Aesop's Secret Read online

  Felix didn’t understand what his mother wanted from him. He barely remembered any of the stories she used to read to him. He knew he had enjoyed listening to them when he was a lot younger but that was a long time ago. He couldn’t feel anything about the stories and he couldn’t see anything in his memory except his mother sitting with him and reading aloud.

  Melinda closed her eyes. It was easy to see and sense how the water would feel rippling over a seal’s sleek body. She visualized herself turning from a girl into a seal.

  “That’s enough,” Elaine said so abruptly that Melinda jumped while Felix’s frown deepened.

  Felix looked from his mother to his father, both of whom looked like something miraculous had occurred. He turned to see if Melinda understood what was meant to have happened and shuddered. Her face looked grossly different. Her skin was grey and her eyes seemed almost black. He rubbed his eyes with an involuntarily shiver and looked back at her. She looked like she always did, cheerful and clueless in his opinion. Everything seemed normal, and should have felt the same, but Felix was uncomfortable.

  Jake smiled proudly. “Well done, Melinda. I’ll bet you feel terrific.”

  Melinda smiled weakly. She had no idea how her father knew about the exhilarating sensations she had just experienced but he certainly seemed to.

  “Felix, did you feel anything different?” his mother asked cautiously.

  A corner of Felix’s lips curled unpleasantly as he shook his head.

  Jake cleared his throat. “I don’t have a medical explanation for what’s happening to Melinda: she is growing up rather quickly.” He turned his attention to Felix. “Felix, you are not going through the same changes yet but you will soon. Our bodies usually start to mature at around fourteen or fifteen, not at age ten like in Melinda’s case.”

  Felix’s head was pounding. “I still don’t know what you’re talking about. All I know is that I woke up to see Melinda standing out in the garden without anything on, then you and Mum start talking nonsense about myths and maturity. WHAT’S GOING ON?”

  Jake massaged his forehead with one hand while his other hand massaged the back of his neck. When he was finished he took a deep breath, exhaled slowly then met Felix’s frustrated gaze. “We are descendants of a race of people known as Athenites. We believe the name is connected to the goddess Athena because of her ability to metamorphose into different creatures. To be honest I don’t know whether we were named after her, or she was named after us, but that doesn’t really matter. What does matter is that you know who you are and what you can do. It appears that Melinda has already experienced transformations. This morning her survival instincts allowed her to escape from the charging bull by transforming into a horse. It’s what Athenites have always been able to do throughout history, calling on the strengths of another creature to survive. And what we just witnessed here confirms that she is indeed maturing as her mind focused on becoming a seal and she nearly succeeded in changing into one,” he said proudly.

  Felix sat dumbfounded. If his mother had said all of this he wouldn’t have believed her―she was always talking about fables and their connection to reality. He usually ignored her. Then it dawned on him: this was all a joke…a hoax designed to get Melinda to stop all her babbling about changing into animals. “OK,” he laughed, “If we can transform then show us how it’s done.”

  “Are you sure you’re ready for this?” Elaine cautioned.

  “Sure,” Felix answered cheerfully. “If it’s our destiny then let’s see what’s in store for us.”

  Jake looked more animated than usual, almost like a child picking out a favorite toy. “All right, let’s see, what will it be?” He closed his eyes and froze his movements. His breathing was subtle and steady. His dark beard was growing rapidly, turning from brown to grey and now covered his face. On the top of his head, pointy ears sprouted, growing straight up like a dog’s. His nose flattened and both his mouth and jaw elongated, ballooning straight out from his face. His whole body was changing rapidly. His shoulders became narrower, then they expanded as his neck grew thicker. Clothes that minutes before fit perfectly now seemed too large as they hung on his fur-covered body. His eyelids lifted to reveal round, yellow-brown eyes. He hoped to see understanding and acceptance, maybe even enthusiasm on the faces of his children.

  He got all three from Melinda. Her excitement was barely contained. She looked like she wanted to try the transformation herself.

