A Journey of Paw Steps

Chapter 1:

The sun peaked its head over the horizon, signaling the beginning of a new day. Golden rays washed over the Nofur Denning Place, lighting the roves, walls, and lawns of the squat dens arranged in neat rows across the land scape. A few Metal Beasts rumbled down the Black Path in the early morning light, but otherwise the Denning Place was quiet. Sunlight filtered through the clear holes in the side of one of the dens, resting their warmth upon the head of a brown tom cat asleep in his soft nest below.

The tom's back was covered with a spot of slightly darker brown, falling in a drizzle like pattern down his back, but unless he was in direct sunlight, the pattern blended seamlessly with the rest of his coat. His snow white paws were tucked under his body, and his mussel of the same color was pressed close to his chest in sleep. The tom's ears twitched in the light, and light brown eyes flickered open to this new dawn. A smile of joy spread across his face, and the tom stretched in his nest before balancing on his hind paws so he could see out of the clear hole. The cat eagerly pressed his pink nose against the invisible wall that separated him from the small area of grass that his Nofurs owned and watched as the world awoke. The sun was just beginning to climb above the pointed roves of the dens across the Black Path, shedding color across the green grass and the fence that bordered his territory. The yellowed light was caught in the beads of dew that clung to the grass, yet to be dried out by the sun's heat. The tom cat released a content sigh, the warmth bathing his head spreading throughout his body. This was the best way to start such a great day. Who was he kidding, every day was great!

The sound of small pellets clinking into his bowl brought the cat out of his basking reverie. His eyes widened with even more excitement, if that was possible, and he dropped to all fours again from the sill; the bronze clips of metal around his bright red collar jingled as he did so. One of the tags proudly stated his name for all Nofurs to read in case he got lost; Feliciano. He trotted into the food room with a bounce in his step, as he most often had. Feliciano was one of the most positive creatures who ever existed, and brightened the day of all those who he crossed paths with. If encountering a black cat was bad luck, Feliciano was the exact opposite. Feliciano skidded excitedly into the room, paws slipping on the slick surface as he struggled to turn towards his food bowl. The female Nofur was currently bent over his dish, pouring the tasty round food into the silver container with a clink, clink as the hit the sides.

Once the dish was full, she backed off, and Feliciano dashed to the bowl's lip, sticking his head into the pile and scooping up mouthfuls of the food into his maw. The female Nofur cooed above him, and bent to stroke her strange, long paw down Feliciano's back. Not that he minded. He discovered a long time ago that petting him made her happy, so the tom continued to allow her to run her paw down his spine as he munched on today's first meal. The Nofur made more high-pitched noises from overhead in their unusual voices that he could never understand. But judging from the pleased tone emanating from her throat, Feliciano was sure she was showering him with affection.

Halfway through his meal, the Nofur stood and left, climbing the steps upwards to rejoin her mate in their nest. Today was one of the two days of rest, where most Nofurs slept well into the day and did mostly nothing, which was a big change from the bustling activity that consumed all the other days.

I wonder what compels the Nofurs to rush around so much almost all day every day, but then just stop for two. Feliciano thought as he chewed. I guess when you have a group as big as the one in the denning place, everyone has to work hard to watch boundaries and catch prey for everyone. With a shrug, the brown cat pushed such contemplations from his mind. It's too much of a beautiful day to spend it stuck inside his brain in thought! Swallowing the last of the flavored pellets, Feliciano pranced towards the spot in the wall he knew opened to the outside. A clouded white flap covered a hole close to the bottom of the den opening, a "cat flap" they called it. He placed a white paw on the covering and pushed; it didn't budge.

Feliciano flattened his ears in frustration. They forgot to open it again! The Nofurs always forgot during the days of rest to unblock the flap, preferring to continue to snore in bed than take the time to remember their cat's fondness for early morning exploring around the yard.

If I have to sit in here again until sun high watching the day disappear, I'll go mad! Feliciano silently raged at his Nofurs' forgetfulness. Well, I know how to take care of this. He turned with a skip and hopped to where the steps reached the wooden floor, stretching out on his side at the base of the stairs. Taking a deep breath, and filling his lungs with air, Feliciano released a huge yowl. The sound echoed throughout the entire den, rattling the eating dishes in the cabinet, rippling the water in his drinking bowl, and shaking the images surrounded by wood the Nofurs insisted on placing across the wall. There was a loud thud from upstairs, and Feliciano heard a gruff voice cursing in anger from the floor above. He smiled with satisfaction; the male Nofur was awake. There was more shuffling and bumping, accompanied by course shouts Feliciano assumed were Nofur curses slipping from his mouth. Heavy pounding sounded from the top of the stairs, getting louder as the heavy object descended. Getting up in a dash, Feliciano raced towards the den opening, sliding to a stop by the cat flap.

