cat's backstory does contain triggering content. as i've said, i don't go into frequent detail, but things will be mentioned and come up. what will be mentioned here:
abuse - physical, mental, emotional, manipulation
abandonment
brief mention of suicidal tendencies
rape ( i warn about this in the paragraph it happens )
art is by my real life cousin!
up until sarah was ten, she lived a relatively n o r m a l life in a small town of north carolina. she had a family, she had friends ( including hannah and scott ), she went to school, and she loved to attend dance class. hannah was the friend who lived nearby and whom sarah could hang out with the easiest. scott was only around when visiting his aunt and uncle, a couple that owned an equine assisted therapy barn up the street from where sarah lived - one where the little girl loved to go and play around at during many of her days. scott himself was actually from los angeles, but even though he wasn’t in town often, the two children became exceedingly close. their first meeting was in the barn, when scott found sarah having sneaked in to see the horses. he was warm and welcoming, leading to the two would hang out each and every time he was in town. when they were five, the two even exchanged best friends forever gifts; sarah gave scott a friendship bracelet of light blue and white while scott gave her a hand drawn picture by himself of the two of them playing with his dog, buddy. the last time young sarah would see scott before her life would spiral downward involved a little puppy crush kiss from him even. the two seemed inseparable if it weren’t for life deciding to take the turn it would.
before sarah’s life would flip - while she was growing close to scott and merely growing up - she was known as a sweetheart to just about everyone. her family was actually relatively poor, leaving the child with little in the way of personal possessions, but she made up for it in an abundance of love for those around her. in the end, all she ever did was try to be the perfect daughter and the perfect older sister to a baby brother that came along.
when timmy was born, sarah was eight years of age. sarah’s “mother,” mary, was instantly overprotective of him and loving in a way she had never been towards sarah. this overprotectiveness even led her to often keeping sarah at a distance from the baby, ingraining in the little girl a sort of confusion that she would carry through life about how to handle babies... especially little boys. though despite the oddity of the behavior and situation, the woman had never been cruel and most times seemed to care for the little girl. mary was always the parent to comfort the elementary schooler and make certain she was fed, happy, and healthy. mary was the one to provide her special treats and toys and the occasional hug, even. it was sarah’s “father,” robert, that had a breaking point and an unhidden hatred for her. he never hit her… but he yelled. sent her to her room often. he reeked of alcohol most nights but luckily was more a bumbling fool who wanted her gone rather than someone to resort to physical abuse. the worst he would do was when he would grab her and drag her to her room or yell obscenities and negatives regarding her. still, sarah loved her family despite the flaws. she believed they loved her too, though they never once said as much. mary’s care and tenderness that she could show on occasion was enough to fool the child that everything was fine.
hint: it wasn’t.
sarah’s tenth birthday approached. her present that year was a chance to enjoy a “camp” at the barn down the street, the one owned by scott’s aunt and uncle. mary had spoken with amy and jon, arranging a week long stay for the little girl to ride the horses, visit the duck pond, venture around the pastures, and just get a chance to be out of the trulane’s tiny apartment for a bit. mary offered to pay amy and jon for doing such, and excused it as being cheaper than a trip to disney like sarah wanted. it would also be a chance for mary and robert to have a small break - for robert to focus on job searching ( for he had been unemployed for months by that time ), for mary to focus on timmy ( a two year old was a tiring amount of work )… the camp idea seemed wonderful. amy and jon, who were fond of little sarah after getting to know her through her many play dates withs scott, agreed to the arrangement. the week came and went without incident, the little girl having a blast with the couple, the horses, and the time away from the stuffy apartment she called home ( even if it was only down the street essentially ).
when it came to an end and for mary to come pick her up… no one showed. sarah and amy waited for hours… but with no sign. no one answered the phone, so amy put sarah in the car and they drove to the little girl’s place themselves. there, they found mary, robert, and timmy were gone, the apartment sold to another couple who had moved in the day prior, boxes strewn about beyond the open door. however, the new woman living there handed a large folder to amy, saying mary had left it behind for the other to have.
