A little scene where Alyse meets a cat.
Idea from: @catnykit
As Alyse took a step off the sanctuary of her fur rug, she found that the stones beneath suddenly bit. She spiked up to the tip of her toes at the bitterness. A harsh coldness crept through the air, enough so that she had dared to pull a blanket from her bed, shielding it around her head and shoulders like a shroud. Despite the hearty effort of the fire in her chambers, the chill was stronger.
That was to be expected, of course, as winter reared its glimmering head, coating every inch with its ivory velvet cloak. The beauty of it was undeniable, but so was the brittleness that galloped alongside. Alyse was sure she had never been this cold before in her entire life. It sank down into her bones, caring not for the layer of fat she had managed to accumulate from her time with Valerius. Her teeth chattered like the hollow click of wind chimes, disagreeing with her decision to flee the confines of her warm lenin.
Alyse made her way through the lengthy hallways, danced on her toes down the swirl staircase, and finally with a foggy breath, made her way into the solar. It was a grand room, framed by three marvelous round windows that overlooked a similar 3 beautiful couches. They were placed in a U-shape, curling their soft fabric around the hearth of the fire.
An orange rug, woven with the finest of threads, housed the couches, which housed their own array of plush pillows. This morning, however, there was not just the furniture, or the carved mahogany table, but a puddle of black and grey fur.
The lamb wasn’t entirely sure what it was at first, in fact she thought it had been a rag accidentally left by some housekeeping. Then it moved, unfurling from its ball, stretching out two legs matched with long claws.
A cat…
Oh!
Alyse hadn’t seen another living being, besides Valerius and the shadows of the other servants, since she had left the pet store. To say she was enchanted would be an understatement.
“Hello.” She whispered, sealing her tone with silk, horrified to speak too loud and scare the thing away. “I haven’t seen you before. Do you live here?”
The cat’s eyes flickered over to Alyse, barely giving her a glance. Its pupils were wide, spreading out across the entire green surface. Within the millisecond that its attention waned away from the warmth of the fire, it was as if the cat was sarcastically saying ‘Obviously.’
Furry legs folded beneath her skirts, settling her down against the rug. She let the blanket roll off her head and cuddled it down around her shoulders. The darling tilted her head to the left, eyes wide as the cat settled once again against its hearthrug throne.
She hadn’t met a cat before, not in person. She’d heard of them, of course. She had even heard the shopkeeper considering getting one once, but she didn’t know why.
Her fingers twitched, wanting to reach out, to lay her hand upon what looked to be the softest thing in the world. But the glint of the nails warned her against it. Perhaps in some cases her self preservation skills were pitiful, but not in this one. That was a predator, no matter how small and cuddly it looked.
“Lamb–” Alyse’s head snapped up, the sound of her master’s voice scattering her thoughts like broken glass. His presence filled the room as easily as the firelight. “ –have you made a new friend?”
She clasped her treacherous hands together on her lap, leaning until her back met the base of the couch. Valerius could tell it was not the heat from the flames that warmed her cheeks pink. “I uhm— Well I… I don’t know, sir…”
The lord’s cloak swirled against the floor, akin to the elegant dance of fog above a lake, as he seated himself above the lamb. He lowered himself with measured grace, something that appeared so casual yet Alyse knew better. Everything about her master was precise, deliberate, controlled. “You find partnership in very strange things.”
Alyse scooted a hair closer to the cat, the blanket trailing behind her like a makeshift cape. “Can– uhm– can I pet it, sir?”
Precious, how very precious she was.
Valerius might have been annoyed that she was sitting on the floor, dirtying her dress, if not for how infatuated she seemed. Her ears were perked more than he had ever seen them, and her mouth sat slightly agape. What was so fascinating about a cat? Valerius didn’t understand, but he supposed he didn’t need to.
“Come here first.” Alyse twisted around, raising her chin. Valerius had to swallow, slow and steady, as he took in her sight. A tiny little being, down on her knees, wide-eyed, staring up at him as she sat at his feet. He patted the cushion, lest the elegant painting before him cost both their mornings. “Here, Alyse.”
She crawled up, disregarding the blanket on the floor as her master brought with him a warmth that fought away any chill.
“Let her come to you.” Valerius instructed, feeling as though he were caring for a child. What person didn’t know to wait for a cat to approach them? If she’d shot her hand at the sleeping feline like she had done to him, she would have pulled away one less finger than she started with.
Her ears drooped down, nuzzling into her wool as she took her spot next to her lord. Her legs curled up on the couch—goodness, a couch. She never thought she’d be allowed on a couch but now it was expected of her. Alyse molded her side against Valerius’s, using his shoulder as a place to rest her head.
