Night Club Cat, part seven
I sat down to write this morning... and promptly spilled tea on my keyboard. I think it's dry now, but so is my muse. If I'm going to get any writing done, I better knuckle through, but I'm not sure what should happen right after this chapter.
Night Club Cat, part seven (apologies for not putting a cut in, but cuts have been screwing up my formatting and I haven't got the patience today to fight)
900 words
Key slumped on a park bench. What was he going to do? Dogs ran back and forth through the dog park. Kid’s shrieked and yelled from the playground. Everyone was here with someone except him.
A giant leopard cat jumped on the bench beside him. Key held out his hand. “I haven’t met you before.”
He knew all the cats, domestic and feral, in the neighborhood. He would have remembered this beautiful beast.
The cat sniffed him and climbed in his lap.
“Whoa, beautiful. Watch your feet.”
The cat kneaded his legs and rubbed up against him.
“All right, all right. I’ll pet you.”
The cat’s fur was even softer than it looked. He didn’t have a collar. “Where do you live, beautiful? You have to have a home; you’re so well taken care of.”
The cat sniffed his neck then jumped down. Watching him walk away made Key feel more alone than ever. The cat stopped, turned his head, and blinked. Key got up and followed him. Under the trees, the sounds of playing were muted. They walked on until the cat went off trail. Key stopped. This “path” led to where he kept his backpack.
The cat blinked at him again. Key did his best to follow. The path was much more difficult with his greater height and lesser coordination. Human bodies were weird.
Or did he only think that because he’d spent most his life as a cat?
In the small clearing by Key’s favorite tree, the cat sniffed about, turned three times, and blinked. Then Sexy was standing in the cat’s place in all his naked glory.
Key fell to his knees. Sexy knelt in front of him. “I can’t say I’ve ever had that reaction before.”
“No?” Key looked him down. Anything was better than thinking.
Sexy laughed. He laid his head on Key’s shoulder. “You’re not alone.”
Key choked up. He couldn’t breathe.
“There are many of us. I want you to meet my fathers, siblings, and all their kids.”
Key wiped his nose. A thought stuck in his throat. He swallowed hard. “Not all… people who turn into cats are related to you?”
Sexy laughed. “No. Familiars got their abilities many different way, just like wizards did.”
Key blinked at him.
“Sorry, not ready for that yet I gather. Not all blue eyed people are related. Or all red headed people.”
Okay. “You came here to find me.”
“My team and I split up. They went to research the past of a family of familiars that disappeared in the area twenty years ago. I’m here to look around. I recognized you as a familiar the first time I saw you. I’m not even sure you’re related to the family.” Sexy took Key’s hand. “But here you are, a familiar who doesn’t know who he is.”
Key pulled his hand away. “You had to help.”
“It wasn’t a hardship.” Sexy’s body was much too close. And he was as perfect as Key had imagined. Change of subject. “Was the family Cziske? My caseworker said I was found in a blanket with key chain with that word on it.”
“Sis-key?”
“C-Z-I-S-K-E. I learned early that that meant me. It was on the folders with my stuff inside.”
“The Marlows say you were given the name Christopher, but that you didn’t respond to it.”
“They called me Kit?”
“That seemed to fit you. You were always kitten like.” Sexy grinned. “And you responded to Kit at least as often as a cat would.”
Key hung his head.
“I’m one of thirteen, so I pretty much respond to any of their names as well as my own.”
“Thirteen!”
“It was going to be three batches of three, except my oldest sister decided to be born, so the middle batch was four, then my grandmother, who studies fertility, figured out how to get three or more parents genes into a baby without invasive treatments. So of course my fathers had to try it, and familiars don’t do well in litters of one.”
“Your family’s weird.”
Sexy nodded. “But thirteen isn’t that big of family where I’m from.”
“Without invasive treatments?” What a funny thing to get caught up on. “Wouldn’t all of you be? What woman would want to carry three?”
“Dad and Papa carried us. Males familiars carry the kittens as often as the female.” Sexy frowned. “Maybe more, since we seem to have more sons than daughters.”
A baby inside Key’s belly? “Weird.”
“As weird as this?” Sexy turned back into the cat.
Key squinted. “You’re that cat who joined me the other night.”
Sexy rubbed up against him.
“If thirteen is normal, how many is a lot?”
“I know a couple who had five for their first litter, six for their second and have had about a dozen kids under five for… as long as I can remember.”
Key put a hand on his gut. “We aren’t going to do that.”
Sexy licked his paw. “Grandma told us the trick to keep it three or under.”
“What about just one?” How did anyone take care of infant twins, let alone six?
Sexy froze. “It isn’t good for familiars to be alone.”
“Like I am?”
