Work Text:
It was indeed true what they say in that famous proverb:
“ Nell’occhio di un gatto, tutte le cose appartengono ai gatti ”
“ In a cat’s eye, all things belong to cats “
Every day of your life you had been receiving confirmation after confirmation of said statement since the moment Diavolo and Doppio, your adopted hybrid cats, had became part of your family, sharing their daily life with yours.
You still remembered the day you had heard a faint whisper when you had been passing by a shadowy alley, growing curious by the second about the provenience of said noise. You had seen a pair of big honeyed eyes staring at you from the shadow casted by the building’s shadow on the alley, conveying something akin to a sense of pleading. Baffled, but still quite cautious about who this mysterious person could be and what their motives could be to be so keen in attracting your attention and curiosity, you had become even more surprised when you had seen a stranger exiting the dark, featuring a mop of long bubblegum hair, adorned with a set of cat ears and a twitching long and fluffy tail. In a world where cat hybrids existed, you weren’t surprised to see one of them, given that their existence had been running along the one of humans for decades and centuries, to the point humans and their kind lived in harmony. While some of them lived in the streets as strays as their feline colleagues did, other seemed to prefer to live with humans.
This specific cat hybrid you had found, looked quite soft and his features held a tenderness you had seen rarely but the feature to struck you the most were his eyes: big like full moons and warms like a pool of honey, sending you a silent request to help him. He was quick in stating that he needed some help for somebody that was injured, fidgeting a little as he did so since he seemed to be very much worried about the conditions of his friend and it was very apparent in the way he looked at you, almost as if you held the keys of his salvation in your hands. Becoming worried about the wellbeing of somebody being badly injured, you had asked him to take you there to him and to lead the way, because you would have liked to help.
The mysterious cat hybrid seemed to grow more serene as you had told him you would offer some help to his friend and as he lead you to the location the other cat hybrid was at, he seemed to rush his presentation, telling you his name was Doppio. So, the one to draw your attention, asking you if you could cure the wounds of “his boss” as you remembered him saying was named Doppio. You really couldn’t grasp the reason why he referred to the other cat calling him with a title and not his real name. Why all this secrecy? He kept muttering something about somebody called “Giorno Giovanna”, another cat hybrid presumably, saying that “the boss” had lost the power over the cat territory he ruled over. It had been safe to assume that he referred to a cat fight, which had lead his injured friend to lose the portion of territory he had allegedly under his command. In fact, much as normal cats, hybrids could be quite territorial and the ones who lived in the streets, as you realized Doppio and the boss did, fought for their predominance over a specific area of the city.
Anyhow, as Doppio had taken you to the location where the injured boss stayed at, you couldn’t help but notice how secrecy was the main focus of this bizarre duo of hybrids. In fact, he had lead you inside an abandoned building with cobwebs and cracks on its antique walls. In that moment you had started to think that that shadowy building was only an excuse for luring you in and maybe have you as the protagonist of a theft or… even maybe a kidnapping! Why did you even followed this hybrid inside the building? Gosh, you had been too reckless… but something, inside his eyes, had told you that he really needed your help. He had meant it when he had begged you to come with him and help his “boss” and since you hadn’t detected any malice in his tone, his request of help seemed quite frank. But in that moment, you couldn’t help but grimace in realizing about the fact that you were risking so much in that moment… you only hoped Doppio had not been lying.
Maybe you had been too naïve in following Doppio that day since it could be something dangerous for you to partake in, but, at the end of the end, you were glad you had followed your guts feelings that told you to trust him. You had, indeed, found another injured cat hybrid and he had, indeed, been in something akin to a fight since he displayed some cuts and bloody injures in his toned body. It had hit you instantly, this was no ordinary cat hybrid. He was sitting in a big velvety chair, his body illuminated by the faint light that came from a barred window, his visage concealed by the dark. He, also, seemed to be resting in that moment, given how faint his breath was. Yes, he had been resting up after the fight that had ensued with the other hybrid named Giorno, but the fact you couldn’t see his face, didn’t deter your apprehension to raise to the highest point since his figure emanated such a dark aura and his physique seemed to be much more gargantuan and bulky than the one of Doppio. He reminded you of a sleeping lion, ready to pounce on the prey at their minimum movement. His tail, coated with a vibrant magenta as the one of the Doppio but with some black spots, stirred in the meek limelight, drawing spirals in the air.
Doppio had seemed to gesture towards him as if to galvanize you and confirm to you that that was the cat hybrid that needed your assistance which had you gulping and feeling even more intimidated, when you focalized again on the imposing frame of the boss, only to grimace internally in seeing he had opened the slits he had for eyes and had been studying you the whole time Doppio had captured your attention. Those jade eyes held such a terrifying gleam that you had casted your ones o the ground, unable to maintain eye contact with such a stern and cold gaze. Yes, the overall first impression you had of this “boss” was quite an anxiety inducted one for you.
“So, is this the human that is supposed to cure my wounds, my dearest Doppio?”
You had heard the mysterious boss speak from the dark, shivering a little as his deep voice had reverberated on the walls of the abandoned building, scraping your soul from the inside out. He had such a velvety voice, one who held such a magnetic and dark allure.
“Y- Yeah!” The other one replied, adjusting his tone since head fidgeted a little “Between all the humans I called upon to ask for help, she’s the only one who stopped by and listened to me, boss…”
Wow, seriously, had you been the only one to respond to Doppio’s call of intervention?
“I thought… I thought she would be willing to help with your wounds, boss…did I do well?”
His question had lingered in the air quite tentatively, as Doppio casted his hopeful eyes towards the jade ones, that looked at him with a somehow softer gleam, in respect of the one he had bestowed you with previously. You, then, had felt a strong constriction on your wrist, only to discover that the tail of the boss had latched and warped itself on your wrist, encasing it in a solid vice like grip. You felt it as he tugged you forward in quite an harsh way, making you stumble a little and taking you under the direct attention of those burning eyes. As you readjusted your stance, more light streamed on your face from the barred window since the boss had taken you directly in front of him, just under the direct source of light. You hadn’t dared raising your eyes up to meet his, but you knew he had been studying you quite attentively. He didn’t spoke for some minutes, before letting go of you wrist.
“She will do”
You didn’t know what strange trial you had just passed but, somehow, you had been able to convince the mysterious boss you weren’t a threat. The way he had grabbed you with that tail of his had truly scared you for a moment, since his hold had been, almost, bruising in its merciless grasp.
After that awkward moment, he had raised up and you had seem him in all his appalling glory, to the point you were breathless when his jade eyes had reflected the light that streamed from the window as he came more into view. He had been frontal to you and you couldn’t help but look anywhere else but his form, since standing up he looked to be even more intimidating than before. He, truly, oozed power from every chiseled muscle of his.
“Qual è il tuo nome, umana?” (What is your name, human?)
