A Cat’s Tail CH 1

I opened my eyes, like a blink. I didn’t feel anymore pain. I felt rejuvenated, I’m ready to go home! “Thank you!” I quickly got up, though my body didn’t move. I looked at the lady in the white coat, she was tearing up. The people surrounded the table and closed their eyes. “I’m just going to leave.” I started to head off the table but looked down to see my slate fur and darker stripes lay limp. I picked up my paw, it looked transparent. Like a window, I could see through it. My pads were black, like they were when I was real.

I felt like a wind pulled me up. I was slowly floating upwards, this made as much sense as the red dots. I looked at my tail, transparent as well. My stripes were still intact, and the table was slowly growing smaller. I tried to move forward, though made no progress. “Mom! Dad!” I yelled out, hoping they could hear me after leaving. “Aaron!” I yelled out. Nothing in return. They couldn’t have not heard me. I’m loud in general. “Aaron!” I yelled out once more. I looked up to see I am almost at the ceiling. I closed my eyes to brace myself.

A bright light shined at my face, forcing me to look. It was a shining ball of pure light. I looked all around me, nothing but fluffy clouds and blue skies. What does one say to a ball of light? “Hello?” I dumbly asked. The light swirled around me, like the fairy in those games Aaron played. I was blinded with light around me, I closed my eyes to avoid being blinded.

The light stopped and in front of me was a gate. A stunning gate, might I add. A huge golden gate with many swirls and curls. I went to walk forward, seeing my feet shrouded in clouds. I can move at least. I marched forward, the light dissipated. A small wind blew against me, almost like a whisper.

“Welcome, Toby.” The whisper hissed in the wind. It was a warm fuzzy chill, as if I knew that it was safe to go forward. That this was a haven, a heaven more like. I didn’t die, I know I am going back home soon. I walked up to the gate, being blinded with more light.

I entered, seeing a mass number of cats and kittens alike. It was strange, I’ve never seen so many free cats in a vicinity. I saw a shadow fly above me, a cat had wings. He flew over the gate forward, along with several other winged cats.

I marched forward, though couldn’t help hearing over the many shouts and cries.

“Mommy!” A heard a small kid cry out, he sounded like he was upset, “I wanna go hooome.” His sobs echoed out loud. It was chatty like at the adoption shelters and white coated offices. I turn to the commotion, the mother picked him up by his black scruff, “Mommmy…”

“We’ll be off soon,” the mother trailed off with the crying kitten in her jaw.

I turned to the gate again, seeing how there was multiple lines of cats. Big cats, small kittens, some Bengal cats. None looked like each other. Everyone was unique in their own aspect. Each cat sounded immensely different from each other. Some words and phrases I’ve never heard of. The languages were just as varied.

I walked up the staircase to the shortest line and asked the cat worked. She had a slightly brown coat with a darkened muzzle and chin. “Name?” Her voice asked. She had glasses, are cat glasses a thing? After realizing this, I saw my vision was perfect. I wasn’t having any difficulty seeing ahead of me. She looked up, having a disapproving glare to my presence.

“Toby.” I calmly replied, “Toby Wishmeyer.” The feline looked down and swatted the pages to reveal more and more check lists.

She sighed before looking up and replying, “Sorry, Toby. You should be looking for the spirit board.” I shook my head, spirit? “If you look to your left, you can see the board just in front. Follow the protocol and you’ll be adjusted shortly.”

“I’m looking for my family. Do you know how I can find them again? We got separated and I’m trying to find them.” I asked.

“I’m looking for a new job, but here we are.”

I paused, why did she snap at me? I took in a deep breath and asked a simpler question, “Where am I?”

“Heaven. You died exactly 7 minutes ago. When you die, you become a spirit. As I had stated before, please go to the left and you’ll find the spirit board.”

I couldn’t wrap my head around this scenario. I pressed further, “How can I have died? I need to go back to my family. Do you know where Aaron Wishmeyer is? My mother? Dad?”

The brown cat chuckled under her breath, “You mean Aaron, that handsome tom? He left a while ago to the guardians. Why do you ask?”

“No, my owner. Aaron Wishmeyer is not a cat.”

“Sir, you are holding up a line.”

I looked back to see many cats, wondering and confused just like me. I turned back to her bored and unamused face. “I didn’t die. I need to find my family.” I coldly stared into her eyes, as gray as they were. “I will not leave without seeing them.”

She sighed and gesture to a small light spot in the clouds. “Please step there, sir.” Her emotion had not changed, neither did her enthusiasm or tone. I stepped forward and fell through the cloud. The clouds reformed themselves above me as wind pushed against me. I braced myself for impact, until falling onto another cloud. I flopped from one cloud to another, realizing that my claws had no effect towards the clouds. One surface to another, I hit many cats and dodged those who had wings. Soon enough I fell comfortably onto a cloud, in front of a huge golden building.

None of this made any sense. Cats with wings? A cloud utopia? A snappy lady telling me that I had died? Nothing made sense! I stood up, feeling a slight pain on the side I fell on. I shook to relieve myself. The groups formed down here were much larger and diverse than those near the gate. Huge forest cats walked casually towards the golden building, others were skeptical going in. I looked around, seeing huge market stands and buildings surrounding the area.

