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Friendship is endless and love overcomes all.
Somewhere in the afternoon, after finishing cleaning the windows of the manor with some help from a little duplication magic and a few magnets, Will Cipher put his cleaning supplies in the broom closet, the wet rags in the laundry room and the bucket in what he called the janitor’s room. Then he set out to find his cat, suspecting she had gone outside again. As he walked to the front door to put on his boots and wade through the snow to find Sixie, the demon thought back to the cat’s first time seeing and experiencing snow. She had been meowing at Will to open the window so she could go outside, and when he wouldn’t she had weaved between his legs when he was downstairs. In his desperation to not constantly trip over her, he had decided to open the front door and het let feel for herself why it wasn’t nice to go outside right now. Snow had been falling all night and had left a layer of several inches by morning. Sixie had frozen shortly, then had carefully sniffed the snow before carefully setting her strange paw with extra toe in the cold white stuff. And that’s when Will found out he had one of those cats who loved being in the snow. And she was white too, which means the only way he could find her was tracking her footprints whenever she didn’t react to his calls.
But before he could set foot outside now, Fiddleford entered the manor with a package under his arm. His looked Will up and down and huffed. “You’re wasting your time.” The scientist set his pack down and cleaned the condense off his glasses. “What do you mean? What do you think I’m doing?” The demon was confused, usually the man didn’t care what the slave was doing, unless it was testing day and he would get to cut him open again. Fiddleford snorted. “You’re looking for that feral hissy fit of yours, right? That thing shot past me when I left, so it should be inside somewhere.” He retorted, picked his pack up again and left for his lab. “You should keep an eye on that thing before it does to Stanford what it did to me. I can tell you right now that he won’t be so nice and forgiving to you when that happens.” Then he left, and Will quickly exchanged his boots for his indoor dress shoes again. The scientist was right that if Sixie were to attack Stanford, he would throw her out, at the very least. More likely he would demand her being killed for her action, and Will would be heartbroken if anything happened to his sweet cat. So he had to do something. He had to find her before someone else did. Especially Stanford. Although he didn’t know if he wanted to find out what Fiddleford would do to her if he ever got his hands on Sixie.
Luckily, she always went to the same place after playing in the snow. Currently, the white cat with the fluffy tail was curled up in front of the burning fireplace in the big living room of the Gleeful Manor. While she was long dried up from her little adventure, she liked the warmth of the fireplace and the softness of the carpet. Her purr was soft and drowned out by the crackling of the fire, and the slowly increasing wind around the house. Sixie would have loved to sleep in front of the fire for a while, but she wasn’t alone in the room, and it didn’t feel safe for her to go to sleep now. She never liked Stanford, and while he was reading a big book, which he seemed engrossed in, she still didn’t trust it. Especially not because he had watched her with a hint of fascination in his eyes when she entered and licked herself clean before settling with her legs tucked underneath her. The human had not tried to call her to him, nor had he attempted to approach the cat. He hadn’t even said a word meant for her. In fact, the only thing he had said was addressed to the hounds by his feet: ‘heel.’ Not that they had any desire to do harm to the cat though. Sixie had learned long ago that despite their huge size, the two dogs were not so dangerous. At least not to her or Will. They were only dangerous to people who snuck into the gardens. On the occasion the cat and the hounds had met eachother anywhere on the ground, nothing had occurred between them other than some curiously sniffing from both parties.
Will entered the living room a minute or so later, with great caution when he saw that the big leather chair was occupied by his master. He wanted to just take a quick peak and then move on, as he didn’t expect Sixie to want to stay where Stanford was, due to her dislike for him. By now he had remembered that Fiddleford was just being bitter because of an earlier attack. Sixie had never attempted to harm Stanford. At most she had just hissed at him, which also wasn’t the best idea in Will’s eyes. To the demon’s surprise, as soon as he stuck his head around the door, his master looked up from his book. “Your little darling has been by the fire for nearly an hour now. Either you trained her this well, or she is extremely intelligent and thoughtful not to cause any disturbance. You look pale however, my little bird. Are you cold?” Stanford asked, his voice deep and warm as ever. Will fidgeted with his fingers and shook his head. “No master, I was just worried about Sixie getting into trouble if I would not find her soon.” He confessed with a small voice. Stanford laughed a little and put a bookmark in his book before putting it down. “Clearly you didn’t train her then if you are so worried. In that case, I am able to console you; your sweet little one is not going to get herself into any trouble. She is smart, I can see it.” He gestured over to the fireplace. Will hesitated shortly, as he didn’t want to turn his back to his master when the man was talking to him, but after an assuring nod, he went straight over to Sixie.
