Solace & Grief (22 page)

The cat – Solace still couldn't decide how old she was – flicked her tail.
Follow me
> she commanded. Dropping down from Manx's leg, she turned and began to trot along the alley.

‘She says to follow her,’ Manx interpreted to the others.

Without waiting for anyone else to answer, Evan headed off behind the cat.

Electra grabbed his arm. ‘You're just going to do as it says?’

‘Tell me a better choice we have. Besides, it –
she
– is tiny.’ Evan pulled a face. ‘It's not like we're chasing a rogue leopard.’

‘Come on, then,’ Manx said, joining Evan.

The alley, it turned out, was not a dead end. Instead, it branched off into two equally narrow, equally shady streets. The little cat paused briefly then bounded off down the left-hand path, not bothering to see if she was being followed.

‘You didn't say you could talk to animals,’ Manx murmured to Solace.

‘I didn't know I could!’

‘Probably a side-effect of that translating languages thing,’ said Evan casually. Manx and Solace stared at him. Evan blinked. ‘Remember? That random small miracle wherein you suddenly started listening in tongues and overheard Glide on his universe-surfing dreams? The cat is speaking. I get that. And therefore you understand.’ They continued to stare at him. Evan stopped walking and threw up his hands. ‘Am I the only one who sees the logic in this?’

‘Evidently,’ Solace muttered, embarrassed.

‘Argue it later.’ Electra grabbed her arm. ‘Look.’

Solace glanced up. The cat had stopped. The laneway ended not much farther on. The backs of terrace houses rose on either side of them. As if she'd been waiting for their full attention, the little cat stepped up close to the right-hand wall, which was made of brick and belonged to a different type of building altogether.

Here
> she said, in a disinterested tone.

With Manx and Solace leading, everyone crowded forward.

In front of them was a wooden door, originally painted green but now peeling in cracks and flakes. There was a keyhole, but no handle. It appeared to be locked.

What is it
?> Manx asked.

The cat blinked dismissively.
You are still too
big> she admonished, and then, when he continued staring at her,
Get smaller
!>

Comprehension dawned.

‘She wants me to change,’ he said, frowning. ‘Should I –’

‘Just do what the lady says, eh?’ Evan grumbled. ‘But pounce on me again, and you're a dead man. Cat. Thing.’

The little cat glanced at Evan.
You are useful, perhaps. For a human
>

Solace laughed; Evan raised an eyebrow until she translated, at which point he laughed, too.

‘Fine then.’ Manx shifted unhappily. ‘Nobody look!’

Shuffling a little farther down the alley, he began to undress. Blushing slightly, Solace looked away; the others did the same or closed their eyes. Several seconds passed. Evan breathed in, about to speak, but was cut off by an uncomfortable bending, stretching, clicking sound, followed by a high-pitched, inquisitive ‘
Mrou
?’

They looked back in time to see Manx-as-cat padding sulkily towards them.

Still too big
!> their guide scolded, dashing forwards. For a moment, the two felines faced off, the little cat not even coming up to the base of Manx's elbow, or at least, to what Solace supposed would count as the cat equivalent of an elbow. There was a pause. Abruptly, the little cat struck out and bopped Manx unceremoniously on the nose.

Follow
!>

It was very Monty Python, Solace decided as she watched Manx, who was almost the size of a panther, follow the little cat up to the window – like something out of a Terry Gilliam cartoon. Initially, their destination wasn't obvious, forcing Manx to tag along while his guide navigated a series of obstacles, eventually arriving at a nearby roof. From there, the two of them vanished from sight, only to reappear a minute later, perched a metre or so away from a window in the side of the brick building. With practised ease, the little cat leapt across the gap and through the open window. Manx was another matter. From the set of his ears and the continual flicker of his tail, he was clearly concerned as to whether or not he would fit. It was all Solace could do to keep from laughing when, after a few seconds of this indecision, the little cat's head poked back out of the window.

Silly cat-human>
she chided.
You are not useful
!>
And before Manx could respond, she ducked back into the building.