Here Kitty Kitty

Posted on Sun Oct 6th, 2024 @ 6:50am by Solveig Kallestad & Jada Zovko
Edited on on Sun Oct 6th, 2024 @ 8:05am

4,175 words; about a 21 minute read

Mission: Summer's Fading Light
Location: Red Rock Academy
Timeline: 8/26/2016

The previous day had been interesting to say the least. Going out to buy a car and ending with being questioned by the police hadn’t exactly been how Solveig had pictured the day going. Even with that slight black spot though, she had found it overall enjoyable. Jon had been invaluable with his help, and despite their rocky start a month ago she found herself considering him something of a friend and enjoying his company. She knew she wouldn’t have been nearly as successful in her purchase without him by her side, and she hoped she had successfully communicated to him how grateful she had been for his help. It was early morning and she was sitting outside on the small patio loveseat with her legs tucked up under her and a book in her lap. She wasn’t alone in enjoying the fresh morning air.

Out in the middle of the small backyard was Hati stretched out lazily in the grass and sunning herself. Her long, fluffy tail would occasionally twitch, but otherwise she was quite still and blinking slowly without a care in the world.

With a sudden rustling of a nearby bush, another cat emerged into the pristine sunlight near Hati. It was a tiny American Shorthair with incredibly smooth gray fur and big golden eyes. The cat paused at the much larger Hati and meowed quietly. Hati immediately took notice and stood. As the new arrival approached, they circled around each other, purring softly. The American then slowly approached Solveig and stopped in front of her, looking up with big eyes and meowing again.

Solveig blinked at hearing the unfamiliar meow and placed her hand on the book to keep the pages open while she looked down. On seeing the unfamiliar but healthy, clean cat, she smiled. “Hello there, little one. Are you lost?”

The cat meowed yet again and turned her head to the side, her large eyes turning to the cover of the book on Solveig’s lap. She turned then, looking back at the woman over her up-turned tail, and then started off slowly toward the gardener’s house.

From what could be seen of it at the angle Solveig was holding it, the title seemed to start with the word “name”, but nothing else could really be seen. She watched the cat wander off and shrugged to herself, then looked back down at the book. Hati wandered up, looking after the cat and meowing loudly.

The cat walked up to the door that led to an enclosed porch and looked at it. Raising a paw and scratching at the door, she looked back over at Solveig and meowed loudly. She paid no attention to Hati as the large cat approached and started to sniff her, trying to get a read. The cat meowed again, High pitched and insistent as her paws moved over the door.

Solveig had largely ignored the cats until the chorus of meows cut through her concentration. Sliding the bookmark into place, she put the book down on the cushion next to her and walked over to the cats by the door. “Alright, alright. I get it. Are you thirsty or hungry? Hati will share but be good.”

She opened the screen door first and then the main door behind it so both cats could go inside.

The cat rushed inside followed by Hati and made her way into the enclosed porch. Stopping and looking, the cats large golden eyes moved over the display of exotic plants there with interest. Taking a few bold steps, the cat seemed to consider it with genuine intelligence, and then meowed again.

“Well thank you.” Solveig chuckled to herself as she looked down at the small gray cat, fancying the creature had said something nice about the set up. All of the pots on the narrow counters and hanging planters were quite tidy and the room smelled of fresh, fertile soil underneath the mild leafy and floral fragrances from the plants. It was immediately obvious that there were no plants that were dangerous to cats in this place. Hati hopped up on one of the counters with ease and looked down at the smaller cat, giving another loud meow that sounded more insistent this time.

The cat seemed to ignore Hati’s insistence and moved into the house proper, walking into the small, central hallways and looking with curious eyes at everything she could find. She pushed open a mostly-closed door and stepped into a smaller spare room. Twirling around the chair in front of the desk, her eyes scanned the rows and rows of books before walking out again and into the kitchen. She passed by a pot of dirt by the cabinet and then leaped from the floor to the counter, then sniffed a plant in the window with intense interest.

