"What is wrong with you?" Orchid wailed. She recoiled from the stone, its six sides now trembling with reflections of light from another sky. Midnight's guards unsheathed her claws, but every cat gathered was too occupied by the weird phenomenon to attack Pilot.

"It doesn't belong here," said Pilot. "All of this will stop if you return it from whence it came."

Orchid's ears flattened. Chestnut cried out in fear, and his caterwauling spread until the cries of the cats filled the forest. The stink of fear filled the colony. Each cat's shadow stretched as if the light of an invisible sun beat down on them from beyond their sight. Dark violet hues swirled on the bark, painting the twisting forms of the panicked cats.

"You're the only one who can send it back," said Pilot.

Orchid staggered toward the stone, her legs stiff with fear. Her fur stood on end from her head to her tail.

The black queen slapped her paw down on the stone.

A thin slit opened in the air as if someone had taken their claw and run it down from the lowest branches to the ground. Every cat could see through to another version of the colony that was empty save for a single cat.

An orange-furred tom popped into view. When he saw the rift open, he stared dumbfounded for a moment, then barreled out of the seam and leaped to Orchid's side.

"What's happening?" he cried, head darting from side to side as he tried to comprehend the mass of terrified cats.

The portal snapped closed and the stone was gone. Everyone grew still. Their shadows had returned to their usual length, and the light of the setting sun no longer swirled around them like whirlpools in a storm. Saffron licked Orchid's fur back into place, attempting to soothe the queen who now stared at the vacant clearing, panting for breath.

Midnight shook her head in disbelief. "For once, I think Saffron has the right of it. What on earth happened?"

Pilot's tail twitched. "If nearly ending the world is what it takes to get your attention, then I suggest you listen to everything I have to say. Because I will do it again, if necessary."

Confident that she had every cat's undivided attention, she began to pace the center of the colony. "It was a deceptively simple request. 'Find Saffron.' As a favor for a friend, I was willing to oblige… but the details of the case didn't add up. Saffron is a social tom, and yet no one seemed to know where he went. The cats who might have wished him harm were looking for him, too. No one could ever figure out how he and Orchid kept meeting against Midnight's wishes, or how they even got over the river without being noticed."

Midnight narrowed her eyes at the tom, but Pilot recaptured her attention with a flick of her tail.

"No matter how hard I looked, Saffron's trail always came to an abrupt end. What I did find was evidence of supernatural phenomena. Visions of a world between worlds, an experience I shared with the missing Rue."

The Second's ears pricked in surprise. "The cat is still alive?"

"Alive and afraid," said Pilot. "Afraid of what you'd do once you found out he tried to steal the stone from Saffron and fell off the overpass due to his short-sighted greed. Which explains why he never bothered to report back to you."

"He should be afraid," growled the Second. The cat nodded to Saffron. "If what she says is true, then I owe you an apology."

"It's… all right?" Saffron said.

"Saffron doesn't know what he was accused of, or that anyone was looking for him in the first place," said Pilot. "Because he's been hiding in the Between ever since the incident at the overpass."

Midnight dug at the ground beneath her paws. "And what does any of this have to do with my daughter?"

"One thing became apparent during my investigation," said Pilot. "These two love each other, intensely and unconditionally, as young fools often do." She ignored the glares from the queens and licked the back of her paw. "Which is why it was odd to me that, during my prior visit, she asked me to call off my search. I considered the possibility that she had called the investigation to create an alibi for murder… but knowing her true feelings, she would only have been as calm as she was if she knew Saffron was safe."

Pilot pointed her tail at Orchid. "You know my reputation. You hired me to find Saffron so that, after three days, everyone would be convinced that he had vanished. Then you would carry on your affair in secret… but you had no idea that using your Gift could have such consequences."

Midnight caught her breath and padded over to Orchid. "My flowerling… is this true?"

Orchid tried to meet her mother's gaze. Then Saffron pressed to her side and spoke instead.

"I'm sorry to have caused you all so much trouble," he said. "I love her. I would do anything for her. And however long it takes to prove that to you, I intend to."

The forest queen's scowl warred with worry for her daughter.

"Do what you'd like," said Pilot. "Whether you accept their relationship or not makes no difference to me. But it will be the difference between saving your daughter and losing her." She cast a cool look over her shoulder at Orchid. "As for you? Find yourself a teacher before you manage to tear Twin Rivers in half."

Midnight stiffened. She leaned down to Orchid and whispered, "We will talk about this." Then she circled to stand on a nearby rock, raising her tail high to address the gathered cats. "The rest of you clear out. I want you off of my territory by Moonhigh or I'll be relieving you of your tails."

Pilot had no desire to stay in the forest colony. Satisfied that the cats were safe enough to sort themselves out, she turned and walked away.

"Wait!" called Saffron. The cat caught her up on the trail back to the bridge. "I don't know what exactly happened, but I know you went out of your way for Orchid's sake. At least let me thank you."

Pilot turned her head to regard the tom. Something about his expression, somewhere between too bright and too dull, reminded her of another cat in her life. "You can repay me by making sure Orchid finds help," she said. "Otherwise she's going to find herself in a lot more trouble."

"Yes, of course," said Saffron, bowing his head. "I'll make sure she finds someone."

As Pilot turned to make her way home, she heard the paw steps of Orchid and Midnight hurrying to gather Saffron.

