Hope you enjoy Molinde and Tevildo's cat redemption arc.
Ch. 1 - Tevildo and the Elf
And in the aftermath of the successful mission of Beren and Luthien to steal a Silmaril from Morgoth, a lot of his servants were killed, in the worst cases, and demoted, in the best cases.
Because no one should dare fail in stopping a mortal man and hs Elf girlfriend from achieving the feat of stealing a Silmaril from Morgoth's crown.
And, unfortunately, Tevildo the Prince of Cats, once a feared foe with his own domain, had found himself on the brink of death like any other stray cat in Middle Earth. This pissed him off to no end. He would die nameless and with nothing to his name.
His once luscious black fur had now been reduced to a matted mess, he had scratches all over and probably a broken paw.
He had also been deprived of his golden collar, so he had not even his powers left.
And he closed his eyes, waiting for death by horse hooves or other foul beasts like dogs to rid him of his misery.
Instead, he felt his body being lifted and put into something soft, as a voice so gentle was speaking to him. "Oh, you poor thing! Look at what they have done to you! Such a cruel on is Morgoth! Not even small creatures are spared!"
Tevildo opened his eyes and saw pointy ears, long dark curls, blue eyes and dark skin. Oh great, an wretched Elf!, he thought. And yet the thing he was laying on was so soft and comfortable! And he was about to die, anyway.
So much for being one of the most faithful servants of Melkor, and the most effective one.
So much for being the Prince of Cats.
Things got a bit blurry, as his strength dwindled down, but when Tevildo opened up his eyes again, he was surprised to find himself still alive.
And all bandaged and laying on the softest bed ever known to cat. But still he was greeted by the Elf. "Hi, you cutie pie! You are finally awake! I am Molinde, do you care for a little treat?"
Tevildo mustered up his strength and hissed at the elf. Away from me, you witch! Were it not for my predicament I would have you disfigured and reduced to less than a scullery maid!
His words did not have any effect at all. It did not even seem like she understood him at all, as she just smiled. "Aw, look at this spicy baby! Are you spicy? Yes, you are! But we are going to be friends, I am sure of it! Here, have a treat!"
Such undignified words! He would make her pay dearly as soon as he got his strength back… Wait, was that CHICKEN he was smelling, right next to him? Was this bribery? Was this a spell? An illusion?
Was his cook Miaule there? Unlikely.
And yethe felt hungry, so he bit the piece of meat - so soft, so tender, so savoury. And the Elf's voice reached his ears again. "Aw, you do like the treat! We are definitely going to be friends!"
More undignified behaviours! The Elf witch now just had to put on him a stupid name and she'd have signed up for her painful death! Just wait until I get back my strength, I will call upon my servants and deliver you to the Dark Lord himself!
But Tevildo did not sound so convinced now.
The chicken treats he was now munching were really tasty. And the bed was really soft and all his wounds were bandaged and healed.
Maybe the Elf witch was worth as a servant, after all. "That's a really good kitty! I am leaving here more treats for you and I am coming by later to check on you. You just close your pretty kitty eyes and sleep for a bit!"
Molinde carefully gave him a little scritch on his head - the AUDACITY, the GALL, the NERVE!, Tevildo thought, but the scritch surely felt nice.
With that he felt again very sleepy and finally closed his eyes.
Molinde finally took a breath. "You poor thing, the naughty Wargs out there really pulled a number on you! Worry not, you are going to be safe!"
And with that, she went back to her work - she had some new kitty-sized trinkets to sew.
