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By Daniel Gibson (AKA Blaine) & Kenny Blackwell
Chapter 1: Meeting! Tuna, Laundry, and Escape!
Man has always been proud of his place, high above the animals. Man was the highest creation and it felt that nothing else should come close to being as intelligent or civilized as man.
In 2034, Scientists succeeded in cloning a human with animal DNA, creating an anthromorph. More were made. They hoped to use these Subhumans as a new source of labor. But government funding was running low and the Humane Society felt that it was wrong. And so, the experiments were scrapped and 397 Subhumans were forced to enter the world. An act was passed, making Subhumans subject to human laws and made citizens. But that didn't mean the majority liked it. Subhuman's were spat upon, humiliated, and persecuted. And so this went on, and the world turned...
Felicia digs about in a dumpster. She is a calico colored catgirl with long, dirty blonde hair. Her hair as well as the rest of her body is rather dirty. She is thin and a few ribs poke out just under the torn Hard Rock Cafe shirt she has on, which is torn up so much it's really just a belly shirt. She also has some dirty, stained and torn jeans. She is barefoot and the bottoms of her feet sore and calloused.
She scrounges around and smiles triumphantly as she pulls a can from the dumpster. She scraps the remains of the corn beefed hash in it out and eats it hungrilly. She sigh, satisfied with her largest meal in two days and lays back in the dumpster for a moment.
She noticed a couple of policemen exit out of a cafe nearby... they don't see her, though.
"I'd better get out of here.... " she murmures to herself. "But I need a drink." She peeks out and sees taht they don't se eher and she sneaks across the alley to a water spigot on the opposite building and turns it on.
"Hey! Hold it right there!" The officers spotted her! They approach her with accusing looks. "And just what were you doin'?"
She gasps and back sup into the alley a bit, the water running. "N...nothing. I was just thirty. Wanted to have a quick drink... maybe wash my face...."
"Hey, you know that's a private building... maybe we should beat some sense into you..." the both pull out their nightsticks.
She backs up quickly. "No, please. Not again. I'm sorry. I won't do it again, please." She begs, remembering the beatings and jailtime she had spent before, just because she was a Subhuman.
"HEY! POLICE!!" Both officers turn to see a young man with longish black hair and brown eyes, carrying groceries. "The bank's being robbed, you better get there and try to stop it!!" The officers look to each other, then to the cat-girl.
"She ain't worth it... c'mon..." the officiers quickly leave, more importantly, leaving the cat-girl in peace.
She sighs and shudders, standing there. She then realizes that she should probably get out of there and heads to the end of the alley.
"... Hey, wait!" the man calls out, setting down his groceries, pulling out a pre-packaged tua sandwich. "... Here, catch!" He tosses the cat-girl the food.
She turns just in time to grab it. She looks at it a moment... then looks up to him. "Why?" She thinks a moment. "Hey, if you think this is a way to pay me for 'somthing', then you can have it back. I don't associate with primates."
"No, it's... well, you looked like you needed something good to eat... I just wanted to do something nice. No strings attached. Really."
She looks up at him. "... right. Well.... thanks." She unwraps it a bit and smells at it. "And uhm.... thanks for calling those cops. Was there really a robbery?"
"Well... not exactly..." he said with a smile. "Just didn't want to see them hurt someone, that's all."
She grins. "Idiots. Well... thanks. It's getting late. I need to find a place to stay. I know a guy who owns a junk yard and lets me sleep there." She grumbles. "If I flash my tits. He's a dirty old man, but I guess it's a small price to pay for a nights rest. Things can happen to you out on the street." She says this as if she knows from experience.
"Yeah... uhm..." the man sighs softly, lowering his head, then looks back to the cat-girl. "... If you want... well, I have more than enough room back at my apartment... you can come with me... no funny stuff or anything, I promise. Just a good place to sleep... plenty of food... your choice."
She looks at him. "... no funny stuff? You sure?"
"Promise. You'd be my roommate. No strings attached."
"..." She looks him up and down one more time. "... Ok.... I'll go with you. Might not be too bad." She walks over to him. "I'm Felicia. You?"
"Ken Black," he smiles, then picks up the groceries. "C'mon, let's get going before the police find out I pulled one over them."
She nods and follows.
Ken reaches his apartment. Placing the groceries down, he fishes for his keys and pulls them out, unlocking the door and getting the groceries back up. "Well, here we are... it ain't much, but at least it's home..."
She looks around. "Hmm.. aint' bad, I guess." She tosses the wrapper from her sandwich into the street and follows him in.
Ken smiles then goes to the kitchen and starts putting the food away. "I'll get dinner cooked in a bit... how do you feel about tuna casserole?"
She nods. "Sounds OK." She tries not to be too enthused by anything just yet. She walks about his living room and looks at thing.
She notices a few pictures... some of himself and an older man, possibly his grandfather. There's also a triangular case with an American flag on the wall, underneath is a plaque that reads "Sgt. John Black."
She looks at these and pads quietly to the kitchen door and peeks in.