At last the male Nofur reached the bottom of the stairs. The little patch of fur on his head was ruffled and messy, and the scruff along his face was very noticeable today. He wore only his baggy, brightly colored sleeping pelt bottoms, leaving his fuzzy chest bare. The male gazed at Feliciano with a tired expression. The cat tipped his head to one side and meowed again, scratching against the flap with a paw. With an exasperated sigh, the Nofur approached and flipped a switch along the bottom, unlocking the opening with a click. In that instant, Feliciano was gone, dashed out the door in an explosion of fur, leaving a surprised Nofur gazing open mouthed at the swinging flap. Sighing again, he turned and retreated upstairs.

Outside, Feliciano was frolicking through the yard.

"Yaaahoooo!" he cried in joy, jumping into the air after a pretend bird. The feel of sun on his back and grass under his paws, it was all exhilarating. Being outside always excited the tom's instincts. Something about the wild called him to jump, twist, and run, to explore all areas he could cover to with his paws! If only the long planks of wood stuck in the ground didn't bar his way. Feliciano stopped short of the fence and stared longingly at the sky above. Climbing the fence was no problem, the height never stopped him, it was the fact that the fence when on and on, through yards and dens exactly the same in all directions. The size of the border was daunting, and the cat was always afraid of getting lost. But how he would love to see beyond, to run through grass unrestricted by Nofur hands and structures. To climb those wild trees he heard of that could grow larger than the dens. But he was stuck here. In a small square of grass and a small little den.

Ah well. He sighed and turned away. Perhaps in my dreams. His spirits had dampened in the morning light, and now his brown tail dragged slightly on the ground. Feliciano lifted his head, gazing back towards the fence along the left side of his territory. The roof of the den next door was rising above him like a tall black mountain. A memory from the day before flooded the cat's mind, and he was excited once again.

Today's no day to be down! He meowed to himself as he raced to the opposite side of the yard. There's news to be spread! The brown tom crouched low, and leapt with ease to the top of the fence, balancing with practice skill on an edge thinner than a blade of grass. Filling his lungs with air again, he let another howl ring across the nearby yards and into the den on his right, hoping to alert his friend inside.

"LUUUUUUDWIIIIIIIIG!"

"LUUUUUUDWIIIIIIG!" The shout was quiet, muted by distance and by the thickness of the den's walls; to most Nofurs, it would sound like nothing more than a slight ring in their ears, but it was enough to awake the blonde tabby sleeping on his Nofur's desk on the second floor. Blue eyes snapped open and his body stiffened with the shock of being suddenly awoken. The call came again, his name screamed even louder this time from a high voice coming from across the yard.

"Feliciano." The cat growled in a gruff voice. Every day started similar to this one. That cat next door got up at some ungodly hour of the day and made as much racket as possible until he got up. Sighing, the tabby lifted himself into a sitting position, surveying his current surroundings. His Nofur's sleeping room was a mess. Pelts and papers scattered across the floor, along with what used to be food containers and odd shiny boxes for stuff he had no name for. The desk he was sitting on was cluttered as well. Papers bound and loose placed haphazardly around or in messy piles across the wooden surface. Ludwig turned his gaze to the few he was sitting on. The black lines that were dashed across the surface still meant nothing to his mind, no matter how many times he looked at them. Supposedly, they made a series of images, and other Nofurs really wanted them, especially when they were bound and put in the selling dens. But they looked more like a mess to the tom than anything special.

A hefty snore traveled across the room. Speaking of his Nofur, the lazy male was sprawled across his fluffy nest, colored cover half on, half off his body. A trail of drool leaked from his mouth, soaking the fluffed pelt under his head.

Ugh he thought, cringing in disgust. Sometimes, his Nofur was even dirtier that the alley dogs that prowled the streets outside. Feliciano howled again from the fence. This time, the Nofur twitched and stirred in his sleep. Ludwig flinched again. He didn't need the Nofur waking up now, his caretaker was busy most days and deserved the extra sleep in the morning. Something Ludwig wished he could have.

Falling to the floor, the light colored tabby stalked down the stairs and to the cat flap in the front opening. Stepping onto the stone path that cut from the entrance to the gate, Ludwig's ears were assaulted with the full force of Feliciano's voice.

"Gah!" the tom cried as he covered his ears with his paws in pain. Walking over to the fence, Ludwig shot an annoyed look to the brown tom still wailing his fur off overhead. The idiot didn't even see him walk outside! With anger building, Ludwig overpowered Feliciano's call with his own.

