#monokat:post

[ichi-peachy]

“Alright!”

“I have all the information you requested boss!”

The cat looked pleased with itself, wagging it’s tail with pride. Jay simply took some papers from it’s hands.

Jay: “Alright, so were able to confirm that Akiko is in the killing game. Or more specifically, she agreed to take somebody’s place.”

He thought for a moment, before continuing.

“Furthermore, the person who died shared a connection with Akiko. Her sister. Akiko isn’t as despair crazed as Junko, so killing her would serve no purpose. I’d wager it was a fake death.”

He flipped through few pages, before reading.

“Didn’t she also say something important before cat? I recall when she was fighting Ichi, she referred to herself as an acrobat. I couldn’t care less about that, but she did call the ordeal an act of the “Hamasaki Sisters.” Her sisters talent being an ultimate juggler.”

He flipped back to one of the first pages he read.

“Although, the tv mentioned her as the Ultimate Voice Actress. This could have been a good cover up, and a throw away talent. So by faking her death...”

The cat purred as Jay started rubbing it’s head.

“Then Akio would be able to hide behind the scenes, using Akiko as a tool. Which is what the voice mentioned. She also claimed that Akiko was willing to go along with being her pawn, and I don’t think Akiko would be willing to do that for just anybody.”

He stood up to stretch, and placed the papers down.

“My bet, is that Akio is the mastermind. What do you think cat?”

The cat looked up at Jay, with an smug smile.

“Aren’t you forgetting about the person working on this case?”

[ichi-peachy]

Robot Builder.

Jay’s pants were covered in grime and dust, along with the red shirt he wore. In his gloved hands was a wrench, which was just as filthy as the rest of him. Letting out a sigh of relief, he placed the tool on a desk beside him as he wiped his forehead. It felt like ages since he started this project, and now that the end was near, he had put all his effort in finishing up today. It was a black spotted cat, similar to the one that constantly followed him around. The only thing that was missing was one of its red eyes.

The final piece in question was sitting comfortably in his pocket. He didn’t dare leave it out, terrified of losing such a valuable component. He carefully slipped the red marbles into its eye sockets, moving slowly to ensure it would fit perfectly. Once it locked in, he let out a sigh of relief and took a few steps back.

Now was the moment of truth. Either the machine would blow up and kill him on the spot, or it’d work as intended. And by god, was he praying the damn thing would work. If it didn’t, he wouldn’t know what he’d do. Probably slam his head against the desk and try again later, but he’d rather save himself the headache.

And if it worked, there would be a point of no return. Once it was powered on, it couldn’t be shut off. Of course, he could reduce the robot to scrap, but doing so would’ve been a waste of time, energy, and common sense. After approaching the robot, he tapped its snout once. Pressing down on it as if it was a button.

Almost immediately, it began violently shaking, as if it was threatening to explode. The roboticist took a few steps back, unsure whether he should stay or run. After a couple of seconds, the machines shaking finally came to a lull. The dark red marbles finally lit up, the first indication it was alive.

The boy held his breath as he watched it move its head. First turning it to the right, then turning it to the left. It’s eye finally glanced over to where the entertainer stood, curiously gazing upon its creator. 

[ichi-peachy]

Exhaustion.

It should have taken Ichi far longer to complete her ritual, and yet she was already up with a tired look. It would have fascinated Jay if the experiment wasn’t preventing him from hurting the Monokat. And with the inventor distracted, the mechanical cat was able to crawl away. It was clear it had taken some serious damage, but it was still moving relatively fine. Quickly, it dashed behind Ichi, taking the black bangle the girl had in her hand. Afterwards, the cat ran off in Two’s general direction, leaving the duo alone.

“This is all your fault.”

Jay’s harsh tone made Ichi uneasy. It was clear that the boy wasn’t simply referring to their current situation, and it was clear there was an underlying frustration. Frustration that wasn’t entirely directed at her. Regardless if it was directed at her or not, Ichi knew she screwed up.

“I’m sorry.”

His harsh glare made it clear he didn’t forgive her. Turning away, Jay sat down on the floor. He was tired and he didn’t have the energy to fight, nor argue. Besides, Ichi had more important things to attend to. And although the entertained was instructed to kill Ichi, he really wanted to rest first. Ichi tried to talk to Jay, but he only ever waved her off. Eventually, she decided it would be best to take care of the queen first, and come back for Jay later.

Two was having a hard time keeping the Monokat units away. It was only a moment ago that she was able to use a variety of abilities, but a certain sneaky cat managed to place the bangle on her, rendering it all useless. On top of that, her energy was rapidly depleting. Not only was it exhausting fighting off the endless units, but her energy also seem to be draining on its own. 

Moving a strand of her messy hair aside, Two tore another unit apart. No matter how many she broke, more seem to take their place. What’s worse, Ichi was approaching the tired killer. The analytic simply watched Two try to fend off a few more robots, letting her tire out. Once Two finally stopped fighting, the Monokat units steppes away from her. She was suddenly lying on the floor, trying to catch her breath. 

“Are we done?”

Looking around her, an army of Monokat units surrounded them. Ichi stood in front of Two, with Monokat on the experiment’s shoulder. They both looked down at her, unsure of what to do now. It was almost like neither expected to get this far, but Two knew would happen eventually.

“Are you gonna strangle me like before? Maybe stab me this time? Or do you need time to think about it?”

“...”

Looking over to Monokat for guidance, it was apparent the cat didn’t have any to offer. They both knew the queen caused to much trouble to be left alive, and yet something about this felt wrong. Without saying a word, Ichi extended her hand out for Two to take. Although the older girl seemed hesitant, she eventually took it. After a moment of silence, Ichi finally spoke.

