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This wasn't exactly the night Kali had hoped for.

First exhausting Rinzaan with a couple dances, then the near-catastrophe with his gold, and, after all that, then arguing over long-dead sea monsters on a rooftop? Thus far, almost every turn Kali had taken led them down the wrong street. At least they seemed like they were on the right path now. Unless she stepped on Rinzaan's tail, when she shoved him into her hammock and pounced on top of him.

But she already had a plan for that. She'd make sure his tail was out of the way first. Then she'd pounce, and everything would be fine. All she had to do was get Rinzaan to her home after Mikora was gone, which she had to be by now.

Nothing else could go wrong. Not once she got him into bed.

A plan concocted while Kali ushered Rinzaan through the busy streets, skirting around groups of cats and avoiding any enticing shops. They left behind the glittering pearls and mesmerizing patterns in a passing blur. Often with some extra tugging on Rinzaan's hand, to keep him from stopping dead in his tracks to stare. Kali tossed out apologies left and right as they cut in front of the other cats. Sometimes just a wave of her tail to acknowledge an annoyed growl or two.

Half the time, Kali didn't even hear them. Her own laughter drowned out most growls or snippy comments, as Rinzaan tripped on the uneven planks and stumbled along. A stammered, breathless apology whenever he bumped into someone. Every time she looked back, she saw his bright white teeth, half-smiling and half-panting, and his blue eyes on her–almost always on her. And his half-smile turned full when their eyes met for a fleeting second.

A packed street waylaid her fantasies of discarded clothes and tangled tails. Their quick progress slowed until they made none at all, crammed shoulder to shoulder with other cats. All of Kali's fun plans fizzled before her whiskers. Apparently, this wouldn't be a quick jaunt home, like she hoped it would be.

“What's going on?" Rinzaan asked. “Why have we stopped?"

His whiskers brushed Kali's cheek as he leaned forward, peering over her shoulder. Though half an ear taller than her, Rinzaan couldn't see much more than she did by the squinting and wrinkling of his muzzle. Kali stood on the tips of her toes, leaning and tilting her head until she caught a glimpse through the dozens and dozens of ears. A procession of cats followed by a series of tall banners made their way across the intersection. All headed towards the port and the sand sea.

“Funeral," she said. Her ears dipped for an instant. More annoyed by this development than anything else. “They've blocked off the streets, so they can get through."

“Oh, uh, sorry."

“Don't be. It's not anyone I know."

Probably. No easy way to tell from where they were. But there were lots of cats in the Benz. Too many for Kali, or any cat, to know every individual. Funerary processions, like this one, were common. Guaranteed to stop traffic at least a couple times a night. Often without a body to say farewell to, since most of these funerals were for cats the sea had already claimed. Just one of the many risks of sailing and living on the Benz rafts.

A common occurrence that hardly phased Kali anymore, who bounced her shoulders with a quick shrug. “This happens sometimes."

“Oh." Rinzaan's ears perked up. “Then what do we do now?"

That was another question she didn't have an answer to. Kali twisted around and surveyed the nearby alleys. Most looked impassable. Just as packed as the street they were on, with cats lined up and waiting. They might squeeze through one of them, with yet more apologies and shoving, but she would rather they not step on any already bristled tails, if possible.

“Do you want to check out any of these shops while we wait?" Kali asked, nodding towards the various stalls and booths on either side of them. “This might take a minute. Should be fine, as long as you don't wave around your coin—"

Kali's ear flicked. She looked past Rinzaan's shoulder into the crowd, smile lapsing.

She thought she saw something. A pair of eyes. A pair of ears. Something caught her eye. Only for an instant.

Then, whatever it was, it was gone. Kali searched through the sea of whiskered faces behind them. Old cats and young cats alike. Nobody watched them. All the eyes and ears around them were on cats beside them or flat and irritated as they waited for traffic to move again. Either way, all she saw were the same impatient cats as before, grumbling and growling at each other. Nobody noteworthy. Nothing particularly concerning.

But, even if it was just her imagination, that creeping, chilly feeling in her pelt was still there.

“Really? There was a jewelry shop I wanted to check out." Rinzaan's voice cut through the idle din around them, drawing Kali's ears towards him. “I think it wasn't far. Maybe a few houses back."

Kali's tail lashed with some uncertainty. For some reason, she didn't feel like they should backtrack now. Instead, she nodded towards the houses on their left. “Actually, I think I see a way. We'll cut through that alley."

Hardly spoken, and Kali started shouldering her way across the street, tugging Rinzaan along. She didn't want to give him time to protest. Most of all, she wanted to get away from the weird feeling in her fur.

More quick lifts of Kali's tail, more apologies, as she shoved and wiggled their way through the crowd. Though, despite some showy snarls and growls, no one really minded. Benz cats knew how the streets were. In situations like this, stepping on feet and tails at least once or twice was guaranteed, and they weren't the only cats being pushy.

