Archive of Our Own

It was fascinating how much easier a business could be run when you didn’t have to hide from Death anymore. It was also fascinating how much busier it got.

When the Dead Boy Detectives went back to London, the reputation they had created in Port Townsend followed, as well as the advantage of being sanctioned by the Lost and Found Department. Business was booming. It was rather handy to have a new minder and a psychic by their side. The Night Nurse was very organised in a way that made Edwin almost glad that she was there. And Crystal’s newfound powers helped them solve new cases in record time.

That all meant that Edwin found himself strolling around London more often. There was always someone there to mind the office, after all. And Charles and Crystal seemed like they needed some time to sort out whatever was going on between them. Crystal’s goodbye kiss didn’t seem to mean that they were actually together, but from what Edwin could observe, they were not not together either.

And a couple months ago, he was jealous about it and he didn’t even know it. He got upset when Crystal first joined their agency and he got even more upset when he found out she and Charles had kissed. And yes, a series of events resulted in him eventually doing the maths and realising that jealousy stemmed from the fact that he was utterly in love with Charles. After telling his best friend that much, everything eventually got easier. Edwin started to realise a lot of things about his own feelings.

He still loved Charles and that would never change. But he’d been reflecting over the connections he’d built with other people over the last few months and he realised what was inherently different about Charles. He was safe. Even when Edwin’s trauma made it hard for him to acknowledge what his feelings truly were, deep down he probably knew that his best mate wouldn’t forsake him for them. So it was easy to fall in love with him and to harbour that love for years.

But now Edwin felt more at ease with who he was. The times had changed and these days there were people like Jenny, who were not afraid to love the same gender. And Edwin felt more confident that even if Charles wasn’t the fairytale ending he had dreamed of, he would one day find someone for him now that he can stop hiding.

He was on another night stroll near the shore of the Thames. He liked that area. Even though London was a city that was buzzing with life at any hour, that specific area always seemed to be rather quiet before 4am.

The detective walked down the street with his hands in his pockets, still amazed by the fact that he could hear his own footsteps. Even after decades of being back on earth as a ghost, it was impressive how much of him seemed to be almost human while he still couldn’t do the most basic things such as eating, drinking or sleeping.

He got shaken out of his thoughts by a high-pitched meowing, which he probably wouldn’t have heard if the streets weren’t as quiet as they were now. He immediately turned towards the sound and in the darkness he noticed a little orange kitten walking dangerously close to the water. Its moves were staggered and unsure and that’s when Edwin caught sight of its face to notice that it was missing both eyes. The poor thing was blind and was about to walk head first into the water.

The ghost moved quickly, stepping off the pavement and onto the dock, rushing and laying down on his stomach to catch the kitten just as it was about to place one paw over the edge of the dock.

The kitten gave out a surprised little meow and at first Edwin was scared it might scratch him - cat scratches were like poison to ghosts, after all - but instead, it cowered in fear.

“It’s okay, dear,” he murmured, getting on his knees and holding the kitten close to his chest. “I’ll bring you somewhere safe, alright?” The kitty snuggled up in his arms and relaxed and Edwin couldn’t help but smile down at it as he got to his feet.

He walked to the nearest animal shelter, ringing the doorbell and putting the kitten down on the doorstep, waiting for someone to open the door and take it in before leaving to walk back to the office.

It was probably his 20th cat encounter like this in the past two months. It was peculiar and Edwin felt like the number of cats in London had multiplied while they were away. Either that or someone was playing tricks on him again to make sure the boy didn’t forget about him. As if he could ever forget those encounters.

He wrapped his fingers around his right wrist subconsciously, but of course, there was nothing there.

The next morning was rather slow, with no clients coming in until late afternoon. Crystal was out, looking for some of her old friends, trying to make amends with her past life. Jenny was still looking for a job and an apartment. Making use of their free time, Charles was once again trying to teach Edwin how to defend himself in combat.

“You’re getting better at this, mate,” Charles said with a smile, catching the punches Edwin was throwing at him.

Edwin rolled his eyes and took a step back, taking his gloves off. “I still do not see the point of learning such skills, considering most of the supernatural beings we encounter are unlikely to be defeated by a few right hooks.”

The other let out an amused chuckle. “I am actually impressed by the fact that you know what a right hook is.”

“This may come as a surprise to you, but I actually do occasionally listen to the things you tell me.”

Charles smiled smugly and put his hands up once more. “Then you can listen to me when I tell you you need to hit harder.”

Edwin opened his mouth to reply to that, but he didn't have time to get the words out. The front door opened and Jenny walked in, and following right behind her was a majestic-looking British Shorthair.

“It insisted on following me home,” Jenny explained, sounding like she was not in a chatty mood. Job hunting in London was not as easy as ghost hunting, apparently.

Edwin and Charles exchanged a look. Edwin looked back at the cat, slightly bending down to talk to it. “Can we help you?”

“Of course. I forgot about the talking cats. I'm out,” Jenny said, leaving their office to head to one of the spare rooms that they had accommodated to be her bedroom.

The cat didn't respond. Instead, it hopped onto the chair that was placed across from their desk, the one reserved for clients. 

The detectives gave each other another wary look before walking around the desk and taking their places on the other side. “I take it you're here for a reason. Welcome to the Dead Boy Detective Agency,” Edwin said formally.

The next moment, the cat disappeared in a mass of green smoke and as the smoke started to dissipate, it revealed a young woman sitting in the chair instead. She had long, straight black hair and was wearing a tight-fitting red dress with fishnets and knee high boots. Her outfit was elevated by several pieces of gold jewellery and by a pair of amber eyes, which seemed so similar to some Edwin knew really well that he had to do a double take.

“So you're the ones I've heard soooo much about…” the woman drawled, biting her lip and smiling amusedly. “I expected you to look less… soft.”

Charles scoffed at the comment, sitting down on the desk and giving her an offended look. “If you heard the stories, you know we're aces at what we do. It's not our fault we died when we were still in high school.”

The woman nodded considerably. “I suppose. It's none of my business, either way. I'm merely here to deliver a message.”

“May we know who we're speaking to first?” Edwin asked, crossing his hands like he does when he's in business-mode.

The woman smirked, tapping her long nails against their desk playfully. “I go by many names. But the conventional way to address me is the Cat Queen of Greenwich.”

Edwin blinked at her. He was well aware that the Cat King they had met back in Port Townsend was just one of many, but it was still strange to meet another monarch after such a short period of time. Which made him believe it wasn't really a coincidence.

“It's a pleasure, Your Majesty,” Edwin said diplomatically.

Charles looked like he was about to burst out laughing. “Your Majesty?”

“That is indeed the formal way to address me,” the Cat Queen pointed out, raising an eyebrow as if to say ‘Do you have a problem with that?’.

The boy frowned and looked over at his partner. “Edwin, please tell me you've never called the Cat King that.”

Edwin chuckled. “Don't be ridiculous, Charles. My relationship with the Cat King was hardly formal or civil enough for it.” 

The Cat Queen gave him a pointed look at that and it made him realise how his words would sound to someone who didn't know the full story. He looked away, happy that ghosts couldn't blush since there was no warm blood in their veins.

He saw Charles roll his eyes out of the corner of his eye. “Alright. Let's hear what message you have to deliver then,” he mumbled, clearly tired of cat monarchs and their business.

The Cat Queen gave him another look, as if she was thoroughly entertained by the whole exchange, before her eyes flicked back to Edwin, fixating on him. “You're Edwin Payne, right? I saw you rescuing that kitten yesterday.”

Edwin cleared his throat uncomfortably, trying not to let surprise show on his face. “I wasn't aware I had an audience. And I don't see how that is relevant to your case.”

The woman shrugged. “Word travels fast around the feline world. Most of us know what you did to that cat in Port Townsend so I was wary about you when you came back to London. I wouldn't want you putting a spell on my cats.”

Edwin let out a long sigh. The cat in question was part of the reason for all the problems they had faced in that godforsaken American town. The only thing Edwin did was put a small spell on it to get some information. He certainly had no way of knowing how protective the Cat King was over his cats, so protective that he would put a spell on Edwin to keep him in that town.

“Get to the point, will you? We are awfully busy here.” Charles said, clearly annoyed. 

The Cat Queen looked around at the empty office. “Clearly,” she said with a laugh. “But my matter is indeed urgent and is related to Port Townsend. The Cat King requires your help,” she explained, looking straight at Edwin.

Charles seemed to lose his patience at that. “I don't know who that bastard thinks he is, but you can tell him-”

“I thought the Cat King likes to do his own investigations and trials. We usually only help ghosts. If we solved every supernatural problem, our hands would be full all the time,” Edwin explained, though he couldn't deny that he was curious about what it was the Cat King required of them.

“He told me you'd say something like that,” The Cat Queen said, not wiping the grin off her face. “And he told me to tell you that it is tied to a ghost. Apparently a witch has decided to haunt him, a witch you two took care of when you were there.”

Even Charles let go of his apprehension at that and he looked towards Edwin with a worried glance. If it was who they assumed, things could get ugly.

“Esther Finch?” Edwin asked, trying to keep up the professionalism and not let the slight fear distract him.

“Yes, that sounds about right.” 

Edwin clearly remembers the moment the witch got dragged out by the goddess Lilith, who was also the one to give her her immortality in the first place. Which means Lilith must have taken it away if Esther is dead. But then again, the question is how Esther would manage to escape Death in the first place in the condition she was in. There must have been something about her that they all missed and the fact that she was back was putting them all in danger. While she wouldn't be as powerful as a ghost as she was as a living witch, she still must know all her skills.

“Can you give us any more details on the case?”Charles asked.

The Cat Queen shook her head. “I think it's best if you go to him directly to talk about this. It's just one mirror hop for you, after all.”

Edwin opened his mouth to reply, but it was Charles who spoke. “Thank you. We'll consider it.” He forced a smile which anyone could probably recognise as completely not genuine. 

The Cat Queen's eyes lingered on Edwin. He wondered how much she actually knew about him. “Well, I'd consider it fast if I were you.” She stood up languidly and for a moment Edwin wondered whether everyone who was cat royalty had the same body language, the cat-like movements in a human body.

Once the woman was out of the door, Charles turned towards Edwin. “Alright. So here's how it's gonna go: I will go to Port Townsend and check out if this is a trap.”

Edwin blinked slowly, as if he couldn't believe his ears. “Pardon?”

