Viana's body froze.
All her muscles turned rigid like stone, rooted to the cold wooden floor. The sound of the mysterious knocking still echoed in her head, mingling with the terrifying creak of those old hinges.
Tap.
Creeeak.
As if the dimensional door she'd only ever heard about in fairy tales – and later dismissed as a sweet childhood illusion – had truly come alive, and something was opening it from the other side.
Her breath hitched, trapped in her dry throat. Her heart pounded wildly, pumping blood so fiercely she could feel it thrumming in her temples and neck.
The sweet scent of Nenek Anna's pinch cake suddenly felt alien and disgusting, mixed with the metallic tang of fear on her tongue. Her eyes, still swollen from last night's tears, widened in a fixed stare, unable to tear away from the dark end of the hallway.
A silhouette slowly emerged...
"No…" Viana's hiss escaped in a breath barely audible.
Her legs trembled violently. Every fiber in her body screamed to turn around, slam the front door, and run as far as possible from this old house that had suddenly become so terrifying.
Run! The instinct was so powerful. RUN NOW!
Yet, the suffocating, terror-filled atmosphere vanished instantly, everything changed when...
A small figure stepped out of Grandpa's room. Not a monster. Not a ghost. A cat.
Blue-grey fur glowed softly, adorned with tiny star patterns shining dimly in the darkness. Two butterfly wings—transparent and shimmering like glass—draped gently down its back. Sapphire-blue eyes, large as marbles, gazed at her full of curiosity.
Viana even blinked several times and rubbed her eyes gently, but the creature was indeed real and walking closer towards her. Expressive, large sapphire-blue eyes, a slightly rounded head, ears that twitched showing emotion, and its whole body covered in fine, faintly glowing fur. Viana was transfixed by the enchanting creature.
A cat with blue-grey fur and tiny star patterns glowing softly in the dark. Its small butterfly wings were only for short flights or chasing light.
"Wait, that's a cat? Since when do cats have wings?" Viana whispered, still frozen in a half-standing position.
Meow!
The cat meowed. Hearing it, Viana immediately snapped out of her earlier tension. Instantly, her legs went weak, and she collapsed into a seated position on the floor.
But that didn't last. When she looked back at the cat, now right in front of her, Viana's eyes widened again in renewed tension. Seriously, what kind of cat had glowing fur and wings? Then, flashes of Grandpa's childhood fairy tales about adventures in another world surfaced in her mind, along with Nenek Anna's warning about something strange.
"W-what kind of creature are you?" Viana asked, her body still shaking. "An experiment? Or…" A flash of Grandpa's tale about another world suddenly crossed her thoughts. Nenek Anna's message about something strange in this old house.
'Was the 'something strange' Nenek Anna meant… this cat?' Viana thought, swallowing hard.
'Seeing how different it looks… is this cat an experiment… or… a creature from another world…'
Thinking of the first possibility seemed unlikely, because even if scientists could implant wings onto a cat… it was still impossible to make a cat talk.
[Hello!]
Viana swallowed, her saliva feeling strangely like gravel. She looked around frantically as if searching for the source of the voice. But there was no one else there except herself and the cat. So, with a fearful and anxious expression, Viana gathered her courage and looked directly at the cat.
[Hello! My name is Whisper. Nice to meet you… Vivi]
"Kyaaaakkk!" Viana's hysterical scream shattered the silence of the house, and darkness swallowed her.
***
A seven-year-old child ran towards her grandfather sitting on the porch, hugging an old book. "Grandpa! Grandpa! Read Vivi another fairy tale!"
Grandpa laughed, his voice warm like crackling firewood. "All the fairy tales in this world have already run out for Grandpa to tell his little grandchild…" He lifted Vivi onto his lap.
The child, who called herself Vivi, showed the book she was carrying. The title was clearly displayed on the cover Jack and the Beanstalk.
"Jack and the Beanstalk again!" Vivi exclaimed, thrusting the book forward.
"Well, didn't we do that last week?" Grandpa tickled her stomach, making Vivi giggle. "How about… Grandpa tells you a secret story? A story Grandpa has never told anyone before?"
Hearing this, Vivi stared at her grandfather with sparkling eyes, her expression full of anticipation for the story he would tell.
"A secret? Tell me, Grandpa! Hurry!"
Grandpa gazed far into the yard, his eyes shining strangely. "This is the story of a little girl who found a magic door. This door could take her to another place, very far away…"
"Oh, a magic door… where is that faraway place, Grandpa?" Vivi whispered.
Grandpa smiled. "It's a very beautiful place, dear. The sky is the color of purple dusk, the trees glow softly at night. There, Lutishia befriended three special creatures…"
"What creatures? Dragons? Fairies?"