They're in for a difficult conversation, she thought. As long as they remember they both love Orchid, they'll find a way to live with each other.

Probably.

* * *

Tired though she was, Pilot was light on her feet. Now that the matter of Saffron's disappearance was closed, her work was finished. She should, she supposed, let the Collector know that the stone was back on the other side of the veil.

Or I could make Prince do it, she thought. Seeing as he's the one who got me into this mess in the first place, it's the least he could do.

Then there was the favor she owed to Bandit. That would need to be repaid, but there was always a chance that his canine pride would win out and he wouldn't lower himself to asking a cat for help.

She could always hope.

As for the favors owed her, they were already too tedious to count. She had done her part, and now she was going back to her corner of Twin Rivers to get some much-deserved rest.

The moon swung high over the town as Pilot stole along the fences, no more than a shadow retreating into the night. Again the sounds of music carried from the Row and down the scant settlements in the quieter part of town. Fairie lights and sodium lamps flicked on, attracting swarms of moths and flies to bob around beneath them.

It crescendoed as she passed the heart of the city and then dwindled to a murmur as she approached the little bungalow at the end of the drive.

Two pairs of ears raised as she jumped onto the porch. Prince and Hermes raised their tails in greeting.

"Told you she'd be back about now," said Prince. "You might know a lot of folks, but I know her better than anyone."

"Indeed." Hermes chuckled. "So you've dealt with the matter of the missing tom?"

"I have," said Pilot. She sniffed the back of Prince's head but otherwise refused to give more than a cold greeting to the pair.

"Very interesting," said Hermes. "Most cats would have become flustered or frightened to contend with the forces present in Twin Rivers. Yet you cut to the heart of the matter with, what, half a day to spare?"

"I told you she was the best," said Prince.

"Mmhm." Hermes bobbed his head. "Now that you've proven yourself, you're bound to attract more cats in need. There's always some lost friend or artifact… what do you think, Pilot? Should I spread the word that Twin Rivers has a new detective?"

She almost turned it down. Then the words of the witch echoed in the ears like a prophecy.

Dark omens come in threes, each stronger than the last.

Pilot knew better than to believe superstition, but she had seen what lay beyond the other side of the bridge. Never before had she seen the veil drawn thinner than a spider's web. Even if Orchid managed to master her abilities, she couldn't shake the feeling that something bigger lurked at the heart of Twin Rivers.

Solving everyone's personal problems sounds like a good way to drive myself crazy, she thought. But I refuse to believe this is all coincidence. I'm going to need as many eyes and ears as I can get my paws on.

"An agency isn't the worst idea," she conceded at last. "Bring any matters of concern to Prince. He'll decide what cases we take on."

"Me?" Prince pointed a claw at himself. "Are you sure? This is kind of your area of expertise."

Pilot grunted. If it were up to her, she wouldn't have gotten herself involved to begin with. The tom had a good sense of when to push her out of her head and into the thick of things. "You'll get to meet a lot of cats from around here."

"When you put it that way." Prince sighed and lifted a paw to his brow in a mock faint. "I suppose I can't just surrender myself to kibble and donut beds while you're working your tail off."

"That's settled, then," said Pilot. "Now, if you'll excuse me…"

"Of course, of course," chuckled Hermes. "Go on and relax. You've earned it, detective."

Pilot firmly believed that what she had earned was a few minutes of peace. She quit the porch by the back rail and prowled across the grass. As she jumped onto the edge of the fence and the sound of frog song filled her ears, she heard Hermes retreat into the night.

Bright green flashes lit up the wetlands. The fireflies drew swirls in the air before their lights went out, and then lit again, leaving wandering patterns for her to admire. She breathed deep and found the heavy wetland air salved the chaos she'd crossed in her return.

Soft paws scrabbled against the fence as Prince hauled himself up beside her. She didn't mind.

"What made you stick it out?" asked Prince. News, as usual, traveled quickly regarding the details of the case. No doubt Hermes had filled him in on everything that occurred while he was out of the forest colony with a few embellishments to boot.

Pilot bit back a sharp remark about cats telling her to keep her nose out of things and studied Prince. Her whiskers curled with amusement. "If I didn't, loverboy was going to get himself killed. Still might manage it."

"I don't know." Prince waved a paw in the air. "He sounded pretty capable to me."

That was precisely the problem. Saffron was just capable and willing enough to throw himself into any danger that threatened Orchid. The danger wasn't big enough to swallow him whole this time.

But heroes inevitably attract bigger fangs, thought Pilot. And I've got my paws full keeping Prince in one piece.

Pilot shook her head. "I can’t believe you thought I would be good with Midnight of all cats."

Prince laughed and she could feel the vibrations in her chest. "I still do! If you can get over yourselves.”

“And her husband,” Pilot added blithely.

Prince retorted with a non-committal sputter, and stuck his tongue out. After any near-miss cataclysm, his simple pleasures had taken on their own charm.

She sighed and turned her gaze back to the wetlands. “So much for that quiet life I promised you.”

“Ahh, I wasn't looking forward to it anyway. This way I get to meet as many friendly cats as I like!" Prince listened to the silence for a little longer, then shifted so that he was properly balanced on the fence. "This is good too. Just us and the fireflies."

"And the fireflies," Pilot agreed. The porch light hummed behind them and they watched the green sprites light up the darkness, one flicker at a time.