Nihao! Thanks for all the reviews! Every single one is comforting. Hahaha. J/k. Oh well, I got this blood poisoning problem, I look like Merle with streaks all over my face. So now! Before I forget! I know some people never read the author notes u.รบ

It's The LAST OPORTUNITY! CHOOSE WHO DO YOU WANT THE NEKO-CHAN TO BE!

If you don't I'll let the goblin choose, and believe me, that's not very good... eeek!

Disclaimer: The dragon doesn't own anything! Except for those delicious cookies! HAHAHAHAHA THEY ARE ALL MINE! MOERO! MOERO! Ejem.. sorry...

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CHAP 4: Friendship Price: One Sided Love

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She woke at dawn, she sat up and noticed a bandage on her body, it didn't hurt much anymore, just a tiny bit, she also noticed that she didn't fall on a bed when she tried to save that poor girl. The sunrays were starting to show over the high mountains. Mountains? The slave city was located in the plains... where they shoot arrows at the slaves that where trying to make a dash for liberty. The only mountains she barely knew about were those located at north, where the forest dragons lived.

She then realized that she was really far indeed from her loved one, the farthest the better, was her concept of life now.

Rising her eyes to the ceiling she took notice of the room for the first time. It was a sky blue colored, with lilac curtains, quite a weird but beautiful convention. It looked darker, but her eyes adjusted just fine. She could see a couple of doors, one she figured to be a closet, a very big one judging by the size of the doors. The other one smelled like water, so she expected it to be a bathroom, and the third one, by elimination process, must be the entrance door. Huge windows stood on the wall in either side of the bed's majestic headboard. The bed indeed was huge, snow-white silk blankets covered her thin body, very contrasting against her dirty fur, dirt smears where all over the bed.

She stepped off the bed and took all the bed sheets. Silently she headed down the hall, where the water smelled stronger, down huge flights of steps, and down more halls. This must be a castle, she thought, it was huge. She felt like walking to the center of Gaea already. She finally reached the zone she wanted: the laundry pool.

There were already several maids washing tablecloths, bed sheets, curtains, cloths, and other innumerable pieces. They paid no heed on her, they just kept washing, all their chores needed to be done before the masters woke up.

The cat-girl just kneeled next to a young girl of about 14 or 15 years old with long ebony hair and started washing the bed sheets, her soapy hands running swiftly over all the dirt smears. She could sense nasty looks glancing at her when they thought she wasn't looking.

The girl had noticed that and smiled at the dirty cat-girl, giving her one of her most comforting smiles. The Neko-Chan had curious look in her face, had been a very long time since somebody had smiled at her. It felt... kinda good.

"Hi! I'm Shasayame Nezumi. You can call me Shasa if you want. Welcome to the group." The girl then smiled again.

Our cat-girl found it really weird indeed, a mouse and a cat-girl? The feeling that brought to her mind was not welcome anymore, chuckles, giggles and laughs were just a distant memory in her heart.

The cat-girl just turned to her washing and resumed to that. Shasa felt ignored, but by the look on the cat-girl's face she knew that she wasn't ready to talk just yet.

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When Zenji woke, the first thing he did was to check on the cat girl. He walked down the hall, towards a guestroom where they had accommodated the poor girl. Alia was already there, standing at the door embracing herself with her hands holding an elbow each one.

"What happened, Alia?" Alia's concerned face made Zenji thought the worst. "D...Did she died at night?" Sadness crossed his face. If he hadn't let Alia climb that stupid tree the poor cat-girl none of that would have happened. He felt guilty and ashamed, just as he felt that day when his mother was killed...

"I do not actually know. She isn't in her room anymore. Neither her or the bed sheets" Zenji felt calmness invade his heart again as Alia told him that. But if she had run away she could reopen her wound and she would de because of all the blood she lost.

"We gotta find her again. She might hurt herself again." Zenji then called for his guards and servants and ordered them to find the mysterious cat-girl.

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Shasa helped the cat-girl to rise the bed sheets. Silk needed a special wash, but the fine feline hands had made an amazing job. Shasa noticed that once cleaned the cat girl's hands were whiter than the bed sheets. It was white pure fur; her hands were more like light in the dark.

The hung the bed sheets on a cloth rope and they headed upstairs. To continue getting far away was her only thought for the moment. She had to keep moving. She didn't want to hurt anyone. She must be alone. It didn't matter what happened. What it happened, was just fate.

She felt too tired. The steps seemed endlessly. But she didn't show marks of tiredness. She looked stout as an oak; a white oak in her case. She learned to hide her tiredness because if you showed any sign of weariness in the slave city they would just torture you more.

Shasa kept talking about some gardens or something like that. She was to busy thinking how to find something to eat. Just when they turned around a hall towards another flight of steps, they ran into some guards. The guards made a grab for the cat girl, but she hissed as they tried to hold her down.

"Calm down, miss! We are not going hurt thee." The guards tried to calm her down. But by surrounding her against a corner she acted just like a cornered prey would.

She crouched in the floor and hissed loudly. Her ears dropped at the side of her head and she bared her claws, the fur in her body stood up and her eyes reduced to slits.

"Hey, Stop! You are scaring the poor thing!!" Shasa pushed the guards aside and kneeled next to the cat girl. Petting her auburn hair, soothing her. The cat girl stopped hissing and crouched way more. "What do you want with her?" asked Shasa, talking for the scared cat.

"Sir Zenji made a call for her. She ran from her location and the Masters are worried." The guards explained as he tried to emphasize with the scared one. "Please, you shall come with us."

Shasa helped the cat girl stand up again, as her newfound friend recovered her calm and serene expression. She was a really hard puzzle, but she could handle it all.

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Eeeek! Shall the Neko-Chan run away again? Shall the laundry pool ladies hack her head off? Shall the Neko-Chan take a bath soon? She's starting to stink... eek! And just think about pesky fleas! Eeeeewwww!

Oh well, once again! It's your last opportunity to chose who'd you want her to be! If you don't it will finish in the hands of my sis the Green Goblin, and that's NOT good.

Chai Chien! See ya next time in...........

Next Chapter!! Wheee!