Solveig was too amused by the cat to stop it; it wasn’t doing any harm, it was just intensely curious. When it jumped up into the window though and began to sniff at the catnip there, she finally chuckled and walked over. “Alright, kitty. We need to find where you come from.”

Gently, she picked up the cat while supporting her chest and back legs and gave the top of her head a few scritches. “You’re very pretty.”

“You’re too kind.” The cat purred, the voice high, feminine, and accented. “You’re not too bad yourself.”

To her credit, Solveig somehow resisted the impulse to launch the talking cat across the room, but she did immediately put it down on the tile floor and take a step back. “Um… what?”

Stepping away a few quick steps, the cat grew and transformed quickly and seamlessly into the back of a woman eight inches shorter than Solveig with straight dark hair just past her shoulders and a slender, muscled, well-shaped form. Besides the fact that the cat just turned into a person, that person was completely naked. She looked over her shoulder gracefully, her face hinting at a smile. She was exotically beautiful with creamy, butterscotch skin and striking green eyes with slender, cat-like pupils.

Without another word, she moved with a slow grace to the hallway closet, opening it and pulling out a powder-blue bed sheet. Turning to Solveig again, she wrapped it around her attractive body like a cloak and then approached like a queen.

“Surprise.” she said with an almost pretentious fluttering of her hand with its long passion-pink colored nails. “I can’t believe you get your own house. I’m devastatingly jealous.”

“Uh… yeah…” Solveig blinked a few times and shifted where she stood. She wasn’t afraid, but this was certainly an awkward moment for her and it showed in her body language and expression. “Who are you, exactly?”

The woman took another step forward, but paused with a comfortable amount of distance between the two of them. It wasn’t clear if the space was for Soveig’s benefit or her own, and something about her seemed somehow both calm and ready to move at any moment.

“Jada Zovko, but everyone calls me Jag.” she said, offering a warm, pretty smile, but keeping her distance. “I’ve just been hired as the new Art teacher here. I was giving myself a tour and decided to do it in a form that opens doors. I can’t stand a closed door.”

“Oh... okay. You could have just asked, you know.” Solveig smiled slightly and reached up to rub the back of her head. “I don’t go out of my way to be overly social, but it doesn’t mean I would turn you away.”

“But this was much more fun.” Jag said with a genuine grin this time, then wandered back into the open kitchen and pulled a lone leaf off of the catnip plant. Turning back around to look at Solveig, she crushed the leaf and leaned against the counter, bringing it up to her nose and sniffing quietly. “Besides, if I’d done that, you probably would have hidden the drugs, am I right?”

“No? Does that actually work on you?” Solveig asked, remaining where she was and watching the strange, intrusive woman carefully.

Jag nodded, running a hand over the exposed skin of her shoulder before clearly controlling herself, and returning it to her side.

“It does, fortunately or unfortunately. But, like a cat, it only lasts about fifteen minutes. It makes me want to jump around and take my clothes off, so I suppose I’m halfway there.”

She placed the leaf on the counter and looked at the woman across from her.

“So, what’s your name?”

“Solveig Kallestad.” The blonde replied and watched as Hati immediately jumped up onto the counter and began to rub her face all over the crushed leaf. “Doubt I need to tell you I’m the groundskeeper.”

“No, I figured that one out all on my own.” Jag said, moving her hand to pet the cat next to her. Her eyes remained with Solveig, seeming to watch with a keen observation, blinking slowly, and rarely. “You have a talent for growing. You’re also very clean, which I like, and have tons of books.”

“Uh, thank you?” Solveig nearly questioned. “Do you want to come and sit down? Would you like a drink?”

Jag seemed to consider silently for a few seconds before nodding.

“For a bit.” She said, her seafoam eyes looking to the couch. “”And I’d like a drink. What do you have?”

“Water, apple juice, orange juice… milk.” Solveig offered up and glanced at Hati who had sat up and was now thousand-yard staring at Jada.

Jag chuckled and shook her head, before she started off for the other side of the room and lowered herself onto the couch, tucking her toned legs underneath the sheet.

