A/N: Back from my break and my mind is better cleared now and I have some ideas straight. Alright, when we last left off Katt had just encountered Wolf and is about to receive a tour of the mansion (also remember she's in the east wing and not the west wing). I think you'll notice that even though Wolf's mansion is smaller than Shane's on the outside, he makes better use of it than Shane did. Oh, and the diary? I'll bring it back up in a little while, probably by the next chapter as a matter of fact.
Disclaimer: I don't own the characters of Star Fox, Nintendo and/or Rare do. Any relation to my original characters in anyway is entirely coincidental.
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Chapter 5: A Wolf in Sheep's Clothing?
They had left the reading room on the second floor of Wolf's mansion and Katt closed the door behind her. They could've ventured further down but Wolf advised that the patio was nothing special to view.
Something about the way Wolf was acting didn't seem right to Katt. Loners weren't usually this nice to there… "guest" were they? Still, and with a bit of reluctance, she took to Wolf's hospitality. Still, he was probably just hiding behind a mask. Something inside told Katt she needed to get out of there but she didn't take any such action to do so.
Wolf led her down the hallway and they were soon out of the upper floor of the east wing. "Well, go to the library first I suppose, it's only on the first floor of the east wing."
Katt remained silent. Words couldn't force their way out anymore. I just KNOW he's up to something! Katt kept telling herself. She wish she knew what the lupine was thinking. For the first time since Falco she wanted to know what was going on inside Wolf's mind.
Wolf opened the door to the east wing and held it open. "Ladies first." He said, which surprised Katt very much. Words still failed her but she took herself inside either way.
Once inside, it was clear that this lower section was the dressing room. There was a dresser and a mirror, and the room branched off to another. "What's through those doors?" Katt suddenly asked pointing to the left.
"That's my bedroom…one of my bedrooms." He answered. "But that's not a part of our little tour now, just follow me."
They passed the dresser and several suits hanging on racks as well as a wall he put up to hide those getting dressed. The room wasn't decorated in any way whatsoever. Obviously Wolf was only here but once a day. It was like a huge closet, almost.
Once passed the dressing room they came to a darker room, but the window revealed a few tall standing bookcases. The room was lit in full bloom. The Library was actually pretty big. Several bookcases stood tall, and on the ceiling was a painted mural of clouds.
"Like what you see? The clouds up top help to keep my imagination flowing. Don't you just love to get lost in the clouds?"
The mural made sense now at least. The clouds were painted in a cotton white. They look soft and fluffy, almost like real clouds. Katt took an even closer look. They really were like real clouds! Taking a closer look revealed that they had shapes…and it looked like they were moving.
"The mural looks different based on the light that beams in." Wolf noticed her shocked face that she had no control over giving. "And at night I can even make stars shine. If you go to the lower level it looks better."
Katt couldn't believe this. "Lower level?"
"Not EVERYTHING has to be at ground level. I extended on it myself. It's better this way, I can fit more books, and it's a nice place to come and think because of the clouds."
Maybe he really isn't so bad… the feline thought. Perhaps he's misunderstood…much like other furs I've met. She tried not to think about Shane, but of course, by that little statement her mind just HAD to make, it was to no avail.
Wolf led Katt down stairs to the portion that didn't really have a light but there was still one that hanged above them that granted enough light to read, and you could still find any book you wanted.
On the bookcases marked with a large "S" where Wolf took the book and placed it back on the shelf. "No use alphabetizing them. All I need to know is that it starts with an 'S' and I'll be fine."
He seemed so humble, but Katt could still tell that he must be up to something. Wolf then sat down in a chair at a table in the middle of the lower floor. "Have a seat." He suggested.
"What about the tour? I want to see the west wing."
"First you tell me what brought you here. I don't much care for guests but I'm not always this tolerable of intruders either."
"What makes me any different then?" Katt began to grow suspicious.
"None of them were quiet about breaking in like you were. To me you're no different, you just caught me in a better mood." Wolf smiled. "But you don't have any reason to be scared of me. I wouldn't harm a fur. I'm usually a good host to my guest…even the unexpected ones."
"You're already creepy as it is. I'm not trying to sound mean or anything but I know you've got something planned for me."
