Chapter Ten
A New Family
(Part One)
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Merle growled deep in her throat, struggling against the loops of rope that were wrapped tightly around her wrists. Her next jerk at the unyielding bonds sent her elbow slamming into the wooden bottom of the cart she was in. A whimper escaped her as a film of tears filled her eyes. Blinking them back harshly, she took a couple of deep breaths through her nose, the only way she could breathe with the thick gag that filled her mouth.

Trying to remain calm was getting to be harder by the minute. Things had gone steadily from bad to worse since she had felt those hands seize her from behind. With the one over her mouth forming a tight seal, there had been no way for her to yell for help. By the time that her terror had worn off enough for her to try and fight back, it was already too late. Both arms had been pinned tightly to her sides, rendering them useless.

Her next thought had been to kick her abductor, but that, too, turned out to be hopeless. As if her reaction had been expected, she was being dragged backward, her upper body held tightly against the chest of her captor. Her lower body was being pulled at an awkward angle, giving her no leverage to strike back. She was completely at his mercy.

Her one form of attack had come when they had left the kitchen behind and crossed some distance through the courtyard. Though the early morning light was extremely dim, her excellent eyes had allowed Merle to make out a small cart waiting off to one side, the horse that pulled it stamping impatiently at the ground.

When the man, and she was sure it was a man from the extended bit of close contact, shifted her to place her in the cart, his grip on her mouth had loosened for a fraction of a second. Using it to her full advantage, she twisted her head to one side, and then sank her teeth as deeply into his palm as she could manage. When he jerked the wounded appendage away with a muffled cry, she'd filled her lungs in preparation for a wall-crumbling, window-shattering, dead-waking scream.

A fist connecting harshly with the side of her head knocked that breath right out of her. It also sent her sprawling into the bottom of cart with ringing ears and a throbbing pain in one temple.

After that, things were a little blurry. The dusty tasting gag was shoved into her mouth. Something thick and dark was pulled over her head, completely blocking out her vision. The dark, stiffening feeling that the covering gave made everything seem twice as frightening. By the time she felt the small jolt that signaled the cart's movements, it was all she could do to keep from falling into an all out panic attack.

Since then, she felt as though they had covered a lot of ground, but knew that she could be completely off on that guess. It was so hard to be sure of anything when your whole world was darkness and muffled sound.

It was another jolt, this one rougher than the first, that roused her from her almost sleeping state. Instantly coming fully awake, Merle tensed as footsteps came clearly to her ears. They rounded the side of the cart, stopping at the back. Even with her eyes covered, she could tell that he was looking at her. She shuddered as she imagined his gaze like thick ooze, sliding its way across her skin.

There was the sound of something scraping against wood as he leaned onto the bed of the cart. Merle couldn't hold back a small squeak as two far from gentle hands gripped her ankles. She was dragged roughly across the hard surface, gaining her some more scratches and wood burns.

She felt an instant of vertigo at the loss of the support, but it vanished as her feet hit ground. Weaving slightly, she fought to regain her balance. The last thing she wanted was to be at even more of a disadvantage, sprawled across the ground.

There was no warning. One moment, she was trying to shift herself to keep from falling, and the next, the hood was whisked from her head. Blinking against the harsh sunlight, it took a moment for what she was seeing to sink in. After that, all she could do was stare at the now revealed identity of her kidnapper.

Van smiled as he slid down the banister, not even caring if anyone saw him breaking the rules. Nothing could bring him down right now.

As promised, he had met with his mother immediately after breakfast. A long talk had followed as he explained to her how he had met Merle, and all the visits that had followed. When he told her what Merle had revealed to him about her lack of family, and Balgus' intervention, he could see that she agreed with his early deduction that Merle was supposed to have been a companion for him.

After that, it took no more convincing. Varie had seen nothing wrong with allowing the cat girl to take her intended place. Before he had left the room, Van heard his mother issuing orders about readying a bedchamber and summoning the seamstress for a fitting after lunch.

Allowing himself a couple of jumps as he neared the kitchen, Van felt like he was going to burst. This was going to be the best news he had ever given someone. He wondered what Merle's reaction would be. Would she laugh? Cry? Would she even believe him at first? He wasn't sure, but he was reasonably certain that she'd be as thrilled as he was.

