We all met up at the station as the sun was setting. It was abandoned, like everywhere else witch's met, but one of the best kept places I'd been to. The stairs were polished and free of debris, the platforms were unstained and appeared brand new. It was only the train tracks, severely rusted and even broken in some places, which gave away the station's age. 

Jamie and I parted ways with Stallion soon after leaving the car. He didn't look at me or even say anything, really. Just a grunt as we stepped onto one of the platforms and then we were walking in opposite directions. I still had a headache from all the glaring I had been doing back in the car. I watched him go without a word.

"You'll see him again in the meeting room," Jamie said as we walked towards a nearby bathroom. "Apologize to him then."

I found myself nodding without really thinking about it.  "He reminded me of how much I hated being angry all the time," I said. "It really is exhausting."

"You can't deny that you aren't good at it, though. I swear, I thought you were going to go cross-eyed after the first hour!"

Jamie nudged me as I laughed. My cheek was already feeling better and it felt good to laugh again.

The bathroom was like its own, small, building in the center of a platform. There were two doors, but if there were ever any symbols indicating which was for which gender they were long worn away. I noticed Jamie heading for the one closest to us so I moved ahead a bit in order to push the heavy, creaky thing open for her.

"My, such a gentleman," she said, putting a head over her chest and trying to hold back a snicker as she went through.

"Can't let my serving skills get rusty or Fawn will have my ass—er, behind."

"And we can't have that, can we? Especially not with such a good looking 'behind'."

"Hardy har."

I followed her in and was in for another surprise when Jamie flipped a switch and fluorescent lights from the ceiling revealed themselves. They bathed the rest of the room in their dull glow. It allowed me to see a stall and a few urinals lined up against the wall. There was a single sink directly in front of us, a metallic stool sitting before it. I looked back up at the lights for as long as my eyes could take it.

When I looked back down, Jamie had her supplies open on the tile floor by the sink and was giving me a strange look.

"What's with the dumb look?"

"I could ask you the same thing," Jamie said, sticking out her tongue at me before smiling. "First time seeing electric lights or something?"

"It's been at least a year," I admitted. "Definitely feels like a year with how much this is hurting my eyes."

"It helps if you don't stare right at it." Jamie laughed, but then cut herself short.

She bit her lower lip. I had never seen her do that before. It was odd. It made her look vulnerable.

"If you want, you can turn off the lights for a moment. If you close your eyes before turning them on again it won't hurt as bad and you'll get used to it quicker."

"Really?"

She nodded.

"Well, I don't want to keep you here too long. I'm sure everyone's gonna be waiting on me as it is."

"It's alright. It'll only take a second."

Jamie was being strangely pushy about this. Still, my eyes really were having a hard time adjusting.

I shrugged. "Okay, why not?" I put a finger on the switch. "You ready?"

Jamie licked her lips and nodded again. "Yes."

I flicked the switch and the lights went off. Everything went pitch black in an instant. There wasn't even light coming from the door.

"Are your eyes closed?" Jamie asked me from somewhere nearby.

"Oh, right." I closed my eyes. "Now they are."

Not much of a difference. I could already feel the burning sensation in my eyes going away though, which was nice. It was much quieter without the hum of the electric lights. I couldn't even hear Jamie's breathing.

"Hey, can I turn on the lights now?"

"Not yet."

I jumped nearly out of my skin. She was whispering, but sounded much closer. I opened my eyes again but I still could not see much. Just shadows. I reached out to turn on the lights, but instead I felt something soft and smooth. Another hand, covering the switch.

"Not yet," she repeated.

"Jamie?"

I gasped when another hand rested on my chest. I could see a shadow, a big one, right in my face and getting closer. I could smell her perfume. Strong and sharp, like flowers.

"What are you doing?"

"You know what I'm doing."

I could feel her cool, minty breath on my face. Her lips brushed my neck, my cheek, but when they came to my lips I moved my face to the side.

I closed my eyes again. It got very quiet.

"I'm sorry," I said.

The hand moved away from my chest. "Are your eyes closed?"

"What? Um, yes?"

There was a clicking sound. I opened my eyes. The lights were back on and Jamie was walking back to the sink. Wordlessly, she bent down to her duffle bag and stared pulling out the make-up.

"Better?" she asked. She kept her back to me.

"Yeah," I answered, taking a few slow steps forward. "Uh, Jamie—"

"Well, come on and sit down, Foxy." She patted the seat of the stool. "Like you said, times a wastin'."

"Totally not what I said."

I walked over and sat down, eyeing her in the small mirror. Jamie smiled as she began her work, touching up the bruise with color like she said.

