Thank you to Mominator124, Phantomgirl24, SpookyMormonHellDream, phanrose, SloaneDestler, crawfordphantomluvr, peanutpup, lindaweng, Aphaea21, Teen543, Child of Dreams, Pensez-a-Erik, and Batty Dings for the lovely reviews!
By the way, I changed Erik's request to Ibrahim as he was being taken away from "apologize for me" to "try to save her" as I felt this was more in character.
Enjoy!
Erik
Chapter 75
The Lady
I couldn't sleep.
So I left my room one night to go walk through the streets of Moscow. Never mind the freezing winter temperature. Never mind the dark clouds over the moon that threatened to bring rain; that blocked out nearly all light save for the streetlamps. I didn't care. I was too lonely; my mind too awake. And the night was far too quiet.
It was while I walked, watching the dark cobblestones as they passed beneath my feet, that I stopped at a sound. It was a cry. The voice of a lady asking for help.
A very little lady.
I went to the source of the sound - an alley between two buildings - and found her. Wrapped in a woolen blanket, barely larger than my hand.
A Siamese kitten.
In the little illumination, I could see how skinny she was. The poor little dear was starving.
By the state she was in, either her mother had abandoned her, or her owner had. Either way, I was not going to let her die.
I thought, of course, of my curse. I thought of how becoming attached to this little creature could potentially kill her. But looking at her, I knew she would perish either way. I could provide a few more years of life and a warm, comfortable home in the meantime.
I went to my knees before her as she looked at me, sending a high-pitched meow in my direction. I smiled. "Hello, pretty girl," I whispered.
She meowed again, attempting to move toward me, but she was too weak. She fell from her feet. I held out my hand to her, letting her become acquainted with my smell. The moment her nose met my fingers, she rubbed her cheek and forehead against me. I took that as consent to pick her up.
Once she was in my hands, she purred. Loudly. She closed her eyes and continued rubbing her face against my fingers, thanking me for finding her.
And a quick examination of her small body let me know that - yes, my first instinct was right. She was indeed a girl.
I cupped my other hand over her, shielding her from the cold, as I walked back to the tavern. I hid her in my coat while walking in, hoping that she didn't meow. Luckily, she merely continued to purr. Only when I was in my room again did I bring her out. She looked back at me with wide, blue eyes.
"Are you hungry, little darling?" I stroked her tiny forehead and she narrowed her eyelids in pleasure. I looked to the dresser, where I still had half a loaf of bread. It was late enough that the kitchen of the tavern was closed, so this was all I was able to offer at the moment. I went to the bread, picked off a piece, and held it out to her - hoping that she would find it appetizing.
To my relief, she did. After investigating it for nearly a full minute, she opened her mouth and accepted the food. She swallowed, licked her chops, and asked for more. I obliged. After several more morsels of bread, and a bit of water as well, she decided that she was full and curled up in my hand. She promptly fell asleep.
At that gesture, that show of trust, I knew she was mine. I knew that I'd do anything for her.
"What do I call you?" I asked her. I pet her bony back, feather- light. Lord, she felt so fragile. Her little paws flexed at the contact. Slowly so as not to disturb her, I brought her up to my face and kissed her lightly between her ears. Her purring only intensified, and she pushed her face into my lips. I laughed and kissed her again.
I went to the bed and set her down on the blankets, and the moment she was out of my hands, she protested. How dare I leave her alone - how dare I step away to the other side of the room? 'Really,' she squealed, 'the audacity of it.'
"One moment, love," I said gently. "Give me one moment." I changed as quickly as I could into sleep-clothes and went back to the bed, sitting cross-legged on it. I placed a pillow over my legs, picked her up where she was lying on the foot of the mattress, and put her on that pillow. She settled in and slept, looking like the little angel she was.
After what felt like half an hour, after not daring to move except to run my forefinger over her cream-colored fur, I finally reached out to the bedside table where the book I was currently reading lay. It was in Russian - by now, I had learned the language - and told the story of a missionary on a trip to the Arabian peninsula, who fell in love with a homeless woman there. I didn't much care for the protagonist, the missionary, but I did rather like the woman's character. Her name was Ayesha, and although the world had dealt her nothing but misfortune, she continued to hold a stubborn spark in her heart. The missionary found her, alone at night, and offered her shelter.
Very much in the way I'd just now found my little roommate.
I turned away from the book to look at her.
"Ayesha," I said, trying it on my tongue. I liked it. "Should I call you Ayesha?"
She purred at the sound of my voice.
I grinned, knowing I hadn't smiled like this in so long. I hadn't smiled at all before tonight, not since...well.
I found my place in the book, holding it with one hand and petting her with the other. "Ayesha it is, then."
