Title: Of Cat and Boy
Author: Lady of the Ink
Pairing: Van & Merle friendship
Category: Drama
Rating: G
Disclaimer: I don't own Escaflowne, but you knew that. I hope. But I do own this story and all the plot twists it contains.

Chapter One
A New Beginning

He was big.

That was the first thing Merle noticed about him. Of course, she was small even for someone her age, so everyone seemed large to her. But she was sure normal sized people found him daunting. He was massively tall, and just as wide. The muscles on his arms were almost as big as her entire body!

The second thing she noticed were the scars. Crossing his face in downward slashes, one of the wide cuts went right down the middle of his eye. They were faded and healed, so she knew they had to have happened a long time ago. She winced just thinking about how much it had to have hurt.

But even though those things should have made him menacing, she wasn't scared of him. He had plucked her from the dark, wet place where she'd been sleeping, cold and hungry and alone. A warm blanket had been wrapped around her shivering body, and a cup of something hot and sweet thrust into her hands. When they trembled too much to hold the cup steady, another hand had wrapped around the metal, making the mug seem to shrink in comparison.

As night took firmer hold, a fire was built, and a place was made for her close to it. There were no kind, soothing words; in fact, there were no words at all. Just the silent presence of someone she somehow knew meant her no harm. It was a calming feeling that allowed her to sleep deeply for the first time in a long time.

She was woken before dawn the next morning with a shake on her shoulder. Again, there were no words, just a plate passed to her, filled with nourishing if not extravagant foods. As she ate, shoveling down the meal with a speed that spoke of too many nights left hungry, the man packed up his camp.

A sense of alarm filled her. He would leave now, and she would be just as alone as she'd been the night before. Her throat closed up, and she couldn't force herself to swallow another bite.

Apparently noticing her sudden lack of motion, the man turned to face her. Squinting slightly, he looked her over as she tried not to shake. A long moment passed as they stared at each other. When he spoke, his voice was a deep rumble, as substantial as his stature.

"I am going to Fanelia's castle. If you wish to come along, there may be a place for you there."

Merle just stared at him, trying to understand. This giant of a man had dropped into her life with no warning. The meal and blanket had been a welcome gesture, but one that was not altogether unusual. Once or twice another had taken pity on her and spared a small bit of food or clothing. Of course, they had all been woman, and probably mothers in their own lives, so their kindness was easier to understand.

But this man, a man baring the marks of a warrior, was willing to go a step farther. To give her a chance at something better. A home, maybe. Food in her stomach and a roof over her head. Maybe even . . . a family. Her teeth began to gnaw at her lower lip as she thought it over. The man seemed to understand her need for time, and stood motionless, waiting.

Should she trust him? Did she dare risk it? To go with this stranger, to somewhere new and unknown? Her eyes drifted to the trees around them, the only home she'd known for so long now. What would she be leaving behind, really? Cold, damp dirt for a bed, nights with only the sound of her growling stomach to keep the enveloping silence at bay?

A deep steadying breath filled her lungs as she came to a decision. Raising her eyes to the man, she searched his expression one last time. There was nothing unpleasant there, no hint that he had anything but what he said in mind. Swallowing hard once, she stood.

She would go.

They were getting close to the castle, she knew. The houses were becoming more frequent, and large numbers of people filled the streets, going about their days. She felt a surge of fear at the sheer number of them, so many more than she'd ever seen in one place before. It didn't help that they all seemed to be looking right at her. Trying to calm herself, Merle pressed closer to the man seated behind her on the horse.

There was a vibrating feeling against her back, and she knew that he was chuckling. A frown crossed her face, but she didn't say anything. She wasn't going to chance offending the one person who was slightly familiar and risk being dropped in the middle of the sea of strange faces. Just the thought of having to fend for herself here made her shiver.

Her first look at the castle stopped the breath in her throat. It was larger than anything she'd ever seen before. Massive walls rose towards the sky, windows like black, empty eyes watching over the town. Watching her.

She shivered again.

The next moments passed in a blur as the man led the horse to a stable and dismounted. Gathering the bundle of his belongings, he motioned for her to follow him. Weaving through small groups of people, she could feel them watching her with curious eyes. Thankful that the man's size made him easy to keep an eye on, she kept her gaze focused solely on him, and tried desperately to ignore everyone and everything else.

As she followed him inside a side door of the castle, her eyes quickly adjusted to the dim level of light. This hall seemed to be in the servants' section, clean but unembellished by wall hangings of any kind. She looked around as the man spoke to a woman, apparently questioning her about something. There wasn't much to see, really, but she had to do something to keep the nervousness at bay.

"Lord Van needs someone his own age . . ."

The man's words drifted to Merle's ears. She hadn't meant to eavesdrop, but she did have really good hearing. Who was Lord Van? Did he mean her when he said that? Unconsciously, she shifted closer to hear more.

"The Queen has been hard to locate recently. She's spending more time alone." The woman's answer was low pitched but respectful. Her tone suggested those actions were almost to be expected.

"I have to leave by sundown. Is there no way to find her?" The woman held her hands out in a helpless gesture.

