061 Magical Sparks

"Really?!" Kitty exclaimed, and then rolled her eyes with sarcasm: "That's so cool! It would be cooler if I can actually use it."

"Haha," Erebus burst into laughter, "Try it. There's nothing stopping you now."

"I did! I tried!" Kitty pouted with compliant, "I couldn't even summon a magical item even when--God!"

Kitty froze there, staring at the little stone that just emerged from her palm when she thought of the idea "summon a magical item".

It was really that easy... IF she could use magic then.

"I don't understand..." Kitty mumbled, eyes moving to Erebus with an appealing, confused look.

"There is much that we don't understand about you, for now." Erebus chuckled, "But one thing is sure."

"What?" Not satisfied with his deliberate pause at the crucial part of that sentence, she frowned as she stared at him.

"That you ARE magical." Erebus said, smiling at her.

"Ohh." Kitty lowered her head as she felt her ear tips flushed. She quickly shifted her focus on the stone to avoid Erebus's gazing.

It was a BEAUTIFUL stone.

It was in a very simple shape, ordinary even, like how ANY stone you could imagine, yet you cannot really pin it down and say there's anything special about it. It was the PURE definition of a stone.

Anything more or less about it, minishes it.

It was a stone. It was all stone.

The shape was so perfect that every line and curve was JUST right, and you feel pleasure, just by fixing your eye on it.

Yet under its gray grain, there was looming purple lines. You feel like you can see them, but when you focus your eyes, they disappear; when you look away, you see them again.

Erebus put a finger on the stone, and electricity came out immediately, and left a scarlet red burn on his hand, as if a vicious little monster, biting at anything comes closer.

"Interesting." Erebus said.

"Sorry..." Kitty mumbled.

"It's okay. If you are gonna apologize every time when this kind of 'injury' happens in my world," Erebus made a quote in the air, "apologizing would consume half of your time."

Kitty leaned backwards on the carriage and looked at him obstreperously: "Fine, you are welcome."

"Haha, thanks, my lady." Erebus bowed a little, completing her joke.

"Ew," Kitty closed her palm and jumped aside as if that bow was a weapon targeting her, "I'm no lady."

"Really, what are you then?" Erebus took her by the wrist and pulled her towards him.

"Told you, I'm only a stray cat." Kitty put her arms around his neck and pecked him on the cheek, satisfied seeing him froze where he was.

It took them nearly an hour to get back to the hotel, mostly because they had been chatting and laughing during the short walk when they got out of the station.

By the time they got to the hall, Metis was already there.

"My Lord." Metis bowed.

"Is everyone here?" Erebus asked as they walked towards the elevator.

"Yes, my Lord." Metis said as she followed him, "EVERYONE."

Erebus stopped at that word, and then started walking again without another word. But Kitty could see that his face tightened a bit, as if that word "everyone" somehow offended him.

"Are you alright?" Kitty whispered to him.

"I'm okay." Erebus quickly wiped that dark look off his face and smiled to her. But it was reluctant, and she could tell. "How are you feeling today?"

"I'm okay, why?" Kitty was a bit confused.

"You were just attacked by a wizard," Erebus reminded her, "It has been a long day. I'll understand if you want to go up and rest first."

"It's okay. Do you need me?" Kitty asked, sensed out the tone in his words.

"I... I'll leave it to you." Erebus said, but he didn't insist on her leaving for her room first.

There were so many people in the office on the 19th floor. It wasn't a small room, but it surely felt crowded on that day.

Winnie had Emma in her arms, and Menoetius grinned at her when she came in, even Curtis was there!

"W-what are you doing here?" That question slipped of her tongue before she could stop it.

"Why? I'm not welcome?" Curtis laughed and stepped closer to her, which initiated Erebus to come forward in between.

"I KNOW why you are here, and yes, you are not welcome." Erebus said in a dark voice, "And you should know, more than anyone, why you are here."

"You are not her father." Curtis didn’t even flinch, let along taking a step back.

"Metis." Erebus suddenly called.

"I'm her legal guardian." Metis came up and said.

Erebus looked at Curtis with smirk: "Do you need the paper work?"

"Oh my God!" Curtis burst into laughter, "I cannot believe you assigned her a 'legal guardian'!"

"She's a minor, hence in the need of a legal guardian. Do you have a problem?" Erebus rose an eye brow.

"Erebus! Really?! You are really THAT old school?" Curtis exclaimed, "Or you are just using this to--"

"This is not about old school. There's lines that should not be crossed." Erebus cut him off before he said that. He didn't know Curtis already made the move.

"She is very capable of making her own choice." Curtis said angrily.

"That's what they all say. 'Let the underage take the responsibility'." Erebus didn't want to get into it in front of Kitty, "Maybe you should take care of your 'own choice' and keep your distance."

"I'm not even-- You know what? It's fine. I don't have to explain myself to you." Curtis shook his head, "What about you? I don't imagine--!"

"I'm aware." Erebus cut him off before he could say "it's easy for you", Kitty would know everything if that.

"Interesting." Curtis nodded, staring at Erebus, "Why am I here then?"

"You are here," Erebus said lazily with a shred of strict in his tone, "To explain how you knew Kitty was the daughter before she even did."

"I know witches, TOO." Curtis said, stressed on the "too", indicating he knew Erebus kept in touch with the magic users.

"And?" Erebus didn't even flinch.

"They tracked her. I'm guessing you don't know how that works. See, it's a royal privilege." Curtis said, smirking at Kitty.

Kitty frowned and turned to walk to Winnie.

"She's really weird..." Curtis murmured.

And before Erebus could teach him that was what a girl with dignity was like, Curtis rushed towards Kitty and said, "I'm the Prince of the werewolf Kingdom, as in--"

He didn't even finish the name of the Kingdom, because Kitty took Emma in her arms and turned to him: "Okay, PRINCE. How did you know it was me?"

She didn't know why Erebus asked him of that, but she trusted Erebus's judgement to know that that was important.

"I..." Curtis went speechless.

"And by the way," Kitty thought a bit and continued, "WHEN did you know?"

Curtis came because Erebus suspect him of being the one who leaked when and where Kitty would be transferred by the spell, and he wanted to prove his innocence. It seems this goal just went off the track and headed straight to the failure can.

"Well, I..." Curtis stuttered.

He KNEW, Perses wiped out the whole town and took a three-year-old away; and he KNEW Kitty survived! And there was no way he could explain that to her without revealing his secrets.

"It was you!" Kitty suddenly yelled, "You were the mole, aren't you?! I regret that I ever trust you!"

"No! I'm not!" Curtis protested, but Kitty won't let him and she screamed at the top of her lung:

"Get out of here!"