Chapter 14

"One down... four to go..."

No one could find Eve anywhere.

Waffle was in shock and fear. They had only been playing a game of hide and seek, how could she have wandered off the face of the earth? He was determined she had been abducted by mushroom people, despite when Blik slapped him for saying such 'stupid and impossible' things. He was certain that above the earth was a chestnut shaped space ship where inside, mutant mushroom people were holding her captive for their awful experiments.

He didn't sleep that night, well the few hours that was left of it, they had been searching high and low for the missing cat-girl, their hard effort eventually came out reward less and Blik ordered to call it a night, despite the emotion shattered position was, by that time, in. Thankfully Gordon was there to calm her and get her to bed.

Unfortunately, it wasn't as easy for him, Waffle, to sleep. Siebel seemed worried sick on his BFF's disappearance and refused to eat or sleep, or do anything. He isolated himself away from the Newts (which he had come to know only during the day) and simply slumped in the corner, under one of the large leaves in the shallow, green, muggy water.

That also worried Waffle, but his greatest concern was when he'd ever see her pretty, innocent face again, smiling up at him with a rosy red blush and giggling like the little angel she was. He completely stood by his childlike thoughts of aliens and abductions and for the rest of the night; he stayed outside on that cold night with merely a blanket for warmth, and slumped against the large oak tree that sat on a little hill. It had been a nice place to sit and immediately had once made him and Eve feel relaxed and happy again in warmth of the sun and the delightful company of each other's presence.

A bitter freezing gust of wind reminded Waffle that was not the case. It shivered the warm memory out of him and made him wrap the blue and white striped blanket tighter around his ice cold body. He crossed his legs to keep his feet warm and coiled his arms and paws in the blanket to shade them from the bitterness of that chilling night.

His eyes stuck to the pitch black sky, scanning around each star to see if he could find a sign of any sort on where he could go to find Eve. He was determined to stay awake in the dim hopes she would return and warm up the night for him.

He fell into his dreams as the first ray of the morning sun peeked over the buildings and hills of Bakersfield.

Gordon was already awake.

How could he sleep with the twisted knot of guilt deep in his stomach? It wouldn't go as long as Pandora was so heartbroken. His sweet little Pandora. He couldn't bare to see her so disheartened and saddened by the disappearance of her little sister. It tore him apart, thinking about all she had been through. First, she had been separated from her entire family and lost in an unknown country, then when she found them, she lost her dear owner due to a reason he himself didn't fully understand, and now her sister had disappeared into the blue, without a clue on where she had gone.

Now, as her protector, her warrior, her lover, he felt entwined with her glass delicate emotions and silently vowed to protect her and her feelings and keep her as happy as possible. He didn't care what would become of him, just as long as his dear bonnie lass was safe and full of joy.

She stirred in her sleep in his arms.

He looked down upon his sleeping beauty and couldn't stop himself grinning. He never could have dreamed that he, Gordon Quid, would ever end up with such a magnificent and stunning creature like Pandora, he didn't even know such beauty and innocence could exist in such a cruel world like the one he lived in. She deserved protecting. She deserved a cat with a caring heart and an honourable will to defend her no matter what. And he was that cat.

Her eyelids fluttered like a sweet little butterfly, greeting her into the new morning. Gordon smiled warmly as her little nose twitched as she nuzzled deeper into his fur and peeked up at him with loving, innocent eyes.

She giggled lightly, "Yoi asa, my love..." He grinned and gently kissed her forehead.

"Good mornin' my sweet bonnie lass..." She blushed as he gently stroked her silky, smooth cheek fur with the back of his paw and purred in her ear.

"How are ye feelin' this morning...?" She sighed sadly and tightened her grip around his back and snuggled deeper into his fur for comfort.

"B-Better... I-I guess..." Gordon wanted to smack himself. Earlier he was ranting about he needed to protect her from the cruelties of the world and keep her emotions safe, and now he's just gone and brought up a painful memory that had only just recently happened. He quickly held her tighter against him and snuggled his muzzle into her forehead, his fingers gently ran through her feather light, chocolate brown fur.

"I'm sorry lass," He purred sympathetically, "I-I didn't mean to upset ya, I just, I-" He was silenced when Pandora placed a finger over his lips and smiled at her sweetly.

"Don't worry, Gordon-san... I-I know that we'll find her... I know it..." Gordon smiled warmly at her deep and calm sense of determination and optimism. He leaned forward until their lips pressed together for a glass delicate kiss.

