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Chapter Text

A mighty hunter prowled through the tall grass, stalking his oblivious prey. His jet black fur allowed him to become one with the shadows as he kept careful pace with his target. He became as still as a statue as his prey suddenly flicked its head in his direction. Had the wind changed? Had he been too loud? If he moved now, the prey would surely see him and run!

Soon though, his target turned away and relaxed, seemingly getting ready to bed down for the night. Oh how foolish of it! This was the opportunity he'd been waiting for. He slunk forward, carefully holding himself back until the perfect moment to strike. Days had gone by without a decent meal, and the terrifying predator could no longer hold back his bloodlust as he took a great leap–

Right onto a crunchy leaf! A successful hunt for Kazuma Nyasogi! 

Yes, though it may surprise some, the mighty hunter was in actuality a tiny kitten! Though he would still insist he was mighty, thank you very much. So what if he was still young and small? He'd get bigger and he'd take down even bigger prey! And right now, he would practice by tearing apart this leaf!

He batted it up into the air and jumped after it. When he caught it again he rolled around with it, clutching it in his claws and tearing it apart with his sharp teeth. Soon, the little black and white kitten was covered with bits of leaf. Even if he shook himself, they still clung to his fur, and he had a thin layer of dust coating him. He didn't care though; getting dirty was just a part of playing! He sneezed, then went on the hunt for more “prey.” Maybe if he looked hard enough, he could even find a mouse! Or a squirrel! Or even a–

He was cut off from his own thoughts as he suddenly found himself lifted by the scruff of his neck. He squeaked out a mew in surprise. Looking over his shoulder, he saw it was his Mama, Ume who had picked him up. She was a beautiful black cat with sleek fur. He wiggled grumpily as she carried him towards a large,flat boulder, one of her favorite sunny spots to lay; couldn't she see he was playing? He let out a small groan as she hopped up, placed him down and got comfortable. He knew what was happening now.

Bathtime

Oh, how he hated bathtime! It always interrupted his playing, and it felt weird, and he thought it was useless anyway! Why bother to get clean when he was just gonna get dirty all over again? Mama certainly didn't care about his protests. She saw a dusty kitten and was going to give him a bath no matter what he wanted. Well, no more! He was taking a stand!

Kazuma braced his paws against Mama's face as she went to start, blocking her attempt at cleaning him. She mrrped in surprise and tried again. She got in a lucky shot, but he strained against the hold she had on him. Despite her best efforts to contain him, the naughty little kitten managed to escape, and rolled off the boulder to the grass below.

Mama gave a short meow of annoyance as she got up to fetch the little runaway, but Kazuma didn't allow himself to be dizzy long enough to let her try. He ran off in a random direction, darting off as fast as his little legs could carry him as she trotted after him, calling with exasperated meows. He couldn't run from her forever, but maybe he didn't have to. He saw his sanctuary up ahead, and just before she caught him, he slipped into a small gap under a woodpile.

Thank goodness for his small size; it was just big enough for him to take shelter, but small enough to block mama cats trying to catch their kittens. It was perfect! He'd just hide out here and he'd never have to get a bath ever again! He pressed himself against the back wall as Mama tried to reach in to snatch him with her paw. He was just out of reach, however, and Mama growled in frustration. He couldn't help the feeling of smugness that ran through him when he saw he was untouchable, so to speak. 

His celebration didn't last long though. After a few minutes, he heard the sound of someone padding through the leaves towards them. Two white paws soon came into view, just to the side of Mama, who turned to look at the newcomer and mewed in greeting. The new cat dropped two squirrels to the side and crouched down to look in the little hole Kazuma had hidden himself in. It was his Papa, Genshin Nyasogi. He was also black and white, but with more white on him than Kazuma. He had two distinctive black marks on his muzzle and a long tail with a white tip, like Kazuma.

Papa was a very smart cat. Even without input from Mama he seemed to figure out what was going on, looking at his son's dusty appearance, his mother's annoyance, and the fact that Kazuma was currently hiding under a woodpile. A clear attempt at escaping bathtime. Kazuma blinked with big eyes at him, trying to gain favor, but Papa simply meowed sternly at him. Practically a direct command to come out from there. To that, Kazuma hissed, surprising himself but feeling confident that he couldn't be reached anyway.

