Sparks of Celebration

"Zimi!"

The poor Nekomata jumped up and landed on the table in her cat form, her fur stiff and her tail and ears raised high. She blinked and it was then that Janette recovered enough to stiffle a giggle from what she had just witnessed. Her ears dropped and she emitted a low growl as her grizzly girl reached out and patted her head, calmly stroking her fur. After three strokes, Zimi calmed down and even began to purr, much to Nukka's amusement. Some of the other guests Zimi was speaking to were smiling as well, some even cooing at the affection between the cat and bear.

"I'm sorry," Janette chuckled before clearing her throat in an attempt to disguise her amusement. "Ahem-! I didn't mean to frighten you."

Zimi meowed before dropping from the table and growing into her more human appearance. When Nukka gave her a worried look, Zimi leaned in and kissed her forehead which brought a smile to her face as her grizzly bear ears wiggled with glee.

"How can I help you?" Zimi asked with a crossed tone in her voice as she spun around to face Janette. Judging by her scowl, she was not amused by her abrupt approach. Her nose wiggled before she took a quick sniff, her ears then flicked up as if she were alerted to something or someone nearby.

"What? What? Are we in danger, is someone here?" Janette seemed momentarily worried before realizing they were celebrating, so what danger could she be sensing?

"Uhmm," Nukka sniffed and covered her nose, turning red as she turned her head left and right. Janette stepped back, it looked as if the bear was about to sneeze. But instead, she gasped and fell back nearly on top of the other guests.

Zimi shook her head and rubbed her nose, her cheeks flushing in response as her tails gave a playful wag behind her. The other guests seemed to respond as well, some with a soft giggle and a wink before walking away, others looking embarrassed and scooting by. Janette could not help herself as she took notice of how one of the girls snuck away with her tails wrapped between her legs.

"N~Needs!" Nukka began to pant, trading looks between her and Zimi. She knew the answer however, and so her voice began trailing off as she turned her head sharply from one angle to another until she settled her sights on a table full of sugary desserts. "Needs... N~Needs uhhn... lick?"

Zimi shook her head, keeping her arm across as if she were rubbing her shoulder. The bear girl whimpered and scurried off, quickly burying her head into the tray of caramel apples. Some of the nearby kids laughed as the grizzly bear stuffed her nose with caramel sauce while eagerly licking the frosting from a pawful of vanilla cake.

Zimi groaned at the sight and licked her lips, turning to her side and squeezing her eyes shut momentarily. "Can you not smell that!?"

"Smell what?" Janette asked, now she was really worried. At the start of the party she made sure to have sprayed herself with a newly purchased perfume she had bargained for at the Kershin Marketplace. The lady who sold it seemed like she knew what she was talking about when mentioning its numerous ingredients; the fragrance of fully bloomed roses, a hint of cinnamon, and a sweet fragrance of caramel to name a few. She began Instinctively sniffing under her arms and fanning herself to check for any foul odor, feeling her face burn as her hands became sweaty. "She said it would compliment my natural beauty and leave a lasting scent to my lovers, damn it!"

"I'm sure it does, from a certain point of view." Zimi replied in a nasaly voice as she kept her paw over her nose. "Grant me a moment to compose myself first. It's the first in some time since someone's experienced such heat."

"Heat?" That word lingered in her head, her hand rubbing her stomach as she stepped back. "As in... I'm in heat?"

"Gah" Zimi nodded quickly, taking a deep breath before stepping closer. Reaching out, she pressed her paw on her neck and leaned forward until their noses nearly touched. "Open your mouth and say ah."

Nervous, Janette swallowed before complying with her order, parting her lips and opening her mouth as wide as she could. Zimi squeezed her thighs together before shaking her head and stepping away. "Subject is salivating, her body appears sensitive to physical contact, and yet seems unaware of her cycle."

"My cycle happened weeks ago."

"No, your new cycle. The mark on your neck remains, you're in heat. Your body is producing pheromones anouncing that you are ready for your mate. It signals when a girl becomes a woman, often occuring at her late teen years. It means you are ready to-"

"I know what it means!" Janette snapped before finding a chair to sit while adjusting her dress. "Damn it, I wanted to enjoy tonight. No wonder Nekomatas have been avoiding me."