“Funny.” She said quietly. “I’ll have water, please. If only to break the mold.”

A moment later, Solveig walked into the living area and put down a small glass of ice water next to Jada, then took a seat in the chair nearest to the couch. “When did you arrive on campus?”

“Just last night. I flew into Phoenix and that big angry guy picked me up in his monster truck.” The woman answered, picking up the glass and smiling before bringing it to her lips and sipping. “What about you?”

“Angry ma- oh, you mean Jon?” Solveig questioned, wondering if the poor man was the only one asked to go retrieve people from the airport or if he volunteered.

“Yes, Jon. That’s right. Caramel skinned, really sexy, but acts like he has a pine cone up his ass?”

“Does he? I hadn’t really noticed.” Solveig frowned and shook her head. “I’ve been here a little over a week myself. Just settling in and keeping busy.”

“He’s grumpy like a grandpa, and so fun to mess with.” Jada remarked, grinning mischievously. “I pretended to claw up his leather seat and I thought he was going to use one of his giant arms to pop my head off.”

“Why?” She blinked, frowning a bit, and found herself wondering if this woman just existing set off Jon’s allergies or not.

“He’s just one of those guys who are hilarious when they’re angry.” She answered, placing her perfectly manicured hands on her legs like she was posing for a picture. She had a pleasant smell of ginger and cinnamon and her slotted eyes remained in Solveig’s face. “Sometimes I just like to see what I can get away with.”

“Well that doesn’t seem very kind, especially if he was saving you some money and time by coming to pick you up.” Solveig pointed out quietly. She watched Hati fall off the counter but still landed on her feet and sighed at her cat.

“You’re adorable.” Jada said, smiling. “Most men like when beautiful women play with them. Don’t tell me you haven’t tried it a few times.”

“I don’t know what you mean.” She looked back to Jada with her brilliant blue eyes and it was obvious she really wasn’t following what the woman was saying at all.

“A little teasing; a little flirtation. It’s fun. Everyone loves it. Who isn’t uptight.” Jada declared, sipping the water again and looking for recognition in Solveig’s eyes.

“Oh… okay. Did he enjoy that then?” She asked and shifted in the chair as Hati half climbed, half crawled up into her lap and began to purr loudly.

“Let’s say he’s part of the one percent of men who want me to get out of their car.” She said, waving a hand. “But that’s just a different kind of fun.”

Placing her water on the coffee table she leaned in a bit.

“So, I detect a Scandinavian accent, I think. Where are you from then?”

“Norway.” Solveig replied without any hesitation. She was a bit confused by Jada, but she was still being friendly if slightly reserved. “What about you?”

“I was born and raised in Kosovo, but I left when I was sixteen during the war.” Jada responded just as quickly. “I’ve never been to Norway before. Is it beautiful there?”

“Oh yes.” Solveig smiled at the thought of her home but it was tinged with sadness. “Beautiful mountain vistas and the fjords, there’s no place quite like it.”

Her expression gentled slightly. “I’m so sorry to hear you were exposed to that war. I can’t imagine what kind of childhood that was.”

“It was…indescribable.” Jada said, her smile fading. She didn’t show any signs of sadness beyond casting her eyes down at the ground for an instant before looking back up at Solveig with confidence. “But it made me strong.”

“I’m sure it did; it didn’t break you, and I’d think those would be the only two options.” There was kindness and sympathy in her blue eyes, but she didn’t pity the other woman. Most people hated to be pitied. “What brought you here to this place?”

“I taught college art in Chicago, but I was encouraged to apply by the incoming Executive Director. I was hesitant at first, but the opportunity to work with children who are like us…I couldn't pass it up.” She answered, watching Solveig observantly. She could tell the younger woman was uncomfortable, but the fact that Jada was both a great deal smaller than her and sat an appropriate distance away no doubt helped.

“Oh… are you close with the man?” She asked curiously and tilted her head just slightly. Cornelius wasn’t her biggest fan, and the feeling was really quite mutual.

