Cooking and preparing Marianne's homecoming dinner was left undone. Audrey
quickly forgot about anything else but her new talent that she had recently
discovered. It was amazing how much she found out in just a few hours' time
talking to her dear friend Stardust. And the more she communicated with her
cat, the more she got accustomed to talking with her mind and not her
voice. It was unbelievable how much she learned about herself. But Stardust
had been part of the family for a long while and he too kept the well-
guarded secret which Audrey desperately wanted to know.
"How is this happening to me?" Audrey stuttered. "I mean, why, and what does it mean?"
"Well, I'm not exactly sure. You have been able to talk to me for a long while; you just never actually noticed it." Stardust jumped unto the kitchen table and lay his head down on his front paws. "Besides, think of it as a good thing."
"Think of it as a good thing, huh?" she questioned herself. 'Jeez, here I am talking to my cat and he says it's a good thing. He told me it's a good thing.I must be going crazy, really,' she thought to herself, nervously eyeing the cat.
"Hey, no insulting the cat! You know, I can still hear you, especially when you're pondering about me."
"Oh, sorry. I guess I'm not used to this yet." She blushed uncontrollably.
"It's quite alright. I completely understand. You'll just have to harness your talent and practice to perfect it." Stardust suddenly lifted his head upright.
"What is it?" Audrey looked towards the window.
"I believe we shall be having company shortly."
"What?" She got up and crossed over to the window over the still- dirty and messy sink. "Oh, bloody hell!" Her father's fancy foreign car was visible further down the road and in a few, short seconds; he would be standing at the front door with Marianne.
"Don't panic!" Stardust hissed. "Just remain calm and don't look so flustered."
"But I haven't even cleaned the kitchen! It's still filthy!" she whispered.
"Audrey, listen to me!" Stardust leapt in front of her, stopping her from running to the front hall. "Haven't you read millions of books, your fantasy literature? I'm positive that you can easily invent and produce a likely story." Audrey looked at the black cat, knowing exactly what he meant, but also knowing that she would have to lie.
"But, I don't want to lie." She looked back towards the front hall, still undecided about what she should do, hearing the cars doors close outside in the driveway.
"Then don't lie. Who said anything about lying?" He pranced towards the front door, occasionally looking back at Audrey with his golden eyes.
"You did!" she said incredulously.
"Well, then -"
"Stardust, I can't do this. I'm such a failure!" She began to tremble, just because she got caught up in something else. Her hands came up to her face, clutching her cheeks and she could feel the pressure of her fingernails digging deep into her skin. The front door opened and the rustle of cloaks could be heard. Stricken with fright of how her father might scold her, Audrey remained planted to the carpet-covered floor, her eyes searching the next room, which happened to be the sitting room, her mind circling with ideas and excuses. But nothing that would fully explain the situation came to mind.
"Audrey!" her sister called from the front hall. "Hey, Audrey! Papa's got something for you!"
"Oh, what am I going to do?!" Audrey thought to herself, looking directly at Stardust who was looking back at her.
"Just relax. They won't murder you for not cleaning the kitchen. They didn't even ask of you to do this task." Stardust pounced unto a dark blue lounge chair in the sitting room and situated himself on his hind legs. "Just tell them the truth."
"The truth?!" Audrey shouted disbelievingly.
"Audrey is everything alright?" her father's voice sounded from the front hall. His footsteps were coming closer and were getting louder.
"Um, yeah, everything's just fine." Audrey looked around her and ran to the dark blue sofa. She stiffly sat down and looked towards the entrance.
"Are you sure?" Jonathan Moon's round face could barely be seen because of the many packages and boxes he carried in his arms. "Sweetie, would you help me? This is heavy and my strength isn't what it used to be."
"Oh, sure." Audrey meekly got up and crossed the room, outstretching her arms to get a package or two. "What is all this for?" she asked quietly. Although she would have much rather opened the three strangely- shaped packages she took from her father, she set them down on the glass- topped coffee table in the center of their sitting room.
