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"Senpai. Chris-senpai. Wake up!"
"What the hell is going on? Are you drunk, Sawamura?"
Chris is groggy as he's dragged out of a deep sleep, only half sure he heard the voices he thinks have woken him.
He'd struggled to drop off to sleep the previous night due to it being pretty rainy the whole day and it making his shoulder ache badly. That lack of rest is what he puts his grogginess and the unfamiliar silhouettes down to when he thinks something isn't quite right with the twin shadows formed from the half-light of pre-dawn at the edge of his bed.
The voices were indisputably Sawamura, the one telling him to wake up, and Kanemaru, Chris's roommate, demanding to know what was going on from his bed across the dorm. Which, well someone might if their room has been invaded by other students at all hours of the night waking up their dorm-mates.
"Chris-senpai." That's Kuramochi, and his being here shakes Chris out of his fugue state more effectively than a bucket of cold water might have, because while he could imagine Sawamura being so random as to turn up in the early hours of the morning just to tell him he'd stubbed a toe, or discovered a new star he'd never seen before, or read up on how baseballs were manufactured, Kuramochi absolutely wouldn't.
"What's going on?" Chris asks, as he sits up. The two kouhais hanging over him look dishevelled and like they've just tumbled from their own beds, which makes sense as the alarm clock on the shelf above his bed says it's not quite six yet.
Their state of dress isn't the most notable thing about them though.
Those are the soft cat-like ears resting in the tousled mess of hair on their heads. And it would surely be a headband, except one actually twitches as Chris watches it, nonplussed.
He lifts his hands to rub at his eyes, sure he's still half-dreaming and his brain is making up what he's seeing, but even when he looks again, those four ears, two pairs of two, one pair for each of their two visitors, are still very much evident.
"Ummm…?"
"You too, Chris-senpai?" Sawamura demands, and he watches him with continued confusion. Him too what?
"What are you two doing here?" No, that seems like a less important question than the obvious. "I mean, what are you two wearing cat ears for? Are they animatronic?" Chris amends the most burning question.
"No, they're attached, and real." Sawamura takes hold of the tabby ears on his head and gives them a little tug, demonstrating they're very much attached to him.
"That's why Sawamura said we should come to you. You're the smartest guy on the team. Senpai, and you have to help us figure out what's happened and how we can get rid of these…" Kuramochi demands, pointing at his own ears, and, spinning his hips slightly, at the long, fluffy tail held upright in the air behind him.
"Oh my." He's shocked, but also a bubble of a laugh rises in his throat, because the thought of Kuramochi with cat ears and a tail…
Kanemaru has left his bed and flicked the light on, and is now stood next to the two neko-fied first teamers, but Chris clocks that he looks absolutely normal, no evidence of supernatural cat ears or a tail at all…which means what? His dream is being selective in his choice of nekofication?
Wait. Kanemaru has only just turned the light on, so why had he been able to see Sawamura and Kuramochi perfectly well before, to the point he hadn't felt the need to turn his own reading light on?
He surreptitiously pinches himself, but the sharp little pulse of pain tells him that he appears to be awake.
So some kind of hallucination then, perhaps? He's definitely been burning the candle at both ends recently, between his own intense rehab schedule, the extra work he's been putting in on the baseball club's behalf, and keeping his grades in tip-top order. He's just about keeping afloat but it is a lot to shoulder, and maybe the stress has all combined into some kind of exhausted delusion?
"I'm not sure why you think I'd know…"
"Either way, Senpai, if you want to get rid of those, you're going to have to find out." It takes a second for Chris to realise Kanemaru is pointing at him, and whatever is on his head when he says 'those', and his heart trips a beat, or several, in panic.
He raises a hand slowly, nervously…his fingers tentative as they move through the air above his sleep-ruffled hair, and–
There. Just like Kanemaru had said. Two furry cat ears. They're soft and warm against his fingertips, and then he feels them flatten as they react to his rising panic.
Was that a rowl of surprise he'd just let out?
What on Earth is going on?
He climbs out of the bed and strides to the door, on the back of which is hung a mirror. His hands hadn't been wrong; he was definitely sporting a pair of very attached grey cat ears.
