Advent Of A Gunslinger

Bombay tilted her head with a curious expression behind those golden eyes of hers as she flicked her tail. “...Hm? Are you two not together?” she asked innocently.

Spitha cupped her claws against her blushing cheeks in an embarrassed fashion. “W-wha? Oh no! We’re not together, we just…”

“...Ah, I apologize for assuming,” the queen cat responded quietly with a worried look on her face, “I saw you both come in together and I thought...forgive me.”

“Oh no, i-it’s perfectly fine!” Spitha put her hands down and cleared her throat as she came down off of her bashful state. “Er--rather, it’s a long story in regards to how we came to know each other.”

“I’ve got time,” Bombay assured her, placing a paw on the dragon’s shoulder to encourage her, “If you want to explain your plight, then I’m all ears, friend.”

Spitha was able to relax. “...Alright. Well…”

And she went on to explain everything from how her husband had lied to her for five years, how Mio was the one who brought it to her attention, how the two men fought, the fact that they were here now, and their next course of action…

“...My goodness…” Bombay got up from her seat, and wrapped her arms around the dragon woman to bring her in for a hug. “I’m so sorry that happened to you. You didn’t deserve that…”

“...Thank you for listening,” Spitha replied while putting her arms around the she-cat, “It means a lot. And it’s quite alright now. I’ve already come to terms with it and know that I want to see him dead and buried into the dirt.”

Once they broke the hug, Bombay sat back in her seat. “I see…” She glanced over into the kitchen once more. From where they sat, they could see Mio helping Mau flip some pancakes off of a griddle.

“It’s all in the wrist,” said Mau, “Just flick it with the spatula and it’ll be no problem.”

Next to him, Mio could be seen flipping over several pancakes with a spatula in both hands. Some almost flew into the air, but they all landed on the proper sides to finish cooking. “Something like this, right?”

“...Hot damn, you’re a natural--”

SPLAT!

One of the pancakes flew behind Mio and across the kitchen, landing into the sink behind them.

Mio turned and immediately noticed his mistake. “...Oops! Sorry, sir…”

“Hey, no harm done,” Mau assured him with a smile, “Just ease up a little. You’re not trying to toss it like a yarn ball.”

The younger tom chuckled. “Ahah--guess not. Let me try again…”

At the table with the ladies, Bombay couldn’t help but giggle at the sight. “He’s a spry one, isn’t he?”

Spitha tried to hold back her laughter. “Mm? Y-yes--he’s quite nice. Easily the most trustworthy friend I’ve made in a long time.”

“...Just a friend, eh?” Bombay thought to herself, “With the way you look at that young man, it's most certainly not going to stay that way." She'd respond with a small mewl, “So you both want to get payback for what your ex did to you, hm? I’m all for it.”

“...I’m not simply motivated by revenge,” Spitha replied as she glanced down at the table, “I want to see him lose everything because he’s actively hurting innocent ponies by forcing them into these slave labor situations. And it’s painful because it doesn’t look like Equestria is doing anything about it…”

Bombay sighed, and looked out of the nearby sliding glass door and into the kingdom she and her husband ruled. “It’s not that they don’t want to...they simply can’t,” she lamented, “The Southern Hemisphere is simply too vast and desolate for them to try and mount any sort of attack. Not to mention the fact that it’s ultimately beyond Equestrian jurisdiction. Same for us here in Abyssinia. We have no stake in the North--they have no stake in the South.”

“Ah...that makes more sense now that I think about it,” the dragon woman shook her head, “Even so, I want to see him buried for his actions. I would never have supported him if I had known…”

“Whatever you do…” the queen she-cat went on, “Please don’t try to act on your own. I know it may take a while for you to begin to put trust in others again, but don’t let that stop you.”

Spitha looked up at her. “Hm? What do you mean?”

Bombay glanced over at the kitchen once more where Mau could be seen chopping vegetables with one hand and flipping the contents of a pan with the other. “Well, after dealing with the horrid effects of the Civil War, I found it hard to trust anyone until Mau came along. Now? I couldn’t be happier. I have a great home, loving subjects, have reinforced a good state of living, and have a loving man who’s willing to share his clothes.” She purred while pushing down on the hem of the oversized sports jersey, causing it to cling to her form. “I couldn’t ask for anything better.”

“...Hopefully I can reach something like that someday. With someone that I can really trust.” Spitha focused hard upon Bombay’s words, and came to agree. “Yes...I understand. Trust me. I’ll keep going with Mio’s help and work towards trusting others...slowly.”

“Mm-hmm,” the she-cat smugly thought to herself, “I’ve seen the way you glance at that young man.”

In an attempt to change the subject, Spitha glanced at the jersey the queen was wearing. “Oh, I’ve been meaning to ask--what sort of sports do you abyssinians play?”

BB looked down at the jersey and gasped. “Oh! This, that’s right. Well, there’s loads of different ones. But what Mau used to play in his spare time was a little game called kirikwasi--or yarnball. It’s basically a game where two teams try to throw as many balls of yarn in their opponents baskets before time runs out. Tackling is allowed.”

“Oooh…” the dragon woman vocalized curiously, “I’d love to see that in action.”

“Oh no…” Mau muttered as he walked up to the table with plates in hand, “Don’t tell me you’re telling our guest about my embarrassingly short kwasi career…”

BB let out a purring laugh. “Hrrrr! Don’t be modest, sweetie. Tell our guests the history behind your time spent with the Leo Cantus team.”

At long last, breakfast was served. Mau sat next to his wife and placed a plate of food in front of her and then himself as he sat down.

“Leo Cantus? Weren’t they unbeatable for five seasons?!” Mio asked as he sat a plate down in front of Spitha and sat next to her on the opposite side.

Everyone had a plate of three pancakes each, some bacon, sausage, and some sauteed potatoes with fried eggs on top--along with the all-important chives of course.And a glass of fresh milk.

“...We were, but I was the waterboy,” Mau explained as he picked up his fork, “I always preferred to stay in the background, being the son of Devon and all…”

BB would then rebound off of what her husband said in an attempt to make him feel better. “While that may be true, you came in and demolished the competition in their playoff game!”

“...” The king rolled his eyes as he took a sip from his glass. “Rrrr...only because I was so overweight that no one else could knock me over.”

“HRRK!” Mio’s fur stood up on end as he was eating, and he nearly choked. “...You were fat at one point, sir?”

“Ach--Mio!” Spitha gently scolded him, “Don’t say things like that. He was probably just...chubby.”

“No, he’s right,” Mau said with a chuckle, “I was quite rotund when I was younger. But that didn’t stop the pussy next to me from asking me out.”

The queen playfully flicked her tail against her husband’s nose. “Oh don’t be like that. I always found you cute as a button even when nobody else did.”

“Yeah...and I’m grateful for it,” he replied with a small laugh.

Mio leaned to his left and whispered to Spitha. “...They appear to be a loving pair, don’t they?”

“Mm-hmm,” the dragon woman nodded, “It’s no wonder this place is so prosperous. The ones in charge are very wonderful and support each other.”

The conversation would soon shift back to the direction of business where Mau would ask.

“Alright...now explain to me how you want to deal with this, ‘Rongu’.”