At this act of blatant disrespect, Papa attempted to grab him as well with his paw, and Kazuma nearly had to meld with the wall to escape being pulled out. As Papa backed off, he gave his son a calculating stare; it made Kazuma's pelt prickle with nervousness and yet curiosity.  Genshin and Ume shared a look and, seemingly reaching a conclusion that Kazuma wasn't privy to, the two older cats backed away from the hole, each picking up a squirrel and trotting off somewhere. 

Kazuma blinked in surprise; they just left? Where did they go? He was tempted to go out and look, but he was certain if he did they'd just turn around and snatch him up. He waited a few minutes and, not hearing any activity, he gingerly crept towards the opening of the hole. Gathering his courage, he poked his little head out and looked around. He didn't see them anywhere; he smelled them but that was probably because they had just been here.

Suddenly a rustling noise in front of him caught his attention and nearly sent him running back into his hole, but whatever it was, it was hidden just under some leaves next to a bush; much too small to be another cat. After a few minutes of watching the leaves move in jerky movements with whatever was hiding there, Kazuma could no longer contain his curiosity, and slunk forward. 

Could this be a mouse? Or a squirrel? Maybe a rabbit….no, not big enough to be a rabbit. He tried to keep his pawsteps quiet as he stalked it, trying to remember how his Papa showed him how to sneak up on something. He cringed as he stepped on a twig that snapped, but whatever the little creature was, it didn't seem to be bothered. Finally reaching the best pouncing distance, Kazuma took a chance and pounced square on it.

In just a few seconds, many things happened. First, Kazuma realized this was not a mouse, and not a squirrel. It was long, black, and furry….a tail! Second, the bush erupted with a flurry of noise as Mama jumped out of it towards him. Finally he realized, it was a trap! He ducked under his mother and tried to race back for the safety of his little hidey-hole; that was ruined however, by a very smug Papa dropping in front of him from the top of the woodpile, blocking his only escape. He also tried to capture his kit, but just barely missed him by his tail as his son headed in a new direction.

Kazuma screeched as he ran from his parents. They were catching up fast. He had a small advantage of being able to duck under some things as he ran, which bought him some time, but he didn't have as much stamina. He couldn't keep this up. As he briefly lost them, he realized he was no longer in their territory. Off in the distance, basking in the sun, he saw one of their neighbors, and quite possibly his savior, Yujin Mewkotoba.

Running up to him, he startled the older cat by diving under his fluffy tail. At Yujin's yowl of surprise, he peeked out from the fur of his tail, giving him pleading eyes. He dove back in as he heard the sound of approaching cats. Kazuma tensed up as his Papa mewed a short greeting to his friend. The fur from Yujin's tail tickled his nose, and despite his best efforts to hold it, he sneezed.

Immediately, he felt the tail lifted off of him, making him blink from the sudden bright light. Almost immediately he saw Yujin giving him an amused yet apologetic look and his Papa–

He squealed and tried to run again, but it was too late. Teeth fastened firmly around his scruff and he was hauled into the air. He had finally been caught.

No! How could this have happened? He had a perfect hiding spot and he had completely botched it! And not only that, but he'd been betrayed in the worst manner! He glared at his father's friend as they turned to leave, and the cat in question simply purred in amusement. Kazuma squirmed unhappily in his father's grip, but it was no use. He was captured and being carted off to face the worst punishment possible…..a bath!

Well, he was not going to go quietly. He wailed and screeched in loud protest as they made their way home, Mama joining up with them a few minutes later. You'd think he was being murdered with how he was going on. He could feel the exasperation radiating off of his parents as they reached their little den. They could have rolled their eyes at their son's dramatics.

In their den, Mama made a beeline for their nest. Papa waited for Mama to get comfortable, then placed the wiggly kitten between her paws. She got right to business, and through her son's struggles, she slowly made progress on cleaning him up. Kazuma tried to squirm out of her grasp once more, but was met by Papa starting to clean him as well, electing to help his mate, since their little one was being so difficult. 

