ORIGIN - cat nap

Solis stepped with dainty paws along the ice of the floor, his head turning this way and that as he looked around. It was cold, first off- snow accumulated on the spots of rank-smelling mud that he lowered his head down to sniff at. He'd begun his explorations of the caves after he'd gotten used to being alive and being on four paws.

His tail flicked high above his back and he rose his head to look around. This wasn't a cave he'd been in yet, and he stopped on the other side of the mouth to look over the entrance. He wanted to commit it to memory, trying to mentally add it to the tunnel he just emerged from.

@Howl

Howl skulked through the darker crevices in Tunnel H, unheeding of the biting cold underfoot. His mismatched eyes glinted like will-o-wisps in the half-light, blinking once or twice before he shambled onwards, relishing in only the cleanliness of his mind and the singular focus in it: please Mother. Mother knew that the family needed more siblings, and he would do his level-best to bring them.

Perched atop a stone, not so much as picking at the scabs on his forearms (like his old, chaotic self without her might have) the sneak-thief waited. He was blind, unseeing eyes on the tunnel entrance among the murmurings of his kin, up until the moment movement stirred.

Howl jolted, as if stirred from a torpor, and he hunkered low. Calculating. Measuring. Here came a smaller creature - perhaps a juvenile. It was little enough, and held the curiosity of a Greater. A mind that could be joined with theirs.

There wasn't so much a flash of teeth as Howl sprang from the spot, arms outstretched to fall upon poor Solis and his face. His intent was restrained - not to kill, but to suffocate into unconsciousness. Alas, he merely skimmed the cat's back, shambling slightly to the side as he landed awkwardly on his left hand. The rising temper was quickly quelled, stilling him as he made to take another stab at the dispatching.

@Solis

He didn't notice the hybrid until cold hands came onto his back. A surprised mix of a yelp and a yowl hissed pass his teeth as he jumped away, eyes wide and ears back in a brief flash of fear.

"Hey!" His teeth were bared and he was about ready to fight with his tail lashing, until he came to the rather foolish conclusion that maybe this was how people greeted each other.

He huffed, letting his fur calm despite Howl's posturing. "Are you okay?" His dual-colored nose twitched as he sniffed at the hybrid, trying not to make a face at the smell that returned to him.

@Howl

Howl's tail flagging was the only sign of response as the sneak-thief seemed to almost... reset - reset into an active state in which he barreled forwards.

His hands went straight at the little cat's face again, pressing hard into the snout and holding it shut. The hybrid's fingers curled around the furry muzzle, covering the nose - and Howl refused to let go even as he wrapped an arm around the feline and started to pull him out of the light.

@Solis

Solis squeaked out a noise of confusion, concern, and finally dread when the hybrid slammed into him.

He squealed even more when that cold hand clasped around his jaw. Hyperventilation came over him in a state of panic as his limbs moved without direction, trying to shove the limb away to no effect. The other arm around him was too strong at keeping his face shoved forward, and his breathing wasn't helping.

He wasn't out, yet, but he began to choke on the stale air rising from his lungs. What was this thing doing? What was going on!? His claws dragged ineffectively on the smooth ground as he scrabbled to find purchase that wasn't there.

@Howl

Howl, before, hadn't been one to deliberately kill, maim, injure, the like - he was more prone to simply running away from anything that could pose a threat to him. His relationships had been distant, emotionless, often forgotten.

But, that was not now, where the sneak-thief was holding the little feline close to his chest as if he were merely giving a hug. A welcoming to the family, even before their mind became part of One. The hybrid gave only a hum as the struggling grew more and more feeble, mistaking it as acceptance.

Whatever deep, dreamless, loveless slumber came was soon to be Solis's last.

pp permission granted to just continue holding litl cat..
@Solis

His chest tightened. His eyes bulged with how wide they went. His paws scrabbled uselessly against the fur that held him in place before they all collapsed under the weight of sleep that had overcome him. Not even any thoughts were able to infect his slowing mind.

He couldn't breathe anything but the useless air already in him, and that proved to be of no use to him as he slumped in Howl's arms, falling unconscious.

There was no going down fighting for the kitten.

;exit Solis
@Howl

The moment any and all struggle ended, Howl relinquished his hold on the cat's snout. Mismatched eyes inspected once or twice and listened to the steady - but raspy - breathing from the nostrils starved for air. A pang of pity fell through the sneak-thief's conscious, if only for bringing harm to a brother-to-be. This, he'd decided, was the most painless way, even as lungs screamed to find relief and paws scrabbled.

Through Mother's shared link, he called, we will have a new brother. I am coming home.

With no more prelude, the hybrid skulked further into the shadows, having hoisted the limp kitten halfway into his mouth, carefully nestled behind curved canines.

- exit to cetus