Work Text:
(Third Person POV)
‘Today’s the day, I have to tell Catto about his family.’
It had been a few months since the ball had occurred. Despite almost dying to Kunshu AGAIN, it was nice to formally meet the cats who had helped her along her journey. It would most likely be a whole ‘nother year before she could see them again, but Minori was willing to wait. Besides, they deserve the chance to rest for a good while.
Though the Ball was nice (mostly), one thought that really tugged at Minori was the fact that she hadn’t gotten around to telling Catto anything about his family yet. That was something she really needed to do before next year rolled around and he was suddenly pulled into the spirit realm. He’d probably need a little more context before that happened, and Berry would probably be really sad if Catto went in there and had no clue who she was.
She asked to meet him in his house to talk about something private yesterday. How was she going to approach this? She had no idea, rather than just sitting down and talking to him. It wasn’t the most convincing thing, but it was one of the only things she could do.
Chomping down on her last biscuit, Minori swallowed it and stood up, walking to her front door and heading for Catto’s house. It was a fairly nice day out today. It was a tad cloudy with just a hint of sun peeking through them. Not many cats were out today under the threat of rain, but Minori wasn’t really one who minded getting wet.
Finally arriving, she gave a simple knock and waited for the door to open. It sort of reminded her of last year when Catto had pushed her out and slammed the door in her face while under the effects of the Book of Greed. Reflecting on that moment, it made a lot more sense why he acted that way.
While she was in thought, the door opened.
“Hey Minori! Come in before you get rained on.”
By now, the scars had completely faded. All that was left of them was some slightly discolored lines of fur below Catto’s eyes.
Walking in. Minori closed the door behind her and locked it.
“Hungry?”
“Nope, just ate.” Minori sat on the couch, waiting for Catto.
“Alrighty, just asking.” Catto walked into his kitchen, digging into a container of biscuits and pulled one out before walking back into his living room.
He flopped onto the couch. “Alright, whaddya need to say? If it’s another fetch quest I’m taping the book back together.”
“No! Nothing like that.”
“Ok, go ahead.”
“Well..” Minori rubbed her eyes, trying to think. “..I’ve been meaning to tell you this for a while after you recovered. I didn’t really know how to, since it’s a pretty complicated topic, but it’s too important to wait anymore to tell you, so I might as well do it now.”
“..mkay?”
“Catto, you have a family and a mother.”
She expected.. more of a reaction from him, but he just stared at her dumbfounded.
“..I found it out while searching for the sword. They talked to me and.. told me quite a lot of things. That includes your mother so.. it didn’t feel right to keep it from you.”
Catto blinked, and then turned his head to look at the calendar he had hanging on the wall. “OH! Ooohhhh! Hah! You had me worried there for a second.”
“..what?”
“You didn’t think I wouldn’t see the date today? Yeesh, you almost had me.”
Minori looked at the calendar. April 1st. Wow. She couldn’t have picked a better time to say this, could she?
“Ah! No! I didn’t realize-”
“Don’t try to go back on it. I already know.”
“Catto, I'm serious!”
“Sure you are.”
“I am!”
“Listen, you know I’d believe like, literally anything else you tell me, but family is a little bit of a sensitive issue considering the fact that, you know, I don’t have one. It isn’t something I like talking about. Good joke, but you really shouldn’t drag this out.”
“I’m being honest! I’m telling you the truth. Like, actually. I didn’t know it was April 1st, that was my mistake.”
Catto frowned. “I don’t get it. I also just don’t believe you, period. I’ve been in the orphanage ever since I was a kitten. I grew up there and appeared out of nowhere. I don’t have a family.”
“I know, bu-”
“But what?”
“But you do have a mom.”
Catto rubbed his eyes. “Listen, I’m not gonna believe you unless you show me some sort of physical proof. This conversation is getting uncomfortable for me and I’d rather not go on unless you have something to show for it.”
Minori paused to think. Physical proof? They went on such a long adventure and she didn’t have any. That was until she remembered how she met Berry in the first place.
“Actually, there’s somewhere I gotta take you to see it.” Minori stood up.
“Huh?”
“Just trust me.” She started advancing towards the front door.
“O…kay then.” Shrugging, Catto decided a walk couldn’t be too bad and followed her out.
…
The sky got darker as clouds obscured the sun, thunder ringing out from a distance. The canopy from the forest wasn’t really helping much, either.
“..Minori where the hell are we going?”
