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    Valkyrie
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Stories posted in this category are works of fiction. Names, places, characters, events, and incidents are created by the authors' imaginations or are used fictitiously. Any resemblances to actual persons (living or dead), organizations, companies, events, or locales are entirely coincidental.
Note: While authors are asked to place warnings on their stories for some moderated content, everyone has different thresholds, and it is your responsibility as a reader to avoid stories or stop reading if something bothers you. 

Promptings from Valhalla - 18. The Cat Crusades

This is the first of a series of monthly prompts that Cole Matthews and I will be completing. Please check out his response in 1550 Loring Lane.

Prompt character: person with a tail who’s a liar

Story words: pregnant, declaration of war

 

“Ow! Stop it, you jerk!” Sam wailed and yanked his tail out of Hank’s hand.

“Oh gimme a break. I didn’t hurt you, you freak.” Hank rolled his eyes.

Sam cradled his black, furry tail close to his chest. “My tail is very sensitive.”

Hank grabbed for Sam’s ears, but the boy had been anticipating the move and ducked away. Unfortunately, he hadn’t accounted for Hank’s minion, Tom, who grabbed him and held on to the struggling boy with a vice-like grip.

Sam howled and flailed his legs, stopping only when Hank approached. He looked at the towering boy with moist, brown eyes. He bit his lower lip to stop it from quivering. Hank grinned and snatched the soft, inky cat ears from Sam’s head. He held up the headband in triumph, like the winner of a sporting event brandishing a trophy.

Sam’s eyes widened in horror, then he screwed his face up into a ferocious scowl. “Give those back!” he shouted.

“Finders, keepers!” Hank taunted. He waved the ears in front of Sam’s reddening face and laughed.

“Those are mine! Give them back!” Sam emitted a keening cry that drew a large crowd of their fellow fourth-graders.

“Shut up!” Hank drew his arm back and landed a punch to Sam’s stomach. The boy doubled over in pain and Tom released his grip. Sam knelt on all fours, gasping for breath.

“If I lose my kittens, I’m going to kill you,” he panted.

“Kittens? Man, there’s something wrong with you.”

Sam collapsed to his side in a fetal position and caressed his stomach. “I can’t feel them….” He sobbed, making it even more difficult to draw breath.

Hank raised an eyebrow and scoffed. “Freak.” He started to walk way, followed by Tom.

“This… is… war…,” Sam declared, glaring at the retreating bullies.

“War, huh?” Tom taunted. “Oooo, I’m so scared.” He bumped his shoulder against Hank’s and the duo burst into laughter.

“What are you going to do? Scratch us? You really are a pussy, you know that?” Hank puffed out his chest, proud of his play on words.

“You’ll see. You’ll be sorry,” Sam muttered as his tormentors disappeared down the hallway, along with the dispersing crowd.

*****

“Take your hood off at the table, Sammy,” his father stated as he set a plate of burgers on the table.

“I don’t want to.” Sam crossed his arms and slouched in his chair.

“It’s not up for debate. We use good manners in this house. No hoods or hats at the table.”

Sam huffed out his breath and slowly pulled his hood back. His black hair fell around his face, hiding his chocolate brown eyes.

“Where’s your ears? You don’t go anywhere without them.”

Sam shrugged and picked at the bun on his plate.

“Did something happen, Sammy?”

“They were getting ratty, so I threw them out.” He stared at the table. “Can we get new ones tonight?”

Sam’s father exhaled. Money was tight that month, but Sam asked for so little he hated saying no. His son wasn’t always truthful, but he decided not to press the matter. He didn’t believe for one minute that his eccentric son threw out his beloved kitty ears. “Sure thing, kittycat. As long as you eat all of your dinner.” He handed Sam the plate of burgers. “Like a human,” he added.

“Fine.” Sam grabbed a burger and assembled his dinner. He didn’t have much of an appetite, so only ate about half of his meal before heading to his bedroom. He had a battle to plan.