The cat unfolded herself and leaned in when the demon held his hand out to scratch her under her chin. “Oh Sixie, I really have to find a way to keep you safer, so I don’t worry about you all the time. I don’t know what I would do if you ever get hurt over even worse.” He said softly as the polydactyl cat purred louder now. Stanford cleared his throat lightly and the demon looked up. “William, while I certainly wouldn’t wish to dampen your mood, I must remind you that the average lifespan of a cat that regularly spends time outside is just over a decade. Add the considerable risk of her running into something unnatural around this area, and you do have to prepare yourself for the inevitable day her life ends. I certainly don’t want to hasten it; your little friend is far from a burden to the manor. Yet it is something I warn you for. Of course, when the time comes, I will allow you to giver her a resting place somewhere secluded in the garden if this is your wish.” His voice was calm and reasonable, but he did see the tears well up in Will’s eyes. It was harsh, yes, but Stanford was not about to deal with a sobbing and useless demon one day when that fluffball would close her eyes for the last time. There was more than enough work to do every day. Of course, he could always buy a new cat for his demon if it became necessary, but he would really rather not. Sixie was an exception to a rule; Stanford was much more a dog person, as those were far easier to train and keep obedient. Cats were rebellious and independent. They could be bribed with treats but would never do the type of work dogs did. No, if anything, the sorcerer would opt to give William a puppy of sorts. Perhaps, if the timing would be right, he could have the demon train the next generation of guard dogs.
As of now though, the demon clearly wasn’t very happy with him. The blue haired slave scooped up Sixie and left the living room. Stanford watched him go, raised an eyebrow for a second and then opened his book back up. It was equal to him really, whether the demon would spend time with his cat around his master or not. William had an easy day as far as tasks went today, but Stanford was reading up on a magic type at the moment, and he wished to focus on that. Perhaps William would translate his sadness into one of those beautiful paintings he could sell to his guests again. Or put his energy into extra cleaning. There were always spots that could use an extra wipe.
But the demon wasn’t doing any of that. He was sitting on his bed, playing with Sixie with a piece of string. While the activity was a happy one and did help to ease the pain from the comments earlier, William’s mind was working overtime. He knew that Stanford was right, that Sixie was just a normal cat and would one day leave him forever. But the question was if he could handle that. While Stanford was an incredible master, who did wonderful things for Will whenever he was doing well, Sixie was his little friend. His companion. She was the one who helped him fall asleep after a day of experiments in the lab. She helped him keep his chin up when he was feeling he wasn’t doing his best. She even helped him through days when he thought he was going to faint because Stanford was draining a lot of his magic and leaving the demon fatigued. Her presence, her warmth and her love were sometimes what kept him going. Not to even mention those periods when Stanford was away on a business trip. Will would be all alone if he did have Sixie by his side.
But perhaps there was something he could do? That night, William Cipher didn’t go to bed at his normal time. Instead, he waited until it was midnight before igniting a candle on his dressing table and speaking a single word: “Axolotl.” It was a whisper, and somehow seemed to hang in the air. The flame of the candle flickered and turned pink. “I need your help. I don’t want to lose her. I know she is just a cat, a normal house cat. But I cannot envision my life without her anymore. If there is anything I can do to help, please tell me.” Will told the flame, then set a hand on his heart and moved that hand outward, to the flame. A sudden gust of air extinguished the candle. Will closed his eyes for a second and sighed deeply. Then he got up and slipped under the covers. Sixie walked over his legs and up to nestle herself against his chest. She nuzzled her face in his hand and purred softly. Will smiled. He knew that she loved him as much as he loved her. Hopefully, the Axolotl would know what to do.
