 |
| Plato's tugging of her hand brought Demeter's attention back. "They not like dogs," he grinned. "Inside?" |
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| "Oh," Demeter wiped strands of mane from her eyes, now thoroughly soaked through by rain. "This way..." The unicorns having dropped them near the edge of the orchard, the young servant girl had little trouble leading her mysterious friend on to the castle wall and in through the servant's door. The Pollicle had not locked it after his return. Once inside, the door shut and locked securely behind them, Plato began to act even stranger. Demeter stood back, wide-eyed and stiff with silence, as she watched her friend drop to his four-legged stance and, once again appearing no less than some beautiful spider, crawl across the ground as nimble and balanced as could be. He would have made a wonderful dancer, the young girl couldn't help but think. Across the dark ground under the cover of shadow and pelting rain her friend went, tail twirling in the air behind him, his lean frame swaying back and forth as though doing some obscure ritual. Demeter did not move for fear of distracting whatever his intent search was for, and Plato had reached the stone stairway leading up into the castle itself before he looked back. A wave of his hand brought her scurrying over. |
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| Demeter crouched down on the bottom step, gazing up the steep, jagged way as Plato began climbing, his form like flowing water over the bends and curves. Despite the white tip of his tail like a beacon in the night to guide her on, the young girl remained as she was, hands trembling and heart pounding. A whimper escaped her throat, drawing back the young tom's attention. His dark eyes gazing back through the darkness were cold as ice, the predatorial glow in them no longer that of the carefree tom she'd known. Tears crept into her eyes. |
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| "Plato," her voice squeaked in the still night air. "I'm scared. Are the Pollicles really going to...?" |
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| In one flowing movement Plato had turned and crawled back down the stairs, constant in his four-legged stance, to reach for her hand, pulling her up to meet his eye level. He didn't say anything, and that frightened her even more. Instead the young tom turned to continue up the stairs. Demeter followed as though by a will not her own, lifting one hand to shield her eyes against the pelting rain. Up and up they climbed, finally reaching the high wall that led to the castle. Demeter crept close to Plato's flank, eyes darting in fear each time lightening split the sky, fearing that every burst of light would reveal the Pollicle assassins poised and ready to attack. But Plato crept on, undaunted by rain or storm, the wind howling over the wall's ramparts ruffling the thick fur that was his own and that of his clothing. Demeter's dress clung soaked to her sopping wet fur, her bare feet making small smacking noises in the gathering rain puddles that formed on the cold stone wall while her friend made no sound at all. Another flash of lightening, a crack of thunder, and Demeter threw herself down at Plato's side once they reached the far tower's interior. |
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| The young girl had never been so frightened. Storms were enough to keep her under her covers at night, but to add in these Pollicles...these assassins...and Plato's animalistic behavior, was all too much. Clutching the tom's damp fur Demeter buried her face, the tears streaming her cheeks though she couldn't tell them from raindrops, against his warmth, begging him not to go any further. Not to drag her along towards the danger... "Plato, please," she whimpered, "let's go back. I'm scared! That Pollicle could hurt you! Pla-!" |
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| Demeter froze when Plato's firm hand clamped over her mouth. Breath held, green eyes going wide, she stared up fearfully at him, but his own dark golden eyes were fixed elsewhere. She followed his gaze down the dark hallway that lay before them: the hallway leading directly to Deuteronomy's bed chamber. A flash of lightening and she saw it. The Pollicle assassin. She saw him crouching low along the wall, the torrents of wind and rain having long extinguished the torches that usually hung there to light the passage. In the late night and in a time of peace there were no guards posted along the corridor to protect the king and queen's chamber, thus the canine male moved without hindrance. Another flash of lightening illuminated the scene for a brief moment. Whoever the Pollicle was, it was not the General. It was a dog Demeter did not recognize. He could have been at the breakfast that morning, for his attire matched that of the Pollicles who had accompanied the Ambassador and General, but it was not a face she recalled. His fur was short, thick, a grayish color, and under his arm he carried the same wrapped parcel she had seen exchanged in the orchard. |