"SHUT UP! I'm right here, you tail chewing bee-brain! Stop the yelling already!"

Feliciano cut his caterwauling mid cry as the tabby got his attention.

"Ludwig!" he cried in joy as he tackled his larger set friend. Ludwig let out an oomph as the air was knocked out from him. Despite the size of his smaller friend, all that energy made his impacts as powerful as a boulder hitting his chest.

"G-glad to see you too, Feliciano. C-can you get off me now?" The tabby gave an uncomfortable look towards the brown tom above him.

"Oh! Sure thing, Luddy!" Feliciano bounced off his friend with his usual cheer.

The blonde tabby smiled despite himself as he was reminded again of why he stuck around with Feliciano. He was like a constant ray of sunshine; ever since they were kits, Feliciano spent his life cheering up cats around him when they were sad. His ability to compromise has stopped many a devastating fight in the area, and never allowed life to be boring for a second. This was why he allowed the early morning wake up calls and the constant chattering his ears. Feliciano was the only cat who could make him smile.

"Ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, Luddy!" The tom chirped his nickname. "I've got reeeeally important news that you have to hear!" Feliciano was bouncing on the spot from pure excitement.

"What is that?" The tabby asked in his steady voice as he sat down to wash his paws.

"Someone new is moving in next door to me!" He was practically squealing with happiness now.

Ludwig's ears perked up at this new information.

"Yeah! More Nofurs were here yesterday with one of those Metal Beasts with the huuuuge bellies, unloading stuff and taking it inside the den. It took all day for them to get done! And the huge males moving the stuff looked really tired too."

Feliciano went on with his description for a while as Ludwig digested this news. New arrivals were a rare thing around this denning area since most of the dens were occupied already. The den to the left of Feliciano's place had sat empty for who knows how many years, it was long before Ludwig's time, that's for sure. And new always meant interesting. "When are they supposed to get here?"

"I think today! Just before the sun finished moving past the tree tops. Which should be…" Feliciano trailed off as he studied the suns position. He whipped his head back towards Ludwig with a gasp. "Right now!" The brown furred cat leapt to his paws and started butting his head against his friend's side, encouraging him to get up. "Come on, come one! We can't miss it!"

With great urgency, Feliciano bounded over the fence and into his yard once again, with Ludwig following behind at a slower pace. The brown cat was already perched on top of the fence by the time Ludwig was halfway across the yard. As the blonde tabby pulled himself up so his top half was hanging over the edge, a loud rumbling sounded from down the Black Path. A monstrous Metal Beast with a long body and deep stomach roared to a stop by the house. Several male Nofurs stepped out from the Beast's sides and opened it along the back. They began pulling some brown, square containers from its stomach and carried them inside. A smaller Beast with a shiny blue hide pulled around the larger one and into the Metal Beast path by the den. A male and female Nofur couple emerged from it, carrying a small, rounded box with a black handle towards their new home. A few small holes pierced the hide of the carrying box, and through them, Feliciano could make out the fuzzy outline of a cat sitting inside. His body filled with jittery excitement at the thought of a new friend, and he smiled wide while prodding Ludwig with a paw to get his attention.

"Ludwig, Ludwig!" he cried with excitement. "Did you see did you see?"

"Gah! Stop poking me, mouse brain!" His friend growled with annoyance as he pushed the other tom's paws away. "Saw what?"

"There's a cat in there! You know what that means?"

The tabby stared at him in confusion.

Feliciano sighed. "It means we have a new friend!" He turned back towards the couple trudging up the steps towards the den opening. "Heeeeeeeey!" he called. "New cat! New cat! It's us, your new neighbors! We can't wait to be friends! We'll do all kinds of stuff together! We'll-" the tom continued on in this fashion, but the passing group paid him no attention. They entered the den, and swung the flap closed with a slam, cutting Feliciano's welcome speech off mid-sentence. The cat looked crestfallen towards the opening, ears flattening in disappointment.

"Aww. The cat didn't even turn to greet me!"

"What do you expect?" Ludwig questioned in a bored voice. "Stuck in an unknown place like this, that cat must be out of his mind with anxiety."

Feliciano looked with confusion towards his friend. "But I was only ever being friendly."

He shrugged. "Some cats aren't as anxious to be friends."

With this, Ludwig dropped to the ground, now losing interest in the event. The tabby settled by a bush in the yard and continued his morning bath. Feliciano walked over to him with less pep than before and joined his friend in grooming under the bush. Perhaps he would have more luck with this new cat tomorrow.