Jellices Empire's Capital

Royal Palace

The General of Jellices apartment

"Dem"

"Demeter" Bombalaurina was looking at her sleeping daughter and was trying to wake up her.

"come on, sweaty" she said "the day is come"

Demeter suddenly opened her eyes... the day.

"come on, sweaty ,you have to dress up properly" her mother said, kissing her forehead.

She was Demeter, daughter of Bombalaurina The Scarlet Rose of the Jellicles and Admetus the General of the Jellicles, one of the closest friends of their Emperor and their High Adviser.

She was the Chosen one.

She sat up on her bad and her father walked into her chamber.

"Hi, girls" he said smiling at them

"the High Priestess is waiting for you, darling" he stroked his daughter head's fur.

Demeter suddenly stud up and walked to her bathroom.

She washed her face, feeling the cold water on her face.

When she come back into her chamber her mother was putting a silk, soft, peach pink dress on her bed.

Bomba smiled at her and helped her daughter to dress up.

The soft silk flowed on her black and gold fur, the dress had a deep neckline which showed her white fur.

It was closed on her shoulder by two gold lily brooches.

Her mother nudged her cheek and brushed her head fur

After less than one hour she was ready to go to the High Priestess Cassandra.

Her father smiled at her when she and her mother come into the living room of their apartment in the Royal Palace.

"you are beautiful" he said coming near them

He gave his arm to his mate and led them out.

Outside two identical twins were waiting.

They were black and gray, with handsome and impenetrable faces.

"sorry for make you waiting so much" Demeter said to them

The female gazed her with her strange look, then she smiled

"no need to be, noble Demeter" she kindly replied

"can we go?" asked Admetus

The twins nodded and start to led them in the hallway.

Demeter follow her parents and the twins feeling her stomach becoming more and more knotted

She was the Chosen one, she had to mate the High Prince, the Jellicle's Protector, and she will one day succeed to Empress Grizabella when their Leader will become too tired to keep reign.

She had shivers at that idea.

When they raced the Temple of the Everlasting Cat, a very little black kit, with white legs run out of it.

"Misto come back right now" said a calm female voice from inside.

Demeter smiled to the little kit and grabbed him.

"stop here, Mister" she said nuzzling him.

He has to be two or three years old and looked at her with sparkling blue eyes.

A beautiful young queen, with a brown and gold fur, come out from the temple.

All of them bowed at her, Demeter still holding the little kit.

"High Priestess" said Tantomille, the female twin "the Chosen one is here"

Cassandra looked at them, a smile come onto her face when she saw Demeter with the kit in her arms.

"so there you are" she said coming near.

She take the little boy, her son, in her own arms and looked into Demeter emerald eyes, for a long moment.

"you have a pure heart, Chosen" she finally said

"we are lucky that you will be our High Princess" she said walking back to the Temple's doors where a black and white tom was waiting.

Demeter looked at him.

He was Alonzo, the Second in Command after the High Prince, his cousin, and was Cassandra's mate.

"follow us" Cassandra said looking at Demeter's group from beside Alonzo.

They walked into the temple towards a little chamber with some sofas and four braziers, one in each corner.

"please make yourself at home" she said while the twins went to fire the braziers.

"Demeter will you come with me?" Cassandra said passing her son to Alonzo.

The tom picked his son into his arms and gently kissed his mate.

"come" Cassandra smiled at Demetra

Demetre followed the Priestess into another smaller chamber.

Like the rest of the temple the wall were cream, but here the drape on the walls were salmon pink rather than gold.

"please take a chair" Cassandra said sitting in a iron made armchair in front of a little table.

Demeter sit into the armchair in front of the High Priestess.

Cassandra poured some tea into two cup, and offered one to her.

Demeter smiled and took it. The sweet scent of mint tickled her nose

"How are you feeling?" asked the Priestess

Demeter looked down

"a little shake, but I think I could handle with that" she said

Cassandra smiled and Demeter felt suddenly better

"it's normal" she said "I remember when I and Alonzo become mate, I was completely scared"

Demeter looked at her in surprise, the High Priestess scared?

"but you were already the High Priestess when you mated Alonzo" she said

Then she bit her lip, it wasn't polite.

But Cassandra laughed, to her most relief.

"oh dear" she said "I was already the High Priestess, but why this could help me to not be afraid?" she asked

Demeter didn't know what to said, she always thought that Cassandra was a fearless creature.

"I was afraid because I love deeply my mate" said the Priestess "and I was scared that something could go wrong and I couldn't be with him that night"

Demeter blushed at the last sentence.

"you are in love with him, aren't you?" she heard the Priestess asked

"yes" she replied looking into her tea

"and he loves you, no?"

"yes, I guess he does" Demeter said with a dreaming smile.

She remembered when they first met, or at least when they first met not being kitten anymore.

It was during the last ball, he was performing his duty as protector and story teller when their eyes met.

He almost forgot to go on into his song and if it wasn't for his brother who take the next line, the novel would be ended too soon.

After that he managed somehow to regain his concentration and finished the song along with his brother.

After this he was kidding by his brother for a long time.

"so what is troubling you?" Cassandra asked

"I..." Demeter said "I don't know if I'm on a level with..."

she took a deep breath "with be the High Princess" she almost whispered

Cassandra didn't replied right

Demeter looked up at her and met her amazing eyes, now they were sparkling blue.

"you have a kind heart, you could sense good in people and help them to bring it up" Cassandra started

"you know why you are the Chosen?" she asked

Demeter shook her head, she didn't know.

All she was told was that she had to be the mate of their prince since she was born.

But she and the prince discovered their identity as future mates after they fell in love with each other.

"because you, Demeter, daughter of the Scarlet Rose and the General, has a Everlasting Cat's gift"

Cassandra said

Demeter could not help but starring at her with her mouth open.

"what?" she asked "I...I haven't any gift" she protested

"you have, my dear" smiled Cassandra

The High Priestess drank some of her tea

"do you think that helping the other to be themselves and to be good was a thing that every Jellicle was able to do?" she asked

Demeter shook her head, now a little more self confident

"good" Cassandra said "now we have to talk about your duty as High Princess"

They talked for almost one hour and then finally Demeter was able to enjoy completely her day.

After the chat with her, Cassandra dressed into her High Priestess tunic and all of them go back to the Royal Palace, where the mating ceremony had to take place.