Young Writers Society

Plot: In the outskirts of a large city, deep within a bustling neighborhood, four gangs rule the streets. These gangs are made of a different race of cats, who are animals for half of the day from 12 AM to 12 PM, and are human from 12 PM to 12 AM. These gangs all have vicious rivalries with each other that have been held for decades. They also do not associate with humans. However, when four members from opposite gangs fall in love, and one cat falls in love with a human, the rigid rules and structures of the gangs slowly begins to crumble as they descend into mad warfare.

Japanese Bobtails (Koneko)

Koneko = Japanese word meaning “kitty” or “kitten”. There are fifty members in all of the Koneko gang, but the ones listed are the “top cats” of the gang, the most important. The Koneko are usually deathly loyal to all of the other members of the gang. They hold a high level of respect for each other.

Yuuka Kimura-Koneko: the dominant cat of the gang, Yuuka has a strong feeling of loyalty for the gang, but she also holds herself in high regard. She has no regard for those outside of the gang. She is a short haired mi-ke (calico) she-cat with bright blue eyes. As a human she has short golden-brown/black hair with white tips and bright blue eyes. Her first name, Yuuka is a combination of the Japanese words yuu meaning “gentleness, superiority”, and ka, meaning “flower”. Her first surname, Kimura means “tree village”. She is 22 human years old.

Atsuko Tsukino-Koneko: Yuuka's best friend and the second most dominant cat of the gang, Atsuko is usually very quiet and tends to stick to herself. She is completely loyal to Yuuka and will do whatever she asks. She is a black and white bi-color she-cat with dark amber eyes. As a human she has long black hair that is white on the underside and dark amber eyes. Her first name, Atsuko comes from the Japanese combination of 温 (atsu) "warm", 篤 (atsu) "kind, cordial" or 敦 (atsu) "honest" combined with ko, meaning "child". Her first surname, Tsukino means “moon field”. She is 20 human years old.

Hayate Miyamoto-Koneko: the “big brother” figure to most of the cats, Hayate is the oldest cat in the gang. He is very wise, and many of the cats will go to him when they're seeking advice. He is a long haired red tabby van-patterned tom with bright green eyes. As a human he has long red hair with white tips and bright green eyes. His first name, Hayate means “smooth” in Japanese. His first surname Miyamoto means “base of the shrine” in Japanese. He is 37 human years old.

Hideaki Honda-Koneko: the youngest cat of the gang, Hideaki mostly tags along with Hayate. He is quite dependent on Hayate and often will not leave his side. He is very friendly and energetic, though he is weary of cats from the other gangs. He is a long haired cream colored tom with dark green eyes. As a human he has long yellow-cream colored hair and dark green eyes. His first name, Hideaki comes from the Japanese words hide meaning “excellent” and aki meaning “bright”. His first surname Honda means “one from the base of the fields”. He is 11 human years old.

Hikaru Yukimura-Koneko: the older twin to Arata, Hikaru keeps mostly to Arata, though he gets along well with the other members of the gang. Hikaru is generally ambivalent to the problems of anyone but himself or his twin brother, though Yuuka is always telling him to support the gang more. He is a short haired blue and white tom with hazel eyes. As a human he has short blue-gray hair and hazel eyes. His first name, Hikaru comes from Japanese 光 "light" or 輝 "radiance". His first surname Yukimura means “snowy village”. He is 19 human years old.

Arata Yukimura-Koneko: the younger twin to Hikaru, Arata mostly keeps to Hikaru, though he does like to go off on his own and interact with other gang members. Unlike Hikaru, Arata cares more for others, and many cats say that he shouldn't be cut out for gang life. Arata is considered the “Romeo” of the gang, inclined to be “in love with love”. He is a long haired blue and white tabby tom with one green, one brown eye. As a human he has long blue-gray hair with white tips and one green, one brown eye. His first name, Arata means “fresh, new” in Japanese. He is 19 human years old.

Egyptian Maus (Sanura)

Sanura = a Swahili name meaning “young cat”, given because all of the members of this gang are under the age of 25. Despite their young ages, this is the largest gang with sixty-eight members, and so controls the most territory. A number of the Maus are polytheistic, worshiping the Egyptian gods, while many remain without religion. All Maus have a shade of gooseberry green eyes, and it is the mark of the gang.

