Harri made an annoyed noise in the back of her throat as the rain- large, heavy drops- fell on her head again. Shaking it to clear away the water on her face, she gave a small growl as she pressed her small body to the corner of the crate in the alley she had found herself in, resigning herself to suffering through this ridiculous storm with only the shelter of a half broken wooden crate.

What had led up to this, anyway? Harri wasn't so sure anymore. All she really remembered was getting stuck in her animagus form and then a squeezing sensation- similar to apparition but not at the same time- and suddenly she was in an alley, and it was storming.

Which was odd, as it was summer and there was no indication of any storms recently. Though, looking out at the streets, and seeing maybe one or two horse-drawn carriages for the entire two or three hours she had been there, Harri figured she wasn't exactly in her own time.

Or dimension. The ambient magic around her felt a little too different for it to simply have been accidental time travel.

Exactly how had she gotten into an alternate universe, stuck in her animagus form no less? Harri really didn't know, but she supposed that she should have expected something like this.

Harri gave another small growl as yet another water droplet fell on her head- dammit, she was too small for this! One water droplet almost blinded her! Why did her animagus form have to be stuck as a very small kitten? Harri pressed even further against the crate.

It provided no warmth and very minimal shelter.

She sighed internally and curled up against the corner of the crate she was in. It was better than nothing she supposed.

Shivering, Harri curled up even more, trying in vain to keep even a little warm.

As a third drop fell on her head, she gave a frustrated yowl and batted at the water with her paw- useless, yes, but it made her feel somewhat better to take her anger at the situation out on something, at least.

Suddenly, there was more shelter than there should have been and a small gasp was heard above her, but before Harri could move, large hands were picking her up, cradling her to a chest.

"Oh you poor thing," a voice, most likely belonging to the person now holding her, "how did you get caught in such a storm?"

Instead of clawing at the person that was now holding her as her first instincts told her to do, Harri nuzzled into the chest that she was held against, grateful for the shelter from the rain and the warmth that was practically rolling off the person.

The person, a male she realized belatedly, chuckled a bit and then they were moving, and she was being held in one hand.

Harri instinctively tried to get a hold on something with her claws because of the suddenness of the movement, but she made sure not to scratch the person holding her. She was obviously being taken somewhere with shelter and warmth, the least she could do was not hurt the fellow.

After just a few seconds of movement, they were stepping up into a carriage, and Harri blinked owlishly, wondering when that had gotten there. There was already a person inside, around thirteen years old, judging by his height. He had teal-gray hair and one sapphire blue eye (the other was hidden by an eyepatch). By the way he was dressed, he was a noble.

Said thirteen year old rolled his eyes (eye) at the person holding her. "Really Sebastian? You stopped the carriage because of a cat?"

Sitting down across from the teen, the person holding her- now identified as Sebastian- replied. "Of course, young master. She was freezing. Besides, look at how adorable she is, and she really cannot be any older than perhaps a month. She should not be on her own."

Harri, instead of growling or scratching his face like she normally would have done, simply accepted this. Her sudden ease with which she allowed herself to be second-hand patronized may have something to do with the hand that was now scratching at just the perfect spot behind her ear.

"Be that as it may, you know I am allergic to cats, Sebastian. As soon as we get somewhere, be rid of the thing at once." The thirteen year old seemed to wave aside Sebastian's obvious attempt at being able to keep her (Harri had mixed feelings about this- she wasn't a pet, and would never be one, but the hand petting her really did feel nice).

"Yes, my lord." The man holding her said, reluctance obvious in his tone.

Though the first sentence the teen said got to Harri. She didn't care how he reacted to other cats, she was hypoallergenic, dammit! Meowing quietly and shifting so that she was placed in Sebastian's lap instead of held against his chest, Harri shook herself just a bit then jumped across the small aisle, landing neatly on the teen's lap.

Not letting him shoo her away, Harri easily jumped up onto his shoulder and bumped her head against his cheek, purring. Instead of sneezing or whatever he had obviously been expecting, he just sort of blinked at her.

"Why am I not sneezing, Sebastian?" He asked after a few seconds, turning to what Harri could now tell was obviously his butler. Weren't butlers referred to by their last names? Harri was sure she had read that in a history book. Seems these two were closer than most butlers were to their lord. "Did you do something to the cat?"

Idly wondering why this little lord immediately thought Sebastian did something, she jumped back down into his lap and back across to Sebastian's.

The hand immediately continued petting her, much to Harri's delight. "No, my lord. It seems the kitten is simply hypoallergenic."

'Damn right I am,' Harri thought, purring as the hand made its way to just behind her ears again.

The little lord gave a small huff through his nose. "In that case, I suppose you can keep the thing. Though if I get ill in any way from her presence, she's gone. Immediately."

"Yes, my lord," this time the reply was definitely happier than the other time Sebastian said only that.