*Part 4 of the Destination Fluffery Series. (You don't have to read the others to know what's going on. All you need to know is: Everyone at UA is a Neko except you and Shinsou, and they all live at a little cafe called Destination Fluffery.)
For NicoleChan290.
Description: After the Fluffery closes, one little Neko needs to find a new home.
"Oh! Hey! I'm glad I ran into you." A girl who you knew from the pet café came running up to you in the grocery store.
"Hey. Good to see you." You smiled in greeting. "How's things at the Fluffery? I haven't been there in a few weeks. Busy with school and all."
"Well, that's kind of what I wanted to talk to you about."
"Hm?"
"Well... the owners had a bit of money trouble. The landlord raised the rent... so it's become too difficult to care for all the animals. Vet bills are expensive, you know? We had to shut down about a week ago..."
"What?! NO! That's terrible! What's going to happen to the animals?!"
"We are reaching out to find good homes for them."
"Good."
"That's why I hoped I would find you. We wanted to ask our regular guests if they wanted to adopt before we put them through the stress of leaving them at a shelter."
"Of course. That would probably make the transition easier."
"Does that mean you'll adopt?"
"Of course! I'll take any of them. How about Mirio or Little Deku?"
"They were the first to go."
"That figures." You smiled, happy they were going to be taken care of.
"We only have one left."
"It's Kacchan, isn't it..." You knew the aggressive boy would have frightened most potential owners away.
"No, actually. My coworker took him home. You probably don't remember the one I'm thinking of. He was good at keeping himself hidden." She tried to think of a way to describe him. "He was uh... the one who used to chase the butterflies."
"Tamaki?"
"Oh. Is that what his name used to be? A while back we started calling him 'Suneater' because he jumped up and ate the sun stickers off the window. I guess they were blocking his view outside or something." She chuckled at the silly behavior. "So what do you say? Are you interested?"
"I'll take him." You agreed. He may not have been the most friendly and playful in the bunch, but you couldn't possibly let the poor thing be sent to a shelter. You shuddered at the thought of him cold, sad, and alone in that horrible place.
"Thank you so much! It's a huge weight off my chest knowing that they all found good homes."
"Glad to help." She returned your bright smile. "When can I come pick him up?"
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The café worker brought a very unhappy looking boy out on a leash. His ears were turned back and down, tail tucked beneath him in either fear or submission. It was hard to tell which.
"Do you remember me, Tamaki?" You cooed quietly, slowly taking the leash in your hands. He responded with silence, looking down at the ground. "I know this is new and strange to you, but I can promise you'll feel right as rain soon enough."
It was no easy task, getting him into your car, but he didn't fight once you arrived at your destination. He simply followed you inside with his head hung low. The door swung open and you moved to let Tamaki off his leash.
"Here we are. This is your new home. I heated you some food before I-eh-" Once you unlatched the hook, he ripped free of your presence, finding the farthest spot in the room away from you to hide. "Uh... okay... I guess you need some time to adjust to your surroundings. That's fine. Take all the time you need." You gave him that evening to gain his bearings, trying to not let him catch you staring at him as he explored the house.
It wasn't until now that this situation felt odd. You had heard of people owning Nekos before, but you had never considered owning one for yourself... and for good reason. It was honestly like having a handsome boy roommate that just happened to have cat ears and a tail. 'Yeah, this is weird. I didn't really think this through...' You wondered how much he was able to talk. Most Nekos you had seen at the Fluffery had a good grasp of the human language; whereas a few of the others clearly had more cat in them. Little Deku could communicate like any person, yet Kiri only spoke in short excited bursts. The curiosity became too much to simply sit and mull over, so you just decided to ask.
"Tamaki?" He flinched at your voice as if he had just been struck. "Can you speak?"
"Yes." His voice was smooth, yet meek and quiet.
"Oh. That's good..." You said awkwardly, not actually having a Segway to follow that.
Darkness fell and you gave him a warm invitation to sleep in the bedroom with you. You had even bought a soft little bed for him. Unfortunately, he stayed crouched in the corner when you approached, facing the wall. Knowing patience would ultimately pay-off in the end, you hauled the bed into the kitchen corner where he felt most comfortable and reached out to stroke his soft ears. He cowered from your touch, so you simply told him goodnight and retired to your room.
However, sleep did not come easily. You heard Tamaki's cries late into the night, missing his home, missing his friends. You desperately wished you could offer any source of comfort to the sorrowful creature on the other side of the wall.
