Forward; the idea for this story was kindly donated by fairyMei33. Thanks again!
Chapter One: The Baron
Baron smiled warmly, the Haru Yoshioka file finally finished for his records. He shook his head at himself, trying to figure out why it took him three months to make the account.
At first, he did a short summary of what happened, since that sufficed for all his other cases. But just when he thought he was done, the orange cat was overcome with the desire to elaborate on every detail, even the smell of the charming girl's hair (oranges and cream shampoo). He wrote and rewrote the story, until the tale took up several stacks of paper, which he was very careful not to rearrange as he delicately placed them in their assigned place inside the special records cabinet. In order to make room for Haru's file, he had to shift the other files into year slots instead of case slots, but since the other files were so slim when compared to Haru's, this wasn't really a problem.
Muta was at his Cross Roads post and Toto out seeing some friends. The dapper cat twiddled his thumbs, now wondering what he should do, with the Yoshioka file completed.
'I could make tea…- wait, there's still plenty left from the last batch. Perhaps a book? No, I could recite any book on my shelves just by hearing the title.' Baron shook his head, wondering why his life at the Bureau was suddenly so boring. There was literally nothing he could add to Haru's file, and he hadn't had a case since her. His eyes trailed toward a door in the back of the Bureau, and he laughed at himself.
He had been so preoccupied with Haru's file, he had completely forgotten about Louise. He took a large handkerchief from the bottom drawer of his desk and headed toward the door. Opening it, he felt around for a light switch, glad that his house had been given electric lights, since he had little tolerance for fire, being born from wood. He flicked the light on, revealing a small neat bedroom.
Standing in the middle of the room was a beautiful cat doll, a female version of him. Except unlike him, there was no glimmer of life in her lime-green eyes. Her face was completely blank, staring off into the vast nothingness in front of her. He sighed and started brushing off the dust that had started collecting on her. Her light gray fur became as white as snow, and her blue dress deepened to its original navy color as he kept brushing off the dust.
'Louise' was the name given to her, not by their artisan, but by the aristocratic woman that had insisted on the white cat's making, certain that a handsome doll like Baron deserved a beautiful lady friend. His artisan had agreed, but he was so drained from pouring a soul into Baron that his fiancé was nothing more than an ordinary doll that resembled him. The Cat Lord had been the artisan's passion, not the one created to be his companion.
After the woman's death, Baron had taken Louise and moved to the Refuge, deciding that he didn't want to be fought over by her squabbling heirs. Sure, he could have left her, but it would have felt so disloyal to leave as soon as it was convenient, even if she wasn't alive to know or care. Finished with his chore, Baron tipped his hat at her and shut off the light while closing the door.
It was one thing to have a lady friend, but it was completely another to have one that could talk back to him, make him want to be with her.
'If you ever need us, you will always know where to find us. And the Bureau's doors will be open to you, be it day or night.' He looked towards the window, hoping to see a certain brunette leaning over on the other side. She wasn't. She hadn't dropped by once since that first time. Baron frowned, wondering if he had made the offer sound like she could only come back if she had a problem. He should have said something like 'Feel free to drop by for tea sometime'. He had only seen a glimpse of that sparkling true personality of hers, near the end of their adventure, and wondered how it had progressed since then. His eyes trailed over to the cabinet, a new idea beginning to take shape.
Toto had managed to memorize the personal information on the nametag of her school bag before returning it to her, for the Bureau records. Her address was just behind the front cover of her file. Even if her crush on him had faded by now (why does his heart suddenly feel heavy?) she surely still liked him enough not to mind if he dropped by for a visit. He grinned, his heart lightening at once.
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
It wasn't easy, by any stretch of the imagination. He had to use a bunch of back alleys and bushes to keep out of sight of humans, occasionally asking for directions from alley cats.
When he arrived at the correct place, he didn't even bother to read the mailbox to know it was the right address. Cat tails covered her yard, only coming up to the knees on regular sized humans, probably frequently cut down. Since cat tails weren't a naturally growing grass in this area, and Haru struck him as a neater person than to grow it on purpose, it had to be the remains of a gift from the Cat Kingdom. Grinning widely, he dove into the tall grass and ran for the house, the height of the green stalks covering his moves wonderfully.
Deciding that it wouldn't be prudent for him to try the doorbell, even if he could somehow ring it, he made for the flower bed underneath the large front windows, partially opened for ventilation. Taking a second to straighten out his attire, he brushed his handkerchief over his clothes, wishing to look his best for Haru. His hand froze as he stuffed the handkerchief into his breast pocket.
Why was Haru's opinion of him so important? Her very first words to him were 'wow, you're cool', so she was already impressed with him. Shaking his head slightly, he leaned down and jumped for the wooden pane, grabbing it with ease. As he pulled himself into the windowsill, he could hear a woman inside talking.
"What about Lune? Yuki? I see; thanks for your help, Hiromi. I'll tell Haru you said hi."
He looked at the woman, easily Haru's mother, looking just like her except her hair was red and shorter, plus the woman wore glasses. She placed the phone back into its receiver and held her head with her hands, staring at a piece of paper in front of her. She started whispering softly to herself.
"Who are all of these people, Haru? How could none of your friends know them, but still be important enough to call out in your state?"
Baron cocked his head.
"In what state?"
"In her sickness-" the woman caught off, jumping out of her seat at the tiny table and looking around frantically as she grabbed a broom. She waved it threateningly, trying to find the intruder.
"If there's a robber in here, I'm warning you that my nerves are already on edge, and you won't live to survive a confrontation with me right now!"
Baron chuckled.
"I can assure you that I am no robber, and I'm next to your front window."
She looked straight at him, her eyes slowly losing their angry look to melt into confusion. He tipped his hat politely.
"Please permit me to guess the rest of the names that are causing you confusion; Baron, Toto, and Muta."
Her eyes widened further, and she put the broom down, silently affirming his guesses.
"Am I dreaming or something? You don't look like a real cat, and only Haru claims that they talk to her."
He chuckled warmly.
"You are not dreaming, Mrs. Yoshioka. I am a Creation; a wooden doll with a soul. My name is Baron Humbert von Gikkingen, and I had the pleasure of meeting your daughter three months ago. I was hoping to pay a call on her. Did you say that she was ill?"
Naoko nodded, the confusion melting from her face.
"Three months ago…that would be about right. Yes, she's very sick. She fainted three days ago, and hasn't been able to fully regain consciousness since then. She keeps calling out names when she was closest to being awake, and talking about needing to get to a Cat Bureau."
Baron's eyes sharpened. He should have come sooner.
"Where is she?"
Naoko saddened further.
"At the hospital. Her body's starting to shut down on her."
Baron gripped his cane hard, a cold fear working its way into his chest. He tipped his hat again and turned to jump off the window.
"Then I will pay a call on her there. Good day, Mrs. Yoshioka."
Her hand shot out and grabbed his arm as he jumped, leaving him dangling outside the window.
It was times like this when Baron despised being so much shorter than humans.
"You can't visit her in there! You'd get caught within seconds, since there are always nurses with her."
Baron growled his frustration.
"But if she has been calling out for me, then I must go to her. I must be there when she needs me."
The red-haired woman seemed surprised at his passion for her daughter's welfare, but lifted him back through the window and set him down on the windowsill again.
"If you don't mind riding in my handbag, I can get you close to her."
He looked at her, smiling gratefully.
"Thank you, Mrs. Yoshioka."
She smiled back at him, suddenly remembering that out of all the names Haru had called out in her troubled state, Baron's was the most constant and insistent one.
