Persona BLEACHED 4: Chapter 6

Chapter 6: In the Dark Night
August 30, 2031
I've been a nomad my entire life.
I never stayed in the same place for long. Dad was constantly searching for the "right environment" to continue his studies. Glasgow, Berlin, Lisbon...I've seen more of the world than most people will in their entire lives.
It was fun for a while. What child doesn't want to go around the world and see all there is to see? My entire room is filled either memories of my travels. Even my cat comes from a land far away from the West Midlands. 
I couldn't understand why Mum always looked unhappy. This was the kind of life everyone dreams of. But over time, it started to hit me. You establish a routine after a while. A life. Friends. People you love seeing and things you enjoy experiencing. Every time we moved, it was like clearing out your hard drive. You had to start all over from the beginning. And by the time you were set into comfortable habits, it was time to leave again.
One day, she decided that the days of not seeing Dad for long periods of time, when he was the entire reason for even *being* where we were, couldn't go on any longer. So she took me back to Wolverhampton. After being away for so long, it felt like another reboot. Crippling loneliness set in again.
It wasn't long after I returned home that I met Calvin Nguyen. He was a worker at the café I frequented. I was taken in by his smile and his casual attitude. I started telling him more and more about what I was going through. How frustrated I was with my dad's absences. He was...comforting. Going to see him at the café became part of my daily routine.
After a while, things started to become less pleasant. I'd notice a dour look in his eyes if I ever spoke to another man, or even looked in their direction. Every free moment had to be spent around him, or else I'd be hit with a barrage of texts and calls. One time he told me to take off the make-up and nail polish I had at the time, "unless I wanted to be confused for a whore". I've been scared to use any kind of cosmetics ever since.
My decision to leave for London had three factors going into it. One was that the educational programs were second to none. Two, it would be a last-ditch attempt to see eye-to-eye with Dad, and maybe, finally, convince him that moving from place to place wasn't a viable lifestyle anymore. Lastly, it would give me space to get away from Calvin. His controlling tendencies were intensifying to an alarming degree. This didn't feel like the same man I was charmed by at the café. Did he change over time? Or was that kind listener just a mask he was wearing?
When I told him I was leaving, he was furious. His only victim that day was a vase inside Mum's study, but the alarm bells were sounding, loud and clear. Once I left, I blocked him from contacting me, but that didn't stop him from trying. Wolverhampton is only three hours from London. I knew the day would arrive when he would follow me here.
I never believed his response would be so...so...
......
---
Tabby awoke from her slumber. She looked around at where she was. It was a hospital room, and she was covered in bandages where Calvin had attacked her. Everything was hurting.
"Oh, thank goodness! You're awake."
Seated beside her, going through her phone, was Carrie, now back in her normal attire.
"Carrie..."
"Shh, don't strain yourself. You've suffered a great deal of trauma. You need to relax. He can't hurt you now. I won't allow it. Kenneth and Natalia went back to your apartment to fetch your cat. I took the liberty of contacting your mother. She's currently racing over here."
"And Dad...?"
Carrie paused. "I'm sorry. I haven't been able to get a hold of him."
Tabby sighed. "That just figures..."
"I'm sorry about all of this, Tabitha. I have some understanding of what you're going through."
"How could you? Your relationship with Kat is so wonderful...she would never..."
"Of course she wouldn't. What I mean is that I've also stared death in the face and lived to tell the tale. Natalia told you that I risked my life to save hers, correct?"
"Yeah, I remember..."
"It was during our first year at the Academy. An enemy of ours had hidden an explosive device inside of a package addressed to Natalia. I pushed her out of the way when it went off. I was comatose for a full day. I have scars on my back that serve as a constant reminder of what happened that day. You've survived something horrific. The memory will stay with you for a long while yet. But I believe there is something to be gained from this, as well."
"How? Being stabbed...beaten...and nearly drowned...what could I get from that?"
"The knowledge that you survived it and the strength to keep going and not let it defeat you. I've suffered through more than one near-death experience in my lifetime. And yet here I am, happier than I've ever been. This darkness you're suffering through won't last forever."
"How can you still be so calm when you've gone through so much?"
"I'm going to tell you something not many people know about. When I was lying in my hospital bed, much like you are now, I had a vision that I was staring at my own body. And there with me was my mother. She was as beautiful and filled with love as I remember her being. She said that I had two choices. I could go with her, or choose to keep fighting and live. Telling her that I couldn't go with her was the hardest thing I've ever done. But I knew that my work in this life wasn't done yet. I still had a reason to be here. I know how you must be feeling now, and I want to help you through it. All of us do. We're going to take care of you from here on out, okay?"
