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The black cat on his lap decided to lay there on his own. He wasn't forced, or even persuaded to.
Sai willingly came to him, in his cat form, to curl up on top of him. For a domestic cat, this behavior should be expected. But in this case, it's genuinely shocking.
Sai is overly shy, to the point that petting him at all is a real challenge. The cat is always hiding, inside shelves, behind furniture, in the closet… covering his owner's clothes in fur. He only comes out when he is hungry, and Ryusui’s attempts to hand feed him end up in scratched hands. Catboys are supposed to be more affectionate than this, aren't they? But to be clear, Ryusui isn't complaining. He has accepted the challenge.
He raises a hand, to slowly caress the creature. Sai’s deep black and messy fur is extremely soft to the touch, softest than even the finest silks.
Ryusui is happy, until he realizes the cat is shaking under his touch. How is Sai even this afraid of him? Ryusui is sure he hasn’t done anything harmful, all he ever does is try to bond, only to fail miserable each time.
In a second, taking advantage of a confused pause, the cat is gone. He escaped, running off and into the bedroom like his life depended on it.
Ryusui’s only possible reaction is to blink in confusion. Sai was the one that came to him, positioned himself on his lap. How was touching him the wrong thing to do? Was he wrong to interpret the situation as an obvious request for attention? No, he was not. There is truly no other possible reason to come lay on him. Sai is just shy and anxious to an extreme.
Well, it’s fine, Ryusui doesn’t mind having to chase.
With an amused smirk, he stands up and heads the same way the cat did. It all happened too quickly for him to see where Sai hid, but he has a good guess. After sitting on the floor and peaking under the bed, a pair of wide open eyes stare back at him from the darkness.
Ryusui snaps his fingers out of habit. He soon realizes he shouldn't have, when the pair of eyes moves farther away. Sai is definitely pressing himself against the wall, staying as far as possible.
For now, he will keep in mind that making a loud noise near an already frightened animal does not help.
Ryusui clears his throat. “Sai. I have bought the highest quality tuna in the market for you. If you come out, you can have it right now. A good deal, isn't it!?”
The eyes squint.
Hm.
Ryusui is sure if he was a cat, the promise of a luxurious meal would at the very least spark his interest, but Sai is barely reacting. Fine, he will try something else. He almost snaps his fingers again as he comes up with an idea, but stops himself. “I'll be back.” He announces, not realizing it sounds like a threat to the cat he is trying to soothe.
He rushes to a shelf to pick up a cat fishing toy, with pretty colorful feathers at the end of the thread. How could any feline resist!?
“Here, Sai. Let's play together!” Ryusui sits back down on the floor, fluttering the feathers on the floor.
The cat’s eyes widen again, pupils following the toy. But the cat itself doesn't move, making no efforts to play. Ryusui continues to try for several minutes, until it's clear that as temping as the toy might be, Sai will not come out to play. “You are tough one.” He comments in defeat, with a sigh. “I wish you would talk to me, tell me what you want me to do.”
Sai rarely turns to his human form to begin with. Probably because hiding is much easier when you are smaller. Ryusui flops onto the floor, looking at those eyes that won't take their focus off him. “It's not comfortable there, is it? The floor is cold and hard. You could use the bed, or the cat igloo I got you.”
The cat blinks.
“You want out of there, don't you? You are just scared.” Ryusui stretches his arm, so his hand is avaliable to the cat, if he would like to approach. “You came to me today, after all. Let me pet you, it will be alright.”
Nothing happens for a while. It's like they are both frozen in time, waiting for the other to make a move.
Ryusui yawns after about ten minutes, his hand becoming sore from staying in the same position for this long. At least he hasn't been bitten. He is about to pull it back, when he feels something cold on the tip on his index finger. A cat nose, sniffing him. Ryusui smiles, staying quiet and unmoving to not ruin the little progress they have made.
Eventually, Sai is shyly licking his hand. At that point, Ryusui feels confident trying to pet him again. As slowly as he possibly can, he begins petting the cat's head, a bit nervous he might bolt again. But that does not happen, Ryusui is able to continuously pet him. He feels some shaking, but not even nearly as bad as it was last attempt.
