”It looks like I underestimated you, Wolfe Noxus. Your power is growing at a more impressive rate than I expected, but an agreement is an agreement. 500 units a day. But if you volunteer to donate extra, the teachers will thank you for reducing their workload.” Headmistress Peach offered.
Wolfe noticed that there was no offer of payment, only of allowing him to volunteer mana. The Witch was playing it safe, probably so he couldn’t load up on Academy credits and bias the advancement of his Witches by just buying everything they wanted.
“I will take a few extra Crystals and think about your offer. I’m sure the professors would appreciate the effort.” Wolfe replied, carefully not agreeing to actually do it.
“Good. Now, officially Stephen Isabel will have been sent home for breaking unspecified Academy rules. You may tell the others anything you like about the origin of your new Familiar, but under no circumstances are you to let others know that they are one and the same.”
Headmistress Peach handed Stephanie to Wolfe, who instinctively began to pet her head. The kitten began to purr for a second before she caught herself and gave Wolfe a dirty look that made the guards laugh.
“Familiar Cats are very mana sensitive, so physical contact with you will be extremely comfortable to her, and any mana you feed her will help her own powers grow. She can still use her powers as a witch, but she will need to be much more powerful than I am to return to her human form without permission.
Most Familiar Cats never choose to turn back, though. Being a cat is a good life. Just remember that cats are carnivores that can’t digest most plants, so feed her meat.” Headmistress Peach reminded the pair, then looked to the Academy building.
“You’ve missed the start of class, so go get washed up, and I will excuse your absence.”
With that, she turned and vanished, leaving Wolfe standing outside the gates, covered in dirt and leaves, holding a kitten in his arms.
“Well, uh, I’m not sure what to say. How do you even apologize for getting someone turned into a cat because you wanted to have a private conversation? If I hadn’t brought you out, you would be assisting class right now, trying to land yourself a wife. I promise you that I will make this right, but until then, you’ll be in my care.”
Wolfe stroked the fluffy black kitten, unsure if Stephanie could even answer anymore, though, from the way that the Headmistress was talking, it seemed that she was likely to have kept all of her previous mental faculties.
This time she didn’t get mad and simply rubbed her head against Wolfe’s cheek then looked to the Academy.
“You’re right. We should get going.”
The hallways of the academy were virtually empty as Wolfe passed through, heading straight to the room he shared with Cassie and Ella. Once he was through the door, he set both backpacks down and headed for the bathroom, eager to get the last traces of the fight with the mud monster off of him.
After setting Stephanie in the sink for safety, he stripped down to have a shower and only realized his mistake when he saw her cover her face with her paws and then sneak peeks in between them.
“Sorry, do you want me to leave you out on the bed?”
Stephanie considered it for a second, then violently shook her head, meowing in panic.
“Right, it would be hard to explain if they came in to find a random cat in the room. But you will get used to us right away. Well, hopefully. We’re a bit closer than most pairings you see. It’s part of the way that a Demon helps their Witch gain power.
You, I can cuddle all day long, but for them, depositing mana to absorb over time is more effective. They’re already stronger than most second-year Witches, and by the end of the semester, I intend to make them the strongest in the Academy.”
Wolfe finished his shower and towelled off, ignoring the very bashful kitten until he was changed into a clean uniform.
“Since we missed lunch, how about we go to the Staff dining room and grab a bite to eat? It’s open all day, and I’m still considered an employee of sorts. At the very least, I’ve got an employee badge, and they let me in.” Wolfe suggested before placing Stephanie on his shoulder for the walk.
ƥαṇdαηθνε|
“Hey, Wolfe. Babysitting a lovely little kitten, are you?” The cook in the staff dining room asked as he walked in.
“Yep, an extended lesson in personal responsibility. She’s no normal kitten either, so I’ll need something tasty that she can eat.” Wolfe replied, knowing that he would never be forgiven if he allowed someone to try to feed her cat food.
“Well, in that case, let’s go with breakfast. Scrambled eggs and some diced steak cubes. I’ve got those here all day, every day, but at her size, she won’t need much.” The friendly Witch offered.
“I think I’ll take steak and eggs as well. She can’t complain that I’m starving her if there’s more on my plate.” Wolfe agreed, and Stephanie gave a snort of amusement that came out as a tiny sneeze.
The cook had just brought out their plates when Gary Isabel, Stephanie’s older brother and the rejected suitor for Cassie, came in on his lunch break, looking particularly exhausted.
The sight of him made Stephanie freeze mid-bite until Wolfe whispered in her ear. “There is no way that he knows what happened. It was all out of sight of the Academy behind the wall.”
Gerry didn’t even seem to notice them, though. He just grabbed a plate from the buffet and joined a group of men from the maintenance division. They were almost all sons of Nobles and not at all happy about their job assignments, but even their family’s influence couldn’t get them a free ride here at the Academy.
“Oh, she is beautiful, isn’t she?” A lady from the housekeeping division asked, sitting down across from Wolfe at the table.
“She really is, and she looks so soft. Better keep her away from that Mary, that little witch with the big dog, though.” Another housekeeper laughed.
“The problem isn’t Pup. He likes everyone. Well, almost everyone. But Mary is obsessed with cute and fluffy things.” Wolfe explained to Stephanie.
The first housekeeper to sit down was confused by the way that Wolfe spoke to the kitten for a few seconds before she realized what was going on. “Oh, we should have realized that she was a Familiar and not a pet. Familiar Cats are wicked smart, so she probably knows everything we are talking about. I’ll remember for next time.”
Lunch passed with a bit more peaceful chatter until Wolfe excused himself back to the room, bringing the overwhelmed Stephanie with him.
“They’re a lot to take in, but partially that’s because most of them are failed Academy Students who always wanted their own Familiar. Now, did you want to study, or did you want me to make you a good spot for a nap?”