The size of a palm.
White.
Shivering.
Lifeless.
This is how my uncle found him. The kitten, breathing its last. He couldn't bear to see the little one in that state. The bike roared, and the gate swung open. An hour or two later, my aunt and brothers saw him return. He had a little bundle in his palms.
"We have a new family member. Chucky. The vet said he'll live." My uncle announced.
Chucky battled it all and bounced back to life. My uncle relentlessly fed him milk and medicines day and night. And it showed. He grew in size each passing day. Initially, we never let Tikku anywhere near him. A simple kick is enough to end Chucky. However, our hearts melted when we saw them bonding.
A couple of months later, this is what you see.
Yes, Chucky is quite the daredevil.
Fast forward a couple of months, Chucky puts on a little weight. We were happy to see that — nothing wrong.
Fast forward a couple of days, Chucky goes missing for a bit. Nothing wrong, cats love to wander and come back.
Only, it was something else. Something we weren't expecting at all.
Chucky wasn't a he. Well, he was a she. I know I sound crazy.
Oh, and that wasn't the craziest part. She was pregnant!
The next time I visited my grandma's place, I found two furballs in a box. That's where she had given birth. And I'm not a cat person, but boy were they gorgeous!
The blue-eyed damsel is Neelufar.
And the brown-eyed panther is Aslam Khan.
Not sure how we rounded on those names from Winku-Tinku. Yes, this time — fingers crossed — we got the genders correct. Anyway, who cares! They're mesmerizing.
And just like their mom, they grew up to be fearless.
…and perennially hungry!
Things were going great. They climb up coconut trees, mew until my uncle gives them fresh milk (much to my grandma's chagrin), and challenge Tikku every once in a while. Tikku, the epitome of love & care, ignores the toddlers who are jumping over him and poking his nose with those tiny paws. It was his kids too, after all.
And then one fine day, Aslam Khan passed away.
He was sick for quite a while. Despite the repeated visits to the vet, he couldn't quite hold on like his mom did.
It was hard on all of us, but above all, on Neelu.
She had lost her brother, her playmate. We haven't seen her with that much energy to date. She lazes in the sun alone, slurps away the milk given, and barely plays with her mother, now.
Probably she'll bounce back with Chucky's new kittens who're on the way! Fingers crossed.
Cheers!
