[Meanwhile- Southern province of Kuroriku]

I stood to the side as Teresa moved back and forth, rapidly taking hay out of a truck and putting it in front of a family of sheep.

"Alright, sheep fed! Next up is cooking dinner," Teresa said, turning around.

"Shouldn't you take it easy?" I asked, putting down a pile of hay. "You've been moving non-stop. At this rate you're going to get sick."

"I don't get sick," she said, puffing up her chest. "Plus, I've gotten used to this over the years."

"You have?"

She nodded. "Yeah. While Tetsu was in college, there were times in which Taku would be off for days slaying demons, so I've had to do most of the work around the farm."

I averted my gaze. I had completely forgotten that her older brother was a demon slayer...

"Is something the matter?"

"Huh? I'm just tired," I said, laughing dryly.

She smiled. "Ya really are a city boy!" She patted me on the back with strength I hadn't thought she was capable of.

I snickered. "Now that sounds if as you're challenging me." I walked toward the exit of the barn and glanced up at the starry sky. "As for me being a city boy, I was actually raised in a small village in the outskirts of Yozora."

She walked over and stood by my side. "Yozora, huh? I've heard it's a great place for stargazing."

I nodded. "Yeah. My mom and me used to always look out at the stars."

I should pay Mom a visit when I can.

"I used to watch the stars with Papa," she said, stepping forward. Her eyes scanned the sky. "Huh, that's odd, it should be there."

"What are you looking for?" I asked, scanning the sky.

"I'm looking for Cattus. It should be right there at this time of year, but it's not." I stared at where she was pointing at and saw only a single flickering star. The area round it was devoid of any other visible stars.

"You're right, it should be there," I said, recalling the star chart my mom had shown me.

Teresa rushed over to her house.

I chased after her.

"Ma!" she shouted as she ran into the house.

"What's wrong, dear?" Anis asked, emerging from the kitchen. "Are we under attack?"

"No... well, maybe we are."

She furrowed her brows. "Please explain."

"I can't see Cattus!"

"The constellation?" she asked, turning around. She rushed over to the window and glanced westward. She gasped. "There's nothing there besides one star..."

I looked over her shoulder and saw that the star's flashing had sped up. Was it dying?

"Maybe it's someplace else. It could be that the earthquake caused by the abysmal attack a couple weeks back moved the planet enough that the constellations no longer align with our past knowledge," I suggested.

Teresa nodded, however, she still looked unsure.

"Let's go check the telescope," Anis said, turning to face us. "I want to check out that twinkling star. Want to see if the twinkling is the atmosphere's doing or if it's something else."

"You got a telescope?" I asked as she walked past us.

"Yeah," Teresa said. "My brothers, parents, and I made it together. Though, my brothers and I mostly decorated the outside while Pa and Ma took care of making it actually function as a telescope.

Anis seemed to jump at the mention of her husband, but she continued to walk on ahead.

"Ya okay, Ma?" Tere asked.

She nodded. "Y-yeah, just a little perplexed by the stars is all." She clenched her hands together as if in prayer. "Hopefully, this isn't an omen about an upcoming attack."

"An omen of an attack?" Teresa asked.

Her mother raised her crossed hands. "Ya father told me that before the abysmal attack on Xeleria, that there was an unexplainable eclipse and the morning sky had taken on a strange reddish tone."

"So they can impact celestial phenomena?" I asked.

"Yes. If that turns out to be the case, we better be ready to defend Zionia," she said, rubbing her stomach. "Hmm, it's possible that we were made to think that they'll attack Xeleria again for the Ziz when in reality they will come here. Or maybe they're splitting their forces in two or more, forcing us to spread ourselves thin in an attempt to fend them off."

"Ma, ya pregnant. Nico and I will defend Zionia. If they do come, hide."

Anis glanced back and smiled at her daughter. "Thanks, Tere, but pregnant or not, I am still one of the Seven Knights. With the angel tool of the 2nd ruler of Kuroriku, I, Anis Alista Sermonia Kuroriku will defend this kingdom!"

Tera ran over and hugged her mom from behind. "Please don't. I'll fight in your place, Ma."

"Tere..." Anis said, putting her left hand over her daughter's right hand. "I appreciate it, truly, but as I said, it's my duty. I've already long overlooked it. Plus, I don't plan to die. I have to live for you four." She turned away. "As well as your father..."

"Pa?" Tere smiled. "You're not mad at him anymore?"

The Seven-Hill knight sighed. "I might've been too harsh on him. Ya Pa was a nice kid, though war changed him. To be honest, I didn't wish for any of ya to have to witness it firsthand. In most wars, there is no true good or evil. We like to think that to make ourselves feel more heroic."

"Indeed," I said.

"Why did ya join Osamu's army of one-hundred?" Anis asked.

I averted my gaze. "It wasn't for righteous purposes like Tetsu. It was actually rather selfish. I wanted to earn money. I spent most of the money I had earned from wrestling to buy the restaurant in the capital, but it didn't quite turn out how I would've liked." I sighed. "Perhaps I'm not quite cut out for business like my father is."

"Ya had tasty burgers," Teresa said, patting me on the back.

Anis nodded. "Think that ya need is to advertise better, and also fix up the place."

"Well, that is where I plan to use the money I've earned. It isn't much, though."

"Hmm, how much is my annoying cousin paying you?"

"Wait, cousin? You're the cousin of the king?"

She nodded. "Yeah, unfortunately."

