Oh my god! 'slightly' was not the word in my head right now. It was a big difference! It was a huge, humungous difference! I got cat-ears! Soft cat-ears! And, and it's… ooh it's cute… I shook my head – Lia, you don't look normal, get a grip on yourself! I remembered my teeth, so I bared my teeth, revealing sharp teeth and two very sharp fangs. Oh, that's great. That's just great. I'm never going to be normal. I felt something extra at my back but couldn't quite name it. I turned to see my back and saw some form of rope of teal colour swung to the right. I stopped and scratched my head. I turned again and this time, the rope swung up and wavers left to right. "Is that a tail?" I asked weakly.
I sighed. I was so doomed. "Hey kitty cat, don't feel down. You makin' us feel down too you know. You're supposed to be excited and everything?" Saw tried to comfort me.
"Why should I be excited?"
"Because you're half-cat! You got the looks and probably the abilities too!" Zara purred.
I pondered on what Zara said. Maybe she's right. She could be wrong too. I started to protest, "But what if- "
"Just do it." She cuts me off. "Ok ok." I rolled my eyes.
I straightened up and exhaled. Then I climbed on the highest stacks of crates there was in the shed while the cats spread out hays on the ground, so that I could land safely. "I'm going to try to jump down ok?" They nodded, and I counted to three. I jumped off the crate and instinct took over, my legs bent so as in a crouching position. I felt the tips of my fingers touch the ground and pushed off with my hands so that I rolled over and landed on a crouching position. There were meows and purrs around me, I felt my hands and legs – I didn't break a bone.
"So, are you ready for tonight?" Zal asked me.
"I guess so." I said with uncertainty. "Don't worry, you'll be fine." He reassured me.
That night, I camped out at the same alley in the marketplace. I brought my thin blanket with me and a utility belt I stole earlier from a stall. In that belt stored a golden key I obtained from the magic shop that morning. It happened so quickly, now I had no idea what to do with it. The shopkeeper did not know which spirit will be summoned from the key and celestial mages were sceptical about it, thus there was no sale. He had said the key was useless and I was captivated by the design that I asked him if I could have it and he simply said yes – It seemed as he just wanted to get rid of it. Now, it is strapped in my belt, without of any use to me.
I waited until all of the shop's lights were out and I made my move. I used my magic and transformed into a cat and left the alley. I trotted to the armoury shop first. I jumped on a box that led me to the window with the small opening and slipped through it. I felt my way through the shop with the help of the street light and made my way to where I thought the item I picked out earlier was. I transformed into human and examined a small breastplate. 'Yes, that's the right one.' I thought to myself. Alright, I need to get out. I unlocked the window, and put the armour on the box, then locked the window again. I thought, surely the shopkeeper will notice the armour's gone when he gets in here, so an idea occurred to me. There were several armours were piled on the floor right next to the door that led to the back of the shop. I took one from the floor and placed it on the empty space on the table, careful not to make any noise. Finally, my job was done. I turned back into a cat and slipped through the small opening of the window. I carried the breastplate in human form back to the alley and slept through the night. I thought to myself, save the weapons for tomorrow night, so that I have something to do the next day.
Morning came; I woke up, feeling groggy. Luckily, there was a fountain in town that I could go to fill my needs. I walked to the fountain in the middle of town and splashed my face with the water, and then I cleansed my mouth and drank some. Some people were looking at me weirdly but who cares? Oh, I see: A cat behaving like a human. I went back quickly to the alley and transformed. I made a mental note: check how you look like every morning before going out. I walked around the marketplace again in search of food. I saw a fruit stall and made my way there. I slipped an apple into my pocket and walked away. 'A clean getaway' I thought and smiled to myself. I also stole a loaf of bread in cat form and ran as fast as I could back to the alley.
I ate half of the bread and decided to keep the rest for later. I examined the breastplate I stole last night; it was purple in colour, provides protection on the back, side and chest area with three claw-like metals extended from the side to the front, leaving a small empty space between the claws. I imagined it on me and concluded that the claws extended from the side to the corners of my stomach, leaving the centre of my stomach bare. I like it.
I walked back to the shed and greeted the cats. "So, how did it go?" Saw asked.
"Good. This is what I got." I showed them my new armour and they nodded approvingly.
"Well we best get going." Saw said.
"Wait, what are you talking about?"
"Oh yeah, we're leaving." Zal said nonchalantly.
"You're not staying?" I asked, bewildered.
"You see, we cats don't stay in one place for a long time. We move around a lot in the summer to get food." Saw explained.
"So, all of you are leaving." I said, more of a statement than a question.
"Yes, but we don't all go to the same place, we go in our separate ways. We choose where to go individually but some may choose to stay in a small group like Zara, Zal and I. Although in winter, we tend to stick together in one place to keep warm."
"Then what about this week? You guys stayed for a while."
"Yes, we did. That was because it was pouring outside, and this shed was the closest shelter we could find. Then, you came along with the whole magic thing and we got curious, so we decided to stay a bit longer." The cats nodded in agreement.
"I see." I said, looking down at the ground.
"Hey darling, don't look down. We'll see each other sometime soon ok? You're old enough to take care of yourself." Zara comforted me.
"I'm turning 11 soon." I mumbled. "Well, I guess this is goodbye then?" I said.
"Yes, but not forever. We may cross each other's path someday." She said.
"Wow, you cats sure can be wise" I laughed.
"Yeah, don't underestimate cats!" They said in unison. I scratched them under the chin, making them purr, and with that, they left. I stood there, waving goodbye to my furry companions.
'Now I've got the shed to myself.' I thought. 'Right, time to get working'. I sat cross-legged once again on the thin blanket and focused. What day was it today? What was the date today? Gosh, I've lost track of the days staying here for weeks. Mental note: Ask people the date tomorrow. I practised transforming into cat and back to human form. By late afternoon, I was exhausted, but I got the hang of transforming. Now, I could transform faster than before. I decided to eat the fruits I stole at the marketplace yesterday and lay down, thinking to myself – 'Magic huh? I want to learn more, and maybe someday I will be a full fledge mage and join a guild. Earn some money, and then I won't be homeless anymore.' I craved for some human companionship. Tomorrow, I will go to the library and look up some stuff…about more magic… I started to think about my life. It is unfair world, isn't it? I see other kids every day at the marketplace, happy with their parents and have a bright future of their own. Here I am, stuck in this place, with no money, no friends, nothing. Even the cats left me. My stupid father! I started to cry. Why does this have to happen to me? Why father had to go gamble? Ever since mother left, you became lost father. You stopped going to work. You stopped doing the things you loved to do. You stopped doing everything you used to do. You stopped caring. I watched you break down, layer by layer every single day... I cried myself to sleep.