"Cats, Vivi," Grandpa smiled meaningfully. "Three little winged cats! There was Lumina, whose fur shone like the moon, Amber, who was warm like the evening sun… and Whisper…"
"Whisper?"
"Yes, Whisper. The smallest one, fur blue-grey like morning mist, and very loyal. They were always with Lutishia on her adventures…" Grandpa's voice suddenly grew heavy. "Until one day… she had to return here, and leave them behind…"
"Why did she leave, Grandpa?" Vivi asked innocently.
Grandpa just stroked her head. "That… is a story for another time, Sweetheart. Time for sleep now?"
***
Viana stared at the ceiling of the old room, dotted with cobwebs. Her eyes blinked slowly, gazing emptily at the spiderwebs.
"Whisper…" Viana murmured.
[Yes! You called me?]
Viana's eyes stopped blinking. She turned to the side and found a cat with blue-grey fur sitting in a bread loaf position, its tail curled. Its sapphire-blue eyes watched her attentively.
Whisper. A name that once appeared in the bedtime story Grandpa told. The name of a
cat.
Viana slowly sat up, facing the magical creature. Doubt and wonder warred in her chest. "You… you're really Whisper? From Grandpa's story? From… Eldoria?"
[Yes. That's my name!] Whisper approached and rubbed its smooth head against Viana's knee. Its fur was warm and vibrated faintly, emitting a soft purring sound.
[I came because I smelled your scent. Like Lutishia's scent…] Whisper thought silently.
Viana spontaneously covered her mouth with her hand, this time not out of shock or fear, but disbelief. For a moment when she had fainted, old memories with Grandpa surfaced like a dream. And in that dream, Grandpa told the story of a girl's adventures in another world with her three cat companions.
And the name of one of those cats was... Whisper...
"You must be from another world, Eldoria!" Viana exclaimed.
[Yes!]
Hearing that answer, Viana's eyes sparkled even brighter. "So, the magic door is real? You came here through it, right? Is there a magic door in Grandpa's room?" she asked rapidly.
[Yes. The magic door truly exists. I came because I smelled your scent, based on a promise to Lutishia... after she was gone, I was to become your guardian.]
"Woah!" Viana gasped in amazement. "But, who is Lutishia?"
[Oh, that's your grandmother!]
Instantly, Viana's expression froze. Her eyes stopped blinking, her gaze empty.
"Grandmother…" she whispered. "All this time I never knew about a grandmother. Grandpa never spoke about her either."
The cat stood up and rubbed its head against Viana's arm, then climbed onto her lap and rolled over affectionately.
[It wasn't a happy story, but in time, you will learn it if you come with me to Eldoria.]
Viana stroked the winged cat, holding back a squeal of delight. Viana looked down at Whisper rolling affectionately in her lap, its glowing fur reflecting the morning sunlight filtering through the dusty window.
Her fingers unconsciously continued stroking the soft fur while she tried to process everything the magical cat had just revealed.
My grandmother... Lutishia... From Eldoria?
The thought spun wildly.
All this time, Grandpa had never mentioned a grandmother, as if she never existed. But now, a cat from another world declared itself her guardian based on a promise to this mysterious woman.
"Eldoria…" Viana murmured softly, testing the feel of the foreign world's name on her tongue. "The world my grandmother came from?"
[Yes, perhaps! A beautiful place, full of wonders,] Whisper replied, its sapphire-blue eyes sparkling with enthusiasm. [The place where your grandfather and grandmother first met!]
Viana choked up. Grandpa had been there?
Memories of the loving old man, who always seemed like an ordinary village farmer, were suddenly filled with new shadows. What secrets had he hidden throughout their lives together?
"And you… you want me to go there? Now?" Viana asked, her voice still trembling, a mix of fear, disbelief, and an ancient, irresistible curiosity – the same curiosity that once made her beg Grandpa for bedtime stories.
Whisper nodded enthusiastically, jumping down from her lap and landing lightly on the wooden floor. It turned, its small, twitching ears pointing towards the dark hallway leading to Grandpa's room – towards the unseen dimensional door.
[Come on, Vivi! Eldoria awaits you!] it cried, its voice like the rustle of autumn wind full of promise. [I'll guide you!] it added cheerfully.
Viana, who initially seemed hesitant, finally took a step and ran towards Grandpa's room. Behind her, Whisper watched the woman's retreating back intently.
[I will keep my promise to her. You won't be lonely anymore, Vivi.] Whisper whispered before following Viana's steps.
[Your daughter won't be lonely anymore. I will take her home.]