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Chapter 3 - Lost Kitty ~ Part 2

Nessa

He didn’t try to hold her or touch her as they made their way over to the diner; he simply walked by her side and escorted her there. It was a small gesture, but she felt very grateful.

He pushed the glass doors open and they entered. It was cool inside, along the glass windows were leather booths and wooden tables and in the centre was a counter with stools lined all around it for customers to sit. At the moment there were no customers though, only Nessa, the bus driver and the waitress behind the counter.

The waitress spotted them the moment they entered and rushed her way from behind the counter over to them. She was old, maybe roughly in her fifties; she was wearing black jeans, a black t-shirt and a white apron over them. She had a name tag pinned to her t-shirt that read, Agnes.

“Glenn!” She squealed when she had made it to them, she threw her arms around the bus driver and pulled him into a hug. She was way shorter than Glenn the bus driver, so he had to bend down just to be able to hug her back.

“Good afternoon Agnes, how’s business?” He asked, chuckling.

They pulled away from the hug and she slapped him in the side with her tea towel, making Nessa jump at the sudden movement.

“Screw business! Where have you been? I’ve been worried sick!?” She scolded him.

“Ahh, sorry about that little sis, I got called to do the overnight bus route.” He calmly explained, rubbing his side where she had wacked him.

“Overnight…” She started to say and then noticed Nessa standing beside him. She looked her up and down taking in her overall, bedraggled appearance and then gasped. She looked to Glenn, who nodded sadly at her.

“Oh dear!” She exclaimed, chucking her tea towel to the side and pulling Nessa into a tight and unauthorised hug. She didn’t complain though, despite Agnes being a complete stranger her hug felt pleasant and warm. “Another lost pup.” Agnes whimpered.

She then held Nessa in front of her and looked her over again, she looked near to tears. “Oh my dear, look at you.” She wept and then pulled her into another hug. “It’s alright, you’re safe now.” She cooed in her ear, patting Nessa's messy hair. It felt incredibly comforting and Nessa could feel herself melting into the hug, ready to just breakdown in her caring arms.

But Agnes pulled away again, and spoke to her in a calm and reassuring voice.

“You’re lucky Glenn found you, he knows that if any lost soul is in need he’s to bring them straight to me!” She confirmed, nodding to her brother, who smiled kindly back. “Now, you’re more than welcome to stay, there's a flat just upstairs that I use for this exact situation.” Nessa was about to open her mouth to explain she had no money, when the woman shook her head dismissing what she was about to say. “Don’t even begin to talk about payment, this is a safe space and if you’re really determined to pay me back then we always have plenty of dishes, but only if you feel the need.” She reassured her, taking and patting Nessa’s hand. Nessa nodded, feeling the tears pricking the corners of her eyes again.

“Good, now you’re probably exhausted, hell knows that bus is not at all comfortable.” She shot a look at Glenn, who just continued to smile down at his little sister. “I’ll take you upstairs and you can get some rest, when you’re hungry you just come back down and I’ll whip you something up, on the house of course.” She winked.

“The pancakes are the best.” Glenn added, taking a seat at the booth nearest the doors.

Agnes rolled her eyes at him, before reaching into her apron and producing a set of keys.

“Now, what’s your name sweetie?” She asked.

Nessa felt the blood drain from her face. She couldn’t give them her name; she’d have to come up with a new one, again. But her mind was drawing a blank, she couldn’t say Agnes because honestly what are the odds and she’d have to stick with the name at least until she left town. Luckily, Agnes seemed to understand the reaction she was getting from her and patted her hand again.

“It’s ok you don’t have to tell me just now.” She smiled the same kind smile that Glenn the bus driver had. “Why don’t you go for a rest and when you’re ready you can let me know what name you like best.”

She then led Nessa away, past the counter through a door which had a sign saying 'staff only' and then through another door, which she unlocked with one of the keys. It led up a small staircase, above the diner and into a small studio apartment above. It had a wooden double bed, a small and chipped dining table with a small kitchen stove and counter and a little threadbare couch against the far wall. There was another door which Nessa assumed led to the bathroom.

“It’s not much, but it should do you.” Agnes smiled, watching as Nessa stepped into the room marvelling at it’s simple décor.

“It’s perfect.” She gasped.

“Ah, so the pup does have a voice.” Agnes chuckled. “Well, I suggest you get some rest, maybe take a nap. There’s a lock on the door, it you’d feel more comfortable with it locked.” Agnes told her, placing the keys she’d used to open the door on the table.

