BEEP.

The normal barcode scanner whined as the second cat condo slid across the rubber conveyor belt. Some things hadn't changed since the System's arrival, but the tag did read "Suitable for Dangerous Feline Familiars Over 30KG." Alex was pretty sure Emilio wasn't that heavy, maybe 30 pounds tops. Now that he thought about it...Emilio was probably more like 65-75 pounds. The cat was gigantic. But Emilio was majestic and he wanted to treat his oldest friend before Mary and the bots helped him pick out some clothes for his date. Spending the Credits would hurt, but he thought the cat needed the two condos just to be safe.

"Two condos," said the kid behind the register with a cracking voice. He looked barely old enough to work, and had a constellation of pimples across his face. The clerk had a tiny frame under an oversized blue Familiars R' Us vest that hung off him like a wizard's robe. Then the kid stretched to reach over the counter for the twenty pack of canned cat food that Alex was also buying for Emilio.

BEEP. BEEP. BEEP.

Alex winced as the number on the register climbed. Then climbed again. Then leapt even though the kid just scanned another can. "Wait, is that the subtotal?"

"Yeup." The kid blew a pink bubble. "Got a loyalty card? It gives you 0.1% Credits back." The bubble snapped. Alex stared at the price displayed across the magical display. It was a good chunk of his Credits. He still had to buy some food, get some clothes, remember to pay rent, have some Credits for his date…but Emilio deserved this. The cat had been with him the longest.

"Yeah. Yeah, give me that loyalty card." The kid reached under the counter and handed him a thin plastic card with "FAMILIARS R' US" etched with silver runes and a sigil in the shape of a wagging tail. Alex immediately handed it back, as that seemed to be the formalized process in the kid's training, and the kid scanned it. The price on the register didn't drop. Alex sighed and waved his hand over the pay pad while injecting some Essence into it, and watched in horror as the screen flashed a "Thank you! 🐰" before it sucked the Credits from him with a sad little chime.

[Credits: 2342 -> 1618]

Oof. That stung, he thought as he pulled the second cat condo box on the tiled floor and looked around for Mary.

His eyes wandered across the store again. At the aisles stacked high with treats, toys, and gear, all branded in bright fonts and verbiage that promised loyalty and obedience. It made his skin itch a little. There were Familiars everywhere. Some in cages, some perched on shoppers shoulders, some prancing. Alex didn't like the idea of Familiars. There was something about the bond that rubbed him the wrong way. When a Monster became a Familiar through a very specific Skill that someone called a Bonder could use, it wasn't really a bond. It was submission. Once bonded, the Monster would listen. Sit. Stay. Dance. Fight. Smile on command. Familiars did practically anything their owner told them to. And most people loved the idea of being adored by a strange and eccentric creature until they got bored of it and either sold it or worse. Emilio wasn't his Familiar and would never be. Emilio came and went when he pleased, ate what he liked, definitely slept where he liked, and bit people who annoyed him. He was his thirty-pound bastard and Alex adored him for it. Mary's bots didn't count to Alex either. They had personalities and as far as he knew, her Skill was a link and not a bond. They weren't bound to Mary, they just liked her and stuck by her side as their creator.

Familiars R' Us was located on the outer edge of Yorkville, Toronto's bougiest neighbourhood with disgustingly expensive restaurants, Core Lounges, and too many candle stores. It was a megastore and a spin off of a now-defunct toy chain that had gone under in spectacular fashion during the Toy uprising a decade ago. Apparently, just one Toy Monster turned the entire gundham aisle into murderous robots. The hostile boardroom takeover that followed involved streamed beheadings and ended in a missile and a bottoming out stock price. The new brand, Familiars R' Us, focused on all things pets, and well… Familiars.

This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

The place was ginormous. Fluorescent lights buzzed, and the aisles were stocked with food, toys, and leashes for any kind of Monster, Familiar, or pet. Cages lined the outer walls and each one held a unique or strange Familiar. A tank of angry water sloshed in the corner and allegedly contained an Invisible Octopus Familiar that swam through space. A rack of little yellow birds yelled when someone lied infront of them. There was a rabbit Familiar that was reading a paper and had given Alex a nod as he walked by. A giant container of mice ran through karate drills, and there was even something that looked like floating cotton candy that apparently made a great service animal.