inside were documents and information. sarah’s birth certificate, her legal papers, forms, everything. sarah trulane wasn’t her name. it was sarah halloway. mary and robert were her aunt and uncle, and they had never adopted her or taken guardianship, sarah had an older brother who was adopted and living in chicago, her mother was dead, her father was in jail for kidnapping her brother… it was a great deal to take in for amy and jon, and even more for sarah. the two explained everything they could carefully, but nothing could soften the blow of realization: sarah had been abandoned. unwanted. she had never had parents, she had had an aunt and uncle who left her behind without a goodbye, without a care. she was alone now. she was in tears.
the camp had been for mary and robert to get away - to sell their accommodations and move. amy and jon were revolted by the act, but they loved the little girl. it didn’t take them long to decide that they would adopt sarah themselves. they couldn’t have kids of their own, after all, but had always wanted one. they told the brokenhearted child, restoring her hope and giving her joy once more. maybe things wouldn’t be so bad… but the legal system couldn’t just let her stay with them. not yet.
as amy and jon had to handle all the paperwork, sarah was plucked away, taken into a home until her documents could be finalized. sarah was terrified. she hated it, and she screamed into the night. did amy and jon not want her? why was she here? she had to get back. so she escaped, taking off into the world under the cover of darkness with only a small barbie backpack and a few contents inside ( including a stuffed dog named sausage and her picture from scott tucked away inside a notebook ). her goal was to find them, to make sure they still wanted her and wouldn’t leave her. she didn’t want to be in that horrible place with the other kids… she didn’t want to be alone.
the fall months had come in swift, however. fleeing down the streets, the little brunette easily became overwhelmed and found herself in terrible shape within a few short days. she had no idea how to get to amy and jon’s from where she was, but fear kept her going forward rather than turning back. the chill swept in one night dangerously fast. she would have d i e d if margie hadn’t found her.
margie was part of a rather loose gathering of people that sarah simply came to call a crime ring. they often lived in the vacant rooms of old and abandoned buildings among other disgusting spots. a ragtag gathering of people lost to the world, they generally partook in large heists; stealing things for money or even money itself. within the years, they dealt with drugs, and they committed murders. they kept witnesses away, they tracked down targets… eliminated them. it was not the lifestyle for a child, but it was where she came to stay.
having lost a baby not long before finding sarah, margie became greedy and selfish. the woman wanted to keep this lonely, little girl as her new child, and so she manipulated and affirmed the ten year old’s fears of thinking that amy and jon also didn’t want her ( why else had she been sent to that horrid place with all those other undesired kids? ). she assured sarah that she would help the small girl find a better family and somewhere to belong. but what was promised to be temporary turned into something sarah couldn’t escape. in the years to follow, the group may have taught her how to SURVIVE, but they stole away her innocence.
in the beginning, the ring had been somewhat more organized and structured. under the original leadership of toadstool, everyone took care of each other, food was rationed well, and money hardly went to waste. she had margie as a "mother" figure, flint as a friend, and tinderbox to help train her and guide her. her nickname with them became “street cat” due to her ability to move as quiet as a stalking feline.
it was tragedy for many when toadstool fell ill in only the first year of cat’s indoctrination, and it was copper who would be there to scoop up control in the wake of the other man’s death. what the brute wanted for the ring was chaos and destruction, what he wanted for sarah was to be obedient and his own little weapon. so she became one. he gave her no choice. it was do or die. so young, so easy to influence unlike everyone else in the group. cat faced a terrible amount of verbal and physical abuse in ways far worse than her uncle had ever given her. copper was the cause of many SCARS, welts, and bruises that are still fashioned around her neck, along her left shoulder, left arm, and her back to the present day. he was the cause for her not leaving the ring even after she realized she was becoming someone she didn’t want to be.
