Varla, in her eternal quest for shinies, adventure, and a questing partner, found herself wandering through Clan Akelara in preparation to explore the rest of the - apparently unexplored - world.
Well, that was the goal at least.
Shhiiiinnnnyyyyy!
The cry was the only warning she had, before a tiny ball of fur and paws and annoyingly sharp kitten claws hurtled through the air at improbable speeds, to crash into her and thwack repeatedly at the earring dangling from her left ear.
Shinyshiny! Shinyshiny! chanted the ball of fluff in a rather feminine voice, as it dangled from Varla's neck and batted at the earring.
The catdragoness blinked, trying to arch her neck enough to get a good view of the kitten, "Well hello. And you would be...?"
Iceni! Who shiny-lady, and where go? chirruped Iceni as she scrambled gracelessly around to perch on Varla's back.
"I'm Varla," she responded with a wince, as kitten claws bit into the skin beneath her fur, "And I was... well, intending on exploring the uncharted areas of this world."
Iceni wanna go! No like nest no more! Nest boring-same! Want ex-plllooor-ing! Can Iceni ex-pllooor-ing with Varla?
The catdragoness chuckled, "Only if your parents say so, little one."
Aww! the kitten pouted, ears drooping and eyes widening into the sad puppy dog look of doom, Pppwwwweeeeaaaaassseeee? Iceni won't be trouble! Ppppwweeeaaassssseeeee? Wit sugar on top?
Varla blinked, then sighed, "Oh fine, fine... I'll just leave a note at the library then..."
Yay!! Iceni dropped the look, sitting upon Varla's back surveying the world, Varla go-go! Iceni want ex-pllooor-ing now!
"Mmeeeww?"
Thaddius blinked and glanced down, looking for the cat that he kept hearing every couple of seconds.
It still wasn't there.
Maybe Akelara had some strange invisible cat breed? He wouldn't put it past them - some of the magic he'd been researching was a bit... interesting. He'd been handed some books on a strange theory about there being layers of the universe - like an onion with its multiple skins - with 'magic' being nothing more than energy from the pressure that bled off from lower layers and manipulated by the mind.
Of course, the author made some interesting points about the potential cause of certain effects, such as fireball and--
"Meeeeeeeew!"
That had to be it. Frowning, and jarred from his train of thought, Thaddius glanced around again, using all his senses in an attempt to discover the culprit. He even rose and looked around from a different angle.
When he finally gave up the search and settled back to continue reading, he found a tiny black and white kitten sprawled across the book.
"Ah. So you're not invisible, hmm? Just being secretive. Well, come on, you can sit in my lap, but I'd appreciate having my book back." He tisked at the kitten as he reached a hand out to lift the fuzzball up.
Violet eyes snapped open and gave him a look of feline disgust, as the 'kitten' yawned and shifted to sprawl in a different way, spreading itself out over the entire book. In the process, the little one revealed tiny violet horns, tufts of violet fur that looked to be forming a tiny mane, and overlarge-for-it's-frame wings with violet membranes.
"Well now, you're a strange kitten..."
Momma says... A-le-va-har-in came the tiny, baby-squeek voice that carefully enounciated each syllable of the long name. Sibs say... 'we 'splore!' -- I say... world too big, wings not work... tired. The kitten punctuated his words with a great yawn, snuggling himself further into the book, if that was possible.
Thaddius arched an eyebrow, "Why not sleep in a more comfortable spot?"
? It wasn't so much a sound as a mental 'ping' that conveyed questioning.
Patting his lap, he watched as the kitten finally sighed and rose, leaping from the table to curl up, not on his lap as he had expected, but on his shoulders instead.
"I'm Thaddius," he offered after scritching the kitten's ears for a bit, "you are...?"
Siraz. Read for me...?
Laughing softly, Thaddius nodded, "It's a bit... dry though. A theory on--"
Magic... and where it's from. Momma told me some, but always say 'learn later, little one, enjoy world now.' Is this Naal-a-vas'z theory, or Z-ey-zar'z theory?