As it turned out, Tabby's tear ducts weren't entirely empty. Carrie comforted the weeping girl. "It's okay, love. You're safe now. Cry as much as you need to."
Carrie's phone lit up. "Pardon me for one moment. Kitten is still pursuing the dastard through Fulham. I'm keeping track of his coordinates."
"Carrie...how are you doing that? How is anything you've shown and done even remotely possible?"
"Tabitha...there is much we need to tell you, when the time arrives. You're just like me. Your background is with science. Being able to prove something through facts and logic. Yet everything you've seen from us tonight goes against any notion you've had about our world. There are some things science can't explain away. I suppose the most accurate name for that would be 'magic'."
"Magic...ugggh...my head's hurting just trying to wrap my head around it..."
"Don't fret. Rest. Everyone will be here in short order. Including my Kitten. She's doing what she does best. Protecting her pack."
---
King's Road in Fulham, known as one of the major shopping areas in Greater London, certainly one of the more famous in the upscale district of Chelsea.
Calvin Nguyen wasn't in the area to shop. He had made the three-hour drive from Wolverhampton for one single purpose: revenge against the girl he had believed wronged him. In his mind, she was currently in the trunk of his dad's Chevrolet, lying at the bottom of the Thames. Whether she bled out from being stabbed, drowned in the river or suffocated inside the enclosed trunk didn't matter to him. She was suffering like she'd made him suffer.
His plan now was to disappear. Even if the car was never found, the police would surely deduce that with both him and the car gone, that he was the one responsible for her vanishing. 'Calvin Nguyen' had to vanish with her. 
His plan had hit a snag, however. Someone had caught sight of what he'd done. And they were following him from the shadows. As he hurried through the busy streets, he was constantly looking over his shoulder. Atop one of the buildings, he thought he saw a flash of pink. That same pink would keep appearing everywhere he looked.
He ducked between two buildings. He peered out to make sure no one was pursuing him. Then, his phone began to ring. "Don't do it. Don't do it." The caller's persistence got to him, and he answered. "Who the hell is this?"
"Hi, Calvin. Out for an evening stroll? You've wandered awfully far from home." The caller's voice was distorted.
"Why are you following me?"
"'Why are you following me', he asks after pushing an innocent girl into the river."
"That little bitch is far from innocent, and why do you even care?"
"I feel so bad for her. Knowing her first experience in a relationship was with a pile of dung like you. My ex can be a stubborn dolt, and we've had our share of bust-ups. But I know that he's a sweetheart underneath it all. There ain't a sweet thing about you."
"Why are you telling me this?"
"He had this thing he used to do. Go out at night and vent his rage on scummy creeps like you. I told him over and over what a bad thing to do that is. But now? I'm starting to see the appeal."
A thin beam of pink light shot down, and struck right next to where Calvin was standing. "What the hell?!"
"See, his problem was that he was doing it out of anger. Me, I'm plenty pissed off at the moment. But there's more to it than that. I'm making sure you don't do to anyone else what you did to that girl."
"What the bloody hell does it matter to you?!"
Another beam was fired close to him. He looked up. Standing on the rooftop was a shadowy figure, that same striking pink shining through the darkness. The figure was holding out their index finger. "See you soon, Calvin." They hung up the phone. 
Calvin fled in a panic. 
He ran until he reached Chelsea Harbour. The luxury apartments could provide adequate cover, he thought. Maybe he could stow away on a boat, go across the creek and disappear, away from whoever was following him.
He hopped onto a yacht, and ducked inside. After a few seconds, he could hear the sound of someone hopping onto the boat. He tried to stifle his breathing. Whoever this was walked along the deck for a short time, but soon, the footsteps stopped. Calvin waited for a few minutes, but no other sound came. He cautiously stepped out to have a look. Nobody was around.
He ducked back inside the boat. When he turned around...
He was staring into the glowing pink eyes of an angry, black lioness. She roared at him. 
"Aaaah...AAAAAAAAAGH!"
She lunged onto him, clawing at the panicking man. He managed to break free, and ran as fast as he could. He leapt into the water, frantically thrashing about out of sheer terror. A hand reached down and hoisted him back onto the dock, throwing him down with force.
He coughed up water, and looked up. 
"Hi, Calvin." Kat loomed over him.
"Who...who are you?"
Kat knelt down, and punched him in the face with enough force to knock him out.
"I'm VENGEANCE." 
She took out her phone, and opened up an app with an icon resembling a stylized, ashen gray letter 'A'. "You're about to say sorry like a YouTuber, Calvin."
The world began to shift, and soon, the surrounding area appeared much differently. The ground, buildings and sky were colored red and green, while the water had turned a pitch black.
