013 An Old Friend

Only for one day and she was already used to his accompany!

Waking up in her new bed, Kitty realized she had no plan for her day. What did she do yesterday? Well, in short, Erebus.

With her first thought after she woke up in her new bed being about Erebus, Kitty got agitated at herself and jumped out of bed.

She had to get her life back! Erebus was too far away a dream for her and she cannot risk losing herself in this doomed crush.

She got a few days off on her hand with some month's salary in her hand, why not take advantage of it?

Kitty looked at her frizz hair in the mirror and tried a few pulls on it to make it straight before she gave up with a wail. While she loved the grey blue hair she got from her mom, the little curls that came with from her dad always gave her trouble.

She got into her loose sweater and slims after a quick fresh up. They were brand new, unlike the boots on her feet. She stole them from the hypocritical dean at the orphanage as her revenge. The dean kept them hidden because while she liked them, it was not really "appropriate". And Kitty had been wearing them ever since because they WERE some decent leather, and it would be a shame to see them hidden, or on the dean's feet really.

Getting used to the city. Being a stray cat, you should always know your turf. And that was what Kitty planned for her first day here in the city.

It was not her first day in any city though. She did remember her parents' house in a city just like this one, maybe as huge and fancy. They would drive around all the time to get groceries, to cinemas, or just to go around and appreciate the views. But it felt like last life to Kitty now. Too much had happened since then. She had little memory of that rough time, like pictures taken with her mind, and pictures she would avoid looking at if she could.

How much would "three months' salary" be? Kitty let her mind wonders as she walked on the street, taking random turns. She likes to "get lost" in that way when she was "prisoned" in the orphanage to feel as if she was free in a whole new world when she won't recognize the surroundings.

"Little girl!" Someone yelled at her from behind. Kitty turned around to see an old woman chasing her down from a couple shops pass.

"Yes?" She replied in hesitation. What could the old lady possibly want from her? This was her first day here.

"So, soooo beautiful locks you have." The old lady gave a praise as her gaze fell upon her.

"Ohh, thanks for saying so." Kitty was extremely cautious when it comes to strangers. It's the first lesson to learn living on the streets.

"Here, kiddo. Would you like to take a peek at my collections? I'm sure you could find something that interests you." The old lady made a greeting gesture to the little antique shop she came out of, but Kitty could swear that shop was NOT selling what she was seeing now!

Kitty hesitated for a second and followed the old lady. She knew she didn't miss this small shop to her lack of attention. If she didn't see it before, it was because it wasn't there! But this was precisely why Kitty decided to check it out. There had to be something more about this store, and about why the old lady just chose to called out to her but not anyone else.

It was a small room judging from outside, but the ceiling looked surprisingly high once Kitty got inside. There were several tall shelves casually scattered around in the room, but one hardly notices the messy layout because EVERYTHING on the shelves is an eye catcher!

There were ancient rings, bracelets and all kinds of accessories, some hanging on the side of the shelves, but certain ones neatly in small wooden boxes with velvet under; what were the most there was all kinds of crystal balls, all showing different things in them, some only a mist, others with images twirling around...

There was no way Kitty just missed this store!

Kitty was afraid that her probing question about the store would scare it to disappear in front of her, so she held down her curiosity and simply just began to explore the shelves: "I can see why you hold a high pride for your amazing collection."

"You are a sweetie pie, just like your mom." The old lady smiled, as if Kitty was just a neighbor’s daughter, visiting a grandma next door on a casual afternoon.

"You!... You know my mom?" Kitty took a sudden turn and her eyes popping out at those words.

"Ahh, yes, of course I know her. The sweetest little witch that I have ever met. Go on, Kiddo, see if you feel anything."

Kitty turned slowly with her brain shocked empty, blindly following the old lady's suggestion as if under a spell. What did she say? Did she say "witch"? Her mom? Yes she was an amazing mom, fascinating and always mischievous. Kitty admitted she always knew there was something special about her mom, but never had she imagined that she could be a witch!

Walking by the shelves, but Kitty no longer found any of those weird gadgets interesting when all her mind was on her mom. How could she be a witch?! And if so, how could she die of a car accident?! Shouldn't witches be like, powerful and... Do witches die? Yes, of course, but from what? Do they die for "normal" reasons like drowning, or, like her mom, crash of a car? It suddenly seemed so unreal, both the fact that she was a witch, AND her too "ordinary" death.

And that was when Kitty's eyes were caught by a sparkling blue light coming from a bit above her head.

She looked up and found the light coming out of a dark wooden box on the third storey of the shelf by her side. She didn't even think to ask the old lady before she reached out and took the box down, she HAD to know what was inside because she felt such a pulling from it. It was calling out to her!

It was only a stone.

The second her hands reached the box; the light went out. It was a VERY fancy, in fact, too fancy a reliquary for just an ordinary stone like that. It wasn't even in a regular shape. It looked as if it was just a piece knocked out of a huge rock, but had been in the wind and water for so long that even though atactic, it had lost its edges.

It was only a small, grey stone with no special patterns whatsoever on it.

But somehow Kitty felt a warm flow coming out of the stone that made her just cannot help but to try to touch it...

"Oh my God! What happened!" Kitty gasped because the stone disappeared in front of her eyes the second her fingers touched it!

"Ahh, a peculiar choice, yes." The old lady suddenly spoke, "It's only right that you chose the one gift from her."

What did she mean?

This was a gift from her mom to the old lady? But where did the stone disappeared to?! Did she just destroyed a gift from her mom to a friend?!

"I'm sorry! I don't mean to... I don't know what happened--" Kitty looked around for the stone, but somehow she knew the stone was no longer in the room.

"It's okay, kiddo. You didn't choose it, it chose you." The old lady put a hand on her shoulder to calm her down: "She helped me a lot when she gave it to me, but I was never able to really own it. You are its master now."

"You... you mean the stone?" Kitty hesitated. But it disappeared on her! How is she its master now?

"A stone? Interesting, interesting indeed..." The old lady exclaimed with a fascinated laugh, "It's not a stone. It's not anything. It's pure power, or rather, a portal of pure power, taking different forms in different people's eyes. It has appeared as gem, gold, fire, and even an elf once. Your choice is indeed peculiar."

"Hmm, so it's supposed to be disappeared...?" Kitty didn't particularly feel like she was much more "powerful" than before she met the store.

"Haha, kiddo. It's inside you now. You can summon it as you like."