Deep within the wilds of a primeval forest, a young feline crouched in a tree above a faded trail. She waited patiently for the sound of another heading for the spot below her.  She was a cub really; little more than a child in her kind’s eyes. Her striped tail twitched every so often, showing that she had not become one with the tree as it would seem.

Suddenly, her ears twitched toward a silent padding coming towards her perch. Within a matter of moments, one could distinguish the sandy-silver fur of a kitsune girl. The kitsune’s two silver tipped tails trailed behind her short tunic of rough material. The feline grinned and prepared to launch herself at the silent fox.

As the cat leapt into the air, the fox paused in her leisurely stroll and the cat landed on all fours in front of her. The cat stood, revealing that she too wore a roughly woven tunic equally as short.

The kitsune girl set her hands to her slender hips and glared. “Sadi! Everyone’s been looking for you. Where’ve you been?!” she scolded.

Sadi yawned. “Lighten up Raven. I just went down to the stream to catch some lunch.” She licked her claws in memory.

Raven frowned in apprehension. “You shouldn’t have done that. The river on that side is part of Kurama’s land.”

Sadi rolled her eyes. “Says you. Nobody really knows where the Master Thief hides out. For all we know, he could be living right under our noses.” She pointed out matter-of-factly.

Raven sighed. “If only that were true. Then I could offer myse– err, services to him.”

Sadi giggled furiously and eyed her friend. “Are you still convinced that your silver will grow in like your mom’s did?”

Raven sniffed haughtily, a few age groups Sadi’s elder. “That won’t happen until I finish puberty and shed my puppy coat.”

Sadi leaned against a tree and gazed through half-lidded eyes at Raven. “You mean like the way your brothers’ and elder sister’s didn’t?” she mentioned casually.

Raven scowled angrily. “That’s because they  have father’s wretched wild coat. Mother says I take after her more than the others do.”

Sadi jumped onto a low hanging branch and reclined there. “But she says that about all of her children after the first one. Everyone in the village says so.”

The kitsune girl crossed her arms. “Well, everyone’s wrong. Mama told me I would be the one to inherit her silver coat instead of the blotchy, ugly thing I have right now.”

Sadi put her claws up in surrender. “Okay, okay. You win. I won’t say another word on the matter.”

Raven turned fully kitsune and casually cleaned a paw. “What about you? Have you figured out what your coat will look like after you shed your baby fur?”

Sadi dramatically held a clawed hand to her child’s breast and declared, “I. Am a cat. I am not vain of the color or the pattern of my pelt. Just so that it’s clean and serviceable for my needs.” She studied a claw for a moment in annoyance. “My abilities, on the other hand, are an entirely different matter.”

Raven shot the young cat a sly look. “That’s right; both of your parents are elementals.  One is feline, the other, humanoid. Do you know what possibilities you have?”

Sadi growled, “Any one of them! Mother has both earth and water elements and daddy has a little bit of everything! The only consolation I have is that I’ll definitely be an elemental albeit not a very powerful one.” She rolled over and off the branch, landing lightly on all fours.

Raven’s tails waved back and forth slowly, clearly enjoying hassling her friend. “So there is something that gets under your skin. And here I thought you enjoyed the randomness thrown your way.”

Sadi stood and brushed off her knees. “Oh yes, about as much as you enjoy your ‘wonderful’ coat of sandy silver,” she said sarcastically.

Raven bristled. She closed her eyes and took a deep calming breath. With a swish of her tails, she turned and headed back to the village. “Well, in any case, your parents are looking for you.”

Sadi watched until Raven disappeared into the underbrush. She looked up at the sky. “Mom and dad will wait,” she said to herself. She leapt into a tree and climbed into the highest branches. She lay down on her belly and looked out over the forest. Relaxed by the rays of the sun and the gentle rocking of the branch, Sadi began to doze.

She woke with a start a few hours later. She paused, trying to pinpoint what had woken her. A twig snapped and a low murmur came from beneath her. She looked down curiously.

Below her was a small group muffled in cloaks heading toward her village. One of the hidden figures paused and looked around, feeling Sadi’s gaze. It toyed with something under its cloak and then whistled shrilly. Sadi’s ears flattened to her skull and she winced at the harsh note. She watched as another cloaked figure appeared beside the whistler. The whistler gestured quickly and spoke quietly to the new figure. The figure nodded and disappeared again.

“Well, well. What have we here?” Sadi gasped as she heard the voice behind her. She whipped her head around and spied a tall demon male in rough dress of tunic and pants. He stood across from her on a thicker branch than hers. He grinned and crossed his arms. “I believe we have a spy here.” He scooped her up quickly and jumped down from the tree. He walked over to the hooded group. “Hey guys, check out my new pet.” He plopped her down in their midst.

They lifted their hoods from their faces and laughed at his captive.

“What are you going to do with it Yaksha? It’s hardly more than a ball of fur,” one of them called. He was a giant among them and sported tusks and spiked brow.

Sadi’s captor grinned at the giant. “Oh I don’t know, Gregor. It will definitely make a good pillow.”

“Not yet it won’t. It’s barely more than a kitten,” a sinuous voice spoke from behind Yaksha. Sadi turned and beheld a demon with scaled skin and more than a passing resemblance to the cold-blooded serpents. Sadi crouched down and whimpered, instinctively recognizing a larger predator.

Yaksha frowned at the serpent. “Aw Seera, you scared it.”

Seera shrugged his shoulders. “She obviously has some sense. Unlike you, Yaksha.”

“She?” The whistler laughed. “What, you’re catching them young now Yaksha? Going to rob the cradles of the ladies for their daughters? That little thing isn’t even worth it.” He grinned. “Unless you intend to teach her a few games.”

Yaksha tapped his chin. “You know, that might not be a bad idea…”

Sadi realized what they were speaking about and quickly leaped into a tree and began to run along the branches towards the village. A few seconds later, she halted with an audible squeak as the last one of her captors appeared in front of her. He looked to be the youngest of them, a youth at the oldest. He cocked his head, barring her way with a wicked looking sword.

“Hey Kid, bring her back this way! We’ll set up camp right here and take the village tonight,” Yaksha called to the youth.

Kid grunted and twitched the sword at her, indicating that she should return to the group. Sadi hung her head and slowly made her way back, regretting not going home earlier.