"Senpai has such nice fur!" Sawamura exclaims, and Chris is forced to look over his shoulder by the sudden realisation of what Sawamura must be eyeing.
If Kuramochi has as full set, and so does Sawamura, it makes sense that he has a long, fluffy cat tail too.
There it is, swishing in irritation behind him.
He feels giddy, and then like he's going to be sick. He doesn't know what to do with himself, because how could he?
Was that why his vision in the dark had been so good?
And why are Kuramochi and Sawamura looking to him for answers?
Because he's a third year, their senpai. It should be a compliment really, it means trust, confidence and respect for him.
Calm. He can be calm.
He sucks in a long breath surreptitiously, hoping it'll bring some of the calm he knows he needs to feel.
Firstly, are they in danger?
They might look absolutely ridiculous but it doesn't seem to be harmful in any way; apart from feeling like he's just been woken from a deep sleep Chris doesn't feel like he's in any kind of pain or discomfort. Except embarrassment, but he's pretty sure that's not generally terminal.
There's no point panicking, they just have to think about things logically, do what they can do with the information they have.
"OK, so we don't seem to be in imminent danger." Except of getting laughed at by their schoolmates. Which, to be honest, most of those guys on the baseball team didn't even need the excuse of cat features to do. He continues; "and whatever has happened isn't affecting everyone, or Kanemaru and Sugita would be the same." He mentions both of his roommates who demonstrably don't have these specific cat features.
"So did we all do something that those guys didn't?" Kuramochi asks, "it's nothing to do with rooms, because Masuko is fine in ours, and it's only you who isn't in this one."
"Maybe. What we do need to do is let staff know, and probably get checked out by medical professionals. Maybe." He's definitely the older of the three but he's feeling pretty out of his depth still. About all he's managing to be of use for is not panicking.
"I vote Coach. I trust him more than anyone else to be straight with us."
Kuramochi's point is a fair one.
"Should we find out if anyone else has cat-ears? It can't be just us, right?" Sawamura suggests after they've both agreed with Kuramochi.
"If we have more information, it might help pinpoint what's going on," Chris agreed. He doesn't necessarily think it'll help, but they're looking to him for leadership right now, and if nothing else it will keep them busy and their minds from dwelling on it. "We can probably see to that at morning training."
~
Morning training arrives and it's as chaotic as is to be expected considering the distractions.
Their first discovery is that it's half a dozen of them sporting varying colours of cat ears and matching tails.
It appears to be fairly random – they're all different years, different positions, different home prefectures, had done different things yesterday. The things they do have in common, like what they'd eaten the previous day for example, were things that more than the six of them do have in common – the vast majority of the baseball team had done the same too.
Considering the six, it also doesn't seem to be family related, as the younger Kominato has a fine pair of soft, fluffy ears, but his older brother is free from them, and has that serene, untrustworthy smile on his face that says he's about to make himself someone's problem. Those someones are probably Haruichi and Kuramochi.
Chris appears to be the only third year affected which is extremely unfair, in his much-considered opinion, and he casts what must be a jealous glance at his year mates with their not-cat ears and lack of tails.
Acting calm, and like they have everything under control, Kataoka and Takashima spoke to the six of them briefly while the team continue to gather and gossip, making Chris's cat ears twitch on top of his head, because his hearing is so much more sensitive than it had been and yes thank you he can hear what's being said about him.
"You look like you just licked a lemon, Chris-senpai," Sawamura informs him helpfully.
Takashima vanishes to the office to make some calls, while Kataoka decides whether they should be excused from training for the day. And really, Chris has plenty enough to do if that was the case…but it's not like he'd rather be doing any of that instead of being out on the field. He's likely to think a lot less and be more occupied if he's out here with his teammates.
"I don't want you pitching today; I don't want you ruining your pitching forms by adjusting for the current physical changes to your bodies," Kataoka decides. And it's probably a good call, tails affect balance, so it makes sense they might have a knock on effect.
"But I can run. I feel like I could run forever, Boss," Sawamura tells him, his usual forthrightness not affected in the least by his cattification.
Not to be outdone, long black tail twitching in interest, and, on the surface, the least obviously bothered by what's happened, Furuya nods. "Me too."
And really Chris thinks it's probably the best use of both their times; they aren't going to do any studying if they don't, even though they could definitely both do with putting the extra effort into their books.