  Felix looked horrified as he stared at the wolf in his father’s clothing. He had turned a ghostly white. His mouth hung open as he gasped for breath. He looked like he might faint, throw up or both. Instead, he stood up, moved backwards, then ran out of the room and out of the house.

  CHAPTER THREE

  The only word to describe Felix’s behaviour over the next two weeks was polite. He exhibited extraordinary courtesy to everyone in his family, even Melinda. He didn’t talk to them any longer than it took to ask or answer a simple question but he no longer grunted his morning greeting. Instead he would politely say the words “Good morning.” When his mother set his dinner plate in front of him, he gave her a gracious, “Thank you,” and when he decided to leave a room he said things like, “I hope you’ll excuse me, I need to see to some things.” Felix had become a courteous stranger in his own home.

  Jake’s reaction to his son’s behaviour was simple: “The boy will get things organized in his mind in his own way and his own time. We need to give him some space to adjust.”

  Elaine worried anyway. “I never thought he would react to his ancestry this way.”

  Melinda didn’t see the problem. “I don’t see what the big deal is,” she offered. “At least he’s polite.” She couldn’t be bothered with her brother’s mood. She was still reeling with excitement from the discovery of her new talents and used every opportunity to nag her parents into helping her learn how to use them properly. Unfortunately they never had the time, so she had to experiment on her own.

  The weather had changed into something Seattle was famous for: patchy drizzle and otherwise grey conditions. It didn’t matter to Melinda as she prepared to transform into a squirrel. Her model was the grey squirrel that resided in the tall oak tree at the back of the garden. She walked out to the middle of the lawn and stripped off her clothes, knowing from experience that when an Athenite transforms their clothes don’t. The cold air almost stung as it hit her skin so she acted quickly, closing her eyes and freezing her movements, concentrating on the image of the small rodent that she had observed earlier that day. As the familiar tingling of transformation spread throughout her body she heard the caw from a crow in the distance and for a split second visualized its shiny black feathers. As quickly as the image arrived, she shoved it aside and let squirrels be her sole focus. Fleetingly she remembered that her father always called them bushy-tailed rats.

  The back door slammed loudly startling Melinda out of her trance. Her eyes sprang open and she saw that her clothes were now looming high above her. Then, in a more startlingly observation, she noticed a pair of huge shoes coming rapidly towards her.

  Having seen Melinda’s clothes from inside the house, Felix had gone to investigate. He could not allow her to leave her things here, there and everywhere with the impending arrival of Professors Mulligan and Stumpworthy. They were due to arrive any day and he had to make a good impression.

  A few weeks before Felix was confronted with what he referred to as “Athenite insanity,” he had received an invitation to attend the prestigious Stumpworthy School of Science in Paris, France. He had dreamed about attending that school since he was six years old. Excited beyond belief, he began the persuasion process on his parents that he hoped would convince them to let him go. At the time they seemed to be as thrilled as he was about the possibility. His mother even knew a member of the governing board: an old colleague and friend named James Mulligan. He and Horace Stumpworthy, the owner of the school, were currently traveling around the world to meet pr
ospective students, and his parents had happily invited them to come to their home and meet Felix.

  But then Melinda ruined everything. Ever since her changes began, his parents were of two minds about whether or not he should be allowed to study so far away from home. His mother was reluctant to let him go. “Maybe next year would be better,” she had moaned. “There are so many changes going on right now, it would be wise to wait.” While his father offered slightly more encouragement: “Let’s see how things go with Mulligan when he visits, then make up our minds.”

  The last couple of weeks had been a nightmare. Most mornings Felix awoke feeling as he did before learning the facts of his life. However, things quickly soured when greeted by his bubbling, unpredictable sister. One morning he had to do a double take when he saw that she had long furry ears on top of her head; another morning she had a big, black bushy tail dragging on the floor from underneath her dressing gown. A boy at his school had always referred to his little sister as a pig. Felix shuddered to think what would happen if he called his sister a pig.

