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Ajax was a little orange kitten living in harmony with his family in a cosy house. All of his siblings were of similar colour to him, just like his mama and papa cat. In their house lived a kind human who would give them tasty food and water.
As Ajax grew older, he became able to climb on almost everything, the couch, the curtains, and the human's legs. The house wasn't too big, and with days, Ajax had discovered all the little fun corners. He even made a hole under the couch to crawl into it!
The only ones who got out of the house were the human and sometimes his dad, which made little Ajax curious. "What is there beyond the door?" He wanted to go out and explore, but every attempt was futile as the human would pick him up and place him beside his mama.
One day, the human opened the door and was talking with another one Ajax didn't know. He didn't have too much time to dwell on it, though, as he bolted out of the house and was met with cold white floor everywhere. He didn't let his fear of the white stuff get to him, though, as he marched on and ahead. He heard his human yell his name and call for him back, so he closed his eyes, sped up, and ran until he could no longer hear anything.
When he could no longer hear the human running behind him, he opened his eyes but was met with an unfamiliar place. The wooden sticks were thick and tall, far taller than the counter he could climb back home. He could hear noises he never heard before, ones so ominous that he flattened his ears and tucked his tail between his legs.
He was scared.
He called for his mama when he couldn't make out the front from behind of this unfamiliar place, but she didn't come to pick him up, and neither did she respond to his calls. It was starting to get dark, and Ajax could hear movement from everywhere around him. He shivered at the cold and sat down, looking around him and trying to look for a safe space. Multiple eyes shone in the dark, and Ajax jumped as he felt immediate danger.
A giant scary creature jumped in front of him, followed by many others, and Ajax could only run away. They were faster than him however, and soon caught up to him. One of them raised its claws at him, and he felt pain all over, making him stumble and fall. Little Ajax watched in fear as the creatures surrounded him, and he closed his eyes before he heard a pained yelp in front of him.
He opened his eyes and saw a big and powerful cat lady slashing at the creatures and growling at them. She picked him up like his mother always does and ran, and he had to close his eyes from how fast she was going. A few moments later, they were inside a hollow in one of the large wooden sticks. Somehow, little Ajax missed the hole he made in the couch. It was far warmer and safer than this.
The big cat cleaned his wound and gave him some of her food. It didn't taste as good as his human's food, but Ajax couldn't complain. Weeks have passed, during which Ajax learned how to use his claws and teeth well in a fight. He learned to hunt for food and, most importantly, learned to find a safe space if he needed to hide. His master told him to never trust a human or anyone else. So he never did, but he learned how to charm them for food.
Years passed, during which Ajax was no longer little. He became bigger than his master and was able to protect himself. He travelled away from the forest and into the city, where he may find other cats to fight and get some leftover human food. During those years, he gained many new names from different humans, all of which tried to trap him in their houses. He always escaped. He will accept human food, but he will never follow one inside.
Ajax woke up from his nap on a bench as a butterfly landed on his head. He got up and stretched, enjoying the warm sun, before hopping off and starting his day. He hopped on a box and from it onto the side of a wall until he reached a random balcony. He walked along it and jumped from one to another with ease. It was a new part of town he hadn't explored yet.
As he was walking, something caught his eye on one of the balconies. Inside that house was a beige cat sleeping in the sun right beside the window. The cat was pretty, he thought, but he pitied her for being holed up in that house all the time. He didn't spend too much time looking at her before going about his day. He chose a perfect spot where the sun could reach and no human could bother him before sleeping.
As the night rolled around, he woke up and stretched well before starting his hunt for food. He spotted a pigeon a few blocks away from him, and he wriggled his tail in happiness. He wasn't as lucky last night and would be a fool to let such a delicious-looking hunt escape him.
He crouched down and started approaching his prey in slow steps, stopping in his tracks every time the pigeon raised its head. Once he was close enough, he waited for it to bring its head down again before lunching and sprinting towards it. Much to his chagrin, however, his prey was stolen right before his eyes.
He watched wide-eyed as the cat he spotted sleeping in a house this morning held his prey in her mouth. She turned back to him and when she spotted him, she ran.
He chased after her, refusing to let his catch escape this way. He was a little angry too. The cat clearly had somewhere to stay and most definitely had food waiting for her, so why was she taking his when he didn't have the same luxury?