“Somewhere I remember from my adventure.”
After a while, the trees began to clear and gave way to the abandoned village. The place still smelled of ash and death, but it was a little weaker than the last time she was here. The buildings were just a little more gray, the wind blowing the burned sheets and covers in the houses.
“Uh, what is this place?”
“The abandoned village, or your old home. It’s.. a lot more sad compared to the visions I saw.”
Catto couldn’t help but cough, inhaling the dusty air. He sneezed. “..okay. Believing what you’re saying, (I’m not, but lets say hypothetically I am), where’s my house then?”
Minori immediately walked towards one, which freaked Catto out a little bit, but he followed her in silence. Stepping into the house, she looked around, recognizing the parts of it. She couldn’t help but feel more sad looking around. Berry was a good cat.
As soon as Catto stepped in, Minori stepped through an empty doorway and looked at the crib she had touched. This was his nursery, and now he was grown up. It felt strange to be here.
Catto walked in as well.
“Well, here.” Minori moved to the side to let him inspect the room.
Old toys, some burned, some untouched but dusty, littered the room. They were scattered around, their small stuffed selves knocked over and abandoned for seemingly years. The soft carpet had gone damp and dirty from the rain and dirt accumulated there over the years. Catto looked at all of it, walking over and just touching the crib near the wall. It didn’t seem all that old as it had held up pretty well over the years.
“What happened to this place?”
“Well, the dragon you fought had a den right near it and.. well..” The charred black-tinted walls made it easy to tell the rest.
Catto looked inside before turning his head and taking a second glance at everything he was seeing. He blinked, turned, blinked again. None of this seemed real at all, but it was right here.
Catto shook his head, a little thought tugging at him. “..this is some elaborate prank you’re pulling, Minori, but I’m really starting to get uncomfortable so..” An awkward smile spread across his face as he walked past Minori and out of the room. He walked for the exit.
“But this isn’t a prank! I’m not lying.” She walked fast after him.
“I told you, I don't really want to talk about this any more.” He walked faster, out of the house. Rain had started falling.
“Catto please, it’s-” Minori walked faster too, paws pressing against the wet ground.
“STOP.” Catto turned around and looked at her, ears down with a snarl.
Minori stopped.
“If you know EVERYTHING about me, then answer me this.” His paws shook. “If I have a mom like you say I do, then why did she leave me behind?!”
Minori tensed up at those words, her lips struggling to form a phrase. “Catto, she didn’t leave you-”
“Oh REALLY?! Then why would she drop me off at the front door of the front door of that stupid fucking orphanage?!”
“She didn’t-”
“Do NOT try to tell me that she didn’t! I spent my life in that dirty, run-down hellhole. If she did exist, she obviously didn’t care! No one in that damn orphanage did.”
…
“No adult cared, no child cared, I was bullied for my speech impediment. The only friend I had was Big Boi, and he was a foster kitten! We only saw each other in school and the very rare occasion he passed by the play yard. That’s it.”
Minori had more to say, she knew how it happened, so why did he think this?
“That’s all. There’s nothing else. I have no family. No one wanted me, and I’m fine with that.”
With a deep sigh, Catto turned away and started walking. You could hear the thunder more clearly now as the rain came down harder. Soon enough, Catto had walked out of sight. She doubted that he even knew where he was going, but she knew better than to follow him right now.
Sighing, she turned and walked back into the house. The rain was really coming down now, and she’d rather wait for it to stop. Finding a place where the roof was intact, she sat down and stared at the wall, leaning her head back.
She turned her head to look at the nursery door, disappointed in herself.
Thunder struck as lightning lit up the room through the window. In that flash of light, Minori noticed a silhouette in the doorway. An average cat with fur over one side of their face.
“..Berry?” She questioned.
At the next lightning flash, she was closer to Minori,
‘..probably can’t say much, can she?’
“..I tried to tell him. I’m sorry you had to hear that.”
Next flash, she’d sat herself right beside her.
“I.. it’s so hard when everyone is.. pretty much dead. He’s been alive so long believing that he has no one. It’s gonna take some time for him to realize.”
A chill went across her shoulder.
“..I know you’re trying to comfort me, but your paw is really cold.” She sadly smiled.
The chill ended as another flash lit up the room. She was pointing outside.
“What is it?” Minori stood up. “Actually, I take back that question, you can’t talk.” She walked outside.
Another flash. Berry seemed to be kneeling over a certain patch in the dirt. Minori walked over and knelt down too. “..is there something buried here?”