"Yes, I apologize. I recommend finding a way to burn through your heat, or perhaps isolation. But isolation is only reserved as punishment, I can call for Syri if you-"

"No no, we were just getting along as friends. I don't want to make it more complicated."

Zimi stared as Janette shook her head and rubbed her eyes. The Nekomata blinked before looking away. "I see. You two are friends, I apologize. I was friends with someone too. She was... clumsy, troublesome, curious. There was a charm to her quirks, her mannerisms displayed innocence and when I looked into her eyes I felt a sense of comfort and acceptance that I was missing in myself. But we are too different, I said. It would complicate our friendship, I said."

Zimi brought a chair over to sit next to Janette, holding her hand between her paws as she spoke. "I decided to seek my closest friend to consult over my thoughts, and she told me that life is too short for complications. Better to seek answers rather than live in mystery. So I did that, fully prepared to lose my friend if she did not share those same feelings back."

Janette looked up at her with worried eyes. "Yea, and then?"

She smiled. "She was clueless, I explained it to her as if I were speaking to a child. Her response was confusion, she misunderstood and believed we were already a couple and that I was being shy each time she licked my cheek for affection."

Zimi laughed as she remembered the events from that story, playing out in her mind. "I was under the belief that those acts were her way of saying hello, that is until I noticed she only did that with me."

"What if she said no?" Janette asked.

She shrugged. "Then I would have my answer and know where we both stood. I could move on without living in mystery. It would hurt, but what Emyri said is true."

Just then, another cat girl wondered in before rushing toward them as soon as she spotted Zimi. "Hey mom, I think Nukka has a stomach ache. She's not feeling well."

Zimi smiled as she stood up. "It's not a stomach ache, but I think I know how to treat it."

She gave a nod to her side and soon both girls ran off around the large house, heading toward the front before Janette lost sight of them. She turned around, spotting Syri sitting at a table on her own, with no one around. Or rather, plenty of people were around but none seemed to be interacting with her. Yet her face didn't convey any disinterest or dissatisfaction, it was apparent that she was fine sitting among the crowd.

Janette contemplated approaching her, but she remained sat at her table, her mind fixated on the meaning of that story. She sucked in her lip and wrinkled her eyebrows while thinking hard about what to do next.

Kuli placed her cup down on the counter, licking her lips and beaming with joy. Her cat ears stood up as her tails quivered behind her, she slid her cup aside towards her beloved while making eye contact with him.

"More please!"

Felix reached for the cup, his fingers drumming along the surface of it as he peaked inside to see it empty. "Love, this makes your fourth serving. Are you sure you want some more?"

"Yes I'm sure, why?" She huffed, her playful nature disappearing as she placed her paws on her waist. "Are you saying I'm fat?"

"No, I'm saying that we are almost out of apple juice. I may need to look around the kitchen, maybe check in the cellar to see if Janette keeps them there." He paused, opening a cupboard to inspect inside only to find more silverware. Someone bumped into him from behind and excused themselves. The party continued around them, the music now accompanied with violin playing at an addictive rhythm, complimented by the many tapping feet that danced along. Not everyone was dancing, those who enjoyed the spectacle where clapping their hands and cheering on the others, with the occasional "Ey!"

Kuli's eyes grew as she cocked her head, her eyes following along. Felix hadn't noticed, but she quickly waved her paw and composed herself when he turned back to her. She stuck out her bottom lip and whimpered, staring with her eyes pleading and begging for him to cooperate just this once as she had asked many times before. His shoulders dropped and he reluctantly poured her a fifth cup much to her delight, she kissed him on the cheek before taking the cup from him and dipping her tongue into the surface of the caramel brown liquid.

Out on the main hall, a tired elf sat down exhausted on the stairs while leaning against the hand rail. He wiped the sweat from his brow, panting and clearing his throat. Someone extended a beverage to him and he took it without looking up, simply muttering his thanks before pressing the glass to his lips. The smooth red wine flowed down his throat like a cool waterfall refreshing hot coast rocks below, he could almost feel that sizzle of his stomach hissing in appreciation, smacking his lips and smiling to himself.

