It was a quiet night in Norune Village. The majestic Dran’s Windmill loomed over the sleeping town with a sort of god-like benevolence, the sound of its massive blades an eerie lullaby. The village itself was in a sort of peaceful slumber, as if an enchantment had befallen it and only the light of day can reverse the spell. Overall, things seemed very calm. So one wouldn’t think this quiet, secluded town had any secrets.
 
 
That was far from the truth.
 
 
“Ok, quietly now. No sense wakin’ the whole damn village.” Traelic said, his mustache twitching from the sound of his noisy men. He scanned the houses for the one described in the coded message before setting his eyes on it. It was a tower-shaped hut, with the downstairs being a barn, and the upstairs the residence. “Ok, it’s dat one. On the double, lads. We pull this off, the general gives us a hefty sum. Look for the gem. That Atlamillia is worth a fortune.”
 
 
Slowly, he walks up the wooden steps, cringing when the middle one creaked under is immense weight. He carefully continued up, and slowly opened the door. No lock. Typical.
 
 
~~~~~~~~
 
 
In the family room, on a small, circular rug, slept a girl. Though she looked human enough, her cat-like ears and clawed hands were enough to tell you she wasn’t. She snored softly, dreaming of eating a whole bowl of her favorite fish candy, and getting so full, she could barely walk. A small pur came from her throat as she twitched, her diaper crinkling with the movement.
 
 
Then her ears twitched. She heard the latch on the front door click open. She bolted upright, as if shocked by electricity in a science lab, and quickly got into pouncing position. The catgirl waited patiently, a small bit of ecstasy filling her body as she awaited the intruder. “Whatta waitin’ for, Lads. Come in. This place has got no security. It’s as if they’re beggin’ for the Atlamillia to go missin’.” Said the intruder. He had a harsh, deep voice, but there was a slight edge to the tone, according to the girl’s acute hearing.
 
 
The intruder walked into the family room, and flicked on the light. With the reflexes of, well, a cat, the girl lunged forward and pinned the man down. He was clearly overweight, and he had a liquorice-y sent to him. When he tried to move, she put one of her clawed hands to his throat, awfully close to his jugular. “Tell your men to stand down, now!” The girl hissed.
 
 
“P-please! W-we g-got lost! W-we w-were just lookin’ for directions to Queens” Traelic said, hoping to trick the girl out of letting him go so he can snap her neck. He studied her features, and gulped back. The general never said there would be a cat of any kind. Traelic has always been afraid of the pointy-eared bastards. “N-now. Can you release me and show me da way?”
 
 
The girl glared at Traelic with malice. “I can sense your fear, and your intent to hurt me. You think just because I look human and can speak English I’m not a cat?” Traelic started shivering, and he motioned for his men to run, skedaddle. “N-nice kitty?! I-I’ll go. I-I’ll leave peacefully.”
 
 
The girl moved her clawed hand closer to his jugular. “I have no intention of letting you go. You’ll just go and get reinforcements. The Atlamillia...is around my neck.” After she said this, Traelic notices the blue gem around the catgirl’s neck. “Knowing you, you won’t even care about completing your mission. Allow me to show you the way out.”
 
 
The catgirl opens her mouth, and engulfs Traelic’s head, sticky saliva coating his mustached face. The predator took a swallow, and sent Traelic’s head and shoulders down her slimy throat. It was obvious that she had done this before, and maybe even with people bigger than Traelic. As the catgirl continued to swallow Traelic, his head pushed against the walls of her stomach. About a minute later, Traelic was curled up in a fetal position as he felt the catgirl walk back to the family room rug and curl up, falling asleep instantly.
 
 
~~~~~~~~
 
 
At first, Traelic felt nothing, but then a slight tingle started to nip at his feet. And then that tingle became a burn, and the burn, a scorch. He cried for help as the catgirl’s acids ate away at his body, and he felt his liquified legs start to be pumped into her intestines before he lost consciousness. While he wasn’t alive anymore, it still took the catgirl another hour to fully digest Traelic.
 
 
As she slept, the catgirl’s colon started building pressure. First, a thin stream of urine yellowed the front of her diaper, which was followed by the boney remains of what was once Traelic, a bandit who was searching for a gem, but only ended up as a catgirl named Xiao’s midnight snack.