The cat in front of him knew the place better than he could however, because soon, she successfully escaped him. Ajax slumped down as he watched her get away. He didn't have much energy and would rather save it for tomorrow to hunt or meow at some humans until they gave him food.
As he was about to sleep for the remainder of the night, she appeared in front of him again, dropping the pigeon in front of him. "I thought you wanted to play," she said, "here's your food so we can play again tomorrow." He didn't get to say anything before she was off again pretty agile for a house cat.
Interesting .
The next day, Ajax visited her on the balcony again and watched as she turned around on her back, her paws on the window and staring at him with bright amber eyes. His tail twitched behind him as he sat down on the balcony, enjoying the sun with her. At night, they would spend time running around the place and alleys and even play fighting.
The following days consisted of the same routine, visiting her during the day, hunting, and playing with her at night. He learned her name, Lumine, and shared his with her. She was a house cat, but her human would let her go out through the window whenever she wanted. One day, she invited him to come along with her to her house, saying she could convince her human to take him in too.
"I can't," he replied, "My house is the streets. I can't stay inside."
"Try before you judge," she told him in return, "you have injuries, and you're a little thin. I'm sure my human can help." He couldn't reject her proposal and followed her home. "Don't fight," she told him, "stay still, and I'll take care of things." Since they returned in the middle of the night, her human was still asleep.
Ajax walked in slowly, carefully taking in his surroundings before following Lumine to where she slept. Her bed was fluffy and soft, far more comfortable than a wooden bench or a stone windowsill. She invited him in, and he relaxed in it despite his attempts to stay alert. She began to clean a wound he had on his head, and he eventually fell asleep, a rare purr escaping him and memories from a faraway home surfacing in his memories.
His eyes shot open when he heard footsteps, and he watched as the human froze in place. Lumine woke up from beside him and yawned before stretching and hopping off her bed. She went to her human and rubbed its leg, meowing for food. The human ignored her and approached Ajax, crouching in front of him, and he found himself flattening his ears, resisting the urge to jump and scratch the human.
Lumine was quick to stand in front of him, rubbing her head on his and looking back at her human. She hissed at it when it tried to grab him and went back to rubbing her head on him and her human's leg.
The human eventually got up and patted Lumine's head before giving her food in a bowl and sliding the same amount on a paper for him. Ajax cautiously approached the food once the human was further away and sniffed it. It didn't take too long for him to taste it and eat it all.
During the day, he would sleep next to Lumine in the sun, and at night, they would go out and have fun in the alleys. Ajax suddenly didn't find it too bad to be inside a house until, one day, the human caught him and put him in a cage.
Ajax was furious.
He meowed and threatened the human before his eyes locked on Lumine. "It'll be fast, don't worry," she said. But that only furthered his anger. What will be fast? His death? He thought they were friends!
Her betrayal stung, and Ajax decided he wouldn't give up without a fight, so he screamed and tried to break the cage the entire time the human carried him. They arrived at a new place, one with a strong smell and another human in white. He tried to fight, but he only felt a sting in his body before his vision blurred and blacked out.
When Ajax woke up again, he was back in Lumine's bed, his body feeling far better than it ever was. Lumine was busy grooming his fur for him, and he was about to sleep again when all that occurred played back in his mind. He stood up, feeling a little wobbly, and asked Lumine about what happened, holding the accusation of her betrayal at the tip of his tongue.
"It's an evil place that magically heals your wounds," she said before sharing with him the many times she went there too. His anger dissipated, and he sat back down on the bed, allowing her to continue grooming his fur as the warm sun lulled him back to sleep.
His following days in the new house gradually got better, as he had food for himself at all times, now in his own bowl, and getting a new bed for himself. He didn't use it much though, instead opting to sleep with Lumine, occasionally grooming her fur for her when she slept.
As the days passed, his body started to feel healthier than it ever was, and Lumine started to show him her favourite places around the house. She showed him the best corner to hide in if there was a loud noise nearby, showed him the best spot on a windowsill to watch birds and other humans walking by, and showed him her best toys.
Months passed by much easier now that he didn't have to constantly worry about food and water, and Ajax slowly got used to his new life. They still went out at night and fought the alley's cats, but their days spent birdwatching and grooming each other were just as precious and fun.