"Here, this one is my favourite," Canas said, finding the story he was looking for in his book of fairy tales.

"Well, what is your favourite story?" Nils asked excitedly.

"It's called Puss in Boots," Canas proclaimed.

"What am I going to do, Matthew?" Lyn asked of the cat sitting next to her. She sat cross-legged in the grass of a small meadow surrounded by trees, scratching Matt the cat behind the ears.

Matthew purred happily, only partly listening to Lyn's plight.

She continued, "My grandfather... I wonder what he could be doing right now? I hope he's alright... I fear he may be in danger from Lord Lundgren. If only I could meet with my grandfather..."

"Lord Lundgren," Matthew repeated. "Isn't that the ogre who lives in Caelin?"

"Yes, my great uncle," Lyn replied. "He has his eye on the throne of Caelin, I'm afraid."

"Don't worry," Matthew reassured her. "Just as soon as I can, I will help you. Hm... Maybe I should go to the edge of the forest and see if Legault has returned yet. As soon as he does, we can get started on returning you to your rightful status."

Lyn smiled at the cat. "I'm sure glad I found you. I would have been lonely here by myself."

"Well then, it's a good thing Hanna kicked me out of the house for clawing up the furniture, huh?" Matthew grinned. He stood on all four paws and went bounding away through the forest.

Darting through the trees, he saw a dark shape moving some ways ahead of him. He moved quickly but cautiously toward the figure in the forest, but soon discovered that it was no threat to him. In fact, it was his lucky day.

"Legault, you're back!" Matthew cried. He leapt out of the bushes and into Legault's path. Matthew began dancing around his feet, singing, "You found it! You found it!"

"I certainly did," Legault replied. He reached into his cloak and produced an old book with a rather worn spine. He placed it on the ground before the hyper feline. "Here you are, my furry friend. The book you required on shapeshifting."

"Eeeeeeexcellent," Matthew purred, rubbing his paws together. He pushed open the book's cover with his nose and began leafing through the pages. "So it was in the giant's palace, as we thought?"

"Yes," Legault replied. "It seems I managed to track it flawlessly."

"Go on, let's hear it then," Matthew urged.

"As you know, it once belonged to the ogre Lundgren," Legault explained. "It was stolen from him by a myrmidon."

"And so the myrmidon had it?" Matthew guessed.

"Not quite," Legault corrected him. "It seems the myrmidon had it won off of him in a duel to the death with some rogue swordmaster. That swordmaster was one Karel, in the employ of the wealthy giant."

"I see," Matthew said, intrigued. "A duel to the death? Whose idea was that, the myrmidon's or Karel's?"

"Why, Karel's, of course. He wanders in search of a real challenge, and earns money from the giant to participate in arena battles."

Matthew snorted. "Sounds like a real gentleman."

"Actually, he offered for me to stay and have brunch with him at the palace," Legault explained.

"What'd you have?"

"French toast."

"With syrup?"

"Raspberry."

"Mmm..." Matthew mumbled hungrily. He turned back to his book. "Well, let's have a look at what we've got here... Gee, this looks kind of tough... Turning into a human is obviously no easy task. But I will do it. I have to. I want to help Lady Lyndis."

"A perfectly noble goal," Legault nodded approvingly. "I'll help you out as best I can."

"Really?" Matthew asked happily. "Thank you so much. Let's see... Super catta, fratta... What does that say?"

"Supercalifragilisticexpialodocious?"

"Oh, good gods..."

"Where did Matthew get to?" Lyn sighed. She had spent enough time alone with her thoughts, and now felt that if she sat still any longer she would go crazy.

She was about to rise to her feet and scour the forest for the stray cat when a pair of hands suddenly appeared from behind her and obstructed her sight.

"Guess who!" her assailant commanded.

"Ee-YAH!" Lyn cried. Quick as a flash, she drew her sword and struck her assailant square in the stomach with the hilt of her blade.

