Essentially the 14th chapter, but really just Part 13.5…no summary needed. This is mostly Kitty-centered…Nat was mostly finished last time. Brief fluff, but with the wrong person. Sorry this took so long!


Memory is Futile, part 2

"A memory is what is left when something happens and does not completely unhappen." – Edward de Bono

Kitty closed her eyes and savoured the familiar smells of damp and decay in the cellar. Wherever she had been, and whatever had happened to her there, it was good to be home.

"Er…Kitty?" It was Kevin. Her eyes snapped back open.

"Are you all right? It looked for a moment like you were savouring the smells of damp and decay…"

"Shut up. I missed you all!"

"What was it liked?" Jenson asked eagerly, his overfilled notebook already out like a newspaper reporter's.

Kitty frowned.

"That's the weird thing," she said to them. "On the way back home, something must have happened…with the portal. I can't remember anything now."

"Amnesia?" said Antony, frowning.

"I don't think so," Kitty told him. "I can remember everything clearly up until after Kevin came to my apartment the other day. After that it's like an entire section was just erased for some unknown purpose…"

"And the Amulet?" asked Rory. "Was it all for nothing?"

Kitty braced herself.

"I have it," she said slowly. "I'm not sure how. And I'm not sure if I want to touch it at all."

"Oh, come now," said Jenson blusteringly. "How are we ever going to get our heart's desires if we don't even touch it?"

She had been afraid they would take it this way…had the Resistance always been this greedy and grasping? For a moment she saw Mr. Pennyfeather again, creeping in the darkest tomb in search of wicked things…but no. That was over. It would have to be different this time.

Carefully, Kitty reached into her pocket once again and pulled out the Amulet of Phasma Mortuus by its thin chain. The purple jewel sparkled and danced in their torchlight, and most of the group gasped in wonder. Far from making her feel satisfied from a raid well done, the sounds made the emptiness inside of her increase. She couldn't do this anymore…

As one, the hands of the Resistance reached out to touch the amulet. Kitty felt, once again, that inexplicable feeling of foreboding and – was it still? – sorrow. She closed her eyes as their fingers made contact, ready for an explosion or a jolt of power.

That was when the surprise came.

With a sound not unlike a snake's hiss, the beautiful amulet dissolved into nothing but sand. Kitty blinked, sure she had missed something.

"What the hell?" Antony looked flabbergasted, staring at the pile of sand that had slipped through his dark fingers. Gone all gone…everything for nothing…

Kitty covered her mouth with her hands. Why?

"That's – rather unfortunate," she squeaked from behind her fingers. Rose looked as if she were about to cry.

"Come on, you guys," said Kevin, while the others looked dejected. "This wasn't our only hope or anything…we just need to rethink this, that's all…"

"Why?" cried Jenson, looking profoundly upset that his meticulous (and obviously too public) research had gone to waste. "Why did it disappear?"

"I guess it only works on that island place," said Rory sadly, her curls drooping with disappointment.

"Listen," said Kitty. Everyone turned to her, but she couldn't look at them. "I – I'm thinking of quitting the Resistance."

"What!" cried Jenson, Rory, and Rose all together. Antony looked solemn, Kevin's expression blank.

"Look, you know it's hopeless!" she said. "This just isn't the way to bring the magicians down…every step we take forward, we're just pushed backward again. Now we're just depending on artefacts again, which will just bring us down further. They're going to pick us off one by one. This isn't the way to do it."

No one spoke, each lost in their own thoughts.

"I agree with Kitty." It was Kevin, and he was smiling wryly. "It's not safe anymore to keep doing this. It's not like I'm giving up - " he looked at her, his expression unreadable.

"It'll happen eventually," Kitty continued, grateful to him. "Remember what I said about the endless cycle no one escapes from? We just need to get someone else on our side…someone other than commoners…"

Rory stood suddenly and walked away from her, her small fists clenched. The door slammed behind her. Jenson followed without looking back.

"Listen to me!" Kitty cried out at their retreating backs. She turned to her remaining companions: Rose was still shaking her head, looking betrayed.

"Rose…" she began, but she knew it was too late.

"Goodbye, Alyssa," the girl said , giving her a small smile before turning to the door. She glanced back once before leaving; Kitty could hear the beginnings of a sob before the door to the cellar was closed once again.

Antony smiled and clapped her on the back.

"It's been…invigorating," he said.

"Thanks."

He left quietly after pulling his trusty knife out of the wall. Kitty turned to Kevin and saw the strangest look in his eyes.

"Kevin?" she began tentatively. He walked, not towards the door, but to her.

"I'll really miss you, Kitty."

Then he leaned forward and kissed her gently on the lips. She gasped and drew back. That had been rather unexpected! But why did it feel as if she were betraying someone?

Kevin looked rather hurt.

"I'm sorry, Kitty…I've been, well…"

"It's – it's all right, don't apologise." Kitty felt flustered. What was wrong with her? She had always like Kevin, perhaps even as more than a friend…

He kissed her again, drawing her close to him.

"I'm sorry," she said, breaking off. "I – I can't."

He stared at her for a while.

"I guess I should have known," he said quietly. "But – will you remember me?"

"Of course." How could he even ask?

Kevin smiled again.

