Unbeta-ed
Story
The sun was high in the sky, the light intruding into the room uninvited. The bright rays bathed the sleeping form that was resting in the room, still lying in bed. A sound emanated in the room, a mix between a growl and a moan.
It was a cloudless, sunny day, and no curtains was placed on her window, so she did the only thing she could think of, and pulled the covers over her head as another feral noise escaped her throat in irritation.
"How long was I asleep?" She mumbled, her voice coming out raspy and horse from all the crying she did last night. "I can't remember when I fell asleep…" She slowly opened her eyes, seeing the thin fabric surrounding her. She then peeked her head out from the covers, her ears popping up first, before her blue eyes scanned the room she was in. She paused, trying to remember where she was and what happened. Her mind was a fog as sleep still clouded her mind, and her ears gave a twitch in thought.
She looked down at herself and her expression dropped.
"That's right." She looked around the room again, her eyes holding more sadness this time as images of what happened yesterday came back to her. "Third Earth." She sat up straight in her bed, and looked at the window. "ThunderCats and…" She looked down at herself once more and sighed. "I'm a not human." She then spoke something else that she remembered about yesterday. "Lion-O." That particular thought caused her to smile, instead of frown.
She quickly shook her head and tried to rid herself of negative thoughts for now, she had enough time to cry last night. Though it was hard not to just curl up and cry again— even though she wanted too—she knew it was more important to figure out what to do. She was in a new world again. There must be a reason for it, and like before, there should be a way to get back home. If she got here, she could get back. Maybe even find a way to change back to her human from.
She wiggled her toes from underneath the covers, groaning slightly, as her body still ached from yesterday's exercise.
"If you would call it that." More like running for her life… again. Why is it always like this? She comes to a new world and everyone wants to either kidnap her or kill her. She sighed. "At least I will never get fat with all the running I do." She smiled to herself at her own joke. Even so, she is glad she is just aching, and not in any more pain like before. "Tygra did a good job." At least he knows what he is doing… kind of.
She paused, before thinking to herself. If she is to find out about the world here, she should start trying to learn how to speak English, and fast.
"Let me see if I can say that in English." She tried to think of all the words she knew in English, placing her hand under her chin in thought. She knew small, common words, like shoes, home, eat, big, small, tall, short, 'I am a pen'. She groaned, scratching her head. It's been so long really, her English is kind of rusty. "Tygra… good…" She hummed. "Tygra good job?" She repeated once more. "Tygra good job." She nodded. She didn't think it sounded completely right, but it will do for now. "Just hope I don't make a fool of myself when I try to talk to them…" She mumbled as she scooted to the edge of the bed, and placed her feet onto the floor.
She shivered, feeling the cold chill of the floor crawl up her legs. Yet she paid it no mind, and stood up, putting her full weight on her legs—she stumbled, her lower limbs feeling stiff and instantly buckling from the sudden weight. She placed her hand onto her bed for support and she stood there a moment. She took a deep breath and tried to ignore the small stabs of pain that shot up her legs every so often.
"It will go away." She told herself. "I just have to work out the soreness in my muscles." Even so, she should take it easy today. "Darn, guess I can't run that marathon I had planned today." She joked. She giggled slightly, but then looked, noticing that no one else was around, and that she was the only one laughing at her joke. She sighed, feeling slightly embarrassed. "I should go find the others."
She overslept and they might be worried—and she was feeling lonely, all of a sudden…
Kagome started walking down the hallway, taking a right turn here, or a left corner there, but the fact was, she had no idea where she was going. Lion-O gave her the full tour yesterday, but his home was rather large, and it will take several weeks if not months for her to remember all the twists and turns of the cat-shape building.
She kept her right hand up, gently touching the wall as she walked. Every now and then her legs would send a random jolt of pain up her leg, causing her to stumble. After the first few times of her almost falling, she decided to keep her hand up on the wall for support—
"Dang blast it!" A sound came from around the corner, causing her to pause. "Worthless piece of junk!" The shout was soon followed by several clangs and powerful hit, as if someone was hammering metal against metal. Kagome wasn't sure what he was saying, but whoever it was sounded upset…
Being curious, she took the few steps needed before she rounded the corner. When she did, she came upon an already open doorway, and inside was a huge garage like room. Once she entered she got a good look around. There were screens and gadgets everywhere, tools and parts laid scattered among several piles of metal, wires, and other objects. In the middle of the huge room was the 'ThunderTank' she believe that's what Lion-O called it. It was lifted a foot or two off the ground, and Kagome could see someone lying underneath of the metal vehicle. She had to hold in her giggles, for the cat was underneath the front, so it looked as if the cat-tank was eating the poor feline, his top body gone, leaving only his legs sticking out.
"Blasted stabilizer spirals are completely shot." Kagome now figured out that the one underneath the tank was the one they called 'Panthro.' She took a few more steps, to get a better look, and stood beside him, making sure not to step on any of the tools that were lying on the floor near his legs—"Lion-O?" He suddenly called out, causing her to jump.
"…?" She looked around before pointing to herself. Which was silly, considering he could not see her. She wasn't Lion—
"Hand me that wrench, will you?" His clawed hand suddenly popped out from underneath the tank, and he was pointing towards one of the tools by his side. She paused for a moment, before crouching down, and picking up the tool. She could only hope that she got the right one, and reached out, putting it into his open palm. "Thanks." Was his reply as he withdrew his arm back underneath the tank. There were some more noises, before he stuck his hand back out pointing to a different tool. "Screwdriver." Kagome smiled, and leaned over to pick out the tool he pointed at, before placing it into his hand, happy to be helping him. "Thanks." After his hand disappeared once more, there were several grunts and a few grinding metal noises, before a now familiar hand popped back out. "Torque wrench." This time he just held his hand out, and did not point to anyone of the tools.
Kagome nibbled on her lip and glanced at the items still sprawled out onto the floor. What is a 'Torque wrench?' The fact that she got the first two right was a miracle. If he wasn't point at them—
"It is in the tool box." Panthro spoke out pointing, not at the tools, but at a large red tool box a few feet behind her. She sighed in relief and walked over to the large red metal box carrier. So it's in here-? Her eyes went wide when she looked down at all the tools placed inside of the drawers. She quickly closed the draw and pulled out another. She frowned, and nibbled on her lip once more. She picked up the tool lying on the very top of the pile, hoping that she picked the right one. She walked over to Panthro and crouched down, hugging her knees up to her chest, and laid the tool into his hand. "Thanks." His hand disappeared once more and she sighed in relief—"What the— This is a wire cutter!" There was a few clanging noises and she watched as more of his legs start to get exposed as he began scooting himself out from underneath the tank. "You should know the difference between a wire cutter and a torque—" He paused in his small rant when his eyes locked onto her blue ones, as he was leaning against his elbow, propping himself up. He looked at her in surprise. "I thought you were Lion-O!" He seemed to find his mistake funny and laughed, which caused her to smile.
"No." She shook her head. "No Lion-O."
"I see that now." He chuckled as he stood up. She followed his example and stood up as well.
"Tour- wench?" She said as she pointed down at his hand. He looked at his hand before shaking his head.
"No, this isn't a torque wrench." He told her. "It's alright though, I'll get it." He chuckled as he walked over to the red box. She watched as he rummaged through the piles of tools before pulling something out. As he walked back over to her, he held out the tool for her to see better. "This is a torque wrench." He told her. She put it to memory, as well as the other two tool's names, hoping that she wouldn't forget how they are pronounced.
"Panthro good job." She smile at him as he paused and turned towards her.
"Thanks." He replied, before chuckling in amusement. She put the word 'thanks' into her mind, remembering the fact that he said that same word before, whenever she handed him a tool. It must be a word of gratitude of some sort- "You did a pretty good job too, considering you probably can't understand a word I am saying."
Kagome quickly tried to put his words together in her mind, so she could reply. Yet all she understood was 'You blah blurg blob good job blah bleh blerh.' Putting the only words together she knew 'You good job.' She just told him that he did a good job few seconds ago—So she figured the correct response to 'good job' was—
"Thanks." She smiled up at him. He looked at her in surprise, before he smiled. Reaching out he playfully ruffled her hair, which caused her to smile.
Guess she said the right thing…
After spending a little bit longer with Panthro, learning what words she could, she soon left. She didn't want to stay too long with the tough looking cat, for she knew even though he seemed okay with her being there, she could tell that all her questions was interrupting his work with the tank, so she left.
She walked down several more halls, her right hand against the wall for balance. She walked by a door, and like all the others she passed before, it opened up automatically, and she paid it no mind and continued—she paused when something orange caught her attention out of the corner of her eyes. She stopped in the doorway and looked, smiling when she saw a familiar striped feline sitting in the room.
He was sitting on a stool, at a table. Before him were several test tubes, beakers, and different colored liquid boiling in clear jars. There were several other tables with the same equipment in the room, along with a few blackboards and some chalk. She quickly figured out this must be some sort of laboratory, and began walking towards the table Tygra was sitting at.
Yet after just walking a few steps into the room, Tygra saw her out of the corner of his eye and paused in his study. He lowered the beakers he had in his hand, and smiled at her as she continued to walk towards him.
"Kagome." He smiled. Unlike Panthro, he didn't mistake her for Lion-O… Then again, he didn't have a half ton vehicle on top of him, blocking his view.
"Tygra." She greeted him back with the same enthusiasm.
