Disclaimer: All characters and events are fictional, and any similarity to real people and events is purely coincidental. This is a work of ero...wait, a CLEAN story that isn’t batshit crazy? From me? No wai!!! Story and all characters © Kardas Fox. Meeting Daddy Kelly stirred a pot of mashed potatoes idly, wondering if they might be a bit too thick. The tan mouse ran some water into a measuring cup, pausing momentarily to brush the long brown hair from her face. It was starting to curl at the ends, she would have to have it cut soon. Amy hovered in the doorway and watched her mother cook. She took after her mother quite well -- they shared the same brunette locks and warm brown eyes, though Amy’s fur was significantly darker than her mother’s. At twelve years of age, she was normally as hyper and energetic as someone half her age, but something had been troubling her young mind lately. After taking a moment to collect her thoughts, the brown mousette strode into the kitchen and tugged her mother’s apron to get her attention. “Yeah sweetie?” the older mouse said without even looking up as she cautiously stirred water little by little into the potatoes, working for the right consistency. “Um...why...why don’t Kate and me have a dad?” Amy asked nervously. The answer came first in the sound of breaking glass as the measuring cup slid from Kelly’s grasp. The older mousette slowly turned to address her daughter, a stern expression on her face. “Honey...sometimes, well, sometimes grown-ups drink too much and do things they regret. Sometimes, they drink even more and can’t remember what they should be regretting in the morning...” “Am I a mistake, mommy?” Kelly could hear her little angel’s voice breaking with the question and moved quickly to embrace the young mouse. “No, of course not! You and your sister are the best accidents that have ever happened to me!” she said as reassuringly as possible, “My only regret is that you girls never knew your fathers, and that even I’m not so sure...” “What does ‘slut’ mean?” Amy asked out of the blue. “What?! Where did you hear a word like that?!” “A girl at school said it, she said that’s what you were,” Amy explained, “I know it’s an insult, but I don’t really know what it means.” “It’s a very bad word used by closed-minds who think they know what’s best for everyone else, and I don’t ever want to hear you use it again,” Kelly answered firmly, “Now run along and tell your sister that dinner is almost ready.” “Okay!” Amy squeaked before bounding up the stairs to find her half-sister. Kate sat on the inner ledge of the bay window in her bedroom, daydreaming. Despite having the same mother, she didn’t bear close resemblance to Amy. They shared the same mahogany eyes, but the resemblance ended there. The spacey black kitten, no older then ten, sat nearly motionless as she gazed out the window, only the tip of her tail swishing lazily back and forth, silky black hair flowing freely down her back like a nocturnal waterfall. On the outside, she looked rather pensive, but her inner thoughts were only as deep as a bottle cap and as consistent as a sketch comedy show. Amy snuck up on her younger sibling and leaned in close, then gently blew on one of the kitten’s triangular ears. Kate’s ears twitched in unison and the fur on the back of her neck stood up as she whipped around to see the source of her sudden dose of reality. “Oh Amy, it’s you!” Kate sighed, “You startled me!” “That wouldn’t happen so much if you’d stay in everyone else’s world and not your own,” the mouse teased, “You sure do love that window.” “It’s really peaceful here, I just kind of zone out I guess...” “Oh whatever, you zone out no matter where you are!” Amy giggled, “Come on, dinner’s ready!” The girls hurried downstairs to a simple meal of fish sticks and mashed potatoes, with which they eagerly stuffed their faces. Kelly, on the other hand, moved her food around her plate without eating and pondered how to say what she was thinking. “Amy, Kate, I know you girls don’t want to hear this,” she started, “But, I’ve decided to start dating again...” “Does that mean there are going to be strangers in the house?” Kate asked. “Yes, I’m sorry girls, but mommy is lonely...” “But you have us!” Amy interjected. “That’s not what I mean, Amy,” Kelly sighed, “I want someone to come home to, I want you girls to have a father-figure.” “We don’t need a father, we have the best mom in the world!” Kate proclaimed. “I appreciate the thought, but I’ve made my decision,” Kelly said firmly, “You two are old enough to take care of yourselves for a few hours now, I don’t have to feel guilty about leaving my precious angels with a sitter. Just look at this as a chance to prove how grown up you are.” The rest of the meal passed in silence, then the girls washed the dishes while Kelly prepared for her first expedition to the singles’ bar in a long while. Amy paces restlessly in her sister’s room. She had an uneasy feeling that made her not want to be alone or still. “This is gonna be so weird! What if she marries some random guy and we have to call him dad?!” she squeaked. Hearing no response, she looked at Kate to see that her younger sibling was once again staring aimlessly out the