Eventually, they made their way into the narrow alley. Then, sidling past the line of cats waiting to join the already dense mass of pelts, they made it through. Once on the other side, Kali glanced back. Whatever unnerved her before and made her hackles itch, she didn't see it now, either.

A slight draw on her hand, a gentle squeeze on her fingers, returned her attention to Rinzaan, who frowned. “Is everything okay?" he asked. “You seem like you're, well, in a rush or something."

Kali took a breath, checking behind them one last time, and let it go. There wasn't anything to worry about. Her hackles were getting ruffled over nothing–probably the crowded streets making her nervous. Feeling Rinzaan's hand in hers, and his steady if not worried eyes, smoothed her fur down again.

“I'm rushing us a little," Kali admitted. Her whiskers lifted with a small smile. “But I sort of thought you'd be in a rush, too." She glanced around, checking the few ears, then leaned in closer. “Since you've gone so long without my pelt or whatever."

Rinzaan's tail flipped, nearly swatting a cat that walked by them. “I mean, it's been a while." He similarly lowered his voice, grinning as their noses almost touched. “And I didn't get to feel your fur so much last time." His tail flicked again. “I didn't get to kiss you much, either."

Kali squeezed his hand. Her subtle smile spread as Rinzaan's big ears started to twist. “That's funny. I don't remember you complaining."

“Yeah, well, I–" Rinzaan paused as a couple of cats crossed behind Kali, laughing loudly as they went. Too close for him to say whatever hovered on the tip of his tongue.

But not close enough to stop Kali. On the contrary, as her tail danced behind her with a mischievous delight. “You definitely weren't complaining when I had you past my teeth." Kali didn't even check if anyone else listened to them. She was having too much fun, seeing Rinzaan's ears skew at awkward angles. His tail was a flicking, twitching mess. Nice and flustered–the way Kali preferred it. “But I guess you're right. We didn't get to kiss as much as we usually do, since I spent most of that time tasting you and your precious seed."

Rinzaan's steaming ears dropped, rippling his scarf, and he tossed back his muzzle with a frustrated groan. “You weren't supposed to hear that. 'Mere, that was so embarrassing."

Kali smirked. She pulled on his hand, leading him forward again. “It's okay. I know your guards have your best interests at heart. It makes sense. They have to guard your loins along with the rest of you."

“That wasn't my guard. That was Remsi. My attendant." Rinzaan grumbled. He ran a hand down his muzzle, tugging on his whiskers, and snatched at his hood before it slipped off. “He helped raise my dad. Maybe even my grandpa. He's ancient." Rinzaan scowled. “And old-fashioned. Seed this and seed that. You have no idea."

“I think I have some idea now." Kali flashed a wicked grin back at him as they turned a corner. Pausing for a moment, as a few cats crossed their path. “The importance of your seed and breeding–"

“Oh, please," Rinzaan said, laughing once. “You don't even know. The licking I got for that was ridiculous. He lectured me for hours. Recited the entire pedigree to me at least three times. And he went on and on about 'lives squandered in the throat of a commoner' or something stupid like that."

“He really got on your tail about it, huh?" Kali said, her tail perked despite what was likely a more toothy insult than Rinzaan let on. Not that she minded. She'd already been called every insult in a cat's dictionary. Whatever Remsi had honestly said? She'd probably heard it before. “He can send my apologies to Cerinnia and your future kittens, if that would make him feel better."

“If you write a nice, proper letter, I'm sure he'd hand deliver it to her." Rinzaan pinned his ears and growled. “Spitting louse."

Kali paused. She looked at Rinzaan, her eyes round and full with a curious surprise. “Which one's the louse?" she asked, her tail dancing. “Your attendant or Cerinnia?"

“Both of them. Honestly, both of them."

Their eyes met. An ephemeral smile shared between them amidst the busy street. A strange sensation, feeling a chipper trill in her throat because Rinzaan was calling someone a spitting louse, but Kali liked it all the same. She only wished they could stay there forever, staring into each other's eyes with their fingers linked together. In little moments like this where her heart fluttered in her chest. Ignorant of everything–everyone else around them, like there wasn't a single other cat in the two cities of Mjau. Just her and Rinzaan.

But that wasn't the case. They were in the middle of a narrow but bustling side street, and they weren't alone. The shared smile, that moment, vanished in an instant. Kali's grin faltered. She saw something over Rinzaan's shoulder. Movement that briefly caught her eye. So quick, so sudden, she almost missed it.

A shadow darted into an alley. The tip of a long tail vanishing into the pitch black recesses.

Something wasn't right.

Kali checked the various ears and whiskers. A couple followed their kittens, who ran ahead or pulled their parents along. Other cats looked at the shops and wares at the different stalls lining the street. Most cats she saw tended to their own matters. Their noses pointed towards their destinations, with ears and tail following. All the cats there were oblivious or indifferent to Kali and Rinzaan. Except for one.

One pair of pointed ears aimed at them. Ears that flicked the other way when Kali spotted them.

