Their eyes lost color first—turned glassy, unfocused. Their cheeks had collapsed long ago, skin clinging to bone like damp cloth. The room reeked of unwashed bodies, old blood, and the slow rot of something no longer alive but not yet dead.
Once, my keen nose wouldn't be able to take it.
Now, I only watched. Quiet, Still, atop the old wooden table like I belonged there.
She worked slowly, pressing the blade beneath their fingernails, pulling deep, with motion. When they screamed, she smiled with tears.
When the bricks broke their skulls, she didn't flinch. Neither did I. I watched the whole thing, my tail curled neatly around my feet.
For the first time, I felt calm.
Not just safe. Just... calm.
Their blood carried a scent I recognized. Metallic, sour. Like the puddles around my siblings when I found them cold.
Soon it'll smell rotten, like the stench that clung to Mama's body the last time I pressed my nose against her fur, and she didn't lick me.
The girl turned her face toward me. Her cheek was smeared with red. Her eyes weren't crazed now. They gleamed like red moon, also, warm
"Come, honey," she said softly. "Finish this one yourself."
Her voice... I'd heard it before. It felt strangly warm. Long ago, when I was small enough to be cradled.
Maybe I'd always known it could sound like this. Maybe I just never let myself believe, nor did I look at those eyes acknowledging the sincerity.
I leapt down. Didn't understand properly what she was saying, but I could feel it.
The last one was trying to crawl backward, spine scraping against the stone. You can't move with tied, broken bones. His eyes were wet with terror. Not of her.
Of me.
I stood in front of him and yowled—long, sharp, splitting the silence.
Are you afraid of me now? This little, dirty thing that couldn't even be considered a living creature?
I stepped forward, slow, deliberate. Felt the trembling in his breathing with each movement. He whimpered. I tasted the fear in the air. Thick, and bitter.
Then I reach his neck, and bit.
Through skin. Through muscle. Into the pulsing warmth beneath. His blood ran fast. I drank slowly. I wanted to feel every part of it—every echo of joy that once beat in his heart when they took everything from me.
My siblings. My mama. Piece by piece.
Now he would disappear too, along with his family.
I don't know where I was born, or how many siblings I had at the beginning.
I only remember a faint, warm smell and the taste of milk.
When I opened my eyes for the first time, I saw a small space, dark. But my first clear memory started with my mama hissing at a weird, nasty creature that looked like it was trying to hurt us.
Us?
Yes, there was another one beside me. Well, not exactly beside me—more like under me, shaking like a scared little rat.
So... she was my mama's other child, huh? That's what I thought.
She was ugly, with her white fur and olive-colored stain, like a crow trying to pretend it's a peacock.
I didn't have time to think more because the big, nasty creature came running toward us with a long… what was that? A tree?
Later I learned it was called a stick. A terrible thing for cats like us.
Mama said if we ever saw a stick in a human's hand, we should run. Don't think—just run.
And that was the first time I ran.
Ran from the place mama had thought was safe for us.
Mama knew that her daughter—my sister, as she taught me—had no clue how to survive.So she picked up that ugly fluffball in her mouth and ran.
I followed with my tiny legs. I'd never run like that in my whole little life. We ran across piled up boxes, which are called walls and bricks.
But I promised myself—once we stopped, I'd smack that white-furred, unpleasant-looking kitten. Mama should've picked me to save, not her!
Then, suddenly—creak!
Something hit my back hard, like my bones snapped in half.
It hurt so bad I thought I couldn't move anymore.
But the fear of being hit again was scarier than the pain, so I forced my legs to keep going.
I ran and ran until I saw mama inside a bush.She didn't say anything. She just pulled me close into her lap and licked my wound.
Thank the stars I didn't break any bones.
I glared at the little creature drinking mama's milk. I tried to smack her on the head and break her weak skull in half—but mama stopped me.
The first words I ever heard from her were,
"I'm sorry I couldn't protect you. But don't hurt her. You're her brother. I'll protect both of you next time."
Days passed as we kept running from humans. I started to distrust those tall creatures more than anything.
I hated them—from the bottom of my heart.
But something else changed too. I began to feel bad for my dumb little sister. She was so idiotic that I often wondered if she would survive even a minute without me.
