chapter 1 the kitten

When you first wake up in hell, I bet you don't imagine a pretty room lined with golds and silvers, traced with a hint of red marbling, or anything less fancy than what our girl, Moon Takona, had woken up to after being born. It wasn't very much of a spectacular birth either, but then again, when is it ever?

Moon wasn't born in a fancy hospital with expensive technology, but then again, this wasn't that kind of era either. Moon was born into the era of the new world, as they called it, into a family of high-standing royalty, despite how most history books would beg to differ about this being a thing in the time of her birth.

When the young girl had awoken after being dragged off to be cleaned and swaddled by a handmaid, instead of being greeted with warm smiles and attention, she awoke in a fancy crib lined with laces and soft fabrics that were definitely not a mother's embrace. Her gaze was locked on a scowl of the woman who had birthed her; she looked disgusted and annoyed, like this bundle of joy was the worst thing to happen to her. A newborn couldn't possibly understand, especially after reaching out to be held with quiet coos, only for the woman who birthed her to just walk away coldly without another word.

Something must've been said because instead of meeting her mother's embrace, a maid with perfectly soft wolf ears and a fluffy tail had rushed to cradle the poor child who instinctively cried because, even though Moon was just a baby, she knew it was not her mother, the mother she needed. These first few moments of her life would just be a small portion in comparison to what would be misery that intertwined with the events of her life following.

Walking the halls of the cold estate, Moon would gaze out of the floor-to-ceiling stained glass windows of roses and leaves at the snow falling into the courtyard, watching as her older brother was being put through his usual training lessons while her personal maid, Lucian, followed closely behind her.

"My lady, would you like to go outside? I can prepare your outdoor outfit if you wish."

"No, thank you, Lucian. I'd like to stay inside today."

Mumbled through her quiet Russian accent. Though it isn't exactly referred to as Russian in this world, her language is actually referred to as Nyxovian, which her parents have very heavy accents of. At this young stage in her life, Moon's accent was also pretty heavy.

Lucian May is Moon's personal maid, and like most lower-class races, Lucian was one of them. In this world Moon was unfortunately born into, the Beastfolk were usually lower class, so they'd often be involved in slave trade or servant work. In the Takona estates, usually the wolf and fox hybrids were embedded into the servant and assistant work.

Since it wasn't mentioned before, it shall be mentioned now. Moon's direct family and race, which primarily take over the portion of the world she lives in, are different breeds of demon races. Although it might seem a little clichéd, Moon's bloodline runs deep into succubi and incubi blood, but her family is also the last standing full-blood succubi and incubi, so they run the highest power on the hierarchy, meaning her mother and father are the Emperor and Empress of the Northern Empire, Rabukira. Unfortunately, Moon was not next in line to become Empress, despite the fact women are known to be more in power and control in this world.

But her brother was chosen to be the Emperor next in line, which made Moon develop a pit deep in her stomach.

It was unfair.

Her brother, Sirius Takona, looked like an exact replica of their mother, Comet Takona, the Empress. Though it was always common for the firstborn to look like an exact copy of the mother, especially in succubi and incubi families, that wasn't exactly something that could be controlled unless you possess an insane amount of magic or skill in alchemy.

Moon, however, has the looks of both of her parents combined: the red horns that curled around her head from her mother and the long Dalmatian tail with a black puff at the end from her father. She also has

big, puffy, naturally curly brown hair that wasn't light strawberry brown like her mother's or black like her father's, but instead a normal shade of semi-orange brunette.

Moon also had a skin tone so pale it was practically white, and yet her skin usually flushed with a pretty blush occasionally. Her eyes shimmered a bright green emerald color that she inherited from her father as well. Moon, around this time, was as young as 10 years old, at least in demon years. Though when she would grow older, she'd probably achieve her mother's more... plump looks, like a perfect body and luscious lips, along with other things.

Moon stood at those windows for a good while, her tail swaying slightly, which caused her hair to move along with it. Considering Moon usually kept her hair unbraided and free, which her mother hated, but Moon wasn't always going to bend to her mother's needs.

Lucian stood a few feet behind Moon, like most servants were groomed to do. She was quiet and patient, but she noticed the look in Moon's gaze whenever she watched how their father, Mortis Takona, the Emperor, would personally go down to the courtyard to praise her brother for getting so far into his training. He was only 2 years older than her, and yet he had all the more attention from their parents than she would ever get, besides a small glance or the occasional "good job," which Lucian knew infuriated Moon.

