Whisper of The Cat

Decisions Made and Decisions to Make

Seiji paced back and forth as he impatiently waited for Shizuku to come back. The Uncivilized had been concerned about the presence of humans with the cats from the Cat Kingdom, so they were speaking to them each individually to see if they had similar stories. Seiji and Haru had already been interrogated and now they were now waiting for Shizuku to be finished with her meeting.

"How long has it been now?" Seiji asked worriedly.

Haru sighed and checked her watch for what felt like the thousandth time. "It's been 42 seconds since the last time you asked."

Seiji groaned and continued pacing even faster.

"Cut it out!" Muta snapped. "You're making me dizzy."

Seiji glared at the overweight cat. "I'm sorry, I'm just worried. I know that these guys aren't as bad as we thought they were, but still, these are lions, and tigers, and cheetahs."

"Oh my." Haru joked, trying to lighten the mood. Seiji didn't buy it as he began pacing again. Haru gave him a knowing smile. "You really love her, don't you?"

He nodded. "With all my heart and soul."

Muta snickered. "So why don't you ask her to marry you already?"

Seiji blushed. "I've been planning to."

Haru's eyes widened. "What?" she cried, her gossiping instincts kicking in. "When did you decide this? Do you have a ring? Why didn't you tell me? Do you need help setting the mood? Tell me!"

Seiji was surprised by her excitement. Not seeing any harm in it, he reached into his pocket and pulled out a small black box. "Yeah, I have the ring. I've been carrying it around for a while now, waiting for the perfect moment. I've been meaning to ask her for some time now. But then she got that letter saying that her story was going to be published, and I didn't want to do anything to interfere with that. Then she came back and we had to come here and... well I haven't had the chance to ask yet."

Haru eyed the box hungrily. "Let me see it! Now!"

Seiji opened the box and Haru's eyes widened even more. "Wow, that's a nice rock. She'll love it!"

Muta snorted. "What is it with women and jewelry?"

Haru cut her eyes at him. "Well, for me, I see it as the guy saying that I'm worthy of such a precious object and they're willing to buy it for me."

Muta muttered something that sounded a lot like, "Greedy."

"Oh, what do you know?" She turned back to Seiji. "So, do you need help setting things up for the occasion? I'll do anything you want. Oh, I hope I find someone to love me like you love Shizuku."

Seiji closed the box and safely put it away. "I'm sure you will, Haru. There's someone for everyone."

Baron sighed. "Indeed there is. And when you find them, don't ever let anything come between your love, because you never know if something will come happen to them."

He frowned and looked longingly up at the sky, thinking of Louise. Seiji gave him a sympathetic look. "We'll get her back, Baron. I promise. Once Shizuku comes back. I hope they hurry up. What is taking so long?"

Haru rolled her eyes as Seiji went back into 'worry mode' and began pacing again. She understood that he was worried, but she thought he was getting a little paranoid. Shizuku hadn't even been gone all that long.

"Too much time has gone by!" Seiji declared.

"You and Haru were gone longer." Muta snapped. "Geez, chill out already."