Oracle (Book I)

Fritter

 *Author's Note: I experimented with a gender neutral pronoun that's new to me for Caprice, Bossa, and Nezzle's new furry friend, the friegle. I was tired of referring to zir as it. Should I pick a new one so its not all "purr" and "per" and stop thinking that I'm being clever?*

A knot of students gathered around the trio's table in the Grand Hall.

Petting their new companion each time per walked along the table in front of her, Caprice wasn't sure if Nezzle had brought the friegle with her, if the feline followed her to luncheon, or if the feline just happened to be there in the great hall as a free agent.

"What's the big deal, it's just a cat," someone said.

"Isn't that one of those British chesher-whachamacalls?"

Bossa hissed loudly, irises reddening as she glared at the animal.

"Bossa, is there something you want to share?" Grace said dryly. She stood in the group of students by the table, holding a plate and forking at her food. Next to her, Timika was holding his sleeve out of her plate and straining over to pat the cat who was sitting on the table.

"They overran the fields outside our home. Slinking through the high grass...smiling at people. You always knew they were up to something," Bossa crossed her arms over chest and continued glaring.

After padding a few laps around the table, the friegle sat, faced its curious onlookers, and smiled.

"Whoa! Frickin' friegle!" Timika snatched back his hand while others flinched backwards and laughed nervously.

"It can't tell us its name so what do we call it?" Nezzle asked. Caprice was about to answer but—

"Don't name it!" Bossa hissed. "If you give it a name, it'll never go away."

An abandoned plate of kippers and bright colored baby tuyeye sat to the side of the table, exuding a mild odor. Some pieces were fried and others slimy and pickled. Who would eat that, Caprice did not know. But the friegle padded over and purred at the plate.

A boy walked over and picked up a goo-covered, blue tuyeye fritter and held it up, grimacing.

"Gross."

Rather than stand on its hind legs to paw at or beg for the fritter, the friegle purred and then grinned its broad, oddly terrifying and yet somehow innocent grin at the boy. The boy dropped the fried fish onto the table immediately and stepped back. Nezzle pinched the fritter up between two fingers and held it within reach of the hungry feline. The friegle licked the goo on the fritter then began an earnest chewing.

"It wants hand-feeding something so nasty-looking? Regular diva, isn't it," Grace said.

"We'll call you Fritter," Nezzle said. She stroked the feline behind the ears. "Since we know what you like to eat now. Is that agreeable?"

Per paused to look at her a second and said, "Meowrf," in its slightly garbled purr.

"Fritter it is then," agreed Caprice.

"Nooo," Bossa moaned.

"We'll take you to your new room, Fritter," Caprice said. Bossa moaned again.

Done eating, Nezzle scooped Fritter up and carried per to the dorm as if per was wearing a tiara and sitting on a cushy satin pillow. Caprice laughed behind her hand at all the stares and aghast expressions they faced while Fritter smiled and purred loudly in Nezzle's arms the whole way.

A dark curtain hung over the window, softly dimming the room. The moment the door had opened, Fritter jumped down from Nezzle's arms and raced inside. In a mighty bound, per leapt into Bossa's hammock, sending it swaying. Fritter braced pers legs, eyes wide and wild, until the swinging slowed, then per sat down and raised pers head high.