Yomi’s symptoms were growing worse in intensity and frequency. Splitting headaches that made even soft candlelight awful to look at. Back and leg pain rendered her immobile. And every time she ate, no matter how small the meal, she felt as if she’d throw it up—oftentimes, she did.

I can’t do this alone.

She was well aware of the nurseries set in place for pregnant catgirls. [Priest]s and nyannies worked side by side to care for expecting women. Then, once the kitten was born, they trained mothers who decided to personally raise their offspring on best practices for newborns. Otherwise, they found a communal house accepting new tenants to tend to the child.

Do I deserve that kind of care?

But every day that passed grew worse. Each morning it was harder to get out of bed. The overwhelming pain and nausea paralyzed her in place. She knew if she didn’t seek help, it wouldn’t just be her life she’d compromised. Ruyah deserved better.

Another sunrise dragged into purple dusk. Yomi forced herself from the bed, sweat coating her skin and weighing heavily in her thin nightgown. With one trembling finger, she drew a violet oval in the air, closing the warp with her intent. She remembered visiting a nursery in Nyarlothep with Finn and Ravyn many years before. Her spell would deliver her straight to it as long it was still there. She rasped a shaking breath and stepped through.

To her relief, the portal gave way to a well-lit doorway. Aromas of fresh bread and hot soup wafted through the windows, accompanied by cordial conversation and heartfelt laughter. Yomi knocked, teetering on quaking knees.

A [Priest] in pink and white garb answered the door with a kind smile. Gentle laugh lines creased the corners of her eyes and lips. A mane of silver hair was swept back into a braid trailing down her back, and her kind brown eyes peered into the night. When she spotted Yomi, her smile evaporated, replaced by deep, furrowed brows of concern.

“Oh, goodness. My poor, sweet girl. Come in,” the [Priest] crooned, stepping forward to take Yomi’s arm and steady her. “Jesna, prepare an emergency bed and call for the [Hermetic] immediately.”

“Y-yes! Right away, Miss Miral!” A young nyanny in a modest brown dress stood from her meal and vanished from the room.

“What is your name, love?” Miral asked gently, slowly guiding Yomi through a long hallway.

They passed multiple curtained-off rooms on either side. Through the tiny gaps, Yomi noted catgirls sleeping peacefully or resting comfortably with a book. Some rooms had bassinets near the beds with a nyanny attendant standing close by. “It’s Yomi, ma’am.”

“Please, call me Miral.” Miral touched her hand to Yomi’s forehead, her eyes widening. “What symptoms are you experiencing, child?”

“Everything…Everything hurts,” Yomi admitted, tears leaking from the corners of her eyes. “My back, my legs, my arms. It’s hard to breathe and—” she paused for another shallow breath. “I can’t eat without throwing it back up.”

“How long have you felt this way?” Miral led them into an identical room to the others. She stepped away from Yomi momentarily to light the oil lamp on the wall, then returned to help her toward the bed.

The blankets on the bed were freshly cleaned and pressed, and a bouquet of yellow flowers bloomed from the side table. A short wooden table with multiple drawers was positioned opposite the bed. An empty bowl, folded cloth, and metal tools that Yomi didn’t recognize were neatly lined along the top.

“I-I don’t know. At least a week.” Yomi let the tears fall free. I’m so stupid. “I lost count.”

“Oh, sweet. Everything will be alright. We will take care of you.” Miral ensured Yomi was situated in bed before drawing the curtain at the door. “You’ve come to the right place.”

“Will my…my kitten make it?” Yomi asked between sobs.

Miral returned to Yomi’s side, pulling the blankets up to her chest and tucking them around her sides. “I’m certain you and your daughter will be fine. For now, we shall make you as comfortable as possible until—”

There was a knock on the outer wall before a young woman with pale violet hair poked her head around the curtain. Large white feathers dangled from tiny hoops on each of her ears. “Miss Miral? You called for me?”

“Latali! Praise Saoirse for your excellent timing. Come in. Please.” Miral brushed the damp strands of Yomi’s hair away from her face. “Yomi urgently requires your assistance.”

“I was on my way here to check on the others.” Latali entered the room with a grin, making sure to readjust the curtain to offer them privacy. Her hair hung all the way down to her hips, and her attire was unlike any Yomi had ever seen before. She wore a deep green top that cut just beneath the bust, and an ankle-length skirt that both appeared hand woven, bedecked with geometric shapes and angled lines. Strappy sandals wrapped around her calves and feet, offering little protection from the elements. A tattoo of a flowering vine that began at her cheek curved around her throat and shoulder, lining her waist until it vanished beneath her skirt. “It’s nice to meet you, Yomi. I’m Latali, a [Hermetic].”

“Hello,” Yomi said meekly.

“It’s my job to keep you out of pain and help Miss Miral get you on the mend.” Latali crossed the room and set her sizeable [Cat Pack] on the floor next to Yomi’s bed. After touching her forehead and a brief physical inspection, Latali folded her hands against her skirt and asked, “Can you tell me what symptoms you’ve experienced the last few days?”

Yomi relayed every ailment and symptom she’d felt for the previous week while Latali listened intently and slowly nodded. Miral stood at the foot of the bed, watching the exchange with more worry in her eyes than Yomi wanted to see. Am I really going to be okay?

“Alright. I’ll be blunt. You’re not in a good way, Miss Yomi. But I think you got here in time,” Latali said once Yomi had finished. “I’m going to give you two tinctures tonight. One will ease the pain and help you rest. The other will begin to fight the infection. The latter of the two can have powerful side effects. Nightmares, hallucinations, sudden shifts in mood. We’ll have Jesna stay in your room and Miss Miral will be close by. We’ve had great success with this combination of tinctures before, so you should sleep soundly.”

