n: Part 3
By Kate Everson
Copyright 2012 Kate Everson
Stephanie sipped her Earl Grey tea.
She lifted the porcelain cup with its floral decoration and put it down deliberately. She stared at the cup. Something was not quite right.
Ever since the train journeys she had not been herself.
First it had been Calvin, then it was the mind-reading man, and now, suddenly she was expected to be someone else.
A Queen.
“I am powerful,” she had said to herself then.
But who was she now? She felt weak and ordinary.
The tea no longer appealed to her. She could not finish it. What was wrong?
“I have to go back,” she said to herself. “I have to go to the train station.”
Stephanie threw all the essentials in her backpack; her handkerchief, hairbrush and bright red lipstick. She put on the lipstick. She remembered what the man had told her. It showed that she was powerful. The red illumined her whole being. She was infused with the Power.
But what was this power and how was she supposed to use it? Stephanie felt powerless.
“I’m just a girl,” she thought. “Just a simple girl. Maybe it was only a trick.”
But she felt different, a bit strange, not her normal self. And she needed to find out more. So going back to the station seemed the only option.
Nobody was at the station this bright afternoon. The train was not due to arrive until later, and the platform was empty. She stood there and looked at the track. It seemed to stretch to infinity. It beckoned. She began to walk along the track, into the sun.
As she walked, one step at a time, Stephanie hummed to herself. It was just a simple tune she had learned somewhere a long time ago. But it kept running through her mind and she had to give it voice. Something ancient.
“Who am I?” she asked herself.
Suddenly, she knew. It was as plain as the white cat sitting on the track in front of her. She was a mystical being from another age.
The cat yawned and stretched. Its sharp teeth gleamed in the sun. Then it turned its back to her and began walking along the rail. Its tail twitched, high in the air. As Stephanie watched, the cat turned its head sideways and looked at her.
“Come on,” it said. “Follow me.”
“Of course,” she said, and followed meekly.
The cat walked perfectly balanced on the rail, its tail high. Stephanie admired its poise.
“Oh, come on,” the cat meowed. “You can do it too. Try.”
So Stephanie started walking on the rail behind the cat. It was tricky at first, and she dropped down a few times until she got the hang of it. Then she settled into a smooth walk, balanced like the cat.
“See,” it purred. “I knew you could do it, Stephanie.”
They walked along the track for a few miles in silence, an unlikely couple, the white cat leading and Stephanie following meekly along.
Then they came to a bridge and the cat leapt up.
“Oh, I can’t do that,” Stephanie said. “I’m not that agile. I’m no cat.”
But the cat just purred and waited.
“Sure you can,” it said. “Try.”
She did try, but she could only fall flat on the track, her backpack cushioning her fall.
The cat laughed.
“Oh, not that way, Stephanie,” it said.
And it jumped down beside her.
“First you have to know who you are,” it said. “And then … you can do anything.”
“Really?” she asked.
“Really,” it smiled.
Cats don’t smile and they don’t talk and they don’t laugh. Stephanie knew that in her world all this was true. But here she was on this bright, sunny day talking to a very unusual feline.
“What is your name?” she asked, thinking it can’t be Felix or I’ll die.
“No, it’s not Felix,” he snorted and leaped into the air. “I’m not a real cat, of course,” he added. “I’m just your imagination.”
Stephanie reached over to touch the cat. It jumped away.
“Come here, kitty, kitty,” she called. “I won’t hurt you. I just want to pet your nice soft fur.”
The cat came closer and walked between her legs, rubbing against her, as cats do. She reached down to stroke its fur. Suddenly, it vanished. Poof, it was gone!
Stephanie looked all around. No cat.
“Oh great,” she said. “Now what?”
She heard a voice. “Follow me,” it said.
It sounded like the cat but she could not see it anywhere.
“How can I follow what I can’t see?” she asked, bewildered.
She heard a long, low laugh, that got caught in the wind and circled around her. The sound was rather unsettling and Stephanie shivered nervously.
She felt cold, and the sun was slowly setting on the horizon. Was it time to go home? She thought about that tea not finished on the kitchen table, and wished she had it now.
Suddenly, she heard a train whistle. It must be the 5 o’clock train coming through. Stephanie stepped back from the track and hid in the bushes. She did not want anyone to see her so far from the station. They might think her mad.
“Well, maybe I am a bit mad,” she thought. “Out here in the middle of nowhere, following a disappearing cat!”
The train zoomed through, its pistons plunging, its cab careening as it rounded the corner, and the engineer leaning out the window ahead. It was quite a spectacle. Stephanie actually liked trains. They were so big and powerful.
Oh, right, she remembered. Me, I’m supposed to be the powerful one. What happened to that?
Meow.
She heard it right behind her. The cat was sitting there, licking its paw and washing its face. It seemed quite unperturbed.
“Stephanie,” it purred.
“Stephanie. Are you ready yet?”
“Ready for what?” she wanted to know.
“Anything, my dear.”
The cat rubbed up on her leg. This time Stephanie caught its fur and held on. It felt very real.
“What are you?” she demanded. “And where are you leading me?”
The cat just smiled.