"So you're finally awake. Did you sleep well?" He asked, placing the objects in his hands onto the table and standing up. "How are your legs? Do they hurt?" Once she reached him, he crouched down and looked at her legs. She raised an eyebrow, wondering what he was doing. He paused for a moment in his observing and looked up. He must have seen her expression for he cleared his throat and stood back up. "Sorry." He patted the extra stool at his table. "Sit."
"…?" She was unsure, but sat down on the stool. She watched as he kneeled once more and gently took her left calf into his hands. She immediately tensed up, but then after a moment when no pain came she sighed.
"A lot better reaction then the last time I did that." He was talking to himself. He then began to move his hand down her leg, squeezing and putting pressure on it. At certain spots she couldn't stop the hissing and wincing that came forth, when a jolt of pain suddenly would shoot up her leg. Damn those spots are sore! And he knew just were each and every one of them were too-
"Ouch!" She hissed.
"Sorry." He was watching her reaction carefully, but after that last one, he finally stopped his prodding and began his gentle massage instead. Ah~ much better. She sighed as her leg started to tingle. "The sore and tenseness as lessened considerably, all that rest helped greatly. At this rate you should be back to normal by tomorrow, but try not to overwork yourself today. Okay?" He spoke to her as he moved to the other leg and started to rub the kinks out of that one as well. Her tail twitched behind her, pleased, as a purring sound started to vibrate in her chest. He gave a small chuckle. "I'll take that as a 'yes." In her opinion the soothing rub was over much too quickly, and a small pout appeared on her face as she watched him stand back up.
"Tygra good job!" She tried her best to praise him the only way she knew how.
"Thank you." He replied with a smile of his own. She paused for a moment, realizing that his reply was different then Panthro's. It wasn't too much different, but still... "You want to stay here and keep me company while I experiment on some new minerals I found in the forest?"
"…?" She just blinked up at him, unsure of what he said.
"Do you want to stay and watch me?" He tried to ask again. She tilted her head, thinking carefully about what he said. Judging by the way he is looking at her, he wants a reply—
"Stay watch Tygra?" She spoke the only words she understood. He just nodded. "Yes." She nodded back, placing her hands onto her lap. He smile softly before sitting back down on his stool and picked up the beakers he hand earlier, continuing the work he was doing before she arrived.
Watching him doing… whatever it is he was doing, seemed interesting enough.
She focused her gaze on the tiger in front of her, yet after just a few minutes of watching him dump one liquid into another, then put another drop into a glass tube she began to get impatient, just like she did with Panthro.
And just like with the tough panther, her mind and eyes began to wander and she searched the room, curious. She stood back up, and began to walk around the table.
She found an empty glass container, and picked it up. She looked at it for a moment before looking towards the tiger.
"Tygra?" She asked.
"Hmm?" He paused in his experiment, when he heard his name. She held up the item in her hand, tilting her head. "What's that?" He asked. "That is a beaker." Just like Panthro, whenever she spoke his name and held up an item, he said the word's meaning.
"That is a beaker." She repeated him.
"No." He shook his head.
"No?" She pouted a little.
"Beaker." He spoke one word, lifting up an empty beaker of his own.
"Beaker." She repeated. He nodded then went back to his work. She smiled, before putting down the beaker and picking up a different empty glass. "Tygra?" She called to catch his attention and he look towards her again.
"What's that?" He said again. "That is a test tube."
"Test tube…" She figured out 'that is a' is not the meaning of anything, but something else, and the ending of those particular words is what the item is. Tygra nodded. "You are a pretty fast learner." He noticed, he smiled at her before going back to his work. He began writing something down in the notepad before him—
Maybe Tyra is more patient then Panthro and will help her learn more words…
"Tygra?" She called again. He paused in his writing, looking at her once more. She held up a different kind of liquid bottle.
"What's that?" Third time he said that, she noticed. She began wondering what those words meant. "Water." After giving her the answer he went back to his writing.
"Water." She repeated. She watched as he lifted up a beaker with a green liquid inside. She placed hers down and stared at what he was doing.
She has made several wild guesses, on the meaning of words, judging them by how people reply to certain words and how many times they said certain things. It worked with Panthro and the word 'thanks'. Maybe it will work again? She sighed wondering if she will just end up looking stupid instead…
"What's that?" She questioned.
"Acid." He told her, as he continued to swirl the liquid a few more times—He paused, his eyes going wide for a second and he glanced at her.
Did she say the wrong thing? But he answered her when she asked…
"You catch on quicker than I thought." He smiled at her. Why was he smiling at her?
Then she finally understood that she did say the right thing, and she was being smart after all—not stupid. She smiled back, happy.
"What's that?" Kagome held up yet another object for him to identify.
"Chalk." Tygra was now enjoying himself. His full attention was on her, as she walked around the room and picked up random things, asking him what they were called.
He was sitting on a stool in the middle of the room, watching her as she happily held up something asking 'What's that.' He didn't bother to correct her in the tenses she was using. The correct way of asking something you are holding is: 'what is this?' while 'what is that?' is used mostly if it is in someone else's possession or far away. (?) But correcting her now with something like that in such early stages of her trying to learn a new language might confuse her, so he just let her be and enjoy her lesson for today.
"What's that?" She asked.
"Blackboard." He replied.
He hummed placing his hand under his chin in thought. She is a fast learner, and within no time at all she will learn English, at the rate she is going—if only she would stay this enthused about learning English the whole time, even with the more detailed things, like sentence structure, that is the key, as long as she is interested she shouldn't have too much problem.
"What's that?" He heard her, and he glanced at what she was holding up.
"If she has a right teacher…" He mumbled to himself. "That is my lunch." He told her, seeing her holding up a small metal box.
"My…?" She seemed confused by his answer.
"Lunch." He told her. "I am going to eat it." He was supposed to have eaten it hours ago—guess it is now his dinner instead…
"Eat?" She said the only word she understood and looked down at the box. She then opened the container and looked inside. "Tygra's lunch?" He nodded and she smiled—Suddenly a growl filled the room and he looked at her questionably. A light blush was on her face as she looked down at her stomach. "Kagome's lunch?" She asked, looking at him for permission. He just laughed and stood up from his seat.
"I don't mind sharing my lunch with you." When he reached her, he pulled out the two wrapped sandwiches that he made this morning, and held out one to her. She smiled and took it, before placing the metal container down.
"Thanks."
"You're welcome." He sat down at the table, and she sat beside him. We both carefully unwrapped our meals, and he growled when the smell of the fish hit his nose, and he licked his lips. It was in that moment that he realized that he was famished as well-
"Itadakimasu." He heard her say something beside him and he glanced at her. He watched as she pulled her hands apart from the praying position and began eating.
Must have been giving thanks of some kind…
"…" He placed his hands together respectfully and lowered his head. "Itadakimasu." He hoped that he pronounced it right— He glanced over at her, and saw that she paused in mid-bite staring at him.
A bright smile spread over his face, her cheeks taking on a slight pink hue in joy, and he couldn't help but smile back at her.
Kagome sat in her stool, trying not to drool too much as she nibbled on her sandwich. She hasn't eaten since she got here, and she was starved.
She tried to control the urge to just stuff the entire sandwich in her mouth, wishing to get as much food in her stomach as fast as possible. Instead she opted to peel small pieces from the sandwich at a time and nibble on it slowly. If she ate too quickly, her empty stomach might end up rejecting it. She stopped herself from making any disgusting expression at the mere thought of throwing her food back up. Would have been a waste-
"Kagome?" Hearing the sound of her name she paused in her nibbling and looked towards the ThunderCat sitting beside her. "Would you like it if I was your teacher?" He was obviously asking her something, but she couldn't understand what.
"…?" She just tilted her head, unsure of how to respond.
"Hmmm." He put his hand under his chin as he tried to think of a different way of putting it. "I can teach you how to speak English, if you want me to." He offered.
"Kagome speak English?" She repeated the only real words she understood, trying to put what he meant together. Is he trying to say he wants me to speak English? But she thought she was speaking English? Is it really that bad…? "Kagome no speak good English?" She tried to word her concerns to him the best she could—
"No." Tygra shook his head, waving his arms in front of him in defense. "I mean, yes." He paused. "That's not what I meant." He seemed to be confusing himself as he began to make hand gestures before finally looking defeated and sighing, scratching his head in embarrassment. "I want to teach you."
"Teach?"
"Yes." He nodded. "I've been teaching you English all day, for example." He reached out and picked up one of the objects on the table, before placing it down in front of her. "What's that?" He pointed to it. She thought back as she looked at the container.
"Beaker, water." She repeated the words, saying them both, unsure of which one he wanted to know the word to.
"Yes." He smiled. "I will help you speak English."
"Tygra help me English?" Her ears twitched.
"Teach you."
"Teach." She repeated the word again. "Tygra teach me speak English?" The words blurted out as she tried to figure out what he was trying to say.
"Yes!" He smiled at her nodding.
"Tygra…" She paused, replaying what she just said, in her mind, and figuring out what it meant. "Tygra teach me speak English!" She stood up in her chair, surprised.
"Yes!" His smile got bigger.
"Tygra!" She got so excited and happy, that she jumped up, wrapping arms her around his neck, and her legs came up, instinctively going around his waist. He laughed, quickly catching her and putting his hand on the table to stop his stool from tipping over from the quick motion. "Thanks!" She squeezed her arms tighter around him. His laugh turned into an amused chuckle as he patted her on the back.