He called your attention on him again, making you flinch a little. As you told him your name, quite unable to take your eyes on his own stern gaze, he seemed to scoff a little, before instructing you on what you had to assist him with. He had had some serious injured for you to cure and some of them where so deep that you had wondered how in the world was it even possible for this hybrid to stand, given that he had been losing quite some blood. He had such a strong sense of resilience and, probably, even if he was suffering the aftermaths of his confrontation with the other hybrid, he stood tall and proud, intimidating as ever. In order to help him, you needed some medical supplies and thus, you had been fast in stating that you needed to go home and retrieve the kit. You lived quite near, too, so it was a true luck for the boss to be stationed near your house.
Anyway, you had been able to disinfect and bandage his wounds, with quite a bright blush too since you had to see him shirtless and well, to say that he was crafted by the hands of the gods could be quite the statement since his physique was elegantly enchanting, strong yet lean. And yes, he dismissed you without even saying thanks, saying something about the fact that you should have felt lucky to assist him in the first place and came out of that situation safe and sound. Yikes, just how intimidating was this hybrid? He was, probably, a powerful individual that nurtured quite the self esteem since he seemed to be very confident. Doppio, on the other hand, was the opposite, since he had looked at you with some uncertainty the first time he had laid eyes on you but, as you had helped his boss, he had seemed to grow more accustomed to you.
And truly, you didn’t know if it was the fact Doppio had started knocking on your door and asking bashfully if you could give him some tuna for his boss or the fact that he looked so happy when you gave some extra tuna to him, too, but soon, Doppio had became a regular presence near your house. When you came back from work, you found him sitting in the corner of your big garden, while he looked for frogs or just stared at the flowers that you grew in your spare time. He would always sit on the lush green grass, as the light of the Sun kissed his freckled face, his tail twitching in harmony with the little hum he released in the air as he waited for you to come back. You would provide him with some tuna and him, on the other hand, helped you with the garden and tended to the flowers you liked to grow in your colorful garden that pullulated with life and light. He enjoyed being around you to the point that he had flatly asked something very important, introducing the matter mimicking the way he would ask confirmation to the boss:
“(Y/N), you know, I really enjoy your company and I was thinking about something… “
He had looked from side to side, quite uncertain to move the proposition forward since he feared you would reject it and, maybe, think that he was a weird hybrid to be asking you that specific question that was so sporadic for a hybrid to direct to a human. He really liked how kind you were, not only to him with all the extra tuna you gifted to him, but you had been so cooperative and gentle while treating the wounds of the boss too. He had taken a quick liking to you and he found your garden to be so Heaven on Earth, a sacred little Eden where he could sought out refuge to when the boss was busy with other matters such as reclaim back his throne from the paws of the usurper Giorno Giovanna.
In fact, Giorno and his allies had defeated the boss and relegated him to the border of the city, near the countryside, there were he would be afar from the Neapolitan city and he would be deterred from having any influence in the partition of the territories in which the gangcat (as Giorno liked to call himself) could have full control. The territory the boss had governed on was, currently, under the control of Giorno Giovanna and of his group and, of course, this fact had ignited such a burning lust for vengeance in Diavolo, that he couldn’t help but wanting to retake what once had belonged to him. Doppio and Diavolo had always been together since they were brought upon this world of cat fights and humans, hence why Doppio stayed with his boss even now, that he was exiled in the border of the city, humiliated to live like any other common stray cat. Diavolo couldn’t digest the fact he had lost his crown and the fact that Giorno held all his riches and all the fishes that were once paid as a tribute to him by the other hybrids, had him harboring a gloating plan for revenge.
But, even in this chaotic scenario in which he staid side by side with Diavolo, Doppio had encountered you, a kind human, and he was happy to have you as his friend, to the point he would have liked to be adopted by you. Him and Diavolo had always lived freely, without feeling the need to merge their life with the humans. In fact, if a cat hybrid sought out a companionship, it was possible for them to make a deal with the human they wanted to live with, since hybrids like him had rights like humans but could still benefit of the option to be “adopted” and begin a peaceful existence of cooperation with the human they wished to live with. The best thing to do in order to live in an everlasting equilibrium was leaving the cat hybrids to chose their paths correspondently to their wills and aspirations, hence why no human could strike an adoption deal with them if they didn’t want to participate in them.
But Doppio, unlike his boss, had always been quite sympathetic to the option of sharing and living his life with an human when Diavolo, on the contrary, was opposed to the idea since he had to qualms in stating that no human would ever hold any power upon him and that he would have never called an human something like “master”. He ignored any other view on the human kind and had always been hell-bent on wanting to claim the crown of the cat hybrid world. He had no interest for humans and the like, which was another difference that run parallel to the set of differences that intertwined him and Doppio. First of all, their breed: Doppio belonged to the breed of the Singapura cat while Diavolo was a mix between a Bengala cat and a Korat cat.
As any other specimen of this breed, Doppio looked petite in comparison to the likes of other cat hybrids and had quite a bright set of big eyes while personality wise, he had the same initial shyness around strangers at first. But he had also the same curiosity and playfulness of a Singapura, as testified by the moments in which he looked for some frog to befriend. Hybrids like him, also, liked to have some company and his boss had always served as a great companion for him, since Diavolo instructed him and he acted bringing his boss’ orders and requests to fulfillment. Diavolo, on the other hand… could be quite an hassle. His personality was the same of the Korat cat from which his genealogy sank its roots: Korat cats are named “little tyrants” for their peculiar personality that resembles the one of a monarch, since cats of this breed are dominant and like to subjugate other animals, or even people, under their command, just like Diavolo liked to do.
Korat cats, also, need the “ideal” master, somebody stubborn and decisive just as them with whom interface themselves: if they find the one, then, they can disclose their softer side to their chosen master. However, Diavolo was sure that no human was going to be called “master” by him, because not only did he like to play by his own rules and be in charge of everything like a true emperor, but he also seemed convinced of the fact no human would be good enough for him to be recognized as an eligible human worthy to be called “master”. There was no way in Earth him, the king that stands at the apex, was going to even recognize an human as worthy of being called in that way, since he didn’t seemed to like the concept of life with another human to begin with. The other part of his mixed breed, the Bengala one, provided him with that peculiar leopard like dotted fantasy that he displayed in his long and shiny hair, a fantasy that was present in his robust tail and pointed hears too. Personality wise, he conserved the same instincts and their vivacity.
Yes, Diavolo was quite different from Doppio but, somehow, they had been able to exist peacefully and become one a powerful cat hybrid that now versed in a condition of exile, waiting for the day he could gain his power back and dethrone Giorno, while the other was his loyal second in command. Yet, for how functional they were in cooperating side by side, Doppio seemed much less acrimonious as Diavolo was and this is, exactly, what had led him to ask you this particular question, after the suspense of his first sentence:
“U-umh, vediamo (let’s see ), come posso dirlo (how can I say it )… I was asking myself if you would ever consider adopting me and the boss…? It’s just that I like your company and you are one of the kindest humans I have ever encountered…ah, I know, it sounds weird! Cavolo, non avrei dovuto dirti nulla….! (Gosh, I shouldn’t have said anything to you) You must think I am a creep now…”
He trailed off, while looking so discomforted by the prospect of you thinking something negative about him. He was quick to voice out all the doubts his mind was spiraling in as he started to blurt out this never ending string of sentences all attached the one to the other:
“I think you are a great human and…you are nothing like those lousy humans that the boss warned me about and I would like to live with you and help youinthehouseifyouneeditbecauseyoulivealoneandmeandthebosscouldyou and-“
Yes, he was babbling at this point and the most baffling part was that he had everything on his own accord since you hadn’t uttered a syllable, so enraptured you were in listening the proposition he wanted to address to you. He was already spiraling in thoughts of self doubt about himself, probably regretting to having voiced what he wanted to ask to you. In front of how distraught he seemed to be, you were quick to put an hand on his shoulder, which made him slightly jump as he broke from his spiral of doubts and regrets. He looked at you puzzled, as you simply smiled at him, showing him the supportive smile he loved to see so much on you.
