Sal, Butter and Pepper || ONC2024

Chapter 1: Almost time

Polpom
23rd December, 2023

"Thank you, dear Satan!" Pepper dropped the bags in her left hand on the floor. The thud made Butter jump and bump his furry little head on the ceiling of the cramped quarters, aka the cage he had been assigned.

"Ouch!" Butter yelped and snapped his mouth shut. He always tried to act like the man he would have grown up to be had fate not intervened, but sometimes his kitten showed. There was nothing he could do about it.

"Oh dear!" Pepper peeped into the cage, placed it on the table by the four-poster bed, and crouched. "Are you alright?"

The familiar cleared his throat and sat up as straight as the confined space allowed. "Of course. I was just excited at the prospect of freedom. That was the sound of excitement, my lady."

Pepper cocked her head and moved to open the latch. The mouth of the pink plastic carrier fell open. "Of course, of course. What else could it be?" she said, picking up the golden ball of fur in her arms and carrying him over to the bay window.

"Look, an all-you-can-eat buffet. One, two, three. With three rows of delicacies!" Butter struggled free from Pepper's arms and jumped onto the sill.

As soon as his mistress opened the window, he breathed in the scent of the spread before his eyes and purred. "Ignore it," he said. "That was just me-"

"It's alright to purr once in a while, you know. It won't make you less special."

The months of overtime before the trip had obviously taken a toll on Pepper's usually bright disposition. But Butter was going to change that. He had everything planned. A few answers and a good man to love and care for Pepper like she deserved was all he was waiting for. He hoped that, at the very least, he had gotten that part of the prophecy right. Yes, Butter had slacked off, but it was not because he meant to do it...it just slipped out of his mind, which was much smaller and less developed than a human's. According to this logic, the feline was relieved that at least he had remembered the prophecy.

"Sorry, my lady. It's a force of habit; moving forward, I will work on being the best kitten there is," Butter said, meaning every word.

Pepper caressed the top of his head and sighed, "I haven't been the best mistress, have I?"

"You are doing your best. Even the blind can see that," Butter said, contemplating what had happened to upset his mistress.

"Thanks for the vote of confidence, B, but it doesn't make me feel any better."

"Then what will? You know I can do anything you ask of me." Well, that was an exaggeration, but what else could he say?

"I want Mum back. And grandma, too." Tears welled up in the witch's ebony eyes. A long lock of wavy, dark hair cascaded down her shoulder as she placed her chin between the palms of her hands and rested them on the window sill. "It's magnificent here, isn't it, Mr. B?" she addressed her companion the way she used to when she was a toddler.

"Yes, mistress. It truly is."

It's going to get even more so soon, he thought, side-eyeing the solid black digital clock ticking on the left wall.

12.30 PM

"B, what say we hit the buffet?" Pepper suggested, glancing at the waiter serving the handful of guests hard and soft drinks.

Sleep lingered in his mistress's eyes. It would be a good idea, Butter thought, to get lunch out of the way so Pepper could get a shut-eye before the evening festivities began. He nodded, "A brilliant idea, my lady." Hopping off the window sill, he walked over to the door. "Madam, would you please do me the honor of escorting you to lunch."

"Why, thank you, Mr. B. I would love to," the witch replied, pretending to tuck a stray strand of hair behind her ear, "please lead the way."

It was half-past-one when they returned to their room. Pepper yawned and patted her tummy. "I could get used to the peace and quiet this place has to offer. You know this is the reason I agreed to attend the wedding."

Butter knew that to be a lie. His mistress would have attended the wedding regardless of the venue. She thought she owed the bride.

The kitten had work to do; he walked to the four-poster bed. "My lady, you look tired; why don't you take a nap?"

"That's a great suggestion." Pepper stood up and dusted off her bottom. "Want to join me?"

The witch's eyes grew expectant. What was Butter to do? He was just a kitten, after all; he wasn't strong enough to turn down the offer. So he did what any respectable familiar would do. He hopped onto the bed, checked it for any kind of infestation, and tapped his tail on the bed. "It's ready to be graced by you, my lady," he said, bowing his head and gesturing to the space next to him with his left paw.

"Well, thank you, good sir." Pepper joined in the role-play, smiling from ear to ear.

Soon, the two fell into a deep slumber without either of them knowing what the evening had in store for them.

Chapter word count: 906