window. “You and that window...psh, forget this, I’m gonna go play nintendo.” ---------- A few weeks later, Curtis found himself standing in line at the grocery store. The tall black cat only had a couple of things -- some coffee, milk, and bread. He sighed upon catching sight of the over-loaded cart in front of him, and slicked his lustrous black hair back after feeling an errant ear twitch knock a few meticulously groomed strands out of place. His ears perked up again upon noticing the tan mouse beside the filled cart. It’d been years since they last saw each other, and he thought of her as something of an old friend. Next he noticed the two little girls standing next to Kelly, probably her children. A brown mouse who obviously took after her mother and...a black kitten. He froze -- the resemblance was so clear it may as well have been on a billboard. Kate got the uncomfortable feeling that she was being watched and turned around. That cemented it -- she had her mother’s eyes and Curtis knew she wasn’t just a friend of the little brown mouse. “Mommy, that man is staring!” Kate said. Kelly turned around and gasped. “Curtis? Oh wow, it’s been so long!” “Yeah,” he replied uneasily, “I think the last time we saw each other was...at that party.” “Oh...” Kelly’s gaze shifted to her youngest daughter as she suddenly understood the reason for staring, “That was about ten years ago, wasn’t it?” “Closer to eleven, I thought,” he said, “So, um...are you married, or..?” “No, single, but I’m looking again...and you?” “Separated, I don’t really like to talk about it. If you’re not doing anything tonight, maybe we could catch up over dinner?” “I’d like that a lot Curtis, thank you...” “Mom, the line is moving!” Amy observed. ---------- “Why does she have to go running off with guys all the time?” Kate grumbled. “Because it makes her happy,” Amy replied, “There’s not much we can do about it. Like she said, we can take care of ourselves while she’s out now. I’ve been thinking about it and it’s really none of our business. I’m not happy about it either but we just have to let mom live her life. At least we got to see the guy first this time, instead of mom just going barhopping. He seemed kind of nice.” “No! He’s stupid and I hate him!” Kate protested. “You don’t even know him! Just chill, I think he’s even someone she knew before. You never get this worked up about mom’s dates, what’s gotten into you?” “That guy creeps me out! He kept staring at me, then mom said there was some kind of party ten years ago, and she started staring too!” “Mom told me she used to drink a lot and do stuff she regrets, maybe that guy...I don’t know, what if he’s your real dad?” “Am I something mom regrets?” came a soft whimper from the kitten. “What? No! I didn’t mean it like that! Mom just said that she wanted us to know our fathers!” Kate went silent and looked away from Amy, casting her gaze out the window. “I know you didn’t zone out that fast! Kate? Tch, fine...give me the silent treatment you big baby! At least you might get to meet your real dad, I still don’t know who mine is!” Kate waited until Amy had left to wipe the tears from her cheeks. She let out a ragged sigh that turned into a light sob as she tried to find solace in the night sky. ---------- “Something’s bothering you, I can tell,” Kelly said. She’d been dating Curt for well over two months and he’s never been so silent and intense. The two of them had decided to take a walk in the park, but the sunset filtering through the trees proved a less romantic image when nagging curiosity and concern made themselves known. “I’ve been thinking,” he replied, “I...I want to have a DNA test done, I want to be sure that I’m Kate’s father.” “You don’t plan on leaving us if the test is negative, do you?” “No, of course not, I love you Kelly! But Kate...she hates me. She never says a word to me and always glares when I come to pick you up. It hurts...I just want to know that the pain is justified.” Kelly pressed tightly up against her lover as a chill wind began to blow. “She just needs time to adjust, but I understand. I have no reason to object to a paternity test.” Curtis started to purr softly and held Kelly close to his side. After a long pause, Curtis finally spoke again. “There’s something else you should know. I have a son, by my ex-wife...” “I know, you mentioned him. Connor, right?” “Yes, I just wanted to be sure I’d told you.” “You never went into what happened to Connor’s mom. If I’m not prying, that is. I mean, are you two legally divorced or did she just leave or..?” “Jenny and I never fell out of love, no, we might have been together forever. But there were complications during Connor’s birth...she didn’t make it. I’ve been a single dad ever since, and poor Connor never met his mother.” “Oh...I’m sorry, I had no idea...” Kelly said. She could hear the pain in his voice and knew she had dug up something he was trying to move away from, it made her feel so stupid. The walk continued in silence, even the soothing sound of Curt’s purring had ceased. ---------- Kate sat in her usual spot by the window, brow furrowed and tail twitching angrily. She had been warned that Curtis would be coming over to deliver some news personally. Try as she