Thorn Boy and Other Dreams of Dark Desire (30 page)

Then I felt a
soft touch upon my arm, of gentle fingers. Alarmed, I dropped my
hands and uttered a cry of shock. I beheld a young woman, who
backed away from me, her eyes wide. She crouched down before me,
utterly naked, her skin the color of honey, her body hunched into a
position of alertness.

‘
Who are
you?’ I demanded, while within me conflicting emotions made war. My
male instincts were aroused by the surprise of finding a naked girl
in my garden, but she was still an intruder. What was she doing
there?

The girl held
up her hands to me, and now her expression was pleading. She shook
her head slowly from side to side. Her face was small and
heart-shaped, utterly enchanting.

‘
Speak!’
I said, ‘or I must summon my staff to evict you.’

The girl’s
face was puckered with anguish. She shrugged her shoulders in an
ophidian motion, which seemed to indicate impatience, then touched
her mouth with her fingers. I realised she could not speak.

I reached down
and took her forearms in my hands, lifted her to her feet. She did
not seem at all ashamed at her state of undress, and I could not
help but admire the trim conformation of her body. ‘Are you lost?’
I asked her.

She smiled
then and shook her head. It was a fierce smile, quite without fear,
and a strange tremor passed through me. She held my gaze without
blinking, pushing her long amber hair back behind her ears. Then,
she dismissed me from her attention and held out her arms before
her, twisting them around as if to examine them for the first time.
After this, she shrugged and began to walk away from me. Aghast, I
called out and she paused and glanced over her shoulder, before
resuming her walk back towards the house. I felt that she knew this
place well, but how? I think perhaps it was at that moment I
realised Simew was nowhere to be seen. A chill coursed through my
flesh. No! I called her name, scanning the trees and bushes, but of
course it was my lovely visitor who turned her head to answer the
call.

Pu-ryah had
heard my prayers and answered them. As I had dedicated myself to
her, so she rewarded me. Simew had been transformed into a woman,
the most lovely woman I had ever seen. I caught up with her by the
cloister that flanked the back of the house, and here took hold of
her arm.

‘
We must
be discreet,’ I said. ‘The servants must not see you
undressed.’

She shrugged
again, as if to imply she would concur with my wishes, but didn’t
really care whether someone saw her or not. I went into the house
before her, and led the way back to my private chambers, checking
round every corner beforehand to make sure the coast was clear. In
my rooms, I turned the key in the lock, and leaned against the door
to gaze upon this magical creature. She stood in the center of the
room, looking around in curiosity. Now, the world must appear very
different to her. Then she turned her attention upon herself, and
began to stroke her body in long, slow movements. She raised her
hand to her mouth and licked it. I was entranced by her, my cat
woman.

‘
You can
no longer wash yourself,’ I said. ‘The human body is far less
supple than a cat’s.’

She gave me a
studied look, as to contest that remark. Her mouth dropped open and
expelled a musical, feline cry. She was not mute, then. My flesh
tingled.

She slunk
towards me, her eyes half-closed. I heard her purring. When she was
very close, she butted her head against my cheek, uttered a
chirruping sound. I seized her in my arms. She wriggled away, still
purring, and ran nimbly to my bedroom. I followed her and found her
crouched on all fours, on the bed. She turned round in a circle a
few times, before collapsing gracefully in a curving heap, peering
up at me seductively through a veil of hair. The invitation was
unmistakable. I approached her and she rolled onto her back, as was
her custom. I reached down and stroked her belly, conjuring louder
purrs. Her skin was softly furred by tiny, transparent hairs. I ran
my hands up over her firm breasts and she arched her back in
delight. Emboldened, I continued this tactile investigation,
sliding my fingers down between her muscled thighs. All I found was
welcome. Lust overtook me and I tore off my robes. Simew positioned
herself on all fours once more, her glistening vulva displayed
provocatively, her hands kneading the bed clothes before her. When
I entered her, she screeched; her whole body became rigid. Never
had coupling been so swift for me.