“Kali?"

That chill from before breezed through her fur–down her hackles to the end of her tail. She could barely hear Rinzaan past the thumping in her ears. A quick rush of blood and panic that she swallowed back down into the pit of her stomach.

Kali forced her ears forward. Her tail up. She squeezed Rinzaan's hand once and started leading him in the opposite direction. Just a casual walk down the street. That's all it was. A forced, casual walk.

She glanced behind Rinzaan again. Those ears pointed at them again. And now they meandered after them, too.

“Hey," Kali whispered. “Can you walk a little faster?"

Rinzaan's brow furrowed. “Well, yeah? Am I walking too slowly or something?"

She tugged Rinzaan's arm, leading him away at a faster pace. The pair of ears behind them, unfortunately, followed suit.

Kali swore under her breath. “If I tell you, you can't fluff your tail. Okay?"

“What?" Rinzaan asked, stumbling a little on his own feet. “What would fluff my tail?"

“We're being followed." Kali cast a stiff-whiskered smile back at Rinzaan. Who, even though she told him not to, looked fluffier than before she had said anything. “They might just be looking for an easy mark. Just stay calm, look happy, and pick up your feet."

Rinzaan did everything but look calm and happy. His brown and white tail had puffed up to twice the size it was before.

Kali turned forward, and her stiff whiskers dropped into a grimace. Of course, she shouldn't have said anything. Whoever tailed them had found their mark. They had to realize that by every hair on Rinzaan's spooked tail. She reached into her loose shirt and plucked out a single coin–the last silver she had in her pocket. A few steps farther, she flicked that coin aside. Tracked it with a single turned ear. It hit the wooden walkway with a sharp rattle and tap behind them. If they were after easy money, they'd take a silver and run. She waited until they were far enough, and turned back to Rinzaan, feigning another smile as she peeked over his shoulder.

The coin remained untouched on the boards.

Worse yet, there were more cats watching them than before. Following. Whiskers and scarf covered ears angled towards Kali and Rinzaan. They weren't even pretending anymore.

“Okay," Kali said. “Now we run."

She grabbed Rinzaan's wrist and slung him ahead of her. She pushed him forward, racing after with her ears twisted around. Distant footsteps picked up behind them. Paw pads rapped against the creaking boardwalk. Chased after.

Kali shifted her ears forward. Didn't matter how many there were. They just had to outrun them.

She yanked Rinzaan to the left, almost off his feet, into another alley. She jumped over a pile of sand. Rinzaan tripped on it. Slowed them down two steps. The pursuers were on their tails now.

They ran down another street, weaving around idle cats. Some dodged out of their path. They knew trouble when they heard it. Other uninterested bystanders didn't cast a glance at the cats racing by. They carried on, walking or shopping, like nothing else happened.

They wouldn't help. Nobody would help. Especially when they found out Rinzaan wasn't a Benz cat.

Kali veered around another corner, lugging Rinzaan after her. Dragged him back into a sprint. Ears turned away from the footsteps behind them. She didn't need to listen past their feet hitting boards and her heart in her ears. One more street, through an alley, and they'd be clear once they reached the other side. They just needed to make it that far. Two streets over. If they could just make it—

Kali skidded to a stop, the claws on her feet scuffing across the boards. Rinzaan bumped into her back, nearly knocking her over. She stumbled a step, her tail keeping her upright.

Two cats stood in their path. Dark scarves over the ears and wrapped over their muzzles. Concealment that made little difference. Kali still recognized them by the fur around their eyes and their bare tails. She didn't remember their names, but she'd seen them before. A couple of toms with a terrible reputation at sea and a worse reputation at shore.

She felt Rinzaan's hand tremble in hers. “Kali, what now?" he asked, a hissed whisper. “What do we do?"

Kali ignored the question. Her ears stayed pointed at the cats ahead. Kali straightened up. She perked up her tail and smiled with every whisker on her face. “Excuse me," she said, her voice a pleasant purr. “We just need to get through here, if you don't mind."

“Drop the act," one tom said. A gruff voice, like sand rasping against the docks. He pointed over Kali's shoulder. A single curved claw directed at Rinzaan. “We know you've got a Dockie with you."

Kali's whiskers dropped. So much for that. Though she didn't expect it to work, anyway. “Okay, then," she said, a fresh growl to her words. “How much is it going to take to let us get through? What's your price, if a silver isn't enough?"

The tom huffed. “Yeah, that's not going to work," he said. “More 'portant question is why are you getting involved? Leave his tail here. We don't care about you, Weird-eye."

Kali pivoted an ear. Drawn by the discordant, softened steps behind them. More cats approached. “Original," she grumbled. She cast a brief glance behind them. Two more cats with scarves obscuring their ears and muzzles. No doubt they were part of this same merry clowder. She looked at each of them. Again, they looked familiar, but not familiar enough to be useful. Just enough to know they were younger than the first two, but they assuredly had a poor reputation to match. But when she did, her bad eye roving across, one hopped back a half-step.

