Work Text:
Da Qing was lounging atop Zhao Yunlan’s chest of drawers — well, on top of the mountain of dirty socks on the chest of drawers — in cat form, because he was trying to have a think, and heaven knew that the best way to have a thought was to be in the superior form of a feline. And obviously he had to do it where he could get a full view of the corridor and any birds that might fly their way, because uniting with the noble instincts of the cat was the best way to solve any problem.
And Da Qing was contemplating an important problem indeed, for behind the closed door he was watching lived Shen Wei. It wasn’t often that someone came along that Da Qing and the SID couldn’t figure out in a few meetings, and even less frequently one that made Zhao Yunlan look as if there might be some mysteries that he would be happy to leave unanswered. Which was to say, Da Qing was fully aware of just how suspicious Shen Wei was at this point. Which was why he stepped forward when a gust of wind revealed that Shen Wei’s door was unlocked.
What even was that scent? After the thousands of years spent wandering Haixing, Da Qing had thought himself an expert on every fish there was. He sniffed carefully. It smelt like mackerel, which Zhao Yunlan sometimes slipped him from the bento sets he got Xiao Guo to buy for him from two blocks down, except this had a smoky charred scent that rivaled Old Li’s fish. And okay, Da Qing knew he was being disloyal to Old Li, but the smoky charred wonder was practically calling Da Qing’s name, tingling his taste buds with the idea of all that fishy goodness all over his teeth, oil glistening proudly on his whiskers.
Well, let it not be said that Da Qing ever let perfectly good food go to waste. He leapt off his perch, landing without a sound, and padded towards Shen Wei’s door, tail held high. At the last minute, he decided it would not be wise to speak to him and reveal that he wasn’t, in fact, an ordinary cat before they had the chance to figure out just what exactly Shen Wei’s deal was. Ah, in fact, this was it. Da Qing wasn’t slacking off, heaven forbid. He was doing work. Important reconnaissance work. On the titles of the books on the shelves of the living room, none of which were about fish. Or the wooden sculpture on the table, which was so close to where the fish was. One of the fish tails even fluttered slightly in the wind, as if waving Da Qing over.
Da Qing padded in, summoned the best wide-eyed look of innocence he could muster, and announced his presence with a meow. When Shen Wei turned a pair of round eyes on Da Qing, the cat did his best to convey how very special he was and how imperative it was that he be fed. And indeed, Da Qing did seem like he was being successful, because Shen Wei’s eyes fogged over for a moment, as if momentarily overcome by some kind of memory — or the inclination to treat a wonderful cat like Da Qing as he deserved — before turning a gentle smile on the cat.
“I don’t think we’ve met. You belong to Zhao Yunlan, don’t you?”
Da Qing was hardly born yesterday. There was no way he was going to be tricked into talking so easily. He simply blinked at Shen Wei and sniffed hopefully at the fish on the counter.
Well, Shen Wei was still a subject of investigation, but at least he was teachable. He angled his head in the direction Da Qing was pointing and chuckled. “Ah, of course, you must be hungry. Let me get you some.”
Shen Wei certainly didn’t seem like the average stuffy, standoff-ish professor that Zhao Yunlan complained about after his previous research trips to the university. Even Shen Wei’s bowl was suspicious, for it looked nothing like the three-for-ten-dollars crockery that littered their home. Instead, it had uneven curves and dips, almost as if it was hand-fired. Da Qing nosed at the edges, wondering where he had seen such a bowl before. By some kind of amazing coincidence, the bowl fit Da Qing exactly, even bending a little where the sides of his face would otherwise bump against the bowl.
Objectively speaking, it was all rather suspicious. But that fishy aroma, with a hint of the scent of the sea, looking golden brown just before his eyes.... and Da Qing made the executive decision to leave those human worries for later, and began stuffing his face — er, imbibing nutrition in a dignified feline manner.
Da Qing had meant for it to be a fast trip, but then again, one could never spend too much time with delicious fried fish that was crispy on the outside but still mouthwateringly tender on the inside. The next thing he heard was Zhao Yunlan’s familiar chuckle as he leaned causally on the doorjamb, the tip of the lollipop dangling out of his mouth.
“My apologies,” he said to Shen Wei. “This fat cat of mine is terribly greedy. I simply turned around and there he is, begging for food. I’m sorry to have caused you all this trouble.”
He lunged forward to scoop Da Qing up, holding him tight so that Da Qing couldn’t give him the swipe he deserved. And besides, Da Qing could see the oil gleaming off his whiskers in the mirror's reflection, which made it a little hard to dispute Zhao Yunlan’s statement at the current moment. He settled for a wide-eyed look, trying to convey, “See? Here I am, pulling out all the stops to ensure that we appear to be normal people.”
Zhao Yunlan plastered on a matching grin until he closed their own apartment door behind them. “A ten thousand year old cat, huh? Looks like you’re losing your touch.”
Da Qing sniffed smugly at him. “You’re just jealous because you didn’t get to taste the fish.”