Night had already fallen fast upon them when the valiant pair of cubs chose an inconspicuous forest bush to take refuge underneath. The chill of the night could do nothing against their hard-earned fluff, and the soft blanket of leaves would conceal their snowy fluff from the moonlight above—and any hungry creatures who might happen upon them.

At least, that was all they could hope for.

The remainder of the day’s journey had been uneventful. With no further prey to train upon or food to sustain their tired, small and incredibly fluffy bodies, Sasha and Arwen snuggled together under nature’s cover, eagerly awaiting the moment that sleep would lead them to new rays of dawn.

But the night was still young.

“Hey, Sasha.” Arwen nuzzled her sister.

“What is it?”

“Just wanted to see if you were still up!” Arwen giggled.

Sasha groaned. “This isn’t a camping trip. We should try to sleep now while we can. It’s only been the first day of our journey, and we have a long way ahead of us.”

“Yeah, I know…”

…

“Hey, Sasha.”

“What?”

“What were all those numbery things we kept getting earlier?”

“Oh, those? I don’t think they make much of a difference. A true hero does not rely on stat points. They’re just there to make you feel better whenever you see you’re getting bigger numbers.”

“Huh. Okay…”

…

“Hey, Sasha.”

“What?”

“Remember that time back on Earth when we went camping together? We spent the whole day before packing, but then it was already nighttime when we realized that we didn’t have enough blankets. Then we had to snuggle together just like this!”

“Oh yeah, I remember that. And I’m pretty sure the one who was supposed to bring those blankets was you.”

“W-well, um… let’s just say that this time, I made sure we had blankets!” Arwen gave Sasha another round of fluffy headrubs with a giggle.

Loathe as she was to admit it, Sasha could feel for herself how their upgraded cub fluff had its perks against the cold. Depending on how far they made it before the snows of winter, this might be the protection from the elements they needed. They would even be prepared if they had to return to the chilly mountains.

…If only it were all so easy. Before Sasha could answer, Arwen’s stomach let out a rebellious rumble.

“Hey, Sasha.”

“Don’t say it!”

“I’m hungry.”

Blast it all. Sasha had nearly forgotten about her own hunger. They should have eaten as much as they could before setting out! Now they had spent the whole day traveling with nothing to fill their bellies, leaving them exhausted and hungry. “I… I will hunt for something we can eat in the morning,” Sasha said. “Okay?”

“Nothing until morning?!” Arwen groaned. “Can’t we, um… go find that giant raptor from earlier? That thing would be like two hundred chickens!”

Sasha frowned. “It’s been a long time since the beast fell. Something else has probably found it by now. Something bigger, and scarier, and—”

“Okay, I get it!” Arwen shuddered.

Tomorrow, they would return to their quest. Tomorrow, they would get even stronger. Tomorrow, they would figure it all out… somehow.

No one ever said the hero’s journey would be easy. To save the world and slay the demon king, they would have to train their bodies to the limit. They would have steel their resolves to overcome the harshest trials imaginable, like—

“Hey, Sasha.”

Fluffing heck! “What is it now?”

“What if… what if the others come looking for us? What if it’s Freya?”

“Well, I suppose a seasoned huntress like Freya is the only one who ever would be able to find us, but…” Sasha shook her head. “No. They were already running out of food, and they hardly have any shelter. We don’t know if they ever made it back to the camp today. And knowing those perverts, that’s assuming they haven’t already been corrupted to a life of endless degeneracy. Right now, they could even be holding hands… with laced fingers!”

Arwen gasped. “Sasha, no! That’s too much!!”

“Then don’t worry about it. We’re safe here. Just try to get some sleep, okay?” Sasha gave her sister a few more gentle pats.

Arwen took a deep breath before smiling and snuggling a little closer. Hunger aside, this would be alright. They were going to make it. And now that she had gotten so close to her sister, Sasha couldn’t help noticing again how Arwen’s new cub fur felt so unbelievably soft…

A sudden motor-like sensation beside her startled Sasha again. “Arwen, why are you purring?!”

“O-oh!” Arwen uttered, still purring. “I can’t help it, Sasha! Your fur is too fluffy~!”

“We can’t get the rest we need like this! And the noise is going to alert anything nearby! You c-can’t…”

It was absolutely infectious. The gentle, pleasant sound, the rhythmic kitty motor, the heavenly-soft fur… it was only a matter of time before Sasha couldn’t stop herself from purring, either.

“Sasha, I-I’m so happy!” Arwen purred. “I’m so g-glad I got to be a kitty with you!”

