Alexander the Caracal meets Miltiades the Canada Lynx

Awakening

Alexander awoke with a jolt, surprising all those in Nana Smith's room. Roxana stared with wide eyes while the great-horned owls Herod and Cleopatra, whom had since come to keep Alexander company, both reacted with surprised hoots.

It took Alexander a moment to realize where he was. Once he did, two questions came to his mind. The first question was where was the Stone Miltiades? The second question was where was the Brobdingnagian Bird? Where had they gone? Had they even been there?

Gently stroking the wounded caracal, Nana Smith: "Are you alright, Alexander? Did you have a fantasy?"

Alexander did not respond with a meow. He merely stared out the window, wondering if he would see the Brobdingnagian Bird flying in the sky.

Soon Alan Carter, Captain Smith's elder nephew and Nana Smith's firstborn grandchild, entered the room. He was sixteen years of age, as lean and hungry as William Shakespeare's portrayal of Gaius Cassius Longinus and stood at a height of five feet and five inches. His skin was ruddy, his red hair short and curly, his eyes mismatched with the left being blue and the right green, his nose hooked and his jaw square. He was wearing his usual attire, which consisted of a white shirt, and black trousers, but the red blazer, black shoes and white socks were all missing from his person and that alone caused Alexander and Roxana to both stare wide-eyed as if a cannon had just gone off. The owls Herod and Cleopatra were completely disinterested in the lacks of blazer, socks and shoes on Alan's person however and paid him no mind, both just staying on their respective perch, Nana Smith's dresser for Herod and a rocking chair for Cleopatra.

Alan approached Alexander who gave a weak meow as the boy gently pet his head. Looking to his grandmother, Alan then asked: "How is he?"

"Alan, it has only been two hours." Nana Smith replied with a matter-of-fact tone. "Be patient, dear." Taking a seat on the floor next to his grandmother's bed, Alan looked Alexander in the eye, the caracal now sniffing his shirt, wondering where the blazer was, while Roxana was staring at Alan's feet, wondering why he was barefoot when he was not wearing his pajamas. Knowing her eldest grandchild well enough, Nana Smith inquired: "Something on your mind, Alan?"

Alan's answer was not immediate. He merely stared at Alexander before saying: "Nana, we aren't going to lose him, are we?"

Nana Smith looked to her grandson with a smile before saying: "Alan, I can assure you we will not."

"We aren't going to lose you, are we?"

The old woman's smile vanished from her countenance. She merely said: "Alan, we both know that all that lives must eventually die. I know you've lost your father and mother this year, but my time is coming to a close and no amount of praying, hoping or wishing will change that. I will be with your parents and with your grandfather and we will always be with you."

As Nana Smith spoke to her grandson, Alexander and Roxana's attention turned from Alan's shirt and lack of shoes to a figure standing in the doorway. What they saw was another caracal, an old male, battle scarred and with drooping ear tufts. Herod and Cleopatra looked to the stranger once then looked away with disinterest.

The two owls may have been disinterested, but the two caracals were puzzled. This old male had something off about him, most notably his lack of a scent. It did not take Alexander or Roxana long to realize whom this was. This caracal was Darius.