Just A Normal Day, Yup [Seiji]

[Snow]

Oh dear, he was running late again. 

The blind Forestkin, in his red tabby cat form, hurried through the busy streets of Gold City. He didn't like the Light Forest Province because it was simply too warm here, but he had a client here in need of the herbs in his mouth. Catmint, to be exact. It cured almost any severe illness, like pneumonia and greencough, but it was very rare and hard to grow. Nonetheless, Ryuu's careful watering of the few clumps of catmint near his home had paid off, resulting in a larger than normal haul of catmint. His client, who happened to be a raccoon, was in need of this herb, and Ryuu had promised to bring him some. So here he was, in the middle of the Light Forest Province, which he hated with a fierce passion, bringing herbs to a raccoon through the busy streets of Gold City. Unfortunately, the raccoon lived all the way on the other side of the city, so it would take nearly a full day for Ryuu to get there, especially in his current form. 

He often had to stop and wait with people to be able to cross safely, and some people would pet him because he was "so smart for waiting with them." Big deal. If they knew what he really was, he was sure that at least one of the people he had stuck around was a full-blooded Eswyn and would have cursed at him. Ryuu padded briskly across the street after making sure that it was safe, ignoring the strange looks the people of the city gave him. He probably looked unnaturally smart for a cat, and weird for carrying about a bunch of plants, but oh well. Who cared what the people thought? They'd probably assume that he was just a cat being weird. Growling slightly, Ryuu was forced to stop as the people in front of him did. He squeezed his way to the front and walked with them to the other side of the street, ignoring them completely. 

Not too long after, just about sunset, Ryuu arrived at a stop where there were no others in front of him. And yet he sat down and waited patiently, because he could hear the things on the streets. He couldn't decide if it was horses or something else. Didn't sound like horses, but then again horses didn't seem to like cats much which was probably why they avoided him. He heard someone else stop by him, but he paid them little attention. He meowed at the person and flicked his tail over the other's shoe, but that was it. He kept his eyes on the other side of the road, though it wasn't like it mattered to him, being blind and all.  He heard the signal go for him to cross, but he could hear a horse approaching, its hooves going clipclopclipclopclipclopclipclop at a speed that it shouldn't have been. At the speed it was going, it was going to hit anyone who stepped out onto the street until after it passed.

Hearing the other person start forward, he meowed very loudly, flicking his tail across the cement. "Stay here with me, it's dangerous to go out onto the road," he meowed in the Liar's Tongue. The Liar's Tongue was the common name for Catspeak. He meowed loudly again and tapped the space next to him with his tail. Hopefully this person would take the hint and not get run over... If he did get run over, though, well... natural selection at its finest.

[Midna]

Seiji slipped from an alleyway, blending into the crowd of people. He tried hard to keep the smirk off of his face, but he couldn't keep the corners of his mouth from twitching up. Another successful catch, and he'd been lucky. With this much food, he'd have enough for dinner, breakfast, and the next day's dinner. People should really stop leaving food outside on unattended tables. But then again, if they did, he'd starve.

He glanced down at the bag by his side, checking to make sure everything was still inside. Yes. Good. He'd hate to be leaving a trail by accident and lose food in the process. Still, maybe he should take a longer route. If guards were tracking him, he wouldn't want to lead them straight to his hideout. He'd probably be able to get away, but losing a perfectly good shelter always stunk. This one was quite a bit nicer than the ones he usually found.

Seiji crossed the street then started down a less crowded street, looking nonchalant and relaxed. But in reality, he was tense, tyring to look around for any sign of danger. Nothing so far, but he'd been surprised before. Maybe another back street. Turning a corner, he came to a crossroads and stopped next to a red cat. A cart pulled by a couple of horses slowly rolled past. He sighed quietly. It wasn't busy, so why was he waiting? He should be faster. If Koda were here, she would have already been across that street...

Scowling that he was hesitating too long, he started to step onto the road. But the loud meow stopped him. Putting his foot down where it had been, he gave the cat a wary look. Cats didn't communicate with Humans, or even Skrit. But it seemed to have been trying to talk to him. Trying to warn him. It meowed again, and tapped the ground with its tail. The message was clear to Seiji. 'Stay'. But why? Was it a trap?