Curious. The tip of Kali's tail twitched. “If you know about my eye," she said, setting that same eye on the cats ahead of them. “Then you know it's cursed, right?"

The tom that spoke before, presumably the leader, didn't flinch. Not even a flick of his tail when she mentioned it. But the lackey on his left wasn't so brave. A quick worried glance at the older tom. A peek, just once, but Kali saw it. If she weren't trying to bluff them out of this situation, her tail would've perked up. Not all of these vagabonds had steeled nerves. That was something she could work with.

“Stare too long, and the curse will get you, too," Kali continued. She tapped once under her yellow eye. “I'm sure you know the rumors. You don't want to risk that, do you?"

“Tail-talk." The tom shook his head. “We're not falling for that." A purposeful wave of his tail. A jerky, unnatural motion, in their vague direction. The cats behind Kali and Rinzaan stepped closer. Boards creaked under the shifting weight. “Just ditch the Dockie already and go."

Her eye trick was unsuccessful. Worthless rumors. They only scared cats off at inopportune times. Her weird eye was never useful at times like this.

All her options exhausted, Kali raised her hands and flexed her fingers. White claws unsheathed, bared from the tips of each finger. “Yeah," she said, lowering her ears. “I'm not leaving him. He's with me."

Another lash of the leader's tail. Kali heard steps behind her. She shoved Rinzaan clear and whirled around. Bared her teeth, a wicked snarl, with a pitched, throaty hiss. That stopped the first cat, the flightier one, in their tracks. But the second didn't balk so easily.

She ducked under a swing. Their claws skimmed over her ears. Kali struck with her own claws. Her right hand missed, swatting empty air, but her left snagged the front of their shirt.

Fabric tore. No skin. No blood, as they leaped back unkempt but unharmed.

The third cat jumped in on Kali's left. Claws bared, but dug into their own clenched hand. Kali hopped back, bumping into Rinzaan. Their fist swung past her nose. Too close. She felt the breeze on her whiskers.

Kali flung up her arms and blocked the next punch. Their knuckles landed on her forearms–stopped short of her muzzle. A solid hit. She felt it vibrate down to her elbows. A dull ache, but not the worst. Better in her arms than on her muzzle.

She crouched, letting the next fly overhead. Kali returned the favor this time. Her claws pressed into the pad on her palm, and she swung upwards. Her fist slammed into their stomach. They staggered a step, coughed, but didn't go down.

While their companion was knocked back, the other cat dashed in. She saw the blur on her right, but she didn't move in time. An open-palmed swing. Sharp, hooked claws raked across Kali's arm.

A flash of red. Blood on their claws–on Kali's sleeve.

Kali didn't twitch a whisker at the sting. Like Tulaziya taught her, all those years ago, sparring up on the top deck. All the cuts and bruises didn't matter. When another cat has their claws out, keep fighting. Kali packed that pain into another furious hiss. Clenched every furious fiber into her fist.

Their claws swung in again, but Kali's swing connected first.

Their nose crunched against her knuckles. Muzzle bucked backwards with a snap. Kali grinned at the shrill yowl, following. The cat staggered back, wobbling and clutching their muzzle. Bloody nose raining through their fingers and spattering onto the planks, as they retreated.

One down.

Kali's ears jerked left. She grabbed Rinzaan again and yanked him back, just as another cat lunged in–the leader. His claws hit the wooden floor, and he hissed as he yanked them free. “Just leave the Dockie. You're not getting out of this, if you don't."

Kali answered with her own guttural hiss. A hiss cut short. She wasn't watching the other cats. A well-timed hook smashed into her whiskered cheek.

Kali stumbled left. There wasn't time to figure out which of the leader-tom's dumb lackeys did it, because a split second later, he was at her whiskers again. Fist raised. His shoulder tensed, arm braced beneath the edge of his scarf. Kali narrowly brought up her arms in time. The tom's fist landed, and she certainly felt it. A sharper ache in her left arm. Kali clenched her teeth. That one was going to bruise.

His lackeys didn't hit very hard. Too young. Newer sailors fresh out of apprenticeship. They were what she was used to, in the few brawls she'd had in alleys. Cats that took teasing too far, and tried to back their words with claws. The couple of times some other cats her age tried to take her spare coins and ended up with matching black eyes instead. Little skirmishes Benz cats had to deal with growing up. Easy stuff that involved more hissing and spitting than actual claws. More posturing than anything else. The fights Kali was used to. One or two hits, and somebody called it quits.

This was different. This tom threw a mean punch.

Kali shifted, taking another hit on her right shoulder from another cat. She threw an elbow. It landed somewhere on their torso. Chest or ribs–she wasn't sure. All that mattered was they yelped and jumped back. She only had a moment to breathe. The leader swung at her again.

At least, Kali thought he did. She couldn't tell where his fist flew from. A feint? Or a second punch that followed too fast for her to see?

