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Post by Wolf Tears on Jul 15, 2007 14:14:41 GMT -5
(OOC-Phooey to my bit of poetry. It is awful. It's better with music.)
A lone figure, small and black against the setting sun, walked across the cooling sands, looking out over the water. A soft tune escaped her lips as she sat, absent-mindedly pulling an apple out of the bag she had dumped at her side.
The moon comes up and the sun goes down But this world just rolls on an' on Rain and snow and clouds and sun Ravaged by humans, healed by them later
Soft waves lapping at the seashore's sands Mountains rolling into the distance Deafening silence and unnoticed noises But the world just rolls on and on.
The song ended just as the waves came up to lap at the young girls feet. She glanced down at them, a slight smile on her lips as she thought of the many times she had tried to convince Sandy to let her play in the water. Her aunt had refused on the basis that Katrina would drown if she went out into the surf alone.
Acting on an impulse, Katrina stood and jumped into the surf. She blinked furiously as salt got in her eyes, put the pain wasn't enough to negate the joyous feeling of floating in the water. She laughed as she let the waves take her out further, where she swam up and down and right and left until she didn't know if it was the fish she was looking at that was up-side-down, or her.
Finally Katrina felt the tide begin to rise, and the waves carried her back to the shore. She lay there, stretched out, staring up at the sky; she had never seen this many stars from her house. They combined with the full moon to let loose a silver light that bathed the beach; she could see almost as well by the soft glow as by the street lights back at her old home.
And so Katrina sat, lost in her thoughts, quietly munching on her apple, unable to notice anyone or anything that happened to be near.
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Post by Silverflash // Jayrunner on Jul 16, 2007 9:42:46 GMT -5
Sakura silently ran along a high ledge up on the cliffs. She stopped when she saw Katrina and leaped down to land on her feet. She pulled her ears and tail in so she looked like a normal girl -- well, other than the pink sparkles in her hair and her bright pink eyes. She sat down beside Katrina in the manner of cats and absentmindedly licked the side of her hand and pulled it over her forehead. "I think it's gonna rain tonight," she purred.
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Post by Wolf Tears on Jul 18, 2007 18:08:14 GMT -5
Katrina jumped up at the sight of another human here; her thoughts flew to Sandy as she scrambled backward, sand flying around her. With a movement too swift to follow she pulled out a pocketknife, followed by striking up a deffensive pose. her breath was harsh and shallow, her eyes were wide, and when she spoke, her voice was harsh with fear.
"Sandy sent you, didn't she? Well, I'm not going back and you can tell her that!" She hoped that no blood would be drawn, but she would fight for her freedom if need be.
Then the other girl sat down, four-legged style. Katrina stared for moment, confused, before deciding it was safe. She flicked her pocketknife closed and put it away next to a larger dagger she kept for skinning meals, defending herself against larger predators, and other things she needed a sharp tool for. She eyes both it and the girl sitting on the sand before pulling the sheath away from her belt and laying it-and the dagger-inside her bag. Then she stood and, stepping lightly in case she needed to make a quick getaway, approached the strange girl.
She watched in a silent mixture of fascination and fear as the girl licked her hand and drew it across her forhead. Does she think she's a cat? Ashamed, she repealed the thought instantly, remembering the number of times Mocha had inspired her to act like a cat.
Katrina jumped a little at the girl's comment, surprised to hear another human voice after so many weeks of hearing only herself.
"What, so you're filling your cat's place washing your ears?" Katrina smiled slightly to take away some of the sting of her words. "I'm sorry about what I did before, by the way. I-I've been-I'm not quite ready to trust most people yet. It's been a while..." Katrina's voice trailed off and her hazel eyes flickered slightly as memories flew back to her. The young girl shook her head to clear her thoughts.
"Sorry-I'm not really used to actually talking to-to people." She smile apologetically and the newcomer, now almost completely at ease despite the glimmer of mistrust inside her. "So-what brings you here?" She was curios despite herself of this mysterious young cat-acting girl.