He stood still for a few seocnds, looking down at the can and deciding what to do. Then he lifted his foot again, just as a speeding horse galloped past, dragging a heavy cart behind it. If he'd been another inch closer, either one of the other would have hit him. As it was, he jumped backward, eyes wide. If he'd been in the road, he would have been dead.

Then he slowly looked back at the cat. Somehow, it had known. That's why it wanted him to stay. Seiji didn't speak for a few seconds, thinking about what had happened. Then he asked in a low, quiet, and slightly incredulous tone, "Were you trying to warn me, cat? ...Thanks." After a couple more seconds, he added on, "So, can I cross now?" and a quieter "I can't believe I'm talking to a cat..."

[Snow]

The cat smirked when the person jumped back, and yet Ryuu didn't even flinch. He flicked one ear towards the human and briefly brushed his side against the human's leg. He meowed again and sniffed the air. Drat, it was twilight. Ryuu stepped away from the person, picked up his herbs, and, after listening carefully, briskly crossed the street. On the other side, the red tabby could smell something, but he wasn't sure what it was because of the herbs in his mouth. He'd have to go this way to get back home anyway, so he'd just have to check it out later. Ryuu took a few left turns, then a right, and then he was at Rack the raccoon's alleyway.

"Rack, I've got your herbs. Do you have what you promised me?" Ryuu barked into the alleyway. The raccoon language was harder to perform in his cat form because cats weren't meant to bark, but he managed it well enough. Before long, a raccoon slithered out from the alleyway, carrying a mouse. Ryuu hadn't had time to eat since he'd wanted to get here before the moon was at its peak and so the raccoon had promised that in exchange for the herbs that would save his mate's life, Ryuu would receive a good piece of prey. Because Ryuu was a Healer, the rules between animals and Forestkin was that the Healer would be given what they wanted first, as Healers were required to help anyone who needed it.

Ryuu quickly scarfed down the mouse, feeling satisfied as his stomach stopped grumbling. He pushed the catmint over to Rack. "Just 6 stalks a day, one stalk every 4 hours, and she should get better in no time."

"Thanks, Red. Don't know what I'd do without these herbs."

"It's my job to help," Ryuu replied smoothly. "But if I was given the choice on whether or not to help you, I'd do this entire trip over again to help you, Rack. I haven't forgotten how you've been saving my life for countless snow-seasons." Because Ryuu was blind, he found hunting hard, especially in the winter. Rack, the kind old fellow, had decided to start catching things for Ryuu during the winter so that the Healer wouldn't starve. Pressing his nose against the raccoon's muzzle, Ryuu murmured, "If you need more catmint, don't be afraid to send me a message. I've got extra this season."

Then Ryuu turned and padded away, his tail high. He heard Rack pick up the herbs and carry then into the alleyway for his mate. Now Ryuu could investigate that smell. Though Ryuu should really be focusing on getting home, that scent had disturbed him. Backtracking to the place where he had first gotten a whiff of the smell, Ryuu found that the smell was still strong. Sniffing the ground like a dog, Ryuu tracked the smell to a plant growing from the side of a building. Deathberries, definitely. Ryuu hissed in displeasure and carefully picked the plant at its base, not wanting any of the juice on his fur. Though it was the seed of the deathberry that was fatal, the juice caused very bad sickness. 

He dragged the plant out in the way of horses and carts, jumping back to safety quickly. He heard the plant get run over and grinned widely. Now no animal would accidentally eat some. He walked through the city back to the entrace, only to find it blocke doff my guards. Perhaps they wouldn't see him slip by, or maybe they wouldn't care. However, one of the men he tried to slip past scooped him up and pet him. The young Forestkin couldn't help but purr. 

"Look at 'im," the guard laughed to his friend. "Such a cute and friendly stray cat. Wonder what the thing was doing, trying to get into the Dark Forest Province."

"Maybe 'e lives there," the other guard wondered. Yes, yes, come on, get to the right conclusion, let him through to his home! "Sorry kitty, can't let ya pass. Even if ya do live there, we're under orders not to let anythin' pass through to or from the Dark Forest Province until the Nocsyn stop coming out and trying to enter at night." The first guard put him down on the ground behind them, petting him once more.

