A Prey Among Predators

A long table consisting of tables put together stand in the middle of an omnivorous restaurant. Gathered around the table are a handful of the Brave, the scorekeepers, and even Miro and the penginmimis. Dishes of various foods from meats to salad line down the middle of the table. The friends serve themselves food and talk among one another.

“Here, try this!” Zachary places a small, silver-colored fish on Carter’s plate.

Carter gives the offer a look of uncertainty. He darts his eyes to him.

The penginmimi holds a warm expression at him. “You’ll like it!”
Carter takes the fish by a fork and munches half of it. With the fish sticking out of his mouth, his eyes light up. He gobbles up the rest. “Mmmm!” He swallows. “Wow, that’s good!”

Zachary then whirls around to face his friends to his left. “Niclas! Bring the fish plate over!”

To Carter’s right, Nolan taps his shoulder, grabbing his attention. “You like the salad?”

“Yeah! It goes great with fish!” He jabs his fork to his plate, which is now being loaded with fish by Zachary.

Nolan grimaces at the new addition.

“But thanks for suggesting the salad—” He pinches his fork in his salad, getting a fish among leaves. “—it’s great!” He stuffs it in his mouth.

“Because it’s bottomless salad Saturday!” Lias blurts out from Nolan’s other side. “My favourite day!” He picks up his bowl and shoves the salad leaves into his mouth.

Nolan turns to him with furrowed eyebrows. “Not fruit Fridays?”

Carter swallows. “Oh, fruit Fridays are amazing!”

Lias puts down his bowl and points his fork at him. “Even better!”

“Their fruit salads are fresh here,” Elias pipes up from even further down the table, on Lias’s other side.

Nolan gazes up in a dream. “They’re the best I’ve ever had!”

Lias gasps with pleasure. “And their fruit tarts!”

“Fruitcakes!” Carter adds in.

Nolan places a hand on his chest. “Oh, yes! I can taste the juicy berries.” He then nibbles on a berry from his berry salad.

Elias throws a pointer finger in the air. “Have that with a fruit smoothie!”

Lias turns to him with a pleading expression. “Petey! You’re making me want some now…!”

Across the table, Clayton and Brett are gawking at them. In front of them are two plates of rare-cooked steak; Clayton holds his fork with a sliver of meat in the air.

“How can you like fruit?” Brett croaks out.

Clayton shakes his head and bites the meat off of his fork.

Brett looks down at his plate. “I guess that only comes from those who eat just salad.” He cuts into it and eats some. “And bears.”

Clayton swallows. “They’ll never know the goodness of a rare steak.” He eyes his plate. “What a pity.”

Brett nods with his mouth full. “Mmm-hm!”

Sitting next to Brett’s right is Miro, who reaches over and points to the bowl of silver-colored fish that sits across the table.

“Can you give that bowl to me?” he asks.

Brett turns to him. “Oh sure, Heisk!” He reaches over to the bowl, grabs it, and places it by his plate.

Miro serves some fish before handing the bowl down the table to Renārs.

Clayton leans over to gaze at his face. “So, I heard that the Fury folded.”

Miro turns to him. “Yeah. It was a band of troublemakers.”

“I guess that what happens when a mustelid leads a team...”

“...of other mustelids and rodents,” Miro adds in.

Brett raises his eyebrows at him. “No canine?”

“Dogs.”

Brett snorts.

Clayton narrows his eyes, rotating his fork at him. “You were the only feline, right?”

“Yeah…” Miro consumes one of the fish.

Clayton turns to his plate and cuts into his steak. “Well, Clague, Hague, and Jost are still on the team, so you got them.”

Miro’s eyes light up. “I can return to your team then?”

Brett eyes him. “You were just a loan for the Fury, right?”

“Yes, since the Fury lost a D-men and now they’ve folded.” He drops his utensils and faces Miro. “Glad to have you back.” He holds his fist across Brett to fist bump him.

Miro bumps his fist against him, letting out soft purr with a bright, small grin.

“That’s good they didn’t corrupt you,” Brett speaks up. He aims suspicious eyes at Miro. “Or did they?”

Miro shakes his head. “Oh no, no; I didn’t like them.”

Brett clicks his tongue and points to him. “Good. You’ve been Brave-preserved.”

Miro chuckles.

Clayton resumes cutting his steak. “Now we got our D-men back…” He looks up in deep thought. “...and…”

Brett peers at him. “Oh, shoot, Pat.”

The two canines face ahead of them. On the other side is Nolan, who converses vibrantly with the scorekeepers and Carter on both sides.

“What about Pat?” Brett hisses. “He was loaned to fill in Heisk’s place!”