It wasn't just the lack of praise that got to Moon. It was everything in between that Sirius did to show how he didn't deserve it.

Sirius seemed like the perfect shining star to everyone around him. He made it out to seem like he studied hard, despite the fact he just flirts with the smartest girls in his classes to get them to do his work. He berates the servants along with physical harassment that Moon can never stand to watch, and yet she takes the time to heal them personally.

Sirius is awfully terrible at combat as well, though she does give him credit when it's due. He tries his very hardest during his training lessons, but even Moon could quite literally knock him on his ass if she ever needed to.

Moon knew her mother would probably kill her if she ever found out Moon was doing secret training in her own time, but that was not something she ever needed to find out.

That being said, with him being terrible at combat, she often notices how he only really puts in effort when he's being watched. He could be sitting on his lazy ass, but the moment his instructor lays eyes on him, he jumps up and acts exhausted like he's done a day's work. It truly disgusts Moon.

Even in Moon's opinion of her brother being essentially useless because their parents hand him everything on a silver spoon, she does admit he's an okay brother.

He's never abused her once physically or mentally like their mother and father do, but he's not exactly there for her either. He could've done something to stop it, but at most, he just stands and watches.

It hurts more on particularly tough times when their mother could go as far as leaving gashes on Moon, half unconscious or not, even locking Moon in an empty, hot, dark room for hours on end as punishment. The reason that is so awful is because northern demons thrive in cold temperatures while weak in heat.

Even after Moon suffers through such punishments, her brother still tries to act kind towards her. He wouldn't protect her from their parents, but if someone outside the family tried anything, he'd at least try and stand up for her. Even if Moon could handle it herself, she could just never find the strength to be tougher against her parents.

Moon was just indifferent towards Sirius. She neither loved nor hated him; he was just a ghost in her life that haunted her like everything else around her.

Although Moon would've liked to be lost in her own thoughts in that cold hallway, she heard a familiar sound of rushing, clicking heels that made a shiver go down Moon's back and a heavy pit form at the very core of her stomach.

"You moronic girl! How dare you make me search everywhere in this estate for you!"

Comet was crashing through the hall towards Moon with an enraged glare in her eyes. Ah yes, that look Moon knows all too well. Moon would have guessed from the way her mother always scowls at her, she would've formed wrinkles around her face by now.

"Apologies, Mother. I was not awa—" Moon's quiet protest was quickly cut short when her face was grasped in her mother's hand, her sharp nails digging into her silky flesh.

"I don't want to hear your damned excuses, you little brat. You are coming with me. I have an important meeting planned for you to finally rid of you," Comet stated with a snarky, entitled grin on her face. Before making off with her daughter, she turned to Lucian with a cold look in her eyes. "I will deal with you later for not following orders to make my daughter look presentable for once." Before Lucian could calmly explain that she was not made aware of anything, Comet was already roughly dragging Moon by the arm to a dressing room.

Comet had never enjoyed being a mother to Moon. In fact, she never even planned on having Moon to begin with, though that much was already obvious. But Mortis always had an insatiable hunger for Comet that neither Comet nor Mortis could avoid, so Moon was nothing but a mistake as Comet would refer to it as.

Comet made it very obvious to Moon from the moment she was born that she was going to be handed off to someone else to deal with. She had gone through all the trouble and expenses of somehow convincing the Emperor of the neighboring Western Empire, Piffedal, to arrange a marriage between one of his sons and her daughter together as a way to strengthen their alliance. How Comet had managed to do this, Moon would never understand, but Moon was still forced to be dolled up in an outfit that Comet thought would appeal to the son of the Western Empire's Emperor.

Her hair was even braided and put up in a pretty way, yet Moon loathed it only because her mother was the one doing it. Moon just hated anyone touching her hair, not that anyone did anyway, since long hair was something of a beauty standard. It was meant to symbolize strength and resilience or something along those lines. But she really just hated anyone trying to style it. Moon has often had outbursts because of that specifically.

"At least now you look more appealing and less like a filthy animal," Comet always seemed to make sure to never say a single kind thing to Moon, but she's at least used to it by now. She tended to drown out her words anyway.

"Hurry up now. I don't need you being sluggish for an important event. I'm trying to rid of you as quickly as possible."

Comet wasn't there any longer before she rushed out of the room and yelled something at a maid waiting outside, presumably to tell them where to escort Moon before the clicking of her heels slowly quieted in the distance. Moon stared at herself in the mirror, a small sigh leaving her lips.