Chapter 172: One Of Them

I was meowed at to follow.

So I followed.

Mr. Black leaped off my lap the moment I stood back up on my feet. A newly ingrained habit kept the tennis ball held firmly in my grasp even as I sprinted after the pitter-patter of paws streaking deep into the darkness ahead.

From behind, tuned to the melody of surprise, a voice sounded aloud. "Where  do you think you're going?!"

Ash was just as loud. "Master, wait!"

I did wait, momentarily, before I picked up the pace again, just brief enough to glance back at Ash and look into her glowing green eyes, and reflect back to her the worry in my own.

"The other's one missing." 

After that, she didn't press on any further, just followed - Irene along with her, though less sympathetic going by the groan she expressed under her breath. Together the three of us scurried across the cobble-paved pathway originally meant for a leisurely stroll.