Mary was easy to spot. Alex dragged the two cat condos and the twenty cans of cat food slowly towards her direction. She stood near the display at the front with Beepy and Zippy. Beepy was trying on a red shirt that read "Sizzle Prince" and Zippy was attempting to discreetly steal a squeaky toy into Mary's back pocket. The slimeperson security guard watched and whispered furiously into his walkie talkie.

"Little help here?" Alex grunted as he struggled with the items. Zippy immediately froze mid-sneak. The little flying robot looked between Alex and the slimeperson security guard, and dropped the toy with a guilty toot. Beepy rubbed his lego hands slowly down the front of his new "Sizzle Prince" sweater, clearly impressed with his new attire.

Mary reached over and felt for the cat condo box quickly finding her grip and hefted it up like it was nothing. Alex pouted internally. "Zippy," she said and tilted her head toward the plastic bag of cat food Alex carried. Zippy beeped and zipped to the other side. The bot extended his little metal claw hand and snatched the bag from Alex. When Zippy lifted off, he dipped several inches under the weight, but managed to stay airborne.

Together, the gang made their way out of Familiars R' Us. Another slime guard gave them a glare as they passed. Mary stomped out first with the cat condo balanced on one shoulder while Beepy rolled confidently beside her and adjusted his cuffs with his hands. The front doors whooshed open and they stepped out of the air conditioning and onto Cumberland Street.

The sun smacked Alex with its heat. Cumberland was glaring, showy, and still offensively rich. The same buildings had been there since the before times, and the same kinds of people strutted, but it too had been changed. Luxury boutiques lined the wide sidewalks: watch stores with timepieces that counted the seconds before your greatest enemy died, clothing stores that actually made you more attractive, and candle stores that just sold candles. Fashionable rich people strutted around as the most expensive and vintage cars drove by, loudly revving their engines. Most people had rare Familiars perched like status symbols, whether it was a gold lizard that walked backwards, perfectly coiffed poodles, or miniature hippos that were common but highly regarded as great Familiars. The great canadian miniature house hippo was so cute that even Alex stared in envy.

"Great," Alex said. "We look like we robbed the place. God, I feel so out of place."

Mary snorted as Zippy led her back to the extremely expensive parking garage where he had parked. "You say that like it's a bad thing." Beepy scooted along and gawked at all the expensive things. Alex just adjusted his sweaty shirt and tried to walk with a little swagger. He still needed some new date worthy clothing. Preferably that made him look cool, but without trying.

The gang made their way into the parking garage which was somehow even hotter than the street. They reached Alex's dented hatchback wedged between a chrome covered car and a spotless vintage F-150 that looked like it had never seen the outside. Alex kicked the trunk open and the group shoved in the two cat condos and the cat food. A man cleared his throat nearby. Alex turned to see a tall handsome guy in a leather suit locking his fancy car with a crystal fob. The man gave Alex's car a look up and down, and snorted before walking off with the swagger of a butt plug enthusiast.

"Okay. Well. That was rude." Alex's face flushed.

"Ignore him," Mary said while smacking her hands together. "Let's go. We're going to Ralph's for some sexy pants."

"Sexy pants?"

"Oh yeah, Alex." She started walking off with Zippy following over her shoulder. "Your butts your best feature. Gotta show off those goods for your date. Plus…I don't know how to say this. You need some new pants man."

Alex sighed, but followed. "Fine. But I'm vetoing anything too weird."

"No promises," Mary grinned. "But you're a hot commodity now, Mister. These pants gotta slap. Don't worry, Beepy has excellent taste."

Beepy was still running his hands over his new sweater and even did a twirl like he was in a pageant before posing for Alex. The damn little robot even tried to copy Alex's finger guns and everything.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.