Calvin reappeared, though his eyes were now colored yellow, and there was a distortion in his voice. This space was the Metaverse, the realm constructed from humanity's cognition, and this 'Calvin' was a Shadow, an entity created from a person's innermost emotions and thoughts.
"Why are you following me and attacking me? I haven't done anything wrong!" he demanded.
"That's exactly what the girl you attacked should be saying. She dumps your controlling ass, so you do all these horrible things to her? That's what you think getting even is?" Kat retorted.
"It's my right! She thinks she can play with my feelings and get to walk away? You know how many times I've been rejected before? I had so much more to offer than that deadbeat dad of hers, but she goes and runs off to live with his ungrateful ass? I taught her a lesson! One she can take down the river to Hell!"
A shadowy aura surrounded him, and his form shifted to that of a red-colored demon with a bolt tied to one of its ankles. "She deserved to die for betraying me! And now you'll join her in--"
His speech was interrupted by a large pink beam blasting him into a smoldering heap, the force of which caused the water behind him to part.
Behind Kat was an ephemeral woman with long black hair, gray skin and pink eyes, wearing ancient-looking armor and black headphones with a crescent moon symbol on each side. She rode astride a black chariot with the same pink cat image that adorned Kat's uniform, which was pulled by two horses with star-patterned fur. A large cannon-like weapon was mounted on the woman's shoulder, which dissipated after having been fired. This entity was Selene, goddess of the moon, and Kat's Persona.
"Let me stop you right there, Beelzebub. Nothing, and I mean NOTHING Tabby could've done warranted you driving from your house, breaking into hers, kidnapping her and trying to kill her. It's not her fault that you're an insecure prick who can't handle rejection without flying off the rails. She deserves better, and she's gonna *get* better. Know why? Cuz your lifetime of mistakes includes not finishing the job. She's not sitting at the bottom of the Thames, Calvin. She's in a hospital bed, recovering."
"She...she's alive?" the Shadow asked in disbelief. He dropped to his knees. "Please don't...I've got nothing left...I'm a goner for this..."
"Yeah, you are. Kidnapping, assault, breaking and entering, stalking, attempted murder...you're gonna be in a cell for a looooong time." Kat pointed at him with her index and middle fingers, imitating a gun. "See you, loser." 
A pink beam of energy fired out from her fingers, striking the Shadow in the head.
---
"What in the world...?"
Three Metropolitan Police officers were left puzzled by the sight before them. A young man had been left on the doorstep of their station. Beaten, scratched, and tied to a pole, he couldn't muster a single word.
What the officers would have to go on was a note taped to the man's forehead, written neatly in black ink.
"*My name is Calvin Nguyen, from Wolverhampton. Tonight, I drove all the way from home and broke into the apartment of my ex-girlfriend Tabby Fairweather. I attacked her with a knife, kidnapped her, drove her down to the Thames in Chelsea, then locked her in the trunk and drove the car into the river. Even though she survived, I'm still guilty of a laundry list of crimes. I'm a complete son of a bitch who doesn't deserve to see the light of day again. Please arrest me. Thanks.*"
---
Back at the hospital, Tabby was resting in her bed. Carrie remained at her bedside.
Kat entered the room, back in her normal clothes. "Hey."
"There you are. Completely unscathed, as I predicted." Carrie hugged her.
"You don't beat up fiends on the regular just to be sniped by an imp. Where's the rest of the Krew?"
"Kenneth and Natalia are in the waiting room with Tabitha's cat. We're just waiting for her mother to arrive."
"Okay, good." Kat got next to Tabby. "Hey, iron lady. How are you feeling?"
"I've been better." replied a tired Tabby.
"I hear you. I'm sorry this is how today turned out."
"None of this is your fault. Where's Calvin?"
"I took care of him."
"He's not...dead, is he?"
"Nope. I don't fly that way. I just roughed him up. I tied him nice and tight and left him for the Met to deal with. Left them a lovely handwritten note telling them all about the crap he pulled. He's probably spilling his guts to them as we speak."
"That's...I don't know what to say. I still don't understand how it is that you're doing...what it is that you're doing. What *are* you?"
"Just your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Kat." Kat winked.
"I don't know how I'll ever repay you for this. I owe you all my life."
"Don't sweat it, OK? It's what friends do."
"Well...can I give my savior a hug, at least?"
"You most certainly can." 
Tabby rose up and gave Kat a hug.
"Where is she? Where's my Tabby?" a woman's voice echoed from the hallway.
"Mum...?" Tabby questioned.
A woman with short brown hair ran into the room. "Oh my God, Tabitha! Oh, my poor baby...oh, what did that horrible boy do to you..." She sprinted over and embraced Tabby.
"It's okay, I'm okay now...Mum, these are my friends, Kat and Carrie. They're the ones that pulled me from the river."
