Chapter Twenty Two: Mountains

Some mountains are moved one rock at a time.

-Shellie R. Warren

xxXxx

"Eating Habits of Humans, Edible for Humans; are Cats a Food Group?, Evolution of Humans." Baron growled in exasperation, pushing on the sliding ladder in order to peruse a different section of books.

It had only been an hour since Haru ran out of the music room without an explanation, only made worse when he tried to run after her. All he managed to do was trip over Richard and a number of the other servants who had been eavesdropping on them. Luckily, Haru had only chosen to run to her room, and no amount of persuasion could make her come out, or even take down the barricade of furniture she had erected on the other side of the curtain.

"Please let me find something," he whispered as he started sifting through a new section of books.

"Baron? We need to talk!" called a voice that he hadn't heard in a while.

He looked down to see Yuki entering the library, looking somewhere between fearful and angered. "Has she calmed down yet?"

"No, and I can't convince her to tell me what's wrong. What did you do?" she demanded.

This was a side of Yuki that hardly anyone knew existed. But Baron was all too aware that it was partially why Lune had fallen in love with her.

"I'm trying to find out! I told her my name used to be Ivan, and she started panicking over it. Yuki, is there a human superstition concerning the name?" he asked, hoping to have found a shortcut to Haru's problem.

"Not that I know of. I was only in the Human Kingdom for a few months, remember?"

"I remember," he answered miserably, climbing down the ladder to talk more comfortably. "I'll be honest; I'm worried sick over this. Haru is not the type of girl to lose control over small details."

Yuki groaned in agreement as she sat down on a comfortable couch. "You have no idea. Just the other day at the docks, one carpenter accidentally ripped her skirt with one of his tools. All she did was make a sarcastic comment about trying to do anything useful in fancy clothes before tying the rip up so that she could help out with the construction."

"That sounds like something she'd do," Baron concluded, sitting in a nearby chair in order to rub his temples. "I just wish there was some sort of clue as to why she is acting this way. Despite her many eccentricities, she's one of the most sensible people I know."

Yuki was silent for a while. "I don't know if it's the problem, but…"

Baron looked up at her expectantly.

"For humans, names have meaning other than the obvious. For example, my name means snow, and Haru's means springtime in Japanese. Maybe Ivan has a bad meaning in another language?"

Baron stared at her, but smiled gratefully. "Thank you, Yuki. Maybe that is the problem. But if that's it, Ivan would have to have a terrible meaning, to make Haru of all people react like this," he murmured as he got up to inspect another area of his library.

In mere moments, he found a thick book that he had deemed too boring to peruse before. 'Human Names and Their Origins'.

"Let's pray this has something," he wished aloud, opening the book as he walked back to the chairs.

Luckily, the names were alphabetized, so he was able to find Ivan in mere seconds.

"Ivan; Hebrew form is John. God is Gracious, common older name for tsars of Russia. Tsar… that's another word for king," Baron realized.

Yuki was stunned. "That can't be it, then. It's too complimentary to be Haru's problem. Wait, your name's Ivan?" she asked with surprise.

Baron looked at her curiously. "It was my middle one, before the king changed it." 'I thought she knew. Does Lune know?'

Yuki sighed, and covered her face. "Just when you think you know someone… I don't know what to do, Baron. How can we help her if she won't let us know what's wrong?"

The little lord sighed, and set aside the book. "We do what we can, I suppose. See if a number of the servants are willing to help you through the barricade. Would you mind telling Haru that her lessons are canceled for today, and she's excused from having meals with the rest of us?"

She looked at him in confusion.

"If she won't let us help her through whatever issue my name has brought up, the least we can do is give her time to recover from it. Maybe after she calms down, she will be willing to tell us what's wrong."

"… Normally, I'd say that's a great idea. But, even when she found out she was the Sea Maiden, she didn't barricade herself away."

"No, but she did run like her life depended on it back then as well."