They shortly parted, much to his secret dismay, and stared at her with love filled, grass green eyes. She returned his gaze with dazzling, sea blue eyes. Eventually, Gordon managed to tear his gaze away from her and sit up in their bed.

"Well, the sooner we get up, the sooner the day can start." Pandora nodded and sat up in bed with a little stretch of her arms before following Gordon downstairs.

They walked down the stairs and past the living room.

"What's he doin' out there?"

"I-I-I don't k-know..."

Both stopped and peeked into the doorway to see Rose and Snippy looking out the window of the living room. Pandora frowned slightly and entered the room. Gordon followed her like a lost puppy.

"Rose? Snippy? What's wrong?"

Snippy continued to look as Rose turned her head to face then, pointing out to where they were looking to.

"Take a gander at this..." Pandora stepped forward between them; Gordon stood behind her and peeked over hers shoulder out into the back Garden.

Across the grass was a faint image of a small hill, a large oak tree rested upon it. In the shadows of the tree was a bundle of grey fur wrapped in blue and white.

"Is that... Waffle?" Pandora gasped slightly.

"Yup, that's him... I just looked out and saw him asleep out there..." Rose explained.

Gordon looked at her, "Why didn't you go to get him?" She sneered at him.

"I only got down here a minuet ago..." Gordon nodded in understanding as Pandora continued to look out of the freezing cold glass and out to the shivering grey cat.

"Why is he out there...?" She breathed. Rose moved away from the window and shuffled towards the door.

"I'm gonna go get some milk down the shop..."

Snippy faced her with a frown. "I-I'm sure there's m-milk in the f-fridge..." Rose didn't stop walking or even face him.

"I don't like that kind..." And with that she left.

Gordon joined Pandora's side. "Maybe I should go get him?" She mumbled slightly. Gordon frowned and placed a paw on her shoulder.

"It's very cold this mornin' lass..." He said with a tone that stated 'I don't want you to go outside because it's freezing out there'.

Pandora looked up at him with sparkling eyes that made his heart melt.

"Please Gordon-san... I have the idea this has something to do with my little sisters disappearance..." Gordon gave a sigh of defeat and smiled at her warmly.

"Okay, Lass..." He quickly kissed her, "Just don't be out there too long, okay...?" Pandora smiled.

"I promise love..." She jogged out towards the backdoor.

Rose didn't know what hit her. Literally.

When she woke up, her head felt like hell and it felt like her brains had been splattered. All she remembered was leaving the mansion in a rather foul mood for some proper milk that was drinkable, and then, whilst walking along the rose bushes up the path, everything went fuzzy and she blacked out.

She growled in pain and tried to stand up.

She slammed into something hard. She flinched back into a sitting position and clutched her aching head. She opened one angry green eye and looked up to see the roof of a cage. A cat cage. Her eyes immediately adjusted and her natural reaction to get away flicked on. She pounded at the wire mesh of the cat carrier.

"OI! Anyone there? Let me out! Right now!"

"It's no use, Rosie..." Rose's ears perked up in interest yet she sneered in disgust at the voice she recognised far too well.

She pressed her face against the wire mesh of the cage and looked to her left to see the familiar yellow furred cat in the darkness of god knows where they were.

She sneered slightly, "Okay, Katilda, you got any idea what's going on? 'Cus I'm not in a good mood this morning..."

'She never is..." Katilda thought before shrugging. "Not really. I just know some crazy guy has caught us and, according to Eve is taking us away-"

"Eve!"

Katilda nodded in the direction just past Rose, unable to point through the bars, "To your right... She's asleep though..." Rose looked over to the cage on her other side, and sure enough, through the bars of another dull grey cage was a little bundle to light chestnut brown and chocolate brown.

She was about to speak, when the day light suddenly flashed through into the van, causing the two cats to back against the walls of their cages and shield their eyes with their paws.

Rose heard it. She was so sure it was the devils chuckling. Chuckling at her misfortune. The light faded as the doors slammed shut.

Rose didn't hesitate to try and get a better view of who ever dared to trap her. The figure was shadowed. Male, defiantly. She could tell by his build. His head was only an inch away from the roof, a long white coat reached down to the knees of his brown trousers. His face was shadowed, apart from insane, glaring eyes and toothy grin. His hand reached up and pulled a pen (or pencil, she couldn't tell, it was too shadowed) and swiped a clipboard up from one of the top of one of the empty cages to his right. He clicked the pen and scribbled down on the paper on the clipboard, still grinning like a madman.

"Three down... two to go..."

eH

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