*****

“Hi, Sam. How are you today?” Lilly asked. “I see you got new ears. Hank’s a jerk. He shouldn’t have taken them.” She walked next to Sam as they entered the school.

Sam shrugged. “I needed new ones anyway. He can have them. Besides…”—he looked around—“I brought some weapons with me today. Hank is going to pay for hurting my kittens.” He patted his belly.

Lilly stared at her friend. Sam was strange, but harmless. Or so she thought. “What do you mean, you brought some weapons?”

“I meant it when I declared war. Hank needs to learn a lesson. Hurting me is one thing, but messing with my babies… he deserves what he gets.”

Lilly had never seen the strange boy look more determined. She swallowed. “What did you bring?”

“You’ll see. Second period. I’d stay to the back of the room, if I were you. You’re my only friend. I don’t want you to get hurt.” He smiled at her and skipped to his locker.

 

Sam entered his second period classroom and stopped in the entryway. Lilly stood next to their teacher, wringing her hands. Her eyes widened when she saw him, and she stepped behind Mr. Stephenson.

Sam narrowed his eyes and yelled, “Betrayer! Judas!” He quickly removed his black, cat-shaped backpack and undid the clasp.

Two police officers who had been standing next to the teacher ran toward him and drew their weapons, but stopped when they saw what the boy had withdrawn from his pack.

“Go forth, my minions, and wreak havoc upon my enemies!” he yelled. He gently prodded three small kittens in Hank and Tom’s direction.

The three balls of fluff flopped onto their backs and rolled on the floor, twitching their tails.

“Awww! He brought in kittens!” one of his female classmates said and squealed. She left her chair and knelt in front of the little animals. She stroked the one closest to her—a ginger kitten with yellow eyes.

“Get away from them! They’re supposed to attack!” Sam yelled.

The class erupted in laughter. The police officers looked at each other and raised their eyebrows. They then sheathed their guns.

“We had a report of a student with weapons. Want to tell me what’s going on here?” the male officer asked.

The kittens trotted in different directions, exploring their new surroundings. A black kitten with a small white spot on its chest tottered over to Hank and rubbed against his leg.

“Get him!” Sam shouted.

Hank reached down and picked up the kitten. He held it against his chest and stroked its fur while the animal purred happily. “Nice kitty,” he said as a smile spread across his face.

Sam stared at the spectacle, his mouth hanging open. “Benedict Arnold!”

“Son, what in God’s good name are you doing?” the male officer moved in front of Sam.

“Waging war,” Sam replied.

“Let me see your backpack.”

Sam picked up his discarded bag and handed it over. The officer searched its contents, then looked at his partner and shook his head.

“You mean to tell me your ‘weapons’ are these kittens?”

Sam sat cross-legged on the floor with his arms crossed. Tears streamed down his cheeks. “They were supposed to avenge me.”

The officer sat next to him. “Avenge you for what?”

“Hank punched my stomach and made me lose my kittens. I wanted to make him pay.”

Lilly ran over and sat on the other side of Sam. She put her arms around his shoulders and pulled him close. “I’m sorry, Sammy, but I was afraid of what was going to happen. We hear about school shootings all the time. I couldn’t let you ruin your life,” she cried.

“It’s OK,” Sam muttered. “It didn’t work anyway.”

“Tell me what happened,” the officer stated.

“Yesterday Hank stole my ears and punched me. Now I can’t feel my kittens anymore.” Sam placed his hands on his stomach and sobbed.

“Sam thinks he’s pregnant with kittens,” Lilly explained.

The two officers exchanged worried looks. The male officer rose and held out his hand. “Why don’t you gather up your minions and we’ll go call your parents?”

Sam sniffled and nodded. “Poppy died last year so it’s just me and daddy now.” He took the officer’s hand and stood.

Lilly looked at the female officer and stated, “The cat thing started after his poppy died. They were very close.”

The female officer smiled sympathetically. “It sounds like Sam might need a little more support. Let’s get these kittens rounded up.”

