Cat looked at her messages, bored. Then a new note caught her eye, and she opened it excitedly. It was from Jagex. This is what it read:
Dear Cat Lover657,
You have been registered as a member. We show our gratitude torward your good behavior. You have received no elegible reports, but we just decided to give you membership, for no cost. Forever. Thank you. Your card is enclosed. With an additional bonus already in your bank.
Jagex and co.
She stared at it, stunned, then took out a slightly vibrating orange card. Her long tanned hand grasped it tightly, then the full impact of the words hit her. She was a member. Free. Forever. With a startling yell, she lept up and ran out of the receiving room.
Her new purple cat followed Cat, meowing pitifully. "Alright." she smiled. I'll name you...Tonks." Tonks purred, and gamboled about. Cat smiled again. Her long straight blonde hair blew about in a small wind, and her grey eyes were alight with laughter. She watched as Tonks, purple fur glossy and gleaming, walked into a patch of flowers. She turned away, and remembered why she had come in the first place. She entered Varrock, smiling at the guards. They were always being attacked by other people, she she kept a policy of kindness torward them. The wind died down, and her radiance seemed to dim others in comparison. She hurried along, eager to get to the grand exchange. The tall pillars she saw first, stony looming towers with a hand clutching gold coins at the top. The hand was white marble, and the grey stone was trimmed with more marble. The white outlines dazzled her eyes for a moment, and Cat smiled wider. Almost there. What else had Jagex and co. given her? The milling crowds refused to be parted, and unshamelessly she pushed through, apologizing hurridely. One more step..."May I access my bank account please?" "Of course, madam." replied the accountant.
She looked, and gasped. There, among the various insignificant and significant items she had collected for all those years, there was a gigantic glittering pile. Cat had only 90K, before the fateful letter. Now...now...she could not comprehend the wealth. A small corner of her mind came to life. 'Jagex co. could have given me membership, but all this...it must have been someone very kind, or just very curious to the outcome of events...' Cat had now 700,000,000. 700 million. 700 mil. She weakly grabbed some of it, and stuffed it in a ragged brown bag. Then she scrolled down the list of buyable items. A beret! Hmm... white, light blue, black...white would set off her hair nicely...she was about to buy one. Then a revelation came over her. "I used to be an outsider...with this, I can be one of them..." she whispered. Her hand trembled. Quickly she signed a paper and handed over the standard 200 thousand for a white beret.
It was soft, and cool to the touch. Cat dreamily ran it over her cheek, enjoying the sleekness of the cloth. Then she came to a start, and put it on her bare head. Step one, completed. Now for step two. A scarf.
The only one on sale was very pretty. It was pure white, and made of expensive silk. She bought it for 700.5 K, and was absurdly pleased with the price. The more expensive, the better, ran the social rule in these high clubs. Someone lent a santa hat to her once, and she had been able to find out that much. There. Step two completed. "What would Slappy say if he saw me now..." Slappy was her best friend. He would laugh, and then Icy, a tough but funny girl, another one of her best friends would come along and laugh her head off. Then she would giggle along, pointing to Tonks' latest bruise from his latest escapsade. Good times....to be, she reminded herself.
She selected white flowers for a nice deal- they were the most costly, but they were quite beautful. She clutched them in one hand. She didn't bother with gloves, so wonderful were the warm flowers. In the other arm she casually held a mage's book, 2.5 million gp. Gold pieces. Gold...all hers. All hers. To keep.
Cat then entered a small, stone bulding off to the side. There was a large gate around it, but a guard waved her in. She ducked under a low doorway and entered into a dimly lit room. There was torchlight flickering eerily on many mystical items, and powerful looking people were browsing. She headed off to a section with some nice looking shirts. She decided at last on a Saradomin robe top. It fit her perfectly, and she smiled wider. There was a glass case nearby, containing a red plateskirt type opened the case and selected a Saradomin robe bottom. She brought the lot to a tall, pompous cashier. He checked out her items readily enough, but when he came to the strange plateskirt he sputtered,
"Dragon plateskirt? But there wasn't any left..." Cat nodded silently torward the container. He nodded back respectfully, and she paid. "Thank you, madam. I see you might be in need of some shoes, perhaps." Cat nodded again, and he waved her torward a smaller section, full of footwear. She headed over, and browsed the racks of boots. Ranger boots- interesting. The cashier took the money silently. As she dressed in a side room, Cat felt elated. Her grey eyes sparkled happily. Tonks appeared in a sudden poof of dark smoke. He meowed. She patted his sleek head absentmindedly, then stopped. 'Cats aren't that hard to summon...I need to work my member abilities up...' And she set out into the fresh air. It was sunset.