“Hey, hey, Doppio, it’s okay”
You said to him, in order to make him see that you didn’t hold any resentment towards his idea and that he had been too fast in auto diagnosing himself with your refusal.
“And you know what I think? I think that this is, indeed, a great idea!”
He seemed to be taken back when you showed your agreement towards his offer since he had thought he would be sent home instantly by you with a sore pride, too, after witnessing you grimacing and sending him back to the boss. Luckily enough, what he had been thinking had revealed itself to be quite the contrary of that bitter mental image he had already set in his mind. You nodded your head eagerly and reiterated the fact that tying a contract of adoption between you, him and Doppio was an idea that you enjoyed very much. After all, you lived all alone and you stayed of the your house for quite some time every day thanks to your job. You had such a big house with a seemingly big garden full of life and beautiful flowers, but, sadly, there was anybody else with which you could share all this beauty with. It was, actually, the big house that you had inherited from your grandmother which you sued to visit when you were a child. Yeats had passed, but the beauty engrained in those beautiful and vibrant flowers had never slithered away. In the same fashion you had loved playing outside in the summer, in the same way Doppio loved to bask in the natural glow of the Sun and of the beauty of your garden, which was something akin to a sanctuary.
Seeing Doppio enjoying some sunshine outside your porch or seeing him running around while trying to catch a solitary frog had been, by far, one of the most heartwarming things you had witnessed while staying in that gigantic house, too big to be lived in with lonesome. You loved the peacefulness and the quietude it provided since it was in the outskirt of the city but you couldn’t deny the fact that you would have loved some company, hence why you adored the fact Doppio came to visit you. He could be so goofy sometimes and seeing him playing outside happily made you happy, too, since you could provide some entertainment for him. He looked tense most of the time you encountered him, but inside your enchanting and lively garden walls, he was at peace.
You, also, feared for thefts to happen and since you weren’t home for most of the day, the fact that you lived in a more secluded area came with the worry that some burglars could enter your propriety while you were at work and without nobody noticing. But, if somebody like Doppio, or even the other frightening cat hybrid that Doppio called his boss lived with you, then, there could be some more security with somebody being inside the house. Even subtracting the fact of you wanting some company and Doppio wanting the same, their presence there could be a beneficial fact for you, too. The only problem was convince the boss to leave his hideout in the abandoned building near your house, but, somehow, Doppio was able to convince him that your house would provide a much more secure place to reside since not only that building was perilous but Giorno Giovanna didn’t know about you or the fact that you had befriended Doppio, hence why staying hidden in your house could be quite beneficial to him, too, since he could plot undisturbed in the shadow of a secluded room. Of course, Doppio would watch out for your safety, in order to not endanger you.
Somehow, you found yourself entangled with them and for a year you had been living with them. While you worked, Doppio took care of the house and Diavolo stayed hidden, reinvigorating his health back and devising a new plan for his glorious return. In exchange, you always bought the most flavorful fish and food you could find on the market and provided for their needs. Part of their cat nature was still visible in the way they behaved around you and while Doppio had been fast in growing more affectionate to you, Diavolo, who you called boss since he didn’t want you to know his name yet, was the most vicious of the two. He was always stern with you and he always requested for you to buy the premium quality tuna, which could be quite expensive to buy. But, as a sign of good will, you abided his whims and bought all the tuna his heart desired. Another thing he used to do was breaking something of yours: you didn’t know if he did it because he hated you or because he couldn’t settle down about the fact that you had, without a doubt, became their adopter, but you always found some vase or glass shattered in front of your door, as to say that you were the next. On top of that, he could be quite bratty, too, as he always requested for you to brush his hair every day and if he wasn’t satisfied, you would have to do it again.
Yes, he was quite dominant as expected from his Korat cat genes, even if you didn’t see much of him to begin with. He always stayed hidden in his room which you had equipped with a computer for him to use. He had every comfort you could think of: you had even gotten him a personalized stretching post with a fantasy matching his tail and hair and while he had scoffed when you had presented the gift to him, unknown to you was the fact that he appreciated that his human servant, because he deemed to be that, would show such interest in creating a good bond with him. He always treated you with complacency and he had never used a word of kindness in your regards. Still, you were stubborn just as him in showing to him that you were a good human and while he was determinate in showing his power with strength, you were determinate in showing yours with keeping a solid coherence in your will. He wouldn’t bring himself to admit it just yet because of his pride, but between all the humans, you were the most likeable he had encountered.
Doppio, on the other hand, had been more prone in adjusting to the situation and seemed to like your closeness even more. He always liked to purr when you returned from work and rubbed his ears with a little smile or brushed the comb through his knotted hair, since he liked to play in the garden in the afternoon. Your touch was gentle as the breeze and he truly enjoyed the fact he had you in his life. Another thing he did was always placing his head in your lap as you watched the television with him, since it provided him with a sense of utter bliss and calmness. He had always fought for his life outside in the streets and being able to press the “stop” button in the chaotic entangle of his life felt heavenly, almost. And therefore, you went on, with Doppio being cooperative and happy to be in your life and with Diavolo trying to mine your enthusiasm, but not being able to do so in the slightest.
One specific afternoon, you were brushing the boss’, as he still wanted you to address him as, long mane of magenta hair in the living room, when Doppio stormed in with a frog and your telephone in his hands, which had both you and Diavolo whipping you heads towards the direction he had arrived from.
“(Y/N), your phone is ringing”
He said, before extending the hand that was holding the frog, only to correct clumsily his actions as he registered your puzzled glance.
“Ops, sorry, wrong telephone…!”
He said, while you see the frog clasped in his right hand being replaced by your ringing phone that was clasped in his left on, while he pushed it forward in order for you to take. He always performed actions that could be judged as quirky such as this one but you adored just how adorably quirky Doppio could be. You had seen him speaking through the most bizarre objects thinking he was speaking through the phone with the boss Diavolo, even if it was quite clear that the objects he chose were anything but telephones. This time he had, even, brought a frog inside your house which had you taken aback in reciprocating the curious stare the big eyes of the frog directed at you still questioning why she was being held inside Doppio’s fist. You knew Doppio was only playing and he would return to the garden soon enough, hence why you were quick to change your expression in a little smile and thank him for the assistance.
