Cats and Dogs (unedited version)

Chapter 9: A Warning to All

HEYYYYY!!!!!!!! Sorry for the wait and shortness, I was going to write more but I can't be bothered, I want my story to actually go somewhere so the next chapter will be very depressing (just a warning) but then it'll get happier!!!! XD

Picture is of the card - yes I made it in RE, don't ask

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To anyone else, the contents would have appeared as a religious friend who was worried, but because we live in the world we do – we knew what it meant. The front read “Never Give In”, which in any other situation would have had me sing Black Veil Brides for the next four hours, and “Godsets the time for sorrow and the time for joy”. Inside the cover was a quote saying “Your pain has a purpose, and I can’t tell you what that purpose is, but you will find out soon on your own”. The rest of the card read:

“To the Higates,

    I’m so sorry to hear about your recent family loss, and I can only hope God helps you through this time, but remember, you can always come to me.

Yours Forever,

    H.

P.S. Remember and wait, good will come.”

It was the conniving way in which my mental voice read it that caused the unrest feeling in my stomach – the secretive way of writing, the sarcastic mental tone, the threat about “purpose” – it was all due to the writers of said card.

    “H.” was in fact short for “Hunters” and the way it was addressed to all of us freaked me out – there were a lot of shifters under that family name, I didn’t want my nephew involved in this.

    “Rob...” I managed out after the initial anxiety, “what do we do..?”  I was scared for some reason, though which I wasn’t sure. Maybe it was just due to the fact that this, besides attacks, was the only other form of direct communication with the Hunters. Or maybe it was just that it was addresses to my family as a whole and not just to me – they could torture me all they wanted, but there was no way any of them would hurt my family. Either way, I was properly scared for the first time since initially taking the crown.

    “I’m not sure, but we definitely need to inform the Council,” the Council is made up of the ruler, future ruler, second in command, any guard members (true guard members are extremely rare, with not one being identified in the past century), and any mates they have from each clowder/pack etc. However, as Robert will practically be in charge, the Council representatives from our clowder are currently me, Robert, Jade and Jamie. “The next Council meeting is on Monday at the school,” he continued, “if we can go on Monday for lessons then we should tell them then.”

    I agreed before asking the doctor who’d been previously gorging on a scoop of hedgehog gooeyness, “will they be alright for tomorrow?” She knew what I meant, I was talking about the physical health (if I started talking about their mental health I’d be entering unchartered territory), of the kids who’d been injured due to my idiocy because if the funeral was held tomorrow we could be at school for Monday having only missed the first week.

    “They should be, yes, but I’d like it if they stayed under strict supervision for the time being,” I shrugged – anything to guarantee their well-being.

    The rest of the day passed in a blur, nothing happened out of the blue. I just sat and answered any questions given to me.

    At some time during the afternoon, Louis dragged me out of my thoughts. “MUNTIE!” he yelled at the top of his voice. Everyone in the room stared at him.

    “Yes big boy?” I asked scooping him up.

    “Daddy is lost,” he said, causing my stomach to knot itself in yet another twist.

    “What?” I asked, hoping he didn’t mean it that way.

    “We were playing hide and seek and I can’t find him anywhere!” he whined and I smiled.

    “We better find him then!” I laughed.

    Leo, where are you? asked in his head, not letting on that I was with Louis.

    In the garden, why? he replied.

    I need to talk to you, was all I said before I kicked him out of my head.

    “Louis, he’s in the garden, go find him, I’ll join you in a few minutes,” I told him, and he started to leave. “Oh and don’t tell him how you found him,” I added, not wishing to have an argument with one of my few genuine friends.

    “I pwomise Muntie,” he lisped before he ran in the direction of the garden. I had to laugh at his adorableness.

    “That’s something I’ve not heard in a long time,” a voice said behind me, and I jumped. I hadn’t noticed anyone in here with me.

    “What?” I asked inquisitively as I turned the speaker – it was Rob.

    “You genuinely laughing at anyone besides Jade,” he made it sound so ordinary, but what he was saying set me back. What was he talking about? I laughed all the fucking time, just because my current emotional state was commonly known now did not mean people could just point it out!

    “What are you talking about?” I demanded, “I laugh all the time.”

    “Not genuinely, not anymore,” he said softly. “you force a laugh when necessary, and even they are short lived.” I wanted to deny it, but I knew it was true – my emotions were seriously messed up.