Faithful 'Till the End

by Spirit Writer of The Republic

The cat spotted the orange glow of a fire. He walked towards it and entered the light with his tail high and waving like a banner. He meowed at the squire to pick him up and purred as she did so. And continued purring as his fur was dried and he was finally warmed.

Title: Faithful 'Til the End

Summary: The cat spotted the orange glow of a fire. He walked towards it and entered the light with his tail high and waving like a banner. He meowed at the squire to pick him up and purred as she did so. And continued purring as his fur was dried and he was finally warmed.

Category: Song of the Lioness

Genre: Friendship; some H/C

Characters: Alanna; Faithful

Author: Spirit Writer of the Republic

Song: Familiar's Promise

Artist: Heather Alexander

Cover Image: art/Alanna-Faithful-Portrait-86473640

Cover Image Artist: Maseiya

Disclaimer: Nothing is mine except my imagination.

A/N: A small one-shot I wanted to write while listening to Familiar Promise.

Dedicated to Sassy, the best cat I've ever owned.

Hope you're chasing all the mice and bugs you could ever want up there in heaven, my girl.

And to Pepper, the sweetest little ocelot.

Hope you have the freedom you deserve up there.

Italics: Flashback thingy Italics + underline: Song lyrics

~O~O~O~O~O~~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O~O

Lay your hand on my head

As the firelight dies

And believe what I said

For this love never lies

~Familiar Promise

The tiny black kitten shook its wet fur irritably, though the rain that poured down made it so this action didn't do much good. He hated this weather. Where was The Mother? And where was the squire he'd been told to find? Finally, through the trees, the cat spotted the orange glow of a fire. He walked towards it and entered the light with his tail high and waving like a banner. He meowed at the squire to pick him up and purred as she did so. And continued purring as his fur was dried and he was finally warmed.

~O~O~FAITHFUL'TILTHEEND~O~O~

I will guard you at night

And alert you to harm

Then we'll snuggle up tight

Just to keep us both warm.

The dying embers glowed faintly, illuminating the small black cat who sat beside it, motionless except for the occasional twitch of his tail. A black ear twitched back as the sleeping figure nearby sighed and rolled over in her sleep. The cat watched her, the dying flames reflecting in his lavender eyes. A long, low howl echoed through the dark woods, and the cat arched his back, every hair on his body standing up as he let out a low growl. The knight sleeping nearby opened her eyes slowly to see the creature standing in a fighting stance and quickly reached for her sword.

"What is it, Faithful?" she asked softly.

Faithful looked up at her, their matching violet eyes meeting as they had a silent conversation. Alanna grabbed a good sized branch and wrapped a piece of cloth around the end, willing the branch to catch fire before setting out in the direction of the howls. The wolves scurried away when they saw Alanna coming towards them, and the knight returned to her camp. She lay a gentle hand on Faithful's head, scratching the cat behind his ears. The small creature purred and curled up on her chest. Alanna sighed as her eyes drifted shut and she slipped back into dreamland. Faithful watched the low flames with half closed eyes. If a cat could smile, he certainly would have.

~O~O~FAITHFUL'TILTHEEND~O~O~

I will give you my heart

If you give me your hand

And it's never we'll part

Whilst beside you I stand

Alanna cried out in pain as her opponent knocked her sword from her hand and threw her to the ground as well. The Lioness curled up as the cutthroat group of criminals leapt on her at once, kicking at her, aiming for her head and chest. But a low growl and a hiss from the bushes caused them to look up. Just in time, for a black streak shot out, landing with claws extended on the leader's leg. The man yelled as sharp claws sunk into his flesh, tearing at his leg as the small, and very angry, cat climbed up his leg.

Another bandit grabbed the creature, managing to pull the cat off his fellow thief. But he made the mistake of holding the creature at eye level. Faithful hissed and clawed at his captor, leaving four good sized scratches along the side of the man's face. The man dropped Faithful, and now everyone saw the cat's unusual eyes. They ran for all they were worth, thinking Faithful was some sort of shape changer, a powerful sort of magician.

Alanna retrieved her sword and patted her familiar's head, frowning as her fingers touched something wet and sticky on Faithful's neck. A long cut ran from the cat's ear to the scruff of his neck. Fortunately, the wound was not deep, most likely from where a branch had managed to grab at him, but it seemed painful to the cat, who drew away from Alanna when she touched it. The Lioness gently stroked her cat's head, cooing softly until Faithful allowed her to touch the wound. She closed her eyes and called upon her magic. Her nose itched. She nudged at the ball of lilac flame. She had the greatest urge to sneeze. The ball of flame grew and the flame began to move down her arm, lavender flame that matched both her and Faithful's eyes. The cat mewed softly as he felt his skin close over the wound and he looked up at his mistress, nosing her hand gratefully.

~O~O~FAITHFUL'TILTHEEND~O~O~

I'll inspire you to laugh

I'll release you to cry

I'm the strong silent half

Of what we unify