— …this can't be happening — the man murmured.
— They're our kittens? — she said, without hesitating.
The silence that fell wasn't shock.
It was forced acceptance.
The man ran his hand over his face, too tired to shout.
— A-alright — he finally said. — Let's do this properly.
He pointed to the living room.
— Everyone sit down. Now.
The living room felt strangely small with five human children inside it. They spread out as best they could: Théo on the floor, near his mother. Dehvon on the edge of the sofa. Navi sideways, unable to stay still. Daylor leaning against the wall, arms crossed. Pearl taking up too much space for someone who claimed to be comfortable.
The woman sat facing them, her hands tightly clasped together.
— Right — she said, too steady for someone clearly freaking out inside. — You're going to explain to me. Calmly—
Before she could even finish her sentence, they all started talking at the same instant, a jumble; she could barely hear herself think.
— WE TURNED INTO PEOPLE!
— IT WAS THE BUTTERFLY—
— I FELL INTO A FOUNTAIN—
— I DON'T HAVE A TAIL—
— IT'S ALL THÉO'S FAULT — they all said at once.
The woman, after several attempts to ask for silence, stood up and clapped her hands once.
— STOP! — she shouted.
It worked. Miraculously.
— Right. — she took another deep breath and analyzed each of them with sharp eyes. — Théo, you start.
Théo swallowed hard, and suddenly, all the confidence from before seemed... small.
— I- I— he scratched his neck, nervous. — W-we made a wish. At the festival. To the butterfly.
— What butterfly? — the man asked, crossing his arms.
— The Butterfly — Théo replied, as if that explained everything.
It didn't.
— She appeared when the priestess appeared — Théo added.
Théo took another deep breath, puffing out his small chest as if preparing to dive.
— We asked to become human and understand this world — he said slowly, choosing his words — and to enjoy it like—
He made a vague gesture with his hand, fingers opening and closing in the air, as if trying to grasp something invisible.
— important people. And not just as animals.
— Look at that — Daylor immediately interrupted, leaning forward and raising an eyebrow, his tone sharp — that "we" was just what Théo wanted, just to be clear.
He crossed his arms tightly.
— I only went along because — he shrugged — well, it was already messed up anyway.
— HEY! — Théo turned his whole body towards him, indignant, his hands clenching into fists. — You all agreed!
— We agreed not to die — Daylor retorted, without even hesitating. — Important detail.
Pearl cleared her throat and raised her hand with an almost exaggerated elegance, as if in an important meeting.
— Technically — he said, too seriously — I just thought the butterfly was pretty.
Navi tilted his body to the side, shifting his weight to one foot, restless.
— I thought she was curious — he added, twisting his fingers. — Not trustworthy. But curious.
The woman closed her eyes for a full second, as if counting to ten inside. She let out a long sigh, her shoulders dropping slightly.
— One at a time — she said, her voice trembling, but firm enough to cut off any new interruption.
The man rubbed his eyes hard, as if that would solve the problem. When he looked back at them, his brow was deeply furrowed.
— Okay — he murmured.
He paused, pointing vaguely at the floor while organizing his thoughts.
— Let me see if I understood this.
He took a few slow steps around the room, breathing deeply.
— You're telling me — he raised both index fingers — that a butterfly—
— Magic butterfly — Théo interrupted immediately, raising his hand, too serious for someone his age.
The man stopped mid-step.
Turned slowly.
— ...a magic butterfly — he repeated, the word sounding heavy in his mouth, making air quotes with his hands — appeared during the festival...
He made a broad gesture with his hands, as if redrawing the scene in the air.
— and you followed her.
Another step.
— And then, without knowing anything about her — he emphasized, pointing at each one — absolutely nothing—
His voice started to rise.
— you asked her to turn you into humans?
Silence.
— Is that it?
The five looked at each other.
— ...yeah — Théo replied softly.
The man closed his eyes, letting out another heavy sigh, the kind that came from deep in his chest.
When he opened them, his look was no longer fear; it was suspicion.
— This is ridiculous! — he suddenly exploded, throwing his arms open. — How are we supposed to know this isn't just an act?
He stepped forward.
— What would you want from us, huh? — he pointed at the five, one by one. — Money? House? Something?
His hand trembled slightly, but his voice remained steady.
— If you say you're our cats — he took a deep breath, lifting his chin — then prove it.
The silence grew heavy.
— Say something — he continued — something only they would know.
The woman brought her hand to her mouth, apprehensive.
The five looked at each other.
Théo opened his mouth first, but froze.
It was Dehvon who stepped forward.
His hands trembled.
— You — Dehvon swallowed hard, his gaze dropped to the floor, as if that weighed more than he could bear. — You adopted us because you couldn't have children.
The man didn't move, just looked at his wife, startled.
Dehvon squeezed his hands tightly, fingers shaking.
— When people asked why you didn't have children — he continued, voice low, careful — you always said it was because cats were less trouble.
He slowly lifted his face.
— But that wasn't it.
The silence became thick.
— You couldn't have children — he said, finally. — And — his voice faltered for a second — we've seen you cry because of it.
The man turned his face away. That was something they had never told anyone.
Not even their own parents.
To outsiders, Kallias was a strong-built man, known in Evanghard as a tireless provider, respected, firm. Beside him, Vanette always with that warm, welcoming smile, almost impossible not to trust.
No one would ever imagine the two carried a fertility issue.
Not in a prosperous city like Evanghard.
Not them.
Kallias's chest tightened.
And then the memory came uninvited...
Vanette standing at the door, holding a small wooden box.
Five tiny kittens curled up inside, mewing weakly, eyes still too big for their bodies.
The silence that followed before she spoke.
The way her hands trembled.
"We can't have children..."
"But maybe..."
He froze.
— Damn — he murmured, his voice hoarse, almost broken. — You couldn't have known that.
Silence spread through the room again, heavy, full of unsaid things.
Vanette took a deep breath, wiping her face with the back of her hand.
— If this is magic — she said, her voice steady — then we can't pretend nothing happened.
Kallias nodded slowly.
— Tomorrow morning, we'll go to the priestess. — he finished.
The five children looked at each other and nodded in agreement.
— It's already getting late, let's just rest tonight — faced with that whole whirlwind of thoughts and emotions, Vanette smiled gently, easing everyone's tension.
She soon went to arrange a place for the children to sleep. Since the house wasn't big enough for seven people, she found a space in the living room for them to spend the night.
The night carried a different atmosphere. They didn't know if it was joy, surprise, or fear, but it had an abnormal touch.
The five kittens, now human, took a while to get used to the bed, but soon passed out, sleeping on top of each other, as usual.
Vanette, however, tried to sleep but couldn't. As she rested her head on her beloved's chest, worries arose about how their lives would be from now on and, most importantly:
how the priestess would react to this whole story.