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Okay. So maybe this isn't the best idea.
But what else were they supposed to do?! Hoppy lost her ball. It’d be mean to just sit around despite being able to do something.
And now they’re stuck on the roof of DogDay's house. Last CatNap knew, he and PickyPiggy were inside making everyone snacks, so everyone else was outside playing—well, not CatNap, they were in a tree watching, and they were okay with that.
(“Shoot! KickinChicken!”
CatNap's ears flatten against their head, watching the ball hit the tree they were in, almost hitting CatNap themselves, and shoot up and hit DogDay’s house—and then get stuck on seemingly nothing. The Critters all stare up before a loud whine leaves Hoppy. “My ball!” She cries out, and CatNap slowly looks over at Hoppy, and seeing the pain in their eyes irritates CatNap. Once, Hoppy called them “something akin to a little sibling”, and CatNap adored her for thinking of them so highly like that. “What are we gonna do? Do you think DogDay will be mad?” She whines out, looking over at their bird friend who spills about a dozen apologies.
CatNap blinks and looks at their claws and at the closest tree to DogDay’s house. “I’ll get it.”)
And they did get the ball down, it’s on the floor beside the green bunny, her ears flat as she looks up at CatNap with worry on her face, and CatNap understands. This is the worst spot they could be in. “It's okay, CatNap! Just jump into my arms!” She calls, and CatNap decides, no, that's a terrible idea, they won't be doing that, no matter how much the others ask. “CatNap, come on-! Someone go get DogDay!” Hoppy snaps at the end, holding her paws up at CatNap, now making the familiar, pspspsp noise at them as the door to the house is swung open, CraftyCorn running inside.
But she can pspsp all she wants, CatNap isn't moving, their claws are digging into the shingles, tail wrapped around their body tightly.
“Come here, Kitty kitty kitty! It's okay, ‘Nap, we’ll catch you!” KickinChicken calls out, arms spread, his feathers twitching in some sort of anxious anticipation.
“Bobby, you can climb trees. You go get them.” Bubba’s tail swishes and lightly hits Bobby, who ducks her head low, a frown on her face.
“Uh, no. Sorry, Bubs, but since the storm broke those branches, I’ve kept myself out of those trees.” She replies, a defensive tone to her voice.
“For the love of all that is good—CatNap, just jump!” Hoppy screeches, a desperate tone, laced with worry.
A multitude of voices, but CatNap doesn't budge, opting to stay right where they are, staring down at the group with a blank expression. Their ears fly up and the door is quickly opened, CraftyCorn screaming about the situation as DogDay and PickyPiggy rush out and look up at him. “CatNap!” He screams, and their ears fly up to attention, shakily standing on four paws as they look around, ears twitching before their gaze slowly sets back on the extremely panicked and upset dog. “How did you even get up there?!”
DogDay sounds seconds away from punching KickinChicken into next week, not that CatNap would know much about how that sounds. Their ears flatten, weakly laughing as they look away from the spaniel, and DogDay loudly groans. “I… Jumped from the branch.” CatNap speaks and DogDay pinches the bridge of his nose. “I'm sorry.”
“No, no, you're fine… Ugh, I think I have a ladder somewhere…” His voice and words mix together, muddling his speech as CatNap's ears fall, watching the dog try and climb the tree with mediocre success.
“DogDay?” CraftyCorn’s voice is ignored by DogDay, who jumps on the fragile branch and catches another, the sound making all eight Critters go silent for a moment, only being broken by the blue elephant, who storms forward and grabs the back of DogDay’s left leg.
“Didn't you just say you might have a ladder somewhere?! DogDay, that's extremely dangerous and reckless.” Bubba scolds, but DogDay rolls his eyes, glaring back at Bubba before ripping his leg away.
“Yeah, but I have no idea where it is. You're free to go search the house, Bubba, but I would rather get CatNap down as fast as possible than waste time looking for that ladder.” He barks back, looking up at CatNap, taking a breath, and climbing. “I’m coming, don’t worry. I’ll keep you safe, just stay there, okay?” He speaks, and CatNap manages a nod. “I know, it's scary I’m here.” DogDay smiles, a small branch snapping under the weight of one of his paws, making the dog tense up. Upon reaching a high up branch where he and CatNap are somewhat close, he smiles and extends his paw. “Reach for me.”
