MISSION 15

A Lesson In History


"Even in the dark ages, the Broken Isles was divided by different noble kings and queens. It was harsh back then, with their citizens sometimes getting in the crossfire of disputes between various kingdoms. A rather bleak and painful time in our history," a slightly chubby she-kat explained as she guided the prospecting students around the school.

Ethan was part of this group, with the young wizard following the group in the far back and yawning as he had trouble sleeping last night. He sniffed and rubbed his nose, looking at the statues around him as the guide droned on about the history of this country. He played around with the black robe he was supposed to wear for the week and mused how stupid he looked.

"Don't fall back!" the guide yelled, making Ethan wince as he noticed he was a bit away from the group.

A few of the elite children snickered at him, with the guide already writing something down on her notepad. Ethan cursed under his breath as he knew she was marking him and anyone that acted off. The boy hurried towards the group and apologized quickly.


Somewhere below the school, uncovered caverns were located, and a few abandoned underground buildings were found here, untouched for hundreds of years by kats. However, this soon came to question as two voices could be heard in the darkness, echoing in the vast caves. A green glow could be seen in one of the damaged buildings, shifting as the light changed from bright green to dim green.

Looking inside, a robed figure stood before the flame where a kat's skull was in the middle of the green fire upon a stone podium. A couple of broken instruments could be found around the room, with the only functioning tool being the violin that kat had in his hand. A small amount of energy flowed into the violin before it disappeared inside.

"Come on, join me already, my good kat. Don't you want to take these nobles down and make them suffer as they did to us?" a voice echoed in the flame with a calm and soft male voice. "I sense you still don't trust me, despite me giving you a taste of my powers. Granted, seeing their kits attack them brings me such joy…..and one finally managed to kill one of those bastards."

"That's not…..what I wanted," the robed kat said, tilting his head down and gripping the violin. "I just want them to feel fear and make them suffer a bit. I didn't-"

The green flame burst into a fiery glow, pushing the kat's hood to reveal Professor Baxter, who seemed unfazed as the image of a tom's face appeared before him. Baxter raised his head and looked as the flame growled at him.

"Such a weak resolve," the green figure snapped, flowing freely around the tom and calming itself. It thought momentarily before it grinned, "Isn't the one responsible for your grief coming in a few days? If you let me share your body, I can make him suffer and squeal like a pig. Just say yes, and it will be done."

Baxter snarled when the spectral ghost reminded him of the incoming kat, his mouth almost saying yes till his consciousness reminded him of the consequences. He let out a breath and turned to leave, making the specter scowl and look at him in disgust.

"Well….I'll be around. Just call upon my name if you decide to change your mind," the specter said before heading to the flame and shutting it off as it rested.

"Of course, Umfrey," Baxter said, deciding he had enough for today.

Baxter looked at his violin that Umfrey gave the powers of hypnosis. His face was so disgusted that he walked to the cliff's edge, appearing ready to throw it into the dark abyss below but gripping it tight despite holding out. Baxter felt his heart beating fast, and he pulled it back to hug his instrument, feeling revolted and fearful as he could not part ways from it.

"What should I do, Rose? What should I do?" Baxter attempted only to get silence.


The school housed only middle and high students, with different gothic buildings covering many acres. The dormitories for the girls and boys were separated on the far side of each corner, the center served as a central hub, and buildings of different shapes and sizes littered the school grounds. The most impressive thing in this school was the vast garden in the middle.

It was a quiet night at the boarding school, the kittens were asleep, and the staff was resting in their own room with security guards stationed around the school, ready to deal with any trouble that may arise. However, they were unprepared for a magical problem as Ethan silently went around the school grounds, disappearing and reappearing with Shadow Gateway. The boy appeared at the school tower, taking a good look at the school and yawning as he wanted to sleep.

"God, this sucks," Ethan grumbled, slapping his cheeks to wake himself up and shift the heavy backpack behind him. "Twenty cameras and mics set up, only two hundred to go…...a bit of overkill, John?"

"And you were excited to start? What happened to all your energy?" John asked.

