|
|
Despite the slight chill in the air, Coruscant Park was full of people. Some were couples, huddling close together. Others were families enjoying the day. However, there was one little girl who did not seem to be enjoying herself. In fact, she was crying.
No one noticed the unhappy child, save for a green-eyed blonde. "What's wrong, sweetheart?" Seijoutai Priire asked, kneeling by the little girl. "Don't cry!"
The child looked up at Priire with a tearstained face. "My kitty climbed the tree, and... and she won't come down!" The child's emotion sounded a little forced to Priire. Despite her slight unease, Priire offered to climb the tree and retrieve the kitten.
"Would you? That would be great!" The little girl forced a smile.
"Mu," the kitten said pleasantly as Priire reached it. "Mu!" it called again, jumping to a higher branch.
Priire smiled and shook her head. "Give me a minute," she called down to the girl as the ex-mercenary hauled herself up on to the higher branch. She was now very far above the ground, but unworried.
"Take all the time you need," the child said, a darker element invading her voice.
That was when Priire realized what was off about the child. She sounded like a grownup trying to sound like a child. Unfortunately, by the time she realized this, Priire had already grabbed the kitten. The diminutive feline hissed suddenly and racked its claws across Priire's face. Priire cursed, loud and hard. The tree swam around her, and she lost her balance.
The sounds Priire had made as she fell from the tree had alerted the other people in the park that something was wrong. The object of everyone's attentions groaned and tried to lift herself from the ground. Priire got as far as opening her eyes before she decided that was a bad idea. She could feel blood from the cat's scratches trickling down her neck and on to her shirt. Hoping she wasn't wearing a borrowed shirt, Priire decided to ignore the burning on the side of her face for the pain in the rest of her body. After a few minutes, she figured out that nothing was broken, only bruised, cut, and beat up. Priire once again started to lift herself from the ground. Employing one of the Jedi techniques Kousotsu had shown her, she eased her pain. The world, however, was still swimming around her.
"Ariel..." Priire groaned, staring at the little girl. The child was swaying in and out of focus. "What did you... do... to me...?"
No one else saw anything wrong with the little girl. "Thank you," she told Priire, "for getting my kitten."
"You fell out of a tree?"
Priire groaned and hoped that she was hallucinating. She still hadn't made it to her feet but was in enough of an upright position to attempt to focus on the speaker. "Kirei..." She couldn't form any more words and had to collapse back to the ground. Annoyed, Priire chastised herself. You fell from a tree... big deal. Get yourself together! Despite her inward resolve, her outward body was not cooperating.
Kirei got closer, still shaking her head. "You fell from a tree?"
The kitten launched itself from the little girl's arms at the pretty princess. Kirei batted it away, getting a scratch on her arm in the process. "Why! That evil cat!" She pouted, and most of the men in area offered to help her.
Blinking, Kirei realized that the world was becoming fuzzy. "I'm going to faint," she announced.
Priire, by this time, had been forgotten. The child and her kitten were gone as well. The crowd dispersed, leaving Priire in the soft grass. This did not bother the one-time mercenary. She also had passed out.
"Priire? Priire..."
The girl groaned.
"Priire, come on, wake up! Nom's cooking something chocolate."
Priire recognized the voice. "Anakin?"
The boy nodded. "That's me. Now, get up! We've been looking all over for you."
Obligingly, Priire rolled over and smiled.
Anakin screamed.
"What's wrrrong?" Priire looked around for any sign of danger. "And why am I rrrolling my rrr's?" The girl looked confused.
"You don't have any clothes on!" Anakin said, still backing away.
Priire's eyes went wide. "Then wherrre'd they go?" She looked down. "Oh, a furrr coat." It took her a minute to realize what she'd said. When she did, she held out an arm and looked at it every carefully. "Sithspit." Her fingers were elongated, clawed, and furred. "Have you got a mirrrorrr?"
Anakin shook his head. "Priire... you're... you're..."
"A cat," the girl sighed, touching her face. She even had whiskers.
"Kind of." The padawan looked like he was amused. "You look almost Catharian or Selonian."
Priire gave him a glare and lashed her tail. "We've got to get back to the Rrroom Behind the Waterrrfall."
"Hey, Priire!"
She turned to look at him. "What?"
"Say 'Robert ran 'round red roses'," Anakin grinned.
"Rrroberrrt rrran rrround..." Priire stumbled over the words. "I hate you, brrraid boy."