She couldn't hunt even an ant while I was chasing flies. I climbed trees while she still freaked out at a buzzing bee.
One thing mama liked about her was that she was calm and always stuck to mama and to me, even though I never asked her to, with admiring eyes, as she should.
Because I was different. I'd even chase those barking sons of bitches. Some of the humans call them 'puppies'.
But to me, they all were just sons of bitches. (Yes, I heard a rough human yelling that, and it actually fits.)
Mama used to sigh and say,
"They were right when they said raising an orange kid is like fighting against the world."
My little sister always looked at me with silly worried eyes… but also admiration.
Six kityear had passed. So, we were six now. Mama once shared a really interesting information that six of our kiyears is just two full moons in human time.
Humans live forever, it seems. I wished I could live long like them too, only if I didn't hate every single thing about them.
They only know violence toward us.
One day, mama brought us near a human house we always stayed close to. She told us to behave.
Then she called someone "Mama."
Mama has a mama?! She must be super old then!
But then… a human girl came out of the house. I immediately stepped in front of my sister, ready to fight.
I told mama to move away from that giant!
But mama didn't move. Not even a little. Was she trying to pick a fight?
The girl laughed like a lunatic and ran straight toward me.
There were trees in the yard, small and big, so I hid behind them.
She didn't hurt me, but she kept trying to touch me. Well, both are the same.
After a long game of hide-and-seek, she gave up and turned to my sister.
That dummy just gave up and shut her eyes tight in fear.
I mewed loudly at mama to help her!
But mama just sat in the corner, licking her paws like it's a laundry time.
I couldn't move—I was too scared.
I could only watch my sister… die?
But then....surprise!
The girl picked up my sister and patted her. She said something in a soft voice, probably meant for mama.
"Ayyoo, are they your babies? My baby's having babies! Did you come here to show them to me?"Her big smile never went away.
After some time, she let my sister go and came toward me again.
But I was clever. I knew what humans were. I didn't let her dirty hands touch me. No way.
Later, I got mad at mama.
I didn't understand how she could trust that creature.
She always taught us to be careful of humans. but now she was rubbing her scent on the girl like she owned her!
I smacked my little sister before licking off the human scent from her. I immediately gagged. (I acted to show my disgust toward the creature of course)
Mama didn't speak for a while. Then she told me a story from before I was born.
"I met this girl 24 kityear ago—just 2 summer in human time.
I was still a kitten, dumb and clumsy like your sister.
I wandered into this place and saw a girl feeding a cat. That cat had shiny ginger fur just like yours and looked so well taken care of… not like me, all dirty, covered in bruises and rough.
But I wanted what she had. I wanted that warmth."
I blinked at mama.
"Humans take in cats?!" I said, shocked.
That can't be true. Not the same humans who beat me when I was tiny. The girl must've ruined mama's mind.
Mama nodded.
"Not all cats are unlucky like us. I thought only pretty and lovely ones got chosen by humans. But the girl saw me and smiled. She called me over with her hand. Well I didn't t understand the weird paw gesture at first.
The cat next to her hissed and tried to attack me—I think she was scared I'd take her place.
I got scared and backed off. Cats with human parents are not to be messed with. I had my lessons before.
But the girl scolded her and gave me a pot of warm milk.
And then… she patted me.
The first kind touch I ever felt."
I still didn't completely believed her. All humans I met were trash. What goddess would just descend from them suddenly? Mama was sure bewitched (I learned it from that girl later, such a heavy word isn't it?) by that creature.
"Then if you believe her, why didn't she take you in?" I raised my point like I was challenging her,
"She had the shiny cat with her. If she really did not go for looks, you would've lived with her. And we wouldn't have to run and hide all the time!"
Mama looked down.
"She couldn't. That cat didn't live inside. She just came for food. This girl's family doesn't allow her to keep any of us. But she still feeds every dog and cat that shows up here."
I frowned at her lame excuse. My point still stood.
Humans are shits.
Even if I stayed cautious, mama and my sister gave in to the girl quickly
.
Sure, she gave us two whole breads that day. But I still didn't trust her.
Maybe she had some evil plan.
From that day we started to go to that house every day at noon.
But I stayed alert.
Prepared to bite her hands off and scratch the shit outta her if she tried anything funny with my family.
After all, I'm the man of the house!