Sliding around the last corner, he bounded into the crowded kitchen, ignoring the startled cries from the workers as he headed straight for Merle's sleeping corner. The sight of the empty sleeping pallet stopped him in his tracks. For a moment, he just stared, then his brow furrowed. Merle was always in bed at this time of day. It was one of the busier times in the kitchen, and she preferred to keep as far away from the other woman as possible.

So why wasn't she there?

His eyes darted all over the small corner, but there was no sign of the cat girl. No tousled pink hair peeked from beneath the blanket hanging half off the bed. No tail curled from behind one of the barrels or boxes that formed a barrier between that corner and the rest of the room.

An unsettling feeling began to build in the bottom of his stomach. Something was wrong with all this, he just knew it. Turning from the alcove, his eyes skated over the figures behind him. Some continued working, some watched him out of the corners of their eyes. Only one seemed to be watching him openly, not caring who saw. When he caught her eye, Daphne left her counter station and came towards him. She started to speak before she even made it to his side.

"So you don't know where she is either." It was much more of a statement than a question, and they both knew it.

Van shook his head, knowing that the downcast expression on the older girl's face was mirrored on his own. "Wasn't she here when you got here?"

It was Daphne's turn to shake her head. "I even came early, to see what you'd thought about her new look, but there was no sign of her. Just the empty bed."

"You don't . . .think she left, do you?" He hated thinking that his friend would do that, but he also knew he needed to look at all the possibilities. Merle had never hidden the fact that working like she did wasn't the way she wanted to spend the rest of her life. Though he had spoken of his plans to have her position changed, she might have thought that it wasn't going to happen. Had she given up and decided to take her chances on her own?

"I don't think she would have done that," Daphne's voice was calm, but tinged with worry. "She was so happy last night. She said she'd never had friends to look out for her before. Even if she were going to leave, she would have told us. There's no way she would leave without saying anything."

Van nodded his agreement as his shoulders slumped. He didn't like the path that his thoughts were taking. If she hadn't left on her own, why wasn't she here? Was she all right? Or had someone done something to her?

"We should look for her." His strident statement was enough to make everyone in the room turn towards him with varying expressions on their faces. As his eyes skated over those faces in slight embarrassment, he saw one that seemed out of place. Of all the women, some looked confused, others questioning, but one wasn't even trying to hide an expression of spiteful satisfaction.

The woman, Nellie, was someone he recognized dimly as one of the cooks. Though she had never spoken directly to him, he had heard quite a bit about her from Merle, none of it flattering. The look on her face made anger rise inside him. What kind of person was she to take pleasure in someone else's misfortune?

His anger changed to worry when he realized that someone like her, or even worse, could have Merle at that very moment. Biting his lip, he turned back to Daphne, ignoring the rest of the room. "Can you look around down here? Check all the storage rooms and cellars, anyplace that you can think of. I'll talk to my mother, then look around the rest of the floors."

Daphne nodded, obviously not worried about getting in trouble for obeying the prince's orders. In an instant, she had turned on her heel and vanished into the first of several storerooms that lined the walls of the kitchen. Following her lead, Van made his way back into the hall through the door he had entered. A small corner of his mind recognized the quirk of fate that had him passing through the same doorway twice in so few minutes, and in two completely different moods. His happiness from earlier had been completely replaced with worry and a bit of fear.

Picking up speed as he neared the stairs, only one thing was clear in his mind. Merle was in some kind of trouble, and he had to find her. He wasn't sure how he knew that the whole situation was more than a misunderstanding or a prank, but he did. For all that he wished she would turn up somewhere, sleeping and oblivious to the commotion she was causing, he knew it wouldn't happen. She wasn't just napping somewhere; she hadn't taken a walk and lost track of time.

Something was really wrong.
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Chapter Ten
A New Family
(Part Two)
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Josias.

Of all the people that had flitted through her mind as possibilities for being her abductor, his name was first on the list. But she never would have thought that the conceited, bigoted, narrow-minded jerk would actually have the gall to do something like this. He flaunted his position as if it raised him above everyone else, so why would he do something that practically guaranteed his dismissal?

