Kat Among The Pigeons

by Lazette Gifford

  I took the device over to Shakespeare. He tilted his head left and right, as though he could discern what I was up to by watching me.

  "I spoke to her of power and pride, but mystically -- in such guise," he said.

  Pretty words. I supposed I should be grateful he didn't shout obscenities all day.

  "We're going to try something new, Shakespeare." I held the little recorder so he could see the device before I turned it on.

  What would have been screeching to most people became the sound of excited bird voices in the background discussing weather and the shop owner's bad taste in clothing. Just as well people couldn't understand what they said most times.

  "Is this recording?" Richard asked, obviously holding the machine close to his mouth. The loud feedback won a jump from both Shakespeare and me. "Yes. Good. I'm going to see if we can get Telora to speak. Come on lovely. Make some nice little birdy sounds for the poor African Gray. Come on my sweet --"

  Richard's bird began squawking in parrot, which I, unfortunately, could understand all too well.

  "What are you holding?" Telora demanded, worry in the frantic sound of her voice. "What is that silver thing? Why is he pushing it toward me?"

  "Very good, Telora. Nice bird. Say a few more things."

  "Oh gods of all feathers! He's going to kill me! Help! Help! I told you! I told you they EAT BIRDS! I saw it! Fried BIRDS! He's going to kill me! Help, help, help!"

  "Not quite so loud, sweet."

  "Oh gods, oh gods, oh gods! I'm going to be fried! The humans will kill us all! Someone help me, help me, help me!"

  The other birds grew louder, a general mayhem of panic Telora spread through the shop. I shook my head, certain this wasn't going to help. I almost stopped the recording, but suddenly, somewhere in the background, I could hear the clear voice of a little cockatiel speaking in badly accented parrot.

  "Will you SHUT UP!" he shouted. I could even hear the rattling of a cage door. "If I have to put up with this damn drama queen bullshit one more time I'm going to squeeze through these bars, break into your cage, and bite off your head! Shut up!"

  "I thought they loved me. I thought they cared! They were only interested in food. Help! Help! Help!"

  "Shut up! If they aren't going to kill you with the silver thing, I will. I'll shove it so far up your fancy feathered ass they'll be calling you mirror bird every time you open your mouth!"

  "Help! Help! Help me!"

  "Not so loud, love," Richard said. "Calm down. There's a good bird. You're doing very well! This seems to be going well, Deb!"

  "The human woman is coming!" Telora cried. She was almost gasping for breath. "She's going to bring the knife! Oh help me, help me, help me --"

  "I'll help you!" the cockatiel shouted. The cage rattled some more. "Give me a chance and I'll help you! Let me out of here! Let me at her! I can't take any more of this crisis-of-the-day crap! Half a year of this is more than you should ask of any bird! Let me kill her! She'd be good fried!"

  "Just a little bit more, my sweet."

  "I don't want to die! Don't let them kill me! Help! Help! Help!"

  "I can't take any more! I can't stand it!" I could hear the sound of splashing water followed by a moment of odd, distorted bird sounds. "Oh gods. This pathetic little water dish isn't even enough to drown myself in!"

  "Gaylord, you silly little bird, what are you doing? Do you want a bath? Can you say something to the lovely little African Gray?"

  "Oh yes, oh yes -- take the silver thing away," Telora said, sounding quite happy. "Kill the cockatiel instead. Yes, much better choice!"

  "I'll remember that, sweetie."

  I shut off the recording, gasping for breath as I tried not to laugh. Shakespeare didn't seem in the least little bit impressed by what he'd heard.

  I was in a better mood, though. I thought about reading or writing, but I wanted to get past this day. I went into the bedroom, pulled on a nightie, and slid under the covers. Cato padded into the room and jumped up on the bed.

  "Better?" Cato asked.

  "A bit," I said. The recording helped push past the horrible time with Aletta. I rubbed Cato's ears and he lost all ability to talk as he purred and rolled around a little so I could reach the particularly good spots. "I don't know quite what's going on, but maybe I'll get lucky and I embarrassed her with David."

