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Welcome to the (extremely) long-awaited 4th chapter of Now and Then!

This story contains lots of violence, swearing, and alluded incest. Don't worry, the rest of the series won't be this bad; I'm just getting it out of the way. If you object to violence, you may want to skip forward to this symbol (ctrl+f): #@@#.

Beyond that, happy reading!

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Well, Cards night was a flop, if you pardon the expression. Fish had to get his jaw set in about three places from where Aeris wailed on him hard with those hooves, Aeris needed some stitches from the broken glass that got caught between the hard hoof-pads of his hands, Hammard got some bruises from helping me keep the two apart and I got a few new cuts that are probably going to scar; not that it really matters anyway, I'm already pretty scarred up as it is. I think the only one who got out of this OK was Shadow. I swear, that girl's been seeming a little happier lately. Maybe it's the change of scenery, maybe Hammard said something to her that helped, maybe she really likes it here; I don't know.

It took a few days, but we've managed to move Shadow in completely. I expected Will, the pathetic runt he is, to at least put up a protest. Apparently he seems to think that all this times she's been out with her friend Dave, not me. I didn't know what to expect, but considering I was expecting trouble, it shouldn't have surprised me when I got a phone call.

"Jackal! Come quick! I'm at the old apartment...", Shadow's voice came through broken and scared. In the background there was the sounds of yelling. "I was at the park with Dave, when Will confronted me and said he had my Birth Certificate. I followed him back and- Oh god; he's found me!"

There was a dial tone and nothing more.

I threw on my jacket and shoes and came as fast as I could. The door was locked, though inside the room I could hear crashing and the sounds of shouting.

"YOU WHORE! Did his dick feel good in your pussy?", an unfamiliar male with a thick voice screamed.

"I... I never slept with Dave!", Shadow pleaded, "Please, let me go!"

I heard a smack land faintly through the wall as Shadow howled in pain. I pounded on the door. There was silence for a moment.

"You fucking slut. You called the cops! You WANT me in jail don't you?!?! You WANT to see me in a CAGE!"

"No, I never said that."

"OWW! Shadow! Stop hitting me! OW! Let go! Stop biting me!"

"Will, Quit it, please! I'm nowhere near you!"

I banged harder on the door, about to break it down. Will was not just abusive, he had to be sick! Again and again I pounded until the door unlocked to reveal a stout tanuki with greasy brown fur matted with sweat, dark brown eyes glinting maliciously as his small rounded ears pressed back hard against his head. His shirt hung limply from his chest, half torn off; his ratty jeans hanging low about his waist barely covering something I really didn't want to see. "WHO the FUCK are YOU!" he roared.

Not far away there was Shadow, hair a mess, glasses missing. Her shirt was completely torn off, her bra stained with dark red blood seeping from a nasty gash on her arm. Shadow limped to her feet.

"Me? I'm your neighbor down the hall. I heard yelling and came to make sure everything is ok. That's a nasty welt on your forehead.", I said as Shadow limped up behind will, dragging a chair.

"That bitch Shadow lost her temper again! Look what she done to me!", he turned towards her to glare accusingly as she brought the chair up, smashing it hard over Will's head.

As the tanuki sunk to the ground, temporarily stunned, Shadow bolted into the Hallway. "That's it! Run! Run you fucking whore! Run to your precious David!", he shouted after her.

I sat there in complete shock. How had someone this vile gone unnoticed for this long?

"I'm going to clean up and go back to work. Thanks. If you see her come back around here, call the police.", he said, grimacing, then slammed the door.

Looking in the direction Shadow had run, I saw a trail of blood. Following the drops carefully, I found her hunched between too bushes, picking shards of glass out of a nasty gash in her arm.

"Shadow, we need to talk..."

Shadow looked up at my sadly.

"Why did you do this?"

"Because he was right; he does have half my papers. He noticed I was missing and hid them in order to get me to come back."

"You can get new papers. You're bleeding badly... and your ankle has swollen back up. How did you manage to run?"

Shadow shook her head, still crying.

After a few moments I heard a door slam, then a car started up and drove away.

"Shadow, I've got to know... did you? I mean, did you actually sleep with Dave?"

"No. I haven't done anything I didn't have permission to do. At worst we kissed. Dave kissed me goodnight one night and since then Will's been going crazy. It wasn't even a passionate kiss or anything, just a tiny peck on the lips! We even had things worked out so if I found anyone of interest I'd just tell Will and things would be OK. I told him I liked Dave, but he ignored things until he saw that stupid tiny kiss. We both apologized but he just wouldn't stop."

