It was that moment that Billy realized that the tightening in his chest might not be a crushing sense of doom, but maybe just allergies.

He waved the cat away, trying to mentally will a force field into existence to protect himself from cat dander. He was allergic to cats in a big way.

"Did the cat eat your owl, too?" he asked, moving to the far side of the tent. Where there was another, almost identical cat waiting for him. "What, are you cloning these suckers?"