"Well, staying up all day and hearing all the boring lectures about the history of this school does a number on me," Ethan said, wishing he had coffee or something to get him awake. Even without his kat ears, he could hear John taking a sip of what he desired, "Asshole, I can hear you drinking coffee in my ear!"

"Jealous? How about you focus on installing all the devices and stop yapping…..you have only six hours till sunrise."

"God, you are such a pain! I know! Just bring me the kit's clothing, and I can-"

"No. From what you told us, you need to know where precisely the kat was and what time. Second, we don't want to alarm someone seeing an alien walking around the school grounds or a shadow scaring some poor kits to death. Covert is critical in this mission. Plus….a few nations would quickly figure out whom you belong to…..so let's not do that."

Ethan was about to say something till he heard the sound of keys closing in, making a chant and shift towards the other side of the wall. He stayed silent as he ducked to the side of the mirror and watched a light appear, followed by a guard doing his rounds on top of the tower. Ethan waited for a bit before letting out a heavy breath.

"Why couldn't this school be small? It's like a mini town here," Ethan whispered, pulling Evelyn's food booster, a decent size gummy ball. It tasted awful, but it had a cherry flavor. "Gah….not helpful, but it tastes better than the bars."

Ethan gulped the last piece, feeling energized after transporting a high amount already and shivering at the aftertaste. He mumbled something before chanting his exit, heading towards his next destination and hoping to finish it in time.


Walking around the island, Chance and Evelyn explore the land, with the tabby glancing at the doctor as she is preoccupied with her thoughts about a certain boy. Chance slouched forward, rubbing his face as he wished this little trip around the city could distract her. He practically had to convince her to come despite her insistence on staying at the hotel and monitoring the boy until they could come to the school in a couple of hours.

"Hey, let's get a drink here," Chance said, seeing Evelyn blink at him before nodding her head. Chance felt a scream inside, wishing he could tell the doctor not to worry about Ethan and enjoy their short vacation away from the Strays. "Hello? You with me?"

"Huh….oh, sorry," Evelyn said, following the tabby inside and glancing around the store.

It was a mix of old and new architecture, primarily serving fruit drinks, milkshakes, or anything to quench visitors' thirst for something cold. It had a cute kitty logo and was called 'Thirsty Kitty.'

Chance ordered for them a milkshake, with the pair taking the farthest seat so they could be alone. The tabby would drink his milkshake and glance at Evelyn as she drank hers, thinking about how to break the doctor's spell. He tapped his claw on the table and sighed, thinking it would be best not to avoid it.

"It's not healthy to overly worry about him," Chance said, seeing the doctor's ears perk and glare at him. "Before you throw that drink at me….just hear me out….you are acting like a mother hen. Granted, you have always been overly worried about the boy…..but now that he looks like- "

"My kitten? Don't assume-" Evelyn cut off, looking down and shaking her head. "Okay…..maybe I'm getting a bit too concerned."

"You practically called him daily when he went to train with Benson. Crud, even my mother wouldn't smother me like that," Chance added.

"You just don't understand….." Evelyn stopped, ears flattening as she looked away toward the outside.

Chance licked his lips, feeling dry in his mouth despite drinking a cold drink. He cursed himself, as he never hesitated when flying a jet or fighting kats on the ground. However, this was all new to him, and it felt like he dodged imaginary minefields with Evelyn and Ethan. Chance shook his fears and reached for Evelyn's hand, tenderly grabbing it and looking at her to show his support.

"Then, let me understand. I want to know what's going on," Chance said, beaming with a smile and a slight chuckle. He got serious, "Please…don't shove me away. I care about you two, you know?"

Looking back at the tom, Evelyn felt stunned, her eyes drifting to his hand. She sighed, putting her other hand on his big hand and thinking about it momentarily.

"Losing a kit….is the worst feeling than any wound I received. You wake up each day knowing your kit is gone, and sometimes you think it's a bad dream you haven't woken up from," Evelyn said, gripping Chance's hand and releasing a shaky breath. "I'm not…..trying to replace or get what I lost with Ethan…..Atlas is gone…..but seeing him again reminded me of my fears of losing him. Now…..I'm scared of Ethan not coming back one day or…me getting the news that he….."

