While Vanilla prepared the lunch, Chocola took out the small vial she bought. She showed it to her sister.
"What is this?" Vanilla asked.
"An eye color potion. I do not like Chocola's eye color, actually." Chocola explained.
"Oooh, I assume you want to change your appearance so no one recognizes us." Vanilla also guessed.
"Yep, precisely. As far as the actors are concerned, we have returned to Earth. That's why the goodbye party and all. They will get a new Chocola and Vanilla eventually, and no one will know any better. Business as usual."
"Quite the intricate plan. I bet you bought new clothes too." Vanilla giggled.
"I sure did. But I don't know what to do about you. I guess we will think of something."
"Ah, I actually don't like blond hair. So I can change that. I could quickly run to the market and get some."
"No. Too dangerous. Let's go to the next town." Mary added.
"Mary. Did you check the map?" Vanilla sighed loudly.
Mary shook her head and lowered her kitty ears out of guilt. She really did not prepare for the aftermath.
"The next town is five days of walking from here. A full day on a carriage, but I guess you will be avoiding it. We don't have enough food. We're cats; we need meat; we can't survive on mushrooms, and I don't know a lick about hunting." Vanilla sighed, this time more loudly.
"There's a river; maybe we can fish." Mary quickly offered.
"Do you have a line or a hook?" Vanilla sighed.
"No." Mary lowered her ears further.
"So… we need the market. I need new clothes too. And a hair dye. It would have been easier if you had just told me. Anyway, I assume we can't wait till tomorrow because then the new actors might arrive. And I am already making the stew, so I can't really leave it unattended…"
"Fine, I got it; I will go to the market. Gimme a sec."
Mary then quickly drank the potion in her hand. She did not feel anything. But as she looked into the river, she saw her new eye color; it was a beautiful shade of blue. She then quickly removed her waitress's outfit and put on the adventurer's clothes. She also undid her twintails and let her long hair hang straight.
"How do I look?" She showed herself off to Vanilla.
"Like Chocola who lost all her sense of fashion. Neither shoes nor stockings fit this outfit in any way." Vanilla complained and seemingly ignored the eye color entirely. "But I guess that's the best disguise you can use now. But there's just this one other tiny problem!"
"Which is? If someone recognizes me, I will just say I don't know who Chocola is." Mary insisted.
"Mary, the market is closed. It's late afternoon." Vanilla sighed.
Mary lowered her ears again.
"Well, we have enough food for a day and maybe two. But I like your fish idea. It's still bright; find a way to catch fish." Vanilla stirred her pot.
Mary took a knife and began looking around. She walked along the river downstream, and she indeed saw a fish or two. Maybe trouts? It did not look anything like a trout, but food is food.
So she confirmed there were fish, and they were big enough to eat. She removed her shoes and stockings, then tried catching one, but the fish was simply faster. Water difraction made it hard too. She gave up for now and simply observed the fish. A lot of different and silly ideas came to her head. Like using her waitress as a net. It was silly, but wearing that dress was dangerous, and she wanted to burn it anyway. But she would still somehow have to hold the dress too.
A bit tired of thinking and wanting to simply fiddle with something, Mary took the laser pointer out of her pocket and began playing with it. She projected the dot at the fish, and, to her absolute amazement, the fish followed. In fact, the fish chased it pretty aggressively. Mary smiled evilly. She looked around and saw something else; the river had sections that were deep, but it also had sections with swally rocky mazes. Fish preferred the former, but thanks to the laser pointer, Mary lured the fish into the rocky maze, then chased the fish until it was trapped in the shallows or forced to jump out of the water.
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And so, Mary caught her first fish. At first, she squished the fish between her left palm and the rocks. After placing the laser back into the pocket, she picked up the fish with two hands and ran towards Vanilla with childlike excitement.
"Wow, how did you catch it?" Vanilla was surprised.
"You will never guess it." Mary was smug.
"The laser?" Vanilla guessed on her first try.
Chocola frowned, yet that confirmed Vanilla's guess.
"Well, that's why they call them catfish." Vanilla tried to raise her mood and gently patted Mary's ears.
"Is this a catfish?" Chocola asked. The fish looked unfamiliar to her.
