Many years ago.
"This will be your new home. Make yourselves at home—treat it as your own."
The one who said this wasn't the "father" they would later know, but a noble who had taken them in for their magical talent.
Lynette and Lyney, both orphaned, had been wandering the streets. To survive, Lyney had secretly learned a Magician's trick and acquired simple illusions.
Perform, then receive a sum that wasn't much, but at least enough to buy two meals for the day.
Their struggle to survive was temporarily solved, but they couldn't keep wandering the streets. That noble chose to adopt them.
Later, Lyney discovered his true purpose—he merely wanted to use them.
The elder brother, with his magical talent, could expand social circles and show off to others.
The younger sister could be given away as a gift.
"The girl you adopted is quite interesting, like a cat."
"Oh... If you want, I can have her 'stay' at your place. But..."
"I know. I'll inform my family members afterward."
This was a blatant violation of the law, but nobles often knew how to avoid investigations. A meal, a bottle of wine, and a bit of "consideration" could reveal much information.
The noble who believed in "using things to their full potential" was later eliminated by "Father," but that was many days later.
"From now on, you'll live with your new father!"
At that moment, the noble shoved Lynette into the carriage, ignoring her struggles and resistance.
As the door closed and the scenery flew by, Lynette couldn't help but cover her cat ears, thinking perhaps the outcome was already decided.
Why did she grow such ears?
When the carriage stopped, she looked out the window. The doorplate at the entrance read "Lefèvre." Beyond the gate stood an eye-catching mansion.
It's over, Lynette couldn't help but think.
"Get ready. Mr. Lefèvre wants to enjoy you quickly. Dress yourself up nicely. If you can satisfy him, you might still live."
The guard dragged Lynette by the hand and threw her into a spacious room.
Most of the other girls in the mansion were hidden in the basement, but it seemed that newcomers were first kept in this room.
The room was large and could be called luxurious. But she didn't want to stay here at all.
Lynette clenched her teeth, her nails leaving a white mark on the floor.
"Brother..." Tears slid past her lips.
Though she didn't know what kind of situation she would face next, she vaguely understood that she would never see her only family again.
Just then.
"Are you new here too?"
"Huh?"
A similarly youthful voice sounded, making Lynette's cat ears twitch.
She lifted her tear-filled eyes, instinctively looking toward the source of the sound.
By the window sat a petite figure, bathed in moonlight, appearing particularly ethereal.
It was a girl about her age.
Golden hair, red eyes. Though simply dressed, nothing could hinder the already emerging beauty.
Most importantly, her voice was beautiful, as clear and crisp as a bird's song.
For a moment, Lynette forgot her fear and asked in a daze, "Are you...?"
The girl smiled faintly. "I'm Luna."
"I was just brought here too. What about you? What's your name?"
Lynette crawled up and sat on the ground, feeling lost. "L-Lynette..."
"Are you a cat?" Luna asked curiously.
Lynette immediately covered her cat ears.
Enough.
These ears had never brought her anything good.
When her parents were still alive, many children would ask her: "Are you really your parents' biological child? Why are you so different from your brother?"
She didn't want to hear any of it.
"How beautiful."
"...?" Lynette looked up in confusion.
Luna jumped down from the window, walked over to her, and crouched down.
"I love cats. If only I had a pair of cat ears too." As she spoke, Luna reached out to touch Lynette's cat ears.
"Don't touch me!"
Luna immediately withdrew her hand, feeling guilty. "Sorry. You were brought here because of these ears, weren't you? As for me..."
She pointed at her neck.
"It's because of this."
Her neck?
Lynette stared at Luna's neck, unable to think of anything beyond "so fair" and "beautiful."
After a moment of silence, she hesitantly asked, "Your neck?"
"My throat."
Luna sat down, touching her neck. "The owner of this mansion thinks my voice is pleasant, and then..."
She hugged her knees, lowering her eyelids.
"The orphanage sent me here. I just saw a large birdcage earlier. Maybe they want to lock me in there."
Though they were around the same age, Luna's manner and speech made Lynette realize that the other girl seemed more psychologically mature.
Lynette wiped away the wet tears on her face with the back of her hand and murmured, "I hate these ears."
Luna lifted her head, gazing at her.
"...I may never see my brother again. He's my only family left." Lynette struggled to contain the turbulent emotions swirling within her.
"What will we become next?"
Luna shook her head.
Of course she didn't know. How could she possibly know?
She and I were both brought here... Lynette's eyes grew dim.
Tic-tok, tic-tok. The clock in the room kept ticking away.
How piercing. Lynette's cat ears drooped.
The more she heard the clock's sound, the more she realized the end was approaching bit by bit.
And what the outcome would be? Perhaps only the full moon knew.
Lynette shrank into herself. The night wasn't cold, but she felt icy tendrils seeping into every corner of her skin.
Tap-tap... She suddenly heard Luna's footsteps moving away, then returning. A cloth was draped over her. Lynette shuddered, keeping her eyes downcast.
"I'm so scared," she murmured.
Luna sat beside her, pondering for a moment.
"Have you heard the story of Adventures in the Night Kingdom?"
"...I have some vague recollection."
But Lynette didn't understand why Luna would suddenly mention this.
Still, it was better than enduring the torment of silence. So she continued speaking softly.
"But I've only seen the stage version, and I didn't finish watching it."
She'd only seen street performances by small groups, and never managed to finish them.
When you need to make a living, you can't waste time on such things.
