Winterlyte the Hanacat

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Winterlyte
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Stolen
15 Apr 2023
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This egg I bought in memorial to a past pet, Winter.

She was adopted by my dad and stepmom after being taken from her old owner by Animal Control for being abused (her purrbox was permanently damaged after she was choked several times by the neck with extreme force.) She was also beaten up by our other cat, and while I and my sister were also being abused, Winter was actively suffering as well.

At one point, we had to look for her presumably-dead body because she hadn't appeared in weeks (she was a "watcher" as my dad called her, so she would hide behind or under things and not appear, but this was a long period.) Thank god she was alive still, but our other cat had essentially beaten her back to the point she made the decision to lay in the shadows and starve to death just so she wouldn't get cut over trying to eat.

While I nearly got smacked for making the suggestions that would ultimately fix the situation (I was reading ASPCA books from the school library as an ASD hyperfixation at the time) I was instead tasked with cleaning the entire basement in addition to all the other Cinderella tasks, which is how we got close.

I had severe asthma at the time due to the dander and dust in the house, but if I sat down or took a break just so I could take a breath since I was wheezing so bad, I was punished severely for "slacking." However, since the cats were in a section of the basement with a separate door, I was able to close myself in and sit down most of the time and gain reprieve without anyone seeing me.

When I began sitting down there regularly, Winter began to come out and sit with me. I have never figured out why this was; maybe it was because I was also a loner in the house, maybe it was the wheezing (she would purr with me when she wouldn't with others, and because her box was broken, it came out like a hissy-crackling sound instead of a rumble like it was supposed to.) I just know we became fast friends.

She started visiting me in my room at night or in the mornings when she knew people wouldn't be walking around. She also started giving me headbutts, which I didn't know about until my dad caught me with her, and he was stunned, saying that headbutts mean a lot of trust (so the fact that she would regularly hit me with enough force to give me a headache meant a lot, apparently.)

When my family moved to South Carolina, she came as well. I was shortchanged again, being given the smallest room and not even proper furniture, but that was ok. One of the things people tend to look at badly for my experience was the fact that I was the only one in the house with no bed but only a futon, but that was honestly fine with me, because that meant Winter was able to stay in my room with me.

When Winter first joined the house, when I was only 10 or so, she was struggling to hide from our other cat, and would often hide under this same futon. One of my first events where I felt bad for her but was told I was being whiny and a brat over it was when Winter hid, the other followed, and I heard Winter screaming under the futon as she was being cut up. "They just need to learn to get along," I was told. Two months later, we found her skeletal body hiding in the closet.

Now that I had the futon, and all of her stuff in my room, she could stay with me, and I was happy. She would sleep either under the futon, or often when I was working on my phone or on my 3DS or just sleeping, she would sleep next to me. When I'd leave for high school, she'd hop under the futon again, and when I came back, she'd be glaring at me from under it before hopping back out to hang out again.

When I was 15, however, I was hospitalized after a suicide attempt. 4, in fact. In the space of 24 hours. I couldn't take the abusive conditions I was living in anymore.

I was sent to Springbrook Behavioral Health, which if you look it up (they have also hidden older complaints under the older corporate name "Chestnut Hill" which is on the same address but says "permanently closed") is horrific. Some of the top hits of trauma from my stay was being SA by another patient, being left in the shower for 5 hours under threat of having all of my stuff thrown out, and being sat on by my therapist for saying my parents were abusive and not being allowed to leave until I said that I was just having OCD and compulsively resisting them, that they were good parents.

When I got there, it was Halloween. When I got out, it was March.

I came back, and the unknown cPTSD I already had was now turning to full gear. I hate myself for being like that, but since I was regularly attacked by other patients and bet on by staff, as well as beaten up by the staff, when I got home, any threat and continuing that I would have normally met with my typical ASD meekness was instead met with anger and violence.