"Poor cat," the first guard muttered to his friend. "We won't even be allowed to let it pass in the day, 'cause there's going to be a guard for the next few weeks."

What? Ryuu recoiled at the sound of that. A day and night guard for the next few weeks? He wouldn't be able to return home until then? Where would he stay? Certainly not in the alleyways. He may have been a Forestkin, but he didn't want to have to lick mud out of his fur for the next few days. Ryuu sighed and padded away from the entrance, scouting around the wall to hopefully find a way out. After only a few minutes, though, Ryuu gave up. After another hour of searching for some place clean to sleep, Ryuu gave up and slept in a relatively clean box on the side of the street. He'd tipped the box to lay its bottom side on a nearby wall, to hopefully keep him dry if it rained. And then it started raining. Great. Hopefully his box wouldn't get too soggy, or else he might have to resort to begging humans for shelter. Of course, if a human did take him in, they'd probably keep him there...

[Midna]

The cat crossed the street, and Seiji took that as his answer. He followed a few paces behind the red tabby, looking both ways for more rampaging horses. They parted ways as soon as he was across the street, the cat going one way and him another. After that, he sort of cleared it from his mind. It wasn't like he could repay a cat for saving his life. It seemed like it was smart enough to not starve, and the city girls were probably showering it with food. It probably ate more than he did, or at least more often.

Seiji made it to his temporary house without any trouble, and it was still in one piece and uninhabited when he arrived. Good. He'd have to leave if the true owners returned, and it would suck if someone moved in. Of course, he was prepared for if that happened. All of his few possessions stayed with him at all times, so if he came back to find someone else at home there, he could always move on. This strategy also worked the few times guards caught up with him and he'd had to run for it before they caught him. Being a thief certainly was a risky business.

After he'd checked the house, he sat at the table and looked over what he'd managed to find. A frown formed on his face when he discovered that the water bottle he'd thought was full was actually bone dry. Dang it. He didn't dare go to the nearby well and get water, and an ice Skrit like himself needed water. Seiji was running out. He'd have to make another trip out the next day unless it rained. A little rain would be nice.

Without water, he was down to about a third of his regular magical power and three quarters of his strength. Koda would have scolded him for not checking the bottle once he was safe on a roof or something. She'd have been right; he knew that it had been stupid and reckless of him not to check. There had been too many close calls over the last year, especially since South Mountain was a lot colder and wetter than the rest of Sirrus. For now, Seiji needed to conserve his energy. He'd only go out if he absolutely needed to. Or if it rained.

He stuffed his things back into his bag and stood up, stretching. Maybe he could take a nap. Naps didn't take much energy. He was feeling tired; probably from the dehydration. If someone walked into the house, he'd wake up. Probably. Years of training had put his senses on high alert, even when he was sleeping. That's probably why he was able to hear it. The soft pattering of tiny drops hitting the ground. Raindrops. Maybe he'd go for a walk instead of taking a nap. It would get a lot more of his energy back than just a nap.

He put some clean pans outside first to collect drinking water. Then he started walking. Of course, he stayed close to the house. Seiji doubted anyone could see him anyway, not in this downpour. The rain soaked him, but he wasn't cold, his magic absorbing the waters' energy and rehydrating him in the process. He could feel the boost, and it felt great. A tiny smirk stretched across his face, and he let his eyes slip closed. He was almost as powerful as he was at home in the mountains. If only it were snowing...

His reflexes kicked back in after a few second, and he opened his eyes, smirk vanishing. He couldn't let himself get caught in this. Someone could sneak up behind him. His sharp, red eyes scanned the area around him, and that's when he saw it. A cardboard box, propped up against an alley wall. Inside, there was some dark shape. Maybe some kind of item he cold use that had been thrown out? Curious and somewhat overconfident, he walked towards it. The teenager knelt down a couple feet from the box to peer inside.

