Star Kitty: The Legend of Felindoria

by Avery 'Kira Ashlyn' Thompson
 

Portha looked simply desolate at this time of night, though it was only about an hour after the sun had gone down. A light shimmer clung the dense cloudless night sky, as if the stars reflected their light upon the surface of a water equally as dark, yet above us. It was truly entrancing, and I felt for a moment so akin to my name that I never could have imagined me with anything but that. And Dolcina! Her name suit her so well, sounding so sweet yet with a touch of silliness to account for her eccentricities when it came to her liking of sugar, yet beautiful enough to match the soul she was.

My sister deserved a name that suited her so well. I would think of one for her, and when I saw her, I would tell her what that name was.

“Which way should we go?” Dolcina asked, breaking my momentary reverie and bringing me back to the mission at hand.

I glanced down one street lined with fiery lamp posts around some of the smaller homes. Farther down there were more lights, and I could only assume that it led to the main part of the city. To the left however, only darkness lay past the dimly lit homes, and I could not guess what was there. I wished I knew a bit more how the city was laid out, for I could not even begin to guess which would be the wiser course of action. And if we started down the wrong path, then we risked not having enough time to retrace our steps and choose another.

After a moment more of thought, I turned to Dolcina and whispered, “Alright, here is what I think would be our best move. You go to the left and see what all you can find, I will go to the right, and we will meet back here in an hour to discuss from there. Perhaps we will even find some other cats that could point us in the right direction.”

“Sure, that sounds like a great plan! I mean, really, it wouldn’t help us so much to--”

“Yes,” I said, cutting her off before she could begin another stream of babble, already feeling sorry for any poor soul she came across to question. “Then I will see you shortly.”

She nodded, and as she headed in the assigned direction, I turned tail and headed mine. The fur on my body stood out, making the evening summer breeze colder than it had ever felt in the shelter of the trees on The Lady’s porch, and I could not remember a time my eyes had felt so open and my ears so large. I felt so vulnerable there, out in the open, away from everything I knew, and now alone without even the fearless Dolcina by my side. I wished I could have taken it as lightly and care-free as she had, but of course I was ever thankful for her. She was proving to be a good friend indeed.

My mind proceeded to wander as I padded stealthily down the sidewalk, and I glanced down at my signature white hairs gleaming in the moonlight. Dolcina had said something about having heard of me before, the defective black cat with traces of white on his chest, yet she did not seem appalled. In fact, she had not mentioned it at all beyond her first introduction. I didn’t understand why she couldn’t care about that... then again I still did not know how she so casually could walk into complete and udder darkness without a second thought. I thought to myself how well she and my sister could get along...

“By Felindoria, it’s a bit late for small kittens to be out and about, ain’t it?” a gruff voice questioned.

I turned quickly to face one of the largest, most intimidating cats I had yet to see and doubt I shall ever see again. Not only was his structure simply, oh, massive, but muscles like a horse’s wired themselves to every part of his frame. To top it all off, his black fur fluffed out from everywhere, his long bushy tail curling high into the sky as he walked over to me and loomed down, his green eyes reflecting a most undignified terrified expression upon my own visage. “I... I apologize dearly... erm... sir... I did not mean to disturb you.”

He guffawed and slapped my shoulder with his paw in what was meant to be a friendly gesture, but it sent me tumbling onto my side with one or two rolls proceeding. “You didn’t disturb me, Scrawn. I just noticed you and thought I had not seen your likes about here before. What’s your business if you don’t mind my asking?”

I shot him a bit of a glare as I sat up regally and licked the dust casually from my coat. “First off,” I said, choosing to not look at him as I spoke, just to give him an idea of how I did not appreciate his attitude, even if he was six times larger than I, “My name is Star, not Scrawn. Secondly, this is my first time here, to answer your question. And thirdly, I am in search of a place called Oak Crest.”

“Star, eh?” he chuckled. “Scrawn suits you better. Ah well, Star it is.”

“And what is your name, might I ask?” I requested, allowing a miffed edge to creep into my tone.

“Fungus,” he stated quite proudly, puffing out his massive chest. Needless to say, it took every attempt on my part not to laugh in his face. Ah, another aptly-named creature....

“Well then, Sir Fungus,” I continued, clearing my throat a bit, “might you be able to point me towards this Oak Crest?”

“And what business have you there out of curiosity?”

A puff of air escaped my nostrils as my ears slanted back. This conversation was getting rather tiresome. “I am searching for a friend of mine--my sister, actually--whom I have reason to believe has been taken there.”

“By whom?”

“Why must you ask all these questions?!” I snapped, standing now but crouching down beneath his huge stance.

He shrugged lazily. “Just curious. Like I said, you’re not a usual to these parts.”

I narrowed my eyes for a moment almost to the point of closure, allowing myself to find a place of calm within myself before proceeding. “My sister was sold this morning to a very brat of a witch that lives in those parts, or I would guess that from their extravagant dress.”

“Aye,” he agreed, nodding, “that usually does signify one as coming from the likes of Oak Crest. That or a diamond-studded collar, ha!” he barked a laugh, smacking me again on the shoulder, but this time I dug my claws into the dirt of the path and braced myself for impact. I only fell flat on my face this time, versus doing some acrobatic rolls. “It’s easy to get to from here, just takes a while. It’s on the complete opposite part of Portha. Just keep following Portha Circle, through the city and such. It will be a ways out of that, but you can’t miss it.”

“I take it you’ve been there?”

“Aye,” he said again, a reflective quality coming over him, “when me lass Clara was but nine and I had just left The Lady. She lived there. But she’s all grown now and married to a fine wizard, yet a much less wealthy one. They are happy here though. She’ll be having a little witch of her own in the next few months I believe, she’s swelled up as big as a cat with fifteen kittens stuck inside her!”

