Chapter Text
Waking up feeling disoriented wasn't new to Cale, nor was finding himself alone. With his habit of sleeping in, everyone was usually about to have lunch by the time he got up.
But waking up feeling uncomfortable was something he hadn't experienced in a while. After all, his family always made sure he was as comfortable as possible.
But this time it was different. He felt sweaty, cramped, and like he was sleeping on the floor.
With discomfort creeping in, he tried to stretch out to get more comfortable, but he couldn't.
He felt trapped, so he opened his eyes to try to assess his situation.
And what he saw surprised him.
He was on the floor, surrounded by what appeared to be office desks and chairs, but that wasn't what surprised him most.
No, what surprised him most was what appeared to be his hair.
It was black.
None of the reddish color he'd had for years; instead, it was jet black.
Long, black, and unkempt, as dark as Kim Rok Soo's hair.
The sight of that hair set off all his alarm bells.
With that, he did everything he could to escape whatever had him trapped, finally managing to free himself after a brief struggle.
He tried to stand, but a screeching voice stopped him.
"Aizawa-san, I apologize for waking you; I just needed some files."
The screech came from a creature with whitish fur, standing on two legs and wearing a uniform that seemed tailor-made for it.
It looked like a cross between a dipodidae and a mustelidae and was almost the size of Mueller. Although he had certainly never seen a creature quite like this one.
And he'd seen a lot in his life.
Cale could only watch, bewildered, as the creature reviewed some papers while a thousand and one thoughts raced through his mind.
But the one that stood out the most was:
Where is my family?
“I found them! Don’t worry, Aizawa-san, you can go back to sleep.”
The animal’s voice brought his attention back to the present, and he focused all his energy on him.
“Then I’ll see you later…”
But he stopped, the smile slowly fading from his face as he stared intently.
“You’re not Aizawa-san…”
Those small, cold, dark eyes didn’t blink. And he asked,
“Who are you?”