I looked her up and down. The more I did, the more similarities I started to see. "I see. Well, your cousin gives us a hundred gold a month. Though, we can also get extra based on our performance."

Teresa gasped as we walked upstairs. "Wait, but isn't it bad that ya're here?"

"Well, it's not like Osamu didn't know," her mother said. "He also left us older Seven-Hills behind along with other key assets. My perverted cousin isn't foolish enough to leave Kuroriku completely unprotected."

"Good thing too, if your theory about an upcoming attack proves true," I said.

"I hope not," Anis said as she opened the room in the middle of the hallway.

The room was rather simple, but it did have a small shelf with books which doubled as a nightstand. Two small beds flanked the shelf. The one on the right had a basketball net next to it.

"Is this Takuya and Tetsuya's room?" I asked as I continued to look around.

"Yup. Pretty clean for a boys' room, huh?" Teresa asked.

I snickered. "I guess, but my room is pretty clean too."

Teresa tilted her head at me. "Really? I would've imagined it would be rather messy."

My face reddened. "My mom taught me to clean up my room. Admittingly, it was messy when I was a little kid. Used to leave my gloves and clothes on the floor."

Anis snickered as she took out a book from under the bed on the right. "Tetsu used to be the same way. Though, Taku has always been one to clean up after himself. He used to clean up after his little brother and sister."

Teresa blushed. "Uhh..."

I chuckled. "So much for girls supposedly being tidy."

Her mom laughed. "Wonder whoever made up that stereotype. We girls can be as messy as ya boys. Anyway, got the telescope. Let's go see what's going on in space."

"Will the telescope be able to look beyond the effects of the atmosphere?" I asked as we followed her out of the room.

"This one can. The lens is made in such a way, that it can see through the distortions that result from the gasses in the atmosphere."

"My dad made it using aluminum and bits of seraphium!" Teresa said, smiling.

"Woah. Kuro--I mean, Takeshi—sure is amazing."

Anis smiled slightly. "Yeah..." She came to a stop and pressed the box against her chest.

"Ma, is something the matter?" Tere asked, putting a hand on her shoulder.

Her mother's eyes were wide as if in shock. "I'm having a bad feeling."

"Is it the abysmals?" I asked.

"No, it's not an attack," she whispered, glancing at the ceiling of the hall. "It's... a feeling like..." She shook her head.

"Ma. Ya don't think that something is happening to Tetsu or Taku, right?"

"I'll like to say no, but it's akin to the sensation I felt on the day before ya father was set to return from his mission, and like when my little dragon almost died in Xeleria."

Little dragon? Does she mean Tetsu?

Teresa began to shake. "Cattus can't be seen..." she whispered. She took the box from her mom and ran over to where the legs of a ladder jotted down from the ceiling. With one hand, she yanked on the legs, causing a five-by-five section of the ceiling to open up.

The young woman climbed up the ladder frantically. One could hear her frantic steps as she opened up the metal box in her hands.

Anis remained in place. Her entire body trembled like the branches of a tree in a storm.

"Take it easy, miss," I said. "I'm sure that everything will be fine. Sir Takeshi is strong."

She took a deep breath. "Yeah, he is." Her violet eyes glanced up to the ladder. Grabbing a hold of it, she climbed up slowly. "Tere, do you see something."

"The star is still pulsating," Teresa responded.

I followed Anis up. At the end of the ladder was a small attic with various boxes and some dusty toys. Teresa stood on the opposite side of where all the boxes were gathered, gazing through a colorful looking telescope that looked as if a kid had made it.

"See which constellations ya can find," Anis said, running over to the now opened metal box resting on the floor next to her daughter's feet. She took out a laminated sheet of paper from the box and opened it up.

"A star chart," I said, looking over her shoulder.

"Yeah," she said, drawing a circle with her fingers around a series of constellations which included Cattus. "With this, we should be able to see what's changed in the night sky."

Teresa slowly let go of the telescope.

"Ma..." she said, maintaining her back to us. "The constellations are mostly where they should be..."

Anis clenched the star chart tightly. "Let me see." She glanced back and forth between the telescope and the chart. "No, this can't be."

"Ma, Cattus is gone except for Cattus α," Teresa muttered.

Her mother took out a crystal from her pocket. "Show me Takeshi!" she shouted. Nothing appeared. "I said, show me Takeshi!" Still nothing. She raised the stone into the air.

"Calm down, Miss. Stress is bad for your health," I said, grabbing her by the wrists.

"How do ya expect me to calm down when Shi might be dying right now?" she snapped. "I... I told him to leave me." The stone dropped to the ground as her grip over it weakened. "That I never wanted to see him again. I-I don't want those to be my last words to him." She whimpered.

"Don't give up hope. The last star of Cattus still burns," I said, slowly letting go of her.

"Nico is right, Ma. We should still have hope. Pa's a cat. He has nine lives just like Cattus has nine stars!"

"Tere, that's... a myth," Anis muttered. She took a series of deep breaths. "Though, ya're right. I shouldn't give up hope. After all, the myth does stem from their uncanny ability of cats to break their falls even when falling from incredible heights."

She walked up to the window and gazed on the flickering ninth star. Starlight bounced off the tears streaking down her face.

Anis closed her violet eyes and crossed her hands together. "Sky Father, please bring Shi and the boys safely back home to us," she whispered as she pressed her clasped hands against her forehead. "Please..."

**Solar Note: Hope that you enjoyed the chapter ^_^! Thoughts? Predictions?**