Afterwards,
she did the most astounding thing. I watched in silent amazement as
she contorted her body without apparent difficulty and set about
washing her private parts with her tongue. Then, she cleaned
herself all over, licking her hand to reach more inaccessible
areas, unable only to attain the back of her neck. I lay in a
stupor beside her, aroused once more by her bizarre behavior. When
she came to lie against my side, purring, I laid her on her back
and took her that way. Her desire was kindled instantly and she
appeared to enjoy the change of position.

Throughout
that day, I taught her many tricks of the art of love. The servants
came to my doors, but I would not allow them entrance. No doubt
they thought I had succumbed to melancholy once more. But then,
they must have heard the howls and grunts emanating from the
bedroom, and drawn their own conclusions, upon which it is better
not to dwell. Simew could not help but sound like a cat when throes
of delight overtook her.

How she loved
the sexual act. I had always suspected cats were masters and
mistresses of carnality, but now, with Simew transformed physically
into a human, while retaining feline sensibilities, I had no doubt.
She was quite impossible to sate. The more we coupled, the more
hungry she became. I remembered that the member of a male cat is
barbed, and people say that during feline copulation it is only
when he withdraws from the female’s body, thus tearing her delicate
flesh, that she finds satisfaction. I had no wish to hurt my
beautiful lover, but how could I provide her with what nature had
denied me? Eventually, her agitation became so great, I put my
fingers inside her and raked my nails along the slick flesh. She
uttered an ear-splitting howl and lashed out at me, her body
bucking. Within her, powerful muscles gripped my fingers and warm
liquid flowed down my wrist. Then, as the convulsions subsided, she
lay quiet, her eyes half closed, a soft purr rippling from her
throat. I felt exhausted.

When I stood
up to go to my bath room, I found my body covered in scratches,
welts and bites. My member seemed to have shrunk back into my body
in an attempt to escape my lover’s demands.

Weak, I drew
my own bath and lay there for some time, blinking in the steam. I
had never felt so utterly complete. The sexual urge had been
drained from me. I had filled Simew’s cup to the full and now my
vessel was empty, but the experience had exhilarated as much as
sapped me.

I knew that I
could not keep Simew a secret, nor did I want to. I had no women’s
clothes for her and this must be attended to before anything else.
As I went back into the bedroom, drying my tender flesh with a
towel, I gazed upon her lying amid the tangled sheets, her damp
hair spread around her shoulders. She was sleeping now, but for how
long? I dared not leave her alone, because Simew was accustomed to
having the run of the house. If I locked her in my chambers, it was
likely she would awake and then howl at the door until one of the
servants came to her aid. Medoth had keys to my rooms. He would no
doubt be summoned to let the cat out. It had happened before in my
absence. I dared not think about the consequences of that.

In the end, I
woke her with a gentle caress and told her we must go out of the
house and purchase garments for her. As always, she appeared to
understand my every word, although I sensed she was not altogether
pleased with my suggestion. I remembered the occasion when a
previous lover of mine had bought her a jewelled collar, and the
manner in which that gift had later been found shredded under the
dining-table, its expensive gems scattered by playful paws.

I dressed her
in one of my own robes, using sashes to create a suitably fitted
garment. Simew growled a few times as I made her hold out her arms
to assist my adjustments. I bound up her hair as best I could, then
led her from my chambers. Medoth had clearly been lurking nearby,
and now came forward to hear my orders. Without explaining the
presence of the oddly-dressed female at my side, I demanded my
carriage be made ready for a trip to town. Discreet as ever, Medoth
bowed and obeyed my word.