It was a cat. The cat from earlier, the one who had seemed to warn him. He frowned slightly. Cats didn't like getting wet; that he knew. This one was probably miserable from being inside a soggy cardboard box. It would be worse when the box started to drip. Maybe he should take it with him, let it dry off and warm up in his house? It might have saved his life, probably had. But he couldn't be honor bound to a cat, could he? Maybe. Ariss were close enough to cats that Koda would have offered.

Not caring that his pants were getting dirty from kneeling in the mud, he watched the cat for another minute. Then he murmured, "You're the cat from earlier, the one that saved me. Wow you must be miserable out here." He paused, then "I have no idea if you can understand me, but if you want a place to dry off, come with me."

[Snow]

The box had started to drip a while ago, and Ryuu was too afraid to sleep in case he never woke up again. He'd kept curled up, however, to conserve body heat. When he heard someone speak, he lifted his head wearily. As his head cleared a little, he recognized the voice of the person he'd saved earlier. The cat flicked one ear and hesitated; he was miserable out here, but he wasn't sure if he could trust this person. Then he decided that if this person was offering shelter, dry shelter, then he'd have to take it. Couldn't fall sick here, not when he didn't know where any safe herbs were. 

Ryuu meowed pathetically and stood up, quickly stretching and climbing into the person's lap. His fur was only damp, thankfully. The box had done its job well enough, though Ryuu was sure that he'd get sick later. He huddled on the person's lap for only another second before getting off, immediately pressing close. He meowed quietly, his tail drooping and pressed close to his side. His purple eyes stared at the ground blankly, his fur becoming wetter. His short, fluffy fur was completely smoothed down from the rain by now, revealing a faint outline of his ribs. 

The little red tabby Forestkin had never considering begging humans for food, and often rejected the food that the city girls tried to feed him. Only in the winter did he accept the bowls of pet cat food that the citizens put out for him and the other stray cats. Because of his pride and refusal to accept help, Ryuu was just about always on the brink of starving. In fact, if it weren't for his knowledge of herbs, he'd probably have died long ago. He usually ate blueberries, but cats weren't meant to eat blueberries. Rarely did he catch anything and even rarer was it for the girls who fawned over him in the Dark Forest to catch something for him.

The cat moved when the human (or maybe something else, the scent certainly said something else) did, cold and wet and shivering. He kept close to make sure that he didn't get lost, and to make sure that he didn't lose the human. Earlier, he had saved this person's life. And now, they were saving his. An act of kindness never went unpaid, as Rack had always told him. When he noticed that he was inside, he realized that he must have zoned out and they'd arrived without him realizing.

"T-Thank you," Ryuu mewed quietly, settling down off to the side near a wall to lick his fur dry. He stopped partway through and walked up to the person, settling down close by to finish licking his fur dry. Once it was dry, he sniffed the air and carefully padded his way over to the human, purring and jumping up beside them. Laying down, he fell back asleep.

[Midna]

Well, the cat seemed to hear him at least. He watched with a blank expression as the soggy creature moved towards him, though surprise flickered in his eyes when it climbed onto his lap. It was definitely a weird thing for a cat to do. Maybe it had understood him? Well, he didn't really understand it. It wasn't like he could speak cat. Maybe if he had grown up in the forest he'd be able to.

It climbed off of his lap and curled against him, and he instinctively pulled his hand a little farther away, keeping a close eye on the tiny red cat. It was mostly a habit; he'd already decided that there was no way the cat was a threat. It wasn't because it was cute that he'd figured that out. Heck, people though rats were cute sometimes, and wolves too. No, it was how pathetic the thing seemed, with its ribs showing a little through its fur. It looked half-drowned almost. This thing seemed very different from the cat that may have saved his life earlier. Maybe he'd found the wrong cat? He hoped not. This one better not have fleas.

The rain had picked up a little, and even though it felt nice to him, Seiji reminded himself that cats weren't cold resistant. He'd better get inside and dry it off before it got sick or something. With a soft "Come on" he stood and walked back to the house, checking behind him every few steps to make sure it was following. It was.

They reached the house and he walked inside, the kitten following. His clothes quickly dried due to his magic once he was out of the rain. Well, that took care of his magic problem. He was full of ice magic now, and not dehydrated at all. Maybe whatever Gods and Goddesses lived in the Divine Realm were feeling generous. Or maybe it was for the cat. Why would they want to help a thief like him?

