Chapter 202: Worries
Alma shifted uncomfortably, wiggling her crossed arms while she watched. A clutter of cat girls sat down with their legs crossed and their tails wagging with curious interest as they watched at their most recent visitor and instructor. Reta paced back and forth, calling for assistance from one of the local elves who fetched her a soft grapefruit. The mother elf adjusted her crimson red hair back and looked away, her muscles growing tense as she gazed over the wooden rails and into the forest below.
She closed her eyes and released an exasperated sigh, turning around the corner of the hut and walking into the shade for a bit of privacy.
"Is something on your mind, Nihja? Or are these your usual tendencies of eavesdropping." She asked, leaning against the hut wall while looking upwards. She was met with mismatched eyes of yellow and green pupils, the same pair she had grown accustomed to finding hidden among the wildlife over their heads, or sometimes on rooftops. "You know the others find this behavior unsettling."
Nihja looked around before landing softly beside her. She kept her head down, somewhat hesitant to meet her gaze like a child scolded by their parent. "Um, how?"
Alma smiled as she gestured toward her pointed elf ears. "These aren't just for show. Working with cat girls means you learn to recognize the sounds they make, both obnoxious and subtle. After a few years, it becomes intuition."
Nihja huffed and leaned over the rails, sweeping her furry tails along the ground behind her.
"Why are you following me, Nihja?"
She hung her head as her cat ears dropped flat against her head. "I can't say."
"You don't trust me?"
"It's not you, it's someone else. It made us feel uneasy."
Alma leaned by her side. "What could have happened to make you feel unwelcomed here? Is this because your friend and I engaged in a duel?"
She could see the hesitation on the poor Nekomata, choosing to reach out and stroke her hair. "Whatever be your reasons, they are yours to keep. I won't push it, but please keep in mind that you have family here."
"Family," Nihja muttered, glancing at the clutter behind them. They were asking Reta questions, some even volunteering to be used for demonstrations. One of them reached out and was gently flipped out of balance before being taken to the ground. She gasped and stared in awe, her friends cheering for her as she excitedly reunited with them. Nihja watched in disdain, her shoulders sunk down before she looked away. "Why is it that even they are greeted by them? They make it look so easy. I grew up with them, and nobody cheered for my return."
Alma frowned. "When we rescued you and Syri, you were met with hugs."
"That wasn't for me, they were happy to see her. She was the favorite. The reason I can hide so well is because there is no one to see me when I'm here."
Alma held her paw and leaned in. "I see you. Don't let these thoughts corrupt you. Take it from me, you will only suffer further from your own self-doubt. Not everyone will see you, and when they do you will miss the days when they didn't look upon you. Both sides have their shared struggles, but you have a gift."
Nihja gave her a puzzled look when Alma pressed her palm against her chest.
"You are resilient. You carry a passionate bond and loyalty for those that do see you. And you were the first to rescue Emyri and her daughters. That wasn't me, and that wasn't us. That was you. Perhaps if we had been more persistent, or maybe the ambush required more numbers."
"But it wasn't enough." Nihja muttered, gazing across the forest where the tower stared back at them from afar. "When will this end?"
To this, Alma had no response, leaving both of them looking across the forest. Not in complete silence, as Reta's instructions could be heard nearby.
"This one targets the nerves, give it a twist in this direction and you'll force the enemy to fall to one knee. Keep a firm grasp onto their wrist, the slightest hesitation will provide them a window of opportunity to retaliate, and they will seize it." She demonstrated, using a wooden dummy for safety.
The cat girls mewed and nodded in return with some of them whispering in awe. Their eyes widened and their ears shot up when Reta pointed across them.
"You have an advantage at your disposal that I do not. Your tails, wield them utilizing your speed and quick reflexes. In battle, there are those that can fight and those that can't. If you are the latter, it is wiser to stay or escort the others to safety."
Reta breathed in and closed her eyes momentarily before being met with a raised paw. "Yes?"
"Can we learn about Genki?" Asked a younger cat girl with bangs over her forehead.
Some of the other cat girls cooed and nodded enthusiastically at the mention.
Reta frowned before turning to find Janette and Syri watching from the right.
Janette giggled nervously, "I might have mentioned a few bits and pieces from back home."
"I see," Reta glanced back across the crowd. "Genki, it's... not something I can share so easily. It's forbidden."
"But you taught Felix and Nityri that!" Argued another cat girl.
"I thought she goes by KuliKuli?"
"That's what they say, I don't know."
"Sshhh!"
Hesitant, Reta looked back at Janette with a worried expression. Janette raised her eyebrows in surprise, perplexed at her friend's reluctance to disclose her teaching. Syri didn't know any better and clapped her paws in support, egging her on. But Reta seemed lost in her own thoughts as she stood their awkwardly. Something about the request left an impression on her as she recalled her past life and the many lessons they were sworn to uphold in secrecy. She had broken that oath when she taught her friends Genki, and now here she was again about as history repeats itself.
"Genki... is a difficult technique to master." She spoke softly, looking back at the dozens of cat girls watching her. "It requires years of practice before learning to use it in a fight."
"Can you show us?" Asked one eager cat girl.
