Chapter Thirty-Eight

Embracing Companionship

3rd POV

Sicily huffed painfully under her breath, her knees aching from where they were kneeling on the hard-surface floor, where she had been for nearly an hour now. Though that didn't compare to the way her small fingers burned as she continuously scrubbed the hard floor with an old, falling apart scrubbing brush that had obviously seen better days.

The particular stain she was dealing with was currently a huge pain to get rid of, for no matter how long and how hard she scrubbed, it stayed in place. The white haired girl was beginning to wonder if the stain was merely a part of the floor with how it just refused to budge, though it was only hopeful thinking considering the entire floor consisted of a light brown and this spot was a pitch black that seemed to mock her existence.

Swiping a hand across her sweaty forehead, where her eyebrows were scrunched in concentration and confusions, Sicily sat back on her ankles, slowly becoming frustrated. Though her anger didn't last long before she sighed in resignation, resuming her position on the hard floor as she went back to scrubbing. I'm in no position to become angry or irritated, she chastised herself sternly. I'm earning my keep, and if can't even clean away the spots on the floor, then all I'm going to end up doing is burdening my aunt by not helping her out with the cleanliness of the apartment… She provides so much for us… contributes way more… and all she asks of me is to do as she says. If I can't even do that then I don't deserve to be here, because then, all I would be doing is taking advantage of her.

Lifting her shoulders up with much more enthusiasm than before, Sicily put her entire weight on the scrub brush despite its poor condition, and used the power behind her weight to scrub the floor more sternly. Thankfully, after a couple minutes Sicily was finally starting to see some improvement; the dark of a void stain was now had about one third of the way gone.

The girl beamed at the improvement, the satisfaction giving her the energy and the strength to continue scrubbing. But before she could even get much farther getting rid of the monstrous stain, a high heeled foot stomped on her hands, halting any more improvement. Sicily squealed out in agony, the bones in her dainty hand rubbing awkwardly against one another, moving in ways they shouldn't as the weight intensified.

"You're still not done yet, you little whore," Amaya's asked disapprovingly, pressing her foot down more harshly to show the younger girl her displeasure with her slow pace.

This induced another pained squeak from Sicily's pink lips, the pain emitting from her hands felt as if Thor's hammer had been placed there, the heavy weight crushing her bones. (?)

"I'm sorry Aunt Amaya," Sicily whispered huskily, her head down and her throat feeling as if it were clogged up due to the pain and the slow build up of tears.

"Sorry is never good enough. I want this floor to be done by the end of the day, as well as the rest of your chores that you've been too lazy to complete; no exceptions. And since you've been spending so much unnecessary time scrubbing the floor, I expect to see my reflection by the time you're done, or else you'll be punished accordingly. Right now, I want you to actually be useful for once and get some groceries. And be sure to bring back a receipt, I need proof that you didn't decide to smuggle some of my hard earned cash away. Do you understand?"

"Yes Aunt Amaya," Sicily complied easily, letting out a soft sigh of relief as the older woman's foot finally released her hands. The imprints of her heal were already bruising into her fair skin, leaving behind a rather large and noticeable mark that looked exactly like a bottom of a high heel.

The older woman sneered at Sicily's meekness, before heading into the bathroom, finishing getting ready for wherever she was planning on going. By Sicily's guess, somewhere fancy or somewhere that provided entertainment considering she had on her high heels, a nice dress, and had her hair perfectly styled. Amaya had never dressed like that before (at least not during the time the white haired girl had been here) so it was very unusual to see the older woman all decked out.

I hope she has fun, wherever she's going, Sicily thought wistfully to herself.

She then wiped her hands along her dirty apron, before taking it off and grabbing the grocery list and a small stack of cash from the counter. After scanning the list, Sicily was already dreading the trip, for without a car, she would have to lug all this stuff all the way back to the apartment, which was a good couple miles away from the store. Last time she had gotten groceries, the plastic bag had ripped and she had spent a good couple hours having to figure out how she would get all the stuff home. After all, she only had two arms and could only hold so much.

Realizing that she was starting to inwardly complain about the trip, the blue eyed girl quickly scolded herself. You know better than to complain about something so… trivial; this is the least I can do for Aunt Amaya. Besides, it won't be so bad, this time I'll take my satchel; that'll carry any groceries that break through the bag so there won't be a repeat of last time.

Sicily nodded to herself in resolution at her plan, before pulling on her only jacket and some pants to hide the lingering marks on her skin. As she moved to the door, with her satchel hung over her shoulder, her aunt stepped out from the bathroom, sliding in expensive, jeweled earrings into her ear. She looked very beautiful, and while she was pretty woman before, the added glam made her appearance more stunning, and now she even looked like someone with a lot of dough lying around and with a lot of men drooling at her heels.

"You look very beautiful Aunt Amaya," Sicily compliment sincerely, offering the woman a wry, unsure smile when Amaya scowled in return.

"If you think compliments will get you a free pass from your chores, then you have another thing coming you little whore!" She spat, her dark eye glaring holes in the teenage girl's form.