"I'm sorry, Sir Balgus."

The man sighed heavily, casting a single, quick glance behind him. "Who's seeing to Lord Van, then?"

"His tutor, Master Josias."

"Bring him here, if you will."The woman nodded, and quickly vanished down the hall.

Shuffling her feet, Merle looked up to find the man, Balgus, apparently, looking at her. Straightening her shoulders, she lifted her chin. There was no way she was going to show him the stark terror that had flooded though her when she realized the meaning of what she'd overheard. He was setting off again tonight, leaving her here in this strange place alone.

"I'll leave word with someone, they'll make sure you're taken care of." His words, though well intentioned, were cold comfort. He was giving her an opportunity she probably wouldn't have gotten on her own, but what if she didn't like it here? Would she be able to find her way through the mobs of people?

Would they even let her go?

Before another word could be spoken, a man appeared from the direction the maid had taken. He seemed to be almost the exact opposite of Balgus, short instead of tall, slender instead of broad, with a paleness that spoke of little time spent outdoors. The mustache dotting his upper lip was thin and slick looking. She was sure he thought it looked good, judging by the way he kept smoothing it with his thumb and forefinger. But to her, it looked rather like a worm that had wiggled its way across his upper lip and gotten stuck there. She wrinkled her nose at the thought.

The man's eyes flickered over her, flaring with some emotion she couldn't name, but was sure she didn't like. Deliberately ignoring her, he turned so she was out of his line of sight. Now facing Balgus, he inclined his head.

"You wished to see me?"

"Yes." After that single word, his voice dropped to a low rumble that made it impossible for her to make out his exact words. It must have been something the other man found surprising though, because it wasn't too much longer before he was throwing an incredulous look back at her. Feeling uncomfortable, she tipped her head forward, allowing her tangled hair to hide her face. The two men continued to talk for what seemed like an awfully long time. Shifting her position several times, she wound up with her back against the wall, one shoeless foot swinging in lazy arcs in front of her.

When a heavy hand landed on her shoulder, Merle almost jumped out of her skin. She lifted her head to see Balgus looking at her closely. Squirming slightly under the inspection, she waited to see what he had to say. If she'd been hoping for a more in-depth explanation of what was going to happen, she was to be sadly disappointed.

"Everything's been arranged. You'll have a place here now." With a small squeeze to her shoulder and a smaller nod of acknowledgement towards the man, he turned on his heel. Seconds later, he had vanished through the same door they'd come in.

A shudder ran through her slight frame as the unsettling feeling she'd had upon the other man's arrival intensified. Turning to face him, she caught the now unhidden expression on his face. It was a mix of revulsion and superiority. She shuddered again.

As she watched him glare at her, she could see his nostrils flare and his lip curl. Regardless of what Balgus had said, this man obviously did not want her around. That thought was verified when he took a quick step forward and caught her shoulder in a bruising grip.

Barely managing not to cry out, she was nearly jerked off her feet as he half-ran down the hall. When she tried to pull away, he merely tightened his hold, his fingers digging deeply into her flesh. A small whimper was torn from her throat at the throbbing pain that shot down her arm.

"A cat girl!" she heard the man mutter under his breath. "He brings a cat girl and expects her to be allowed near the prince! Really, it's too much!"

Before the impact of his words could sink in, she found herself in a stifling room bursting with all sorts of sounds and smells. Cooking meat, clacking knives, the banging of pots being stirred, and the thuds of plates being stacked bombarded her senses.

"Laurinda!" The man called out, traces of anger and impatience coloring his voice. A moment passed with no visible response to his bellow. "Laurinda!"

"I'm right here," a mildly irritated voice answered from one side. Being jerked around so swiftly the room seemed to fuse into a multi-colored arc, Merle felt her stomach give a lurch. When it settled, she saw a short woman with graying hair standing in front of her, a fist planted on either hip. Her plump cheeks were flushed red from the heat in the room, and strands of hair had pulled free from her bun to curl around her face. She felt the woman give her a quick, though not altogether unkind, once over. "What is it that brings you to the kitchens, Master Josias?"

"Here," he answered, giving her already sore shoulder a firm shove to move her forward. "Do something with . . .this."

A bewildered look crossed the woman's face and her mouth opened, but before she could speak, the man cut in. "Set her to catching vermin, or scrubbing floors, or something else. It doesn't matter what. Just keep her out of the way." With that demand made, he relinquished his hold, turned on his heel, and left the room.

Merle heard the woman heave a sigh. For a long moment, she waited to see what would come next. Then a gentler hand pressed her forward, leading her down the entire length of the room. She caught a few muttered "poor dear" comments, but mostly tried to ignore everything around her. As she was shown to a small cubbyhole off to one side, a single thought was running through her mind.

'What have I gotten myself into?'

A/N: To make this story work, there was one detail that needed to be changed from the series' information. According to the Compendium, Merle was brought to Fanelia "in infancy". Obviously, Merle would not have been old enough to understand what was going on around her. So she's a little older in here, four or five, and everyone else's ages were bumped up accordingly.