Fhrwoov fluttered behind her and uttered a keening cry, that echoed around the small room. The Guthix raptor usually was quiet, but she was overjoyed when she sensed her owner's uplifting spirits. Cat hurried out, and flashed her pure white. perfectly even teeth at people. She headed to the Varrock gathering place with a Santa hat on.
"Merry Easter, everyone!" she laughed merrily. The others were slightly taken aback by this confident newcomer, and they eyed her clothes and attitude. Then one snorted in amusement, and soon the others crowded around. Cat turned into an egg with her egg ring, and one other followed suit.
"Twin eggs!" cried the other. If Cat could've smiled, she would've. But an egg can't really smile, so she chuckled. The voice was not too deep, and the friendly stranger that popped out of the egg was tall, tanned, short haired with chestnut brown hair. He was very handsome in full Saradomin armour, except for a helm. A Saradomin Owl was hovering above him, hooting softly. Cat unmorphed. "Hi, I'm called Cat," and treated him to a dazzling smile.
"I can see that." grinned the stranger. "I'm Wheero. No jokes about my name, though, cause' they just love to abuse it!" He pointed dramatically at several people, introducing them as Bob, Kiera, Mandeline, Keyll.
Bob was short, and stout, like a dwarf without a beard. His eyes glinted with humour. Kiera was of medium hieght, dressed in blue mystic robes. She wore a blue beret on top of mauve hair. She smiled and waved some purple flowers at Cat. Mandeline seemed a little shy, but brightened up when Cat gave her a friendly grin. She had burgundy hair, and a round believing face. Keyll was almost as tall as Wheero, with short hair cut like his, but minty green, and he shook hands with Cat enthusiastically.
"So you must be Cat. I've heard about somebody who came in and bought the last dragon plateskirt..." he grimaced comically. A quip came to her mind, and she joked,
"Why were so so interested in a plateskirt? Sure you're not planning on visiting the Makeover Mage for an, ah, unfortunate change?" The others laughed, and even Keyll snickered.
"You're funny, Cat. Hey...gotcha! Snowball fight!" Everybody took out their snowglobes and shook them. Cat got one in the face, and hit the offender, Mandeline, in the eye with a well-aimed shot. Wheero grinned and teamed up with her. Then Kiera got frusterated at Keyll and tackled him. Snow flew everywhere as they piled in. Cat's hair was disarrayed, and her cheeks were stinging with cold, but a warm feeling washed over her. Of belonging, to an exclusive group that would trust each other. Her new friends. The pale winter sky had never been so beautiful. Nor had been the clouds so white. And maybe her ears were deceiving her, but the laughter Cat heard now was so much more welcome and musical than the weak shrieks in her life before.
The next day dawned sunny yellow. The sky was a piercing blue, and the air was so cold it took your breath away. Cat boarded a sturdy wooden ship, crowded with eager passengers. First step: Karamja. The days passed on a gently rocking boat, and the air grew warmer and warmer. It was one weeks journey South. Cat questioned a sailor about when they would hit dock, and he replied,
"In half an hour, miss." She thanked him, and stalked off belowdecks, her waist-length hair swishing behind her. She changed into a fresh fawn striped, no sleeves pirate shirt, and its thin coolness felt nice after the heat in her long sleeves. She combed her hair and pulled on yellow shorts. She put on audience shoes, those without the buckles, reveling in the fresh air on her poor feet. The plan was she would meet Wheero at T'ai bo Wanni village, south of the volcano. The village was full of wonderful aromas, he told her, with a place to practice agility and an interesting shop or two. There were many flowers scattered around it. She had grinned widely and thanked him for the trip. He dismissed it, but his blue eyes gleamed delightedly that she was happy with his gift.
