Long ago, King Richard ruled the kingdom of Jurdenta. He was respected by all. He was very generous. He would donate food and gold to homeless shelters and orphanages, he would care for animals, and he would cheer up small children. He was widely known throughout the country.

But soon, he grew bitter. All this giving, and what did he get? Nothing! Nothing except for the smiles on children’s faces, and jumping animals, and love and joy all around . . . But he didn’t realize it. He stopped helping. More and more people grew hungry. Homeless shelters weren’t getting enough money to support the ones inside. King Richard lost popularity.

Very few were able to be happy after that. Very few thought there was a chance. One of the few was a young girl named Meadowlark. Another was her sibling, Florizel. Florizel wasn’t a boy, nor a girl, nor even a human. They were a cat. A non binary cat. Did I mention they can speak?

One day, Meadowlark decided to confront the king.

“Maybe he’s lonely,” Meadowlark considered. Florizel meowed in reply.

“Or maybe . . . Do you have any other ideas?” Meadowlark asked. Florizel meowed again in protest. They meowed and meowed, but could not seem to form words. Meadowlark knelt down in front of them.

“Are you okay, Florizel?” she asked worriedly. Florizel only meowed. Little did they know that Florizel was losing their power because it was always the king who gave them the ability to talk. King Richard always would play with Florizel.

The two companions walked up the hill— Well, Meadowlark carried Florizel. They were in lazy mode that day— and started the long journey to the king’s castle.

The first day, they tromped through a muddy forest. By the time the sun began to set, they had reached the edge of the forest. Meadowlark rolled out a sleeping bag and Florizel curled up on their small pillow, also packed in a small bag. In the morning, Meadowlark quickly ate a peanut butter and jelly sandwich and fed Florizel some cat food. They packed their stuff and swiftly set off.

That second day, they crossed the wide fields of crops carefully to avoid trampling the crops. It was a couple hours trip on horseback . . . But of course, Meadowlark did not own a horse, nor did she know how to ride one. They stopped about three fourths of the way into the field and layed out the sleeping bag and pillow. Florizel meowed sadly. They missed speaking. They nuzzled Meadowlark with their nose and drifted off to sleep.

The third day, they finished walking through the field. The huge castle was in view, but it wasn’t vibrantly decorated as it used to be. It was a dull stone gray with none of the usual golden embellishments or red banners. Meadowlark nervously stepped towards the two large wooden doors, holding Florizel.

Why had I chosen to come? she thought panickedly, her heart beating wildly. She started to turn around.

“King R—” Florizel started. The word dissolved into incoherent purrs. But that was all Meadowlark needed. She turned towards the doors again and knocked.

Silence.

Of course, she thought. How would the King know I’m down here? He’s probably cooped up in his room.

Looking up at the castle, she looked at the small stone bricks jutting out of the wall and had an idea.

A very dangerous idea.

***

Two minutes later, Meadowlark was five feet above the ground, clinging to the stone bricks. Her foot slipped. She yelped and steadied herself. There’s no giving up now.

Perhaps an hour later she was reaching a high window, trying not to look down. She climbed up onto the ledge and knocked on the window. It slid open and a grumpy looking King Richard stood behind it. His face suddenly turned shocked.

“H-how— who are you?” he asked, struggling to compose himself.

“Meadowlark,” she said. “Remember Florizel?”

“The— the talking cat? Why, yes, of course I remember them— but—”

“They're right down there,” Meadowlark said, pointing downwards. She wobbled.

“Em— come in,” King Richard said, opening the window farther. Meadowlark clambered inside.

“Why are you so grumpy and sad?” Meadowlark asked.

“I— I’m not grumpy!” he protested.

“Uh-huh, sure,” Meadowlark said doubtfully. “Why haven’t you been coming over to play with Florizel? They can’t speak anymore!”

King Richard’s mouth dropped open. “Well, I— I never expected you would really want me to—“

“Of course we wanted you to come!” Meadowlark cut in. “Father’s been so lonely since mom passed away. You know that. You were a friend to him, and now— who else does he have? Of course he has me, but he also needs someone like him.”

“I— I’ll reconsider,” King Richard said distractedly. “But right now I have a lot of things to correct. Now, child, come.”

King Richard led Meadowlark downstairs. They stepped out the door and Florizel leapt up from their sitting position. King Richard crouched down to stroke their soft fur.

As soon as hand and fur made contact, Florizel said, “Finally! I can talk!” Meadowlark whooped and hugged Florizel.

The king realized his mistakes and righted them. Now, orphanages and homeless shelters could take care of the kids there. Both animals and humans were happier. And King Richard realized that the greatest gift is love and joy.