“N-no, this is bad!” Sasha purred. “You’re going to give away our position! Just g-give me some space!”

“But it’s so w-warm and fluffy next to you! Five minutes, no, a little longer!”

Suddenly, the snapping sound of a broken branch gave Sasha another shock. “There’s s-something near us!” Sasha whispered. “It’s close—you have to be quiet!”

“Y-you first!” Arwen kept purring. “Your fur is just too f-fluffy!”

They were making too much noise. The hunters had become the hunted. Sasha knew that much, and yet she felt practically enchanted by their irresistible fluff. Even the impending dread of a predator prowling toward them could not match the tranquilizing calm of their mutual purring.

“I can sense it getting c-closer!” Sasha purred. “We have to run!”

“F-five… more… minutes~…”

Arwen was starting to fall asleep! Their fluff and purring stats must have really grown too powerful after all! She would be utterly helpless against the creature that was nearly upon them—it was all up to Sasha now!

…Except whenever Sasha tried to come up with a plan, their purring shattered her train of thought. Was it all over? Was this how it was all going to end, caught within a fluffy trap of their own making?!

No, of course not. Sasha still had her claws, of course! And the moment their hunter foolishly got within—

The leaves around them shook and rustled. In the gap between the bush and the forest floor dead ahead, something appeared in the blink of an eye: a girl’s face with short snowy hair and a pair of snow leopard ears overhead, her two feline eyes glowing with reflected moonlight.

“There you are!”

Two hands lunged forward to grab Sasha and Arwen by the scruffs of their necks, lifting them high in the air.

“Bad kitties!” Freya huffed with a stern look. “I spent the whole day tracking you down just to find you two. You have no idea how worried I was!” The snow leopard spirit hugged her two cubs tightly in her arms.

It’s… it’s really Freya!? She just, this is… this means…?!

It took Sasha a minute to recover from the shock. “S-so, is the party going to continue onward and try to slay the Demon King now?” she finally asked. “I mean, what about making the log cabin before winter? And getting food?”

Freya tilted her head. “Huh? Is that what you were worried about? No, everything’s going to be okay! We were out meeting with a village of hunters who live nearby. They’re surprisingly friendly for humans, so we should be able to trade with them for whatever we need! Our party will manage to put something together in time for winter, no matter what!”

“Yaaaaaay!” Arwen cheered. “Sasha, did you hear that? We’re saved!”

Freya laughed. “That’s right! And we don’t have to worry about food anymore, because we are all going to be feasting real good. We found this giant raptor that fell off a cliff, all by itself! Those things are really dumb, huh?”

Sigh. Sometimes, a true hero’s duty was a thankless task.

Still, Sasha could feel how warm and unbelievably fluffy it was next to her sister in Freya’s arms like this. Then she couldn’t keep her mind from wandering. In the end, they really were going to have their own log cabin out here with the beautiful mountain scenery all around, and a nice easy life getting to play with Arwen every single day… Maybe this wouldn’t be so bad after all. Especially with all this new irresistible, purr-inducing fluff.

Purrhaps Sasha would retire from being a hero. She would already have the purrfect relaxing daily life ahead of her, everything she could ever want with some extra warm purr on top. And after all…

Who needs heroes, any—

“WAIT A MINUTE!” Freya gasped. “Did you two just talk like humans?!”

Oops. “Uh… M-meow? Meow?”

[Your Purrsuasion attempt succeeded! +1 MEOW]

“Huh. It was just my imagination then?” Freya thought out loud. “Yeah, there’s no way that would happen! Ohh my head, it’s been a very long day…”

“Nice save, meow!” Arwen whispered.

“Don’t ruin it,” Sasha whispered back.

Freya smiled at her cubs. “Now, let’s get you two home~!”

 

And so, the fluffiest adventure quickly came to The End—

 

“WAIT A MINUTE!” Freya gasped. “My cubs were never this fluffy! What’s going on here? WHO ARE YOU TWO?!”

Oops. “Uh… P-purr~?”

[Your Purrsuasion attempt succeeded! +1 PURR]

“Huh. Yeah, what was I thinking?” Freya thought out loud. “Of course it’s you two! Look at you both, getting your fluffy coats of fur ready for your first winter together! Sasha, Arwen, I have to pay more attention to you two now.” She hugged them a little tighter. “Ahh… I’m so happy we’re here, because now I have the fluffiest kitties in the whole world!”

“Purr, purr!” Arwen agreed.

Sigh. “Purr, purr…”