in fact, no one could leave the ring under copper’s watch. he would hunt them down using whatever means necessary, ending them brutally and sudden. somehow escaping capture each time with only speculation left behind for the police to ponder. no one knew about these lost souls... which made it harder to find the one hunting them. what had been a well-run, supportive group ( even despite all the illegal measures ) turned into a careless and self destructive band of gangsters. all cat could do was try to endure the mistreatment that plagued her... and try to wait it out for the day she could finally get away without copper finding her. as she grew, older people in the ring looked to her with disgusting eyes, but margie, flint, and tinderbox shielded her from such advances. even copper threatened those that tried anything more. despite his abuse of the child, he never wanted her to be hindered or broken. she would be of no use to him in such states.
thus, as the years progressed, cat learned how to deceive, how to sneak into buildings undetected, how to knock down a man twice her size, how to throw knives with expert precision. she turned from a young, smiling girl to a serious, surviving criminal. she was talented and got away with a number of crimes from stealing to murder. however, even despite the list growing bigger, the only thing that the authorities could pin on her was stealing. during all these misdeeds, struggles, and spirals, what kept her from slipping entirely under into a being of no mercy was the laughter of flint, the love of margie, and the patience of tinderbox. such meager joys in the darkness of her every day kept her pushing to survive even as copper struck her, as crackshot taunted her, and as birdie watched her every move for a falter.
the escape she eventually found was far from the way she envisioned it going down. all that time on the street would come to lead to her arrest when she saw her aunt and uncle again while in a small, virginian town the gang was traversing through on the way to new york city. it was tinderbox who brought her out and gestured to the couple across the way. it had taken some digging, but with flint’s help, she and margie had located the adults cat had stated were the names of those who abandoned her. now was finally the chance for cat to confront them and perhaps to get as far from copper as she could… but when the fairly recently turned fifteen year old crossed the street, she didn’t even give her family a chance to recognize her. with the sight of them, her abandonment had become all the more real, and cat lost it; years of her agony, frustration, hurt, and fury needing release. she pulled out one of her throwing knives and started to attack. mary clutched timmy close, managing to spare herself from her niece’s fury. robert was not so lucky. he wasn’t killed, but when the police that got to the scene, they found him soaked in his own blood. her terrified aunt and barely-breathing uncle called her a monster as she was thrown into a cop car. arrested for attempted murder, cat found herself in court. she was lucky however, because other than the attack on her uncle and stealing, they were unable to pin more acts on her... none of the murders or drug dealings she partook in, so the whole ordeal was far easier than it could have been.
she plead guilty after discussion with her assigned lawyers. kept her secrets of darker traumas and illegal measure and focused on bumbling through sob stories of her abandonment and abuse. the teen won the favor of the jury, and while she was ruled guilty in some cases, her punishment was mitigated. juvenile hall was the worst of her sentencing, and would become her next stop in life.
cat did not take well to it. going by sarah again ( as that was her legal name the detention center knew her by ), she was shoved amongst other teens of varying torubles, where instead of finding community and interest with people her age, she recoiled. it was too much, too crowded. the loss of freedom hit her hard... even as a little girl, she had been able to do so much on her own. now she was roped into a schedule, locked behind doors, and forced into a variety of situations and programs that caused her to garner a growing sense of dread, rise of anxiety, and suffocating paranoia. the other inmates around her did not help, either. being the new blood who had arrived to the building in tears, she was mocked and laughed at. viewed as nothing more than a pickpocket who got caught during one bad snap, no one knowing the full extent of her damages or abilities - underestimating her and placing her lower on the food chain of the system's selfmade hierarchy. rissa was one of the many bullies. harrison, jackson, leroy... a handful found it to their glee to taunt and attack her. really, they did it to all the newbies, sarah was nothing special... but that didn't stop her from taking it personal and finding it hard to adjust into the prison, so her tendancy to fight back or respond was sterile for a time.
the closed doors and bright white walls led to panic and isolation that only made her seem all the more pathetic to the eyes of those around her. broken, she let them shove her around, opting instead to tuck away within herself. fighting through fear and uncertainty. anger, relief... she was free from the ring, after all. from copper. and he wouldn't hunt her down in juvie, surely. she was forced to visit the institution's therapist, margaret. the woman deeply cared about her job, and genuinely wanted to do right by teens she felt were give no choice in their behaviors. while she didn't know all the details, she could tell that sarah had more to her than what was written on her documents and records. a thief. a criminal. mental health problems and difficulties. but getting sarah to be honest was tricky if not impossible.
