A Game of Cat and Mouse

[BlacKitten]

Miu – 1

Once upon a starry night with a crescent moon high in the sky, there was an order barked by the Queen, “Bring me some fish!” She was the queen of the Kingdom of Veldesh who dwelled in a glorious castle within the capital, Queenstown, the massive city that takes up a few mountains’ worth of hollowed out.

Every tower was a spire. Every roof was a golden leaf. Beyond this city was nothing but large flower forests and neighboring mountains as far as the eye can tell except for one other city. The lower one’s rank, the lower they live. The highest rank, the queen, dwelled in the highest tower in the central tower that’s compartmentalized into multiple towers. Even the towers had towers. Within each building, there were hallways interconnecting a wide network of passageways, internal courtyards of apartments, and unused hidden doors.

Upon the queen’s orders, the servants obeyed without question. Her words were absolute and cannot be denied. This was the class of supreme royalty. As a golden honeycomb-shaped plater arrived with the hexagonal lid removed, fish was presented to the majesty.

“Bring me some more fish,” said the middle-aged woman who wore a dress of bright colors of orange and yellow. A black sash tied around her waist, showing off her lithe build. Long black tights around her legs, orange high-heel shoes with a red ribbon in the front. Her black hair braided into two strands. She wore a pair of white accessories on her back to indicate small insect-like wings.

Once again, the servants continued to serve their queen without questioning her unusual change in eating habits. She did not usually eat fish and only fish. This had been her eighth plate for honey-slathered fish with the seafood imported from allied islands; her highness usually did not have such a huge appetite.

Suddenly, a storm of footsteps barged into the room of the royal apartment that neighbored the throne room. The leading figure who stepped in was none other than the queen herself who stared blankly at a splitting-image of herself in front of her. Behind her were a small group of guards who served to protect her. And in the room, there were guards serving to protect the other lookalike of their queen.

Immediately, both women in their flamboyant dresses accusingly pointed at the other, barking out the same three words, “Imposter! Seize her!”

The word of the queen was absolute, but now there, were two of them. From their faces, body proportions, clothing, and their voices, there was nothing to distinguish them visually or aurally. But again, the servants obeyed what they were told, and from both sides, both queens were seized.

“Unhand me, you fools! It’s the other one!”

“Remove your filthy hands off me. Can’t you see it’s the other one?”

Immediately, the guards from both sides obeyed without question and stepped away from both sides.

In a monarchical society, there could only be one true ruler. But when there was a doppelganger of their one and true leader, their own system began to fall apart.

[Aromancer]

Viper Lee - 1

Lee had washed up on the shore of a very strange island. Everyone here was so... passive. It was nice in a way, as he could ask the residents for pretty much anything and they would do their best to accommodate him, but it was also somewhat creepy. It was like they had no will of their own, as though they were mere drones for some sort of grand hivemind.

Still, he supposed he shouldn't complain. It certainly was a good life, getting all his needs taken care of. He almost wanted to stay, but every time he looked down at his log pose, he was reminded of his mission. This was a peaceful island; it was his job to keep it that way.

But one day, during his visit to the city's capital, things seemed different. The citizens were aimless, distracted almost. He tried to ask for directions from a number of people holding a plate of delectible-smelling fish, but they merely ignored him.

"What's going on today?" He asked himself, as he wandered through the town, eventually finding a place to spend the night. He approached the bartender, who barely looked up from his work as Lee sat down.

"So, uh... what's with all the kerfuffle?" Lee asked the man, looking around at a large number of other customers staring listlessly at their drinks.

"Confusing orders," replied the bartender, looking up and showing Lee his rather hopeless face. "Nobody's really sure what to do; the Queen is... perplexing."

"Um... do you... need to follow her orders?" Lee asked in reply, confused.

The bartender nodded. "The Queen brings prosperity to Veldesh," he replied. "We do not question her. But recently... she... questions herself."

Lee hummed. This was... concerning to say the least. "Maybe I should pay Her Majesty a visit," he said, mostly to himself. This seemed serious.

[BlacKitten]

Miu - 2

The royal apartments and throne room were areas reserved only for those of royalty. Trespassing was considered a crime, and right now, the queen was fuming with frustration at the sight of her own doppelganger. How could this be possible!? How long has this been the case? How could anyone sneak in here despite the security of members of the Warrior Class?

“Heh-heh-heh!” The queen snickered before suddenly shrinking down into a much smaller form. A heartbeat later, what used to be the queen had turned into a cat! The feline perched on the chair, giving a mischievous smirk. Her lower face, underbelly, and paws were all white whereas the rest of her body had a grey coat of fur. Large yellow eyes glared at the humans before her.

“What!? A cat!?” The queen, the real one, was aghast by the cute, adorable creature. She wasn’t stunned by the fact that it was a cat. She was stunned by the fact her doppelganger inexplicitly turned into a cat. Was this the intruder’s true form? Or was this just another façade?

The guards were taken aback by the sudden supernatural phenomenon.

Intrusion was indeed a crime, but were animals, such as this adorable cat, obligated to follow such laws?

One thing was resolved. They knew for a fact who their real queen was. All that is left was to figure out what to do about this bizarre creature.

“Seize that cat!” The queen gestured towards the feline with her pointer finger.
Surrounding the creature from all sides, the guards, all wearing the same gold-plated helmets, lunged at the animal with their outstretched arms, ready to grab onto their target.