"Actually, some are your birthday presents, so don't go shaking them or rummaging." He smiled at her. He looked travel-worn and his usual jovial presence was somewhat dimmed. His dark hair was disheveled and his eyes looked weary with exhaustion. His clothes weren't donned with the usual grace that Jonathan Moon was known for in his business world. But it was Audrey's father, and she went up to him, put her arms around his neck and went on tip-toe to kiss him on the cheek. "Don't you go sugaring me up," he smirked. "You still have a couple of days, you know."
"Papa, I'm simply greeting you as a daughter should." Audrey replied.
"Simply greeting me, eh? Well, in that case, this is for you." He handed her a small box and kissed her on the forehead. During this time Marianne had entered the sitting room, straining to pull her trunk along with her. "Mari, come," Jonathan called to her.
"Well, aren't you going to open it?" Mari looked interestedly at the small package Audrey gingerly turned in her hands. "I don't even know what it is. Papa wouldn't tell me."
"I want to open it, but I have to tell you something first." Audrey looked first to her sister's flushed face and then at her father's. Glancing quickly at Stardust, who hadn't moved one centimeter, she began. "Mari, I'm so sorry but I don't have your welcome feast prepared. I haven't even cleared the kitchen from this morning. I haven't done anyth-"
"Hey, it's ok. I was so excited to see you and to tell you the good ne-" Mari was promptly interrupted by her father.
"Audrey, Mari just wants to say that it's not a problem. There's no need for a feast. And anyways, it's not your responsibility to keep the household; that's a family duty." Jonathan squeezed Audrey hard.
"I know, but I wanted to surprise you, to make you happy," Audrey sighed and she looked down to her hands where the small beige box still resided.
"Audrey, we don't need a feast or a clean house to be happy," Mari smiled. "I completely forgot about that. I just wanted to see you again. Don't worry so much about it."
"Well, in that case, I have something to tell you." She looked at her father and shivered a bit. 'Stardust, will they think me crazy? Will they want to get rid of me? Will they stop being here for me?' she thought.
'Of course not,' she heard Stardust whisper back. 'Just tell them.'
"Papa, I discovered something today. Something about me in specific." She stood up and paced the floor, looking out the window and back at Stardust.
"Go on, tell me." Jonathan looked queerly at his daughter.
"It's nothing dangerous. I'm not sick or anything like that. It's just that I can talk to, to Stardust, the cat, our Stardust." She whispered the last few words, stumbling on them, scared to tell them out. She looked at Mari and was shocked to see her greatly smiling.
"Audrey, that's so wonderful! Ooh! I'm so excited. Papa, can we tell her yet?" Mari beamed. She jumped from her seat and her long black curls shook with her enthusiasm.
"Tell me what?" Audrey looked mysteriously at her father and narrowed her eyes. This was so highly suspicious, as her family always told her many things. This could actually be the great secret.
"Something that will have to wait, I'm afraid," Jonathan Moon looked away and out the window. "Just a few more days, and then Audrey will be, will be more grown up." he trailed off.
"Well, it's only just a little while longer. You can wait, can't you Audrey?" Marianne hugged her sister quickly and rushed to her trunk. "I'll be trying to get this stupid trunk up to my room. Just call if you need anything." She left, dragging Stardust with her, cooing words of love to him.
"Audrey, I want you to tell me everything that happened. And don't leave anything out. Do you understand, honey? This is very serious." Jonathan's face was extremely stern, a mood which Audrey rarely saw. But she knew this was important to him and she tried her best. She placed the small box on the coffee table and sat down next to her father. She looked at his face; the jutting jaw, his large, glossy eyes, his small mouth. His untidy hair, which shook each time he made the slightest movement, hung over his dark brows. And at that moment, his forehead, wrinkled like the sand streamed with rain water, openly showed his stern mood.
"It happened so quickly.last night, just before you came in to say goodnight, I just talked to Stardust like I usually do and then I heard him in my head. I heard his voice, and I knew it was him. It was so strange because it was so familiar, but not at the same time. Somewhere in my heart I felt like I've always been able to talk to him. I've just been on sleep mode, or something like that. But then it also scared me, a lot. I thought I was going crazy, that I was sick or something. Am I ok?"