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Post by Silverflash // Jayrunner on Jul 18, 2007 21:21:05 GMT -5
Sakura gave her curled hand a final lick before placing it back down. She glanced sideways at Katrina, at ease with the young girl. "Uh, well to put it plainly, I live over there." She pointed to the tall grassland where OceanClan's camp was. She stretched the way a young cat does when they first wake up, flexing her fingers and yawning widely. She sat down again and began licking her chest softly, migrating to her shoulders occasionally. "What bring you here?" she shot back, hoping not to sound defensive.
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Post by Silverflash // Jayrunner on Jul 18, 2007 21:25:04 GMT -5
Soot bounded down the beach and flew into Sakura's lap. He purred as she rubbed her cheek softly against his, then glared frightenedly at Katrina. "Is she safe?" he meowed wearily. Sakura purred deep in her throat and runbled, "Yes." He picked himself up from Sakura's lap and padded slowly to Katrina. He sniffed her shoe and then rubbed his cheek against her leg before settling down to wash his ears. "It's gonna rain soon," he explained.
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Post by Wolf Tears on Jul 19, 2007 14:04:13 GMT -5
(OOC-'Kay, Mocha and Katrina are in different time warps. Mocha left a few days before Katrina and has been gone about that long; Katrina, like I said, left a few days after Mocha and has been gone two months. *shrug* Ask StarClan how it's possible, not me!
Sorry it's longer than usual, but I've been in a writing mood lately and Katrina's post seem to usually be longer anyway.)
Katrina stared curiously as the girl finished "washing" her ears and set to work on her chest with quiet strokes of her tongue. Yep, definitely catlike behavior...
Her gaze slid from the newcomer to the indicated grasslands. "Do you really? I lived over there for a while, too, but it just-didn't feel right. Neither does this, not anymore." She waved a hand around at the sands, the waves, the rolling dunes. "I suppose it's just not in my nature to stay in one place for too long..." She gazed out over the water again as her memories flew through the past two months... Rivers, forests, hills, moorland, grasslands, and now the ocean... Would she never find a place to stay?
What if she never got to a place that felt like home? Or what if it was back at Sandy's, living the normal life of a normal ten-year-old girl?
No! Though she didn't speak aloud, ever sense tingled desperately at the thought, and her mind screamed the word as her eyes flashed furiously.
Katrina was dragged out of her thoughts by the girl's question. She was surprised, unprepared to answer, though in retrospect she realized she shouldn't have been. She opened her mouth, closed it, and opened it again, trying to figure out what to say. "It-Well, it's a bit of a long story."
She was cut off by the appearance of a smallish black cat, which ran straight over to the strange girl. Katrina watched them, a sad smile on her face as she thought of Mocha. These two had obviously been friends for a long time.
She was a bit surprised at the hesitation the tom held in approaching her, seeing how happily he'd greeted the other girl. He sniffed her quietly before sitting up and washing his ears in a style so similar to the stranger's that Katrina had to laugh at the resemblance. She reached out a hand, quietly laying it on the cat's head. She rubbed and scratched the mall cat, starting up by the ears and working her way down his back, meowing the "Hello, I'm friendly!" sequence she had learned from listening to Mocha.
"He's too skinny for a house cat but in much better shape than most of the city alley cats..." That was spoken with a questioning glance at the other girl.
Having greeted the cat, Katrina reclined backward, propping herself up on her elbows. "Eight years ago, my parents died in a car crash. I was two, so I don't really remember them, don't miss them. I was given to my aunt Sandy, my only relative. I've always hated her-she talks to everyone like they never stopped being two, she does practically everything wrong. The only thing keeping me from running away was Mocha, the cat who lived with us-I'd say she was 'my' cat, but then you don't really own a cat, do you?
"Anyway. But then I was talking to Mocha and a friend of hers-a wild cat, I think, with gorgeous white fur. But it turned out that Mocha and I were holding each other back, because when I told her that, she pretty much told me the same, ‘cept with our names switched-well, she didn’t rally talk, obviously, but she as good as. She left that evening with her friend-Sandy made her life torture, so I can hardly blame her-but I waited a few days to make preparations before heading out. Since then I’ve just been going here and there, catching and growing my food, wandering about.” Katrina let out a wistful sigh as she turned her gaze back to the other girl. “The one thing I want more than anything is a home, but I can’t really find a place I like enough. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve loved each place I’ve been in and I love to travel, but…” She let her voice trail off as her thoughts turned, full circuit, back to the places she had gone to so far.
