“Basile?”
“Yes?” I peered closer.
“Thank you for coming to my rescue. You truly are such a sweet boy.” The stone strobbed.
I swatted at it.
“Wait!” It flashed brighter as it skidded across the floor.
I was about to go at it again when the stone actually said something.
“I am a friend of your old lady, Helene!”
“You are?” This was the first I had ever heard of it. She had never said anything about being friends with her gifts and charms. She apparently didn’t value the ones I gave to her and friends don’t lock up friends in little boxes. She had never locked me up. Except for those couple times I got shoved into that little pink box with the bars on it. One of those times, I was quite thankful for the ride, so it had to be for some good reason.
Anyway I was mid-thought when this stone, once again, interrupted me.
“I know what you are thinking, friend!” It beamed soothingly. “I am a friend of Helene. You are a friend of Helene. So we are friends.”
“So how did you get in here? Where are you? Who are you?” A twinge yanked at my attention for a moment, so I decided to put off any more questions for a spell and address it while he answered.
“Well, our friend Helene has a very interesting history and it seems that when whatever happened to me happened, I came to be stuck here in this jewel of hers.”
The strobbing stopped for a few moments then continued, “Oh no, my friend! I can’t seem to remember much else at the moment other than my connection to lady Helene and you, of course.”
I wasn’t really buying it. I had never seen or heard of this guy before. Besides some little grabbers and chasers and the big people who brought them here sometimes, there were only a few other people she had over as guests. They were all old ladies like her.
“Why don’t you pick me up?” the stone blinked quickly. “Show me around and I will show you that I do know the lady, Helene!”
I finished up cleaning that tricky twinge and weighed it for a moment. I got up and turned towards the door. “Nah.”
“Basile, you are incorrigible!”
I stopped.
“That is what she would say to you right now. Listen friend, I have known Helene for a long time. She means so much to me that my spirit must have come to visit her as it was passing on to the next world. This magic stone she has, must have some way of helping. It must be our destiny to be reunited and you can give her that gift!”
I had a lot of questions. He had given answers to all of them. I was still a little shakey on the details, but I don’t think people are used to being trapped in stones and I’ve never had a conversation like this before with a human. They either tell me to get lost or praise me like they should. Some even have amazing fingers and can do wonders around my chin and ears.
He seemed kind and I had heard the other ladies call my old lady Helene before. He did know her. But how did a whole man fit inside of a little trinket? I didn’t get it.
“Basile?”
“What do they call you?”
The jewel flickered softly for a moment. Was he surprised I was asking? “They call me Corvus.”
“So Corvus, what are we going to do with you?”
“Well, I would like to get back to my body and set things right.” The light in the stone seemed to dance again. “BUT first let’s set things right in this room.”
“What do you mean?” I was headed towards the door again.
“All the jewelry and charms on the floor. Let’s pick them up, so Helene doesn’t come home to a mess!”
“What do you mean ‘let’s pick them up,’ when you can’t move on your own? You want me to do all the work, friend?” I glared at Corvus, stuck in that little brooch.
The jewel went dark for a few moments and I wondered if he was gone. I caught the faintest glint of light from within the brooch as it twitched. I heard the twang of the little pin in back and saw it hop a bit in a haphazard manner that almost made me want to pounce.
“You see?” The brooch flashed triumphantly as Corvus gloated. Though he sounded a bit quiet, almost distant.
“Do it again.”
“What!?”
“C’mon, keep me motivated!” I pounced passed Corvus and pushed some jeweled pieces together into a pile.
Now and then, the brooch would twang and strike a satisfying thud against the floor. I had never really had a friend before. Sure my old lady and I were close, but this was different. The way Corvus and I could talk and the bond we shared with Helene was special. It was different than hanging out with other cats.
Before my old lady got home that day, Corvus and I had cleaned up the mess and shared a lot with each other. We worked out the beginnings of a plan to get Corvus back in his body as a way of paying back Helene for all the things she had done for us over the years.
MJ Muñoz 