Blinking, the mage shook his head, "Naalavas's theory. You're rather learned for a kitten, aren't you?"
Mhmm. Read, please?
"Alright, alright, demanding kitten..."
Dems reluctantly glanced around. Clan Akelara wasn't that bad of a place to be, it was just...
Well, Elora and Ina-en had this strange, giggling, secretive air about them. They knew something he didn't, and he wasn't enjoying this fact in the slightest.
Why did he feel like his world was about to crash down around his ears again?
His suspicions began to spiral as he noticed the kittens running around, apparently fleeing the control of adults. They were cute, but...
"Dems! Look!" Elora chirped as she swished her tail from side to side, laughing as several of the ungainly kittens made wide lunges for the 'toy' and flopped back to the ground, disgruntled. "Aren't they cute?"
"No. We're not taking one home!" Kittens. Winged kittens. It didn't matter how large Lethe had made his house, it wouldn't be large enough. Not for one, and definitely not for multiple ones!
"But they're so cute!" Ina-en chirruped, playing with her own set of kittens.
"I don't care, I-- ack!"
Tiny pinpricks advanced up his back as he was used as a 'tree' by a previously unnoticed kitten, the scamp settling on his shoulder and leaning over to grin in his face. It then proceeded to lick him with its sand-paper tongue, purring in self-satisfaction.
Ritaki thinks man silly. Ritaki will go where she will. Ina-en say silly man have nice house -- Ritaki will go with.
"But.. you.. I.."
Ritaki flicked her tongue over Dems's face a second time, Ritaki win, silly man lose. Ritaki go to new home now, yes?
Dems sighed in defeat, "Fine, fine..."
Oh Vaarrrlllaaa, came a soft masculine trill from... somewhere above her?
Confused, Varla looked up, as Iceni pranced and giggled atop her back, scanning the bookshelves above her for whoever had called her name. Suddenly, a ball of gray-black came hurtling through the air, thwumped onto the top of her head, and proceeded to cackle insanely.
"Hey! Off!" Varla suited words with actions, lowering her head and trying to pry the tenacious kitten -- with evil, evil, evil kitten claws -- from her head without removing her mane, her ears, or her fur. A difficult proposition in any instance, and made worse by the squirming of the blackish fuzzball and the prancing of Iceni.
Nooooooo! Thine fur shalt be mine! cackled the fuzzball, as he clung tighter to her mane.
Iceni giggled, Xaar! Leave shiny-lady 'lone!
Nev-aaaarr! chirruped Xaar, sticking his tiny pink tongue out at Iceni.
Xaaaaaaaaaaaaaar! Iceni whined, stamping a paw on Varla's back, Xaar not nice! Play nice! Momma said!
Finally, with a gusty sigh, Xaar released his hold and let Varla pry him free. Sitting comfortably on one of Varla's hands, the kitten grinned toothily up at her, Mine name be Xaar! Thou'rt mine as well! So saying, he half-scrambled, half-flew up and onto Varla's back, where he resumed gnawing on Varla's mane.
Varla blinked, wondering why she was suddenly saddled - literally - with one shiny-obessed kitten and one... strange... kitten... thing...
And wondering if she'd have any mane left by the time Xaar grew to adult-hood.
Thaddius had lost track of time a while back, as he and Siraz sorted through the multitude of books on magic theory and practice gathered from different worlds. It was interesting work, if a bit dry on occasion, and Siraz soaked in both the information and the gentle petting that Thaddius gave him.
Suddenly, Siraz's ears perked, and the kitten looked up. As he did that, Thaddius finally noted a soft melody being mentally 'hummed' by someone.
That sister -- she's nice, Siraz chirruped softly, looking towards where the mental sound was coming from.
"That's your sister? She has a nice voice," he remarked, as he continued to scritch Siraz's ears, "What's her name?"