"Looks worse in this light, doesn't it?"

"Wha—oh, yeah."

The bruise looked terrible. Big splotches of red, purple, and blue. Seeing it reminded me just how much it still hurt. Damnit, Stallion.

I tried not to think about it as Jamie touched up the bruise. But if I wasn't thinking about Stallion, I was thinking about Jamie. Her perfume, her touch, about she—what we almost did. That stuff, those feelings, it was like going down a rabbit hole filled with angst.

I liked Kat. I thought Mouse liked me. They both had been good about the 'no talking about my past' rule, but that also meant we never talked about those feelings. I guess I had pushed them away, after all these years. With Fawn, everyday was either a drain on the body as we fought to survive and improve ourselves, or a drain on the mind as we learned about the complicated history of witches and the proper methods a familiar should interact with their witch.

There was no time for feelings.

Was that why I didn't kiss her?

Jamie was still smiling, even humming to herself as she continued to work on my face. She seemed over it. Was she really over it? I was too afraid to ask. Afraid of what she'd say, what she'd do. It was better this way. Better to not complicate things. Feelings were complicated. They complicated everything.

It took less than an hour for her to finish. I was again transformed into the beautiful alien that I did not recognize. For all of that time, I could not think of what to say to her and Jamie did not say anything either. Her smile was gone. When I told her thanks, she only nodded and went to work on putting her stuff up.

"That's it then from me, Foxy. You better go head out to meet with the others. The witches will be here soon."

I got up from the stool. Jamie had her back to me. I reached out a hand to her shoulder, but hesitated. My gut twisted up inside me.

I guess it was too late.

I went to leave and I made it all the way to the door. When I opened it, I noticed my hands were shaking again. I looked back and saw Jamie sitting on the stool. She still had her back to me; her head was hanging down so I could not see her face in the reflection.

"I hope I get to see you again."

Her head shot up. Her eyes looked red in the reflection of the mirror. Did she make them like that...or had she been crying? She spun around in her stool and flashed a big smile, closing her eyes in the process.

"Right back 'atcha. I still have to trick you at least once, don't I?"

"Definitely," I smiled. "Bye, Jamie."

Her own smile diminished. She opened her eyes and looked at me with an intensity that made me blush. When she grinned again and winked, I had to turn away.

"See you around, Foxy," she called as I left.

I don't think I'll ever understand witches, let alone women.

...

My hands stopped shaking as I walked along the edge where the platform met the train tracks. The sun was sinking lower in the sky. The trees were sparse in the area so I could see it clearly. Big and orange. It tinted everything around me in its dulling glow. I couldn't explain why, but it felt nice. Despite what just happened, what already happened, and what might happen, it was peaceful walking by myself through the quiet, abandoned train station.

That peace drained away when I approached the meeting spot.

It was another small building, only slightly larger than the bathroom, situated between two platforms. Bleached white with a few windows at the front that were painted over with black paint. There was a small open slot at the bottom of each window where I could make out more artificial light.

As I got closer, the sounds of shouting grew louder.

I recognized the voices easily enough and it put a heavy weight on my insides. The party last night seemed more and more like a dream.

I sighed and braced myself.

It was already back to our old ways, it seemed.

Stallion and Mouse were still shouting at each other when I entered. Even after several years of their back and forth, it was still a strange sight to see the small and petite girl holding her own against someone almost three times her size. They were yelling over each other, which meant I could not understand what they were saying, but it also meant they were reaching the end of the argument.

Kat was sitting down on the ground near the front door, cleaning her knife with a dirty cloth. When I first entered, our eyes met and she nodded a greeting before going back to her work.

I guess even after nearly a year I should not expect more, but I was still a little put off by it.

Maybe it was why, for the first time since they started, I decided to cut in to their fighting.

"Hey, guys, guys! Could you give it a rest already? I can hear you two from the damn bathroom!"

They both actually stopped shouting for a second, probably unused to anyone other than Fawn getting in between their arguing. While Stallion merely frowned and seemed intent on going back to bickering, Mouse's face immediately brightened upon seeing me. She raced across the carpeted floor and embraced me in a hug that nearly cracked my rib cage.

"Oh my god, Alex! You look so adorable!" she cooed. She released me so she could place her small hands on either side of my face and look me over. "You sure Jamie doesn't have time to make me look this cute?"

"I think that's more your Master wanting you to look the way you do than Jamie not having the time," I said.

Her hair was still short, even after a year. But she must have grown it out a bit because she was able to have it in pig-tails.

Seeing the hairstyle alone almost made me sick with the sudden memories.

