The Magician Boy’s Cat

The magician boy, new to his trade
Noticed one day the stray cat who everywhere laid
She was chasing a mouse who; skidding to a stop on the marble floor;
the rodent then clambered up the doors

Deciding to try a different trick- one just learned
The magician chanted sounds from his book and used his orb, careful not to get burned
Stumbling over only a few words, he was able to change reality by letting the cat rise

The cat, looking at first in awe and then in surprise
The book rose too, neither about to fall
While the mouse stared, not knowing what to think of it all

She sprouted wings, a fine pair of yellow tipped in black
They waved, raising her higher never slacking
The cat mastered herself and flew into heights
Never dreamt of and saw many sights

Playing with his spell some more the boy added colors to the wings,
A little red and more of green
with dashes of purple in- between

He did this trying different colors until a higher authority came and snapped
“Stop giving the cat wings.
What use would they be for such as she? Next the boy will try to make it sing”

But try as he did, the boy couldn’t remove the feathers
Whatever spell he tried the cat never was better
Instead he kept his new pet, trying to get rid of the wings- but they would only change
colors until he was told to let the cat be
And so there now is no other feline with a finer set of wings than the magician boy’s cat

Kristin Roahrig is a graduate of St. Mary-of-the-Woods College. Her poetry and short stories have appeared in various publications. She is also the author of several plays and lives in Indiana.

Find more by Kristin Roahrig in the Author Index.

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