Raven Saga 01 - Raven

was my mother. She gave birth to me. She loved me and she would never forget me. Not even in death.
    “I was always very envious of her thick dark hair. She only ever had it trimmed – so it grew very long over the years and she didn't have a single grey hair!” Rose reminisced. “Whereas I had grey hair from my early twenties,” she laughed.
    “But isn't that because of the cat... business?” I asked.
    “That's a good way to put it, dear. Cat business,” she laughed out loud again, a graceful deep sound that matched her own grace and beauty.
    “I guess you're right. It must be the siamese in me,” she chuckled as she unlocked the white wooden back door of her house. Four of the cats were already with us, they had joined us in the forest a good few hundred metres away. The others gathered in the kitchen as we walked in. When they had first seen me, they hadn't appeared interested at all. Now, they all made a point of brushing up against my legs, purring loudly. It was as if they were welcoming me.
    “I told them about you, dear. They know you're a part of this family now.”
    I stuttered, thinking of something to say in response but I honestly couldn't think of anything suitable. Nothing that made much sense anyway.
    Clearly, being part cat, part human had its advantages when you wanted to communicate with your fellow felines.
    “In time, you'll be able to speak with them too. For now, though, they'll be happy with a stroke and a nice warm lap to sit on,” she said, suggesting I sit down in the only well-worn comfy armchair next to the breakfast bar.
    I did as I was told and immediately a cat that was so black he almost looked blue jumped up onto my lap. He stood there for a few moments looking deep into my eyes, before hopping onto the armrest and curling up. I patted him gently on his back before a second one leapt onto my knees too. This was the one that resembled Rose and was the one that had greeted me when I had first laid eyes on her. She was an off-white colour with a faint grey pattern all over her. The best way to describe her was that she looked like she'd been run over by a car and had a tyre print across her back. Her eyes, like Rose's, were so dark, yet as I had seen outdoors in the sunlight were bright blue.
    She did as the black cat had, stood and stared into my eyes. Her head dropped slightly to the side as if she was really looking into the depths of my soul, as if she was reaching inside of me to see what was really there. Once she had come to some sort of conclusion, she began to purr. It was as if a smile crossed her face. It was hard to describe but not only did she remind me of Rose, but she reminded me of... me. I liked her and she clearly liked me too, judging by the way she curled up on my lap and began to pummel me with her paws.
    “She's happy,” said Rose, “she's very fond of you. Her name is Scully.”
    “As in the X Files?”
    She nodded and I remembered the book my father had given me once. It was a book from the TV series, hence me knowing the name. Having never watched television, I wouldn't have otherwise known.
    “Why did you call her Scully?”
    “It wasn't my idea. Ben came up with it actually and I liked it so it just kind of stuck.”
    Scully had been found wandering the streets of Vancouver when she was just a few months old. Someone had rescued her and taken her to the local vets – it just happened to be the vets where Ben was training at the time.
    “You're a lucky cat, Scully, to have found a home here of all places.”
    I probably imagined it but she appeared to nod at me, as if she was perfectly aware how lucky she was.
    “I believe they all came here because they were meant to come here. Some divine force brought them to me. I'm quite a strong believer in that,” said Rose, as she put the finishing touches to two tuna sandwiches and two glasses of milk. Leftover tuna was placed into a large bowl on the floor to where all the other cats rushed to get in on the action.
    Scully remained comfortably seated on my knee so I had little choice but to eat my lunch where I sat.

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

    Rose began to tell me more about my mother. Even though she had Neleh at an early age, Serena never dropped out of school – continuing until she graduated before getting a part-time job at a local museum.
    “She loved that place. She felt like she really belonged there. You should go and have a look around it one of these days. It may also help you understand