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I looked at Gran, and then at Luca. “What’s an Aitvaras? And why do you both look so worried?”
Gran said, “I’ll explain everything in a minute, but you need to put the kitten down - carefully.”
“She’s got a name. She’s called Kitty.” I pulled Kitty closer to me.
“Cassia, listen to me,” Gran said. “This is for your own safety. Trust me. Put Kitty down on the table.”
“You’re acting as if she’s an unexploded bomb,” I said. Kitty purred as she rubbed her little head against me.
Luca said, “That’s a good way of putting it.” He held his hands out. “Let Kitty come to me. I’ll look after her while Esther tells you about her.”
I hesitated. Luca moved his hands closer. I looked into his eyes and knew I could trust him. I carefully placed Kitty into his hands.
Luca pulled Kitty close and said, “Hello there, little one. It sounds like you’ve been on some exciting adventures with Cassia and Stanley.”
Kitty nodded. “I have. I’m going to fly soon. You can watch me.”
Stanley moved over to me and gave me a worried look. I shared my own anguished look with him.
Gran began, “An Aitvaras is a shapeshifting dragon.”
“A dragon?” I looked at the little kitten.
“Hear me out, and stop interrupting,” Gran said. “Yes, they’re dragons who can change into a bird or cat, usually black in colour. When they are in their cat or bird form, they can place themselves in the home of their chosen victim.”
“Victim?” It was Stanley who interrupted Gran this time.
“Yes, victim.” Gran wagged a finger at us. “If you two don’t stop butting in, I’m going to put a silencer spell on you.”
Stanley and I pressed our lips tightly together and waited for Gran to continue.
“As I was saying, the creature makes its way into the victim’s home without the victim being aware of it. In your case, Kitty came home in the end of your broomstick. Once the creature latches onto their victim, they will start to bring them good luck. But the good luck has to be balanced with bad luck. Not bad luck for the victim, but bad luck for those around them. Cassia, have you been having bouts of good luck recently?”
I thought about that for a moment and then nodded. “I managed to find Lifin and Treto straight away when I went looking for them. I even found Treto when he was hiding beneath the trees.” I glanced at Kitty. “Well, it was Kitty who found him. And when I used that spell in anger, it worked perfectly.”
Stanley said, “Don’t forget about finding Alan’s body in Blythe’s garden. Didn’t you say Kitty wanted to fly over Blythe’s house?”
“She did. Gran, is this really true about Kitty bringing me good luck?”
“Was Kitty with you when these incidents occurred?”
“She was.” I frowned. “Stanley, do you remember when we took Kitty to the café and it was busy. All of a sudden, there was an empty table.”
“That’s right,” Stanley replied. “And you got the last bit of chocolate cake. That ogre was furious.”
Gran said, “Tell me more about the ogre.”
I explained, “He wanted the last bit of cake, but he was too late. When he was talking to us, he got his finger stuck up his nose and ended up being thrown out into the street.” I paused. “Did he get a dose of bad luck? Was that because I got the good luck, Gran?”
“It is. You told me Lifin injured himself when you found him.”
I nodded. “He hurt himself again when we found that piece of material in the bushes.” Realisation dawned on me. “The piece that I didn’t find the first time I was there because Kitty wasn’t with me.”
Stanley added, “As soon as we found Treto, he ran into that tree and broke his leg.”
Gran said, “As your good luck increases, Cassia, the bad luck for others increases too.” She reached over and put her hand on top of mine. “If you keep Kitty close to you, things will get better for you, but worse for others. Much, much worse.”
Kitty looked my way from Luca’s hands and raised her paw in a wave.
“I don’t understand,” I said. “Why would Kitty do that? She doesn’t look evil.”
“She isn’t. She didn’t enter your life on purpose. She’s too little to understand her powers. Someone placed Kitty in your broomstick yesterday. Someone knew the effect she would have on you.”
“But why?” I rubbed my forehead. “Why would someone want me to have good luck?”
Luca said, “The thing with these creatures is that you begin to rely on their good luck. For the creature to continue giving you good luck, you have to eventually pay a price.” He paused for a second. “The price is your soul.”
“My soul? Kitty wants my soul? What’s she going to do with it?”
Gran said, “Kitty doesn’t know what she’s doing. It’s just her nature to give you good fortune. She’s not aware she’s doing it. I think there’s another reason behind this besides wanting your soul. You’re not going to like it.”
“I don’t like any of what you’ve told me so far,” I said.
“I think someone targeted you on purpose. They wanted you to be seen having good luck. Unbelievably good luck. And they wanted to make sure those around you received a tremendous amount of bad luck. If that happened, what do you think the residents of Brimstone would think?”
It didn’t take me long to figure that out. My shoulders dropped. “They’d think I was using my magic to my own advantage, and that I was using magic on them too.”
Gran nodded. “Treto thought you used magic on him which resulted in his accident. He was threatening to tell everyone what you’d done. It wouldn’t take long for rumours like that to spread. You would soon lose respect around here. You might even be forced to leave.”
My shoulders dropped even more. “That’s awful. Why would someone do that to me?”
Stanley said, “The murderer! They must have planted Kitty in your broomstick. They must have known we’d investigate the area where Selo died and waited for us. Perhaps Alan did it! He could have been there under his invisible cloak when we were there.” He shivered. “I don’t like the sound of that.”
Kitty looked up at Luca and said, “Can I fly now? Is my mummy here?”
“Not yet, little one.” Luca gave her a big smile. He looked over at Gran. “Esther, I think it’s time to contact Kitty’s mum.”
Gran nodded. “Do you know who she is?”
“I do. There’s only one Aitvaras in Brimstone. She’s called Gepru, and she lives far away.”
“How do you know that?” I asked.
“She’s a shapeshifter, and it’s my duty as a guardian to know where all shapeshifters live. I’ve only met Gepru once. She stays away from Brimstone town because of the powers she’s got.” He smiled again at Kitty. “I didn’t know she’d had a baby. She must be worried sick about her. I’ll send a butterfly message straight away.”
Luca stood up and walked to the nearest butterfly tree. There are many trees in Brimstone which are covered in the lovely butterflies. The butterflies are always ready to send messages. I heard Luca talking softly to Kitty as they walked away.
Gran still had her hand over mine. She squeezed it and said, “We’ll find out who placed Kitty in your broomstick. Be thankful you found out about her powers now before someone got seriously hurt.” She took her hand back.
Stanley shuffled closer to me and leant against my arm. He said, “I don’t know what to think. I can’t believe Kitty was giving out all that good luck and bad luck. Who would do such a nasty thing to you, Cassia?”
I tried to feel angry, but I couldn’t. I felt incredibly sad that Kitty had been used like that. It was cruel.
I looked at Luca’s retreating back and said, “I wish I could give Kitty a cuddle.”
“You mustn’t,” Gran said. “You have to keep your distance. For your sake and ours.”
