Episode 02 — The Night That Shattered

【Tama’s Memory — The Black Cat】

The smell of rain.

The metallic scent rising from wet asphalt.

My vision was red, then rapidly fading to black.

…That stupid kid.

Running into the street like that—of course he was going to get hit.

Before I knew it, my body had moved on its own.

I shoved the child out of the way, and my body flew through the air instead.

A dull impact.

The sound of bones breaking.

Strangely, there was no pain.

Only the sensation of my body heat draining away.

(…Ah. I’m dying.)

The moment I realized it, the first thing that came to mind was the pathetic face of a certain man.

Kazuya Sato.

A man who sits in front of his computer all day, complains when I walk across his keyboard,

yet keeps petting me forever when I curl up on his lap—even while saying I’m heavy.

(That idiot has nowhere in the world to belong without me.)

If I disappear… what will he do?

He forgets the trash day, wears the same pajamas for entire seasons,

and if I don’t dig my claws into his sandals once in a while, he forgets he’s alive at all.

(I have to go back… back to him.)

Dragging my unresponsive hind legs, I crawled through the night.

With every step, another drop of life spilled out of me.

The cold rain stole what little warmth I had left.

Still, I aimed for that familiar “gap” in the window—

the one he always leaves open just a few centimeters.

At last, my paw touched the window frame.

From inside the room, I heard his voice.

“…Tama? You’re late. Do you know what time it is?”

(…I’m home. Don’t make that pathetic face… not for my last moments…)

My soul floated free from my body.

And in that instant, a voice echoed in my mind.

“O noble soul of self-sacrifice. I summon you as a savior. I shall grant you the power to save a world.”

(I don’t need that. Send me back—to my home.)

“But your body has already—”

(Send me back!! He’s on the other side of that window.

If it means leaving him alone, then the world can burn for all I care!!)

My obsession forcibly rewrote the divine system.

The summoning light didn’t just take me—it tore my entire home and my beloved human out of our world.

【Kazuya’s Memory — The Human】

“Tama!? Hey—wait… no way…”

When I tried to pick up the black bundle that slipped through the window, I understood immediately.

Tama’s fur—usually sleek and warm—was soaked with mud and blood.

Her body was limp, already losing its weight as something living.

Right there in my hands, her warmth turned into the weight of an object.

My fingertips felt the exact moment her soul went out.

“Tama…? Tama! Open your eyes! I’ll take you to the vet—just hang on!”

Despair swallowed me whole.

A tomorrow without this cat wasn’t something I could imagine.

(Please… anyone… just give her back…)

That was when it happened.

BZZT!!

A violent crack—like every appliance in the house short-circuited at once.

The entire room shook.

Not an earthquake—more like being tossed into a giant washing machine.

Books rained from the shelves.

Dishes clattered in the kitchen.

Still holding Tama’s body, I lost consciousness.

“…Ngh.”

A warm breeze brushed my face.

I opened my eyes, still lying on the living room floor.

The ceiling above me was the same as always.

The water stain from the leak.

The dust on the lightbulb I hadn’t cleaned in a week.

“…A dream…?”

A nightmare.

The worst one imaginable.

I sat up and looked toward the window I’d left open.

“Tama, you there? I had this awful—”

My words froze.

Outside the window—

the familiar concrete wall and rusty power pole were gone.

In their place stood a colossal tree, its trunk piercing the clouds.

Massive winged creatures glided through the sky.

Somewhere far away, something between a bell and a beast let out a deep, resonant cry.

“…Huh?”

I leaned out the window.

My house was floating.

Perched on a natural terrace formed by the intertwined roots of the giant tree.

Something moved at my feet.

“Meow. (You’re slow. How long were you planning to sleep?)”

There she was.

Not a scratch on her.

Her fur shinier than ever.

Tama.

Sitting there like nothing had happened.

“…You’re alive?”

“Meow. (Obviously.)”

I shut the window.

Then locked it. Twice.

(Nope. If I go outside, something irreversible will happen.)

Tama was alive.

That alone was enough.

Even if outside was Jurassic Park or another world entirely—

as long as she was here, this house was my whole universe.

I walked to the kitchen and opened the fridge.

Yesterday’s half-finished cola was still there.

The lights worked.

The water ran.

“Tama… look, I’ll deal with the whole ‘you’re alive’ thing and the dragons outside later.

Right now, I’m making udon.

If I don’t, my sanity is going to die.”

And so began our life in another world—

a timid yet stubborn first step to stitch together a night that had once been broken.