The Cat's Tail

Chapter 42 - Mechanics

Last night, when Callisto figured out that the trigger to her ability was simply to have the desire or need to finish a task or achieve her goal, Callisto immediately thought about how to properly use her golden eyes.

She wanted to learn how to use it to her advantage rather than it causing her problems just like with the durian fruit.

Through her own observations and testing that made her sleep very late last night, Callisto learned that she could manipulate the sensitivity of her senses while in her golden eye state.

Basically, Callisto could suppress all of her senses or elevate the sensitivity of one of them at will.

And that wasn't the only thing she learned.

Callisto pulled a pebble out of her hoodie's pocket. She found it on her way home and was big enough to cover the palm of her hand.

"..."

Before anything else, Callisto looked at the spot on the wall she tried to make a dent with her hand, reminding herself of how she wasn't able to even make a crack on it despite having her eyes turned golden.

Then, her gaze returned to the pebble in her hand.

Callisto clenched her hand on it with the intention of breaking the pebble into tiny pieces.

Crackle! Crackle!

The crisp sound a result of the gradually increasing pressure being put on the pebble. Before long...

Crush!

The sound of the pebble getting crushed echoed in the apartment. Tiny grains of the small rock slipped between Callisto's fingers.

She opened her hand and found the pebble almost turned into a tiny patch of sand. Some of them already landed on the floor.

"I need to clean this up."

Callisto went to the corner of her apartment where the small trash bin was, threw the remaining pebble pieces lingering on the palm of her hand into it and grabbed the broom and dustpan sitting right next to it.

While sweeping the floor where the rest of the pebble fell, a cold sweat ran down Callisto's cheek.

Just like with her senses, Callisto could also manipulate her strength while in her golden eye state at will.

Callisto was also well aware that her reflexes and speed were enhanced by her golden eyes. That, and she could also manipulate her speed at will.

It was all thanks to Macaron falling from the tree branch that she realized it.

However, she haven't really found an opportunity to truly test out her speed and reflexes because Raymond hired someone to always keep an eye on her.

She looked at the closed window as she heightened her sense of smell just enough to pick up the already familiar scent of the man trying to observe her every move.

He was out there.

The man usually retires at 9:00PM and comes back early in the morning.

Sneaking out at midnight wouldn't help her either as there were CCTVs planted around Oner's apartment building that could catch anyone sneaking around the premises.

If Callisto were to do something suspicious and out of the ordinary, she was sure as hell that her father would hear of it in no time, resulting to her being jailed in the hospital again.

"I don't want it," Callisto palmed her face with both hands as she sat at the dinner table, her voice filled with horror. "I don't wanna go through that ever again."

Though she declared that, it was with a heavy heart. Callisto knew damn well what needed to be done if things became a lot problematic with her newfound ability.

After all, she did not live just to cause her parents and everyone around her trouble.

Callisto uncovered her face, her gaze lingered at the palm of her hands. "If things do get problematic because of it, I'll do what I have to do. But right now, there's no need to worry, right?"

Callisto stood up, searching for something. She found what she was looking for under the pillow on her small sofa.

A stress ball.

She plunged on top of the sofa, her hands playing with the stress ball.

"I know how to trigger and use my power now, although I don't think I've already seen the full extent of it. It has to have some kind of a downside that I still don't know about. I need to figure it out. Soon."

The golden glow in her eyes finally disappeared as her hands fidgeted with the stress ball. Her gaze zeroed in on the ceiling, seemingly in the middle of thought.

"I guess I'll visit Papa, after all."

* * *

Another day, another shift that was almost over for Callisto.

"That will be 145 pesos," Callisto packed the customer's purchases for her.

She accepted the payment of an exact amount and gave the purchases to the customer. "Thank you. Come back soon!"

From the other counter next to her, Hinata just finished tending to his own customer. "Patricia and the others are already here, so you can go ahead if you want."

"Huh? Are you sure?"

Hinata beamed a reassuring smile at her. "Yeah. Good work today, Callisto."

Callisto's expression brightened at the young man's words. "Thank you!"

On the way to the girls' dressing room, she found Patricia and Josephine at the lounge area chatting with one another.

They were already in their store crew uniform, just waiting for their own shift to start.

"Heya, Josephine, Patricia."

Patricia was the quick one to respond with her usual bubbly vibe. "Heya, Calli!"

On the other hand, Josephine was the one who noticed Callisto being there ahead of her shift. "Hey, is something up?"

"Oh, it's nothing," Callisto replied. "I'm just going to visit father in Manila."

"I see," said Josephine, a relieved expression on her face. "Be careful out there. I won't be with you if another durian fruit comes your way."

A soft chuckle escaped Callisto's lips. "Thank you. I will."

* * *

Back to her usual oversized hoodie and attire that paired with it, Callisto left the convenience store.

Just as she was about to head out for the Mt. Tierra jeepney terminal, a woman's voice called out to her.

"Leaving already?" Selly appeared behind the young lady, her usual commanding voice making Callisto's cat ears jolt.

"Boss," Callisto turned to face Selly, noticing the look of concern on her face. "What's the matter?"

"Not me. What's the matter with you?"

"Huh?"

"Don't play dumb with me, Callisto," Selly leaned closer, her sharp eyes bore into the young lady's as if she could see through her. "What's on your mind? Can't you tell me?"

Callisto fidgeted at the hem of her hoodie, her eyes avoiding her boss's gaze. "Nothing."

"Really?"

Callisto nodded at her boss. "Yes."

"Well, you're gonna talk to your father about whatever it is your concerned about, right? So I'll let it slide for now."

An internal sigh left Callisto.

"But," Selly continued. "If you want to let something out of your chest, I'm always open to listen. Feel free to contact me or visit my office."

A fond expression was etched on Callisto's face. "Thank you, Aunt Selly."

"It's boss," Selly reminded, her gaze stern.

Despite the strong and commanding presence she was giving off, Selly has a soft side which Callisto appreciate.

"Yes, Boss. See you tomorrow."

"See you."

. . .

While this was happening, a white car was on an open road, making its way to the district of Silangan.

The driver was none other than Adela, who just visited Leona's grave.

A mix of nervousness, anticipation, and longing was clear in her eyes. At this very moment, there was only one person in her mind.

Callisto.