"I'm happy you are so excited about it…"
"Tygra!" An urgent shout echoed in the hallway, catching his attention. "Tygra!" They repeated. "She is not in her bed!" He looked up just in time to see the door open up, revealing Lion-O. "Kagome is miss..." His words were frozen as he stared at them. "ing…" He finally finished his sentence, yet he was still in slight shock.
"I guess you found her then, Lion-O." He tried to joke, to ease the tension that was quickly suffocating the room.
"Lion-O!" Kagome called to the young lord. Within moments she jumped off of him.
"Whoa!" Tygra couldn't stop the small shout that escaped his lips as his stool almost completely toppled over from the violent movement. He reached out and grasped the table beside him to sturdy himself. He watched with a small smile as Kagome ran across the room in record time and wrapped her arms around Lion-O's abdomen. The usually strong lord stumbled slightly from the sudden impact and was snapped out of his daze.
"Tygra teach me speak English!" She was so excited about it she couldn't wait to tell him.
"He is?" He was too stunned to move, unsure of how to respond to her excited embrace. "Well that's—that's great." He finally regained himself and gently took a step back, just enough so that he was looking down at her. "That is really good, Kagome." He took a deep breath and sighed. "I was going to go get her for dinner. I thought she was in her room, sleeping all day. When I didn't see her…"
"It's okay to worry Lion-O, but don't stress yourself too much. You are not alone. It is all of the ThunderCats reasonability to look after her, not just yours." He tried to tell his younger leader to not get so worried and that she is well taken care of. "She is safe here."
"You are right, Tygra." He backed away from Kagome, and just by looking at his expression, he could tell that their leader was feeling better. "Do you want to go eat dinner with the others?" He asked her.
"Eat?" Kagome seemed to be thinking it over, before she looked over her shoulder and towards Tygra. "Me eat Tygra's lunch." She confessed.
"Oh, I see, you already ate." Lion-O sighed and scratched his head. "Snarf might not be too pleased with that, since he worked so hard on making dinner especially for you tonight, but I'll see that he saves you some in case you get hungry later."
Tygra watched as Kagome suddenly yawned, revealing her pearly white fangs to the world. This caused him to smirk in amusement.
"It's getting kind of late." Standing up he began walking towards her. "You are probably tired." Once he reached them he patted the small female on the shoulder. "You should go to bed early." He gave some advice. "The rest will do you good and ease the tense muscles in your legs."
"Muscles." She repeated the word she heard him use last night. "Kagome bed." She nodded, agreeing. She gave another yawn, before she looked up at both of them. She suddenly bowed towards them, which caused them to pause and raise an eyebrow. "Good night." When she stood back up, she waved to them goodbye, as she began to leave the room.
Both Tygra and Lion-O continued to wave back to her, until the door shut closed behind her.
Her legs were like jelly. Her body ached, she felt exhausted, and within every few steps, a pain would shoot up her leg and she would stumble, forcing her to brace herself against the wall.
"How long has it been since I left the lab room?" She questioned to herself. It has been hours…
If only she was smart enough to ask one either Lion-O or Tygra to take her to her room. She shook her head. She was too excited about Tygra's offer to teach her English that she completely forgot the fact that she only found his laboratory by complete accident.
Since she left them, she's been stumbling around in the empty dark hallway for hours, unable to find anyone, much less her room. The long period of being on her feet has caused the pain in her legs to flare back up, and she has tried everything she could think of to get back to the lab, knowing that trying to find her room is probably a lost cause at this point. Yet this too, only served to make her even more confused and lost. She tried to retrace her steps, but she then ended up in a hallway she never even seen before.
As she glanced around the unknown structure surrounding her, she placed one foot in front of the other, wincing every now and then when a small spark of pain poked at her in the back of her mind, reminding her that the fact that she being lost, wasn't the only problem she had at the moment…
Why did this place have to be so big? She nibbled on her lower lip and leaned her shoulder against the wall beside her for support. Her morale finally taking a beating and she found herself defeated.
"Kagome?" Her ears perked up at the sound of someone calling her name from behind her. She turned her head to look over her shoulder—Her eyes lit up with relief when she spotted a familiar red mane of hair with a concerned expression on his face. "I saw you never returned to your room and I got worried—"
"Lion-O!" She called out to him in relief and pushed herself away from the wall to walk towards him. She gave a small hiss when a sudden pain hit her and her legs buckled beneath her.
"Whoa!" He was at her side in an instant and caught her as she was falling, placing his arm behind her back for support, and lifted her up. "I got you." She leaned on him for support and sighed, her tail curling around her in a comforting manner. "Are you alright?" She could hear the worry tone in his voice. She shook her head, which caused his eyebrows to angle together.
"Muscles." She confessed. She sighed, wishing she knew the word for 'lost.'
"Yes. Tygra told me about your leg muscles being the cause of your pain. I'll carry you back." He bent down and placed his other arm behind her knees. She quickly realized what he was going to do and shook her head, and backed away—Her legs gave out on her a second time, yet he quickly caught her again. "I know you are stubborn, but now isn't the time." So she yet again found herself carried by the young cat, as if she was a fragile package.
"…" She sighed, feeling her ears droop and her face heat up slightly from the kind gesture. "I no room."
"No room? I have room to carry you." She could feel the muscles in his arms tighten around her and her blush deepened. She shook her head, and tried to explain again.
"I no see my room."
"Oh." He finally understood. "You can't find your room?" He seemed to be in deep thought. "I didn't think about the fact that the lair might be too big for you to learn your way around in just one tour." Guilt flashed across his face. "I'm sorry, that is my fault." The guilty look on his face quickly went away and he smiled down at her. "I'll be your chauffeur while you are here, until you can find our own way around without getting lost." He offered. "Does that sound alright?"
"Chauffeur?" She asked, tilting her head.
"I'm going to carry you everywhere." He once again flexed his arms and she wiggled in his hold, her blush coming back.
"No carry." She shook her head.
"Aww, that's no fun." He teased.
"No carry." She repeated again, just to make sure he understood.
"Alright, alright." He nodded. "No carry."
"…" Kagome couldn't help but let her eyes wander to Lion-O's strong built arms that was at the moment carrying her with ease. "Lion-O's muscles big." She felt her body shift, the lord caught off guard by her words and stumbling. She looked away from his arms and up at his face, questioning his sudden slip.
Yet she was left wondering if she said the right thing, when she saw that his usually cream colored fur was stained crimson red.
Kagome sighed as she stared at herself in the mirror. She had on a tank top style shirt with tight long length pants, the right leg cut off as short shorts, showing off her thigh. She looked down at her toes, smiling as she wiggled them. Wearing shoes just didn't seem natural any more, she wasn't sure why.
She also didn't understand why all the ThunderCats uniform were all skin tight outfits, even the males, but she just went with it anyway. She shrugged, and turned her hips so she could stare at her backside, she smiled, seeing her tail swished to and fro, sticking out of the hole built in her uniform. She purred, before finally decided she had enough of looking at herself, and walked out of her room.
Since Lion-O's room was right next to hers, she didn't have to walk far. When she walked up to the door, she just continued on and the door opened automatically for her. She paused when she spotted a lump still lying in his bed.
"He must be tired." She was talking to herself, smiling when she saw his red flaming mane of hair sticking out of the covers. "I won't bother him." She decided he should just keep sleeping, and walked out of the room to give him privacy.
She knew the lord of the ThunderCats was sleeping, but Kagome felt the need to go exploring today. Her legs felt great, and after last night's sleep she felt like her old self again, just like Tygra said. No more pain, as if it never even happened, and it made her want to go wandering around in the lair. Not only that but she should try and learn the ins and outs of her temporary home.
She knew better then to go on her own, after being lost for so long last night, but the young lord was asleep and she did not wish to wake him. She glanced back at Lion-O's doorway, weighing her options…
She then shrugged and started walking down the hallway.
There was no way she could possibly get into too much trouble on her own…
The hallway was long and dull, as was every corridor in the lair it seemed. She would take a left, then a right, even though she didn't know where she was, much less where she was going.
"…" She paused and placed her hand under her chin in thought.
A small set of giggles broke her concentration and she pause. She looked behind her, but when she did not spot anyone she shrugged and continued down the hallway.
She took a few turns, but then when she saw something familiar she paused.
"Haven't I seen this before?" She questioned to herself as she stared at the flower pot placed in the hallway.
"Lion-O isn't with her…" A voice came from behind her, causing her ears to twitch in response.
"Is she lost?" The person then started to giggle once again in amusement.
"Shhhh, be quiet." Another voice spoke up.
She quickly turned around, trying to catch the spies in the act, but when she yet again did not see anyone, her eyes narrowed, her lips thinning into a small frown. She snorted, before turning on her heels and walking forward once more.
She couldn't understand what they were saying, but she knew they were laughing at her…
"I'm walking in circles." Kagome finally admitted defeat and sighed, staring at the unusual plant for the fifth time. How many times did she pass this flower?
"She's lost." The voices came back again. She has been hearing their hushed laughs for a while now…
"Definitely…"
"Then why don't you help her?"
"I'm not going to help her—You help her."
"Me?" The voice cracked slightly. "I can't understand her."
"You think I can-"
"Hello." Kagome spoke up from behind their crouched position.
"Ah!" They both screamed out in surprise, jumping to their feet and turning to face her.
"H-hey." The girl, Wilykit, wave to her.
"Hello…" The boy, Wilykat, was looking down in embarrassment at getting caught, and was moving his foot around in a circle.
