MacKenzie: Fable of a Feeble Feline Female

MacKenzie – the 17 year old socially awkward girl with wild floor-length red hair, glazed eyes and feline quirks. Her pale face had freckles on it. Having been abandoned by her birth parents when she was little, she was found and raised by her foster white cat mother, Margo. She would often wear sweaters with cat designs on them. Once she was old enough, she was sent to the Safe Haven school to meet other humans, animals, and interspecies. While there, she found her love of singing, abstract art, and stage performing…her favorite musical being “Cats.” However, others thought of her as a nuisance…a weird girl who was always in the way. MacKenzie couldn’t help the fact that she loved milk or hissed at people she found strange. Those were things her mother did all the time…but apparently it wasn’t what a human was supposed to do. With the school housing a majority of interspecies, the shy girl feels left out…until she goes to Cameron for a therapy session.

“Good afternoon, my sparkling turtle doves!”

Jackie, the parrot-human drama teacher greeted her class in a sing-song voice as she made her way down the aisle toward the stage.

“Hey, Jackie!” the class chorused in reply.

There were several students sitting on the stage: Jack, Zillion, Kayla, MacKenzie, Sahara, Damian, Taylor, Vanexa and a girl looking at herself in a pocket mirror…nine students. MacKenzie sat wearing a lavender sweater with a cat on it. A string with a small toy on it was attached to her hair. She supported her pale face with her hand, bored.

Zillion had just won an arm wrestling match with Taylor.

“Who’s your friend, cracker-jacks?” he asked in a teasing tone.

“This here is your new guidance counselor, fellas!” Jackie exclaimed as she put a dark tan arm around a blonde haired woman wearing gray. The woman was Cameron, an ordinary human with an extreme fear of animals. She had been sent to Safe Haven by mistake.

“Oh good!” Jack and Damian said at the same time.

“I need a lot of “guidance,” Damian mentioned, floating casually in the air.

Cameron looked at Zillion. “Um…sorry, I hate to ask, but…what exactly are you? I want to know how scared I should be…”

His friend Jack snickered.

“Well I…” he began. “Then he deadpanned, “pass.”

MacKenzie snuck up behind Cameron on soft feet and sniffed. The scent was unfamiliar.

“Hisssss!” she hissed as Cameron reeled back.

“You really got your work cut out for you, lady!” Damian said to Cameron with a smirk. “Just sayin.’”

“H-How are you floating like that?” she asked.

“Oh well…it’s because…” Damian began.

Then he turned on a flashlight under his face and said in a scary voice “I’m the Anti-Christ!”

“I’m really sorry about my cousin,” said Jack, a creature with tan matted fur. “Hello! My name is Jack, and I would like to schedule with you as soon as possible!”

“Uh okay…?” Cameron asked in confusion.

“Sorry! It’s been a while since I had someone to talk about my problems…”

There was a loud clang as a stage light fell onto Jack’s head, knocking him to the ground.

“Aw man, not again! You okay, dude?” Zillion asked Jack.

“Yeah, this happens a lot,” Zillion mentioned to Cameron.

“Hey Jackie!” called Taylor. “Another light fell!”

“Yeah, I saw it!” she replied.

The talent show had arrived. MacKenzie walked on stage, dressed in a white cat costume. Gustav, the German snake judge looked down on her as she briefly practiced her meows.

“Hideous costume and messy appearance. Off the stage. Next!”

“Hey! I haven’t even started yet!” MacKenzie spoke.

“Girl. I say again. Please get off ze stage.”

“C’mon!! You didn’t even see my act! That’s not fair!”

“I didn’t need to see any act to know you have nothing to offer. Why are you wearing that?”

Nathan smiled. “Actually I would love to…see…”

Gustav glared at him.

“Next!”

MacKenzie pouted and stomped away. Her luck got much worse when she accidentally snagged herself on her hair. She fell backwards off the stage…

…And tumbled into Gustav’s lap.

“What kind of clumsy move was that?” he chided.

“MacKenzie?!” called Jackie who had just arrived. “Gustav! What’s happening here?”

“IT tripped,” Gustav spat.

MacKenzie felt her face go red in embarrassment and shame.

“Oh Kenzie…again?” Jackie asked. “Sweetheart, you can’t keep…”

MacKenzie hissed loudly in her face before Jackie could finish. She was tired of people telling her what she should and shouldn’t do.

With a pout, MacKenzie stormed out of the room, tears falling down her face.

One day, MacKenzie sat on a stool in a corner, drawing on a clipboard.

A group of classmates walked by, Sahara, Addison, Damian, a boy with glasses and two twins.

“So who’s voting ice cream not that the meeting’s over?” asked one of the twins.

“Oh hey shouldn’t we ask MacKenzie if she wants to join?” asked the other twin.

Everyone glanced over in her direction. She could feel their eyes staring into her.

“She never looks like she’d want to,” said the twin. “Onward!”

“Why does she even come to the club?” Addison asked, crossing his arms.

MacKenzie stared with sad eyes as the group left.

On another day, MacKenzie sat alone in the art room, making abstract art on canvas. She was currently drawing some hearts. She didn’t notice Gustav and Addison flirting nearby.

Their laughing was starting to get annoying. Couldn’t she just draw in peace? She didn’t need the reminder that she didn’t have any friends in this place.

MacKenzie stood up and carried a bucket of red paint in her hands. She tripped on her long red hair…

“Shit!” she cried…

And the red paint spilled all over Addison.

