OPEN — there was a cat that really was gone

[Atticus Roux]

His ears pinned to the back of his head. Tears bellowed in the boy's eyes as his listened and sorrow encapsulated his heart. 'I have not only lost a mother, but a brother as well!' A choked gasp left his maw. With every blow Ivan verbally dealt, the kitten backed slowly away with his tail between his legs. Ivan's words grasped his attention, stabbing him in the back repeatedly. Even slow. Atticus's eyes squeezed shut, Ivan's wavering phrases overwhelming his system... but it never stopped. His brother held no mercy.

Atticus blubbered through staggered breaths. "I-Ivan, it's not like that," he feverishly begged. His wide yellow gaze opened cautiously, pleading for Ivan's understanding. Maybe even his forgiveness. "I needed to go." Every little aspect of Tanglewood reminded him of his mother. Seeing the remains of their home just made him relive the memory all over again. The crash replayed in his thoughts, tormenting Atticus endlessly. From the cracking of her bones to the debris slicing through his ear, he remembered every small detail. Aurum's desperate call, Ivan's bloodied facade, and Alice's reassuring echos in the distance. Even Selby's unnervingly calm stature radiated within his mind. In the heat of the moment, they crowded his brother. While they were attending to him, did they even happen to notice Atticus' ear sliced in half? Or that he just watched his prized mother succumb to death's grip? Bloodied and defeated, he wondered if they even cared. The apparent golden child felt alone.

Moth's death made him question his independence. Once relying on his mother, he was thrown aside to fight on his own. The grey tabby wasn't as smart as his brother. Ivan's intelligence surpassed his greatly, but where was his sensibility? He dearly wished that his brother could see why he left. Ignorance led him elsewhere. "Can't you see that?" he bellowed.  "I couldn't bare to stay." His gaze faltered momentarily, looking away from his brother. "Every time I walked past our home, it was like watching her die all over again, Ivan." In the meantime, Atticus was fighting to survive. He was growing on his own without his family. After all, they would see him as a burden after this, wouldn't they? Seeing the son or brother that caused Moth to die would just ruin them. Subconsciously, the guilt was tearing him apart. Her demise was not Atticus' fault, but the spared kitten still blamed himself.

'You are guilty.'

Confirmation. As tears slid down his matted cheeks, he heaved. Breaking down, Atticus' body began to shake violently. "Stop..." There was no use though. Through his lowly begging, Ivan's presence still towered over him. "I didn't..." he whimpered, words trailing off. "I didn't do it." Spiraling further, the boy let his legs buckle forward. With one last request, he let out a pained cry. "Please."