three months went by, margaret barely making any dents in sarah's hard exterior. the girl was still closed off due to the pressures and antagonism around her, and so she only offered bits and pieces of herself for the woman to pry open. to the rest of the center, she had turned from miserable to apathetic. thought she continued to let herself get beat up, there came no more merit from the encounters. she simply existed. there was one boy, vinnie, who loved to chat with her as a sounding board. estranged from the others himself ( but for being annoying and frustrating to deal with more so than for lack of effort ), the two found a strange friendship... if the term could be considered applicable. sarah didn't speak hardly while vinnie went on and on. his chatter was rarely beneficial and often degrading of her. so often did the conversation find itself along the tone of insulting and demeaning; putting sarah down and insisting she was stupid. unwanted. unloved. he wasn't necessarily meaning to, but in the absence of her responding, his humor turned cruel, and all these words would hang in the back of her mind. sarah didn't know how to do better. it was listen to his jeers or deal with rissa's punches. but everything stated hung in her heart, and when the brunette was able, she stole extra pills or blades. three times one guard saved her life. louie was a tired, older security man who had seen too much. yet, despite his gruff nature, he tried his hardest. his checking up on her was enough to get her the help she needed in time from her attempts to end it all.
margaret continued to pry, and she was discovering that vinnie's words and rissa's bullying were pushing the loner to these points. the therapist began to grow concerned and tried to vouch for getting a transfer for sarah, hoping that a different location would be better. as she fought for this, sarah spilled more information at various points. margaret found out about amy and jon... not much but enough. able to locate the couple, she called them and they came almost immediately to visit, but sarah wouldn't have it. still believing amy and jon didn't love her - margie, copper, and now vinnie had all convinced her the couple had never truly wanted her - sarah spurned their attempt at having a reunion. however, the brief interaction was enough to prove she was alive to them, and word got to scott from his family members. their meeting would never come to happen.
after the visit from amy and jon, sarah snapped. when she was confronted by rissa later, finally did she launch an attack back. it was brutal. her training kicked in, and the far bigger girl wasn't prepared for her normally mousy victim to be so prepared. when it was done, sarah was being dragged away by louie while rissa watched from the ground, a few broken bones and some smearings of blood. the other girl was shocked... but intrigued. her bullying turned to unwanted advances. impressed and turned on, rissa grabbed sarah without asking, got too close, and sarah was left punching or squirming to get away, resulting in further instances of acting up that landed sarah in solitary confinement. with the turn in the situation, margaret's requests to have sarah transferred were finally paid mind to.
scott managed one quick visit before sarah was put into a van to head elsewhere. it was a relatively tame visit, because sarah never blamed him for anything... but aside from a bit of catching up, nothing more would change. margaret watched nervously as the vehicle headed off later that day... because something didn't sit right. surely she had done what she needed to... but she couldn't be positive. when she received news that sarah had vanished later that night, she blamed herself.
in reality, the van had gotten caught up in a wreck. strangers had run it off the road, sending it careening into a ditch. the driver and guard were shot. the van opened and sarah was dragged out. copper leered over her. no one left the ring willingly.
it should have been her end. crackshot undid her handcuffs and copper offered her one chance to come back or die. she spat on him. as his gun raised, police pulled up. instead of a bullet to her head, he was forced to instead train his weapon in their direction before he could be taken out. the shots between both sides split the air, split her skull. she crawled and hid back in the van, snagging the few things they were transporting with her ( her backpack, her picture, sausage... ), then fled amongst the chaos. crackshot and birdie managed to follow, and the former took a shot at her as she jumped into a river to cross. sarah seemingly never surfaced... birdie tracked along the edge of the swirling waters, searching. the two reported back to copper that she was dead, and the three fled before they could be arrested or further identified. cat struggled, barely alive, nearly drowned, onto the bank of the river some ways down. she scraped by with her life, escaped juvie, and was now believed dead by the man who hunted her.