She grinned sheepishly, let go of my face, and stepped away a bit. "Do you like them?" she asked, indicating her hair. "Master didn't ask me to. I just thought...since this is the last time we might be seeing each other—"

"Just stop there." I held up a hand. "Can we not talk about this, please?"

I looked between Mouse and Stallion. "And can we not do this either? Whatever you guys are arguing about, just drop it."

Stallion opened his mouth, but Mouse stepped up. "Yes, definitely, great idea!" she said, grabbing my wrist. "Come on, Alex, let's sit together!"

Stallion still had a sour expression as she dragged me over to a pair of wooden chairs situated in front of another black window. Mouse had on her usual attire. An ugly brown jacket, white dress shirt underneath, with cream colored khaki pants and polished brown shoes. Her crazy tie of the day was an explosion of various colors splattered over it like the painter had an accident.

As soon as we sat down, Mouse got into excitedly talking about her unofficial job as the Stalwart's familiar.

Well, unofficial until today.

It sounded pretty exciting; tracking down rouge witches, such as the still-at-large weather witch, August. Settling disputes between free witches. Working with the local police to make sure all of it stayed quiet. But I couldn't focus on her words for very long.

Stallion stood in the center of the small room for a little while after Mouse dragged me away. His hands were clenched and he was staring at the beige carpet at his feet like he wanted to smash it. He did not move until Kat called him over. His eyes met hers and she nudged her head for him to come over.

He sat down next to her and they started talking quietly with one another. Too quiet for me to hear.

"Alex?"

I held my breath. I hadn't realized how quiet it had gotten. My hands were gripping my jeans. I couldn't feel them.

Mouse stared at me, unblinking, until I had to look away. "Sorry," I muttered. I relaxed my hands as I held in a bitter desire to sigh.

"You still love her, huh?"

She was smiling a sad sort of smile. She put a small hand over one of mine. The skin was tough, rougher than Jamie's.

I took my hand out from under hers and turned to stare at the black window. "Why did you say that?" I asked.

"It was the way you were looking at her," she said. "I know that look. I saw it a few times back when—"

            "Not you, too," I grumbled, pinching the bridge of my nose. "Did you all completely forget what I asked? The one thing I asked?"

"Yes, yes, 'no talking about your past'," Mouse said in a gruff voice that could only be a cruel mockery of my own. "It's just been so long, Alex. I haven't seen you in over a year! Can't we just drop your request? For just a few minutes?"

She grabbed onto my arm and looked up at me with her big brown eyes. "Please?"

I felt more eyes on me. Kat and Stallion had stopped their whispering. They were watching us.

I shot my own eyes back to the painted window. "Don't call me Alex."

"Oh, come on, man," Stallion spoke up as he stood back up. "I get how you feel, I really do, but you gotta come to grips with the chance that it might not happen. I think Mouse is right...drop the tough guy act. We gotta enjoy our time together, while we can."

Stallion focused his attention on Mouse, the latter straightening her back in response. "I'm sorry for losing my head earlier...Mary."

Mouse's face was a blank before she beamed and leaped up from her seat. It was Stallion's turn to stiffen when she rushed up to him and bowed.

"Apology accepted, my noble steed," she said, straightening up and extending her hand. "If we meet again I'll be sure to discuss politics with a more level-mindedness as well."

Stallion laughed as he took her hand and they shook. "That would be nice; you are pretty scary when you're angry."

"It comes in handy when my Master and I are interrogating a particularly stubborn victim," she said with a laugh of her own, before gasping. "Oh, my, did I say victim? I, of course,  meant suspect."

"Even scarier," Stallion said.

Smile still on his face, he turned back to Kat. "C'mon, Kat."

Kat stared back at him, unmoving against her spot on the wall. "I can reminisce just fine from here."

"Come stand with us," he said.

"You too, Foxy," Mouse added.

She walked back over to me when I didn't move and grabbed my hands, lifting my arms in the air.

"Even if we do see each other again, don't you think we should enjoy our last few minutes of freedom together?"

Last few minutes of freedom. That's right. Who knows what our witches will be having us do. I don't just have to accept the chance that I won't see my friends again. I have to accept that I might never sleep in a bed again, never eat warm food, have a real, genuine, laugh, or run through the woods without a care in the world.

I felt tingles go up and down my arm. Mouse was trying to gently pull me up, but I was frozen stiff.

"Alex? What's wrong?"

Who knows what my Master will have me do? She could keep me caged in some dark and dank basement, only dragging me out when she needed me. She could starve me, ridicule me, torture me, and she could make me just smile and ask for more.