Wolf didn't even lift a brow to this. "I have a soft spot for furs that trespass here." He sounded. "Now please, have a seat."
Katt finally took a seat, but Wolf's aura still made her feel insecure. Her heart was beating fast, and she knew he was going to try something…but what?
"What about…humans?" Katt inquired. Her heart was still pacing fast.
"Humans are not welcomed here. Not after what I've been through with them." Wolf shook his head. "I have nothing against them…well not much anyway, but there are just a lot of humans that can't be trusted." He pointed to his eye.
"What happened to your eye?" Katt looked at him awkward like.
"That, my feline friend, is what happens to you when you try to ask a human for directions when you're lost. I was heading to Corneria, when I got lost. I was so much younger then. I had no sense of direction really, but Zoness and Corneria aren't far apart from each other. But I got lost and ended up at the foot of a mansion. When I went to the front door, I had my first encounter with a human…whom of which I soon began to dislike."
He couldn't possibly be talking about…HIM? Katt tried to hold in a gasp but it had escaped her moments too soon.
Wolf didn't acknowledge her gasp and continued to talk. "He was no ordinary human. He was what many of the furs refer to as a 'hunter' or an 'anti-fur'. Anyway, he pulled out a gun and chased me down. I was lucky he was out of ammo, but that was the first time I'd ever seen such a device. Eventually I was pinned to the ground and he took out his dagger. I tried to defend myself but because my own error I ended up causing the dagger to slash my right eye."
That was when it clicked! Katt realized that she KNEW this wolf. I saved you… is what she wanted to say, but in short most of it was Mia and he was out cold when they found him anyway.
"I still have the dagger. He ran off without it. The nurse who helped me heal up said that I was saved by a pink cat, much like yourself, and a platinum vixen. However, I'd never be able to see out of this eye ever again. I don't like the patch but I'm used to it."
It made Katt feel sorry for Wolf, the way she did five years ago. But looking at him now…seemed different. "I think the patch gives you character." She couldn't help but say.
This made Wolf's ears come to a full rise. "Gives me character?"
"Everyone has something about them that makes them unique." Katt said and started to hang her head low. After that last comment she could no longer look him in the eye.
"What makes you unique then?" The lupine asked.
"That's what you're going to have to find out on your own." Katt smirked a little bit.
"I can't remember the hunter's name… I can't even recall if he spoke his name to me. I don't want to go back for fear of my life…"
That was it. He didn't allow humans in his home because he was scared of them. "Well, come to Zoness and meet my friend Jon. He's not one of the bad humans. There are bad furs too."
"None can be as evil as a hunter. I went to Zoness once and none of them have even heard of a 'shotgun' before." Wolf sighed.
"How did you come to hear of them?" Katt asked.
"Look at the books I've got. When someone comes at you with a weapon you've never heard of before, would you stand around to find out first hand what it can do? I wouldn't dream of that. I went to Zoness and Corneria and bought books on the weapons humans used. These are the books that many fur civilizations ban from their shelves."
"Why were they banned?" Katt wanted to know. She'd seen books on human culture as well but they weren't from Corneria. They were from Earth.
"It's hard to find books about human life in Zoness and Corneria. I bought a book entitled 'Being a Human' by a writer named Mia. Of all the books I'd read on human life, that's the one I trust the most. It's the only one that actually reflected on their culture and life and not a book just to say how evil they are and to stay way. I got my hands on that before it was banned from the stores. Many don't believe it though…that they actually live like us. Still, when I read her chapter about how they hunted it made me sick."
"What do you mean?"
"There are more than just guns to fear. Not only that, but they have more than one type of gun. They have traps and nets too. They won't hesitate to skin an animal alive! If you ask me that's barbaric."
It was pretty barbaric and Katt had to admit the thought of that made her sick to her stomach. "But not all humans are like that."
"I know…" Wolf whispered. "…but I can't take any chances."
Wolf then came to a stance. "So do you want to see the rest of my lovely home or are we going to sit and talk all day?"
This took Katt by surprise, she expected to be lured into his mansion and then…well…hurt or something.
