Butter woke up slightly more tired than usual, but her morning routine remained the same. A young human arrived to replenish the contents of her magic food bowl and clean up her litter box. She then ate a light breakfast before an elderly human picked her up and sat her on top of a drawer, facing one particular photograph. There was another cat in that photograph.

"Look Butter, it's your older sister Popcorn. We loved her very much, and I'm sure she would have loved you too. Say hi to your sister, Butter." The old human nudged Butter, which was the signal for her to meow at the cat in the picture.

She learned that if she did this, the human will take her off the drawer and it would mean the completion of her morning rituals.

"I'm going to tend the garden. You be a good cat now Butter." Said the human.

Butter lived with three of these strange creatures. There was a young one that moved around quickly. It gave Butter her food and grooming, but showed little affection beyond that. The elder one was slow and didn't provide her with any needs, but it spent lots of time playing and bonding with her. Butter knew there was a third human that lived upstairs, but it never left its room. Behind that door permeated cryptic conversations and awkward groans. Sometimes there was laughter, other times there were cries of grief. The enigma of this third human fascinated Butter, and she always wondered what it was like inside that room. She was never allowed in.

However, yesterday Butter met a new enigma in the form of a stray, nameless tomcat with white fur and oddly colored eyes. He had no patience for her alliance with the humans, and carried a tone that suggested he thought very little of her. Butter’s tail stood on end at the thought of him. She decided to find a nice patch of sunlight upstairs to curl up on and relax.

There was momentary peace. Then, there was chaos.

A shriek erupted from downstairs. It came from the young human, which continued to scream as if something terrifying had invaded the house. Butter snapped into action and darted towards the scene. There was a black creature zigzagging around the living room. It was a large rat, and both humans were trying to remove it from the house.

Butter was nervous but excited. This was the perfect opportunity to prove her worth as a hunter to the humans, the tomcat, and herself. She used the commotion caused by the humans as a way to hide her own presence and poised herself for the optimal chance to strike. While the panicking apes were dismantling the perfect arrangement of their furniture to upheave the rat, Butter gracefully hopped on top of the dining table for a surprise attack from above.

The backyard door was wide open, and it seemed as though the humans were trying to direct the rat towards it. For some reason the uninvited pest was adamant about staying away from the garden, almost as if a great threat was waiting outside. This made the process arduous, as the rat swiftly weaved between table legs and hid under sofas. The humans, in their own clumsiness, shattered plates and knocked over chairs as they swung brooms and mops at the stubborn rodent.

A chance was approaching. The rat scuttled into Butter’s pouncing range.

“You’re mine.” Butter launched herself at her target. Her trajectory was perfect. She also considered her surroundings. She was not going to fall off a roof and lose her catch this time.

Crunch. It was the sound of a cat’s fang going into a rat’s shoulder. But it wasn’t Butter’s fangs that did the damage. An almost unperceivable white blur zipped past Butter and intercepted the rat. It was the stray. Today marked the first day of his seventh year as an independent and wild animal. His reflexes, senses, and killing instincts were as sharp as ever and showed no signs of decline. Butter gave him a determined glare that was returned with equal intensity.

“You took the bird yesterday, and I’m fine with that, because it was yours to begin with. But today, you are the one who is stealing. That rat came into my home, and I was just about to get it before you interrupted. I won’t let you pass until you give it up.” Butter meowed a mouthful, standing between her opponent and the backyard door.

The tomcat didn’t reply, as his jaws were clenched tightly on the still struggling and squealing rat. Instead he let out a hostile groan from his throat. The two cats were at a standstill and the humans dared not to interfere.

The domesticated one introduced itself. “My name is Butter. You could at least tell me yours.”

No reply from the wild one. She grew frustrated.

“You act like you’re so much better than me. What makes you think that? You’re fur is all dirty, you’re skinny and smelly and you’re mean! The only thing you care about is hunting prey and hating humans. Seriously what’s your problem?” Butter demanded answers.

There was a short pause before the stray cat dropped the rat and pinned it down with his front paws. It was still squirming but slowly losing energy.

“You think I’m the one with the problem?” He asked. “I told you before. You’re a pet. You depend on humans for food and shelter. You will never understand the struggles we strays face.”

Suddenly, a quivering voice came from the stairway.

“Ghost?”

It was the reclusive human that lived upstairs. The sight of it being outside of its room astonished Butter.

Ghost showed no signs of recognition, neither at the name nor at the human muttering it. He stayed on guard.

“Is that really you, Ghost?”

TO BE CONTINUED…