The Time I fell in Love with my Cat
Febuwhump Day 14: Blood-stained tiles
Short scene from a fic that I'm writing. I plan to put this scene into a future chapter.
Izuku is a lonely boy. His mother suggests that he gets a cat to keep his company. He goes to a local shelter to find one, unknowingly adopting a young woman who'd been cursed to be one.
From the far side of the roon, the cat was still eyeing him from inside her cage. Bawled up, hair standing on end at the corner of the opened crate.
At the very least she wasn't yowling or hissing at him like before.
He moved slightly, shifting in his seat on the couch to rest is elbow on the arm rest.
The cat began to let out a low growl.
He sighed, deflating more into the cushion of the couch. "I'm not going to hurt you." he said, a touch tiredly.
The cat let out a loud hiss, eliciting a faint, nervous squeal from him. "U, u-u-u, okay. J, just take it easy-"
She let out another hiss, more loud and more threatening than the former.
He closed his mouth, deciding to stay quiet as not to evoke her more.
Carefully and slowly, he slid his hand to the side of him to slide the phone out of his pocket.
He took another look over at the hissing feline before quickly going to the internet.
How to make a new cat feel more at home?
Various links, some sponsored some not, appeared on the screen.
He'd read some of these websites just a day prior, some even just hours ago.
He'd cat proofed the house, he'd placed cat toys throughout it and he'd even sprayed catnip in a few areas of the home.
He'd listened to another comment on a separate website, where it stated that it would behoove him to place a blanket over the crate to create a sense of protection and for the cat to feel more safe and secured.
The dark blue blanket was covering all sides of the cage with just the material of it a few inches from the floor.
Underneath of it, the cat's eyes were locked directly at him.
The nervous smile came to his face as he went back to his phone.
To leave the room and to leave the cat alone and without feeling the anxiety of your presence. This one, he had second thoughts about as this particular comment had garnered both positive and negative responses.
And the original poster's rebuttal?
I didn't say to leave the house for a day. I said to let the cat have its space without you hovering over it. It's scared in it's new environment. You standing over it and watching it 24/7 isn't going to help much either. And you can still look after it and peep in every now and again or watch from afar on the cat's doings and whereabouts.
Not necessarily but he was staring quite a bit and he was only just a few yards away.
Maybe that was too close to comfort for her.
This person could be wrong. Or, right.
Nevertheless, it was a possibility and something that he could do...?
He furrowed his eyebrows in thought.
Well, he doesn't have to go too far. Maybe another room would suffice.
And, maybe he should give it forty minutes or so?
He nodded at the thought and locked his phone. Keeping his eye on the furry, spiked puffball that was his cat, he got up slowly from his seat and made his way to the hallway that was, ever so conveniently, beside the opened cage.
He took slow, light steps across the hardwood flooring, now hearing more of the cat's yowling.
"It's okay," he whispered. "just... walking past..."
He walked just to the side of the cage, as far as he possibly could, with his arm now rubbing agaisnt the wall.
There was a bang from inside of the cage, followed by a hiss and a long, loud yowl.
He picked up his pace, scurrying up the hall and towards his room.
He stepped foot inside and immediately peered back out from the wall.
The cat was still yowling.
He let out a long, deep sigh and leaned back into the room, grabbing the edge of the door.
It made a shrill creak as he pushed it to a near close.
He waited by the threshold for a few moments before shuffling his feet towards the futon. He crouched down and sat on the covers.
-give the cat some space-
He pulled his phone back out.
Use this time to garner more information as a new pet owner of a cat.
That would be using his time wisely.
How to make a cat happy in her new home?
Izuku glanced back at the time.
More than an hour at past.
"Uh-!" he jolted up and made his way for the door. "I was so focused on my reading, I lost track of time." he said aloud.
The door creaked open and he jogged out then quickly thought about it before coming to a near halt and taking slow, cautious steps down the hall.
I wonder how she's feeling now?
He took a step just on the side of the cage and was ready to hear another hiss or a yowl.
He took another step forward.
Did she end up falling asleep?
He bent down and immediately thought of what'd happened just hours earlier at the shelter and took a few steps in front of the cage before bending down and peeking inside.
His heart jumped in his chest.