Now Cat walked sedately down the gangplank, ignoring the admiring mutters. She set off along a dirt pathway, and brought out a dragon dagger. She hacked her way through some dense underfoilage, groaning when a snake crossed her path, very slowly. It didn't bother to hurry up, so she stepped gingerly over it and rushed ahead, through more green leaves and shivering rain droplets. Monkeys screeched back from whence she came, but Cat ran to a steel gate. She passed a pulsing orange card through the middle, and it opened sulkily.
The first thing she saw were the flora. Vibrant hues came in from every angle, highlighting the ever-present green with bright blues, yellows, pinks, orange, and all other colors of the rainbow. She plucked a pink flower and twined it into her hair. Bird calls resounded between neat brown huts, and those were mixed with the chattering of natives, but few strangers. The next thing she noticed was the smell. It was wonderful- fragrant perfumes rose up, creating an ethereal air. The sun here seemed to shine more powerfully than anywhere else, and it reflected upon everything in its path. Her footfalls were silent upon a cheerful dirt road. Then Wheero stepped out from a doorway, clad in lenderhosen shorts, socks pulled down. He wore light boots, a hole cut in the top to allow fresh air. His hair was as messy as ever, but he also wore a plain brown T-shirt. Red dragon vambraces encircled his wrists, however, and Cat noticed a dagger hilt poking out of those boots.
"Just in case...Villagers have a legend of a monster in the jungle, and it preys upon those foolish enough to go unarmed."
"I know- I've heard some odd growls when I was walking here, but I just put my dragon dagger into greater clarity, and the menacing sounds receded." She smiled up at his worried face, which relaxed into another grin. She added quietly, "You know no monster could catch this lady unawares and unarmed. I still have my fists-
"-And your toes, teeth, claws..." He stopped at Cat's mock angry expression. "Hey, I thought all cats had claws." She laughed, a clear ringing sound. She hugged him, happy to be there, in the warmth of the island. They walked off, down to the beach, arm in arm. The beach was full of white sand and shells, and the water was clean and cool. Cat splashed in, and dragged Wheero's head underwater. He picked her up and tossed her far out into the ocean. She didn't resurface for...1 second...three seconds...four seconds... eight seconds... fifteen seconds... his expression turned concerned, but then he saw a corkscrew of water rise up, and a form with it. Cat laughed as she dived back into the water. It was her element, and she was determined to get Wheero back. She kicked up a cloud of sand, and the water around them became opaque. He looked around, confused, when Cat dissapeared all of a sudden. Then something grabbed his foot, and he was dragged under.
It became quiet. Noises reverbrated creepily and softly in Wheero's ear, then he saw a slim and soaking wet figure pull him out onto the white sands. He lay there, gasping.
Cat snickered at her friend's astonished eyes. Then he registered that it must have been her, and he lept up. Cat remained sitting, legs crossed nonchalantly.
"Y...you got me..." he gasped dramatically.
"You were asking for it, 'Ro."
"Just as well. I feel refreshed from my little dunk in the water, Kitty Kat." She frowned.
"Don't call me that. I know that you think Ro's fine, but you know that I think 'Kitty Kat' isn't fine." Her tone was slightly scolding, and he grinned. He sat down, and they spent the rest of that sunny day hunting for pretty seashells. Ro made a string of coral shells for Cat's hair, and Cat presented him with a necklace, with a small clan shell at the base of the string. "Open it." she murmured softly. He did so, curiously, and his smile became soft. Inside was a little heart coral, and she whispered again, "It will not fall out. I enchanted the shell. Keep it," she said, closing his outstreched hand with her own. They gazed into each others eyes. Then a slight sense came over Cat, and she shook her head, eyes closed.
"What is it...?" asked Ro. She hesitated.
"Nothing...I just felt a little odd..." He smiled in understanding. But as Cat looked into that honest face, she got another stirring in her, fainter this time. It was dischord. She tried to beat it back, and it ran away, back into the depths of her mind. But, when they headed back to the hut, she knew it lurked there, waiting to spring up at the wrong moment.