Coach appears to agree with Chris's unspoken thoughts and allows it.
"We can definitely take part in fielding practice this morning, Coach," Kuramochi assures Kataoka, and Haruichi at his side agrees. The younger Kominato has a light flush on his cheeks and looking as if he's trying to make himself as unnoticeable as possible; it seems the already cute Haruichi is worried about the effect cat ears and a tail are going to have on that. And fair, Chris can definitely see people getting hit with cuteness aggression.
Coach also agrees to this, and turns his attention onto the final two of them.
"I can't let either of you do any work with Tanba or Kawakami, seeing as you can't wear your safety gear." He thinks the warning is probably more for Miyuki than him, but it's equally valid; while they'd been able to make some simple adjustments to their uniform to accommodate their tails, the helmets don't have ear-slots like they would if this was some kind of RPG with specially designed armour.
Normally he'd expect more reaction from Miyuki, except for the last few minutes the second year has been sneezing rhythmically. He looks a little bedraggled and a lot miserable when Chris tilts his head to eye him up.
Chris meets Coach's eye, and takes the hint.
"I understand. We'll find something else to do instead, Coach." Chris assures him, and sets a hand in the centre of Miyuki's back.
The catcher jumps a little at Chris's touch, but allows himself to be lead over to the bench, and urged to sit down.
He hears Coach giving orders, telling them that after they've done their laps that the first part of the morning will be free practice.
It's probably so he can deal with the fairly pressing issue of his cat students, Chris thinks, as he takes a seat by Miyuki and briefly watches Kataoka head towards the office.
"Allergic to cats?" Chris asks Miyuki as another sneeze draws his attention back to the matter at hand. He hands the other boy his handkerchief.
Miyuki nods, manages a thanks, and then sneezes into it.
"That's rough, considering you can't actually get away from yourself. Are you OK taking antihistamines?"
"I think so," Miyuki says. It's genuinely odd to see the normally energetic catcher be so subdued, but as a sufferer of hay fever who generally feels completely under the weather if he misses one of his daily tablets, Chris gets it.
He calls out to Sawamura, and the pitcher trots over, followed by Furuya who's watching his striped tail with the focus of a…well, a cat on the hunt…and asks him to relay a request to Kanemaru. He hopes his first year roommate won't mind calling back to their dorm and bringing some of Chris's allergy medication for Miyuki. Or at least mind it too much.
Whether he does or not, Kanemaru obviously feels like he can't deny a senior's request, and he heads back to the dorms. Chris does his best to keep Miyuki's mind off his current trials, even though he's not the most reliable small-talker. At least they're not waiting long, and he returns shortly with the tablets and a bottle of water, and hands them over to Miyuki.
"Take one. It might make you a little drowsy, or give you a headache. Just drink lots and take it easy if you need, Miyuki; it usually takes a little while to kick in, so bear with it." Chris stands up. He only realises at that point that Miyuki's tail has been curled around his, maybe for a while now.
"Thanks, Chris-senpai." Miyuki tries to play it off, but there's the hint of embarrassment in his cheeks. Chris chooses not to make it awkward for him, because their bodies are pretty much not their own at the moment, and who knows how cat body language works? He doesn't blame Miyuki for the tangle, he's never even aware what his own is doing at any given time.
His first task dealt with, he steps out of the shade provided by the roof of the dugout and into the sun, and it's such a nice feeling as it touches his skin, that it's all he can do not to stretch languidly and turn his face into it.
Honestly, finding a nice patch of sunshine and stretching out for a nap suddenly seems like the most tempting treat…does he really need to get involved with the rest of the teams training?
He fights off the feeling, and, as he makes his way onto the field, he sees Tanba heading towards him. His heart sinks. Not because of the man himself, but Tanba is being trailed by Isashiki and Yuuki, one of whom he's well aware is going to do everything in his power to tease Chris about his interesting new look.
He wonders if it's too late to make a dash for it, and whether he's been given anything like a dose of cat speed along with his ears and tail to aid his great escape.
In the end he chooses to face his fate bravely, however, he doesn't have the commitment to avoid Isashiki for the duration, especially seeing as he doesn't know how long that might be, so he might as well get it out of the way quickly, like pulling off a band-aid. He meets them halfway.