  “It’s normal when you’re maturing to suffer unexpected transformations,” his father had explained. “If your mind wanders your body follows. You have all this to look forward to.”

  Felix could honestly say that he was NOT looking forward to experiencing any of the changes that his sister was already going through because transforming didn’t interest him in the least. As the days passed his resolve to never morph out of his own body and into another creature strengthened. But he knew that the only way to avoid becoming like the other mutants in his family was to go away. So he made up his mind: whatever it took, he was going to that school, and the sooner the better.

  Grumbling under his breath, he reached Melinda’s clothes, hastily picked them up then headed back towards the house. Melinda squeaked loudly as he walked away but failed to get his attention. She scurried after him, surprising herself with the agility her little body could manage, calling out to him in her squeaky voice again and again but he took no notice of the little creature scampering behind him. She was desperate to show off her successful transformation so she didn’t give up, running more quickly but failing to attract his attention. He was only a yard or so away from the steps that led up to the back door of the house and Melinda wasn’t about to give up the chase so in a last-ditch burst of energy she leapt free of the grass, grabbing hold of the back of his thigh and digging her claws in through his jeans.

  Her clothes flew into the air as Felix lunged forward, screeching shrilly as he batted at the rodent clinging to the back of his jeans. Melinda leapt free, ran to a safe distance in front of him and then sat up proudly for him to admire her.

  Felix’s body was completely rigid as he stared at the creature screaming in front of him. A second later he shook his head. “I don’t believe it,” he groaned, “what are you?” He took a step closer, bent down and stared into the face of his sister that was now planted on the head of the small rat-like creature. He grabbed her by her furless rat-like tail and lifted her black-feather-covered body into the air until her freckled face was even with his. “You are disgusting,” he said, looking like he’d just eaten something extremely sour. He dropped her back to the ground and watched as she rolled to a stop.

  “You know what Mum and Dad said, no transforming when Professor Mulligan and Professor Stumpworthy are here!” He stormed into the house, leaving Melinda’s clothes strewn about and her with an angry pout on her face. She hated the idea of not transforming but more than that she hated the idea of James Mulligan in her house.

  Professor Mulligan, or Professor Walrus as Melinda had always called him because of his full puffy jowls and grey droopy mustache (which actually did make him look like a walrus), had never been her favorite. Felix liked him because he was a scientist. Melinda didn’t like him because she thought that he was boring. But the biggest problem for Melinda with having him around was Aesop, Melinda’s pet rabbit.

  Aesop had been a kind of birthday present to Melinda from Professor Mulligan. Kind of, because when he gave her the rabbit he didn’t even know it was her birthday. He simply wanted to get rid of the animal and gave it to the most likely home he could think of at the time. It was only a coincidence that it had been her birthday. She always had the feeling he regretted giving up such a remarkable animal because Aesop could change colour.

  The first time Melinda had witnessed the change she was surprised but not startled. She had learned in school about animals, like rabbits, that change colour to match their surroundings. The first time Aesop changed his colour from white to brown, which seemed perfectly normal. The next change was a little stranger. Aesop changed from white to purple with eyes the colour of deep red rubies. Aesop could change into an orange bunny or a black bunny or an orange and black bunny. Once he had bright pink polka dots and another time he turned a brilliant daffodil yellow. She tried to show her family what he could do but he didn’t do anything when anyone else was around; he was always white with crystal pink eyes. At first it was frustrating not being able to share Aesop’s talents with anyone, until she realized that Aesop was probably smart not to. “You are a clever bunny,” she had said, “because if my father and Felix knew what you could do they’d probably cut you open and see what makes you tick.” She laughed when Aesop responded with a violent shiver.

  The day arrived of impending doom in Melinda’s mind and of salvation in Felix’s. James Mulligan and the imposing figure of Horace Stumpworthy would arrive later in the day.