A lone cat toy and the several pieces of cat treats over the cushioned interior of the kennel.
He sputtered as he jerked his head left then right, searching the living room.
"This isn't good!" he pushed himself up and turned around. "HA?!"
The entrance of the kitchen was directly in front of him. The sunlight coming through the light colored curtains of the window. The curtains flowing gently in the breeze by the cracked open window.
And the cat, head through that said window, with her teeth grabbing hold of the net of the screen, trying to rip it open.
"AH!" he ran inside. "Noooo, no, no, no! Y, you don't do that!"
The cat placed her paws on the screen, scratching at it.
He ran to the counter. "Mikan," he called out.
The cat let go of the screen and whipped around, taking a lounge at him as she hissed.
He backpedaled, screaming.
The cat's bushed up tail flickered back and forth as she began to growl.
He raised his hands up in a placating manner. "S, sorry. But I can't have you ripping up the screen and running out.." he said gingerly. "You could get hurt." he took a step towards her and she lunged just to the edge of the counter.
"T, this isn't going to work...-Mm." thinking back on those websites and with the situation he was in now and with the resources he had with him, he grabbed the hem of his shirt and pulled the article of clothing upwards, taking it off.
He held it up with both hands.
Now, if I can just get a bit closer to her, I can wrap her up in my shirt.
Of course it also says that one should use thick gloves... but I don't have them handy right now.
He took another step, eliciting a louder yowl from her.
"E, eaasy does it." he said meekly. "I'm... just walking... over to you..." he took another courageous step. "Eaaasy, d, does it now... good kitty." he took another step. "niiiice kitty..."
The orange, tanned fur puffed up around her and he red eyes widened as her ears pinned back towards her head. Her body laid lower to the counter.
He continued to close the distance between them, stepping closer towards her.
The cat eyed the piece of fabric as he hoisted it farther up. A dooey, nervous grin came to his face. "J, just... a little... bit... clo... ser..." he took another step. "Now," another step and as he moved his hands forward the cat jumped off of the counter.
He screamed, pulling his arms back, blocking his vision with the shirt. He felt four paws hit his stomach before he felt claws dig into his skin.
He stumbled backwards, shouting out as he tried to pull the shirt away.
The cat was still on him, pinning the shirt between them and clawing and scratching at his stomach and his chest.
His foot tripped over something sleek and cool feeling, immediately realizing it as Mikan's dish holder. He fell back, water spilling onto the floor as the bowl tipped over, mixing with the bits of food that'd dropped in the process.
His back hit the fridge and he felt a paw hit just above his collarbone before the weight of the cat was off his chest.
Yet, the yowling continued.
He threw the shirt down to see the cat glaring at him.
He took a step to the side and away from her with a soaked foot before she lunged at him once again.
He screamed, pulling his leg back as the cat grabbed hold of his foot, biting and clawing at it.
"Let go!!" he shouted, shaking his leg.
The cat climbed up his leg, her nails digging deeper into his skin. He leaned down to grab her when she swatted at him with both paws.
Grinding his teeth, he half stumbled half fell towards the corner of the kitchen, quickly fumbling and grabbing an old mop, dropping the shirt in the process. He moved the head of the mop towards the cat, both trying to be gentle and trying to encourage her to let go.
He put the head of the mop on the cat's face, moving it around.
She swatted and bit at the tassles of it before eventually grabbing it with both paws and Izuku pulled his leg back from her back claws.
He placed the mop, indirectly the cat, onto the floor as he hopped farther away on the other foot.
He panted, watching the cat closely as his skin stung in pain.
The yowling continued but the cat let go of the mop.
He kept the broom diagonal of them as he hopped another couple of feet away from her and out of the kitchen.
Well... that didn't quite go as planned.
His nervous look hadn't faltered and his eyes never left her.
She began to walk slowly towards him and he hopped a few paces back, his shaky arms holding onto the mop.
She stopped over one of the blood-stained tiles, eyes staring at him for just a few seconds more before looking away and lapping up his blood.
Are... are cats supposed to do that?
His trembling arms continued to hold onto the mop as the cat licked the area clean before moving to her side and licking another spot of blood.
She stopped abruptly and licked her lips.
He could hear another faint growl from her.
He hopped another few steps back.
What exactly had he gotten himself into?
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