  "David," Cato mumbled. "Is this all about? David?"

  "Maybe so." I hated to admit anything to Cato, but I never lied to a cat. "I don't know. I'm not going to worry --"

  The air changed. I thought someone might be trying to reach me before the waves of magic hit so strongly I felt disorientated. I couldn't be certain I even remained in the room. Cato yowled as he flattened himself closer to me. Sometimes animals can feel strong magic. Sometimes even humans feel it, though they mostly think the weather is odd or something.

  I caught tight hold of Cato, afraid for him caught in this maelstrom of wild magic with me. This felt more powerful than I had ever experienced on this side of The Edge or the other. The power rippled and glided; things appeared to melt, move, swirl, change colors --

  Cato buried his head in the crook of my arm. I feared the surge of power would never end.

  The magic slowly melted away, like a river running dry. I gasped and curled into a ball, Cato safely nestled between my arms and my stomach. He made a few mewing sounds, but we both stayed motionless for a few minutes.

  I feared something would happen again. I finally sat up, trying not to be ill. Cato did the same, though he swayed a little.

  "What the hell happened?" he whispered.

  "Flux from The Edge."

  "It's never done that before!" he protested. I could hear Shakespeare out in the other room. The word 'hell' seemed to play into a lot of his quotes tonight.

  I lifted my trembling hand to feel the world around us.

  "Power outage in part of town," I said. I hadn't suffered one because magic supplied the power to my place. "It should come back on in a couple minutes, though."

  "Good. Don't want panicked humans." Cato carefully settled down on the pillow.

  I directed my senses toward the way The Edge. The surface rippled and it had moved a little, too.

  And I found something else.

  "Damn! Something got through!"

  "What came through?" Cato said, lifting his head.

  "I don't know. Something big. I'm going out there. I think you need to come along."

  "Me?" he said, glancing over his shoulder in a comical 'there has to be someone else she's talking to' look.

  "You," I said and smiled. "I need an extra pair of eyes tonight. I can't do much magic close to The Edge. I don't trust myself, Cato."

  "I trust you. Implicitly. You'll do great. You don't need me --"

  "Cato."

  "Fine. But don't you think you better get dressed? It's going to be a bit cold out there."

  I would have gone out in my nighty. I did need a keeper.

  Chapter Six

  I whipped up some nice, warm clothing and added a jacket with enough room for Cato to nestle into. That gave me a few more minutes to calm, though I don't think it helped much.

  We stepped out into the yard. Clouds obscured the rising moon. We might have snow yet tonight. I scared three deer standing in my yard.

  Cato began to burrow in deeper --

  "Stop moving! That tickles!"

  "You're bony," he complained, but settled into the fleece of the jacket. I probably looked pregnant.

  I found the path I wanted leading to The Edge, and created a conduit of air to lift us.

  We walked on the wind.

  We'd have to walk on land for some of the trip, because it's not safe to do magic near anything as unstable as The Edge. This would get us close, though.

  "I'm not going to look," Cato said. He'd taken this kind of trip before. I remembered the first time he found we were well off the ground. It had taken me days to heal all the scratches. Cats don't seem t
o take to flying.

  I enjoy flying, though. I love the feel of the wind through my hair. I always felt as though I could shed all my troubles, and all my responsibilities up here in the clouds. That's the reason I only fly for work-related problems. This freedom could be too addictive.

  "Are we there yet?" Cato asked a little later.

  "We're passing over Odessa Falls."

  He moved and I tapped him on the head. I could feel something dark in the air tonight and I didn't want his distractions.

  I spotted the glow of The Edge ahead of us, which meant I had come close enough with magic. Probably no more than a quarter mile or so of The Edge brushed against this world, mostly hidden (thankfully) in the forest on the east side of Terra Tomah peak. Most times The Edge wouldn't be anything more than a rainbow line of color against the air. This, however, appeared to be several feet thick and moved like a techno color snake.

