Black Cats and Wolf Spirits

The Realm of the Living (Finale, Part 2)

(Mako's POV)

I sat by the forest's edge silently, wishing with all my heart that Y/n was here. I would be married in a few hours, and not having her there felt like there was a piece of me missing.

I had hardly slept last night. Not just from wedding jitters combined with grief, but wolves had been howling all night. Something had happened in the forest, and the wolves were the first sign that something was different. The last time they had howled like that was on the night Y/n had disappeared. The whole village was terrified that someone else had been taken.

The air smelled sweet and the sky was clear, and everything was in place. Atsuko was getting ready, and today was supposed to be the best day of my life. Except, I couldn't enjoy it. Not without my sister.

A sound from within the forest made me forget about my wallowing and pause. I heard a voice talking, the sound light and familiar.

"I know it's around here. But the door was locked at home, and I can't find him anywhere! Yes, I know, cat. Don't give me that look!" The voice said.

My heart squeezed. It sounded like her.

I looked over to where the sound had come from and saw a figure in a long, black cloak. Long h/t h/c hair spilled from within the hood of the cloak, the aura of the person overwhelmingly cold and dark. It wasn't the aura of my sister.

There was a meow that brought my attention down to the feet of the cloaked individual. Expensive looking boots poked out from the fabric of the cloak, and weaving between the feet as they walked was a small black cat.

At the sound of the meow, the cloaked woman turned and met eyes with me. The familiar brown-black eyes that were a mirror of my own shocked me. I hadn't seen eyes like those since she had left. "Y/n," I sighed, tears forming in my eyes. "Is it really you?"

Y/n pulled her hands to her chest in a moment of hesitation, and then ran for me. She leaped into my arms, throwing me backwards into the grass. The wind blew her hair around the both of us, the sleeves of her cloak billowing out to the side. "Mako," she cried, "I missed you so much." She buried her face in my neck, squeezing me tight to her chest.

I felt sobs build up in my chest, the hollow sounds that racked my body only reminiscent of when I had first heard the news of my mother's and then Y/n's death. I couldn't form the words to scold her for having been gone so long. She was alive and she was finally home. She would get to meet Atsuko and be there at my wedding. I hadn't lost her. She was safe, and soon she too would find someone to settle down with. Then our families could come together, and-

"I have so much to tell you. I found this amazing place, and I learned so much! I can't wait for you to meet him, Mako-"

"What?" I reared, meeting eyes with her again. She paused, biting her lip. She tugged at the black sleeves, not saying anything. "Meet who? You were with someone?! I can't believe I'm saying this, but Lyle was right!" I combed my fingers through my hair, panic starting to set in. "We have to go searching for whoever took you and bring them to justice."

"No! No, Mako, you've got it all wrong! I wandered off by myself, and he saved me! Then he helped me find my way home with help from the Guardian and the rest of the Council! He's my-"

"Y/n, no, this guy wasn't helping you! He kidnapped you! Don't you understand?! He must still be around. I'll rally the men and we'll search for him, I'm sure Atsuko won't mind if it's for the safety of the village women and children."

"Mako, stop! He didn't hurt anybody! He didn't even know what I was!"

"So it was a witch!"

"I'M THE WITCH, MAKO! NOW STOP MAKING STUPID ASSUMPTIONS AND LET ME TALK!"

I stopped, not believing my ears. "W-what..?"

"I'm a witch, Mako. Just like Momma." She held out her hands, a large book appearing out of thin air. "This is the Grimoire. I can tell you all about it, if you just wait. Now, you need to hurry. Your fiancée is getting worried. I'll be there, don't worry."

She waved her hand past my head, and then I didn't remember.

*

*

*

I sighed, feeling bad for what I'd had to do to my brother. Memory erasing spells were one of the first things the Grimoire had covered. But it was necessary. I spelled myself a new dress and wandered alongside my brother to where he needed to be, and the. I joined the rest of the guests at the venue with the help of a little glamour spell so none of the guests realized it was me and caused a fuss. To them, it was all normal.

The wedding went along almost perfectly, except for the fact that Mako was still a little dazed from the memory spell.

I gave them their wedding night and spent my night in the forest, reacquainting myself with it and it's inhabitants, and then I knocked on my brother's new front door.

The door was opened by his beautiful new bride, and then I began to tell my story.

End of Black Cats and Wolf Spirits.

(Thank you for reading Black Cats and Wolf Spirits. I had a really fun time writing this book! I hope you had as much of a fun time reading it! Please check out my other stories if you enjoyed this one! There will be a sequel starting this October. I'll make an update when the first chapter comes out! Thanks again for reading!)