Evelyn let go of Chance, holding herself close as tears came, and she tried muffling her cries as the memories returned to her. Chance hurried towards her, sitting beside her and pulling her close, allowing the doctor to hide her troubles from nosey customers. The tabby put his head on top of the weeping doctor and nuzzled her head.

"I won't let that happen."


Ethan bobbed his head as he stared at the breakfast they served the rest of the applicants. He would blink and rub his eyes as he attempted to stay up but saw the omelet like a welcoming pillow. Ethan was about to slam his head on his food when someone slapped his back hard, making him yelp in surprise and glare at his attacker, Kyle.

"I'm about this close to stabbing you," Ethan growled, rubbing his back as he felt the sting lingers.

"I'll take that as a thank you," Kyle laughed, eyeing Ethan from the beginning and almost losing it when Ethan made a girlish sound. "But hey….maybe that's our ticket out of here! Well, mine mostly so stab away!"

"You're pretty weird," Ethan said, trying to figure out why Kyle decided to stick to him like gum.

Ethan was surprised to see him here, expecting him to fail, but it sounded like Baxter enjoyed Kyle's attitude and decided to let him pass, much to the annoyance of the kitten. During the introduction day, they re-met as they were the only few that Baxter gave a pass. Kyle would complain about how unfair it was and would try to bounce ideas to Ethan so he could get kicked out. Ethan was stuck on what to do, nodding or shaking his head when Kyle's plans got too hectic.

"Remind me again…..why can't you just quit?" Ethan yawned, half-heartedly shoving the omelet in his mouth and attempting to enjoy it.

"My mom would kill me if I did it…..if I can make it happen where it was not my fault, then I would be golden," Kyle said, rubbing his chin and thinking about another great idea. "What about if you start a fire and-"

"No."

"How about a small explosion and-"

"No."

"How about-"

"If it involves explosives, fire, death, or anything close to that…then no," Ethan firmly said, getting Kyle to pout at him and tap the table to rethink his strategy. "Why are you so bent on not coming here?"

"You are no fun! Because I don't want to, especially if I can piss off my parents," Kyle pointed out, getting Ethan to tilt his head and eye him with confusion. He smiled and waved the concerns away, "If you can find a way for me to get back home….I'll be in your debt!"

"Yeah, sure….so what are we doing today?" Ethan said, semi-stretching forward and extending his claws. He felt relieved when doing it and eyed the rest of the kittens that were set up in the temporary dormitory like them. "I'm kind of a bit tired to remember."

"Hmmm…..apart from shadowing our alumni's classes, free time, meeting our parents for a bit, and rinse and repeat for the next three days….that's pretty much it," Kyle informed, tapping his fingers on the table before leaning close to Ethan, "So what classes did you pick?"

"Oh uh…." Ethan said, taking out his card for the classes he would join, almost revealing his shocked face to Kyle. He did not pick his classes like the other children, with the Enforcers selecting them for him and mirroring what the current victim attended. Ethan grimaced at the number of advanced courses he would be attending. However, his eyes shifted slightly when he noticed one of the classes, making him stare at it longer.

"Wow…..aren't ya a smart one!" Kyle whistled, snatching the card away from Ethan and noticing something particular. He smirked, "Didn't peg you as a chef."


Alex was reviewing some staff files, the potential kats of interest, and seeing if anyone had any red flags in their history. However, these were already examined by John's group, with them finding nothing of concern on their end. Alex wanted to confirm and distract herself as John was hogging the responsibility of monitoring the school despite her offering to help. She would report to her superior at the end of the day and share their progress with the captain's lieutenant.

Alex turned her body to eye the back of John, who seemed tired despite being awake all day and planning to take a break when Ethan rested. She rolled her eyes, hoping to convince the cute munchkin to relax before he slammed his head against the table.

"Darling, just take a quick thirty-minute break at least! I can practically feel your body giving up on you," Alex called out.

John raised his coffee can at her, making Alex groan and return to her files.