That cracked Anakin up even more... until Priire turned and hissed at him.
Priire crossed her arms and looked annoyed. Anakin had the brilliant idea to disguise her so everyone wouldn't know that one of the Sailor Jedi had been morphed into a felinoid. That meant she had to wear a Jedi robe. And it was hot!
"Anakin," she hissed. "Stop talking with everrryone you see. I want out of this rrrobe!"
Before the poor padawan could respond, another voice shouted out his name. "Anakin! We have a problem!"
Wincing, Anakin turned to see what his master was shouting about. "Yes, Master Kenobi?"
"Someone turned Princess Kirei into a felinoid," Obi-Wan told him. "And she's been raising quite a lot of fuss about it!"
The Princess in question was following Kenobi, shouting. "I demand to speak with Masterrr Yoda!"
Priire was laughing so hard by this time that everyone was staring at her. "Um, miss?" Kenobi said. "This is hardly a laughing matter."
"Oh, I have a rrright to laugh at herrr," Priire purred, flipping back her hood. "We'rrre in the same boat!"
Obi-Wan Kenobi looked from one felinoid to the other. Each girl's hair was still the same, but otherwise they were cats. Priire's fur was short and black. Her paws had slightly lighter stripes that Kenobi supposed were her scars. There was also a lighter patch on her forehead. Kirei, on the other hand, was a white longhair with silver paws and ears. "Oh no."
Priire slipped out of the Jedi robe. "Much betterrr." With a grin that showed all of her sharp teeth, the cat-girl turned to Kirei. "Maybe now you'll be able to keep yourrr paw off of otherrr people's boyfrrriends!"
The silver-pawed feline snorted. "Therrre will always be someone who wants me." She stretched and fixed Priire with a hard stare. "You'rrre the one who'll be out of luck. I don't know how a man would want you in the firrrst place." As if she's just realized something, Kirei smiled. "Maybe then he'll come to me."
Priire had been lashing her tail angrily, but Kirei's last statement pushed her over the edge. With a growl from deep in her throat, Priire launched herself at Kirei. The two felinoids rolled around the floor, tearing at each other.
"Cat fight!"
"Anakin," Obi-wan chided. "This is not a time to be making jokes! We've got to get the senshi."
Anakin was still looking at the cat-women. "And stop them!"
With deliberation, Priire licked her paw, putting her fur back in place. "I don't know what came overrr me," she sighed. "It just happened. Besides, Kirrrei starrrted it."
"So tell us what happened, again?" Ippin said, trying her best not to giggle.
For the third time, Priire told everyone how she'd been walking in the park, tried to rescue the kid's kitten, and fell out of the tree.
"My theory," Kairiku started, "is that you weren't only turned into a cat-morph, it also made you more cat-like. She turned you into an animal."
Priire shot Tashita a glare. Her daughter was laughing so hard that tears were coming out of her eyes. "I'm sorry, Mom," she said, still laughing. "But... you're a cat!"
The kitty-fied blonde groaned. "Why does this always happen to me?? Mika turned me into a cat. Kendren turned me into a kitten. Ariel turned me into a cat-morph! Do I have feline genes or something??"
"At least you're not in heat or something," Ippin giggled.
Priire just moaned.
"What's wrong with Priire?" Kousotsu asked, following Anakin. The young padawan had been sent to find Kousotsu after the other senshi had separated Kirei and Priire.
"Well..."
Kousotsu looked worried. "Anakin. What's up?"
"She's running around naked and starting fights because she got turned into a half-cat."
A shocked expression settled on Kousotsu's face. He cursed being away from her so much. It seemed like every time she got in trouble, he was too far away. Maybe someday she'd realize that he was never there for her and sometime when he came back, she'd be gone. Kousotsu shook the thoughts away. No, Priire loved him. "Where is she?"
"This way!"
"Someone get that dog out of herrre!" Priire hissed.
Kiri's cocker spaniel had innocently walked in and made all the fur on Priire's neck stand on end. The cat-woman hissed at the poor dog again. Miyuki scooped the pup up and carried it out of the room.
Smoothing her fur back down, Priire smiled at the rest of the people. "Sorrrrrry!"
Mika shook her head. "I can't do anything to help you..." Mika tried not to giggle as Priire arched her whiskers. "But maybe Kendren could..."
"No! No! No!" Yume shouted, zooming into the room. "That would be very dangerous. Kendren doesn't have enough control over his powers to..."
