Double-Booked Banner 1


All of Snowball’s fur stood on end when Servant opened the door. A gust of chilly wind blew in, sending the stranger’s scent straight in Snowball’s direction.

He smelled like… danger.

Snowball poked his head between Servant’s legs and hissed at the newcomer. The tension in Servant’s body made Snowball’s whiskers itch, so he rubbed himself up against Servant’s ankles in an attempt to soothe both himself and his minion.

The Danger stepped into the cabin and closed the door gently behind him. He ruffled his dark head fur, the action making it stand on end. “I—er—well, this wasn’t what I was expecting, I’ll admit.”

“What?” Orange Fur snapped.

Snowball heartily approved of her display of aggression. Someone needed to show The Danger he wasn’t welcome! Now it was Servant’s turn to indicate his displeasure… and Snowball hoped he used his teeth and claws.

The Danger shook his head. “How long have you two—I mean, I guess it’s not my business. I’m just surprised, is all.”

Servant and Orange Fur looked at each other. “Us?” they meowed in unison. “We’re not together!”

“There was a mistake,” Orange Fur continued. “This—” She waved her paw through the air, apparently indicating herself, Servant, and the cabin as a whole. “This wasn’t supposed to happen. What are you doing here?”

“I came to see you.”

Orange Fur and The Danger didn’t notice when Servant backed away, slinking to the stairs to flee the appearance of a threat by drawing the least amount of attention possible. But Snowball noticed. In fact, Snowball was very good at slinking away from danger himself, having perfected his technique after multiple unexpected visits from the cold female Servant called “Mother.” He could only assume Servant had learned the evasive maneuver from his truly.

Instead of Orange Fur defending her territory and attacking The Danger until he, too, ran away, her meows softened and she stepped aside, inviting The Danger further in!

Agitated by her actions, Snowball paced between the door and the stairs, uncertain of what he should do. His instincts told him that he needed to stay and keep an eye on The Danger, give him a good hiss and sharp swipe every now and then so he didn’t forget he wasn’t wanted. If only Servant had marked Orange Fur with his scent. That for sure would have driven The Danger away, and then Snowball wouldn’t need to supervise the situation.

But the other side of Snowball, the side he hated to admit existed, was compelled to follow Servant to make sure he was okay. Not because Snowball felt any affection for his caretaker of course. Snowball knew that if anything happened to Servant, Snowball’s quality of life would severely decline. He wasn’t ready to give up his comfortable cat tower and his favorite window in which he liked to perch and watch rabbits hop around in the garden and the gourmet food he enjoyed without the inconvenience of catching or preparing it himself. He wasn’t ready to go back to digging in rubbish bins for scraps to eat. He just wasn’t cut out for that kind of rough and tumble life!

Conscience (something Snowball hadn’t been aware he had), or maybe his fear of the future, won out in the end. He dashed up the stairs and down the corridor to Servant’s room, where he found him sprawled on the bed.

“Meow,” Snowball said.

Servant did not acknowledge his presence.

“Meow,” Snowball insisted.

Servant remained still and silent.

Alarm propelled Snowball onto the bed, his cries becoming more concerned as he inspected Servant for injury or death.

Thankfully, he swatted him away and sat up, his annoyance palpable. But now that Snowball was no longer within reach of licking his face, Servant drew him into his lap and petted him the way he loved to be pet: one paw behind the ears and the other at the base of his tail. Scratch, scratch, scratch, scratch, scratch….

Snowball’s eyes closed in bliss, and for an extended moment, he forgot all about The Danger. Servant didn’t let him forget for long, though.

“Saint Potter ruining my holiday....” he grumbled. “Probably thinks he’s going to get Weasley back or something. Who does he think he is anyway? Father Christmas?” An irritated blast of air shot out of his nose, ruffling the fur on Snowball’s fluffy tail. “Who gave him the right to come here, and….”

Servant’s voice drifted off, his displeasure too great to vocalize, apparently.