“Like you were.” Sexy pushed Key, not just over but in a way that made him want to turn cat. Key squirmed out of his clothes. Sexy groomed him. Being with another cat person, familiar or whatever, was the best feeling on earth.
Night Club Cat, part seven (apologies for not putting a cut in, but cuts have been screwing up my formatting and I haven't got the patience today to fight)
900 words
Key slumped on a park bench. What was he going to do? Dogs ran back and forth through the dog park. Kid’s shrieked and yelled from the playground. Everyone was here with someone except him.
A giant leopard cat jumped on the bench beside him. Key held out his hand. “I haven’t met you before.”
He knew all the cats, domestic and feral, in the neighborhood. He would have remembered this beautiful beast.
The cat sniffed him and climbed in his lap.
“Whoa, beautiful. Watch your feet.”
The cat kneaded his legs and rubbed up against him.
“All right, all right. I’ll pet you.”
The cat’s fur was even softer than it looked. He didn’t have a collar. “Where do you live, beautiful? You have to have a home; you’re so well taken care of.”
The cat sniffed his neck then jumped down. Watching him walk away made Key feel more alone than ever. The cat stopped, turned his head, and blinked. Key got up and followed him. Under the trees, the sounds of playing were muted. They walked on until the cat went off trail. Key stopped. This “path” led to where he kept his backpack.
The cat blinked at him again. Key did his best to follow. The path was much more difficult with his greater height and lesser coordination. Human bodies were weird.
Or did he only think that because he’d spent most his life as a cat?
In the small clearing by Key’s favorite tree, the cat sniffed about, turned three times, and blinked. Then Sexy was standing in the cat’s place in all his naked glory.
Key fell to his knees. Sexy knelt in front of him. “I can’t say I’ve ever had that reaction before.”
“No?” Key looked him down. Anything was better than thinking.
Sexy laughed. He laid his head on Key’s shoulder. “You’re not alone.”
Key choked up. He couldn’t breathe.
“There are many of us. I want you to meet my fathers, siblings, and all their kids.”
Key wiped his nose. A thought stuck in his throat. He swallowed hard. “Not all… people who turn into cats are related to you?”
Sexy laughed. “No. Familiars got their abilities many different way, just like wizards did.”
Key blinked at him.
“Sorry, not ready for that yet I gather. Not all blue eyed people are related. Or all red headed people.”
Okay. “You came here to find me.”
“My team and I split up. They went to research the past of a family of familiars that disappeared in the area twenty years ago. I’m here to look around. I recognized you as a familiar the first time I saw you. I’m not even sure you’re related to the family.” Sexy took Key’s hand. “But here you are, a familiar who doesn’t know who he is.”
Key pulled his hand away. “You had to help.”
“It wasn’t a hardship.” Sexy’s body was much too close. And he was as perfect as Key had imagined. Change of subject. “Was the family Cziske? My caseworker said I was found in a blanket with key chain with that word on it.”
“Sis-key?”
“C-Z-I-S-K-E. I learned early that that meant me. It was on the folders with my stuff inside.”
“The Marlows say you were given the name Christopher, but that you didn’t respond to it.”
“They called me Kit?”
“That seemed to fit you. You were always kitten like.” Sexy grinned. “And you responded to Kit at least as often as a cat would.”
Key hung his head.
“I’m one of thirteen, so I pretty much respond to any of their names as well as my own.”
“Thirteen!”
“It was going to be three batches of three, except my oldest sister decided to be born, so the middle batch was four, then my grandmother, who studies fertility, figured out how to get three or more parents genes into a baby without invasive treatments. So of course my fathers had to try it, and familiars don’t do well in litters of one.”
“Your family’s weird.”
Sexy nodded. “But thirteen isn’t that big of family where I’m from.”
“Without invasive treatments?” What a funny thing to get caught up on. “Wouldn’t all of you be? What woman would want to carry three?”
“Dad and Papa carried us. Males familiars carry the kittens as often as the female.” Sexy frowned. “Maybe more, since we seem to have more sons than daughters.”
A baby inside Key’s belly? “Weird.”
“As weird as this?” Sexy turned back into the cat.
Key squinted. “You’re that cat who joined me the other night.”
Sexy rubbed up against him.
“If thirteen is normal, how many is a lot?”
“I know a couple who had five for their first litter, six for their second and have had about a dozen kids under five for… as long as I can remember.”
Key put a hand on his gut. “We aren’t going to do that.”
Sexy licked his paw. “Grandma told us the trick to keep it three or under.”
“What about just one?” How did anyone take care of infant twins, let alone six?
Sexy froze. “It isn’t good for familiars to be alone.”
“Like I am?”
“Like you were.” Sexy pushed Key, not just over but in a way that made him want to turn cat. Key squirmed out of his clothes. Sexy groomed him. Being with another cat person, familiar or whatever, was the best feeling on earth.