by Sandra Gerz
She had always loved animals – often more than humans. Humans could be mean most animals wouldn’t do the same. Her cats, for example, had always been around when she needed them and now, she couldn’t even be there for them when they needed her. It wasn’t fair. They didn’t deserve to be locked up at home. At least she had a chance of finding her other cat here. At least that was what she told herself. She didn’t really believe it, but it was the only thought she could hold onto for sanity. Not everything was bad here, but almost.
The purple wrinkly creature was still beside her. It pointed at the colorful rocks that were lying on the ground everywhere and told her to look behind them. It checked another rock in the meantime.
The rocks all looked kind of fluffy, but she didn’t dare touch them. There was no way of knowing what the fur on top of these things was. She barely even noticed the darkness anymore. Everything was so colorful now. In the distance she could make out a crowd of purple creatures that looked just like the two she had met. However, most of them were floating in the air with their legs crossed. Some even appeared to gnaw on their limbs. “What’s that?”
“I think you guys call it a restaurant” It looked at her puzzled expression. “Just people sitting on chairs and eating. Nothing special.” It checked another rock. “I’m sorry we didn’t find your cud yet,” the wrinkly creature said looking around like something might cross its way that very second.
She kept her eyes fixed on the ground so she wouldn’t miss her cat – and to not let the alien know its statement had explained nothing. “It’s cat,” she corrected the alien. “But why did you do this?” she asked the question she had been pondering ever since the worst fear had worn off.
“What do you mean?”
“Help me look for my cat? Not many people would do that where I come from”
It looked behind a yellow rock. “Here neither”
“Then why are you doing it?”
“I have pets too. I couldn’t imagine losing one of them even here. Let alone at the other end of the galaxy. You are so strong for coming here and looking for it”
She laughed dryly and thought about how much effort she had made to close the portal before. If not for her cat she would never have stuck her head in, let alone come here. “What kind of pets do you have?” She wasn’t sure she would understand the answer, but she was curious anyway.
It made a strange growling sound. It looked at her for a second and seemed to realize she had no idea what it was talking about. “It walks on three legs, has long ears and a trunk to eat” It held its fingerless hand at about her knee’s height. “And it is about this size. It always follows me unless I go to work, I can’t have it there.”
A high-pitched sound made her look up from the blue rocks she was walking on.
© Sandra Gerz 2023-01-08