The Lives We Weave

Chapter 5 - Unspeakable Violence and Cats

I returned to semi-normality after a several hundred years, and it was around this time I also took on a name I was fond of: Mori. I had started going to book club again, and had convinced everyone else to come along too, except Air and Space of course. It was at one of these meetings that Ahly announced she was returning to human life. I was afraid for her, but she assured me that she would call one of us if she was ever in a situation similar to her previous one. During my time resting, Land and Fire had also both taken on names, as had my siblings. Land was now called Terra and Fire was called Ash. It felt different, like we had all changed now.

Ash spoke up now too "I will also be becoming corporeal for the first time, and I will be entering the same community as Ahly."

"Please both try not to meet me too soon."

They laughed. I didn't.

I kept a much closer eye on the both of them than I had last time.

Ash was born a boy, with thick ginger hair. I found it uncanny how closely his human form resembled his noncorporeal one. Ahly was born a girl, with pale skin and bright green hair. They found each other almost as soon as they could walk, and became the best of friends onwards. Close to reaching adulthood, Ahly and Ash called a meeting with Maku, Terra and I. It was to be done late at night, so no one would question why they were speaking to invisible beings.

"Hey everyone! I know it hasn't even been two decades since we became corporeal, but something has happened and we need to discuss it with you all."

The three of us looked at each other inquisitively.

"I am to be married." Ahly said simply. Terra and Maku both glanced at me sideways. I took a deep breath.

"She is to be married, to me." Ash continued

Maku and Terra both laughed then.

"So your parents chose that then?" Maku exhaled through chuckles.

"Yes, how did you know."

Terra interjected then, still through chuckles "Because you two have no chemistry. You're essentially brothers without the blood."

We all laughed then. I felt relieved.

Ahly is the first to speak once more "we just wanted to speak with you all, as this is an incredibly unique situation."

After that conversation Ahly lead the most simple life I had ever seen her lead. She got married and was gifted several kittens. Those several kittens turned into many, many cats after a few years. Ash was gone most of the time, contributing to the firepower his fellow Vikings reveled in. Ahly stayed home with her cats, went to the local drinking establishment at the end of each week, looked after the crops in her garden and taught the local children embroidery. After a few years she even adopted several children whose parents met untimely ends. I visited her each week, on the second to last day. She always let me hold her cats (cats have always been able to interact with me, a skill unique to their species alone) and she told me all of the local gossip. Ash wasn't home every time I came, but when he was Maku and Terra came as well. We all ate dinner together and listened to his stories of glory and pillaging. He even told a story of how one of his crew became cruel and tried to do something bad so he burnt him alive. I made a mental note to ensure that person was in Elsewhere. He was.

It was on one of these nights, one where it was just us, that after becoming quite intoxicated, Ahly leaned her head on me once more.

"Mori. Moorii. Mo-ri. It's such a pretty name, you know? It suits you. I'm so glad you picked one, even if you took your sweet time. It was getting hard to tell people about you and only being able to call you Death."

She tells people about me. I leant my head on top of hers. I wonder, since she does have a heart, if it skipped a beat.

After each of her cats lived a miraculously healthy and violence free life (thanks to my intervention), I reaped them all incredibly gently, and took them all back to my resting place. In the end, Ahly had over 100 cats across that one lifespan, I wonder if she is the reason Egyptians like cats so much, I do know she lived in the area a few lives ago.

Ash was the first to be reaped, which surprised me. He died sailing through a storm, he was thrown off of his ship and right into the ocean. Maku had tried to save him, but it was his time. He said he was actually glad to return home to his Lovers, who he had missed very much despite seeing them quite frequently. Maku apolgised profusely for drowning him, he assured her that it was nothing she did, it was his time.

Ahly continued to live her life quite happily, despite her corporeal husband being lost at sea. She continued to raise the children she adopted and the cats she loved with her whole heart. It was actually the longest she had ever lived to, over 60 years. It was very comforting seeing her live a quiet life. She deserved to be happy.

When I could tell it was nearing the end of her life, I gathered up all of her deceased cats and broke an incredibly important rule. I brought their souls to Ahly's domain. They remained dead, but I thought it would be a nice surprise to see all of her friends waiting for her she got home.

Her time eventually came incredibly peacefully, she was surrounded by 5 of her children, 3 grandchildren and 17 cats. It was actually a struggle to get to her bedside with how many were surrounding her.

"Ahly, I'm so proud of you." I whispered before touching her gently, pulling her from this body.

"Mori, I was ready for you this time."

She pulled me into a hug.

"There is a surprise for you, back in your domain."

"Thank you, Mori. I know whatever it is will be incredibly thoughtful, but I am very tired from the long life. I am going to rest now, and I will be seeing you."

"It is inevitable."

I wasn't expecting to see her for a while, or at least until our next book club, but she came to my domain for the first time that night and knocked on my door with tears in her eyes.

"Mori, you did all this for me?" she asked, shoving a cat into my face.

"Oh. I seem to have upset you, I'm sorry. You are welcome to return them."

"No, no! Mori it is wonderful! I am so incredibly grateful for them and so incredibly grateful for you."

"Oh. well I'm glad you think so!"

"You know, after everything I never even knew where you took them."

"Who?"

"The creations! This place is wonderful! Please show me around!" she asked enthusiastically, sending the cat she was holding back to her home.

I first show her my resting quarters, and the large jellyfish enclosure. "I always knew you liked jellyfish, but I didn't realise you liked them this much."

I then showed her each of the places I keep things, the pool for single celled organisms, the dinosaur enclosure, the human place, and the special place where I keep all of the people members she came to love in her human lives. I did not show her Elsewhere

When she saw them, the mismatched village of people all thousands of years apart from each other, looked at me inquisitively "Mori, what is this?"

"This is where I keep your loved ones! And over there in the middle is the jellyfish pond!"

"Oh my god. I need to go." and she left without saying anything more. I never really understood why she reacted like that, but I shrugged it off, just excited that I finally got to show her my jellyfish.