Not waiting for an answer, Minori swiped a few rocks to the side and started digging downwards. The dirt was soft from the rain, so it wasn’t too hard. Eventually, her paw hit something. She looked down and pulled out a paw skull.
Minori yelped and dropped it.
“Why are you making me desecrate your grave?!”
Before she could say anything else, she saw something that wasn’t bones. Curious, she grabbed it and pulled it out of the ground. Once it was all out and she’d shaken the dirt off of it, she gazed at the axe in her paws.
“..this is yours?”
“Yep, but I had no clue my paw was still attached to it. Sorry!”
Minori jumped before spinning around to see Berry. Though, she was pretty different from the last time she’d seen her. Her ghost self had attained a lot more injuries compared to the Ball. Her fur was charred and bloody, you could see her skull sticking out of her head and how roughed up she was.
“..what happened to you?”
“Oh, what you’re seeing right now? I always look like this. Ghosts tend to look different depending on where we are.”
“I see. ..I’m guessing you heard everything.”
“I did.” She wiped some small tears from her eyes. “To say I didn’t expect it would be a lie, but… gosh.”
“Well, what do we do now? He’s clearly upset and I don’t think talking to him about this for a while is a good idea.”
“Probably not. I suppose next year's ball will have to clear it up for him. In the meantime, can I ask you a favor?”
…
Catto made his way through the forest, plenty of thoughts rushing through his head all at once. Not only did the conversation he had with Minori shake him up, he was also lost in the forest with rain pouring down like no tomorrow.
Shivers went through his cold body as he kept walking, just hoping to reach the edge of the forest eventually. He knew the plains like the back of his paw at this point, so it wouldn’t be an issue. It was just navigating this forest that was really tripping him up.
This situation felt like something he’d see in one of his many nightmares. The forest was getting darker by the minute, and Catto could’ve sworn he kept on hearing footsteps around him. The wind wasn’t helping, rustling the bushes and grass. All of it made him paranoid as he continued to shiver and walk.
Though, eventually, he saw an opening through the trees. With no second thought, he ran towards it, feeling mud and dirt splash against his paws he eventually arrived at…
the base of a mountain. Not the plains. Fuck.
“Ugh.. I’m gonna be out here forever..” He tiredly laid his head against the rock, just letting the rain fall on him. It was getting late already and he wasn’t even close to getting back home. Even worse, Catto didn’t know what these woods could hold when night rolled around. He’d really prefer not to get mauled by anything, so finding shelter was his next best bet.
Standing up straight, he started walking before his foot hit something metal.
“Ow!” Catto shook his foot before looking down to see what exactly he hit. A metal lamp with space for a candle inside laid there. It was rusty and the candle had burned out a long time ago, but it strangely seemed untouched.
Upon seeing this, Catto backed up, trying to see where it came from. Apparently, Catto had missed the giant cave-in on the side of the mountain. The cave-in was surrounded by old candles, burned out and melting in the rain. A door laid in the center of the cave-in, seemingly carved by hand. It was odd, but it was somewhere to stay until the storm cleared away. Taking caution, he knocked on the door.
“..is anyone there?”
No response came from the inside. It was probably a risk, but it was more preferable to staying out in the rain. Sighing, Catto opened the door and walked inside.
Strangely, the handmade shoddy fireplace was already lit when he walked inside. The flame was warm and felt nice against his cold fur. He started to have second thoughts about this. If the fire was lit, someone probably still lived here. He was literally breaking and entering right now.
“Is someone there?” A voice came from a different room.
‘..shit.’ Catto quickly thought.
“I’m so sorry miss! I thought this place was abandoned.. I was-”
“Are you looking for shelter from the rain?”
“..yeah.”
“Then come in. Please, make yourself comfortable, Catto.”
He froze up. “Ah- how do you know my name..?”
“You’re very recognizable, you know.”
Catto thought back to the Book of Greed for a moment. Him being the village hero, mixed with everything that happened a few months ago? It was sort of a given.
“..I guess I am.”
The voice chuckled. “Please, have a rest by the fire. I can practically hear you shiver, dear.”
Not questioning it, Catto slowly walked towards it and sat down. The fire felt so nice, beginning to dry his fur and warm him up. He was still tense, so he couldn’t exactly relax, but it was nice to not be freezing.
“Are you by any chance hungry, sweetheart?”
“Well..” Catto thought on it for a moment. “I haven’t thought about it but I guess I am.”