CatNap blinks a bit before inching forward, reaching out their paw and extending their claws, hoping to maybe nick his skin for something extra to grab onto, but they're still too far. CatNap slump, bringing their arm close to their body as DogDay carefully walks forward, and the worried chatter of the other Critters is a background noise. “You should probably just get the ladder,” CatNap whispers, as if being too loud is a crime—soft spoken ; they've always been more of an “inside voice” type of Critter. DogDay makes a face and CatNap sighs. “Stubborn.”
“You're one to talk,” DogDay softly, dryly, laughs, nearly slipping off the branch. “Just try again. Give me your paw. I promise I won't let go the second it's in my grasp.” DogDay speaks carefully, slowly, and CatNap lays their ears flat, but inches forward and extends their claws, reaching.
Reaching.
“Ow—”
Their claws sink into him, and instantly, DogDay grips the claws and yanks CatNap into his chest. They two almost tumble out of the tree, but DogDay quickly walks backwards and hits the tree trunk, holding CatNap extremely tightly.
Thankfully, it’s not a bad pain, it's more of a comfortable pain. CatNap lets out a hum, deciding to let DogDay maneuver them onto his back as he climbs down the tree, and when he gets to the comfort of the floor, CatNap feeling the soft grass under their paw pads is a sudden comfort—comfortable, not hard and sharp like the roof shingles.
CraftyCorn quickly tackles DogDay into a tight grasp, yelling and screaming at him about how dangerous that was, and everything that could have happened. CatNap scowls at her, huffing as their tail twists as they walk to the others, instantly getting happy welcomes from the others. Hoppy takes their paws in her own, expression soft. “I'm happy to see you safe, CatNap.”
“Yeah. Roof… Not fun. Don't recommend.”
Hoppy laughs, and CatNap looks behind them, watching CraftyCorn shake DogDay, the dog looking both amused and concerned. CatNap huffs, crossing their arms as KickinChicken elbows the cat. “Hey, sorry. My fault.” The chicken murmurs and CatNap's ear flicks, shaking their head as they walk back to the tree they were in and sinks their claws into the wood, heaving themselves up into the tree and laying on the branch once again. The others are all smiling, and their eyes dance to DogDay, who has a slightly amused look on his face.
“Haven't you had enough of being up high?” DogDay asks, now leaning on CraftyCorn as he looks up at CatNap. “Come back down, the grass is fine.” He chuckles, getting off of CraftyCorn and walking to the tree. “C’mon, Kitty,” he holds his paws out, “you know you wanna.”
“No,” CatNap speaks quietly, “I’ll keep myself happy in my tree.”
That tail stops wagging. He seems to slump before perking up; DogDay has an idea,clearly, and CatNap isn't sure if this will be good or bad, considering what they just put DogDay through. “Then do you have more room on that branch then?” He asks, tail once again wagging. CatNap stops.
“What—??”
And, suddenly, DogDay is once again in a tree. He leans against the trunk and pulls CatNap into his lap, with the feline blinking a few times before relaxing into the dog, shifting to get comfortable before PickyPiggy dusts herself off with a huff, glaring at everyone. “Okay, now that DogDay played the hero, and has CatNap safely in his lap, I think we should all eat. I’ll go set the table.” She turns, walking out, ears bouncing each time she steps.
A pair of arms wrap around CatNap.
“How about you stay off my roof, hm?” He laughs, and CatNap’s response is a purr, leaning into DogDay. “I don't know if I’ll always be here to climb a tree for you.” He chuckles, but CatNap’s response is to roll their eyes.
“So if I get stuck again, you won't climb a tree?”
CatNap hears PickyPiggy call from inside, the food is done, come eat, and watches the other Critters rush inside—leaving CatNap and DogDay alone outside.
“I’ll do whatever I can to keep you safe.” He whispers into CatNap's ear, and the feline freezes. Suddenly, they’re all too aware of their placement on his lap, and where his paws are, holding their hips a bit tightly, as if keeping them in place. “If that means I climb another tree, then I will.”
CatNap's fur raises, DogDay's breath on their neck, and for a moment, CatNap feels at peace. Feels that maybe, just maybe, this is okay; that finally saying, “I love you” , is okay. That admitting to this sin is okay.
The screen is off; the curtains closed.
They know that DogDay and CraftyCorn are written in the scripts, but it sometimes seems that DogDay isn't interested in her in that way. Like he sees her as a sister, if how CatNap themselves interact with Hoppy is anything to go by, so maybe there’s a chance.
A slim possibility.
A chance that CatNap finds the courage to ask, to say, “love me, I love you, can you ever love me?”