"Oh...oh, bless you both. I could never repay you for this."
"Ma'am, you really don't need to." Kat said.
"Anything for a friend." Carrie added.
"I knew that boy was trouble the moment I had eyes on him. A mother just knows when their child is in danger. I never should've allowed it." Tabby's mother asserted.
"Mum, you couldn't have known this would happen." Tabby insisted.
"It's my responsibility to keep you safe! Especially since you can't rely on--"
A noise could be heard in the hallway. "Sorry, sorry! I hope that wasn't vitally important or anything..." a man stumbled to say.
Tabby's mother grew agitated. "That bloody little..."
"Mum, please don't..." Tabby pleaded.
A man with messy brown hair, with goggles on his head and glasses over his eyes, in a red and black vest and tie, appeared in the doorway. "S-sorry I'm late, I got held up at--"
Tabby's mother walked over and slapped him in the face. "Bastard!"
"Agh! Nice to see you too, Margaret..."
"Joking? At a time like this? Are you that detached from reality? What the hell were you doing all this time?"
"I already said, I got stuck at work with my phone off, I couldn't--"
"Bollocks to your work! You dragged us around the damned globe for ten years to 'Do work', I'm done hearing the excuse! Our daughter--YOUR daughter--nearly died today, and you're giving me the 'I was busy' tripe AGAIN?! Are you that daft, Albert?"
"What else do you want me to say except 'I made a mistake'?"
"It'd be the first time I ever heard it. I drove here for three HOURS, yet somehow I arrive here before you do? If you can't even be bothered to visit our daughter in a timely manner after she's been *assaulted*, then what good are you? If you can't prioritize her over the vast expanse of NOTHING lying above our heads, then do everyone a favor and shove off."
"You're not going to keep me from seeing her, Margaret."
"Every other obstacle seems to."
Tabby covered her face. "I can't deal with this right now."
"Okay, okay, okay, time out." Kat interjected. "Look, I'm not gonna pretend to have intimate knowledge of the family drama, but Tabby's gone through something insanely traumatic. You two clawing each other's throats out isn't gonna help at all. You wanna just call a truce? For her?"
Margaret grumbled. She stared daggers at Albert. "You're got five minutes. Then I want you gone." She stormed out.
"....." Albert looked at Tabby. "I'm sorry, Tabby. I should've kept my phone on."
"It's fine, Dad, I'm just...I'm just tired." Tabby uttered.
"I don't want to cause more of a scene than I already have. I'm relieved that you're okay." He bent down to her for a hug. Tabby hesitantly reciprocated. "I'll just...I'll just be going, then." He stumbled out of the room, as Margaret shot him another dirty look, before he opted to go the other way.
"That was certainly tense." Carrie commented.
"You can say that again. Are they always like--Tabs?" Kat looked.
Tabby was sitting up, and had buried her head in her knees. She was sobbing.
Kat comforted her. Carrie went to the other side of the bed and did the same.
There weren't any words after that. What she had experienced was beyond words.
---
September 6, 2031
"Here we are. Your mansion for the foreseeable future." Carrie said.
The girls walked Tabby into their house. It had been a week since she was hospitalized, and though the aches and pains remained, she was in good enough physical condition to return home. 
She sat down on the couch. Khukki came over to greet her. She bent down and pet the feline. "....."
"Everything okay?" Natalia asked.
"I'm sorry to put you out like this."
"You're not. We're happy to let you crash here for a bit." Kat replied.
"I have a place to stay. I just...I can't go back there now. Your home is supposed to be your sanctuary, but now...how can I ever feel safe? Not even mentioning the awkwardness with Dad..."
"It's okay. We get it. You can stay here as long as you need to. Look." Kat took a folder off of the table. "Here's your notes from last week. I asked some peeps from your other classes to photocopy theirs, too."
"Wow...thank you. And they're all neatly divided by class."
"Kitten's organizational skills have taken quite the leap over the years." Carrie commented.
"You should've seen what her room used to look like back in high school." Natalia teased.
"Stoooop." Kat urged.
"Anyway, I'm gonna go drop her clothes off in your room, Kitty Kat."
"Wait, *your* room?" Tabby questioned.
"I figured the nerd cavern would be the most comfortable for ya." Kat replied.
"Oh, no, you don't have to do that. I can take the couch."
"Absolutely not. You deserve a comfortable bed. Kitten will be staying with me." Carrie replied.
"Woe is me, woe is me." Kat deadpanned.
"I...okay. That's incredibly generous of you. Really, everything you've done for me has been insanely kind and I could never repay you all for it. Even...saving my life." Tabby sighed. "Okay...there's one thing I'd like to ask of you all."
