Meet the King and Queen
Upon arriving back at the castle, they proceed to the throne room. Crow had decided, with her permission, that he should introduce Cat to the king and queen. At the door to the throne room stand two guards, both felines (more commonly referred to as cats; actual cats, unlike Cat who is a fox who feels like a cat). One thing to know is that most of the king's guards are cats and the captain of the guards is a squirrel. There is a long history of cats being the preferred guards of the castle for their sharp senses, agility, and precision. That is not to imply the current roster has all of those qualities.
The guards allow Crow into the throne room of King Ploomage and Queen Lotsospots and Cat follows him in. He removes his cap and goggles, bows with elegance, and says, "Good morning, Your Majesties. I would like for you both to meet Cat, my new friend. She is here to help protect the castle."
The king, a brilliantly blue-feathered macaw, sits on a throne next to the queen, a leopard, on hers. He remarks, "I am surrounded by cats, but where is your friend? It appears that no one entered the room with you, Crow."
Crow motions a wing at where Cat is standing. "Begging your pardon, but she is the white and pink fox... err, cat right here next to me."
Everyone in the room glances around in confusion. The guards and king and queen all whisper to each other.
Cat says, "They must not have the believing power to see me. Maybe this will give them the clarity they need."
She leaps into the air and floats amidst a swirl of sparkles, which surprises Crow because it is the first time he notices her ability to hover. The large, wand-like paint brush emerges from her left tail and she twirls, sending a rainbow ribbon of brilliant watercolor paints flowing all around the room. No one but Crow seems to even notice it though, and the rainbow fades and drifts through them with no effect.
"Oh, my gosh!" Cat says. "If they can't see me or believe I exist, then my powers won't even work on them. You're gonna need to help me make them believe, Crow."
Knitten says, "Yes, please help her, kind and noble Crow. Father."
He wonders aloud, "Hmm, how can I prove to them that you're indeed real and not a mere figment of their imaginations?"
Cat suddenly perks up. "You've asked a great question, Crow, and I think our viewers would like to know the answer as well, so let's give them what they want!"
"Viewers? What viewers? What are you talking about, Cat?"
"Don't you know? The whole world is our audience! Life is a stage and it's up to us to do the entertaining! This one goes out to all our fans, even the ones we don't yet know we have!"
A wave of adrenaline washes over Crow, causing him to feel energized, and he begins again to move and speak like a circus ringmaster. "T-That's right, Cat! The whole world is our oyster and we are the shining pearl set to form around whatever irritates it so! We are the resplendent center attraction, so let's stand out and dazzle them for all it's worth! Tomorrow is not set in stone, but we can guide how it layers up!"
"Now you're getting it, Crow!" she tells him. "You were born for this. I could tell you would be brilliant at it!"
"Brilliant like a pearl?"
"Like a pearl, Crow!"
Everyone hears only Crow's booming voice and not Cat's voice. The queen leans to the others near her and asks, "Is he still pretending that someone is there? Perhaps he has a fever?"
The king agrees, "Yes, it may be a fever." He calls out, "You may have the rest of the day off to get feeling better, Crow. Please, go see the physician and get some rest."
The captain of the guards, the squirrel, responds by telling the other guards, "Haste, remove him before the king and queen get sick as well!"
"No, I'm not sick," Crow tries to explain, but the guards are already in action.
As they move toward Crow, Cat warns him, "Uh oh! Now you need to make like a pearl and get scarce! Better start flapping your wings, bird boy!"
"But I don't fly very well," he admits to her.
"Just try, Crow. I believe in you."
Knitten chimes in, "I do too!"
With that encouragement, Crow decides to give it his best try. He fluffs out his feathers and begins flapping both arms. Rather awkward in form, but he rises off the ground, billowing great puffs of air at the guards in doing so. Cat alights gently onto his back, then sinks her paws in and uses her floating ability to help him rise much faster.
The guards converge on Crow's location as he is just out of their reach. They leap to catch him, careful not to use their sharp claws, but he has risen too high.
Crow flies up a bit higher, then takes a calming breath and dives toward the exit doors. Unfortunate for all involved, he crashes into two guard cats who are also rushing to the doors, but Crow acts fast, wrapping his wings around and pulling them close to protect them as they all somersault through the doors and across the floor. The two guards standing outside the door are startled and begin dashing about in a panic.
Crow gently releases the guards he is holding and checks them for injuries. The rolling action did make his shoulders sting a bit, but he feels fine otherwise.
Soon enough, the door guards have regathered themselves and more guards are making their way through the doors from inside, bumping into each other as they go, so he tells the two, "My deepest apologies, but we had best get going now, before I cause any more trouble."
Cat, who had leapt clear as Crow started somersaulting, says, "Wow! Thanks to you, it looks like they have no ouchies, Crow."
"Fantastic!" he delights. "Let's get out of here then."
They scamper down the hallway before any of the guards can lay hands on them. That certainly did not go as planned, Crow thinks to himself.
