Inky black tendrils unfurled silently from the pink, fluffy paw of Garfield.
Darkness slithered along the walls winding its way toward Credence. The boy, distracted by the approaching Aurors, didn't notice the creeping power.
Unseen, the darkness merged with the unstable force of his Obscurial form.
Just as the first spells were about to fly, Garfield snapped his paw.
A black wall erupted, shielding Credence from the barrage. And out of nowhere, a void-black baseball bat shimmered into being, hovering above Credence's head.
THWACK
Credence's eyes widened. The blow was not physical, but it struck something else… his mind.
He looked up, confused.
THWACK. THWACK. THWACK.
"Go to sleep, meow."
"Go to sleep, meow."
"Go to sleep, meow."
The chant continued as Garfield rained down psychic blows like a babysitter putting a tantrum child to bed.
Overwhelmed and unable to resist, Credence's eyes fluttered shut. The darkness faded from his form.
Garfield raised the other paw.
A golden magical cage shimmered into place around Credence's unconscious body.
With a flick of his tail, a glowing orange portal opened beneath the cage, whisking Credence away from the battlefield.
"NO!"
Tina screamed, throwing out spell after spell in desperation. Her attacks shattered the remnants of Garfield's wall of silence.
"Idiots! Do you know what you've done?!" Grindelwald's roar followed immediately… and he was not happy…
The livestream chat exploded.
"David get in here and EXPLAIN."
"I don't trust movies anymore."
"I NEED an orange cat right now."
"Also… does that portal look familiar?"
"Ancient One: I sense a disturbance."
"Doctor Strange: That looks like the day I nearly died on a Himalayan cliff."
"Wait a minute. Is this a MARVEL x GARFIELD crossover?!"
"My wallet is already crying. I'm seeing this in IMAX."
…
Meanwhile, somewhere in the U.S., in a dark government meeting room…
Director David Yates stood in front of a computer screen, a live feed still running. Behind him were agents from the FBI, CIA, and the Department of Defense.
"I swear…" Yates said, pale, pointing at the screen.
"I didn't direct that scene. I swear to God, if I step outside right now, I'll get shot."
An agent nodded solemnly. "We believe you. But…"
BANG. BANG. BANG.
Gunfire erupted.
Yates froze. The agents jumped into action, surrounding him. The shots stopped after a brief scuffle. Guards quickly confirmed the incident.
A lone fan, now arrested, was being dragged away by security. Reporters swarmed the scene outside, catching the chaos on camera.
The enraged fan shouted at the top of their lungs:
"YOU BASTARD! YOU RUINED MY GARFIELD!"
(╰_╯)
Inside, he stood by the window, staring blankly at the aftermath.
"If I told them it was an accident…" He muttered to the agents. "Would you believe me?"
They exchanged long, uncomfortable glances before answering.
"No…"
"…"
✦••┈┈••✦••┈┈••✦
Back in the livestream, the feed seamlessly transitioned to another angle of the epic showdown.
Percival Graves otherwise known as Grindelwald.
He stood like a fallen angel of war, robes whipping in the wind, a one-man storm facing an army.
He turned a hundred spells of different colors and types surged towards him.
He batted it all aside.
And swiped back in return.
Taking out half of the gathered aurors.
Another a barrage followed, and he shoved most aside and twirled to dodge the tricky ones.
Every attack from him took out multiple Aurors as he continued his unstoppable momentum.
The president of Macusa couldn't believe her eyes as one man annihilated most of her best men.
A cinematic masterpiece of magic and madness, filmed from a drone-like perspective.
But he never imagined it would end like this.
Grindelwald, a one-man army, the powerhouse of the battlefield, the unmatched spellcaster, defeated…
... by Newt Scamander…
He'd forgotten one thing, even the weakest support class can flip a battle when control skills come into play.
Sometimes, the right stun is deadlier than a killing curse.
"I actually feel bad for Grindelwald for a second…"
"He was the carrying, but forgot about the main character."
"You can't out-DPS good teamwork."
The barrage chat erupted once more. But this time, the scrolling lines turned poetic.
"Spring breeze proudly greets a soulmate"
"Peach blossoms smile upon the altar"
"Talent unveiled, loyalty proven"
"In hardship, we stand together, never to part"
Even viewers from other regions joined in, using auto-translate features, and soon the barrage descended into beautiful nonsense.
As the poetic spam spiraled sideways, the livestream screen changed again.
A new portal shimmered open. Garfield, the magical orange cat, stepped through.
The Screen changed to the Rain-soaked streets of New York. Yesterday's magical disaster had been wiped clean from No-Majs' memories.
The thunderstorm controlled by Thunderbird Frank purged their minds, while Aurors repaired the broken city behind the veil of falling rain.
Near a trash-strewn alley, Garfield sat perched on a windowsill, his fur damp but his gaze sharp.
Below him, Credence lay unconscious beside the bins.
A young couple walked past with their small, skinny son.
The man paused, handing the boy off to his wife. He knelt beside the unconscious Credence.
"He's breathing... must've blacked out."
"Rogers, is he drunk? Mugged? He doesn't look like some street kid."
The woman came closer, gently touching the large bump on Credence's head.
"Poor thing. Looks like someone knocked him out cold."
Rogers helped Credence sit up, planning to carry him somewhere safe. But as the cold rain struck his face, Credence suddenly gasped awake.
Drenched and dazed, he spotted the family and, panic in his eyes, scrambled to his feet.
"Hey! You okay?" Rogers called after him.
But Credence was already sprinting down the alley, vanishing into the mist.
"Weird kid…"
"Come on, let's go." The woman said.
"Mom, Dad!" The little boy spoke up, wide-eyed, "That orange cat's eyes were glowing."
The mother smiled and stroked his hair. "Cats' eyes shine in the dark, sweetheart. Helps them hunt mice."
"Oh…" the boy said, reassured.
"Is that right, Dad?"
The man nodded. "Steve, your mom's always right."
From above, Garfield twitched his ears. "Tch. I don't even like catching mice, meow."
Then a realization hit him like a bolt.
"Steve? Rogers? …New York? Blonde hair? Skinny kid…?"
He turned to the nearby street sign. Rain trickled down its metal face.
Brooklyn.
Garfield stared. For once, he was speechless.
The livestream camera froze, locking on the street sign like the last page of a comic book.
The chat exploded…!!!
"WAIT. NO. WAY."
"That was STEVE ROGERS?!"
"Cap's origin story now has a magical orange cat cameo??"
"This crossover is getting out of hand!"
"I'd pay to see Garfield in Endgame."
On the rooftop, Garfield stood in silent contemplation, watching the couple and their frail, bright-eyed child…
The rain kept falling.
꧁𓊈𒆜༺⚜༻𒆜𓊉꧂
Phantom your way through a treasure trove of chapters waiting on P@treon!
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