Lilly and the officer each grabbed a kitten. Sam walked over to Hank. The bully continued to cradle the little furball and pet it.

“You like cats?” Sam asked in a surprised tone.

“Yeah. I have two,” Hank replied.

“But you make fun of me all the time. How can you like cats and make fun of one?”

“Because you act like you’re five. We’re ten years old. That’s too old to dress up like a freaking cat.”

Sam narrowed his eyes. “That’s no reason to be such a dick.”

Hank shrugged. “Stop being a freak and I’ll stop being a dick.”

Sam raised an eyebrow. “Somehow, I doubt that will happen.” He held out his hand.

Hank scratched the kitten’s ears, then handed the animal over.

Sam held the kitten close and muttered in its ear, “You were supposed to attack him, but I forgive you. You’re too nice to be an attack cat.”

With the three kittens secured in the backpack, Sam and the officers headed to the school principal’s office to call Sam’s father.

I hope you enjoyed this little snippet of Sam's life. Cole Matthews and I plan on writing one story per month from the same prompt, so look for more of these in the future. Any and all comments are appreciated. Thanks for reading!
Copyright © 2018 Valkyrie; All Rights Reserved.
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Stories posted in this category are works of fiction. Names, places, characters, events, and incidents are created by the authors' imaginations or are used fictitiously. Any resemblances to actual persons (living or dead), organizations, companies, events, or locales are entirely coincidental.
Note: While authors are asked to place warnings on their stories for some moderated content, everyone has different thresholds, and it is your responsibility as a reader to avoid stories or stop reading if something bothers you. 
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Chapter Comments

When I saw that the Prompt was a person with a tail, I was thinking Rat Tail, the underdeveloped and even dumber version of the male ponytail!  ;-)

 

I’m still trying to understand why a person with a tail would want to wear a cat’s ears headband. When I was Sam’s age, my parents would never have given in to a request like that! Money was even tighter for my family than for Sam’s family. Even if I had wanted something like that, they’d never have purchased something so idiosyncratic and (in their words) “wasteful.” Of course, my parents became much more indulgent of their grandchildren!  ;-)

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This is a sweet, sad story. And what a fortunate outcome for Sam, in that maybe his life has a chance of getting brighter. Thank you for doing such a nice job on this. 

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Kids cope in so many different ways. We look at the world differently as children, especially when we have suffered a loss, and you show that here. I was riveted to this tail... er... tale, Val. There was an eloquent sadness that touched me. I hope Sam and Hank can become friends. He needs to come back to the world around him... and it sounds like it could be time... I hope. Well done. Cheers... Gary.... 

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I can totally empathize with Sam's desire to withdraw from reality. I did the same thing, but it was all internal in that I got lost in books, so the only additional thing I got tormented about was being a "nerd" for liking books. 

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14 hours ago, dughlas said:

Poor Sam.

Yes, the poor kid has been through a lot.  Thanks for reading :) 

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13 hours ago, Slytherin said:

I remember being 10 and instead of letting the person you were interested in know, you were fighting with them :P High hopes for the future, Sam is adorable :)  Thanks Penguin :thumbup: 

Yes, 10 is a difficult age.  Thanks for reading and commenting :) 

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12 hours ago, LitLover said:

Aww I just want to hug Sam and  make him feel better.  Bullying can cause some terrible repercussions, and  I admit I was worried about about he was planning too, but his attack kittens were unexpected  :gikkle: 

Sam may have issues, but he's really a gentle soul at heart.  I admit to giggling when I wrote the attack kittens part.  ;)  Thanks for the comments!  :hug: 

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12 hours ago, Defiance19 said:

Aww... Sam.

I agree with Slytherin too. 

Will look forward to these.  