“Meow,” Snowball said again.

Servant seemed to understand because he grunted in embarrassment before flattening his paw and stroking the length of Snowball’s body.

Both of their ears swiveled toward the door as a sound from downstairs drifted up to them. Snowball recognized it as the sound that was made when he accidentally locked himself inside a room, usually by playing with his toys in doorways.

Servant jumped to his feet. “I can’t believe it. She left.” There was a plaintive note in his voice, not unlike Snowball’s cries whenever Servant disappeared from home in the morning.

Snowball followed him out of the room, the jingle bell on his collar an inappropriately happy melody considering the devastation emanating from Servant’s body. Whiskers itching, he tried to moderate his steps to keep the bell from ringing so discordantly, but the stairs made his good intention nearly impossible.

Orange Fur stood in the middle of the living room, her arms wrapped around herself as she stared out of the glass back door and watched the snow fall heavily on the deck. The Danger was nowhere to be seen, but his acrid scent of peril lingered like an unscooped litterbox.

Snowball ran up to Orange Fur, rubbing his face against her calves in a plea for pets. She hadn’t left after all! Maybe Servant wouldn’t be sad anymore now. Not that Snowball cared if he was…. Not that Snowball really cared if she stayed, either!

She turned to Servant and smiled at his surprised expression.

“Potter left?” As she nodded, he composed himself, the surprise turning into indifference. But Snowball could feel the truth in his whiskers. He wasn’t indifferent at all. “What did he want?”

“To apologize for breaking up with me mere days before such an important match and to beg me to come home.”

“Why didn’t you go with him, then?”

Her smile transformed into something a little more mischievous. Snowball approved of all such expressions. “And leave you here all alone?”

“I’m not alone.”

She took a step closer to him, and Snowball darted away before he got himself kicked.

“A cat is hardly good company for Christmas.”

Snowball’s tail twitched. He did not appreciate her bad opinion. He was excellent company for all things, including Christmas. Whatever that was.

“Are you saying you want to stay here with me instead?”

“Would that be outrageous?”

They were standing so closely now, Snowball wouldn’t have fit between their bodies even if he was wanted there. Instead, he jumped up onto the back of the sofa where he had a better view of their confrontation.

Servant blinked slowly, taking his time to answer. He and Orange Fur were locked together in a battle of gazes, staring at each other in a way that could never be misconstrued as aggression. In fact, they were throwing off scents that made Snowball frankly a little uncomfortable.

“No,” he finally answered. “I wouldn’t be outraged if you wanted to stay.”

“Good.” And then Orange Fur rose up onto the tips of her toes and pressed her face against Servant’s.

Snowball turned his head as he tried to make sense of what they were doing. Their arms wrapped around each other, their breaths became labored, and when their heads parted, it was only for a moment before they mashed them into each other again. They stayed locked in this strange embrace for a while, long enough for Snowball to become concerned. He did not like this at all.

“Meow! Meow meow… meow?”

Without untangling himself from Orange Fur, Servant reached down to the sofa for a decorative pillow. “Piss off, cat!” he said just as he launched the pillow straight at Snowball.

Furious at this insulting behavior, Snowball jumped to the floor and hissed at his ungrateful servant. Was this how he deserved to be treated after he’d attempted to protect their territory from The Danger and then comforted Servant in his three minutes of despair?

Skulking off, he intended to find a warm place to curl up for an anger nap. But then Snowball's nose flared as he passed the dining room. The remains of the human dinner had not yet been cleared away, leaving plenty of ham and turkey and mushy things that only tasted good because they were forbidden. He glanced back toward the living room, but Orange Fur and Servant were still locked around each other, their inattention a perfect opportunity for Snowball to eat to his heart's content.

And then throw up in Servant's bed.

Author notes:

Thank you for sticking with this silly thing so far! Maybe I'll get this finished before Christmas 2018. ;)

Leave a Review
You must login (register) to review.