✦ A SHRINE IN HER HONOR ✦
THUNDERFlower
Black cat. Amber eyes. Green eyes. Emperor.
CHAPTER I
Who is Thunder?
FIG. 01 — THE EMPRESS
Her full name is Thunder Flower. She is a black European short-hair cat with eyes that shift between deep amber and vivid green depending on her mood and the light. She was adopted in 2021 — one week earlier than officially recommended, because the people who had her insisted.
Thunder imprinted hard. She gets anxious when we leave, but she would never admit it. Officially, she does not need you. She will, however, always be in the same room as you, sitting quietly, pretending she is there for completely unrelated reasons.
When she wants to be held, she will scream until it happens.
She eats only dry kibble. She purrs only when a specific blanket is involved. She meows loudly in the middle of the night so that someone will come and carry her to bed.
FIG. 02 — IN HER GARDEN
"Its color allows it to disappear at night."
She is vicious. She is beautiful. She is loving.
If she were a person, she would be a techno DJ who also works in fashion.
✦ CHAPTER II — INTERACTIVE RITUAL ✦
What would
Thunder do?
Consult the Oracle. She will not flatter you.
CHAPTER III
Visual Evidence
PINNED TO THE WALL · ARRANGED WITH DEVOTION
— ARCHIVAL DOCUMENT —
The Imperial Record
11TH MARCH, 809 · FIRST YEAR OF THE KŌNIN ERA
EXHIBIT A — A 22-YEAR-OLD EMPEROR WRITES OF HIS CAT
ON THE 6TH DAY OF THE 2ND MONTH OF THE FIRST YEAR OF THE KAMPO ERA.
Taking a moment of my free time, I wish to express my joy of the cat. It arrived by boat as a gift to the late Emperor, received from the hands of Minamoto no Kuwashi.
The color of the fur is peerless. None could find the words to describe it, although one said it was reminiscent of the deepest ink. It has an air about it, similar to Kanno. Its length is 5 sun, and its height is 6 sun. I affixed a bow about its neck, but it did not remain for long.
In rebellion, it narrows its eyes and extends its needles. It shows its back.
When it lies down, it curls in a circle like a coin. You cannot see its feet. It is as if it were a circular Bi disk. When it stands, its cry expresses profound loneliness, like a black dragon floating above the clouds.
By nature, it likes to stalk birds. It lowers its head and works its tail. It can extend its spine to raise its height by at least 2 sun. Its color allows it to disappear at night.
I am convinced it is superior to all other cats.
Written 1,215 years before Thunder was born.
OR WAS IT?