<strong>King Leomedes<br/>Courtyard</strong><br/><br/>The king had been walking the halls. Even after he had finished his talk with General Oceloto, he just couldn’t force himself to return to the throne room. The paperwork part of diplomacy just wasn’t his thing. Therefore, he had handed the paper-signing duty to his Minister of Affairs. The halls were quiet with the light whisper of servants rushing from one area to the next. Most of the royal staff was busy making preparations, and for some odd reason, he felt fearful. He didn’t understand why he felt such an emotion. He should have been happy to see his kits become cats.<br/><br/>He closed his eyes as he passed beneath the rays that shown from the large windows of the corridor. One of the windows was cracked to permit a breeze, and on that breeze was a beautiful voice. The king stopped and straightened from his slightly hunched and thoughtful position. He recognized the voice immediately for there was no other Cat who bore such a melody. Unfortunately, not even his wife’s voice could compare to Servallatrix, his concubine.<br/><br/>The king smiled pleasantly. Her singing could wash all his worries away. He followed her voice to the courtyard and came across her small picnic to see her sitting there alone and enjoying herself made the king feel relieved and yet also sympathetic. He knew that if she wasn’t alone, more specifically, if she had been sharing a meal with another man, she would have seen a rage like no other.<br/><br/>She was so delicate. She was like an orchid singing in the spring as she blossomed. The armored lion stopped before her blanket, his arms crossed behind his back as his cape swept the pink and white petals that speckled the grass.<br/><br/>“May I join you?” the king asked. He knew he was a monarch, but he was also a gentleman.