"…" She smirked down at them, before reaching out and ruffling their hair in a playful manner, which caused them to laugh at the treatment. When she was done, she crouched down so she could stare at them in the eyes. "Help me?" She asked, tilting her head at them.
"…" They both looked at each other, as if weighting their options.
"I don't see why not." The girl shrugged.
"Where do you want to go?" Wilykat looked at her.
"Lunch." She told them.
"Lunch?" Wilykat questioned, confused. "But it's only eight in the morning."
"Well breakfast or lunch, they are both in the kitchen." Wilykit tried to reason with him.
"Oh alright." He shrugged.
"Follow us." They both waved to her over their shoulders and turned around.
She nodded and followed them silently.
"Here is the kitchen." Wilykit spoke as they walked into a large kitchen, and Kagome smiled, nodding.
"Thanks." She walked forward, but then she felt two pairs of small hands grab both of her hands, causing her to pause.
"If you are hungry, we will get it for you, sit at the dining table." As Kat spoke, they started to drag her to an open doorway, and once she passed it she saw a long table sitting in the middle of the room. "Here." The boy pulled out a chair for her. "Sit."
"…" She smiled at their kindness. "Thanks…" She plopped down in the chair—
A loud noise suddenly sounded from beneath her, under her butt, causing her to freeze up. Hearing the children's laughter, her cheeks took on a rosy color and she lifted her rump just enough to reach underneath it. She pulled out a whoopee cushion and she smirked.
So she has a couple of pranksters on her hands, uh?
Today is going to be an interesting day…
Kagome was sitting at the table, staring at the fruit that was laying on her plate. They were of different shapes and colors. Some spotted, others striped, one of them was white on the surface, yet once she cut it with a knife, it was layered like a rainbow on the inside. It was all so strange.
Was she actually supposed to eat this? She questioned to herself, yet when she looked up from her strange assortment of food, she saw that the kittens were already nibbling on their own fruit, enjoying it, as they chatted among themselves.
Reaching out, she picked up one of the striped fruit, before placing it up to her nose. After sniffing it, she hesitantly put it up to her lips. She swallowed in nervousness, before finally deciding to just go for it and took a small nibble off of it. The juice exploded in her mouth and she was hit with a ripe flavor that she has never tasted before, yet that didn't mean it was bad, in fact it was very good!
Within just a few bites that juicy fruit was gone, leaving only the core left. She purred to herself, her tail swishing back and forth behind her, as she reached out to take another helping.
The sound of the door behind her opening up caused her to pause, and she glanced behind her shoulder.
"Oh, here you are." A familiar voice called out as he sighed in relief. "You are with Wilykit and Kat."
"Good morning Lion-O." Kat waved to him, a piece of fruit in his mouth.
"Good morning Lion-O." Kit also repeated the same thing, and waved to him, yet unlike her bother, she did not talk with her mouth full.
"Good morning." He nodded, greeting them back, as he walked up to the table. Once he reached where she was sitting, he looked down at her. "Good morning."
"…?" She just looked up at him, raising an eyebrow.
"Good morning." He repeated.
"Good morning?" She guessed this was a common thing to say to each other in greeting. His amber eyes shone as he looked down at her, proud, and she had to fight back a sudden rush of heat that wanted to come to the surface of her cheeks. She tried to ignore the feeling and looked back to her plate of food, reaching for another piece of fruit.
"You are just in time." Kit spoke up.
"Yeah, come and eat with us." Kat never stopped stuffing his face, even as he talked.
"I'm sorry, I can't" The cat raised his hand looking apologetic. "In fact, I'm glad you guys are getting along so well…" As he let his voice fade, hinting at something, the two kittens paused, looking at him questionably. "I have some business I have to do. The mutants have been spotted in the forest, and I need to go survey the area. I told Kagome I would look after her and take her wherever she wanted to go, until she could move around the lair on her own…" At this point the two children kind of understood where things were going, and their expression dropped.
"Well Lion-O that's great and all but umm…" Kat quickly tried to interrupt him.
"We had planned to go out and ride our hoverboards today." Both the kids quickly stood up from their chairs, sprinting towards the doorway.
"Not so fast." Lion-O reached out and grabbed them by the scruff of their shirts, as they tried to hurry past him, lifting them in the air with ease. His stern voice left no room for argument as he placed them so they stood in front of him. "I know you guys had plans, but I need you to do me this favor." He crouched so that he could look them in the eyes. "Can you look after Kagome for me today? She doesn't know her way around, and can easily get lost."
"Yeah, we already found that out…" Kat mumbled under his breath and he glanced at the black furred feline still sitting in her chair, staring at them curiously.
"Lion-O we are not cat-sitters." Kit whined.
"And why us? Can't you get Panthro or Tygra—Even snarf to do it?" Kat tried to weasel his way out of it.
"Because, I asked you." Lion-O sounded as if he had some different grown-up meaning behind those words. "I think you need to get to know her better, and I'm sure you will like her." He placed his hands onto either one of their shoulders. "Please?"
"…?" Kagome looked at the three cats, wondering what they were discussing. It must have something to do with her. Her ears twitched, and her tail snapped behind her in aggravation. If only she knew more English words—
"Oh, alright." Kit gave in, her shoulders deflating.
"We will look after her." Kat sighed, crossing his arms over his chest defiantly.
"Promise?" He looked at both of them in the eyes.
"Promise." Though they both knew they would not like it.
"Good." His shoulders visibly relaxed and he smiled. "I'll see you guys later this evening." As he stood up, he waved to Kagome, who was still watching the conversation with mild interest. "See you later, Kagome."
"…?" She waved back, and he smiled. He then turned and walked back out of the room, leaving the two kittens alone with the female. She stared at the door, slightly worried, as she still continued to wave goodbye.
When she finally stopped waving, she looked down at the two children, and saw they had a disappointed look on their face. By looking at their grumpy dispossessions, and slightly ticked off looks they were giving her, and Lion-O's disappearance, she quickly put two and two together and made a quick guess that she was dumped in the small kit's laps.
"Great, now we have to cat-sit her." Kit grumbled.
"Great, now I have to baby sit them." She sighed.
Kagome sat in the dining room, nibbling on more of the fruit the children gave her. There was high tension in the air and it caused an unsettling feeling for her. Kit was just playing with her food, rolling it around on her plate, while Kat just continued to stuff his face without paying much attention to her.
Her ears dropped and she put her core down onto her plate, staring at what few pieces of fruit she had left.
The day started off so well, but it seems that they did not want to hang out with her, yet Lion-O had to leave for some reason and told the two children to take care of her while he was away.
In any other circumstance Kagome would have been thrilled to be able to play and have fun with children all day—She loved children—but it seems that they were not as interested in being in her company as she was with them, and that bothered her a lot.
"…" She reached over and grabbed one of the green fruits, sighing. Maybe she can do something that will make them like her better? She doesn't want to seem like just a bother to them, or any of the other ThunderCats. Her ears lowered in thought as she placed the green fruit to her lips and took a big bite—"Raaow!" She let lose a snarl of disgust and she spit out her tongue scratching at it with her claws to try and get the vial taste out of her mouth as she hissed.
Then she heard it, the sound of laughter…
"Ha-HA! I told you she would find it eventually." Kit was pointing and laughing at her, her hand placed over her stomach, tears in her eyes.
"Yeah~!" Kat too was laughing, he was rolling on the floor, holding his sides as a roar was coming out of his mouth, followed by mews of delight. "Her face!" He choked out between gasps of air. "Did you see her face?"
"Yes!" She doubled over, trying to breath.
"You little sneaks!" Kagome's eyes narrowed at them, her tail twitching behind her playfully. "I'll teach you…" She reached out to her plate, before chucking one of the colorful meals at the young girl's head.
"Ah!" She gave a small squeals when the melon burst on the back of the chair, right beside her head.
"Take that!" A smirk was dancing across her face as she stood up, tossing another fruit into the air threateningly.
"Why you~!" Kit grabbed one of her own fruits and threw it at Kagome, yet she easily dodged the projectile. She then returned the attack, throwing another piece at Kit.
"Food fight!" Kat shouted at the top of his lungs, two pieces of fruit in his hands as he got to his feet, finally off of the floor, a playful grin on his face as he threw one piece of food at his sister, the other at Kagome.
A war broke out, and all three of the cats were laughing in enjoyment as food was whizzing by their faces in a blur, splattering the once tan room with an array of color—
"WHAT IS GOING ON HERE!" A shout of pure terror caused all three of the cats to freeze in mid throw, and glance at the doorway. Their eyes quickly saw an extremely pissed off Snarf, and all three of them quickly put their hands behind their backs, as if trying to hide the fruit that was in their hands. "You better have some sort of explanation!" The small cat huffed as he walked into the room, trying to avoid all the colored goop that was on the floor.
"She started it." Both of the kittens pointed towards her.
Kagome glared at the two kids, before looking back down at snarf—She froze, seeing all his attention was on her. He ears drooped low, till they were pressed against her ears and her tail sagged low to the ground. A chunk of food that was splattered onto the ceiling came loose, and fell, landing right beside her and snarf, causing a huge 'splat' noise, some of the sticky substance splashing on the small cat standing in front of her. Seeing the extremely angry look the older cat was giving her as he wiped the goop from his face, she tried to seem cute as she laughed nervously and smiled at him.
"Oops?"
"That was great!" Kit was walking beside Kagome as they were going down the hall.