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| Plato didn't move, therefore nor did she, as the Pollicle crept closer to the large curved arc that marked the thick wooden door of the king and queen's bed chamber. Unguarded, as vulnerable as an isolated farmhouse in the deepest of war's winter, the Pollicle would have no trouble infiltrating the room to finish his assigned task: the death of the king. Demeter's heart flipped, nearly stopped, when she saw the Pollicle's black-gloved hand reach into the package he carried and withdraw, gleaming in the brilliant flash of light with cruel beauty, a long, wickedly sharp dagger. Dear Heaviside! Demeter's mind screamed. If only Munkustrap were here! |
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| "Stay," Plato hissed in her ear, making Demeter wince, her entire side curling against the tingle that shot down her side against such a sound. Just as quickly Plato slipped away, abandoning her in the shadow, to slink along in his four-legged stance after the Pollicle with silent speed. Hugging her knees, the young girl held her breath, whiskers, ears, and tail pressed forward with frightful anticipation as she watched Plato bear down on the Pollicle's turned back just as he managed to part the heavy wooden doors of the royal bedchamber. |
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| "Arrrrrrrrggggghhhhhh!!!" |
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| A horrendous cry split the air as Plato's outstretched hands, claws fully extended, sank into the Pollicle's broad back, penetrating cloth, fur, and flesh. The Pollicle howled in agony and fell forward under the young tom's weight, the dagger flying from his hand to land with a loud clatter upon the stone floor. So many things happened at once... Demeter's mouth fell open, her scream a silent one, as Plato's fangs let loose a viscious snarl and clamped down into the still-struggling canine man. The Pollicle made a sound - a horrible, gurgling sound - and convulsed where he lay belly-down on the floor with Plato perched like a predator upon his back, then lay still. From inside the chamber came a shout of question, the rustle of blankets and feet upon the stone floor before Deuteronomy himself appeared in the corridor just where the two had fallen, his bellowing bass voice echoing down the long stone hall. |
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| In an instant the corridor was flooded with light and voices. Demeter cringed, scooting back against the wall to make herself as small as possible as a countless number of guards surrounded both Plato and the slain Pollicle, while Deuteronomy and his wife, the Queen, framed in the vast doorway, looked on with gaping expressions. |
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| "What is this?" the king demanded, stepping forward, his enormous size dwarfing that of a crouching Plato who was immediately seized by the two nearest guards. He offered no resistance, but kept his head lowered against the blazing torchlight. Another guard standing ready knelt beside the Pollicle and reached for the dead man's neck, or what was left from where Plato had bitten. His answer to Deuteronomy was prompt and certain. |
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| "Dead, Your Majesty. One of the Ambassador's soldiers." Glaring feline eyes turned on Plato from all directions, accompanied with hisses and angry tail lashings. "One of our own guests!" |
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| "Guards," said the king resolutely, lifting one large furry hand in accusation. "Take this ruffian to the dungeon. He shall be executed for this heinous murder!" |
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| "No!" Demeter sprang forward before the guards could take one step, flinging herself upon Plato's arm that was held securely by a guard, giving no thought to her drenched appearance, her status in the castle, or the fact that tears still streamed her face. "You can't arrest him! He's done nothing! You don't understand!" |
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| "Demeter!" she heard Tumblebrutus's voice from behind just as a sturdy hand clasped her shoulder in restraint. "Demeter, what are you doing here? Calm down!" |
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| "What in blue blazes is going on?!" came another, much angrier voice, and the ranks of gathered soldiers and guards parted as the Pollicle Ambassador and General shoved their way through, attended by their own number of guards. Stopping dead upon first laying eyes on the scene, realization was sudden and complete, and the Ambassador's golden eyes flashed up at Deuteronomy. "Explain this!" |
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| "Yes, indeed," came yet another voice, and from the opposite length of the corridor appeared Munkustrap through the ranks, no doubt drawn by the same noise and attention. Giving no regards to his father's presence, the prince clad in his dark-colored nightrobe stooped to pick up the dagger the Pollicle had been carrying, holding it balanced in his palm to display to all. "Explain this, Ambassador. An assassin's dagger clutched in the hand of one of your people, taken down just outside the door of the King of Felinera?" An angry note crept into his voice and he threw the dagger at the feet of the brown-furred Ambassador, who jerked back with a wince at the clanging sound of metal upon stone. "We're all ears, I assure you." |
