The rain was tapping on the windows with a gentle rhythm, tap tap tap tap, quite soothing and providing the perfect atmosphere for reading in bed or in the living room, a custom this time of year in Lenburg.
Klein only allowed himself a moment to gaze at that blurry landscape. Adjusting his yellow scarf around his neck, the detective heaved a slight sigh as he closed the door to his apartment and began his short walk to the next door.
It was time to feed the beast.
He was not even two steps from the door when he could already hear a lot of movement inside. Something he still found ridiculous.
To make sure he wasn't running late, he pulled out his pocket watch and clicked it open, for the tenth time in the last hour.
'It's two minutes before your meal time, why are you so jumpy? I left you a full plate!' Klein pursed his lips and, sighing again, pulled the keys to the beast's prison out of his pocket.
Cricck-
The door was barely open when a black blob emerged from the crack, quickly circling him with huge green eyes.
"Meow! Meow!" Madam Dolly didn't stop her rotation, her incessant meows demanding the highest of speeds.
'I forgot how stubborn cats became when you didn't feed them.' Rolling his eyes and not wishing to wake the neighbors so early in the morning, Klein entered the apartment, being followed closely by the black cat.
Madam Dolly quickly moved in front of the detective, occasionally glancing behind her, making sure he was there but never stopping her righteous journey to the back of the room.
"Meow! Meow!"
"Yes yes, one moment please."
Laughing a little as he grabbed the bag of cat food sitting on top of a shelf. Klein knelt down and filled the hungry animal's dish.
This naturally caused the food inside to make a noise with which Dolly was very familiar, and what came next didn't even take a second to arrive.
"MIAUUU!"
Immediately, Dolly placed herself next to her plate of food. Her gaze focused so intently on it that it seemed as if she could burn it with her gaze alone.
As soon as the last piece fell and the bag stopped serving, the cat attacked. And opening its snout wide, it took a good bite.
Ñan Ñan Ñan Ñan
Despite the speed and ferocity with which she ate, not a single piece of her food fell to the ground.
"Not for nothing are you a Madam." Smiling faintly, Klein stroked the cat's back a couple of times.
'No wonder you don't choke, you look experienced...' Lampooning a bit, looking at the somewhat large size of the lady, the detective held back his comment.
It was not for a gentleman to comment on a lady's weight-animal or human
Taking advantage of Dolly's busy breakfast, Klein headed for the kitchen and filled a pitcher with water from the tap, he returned to the living room.
Standing next to Madam Dolly and with his back straight, Klein bent elegantly and filled the free dish with water.
Straightening, he smiled courteously and gave a respectful bow, "Your drink, Madam. I hope it is to your liking."
Yum yum yum
Of course, Dolly didn't even look at him, just continued to eat, lost in her own world.
The corners of Klein's cheeks twitched for a moment, but other than that, his expression didn't change.
As the cat continued to devour as if her life depended on it, Klein looked around at the various decorations and photos that adorned the room.
There were a few photos from when Susan was just a baby and a much younger Analia was holding her, both smiling at the camera. Next to them, a man and a woman were standing.
They were Susan's parents, and just by looking at them, Klein could easily tell that little Susan was a carbon copy of her father with her mother's brown hair.
An undoubtedly tender photo, and Klein couldn't help but smile a little at the sight of it.
'I hope you're having a good trip...' His gaze then shifted to the rest of the room.
It was quite warm, the sofa was the same as the one he had found in his apartment, but it was covered by a yellow blanket. The same was repeated on the other sofas, where one of them had a neat pile of books sitting on it.
They were varied between children's, early math, loenese, and a simple coloring book. It wasn't hard to tell who used it the most.
But, even if this place was warm and comforting, the emptiness made it feel incomplete, an important piece missing to truly call it home.
Home...
Klein returned his attention to the family photo, his eyes darkening slightly and taking on a certain depth.
With a small pup, Dolly hopped over to the table where the photo was, licking her lips after a good meal. She ignored him and went straight to the framed photo.
Sitting down in front of it, the cat's sharp pupils dilated. With a faint purr, she closed her eyes and, with her head, gently tapped the photo.
This scene caused a small pang in Klein's heart, his lips tightening a little.
"You miss them, don't you? Little Susan and Madam Analia.
"This place feels empty without them, doesn't it?
"You're quite young still, so this must be your first time without either of them with you.
"Do you feel that emptiness in your chest? That one that doesn't let you breathe and makes it hard to sleep because knowing they're not here beats on your mind. Not knowing if they're okay or if they're waiting for you too, wondering what's become of you..." His voice trailed off until, at some point, he stopped speaking.
The picture of his neighbors became fuzzy, faces changing slightly, and hair turning black and straight. Soon, familiar faces and features not of this world appeared, blurred, a distant memory.
That only lasted an instant, for not a second later, they changed again.
A man more handsome than the norm, with a receding hairline that made him look 10 years older. Next to him, a young girl with a thin face and black hair, like the man, her eyes were also large and brown.
Her expressions were the same as the last time he saw them, droopy and dark.
At the sight of his siblings, Klein's smile tensed. After a few seconds, a small whisper came out.