He glanced over to the cat and saw that it was drying itself off. Smart cat. The Skrit plopped down on the couch, watching it with a small amount of interest. It already seemed almost at home here... Well it was a little cute maybe, but Seiji wasn't planning on letting it stay long. Just enough to rest up and maybe get a quick meal or two, or at last until the rain stopped. It better not do its business inside the house either. ...Why was it coming over to him? Did it want something?

It was... purring. Huh. Well, at least it was grateful and hadn't hissed at him. It was the purring that kept him from standing up and leaving. He'd never had a cat purr at him before. He'd heard a rumor once that Ariss purred when they were happy, but Koda never had. At least not around him. The purring soon stopped, and he noticed that the now dry cat had fallen asleep next to him. He actually chuckled, a slight smile appearing on his face. Little thing must be worn out. Seiji was too. He stood and headed towards his room upstairs, flopping onto the bed. Wow, he was tired.

His last thoughts before he drifted off were that if the cat stayed, maybe he'd call it Red for that fluffy red fur.

[Snow]

Ryuu dreamed of ice. It was strange, but he couldn't say that he didn't enjoy it. Sliding on his fur across the ice at speeds that he could never achieve in human form, or even at speeds that he wouldn't feel safe in when awake. It was exhilarating. When Ryuu awoke it was the next day, he was warm and dry, and he had no idea where he was. He flicked his tail and stretched quickly, remembering the events of yesterday. He was intent on exploring, because he hadn't really gotten the chance yesterday. He sniffed around the bottom floor for around a half hour, trying to identify smells. He noticed a few mice, and one even had the audacity to hiss at him. He didn't kill any though, even though he probably could have. The mice around here seemed to have never seen a cat before. 

Ryuu found his way into the kitchen, and spent a little bit sniffing around there. Not that he was hungry, but he wanted to get a feel for how the house was designed and where everything was before he went sauntering off anywhere. Might as well make sure he wouldn't hit his head on anything. It was still raining outside, he noticed, and he thought for a second that maybe if he hurried, he could get through the rain back to his home but quickly that thought was dismissed. The guards would be there whether it was raining or not. He was stuck here, and he'd have to deal with it.

Remembering the person, he felt his way to the stairs and cautiously climbed them. Once upstairs, it wasn't hard to track the other being to one room. Settling down in the middle of the room, he began to lick his fur down to keep it from getting matted. Once he was done that, he hopped up onto the bed like any normal cat would and settled down on the edge, not curled up but laying on his stomach. He stayed awake, in case the male next to him wanted him to get down. He'd rather not get shoved off. Contrary to popular belief, cats did not always land on their paws. And blind cats often did not land on their paws.

[Midna]

Ryuu probably couldn't tell, but Seiji actually looked peaceful while he slept, much different than he did when he was awake. His dreams that night were peaceful, untouched by nightmares. That night's dreams weren't too strange. He was just walking through the city, casual and not caring that people could see him (which might have been weird in itself). But out of the corners of his eyes he kept seeing flashes of bright violet. Intrigued, he turned to look. But everytime he did, there was nothing there.

His scarlet eyes slowly blinked open as he woke, and his mind brought itself back to reality. So the colors had been just a dream. But they'd seemed so real. Weird. Then again, weren't most dreams strange somehow? This one had been fairly normal. He started to sit up, then froze when he spied the cat sitting on his bed. Huh, it was awake. And probably hungry. Hopefully it hadn't eaten anything important. At least he'd grabbed a lot of food yesterday. Maybe it would like something he'd nabbed from the rich citizens.

Seiji sat up and rubbed at his eyes with his arm, now completely awake. Glancing down at the cat with the same stoic look that he always wore, he said "Morning. Hungry, Red? I'll get you some food." He was actually hungry too, and it was with a growling stomach that he stood up and headed downstairs, expecting the red cat to follow him. Once he was downstairs, it was easy to grab and defrost a piece of cooked meat (he'd frozen it to keep it from rotting). He set one on a plate for the cat, setting it on the floor. Then Seiji darted outside, grabbed a couple full pans of water, and brought them back in. "There. Eat up." he said, setting the shorter pan on the floor as well.