"Oh boy. I think I know where this is going."
"I have to know how you did all of it. How you tracked me down so quickly, how you pulled the car from the river, how you battered Calvin the way you did, how you stitched my wound together like that...it defies any reasonable logic. It can't really be magic, can it?"
Kat looked at Carrie and Natalia. "I think it'd be better if we just showed you. You're a sciencey girl. You live off facts and evidence and what your eyes tell you is real. Just promise me you won't tell anyone else what you're about to see."
"Of course not. I'd never betray your trust that way. But you're implying that this has no basis in scientific fact, and I find that completely--"
Kat's eyes glowed pink, and she transformed into her smaller cat form.
"--implausible."
"Meeeeeeew?!" Khukki uttered a confused growl.
"Mrawr." CiCi affirmed.
Kat cocked her head. "Not so implausible now, is it?"
Tabby blinked. And she blinked again. Almost as if her brain was struggling to process what her eyes were seeing. ".....AAAAAAAH! WhatwhatwhatwhatWHAT?! You're...you're a cat now?! A TALKING cat, no less?! Wha--how?! This...this has to be my mind going mad. They must have given me hallucinogens instead of painkillers. I'm not really seeing this."
"This ain't a trip, Tabs." Kat transformed back. 
"As fantastical as it is..." Carrie brought up several holographic screens around her. "This is reality."
Natalia telepathically lifted Tabby's suitcase up, carrying it up the stairs. "We've got gifts."
"Unbelievable...so that's how you got the car up? You lifted it with your...your mind?" Tabby questioned.
"Yep. That's not all I can do, but it's the main thing. I used to only be able to lift up small stuff, but after a lot of training I can pull heavy stuff around, too."
"I can analyze pretty much anything. From technology to people. It's how I was able to find your location and track him down so easily." Carrie explained.
"And let's just say I have a way bigger bag of tricks than turning into a pettable furball." Kat added.
"How is any of this possible?" Tabby asked.
"It's...complicated. I'd show you how right now, but you're not in any spot to go somewhere so dangerous."
"Somewhere dangerous...?"
"Really dangerous. The kind of place you can't go around without the right protection. So we had to dig deep and really understand who we are. All of us." Natalia said.
"All...? I think I see now...your friends in the picture. Are they all...?"
"Yep. All of them. So's Professor Kubo. She was the first one. Her and Doc Rose taught us all about it. Her friends and a few other people, too. The things we've seen...what we've fought against...you'd never believe it." Kat replied.
"I just saw you turn into a cat, I don't think there's much I wouldn't believe at this point."
"It goes so far beyond that. These are things that would fundamentally change how you perceive the world. When you're--" Carrie began.
"Take me there now."
"No, Tabby, not while you're still hurting. Even with us around, I don't wanna risk it." Kat refused.
"I want to understand it better. You can't just turn into a cat, imply there's so much more to it and then leave it at that."
"I promise I'll show you. When you're okay. Just let us--"
"Okay? 'Okay'? I was stabbed in my own room and nearly made to die at the bottom of a river! I can't even get my parents to hold a ceasefire long enough that they can both stay in the same room for more than five seconds! My dad can't muster up the spine to come visit me because he's so terrified of my mum! When am I ever going to be 'okay' again?!"
She put her head into her hands and started to cry. Kat sat down next to her and comforted her. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry, I didn't want to bring anything up like that."
"I know, I'm sorry for the blow-up..." Tabby wiped her eyes. "I can still hear his voice in my head...telling me how I deserved to die for hurting him...telling me exactly how he was going to kill me and why. Every horrific insult he lobbed my way, replaying in my mind over and over again. And I can still feel...the ice pick going into my side. I remember it feeling so cold...and I knew then that he had no intention of letting me live. I'd accepted the fact that I was going to die that night."
"But you didn't. You're here, and you're safe with us. That's all that matters." Carrie grasped Tabby's shoulders.
Tabby looked Kat in the eye. "I want to be like you."
"Huh?" Kat uttered.
"You're so strong...so confident...so fearless...you don't have to think before doing anything. Your heart is bottomless...and free to do whatever you set your mind to. I want to know where it comes from. I feel so powerless to change my life. So please..."
"Tabs...I'm flattered. Really, I am. And I really do want to show you everything. But you just got out of the hospital. If I took you to where we got our powers from and you got hurt even worse, I'd never forgive myself. Let us take care of you until you're 100% again. When you're ready, then I'll show you."
Clearly disappointed, Tabby sighed. "Alright. But when I'm able to, you promise me that you'll fill me in on everything."
"Pinkie swear. And I treat those like gold. I promise." Kat held out her pinkie.
Tabby returned the gesture.
