A Furry Little Friend [5.3]

The creature wailed, "You miserable blasted #$@%&$ @$%#$ human!!! What did you do to me!?!"

My eyes lit up, "KYAAA! How cute!"

"Eh?" He blinked startled by my response.

I reached down and hugged the cat creature to me, "So cute!!! AH! You are just the cutest little kitty ever!!!"

The cat twisted in my arms trying to escape, "LET GO! OI! Blasted human! Let me go before I @$#%^*&@$%!!"

I giggled, "Aww! Little kitty has a foul mouth!"

He shrieked in my arms, "Who are you calling a little kitty you F&#^!"

I nodded as I hugged him closer, "You're right. I'm sorry. You aren't a little kitty. You are a big ol' kitty! A cute fluffy kitty!"

"I'M NOT EVEN A CAT! I'M A FOX YOU TWIT!"

I pet his raised fur with a pleased smile, "Yes yes, you are a mighty kitty, aren't you? A true house panther."

"SILENCE!"

"Aww! An angry kitty! How cute! I could just eat you up~"

He bit down on my finger,

"Ow!" I frowned at him, "That's a naughty kitty! Don't bite."

He glared at me still biting my finger. He attempted to claw me too, but I quickly formed ice over my skin so he couldn't draw blood. Even though he was biting and scratching at the ice, this didn't seem to phase him. As I watched him continue to attack me, I smiled gently with nostalgia.

The world around me seemed to get fuzzier. It was like there was a fog in my mind. I spoke aloud in a daze as my mind drifted elsewhere, "You remind me of my cat from my other world. He was also such an angry kitty."

He stopped biting and looked at me in confusion, "Eh? Other world?"

I nodded softly, "I met him when I was at a low point in my life. My life lacked purpose and I began to wonder if it was even worth it... But then I found him. He had been attacked and was dying in an alley. I picked him up and took him to a vet. When I first brought him home, he kept attacking me. He was fiery just like you. Eventually, he realized that I only wanted to help. He was the only thing that made my life worth living. At that time, I had no friends and no loved ones that I could rely on. There was only him."

But… If I am here then...

I let out a sigh, "I wonder if he is waiting for me to get home..."

He's probably confused…

A single tear rolled down my cheek, dropping to the ground below. The strength in my arms began to weaken. My voice trembled, "No… That isn't right… He is already… Already…"

The cat in my arms blinked revealing his dark red eyes, "Are you okay? Or are you insane? Because I am starting to think it is the latter."

I let out a weak chuckle as I placed him to the side. He jumped down and looked at me as if I was a mental patient and he wasn't sure what he should do. A wave of exhaustion suddenly hit me. I could barely fight off the fatigue and stay awake.

I gave a weak smile, "Little kitty, I am too tired all of a sudden. Protect me while I sleep."

He glared at me and gave an arrogant huff, "Stupid human girl! My name is the great Zephyr! Not little kitty!"

I smiled at him and let out a giant yawn. I scratched his head and he immediately swatted me off. I chuckled, "Okay. Zephyr. Protect me while I sleep."

"As if! You can die, you halfwit dolt!"

I lay on the ground using my arm for a pillow. My eyes began to flutter close as I felt myself being overtaken by sleep. I yawned once more, "Zephyr. I forged my name on your soul. If something happens to me, you will die. In fact, if you try to hurt me, it will be returned tenfold. Likewise, when I order you to do something, you must do it. I've taken you as a familiar and there's nothing you can do about it."

He froze from the realization. He let out a shrill cry, "Y-Y-You! How dare you!! Do you even know who I am?!"

"Should I?" I let out another yawn and closed my eyes, "Now try to be quiet… *yawn* Why am I so… sleepy…"

He stuck out his tongue, "Trashy human! Are you surprised you are so tired?! I am a thousand-year-old demon! For anyone to defeat me by the sole strength of their soul is no easy feat. Especially for a human. It's no wonder you are so tired. You are lucky you didn't just kill yourself or cause a backlash using that much mana. Stupid girl."

However, his explanation fell on deaf ears since I was already fast asleep.

_____...…..______

(This is from no one's POV)

*clack clack clack*

The sound of heels echoed off the walls. Young children turned to see a woman smiling gently at them. They all grinned at her, "Hello, Miss Dean!"

She gave a light-hearted laugh, "Hello, children. Have you finished your chores?"

"We have!"

She nodded, "Very good. Now run along."

The children giggled as they ran off to go have fun. Miss Dean walked into her office and began to sort through her papers. She heard a timid knock on the door and looked up. Bea was standing in the doorway with a troubled expression. Her face was still scarred from the wasp stings and the bumps were now beginning to turn a sickening purplish color.

Miss Dean let out a sigh, "Beatrice. If this is about staying again, I don't want to hear it. I've already told you that you can't stay after you turn 14. It's the rules and we can't make exceptions."

Bea fidgeted slightly, afraid to speak. Behind her back, she held a simple wooden wand that held no designs. Bea spoke timidly, "It's… It's not about that…"

"Oh? Then what is it?"

She bit her lip, "Was Reika… Really adopted?"

Miss Dean's eyes widened slightly before returning back to normal, "Of course she was."

"But we didn't have a goodbye ceremony for her like we did the others…"

Miss Dean's smile faltered slightly, "That's because she didn't want one. She insisted on leaving without anyone knowing. I guess she just didn't like us that much."

Bea's grip on the wand tightened, "But… To leave in the middle of the night-"

Miss Dean immediately shut her up with a venomous glare. Her face was fierce, then as if realizing how she appeared, she dropped the glare and replaced it with her gentle smile. Her voice held a trace of foreboding as she spoke, "Her parents didn't mind, so I didn't either. Don't think too much about it Bea. Curiosity can be a deadly thing."

