Miss Kitty

by Maria Rocket

*****

"Meow."

Twitching her slender space-black tail from side to side, the cat stared up at the rich brown monolith in her way. Her rounded ears, which were as black as the rest of her sleek shape, flickered at the scratching sounds coming from somewhere at the very top. Those sounds always disturbed her, and she usually stayed away from that place.

Her golden eyes slitted. The scent of freshly opened tuna was overpowering, and she was hungry. She was going for it. In one bound, she cleared the distance and landed atop the great monolith. She yowled in surprise as white papers went scattering underfoot. She nearly slipped, but her nose led her towards the nearby promise of food. Then as she moved forward, she found herself being lifted into the air.

"Miss Kitty! Look what you've done to my paperwork!"

"Meow?" Her golden eyes looked up with irritation into large blue ones. He was a pretty pet, with yellow fur, but sometimes he could really get in the way. He needed better training. She rubbed her head under his chin and purred.

"Aww... You're just hungry, aren't you?" He stroked her fur, making her purr more. "I wasn't going to finish it anyway."

Placed in front of the half-eaten sandwich, she began to dig in quickly. Yes, he was a good pet, easily trained. She felt him rub behind her ears, then he was gone. She was so busy eating that she didn't notice him leave. Minutes later, she licked her paw with her small pink tongue and cleaned her whiskers. That's when she noticed her pet was gone.

Not that it mattered at the moment. She would find him again when she was hungry. She jumped down from the monolith and proceeded to patrol her vast territory. Up and down the halls she went, ducking under places her pet could never find when it came time for her bath. Down the staircases she went with graceful moves that proclaimed that she owned all that she surveyed. She was about to jump off a banister rail, when she smelled it.

Another cat. A powerful cat. On her territory. Her fur bristled. There was no mistaking it, she'd smelled it before. The damn cat who dared intrude on her territory, no matter what she did. Well, she would make it clear that he was not welcome! Her tail held high, she bolted through the rooms, following the smell.

Finally she found the intruder, and with her pet! She growled. Of course, her pet must be in heat again. Everytime, this huge unnatural cat would intrude on her territory to mate with her pet. And then her pet would ignore her the entire time the other cat was there. No more, she would show him who was top cat around there!

"Hey there kitty," the big cat looked down at her with those green feline eyes.

She hissed and bared her fangs at him.

"Still don't like me, eh?"

"I'm sorry Trowa, she's usually very sweet. I don't know what comes over her. You be nice to Trowa, okay Miss Kitty?"

She hissed again.

"It's the strangest thing. You're the only one that gets her like this. She's civil to everyone else. Even when the entire Magaunac Corps comes through here, she's perfectly mellow. And I've had to actually pry her off Duo before."

"Maybe she's jealous?"

"Don't be silly Trowa," her pet laughed, "cats don't get jealous."

With another hiss, she leapt at the big cat's leg and started clawing and biting at it. Big or not, she would fight it to the death.

"Miss Kitty!"

In one dizzying motion, she was suddenly swung into the air. Then her pet had her tight to his chest, and was saying things to her. She couldn't hear very well since he had his paw cupped over her head. Next thing she knew, she was being set down in another room. When she turned to face her pet, she found the door closed. She pawed at the door uselessly and yowled.

That cat was still out there! She wailed piteously. For hours.

This wore her out so badly, that she eventually fell asleep. When she did awaken, everything was dark. She was lying somewhere warm, and as her eyes quickly adjusted to the night, she saw that she was in someone's arms. A familiar stroking caressed her fur.

Then she smelled that cat again! She hissed.

"Shh... Calm down Miss Kitty, calm down..." It was the voice of her pet. She looked up into the face she'd known since her kittenhood. It was her pet, but why did he smell like the intruder?

"I'm sorry if I've been neglecting you when Trowa's around," he whispered softly. "It's just that he's very special to me, and I don't get to see him very often. I get excited, and things slip my mind very easily." He rubbed her ears. "But I promise from now on I'll remember to give you your time even while he's here. Because you're family too, Miss Kitty."

"Meow." It definitely sounded like her pet, and it even looked like her pet. But the smell of the strange cat was strong on him. She wanted to strike him and drive him out, but she couldn't do that to her pet. It was very confusing.

"But you have to do your part too. You shouldn't be so cruel to Trowa. He likes cats even more than I do, you know. Although I wonder if the cats he works with have half as much pride as you do, Miss Kitty," he smiled as he continued stroking her.

She purred. This was very strange. But if her pet and the strange cat were one and the same, she would just love them both. And if that was the case, then they were both her pets, and she was still the top cat in her territory. This was good. She kneaded her paws on her pet's arm. Next time she would be able to face the one with the green eyes, knowing that he belonged to her too.

She fell asleep in her pet's arms, purring softly.

End