How do these stories usually go-- oh yes-- Once upon a time, there lived your standard everyday short haired cat. She was a smallish, black and white cat, with the subtlest shade of brown on her back. She led a somewhat impoverished life, begging for food on the street, trying desperately to hold her own against the fiercer, more aggressive of her species. As she approached her third year of struggling on drab streets and alleys she called home, she met a male companion. Since her eyesight and sense of smell were on the decline, she didn't notice it was actually a raccoon.
She and the raccoon scurried together, searched for food, and foraged a had a somewhat happy rapport with one another. They were both outsiders and had the keen awareness of it in their heads. One night she and raccoon surrendered to their lone passions and made love, or whatever love a cat and a raccoon could possibly consist of. The night after, the raccoon left in a panic, leaving the feline wounded and pregnant!
She somehow fended for herself for months, constructing a makeshift fort of trash and dirty linens thrown out by a neighboring restaurant. She struggled and survived with the thought of carrying her young, thinking that they will have a shot a happy, normal, well fed life. This was the only thought that comforted her.
Finally in what seemed like an eternity, the day arrived and she gave birth to four kitten-raccoon hybrids. Unfortunately, only one survived. She nursed the lone survivor as best she could. Keeping the male she named Babaccoon warm and nursed, reassuring the young lad and herself that he will go on and live a happy life, even without her. As the months went on, she decided to take her young to more suitable grounds, the nearby woodlands would provide and optimal place to secure food and warmth, thought the new mother. With Badaccoon in toe, they ventured into the wild.
Chasing squirrels and munching on plants kept the two going for a while, but soon the young mother realized this was only a temporary plan, she needed more for her growing son. Luckily for her, she met another friendly companion-- this one was a kangaroo. Even though she was frightened, she saw a good soul in the gentle kangaroo, who had been surviving by eating out of trashcans on hillside residences. Though skeptical and still burned from the raccoon betrayal, they became a odd family of sorts. One night, after tucking Badaccoon to a deep slumber, the kangaroo and the mother cuddled and made love, in a way only a cat and a kangaroo can I suppose. The next day, the kangaroo was captured by animal control vets, after multiple complaints of kangaroo sightings in nearby houses. Again, she was left and again, she was pregnant!
Saddened, but determined, she prepared herself for her second unplanned pregnancy, while keeping Badaccoon at close range. The delivery this time was a bit more arduous. She delivered just one offspring. This one-- a cat-kangaroo hybrid-- was promptly named Bingaroo. She struggled to summon strength, resorting even to prayer to muster enough courage to stay around at least until her children could live on their own. This continued for about a month, until she finally succumbed, the lone hope that her two children will go on. Her last words, "Stay together and survive," stung in both Badaccoon and Bingaroo, both, while young, knowing this the end for their mother.
to be continued....
origin story by C.T.