"Stubborn little…" Alex rumbled, shaking her head and looking back at the files. She had already made a mental note to draw on John's face when he fell asleep. She flipped to the following file with a smirk but stopped when she glanced at the name in Baxter's file of family members. She sighed, "Small world…..shit, what a reminder."

"Found something?" John's ears perked, sluggishly turned to face Alex.

"Not really…..just something I wanted to forget," Alex said, leaning back from the chair and eyes staying glued to the ceiling.

John blinked, rubbing his eyes to ensure he saw things correctly before realizing Alex's frown. He rubbed his neck, head-turning from his duties and his temporary partner. John pinched his eyes and thought about it.

"Do you want to…talk about it?" John finally said with some reservation.

"Not really."

"Oh….okay," John said, returning to the monitor.

"Well…." Alex said, making the munchkin turn back to face her with annoyance, "Let's just say this job sometimes drains you. This kat here…his sister and a few others died during a hostage situation….maybe everyone could have gone home if those wealthy bastards didn't pull out as soon as their kits were set free…..just maybe….."

"Hey, don't kill yourself over that. It's not like you had a choice in the situation," John tried to reassure, but it didn't ease his partner, who kept looking away and thinking about the past.

Alex heaved, shifting back up and putting a paw on her chin, "Thank god I'm leaving this unit soon…..I'm done with all these fat kats. Going back to Megakat City! Shame I won't get to see your face again."

"Oh, yeah? I'm also….. never mind," John said sheepishly, looking away quickly.

Alex's ears twitched, sensing something was off, and looking back at John. She tried peering at the tom, who was trying to distract himself with the multiple monitors. Alex touched her lips and quickly analyzed the tom before a thought came to her.

"Are you also coming back home?" Alex said, getting a quick glare from the tom. She smirked, "Seems like I'm not the only one. Which department are you going to? Oh, do tell, darling."

John shook his head, looking back at the monitor and watching Ethan go about his day. He recalled an old friend's call and his updates with his team. Well, a friend was such a loose term with John as the tom kept pestering, checking his well-being, and always inviting him to things. John just hoped they could make a difference once he returned home.


Upon the tower, Dante sat on the ledge and observed any signs of energy with his eye. He felt the magic a while ago, but now it's gone again, making him annoyed as his tail swayed behind him. Dante rubbed his face, wondering what could be causing these spikes and why the school had the lingering smell of old magic. The smell of bitterness, resentment, and death is how he would describe it.

"Where are you?" Dante said, looking down towards the active school, where kits, teachers, and staff were doing their business.

Dante stopped, wondering about his past, thinking if he was ever a mortal. From his understanding, he could interact with objects but not living things, much to his annoyance, as he has been experimenting when not searching for clues to his past. Kats could see him if he let them, and they could see his shadow. It was like his physical body was there but not really, more like an in-between of a ghost and a living thing. For some reason, this body felt odd, like he was wearing someone else's fur. However, this was another thing to add to the list of questions that kept growing, and he had fewer answers than he would like.

"Curses," Dante spat, standing up and wondering if he would regain his memories. He stopped, his eyes focusing on a figure heading to class, realizing it was Ethan in disguise, and a wicked smile crept on him. "Well, once I can enter his body, I'll be able to have some fun toying with these kats."

Dante's smile faltered, watching the kid closely and eyeing around to ensure the hostile magic was not around Ethan. He chuckled and wondered what else to teach the boy when they returned home. Dante halted, shaking his head and feeling disgusted for thinking like that.

"Annoying brat…." Dante said, heading away and looking towards the distant ocean. However, his eyes would linger on his corner, wanting to check back with the kid.

When Dante was not exploring Megakat City, he would silently watch Ethan go about his days with the Strays. He would watch them fight, laugh, talk, and just go about their lives. Dante would appear before Ethan at times to see how his progress was going, and both bicker about what the other wanted the other to do. He couldn't understand why or why he would stare silently at the team in the shadows, feeling a mix of emotions.

"Huh….maybe I should," Dante paused, ears flicking towards the city's port, feeling something completely different than what he felt at school. It disappeared quickly, hiding from Dante's senses.

Dante looked back towards the ledge, where he saw Ethan, before looking back towards the port area, deciding to check out this new disturbance. He vanished from view.


