Dec. Contests Results + Jan. Contests!

Here’s my story! 🙂

Hadaza felt cold. She didn’t understand. Her littermates were next to her; she should be warm. She opened her blue eyes to see her littermates lying next to her, incredibly still. She prodded them with her paw, but they didn’t move. Hadaza looked up at her mother with a look of confusion.
“Why aren’t they moving? What’s wrong with them?” she asked Zaba. The brown and white she-cat gazed down at her little daughter, kindness and sadness in her eyes.
“They’re gone,” she replied in a soft tone, “We need to go now. There must be a warmer place somewhere.” Hadaza felt her mother grab her scruff and lift her up.
They walked and walked and walked, stopping to rest in any dry place they could find. As they traveled, Hadaza felt the cold of the wind and falling snow penetrate her fluffy kit pelt.
Soon they came to a wide stretch of strange black earth. Hadaza sniffed the chilly air and smelled a nasty scent. Zaba set Hadaza on the ground next to her.
“I need you to walk next to me. Be very careful, and do not leave my side,” Zaba told her with a serious voice. Hadaza nodded. There didn’t seem to be anything there, so Zaba started crossing it, Hadaza following. She walked slowly, checking for rumbling with every step. When they were about halfway across when Zaba felt a faint rumbling. She turned her head to see a bright light shining through the snow. It was close, and she knew they wouldn’t make it if they tried to run. Hadaza glanced up at her mother with a frightened look on her face. Zaba looked down at her as if saying goodbye. In one swift movement, she grabbed her daughter by the scruff and flung her to the other side of the black earth and into the snow.
Hadaza opened her eyes. She found herself lying in a snowbank. She lifted her head and saw a long patch of black earth. She was about to ask her mother what it was when she realized that her mother wasn’t next to her. Hadaza suddenly remembered what had happened the previous day. She ran to the edge of the black earth. Her fears were confirmed. Hadaza could see her mother, lying motionless in the middle of the black earth. There was blood surrounding her. Hadaza began to cry. She cried until she couldn’t cry anymore. Feeling sad and alone, Hadaza drifted off to sleep.
Hadaza woke to a pang in her stomach and the roaring of the wind in her ears. She looked up and could see snow falling all around her. The small kit realized that, though she didn’t know how to hunt, she needed to find some food and shelter. Maybe I could find some of those strange nests!, she thought, Mother told me that they’ll sometimes give out food to hungry looking cats. Now with a goal, Hadaza braced herself against the wind and stood up. The roaring wind sent her flying down a hill, and she landed in yet another snow bank.
Hadaza shook herself to get the snow off of her unharmed body. Not recognizing her surroundings, she decided to head towards the rising sun. With one last look up the hill to where she knew her mother was, Hadaza set off.
Hadaza walked and walked and walked. She walked until her legs ached and her pads had gone numb from the cold snow. Seeing the sun setting behind her, she found some dry space under a bush and settled in for the night.
When Hadaza awoke, the hunger in her stomach was still there. She hadn’t found anything to eat the previous day, and she knew she wouldn’t last much longer without something. There were buildings on the horizon, however, and Hadaza was filled with hope. With a new spring in her step, Hadaza started off towards the tall structures.
Night was just starting to fall when Hadaza came to the edge of the dense collection of buildings. She decided to find some shelter and look for food in the morning. Hadaza went towards the nearest building and spotted a strange object lying on the ground. It was made of strange shiny material, and had two nasty smelling circles. There was a small den made of wood on the end of it, and Hadaza deemed that to be a good spot to rest.
Morning seemed to arrive too soon. Hadaza heard a strange sound. She opened her eyes to see a twoleg kit standing by the object. It lifted the object, setting it on the circles, and Hadaza somehow managed to stay in the small den. Hadaza let out a small, terrified mew, and the young twoleg looked at the den. Finally noticing her, the twoleg reached down and picked up the small gray kit. Hadaza looked up at her with wide blue eyes. The twoleg whispered something that Hadaza couldn’t understand. Still holding Hadaza, the twoleg got off the object, set it on the ground, and walked into the building. Hadaza noticed a strange looking hill. The twoleg looked around frantically, and headed by the strange hill. The twoleg went into a smaller part of the building and closed off the entrance. She placed Hadaza on the floor, and started searching the room. Hadaza walked over to her, and tried to look hungry. The twoleg crouched down, patted Hadaza’s head, and set a shiny, hollow object on the ground next to her. She filled the object with some strange smelling meat. Hadaza rapidly gulped down the meat. She instantly felt stronger. Hadaza purred and rubbed against the twoleg’s legs. I like this twoleg, she thought. I think I’ll stay here with her.
For the next few weeks, Hadaza stayed with the twoleg. She always remained in that part of the building, and was taught to hide whenever footsteps could be heard. The young twoleg fed Hadaza scraps of meat, and they would play together most of the time. Hadaza chose a nice hiding spot to nap when the twoleg wasn’t there. Hadaza was finally content.
One day, when the twoleg kit wasn’t there, Hadaza heard footsteps. She ran to her usual hiding space under the twoleg sleeping place. She could smell another twoleg. It picked up the brightly colored soft things she’d been napping in. Hadaza heard a sudden noise. It came from the twoleg. She recognized the sound from when one of her littermates had a cold. Hadaza tried to stay silent, but let out an involuntary sneeze of her own from the dust under twoleg sleeping place. She saw the twoleg bend down. She could see its eyes fall on her. It let out an angry shout and grabbed Hadaza. Even though she wasn’t hurt, Hadaza was terrified. The twoleg took Hadaza into one of the things on the road her mother had called monsters. Hadaza felt the monster begin to move, though the twoleg didn’t loosen her grip on Hadaza. They were in the monster for what felt like hours, though it probably hadn’t been quite that long.
Hadaza felt the monster come to a sudden stop. The twoleg climbed out of the car, still holding Hadaza, walked a few feet towards the vast wilderness, and tossed Hadaza into a snowbank. As she lay in the snow, Hadaza could hear the monster growl and start to move again. Feeling defeated, Hadaza lay in that snowbank and went to sleep.
When Hadaza awoke, she felt nearly numb with the cold. She could see snow blowing everywhere through the hole she made in the snowbank when she landed. Hadaza wanted to find a nice, warm place to continue resting, but she knew the wind would probably knock her over. Besides, she thought, I doubt I could even walk far enough to find somewhere. I feel so weak and hungry. Hadaza let out a small cough and decided she would try to get some energy back by resting some more. She could try to find a dry place when the wind had stopped. With another cough, Hadaza went back to sleep. She did not awake again.