"No, it was just a joke. I have no idea how the fish is called, but I think I saw it in the market a bunch of times. So it's edible." Vanilla smiled. "But I am not sure what to do with it."
"Should I go catch more?" Chocola proudly told.
"No, I think you should let it go. We have enough food for today and tomorrow… Wait, no. Actually, you know what? Go catch a few more. We can cook the fish today and eat the stew tomorrow. Fish goes bad quickly, but stew can be reheated for multiple days. And I am not sure we will find another river either." Vanilla thought a bit and figured out a plan.
Mary washed her hands from the fish slime, then the knife back to Vanilla. She went back to the river, to the shallow, rocky section of it. She tried to take out the laser pointer, but could not find it. There were many pockets in her outfit, and in a rush, she must have placed the pointer in the wrong pocket. She briefly went through all the pockets and found the laser pointer, but she felt something else too.
In one of the pockets, she found a folded paper note. It was not there before. Before buying the outfit, she checked all the pockets; there was no way she would miss this note. Someone must have slipped it to her. Maybe during the party?
Somewhat confused, she sat down on the nearby rock and took the note out. Her eyes grew wide as she began reading it.
> Hi Chocola! It's me, Kate!
>
> If you're reading this note, it means your plan worked. So, congratulations!
>
> I knew what your goal was. I do not know how, but I knew what it was. When we first met, you were so curious about everything. The physics and magic of this world. And yet, when I gave you the pointer, you showed zero curiosity. You did not even ask how it worked. Did you really think I would not notice? It is adorable how transparent you can be.
>
> So, well, now what? Well, I ask you to keep quiet. Knowing you, I assume you did everything in secret. Nevertheless, please stay away from other actors. I don't want to take any chances. The "cultural exchange" project is a secret in both worlds. Don't tell anyone about what happened to you. Don't tell this to people that came through the portal; they have no idea, and it is better if they don't know.
>
> The portal is on the continent in the north. In a small village next to a mountain called "Lion's Paw," that should help you find it on the maps. It will take you a year to get there. You won't be able to use the portal, but you should be able to use the bank and send money and messages around. Obviously, don't tell them about the spheres and simply pretend to be a local.
>
> There is another way for you, too. You're not the only person who is stuck. I am stuck as well. A magical girl's mind is so tightly intertwined with the spirit circuit that she can't survive without it anymore. It's a sacrifice I chose to make. But it is a price that you have already paid. So why not become a magical girl?
>
> There are no magical schools on your continent, so you will need to find your way into the elven territory. It's about a year and a half toward the northwest. You can't go from the portal continent, so you will have to make a choice.
>
> Getting there without knowing elven language is a suicide, so you should learn that first. I've included a small spell inside the laser pointer, a single word; if you guess its meaning, it will kickstart your learning process.
>
> Goodbye, Mary! I hope we can meet one day, and you can tell me all about how you used the laser pointer. I am really curious.
>
> Oh, your mom's message too:
>
> Mary, we all miss you too! But if you are truly happy, we are happy too, no matter what you do. And no matter what, we will always love you. Oh, and we received your money too; it is too kind, but we deserve none of it. We tried to send it back, but for some reason, our bank did not allow it. Can you give us your bank account so we can send it back?!
Mary carefully read the letter, and the last part made her sob loudly. It finally hit her. She was stuck. There was a high chance she would never see her family again. She remembered their faces, but the images were imprecise, and it scraped her heart. What if, one day, she forgets their faces entirely? The thought terrified her more than the death itself.
Vanilla heard Mary cry from afar and rushed in to hug her tightly.
"Mary, what happened?!" She asked with lots of care.
"I… I am stuck in here." Mary said it through tears.
"Well, yes, so am I. That's what we wanted, right?" Vanilla responded and added a headpat too.
"I guess…" The catgirl was still crying.
"Come, the stew is ready. I brought two bowls this time too!" Vanilla smiled and gently led Mary to the fireplace. She poured her a bowl of stew.
Mary ate it and began crying even more as the stew reminded her of her mother's stew. Vanilla sat besides her. There was nothing she could do but simply lean into Mary and wait till she ran out of tears.