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“Yo, you’re the kid that’s been collecting them shiny hourglass things, right?”
Bow looked up from her Metro map at the tough looking, but also still very cute cat who’d approached her. “Yep, that’s me. You know where another one is?” She’d only found three so far due to how twisty and large the Metro was as well all the cool stuff and cute kitties that kept distracting her so a tip on where another one was would be welcome.
“No. The Empress wants to talk to you. Come with me.” With that they turned around and started walking away, seeming indifferent about whether or not Bow actually followed. She had scrambled to do so. Based off the hushed whispers of the cats that liked like to hang around the food stands and share gossip the Empress seemed to be the head of a very powerful gang. And thus not a good person to piss off by refusing to meet or being late to doing so. Also, who could possibly say ‘no’ to a chance to meet the leader of a powerful cat gang?
~
Turns out the Empress ran a jewelry shop, likely as a front for her gang stuff. Right away before she’d even said a word, she had an air of poise and badassery about her that made Bow automatically like her. And there was a Time Piece on her on desk.
“I need that,” Bow said as she stepped forward, pointing at it.
The Empress glared down at her but she didn’t speak until the cat who’d brought Bow here finished leaving, closing the door behind them. “It’s mine.”
“But… okay.” Bow didn’t want to start off on a bad foot with someone as cool as the Empress. Given enough time perhaps she could get it without conflict. If not, sneaking in and stealing it later was always an option now that she knew where it was. “You wanted to see me?”
“Yes, I did. It’s about this.” She put one clawed finger on top of the Time Piece. “From what I’ve heard, you’ve got a reliable way of tracking these down. So before someone else tries to pull you in or force you to work for them, I’d like to make a deal. You get me more of these and I’ll make sure good things come your way. And if you prove yourself worthy, I’ll let you join the Nyakuza and all the benefits it provides shall be yours as well.”
Bow should say no, she needed the Time Pieces to fuel her ship so she could go back home. But… a cat gang, she could join a cat gang. Could she really say ‘no’ to such an opportunity? Gangs were fun and cats were great and… a cat gang! “Yes, I’ll do it!”
The Empress looked pleased. “Very good.”
A few months later
Deciding to pull Bow into the gang was one of the best moves the Empress had made in a while. Being so small and cute but also tough and resilient made her perfect for many jobs, far beyond just collecting Time Pieces. And despite not being afraid of the Empress she still seemed to want to please her. It had been annoying at first but now the Empress couldn’t help but find it endearing. There was just one problem with her…
“I need the Time Pieces in the vault. I don’t have enough fuel in my ship to return home without them. So can I please have them?”
“Still no.” The Empress glared down at Bow, standing before her and utterly unafraid as always. If it were anyone other than Bow trying such a thing, they’d have paid dearly. “How many times are you going to ask before you accept that it’s not going to happen? A deal’s a deal, you got those Time Pieces for me, they’re mine now.”
“Yeah but… they were mine first. So I’ll keep asking until you give them to me. I know you will eventually because you like me and it’s the right thing to do.”
The Empress hissed as she turned away. She wasn’t going to bother denying it though, everyone knew she’d grown a soft spot for Bow. She wasn’t going to give up the Time Pieces though… probably.
Another month or so later
“Why do you even want to return home?” the Empress asked as Bow invited herself into her office to ask for the Time Pieces again. Apparently, the Empress just knew when she was coming in to ask about that now, though to be fair she came in like once a week to do so. “You seem happy here so why do you want to leave?”
“Because I…” Bow trailed off because… why did she want to go home? She was part of a cat gang and it was awesome, why did she want to leave? “I don’t know, going home was just always the goal.” She’d been putting it off though, using the Empress’ refusal to return the Time Pieces as an excuse. She could’ve easily broken into the vault and stolen them at almost any time. She probably could’ve even gotten out of there and back to the ship and headed home before anyone knew she’d stolen them. She would’ve been fully within her rights to do so too since they were hers. But… she was still here. “I… don’t even have a family to go back to so… I really don’t know.”
The Empress raised an eyebrow. “Really?”
“Uh, yeah I’m an orphan. I have a friend but she’s probably off on her own adventure by now and probably wouldn’t be there when I got back. So… I guess I don’t really have a reason to go back home, huh?” Why had it taken her so long to finally realize that? It was a rather depressing thought though, wasn’t it? Because it was home, she should want to go back, right?
“Well, that’s settled then. You’re staying here as part of my gang and you’ll finally stop asking for the Time Pieces.”
“I uh… all right.” Being part of a cat gang was pretty awesome. So… actually this was better than home anyway. Still though… “Thanks.”
“You’re welcome.”
A week or so later
“Wait, you’re really making me second in command of the whole gang?” Bow’s eyes sparkled with excitement as she looked up at the Empress, the exact kind of response she was hoping for and expecting.
“Yes, if you want it. The position comes with more responsibility though, a lot more. You think you can handle it?”
“Yeah, yeah, I can handle it!” Her excitement was nice to see and the Empress didn’t doubt for even a second that she was more than capable enough for the position, else she never would’ve consider her for this but…
“Before I accept your ‘yes’ you need to know that the position is also contingent upon one thing. Before I tell you want it is just know refusing won’t hurt you standing in the gang or in my eyes, you’re a valuable member no matter what, okay?”
Bow’s excitement didn’t fade even a little. She just nodded and waited for the Empress to continue.
“As you might’ve heard by now, the Nyakuza is a family run gang. My parents ran it before me, I inherited it from them. And as tradition dictates, I’m supposed to pass it down to my child. However, I have absolutely no desire for a biological child or even a partner of any sort, leaving my only option for a successor to be adoptive. As you’ve recently revealed to me that you’re an orphan, I’m sure you can see where I’m going with this.”
As Bow thought about it for a few seconds her eyes widened, going from excited to shocked back to excited. “You’re saying you’re going to adopt me? For reals? Really? Like… you’ll be my mom and stuff?” And now her eyes were filling with tears, not what the Empress had expected nor was it something she knew how to deal with.
“Yes, if that’s what you want.”
“I… I… Yes, I’d like that very much.”
Before the Empress could say a word in response, Bow hugged her. It was weird and strange but not necessarily bad so… the Empress patted her on the head. “Well, I’m glad that’s settled, now we just need to get the paperwork done.” That could wait until Bow had composed herself though.