I would have bitten my tongue in the first place if I had known it would lead to such a pointless little anecdote. But no, of course he did not stop there. “How is M’Lady doing?” he asked, tilting his head. The wondering expression on his face only continued to make him look dimmer and more vacant as the questions progressed.

“She’s fine, she’s fine,” I said hurriedly, trying to point myself down the path to give him the idea I was in a hurry. “But I do really need to be--”

“By Felindoria, you aren’t scatting, are you?”

“Scatting?”

“Scramming.”

“....Scramming?”

He let out another hearty laugh and started a paw towards my shoulder, but I dodged it this time. How sad, he nearly had me trained. “Running away!”

“Oh... Oh! No, not at all... I am just trying to get my sister back.”

“By Felindoria! You aren’t--”

“What in the name of Portha is ‘Felindoria?!’”

He gazed at me now with an expression akin to horror. “You... you don’t know what Felindoria is...?”

“Yes. I do know. I simply asked you to make sure you knew,” I said flatly, unable to imagine what sort of dumb oaf I was dealing with.

“Oh, well that’s good, I was a bit worried--”

“Of course I don’t know, otherwise I would not have wasted my breath on asking the question!” I snapped.

He chuckled lightly. “Haughty little bloke, ain’t you? Take it easy, you got a long road ahead of you to lose a few of your lives now in heart attacks.” He nestled down into the ground, his stomach loosening and encircling him, making him look like a gigantic hairball. “Let me tell you about Felindoria...”

Joy of joys. There goes the rest of my hour.

“Thousands of years ago when the world was still young, there were no cats anywhere on the planet except for one place, a tiny island in an ocean no one even remembers now, an island called Felindoria.

“Now no one knows what these cats on Felindoria looked like. Some say they were as large as elephants, others say they walked on two legs, but most say they weren’t much different than cats now. One thing is for certain, these cats were very wise, so wise that not only could they understand the language of any living creature, but they could also communicate with nature itself. They held the essence of the earth’s power inside of them, yet could not use it themselves.

“One day a simple woman arrived at the island. She had been on a ship that had been broken up in a storm, and had washed upon the shore. The curious cats stood all about her, but she could see none of them, though they could tell she felt their presence.

“Suddenly, the undergrowth rustled and out stepped the first solid black cat. The woman could see it, and fell to her knees as it approached. The cat’s name was Felia, and it is said that she is the Mother of All Black Cats. The woman’s name was Morgan, and it is said that she became the first witch after this encounter, Felia at her side.

“For you see, when Felia approached Morgan and allowed her to stroke her smooth black fur, a silent contract was made, a contract forever binding them to eachother. Forever they would help eachother and protect eachother, the cat lending her powers to the human so that the human could in turn protect her and nature in general. That is why today, when a young witch comes of age and grows into her powers, she must first attain a young cat of her own to be her companion.

“That is also why,” Fungus said more forcefully, “that contract that The Lady signs when she gives a cat to one of the children is so sacred. It is a physical representation of that silent contract originally made between Felia and Morgan. To break it would be to not only break a long established law of black cats, but all cats. That is why you can not go to Oak Crest and take your sister back.”

I heard his last ramblings about rules, but hardly listened. Felia... The name rang in my ears like a somber bell in a tower on a still spring mourn. So beautiful. Only such a name would suit my sister...

My Felia.....

A heavy paw came down upon my head, dazing me for a moment until all the green lights disappeared and I returned to Portha from... wherever cats go when they stare. I would have asked him (as I’m sure he would have had another string of yarn for me), but I really did not have the time. “Did you listen to a word I said?”

“Why of course,” I answered indignantly. “You told me of this place Felindoria in which all the little kitties grew from the ground and scattered their seeds upon the rest of the earth, which is why we are all here today.”

The force with which he hit me next I never would have thought survivable, and this time he did not move. He pressed his paws against me, pinning me to the place on my back as he glared down at me, bearing his weight on me so much I thought my bones would crush at any moment. “Do... not... ever... make light of Felindoria.”

“Felindoria means nothing to me,” I gasped, squirming to be free but failing miserably, “as I am not a true black cat.”

He stood back suddenly, his eyes looking sad. “Then it should mean more to you than anyone else, Star.”

His sudden solemnity surprised and disturbed me. I couldn’t even think of a thing to say to counteract it. “What do you mean?”

“I mean that for... for you, Felindoria is harder to find, but when you find it, it will be all the more rewarding.”

I laughed out loud before I could stop myself. “Find it? Oh, you are an old fool, aren’t you? This couldn’t possibly be a physical, findable place.”

He stood and turned his back to me, his tail drooping. “Possible. No one has ever found it since, at least that I have heard. But it’s out there, I can feel it. And whether you find it in the ocean or find it in your heart, it still means the same. But out there... it is said to appear some nights... some nights at midnight, when a full moon shines just right upon the water... it opens up a gateway into Felindoria with its divine light.” He sighed suddenly, making his way up to the house, not looking back at me. “If only I weren’t so old, I would find it now. I would try, especially now that my Clara has less need of me. But alas, it is too late for me. Perhaps some day... some day when my bones lie in the earth... Perhaps I shall yet see Felindoria.”

My body remained in its rigid, proud stance as Fungus departed, but I could feel my head sinking lower and lower below my shoulders. What was this? Shame? Whyfore? I had not a reason in the world to feel it. Just because of some crazy old cat’s broken fantasies...

I stood and shook the sensation just as quickly as it had washed over me. I hadn’t the time for it. I had my own Felia to find.