Those days in T'ai Bo Wanni village were some of the happiest in her life so far. Ro was cheerful, engaging, and wonderful in almost every other way. The natives were friendly and she had a knack for their language, so she had no trouble communicating with them. She made some new friends, mostly wealthy travellers like her. But one of the friends Cat made was when she was dressed in her simple tan striped pirate shirt, and wearing nothing remotely costly. A shy little girl had gathered up the confidence to talk with this self-assured person, and Cat learned that the girl, Mira, had just bought membership. She was touring the world of Runescape as best as she could with very little supplies. Feeling kind, Cat gave her some tips and items. They departed with a feeling of goodwill and friendship, although Cat rarely ever saw her again. They spent a whole warm year holed up, down South, but Cat began to long for a snowfall. Wheero had been called away to an urgent war in Clan Wars, and the same night he got the message he and Cat stood on the verenda of their hut. The moon shone down, and Ro hugged her tearfully.
"I'll miss you, Kitty. I'll miss you very, beary much." He gave her another bear hug, and left her standing, looking at the space he had occupied a few moments before. Sad, Cat departed soon after he left. Little did she know that she would never see Wheero again...
She teleported to Falador from the seaside Port Sarim in the fall, tiring of the ever-present fish. She nibbled on some cabbage leaves as she walked around a shop. Its walls were white stone, and some citizens of Falador were quietly looking around. The air was musty, tinted with a slight hint of...was that lavender? Cat was not sure. She shook her head disdainfully at such pointless musings, and joined the little shuffling of the customers. It emptied out quickly as noontime passed by, and soon only three determined buyers were left: Cat, an amply proportioned lady, and a thin gangly man, who had glasses that kept on falling off. She moved away from the two, and passed through a door into an obviously well-kept room. She remembered seeing some people wearing some nice looking shirts and skirts, and she spotted them labeled as "Elegant blouse and Elegant skirt."
Delighted, Cat tried the white Ele' blouse on, and got it for 513 thousand. That may sound like a lot to you, but near nothing to her. She also bought the white ele' skirt, and the purple,blue, and green sets. To match, Cat selected some boots, and those items totaled up to about 600 thousand, not counting her new white blouse. The owner of the store showed her a secret little room off to the side. She gasped at the aura of power, and the owner, Lirkaz, nodded and added in a confedential tone,
"This room is one of my greatest secrets. Anything of great magic you need- come to me, and I'll have it"
Then he said, in an even lower tone, "Don't tell anybody else this, but I got some of these off the black market. You can't find an onyx ring much now, can you? Or an enchanted one, to boot." He hurried off, and the door closed with a faint click.
Cat picked up dragon boots. They were dark red, with cruel teeth-like spikes at the toes. Her eyes gleamed darkly. She looked for something dark, and found it in a red and black mystic robes. She bought those and dressed. Then she put on a black beret. She glanced in a mirror and froze. This Cat was tall, proud, beautiful, and a fierce glint was in those grey eyes. A lopsided smile grew upon her face. 'I could use this image," she thought,"...to intimidate the lesser peoples." She swept away, leaving an astonished and slightly frightened Lirkaz behind. She swept out a dragon scimitar at the guards, and they leaped aside, allowing her through the closing gates. It was twilight, the hour in which day teeters and falls to the darkness. She was swallowed by shadows before the guards could remember to throw some javelins after her. The wind blew coldly, and leaves twirled, unseen by mortal eyes.
Cat stopped on the way. A steel dagger lay on the ground before her. Stooping, she frowned and picked it up, and idly turned it over with her fingers. It had fine workmanship, and the hilt had a golden heart engraved on it. The heart made her think of Wheero, and that cruel grin became wistful and distant. Then she stood stock-still, hands rigid. The dagger clattered to the ground. A memory forced its way into her mind, a memory of her dark days. She had been standing in Lumbridge, and only about fifteen people were scattered around, occaisionally talking. There was a steel dagger on the ground..she had picked it up, and a flash of foresight had come to her. 'One of us will die soon. One of us that is in this very courtyard...' The scene dissolved. A tear ran down her perfect face. It landed on the dagger with a tiny plink. Somehow, to her ears, that little sad note sounded very final.
-Disclaimer- Cat Lover657 is NOT what she is described as here. She is not a member, nor does she have 700 mil, though she would very much like to! Cat Lover657 the name of my account, anyways. :/ And Jagex does not give out free membership. Sorry. It's a wonderful company though! Heh. One event is true though. (She did forsee the steel dagger thing, and someone did die later that day.) Thank you for understanding the misunderstanding! ;) Don't forget to give those plot bunnies reviews! They're getting hungry...*Looks around nervously and yelps*