Technically, it could've been a far smoother job if Alice had been there to assist him.
Her authority as queen, her imnse mana, her command over the remnants of the White Realm—it all would've lightened his burden significantly.
But ever since the war ended, she'd remained largely to herself, still recovering.
Her strength wasn't fully restored yet, and more than that… her heart and mind were clearly still occupied.
Occupied by Riley.
Cheshire wasn't blind to that.
He'd left her alone on purpose, choosing not to prod or poke.
She needed ti.
And besides, he'd always been able to handle things solo—no matter how dramatic he made it seem.
Still, he couldn't help but mumble under his breath as he floated toward the shimring red-and-white horizon, "It's been a few days since Riley woke up, hasn't it?"
His voice carried a tinge of uncharacteristic softness, thoughtful and genuine.
"…Maybe I should check on them. Especially him."
He closed his glowing eyes for a mont, ears twitching.
"After all… that fool risked his entire existence for and my master," he murmured, almost annoyed at the thought, though the faint curl of a smile tugged at his whiskers.
Cheshire was already well aware that the two lovebirds were probably spending their ti sowhere cozy—reminiscing, healing, and growing closer to each other in the way only those who had danced at the edge of death could.
And as much as he wanted to give them just a few more days of uninterrupted peace, the mounting complications within the realm would soon demand the attention of its proper ruler.
The rging of two realms wasn't exactly a small matter.
Even with his efforts smoothing the way, there were bureaucratic decrees to be written, residual anomalies to manage, and territories that needed Alice's signature mana to fully stabilize.
Cheshire could only do so much before her presence beca necessary—not just as a queen, but as the heart of this erging world.
He figured it would probably take a few more weeks before both Alice and Riley were fully recovered—physically, emotionally, and spiritually.
But checking in on them?
That wasn't crossing any lines.
He told himself that as he floated through the air on a streak of red mist.
Word had already reached him that the two had gone on a date almost imdiately after Riley woke up.
That alone was proof enough they were doing well—or at least, on the right path.
A path that had been hastened by Riley's absurdly reckless, utterly selfless act of saving Alice… again.
Cheshire let out a snort, half amused, half annoyed.
"No doubt my dear master is now hopelessly, irrevocably in love with him," he muttered, rolling his eyes skyward in mock exasperation. "Though knowing her personality… I highly doubt that much progress has been made."
He crossed his forepaws behind his head as he floated lazily on a drifting cloud of crimson mist. His ears twitched thoughtfully.
"Maybe I should… set sothing up for those two?" he mused aloud, reaching into his personal dinsional pocket and pulling out a small, shimring vial filled with rosy liquid that sparkled mischievously. "Just a little magical push. A nudge. A charming love-acceleration draft, perhaps—sothing classic."
But after a beat, he sighed and gave the vial a playful toss before slipping it back into the void of his storage.
"Nah. Wouldn't want to ruin their delicate progress now~ They've earned this pace… even if it's a slow crawl."
He stretched, his body puffing up like smoke before contracting again into a more feline silhouette.
His eyes glowed faintly as he scanned the horizon, pinpointing Alice's presence.
With a final flick of his tail, Cheshire leapt gracefully from his perch in the sky.
His smoky form shimred, then vanished, riding the wind toward her.
Even for a being as whimsical and chaotic as himself, there was sothing grounding in seeing the two of them together—two souls who had defied fate, survived a war, and still found sothing real between all the ruins.
Cheshire would never say it aloud, of course.
But sowhere beneath that smug grin of his… he was proud of them.
Now he just hoped they'd hurry up and kiss again already.
...
Manifesting in a swirling cloud of gray smoke tinged with red, Cheshire elegantly descended from the sky like a wisp of royalty in motion—until sothing rather unceremonious stopped his montum with a dull, resounding bonk.
"Ow~?" he muttered in surprise, his ethereal form puffing out slightly from the bump.
He floated backward and rubbed his now very slightly dented head with a paw.
"What in the fractured realms…"
His glowing eyes focused forward—and then widened slightly.
Before him stood not just any door, but a heavily fortified, reinforced, and magic-saturated barrier: the entrance to his master's private chamber.
Alice's room.
The door, once simple and unassuming in design, now shimred faintly with multiple protective layers—runes etched in both red and white, glyphs of shielding, silence, distortion, and even perception denial.
To the untrained eye, the door would seem perfectly normal, but to Cheshire's arcane senses… it was a fortress.
