J alin cleaned the bar and whistled softly, it had been a good night and he had made a tidy profit from a caravan that had come through needing supplies. The bar took care of him and the Heroes because they respected its power, they never used it for ill and the money was an extra bonus. He washed the last glasses and couldn’t wait to close up so he could finally take a break, sipping at a glass of light wine and looking at his father’s sword up on the wall behind the bar. He wished his father were here, he would have enjoyed being an innkeeper, the fun and enjoyment behind the job were what he would have enjoyed.

His last two customers sat at a table alone and Jalin was sure they’d be leaving soon. So he continued polishing the bar until he felt the prescence of someone standing in front of him. He looked up suddenly and found himself face to face with the most beautiful Feline he had ever seen, his jaw dropped as he stared into her eyes.

She smiled softly, “Innkeeper, I asked you a question.”

He stared dumbly at the firey-haired feline.

She took one sharp, perfectly manicured claw and closed his jaw with it, she tilted his head up till he was looking deeper into her liquid eyes.

“Innkeeper, can you speak at all?”

Jalin nodded dumbly a bit as he took in all of her, the light perfume wafting off her fur, the warm smile, the rippling muscles that flowed like water under her skin.

“Then would you be so kind as to tell me your name?”

“J....Ja...Jalin...Jalin.”

She nodded, “Now, would you be so kind as to give us some service?” She turned his head to look at the other Feline with her, “That is the Lady Tsunami, General of the Southern Forces and placed in my care. Now, Innkeeper, please get us some wine and whatever you have to eat.”

Jalin nodded dumbly again and watched as she walked away, her tail moving from side to side as the dancers legs glided over the floor to her table. He pulled his eyes away and reached for the bottles of fine MystenWyne under the bar and placed them on a tray, then to the stove and filled two steaming bowls of vegetable and Enlal-meat soup. He picked up the tray and brought it to the table, receiving a warm smile from the pretty Lady Tsunami sitting there, her companion looking at him with calm eyes and a slight smile.

“There you go ladies, hope you enjoy and there is more if you wish.”

He bowed and returned to cleaning up the bar, ducking under quickly to clean the floor, he came up to once again be comfronted by the beautiful Feline.

“Innkeeper, I would like to thank you for the service.” She lay a small pouch on the bar.

Jalin took the pouch and thanked her for it, looking inside he saw a group of perfect blue diamonds. He stuttered, “Milady, this..this is too much. I can’t accept this.”

She smiled warmly again, you have been a most polite host, this is our thanks.

Jalin bowed again and thanked her humbly. He was about to ask her name when his neck began to start prickling, he perked up and looked around as he saw the feline doing the same. His large paw began to slam down to throw up the magical shields about the place when the door and windows blew apart in a fury of fire and wind.

The smoke cleared a bit and he saw a group of dark-furred individuals coming through the holes in the wall with bows and swords drawn. Both the ladies and Jalin recognized who they were, traitors with human steel, Folk who had sold out to the Hyoomans because of money, or evil, who knew. But they meant no good, and that was what was important now.

The flame haired Feline snarled as she drew her matched swords from their scabbards, leaping and disembowling one of the intruders, she twirled and swung both of them together sending a head flying across the room.

Jalin leapt up and grabbed his father’s sword from the wall, turning around he saw the two Felines backed against the far wall, the swordlady killing anyone who got too close. He could see archers with heavy crossbows moving in to kill them from a distance, leaping the bar he hacked one archer down and proceeded to cut through armor killing another. The traitors turned around and the fight was on, archers zeroed in on the furious Innkeeper as he cut and slashed his way through the mob of traitors to reach the two ladies backed into a corner.

He watched as the swordlady went spinning and leaping up over the traitor’s heads and brought her swords down in a fury of death and spinning blades. Her muscles flexed as she displayed mastery of the killing arts, turning and snarling she whipped the blades faster and faster as she cut bone and flesh like paper. She kicked and snapped legs and arms as her blades brought screaming death to the traitors.

Jalin fought his own battle as he swung the blade with both paws, his fathers words coming back to him as he remembered what he had been taught. Cutting low and high he fought to reach the other two before they were all overwhelmed. He turned to see that an archer had taken aim at the swordlady and leapt in front bringing his Claighdmor down to kill the evil one. The bow thudded and Jalin looked down to see a feathered shaft sprout from his right side, pain tearing through him as he killed the offending bowfurre. He looked around to see the traitors ignoring him and proceed to take the fight back to the swordslady.

She snarled and screamed out as she cut and slashed to keep the traitors away from Lady Tsunami, throwing her behind a table she struck out and hamstrung another leg as she kicked and heard the snapping of bones.Her fists brought the swords together and blocked an arrow winging her way, snapping around and spilling a traitors guts on the floor. The dark furre looked in horror as he watched his intestines fall out in coils, trying desperately to put them back in as he fell over.

Swords snapped out again and again as she fought for her life against the rest of the group of traitors. An archer reeled back screaming at a lost eye, a sword wielder collapsed with punctured lungs, all around death had a joyous time. Leaping and screaming her fury she snapped a first backwards breaking a septum as her swords punctured a gut. Panting and looking around with hard eyes, she saw the last had been felled, cries and moans of pain surrounded her as she calmly wiped her blades and returned them to their places of honor. She spotted the Innkeeper kneeling and trying to tug an arrow out of his side before falling over.

Waking up in a bed, his side bandaged, Jalin looked around and saw the bright sunlight falling on him. He looked around to see the Lady Tsunami smiling calmly at him.

“What...where am I?”

She smiled politely, “You are in your Inn Innkeeper, my troops have secured it and are cleaning up. I owe you a debt for helping us, I think things would have gone badly if not for the assistance you gave us.

Jalin blushed, his ears turning a bright red, “I did nothing Lady, I was shot and was out quickly. Your bodyguard did it all.”

“We understand, but you helped when you could have remained behind the bar. For this, we owe you.”

He smiled shyly as he saw her bodyguard come back in, the beautiful furre smiled at him and walked to the side of his bed.

“You fight well for an Innkeeper, where did you learn to swing a sword like that?”

“My father was a Highlands Guards, he taught me to swing a sword when I was a wee cub.”

She smiled and moved back whispering to Lady Tsunami, who turned to Jalin again,”The repairs are complete Innkeeper, is there anything else we can do for you? Is there any request?”

Jalin looked at the regal furre,”May..may I have your permission to see your bodyguard again?”

Lady Tsunami laughed,”That, Innkeeper is Lady Aerith’s decision.”

Jalin blushed again as they walked out of the inn. He went down to check the bar and realized that nothing looked out of place, like nothing had ever happened. He put his tunic on and got a small glass of wine and sipped gratefully, thinking he would have to open soon, he couldn’t stop being an innkeeper. He smiled and remembered a firey-haired furre, wondering if he would ever see her again.

A hint of perfume caught his senses as a sharp claw came under his chin and turned him around.

Lady Aerith kissed him on the cheek and whispered in his ear, “You will see me again, I think .....Jalin.” And with that she glided out the door in a swirl of silks and perfume.

Jalin sighed, of all the ladies he had to meet, this one was as deadly as a viper and as beautiful as the gods could make her.

He thought for a second, the furre that captured that ladies heart was in for a rough battle to get it. He laughed and returned to the bar, watching her as she rode out of sight....he waved at her and smiled, of heart and sword he thought...of heart and sword.....