Short story 1: The cat

First short story rambling. It features the life of a white cat in a fantasy-esque world.

Short story 1: The cat

 

Once, there was a modest little cat.

It lived in a grandiose, poverty-free kingdom. Streets were bustling with every race and species imaginable. At every corner you could see a smile brought to face by interspecies interactions; the orcs, dragons, and ents were the physical power that lifted boulders and logs with ease; the elves, angels, spirits and even slimes were manifesting the magical nature through libraries, rituals and inscribement; the demons, youkai, dark elves and shamans treaded through misfortune in order to control it, to help in prosperity; the beast-people, humans, demi-humans, cyclops and even the undead filled in where innovation and initiative was needed, providing the last touch.

Yet the cat didn’t fit in.

“All these species, so special…” , the cat thought to itself.

Even though the cat has never stepped outside its decrepit cardboard box, it prefers it more rather than risk the unknown.

“What if they don’t accept me?”

“I’m not particularly good at anything, I’ll just waste space and food…”

The cat was clearly anxious about its position, and had a hard time deciding what to do.

 

Sometimes a kind soul would pass by the dark alley that the cat resides in, leaving a small treat for the feline. Kids would get excited and want to play, but the cat would hide away. When rain came, an elderly orc would leave an umbrella over the box. When snow came, the shaman would leave their furred coat. When a harsh summer came, young lady elves would cast a protection spell on the cat.

These acts of kindness seem miniscule in the perspective of the initiator, but to the cat, it meant everything.

 

The cat managed to live years and years even if it never left its home. The cat was content with leading such a life. Prospering from the kindness of others. Maybe even deliberately forcing its misfortune in order to experience the kind.

The cat would often play the victim of diverse happenings. Exaggerating small changes of weather; Meowing non-stop for attention; Faking a limping walk for sympathy; Picking fights just to get injured and ask for care.

The more the cat victimized itself, the less people went out of their way to help it.

 

That same elderly orc never came near the alley; The kids went crazy and vandalized its box; The shaman would pray for the cat; The young elves would scoff and walk away.

Suddenly, the cat found itself to be alone.

It did not understand why.

Why is it that natural misfortune is different from victimized misfortune?

People shouldn’t be able to tell them apart, right?

Doesn’t kindness overcome the critical thinking in the face of a sad being?

Isn’t seeing a pathetic soul supposed to fill someone with sympathy and guilt, and force them to act kind just to not be seen as an apathic person?

 

But no.

The cat experienced it firsthand.

People can feel the difference between authenticity and counterfeit.

And so, the cat was left alone yet again.

A cold night had passed.

And another one.

And another…

 

Until it became unbearable.

Everything just hurt too much. Hunger, thirst, insomnia, wounds, sickness, headaches, stress, anxiety, fear, guilt. The cat couldn’t function under such circumstances. Sooner or later, it would perish.

The feline had two choices.

The first was to accept fate, conform to the supposedly destiny-driven life and crumble under everything, and the second was to leave home.

Home was where it felt comfortable. Where there were no dangers, no threats, no possibility of being out of place.

But when home is filled with negative elements, is it really home?

That same place that is supposed to give you peace, the haven of life, if it no longer does, what do you do?

 

The cat has decided.

 

It took its one wrinkly and wet paw, and stepped into the ray of light, revealing its white, shiny fur.

Being in darkness all its life, it was not conscious of its own beauty.

The feline took steady steps towards the street, determined to meet reality head on. Its heart was pounding harder than ever, its legs weak and mind rushing with thoughts. It did not know what to expect. Bad people? Good People? Threats and fear? Happiness and kindness?

 

Well, when the streets came in view, the felines eyes widened.

In one corner, a dark elf was spotted pickpocketing a couple of goblins near a fruit stand; In another, an angel was reciting stories to kids of different races surrounding her; A skeleton barely dodging the fury of an orc’s log handling; A cat-lady singing and playing the ukulele in an open bar; A group of human kids of a school taking turns interviewing a dragon-kind;

The cat shook its head, mesmerized by the richness of culture.

The answer is everything.

Reality is filled to the brim with everything imaginable to our minds.

You only have to step into it. To allow yourself to see the world. Only then can you enjoy its beauty.

The cat maneuvered through countless people and arrived at a rustic, two-storied wooden structure. The gates didn’t bother it, and inside was beautiful.

 

The overall aesthetic of this structure is dark colors, lots of old vanity stuff, and simplistic design.

Towards the back-right corner was where the bar stood, an island counter that surrounded the bar itself at about 60% the full circle, and half the back wall designated to wines. Right next to the bar, to its left, is a spiral staircase to the second floor that was separated into three separate stairs, each leading to a different corner of the next floor.