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Post by Silverflash // Jayrunner on Jul 19, 2007 14:17:43 GMT -5
Sakura tipped her head. "Of course I do!"
Soot stopped his washing mid-lick and watched Katrina's hand silently move down his back. It felt good, but he knew that it might not be good to let her pet him too long. He glanced at Sakura and muttered, "Sakura, what the heck is she doing?" Sakura purred a soft laugh.. "Petting you, stupid furball. It's how twolegs show their love to cats." Soot turned his gaze back to Katrina and he softly licked her hand. "Well, he's not an alleycat. He's a warrior to an evil black cat named Shadow. His name is Soot. He's my--" She almost let herself continue in happy tones, but she brought her voice down to barely mor than a murmure. "He's my mate. And Shadow's my grandfather. I've been fighting my family for over a moon and it's getting tiring." She softly licked Soot on the head and he returned it, gently licking her nose. "It's harder to fight your family than it is to lose them, trust me." She blinked at katrina with respect, hoping she wouldn't ask how two cats could be so closely related to a human.
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Post by Wolf Tears on Jul 19, 2007 15:28:26 GMT -5
Katrina smiled a little at the look on the tomcat's face as he watched her hand. His questioning meow completely baffled Katrina, but aparently the other girl understood because she purred something back, and the black cat turned his head back around. Katrina's smile widened slightly as the cat's soft pink tounge rasped over the back of her hand, and she reached her arm back out to restart the sequence.
"No, I didn't think he was, but I've never seen any cats by the ocean, so I was curious." Katrina nodded acknowledgement at the other girl's words and allowed her to continue.
A warrior? For Shadow? Who's that, a cat or a human? Katrina stared, utterly bewildered, as the strange girl's voice carried on. Soot was her mate? Shadow was her grandfather? Katrina's jaw dropped as she glanced back and forth from Soot to the girl.
Her confusion melted into sympathy at the last few sentences. She stood, brushing her jeans off, abandoned her petting of Soot, and crossed to where the girl wa sitting. Gently she put a hand on the girl's shoulder, saying, "I suppose that depends on what you're fighting for."
She was quiet then, staring at the sky and the last remnants of the sun's light. When she glanced back down, her gaze caught both Soot and the girl, and everything bounced right back into her head like pieces of a puzzle that doesn't quite go together right.
Or does it? katrina thought, her mind whirring. The girl acted like a cat... she could obviously speak to Soot... Soot trusted her... Cats... Humans... Cat-humans? Cats and humans couldn't cross-breed, Katrina knew, but could cats turn into humans-or maybe vice-versa?
After a few minutes of silence, Katrina couldn't stand it anymore. she looked straight at the strange girl and open her mouth.
"Okay... I'm gonna ask you a question, but first I want you to promise that you won't think I'm crazy-okay?" A strange request, she knew, but she had to be sure.
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Post by Silverflash // Jayrunner on Jul 19, 2007 15:35:16 GMT -5
"My family comes down here alot to fish. We're all good fishers, and my father gave me a surfboard for my birthday once and we can all swim so the ocean is natural for us."
Sakura nodded soflty. "We fight for freedom. Shadow wants to take over the whole forest, from the desert to the mountains to the forest to the sea. He plans on ruling the world, so we fight to stop him."
Sakura shrugged. "Sure, why not. Any questions that unsettle me are mostly about why I'm fighting my own grandfather." She let out another soft purr and Soot jumped into her lap, content to be with Sakura even though she was a twoleg. She ruffled his fur and gave Katrina a knowing smile. "No matter what it is, trust me, I can show you whatever you want."
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Post by Wolf Tears on Jul 19, 2007 15:40:57 GMT -5
(OOC-I'm noticing more and more that when I play Katrina, I ask myself what I would do. She's like my alter ego or something...