might, she couldn’t zone out, she had too much on her mind to escape for real. “Hey Kate, mind if I have a seat?” The sound of his voice made her ears flatten, but she refused to acknowledge him with a response so he remained standing. “I know we haven’t really gotten along, but the tests prove it. I’m you’re biological father. I know it’s late, but I’ve decided to propose to your mother to try and make things right.” Kate suddenly whipped around and cast the most intimidating glare she could muster. “And I’m supposed to just accept that?! I don’t even know you and you just want me to hug you and call you daddy?!” “You don’t think it hurt me to realize I’ve got a daughter who I’d never met?!” Curtis snapped back, “I didn’t even know your mother was pregnant, it happened at a college party and...well, I wasn’t the only guy there. She dropped out after that and I didn’t hear from her again until we ran into each other at the grocery store. Had I known that I’d fathered a kitten that night I would have done the right thing and married your mom back then!” He realized he was trembling and felt moisture in his eyes -- he hadn’t expected Kate to cut so deeply and had become quite emotional. After a moment’s hesitation, Kate climbed down from the ledge and gently hugged Curt. “I’m sorry, I just don’t know what to feel right now...” “It’s okay Kate,” he said as he hugged back. “Are you Amy’s father, too?” “No, your mom said she got pregnant with Amy at a different party a couple of years before you were conceived. I wasn’t at that one, and your mom was too drunk at the time to remember. We may never know who Amy’s biological father is.” Amy had been hiding just outside the door, listening the whole time. She fought back tears in her own eyes from the emotional intensity of the situation. She silently fled to her own bedroom, lest she be discovered. She couldn’t let them see her cry; she was supposed to be the tough one, the big sister! Kate was the fragile one! She flopped down on her bed and dried her eyes, but suddenly sat bolt upright at the sound of an unexpected knock at her door. “Come in.” Kelly opened the door and padded into her eldest daughter’s bedroom. “Is everything okay Amy? I heard you slam your door.” “Kate gets to meet her real dad,” Amy sniffled, “When do I get to meet mine?” “Sweetie, it’s not that easy...” she replied, “I never expected to figure out who Kate’s father is. I just ran into Curt by chance and...well...you see the resemblance. We had a paternity test done and it’s proven now.” “So I might never know who my dad is?” “Amy, Curtis proposed to me this morning. He’s not your biological father, but I know he’s going to do his best, biology be damned. Please, just give him a chance for me.” “A...alright, I’ll give him a chance.” “There’s something else, too. Curtis has a son, his name is Connor and he’s only three years old. Poor thing never knew his mom. When I marry Curtis, Connor is going to be your little brother and I want you to be good to him.” “A little brother?” Amy squeaked, her mood picking up almost immediately. She could be the big sister twice as much! “When is the wedding?” “In a couple of months, but they’re going to move in with us next week. I’m going to have to put you and Kate in the same room, though...to make room for Connor.” “We get to share a room? Oooh...does that mean we get a bunk bed?” “Um...yeah, I think we can do that. You two are going to help me put it together, though.” “Yeah! I call top bunk!” ---------- Kate sat down a large box with a sigh of relief, she was nearly out of breath. Any watched on with a smirk. “Aw, is the kitty ready for a nap?” “Shut up Amy, you got all the light ones!” They both went silent as Curtis walked in carrying the last of the moving boxes. Hiding behind his leg was a frightened little black kitten. “Go on champ, don’t be so shy,” Curtis said reassuringly, “These girls are going to be your big sisters from now on. come out of hiding and say hi.” Connor timidly stepped around his father’s leg and took a few steps, then suddenly stopped and looked back to see an encouraging nod. He approached the much taller girls and spoke nervously. “Hi, I’m Connow.” “You speak so well for three!” Amy squeaked, “I’m your big sister Amy, and this is your other big sister, Kate!” “Good to meet you little guy,” Kate said, “Can you say Amy and Kate?” “Amy and Kate,” he echoed hesitantly. “If you girls don’t mind, give him the grand tour while we unpack.” ---------- Connor toyed with the collar of his dress shirt. It felt so weird, so different from his other shirts and it was starting to bother him. “Connor, quit fidgeting!” Kate whispered, “This is important!” “What’s going on?” the young kitten asked, “That man up thew is just tawking a wot.” “They’re getting married,” Amy explained, “It means our mom will be your mom and your dad will be our dad.” “And we get to be your sisters officially!” Kate added, “We’ll be one big happy family!” “Shh, they’re about to seal the deal!” Amy chided. “...I now pronounce you man and wife. You may kiss the bride.” said the minister. With a kiss to the lips, both symbolic and loving, Kelly Pearson became Kelly Landers, and they all lived happily ever after. Mostly.