My Master is a free witch. Just like Maple. Just like her mother.

"Foxy!"

I flinched and took in a deep gasp of air. I had forgotten to breathe, for a second.

Kat was still relaxed in her sitting position against the wall, but she was now looking directly at me. Her eyes appeared to be glowing despite the lights. As the feeling came back to my arms and the rest of my body, I scrambled for words to say when Kat smiled. Probably the first smile I had seen in years.

"It's going to be alright."

She stood up and joined Stallion in the center of the room.

Of course. I was being an idiot again. Of course she says it's going to be alright. No matter who my Master is, she is no comparison to Kat's Master.

Maple.

She could have killed us so many times. We only got away because she let us. Because she likes to watch us burn alive. She could have stolen Kat away at any time, but she only controls her enough to slow us down, to draw blood, to push Kat more and more away from us to the point where I had almost forgotten how much influence the girl with the green eyes could have over me.

I grabbed Mouse's arms and returned her bright smile with a flimsy one of my own. I stood and allowed her to lead me to the center of the room.

It might be the last time I could get another good hit at Maple. If I could show her that, no matter how hard she tried, we remained friends until the end, it maybe could make up for everything she did to us.

Maybe.

We stood in an awkward rectangle. Mouse and I on one side, Stallion and Kat on the other. I tried to strike up something, but I noticed Kat staring at me and shot my gaze to a corner instead. My words backed up in my throat. Mouse was still gripping one of my wrists and I felt the hand tighten.

Stallion ended the silence with a strained cough.

"So, talk about long time coming," he said, looking between us. "Been awhile since we've all been in the same room, huh?"

"Not all of us are here," Mouse pointed out. I couldn't feel her holding my wrist. Stallion did not say anything back at first.

"Mutt's Master still wants him?" Kat asked.

Mouse nodded. "She insists."

"What is she, crazy?" Stallion shot, throwing up his hands. "Mutt isn't in any condition to be a witch's familiar!"

"Last time I saw him he seemed to be moving around just fine," I said.

I decided not to bring up the details. They no doubt remembered our fight.

"I don't mean about his leg," Stallion replied. He didn't seem in any hurry to explain and, before I could ask, Mouse spoke up again.

"Madame Terrebonne is being characteristically stubborn about the whole thing. She insisted there was no time to have another familiar prepared for her."

No one said anything right away, but I knew what they were all thinking. It was because of me. Because my Master and Mutt's Master have been feuding for years. Madame Terrebonne couldn't allow her rival to have a new familiar under her command with nothing to respond with. I had done my best to avoid as many details about it as I could. What I knew was already a huge headache.

"Did you guys tell her everything?" Stallion asked, still staring at Mouse in disbelief. "Everything?"

"Believe me, Stallion, my Master and nearly every other witch in Wildwood have said and done everything we could to try and sway her away, but she wouldn't have any of it."

"Why does it feel like I'm missing something?" I asked.

"You get used to it," Kat said with a shrug.

"Mutt isn't mentally stable enough to be a witch's familiar," Stallion answered, clenching his fists. "He's going to crack. Completely crack. I know it."

"Isn't that being a little...over-dramatic?" I offered. "Sure he's a little naive..."

"I know you haven't been around him as much lately, Foxy, but I know you have some idea of what I'm talkin' about." Stallion met my eyes with his dark ones. "Don't you remember the last time ya'll 'talked'?"

I winced, but tried to shake it off with a shrug and a smile. Mouse and Kat seemed focused on the floor beneath us.

"It was just a fight, and it wasn't the last time you guys disagreed with me enough to give me a beating."

Stallion frowned, but kept his eyes on me when the girls shifted their attention him.  "That was different, Foxy. It was one punch. Mutt wasn't fighting with you man, he was attacking you. He didn't hold back."

"He was angry. I said a little too much and it messed with him. I should have realized what I was doing."

"He would have killed you if Kat and I hadn't intervened," Stallion pressed, almost shouting. "Man, you can't seriously be defending him right now!"

I shrugged again, shying away under Stallion's intense glare.

"Foxy knows what its like," Kat spoke up. "To lose yourself to anger. You need to let up on both of them, Stallion. You don't know what it's like."

"That isn't the point here," Mouse countered, moving up in front of me. "Foxy got past his anger, he accepts who and what he is. He grew up. Mutt is not Foxy. Or, he's more like two-years-ago Foxy. Wild, primal, more animal than familiar. If Madame isn't careful, he will kill her."

"Then she better be careful," Kat said with a casual shrug. "Why do you care so much anyway?"