In addition, my "punishment" for this trespass of mental crisis was being locked in my room all day, no door, having an Echo as an intercom to be allowed to leave my baby-gated room, and having cameras all over my room, which while I was told not to strip in front of them, I regularly did anyway in hopes that they would be arrested for it.

My dad would regularly put me into chokeholds from his police training because "he would not allow a crazy ----- in his house," and I had the cops called on me, and after they lied to him, saying I attacked my father when he attacked me because he challenged me to do something about it, the cop chewed me out to tears, telling me that if I was his, he would paddle me.

During all this, I didn't have anything. Except Winter.

Winter was still in my room, and she still slept with me. Probably moreso then than ever. I didn't have anything to do but sleep, sometimes read if I even had a book, or draw before I knew my pictures were being stolen to keep as evidence of how insane I am.

When I didn't have anything to do but cry, or I'd have nightmares, she was sleeping next to me. She was there for me when no human was.

In May, I decided to steal a phone. My parents worked for Verizon, so the amount of smartphones they had just hanging around was staggering. I knew none of them had data, but that was fine, I just wanted something I could sneak to school, connect to wifi, and finally have some access.

This had been a battle. I unlocked my 3DS Parental Controls, so I could watch YouTube and do things there, but I only got my 3DS twice for 30 minutes each in those 2 months. My FlipShot that I was given had data still, somehow, so I was able to play MocoSpace games on there for a while, and I was happy, but I was punished severely and my phone was mostly deactivated (even texts were restricted) after it somehow sent a ping from my old Facebook account that I was online.

I was able to have a whole day of data, it was great. But when I got home, I was told to pack up what I thought was necessary.

I wasn't even told about my electronics. No instructions. I would have left my laptop, phone, 3DS if I didn't think.

12 or so hours later, I was dropped off at my mom's in New York, and disowned, my stuff dropped on the pavement.

I didn't get to spend anymore time with Winter.

On my 18th Birthday (June 2002,) my sister informed me over text that Winter had been put down months prior due to an unknown sudden illness. She was coughing up blood, then throwing up blood violently, and since she was anemic and emaciated by the time she was found, they decided to put her down, and never told me. Never told me until my birthday.

I called my dad to ask what happened, and he told me the same thing, but when I mentioned that I wished I could have been there, or taken her with me (my mom has a no-pet rule,) he proceeded to tell me she was never my cat, that she was his, and that if he wanted to put her down and never let me know, that was his choice.

...

I'm turning 21 this year.

I saw this Egg come out, and I thought it would match her perfectly.

She may have been just a grey tabby, but she healed me more than I could ever thank her for, and I'm sorry that I couldn't be there for her.

So... bloom brightly, love. 😊

About Hanacat Eggs

Hanacat eggs all have a flower stuck to them. These flowers will gradually fall off, petal by petal, and when all the petals have fallen off the egg will hatch. Studies conducted by the SAR Center show that Hanacat eggs hatch the quickest when placed on soft bedding and exposed to sunlight. The petals have healing properties, so they are highly sought out by doctors and herbalists. If someone forcefully removes the petals, however, the petal will shrivel up and all its medicinal properties will be lost, becoming highly poisonous. The petal will grow back after some time, however, giving the person a second chance to raise the creature correctly.

About the Hanacat Creature

Young Hanacats are incredibly shy and will go out of their way to avoid contact with other creatures. They hide in the shadows of the Forest during the day, which makes them to be incredibly elusive. They are also highly curious and will come out of their hiding places at night to explore. Once outside, they are playful and enjoy frolicking around in Ark City. As they grow older, they leave the Forest more often, and become more sociable. An older Hanacat is more easier to tame than a young one. When domesticated, Hanacats are loyal and affectionate companions, making them great pets. They still retain their curiosity, however, so fragile items should not be kept near Hanacats.

Once a grown adult, the Hanacat's flower petals lose their healing qualities but still retain their beauty.