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| "And I assure you," the Ambassador snarled back at the younger Jellicle. "I know nothing of any of this! I am here on negotiations for peace, not assassination! This rogue acted on his own." |
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| Demeter could hold it in no longer, and shouted out despite the ache in her heart, her soft golden hands never once leaving Plato's fur. "No he didn't! I saw him! Your Majesties, I followed him out of the castle and into the orchard. I saw him meet with another Pollicle there. I heard them talk!" Without thinking she rounded on the General, tail puffed in exhilaration as she splayed her claws at the black-furred canine who had drawn absolutely no attention to himself thus far. "They said it was his plot!" |
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| A low growl was the only sound that rose up in the silence that followed, the large Pollicle general looking like a fox caught before the eager jaws of a hound, eyes alight with intelligence and plans of escape but unable to decide which one to use. The General took a step back as the Ambassador rounded upon him, canine fangs flashing dangerously. "Rawn! Is this true?" |
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| For a long moment the General said nothing, only the two dogs' stares meeting in cold, calculated hatred before the black half of the pair bared his own fangs. "Negotiations of peace with the cats," the General began, low and growling deep in his throat, with slow enunciation. Demeter held her breath, the tone of his voice lifting the fur along her spine, unable to understand what he was about to do, but knowing it couldn't be good. She'd hated the General since first seeing him, and realized only a split second before he snatched the dagger up from the floor with unimaginable speed that she had good reason to be so afraid. "It should not have happened!" |
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| The dagger flashed in an arc over the General's head as he leaped forward, attacking the Ambassador with unbridled rage. A yelp of surprise emitted from the brown-furred Pollicle, and immediately after guards and soldiers of both races leaped forward. In the mass confusion that ensued Demeter was knocked off her feet by a guard rushing past her, but felt herself caught and held securely in the strong, protective arms of some tom. She thought it was Tumblebrutus. Unwilling and unable to look, her young eyes were fixed upon the scene she felt herself being pulled away from to a safer distance. The General was pulled from the Ambassador and flung away of his own accord, stumbling to stay on his feet as he snarled back at the guards and onlookers in foul Pollicle speech. The dagger was still clutched in his black claws, dripping bright red from the blows he'd delivered some unfortunate guard. Backing away to what could have been possible freedom the very route Plato and Demeter had come and where the storm still raged, the General barked and howled visciously, his speech broken between that of the Jellicles and that of his own. "Never should the cats be viewed as equals! ... It is the Pollicles who are superior! ... You'll see! The Empire will expand to cover all land and sea! ... Death to all Jellicles!" With the final phrase the General drew his arm back and hurled the dagger with all his might. The blade spun through the air, whistling its deadly song as it aimed directly for an unprotected Deuteronomy. Demeter cried out in useless warning. |
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| A tremendous leap, a flash of silver and brown, and Plato - who in the rush had struggled loose from his captors - landed squarely on all fours, the blade snatched securely between his fangs. Whirling to fix his blazing eyes upon the General as the king stumbled back against the wall, one hand clutching his chest, the two remained transfixed, stares locked and utterly frozen save for the violent lashing of Plato's tail, until the General was overrun by Pollicle guards. Plato spat the dagger out distastefully. |
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| "Put him in chains!" the Ambassador barked, regaining his feet with one hand held to the side of his neck where a small trickle of blood strained the high collar of his nightrobe. "Until we return to Canin, General Rawn is under arrest on the charge of treason!" All watched or tended to those wounded as the General was dragged away, howling in protest, until several well-aimed blows knocked him senseless and the guards carried him down the corridor into darkness. Tongue lolling from exertion, the Ambassador turned to face Deuteronomy, who was helped up by his wife. "Deuteronomy," the Pollicle said in the gentlest of tones. "I cannot apologize enough for the radical action taken by my contemporary. I give you my word this does not reflect any intention of Canin." |
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| "I am glad to hear," Deuteronomy laughed, breathless and unnerved, as he groomed his fur back into place. "Though in the future I suggest you keep a closer eye on such contemporaries." |
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| "It is true," the Pollicle admitted reluctantly. "That General Rawn has often before shown the desire for war between Felinera and Canin, but my hopes are quite opposite. You have shown us remarkable hospitality and kindness in our stay here...may it not be in vain." |