“I see. Well, if it’s not too much to ask, there are some ingredients out there. Do you mind making it if I tell you how?”
“Sure, but why can’t you?”
“I’m terribly sick right now. I don’t want to risk getting you sick too.”
Standing up, Catto stretched. “Okay then, what do I do?”
“Do you see that pot in the center of the room? Does it have water in it?”
Catto turned around, he didn’t even realize it was there. To him, it looked more like a cauldron than a pot. Shrugging it off, he looked inside. Sure enough, there was water. “Yeah.”
“Good. Now heat it up.”
“How?”
“Do you not know how fire works?”
Seeing the wood underneath the pot, he immediately felt stupid. “Ah- nevermind..”
Grabbing a stick from the fireplace, he dragged it across the wood. Quickly, it caught flame and began warming up the large pot.
“Great. While we wait for it to boil, why don’t you look around for some salmon powder, as well as salt and pepper?”
“Uhh.. okay?” Making his way over to the shelves of different spices, he scanned each label. He grabbed the salt, pepper, and one of the pink powders labeled “salmon powder.”
“Okay, is there anything else I should grab?”
“The chest under the shelves should have some fish and vegetables inside. Grab those and cut them up.”
Putting the seasonings aside, Catto opened the chest and grabbed the ingredients before carrying them over to a nearby table. The table was littered with glass bottles. They all seemed dusty and old, some laying on top of books and others on the floor. Grabbing a nearby knife, he cleaned it off and started cutting slowly. He was no chef. All his cooking skills sucked unless Big Boi gave him specific instructions on how.
All of his cuts came out uneven and jagged, and that conversation hadn’t quite left his head yet. He couldn’t focus.
“Is something wrong, dear?”
“Sorry I just.. got a lot on my mind right now.”
“That’s okay. Just breathe.”
Catto did, just trying to focus more on his task. Eventually, it got done, and he could hear the water bubbling behind him.
“I hear that it’s about time to put everything in.”
“Yeah, just a second!” Catto put the knife down and grabbed the seasonings.
“How much should I add?”
“Up to you. How do you want it to taste?”
“I uh.. Dunno?”
“Then take a guess.”
Unsure, he started pouring things in and hoping it would taste good. Once he poured in what he thought was enough, he added the fish and veggies.
“Smells nice so far. There’s a wooden spoon on the wall that you can stir with.”
Just nodding, Catto made his way over to the wall and grabbed exactly what she was talking about, walking back and stirring.
“So, dear, what’s on your mind?”
“Huh?”
“You said you had a lot on your mind.”
“Oh right. I did, didn’t I? Well.. I just.. had an argument with a friend that left me really uncomfortable. I’ve just been thinking about everything she’s said and it really shook me.”
“I see. Were you two roaming the village?”
“Yeah. She tried to tell me I have a family and that’s..” He paused.
“..I just don’t believe it.”
“I see, I see. Do you not have one?”
“Nope, spent my life in an orphanage.”
“Right. Is it ready, dear?”
Catto looked down. “Yeah, I’d say so.”
“You can find some bowls in the chest as well.”
Walking over to the chest, Catto looked through it. This time, he noticed more odd looking things. Crystals, more strange herbs, empty glasses and.. skulls. He blinked twice, really hoping he wasn’t seeing this right. Grabbing the first bowl he saw, he looked around more. More crystals were strung from the ceiling, vials with little remnants of potions laid about, and the large pot in the center should have been a dead giveaway.
“Is something wrong? You seem stressed.”
“..what are you?”
“..ah. Well, what do you think I am?”
Catto didn’t know much about witches, but over and over again he had been told tales of witches while he grew up. How they’d put spells and curses on cats, tricking passerby and eating them whole. Witches were terrifying, ugly creatures who’d simply disguise themselves as normal cats. Many things were said about them, some of them conflicting, but one thing that always persevered in any telling was that once you were in the clutches of one, there was no way out.
“You’re.. a-a.. a witch..” He shook.
“I am. Is there something wrong with that?”
“..what’re you going to do to me?”
“..what? What are you implying?”
“That you’re probably gonna curse me or eat me..”
“..do you want me to do that?”
“No.”
“Then I won’t. Where in the world did you get these silly ideas from?”
“I was.. well.. so.. that’s everything I’ve been told about them.” Catto couldn’t help but feel a little insensitive about what he just said. He’d never actually met a witch before, and this certainly wasn’t a good first impression.