Still caught up in her confused thoughts, she shrieked in surprise as his hand connected with her shoulder, pushing her roughly to the ground. He glared down at her, his face twisted with disgust. As she stared at him, she noticed him wiping his hand on the side of his pants, as thought touching her had somehow dirtied it. The other hand held traces of blood from the bite she'd managed earlier.

"Don't look so surprised. Did you really think that I would allow such a vile creature such as you to share space with me for longer than was absolutely necessary? Even then, I might have been able to allow you your miserable existence if you had just remained in your place.

"But, no. You dared to leave the kitchens, where you belonged, and roam about as if you had the right. And more than that, you had the nerve to actually speak to the prince!" His eyes narrowed and he smirked at the stunned look on her face. "Did you really think that I wouldn't know? You actually believed that something like you could keep a secret from your betters?

"I've known for quite awhile now. There were more than enough clues for someone as intelligent as me to piece it together. All the times he fell asleep during his lessons, it was easy to see he was doing something other than sleeping at night. It was a simple thing to follow him. And what do I find but you, who only had a place because I allowed it, playing games and speaking with him as if you were his equal!"

The anger that had been building all during the trip finally had an outlet in the self-important man standing over her. Her fur bristled as she tensed to lay into him. "You 'allowed' me to stay? You? Since when do tutors decide who and what stays or goes? I think the only place you're as powerful as you think you are is in your own mind. All you are is some delusional, power hungry nobody who just made the biggest mistake of his life! When Van finds out what you've done, you'll be out on your butt so fast that your head will spin!"

During her speech, his face got darker and darker until, by the time she reached her final sentence, he was almost purple. But instead of the angry reply she was expecting, he answered with laughter. An unsettling feeling unfolded in her stomach at the nearly hysterical sound.

"You expect 'Van' to be upset about this?" He spat Van's name like a curse, obviously upset by her informal way of addressing him. "You are nothing. Your existence is of no meaning to me or to him. In fact, whose idea do you think it was to get rid of you?"

Even though she didn't really believe him, Merle couldn't help stiffening a little at his words. Van was her friend. He would never allow someone to do something as mean as this if he could help it. And besides, he had told her how much he disliked his tutor. Why would he make plans with someone he hated?

Josias smirked at her, and then began walking back to the little cart. Before she could regain her feet, he had swung himself up onto the seat. Giving her a final look of loathing, he slapped the reins, sending the horse into a quick brisk run.

It was raining. The drops were large and cold as they dripped their way down her neck. Merle shivered, and then increased her speed as she struggled forward. Already the ground had turned from thick packed dirt into an inch deep sheet of foot grabbing, slippery mud. Slogging through the goop, plus the chill that had set in were tiring her out. Add in the stress of the morning and afternoon, and it was all she could do to keep her eyes open and locked on her destination. About a hundred yards ahead of where she stood was a small stand of trees. She was hoping that they would offer some shelter from the elements.

As she finally settled beneath the branches, she heaved a sigh of relief. It was slightly drier there, though a few random drips struck the ground around her feet. Wrapping her arms around her up drawn knees, she tried to hold on to what little warmth she had left.

'This day just keeps getting worse and worse,' she thought. 'First, I'm pulled right out of bed and dumped out in the middle of nowhere. Then, when I tried to follow Josias back, I tripped and lost sight of him. When I decide to keep walking until I find someone to ask for directions, Fanelia gets the heaviest rain it's had in months. What's next? The ground opens up and swallows me? A dragon comes and eats me?'

Knowing that being sarcastic with herself wouldn't help, Merle tried to think positive thoughts to keep her mind off her situation. The only problem with this plan was that for every positive point she found, some sadistic inner voice immediately countered with the negative.

Though they had left early, Josias couldn't have taken her very far. When he pulled off the blindfold, it wasn't long after sunrise.

Van had said he was having a talk with his mother after breakfast. Surely he would want to tell her how it went.

Van comes to the kitchen every night after bedtime, so even if he doesn't know I'm gone now, he will in a few hours.

One night isn't so very long to wait.

I'll wait until he gets here.