A yell from PickyPiggy breaks them out of those thoughts. They feel DogDay move under them—
“DogDay, wait.” CatNap blurts, sinking their claws into the bark once again. “Wait, please, wait.” They speak and look behind them, a confused look on his face, but he settles once again. A silent, “I don't want this to end” echoes in their head.
“Everything okay, Kitty?” DogDay murmurs. CatNap takes a breath. A breath of courage, a breath of air.
“If, if I said…” Their voice fails. They aren't strong. They can't admit this—they can't do this. “CraftyCorn. Do you truly like her?” CatNap asks, getting off DogDay's lap and facing him.
Rip the bandaid off. Get it over with.
DogDay immediately looks uncomfortable, eyes shifting away. “Uhm. I… I guess? She's amazing. Creative and always looking at this in a different way than everyone else. Helps keep me grounded when my head’s in the clouds, and always has amazing input.” He explains, still averting eyes, not looking at CatNap. “Why?”
To know I had a chance —what other way? Why else would they ask? So does their response even matter? No matter what they say, he’ll choose her instead.
No. They’ll tell the truth and leave. Leave and not show their face for a bit, and then pop back up and act like nothing happened while they bury the hate, pain, and heartache in a graveyard. Is that possible?
Can they be happy after pushing away all their pain?
The words are in their throat. They can't speak, though they open their mouth to do so.
Fear. Rejection.
They force it down; swallow, take a breath, and speak.
“If there was a world where… Where we had free will. Free choices—always,” CatNap starts slowly, ears perked as they listen for noise, an alert to tell them that someone is coming, someone's coming to tear them away, “would you still love CraftyCorn?”
DogDay blinks, and his brows furrow. He stares at the tree branch before he looks up. “Love… Isn't linear, CatNap,” DogDay slowly explains, beginning to play with the leaves on the tree. “I can say I love Crafty and not date her. Bobby talks about it a lot. ‘Cause Bobby has a crush on CraftyCorn,” a sad smile dances across his face, “so she talks about love all the time, about what kind of love she has for everyone.” He murmurs, stretching as he leans back against the trunk. “I know off script, off screen, Bobby asked me to give her a chance to try and love CraftyCorn. I would adore seeing them together. Bobby adores CraftyCorn.”
CatNap's ears are up, eyes wide. “Really?” They ask, and DogDay nods. “Then I have a chance?”
“A chance?”
CatNap goes silent. Oh shit.
Fuck.
“CatNap?”
CatNap squeezes their paws against their mouth, hopping out of the tree to attempt to get away from the spaniel but the pup is faster, grabbing CatNap's wrist to stop them, and CatNap attempts to pull away from the dog but—
… But they don't want to. DogDay holding their wrist, and CatNap can't find a reason to pull away. They stare at DogDay, and watch him swallow, look away, before taking a deep breath and looking CatNap in their eyes. “CatNap. Uhm. Here, stay here. I’ll go get our food.” He speaks, and enters the house quickly. CatNap drags their claws through their tail and sits under the tree, looking up at the sky, watching the dragonflies go by, reaching up, extending a claw, and staying as still as they could.
Then a blue one lands on their claw. It allows CatNap to bring it close, watching the wings through the sunlight.
Sunlight.
DogDay.
Speaking of, they watch the door open as DogDay carries out some food, stopping as he sees CatNap and the dragonfly. CatNap lowers their paw to the grass, letting the insect fly away before turning their attention to DogDay. DogDay seems to slowly walk over and sets a plate down in front of CatNap, who pushes the food away.
Awkward silence ; CatNap could cut themselves on how tense, how sharp the silence is, how—
“A chance, huh?” DogDay speaks, looking at CatNap. “A chance at what? A chance to be close to me? A chance to know no one is more important to me than you?”
Yeah. Thinking about it, that makes since. DogDay wouldn't do a lot of stuff he did for CatNap for the others.
When CatNap got a bad cut on their paw, their paw pads to be more specific, that bled and stung so much they didn't even want to move… DogDay took it upon himself to carry CatNap around.
And when CraftyCorn got a bad sore in her hoof, DogDay didn't seem all concerned, simply telling her to, “take it easy”.
“Do you like me better than the others?”
DogDay laughs at that, munching on a piece of watermelon. He swallows and shakes his head. “Are you going to tell the others?” He asks, and CatNap… Blinks.
“No.”
“Then yeah, I do,” DogDay picks up another piece of watermelon, “you are my favorite. You're my opposite, cats and dogs, suns and moons. Dark and light.” He gently grabs the dark purple paw and traces the soft circular paw pads, making CatNap slightly shiver under his touch. “I can talk to you all day, I can listen to you. You make the moons light look like nothing.”