“That fear has been ingrained in your mind, hasn’t it?”
“I guess.. if those things aren’t true then.. what are witches?”
“To put it simply, we’re just cats who practice magic and sometimes live out in the woods.”
“..that’s it?”
She giggled. “Yes, that’s it.”
“Wow. Uh.. sorry for reacting like that. That was asshole-ish of me.”
“Ah, it’s quite alright. Kunshu put quite a stain on our community, so I didn’t expect you to say anything positive.”
Catto perked up at that name. “Kunshu?”
“Do you remember that name? Did they ever tell you?”
“It sounds familiar..”
“They were the one who created the Book of Greed.”
It was a blurry memory, but Catto remembered the fight, especially when the book took control. Was that who took over him at that moment? Was that the voice in his ear? Catto rubbed his eyes, trying to remember more. Most things were a blur by now, and a headache began to form. Grunting a bit, he put a paw on his head.
“Don’t strain yourself to remember. Even if you’ve mostly recovered, you’re still healing. We don’t want any opportunities for that curse to seep back into you now.”
Catto inhaled and exhaled, trying to calm himself down.
“The only thing more I’ll say is that they did bound their own soul to the book. You’ve likely heard them before. They’re terrible, ruined our reputation forever.”
“I heard them quite a lot. They’re.. something.”
“That they are. I bet you’re grateful to be free.”
“Don’t you know it.” He smiled, carrying his bowl over to the pot and grabbing some of the soup. “Oh, here, I’ll bring you some.”
“Oh no, dear, that bowl is for you.”
“But you’re sick. Don’t you need something to warm you up?”
“Do you always think of others before yourself?”
He didn’t have a response to that.
“Bold question, I’m aware, but I couldn’t help but notice that while you had the book. You didn’t just use it for yourself, but you used it to help other people, even if your idea of help was a little more twisted. It was a little strange to me.”
“I’m the village hero. It’s just what I do. I’m used to it.”
“You help others before yourself, and what do you do when you need help?”
“Well.. I usually just take care of it myself, unless it’s so bad that I actually need help.”
“So you wait until it’s too late?”
“I guess.”
“I see. That’s why you had that fight, right?”
“I don’t see the correlation.”
“Your friend tried to tell you something, and you pushed her away because you think you already know it, therefore you’d already taken care of it?”
“I.. well it’s different when it comes to family. I dunno where she got all of that from but.. I just can’t believe it. I know how I grew up.”
“Can you really not believe her, or do you just not want to?”
“..both I guess.”
Catto walked and sat by the fire. “I guess I just want to feel.. like I have control over one part of my life. Something I know for sure, something that I know is true no matter how many times I look at it.. and then she just.. tries to shatter that for me.”
“How would your worldview shift if she was right?”
“I’d.. feel empty. Not that I don’t already but.. more empty than I do.”
“..well, I wouldn’t say you have no family.”
“What?”
“You have your friends right? Your best friend?”
“They’re the ones asking me for everything. Y’know. ‘Pick up my pearls, Catto!’ or ‘Go get the book, Catto!’ It’s.. tiring.”
“Do you ever say no?”
“If I do, would they still want me around?”
“I think they care a lot more than you think. I mean, they saved you from the Book of Greed.”
“That’s because I was evil.”
“They cared enough to travel all around the island, building the sword and coming back to help you. Not to mention, your best friend put themself in danger for you, and also declared their love right to your face during that fight.”
Catto took a moment to process this. “..WAIT HE DID THAT?!”
The witch giggled. “Indeed they did. They really love you, and I’m sure none of your friends have malicious intent when they ask things of you, but it’s okay to say no sometimes to help yourself, and pushing people away when they try to help you isn’t healthy. It’s okay to be wrong.”
Catto was quiet. “..I still don’t want to accept the fact I’m wrong about my family. It just feels wrong.”
“I understand that. But did it feel nice to get that off your chest?”
“..yeah.”
“Good, now eat, dear. You must be hungry.”
He smiled, beginning to eat the warm food. It tasted great, and Catto gulped it down quite fast. The food was comforting, a complete contrast to the storm raging on outside. He couldn’t help but take another bowl and gulp that down too.
“That was really nice.. thank you.”
“Of course, now please, rest. I don’t think the rain will stop until the morning. There’s a few blankets by you.”
