Narrative: Collective Soul WHO: Caitlin Murphy and various NPCs WHEN: Friday afternoon-evening-ish WHERE: An hour before this
Funerals were a time for families to grieve. To send their loved one off into whatever happened to souls after death. A small gathering had come to the funeral home in Camden. Ten people maybe. Some family and maybe a few friends. Caitlin half-listened to the eulogy about the woman that had died. She left behind a few cats that were bequeathed to a family member. She loed crochet and watching reruns of Gunsmoke. One person stepped up to speak, sharing some anecdote about how the woman had said George Clooney was a 'silver fox' and apparently that was supposed to be funny.
Caitlin was on edge. She wanted them to stop talking so she could go forward with the spell. Cat Sìth knew only a little magic. The magic that allowed them to change form, the magic that allowed them to use glamour, and the magic that could help them capture a soul. Because of the spell's longevity, it required a lot of work and patience. It was mixing and incantations and an intricate weave of spellwork. Caitlin had spent almost the entirety of the night in preparation. The only break she had was when she went to the dance prep. She skipped dinner to get back to work.
Now she had to time this all perfectly. The spell preparation was a lot of work, but if she didn't jump at the exact right moment, it was all for nought. It wasn't like Camden residents were dying every other day.
As a friend finished some words, the people moved to the grave sit for the burial and the last rites. Caitlin followed at a distance but drew closer. The longer days meant that sunset was pushed to almost eight in the evening. The mourners would bid farewell to their late friend at the end of the day. They would go home, sleep, and wake up to another day without that person but have the comfort of knowing the person had been laid to rest. They didn't need to know that the woman's soul would never reach the beyond.
The casket lowered into the open grave and finally settled with a clanking sound. The priest then began the last rites. Caitlin began whispering the incantation and her eyes saw the intangible form of the woman's soul detatching from her body. She looked to her friends and family and prepared to leave. Caitlin sat with patience in a nearby tree until it was time.
She hopped down from her perch and then leaped over the grave. Everyone was surprised to see a cat, and the pastor fumbled over the last few words but finished. As he spoke the last word, Caitlin was landing on the other side of the grave. The soul lingering over the gravesite stared at Caitlin who watched as she was literally sucked into the bauble that Caitlin wore attached to a chain she'd slipped around her neck. The soul made no sound. Not even a 'whoosh' from the movement. By the time the mourners said their "amen" it was done.
Caitlin hurried off before anyone could shoo her away or question who the cat may belong to. Her paws made no noise against the cool grass of the evening. When she was out of eyeshot, she changed back into her human form. The chain now sat on her neck like a pendant, the bauble nestled between her collar bones. Her fingers touched it, knowing that within it was her guaranteed resurrection. Caitlin's "get out of jail free" card, so to speak.
She smiled then. A grin that showed off the sharpened canines that were not so vampiric as they were feline. Her green eyes sparkled with delight. Caitlin glanced at her watch and knew she would need to hurry back to get John from the dance. Changing back into a cat, she darted back in the direction of the school.