A story by Neriah
Jin thought cats were spectacular creatures. Known for being agile and smart, they always reminded him of his older sister, Hana.
Hana had gone away to college, and there was a good chance she wouldn’t be visiting anytime soon. Their mom and dad had practically disowned her for choosing to become an actress instead of a scientist.
Now Jin was lonely, with almost nothing to do.
Before, his sister had always been there to argue with him, tease him, and keep him company. But now she was gone. And somehow, everything his parents said seemed to remind him of her.
His favorite story Hana had told him when he was younger was about mooncats.
“Mooncats are celestial cats, and they’re very, very rare,” his sister had once explained. “They come in different colors. White mooncats are the purest and have the gentlest souls. Blueberry-star mooncats are the fiercest of them all. And orange mooncats are the saddest ones to ever exist. They need to eat light to feel comfort—or make friends with a human. But it’s extremely dangerous for a human to own a mooncat.”
His sister’s voice replayed in his mind as he sat at the breakfast table.
Maybe I should look for a mooncat…
Jin’s thoughts drifted until his mom’s voice snapped him back to reality.
“Jin, you need to eat real food,” she said, her voice loud and intrusive.
“Ama, I don’t want to…” Jin mumbled.
His thoughts wandered again.
What would a real mooncat even look like?
“Jin!” his mom called. “Don’t be like your sister. Go get some fresh air and study your textbooks.”
She dropped his textbooks onto the table with a loud thud.
Aish! That looked painful! He felt sorry for the textbooks, like they had feelings like him. He finished his sandwich and grabbed his poor textbooks and went into the backyard.
Don’t be like your sister.
His mom’s words echoed through his mind.
Your sister.
His older sister was gone.
Jin stared at the enormous gate that separated the backyard from the outside world. After Hana had left to follow her dream, his parents had taken him out of school and decided to homeschool him instead.
If only…
Something moved near the gate. A small cat squeezed between the metal bars and slipped into the large backyard.
Jin froze.
The cat was orange.
But not just orange.
It sparkled.
Its fur seemed to glow with a strange warmth, yet there was something deeply sad about it. On its body was the shape of a moon—a crescent moon, to be exact. A blue crescent moon with a star crossing over it.
Jin’s eyes widened, remembering a tale he had often once listened to…a mooncat tale. He was staring at a mooncat! Not just any other cat, but one of the rarest cats to ever walk the earth!
The cat looked around the yard but never made eye contact with him. It seemed to be searching for something.
Was it a he? Jin wasn’t quite sure. He was definitely looking for something. Then Jin noticed a small lamp his parents kept outside for emergencies. His sister’s words returned to him.
Very sad… eats light to feel comfort…
Orange mooncat! Although Jin could already tell from the color, the realization seemed to lift his spirits right up! He followed the cat’s gaze toward the lamp and slowly approached.
“Hello. I’m Jin,” he said. “Most people say I look like a cat, so maybe we could be friends. What’s your name?” He didn’t in the least feel stupid or weird striking a conversation with this very peculiar cat. Instead, all he wished for was for the cat to speak back to him. But the cat ignored him and continued walking toward the lamp.
Jin suddenly felt as though he were talking to himself.
“Um… you look like a he, so when I’m describing you, can I call you a he? I mean, I’m not very good at telling cat genders, but I love the species!”
Silence. This was getting awkward. Then the cat stopped and slowly turned toward him.
“I am not a he. I am a she,” the cat said. “And you should know that. It’s quite obvious. But don’t bother trying to talk to me. I have enough worries already.”
Jin’s mouth fell open, as though he never expected a response from a cat in the first place!
The mooncat turned back toward the lamp.
“My sister told me about mooncats,” Jin said quickly. “She’s not here anymore. She left for college. I’m not exactly allowed to call her my sister anymore because my parents disowned her… but I still call her my sister anyway.”
Tears began forming in his eyes. Jin bit his tongue, using the small sting of pain to force the tears away. It was something he had learned after a long time of trying not to cry.
