keep your cats inside for the love

A beautiful, fluffy white-and-caramel cat. I could feel that her fur was very soft, even through my gloves. She had a pink collar with a little bell.

A big, sleek, shiny black cat. She was very hefty. She was still warm.

A fluffy grey cat that I saw crossing the road. Thankfully, I didn't see it happen, but I heard the quiet thud of the impact.

A pretty grey tabby with a white underside. I saw her on a walk, in the ditch by a road where people usually drive pretty slow. I turned my head and walked away without looking back. I'm not going on another walk for a while.

A soft tuxedo kitten, just old enough to be without their mother. They kneaded my gloved hands as I carried them. I got their blood on someone's door when I knocked in an attempt to get help. My sister took them to the vet. We buried them in the backyard.

A large dark tabby. I thought she was a wild animal when I first passed her, and my mom let me think that. When I passed her on the return trip, I realised that she was a cat. I thought about moving her, but it was a dangerous stretch of road, so I didn't. I still need to light insence for her.

An orange tabby that I'd seen around before. She was lying in the road in front of a house where I'd seen her sitting atop a tall porch chair. I couldn't look at her very much. There were flies on her, and I felt her ribs shifting as I lifted her with my gloved hands. She was dropped unceremoniously into the tall, unmown grass. It was fairly horrible.