“Thank you so much, Doppio. Where would I be without you?”
You said, feeling quite grateful he had intercepted the ringing of the phone, since you had accidentally muted it. The id of the caller belonged to a work colleague, which meant you had to urgently respond to the call. As Doppio smiled back to you, out of your peripheral vision, Diavolo had rotated his head a little and was in the midst of staring intently at both you and his sweet Doppio. He registered the little smile you were able to make blossom every time you interacted with Doppio, which was something that both struck and irked him. He didn’t know what he was currently feeling but damn, he couldn’t negate the fact he was glad Doppio felt at ease around you. If there was somebody Diavolo ever cared about, that somebody was, indeed, Doppio. And seeing him so complacent and accustomed to research your presence and closeness, had made analyze his pattern of behavior and asked himself if maybe, maybe, he had yielded an iron first with you even when it hadn’t been a necessary act on his part. He had always been so deep in his own conviction of having rightfulness in his decisions, but what if, for once, he had been mistaking in judging you as any other lousy human? What if the great emperor had made a mistake in coming to a too fast and too biased conclusion?
The way Doppio behaved around you constantly made him aware of the fact that Doppio could look innocent and naïve, but he wasn’t. Doppio needed some reassurance, true, but he was not fool since he could be just as ruthless as him. Hence why the fact that his trusted companion was willing to trust you so willingly, had him questioning his judgment and his previous beliefs. Were you the one that could unhinge his previous resentment towards humans? Were you the one… worthy to be his equal? These questions accompanied the mind of Diavolo, as he witnessed you speaking through the phone with somebody whose name he didn’t care to remember. For how strange it may sound and for how much he didn’t want you to know, he actually was very interested about everything that concerned you. He always knew where you were and if he didn’t, he was quick in asking Doppio about your whereabouts. He didn’t know why he needed to know these information, but a cat king like him had always to be informed by the whereabouts of his human servants, right?
“Oh, hello Jean Pierre! Don’t worry, you never disturb me! How may I help you?”
As always, you sounded too much accommodating for your own good, Diavolo thought. You had said the name “Jean Pierre”, which only meant you were talking to that French man with which you worked alongside.
“Jean Pierre Polnareff, was it?”
He recalled his name, as his lips seemed to lock in snarl and his eyebrows in a frown since you had stopped brushing his marvelous mane in order to answer to another man’s telephone call. And not any man, this was the same man that sometimes flirted with you and that had sent you a bouquet of flowers for your birthday. Twelve red roses, Diavolo remembered counting. The vision of said flowers had made something snap in him as he had gyrated his claws in one of the roses, which had you alarmed and rushing to take the bouquet away from his grasp before he could ruin it. He didn’t like that bouquet. He didn’t like that man. He didn’t like any other man that you had around. He had never. He had even came out of hiding (which was unexplainable on his part) and scared the pizza delivery man away when he had seen you welcoming him inside the threshold of the house to pay the pizzas you had ordered. Hell, he hated every other man interacting with you if not his sweet Doppio. Yes, he didn’t know why his instincts clicked and made him feel such blind and reckless spurs of wrath, but it was something innate in his wild blood, something that resembled the feeling of pulsing blind rage he had felt when he had lost his territories to that damned Giorno. He had came to realize that he didn’t like when you were this nice to other people if not him and Doppio. Also, he refused to investigate the “why” of this last statement since he didn’t want to admit to himself that he, actually, enjoyed your kindness…
But for how proud the king could be, what remained certain was that he was growing irritated by that call. What did he want that man from you? You were already busy with combing his hair, couldn’t you just close the call and resuming your tranquil pace of brushing his long hair? You really were able to coax an unexplainable peace of mind in him, that that Polnareff, as he called him, had shattered in mere seconds. What could he be wanting now? He focused more on the conversation you were having, as he saw Doppio returning to direction he had came from, with the frog in tow.
“Yes, I am free on Sunday! Mh…To… what? Help you watch over some cat hybrids adopted by your sister Sherry…? A Maine Coon cat hybrid named Risotto, a Siamese cat hybrid named Melone and a Sacred of Burma cat hybrid called Prosciutto, you say…? Yes, I shouldn’t have any problem with that… Yes, at eight could work just fi-“
*click*
In a matter of quick seconds, your phone was snatched violently from your ear, as it was in the midst of being gripped by Diavolo in such a bruising hold, to the point you dreaded he would snap the utensil in two. He was boring holes in your soul as if you had just stepped on his tail in that moment, as if you had done something of undignified or offensive to him. You just stared shocked at the hybrid, not quite understanding what just had happened to make Diavolo snap in this violent way. Yes, he had some violent endeavors sometimes but, habitually, he never interposed your calls.
“What the hell had happened just now?”
You couldn’t help but think as you expressed all your concern and disbelief in that stare, a stare that begged Diavolo to answer and give an explanation for his behavior. On cue, he seemed to commute your shock in what could be defined as a question on the motives that had lead him to act in that way, a question that needed an answer. He… didn’t know why he had snatched your phone in that way at the mention of those three cat hybrids, male cat hybrids just like him, that could steal you away from him and Doppio just as that wretched Giorno had done with his kingdom. Maybe it was the reminiscence of the loss, maybe it was the growing unsettling feeling in thinking those other cat hybrids could mark you as mates would do, but anyway, Diavolo wasn’t going to accept you stepping out of the house and reserving your nurturing cures to any other cat that wasn’t him or Doppio.
He knew other hybrids too well, he knew you could conquer their hearts just as you had done with his dearest Doppio or how you were, slowly and painstakingly, doing with him and maybe, just maybe, this thought had ticked something off in him. Yes, he had heard stories, too, about one of those hybrids you had mentioned which was the one named Melone. He could be very affectionate, even perverse from what he recalled hearing about hence why Diavolo was already gritting his sharp teeth in envisioning him asking you to mate right away if he deemed you worthy which he knew you were. But no way in hell, the king himself, would let you watch over somebody so deranged. The thought of seeing you with a teeth mark that wouldn’t be originated from somebody that wasn’t Doppio or him, made the boss’ blood boil, to the point he had chosen to ignore the reason of such burning and churning anger and focalized in the task of forbidding you from going. You were his human, not Risotto’s, not Prosciutto’s, not Melone’s, not Polnareff’s, only his and Doppio’s. No more hybrids or humans he would allow staying close to you.
“Why did you react in that way, boss? I was having a conversation with my friend Polnareff just now… did I say something wrong?”
Ah, of course you would try to figure out his motives and you would do it in that gentle way you used to interface yourself with others, even when he, himself, didn’t know them. Gah, he hated how helpful and understanding you were with him, with Doppio, with everybody, with the whole world. It was a characteristic that some of his hybrids peers would have loved to have in a mate or a master, he knew that. It was, also, something he had always overlooked and never appreciated fully, always reasoning that humans were weak and nobody would be worthy of his attention. But now, not even knowing how, he seemed to reconsider some patters of his behaviors, as he seemed to realize what he had despised for so long, others may have found enticing in you. And the thought of such event to occur, of going back to the cold and the dark humidity of that abandoned building and of going back to the bitter taste of defeat accumulated with his hate and resentment, somehow unsettled him as he frowned and glared at you more heatedly, as if he wanted to communicate that no, you weren’t allowed to shift your attention from him and Doppio. You had told them that you were glad to have them in your life, then why would you ever consider watching over other cats? Weren’t they both enough for you? Or he had hurt you with his stern behavior to the point he had pushed you to the edge and made you willing to watch over other hybrids that weren’t him or Doppio?