"And before then? When did Will start doing this?"

Shadow paused, speaking slowly, her ears drooping, "...almost a year ago. I forgot his birthday."

"Still have a house key?" I said, ears lowering slightly.

"Yes."

"It's time to call the police."

"No! Don't!"

"Shadow, it needs to be done. You have somewhere to go, now it's time to end this."

"But Will will tell the police I did al this and that I hit him first! You saw me hit him with that chair! You'll be called in for a witness!"

"I also heard you begging him to stop and him calling you a whore and hitting you."

Carefully I helped shadow to her feet and we went back inside the apartment. I picked up the phone and called the police. Shadow tried to grab the phone away at first, but eventually sat there on the couch tending the deep bruises that were surfacing under the white fur of her arms as the entire side of her face began to turn purple and swell. While we waited, I found her glasses and tried to help her relax. It seemed like eternity before anyone came. first on the scene was a rather abrupt ferret.

"What happened?", he asked.

"Wwwill... attacked me."

"Where is Will? Please sign this.", the ferret said holding out a small stack of papers.

"At work; he works at Vancostas. What is this?", Shadow Said as she began to read.

"36 hour protective order. He can't go near you for at least 2-3 days. Now just sign; I have other houses to go to."

Shadow kept trying to scan the papers, "What else does it do?"

I came closer and tried to read over Shadow's Shoulder. The ferret officer nudged her, putting a pen in her shaky paw, "Sign it so I can get this over with."

"She has a right to read.", I said.

"Humph! She can read it later. Thank you m'am, the photographer from evidence will be here shortly." the officer said, leaving and taking the papers with him.

Shadow was bewildered as was I. Sure, it was a Friday night, but there was no excuse for that. About ten minutes later a young female rat came with a camera. She seemed especially sad when she saw Shadow.

"Hi Officer Jack. I'm sorry you had to see me like this again."

"AGAIN!!" I said, my eyes wide and ears perking.

"I know, Shadow. This happens too often. All I can say is find someone better.", officer Jack said as she tried to smile, but her whiskers continued to droop and her small bright eyes were soon full of tears. Taking a few moments, she turned away as if to fix her camera, though I could see she was trying hard not to cry.

"I've known Officer Jack since she was in training. I was one of her first cases... she's helped me out before." Shadow said, turning to me, oblivious of what Officer Jack was hiding.

After a few minutes Officer Jack turned back to us, and drew in a slow, deep breath through her long front teeth, holding her camera ready in her clever little hands.

"Ok, Shadow. Turn on that light switch and let's get this done."

As the Camera flashed and Shadow displayed her bruises and wounds, I took a few moments to reflect. If Shadow had gone out with Dave, where was he during all of this?

---

Will parked a little distance from work and took out a screwdriver from the glove box. Hitting himself over and over as hard as he could with the screwdriver handle, he sat there in his car, mind burning with the image of Shadow and Dave. How happy they looked together! That fucking cat. How dare she! It didn't matter that it had been over half a year ago, Shadow needed to pay. Putting the screwdriver away, he began to choke himself. Oh yes, she would pay. What story would he tell? Shadow and he had gone back to the apartment to get her papers, and he had been too slow in finding them, so she had gotten angry and grabbed the nearest object she could. Oh yes, had she choked and bit him as well! That fucking whore.

Getting out of his car, Will walked into the familiar restaurant he worked in. A great white tiger looked sad and shook his head behind the front counter. Will tried to look sad, but inside he was smiling. Oh yes, they would pity him and hate her; exactly what eh wanted. She didn't pity him or obey him; she didn't even put out. At least he could get the power and respect he deserved at work. Nobody would approach him; Vancoastas was the most popular restaraunt in the city and it was his cooking that brought them in for miles. Even the police ate there. His cooking made him invincible.

A police car pulled up outside and a ferret got out holding a small stack of papers. He walked in and came up to the tiger behind the front counter.

"What will it be, the usual?" the white tiger said with a thick Iranian accent.

"Is Will Bender here?", the ferret replied.

"Will! Come out here!", the Tiger called into the kitchen and a bruised and bitten Will emerged.

