The train slowly pulled out of the station, heading towards New York.
Gwen and Kara, sitting a seat apart, exchanged glances, a hint of unspoken hostility in their eyes.
Vincent, sitting between them, was oblivious. He placed his backpack on his lap, and as the zipper was slightly unzipped, a small, orange-yellow head peeked out.
"A kitten?" Gwen exclaimed in surprise. "Vincent, when did you get a kitten, and an orange one at that?"
"Its name is Little Orange Cat. I found it in the park yesterday. My aunt went out, so I thought it would be better to bring it with me," Vincent said, gently massaging Little Orange Cat's soft chin with his thumb. Little Orange Cat responded with a comfortable, contented expression.
"I always wanted to adopt a kitten too," Gwen's beautiful eyes sparkled, finding it incredibly novel.
After all, who could resist cuteness?
Kara, however, sitting nearby, had an unusual look in her sapphire-blue eyes from the moment she saw Little Orange Cat.
"Let me hold it," Gwen said, reaching out her hand towards Little Orange Cat. But before her hand could touch Little Orange Cat's body, Little Orange Cat's fur immediately bristled, and it quickly retreated back into Vincent's backpack. Through the gap in the backpack's zipper, a pair of eerie vertical pupils glowed with a faint green light in the darkness.
Gwen shuddered, her hand instinctively recoiling at the same time, the tiny hairs on her body bristling like an animal's instinct.
Clearly, both the person and the beast were startled.
As an ordinary person, Vincent naturally didn't notice Gwen's abnormality.
"What are you scared of? She's my friend," Vincent admonished Little Orange Cat while smiling at Gwen. "Don't mind it, Gwen. This little guy is very wary. Right now, besides me, it won't even let my aunt touch it."
"It's fine, I'm fine," Gwen shook her head, her eyes still fixed on Vincent's backpack, a deep wariness and astonishment swirling in her gaze.
Her Spider-Sense clearly perceived that, in that instant, she had the illusion of being 'eaten'!
Was it really just an illusion?
"Alright, I'll take Little Orange Cat to the train's restroom to get some water. It gets a bit irritable when it's thirsty," Vincent said, leaving his seat with his backpack.
Watching Vincent's back disappear into the train's restroom, Gwen's attention immediately shifted from Little Orange Cat to the quiet junior sitting beside her: "Tell me, what exactly is your purpose?"
"Senior, what purpose are you referring to?"
The brilliant sunlight outside streamed through the window into the carriage, turning Kara's originally dark golden hair platinum blonde. She asked curiously, like a fresh and lovely girl next door, "Wanting to go on a date with Senior Vincent, could that be called a purpose?"
"Shameless!" Gwen's cheeks flushed slightly, a flash of anger and embarrassment crossing her face. Then she lowered her voice and said, "You can fool others, but you can't fool me. You clearly..."
"Senior Gwen," Kara narrowed her eyes slightly and said naturally, "You're not an ordinary person either, are you?"
"So what if I am?"
Since the other party had already laid their cards on the table, Gwen admitted it quite straightforwardly.
The first time Gwen saw Kara at school, an unprecedented sense of crisis welled up in her heart.
This sense of crisis didn't come from so-called romantic rivalry, but from a deeper level — it made her body and mind tremble more than facing the gigantic and powerful Abomination!
"Whatever your purpose, you can come at me privately. Vincent is just an ordinary person!" Gwen quietly clenched her fists, ready to fight Kara at any moment.
Kara merely brushed a strand of hair back, her small face full of seriousness as she said, "Senior, my criteria for a partner are very normal. I personally have no interest in you. As for Senior Vincent, since even you, who are not an ordinary person, can be his friend, why can't I be his future partner?"
It seemed reasonable?
Gwen's delicate eyebrows rose. She sensed that Kara was not to be trifled with, but the other party genuinely seemed to have no intention of harming Vincent.
Recalling what had just happened, Gwen said, "What do you think about that cat just now?"
"That's not an ordinary cat," Kara said gravely. "No. I should say, it only has an appearance similar to a cat. In fact, both its inner nature and its species are completely unrelated to cats, this Earth species."
Kara gently propped one side of her cheek, contemplating, "This is the first time I've seen such a creature. Its bone structure and internal organ configuration are very unusual, like a mobile mini black hole."
"Ah? Then isn't Vincent in great danger being alone with it?" Gwen immediately stood up, looking worriedly at the silent train restroom.
"Don't worry, Senior," Kara blinked, then said to the metal partition of the restroom, "I've been watching since just now. That creature is very well-behaved with Senior, no different from an ordinary kitten."
"You... you can see through things?!" Gwen turned back in surprise to look at Kara, remembering her analysis of the kitten just now. If she couldn't see through things, how could she know the kitten's internal condition?
She herself, not being an ordinary person, must have been perceived that way by the other party too!
"Of course," Kara nodded as a matter of course, pointing towards the restroom. "Look, Senior Vincent is inside right now..."
"Close your eyes! Don't look anymore!" Gwen's face flushed instantly. She covered Kara's eyes with her hand, preventing her from peeking and looking towards the restroom.
Kara instinctively raised her hand and gently pushed away Gwen, who was leaning on her.
But then came a "bang." Gwen crashed heavily into the back of the opposite seat, her face filled with shock.
Where did that slender, white arm get such terrifying strength?
Kara also panicked this time and quickly apologized, "I'm sorry, Senior, I... I didn't control my strength well."
"I can only say... thankfully, it was me," Gwen exhaled, patted the dust off the back of her clothes, and stood up again as if nothing had happened.
A little while later.
Vincent returned to his seat, carrying his backpack with Little Orange Cat inside, and looked at Gwen and Kara, who were 'joking around' together, with surprise.
These two beautiful young women seemed to get along even better than he imagined?
Seeing Vincent return, Gwen and Kara quickly returned to normal. They sat calmly and serenely in their seats, as if nothing had happened between them, resuming their appearances as a cold and proud older sister and a girl next door, respectively.
Vincent was utterly confused by this.
Wait, why was the back of the chair in front of him dented?
Regardless.
The train continued to move at a steady speed, getting closer and closer to its destination — New York.