Ethan felt the steam coming out of his head as he finished the fifth class, wishing he could end today and do something fun other than learning about Physics or Astronomy. If everyone around him could read him, they would understand that everything flew past him as he let John take the pilot seat when called upon. However, that was unimportant as he had to check on things with the students.

"Hey, do you have a minute?" Ethan said, approaching a small group and stopping in front of them. "I'm a family friend of-"

Ethan's day job would be to ask the victim's fellow students about him in his last days. Despite knowing the truth, he would pose as a concerned friend, acting oblivious and surprised not to see the kitten there. Apart from snobs, many students replied to Ethan, explaining they were unsure what happened to the kitten and that nothing unusual happened in his last week here. Ethan grimaced, wishing there was some clue or indication of where things went wrong for the kitten.

"Shame…..I expected something, at least," John said.

"Crud, where do I go from here?" Ethan said while scratching his ear and pretending to be lost.

"Go to your last class for now. We will monitor the school and report to you if you need to check on something tonight."

"Oh, right!" Ethan said, turning down the hall and walking in a specific direction with a more upbeat attitude.

Ethan quickly took the stairs and exited the building, heading toward his next class, cooking. After this, he would see Chance and Evelyn for a bit, allowing kits to share their progress with their parents and get advice. Of course, the parents will attempt to butter up some of the staff and explain why their kit deserves a spot in the school.

Cutting through the garden, Ethan followed and entered the green entrance, following the dirt path as he looked at the beautiful flowers around him. There were a lot of exotic plants in this area and giant trees, everything screaming rich and with some lovely marble fountains around.

"Hey…you…" John's static voice came on.

Ethan stopped, looking around to ensure nobody was watching him before touching his communicator and clicking the button to speak.

"Everything good?" Ethan said, wincing at the static feedback.

"Ethan…..lost…." John's voice was gone.

"John? Hello….shit," Ethan yelped, hearing more annoying static and deciding to turn off his communicator. He rubbed his ears and wondered what happened to John.

Suddenly, Ethan's internal whispers began firing, making the boy jump and spin around as the warning signs were everywhere. It was not like the death warnings on the beach but vigilant voices telling him there was danger nearby. His fur frazzled, his eyes sharpened, and his claws were out as he felt the cold chill in his spine.

Ethan was about halfway in the garden when his ears flicked, hearing the sound of music from a distance, making him turn his head towards the green maze entrance.

"Huh…what's that-" Ethan stopped, relaxing as he felt entranced by it, slowly bowing his head down and heading towards the mouth of the door.

It was soothing, a soft violin lamenting its sorrows as the kid turned left and right in the maze. Ethan's eyes were white like snow as he followed the sound like a mosquito heading towards a zapper, unable to move and body moving on his own. Even as he entered a clear opening with a massive rock in the middle, the boy was unaware of what he was doing.

The black rock appeared recently split, with the approaching boy coming closer and closer to an opening in the middle.

"Ethan!" John's static voice cut in and out.

Ethan stopped, wincing as he touched his ear, shaking his head and sluggishly trying to move his head to see where he was.

"Sleep and forget," a voice whispered to his ear, with a green mist spraying on Ethan's face.

Ethan's eyes return to a trance state. He seemed confused and dazed even as he looked at the fuzzy image of an adult looking at him. Ethan wanted to speak up but felt tired and like his energy was sucked up from him, leaving him vulnerable and shaking.

Ethan collapsed.


In a modified RV hidden away in the salvage yard, Ethan awoke to the humming sound, making the eight-year-old shift over the bed he shared with Zoe. He rubbed his eyes and slowly got off the bed. He opened the door and saw Zoe cooking breakfast as she continued humming.

"Oh, did I wake you?" Zoe said, stopping and glancing to her side to see the boy.

Ethan didn't say anything except try to look at what she was making, stomach rumbling as the smell of eggs reached his nose. He groaned, grabbing his stomach and looking at his mentor with puppy eyes.

