Ignore the Status Quo

New Friend

A burst of chilly air blew through the condo, making the occupants near shiver. It was about halfway through their winter break and the teens were taking full advantage of the snow by skiing, sledding, and snowmobiling. Honestly, they didn't really know how they fit all the winter gear in the house. Across town there was a shuttle that took people up to the ski mountain about twenty minutes away. Linnea and Julia were currently up there and said they would be back around three. Alice and Isabel were both huddled around the heater playing cards while Thomas and Chloe played video games in the living room. Trea had gone home early in the morning, claiming that she had forgotten something critical. Knowing Trea, she would probably take everything from her room except what she needed in the first place.
"I'm back!" A voice hollered from the doorway, announcing Trea's return. A bumping and clumping could be heard as Trea made her way inside. Chloe peered over the couch at Trea's back as she took off her shoes and drop a huge black crate that must have been making all noise.
"What? Did you bring your whole bed?" Chloe said gesturing to the create with a smirk. Trea turn quickly on her heal and grin, almost manically. Chloe's smirk dissolved. Trea had that look on her face that said that she had an idea that would probably result in a disaster later. Thomas turned and after taking one look at Trea, he paled and turned back to the TV. Trea took off her coat and threw it in the closet, still grinning. She rushed over to the plastic crate, hefting it up on her hip. A rustling could be heard in it along with a slight scraping noise. Chloe raised her eyebrows and waved a hand at the box.
"What's really in there?" She questioned. Thomas shrugged his shoulders and muttered something along the lines of 'knowing Trea it's probably like, five-eighth of a virgin or something.' Trea scowled and shifted her weight.
"Um... Well..." She started, glancing down at her sock-clad feet. "Remember how I said that I was going to visit my aunt last week?" Thomas and Chloe nodded. "The same aunt who's cat had kittens last month?" Thomas kept nodding, but Chloe stilled. A look of dread crossed her face. Trea smiled sheepishly.
"I felt that we needed a cat, this place felt one species short, don't you think? Meet El!"

---

Fifteen minutes later and a few screams of 'what?!' Followed by' a kitten?!' And they were gathered around the dining table with the kitten, El, curled up on Trea's lap. Isabel was sitting next to Trea, cooing at El. The little kitten was pale white everywhere except the top of his head, which was a black tuff, running down to his neck. Trea had attached a deep red collar to his neck. Altogether, he was pretty adorable.
"Are you expecting us to take care of him up here? Because I really don't want to clean litter boxes." Alice said skeptically.
"No no. Don't worry I've already bought all of his things, from food to beds to water bowls! I even bought extras for up here. Everything is set up." She smiled brightly at them. Isabel didn't seem to even notice that Trea had been speaking.
"He's absolutely the sweetest!" Isabel whispered. "I wish my parents let me have a cat. They say that Dahlia doesn't like cats though. But I think a rabbit and cat would get along great!" She frowned t El, as though that would solve the problem.
"What kind of cat is he even?" Thomas asked. He leaned over the table to look at the sleeping ball of fuzz.
"Maine Coon." Trea stated proudly, bumping Isabel's hand out of the way to tickle El's ears. Thomas gave a small chuckle before scooting back. Alice tilted her head quizzically.
"Where are you going to keep him? Is here going to come up here with you?" She seemed hesitant to approach the cat, as though he might turn towards her and have blood red eyes. Trea continued to pet the cat, and probably would be thrilled if her cat turned out to be a demon in disguise. Isabel probably wouldn't care either way, so long as it continued to have fur.
"He'll be living at home with me, also coming up with me. I have a travel crate for him, that's what you saw earlier. I'm going to store food up here for him incase we run out. I even bought little toys for him! He's destroyed a few already, but I'm saving the heavy duty ones for later." Alice didn't look any less skeptical but Isabel was still cooing away.
"Aww, got a little toy for the kitty-witty? Hmm?" She said all of this in the standard cute animal voice, that every human seems to have stored away somewhere in their deep subconscious.
"I wonder how Linnea and Julia will react to it." Chloe puzzled.
"This is what they get for going skiing. Missing all the fun." Trea declared.
"You're just jealous cause you can't ski well." Alice stated.
"What makes to think I can't ski well?! I could be the best skier in the nation and you couldn't tell." Trea replied defensively.
"Trea, we're all seen you try to ice skate, and that was a disaster of epic proportions. Second, if you were to be the best skier in the nation, then you would go around every weekend proving it to us." Alice scoffed.
"I really couldn't care less about skiing. Let's get back to the cat. Where's it going to sleep? Can it sleep with me?!" Isabel happily exclaimed.
"No, it's going to sleep with me. It's my cat after all." Isabel pouted then returned to stroking El.
"Just be careful that it doesn't sleep on your head in the middle of the night." Chloe warned. They finally settled all the remaining questions and Thomas, Chloe and Alice returned to the living room for more video games. Trea and Isabel settled down on one of the dinning room benches with El. Isabel snapped photo after photo to send to James. Trea rolled her eyes and pulled Le closer on her lap. Just after three thirty, the tell-tale sounds of the blue Volkswagen that Julia drove were heard outside. The two were covered in snow while dragging their skis and poles to the shed. The both marched in minutes later. Shaking snow from their hair. Julia's cheeks were a rosy red and she had snow frozen in the ends of her brown hair and the chaps of her lips. She was the first to take off her clothes and grinned as she made her way over to where Trea and Isabel were huddled out.
"Hey, what's this?" She leaned over them, then took and surprised gasp.
"Is that... A cat?!" She whisper-shouted. A small smile crept over her face. She didn't even seem that fazed, just bent down to pet it.
"What going on over here?" Linnea asked as she finally got all her clothes off she had read lines across her face from here mask. Trea snickered. Linnea glared back. When she leaned over to look at El, she eyes widened almost comically.
"Oh. Wow. What did we miss?"

---

After almost the same set of question asked earlier, now asked by Julia and Linnea. They all seemed to accept the new family member pretty quick, though he seemed to be constantly under foot. That night at diner, Trea snuck him scraps from under the table.
"Just don't make me sleep with him when he has gas tonight." Linnea warned.
Trea continued to give him potatoes. That night as they settled down for bed. Trea carried El up stairs, along with is bed, which had a candy patterned cloth on it. She set him at he end of her bed, feeling content.
"Goodnight, El." She whispered. That night, at about two in the morning, Trea woke to a mouth full of fur.
"El, get off my face."