Ugh, now he was getting two baths at once! This was the worst! He squealed in protest in the midst of his tantrum but it fell on deaf ears. They weren't going to stop grooming him until he was nice and clean. If he had known this was gonna happen, he would have accepted getting the first bath just to get it over with already!

Finally feeling tuckered out and accepting that he couldn't get away, Kazuma fell limp and allowed his parents to finish cleaning him. He still made fussy sounds in complaint, but Mama and Papa just purred, quieting him. At least with the both of them it finished quicker. At last, at the end of it all, he was left with a clean, shiny coat. When he was finally set free, he found he was just too tired to move. All that running around had really tired him out. He let out a big yawn. Though he still felt grumpy about the bath, he let himself curl up next to his mother, and fall into a deep sleep, his parents’ purring being the last thing he heard before slipping into a deep slumber. Maybe next time he should just let it happen. Then he could get right back to playing!

Chapter Text

The day was warm and sunny, perfect for a young kitten to play. Kazuma Nyasogi stared up a large tree at the bird's nest settled amongst the branches. It belonged to a crow. A mother crow, to be exact. Of course, he couldn't see the baby birds, but he heard them, and it piqued his curiosity. He had seen birds before, flying around or pecking in the grass, and sometimes his parents caught some for a meal, but he'd never seen baby birds. What did they look like? He wondered how they didn't get bored in that tiny nest. Didn't they know there was a big world to explore?

He really wanted to see them, just to see what they looked like. The mama bird wasn't there right now. He could go and look really quick and she'd never know. Mind made up, he crouched and jumped onto the trunk of the tree, his tiny claws digging into the bark. He started to climb up when he heard a short meow behind him, and suddenly he was tugged off the tree by his scruff, causing him to squeak in surprise.

He was carried away from his mission by his Papa, Genshin. Kazuma grumbled, remembering that he wasn't allowed to climb trees yet. He didn't understand why; he was a great climber! But Papa didn't care, and brought him over to the wooden fence posts, setting him down and nudging him towards them. The meaning behind the action was clear; if he wanted to climb, he had to practice on the fence, and that was that. He was too small to climb the trees yet. A lick given between Kazuma's ears silenced any protest, and Papa went back to where he had been grooming himself. 

Kazuma glowered at the fence posts. He had climbed these so many times back when he was very little, back when he was just barely allowed out of the den. They'd been great fun then but he was so bored of them now! And they didn't have anything interesting at the top, like the tree he looked longingly at. He clambered up them anyway, pretending to play, as Papa was watching him closely. Satisfied that his kit was safe, he continued cleaning himself. Kazuma felt relief as the attention was finally off him; he didn't have to worry about Mama at least, she was hunting.

His tail lashed in frustration as he thought about how he was getting older but he still wasn't allowed to do a lot of stuff. He wasn't allowed to hunt, he wasn't allowed to wander off too far, and he wasn't allowed to climb the trees. Did they think he was a baby? He would say he wasn't. He may still be a bit small, but he wouldn't be for long! And even then, he was plenty brave enough to handle himself! He could climb that tree easily!

A movement in the corner of his eye caught his attention. Papa had finished grooming himself and was now basking on a warm rock. He still watched Kazuma through half-lidded eyes, so Kazuma continued pretending to play, jumping from post to post. But eventually, the warm sun rays were too much to resist, and Papa's eyes slipped close.

Now was his chance! He just had to sneak past Papa to the tree. He hopped down the fence, then made his way back to where he was before. He froze as Papa twitched, but all that happened was he settled himself further into laying down, unaware of his son's sneakiness. Finally, Kazuma arrived at the base of the tree; success!

Not wanting to waste any time in case Papa woke up, he jumped up the tree stump again, digging into the bark. He slowly clambered his way up. After a while, he was starting to feel pretty tired. This wasn't as easy as climbing the fence. Oh, but that's what made it so fun, the challenge! He made his way past a few branches before finally reaching the one he'd been aiming for; the one with the bird's nest. 