“Last time you got near Whiskers, he put a bloody caging spell on you. Who knows he isn't luring you into another trap?” Charles was clearly upset about something and while Edwin understood a little bit of apprehension, this seemed extreme.

“I am absolutely not letting you travel there by yourself if Esther's ghost is roaming freely in that town, you hear me?” Edwin said decisively, holding his ground. “I don't think it's a trap. The Cat King actually helped Crystal and Niko defeat Esther, remember?”

Charles groaned. “That's just because he wanted to get in your good graces, Edwin. I don't trust that wanker.”

“Charles. If this is truly Esther, it goes beyond whatever happened with the Cat King. We… we owe it to Niko to solve the case,” Edwin said softly, the shadow of a memory passing through his eyes. Niko sacrificed herself to save them and the least they could do was make sure that her death wasn’t for nothing.

The other boy considered it for a moment, clearly not happy about it but at least willing to listen.

“Fine. We will wait for Crystal and consult with her before we do anything, though, yeah?”

Even though Edwin was itching to get started on that case, he nodded. It was going to be hard to get Charles and Crystal on board with taking on the case, so he needed to be diplomatic about it.

By the time they had talked it out, it was already past midnight in London.

To Edwin’s surprise and to Charles’s dismay, Crystal was definitely on board with going to Port Townsend. However, there was the small detail that she needed to travel on a plane instead of through a mirror. 

“I say we just pay the Cat King a visit before the flight so we can make sure it's nothing urgent as in ‘Esther's ghost trying to beat him to death’-urgent,” Edwin explained, handing Charles a couple of different books and his alchemy bag to put in his backpack just for good measure.

“I still don't like this one bit,” Charles said, packing his new cricket bat. Edwin sure hoped he wasn't planning on actually using that on any cats.

“I know,” Edwin said with a sigh. “But I am going to need you to trust me.”

Charles tilted his head. “That's the only reason why I am even considering this, mate.”

They looked at each other and then Charles looked back at Crystal in a way that would have bothered Edwin a few months ago. Now, he smiled fondly at them. 

Edwin stretched out his hand and touched the mirror, looking for Port Townsend. It didn't take long for him to locate a mirror lying on the side of the street near the warehouse that was the Cat King’s hideout. 

“Alright,” he muttered, stepping through, not even needing to look back to know Charles was right behind him. 

He stepped out into the street in the dim evening hue surrounding the docks. It was strange to be back in Port Townsend so soon and yet it felt like an eternity had gone by since he was last there. It was particularly strange to be back in that specific place again, because now that they weren't getting marched there by an army of cats, it seemed strangely quiet.

There were several cats in front of the warehouse and a little tabby looked up at the two of them. Edwin recognized the cat right away and it looked like it recognised him too.

“Don't you dare think of doing any of that funny spell stuff again, ghostie,” the cat said, clearly angry.

Edwin put his hands up defensively. “I wouldn't dare. I believe your King called us here.”

“I know. Follow me,” the cat instructed and then the detectives exchanged a look before following it inside the warehouse.

Once they got there, everything looked the same as last time. The Cat King was sitting on his throne, -already in his human form this time- holding something shiny in his hand and inspecting it. He looked up when they walked in and the object he was holding instantly disappeared in a cloud of purple smoke.

The Cat King looked different, just like he had in that alley where Edwin had last seen him. His hair was a shade darker and there was something different about the way he smiled when he saw them (or rather just Edwin, since he wasn't exactly paying much attention to Charles). He was wearing a long skirt and a white shirt that was more see-through than it was opaque. Through it, Edwin could see several bruises and cuts on his torso and stomach. There were similar cuts all over his face.

He found himself looking a moment too long before looking back into the amber eyes that were crinkled into a smile.

“Like what you see?” the Cat King asked smugly.

Edwin frowned. ”Not in the slightest. I preferred it when your skin was unharmed.”

Charles looked at him, eyes full of panic and disbelief. “Wait… when the fuck did you see his bare chest before?”

“That's not important right now,” Edwin said, voice levelled. “There's a reason we're here.”

“I suppose there is. The fun stuff will have to wait a little longer,” the Cat King said, that smile still on his face. “Though it's still been far too long for my liking, I have to admit.”

“We're here because of Esther, so no funny business or anything from you, yeah?” Charles said, immediately defensive. Edwin didn’t blame him for being a bit wary, considering the little trick the Cat King pulled on him the first time they had met.

“Charles…” he muttered. No matter what had happened in the past, his friend’s behaviour still seemed a little extreme. And Edwin had a feeling about the Cat King now. After his rebirth, he seemed significantly different in more than one way.

The Cat King rolled his eyes and stood up to his feet. “No, no, he's right. I know I can be distracting and I wouldn't want to ruin your reputation. I heard business is booming in London.”

“Did your friend the Cat Queen tell you that?” Edwin asked curiously.

“Well, I do love some gossip,” the Cat King admitted. “And she knows everything about everyone in London.”

“Clearly…” Edwin muttered. “Now if we could return to the-”

“Yes, The Case of the Nasty Witch- pardon, Bitch Looking for Revenge,” the Cat King cut him off with a sigh. “Where is your little psychic?”

“She'll fly in tomorrow. We came today to check on the situation before we take on the case,” Edwin explained, all professional.

The Cat King looked at Edwin with a playful glint in his eye. “Oh, when have I ever done anything that wasn’t worth your time?”

Charles made an offended noise in the background. “I'm here too, so tone it down with the cheeky flirting.”

“Yes, I am painfully aware of your presence,” The Cat King said, but there was no real venom behind his voice, just amusement.

His features turned into something more serious then. “About Esther…”

“Where is she now?” Edwin asked, getting the important things out of the way.

“She's not here. Don't worry. I don't think her ghost can leave her house, actually,” the Cat King explained with a dismissive flick of his wrist.

That sounded rather strange, since Lilith even dragged Esther out of her house before apparently killing her, so there should be no reason for her soul to be bound to a specific place. But then again, the detectives hadn’t dealt with many ghosts who used to be supernatural beings in the past, so these things could be unpredictable. 

Edwin took out his notebook and jotted down the new information.

“Then what did the Queen mean when she said she's haunting you?” 

The Cat King looked over at Charles for a moment, as if he was questioning whether he wanted to say the next words in front of him. “Ah, fuck it,” he muttered. “She knows my name, okay?”

Edwin squinted. “Your… name?”

“Yes, my real name. You didn't think my name was Cat King, did you?” He asked, some amusement back in his tone.

“Of course not,” Edwin said.

“Well, sort of,” Charles admitted at the same time.

“Well, I have a real name. And names hold power. With the right spell, Esther can call on me to summon me to her home. Magic doesn't usually work on me, but there is always that one exception. This morning, I was holding court, minding my own business and then the next moment I was in that stupid house. It was a real bitch trying to get out of there, her kitchen is still full of cleavers and knives that she can clearly use, but luckily my scratches hurt her a lot more now that she's dead.” Something flashed in the Cat King's eyes then, something small and vulnerable that Edwin wasn't used to.

“So if she can just summon you to her home whenever she likes, how come you're not there right now?” Charles asked warily.

The Cat King shrugged, approaching the detectives. “I know some magic too, as you may recall, so I put a protection spell on the warehouse. She can't get me while I am in here, but the spell is only temporary and it will wear off. Besides, I doubt I am the only person she wants to get revenge on, which is why I called you.”

Edwin and Charles exchanged a look. “If revenge is her unfinished business then getting rid of her will be complicated. We can't exactly let her get her revenge on everyone to move on,” Charles pointed out.

Edwin was still vigorously writing information down in his notebook. He flipped back to some of the previous notes he had taken when he'd first been in Esther's house. He had no notes about his second time there, since that was an occasion he would rather not think too much about if he had the choice.

In his few notes, there was one detail that stood out to him. Amongst the several ingredients displayed in her kitchen that she would presumably use for her spells, there was a Chimera horn. Edwin noted down that he wanted to look that up since it reminded him of a very specific ritual, but with the events that had followed that visit, it completely slipped his mind.

He considered the information for a moment. “Are we sure that we are talking about unfinished business here?”

Charles frowned. “Why else would someone stay behind as a ghost?”

“Esther Finch is not precisely like anyone we have encountered before. You never know if maybe there was something else about her powers we missed…” He looked over at the Cat King expectantly.

The Cat King seemed to pay close attention to their conversation while at the same time keeping that nonchalant air about him. “I told your friends everything I know about Esther. While I know her well, I have never claimed to know everything about her.”

Edwin nodded, making more notes. “So are you sure she can’t leave the house?” He asked the Cat King, who nodded unsurely in response.

“If she could leave the house, I am sure she would be here right now or something.”

“There must be something in the house tying her to it then. It can't be the snake because you killed that,” Edwin muttered, turning to Charles. “So it must be something else…”

“Which means we're going to have to go into the house, won't we?” Charles asked with a groan. 

Edwin understood the feeling. He wasn’t particularly keen on going back to the place where Esther tortured him and killed Niko. But this was not just about them.

“Even though she's trapped inside the house, she has her potions and spells and she can find ways to hurt people from afar. We need to do something,” he said decisively.

Charles considered his words for a moment, before letting out a sigh. “Alright. Let’s go get Crystal.”

Edwin looked ahead at the Cat King who had been watching their conversation. “Leaving so soon?” he asked, apparently not even trying to hide the disappointment in his voice.

The ghost almost rolled his eyes at the exclamation before an idea came to his mind. It was perhaps the most ridiculous idea he’s had in a while, but it would certainly make things go a lot faster for them. He turned back to his best friend. 

“Actually, Charles, what do you say if I stay here and investigate a bit further while you and Crystal travel by plane?”

The Cat King’s eyes widened at the words and Edwin was pretty sure that if the man had a tail right now, he would be moving it around curiously. 

On the other hand, Charles looked at him as if he’d gone mental. “You can’t possibly be serious, Edwin. That bloody witch is out and about and you’re suggesting I leave you here alone? Not happening, mate.”

“Well, he wouldn’t be alone,” the Cat King pointed out with a coy smile.

Charles glared at him in return. “That does not make me feel any better.”

“Oh, Charlie boy, we’re doing business now. You have to start trusting me at least a little,” The Cat King said, sitting down on his makeshift throne made of wood.

“No fucking chance.” Charles growled back.

Edwin put a hand up. “Stop it. Both of you.” Charles looked at him with something like betrayal in his eyes while the Cat King looked away innocently. “Charles, a word.”