Valerius did not move at first. He simply allowed her weight to settle against him, as though measuring how much she dared to take. Alyse’s breathing slowed, her lashes fluttering with each blink, and he felt the small, timid tremor of her frame as she pressed closer. “You are far too comfortable with me, little lamb.”
It was a warning, a precaution. But Alyse didn’t see it as such. In fact, in her head she wrapped the sentence in glittering paper, finished with a bow. “I like being close to you.”
Valerius flicked his gaze to her. “Oh yes, darling. I can tell.”
If she were any other creature, she would have realized this was a sign of danger. But she was not, so she kept innocently calm. “Does she have a name, sir?”
“The cat?” He followed her gaze toward the fire, where the beast’s tail flicked lazily. Alyse nodded.
“No. I only let things I like have names.”
Giddiness bloomed in her chest, bright as sparks leaping from the flames. She tilted her head up at him, hair tousled, eyes half-hidden but alight.
“You like me?”
Valerius paused. The thought came unbidden, traitorous: Far too much, my little lamb.
His lips curved, though not kindly. “For now, I suppose.”
Alyse’s grin spread slow and shy across her lips, like a secret she wasn’t sure she should share. She nestled in closer, entirely unbothered by the claws beneath his voice. To her, “for now” sounded like eternity.
Valerius let his eyes linger on her for a moment longer before dragging them back to the heat. The flames licked and curled against the stone, greedy and unrelenting—how fitting. He had no business indulging her closeness, no reason to let her curl against him like something cherished. Yet he allowed it.
Alyse’s eyes stayed fixed on the cat, her small hands clasped so tightly in her lap that her knuckles blanched. She tried to still herself, tried not to spook the creature by watching too eagerly.
At first, it only stretched. A long, languid arch of its back, paws kneading at the rug before it slunk closer. Its steps were soundless, deliberate—almost like her master’s.
Alyse sucked in a breath and whispered, “She’s coming.”
Valerius’s arm shifted ever so slightly at her side, as if to contain her quiver of excitement. “Then remain still.”
The cat leapt onto the couch with the quiet authority of something that believed it belonged there. Alyse froze, not daring to move, hardly even breathing. Slowly, cautiously, the feline padded across the cushion. First it brushed her knee, then it climbed higher, curling without hesitation directly in Alyse’s lap.
Her hands trembled above it, horrified yet desperate to make contact until she looked up at her lord. Wide eyes pleaded for permission.
Valerius reclined back against the cushions, studying the sight of the quivering lamb with her new charge. The contrast almost made him laugh. “Go on, little one,” he murmured. “She has chosen you.”
Alyse exhaled in a rush, as though she had been holding her breath for years, and lowered her palm gently onto the cat’s fur. The warmth, the soft rumble of a purr—her heart swelled until she thought it might spill out of her chest.
Valerius felt it through her, the tremor of joy, the way her body softened against his side. He did not look at the cat again. His eyes remained on Alyse, the lamb who glowed as though she’d been granted the world.
“Careful,” he said, voice low, rich, threading warning with indulgence. “If you look at me with that smile, I’ll start to think I’m the one who put it there.”
“Oh, master…” Her fingers settled down into the awaiting softness, the cat’s back arched, meeting her gentle caress. Alyse barely managed a swallow, keeping her voice level even though she could have yelled with joy. “I think I love it very much…”
“It has its uses.” That was as much of an agreement as Alyse was going to get. “It keeps the mice at bay in a much more merciful way than I.”
Alyse wouldn’t let herself imagine the horrors that would make the slow, toying death from a cat merciful. She simply settled back, warm, happy, loved as the cat began to knead delicately into her satin gown.
receiving a “present” from a kitty produces such conflicting emotions like I am so happy you care and love for me little kitty and you took the time to catch some food for me I love you so much lemme kiss your little forehead goddess of the hunt
then the other emotion is just pure sadness because your little angel just killed a poor little animal that had a life and a family....
@descentofthe-losechesters, couldn't reblog your response so posting. Yep I've got the one cat (though she has two puppy siblings) that's our own little calico Athena. I'd love to get one of those GoPros for her too, but she's bad enough at getting collars off...just wanders back in sometimes with it missing, no idea how she does it...because yeah, I'd looooove to know what she gets up to when she's out and about. She came home with a still living magpie (I only noticed when it started squawking from under the couch) when she was so ickle that the bird was bigger than she was. Among the stranger things she's come home with have been a chicken wing? and a salmon steak??? Not half-eaten either, they looked fresh out of the packet. I suspect she's found a way into one of the neighbour's houses and sometimes sneaks in to steal food that's been left out. Reblog with the most unusual thing your cat's returned from a wander with.