You remembered how much he liked takoyaki the one day you brought it to the Fluffery for lunch and decided to get it on your way home the next day. You thought that gesture had made a bit of progress, but it was quickly squashed when you accidentally stepped on his tail in the kitchen. You hadn't noticed his quiet presence hovering behind you while you opened the bag of food. This earned you a large scratch down your leg and a very unhappy yowl from your companion. Perhaps 'companion' was the wrong word... he was more like your 'embittered-prisoner-roommate.' You sighed in defeat, cleaning your cut in the bathroom. 'Sheesh...' You knew there was going to be an adjustment period, but how long was this going to take?! You just wanted to be his friend.
He crept around the corner and you threw him a sympathetic gaze, trying to convey that you bared him no ill will. But he read the sadness in your eyes, and felt an overwhelming cloud of regret wash over him. He opened his mouth to apologize, but no words came out. His throat was tight and he just wished he could disappear and not cause you any more pain.
Thunder rumbled outside the apartment, rain streaking down the dark windows. You went to your room, taking one more shot to get close to him. "Tamaki... if you get scared or upset, you can still come sleep in my room." It broke your heart when he curled up in his bed in the kitchen. You left the door open to maintain the invitation and laid down in your bed.
There was no way he'd go into your room. He was not worthy, not after what he just did. Tamaki felt wretched, like he was nothing but a burden to you. You had shown him nothing but kindness, but in a fit of stupid anxiety, he had widened the rift between you by scratching you. He buried his face in the soft bed, but this time his tears were from guilt rather than homesickness.
As loud as the storm was, it was not enough to drown out Tamaki's sorrowful cries, and you were plagued by another sleepless night. You felt helpless. If he would let you, you would cuddle all his heartache away, but that was obviously out of the question. By the time morning came, you were feeling terribly down. It was time to take action, and you made the decision to call Shinsou to see if he had any advice. On the phone, you discovered that he also took in some pets from the Fluffery.
"You got Mirio and Kiri?!" You exclaimed with excitement. Tamaki looked up at the mention of familiar names. "Wow! You must have snatched them up really early, huh?"
"Yeah. Most of them were gone in the first day."
"Why didn't you tell me?! I would have adopted sooner!"
"I thought you knew." He defended honestly. "Why? Did you not get one?"
"No. I adopted Tamaki."
"Which one was that?"
"He was Mirio's friend. Slept on the windowsill a lot..." There were plenty of other descriptors of him, but seeing as his attention was on you, you thought it best to be careful what you said.
"Oh, I see." His voice sounded understanding. "So you would have picked a different one if you had gotten there earlier?"
"...I didn't say that..." You mumbled, concerned with how good Tamaki's hearing was. His ears were the biggest in the Fluffery, after all... "Oh! Wait. Why didn't I think of this sooner? We should schedule a play date!"
"Great idea. Kiri has a lot of energy and it's hard to keep up with him sometimes. I'll bring them over tomorrow."
"Sounds great. See you then." You hung up and stood. "Hey, Tamaki. Do you want to see your friends from the Fluffery?" He finally smiled, the first glimmer of hope in this mess of a living situation. "They're coming tomorrow." His excitement was apparent. "You know... a smile really suits you." You said, feeling as if a bond just started to form.
That night, Tamaki's mind began to wander. He had been so excited initially to see his friends that he completely forgot about the conversation he overheard you have on the phone. 'Wait... that human on the phone asked master if she would have chosen somebody else... and... she didn't say no...' The very thought pierced his heart. He realized how difficult he had been to live with, especially after causing you physical harm yesterday. In comparison to Mirio, who had always greeted you at the door of his former home, he was the much less desirable candidate and he knew it.
With this thought driving him, he made the decision to creep down the hallway, noting you sleeping soundly in your bed. After two consecutive nights without sleep, your body had finally succumbed to fatigue and crashed. In an oddly realistic dream- it must have been a dream, because Tamaki was approaching you in your bedroom and that was borderline inconceivable- your Neko pet spoke to you, barely above a whisper.
"Master?"
"Mm?" Your heavy eyelids barely opened enough to see his silhouette in the darkness.
"I have to ask... is what the other human said true? Would you rather have adopted Mirio instead of me?"
"Mmf... 'course not, Tamaki..." You mumbled into your pillow, flopping your arm over the edge of the bed. Dozing off again, you felt a tickle against your palm. You sleepily moved your fingers, petting his soft hair. You prayed you wouldn't wake up; this was much too nice of a dream.
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Revitalized the next morning, you stretched and headed out for the day. It was a good thing you had gotten a full night's sleep, because today all hell broke loose. While downtown, your car had been towed and impounded, forcing you to walk several miles through the bad side of town in the pouring rain... since your umbrella was left IN THE DAMN CAR! This process took you so long, you got yelled at by your superiors for being late coming back from lunch. At long last you arrived home, having completely forgotten about the plans you made with Shinsou.