“You again?” Gustav asked. “Are you always this destructive and clumsy?!”

“I’m sorry!” she cried. She stared at Addison, white hair stained red, his tail a mess.

She reached out to touch his arm. “I’m so sorry! Are you okay?”

Addison experienced terrible flashbacks of being poked and prodded at a science lab. He whirled around and shoved MacKenzie off him.

“Don’t touch me! Nobody! Don’t! Ever!”

“Addison?” his Indian snake foster mother called. “Addison! MacKenzie! Stop this instant!”

MacKenzie yelled as Addison pulled her hair.

 “She grabbed me!” he yelled.

“What?!” MacKenzie yelled.

Addison’s foster mother pulled MacKenzie away. “Calm yourselves.”

“She grabbed me!” Addison yelled again.

“I did not!” Mackenzie yelled. “I was just trying to comfort you!”

“Enough!” the woman demanded. “Gustav, please take these two to the office.”

MacKenzie and Addison were marched down to the office.

MacKenzie stepped through an elevator without another word.

Girls nearby were laughing and gossiping.

“Did you guys here about how the fox-tailed freak Addison attacked that red haired hermit loser MacKenzie?” A white skinned girl with gray hair in a ponytail was chatting with her friends.

“OMG! No! Spill!” they laughed, leaning in.

“Oh my, look who it is!” she called as MacKenzie walked over. “We were just talking about you! So Kenzie! How did it feel getting beat up by a flake like Addison?”

MacKenzie turned red in the face and stomped away.

“Hahaha! Where are you going?” she laughed. “To go cry to your cat mom, human!”

Tom, a teenage incubus with short dark hair stood menacingly against a tank full of sharks. He wore a checkered collar, white boots, black pants, and a black shirt with a skull design on it.

“Ello’ Addi. Fancy seeing you here…”

He slammed Addison’s locker door closed with his elbow, blocking his way.

“At my locker? Yeah fancy…” Addison retorted. “What do you want, Tom?”

“So you talking to that purple poxy? What? Do you like him at all…?”

“That is none of your business!” he scoffed. He walked away but Tom blocked his path as he traveled via shadow. “Hahaha! Where are you going, luv? I’m talking to you…”

“Tom. MOVE!” Addison yelled.

“Tech. You can afford to be less of a prat, ya know,” he scoffed.

“Eugh! Go away, Tom. Stalker,” Addison mumbled.

Tom growled. “Ey! I’m not finished talking to you…”

He grabbed Addison hard by his white tail…sparking up bad memories once again…

Addison smacked his hand away as he smirked.

Gustav slammed Tom into the locker. “Hands off! He clearly iz not interested! So don’t touch.”

Several curious students peered over and giggled at the commotion.

“The hell are you, mate?!” Tom demanded.

“Ahem,” Addison cleared his throat and stood between them. “It’s okay Gustav…He’s just…I mean he’s harmless…Trust me.”

“But…I…” Gustav began.

“Really! I can handle myself, it’s okay. But I really appreciate it.”

“Hehehehehe,” Tom snickered.

Addison whirled around. “You! Stay away from me, Thomas! We broke up! We only dated a week! Don’t get why you’re so…possessive.”

“Oh shit!” a girl catcalled.

Addison continued. “One week. It didn’t work. It’s done. I swear. If you touch me again…I’ll…eugh…just…Get over it! And leave me alone!”

“Oh dayum!” called the students as they laughed.

MacKenzie ran down the hall and tumbled into an incubus teen wearing black clothes. They both stared at each other in shock as the other students “Oooohed!” around them.

MacKenzie shoved him away. “EUGH! You people are the worst! ACK! None of you know anything! Why don’t you mind your own fucking business and leave me alone!”

She hissed at the teen and ran off.

“I’m not that bad!” he yelled. He spotted MacKenzie’s papers and a journal with a heart on it. 

Tom picked them up and stalked off. He considered giving them back to her later on.

But he also couldn’t help himself as he browsed through pages of heart drawings, cat drawings and notes of sorrow and anger.

They both had been mocked and ridiculed on the same day. They both came from families that no one understood. He had to admit, she was kinda cute when she tripped into him and had stared into her milky eyes…

But that was only a fling of the moment. He was still upset that Addison had broken up with him…and all before he had the chance to eventually seize his soul. Though, he did have a weakness that he hated to admit: he would often grow attached to his intended victims…something Tam would tease him about all the time. It was why he hadn’t attacked Addison long ago.

Tom and Tam were the only lust demons at school, often avoided by many other students. Tom had bonded with Addison and Camilla, a pole dancing deer spirit who was seen as a rebel by many.

Tam was Tom’s succubus sister, a teen with a pale face, yellow eyes, gray hair in a ponytail with black spots. She wore a gray tank top and black pants with a skull belt buckle design on it. Like Tam, Tom collected souls, though he has more fun messing with males. Tom was bound in his duty to collect souls…if he goes too long without feeding, he gets desperate and violent. He wore a chain around his neck to remind himself of this…not that he had the ability to take it off. He also makes tailored dolls of his victims to keep as momentos. He and his sister did not get along.

Lolly Gag was their mother, an ancient powerful being of Lust but with black hair and a youthful appearance. She is fond of sexual jokes and pirates. She hailed from the Second Circle of Hell, where Tom and Tam were born. Tom and Tam lived with their family in abandoned buildings in the darker part of the city.