Warmth

Her voice was soft, though it held an accent Paradox had come to know well. Her words were as pillowy as her fur. It was a stark contrast to the grating of the floor and pillars against nearly formed paws. His former apprentice had recently made a move on the metaphorical chess board that threw a very large wrench into almost every single one of his plans. It really rubbed salt in the wound, so to speak.

Yet, even as he despised himself for allowing such a thing to happen, the Pallas cat was always there with sweet words and comforting touches. He did not like his past, but oftentimes he could find himself telling the horrors of his life to his new companion through quiet tones. She would listen and nod, eyebrows upturned and blue eyes round with sympathy. It was a feeling Paradox had long since lost to time. Now all he wanted was the pain to cease. The only way to achieve such a goal was by means any normal Median would consider lowly. It never made sense to him. Nobles and mage hunters did so with ease.

The very thought made his head pound and brought him to the uncomfortable awareness that his wounded paws were pressed against salt and grit. It never stung as much as his memories.

The pallas cat returned from a hunting trip, soaking wet and with a large mouse trapped between her jaws. He had slowly been regaining the ability of smell, yet by no means did that mean he could eat. It had been too long since he'd been able to sink his fangs into the plump hide of a juicy avian. The very thought was delectable.

She padded over to Paradox, setting the small mammal onto the floor and curling her tail dripping around his own. It must’ve been raining when she and Print went out for food. “You've been working very hard lately.” she purred.

Something nearly familiar swelled in his chest, locked beneath blackness and chain. Paradox was well aware of this fact. “I know.”

“You should rest. You’ve been doing nothing but planning and worrying for the past few sunrises.”

“There’s no time to rest,” Paradox stated bluntly, watching as the cube flickered cyan for just a moment. A scowl crossed his face. “All of my effort must be put into healing as of now. You are aware of how important this is.”

A sigh escaped her. “I know, I truly do, but the more you wear yourself out the harder it will become to stay at such a constant source of power.”

“I can take it.”

“I can’t.”

Paradox turned to face her, tail curled taught around himself.

“I don’t like watching you refuse to care for your wellbeing that isn’t just physical. Please, Sir, just a small rest.” Inside her eyes resided an emotion Paradox couldn’t place. They shimmered with conviction and something beyond even his understanding. Beneath all the fur, all his injuries and shadows, it wormed its way into him like a snake into a crack within a boulder. The uneaten mouse lay against the stone floor, presumably still warm.

Paradox made a noise that could be akin to a laugh. With a small brush of his shadowy paw he pushed the deceased rodent closer to his companion. “Hmmm. Only because you asked so nicely. One hour.”

The feline beside him smiled, shoulders visibly relaxing. “Thank you.”

“Consider yourself lucky.”

“Oh, you needn’t worry about that. I consider myself very lucky.”

“Then that makes one of us.”

“Hush. Don’t be so hard on yourself. I know you love to do that.”

“It’s not that I love it,” Paradox protested with a twitch of an ear. His next words slipped from him, coaxed by the perception of comfortability. “It’s just very easy to do.”

“I happen to disagree. I think you are achieving your goals despite the hardships you’ve faced prior. If that is not the mark of someone with a strong heart, then I’m not sure what is.”

Print arrived the moment she went to pick up the mouse. He’d come back without any prey, fur tousled and mouth twisted into the funniest frown Paradox had ever seen in his lives. Print did not elaborate as he stalked across the cavern and laid himself down across a raised boulder, far from the shadowy visage of an amalgamation of shadow, monkey, and feline.

The Pallas cat padded over to Print with a mrow of greeting before setting the mouse down in front of him. She settled beside him, tucking her forepaws beneath her chest. “Would you like to share?”

Print did not respond.

She nosed the kill closer to him with a gentleness Paradox had forgotten was possible.

Print raised his head and took a singular bite.

With a satisfied purr she began to eat her own fill. Paradox had a sneaking suspicion that she did not take to their newest team addition all that well. No matter how much he went over it in his mind he could not find a feasible explanation for sharing your own kill with another you had little attachment to.

Paradox rested his head atop his paws, taking a precious breath and allowing the artifact, as well as himself, to rest. White light dimmed, encasing more of the salt caverns in darkness and shadow. He was sure he would regret this decision later. Just as he began to plan a way out of this and return to his healing, the cloud of a cat got to her paws. He had not felt warmth in days, yet as Consolidation padded over and rested against him, it was as if he lay in a grass field during the middle of summer.