Cat Transformation

Cat Transformation

Have you ever wished you could be a cat?  I have.  And my wish came true.

My name is Rachel.  I'm ten and I have two cats named Lyra and Thunder.  Lyra is an outdoor cat with flaming red fur.  She has serious amber eyes and paws as white as snow, while Thunder is a gray tabby tom with shining green eyes.

It all happened on a nice normal evening.  I was gazing at Lyra, thinking how lucky she was, to not do homework, and eat and sleep whenever she preferred.  Lyra was grooming her silky fur with her eyes closed, as if she didn’t care about anything else in the world.  I marveled at how she could seem so careless about everything else happening around her.  I turned back to my book.

At that exact moment, I saw the shooting star out of the corner of my eye.  Quickly, I made a wish.  Then I peered at the clock.  It was 10:30!

My mom must have noticed too, because she exclaimed, "Rachel!  It's so late already!  You must get to bed."

"Mom, can't I finish my book?   I'm almost done.  Look!"  I showed her my book.  

"No, honey," said my dad.  "Put it down and go to bed."

I glared at him and threw my book down angrily.  Lyra twitched her whiskers.  I scowled at her, too.  I tromped up the stairs to my room and slammed the door.  I turned off the lights and climbed into bed.  Then I remembered that I had homework!  My assignment was to write about what I want to be when I grow up!  Oh well, I thought.  I'll do it tomorrow morning.  Slowly, I fell asleep and began to dream.

* * *

I dreamed that I was Lyra, and I was watching.......me!  I watched myself sprout a tail and shrink down to Lyra's size.  I grew cat ears and tortoiseshell fur sprouted all over my body!  Suddenly, I realized I was awake.  I was nose to nose with Lyra, who was staring at me with her huge amber eyes!  Startled, I jumped back and wet my lips.  Why did they feel furry, and when was I able to lick my nose?  Finally, I looked at my body.  I couldn't believe it!  I was a cat!  How did this happen?    Then I remembered my wish: "I wish I could become a cat."  I shivered.  This was what happened in Animorphs!  I thought, moaning.  Am I stuck as a cat?
"Hello?"  I heard someone say.  I jumped again.

"Hello...Thunder?"

"Yep!  I'm Thunder!"

As my eyes adjusted, I saw that Thunder was bouncing on his paws, looking excited.

"How do I turn back into a human?"  I was very frightened.

"You don't have to," meowed Lyra.  "Not yet."

"What do you mean, not yet?" I asked.

"We could show you how it’s like to be a cat first,"  answered Thunder.

"Okay!"  I agreed.

I followed Lyra and Thunder out the door.  I noticed many differences between being a human and being a cat.  The night seemed like day, and I could smell many new things.  We hopped down the stairs into the kitchen.  I was overwhelmed by the scents that welcomed me there.  There were the scents of food from last night’s dinner and the putrid smell of the litter box.  And the canned cat food...oh, the canned food was the best.  The scent of chicken and fish together.....it was all I could do to stop myself from devouring it all!

“Go on!”  meowed Lyra.

“We prepared the canned food specially for you!”  chimed Thunder.

“Thanks!”  I quickly gobbled down the canned food.

After that, Lyra and Thunder took me around the house.  I learned how to use the litter box and where the warmest place in the house was.  Soon, I became drowsy, and my cats led me back upstairs where I fell asleep again...

* * *

When I woke up the next morning, the only proof of my adventure was a tiny tuft of tortoiseshell cat hair.  Remembering my homework, I decided I want to be an author when I grow up.

Rachel is a fictional character. Just saying.

How Did Cats Get Their Fur?- 1: The Prophecy

How Did Cats Get Their Fur?

Many moons ago, on the planet Animala, which would later evolve into Earth, there lived all the animals of the world.

Of those animals, there were dogs, and there were cats.  The cats lived in the small bustling village of Catsville, and the dogs roamed the large country called Dogland.  At that time, dogs had fur, and cats did not.  So while dogs looked sleek and elegant, cats were hairless and ugly.  The cats envied the dogs.