His prayer was heard. The next morning, Will got dressed and made breakfast for Stanford and Sixie and himself. When he came into his room and put her food bowl down, he accidentally bumped against his bookshelf. A thin, leatherbound red book fell out. When the demon went to put it back, he read the title to check where it went. Strange really, because he didn’t immediately recognize the book, even though he thought he read every single one of the books on his shelf repeatedly. ‘The basics of Familiars.’ It said. Will’s heart started to pound against his ribcage. He set his plate down and sat on the chair in the corner of his room. With trembling fingers, he opened the book. He nearly dropped it twice as he tried to read it. This was it; this was the solution he needed. He could share his soul with Sixie and make her his familiar. She would never grow older anymore, but stay as she was now, in the prime of her life. She’d even get a few limited abilities. Nothing that would make her a target to Stanford or Fiddleford, but enough to make sure he would never have to worry about her getting lost ever again. He almost cried. Without tasting, he ate his breakfast as soon as he could and then ran out of his room to find Stanford. There was only one hurdle to overcome, and he couldn’t wait a second longer.
Stanford was in his office and looked perplexed when his slave entered his room like a whirlwind and nearly folded over trying to catch his breath. “I sincerely hope you have a good reason to storm in, without even knocking first.” The sorcerer retorted drily, straightening his back, and folding his hands on his desk. “What is the matter with you? You act like my house is on fire.” This type of unhinged behaviour was not desirable. Will finally managed to speak up. “No. Not at all. The house is fine. I’m fine. There is no problem.” He rambled and Stanford raised a hand to silence him. “Get to the point, William. I have more to do.” He said sternly. Will steadied himself. “Yes, I’m sorry. I am only here to ask something, but it is sort of urgent. I want to request a little more use of my abilities for today.” Well, that was a lot more direct than he usually was, and it wasn’t surprising that the demon turned bright red as Stanford raised his eyebrow again. “That is a big request, I sure hope you have your reasons?” He asked, and Will just gave up and gave his master the book. One look through it and it all became clear. “I see. I will have to think about that, William. I said I would help you with the aftermath, not that I wanted to see her immortal.” He then waved the demon off.
But for once, the blue haired slave didn’t let up. He was usually patient and would wait politely for his master to reach a decision. Not this time. He begged, repeatedly. And Stanford, normally so immune for pleas and tears, felt himself give in. “Very well, William. You will have your way. I will allow you to make your cat your familiar. I have read that it means you can communicate with her in a sort of telepathic way. If my suspicions are correct, your cat has a good sense of character. If I allow this, you will agree to lend me this trait of hers when I need it. While I am a good judge of character myself, she will be my second opinion. I do not particularly care that she does not like me. If she becomes a permanent addition to my house, she will get set tasks, just like everyone else.” He said sternly. Will nodded immediately. That was fine, it was all fine...
Stanford unlocked a few seals later that day. Will felt the power go through him and smiled. At his master’s request, he brought Sixie to the basement. Not he lab, which was further down, but a reinforced room designed to withstand stray magic. Stanford was standing behind a one-way mirror window in the adjacent room. He insisted on witnessing this. Will drew his person symbol on the ground with chalk and sat in the middle of it. He guided Sixie to sit in front of him and set his hand on her furry head. She purred, trusting her big demon friend completely. A spell was uttered. Will felt as if he was floating, but in reality, he and his friend were simply engulfed in a blue light. A silver line seemed to come from Will’s chest and extended towards the cat, touching her chest. A warm feeling filled the demon, and in Sixie’s blue eyes a little light seemed to ignite. ‘Meow?’ Will heard, but she didn’t actually meow. It was just in his mind. ‘I love you. ´ He almost cried with happiness when he heard that. Will had found his forever friend. His sweet Sixie would be with him to the end. Will would never be alone again.