After taking a minute to catch his breath, he slowly crept forward, and peeked into the nest. Three baby crow chicks peered back at him. So this is what baby birds look like? They were….kind of ugly. But also a little cute. Kazuma gave them a mew in greeting. They peeped back at him. He gently batted at one with his paw and it pecked at him, annoyed. It felt a bit fuzzy, and really warm. Their nest looked a bit cramped; how did they not want to explore and stretch out? Well, he supposed there wasn't much to explore here, especially when they couldn't fly.

He briefly looked over the edge of the branch, then gripped the wood underneath him tightly with his claws as he realized how far away the ground was. Kazuma's whole pelt stood on end. This tree was a lot taller than he first thought. He swallowed nervously. How was he going to get down without falling? He was still tired from climbing up here in the first place. He shook his fur out and forced himself to feel calm. He could do this! He was brave and strong! He'd just….take it nice and slow. That was ok, it didn't mean he was afraid, he was just….playing it safe!

As he prepared himself to descend, the chicks started chirping frantically, but before he could turn towards them, a harsh caw sounded in his ears and he was blinded by something slapping his face repeatedly. Kazuma backed up and screeched in terror at the attack. All the world seemed to erupt into chaos and all he could hear was harsh squawks and caws, the peeping from the chicks, and his own screaming. The attack was relentless and he just barely was able to peek out of his eyes to see it was the mother crow attacking him. She must think Kazuma was trying to hurt her babies. He wasn't! Honest! He just wanted to look!

She cared not for any excuse, and when batting at him with her wings seemed to not be enough, she pecked at him with her sharp beak. He hissed in pain, but it didn't last long. He'd been so focused in trying to escape, he didn't realize he ran out of room, and Kazuma slipped off the branch into open air. He wailed as he fell, and at the last second, he snagged the end of a branch a bit lower down and broke his fall. He clung to it for dear life as it bounced up and down, and as the crow came back for more, he let out pitiful cries for help, his frightened mews carrying through the whole area.

The onslaught seemed to last for hours, but in reality it was only for half a minute before a loud yowl reached his ears. As he opened his eyes, which he had squeezed shut to protect them from the crow, he saw at the base of the tree was his Papa. He cried out once more and the crow continued trying to push him off the branch. He heard a scrabbling noise and saw his Papa clambering up the tree towards the branch he was hanging onto. This gave him hope; Papa could save him!

As Papa reached the branch he was on, however, it became apparent there was a problem. While the end of the branch was stable enough to support a kitten of Kazuma's size, it couldn't support the weight of an adult cat, or at least, it was too risky to try. He could put them both in danger if he attempted to grab him from the edge.

Papa called out in a long beckoning meow, trying to get Kazuma to come closer to the thicker part of the branch where it would be safe for him to be picked up, but the mother crow was determined not to let him move to safety. As he tried to crawl to his Papa, she gave him a big shove that nearly had him slipping off, before he tightened his grip once more. Papa tried to swipe at her, but she was just out of reach, and the branch creaked dangerously as he stepped out too far. Kazuma felt despair and let out a heartbreaking wail; he was so scared. 

He felt a jolt of fear as Papa left the branch he was trapped on. Was he leaving him because he'd gotten himself into this mess? The crow continued to flap at him and peck at him, causing him pain. He cried out with a begging mew for Papa not to leave him. He'd never, ever be naughty or disobey again, he just wanted down!

But Papa didn't leave the tree; rather, he climbed up further to the branch he'd been on before, with the nest. As he reached it, he drew closer to the nest, and let out a loud yowl that caught the mother crow's attention. As she turned her attention away from the young kitten she had trapped, she squawked with fright. Now that he wasn't being beaten with wings, Kazuma could clearly see what was happening above him.

Papa towered over the crow's nest, and the chicks peeped frantically as he hovered his paw above them, unsheathing his claws. But he was paying them no mind. No, he was staring down at the crow perched next to Kazuma. His ears were pinned back against his head, and he hissed, pupils narrowed to slits. The crow cawed angrily from her spot, feathers ruffling up. Papa wasn't intimidated; he lowered his paw closer to the hatchlings as they chirped in fear. He stopped just before his claws could touch them and potentially rip their tender skin. The message was clear.

Let go of mine, and I let go of yours.

