The next morning started out as usual,
waking up a few minutes before Anathasia did, then preparing breakfast.
Or at least, that was what I planned on doing.
"Right…" I murmured under my breath as I sat up on the bed.
"We're still on the island."
Beside me, Anathasia stirred awake. Her eyes fluttered open before meeting mine, and she slowly pushed herself up, yawning.
"Mornin'…" she mumbled.
She shifted closer, snuggling against me before lying fully across my lap, rubbing her eyes sleepily.
"Say," she started, "today's the day for those… parlor game stuff, right?"
She let out a lazy sigh, rolling onto her back.
"Sounds like a pain… I kinda just wanna finish my main quest… or maybe review some of our majors."
I watched as she continued to fidget on my lap, mumbling half-formed complaints under her breath.
When she finally settled, my hand reached out to stroke her hair, twirling the ends around my finger.
"Joining isn't really mandatory," I said. "I'm not planning on joining either, honestly."
I lifted a few strands of her hair, brushing them lightly against my cheek.
"I'll probably just watch from the sidelines."
She kept staring at the ceiling as I gently rubbed her hair between my fingers.
Then, all of a sudden—
POMFP.
The next thing I knew, a cat was nestled comfortably on my lap.
Smooth white fur. Sharp crimson-red eyes. Almost like—
"It is me, though," the cat suddenly spoke.
What…?
"I'll be a cat for today," it continued, standing up before casually walking onto my stomach and lying down.
"If they ask anything, just tell them I have period cramps or something," she added, licking her paw while curling up on top of me.
"Anathasia…?" I muttered. "Are you really that desperate to avoid getting dragged into those games?"
The cat paused, glanced at me—
Then went right back to licking her paw.
I didn't press further. Instead, I carefully lifted her off my lap, cradling her against my chest as I slipped off the bed.
"Since I can't exactly make breakfast right now," I muttered, glancing down at her as she snuggled comfortably into my arms,
"we'll have to head down to the buffet. Though… I'm not sure if cats are even allowed there."
She looked up at me briefly, then closed her eyes, resting her head against my arm.
"I'll just… pull some strings if that's the case," she replied, yawning before promptly falling back asleep.
I sighed.
Without another word, I stepped out of our room and headed for the elevator.
—
After breakfast, and a quick change of clothes, I continued carrying her around the resort for some light sightseeing, as she'd requested.
I still wasn't entirely sure why she kept clawing anyone else who tried to pet her, though.
It happened not long after breakfast.
"You have a cat?" a classmate asked, slowly reaching out toward Anathasia—
Only to immediately recoil as she hissed and swatted at their hand.
[…Oi.]
[She tried touching me without permission.]
[And even if she'd asked, I still wouldn't let anyone else touch my fur anyway.]
I offered the girl an apologetic smile.
"Sorry… she doesn't really like being touched by other people," I said.
"So I don't recommend trying to pet her."
"Y-yeah…" she replied awkwardly. "I can see that."
After that, we moved on.
Eventually, I stopped near one of the pools and sat down by a planter box.
Anathasia settled herself comfortably on my lap, lounging there like any ordinary house cat.
That peace didn't last long.
A group of guys from our class (college students, by the way) suddenly sprinted toward the pool before leaping in all at once, sending water splashing everywhere.
I reacted just in time, lifting Anathasia off my lap and out of harm's way.
Still, her fur bristled as she hissed sharply.
[Careless pieces of—! I almost got drenched!]
I let out a quiet sigh, cradling her against my chest as I stood up. I gently stroked her fur, watching the others laugh and play in the pool like nothing had happened.
[Okay, calm down, alright?] I murmured internally, glancing down at my shorts where a few droplets had landed.
[I'm pretty sure they didn't mean it.]
She didn't reply immediately.
[I'm glad I changed into my swimwear before coming here…] I added.
Her tail flicked once.
One of the guys glanced our way. Noticing I was alone, or at least, not visibly with Anathasia. He tilted his head.
"Abe, where's Dunaleff?"
I paused briefly, then offered him a wry smile. I glanced down at the cat in my arms before looking back up.