The entire left side of the first floor was filled with tables and chairs of various sizes, from halflings size to dragon-kind size, and in the middle was a giant common round table where most of the events were held, mostly in the name of someone famous.

 

The cat was stunned at what it saw, mostly because it was empty.

There was not a single soul there.

Its mind was prepared to see hundreds of people, yet there was nothing.

The feline carefully made it way towards the next floor, but it was the same.

Disappointed, it walked towards the balcony and jumped on the rail.

Looking at the city, it is undeniably glamorous.

Yet, there was an ache in its heart.

You see, beauty can’t compensate the inside of us.

Sure, it alleviates our worries, in the grand scheme of things, we can ignore everything else for a bit and enjoy ourselves, but at the end of the day, you are still alone.

And the cat felt the same, seeing how none of its species seems to exist anymore.

It saw no animals, so maybe the cats also aren’t here anymore.

 

Being the last of your kind is hard to process, stumped in how to proceed: you can’t copulate, and by being normal, you can’t leave anything of value for future generations.

Your existence is essentially meaningless.

But the cat heard rustling behind him.

Underneath some drapery and boxes in a corner, a fluffy black cat reveals itself.

 

Its tail is so much bigger and fluffier compared to the cat’s straight and round tail, and their ears are sharper.

The cat was stunned. Its eyes locked on them. It couldn’t process anything, until the black cat was on the railing next to him.

The black feline just looked at the street, and the white cat soon turned to do the same.

 

It was not alone after all!

 

But there was awkward tension between them.

You’re the same species, but you still don’t know each other. How do you approach the other person? What is the right impression to give? What if you mess up and get abandoned again? You don’t want to seem out of place.

All of these worries are counters to our authenticity. The desire to survive surpasses our true self, which in turn hurts us in the long run. Survival is dictated by acceptance in this day and age, and not fitting in is essentially being cut off.

 

“H-hey, the w-weather is nice today, huh?”, said the white cat.

A weak attempt at a common subject. Very awkward to follow up.

“Mhm”, mumbled the black cat.

An uninterested response, but still acknowledged the cat.

“So, are you alone here?”, asked the white cat.

“…”, the black cat was silent.

This either indicates total disinterest or waiting for additional input.

“Do you feel… like you’re not a part of this world?”, asked the white cat.

The black cat peaked and tilted their head at the white cat.

“I-I mean I… ummm… forget it.”, shyed the white cat.

“Sometimes…”, replied the black cat.

Their voice was soft and echo-ey.

“Sometimes?”, inquires the white cat.

By repeating the last word of someone’s sentence, you actively seem to be interested in listening.

“In such a big city, the people can help me forget how truly alone I am. The parties, holidays, and general ruckus are loud enough to stop myself from thinking. Yet, I myself can’t achieve that. I also can’t offer that to someone else. In such sense, I don’t have anyone special to share this world with…”, rants the black cat.

“I get it…”, says the white cat.

“You do?”, asks the black cat.

“Kind of. Whenever I was met with kindness from others, it temporarily stopped myself from feeling bad. As if I deserved those things. I learned to keep waiting for people to help me alleviate some shortcomings, as I couldn’t care for myself. But in the end, if I myself can’t do that, as alone as I am, I’ll just perish.”

 

A moment of silence fills the air.

Night came a few minutes ago, and now the sky is full of bright stars.

“Funny, how destiny brings two such souls together”, remarks the black cat.

“Haha yeah… “, mumbles the white cat.

Both of them got closer together, and pressed their heads together, side by side.

“The moon is beautiful tonight, huh?” says the b w l h a i c t k e cat.

 

And so, the cat found someone special to him.

In a world where you think you’re alone, where no one can match you, there is always that one exception, which can be found only by exploring.

The cat’s story doesn’t end here, but the night does.

And sleep is part of every cat’s lifestyle.

 

Good night fellas.

 

Author's Note

Heyoo, this is just me rambling about fiction and life haha. I just wanted to write something, so sorry if its not up to standard! I do enjoy feedback though :D

Reviews

[Ern M. Yoshimoto]

it's a sweet little parable about putting yourself out there. i found myself rooting for the cat. i am not like that any more, but when i was a kid i was certainly afraid of stepping out of the shadow. when i finally did, i discovered all sorts of things, both beauty and chaos. i could relive years worth of memories in this short piece. and the bits featuring elves and goblins are also cool.

[Tailed Ray]

Thank you so much! I am glad you felt at peace with my creation. I am happy for you having overcome such hard times!