"Will Bender, you are under arrest. You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in court. You have the Right to an attorney...", the ferret started reciting Will's rights as he put him in handcuffs.

As he was led away, Will's eyes were wide and his small cupped ears twitched, "I... can't believe she actually did it..."

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That night my dream seemed to continue from where the other one left off...

It was a little before sundown as a brightly colored caravan arrived at the palace escorted by a small army of feline guards; the very best of their kingdom. Trumpets played and maidens in light robes danced out to greet the prince. A soft red carpet was unrolled from a carriage of wrought gold and out stepped two cats, both sandy yellow with brown eyes. Their clothing was of the finest silk and at each of their sides hung a sword of the finest quality, crafted by the finest artisans of their kingdom. The Maidens paused in confusion, their tails swishing behind them. Which was the prince?

The cats laughed with the same voice, then walked along the cushioned red carpet bare pawed into the palace to meet the king. They smiled approvingly of our tall walls and high arches, of our art and sculptures, of our fine gardens and tinkling fountains, and, most approvingly, of the princess as she clung nervously to my side as I stood ready in my nicest armor. Unbeknownst to the cats, I could feel her tail tucked between her knees beneath her deep purple royal robes. Gently I tried to reassure her, we did not know what they were there for nor did we know which was the prince in question; why should we be afraid? Yet my little Shadow simply whimpered softly to herself once the procession had passed us.

After a time, a servant mouse in soft white came to us and let us know the king requested our presence. Shadow tried to straighten herself up and behave in a refined fashion, though I could tell by the look in her copper eyes that she would rather be anywhere else right now but here. Gently she walked before me, doing her very best not to stumble and fall, trying to smile and look at ease. I walked behind her, ears sharp; there was no way to know who had come with the cats, and it was best to stay alert.

The king awaited on his white throne, grey muzzle still regal despite his years, "And here is my best guard and my daughter's protector, Jackal, and my daughter Shadow."

The cats whispered back and forth among one another in their language, then one spoke, "A good sight to see. She's available?"

Shadow's ears started to droop. "Yes, she is unwed right now, though come, we have much to speak of. You can get to know her better later."

And the other cat grinned.

At first Shadow was shy with the newcomers, apparently they were twins, Daniel and David. Apparently Daniel already had a mate and kittens, though David was available... and Shadow seemed to like him, much to her father's happiness. The two would take long walks together under my watch, talking and playing in the gardens, and every day she grew to care for him more and more. He made her promises, sweet pledges the type only those in love do; promises to cherish and protect, promises to care for her and always be there, and promises to be a good loving mate for the rest of his life. Shadow happily returned this attention with smiles and warm affection. Outwardly, I was happy for her, but inside... I seared. Still, if what he was saying was indeed true, perhaps she finally has someone she can trust? At the end of each night, David would return to Daniel and the two brothers would retire in their quarters.

Weeks passed and David and Shadow began to talk about a life together. There was talk of a home (though staying with Daniel at first), a family, plenty of good food, good education, servants... and a celebration feast to commemorate the pair announcing their love. Indeed, the feast was planned and all was going well for the two. David and Shadow were on one of their walks shortly before the feast when David said he need to go and would return if called, bidding Shadow good afternoon. As we walked through bustling halls, I saw a figure out of the corner of my eye.

Lurching from the shadows, a tanuki dressed in form fitting black pulled out a knife and reached for Shadow. Shadow cried out, but David did not come. Instead I drew my sword and attacked, cleaving the would-be assassin's right hand clean off in a single stroke. The assassin shrieked in pan, then fled into the darkness form which he had come.

I checked the shaken shadow. She was bruised and had a cut on her arm, but was otherwise alright. Where was David? Shadow began to cry; he had promised to come if called! I took Shadow's Hand and went to her father, angrily stating what had happened. The king appeared worried; apparently Daniel was also missing having claimed he would be gone but a few moments and also was missing. With a bevy of guards for backup in case it was indeed a siege on the castle, Shadow, her father and I began to look for the cats.

We searched high and low, finding the assassin half dead but no others. Where could they be? A servant said she had seen Daniel near his room and so, at least we checked. Opening the door we received the starling sight of the two brothers tangled up naked beneath the sheets, their clothing lying upon the floor. Filled with Rage, the king threw the blankets off of them, and demanded and explanation.

Apparently David only was seeking a mate due to family obligations and nothing more. Also, Daniel preferred men, apparently.