The mooncat turned back toward him. And she smiled. Yes, this cat could definitely smile. But somehow, she also looked like she might cry.
“Well,” she said softly, “you must really love your sister.”
“Oh, I do,” Jin replied. “I wish I could still visit her.”
He wiped his eyes.
“How old are you, Mooncat? And what may I call you?”
The mooncat suddenly looked stunned; she tilted her head.
“Hana,” she said.
Jin stopped breathing.
“My name is Hana. And I’m seven years older than you, Jinie.”
Jin’s face lit up with recognition. His sister! Hana! His sister had come back to him as a mooncat!
“Hana!”
Jin dropped to his knees as tears finally poured down his face. His dear sister had come back to him.
“Ah, Jinie, don’t cry!” Hana teased. “I thought you said you were strong.”
Jin laughed through his tears. He bent down, gently picked her up, and held her in his arms.
“I guess I’m the taller one now!” he said.
Hana purred.
“Now you won’t have to cry like a baby and keep missing me,” she said. “I’ll come and visit as often as I can. I love you, baby brother.”
She paused.
“You still cry like one, though.”
“Hana!”
Her laughter echoed around him. Then her body began to glow.
“Hana?”
She became brighter and brighter until she seemed to dissolve into moonlight. Her voice echoed one final time before she disappeared.
“I love you, Jinie.”
Jin stared at the empty space in his arms.
“I love you too, older sister…”
Jin woke up with a start, cleaning off the drool on his right cheek and leaving a smudge across his textbook page. He blinked rapidly, realizing that it was still morning, and sunlight poured brightly across the backyard. Jin looked around; the mooncat wasn’t there. There was no glowing light, nor was Hana there. It had all been a dream.
He jumped to his feet and rushed inside. When he reached the hallway mirror, he stopped. His eyes were red because he had been crying in his sleep. His mother noticed him and stared for a moment. Then her expression softened.
“Jin,” she said quietly, “I’m sorry for putting you through so much pain.”
Jin turned toward her.
“Your dad and I have been talking,” she continued, “and we were thinking… maybe you can still talk to your sister. Your dad and I can’t tell you not to love her just because we’re upset with the choices she made.”
Jin stared at her.
“Ama… really?”
His eyes filled with tears again.
“You’re not joking?”
His mother shook her head and pulled him into a hug.
“No,” she whispered into his ear. “I’m not joking.”
Jin hugged her tightly.
Then—
Ding-dong!
The doorbell rang. Jin immediately pulled away from his mom and rushed toward the front door.
“I’ll get it!”
He swung the door open, and whoever he saw standing at the entrance made him freeze. Right there on the porch stood his older sister.
“Hana?”
She looked different. Parts of her hair had been dyed orange, blending beautifully with the darker strands like a sunset.
Hana stared at him.
“Jinie?”
Then she grinned.
“When did you get so tall?”
Jin threw himself into her arms.
“Hana!”
She laughed and hugged him tightly.
Their mother stood a few steps away, holding back tears, which seemed to last only about three seconds. Then she couldn’t take it anymore.
“Hana!”
She rushed forward and wrapped her arms around both of them.
Jin smiled. He had always known his parents were bluffing when they said they would disown her forever. They loved Hana just as much as he did.
A moment later, his father came out of his home office. He stopped when he saw Hana standing in the doorway. His expression changed immediately. Soon, all four of them were wrapped in one enormous group hug. For the first time in a long while, Jin felt like his family was whole again. They went inside and sat together, catching up, apologizing, laughing, and saying all the things they should have said before Hana left.
While everyone talked, Jin leaned back in his chair. Then something caught his eye.
Hana’s leg.
Jin blinked. For one second, it wasn’t human; it was covered in sparkling orange fur, a cat’s leg. Jin’s eyes widened, as though Hana had sensed he had caught sight of it; she casually shook her leg, and then it was normal again.
Jin stared at her. Hana looked across the room and met his eyes. A tiny smile appeared on her face. Jin smiled back in response. Maybe the mooncat hadn’t been a dream after all.
His sister was, indeed, a mooncat.