"You're perfectly healthy. Well, at least now you've told me and you don't have to carry this burden by yourself." Jonathan stroked his daughter's head and hugged her to him. "Sweetie, I believe you completely. And during the summer, you'll understand why I'm so certain of this."
"During the summer? Why can't you just tell me now?" Audrey's stomach twisted. This was part of the secret, the one which had been torturing her all of her life. And once again, she knew she wouldn't be finding it out.
"I would tell you right this second. But Isabella, your dear mother, asked me not to say anything until your eleventh birthday. And so I shall do as she begged of me." There was a long pause in which Audrey could hear Marianne putting her things away in her room upstairs. 'Why my eleventh birthday.why not my tenth, or my sixteenth? It doesn't make any sense. What's so important about it that my own mother wouldn't want me to know? What makes my father go out wearing strange cloaks? And what makes Mari be so different, with her unknown boarding school and friends? I just want to know that!'
'Audrey dear,' she heard Stardust say in her head, 'don't think about it. Your birthday is in less than a week. Just wait. I promise it's wonderful.'
'Stardust, I love you so much!' Audrey thought. She wanted to go squeeze him. 'Make sure I give you tuna tonight.'
'Sounds good to me!'
"Let's go out to eat tonight," Jonathan suddenly woke up. It also brought Audrey back to the sitting room, her father sitting right next to her. "I haven't done that in a long while. And let's go somewhere extremely fancy, just for fun. We'll celebrate summer." He paced up the stairs to his bedroom without looking back.
"Ok, papa. I'll go tell Marianne," Audrey called after him. She looked at the coffee table and found the small beige box still waiting patiently. 'I'll wait until my birthday to open it,' she thought to Stardust as she walked to Marianne's door.
'Actually, that's a marvelous idea. I think it would be best,' Stardust responded. 'Would you let me out? I want to wash myself, but not in her presence.'
Audrey laughed to herself. 'Such a selfish cat, Stardust. Yeah, sure. Just wait a sec.' She rapped lightly on the door and Mari's curly brown head stuck out.
"What?" Mari asked confused.
"Nothing. Papa wants us to go out to dinner, somewhere fancy, he says." Audrey attempted to glance around the bedroom, but Marianne made sure that the view was blocked. "Oh, and Stardust says he want to go out. He wants to clean himself, or something. I don't know. He likes to ramble."
"Oh!" Mari jumped slightly. "I forgot about your little talent. Sorry about that, Stardust." The gleaming black fur of the cat was barely visible as he scattered out of the bedroom and down the hall.
"Can we talk?" Audrey gently asked. She knew that she and her sister didn't chat at all. It was rare when they had conversations when crossing paths, so this felt awkward and strange. Audrey sincerely felt that she and Marianne needed to settle some things now or never.
"Audrey, I can't right now." Mari looked back into her room. From the tiny peek Audrey got, Mari's room looked like a pack of wild creatures had made it their playroom. "Let me just get dressed so we can leave."
"Marianne, listen to me." Audrey felt herself being more assertive than usual. She wasn't accustomed to confronting people, even if it was just her sister. "I need to you to talk to me. You don't have to tell me anything, I just need to hear your voice and feel your mind working."
"I'm so sorry." Marianne's face looked so pained that Audrey felt like bursting to tears. And that's exactly what she did. It wasn't something she could help. Nothing she could regulate. And sadly, Marianne wasn't one of those people who can easily comfort those who are suffering. Audrey stood sobbing at Marianne's door for a minute or so. Marianne thought it best if she let her sister go through it on her own. So Marianne and Audrey remained distant from one another.
"Why can't anyone tell me anything? Why is it so hard to tell me? I just don't understand you or papa. It makes no sense. I just want to know why both of you act so queerly. And then, I begin to talk to Stardust. A cat. Now I'm queer and strange and just plain weird. How can I talk to a cat? Why is this happening to me?" Audrey cried her heart out. Ever since her mother had left, the strange occurrences in her family seemed more frequent and more noticeable. It wasn't normal, she thought. It was downright bizarre. But if her father was saying the truth and her own mother didn't want her to know until her birthday, then she would wait. She could make it five more days.
