Only a Shadow - Chapter One
So I thought I'd try something different. I thought I'd sorta...drive myself away from Fanfiction and go into something more original. I write alot, but I'm not...really too skilled. So if I make a few mistakes, I'd like to see some critique so I can improved. I'd like to be able to write more in the future, to the highest quality.
A black ten-year old cat laid still in his bed, it was Saturday, so no matter what he did, his legs wouldn't move. He stared at the roof absent-mindly, the only thought on his mind being what he was going to do today.
"Max! Get up! I've got some breakfast for you!" A female voice shouted from downstairs.
"Yeah, mom!" The cat shouted back.
Maybe I could beg mom to take me uptown, He thought to himself. 'Max' yawned and pushed himself up, he sat on the side of the bed and stretched his arms above his head, It's about damn time that I got some rest, He stood up and shivered.
He'd left one of his windows open, a large gust of wind had swept in. Max held himself, looking down his body, Serves me right for only wearing boxers, He trudged over to the dresser and opened one of the drawers. He scanned through the drawers for a few moments, eventually pulling out a casual t-shirt and a pair of jeans.
He slipped on the t-shirt, followed by the jeans, then walked over to the bedroom door, I could be sleeping, but that bacon smells good, Max smiled to himself, inhaling the sweet scent that had been intoxicating him for the past five minutes.
He opened the bedroom door and slipped through. He walked down the hallway and down the staircase, a smile made itself familiar on his face. He made it to the end of the staircase in record time and he followed the scent to the kitchen.
Once he entered the kitchen, he was greeted with the source of the scent, a platter of bacon in the middle of a small table. His mother was still preparing some food on the counter, "Oooh, bacon!" Max exclaimed, clapping his hands and licking his lips.
Max's mother turned around and smiled at her son, "Glad to see that you're finally awake."
"I only got up for the bacon," He licked his lips, pulled out a chair and sat down.
"Now, before you dig in, that bacon isn't all yours." Max's mother sternly said, but a smile remained on her face at the same time.
"I know, mom." He picked up a fork and took half the bacon off of the platter, putting it on his own plate. His mother sat across from him and they shared a smile.
A few minutes passed, Max had almost finished his food, there was a knock at the door. Max's ears twitched, and his eyes darted to the door. His mother stood up, grabbing all of the empty plates off the table and gently placing them in the sink.
Max stood up and walked over to the door, he placed his paw on the door-knob and opened the door. A grin appeared on his face when he recognized the person who had knocked; it was none-other than his best friend, Sean.
Sean was a white wolf, he was just a little younger than Max, but they both treated each other fairly none-the-less. Max embraced Sean in a friendly hug and turned around, his mother was approaching the door.
"Hello Sean." She greeted friendly. Sean waved at Max's mother and flashed her a smile.
"Since Sean's here, can we go out for a while?" Max asked, furrowing his whiskers. His tail began to wag, along with Sean's, which provoked a smile from his mother.
"Of course. Where did you want to go?" She asked, grabbing her coat from the coat-rack.
"Um...there's this playground down the street..." Sean said quietly, pointing down the street. Max's mother glanced at Max.
"Wanna head there?" She asked. Max gave her a nod in response.
Max reached inside the snatched his coat, he threw it on and ran outside, with Sean trailing behind.
Max's mother walked outside behind them and shut the front door, "Should we take the..." She turned around and saw that the boys were walking along the sidewalk, "car..." She shrugged and followed the boys.
"Did you get the new Fur-Force action figure yet?" Sean asked, a smile appearing on his face. Max gave Sean a grin and reached into his pocket, pulling out an action figure that resembled a cat in a police uniform. Sean stared at it in awe.
"Before you ask, yes, you can use it." Max handed it to his friend. Sean stared at the action figure and messed with it a little bit, while Max watched him. The mother eventually caught up to the two boys, albeit breathlessly.
"S-So where's this playground...?" She interrupted, while panting.
"It's just down the street." Sean answered, still messing around with the action figure. Max scratched his forehead.
"Have you been there?" Max asked, picking up the pace a little bit.
"Yeah, a little. My dad used to take me there..." Sean's ears dropped. Max raised an eyebrow at this.
"You okay?" Max asked, not noticing a few stray tears falling from Sean's eyes. Sean nodded, and wiped the tears away. They turned a corner and Sean pointed ahead of them.
"There it is." Max's mother lead the two boys across the road and they walked into the playground. The playground was packed with kids, while most of the adults were all sitting in a group away from the playground.
Max's mother knelt to the boys' height, "You two know the rules. Stay close to each other, and don't leave the playground without me." She said sternly. Max and Sean nodded excitedly.
The two boys pushed past Max's mother and ran into the playground. Max's mother watched them run off, then walked over to the other parents who were all grouped together.
Max and Sean ran over to the only playground ride that wasn't being used by anybody else; the slide. Max climbed up the ladder to the slide and slid down to the bottom. He jumped up and threw his hands up in accomplishment.
"Try to do better than me!" Max exclaimed. Sean climbed up the ladder and bit his lip, "Come on Sean!" Sean laid on his stomach and slid down to the bottom, the only reward he got was a mouth filled with sand. He coughed and sputtered.
Max laughed, "Not such a good idea after-all!"
Around an hour later, Max and Sean had exhausted themselves by going up and down the slide non-stop, but that didn't stop them, "Just one...more time...!" Max shouted, completely exhausted.
"S-Sure..." Sean said, crawling back up the ladder to the slide and sliding down again. A sharp strike of lightning crashed along the sky, causing Max to fall backwards in shock. Sean laughed at him when he reached the bottom.
"Scared of lightning?" He laughed, "I would never have guessed!" Rain started to fall, which alerted some of the parents. Parents began picking up their children and taking them away.
Max's mother walked over, with an un-opened umbrella in her paw. She opened up the umbrella and held it above her head, "Come on kids. It's about time for you to be going home."
"Do we have to, mom?" Max asked, his ears dropping down, along with Sean's.
"I'll make you some waffles." She bargained with a grin.
"Fine." Max sighed, "But can Sean come too?"
"Sorry Max, but I'm sure his parents are worried about him." Max's mother apologized.
"I'm scared to go back..." Sean said, his ears dropping.
"Why? What's the matter?" Max's mother asked, beginning to worry a little.
"My mom and step-dad are fighting again..." Sean said, "And when my step-dad gets mad, he hurts us..."
Max's mother had been worried about this, she'd known about this for a while, but wasn't sure if it was true or not, "Well...I guess it couldn't hurt to have you over-night. I'll explain it to your parents tomorrow." She gave him a smile.
"Good...I don't like being there right now..." Sean's lip quivered. Max gave Sean a friendly hug, "Don't worry! You can party with us!" He exclaimed, a grin appearing on his face.
Sean couldn't help but grin too, Max's enthusiasm always made him feel happier, "That sounds like fun..." He said.
"I've got a ton of waffles that we can make." Max's mother extended her hand and led the two boys out of the playground. As they left the playground, Max's mother lowered the umbrella so it covered the two boys.
Max noticed Sean's sad expression and wrapped an arm around his shoulder, "Cheer up man! We're gonna have a lot of fun!" Max exclaimed. Sean avoided eye-contact with his friend, but a smile appeared on his face. Max's mother sighed and she looked down at the two boys again; "We should've taken the car."
If I take a long time to update, I'm sorry. I've got tons of crap goin' on right now, but I'll try to update as soon as possible.