There was something about Skuld - there always had been - that warmed the heart and balmed the soul. The playful unconcernedness she held deeply within herself had the healing power of a child's laughter, and the comforting sensation of a caring lover.  Maleena flicked her ear in unconscious joy at the sight of Skuld rolling over with the skill of a cat and the silliness of a monkey. Miraculously, the feather remained undamaged in the process - but Skuld was a catgirl after all.<br/><br/>Maleena's long, slender legs carried her to the adjactant door, by which the floor was still ever-so-faintly dusted with the ash that had come off Skuld's paws. Without being invited, she entered Akira's room, finding this absolutely essential for figuring out more about him through sight and senses. She was pleased by the dominant color - a shade of natural, light green - fresh flower buds - that was pleasing to the eyes and calming on the mind. There was an flair spring about and the air was laced with a fresh scent, reminiscent of a waterfall or a small mountain spring.<br/><br/>The leftover indentations on the bed, outlining the general shape of Skuld's imprints, promised a soft underground. Maleena was sure that she'd soon find herself curled up on there, if she felt like it, with or without Akira in the bed. It was weird and silly of the humans to have only one sleeping place that they returned to every night. Eventually, humans got rusty and stiff from sleeping on the same underground and then they'd whine about back pains and stiff necks. Maleena had seen it mostly in the slightly older people who had owned her before, but also in the people from the orphanage. These same people had designed such a sleeping place for each of them and expected the cats to conform to this arrangement. Even Maleena and Skuld, together, had had a room and two beds (which they had indeed used for this or that private purpose and even for sleeping), and so did all the other cats - but things had regularly run havoc when it came to "bed time". The kittens slept when- and wherever they pleased - on sofas, tables, furniture, rugs and (mostly) each other, and barely in the places designed for that purpose. Some valued the feeling of privacy more, the others less. Maleena valued the private company of Skuld, so it was good that here they'd also have a room for themselves - plus, there was that thing about how Akira let her design it and that did make it a special place indeed.<br/><br/>But all things considered, they weren't going to conform to human standards and the bed would be<em>one </em>of Maleena's favorite sleeping places - but not the only one. And this bed in front of her would probably be another. She expected Skuld to conquer something higher up like a shelf or closet for this or that night, and the stairs didn't look bad, either. Some sun was to be expected from the windows for a lazy afternoon to roll in and here and there they could find a place that allowed closeness to the garden for gentle summer days.<br/><br/>Maleena gave a little sound - much like a "prrt" that rumbled in the back of her throat - and her tail swished past behind her. She thought of Skuld on the bed and breathed the enchanted scent of Akira. Her tail kept slowly beating behind her. She threw Skuld a long look - even with that feather tucked in like she was a native American on the hunt, she had something utterly appealing to herself. Not to mention the sweet sensation that Akira's scent as it was lingering in this room evoked in her. Her heart skipped a beat with excitement. There was something to be said about bad timing.