the air again. The scent was strongest to the right. She quickly turned right and ran as fast as should. Something about the odour was awakening a feeling deep inside her... sexual desire. She shook her head again. What was wrong with her?

"Aaaaaaa!" someone screamed.

This voice... it was... "Ryan! I'm coming!" Flavia's answering scream resounded through the forest.

She ran headlong through the brush. A few stray branches scratched her satin skin. When she finally arrived at the river, she saw that Kyle and Ryan were holding each other and were stepping backwards, towards her position. Farther ahead, a dark furred neko with tanned skin was gazing directly at them. It was clear he hadn't eaten anything for days. He had many, many scars on his face and on his skin. He was bare from the waist up, but still had a pair of ragged shorts. He was the source of the scent that was affecting her so.  Despite her scream earlier, the strange neko was paying her no heed whatsoever. He was entirely fixated on the two humans.

"Kyle, Ryan," she whispered at them. Both turned around, jumping in surprise. The look on their face when they noticed her made her smile a bit, but she remained serious. "Go back to house. Now. And stay hidden until I come back. Don't ask questions."

Kyle nodded, and grabbed Ryan's hand to force him run along. While Ryan passed close to Flavia, he brushed his hand against her foot, which was his way to tell her "good luck." She purred faintly at the touch, and set her gaze on the male neko.

The male, seeing that his lunch was escaping, attempted to run after them. He completely ignored Flavia.

She, however, did not ignore him. As he attempted to pass her, she extended her claws and violently scratched his face. He howled in pain and stumbled back. On his left cheek were now four deep claw marks. Blood was slowly dripping from them. He seemed disoriented as he faced her, his own claws extended.

Flavia slowly circled the male neko, keeping out of reach of his claws. He followed her movement, shifting in place slightly. Flavia was very surprised at herself. She was acting almost purely on instinct. She bared her fangs at him, hoping to appear threatening. The display did not seem to faze him as he continued to glare at her.

She now had her back to the river, opposite from where she first arrived. That was when she noticed her foe was trembling. She did not think it was due to fear of her. No, more likely he was starved. He was well built, but very weak at the moment. When Flavia looked into his watery eyes, it was obvious he was sick. He was just a neko who needed to eat to stay alive. She was no expert, but she doubted he would survive another day without assistance. He would soon be too weak to stand, which meant he would no longer be able to hunt. After that, death was certain to come.

Suddenly, the neko male crumpled to the ground, lying on his side. It was as if his legs simply gave out, no longer able to support his weight. His eyes remained focused on Flavia. He was waiting for death to take him.

When he hit the ground, Flavia stopped moving. She waited, to see if he was playing a trick on her. His eyes slowly closed and he rolled over, face down upon the ground.  She slowly walked closer. He was still breathing, though so shallowly she could barely see his chest moving. Hearing her approach, he issued a weak, pathetic growl. She ignored the bluff, and carefully turned him on his back.

Flavia leaned her head over his chest and listened to his heartbeat. It was beating still, albeit feebly. She stood and looked down at him. What to do now? Leave him there to his fate?

The smiling face of Arminia came to her mind. It warmed Flavia's heart. She knew what Arminia would have done. She looked down at the male neko and stroked his cheek. "You will live," she whispered.

Then, she immediately took off towards her house. Fortunately, it wasn't too far. When she arrived, the princess quickly climbed her tree.

Kyle and Ryan slowly emerged from their hiding place. They had heard someone coming, but they weren't sure who it was. Suddenly, they heard a loud crack, which made Ryan jump in terror. It was followed by another loud crack. Ryan feared for the worst. Maybe the male neko was eating Flavia... and those cracks were her bones!

His thought quickly dissipated as Flavia jumped off the tree to land on the ground, two long, solid branches in her arms. She grabbed up a length of vine before turning back to the river. She noticed Kyle and Ryan, but barely gave them her attention as she spoke to them.

"Both of you need to go and quickly find something to eat. Anything. Hurry up." She urged them on with a little nod of her head, then began to run back towards the river and the sick neko.

"But," began Kyle, "what's happening? Are you alright?"

"Don't ask questions and hurry! It's a matter of life or death!"

She quickly returned to the where the male neko was lying. She was relieved to see he was still there, even though she knew he could not move very far in his current. She put her two branches on the ground, both parallel and very close to each other. Taking the vine, she tied it off and began looping it from one branch to the other, forming a makeshift stretcher. It wasn't much of one, but it would have to do.

She carefully grabbed the neko and pulled him onto the vines between the two branches. He was heavier than she had thought. She hoped he would not break either the branches or the vine between them. After positioning him, she lifted the ends of both branches, making sure they could bear his weight. This done, she slowly began dragging him towards her house.

During the short trip, he growled several times. But Flavia didn't care. Even if he didn't want to be saved, she would save him.

Sooner than she had thought possible, she arrived at her house. She noticed Kyle and Ryan weren't there. `Good,' she thought. That meant they had listed and were out searching for something to eat. She brought the dark neko to her tree trunk. He was barely awake.

She let him rest there, and quickly ran back to the river to get him some water.

Barely conscious, the dark-neko wondered why this yellow neko was trying to help him. And he also wondered why she had saved those two tinies. It didn't make any sense, her attacking him over food, especially when he was so obviously starved. None of that mattered in the end. As sick as he was, he knew death was coming. He welcomed it. As his thoughts turned dark, he finally fell into a fitful sleep; his final wish was for a quick and painless death.

To be continued...