Tamaki was sitting on the couch by the door for a change when you came in. Without a word, you hopped in the shower, rinsing off the sticky cold city rain. Adorned in your warm cozy pajamas, you approached Tamaki on the couch. He looked up at you with excited curiosity.
"...Where's Mirio?" You blinked, eyes wide. 'Shit! I completely forgot about the play date!'
"Uh..."
"He'll be here soon, won't he? I've been waiting all day."
"Well..." You're heart sank. "I'm sorry, Tamaki... I forgot..."
"WHAT?!" He backed up, looking terribly upset.
"I had a long day, I'm sorry."
"Why would you lie to me?!"
"I didn't lie-"
"LIAR!" He hissed at you, hurting your feelings. You were in no mood to fight with him today. You didn't have it in you, so you got defensive.
"Could you give me a break?!" Your volume increased and the energy tensed. His tail swished, knocking your glass off the coffee table where it shattered on the wood floor. "Dammit!" You leaned forward, grabbing his tail before he had the chance to knock over anything else. In a panicked state, he turned when your hands gripped him, and you suddenly felt a harsh sting on your skin. "Tamaki!"
His betrayal had cut deeper than his fresh aching claw marks on your arm. He gasped, realizing he had acted upon instinct without thinking, just like before. The tears in your eyes made him immediately regret his mistake.
"I'm s-"
"I'm doing the best I can, okay?!" You didn't even bother to put compression on the wound. Your just let your arm hang there, blood dripping onto the floor. "Look! I'm sorry this isn't what you wanted! I was just trying to help you!" Your voice broke and you lost your will to fight. "I thought... I could be your friend..." After days of floundering helplessly to make him happy, you had become weary and your spirit was broken. Tears spilled from the wells in your eyes, a reflection of the overwhelming grief in your heart. You ran back to your room, collapsing on your bed in a heap of miserable sobs.
A few minutes passed before you heard the soft patter of his feet entering your room.
*Hic* You recognized his quiet brand of sniffles; he was crying too. You opened your eyes to see him drop the first aid kit by your side and turn to leave.
"I'm sorry I yelled at you, Tamaki." You blubbered, remorse tearing at your heart. His puffy eyes met yours. "I'm sorry for everything..." But the thing that hurt the most to say was the last. "I'm especially sorry... that you don't love me..." Tears blurred your vision and there was a brief silence.
"But I... do love you..."
You took your head out of your pillow to look at him, lips parted in awe and confusion.
"You're like the sunshine of my day... I'm lonely until you come home and keep me company." He felt as though he had truly messed up beyond repair. How could he have let you believe that you weren't his whole world now?! "Master... are you going to abandon me?" You sat up abruptly, wiping tears out of your shocked eyes.
"Why would you think I would do that?" His lips quivered.
"My old home... is gone. All my friends... left me too... I don't know what I did wrong..."
It was then you understood. The poor thing blamed himself for all of that, despite it only being a string of unfavorable circumstances. If anything was a reasonable excuse for his unbearable anxiety, this was it. You made it your new mission to make him feel welcome again; to make sure he knew this was his new home and you would never desert him
"Come here, Tamaki..." You opened your arms wide. He obeyed, and you briefly wondered why you hadn't issued commands like this from the very beginning. You pulled him into your arms, finally holding him tight. "Tamaki... How about if you promise not to leave me, I wont ever leave you either..." He let out a happy sob into your neck and nodded.
"I promise..." You laid back on the bed, stroking his hair and ears. He had needed this just as much as you, and your arms felt so wonderfully warm and comforting the way they wrapped around him. You couldn't fight back a smile when his purr vibrated against you, the most therapeutic thing you could have asked for after the hectic day you just had.
You stayed close for a long time, and he helped bandage your scratch, making sure you were still snuggling in the process. The minutes ticked by, indicating it was time for bed. He restlessly started looking at the clock, not wanting his time with you to end. But his fretful thoughts were put to rest when you whispered to him.
"Stay..." He gave you the sweetest of smiles, looking into your eyes. "Tamaki. Do you know how to give a kiss goodnight?" He blushed.
"Yeah..." He mumbled, looking down as if it was obvious. You brought your face close to his, stretching your neck so he could reach your lips. But, to your surprise, he tilted his head, tongue flicking out quickly for the tiniest lick to your cheek. He withdrew, terribly bashful and embarrassed by his action.
'Close enough...' You thought with a warm smile.
"Goodnight Tamaki..."
Lesson to all: Adopt! :)