< A Cat Adopted into a Wolf Family? >
< Episode 1 >
"I don't need thieving cats stealing food in my territory. Throw them outside the walls."
A cold, mocking voice rang out from above. I knelt, desperately rubbing my palms together as I pleaded.
"Lord Jerian, please... Just this once. My mother was only hungry..."
"Silence, Kitia. I spared your life solely because your mother begged me."
"Lord Jerian!"
"If you value your life, never appear before me again!"
The moment Jerian's icy command echoed through the warehouse, his minions hauled me up. My unconscious mother lay limp on the floor, dragged out like discarded cargo. Her magic had faded, leaving her human form dissolved—her body and tail hung lifelessly.
I trailed them, voice cracking with urgency. "Please, sirs! Be careful—she’s carrying..."
"Quiet, Kitia. Your mother’s finished. Should’ve known better than to steal from Lord Jerian’s stores."
They lifted me effortlessly, as though my starved frame weighed nothing. "Please..." Hot tears spilled down my cheeks, but they hurled me outward without mercy.
Thud!
My back slammed into the earth. Blood filled my mouth—a broken tooth clattered to the ground when I spat. My skull throbbed as if struck by a carriage, but I clenched my fists. Losing consciousness now would doom me. At six years old in human form, I might still catch her. As a cat? Never.
"Mom!"
I scrambled upright just as her body tumbled from the warehouse. The drop wasn’t fatal, but her starved weight felt alarmingly light in my arms. On that bone-chilling night, moss crackling underfoot, we were cast out from feline territory.
"Mom..." I whispered, crouching in the grass to stroke her matted fur as she’d once comforted me. No response came. Fear swelled like the encroaching darkness.
Shifting into my gray-and-white cat form, I frantically licked her cheek. A faint breath escaped her.
"Kit... my soft-paw..."
"Mom!"
"Forgive me... You too..." She rasped.
I shook my head, words slurring through broken teeth. "No! You had to feed the kittens. But..." My gaze dropped to the blood staining her tail. Even a child could see the life draining from her belly.
"Kit... Go. Before patrols..."
"Together! Please—"
"Too late... Wolf territory..." Her paw brushed my hand, warmth flooding me as cryptic images flickered in my mind.
"Mom?"
"You’ll... understand... Strong... like wolves..." Her paw fell.
"Mom! Mom!"
Her chest stilled. I clung to her cooling body, lost in a whirl of grief—our family torn apart by clashes between beastfolk, Dad and brother gone, now her.
Digging her grave with bloodied hands, I whispered apologies to the unborn kittens. Moss blanketed the fresh earth as rain began to fall.
"Mom... What do I do?"
Distant patrol torches flickered. I spat blood, fists trembling. I’ll avenge you, Jerian.
Forcing my legs forward, I recalled her final words: Be strong. The wolf territory—where ash-furred pups resembled kittens, where kindness might hide.
Days later, Theo and Deon Gridwolf slouched on a sofa, grumbling.
"That thrice-cursed ball’s over the wall again."
"Ball games are tedious."
"Why can’t we have a sister to spoil?"
A chime interrupted. A flustered knight announced, "Young masters, someone’s lurking—"
"Who?"
A squeak piped from below: "Down here!"
Theo glanced down. A grubby kitten of a girl stared up—ash-gray hair matted, clothes frayed, reeking of cat. Yet her jewel-bright eyes gleamed with audacity.
"Welcome to Gridwolf Manor?" Deon drawled.
Her smile dazzled. "Hello! I’m Kitia, a brave young wolf! I heard your family helps orphans—"
The brothers exchanged glances. Let’s fatten her up as a plaything, Deon’s smirk said. Soft fur’s a bonus, Theo’s grin replied.
"Come in," they chorused.
"Thank you!" Kitia chirped, oblivious to the wolves’ teeth behind their smiles.