The air was tense with the standoff. Kazuma dared not move as the crow considered the potential threat to her offspring. After what seemed like an eternity, she seemed to have weighed the consequences, and with a flap of her wings, she flew up to the top branch and perched at the end, watching the older cat with caution. Papa didn't move from his spot, nor did he break eye contact with the crow, but he meowed a beckoning call to Kazuma again.

Though Kazuma was still terrified, he summoned up his courage and slowly crawled along the branch, towards the trunk. It got steadier beneath him, and before he knew it, Papa had jumped back down to him and grabbed him firmly by the scruff. As he was picked up, he caught a brief glance up above and saw the mother crow fussing over her babies, no longer concerned with the cats below. 

He squealed in fear as Papa began his descent down the tree; they were still so high up. Kazuma squeezed his eyes shut as they made their way down. A very disorienting minute later, he felt his Papa land and start moving forward. He gingerly opened his eyes and was relieved to find they were on solid ground. He wiggled, but Papa did not set him down. No, they were headed towards the den. Papa walked with a sense of purpose, with a stiffness in his gait. Kazuma curled up tighter as he felt the tension in the air. As they entered the den, Papa brought him to their nest, and Kazuma grunted as he was dropped rather unceremoniously in it.

Shaking a piece of grass from his head, the little kitten looked up to see a very unhappy papa cat giving him a stern look. Papa let out a low growl, letting him know exactly what he thought about his actions. Kazuma looked away, trembling as everything hit him. He could have gotten really hurt…or worse! And now he was sore, and Papa was mad at him, and now he couldn't stop shaking.

Overwhelmed, the little one started mewling like a newborn, letting out his feelings and showing Papa how very sorry he was. Above him, Genshin's eyes softened, and he climbed into the nest and curled around his little kit, gently grooming him and purring to let him know he was always there to protect him. The young cat pressed into his fur, and slowly calmed down from the whole frightening affair. Eventually, the shaking stopped, and Kazuma started purring as well, as he felt better now. He nuzzled deeper into his Papa's fur and sighed in relief. 

His ears twitched as he heard noise from outside the den. He knew those pawsteps! Mama was back! Mewing in excitement, he hopped out of the nest to greet her outside, but he was stopped by a paw catching him around the middle. He mrrowed in confusion as he was dropped back into the nest, his Papa giving him an unimpressed look. He tried to climb out again, but a gentle shove had him tumbling back in. Another look at Papa told him all he needed to know; this was his punishment for disobeying. He'd have to stay here until his father was good and ready to let him leave. He was being treated just like those little birds, stuck in a nest. Not feeling happy about being punished, Kazuma gave his father big pleading eyes, but it was no use. He was grounded until further notice.

Oh well, at least he was on solid ground. 

Chapter Text

Kazuma Nyasogi stared at his prey with large unblinking eyes. Said prey was perched on a rock, completely oblivious to its impending doom. He stalked forward silently as possible. If he could just get close enough, he could pounce on it, and it would never suspect a thing! Then he'd show Mama and Papa what a good hunter he was. They'd have to take him hunting then!

That morning as his Papa, Genshin Nyasogi, went off to hunt, Kazuma had tried to follow him. But the experienced hunter had heard him, and before Kazuma even realized it, he was being carried back home. Papa had placed him next to his Mama's belly, with her still sleeping, giving a short meow and a lick between his ears, wanting him to stay put.

Offended, Kazuma tumbled out of the nest after him, mewing loudly and running to catch up. Papa's tail twitched in irritation, but Kazuma wouldn't be swayed. He planted himself in front of Papa and stood his ground. He was big enough to hunt, he was sure of it! And there was nothing Papa could do that would stop him from following him!

Of course, that didn't change the fact that he was very easy to carry. Papa brought him back to the entrance of the den, and placed him down once more. Kazuma tried to run past him back to the path that led to a thicker part of the woods, but Papa held him down with a paw. He squirmed and yowled angrily, but froze when Papa growled lowly in his ear. A clear reprimand, and Kazuma knew he shouldn't push any further. He went limp, and Papa removed his paw and made to leave once more.