"How is this happening to me?" Audrey stuttered. "I mean, why, and what does it mean?"
"Well, I'm not exactly sure. You have been able to talk to me for a long while; you just never actually noticed it." Stardust jumped unto the kitchen table and lay his head down on his front paws. "Besides, think of it as a good thing."
"Think of it as a good thing, huh?" she questioned herself. 'Jeez, here I am talking to my cat and he says it's a good thing. He told me it's a good thing.I must be going crazy, really,' she thought to herself, nervously eyeing the cat.
"Hey, no insulting the cat! You know, I can still hear you, especially when you're pondering about me."
"Oh, sorry. I guess I'm not used to this yet." She blushed uncontrollably.
"It's quite alright. I completely understand. You'll just have to harness your talent and practice to perfect it." Stardust suddenly lifted his head upright.
"What is it?" Audrey looked towards the window.
"I believe we shall be having company shortly."
"What?" She got up and crossed over to the window over the still- dirty and messy sink. "Oh, bloody hell!" Her father's fancy foreign car was visible further down the road and in a few, short seconds; he would be standing at the front door with Marianne.
"Don't panic!" Stardust hissed. "Just remain calm and don't look so flustered."
"But I haven't even cleaned the kitchen! It's still filthy!" she whispered.
"Audrey, listen to me!" Stardust leapt in front of her, stopping her from running to the front hall. "Haven't you read millions of books, your fantasy literature? I'm positive that you can easily invent and produce a likely story." Audrey looked at the black cat, knowing exactly what he meant, but also knowing that she would have to lie.
"But, I don't want to lie." She looked back towards the front hall, still undecided about what she should do, hearing the cars doors close outside in the driveway.
"Then don't lie. Who said anything about lying?" He pranced towards the front door, occasionally looking back at Audrey with his golden eyes.
"You did!" she said incredulously.
"Well, then -"
"Stardust, I can't do this. I'm such a failure!" She began to tremble, just because she got caught up in something else. Her hands came up to her face, clutching her cheeks and she could feel the pressure of her fingernails digging deep into her skin. The front door opened and the rustle of cloaks could be heard. Stricken with fright of how her father might scold her, Audrey remained planted to the carpet-covered floor, her eyes searching the next room, which happened to be the sitting room, her mind circling with ideas and excuses. But nothing that would fully explain the situation came to mind.
"Audrey!" her sister called from the front hall. "Hey, Audrey! Papa's got something for you!"
"Oh, what am I going to do?!" Audrey thought to herself, looking directly at Stardust who was looking back at her.
"Just relax. They won't murder you for not cleaning the kitchen. They didn't even ask of you to do this task." Stardust pounced unto a dark blue lounge chair in the sitting room and situated himself on his hind legs. "Just tell them the truth."
"The truth?!" Audrey shouted disbelievingly.
"Audrey is everything alright?" her father's voice sounded from the front hall. His footsteps were coming closer and were getting louder.
"Um, yeah, everything's just fine." Audrey looked around her and ran to the dark blue sofa. She stiffly sat down and looked towards the entrance.
"Are you sure?" Jonathan Moon's round face could barely be seen because of the many packages and boxes he carried in his arms. "Sweetie, would you help me? This is heavy and my strength isn't what it used to be."
"Oh, sure." Audrey meekly got up and crossed the room, outstretching her arms to get a package or two. "What is all this for?" she asked quietly. Although she would have much rather opened the three strangely- shaped packages she took from her father, she set them down on the glass- topped coffee table in the center of their sitting room.
"Actually, some are your birthday presents, so don't go shaking them or rummaging." He smiled at her. He looked travel-worn and his usual jovial presence was somewhat dimmed. His dark hair was disheveled and his eyes looked weary with exhaustion. His clothes weren't donned with the usual grace that Jonathan Moon was known for in his business world. But it was Audrey's father, and she went up to him, put her arms around his neck and went on tip-toe to kiss him on the cheek. "Don't you go sugaring me up," he smirked. "You still have a couple of days, you know."
