Whereabouts

The next day, Nini and Fonmi left their colony and went off to start searching for Ryne. But the question was, "Where is he now?" And that's why Nini decided it was best to go ask around for any piece of information. Cats were found all over the city, so there had to be someone who had an idea of where he was.

If only I had asked him before he left… said Nini in her head, recalling the time when the person was exiled, or rather, had exiled himself. I was such a fool!

Fonmi picked up on his mother's expression. "Mummy, why are you sad?"

Nini had to reassure her child that it was all right. "I'm not sad, Fonmi dear. I'm just… regretful."

"Regretful? What's that?"

"It's when you feel that there was something that you should have done before, but you didn't do it."

"Okay… So why didn't you do it?"

"I…" Nini was embarrassed by the piercing question. "I was young and didn't know any better."

Fonmi didn't quite understand the last part, but he didn't know what to ask to make it clearer, so he kept quiet after that.

They started their quest by making rounds to the other colonies of cats in the city, asking for any clues as to where their friend might be found.

While they did so, the two of them kept a lookout for any human who would possibly be like him. Nini wasn't quite sure if she would recognize him, as she barely remembered what she smelled or even saw back then as his human form. However, she believed that she would be able to do it if she was close enough to him.

If she found him, that is.

She didn't want to admit it to herself, but there was a small nagging feeling at the back of her mind that she may not be able to succeed. What if Hugma was right all along, and she was being a fool yet again?

But then, she would never know anything until she tried. She had already regretted her previous decision to not go with Ryne, and she won't stand to do it again. Not this time, when she had finally gathered the courage to make the other choice.

After some time of asking around, they came to the conclusion that Ryne was indeed outside of the city limits. There was no choice but to prepare themselves to venture into the unknown.

They made their way to the city's entrance. Despite being a more or less modern place of the sort, there was only one entrance and exit, as it was surrounded by a high wall.

The cats didn't care much about it, but to a human, living in this time, it would have been an unusual feature.

Many people, both human and cat, came and went through the place. Normally, the two felines wouldn't mind the foot and vehicle traffic as well as the noise that came with it, but a certain statement perked up their ears. Or at least, Nini's.

"Wait 'til you hear of the time I encountered this unusual human who has the scent of a cat…"

A human who smells like a cat…? Could it be? Nini thought.

The two quickly went to the source of the phrase. It could be the lead that they were looking for. Apparently, the one who had said it was a scruffy-looking tomcat with bushy dark brown fur. He didn't seem to be from the area and was telling stories to some other cats.

"Excuse me," said Nini, knowing that she may be interrupting the conversation they were having. "I would like to know more about this human… The one who has a cat's scent?"

"Ah! A lovely lady interested in my tale! Or should I say tail?" said the storyteller cat, waving his pride and joy of a tail.

"Please save the flirting for some other hapless female," answered Nini. "I don't mean to offend, but I only want to know more about this human you were talking about."

The cat gave a laugh and said, "I apologize. Please forgive me."

After the slight pause, he continued his story. "As I was saying earlier, yes, I have encountered a most unusual human in my travels. He had the scent, and attitude, mind you, of a cat."

"I met him while I was looking for a place to stay for the night. It was in one of the human homes where many of them gathered in one large place, quite a ways away from the city. I checked it to see if I could sneak in somewhere for some food. You know humans, they always leave delicious things in places we could reach, and yet, they're so territorial!"

At this point, he did a little pounce and started clawing the ground.

The storyteller found that he had gone slightly carried away in the wrong direction and steered it back to the topic at hand.

"Anyway, getting back to my encounter… I found that his window was open, so I took the chance and went in. Then I smelled it, the scent of a fellow feline! I was curious, and wanted to see if I could make negotiations with the one who could be my ally, so I followed it. It led me to a human, not a cat."

"This human with the raven-colored hair saw me and tried to drive me away, but to no avail. I was relentless and tried to engage him in conversation. I did not quite understand what he was telling me in response, but I felt that he understood me. In the end, he gave in to my pleadings and provided me with food and temporary shelter."

"He tried to act as if I was unwanted in that place, but I could tell that he had this inner compassion and could not just leave me to the mercy of the elements. The next day, I left with thanks."

Nini's feeling that the human this cat was describing was the person she was looking for grew. She decided to take it as a lead.

"Could you tell me how to get to this place? My son and I need to go there and see the human for ourselves," she said.

"Now, why is that? If you don't mind. I am curious."

"We've been looking for a friend of mine, but because of circumstances, he had to move out of the city. He may be that person we've been looking for. We need his help to solve a certain… problem." The other cat was a wanderer, so she felt that she didn't need to explain the situation in detail.

The other cat's yellow eyes lit up. "Hmm, if that's the case, I will be glad to lead you there. As an added apology for the offense I have made earlier, too."

Nini was overjoyed. "You will? Thank you… um, Sir…?"

"Prauza. My name is Prauza. Glad to meet you, Miss…?"

"Nini. This child with me is Fonmi."

"I see! Again, glad to meet you!" Prauza said. "Well then, shall we go?"