Sorry, that was random. *thwacks head*)
Freedom... Katrina's lips formed the word silently as her mind spun. Her eyes were unfocused again, staring at scenes that had happened long before. Mocha, softly growling, upside down in Sandy's arms... Bitter tears falling unbidden on her pillow... Mocha dissapearing into the undergrowth... Her final glance back at the two-story brick house where she had grown up, the only home she remembered. "Somehow it always comes back to freedom, doesn't it?"
Katrina shook her head slightly, clearing out her thoughts to listen to the other girl. "Yeah, world domination is common in villains, real and fictional." She turned curious eyes to the girl. "May I presume that Shadow is a cat?"
Katrina nodded at the next bit. "Yeah, I know how that goes. When I lived around other people, I would tend to stay away from them lest they attack me with a barage of questions about Sandy."
Katrina gave a sigh of relief at the other girl's consent. She took a deep, nervous breath, and finally gave voice to the question that had been plauging her.
"Are you a cat?"
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Post by Silverflash // Jayrunner on Jul 19, 2007 15:45:26 GMT -5
Sakura laughed. "Why would you say that? If I wasn't a cat, I wouldn't know it was going to rain, I wouldn't speak cat, and I wouldn't wash myself this way." She blinked at Soot and he stepped off her lap and a few paces away. "Watch and be amazed," she murmured. "Metamorphosis," she breathed. She rapidly changed into the tall silver and white cat, her eyes glittering as she approached Katrina. She licked her hand and sent a simple thought wave to her. "If I wasn't a cat, could I do this?"
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Post by Wolf Tears on Jul 21, 2007 4:21:44 GMT -5
(OOC-Okay... You adjusted your post, so now I've edited mine, meaning you'll have to edit your's so that I can edit mine so that...
Well, you get the idea.
Okay. so how about neither of us posts any more until we get caught up with each other's edits? Otherwise we'll fall behind and drive ourselves crazy... 'Cept I'll be at camp fo rseveral days, so there's a bit of a setback there.)
Katrina smiled as the strange girl confirmed her theory. She had to laugh a bit at the weather comment, though, and interrupted briefly. "You think so, huh? We humans have our ways, too. we can feel the change in the air pressure and smell the humidity, an we have machines to tell us what our senses can't." She stopped before she let herself get carried away, gesturing for the other girl to continue.
Katrina's jaw quite literally dropped open as the girl she had been talking to dropped down, effortlessly transforming until she was a silver and white furred, pink-nosed, full-fledged cat. The (human) girl's expression was caught somewherebetween awe, amazement, and sheer joy-whatever she had expected-a permanant enchantment or something, perhaps, or a hundred-year-old curse (hey, it happened in the stories!)-whatever she had expected, it was certainly not that.
And yet the shock was still not over.
As the young cat walk up to Katrina, the young girl heard a voice, distinct in her mind. She looked at the cat now at her feet, but her lips had not moved; that must mean the voice was inside her mind. It was possible that she had imagined it, but as Katrina gazed at the silver-and-white body next to her she couldn't quite come to terms with that explaination. She had just seen a human turn into a cat-back into a cat-why not have that same cat speak in her head?
Wondering whether the cat-girl would be able to understand humanspeak even as a cat, Katrina decided to try reversing the process. She envisioned sending he thoughts out to the smaller figure like radio waves, feeling a little foolish and at the same time extremely thrilled.
Can you hear me? If you can, in answer to your question, no, I boubt you could. Can all cats do that? Or is it just you?
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Post by Silverflash // Jayrunner on Jul 21, 2007 13:39:48 GMT -5
(ooc: sorry, my edit was becuz i realized that what i said made no sense, i spelled alot wrong, and that weird thing happened where i capatilized the first two letters of like every sentence. ) Sakurapaw purred. "I am the only one that can do this. I was born a cat, but my ancestors, StarClan, told me I would be one of the three to save the forest from Shadow. These are my powers. I can read minds and send mind messages as well as transform into a twoleg. When the prophecy is fufilled I will never be a twoleg again, though." She sent the message easily with a lazy flick of her tail.
