Admiring the Light

Ep 57

"Dad- please, we need to go. You've left before."

"I can't legally take you anywhere, Guinevere. We both know she'll take action out of spite."

"Why should we care what she does?? She's an animal!"

"You're right, she's a shitty person, and if I brought you anywhere she'd use that as an excuse to bring me to court. I'm sorry."

"Please! Dad! Don't leave me here!"

"I can't help you..."

"Yes you can!"

Her father just walked away. "It's not my responsibility to pick up the pieces of her mess, I've done that since high school."

Guinevere stormed off.

...

Naturally, Katherine found herself drinking away her problems. After everything that had unfolded, it just felt organic now to get herself too wasted to remember what was happening.

But drinking was different than openly drinking and driving.

Her phone started going off... somewhere in the car- she couldn't pinpoint a spot. Except, she didn't even care as she just cranked her music, shaking her windows with some country song involving beer and marriage. She wasn't going to get hung up on anything, she would just continue living her life. It took all of her self control to not just drive out of town and leave whiny Guinevere behind to take care of herself. Her father could pick up the slack, they seemed to enjoy the company of each other.

But a loud scratch managed to get her attention. "Hah... what the fuck-" Katherine shifted one of her mirrors to see the furry shape of Nightwhisper up on her back seats. Her melted brain couldnt scramble a reply fast enough, but she knew the cat hadnt been there before. "Just fucking teleporting around again, are you?" She asked, her voice flat. "We don't have to go back."

"Mrrow?"

"No! I shouldn't! You heard what I am, I'm an evil, narcissistic sociopath. That's all I fucking am." She hissed. "I'm sure it is true, but the disrespect in fucking saying it?"

"Meow :3"

"No. No. I don't know why you spawned randomly, but no. Bad kitty." Katherine snapped, still glaring as Nightwhisper slunk back against the seat. "Yeah, sulk away. Fuck you..." But she wasn't done without one more slash in Katherine's direction. "NO. I WILL PULL OVER HERE AND THROW YOU INTO THE WOODS-"

With some annoyed huffs, Nightwhisper managed to pull Katherine's phone from her hat. "Meow :3"

"I SWEAR-" She hissed, pulling herself over to the side of the road. She had thought she could tolerate this cat. But right in front of her, the maine coon ran her furry paw over the screen with Katherine's pattern. "What do you want, asshole." She mumbled, as the cat went straight for the phone app.

"Mrrow." She managed to pick Guinevere's name from the contact list. "GIVE ME MY PHONE."

"Mrrowww? :3" "NIGHTWHISPER??" "Mrrow." "How did you even get in there?? MOMMM." "Mrrow :D" "Did you sneak in??"

Katherine's story ends here. She never attends Natalie's funeral.

"A reading from the Book of Wisdom.

The souls of the righteous are in the hand of God, and no torment shall touch them.

They seemed, in the view of the foolish, to be dead; their passing away was thought an affliction, and their going forth from us, utter destruction. But they are in peace.

For if to others, indeed, they seem punished; yet is their hope full of immortality.

Chastised a little, they shall be greatly blessed, because God tried them and found them worthy of himself.

As gold in the furnace, he proved them, and as sacrificial offerings he took them to himself.

In the time of their judgement, they shall shine and dart about as sparks through stubble.

They shall judge nations and rule over peoples, and the Lord shall be their king forever."

"Natalie was an incredible person, she had her moments, but she remained strong until her last breath. I don't think I could ever remember her for the times that she snapped at me in the hospital, she was suffering, as we all were. And she got irritable, as we all did. But she meant the world to me, as she did to all of us." - Lola

"Natalie had her flaws. She was never perfection, she wasn't always a pillar of respect. But she acknowledged when she was wrong, and she never hid from anyone. That was her strength, and I'm proud to have been her friend, even through the jealous conflicts of myself with others, when I wished she would just abandon me." - Alexandra

Guinevere wished not to speak.

"This Mass is offered for God, our bishop, all of our religious brothers and sisters. And for Natalie Perry, a cornerstone of our community that will never be gone. Let us pray."