Part II: The Dark Physician

11. The Feline

It had been a week since Kirk and his crew had left the island to continue with their voyage. At first, it was strange not having them around, but soon enough, Jessica returned to her daily routine of helping Elena out at the tavern and seeing Dom every lunchtime to listen for any vessels approaching the island.

She liked Dom as a friend, but she could tell he wanted to be more than just a friend. She was still too young, and he was three years older than her. Because of this thought, she had distanced herself from Dom, and now she found herself profoundly bored despite the incoming crowds for the harvest festival, so she decided to trek over to Northport to find some form of entertainment. Maybe some apple picking would cheer her up.

It took over a day's walk to reach the northern port town, and it was dark by the time she arrived. The town was small compared to Southport and not as wealthy but still just as busy with locals and tourists visiting for the harvest festival.

She made her way to the local inn, the Cherry Tree, and booked a room for the weekend and collapsed onto the bed, falling asleep instantly. The walk over to Northport had tired her out, and she slept like a log for the entirety of the night.

As morning came, Jessica yawned, a smile on her face as she prepared herself for the new day. Grabbing her leather bag and attaching her rapier sword to her hip, she made her way to the town, passing the harbour as she did so.

She walked past a ship with mint-green sails docked up at the port and froze, staring at the vessel's strange logo of an animal's paw print. She couldn't tell if it was supposed to be pirate ship or not and had no idea who the symbol belonged to, but it intrigued her nonetheless.

Jessica shrugged and carried on, skipping along the path to the town centre. She started to muse about, looking at anything that took her interest. She made her way to her favourite sweet shop, and a familiar face greeted her: a senior man with greying hair and a sprinkle of freckles on his kind-natured face.

"Jessica, I haven't seen you in over a month; you're usually in here every weekend."

Jessica smiled up at the shopkeeper. "I'm sorry, Mr Simms. I've been preoccupied." She thought of Kirk, and her smile broadened.

Mr Simms chuckled at Jessica's smile. "I understand. While you were gone, I stocked up on your favourite honey drops."

Jessica's face lit up. Honey drops were her favourite. They were a honey flavoured boiled candy that tasted like a drop of heaven.

"I'll buy enough to last me the month, please."

Mr Simms smiled and did as she requested, handing over her sweets. She paid for them and placed the candy into her leather backpack and said goodbye to her friend.

Jessica skipped along the street and headed towards the bookstore. She loved to read and wondered if any new collections would take her fancy. As she was about to enter the shop, she ran into someone who was walking out. She immediately fell over, her hands grazing against the gravel, and she hissed in pain and scowled up at the perp who caused her to fall, only to find the cutest boy ever. He looked her age but with cat-like ears poking through his jet black hair and mint-green eyes with cat-like pupils. He dressed in black boots, black jeans, and a mint-green hoodie with the same paw symbol as the ship docked in the port, stitched onto the fabric where the breast pocket would have been.

The boy carried a very heavy-looking physician's bag and was bent over as he apologised to the girl. His cat-like ears that were poking through his hair drooped over, and his jet black tail swooshed and wrapped around his leg.

Jessica's face immediately lit up, noticing straight away that he was of a rare species called felines from her homeland. She had not seen a cat-humanoid hybrid since she was a child. Jessica jumped up and started to stroke the feline behind the ears and cuddled him, rubbing her cheek against his face. She knew felines loved affection in the form of cuddles as a part of their culture.

His depressed state instantly disappeared, and he rubbed his cheek back against her smooth face and affectionately licked her skin. Jessica giggled in response to his actions and cuddled him some more.

The cat immediately took a liking to the red girl; she smelled of a mixture of honey and sweet-scented azaleas, a smell he could recall from somewhere but could not remember. The thought disappeared, stolen away when she stroked his sweet spot behind his ear.

Before the boy even knew what was happening, the girl was dragging him away from his shipmate who was still inside the bookstore. He soon found himself walking through the port town with the kind-natured girl.

"I'm Jessica, what's your name?" she said, introducing herself.

"Paddy."

Jessica's grin widened. "Paddy, would you like to have lunch with me?"

Paddy's stomach grumbled; he was feeling hungry. He immediately nodded his head, forgetting his duties as captain. This offer was too good to say no to: food and a girl who was accustomed to his culture.

What more could a feline ask for?

The two wandered around the town together, and the whole time the girl spoiled him with treats and cuddles, and they had lunch together at a local seafood restaurant. Paddy had smoked salmon and a glass of warm milk, his favourite, and Jessica had oysters with a glass of white wine.

Paddy felt stuffed; he couldn't possibly eat another bite. The waiter came back with their bill, and the black cat noticed the price; he wouldn't be able to afford this. He looked to Jessica, and she had a mischievous gleam in her eyes. She grabbed his paw-like hand, and the two of them dashed out of the restaurant, the waiter chasing after them.

The entire time Jessica laughed, a soft laugh that brought joy to Paddy's twitching ears. He liked her; she was very friendly and fun to be around. It was fun he hadn't had in a long time. Being cooped up inside of a ship for days on end could be very dull at times, especially for a cat.

As they ran along the streets, the bag still hauled over his shoulder; he ran past his shipmate who had been in the bookstore earlier. A shocked expression was on his friend's face as Paddy whizzed past him with Jessica.

Paddy had to admit, Jessica was a fast runner; they were probably a blur to his shipmate.

The pair made it as far as the beach, not too far from the docks. His ship, the Paw, was still in view. They both sat down on the sand, tired and worn out from running.

"What crew are you a part of?" Jessica prodded her finger against his logo.

"The navy calls us the Hunter Pirates." He shrugged while leaning into her hand as she scratched him behind his soft black ears.

"The ship with Dr Jude Hunter, the Dark Physician?"

Paddy nodded his head. Jessica's eyebrows shot up. Another rookie pirate. Jessica didn't realise the black paw on a mint green sail was their pirate flag; it didn't make sense that it was a paw. If it were something to do with medicine, it would make sense, considering their captain was a physician who liked to experiment on anything living cruelly and sadistically. Dr Jude Hunter would be the second rookie pirate to have landed on Harvest Island within a couple of weeks from each other.

Paddy and Jessica both fell silent from then on and watched the soft surf crash against the sand. They enjoyed each other's company for the rest of the day and watched as the sun set over the horizon. Jessica's heart felt warm after spending her day with a feline. It brought back happy memories of her childhood when she used to play with a kitten; she would always treasure those happy memories. The feline had been her chosen guard, but after the events on her homeland, the kitten never got a chance to train to be a guard. She doubted very much the feline was alive; many felines were either slaughtered or sold at slave houses due to being such a rare species.

It was nice to see a feline again after so many years.

Jessica's eyes started to droop, and she found herself yawning and falling back against Paddy, using him as a pillow as she fell asleep. Both of them snoozed together under the light of the stars.

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