He himself sat at the table, eating an apple and sipping at the water. His gaze never left the cat. Funny, he'd sort of expected it to leave overnight. Maybe it hadn't because it was raining. It would probably leave after the sky cleared.

[Snow]

Ryuu meowed and followed the person downstairs. Red, huh? Reminded him of Rack. The person's voice also reminded him of Rack, as well as the general demeanor the person seemed to have. Cold, stoic, but with a sense of kindness for the weak or unable. Ryuu purred and happily ate in the daintily manner that cats ate in, careful to keep his whiskers and fur clean. The food might not have been much, but it wasn't like he ate much anyways. He ate what he needed to to survive, nothing more and nothing less. If he needed 15 blueberries to get by a whole day, then he'd eat 15 blueberries. Not 20, 10. 15. Not that he could count well.

Once the meat was gone, Ryuu lapped up from water and picked his way across the floor to the person, purring and rubbing up against the other's legs. He was grateful, and showed this by not jumping up on the counters or begging. He performed the Maneuver of Appreciation, wrapping a tight figure eight around and between the person's legs. 

Flicking his tail, he carefully stepped back, using his tail to judge where things were behind him. He looked right into the person's face and gave a loud, happy meow. He disliked the silence of the house, but even more disliked the sounds of squeaking mice inside the walls. Caught by a sudden thought, Ryuu rolled over onto his back, showing his belly for pets. Most cats saw him as strange for liking his belly to be rubbed, but hey, when you barely get any positive attention and hardly any affection from people who weren't Nocsyn and people who didn't want to keep him as an indoor pet, you take what pets you can get. 

His eyes, a bright shade of violet, were wide and innocent; Ryuu was sure that they betrayed his want of pets. Pets pets pets, that was all that was on his mind. As simple-minded as cats seemed, they weren't what they seemed. Most cats, such as Ryuu himself, were smarter than humans and most knew a variety of languages. Ryuu could speak in Common if he really tried in this form, but there was no point in that. last time he did that, he got screamed at and told to scram. He'd rather not have to travel in the rain. 

He could smell a bitterly sweet scent somewhere, and he'd probably investigate after his tum-tum pets...

[Midna]

Well, at least the cat had a good appetite. Apparently it trusted him enough to eat the food. Seiji finished off his own food and water fairly quickly after that, though he stayed sitting down, just watching the small cat. What would it do now that it was done? Leave? Search for more food? Pee on his bed? He hoped it wasn't the last one. That would be horrible.

Instead of doing any of that, the cat came over to him. Seiji watched it with mild surprise but didn't shoo it away, and he actually smiled slightly when it rubbed against his legs. Silly thing... Did it think he was its master now? Or maybe vice versa. Cats were strange. He'd never had a cat before. Hopefully if it decided to stick around he could actually take care of it.

He thought about it. Did he even want a cat? Not a misbehaving or mean one. But this one seemed nice and it hadn't messed up anything yet.

The cat mewed happily and he focused his attention on it again. It looked like it wanted a belly rub. Seiji hesitated, not sure if he should give in, but finally reached down with one hand to rub the cat's belly. Heh, the cat was soft. Well duh Seiji, he told himself, it had fur. But it wasn't filthy and mud-covered like many strays Seiji had seen.

Maybe the cat would stay. It seemed to like it here (or at least hadn't shown that it didn't). Maybe it had a home somewhere though, a place it needed to get back to. It looked a little young for a mate and kits, but oh well. "Are you a boy cat or a girl cat, Red?" he wondered to himself. Cats were hard to tell.

[Snow]

Ryuu purred when his belly was rubbed, though the question caught him by surprise. How did he answer that without ruining anything? He didn't really know. So instead, when he was done with the tummy pets, he flipped over and nuzzled the human's hand.

He considered licking it, it seemed to be fairly dirty, but he decided not to and instead just rubbed against his hand, leaving his scent behind. He smiled a cat smile and meowed, pushing his head under the person's palm and nuzzling it again.

