Warsong | Celeste Academy Series Book #4

Chapter Twenty-Four ⚜ Passing the Baton

Valeriana rose from the bed and looked around to see that the sun was high up in the air. She still couldn't get over having to meet the younger version of herself, which was surreal. The soul had a lot of mysteries and now, even the white jade in her hands became a tad bit more mysterious than ever.

She tucked back the white jade into its own pouch as she got dressed up for the day. Tiger followed her around like a dog—which was ironic—and he kept circling around her legs whenever she stopped. She had her bag packed and ready and equipped herself with an ordinary sword just in case of emergency. A couple of knocks told her it was about time to leave, so she picked up her new companion and raised him to meet her eye-level.

"God, how am I supposed to tell the others about you?" she wondered. "Just tell them. Hey, somebody sent me a cat. Yes, that should work."

She set him comfortably in her arms after securing her backpack and left her room. She went down with Brindon who still looked a bit sleepy—with marks of charcoal on his face and darkened fingernails. The moment he saw the cat, he looked at her questioningly.

"Meet Tiger," she said. "I picked him up and I have to bring him along. Do you think Lord Eres will oppose?"

Brindon shook his head. "No."

"What happened to you, by the way?" she asked him and Tiger seemed to ask the same.

"Drawing."

"Oh."

When they got downstairs, Keelan was waiting with a table full of meal in the private room. After the fact that the high family of Denovegasia was revealed to be staying in the inn, there were still quite a lot of people. Keelan examined the cat Valeriana had in her arms curiously.

"Where did you pick him up?"

"Appeared in my room with a note," she replied. "Said he was a companion, to serve as a sword. Someone must've sent him over, but I'm not sure who."

"Oh. I'm not sure how brother will react, but he shouldn't make a big deal out of it. What do you call him?"

"Tiger."

"Very suitable." He nodded approvingly.

They were surprisingly accepting. Now the only person left was Eres. Hopefully, he would be the same.

Said person came down a bit later, the package on his side and his things on the other. He sat with everyone and they started breakfast without a hitch. He did see the cat and gave Valeriana a brief look of inquiry.

"His name is Tiger," she introduced. "He appeared in my room early this morning with a note." She relayed the same information to Eres as she did with Keelan. His reaction wasn't very different. He probed the creature with his eyes for a little longer before he casually turned to breakfast.

"I don't have issues with picking up cats, but make sure to keep him in sight and safe."

Valeriana nodded energetically, elated that that didn't take too much trouble. Tiger sat obediently on her lap, but pawed her plate, reaching for the fish. She picked it up and fed it to him so that he wouldn't make too much of a mess. The poor one must be hungry.

"You bet I will. I kinda miss Femeron too. I wonder how she's doing."

"Our request should arrive this morning," Eres said. "They must've traveled overnight."

"Who did they send?" Keelan asked.

"I'm not very sure. But we're about to know soon."

They continued eating.