Mittens walked down the streets of the small suburban area that she now resided with her new family. Usually she took walks with Bolt and Penny, but tonight she wanted to be alone. She had been having recurring nightmares about her old owner and her old life in the alleys. These nightmares had put a lot of stress on the poor cat and she desperately wanted to clear her mind. She gazed at the graffiti covered walls of the abandoned houses as she walked by. She tried, but she just couldn't shake the images of her old owner leaving her in the dumps of NY. Her owner that she had been with for so many years, just tossing her out like she was nothing more than a pile of garbage. She remembered the tears rushing down her face, realizing what was going on. Realizing that she was being left behind.
Mittens had stopped walking and stared up a nearby street lamp. She took a moment to bask in the light before continuing down the sidewalk. Memories of the past continued to flood her. She knew it wasn't good to keep this things inside. She knew it would be better if she had someone to talk to. But who. I mean, she could talk to Bolt, but she didn't want to make him feel guilty about things he had no control over, especially since he had basically given her a whole new life, a new family, a reason to keep on going. Sometimes she even had thoughts of them being even more than friends, but she knew that was crazy talk. I mean, a dog and a cat, whoever heard of such a thing. She was afraid to express those feelings around him, for fear of being mocked. Even though Bolt was one of the most caring and kind people she'd ever met, she couldn't help but be worried about telling him.
Suddenly, her thoughts were interrupted when she heard footsteps behind her. She turned, standing under the glow of a streetlamp, staring into the darkness to see a pair of eyes staring back at her. "Um, hello." She said. "Hi." answered the voice. Mittens watched as an all dark cat about her size stepped out of the darkness and into the light. "Well hello there." He said as he took another step forward. "Um," Mittens started to reply but was quickly cut off. "What's a fine feline like you doing out here so late?" He said seductively as he took yet another step forward so his eyes were now almost directly in front of her.
Mittens attempted to go around the black cat but he was quick to block her exit. "Listen asshole, I'm just trying to get home!" Mittens turned to walk the other direction but she bumped into something big and furry. She looked up to see a huge gray cat staring her down. Before she even had time to blink, she was snatched up and dragged into a nearby alleyway.
"Let go of me!" Mittens screamed at the top of her lungs only to be flung hard to the ground in the middle of the alleyway, knocking the wind out of her. She was quickly pinned down by the gray cat before she had any time to regain her composure. She tried to scream but the gray cat slammed his huge paw against her chest, again knocking the wind out of her and forcing her to gasp for air.
Mittens looked over and saw the black cat stroll into the alleyway, a smug grin on his face. He stopped and knelt down beside Mittens, who was still pinned by the huge gray cat. He flexed his claws in the pale moonlight and held them right against her throat. "Listen you little bitch, if you don't shut up I will slit your fucking throat. Now, if your a good girl, then I might let you go when I'm done." He threatened. It was then that Mittens realized what was going on. Tears began to form in her eyes as the black cat proceeded to taunt her. "Aw, your not so feisty anymore are you?" He taunted as he circled his pinned victim. Mittens looked up at the gray cat, who had a completely blank expression on his face, staring straight ahead the entire time. Mittens continued to struggle under the massive weight of her captor but she knew it was hopeless.
"What's a matter, how come your so quiet?" The black cat sneered as he knelt down beside her. Mittens didn't respond. She didn't want to give this sicko the satisfaction of a response. "Not very talkative, huh? Let's see if we can fix that." He jabbed his claws into her side. "AARRGGHH!" Mittens cried out in agony. "Hehehe." he chuckled. "That's much better."
Mittens saw the look of pleasure in his eyes at the sight of her anguish. She realized that he was a pure sadist. He was enjoying every minute of this. The black cat slowly began stroking her abdomen, but Mittens knew that he was building up to something much worse. "Please stop." She begged as he snickered in delight. "Please stop." He mocked as he continued to torment her. "You want me stop, but I'm just getting started." He said as he motioned to his gray accomplice. Without saying a word or showing any signs of emotion, the gray cat forced Mittens to lay face down on the concrete.
Tears fell down her cheeks. She knew what was coming. The black cat got behind her, his grin widening. "Don't worry sweetheart." He snickered. "I'll be sure to make this as slow as possible for you."
"Don't do this!" She cried in a last ditch effort to get him to stop, but her pleas fell on deaf ears.
"Oh, I'm going to enjoy thi-AAAHHH!"
Mittens heard the sound of someone being lifted in the air and thrown against the wall. The gray cat turned its head to face the attacker, but was quickly knocked off balance by a white blur. Mittens, having been freed from the gray cats grip, turned to see Bolt pounce on the gray cat, biting down on his neck with all the strength he could muster, swinging the gray cat into a nearby trash can. The black cat regained his footing and started to make a run for it but was tackled to the ground almost instantly. The cat looked up to see Bolt, who was livid with rage, a death stare on his face.
"Listen to me you worthless scumbag," He growled. "Don't you ever come near her again or so help me I'll tear you apart! ARE WE CLEAR!?"
The black cat was paralyzed in fear, but he somehow managed to slowly nod at the canine. He looked over to see that his accomplice had already took off running down the street. Bolt released the black cat who followed suit. Once they were out of sight, Bolt turned to Mittens, who was still in shock.
"Mittens, are you alright? Did they hurt you?" Bolt asked as he checked on his fallen friend.
"Just a few cuts and bruises, but it would have been a lot worse if you didn't show up." She said as tried her best not to cry. Eventually, she started sobbing, unable to hold back her sorrow.
Bolt was quickly there to comfort her, as she sobbed into his fur. "Hey, hey, everything's going to be okay." He said in a caring voice as he held her tightly.
"Bolt," Mittens whimpered between sobs, "There's something I need to tell you."
"You don't have to thank me, Mittens, I was only-"
"No, not that, it's something else." She choked out.
"What do you mean?" He asked.
"I-I, I love you Bolt." She said finally. She waited to see his reaction. He stared at her for what seemed like an eternity before he replied.
"I love you too."