The Island of Wonder

When they got back to the Mother Hive, the victorious caravan split into three groups. The only two Narakai survivors returned to their base, the Bee soldiers went to the castle, and Nicole with her friends stopped at the same inn as before.

They gently carried Annie into their room and placed her on the bed. The girl had been sleeping the whole time since they left the Zanokai village behind. With the only bed occupied, they spent the night sleeping on the floor.

"I think it's best for me to go report to the Queen now," Nicole sighed in the morning. "Keep watch over her. If she wakes up, tell her that I will come soon. I don't know if she will freak out if she wakes up with only the two of you here." The catgirls nodded and Nicole left.

As she got to the throne room, the doorkeeper approached her. "Miss Nicole, Her Majesty currently has a meeting, but she said that if you come, you should go straight there. Her Majesty is in her personal chambers."

Hm, I wonder if the meeting has anything to do with the raid.

During the first few weeks of working there, Nicole learned the most important parts of the royal castle's layout, so she didn't have trouble getting to her destination. Standing in front of the grand door, she stopped for a few seconds.

Alright, I just hope it won't be a lecture about the losses among the soldiers.

She raised her hand to knock, but the voice from inside stopped her right before she did.

"Come in."

It was an unmistakably female voice, but through the closed door Nicole couldn't tell if it was the Queen or not. Obeying, she pushed the door open.

Inside, the big room was lavishly decorated with paintings on the walls, most depicting previous Queens. Rows of furniture stood along the walls, especially bookshelves. In the corner stood a grand bed. But Nicole's gaze darted to the two figures sitting at the small round table, with cups of steaming tea in front of them.

One of them was the Bee Queen in one of the dresses Nicole had presented to her earlier. The other was a blond-haired woman in her early thirties. She was sitting comfortably across from the Queen, comfortably enough that it would normally be considered rude. Her chair was slightly away from the table, one of the woman's high-heeled boots resting on the tabletop while the other leg was placed over the first one. She was wearing shining armor plates on her torso and limbs, with her lower half covered only by a leather skirt. The skirt was held up by a belt to which as many dagger sheaths as possible were attached. It looked like a second, strange, segmented skirt. The woman's bushy blond wolf tail swayed lazily from side to side. Nicole was stunned and didn't know what to do or say.

The woman chewed on a small bone that stuck from her lips like a cigarette. "So that's the girl?" she asked, looking Nicole up and down.

"Yes," the Queen replied calmly. "The one who started the whole thing."

In a blink, the Narakai woman stood up and got close to Nicole. She was taller and had to lean forward to bring their faces to the same level. The woman placed one arm on Nicole's shoulder as she invaded her personal space, studying Nicole's face up close with interest and a smirk.

What the?

Nicole pushed the arm off her shoulder. "Don't touch me. I came to report to the Queen," she snapped. After everything that happened, she was too tired, both emotionally and physically.

The girl's gesture and dismissive tone made the woman grin, showing the big canines. "Oh, I like you already, ha! But sure, that's why you are here, so go on. I want to hear this too." The woman was still close to Nicole's face, enough for the girl to see her own reflection in the Narakai's black eyes.

The Queen was sipping her tea. "Stop wasting my time. And the girl is still officially hired by me, don't forget that."

The Narakai woman's wolf ears twitched, annoyed, as she nonchalantly got back to her chair. "You are such a bore, Varoria!"

"I actually have to rule over my tribe, unlike some," the Bee Queen cut in before looking back at Nicole. "My soldiers were occupied by the fighting, so I want to hear more about what you did there."

After gathering her thoughts, Nicole explained everything that happened during the raid — mostly about the fight with the elder, the horrifying building, and the appearance of the Lamia.

"The main thing that worries me is that she somehow knew about me. That Annie and I are humans," she concluded the report.

"So the third division was slaughtered by some Pigs and a fucking snake, then got basically nothing?" the Narakai woman frowned. Her fingers slid around one of the daggers on her waist and Nicole felt the room getting colder. For a second, she could have sworn she saw barely visible white steam as she breathed. The woman continued. "Maybe I should go hunt the bitch."

"Lortia, you are making my tea cold," Varoria scolded.

"My bad." The Narakai woman said, and the temperature slowly started returning to normal.

Great. Now I got confirmation that she is the Narakai Queen. This is a great chance to get on her good side.

"Your Majesty," Nicole addressed Varoria. "What about holding a small celebration of the victory? I can teach your cooks how to make dishes you've never seen before. This could raise the soldiers' morale, after all some of their friends died not long ago."

"Sure," Lortia answered before the leader of the Bee tribe could say anything. "Impress me and I will reward you… Let's say, I will let you keep your Krellip with you."

Fuck, I hoped to ask her about this after the celebration. She seems like the type to get drunk at parties. It could be easier than having to impress her. Ugh.

Varoria sighed. "Fine. You have three days to prepare. You may leave now."