"Just let me try," Kendren begged. "I can do it!"
Yume sighed. "You get three chances."
"Allrrright, Dye-boy. Get it rrright," Priire said.
Carefully, Kendren set his book down and spoke some magic words. A bright light flew from his fingers and enveloped Priire.
"Thisss issss not funny," Priire literally hissed. Kendren had turned her into a human-snake. She was in the process of slithering over to chew on his ankle when he cast another spell.
"Hhhey," Priire whinnied. "I'm a hhhorse!" She seemed to be a mix of horse and human... and not happy about it. "One more try..." she threatened.
Reading a little farther into his book, Kendren nodded triumphantly. "I'm sure I have it this time!"
After the words, Priire looked down at herself. "Oh... I'm sure thaaaat waaaas beeetter... I'm a sheeeeep!"
Yume raised an eyebrow. He could hardly make himself heard over the loud laughter. "Kendren, time's up!"
The boy looked disappointed. "How do I get her back?"
Yume did it for him.
"Hey! I'm a cat again! Yeah!" Priire paused and slapped herself in the head. "What am I saying??"
A new voice - one that, surprisingly, wasn't rolling in laughter - broke in. "Guys... we have to get Priire back human in the next three hours or she'll stay a cat forever!"
Everyone turned to look at Kairiku. "That is not good," Nom told her. "DO you have a solution?"
"I'm working on it!" Kairku responded.
"I'm going forrr a walk," Priire sighed.
On her way out, Priire met Kousotsu. "Hi, Kousotsu!" she purred.
It took him a minute to realize who was talking to him. "Priire? Is that you?"
The girl sighed. "Yes, it's me. Orrr what's left of me." Her ears, tail, and whiskers seemed to droop.
Koustosu put his arm around Priire. "It's okay, Priire."
She didn't look convinced so Kousotsu leaned over to kiss her. As their lips touched, he jerked back and tried to hold in a laugh. "You're all... fuzzy!"
Instead of being annoyed, Priire laughed too. "How do you think I feel when you forrrget to shave?!"
The two of them laughed and kept walking with their arms around each other. Every time Priire tickled him with her whiskers, they both broke into fits of laughter.
As they walked along, they met another cat-girl. Priire's fur stood up on end and her tail stiffened at the sight of Kirei. Kousotsu hugged her tighter and whispered in her ear. "Don't kill her."
"I won't... I'll just rrrip some furrr off..." she growled.
By this time, Kirei had spotted the couple. She purred and stretched her cream-colored body, letting the sun sparkle over her fur. Priire snaked her tail around Kousotsu's waist. "Oh no," he sighed.
Kirei padded over to the pair on her silver paws. "Hello, everrryone," the beautiful cat purred getting closer to Kousotsu than Priire liked. Leaning even closer, Kirei smiled at Kousotsu.
Before she could say anything, Priire flattened her ears back and hissed at the other cat. "Back off," she warned.
Kirei didn't head the warning, and it wasn't long before the two cat-women were rolling on the ground, once again intent on killing each other. Kousotsu shook his head and thumbed on his comm-link. "I hope you've found a way to cure Priire and Kirei... they're trying to kill each other. Again."
"It's all right! I found the cure!" Kairiku responded.
Apparently, Annika wrestled away the comm-link, because her voice came on next. "Kirei's a cat?? Don't change her back!!!!"
Kousotsu shook his head and hoped the other senshi got there soon.
"We're here!" Kairiku announced. "And I have the antidote!" She giggled. "I always wanted to say that." The adorable odango atama was holding an old-style bug sprayer. "I need to get close enough to the to spray them with this."
"Should we separate them first?" Kousotsu wondered. Kairiku shrugged.
Over in the group of people who'd gathered to watch, Annika was shouting. "Go, Priire! Get her!! You can do it!" Tashita was still doubled over in laughter.
Getting as close as she dared, Kairiku aimed the sprayer at the fighting pair and sprayed them with the purplish vapor. A few minutes later, Priire and Kirei leapt apart like identical magnets. They began to fade from their cat-morph selves into normal humans.
"Hey! I'm a people again!" Priire hugged Kairiku.
Kirei dusted herself off and looked down her nose at everyone in the area. "Well. I need a shower!"
Annika looked disappointed. "Darn it! You could have taken her!"
Laughing, Priire slipped her arm around Kousotsu's waist. "Thanks," she told everyone.
As she walked off, she gave her black tail one more lash before it disappeared all together.