He had always been quite paranoid with the matters that concerned him and his identity so it was only natural for him consider every possible scenario. Fact was that with you had provided an home for both him and Doppio and while he had accepted, primarily, to keep crafting his plan in secret and out of prying eyes, now he realized that it had been quite some time that his full interest had subdued in regards of the plan. How much time had passed since he hadn’t cursed out Giorno Giovanna or thought about a torture device to make Giorno pay for his insolence? Now that he thought about it, he had been more intrigued by what you did when you were present in the house, hence he was in the living room and not in his dark room where he always requested for you to brush his hair. He had started to come out a little more, especially if he knew you were present.
He wouldn’t say anything, maybe some witty remarks there and there to tease you, but nothing else. He would just stare at the way Doppio seemed to have found his peace with you, wondering if he, too, could ever achieve such a bliss, without having to worry about humans or hybrids discovering his identity or his whereabouts. He would just stare, quite struck by how the simplicity of a loving caress to his mop of magenta hair, could suffice to Doppio and make him feel so elated. Doppio had always been different from him character wise, but as any other Singapura cat, he put so much meaning in relationships just as he had put all his devotion in fulfilling Diavolo’s requests. They had always agreed on the fact that they would elevate themselves from the streets they used to inhabit, that they would transform their dreams of power in goals and goals into an empire and an empire into fear and fear into nightmares for the ones who didn’t bow their heads to the king. Diavolo had always been born to rule and order and while he was dominant, he recognized Doppio’s stubbornness and determination, too. His sweet Doppio had the same determination of a king like him but would a king be satisfied with so little?
They had lost their fine dresses, their lavish mansion, their connections, their money and the fear the mention of the boss of Passione was able to make flourish in the hearts of his opponents. But now, after Giorno’s coup, they had lost everything they had worked to achieve. Then, why, if Doppio was his equal, he was the only one to feel crushed by the loss? Why was Doppio so content with just the little things you offered him like kind pats and the tuna? A king deserved ambrosia and the finest meats for him to taste and savor, not the rose tea you brewed or the tuna filets you bought and yet, Doppio appeared to be appeased with just that. Then, maybe, had he been wrong in thinking that even this bucolic life with you couldn’t bring something more than just being an experience of hiding? Maybe you were worthy, after all, of being the a subject of his respect?
He didn’t know. What he did know was, however, that you watching over other cat hybrids was out of question.
“Forget it, you aren’t going”
He seethed, venom drabbling down every word he pushed out of his black painted lips as he glared at your puzzled form.
“But why? I should be way just a couple hours and I already gave my word I would help out Polnareff’s sister…”
“I don’t care, call back that dimwit and tell him you can’t be present. You are not going”
He seemed to grow more insisting and every phrase you said back sounded almost as if you were defying the order he had just gave to you. You were truly being committed to this whole matter of helping Polnareff’s sister and he appreciated your good heart but he wouldn’t allow you to stay in the proximity of other male hybrids, more than ever if they were very shameless like Melone.
“But why? I would like to help my friend since he always he-“
“Don’t make me repeat myself, I said you aren’t going to watch any of those fleabags and that’s final!”
He cut you off unceremoniously, slamming your phone on the table and glaring at you even more. If looks could kill, then, you would be already slaughtered by Diavolo’s burning gaze. His violent endeavor made every word die in your throat as your heart started beating rapidly in front of such an outburst. You couldn’t understand why the boss would behave in such a way. His vehement response had you instantly at loss for words, as you looked anywhere but his furious gaze. What had you done to make him so enraged? After some minutes of awkward silence in which you looked almost as if he had just kicked you in the gut with that statement, he talked again, seemingly more at ease.
“Now, if you don’t have difficulties in understanding even the simplest of commands, then, you won’t question my will any further”
He murmured, before passing you hastily and leaving you there mortified. You could only murmur, as his back had started retracting towards the dark of his chambers. Yet, he seemed to freeze in the moment he heard you lisping some sentences in quite a whispered fashion. Thanks to his hearing, he was able to capture every word your lips muttered and his eyes widened when he registered what you had said.
“Am I… am I really such a terrible person for you to hate me this much….?”
You had pondered absentmindedly, almost to yourself than him. You had forgotten he had such an exquisite hearing and he had been still in earshot and he had listened to what you had confided to yourself in that moment. It really stung you every time every time Diavolo behaved in this way, because it made you feel responsible for his wrath. Maybe you had offended him? Provoked him? Maybe you lacked the sensibility to understand him? With Doppio you tuned beautifully because he was always vocal with his needs or worries but the boss was another story, completely. He was always very secluded and didn’t reserve much kindness to you to begin with. He had the allure of something forbidden around him and most of the times you had wanted to connect better with him, to try to understand why he behaved in the way he did with you, yet nothing had came to mind. Yet, one thing was clear about him: he loved loyalty. He always referred to Doppio as “his trusted”, “his dear”, “his sweet”, “his loyal”, so could it be that you accepting to watch over other cat hybrids had him preoccupied about the fact you were willing to betray his trust?
“There is nothing terrible about you, it’s… them, that I don’t trust”
His voice boomed behind you, making you quite aware of the fact he had heard your little moment of self doubts. Yikes! You only hoped that he wouldn’t grow even more enraged and… but wait, what had he just said? That you weren’t the problem…?
“Those of my kind can be unrestricted with their advances and I won’t tolerate any of them soiling what belongs to me or Doppio with their puny hands or scents. The sole thought genuinely enrages me”
He kept going on, pinning you in place with that hoarse voice of him that forbade you from even trying to twist your head to meet his merciless eyes. You knew he was intending every deep Italian accented word he was muttering in that moment and just like the first time you had met him, you could feel the same dark and gloomy aura around him, which suggested to you that he wasn’t kidding. Diavolo was a hybrid of word and he had been a ruler, once, that did what he said. He had no qualms in killing and torturing if he had to, anything would be acceptable in his monarchic mind in order for him to seize the crown. But since he had been spending more time with you, he had started to count you as one of the riches Giorno or any other hybrid couldn’t steal from him and he was hell-bent on pursuing this conviction, because he wouldn’t allow what he had built from crumbling again. He knew that he had to protect what he had now even more than before, because peril could be lurking in your life. And not only that, but you were dear to Doppio and having you visiting other hybrids, returning home with their scents imprinted on your skin and maybe talking about them, too, would make Doppio grow restless too. He couldn’t permit such an event to occur.
