Sorry for updating late, but Christmas Eve was, well, BUSY! I hope everyone has a very merry Christmas, and that they enjoy the latest updates.
Oh, and to Nonimouse; the reason I can update so quickly is because all the stories I post on the web are completely written and beta-ed a couple times before I share them a chapter at a time over the website. I hope that answers your question, and thanks for reading.
Chapter Three: A King's Dilemma
Baron blinked a bit as he stepped through the portal that Natoru provided, with one of his best friends close behind him. It was akin to being in a tunnel made of blue light, except that it kept shifting, and changing directions before coming to an opening.
As the travelers stepped into a fairly large study, a large gray longhair looked up from shredding the upholstery in his nervous state. He sighed heavily with relief as his slimmer companion adjusted his hold on a clipboard.
Natoru bowed low before the longhair, a goofy smile on his face as he gestured to the two visitors.
"The Cat Bureau has arrived, Your Majesty."
The cat grunted, sitting in the couch he had just been shredding.
"Good job, Natoru. Go… water the flowers, or something."
"Yes, your Majesty!" The brown-spotted cat hopped off happily to do as his monarch requested. The Cat King sighed tiredly.
"Please take a seat, babes. This could take a while to explain."
Muta took over one couch, making the legs of it groan in agony. The spectacled cat looked closely at the large feline as the Cat Creation neatly sat down on a nearby bench, placing his top hat on his lap.
"Beg your pardon, Majesty, but Natoru didn't give us very many details as to why you're requesting our services."
"Good. He's not very good at details anyway." The king sighed again. "A few hours ago, a cloaked seer appeared in my throne room. He said… oh for crying out loud! Natori?"
The Cat King's companion left off examining Muta in order to look at the clipboard.
"He said 'in return for all your deeds, oh king, a member of your own house will spill your blood well nigh unto your death ere long'."
Baron held one hand to his chin.
"Translated, somebody in your family is going to kill you in the near future for something you did?"
The king nodded miserably, holding his head between his paws.
"I don't know what I could have done to make someone angry enough to want to kill me, but… with your Bureau's reputation…"
Baron smiled grimly.
"You were smart to call us. Now, where is this seer?"
"We don't know. He disappeared after telling the king's future," Natori said solemnly. Baron sighed softly in irritation.
"Well, then who are the suspects?"
Natori unclipped a sheet from his stack and handed it to the tawny cat. He took it, a little surprised to find that it was actually a very long sheet, conveniently folded in order to make it manageable. He looked at the first section.
"Your wife is the first suspect?" the Cat Creation asked incredulously, making the king jump.
"Natori! Why did you include her in the list?" the feline monarch demanded.
"Just a safety precaution, Majesty," the darker gray cat said, although he looked nervous. "She is a member of the royal family, after all, and she never quite forgave you for-"
"If she had it in her to kill me, she'd have done it years ago!" the king shouted at his servant before turning to Baron. "Just ignore that first line. My wife would never try to kill me. She's too soft-hearted."
The Cat Creation cocked his head and kept looking down the list.
"What about your son? And his wife?"
The king started growling.
"Now those two, I can understand. I think my son's getting impatient for his turn on the throne, and he hates me with an unholy passion. Are my grandkittens on the list as well?"
Baron checked as Natori coughed.
"They're not on the list, majesty. They're too young to pose any type of threat."
"You included Haru, why not Haruhi and Harumi?"
Muta jerked, and his mouth fell a little open as the advisor struggled to justify his reasons.
"Are you all right?" Baron asked his fat friend softly, glancing at his friend while looking over the list.
"Y-yeah. Sure." But the expression on his face told a different story. Baron sighed, and slipped the list into his inside jacket pocket.
"Would your Majesty be offended if Muta and I chose to take a look around the castle? It seems that every noble and aristocrat in the kingdom is on the list, and we'll need to narrow down the suspects."
The Cat King jerked and looked at the Cat Creation.
"Are you going to leave me alone?" he asked like a scared little kitten. Baron sighed.
"Take the usual precautions, Sire. Keep guards around you at all times, have someone else taste all your food first, and stay away from open windows."
The king nodded miserably, gesturing to his advisor.
"Show them around, Natori?"
"Of course, Your Majesty," the old cat said soothingly, folding the clipboard under one arm.
"On second thought, send for Natoru to do it. I'd feel better if you stayed close by."
Natori blinked, but then bowed and pulled on a brown rope near the deep red couch. Precisely thirty seconds later, Natoru ran through the curtain, panting a bit from the exertion.
"You sent for me, Your Majesty?"
"Yes. Escort the Cat Bureau around my castle, and when they're done, show them to some comfortable rooms."
The brown fool nodded enthusiastically and gestured for the visitors to follow him. Baron tipped his hat politely at the feline monarch, though sensing that there were a lot of things that were left unsaid.
"You will not be killed, if we have a say in the matter, Majesty," the Cat Creation said soothingly. The king sighed with relief as the Cat Bureau made their exit.
"One more thing?" the king asked. "I'd rather not have my wife find out about the death threat. She tends to lose her reason when somebody gets close to losing their life, and goes a little crazy."
"We'll try, but chances are she'll find out soon enough," was all Baron could promise before leaving.
After they had walked half the length of the hallway, Baron turned to Muta.
"All right, what bothered you back there?"
The large white cat stiffened.
"What do you mean?"
"Come now, there was something the king said that got under your fur. Tell me what it is."
"Nothing."
Baron sighed, and pointedly placed one hand on a side pocket, out of which protruded a fine silver chain. Muta didn't miss the veiled threat, sighing a bit.
"I… knew a kid some years back named Haru. But it's not the same one that the king's married to. The name just kind of stuck on me."
"Was she a human?" Natoru asked as he expertly navigated the castle.
"Yes."
"With dark brown hair that brushed her shoulders?"
Muta began eyeing the guide.
"Yes…"
"Large expressive eyes the same color? Pretty face? Slim build? Tendency to speak her mind? Very giving nature to strangers?"
Muta stopped in his tracks, his eyes wide with understanding horror. Natoru looked behind him and smiled grimly. The first clue given that he could occasionally be serious.
"She is going to blow a fuse, when she finds out that she knew a Cat Bureau agent."