Meredith looked between Gwendolyn and then to Leon and back again. "Am I supposed to understand who this Natalia is?" The reaction on Gwendolyn's normally blank expression told her everything she needed to know as she noticed the gentle twitch of the other female's ear.
"Natalia is an assassin, the best in Beyersdorf, in fact she is leader of a band of them. She probably selected the assassins that came to Zootopia." Leon walked over to the window of their room and peered out into the growing darkness. The sun was half hidden by the hills they had come over on their way into town casting the winter bound landscape in growing shadows under an orange sky. "She doesn't give up."
Meredith took in the information and watched as Leon walked over to the window. Her attention was captured by movement in the corner of her vision and she turned her head to see Gwendolyn taking off the jacket she had been wearing. She had to admit for a young lady she was quite attractive if a little skinny. The outfit she was wearing underneath the warm and protective outer wear was more of the traditional browns she had seen on many of the males in town. The skunkette seemed to be more comfortable wearing the dark brown pants and light brown shirt then she had been in the dresses she had worn when last she saw her. It gave the young woman a tomboy look that suited her in Meredith's opinion.
Gwendolyn must have noticed her staring as the skunk tilted her head to the side as she looked back. "This is a big deal then?" Meredith asked softly.
"Yes." Gwen responded in her typical flat voice. "It means that Leon is considered a major threat, and it also means that Gerhard knows he is here."
"It also means that our plan will no longer work." Turning around Leon walked toward the door. "Both of you stay here."
"But Leon?" Both Meredith and Gwen spoke at the same time.
"No!" Looking at Gwen, "You have done enough and by this point need rest." Turning to Meredith, "If anyone sees you it will cause questions that we can't afford right now. It is best that you stay here." Leon closed his eyes and walked over to them both. "I'm sorry but for now it is best you stay in this room." Kissing Meredith softly before turning to ruffle Gwen's head, causing a small frown to form on her muzzle. "I'll be right back and we can order something to eat from the kitchen." Leon quickly turned and exited the room.
The two females stayed where they had been as they heard a knock and muffled voices to one side of their door, and then a repeat in the opposite direction. Then the noise in the hallway went silent.
Gwendolyn having decided that she was safe to continue removing her gear sat down and removed her boots before stretching out with a groan, it had been a long ride after all. Wiggling her toes under two pairs of socks she had put on to stave of the cold but also to help make the slightly too large boots would fit she looked up to see Meredith looking at her again. "Is something wrong?"
Meredith shook her head with a smirk. "You care for him don't you?" Meredith noticed an ever so slight change in the other female's demeanor at her question. A twitch in the and a slight dilation in her eyes as well confirmed her assumption.
"No." Gwen replied shortly, starting to busy herself with removing her socks.
"Oh come now, you've known him for a long time and you followed him around when you were able to back at Grandmother's house." Meredith stood up and moved closer. "You and him spent a lot of time together didn't you?"
The skunkette listened as she staired at her now bare feet. She could feel the warmth in her cheeks as she thought how easily Leon's mate had read her. With a long sigh she sat up strait. "It doesn't matter, he has never seen me as more than a kit, and he still sees me as a kit." Taking in a deep breath, she looked up at Meredith, "And you are his mate." As she admitted that the male she had crushed on for so long was mated, she deflated and sunk. "Perhaps I should have learned to wear dresses like Grandmother always said I should."
"Is Leon my mate, yes … yes he is." She could not help but reinforce her claim, "It's obvious that Leon cares for you like family, unfortunately not the way you want him to." Leaning forward the vixen hybrid placed a paw on Gwen's shoulder. "But you should not change who you are for someone either. Obviously, you are more comfortable like this," Motioning to the skunks outfit, "Than you were in a dress. Who ever you find will need to be comfortable with you as you are."
"The boys in my town never liked me. Leon would teach me how to do things when I asked, but boys just want a future mother who can cook and make house." Her voice taking on a twinge of bitterness amidst her otherwise emotionally flat speech.
