Kingsley Farebrother

He who fears not the blade he wields has no right to wield that blade.

    Kingsley awoke to the unfamiliar sensation of a paw brushing against his cheek, the individual toes spreading and retracting gently in an attempt to nudge him out of dreaming. When his eyes finally opened and overcame the residual blurriness of sleep, he found a pair of emerald eyes staring back at him. It had been only a few days since his mother had visited the castle town of Kikka, bringing a small basket of baked goods from the village to her son, as well as this goofball of a feline Mana Beast. Shira cocked her head forty five degrees, not breaking eye contact with her new master for even a second. He had barely returned from the charity festival in Silva when his mother hoisted upon him the responsibility of raising this thing, a snow white kitten already the size of an adult cat but with none of the sense or patience.

    Shirafude, or Shira as he called her, had been left alone to die in the harsh wilderness of the Forsaken Realm by her own mother, no doubt in an attempt to secure food and safety for her other, stronger children. Kingsley was no magi zoologist, but even he could tell Shira was meant to be bigger. The proportions of her body seemed too lanky and lean, lacking the musculature associated with the lion-like Mana Beasts that were said to prowl the area where Shira was found. But what she lacked in physical strength she made up for in mana, wielding two elements one wouldn't normally associate with felines; water and ink. The cat's constantly wiggling tail looked as though it had been dipped in an inkwell, leaving a trail of ink wherever it went. This meant that Kingsley's bedsheets in the Purple Orca castle had been ruined beyond even the most skilled of housekeeper's abilities, and that he had to keep a small retainer of cleaning supplies in his room to keep it from getting worse. Still, it was a small price to pay compared to the love and affection the cat heaped on him when he returned to the castle.

    This morning however, Shira had awoken with the sunrise, and insisted that Kingsley do the same. Poking and prodding his face until he arose, Shira did her best to communicate her hunger to the young knight. The brunet's stomach felt much the same way, and he acquiesced, quickly wrapping one of his floral kimonos around his body and slipping on his sandals. It was his day off, and he didn't want to lace up his boots if he didn't have to. The other knights spend their time off visiting family, or training to reach new heights with their magical power, but the recent slew of missions had left Kingsley too exhausted to pursue either.

    The young mage held a hand out to his new feline companion, trying to imprint upon her the command 'stay'. He had yet to ask the Captain's permission about Shira staying at the castle, and wanted to approach the topic delicately. The daemon threat meant that Captains like Torvald were constantly busy, and interrupting an important meeting with a silly question felt like a good way to get assigned an awful task like cleaning the latrines. Gingerly closing the door to his bedroom behind him, Kingsley made his way to the kitchens downstairs, where he could whip up a quick meal for himself and Shira.

    The Purple Orca kitchens were amazing compared to the single coal stove of Kingsley's youth, though he had heard rumors that squads like the Golden Dawn and Silver Eagles had retainers on staff to do such menial tasks like cooking and cleaning for them. Decadence like that was unheard for the Common and Forsaken Realms, who had to construct meals through careful planning, budgeting, and foraging. Kingsley grabbed a cast iron pot, walking to the small pump that provided water to the kitchen, and giving it a few pushes to get enough for his meal. Shira had a predilection for hard-boiled eggs, an easy meal for a cooking novice like Kingsley. If he made enough of them, they could both have breakfast and no one in the castle would be any the wiser.

    Unbeknownst to the brunet, his new 'roommate' grew curious and impatient. Shira eyed the door with determination, calculating the best way to open the wooden barrier that separated her from the rest of the castle. It only took a single jump to apply her meager weight to the door, pushing it open enough for her to explore. So many curious scents wafted in the air around her, and her tail swished left to right in excitement. She followed her nose down the hallway, no longer content to wait for Kingsley to bring her breakfast in bed. With every step she took, a small dribbling of ink flew off her tail, leaving a bread crumb trail anyone could follow as the juvenile Mana Beast wandered off.