Paradox

By the time Lucy reached her apartment building, the sky had turned a soft orange, streaked with hints of violet.

The streets were quieter now, with students either back in their dorms or scattered across the city's cafes, libraries, or arcades stadiums.

The girl gripped the small paper bag in her hand a little tighter, a satisfied smile on her face.

"Tomorrow, Mochi," she mumbled to herself as she climbed the steps two at a time, "we are finally gonna go on a walk together."

The black collar rested inside the bag, packed along the sheets of paper like some prized jewel.

It had cost more than she wanted to admit, but Lucy told herself it was worth it, that she had spent so long trying to adjust this newfound temporary life of hers that she had forgotten to live.

Her father, Mikael, had told the girl that he's be back soon, but days became months, and months turned into years.

They never had a very stable relationship together…not after Lucy's mom died.

The girl let out a long sigh, pushing these thoughts away for now as she reached the third floor, her apartment sitting at the end of the hall like always.

The building was old, pre-Sundering era by the looks of it.

Brick walls covered her surroundings along with a set of pesky neighbours she always seemed to run from.

Well, all this was thanks to her bastard of her father—

…or so the girl thought.

If only she knew that what was happening to her wasn't anything knew, it was not just her and Kaito but an unknown amount of youthful geniuses experiencing the same thing right now.

Instances where all of their parents just disappeared two years ago.

The only question was…why?

Lucy pulled out her keys and twisted them into the lock.

The door creaked open, and she immediately paused, her nose twitching.

"What the…"

There was a smell.

Not a terrible, 'something died in here' kind of smell.

But definitely a weird one, sharp and chemical.

A bit like burnt rubber and…soy sauce?

"Did I leave the stove on?" she asked particularly no one, her nose scrunching as the black haired girl stepped inside.

The apartment was dim, the golden hour light casting shadows across the furniture. Everything looked normal at first glance.

Her coat still hung by the door. Her shoes were where she kicked them off. The window by the kitchen was cracked open a little, letting in a light breeze.

But the smell was stronger here. Like someone had mixed every weird air freshener into one and then sprayed it in panic.

Lucy cautiously tiptoed through the living room, eyes flicking around. "Mochi?" she called, her voice rising just a bit.

Silence.

She set the paper bag on the table and peeked into the kitchen.

A mug lay on its side near the sink, dripping onto the counter.

Tissues were scattered across the floor like someone had been trying to mop up something.

The trash lid was ajar. And near the base of the counter…

She squinted.

"…Is that pee?"

The girl couldn't believe what she was seeing, but the faint outline was unmistakable.

Lucy groaned, realising her mistake. "Mochi…"

In all of her mess, she had forgotten the most basic thing, well two to be precise.

One being that Mochi wasn't toilet trained yet and... the fact that she had forgotten to buy him a litterbox.

The fact that this black cat had somehow tried to clean his shit with tissues only made her a tad more concerned about how intelligent it was.

With a long sigh, she walked back to the living room and flopped onto the couch.

"I leave you alone for one day and you redecorate it with fluids," she muttered, trying to make a joke to herself.

"Classy."

The girl looked over the rug below the dining table and saw the familiar figure of the adolescent black cat sleeping.

Bending down, the girl couldn't help but slowly pet Kaito's small, black-furred head as she looked at her with love and something close to peace.

Realising that her little menace must have become tired and gone to sleep, she slowly picked him up and went to the bedroom, laying him against the side.

Looking at the developing muscles of the black cat's hindlegs, she put on a soft smile.

If Kaito had been awake right now, he would be shocked to see the number of notifications popping on the blue screen in front of him.

Seeing the peaceful look on her baby cat's face, the girl started yawning as she changed into a pair of shorts and a black bra.

The girl almost hated wearing too many clothes while going to sleep.

The hazel eyed girl slowly covered the kitten she had started to love dearly with her blanket as she snuggled right beside it and went to sleep.

Meanwhile, the notifications in front of the said cat just wouldn't stop popping.

[System Update: Lucy has reached a milestone!!]

[You have successfully helped your owner untying a hidden knot in her heart, thus speeding her 'transition'.]

[+50 Faith Points.]

[You have successfully helped in altering your first follower, Lucielle V. Kincaid's destiny.]

[+100 Faith Points]

[New Skill Unlocked: Nine Lives Protocol]

Then, just as quickly as it had begun, the system quietened, the flickering lights on the invisible screen faded as if folding back into the haze of sleep.

But not before one last, almost forgotten alert that pushed through the layers of warning logs:

[Last Seen Location of Subject: Kaito Angel - Human Form]

[Date of Disappearance: April 1st, 3071]

[Status: DECLARED DECEASED.

Body: Not Found.]

[Matching Neural Signature Found — 98.7% Accuracy.]

[Warning: Two Hosts may trigger Paradox.]

***