"I miss my family too."
Klein paused for a moment and blinked, snapping out of that little trance he had fallen into as soon as he began to speak. Before he could do anything, he noticed how the cat had changed her posture.
Madam Dolly was looking at him over her shoulder with a look that was hard to describe, but which had a certain gleam of understanding.
The cat meowed a little and, getting up from her position, walked over to him and tapped him on the waist with her head, not so gently, but with some appreciation.
Unconsciously, Klein began to pet the lady, who soon began to purr lightly.
At that, he returned his attention to the photo. The face of a baby Susan, greeted him along with that of her grandmother and parents. Not that of his family on earth or the one he left behind in Tingen.
Klein's expression didn't change at all; he kept that slight smile. But the speed he was stroking Dolly had slowed slightly.
Tap Tap Tap
The sound of glass being tapped reached his ears, and Klein's hand stopped. His heart skipped a beat at the sudden noise.
Following the source of it, he discovered it was coming from the kitchen window above the sink.
There, behind the glass, a bird was staring at him. With strange attention and intelligence.
Without showing much reaction other than to raise an eyebrow slightly, Klein silently observed the bird.
It was whitish-feathered, with featherless areas on its face and throat showing greenish-blue skin. Its legs were gray with yellowish stencils.
"Tap! Tap!" As if annoyed that it was being ignored, this white bird pecked at the window again, this time with slightly more force.
'My sense of danger as a clown hasn't reacted, and my spirituality hasn't jumped either. So there is no immediate danger...' Klein remained calm as he analyzed the current situation, deeply considering his next move.
It was clear that this bird was not a normal one; the mere way its eyes looked directly at him showed an intelligence superior to an animal.
Raising an eyebrow slightly, Klein pulled a coin from his pocket, a cuprum, and tossed it into the air without ever taking his eyes off the bird.
The coin slipped through his fingers without touching his skin and hit the ground with a resounding thud.
'Failure?'
What did that guy want now?
'At least you can leave me a few more minutes in my misery... Well, at least this time I didn't get a slap on the back...'
Understanding what this outcome meant, Klein pulled with nimble hands from his pocket a paper figurine that, with the simple twist of his wrist, flew away.
A magically precise shot that traveled through the air with extreme fluidity and slipped through the cracks of the apartment entrance.
With his escape route prepared, Klein bent down and grabbed Madam Dolly, who had just begun to approach the window.
Next, he walked with the cat in his arms to the window, his guard somewhat raised.
While he was quite sure that this was his soul brother, caution and vigilance were not to be neglected.
'A magician never performs unprepared...' Repeating what could be considered the most important rule of acting, he entered the kitchen.
Arriving in front of the window and keeping a tight grip on Dolly, who watched the bird without blinking, Klein opened the window slowly.
The bird came in with a small flutter, looking at him with what looked like a frown.
'...A bird is judging me because I left it hanging?
'Is this a Robin-no, it doesn't look like one at all... Although considering Joa's preference for DC, maybe he gave it as a code name?' Klein didn't know what kind of expression to put on.
On her side, restrained and trapped in his arms, Madam Dolly was meowing loudly as she tried to free herself from his grip. Her sharp eyes seldom left the white bird on the counter.
The bird didn't seem the least bit affected by being so close to its predator, not even glancing at it as it scratched its wing with its beak.
Klein watched, somewhat surprised, as from between the feathers, a piece of paper suddenly peeked out.
The little bird grabbed it with his beak and pulled it out, spreading it out for him.
Because of the way it was pulled out, he could now see what it was.
It was a common theater ticket, sky blue, and a curious sentence was written on it.
The adventures of Mickey Mouse and Goofy...
The detective's expression immediately went flat, the corners of his lips quivering tightly.
'Yep, this is from Joa. Looks like he took some pages from The Emperor, eh? Another copycat, but it's Disney, so it doesn't really count...'
He didn't think he'd see anything Disney-related in this world. Especially its mascot.
'If this home, you'd have an army of lawyers in your living room by now. They never took kindly to their image being taken...' Pouting a little, Klein took the ticket.
Once he did that, the bird spread its right wing and made a military salute, and without waiting any longer, went out the window and flew away.
"..." Klein didn't want to know what kind of expression he had on his face.
Not wanting to have that mental image for too long, he looked down at the ticket in his hands, one eyebrow raised.
As he checked the ticket, he finally released Madam Dolly, who quickly went to the kitchen window and looked in the direction the white bird had gone.
Turning slightly, the black cat looked at him, eyes wide and pupils dilated.
"Meow..."
Sighing slightly, Klein raised a hand and gently scratched the cat's head, "There now."
The cat just turned away, ignoring him and hopped off the counter, walking gracefully out of the kitchen, leaving the detective with one hand in the air and rolling his eyes.
Rubbing his head a little, he said, "I did you a favor, believe me."
If he ever let go of Madam Dolly, the one in danger would be her, not the bird.
Putting aside the disdain the cat no doubt now felt for him, Klein looked back down at the ticket in his hand—interest shining in his eyes.
'A play... What kind of clothes should I wear...'