So every time she passed by, she could only catch fragmented scenes, unable to piece together the full story.
If she were to ask Lyney, he would undoubtedly take her to see it—stealthily if necessary.
But that would only add to her brother's burden.
"Let me tell you this story instead."
"Long, long ago, there was a princess of the Night Kingdom. When her seven dwarf muskets went missing due to enemy invasion, her stepmother gave her a vibrant apple that summoned a pumpkin carriage..."
Lynette's ears perked up, unable to resist listening.
Luna's voice, soft and melodious, effortlessly drowned out the clock's piercing tick-tock.
The room wasn't warm, despite the tightly sealed windows that kept out even the slightest breeze.
Yet as Lynette listened to Luna's voice, she felt her spirit already passing through this cage, being carried into the world of the story.
"Lynette."
"Hm?"
"Do you want to return to your brother's side?"
"Yes," Lynette answered without hesitation.
She whispered, "What about Luna?"
"Me? I... I have no place to return to."
Luna lowered her gaze before looking back at Lynette.
"But I can try to take you away from here."
She produced a small knife from her pocket.
"Where did you get this?" Lynette asked, her face full of surprise. No matter what, she knew the people in this mansion wouldn't let caged birds like them touch any weapons.
Luna just replied softly, "I stole it."
"From here?"
"The orphanage. Before they put us in the car."
So she had planned to leave long ago?
"Then why didn't you escape first?" Lynette couldn't help asking.
"...Eh heh."
The awkward laugh made her drop the subject.
Did she really want to escape? Lynette thought for a moment. Before she could ask, the door suddenly opened.
In that short moment, Luna hid the small knife and looked over with Lynette.
The guard tightened his belt, where a small pistol hung.
"Time's up. Mr. Lefèvre wants to see you. Come with me."
His face was expressionless, his eyes cold. He didn't think these two skinny girls could do anything to him.
"Don't... I don't want to," Lynette whispered.
"Don't want to? That doesn't matter."
The guard grabbed Lynette's arm and easily picked her up.
"It seems I need to show you that resistance is useless first." The guard raised his fist.
Lynette closed her eyes instinctively, her cat ears drooping immediately.
But the expected pain didn't come from anywhere. Instead, a warm liquid splattered across her face.
"Ugh... Ah..."
The grip on her wrist vanished instantly, and Lynette collapsed to the ground.
She opened her eyes in shock to find the guard lying on the floor, a small knife protruding from his neck. The blade had pierced through the flesh with surgical precision.
"...Are you alright?"
Lynette stared blankly at Luna. "Ah... you..."
Clearly, the knife had been thrown by Luna.
The guard tried to rise, but Luna noticed this and immediately withdrew the blade. Blood gushed from the wound, and he soon stopped struggling.
Luna: "..."
She gazed at the corpse, her fingers trembling slightly with tension while her eyes remained unnervingly calm.
Taking a deep breath, she pulled out the small pistol from the guard's waist and casually produced several bullets.
"I remember it's like this..." Luna murmured, loading the bullets into the pistol before putting it away.
Finally, their eyes met again.
Luna didn't know what to say, but they didn't have much time left, and this was their only chance.
"Lynette."
She reached out with clean hands to wipe away the blood from Lynette's face.
"Let's escape together."
Escape? Could they really get out? Lynette's eyes asked the question.
Luna's answer was simple.
"With Tsuki guiding us, we'll definitely make it!"
This line came from Adventures in the Night Kingdom, where the female protagonist and her friend were imprisoned. Under the moon's guidance, they successfully escaped and returned home.
"I may not have a place to return to," Luna said, "but I can take you back to your family."
Her voice was firm. "Let's go!"
Lynette felt her eyes grow hot again.
The moon won't guide me, she thought. If it did, Lyney and I wouldn't have suffered so much.
That moon in the sky only watches others. It never shines its light on anyone.
But Luna was different.
"Okay!"
The moon won't guide me, she thought, but Luna can.
Taking Luna's soft, baby-fat hands, Lynette stood up.
To escape, you can't do it alone.
Eyes, ears... and the natural agility and balance you're born with—these can all be your most important weapons.
They tore bed sheets into ropes, pried open the window lock, and slid down.
With eyes watching all directions and ears listening to every sound, Lynette had never been so grateful for her unique ears—even though it was precisely these ears that had put her in this situation.
But in the end, someone still blocked their path.
"Escape? How could you possibly get away? One's an unwanted orphan, the other a catgirl already known to everyone. Recapturing you wouldn't be difficult at all!"
"Go back quickly, and I might pretend nothing happened..."
"Otherwise, don't blame me for throwing your brother into the water!"
Lefèvre's face was full of mockery.
But in the next moment, his expression froze forever in terror.
Bang! The fire tore through the night, a scorching bullet piercing straight through Lefèvre's heart. The sudden gunshot made Lynette's entire body jolt.
She looked beside her, seeing only Luna gripping the gunstock tightly.
Lynette carefully recalled the scene.
Though somewhat blurred, she still remembered Luna's expression at that moment.
No panic, no fear, no anger.
Her gun hadn't fired from inner fear or fury.
The cold moonlight illuminated her eyes, as if her blood were burning coldly, seeming to say—this person shouldn't remain in this world.
Her gun fired for her own sense of justice.
That's why Arlecchino placed her hand on Luna's head.
"Well done."
Then she gently stroked a few times.
-
Made a discord if anyone is interested
https://discord.gg/BFW77h7XyS