  I carefully settled us on the ground in a small glade where the sun had burnt off most of the snow. Deer, rabbits, and other animals ran for the shadows. I didn't, however, hear any birds -- neither night birds nor anything startled awake by the sudden movement of everyone else. I thought they must have moved on when The Edge became so strong and felt unsettling to the wild creatures.

  "We're down," I told Cato.

  Cato peeked one eye out, gave a quick flick of his head, and began to snake his way out of the jacket. I helped settle him on the ground. We both stood motionless for a moment, I think afraid to move. I could feel magic stronger here.

  "Let's get this done," Cato said with his tail up despite the situation. "I want to get home and get some sleep. You know, a few shrimp might be in order for tonight's work."

  "I'll think about it." Cato is good, loyal, and smart. But when it comes to food, I could get any cooperation from him for the right price.

  We headed out of the glade and into the trees, mostly following a path laid down by elk -- a bit larger than a deer trail and easier to traverse.

  The night would have been dark except for the glow of The Edge which permeated everything at ground level like a small aurora borealis. The light would have shown higher, too, except I kept a dark mat over the entire area as part of the job. I could see through the magical mat but pilots wouldn't. Even when The Edge isn't in a flux period, we need to keep it well hidden with mats and repelling spells to keep hikers out of the area. We have such mats over a lot of wilderness areas. They filter out the magic others might see in their planes or from satellites.

  We hadn't gone far when I found someone I could talk to, more or less. Owls are annoying creatures sometimes. They are smart, but they only speak in questions. This one almost took off before I could speak to him as though he felt a compulsion to fly away from all the magic.

  "Is there trouble around here? Did something come through The Edge?" I asked quickly.

  "What is it? What is it?" the great horned owl asked, leaning down from his perch on a pine tree branch.

  "How big is it?" I asked.

  "Is it large?" he answered.

  I thanked him and moved on, hoping for some other animals. A bobcat would be nice, except Cato would no doubt take offense to me speaking with one of those wild, uncouth brutes.

  I love the woods most of the time. Day or night, I enjoy going for walks. Knowing I'm safe helps, of course. I don't fear anything from this world and little from mine. I have magic enough for my own protection, and I've never seen a reason why a fae would need more. I didn't want to act like Aletta, who uses magic without regard for others.

  I wondered why she came to Estes Park and especially why she showed up at the restaurant. I had every reason to believe she'd been the badger, which meant she had been following me. I didn't appreciate the idea of her playing games in my area, but I couldn't do anything to stop her. Not because I didn't have the power, but because I didn't understand her reasons. Legit? Not? Was she in one of her moods and finding a way to prove her superiority? I was an easy target.

  "You shouldn't snarl when you're walking," Cato said. "If you want to talk to some birds, you don't want to scare them away."

  I almost snapped at him, but caught myself. The mood I felt manifested in more than a look: it was part of my energy and the animals would feel my annoyance. I curbed my annoyance toward Miss Perfection to concentrate on what brought me here in the middle of the night.

  "This is too damned cold," Cato said, drawing my attention. He pranced ahead a few steps and leapt over a pile of snow. "The needles hurt my feet! It's late! What the hell are we doing out here?"

  "Keeping the world safe."

  "That's not the kind of job you want to give to a cat."

  I laughed with agreement. He did know how to put me in a better mood. We neared The Edge, and I needed to pay better attention. Aletta was an annoyance, but she wasn't the problem, and I dismissed her from my mind.

  Cato paused by the next stand of trees, waiting for me. The glow became almost sunlight-bright as I neared, though the shades shifted in rainbow colors. Up close The Edge looked lovely, like water standing on end and holding glowing stars in its depth. If it had been thinner, we could have seen through to the fae lands.

  The magic is beautiful -- and distracting. I looked away from the shimmering surface and glanced down the length, searching for sign of whatever trouble had pushed through. Huge trouble, if I understood the owl.

  I wished I could have reached home to ask for help. I almost wished I hadn't annoyed Aletta. Maybe she would have come along tonight, though truthfully, I trusted Cato more.

  Cato and I began to walk along The Edge. Cato kept a few feet from the glowing surface. Sometimes when the colors abruptly changed, Cato's fur would fluff up as he hissed.