CatNap's ears flatten. They… “That. Isn't entirely true. I'm not good at anything like the others. I'm don't have any—”
CatNap is silenced by DogDay leaning forward and cupping their jaw. “Hey, hey… Who said you needed to be good at anything? Here; name all your “flaws”. I’ll prove a point.” DogDay crosses his arms, and CatNap looks away.
“I’m not athletic like Hoppy or KickinChicken.” CatNap points out, flicking their tail.
“You're a homebody, first off, and because of that, you’re always available.” DogDay points out, popping another piece of watermelon into his mouth.
“I have no talent. I’m not smart.” CatNap murmurs, avoiding the dogs gaze. A noise, one CatNap can only assume is some sort of annoyance, leaves the dog.
“First off, you're someone that doesn't try anything new. Maybe you're really good at singing, but you've never tried, so you can't say that. Talent has to be discovered, and you hate trying new things, and that's okay. You don't have to try anything you don't want to. Secondly, you are,” DogDay leans back, “I can't name anyone else that can name all types of different fabrics and the best stuffing for pillows. You're smart with the things you love. Sure, you aren't like Bubba. No one is. I don't even know how to solve the quadratic equation, but that's not the point. You are smart to the things you know, the things you excel in; and I love you for that.”
“I love you for that.”
CatNap looks at him, eyes wide. “You love me?”
They can't help but repeat that, and DogDay laughs, tail hitting the ground. “I said that, yeah. I love you.” DogDay hums, and CatNap swallows, looking at their paws.
“How much?”
CatNap whispers.
Are they allowed to speak louder than that?
They already heard what they want—at least, in some way, even if it's not the definition CatNap wants. Even if it's, “I love you as a friend”, and not, “I love you, I want to kiss you”.
DogDay tilts his head, looking at CatNap with a soft expression. “How much do I love you?” He asks, and CatNap nods. “That's what you're asking? How much I love you?” DogDay stands, moving the plates out of the way as CatNap watches him closely.
“Yeah.” CatNap confirms it. Needs it to be said, said where they can love it, said where they can be loved. “If… If you don't mind me asking.”
DogDay walks over and sits in front of CatNap, crossing his legs, and holds his paw out. “Can I touch you?”
A silent question, and almost, almost, it feels like the world has stopped.
CatNap nods.
In an instant, DogDay pulls CatNap onto his lap.
In an instant, DogDay's paws are placed on their body; one on their hip, one on their thigh.
In an instant, their chests are touching.
And in an instant—
In an instant, DogDay kisses CatNap.
It's soft, it's slow, it's gentle.
It's almost a bit of a shy kiss—maybe DogDay was also afraid?—but to CatNap, it's perfect. Claws rise up to DogDay chest and the kitten kneads their claws there, even after DogDay pulls away.
“More,” CatNap whines, practically begs , “again. Please kiss me again.”
Because what else can they do but chase the high of being loved? Sitting on DogDay's lap, bouncing with anticipation, DogDay holds them a bit tighter. “Stop squirming,” his tone is playful, squeezing CatNap a bit tighter, “I’ll give you all the kisses you’ll take.”
It was whispered into CatNap's ear, those words. He simply brought CatNap straight back in; jaw, cheek, head, lips. Each part of CatNap is kissed.
“We should probably head inside,” DogDay hums against CatNap's fur, “I told them you wanted to talk and to not disturb us.” He murmurs, pulling away. CatNap scowls at that and shakes their head, clinging to DogDay's chest, huffing quietly.
“Don't make me get stuck on the roof again.” They grumble, and DogDay laughs—genuinely laughs as he stands up, holding the feline to his chest. “You laugh now, but I’ll do it. Try me!” CatNap snaps back at him, and DogDay shakes his head.
“Uh-huh… But if we go inside, how can we cuddle up with blankets, hm? My bed is more comfortable than the grass.” DogDay interjects CatNap's thoughts, and their ears lay flat against their head as they stare at him.
Is this okay?
Is it okay? To agree, to say yes, to allow themselves to take DogDay’s heart?
“Can it be the really warm one? The one with the plaid design on one side and the wool texture on the other?” CatNap speaks after a moment, and the smile from DogDay tells him everything he needs to know.
They lay their head on him as he carries them inside. They’ll deal with all the comments about it later—right now, a good cuddle session with their favorite blanket and favorite Critter is the only thing on their mind.