Seeing his Papa leave without him made sadness well up in his heart. He mewled pitifully after him. He just wanted to hunt with him and make his parents proud by catching something. It wasn't fair! Papa turned to look at him again, and Kazuma wondered briefly if he had made him angry, but there was compassion in the older cat's eyes as he returned to his son and gave him a gentle headbutt, his purrs vibrating his tiny body.

Looking into his father's eyes, Kazuma saw understanding in his want for independence and yet a firm request to stay near their home and stay safe. And though he was still unhappy about it, Kazuma listened and watched his father leave once more. He sighed and went to see if anything nearby caught his interest to play with.

There were some loose leaves, but they didn't seem as fun as usual. He couldn't stop thinking about hunting. Oh, how he wanted to go! But he knew if he tried to follow Papa again, he'd get in trouble. And he really didn't want to be confined to the nest again. If only something could wander over to him, then he could catch it and he wouldn't get in trouble for leaving…..

Wait, that was it! Surely he could find something to catch around here! Then he'd show his Mama, and maybe his Papa when he returned later. They'd be so proud of him and they'd see he was ready to learn to hunt! He wouldn't be treated like a baby anymore! All he had to do was find something.

He looked around the clearing once more, ignoring the leaves rustling from the breeze. Any cat could catch a leaf, that wasn't good enough. No, he needed something alive. Something that moved.

A flash of color and a fluttering movement caught his eye. He wiggled in excitement and dropped into a crouch. This would work, he was sure of it.

Which brought him to this moment, stalking the prey that had made the mistake of landing near him. Soon enough, he was just a few pawsteps away, and his future prize didn't even notice him. Just a little closer-

Rustle

His paw accidentally brushed against some dead leaves, and his prey took flight, alerted by the noise. In a last ditch effort, he broke into a sprint and leaped as high as he could after it. But he just missed his target, and he landed, paws empty and heart heavy.

The butterfly mocked him, flying just out of reach of the tiny kitten. He meowed and batted at the air, trying to coax it to come down. But it ignored him, uncaring of his plight. He looked up the tree nearby; maybe he could climb it just a tiny bit and leap down on the butterfly?

On second thought, no….there was no guarantee that he'd catch the butterfly that way anyway. Plus, if his Mama or Papa caught him climbing trees again he'd get dumped back in the nest for sure. He'd have to give up on this particular endeavor. His tail lashed in frustration. How could he not catch even a butterfly!? It was so small, it should have been easy!

Well, maybe there was something else he could catch around here. Preferably something without wings. He glanced around, and something shiny twinkled back at him. Curious, he approached it.

It was a spider's web. The morning dew had left some drops on it that glittered in the sunlight. And there, in the corner of the web, was a big spider. It either hadn't noticed, or ignored Kazuma's approach.

Maybe he could catch this bug! After all, it was sitting right there. It was practically giving itself away. Mind made up, he batted at the spider, trying to knock it loose. It just tensed up and crawled further up the web. Not wanting to lose this one, Kazuma batted at it harder, but he accidentally hit the web, which clung to his fur. He tried to shake it off, but it was no use. His shaking merely broke the web free into strands that stuck to him even more. The spider, which had crawled off, was forgotten as Kazuma tried to free himself of the sticky web to no avail. He whined as his squirming and kicking only succeeded in getting the strands all over his body, even some on his back legs! He shuddered in disgust at the feeling as he finally gave up on the spider, accepting that he couldn't get the web off himself, and feeling embarrassed and angry at his failure. This was all going terribly!

As he angrily stomped away, he hissed as he was startled by a tiny object leaping away from him, barely avoiding being squished by his paw. As Kazuma recovered from the brief scare, he looked closely at what had jumped away from him. It was a grasshopper!

This was perfect! He only saw the grasshopper hopping, not flying. Maybe that meant it wouldn't get away from him. And no sticky webs involved at all! He wouldn't find a better choice; he had to catch this one. He wiggled his bottom as he crouched, then he pounced towards the bouncy bug. It barely escaped him again, hopping away into some grass, but Kazuma was a determined kitten and would never give up! This time he would be successful and be known as a mighty hunter!

