In the depths of the forest, Sem's group were all united together after having filled their stock of supplies, and the group were soon to set out to deliver their supplies to the village. As the two groups merged together, Sheila, Ania, and Yonka were relieved to see Sem's return. Ania and Yonka, the youngest pair of the group were a little more excited by his presence.
"Sem!" they each called out, as they ran up to Sem together with bright smiles on their faces, giggling happily.
Although they were much older than most one-tailed nekomata, that didn't stop their child-like nature from slipping by.
"Welcome back!" they called together, as they stood energetically in front of him.
Sem placed his hands on each of their heads with a big grin. "Say! How are my two surrogate daughters today?"
"We're great!" Yonka exclaimed.
"Yeah! We caught so much fish!" Ania announced ecstatically, "You should have seen Yonka before, she was so amazing! She even caught some out in the water!"
"Ahh, did some swimming did you?" Sem inquired cheerfully.
"Yep!" Yonka replied in a nod and a bright smile.
If someone were to see Yonka in the water, they would see her human-like hands paddling along with just her head sticking out of the water, occasionally dipping down to swoop up multiple fish at a time.
"Welcome back to the troop Sem! I see these two are as excited as ever to see you," Sheila said as she walked up from behind the two girls, "How's the little one back home?" she asked.
"Yeah! How's sissy Alena?!"
"How is she?! How is she?!" the twins Yonka and Ania followed.
Both twins were quite fond of Alena, but as Sem had left in a hurry, they too were left out of the loop.
"We had some troubles, but it's being taken care of as we speak," Sem explained, "We just got her started with her schooling, and I've left her with the best person for the task."
"You mean Master Ken?!" one of the twins exclaimed enthusiastically, "How is he?"
"All things considered, Kenrir seems to be doing well for himself," Sem answered, "He's as strong-willed as ever."
The twins seemed thrilled to have received an update on their old sensei, even though he hasn't used the title of 'master' in quite a long time.
"Sounds like she's in good hands," Sheila added.
Sem nodded, feeling a little more content.
"Well, shall we be off?" Malin asked everyone. They all agreed, and set off to deliver their run of supplies to the village.
When traveling a distance through the forest, a pair of eyes began scanning the area as one of the members' attention rose to concern.
"Something isn't right," Ulva spoke hesistantly, "Aren't there normally a bunch of cats around these parts?"
This brought the attention of the other members, as they began looking around in concern.
"You're absolutely right," Sem agreed, "This place is usually filled with them."
When the convoy came to a stop, Sheila spoke up, "Come to think of it, I haven't seen any cats for the last few miles," she added.
Malin, hearing these concerns, began scanning the area thoroughly. He looked up into the trees, and amongst all the foliage in the area around them.
"No, you're right. I thought nothing of it, but this stretch of forest has been — empty," he confirmed.
Ania and Yonka looked over into one another's eyes, realizing the same. They were bewildered. What had happened to the cats of the forest?
"Do you think something happened?" Sheila asked.
"I think we better report this when we get back to the village," Sem insisted, "This isn't something I'd feel comfortable leaving unannounced," he added.
The whole troop agreed, all nodding to Sem in approval.
"We should hurry," Ulva declared.
"Right then, let's go," Sem replied.
Sem wasn't only concerned for his troop with this discovery, but with the potential safety of the whole village, and his family most of all.
"Right!" the twins called back in sync, as their troop picked up the pace, doing everything to move their wagons along.
Running swiftly through the outskirts' forest, Variann was desperately making her way back to the temple side of the village.
As she fled through the forest, the whole of her surrounds were completely void of wildlife, as all the animals had scattered far from this portion of the forest.
She soon arrived at the temple grounds, and darted to the rear side of the dojo where her senses found him. Kenrir was still resting on the roof looking to the clouds when he heard Variann swiftly approach.
"Master Ken! We have a problem!" she cried. A serious need of haste carried in her voice, as a new threat was about to unfold.
Immediately, Kenrir stood up, ready to jump into action.
"What is it?" he inquired with conviction.
"Those beasts! They've returned! No one is safe!" Variann screamed back.
Kenrir's eyes grew tense with a sharp jump in his breath as silence fell on the scene.
Inside the dormitory, Alena was roaming the building, trying to find a spot where she could rest for the night. She listened for voices, as it was unclear where she would be staying.
As she wandered the halls, Alena stumbled upon two new faces, barely recognizing them from her time in the dojo. Elijah, who too was unfirmiliar with the present layout and was quite curious, followed along at Alena's feet.
"Hey! You're that new girl!"
It was Tika and Maulana, who were making their way back from Karra's dorm.
Tika came trotting over to Alena with pep in her step, as Maulana trailed a little more slowly behind her.
"It's so nice to meet you!" Tika exclaimed.
Alena was mildly surprised by this upbeat greeting, and Elijah brushed against the back of Alena's ankles, keeping behind her as he was unsure how to react to this sudden encounter.
Tika in her perky personality, tipped out her hip as she rested her hands over her chest with a slight twist in the knees as she gave her introduction.
"I'm Tika, and this here is my dormy Maulana!" she explained in an upbeat tone, "We've been studying under Kenrir sensei for a little more than a couple years now, and we entered into this academy together."
Alena barely even had a moment to process as she struggled to determine when it would be her moment to reply.
"You and your little kitty are so cute! What are your names?"
Alena hadn't expected to encounter anyone in the halls like this, and certainly not someone with such an extreme, perky personality. She held her paws close to her chest, feeling a bit nervous.
"Um, I'm Alena, and Elijah is my friend," there wasn't so much as a pause, "I'm sorry, but do you know where my room is?" she asked.
Tika was a bit surprised.
"You mean you weren't assigned a room? Didn't miss Variann show you in?" she asked.
Alena shook her head, not knowing who Tika was referring to. Tika looked back to Maulana, who met her eyes in equal confusion.
"Well that's alright!" Tika turned back to respond.
"You can stay in our room for the night," Maulana added kindly, "It's just a little down the hall."
Tika gave an exaggerated nod of agreement.
"Oh, okay. Thank you," Alena replied, bowing with a slight curtsy of appreciation as she has seen her mother do many times before.
For some reason, she was feeling a little shy, but she was grateful for the two girl's kindness. Most unexpectedly, Alena's paws were suddenly clutched as Tika reached out to spin Alena in the direction of their room, "Come on, it's this way!" she exclaimed, pulling Alena along with her as she ran down the hall. Elijah had to trample around in an effort to avoid being stepped on, as he and Maulana alike took off sprinting to keep up. Alena was certainly surprised.
As Tika, Maulana, Alena, and Elijah arrived in the girl's dorm, Tika showed Alena to her bed.
"You can use my bed for the night," Tika insisted kindly, "Maulana and I don't mind sharing one for just one night, so you don't have to worry."
Tika and Maulana sat down on her bed, and observed as Alena and Elijah climbed up to make themselves comfortable in Tika's bed. Alena, of course, was extremely grateful as she was getting quite tired.
"What do you think?" Tika asked.
"It's cozy," Alena answered, as she sat on it and bounced lightly before tucking herself in. "Are you sure this is okay?" she asked shyly for reassurance.
"Of course!" Tika proclaimed, as Maulana nodded quietly beside her, "Just under one condition!" she added, holding her index finger upward with her eyes closed triumphantly.
Alena, tucked under the covers, blinked at Tika curiously.
"You have to accept us as your friends!" Tika explained.
Alena was more than relieved. Her eyes lit up, and she nodded with a gentle smile in agreement along her reply, "'Kay."