The boy grabbed his best friend by the arm, dragging him further away from the Cat King. As soon as they were relatively out of earshot, Charles turned to face Edwin. “Have you actually gone mad?” he whispered. “I don’t trust Whisker’s intentions one bit.”

“I am not asking you to trust him. I am asking you to trust me ,” Edwin said earnestly, looking Charles in the eyes. “We’ve been working together for thirty years and the only way we always manage to solve our cases no matter how hard they may seem is because we always know we can rely on each other. This case is personal because it is Esther. We have no idea about how dangerous she may be as a ghost, but I do know that the Cat King isn’t as dangerous as you may think.”

His friend still didn’t seem convinced and Edwin let out an exasperated sigh. While they did make a good team, arguments like these often slowed down their whole process.

“If I may add something,” the Cat King’s voice chimed in. Of course he could hear everything no matter how far away Edwin and Charles were from him. Cats had very sensitive hearing, after all. “If it makes your… best friend feel any better, there is a mirror right there for you to use at any point,” he said nonchalantly, pointing towards a dark corner where indeed a full-body mirror was prompted against the wall.

Edwin furrowed his brows at the sight. That certainly hadn’t been there on their first visit to the warehouse. “Why would you have that here?”

“So I can look at myself and admire how alarmingly sexy I look,” the Cat King said, but Edwin had grown to know him well enough to know there was something else there. “So?”

Charles seemed to think about it for a moment. His lips were a thin line as he thought about it very hard before giving Edwin one final look. “Fine.” He turned around to look at the Cat King again. “I swear if you try anything-”

“Yes, yes, you will kill me or whatever. Don’t threaten me with a good time,” the Cat King replied with a wink.

Charles looked at Edwin once more before starting to walk towards the mirror, but Edwin stopped him with a hand on his shoulder. “Wait, could I perhaps have my alchemy bag from your backpack? And Volume 4 of Demonology and the book on Death and Reincarnation?” Charles’s questioning look, he added. “One can never be too careful, right?”

There was something more than just carefulness behind Edwin’s request… he already had an idea of what it was they may be dealing with, but needed to make sure of it before speaking of something like that.

His friend dug around his backpack until he found what he was looking for, taking out Edwin’s bag and the books and handing them to him. He squeezed Edwin’s shoulder once in a reassuring manner before he stepped through the mirror, heading back to London.

Edwin set the books down on the floor and looked at the bag in his hands and up at the Cat King, who was watching him with a playful glint in his eye.

“If I knew this was all it took to get some time alone with you, I would have asked you to visit a long time ago,” he said, getting comfortable in his throne.

“We’re here for Esther,” Edwin said, clutching the bag close to his chest like some sort of shield.

The Cat King let out a disappointed sound. “So you haven’t missed me? Not even a little?”

The boy pursed his lips. He could lie and say that he hadn’t thought of the Cat King since the moment they travelled back to London. That would probably be the wisest thing to say to avoid making this situation even messier than it already was. But instead, he remained silent, which made the Cat King grin even wider.

“So you did miss me. Aw, Edwin, you know you are welcome here any time.”

Edwin tried to focus on the matter at hand and not let himself get distracted by the Cat King’s advances, even though the other wasn’t making it easy on him.

He walked up to the Cat King and even the latter seemed surprised at that, his yellow eyes widening in shock at how confidently Edwin was stepping up to him. The ghost was still holding his bag and once he was standing in front of the throne, he crouched down, putting the bag down on the floor before looking up at the feline.

Clearly, he hadn’t thought this through until the end because the Cat King was giving him a curious look and Edwin didn’t know how to say the next words. He looked around and noticed that the warehouse was populated by dozens of cats, all looking at them.

“Can you- do your… thing?” He asked, feeling a lot less confident than he was about this to begin with.

“My… thing?” The Cat King raised an eyebrow and an amused smile spread on his face. “What exactly are you doing here? Not that I mind the fact that you want to spend some alone time with me, but…”

The ghost cleared his throat and looked down at his alchemy bag, since that seemed to be the only way he would manage to get the words out. “I would like to take care of your wounds. I have what I need for it, but I would prefer not having an audience since-”

Before he even got to finish his sentence, he saw the floor spin and change to something slightly different. Edwin only needed to look up once to realise they were back in the Cat King’s private room, the one he had been taken to the very first time they’d met and where he received that damned punishment in the form of a magical bracelet.

He expected to feel suffocated by the memories in there, but he didn’t. Perhaps because the Cat King was acting so differently now, too. Edwin was crouched next to the bed and he would have expected the Cat King to be sitting as close to him as possible, but instead he was all the way at the other end of the mattress, giving him space.

“Why do you want to heal me?” the Cat King asked, as if he were the one to have a reason to be wary about this whole ordeal.

Edwin took the vials he needed out of his set and got up to his feet again. “You say Esther is no danger for now, but I don’t want to take any risks of being taken by surprise when you’re not in full health.” He stood in front of the Cat King awkwardly, looking down at the man’s chest before looking back up into those yellow eyes. There was still a playfulness in them, but there was also something unexpected. 

“So you are doing this out of pure self-preservation?” the Cat King asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Precisely.” Yeah, let’s go with that . Edwin thought to himself. “I will need you to take off your shirt.”

The Cat King did react exactly like Edwin expected him to, a pleased laugh escaping his lips. “Well, whenever I thought about you coming back to Port Townsend, I never thought you would take initiative like that,” he joked, unbuttoning his shirt and sliding it off his body.

Edwin swallowed past the lump that was forming in his throat and picked up one of the vials, pouring some of the viscous substance in it on two fingers. “Sounds like you’ve entertained the thought of me coming back a lot,” he pointed out matter-of-factly, bending down just a little to apply some ointment on the cuts on the Cat King’s face. He could swear he heard the Cat King purr again at that.

“Are you surprised?” The shapeshifter asked casually, even though there was something like hope underneath all that.

Edwin thought about it for a moment. The Cat King had made it quite clear that he found Edwin fascinating. However, Edwin had assumed he was just another toy for this cat to play with, just another stepping stone that was just interesting because he wouldn't give in to his charms. He almost assumed that the Cat King would have found someone else to chase after in the months since they left for London.

“A little,” he finally said.

The Cat King offered him another smirk. “Don't worry, Edwin. You're still my favourite,” he said in a suave tone but then cut himself off with a hiss.

“Sorry…” Edwin muttered, cursing at himself for his lack of attention that led to him applying a little too much pressure on the cut he was cleaning. “That is what happens when you purposely distract me whilst I am trying to work,” he grumbled, looking back at the wounds and focusing on them this time. He crouched down in front of the bed so he could reach the ones on his chest better.

“Oh, I don't mind a little pain…” the Cat King replied and Edwin could hear the grin in his voice. The detective just rolled his eyes in response but didn't speak again until he was done spreading the ointment on the man's skin.

“There,” he concluded, taking a napkin out of his pocket to wipe the ointment off his fingers. “Now those should heal in a tick.”

“Thank you.” The Cat King's gratitude sounded genuine, but Edwin was still not looking at his face, unwilling to play his game.

He got up to his feet and walked back to his alchemy bag, placing the vial back in the exact compartment where he took it from. Maybe he spent a little more time than necessary looking into his bag, needing a moment.

He heard movement behind him, sheets shuffling, as if the Cat King was making himself more comfortable. “So what are we going to do while we wait for your friends?”

The ghost took a deep breath and finally turned around to notice that indeed, the shapeshifter was sprawled out on the bed, similar to what he did during their first meeting. At least the circumstances were entirely different now, though Edwin found himself looking at the other's chest for just a second too long, just like back then.

“I will need you to stop messing with my head,” Edwin said then, getting the words out before he could even think about them. “Stop putting cats in my way.”

The Cat King furrowed his eyebrows, as if he had no clue what Edwin was talking about. And while he was a trickster, he didn't seem like the type of person to play dumb so it was his turn to be confused.

“If I was messing with your head, you would know,” the Cat King said with a snort. “Whatever it is you're talking about, it's not my doing.”

Even though Edwin was confused, he felt even more frustrated by the answer so he took two long steps towards where the Cat King was laying, standing in front of him. The shapeshifter seemed like he was fairly comfortable and had no intention to move.

The ghost started to count on his fingers. “The kitten the other day by the Thames. The British shorthair on Westminster Bridge. The Scottish fold in Kensington. Lots of cats in danger that I had to save. That never used to happen before I met you.”

The Cat King's eyes shone with interest now, his confusion replaced by clear intrigue. He pushed himself up into a sitting position and looked at Edwin with a wide grin. “Have you ever considered that maybe instead of magic, your perception may have just… changed?” He asked, sounding amused.

Edwin's shoulders sagged at that and he squinted at the man. “What is that supposed to mean?”

“From what I understand, you've been saving cats left and right, which is a really noble act. Yet when you first came to Port Townsend, you had no issue using magic on a cat to get information. Because you saw us as lesser beings than humans.” He stood up, his face dangerously close to Edwin's now. “My, my, it seems like my punishment worked.”

The phrase made Edwin acutely aware of where he was and who exactly he was talking to and he swallowed hard, taking one step back. He felt overwhelmed, but he still felt frustrated, too.

“What are you trying to say?”

“I am trying to say that maybe you, Edwin Paine, have learned to value the lives of cats more,” the man said with a shrug, as if it was the most logical conclusion. “Cats die every single day. Be it because of terrible accidents or old age or… at the hand of cruel humans.” He gritted his teeth at the last part and took a deep inhale before continuing. “I would know. I have 146 cats to look after. Counted them yourself, didn't you?”

Edwin processed the information. Was there a chance that maybe he would witness cats in danger before, but would get carried away by their job or by something that he had deemed more important at the time, resulting in his completely ignoring the life of a cat?

He didn't have an answer for it at that point in time, but he made a mental note to further investigate later.

“147,” he said softly.

He'd clearly spoken too softly for the Cat King to hear or understand him, because the shapeshifter asked, “What?”

“You have 147 cats to look after. You have yourself to take care of, too, after all.”

The Cat King's confident smile faded for a moment. It didn't completely disappear, but it turned into another type of smile, one Edwin had only seen once before, during their goodbye.

“I can assure you I am.” The Cat King motioned around his space in demonstration. “It is sweet that you think about me, though.”

“I was merely correcting you.”

“Right. Of course.” The Cat King's smile grew wider again as he looked Edwin up and down. “Now, what would you like to do while we wait?” He asked again, his voice low and sensual.