“Tu sei la mia umana, non osare dimenticarlo”
(You are my human, don’t you dare forget it)
And that was it, his admission. You couldn’t help but widen your eyes in pure disbelief and pinching yourself a couple of time to ensure yourself with the certainty this wasn’t a dream. You were positively flabbergasted by him calling you in that way and even in you hadn’t met his eyes, you knew he had been dead serious, as he always was if he wasn’t enraged or in his teasing moments. So, you weren’t in a daydream, right? Right?
He had called you “his human” when never he had, because he didn’t address you with words that could be perceived as tender, because nothing in Diavolo’s world was tender. It was cruel, dark and bloody, stained crimson as the crimson king he was. But with you, he felt as if the dark aura of his existence had subdued a little, making him experience something that the streets had never gave him. He had run only after power and secrecy, because the crown is a heavy bless and curse to yield but now, his world seemed to relent a little, maybe making him see that not all humans were rotten to the core as he had believed. And that some humans are worthy fighting for, that some of them are even worthy of being respected and protected, because curing kindly the wounds of a stranger without gaining anything back is a proof of the fact humans can be fueled by something else but selfish desire to have and conquer. You were one of those rare humans and, maybe, Doppio had understood it much more prior than him, when he had called you to help him.
As you remained paralyzed by such an occurrence, Doppio entered the scene with the frog sitting upon his head in between his twitching hears, taking you back to the reality at hand.
“Hey (Y/N), I just saw the boss passing by! Che mi sono perso? (what did I just miss)?”
He inquired as he sat parallel to you on the table, while you were staying up frontal to him. You couldn’t help but chuckle in seeing the frog that sat upon his head looking at you quite curiously. And, of course, your smile couldn’t help but remain on your lips when you remember what Diavolo had just admitted to you.
If only Doppio knew!
At dinner, Diavolo had not manifested in the slightest. He had opted to stay in his room, hence why it was only you and Doppio at the table. You were a little worried about the other hybrid but you knew he was, probably, self analyzing about what he had told you that afternoon. You only hoped he didn’t regret what he had said to you, since you had detected a somehow strange sense of caring in his words and even…jealousy, was it? Yes, he had sounded quite convinced about the fateful words he had entrusted you with and you couldn’t help but feel a little better in witnessing that even a bond with somebody of morbid doubt of mistrust as the boss could be convinced, slowly, that you were a good willed individual. For now, you would concede him his spaces and, maybe, see if this little moment of peace had profited something eventful for your bond. As per now, you observed the happy gleam inside Doppio’s eyes as he finished his third plate of cod fillets. You had bought them that morning to make a surprise for him and Diavolo, and, hopefully enough, he had liked them and had asked to do an encore already two times.
“Thank you so much for this delicious dinner, (Y/N)! You are the best!”
He crooned happily, feeling so satisfied about the meal he had just had. Doppio was like this, sometime he could be clumsy in elaborating his speeches with uncertainty, but other times he was very bold and straightforward. This was one of those time and he seemed to be beaming in front of what else you had prepared for the dinner, which was a slice of red velvet cake, which he always seemed to like. Both him and Diavolo liked the color crimson red and for this reason, you had prepared a cake that integrated that color in quite a rich way. Doppio would always compliment your bakery skills and Lady Luck had really kissed him in the forehead when he had consigned both him and the boss to your cures. Anyhow, you couldn’t help but notice that Doppio had some flower petals sticking out of his braid, which was a little tangled since he had been playing outside with the frog till that moment. He seemed to be a little tired, too, as he his ears had flopped a little and he had yawned after his last spoonful of delicious cake.
“Do you want to go to rest, Doppio?”
You inquired, as you collected the flowers petals from his unruly hair an started combing his hair with your hands, in order unknot the braid that was resting on his shoulders. Doppio let out a purr of satisfaction in feeling your soft movements on his wild tresses, as you combed his hair delicately and with a flutter of your fingers, in order for him to feel relaxed in the best way possible. You had always loved how long his hair was and how shiny and soft they were at the touch, he always wore them in a braid and it suited him but when he had them falling on his shoulders like a velvety curtain, he would grow even more beautiful than already he was. he loved when you played with his hair and he couldn’t help but moving his tail softly in appreciation, his eyes dropping a little as his purring stayed low-key, like a low soothing rumbling which indicated he was so happy in that moment.
“Nwwwaa, it’s too soon, yet…”
He trailed off, before laying his head on top of his folded arms and stalling for a little, just enjoying the little spark of joy his heart felt in relishing in your warm and soft touch. You kept caressing his hair with such a slow fashion, that he couldn’t help but let his heavy lids slip shut for a moment, as he lost himself in the momentary bliss.
“You know…” You heard him mutter, between another yawn and his low purring “I am really glad I met you that day… you are so kind to us… like…like an angel….”
So cuteee! His speech ha literally melted your heart. He looked so soft in that moment and he kept fighting with his own need to go to sleep in order to keep talking and telling you that he appreciated you and everything you had done for him and his boss. He had been almost slurring his last two words and with some stalling in between, too, which told you he was growing so relaxed to the point he was close to fall asleep directly on the table. Even if your heart menaced to burst open from the glee of such a sweet moment, Doppio needed to rest since he had been running here and there all the day, first taking care of your flowers and then, playing with the frog. He really needed to go to bed, you didn’t want him falling asleep on the hard surface of the table, after all.
“I am so happy to have you in my life, too, Doppio. Without you, my life would be so monochromatic and dull, but with you here, I always feel thankful and looking forwards to another day to live with you”
You whispered to him quite near to his ear, which had him twitching his tail in delight and his purring augmenting as he let out a sigh of content in hearing you say such beautiful things to him. He was so glad you thought such things of him… he was glad he had grown the right courage to ask you to “adopt” him and the boss that day or else, he wouldn’t be experimenting all the warm feelings he felt thanks to you. He, also, slept with you sometimes since he always wanted to have his master, as he had recognized you to be from quite some time, near him. Yet you had never expected him to call you in that way nor did you want him, too. For him you were (Y/N), not “master”, and for this little detail he liked you even more. Still, sometimes he called you master without wanting, too, since his heart recognized you as “master”. That day he had asked you to sleep in your room since he had been having some nightmares recently and you had caved in quite instantly as you had patted his head and reassured him over the fact that he could sleep with you every time nightmares tormented him.
“But you are falling asleep, dear. I think it’s time to go to bed, Doppio… and if you come with me right now, you’ll receive an extra portion of cuddles too”
You finished your phrase, as you saw his eyes opening instantly as he sprung to life, quite revitalized by the prospect of receiving cuddles.
“E-extra portion of cuddles? I am in!”
He remarked enthusiastically, before standing up with such a merry step and running off towards your room, as you chuckled in seeing how goody and adorable he could be. You finished reordering the kitchen and putting the last plates in their respective places, before stopping to think about the boss, Diavolo, for a while. You asked yourself if he was okay and you couldn’t help but wonder if he would be fine since he had disappeared for all the evening and had sent Doppio to communicate to you that he would not join dinner. Another thing you wondered about was his name. He had never revealed it to you before but with the new event that had happened between you two, you hoped he would grow secure enough to share such precious data. Even Doppio called him “the boss” and this fact spoke volumes about his love for secrecy, since Doppio was the being he trusted the most in the whole world. Or better, the only one he could trust because more than often, trust can be easily broken. But you hoped Diavolo would be willing to give you a chance, starting with revealing his name to both you and Doppio when he felt ready for it.
