Chapter Text
Mallory’s desktop background was from Little Witch Academia, because of course it was. She sat at her desk chair, working the keyboard and mouse. I sat on her lap, peering up at the screen. She was warm, and something about it just felt right. I think she thought so too, because every so often she would absentmindedly stroke my fur. It was nice.
"You still use Facebook?" she asked, wrinkling her nose a little as I told her my username and password. "I didn’t think you were that old."
I shrugged. Well, I tried to shrug. Feline bodies aren’t really built for it. "The CEO is a fuckwad and the news feed is basically useless, but the rest of the functionality still works, mostly," I said. "It’s not so bad."
I had 12 new messages.
Isabella J: Hey, are you okay? You didn’t come home last night.
Isabella J: Are you there? You’re not answering your texts.
Isabella J: Pick up your phone, Katie! 😠
Isabella J: See, most people, I would think they’re out with someone. But I know you.
Isabella J: I’m not saying you couldn’t get some if you wanted to!
Isabella J: I’m just saying, you probably wouldn't want to. And even if you did, you would bring your groceries home first.
Isabella J: Dammit Katie you take your phone off silent right now!
Isabella J: Fuck. I don’t know where you are, but the police were just here asking about you. What the hell happened? Are you okay?
Isabella J: Please please contact me if you’re okay.
Corey W: Hey, the police called us asking if you had made any contact with us today, or if we received any ransom demands? They said you went missing. Mom is freaking out. What’s going on? Are you alright?
Corey W: Apparently they found your bike, your clothes, and a bunch of your stuff in a heap in the middle of the road, including your wallet and phone and keys? WTF? Were you kidnapped? LMK if you can, I’m worried about you.
Corey W: Please be okay.
We were both quiet for a moment. I was thinking about what the hell I was supposed to tell them. And I could sense that Mal was thinking about just how badly she had overturned someone else’s life, which, yeah, fair.
"So…your roommate, and your brother, I’m assuming?" she finally said. "What should I say?"
"I guess we start by saying, ‘I’m okay. It’s hard to explain.’ And then after that, uh…well, are we even allowed to explain what really happened?"
She typed out my laconic response and hit send, then repeated it in the other chat window. "What do you mean?"
"Well," I said carefully, "I’ve never heard of magic being real. Is that because it’s a secret? Is there some kind of masquerade that you and all the other witches are required to maintain?"
She shook her head. "Not really. I mean, it is a secret, but that’s not a rule or anything. It’s just what our culture is like. Magic-users are very insular, even from one another. I don't even have a teacher, really—I've just been learning from my grandmother's spellbook, and getting some tips from a private Discord server for practitioners. And it’s usually dangerous to let ordinary people know about magic, so we try to avoid making a big spectacle of ourselves.
"Oh, I’m a wizard, by the way, not a witch! The methodologies are very different, even though a lot of the underlying principles behind the two arcane traditions are similar. Like, we can both have familiars, but only wizards can use books as a medium for preparing spells. Witches focus more on cauldrons and potions, I think? I don’t actually know any witches. I do know a bard, but that's—ooh! A reply!"
Isabella J: What happened? When are you coming home????
"Tell her it’s a long story, and I might be away for a while, but the important thing is I’m not hurt, and the thing with the police is a misunderstanding." Mal dutifully relayed my words.
Three more notifications appeared.
Isabella J: I was really scared for you, you jerk! You should have called or texted. 😡
Isabella J: Where did you even go? You’re not dropping out of the semester, are you?
Corey W: That’s exactly what a kidnapper pretending to be you would say! 😮
"I am sort of a kidnapper pretending to be you," said Mal. "I mean, I sort of did kidnap you, and I am typing these messages."
I laughed in spite of everything. It came out sounding like a purr. "I really don’t know what to tell them," I said.
"Do you want to tell them the truth? Like I said, it’s not against the rules or anything. It’s a pretty embarrassing truth for me, but I owe you that much."
"I don’t think they would believe the truth."
"Oh, definitely not. Nobody above the age of, like, six ever does unless they see it with their own eyes. But it’s up to you, Kate."
As I pondered what to say, I was interrupted by a BLOOPY-BLEEPY-BLOOPY-BLEEPY noise. "Shit, Izzy is starting a video call!" I said, panicking a little bit.
"Do we answer it? What do we do?!" Mal said, graciously reciprocating with an equal amount of panic.
I made a split-second decision. "Okay! We’ll just…we’ll tell the truth, and she’ll freak out, but…I don’t know. Let’s bite the bullet. Go ahead and pick up."
Bloop. Mal pressed the button. An androgynous woman with light-brown skin and electric blue hair appeared on the screen, with our shared apartment in the background. "...The fuck are you?" she said.
Mallory waved nervously. "Hi! You must be Isabella? Um, I’m Mallory Avalon. I’m, uh, a friend of Katelyn."
"Well, where the fuck is she, and why are you answering her phone?" Izzy replied matter-of-factly. Yup. That’s Izzy for you. Straight for the jugular. She’s one of the fiercest people I know, and she’s not one to beat around the bush.
Mal stammered a little. "So, ah, funny story! She—"
"Wait!" I said.
"What?" said Mal, looking down towards me.
"I didn’t say anything," said Izzy, glaring fiercely.
I pointed at the screen. "If we’re going to explain this, we might as well add Corey to the call, too. He’s going to have the same questions. It’ll save time."
Mal squinted at the screen. "How do I do that?"
"I think there’s an option for it somewhere in the dropdown menus," I said.
"Oh! I think I see it. Give me a second."
"Are you talking to your cat? What is happening over there?" Izzy said, the stony glare shifting into a confused frown.
"Sorry, Isabella," said Mal. "I’m just going to add Katelyn’s brother to the call, okay? We think he’s going to want to hear this story too."
"‘We’ meaning you and Katie, or ‘we’ meaning you and your cat?" Izzy was sounding increasingly impatient as more bloopy-bleepy sounds heralded Corey’s arrival, and my little brother’s face appeared on the screen.
"Hi Izzy! And…Kate?" he said. "No, hang on, who are you? You’re obviously not my sister, and you don’t look like a kidnapper. You’re too…pink. No offense." Corey is three years younger than me and several inches taller, with short brown hair and a quick wit. We grew up together, and we’d always been close; he knew me better than just about anyone.
Mal took a deep breath. "My name is Mallory Avalon, and I’m a friend. Kate was in an accident, but I pulled her out of danger before she could get badly hurt. She’s fine, and we’re here together at my home in Sonoma County."
"Hey, that’s pretty slick," I said. "All technically true! Nice."
"Also," Mal continued, "I’m a wizard, and I accidentally turned her into a cat." She scooped me up and lifted me in the air to present me to the camera.
Well. Okay. Fair enough. I lifted one paw and waved. "Meow," I said.