"Still…"

Baron looked at her knowingly. "I'm scared for her, too. Please, just be there for her."

Yuki nodded, attempted to give him a brave smile, and left the room.

The small kitten looked at the thick book across his lap, feeling like he had forgotten something. He tapped his thumb in concentration, struggling to think of it.

Slowly, after a few minutes, it came back to him; making his eyes widen in shock.

He once had feelings for Yuki… and they were now firmly behind him. The fair white cat was now only a treasured friend in his eyes.

"When did that happen?" he asked aloud in confusion. 'More importantly, whydid it take me this long to notice?'

ooOoo

The next morning, he couldn't stop sneaking glances at Haru from across the table. He had specifically asked the cooks to make mulberry pancakes, knowing how much the brunette enjoyed them, but she barely noticed to give more than a murmured thanks to the elderly servant who served them.

"Are you feeling any better from yesterday?" Baron asked gently, a little worried that any loud sounds might make her snap again.

"… I guess," Haru replied reluctantly. "I'm sorry for running away like that; it wasn't really called for."

"No, it wasn't. Just out of curiosity, what made you run like that?" he asked, trying to sound like he didn't know it had something to do with his name.

Haru suddenly snapped to attention, and looked around the table. They were the only two sitting at it. "Isn't Lune usually here by now?" she asked a little loudly, as if hoping to distract him.

"He woke up with a monumental headache; he won't be joining us. Now, about why you ran-"

"It's a shame about that headache, I wonder if one of your blends would cure it," she continued in a falsely cheerful tone. "I mean, with how many blends you've come up with, there's bound to be at least one that can cure headaches."

Baron looked at her sadly. "You do realize you're not fooling anyone, don't you?"

"What do you mean 'fooling'? I'm not trying to fool anyone."

He winced from the blatantly obvious lie. "Haru whatever it is that's troubling you-"

"I mean, you already know that I'm a bad liar, so why would I bother trying to lie to you over anything?" she babbled, a hint of yellow returning to her eyes.

Baron's eyes flicked once to the servants lining the walls. Every ear was cocked to them, trying not to look like they were eavesdropping.

Whatever it was that was bothering her, perhaps it would be better not to attempt finding out where others were listening.

"… It's a beautiful day outside. We will resume your dancing lessons after I make tea."

"That sounds wonderful," she replied with relief, the yellow in her eyes fading away to their normal caramel color.

The servants looked irritated at the lack of progress, but there was nothing they could do about it.

"But it appears that I will have to come up with a different penalty; the harp might just encourage you to step on more branches."

"That's a strong possibility," she agreed, a soft smile returning to her lips as she thought about his mother's instrument.

Baron couldn't help but feel relief that she still loved his heirloom. Perhaps he would be able to get her to play for him without invoking a penalty.

'Right. Perhaps while I'm at it, I'll be able to convince her to come clean about Ivan.'

ooOoo

"I still don't get how you can accidentally make all those things with just herbs and such," Haru commented as they walked back to the vineyard. The day was a bit cooler thanks to the storm yesterday, so Haru was wearing her long blue coat over a simple yellow dress.

"Frankly, I don't understand how you keep finding a good use for them. I mean, cough syrup?"

"You make it sound like I'd put it on pancakes."

"Don't you?"

She giggled at that. "Of course not; it's medicine. Even if someone got really sick, no one would be really crazy enough to try eating it like regular syrup. Did you remember the flute today?"

"Actually, I did," he said, pulling it out of the special pocket in his jacket. "The rules are the same; stepping on a branch will result in a penalty."

"I hope you'll let me play your harp again without a penalty," she informed him, stepping closer to a tree as he raised the flute to his lips.

That simple statement sent warmth though his body. But just before beginning a song, he stopped cold. "I believe I have a new penalty in mind, Haru."

She looked over at him curiously.

"Step on a branch, and you have to tell me why my true name disturbs you so."