"Well, too bad for them. I think its pretty amazing that you were even able to ride across that landscape on a motorcycle and make it." Smiling Meredith, "Plus, there are males out there that like a strong woman." When Gwendolyn looked at her with disbelief, she knew she was cracking what ever shell this young skunk had put up around herself. "Look at me, if some male didn't like things different, I wouldn't exist."
Gwendolyn looked over the hybrid, tall and pointed ears for a rabbit but not tall enough for a fox, longer tail and puffier then a rabbit, but not long enough for a fox, and her fur color an enticing mixture of both. She had to admit to herself that the difference was suited to the female in front of her. "We are … not so tolerant of difference here."
"Well, perhaps you'll just have to come back with us when this is all over." Meredith said, and she had to hide a smirk when she saw the most emotion she had ever seen out of the younger female when the striped head snapped up to look at her. "Plus, my brother rather likes the tomboys," Leaning closer to her, "So does my sister." The vixen nearly fell over laughing as the expression she saw shifted from one of near blank emotion to an open-mouthed expression of shock, that was before the door opened and Leon reentered the room.
"And what have the two best females in my life been talking about?" His expression relaxed now that he had spoken with the others. As he looked at Meredith's paw covered smirk and then to Gwen's still shocked expression. "Meredith my love? Did you break Gwen?" A little shocked to see so much expression on the other skunk's face.
"Perhaps a little?" Meredith couldn't help but chuckle again. "But its girl stuff." Giving Gwen a wink. "And you aren't allowed to know." She stood up and walked over to Leon. "For now, you promised us food, and your little spy here could use to have a few more calories in her diet."
"Ahh little Gwen here has always been a bit skinny." Smiling at her, fully knowing that sometimes the fuller meals where hard to come by but not wanting to dwell on it. There was something of pride in the community in surviving. "But perhaps a little fish stew hmm? I bet they have that brown bread that I know you love Gwen."
The mention of hot stew and bread snapped Gwen out of her shock and even broke the slightest of smirks on her muzzle before her stomack let out a growl that would likely have done a tiger proud. "Oh my I guess that is approval if I ever heard one." Meredith chuckled out as she glanced at the young skunk.
Leon shook his head and picked up the handset from a type of phone that Meredith had never seen the likes of before. On the face of the desk based phone was a circular piece of plastic with ten little holes placed in the disks edges, numbers zero through nine appearing underneath them. Leon slid a claw into one of the holes and rotated the disk clockwise until his paw finger met with a metal stopper. When he let go the circle slowly sprung back to where it was making a clicking sound as it returned to its original position.
As Leon spoke to whomever had picked up the other end of the line Gwen whispered, "Haven't you ever seen a phone before?" She asked the hybrid with a raised eyebrow. She had heard that Zootopia contained all sorts of wonders and she was surprised to see the confused look that was now plastered on the older female's face.
"Oh, I have, just never one like that." She chuckled. Meredith had grown up in a digital age, and this technology was antiquated to her. "Our's just look, well a lot different."
"I see, what do they look like?" Gwen asked, her curiosity coming out in full force now that she had someone else she could ask about all the things outside of her little corner of the world.
"Well they have screens, and no wires." Meredith fumbled to explain a tool she had used daily since she was a kit.
"A screen? Like a projector screen?" Gwen asked.
Meredith chuckled and shook her head. "No, much smaller and generally its made of glass."
Gwen tilted her head, "Glass? Don't they get broken?"
Meredith snorted, "Quite often, yes." Thinking about how she had shattered the screen on her first cellphone, "and they are expensive to repair too."
"Well that doesn't seem like a good material to use than. Those phones could be used to kill a mammal and still work."
Meredith smiled, the kit had a point at least. She looked up to see Leon hanging the handset up with a smile. "Three large bowls of fish stew and two loaves of that bread. I even got us some cheese."
Gwen looked up at the mention of the meal that was in store and she hopped up and wrapped her arms around Leon in thanks. "Thank you Leon." This sounded like a veritable feast to her after all, and thanks were certainly in order.