You finished your last kitchen tidying before turning off the lights, as you made your way to your room, only to find Doppio already passed out inside a cocoon of covers and while holding your pillow close to his chest, almost as if it was your substitute. He had no idea how precious he looked in that moment but since he seemed to have found sleep quite easily, you decided to not rob him of his precious sleep, as you opted to close the door slowly and tiptoeing to your side of the mattress, after taking another pillow from the closet. Thankfully your bed was one square and a half hence why you didn’t have problems in welcoming Doppio and rest comfortably in the shared space. He didn’t take much space to begin with, since he slept near to the border of the bed. Yet, as you settled down under the cover, you reached out towards Doppio and caressed the points of his hair, which had him scooting closer and pressing his head towards your previous pillow even more, as he started purring even more. You felt content with just that and feeling satisfied and both blessed to have Doppio by your side, you started to snooze off as fatigue was nesting itself in your system, while lulled by Doppio’s faint purring and his gentle breathing.
….
….
Zzz….
You were almost close to falling asleep soundly, when you felt something brushing against your cheek, feeling almost like sand paper. It had the same abrasive texture of a cat tongue, you remarked in your sleep induced train of thoughts.
Cheek. Sand paper. Tongue. Cat.
Yes… you had two hybrid cats inside your home’s walls. And well… had somebody licked you just now?! What the…?
“WAIT A MINUTE”
You were quick to think, opening your widened eyes in such a frantic haze as you struggled to adjust to the dark. Almost instantly, you could make out the outline of a heavy body on top of yours, propelled only by his hands that held him up and caged you against the mattress. Not only the gargantuan physique of said male was quick to register itself on your mind as you felt his weight pressing down on you, but you could feel every centimeter of his abs pressed directly into your skins, since he was literally attached to your body in such a tight enclosure. Then you focalized on the bright mischievous gleam of jade eyes and as you connected the your bewilder and scared gaze to his own wicked and entertained one you knew who the culprit was. You could almost see the faint ghost of a teasing smile in his full lips, but those eyes staring at you brightly held the same gleam you had seen the first time you had spoke to him after meeting Doppio. It was the boss! It was him! You could see the silhouette of his body and of his sharp features from the faint light that shined through the crack of the window of your bedroom. Yet, there in the dark, there was only you and him, Diavolo and his little human, tightly sealed the one with the other.
“Oh, look at who finally decided to wake up. I’ve been calling you for quite some time, you know, sleeping beauty?”
He taunted you mockingly, whispering directly on your quivering lips, as he closed the distance between your two, to the point he was a breath away from you, so hazardously close you could almost taste the fire of his smug lips on your own lips.
“Who were you dreaming about? You looked so adorable just there…”
He trailed off, as you focused your attention anywhere else that wasn’t the provoking little speck of space that separated you from this hulky cat hybrid, inviting you to seal it shut. He was, seriously, a code you couldn’t crack. Before he looked so inimical in disclosing any information with you and now he stood on top of you, pressing your body on his own and making your heart jump to your throat given how sweetly he kept brushing your hair and stood dangerously close to your lips, never fully close to claim them but far enough to make you pay attention if you didn’t want to brush your mouth with his own. He was provoking you with such a tantalizing offer and putting you at the center of a trial to see if you would handle the way he could treat you. He caressed you like made of crystal or fine china and even if his touch was faint and light, you felt burning it on the surface of your skin, delving a feathered path that leaved goose bumps in every open space of skin he found to taunt with his feverish touch. What a devil cat he was!
“I didn’t get much sleep to begin with thanks to somebody’s intervention…”
You trailed off, as he snickered silently in seeing how sassily you were responding to him. Ah, he loved when you dropped the docile surface and engaged to battle with some sassy remarks of your own. He felt really enthralled by this duality, a duality that was enrapturing his mind in that moment, too.
“Why did you…lick me? You could have… you know… just shook me a little if you wanted me to wake up…”
Now you were growing conscious but what he had done. How bold of him to even think of doing such an intimate gesture of affection, since cats usually show their liking for another of their specie in this way. But him… licking you…. oh gosh. You could feel your heart beating wildly under his fiery gaze, his lips curving in a malicious smile as he saw just how flustered you were growing in the way you were speaking to him. Meek voice, broken sentences and some heavy breaths there and then, Diavolo knew he was teasing you just right and damn, he loved every second of it to the point he wished he had intruded in your room much before, because he didn’t know teasing you so sensually could kidnap his mind in this blazing fire he felt growing inside his soul, nor that your faint blushing could be so delicious. You stayed pinned down his massive body, close yet not enough as you shivered in registering how dangerously his lips staid in confrontation to yours. You both looked as if the minimal contact would scorch you both and leaving you bleeding out in the fires of the passion you felt flowing inside your blood with every beat of your anxious heart and his wicked one. Gosh, what even was he doing to you…. this was such a different feeling from the one you had just lived with Doppio. Doppio was like a flowery meadow in spring and a promenade under the stars with cotton candy, but the boss was like diving in an ocean of blazing fire, stirring chaos and passion altogether.
“I can do what I please with what belongs to me, sai? (You know?) Also, since I don’t recall preaching about the way you treat your belongings, I would advise for you to stop chastising me about mine, dear human”
He said to you, then, which had your mind growing blank in front of what he was whispering to you, the whisper of a demon engraved by the darkness of the night and the warmth provided by his stone muscled body merged with your softer one. He had quite some audacity! He was implying you were…his? What? You stayed put quite caught up with everything he was disclosing to you. You didn’t know what was going on with him and all this talk about you belonging to him but hell, the way he spoke to you, a dark velvet whisper, had your mind locked on the alluring being that was Diavolo. His words made you shiver, as the darkness swallowed his whispers.
“And besides…” You felt him usher to you then, just right beside your face, as you sensed him being much more closer than before, as you kept your breath locked inside your lungs, unable to think about anything else that was the sin incarnated by him and his sensual voice “I thought I had already pointed out that quite clearly in the afternoon, but you seem to be lacking some understanding skills, after all…”
He proceeded to say, as he dragged suavely his tongue on your cheek swiftly, for the second time, while making you blush the reddest shade you had ever blushed in your life. Diavolo gloated with pride seeing how worked up he was getting you to become since he had quite the ascendant on you. He loved the way you reacted to his taunting, he loved the little squeaks you emitted and if you let him, he would have ruined you with how lovely you were being. In sensing how your breath had hitched up at his mercy he felt ecstatic and he adored getting lost in this forbidden intoxication of the sense. Your heart menacing to burst out of your ribcage if you only listened to the silver talk of this merciless charmer, that had came to you, in the night, acting like a shadow and talking like a devil.