The trip was
not without its awkward moments. The proprietress in the dress shop
we visited seemed to accept my story of a visiting relative having
had an accident with her luggage, but unfortunately Simew was
unable to behave in the way that women usually do while purchasing
clothes. The noises she made, the attempts to bite from her body
the gowns she found most offensive, plunged the staff of the
establishment into silent horror. I laughed nervously and explained
she had an hereditary affliction of the mind. At length, the
proprietress suggested frostily that we take one set of garments
now and that the rest might best be examined and tried on in the
privacy of my home. Someone from the shop would be sent round the
following day. I understood her desire to get rid of us, because
several other customers had already vacated the premises in alarm
at Simew’s behavior. Spilling coins from my purse into the
tight-lipped woman’s hands, I agreed readily with her suggestion
and Simew and I fled the shop. She was dressed now in a simple gown
of soft green fabric, and wore emerald slippers on her feet. The
outing had been a trial, but at least my lover was now dressed.

In the
carriage on our way home, I tried to explain to Simew that it might
be best if she remained silent in the presence of other people.
Clearly, I had a lot of work to do with her regarding etiquette and
good manners.

The story I
concocted for the servants was that Simew was a distant cousin of
mine, who had arrived in the night, having escaped a brutal father.
I could do nothing but provide sanctuary, and indeed had even
extended my services to offering her marriage, so that she would be
forever safe from paternal threat. The servants were all
stony-faced as I told them this story, and it was Medoth who
ventured to tell me my cat was missing. I think he guessed the
truth at once, because Pu-ryah was his goddess, but he did not
voice his suspicions to me.

So the
transformed Simew became part of my household. I decided that once
I had trained her enough to be presentable in company, we would be
married and all of my friends in the city would be invited. To the
servants, I repeated the story that Simew - who I now called Felice
- had been ill, because of the treatment she’d received from her
father. Her mind was slightly damaged, but it could be cured, and
patience and love were the medicines she must receive. Because she
was still essentially Simew, it didn’t take long for the household
to learn to love her. Everyone became conspirators in my plan to
transform this wild girl into a young woman of society. To her, I
think it was all a game. She was playing at being human and thought
it was hilarious to ape our behavior. She learned to laugh, and it
was the most thrilling expression of joy any of us had ever heard.
It brightened every corner of that vast house; she was like an
enchanted light buzzing through its halls and chambers. No-one
could have overlooked her cat-like habits, but they were prepared
to tolerate and then to change them.

The portrait
of Pu-ryah was hung in the main hall, and Simew would often stand
before it, staring into that feline face, as if remembering with
difficulty the days when she had looked the same.

One of the
strangest things about Simew the woman was her incomparable
clumsiness. As a cat, she had always seemed a little heavy on her
feet, and no fragile things had ever been safe in her presence, but
now she seemed unable to enter a room without knocking something
over. At dinner, wine glasses were spilled with regularity, quite
often onto the floor. Medoth arranged that a servant equipped with
a pan and brush was always stationed near the door. We got through
so much glassware and crockery that eventually I bought Simew a set
of her own, crafted from gold. These, she could not break by
accident. It took a while to teach her to eat using cutlery. She
found that these implements simply delayed the consumption of food
and would sometimes lash out and me and growl, when I pointed out a
young lady of breeding would never eat food directly from her plate
without even the agency of fingers. ‘Simew,’ I murmured one night,
with fraying patience. ‘You are here to be my wife. The Lady
herself has arranged it. I’m doing all I can to keep my side of the
bargain, please oblige me by keeping yours.’

Then, she
laughed and shrugged. ‘All right,’ she seemed to say, but there
were still lapses.

Neither could
she take to immersing herself in water to bathe. The shrieks and
clawing that occurred when we tried to enforce it became too much,
and eventually we had to compromise. At morn and eve, her personal
maid would clean her body with a damp sponge. This she tolerated -
just. The maid was often scratched.

It was also
difficult to accept Simew’s gifts, which invariably she brought up
from the cellar or in from the grain store. I would hear her
muffled chirruping as she made her way to my studio, and then she
would fling open the door with a dramatic gesture of her arms. A
mouse, or even a rat, would be hanging from her mouth. It was worse
when they were still alive. Her eyes would be shining and she’d run
to me and drop her prey at my feet. I suppose she expected me to
eat it with gratitude. It took some weeks to rid her of this habit,
and I ached to see the sadness my disapproval conjured in her
eyes.