"The recognizable characters appearing in this story are © Wizards of the Coast, Inc., all rights reserved. They are used without permission and for entertainment purposes only. No profit is being made by the author for writing this story. No infringement upon nor challenge to the rights of the copyright holders is intended; nor should any be inferred."
"A Gift from the Heart"
Never in her memory, not even in her youth on Icewind Dale, had there been such a winter as this. The elderly woman dragged her gaze away from the window, forcing herself up out of the comfortable chair. Catti-brie thought of the long, terrible winter after the defeat of the mad wizard, Akar Kessel, but, no, not even that ordeal could compare to the fury of wind-borne snowflakes that she saw day after day beyond the frosted glass. Straightening her back against the pain that threatened to keep her stooped, she set out determinedly for the cottage's kitchen. Another lonely meal that she didn't feel like preparing, much less eating.
"Ah, Drizzt, how I miss ye so!"
The sound of her voice only emphasized the depth of her loneliness. She and Drizzt had many friends who looked in on her almost every day, but her husband's absence created an empty ache within her that would not go away until his return.
The lack of purpose to her days was also a bitter potion to swallow. How she still yearned for the open road and the adventures found there! But she was of an age now when not even the wondrous, restorative magic imparted by the kindly elves of the Moonwood could stop her human body from growing feeble.
Catti-brie shook her head in silent chastisement. She pushed away the dark shadow of self-pity and reminded herself that she had so many blessings to be thankful for! She had her health, such as it was. There were her books, which permitted her to journey still to far-off lands, if only in her imagination. And then there was Drizzt. Catti-brie squeezed her eyes tightly shut to hold the tears at bay as she thought of the love she and Drizzt had shared over the past century. Ah, but that "durn elf," as Bruenor would say, could still make her heart leap for joy within her chest.
"Ah, Drizzt how I miss ye so!" she said again, but this time with a radiant smile that lit her face so that she looked once more like the young, impetuous girl who had fatefully met a certain drow elf on the slopes of Kelvin's Cairn so long ago.
Thinking of all that had transpired between that day and this, she busied herself in the kitchen. The magical, musical globe that Drizzt had given her on their fiftieth anniversary played gently in the background.
Suddenly, a vigorous knocking from outside cut through her cocoon of memories. Who could possibly be calling on her this late in the day?
She headed back into the cottage's common room, slowly making her way to the front hall. She opened the stout wooden door and stared at the young man standing there in the wind and snow. She recognized him as the stable boy at The Pipe and Drum, the small village's lone inn.
"Come in, Jotham, quickly now," Catti-brie said as she motioned the shivering lad inside.
"Th… th… th…" the poor boy stuttered through frozen lips. He finally managed to get out, "Thank you, ma'am."
"Now, I've told ye before; none of that lady-talk," the old woman gently scolded him.
Jotham grinned, "Sorry, Catti-brie."
"And what have ye got there?" she asked, pointing a bony finger at the sack in his hand.
"This," he declared, "is for you!"
Jotham carefully reached into the sack and pulled out a small, black bundle of fur. As he handed it to her, his grin threatened to swallow his ears.
"But, it's… it's a… a kitten," Catti-brie stammered. "Are ye sure… I mean, fer me?"
"Oh, yes, ma'am. And I was to give you this, too," Jotham assured her as he handed her an envelope.
Sure enough, her name was on the envelope. In Drizzt's handwriting!
"There's some food and milk in the sack for her, but she just ate so she shouldn't be hungry," Jotham explained as he reached for the door's latch. "I need to get back to the inn now. Bye!"
Before she could protest, he was gone back out into the cold night. Catti-brie stood there for a moment, cradling the wriggling kitten with one hand while clutching the unexpected correspondence in the other hand. Then, curiosity eating away at her, she made her way to her chair and settled into it.
The kitten curled up in Catti-brie's lap and promptly fell asleep as the old woman broke the seal on the envelope and pulled out a letter from her husband.
"Heart of my own heart, do you know how I am missing you? While I know this undertaking is important, I would not have agreed to Alustriel's request if you had not urged me to grant the High Lady my help. For your selflessness, I will bring you back a gift from that bookseller's shop where you spent so much coin the last time we visited Silverymoon! Until I return with that gift, I hope you find pleasure in this one. She was born just before I left and when I saw her in the inn's stable I knew she would make a fine companion for you in my absence. I left instructions that she be delivered to you as soon as she was weaned. I thought perhaps you might call her 'Guen.' When you look upon her, know how much I love you and long to be back home beside you. Drizzt."
Wiping at her tear-filled eyes, Catti-brie tenderly folded the letter and put it back in the envelope. She would re-read it many times while awaiting her beloved husband's return.
Gazing upon the little creature contentedly sleeping in her lap, she laughed in delight. A wee Guenhwyvar, indeed!