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Black cats weren't all that uncommon, from what Polyhymnia had seen, at least in Destiny City. Cats with markings on them weren't all that uncommon, either, though that left her wondering a great many things about the city itself. So when out on an attempted patrol (she knew she should look out for bad things, but that was about all she knew at this point) and she saw a cat that made her brain sort of tickle, she didn’t even hesitate before following it.

Perhaps the time of year was playing tricks on her, perhaps listening to the story time spooky stories at work had played into it, but the longer she followed the oddly silent cat, the more of a bad feeling in her gut she got, especially as it seemed the cat was leading her to somewhere dark and full of shadows.

Once she caught up, leaning over almost in half and breathing heavily, she reached out, wanting to give the cat a pet between the ears -- wanting to make the most out of the situation and at least get to pet the thing -- but before she could, the cat looked up at her with wide, almost glowing eyes and meowed…

...and then the cat was gone.

“...oh, come on. I didn’t chase you halfway across the city just for you to vanish on me. C’mon, kitty, come back out, please?” Polyhymnia’s voice was rough with a hint of a whine as she still was trying to catch her breath. “I promise, I’m not gonna hurt you, I just want to play. To pet.”

Letting out a deep sigh, she stood, turning to look around only to step and promptly run right into someone.

Polyhymnia did the only thing that made sense in that moment.

She screamed.

Nix might not recognize Polyhymnia, but that didn't mean the reverse wasn't true. A wave of emotions flashed across her face as she took in that she was safe, and that it was indeed Nix right there. Confusion, anger, fear, worry, excitement, recognition.

"You! I've got a bone to pick with you, Nix. I'm here, not knowing what I'm doing, because I forgot to ask kittyfriend, but you've been as helpful as he has been with me sorting out this whole business. But why is everything scarier this time of year? I hoped there'd be more finding random contraptions in the middle of a bunch of trees and less spooky shadow things." By the end, her voice was whining -- and through all of it, she hadn't quite considered that Nix couldn't recognize her. As far as she was concerned, she looked the same -- even if her hair felt a bit shorter but curlier -- but she'd forgotten about the magic that concealed her identity.

So much for keeping that identity secret for long. At least it was only one person she was telling.

"I'd hope I wasn't powered up, I only just got this whole thing." Polyhymnia gestured to herself, the whole outfit being sparkly but what most would say was impractical. "You showed me Pluto, and-- and we had an adventure!"

She took a breath, trying to calm herself before whimpering softly. "I don't like it. I thought it was just another kittyfriend, but kitty never talked, just...was creepy. And other things were creepy. The shadows have been creepier than usual lately, have you noticed that?"

"I wouldn't say it's cool, but it's not...bad? I'm just constantly confused and trying not to roll my ankle again." Oddly, she hated seeing the disappointment on his face, trying to make things seem...not as bad.

Because really, she didn't hate being a senshi, no. But she was terrified of finding an enemy, terrified she would mess something up and someone would get hurt, terrified she'd let Arthur down.

And now terrified she'd let Nix down.

"Things definitely didn't get this creepy back home," Nia added with a frown. "I feel I came into this at the worst time of year. Not that I could really control that but..." She puffed her cheeks out before sighing.

"I really should get used to this, shouldn't I?"

"Here I hoped seeing a kid playing music on the library roof would be the extent of the weirdness I saw," Nia snorted. "I'm sure there's plenty of other weird stuff that I'll see but shadows and shadowcats...can go away."

She paused to listen to Nix before letting out a sigh. "Great, trouble magnets are us. That will be fun."

There was a moment before her face lit up. "Oh, oh hey, just a moment, I just remembered, I need to do a thing." She reached into what looked to be air and pulled out a pretty snazzy looking phone (in her opinion, at least), holding it up and taking a quick picture of Nix.

"I mean, it's not like I've been awakened for too long, but it was one of the first things I learned. I haven't learned too much yet, but I have learned some and not just by wandering the streets when I can't sleep, either." Nia smiled happily at that, putting her own phone (purple) away.

"I'm not going to wake you up in the middle of the night, Nix. I might not know how old you are for certain, but you still look like you should be in school, so I'm letting you get your rest. Daytime hours, though, all bets are off. I freak out easily, probably too easily given...well....yeah." Cough. Cough cough.