Life and Death {Enoch O'Connor}

8

Enoch stared at the cat.

The cat stared back. Alive. Very much alive.

It wasn't possible. The cat had been dead not even five minutes ago. It had been buried in the ground. He had carried its limp body through the woods. When he was first taught about death, his father had been very clear about one thing: the dead don't come back.

Enoch pinched his arm, squeezing his eyes shut. He was dreaming, there was no other explanation. But when he opened his eyes again, the cat was still there, licking its paw as if nothing was off.

Kneeling down, Enoch stuck out his hand for the cat. But it ignored him, working its rough tongue over the tufts of matted fur.

"Come here, kitty," Enoch spoke to it, his arm still extended.

The cat froze for a moment, its tongue sticking out, mid lick. It turned its head to him with its round eyes wide, then walked towards his hand. Its whiskers ticked his skin as the cat sniffed him with caution. Its ears pointed back, its dark fur sticking up slightly. Taking a few slow steps back, the cat quickly turned, running off into the trees.

Enoch jumped up, starting to chase after it. "No! Come back!"

In seconds, the cat was in his sight again, running towards him rather than away. It stopped at his feet, looking up at him with curious yellow eyes.

Enoch took a step back, surprised by the cat's actions, "Did you hear me?" He asked it, knowing it wouldn't responds.

The cat let out a gentle 'meow', circling around his feet.

Testing his luck, Enoch spoke another order, "Sit."

The cat plonked down where it stood. Could it be a coincidence?

"Speak," Enoch told it.

"Meow."

Enoch's heart beat faster in his chest as he gave one last instruction, a hard one this time, "Dance!"

The cat jumped to its feet, hopping from paw to paw as if on a beat and swaying its head back and forth. Enoch couldn't help but let out a giggle. A dancing cat. A dancing cat that he could control.

He wanted to keep going. To try more and more commands to see if they'd work. But he thought back to the flyer and the little boy he'd seen the night before.

"Follow me," Enoch said and the cat obeyed, trailing behind him as he made his way through the trees. He knew what he had to do.

Using the address written on the flyer, he found the house, a little brick bungalow with green shutters at the other end of his street. The cat followed him obediently.

Enoch stopped in front of the house, kneeling before the cat. Part of him didn't want to give it up. He wanted to take it home and study it. See how it had come to life, what he could make it do, and if it would work again on a different animal. But the thought of the sad little boy wouldn't leave his mind.

"Come here," Enoch said, scooping the cat into his arms. He walked up to the doorstep and knocked.

After a moment, a man opened the door. The same man from the night before. He looked down at Enoch with a flash of confusion before he noticed the cat and his eyes lit up.

"Ashes!" The man gasped. The cat's ears perked at the sound of its name.

"I found your cat," Enoch told the man, holding the ball of fluff up for the man to take.

He turned his head over his shoulder, yelling into the house, "Bentley, come quick!"

There was a patter of footsteps from inside as the little boy appeared in the doorway. He saw his beloved pet and let out a squeal of delight, reaching up to give it a cuddle.

"Thank you so much," the man said to Enoch, "Where on earth did you find him?"

"In the woods," Enoch answered, deciding not to add the fact that it had been dead moments before.

The man turned to the boy, "Say thank you to-"

"Enoch," Enoch filled them in.

"Say thank you to Enoch, Bentley," the man told his son.

"Thankyouthankyouthankyou!" Bentley spoke rapidly, hopping up and down.

With a wave, the man brought the cat indoors, shutting the door behind him. Enoch lingered on the stoop for a moment, a smile on his face.

But the smile soon fell on his walk home. He was glad that he did the right thing but he couldn't get over the fact that he has given away his greatest discovery. A cat that he'd brought back to life. He still didn't understand what had happened. But he knew one thing, for sure.

He was going to try again.