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Post by Wolf Tears on Jul 21, 2007 15:55:21 GMT -5
(OOC-Oh. So I'm just confusing myself? This is what happens when you take a break from reading at odd hours so that you can stare at a screen for a while to help wake you up. I was litterally up so late with Deathly Hallows that I fell asleep over the book. Part of that was the fact that the night before I got only three hours of sleep... I've pulled all-nighters before, but never two in a row. I'm glad I didn't do it during the school year.
Okay. Back to RPing...)
Katrina's eyes widened as the cat sent another wave of thought to her. Almost immediately, those same eyes blinked in confusion. What the heck was StarClan? What were tw-no, wait, twolegs must be another word for humans. But what was this about a prohecy?
What do you mean? What-who-is StarClan? What prophey? You can see into the future? Katrina's expression was more curiosity than confusion now-knowing that the girl was a cat made a great deal of things clearer.
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Post by Silverflash // Jayrunner on Jul 21, 2007 20:45:08 GMT -5
Sakurapaw lazily flicked her tail and washed her paws. "StarClan are my ancestors, your 'heaven' i believe it's called. The prophecy said that three cats born of Riverstream to three different faes will have the powers to destroy the evil like no one else. These three can save the Clans, and no others or they shall perish. And no, I can't see into the future." Sakurapaw turned back to Soot and licked him on the forehead. He blinked warmly and liked her nose. She purred softly and lay down in a curled little ball, pushing herself against Soot but leaving her mind open for Katrina. Soot purred louder and lay down around her, turning into a real catbed.
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Post by Wolf Tears on Aug 1, 2007 11:16:09 GMT -5
(OOC-Can Katrina's excitement and curiousity kninda reach out and make Sakurapaw's powers work backward-like, not really reading Sakurapaw's mind, just helping Katrina figure out what she wants to know without her really knowing how she knows? Really an extension on Sakurapaw's powers, not some of Katrina's own. 'Cause that's what's happening here. Let me know if I'm screwing up an important plot point.)
Katrina sat silently, taking everything in. Her mouth opened, closed, and opened again in an attempt for speech. Oh, came the responce at last. So-who are the other three? Do they have the same powers as you? Her curiousity was taking over her now, filling her mind with insatiable questions-Where was this Sakurapaw's family? Where did she live? How many cats were there? How far did their territory reach? Were there other Clan- Whoa, whoa, hold on there, horses. Clans? Where had she gotten the word Clans? And how the heck did she know that the cat in front of her was called Sakurapaw? Holding her head and reeling slightly, Katrina forced herself to puch the questions backward land pay attention to Sakurapaw.
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Post by Silverflash // Jayrunner on Aug 3, 2007 13:05:32 GMT -5
(ooc- dont worry, sakrapaw's powers work that way.)
Sakurapaw flicked her tail as her tongue roved over Soot's ears. The other three? Hmm... I don't know who they are, but they have powers. We don't have the same ones, though. She blinked as the questions hit her fll force. Well, my family is back at camp. We live over there in the forest, as I've stated, and there's more cats than a cat like me can count. Our territory reaches to the edge of the huge ForestClan forest, to the Starlight lake, the tiny forest between here and the mountains, and to the beach. And there's three other Clans, besides us and StarClan.