Either way, he hit Kali on the same side of her face. A shockwave rippled through her teeth.

Pain echoed in Kali's nose and lip. Louder than the first lucky hit, with a piercing ache that was impossible to ignore. A piercing, blinding ache. Her vision blurred on the right. She reeled from the blow, stumbling left. Her arms lowered. Loose, unresponsive, when she tried to brace. Even when she raised them, it didn't matter. The tom swung low. An upward angled strike. A sickening crunch just below her ribs, crushing all the wind out of her lungs.

Kali crumpled.

She fell hard on the sandy boardwalk, landing nose-first. Another throb through her muzzle and teeth. Her numb arms clutched her stomach. Every breath a ragged, guttural cough that forced jagged air into her lungs. Each one hurt worse than the last, radiating pain through her chest, her stomach–everywhere. She couldn't pinpoint it. Everything hurt.

Every instinct told her to get up. Stand up. She dragged her claws on the planks, but her legs wobbled. Feet slipped. Her knee banged on the planks.

She watched as the tom's black furred feet stepped around her. Towards Rinzaan. She threw out a hand and grabbed onto his ankle. Her claws sank in. Though she didn't shred them as much as she wanted. Her claws didn't make it past his short fur before the tom turned and kicked her aside.

“Can't believe you'd get beat up for a Dockie."

He sounded more disappointed than annoyed. That bit Kali worse than any of his punches did. As if he knew better. This random cat, who was determined to beat them both up for no good reason.

Kali spit onto the boards. She saw Rinzaan sitting on his flared tail. Deathly afraid, paralyzed where he was, his trembling claws rooted into the boardwalk. Even his usually twitchy tail didn't budge. But he was unharmed. Somehow, despite all the cats around, he remained unscathed, with no scratches on his clothes or pelt.

While the leader and his lackeys stayed focused on her, Rinzaan was safe.

That was the only motivation she needed. His pelt in one piece. Kali sank her claws in, raking along the woodgrain, and shoved herself up. Wincing, as she lugged her legs and feet under her, and she stood up again. Head a little clearer, now that she had her breath back. Upright again, her sore stomach didn't hurt as badly. If she focused on the furious, burning anger rumbling in her throat, she didn't feel anything else. She bared her teeth again and hissed one more time.

The tom's shoulder tensed before he even turned. She saw it coming. He spun around, but Kali dodged. His sudden jab flew past her arm. She threw her own punch, hitting him in the chest, but he only grunted once and took a single step back. Kali winced. It was like hitting a full sack of sand.

But the way he fought, and the way he took punches, confirmed something. What was only a hunch before was a certainty now. He was a sailor. She remembered him now. The ugly, sneering muzzle on him, behind the scarf, and the way his cold brown eyes glared at her. He sailed on the Duneprowler. She didn't remember his name, still, but she'd seen him on the docks. He worked on the rigging when he wasn't bullying cats with his fellow miscreants.

“You need to let us go," Kali said, sliding a couple steps back. “We're apprentices on the Sandstalker. Both of us are. And Captain Tulaziya won't let it slide, if you hurt either of us." Kali licked the bit of blood off her lip. That was a threat no sailor could ignore, even if he worked on another ship. A punch that should easily land. Tulaziya's name was more powerful than Kali's fists. “Let us go, right now, and I won't say anything."

That was a ploy that should've worked.

Maybe it would have, if Kali had said something before they drew their claws and spattered blood across the street. But with hackles raised, and a reputation to uphold, the tom wouldn't stop now. Evident by the way his scarf curled and wavered, as he bared his teeth behind it.

“I don't give a lick what your cap' has to say."

He raised his fists again. Kali dodged the first punch–a clumsy sidestep. The second landed on her shoulder. The third hit her muzzle yet again, in same place on her already bloody teeth and already bruised lip. Her head jerked. Kali's tail bristled in alarm. The docks and houses spun around them.

Kali tripped on an uneven board. She fell on her hands and knees, panting. Anger held the aches and pains at bay, but it didn't help her throbbing, dizzy head.

“Stop!"

Kali grimaced. She clutched at the side of her head, digging her claws into her own fur. As if she could hold herself steady, while the world teetered and skewed. She watched a wobbling, wavering Rinzaan stand up and reach into his shirt.

“Look," Rinzaan said. He took out his purse. Jingled the coins to entice them. “You can take this. Take all of it. Just leave us alone."

“Rinzaan, don't–" Kali mumbled. Don't draw attention to yourself, is what she wanted to say. But her words came out slurred and unintelligible to even her own ears. He needed to stay out of this.

They were fighting, sure, but this cat was pulling his punches. He spent too much time letting Kali dodge and weave around obvious attacks. His eyes, his fists, seemed serious, but his tail gave him away.

And he wouldn't be as lenient with Rinzaan. Especially not with him holding up his muzzle the way a snooty Dockie did. Dangling coins in front of a sailor, and his lackeys, like they were a bunch of greedy gulls after crumbs.