"Yeah!" Kat was standing by his sister, the same pleased expression his face. "I don't know why Snarf had to get so mad."
"Well, he did just clean it, and then we made it a mess…" Kit tried to come up with a reason. "So I can understand why he would be angry."
"But we said we were sorry, and even offered to help!" Kat sighed, shrugging his shoulders. "He just shoved us out."
"You know what's weird?" Kit tried to change the subject as she looked at her brother.
"Hmm?" He looked over to her.
"All the food that was thrown and we are all clean."
"That's because we have such good agility." He puffed out his chest. "We are the most agile of the ThunderCats—"
"But Kagome is clean too…" She mumbled.
"Really?" Both Kat and his sister looked over to her. "You're right!" He spoke as if he just now noticed it. "I didn't know she has such fast reflexes."
"…?" Feeling eyes upon her person she glanced over at them and tilted her head. The kittens both shrugged, before deciding that it didn't really matter and continued on down the hallway.
After a few minutes, a smile appeared on Kagome's face as she glanced to her side, and seeing the two cubs. Kat gave a small yawn, bored, and stretched his hands above his head. A playful grin appeared, as an idea came to Kagome's mind. Using her tail, she sneaked it behind Kit, and tapped Kat's far shoulder. After the deed was done she quickly pulled her tail back, just as Kat looked to his side, yet saw nothing.
"Oh, Ha-ha." Kat mocked. "Very funny."
"Hmm? What's funny?" Kit looked over to him.
"Nothing." He shook his head and ignored his sister.
"…" After a few more moments, Kagome's tail snaked its way over to his shoulder, and gave it another small tap.
"Come on Kit, stop it." He whined, looking over to his sister.
"I'm not doing anything." She defended herself, placing her hand onto her hips.
"Alright then, fine, don't admit it." He shook his head, and we all continued our way down the hall.
"!" Kagome had to stop the small set of giggles that was trying to escape.
After waiting just a few more seconds, she used her tail to once again tap the small male on the shoulder—
"Stop it Kit! It's annoying, and not funny anymore." He turned and faced his sister, his eyebrows angling together in irritation.
"I have no idea what you are talking about, Kat! I'm not doing anything." She huffed.
"If you're not the one tapping me on my shoulder, then who—"He paused when he felt another soft touch on his shoulder and he looked to his side. Seeing a long black limb he blinked, as it waved to him in greeting. A soft laugh came from the tall feline as she giggled behind her hand. "Hey!" Kat laughed, finding himself not so angry anymore. "That was rather good!" He smiled, enjoying the small prank that Kagome played on him.
"Good one, Kagome." Kit was also trying not to laugh, a small purr rumbled through her chest at the thought of seeing her brother so upset.
"…" Kagome's laughter finally died down, and she slowly pulled her tail back into its rightful position behind her.
Yet it didn't take long for a certain male cat's mind to wander…
"Man~" He grumbled to himself and placed his hands behind his head as he stared up at the ceiling. "I wish we could go riding on our hoverboards."
"Yeah I know-" Kit paused, before a smile went across her face. "Hey, why don't we show Kagome that thing?"
"That thing? What thing?" He lowered his arms and looked towards his sister.
"You know~" She elbowed her brother in the ribs gently, trying to hint at something. "The awesome thing we just have to show her in the forest."
"Oh!" His brother exclaimed, finally understanding. "That thing!" He nodded. "I thought you meant the other thing!"
"…?" What in the world are they talking about? Her ears twitched, curious.
"Come on Kagome!" Both the kits grabbed either of her hands and started dragging her down the hallway. "We have something you just have to see!"
Kagome's tail twitched behind her, a smile on her face, happy that the children were finally excited to be with her…
"Where go?" Kagome asked, looking back at the two siblings, who had started to lag way behind her. The forest wasn't far from the base, but she didn't want leave safety of the lair for too long.
But it seemed like they have been walking for a while into the forest…
"Just up here." Kit pointed straight ahead.
"Yeah, up here." Kat copied his sister.
"Up here?" She repeated, looking ahead. What is in the forest that they had to drag her all the way here? She sighed, and then continued walking.
"It's not far now." Kat told her.
"Yeah~" Kit's tone revealed the fact that she was holding in her giggles.
"…" Kagome just shrugged, unsure.
She continued to walk, but she had her doubts. What could possibly be up here that they had to show her? Her ears twitched, her tail swishing to and fro. After walking for a few more minutes, she sighed. How much longer did she have to walk?
"Up here?" She asked, glancing over her shoulders. She froze when she did not see anyone behind her. "Wilykit?" She looked around franticly, her ears up in alert. "Wilykat?"
She got no reply…
"You failed me again!" The tremendous roar of anger erupted from the almost skeletal mummy. "Why am I not surprised..." He gave a hiss of displeasure as he wrapped his red robe around his body. He turned his head away from his minions.
"It'sss not our fault, Mumm-Ra." Slithe gave his own hiss towards him. "The ThunderCatss—"
"ThunderCats!" Mumm-Ra shouted, lighting coming down from the top of the pyramid and falling into the caldron, a crackle of energy sparked in the large room, making the mutants shrink in slight fear. "I do not want to hear 'ThunderCats' spoken in my presence again!" He spit out the word 'ThunderCats' like a vial poison expelling from his mouth.
"But it's true, old decrepit one." Slithe spoke once more.
"I had her!" Monkian spoke up. "But then Lion-O-!" He began to hoot, angry. "He took her from me."
"Yeah." The chuckles of Jackalman was heard next, unable to control his laughing, a nervous habit of his. "We tried to wait in the forest, to ambush her when she left, but he found us in the forest today, and chased us away!"
"This just shows you what fools you are!" Mumm-Ra's red eyes gleamed as the smog from the dark waters in the caldron steamed up, heated by his anger. "Do you not understand what that female is? The powers she possesses!" He glared at Monkian, which caused the white furred mutant to shriek out in fear. "You should have fought with that cub until your arms were falling off, and even then-! That power was worth sacrificing your worthless lives for!" He hissed.
"But Mumm-Ra dying—" Monkian tried to defend himself, but then a shot of power blasted at his feet caused him to jump in surprise, he hollered out in fear, taking a few steps back.
"No more excuses!" He yelled, obviously still pissed. "Maybe I should just kill you here so I won't hear your sniveling!"
"Don't be ssso hasty, O-powerful one." Slithe slithered up closer to the pot. "We tried our bessst."
"Obviously your best isn't good enough…" Yet his voice had lowered greatly in volume, and the deadly gleam was no longer in his eyes. Slithe had once again saved their skins by stroking the old mummy's ego. "I'll just have to do everything myself…"
He lifted his thin ghastly wrapped arms into the air.
"Ancient spirits of evil… "
"Wilykit!" Kagome called out as loud as she could, as she continued to walk blindly around in the forest. "Wilykat!" She paused, her ears lowering to her skull as she began to doubt. "Wilykit!" She has been calling and calling. "Wilykat!" Yet she has not received any answer, not a single purr or mew in response. "Wily…" She sighed, her shoulders slumping. "Kit…" She looked around, a small prickle of fear eating away at her. "Kat…?" Her voice was a soft whisper as she glanced around in the unknown forest. "Where are you?" She called, as if expecting an answer from the quiet forest. "Where am I…?"
Did they leave her? Why? She thought they were beginning to like her… She thought—
She sighed, feeling her mind becoming heavy. Now what is she going to do? She had no idea where she was, or where the lair is. She had been walking around without thinking and gotten herself lost—
"Help." A call of distress caused her to pause in her thoughts.
"Help?" She repeated. She knew that word but the voice… it sounded so strange, almost robotic—
"Help me, please." The voice called out again. "Someone please, help."
She did not hesitate after that, and ran towards the voice, her fear of being lost and abandon, the strangeness of the speech, all of it erased from her mind, and her feet took flight. Trees went by her in a blur—
"Help." The mechanical voice was louder, which she sent a spark of hope throughout her, warming her body.
"I'm coming to help! Hold on!" She yelled out in response. Within a few more leaps, she found herself jumping over a thick cover of bushes, and when her feet touched the other side, her blue eyes narrowed, seeing a creature hanging up in a tree, a rope tied to its leg, caught in a trap.
"Help me." The creature hanging upside down looked at her with worry.
"I help." She responded, walking up to her.
She tilted her head, trying to figure out what the creature was. She was a cross between a bear and a robot. The only reason she could guess was that it was a girl, was because there was a very pretty flower behind her ear, and her tone, though still monotone, was in strange sort of way, soft and gentle sounding. Kagome was fascinated with the way her mouth would light up whenever she would speak.
"Are you a ThunderCat?" She asked, trying to look at her upside down.
"No." She shook her head. "Me Kagome." She pointed to herself. "ThunderCat friend." Reaching up, she grabbed the bear's hand. With a tight hold she began to pull the distressed bear down more and more, bending the top of the tree down into an arch. She could hear the wood and bark of the tree groaning with each yank, as she stretched its breaking point to the max.
"I am the ThunderCat's friend too." She told her.
Her ears twitched, happy to hear that she was saving a friend of one the ThunderCats from a trap. She hummed, the rope finally coming into reach, as she held the bears captive foot. She opened her fanged mouth wide, and placing it around the rope as she tilted her head sideways.
"Hope this works…" She mumbled to herself, not having any real knife to cut her down. With a powerful and crisp chomp, her jaws clamped shut, the rope not standing a chance against her newly formed fangs, and it snapped. The tree bounced back like a rubber band from the sudden release of stress, and it stood straight once more.
