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A gentle breeze rustled a tree in the corner of the backyard. Leaves glided away and the air picked up the smell of freshly cut grass.

Playing on the grass, next to a white fence, was a six-year-old boy combining scraps of wood.

He was tying intersecting sticks with twine, completely engrossed in his work, until a gust of wind forced his eyes shut.

A cloud of sand hit his face. Once the wind faded, the boy opened his eyes.

“Hm?”

A black cat perched on the white fence had caught the boy’s eyes.

He was positive that that animal had not been there before. Curious, the boy drew closer.

He lowered his posture and approached so that the cat wouldn’t try to escape.

“Here kitty, kitty.”

He raised a finger and reached out, slowly.

The girl next door once told him that it shows cats you’re friendly.

But instead, the cat burst into laughter.

The boy leapt back in surprise.

“It… laughed?”

“Excuse me,” said the cat.

A girl’s voice came from the black cat. She tilted her head.

Quite literally a creature of wonder. Any ordinary human would think they were dreaming if they ran into one.

But the boy, still an innocent child, beamed at it without a hint of caution. He walked closer to the black cat.

“You won’t run, right?”

“I won’t run.”

“Why can you talk?”

“I wonder. There’s no point worrying about it though.”

The black cat jumped off the fence and snuggled up to the boy’s feet. Her soft fur felt just like that of a real cat’s.

They sat side-by-side in the backyard and chatted about nothing in particular. The black cat waved her tail and brushed the grass.

“Is your father kind?” asked the cat.

“Yeah. He’s a bit clumsy though. And he never wins against mum.”

“I see.”

The black cat smiled. The boy thought she looked kind.

He hesitated, before stroking her back. The cat’s face relaxed.

He talked about his father, his mother, his friends and so on, and the black cat sometimes smiled or nodded, listening to his stories.

Eventually, she asked the boy a question.

“Has your father taught you anything?”

“Tons of stuff. Like, how to fish and what to be careful of when camping.”

“What about fighting?”

The boy made a puzzled face.

“A little, in case I get into a fight. That’s about it.”

“I see… of course.”

The cat’s black tail tickled the boy and she gazed at the sky looking pleased.

The boy stroked the cat’s head.

“Why do you ask?”

“Oh, it’s nothing. He passed down his skills to me… so you’re fine the way you are,” the cat said.

The cat seemed to smile.

He reached out to hold her small body, but his mother called out to him from the house.

He stood and turned to the cat.

“Are you staying?”

“No, I’m leaving now.”

“Will you come again?”

The cat did not answer.

She gracefully turned on her heels, wagging her tail as if waving goodbye and disappeared to the other side of the fence.

She looked beautiful from behind as she trotted off into the distance, just as quickly as she’d appeared.

The boy stood there and watched until he could no longer see the cat.

He would never see that mysterious black cat again.

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