The Liar

Chapter 1

-Seven months later-
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         The forest was near silent as Knavish sat beside the base of a tree and let out a growl. Or, at least, something that sounded like it.

         "Hello... hello," the young molly repeated in an odd voice, a sound akin to that of a pair of growling cats. She was alone, nobody was around for her to speak to, and it was a perfect opportunity to practice her growl-voice.

         Her mother said that no one she knew could talk and growl at the same time, and all of Knav's friends said the same, even though they tried to replicate it themselves. Knavish guessed her throat was messed up due to what happened when she was born. Something, she had never cared enough to remember exactly what happened, had wrapped around her throat and messed it all up. Obviously, the kitten didn't care much about how it happened, but she thought it was pretty cool that she could do something that no one else could.

         After a minute or so of just growling to herself, the brown tabby got up and navigated through the forest, back to her family's home. After living there for months, the young cat was well-versed in how to avoid the worst bramble patches, and thankfully, that was all she really had to worry about. Since the woods were often occupied by human visitors, dangers like foxes and bears were rare. That was really good, since almost any even slightly dangerous creature could find the kitten as a good meal. Her dad didn't like that her mother lived in the woods, but Knavish knew nothing bad could happen. Her mom and Tom wouldn't let anything happen to her.

         Tom was her mother's mate, but he wasn't Knav's father. He was pretty okay, but the young molly thought he was a bit strict. He and Knavish's mom had a weird sort of mental connection, so they could talk to each other from really far away. She thought that was pretty cool. One day, Knavish hoped that she would have some sort of magic too!

         As the young molly broke through the undergrowth and into the small clearing that she lived in, she saw her mom curled up in one of the woven dens, watching Knav's half-brother Tommy, Knavish called him Kit, wander around. At the sight of her, Tommy squealed and ran toward her, his tail sticking straight up to show he was clearly excited to see her. Knavish however, was less enthralled. She growled a tiny bit, and turned stiff as her little brother tried to playfully bat at her. They had a six month age gap, so Tommy was quite a bit smaller than her, and the older sibling did not entirely love being scolded when she played with him "too roughly."

         "Hey, Kit," Knavish greeted her brother, before padding over to their mom, who was watching them both carefully. "Sorry for being out so long, mom," the tabby kitten apologized, "Oh, but I did check the forest for weird smells like Tom wanted me to before I explored. Didn't find anything odd."

         Her mother nodded her head. "Thank you, I know he appreciates your help. He'll be back soon, and then we'll eat." The dark ginger tabby then turned her gaze back to Tommy, who was now getting his solid red coat absolutely soaked in the stream. Their mother got up and started to rush toward him, meowing, "Oh, get out of there! Just because it's getting warmer doesn't mean you can get yourself wet and muddy!"

         Knavish only flicked an ear as her mother left to scold her younger brother, slightly annoyed at how short their conversation was. Kit's more than a month old, she thought, jealousy picking at her heart, so why is she still treating him like a newborn kitten?

         Quickly though, the brown tabby made her way over to her own den, not too far from her mother, Tom, and Kit's. It was still almost across the clearing though, and was right next to Kit's own unfinished den. He was too young to sleep on his own safely. Of course, that meant Knavish slept on her own while the "real" family all curled up together at night. The kitten knew deep in her heart that she was definitely part of the family, and both her mom and Tom both loved her as much as Tommy, but she still felt alone. It certainly didn't help when she came back to a dry and stiff nest after a few days in the human town with her dad.

         After settling down in her den, the young cat started carving at a shard of wood with her front claws. She tried her best to shape the stick into a cat, but her attempts ended in a rough, lopsided form that kinda looked like a lizard with a short snout. She was still proud of it, though. In fact, in her eyes, it was one of the best she'd done yet! Knavish placed it in an organized pile of similar carvings, deciding that she would mention her newest masterpiece during dinner.

         Speaking of which, Knav heard Tom's voice outside, meaning that dinner would be sooner rather than later! Walking out of her den and into the clearing again, she caught sight of Tom dropping off some large carrying leaves as he was greeted by her mom and brother. The younger cat let out a greeting trill of her own just as her fatherly figure caught sight of her, who returned the gesture to all three of his family members.

         "Knavish, did you scent the woods?" He asked, in a monotone voice that made it sound almost like he was indifferent. Knavish knew better, though.

         "Yep!" She said back, "Nothing weird, just us and some people and their pets and such. I explored the forest too."

         Tom nodded. "Great, thank you. I'll have a sniff of my own later, after we eat."

         Knavish felt positive that he wouldn't find anything that she missed, she did a really good job that time! Nothing could get past her amazing scenting skills!

         "Alright then kiddos, dinner time!" Tom announced as the two siblings both rushed to the leaf wraps that the dark brown tom had brought in. Inside were chunks of meat. Each kitten picked up a leaf and carried it to the eating space, their parents following them soon after. The evening passed by uneventfully, Knavish showed her mom and Tom the awesome carving she made, and she fell asleep soon after.

         The rest of Knav's time with her mom passed without much incident as well, with each day following a similar routine. Knav would get up with the sun, much to her dislike, go into the human town, hang out with the strays and house cats, then be back home by the time the sun was halfway back down to the ground. After that, she would do the small jobs that Tom gave her until sunset, and then she would sleep.

         The last of those few days was when things would become different again.

Word Count: 1,188