Even with the world spinning, Kali saw a fresh, furious snarl curling the old tom's muzzle all the way up the bridge of his nose. Every tooth bared, behind that mask, and more than enough strength to back up a grave hiss. Even Kali's fur prickled, and that hiss wasn't directed at her. At this rate, Rinzaan wouldn't save either of them. He was about to get himself killed instead.

Kali tried to get onto her feet again. A single step, and she swayed too far and stumbled back onto her knees. The houses were steadying bit by bit. Another minute, and she would recover enough to get up and fight. Just a single minute, and she'd be fine. But she didn't have a minute. She didn't have a second to waste.

Any other circumstance, she would've been fine. She could've handled it. A regular pickpocket? Sure. A couple ruffians looking for a brawl? Whatever. She could've distracted them long enough to let Rinzaan get away. Even if it was this tom alone, she might have let Rinzaan escape and dealt with the bruises and broken bones later. But, even now, the surviving lackeys waited in the wings, blocking off any chance of escape.

Kali flattened her ears. She didn't need balance. The world could keep spinning. She just needed momentum.

Kali threw herself forward at the tom, hooking her claws onto his back. She clung onto his shirt and scarf, trying to pull him down with her. Unfortunately, she lacked the bulk, or the brawn, to do much more than make him stumble a step. The tom shoved her off with a furious growl.

“Will you quit already?" He looked at his lackeys, glaring at each one, and waved his hands at Kali. “Can one of you pin her? Or do something useful? Why are you just standing there?"

“I don't wanna get cursed."

“Me neither."

“By 'Mere's rotten tail," the tom growled. “Do I have to do ev'rything myself?" The tom's tail lashed, and he hissed his frustration through his mask.

He turned towards Kali. With her head spinning, the world tumbling and spiraling, Kali couldn't stand to meet him. She could barely sit upright, as she was. But she still managed a weak hiss. She used enough bloody teeth to show that she still had some fight left in her bruised and battered pelt.

The tom took one step towards her and stopped. His shoulder jerked. There was a solid thunk, and a jingle, as something hit the ground. He looked back, tugging down his mask to show his white muzzle and teeth. He hissed at Rinzaan.

Bits of gold glinted on the boards. It hardly phased the tom, but it sounded like a good hit. A nice wallop on the tom's back that might leave a bruise later. Kali would've laughed, if her gut didn't ache so much right at that moment. Such a futile throw. It accomplished nothing, except making the tom's tail lash with a renewed enraged fervor. At this rate, he might just kill both of them. And Kali couldn't entirely blame him.

The tom turned towards Kali again. His fingers curled in. Claws sank back into his palm. This was it. One last hit. And they both knew it. She wouldn't get up again. Not until slanted sun hit the boardwalk and Rinzaan was a bloody pulp.

His surly amber eyes barely met hers. Kali blinked once, and he was gone. Thrown aside, halfway across the street, stumbling and tail flailing to keep him on his feet. It happened so fast, Kali barely saw it. A blur before her eyes. The tom was about to knock her whiskers off her face, and then someone else was there instead.

A familiar gray and tan pelt. Still in her working clothes, a nicer pair, from her serving job. Her frigid, marbled tail held low with a muzzle tensed to match.

They hadn't made it all the way to the restaurant, but they were close enough. Mikora had found them. The years spent as a palace guard, as a Mjauzi, meant whenever there was trouble, hissing or growling, she always showed up. That was part of her training—to always show up whenever there was hissing or growling. To protect the Mjau cats from all threats. From massive, destructive colossi to little spats between cats. Kali grinned despite her painful, swollen lip.

Kali wasn't strong enough to win a fight against three or four cats, but Mikora? Mikora could take down an army.

“Nazhir." Mikora nearly hissed the name. “I think we've discussed this before. About what happens if you mess with me or my kitten." Her lip curled, furious at the mere thought. “And, if I remember right, it was after I left you a bloody pulp clawing at the docks."

Nazhir smirked. “You got a lucky shot. That's all." He flexed his hands—his claws. “From what I remember, that tenuous agreement didn't extend to Dockies."

Mikora glanced at Rinzaan. Her tail flicked once as she considered him, studying his long muzzle and brown and cream ears and face. A short-lived curiosity, as Mikora's tail stilled again and her eyes affixed onto Nazhir again. “Then I'll clarify, now," she said, with a pelt ruffling, blood chilling ice in her voice. “You don't mess with my kitten, and you don't mess with any of her friends, either."

“Yeah, right." Nazhir shook his head. “That deal doesn't hold any weight now. Your right hook isn't what it used to be. Ev'rybody knows it." He showed his teeth in a cruel grin. “You're not as scary as you used to be, back when you were a Mjauzi or even when you were fresh out the palace. You're just a broken Benz cat with that bad arm. No better than the rest of us."

Mikora's whiskers twitched, and she laughed. “That's what you'd like to think, isn't it? I don't need two arms to knock you on your tail, runt. You or any of your delinquents."