Zoe chuckled, shaking her head and telling the boy to come closer to her, "As I said before, I was only going to cook for you in the first month. I won't always be around to cook or watch over you while on a job. So get your butt over here and grab a chair, and let me show you how to make a chorizo breakfast burrito."

"You are already making me do chores! Not fair!" Ethan pouted but pushed a chair toward his mentor. He tried giving Zoe a stink eye, but she laughed him off and patted his hair. "Just buy me something I can throw in the microwave."

"Fat chance, kiddo. One, I don't want you to pick a bad habit. And two, how will you impress someone if you can't cook a decent meal for them? Or cook for someone dear to you?" Zoe said, giving a toothy grin at the annoyed kid. "Granted, I'm no expert…..my brother was a magician with food. He wanted to become a chef one day."

"Where is he?" Ethan said.

"He passed away," Zoe said, touching her cross and looking out the window towards the sky. It was brief before she returned to her food and wrapped the burrito with the cooked contents. She glanced towards the boy, who appeared shocked at what he heard and looked away as he thought about it. Zoe eyes lingered between the boy and her food, letting out a defeated sigh and moving the plate towards Ethan. "Only for today, okay?"

"Really?" Ethan said, looking at her to confirm before grabbing the plate and heading toward the small kitchen table in the corner.

Zoe let out a cough, making Ethan turn to look at her with a confused expression. He tilted his head, and Zoe moved her hands to signal that she was expecting something.

"Thanks for the food?" Zoe sighed after Ethan kept looking like a deer in headlights.

"Oh…..thank you."

"…..we need to work on your manners," Zoe said, shaking her head and preparing herself another burrito. She glanced at Ethan, who was now sitting on the chair and eating his food with a smile. Zoe smirked and tapped a cabinet below her, "Hey…..if you ever get stuck on what to make yourself. I have some of my brother's old notes. And-"


A spinning fan above greeted Ethan's eyes, making the boy blink in confusion as he collected himself, lifting himself up only to feel someone come up and hug him. He was startled for a second till he saw Evelyn pulling back and looking at him, trying to say something as her voice was muddled to Ethan.

"Huh?" Ethan said, rubbing his ears and feeling a couple of pops.

"-me worried! What happened? Do you feel sick?" Evelyn continued her onslaught of questions, inspecting the boy and touching his head. She grabbed his head, moved it around, checked his eyes, and signaled the boy to open his mouth.

"Sophia, stop smothering the kit!" Chance called out, sitting near them and sighing as Evelyn ignored him. He quickly glanced at the boy and notified him that were other kats around if the first hint didn't go through.

Ethan blinked, trying to look around as Evelyn held him, seeing a suited kat watching them with a scared expression. Ethan finally grabbed the scared she-kats hands and turned back to look at her with a grin. However, he soon realized he had no recollection of leaving the second to last class.

"Huh…..what happened?" Ethan finally let out.

"You don't remember?" Chance said, standing up and glancing at Evelyn, putting a paw on her shoulder to comfort her and get her not to blow their cover. The she-kat nearly crumbled when hearing Ethan had fallen.

"Not really….I remember leaving class….and that's it," Ethan said, gripping his head and thinking really hard. "Weird…I can't seem to-"

"Mind if you leave us alone?" Chance interrupted, looking at the suited tom. "Don't worry about us. We won't make a fuzz or make a complaint. However, I would prefer you gave me and my family some space for now."

"Understood, just know the academy cares about our kittens, and-" the tom stopped when Chance glared at him. "Sorry….I'll be heading out."

Chance locked the private room door and double-checked before returning to the two. He was greeted by Evelyn sitting by Ethan, messing with the tired boy's head, and Ethan taking refuge in Evelyn's chest. Chance felt a beat in his heart, heading towards the pair and sitting on the other side of Ethan.

"Crud….. we can't leave you alone for one second," Chance muttered before clicking his ear and eyes tensing up, "You two, I thought you were monitoring the kit? What happened?"

"Hey, we were….however, some sort of interference was going around. We lost visual, and we were trying to get things back online," John defended himself. "Glad that you are still with us, Ethan."

Ethan rolled his eyes, "Yeah, whatever…."

"You sure you don't recall anything?" Chance asked again.

