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// Chapter 3 - Familiar Family Familiars 
// Story: Gray Joy and the Secret Calamity 
// by dakotadugger 
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Gray Joy stepped into the house and was greeted by numerous things all at once. First the Barricade of 2 massive house cats, that barely looked small enough to be called such. One like a large Tiger cub with a slightly golden tinting to his patterns and a perfectly groomed white underbelly. Giving a very happy grin as Gray Joy came into view. As Gray Joy reached out a Hoof The Golden Tiger Cat Rose to meet it sniffing at it eagerly. Raised on his hind-legs the cat almost reached Gray Joy's chin. Chuckling Gray Joy nodded. "Alright, Alright easy Rolly". He said digging into his saddlebag and fishing out an entire roast Fish and handing it to the Massive cat who took it eagerly and devoured it in a flash with an expectant look. "Sorry Buddy Only one fish per cat this time I'm afraid" He almost seemed to pout at this but Gray Had already turned to the other equally massive feline blinking at him slowly. "Hawkeye," he said gently rubbing the large gray tiger-striped beast under his chin. "You've been crying again, haven't you? You poor se-" He tried to say but was cut off by a blur of sleek black fur almost as large as the two tigerlike felines, but this one is the very picture of a miniature panther nuzzling its body against him. "Hello Klinger." he chuckles. Barely managing to slip the melancholy looking gray tiger his fish before being cuddled aggressively into a sitting position by the affectionate little panther. "Easy girl," he said petting her gently and then granting her a fish as well. Which she took eagerly and bounded off with. Giving him the chance to follow behind her flanked by the small tigers. Greeted by one last Feline laying in the hall. The only one who looked the part in terms of size. A white and gray little cat, who looked very sweet grooming herself. Gray grinned at her. "Fuca," He said gently offering her his hoof. She regarded him with a look of recognition but still only sniffed his hoof at first. Then she rolled over onto her back and stretched luxuriously. Smiling he rubbed her belly gently with his hoof and quickly gave her the last fish from his pack. Much to the disbelief of the Golden Tiger at his side. 

"What's taking you so long?" his mother shouted from somewhere that sounded quite far away despite the house being relatively small. 

"I had to give my offerings to the guardians." He replied gently. Hearing distant laughter in return. Proceeding down the hall he quickly reached a 3-way intersection. One way looked like it was a living room. Which is where the tigers split off and wandered into each claiming a space, the golden tiger sprawling on the couch nearly covering half of it, the gray tiger claiming a chair, and the little panther in the window sill stretched out and cleaning herself happily. Fuca moved past him as well, joining the others lounging in the living room. Smiling he turned to look to the other side and see a large Kitchen. With a strange shimmering barrier that seemed to be holding an odd noise inside. And Mops dancing across the floor followed by a line of towels instantly mopping and drying the floor as they went. Making quick work of the floor and then wringing themselves out and zipping over to a closet on the edge of the Kitchen. As they did. A small instrument seemed to slowly lay itself down and the barrier seemed to pop like a bubble. Gray moved into the now free part of the kitchen and turned to see his mother in a different Bubble one near the sink and stove. A trumpet played inside the bubble she stood inside. Where dishes were doing themselves and she was expertly cooking something. Turning around she looked at him and grinned. 

"Don't tell me you forgot what it's like at home?" She said in a muffled voice over very soft distant music, questioning his look. As she carried the skillet she was cooking it right through the barrier and set it carefully down on a special circular pad on the table. "The dishes seem to have developed a taste for the trumpet, but as usual the mops love their gentle harp music" She seemed to shrug, it's a little tough to explain, some of these enchantments are stubborn and set in their ways. While others get a mind of their own. She said putting down a cup of a dark brown liquid for Gray Joy and tapping her hoof on the table as she glared at a large sugar-bowl. That quickly bounced to life, The handles on each side seeming to turn into little arms. As it moved it shouldered a Spoon like a soldier's spear and scurried over to the cup, lifting its lid it started to scoop in spoonfuls of sugar. 

"WHEN! WHEN" he cried out very clearly after only 3 spoonfuls. Leaping back, the sugar-bowl, despite having no eyes or face. Somehow looked offended to be shouted at, with an indignant looking motion, it marched back to its place at the center of the table with the spoon. He glared at the bowl and looked to his mother. "I see the sugar bowl still has an attitude problem" 

She gave him a sheepish grin. "Well you see, he had improved for a while… but then I accidentally put salt in him instead of sugar. He's been a bit bitter ever since." 

Gray Joy suddenly broke into a fit of chuckles. Quickly joined by his mother. The sugar-bowl looked quite indignant. After a moment of laughing together, his mother broke the silence. 