Aisha, she say -- also say, it mean 'Golden Dawn.' Siraz purred.
As if the utterance of her name was a summons, Aisha appeared around the corner of a bookshelf, tail weaving gently from side to side, wings folded delicately at her sides, ears pricked forward, still humming the gentle melody.
Oh! the melody cut off, Siraz, there you are. Was worried about you. Aisha's gentle voice rippled, filled with kittenish squeeks and trills, but holding the promise of an enchanting adult voice.
She leapt delicately up onto the table and prowled closer to Thaddius, looking up at him with curiousity, Who you?
"My name's Thaddius. You're Aisha, I take it?"
Aisha nodded, Siraz going with you?
Thaddius smiled, "Yes, he seems to have invited himself home with me. What about you? Who're you going with?"
You. Aisha gave a cat-smirk at the slightly startled mage, before jumping down into his lap and curling up, giving him no chance - or will - to argue.
Gunna gitcha... gunna gitcha... gunna gitcha...
Dark sighed, rubbing at her forehead in exasperation. The chant 'gunna gitcha' had been cycling through her head ever since she decided to visit Akelara, and she could neither silence it nor find the culprit.
A black-tipped tail whisked away, visible only out of the corner of her eye.
She was sure that the tailtip -- which she'd been following for the past hour -- belonged to the culprit. But somehow, no matter what she did, what form she used, what skills she exercised, the tailtip remained just that - a tailtip vanishing around a corner, visible only out of the corner of one eye.
Gunna gitcha... gunna gitcha... gunna gitcha...
She followed the tailtip, tracking it down corridors, through rooms, up stairways, all the while listening to the gleeful chant. Occasionally she passed people with what looked to be winged kittens tagging after them, but none of the kittens she passed 'felt' like the one she was tailing.
Finally -- finally! -- the tailtip led her into a room with no way out.
Dark grinned, "You're wrong, I've got you!"
Think again! came a gleeful shriek, as something pounced on her from above, pale wings beating at the air and large kitten paws tangling in her hair. Gotcha!
Laughing, Dark twisted about and pulled the kitten from her hair, "And who do you think you are? Hmmm?"
Reya! Cat Climber ex-terooor-din-aiiirr! the silvery kitten giggled as she waved her paws through the air. Take Reya hooommeeeee!
Dark arched an eyebrow, "Why should I?"
Reya widened her eyes into an innocent expression, 'Cause Reya's cute?
Laughing and shaking her head in amusement, Dark put the kitten down, "All right, all right. I'll take you home..."
Yay!
Why was he here again?
Mars squinted at the sun, then back down at Akelara. Several fuzzballs that looked suspiciously like large kittens scampered across the green common area enclosed by the sweeping arms of the Clan complex.
Why.. was.. he.. here..
He rubbed at his head. There was something lurking in the corners of his mind. Something about a party, and drinking, and a...
Dare? A dare to do... what?
Sighing, Mars trudged across the grass towards the complex, past the darting kittens -- winged kittens at that! -- and the exasperated looking adults of several races, heading towards the main entrance, where he could at least get out of the su--
thWUMP!
Mars yelped, shoving whatever-it-was off of him, hands coming into contact with silky fur as he swiftly rolled to one side and stared up at the winged kitten that grinned down at him. He could feel his eyes already begin to tear in reaction.
Rtar lays claim! the kitten grinned as he chirruped happily, laying a paw on Mars' chest. Rtar goes home with jumpy man!
"I never agreed to that!" Mars snapped, eyes sparking.
Rtar purred, rubbing his chin on Mars' chest, Did sooooo! Rtar was told so!
Mars groaned, putting his head in his hands. He'd figure out what was going on later... as soon as he got away from the cursed winged cat!
They all found companions, Iyurri sighed as she sprawled out in the shade, A rather... enthusiastic litter of kitlings.
Laynaer rolled his eyes, That's an understatement. I do hope that your next litter won't be quite so... rambunctious.