She heard a rather sick sound from behind her and a distinct thud. She whirled around, crouched in a defensive position, to face her attacker. However, she paused when she saw the form writhing in the grass had the same honey-coloured hair Matthew the cat's fur was. This assailant also had slightly pointed ears and a swishing striped tail.

"M-Matthew?!" Lyn stammered. "Is that you?"

"Sorta..." Matthew grunted. He rose to a crouching position, nursing the tender spot on his stomach. "Sure are quick on the draw, aren't you?"

"What happened to you?" Lyn asked in awe. She resheathed her blade and came closer. She recognized his voice, so knew that this had to be Matthew.

"Legault returned," Matthew explained. "With the book. It took long enough to figure out that damn spell, but we finally managed to get it. And look! I'm a human! Not a convincing one, I'll admit..." He looked at the vestige of being a cat swishing behind his back. "...but I'll get by."

Lyn helped Matthew rise to his feet and stand up straight. It was at that point she noticed his new footwear. "Where did you get those?"

Matthew looked proudly down at the sturdy, brown leather boots he now wore. They were up to his knees, where they hung off at a strange angle very baggily.

"Legault lent them to me. Aren't they nifty? I love 'em!"

"They're at least two sizes too big..." Lyn said doubtfully.

"Aw, I'll grow into them," Matthew said dismissively. "Well, what are we waiting for? Let's get going!"

"Going?" Lyn repeated. "Going where?"

"To acquire your rightful inheritance, of course," Matthew replied. He took Lyn by the arm and began to cross the meadow.

"You've had this pretty much planned out all along, haven't you?" Lyn asked suspiciously.

"It's curiosity that killed the cat," Matthew replied mysteriously. "Not conquest."

Lyn and Matthew travelled for a few days and finally emerged from a forest into a farmer's field. Across the field and on the horizon was a large castle.

"There it is," Lyn announced. "That's Castle Caelin. It's where my grandfather should be."

"But you doubt he would accept you just yet, right?" Matthew guessed. Lyn had told him the story before.

"That's right. He wanted nothing to do with my father when he realized that he had married a Sacaen woman. But then, even if he was willing to accept me for who I am, he probably wouldn't recognize me."

"Makes sense," Matthew said thoughtfully. "Wait right here, Lyndis. I'll be right back!"

Matthew dove down onto all fours and took a leap forward, falling flat on his face in the process.

"Are you okay?" Lyn demanded of him.

"Ow..." Matthew groaned. "Uh, I guess humans can't do that, huh?"

"I'm afraid not," Lyn replied, fighting to keep a straight face.

Matthew stood and dusted himself off. "Poorly manufactured creatures..."

He proceeded on two feet, muttering all the way about how slow and clumsy humans were, to a barn next to the field.

One of the doors was open, and he peeked inside. A man in a gray vest with hot pink hair seemed to be taking stock on a wheelbarrow full of vegetables when he noticed Matthew.

"Eh? Who're you?"

Matthew pushed the door to the barn open and bowed deeply. "My name is Matthew, good sir, and I've come to ask a favour of you."

"A favour is it?" the man said suspiciously, advancing on Matthew. "Do you have any idea who I am?"

Matthew shook his head, a big, friendly smile plastered to his face.

"Oh... Well, my name is Geitz, and I'm the son of this here farm's owner. We don't much appreciate strangers trespassing on our land, and furthermore— Hey, you have a tail! Hehehehe!"

"Hey! HEY!" Matthew exclaimed as Geitz tried to reach around Matthew and grab his tail.

Matthew danced around the barn, trying to hide his back-end from Geitz. Geitz finally managed to seize it for a moment, but Matthew screamed and backed himself into a corner, wrenching his feline appendage away from the man's grasp.

"That is unwanted physical contact!!" Matthew shouted.

"Sorry, sorry..." Geitz apologized. "Uh, anyway, what were we just talking about?"