"Well, it will likely be the last good meal we have for some time." Leon said quietly, looking up at Meredith. Gwen was accustomed to small meals and sometimes days where a meal or two were missed. His mate however was unlikely to have missed a meal in her life other than one she refused to eat for one reason or another. He knew his message was received when she nodded.
When the food arrived they all dug into their stew which Meredith found to be a wonderfully heavy cream based stew, and the deep brown bread was full of flavor and texture from the crisp exterior to the soft and chewy inside, which made it perfect for sopping up the stew from her bowl.
Once their meals where finished and the tray returned to the hallway to be retrieved by the staff, all three mammals looked at the bed.
"I'll take the floor." Gwen said almost immediately.
"Nonsense. Leon in the middle." Meredith pointed at the bed.
"This is hardly proper." Leon looked at his mate.
"Well I don't give a flat tail what's proper. If what you've been hinting at to me is correct than we are going to be roughing it for the duration of this little excursion. I'm not letting that young lady sleep on the floor with a perfect bed in the room." Meredith smirked as she leaned in, "Don't forget the vixen's are in charge." Giving his a little scritch under his jaw which nearly had Leon melting at the enjoyable feeling.
"It's ok, really." Gwen tried to argue.
"No she is right. We need to get a good nights rest, and I can protect you both better if I know where you are."
Gwen rolls her eyes, having started to get comfortable around the vixen her expressions were becoming more free. Her voice still mostly flat she mumbled, "more like we need to protect you from going off and doing something rash." She said as she stripped down to the minimal clothing that would at least keep herself from being exposed.
Meredith's ears swiveled to focus on Gwen after her comment and she smirked. "Oh I like her, I'm keeping her." Meredith giggled as she pushed Leon onto the bed and snuggled up next to him. "Gwen be a dear and shut off the light please."
The younger skunk nodded and did as she was asked before slipping into the only spot left on Leon's opposite side, trying to keep a gap between herself and the other skunk, that was until she heard a small whisper from the vixen she couldn't make out and was pulled into Leon's side by one of his strong arms. Letting out a squeak of surprise at the unexpected change, she couldn't help but giggle at the laugh that came from the Vixen.
"Ok you two, get some sleep." Leon grumbled as he had an arm around both Vixen and Skunk. He didn't know what had gotten into Gwendolyn. She chased them all the way here to warn him, she had sown more emotional expression than he had seen on her during any given visit before, and she even got a little snarky comment in as well. It was a good change, but he couldn't help but wonder what had brought it about until he slipped into a light sleep.
*oOo*
Just over 60 miles to the north of where the two skunks and a hybrid slipped off to sleep a plane landed on a small air strip. Once the plane made its way to its parking position and the steps lowered from the doorway a serious female squirrel stepped out of the airplane and looked around. Breathing out she noted the fog of her breath drift away from her in the cold night air.
Her eyes glanced over the small airfield and then on the utility vehicle waiting for her. Without delay she stepped down the stairway and walked directly for the passenger side of the vehicle and climbed in. When she shut the door she slowly pulled off her black gloves. "You have my gear as requested?"
"Yes Mam," the male said from the driver's seat as he started the engine. Natalia could sense the nervousness in the young male sitting next to him.
"Good, now, to the hotel. Tomorrow the hunt begins."
"Yes Mam" The driver put the vehicle in gear and started the drive to the arranged hotel for the assassin.
Once Natalia had her second glove off of her paws she looked over and then up and down the young Jackal that was her driver. He kept his eyes forward and didn't speak, which was to her liking, he wore military fatigues, but she could still see the lean muscle of his arms and legs. Perhaps the hunt would start tonight she thought with a smirk. She was an assassin, but she was still female, and she still had needs too. Maybe this one would have what it took to survive an evening with her. That thought caused her to chuckle as she looked through the windshield.
The chuckle next to him causing his eye to glance over at the squirrel before snapping back to the road ahead, as another shiver of dread ran through him. He swore to himself he would never place duty bets on a card game ever again.