Disclaimer: Nothing relating to Velgarth is mine.
A/N: This would be a birthday One-Shot for the lovely Senashenta. She asked for a Firecat that chose a non-Karsite to be a SunPriest. I hope she enjoys it.
A Smug Cat's Choice
There was a flash of light in a small clearing outside of the town of Fivesprings. Fivesprings sat on a spur of the Red Stag Lake in Southern Hardorn. Funnily enough, the town had gotten it's name from the small feeder springs that fed into the lake.
The flash had resolved into a brick red and cream coloured feline. Said feline currently had his ears laid flat back as he got a lot of information told to him at once. His sapphire eyes were distant as he listened. :Really? A town called Fivesprings sitting near a river and a lake? Imagine that.: He flattened his ears more as the Someone he was talking to didn't exactly appreciate his sarcasm.
:I got it. Get him, and hightail it to Sunhame.: The cat cocked his head to one side, still listening. :Right. Grab him, hightail it to Sunhame. Report to Drippy…: A wince. :I mean Ridan, the Son of the Sun.: He sighed and fluffed out his fur. :Are You going to let me actually go get him? Or am I going to have to—: Another wince. He wasn't doing very well today. :You chose me for this.: Logic. He'd call it Velgarth logic but he wasn't dealing with someone from Velgarth.
He hunkered down in the small clearing, soaking up the warmth of the sun. Deciding to make himself comfortable, he sprawled on his side and closed his eyes. :We were over this five times before I left and that's the third time we've been over this since I've manifested.: He shook his head as, abruptly, the other was gone.
:At least now I can get to work.: He muttered to himself.
Standing, he shook himself, dislodging a bit of soot. Looking around the clearing, he sniffed. So, fires, beasts, people and general smells were that way.
With another shake, he started off in that direction, his tail held in the air. The day was warm; the sky was blue; the inside of his head was quiet —important bit there. Lovely time to be alive.
He sighed and stuck his head out from a bush that appeared to be on a roadside ditch. The road was clear. Stepping out, he began following it in the direction of the city. His form blurred and he looked simply like a large barn cat.
At least in that form he wouldn't be such a shocking sight.
Fivesprings, once he got past the outer edges of it, was a pretty typical lake town. The smell of the docks was everywhere. Although that might mean he could get a bit of fish. There were two inns, one near the docks, and the other near the centre of town. Market square? Check. Small merchants? Check. Blacksmith? Here he looked around. Yep, there it was.
Same thing, different name. He thought to himself. So. He was here to do something. Yes. Time to get to it.
He sniffed and then gently began a mental probe. He was looking for a rather distinctive… Aha! There… she was. Wait. She! He was not Amused. He'd been led to believe it was a boy he was here to get. And now he was here after some female.
The mental backlashing for that thought wasn't pleasant. :I only meant that You'd led me to believe—: He stiffened and flared his fur. :Of course not!: He snapped. :And I supported several—: Another interruption. He spat in annoyance. No one around noticed. Why should they notice another stray cat?
:Fine!: He snapped. He'd been sent here to get someone and by Vkandis, he was going to get her. But the first time she whined about broken fingernails he was setting her hair on fire. He laid his ears back as the Presence was gone again.
Mentally grumbling and thickening his shields, he trotted off in that direction. Might as well get the grabbing and the taking and the talking to Dri— Ridan over with.
He'd better remember to stop calling the boy that. Ridan's own Firecat wouldn't take kindly to it. After all, Firecats didn't fight fair. There was much on the order of fire and lightning and divine smiting going on then. Not healthy for the local population.
He looked around. His wandering had brought him to the door of a warehouse. Sticking his head around the corner, he brought it back fast.
A dog. Oh. Bloody. Hell. They just had to have a dog.
Whipping around, he fled. The dog, obviously taking exception to his feline-ness, pursued the Firecat-in-disguise. Barking. Loudly.
He ran outside of town and finally, when away from prying eyes, whirled on the dog. His size began to swell and he glared at the dog. :I. Am. Not. Dinner.: He snarled at the dog.
The dog, being of high canine intelligence, stared at the swelling cat for a moment then turned tail and ran.
The Firecat sat down and nodded. Now that that was taken care of, he could concentrate on what he had to do. And now that he'd mentally 'marked' his target, it'd be a lot easier.
Down to business.
He gently sought her out again. There she was. Now, he just had to root around a little. Technically bad manners, but he was going to be in there anyways. Might as well learn what he could.
His first impression was of depression. Lovely. Next up was frustration. Typical. What adolescent —and he knew she was a adolescent— wasn't frustrated in some way or another that only made sense to them?
He probed a bit more. So, mother and father both alive and well. Younger siblings? Check. Thoughts of running away to become guard/mercenary? Check. His only thought on that was the fact that he shouldn't have to set her hair on fire for whining about broken fingernails.
He sighed. Time to think of a way to insinuate himself into that household. Without having to eat the dog. They were stringy and got caught in his teeth. Annoying.