Nazhir's smile twisted into a snarl followed by a low, rumbling growl. “Let's find out if that's right."

Mikora whipped her tail towards Kali. A quick signal, which prompted Kali to shoved herself up on her wobbly feet and darted towards Rinzaan, scooping up his purse and snatching a couple of loose coins as she went.

Nazhir's eyes only followed Kali for a moment. Before they could track over to Rinzaan, Mikora lunged between them. She slammed her fist into his breastbone with a resounding smack. Even with her ears turned away, Kali heard that first hit and the sharp yelp following.

Mikora might not hold the Mjauzi title, but she was still a Mjauzi at heart. All the reflexes were still there. Underneath that pretty pelt, Mikora still had all that strength from decades spent mastering the draw and aim of a Mjauzi's bow. Mikora proved that every time any cat tried to step on her tail. Just as she proved it now.

Kali grabbed Rinzaan's arm and hauled him back onto his feet, clinging onto his arm for a second as the houses wavered. She only wobbled for a minute. “Are you okay?"

“No! Are you okay?" He asked, his eyes glossy with worry. “Are you bleeding?"

“Me? I'm fine–"

Kali turned an ear. She saw movement on her left. Someone approached, a few quick footsteps, then nothing. Whichever lackey it was, they didn't make it far. Kali hardly saw a whisker, and Mikora was there grabbing them by the scruff. She hurled them into the side of a building. A cracking impact, as they smacked face-first against the wall. They flopped onto the boardwalk, clutching their muzzle and mewling.

Two down, now. The other lackeys watched from a safe distance; their fluffed, fearful tails anchored them in place on the sidelines. Only Nazhir was still fighting, and he struggled to fend off Mikora's onslaught–just like the last time.

Kali tucked Rinzaan's purse back into his shirt pocket. “Don't worry," she said, smiling with the half of her muzzle that wasn't sore and puffy. “We're fine now. That's Mikora. My mom–or aunt, I guess?" Kali shrugged. “I mean, she's the closest thing I have to a mom. I'm sure you know that already."

“Yeah, I know. I've seen her before. But–"

“It's fine," Kali said. “She's got this."

Kali turned to watch. A giddy swish in her tail, as Mikora landed a punch straight on Nazhir's nose. His muzzle scrunched and blood streamed from his nose. Served him right. The jerk deserved every bruise and broken tooth.

Nazhir took two steps back. He swiped a hand across the front of his face, smearing blood on his sleeve. But that wasn't what caught Kali's eye. There was a glint in his other hand. Something near his waist.

Kali's ears shot upright. Mikora didn't see it. She was lunging in for another hit.

“Mikora! Knife!"

Mikora chirruped. Her legs locked, claws dragging across the planks, and her puffed tail swung wildly. She stopped just in time. Nazhir's knife darted past her whiskers, shaving two off her muzzle. She stumbled back a step, avoiding another swing. The blade cut cleanly across her sleeve.

Kali breath stilled, watching each attempted cut. Each glinting swing breezed past Mikora's whiskers. The narrow blade so close to nicking her arms, her nose, and, once, her neck. Mikora's green eyes wide, following Nazhir's shoulder and hand, as she weaved around each strike.

Each miss of the blade, Mikora took another step back, but Nazhir still closed the distance between them. His knife crept closer and closer to cutting through her marbled pelt.

One more near-miss. Nazhir's knife sliced Mikora's sleeve at the shoulder–short of her neck. Mikora shifted on her toes. A quick pivot, and her arm shot out towards the knife. Her claws latched onto the back of Nazhir's hand. A forceful rake tore through the fur and flesh. Scarlet coated her claws and fingers. Droplets of blood flung across the street. Nazhir's hand snapped open. The knife dropped.

Kali hissed a tense breath past her teeth. With the bloodied knife flat on the ground, she could breathe again. Or so she thought, since Mikora had disarmed Nazhir. With his bleeding nose and bruises, and Mikora's only injuries being the nicks on her clothes, the fight seemed over. Yet Nazhir still bared his teeth. He curled his bloody fingers and clenched his fist. A furious hiss, and he swung again. Mikora's ears flicked forward. His bloodied hand flew at her muzzle. She threw an arm up to block.

Kali didn't know if it was her imagination or if the sickening crunch was real. That snapping, cracking bone, echoed in Kali's ears. It's like she was back at their house again. Watching Mikora fall off the roof.

The ear-splitting shriek from Mikora was real. as she clutched her arm.

Kali's breath came in short rasps—like someone had punched her in the gut again. It took her a moment to realize, to remember where she was, and see there wasn't blood on Mikora's clothes or fur. No splintered bone jutting out through a mangled, twisted arm. Mikora's arm wasn't broken. Her fingers still moved, twitched, as searing pain coursed up and down the arm she clutched against her chest.

Nazhir's ears perked, seeing Mikora recoil and curl around her arm. He scanned the surrounding planks, following the droplets of blood until he saw silver. He lunged for his knife.