  "It doesn't do any good to hiss at The Edge," I told him, trying not to laugh.

  "It's a cat thing," Cato answered, his ears back and his tail remaining twice its normal size. "It'll know not to mess with me."

  "The Edge isn't a thing. It doesn't think."

  "It moves. It has shape. You told me it's here because it wants to be here." He looked at me. "What more does it need to be alive?"

  I started to speak. Stopped.

  "I suppose The Edge could be considered alive," I agreed. "There are creatures on the other side that have less shape and control than this, and we consider them alive."

  "Do you have cats on the other side?" Cato asked, peering into The Edge.

  "Yes. Cats are everywhere. Some of them have magic as well."

  "Oh? Really?" He sounded hopeful. I suppose after spending a couple years around me, he grew interested.

  "The cats sometimes use magic to go fishing in ponds. They make pretty lures to bring the fish right to their paws."

  "Oh, how lovely!"

  "Well, it would be if the fish hadn't picked up magic of their own, and are rarely ever caught by those tricks. In fact, they sometimes pull a cat or two into the water. They're lucky not to drown."

  "There's always a catch."

  We skirted around a tree and past another. I picked up a little speed and passed Cato. I thought I could see a darker spot ahead which might be a tear --

  "Watch out!" Cato yelled.

  I leapt backwards as something moved from beside a tree and stepped in front of me. The creature growled and lumbered forward -- a shape more than two feet taller than me and four times as wide. I thought I faced a bear. A big bear. Two -- no, three of them. All moving in a swaying motion, lumbering toward me --

  "Elf meat," one of them grumbled.

  Hell. Not bears. Trolls. I could see them in the better light as moved away from the shadowy trees. Big, lumbering ugly trolls with pointed dead-gray horns atop their round heads and long, dark shaggy arms ending in massive hands with huge claws that caught glints of the rainbow light. They looked as though they'd just woken from a deep, long sleep. I waved Cato away. Trolls and fae do not get along. I suppose the crack about 'elf meat' probably gave it away.

  "You don't wan
t to be on this side," I said, keeping my voice steady. I thought about calling magic to blast them into small tiny bits. Two things prevented me. First, I'd never held that much power in my life, and second, doing any amount of real magic right here next to The Edge, would not be wise.

  "Elf meat. Hungry." A second troll came forward. "Said we could eat you."

  "Did they?" I said. Trolls rarely make sense. "But you can't eat me, you know. I'm a border guard. You've crossed over."

  Heads swung from side-to-side, big wet noses sniffing the air, like caricatures of dogs. Trolls are pure legend creatures and they should never have been on this side of The Edge.

  I wasn't going to be able to hold them with words much longer. I'd have to use magic. Simple, easy magic. Nothing showy. The opposite, in fact, of a summoning. I prepared the spell in my mind while I stepped forward, almost within reach of those huge, club-like arms.

  Fae and trolls do not get along. We've fought our long wars over on the other side. Maybe such trouble is inevitable when creatures of such disparate types share the same areas. The trolls didn't help by thinking elf meat one of the best delicacies they could catch.

  Which put me in a bad place as I stood before three of the biggest, ugliest trolls I'd ever seen. They seemed dazed, which kept me from already becoming dinner. Being on this side would be difficult for them. Arriving on this side is disorientating at first, as though you've lost all sense of direction.

  "You want to go home," I said, giving power to the spell I began to weave, oh so carefully, around the group of them. They moved closer to together, which I wanted -- although hadn't I heard how they mass before they attack? "You want to go through The Edge. This is not a place where you can live."

  "Go home," one of them said. "Go after we eat."

  "No," I answered, and won a series of growls in return. "No. You need to go now. This is not a good place. You'll die here."

  "Why you care?" the leader asked. He stood a little straighter as he began to recover his wits. Damn.

  "I care because I would have to clean up the mess."

  The trolls found that amusing and gave several loud guffaws that sounded more akin to farting. Great: I had made trolls laugh. My day was pretty much complete at this point.