"Hmm?" He floated around it with narrowed eyes, inspecting every seal and enchantnt. "Well now~ no teleportation… no clairvoyance either? That's a bit excessive even for her…"
He hovered closer, nose nearly pressing against the shimring glyphs.
"Did sothing… happen?"
Cheshire tilted his head, tail flicking with unease.
It wasn't like Alice to lock herself away without good reason, and even then, she usually let him pass through barriers like this—he was, after all, her familiar, her closest companion, her advisor, and part-ti emotional support feline.
And yet… even as he tried to phase through the threshold, it sparked, repelling him with a soft static buzz.
"No entry really?" he whispered in disbelief, voice softening. "Even I'm not allowed in?"
His ears lowered slightly.
He couldn't hear anything inside—no movent, no sound, no words—but his connection to Alice allowed him to feel sothing.
Her presence was there… and not just hers.
Riley's.
The realization hit him with a quiet hum.
His expression shifted into sothing unreadable, thoughtful and sharp.
"She's with him…"
Was sothing happening?
A private conversation, a ritual, a fusion of magic?
Or—his mind offered with a mischievous curl—sothing a bit more intimate?
But no—if that were the case, would she really go so far as to cut off even him?
His curiosity finally outmatched his hesitation.
He floated toward the door, materializing fully this ti, tail curling behind him in gentle spirals.
Then....
—knock knock!
"Master~ are you in there?" he called sweetly, eyes gleaming like a cat pretending it wasn't curious to the point of exploding. "I ca to visit~ maybe deliver snacks~ or judgnt~ depending on your mood~"
Silence.
Only silence.
"..."
No voice. No response. Not even a magical pulse.
Cheshire stood still for a mont, ears twitching, smile fading just a hair.
He beca slightly worried.
For the first ti in a while, Cheshire didn't know what was going on. And that was not a feeling he liked.
Curious and more than a little suspicious, Cheshire raised his paw, about to knock again—perhaps a little louder this ti, maybe even a bit more forceful—but just before his paw touched the door, it clicked softly and began to creak open on its own.
"Cheshire…?" ca a familiar voice—soft, slightly breathless, and tinged with sothing... off.
Alice peeked out from behind the door, revealing only half of her face and a sliver of her body.
Her cheeks were flushed with a vivid red, a stark contrast against her pale skin.
Wisps of her smooth pink hair clung to her forehead with light perspiration, and there was a strange haziness in her golden eyes—no… they were turning pink?
A low glow shimred in their depths.
"Did… sothing happen?" she asked, voice laced with an uncharacteristic urgency, almost like she was trying very hard to stay composed.
Cheshire blinked, taken aback by her appearance. "No~ not really," he replied slowly, eyes narrowing with amused suspicion. "I simply ca by to update you on the realm's status and… check in on Riley's recovery. But—what's going on with you?"
"I-It's nothing,"
Alice replied a bit too quickly, her tone wavering as she shifted behind the door, obscuring herself even more.
"Anyways, you wouldn't mind coming back later, would you? Riley and I are… Hnng~… are a b-bit busy right now."
"Busy?" Cheshire tilted his head, floating up slightly to peek over her shoulder.
The room beyond was dim, with only faint magical light sources glowing from the edges, and though Riley was nowhere in sight… his presence was undeniable.
His life force was inside.
Close.
Very close.
"Y-Yes, very b-busy~" Alice stamred, her voice squeaking at the end.
Her fingers tightened on the doorfra as if bracing herself.
Her eyes—now unmistakably pink—darted to the side nervously.
"Huh…"
"S-See you later then, okay? A-Angh~!"
-BANGG!
Before Cheshire could even press another question, the door slamd shut with magical urgency, seals instantly reactivating with an audible hum.
The sheer suddenness of the motion sent a small breeze brushing against his smoky fur.
And in that gust… a scent. Faint. Delicate. But unmistakable.
His eyes widened.
A scent of warmth. Of emotion. Of sweat and skin and soul.
The scent of intimacy—of two individuals tied by a mont of emotional, physical, and spiritual vulnerability.
A sacred connection.
The scent of love, raw and honest.
"Oh my~?" Cheshire whispered, a paw rising to his cheek as his eyes glead in pure, unfiltered mischief. "It seems I have wandered in at the worst—or perhaps the best—possible ti."
User Comments
0 comments from readers