Edwin needed a moment to gather his bearings but luckily was still clear-headed enough to answer and was not reduced to silence by that voice like he used to be when they first met.

“I don’t know about you. But I am going to do research,” Edwin said, tilting his head towards the books that were discarded on the floor. “You could always help me.”

“Ugh, that sounds like work,” the Cat King said and made a face. He sat back down on the bed, laying flat on his back. “Cats don’t do that.”

Edwin couldn’t help but let out a small chuckle at the comment. It was interesting how much the man resembled a typical cat but how many aspects were different about him too, like his distaste for trees.

“Of course,” Edwin said, looking for somewhere to sit that wasn’t the bed. In the corner of the room, he noticed a big wooden box and a smaller one in front of it, like a makeshift chair and table. That would do.

“If you don’t mind,” he said, picking up his books, “I would like to sit down over there and do some research.”

The Cat King followed his line of view and the look on his face told Edwin that he’s probably forgotten he even had a “desk” (if one could even call it that) in his room. He shrugged. “Suit yourself. Though it sounds like a major waste of time for you to be in my room reading those books.”

“Thank you,” the ghost muttered, ignoring the rest of what he was saying. 

He half-expected the Cat King to not leave him alone and to try to interrupt his research at any point, but the shapeshifter kept his distance. Edwin got so entranced by his book on Reincarnation (which was all for nothing, considering there wasn’t anything useful in there) that he didn’t notice when the Cat King seemed to fall asleep. The only thing that gave it away were the soft little snores that started leaving his lips at one point.

Edwin put his book aside and took a good look at the man on the bed before moving on to his next one. There was something different about the Cat King now than when they had first met and the ghost wasn’t sure whether it had anything to do with the fact that this was a new life for him.

He recalled a line from the book on reincarnation he had just read that said “Every time a supernatural being gets reborn, they leave some elements of their own life behind. Furthermore, they may develop new traits that were not there before.” He wondered how much of the Cat King now was new and how much was the real him that he tried to hide away.

Edwin turned back to his book and tried to shake off those thoughts. He shouldn’t worry about all that. It was not any of his business, after all.

He flipped through the different chapters of Demonology Vol. 4. The reason he had asked Charles to hand him that specific book is because he had a hunch about something. Considering Esther had been dragged away by Lilith herself, it was rather unlikely that she would find a way to avoid Death and with it her damnation once Lilith took her immortality away.

Unless she found a way to work around it.

He flipped through the book, which had chapters on all the major Demons worth knowing. Azazel, Abbadon, Asmodeus… however, those were not the ones he was looking for. Edwin needed someone more specific, someone with enough power to break someone out of hell… and with the ability to travel freely between the two dimensions. 

“That’s it…” he muttered to himself, reading the page in front of him again and taking notes in his notebook.

“Found anything?” The Cat King’s voice rang from right behind him and made Edwin drop his pen. He hadn’t heard any movement and it made him wonder whether he was simply too focused or whether the shapeshifter had used his magic to materialise right behind him. Either way, the fact that he was awake also made Edwin realise that the night had almost passed them by.

He turned around to face the Cat King. “I do believe I have. Have you ever considered that Esther may have made a deal with someone besides Lilith?”

The Cat King was in the process of stretching, clearly having just woken up, and he stopped with his arms above his head at the words. “Like who?”

Edwin picked up the book and got up to his feet, going to stand next to the Cat King and point at the page he was reading. The title of the chapter was “Astaroth”.

The Cat King looked over at Edwin with clear confusion on his face, as if to say he had no idea who that is.

The ghost cleared his throat. “Astaroth. Prince of Hell. His specialties are interdimensional travel, which means he loves to meddle with the so-called multiverse by jumping between realities. I recall him coming to hell decades ago and messing around with the minds of individuals, giving them visions of realities similar to the one they were alive in, but with terrible twists to them…” He trailed off, not specifying who those ‘individuals’ he talked about were. Thankfully, the Cat King didn’t ask, even though Edwin knew he probably had connected the dots. “However, he can also travel between different realms as he sees fit. Now, it doesn’t say anything here about whether anyone can travel with him, but if that were the case…”

“That bitch got a free ride out of hell with him. She was immortal, but she still wanted to back herself up in case she died,” the shapeshifter spat. “But then why is she stuck in the house?”

Edwin frowned. “I am still trying to figure that part out. Might have something to do with the details of their deal. Since we don’t know what that deal was, one can only guess. My assumption is she forgot to read the fineprint again.”

“And how are you so sure we are dealing with this Astaroth guy?” The Cat King inquired further.

“Esther had a Chimera horn in her house. This book provides a rather extensive description on how to summon Astaroth and that is one of the ingredients. In my many years of studying the arcane, I have never come across a mention of Chimera horns for any other purposes.”

The Cat King seemed to think about the new information for a moment. Edwin could tell that the shapeshifter knew a lot about Esther’s past, the type of things only someone who was very close to her would know. It made the ghost wonder exactly how the two had been involved with each other, but he didn’t ask.

He was also acutely aware of how close he was standing to the Cat King now, since he was able to smell him as well. The Cat King had a sharp scent, something akin to what Edwin could faintly recall mint to smell like.

He took a step back and closed the book. “I need to get something.”

“Cool, where are we going?” the Cat King asked, disappearing in a haze of purple flames and reappearing in a new outfit: leather skirt, a burgundy shirt and a leather jacket.

Edwin raised an eyebrow at him. “Did you forget about the murderous witch who is out to get you? You will stay here, in safety. I will go run some errands.”

That did wipe the Cat King's smile off his face “Are you fucking crazy? You want to go out by yourself with Esther out there?”

“I will be fine.” Edwin said, rolling his eyes. ”She is not ‘out there’, is she? She is stuck in her house.”

“Charles will kill me if he finds out I let you go out by yourself.” All seductiveness in the Cat King's body language was gone. He looked tense and upset.

“Well, then it is good that you won't tell him anything, isn't that right? He and Crystal won’t be here for at least a few hours,” The detective added, raising an eyebrow. “Look, I will just walk to Tragic Mick's to try and see if I can find anything that may help us with the case and then I will be back. I can travel through your mirror to speed up the process.”

The shapeshifter still didn't seem happy with the answer but after a few more moments of intensively staring at Edwin and realising the younger wasn't going to give it up, he groaned. “Fine. With a condition.”

Edwin scoffed. “We are helping you. I don't know if you're in the place to set conditions. But go on.”

The Cat King held a hand up and something materialised in his palm in a flash of purple flames. Edwin let out a gasp when he saw what was unmistakably the bracelet that had kept him trapped in Port Townsend for longer than he liked.

“What the bloody hell are you trying to do with that?” Edwin asked, taking several steps back.

“Relax. There is no caging spell on it anymore. There is, however, a protection spell,” the Cat King explained, holding his free hand up defensively.

Edwin was starting to believe Charles saying that coming there was a bad idea. “Protection spell?” he asked, sceptical.

The shapeshifter sighed. “Yes. If anyone poses any threat to you, that bracelet will alert me immediately and I will come after you.”

The ghost was still eyeing the piece of jewellery warily. “Why?” he asked, finally looking back into the Cat King's eyes.

“Why what?”

“Why would you do that for me?”

The Cat King pursed his lips, as if he had to stop himself from saying something. Which was strange, since Edwin knew him as the kind of person who had no filter whatsoever. “I don't think it would be in anyone's interest if you end up in danger, do you?” He stepped closer to Edwin. “If you won't wear this, I can send a delegation of my cats with you as your bodyguards, but if anything happens they will lose precious time having to come all the way back here to inform me. This bracelet will send a signal right away.”

The ghost considered it for a moment. It all made sense, it felt logical. But there was still a part of him that was questioning whether trusting the Cat King was a good idea.

The Cat King must have noticed his apprehension because he sighed. “Here is something you’ve never heard from me before: I am sorry about the caging spell, alright? Even though you deserved it for thinking that using magic on a cat was okay.”

Well, that was the closest Edwin was ever going to get to having a proper apology from the Cat King and it did seem like the other was having a hard time getting the words out, so it made him want to believe him.

“Fine,” he said after a long time, perhaps against his better judgement. The shapeshifter almost seemed surprised that Edwin agreed.

He held out his hand and the Cat King recovered from his brief shock and reached out, clasping the bracelet into place manually instead of with magic this time. That also meant that his fingers brushed Edwin’s wrist and the ghost was once again taken aback by the fact that he could feel it. What with the Cat King not being a common being and all that.

The bracelet glowed a little as it clasped shut and Edwin expected the weight on his wrist to fill him with anxiety, but it was like he could feel that the spell on it was benevolent this time.

The Cat King’s fingers lingered on his wrist for a moment too long until he finally let go and looked up at Edwin with a small smile. “Never thought I would see you wear that again.”

“Yes, well, don’t get used to it. I will give it back to you as soon as we find out what Esther is doing back in the mortal plane,” the detective answered casually, pulling the sleeve of his jacket over the jewellery to try to hide it in a way.

The Cat King nodded in understanding and started walking away. “Alright, follow me.”

Edwin was about to ask where they were going but then he realised they were probably headed back to the throne room, where the mirror was located. He also realised he’s never actually had to walk there from the Cat King’s chambers, considering the other always whisked him away with his magic.

They walked through a maze of crates and up to a metal door that was hidden behind a fishing net hanging from the ceiling. Once they walked through the door, they stepped out into the throne room, in a corner behind where the throne was positioned.

Edwin immediately noticed the mirror and headed straight for it when he felt the Cat King grab his arm.

His first instinct was to yank his arm out of the other’s grip, but as soon as he stopped walking, the man let it go without having to be asked.

“Don’t do anything stupid. I know your group is all about being heroic or something, but just-”

“I will be fine,” Edwin assured him, weirdly touched by the fact that the Cat King seemed to be genuinely concerned about his well being. “I will be back before you know it.”

All the shapeshifter did was give him a curt nod and Edwin took that as his cue. He turned around again and stepped towards the mirror, watching as the surface of it morphed and gave way for him to walk through it.

He came out through a discarded mirror that was in an alley near Mick’s store. It was nice to know it was still there and no one had taken it.

It was strange to see how little had changed about Port Townsend since they’d left, considering how much the lives of the Dead Boy Detectives had changed. 

He walked the few hundred metres from the alley to the entrance to Mick’s store and pushed the door open, hearing the familiar doorbell as he stepped through.