"Okay. Now just sit back and relax. It's me and Care's turn to do the groceries. Got any requests for a Chef Natty special later?"
"Anything is fine. If it's Natty cooking it, it's likely to be a masterpiece." Tabby replied.
"Oh no, please, don't stop there, keep lavishing me with praise~." Natalia chimed.
"We'll be back in a little while, loves. No wild parties while we're away." Carrie said. She and Kat departed.
Natalia sat down next to Tabby, CiCi promptly hopping into her lap. "Guess it's just you, me and the furry babies for a little while."
'Mmhmm..." Tabby looked sad.
"We're gonna make you feel better, the achey bits and with your head. I've got some experience dealing with both."
"I just can't imagine that, with how bubbly you are."
"I wasn't always like this. My head was in a really dark place when I went to Japan. I was bullied a lot back home. It's why I left Belgium in the first place. They used to make fun of my weight, and some of them pretended to be my friends just so I would make free clothes for them. It got really bad."
"That sounds awful. Was it really bad enough that you had to leave the country?"
"It was bad enough that I almost took my life. Twice."
"You...tried to kill yourself? More than once?"
"One day I overheard some girls I thought were my friends making fun of me. I was so distraught that I went to the roof of my parents' shop and...almost jumped. Mama and Papa did everything they could to make me happy, but it just wasn't gonna happen there. So I went to Tokyo and it was a struggle for a while. But Carrie and the others showed me so much love that I started getting better."
"She does have that attentiveness, that's for sure."
"For a while I was good. But then the bad thoughts started to take over again. Something...evil tried to push me to end it all. And I almost did. But my friends saved me again. And they did everything they could to bring me back up and encourage me. That love and care is what saved me. I haven't had any of those awful thoughts in over a year. It taught me how powerful a loving heart can really be."
"Those girls that bullied you must not be having a good time of it now."
"Well here's the crazy thing. One of those girls that made so much fun of me is one of my closest friends now."
"Seriously? Even after all of that? How did that come about?"
"The Chri after I got my head in order, I went back home. I was walking to Nana's bakery, and I see this girl dangling herself over the canal. I pulled her up before she could fall in. Her name was Layla. After I'd left for Japan, the other girl that bullied me turned on her and pinned all the blame on her. She was singled out and bullied, her parents lost their good standing...it was a mess. That day she couldn't take it anymore, and if I hadn't walked by, she might not be here today. I spent that trip doing what my friends did for me. I gave her all the encouragement she needed."
"That takes a remarkable amount of compassion, Natty. I couldn't imagine being so warm to someone who'd hurt me that badly. How is she doing now?"
"She's doing amazing. She's gotten into art school and she's selling her sketches at conventions now. When she graduates, she says she wants to help me with my clothing designs. She couldn't be happier, and neither can I. I know you're in a rough place right now, but I know from experience that there's brighter days ahead. I almost ended it all twice, and here I am, smiling despite it all."
"I think I understand. Why you three are so open and loving towards each other and me. You've endured so much together. Just to receive a little bit of that love means so much." Tabby rubbed her side. "It's going to take a while to feel completely okay again. But with you three around, I fully believe that it's possible."
"That's the spirit!"
Tabby yawned. "I think those meds are starting to kick in."
"Say no more! Let's get you settled in. Easy does it." Natalia helped her up.
The two went upstairs to Kat's room. "I'll help you unpack after you wake up. I can see how tired you are." Natalia said.
"Okay. There's just one thing I needed from my suitcase..." Tabby replied.
"I think I know what." Natalia opened the bag, and pulled out a plush toy of a black cat with a crescent moon on its head.
"Thank you. I can't sleep right without Luna."
"I get it. You should see how fluffy my room is." Natalia giggled. "If you need me, I'll be doing some cleaning. I'll try not to make too much noise. Night night. At like, 3 in the afternoon." She closed the door behind her.
Tabby sat on the bed. "I don't know how comfortable I am with using someone's bed, but..." she spoke to her plush.
Images of the ambush in her room flashed through her head. The fear, the coldness, the hopelessness. And the pain.
"...I'm not sure I'll ever be comfortable in my own bed again."
She put her head on the pillow, and closed her eyes. 
After a while, the voices began.
"(This is all your fault.)"
"(You brought this on yourself.)"
"(You're the reason your parents can't get along.)"
"(No wonder your dad works so much, it keeps him away from you.)"
"(You were going to just sit there and die.)"
"(Weak. Pathetic. Now worth worrying over.)"
"(These 'friends' of yours are only doing this out of pity. You're like a wounded kitten.)"
"(Tabby got a stabby, poor baby.)"
Tabby shivered at the relentless taunting and belittling. But then...
"(When are you going to start taking control?)"