The yellow instantly returned to her eyes. "No."

"Then be sure to avoid the branches this time," he informed her with a mischievous smile. To cut off any further argument, he began playing an upbeat melody.

Haru gave him a look of pure terror before shifting her gaze to the branches still littering the ground. They were still soggy from yesterday's storm, but there was no guarantee that they would be too soft to snap.

She took no chances. She spent a whole minute to calm herself before entering the strange exercise. Her posture remained as perfect as Baron desired, but each and every movement was carefully calculated before taking a step. In sync with Baron's music, she moved soundlessly from tree to tree; forever on the lookout for branches.

Baron had to fight to keep the melody upbeat. Considering how many branches she had broken before, he had thought that it would have been the perfect way to force her to come clean about her little problem. Unfortunately for him, he had underestimated her determination to keep him in the dark.

After the fifteenth tree was soundlessly circled, he lowered his flute sadly. "Haru?"

She looked over at him while keeping one foot in the air, balancing herself by the trunk of the mulberry tree with one hand. "Yes?"

"Is it really such a terrible thing, to be named Ivan?"

Haru flinched from the question, but sighed. "No, it's a perfectly good name."

"Then why did you react the way you did?"

"If I didn't mind telling you, I'd have stepped on several branches by now." She lowered her foot carefully, almost dancing on her tiptoes to avoid making a sound.

"Haru, it's my name, and I care about you. I think I deserve to know."

The slim brunette didn't seem shocked at his words, but he could almost hear the noise in her mind as she struggled to find the right thing to say.

"Baron…" she finally managed to choke out. "That's something I can't share with you. Not yet."

"Why ever not? You know you can trust me, don't you?" he asked, feeling a bit injured.

"Of course I know that, but…" She growled with exasperation, stepping closer to him at a rapid pace.

He couldn't help but notice that she was still avoiding the branches as she approached him and kneeled down to be at eye level.

With a start, he realized that their faces were mere inches from each other, making him stifle an impulse to step away from the half-human. Although he didn't really want to, he could see his own reflection inside her large, caramel eyes.

"Baron, the name Ivan has a very special significance for me. It's not a bad one, but… it's complicated. It's so complicated I still don't understand everything about it, and until I figure out the big picture, I don't dare share that with anyone, even you or Yuki."

Baron looked at her in amazement. "That barely makes any sense, Haru."

"Believe me, I know. But I'm willing to promise you this; when I'm ready to tell you about Ivan, I will."

He cocked his head at her, wondering if she really would.

"I never break a promise, Baron. The fact that I'm engaged to Lune says that loud and clear. I promise; you will find out everything I know about Ivan when the time is right."

"… I will hold you to that, Haru."

She gave him a weak smile, and a very brief hug before standing up.

Baron couldn't help but feel a bit cheated. Propriety was all well and good, but he much preferred her other hugs over that rather stiff one. Did his name invoke the change? If so, he wished he could take back telling her his birth name.

Still… the vagueness in her explanation worried him. "Whatever it is, I'm hoping it won't damage our friendship," he said carefully, trying to weasel out at least a little bit of information.

Haru looked at him mournfully as she drew close to another tree. "That's just it, Baron. I don't know."

He shuddered from her response. "Is it truly that important?" he demanded.

"Maybe, but I could be wrong. I'll let you know when I know."

Baron was almost tempted to think that it was a good thing that she had broken so many branches the first time they visited the orchard together. Because no matter how hard he tried to distract her with music or conversation, she never broke a branch again.

ooOoo

When he deemed her ready for actual dancing lessons, he reluctantly turned her over to Richard. Not only was he tall enough and fit enough to be a suitable partner for Haru, he had actually danced before.

So there Baron was, providing music on his flute as Richard slowly danced with the Sea Maiden.

"I must say, my lady; the king was exaggerating your ineptitude. Teaching you to dance won't take that long at all!" the old steward exclaimed as he twirled her around with one arm.