Looking to his side, Catto grabbed one of the blankets and curled up by the fire. He certainly had a lot to think about, but right now he was warm and felt.. okay. It was surprising, as he was in the home of a witch, but everything felt okay right now. Slowly, Catto closed his eyes and fell asleep.
“..you really are like your mother.”
…
Morning finally rolled around, and Catto woke up. The fire had been put out and the pot was now empty. Sitting up, he stretched and folded the blanket that he’d used last night. He placed it back into a neat stack and stood up.
Strangely, his new friend had nothing to say.
“Hey.. thank you for letting me stay the night. You didn’t have to do that.”
Oddly enough, she didn’t respond.
“..miss?” Catto considered the fact that she may be asleep. A part of him knew that he should just leave, another part was curious of what she looked like. Well, one look couldn’t hurt, right?
Cracking the door open just a bit, Catto looked inside.
The bed was empty. No cat laid there, the only thing on it was a witch hat that laid on the pillow.
‘Where’d she go..?’
Across from the bed, there was a shoddy crib. If they had a kitten, she was likely old and sick. So how could she get up and leave so fast? Could he find her again? Catto shook his head, confused. Whatever the case, he turned around and quietly closed the door, making his way out.
…
Minori woke up early to do what Berry had asked. Her first request was to take her axe to the village so she could roam there as well. The other request was to simply clean and restore it. Minori was no good with weapons, but she did know someone who was.
Getting out of bed early, she grabbed the axe she’d laid against the wall and headed for the door, making a direct turn towards his house. The air was pretty thick from the rain last night, forming a little bit of fog. Despite that, it was a nice day.
Arriving and laying the axe against the wall, she knocked on his door, and it was answered immediately.
“Morning, Minori!” Cheese greeted her with a smile.
“Hey Cheese, sorry for bothering you this early, but could I ask a favor?”
“Yeah, after I eat my breakfast, but what is it?”
Grabbing the axe, Minori held it out to him. Cheese seemed immediately intrigued and took it from her paws to look at it.
“I know you’re an expert with weapons so.. could you restore it?”
“This thing is beautiful.. I can tell it’s very old, but beautiful! I absolutely can. Why don’t you come in?”
With a smile, Cheese took it in and Minori followed him. Laying it against a wall, Cheese walked over to his kitchen and grabbed his eggs to eat. He ate fast.
“So where did you find this thing?” He questioned.
“Was exploring that village we went to and found it in one of the buildings.”
“Are you sure you didn’t accidentally steal an heirloom or something?”
“Oh no, it is an heirloom, but it belongs to someone we know.”
“Oh really?”
“Mhm. I wanted to get it out of there and keep it safe.” She half lied.
“Then I’ll get to work on it.” Eating the last of his eggs, Cheese walked back over and picked it up. With the axe over his shoulder, he started walking over to a trapdoor in the corner of the room. Minori followed him down the ladder and into the basement. THe basement was lined with quite a few dug up artifacts and weapons. A few welding tools lay scattered around, with a hot oven and anvil to complement it all.
“Holy shit.” Were the only words that could come out of Minori’s mouth.
“What? Didn’t know I was a blacksmith?”
“I just thought you were good with weapons, I didn’t know you MADE them?!”
“Well I am! After my parents died, I was put in an orphanage and adopted young. He said his sister was a blacksmith and wanted to carry on her trade. I showed interest, so he taught me how to smith and here I am! A lot of cats don’t really expect someone like me to do this, but I do.” Cheese shrugged, laying the axe on the anvil before grabbing some water from a nearby sink and dousing the axe in it. Dipping a rag in some water mixed with alcohol, he wiped it down before flipping it to the other side and repeating the process.
As soon as he cleaned all the dirt and grime off of it, he shone a light on it. The rose steel axe glimmered under the light, its gemstones refracting rainbows. The axe had multiple chips and was melted in a few places.
“Beautiful..” Cheese smiled. “I haven’t really seen steel that looks like rose gold.. I have to guess the steel was infused with rose gold when it was made. Still incredibly pretty.”
“How long do you think it’ll take to fix it?”
“With the complicated materials and the sheer amount of damage it sustained.. it’s gonna take at least a month. At most, 5 months probably.”
“Alright, I’ll scrape together some money for you..”
“No need! You’re a friend, and this axe is so unique, it’ll be a pleasure to work with.”
“..thanks Cheese.”
“No problem, I’ll start on it today and work as hard as I can.” Throwing on his safety mask, Cheese warmed up the oven and grabbed some tools to get started.