“It seemed to travel with her, to sweep her aloft in the power of song, so that she was moving in glory among the stars, and for a moment she, too, felt that the words Darkness and Light had no meaning, and only this melody was real.” 

― Madeleine L'Engle, A Wrinkle in Time

 

---

 

In retrospect, it probably wasn’t a good idea to run off into the night after a fleeing cat.

 

But she was the eldest of our bunch and I wasn’t willing to let her run off into a dark night when it was about to storm and when there was a road nearby.

 

There was a reason the stray cats on our street only lasted so long.

 

To the back of me, I could hear my dad calling after me, lingering in the doorway with my little brother clinging to his leg.

 

Dad was torn on what to do - go after his daughter on a crazy run through the woods after a slippery cat; or stay with the sickly six year old in the warmth of the house so the kid wouldn’t get any worse.

 

“I’ll be right back!” I called to him over my shoulder. I didn’t look back.

 

Taehyung’s puppy dog eyes and his pitiful red nose would have been enough to make me hesitate and lose sight of Peppermint the Cat.

 

It would be fine. After all, unlike the sickly child back in the house, I only had two more years before I hit adulthood.

 

I could handle myself and once Peppermint got distracted, it would be easy to spot her.

 

She was a snowy white ball of fluff and, despite the storm I could feel brewing in the distance, the moon had yet to disappear behind the clouds and was still illuminating the woods around me.

 

Peppermint practically glowed in that white light.

 

Surely I could catch her and bring her back to the warm safety of home.

 

At least, that’s what I thought until a cloud finally passed over the moon, sending the world into darkness and making it hard to see.

 

I’m not really sure what happened then, apart from a brief moment of panic and then a tremendous pain.

---

 

I might have run into a tree.

---

 

I woke to darkness and the familiar feeling of a purring cat perched on my hip.

 

Peppermint blinked languidly at me, her tiny body feeling like a ton of bricks concentrated on the curve of my hip.

 

I groaned at the sight of her and rolled over. Peppermint was promptly scooped up into my arms before she could run off again.

 

She mrrped in displeasure, but remained still. She’d had her adventure and was done for the night.

 

I shook the leaves out of my hair and grimaced at the feeling of grit against my face and neck. A few rocks were stuck to my arms. It was summer still and during my bout of unconsciousness, I’d been snoozing in a pile of dirt and dry twigs. The idea of bugs crawling all over me made my body itch and I set off into the night once more.

 

I needed a long bath and a face mask, pronto.

 

Thankfully, Peppermint hadn’t led my far from the house and the storm had yet to arrive.

 

There was a sliver of moonlight peeking out from the sudden cloud cover. There was a rumble of thunder in the background. I could just see the lights from the house from between the trees.

 

I huffed down at Peppermint as I hurried forward, ready to be inside again. I wasn’t much for the outdoors.

 

It smelled weird.

 

Peppermint started to squirm in my arms, twisting to latch onto my shoulder with her front paws. Years of carrying her and all the other cats that lived with our family worked in my favor and I barely winced as her claws went through the thin fabric of my T-shirt and scraped against my skin.

 

I tightened my grip around her a bit.

 

“No, ma’am.” I said firmly. “You’re too prissy to stay out here. The ecosystem couldn’t handle you. And don’t think you’ll be getting any treats from me anytime soon!”

 

Normally, this wouldn’t even phase Peppermint. It wasn’t a phrase she would recognize like her name or me asking if she was hungry. Something else caught her attention from over my shoulder and her little body started heaving with the force of her breathe. A little chuffing noise came from her.

 

The hairs on the back of my neck stood up and I fought against the urge to turn around and see what she was looking at.

 

Her chuffs turned into a throaty growl.

 

My hurried walk quickened into a run.

 

I didn’t want to know what it was. I just wanted out of there.

 

I could live without knowing what was in the woods.

 

Peppermint and I broke through the trees just as she let out an angry and defensive yowl, letting go of my shoulder long enough to swipe at something behind us.