"Um, I needed to take some of those cabbages you have over there," Matthew replied, pointing to the wheelbarrow. He smiled widely. "I'm afraid I don't have anything to pay you with, except my undying gratitude."

"Hm, I dunno..." Geitz said doubtfully, stroking his chin. "Your tail did entertain me so that I may be in high enough spirits to give you some... But then again, pa would be awfully angry if I gave some stranger our cabbages for free... And furthermore—"

"Hey, are those butterflies?" Matthew interrupted, pointing outside.

"Butterflies?!" Geitz exclaimed, darting through the open barn door. "Where?!?!"

Matthew, now alone in the barn, smirked at his handiwork. "The attention span of a gnat."

After purloining three cabbages, Matthew left the barn and rejoined Lyn.

As the two crossed the field, Lyn said to Matthew, "I saw some guy go running out of the barn, prancing about and yelling something about butterflies."

"An odd one, he was," Matthew explained. "But he did help us, so I'm not complaining."

The next place the duo arrived in was a port city closer to Castle Caelin.

"We've almost arrived," Lyn said. Her voice betrayed a mix of excitement and nervousness. "What's the next step of your plan, o wise cat?"

"That's simple," Matthew replied. "I'm going to pay a visit to Marquess Caelin."

"Really? Can you do that?" Lyn demanded.

"I'll ask for an audience with him, that's all," Matthew shrugged. "Whether I'll be able to get in to see him, I don't know, but it's worth a try. It's all in the next phase of my ingenious plan. But first, we need to get suited up."

Matthew lead Lyn down the streets of town, at first wandering as if he did not know where he was going. At last, he seemed to recognize something, for his pace quickened and he stopped abruptly in front of a shop.

Lyn nearly ran into him, he stopped so suddenly. "Ack! Uh, so this is where we need to go next? Looks like they sell leather goods..."

"Yup," Matthew replied happily. He dragged her into the shop and immediately started gleefully pawing through the merchandise.

Meanwhile, Lyn wandered about the shop, looking at the hides hanging from the ceiling and noticing the man sitting behind the counter. He looked stoic, and not too impressed with Matthew's behaviour. A red bandana covered his longish dark green hair.

Lyn recognized his particular style of clothing. She murmured to herself, "Hm... I think he's Sacaen..."

"What do you think?" Matthew demanded.

Lyn looked over at Matthew to discover that he was now sporting a large hat with a feather.

"Uh, it's very nice," Lyn stammered, smiling.

Matthew walked up to the man behind the counter and placed the hat on the flat surface. "I'll take it!"

Without a word, the man looked at the tag on the hat. When he saw the price, he spoke. Though his voice was quiet, it was quite clear. "150 gold."

"That's expensive..." Matthew muttered. He felt around in his pockets, and in his cloak, brow furrowed thoughtfully.

"Do you even have any money?" Lyn whispered to him.

"What she said," the man growled, glaring at Matthew.

"Uh, well, no," Matthew replied. He reached into his sack and pulled out one of the leafy green vegetables within. "But I've got cabbage! Would you like some cabbage?"

"Not a cabbage man, huh?"

"Get outta here."

Matthew sniffed indignantly. "Well, fine!" In a huff, he replaced the cabbage and stormed out of the shop.

Lyn turned to the man behind the counter. "Excuse me, but, what's your name?"

"...Rath."

"You wouldn't happen to be Sacaen, would you?"

"I would. I'm Rath, of the Kutolah tribe."

"Really? I'm Lyn, of the Lorca."

She looked out the door and noticed that Matthew was getting away from her.

"Um, well, I have to go. It was nice meeting you."

"Likewise."

Lyn smiled, then rushed out the door after Matthew. When she was next to him again, she noticed that he had stopped and was sniffing the air. "What is it?"

"I smell rabbit," Matthew replied. He looked around, and seemed to follow his nose across the street, around Rath's shop to the back. Here, they found several fresh rabbit carcases.