Akosua Ihejirika-Sanura: the dominant cat of the gang. Akosua rules her territory with an iron first, and is known as a brutal dictator. She does not tolerate outsiders, and is known to carry out executions on anyone who she finds disloyal. She is also very bloodthirsty, and enjoys abusing and torturing lower gang members. She has a spiked baseball bat that she never cleans, and so is very bloody. A bronze colored she-cat with gooseberry green eyes for a light shade. As a human she has short bronze hair with light green eyes. Her first name, Akosua means “born on Sunday” in Akan. Her first surname Ihejirkia means “the one that I have is greater” in Igbo. She is 20 human years old.

Khamisi Afolayan-Sanura: Akosua's long time partner and friend, Khamisi is very submissive to Akosua and will often do whatever she wants. He has no qualms with killing and torturing at her whims, and he knows very well that she could kill him at any time. While he is deathly afraid of her, he also loves her, and will do anything for her. A smoke colored tom with gooseberry green eyes of a medium shade. As a human he has short smokey-black hair with green eyes. His first name Khamisi means “born on a Thursday” in Swahili, and his first surname Afolayan means "walks with grace, confidence" or "walks like a rich man" in Yoruba. He is 21 human years old.

Onyekachi Ihejirika-Sanura: Akosua's half-brother, Onyekachi is the only non-pure blooded Mau in the entire gang. He is half Mau, half American Curl. Although he is ostracized by most of the gang, Akosua protects him, so Onyekachi is very close to Akosua despite her bloodthirsty nature. He is very submissive and non-confrontational, and tends to run away from fights that he knows he can't win. He is a bronze colored tom with white patches, ears that curl back, and deep blue-green eyes. As a human he has short bronze hair with white tips and deep blue-green eyes. His first name Onyekachi means “who is greater than God?” in Igbo. He is 19 human years old.

Turkish Vans (Kedi)

Kedi = Turkish word for “cat”. Many of the Vans are immigrants from Turkey and areas around Turkey. Many members of the gang speak mostly Turkish, and few speak English as their first language. Most of the Kedi are Muslim, though a few remain without religion or are other religions. This is the smallest gang with thirty-five members.

Yahya Tiryaki-Kedi: the dominant cat in the gang. Yahya is very stubborn, and often times will make decisions without consulting the rest of the gang. He often says that “The only man he fears is God”, and has never been known to run from a fight. Yahya has many scars because of this. He is an avid cigarette smoker and can't go a day without smoking at least five of them. He is a brown tabby van tom with blue eyes. As a human he has medium-length brown hair and blue eyes. His first name Yahya is a Turkish form of John. His first surname Tiryaki means “addict” or “stubborn”. He is 30 human years old.

Sevgi Tiryaki-Kedi: Yahya's younger sister, she is also very stubborn like her brother, but she is much more caring than him. She is known as being very carefree, though she carries a weapon on her at all times due to Yahya's many enemies. She hates all tobacco products, and often times she'll destroy Yahya's cigarettes if given the chance. She is a tortoiseshell van she-cat with blue eyes. As a human she has long gold and brown hair and blue eyes. Her first name Sevgi means “love” in Turkish. She is 17 human years old.

Musa Badem-Kedi: Sevgi's main suitor, he desperately wants to marry her. While Yahya is very much in favor of it, Sevgi despises him. He often tries to win her love by buying her expensive objects and giving her money, though she still refuses to notice him. He is a black van tom with green eyes. As a human he has short black hair and green eyes. His first name Musa is a Turkish form of Moses. His first surname Badem is derived from a Turkish word meaning “almond”. He is 18 human years old.

Oriental Shorthairs (Meaow)

Meaow = Thai word meaning “cat”. Many of the Oriental Shorthairs are descendants from immigrant cats from Taiwan and areas around the country. Some of the cats are American-born. There are forty-seven members of the gang, though at least ten of them are under the age of thirteen. They are the most secretive of the gangs and are rarely ever seen freely traveling the city. Often times, they will travel using “tunnels” through the roofs of buildings or through the alleyways. They are known as the “alley cat gang” due to this. Many of the Meaow have blue yes.