Nessa turned to her. “Thank you.” Were the only words she could think to say, she felt so overwhelmed. In less than twenty four hours she had found not only one, but two selfless kind hearted people who had helped her more than anyone had ever helped her her entire life. She knew one thing, she was definitely helping Agnes with the dishes!

“Anything for a lost soul, pup.” Agnes smiled, before she left Nessa to herself.

She sat down on the threadbare couch and looked around the room, still not believing her luck. The window by the couch was open and she could hear the calming sound of the rain beginning its descent and washing away all the other sounds of the outside world. The clouds above finally giving what they threatened for hours. She sat listening to the sound, letting it seep through her very soul and calming her.

She was brought out of this trance when she heard a noise she wasn’t expecting. She shot up from the couch and whipped her head round towards the window. A small pair of yellow eyes looked up at her from the other side of the window, as a small silver haired cat sat in the rain. It meowed at her again, as if asking for permission to enter and get out of the rain.

She felt her heart melt as it meowed at her, it’s little eyes pleading for some shelter. She wasn’t sure whether Agnes would be ok with a cat in her apartment but then she recalled what Glenn had said about helping those who needed help and she just knew that she needed to help the little guy. She slowly walked over to the cat and reached towards it, rubbing two finger together to entice it to come in. The cat didn’t need telling twice it happily entered through the open window, shaking the rain from its long, fine fur and then leaned into Nessa’s hand, purring as she scratched behind its ear.

“Hey kitty.” Nessa whispered. “Are you lost too?” She asked, knowing she wouldn’t get an answer. But to her surprise the cat looked her in the eye and meowed, causing Nessa to giggle at the cute coincidence. “Yeah me too.” She sighed.

“Do you have a name?” The cat meowed again. “I’m sorry I don’t speak cat.” She giggled. “I’ll just call you Kitty for now.” She smiled. “My names…” Her smile dropped. “What is my name?”

She looked out the window, listening to the soft patter of the rain hitting the pavement outside and feeling the sense of calm that it brought.

“Raine…” She breathed and looked back to the purring cat, who was sitting watching her intently. “I think I’ll go with Raine…it’s got not a nice ring to it, don’t you think?” The cat meowed and she giggled at it again. “Raine it is!”

She looked around the room again and her eyes fell on the bed. She felt exhausted, despite having slept on the bus. Perhaps her emotions were slowly wearing her down. She needed to close her eyes, just for a little bit.

She went over to the door and locked it, before walking to the bed. The cat followed her, its little feet running to keep up. When she sat on the bed, it easily leapt up and settled on the opposite pillow, still watching her intently with its bright yellow orbs.

“We’ll just go for a little cat nap.” She smiled at it, as she clambered under the blanket and laid her head on the pillow. The bed was definitely not as soft as her own bed back at Orion Valley, but she found her eyes lulling her to sleep the moment her head hit the pillow.

She wasn’t sure how long she had slept for but she knew it had been a dreamless sleep and she felt calm and safe as she listened to the rain fall and Kitty purring. She stretched her arm, feeling the new found rejuvenation in her limbs from her well advised nap. Even before opening her eyes she knew that the room had darkened a little, but when she opened her eyes she could never in her entire lifetime have been prepared for what she saw.

Her body froze and her own sapphire blues widened in alarm as they took in the scene before her. Kitty was gone! A pair of bright yellow eyes was still watching her, but they weren’t the eyes of a cat. They belonged to a person; a woman with long silvery hair who was now lying on the bed facing Nessa. She kept her eyes trained on her face, but from her peripheral vision she could easily deduct that the woman was wearing nothing, zilch, zero, 100% naked! Most alarmingly of all, they were smirking at her, as if her alarm was funny!

Before Nessa could find her voice to scream or call for help, the naked lady stretched her arms and spoke.

“Good evening Raine.” She purred pleasantly. “Thank you for the shelter, water can be so bothersome for my fur.”

Nessa felt her mouth fall open as she deciphered the woman’s words and the realisation of their meaning hit her.

“Kitty!?” She gasped, her eyes widening impossibly wider.

“Yes.” The woman purred. “But I would prefer my real name, if you don’t mind.” She continued to grin at the shock on Nessa’s face.

“What is your name?” She gulped.

You’d think living around werewolves for over a year would ease her shock over a cat becoming a woman, but it did not. Especially when it was the first thing she saw after waking up from her nap. But the woman didn’t seem to bother with the shock; she kept on as though the entire situation was completely normal.

“Sylvia.” The woman purred, twirling a strand of her long, silver hair around her finger as she continued to stare into Nessa’s eyes. “And we have a lot to discuss, Raine.” She added, grinning.

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