The first thing he noticed was that the shelves seemed to be packed full, which was good news. Mick would be more likely to have exactly what he needed if he’d had a restock. Next, he spotted the walrus-turned-human shop owner behind the counter where he usually was and he looked up at Edwin with wide eyes.

“You’re alive,” Mick pointed out. 

“Not exactly,” Edwin deadpanned.

“No, I mean, as alive as you can be as a ghost. I heard about Esther dying. But then none of you kids ever came back to the store. I heard you went to London but I didn’t know if any of you had gotten… hurt in the process.”

Edwin looked down and fidgeted with his hands nervously. “Umm, we didn’t all make it out. Niko, she…” he trailed off.

A lot of emotions flashed on Mick’s face at that but what Edwin coils see through all of them was a genuine sense of grief and sorrow. “I am sorry to hear that.” He paused, as if thinking about something very hard. “May I ask… what happened?”

Edwin took a deep breath. Months had gone by and somehow time made it easier to talk about it, even though it did not hurt any less. “Esther tried to shoot a magic dagger at Crystal. Niko selflessly stepped in and sacrificed herself, taking the blow.”

Tragic Mick pondered over the words for a moment, something like realisation in his eyes. “So am I understanding this right when I say she was killed by magic?”

“Yes, I suppose you could call it that,” Edwin confirmed, not understanding how that would be relevant.

The walrus picked up something from underneath his desk and then stood up, starting to leave. “I need to speak to someone. I will be right back”

The ghost felt whiplash at that, considering he was sort of in a rush. “Before you go, do you happen to have-”

“Take whatever you need, kid,” Mick said, giving him a smile. “You helped this town get rid of that witch so everything is on the house for you and your friends. Just make sure to close the door when you leave.” And with that, the man was gone, leaving Edwin to stand alone in the shop, still in a bit of a daze. He couldn’t imagine what must have come up to make Mick leave his shop in such a hurry.

However, Edwin had more pressing matters to worry about. He could wonder more about Mick’s behaviour once they solved the Case of the Vengeful Witch.

Without Mick’s guidance to point him to exactly where the ingredients he needed would be, it took Edwin a while to locate it all. For a moment, he doubted whether the shop owner even had snake fangs in stock, but then found them in a shelf towards the back of it.

He managed to find all the ingredients, save for one, but the last one he knew where he could find.

He also got distracted by things he did not specifically need for the case but that were still fascinating unique pieces he would love to have in his collection. Thus, he didn’t even realise that hours went by until Mick walked back into the store only to find him there still perusing.

The man looked no different than he did when he had left, though he seemed surprised to see Edwin there. “I thought you would have left by now.”

The words were what made Edwin aware of the hour and he quickly shook himself and picked up everything he needed for the case. “It seems I’ve lost track of time. Thank you for allowing me to browse.”

Mick sat back down at the counter, eyeying Edwin curiously. “Do come by more often. You never know what surprises you may find.”

“Will do,” Edwin confirmed with a smile, stepping out of the store and towards the mirror.

When he walked through the glass and back to the Cat King’s warehouse, he was met with an unexpected scene. The Cat King was standing in front of his throne, his usual nonchalance replaced by a strange tension in his shoulders. He was face-to-face with an angry-looking Charles, and each of them was glaring intensively at the other. A quick look around the room divulged to Edwin that Crystal was also there, though she was keeping her distance, not wanting to get involved in whatever feud was going on.

“-tear your whiskers off your face,” Charles was saying, before turning towards the mirror when he heard him come in. Immediately, he turned away from the Cat King and towards his best friend and walked up to him. “Edwin, mate, there you are! I was just about to come over to Tragic Mick’s to get you.”

“Were you going to do that before or after threatening our client?” Edwin asked with a raised eyebrow, setting down the items he’d gotten on a wooden crate closeby and approaching the two.

Charles seemed taken aback by the words and Edwin expected the Cat King to comment on his facial expression, but the shapeshifter’s attention was on Edwin. “So much about a short trip to the magic shop. Where the fuck have you been?”

“At Mick’s,” Edwin said with a shrug. “I lost the notion of time while browsing. Hi, Crystal. How was your flight?” He nodded towards the girl who looked like she would rather be somewhere else right now.

Crystal looked up at him and smiled. “It was fine. I didn’t really close an eye because there was a-”

“What the fuck are you wearing?” Charles said, looking at Edwin as if he had grown two heads. Or rather, at Edwin’s wrist, the one that he had the Cat King bracelet on. Charles turned towards the Cat King with newfound anger. “I swear to God you are going to be down to your fifth life in a moment.”

“Charles,” Edwin said, voice stern. “It is not what it looks like.”

“Oh, isn’t it?” his friend asked sarcastically. “Because it sure seems like this wanker tricked you into- into-”

Edwin walked up to Charles and put a hand on his shoulder, attempting to calm him down. “He did not trick me into anything. I gave him permission to put the bracelet on me. Besides, it doesn’t have the same effect like last time.”

His friend finally looked away from the Cat King and over at him this time, clearly confused. “What?”

Edwin sighed and dropped his hand, looking into his best friend's eyes. “I promise I will clarify everything in due time, but for now we have a more pressing matter. I think I know what helped Esther escape hell. I am not yet sure, because there are some unanswered questions, but it is a plausible theory.”

“Okay…” Charles said, some of his anger seeming to dissipate, even though he wasn't entirely reassured.

Edwin's attention was caught by a flash of purple smoke right behind Charles. In the middle of the warehouse now stood a table and two benches. 

“Thought you all might need a proper space to consult each other about this,” the Cat King said with a shrug. “I will leave you to it.” He turned to leave.

“Wait,” Edwin shouted out to him. “I believe you should stay. You know Esther better than anyone, so your intelligence may be useful.”

“So what, is he a part of the team now?” Charles asked with a bitter laugh. “Two Dead Boy, One Psychic Girl and One Massive Dick Detective Agency?”

“Charles!” Edwin basically shouted, starting to lose his patience. “That's quite enough. I understand that you may have your reservations about the Cat King, but need I remind you we are on an important case?”

“He put the bracelet on you again, Edwin!” 

“It's a protective spell!” That seemed to render Charles speechless for a moment and Edwin took a deep breath even though he didn't need it. “He told me not to go out to Tragic Mick's by myself but I needed to get ingredients for a ritual. So he gave me the bracelet to protect me and I allowed it. Now can we focus on our work?”

His best friend still seemed to have about a trillion questions going through his head. To Edwin’s surprise, the Cat King seemed to be slightly shocked too. Thankfully, Crystal decided to step in now.

“Alright, let's hear what you got.”

Edwin broke down the information he'd gotten from the books and his theory for Crystal and Charles. The Cat King chimed in with some of his own knowledge about Princes of Hell like Astaroth, saying he'd come in contact with a couple of them in the past.

“So your theory is based off… a horn?” Crystal asked once the detective was done explaining. “Is that enough evidence to assume a Prince of Hell is involved with this.”

“Even before she became immortal, Esther had the audacity to ask Lilith for help,” the Cat King said. “I wouldn't put it beyond her to make a deal with a demon that powerful.”

“But this still doesn't explain why she is stuck in the house,” Charles intervened.

Edwin gave him a long look. “You're right. It doesn't. Which is why I went to get the things we needed for the ritual.”

“The ritual?” Charles asked carefully.

Edwin looked around at the other three around the table. None of them was aware of that part of his plan yet and he didn't know how they would react.

“Crystal…” he started, hoping the girl would have the most understanding of his reckless plan. “You defeated Esther by calling upon Lilith. She who gave her the powers took them away. What if we can do the same thing with Astaroth?”

He let the information sink in for a moment before they all started talking at the same time.

“Absolutely not!” Charles said.

“Are you fucking serious?” The Cat King got up to his feet.

“Summoning a demon?” Crystal asked, looking more terrified than anything. Understandable, considering her history with demons.

Edwin waited until they were all done questioning his sanity before speaking again. “I understand your hesitations. I am not suggesting that we do it without trying it another way first. I think we should still go take a look around the house to better assess the situation. However, if we can confirm my suspicions and if we can't find another way, I just wanted us to have the items for the ritual already so we wouldn't lose precious time. If we do the ritual right and take precautions, Astaroth should be trapped and after questioning him we can banish him again.”

“Do you really want to trap a demon of that calibre, mate?” Charles asked, tapping on the table nervously.

“My hope is that he will accept an offering from us as an apology. We have a few relics in our collection that might interest him, after all. And as I've said, no one is summoning anyone just yet. The three of us are going to the house to investigate.”

The Cat King raised an eyebrow at that. “So I am supposed to wait here? And do nothing? If that bitch goes down, I want to be there for it.”

“Esther is still after you. But she doesn't know that the three of us are back in town yet. We will take her by surprise,” Edwin explained.

Edwin and the Cat King looked at each other for a moment too long. If the ghost didn't know better, he would say he saw worry on the Cat King's face.

“Okay. So let's walk this through again, step by step,” Crystal intervened, giving the two of them a strange look.

Edwin was floating.

No, he wasn't floating. He was lying. He was laying down in a field and there was a body next to him. He could feel the dampness of the grass he was laying on and the warmth of the sun on his face and the summer breeze. He could feel . 

He looked over at the body next to him to find a pair of beautiful brown eyes looking back at him. 

Charles. 

He was looking at Edwin with pure adoration in his eyes and their hands were intertwined between them. Edwin felt his face heat up even more at the realisation.

Charles reached out and put a hand on Edwin's cheek, gently caressing his face. “I love you,” his friend muttered.

Charles had told him that before, though at that moment Edwin couldn't recall when. But this felt different. This wasn't a platonic ‘I love you’ but the sort of ‘I love you’ you only get to hear once in a lifetime. Edwin could hear his heart beating in his ears.

His heartbeat. He had a heartbeat.

Of course he did. Why was he so surprised about it? Why was a part of him expecting him to not breathe or for no blood to flow through his veins.

“I love you, too,” he whispered back, voice overwhelmed by emotion. 

Suddenly, the world spun and he found himself in their office in London. On their desk there was a typewriter and next to it a stack of papers. A manuscript.

Edwin was a writer.

He was sitting on the couch with Charles next to him and his arm around him. He watched as Charles picked up his cup of tea from the coffee table with his free hand and took a sip. For some reason, it looked strange.

“Would you like to go out for a walk, baby?” Charles asked him. 

Edwin felt all giddy at the pet name, until a thought came to his mind. “When is Crystal coming back?”

“Who?” Charles asked, looking at Edwin with a confused smile.