With a firm hold still on her ankle, Kagome gently lowered the bear down to the ground.
"Thank you." The bear stood up, barely coming to Kagome's waist. "Thank you so much."
"I help." She nodded. "Kagome good job."
"Yes." The girl nodded. "You did a very good job."
"…" Kagome looked at the ground, embarrassed, feeling a rush of blood going into her cheeks—
"Get her!" A sudden shout caused Kagome's head to shoot back up, her ears snapping back into attention as she glanced around the area.
A familiar looking pair of faces jumped out of the thick bushes, causing her to hiss, her hairs standing on ends, her tail frizzing out in warning. Her ears bent back against her skull and her fang protruded out as she snarled threateningly at them.
"No!" Kagome quickly got in front of the bear protectively. She could escape, but she knew she could not leave the bear. She had to help her get away. "Go!" She growled at her, leaving no argument, in case she had to say something otherwise. We both might be able to escape, if she can distract them long enough for the bear to get help. "Go! Lion-O!"
"Yes." She nodded, understanding, and then ran off, going into the bushes and disappearing.
"The Ro-Bear is getting away!" Jackalman called out.
"It doesn't matter! We want the feline, yessss?" The lizard got in front of her, and she growled at him.
A sound of a snapping twig behind her caused her ear to twist around, before she turned to face the creature that was cowardly enough to attack her from behind—Her body froze, stiff, when she saw white fur and a sly grin, a rope was held tightly in his hairy clutches.
Her eyes grew wide, her ears lowering in fear. Her snarl melted, and her body was as stiff as a statue, unable to move. 'Monkey' was all she could think about, as she stared into his black orbs—
"Now!" She heard a shout, before a net was suddenly flung over her. The distraction from the Monkey cost her, and by the time she realized what was happening, she had no time to dodge. The net was enclosed around her, the heavy weight sending her to the ground.
She was trapped.
"You sure it was alright to leave her like that, Kit?" Kat asked his sister.
"You have asked me that a hundred times, Wilykat." She huffed, shaking her head at her brother. "Of course." She shifted the board that was placed underneath her armpit to keep a better hold on it. "She is an adult, and can take care of herself." She sighed. "Didn't you have a good time on your hoverboard?"
"I did, but I just didn't feel right leaving her there."
"Don't be such a worry wart!" His sister tried to make him feel better as they continued their walk towards the lair. "Besides, we didn't walk far from the lair, she shouldn't have a hard time finding it again."
"…" Kat sighed. "I guess you are right…"
"I am always right." She puffed out her chest, proud. "I beat she is already at the lair hanging out with the others and eating lunch as we speak."
At the mention of the word lunch, her brother's stomach started to growl. He laughed, scratching the back of his head in embarrassment.
Kit laughed as well, as they both left the tree line, and walking up to the riven, the lair within sight.
Lion-O was sitting in the command room, sighing as he watched the screens in front of him. When he returned from his patrol, after chasing away the mutants, he saw that the kittens and Kagome were not in the lair. It worried him, but Wilykit and Kat promised to take care of her while he was away, so he tried to relax.
But he couldn't help shaking the feeling that something was wrong…
"I shouldn't be worrying." He was talking to himself as he stood up from his chair. "They are probably at the Berbil village." Kit and Kat no doubt decided to show Kagome the candy trees and are having a good time—
A noise of alert came over the intercom, stopping him in his thoughts, and he looked up at the screen. Seeing a familiar pair of faces walking up to the riven he visibly relaxed and sighed. Reaching out he pressed a button on the dashboard, allowing the bridge to expand and letting them into the lair.
"That's funny…" Lion-O mumbled to himself as he stared at the screen, watching them as they started to walk across the bridge. "Why isn't Kagome with them?"
He started to worry, but seeing the happy looks on the cubs faces, as they talked with each other, he tried not to let it get to him. They did not look distressed, so it must be something else…
He turned around and walked out of the command room, deciding to go and greet them outside.
"Lion-O! Hey!" Kat greeted him. Kit waved at him hello. Their hoverboards were placed underneath their armpits as they walked up to him, to the entrance of the lair.
"Hey Kit, Kat." He waved to them as he walked towards them. "Where is Kagome?"
"Kagome?" Kit repeated. A guiltily look over took Kat's face as both the siblings looked at each other.
"She isn't here?" Kat looked up at him.
"No." He shook his head, raising an eyebrow at them. "I left her in your care, why would she be here and not with you?" His fingertips started to lose feeling in them, as his body suddenly turned cold.
"Well Kit…" Kat looked at the ground, all color draining from his face as he began to fidget. "We umm…" He turned away, and Lion-O had a bad feeling in the pit of his stomach.
"We just wanted to play on our hoverboards, I swear! We didn't mean any harm by it." Kit tried to tell him.
"It was only a harmless prank."
"We thought she would be here by now."
"Tell me what happened." He did not like how they were dodging the subject.
"W-we left her…" Kat finally confessed. "In the forest."
"You did what!" His tone was a bit harsher then he meant it to be, and the two kittens flinched at the sound.
"We didn't leave her deep in the forest, she should have been able to get back—"
"That doesn't matter." He tried to hold himself back from shouting at the two children before him, as his heart began to thrash against his chest in worry. "It was your responsibility to watch over her while I was gone." He shook his head as he looked down at the kittens in disappointment. "Unlike us she does not know this place well. If she can get lost in the lair, then she will most certainly get lost in the forest. She could get hurt, or anything can happen. She is probably scared and alone, wondering why the two people with her suddenly disappeared." His words hit them hard and they looked at the ground in shame.
"It was just a prank…" Kit mumbled.
"A joke can be taken too far." He told her. "You promised me to take care of her, and you broke that promise."
"We are sorry Lion-O." They gave a soft apologetic mew, looking up at him sadly.
"Very sorry." Kat was obviously more upset then his sister.
"When we find Kagome, you are going to have to apologize to her as well."
Both of the children nodded in agreement-
"Lion-O!" A familiar voice called his name and he looked up. "Lion-O!"
"Ro-Bear-Belle?" He watched as she was running across the bridge and over to them. "What's wrong?" He could hear the distress in her voice.
"It's Kagome." She finally told him as she came to a stop in front of him.
"Kagome!" His heart leapt into his throat. "What happened to Kagome?" The two smaller cats turned pale at the mention of Kagome being in trouble.
"She saved me." She told him, and pointed at the forest. "But it was all just a trap set by the mutants."
"Mutants!" Lion-O hissed out the word.
"I thought that's why you left for your patrol?" Kit looked up at him.
"Did you not get rid of them?"
"I did." His hands clinched tightly by his side, trying not to growl out. "They must have come back."
"She told me to get away, so I came to find you." Ro-Bear-Belle told them.
"We don't have time to waste, can you show us where, Ro-Bear-Belle?"
"Yes." She nodded.
"Get on." Kit quickly got on her hoverboard, and Ro-Bear-Belle got on it, with some struggle. Kat had to help her, before he got on his own board.
"Let's go!" The hoverboards took off, Lion-O easily keeping up behind them.
Why are the mutants after her? He questioned. They are really persistent this time. It just didn't seem right, and no doubt Monkian would be with them...
His eyebrows angling together in worry over the dark furred feline he put under his care just a few days ago.
"Let me go!" She hissed, trying to claw, and even bite her way out of the net. Yet unlike the rope, the net was made of a thicker material, and even her fangs could not cut it.
"Try all you want, you are not getting free." The lizard who was dragging her spoke up.
"Ouch! Stop being so rough you slimy green snake!" She gave a small yelp when her back smacked against another rock. She kicked at the net, trying to glare at him over her shoulder.
"Will you shut up! Your weird language isss annoying to lissssten to." He complained.
"When Lion-O comes he will—"
"Lion-O is not going to save you this time, cat." The Monkey appeared, walking behind her dragging from, and gave her a fanged grin.
"!" She instantly froze as she stared into his black orbs.
"…" Slithe paused, glancing over his shoulder. He saw the way Kagome looked at Monkian and he gave a small hiss, and stopped walking.
"Why did we stop, Slithe?" Jackalman asked.
"I'm curiousss." He hummed, turning towards the white furred member of his team. "What did you do to her?" He asked.
"What?" The Monkey hooted, glaring at him. "What are you talking about, Slithe?"
"You said you caught her once, yesss?" He repeated the report that Monkian told him. "What did you do to her in that time you had her, before Lion-O took her from you."
"Hmmm." The dog looked down at Kagome, before back up at the other member of the group. "Now that you mention it, she does seem a little…afraid of you." He laughed, as if finding something funny. "And I'm not talking about your ugly mug, either." Monkian snorted at his comment, before huffing and placing his arms over his chest.
"Nothing that either one of you won't have done, given the chance." The ape admitted. "If Lion-O didn't interrupt me." He gave a yell, shaking his clinched fist, as if remember what happened. Slithe shook his head in disgust, hissing.
"You are even sssicker than I thought, you hairy mammal."
"…?" Jackalman still did not understand.
"Thank you." Monkian puffed out his chest, proud.
"I did not mean that in a good way, you sssstupid ape."
"You should be the one to talk, cold reptile." He hooted, pounding his chest in challenge to his leader.
"You got something to ssssay to me, dirty monkey!"
"What's going on here?" Jackalman was just as confused as ever.