The boss, the crimson king, the sweet talker, the poisoned filled emperor had came to you that night, refusing to stop his actions furthermore. After what he had said to you, apostrophizing you as his human, he realized the only was to destroy this fascination he felt was to concede a piece of you to the part of him that reassured him over the fact you could be trusted and that you wouldn’t be a traior like many had him. No, you had cured his wounds, welcomed him and his dear Doppio and you were always so understanding and gentle, but, overall honest, and he loved to see honesty displayed in front of him just as he loved loyalty.
“You, padroncina (little mistress), belong to me, Diavolo, and to my loyal Doppio, only. No one else is allowed to bask in your kindness or beauty…”
So that was his name, Diavolo… quite fitting, you had to say, but it wasn’t as if in that moment you were in the middle of having an heart attack given that he was oh so sensually coaxing you in feeling a million of contrasting feelings that battled themselves inside your mind, as you heart was beating like a drum and your cheeks looked, probably, like two tomatoes. Oh gosh, what was Diavolo doing? Later you would feel happy he had chosen to finally entrust with his name but the way he had done it? Damn, it was so much. So much teasing, so much direct boldness for him to perform since he didn’t seem to hold any profound affection towards you.
For what reason had he come to you in the first place? Diavolo had told himself he would, strictly, address some apologetic words to you, which was, already, an incredible and unexpected thing for him, since he didn’t do apologies nor did he regret his doings. He always felt like his actions were justified by his rightful judgment, but as he had pondered about how defeated you had locked when he had shouted at you, something akin to subtle regret had clasped his heart, which was something a merciless tyrant as him was never bound to feel. But he did. He didn’t know how, he didn’t know why, he just felt as if you hadn’t done anything wrong to him for him to punish you in such a way with his dejection. And so there he was, unleashing his inner desires on your warm body, since he had thought that apologize would give him some peace of mind. But no, he was still there, pressed to you like a magnet, looking at you as if he waited for you to accept the confession of his name. He wanted to hear you say his name, to hear your beautiful voice calling to him just this once, because to know his name would be the deepest honor you would have. He was honoring you with disclosing such a secret with you and even if his better judgment had protested, something inside his dark heart had told him that you were trustworthy. That you would keep his name sealed in your tantalizing lips and kind heart, till the end of time.
“Diavolo….”
You repeated after him, quite still stricken by him having that name. he stared at you enraptured by the way his name rolled off your tongue, which made him only wishing he could taste it directly on your mouth as you screamed it. Ah, hey, woah there! Dangerous fantasies came with that thought, Diavolo realized and if he stayed with you more than he already had, he could transform that rampant passionate fantasies in reality. And maybe, it was already too fast, too sudden for you to accept. For him, too, it was, since he couldn’t proceed in explaining why you were having that effect on him to begin with. He had resonated with himself that he would come to your room to make amends for the way he had treated you previously, but somehow he had found himself pressed to you, ears twitching in anticipation and tail swinging from side to side as he looked almost ready to pounce on you and devour you like the half predator he was.
“Yes, that is my name. It was time for you to discover it, don’t you think? You have always been a good human with us and I wanted to repay the favor, somehow… and I probably shouldn't stay here anymore since you don’t even know what I would like to do to you... what I would do if I was not restraining myself…”
You could only gulp as you felt him nuzzling just beside your neck, as he took in your enthralling scent. Damn, he was really trying his best to not bite you right there, because the inner part of soul told him to mark you out as his already. His tail kept twitching in deep interest and his eyes were close in that moment, as he strained to keep his behavior in check and not pounce on you more than he already had. He could feel the beating of your heart pushing against his and since he was so close to you, every emotion and feeling was amplified. You kept being bewitched by him, allowing him to hold you as close as his heart desired, because maybe, part of you had always wanted to tie a connection with him, even if you hadn’t thought it would resort to manifest in such a passionate way. Everything of Diavolo was passionate: his feelings, his motives, his rage, his violence, his goals, his dark interests, his hate and his adoration for you, which he had hidden from you all this time. Yet, like Pandora’s box, the chest in which he had concealed his true emotions about you, had been pushed open with such violent force from the moment that had had sensed a menace in you watching over other hybrid cats. He had denied this fact to himself and to you the most, but he was really affected by you, no matter how many times he told himself he would never let a human have such an effect on him.
Your heart was pumping blood like a piston since his whispers kept caressing something deep inside your soul, something deep that could kept being scraped by that hoarse tinge in his deep voice. He had uttered those words leaving you breathless once more. He had sounded talking more to himself than any other as he drawn back, admiring the faint blush adoring your cheeks from that speck of light that came from the crack of the window. With the light and shadow you had met the first time and in a way, you were like a little light that had entered their lives, bringing some of its ethereal glow to the darkness they had been hiding till that moment.
“But… it’s late for me, too. Hence why it would be wise for me to go to sleep as my sweet Doppio has already done”
He lastly commented, as his pointed ears dropped a little before detaching himself from you and leaving you more room to breathe and starting to think again, which was very much needed since he had robbed you of your breath for a solid moment of time with how mischievous he had been. Sly Diavolo, sly devil. But he had to go, because he realized he was entering a maze he couldn’t come out alone. He decided to trust you for now, to give you the benefit of the doubt, to trust what Doppio’s vision of you was and had always been from the very start. He had thought that a sample would quench his hunger of you but it had been the contrary all along. If he remained, he would lose all the control he had on himself and this wasn’t supposed to happen just yet. Maybe, with time, he would grow to trust you fully as he had avoided to do till that moment and you would grow to trust him in the same way.
To being able to construct a solid bond of trust can take quite some time but one of you had to start building, somehow. You had put the first stone forward, now Diavolo took after you and would wait to see you put another stone on the path to bridge of trust you had wanted to build so badly with him. No, it wasn’t still time to be tamed by hellish desires, no matter how strongly they gripped his heart and told him to feed more of you to this interest. No, he would wait, because you both still needed time to let sink what had just happened. He needed time to see if he had done what was right for him in deciding to trust you with such a precious information, an information he was sure you would have clutched tight to your heart. But for now, the wisest thing was for him to mutter:
“Fai sogni d’oro, principessa” (“Sweet dreams, princess”)
This was what he lastly muttered on your lips, before leaving your comfy embrace with an heavy heart but with the notion that whatever feeling had just invested the two of you, it needed to be metabolized and understood by both parts, first. His jade eyes remained imprinted in the midst of the night mixed with the reflection of the moon, as your heart kept hammering and your mind blazing with rampant thoughts in front of what had just happened. Not only Diavolo seemed to find you finally worthy of his unattainable trust but he found you to be worthy of his respect… and of his jealousy, too. What a wild day it had been!
At the night progressed, you could only lay awake as Doppio snored tranquilly with his pillow under his body as you tried with all your might to find relief in slumber but hell, every dream kept reminding you of the devil that had came in the night to tantalize you and taunt you, giving a proof of his renewed trust and intention to be willing to see you as a human he respected and, maybe, longed to have close, too.
Indeed, at the end of the night, only one thing remained certain, as that proverb used to say:
“ In a cat’s eye, all things belong to cats”