"No….Chance I don't," Ethan said, shaking his head before pausing, "I just remember hearing music….I think it was a violin or something…but that's about it….where did you guys find me?"

"Actually, one of the professors found you and brought you here," Evelyn interjected before pulling the kit close. "You had me worried for a second!"

It was a bit before Ethan could move, standing up with Evelyn's assistance and talking to them about how things were going. The adults would repeatedly ask if Ethan was alright before they continued out, assuming their roles and deciding to do some exploring with their limited time together. They made it out to the building, watching a couple of current students passing them and enjoying their free time among themselves.

Ethan wonders how things would have gone for him if he had stayed in school as he watched the kits around him socialize with each other or go about doing something they liked to do. He recalled being awkward, silent, and almost always to himself. It got better when he landed under Zoe's care, pushing the kid to confidently talk to people and try new things. However, when Zoe died, he returned to his father, and everything he used to like shattered like glass.

"Say," Ethan began, getting the two adults to look at him. They were sitting on a bench, watching the activity from a distance, "Do you ever wonder how things would go if things turned out differently?"

"Huh? Why the question?" Chance said, briefly looking at Evelyn and seeing her perplexed face as they were both hit with a sense of Déjà vu. He swiftly turned back to look at Ethan, "Something on your mind?"

"You know…..just forget it. It's nothing," Ethan said, waiving his hand and looking up to see the tree above them.

"Come on, it's us….you don't have to bottle yourself up. We'll listen," Evelyn said, pawing his shoulder.

"As my friends, right?" Ethan mumbled.

"Of course," Chance said, "Look, I don't want to put you on the spot or something, but you've been acting a bit different. I just want to know what's bugging you."

Ethan glared at the tabby, shaking his head and looking back up. He frowned after some thought before realizing he was mad at the wrong person. Ethan tried to understand why he was so bothered about the tabby's word that night. He felt they had his back….but he wanted more despite knowing it was selfish. Ethan eased up, eyes softening as he glanced back at both adults.

"I'm an idiot," Ethan whispered, closing his eyes briefly before reopening them, weakly grinning at his friends. "Just thinking about things…about my past, you know? Like my worthless father! If only he could see me now….."

Both adults blinked, feeling like Ethan switched again, with Chance wondering if what the boy said was true. They kept an eye on the kid as he lazily sat on the bench and looked at his surroundings. Chance and Evelyn looked at each other, and Chance reached for the boy's shoulder.

"HEY! Trevor!" Kyle yelled out, making them all look at the quickly approaching kit. He halted a bit, stopping and waving at the adults, "It's nice to meet you. I hope I am not interrupting something."

"Nope!" Ethan said quickly, getting off the bench and approaching the kit, "Aw, Kyle…..you care about me?"

"In your dreams! Only checking up on the only kit around that I can stand," Kyle growled but grinned as he looked away. His head turned to Ethan, "So…I was going to explore by myself after talking with my ma….but then a thought occurred, and it would be much more fun if you tag along as my sidekick!"

"Why am I the sidekick? Isn't the one asking for advice on how to 'you know what and searching for the leader, the sidekick?" Ethan corrected, crossing his arms and tilting his head. Kyle got close to him and playfully signaled their heights, with Ethan being shorter than him. "Oh, fuck off!"

Evelyn coughed, slightly glaring at Ethan, making the boy roll his eyes.

"Sorry," Ethan said before softly pushing Kyle in a direction. "Anyways, I'll see you guys later.….I'll keep you posted about my progress."

Chance and Evelyn were at a loss again. Evelyn was about to say something, but her mouth came out empty, and she frowned as the boy began to head out. Chance sensed her worry, quickly catching up to the boys and putting a firm hand on Ethan's shoulder.

"Kyle, mind giving us a minute before you head out?" Chance said, getting a nod from Kyle and watching him head toward a pole in the distance. He squatted to be at eye level with Ethan, who ignored him with a bored expression. "Hey, kit…..we are just worried about you. So please let us know if something is bothering you. Okay?"