She woke up. This voice was different from the aggressive one from before. It more closely resembled her own.
"(You seek power and liberation, don't you? An end to the cycle of misery you find yourself in?)"
"Who..who are you? Where is that voice coming from?"
"(If your desire is strength...a new dawn to erase the shroud of night...you will find me in the world within the mind...)"
"Wait! What do you mean 'world within the mind'?"
No further response.
She put her head back down on the pillow. "...what have I gotten myself into?"
A knock at the door. Natalia peeked inside. "You okay? I heard some talking."
"I'm...I'm alright."
"You heard a voice, didn't you?"
"...! How did--"
"That's how it started for us. The voice...it's you. Deep down, you're screaming for a change. Your real self is crying out to you."
"My real self...Natty, what's the 'world within the mind'? Is it the dangerous place you all mentioned?"
"You'll find out soon enough. Just...think about whether you really want to jump into the craziness with us. Once you step through that door, there's no going back."
"....."
"Just think it through. Some shut-eye should help with clearing your head. Holler if you need me."
Natalia closed the door again. "....." Tabby closed her eyes again. Hopefully, it would be a less lively slumber.
---
"Hmmhmmhmmm~." Carrie hummed. It was later in the evening, and she was currently in Tabby's room, brushing the latter's hair.
"Sorry if it's a little hard to manage. I don't exactly take pristine care of my hair. You might have to wash those dainty hands after this." Tabby said.
"Don't be silly, it's just a little unkempt. Nothing a brush and these dainty hands can't handle. I do this all the time for Natalia and Kitten, you know."
"You really are very kind, Carrie. Even to a peasant like me."
"Hush. I don't judge people on their social standing. And you're hardly a peasant. Everyone deserves the same amount of attention regardless of what their bank account might look like."
"Never thought I'd hear--"
"--that come out of the mouth of someone with as much money as me? I've heard that more than once. My Mama and my Auntie both came from less auspicious backgrounds, and they always taught me to be humble and generous with what I've been given. Money by itself doesn't make a person good or bad. It's what they choose to do with it."
"A shame that so many with that kind of money don't use it the way you do. Kat and Natty are so lucky to have you."
"You have it backwards, dear. I'm lucky to have them. Okay, all done and ready for a night on the town."
Tabby looked at herself in the mirror. "Thank you, Carrie. I hope you don't mind going around with someone in average wardrobe."
"Oh, you're far too hard on yourself, dear. I told you I don't discriminate. But if it's confidence in your fashion that you're lacking, well, you've befriended the right group of girls. That can be tomorrow's adventure."
"You really don't have to spoil me like that."
"Have to? Of course not. I want to. I'm sure Natalia and Kitten feel the same. Best to get used to it." Carrie winked. "Come now, reservations are made for a reason. Let's be off."
"Yeah, okay." Tabby turned red. She wasn't used to getting this kind of attention.
The two went downstairs, where Kat and Natalia were waiting. "Heya, ladies. Ready for Girls' Night, aka Natty's night off of cooking?" Kat asked.
"You're making it sound like it was my idea..." Natalia puffed her cheeks.
"It *was* your idea, Hoods."
"....." Tabby looked pensive.
"Hey, cheer up. Tonight's gonna be tons of fun. Dinner, movie...maybe a bit of karaoke afterwards."
"You're dead set on goading me into singing, aren't you?"
"It's a great bonding experience. You could use some lighter fare after the week you've had. No better way to do that than to lower the shields around some pals."
"I guess you're right."
"I know I'm right. We're gonna have a blast, Barbie."
Kat realized the slip far too late. "Uh, I mean..."
"What did you just call me?" Tabby asked.
"S-sorry, I didn't mean to--"
"You called me 'Barbie', as in your best friend, right? Wait...she's the reason you like doing karaoke. Have you...have you been using me as a stand-in for her?"
"No, I swear! That was just a slip-up! Honest!"
"Is that why you all are being so nice to me? You're missing a cog in the machine, so you need a replacement?"
"Absolutely not! We really do want to be your friends." Natalia retorted.
"Tabitha, I understand why you would be frustrated given everything that's happened, but please understand, it was just a mistake..." Carrie tried to reassure her.
Tabby backed away. "I can't believe I let myself believe any of it. You never cared about me to begin with. You just needed me to fill in for someone that's not here." Tabby accused.
"Tabby, I'm sorry I slipped, but you've got it all wrong. I really do care about you. I miss Barbie like crazy, yeah, but I don't need a 'replacement'. C'mon, let's just forget about this and--" Kat pleaded.
Shadowy energy flared up around Tabby. Her voice began to distort. "No...no...it's all lies...you're trying to control me and twist me into something I'm not...just like everyone else...I can't trust anyone...I just...want to be alone..."