"Papa, I'm simply greeting you as a daughter should." Audrey replied.
"Simply greeting me, eh? Well, in that case, this is for you." He handed her a small box and kissed her on the forehead. During this time Marianne had entered the sitting room, straining to pull her trunk along with her. "Mari, come," Jonathan called to her.
"Well, aren't you going to open it?" Mari looked interestedly at the small package Audrey gingerly turned in her hands. "I don't even know what it is. Papa wouldn't tell me."
"I want to open it, but I have to tell you something first." Audrey looked first to her sister's flushed face and then at her father's. Glancing quickly at Stardust, who hadn't moved one centimeter, she began. "Mari, I'm so sorry but I don't have your welcome feast prepared. I haven't even cleared the kitchen from this morning. I haven't done anyth-"
"Hey, it's ok. I was so excited to see you and to tell you the good ne-" Mari was promptly interrupted by her father.
"Audrey, Mari just wants to say that it's not a problem. There's no need for a feast. And anyways, it's not your responsibility to keep the household; that's a family duty." Jonathan squeezed Audrey hard.
"I know, but I wanted to surprise you, to make you happy," Audrey sighed and she looked down to her hands where the small beige box still resided.
"Audrey, we don't need a feast or a clean house to be happy," Mari smiled. "I completely forgot about that. I just wanted to see you again. Don't worry so much about it."
"Well, in that case, I have something to tell you." She looked at her father and shivered a bit. 'Stardust, will they think me crazy? Will they want to get rid of me? Will they stop being here for me?' she thought.
'Of course not,' she heard Stardust whisper back. 'Just tell them.'
"Papa, I discovered something today. Something about me in specific." She stood up and paced the floor, looking out the window and back at Stardust.
"Go on, tell me." Jonathan looked queerly at his daughter.
"It's nothing dangerous. I'm not sick or anything like that. It's just that I can talk to, to Stardust, the cat, our Stardust." She whispered the last few words, stumbling on them, scared to tell them out. She looked at Mari and was shocked to see her greatly smiling.
"Audrey, that's so wonderful! Ooh! I'm so excited. Papa, can we tell her yet?" Mari beamed. She jumped from her seat and her long black curls shook with her enthusiasm.
"Tell me what?" Audrey looked mysteriously at her father and narrowed her eyes. This was so highly suspicious, as her family always told her many things. This could actually be the great secret.
"Something that will have to wait, I'm afraid," Jonathan Moon looked away and out the window. "Just a few more days, and then Audrey will be, will be more grown up." he trailed off.
"Well, it's only just a little while longer. You can wait, can't you Audrey?" Marianne hugged her sister quickly and rushed to her trunk. "I'll be trying to get this stupid trunk up to my room. Just call if you need anything." She left, dragging Stardust with her, cooing words of love to him.
"Audrey, I want you to tell me everything that happened. And don't leave anything out. Do you understand, honey? This is very serious." Jonathan's face was extremely stern, a mood which Audrey rarely saw. But she knew this was important to him and she tried her best. She placed the small box on the coffee table and sat down next to her father. She looked at his face; the jutting jaw, his large, glossy eyes, his small mouth. His untidy hair, which shook each time he made the slightest movement, hung over his dark brows. And at that moment, his forehead, wrinkled like the sand streamed with rain water, openly showed his stern mood.
"It happened so quickly.last night, just before you came in to say goodnight, I just talked to Stardust like I usually do and then I heard him in my head. I heard his voice, and I knew it was him. It was so strange because it was so familiar, but not at the same time. Somewhere in my heart I felt like I've always been able to talk to him. I've just been on sleep mode, or something like that. But then it also scared me, a lot. I thought I was going crazy, that I was sick or something. Am I ok?"