"I guess that would explain it then," Lyn said, beholding the foul sight with some disgust.

"Well, if I can't have a hat..." Matthew said deviously. He chuckled to himself and stalked up to the skinned rabbits.

"Oh, Matthew, don't!" Lyn pleaded.

Before Matthew could lay a hand on the rabbits, a bolt from out of nowhere struck the ground at Matthew's feet. He screamed and jumped back, seeing an arrow lodged into the dirt where his foot had been milliseconds before.

He looked up frantically to find Rath standing at the back door, carrying a bow and knocking another arrow.

"GIT AWAY FROM MAH RABBITS!"

Matthew skittered frantically away from two more arrows, grabbing Lyn in the process and pulling her along with him back into the street.

Once a safe distance away, Matthew stopped to catch his breath.

"You know, I can't say I blame him," Lyn told him.

"What?" Matthew demanded in disbelief. "You wanted him to shoot me?!"

"No, nothing like that," Lyn replied. "But you shouldn't have tried to steal his rabbits."

"Okay, okay, whatever," Matthew mumbled sulkily. He looked thoughtful for a moment, and then his eyes lit up. "I've got it! I'll be right back!"

Lyn called after him, but he was gone without another word.

"Urgh... I wish he'd stop leaving me alone all the time..."

Matthew crouched behind some tall grass, watching one of his cabbages sitting in the dust. He had been watching the vegetable for so long, his eyes were getting blurry. But finally, what he was waiting for hopped into the tiny clearing. A little brown ball of fluff with large feet and ears sniffed delicately at the cabbage.

Matthew watched its movements with all the instincts of a predator, waiting for his moment to pounce. He lowered his upper body and waggled his butt in the air in preparation to strike.

Lyn paced back and forth on the street in front of Rath's shop. Several minutes later, Matthew came trotting back with a brown rabbit in his hand and a huge grin on his face.

"Where'd you get all those scratches from?" Lyn asked when he approached.

"You'd be surprised how feisty rabbits can be," Matthew said matter-of-factly. "Especially when you don't have any claws or fangs to kill it with... But I did it! Aren't you proud of me?"

"Sure," Lyn muttered. "But I'm not impressed with the way you keep running off on your little adventure and leaving me to wait for you. Not only am I excruciatingly bored, but I'm starting to wonder if everything you're doing is actually helping!"

"You've gotta believe me!" Matthew pleaded. "I know this all seems really redundant, but I've got it all planned out. You must know, I'm a very clever cat, and I promise you that I will be successful in making sure you receive your rightful heritage."

Lyn considered him for a moment, then smiled. "Alright, I believe you. But you had better live up to your word!"

"Right, then! Off we go!"

To Lyn's surprise, Matthew lead her right back to Rath's shop. Matthew walked right up to the counter and held the dead rabbit up in front of Rath's face. Rath flinched at the sudden appearance of the corpse.

"Okay, buddy boy, a trade," Matthew proposed. "My rabbit for your really cool hat. Deal?"

"...Alright."

Matthew skipped merrily out of the shop with the large-hat-with-the-feather.

"With these boots Legault gave me, along with this hat I traded Rath for, I'm stylin'!"

"Nice touch," Lyn agreed.

"Now that I'm all decked out, let's to Castle Caelin, shall we?"

"Matthew, I...I can't do it."

"Why not?" Matthew asked in disbelief. "First you go on about how I'm always going off on my own, but now you don't want to come with me into the castle?"

"I'm just too nervous," Lyn explained. "I'll just wait outside."

"You're afraid your grandfather will send you away," Matthew guessed.

Lyn nodded.

"Well, you shall meet, I guarantee it. But not until you're ready. You can stay out here if you wish. Besides, it would only seem proper if a lady of high birth would send in a messenger before her, right?"

"What a remarkable little animal you are!" Marquess Caelin said in awe, tugging on Matthew's ears.