"Stay out of this, you laughing Hyena." Jackalman gasped at Monkian's comment.
"You leave my mother out of this, Monkian!"
"Quiet!" Slithe shouted, causing everything to become still once more. "It doesss not matter now." He pounded his tail onto the ground, by Kagome's form, which caused her to give a small squeak in anger, coughing as the dust went into the air and into her lungs. "We could use it to our advantage, yessss?" Holding the hand that held the net, he reached it out, towards Monkian. "Maybe she will be quiet if you hold the net."
"Alright." He smirked, and grabbed the net from Slithe's grasp.
"…" Kagome's ears flattened against her skull in fear as she stared up at the fanged ape, who was smiling down at her.
"Be quiet, or I'll finish what I stared the other day." He reached out, and grabbed her by the arm, causing her to give a yell of surprise.
"Don't touch me!" She shivered as memories flooded back to her, the same hairy paws going over and touching her across her body. "Stop it!" She could practically feel his hands roaming along her body once more, touching her, caressing her. Even though she knew it was all in her mind, she couldn't stop as the feelings of fear washed over her like a tsunami, and she was quickly being swept away by her emotions. "Lion-O…" She mumbled the male cat's name as she clamped her eyes shut, trying to will the images and feelings away.
"Ah!" A shout of surprise from one of the mutants, caught her attention.
"Get away from her!" Another male voice called out in warning.
"Lion-O?" Kagome opened her eyes, and began looking around, trying to spot a familiar tuft of red in the sea of white, brown, and green blurs.
"Who are you?" Jackalman snorted.
"You better leave if you know whatsss good for you." Slithe pulled out his weapon, along with the other two mutants. Monkian dropping the net to withdraw his club, but it was still tied at the opening, so she couldn't escape.
"I will only warn you one more time, release her." Yet the male who came to her rescue was not Lion-O, but instead a beast she has not seen before.
He was a wolf, proud and strong, his dark grey fur standing out amongst the green of the forest. He stood on two legs, dressed in only shorts, a vest, and his only weapons were his claws and teeth. The first thing that came to her mind was 'Werewolf.'
"You think you can take all three of usss—" Slithe paused when the wolf suddenly disappeared in a flash of speed. "Where did he—" He gave a shout as he was suddenly lifted into the air, the wolf easily holding him above his head with ease. "Put me down!"
"…" He smirked, before tossing the lizard high into the air and over the trees with a roar. He then set his sights on the two that were left.
"Y-you don't scare me." Monkian charged him full on. Jackalman followed behind him, even though he was shaking in his boots.
The wolf did quick work of them, throwing the monkey over his shoulders and into the bushes. All that was left was the dog, and he quickly grabbed him by scruff of the collar. With a simple toss, he was gone, lost high into the trees.
"We'll be back, dog!" Monkian hooted, not seeming so sure of himself anymore, before he finally turned and ran away.
"Good riddance." The wolf just snorted, before using his back legs to kick up dirt in their direction.
Kagome smiled, finding his actions to be very dog-like, reminding her of a certain dog demon.
"Are you alright?" His shadow loomed over her, as he stood above her, looking down at her in worry.
"…?" She blinked up at him, before a sigh escaped her trembling lips. Good thing this wolf appeard when he did…
"There." She felt the net loosen around her, as the wolf used his super strength to rip apart the ropes as if they were paper.
"Let me help you." He stood up, and reached his clawed hand for her, to help her up.
She placed her hand into his, and he lifted her up with ease—She wobbled, and he quickly placed his arm around her waist to steady her. "Whoa there." He smiled in good nature. "I know I'm handsome but don't faint on me."
"…?" She tilted her heat him, unsure of what he said. She looked down at herself, seeing her body shaking slightly, and she wrapped her tail around her waist, to try and comfort herself. She didn't realize how upset and frightened she truly was until now. If this kind wolf did not find her—What would have happened? "Thank you for saving me." The words fell from her lips without thinking, as she tried to keep her emotions in check.
"You speak Japanese?" The wolf blinked down at her, surprised.
"!" Kagome looked up at him, an expression best described as pure shock placed into her feline features.
"You are lucky I came down from my mountain to hunt, and came along when I did." The wolf, who she learned was named 'Ramum' backed away, allowing her to stand on her own two feet.
"Thank you again." She couldn't say it enough. She sighed, sitting down on the grass and feeling exhausted. He joined her, his ears twitching curiously on top of his head as he looked at her.
"How is it that you speak Japanese?" He asked.
"I was just about to ask you the same thing."
"Well." He looked up in thought. "My grandmother taught me. She is the only one I know of that spoke this language. She said that there were many who spoke Japanese, and that it is an honorable language to learn, because it teaches us about our ancestors that once were here, but most died out in the war of First Earth, then who were left faded away and our speech became old and forgotten through the generations."
"War of First Earth?" Kagome had a bad feeling about it, but she had to find out.
"Not many people know of it." He admitted. "It happened about a thousand years ago, a huge war broke out among the humans, wiping out most of the life force on the planet." Kagome's eyes grew wide at this new information. "They used powerful weapons that could kill their enemy's without even being near them." He motioned with his paws. "After everything was almost destroyed what little life that remained rebuilt and had peace. This time was called a 'Second Earth'." He shrugged, his ears twitching in thought. "Sadly, my grandmother told me that a huge fireball fell from the sky and caused a huge disaster, changing the land and the seasons, crating havoc once it was all over." He hummed. "What little life that survived quickly evolved and adapted, creating the world you see now, Third Earth."
"…" Kagome looked down at the ground, as her eyes started to sting with tears. The reality of it all hit her hard, and she now knew why she was here.
It wasn't that she was needed here, and once her job was completed she could go home— The jewel protected her, it somehow knew Earths fate and brought her here. She looked down at her clawed hands. It changed her into something not human so that she could survive—This planet was Earth! It got destroyed so fast, her home, her family, probably lived once on this very spot, and she didn't even know it. She wouldn't even be able to tell. In a blink of an eye, it was gone, and she was never going back home…
"You alright?" Ramum concern caused her to shake her head.
"I'm fine." She sighed. "I'm just unsure of what to do, now that I'm stuck here." She tried to hide her sadness, so that the wolf would not see her in a weakened state.
"You are strong." He complimented. "For a cat." He growled, which caused her to smile.
"Thank you." She purred. "You are kind… for a dog."
"Hey." He barked, growling playfully and she laughed. "Would you like me to take you home?" He stood up, and offered his clawed hand to her, to help her up.
"Thank you, I would like that." She smiled. "I always find myself lost." She tried to joke about her bad sense of direction.
"Why don't you use your nose?" He suggested.
"My nose?" She wiggled the appendage, her eyes going slightly cross-eyed as she tried to look at it. Ramum chuckled.
"It's not as keen as our kind, of course, but cats have an okay sense of smell." He snorted. "Much better than humans at least."
Now that he mentions it, her sense of smell has gotten more sensitive…
We began talking about many things, as he guided Kagome towards the cat's lair.
"You live with the ThunderCats?" He blinked down at her, surprised.
"Yes?" She paused at his reaction. "Is something wrong with that?"
"No, but it just surprises me, is all." He shrugged. "They are well known, though I have never meet them myself I have heard many stories…"
"Where do you live, Ramum?" She asked, curious.
"Over there." He looked to the side, pointing to a mountain far away, tall enough to be visible over the treetops. "In the mountain, to the north. That is my home."
"Oh, so you live in a cave." She teased.
"No~" He whined. "It's not a cave!" He defended himself. "It's a den."
"A den? My mistake." She tried not to laugh, and he huffed.
"I'll show you!" He reached out, and she gave a small yelp in surprise when he suddenly picked her up, and held her over his head, similar to how he did with Slithe.
"Put me down!" She squeaked, kicking her legs. His paw was under her rump, the other supporting her on her upper back as she laid there, staring at the floor beneath her, upside down.
"What do you got to say about my den now, cat?" He chuckled, playfully teasing her by throwing her into the air and catching her again. "Oops" He pretended to drop her, and she screamed.
"Stop it!" Her tail whipped out and smacked him across the cheek and he laughed.
"But you are so fun to tease—"
"Release her, canine." A deep voice commanded from behind us and her ears twitched at the sound. Ramum growled, and lowered her so that he carried her, pressing her protectively against his chest, baring his fangs as he faced his enemy.
"Lion-O?" Kagome mumbled the cat's name, warmth flooded her and she smile at him.
"Release her." He held out the Sword of Omens in a warning. "I will not ask a third time."
"Lion-O, it's not what you think Ramum is a friend!" She tried to tell him.
"Don't worry Kagome, I'll save you." His amber eyes narrowed at Ramum, and the wolf growled in warning.
"You won't come near her, cat." Ramum snarled.
When she saw Lion-O charge towards us, her eyes widened. She quickly jumped out of Ramum's hold, and stood protectively in front of the wolf, her arms out wide.
"NO!" She shouted. Lion-O blinked at her in surprise, coming to a sudden halt. Stopping just a hair away from her. "No fight! Ramum friend!" She tried to explain the best she could with what little vocabulary she had.
"…" Lion-O looked down at her, before looking at the wolf behind her.
"Tell him, Ramum, I am not very good at English…" She lowered her arms and looked at the wolf behind her, a small dash of pink going across her nose in embarrassment.
"I saved her from a lizard, dog, and monkey." He snorted. "They were carrying her away and I defeated them, releasing her."
"Is this true, Kagome?" Lion-O looked at her for approval, and she nodded.
