[ IP ] Said the Stars

They called it the Cat Scratch. It happened every year, same night, same hour. There would be a strange smell in the air -- iron and marsh burning -- then the sky would shimmer. 
 
 Some people thought the veils between heaven and earth were melting. Some people believed it was the atmosphere correcting itself. But the Cat Scratch always returned. At 8:30PM exactly, on January 13th, three long, purple streaks would appear. 
 
 There were other names for them. In Japan, they were called the San'ninshimai ( three sisters. ) In Italian, they called them the Santa Trinità. Germany, ever the blunt creatures, called it simply `` drei Linien in den Himmel'' or *Three lines in the sky.'' 
 
 Errol has his own name for the lines, one he never told anyone else. He called them the Purple Dancers. The light would twist in the sky, then stream outwards. While they did look like bloodless wounds from an eager cat, it was the first instance of their appearance that Errol looked for. 
 
 Tonight the Dancers had come out brighter than ever. The hot air, a side effect of the glittering sky, seemed to press around him. `` It is nice to see you,'' he said. `` Thanks for coming to see us again.'' 
 
 There was a strange rumbling, unbroken for about five minutes. Errol fell to the ground letting his bike get lost in the tall grass. The earth did not move, but the Dancers were gone. In their place was a large, purple hole. 
 
 Errol began to scream.
