Chapter 19
"That's enough, Fluff."
I blinked as the growling stopped so abruptly that, for one alarming second, I wondered whether my near-death experience had finally broken my brain.
Slowly, I opened my eyes.
The creature had frozen mid-motion.
Its glowing red eyes flickered as the violent crimson faded into a warm gold.
Then, as if nothing unusual had happened, it turned away from me and ran straight toward the voice.
Toward Rhaevan.
He stood a short distance away with his arms crossed, looking mildly inconvenienced, as though this entire incident had been nothing more than an interruption to an otherwise peaceful afternoon.
Then the creature began to change.
Its massive body shrank rapidly, bones and muscle shifting into something smaller, softer, and infinitely less terrifying.
Within seconds, the enormous beast had disappeared and in its place sat a small cat with suspiciously innocent eyes.
I stared at it.
"That... is a cat?"
The cat leapt neatly into Rhaevan's arms and curled against his chest with the shameless comfort of someone who had not attempted murder thirty seconds ago.
Rhaevan stroked its head once.
"That is my pet," he said calmly. "Fluff. It must have tracked my magic and followed me here."
I looked at the cat, then at him, then back at the cat.
Fluff.
Of course it was Fluff.
Unfortunately, my mind had already moved to a far more urgent problem.
Had he seen it?
Had he seen the magic?
The glow?
The branch?
No. The attack had happened too fast. Everything had been chaotic, and he had arrived right after.
There was no way he could have seen clearly.
Maybe he had only seen the creature.
Yes. That made sense. It had to.
I straightened slightly and forced my voice into something resembling normal.
"You have a pet named Fluff."
"Yes."
I pointed at the cat.
"This pet was trying to kill me."
Rhaevan glanced at Fluff.
"He was startled."
I stared at him.
"He was startled?"
"Mmhmm."
"And his response to being startled is attempted murder?"
Rhaevan remained infuriatingly calm.
"You frightened him."
I stared at him.
"I beg your pardon?"
I pointed at the cat.
"That overgrown carpet with claws nearly stopped my heart, and somehow I'm the problem?"
I looked from him to the cat and then back again.
"Are you both insane?"
Rhaevan merely continued stroking the cat, a small, thoroughly unhelpful smile playing at the corners of his mouth. He turned towards the path.
"Are you coming, or are you planning to stay here until the rest of the forest introduces itself?"
I narrowed my eyes.
I scoffed and followed, still deeply offended that I had somehow been cast as the villain in an incident where I had nearly peed my pants.
The walk back was quiet. It was not comfortable, but neither was it tense enough to be called uncomfortable.
It felt careful, as though both of us were thinking far more than we were willing to say.
Fluff occasionally glanced at me from Rhaevan's arms and let out low, judgmental sounds that felt unnecessarily personal.
After a while, I spoke as casually as I could manage.
"What exactly made you come back?"
Rhaevan glanced at me.
"Fluff's magic," he said. "I recognized it. Then I heard the noise."
That was all.
No questions. No suspicion. No mention of anything else.
Good.
That was good.
By the time we reached the inn, Miss Ann was already outside.
Her face brightened immediately at the sight of the cart.
"Well done, Rhaevan. This is excellent."
I stood beside him, very much alive and very much present.
"Hello," I said. "I was also there, in case you decided this was a solo achievement."
Miss Ann had already turned back to him.
Naturally.
"I've prepared tea," she said.
"Thank you, Miss Ann," Rhaevan replied before glancing at the cat in his arms.
"I hope you do not mind if this cat stays as well. The poor thing was stranded in the forest."
I stared at him.
What a manipulative actor.
Miss Ann softened immediately.
"Oh, of course. You are too kind, my boy."
Jeez. At this rate, Miss Ann was going to start handing him awards.
And just like that, Fluff became a resident.
Perfect. Everything was perfectly terrible.
They started walking inside, and I followed behind, trying to process how I had nearly died and somehow lost to a cat.
Then Rhaevan stopped.
He turned and walked back toward me.
I stayed where I was.
He stopped close enough for me to feel his warmth, and his gaze settled on me with a quiet intensity that made me instinctively wary.
Then he smiled.
"You're terrible at hiding things, Cassiane."
Every muscle in my body locked.
I said nothing.
Rhaevan reached up and gently removed a leaf tangled in my hair.
His fingers brushed against my hair for the briefest moment before withdrawing.
"I saw enough," he said softly.
I forgot how breathing worked.
But then he did something worse.
He didn't ask questions.
He didn't push.
He simply looked at me with that same quiet steadiness and said, "When you're ready, you can tell me."
That hit far harder than accusation ever could.
Then his expression softened.
"I'm glad I found you again."
He smiled and walked away, leaving me rooted to the ground.
I remained where I was, staring after him and wondering why my heart had suddenly decided to sprint like it was being chased.
God help me.
How, exactly, am I supposed to survive this plot?