He leaped after the grasshopper into the grass, and found success as he cupped both paws around it, blocking its escape. He let out a triumphant cry; finally he had caught something! He resisted the urge to shake out his paws as he felt it twitch under them, tickling him. Carefully he opened them, and swooped in to grab it firmly in his jaws, resisting the ticklish feeling of it kicking again as he proudly trotted off to the den to show Mama what he had caught. 

Ume, his Mama, was just waking up, yawning and shaking out any stray grass from her black coat. She meowed in greeting as Kazuma entered the den, then looked on curiously as her son padded up to her carrying something in his mouth with his eyes full of pride.

Kazuma placed the grasshopper in front of his mother and sat back, pleased with himself. Mama blinked and crouched down to inspect what her son had brought her, but before she could even smell it, the bug suddenly leaped onto her face! Mama screeched and scrambled backwards blindly, rapidly shaking her head and batting at her face. The chaos sent Kazuma running to the wall of the den in fear, eyes wide, ears pinned back and tail puffed up to twice its size.

After what felt like forever, Mama finally shook the grasshopper off, and before anyone could stop it, it crawled into a small crack in the wall. Kazuma ran over to where it escaped, trying to reach in after it, but his paws were just a tiny bit too big. He mewled sadly after it, and looked at his Mama with sad eyes and a droopy tail. Unfortunately, Mama was still pretty frazzled and was trying to lick her puffed up fur back down to calm herself. He sighed and exited the den, and laid down on his Mama's favorite sunning rock, disappointed. So much for making his parents proud. At least the sun was warm, he had that small comfort.

After a few minutes of moping, Mama joined him up on the rock, greeting him with a sweet meow. He twitched his ears but didn't feel in the mood to be cheerful. She looked at him in concern, gently nudging him with her nose, cocking her head in confusion when her son merely placed a paw over his eyes. Seeing that her kit was sad, she curled around him and started grooming him. He made a small whining noise but otherwise didn't struggle, concerning her even more. The truth was, though he usually hated baths, this one felt pretty nice, especially since she was removing the sticky web strands from earlier.

All through the bath, Mama comforted him with her sweet purring. Eventually, his mood started to improve, and though a small part of him wanted to stay grumpy, he couldn't help but purr back and start trying to play with Mama as she cleaned him up, squeaking happily. His parents sure had a special way of helping him feel all better when things just seemed bad.

After he was all clean, he decided to try one more time to find something. Just for his Mama! She deserved it! He looked all around, and finally spotted something crawling on a fallen log. A beetle! And a big one too! It twitched as it crawled along, revealing wings for a split second before hiding them again. He had to be careful not to spook this one.

He trembled with anticipation as he crouched and crept forward, silently as possible. He almost spoiled it again, but carefully stepped around the dead leaves. Now he was close enough to pounce. Feeling nervous, he briefly glanced back at Mama, who gave him a look of encouragement. Turning back, he gathered himself and leaped!

The beetle tried to fly away, but he knocked it down to the ground with a swipe of his paw! It landed on its back and tried to right itself, but it was the end of the line for the beetle. The mighty hunter bit into his prey hard and he watched as the life left his helpless victim. The battle was won. In the end, the hunter had prevailed!

Kazuma could hardly keep himself from leaping for joy, but he was determined to be mature about it. He picked up the beetle and padded back over to his Mama with his head held high, though he couldn't help the little spring in his step. She looked at him proudly as he placed the beetle in front of her. She nuzzled him, purring and letting him know he did such a good job. He was practically floating on air at the praise.

The crunching of leaves brought their attention to the bushes at the edge of the clearing. Papa stepped out from them, shaking his fur out and carrying a large rabbit in his jaws. Kazuma grew excited; he loved rabbit. He scrambled down the rock to greet his father as he placed the food down. Papa meowed fondly at him as he nuzzled around his legs and batted at his tail. Mama came to greet Papa as well, carrying the beetle with her. Papa chirped questioningly, but quickly figured out what had happened seeing Kazuma's proud expression. He liked his son between the ears and purred, very proud of him.

So the small family had a nice meal of rabbit and beetle, the older cat's carefully picking it apart. After the meal, Kazuma yawned and settled down next to his Papa for a quick nap. He was happy he was able to catch something but maybe he could deal with being small for a while longer. Hunting was a lot of work.