I felt a hard nudge on my side, followed with an energetic “Hello!” afterwards. I looked to see a dark brown cat with a white under belly coat. He had a tabby pattern as he happily greeted. “You seem confused.”

I looked at his physique, he was like me almost. Not too slim, though not too muscled. “I’m just lost. Where am I?”

The brown cat lit up his hazel eyes, “The international district! I couldn’t help but see you were falling and without wings. Were you testing out your flight?”

Flight? No cat should have wings in the first place, “I was just at the gate and this lady told me to step on a cloud. I guess I fell down?” The way I said this out loud made just as much sense as everything else. “This is incredibly confusing.”

“Ohh, you met Carol!” The cat happily called back. “Yea, she can be quite a cold person. She has a big heart though! Trust me.” He chuckled afterwards. “Hey, that means you’re new!”

“New?” I questioned. I was ready to speak more, until a loud bell rang next to us. I ducked because of the loud bang, though the cat was happily entranced.

“You need to go, huh?” The cat happily shoved me into the doors.

“Hey! Wait!” I tried to fight back but I was in the doors and sat in a seat. The seats were red and velvet like. “What is this?”

The cheery cat left me in the chair alone. “I’ll be outside when you’re done! Good luck!” He bumped into a huge Norwegian cat and apologized before turning back to me and nodded faithfully.

What had happened? He never told me his name either. I looked around, a huge court was full of diverse cats. We all surrounded in a circular room, a red circle was in the middle. There were TV like objects plastered everywhere. The entire room was filled with commotion and chatter, I couldn’t think properly. Could this be one of those court rooms? Like those shows mom had watched?

The room’s noise was superseded with a loud, “Ladies and Gentlemen!” as an English Fold walked in. A camera followed him plastering his image to the screens of TVs. The second whispers and chatters muffled down to silence, almost deadly silence.

The English Fold walked around, he was massive compared to some of the cats in the audience. “Now that I have your attention, I am here to discuss your current state.” His voiced boomed like a grand court hall justice. “I understand, you all must be confused at where you are or where you could be instead. Some of you are stray cats, relying on mice for dinner or any scraps from the nearest feedings. Some pets rely on the comfort of a couch, bed, or lap… and instead you all are in this room. Do not worry, you all collectively died.” He paused, and the room went into an uproar. I looked the entire room, seeing huge tigers and lions on one end and small kits on the other. Hundreds upon hundreds of cats sitting in this room, they are all dead? I’m dead too. This was beyond any imagination of heaven. This wasn’t anything that I’ve ever thought of.

“Silence!” The Fold cat bellowed aloud. Once again, the room mumbled into a soft rumble. “You all must be scared or worried to have appeared here, and you all appeared here for a reason.” He continued his spiel, however, I couldn’t understand him.

I could only think of my family. This is where he’d pet me until I was comfortable and calm. Mom would set the fireplace on, and dad would give me food. I could almost feel them crying and mourning… for my loss. If I died, that means I could use another life to see them again. Right? Every cat has 9 lives. My thoughts were interrupted by the room growing loudly again and the Fold trying to silence them.

“You are all spirits! You are all part of a stage in Heaven where we try to achieve peace. Being a spirit is the third of 5 stages. You all exited your second stage, which was being alive in the human world. Your next stage is to become a guardian, to guard over Heaven and those in your position. Do you all understand?”

As if it was timed, a cat yelled, “Can I go back home?!” and the room turned silent. Everyone listened carefully, nobody made a sound.

“You can return to the real world; however, it is almost impossible. That is though the process of reincarnation, something you’ll learn along the way in your spiritual life.” The English Fold finished, having the room turn into an eruption of screeches and lost hopes.

I felt nothing, this felt like an excuse to keep people here. I must see my family again! They need to see me in return. I overheard the conversation next to me, “I won’t be able to see my owner, that’s not true.” I agreed, it wasn’t true.

“I’ve heard rumors already, someone actually managed to leave the Spirit Realm!” A gray cat answered the conversation. I perked, it’s completely possible. It had to be!

“Silence! Silence!” The English Fold coldly echoed in the court. He turned directly to the cat who had yelled. “Your time is up. Reincarnation is certainly an affable choice, discovering the rest of Heaven is another. You cannot go back to be the same life you had on Earth. You all would be changed in one aspect or another!” The Fold circled the room again. “Your choices affect your nirvana. Please assure that you make it in the next session.” He sat coldly in the middle, “You are all dismissed.” The sunlight had cloaked him until he had vanished. The room of cats were left confused and murmuring for clarification or help. Some cats left the room and fled outside, others tried to assure another that they would be okay. Cats were angry, crying, some just blankly stared. I was confused, just like everyone was.

Nonetheless, I was going home. That gray cat said it was possible, I will make it there. I can’t sit by, this is monumental. I’m going back to my family.

I’m not going to stop until I see them again.