Edwin frowned. “Crystal… she…” he trailed off. He had the feeling he was forgetting something… someone important.

Crystal.

Niko. 

Jenny.

All these names in his head that felt like they should have a meaning, but that he couldn't recall.

“Edwin!” a voice called out for him in the distance, a voice that was weirdly familiar and that he couldn't quite place. 

“Edwin, don't you fucking dare die on me, okay?” the voice came again and this time he did place it. “Shit. Okay, well, hang on.”

Edwin was frowning, trying to place that voice that was so familiar and that seemed so far away.

He didn't have to try for long though, because then a man appeared in front of him. He was wearing leather pants and a dark ruffled shirt. His eyes were amber and shaped like a cat's.

“I do hope you'll forgive me for barging into your head like this, but it is sort of an emergency,” the man said.

Edwin blinked up at him, but he felt Charles tense up at his side. 

“Who… are you?” Edwin asked after a moment.

The man's face fell. He looked from Edwin to Charles and then at the room around them and something like a pained expression appeared on his face. “Of course. Damn it,” he muttered to himself, before turning back to Edwin. “I need you to listen to me. This is not real.”

Before Edwin could reply, Charles chimed in. “That's ridiculous.”

“Oh, come on!” the stranger exclaimed with a growl. “Edwin, focus. Astaroth has a hold on you. You have to snap out of it! Here…” he said, turning around to the shelves and looking for something. “Fuck. Of course you don't have all your books in this fucked up reality.”

Edwin was trying to process the words, but they were blurred in his head. He knew this man, at least part of him did, but it was as if there was a wall in his mind, something that stopped him whenever he got close to the truth.

“Edwin, for fuck's sake. We need to go, now.” The man offered Edwin a hand to take.

That's when Charles spoke up again. “Edwin, darling, who are you going to trust? Me or this man you don't even know?” he asked, tightening his grip on Edwin. There was something off about it. He was holding him so tight it almost hurt.

He looked into Charles’s eyes. He expected to find that warmth that he had fallen in love with, his Charles. But they looked empty, void of emotion.

“You… you are not Charles,” he muttered, trying to move out of his grip.

The creature in front of him that resembled Charles laughed, a little meanly. His eyes turned red and claws grew from its fingers, digging into Edwin's arm. 

That's when the cat-eyed man spoke up again. “Edwin. Wake up. All you need to do is wake up.”

Wake up.

Wake up.

He opened his eyes to see amber orbs staring back into them. Edwin was almost laying on the ground with a pair of strong arms holding him up. There was a sharp pain in his shoulder.

“What-” he started asking, but the Cat King put a hand on his mouth and shook his head.

Edwin took in his surroundings, just realising where he was. Outside Esther's house. 

He tried to remember how he had gotten there. He, Charles and Crystal had walked over to Esther Finch's house, at first observing from afar. They had seen Esther's ghost wandering around her kitchen, clearly performing some sort of spell. Edwin tried to guess what she was attempting to do from the ingredients, but by the time she reached for the Chimera horn on her shelf, it was already too late.

Someone had beaten them to summoning Astaroth, after all.

He remembered seeing a mass of black smoke appear in the middle of the kitchen and a human-like creature in the middle of it. The smoke spread out, through the cracks in the windows, out onto the street where the three of them were watching. Crystal and Charles moved out of the way, but Edwin inhaled some of the black smoke and that was the last thing he recalled.

Whatever he’d seen just now was some sort of alternate universe. And a really peaceful one at that, one he could have gotten lost in. Maybe that was Astaroth’s doing: tapping into Edwin's subconscious and creating a fantasy that he wouldn't want to wake up from. But there was something clearly wrong with that reality.

Panic came over him, all at once. Charles and Crystal. Where are they? he thought and opened his mouth to ask the Cat King about it but before he even got a sound out, a voice in his head replied.

They're inside. Esther captured them, but they're alive. A voice that sounded a lot like the Cat King's sounded in Edwin's ears. At his puzzled look, the shapeshifter looked down at the bracelet on his hand. Little update for the spell. Don't worry.

But Edwin was worrying a lot. Because Esther had his best friend's in shackles and he almost let himself get carried away by an infantile fantasy.

We have to go in and help them, he thought, getting up into a sitting position. They were right under the windowsill so he sat up just enough to peer through the window. 

His friends were nowhere to be seen, but in the kitchen there was Esther, looking just as she did when Lilith dragged her away. Thin as a skeleton, with wrinkly skin and grey hair, barely holding herself up. Opposite from her was a man in a dark suit with red eyes and with horns poking out of his temples.

Astaroth.

Edwin got a bit closer, listening in. He could feel the Cat King right next to him. 

“You tricked me!” Esther screamed, pointing an accusatory finger at Astaroth. “I gave you all those souls to bring me back to this realm only to be stuck in this stupid house for eternity?”

The demon seemed annoyed more than anything at her outburst. “I did what you asked me to do. I don't know why you can't leave.”

“Then find out!” The witch spat out.

Astaroth laughed. “Do I look like a butler to you? I don't take orders from anyone. Especially not from any low-rank witches like yourself. Actually, here,” he added, flicking his wrist. A red glow shone in Esther's eyes. “I took back my favour. Now the only thing keeping you in this realm is whatever is keeping you in this house.”

Esther looked like she was about to speak another series of insults, but then desperation flashed in her eyes and she looked somewhere to her side. “What if I can offer you a deal? Two more young souls for you to allow me to stay here.” 

The demon looked like he was considering it, but Edwin didn't think twice about it before getting up to his feet. Over my dead body , he thought.

What is he- Oh, fuck. Oh, hell, of course . He heard the Cat King's thoughts in the back of his mind as he stepped through the wall and into the kitchen.

Edwin was a sacrifice. He spent 70 years in hell because his classmates thought it would be a fun joke to offer him up to a demon. He would not allow the same thing to happen to his friends.

“You stay away from them!” He shouted and he saw a mass of purple flames behind him to indicate the Cat King had followed him inside. 

Esther looked at the Cat King and blinked for a moment before breaking out into laughter. “Oh, this is great. Who knew all I needed to get you here was to kidnap some stupid ghosts. Just let me close this deal and I will take care of you, kitten.”

“Fuck off. You're not closing any deal today,” the Cat King spat at her. Edwin looked over to see the Cat King holding his hands up. His fingernails slowly morphed and became longer and longer until they turned into full-on claws. He leaped at the witch.

I'll do the muscle work. You try to be diplomatic with the demon , the Cat King thought. Edwin hummed softly in his head in response.

“My, my, Edwin Payne… Do you remember me?” Astaroth asked, leaning forward with a smirk on his face.

Wait, you know this guy? the Cat King's thoughts rang in his ear. Edwin could hear a collision behind him as the shapeshifter fought Esther.

That's not of importance now , he thought.

Edwin swallowed hard. “I do. It's been what? 50 years? Hard to keep track of time when you're in hell.”

“I bet,” Astaroth said with a laugh. “Do mum and dad still not love you?

The ghost was really trying his best to stay diplomatic. “I wouldn't know. They were already dead by the time I escaped.”

“Pity. So what are you doing here?”

“I am going to let you go. You don't have to close any deal with this witch today. I just want to ask you something.”

Astaroth considered the words for a moment before looking at the summoning circle around him. “I am starting to feel rather claustrophobic. So make it quick.”

“What deal did you make with the witch Esther Finch?”

Astaroth shrugged. “Your typical demon deal. Esther would feed all these kids to her snake. The snake only needed the body, the physical youth to magically keep her young. But the souls were going to waste. So she offered them to me in exchange for a tiny favour in case she died. Two months ago, when Lilith killed her, she appealed to me to get that favour.”

“She's been in the house for two months…”

“Trying to figure out the technicalities of being a ghost, I presume. But I don't know why her soul is stuck in the house. It isn't my doing.”

Edwin frowned. That didn’t help him a lot because even though they now knew for sure how Esther escaped hell, they didn't know how to free her from the house.

“If that is all, would you mind…?” Astaroth asked, motioning at the circle drawn in chalk around him.

Edwin put a foot on the chalk line, briefly hesitating. “You're not going to attack us once I free you, right?”

Astaroth laughed again. “Don't be ridiculous. I have better things to do than to mess with a child of Desire and his… protégé.” He looked over at the Cat King pointedly, who had his claws in Esther's forearm, getting a high pitched scream out of her.

Just in that moment, Charles and Crystal walked over to the kitchen door. Charles had scars on his wrist and neck, clearly iron burns. Crystal seemed to be fine for the most part. 

Thinking of the safety of himself and his friends, Edwin moved his shoe, wiping away some of the chalk on the floor. As soon as the circle was broken, Astaroth disappeared in a mass of black smoke and Edwin was careful not to inhale it this time. 

He turned back around and saw the Cat King slashing a long scratch on Esther's face. The witch staggered back and the shapeshifter chose that exact moment to look over at Edwin. 

But then Esther moved before Edwin could even register what was happening and a knife went flying, piercing the Cat King's shoulder.

The Cat King's eyes went incredibly wide and he froze on the spot. “Fuck,” he muttered, before falling to the ground.

Edwin rushed forward, catching the man's body as he fell forward and slowly lowering him onto the floor.

“No…” he whispered in disbelief. Not again. Not another friend dying at the hands of that witch.

A small smile spread on the Cat King's face. You consider me your friend? he thought.

“You can't fucking die, you hear me? You can't.”

Charles and Crystal acted fast. Crystal wrapped an iron chain around her wrists and Charles held a knife against her throat. Without her magic and in her frail state, Esther couldn't do much to escape their grip.

The witch laughed in glee at the state the Cat King was in. “Oh, he can and he will. I dipped that knife in lily pollen. Not only will he die but he will suffer for hours and it will hurt like a bitch.”

Edwin focused on the Cat King. He slowly pulled the knife out and tore off the sleeve of his own shirt to bandage the wound. 

“We need to get him to the warehouse.”

“We still haven't figured out what to do with Esther or why she is trapped-” Charles said.

“Charles. He is going to die. We need to get him to the cannery now.”

“Edwin…” Crystal said gently. “If what Esther is saying is true, he's going to die either way. But he will come back.”

“No. No one else is dying in this house.”

Thomas , a voice in his head muttered gently.

Edwin looked back down at the Cat King's face, confused.

That's my name. Thomas. I just wanted you to know.

Edwin nodded, not repeating the name out loud. It felt like something intimate that the others weren't supposed to know.

