| abstract
| - "Maaarble!" I flick my ears up as I hear my name called. It's one of my owners. Her name is... well, I don't know her name, but I just call her Hazel. I don't know why, I just think it's a pretty name. I push myself to my paws, feeling more tired than I had when I'd fallen asleep last night. That dream... it was too weird. I feel like I'd seen that cat before, but where could I have? I mean, I've lived with humans my whole life! That black tom looked too scruffy and underfed to be one of my housecat friends. He must be... oh, no! A wild cat!? Why would he be in my dreams? Oh, stars, it's just... I've never seen a wild cat before, oh stars oh starsohstars... "Marble?" Hazel's voice snaps me from my trance, and I let out a meow of joy as she beckons me to sit on the couch next to her. I gracefully leap up to her, then sit and press myself against her, purring. "What's wrong, girl? You looked strange. Did you see a bug?" I let out a long mew. I'm not afraid of bugs! I rub my head against Hazel's hand, then let out a mew of protest as she stands and walks to the kitchen. The sound of my food pellets hitting the bowl rings in my ears, and I leap down from the couch and casually pad into the kitchen, my tail waving. I head right over to the food bowl and start eating. As I eat, I hear Hazel's littermate, whom I call Mumble, trudge into the kitchen, sliding his human-y paws over the ground. I look up at him, let out a muffled mew, then go back to eating. After I finish, I head back into the main room and leap up onto the window sill. I gaze outside in wonder. Is that black cat out there...? ...What am I thinking! He's a wild cat, and I would never come in contact with one! Sure, I love to explore, but coming in contact with a feral cat? That isn't what I look for in an adventure. I leap down from the sill and walk over to the see-through door, pawing at it and letting out loud meows. Mumble walks over and opens the door. Before I can step outside, he picks me up and holds me with both hands under my forelegs. I let out a loud mew, but I'm cut off mid-mew when I feel myself flying through the air. I twist, letting my paws face the ground. I stumble, but other than that I land perfectly. I turn and hiss as I hear the door slam shut. "Such an idiot..." I growl under my breath. Shaking my head, I pad over to the fence and leap up to sit on it. Once I gain balance, I curl my tail around my paws and gaze into the trees. Is that cat out- I need to stop thinking of that! Just explore. Explore... I leap down, landing gracefully. I swiftly pad toward the trees, but a voice stops me. "Marble! Where are you going?" It's my friend, Torri. I turn to face her and mew, "Into the forest! Want to come?" She shakes her head violently, stepping back. "Of course not, Marble! Why are you going in there?" she asks, obviously scared for me. She's a real pain, wanting to protect me all the time. But she's my best friend, so I can easily deal with her. "Torri, it's okay. I've gone into the forest plenty of times!" I reply. "And I came out fine, didn't I?" "Well, yes, but still. What if you see one of those ruffians of the forest?" Torri presses, stepping toward me. "Why do your owners just let you roam around in the flea-infested forest, completely defenseless against those ruffians, maybe even foxes..." She shudders, then gazes at me with her wide, clear blue eyes, almost questioning. "Why don't you just come live with me and my owners? Unlike your obviously uncaring owners, mine keep a watchful eye on me. And I have a special kind of food that they get me, you'd like it-" "Okay, Torri. I get it." I twitch my tail tip in annoyance as I mew, "I'll be fine, alright? Just a few minutes in the forest won't get me killed, now will it?" "Any amount of time in that forest could get you killed!" Torri exclaims. "Ruffians, foxes, badgers... oh, it's all too scary! Why would you want to go out there, anyway?" "Because it's fun and you can't tell me otherwise." I reply, then turn and pad toward the forest. I glance back to see her face, which looks annoyed. I blink, hide a smile, and turn back into the direction of the forest. I breathe in deeply, taking in the scents of the forest. Nothing dangerous here. Torri looked like she wanted to follow me here and drag me back. But she wouldn't do that. I know her well, and I know that she'd never even set her pawtip in the forest, not even for half-a-heartbeat. I step further into the woods, looking around, taking in all the noises of the forest. Birds' wings flapping as they take flight. Squirrels' claws clicking on bark. The crunch of leaves as paws set themselves down on them- Wait, what? My silvery-blue tabby pelt bristles and I take a step back, my eyes darting around. "Wh-who's there?" I call out nervously. I hear a screech, and without thinking, I turn and streak back to my yard. I leap over the fence, barely clearing it, stumble as I land, and claw at the door, wailing in fright. The door opens, and I dart through it into the house. I guess Torri was right.
|
![[RDF Data]](/fct/images/sw-rdf-blue.png)