“Jay’s original planned involved sparing you, and trying to help you rather than get rid of you...”

There was also somebody else she valued that believed in second chances.

“...so, maybe-”

Ichi’s words were cut short as she watched three metal spikes rip through Two, effectively killing her in seconds. Something attacked her from behind.

Lo and behold, it was none other than the entertainer with the remains of a Monokat’s arm.

[ichi-peachy]

Boss.

Monokat felt dirty about hurting Jay, even if it was necessary. The cat himself manifested out of the witch hat Ichi had, and was able to prevent Ichi from getting hurt by tackling Jay. Despite being relatively small, it was at least heavy enough to knock Jay down, thus forcing him to drop his blade. Upon hearing the clanking of a knife, Monokat dove to grab the blade. As soon as he did, the cat bit down on it, consuming it like it was nothing more than a chocolate bar.

“Y’know, I didn’t really expect much from you either.”

Delivering a swift kick to Monokat, Jay watched as the robot slammed against a wall. The cat wasn’t in pain exactly, in anything, Jay’s words caused more damage than his kick did. 

The entertainer turned away from the machine, raising a fist to strike Ichi. Once more, Monokat ran at Jay and tackled him again. Prepared for another interruption, Jay simply nabbed the cat from midair, then flung him against a wall once more.

“We’ve been partners for quite some time now, and yet you never listen to me.”

As soon at Monokat hit the ground, Jay pressed his foot against the cat. Effectively pinning him down, while crushing him ever so slowly. Despite his claim of being the cat’s companion, Jay didn’t seem to harbor any guilt injuring the Monokat.

“If anything goes wrong, get rid of Ichi. I gave you those instructions to prevent all of this. And yet when Ichi had her little standoff against Two, you simply watched, didn’t you?”

The cat tried to wiggle free, refusing to hurt Jay in an attempt to escape. Unfortunately, Jay wasn’t leaving any room to escape.

“You’re just a nuisance-”

“I disagree.”

Ichi was right behind him, a tired look on her face.

[ichi-peachy]

Rainy Day.

Ichi didn’t bother changing out her pajamas, nor did she bother tying up her hair like she usually did. She had already woken up in the afternoon, and accepted she likely wasn’t going to do anything productive. While she thought about going back to sleep, the sound of Lily and Monokat’s voices made her decide to see what they were up to.

Groggily forcing herself out of bed, she dragged herself out the door and through the hallways, then rubbing her eyes as she descended down a staircase. 

Both of them were playing what seemed to be a video game, utilizing a black and white console. It didn’t seem like they were playing against each other, but working together. Despite this, they both seemed concentrated as they tried to reach the end. Ichi didn’t say a word to them, instead roaming over to the kitchen in search for food.

By the time the child and cat noticed Ichi, it looked like she was about to fall asleep. Her eyes were half opened, and she looked almost completely zoned out. It wasn’t until Lily walked over and poked her cheek that she finally snapped out of her daze. The small girl looked confused as to why Ichi hadn’t changed, but the experiment didn’t care. She simply lifted Lily up and into her lap. Patting her head as she mumbled something.

“Good morning...”

[ichi-peachy]

Stress.

Monokat flew around from one room to another. The little robot was constantly busy. From managing Monokat units, to managing a new guest, it hardly had time to rest. The only time he ever had a chance to rest, was when the guest fell asleep petting him. While Monokat was perfectly suited to run nonstop without needing to recharge, the stress of having to manage multiple things still affected him. Even though he felt the urge to snap at the guest, he always maintained his composure and took care of them to the best of his ability.

Of course when Ichi came, it was the straw that broke the camel’s back.

Admittedly, Ichi felt bad for not visiting Monokat often. When it was assigned to look after her, it was always kind and patience. She felt herself grow closer to it day by day. Because it worked for Jay however, she wasn’t often given the chance to see it. Now that Jay was gone...

Either way, she didn’t expect Monokat to blow up at her the second it saw her. It’s fur was black, with small white spots all over it. Even from a distance, she could feel heat radiating off of it.

“What do you want?”

[ichi-peachy]

A silent walk.

Jay had left the house at midnight, careful to make sure nobody noticed him. Monokitsune would be in his room, notifying anybody who looked for him.

It was nice being outside again, it felt like forever since he was outside a room. It felt wonderful looking up at the stars, feeling the gentle breeze rush past him. Even Monokat seemed to enjoy being outside with him, purring softly as Jay pet the cat.

They kept walking, not walking anywhere particular, just walking. Walking and walking and walking. He left his mind wander as he did, simply thinking about little things.

For a moment though, his thoughts were interrupted as he was Two crossing the street nearby. Without hesitation, he ducked behind a nearby car. He covered his mouth, trying to mask his hyperventilation.

Monokat didn’t seem to understand why he was panicking. He was watching the same empty cross-light as Jay, and yet the boy seemed to panic over something. Looking over, he saw that nobody was there. The entire place seemed empty.

“...”

With a sigh, the cat returned to Jay, attempting to calm him down.

[ichi-peachy]

Jiro.

The constant hallucination haunted him, even when Robin was around. It taunted and ridiculed him, bleeding all over the floor around him. Soon, the place was becoming a sea of blood. He could almost feel the warm liquid on his skin, and it terrified him. 

He ignored it at first, he knew it was simply a delusion his mind had made. Little by little however, his composure was cracking. His breathing quickened, and his mind slowly spiraled into insanity. 

Unfortunately, Monokat decided to check up on him at the worst time possible.