( rape mention tw. no real details of it, just mentioned in this paragraph. ) as she snuck back into society, a sixteenth birthday coming and going, the escapee was in shambles. she went by caitlyn mittens, or usually cat again. back out on the streets, she found it hard to fit into the lifestyle she had adjusted to before while in ther shelter of the ring, as she hadn’t had to do everything fully on her own back then. it only got worse when she was kidnapped one night and raped. the man was a businessman who went by his last name with her – hackett. the monster knocked her out from behind when she figured he was just a random passerby, then quietly managed to get her into an old motel he had bought for the night. as moonlight bathed through the small crack in the curtains, cat felt DESTROYED, the night tearing her down. ruining her. she couldn’t handle it, it cemented a feeling of helplessness and patheticness she had started to feel about herself. it was a sense of defeat... the only person who cared about her was a man she didn't want. she felt as though she lost her mind, dissociating and breaking. crumbling, she couldn’t seem to get anything done right on the streets when she was left to them again the next morning.
nearly arrested again multiple times, cat was on the verge of collapse. it was a shock when tinderbox would find her, the woman settling down beside her one evening, making herself known through presence initially. back in the ring, tinder had been a second teacher to cat, a guiding hand, and a comfort that differed from margie’s motherly tendencies. the woman was smaller, closer to cat’s size. everything that copper trained cat in was difficult for her to adapt to in her own way, but the older woman was able to step in and help. without tinderbox, the teen would have never been able to master much of what copper had expected her to accomplish.
normally a quiet being, it was shocking when tinder spoke to her, offering cat a place to go for a time and an explanation as to why she was also no longer with the ring. over a bowl of warm soup in a house filled with scantily dressed or warm robed women, cat learned of the downfall of the ring. margie, broken and angry after cat’s arrest and by the state of things, gathered drugs she had become a master with. the blonde had always loved partying. drinking. trying various substances. the ring had supported her habits in exchange for her being the only one brave enough to try and stitch bullet wounds back together. with what she obtained, margie poisoned a drink she made for the entire ring and warned only a few close people. by the next day, everyone who had had enough was dead. copper, who wasn’t one of the deceased, knew exactly who did it.
margie went on the run, flint escaped, tinderbox fled into the shadows… the ring crumbled apart. still, nothing could be done to protect from copper’s rage, and the news reported of angela thompson ( margie’s true name ) murdered in a bed with a lover just two nights later. the madman disappeared into the night, but he never went for anyone else... not until he hunted down cat with crackshot and birdie. tinderbox couldn’t report on flint, but she had returned to her own boyfriend, and together the two of them started the house for women ( one day they hoped to do similar for men ) that cat now found herself sitting within. tinder had always wanted to help those down on their luck, who had been run over and abused. such a fact was why she had been willing to train cat in order to help the younger avoid the onslaught of copper’s wrath. yet this tactic was something different. these women contributed a small bit of the money they were making into maintaining the house and getting food but got to keep the rest. as they got back on their feet ( whether through sex work or otherwise ), they could find new jobs and leave or they could stay. tinderbox’s boyfriend feigned to be the pimp to help them get gigs and tinder pretended to be a madam if needed, but for the most part, everyone had independence in how they got their lives back together.
the old mentor offered the same for cat.
still reeling from what hackett had done to her, the teenager was put off by the idea even if she wouldn’t have been necessarily expected to do prostitution. tinderbox didn’t force her to do anything, however, and promised that the younger that she could stay for as long as she needed. somehow, someway, the woman seemed to know something had happened. cat never breathed a word of it to anyone within the walls, but there was a carefulness to which her old trainer granted her. a maternal instinct cat had never experienced before, not even from margie.
the lifestyle was unusual to a girl who had never known true and honest compassion. everyone living inside had taken up different names, preferring to go by their false ones rather than their real ones even with each other. tinderbox was going by sweetie, a newer false name for herself. she told cat that it helped the women craft their lives better ( herself included ), freeing them from the binds of whatever their old existences entailed. cat decided to stick with her current name; she was already trying to escape sarah, she hadn’t even gotten to really try in her new situation.