King Nakura of the dogs took advantage of this.  He told the cats he would give them fur if they help him conquer all of the animals.  So the cats helped the dogs, and soon the dogs ruled all the animals of the land.  Soon, Rakira, queen of cats, reminded King Nakura that he promised to give them fur.  But he just laughed and said, “You believed that?  You actually thought I would give you fur?  You cats are just a useless tool, something to help me rise to power!”  And with that, he hit Rakira with a heavy paw, and injured her leg so that she could never walk right again.

The cats were angry, and they fought the dogs, hissing and spitting.  But the dogs forced the other animals they conquered to fight the cats.  Many lives were lost, but the dogs just looked on, undaunted, from their fortress.

Slowly, the cats retreated.  They knew they were fighting a losing battle.  They were nearly in Catsville when Nakura allowed the animals he controlled to go back to Dogland.

Bast, the cat goddess, felt sorry for the cats.  She decided to help them get fur, so she sent an oracle cat to Catsville, who bore a prophecy for a quest, in which two young cats journey to defeat Nakura, proving themselves and earning their fur.

During this all, littermates Lyra and Thunder were hiding in an underground tunnel beneath the battlefield.  They were supposed to be hiding in their house, but they were curious and wanted to at least hear the battle, if they couldn’t see it.

Suddenly, they heard Rakira yowl, “Retreat!” and they heard the thundering of paws that signaled the cat warriors were returning to Catsville.  Thunder tried to speak, but Lyra whipped her tail across his mouth, telling him to be silent.  

<Let’s go.>  Lyra thought the words to Thunder, using their secret telepathic skill.

Quietly, they hurried back through the underground passage to their cellar, where they curled up and pretended that they were there the whole time.  They arrived just in time.

Two heartbeats after Lyra and Thunder returned home, their mother, Star, hurried  down the steps to check on them.  “Quick,” she mewed.  “Queen Rakira called a meeting.  There seems to be a mysterious cat that arrived during the battle, and she bears a prophecy.”  

Excited, Lyra and Thunder scampered after their mother to the Cat Hall, where important meetings were held.  When they arrived, a crowd had already gathered.  Lyra saw a blue furred cat sitting in the middle of it, her fur glowing slightly green.  Lyra and Thunder pushed their way to the front of the crowd and saw that their queen was sitting in front of the mysterious cat.  Thunder stared into the Oracle’s unnaturally scarlet eyes, sinking into their depths.  She seemed to stare right through him, then she switched her gaze to Lyra.  And she opened her mouth to speak:

“Two younglings shall embark 

on a dangerous quest,

Their souls are one, 

Their minds connected.

They shall journey to the

Cave of Nakura,

Defeat the king

Of the dogs

With a rebel

As their guide, 

They kill the king

With tooth and claw

Return home

Victorious,

Their fur shall

Appear at once

Unite the dogs

And the cats

Become friends

For the time being

Die, or fail,

At this quest,

Cats shall disappear

Forever.”

Lyra and Thunder

I own two cats, both of which I love.
Lyra is an outdoor cat with flaming orange fur.  She has serious amber eyes and paws as white as snow.

On the other hand, Thunder is a lively, gray tabby tom who can never sit still.  He has wide green eyes that I just have to laugh at. My cats are very cute. They like to chase one another around the house, often making it sound like we have horses upstairs.  Thunder attacks Lyra by biting her scruff, and Lyra annoys him by pinning him down and grooming them. As you might notice, Lyra and Thunder star in some of my stories, such as How Did Cats Get Their Fur?. In Life With Cats, they are my companions. In HeatherClan Book, Lyra is Sandpelt and Thunder is Graypaw. As Thunder is younger, Lyra is his mentor. And in Lilykit's Adventure, they and Lilykit and and Rosekit's parents.
 My cats are very energetic. Both of them can stand on two paws. Lyra has even gotten into the air vent once! It was very scary. I thought she wouldn't be able to get out, but she did, in the end, unharmed.
Lyra and Thunder weigh 11 and 12 pounds respectively, though Thunder is mostly muscle. They are playmates one minute, enemies another, but I am very happy to have two cute and funny cats in the house!