Jesse stopped to look at a White Pumpkin, before they heard footsteps.
Both girls drew their swords, Jesse whispering, "The White Pumpkin must've heard us!" Petra's flared to life, flames flickering along the blade, and her eyes started heating up as Jesse's lower arm whipped out an axe. Once again, it felt better... more normal, almost.
"GAH!" And Stampy jumped back, tripped and fell right on his butt with a little 'oof'.
"Stampy Cat?!" Petra said, mouth falling open.
"Boy, you gave me a fright!" Stampy said, shivering a bit as he climbed back to his feet, "what are you doing down here?!"
Jesse blinked. "Well, you did see us go through the doors to go have a look at the 'secret lair', so... yeah, that's what we're doing," she said, cautiously, "what are YOU doing down here?"
Stampy stamped his feet anxiously, sidling between the two girls, careful to avoid the swords. "I needed to find you, because I have something important to tell you!"
Jesse and Petra shared a look, unsurely, Jesse slowly putting her axe and sword away as Stampy said, rubbing his arm uncomfortably, "I have something to confess. Something I haven't told ANYONE."
"Where is this going?" Petra asked, slowly.
Stampy hesitated, reached back into his pocket... and pulled out a glowing flint and steel. Only, this one was green, rather than the azure Jesse's was.
Jesse's mouth fell open into a perfect 'o' as Stampy said, shuffling his feet nervously, "Nnnn I stole it from Dan, and it was just supposed to be a joke, a harmless prank, but then, well, you've seen what happened! I knew people wanted it, but I had no idea that, that, that this would happen!"
"I... did not see that coming," Jesse said, blinking. "I did not see that coming."
"I may be a thief," Stampy continued babbling, "but I'm no killer! But that White Pumpkin IS, and he's killing people for it, and now we're all down in his lair!" He shuffled his feet again, rather guiltily. "I was thinking... maybe I should just give it to the White Pumpkin."
"Well, who do you think Dan would want to give it to?" Jesse asked, calmly.
"How are you staying so calm right now?!" Petra whispered, her fingers twitching nervously as she fidgeted.
"I have no idea," Jesse responded, in that same calm voice.
"Well- I suppose- he'd want it back," Stampy said, hesitating a moment, "it IS his, after all, he got it fair and square..."
Jesse shrugged and clapped her hands together. "Well, then that's settled, then," she said, cheerfully enough.
Stampy's shoulders relaxed, as he slipped the flint and steel back into his pocket. "Well- yeah, I guess. Thanks, Jesse."
And the three of them continued forward, until they reached a set of iron doors with a lever next to it. "That looks like a 'lair door' if I ever saw one," Petra said, pointing at it dramatically.
Jesse shrugged, reached out, and flipped the switch downwards, and whipped out her sword as the door flung itself open- just in case, you know.
"Before we go in there," Stampy said, Petra continuing past but Jesse pausing and turning back to look over her shoulder, "I wanted to thank you..."
Jesse blinked and turned back a bit, looking at Stampy. "What for?"
"For saving me and Dan... I mean, you don't know us, you didn't have to..."
Jesse's expression had softened at that. "No problem," she said, and they all ventured forward into a huge cavern. Bookshelves lined the rough walls, as well as a painting, and there were some chests, and what looked like a brewing stand, and a bit of a miniature lake.
Oh, and cats. Lots and lots and LOTS of calico cats.
"Oh, wow," Jesse said, blinking.
Petra looked around, making a face. "Very... creepy."
"I would NOT put this in my top ten places I've ever been," Stampy added. Jesse had to laugh a bit at that, looking around, as Petra put her hands on her hips and looked at the cats. "Well, there's where the meowing's coming from."
"We'll get outta here as soon as we find something that proves the White Pumpkin's identity," Jesse said, continuing to poke around a bit, before going to look at the painting. She'd barely looked at it for a minute before her eyes widened and she stepped back. "Uh, Petra, did you see this?"
"That's the portal hallway!" Petra exclaimed, eyes widening.
"Yeah, looks like the White Pumpkin's been there too."
Jesse tried to do her best to ignore the 'chests of the dead' sign on the wall and the chests- at least there were only two, right? She approached the pool of water-
A small splash in the lake. Jesse reacted and shot a web at it, reeling it in to reveal... a fish.
Jesse looked at the fish, before putting it in her inventory- hey, she'd caught it, she might as well- and went looking around, poking around the bookshelves a bit. "Let's see here... wow, they're all about portals," she said, putting a hand on her hip, "pretty obsessive." Continuing down the shelf, she spotted another book, and squinted at it. "'Walking With the Endermen,' by... Soren?! How in the world did the White Pumpkin get that?" she said, more than a little put out at this point.
Walking over to a chest with a calico cat lying on it lazily, Jesse frowned. "Hm, this might be important," she hummed mildly, before poking at the calico cat sitting on it. "Um, hello, kitty, kitty, could you scoot out of the way please?"
The cat just ignored her.
"Wow, I wish Lukas was here," Jesse sighed. He would've loved talking to the cats. Not to mention that lake filled with very edible fish for him. Actually, maybe she should catch one for him...
"Oh! Hey, sweet, Ender Pearls!" Petra exclaimed, rifling through a smaller chest nearby and startling Jesse out of her thoughts, "look!"
Jesse looked, and sure enough there were about ten of them in Petra's hands. "Toss me a couple?" Jesse called, putting her hands up.
Petra lobbed five of them to Jesse, who turned away from the chest she'd been looking at it and snatched all five out of the air pretty easily, all of them landing in her palm without bursting.
"Nice," Stampy commented.
Jesse bowed, five of her hands stowing the Ender Pearls away. "Thank you, thank you," she said dramatically, making both of them laugh a bit.
Jesse turned back to the chest, backed away a few steps, and pulled out the fish she'd inadvertently caught earlier. "Here kitty kitty," she called, coaxingly, making the cat's head actually lift off the chest. Progress! "Here kitty. Get the fishy."
The cat came down from the chest and came towards the fish, lazily. "There ya go," Jesse said coaxingly.
Suddenly, a chorus of meowing started, and Jesse looked up to see... instead of the two cats from earlier, TWELVE. And all of them were calico cats! They all jumped down from their little shelf and ran towards the fish. "Ah! Cats! So many cats!" Jesse yelped, jumping backwards to avoid stomping on the sudden flood of cats on the floor.
"Ugh. Besides Lukas, cats give me the creeps. No offense Stampy," Petra added to Stampy.
Jesse had to think about that. Whenever one of the scientists's partners brought in their cat... funny, Jesse could barely remember that partner. Just that she'd had lots of red hair. Oh, and calico cats. Just like these. Weird. Anyway, when she'd brought the cat in, Petra would sit behind Lukas and not come out until the cat went away for a bit. She smirked a bit at the memory.
"None taken." And Stampy cupped a hand around his mouth. "I'm not really a cat," he whispered.
Jesse opened the chest and began to move her hands through them. "It's full of... oh wow," and Jesse stood up, holding a portrait in her hand, before putting it up on the wall. And there was Petra, on the wall.
With a huge, red X drawn through her.
A/N: Stopping points!
What the-
Five hundred reviews.
FIVE HUNDRED FREAKING REVIEWS.
I just had 400 like ten chapters ago! You guys!
Toni42: Lol xD
DemonCatLady: Lol xD I'm glad your exams are almost over! Good luck! And that'd be awesome :)
rebekahtpe: I wish. I'd rather be able not to see for a year. And happy early birthday!
x.X. A.L. X.x.
