AN: I loved this movie when I was a kid but have never written anything for it before. There are probably going to be a lot of anachronisms but thank you for deciding to read.

Familiarity of Salem

Chapter One

Thackery had tried desperately to save and protect his younger sister, Emily, from the horrid house of the witches but it looked as if he had failed. They had caught him and were binding him against his will and all he could do was feel the shame that he hadn't been in time to save her. He had knocked over the cauldron that they were using and some of the liquid was running towards his sister's feet but that wasn't good enough. They wanted to punish him. Well, they had sobbed over the fact that even a small part of their life elixir had left but declared themselves still youthful enough.

His eyes widened as they looked in their book of curses for some punishment for him.

"His punishment must be more fulsome," Winifred said, "more lingering," she smiled before flipping through the pages, "Let's see: amnesia, bunions, chilblains, cholera," she shook her head trying to find another page. "We can do better than that, I think."

The sisters smiled together as Thackery attempted to escape but he couldn't. He needed at least to save his sister's body. He blinked, did he just imagine that her finger had tapped on the arm of the chair. He looked at her but then quickly turned to the sisters.

"Let's see what we have," Winifred continued before smiling and Thackery's eyes widened as they found something that pleased them but what kind of wicked curse could please them? He wanted to be on his family's land with his sister again. He wanted for this time to not come. "His punishment shall not be to die, but to live forever with his guilt."

"As what, Winnie, as what?" the two sisters said excitedly only to be told to take a step back as the eldest started her spell.

Thackery made another attempt to escape but it was as if his body was frozen, paralysis, he started to listen to the words which they said.

"Twist the bones and bend the back,"

"Itch-it-a-cop-it-a, Mel-a-ka-mystic-a"

"Trim him of his baby fat. Give him fur, black as black"

"Just"

"Like"

"This"

Thackery could hear the town people approaching but something was wrong with his body, it was getting smaller and lighter and he felt like hair was spreading all over his body. He looked up to yell at them, demand they leave the town of Salem alone but instead of words all that came out were meows. He heard people ordering the sisters to come out and felt scared. He couldn't do anything. Maybe he could scratch them, tear them up with his claws but he wasn't him anymore. He hissed at them, starting to yowl before feeling somebody grab him from behind. He struggled before seeing that it was Emily. She held him close with one arm before grabbing a lighted candle and throwing it on top of their book with the other.

Despite her weakness, she managed to distract them enough to have them pay more attention to their spell book than to her. She ran into the woods and sat down, Thackery on her lap. "Brother?" she asked only to hear a meow in response. She pulled him closer into her arms, kissing the top of his head. "It'll be okay…I'll take care of you."

"I want to take care of you though," Thackery told her and Emily's eyes widened as she realized that he had spoken to her and not through a collection of meows. She held him closer and let her hand run over his head and behind his ears.

Magic curses were outlawed and witches hung for their misdeeds but she needed to keep her brother safe as he had attempted to keep her safe. She could hear the sound of her Father and getting up carefully, went towards him. Feeling a pain in her chest. She had to keep going, Thackery needed her to explain to them.

"Father" she called out and saw his surprise.

"Emily," he whispered and went over to her, "I thought you were a goner," he said as he kissed her head. "What of your brother?" he asked as he looked around. "Release the beast and tell me the story of what happened to your brother. Do you know if he is still of the living."

"Living, yes but under a curse," Emily said and her father looked at her.

"Why are you still holding that damned beast?" he asked as the cat looked up at him with wide eyes and Emily refused to put him down. The words were hurtful but only because her father was unaware of the truth.

"Because it is Thackery," Emily argued and heard her brother meow. She saw her father look at her in disbelief before turning back to the house. If these were witches then their power was unknown. They could easily twist mortal shape at their whim.

"Come to the house," her father said and Emily repositioned Thackery's body as she carried him. She heard a frightened yowl as he looked back at the house and Emily shook her head. She wanted to save her brother. It was him attempting to save her which kept him like this.

…

…

As they returned home, their mother was sitting worrying about them and Emily rushed over to her. Her mother hugged her before looking at the cat. "Where's Thackery?" she asked in panic and their father didn't know what to say in response. "Did something?"

"Light a few candles, eliminate all other light," the patriarch of the family said and his wife did so. Emily placed Thackery down onto the wooden floorboards now that it felt safe to do so.

"I apologize," Thackery said as he looked into one of the candles and he saw the horror on his parents' faces. "Were I not to have come too late, I could have protected the both of us."

Emily placed her hand on Thackery's new back, keeping him steady. She turned to her father who was staring in horror at the feline and then she saw her mother shaking before standing up and walking away from him. "I know it is strange," Emily began, "And if you don't want to take care of him then I will."

Their father reached out and used a finger to scratch his son behind the ear and to rub his cheek. He picked the cat up and held him close. "Nobody outside of the family must know about this," he stated as he cradled Thackery close to him. "It is to remain secret."

"We can keep him here….right?" Emily asked nervously and their father nodded. He placed Thackery down on his lap wanting to turn him back to his human self. Magic and witchcraft was real. Any doubts he had were removed by the condition of his son.

"Here," his mother said as she placed a saucer of fresh milk onto the floor. She saw Thackery get interested in it, he was starving after what had happened including his transformation. She watched him lap up the milk with tears in her eyes.

"To everyone outside of this family he is a regular house cat," she told them before petting him lovingly as he ate. "They can't take him away if he's a house cat."

"Let us hope that that is the case," their father said and Emily watched her brother feeling at a loss. Keeping him safe would have to be enough for now. He deserved to be shown love and protection and it seemed that that's what he would be receiving from his family. She was lucky to be alive and even luckier that she had saved him.

End of Chapter One

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