Merchant Of Cats

Chapter Three: Strange New World

Chapter Three: Strange New World

    Elsa lay motionless in the middle of a cobblestone street, her chest not moving as she barely breathed. If someone happened upon her in that state, they would have most definitely thought she was dead. She was deathly pale, her head bloodied and smashed, and part of her face was unrecognizable, something, that as she lay there, healed.

          She drifted in and out of consciousness, her mind taking her wherever she wanted it to. She was so out of it that she didn’t notice three cats running to her aid. The black one prodded her with his paw and the pale brown tabby sniffed her. The white one, the most timid of the three shrank back.

         “Brother, it smells like a kitten!” The black one stated, amused and slightly confused.

         “She’s not one, Boo.” Answered the tabby.  “She smells like the Merchant. Didn’t you see her falling from the sky? She’s from there…” He motioned with his head towards the sky.

           “She’s young, I can still call her one.”  Protested the one named Boo. “Spirit, what should we do with this girl kitten?” Spirit thought for a moment and then looked to the white cat.

     “Spook, you go get Lyla.” Spirit’s voice held a certain tone, one that clearly said he was the leader and Spook better do as he say. Without a word, spook left.

          The one called Lyla appeared within minutes, her greyish brown hair flying in the wild in wind as the bag at her side bounced. Looking down at Elsa, she grimaced. Then staring into the sky, she waved a hand at the three cats.

       Spirit was the one to speak and he mewed with urgency.

         “Lyla, She’s bleeding badly… Fix her, she smells like him, but she’s not one of us!” Lyla’s bright green eyes went wide and she nodded.

Elsa opened her eyes and panicked.

         “No! Please don’t hurt me!” She screamed as she braced for her father’s blows. When nothing happened, Elsa blinked and looked at the man that stood before her. He was short and lean, too lean, and his hair was a white-grey color, one she’d expect on an old man. Yet, he seemed closer to her age, maybe a little older.

     “Why would I hurt you?” He finally asked, making his words stretch.  “I don’t even hurt the mice…”

  Elsa paled. Then she blinked again.

        With a second glance, a pair of dark ears stuck out of the sides of his head. Cat ears to be precise.

     “You’ve…You’ve got cat ears!” She stated obviously, unable to really say anything more than that. She was blind with confusion.

    The man’s ears flattened slightly and he looked at her with a deeply hurt expression, one that said he was very self-conscious about his ears. Saying nothing, he left the room.

     Elsa wanted to speak, to ask him not to leave, but she was too frightened to do anything. But it seemed his absence was merely a momentary thing, and seconds later he came back, a woman trailing behind him. Elsa was oddly disappointed when she noticed that the woman was apparently normal.

    She was an older woman, in her late forties, that Elsa could tell from her slightly grey hair and the crow’s feet that framed her eyes. The woman was what Elsa would call handsome, and it was in a way that reminded her of a nanny she once had. A woman that was beautiful, but only on the inside.

       “Good boy, thank you for telling me she was awake.” The woman praised as she patted the cat man’s head. Turning to Elsa, the woman happily smiled. “Poor girl, you must be frightened.” Elsa only stared. She could have sworn she’d seen two more pairs of ears.

   “Excuse me…Where am I? I was-“ She went silent.

           Her father’s face, a face that wasn’t truly his, haunted her memories and the last image still burned in her mind. One that made her skin crawl and her heart beat fast. Elsa was still very afraid.

      The woman mulled Elsa’s question over and then gave a halfhearted smile.

               “You are in Orlion.” She finally answered, her voice tight with a secret.

      Elsa took a look around her and for the first time she noticed everything around her shone with a brightness that made her dizzy. Looking out the window, her eyes caught sight of two moons looming in the sky. Two large and very beautiful moons… The woman, not wasting anytime, took Elsa’s hands in her own as her dark eyes stared intently into Elsa’s own.

            “Poor child, you’ve had a difficult life and soon it’ll become more so.” The woman cooed, pity deep in her voice. “You recently lost your mother, haven’t you? I’m sorry that is what brought you here.”

             Elsa stared foolishly at the woman and confusedly opened her mouth.

     “I don’t…I don’t know what you mean. Not even in the slightest. And it was my sister…” It was the woman’s turn to be confused.

      “Oh…Oh,  Dear.” The older woman turned to the cat man. “I could have sworn it was her mother.” The cat man just shrugged. The woman twisted her head back so that she was looking at Elsa. Frowning, she touched Elsa’s hand again.  “I think before we talk any further that we should exchange names. Its only polite. I’m Lyla and he is Spook. Now, who are you?”

      “Elsa...”

    “Now, I hate to ask this, Elsa-dear, but are you sure it was your sister?” The woman called Lyla said, as she twisted her hands back and forth. “I’m a fortune teller, you see, and I was distinctly getting mother.”

      Elsa nodded. Of course she was sure. Maeva was her older sister. Even her father would attest to that. No matter how much he disdained her, he never once denied she was of his blood. In a way, that was a very comforting thought.

  Lyla shrugged in defeat.

         “Well then,” Lyla paused with hesitation. “it doesn’t really matter. You’re here and that’s all that matters. You’re finally here.”

        Elsa, who was too shocked to do much, just sat there until her wits came back and her head was clear. It wasn’t more than a minute later that she spoke.

     “What do you mean; I’m finally here? Where exactly am I?! I was just… Why does he have cat ears?” Lyla lit up with surprise.

         “You really have no idea…Do you!?” Elsa thought for a moment and was about to say something when two more cat men entered the room.  Lyla smiled affectionately at them, like a mother would. Or how Elsa thought a mother would. She really didn’t know much about such things. “Elsa, they are Spirit and Boo. They and Spook helped me care for you.”

       The one with shoulder length black hair grinned mischievously at her, his green-yellow eyes delighted. With Lyla’s help, she learned he was the one called Boo. The other one was much calmer looking than his companion, but he wasn’t like the timid Spook either. He seemed the most mature and his name was Spirit.

       “Seriously, please tell me why they have cat ears!?” She repeated, she could feel herself beginning to panic. “Please just tell me…” She was feeling faint as Lyla looked at her with clouded eyes. It was clear she was trying to hide something.

          “Silly goose, that’s because they’re cats.”

    They’re cats. That explains it all! Elsa’s mind blurred and in the end she had to close her eyes. As she lay there, her mind went blank.

      It was Spirit that broke her little trance, his deeper voice was pleasant and made her body tingle. 

             “What are you going to do wither her?” He asked Lyla. Lyla glanced at Elsa and scratched her cheek gently.

      “I’ll call for Him. Hopefully he’ll hear and come, though he might be searching for her and not even bother to show.” She sighed. “Then, while we wait, I’ll try and explain most of everything"