Anishift

Chapter 1

Chapter 1

(Cat)

I didn't understand what Russhell said at first. An Anishifter? What in the world could that be? Based on her serious expression though, I had a feeling that she wasn't lying.

"Is that why you can...you know..,."

Russhell looked at me with a faint smile. "Yes. I passed through the portal too, when I was still a full human. I was following Salali and she didn't check to see if I was still, literally, on her tail. She passed through and so did I," Russhell shrugged, as if it couldn't be helped.

"How did you become, um, an Anishifter?" I asked, looking into Russhell's eyes. They darkened slightly.

"The magic is powerful in this land. Anlogisto, which is the land we are in right now, has most of the Anishifters in the world. When a human enters one of the four lands, the magic affects them greatly. You'll have a week to survive, at most," Russhell responded. I must have looked confused, because Salali explained in greater detail.

"If a human comes to Anlogisto through the portal, which is the only way, the magic slowly seems to affect them. Like a beginning of a tail, or little animal ears. Humans are not used to being around magic, and never will be. we have these shots you have to take if you want to leave," Salali clarified.

I took a breath. "What if I don't want to stay here?" I persisted.

"We told you, you can't go back unless your one of us," Russhell reminded me. I sighed in defeat and Salali looked at me with an unreadable expression.

"Can I decide later? Maybe see this place before I make my choice?" I inquired. Russhell merely looked me up and down before shaking her head.

"You don't have much of a choice, but okay," Russhell answered. She looked at Salali and Salali nodded.

"Come on then, Cat. We can show you the village we live at," Salali said as she began to loop off away from the portal. Russhell and I followed after her, but not before I glanced back at the portal for another time.

We travelled through the forest and came across a small village with children running around. There were women coming in and out of the small buildings. The buildings were made out of wood, and they were decorated with flowers. Some tree houses nearby seemed to be used as homes too.

"Cat, we need to take you to the village elder. She, like this whole village, is for forest animals only. I'll let you guess what animal she is," Russhell said, sharing a look with Salali. I followed them into the largest house that was there and they entered through the open door.

A black haired women sat on a chair, while she talked to another women. The black haired women talked with authority, and as the other women left, she turned and saw a white steak in her hair. A black tail came from her just below her back and it too had a white steak.

"Russhell, Salali, good to see you. And I see that you've brought a visitor as well," The women said, her eyebrow arching as she looked to Russhell. Russhell looked at the ground.

"She followed me,"

"I see," the women didn't press on for details, and she turned to me. "What might your name be then?"

I shifted my weight. "I'm Cat," I said a little quieter than I normally speak. The women narrowed her dark eyes, but Cat saw a glimmer of white flash for a second.

"Well, Cat, welcome to Anlogisto, the main land for Anishifters. Our village is called the Aforet Village, meaning forest in Old Speak. We are all forest Anishifters here, if you didn't notice." The women said warmly. She gave a start as a thought crossed her mind, and she blushed a deep red. "Terribly sorry, my name is Hawra, elder of Aforet Village. Russhell, Salali, Cat may stay as long as she needs too. She can share one of your houses. Now, it was good to see you two again, but I have some work to do. Excuse me," With that, the women walked out of the room, leaving the three girls.

"Cat, you can stay at my place," Russhell offered. I was surprised that she offered, but accepted gratefully. I wanted a place to my thoughts and Salali seemed nice and all, but she was very energetic.

"Cat? Come on!" Russhell practically hissed at me. I couldn't help but let out a low chuckle. Russhell's back to normal.

"See you two tomorrow!" Salali called and I waved to her as she moved to a shorter and smaller house to our left. Russhell and I continued till we found a tree house, high up in the tree. It looked sturdy enough, but I couldn't help but wonder if those screws were put in right.

Russhell must have sensed my thoughts because she scurried up the wooden boards that made a ladder and called down to me. "Cat, its fine, see?" I shook my head to rid of the fear of heights and climbed up carefully.

Inside the tree house was a knitted rug with an intriguing design on it. I stared at it and saw a fox running through the forest with hunters right behind it. It was like she was there. She paused her running and sniffed the air, a strange scent hitting her nose that almost made her fall over. Suddenly she was back in the tree house with Russhell almost smiling next to her.

"Its a Malorug. Malo meaning magic. They tell stories just by looking at it. In my school lessons, we had to make one and this is what I came up with," Russhell explained. I looked to Russhell in surprise.

"You made this? Its incredible!"

Russhell looked surprised, than laughed. "Its not nearly as well made as when the Maloweavers make it."

A sudden loud howl entered the air, seeming to freeze Russhell. It was a chilling, eerie sound and Russhell's eyes darted to the door. "The raids," She whispered. Quickly she set herself in front of the door and closed her eyes. A bright and glowing light pulsed around her as she spoke. "Malo a malo, no Wolis tonight," The bright light passed from her to the doorway and the light seemed to be held there. Russhell sighed in relief.

"The raids are done by the wolves. They are consently on the lookout for food and I didn't do that, they would have come here. That...whatever humans call it, spells? Anyway, it tells them not to come here. No wolf can pass through."

"What does Wolvis mean?" I asked, trying not to shake as the wolves continued to howl into the night.

"Wolves in Old Speak. You've got a lot to learn, you know," Russhell said. She opened a door into a room and I saw that a bed was in there with white sheets and blankets. Russhell made a gesture for me to go inside. I stepped in and sat down on the bed, the fluffy blankets sinking down. Russhell again almost smiled and she began to close the door. "Good night," She whispered softly and I answered her back before she closed the door all the way.

"Night to you too," With that, the lights in the room flicked themselves off and a closed my eyes, waiting for sleep to find me.