So, how to get in?
• • •
A week later, he was ready to set the dog on fire and eat the children. Most especially the youngest daughter who absolutely insisted on carting him around, in a mocked up baby carriage her father had made for her. Complete with bonnet.
One night that carriage was going up in flames. And he was going to dance around those flames cackling like a maniac. The bonnet was going in there too. If he was really lucky maybe the girl would go too.
He watched the girl he'd come to fetch. She really did care for her younger siblings.
So maybe no on the tossing the little girl on the bonfire.
He put up with the indignities, trying to figure out just how to get her —her name was Amarryn— out of here, and on the road to Sunhame. He wasn't really allowed to Jump her. He had a feeling he was going to have to though.
Otherwise they might never get out of here!
It was now midsummer. If everything that everyone around said was true, soon she'd be of age and she'd be able to get out of there. So, what was a Firecat to do?
He had several possibilities. Actually reveal himself to her, which would probably cause all sorts of problems. Jump her out of the house and into Sunhame when they were alone; also not a good plan since her parents would worry. Lastly, plant the suggestion that she needed to get moving toward Sunhame.
The last was what he chose to do. It wasn't hard. Just as it hadn't been hard to get the littlest one to reveal his name. She had wanted to call him "Mrs. Rosie." A simple suggestion from him, and he'd been dubbed Feltyn.
It worked out well since that was his real name.
Feltyn was just biding his time. He didn't want to just rush her out of there. But as it got closer to her birthday, Amarryn was often found staring off west toward Sunhame.
The night of her birthday came. Feltyn would be quite glad to get his tail out of the house.
"Ma," Amarryn said quietly, over her birthday dinner. "Ma, I wanna leave." She gulped as her mother stared at her. "There's rumours that the SunHawks are takin' people. I…" She sighed and lowered her eyes onto her plate. "Ma, Da, I can't stay 'ere. Somethin's pullin' me. I…" Amarryn shook her head.
Feltyn kept his grin to himself and rubbed across her legs, purring. She was going west alright. But to Sunhame, and not to some mercenary company. He flopped on her feet, still purring and closed his eyes. Yes, this would work.
"No daughter of mine is running off to join a mercenary company!" Her father was on his feet and livid. He cut across anything Amarryn might have said. "Ye're not goin' an' that's that!" The man stomped out of the house, slamming the door behind him. Everyone else sat in stunned silence.
She's going alright. If I have to Jump her! Feltyn thought to himself. Time to start working on a contingency plan.
• • •
Feltyn, having slinked and dodged away from his bonnet toting menace, sat in a clearing, consulting.
:Yes, I know I've been here more than half a year.: He said. :But unless You want me to Jump her out of here, and try to convince her later that running home isn't a good idea, this was the best I could come up with.: He fluffed his fur at some mental rebuke. :There is that.: He conceded. Feltyn was the first to admit he didn't like the cold. Spending the winter on Amarryn's family's hearth hadn't exactly been bad.
:We leave within the week,: he confirmed. That obviously satisfied his Contact, because he was once again alone. Sighing he rippled his fur and soaked up the spring sun. It was nice to be out. Hopefully, he'd get all he wanted to soon.
With a shake, he disappeared in a flash and reappeared in small deserted spot of the dock. Raising his tail, he trotted back toward the house.
—And stepped right into a family row to end all rows.
With a yowl, he dodged a flying bowl and hid under a chair. He wasn't the one supposed to be hit!
"I want to know what in hells ya think you're doin'!" Amarryn's father was livid.
This couldn't be good. Feltyn had gently been nudging Amarryn into gathering supplies for the journey. He had a bad feeling that she'd been caught.
Amarryn's father shook a bag. Feltyn hated being right. "What're ya doin' with this stuff!"
Amarryn, for her part, looked to be holding up well. She looked to be frightened but her chin was held high in defiance. "I'm headin' out, Da." She sighed. "I said I was. So I'm goin'. I was jus' savin' for the trip."
"Where'd you get this money girl?" Her father growled. Feltyn didn't like the sounds of that.
"I got it fair, Da." She said firmly. "I worked 'ard for tha' money an' I'm takin' it with me!" She reached for the bag only to be slapped back by her much stronger father.
Feltyn leapt out and scratched the man's leg managing to get the bag dropped as well. He wasn't having any of that! :Get up!: He snapped at her.
Amarryn, wide-eyed and staring at him, didn't move. He sighed. :Get up!: She finally scrambled to her feet. :Good. Now get your bag.: He could tell she wasn't moving. :Now!:
She scrambled getting her bag. Feltyn sat looking at her father, the glamour dropping so that he did indeed look like a Firecat, and not the simple housecat he'd pretended to be. Both girl and man gasped seeing him. He laid his ears flat. :Now, none of that.: He waved a paw. :Go get your clothing, Amarryn.: When she stayed put, staring at him, he laid his ears flatter. :Amarryn, go get your bag.: Apparently, there was enough irritation in his voice that she moved.
