From: smccoy@dw3g.ess.harris.com (Scott McCoy)
Newsgroups: alt.romance.chat
Subject: CASTLE: Tz'u meets Lady Elaine...
Keywords: castle, tzu
Date: 12 Sep 92 15:08:16 GMT
Reply-To: smccoy@dw3g.ess.harris.com (Scott McCoy)
Organization: Harris Corporation Information Systems Division

The sun was already high in the morning sky when Tz'u awoke.  He stood
up, put his front legs out, shifted his weight back, and gave himself
one of the wonderfully slow full body stretches, all the way to his
tail, that only Cats seem to be able to do.  He followed up the stretch
with a jaw popping, tongue curling yawn!  Blinking, he began to work
his way down from the beam.  He ached in a few new places, courtesy of
that little episode in the forest the previous night.

The Cat headed for the front gate, to make sure the guards who had
surely made a sweep of the forest were back and un-hurt from the wild
goose chase he had sent them on.  The guard sergeant was on duty.

"Good morning!", Tz'u said.

The sergeant jumped at the sound of the voice, then looked around.
Finally, he spotted Tz'u sitting at his feet.

"Good morning!", Tz'u repeated.

The sergeant's eyes widened, but then he remembered that the guard of
the previous night had mentioned a talking Cat.  He got a grip on
himself (after all, he *was* a sergeant!).

"Good morning to you, sir!", said the sergeant.

"Sergeant, has this morning's patrol of the forest returned?"

"Yes, sir, and found nothing.", said the sergeant.

"Well, perhaps it was some wild animal, and it's run off now", Tz'u
ventured.

"Could be, m'lord, at least that's what Lady Elaine thinks."

"Lady Elaine?  I do not believe I have met her.  Where is she?"

"Out in the forest, m'lord.  She went looking for the creature that
screamed.", said the sergeant.

Tz'u tried not to look concerned.  "Will she be alright?"

The sergeant just snorted.  "Lady Elaine can take care of herself,
especially with animals...er...no offense, sir."

"None meant, none taken.  Hmmmm.  Thank you, sergeant."

Tz'u turned and padded back into the castle.  He was worried.  He hoped
Lady Elaine would be back soon.  Then his stomach growled.  If there
was one thing that made worrying worse, he thought, it was an empty
stomach.

Tz'u headed to the kitchen.  One of the kitchen girls heated some food
left over from the night before, and he ate in silence on the wide
mantle over the fire.

He was stilling lying on the mantle, head laying on his front paws,
worried, when Lady Elaine came in.  He didn't notice.

She spotted the strange Cat right away.  Her search of the forest had
been uneventful and unfruitful, for she had not found the source of
that soul-wrenching scream.  Anyway, as when she had spotted the Cat in
the beams the night before, she realized that the Cat was not thinking
"cat" thoughts.

"I hope you enjoyed the food", Lady Elaine said.

Tz'u looked up with a start!  Sheesh, he berated himself, a little food
in your belly and a warm place to lay and you go completely oblivious!
He looked into her warm, soft eyes, framed by her dark flowing hair.

"It was excellent, m'lady.  Thank you.  I am Tz'u, a Seeker."

"I am the Lady Elaine", she said, still not able to figure out just
*what* he was.

"Ah.  That's a relief.  I am glad you are back unharmed."  Tz'u said,
then realized that he had said more than he meant to.

"Unharmed?  Why should I be?  I am at home in the forest", said Lady
Elaine, now sensing his confusion.  "Just *what* are you, Tz'u?", she
demanded.

Tz'u sighed.  As he started to make up a story to divert the woman's
curiousity, he looked into her eyes again.  The concern and compassion
shown through, even though her eyes flashed.  The lie died in his
throat.