"Yes, I discovered the means with which to transform myself into a human," Matthew explained, his patience waning. "I used to be a cat, the vestiges of which still remain to a certain extent."

"And look at this!" Marquess Caelin exclaimed. "A tail!"

"ACK!" Matthew screamed. He grabbed his own rear end and took several steps back. "Please, milord, not the tail!"

The soldiers standing guard in the room tried to hold in their snickering.

"Alright, alright," the marquess said dismissively. "Enough of this. For what reason have I accepted an audience with you?"

"Milord, behold!" Matthew announced with gusto, reaching into his sack. "I give you...cabbages!"

Marquess Caelin stared. "...Cabbages?"

"Yes! As an offering of our respect!" Matthew replied.

Marquess Caelin raised an eyebrow. "And just whom does this 'we' refer to?"

"Why, myself and the Lady Lyndis, marquess!"

"Lady...Lyndis?" Marquess Caelin repeated. "Could it be..."

Murmurs arose from the soldiers around the room. Matthew smirked triumphantly.

Lord Hausen wagged a finger at Matthew. "If this is some sort of jest...!"

"I speak the truth, milord!" Matthew pleaded. He started into his act, exaggerating a sorrowful story that could bring a tear to a demon's eye. "She has come seeking you, milord, her closest living relative. Her Sacaen village was ravaged by bandits! The fiends left not a single soul alive, save for the Lady Lyndis!"

"Not a soul...?" Marquess Caelin repeated quietly. He appeared shocked. More murmurs arose from the soldiers.

"I dread not, milord," Matthew replied, clasping his hands over his heart and shaking his head sorrowfully. "Her heart still resides in Sacae, but her body, milord, has come to Caelin! She seeks you, marquess, her one and only grandfather."

Marquess Caelin paused for a moment. "This all comes as quite a shock... But why did she not come to me herself?"

"You must understand, marquess," Matthew explained. "You and she have never met face-to-face. If you now are shocked, think how the lady must feel!"

The marquess considered this for a moment. "This is a lot to take in all at once... I pray you, leave me to think on this."

"As you wish, milord," Matthew complied, bowing deeply. With the bow concealing his face, no one saw the large grin that now rested there.

The next day, Matthew brought Lyn to the port for the next phase of his operation.

Lyn looked out upon the large expanse of ocean. "What have we come here for?"

"Another offering," Matthew replied. "Phase two of my plan involves giving the marquess many fish as a gift. See that ship out there? I'm sure some sailors aboard will give us some fish."

Lyn raised an eyebrow. "Uh, Matthew, you had no money yesterday. What makes you think you'll get any fish out these guys without money?"

Matthew pointed out at the ship anchored at the far end of the port. "See that flag they're flying? They're pirates. And that's why I need you here. It's a well-known fact that pirates have a penchant for pretty girls."

"Wait a second!" Lyn protested. "What makes you think I want to fraternize with a bunch of crass, foul-mouthed pirates?!"

Matthew shrugged. "Who wouldn't?"

At Lyn's death glare, Matthew said quickly, "Well, just think about it! Does anyone in the port appear to be afraid for their lives? Hiding their women and children? I think not. That's why these pirates can't be all that bad."

"Bad or not," Lyn growled, crossing her arms and scowling out at the water, "They're just bandits in a wooden tub..."

Suddenly, it dawned on Matthew. "Oh... I think I see what this is about..."

Lyn snorted and waved a dismissive hand at Matthew. "Don't patronize me. All I ask is that you don't leave me indebted to pirates."

Matthew's eyes suddenly narrowed as a devious plan formed in his mind. "Oh, there'll be no need to repay any debts... Heh heh heh..."

Lyn turned her head slowly to stare at the cat-man. "What deviousness are you contemplating now, Matthew?"

Matthew tapped a finger on his chin. "Now, where have I heard someone say that before...? Oh well, doesn't matter. Come on, let's go!"