“Who, Cornelius? No. I don’t know him. He just showed up to one of my classes and wanted to talk. I heard him out, and here I am.” She asked, then her eyes widened with curiosity. “Why do you ask?”

“You just must be something special if he took the time to seek you out and get you to come here.” Solveig smiled, seemingly not bothered by it.

“I’m good at what I do in the classroom and students tend to like me.” She said, no shame or hesitation in her tone. “I have a meeting with him later today, actually. He said it was something about a new opportunity.”

Solveig was surprised the opportunity hadn’t already been posed with the offer of employment, but she said nothing. Perhaps Cornelius resented her because she hadn’t been picked by him considering her employment had been approved mere moments before his installation as Executive Director from her understanding - she wasn’t one of his. “Well I hope that goes well for you.”

“We’ll see. I typically do whatever I want in the end. If the deal sounds good, I’ll take it. If not… I’ve never had a problem with just teaching art.” Jada said with a graceful, almost formal shrug. “ So, I hope you don’t mind me asking, but what can you do?”

“I grow plants.” Solveig shrugged. “Do you have a favorite fruit?”

“Strawberries covered in chocolate.” Jada answered with a smile. “Or does that not count?”

“Well, the first part I can do… the second part too technically but after some work in the kitchen.” Her eyes drifted from Jada and down to the small potted plant on the coffee table. The leaves shifted a bit and made room for a long tendril of green to grow out toward Jada. It rested in her lap and began to bloom into flowers, then those flowers became small bulbs that soon transformed into large, plump strawberries before her eyes. The main vine broke away from the bunch and shriveled back into the potted plant where it disappeared.

When the process initiated by Solveig began, Jada paused, alert and wide eyed, but when the flowering plant produced strawberries, she relaxed and smiled.

“Oh, my God.” She said, and pulled one of the berries free from the plant. She took a slow bite and looked at Solveig. “It’s delicious. How impressive.”

The strawberry was juicy and sweet, everything one would think of when they envisioned the look and taste of “strawberry” down to the perfect shape of the berries. “Thanks. What about you? Obviously you can turn into a cat, but are there other things?”

“Well, yes.” Jada said, finishing the strawberry and placing the rest onto the table. She stood on the couch, holding the sheet around her body, and then executed a double flip out of it, off the couch, and over the coffee table, landing effortlessly on her feet with her back and shapely naked bottom to Solveig. Then black hairs started to appear and cover her body and, as she turned, she transitioned into a four-legged panther. As she stalked closer to Solveig, the cat on the woman’s lap meowed loudly and jumped away. The panther released a loud, wild roar which sounded quite genuine. “I can transform into any feline type or breed, and have cat-like adaptations as well. I’m also a bit of a cat whisperer.”

Solveig had immediately averted her eyes when the woman dropped the sheet and left herself naked again. It was only when Hati bolted did she lift her gaze again, and instinctually jumped slightly when Jada roared at her. Her blue eyes were wide from the natural rush of adrenaline, but she cleared her throat and tried to relax. “Wow… that’s really amazing. Any kind of cat? Do you have to have seen it yourself before?”

“A picture will do.” Jada said, stretching out on the floor in front of Solveig with her paws in front of her. “But the abilities make features like my hair color variable. Transforming into a house cat saved my life when I escaped Kosovo, so it makes for a good cover.”

“Can you do unnatural colors?” She asked, leaning forward and looking at Jada more intensely. Now that the adrenaline and shock had worn off, her more intensely curious side was showing.

Jada’s fur and facial features were modified immediately and she became a tiger with a mysterious patchwork of rainbow-like fur covered with black stripes.

“Not the most practical choice, but yes.”

“Oh but that’s beautiful.” She cooed in an awed tone and smiled, reaching out to touch Jada but catching herself and pulling her hand back. “I wish I could do that kind of thing, but I can’t.”

Jada stayed where she was in the same form, realizing Solveig was more comfortable with a rainbow tiger than a naked stranger.

“I’m sure you can do much more than you let on. What can you do besides grow fruit, hmm?”