"M'lady, I am a minion of the Goddess.  A long time ago, the Goddess
came to me and told me that she had need of my services.  That in the
fight between good and evil, I had some role to play.  I was a young
man, rich and powerful.  But I was not happy.  The Goddess promised,
that as payment for my help, she would...well...make me whole.  I have
lived many lifetimes in the quests the Goddess has sent me on, and
taken many forms.  This is merely the latest.  I have been a Cat and in
this land for many years.  I advise those who will heed it, I dissuade
those who waver when considering evil, and I fight those who do not."

"Then it was you last night, who caused someone or something to make
that terrible scream?", Lady Elaine pressed, still concerned that if
someTHING which could cause that kind of pain were in the CASTLE...

Tz'u just sighed again.  "Yes, m'lady, and no."

The Lady gave him that *look*.

Why do women always do that, he thought.  And why couldn't he?
Everytime he tried that look, women just giggled.  Oops, he realized,
he was woolgathering.

"It was I who screamed last night, Lady Elaine.  No one else."

Her eyes softened.  "You?!?!  Are you hurt?", she asked.

"No, m'lady, other than a few bruises on this old body, I am fine.  The
cry was from remembered anguish, not pain."  Some of that anguish
reflected in his eyes, still.  A small voice in the back of his head
was amazed that he had opened up to this woman.  He quickly silenced
the voice.  Everybody's a critic, he thought.

Lady Elaine paused in thought.  She finally had gotten a clear
impression from him.  She knew that he was Good, but she could also
feel the still emptiness in the well of his soul.  She wondered why the
Goddess would use a person whose soul was so, so quiet.  Quiet like a
tomb.

She realized Tz'u was still looking at her.  She said "Come here."  She
reached up and opened her arms to him.

Tz'u jumped gently down (that little voice was back, saying something
incredulous) into her arms, and quickly scrambled up around her neck,
laying there like a silver, furry collar.

She reached up to his face, and began to scratch under his chin.

*scritch*  *scritch*  *scritch*

OOOOHHHHHH, she knew about that spot!  He shivered, then...

Pppppppppuuuuuuuuuuuuuuurrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!

Lady Elaine smiled.  The purr rumbled through the Cat, and tickled her
neck.  Then she giggled when she glanced down at his feet...his toes
were curled!  I knew that would help, she thought.  Actually, his
reaction embarassed her a little.

Finally, she slowly bent down over the table, and Tz'u jumped off.

"Thank you, m'lady, I needed that!", Tz'u said, his eyes a bit glazed
and his knees a little wobbly.

"You are welcome, Tz'u.  I have a question.  If you have been in our
land for many years, why did you not assist in the battle with the Dark
One?"

"I have heard of the battle with the Dark One, and rejoice that you
were able to defeat him.  However, I do not have a good answer, Lady.
I was last in the far south.  The people there were wonderful, but 
needed wisdom.  They already worshiped cats, so when I presented myself 
to their king...well, they thought me a messenger of the gods.  I 
helped them stablize their crops, and tried to get them to free their 
slaves.  When I heard that the Dark One was once again upon the North, 
I immediately headed this way.  But the Goddess did not aid my journey, 
so it took many seasons for me to get here."

The Lady Elaine pondered this for a moment.  "Well, I guess only the
Goddess knows why.  Now," she said, "I must do something about the
feast tonight."

Tz'u looked at her.  That's one of the things amazes me about women, he
thought. They can be so *practical*!  He sighed again, but kept it to
himself.  One of these days, Goddess, he thought, I can be whole, you
will make me into a man again, and I *will* love a woman.  Which
reminded him, he needed to talk to Goddess, to get her to explain last
night.  It had been a long time since the ManLion had appeared...

"I must leave for a while, Lady.  I have some business to attend to."
Tz'u said.

She looked up from deep in thought.  "Will you be back in time for the
feast?"

"I do not know", he said, "but I will try."  Tz'u jumped from the
table, and headed out of the kitchen.  Just as he reached the door,
Lady Elaine called softly out to him: "Tz'u, no more screams, please?"

He paused. "If it were up to me, m'lady, you would have my guarantee.
But I will pass along your request to the Goddess."  He turned and
disappeared from her view.

Lady Elaine stared after him, for a long while...
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