a smol miscellanea

Cats

Nightshade

A very small white kitten lying on a smooth surface. He is very young, with barely open dark eyes and very short, soft fur. His tiny ears are folded close to his head, and he has a pink nose and mouth. He is stretched out low on a soft surface, with his front paws tucked under his head and his body and tail extend behind him. Kitten Nightshade has his eyes suqeezed shut, his nose wrinkled and his mouth half-open almost as if he was saying 'cheese'. You can see his adorable baby teef. Kitten Nightshade sits on a dark leather sofa, looking slightly forlorn. A close-up of baby Nightshade asleep with his mouth slightly open, revealing his first big front teeth just emerging from his gums. Kitten Nightshade lies on a grey blanken on my lap. He reclines in the valley of my legs, all his skinny little limbs streeetched towards the camera, his hind toebeans at the very front edge of the photo. Pepper the Boston Terrier eyes a somewhat worried looking Nightshade as Nighshade's tail curls entirely around and across Pepper's snout. Pepper the Boston Terrier, and Nightshade sit side-by-side at the pale wooden dinner table, in hopes of tricking some food out of someone. They could both use a booster seat as the dining chair they are sat on means their chins are barely over the tabletop. Nightshade enjoying the sun with a tiny blep, as he sheds quietly atop a shiny, lacquered baby grand piano. A close-up of Nightshade, front paws wrapped around my wrist, gently biting me. His striking blue eyes are clearly visible. Nightshade loafing on a colourful knit blanket. Nightshade looks mischievous with a big blep. Nighshade attempts to pull the green yarn from my needle as I attempt to sew up a cat bagel for him. Nightshade and kitten SCSI sleep nose against nose, almost in a heart-shaped pose. Close-up of Nightshade asleep in the sun atop a cat barrel, with a sleeping kitten SCSI resting on top of him. Kitten SCSI in front, his mouth dropped open and his eyes closed in pleasure as Nightshade gives his head a good wash. Nightshade has wrapped a front paw around him to keep the baby cat in place. Nightshade swaddled in a blanket up against me as I try to game. He has sunk backwards into the blanket holding him, and his face is tilted up towards me. His eyes are closed and he is happy.

Nightshade, a lilac point Siamese, is my angel, my beloved, my horrible little gremlin. He's also the strangest cat I've ever had the pleasure of living with. Quite clever, and generally quiet, but when he bellows the whole house can hear him. He has a penchant for smelling people's faces, enjoys punching people who are wary of him, and, in recent years, took up "dancing". Generally a very happy cat as long as he gets his own way. He grew up with Pepper the Boston Terrier, and then ruled in solitude for a glorious year or so until we fucked it all up.

Until I met Nightshade, I was of the firm belief that cats enjoy company and do better when they have friends. I have come to accept this is not true for all cats. We acquired SCSI for Nightshade. He did not approve. It took him a good year to forgive us for that, even after reluctantly accepting his avuncular duties towards the little intruder. Even today he is extremely unenthused about meeting other cats, while he quite likes dogs, and even made friends with one (unbeknownst to us) whilst enjoying his catio.

He's in his early teens now, and enjoys sleeping, soaking up the sun, and being swaddled against me when I'd really rather be able to game in peace. He's doing really well considering both his age, his kidney disease, and the need to take a daily blood thinner which he takes great pleasure in evading at all costs.

SCSI

SCSI lies in a soft grey bed, resting his paw over the edge and gazing forwards, showing off his blue eyes. A close-up side profile of baby SCSI, with one bright blue eye in sharp focus. SCSI stands on the very top edge of an open white door. He is facing upward toward the ceiling, neck stretched and nose pointed at a round air vent mounted above. Sunlight from the right creates a bright rectangular patch on the lower part of the door, while the rest of the room is in softer, dimmer light. The walls are a neutral light colour, and the ceiling has simple moulding where it meets the wall. SCSI sits perched in the corner where two tall white cabinets meet the ceiling. He is facing forward with his back against the corner walls, front legs straight, and back legs spread slightly apart. His tail curves around his body towards the front, and his blue eyes are directed straight ahead. The cabinets below are plain white with simple vertical panel details, and there is a smooth white ceiling above with a small round recessed fixture. SCSI siting inside the recently emptied, and still warm, drum of a white clothes dryer, looking out towards the camera. SCSI cradled against my forearm with his head tilted back, mouth partly open, showing small, sharp teeth and a bit of pink tongue. One eye is mostly closed, and the other is only slightly open, giving a very relaxed, almost blissful expression. A close-up of a SCSI’s face, filling almost the entire image. His mouth is open slightly, showing small white teeth and two pointed fangs, giving a funny, sleepy expression. The nose is dark and centred, with fine whiskers extending from each side of the muzzle. His eyes are mostly closed, with just a thin slit visible, as if he is very relaxed. SCSI lying on his back with both front paws raised in the air. One eye is slightly open and the other is mostly closed, giving a relaxed, sleepy expression. His ears are large and upright, with pink visible on the inner parts. He is resting on a soft, dark grey blanket, and there is a bright turquoise blanket in the background. SCSI’s face held close to the camera, his chin resting on my fingers. His dark chocolate-brown mask is slightly lighter brown fur on the chin and lower jaw. There is a little blotch of pink on his otherwise deep brown nose due to him being warm enough for long enough to change colour. His eyes are mostly closed, with only a narrow sliver of blue visible, giving a very relaxed expression. A tiny bit of a fang peeks out. SCSI, wearing a bright blue and black harness with an orange leash. He is sniffing a small stone statue of a sitting dog on the edge of a garden bed. Standing on the lawn, he tentatively makes sure the statue won’t move, his puffed-up tail revealing his anxiety. Behind the statue, there is a large dark blue plant pot sitting on the concrete edge. In the garden bed, there is brown mulch and some green shrubs and plants with light and dark green leaves. SCSI lies sprawled on his back on a vibrant pink blanket covering an armchair, basking in the sunlight. SCSI, the chocolate point Siamese, looking extra plush (some might say «Huttesque») sitting in his «egg bed».

SCSI, aka devil beans. The Worst Cat. We love him dearly but he actually was such a terrible kitten he put a friend off having cats for a few years. Just in case she got a SCSI by mistake. We are talking balancing on doors, eating walls, going for swims in the freshly Domestos'ed toilet bowl and turning green kind of bad.

Though he is the Worst, SCSI is a happy, sunny little chap who loves Nightshade SO MUCH, and adores his father almost as much. He could take or leave me, I'm a vague pink blob on the periphery. A gregarious, friendly cat, he has outside friends (Jaguar, Boris), and is best friends with Latte. He's getting used to Merlin, but they need more time to become fast friends I think.

He enjoys food, snacking, plastic, and terrorizing me. He is a real scaredy cat, and gets extremely pointy if surprised (never sneeze while holding him). Slightly dim, but very tenacious, he has an oddly smol voice for a Siamese.

Latte

Latte aka Ratté, my red point Siamese "brother", and absolute favourite child of my mother. Sadly he has congenital kidney disease and wasn't expected to live particularly long, considering he was stage 3 when diagnosed at 7 months old. However, he's six (6) years old now and counting! And still going strong!

He's a delightful little house guest, and all three boys get along famously. Although, too much younger cat can overwhelm Nightshade, and he tends to sleep a lot more when Latte visits.