Clayton raises his eyebrows. “Oh dog…”

“I-I don’t have to—”

Clayton holds a palm out to Miro, shutting him up. “No, no, we need you.” He then pulls out his clipboard and pencil from underneath the table and scans through it. “Rats…”

Brett shoots him a bewildered look. “You brought that with you?”
“I bring it everywhere,” he snaps, not tearing his eyes away from the paper.

“I’m not touching that then.”

Next to him, Miro snorts with a crumbled smile.

Brett shoots him a joking smirk.

Clayton smacks his arm with the clipboard, forcing yelp out of him.

“Wow, a team party?!” Kale is heard exclaiming from the front of the room.

Everyone at the table lifts their heads and turn to him.

Kale approaches them with a bright grin and sunglasses over his eyes. He wears a yellow Hawaiian shirt with cat patterns, khaki pants, and flip-flops; a Hawaiian garland hangs around his neck and a straw hat sits on his head; in his hand is a sand-colored, leather suitcase.

He halts at the end of the table, between Elias and Clayton, and places his suitcase on the ground. “Okay, kinda team party.” He points to the penginmimis. “You guys are not part of the team.”

Zachary scans around the table with sharp eyes. “Did anyone so cruel invite this cat?”

Clayton waves a hand at him. “He’s a teammate.” He gazes up at Kale. “What brings you here, Clague?”

Kale whips his sunglasses off his face, revealing his bright, round eyes. “I just wanted to say…” His eyes instantly light up as they land on Miro. “Heisky!”

He darts over to the other feline and swoops down to pull him into a hug. Miro wraps his arms around him; they both have large, closed smiles and closed eyes as they purr together.

Kale then pulls away with an open smile aiming down at him. “My feline D-partner! You’re back?”

Miro nods. “Uh-huh!”

“Oh, what a bummer!” He cranes his head back. “Just as I’m leaving to Hawaii!”

Brett scans his outfit with a scrunched-up face. “You’re going to Hawaii? I thought you were going to Siberia.”

Kale whirls to him. “No! I wouldn’t survive in Siberia in this outfit!” He yanks at his button-up shirt. “How can you think I’m going over there?!”

Brett shakes his head and looks away.

Clayton peers at him from behind his shoulder. “Well, don’t forget to send a postcard.” He then turns back around.

“But-but, Coach,” Kale speaks out with pleading eyes, “I’m actually…”

Clayton rotates back to him.

“I’m actually going to LIVE there! That’s why I’m leaving—” He places his foot on Brett’s lap with hands on his hips and a straight back. “I’m finally living my dream of living in Hawaii!”

Brett pushes his foot off, making him stumble back onto his two feet.

Clayton blinks at him. “Oh. Okay. Then you can’t be in the team anymore.”

Kale points to him with a snap. “And that’s what I was going to tell you— I can’t be on the team anymore!”

“Yeah. You’re out of the team.”

“Yup, I’m no longer on this team; I’m sorry, Coach.”

Clayton nods. “Sure. Send a postcard.”

Kale then whisks to the end of the table. He turns around to face them and salutes. “Adiois, peoples!” He then scoops up his suitcase and bounds away.

Brett stares at the front of the room with narrowed eyes and a gape. “That was Spanish, not Hawaiian.”

“Crazy cats.” Clayton swings his head to return to his plate, yet spots Miro’s frown. “Sorry.”

Miro shrugs. “It works. Don’t need to drop anyone.”

Clayton’s eyes snap open with hope. He straightens up, confidence flooding his aura. He gazes around the table. “My team is back. Perfect for the upcoming season…”

“Yup, this season was weird—” Brett screws up his face. “No championship. Just ended like that.”

Miro peers at him. “It’s for the best.”

Clayton stands up and taps his untouched spoon on his glass of water. Ting, ting, ting…!

The chattering falls into a hush as everyone turns their heads to the coach.

“Prey and predators,” Clayton starts off, “I would like to announce an old teammate back to our team, the Brave—” He holds a hand out to Miro. “—Miro Heiskanen.”

Miro beams with his small, askew smile.

Brett flaps his upward-facing palms toward Miro, motioning him to stand.

Miro dips his head and rises to his feet.

Everyone around the table claps with eyes up on him.

Carter then raises his hand as the applause dies down. “But Coach, does that mean Pat needs to leave—?”

Nolan gawks at him.

“Nope, because Clague did that himself, freeing up a spot.” The coach holds one hand out to Nolan and another to Miro. “Therefore, we keep these two talented players.”

Everyone erupts into cheers and applause, exchanging grins with one another. Clayton gazes out at his complete team in satisfaction.


The End.

Notes

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