"Why do I care?" Mouse repeated, staring wide eyed at Kat. "Maybe because it's my job to care. Maybe it's because I don't want to see people get killed. Or maybe it's because I don't want my Master and I to have to be the ones who put Mutt down when he goes out of control!"

"Mouse, it's alright," I said, placing a hand on her shoulder. She nearly jumped at my touch but relaxed after a deep breath. "He's going to be fine."

"Come on, Foxy, do you really believe that?" Stallion asked, his words a lot softer. "His witch is gonna be using him as the first line of attack and defense against you and your witch—"

            "And mine will more than likely be using me as the same," I finished.

            "So then why—"

"Because I'm trying not to think about it Stallion, alright? You remember what I said back in Dust Town? It doesn't matter how you or I or any of us feel about any of this. We are just familiars. We're part of the problem, not the solution. So, before we walk out that door and face our unavoidable destinies can we stop talking about shit that won't change and instead maybe talk about shit of a more, lighter tone?"

"I'm game," Kat said.

Stallion huffed and looked to continue our heated conversation, but stopped when Kat placed a hand on his arm. They shared a glance that filled my stomach with fire. It lasted just a moment before Kat dropped her hand and Stallion folded his arms and sighed.

"Sure. Fine. If that's what you guys wanna do."

And, for the next short while, that's what we did. Shit of a lighter tone, so to speak. There wasn't all that much we could talk about that wasn't related to witches or familiars. Our lives had been consumed by it for the past few years. And, before long, Stallion and Mouse had devolved into another argument about 'politics'.

"Did you and your Master even think before bursting into that apartment?" Stallion demanded, rubbing a hand over his recently shaven head. "I mean, what if people saw you guys? Are you both willing to potentially out all of us in your blind pursuit for justice?!"

"You sure like to talk as if you've been there," Mouse retorted, flaring her nostrils and poking a finger into his broad chest. "You don't know the first thing about chasing a rouge witch. The feeling of it. For days, weeks, months, even years now with this bastard August, my Master and I have been following his trail, knowing each minute that passes with him out in the streets posses potential ruin for us all. When we thought we trapped him in that building there wasn't time to think, there was only time to act, so that's what we did!"

"Yes, that's the key word right there; you guys thought you trapped him. Your rashness cost the lives of innocents!"

"They didn't die," Mouse huffed, crossing her arms.

"Mr. York had to wipe their minds, turn them into dribbling lunatics because of what they saw. That's basically the same as dying, maybe even worse!"

"Oh where do you get off...!"

There seemed to be no quick end in sight as the two circled around each other like competing predators. I heaved a sigh and continued to keep my distance. Having a peaceful, civil, conversation was a nice idea. But it wasn't like we were all kids in highschool going to the same weird club anymore. Alright, maybe the club was the same but instead of students unanimously striving to keep us all together there were these witches with their own agendas that slowly picked us off and dragged us away from each other. Seeing Mouse reminded me of that. Of how she was already a part of the life. In their own ways, Kat and Stallion were a part of it too. And today was the day where we all would be sucked in, completely and utterly.

Someone tugged at the sleeve of my shirt. My thought processes stopped when I turned and saw Kat, standing less than an arm's reach away from me. I cleared my throat to try and mask the gasp. She smiled again. The second time in two years, both on the same day. Was I dreaming?

"Want to go somewhere a little quieter and talk?" she asked.

The buzzing in my ears subsided just enough to remind me Stallion and Mouse were still at it.

"Not really anywhere we can go in here," I said, glancing back at the two. It was like they were in their own world.

"Good point," she said before throwing a thumb back to the door. "That's why I was thinking we go outside."

"Can we do that?"

"I don't care," Kat said, already walking towards it. "I need some air. Thought maybe you could use some too. You're free to stay if you really want to."

What the hell, it was like Stallion said; it might be my last chance to do what I really want to do. And if Stallion and Mouse really want to argue with each other, I wasn't about to stop them.

So, I followed her. I ignored how quiet the room became as we left. I ignored the age old sweating of my palms and the eternal butterflies in my stomach I thought had long died.

Instead, I focused on the back of the girl--of the familiar that still had me under her spell. I thought on how this might be the last conversation I have with her.

And I really hoped I wasn't about to make a fool of myself.

...

*Author's Note*

So, this may be the last few hours the familiars have with one another. Will they each be able to say what they want to say to one another? Is there even a chance they will meet on friendly terms ever again? Opinions seem to be split on that.

But what do you guys think? Is this the end of their friendship, or the beginning of a whole new level to it?