While she was gone, he began cleaning a front paw, the claws extending out. Purely by accident. He wasn't trying to intimidate her father. Not at all. Although, if he was intimidated, that wasn't Feltyn's fault now was it? :You,: He said looking at the man, :are going to let us go. Peaceably. And possibly I'll be nice and not set your beard on fire.:
Amarryn came back in, looking decidedly pale under her tan. "R-ready."
Feltyn eyed her up and down. She'd grabbed not only her bag of clothing, but her cloak and her good sturdy boots, rather than the half boots she wore around town. He nodded in approval. :Good girl. Now, off we go!: He trotted to the door, his tail held high. He glanced back at Amarryn as she looked between the cat and her father. The cat sighed. :Amarryn. It's a really long walk, the day's about half gone and really, he touches you again, I'll set his beard on fire.:
She looked a bit shocked, but followed him out of the house. He nodded in approval. Turning, he glimmered from "Fear me for I can eat wolves"-size, to "housecat" between one step and the next.
Once they were out of town, Feltyn looked back. Amarryn was dawdling. Now, normally he was all for taking his time, but there were several things to remember here. He was already six months late getting her to Sunhame, and he didn't trust her father not to come after the pair of them.
:Amarryn,: he said gently. The girl looked at him, looking like she was about to cry. He sighed and walked back, brushing against her legs. :Amarryn, we would've left eventually anyways.:
Gently, he coaxed her on down the road. :Come on, fireling. I'll take care of you…: Gently, he got her feet moving away from Fivesprings and toward Sunhame.
• • •
It was after almost a month on the road that Amarryn voiced her first complaint. "Feltyn?" She said as the cat trotted at her side. "If you're so 'wise and all knowing', why are we walking to this Sun place? Can't you like… magic us there or something?"
Feltyn stopped and sat down in the middle of the road. :Well, technically, I can.:
"But…?" She asked, looking down at him.
He twitched his whiskers. He gave her a steady look. :You have to promise not to drop me.:
"I've never dropped you." She said indignantly.
He flattened his ears. :Oh? I imagined being dropped into the middle of that puddle then? Or perhaps all that mud that got on me was simply your way of saying how wonderful and perfect I am?:
Amarryn brushed her sun streaked brown hair out of her face, glaring at the Firecat. "You're the one who insisted on being carried."
:It was raining! I'm not getting my paws soggy!: He shot back.
Amarryn looked up at a roll of thunder. "Well, you're going to get soggy, because it looks like it's trying to storm, and I'm not carrying you this time."
Feltyn looked at the skies. She was right. The clouds were black and heavy. It looked like a lovely rainstorm. He wasn't getting his paws soggy. :Hold out your arms.:
She eyed him dubiously. "Why?"
:Because otherwise, I'm going to leave you here to weather the storm and will head where it won't be raining.: He said, twitching his tail.
"Oh." She said, looking a little stunned. In the last month, she gone from many Gods to one, with his avatar who was now ordering around. Again. She just held out her arms. It was less confusing that way.
Feltyn leapt up into them. :Don't scream.: He told her. In a flash, they were gone.
Luckily it was a nice sunny day in the garden at Sunhame. In another flash, Feltyn and Amarryn appeared, much to the shock of several novices.
Amarryn let out a shriek and dropped Feltyn.
The cat landed on his feet, while she landed on her bum. :I told you not to scream.: He said flattening his ears.
Amarryn was scrambling away from the boys who were looking between her and the cat in shock.
Feltyn rolled his eyes. :You!: He stabbed a paw at one of the novices. :Go get the Son of the Sun.: The boy didn't move. :Now!: That got the novice running through the halls calling that a cat had arrived.
Feltyn walked over and curled up on Amarryn. :See? Service.:
Amarryn gave out a weak laugh as a middle-aged man walked out behind the novice. She glanced up, seeing a middle aged man, a small stripe of white at his temple. There were laugh lines around his mouth and eyes.
He looked straight at the cat. "You cats are entirely too smug." Feltyn made a rude noise at the man. The man ignored the cat. He held out a callused hand towards Amarryn "Welcome to Sunhame. I'm Ridan, the current Son of the Sun."
Amarryn poked Feltyn until the purring cat moved and took the hand, standing slowly. "Thank you, sir. My name is Amarryn." She said in accented Karsite. Living near the border meant she knew the language a bit. A month with Feltyn meant she'd been getting lessons as well.
Ridan smiled, ignoring Feltyn. "Welcome to Sunhame Amarryn." Gently, he led her off.
Amarryn looked over her shoulder at Feltyn. :Go on. Rids knows what he's doing. I'll be around.: With that gentle reassurance, she left for her new life. Feltyn left to go find something heavily alcoholic to drink. Having his own girl to torture, and plague, might be fun, but he Foresaw large drinks in his future.