Preecha Metharom-Meaow: The dominant cat in the gang. Preecha is known as the kindest of all of the leaders. He is very lenient and forgiving. Many of the other leaders look down on him for this. He is a gray tabby tom with sky blue eyes. As a human he has short gray hair and sky blue eyes. His first name Preecha means “intelligence, wisdom” in Thai. His first surname Metharom refers to a place or institute of learning or where knowledge is provided. He is 45 human years old.

Lawan Metharom-Meaow: Preecha's only surviving daughter from his late wife, Lawan is known as the “jewel of the Meaow”, due to her striking beauty. Preecha holds her in high regard and is quite protective over her. Despite this, Lawan is very independent, and likes to explore the city from the alleyways that the Meaow roam. She is a dilute tortoiseshell (blue and cream) she-cat with blue-gray eyes. As a human she has long blue and cream hair and blue-gray eyes. Her first name Lawan is believed to mean “beautiful” in Thai. She is 19 human years old.

Prologue

It was only just barely two o' clock in the morning, and already the lights from the streetlights shone on the bloody asphalt. Here, not thirty minutes ago, the Koneko and the Sanura had fought their second bloody battle in the past two weeks. The smell was almost dizzying, and there were no pedestrians or cars making their way down the lonely street. Sitting on the sidewalk and overlooking the damage, Yuuka Kimura-Koneko hung her head and sighed heavily, her stringy black-tipped hair falling into her eyes. The Koneko had won this battle tonight, taking back this stretch of street from the Sanura when they had taken it two weeks ago in the first bloody skirmish, but to Yuuka they might as well have lost. Many of the members that had been involved in the fight were badly injured. The Sanura had lost one member; his body lie cold in the middle of the street, undisturbed. The Sanura had retreated too fast to recover the body of their dead brother. For a few moments, Yuuka sat in silence, her eyes closed and her head bowed, until she heard footsteps and someone settled beside her.




“Yuuka.” Her eyes opened suddenly, and her head whipped over towards the person who'd settled beside her. She reached subconsciously for her dagger, but relaxed when she realized that it was another member of her own gang, Hayate Miyamoto-Koneko. He held up one hand defensively when she reached for her dagger, but they both relaxed at the same time. Hayate's green eyes that were normally bright and energetic were dull and tired, and Yuuka knew full well the reason for it.





“How are they, Hayate?” Yuuka asked, and the older male shifted a bit.





“Hikaru should be fine within a few days, and Arata wasn't badly injured. Hideaki hid like he was supposed to, and luckily no one found him. Atsuko is still critical, and if she makes it through, she's certain to have some scars. What I'm worried about right now is keeping any infection out. Akosua isn't known for cleaning her weapons, and who knows what kind of diseases her other victims could have carried. We haven't lost anyone yet, though.” Yuuka was silent while Hayate spoke, but it wasn't long before her shoulders began to tremble.





“Akosua is getting much too strong,” Yuuka muttered under her breath. Hayate nodded in agreement, his eyes wandering down to the bloodied asphalt. “This is the second attack in a month. If this keeps up, there's no way we'll be able to continue to fight them. They'll take us over, and then...” Yuuka trailed off, knowing that Hayate's mind would follow. “I've been thinking, perhaps we should create an alliance with the Meaow? They are also a smaller gang like us, and I know that Akosua has been hungrily eying the southern part of their territory for a long time. And, old leader Preecha is ill, and has been ill for a long while. It won't be long until he dies, no matter what his people like to think. Lawan will have to take over after him, but she's nowhere near ready to be a leader. She'll need help.”





“Yuuka, no gangs have ever formed an alliance before,” Hayate said rapidly. “Are you sure that this is wise?”





“Too much Koneko blood has been spilled,” Yuuka growled lowly. “I'm tired of Akosua deciding to claim whatever she wants. It's about time that someone stood up to her.” Yuuka got to her feet and gave one last look to the bloodstained street, before stalking off towards the middle of Koneko territory.





“I guess I'll just have to trust her. After all, she's done the right thing so far,” Hayate sighed as he too forced himself up and followed after Yuuko, leaving the street the way they found it. Black, cold, bloodstained, and barren, save for one lone body lying in the middle of the street in the pale yellow light.