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Post by Wolf Tears on Aug 4, 2007 4:56:08 GMT -5
(OOC-That's kind of the impression I got from earlier posts involving her, but I wasn't quite sure. Thanks! Out of curiosity, did you pick up the word "fae" from WP, me, or some other source? *hasn't seen Silverflash use that particular bit of vocab before-nor anyone else on CW, for that matter*) Inwardly, Katrina half-groaned as Sakurapaw began answering all her questions; as much as she relished the information that intrigued her so, she had been trying not the "send" most of those questions. Then she remembered that Sakurapaw could read minds, not just those thoughts that were directed at her. That made a bit more sense, and also reminded Katrina to keep her mind under control, in case she accidentally barricaded Sakurapaw with questions. But that still didn't explain how she was starting to "remember" things that she had never known at all... Once again, Katrina pushed her thoughts back and directed her attention to Sakurapaw. As the cat reached the end of her explanation, Katrina joined in. ...and StarClan, yes, I know... I know? I do, but I don't, and-and-and I'm not making any sense. Hold on. The girl blinked apologetically down at the two cats as she tried to get her thoughts in order. After a few moments she continued slowly, still sorting things out even as she sent her thoughts. You belong to OceanClan, and your rivals are ForestClan, MountainClan, and SandClan. All the Clans have kits, apprentices, warriors, leaders, deputies, and medicine cats. And StarClan is made up of all the cats from all the Clans that have died. The girl blinked in confusion. I know that, but I don't know how I know that... i-I just... It's like remembering long-lost knowledge, only I never knew it so i can't remember it. Utterly stumped, Katrina stared at her new friend, hoping that Sakurapaw would have an answer or an explanation.
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Post by Silverflash // Jayrunner on Aug 4, 2007 15:38:17 GMT -5
Sakurapaw studied the claws on her left paw as she held it in front of her face for a moment. When you connect with me, you get parts of my mind sent into yours. You know some of what I know, but I'm not even willing to give your personal memories. You know about the Clans because I simply wanted you to. Plain as daylight, you have the words "I am in Sakurapaw's brain" etched across your forehead. She blinked up at katrina. Makes sense, right?((huh? i picked up fae from the word sheet on WP, and i copied and pasted it on my wolf board! shh! don't tell! ))
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Post by Wolf Tears on Aug 9, 2007 12:59:50 GMT -5
(OOC-Okay, I won't tell. XD) Katrina blinked a few times as Sakurapaw's voice entered her head-that was a sensation she doubted she would ever get used to. After a few moments the odd feeling vanished, and Katrina was able to concentrate once again on the cat's words. "I... Oh." Katrina nodded as Sakurapaw explained the phenomenon. Yeah, I think that makes sense... About as much sense as any of this makes-and the longer I think about it, the more sense it makes. The girl smiled happily down at her new friend, hazel eyes twinkling. So... Katrina probed her new knowledge slightly. You're an apprentice medicine cat? What's that like? We don't have anything like that in the world of humans... Well, maybe doctors-in-training, but not really... Katrina had, for that matter, once considered being a doctor, but decided that she wuoldn't have been able to do oit. Instead she had set her sights on being a teacher-not that that was likely to work out, not now.
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Post by Silverflash // Jayrunner on Aug 14, 2007 17:07:51 GMT -5
Sakurapaw licked her paws and stretched in the sand. "It sure makes sense to me!" She licked her paw and drew it over her ear. "Yea, I'm an apprentice meddy. It's okay, but I can never have a mate that my Clan knows about and I have to heal wounds and watch cats die... It has it's downsides, but it can be pretty fun." She rolled over onto her stomach and blinked up at katrina, eyes twinkling. "How would you like to be a warrior cat?" Without waiting for an answer, she pawed Katrina's shoes and bounded of towards the Starlight lake, Soot at her heels.
(i suddenly had a weird urge to speed up the plot! yay me!)
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Post by Wolf Tears on Aug 15, 2007 6:34:11 GMT -5
(OOC-
... Silverflash, you're weird. Yay you!)
Katrina nodded happily along with her new friend. I know-it's just a lot to take in all at once. She gaze down at the two cats, her eyes kind. I'm sure you know what I mean-we all have those moments, I think... Yeah...I wanted to be a doctor once, but I think I'm too tender-hearted. I couldn't handle it, you know? Katrina sighed, wishing once more for those carefree years behind her, when her biggest worries were minuscule and the idea of growing up was almost a fantasy, a thing that would surely happen to somebody else instead of her. Katrina was jolted back to reality by Sakurapaw's next words. Her jaws dropped open. "I... You... But I-But-But" Still stammering in confusion with both voice and mind, Katrina grabbed her bag, swung it over her shoulders, and ran after the two disappearing cats.
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