His tail went straight up with a curled end, showing he was happy and content. Though if the purring didn't tip it off, Ryuuka wasn't sure what would. He could smell that bittersweet scent again, and it was stronger, but he was getting pet right now and didn't feel like going to check it out.

Ryuu purred louder and rubbed himself on the human, spreading his scent and making sure that all other cats knew that this human was his. Sure, he wasn't a house cat, but since he couldn't go home yet he had no reason not to hang around the human. Ice Human, as he'd dubbed the person, had done nothing to hurt him yet or shown any sign of wanting to hurt him.

Anyone who gave him tum-tum pets surely wasn't a bad person.

[Midna]

Seiji actually laughed quietly when Ryuu nuzzled his hand. Cats really weren't the pests people thought they were. This one was kind of cute and very friendly. It seemed to like him anyways. Not many humans did, so that was a plus.

He decided to think of it as a boy. Something about it seemed to hint to that. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad to have it around the house. He could steal enough food for both of them, and the cat could probably hunt for itself, even if it was smaller than average. As long as it didn't try to attack him in his smaller form, he'd be fine. He certainly wasn't allergic to cats, not after living with what was basically a humanoid kitty for years. Oh shoot, if Koda ever heard him say that she would knock him unconscious for a day just to teach him a lesson.

Seiji let the cat play with his hand, then frowned. He was going to have to steal more to feed them both, and what he had now would only last them another day. Then he would have to go out again.

For now, he continued to pet the red tabby cat. It was actually kind of nice to have a companion, even if said companion was probably just temporarily. "Happy, huh?" he murmured to the cat, "Feel free to stick around. Just pee outside and not in here." He didn't know why he was saying that, but maybe the cat did understand...

[Snow]

Ryuu liked the sound of Ice Human's laugh. Maybe he'd stick around and become a house cat, even if he did have to hunt for himself every now and then. This person seemed to be a thief, from what the blind tabby could tell anyway. Ryuu made a laugh of his own when the person petting him told him not to go in the house. Cats were very clean creatures, thank you. They liked to go away from their nesting area.

Ryuu did want to check out that bittersweet smell now, though. So he reluctantly pulled himself away from the human's hand and walked over to the door. Well, more like he crashed headfirst into it. He meowed and twirled around in front of the door that led to the backyard.

"Pleeeeease let me go outside?" he meowed loudly, though he knew the human didn't understand him. Sometimes humans were weird. The tiny red tabby Forestkin patted at the door gently, though he did end up getting a splinter and having to locate that and pull it out. Then Ryuu had to lick the prick of blood that was welling up until it stopped. But oh well. Outside, outside, outside. Cats really were very simple-minded.

[Midna]

Red pulled away and he watched the cat go. Then Red ran into the door. A little surprised, Seiji watched him closer. Didn't he see the door? Why did he run into it? He slowly walked over and squatted by the cat, looking at his eyes. They were purple, but now that he looked at them more closely, they seemed to be sort of cloudy. "Are you... blind?" he asked quietly. It wasn't a problem if Red was. They'd be okay. It was just interesting. Seiji didn't think blind cats could survive well in the wild, especially as kittens, and this cat had saved him from a cart that could have killed him. He hadn't even seen it.

Reaching down, he pet the cat's head. "You're good at adapting, Red. But yeah, that's a door. I've got it." Then he opens the door, keeping an eye on the cat. It's nose seemed a little bloody, but he figured it would be okay.

[Snow]

Ryuu meowed and rubbed against the human's legs as the door opened and with one last meow he trotted outside to sniff the grass. Tail flicking, he was alert to every noise he heard, even the ones from the rats halfway across the next yard over. Ryuu found the bittersweet smelling plant and discovered it was catnip. Catnip didn't grow in the Dark Forest.

Purring, Ryuu lowered himself into the leaves and rolled around in them, making the bitter scent go sharply into the air. even the human would be able to smell it if he got close enough. The little cat even ate some of it, and after that he caught a mouse. It kept it half alive though and brought it to Ice Human, dropping it close by and meowing very loudly. However, unlike before, he couldn't sit still at all. He even chased his own tail a little.