"You can thank Baron for that," Haru replied, sending a small smile at the kitten before looking at Richard again. "He's a professional miracle worker."

Baron nearly choked, but quickly resumed the melody. He kept his eyes on a simple vase across the room, but he could feel both of their curious gazes on him. Only when he was certain that they were no longer looking at him did he dare to inspect Haru's progress.

Richard was right. She wouldn't need as much assistance as expected in dance. The training with the branches had given her a very solid foundation to work from. If she kept up with her current pace, she could easily be a master within a month.

The little kitten had to fight back a sudden wave of melancholy to keep it from changing the melody. He couldn't help but wish just the littlest bit that he could dance with Haru, even if it was only once. But their obvious height difference would make dancing slightly awkward, if not embarrassing for her.

There was also his physical weakness to consider. He knew he might be able to handle a single slow dance, but… the thought of asking Haru for such a thing was somehow terrifying for him. Would she just laugh at him? He had a habit of making her laugh over the strangest things.

He'd best not chance it. Even if the All Hallows' Eve Dance was a mere few days away.

ooOoo

'But still, what if she would say yes? I mean, she didn't exactly contradict me when I spoke of us being friends, and friends dance together all the time.'

'Isn't that also an activity for lovers?'

"Will you be silent?" he hissed, wishing that persistent little voice at the back of his mind would go away.

Perhaps Haru's madness was contagious; he had no memory of that voice before she came along. Was it permanent, or would it fade away after she returned to the palace?

He sighed sadly as he walked alone through a forest path. The thought of her leaving was more than merely depressing. 'That's right. She'll be gone in just a few weeks from now, when the snow starts falling. One would think that I would have prepared myself for this.'

"Why would I need to prepare myself?" he asked out loud with a growl. "She is a dear friend, and knowing the king's temperament, we'll be seeing plenty of each other after she marries Lune."

Saying that out loud was almost the same as a blow to his stomach, making his knees feel weaker than ever.

"Lune will grow to love her. How could he not, once he gives her a chance? It isn't as if he'll be able to keep being distant to her with his father watching-" he finished with an angry yowl as a tree root tripped him.

With how hard he fell to the ground, and lay there gasping for breath around the pain, he must have been walking much faster than he usually did.

Grateful that no one had seen his fall, he sorely rubbed the elbow and knee that took most of the pain for him, and started hunting for his top hat.

"Naturally," he growled, staring at a recently-picked blackberry bush.

The thorns had been kind enough to catch his beloved hat, but he knew better than to merely grab it back. Fighting back a sigh, the little kitten stepped as close as he dared to the blackberry bush, and started to ease his hat off.

Then the left sleeve of his jacket got stuck. Along with two of the buttons of his dark green waistcoat. Not to mention the thorns that were tearing at his breast pocket.

"Come now; let go!" Baron shouted angrily, losing his patience enough to tear himself and his hat away from the natural trap.

Several tears were heard as he landed on his back, one hand stubbornly gripping his beloved hat. He lay there, panting on the soft earth for only a short time. At least, he was certain it was only a little while before he heard a familiar voice.

"Baron? Was that you?" Haru called out as footsteps drew closer.

He panicked and managed to sit up before she turned around a corner. Judging from her wet hair and the large bag with wet clothes hanging from one arm, she had just finished swimming.

She inhaled sharply and ran to his side to kneel next to him. "Baron, are you okay?"

"Y-Yes, I'm fine. I just had a small tussle with the blackberry bush, that's all."

"It looks like you won, though; only your jacket's a little torn."

He laughed a little and held up his hat… only to watch in horror as the brim loosened from the top portion. "Oh no," he choked, holding it closer so that the tear wouldn't become worse.

"Yikes, that's a bad one," Haru commented, reaching into her pocket. "Can I see it?"

He gave her a very wary look while holding his hat defensively, making her giggle a bit as she pulled out a small, strange box.

