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Chapter Sixty
The Hunt for Knowledge
“The journey is the treasure.” Lloyd Alexander
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“The true secret in being a hero lies in knowing the order of things. Things must happen when it is time for them to happen. Quests may not simply be abandoned; prophecies may not be left to rot like unpicked fruit. The happy ending cannot come in the middle of the story.” The Last Unicorn
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Related chapters
The Hunt For Freedom Chapter One
On the night of my birth the feline goddesses rejoiced. As I cried my infant cries the only clue to my feline heritage was my cobalt blue eyes. I am a werecat. My Pride is almost extinct they tell me, and I am one of the only werecats to be born in recent years that we know of. My birth was celebrated by some, while others tore their clothes and cried out with rage. It was foretold that a Princess would be born to save our kind. Apparently, this is me. Nobody asked if I wanted this, nobody cared that I just want to be a normal kid. As I stand in our enormous kitchen drinking a tall glass of milk I watch the caterers setting up for my eighteenth birthday party. This is when the fun will really begin. Sitting down at our comfortable little kitchen table, I begin to think back on my earliest memories of being "different." "Katalea, come down from that tree!" My mother's voice billowed up at me.
The Hunt For Freedom Chapter Two
My eighth birthday came and went that summer without any word from any distant relatives. I played thought transfer games with Mom in the car a lot. It was good practice and I was gaining control and range. My brothers thought I was just getting weirder and weirder when I would suddenly just laugh out loud for no apparent reason. Controlling my reactions was another challenge that would need practice. Sometimes I would put thoughts into my brothers' heads just to make Mom laugh. Once I had Darius tell Mom that he was in the mood for tuna casserole for dinner, a meal he would not eat even if his life was at stake. Mom knew what I was doing but played along. She asked him if he would like crab cakes for dessert, my absolute favorite, and it would snap him out of it. The poor boys were the victims of so many of my childish pranks that summer and they never had a clue. My brothers are Darius and Derrick, ten year old
The Hunt For Freedom Chapter Three
By the time the school year started I was no longer enrolled in our local elementary school. Mom hold everyone, including Dad, that is was because of my crazy gymnastic schedule. That was partially true, this year I was skipping a level at the gym and my new hours were extensive. I loved every minute of my time at the gym, but I was away a lot. If we were homeschooling I could get my workouts done in the afternoon before the other kids could get out of school. Not to mention that I would have far less interaction with the other girls this way. They were really not happy that I was skipping levels and getting one on one attention. They had begun to say very mean thing when they thought I couldn't hear. I guess cats have excellent hearing because I heard them all. Needless to say, I was very excited about this homeschool development.Mom and I kept two sets of books. Seconds grade books that I old show to my Dad, or the teac
The Hunt For Freedom Chapter Four
"Momma," I whimpered, "What are they doing?" I was so scared I was shaking. Mom looked pretty nervous too. Neither of us knew what to do so we just stood there looking back at the people who had started to lift their heads. They were clearly expecting us to say something. A man wearing a very colorful robe emerged. He must have sensed that we did not know the protocol. He greeted us with a booming voice, "Rise all, and welcome the long awaited Princess Katalea." He spoke with such authority but his words make no sense. Did someone tell him my nickname at home was princess? "Please follow me, your damsire is waiting." He spoke so formally that I immediately grabbed for my bag. As I did a young boy was also reaching for it. He was dressed all in white, there was no color on him except his golden eyes and his incredible tan skin. I thought he was going to grab it and run so I put my hands on it too. He shrug
The Hunt For Freedom Chapter Five
"That is a great idea little one," he purred at me with eyes that showed kindness and love. "This must be a lot for you to take in, how much do you already know?""I only know that Momma has family here, and that they are going to help me understand how I am half a cat." I said confidently, I had no idea how telling my words were.My Grandfather actually looked hurt, and my Grandmother emitted a guttural sound like she was being strangled.Grandmother spoke for the first time turning to Mom. "Do you hate us so much that you have denied her any knowledge of her heritage?"Momma burst into tears and dropped to her knees before her parents. "I have been such a fool," she cried. Between sobs she whimpered, "Can you forgive me?"It was hard seeing Momma like that, broken and desperate. I was thankful my Grandfather showed compassion. "Rise my child, your transgressions are forgiven. You have
The Hunt For Freedom Chapter Six
The sun rose over a majestic garden and promised a beautiful day to all that would listen. Grandfather had requested my presence for sunrise breakfast and so I stood, nervous but excited for this day to begin. I heard the whisper of robes that announced his arrival. Werecats were really quiet even in their human form! He was dressed in all white this time, his skin color looking all the more bronzed. His silver hair looked almost white as well in the morning light. He stood so straight and tall, I felt proud to be his grandchild. "Are you the king? I asked. Everyone treated him as one but no one had spoken his name or title in front of me.His eyes lit up with amusement. "My dear, no, I am not a black panther, only a black panther can be royalty. I am the alpha of our pride, however, and my feline form is a lion.""May I meet your lion?" I questioned, always curious."Yes, yo
The Hunt For Freedom Chapter Seven
Jade and I became fast friends. Her two years seemed more like ten when it came to knowledge about the werecat world and she was happy to help. She stayed by my side during all the interviews and for that I was grateful. When the Kalb family came in, we watched as they demonstrated Tahtib as an ancient and beautiful dance with ceremonial sticks. They wore traditional Egyptian garments in whites and blue. The fabric on their costumes moved with the body and created the illusion of water. In my head I sarcastically thought that this dance would be so beautiful that my enemies would fall into a stupor at my feet and decide to leave me alone. Jade was quick to interrupt my dismissive thoughts, "Stop making fun, and pay attention! It's about to get good." I heard her voice clearly in my head. Her two year advantage could also make her bossy! I focused back on the dance just in time to see three black clad figur
The Hunt For Freedom Chapter Eight
Six Long Years Later Only two more excrutiating weeks and this year from hell will be over. Mentally scarred and physically exhausted I am looking forward to summer break with more relief than excitement. I have never minded the scholastic portion of my day, I still approach learning new subjects as a challenge that I must conquer. The day to day social aspects have worn my already fragile confidence into shreds, similar to the wrapping paper on the biggest box at Christmas. In just over three hundred hours I will have three months of much antisipated freedom from the torment that came packaged in the sturdy form of Dalya. For six long years that heifer has been my downfall. I can scarcely remember happy times in my life at all. I have vague memories of laughter and cheer before Dalya came crashing into my life. Thank the goddesses she finally quit gymnastics. It still is the only place that I can
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