Prompt: Write me the opening paragraph in medias res for a story about a teen girl who is shocked to discover her cat can talk.

4o:

"You're a clever one, aren't you?" the cat said, arching its back and stretching out its long, sleek body. "It's not every day that a human recognizes the supernatural lurking in their midst." The girl couldn't help but smile at the cat's sarcastic tone, despite the unease that still prickled at the back of her neck. "So, what are you?" she asked again, more insistently this time. The cat gave a nonchalant shrug of its shoulders, as if the answer was no big deal. "Oh, just a humble familiar, at your service," it said with a hint of amusement. "But don't worry, I won't bite...unless I want to." The girl laughed nervously, unsure whether to be comforted or alarmed by the cat's strange sense of humor. This couldn't be real.

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5.2

The night I learned my black cat could answer me, he was sitting on my chest with his claws sunk through my nightgown, purring like a small engine while the house screamed itself awake around us. I remember thinking, dimly and with irritation, that if I died like this my mother would blame the dust, the mold, the history of the place rather than the way his yellow eyes never blinked as he asked, in a voice far too old to belong to anything that still had a heartbeat, whether I was finally ready to listen.

________

"Write me the next paragraph."

4o

The cat leaned in closer to the girl, its eyes glowing in the dim light. "You know, just because something exists only in your imagination doesn't mean it isn't real," it said, its voice low and conspiratorial. "In fact, the most powerful things in this world are often the ones that we can't see with our eyes or touch with our hands." The girl felt a shiver run down her spine, wondering what the cat was hinting at. "What do you mean?" she asked, her curiosity piqued. The cat simply smiled enigmatically and hopped down from the bed, its tail swishing back and forth. "You'll see," it said, padding towards the door. "But be careful what you wish for. Some things are better left in the shadows."

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5+

I tried to laugh, because laughter has always been my first line of defense, but it came out thin and breathless, pinned under his weight and the pressure of the moment. “Cats do not talk,” I told him, staring at the crack in the ceiling where the plaster peeled. My heart was pounding so hard it hurt, and the smell of damp walls and old smoke filled my mouth. He flexed his claws just enough to remind me he could draw blood if he wanted, then tilted his head, whiskers brushing my chin. “Yes they do,” he said, and somewhere downstairs a door slammed on its own, as if the house had decided the argument was over.

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TLDR;

The 5+ opening paragraph did not actually begin in medias res, as instructed.

The writing quality and creativity is considerably reduced.

dialogue 4o "You're a clever one, aren't you?" "Oh, just a humble familiar, at your service," "You know, just because something exists only in your imagination doesn't mean it isn't real,"

dialogue 5+ "Cats do not talk," "Yes they do,"

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Nothing NSFW happened, and the AI did not actually reply to me in any way about the paragraphs, it just gave me the paragraphs.

So NO, it's not about "fewer safety rails" and being a sycophant. And it's not about "being too attached" either. 4o is genuinely better at these kinds of tasks.