"Relax, Baron; if I can alter pockets into skirts with no one the wiser, I could fix your hat in a jiffy."

"What's a jiffy?"

"It means in no time. Come on, there's a nice rock formation where we can sit until I'm done," Haru coaxed, helping him to his feet.

"… Thank you, Haru," he replied thankfully, noticing that her fingers were twitching after helping him up, as if she was restraining herself from brushing the dirt off him.

He looked down, feeling his face turn hot under the fur as he handed over the hat and took a handkerchief to his clothes.

"You look like you bit the dust twice; you got both sides," she informed him in a gentle tone, using one of her own handkerchiefs to respectfully brush off the back of his jacket.

He felt his face turn even hotter as he cleaned off the seat of his pants. "I assure you that dust is not something I eat on a regular basis, Haru."

She giggled at that, and walked with him the small distance to the rocks. "I know. You are aware it was a metaphor, right?"

He flinched guiltily as he took a seat on one of the smoother stones. "Actually, I thought you were being literal."

That made her laugh and shake her head at him some more while taking a seat of her own, and setting his hat on her lap. She inspected it from every angle very carefully, searching for more tears. "How long have you had this hat?"

"Eleven years now. Lune got it for me shortly after I healed him."

Haru whistled in appreciation. "Eleven years, and it's only coming apart now?"

"I've been taking very good care of it," Baron said, feeling self conscious as she opened up the little box and picked out a white thread.

"I can tell. Too bad I don't have grey thread, but I don't think anyone will be able to tell." She threaded the needle, cut the thread length short with her teeth, and got to work.

Baron watched her, strangely fascinated as the metal needle started dancing through the inside edge of the brim, reattaching it to the rest of the hat. Haru took a short break to grab a thimble from her little box, since the brim had a stiffer cloth on the inside, and kept working. Her pace wasn't fast, but it was steady, and her stitches were surprisingly tiny.

"Have you ever thought of doing embroidery, Haru?" he couldn't help but ask. "I bet you would be excellent at it."

"I'll have to think about that later. Not to be rude, Baron, but now's not a good time to distract me."

"My apologies," he replied quickly, although keeping his eyes on her hands and face.

It was almost funny, how she kept the tip of her tongue to the upper left side of her mouth in concentration, and her eyes slightly narrowed as she kept making the tiniest stitches possible. When her hands were employed in such delicate work, it was hard to believe that, if she so wished, she could break a limb without breaking a sweat.

'But then again, she never truly enjoyed fighting. It is merely a defense mechanism to her.'

Once the brim was secure, she moved onto the seam rip that had traveled up the tall side of the hat, moving her legs so that she could hold the top hat on its side on her lap.

Her comfortable lap.

'Stop that,' he scolded himself inwardly. 'Even if she has the most comfortable lap in the kingdom-'

'Which she does,' the familiar voice interjected smugly.

'- she is still engaged to Lune. I doubt that she'll put me in her lap again after she says her vows.'

That seemed to do the trick, because the voice didn't speak again.

Haru pulled the needle out of the free end of the thread, and held the hat against her face to cut the remaining thread short with her teeth. "I managed to fix it, but you can still see where I patched the tear," she fretted, placing her needle and thimble back into the little box before slipping it back into her pocket.

"Really, Haru; what you've done is plenty," Baron tried to object in her defense.

"But it's not quite enough. Wait a minute," she interrupted, her strange eyes lighting up with inspiration. With one hand, she untied the silk scarf from her surprisingly elegant neck, and secured it around the base of his hat in a simple knot.

Then she held it up at an angle. "You know? This doesn't look half bad," she commented, glancing at him as if for his approval.

Baron could only stare. Her grey scarf was a few shades darker than the hat, and yet…

It looked like it had belonged there all along. The wonderful effect made him wonder if the apprentice had forgotten to finish it.

"… I rather fancy that, Haru. Thank you for doing this."

