"Is that a cat you're talking to?"
Melissa's voice was innocent. Her eyes shone with curiosity and cautiousness. This is because for the first time, she got to see a cat!
An adorable, fluffy fur ball cat!
Meow~ "Very well. I would be more than happy to accompany you." Falacy sat again but instead, looked at Melissa with a slightly tilted head.
Selina smiled, in a better mood.
"This is Falacy. My mischievous, late night company." she extended her hand and caressed behind Falacy's ears.
"Could you close the door?"
Melissa locked eyes with the cat and she slowly abide in swinging the door close. She asked, "You never brought a cat."
"Yes." Selina turned to the feline, enjoying her petting. "Falacy wasn't my cat before. He was a stray. Only used me for food and for a place to sleep."
Meow~ "I never did such things." Falacy maintained obedience despite the false claims.
Selina chuckled dryly and resumed, "He only visits me at night. Well, now I feel that Falacy won't be leaving anymore. I'll be glad."
"Falacy?" Melissa can't help but stare at the cat, fawning its head onto the palm that massages it.
"You can pet him if you like." Selina smiled.
Melissa slowly got closer, but in just an inch she asked, "They say cats bite, especially stray ones. Although I never seen one since higher class families had started to monopolize them as house pets. Is Falacy the same?"
Selina pressed a finger to her lips and chuckled, "He won't bite. Right?"
Meow~ "Indeed. Unless I was mistreated." Falacy remained aloof with its furry expression.
"He said yes." translated Selina with a rather mixed emotion.
"You can talk to him?" Melissa said frankly, with a straightforward eyes.
Selina paused momentarily before sighing, "More like... reading its expression."
"..." Melissa blinked twice before shifting her attention to the cat. She thought carefully and finally called, "Falacy~ Can I pet you?"
Falacy stood up and walked to the edge of the dresser. It sat right in front of Melissa.
You're more obedient? Selina watched with peeled eyes as he got to know more of what her cat truly is.
"Your fur is so soft. Your head is so small and you have big green eyes and a slit pupils." Melissa was fascinated as her hand touched Falacy's back.
The feline returned the gesture by fawning to Melissa's palm.
"I heard cat's eyes dilates when they like something or in hunting mode. It's adorable, but to think that both states are identical and the slit pupils is its actual neutral eyes." Melissa shared her insights, collected from biology classes.
Selina didn't mind anything. She simply watched as Melissa integrate with her only family left in this world.
Then, Melissa posed another question, "Do you... truly not intend to stay?"
Huh? Selina had a delay processing her reaction. She asked, "Why do you ask?"
"..." Melissa took awhile to add, "It's because we know you're only temporarily be staying here. Which was why we prepared the guest room.
"Klein... said perhaps in a month or two you will be allowed to move elsewhere. Won't you feel lonely?"
A faint breath escaped her lips. Selina smiled gently and answered, "I probably will. But I can always pay all of you a visit. Just like I often do with the Heath family.
"The Heath family came here too right? Don't they seem pleasant? Mrs. Heath's Seared Mutton, Little Odelle and..."
"They are..." Melissa's voice was weak. She continued caressing the quiet Falacy in her hands. "But will they visit again if you're gone?"
"... Do you want me to stay?" Selina finally caught onto what Melissa is trying to convey.
Her side-profile was obstructed by streaking of her dark hair. Melissa only nodded faintly before adding,
"I'm not forcing you. But it wouldn't exactly be the same once you're gone."
Selina paused with a parted lips before curling them up to a gentle, warm smile. Out of nowhere, she stood up, walked closer to Melissa and suddenly embraced her.
A comforting hand caressed her head as she heard Selina muttered in a slow voice, "Thank you...for accepting me into your home."
Melissa froze for a moment before she slowly and awkwardly wrapped her arms around Selina, returning the embrace.
After a short while, Selina pulled away a bit and maintained her smile as she said, "Now don't you have school tomorrow? We should introduce Falacy first thing in the morning."
Hearing that, Melissa realized that she had a presentation by morning. She quickly left Selina's side and exclaimed "Right!"
Then, she hurried for the door and right as she closed it, she turned for Selina and the cat, "Goodnight! Goodnight Falacy!"
Selina waved her hand in a slow motion, "Goodnight!"
Meow~ "Goodnight." At once Falacy chimed in.
When the door closed, Selina quickly glanced and leered at the black cat. She asked, "You're still hungry?"
Falacy licked its paws. Meow~ "Yes."
"Sigh... I'll go make something for you." Selina carried herself to the door wearily.
...
In the dreamworld. An hour later.
Selina opened her eyes in a reformed body to see the familiar, ever-changing meadow rolling infinitely to horizon.
Grass flutters under the course of wind. She felt a gentle zephyr caressing her hair while she stood barefooted on the patched ground.
"Barefooted..." Selina noticed that she could feel the soles of her feet against grasses.
Instinctively, she raised her leg unsteadily, there she saw her porcelain-white feet, with pink hues around her toes.
"I can walk..." At the same time, she felt that her body had gained tremendous vitality just by inhaling the wind and feeling the tall grass.
Then out of nowhere, Selina made her long gown into a short sun-dress. She smiled, "I can walk freely!"
The "Goddess" that the Child of God faction revel, left the spot where a mural-like vines extend out. She sprinted into the meadow without a care.