"N-no! I was just-"

"I'd advise to not say another word, or else…" she let the threat hang in the air, smirking in satisfaction as Sicily shut her jaw closed, deferring to her aunt.

"I won't be back till late tonight, but don't think that just because I'll be gone all day that it means you can be a lazy ass and do whatever you want. Like I said, I expect everything completed when I get back, or there'll be hell to pay. Got it girl?" Amaya ordered, a deadly threat lingering in her beady eyes. The teenage girl instantly nodded hurriedly, her aunt rolling her eyes at the nervous but eager to please girl.

Amaya left the apartment without another word, and entering a car that was already parked in the front, while Sicily headed out towards the store.

Though instead of walking on the sidewalks, the white haired girl slipped into the multiple passages of alleyways, having figured out that there was a much quicker way to get to the grocery store using those said alleys. Usually Sicily wasn't one to go through them, for they were usually filled with territorial homeless, stray animals (including rats), muggers looking for a quick fix, and other stereotypical things that Sicily had soon learned to be true.

During the day, though, she found that they were usually always completely bare and totally safe. Much to her relief and her happiness.

Hiking her bag better onto her shoulder, the white haired girl slipped into another alley, grateful for the shade it provided, as it protected her from the suns hot rays that made her clothes almost unbearable to wear. It could always be worse, she reminded herself distinctly, humming a random tune to herself in order to take her mind off of the blistering heat that was raining down on her.

Tap. Tap.

Sicily momentarily stopped, her humming stopping as well as the sound echoed throughout the mostly quiet air, the sound being something she was unable to decipher. It sounded a bit like footsteps, or a small rock clanking against the ground, either way it had not been the result of her humming. Glancing around suspiciously, Sicily saw nothing except for a couple large-sized dumpsters and some trash on the ground. Sighing, she deiced to move along. I wonder what that was… I'm just being paranoid. I'm by myself in an alley with no one else around, of course it's going to be a little spooky and of course my mind is going to play little tricks on me. She shrugged, having convinced herself that it was simply her mind playing pranks on the rest of her body.

However the second she started walking again, Sicily stopped dead into her tracks, rooted to the ground as she felt something brush against her leg. Her head jerked down, expecting either a piece of trash had just flown on her leg or a rat resting on her shoe.

Though it proved to be neither as she came face to face with a… stray cat.

"Mmrooow," the cat purred huskily, rubbing its flank more firmly against her leg, its fluffy tail lightly wrapping around one of her calves.

Almost instantly Sicily smiled (a genuine, true smile) at the cat, lowering herself slowly to run a hand along the cat's greasy, matted back. Surprisingly, for a stray that is, the cat seemed to greatly enjoy the attention as it jumped in her lap and pressed itself against her belly, purring more loudly.

The cat wasn't the prettiest cat Sicily had ever seen; it obviously had been homeless for a long time. It was a normal, long haired, brown tabby (which was one of the most common cat breeds), with extremely matted fur (that it was almost impossible to run your fingers through its mane), an overly underweight body, and had greasy, dirty fur that felt as if it hadn't been washed for ages; though to be fair, it probably hasn't been. The only extraordinary thing about this cat was the elongated canines coming from its mouth, that reached just a little bit pass it's chin, and greatly resembled the look of a Saber-Toothed Tiger.

"Well hello little one," Sicily hummed, gingerly placing her arms more securely around the stray cat's body, hoping she wasn't pushing the boundaries of this lonesome cat, knowing that all cats had a boundary or bubble of some kind that was not to be pushed.

However the cat soaked up her attention like a sponge, and seemed to cuddle more into her arms, its paws and head resting on one of her shoulders as it used its claws to keep a hold onto her shirt. The teenager flinched a little as she felt the overgrown claws nick her skin, but she knew it wasn't purposely, so she ignored the pain in favor of scratching around the cat's neck.

"Oh, what am I going to do with you," she pondered aloud, her arms tightening even more (if that was even possible) around the cat she was already growing attached to. There was just something about this mangled stray that pulled on her heart strings, and having never had a pet of her own before (and yet always secretly wanting one), Sicily didn't have it in her heart to let the cat go.

What should I do, what should I do? I don't want to let the cat go, even if it's taking the little sweetheart to a shelter… but I know Amaya is not going to be too happy with me bringing home an animal. I'm already burdening her with being there myself, but bringing a cat into the picture… Sicily sighed, biting her lip. But… if I'm paying for the cat myself, and taking care of it myself, then maybe it will be okay…

Reluctantly picking the cat up and off her lap, the white haired girl stood up and she dug her hand into her satchel, finding a secret compartment where she had kept money she had earned and had put away for a rainy day. She had saved it up for the past couple years, and had about two hundred altogether, more than enough to at least get the essentials for the cat.

Sadly she wouldn't be able to get the cat a cat tree (for it would take up too much of the money she would need to buy more food and litter later on), and would only be able to buy a couple small toys, but she had just enough to keep her going for a little while. Eventually though, she would definitely need to find a way to earn more cash. Either way, the decision was already made in Sicily's mind.

