Chapter 22
TWENTY-TWO
Her eyes brightened, and the glow of flames strengthened.
Viale della Zitella
Vatican City
An older man dressed in jeans and a polo shirt entered the office, lowered a basket to the floor, and released a bunch of dark gray and black kittens.
The six balls of fluff mewed and squeaked, which drew the attention of all three carbunclo along with my hummingbird.
I worried Garnet might give herself whiplash, as she alternated between staring at the Yule cat kittens with wide eyes and casting desperate looks my way.
“You can go play with them,” I told her.
Garnet bounded over, and she joined the cacophony with mews and squeaks of her own, and Citrine followed in her wake.
My father needed to coax Peridot into joining the other carbunclo in meeting the tiny balls of fluff.
Tourmaline landed on my shoulder, preened, and kept a close eye on the new felines.
“Yule cats have no interest in hunting birds, Tourmaline.” Archbishop Kellan promised, and with a smile, he thanked the man for bringing the kittens and promised he would return the basket later.
“While they will eat chicken, hunting birds is beneath them. Every rare now and again, one will chase a mouse, but they have no interest in killing their prey, which has led to more than a few incidents of mice being released into the quarters of unsuspecting people. Yule cats tend to dislike killing prey despite being omnivores. Fortunately, they’re not obligate carnivores like most felines.
As they are cats, they have many ways of getting into trouble, but rather than hunt, they tend to play with each other, other species of cats, and uphold the legends that birthed them.
” He pointed at one of the kittens, one with more black than the rest. “Take her, for example. Once she is larger, she will steal pillows and relocate them at her whim, usually to where she wishes to sleep. In a perfect world, whomever adopts her will own many pillows and lure her into sharing their bed. Yule cats tend to fixate on a specific object.”
One by one, he pointed at the kittens, informing us of what each one preferred, including the kitten who offered clothes instead of stealing.
I cracked up at the little gray girl fixated on bras.
Erik shifted his weight in his seat, and given ten more minutes, he might begin whining in excitement much like the Yule cat kittens and carbunclo, who settled into the serious business of introductions.
I had no idea what the animals discussed, but I feared it involved the conquering of the entire planet.
My mother likewise struggled to behave herself, and unlike Erik, she wouldn’t whine: she’d scoop up kittens, rub the belly fur in her face, and implode over their wretched cuteness.
My father did his best to avoid eye contact with any of the beasts.
“That’s how you end up with more cats, Dad,” I warned him.
“The instant you fail to show proper interest and subservience, the mystical cat distribution system will activate, resulting in you having a house full of joy but lacking in money, as I’m sure the Yule cats will figure out how to attack your wallet with the same ferocity of a carbunclo. ”
“You’re cruising for a similar fate, little girl. I don’t see you struggling to contain your glee in the presence of the kittens.”
“I’m just a lot better at it than you.” I sniffed, lifted my chin, and refused to meet his gaze, although I kept an eye on Garnet, who was doing her best to befriend all the Yule cats. “Should my sweet little girl charm all the Yule cats, I’ll even let you come visit them.”
My father growled.
I smirked.
My mother laughed. “She won that round, darling. And anyway, this is more about the carbunclo at this point. It would be better for them if they have furry friends, and we all somehow managed to receive particularly social carbunclo.”
That we had; in many ways, we were fortunate that our girls could handle ventures with my parents without much in the way of drama. “Do Yule cats have an alternate form, Archbishop Kellan?”
The gold dragon chuckled and nodded. “They have a tangible and intangible form much like carbunclo, but Yule cats tend to manifest more as a cat spirit than a globe of light. They can also manipulate the world around them while intangible, much like carbunclo can. This allows them to uphold their holiday traditions. They do expect to attend the Midnight Mass, but I’m certain that condition of ownership will not prove to be a challenge for you.
They are not particularly keen on the rest of our ceremonies, but Midnight Mass is quite important to them. ”
I could understand why based on what little I knew of the Yule cats. “Are there any other households with Yule cats and carbunclo?”