each resident had their own story, their own pain, their own struggle. some that cat could relate to, others she couldn’t. they taught her tricks and trades no matter their work even though she had yet to contribute anything to the house beyond her existence. they taught her self empowerment, and they reminded her of her own confidence deep within. eventually, she started testing herself during the daylight hours, pickpocketing and stealing, finding her groove both on her own and with some assistance from sweetie. she was slowly pushing the ache and torment into the depths of her mind. not the healthiest way to cope, but she at least felt as though she was finding her footing. cat had to survive… she would survive. as greatly as she appreciated sweetie and the other women for helping her out from the deepest pits of her mind, the house wasn’t the place she wanted to spend the rest of her days living. despite their guidance, encouragement, and compassion, cat bid goodbye one morning and set back out into the world with only that little barbie backpack she had had through it all ( though much more ragged, with a beaten down sausage inside and a notebook containing a barely visible picture ). she wanted to find herself like they all were attempting to do… but that location and that lifestyle simply weren’t how and where she would do it.
since then, she’s been on her own. surviving. enduring. her nature has hardened up once again, retaining a selfish demeanor and thick wall of independence. she hasn’t seen any of her family since. never had an interest in finding her father ( whom she had only been told was a bad man ), no real ties to try and find her brother… still believing amy and jon don’t truly want her. scott, meanwhile, has become a famous actor. she sees him on the news sometimes… on the tvs that she passes. on t-shirts and action figures. so she doesn’t bother seeking him out, knowing he’s living his best life. he doesn’t need her current state becoming a stain to his newfound fame. she’s in new york city now, making her sad excuse of an life ( if one can consider it as such ) work. stealing, living in abandoned buildings, taking up odd jobs from gangs, whatever needs to be done. she murders if she feels threatened, and there’s apathy towards most of what she takes part in. occasionally, there’s a sign of the softness still inside… playing guitar with a guy named freddie, having a cuddle session with the cat that follows her around she named meatloaf, or just people watching with a sad smile on her face. wishing she could be normal like them.
the below information is relatively optional to read, but will give far more insight into things cat endured in the ring and juvie.
THE CRIME RING:
firstly, the ring has two “eras” so to speak. toadstool’s reign and copper’s reign.
for the first year cat was there and barely into the second ( so until cat was around eleven and a half ), toadstool was still the leader. under toadstool:
the ring was meant to be a family unit for homeless. yes, they did crimes, but it was mainly stealing with more intense crimes ( such as murder ) on a limited, as-needed basis. stealing food, money, etc. their most drastic things were generally stealing from banks.
the people were diverse and usually friendly towards those within. they had a number of talents, giving them the abilities to break into such high-security places and get out. even if a few clues were left behind, they were people lost to the system and were difficult to track down because of this.
food and clothes were distributed as orderly as possible. money was usually spent on necessities. remaining cash was given as rewards.
they usually only killed out of self defense such as if owners or cops pulled guns on them and they feared for their lives. only a few takedowns were done purposefully.
they did still train to fight alongside other necessary tactics for stealing.
drugs, alcohol, and such were only given to the entire group in celebration. otherwise, anyone who wanted such things were to do it on their own time and with their earned money.
despite the loyalty, if someone was caught, you were then on your own. the ring would not risk the safety of the group for the safety of one.
for the remaining years, copper took control ( toadstool passes away ):
copper instills the punishments. most of the punishments were to take away rations, harder training, or long stretches of guard duty. the latter was something toadstool sometimes used, but he didn’t often deal punishments.
copper beat cat terribly only when exceedingly angry or she truly screwed up. otherwise, he mostly just smacked her around, overworked her, or enacted the other punishments. she has been brutalized and the scars reveal as much, but it was not a constant, every day thing. however, it was particular to her because of her youth making her easy to manipulate.
they start partaking in drug dealings and even begin to murder more. most murders were not hirings so much as copper eliminating enemies, traitors, and other people he deemed a menace, but there was some requests that were fulfilled.
