Magic Cat Academy: The Adventures of Momo

The Infirmary

Nimbus jolted awake from his daydream to Frodo's frantic shaking. The frog seemed panicked.

The frog seemed panicked. Nimbus widened his eyes, quickly dismissing any lingering sleepiness and ruffling his feathers to gain composure. For as long as he had known Frodo von Schwartz, he had always approached his problems with determination greater than his body. He might be afraid, yes, but never at loss, unlike how he was right now.

"What happened? Where's Jack?"

"The Infirmary. Humans happened. I don't know which one of the juniors was their target this time, but it seems terrible."

The owl nodded without a word. There was no need for that. They both knew that this was bound to happen sooner or later, and there was nothing they could do. Jack St.Lucer was their best bet. Being an animated lantern, he gave off an uncanny aura that, despite being so untrue about his nature, helped them steer off many a nasty warlock. Besides, his relationship with the elves made him almost untouchable, lest they wanted to invoke conflict. The three juniors, on the other hand, had nothing to defend themselves, with Oliver's goofy nature, Peppy's carefree attitude, and Momo keeping her relationship with Goldiha the Flyer a secret.

They rushed down the Tower and ran across the field to a school building. Frodo yanked open a door on its side, revealing a set of stairs of white marble, and they descended at alarming speed.

Peppy was crying, her fluffy tail wrapping around her hip for comfort. Oliver was whimpering, but he perked up upon hearing the distinct sound of their footsteps. Neither was lying on the bed.

They sat beside the black cat, who seemed to have fallen unconscious, in solemn silence. Black tucked in white... Nimbus had never thought he'd see something of such contrast in his life, and he frowned at how his mind seemed to tell him that this image looked harmonious in some crazy way. There were red-tinted bandages on her head, and he was sure there would be more covered by the sheets. After all, the fox and the dog also had plasters and bruises all over.

Frodo pulled two chairs over, and they joined the mute choir. Only after a few minutes of the frog patting on her back that Peppy had calmed down. When she spoke, her voice was shaky.

"It was in Glyphs class," she sniffled, "You k-know, when we can finally put our Magic Theory lessons to use."

Nimbus hummed, signalling her to continue.

"A-and, well, we were trying the flashlight spell. Arm straight, a small swirl of the tip and everything... It was going so well! And I almost got it! Oliver beat me to it though..." she giggled, only for a little, before her eyes drooped again, "He a-actually got it before everyone else. And before I k-knew it, he was on the floor..."

The owl suddenly realized how quiet Oliver had been for the entire story, even though it involved himself. He wasn't exactly talkative in the first place, but not to the point of eerily shutting himself up.

"Someone punched him, but I can't remember who... He bit them back, and Momo was trying to pry him off before she was h-hurt too..." Peppy couldn't hold herself back and burst into tears again, "I-I was s-so scared, I couldn't m-move..!"

"Hey, hey! It's alright. It's going to be alright," Frodo returned to drawing circles on her back, "Jack is handling it with Instructor Juliana. Trust them."

"I'll go to the Teacher's Office to see how it's going. You stay with them," Nimbus stood up.

"W-wait..."

It was not Peppy who spoke this time. It was Momo Avian, with groggy, empty eyes as if she was on the verge of death. He would've said his last goodbye, had he not known how resilient she was.