"You're perfectly healthy. Well, at least now you've told me and you don't have to carry this burden by yourself." Jonathan stroked his daughter's head and hugged her to him. "Sweetie, I believe you completely. And during the summer, you'll understand why I'm so certain of this."
"During the summer? Why can't you just tell me now?" Audrey's stomach twisted. This was part of the secret, the one which had been torturing her all of her life. And once again, she knew she wouldn't be finding it out.
"I would tell you right this second. But Isabella, your dear mother, asked me not to say anything until your eleventh birthday. And so I shall do as she begged of me." There was a long pause in which Audrey could hear Marianne putting her things away in her room upstairs. 'Why my eleventh birthday.why not my tenth, or my sixteenth? It doesn't make any sense. What's so important about it that my own mother wouldn't want me to know? What makes my father go out wearing strange cloaks? And what makes Mari be so different, with her unknown boarding school and friends? I just want to know that!'
'Audrey dear,' she heard Stardust say in her head, 'don't think about it. Your birthday is in less than a week. Just wait. I promise it's wonderful.'
'Stardust, I love you so much!' Audrey thought. She wanted to go squeeze him. 'Make sure I give you tuna tonight.'
'Sounds good to me!'
"Let's go out to eat tonight," Jonathan suddenly woke up. It also brought Audrey back to the sitting room, her father sitting right next to her. "I haven't done that in a long while. And let's go somewhere extremely fancy, just for fun. We'll celebrate summer." He paced up the stairs to his bedroom without looking back.
"Ok, papa. I'll go tell Marianne," Audrey called after him. She looked at the coffee table and found the small beige box still waiting patiently. 'I'll wait until my birthday to open it,' she thought to Stardust as she walked to Marianne's door.
'Actually, that's a marvelous idea. I think it would be best,' Stardust responded. 'Would you let me out? I want to wash myself, but not in her presence.'
Audrey laughed to herself. 'Such a selfish cat, Stardust. Yeah, sure. Just wait a sec.' She rapped lightly on the door and Mari's curly brown head stuck out.
"What?" Mari asked confused.
"Nothing. Papa wants us to go out to dinner, somewhere fancy, he says." Audrey attempted to glance around the bedroom, but Marianne made sure that the view was blocked. "Oh, and Stardust says he want to go out. He wants to clean himself, or something. I don't know. He likes to ramble."
"Oh!" Mari jumped slightly. "I forgot about your little talent. Sorry about that, Stardust." The gleaming black fur of the cat was barely visible as he scattered out of the bedroom and down the hall.
"Can we talk?" Audrey gently asked. She knew that she and her sister didn't chat at all. It was rare when they had conversations when crossing paths, so this felt awkward and strange. Audrey sincerely felt that she and Marianne needed to settle some things now or never.
"Audrey, I can't right now." Mari looked back into her room. From the tiny peek Audrey got, Mari's room looked like a pack of wild creatures had made it their playroom. "Let me just get dressed so we can leave."
"Marianne, listen to me." Audrey felt herself being more assertive than usual. She wasn't accustomed to confronting people, even if it was just her sister. "I need to you to talk to me. You don't have to tell me anything, I just need to hear your voice and feel your mind working."
"I'm so sorry." Marianne's face looked so pained that Audrey felt like bursting to tears. And that's exactly what she did. It wasn't something she could help. Nothing she could regulate. And sadly, Marianne wasn't one of those people who can easily comfort those who are suffering. Audrey stood sobbing at Marianne's door for a minute or so. Marianne thought it best if she let her sister go through it on her own. So Marianne and Audrey remained distant from one another.
"Why can't anyone tell me anything? Why is it so hard to tell me? I just don't understand you or papa. It makes no sense. I just want to know why both of you act so queerly. And then, I begin to talk to Stardust. A cat. Now I'm queer and strange and just plain weird. How can I talk to a cat? Why is this happening to me?" Audrey cried her heart out. Ever since her mother had left, the strange occurrences in her family seemed more frequent and more noticeable. It wasn't normal, she thought. It was downright bizarre. But if her father was saying the truth and her own mother didn't want her to know until her birthday, then she would wait. She could make it five more days.