Mina felt disoriented when she opened her eyes. She saw nothing but darkness for a while. It took her a few minutes to realize where she was -- and it was not the best place to be.Half of her body was exposed getting rained on. She felt numb, tired, and utterly cranky when she opened her eyes. She didn"t even notice the little mouse who tagged behind her when she tried to seek cover.
Observing her surroundings, Mina felt different than she used to. Her night vision was still there but she felt something change inside her. It was as if she regained a bit of her humanity --it was like one of those days when she started PMSing. She didn"t even want to talk to the "little annoying mouse."
Mina knew she was being b.i.t.c.hy but this was one of those days. Finding the most comfortable position, her paw tried to feel around her neck. Everything felt too surreal and she wanted nothing but to call it a night.
"What did she get herself into?"
Watching the raindrop and trying to be oblivious to the curious looks that Tarou kept on shooting her, Mina felt herself drift off to sleep.
Tomorrow.
She will deal with all her jumbled thoughts tomorrow.
—-
The first rays of sunrise lined the sky when Mina opened her eyes. She stretched her paws, yawned, and did some mindless grooming. There was a gentle wind around her. It was as if last night"s debacle didn"t even happen.
Feeling itchy, Mina continued grooming when she heard small scratchy sounds followed by a grunt.
Find authorized novels in Webnovel，faster updates, better experience，Please click for visiting.
Curious, she scanned her surroundings closely.
"Urghhhhhh...."
"Who"s there?"
Now alert, Mina meowed with caution while observing her surroundings.
"Phew!" She heard a small squeak followed by heavy breathing. Realizing something, she looked below her and tried to search for her small friend after engaging her senses. Following the scent, she entered a small thicket and saw the mouse trying to form a mound of food.
With a small meow, Mina tried to get Tarou"s attention who was focused on the job ahead.
"Boss!"
Mina saw Tarou"s eyes bulge while staring at her.
"Erm! Surprise!"
From the looks of it, Tarou was more surprised than her.
"We"re you hiding food?" Mina meowed with malice.
"This mouse will always think about food first." She couldn"t help but shake her head while observing the small feast.
Observing the food closely, Mina couldn"t help but admire Tarou. Each type of food was in a neat pile -- and there were several piles. It probably took him hours to prepare the feast which appeared like a small picnic.
Running swiftly behind one of the trees. The mouse brought something else with great effort.
Mina could hear Tarou grunt as if he was putting all his energy on bringing the item. Mina saw a small paw anch.o.r.ed to the ground first. When he saw another paw appear, the mouse appeared to sway to one side. To avoid falling, Tarou quickly planted another foot forward, proving just how heavy the item was.
Tarou laid the item in front of Mina before catching his breath.
"Now, everything"s set!"
With cheery squeaks, Mina stared at the mouse who should be covered in sweat because of all the labor had he been human. Tarou"s eyes roamed around the small feast and Mina could see him with a big smile.
"Boss! You must be hungry -- it"s been ages since we sat down for a decent meal."
Tarou"s tone conveyed so much happiness that Mina couldn"t help but feel ashamed of her behavior last night. She looked up to see the sky and back at the happy little mouse in front of her.
Mina noticed that Tarou limped while trying to find the best position but the mouse did not even wince while trying to settle down.
"What"s wrong with your leg?"
Looking at her, Tarou simply gave her a cheeky smile. "This?" Staring at the injured paw, Tarou simply shrugged.
"Boss, let"s eat!"
Mina couldn"t shake off the feeling that something was off but she stared at what Tarou gave her.
"What"s this?" she asked although she had an inkling what it was.
"You need your meat! You"ve been out for days! Boss, I know how you cats are -- you can"t survive on plants alone."
Tarou beamed while squeaking back. The wheels finally clicked on Mina"s brain.
"Did this mouse leave early to look for my food?"
Her pointed stare softened while studying Tarou who seems to be licking the injured leg. Before she could investigate further, the mouse looked at her.
"Hey, Boss, what"s the deal with your collar?"
"Huh?"
Suddenly lost, Mina touched looked at Tarou before touching the collar. Yes, the collar --what"s even the use of this collar, she had no idea. Mina had no idea what to say. Luckily, a pile of food caught Tarou"s attention.
At that moment, a flaming red bird landed close to a pile of grains and invited itself to the feast. The little mouse was busy munching on his food and paid no heed to the feathered creature who decided to partake in their food.
Mina was fascinated with the creature especially by how it"s color.
"What an offensive scarlet color!"
Mina couldn"t help but comment on her mind while observing the bird. Realizing the cat"s pointed stare, the bird flapped its wings and chirped.
"Hey cat, red looks becoming!"
It was only when the bird made a sound that Tarou paid attention to the grain thief.
Laughing at such a high note, the bird chirped and looked at Mina again before flying away.
"Your collar"s red color is more offensive than my feathers."
"Ungrateful scarlet!" Mina meowed loudly at the bird which was now out of reach. Now out of reach but still audible, Mina could hear the bird mumble.
"Pot calling the kettle black."
Before Mina could meow back with a vengeance, Tarou squeaked.
"That bird is called Scarlet?"
"No! That bird"s color is scarlet." The automatic reply startled Tarou.
"Scarlet? What"s that?"
"Like red but more outrageous." Mina meowed offhandedly before digging into the meal.
"What"s red?" Tarou squeaked. Mina stopped chewing midway stopped.
Instinctively, one paw reached for the collar.
"Oh, now I see red."