A new wave of chills crept up beneath Yomi’s fever. She shivered. “Okay.”

Miral gently patted Yomi’s feet beneath the blanket. “We will take excellent care of you, sweet. You have nothing to worry about.”

Latali knelt and opened her pack, procuring two glass bottles. One contained a foggy blue liquid as if she’d bottled the sky, and the other was a brilliant silver. She chuckled as she stood. “They also don’t taste great, but I need you to drink all of them.”

Yomi nodded and accepted the first bottle from Latali—the sky blue one. She pinched her nose—a trick Finn had taught her—and drained it in four gulps. Despite looking pleasant enough, the potion burned her tongue and throat like a bottle of fire. Violent coughs racked her chest when she was through, and Latali swapped the empty container for the silver bottle.

“This one’s easier. Promise,” she assured, uncorking it for her. “It’ll stop the burning.”

The flames were quenched by cool, bitter liquid as soon as the silver tincture reached her tongue. It was thick and difficult to swallow, but Yomi was eager to stop the pain.

“There you go. You should be feeling that one pretty quick.” Latali took the bottle from Yomi and placed both in her pack. “I’ll be crafting custom tinctures for you over the next few days based on your progress. Depending on how tonight goes, we’ll see what strength of potion you need.” She snapped her bag shut and swung the strap over her shoulder. “I’m sorry to pour and run, but there are a few more patients expecting me tonight, and I have one more nursery to drop by.”

“Thank you, Latali,” Yomi whispered. The draught was already taking effect, slowing her tongue, numbing the pain in her joints. For the first time in weeks, the aching in her back and legs eased. The soft blankets caressed her skin and promised a full night’s sleep.

“Yes, thank you so much, Miss Latali. We shall expect you in the morning?” Miral asked. Her voice sounded more distant with every word she spoke.

“Bright and early!” Latali smiled, her tail twitching happily behind her. “Hang in there, Yomi. We’ll do everything we can.”

“Just…Just save Ruyah,” Yomi muttered, not sure if she’d enunciated any part of her words. “Please.”

“Of course, Yomi. Get some sleep. I’ll send Jesna here at once.”

Before the lamp was extinguished, Yomi had fallen asleep.

“This is amazing!” Finn’s green eyes glittered with excitement as they moved through the nursery. “It’s just like a hospital. Better than a hospital. Why don’t none of the nurseries on San look like this?”

Ravyn shrugged. “The economy went to shit a few years ago, and trying to get help from Nyarlothep is a joke.”

“The island should be able to fund itself,” Yomi argued. “That’s part of our job as its protectors.”

“Our job, huh?” Finn grinned, and Yomi’s heart skipped.

“I-I don’t want you to feel like you’re in this alone.” She blushed and fingered the silver pendant at her throat. “You’ll always have us.”

“Then we should work together to fix the nurseries on San,” Finn proclaimed. “I don’t think they have a designated [Hermetic] there. I could work on that! I just hit [Alchemist], after all.”

Finn’s excitement was contagious. “I’d love for my kitten to grow up in a place like this,” Yomi agreed.

His expression suddenly darkened. The sweet smile he reserved for Ravyn and Yomi disappeared, replaced by a malicious sneer. The excited gaze turned to ice, and venom dripped from his words. “You? A kitten? After what you did?”

Ravyn laughed beneath her breath, crossing her arms over her chest and sharing the same disgusted aspect. “No one wants a kitten with a rapist.”

A cold sweat broke over her skin. Blood seeped from the nursery walls, and flames licked at the edges of the curtains. “N-no, I didn’t mean to—”

“Didn’t mean to? You hypnotized him, you stupid bitch,” Ravyn cackled. “It wasn’t an accident.”

Yomi fell to her knees. Heavy shackles bound her wrists and ankles while the chimes of bells rang in her ears. “Please, I just—”

Finn stepped forward and snatched her chin, forcing her to look up at him. Pure, unbridled hatred burned in his gaze. He spat in her face. “When will you stop making excuses, Yomi?”

Tears streaked her cheeks. The shackles grew heavier. The blood on the wall thicker. “I’m so sorry. I’m so, so sorry.”

“You’re pathetic,” Finn snarled, throwing her face to the side and stepping backward.

“Worry not, young ones. There is still a place suited for her.” Belial’s deep baritone voice sounded from behind her. “An eternity where she can never harm another person.”

A hundred blood-soaked arms shot from the walls, wielding swords, daggers, and scythes. All manner of sharp implements were aimed at Yomi.

Finn held up a hand, and the arms paused. “But first, we should carve her kitten free.”

Yomi screamed.

“Yomi! Yomi, it’s Jesna! Please wake up!” Jesna held Yomi’s shoulder down with one hand and a cool cloth to her forehead with the other. “You’re safe. I promise you’re safe.”

Yomi forced her eyes open, the dim oil lamp light seeping through her heavy lids. She was trembling uncontrollably with her knees curled up beneath her stomach. Her throat was hoarse as if she’d screamed it dry, and the blankets were drenched.

“I’m sorry,” Yomi whimpered through tears. “Matt, I’m so sorry.”

Jesna threw the covers back, her eyes widening. She grabbed a small bell from behind the flower vase and rang it vigorously. “Miss Miral! Miss Miral, come quickly. Her water broke!”