“What are we going to do with her?” Charles asked and tilted his head towards Esther, presumably talking mainly to Crystal. “How do we get her to cross over again?”

“You'll have to find a way to kill a ghost to get rid of me,” Esther said with another cackle.

At that moment, the door opened. Everyone looked up, clearly alarmed. Well, everyone except for the Cat King, who lacked the strength to do so. 

In came a man with brown skin and long hair down to his shoulders. His hands were adorned with at least thirteen rings. He was also sporting several pieces of jewellery.

“Who the bloody hell are you?” Charles asked.

The man offered them all a warm smile. For some peculiar reason, Edwin thought they could trust him.

“Hello. My name is Kashina, but my friends call me Kashi. I believe you saw one of my friends recently, didn't you, Edwin Payne? Mick the cursed walrus?” The man said as he approached them.

Edwin's eyes widened at the words. Mick excused himself to go talk to someone. Could that someone have been this man.

Edwin nodded, for lack of a better answer.

Who the fuck is that? And why does he smell like fish? He heard Thomas think as his breathing got more elevated.

“I do believe he asked you about a friend. Niko Sasaki, was it?” Kashi further inquired, hovering near the entry.

It was Crystal who spoke up. “Listen, we've had enough games for one day. What do you want? And why does Niko matter to you?”

The man shot her another gentle smile. “I can assure you this is no game. And young Niko matters to me because she matters to all of you. Every soul has their place in the universe and she belongs by your side.”

Esther started laughing again. “Except she doesn't. Because I killed her. Oops. Just as I am going to kill all of you when I get out of here.”

“Cockiness is one of the many flaws of humanity,” Kashi said gently. “As is the idea that anything in this world is ever absolute.”

“Please, just tell us what you mean,” Edwin pleaded, looking back and forth between the strange man and the dying Cat King in his arms.

Kashi smiled at them once more and then looked at the door. “You may come in now. Don't be scared. These are your friends.”

For a brief moment, Edwin thought that he might have accidentally inhaled some of Astaroths's smoke because through the door came none other than… Niko.

She looked different. She had dark hair again and she was wearing plain black clothes. She gave them all a curious look as if she couldn't recognise them.

Edwin was just about to speak up when he heard Crystal gasp. “Oh my god, look…” she muttered, sounding like she was about to cry. That caught Edwin's attention and he reluctantly tore his eyes away from Niko to glance towards the living room and see… Niko . 

Except that Niko was a ghost. He could tell by the way she walked and looked. She was wearing the white outfit she'd worn the day she died and that cut in her chest that killed her was visible.

“You!” Esther spat. “I could feel a strange spirit in the house ever since I came back. Why are you not dead?”

Ghost Niko looked at Esther with a self-satisfied smile and walked up to her. “I was stuck here for some reason. I couldn't leave. And then you came back and I knew I couldn't let you go after my friends. So I read through some of your books and found a spell that chained you to me so you wouldn't be able to leave. I have excellent reading comprehension.”

She looked at everyone in turn before looking over at her doppelganger, who seemed shocked at everything going on. Ghost Niko crossed the room at a fast pace and then collided into the other version of herself, and the two of them somehow merged into one person.

What is going on? Edwin heard the Cat King wonder right before the man disappeared in a storm of purple flames, turning into his cat form. Edwin held onto the cat. He didn't have the strength to move, too shocked by what was happening in front of his eyes.

Ghost Niko disappeared and now the only Niko there was her black-haired, alive version, who looked at all her friends with a fond smile.

“Hi, guys,” she said softly. 

“Niko?” Edwin asked, feeling a tear run down his cheek. “Is it really you?” He stood up to his feet and picked up the Cat King, cradling him in one arm, mindful of the cut on his front leg. 

“Yes. I think so. You guys, it was so strange because a part of me was somewhere in the Arctic and then a part of me was here and-” she didn't get to finish her sentence before Edwin rushed towards her and wrapped her in a bone-crushing one-arm hug, careful not to hurt Thomas who was still in his arms.

“It really is you…” he whispered softly.

“I missed you, too.”

Esther tried to wiggle out of Crystal and Charles’s grip. They both had tears in their eyes at the sight of Niko, but didn't let go of the witch.

“I will kill you again. And again. Just you wait. All of you,” Esther said with a laugh.

Niko pulled away from Edwin just enough to look at her. “I don't think so. The deal is off and your house is officially free of spirits. Your business on this plane is done.”

As if on cue, the ground around them started shaking. A red tentacle grew out of the ground and wrapped itself around Esther's leg. Crystal and Charles took several steps back.

The four gave each other a knowing look. “Let's get out of here.” Edwin said, leading the way out of the house.

As they were walking out, Edwin could hear the distinct screams from hell and see the red light out of the corner of his eyes. It was strange that he didn't have to worry about it pulling him back anymore.

As soon as they were outside, Charles and Crystal launched themselves at Niko, hugging her and asking a million questions.

Edwin would be asking questions too, if there weren't that one thing on his mind worrying him. He looked down at the cat in his arms, who had passed out now, but was breathing heavily.

“I hope your friend will be fine. Remember there is more than just one way to do magic,” Kashi said, reminding Edwin of his presence. “Give the Night Nurse my regards, please.” And with that, he started walking away into the night once more, disappearing before Edwin even had the mind to question him.

Edwin and Niko were sitting on a big wooden crate in the Cat King's throne room together. Niko was leaning her head on Edwin’s shoulder and he held her hand, as if needing to reassure himself that she was actually there.

Apparently, she was just as confused about her reincarnation as they were. She told them about how her body was in a pocket in time in a frozen land, while her soul seemed to get left behind in Esther's house. Apparently the sprites were somewhere out there too, though the girl wasn't sure whether anything that happened was in any way influenced by them. 

Charles and Crystal had reluctantly gone to Tragic Mick's. They didn't want to leave Niko, but after some convincing from her side that she wasn't going anywhere, they decided to head over to say hello and to thank him for his help. And Edwin asked them to pick up some medicine for Thomas.

Thomas.

He was in his bedroom, resting. He was stable for now, which meant he was not getting worse, but he was also not getting better. Edwin was still not sure whether any of his potions did anything to help his condition. He didn't know whether there was any way to cure lily poisoning. He found a spell that would work on any regular cat, but the Cat King was immune to magic so Edwin’s attempt to cast it made no difference. But he was going to search through every possible book to find something.

“I see I missed quite a lot while I was gone,” Niko said, nudging Edwin's shoulder playfully.

“Hm?” the ghost asked, turning his head.

The girl motioned around them with one hand. “I mean we are here, aren't we? Because you wanted to stay with the Cat King.”

Edwin let out a sigh. “He got injured because he came to my rescue. It is my duty to at least try to help him.”

Niko lifted her head to look at her friend properly. “I still remember his story about how Esther beat him to death. It sounded really graphic. But it was his choice to help, just like it was his choice this time too. You shouldn't feel responsible. Especially after what he did to you.” She pointedly looked down at the bracelet.

“It's not…” Edwin started, taking a break, unsure how to continue. “It's more complicated than that. Yes, that caging spell was out of line and it caused a lot of grievances. But the more I think about it, the more I realise how different things would be if he hadn't put the spell on me. We would have left without meeting you and the sprites would have killed you, for starters,” he said with a gentle smile.

Niko smiled back. “Yeah, I am still very grateful that you didn't let me burst open.” She made a horrified face. “Does that mean that you've forgiven him?”

Edwin thought really hard about it. He'd never told Charles or Crystal about his last encounter with the Cat King before leaving Port Townsend, partly because he was unsure whether either of them would understand and partly because it felt like something he wanted to keep for himself for a while.

But Niko… she would get it.

“The day after Esther…killed you,” he said, the words sour on his tongue. “The Cat King came to the butchershop to speak to me. He offered me his sincere condolences for the loss of you. And he was weirdly…sweet. He gave me a lily, which considering the situation he's in now, might sound like a cruel joke. The point is, he was different, and I think I forgave him that day already.”

The girl thought about it for a moment before slowly nodding in understanding. “I’ve only seen him once. But when Crystal and I went to ask him about Esther, he didn’t seem like a bad guy. He seemed hurt. Which makes sense, considering he had to crawl out of his own corpse.”

Edwin’s eyes widened. “He had to do what?”

“Oh, Crystal never told you that? Apparently, that is what he needs to do when he gets reborn, though I am not sure how it works.”

The detective didn’t know what it meant for sure either, but it was also the sort of thing that he would rather not watch happen.

“I need to go back to work. I can’t let him do that again,” he said decisively, picking up another book out of the pile he had on the floor next to him. 

Niko gave him another look. “You care about him, don’t you?”

Edwin already started reading again where he’d left off, but shrugged. “He’s different now. You said it yourself. He seems hurt. Which doesn’t mean he isn’t uncivill or garish anymore. But he grows on you, like moss.”

“So he’s growing on you?”

The ghost shrugged again, thinking that he had more important matters at hand now than looking too much into the way he felt about Thomas. He needed to make sure he didn’t die, for starters.

“So if I asked you…” Niko started again, clearly not letting it go. “If I asked you now if you want to kiss the Cat King, would your answer be the same?”

Edwin closed his book, realising he wasn’t registering any of the information in it anyway. He needed to finish the conversation with Niko first, apparently. “I don’t know. I haven’t thought about it. I have to admit I feel a certain fondness for him now, though I am uncertain whether that is merely gratitude for him saving my life.”

“Oh, how did that happen again?”

“I am not entirely sure. I was stuck in some sort of other reality in my head. My guess is that he used whatever magic is in this bracelet to get to me, since it also gives me the ability to read his mind.” He looked down at the piece of jewellery, gently touching the material. 

Then, an idea came to his mind. There is more than one way to do magic .

“Niko, you’re a genius.”

“I am?” the girl asked, furrowing her eyebrows. 

“I think… I think I know a way to heal him.” He got up to his feet, ready to head right to the Cat King’s bedroom. But then he hesitated for a moment. This idea was impulsive, reckless, which was more Charles’s department so Edwin needed a back-up. He turned to Niko. “Can you maybe come with me?”

Edwin led the way to the Cat King’s bedroom. The few cats that they saw on the way didn’t question them. Edwin actually thought he saw some of them bow their heads at him. He would have to ask about potential implications and side effects of the magic bracelet later on.

Once they got there, Edwin headed straight for the bed where the Cat King was laying. He was wearing a black silk robe and matching trousers underneath, his chest exposed. There was sweat building up on his forehead and when Edwin checked, he could tell he was running a fever.

