Jon walked off the bus, her cat body drawing a few stares from other occupants. The weather had turned a little cold, as the day fell towards the early evening. The wind had picked up a little making Jon's fur ruffle a little at the change in temperature. Her cat body was fine... blanketed as it was, with lovely soft fur. However her human head seemed to lose far more heat and her cheeks were cold to the touch. It should only be a short walk from here though and she was anxious to see what this was about. Karyn looked at the note with the address of this strange person... her mind was racing just as much as Jon's. What exactly would they find?
They walked across the pavement, and a few small quiet roads. There was something just a little 'odd' about a certain car parked in front. It was certainly a modern looking car... but the license place on it looked like an antique. As if it was passed down from car to car? Quite a strange thing to see. It was parked in front of a single detached building, with reddish grey bricks. To the right there was a moss, that looked to have grown a long time... enough that it was all the way up to a third story window.
Rustic was the general feeling, almost... forgotten? It didn't look like many people came here, simply because there didn't appear to be much to see. However, there was a great deal to smell Jon realised, as she opened her senses to the strange wonders of this hidden world... the curious musky smell, of that tom-cat. Yes... it was strong, and getting stronger. She could feel it nestle into her mind, a distinct marking of the fellow feline's territory.
.. and part of her seemed to want... 'something' from this. Territorial feelings that encompassed the body of the larger cat... her strange desire was interrupted on hearing Karyn's voice.
"Jon? Uh.. why do you do that?" She asked tilting her head.
"Do what?" the sphynx asked confused.
"You're... wagging your tail."
Jon felt herself blushing under her fur. She couldn't convey just what that weird feeling was. "No reason!" She protested. "I- I just smell that cat nearby." She followed after the scent, to the enterence of the old building-
No... it wasn't at the door. It was to the bricks, just to the right. How did the cat end up going through a wall? Karyn noted Jon acting strange, and placed her hand on the wall... feeling something like a door knob? The vague outline of a door was drawn on this wall, and wish a push it seemed to open, into the strange dwelling inside.
it was like going back in time. Everything was just so old, and antiquated. Little china dolls adorned the window, gazing at would be passer bys. There was a cuckoo clock on the wall, tirelessly ticking away the seconds. Even the carpet looked ancient, and there behind the counter was an old woman.
"Ah.. Jon... Karyn? It's a pleasure to meet you this time," she said with a little smile. "I believe you know my cat..."
The cat stepped up suddenly on the counter. "Hello Kitten," he said with a playful look in his eyes. "I left that trail just for you."
Jon wanted to hiss at that. She.. wasn't sure quite why though.
Karyn glanced at the sphynx squaring off at the cat, and decided she best start this off. "You.. seem to know a lot. What.. is going on exactly?"
The old woman looked a little forgetful as she looked occupied with the antics of her pet. "Hm? Oh, yes. Manners first young one.. my name is Agatha. A pleasure to meet you." She gave a little bow as she glanced at the cat again. "Oh.. yes the question... hm, what's going on... to be honest, I don't know for certain. Only rather uncertainly."
Jon arched an eyebrow. She wanted to fold her arms, but her cat body just kind of did a mental fall at the human impulse making her cringe in embarrassment.
This made the cat snigger. "I think that's the first time I've seen a cat fall while standing, kitten."
Jon shot up fast at what felt like an insult. "Look-"
"I knew your grandfather," interrupted Agatha wistfully with a strange look in her eyes.
The sudden revelation made Jon go blank... if she wasn't so embarrassed before, it may well have made her fall down again. "My.. grandfather? You... you knew him?"
"Oh yes... I knew about the stone too." She started to walk away from the counter, looking over her various antics in the strange building. "...Most things tend to weaken... and... wither with age you know..." Her eyes suddenly became sharp and focussed on the teenagers. "..Not so that stone. Always, it got stronger the more you used it... well, he thought it best to give it to you. I wasn't so sure myself... but it was his stone, and you are his grandson... so tell me, what did you wish for?"
Jon looked down glumly. "I .."
"He didn't make the wish... I did," said Karyn.
Agatha arched an eye brow. "You child? You let her, Jon?"
Jon gulped" yes I... I did let her."
Agatha sighed. "So what did you wish for miss..."
The cat girl bit her lip. "I'm Karyn. I.. I just wished for something to replace getting a cold."
"Your exact words dear... it's extremely important." Agatha pressed, with her careful calculating eyes.
"I.. I can't remember exactly." karyn said.
"I was there," said Jon. "She wished that the common cold was replaced by something equally harmless..." the sphinx girl frowned a bit. "but without the symptoms of a cold. Something like that."
"Without mucus and sneezing and stuff," said Karyn. "But... this wasn't my fault! It was the stones. We were going to fix it, but Jon lost the stone!"
Jon looked taken aback. "It wasn't my fault! My mother-"
"You were supposed to take care of it!"
"Girls... girls," said Agatha calmly. "Blaming each other is not the way of friends... now this is very important. When a wish is as open ended as yours, the emotion tends to become important. What were you feeling at the time of your wish?
Karyn calmed down a little as she thought about it. "I... had a cold. I was feeling a bit annoyed by it... I just didn't want to feel ill from it. I... had some things I wanted to do."
"Hm... it could be a wish born of comfort but... we'll have to read the signs to understand what you have wrought.. that your wish changed the nature of the world is equally concerning."
"Can... you tell me about my grandfather? How did he come by the stone?" Jon asked, also feeling calmer.
Agatha tapped her chin, as she sat down on an old coffee table. "How he came by the stone... I can not say. However, your grandfather knew, that wishes could not be undone... but also, the way the stone granted the wish depended a lot on the heart of the person and what they felt at the time. Those with dark hearts, tended to get a major comeuppance... those who wished for good things to others, small things... usually got it- maybe even with a little bonus. Always though, the stone was neutral- though sometimes, I think it had a logic behind it. If it was a person, I would call it a judge, more then a genie..."
"So, it's judging me for... some kind of sinful wish?" Asked Karyn.
Agatha shrugged. "Any wish can be a sin... Are we not selfish for wanting.. for needing... we are all fairly human... some more then others," the old woman said shaking her head. Agatha then removed the cloth from the coffee table, showing a crystal ball. Within it, seemed to be another strange crystal, as it glowed. For a moment the room was bathed in strange light. "Reality has changed... but the stone can not unmake people... not.. of humans anyway."
The cat gave Agatha a little nudge.
Karyn looked up at that, remembering Jon's concerned. "So... people... were never unborn by this wish?"
"They might have been born differently, or found themselves in different circumstances. Some might even have been born in different species entirely," she said glancing to the cat. "You've opened the door of souls between the world of humans and animals. It's a door that was closed for a very... very long time."
Jon looked intrigued. "So... animals can talk to us? We can talk to them?"
Agatha nodded. "Talk is... a rather strong word. My cat here, is quite unique- awakened, by association with humans. The more time an animal spends with us, the more 'humanity' they learn. He's been with me long enough to bridge the rest of the gap... but other animals... maybe not quite so much." She said with some reluctance. "I wouldn't annoy the animals too much. Earth is rather highly populated..." She said while looking into crystal ball.
"So... what do we do?" Asked Karyn.
Agatha shrugged. "I do what I always do in these situations... you will do what you think is best. Some animals will not welcome a human voice in their world..."
The cat shrugged. "I suppose some can get a little jealous. Humans have lovely voices, and know how to make us live the easy life. Humans don't have to worry about predators. But if they are becoming more like us, doesn't that mean they will have a predator of their own now?"
The old woman looked grimly. ".. possibly."
