ruby meets a neighbor.

it doesn't go well.

Mar 15, 2026

CRASH

Ruby startled awake, her hair sticking out in almost every possible direction. Hank hissed behind her, mouth agape. He was staring intently at the bedroom door.

“What on earth?” Ruby’s pawed at her eyes, rubbing the sleep from them. She groaned, “Don’t worry Hank, I bet one of the cages tipped over.” She stretched and kicked her legs over the side of the bed to go fix whatever had fallen in the other room.

Another crash tore through the air. It sounded like the shattering of glass.

Ruby’s eyes widened and another hiss escaped from Hank’s open mouth as he moved across the headboard to the ground.

“Ohhhh, crap.” Ruby whispered, her voice filled with panic. She looked about the room and grabbed the first thing she could find that even possibly resembled a weapon, a broom that she used to tidy the place before moving her boxes in.

“Who’s there?” Ruby called out, trying her best to sound brave. “Oh, that was stupid, I should be hiding.” She whispered to herself.

Something brushed against her leg and she screamed in terror.

Hank looked up at her, wide-eyed, startled himself at her yell.

“I’m sorry Hank” She whispered to him before scooping him up and quickly placing him on her shoulder. Hank looked at her expectantly.

“What do you want me do?” She whispered at him. He cocked his head towards the door, suggesting she do something.

This wasn’t the first time Ruby felt Hank could understand her, but it still weirded her out every time he did.

“Fine.” She said to him, then turned to her slightly ajar bedroom door, broomstick raised.

She screamed a warriors cry and kicked at the door. It swung open, slamming into the wall behind it with a loud thud. Ruby sprinted towards the sound of intruder, broom at the ready.

Sitting calmly on her kitchen counter, above the shattered remains of her favorite mug, was a rotund black cat. Its tail twitched sporadically behind it like a possessed imp.

Ruby’s mouth hung open. She felt the breeze from her open lakefront windows blow her hair behind her shoulders.

A cat. A cat?

She followed the large cat’s eyes which were glued to the walls of critters. An audible stomach growl emanated from the shadowy parasite perched on Ruby’s counter.

The adrenaline rushed out of her and was quickly replaced with an ice cold rage.

“You little miscreant!” Ruby yelled as she leapt towards the cat and swung the broom at it like a baseball bat. The cat easily avoided her assault, despite its rather round belly. It silently jumped through the air, landing on the floor, just behind Ruby.

She twisted around to face the vermin, “You broke my mug you little—” the crack of wood-on-wood from Ruby’s broom colliding with her hardwood floor where the cat was sitting covered her profanities.

Her head spun around as she searched for the cat who has once again escaped her assault.

She heard a meow from under her couch, hidden behind the skirt. It didn’t sound like a typical cat meow, more like a laugh.

Was this devil-cat laughing at her?

Ruby was above to dive under the couch when she noticed the familiar pressure on her shoulder was missing.

She drew in a panicked breath and reached up to find that Hank was gone.

Several paces in front of her, just in front of where the meow had emerged from under the couch. Hank stood bravely.

The chameleon was a shade of red that Ruby had never seen on him.

An awful hiss escaped from him, one that struck fear in even Ruby’s bones.

Suddenly, Hank darted behind the skirt towards the feline-assailant.

“No! Hank, no!” Ruby started towards her chameleon, fearing for his life.

She was more than a little surprised when a black blur darted across the room and jumped through the open window from which it came.

Hank emerged slowly from the side of the couch, victorious.

Ruby released the breath she had been holding and jogged over to Hank, scooping him up. She nuzzled him against her cheek.

“You silly lizard, that thing could have killed you.” Ruby said affectionately.

She held Hank in front of her and watched as his reddish tint slowly turned back to green. He cocked his head to the side, clearly gesturing towards the open window.

“Alright. I get it, I get it. I’ll close it.”

nibbins the cat