Chapter 19 Another Mirror?
“Do you remember that until the moment I met Samir in Egypt, I thought I had turned into a cat by mistake?” Remi asked, settling more comfortably on the pallet, curled up with her knees to her chest and her back resting against Anemo. He was careful to ensure the thick woollen blanket did not slip off them.
“That’s exactly what I was thinking too... What if our arrival here isn’t accidental? What if we have a mission?” Anemo asked, staring into the hearth fire. “What mission could we possibly have in this period, in this place?”
“You’re talking nonsense!” Aeolus intervened, having only just calmed down after all the scenarios he had built up in his mind regarding the local cats and their extraordinary skills. “We ended up here because of the kid. If he hadn’t run blindly to meet you in the cave, you’d be safe and sound in Dublin right now, celebrating Christmas, and you’d have finally had that date Remi promised.”
Anemo appeared to pout, but it was more of a playful tease.
“Exactly, colleague! Would you have taken me out on a date? Or have you forgotten the email written with the paws of this friend of yours? I don't remember exactly how it went, but it was a promise to be fulfilled upon returning from Egypt.”
“Yes,” Remi replied with a chuckle. “I was supposed to take you to the cinema... For now, let’s make do with 'watching' the fire... it’s very romantic. Our mothers ought to be delighted that their plans worked out; we’re no longer bickering and we stand a good chance of becoming a couple.”
“A good chance? Just you wait!” Anemo covered Remi completely with the blanket and began to tickle her, initiating a proper rough and tumble that woke Sirocco on the adjacent pallet.
“What—what’s going on here? Is it a battle? Anemo, just so you know, I can’t help you!”
Sirocco immediately leapt onto their pallet; he would have changed back into a kitten, but his humans had forgotten to return his collar. So, with his tiny fingers, he reached Anemo’s chin and began to tickle him with gusto.
The room filled with laughter and giggles, and for a few moments, everyone forgot they were lost in time, and that the way home was currently closed.
That was how Mistral’s insistent scratching at the door found them.
***
Once inside the flesch, Mistral turned into a black ball of anxiety, pacing all over the room and puffing.
“Something’s happening! Arr said that at dawn there will be guests in the fort, and she’s trying to warn Ri. What do we do? What do we do now?”
Remi realised at once that her composure and diplomacy were needed, so she cleared her throat and intervened:
“Calm down, Mistral! We’re in this together. Try to stand still, you’re making my head spin. What’s happening? How do you know?”
“I was...” The tomcat stopped in his tracks. He felt as though he were suffocating and couldn’t manage to say what he needed to say.
Anemo immediately placed a bowl of water in front of him.
“Slowly, kitty!” he tried to calm him down.
Mistral lapped a few sips of water, gauged the archaic interior of the flesch, then looked at his companions, and finally continued:
“I was with Arr on the surrounding wall of the fort and... I swear I didn’t hear or smell anything suspicious... Whereas she felt it... she’s like a radar. She says she sensed danger and that we’ll have guests at dawn. What do we do?”
Aeolus, the voice of reason, felt obliged to assist Remi in defusing the situation:
“It’s good that you told us, Mistral, but if you were going to suggest we bolt, you should know that’s no solution. The cave is flooded, we don’t know of another mirror for now, and venturing out alone through woods and thickets is completely out of the question!”
“Completely out of the question,” Remi echoed him. “Anemo, where are the photos showing the location of the Time Mirrors? If I remember correctly, there’s at least one more mirror on Irish territory. We needed this one and only this one for me to turn back into a woman, but... Look for those photos!”
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