Bea gulped at her sudden change and quickly nodded, "You're right… Forgive me.."

Miss Dean nodded and turned back to her papers, "Don't forget you turn 14 in a few weeks. If I were you, I would start to figure out what you will be doing."

Bea nodded and quickly left the room. As she hastened her pace down the hallway, she violently clutched the wand in her hands. Her heart raced as she realized her instincts were right.

A few weeks earlier, Reika had been officially adopted. However, she had disappeared in the middle of the night. The rumor was that she didn't want to wait and left earlier to avoid seeing the children in the orphanage before she left. This wasn't that suspicious since it was obvious that she didn't like anyone there and purposely ignored them.

However, not all children were asleep that night.

Bea was still being bullied and her mattress was stolen. She was trying to sleep on the bars of the bed, but it was too uncomfortable. Due to this, she wasn't asleep on the night Reika left. Bea had almost missed it because Reika was so quiet she was virtually undetectable. However, Bea had watched Reika wave a wand and disappear out of the window without a trace. At the time, she was shocked. Not only did Reika have a wand and a good understanding of magic, but she was clearly wanting to run away. However, Bea decided not to say anything.

If Reika wanted to run away before she was adopted, why would she care? The girl was weird and she didn't care enough to try to understand her…

However…

The following day, she found her wand on the ground.

It was too suspicious.

The more she thought about it, the more concerned she became. Her brain started turning and she realized that most of the children who were adopted were those with excessive mana. However, out of those children, none of them wrote back or even tried to stay in touch with their friends at the orphanage. The ones who were adopted, but didn't have excessive mana, would always make sure to write and visit their friends.

Wasn't that too coincidental?

Recently, a magician came to speak to Miss Dean, but Miss Dean assured the children that he was just inquiring about a simple matter. Bea could never forget the man either. He had an ice-cold appearance without showing the slightest sign of emotion. He had dark black hair that almost looked blue in the light. His dark blue eyes were devoid of feeling as they pierced into every person as if they could see right through them. His aura was so intimidating, one was too afraid to even tilt their head to look at him.

Bea recognized him immediately as the Headmaster of the Academy. But why was he here? He only ever left the Academy to investigate serious matters.

Bea didn't get a chance to find out either since he left as quickly as he had come.

Spurned on by the prominent magician's visit, Bea thought there was a pattern and her conversation with Miss Dean only strengthened her belief.

Perhaps she should tell the magician about her suspicions? No. She had to. She didn't care much for Reika, but she didn't want the girl to be in serious danger either. Bullying was one thing, but murder was a completely different matter. Not to mention how many Reika's there would be in the future. Worst case scenario: Miss Dean was involved in the illegal trade of children. Best case: Bea was just overreacting.

Thus, Bea ultimately decided she had to go to the authorities to express her concerns. Since it was about to be night, she decided to go the next morning.

Meanwhile, Miss Dean calmly looked over her papers deep in thought.

The reason behind their higher than average adoption rate? That was because most "adoptive parents" were just fronts for taking children to be sold into mana traffickers. No one cared about these orphans, so they never thought to investigate. Occasionally, a magician would come to ask her questions, and she would calmly assure them that nothing nefarious was occurring. She was confident in covering up her tracks, so she never had an issue.

The last magician was no different.

He just gave a hum and left. She didn't have to worry about him since he didn't seem to care about it.

She went back to her paperwork humming in a carefree manner. The air slowly grew stiff and rigid making her throat feel uncomfortable. She knitted her brows in confusion as she cleared her throat. She itched at it in bewilderment as she tried to figure out what the cause was behind her discomfort. Her face dropped when she realized the room was slowly getting darker despite the lights illuminating the room. She jumped up from her desk in a panic.

"Are you pleased with yourself?"

A voice from the corner crept through the room. Although the voice was sweet and alluring, it carried a sense of danger and overwhelming power. Miss Dean felt her legs give out and crashed to the floor. She looked toward the sound of the voice with a look of sheer terror. She managed to stutter out, "Y-Your E-Excellence!"

The voice called out, "Answer me. Are you pleased?"

Her body trembled as she looked down, "I-I don't understand…"

A pure black hand shot out of the darkness, clamping tightly around her throat. Miss Dean struggled as she was lifted into the air by the black hand with no obvious owner. The voice grew darker and more threatening, "You ruined everything. Now, I have no children and no sustenance. Even those pesky flies are on my case now due to your negligence. I won't be able to harvest my precious mana with them flying around."

She choked out, "F-Forgive me!"

He laughed as if he had heard a hilarious joke. If one wouldn't know any better, they would think the owner was only playing a prank. However, his grip grew tighter as his voice grew sweeter, "I was almost back to power. That girl you sold us ruined everything…. However… I suppose if I just take everyone here… It could make up for what I lost."

She panicked, "P-Please! S-Spare me!"

The owner of the voice sneered, "The least you can do is offer me your mana in return for your failure."

His dark hand dug into her neck. Her veins bulged as something crawled through turning the blue veins black. Dark smoke coursed through her body. It began to consume her mana and drain her of her vitality. Her eyes rolled back as she began to convulse. Her skin turned a ghostly white color before she stopped twitching.

Her neck snapped as the hand withdrew, tossing her to the floor like she was garbage. The voice chuckled, "Well, I suppose you didn't ruin everything. After all, you did find me a perfect candidate to help me achieve my ultimate goal."

A file slipped off the table and landed on the floor. The name Reika was drawn in large letters with a red 'adopted' stamped over it.

He called out in a sing-songy voice, "Little Reika… I look forward to the entertainment you will bring me."