It’s a hot afternoon. The stray cats on the street all lay sleepily in shaded corners.

Except for one kitten.

This kitten stood out in the alley of cats with its pristine white coat amidst the browns and blacks. As the sun’s glare grew stronger, the white kitten decided to retreat to its home for a nap. Although it was a pet cat without any restrictions, it lived a life fit for a king.

The little white creature strolled leisurely through the streets and alleys until it reached a house with a garden teeming with flowers. Entering its home through the flap door, the kitten bumped into a large nose, causing it to let out a shriek. “What you doing here, dog?!”

A huge dog lifted its head and looked at the kitten, saying “Mind your language, little one.”

The dog possessed a pair of pointy ears atop its head, and its black coat gave it a fierce appearance.

“Mind your own business, dog! The human won’t take it lightly if you dare to sink your teeth into me!” The cocky kitten knew that if anything were to happen, the humans would surely blame the dog and show pity on towards it.

“Why would I do that when I can shower you with wet lick to show how much I love you?” the old dog smirked. “The human won’t blamed me for that.”

“No, hey! I don’t want your drool!” the kitten retorted.

And so, the kitten and the dog commenced their usual game of hide and seek in the garden, filled with happiness and joy.

*****

“Woof! Hey kitten, the human are back!”

Of course, the owner of the house didn’t understand what the old dog was saying beyond the woofs. She simply thought that the dog was welcoming her.

“Hi Charlie, I’m home! Hey little sweetie, are you sleepy?” The lady of the house smiled as she patted the dog and stroked the kitten’s coat.

The white kitten blinked its sleepy eyes and yawned, finding comfort in the gentle rub from its caretaker, causing it to purr cozily.

After greeting her pets, the lady of the house went for dinner. The kitten gave the old dog a glare, “The human is back, so what? Why did you call me?”

“There’s something off about her,” the old dog sensed when it saw their caretaker’s arrival.

“What could be wrong? She’s a capable office lady. She can handle anything,” the kitten yawned again and replied.

“Hush, go search her belongings and see if she brought something else home,” the old dog nudged the lazy kitten with his huge nose.

“Why don’t you go check it out yourself? I’m still sleepy…” The kitten stretched its body. It looked around and noticed that the old dog didn’t seem pleased, but it wasn’t about him, it was about their caretaker. The kitten started to feel concerned. “What’s wrong? Has something serious happened?”

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“Just go and search. I’ll go check on the car.”

The kitten blinked its eyes. Its natural curiosity had been piqued. It watched the old dog leave the house through the flap door, and then it turned to explore the lady’s handbag, searching as the old dog had instructed.

The lady of the house had a huge handbag because she liked to have everything prepared whenever she need it, including her laptop and tablet.

The kitten snuggled into the bag and started rummaging around. Its owner had just put her meal into the oven when she noticed her bag shaking on its own. She placed her hands on her hips and sighed, “Fluffy!”

“Meow.” The kitten had indeed found something.

It was a key chain he had never seen before, with a design that their caretaker wouldn’t have choose as decoration.

Just as it was pondering what to do, the lady of the house took him out of her bag and said, “Fluffy, you’re being naughty today, huh?”

“It’s not my problem; ask the dog! It was his idea!” The kitten babbled, but all their caretaker heard was meows.

The lady sighed. “I’ll play with you after I take care of everything, okay? Now go play with Charlie.”

“Yeah, yeah, whatever,” the kitten rolled its eyes and began calling for the dog. “Hey, dog! You still at the car? I found the thing you mentioned!”

The dog returned through the flap door and overheard the kitten’s words, “Really? What is it?”

“It’s a keychain, a weird one though.” The kitten gracefully perched on the arms of the couch. “What’s the big deal?”

“Did you notice any dark aura coming from the keychain?”

“Dark aura?” The kitten blinked its eyes, “No, but there is something strange about that item.”

The dog pondered, made its way to the kitchen, and hoisted his front paws onto the countertop.  It sniffed the relocated bag, confirming the kitten’s discovery, “Yes, I sensed it. The odd feeling you had was indeed the presence of a dark aura.”

The kitten was confused. “So? What’s wrong with that?”

“I don’t know. But I know that things with a dark aura can bring unfortunate events.”

“Unfortunate? You mean…” The kitten narrowed its eyes, “The human will lose her job, and we will be homeless? Like those dirty strays we see on TV?”

“Maybe.”

“Well then, I better find a better human.” The kitten glared at the dog, “And that human would take care of a dog too.”

“You’re overthinking it.” The dog barked to express his disagreement. “Just bring me the keychain. A simple lick will solve the problem.”

The kitten looked at the dog in shock. “You’re going to lick that thing? Didn’t you said it had a dark aura?”

“But that’s the fastest and easiest way to deal with this problem.” The dog urged the kitten with a nudge from his moist nose, “Hurry now, trust me, I’ve been doing this for a long time.”

“Whatever.” The kitten rolled its eyes again but followed the dog instructions. It hopped onto the countertop, and snuggled into the bag once more, while the lady of the house was taking her shower.

“Here, take it.” The keychain fell onto the ground, and the dog quickly licked it with its tongue.

The kitten looked at the wet keychain in disgust, but the strange feeling emitted from it disappeared.

“When I’m gone, and when you grow up, you’ll do the same thing too.”

“Wait, what?”

“Yup, you have this ability too.” The dog left the keychain and settled beside the French window. “I’m an old dog now. You’ll take over the job soon.”

“But that’s disgusting! I’ll never lick those things, do you hear me? Hey, dog!” The kitten let out a frustrated roar, but when it leaped onto the dog’s chest, it noticed the dog had fallen asleep. The kitten decided not to wake it but instead murmured in low voice, “I will never lick those thing, I’m telling you! Your chest is my bed now. This is my reward!”

When the lady of the house entered the kitchen, both of her pets were fast asleep. This was exactly the peaceful life she had been looking for… But why was the keychain she received as a souvenir from her colleague laying on the floor?

-----

This is the second short story I’ve ever written. I skipped the first one because I didn’t feel like rewriting it. I guess you can see my amateur skills in crafting the plot, and the story itself was quite plain too. My writing has greatly improved since then, but that’s in Mandarin. I still need time to perfect my English writing skills. The next story I’ll share is the one I wrote recently, and I hope you’ll get to read it soon!

By the way, I think ChatGPT has made my writing sound a bit…old fashioned? What do you think?

PS: Every sentences above had been revised by ChatGPT, except this line.