"She's sleeping right now," I said. "Monthly visits of… y'know. That."
He frowned for a moment, then his expression shifted as understanding dawned.
"Oh. Right," he said with a small laugh. "Yeah, that happens."
He nodded toward the pool.
"Guess that's why you're here, huh?"
"Mhm," I replied. "They get pretty irritable during those times." I shrugged. "I don't plan on becoming her punching bag."
He laughed louder at that.
[…Manipulative liar bastard.]
The voice echoed flatly in my mind.
I glanced down.
The cat in my arms was staring at me with what could only be described as disappointment.
[You asked me to come up with an excuse, though?] I shot back.
[I did,] she replied. [But why are you weirdly good at it?]
[That's how charisma works, y'know?]
Her tail flicked again.
She looked away, resting her head against my arm.
"By the way," the guy said, glancing at me before looking back at the group tossing a ball around in the middle of the pool. "Aren't you going to get in?"
My eyes widened for just a moment, before I smoothed my expression like nothing happened.
"Anathasia asked me to look after her cat," I replied easily. I glanced down at the cat in my arms, who was calmly grooming herself. "So I can't exactly leave her behind."
"Hee… is that so…" he said, sounding oddly disappointed as he scratched the back of his head. "That's too bad."
"Yeah. That's too bad!" someone suddenly shouted from the middle of the pool.
"And to think we actually bought you a swimsuit to try on!"
…Hah?
"What do you mean—?"
I didn't even get to finish before several girls from our class suddenly appeared behind me and grabbed my arm.
"W—wait—!"
The cat, Anathasia, just watched as they dragged me away.
[I'll be right back. I still need to change.]
[?! Don't leave me here!]
And just like that, I was hauled straight into the changing room.
Everything happened faster than I could process.
By the time I came back out, I was already wearing… whatever this thing was.
The chatter died instantly.
Every pair of eyes, especially the girls', locked onto me.
"Gosh…" one of them muttered. "I think I'm starting to understand why Dunaleff's so attached to him now…"
Moments later, the guys from the pool wandered over, stopping just behind the group.
I didn't really get it.
All I knew was that I was wearing some kind of swimsuit paired with a thin skirt, and a sunhat that had absolutely no reason to exist other than questionable fashion choices.
What the fuck…?
Before anyone could get a closer look, the world suddenly darkened.
A massive shadow swept over the pool, far too large to belong to any cloud, completely blotting out the sun.
Then—
"W—what the fuck is that?!" someone shouted from the back.
Screams erupted almost instantly as the group broke apart, students scrambling toward the building in a panic.
I ran against the flow, ignoring the chaos just long enough to look up.
And then I saw it.
"A… Bakunawa…?"
A creature from Philippine mythology, said to swallow moons whole, coiled through the sky above the island, its massive form casting a shadow over everything below.
[Pfft—you're looking real pretty, Kyle.]
I stiffened.
[Anathasia? What is this?!]
As people continued fleeing past me, she suddenly materialized at my side. Perfectly calm, like this was just another casual inconvenience.
[A quick distraction,] she said lightly. [I told you I'd be back, didn't I? And you wouldn't want to be the center of attention right now.]
She gestured lazily toward the sky.
"What better way than bringing literal nightmare fuel to life—"
SMACK
"Ow—what was that for?!"
"You could've used literally anything that wouldn't make people faint!" I snapped, staring up at the oversized serpent twisting through the clouds.
"How the hell are people supposed to deal with that?" I demanded, pointing at it.
She looked at me, rubbing the back of her head before glancing toward the creature in the sky.
And before I could say anything else—
SNAP
The massive serpentine figure above us froze.
Then it shattered.
Its form broke apart into a brilliant cloud of color before bursting outward. Followed immediately by a rain of candies spilling down from the sky.
All of it.
Gone.
Just like that.
I stared up at the colorful haze for a moment, then slowly turned to look at Anathasia, my expression completely flat.
"…Seriously?"
"…Let's just let everyone assume this was part of Arianne's plans," she murmured, immediately looking away.
My brows knitted together as I rubbed the bridge of my nose.
"Of course," I muttered.
"Arianne's the one catching strays."