The Buttercup chronicles
A story I wrote on the origins of Buttercup, and how he was ultimately found by Prim Everdeen.
I hope it is worth reading. And yeah, feel free to point out any mistakes (Grammar, typo or anything) because I tend to leave a lot sometimes.
My eyes had just opened. I was seeing the world around me for the very first time. My mother was licking me clean but all I wanted to do was to explore the world that was surrounding me. I was a single child. I knew that from the day I was born. Even with my eyes still closed, I smelled no one around me except my mother. As soon as she was done cleaning me, I started to walk unsteadily. I heard my mom telling me to be careful. I turned around, and I had a good look at her for the very first time. She was of the same color than me, but she was a very mangy cat. She kept scratching herself very often. I walked a few steps, eager to explore my surroundings. We were in a very small and dark place. Suddenly, I felt very cold. I rushed to my mother and buried my face in her fur. I quickly fell asleep.
The next few days, my mother stayed with me and did not leave my side for more than five minutes. She went outside to pee, but came back really quickly. But after fews days, she could not bear the hunger anymore. She decided to go mouse hunting. She told me to stay inside so I would be safe. I did not want to remain alone, so I started to follow her. But she turned around, and gave me the fiercest look ever. I understood that I had to remain here. So I did.
The night fell, and my mother was still not back. I was cold and I was waiting for her. However, she was nowhere to be seen. I was scared. Suddenly, I heard someone approaching. I was so afraid that I closed my eyes. But then, I recognized the smell. It was my mother. She was back. I ran towards her and she started to lick me. My mother was back! But then, I saw a deep scratch on her left paw. She told me that she had been attacked by a wild dog, and that he had been chasing her. She could not back to our hiding place because the wild dog would have followed her, and he would have found me too. So she ran in the opposite direction until the dog finally lost her track. She had to make sure he was nowhere around before coming back. Unfortunately, she was unable to go mouse hunting because of this and was hungrier than ever. And now, her paw was bleeding as well. Then, she told me to come and sleep. As usual, I buried my face in her fur, and purred happily, relieved that she was back.
The next day, I woke up. My mother did not…
I was waiting for her to wake up. I found it strange because she was always up before me. I place my paw playfully on her nose. But she would not wake up. Then, I realized that she was cold. I insisted, and I meowed at her. But her eyes remained closed. So, I started to sniff her. And I realized- my mother would never wake up.
I left our hiding place, with my mother there.
I walked and walked, unable to focus on anything else but the loneliness I felt.
When the night fell, I went hiding under a bush but that proved to be a mistake. As soon as I started to fall asleep despite how cold I felt, I heard barking. I started to panic. I jumped though the bush and I felt a sharp pain running over my right ear. It felt like someone had ripped out half of it. But I know that it was not someone who had ripped it out. The bush had long, spiky thorns and one had torn my ear off. I felt the warm blood pouring over it, and I wondered if I would die like my mommy.
I ran as quickly as I possibly could. I did not even realise that the wild dog had not even bothered to chase me, even though he had noticed me jumping out of the bush with my ear bleeding. Maybe he thought that a small skinny kitten was not worth running after. But I was so terrified, that I kept running and I did not notice the huge tree that was standing in my way. And since I was running too fast, I could not stop myself and ran straight into it. The first thing I felt was a deep pain. It was as if my nose had been mashed-it. And I was knocked unconscious.
When I came back to my senses, I was being carried by a girl. I started to squirm and wriggle, trying to free myself from her grasp. But she held me closer to her, and started to rub under my chin. I had never experienced this before but it felt good. She then placed me on the ground. I was preparing myself to run way, but she took out something from her pocket and offered it to me.
"This is the only piece of cheese I have on me, but there is more at home. You'll get them as soon as we reach there. And my mom can take care of that ear, don't you worry." She spoke in a very soft tone.
I ate all the cheese. It was indeed very good. The blond girl with blue eyes started to caress me gently. It was really good. I felt secure. And then, I realized why. Her strokes reminded me of how my mother used to lick me until I felt asleep. And I took it as a sign. That girl would protect me, just as my mother did. As she took me in her arms, I decided that I too, would take care of her. I would guard her in her sleep, and make her happy. Because this girl had just saved me.
I will not allow what happened to my mother happen to her. This pain I felt when I lost my mother, I do not want to go through that again.