***
Once they were out of the east wing, Wolf took her to the lower end of the west wing. Once in the door, the hall was illuminated in a low lighting that made the hall seem a little scary to her. "Why do you keep the halls so dark?"
Wolf started to walk down the hall until he reached the first room. "It keeps some of the humans away." He said and pushed the door open."
Inside was a small little shrine where a statue of the Great Fox stood and behind it, a mural of the Great Fox challenging Andross. It looked just like the church in Corneria. "Why waste my time going to pray at the cathedral in Zoness when I've got one right here?"
Katt found this amazing. "You pray here everyday?"
"Yes. Most days, actually. Right there is the book that tells the story of the Great Fox and Andross. I used to read it all the time as a kit. The story still enchants me even to this day."
Katt found that amusing. "What other mini-town rooms do you have?"
"I have an art gallery." He said he knew many furs were impressed by art. He saw Katt's eyes light up. "It's the next door over." He slid out and closed the door, locking it once more.
The next room was indeed an art gallery. When Katt took a step inside the first thing she noted was a rather large painting of a jade husky. The painting was astonishing to her because it didn't look like anything Shane had done. It was actually BETTER. "Did you paint this?" She asked with her eyes never darting away from the painting of Jade. Soon Katt saw that it wasn't just one green she was looking at but several different shades that looked VERY similar to one-another.
"I didn't paint all these. I only painted the one of the husky, Jade."
"It's beautiful."
"Other arts I find all over." Wolf addressed.
Katt looked at one painting that had a human and a fox standing back-to-back with their heads tilted upwards and their eyes closed. "What's that mean?"
Wolf looked to the same painting that she did. "It shows that no matter how hard we work at it, there shall never be a peace between humans and furs. I guess the will of Andross and Great Fox made it that way. No matter how hard we try to obtain peace, it's useless."
"How can you say it's useless? What about when we do obtain peace?"
"When we obtain it? HA! When we finally get that peace it'll go down the drain. Thrown away at the blink of an eye. Sure we could obtain peace…but how long do you think it could last? Regardless of you look at it, there will always be someone who hates someone else for trivial reasons. There are foxes who hate birds…and for what? Because they're 'different?'"
Katt had never heard of a fur hating another fur because they were a different species. The thought never occurred to her. "But even if peace is out of reach, we can come close to some compromise can't we?"
Wolf pointed to the painting that started this whole conversation. "Flip the painting over." Katt looked at him strangely at first and he repeated in the exact same tone, "Flip the painting over."
Katt proceeded to do so and when she did the two weren't standing back to back, but shaking hands. "I don't get it."
"It simply means that in some places you have peace…and in some places you don't. For example, if you went to Earth you'd see humans who don't like furs, and if it were Corneria you'd see furs that don't like humans. But go to a place like say…Macbeth and you'll come across furs and humans who live in harmony. So there can be a peace, but it all depends on where you are. The humans of Earth will probably NEVER move in with a fur."
Katt flipped the picture back over. "Show me the rest of your home."
"Come, let's indulge ourselves in a meal then."
Katt was starting to wonder where this was going. Wolf was certainly odd and what was going to happen if he and Shane should ever meet? Katt didn't want to think about that. Wolf seemed like he'd kill Shane the moment he lay eyes on him.
Katt walked down the hall and they passed up another room that was just another dress room and at the end of the hall they were in the dining room, adjacent to the kitchen.
A long table stretched down the middle. Able to sit fourteen people, six on each side and two at the ends. It wasn't as big as Shane's but if Wolf had a party or something it would do.
"Want anything to eat? I've got plenty."
Katt wanted to sit down but declined a meal. "Actually I should probably get back now. It's getting on to the afternoon."
"You want to leave already? But I'm an excellent cook I assure you."
"It's not that… it's that I've got friends."
"I see… besides this human… 'Jon' right?"
"I'm not going to touch that one. But you don't seem harmful… I'll come back for dinner."
"Really now?"
"I promise."
Wolf smiled that scary smile again. "Cross your heart…"
"…And hope to die."
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A/N: I thought this was a good place to stop. Got off my break sooner than expected but I couldn't keep away. Hope this was a nice treat for you all, and I really hope you enjoy the rest of the fic.