Suddenly, the tall grasses was thrown off by large trees emerging underground. A tide of water from far away tore a section of the world turn into a luscious river. Animals began to form from Selina's subconscious thoughts.
By extending her Ether Body, she can reanimate certain mounds of soil to produce elks, birds, carps and beetles. She was also able to affect the climate under just one will.
However, murmurs still persisted, telling her "My Daughter, you've returned", but Selina could easily tune it out of her head.
"Haaah..." Selina ran, frolicking under the shade of canopies. The shadows of the sun paved a beautiful forest.
At some point, she slowed down. She met the gaze of her reflection on the silent river, where carps are seen moving, beside the forest and next to the giant rocks.
Whish! Splash!
Selina suddenly had a bout of confusion and fear as she said, "I wasn't able to do before... My whole lower half was rooted in the ground and now..."
"I'm capable of doing this? As if... as if it's because I advanced..." her voice hitched. "The Apothecary pathway has a connection with this dreamworld?"
Selin watched the school of carps leap occasionally in the waters. A fawn and a deer from another side came to drink from the river bank.
"Then... this explains why my hair has a red color. It was the dreamworld's influence! The moment I advanced, I also felt an additional reserve of vitality within me. Did it also enhanced my regenerative ability?
"Even though Apothecaries was never shown to have regenerative powers themselves... Does this mean due to the dreamworld, I was able to recover in just a day from a fatal wound?"
Selina fell into her thoughts and slowly she looked to her side, peering into the forest.
"I wonder..." Selina stood up, reigned her thoughts but kept an open mind as she decided to walk linearly.
Due to her will, a path was naturally formed. Since none of her followers was praying, and being worried about their circumstances would not help. Selina busied herself with curiosity.
She walked for miles, to where her eyes never reach. She felt the nature from where she willed them continues to generate as she pressed on.
Selina saw huge mountains from far away, where clouds shrouds its peak. There were cranes standing on shallow waters in a distance by the time she exited the forest and was now in the other side of the meadow—a glade.
These cranes acted naturally, they would turn their head, inspect the waters before surgically piercing it, lifting a catfish.
Wow... Selina felt she was having a nature trip. Suddenly, it occurred to her that her subconsciousness may be the one responsible for this constant generation of the land.
With that in mind, she willed a ground next to her to form a four-legged hooved statue—a horse.
"Neigh!" The horse has no thoughts.
"That's logical, I mean it would scare if it truly had a sentience..." Selina commanded the animal to lower itself for her to ride.
Clap! Clap! Clap!
Selina's hair flailed fervently against the strong wind. Amidst the galloping sounds, the scenery continued to flash pass her in a motion.
At a distance, she saw a lonesome tree in the middle of the meadow. A rock formation protruding up a small cliff fight by the rivers and the ground road ending at another forest.
The sky had a wispy layered clouds that refracts from an illusory sun. Far beneath it, are dotted groups that flaps their wings, migrating somewhere unknown.
Selina crossed a long dessert dunes, where she spotted numerous scorpions, tumbleweeds and cactuses. In its Ridgeland comes a tropical forest, where venomous snakes lurks up above the trunks, the deep brown waters conceals predatory reptiles whilst indigenous thrived.
She had been riding the horse for tens of kilometers. Distant valleys have vanished and steep highlands did she crossed.
Clap! Clap! Clap!
The horse halted. But neither it and Selina are exhausted from a non-stop travel that should've taken her days.
Now in front of a dense region, where light seems to fade into the deep, dark path. Selina pursed her lips and contained her fear.
It was like a horror play when she saw the entrance. The misty atmosphere darkened the road up ahead. She turned back and murmured, "I'm still fine. Not thirsty or famine. Perhaps this is one of the properties of the dreamworld.
"I wonder what's beyond there."
Hoot! A cacophony of various birds echoed. A feather was flung from a raven flying away.
Selina raised her hand, and from the dirt that her flesh became, morphed into a lantern she held. In her eyes, she was determined to know what's causing this dreamworld and why the Child of God's faction reveled its daughter.
Her silhouette—in a white floral sundress, barefooted and silver hair coursing gently. She lifted the glowing lamp and extended it into the darkness ahead.
...
What's this? Selina paused, already deep into the eerie forest.
I... can't seem to terraform the region up ahead... I can't feel anything...
She furrowed her eyebrows and took a step back. I thought I'm allowed to...
Is the region... ahead do not obey my will? What's on the other side? Still capable of sensing the mural-like vines, Selina pressed on.
This is because earlier, she figured out that by simply reforming to her origin point can she achieve a safe, contingency exit.
Thus, she illuminated the path ahead and climbed onto a steep of large boulders, where enormous roots sprouted to take hold of the terrain.
The things Selina noticed upon entering here, is that the trees are gigantic. The erect for almost an Eiffel tower tall, it's fascinating how they maintained distance.
By then, Selina crossed the precipice of the boulders, resumed in a linear path where large branches were littered, she got to see a distant plane.
The land below the cliff was bizarre. At the end of the shore—a deteriorating swamp, filled with walking women, all dressed in a white gown with twisted faces just like her! They're drenched in viscous blood!
Clank!
Selina dropped the lamp, her hand was trembling. She saw even more of the area was glitching, tearing from the one she saw upon entering the dreamworld for the first time!
A vile grotesque world where even the sky is a veiny tissue!
Thump! Thump! Thump!
Then, Selina heard a beating heart.