"Do you wish to take him out of his cage?"

Lily was startled to hear him, sighing in relief when she noticed it was John, so she nodded at his question.

"Then let me ask the manager, I'll be back shortly."

John made his way to the counter, asking the attendant if that cat could be taken out, but noticing her pale look and shaky refusal, he realized that said cat was not as simple as it seemed. So worried, he quickly returned, finding Lily affectionately hugging the little cat, who was purring with happiness at being petted.

John smiled in relief, feeling that perhaps he did not explain himself clearly, and so the owner would have mistaken the cage because, as far as he could see, this was a most adorable scene.

What danger could a small cat with light-brown fur, uniform black spots and stripes, and black pads, black pads!!!?

Without hesitation, he approached Lily, grabbing the cat by the collar and flinging it away from her, at the same time hugging her and jumping backwards, thus increasing the distance between the two parties.

"John, what are you doing!" shouted Harry, who had just arrived.

John didn't have an opportunity to answer him, throwing Lily in Harry's direction.

The second he did so, a small claw grazed his eyes, instinctively releasing a punch in the direction of the cat, who spun amazingly in the air, thus dodging his attack. Seeing him fall, he quickly released a kick at him, but it dodged him again.

John felt completely frustrated; he was used to fighting against targets of equal or larger size, so he had no experience at all when facing a creature that was not only smaller but faster and more agile.

But that was life, and he slowly adjusted his breathing, attacking and defending, leaving gaps every so often in his defense for the cat to attack, both to attract its attention and thus ignore both Harry and Lily.

The minutes passed, and John gradually became serious. The complicated environment around him was perfect for the cat to move, defend, attack and ambush him.

His punches and kicks, which were once able to graze the cat, now missed by inches, noting with horror how this little feline was beginning to learn from him.

This cat's talent for adapting to his targets was frightening, from small predictable moves to wonderfully unpredictable movements, the consequences of which translated into attacks that moved closer and closer to his throat, eyes and crotch.

The little cat's attacks reminded John of the terror of fighting an invincible foe, a foe that was not only strong, but also growing stronger with each passing second. Biting his lips in shame, he could only resort to that method.

"Help! Somebody help me! I'm over by the feline zone! Help!"

The embarrassment lay not in asking for help, but in the fact that he asked for help in the face of such a small and adorable creature. For a moment, he wished he had the talent of his womanizing friend so he wouldn't feel embarrassed, no matter what he did.

And the thing was even more serious: his clothes, which were made of the best materials on the planet to resist sharp attacks and certain bullet calibers, were being torn to shreds by the small claws of that cat.

Luckily, his clothes still fulfilled the role for which they were created, preventing the claws and teeth of that little cat from hurting him, and this was good since he did not know if the cat was poisonous.

The noise caused by the fight and his cries for help attracted the store manager, who arrived totally enraged, cursing, insulting and ready to fight everyone, but the moment he saw the little cat, he ran away, this left both John and the cat stunned, who looked at each other with doubt in their eyes.

But the one who was most affected was John, who felt that if he got out of that fight alive, he would beat the attendant for his cowardice.

"Devourer of Darkness, leave him alone!" cried a sweet, delicate voice.

John felt like laughing at the ridiculous name, but stopped himself as he recognized the voice.

"Wait, Lily, stay away, it's too dangerous!"

John's words didn't stop Lily, who walked over to the little cat and hugged it in her arms, stroking its head affectionately, an act that the cat responded to with soft purrs while actively rubbing against Lily's body.

The scene was so harmonious that John could not help feeling that his fight against that cat was nothing more than imaginings of his birth out of boredom.

And it wasn't strange at all to think that way—to compare the monster that almost killed him seconds before with the adorable creature in Lily's arms, was to be mad.

Sighing with excitement, John sat on the floor, laughing stupidly, life was beautiful, and the lessons it taught you were very strange. In an unconventional way, he learned that beautiful women, or those with pure hearts, were lethal against any small feline.

"And Harry?" asked John.

"He went to fetch Professor McGonagall," she said shyly, backing away slowly with a blush on her face.

The cat noticed this peculiar action and looked at John with a warning expression in his eyes, at the same time giving him a death sign with his claws.

John felt like vomiting blood. He intended to save Lily from a dangerous black-footed cat, not to get intimately close to her; as pretty as she was, she couldn't compare to Luna or Karenina.

"Are you going to love him?" he asked worriedly.

Lily nodded her head.

"I understand, then I'll go to the manager, I have a few accounts to settle with him." He walked a few steps before turning his gaze away. "By the way, I recommend you keep an eye on him, that damn cat may be friendly to you, but it could prove deadly to anyone else."

"I'll keep an eye on it so it doesn't attack anyone."

"I hope you won't attack anyone, except to defend Lily, of course; otherwise she will suffer," he threatened the cat, who nodded in response.

Thereupon, John went searching for the manager, whom he managed to find barricaded inside a room. After persuading him to open the door and assuring him that the cat was neutralized, he proceeded to beat him until his mother could no longer recognize him.

After this, he negotiated the sale of the cat along with all the necessities it might require in its life, at a price that brought the store manager to tears.

Within minutes of closing that deal, both Professor McGonagall and Harry arrived with panicked expressions.

"Where's the ferocious beast you fought?" she asked worriedly as she held her wand tightly.

"What ferocious beast?"

"Harry told me you were fighting a terrifying creature, and that you had to call for help so it wouldn't kill you."

John looked at Harry, who smiled sheepishly.

Rubbing his forehead, he tried to mimic his womanizing friend's expression when he tried to pick up women by bragging to them about his adventures.

"Yes, yes, I was able to defeat it; it was a feline two, no, three meters tall, with wings, and three heads that spit fire."

"How brave you are, John, not only did you fight Devourer of Darkness, you also fought such a terrifying beast," said Lily, who had just arrived.

"Devourer of Darkness?" asked Professor McGonagall.

"It's my cat's name," she replied sheepishly.

"Yes, your cat, by the way, Lily, grab this contract; with it, you can order any product or service your cat needs, and you'll get it completely free, as for the duration, it's for life."

"Thank you, John, how much did it cost you?"

"It wasn't much, just like Harry, I see you as a good friend, and friends support each other."

Lily smiled sweetly, taking the contract and looking at John in complicity.

"Thank you; not only did you get me this great gift, you also saved me from that scary feline; you were very brave," she said, feigning admiration.

"I won't say it was easy, it was dangerous, a battle that took courage and sacrifice, but nothing I couldn't solve," he said casually, but inside, his heart was quivering with fear, praying again for Harry's future well-being.

"I see, it's a pity I didn't arrive sooner to see your act of bravery, Mr. Carter," said Professor McGonagall with a smirk, Lily's attitude and the intentions of John's gift were more than obvious, but she didn't think to uncover the truth.

John, who understood the meaning of Professor McGonagall's smile, felt like disappearing in embarrassment. If his acquaintances found out about this story, he would practically become the laughingstock of all Quelrathar; all his accomplishments, all his honor, everything would be trampled under the black pads of that cat.

"Let us continue our journey," said Professor McGonagall, waving her wand and restoring John's clothes to their original state, "as you can see, Mr. Carter, if there are such things as incantations to restore clothes."

John was speechless.