She hated herself for even thinking the last one, but as the hours had passed by, her cynical side was changing her mind. After all, everyone else she had ever trusted in her young life had left her. Why should Van be any different? Just because he was the closest friend she'd ever had didn't mean he had to feel the same way back. Resting her forehead on her knees, she sniffed. Then sniffed again.

'I really wish he would come.'

"Merle. Merle, wake up!"

The voice was loud, and getting louder by the minute. Frowning in her sleep, Merle struggled to ignore it. If she could just fall back to sleep, all her problems would disappear again. There would be no cold, wet ground, no unfamiliar landscape. She would be warm, fed, and most of all, not alone.

"Merle!"

Okay, that one got her attention. It sounded like someone was bellowing right in her ear. A growl started in her throat as she forced her eyes open to lay into the intruder. As her bleary vision focused, she saw a grinning face half covered with an easily recognizable mop of jet-black hair.

As she jerked upright, her elbow came into contact with something warm and soft. The muttered "oof!" was enough to tell her that the muddy boy crouching next to her was real, and not just a dream. Feeling happier than she could ever remember feeling, Merle did the first thing that came to mind. Launching herself at an unsuspecting Van, she wrapped her arms around him in a bear hug. When he froze in surprise, she dragged her tongue up the length of his cheek, earning an "Eeew! Whadya do that for?"

With smile so big that it showed every one of her teeth, she pulled back enough to see Van's face. "I knew you'd come! He said you wouldn't, but I knew."

For the first time, the happy expression on his face faltered. "Josias, you mean?" She nodded. "Yeah, well, he's kind of an idiot, you know. Of course I'd come. I know it took awhile, but we've looking all day. He wouldn't tell us exactly where you were, so we had a lot of ground to cover."

At the mention of "we", Merle looked behind him, for the first time seeing the small group of what she assumed were guards milling around. She also noticed that the rain had stopped. The clouds had cleared enough to allow a few sections of the night sky to be seen.

Turning back to Van, she asked the first of the many questions filling her mind. "How did you know it was Josias?"

Leaning back, he rubbed a hand through his hair, sending it into even more disarray. "That was actually more of Daphne's doing than mine. She was asking around to see if anyone had seen you. A couple of people mentioned that they'd noticed him heading out pretty early, which is not something he‘s ever done before. And since just about everyone knows how he felt about you, I decided to ask him a few questions. That's when I saw his hand."

"I bit him."

Van grinned. "I know. When he couldn't think of an excuse about the wound quickly enough, it was pretty clear he was the one who took you. Needless to say, he won't being hanging around in Fanelia for long, so you don't have to worry about him anymore. But even after he got caught, he wouldn't tell us anything other than he thought he was doing what was right, so it was hard to know where to start. We just took the direction people saw him leaving in, and kept going till we got here."

"I'm glad you didn't give up." Her voice was soft, but by the affectionate smile that crossed his face, she knew he had heard her words.

"Let's go home, Merle."

Varie was staring out the window of her bedchamber when the small procession came through the castle gates. Leaning slightly forward, she watched as her son swung down from his horse. A moment went by while he talked to the small group of guards she'd insisted he take with him. They started off towards the stables, and Van turned back to his horse. Reaching up, he helped a small figure to the ground.

When she saw the flash of pink hair, Varie knew Van had found what he was looking for. As the two neared the castle, she managed to catch a few words of their conversation. Van was telling his friend about the morning's discussion they'd had.

"So after I explained everything, Mother said you could stay with me. She had a room readied and everything. No more sleeping in the kitchen for you."

"Really?"

"Really. But there's one condition."

"What's that?"

"You have to call me 'The Super Magnificent, Best That Ever Lived Lord Van'." Varie laughed softly at the exaggerated swagger he adopted as he droned his "title".

The little cat girl snorted. "I'll tell you what. I'll call you Lord Van, just so long as you know that when I say it, I mean 'Loud, Obnoxious, Really Dumb' Van."

"Is that any way to talk to your rescuer?"

"It's the best you're gonna get." There was a pause. "Hey, Lord Van?"

"Yeah?"

"First one to the top of the stairs wins!"

There was an orange and pink blur followed by a shout from Van as they both disappeared inside. Hearing her son's laughter echoing from the hall, Varie smiled.