Thanks, Defiance.  I'm looking forward to writing more of these, too.  It was fun :D 

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11 hours ago, droughtquake said:

When I saw that the Prompt was a person with a tail, I was thinking Rat Tail, the underdeveloped and even dumber version of the male ponytail!  ;-)

 

I’m still trying to understand why a person with a tail would want to wear a cat’s ears headband. When I was Sam’s age, my parents would never have given in to a request like that! Money was even tighter for my family than for Sam’s family. Even if I had wanted something like that, they’d never have purchased something so idiosyncratic and (in their words) “wasteful.” Of course, my parents became much more indulgent of their grandchildren!  ;-)

I had to enlarge my screen and get out my readers to read that tiny font.  My eyes aren't as good as they used to be.   Sam is struggling with a lot of issues.  So is his father, although we don't really know to what extent from what's written.  Dealing with the death of a partner, plus a troubled son can't be easy.  It's not wasteful if a dollar pair of cat's ears brings some level of comfort to a troubled boy.  And yes, I know these are different times and every dollar makes a difference to a struggling family.  Thanks for your comments. 

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11 hours ago, Parker Owens said:

This is a sweet, sad story. And what a fortunate outcome for Sam, in that maybe his life has a chance of getting brighter. Thank you for doing such a nice job on this. 

Thanks for reading and commenting :) And I agree... I think things are looking up for our poor little kitty.  

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8 hours ago, Headstall said:

Kids cope in so many different ways. We look at the world differently as children, especially when we have suffered a loss, and you show that here. I was riveted to this tail... er... tale, Val. There was an eloquent sadness that touched me. I hope Sam and Hank can become friends. He needs to come back to the world around him... and it sounds like it could be time... I hope. Well done. Cheers... Gary.... 

Kids make friends and enemies quickly at that age.  Now that Sam and Hank have something in common, maybe it's a starting point for, at the minimum, a truce.  Thanks so much for your comments, Gary.  :hug:  

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8 hours ago, Efmaer said:

I can totally empathize with Sam's desire to withdraw from reality. I did the same thing, but it was all internal in that I got lost in books, so the only additional thing I got tormented about was being a "nerd" for liking books. 

I did the same thing, too.  I always had my nose stuck in a book when I was a kid.  When I was Sam's age, I was tormented for how much I liked horses.  ;)  Thanks for reading and commenting.  

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There's being a kid and then there's being in need of help. Sam has gone too far into his imaginary world, possibly to protect himself and take control over a life that has gone to hell. 

 

I look forward to more prompts!

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Just now, Puppilull said:

There's being a kid and then there's being in need of help. Sam has gone too far into his imaginary world, possibly to protect himself and take control over a life that has gone to hell. 

 

I look forward to more prompts!

You hit the nail on the head.  At least now people are taking notice of Sam's issues and he should get the help he needs.  Thanks for reading!  I'm looking forward to writing more. These are fun :D 

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2 hours ago, Valkyrie said:

I had to enlarge my screen and get out my readers to read that tiny font.  My eyes aren't as good as they used to be.   Sam is struggling with a lot of issues.  So is his father, although we don't really know to what extent from what's written.  Dealing with the death of a partner, plus a troubled son can't be easy.  It's not wasteful if a dollar pair of cat's ears brings some level of comfort to a troubled boy.  And yes, I know these are different times and every dollar makes a difference to a struggling family.  Thanks for your comments. 

My parents were children during the Great Depression and also the offspring of immigrants – the combination reinforced and multiplied their opposition to waste. They were incredibly frugal and would not spend money on what they would have seen as frivolous fantasies. They were always focused on the practical. My father was a Protestant minister with a very low salary. It’s one of many reasons I’m an Agnostic.

 

Sorry about the font size, it’s my way of ‘whispering.’

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At age 3, children start to develop a vivid imagination. They will create their own imaginary world. But when they reach a certain age and haven't stopped this phase of childhood, then there is something wrong and they need help. 

Loved how the story played out showing us there was something wrong with Sam!

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6 hours ago, Sherye said:

At age 3, children start to develop a vivid imagination. They will create their own imaginary world. But when they reach a certain age and haven't stopped this phase of childhood, then there is something wrong and they need help. 

Loved how the story played out showing us there was something wrong with Sam!

Thank you!  Sam definitely needs some help.  

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