Every hair on Kali's pelt bristled in alarm. “Rinzaan! Purse!"

Rinzaan's ears flicked. He reached in his pocket and fumbled his coin purse out, almost dropping it as shoved it into Kali's hands.

There wasn't time to think. Nazhir snatched the knife off the ground. Kali yanked a gold coin out of Rinzaan's purse. Clenched her fist around it. The hard corners bit into her palm. Nazhir leaped forward. The wicked point of his blade pointed towards Mikora.

Kali pitched the coin with everything she had. A golden dart that hurdled through the air. It hit the mark. A straight shot. The coin pelted Nazhir's right eye.

Nazhir roared in pain. His hand loosened, and he stumbled, but he didn't drop the knife. Kali dug her claws into the coin purse, as she hefted it. She took a step and lobbed it, too, throwing all of her shoulder and arm into it. All the strength she could muster, she packed into that purse. A far less grateful throw, as the half-open bag tumbled through the air and gold coins scattered in every direction. A jingling smack, as it struck Nazhir's hand and snapped open his fingers. The knife flew from his grasp again.

Nazhir clutched his hand. His furious eyes turned to Kali, and his lips peeled back with another blood curdling hiss. But Kali only grinned. Her bright white whiskers lifted with the cheeriest of smiles. The split second distraction was long enough. By the time Nazhir realized it, and he whipped his nose forward again, Mikora's fist was there to meet him.

Her good arm and knuckles took the lead, and slammed into Nazhir's jaw. With the pain subsided, Mikora clenched her once injured hand. Whatever ache remained didn't seem to matter, as she rammed her following punch into Nazhir's nose.

Sickening smacks, one after another, as Mikora pummeled Nazhir. Until, with one last hit, Nazhir's knees finally buckled under the weight of Mikora's fists. He collapsed. His lackeys, nowhere to be seen, scattered as soon as the sandy tides turned on Nazhir. They vanished into the various alleys, not a single hair left behind.

He was alone now. Beaten and bloody on the boardwalk. Just as Mikora promised he'd be.

Mikora lashed her tail. She shook out her hand, her injured arm, a couple times. Flexed her hand to get the feeling back into her fingers, as she usually did when she strained it. She picked up Nazhir's knife and tucked it into her pocket.

“I'll say this one more time. Never mess with my kitten," Mikora growled. “Or her friends. Got it?"

She didn't wait for an answer. She flipped her tail in front of Nazhir's nose, a sarcastic farewell, then she turned to Kali.

At first, Kali was relieved–elated, even. Mikora could still knock the nastiest cats flat on their tails. Maybe not as easily as she used to. Fights left more scuffs and cuts on her clothes and more bruises on her pelt than before. But, when the sand settled, Mikora was the last cat standing. Just like Kali remembered–how Kali knew her to be: her mom, an indomitable titan of the Benz.

Kali's relief didn't last for long. As soon as Mikora turned, Kali saw the subtle flicking of that titan's marble tail. The tip twitched. A result of suppressed frustration, anger, exasperation–that last modicum of motherly restraint slipping from her claws.

Mikora stared at Rinzaan, taking in his dark brown ears and face, his creamy pelt, and his long pointed muzzle. All the traits of a Dockside purebred. Then, as the last of Mikora's patience evaporated into the desert air, her chilling gaze settled back on Kali.

“Kals," Mikora said, her voice low. A tone that rang familiar in Kali's perked ears. A tone that was dangerous. Parental. “We need to talk. Now."

Kali chirped once. A slip of fear and surprise that made it past her lips. On her extensive list of all the potential mishaps, Kali hadn't thought to mark down 'Mikora' as an option. She thought they'd already passed that hurdle. Yet, here they were, facing Mikora's wrath—

No. This wasn't how their night was meant to end.

Kali set her hand on Rinzaan's arm. “Yeah, actually," she said. “We have to go."

Mikora took a step forward, her ears pinned and irritated fur bristling higher. “Kals."

Kali spun on her tail. She yanked Rinzaan's sleeve, dragging him after. “Run!"

“What? Again? But–"

“Just run!" Kali tugged harder on Rinzaan's arm. She pushed her tired legs into a brisk walk. Then faster, when she heard Mikora shout her name again. “Go, go, go!"

“Where?" Rinzaan stammered, as he picked up his feet. “Go where?"

“Away from here!"

“Kali!" Mikora bellowed. “Get back here!"

“Bye, Mikora! Talk later!" Kali shouted back. She didn't stop running. Not for a second. Her feet pounded on the boardwalk. And Rinzaan, hearing that same fury in Mikora's voice, rushed after her. No more questions. Just raggedly panting, as he tried to keep up with Kali–and get safely away from Mikora.

“Kalari!"

Kali folded down her ears. Whatever else Mikora shouted after them, she didn't hear. She imagined well enough everything that Mikora had to say. With more than a few toothy curses, a couple stars, and several 'Meres thrown in.