It was the following morning. Sylvie and Kat were completely ready to leave for their trip, wherever it was exactly Callisto was taking them. Sylvie had donned a dress with some longer sleeves and a large sun hat to keep her skin safe from the sun.
Kat was wearing her usual, which meant her kimono of course, as the only thing she was capable of wearing at the moment. Lily had yet to arrive and Callisto had gone off to find her. Kat was currently making herself busy by loading several boxes of Callisto's into the car
*I wonder what she's prepared so much for? These boxes aren't light at all, and I can't really figure out what she'd need so many for.* Kat was now on the third box. They were about half a metre cubed, but there was six of them.
As Kat slotted the third box into the boot, she realised that Callisto must have these boxes made specially to fit her car. They fit the length perfectly and Kat was now sure that the other three would just barely fit in the other half of the boot.
Sylvie was sitting around on an old desk in the garage swinging her feet and being patient. She was careful not to get into Kat's way, even though with Kat's enhanced strength the boxes weren't much of a concern.
The girls turned when they heard the garage door open. As it climbed up it revealed a very strange looking Lily who was acting like she'd seen the end times. She had a long dress like Sylvie, however it had short sleeves. To compensate, Lily had a coat instead, but looked to be a little uncomfortable as she was.
Kat smiled and waved with her tail as she deposited the next box into the car. "Hi Lily"
Lily walked past Kat with the barest nod and sat down next to Sylvie with a thousand-yard stare. Sylvie waved her hand in front of Lily a few times but got no response. "Kat… Lily seems to be a bit broken"
Kat placed the fifth box in the car before walking over to her friend "Hey are you… alright?"
Lily's gaze turned to Kat but still said nothing. Kat poked her friend in the cheek with her tail and finally got a small laugh. "Ok seriously what is going on Lily" said Kat
"Um… well… So, you know how I was a bit late?" asked Lily
Kat nodded
"Yeah well, my parents didn't really want me to go… that is until Callisto showed up…" said Lily
"Why do you say that like the end times are coming?" asked Kat
"Well, ah, Callisto just started to talk to them… in that way she does and eventually they started sweating, and then she shooed me out the door, and just kept going, in that calm quiet voice that tells you she knows exactly what she's doing" said Lily
"Well of course that would be because I am entirely cognisant of exactly what I'm doing" said Callisto stepping into the garage "Her parents were simply under a strange misconception about their daughters work ethic that I managed to correct them on"
"Yup" said Lily "That's about right"
"Right…" said Kat still somewhat confused, as she ducked over to grab the last box and loaded it into the care before shutting the boot.
"Thank you, Kat, for packing those boxes for me. I lack the required strength to do so as efficiently as you have managed. It seems that you have gained more than a few additional features" said Callisto as she stepped into the car.
The others piled into the car. Lily took the front, and Kat took the back with Sylvie on her lap. There was the consideration for Sylvie to sit on the chairs next to Kat, but it was decided with the space Kat's wings took up and her inherent strength, Sylvie would be safer sitting with Kat under her seatbelt and tail.
As they headed out of the town Sylvie spoke up "So where exactly are we going Callisto? We are heading somewhat towards the forest, but most of what is out this way is large properties"
Callisto nodded from her position in the driver's seat "That's is an astute observation Sylvie and you are most of the way to the answer. I have a… business partner I suppose that happens to own a large section of land most of which is forested area. I use it for testing some of the more volatile creations of mine and so I simply said I was running some tests
"We will be heading towards a particular forest clearing. If I had my ideal circumstances, I'd travel slightly further than the care would allow, but sadly we are not equipped to transport my equipment any further along the road so the first clearing will have to do
"We shouldn't be interrupted but you never know. If we run into issues, I'll deal with it somehow. I have a track record for a number of things so if I can come up with something suitably unbelievable, they are quite likely to accept my word in regards to what is happening"
"Wait unbelievable?" asked Lily who had recovered during the ride… mostly
"Of course. They seem to think that I am missing a substantial number of the screws that keep my head in place. If I was to give them too reasonable of an answer, they'd think I was trying to hide something, which in this case happens to be completely true" said Callisto
*Callisto… should you be admitting people think you are crazy?*
"Well of course I should. It makes interaction with a multitude of people simpler, and it is much easier to tell when speaking will be worth your time" said Callisto
"Wait did I say that out loud?" asked Kat
Callisto shook her head "No not at all, but Vivian's friends had a habit of asking such questions and I got used to the particular facial expression"
Kat nodded. "Does Vivian have a lot of other friends?" asked Sylvie
Callisto seemed to consider this for a while. "Well… I suppose that depends on what exactly you mean by that Sylvie. I know Vivian keeps in contact with a far greater number of people then I myself do, and I also know that she would say that they are friends…
"But I'm not sure you can truly consider them as such. They are not as close knit as Vivian and I or you three are to each other. I'd label them as mere acquaintances, but I also know Vivian would go much farther for an acquaintance than I think she should"
Callisto turned off the main road at this point and started across what looked to simply be a random field. There were some boarder lines marking the property but no fence, and the only sign she was going the right way was the faint traces of other passing vehicles.
"Is that bad?" asked Sylvie
Callisto considered the question for some time as the car continued onwards. *I'm… not sure. I'll let Callisto handle this one because it is a hard question.*
"I'm not sure I truly know Sylvie" Callisto finally voiced after five minutes of silence "See, I'm sure that she is happy with the arrangement and considers there to be no issues at all. I however do not believe that many of them would return Vivian's favour in full, or in part
"The thing is, Vivian is happy to give of herself. Her time and energy. She has a larger amount of these things than most, and it only seems to bring her more joy, and encouragement to spread that to others
"I am not capable of that. While I hate to sound transactional… I could not consider someone a friend unless they are willing to do as much for me as I am for them, and I only truly trust Vivian to return my assistance in full.
"Perhaps this is a crude example, but it is the best I can think of. Say someone asks you to help build a shed. If you do not know them, you would ask for payment. If you know them somewhat, you might ask for lunch. If you are true friends, the other person would simple turn up knowing there is a shed to be built and that extra hands are appreciated.
"I trust that if I needed help Vivian would appear beside me, and I hope she understands I would do the same without question… but I do not trust any others to do the same" said Callisto
"Not even me?" asked Sylvie with a pout on her face.
Callisto froze. The car started to slow without her foot on the pedal until they pulled to a stop. "Callisto?" asked Sylvie
"Hmm… perhaps I understand a bit of Vivian after all" said Callisto as she drove off once again.