Eyes of White

Chapter 6: Cats and Cards

"Would you like to play cards?" Zania asked the twins as soon as their minds cleared.

Penelope felt like she'd forgotten something, but she nodded, sculling her drink and scoffing her chicken. "That'd be great, fankf," she said with a mouthful of food.

Persephone also scoffed and sculled, but she didn't think much of the card game. "Alright, I guess that sounds good." Unlike Penelope, Persephone finished her food before she spoke. She only agreed because Penelope agreed.

Zania smiled. "Alright, I'll go get the cards." She walked out of the room, her boots clicking and clacking.

"What were we talking about before?" Penelope whispered, trying desperately to remember the conversation before the drinks. They were talking about the technology being weird, then... Trying to remember this, Penelope could smell ozone. She sniffed at the air, and as soon as the smell connected with her brain, she instantly remembered that just before a storm, the air smelled of ozone...

CRACK!! A white bolt of lightning shot straight through Penelope and she squeezed her blind eyes tight shut, trying not to think of death. She felt cold, like death does in those movies. Then she realised, she was just wet from the sudden rainstorm that had appeared in the kitchen. Thunder and lightning whipped Penelope's hair around as she kept thinking, Stop. STOP. STOP!!! She heard a voice shouting the same, and as soon as she thought, I'm the one shouting stop, the storm, like it was laughing, dispersed in a puff of clouds. Zania stood at the door, her arms stretched out in front of her.

"Who summoned this?" she shouted, all traces of her happy sunshine voice gone.

Penelope had no idea what Zania was talking about, but she felt her hand rising up of its own accord. "I did, Zania," her mouth said.

"Well, don't do it again!" Zania said haughtily, then she pulled something out of her pocket. It was a tin box with suns and birds engraved on top. The box was painted gold. "Penelope, get your sister to come up from under the table so she can deal."

Penelope obediently ducked under the table, still feeling slightly controlled by some greater force, and shook Persephone's shoulder. Persephone was curled up in a tight ball and she was shaking. "Mummy, mummy, I want you, where are you, mummy..." Then she sniffed and came to. "Is... is the storm over?" She lifted her head and Penelope could see she'd been crying.

"Come out, we're going to play cards. Do you want to deal?"

"Oh, okay. I can do that." Persephone crawled out from under the table and slid into her chair. Zania passed her the box and she opened it, surprised to see fifty two golden cards instead of the usual cards. She pulled one out, testing it, then she pulled the rest out and began to deal five cards each. She stopped and Zania looked down at the floor. "Oh, Mel, there you are. Where've you been?"

A cat leapt up onto the table and regally waltzed over to the empty chair, where she sat and began preening herself. She had amazing white fur that shone almost golden in the light. Her eyes were a lovely gold.

"Now, that's ridiculous. Why?" Zania asked the cat.

The cat looked up at Zania with her innocent blue eyes and licked her lips.

Zania frowned and was about to go on, when she realised the twins were sitting there. "Oh, Penelope, Persephone, this is Mellpell, but I just call her Mel. It's her nickname and she likes it better. Speaking of nicknames, do you have any preferred names?"

"Usually, my friends call me Seph," Persephone said.

"And my friends call me Nellie." Penelope looked awkward.

"Seph and Nellie. They're pretty. Do you think so, Mel?" Zania looked towards the cat.

The cat seemed to wink and shake her head. Penelope heard a voice come directly from the cat's mouth. "I'll stick to Penelope and Persephone, I think."

Penelope stared open-mouthed at the cat until Mel noticed. "It's rude to stare, you... you can hear me, can't you? Zania, first the storm, now this. We've got an early developer here."

Zania looked up at the cat. "Which one?"

"Pen... Nellie."

"Oh, no..."

"You know, I'm here, right?" Seph's voice sliced through the silence. "You guys are all ignoring me. Zania's apparently talking to the cat, while, Nel, you just sit there staring. Why?"

"Oh, no reason, dear. Oh, I just remembered that I've got more drink for you!"

"You'd best get out of the room. That drink's a forget-me-lot. Do you want to forget I can talk and be surprised all over again?" Mel directed this at Nellie, who shook her head, then she got up. "I'm just going to the bathroom." She slipped out of the room and stood outside the door, waiting to hear the clunk of the glass being set on the table.

"Further," Mel yowled, gliding out of the door. "The very smell wipes your mind. Even I can't resist. Come with me."

~~Ooh, hey, a talking cat! You know what she's saying now? 'Vote!' Yep. I have resorted to that.~~