"No problem." She held it to him so he could take it back.

He moved to do so, but then she swiftly held it away from him again; a wide teasing grin on her face.

"Haru!" he protested, hopping out of his seat to try retrieving it anyway.

She laughed playfully while keeping it away from him, and secured his hat to her own head. "I've been wanting to do this for weeks!"

Baron initially wanted to demand it back, but he took the time to look at the general effect first.

Then he wished he hadn't. Her head might have been a bit too big for it, but the way she had perched it between her ears had a very charming effect.

"Naturally," he sighed in a mournful tone.

Haru cocked one of her strange eyebrows at him. "Naturally what?" she asked.

"My hat would look better on you."

Baron had a very strong impression that her own face was turning hot underneath her fur. In any case, she immediately took it off and set it back onto his head, where it belonged.

"Hats give me a headache, anyway," she mumbled almost under her breath. "Even if they're as cool as yours."

Baron laughed at that as he adjusted it slightly. "At least you don't still think my taste in hats is my only good attribute anymore."

She flinched. "Okay, admittedly, that was a bit harsh. Besides, you actually wear your hat."

"What is that supposed to mean?" he asked in confusion.

"Natoru would carry one around all the time, but never actually wear it."

Baron's jaw dropped. The junior advisor hated hats, and lost no opportunity to make fun of the little kitten's.

"He wouldn't have happened to have been keeping one tucked under his arm when no one else was around, did he?"

Haru looked at him curiously. "Come to think of it, yes."

The little kitten started growling menacingly. "That moron!" he yelled at the top of his lungs, angrily stomping around in front of the rocks. "How dare he try such a thing to you of all maidens? I have a good mind to go back to the palace and tell the king what he was attempting! Let's see how he enjoys getting threatened-"

"Baron?" she asked in shock, grabbing him by the shoulders as he passed by her. She kneeled down so that they would be at eye level. "You never lose your temper. What does his hat have to do with anything?"

He stared at her in tired resignation, shaking his head a bit. If she had known what Natoru was trying to tell her, she would have gutted him on the spot.

"I don't know all of the gestures from your world, Haru, but here in the Cat Kingdom, when a male approaches a female with a hat tucked under one arm, it means he wishes to pay court to her."

Her eyes went huge in shock. "Y-You mean… that little idiot wanted to… even though I'm Lune's…" she tried to choke out in rage as her eyes turned as red as blood.

Baron nodded angrily, unable to form a sentence himself. Did Natoru really think that even if Haru had a choice in the matter, that she would want anything to do with him?

"I have only one thing to say to that," she snarled as she looked around and grabbed a fallen branch that was near the rocks.

It wasn't a tiny one. In fact, Baron's wrists were barely thinner than it. With deliberate slowness, Haru bent the branch, taking deep satisfaction from the groaning and popping of the wood until it eventually broke into two pieces. The only thing holding the pieces together was a little bit of bark, but even that was easily torn apart.

Baron purred evilly at the graphic demonstration. "I truly admire your way with words, Haru."

She grinned just as evilly, and tossed both pieces over one shoulder. "Thanks. Now if I could only do that to Natoru's leg; let's see him follow me everywhere in the palace if he has to crawl or get used to a peg leg."

Baron sighed with regret. "If you do that, the king will decide that I have failed as your instructor, and relieve me of my head."

The fire in her eyes dampened at the thought, but she growled stubbornly. "So, what should I do instead? Tell the king what Natoru's been up to?"

"I doubt that will do anything; it would be your word against Natoru and Natori's over an insult that was nearly two months ago. It would be best to wait for solid evidence."

"I'm guessing that the evidence can't involve broken bones?" she asked sadly.

"I'm afraid not." He patted her elbow affectionately. "Don't worry, Haru; we'll think of something to deter that imbecile. I wouldn't wish Natoru's affection on anyone."

She gave him a weak smile, but a warm embrace. "Neither would I."