"Yea! Pleeeeeeasse?"
Reta smirked and shook her head, pausing briefly. "Perhaps another time. That's all for today."
"Awwww!" The girls whined and groaned, but Reta shot them a look to silence them. They straightened up and took their leave with a select few approaching her to thank her. She nodded absently, occasionally letting them shake her hand until one lone cat girl stood shyly before her. Her fur carried a striped gray and black color; she recognized her as the one who hugged Felix based on a dare who went by the name Ori'Chi.
"Yes?" Reta asked, waiting patiently.
The bashful cat met her with a swift hug, wrapping her arms around her waist and pressing her head against Reta's chest. She was much shorter in height which made her look younger in age, although she seemed to match the others in being around late teenage years. Reta was at a loss of words, keeping her arms up as the cat tightened her grip around her, with both her tails standing upright. She purred softly and rubbed her cheek against Reta's chest, which sent little vibrations along her ribs that tickled.
She looked over to Janette and Syri, silently pleading for a rescue. In return, Syri cooed and cupped her mouth hopping around cheerfully while Janette simply laughed at her embarrassment. Reta huffed but submitted to the gesture, awkwardly patting the cat's head as her ears perked up. It took a minute for Ori'Chi to pull away, running down the rope bridge in a hurry.
"I think she likes you." Syri teased as they approached her. "You're getting along well with them here."
"Hmph." Reta strolled past them casually, moving along with an absence of a limp.
"You're healing well." Janette caught on, glancing at the leaves wrapped around her friend's thigh. "I thought you stayed behind because you were... huh."
Reta seemed confused initially, but she reached out and carefully removed the bind. In the morning, her wound remained fresh with reddened skin surrounding the punctured wound where a bolt struck her. But now there was a fading mark embedded in its place, surrounded by a new layer of skin. She traced around it with her fingertips while Syri leaned in for a closer look.
"Wow, is that normal for people like you? I bet its a part of Genki." Syri grinned.
Uncomfortable, Reta covered her thigh and walked off abruptly. Syri stood up and turned to Janette, wondering if she said something wrong. Janette kept silent, watching as Reta slipped back into her hut.
The rest of the day grew uneventful as daylight faded and darkness seeped in. The birds had grown silent, and the insects began chirping and crying out dozens of feet below. It was something that took Janette a moment to adjust to as she strolled around with Syri accompanying her. She glanced over the edge, blinking and squinting down as Syri leaned in and took notice.
"If the dark is super scary, why do you keep looking?"
"It's not that." Janette replied, keeping a grasp around the ledge bar. "On my first night here, I looked down and it was nothing but darkness. That's all we could ever see at night. Mom would sometimes tell me that if I close my eyes, it would be no different. Because doing so meant blocking out the bad thoughts and realizing that there's nothing there."
Syri's ear flicked as she let her continue her story.
"But then I realized, there was plenty to be afraid of in the dark. We just refuse to acknowledge it, because our minds fixate on the worst thoughts of what could happen. But now I'm learning to see clearly in the dark, and I realized something."
"That the dark isn't so bad?"
Janette closed her eyes. "It's that there's a benefit to not seeing through the dark. Because now, I can see what's looking back."
Syri squirmed. "Don't- don't talk like that. It's creepy."
"Sorry, just... forget about it." She shook her head and held Syri's paw.
"What you need is some rest," Syri smiled, reaching for her other hand.
"Maybe a drink would help."
"We could go for that, sure." She agreed, the pair heading off as they brushed past Alma gazing nervously across the edge.
One of the elves approached her. "I asked around, still no word or sign of Lembas and his group."
Alma hung her head and rubbed her temple. "They've been gone since morning. And nothing from Spi'Reto either?"
He shook his head. "Nay. I'll notify the others to keep a lookout. Rest up."
"Telling me to rest when he has not returned?" She scoffed, laughing at the suggestion. "That priest already claimed my husband, he will not take my son. Keep watch, I'm taking a search party with me."
"Alma, you can't. If you find yourself unable to return, then what would come of the others?"
"I can't just abandon my son!" She hissed, slamming her fist against the rail.
"I understand that, and it pains me greatly to see you hurting so. But understand that your people need you too. We've already lost your husband. Your son is a capable man on his own, perhaps this is a test for you both."
"A test to relinquish my only family?"
"Nay, but to have faith in his strength and allow him to grow. You cannot protect him forever, Alma. There will come a time where he needs to lead on his own."
Alma moved past him in angst before resting her arm against the hut in agony. "I mourn for when that time comes, but I only wish I can be there when he is strong enough."
"Perhaps he already is," He insisted while cradling her in support. "I would advise against sending a search party now, but you are our head mother. Whatever your word be is our command to uphold."
"You have my gratitude." She sniffed, wiping away the tears as she retreated into her own hut. From a short distance, Nihja watched in silence before bowing her head. Her ears perked up as something moved from the corner of her eye. In a short burst of light, she shrunk down into her cat form and climbed higher into the trees, traversing from one branch onto the next. Whatever was moving blended well with the dark color of the large trees. She froze upon finding this shadowy mass slink down over the tree hut and crawl through the curtained windowsill without making a noise.