"Like I said, it's just some old stuff that's been…that's it," Ethan whispered, crossing his arms. He smirked, "You guys need to relax and stop worrying about me every second. Don't get so serious in your role…..Nicholas."

"Remind me, who collapsed today?" Chance retorted before shaking his head and ruffling Ethan's hair. "Lil bud' just…..say goodbye to Evelyn before you head out. Please?"

Ethan looked back to the doctor to see her worried expression, making him fold his ears and nod to Chance. He walked back to Evelyn, giving her words of relief and getting a hug from the she-kat. Ethan waved at them as he ran towards Kyle, with both boys heading out to explore the school together.

Chance watched Ethan, keeping an eye on him and eyes lingering on the corner even as he left their view. The tabby let out a frustrated breath, looking back to Evelyn, who was still looking at the spot, wanting Ethan to return. Chance caringly placed a hand on her side and guided them toward the exit, snapping Evelyn out of her trance.

"Let's go and grab something to eat," Chance said. "We should order to go and monitor him in the hotel….how does that sound?"

"Sure…sorry, I just get worried about him sometimes," Evelyn said, trying hard to distract herself from the situation, but her eyes craving to look back. She stopped them and looked at the floor, thinking about it before looking at Chance. "Aren't you worried about him?"

Chance nodded, "For now, let's not press it. If he continues to act weird, let's plan to talk to him after this mission."

Evelyn agreed, continuing down the pathway, and looked at the tabby.

"Hopefully, we don't have to wait a year. Plus, Sophia is getting tired of all the bored housewives," Evelyn joked, shaking her worry and grabbing Chance's paw. "God! I would rather be in a warzone than have another conversation about how their husbands aren't meeting their needs."

"Oh, Sophia, what have you been telling them about us," Chance said, grinning like an idiot. "I could practically feel the other wives' eyes trying to disrobe me. If you are not careful, someone may sweep me off my feet!"

"Go for it! However, just know my lawyer is on standby when we split things," Evelyn chuckled, pretending to be hurt as she grabbed her heart. "Don't worry, Nicholas….I'll take that jet and scrap it."

"Hey, now we are getting personal!" Chance said, trying to show his best angry face but failing as a smirk appeared. "Shame really…..and we were just planning to redecorate the living room of our mansion."


The sound of the crashing waves and soft breeze was felt at the port. It was not busy today, or someone would have noticed the approaching cog ship appearing from the ocean. The boat slowly altered itself it something less conspicuous, making itself seem like a modern small boat. On board the vessel, Wyatt sat patiently as the captain brought them close before nodding his head and casually shifting to light to land at the dock.

"Thank you for using my service," the boatman said, an old blind kat said before pointing in a specific direction. "There should be a small haven in the middle of town where wizards come and rest for a bit. Be safe, and may the gods bless you."

The boatman spun the boat away, quickly descending back down and disappearing from view. Wyatt kept looking before walking toward the port exit, chanting some spell under his breath which surrounded him lightly, and changed his clothing to a more modern look.

"If only some high-ranking wizards were here, then this situation would have been dealt with already," Wyatt mused, coming closer to the city and wondering where the problem was. "I don't sense…"

Wyatt halted, appearing frozen as his face kept a bored expression before swiftly grabbing his amulet and firing a white blast of light toward a nearby container. He looked at the hole he had made easily and kept his aim there, sensing it was still there. Wyatt's ear twitched, and he scowled, feeling whatever was around had disappeared.

"Was that it? No, this one seems different from what was reported," Wyatt said before hearing some approaching voices coming in his direction. He cursed, chanting his exit and zooming out from view towards somewhere else.

On top of a crane, Dante had masked himself long enough to hide from Wyatt. However, his right side, from his hand to pec, was blown off, leaving a dark purple void seeping from him. Dante was surprised, thinking it would be impossible to hurt him in this form, but now he knew it was possible.

Dante gritted his teeth, trying to move, but he only shifted his head to see the school in the distance. His eyes softened, and he attempted to reach for the school, only to feel a heavy sleep coming to him. He cursed as he felt like he was disappearing and closed his eyes.

"Ethan."


AN: Another Chapter - Hopefully, you guys are enjoying it so far! Until next time!