“There are, yes. Yule cats make excellent companions for carbunclo, especially younger ones like yours, so we are often approached by dragons. It is just good fortune we had a litter here.” Archbishop Kellan pointed at one of the kittens.
“This litter has only one male in it, that little fellow. It seems the boys are quite taken with each other.”
Sure enough, Peridot and the male kitten were chirping and mewing at each other, content to sit together with their noses pressed together.
My father maintained his aloof demeanor while my mother did her best to sit still but struggled with the simple task.
Rolling my eyes over the drama, I got up, crouched down beside the two boys, and pointed at my mother.
“She needs the love only sweet little kittens can provide, and she’ll even tolerate you stealing her panties as long as you leave her a clean pair to wear. ”
Erik burst into laughter. “She is going to pay you back for that, Kinsley.”
“I really will, but she’s not wrong.” As I’d done the equivalent of let her off her leash, my mother went for the bait, scooped Peridot up in one hand and the male kitten in the other, and she rubbed her face against them both, went to her seat, and settled them both on her lap.
After engaging my father in a staring contest, she issued a faint growl.
In good news for my mother, the boys settled into grooming each other, content with their relocation.
“When there is a demand for a male Yule cat, we ask that the owner of the female take her to the male’s residence; female Yule cats can become quite territorial, often rejecting a male who doesn’t share her turf for an extended period of time.
Male Yule cats do not have such scruples and will happily invite females into their home for breeding purposes.
Males will help rear kittens should the female stick around for the birth, but often, the owner returns home with their female after pregnancy has been confirmed.
Yule cats have a gestation period of a hundred and thirty days, and complications are uncommon.
We do ask that the number and gender of all litters are reported along with the new household of any kittens, as we try to manage the species and keep them safe and secure.
Currently, there are fifteen thousand Yule cats, and our goal is to increase the population to twenty thousand within the next five years. ”
As Garnet and Citrine had settled with the remaining five kittens without anyone making a fuss, I made the decision all of them would be coming home with us to fill our home with furry feet padding around.
Instead of grief and violence, the former Merorie manor would become a place of renewal and joy.
“We’ll take them all,” I announced. “My father and mother will take the boy to keep Peridot company, and we’ll take the rest. The new manor will have plenty of space for the Yule cats, and if the cats wish to go to Midnight Mass, we will go to Midnight Mass.
That is not a problem. I will put aside some of the funds from the Holy Grail’s sale to help with the Yule cat breeding program as well.
If there are displaced Yule cats, please contact me.
That manor has enough space we could probably fit thousands of the cats and have plenty of space left over. ”
“I wish she was exaggerating, but she’s not,” my husband added with laughter in his voice.
“We’re going to be trying to help the carbunclo’s population, so adding Yule cats to our work isn’t going to break our hearts.
And if we can partner the Yule cat kittens with carbunclo kittens, we might be able to help both species. ”
One day, my heart might not break every time someone mentioned how carbunclo kittens struggled with adapting to their new households. “If the Vatican is all right with this arrangement, of course.”
“We are quite pleased with this arrangement. Your reputation preceded you, and I have no doubt your household will be excellent caretakers of the Yule cats. Also, should any cats need to be rescued, we’ll reach out.
It does, unfortunately, happen from time to time.
Yule cats tend to bond with their chosen human after they reach the age of two to three, and they do not take the death of their bonded human well.
They do better with other Yule cats in that case. ”
The poor babies. “I’ll keep a fund to help pay for transit costs and so on,” I promised. “It won’t be a problem to keep the girls all together?”
“It won’t be, although you’ll have to cope with a great deal of heartbreak in fifty or so years.
Litters kept together tend to pass away within a few months of each other.
They will bond with each other as much as they will bond with you and your partner.
We will also be able to accommodate the presence of the Yule cats, carbunclo, and your hummingbird for your marriage ceremony. ”