“See? I'm not that bad.” Ryusui says, amused. He begins to scratch behind the cat's ears. “Does this feel good?” The response he gets is quiet purring. So, that's a yes. Probably. “You are cute, Sai.”
As soon as he mutters those words, the cat ends contact, running off to press himself against the wall again. This time, however, Ryusui can only find it amusing. “Don't be embarrassed. Nothing wrong with being cute.” In fact, catboys are supposed to be cute. Anyway, he is sure Sai is at least slightly more comfortable now. Ryusui stands up. “I'll get you treats. I won't tell you to come with me, but how about you at least sit on the bed instead of under it?”
He leaves the room then, still endeared by that brief moment of having his hand licked by a little tongue that felt like sandpaper. He intentionally takes longer than necessary, giving Sai extra time to leave his hiding spot.
Eventually he is back with a small plate of slices of that luxurious tuna he bought in hopes of enticing the cat. Perhaps it worked now, because Sai is indeed sitting on top of the bed, even if he still seems somewhat terrified. Ryusui sits down at a distance with the plate still in hand. “Hard to resist a delicious meal, hm?” He picks up a small slice, and holds it in front of Sai. “Spoiled pets eat from their owner's hand. Let's try it, Sai.”
Sai’s fur stands on end. He might be offended by the idea. Not offended enough to reject the tuna, however. It must have been too tempting, because Sai only sniffed it for a few seconds before taking a big bite.
“You are a spoiled pet now.”
Sai hisses at him. Then he continues to eat.
“Good boy, Sai.”
Sai pauses to stare at him for a moment, but continues to eat.
Ryusui picks up slice after slice offering them to the cat each time, until he has devoured all of it. Ryusui puts the plate aside, and seeing as Sai is very much about to flee despite their moment of bonding, he rushes to catch him. “Hah! Running from me as soon as there's no food left? How cold, Sai.” He brings him closer to himself, placing a quick kiss on the cat's head. It's a little punishment. “Not letting you.”
He intends to give him another kiss, amused by how much the cat seemed to dislike it, but a big cloud of smoke interrupts him. He blinks.
Sai just turned to his human rare, something quite rare. As a catboy now, he glares at Ryusui with a frown, his cheeks red, cat ears flattened, and both of his hands pushing Ryusui’s face away. It's somewhat adorable.
“So this is what I had to do to get you to transform? Who could have guessed. I'll have to kiss you everyday now.” Ryusui teases with a smirk.
Sai’s frown deepens, starting to look like he is more worried and afraid than angry. “Don't…”
Ryusui takes his hands, moving them away from his face. “If you let me see you more often, I won't. I'm not asking for much, am I?” In fact, he is fairly lenient. Most owners would simply rid of catboy that avoids them like the plague and doesn't act like the cute pet they expected one bit.
Sai groans to himself, but nods.
Ryusui smiles proudly. They are making progress! “Want to be pet again?”
“No.” Sai deadpans, but Ryusui is already petting his hair, fingers tangling in messy fluffy hair.
Ryusui targets behind Sai's ears, scratching like he did before. If it worked in cat form, it should work now too. As soon as he does, Sai blushes even more.
“S-stop…” He tries to demand, but it's only seconds until he is purring against his will.
Ryusui laughs, finding it adorable how the cat can't hide his enjoyment. “Come on, Sai, no need to be stubborn. Didn't I say you are a spoiled pet? Embrace it. I'm here to take care of you.” He continues to pet his ears, thumbing at the inner part that he knows is just so sensitive.
Sai's eyes slowly close the more Ryusui pets him, and the purring becomes louder.
Charmed by how cute Sai looks, acting so docile like he isn't rebelling against him every single day with constant hiding and hissing, Ryusui moves closer enough that their foreheads are almost touching. His hands move down, cupping Sai's face. “I want to see you like this more. Happy.”
Instantly, there is another cloud of smoke. The familiar sight of a black cat running away happens again, as Sai is on his way to hide who knows where next. Ryusui simply watches him go. He expected it, Sai is too timid, there is no other way he would react to such positive sincerity.
For now, he is satisfied that the feline knows how good it feels to be pet.