Thomas? he thought, trying to communicate through the bracelet, but to no avail. Clearly, telepathy only worked if both people were conscious.

He sat down on the bed next to the Cat King, looking up at Niko. “Here is what is going to happen. I will try to go inside his head. I am not sure what it means, but inside his head is the only place where I may be able to heal him. If anything goes wrong, try to shake me as hard as you can.”

Niko seemed surprised by the request. “Oh, um… I…”

“Thank you, Niko. You’re a good friend,” Edwin said with a smile, before touching his fingers to the bracelet once more and trying to use the connection to get to Thomas. He thought of the way to use telepathy and did it more intensively, trying to enter the other’s mind instead of just building a channel of communication. He followed and followed and followed.

Edwin woke up in the exact same place, the Cat King’s room. But he was not on the bed. He was sitting at a desk, strangely. And it wasn’t even the makeshift desk he had used before, it was a proper desk with a proper chair. Next to him was a big bookshelf, filled with all sorts of different books on the arcane.

He turned his head and looked behind him to see Thomas sitting cross legged in his bed with a book in his lap. He was wearing an oversized jumper and joggers, the most casual outfit the ghost had ever seen him in. He looked up when he felt Edwin’s eyes on him and smiled softly. 

“Are you done yet? You promised we would go for a walk once you’re done with that case,” Thomas said, in a tone that Edwin had never heard from him before. Something gentle and domestic.

“Oh, um…” Edwin said unsurely, trying to make sense of what was happening. When the Cat King entered his mind, he was an outsider in it because he was not part of Edwin’s fantasy world. But it seems like Edwin was very much part of Thomas’s thoughts and he took the form of himself in them upon entering his mind. Still, he felt like was barging into something he shouldn’t.

Thomas placed a bookmark in his book and closed it, then got off the bed and walked towards Edwin. “You seem stressed. Do you need help?” he asked gently, approaching Edwin and placing a gentle hand on his cheek, caressing the skin there. The ghost felt like he might combust at any moment.

“Oh, um, yes, actually,” Edwin said, throat dry. 

Thomas nodded and tapped Edwin’s shoulder. “Go get some rest, sweetheart. I can finish going through those books for you.”

The whole ordeal was strange and nothing like what Edwin imagined Thomas’s thoughts to look like. For someone who was always seductive and who spoke of desire at any given chance, this was strangely… soft.

“Is this really what your fantasies look like?” he blurted out before he could stop himself.

The Cat King frowned, dropping his hand to his side. “What?”

The loss of contact allowed Edwin to think clearly for a moment again, so he decided to make use of his functioning brain before Thomas did something to distract him again. 

“First of all, forgive me for entering your head without permission like this, but the circumstances are sub-optimal.” He could see realisation dawn in Thomas’s eyes at the words. “You are unconscious. You have been for a while, and I have been struggling to find a way to heal you from that lily poisoning, which is why I am here.”

The Cat King stared at Edwin in disbelief. “I remember the lily poisoning. It fucking hurts and I’ve been waiting for it to finally kill me. That’s why I’ve just been… hiding out in this dream.” He looked vulnerable and Edwin knew he’d seen something he wasn’t supposed to see.

“I am here to make sure you don’t have to die,” Edwin explained, getting straight to the point.

“You can’t.”

“I may have found a way,” Edwin explained. “When you were in my head and saved me from Astaroth, different rules applied in that reality. I wasn’t human, but I was under the impression that I was human and I could feel everything again. And yet the wound that demon inflicted upon me followed me to reality. So, I started thinking… There is a spell that can heal lily poisoning for cats in general, but not for cat kings. But this is your head, right? You make the rules. So if you want to be a normal cat for a while, you can be and if I can use the spell on you then, it may be effective in our reality, too,”

“That sounds like a very big if.” Thomas frowned.

“You have nothing to lose, right? The alternative is for you to die. So let me try this one thing, Thomas,” Edwin said, taking the Cat King’s hand.

Thomas looked down at their hands for a moment before looking back up at Edwin. “You need to stop trying to save everyone. You didn’t know what consequences digging around in  my head might have for you.”

“I am not saving everyone. I am saving you. And I trust your magic.” Edwin held up his right wrist with the bracelet to emphasise. 

The Cat King took a deep breath. “Edwin, about this fantasy-”

“Stop. We can talk about it when you wake up.” Thankfully, the Cat King nodded. That wasn’t entirely for Thomas’s pride, but also for Edwin’s concentration. He needed to focus on the spell now.

He looked into Thomas’s eyes and the other looked back, giving him a short nod. After a moment, the Cat King disappeared in purple flames and before Edwin stood what looked like a now regular black cat.

Edwin started muttering the spell that he’s learned off by heart. As if instantly, the spot in Thomas’s shoulder -well, leg in this case- that Esther had stabbed started glowing, spreading light throughout the room. The more words Edwin spoke, the brighter the light shone and as he spoke the last word of the incantation, he was blinded and closed his eyes.

When he opened them again, Niko was crouched right in front of him, giving him a shocked look. “Edwin? Thank God you’re awake!” she said, pulling him into a hug. Edwin was still a little disoriented, but he put his arms around her instinctively.

“I was a little worried because your eyes turned yellow and you started saying all these things in a different language, but you seemed fine so I didn’t wake you.”

“What's happening?” The Cat King's voice made Niko let go of Edwin and they both looked towards him. The wound on his shoulder that was visible due to the robe sliding off was now a scar. “Fuck, my head hurts.”

Niko and Edwin looked at each other in awe. “It worked!” The girl exclaimed, clapping her hands in glee. 

The Cat King's eyes opened wide when he heard her voice and he sat up abruptly. “Wait, am I dead for good? Because you were dead,” he said, staring at Niko.

Niko shrugged, still smiling. “Looks like no one is dead. Yay.” She turned to Edwin and leaned in to whisper in his ear. “I will leave you two alone now. Remember, courage.” Then she turned back to the Cat King. “We’ll talk later, Your Majesty.” And then she was away in such a blur that even Edwin got some whiplash.

Now the two of them were alone and he and Thomas both looked at each other unsurely. 

“Thank you,” the Cat King finally said. “For not letting me die.”

“You risked your life for me. It was the least I could do.”

Thomas laughed humorlessly at the words, pain unmistakable in his eyes. “Yeah.”

Edwin frowned, feeling a little hurt at the change in the Cat King's behaviour. “What?” 

“I almost died for you. Twice!” The Cat King explained, looking up and shaking his head in disbelief.

That made Edwin get defensive. “I never asked you to.”

“I know. That's the whole fucking problem!” Thomas got out of bed and started pacing around the room, clearly troubled by something.

Edwin was unsure how to react to all of it so he stood up too, watching the Cat King. “What do you mean?”

Thomas turned to look at him. “You didn't ask me to, but I still did it. I could have left you alone in that house to fight Esther, but I didn't. Why didn't I?” he asked, sounding desperate.

The ghost swallowed hard. “I don't know.”

“For fuck's sake!” Thomas shouted, looking down at the ground and laughing again. “Do you know what happened last time I played the selfless hero and risked my lives for someone that I-” He trailed off. “Do you know what happened to the last person with whom I started making up fake, domestic scenarios in my head?”

Edwin was completely taken aback by the sudden wave of emotions coming from the Cat King. He'd always been so guarded, unwilling to open up about anything. Yet here he was, letting Edwin see that. 

“I… don't. But I am willing to listen and learn,” the detective said after a long moment.

Thomas stared at him in disbelief. “You're so fucking infuriating, you know that?” He asked, walking up to Edwin until they were inches apart. “You know how infuriating it is to hear you say that when I know I can never have you?”

And Edwin didn't know what possessed him to say the next words, but they were out of his mouth before he could stop himself. “Why are you so sure of it?”

It rendered Thomas speechless for a moment, his mouth hanging open. “Because of Charles. Because of your fantasy world with him,” he muttered.

Edwin let out a sigh, but didn't look away. He thought back on the world Astaroth had fabricated for him. “That world is not my ideal world. Not anymore. Yes, back when it was just me and Charles, maybe that is what I wanted. But things have changed now. I still love Charles, but I also love Crystal and Niko and neither of them existed in that. Maybe Astaroth only works with what can be found on the surface of the human psyche, but not what is underneath. There is much more underneath.”

“Like what?” Thomas asked, clearly  trying not to sound too hopeful and failing.

“I love Charles and I always will.” The Cat King’s face fell at the words. “But…it doesn’t mean I will always be in love with him. And it doesn’t mean I can’t fall in love with someone else. After telling him about how I feel and knowing he doesn’t feel the same, I felt liberated and it was like it gave me the freedom to start letting go and to move on. Try actually courting someone.”

Thomas looked at him with wide eyes, as if unable to believe it. “Someone…?”

Edwin smiled. “I recently had the pleasure to meet this sweet man named Thomas. He’s a handful at first, but turns out he isn’t half as bad once you get to know him.”

Thomas laughed. Edwin didn’t miss the look on his face when he spoke his name for the first time. “There is a lot you don’t know yet. A lot of things you may not like.”

“Let me be the judge of that, hm?” The ghost said, still smiling. “For someone who was set on making me kiss you, you certainly put up a fight when I am the one initiating the courting.”

“That’s because initially it wasn’t actual courting. It was about fucking. But now I hope you’re ready for me to romance the fuck out of you.” The Cat King smirked when the words made Edwin get visibly flustered.

The ghost looked into Thomas’s eyes, in awe at how different they seemed to the first time he saw them. His eyes travelled down to his nose, to the scar above his lips, to his lips…

God, I need to tell Niko that I do want to kiss him, he thought.

Thomas’s smile grew wider. “You can kiss me all you want. Though I don’t know why you would specifically tell your friend about it.”

Of course. Edwin forgot about the telepathy bracelet. That could get very embarrassing for him very fast.

He took the last step forward until there wasn’t any more space between them and he leaned in, at first only brushing his lips over Thomas’s before pressing them together in a sweet, chaste kiss. And the best part was that Edwin could feel Thomas’s soft lips and he thanked whatever force in the universe made him a supernatural being that was tangible to ghosts.

The kiss was over far too soon for his liking, but he knew that it wouldn’t be the last. That from now on he could do it more often, even allow himself to get used to the feeling of it.

“You were right,” he said after a moment.

“Hm?” Thomas muttered, looking like he was floating with happiness.

“Second kisses are always much better.”