"It's good to have you home again Gray," she said softly as Rolly joined them at the table in his chair. "The babies don't appreciate my sense of humor as you do," she said giving Rolly and affectionate look. "This one seems to be obsessed with f-" her words were cut off by a loud melancholy cry right next to her in another chair where Hawkeye had settled. To the uninitiated, you might think the cat was in great pain from the sound but here he sat completely unharmed looking at Gray and his mother expectantly "And you remember Hawkeye" she said with a sheepish expression. "Yes he is, still quite the drama queen" 

"MAAAAAAAAAOOOOOOWWWW" he cried again. And this time Gray's mother began to stroke his head with a hoof gently petting him. In no time at all, he was moved over onto her lap being cradled like an infant in her hooves. 

"I suppose I spoil them." she said smiling down at the purring feline cradled in her hooves affectionately "But they do keep me company out here. That and more" she said smiling brightly at him. Suppressing a laugh as she noticed that Rolly had claimed Gray's lap and was getting his belly rubbed. Sprawled out on him purring loudly. "Well…" she said looking up as she continued to pet Hawkeye "tell me about this book. The one you found in the library, and about the nightmare." she added with a knowing look at her son. 

Not at all shocked by the fact that she knew he had a nightmare on the way over. He placed his saddlebags up on the table and pulled out the book. Laying it between them so his mother could inspect it. "It's old but I've never heard one of the names written in it, all the others are famous ponies from history except that one strange one," he said softly. 

She stared at the book for a long time, in silence as if her eyes were turning it over and unlocking all its secrets without ever touching it. Finally, the book seemed to jolt a little and she grinned with an excited look in her eyes. "Ohhh this is quite a find my little Gray Joy," she said happily. "This book is enchanted, and it has wardings on it as well. Not simple ones at that. Whoever enchanted this book, they used very powerful ancient magic to do it. The kind of things that even the village elders back in the zebra homeland would only speak of in hushed whispers. Most of it was long forgotten. However" she grinned secretively. "Your mother knows a few tricks" she nodded with an air of confidence. "I can't promise I can break the wardings completely. But I'm confident that I can loosen them enough that something interesting might happen" 

As her voice fell silent, the room was filled with the faint garbled sound of the music playing for the dishes finally ending as the dished loaded themselves back into the cabinet. And loud purring from the cats on Gray and his mother's laps. "So, you're saying. That the book, WILL read itself to you?" he asked softly.

She nodded nuzzling Hawkeyes fuzzy face gently "Yes ~," she said in a melodic tone 
"But not every word. It seems like something is missing, or some parts of it are forbidden. Like whoever enchanted this book, blocked more than just being tampered with magically, the information in this book wasn't meant to be found by just anypony." she said in a rather blunt and clear tone. "Whatever this book is about. Or Whomever." she added "It's clear that it's not meant to be part of -" she made quote gestures with her free hoof "official," she said smiling at Hawkeye "History" 

Gray considered this as he rubbed the purring, incredibly soft, plump belly of the huge cat on his lap examining the information in his mind and turning it over to inspect it thoroughly. "If this is such a secret… why did I find the book, in a public library in Canterlot" 

The book seemed to jolt again on the table making the cats jump and bolt away in surprise. Gray Joy's mother didn't flinch she instead put a hoof on the book and closed her eyes listening carefully. 

"Stolen," said a voice, from the book softly.

"Stolen?" Gray's mother asked softly opening her eyes. "It was stolen," she said softly looking at Gray. "I got a glimpse of somepony. Somepony from olden times. Maybe they wanted everypony to know?" 

“Maybe..” Gray said softly. “But it’s still hard to believe that no pony else ever found it.” he pulled his hooves away from Rolly to reach over and open the cover, pointing to the named ponies on the page. “I mean Starswirl, Clover the clever. Those are ponies that, for most of our lives were only spoken of in Myths and legends right? Most of us didn’t even know Starswirl was real until he returned a few years ago.” he pulls his hoof away. “Why now?” 

"Maybe it's your blood," she said softly. "Surely it was even rarer whenever this book was written. Zebra and ponies breeding with one another. You and your brother, you're not typical ponies. You have different blood from most. Maybe the book was meant to be found by somepony of an exceedingly rare type of blood. One that the book thought might be you?" she mulled the idea over in her mind, letting it linger in the air. "Or perhaps, it was pure coincidence. The book could have been predestined to appear at a certain date, or time. And you just happened to be the lucky Pony who found it?" She grinned at him. "Time traveling literature." She chuckles "You always did have a fascination for time travel in books after all. Maybe that's why it appeared to you. Someone who could appreciate and believe the concept of time travel is possible."

Silence lingered in the air again for a long while. 

Finally his mother moved “Well” she said tapping a hoof and making a figure on the table spring to life and begin to play a small violin, which made the still warm skillet move and a plate slid over to Gray joy. The food began to serve itself to him. “You eat, and I’ll go get some ingredients to crack these wardings a little bit. As well as prepare the back rooms wardings. Can’t crack these without a safety net after all. Who knows what might be contained in that old thing” she added with an excited look back at the strange old book on the table.