- The Writers Voice -

[shadowlight]

Here's this week's prompt. I found it on a friend's Multiply site (CWC # 58 Cat 11-26-11). I don't know who the artist is, but will gladly give credit.

God bless and have fun,
shadowlight
with God all things are possible
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Be patient with me. Like any good story, I'm a work in progress.

[Harry]

The Parallel Dimension


Harry Buschman


We named her "Putz." It was the closest our two-year old ever came to Puss. It seemed to fit the cat. She answered to the name when we called her, and if any of you ever had a cat, I'm sure you'll agree that getting a cat to come when you call it is no easy matter.

The only time she wouldn't come was when she was looking at herself in the bathroom mirror. It fascinated her, and I often wondered what she thought of that image of herself. Did she recognize it as her own image or ... maybe another cat, one that lived in a parallel dimension. I know she accepted the fact that the glass of the mirror was a transparent barrier that denied her access to that dimension ... and also kept the cat in the mirror from getting into hers.

It was a puzzlement to me, and I couldn't help comparing it to the life of the two goldfish in our living room fish tank. They stared through a glass barrier into another dimension too. One they could not enter. They saw living creatures out there ... but they were strange creatures, aliens of an alternate existence. There were no fish out there. Putz, on the other hand ... saw another cat behind the glass, and if that cat could live there, why couldn't she? There were times our two-year old stood behind Putz, and the two of them were reflected in the same mirror ... both of them could see the other. The two-year old figured it out eventually, but I'm not sure the cat did.

I thought about it from time to time. In idle moments ... waiting for a train ... in the dentist's waiting room ... Putz's fascination with the mirror. Would she ever figure it out? Most cats, as they grew older, found better things to do. A mirror, like a television set, a computer or a telephone were things humans fiddled with, when their time might better be spent playing with them.

But a day finally came when our two-year old, (now three) came to me and asked, "Where Putz?" Together, we looked in all the familiar places. Food dish, litter box, even the little stool by the kitchen window she used as a perch to look at the birds in the back yard.

Then I got the strangest feeling ...

Yes, I went to the bathroom mirror ... and yes! There she was ... on the other side. How can I explain that to a three-year old?
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We are all apprentices in a craft where no one ever becomes a master.
Ernest Hemingway

[Heidi]

Just read your story Harry. Interesting take. I kind of thought you would go for the ordinary route but going for the extraordinary made it more interesting. We used to have a cat that would scratch at the mirrors in our house, he disappeared too but I don't think it was into a parallel universe;)
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It isn't the fame itself that makes you famous but what you do with that fame that does.

[shadowlight]

Harry,

This is such a fun take on the prompt. I love the little surprise ending. I hope the three year old never figured out how the cat got into that parallel universe. I truly enjoyed this.

Thanks for sharing.

God bless,
Marlicia
with God all things are possible
_________________
Be patient with me. Like any good story, I'm a work in progress.

[shadowlight]

Hi everyone,

Here's my take on the prompt. I've had a hard time being creative lately so it's rough.

Thanks in advance for taking a look.

God bless,
Marlicia
with God all things are possible



Allies (WC 500)
© Marlicia Fernandez 7-21-12

The clock broke the silence blanketing the house. “Tick, tock, tick, tock. Tick… tick… tick... tick… tock.”

“Meow.”

Myri stirred. “What is it Synders?”

Synders stretched and groomed his fur. “Meow.”

“I wish I spoke cat.” Myri sat up and rubbed her eyes. “Where am I?”

“You’re in my home.”

Myri whirled at the sound of the familiar voice, keeping the settee between her and the new arrival. “How did I get here, Asak? And where’s Tyna? You’ve never served anyone in your life. Except yourself.”

“Harsh words from a little guttersnipe like you.” Asak grinned and put the tea tray on the table in front of the sofa. “But I’m willing to overlook them for the sake of our shared…history.”

She glanced at the tray suspiciously. “That doesn’t answer my question.”

Asak’s expression darkened. “I don’t owe you an explanation.”

“And I don’t have to stay.” Myri’s eyes scanned the room. Two windows, a chimney, one door. She edged toward the window.

“Sit down.” He sighed. “You never used to be so suspicious.”

Myri’s fingers lid across the back of the sofa as she inched forward. “Whose fault is that?”

“I gave Tyna some time off to visit her family.” He dropped into the overstuffed chair across from the settee. “Will you sit down? I’m not a monster, you know.”

Synders jumped down from the mantle and hopped onto the back of the couch. Myri stroked his fur. “How did I get here?”

“I brought you, of course.” Asak poured two cups of steaming tea. “You were out cold in the alley connecting Fisherman’s Row and the docks.” He nodded toward the cat. “Synders stood guard, hissing at anyone who came near. What were you doing out there, Myr? That’s no place for a slip of a girl like you.”

She slammed her hands on the back of the sofa. Synders jumped to the floor and shot across the room to the windowsill.

“Reow!”

“Sorry, Synders.” Myri glared at Asak. “Don’t pretend to be concerned about me. I know better. Besides, I can take care of myself.”

Asak massaged his temples. “So I’ve seen.”

“And what were you doing there?”

He looked up. “Protecting my interests.”

She shivered. “What interests?”

“Don’t be dense. You know what interests as well as I do.”

“Whatever charge my parents left you when they disappeared, I release you from it.” She blinked back angry tears. “Your protection’s caused me nothing but grief. I don’t need you. I don’t need anyone.”

Asak stirred a little sugar into his tea. “You’re being stubborn. Sit down and listen to what I have to say. Whatever you believe of me, I do have your best interests at heart. And you’re going to need my help if you’re going to succeed with your plan.”

“If you think I’d trust you to help me with anything, you’re crazy.”

“Maybe.” He pulled a key from his pocket. “Do you recognize this? If you want it back, you’ll rethink my offer.”
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Be patient with me. Like any good story, I'm a work in progress.

[Harry]

I get the impression that Myri has had a blackout of some sort ... passed out did she? Asak to the rescue, and what thanks did he get? Well, whatever ... there's some kind of relationship there and you don't tell us, Marlicia. Can they all disappear into the mirror like Alice did? I wonder if your never-never land is anything like Lewis Carroll's.
_________________
We are all apprentices in a craft where no one ever becomes a master.
Ernest Hemingway

[shadowlight]

Hi Harry,

I'm sorry it's taken me so long to get back with you. I've been having a hard time fitting my writing in with all the other things I've been doing and so I'm behind. I've also been finding it a little hard to write, but I hope that will be changing soon. You ask some interesting questions about my characters to which I have not yet found the answers. When I do, I promise to tell you if my Never Never Land is anything like Lewis Carroll's.

God bless and thank you for taking the time to read and for you kind words. They are much appreciated as always.

Marlicia
with God all things are possible
_________________
Be patient with me. Like any good story, I'm a work in progress.