Inside of one of her pockets, Kat's phone turned on. One particular app, with a logo resembling an ashen gray letter 'A', activated on its own.
"I want to go...where I can just be me..."
The surroundings shifted, reality itself transforming into something much different.
---
Kat came to, and she was back in her Artisan uniform. So too, were Carrie and Natalia. "What the--how'd we end up in the Metaverse?!" Natalia questioned.
"I never even turned on my phone! Damn hunk of junk..." Kat said.
"I recall this same sort of thing happening when Maxwell first awakened. His emotions flared up to a point where the app opened itself in response to it." Carrie replied.
"Where is this, anyway?"
The three were inside of their home, still, though it now possessed a 'jungle' aesthetic. "This isn't the normal Metaverse. Is this...a Palace?" Kat questioned.
"There's a word I haven't heard in years. Once Prisons became all the rage." Carrie replied.
"What happened to Tabby? She was right here with us..." Natalia questioned.
Kat's head slumped. "This is all my fault."
"Don't blame yourself, Kitten. It was an innocent slip of the tongue." Carrie assured.
"What if it wasn't? What if I've just been missing Barbie so much that I've been pushing things with Tabby? Would it be the same way if someone else sat next to me on the first day? And on top of all of the stuff she's got going on, I heap the Artisan stuff on her, too. What is wrong with me..."
"Don't kick yourself too much, Kitty Kat. We've gotta find Tabby, and fast." Natalia replied.
"You're right. She's a sitting duck in here. I hope we find her before whatever's running around in here does..."
The trio exited the house, and found that the bustling streets of London had been replaced with a lush, dense jungle. Despite it being evening in the real world, the sky was a vibrant, cloudless blue.
"Sheesh...where do we even start?" Kat pondered.
"Can't see a thing through all these trees...think you can track her down, Care?" Natalia asked.
"So long as her phone is on her, absolutely." Carrie brought up her map. "It's the same layout as the real world...so it should be--"
When she stepped forward, Carrie took notice of something beneath her feet. The pile of leaves she was on top of suddenly sprung upward. She'd been captured inside of a net. Before anyone knew it, she was pulled out of sight into the trees.
"CARE!" the girls both shouted. 
"Where'd she--huh? AHHHHH!" Natalia suddenly disappeared into a hole, also hidden beneath a pile of foliage.
"Natty!" Kat shouted out. The hole closed up with a wooden gate. She drew one of her daggers, but the seal of branches may as well have been made of cast iron, as the blade had no effect. "Dammit!"
She looked out to the vast sea of trees before her. "Can't ever be easy, can it?"
---
Elsewhere in the Metaverse jungle, inside of a dimly lit temple, Carrie and Natalia found themselves inside of a makeshift cage, made entirely out of branches and leaves. "You've got to be kidding! You think a bunch of twigs are gonna hold us?! I could breathe on this and it'd fall apart!" Natalia exclaimed.
"Wait, Natalia. These aren't ordinary rods." Carrie tested it out by knocking against the branches, which didn't bend as one would assume. 
"Well we'll find their weakness! Just use Irene, find the weak spot and make it weaker! Easy-peasy!"
"It's not going to work." a distorted voice echoed.
The girls perked up. "That voice...Tabby?" Natalia questioned.
"Over here."
At the head of the room, seated on a throne, was Tabby. She was now wearing a dress constructed entirely from leaves and palm fronds, along with a crown. She possessed the yellow eyes of the Shadows. Her left leg was chained to the throne, preventing her from leaving.
"Look at the ground. The moment you open that cage, the floor will open up beneath your feet, where you'll be met by a sea of spikes."
"Please let us go, Tabby! We can talk this over! We're your friends!" Natalia demanded.
"Friends? Those never last. Just more people who want me to be something I'm not. This 'me' sitting before you isn't in any position to make decisions. Never have been."
"This can't be what you want, Tabitha. We only want what's best for you." Carrie insisted.
"What's best for me? Or what you *believe* is best for me?"
"....." The girls had no answer.
"No matter. I'm not the one making the decisions here." She rattled the chain attached to her leg. "I'm as much a prisoner as you. So long as *they* are in command, no one will be leaving."
"Who's 'they'?" Carrie asked.
"I don't need to say anything more. Might as well get used to a lack of freedom. That's all there is to find here..."
The Shadow went quiet, leaving the girls to assess their options. "What do we do now?" Natalia asked.
"At the moment, we bide our time. We're at her mercy...or the mercy of whoever she's saying really controls this place. But if there's any hope in this, it's that Kitten is free. I know she'll come through for us." Carrie replied.
The Shadow looked lost in thought. "Free..."