Turns out, morning Kleo didn’t want to deal with much of anything. The comfort of his bed kept him firmly placed between the covers and within the plush of his pillows. There was exactly no part of him that wanted to leave this perfectly safe space. He was also pleasantly surprised by the fact that he woke with the memory of having no nightmare whatsoever during his sleep and that alone made that morning a great morning.

  "Wake up."

Kleo opened his eyes, confused by the sudden presence of another voice. Drowsily, he sat up and looked around his room.

 “Alexei?” He called out. He knew Alexei shouldn’t be home, but what was that voice?

"We are alone."

Kleo froze. Ok, that definitely was something he heard. He stood, looking around his room again, trying to find where the voice was coming from.

"A little lower…"

He stopped and looked down. Golden eyes met with emerald and he was a lost for words. Literally, he opened his mouth to say something, anything, and nothing came out. He must have lost his mind. He must be dreaming. There really was no explanation for this cat suddenly talking to him? He took a step back, nearly knocking into the bookshelf that divided his room.

"What’s the matter? Cat got your tongue?"

  “You’re actually talking?”

  "Have you not heard a cat talk before?" Kleo could have sworn he heard a chuckle just then.

  “How is this even possible,” Kleo said, mostly to himself while dragging his hand over his face. He was stressed, really stressed. Talking cats were not on his agenda today and frankly, the thought of them being there never came to mind. 

"I am your familiar, Kleo," the cat purred, tail flicking the air as he stared up at him. Kleo held out a hand as if to say, no, wait, hold up.

“You, hold on a second,” he said, trying to take it in. If a cat could roll his eyes, he certainly did just then. Kleo was really for a loss of words and this cat really didn’t seem to get just how impossible this situation should be. “How are even you able to talk?” Kleo settled with asking that first, thinking that at least he could try to wrap his mind around it if he knew how it worked.

 "Technically, I’m not actually talking. You are simply hearing what I want you to," he explained and Kleo just shook his head. That didn’t help at all.

  “This is too fucking weird.”

"What’s weird is a full-grown witch without an ounce of control,” The cat said with a bit of bite. “But I’ll chalk that up to… reasons you don’t have the answer to. Regardless, I chose you as my witch, Kleo, and you accepted that bond."

The memory of what Kleo saw last night played within his mind.

“That was you,” Kleo said, dumbfounded. So he wasn’t just sleep-deprived, no, a cat really did communicate with him using its mind. Alright.

Kleo couldn’t help but notice the anxiety crawling beneath his skin so he forced himself to take a breath. He took a squat, elbows on his knees as he let it soak in, really soak in. He pulled his fingers away from his eyes to look at the black cat that sat before him. There were still so many questions that he had. He was a witch, apparently? He guessed that would explain some of the weird stuff that happened yesterday, like the tuna thing. And this cat, this talking cat, was his familiar. “Do you,” Kleo started but stopped as he figured out how to word his question. “Do I have some sort of powers or something? Like, last night I know there wasn’t any tuna in the pantry but it definitely appeared there.” He admittedly felt somewhat stupid asking that question, but it had to be asked.

"Yes, though, I would call that an example of your magic being out of control."

Kleo’s face must have shown his misunderstanding because before he could even question, the cat continued, 

"You were unaware that you were using magic, correct? Subconsciously, you yearend for something and a part of you made it a reality without your knowledge. You must learn control with your magic, Kleo."

“Well, how am I supposed to do that? I mean, you said it yourself, I had no idea what I was doing. It was just,” Kleo moved his hands about to try and describe it, “it was just there.”

"With practice, of course,” the cat said, slipping away. “But first, I believe it is time for food."

Kleo watched as the cat slinked down the stairs from his bedroom loft. He rested his face within his hands once more and a deep sigh exited his lungs. 

“Why? Just, why?”

After a few moments of contemplating his life choices, and realizing there was absolutely nothing he could have done differently to affect this suddenly, massive change in his life (except, maybe, ignoring the meows and falling back asleep on the sofa the night before) Kleo decided, what the hell, it can’t get worse from here, right? He still had an expansive list of questions with, ‘Why me,’ definitely being somewhere near the top, and realized if anyone could answer those questions, it would be the cat. He carried himself downstairs to the kitchen, taking the rest of the tuna from the fridge and placing it on a saucer for the cat as he thought more about what he should ask.

“So, this magic thing,” he leaned forward against the kitchen island. “Is it like, I just think it and it happens? Or are there spells or something that need to be done?” Kleo questioned out loud. “How does that even work? I mean, can anyone just be a witch? Is this a ‘Sabrina’ type situation or is this ‘The Craft’? I assume it’s just some ability you’re born with? But even with that being the case, how could I have not known about this for my entire life? Even putting that aside, how could I not know that my mom was one?” The questions just poured out of his mouth, his own self-doubt peaking its ugly head. “Why would she keep that from me?” He asked, this time soft and to himself as memories of her began to flood his mind.

He couldn’t think of any moment growing up that may have served as a sign that they were different from the other people in Safehaven. Yeah, he guessed his mom was a bit more eccentric but that’s just who she was. Her love of her books and her plants and even Kleo himself were shown in her everyday life. He grew up with her and her little oddities, so of course, nothing stood out to him. He rested his face on the cold marble and folded his arms over his head as he sunk within himself.

The cat finished his meal as Kleo’s river of questions ran dry and the boy became lost in his own mind. Swiftly, the cat jumped to the counter to face him.

"I may not have the answers to all of your questions, but I am sure that your mother had her reasons for the decisions she made. Magic, though incredible in all things that make the life of those like us worth living, is also incredibly dangerous. Magic is a complex system that relies heavily on its user’s intent. There are plenty of those out there with the intent to live happily and at peace with all, be they human or witch, and there are plenty of those who wish for the exact opposite. You have this ability, a powerful one at that, and with proper study and guidance, you will become a fine witch, Kleo. Your own intent is a reason that I chose to be your familiar."

Kleo was quiet. He contemplated his words before turning his head to look at the cat. He couldn’t explain why or how he suddenly felt more at ease after hearing this, but he was grateful. 

 “Thank you…” Kleo paused, realizing he hadn’t yet learned of the cat’s name.

"Nox.” The cat purred, "That is what you may call me."