"B....B!"

"Calm down, Ms. Woodgrip."

"I can't; what's wrong with him?"

"Ms. Woodgrip, I promise he will be fine."

Warm hands scooped the kitten up. It was Sal. Butter had regained consciousness a few seconds ago but didn't want to open his eyes without assessing the situation.

Had the spell worked? How badly had his mistress freaked out? Had he attracted unwanted attention? Also, it seemed he hadn't lost more than a few seconds this time around. How come? These were just a few of the hundreds of questions swimming in his mind.

He felt the night wind on his face, signaling that the trio was on the move. For a winter evening, it was pretty warm. Why hadn't Butter noticed it earlier?

"Hey, Hart, leaving so soon?"

And now they had stopped moving. Butter felt his mistress move closer to him...and to Sal!

"Butter here seems to have had an allergic reaction to something he ate. We were on our way to the vet. I was on my way to let you know about it."

No, you weren't. You just made that up, Sal. You are a man of many talents, I see.

"Oh, man. I am sorry to hear that. By the way, if you are stepping out, please be careful. The paps have the resort surrounded."

"They haven't left?" Sal's grip on the kitten tightened. Butter almost let out a wince.

"Some have, but most refuse to believe that you left."

Sal sighed. "Thanks for the heads up, Bran."

Bran!? When did they get so chummy?

"No problem, we are practically family now that you are hanging out with Pepper here."

"Sis, what happened?"

Butter heard Felicity approach them from his left. Her anxious tone made the kitten nervous for some reason.

"FiFi, something's wrong with Butter. I am sorry...I haven't even congratulated you properly and-"

"Salvador Hart?" It seemed that the younger witch had just recognized the hands cradling Butter. "Are you here with him, Sis?"

"Later, Felicity." Pepper's tone turned cold. "I really need to leave now."

"Of course. Here"-the air around Butter jingled-"take Bran's car. It's in the private parking lot just behind the amphitheater."

"Thanks, FiFi. Please excuse us, Brandon. And thanks for the car."

"No probl-"

The bride's words were cut off, and Butter was on the move again. He had to think fast, or he could wind up on the vet's table. He absolutely couldn't afford that. But if he was to open his eyes now, they would have to return to the party. Sal and Pepper weren't making any progress there. No, they needed to go someplace private, somewhere they could get some time alone.

Butter waited till they had put some distance between them and the resort. His two companions had fallen silent. It wasn't even a romantic silence like the ones he had seen in overly sweet Christmas movies.

Darn it!

"Meow." Butter bumped his nose on Pepper's elbow.

"Beeeeeee!" The witch held him up. Staring into his soul, she asked, "What happened to you?"

"Check his pulse," Sal said, side-eyeing them.

"I don't know how to do that, Mr. Hart."

"How long have you had him for?"

"Four..." Pepper left her words hanging.

"Four months? He looks older. Anyway, has he had these fainting spells before today?"

"No."

"Is he vaccinated?"

"I don't know..."

No, this was not how Butter had hoped the conversation to go. "Meow." He wagged his tail and hopped onto Sal's lap.

"Butter, stop it."

"It's quite alright, Ms. Woodgrip," the man said; after a second's pause, keeping his eyes on the road, he added, "Hey, little one. Welcome back. You gave us a mighty scare there, you know?"

"Meow." The kitten dutifully returned to his mistress's lap.

"I am no doctor, Ms. Woodgrip, but if you ask me, he looks fine. If you still want me to drive you to the vet, I will, but-"

"Mr. Hart, can you please stop the car?"

"Sure," replied Sal, bringing the vehicle to a slow halt.

"Thank you."

"No problem."

"I know it sounds strange, but could you give us a few minutes alone?"

Sal didn't reply immediately. Butter watched a multitude of emotions dance on his lovely countenance. Then the man shrugged and said, "Sure. Just call me when you are done." As soon as he stepped out of the vehicle, he hugged himself. "It's kinda cold outside, so try to make it quick, ya?" With that, he left the witch and her kitten alone.

"Will do. Thanks." Pepper yelled at Sal's back, after which Butter had her full attention. "What's wrong with you?"

"I don't know. Maybe I am finally dying," Butter said, jumping out of Pepper's lap and onto Sal's seat.

"Stop lying to me. Sal's waiting. Just tell me why you are doing this." The witch searched his eyes. Not finding what she was looking for, she snapped her fingers. "True-lit."

Nooooooo!

Just as a veil containing a purple shimmering viscous liquid appeared in his mistress's hand, Butter jumped into the backseat. "I am not a human, my lady. You can't try that on me. It's not been tested on cats. It might really kill me."

"Then don't make me use it on you. Why have you been pretending to faint? If not for your lies-"

"Lies?" Butter interjected, cocking his head. "My lady-"

"Enough is enough, Butter. You have two choices. Either tell me the truth, or we book our flight back home right now."

Butter hissed.

Pepper snapped her fingers, making the truth potion disappear; she pulled out her phone and waved it in front of his face, "Out with the truth orrrr..."

"Mistress, I didn't pretend to faint, but I have been awake for a while now."

"Since when?"

Butter gulped down air as if it was water and he was parched. "Since before Felicity gave you the keys."

"And why did you choose to stay silent till now?"

Butter contemplated suicide. It would be more merciful than facing the witch's wrath. Then he chided himself for entertaining such an absurd thought. "Because I wanted you to spend time with Sal."

"When did he go from being that jerk to Sal?"

"Since this evening when he got rid of the perv for me." The familiar walked over to the vehicle's handbrake and made himself comfortable in the driver's seat. With a heavy heart, he said what had been on his mind since he left Mount Balsh. "I have been with the Woodgrip family for twenty-five generations; that's four hundred years of watching the ones I love die in front of my eyes. I was born human, my lady. Now I have forgotten what it was to be one."

The witch's eyes shone with tears, "B, I didn't know you felt this way. I am so-"

"It's not your fault. Don't apologize. None of your ancestors found true love, my lady. Is it wrong for me to find someone to keep you company when I am gone?"

"Are you really dying, B?" Tears rolled down Pepper's cheeks.

Over the centuries the Woodgrips' familiar had developed a pattern. From the time the witches were born till they buried their mother, he called them P and their mothers: my lady. Every Woodgrip knew from experience that if Butter addressed them as P, he meant business.

Butter shook his head and walked into his mistress's lap. "You got it wrong, P."

It had been years since the kitten had addressed his mistress like that.

Stifling a sob, Pepper wiped the salt water streaming down her face. "I don't understand."

"I am immortal, P. I have been alive, but I haven't lived. I haven't traveled. I want to see the world. I want to live amongst humans for a bit. I want to...just...live."

"I will take you wherever-"

"No. Not with you or anyone. Alone."

"Why?"

"Because I am old enough to do so, P. And for that, I need to leave home... leave you. I worry about you. And I always will, but if you are with someone, my mind can be, at least, a little bit at ease."

"Are you lying to me?"

Butter wagged his tail, looking like a (younger) live version of Cheshire cat. "I never lie, P. Twist the truth a little, maybe. But never lie."

The stolen declaration made Pepper laugh. Then, "Oh, no!" She brought her hands to her lips. "I forgot about Sal!"

Mortified, Butter gasped. "Oh dear!"

Chapter word count: 1423