 

With my arms full of cat, I could only crash against the door with a bang, accidentally pulling out a bit of Peppermint’s fur in my panic. I finally turned around to see what I was convinced was a giant beast chasing me and my cat.

 

The backyard was empty save for a couple of lawn chairs and Taehyung’s play-set.

 

Panting, I slumped against the door in relief.

 

“Dummy.” I scolded the white ball of fluff as she turned around to keep glaring into the woods. “You overreacted.”

 

We both did , I thought in exasperation. It had to be the coming storm and the electricity in the air getting to me. The thunder rolled again.

 

The backdoor opened behind me and I fell back inside with a startled scream.

 

My dad caught me. He looked angry and suddenly I wasn’t so relieved to be home. I was in trouble .

 

“It’s been half an hour!” he exclaimed, slamming the door shut. Peppermint jumped from my arms and hurried to look out the window by the door. Dad scowled at me. “Kim Jinsol, what were you thinking? You worried me sick! I - what happened to your head?”

 

In less than a second, my dad went from angry father to concerned dad, one I was familiar with from childhood scrapes and bruises. Lately, Taehyung had been the sole target for that look. Usually after the six year old had thrown up.

 

I flinched as he touched my forehead. Suddenly, my head was pounding and I was feeling the burn and exhaustion of my run through the woods.

 

“I hit my head on something.” I said wearily, leaning against the hall tree next to the door. I landed against it more heavily than I intended and rattled it. Taehyung’s little purple galosh fell out of its cubby and bumped my foot.

 

Alarm crossed over Dad’s face and he made me sit down on its bench, leaning me back against our coats that hung there. The jacket he wore to work smelled of hospital soap.

 

A sudden intensity focused his expression, reminding me he was still a doctor, despite the leave of absence he’d taken recently on account of Taehyung.

 

“I’m going to get my bag. Stay awake.” he commanded. “You’ve got a bad bump.”

 

I gave him a thumbs up and a deadpan expression.

 

He rolled his eyes as he left the mudroom.

 

From her place in the window, Peppermint was growling again.

 

I turned my head towards her, less wary this time and noticed that she’d been joined by another of our cats, the chunkiest of our boys, Hunk.

 

Taehyung liked Voltron and Hunk was his favorite character,

 

I liked Shiro and Lance best.

 

Unlike Peppermint, Hunk didn’t puff up with aggression, but the fur on his face was laid flat and his yellow eyes were wide with fear.

 

I frowned and got up to see what they were looking at.

 

A small, congested voice piped up from beneath my elbow.

 

I jumped a bit, looking at Taehyung with wide eyes.

 

“Sorry, baby.” I murmured, leaning down to hug him. “I didn’t hear you.”

 

“They’re scared.” he sniffled, wrapping his arms around my neck. His skin was clammy from his cold. “Lock the door, please? The storm wants in.”

 

Another roll of thunder punctuated his point.

 

I smiled into his hair indulgently. “Sure thing, bug. How do you think we can help them calm down?”

 

Taehyung pointed at the light switch for the porch as I moved to turn the deadbolt.

 

“Ah. Good idea.” I nodded solemnly, wincing at the throb in my head. I flicked the light on and felt a bit better for it. The surety of this child was enough to put me at ease.

 

Little kids were experts in the rituals and warding magic that kept away the boogeyman and the creepy things in the night.

 

I sat back down on the hall tree’s bench and cuddled Taehyung to me. Together we listened to Peppermint’s quieting growls until she was done.

 

She huffed and stretched herself out on the floor beneath the window to keep guard. Hunk sat heavily and leaned over to sniff her face. Peppermint his face and he reared back like she’d hit him. Hunk waddled off.

 

Dad nearly tripped over him as he returned to fuss over his children.

 

---

 

Outside, the light bulb buzzed quietly, warding off the darkness and the unknown as the storm steadily approached. The occupants of the house jumped as an angry blast of thunder shook the glass in the windows, but couldn’t touch the light and the warmth inside.

 

From the darkness of the woods, something waited impatiently, having been so close but still too slow.

 

It needed a little more time, a little more strength, before it was ready.

 

Then no one would be able to run from it.