"Well sweetheart, it looks like you're coming home with me." And as if the cat could understand her, it meowed loudly, seeming more excited that it had been a few moments earlier. "But first let's see about your gender so I can give you a proper name." The white haired girl checked under the body and found the cat to be a male, which suited it's rather masculine and warrior-like appearance.

"I'll have to think of a name for a while, for now you'll be riding in my bag. With how malnourished you are, I think walking as far as we are going is going to be too much of a strain on your body," Sicily told the tom as if he could understand her, grabbing the cat, who easily complied to her man-handling, and set him in her satchel. Sicily was immediately relieved to see that the tom cat appeared fine riding in the bag, for she knew she wouldn't be able to carry him in her arms all the way to the store and back.

As Sicily walked, she thought up of possible names for her new friend. I don't want to give him an overused name, like Socks, Shadow, or Mr. Whatever. It has to be somewhat original, and maybe something strong to suit his looks. Hmm… King would fit the power he already holds over me, Sicily smiled faintly at that, giving the stray tom a quick scratch under the chin. I also kind of like Shakespeare, though I have also really liked the title Czar, and I've always dreamt about a pet named Zoro when I was younger.

"Sicily?" A voice asked, breaking the white haired girl away her happy ponderings. Sicily glanced around, only to find none other than Natsume standing in front of her. He stood on the sidewalk in front of the alley that Sicily was just about to step out of with a cigarette hanging from his lips, his beautiful violet running over Sicily in a non-lecherous way; more like he was assessing if she was fine or not. He paused for a second on the mangled stray cat residing in her satchel but soon moved on, as if he had seen her with the animal a hundred times before.

"Natsume," she greeted softly, walking closer to the orange haired male and offering him a true smile, for her spirits were just too high at the moment to even fake happiness. She truly did feel happy at the moment.

The older man's eyes widened just a bit at the joyful grin she was sporting, surprised to see her in such a great mood because when he had first met her she seemed off; like something was wrong or she was in pain in some way. Though after a very brief moment, Natsume's eyes went back to its normal size, and he felt the corner of his lips twitching just a bit in the urge to smile back.

She really does have a beautiful smile, he thought faintly to himself, before lightly shaking his head at himself. I shouldn't be thinking about her this way, she's still a teenager, a high school student no less. It's inappropriate for someone my age.

"What are you up to?" Natsume asked in his usual neutral and blunt voice, using the conversation to cut off his thoughts before they got too far.

"I'm just heading to the store to pick up some groceries… And well, now cat supplies as well," she added sheepishly, a dusting of a cherry covering her cheeks.

"Did you just find him," he asked curiously, leaning forward and rubbing the cat around it's ears. As Sicily watched, she grew confused as the cat seemed to stare… indifferently at Natsume's petting, which was odd considering a few minutes ago he was purring up a storm just being the teenagers arms.

"Yeah, he sort of found me, and well… I grew attached," she continued softly, a smile grin curling at her lips.

"If you wouldn't mind, I could help you with picking out supplies for your new friend. I have a couple cats of my own back at my apartment," he offered, stepping back away from the cat as the tom only continued to stare at Natsume as if he was some peasant that had no authority to pet him.

Though the orange haired male didn't mind, from the sounds of it, it sounded like Sicily and this stray had imprinted on each other, and usually when that happens that cat will end up like one person and one person only: their imprint. So really, Natsume wasn't shocked to see the cat being so distant with him; if anything, he expected it.

"That would be great," Sicily gushed, her velvety voice causing her words to come out in more of a hummed tune, one that sounded soothing to Natsume's ears.

To be continued…

A/N: Just as promised, the next chapter of My Solace! I didn't want it to stop there but the chapter was getting too long. Also I'm planning on going through all my previous chapters and editing them, so there might be changes and longer chapters that weren't there before, just as heads up, and I will announce when each of them are edited so that you all can go back and re-read the changes if you would like (though they'll mostly be spelling and grammar errors I missed, though there will be added parts/scenes/moments for ridiculously short chapters).

EternalNosebleed (Guest): Like your name by the way lol, and yeah I've been feeling better, thank you! Please enjoy this chapter. :3

To misa241098: Yes I did, though I had that last chapter part way done for a long time; I got sick around the time I was close to finishing it, and struggled to get it done. But I've been feeling better recently, and so here you are! Hope you enjoy the chapter.

To Anshika: I'm glad you a got a true friend now, it sounded like before when you were friends with that boy something would happen and it would distress you, I hope this new friend is making you happier! My health has been better, I have no idea what caused the stomach thing, and for a while I had intense pains in my legs that it impossible even to move my foot, but I found that was because I had forgotten to take my ginkgo biloba (which helps with bad circulation) for a while, hence why I was having leg pains. Anyways I'm much better, thank you Nurse Anshika lol! See you soon, love ya too!

Yusuke- 36 votes

Masaomi- 21 votes

Natsume- 16 votes

Ukyo- 12 votes

Louis- 9 votes

Kaname- 9 votes

Hikaru- 7 votes

Azusa- 6 votes

Subaru- 6 votes

Fuuto- 6 votes

Iori- 2 votes