"Whoa-" He looked up as someone sat beside him with her own drink in hand.

"Glad ye like, is me own recipe!" Nyitzcha waved her glass before helping herself, polishing the drink in one gulp. "Ahhh, cool to the center! Adds a fine kick t' it."

"I can taste something sweet and fruity."

Nyitzcha snickered and gave him a nudge. "It is jus' wine, ye bloke."

"Never had wine before." He mentioned much to her surprise.

"Really now, how youn' are ye again?"

Spi'Reto chuckled. "Twenty-six, half on my way to my third decade."

"Huh, de way ye be like, I figured ye were younger." She mumbled, raising her head to take another sip.

"That's a compliment, and perhaps due to my environment. My mom and I are the only woodland elves after all."

"De rest of em bugger off t'hug more trees?"

He shook his head. "Dead to the winter or disappeared, hopefully they found new shelter. We had a few who stayed but they died of old age."

"Ah, shit. Das a shit thing to live through." Nyitzcha paused, tracing her finger around the edge of her glass. The two shared a moment of silence as the people continued laughing, drinking, and dancing. Suddenly, she turned to look at him. "Oy, I thought elves don't die from old age!"

"Das a bad rumor that sticks, and we're not all the same elves, we're woodland elves." He winced. "I mean that's, blah!"

This brought a chuckle to his friend. "Rubbing off on ye, I 'ave dat effect on men sometimes. I ain't no stranger to elves, I was married to one once upon a time. Some, three hundred years ago I s'pose, give o' take."

This time it was Spi'Reto who snorted, nearly **** on his drink. "Do you take me for a fool?"

"What, ye don' tink a lass like me can live dat long?" She spoke in a rather soft, innocent tone while batting her eyes playfully.

He noticed and quickly turned away, wiping the wine from his chin and keeping his head low. "Ahem! You certainly don't look that age."

"Aww, is the cute elf complimenting me? Ye tink I look good fer my age?" She punched his arm, accidentally spilling his glass of wine over his waist. Her eyes grew big as she realized what happened. "Ah, shit."

"Damn, it's fine it's fine-" He set his glass aside, quickly trying to brush his thighs and assess the spillage.

"No, is not. Dat might stain, c'mere." She reached into her cleavage and pulled out a red handkerchief, applying it on his thigh and pressing forward. "Needs a bit o' pressure to soak in the juices."

"It-it's not, that's not necessary-!"

"My mess, I clean. End of discussion!" She fumed, hunching over before adjusting herself and grabbing his hand. "Les go, d'ere has t'be somethin' to help wash it off upstairs."

Spi'Reto tried to argue but the dwarf had made up her mind, quickly pulling him up the stairs in a hurry. They slipped into a narrow hallway with closed doors at both sides, as the small dwarf quickly pushed open the first door to her right, followed by the next.

Kuli giggled and grabbed Felix by the hands, pulling him into the main hall where the band was playing. One could tell that he was rather embarrassed and yet he accompanied her and the two stared at each other, holding each other before step by step they began to partake in the dance with the rest of the room. She had wanted to be more active, throwing her legs around and taking advantage of her flexibility, but her pregnancy limited most of her moves and instead she relief on softer foot work while he held her paws. One quick spin around and Kuli found herself beaming and laughing again, her silver hair twirling with her while Felix held her waist and moved along with her.

After the song had ended, Kuli found herself at a loss of balance and quickly Felix helped her to find a seat. She sat down and waved him off, claiming she was fine but needed a rest. Just then, someone hugged his arm and he turned to see Emyri smiling back. "Why hello stranger, may I have this dance?"

He smiled and turned back with Kuli nodding back, and soon the both of them began to enjoy themselves, this time with Emyri laughing and observing Felix clumsily attempt to dance with her faster movements. Behind where Kuli sat, Nyitzcha and Spi'Reto were hurrying up the stairs.

