When Meris woke up he saw that Cay was gone. He got up and looked around. There was no sign of her. As he looked around he felt something else missing. The weight of the necklace was missing. He couldn't believe it. That leopardess stole his necklace! How could he be so stupid! That was the only thing he had to remind him of his mistakes and now it was gone. He would have to find her and get it back. As he walked around he could help but grin once he found what he was looking for. In the mud was foot prints bigger than his. It must be Cay, Meris decided.

He traveled after her. It Kyros ever found out that Meris lost the necklace Kyros would never forgive him. That necklace meant the world to Kyros. He hurried his pace. It shouldn't take him too long to catch up with her, he was a cheetah after all and a fast one at that.

He wondered why she would take it? She seemed so innocent. Crazy but innocent. Was that her whole plan along, to trick him and steal from him. Was she just acting crazy to get his guard down. He would never let anything like this happen again. No one is going to trick him, especially sneaky leopardess'.

Cay watched from a distance as Meris slept. So peaceful, so quiet. She wished she could just curl next to her love and sleep with him, but no. Not here. She needed him to come to her, to show her that he really loved her. If they were to stay together he would have to track her down to her den. Than and only than will she finally admit that he was the one.

She smiled at her plan and he had to be the one. Just had to. That was one of the main reason she took his necklace, to be sure he would follow her and now that he had heard her sing he would be drawn to her voice. Everything was perfect. She finally would have a family, one that would be just as beautiful as her and her love. They would be the envy of all around.

She started for her den. He should be asleep for a few more hours, she thought as she traveled. Before she left she had tied the necklace around her, to make sure she wouldn't lose it. She wasn't sure how he would react to his necklace missing. It would be terrible if he got upset at her for something so silly.

After her travel she finally made it to her den. Her den was a cave in the side of the mountain. It was deep enough for her and a family. She could just imagine it with a family of cubs. Meris would be out hunting, she would be teaching the cubs how to sing. She started to sing, softly at first, but she grew louder and louder. She walked around the den and dropped the necklace off in the corner that contained other objects of value that she had stolen over the years. Than she walked toward the entrance and sat, as she continued to sing.

The rain was pouring down even more now. That necklace was his bad luck wasn't it, Meris thought as he pushed his way through. He wondered how long he was out for. It felt like a moment, he should have caught up with her by now. The rain, which had helped him get this far, was now being a hinderance.

As he traveled he thought he heard something in the distance, a kind of song. The voice was familiar. He smiled at his luck. Perhaps the necklace was only bad luck to the one it was with. He listened carefully to the music and followed where it came from. Than he saw her. She was standing at the entrance of the cave looking down at him. She was smiling, as if she knew he would come. He made his way to her.

“Cay give me my necklace.” He ordered once he was close enough.

Was.... was that him? She thought she saw him, so she sung louder in hopes he would hear her. He turned around and saw her. For a moment she thought she was going to stop singing, but she kept focus and continued to sing.

“My love I'm so glad you made it. Please come inside our new home.” She said welcoming him in. This was like a perfect dream, nothing could ruin this moment. It took years but her prince came and he was all hers. “May I sing for you. I sing very well, but you probably already know that don't you.”

Meris watched as she talked. “Cay I want my necklace than I am leaving.” He said almost angrily. If he had been younger, back when he couldn't control his temper he would have yelled and lashed out at her. Now he was older, he thought it best to think this through. He followed her inside and saw his necklace along with other treasures. “Cay did you steal all that?”

“Of course I did. I did it for us and our cubs.” She said with a laugh. “I wanted our cubs to have a treasure that would be envied by all and that's what I did and I stole your treasure so you would come back to me, so we could be together. What I did isn't a bad thing than and you will love me even more for doing so.”

“No I won't” He said a bit frustrated. Her logic didn't seem to make sense at all. She had to be crazy. She wasn't playing games. “Let me have my necklace. I want to leave and never see you again.”

“No Meris. Please. Stay the night, than you'll understand that it was meant to be. I'll sing to you and you will fall in love with me. You won't want to leave.” she said, curling her tail around his. “Please just give it a chance. In the morning if you do not share my feelings I will let you go and give you your necklace back, but if you stay I get to keep your necklace and you.”

A gamble. Something Meris was always interested in. This was one that he couldn't lose either, but the stakes were not nearly high enough on her end. “Cay I'll play your little game, but if I don't fall in love with you I want some of your treasure,” he said as he eyed the treasure. He stepped closer to her, their faces almost touching. “Do you really think you can make me love you in one night?”

“Of course I can my love. You already are starting to love me. Look at your tail if you don't believe me.” She had noticed his tail curling around hers. It made her heart beat faster. This was turning better than she expected. In the morning he would be trapped her, being with her for ever more and eventually they would start their family. “Now let me get you some fruit and we'll start our first night together.”

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