  Elaine was in a state of panic. She wasn’t ready. The house had been cleaned from top to bottom, the meals were organized and all of Felix’s required documents were prepared just in case. Elaine worried instead about her daughter showing up at the table with chicken feet or worse.

  Jake thought Elaine’s worries were a bit exaggerated. “Let’s give her some credit…she has really controlled her thoughts lately. It’s been at least three days with no snouts, antlers, tails or fur.”

  That morning Felix had taken refuge in his room, away from his family, to await the visitors. He looked forward to having non-Athenite visitors―real people with whom he could relate. There was still a chance he could attend Professor Stumpworthy’s Science School in France. He had been more polite to his family than the previous twelve years of his life; they had to let him go.

  At the same time Melinda also sought sanctuary in her room. She was still annoyed about not being able to transform and increasingly worried about Aesop. Then panic swelled up like a balloon as she stroked his azure blue fur. “If you’ve already changed colour in front of Professor Walrus then you might again. And if that happens, he’ll want you back to study you.” She picked him up and held him nose to nose. “Aesop, you must change back to white and stay that way the whole time he’s here. Do you understand?”

  Aesop wiggled his nose but didn’t change colour.

  She put him back down and thought for a good two seconds before deciding what to do. It was obvious that the best way to talk to him was to become a rabbit. She began by concentrating on his long floppy ears, twitchy nose, cottony puff of a tail, short front legs and strong hind legs. She thought about how his fur felt and how his claws pricked her hands when she held him. She visualized his steady breathing, the rapid flutter of his heart and the gentle grinding of his teeth. Then she concentrated on herself covered in sumptuous fur. She saw in her mind her nose change shape, becoming small and triangular; it was twitching constantly and had long whiskers below. Out of the top of her head she could almost visualize long, floppy, furry white ears but her concentration faltered and collapsed completely as she heard her door open. A quick look at her hands showed that she was still human.

  Felix walked in rattling something about the guests arriving soon and that she needed to get ready but as she turned to face him he stopped talking and, with his mouth hanging wide open, just stared at her.

  “What do you want?” snorted Melinda, very annoyed at his intrusion.
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  Felix just stood there, his mouth opening and closing but not making a sound.

  “Felix, what’s going on?”

  Felix continued to stare, his thin lips slightly parted and his glasses slipping down his thin nose as usual. “Your face,” Felix snapped angrily. “Can’t you control yourself for even one minute?”

  Melinda reached up and touched her cheek. There was fur! She felt around her face and realized it was covered with the soft fur she had imagined. She felt a cold slippery nose with long prickly whiskers just below. As she moved her hands up to the top of her head she excitedly expected long ears too, but that part of her felt like Melinda the girl not Melinda the rabbit. It’ll take more concentration, she thought, then closed her eyes to complete the transformation as if Felix wasn’t there.

  “You’re a freak!” yelled Felix. “You’re all freaks and I’m not going to be one of you!” He stormed down the stairs, straight out through the front door and right into the open arms of a tall man who, along with Professor James Mulligan, was about to announce their arrival.

  CHAPTER FOUR

  “Well, if that isn’t an enthusiastic greeting,” chuckled the tall, distinguished-looking man holding onto Felix’s shoulders. “You must be Felix,” he said with a smile, then turned to his companion. “James, you told me how keen Mr. Hutton was to attend the program but I didn’t expect such a warm welcome.”

  Untangling himself from the man’s grasp, Felix looked up at the tall stranger with awe. Since his companion was the familiar short, dumpy and disheveled Professor James Mulligan, Felix knew that the man he had ploughed into had to be Professor Horace Stumpworthy. It wasn’t exactly the calm and intelligent impression he’d wanted to give at their first meeting.

  “I’m sorry I wasn’t looking where I was going,” Felix stuttered, his cheeks burning red.

  “You were in quite a hurry,” interrupted James Mulligan. “Are we keeping you from something?”