"Matthew, I told you, noooooooo!"

Lyn stood in one spot on the pier, feeling absolutely ridiculous. She had tried pleading with the cat-man, telling him that it was an unwritten rule that Sacaens never lied, but he refused to listen. Matthew was not far away, crouching behind some crates. Lyn glared at him, but he returned an encouraging thumbs up. Lyn rolled her eyes, and watched the movements of one pirate as he slowly made his way in her direction. A few strands of brown hair poked out from under a white bandana.

He strode over to her and bellowed, "Who're you? We're working here, stand aside!"

Much to her own dismay, Lyn began acting out the role Matthew had given her. Clasping her hands before her, as if pleading to the man, she widened her eyes and drew her knees together. "Oh, please, sir, could you help me? I'm afraid I've lost my kitten!"

"Your...kitten?" the pirate repeated, slightly taken aback. "What were you doing with a kitten in the middle of a quay?"

"Well, I, uh, like to take my kitten on walks," Lyn replied weakly. She would have liked to hit herself at this point.

"Ooookay," the pirate replied slowly. He continued speaking rather slowly, as if anything faster would have been too much for the poor simple girl to understand. "What was your kitten's name?"

"His name..." Lyn replied, struggling for an answer. "His name was...was... Matthew!"

"Matthew," the pirate repeated. "Very original. I suppose you've got a puppy named Fido, too."

"Oh, yes!" Lyn nodded enthusiastically. "He's a...a cocker spaniel..." She suddenly shook her head. "Okay, you know what? I'm gonna level with you. I was put up to this."

"Put up to it?"

"Yeah. I know this is gonna sound weird..."

"Nah, I think the whole Matthew thing was weird."

Lyn nodded and smiled wrily. "Yeah, that was pretty bad. Look, I don't know whether or not you'll believe me, but I'm the granddaughter of Lord Hausen."

"I wouldn't know whether you're lying or not, tell the truth," the pirate confided. "This is my first time in this port, and I'm not too familiar with the powers that be. But if you're related to Lord Hausen, that must mean you're of noble birth, right? What the heck are you doing being pushed around into pretending you lost a kitten?"

"It's really long story..." Lyn sighed, shaking her head.

"Well, if you're in with the marquess," the pirate grinned, "you're okay by me. The name's Dart."

Lyn smiled and nodded. "Lyndis."

Suddenly, a strange movement caught her eye over Dart's shoulder. A flash of a red cloak and the swishing of a honey-coloured tail registered as being Matthew in Lyn's mind, but it was what he was doing that really caught her attention.

With the speed and liquid grace that seemed to go along with being a cat, Matthew slung a large sack of fish over his back and began to tiptoe away.

Lyn couldn't hide the expression of terror on her face, and Dart obviously noticed.

"Hey, what're you lookin' at?"

Dart turned around and discovered Matthew sneaking away with the loot from the dock.

"Hey, you!" Dart thundered. "Yeah, you with the tail!"

Matthew jumped and froze on the spot, staring at Dart. Suddenly, he screamed and ran away with the sack, practically kicking up a trail of dust at the speed he was going.

Dart looked over to where Lyn had been standing to find out if she happened to be in league with that thief, but she was nowhere to be found. Instead, he discovered her running after the honey-haired thief.

"I'll compensate you for your loss the very moment I have the chance, I swear!" she was yelling over her shoulder as she made for the centre of town.

Dart growled, and barked out a command at his nearest crew mate. "You! Geese! After that scurvy, tailed freak!"

A man with long pink hair undulating majestically in the breeze rested one foot on a crate and held his twin axes at his sides heroically. "Aye aye! ...Ooh, look, a butterfly!"

Geese dropped his axes and began chasing a little butterfly around, giggling like a schoolgirl.

Dart rested his face in his hand and shook his head slowly and shamefully. "Why did we hire this guy? You'd think the fact that his brother was such a pain would have tipped us off..."