Ken has already put away the groceries and has gotten out the ingredients for making a tuna casserole. He doesn't notice her, but she does notice two plates sitting, waiting for the food to be placed upon them.
"So you live here alone?"
"Yeah... used to be with me and my grandfather, but he died of cancer several years ago..." he sighs as he puts the ingredients together. "Pretty much a dreary life from there on out, really..."
She nods a bit and sits on the edge of a chair at the table. "My parent's died. You know that Nuclear Reactor outside of town? It used to be a Sub-Human community til they built that. We lived there, but they dissapeared when I was 9. The authorities say they abandoned me and didn't try to find them, but I think they were killed becasue they didnt' want to move. So, I came here to the city 12 years ago and I've been surviving ever since."
"Wow... that's rough..." Ken emerges from the kitchen. "Well, dinner'll be ready in about fifteen minutes, Felicia."
She nods and sits there, a little nervous looking.
Ken sits down next to Felicia. "It's okay, Felicia... nothing's going to hurt you here. I promise."
She scoots to the far end of the couch from him when he sits down. "Thanks."
"... Right," Ken sighs. "... Well... if you like you can sleep in my bed tonight--"
She stands up suddenly. "I knew it!! You just want to get a little free fuzzy tail!!" She growls and unscheaths her claws. "Yer just like all the other primates! Well, swing back into the trees where you belong, ape! I'm outta here..." She storms to the door.
"NO! Wait, you didn't let me finish! Please stop!" Ken stands up. "I mean you can have my bed, I'd sleep on the couch!"
She turns. "... Oh... I'm.. I'm sorry." She looks embarrassed. "Look, you don't gotta do that. I can sleep on the couch. I mean, even the rug would be a huge step up from my normal situation."
"No, I insist..." Ken smiles. "You're free to use my bed tonight... and well, every other night, in fact. For as long as you wanna stay here."
She looks at him. "... yeah, OK. Thanks." She sniffs. "Can I... Can I use your shower before dinner? And.. borrow some clothes?"
"Sure." Ken nods. "You got time to spare."
"Thanks." She pads to the hallway. "Uhm.. which door?"
"First door to your left's the bathroom... the door down the hall's my room."
"Thanks again. Just leave any spare clothes inside the bathroom door, if you would." She heads to the bathroom and soon the water can be heard starting.
Ken checks the timer on the oven, nods, then walks down the hallway to get some fresh clothes for Felicia, clothes she might wear. He then places them where she wanted them.
As he opens the door to set them inside, her figure is seen faintly through the frosted showerdoors. While not clear enough to give away anything private, he can easilly make out the white and tan spots all over her body as well has her rather nice and perky figure.
Ken smiles a little to himself... then quickly exits the bathroom to check up on the casserole. Though he can't help but think... oO{... she's beautiful...}
After about 15 minutes, she walks into the kitchen. Her fur is shiney and bright and her hair has come out of its tangles and knots and is a prettier shade of blonde. She has it in a ponytail that sits high on her head. She's wearing one of his T-shirts and has his jeans rolled up so they don't drag the ground. "I used some of your shampoo on my hair and fur. And I found a rubber band to put in my hair. Hope you don't mind."
'Nah, I don't mind at all..." Ken smiles; the tuna casserole is already out of the oven and a plate with fork is sitting for Felicia. "Well, dinner's ready. Eat up, but it's a little hot. So be careful."
She sits down and grabs the fork, a bit awkwardly, as she hasn't used one in a while, if at all. She leans close to her plate and shovels her food in, eagerly. She eats like an animal that's afraid it might get taken away.
Ken just smiles, and proceeds to eat his share of the casserole himself. "Good?"
She nods and burps loudly. "YEah... It's wonderful. Can I... have more?"
"Sure," Ken smiles and takes Felicia's plate, putting another slice of casserole on it, then hands it back to her. "Here you go."
"Thanks." She begins to scarf this too, but only gets so far before holding her tummy a little.
"... You okay?" asks Ken, a little concerned.
"Yeah... Kinda.. overdid it. I usually don't get to eat this much...."
"Ohh... sorry about that..." Ken sighs.
SHe smiles. "It's OK... can I get some water?"
"Oh, sure..." Ken gets up and gets Felicia a glass of water. "Here you go... freshly filtered, too."
She takes a sip and makes a face. "Tastes kinda funny."
"Well, it's filtered... no pollutants and other stuff. It's basically fresh spring water. Guess it takes some getting used to. But it's very good."
She nods. "It's not bad, I guess. Just different." She sips some more.
Ken smiles at Felicia, then continues to eat his food.
She sits there and yawns.
"... You can go ahead and take a nap if you like... my bed's yours now, y'know." Ken smiles at Felicia. "I can store your plate in the fridge and it'll be ready for microwaving when you want to eat again."
She nods. "Ok..." She stands up and heads to the kitchen door. She then stops and turns back. "Thanks Ken."
Ken nods. "Hey, it's no problem. Just... doing what I can, you know?"
She... smiles at him. "Good night." She leaves.
Ken watches her leave, then sighs softly. "Night, Felicia."