"That's all right, then." He walked to the door, but paused and looked back at her with his hand on the knob. "You should go tell Lei, you know. About – about what's happened."

Kevin opened the door and left the cellar for the last time, leaving Kitty behind with her troubled thoughts.


"So, ready to dismiss me yet?"

"I'm getting there! I told you, something else might come up…"

Yeah, right. The kid just couldn't bear to get rid of me! After the apparent trauma of Phasma Mortuus (which I still couldn't remember at all), he had made up all sorts of excuses to keep me on earth. I tried all the annoying methods I could think of, but he just wouldn't break…it seemed like with each passing day, Mandrake grew colder and more distant from me. And get this: he was even researching other djinn to summon, while still keeping me here! Honestly!

As a last resort, I tried something new: I took the form of the dead Resistance girl, Kitty Jones. That at least got me some reaction! He looked up from his papers and frowned.

"That's an – interesting guise. More creative than your others."

What! I've got feathered serpents, whirling columns of sand, ferocious minotaurs, crow-headed men, creepy Aztec skulls…and this was more creative? I jumped in eloquently after him.

"I suppose. It's Kitty Jones, you know, the girl who was killed by the golem while saving your life." My trump card, of course. A brief reminder of his own lack of morals might trick him into finally letting me go.

To my annoyance, he said nothing.

"What -" Kitty's face adopted a sullen teenager expression. "Not still preying on your thoughts, is she?"

"If she is, it's because of you!" Finally, some attention!

Unfortunately, that's when the phone rang; predictably, Mandrake answered it with a flourish.

"Yes? Oh, hello, Quentin. Yes, I heard about the newest premiere…yes, fascinating. Now, I'm a bit occupied at the moment, so…what? A mysterious envelope? Yes, I would also suspect an afrit to be behind…what on earth has the ambassador's wife got to do with any of this? I see…yes, I'll respond immediately, if you could kindly inform Mr. Ffoukes of my immediate arrival…good-bye."

He turned to me and I could feel the waves of doom crashing upon me again. Time for another job.


The piano shop was open when Kitty approached the door. She could hear music inside…someone playing, no doubt. The question was if Lei was there.

She closed her eyes and smiled as the piece reached a glorious, passionate crescendo, then opened the door and walked into the threshold.

Kitty had not gone three paces, trying to find the source of the music, when it stopped. She furrowed her brow and listened hard, but no footsteps sounded in the distance. She crept forward towards an open doorway…

Thunk!

A silver knife with an Oriental-style handle plunged itself into the doorframe, two scant inches from her throat. She gulped and turned, hearing a voice say:

"It's polite and more common for customers to make themselves known."

Kitty smiled, recognizing the voice.

"It's me, Lei…Kitty."

A startled gasp, and the dark-haired girl revealed herself.

She looked much better, although Kitty could see the bandaging on her side beneath her thin, draping clothes. She was holding another knife and smiling, her black hair shining in the light of the shop's chandeliers.

Kitty looked at Lei and, without warning, burst into tears.

The older girl was at her side immediately, pulling her into a tight embrace. Kitty cried into her shoulder.

"Now, then…what's this?" Lei asked her.

"It's all too much," said Kitty, her breath coming short, "I went to that island and I can't remember anything and then I brought back the amulet and it dissolved in our hands and the Resistance broke up and everyone left and Kevin kissed me…"

"Well, now, that's a bit – Kevin kissed you? What's wrong with that? He's liked you for ages…"

Kitty laughed in a watery sort of way.

"I don't know," she said breathlessly, "it was weird. As if I was betraying someone else…but Lei, the Resistance is finished. That's why I – why I came…"

Lei gave her a handkerchief and Kitty blew her nose. Lei looked almost amused.

"God, I've never seen you cry like that, Kitty…anyway, don't worry about the Resistance. We've been crumbling for months now. There'll be other ways to get the magicians down, without sacrificing our lives…remember the continuous cycles you're always talking about?"

Kitty smiled, then stood back and wiped her eyes.

"Sorry about that," she said. "You're right, you know…I haven't cried like that in a long time…"

"What are you going to do now? If you need a place to stay, or a job…and what about the lot of us knowing who you are?"

Kitty sighed. This much she already had figured out.

"I'll go back to working at Hyrnek's, maybe with another job in the evenings…some inn or something is bound to need a waitress or something. As for my identity…I'll get a couple new ones. Alyssa Feldman will have to go; I can't risk it, I'm not sure I can trust Rory and Jenson not to go blabbing. Even Rose…and I'll cut my hair again…"

She stopped. It was Lei's eyes who were filled with tears now; she swiped them away angrily.

"I'll miss you a lot, Kitty."

"Oh, don't start," she said. "You'll have me breaking down again. You'll have this shop, and all your other friends…you play very well, by the way. I was listening at the door."

Lei blushed.

"I'm thinking of joining the Makepeace Orchestra…I could make quite a lot of money of his ridiculous musicals…"
"That's a great idea," said Kitty firmly, giving her friend one last hug. "Look after yourself, Lei."

The girl pulled her knife out of the door-lintel and smiled. Kitty smiled back before turning and walking back into the crowded street.

THE END


Ta-da! C'est terminé! Epilogue coming up right away…hope you liked the ending!