"Ramum help me see Lion-O's home."
"I was taking her back home." Ramum translated. "To your cat's lair."
"I see…" Lion-O put the sword back into the claw shield and sighed. "I'm glad you are alright."
Kagome smiled up at him—
"Kagome!" Kit burst into the area, flying on what Kagome's best guess is the 'hoverboards' she heard them talking so much about. The bear she saved earlier riding on top of the flying surfboard as well.
"We are coming to save you!" Kat soon followed. Kagome had to stop her laughter when the boy made a less then graceful landing, falling off his board and tumbling down, landing on his rump with a hard plop. "Get away from her you-!" Kat stood up and hissed charging Ramum.
"Down, boy." The wolf just put his paw on Kat's head, holding him back as he began to blindly swing his arms around, not even coming close to hitting Ramum.
"Ramum friend." Kagome placed her hand onto Kat's shoulder, and he stopped his assault.
"Oh, well…" He rubbed his nose and puffed out his chest. "That will teach him."
"Yeah, you sure showed him…" Kit laughed.
"It seems you have found your friends, so I will be going now." Ramum's voice spoke up and she looked over to him.
"So soon?" She frowned.
"You going to miss me, cat?" He teased, chuckling.
"What would you say if I said yes?" She enjoyed having someone to talk to—with full sentences. Her words caused his chuckling to die down and he paused, looking down at her.
"…" He looked to be thinking something over, before he growled. "Then I would have to steal you away and take you to my house…" He hummed, seeing her reddened cheeks. "I guess I can get use to the cat stink, if you are with me long enough."
"I don't stink!" She huffed, and he chuckled.
"You speak her language?" Lion-O's voice suddenly spoke up, and we both looked at him.
"Yes?" Ramum raised an eyebrow at him.
"Well that saves us some trouble…" Kit spoke up.
"What Kit is trying to say, is that maybe we can found out about her home." Kat tried to relay the message his sister said, in a nicer way.
"It's worth a try." Lion-O looked over to Ramum. "Can you ask Kagome about her home? Her family? We would like to take her back so that she can be with her friends."
"The cat wants to know where you live and about your family so that he can take you to them." Ramum asked for the young lord.
"…" Kagome sighed and looked down at the ground. "My family and friend are all gone." She finally said the words she had been thinking out loud, and she tried to hold back the tears that were welding in her eyes. "I don't have a home anymore." Her ears drooped in sadness.
"She's crying…" Ro-Bear-Belle spoke, noticing.
"I wonder what she is saying." Kat's shoulder's slumped, giving a soft mew of concern.
"I don't know…" Lion-O's hands clinched tightly by his side.
"It doesn't look good." Kit's tone held much pity for the older female.
"Is that true, Kagome?" He bent down tilting his head so that he was looking at her as she held her head down, to try and hide her tear stricken face.
"Don't—"She reached up and wiped away her eyes. "Don't look at me."
"How did it happen?" He asked.
"I don't want to talk about it." She turned away from him. "Just go away."
"…" He sighed. He stood up and looked back towards the cats who were observing the exchange, both curious and concerned. "She says that they are all dead, and her home is destroyed." Ramum relayed the message, watching as the felines in front of him flinched at his words, and they all glanced over to Kagome who had her back to them. "She won't tell me how or why."
"Well…" Lion-O looked at Kagome's back, a pain hitting him in the chest. "Thank you for telling us."
"…" Ramum just nodded towards him, before walking back over to Kagome. "I'm leaving now." He told her.
"…?" She looked over at him, no longer crying, but she had a saddened look in her eyes.
"Don't look at me like that." He frowned. Reaching out he gently patted her on the head. "If you ever need me, you know where I live."
"…" She purred, a sad smile appearing on her face. "Thank you."
"See you later, cat." He waved to her, before taking off in a grey blur.
She sighed, before watching where he left a few seconds longer. She looked back over to the three cats and one bear, who all had that same depressing look of pity on their faces.
And now it's back to a broken and incomplete speech that is regrettably her English- if you would even call it that-… what joy.
Kagome was walking with Lion-O, Wilykit and Wilykat, going towards the lair. The bear she saved, who she learned was named Ro-Bear-Belle, went home, parting ways with them just a little while back.
When she went through the tree line, she sighed, relaxing once she spotted the solid form of the cat shaped home-
"I'm sorry Kagome." Hearing her name she looked down to one of the two children. Kat was looking up at her with a look of guilt on his face.
"Me too." Kit was looking up at her as well. "I'm sorry."
"…?" Kagome tilted her head, unsure of what that meant.
"I'm sorry." They said again, together.
"…Sorry?" She repeated. What does that—she paused when she felt their arms wrap around her waist in a hug. She blinked down at them, seeing their wild tuft of hair she purred, a smile appearing on her face as she got the message. You can't misunderstand something as simple as a hug. "Okay." She bent down so that she was on an equal height to them, and returned their gesture, giving their smaller forms a tight squeeze, which caused them to laugh. Then she smirked, and tightened her hold, which caused them to both gasp in surprise.
"Too tight~!" Kit complained.
"Can't breathe!" Kat struggled in her grasp, wiggling. Kagome laughed, and gave them one final squeeze before finally releasing them. Lion-O found the whole exchange funny, and was chuckling to himself.
Reaching out he patted them on the head in praise and the two kittens started to purr, happy.
"What do you think?" Lion-O looked among the other ThunderCats as they sat around the table in the council room.
"You sure that Kagome has no family, Lion-O?" Tygra asked, there was a small twinge in his tone as he talked.
"That's what Ramum said." The lord nodded.
"She looked really sad when Ramum asked her about it." Kit sighed, her shoulders slumping.
"Yeah…" Kat looked around the room, to the other members. "Isn't there something we can do?"
"I don't see what we could do." Panthro sighed, crossing his arms over his chest.
"Kagome is still under observation." Cheetara pointed out. "Shouldn't we wait till her week is completely up before we decide on anything?"
"I agree with Cheetara." Tygra stood up. "Kagome still has five days left, we should decide what we can do once we know for certain she could be trusted."
"Until then we will just have to keep a good watch on her, and not leave her out of our sight, for any reason." Panthro looked over to the kittens and they slouched in their chairs, as all eyes went onto them.
"I will start on her English lessons tomorrow, to help her communicate with us better, and we will gather for another meeting in five days for a report. We will decide what to do then."
"Agreed." Panthro stood up.
"Agreed." Cheetara got to her feet as well.
"Agreed." The kittens both said at the same time.
"…" Lion-O sighed and stood. "Agreed."
Kagome was pacing in her room, her hand underneath her chin in thought as she nibbled on her lip in worry. Lion-O told her to wait in her room, while he talked with the others. She wasn't sure what it was about, but she hoped that she wasn't in trouble of some kind. Was she not allowed to go into the forest? She sighed, her ears drooping in sadness. Maybe they think she is too much trouble and do not want her around anymore?
"Then where am I going to go?" She mumbled to herself. She had no place… The image of Ramum came to her mind and she nodded. Well, suppose if she had to, she could always visit Ramum. He could teach her out to hunt, then she would be able to go out into the world and take care of herself.
She wouldn't be able to trouble anyone—
"Kagome?" The door to her room opened up, and she paused in her pacing. She saw that it was Lion-O, and she tilted her head at him, curious.
"Lion-O." She smiled at him and he waved.
"I'm sorry I had to leave you like that, but I needed to talk to the others." He walked over to her bed, and sat down.
"..." She followed, and plopped down beside him making the bed wobble. He chuckled when he was bounced slightly by the harsh movement. "Good?" She looked up at him, her ears giving a twitch. "Bad?" She asked.
"…" His mood turned sour and a growl rumbled in his chest.
"Bad…" She looked down sadly and her ears slowly lowered.
"Maybe." He tried to tell her. "For now you will stay here with us." He paused. "If you want to." He added, looking down at her.
She hummed, her ears twitching. She glanced around the room, before looking back up into his amber eyes.
"Me like ThunderCats." Kagome said. "Kagome like Lion-O." She told him the truth as she purred, leaning forward to stare into his amber orbs. He leaned back slightly, but she continued to get closer and closer to him.
"You like me?" He asked, his cream colored fur taking on a tint of red.
"Like Lion-O big and big much." She smiled at him. He saved her, gave her clothes, a home, even her own room. All of the ThunderCats were very nice to her.
"I like Kagome big much too." He chuckled. Reaching out he touched her on the cheek, and her purring became louder. She closed her eyes, feeling his soft caress of his clawed hand going down her cheek. Her tail twitched behind her and she leaned into his touch, unable to control herself. It felt so nice—"You should get some rest." She paused, and opened her eyes, seeing that he was no longer beside her, but on his way out of the door. She snapped out of her trance and shook her head. "You will need it for tomorrow." He warned her. "Tygra will no doubt want you up bright and early for school tomorrow."
"Tygra?" She tilted her head in thought at the tiger's name.
"Yes. He is going to start teaching you tomorrow."
'Tygra teach me tomorrow?" Her tail was beating against the top of the bed in joy at the thought. She will get to learn some more English!
"Yes." He chuckled, smiling at her. "So get some rest." He hummed, just as he walked through the doorway. "Good night."
She watched as the door closed behind him and she sighed.
"Good night…?" She repeated the words softly, even though he was no longer there. Is good night the same thing as good morning?
She had no idea… Maybe she can ask Tygra tomorrow?