A young woman had made herself comfortable in one of the rooms above, preferring smaller groups over the loud and crowded celebrations. Just hearing the laughter and music was enough for her to entertain, large gatherings were never her preference. She breathed in and closed her eyes, picturing herself back at the riverside, meditating to the sounds of wildlife and nature. The soft yet rhythmic draw of water cascading through their known familiar path, perhaps the dipping of wooden buckets to gather some drinking water for the villagers in preparation of their next feast. She remembered the gossip of the women not too far away at the shore, swapping stories in their native language, laughing at embarrassing situations and offering what they believed to be sound advice. One such woman described marital troubles with her husband, apparently finding it difficult for them. It had been years since their ceremony, and despite consummation they were having difficulties to start a family. But it was her mother who spoke up with a sharp tongue and the speech of a sailor, often adding swears to exacerbate or exaggerate her stories, who in this case offered to help her friend and gave helpful advice. She mentioned that they were trying too hard, that love shouldn't be a chore or expected event, but rather an emotional draw which is best experienced in the heat of the moment when neither expects it. But when she began to ask her what positions felt best, that's when the woman decided to walk away as she would rather not eavesdrop on what her mother preferred in the bedroom.

Her memory was abruptly interrupted when someone barged through the door before freezing in place, as both women locked eyes before a third pair of eyes peaked in from behind the door frame.

"Sorry!" Spi'Reto waved apologetically while Nyitzcha rolled her eyes and closed the door. Reta sighed and returned to staring at the reflection in the looking glass, parting her natural blue at the front in hopes of making her appearance more... appealing. She sat back on the bed, noticing the light bounce the mattress had to it, and glanced outside the window to see a crescent moon followed by two similar moons each farther in distance from the other. She looked down and wrapped the black cloth around her palm before placing it over her eyes. Once satisfied, she folded it and placed it neatly on the bed while her fingers traced along her cleavage. She hadn't worn anything too fancy, it didn't feel right as she had nothing to wear that came from home. But the dress she had borrowed for the night would have to suffice, Janette had helped her find one and even ordered it to be fitted in a blue fabric to match her hair, with bright yellow decorations along the edge to complement her eyes. They were not as bright and golden as Kuli's eyes, but rather a dim yellow tone as is natural in a wolf. These were not her natural born eyes, but it had been so long that she had forgotten what they use to look like. Grazing her cheek with her slender, soft fingers, she at the very least appreciated that tonight was one night where she could stay human without the curse being present.

Licking her lips, she patted her thighs and breathed in before feeling ready. She parted her lips and began to whistle.

Kuli sat on Felix's lap and smiled, resting her head on his shoulder. She had grown a bit through her pregnancy, it was beginning to become obvious that she was on her path to motherhood with the swelling round bump of her belly. She had opted to wear loose clothing for a change, something he didn't question as falling asleep was becoming more difficult for her due to her body's growing sensitivity. The effects of motherhood were unexpected, regardless of Emyri and the other Nekomata's offering personal experience and advice. It was most appreciated for her, she was learning more and more about being careful what to eat and not to exert herself too much on daily tasks now. She found herself feeling quite lazy now, almost fatigued by the end of the day despite not fulfilling the more difficult challenges she use to partake the year before.

As for Felix, he was figuring it out day by day just how tiring his new role was becoming. Sometimes he slept for a few hours before tending to her, whether she was hungry for food or for his warmth, or simply irritated for one reason or another. He was told to be patient, that it would be natural for expecting mothers to experience a change in behavior. But being told to expect it and living through it are two different kinds of experience for him. She was aware of how tired he was each day, and she would do her best to show her love for him each day.

Today, she had hoped for them to enjoy the party to the fullest and she would make sure it would be a night for them to remember. Her ear flickered and she kissed his cheek, to which he smiled and leaned in to kiss her back. She moved her head to the side and instead leaned in toward his ear.

"Can I get some rest?" She whispered to him.

Felix closed his eyes, feeling a mixture of relief and a touch of disappointment. He wouldn't admit it so easily, but he had hoped they would enjoy the party a bit more. "Your mother went out to catch some fresh air, maybe that could help?"

"Maybe." She smiled. "But I think one of those bedrooms could help even more. We can give them a quick test, see if they are comfortable for any guests in the future."

Felix felt himself blush before scooping her up in his arms, carrying her as she squealed in delight and hugged him, swinging her paws playfully. People made way for them, with some women smiling and cheering them on while they made their way up the stairs.