Daily Short: Kyo 14

“I didn’t think that would work,” Sene said as she strolled into the kitchen, looking worse for wear from her temporary captivity. Talos gave an eye roll from the breakfast table at the female catkin’s antics. Kyo used the opportunity to reallocate more bacon and sausage from his plate to her own. She’d grabbed a second helping when the last of the enemies were dead.

It was still hard for Kyo to resist free food, even now. Fortunately, Big Sis Nota had informed her that the chance of growing fat with her affinity to plants was non-existent. She didn’t know why but the large floating book had laughed diabolically.

Sometimes her Big Sis was weird that way.

“Let me guess. The plants ate whatever did that to you alive.” Talos said, his eyes narrowing as he moved to take a sausage from his plate. The scratching sound of a fork against bare porcelain sounded grating.

Sene strolled to the kitchen and started preparing her food. Within seconds Sene replied to Talos, “Correct. It was Kyo. Unless you suddenly gained the ability to do something like that, Talos?”

“The little munchkin’s been learning from a book and a brick,” Talos said, his fork flashing as he attempted to reclaim his sausage and bacon.

“A…what?” Sene said, almost burning herself as she started to cook.

Kyo’s eyes blazed green as her forks countered the larger male catkin. She grinned as vines stole more food from his plate simultaneously. “Book,” Kyo said, pointing at the giant floating book hovering asleep at the top of the kitchen ceiling. “Brick.” She said, pointing at the brick on her shoulder. With those two words, she flashed a cute smile at Talos.

The meat was hers!

“Where did the cute little kitten go?” Talos said with a deep sigh. “When did she start stooping so low to steal meat for her meal from a starving cook?”

Kyo ignored the pathetic attempt to gain pity. Pity was a luxury that couldn’t be extended for the bacon and the sausage. If she showed mercy, then the delicious foods would escape her grasp!

No mercy when regarding delicious foods! Kyo thought with finality. She almost felt like Mr. Clay agreed, even though he didn’t move.

Sene finished fixing her meal several minutes later but didn’t approach the table. She eyed the floating book above and the new passenger on Kyo’s left shoulder with suspicion. Kyo stared at the older woman’s plate piled high with sausage and bacon to no avail. Rather than approach and sit at the table, Sene started eating at the cooking counter.

“Drat!” Kyo said, realizing that none of the vines could strike quickly when the food was guarded.

“Both of you are so vicious. Denying and old and frail butcher any meat.” Talos said with tears as he buttered his toast and piled scrambled eggs.

“Suck it up, mercenary. That’s the life.” Sene said as her tail swished in victory. “So, where did the two new associates come from?”

Talos glanced at her and said, “Don’t know, don’t care. They are strong, and they don’t mean Kyo any harm. That’s all I need.”

Sene’s eyes widened as a fork with sausage paused halfway to her mouth. “I’m sorry, did the Butcher just call someone other than a Royal Guard, strong?”

Talos gave fierce warning glare at her before saying, “Arrogance kills faster than the strongest toxin. I have no problem admitting they are stronger than me.” He bit into his egg-butter-toast sandwich with a vengeance, daring Sene to say more.

Kyo looked up as Big Sis Nota floated down to hover at eye height with Sene.

Book and Lion’s wife looked at each other for several moments. They were tense minutes that Kyo spent stuffing more bacon and sausage into her mouth. Once she looked like an ecstatic gerbil with stuffed pouchy cheeks, the two finally spoke.

“Good morning. I’ll be Kyo’s teacher in the mystic arts.” Nota said politely.

Sene narrowed her eyes and said, “That won’t be necessary. There are plenty of loyal teachers that can advance her abilities.”

“That wasn’t a request,” Nota said, still very polite with a chilling edge now present in her words.

“If you think you can waltz in here and-” Sene’s words cut off as Nota and her vanished. Sene’s fork fell with a tinkling sound to the floor.

Talos looked agape, but Kyo wasted no time escaping her chair to steal Sene’s meat platter. Returning to the table, she looked at the meat platter and then at Talos. Finally, she shifted some of the meat to his plate with begrudging unwillingness.

“Cook,” Kyo said, acknowledging that she wouldn’t be able to eat it all and that the cook of her food required a small portion of meat.

Talos stared at the tiny portion of the heaping platter and sighed.

“At least you didn’t forget who makes the meals around here, munchkin.”