“I can grow trees and grass.” Solveig replied and chuckled, shaking her head. “Really nothing more interesting than that, and I need to have physically seen or touched a plant to grow it, so I can’t make fantastical things like you can.”

“Can you make a really big tree?” Jada asked curiously. “Or maybe you can make a vine grow long enough to grab someone?”

“Well, yeah, I guess so. But I can’t make plants that exist in books or movies or anything like that.” Solveig explained and shrugged, smiling.

Jada’s expression was one of a tiger’s and it was unreadable. She blinked silently for the space of a few seconds before responding again.

“It’s not like I can do anything amazing. Changing colors isn’t such a big deal. I do have limits. I can’t be a fifty-foot tall lion; I can’t become a male cat of any kind, so no glorious mane for me.” She admitted. “And I can’t spawn clothing or morph human eyes. We all have limits.”

“We do, but I think what you can do is quite beautiful.” The blonde replied, her blue eyes steady and true. “Could I touch your fur?”

“Petting on the first date?” Jada said, humor in her voice. She stood slowly, stretching first with a big yawn that showed all of her fearsome teeth. She stepped close to Solveig and hopped onto the couch again, making sure she was within touching distance. “Your plants in the back room are quite beautiful too. I can’t do anything like that. As an artist, I love making beautiful things, but sculpture and painting are the only way I can make that happen.”

“Those are beautiful mediums though.” Solveig pointed out and shifted to kneel down next to the couch before she reached out and gently slid her fingers through the rainbow colored, striped fur. She smiled immediately, glancing at her. “Your fur is very soft.”

Jada chuffed, a mixture between a purr and a croak, and blinked slowly as Solveig petted her fur. She allowed the interaction for a few moments.

“And you are very sweet.” Jada said, and then moved away slowly, burrowing under the sheet again slowly until she was covered and changing shape underneath. She pulled the sheet down and her human face was back again. Her beautiful, cat-like green eyes glowed.

“I can tell a good person when I meet one.” She said quietly, declaring it as if it were some absolute truth.

“That’s kind of you.” Solveig said as she shifted to give Jada some room. “I try to be, I don’t always succeed, but who does, really?”

“No one I‘ve met.” Jada answered, her eyes moving to the lock on the wall. “I should be going soon. Mr. Sinclair wants to meet right in the middle of my morning nap, and I can’t go without clothes on.”

“No, that probably wouldn’t be the best.” The blonde agreed with a chuckle and finally stood. “Thank you for coming to visit me… though next time feel free to just come knock.”

“Now, if I did that, how would I learn what other strange creatures you might let through your door?” Jada asked with a confident, beautiful smile.

“Well, Hati is a good judge of character.” She indicated over to Hati who was currently playing with a feather wand attached to the wall. “I hope your meeting goes well.”

Almost as if on cue, Hati leaped up into Jada’s lap. The woman was small herself, and looked silly underneath the large cat. She ran a hand behind Hati’s ear and the cat reacted with immediate pleasure.

“Hati is a wonderful cat.” She said, and then Hati left her lap, again, as if on cue, without being told or pushed. “If it makes you feel any better about your sheet, I shower two or three times a day. It shouldn’t be very dirty.”

“Oh it’s fine, don’t worry about it.” Solveig smiled as Hati hopped up onto the couch next to her and rubbed her head into Solveig’s hand to get attention. She was going to wash the sheet either way, but she did at least appreciate Jada being cognizant of what she had done.

Jada gave one final smile before she shrunk under the sheet again. When she emerged, she was a white and orange Turkish van with a tiny pink nose. She meowed , high and quiet before hoping onto the floor and moving to sit by the door.

“It really was nice to meet you, Solveig. I love your house, by the way.”

“Thank you. It was lovely to meet you as well.” She said and walked over to the door to open it for Jada and smiled as she looked down to her in her feline form. “Take care.”

“You too.” The cat said in a warm, amiable voice, before bounding out of the house and down the path that led away from the house.

END

 

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