“Heh!” The feline wiggled her tail in excitement at all these people ready to play with her.

…

Meanwhile, outside of the castle, a flash of blue light illuminated from the highest level in the main spire.

BOOM!

An explosion had erupted, echoing into the night.

And from the fiery smoke, a little four-legged silhouette emerged. It fell into the shroud of night, hidden in the darkness, landing softly on its plushy, pink paw pads.

…

The queen, who was knocked back from the sudden force, coughed repeatedly as her eyes widened to see a giant gaping hole in the wall that led straight to the outside. Her armored guards had been thrown across the room by the sudden rupture.

She didn’t know how, but that cat somehow caused an explosion, leading to property damage. “Heighten the security! No one is allowed in this tower! Fix this wall! Warn the people! And… have the warrior class capture that cat!” The queen ordered ferociously.

The chase had begun!

[Aromancer]

Viper Lee - 2

It's not every day one finds oneself at the front door of an exploding castle. But it just so happened that today was unlike most days. As Lee stood outside, awaiting admission so he could see what was wrong with the Queen, one of the towers in the castle suddenly exploded, a woman shrieking as a cat dashed away. Quickly, Lee ran over to see what was going on.

"Excuse me, ma'am, are you alright?" He asked, as he rushed over to check up on the Queen and her guard.

"Get away from me!" Her Majesty hissed, batting the boy to the side. "Get that cat... girl... whatever she is! Just get her!"

Lee huffed as he was pushed aside, but he supposed Her Majesty was pretty obviously having a bad day. Maybe he could get on her good side - and figure out what the hell was going on around here - if he caught that cat thing she seemed to intent on.

The boy dashed off after his newfound quarry, his legs moving almost faster than the eye could follow. Few people could outrun Viper Lee at full clip; he was excited to see if this cat could give him a good chase.

"Alright, kitty!" He called out after the target. Sure, it just looked like a normal cat, but no harm in a little posturing. "Prepare to get taken in by the bounty hunter... VIPER LEE!"

[BlacKitten]

Miu - 3

The cat perched on top of a wooden barrel, licking her paws with her brush-like tongue. She expected to be pursued, but the first man to find her was not of the guards with the golden plated helmets. With a curious turn of her head, she gazed upon a human adolescent boy with black hair and narrow auburn eyes.

Upon hearing his brief introduction, Miu was slightly taken aback. To think that a bounty hunter was in this town and already knew about her existence. Did this boy already know about the bounty on her head? That was quick!

But wait, how can that be?

Her bounty poster did not have a picture of a cat. How could he possibly recognize a grey-and-white cat to be the disguised form of the wanted criminal, Koneko Miu?

Come to think of it, this boy never addressed her by her real name. He called her ‘kitty’ as if she was just an ordinary cat. Maybe he didn’t know about her bounty after all.

Raising a forepaw to wave at the boy, the feline suddenly spoke the human tongue in a cutesy, childish, female voice, “Oh boy! Oh boy! Oh boy! A bounty hunter! They love playing tag with me!” She gaped her mouth in excitement at the sight of a bounty hunter.

Leaning against the wall was a fishing net attaching to a wooden pole, yet the cat snatched it and strapped it around her little body, allowing it to press diagonally across her furry back.

Suddenly, the feline sprung off her hind legs, bolting down the city street where markets lined along the flanks with vendors selling all sorts of products.

Now, one might wonder why the cat was carrying a fishing net of all things. By wielding the pole with one paw, she swiftly swung it left and right, scooping up all sorts of product goods that were edible. Fruits, vegetables, and imported products, she took them all.

This was a very strange cat. For one thing, she could run on her hindlegs while tossing the stolen food into her mouth using her forepaw. Secondly, she was an extremely fast eater and could eat a lot.

“Hey! Thief!” A vendor owner, among a few, shook their fists angrily at the feline thief that rushed by like the wind.

[Aromancer]

Viper Lee - 3

Hold on a second, did that cat just... talk? And now it was running on two legs! Lee didn't know too much about cats, but he was fairly certain they couldn't walk and talk like a person! Whatever this thing was, it definitely wasn't *just* a cat.

Another thing cats don't tend to do is steal while beating a hasty retreat. But this action only brought a smile to Lee's face. Now he knew he was chasing a criminal, and if she was a crook, she probably had a bounty on that kitty-shaped head of hers. Regardless, he could probably get a couple thousand berri for her capture.

This meant he didn't have to hold back. Lee drew his blade, the legendary Shichishito, and began giving chase, in hot pursuit of the felonious feline.

Lee jumped over a cart that was in between him and his prey, allowing him to catch up to the kitty just a little. Now within range, he brought down his sword... and lopped off the head of the net she'd grabbed. Damn; this cat was fast! Even Lee, whose whole thing was speed, was having trouble catching up to her.

Well, he'd probably get a better reward for taking her in alive, anyway. Lee quickly sheathed his blade once again and resumed the chase, his calves burning as he ran at frankly ludicrous speeds.

"So, you've tangled with bounty hunters before?" Lee asked himself, under his breath as he closed the gap between himself and the cat. "Well, you've never tangled with *me.*" He jumped off a wall to round a corner, mere inches away from the cat. "Got you now, you mangy rascal!" He cried, diving towards her.