A wise witch once hinted that sometimes love is merely waiting to be found. Well, Butter was sure, deadly so, that his mistress wasn't in the market looking for that tingling feeling that made her heart go: Thump, thump, but she had, by magic beyond his understanding, succeeded in finding it nonetheless. Honestly, though, could it be called finding when the said love kept trying to win you over despite being shot down again...and again...and again?

Also, the kitten wanted to take his words back, especially the ones he had used to describe Ms. Poppy's command over the English language. He stood corrected now, for she was fantabulous!

Even after being assaulted by Butter's mistress, Salvador Hart was totally and irrevocably in love with her. How he had managed to fall so hard for someone who did nothing but her job and came home to a talking kitten was a mystery to the feline. That was until Sal explained everything to him. Butter could almost hear pieces of the puzzle of their ill-fated relationship fall into place with a clickety-clack. 

"Oh, my Satan!" Butter could neither keep words from falling out of his mouth nor surprise out of his tone. "That makes perfect sense. You gotta tell her," he said and snapped his mouth shut.

Oops! 

"Little one, the cat's been out of the bag for a while now; you can relax. If you are worried that I will expose you or your world, don't be. I won't ever-"

"I would like my kitten back, please." 

Oh, no! 

Pepper was at the door; to Butter, she still sounded hot and bothered. So as not to anger his mistress further, the feline left the cozy comfort of Sal's palm and glanced up at her. "Pepper-"

However, before the kitten could fix the misunderstanding, his mistress snapped her fingers. "Slumber-seed."

Butter watched, horrified, as his mistress's suitor fell to the floor with a thud. 

Pepper winced, drawing her familiar’s eyes to her. A plethora of emotions flashed across her countenance, but before the kitten could voice his thoughts, she schooled her features into one of indifference. "I suppose you had fun tricking me again," she deadpanned, and without giving the kitten a chance to defend Sal or himself, she swept him off his feet, held him in the circle of her arms, and left the room. 

The kitten struggled to get out of the restraints. "My lady, you don't know-" 

"Save it, Butter. I have told Felicity to send our luggage back home. We are leaving this place right now."

"Sal is inno-"

"Shut up, or I will make you." The witch fixed Butter with a cold stare. 

Butter raised his front paws in a sign of surrender. No, this was not the time to talk some sense into her. But that didn't mean she could stop him from challenging the hand The Fates had dealt him.

The familiar fell silent, biding his time. Within a minute or so, they were seated inside a red vehicle, with paparazzi swarming it from all four directions. Butter felt like a celebrity; the feeling lasted only for a few seconds. As the shutters went off in their faces, Pepper hid behind her duffel. "Move it!" she yelled at the driver.

The man in the driver's seat turned around. "Sorry ma'am. No, can't do."

"Why?"

"I think it's because someone tipped them off that you are Salvador Hart's girlfriend."

"Well"—Pepper stomped her foot—"I am not. Just tell them that and shoo them away."

"That's not how this works, ma'am. We have to either wait it out, or the man himself has to show up and clear the air, you know what I mean?" 

When Pepper continued to glare at the man-in-white, he turned back to the wheel and rolled the window down a smidgen. "Listen, y'all, this lady is not seeing Mr. Hart. Could you please let her through?"

It didn't help.

"Damn it to hell!" the driver said, honking with all his might. 

"Look at him taking our Lord's name in vain. Shame on him." Pepper snarled under her breath. Luckily for Butter, super-hearing was more uncommon in humans than in magical beings. 

"My lady," Butter mouthed, tugging at the witch's sleeve, "I don't feel so good."

Pepper ignored him and sat with her duffel over her face when, all of a sudden, the sea of paparazzi disappeared. 

"What happened?"

"Miss, it looks like Mr. Salvador Hart has finally made an appearance." The driver turned around. "Do you want to wait or go?"

If Butter didn't know better, he would have thought their driver had bought into the rumor about his mistress being Sal's girlfriend. 

Good man. Let's help manifest it together. 

Sal and Pepper, together forever. 

Sal and Pepper, together forever. 

Sal and Pepper-

"Drive. We have a flight to catch."

But what about attending Felicity's wedding? Butter wanted to ask, but there was no way he could with the man-in-white in their earshot. His eyes fell on the dashboard, where a digital clock informed him it was nearing ten. 

How long was I out for? 

More importantly, he barely had two hours to mend what Sal's silence and half-truths had broken: Pepper and his budding relationship. 

"Yes, ma'am." The driver shook his head as if disappointed and stepped on the accelerator. 

I wish P doesn't leave Polpom tonight. 

Hail Satan, Lord of all things-

Butter felt sick to his stomach; a fierce tremor rocked his body and sent him flying at the vehicle's dashboard. 

"Oh, God!"

"Butter!"

The car came to a screeching halt as the kitten landed on the empty front passenger seat. Dark spots appeared before his eyes, and his head swam. Something warm and thick dripped down his forehead and onto his left brow.

Butter was definitely not having a good day, "Meow," he yowled and promptly lost consciousness. 

White walls. White lights. Everything was just too bright for Butter's sensitive eyes. 

"Ms. Woodgrip, your pet is not in a good condition."

"Yes, I know, that's why I brought him here."

"No, you brought him here because he had an accident in your car."

"Yes, something like that."

Butter heard someone sigh. 

"So, here's the thing, Ms. Woodgrip, your kitten has multiple internal injuries, and his brain has developed a tumor the size of a peanut."

"That's not possible."

"Scans don't lie."

"Then please start the treatment."

"I am sorry, but there's nothing I can do."

"Then suggest a hospital that can treat him."

"I can't."

"Is it about the money? I can pay you. Anything."

Pepper's pained voice reached Butter. He closed his eyes in resignation. Of course, he had a tumor. But he wasn't going to die. He was on his way to becoming a vegetable. Because he had done what Lord Satan had warned him not to do. He had used up the last wish. Now, all he wanted was for Pepper to be happy and to rid the Woodgrips of the weight of the curse they had borne for twenty-five generations. 

"Meow."

Pepper was next to her kitten in an instant. "Hey, B," she said, gently picking him up from the all-too-white table. She turned to a man who looked wise beyond his years. He, too, was dressed in white. "Thanks for everything, doctor. Where do I pay?"

"The payment has been taken care of."

"Was it Mr. Bolt?"

The doctor shook his head and left. 

"It was me."

Sal? 

Chapter word count: 1260