"Hey, and before you go." Lortia stopped Nicole. "I have a request. A Queen needs fitting clothes for the grand banquet. I need you to make me something that could fit with my armor, be comfortable to move in, and still look hotter than the Teq's Desert."

Don't think I have an option to refuse, hah.

"Of course. I will try my best to make something that will perfectly suit you, though it may take a few days." Nicole bowed and left.

Great, even more work. Goodbye sleep.

Not leaving the castle yet, Nicole went to the science lab to let Mizirim know she was back and that she wouldn't be able to continue the work for a few more days, since she was responsible for making meals for the celebration.

"Yet there is good news too. My friend is saved, kind of. When she feels better, I am sure she will love to work with you."

"I hope so." The old Bee wasn't happy about losing the assistant for three more days.

On her way back to the inn, Nicole went to the market and bought some Pietus dust, her own reserves depleted by the wounds she got during the raid. Her palms were still not fully recovered, wrapped in bandages for protection. When she got into the room, Nicole took the bandages off and applied a layer of the healing dust. A light cough made her look around. Glancing at Soi and then Iloe and seeing neither of them coughing, Nicole jumped to the side of the bed.

Annie was looking at the ceiling with hazy, half-lidded eyes. At the commotion, the girl turned her head slightly to the side.

"A-Annie, you finally woke up?" Nicole's voice trembled with worry.

The black-haired girl slowly blinked a few times, frowning. Her eyes studied Nicole's face for a second or two. "Nicole? Is that you?" Annie's voice was light and just a notch above a whisper. "What happened to you? Your eye…"

"Don't worry about it for now. Are you hungry? You look like you need food." Nicole tossed Soi a coin. "Go downstairs and buy some fruits or whatever."

With a nod, the catgirl rushed out of the room.

"How do you feel?" Nicole asked, holding Annie's thin hand encased in her own. "Does anything hurt?"

"Hey… It's usually my job to worry about you." Annie smiled softly. "I am alright, mostly. Just a bit weak. Give me a few days." She coughed again.

"Good. Good." Nicole bit her lip. "I am so glad to finally talk to you again."

"I missed you too."

Nicole couldn't resist hugging her friend, remembering to be careful not to hurt Annie accidentally. Soi came back with a basket of fruits that Nicole cut up for Annie.

"Eat and get some sleep. We can catch up later, when you feel better."

The next couple of days flashed by. Occupied with making food from Earth, or at least replicating it as closely as possible, Nicole had a break from thinking about Annie and the future. At first the chefs and cooks at the castle weren't happy about the incoming feast, but after trying out some of Nicole's ideas, they quickly got to work.

After everyone came back from the raid, Nicole didn't see or hear from Jerar. She remembered the promise, but with Lortia present, she realized the general might have no time for that.

Soi and Iloe were taking turns staying in the room and looking after Annie. The first day after Annie woke up, both catgirls were still there when Nicole left.

"You two are Nicole's friends? Thank you for looking after her." Annie smiled at the two.

Soi smirked. "She is looking after us as well."

"B-But I am curious about o-one thing." Iloe licked her lips. "You two knew each other before getting here, right? Are you two just friends or… more? Nicole told us that on Earth the difference is bigger than here." The catgirl was messing with her alchemy ingredients, trying to appear casual about the topic, yet her tail betrayed her nervousness.

"No, no." Annie chuckled. "We never were anything more than friends. What, were you afraid of me stealing all her attention?"

"I-I…" Iloe blushed, something that rarely happened lately, she thought she had gotten over it by now. "M-Maybe…?"

Soi playfully jabbed her. "Oh, come on! You already admitted that you love her, and that was a while ago. You got back to being a shy kitten or what?"

"Hey! It's one thing with you and her, and another with someone Nicole calls her closest relative, even if not blood-related! That's like a sister, no?"

"Eh, whatever." Soi shrugged, then looked at Annie with a spark in her eyes. "But now that I think about it, you said you and Nicole are only friends… And from what I understand about your experiences on the island, you are not close with anyone…"

"I know where you are going." Annie sighed softly, then coughed. "Sorry, but not now. Back on Earth, I would kill for a chance to fool around with a real catgirl. But right now I need to get back on track first."

Both Soi and Iloe were puzzled. "Back on Earth? Nicole never mentioned that you guys had catgirls there. She said there were only humans."

"Yes, that's true." Annie nodded, her eyes lighting up. "Back there this is called fiction. Made-up stories. And there are not only catgirls. All races from the tribes and even more. Animals that don't exist, magic, time travel…" She had to stop to slow down. "Also, humans on Earth have movies and anime! It's like, imagine a picture of anything and then another picture that shows what happens one second later than the previous picture. Then one more and more. In the end, if you connect all the pictures together, it will look like a story!"

The blast of information left the poor catgirls with fried brains. They tried to imagine and understand everything Annie said, but both failed.

Looking at them, Annie facepalmed. "I am sorry! I have a bit of a habit of yapping about stuff I love and ended up only confusing you." She pulled the blanket over her head and turned away, running from the consequences of her passionate talk.

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