The Fading Oddities of Nate Smith (A NateWantsToBattle Fanfiction) --COMPLETE--

Chapter Sixteen

Æ~Nate~Æ

The stars were shining awfully bright tonight, despite the fact that I was walking down the streets of the city, where lights could burn holes through any shadow in their path. The summer night was a humid one, but it didn't bother me much. To be honest, I actually kind of liked it like this.

My only bag was slumped on the bench next to me, where I was sitting patiently for the next train to arrive. I didn't really know where I was going, just as long as it was somewhere far away from here - and somewhere whatever was in my wallet could afford to take me.

I'd been sitting at the station for about thirty minutes, alone on that bench, watching the crowd pass me by. The swirling currents of people made me feel like I was standing on an island in the middle of a raging ocean, with no one to rely on but myself. Funny how reality worked like that most of the time.

I suddenly heard a meowing next to me, and I turned my head to see a small black cat sitting patiently on the other side of the bench. Its golden eyes seemed to stare holes through me, and its tail flicked every so often in a sort of intimidating manner. I did a double-take to make sure that whatever the cat was staring at wasn't me, but when I looked back, its eyes were still locked directly onto mine.

I sat in silence for a few moments, hoping that the stray would simply lose interest and wander off, but it stayed completely frozen. I turned my head away and leaned back on the bench, pretending not to pay attention to the thing. But when I glanced back after a minute or so, the cat was still there.

"What?" I asked it, slightly annoyed by the fact that it wouldn't go away, "What do you want, kitty?"

The cat blinked and flicked its tail again, then meowed loudly in reply.

My eyes glanced up and down the four-legged fuzzball confusedly. "...Do you have an owner or something?"

The cat ignored my question and stood up, striding over to me and rubbing its head lovingly against my arm. I stayed frozen for a few moments in fear that it might scratch me, and soon enough the cat settled down against my leg. My lips curved into a very tiny smile, my body surging with a feeling of comfort that the warmth of the cat gave me - a feeling I haven't felt in a long while.

We sat like that for about twenty minutes, until a woman began blaring over the PA, "Last call for Tallahassee!"

I perked up at her words and suddenly stood up, causing the drowsy cat to sort of stumble backwards. I glanced back at it as I picked up my bag and apologized, "Sorry, kitty, but that's my train. I gotta go, or else I'll miss it."

The cat sat down and looked innocently back up at me, cocking its head to the side as it purred quietly under its breath. I rubbed its head and bid goodbye to it, then turned my heel and walked off, heading straight for my train.

What I didn't see was the cat leaping off the bench, disappearing into the crowd to follow me from a distance.

***

Oracle Gwydion.

God, I hate that woman.

I don't know what she's trying to accomplish by poking around my past, but whatever it is, I know for a fact that I can't trust her because of it. I haven't spoken to her ever since we returned to our table; the only communication we're giving to one another is a suspicious glare from me and a challenging eyebrow-raise from her.

The jingling of the front door opening brings me back to reality, and I see Olive walking in with her phone in her hand.

"Hey, Oli!" Tess cries happily, "It's about time you got in here!"