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| The two spoke a bit more, but Demeter could not hear it. Trembling like a leaf from a mix of fear and excitement, she found it hard to stand, and only after collapsing limply into the strong set of arms that held her did she look up to the face of her assistant. It was not Tumblebrutus. "My lord..." she gasped. |
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| Munkustrap smiled gently, helping her to balance until she could for certain stand upon her own two feet. Brushing down the shoulders of her ragged servant's dress, she stood stock still, eyes fixed on the ground and hands folded behind her as a servant was expected to do in the presence of her master. The prince, only a few years older than she, laughed good-naturedly. "There is no need to act so proper now, Miss...?" |
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| "Demeter, my lord," she sputtered, daring to risk a glance up. |
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| "Demeter...you've had quite the ordeal tonight. Pray tell me, what possessed you to follow that Pollicle out into the orchard on such a night?" |
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| Demeter looked up for certain this time, gulping a lump that had formed in her throat upon meeting his golden eyes. There was not the usual fear of punishment for meeting a royal's stare...in fact, she quite liked it. "I...I was only...curious, my lord. I had no idea..." |
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| Fidgeting with uncontrollable nervousness, the young girl felt the skin beneath her fur run red hot with a blush when the prince again smiled at her, nodded his silver striped features. "You are a very brave young woman, Demeter." |
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| Munkustrap reached for her hand. "Very much so. I was-" Before the fur of their palms could even brush, the tom's speech was cut short by a painful yeowl, and both prince and servant girl's attention whipped across the corridor to where two armed guards were trying rather unsuccessfully to get a decent hold of Plato. Not resorting to his capable claws and fangs to get away, the young tom of the woods wriggled and squirmed, darting and weaving with such agility it would have been like trying to hold smoke on a windy day. After tripping over each other and falling to the ground in a clang of armor, one of the soldiers managed to get a rather painful hold on Plato's tail and held it tight as they climbed back up. The other saluted Munkustrap. |
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| "What should we do with the murderer, my lord?" |
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| "He's no murderer!" Demeter protested immediately, stepping towards the trio. "He's my friend. And he saved the King's life!" When the guards only eyed her with dubious disbelief, the gold-furred queen turned back to Munkustrap, her emerald green eyes looking up in worshipful pleading. "Please, let him go back to the woods. He belongs there. He didn't do anything wrong... You can punish me instead. I showed him the way inside the castle!" |
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| There was a brief moment of silence, Munkustrap's eyes glancing back and forth between the two couples, before he straightened with resolution and waved a hand regally at the guards. "You heard the young lady! Back to the woods with him! This tom is to be commended as a hero." Immediately the guard released Plato's tail, which he yanked away possessively, and turned his attention back with curious eyes as Munkustrap crossed a hand over his chest. "All of Felinera is indebted to you, young sir. Any prize you desire, name it, and if it is my power it shall be your reward." |
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| As could be expected, Plato said nothing. Demeter covered her mouth to keep from giggling. How silly the prince could be! Plato already had everything he could ever want. It lay for him now in the woods below the castle, even then as the storm died out, forever waiting just inside the first line of trees... |
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| "I'll show him back to the forest," Demeter said gently, curtsying to the prince before stepping back to Plato's side, setting a sisterly hand upon his scruff-furred shoulder. "I shan't be long, my lord." |
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| Munkustrap nodded, again adopting his gentle, handsome smile. "I hope not. You two guards will escort them and see that this young fellow reaches the forest safely. And as for you, Demeter..." What began sounded nothing less than a harsh verbal blow barely had the time to register in the girl's mind before his tone softened even more, and again the gentle hand extended to her. "Would you be so gracious as to join my family for dinner tomorrow evening? To commemorate the event, of course. I...can make for you a chair beside mine..." |
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| The glow in Demeter's eyes was unmistakable, such delight flooding her senses it could only be expressed in another kittenish giggle. She accepted his hand, and his offer. "I would love to, my lord." |
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