Alone. I’d be fucking alone in Nyarlea.

Just when I thought I really had something going. My Party breaks. My girls.

My family.

I was pissed. Beyond pissed. I stormed out to the courtyard filled with the Encroacher zoo. I wanted to put my axe in something’s face. Strangle it with my bare hands.

It’s temporary, Kelmer.

I had to get to Second Class; I knew that much. And with how much faster I Leveled than the girls, it made sense for them to work in my absence.

But who the hell knew if Cannoli was coming back, or if Ceres would be safe with Cailu, or if Ravyn would beg to swap to Tristan’s Party after everything that had happened between us.

Fuck!

I roared with frustration and punched the wall. A sickening crack followed, and I was sure I broke at least one of my knuckles. The skin split and bled. I hardly felt it and I didn’t care.

I whipped around to the nearest cage of roaches, grabbing onto the bars with my good hand. I was determined to mince whatever was inside to shreds. What looked back at me was a cluster of furry green roaches, each sharing the length and build of a ferret. They had four ears and wide glittering eyes, their heads adorned with a miniature rack of horns.

Cannoli would love these.

The thought drained all the fight out of me. I tottered backward, collapsing against the wall with my knees to my chest. My hand and head throbbed in time, and my heart hammered against my chest.

“Fluffpuffs have a calming effect on people,” a gentle voice came from my right. “Maybe you should have checked them out before you punched the wall.”

I looked up at an approaching Jeenie. I had hoped it would’ve been too late for her to still be manning the cages. Hack first, apologize later.

She studied my face and stopped short. “I don’t mean to bother you.”

I grunted.

She procured a rolled bandage and a corked tonic from her [Cat Pack]. “At least let me see your hand. Then you can spend all the quality time with the fluffpuffs that you want.”

“Aren’t you a [Hunter]?”

“I often dabble in [Alchemy]. It’s less embarrassing tending to bite wounds from the babies,” she explained. “I can stop the bleeding, at least.”

I raised my hand. The pain was getting worse, and the blood coated my wrist. I twisted it to get a better look in the setting sun. Probably broke two knuckles. I sighed. “Sure.”

With a resolute nod, she took a seat next to me and held out her hand. I laid my palm in hers, flinching as she examined it. “Whatever the wall did, I’m sure it deserved it.”

I wanted to smile but found it impossible. Instead, I leaned my head against the wall and searched the violet sky. “My whole Party is splitting.”

Jeenie exhaled a long, drawn-out breath before retrieving another bottle and pouring it on my hand. Stung like hell, but it was easier to focus on than everything else. “Why?”

“So I can train for Second Class.”

“Oh. Well, that’s not permanent, right?” She dabbed the skin with a separate cloth.

“Maybe? I don’t think so.” I groaned, covering my face with my hand. “I don’t know.”

“Hang on. I need to stitch you up a bit. This cut is pretty big.” She held up a needle and translucent, thick thread. “It’s not fun.”

“Go for it,” I said. She could have chopped my hand off and I don’t think it would have hurt as much as that damn meeting.

“Matt, listen,” Jeenie began, biting off a length of thread before weaving it through the needle’s eye. “I’ve lived in this castle for years. None of the women here looked at Magni the way your girls look at you.”

I pictured our first day in the castle, the entirety of the First Shell huddled inside the throne room, staring at us in fear. Looking to Magni as their savior. The rage on their faces when Cailu killed him. “Bullshit.”

“I know that I can’t convince you one way or the other.” The needle pierced my skin, and I barely flinched. “But I believe they’ll all be waiting for you when you’re finished. And all of you will be stronger for it.”

How can separating us make us stronger? Especially when we’re just starting to work well together? Two more pokes through my hand, followed by the tension of Jeenie pulling the thread. As if she were stringing me up like a puppet.

This world is fucked.

“How long have you lived here, Matt?” Jeenie asked when I didn’t respond.

“Three, maybe four months,” I replied. I’d lost track of time.

“Hm. Not long, then.” Another pinch. “Maybe you’ve heard this already, but a lot of kittens grow up dreaming of being chosen for a man’s Party. You can imagine how rare of an opportunity that is.”

I didn’t know what to say or see where this was going, so I stared forward in silence.

“I was one of them. And I can say with certainty that every member of your Party is lucky to have you.” She jerked her chin toward the castle. “I’ve seen the alternative.”

“Thanks, Jeenie.”

One of the fluffpuffs came up to the bars and peered out at me, flicking the pompom on its tail. It made a chittering noise, and its companions joined it. A fluffle of fluffpuffs. The thought made me smile. Just a little.

“See? Even the fluffpuffs like you.” She tied off the thread and uncorked the second tonic. “This one’s for you to drink.”

I accepted the bottle and downed its contents while she emptied the second container to clean off the remaining blood. The potion was sharp and bitter, but the throbbing in my head and hand dissipated.

“If you can see a healer, they’ll be able to clean up the broken knuckles,” Jeenie explained as she gingerly wrapped the bandage around my hand. “If you don’t feel like explaining yourself, I can make you more potions, and they’ll heal in a couple of weeks so long as you don’t use them.”

A sardonic thought came to mind. Could ask Kirti. What’s one more soul rock? I pushed it away. There were [Priest]s sanctioning the duel; I could probably find one of them without much of a problem. “Yeah. I’ll do that.” I lifted my arm. The hand had begun to swell, but the bleeding was gone, and Jeenie had done a good job of bandaging it. “What’s a few more badass scars, right?”

Jeenie laughed. “Just tell them you wrestled a chattaan. Anyone on Ichi would believe that.”