margie still served as a mother figure to cat. between her, tinderbox, flint, and even copper, cat was protected from the grimy hands of the ring. copper may have damaged her, but he never wanted her incapable of doing his bidding, and he knew that letting any of the ring members have her would have cost him her focus.
crackshot and birdie were two of his most loyal followers. not his second in commands, though. but they were the two cat dealt with more than others.
tinderbox remained cat’s secondary trainer even after copper took charge. even if copper felt he was a better teacher than toadstool, tinderbox was cat’s size and stature and helped her adapt copper’s lessons for her own since he was much different in the way he moved and fought.
60% of the money went towards alcohol and drugs. 20% went towards clothing and extra supplies like blankets and towels. and the last 20% went towards food. because of this, food and good clothes became scarce and extra money was earned under one’s own time only. people often fought each other within the ring for what was needed.
thusly, loyalty was split into those who actually obeyed copper and those who just wanted a group to survive with. small pockets of friendships would form, but most of the ring felt no obligation to anyone else other than to survive and not get murdered by copper for any supposed treason.
for both leaderships, the ring generally stayed in one place with a base for as long as they could before moving on to somewhere else to avoid being hunted down by police.
experiences:
murder
cat witnesses ( and even partakes in ) multiple of the murders conducted under copper’s reign. cat mostly worked as a distraction, playing a lost, young girl, but she also was forced to knock out people or even lead the target into the trap. she only actually killed around three people directly, the first when she was twelve. total, she also assisted in about twelve murders. it has hardened her and made her rather apathetic towards murder entirely, and she has done it on her own since juvie.
drugs
cat was usually used for the transporting as no one would suspect a little girl. she has tried many of the drugs before, but only once for most and has hated all of them afterwards, though getting high a few times did help ease her, and she will smoke on a rare occasion.
stealing
mostly pickpocketing. but also from small things like fruit stands to large robberies of banks.
drinking
After successful, large heists, the ring would usually celebrate with drinks under toadstool. cat first got drunk at only eleven years old, after her fourth major heist. when copper took control, she drank with the ring semi-frequently simply because there was so much. but, since being on her own, has done it more sparingly.
abuse
copper would physically and emotionally abuse her in order to whip her into shape and punish her. he struck her many times across the face, took away food rations, carved her back and left arm with his knife, switch, or any other weapon he could get his hands on, and did kick and beat her. he even strangled her to the point she’d black out, painted her with the blood of a dead man, and cracked her skull with a metal bar. while the heaviest abuse ( things beyond a punch or kick ) wasn’t frequent, it was awful enough to leave the most damage.
JUVIE:
cat was in juvie for about nine months. the first month was relatively isolated other than her struggling with loss of freedom and constantly getting picked on and attacked by other kids. after her confrontation with amy and jon, where she refused to hear them out in any capacity, she become overly aggressive and brutal, often launching at others and having panic attacks. vinnie, though far from a good friend, was the only one she truly engaged with without any sort of physical violence. rissa, though the girl began to crush on cat, was forceful and a bully, and her advances ended up helping to lead to cat's transfer and copper's attack.
experiences:
suicidal thoughts and attempts
cat first started becoming suicidal in juvie, and it remains the only time in her life she attempted suicide. she had to see the center’s therapist, margaret, and was often put on close watch to be certain she wouldn’t try anything. she was scared and angry in juvie. suffering from feeling trapped, alone, and abandoned, and just feeling pent up pushed her over the edge many times. vinnie was unintentional one of the main drivers of these feelings, often saying things nonchalantly that made her feel worthless. louie the guard saved her life multiple times. main tactics were getting a hold of sharp objects to cut herself or attempts to overdose on drugs she stole.
fighting
often, she had fist fights with other kids, especially rissa until cat snapped. mostly because the first day she arrived, she was in tears. she was mocked for being a scaredy cat and for seeming weak. but, over time, cat began to fight back and often attacked her enemies to the point she began to intimidate them... or in rissa's case... infatuate them.