Stephanie picked it up in her arms and stared into its very cat-like face. The whiskers twitched slightly, but otherwise it seemed serene. It was that smile that Stephanie couldn’t get over. A cat smiling? And not to mention that it could talk….
But this could all be just a dream. At this point, Stephanie was finding it hard to discern between the dream-world and her normal reality.
She stroked the white cat’s fur gently. She liked cats. But this one was definitely different.
“Where do you want me to go?” she asked.
The cat introduced himself. “My name is Nigel,” he said. “And I am taking you to a place that will help you remember who you really are.”
“Nigel?” Stephanie asked.
“Nigel,” he smiled. He fluffed up his fur to look bigger.
Stephanie hung right on to Nigel, not daring to lose him now. If this was a dream, she wanted to feel something solid.
And so the adventure began.
“Take the next train,” Nigel said, snuggling close.
“The next train?” Stephanie asked. “When is that? And how will we get on? We don’t even have a ticket.”
“Oh, you have the ticket,” Nigel smiled mysteriously.
Sure enough, when the next train rounded the bend, it drew up slowly to where Stephanie was standing beside the track holding Nigel. The conductor let down the step and beckoned to them to get on. She reached in her pocket and handed him the ticket. She didn’t even have time to read what it said.
They settled down in a s
eat facing east. The train took off like a shot. Suddenly it was airborne. This was no ordinary train!
“Where are we going?” she shrieked in alarm, hanging on for dear life. Poor Nigel was getting squished in her arms. She let go of him and hung onto the sides of the seat. He sat demurely in the seat beside her, watching out the window.
Nigel began to purr as the train closed in on Egypt.
Stephanie could see the pyramids along the Nile. She gasped. Was this her ancient home? She had no idea. Everything she knew came from a cat.
As the train slowed down over the pyramids, Nigel went through a transformation. He turned kohl black and his ears got even more pointy. His nose began to sniff the air carefully, and then at just the right moment he yelled, “Jump!”
The window opened and Stephanie and Nigel were falling through the air. They landed on top of the biggest pyramid. The sky was black with stars. Stephanie could see that Nigel was loving every minute of this. His eyes could see in the dark. His black coat hid him from predators. His nose smelled everything he liked in this foreign land, and it was all good.
“Nigel?” she gasped.
Nigel just purred and purred, louder and louder. He was a contented cat.
They sat there until dawn crossed the sky in long golden streaks. Off in the distance Stephanie could see some people coming. They were carrying something.
Nigel said “Follow me,” and he extended his long black tail. She grabbed it and hung on as he swiftly flew down to the base of the pyramid. Then he sat and waited. Stephanie sat beside him on the sand.
In a few minutes, the caravan had arrived. Two young men came up to them and bowed down. They offered a dish of dates and figs.
Stephanie felt uncomfortable but Nigel was delighted. He smiled a lot. He beckoned to Stephanie to eat. She picked up a fig and nibbled at it. She offered one to Nigel but he looked at her like it was an insult. Then the men brought Nigel some fish. He gobbled it up in an instant. After cleaning his face, Nigel beckoned to Stephanie to follow him.
They entered the tomb of the pyramid. There was a King on a golden throne. Stephanie bowed, but she was quickly ushered to his side. The King nodded. He offered her the chair on his right. She sat down. Nigel was offered a smaller chair beside her. He snuggled up in it cozily, curled around and went to sleep. Stephanie could only sit with her mouth open.
“This is your true home,” the King spoke.
Slaves brought them tables of food, but she could not eat a thing. Dancers came in and there was music. Slowly, Stephanie began to relax and feel sleepy. She even dozed off in the chair for a few minutes.
When she woke up the King was staring at her.
“Oh, sorry!” she exclaimed. “It’s been a long day!”
The King smiled and gave her his hand. He took her to the bed chamber. It was a huge bed with a canopy of red silk stretched over a carved golden frame. She lay down and opened her arms wide. A hummingbird flew through the room and landed on the side of her bed, its tiny wings humming.
Stephanie looked at the King who was smiling at her. He knelt down at her feet and kissed them.
“I have been waiting for so long for your return,” he said.
At this moment, Stephanie heard a train coming. She could not believe it. Surely, it wasn’t time to leave yet! She was just beginning to enjoy herself!
She felt perfectly at home here in this land of Egypt. The cat had led her to the birthplace of her immortal soul. She did not want to ever leave.
But the train was coming. The noise got louder and louder. Soon it crashed through the wall and stood steaming right in front of the bed. The conductor got out and waved to her to board.
“All aboard!’ he called. “Last call!”
Reluctantly, Stephanie got up from her huge bed and boarded the train. On the step she waved sadly to the King and blew him a kiss. Nigel was there, smiling, and she blew him a kiss too.
She got on the train and the whistle blew and before she knew it she was home. Back in Addington at the train station. Staring into the setting sun.
“I love you!” she called to the Sky. “I will be back!”
And the Queen of Egypt walked slowly home with a big smile on her face. A black cat ran out in front of her. She called to it, but it hurried off. It wasn’t Nigel.
“Another day,” she whispered to the wind. “I will claim my throne!”
The End
Read more about Stephanie at The Train and The Train: Part Two and the final chapter at The Train: Part 4.