I felt myself return her smile. The aching in my chest was letting up, and the preemptive fear of losing my girls was starting to disappear. Without Jeenie realizing it, she had confirmed the tiny voice in the back of my head—this was all temporary. I knew about Cannoli’s search for Saoirse before walking into that dining hall. Keke had to hit Second Class too, and Ceres and Ravyn were pretty adamant about regrouping once we were finished.

We’d be okay. I’d be okay. One day, one Level, one Class at a time.

“So,” Jeenie began, loading the empty bottles into her pack, “Second Class, punching walls, Party breaks; sounds like you’re leaving soon?”

“Sounds like a few more days,” I replied.

“I’ll miss having you around.” She licked her lips and let her eyes wander. “You have a great,” her gaze lingered at my hips, then returned to my face, “sense of humor.”

I don’t know why her dumb joke struck such a strong chord with me. Maybe because of how badly I wanted everything to work out. Maybe because how Jeenie looked at me now was the shit I had dreamed about while sitting in Leiana’s office. But I laughed way harder than I should have. “It’s my best trait, I hear.”

Jeenie grinned. “Good to hear you laugh again, Matt.” She stood, smoothing her thin white skirt that barely covered more than a few inches of her thighs. “I’ll quit bothering you.”

“Jeenie, wait.” I got to my feet, and her stare followed me as if she had a lock-on button. “I thought you said you weren’t good with people.”

“Hmph. Better with Encroachers, honestly. But,” she crossed her arms over her abdomen, raising her ample chest by a few inches, “there are some exceptions.”

For the first time since I’d arrived in Nyarlea, I took a page from Tristan’s suave handbook. This was my job, and I felt the hints of a genuine connection with Jeenie. “I know I kind of screwed myself wrestling that chattaan.” I took her hand in my good one and brushed my thumb over her knuckles. “But do you want to spend the night with me?”

Jeenie flushed a deep red behind her ocean of freckles, the color nearly as bright as her orange hair. “R-really?” she stammered, hand squeezing mine. “Y-you’d let me?”

There’s the Jeenie I know. “Yeah.”

She sucked in a breath and licked her lips. “C-can we, um… can we go to my wing?” Somehow, her blush deepened. “I just don’t want anyone to hear me,” the volume of her voice decreased with every word.

I laughed. “Sure thing.” I brushed her shoulder with my fingertips. “We don’t have to, Jeenie.”

“No! Goddess, please. You have no idea how— How I— You have no idea!” She tugged on my hand. “Just follow me!”

“Alright, lead on.”

Her excitement was palpable as she led me to the back of the courtyard. I watched her hips and brilliant orange tail sway with renewed fervor. Her hand was warm in mine, and the spring in her step was adorable.

The door she unlocked was flush with the wall; it would have been impossible to see if you didn’t know it was there. She pushed it open, revealing a candle-lit den filled with furs and trinkets. The walls were filled with paintings and sketches of Encroachers. A furry shadow raced from the center of the room to the hallway, out of sight before I could register just what it was.

“That’s Ren. He’s harmless,” she breathed, closing the door behind me.

That’s what they all say. “Bye, Ren.”

Jeenie laughed. “This way.”

She pulled me down a corridor lined with tapestries and flowering vines. Everything seemed to depict or reflect some aspect of nature, and it felt like every island’s wildlife had some kind of representation. The whole place smelled like flowers and exotic spices, much like Jeenie herself.

Her room had the same kind of organized chaos that I’d kept back on Earth. A desk stacked with books, half-filled parchment, and sketches stood to the left of the door. More art and decorations spanned every wall, and a tall oil lamp stood stalwart in the corner, illuminating the space. The focal point was an enormous rug woven with colored rings, each one containing a marching line of animal shapes.

Jeenie caught me staring. “My mother made that.”

“It’s beautiful,” I said. Really ties the room together. “It must have taken her years.”

“Pretty much her whole life,” Jeenie replied. “B-but we can talk about that later! No need to bore you! Ha ha!”

I brushed my hand through her hair. “You’re not boring, Jeenie. I’m not going anywhere.”

She leaned into my touch, moving her ears between my fingers. A dreamy moan squeezed from her lips.

That was it. All other thoughts were wiped away, and I was frozen in place. The only thing I wanted to touch, feel, and breathe was her. “You like that?”

“Yes,” Jeenie purred. She cupped my hand, bringing it to her cheek and sliding my thumb into her mouth.

I watched her face; drank in her expression. She was desperate to please.

And I was happy to oblige.

Memory saved and stored for catgirls. . .

For a few euphoric seconds, everything was perfect.

We curled up together on Jeenie’s bed, mouths locked and her hands rarely leaving my skin. I don’t know how much time had passed before she drew away and blinked up at me.

“U-um, is it terrible… i-if I want to go again?” she mumbled.

I smoothed her hair and kissed her forehead. “You have me all night.” I carefully flexed my injured hand. It hurt like hell. “I might need another potion, though.”

“Oh! Right! Of course!” Jeenie leaped from the bed and retrieved her [Cat Pack]. As she dug through it, she said, “So… do you know how few Encroachers carry cytotoxic venom?”

I touched the scar on my chest. “This was a Defiled.”

“Well, now you really have to tell me what happened.” Jeenie pulled a bottle free and passed it to me. “Please?” She pouted.

I uncorked the bottle and drained it in three gulps. “Yeah. Alright.”

Even when my thoughts returned, things seemed a little brighter. Jeenie was right; my training would be temporary.

I had to trust my girls. I owed them that much.

Quest Updated!

[The More the Merrier]

4/8 Catgirls Successful!