The Mage's Familiar

01. A White Cat

The sunlight pouring in through the open window was warm and fragrant, perfumed with the floral scents of late Spring. Dust motes danced in the heady sunbeams as they spilled across the floor and filled the room with golden light. A warm breeze fluttered the white lace curtains, creating swirling patterns of shadows on the walls. Curled into a beautiful white ball in the center of a simple bed was a small cat, basking in the light. It was a perfect tiny creature with a dainty pink nose and sky blue eyes closed in sleep. As the gentle sounds of birdsong and piano filled the small room, the creature stirred, stretching its slender legs luxuriously as it began to drift into wakefulness. As its eyes blinked slowly open it realized suddenly that it was alone in the simple, neat bedroom of the cottage where it lived. It cried out in protest but its complaint was interrupted by a yawn. Still drowsy, the cat dropped to the floor and meowed plaintively, stretching up towards the door. It was closed but not locked but there was nothing it could do but wait to be rescued. Unwilling to return to its spot on the bed, it began snooping around the room. Despite its apparent ease it was new to this home. It had only come to be here the day before but could not help but feel relaxed in the presence of its new master.

The cat's eyes widened as it heard footsteps approaching the door and it darted underneath the wardrobe against the wall. It could tell that this was not the beautiful young woman who had rescued it the day before. This was a stranger. However the steps did not stop at the door and continued on into a different part of the small dwelling. The cat's eye narrowed. It had not yet heard of another person living here. Was its master in danger? It slunk out from its hiding spot and sat beside the door, listening carefully. Voices rose from a nearby room but they were too far for the cat to discern who was speaking. Neither voice sounded like its master. Disheartened, the cat leaped onto the windowsill and peered out into the fields beyond the cottage. Escaping through the window would be simple but getting back into the room would be nearly impossible, even with the agility and skill of a cat. There was no choice but to wait.

Just as the cat was resigned to be patient, it recognized the light steps of its master draw near. The cat let out a small mewl as its master approached and the woman opened the door with a dazzling smile on her face. She leaned down and buried her face in the cat's snowy coat.

"Nas!" she laughed. "Are you happy to see me?"

At her touch, Nas purred loudly, leaning its body against her. It was fate that had brought them together. She had found Nas close to death on the riverbank at the edge of the village and brought the animal back to her home where it had made a fast recovery under her care. She had not thought deeply about the cat's origins or how it had come to be nearly drowned. To her, Nas was only a cat. And it would be some time before the truth was revealed.