[i]She saw. She saw the festivals, with music and laughter dancing with the wind. The priestesses, garbed in red, danced for their goddess as cheers went around. Perfume, ambrosia, and passion clogged the air like a thick sweet smoke. The people, drunk on wine and excitement, felt no sense or emotion save that of pleasure. She saw her father standing tall and strong as his ship sailed across the sky. Behind, emanating fear and hatred and all things evil, the serpent followed with malicious intent. How, everyday, her father would battle to defeat the demon with the aid of her or her siblings. It was her own paws, stained crimson and holding a dagger, that sliced off the creature's head. She saw the cats curled around their young kits or swollen bellies, defending their children from danger. Their hisses at unknown beings, but their welcoming purrs at her presence. They had no masters but themselves as they strutted through the alleyways, and their large two-legged servants served their sacred feline companions. It was their deaths that caused her grief, and their existence that filled her with joy. She saw. But she did not remember.[/i] [hr] The first thing the young woman noticed upon awakening was not the odd instrument by her side or the ramshackle establishment she was currently inside. It was the pain. The pounding ache in her head, as if someone had shoved a knife or two into her skull. Pure throbbing pain. A weak groan slipped out of her mouth as the women forced her dark eyes open. She slowly got to her feet. Her headache screamed against her, though she did her best to ignore it. She leaned heavily against the wall and anxiously ran a hand through her waterfall of black hair. There were too many questions in her mind. What had happened? How did she get here? What was this place? Who was she? The woman slowly looked around, taking in her surroundings. She was in a building. A store, or at least, what used to be one. Broken glass lay shattered on the floor, while empty shelves lined the walls. The puke green wallpaper had begun to peel and rot, revealing the splintering wood behind it. Graffiti speaking out ominous warnings of 'This is the END' and 'ALL WILL DIE' covered the walls. From somewhere in its hole, a rat's corpse had begun to stink up the building. A glimmer on the ground caught her eye. One the ground, nestled among the dust and debris, was a strange golden...thing. It was shaped like a cross with a loop on top, with rods crossing through the rounded area. Though the space around it was littered with dirt, it was pristine and new. [i]Sistrum. It's a sistrum. An instrument.[/i] She didn't know how she knew its name, and a part of her, too enamored with her find, didn't care. As she lifted it, the rods shifted and rattled, and the sistrum began to sing in its hypnotizing tone. It sang with the dances of papyrus reeds. Of whispers told by the wind. Of the river pushing the ship towards home. Of fire as it warmed the home. Of-- "[i]Meow.[/i]" The woman whirled around, snapping out of her daze. She brought a hand to her mouth and stifled a scream of surprise. She clutched the instrument to her chest, eyes darting around rapidly. "[i]Meow.[/i]" She slowly looked down, her shock gradually turning into embarrassed amusement. At her feet, out of all things, was a cat. It stared up at her with sharp golden eyes, its fur matted and torn. The woman let out a nervous laugh and bent down, extending a hand towards the creature. "Hey there," she greeted quietly. "You gave me quite a scare there, buddy." Before her fingers came within an inch of the cat, it turned and darted through the shattered glass door. The woman hurried after, desperate not to lose the first and only sign of life around. She carefully pushed open the door and gazed around, her breath catching in her throat. While the store itself was a mess, the world outside was a disaster. Buildings, once grand and tall, lay fallen in rocky heaps. Cars lay empty and rotting in the streets, and a thick smoky rot tainted the air. The woman walked forward, careful of the chunks of debris that littered the cracked road. "Oh, gods..." she uttered, her grip tightening around the sistrum. She glanced back at the store, her eyes traveling to its sign. [i]Yasmine's Bakery.[/i] Was she Yasmine? The name did seem familiar, but... The woman shook her head and shut her eyes. Yasmine. It was name. It could be hers, it could be not, but it was name. Yasmine...from then on, she was Yasmine. Yasmine turned back to the ruins before her. Her eyes widened in surprise as she saw, in the distance, the cat from before. It perched on top of a jutting piece of concrete. Its eyes narrowed at her and its tail flicked back and forth, as if it was...as ridiculous as it sounds, as if it was waiting for her. With a shaky breath, Yasmine walked away from the store and towards the cat, into a world she barely knew.