"I had no idea you were into nekomimi, Chris," Isashiki says, and strolls behind him.
"You're making him mad, his tail is flicking. You're going to get clawed," Yuuki tells Isashiki, folding his arms but still eyeing up the ears on Chris's head curiously.
Chris ignores the interest in his person, and he's about to ask Tanba if he needed him for anything, thinking it's best to deal with whatever that might be and then disappear, when there's a barely-there tug on his tail.
He spins on Isashiki, and swears he's about to say something about not touching the goods, but instead it's an actual hiss that leaves his mouth. He slaps a hand over it in shock, and Isashiki, still holding onto said tail, is frozen – caught dead to rights, but staring back at him with a look of surprise that turns into the biggest lopsided grin Chris has ever seen on his face.
"Well, well, what sharp fangs and loud hisses you have, Chris-san. Do you come with a purr setting too?"
"Of course not!" Chris yanks his tail out of Isashiki's grip. But as prepared for Isashiki's irreverence as he had been, he's not prepared to have to fight off Tanba. While he's distracted dealing with the centre fielder and the reminder of the actual needle-sharp fangs in his mouth he apparently misses the true danger.
It really is a case of 'et tu, Brute?' with the pitcher, who takes Chris's ears in his hands and now strokes upwards, putting a light pressure on the tips, rubbing them gently between his thumb and forefinger.
The rumble starts in Chris's chest, and no matter how he tries to stop it he just can't. He has no idea what controls it, the ability doesn't come with the normal human body so even concentrating on it doesn't make it subside.
"My family's cat really likes having her ears rubbed," Tanba says, a little embarrassed, as if that excuses it.
"Looks like he does come with a purr setting," Yuuki notes, a trace of amusement in his voice.
"Would you be bullying them the same if anyone else from our year had been nekofied?" Chris demands, mortified but unwilling to show that weakness. He also already knows the answer.
"Yes."
"Of course."
"You can guarantee I'd be ragging anyone, but it is somehow much more satisfying that it's you, Chris, I couldn't have wished for it to happen to a more suitable guy. I know lots of people think you're a harmless goody two shoes nice boy, but you can't hide from us what a sarcastic jerk you can be. Sometimes payback is fun. And well-earned."
"You're going to allow this slander?" Chris demands of Tanba, who looks a little sheepish, but that's as far as his sympathy for Chris goes, as he shrugs.
"You reap what you sow, Chris." Sympathetic, but otherwise unmoved, he makes his proclamation.
"You're all truly awful people. Cat bullies." His tail continues to swish in irritation in the air behind him.
~
It's just after lunch and Chris is recording sprint times, although he admits his mind is wandering a little, pondering how impossible it's going to be walking into his classroom on Monday if things haven't gone back to normal; his classmates are going to have a field day.
He hasn't even considered how he's going to explain all this to his dad. His dad who's definitely going to blame Seido for the current mess Chris is in somehow, even though there's no evidence that the school is at fault at all…
He's glad he's working with Fujiwara who's unconsciously making sure his attention is where it needs to be when it needs to be, but he also is beginning to wish more and more that he hadn't given himself a role today where he has to bring any kind of focus to bear.
The others have been more sensible.
He'd seen Sawamura and Furuya begin by arguing over the tyre Sawamura now claimed was his, but it had devolved into chasing each other around the second training field, and rolling around in the dirt. They're like kittens play hunting each other, and to further cement the image they haven't gotten up since the last skirmish, instead stretching out and only occasionally playfully nudging at each other.
Miyuki has climbed on top of the dugout at some point after lunch and now lies belly-up to the sun dozing, a leg and his tail hanging over the side and swinging lazily in the light breeze.
His allergies and the medication Chris had given him have been making the normally lively catcher drowsy all day, and he's making best use of his inner cat to soak in some spring sunshine as a consequence.
Haruichi and Kuramochi are still taking part in the training, but a lot of their time has being taken up avoiding Ryousuke who is definitely making their lives…interesting…at the moment. Whatever horrors Tanba, Yuuki and Isashiki had managed to inflict on Chris, Ryousuke managed on his brother and his best friend as a single entity, and all with that angelic smile on his face. He really is scary. So much so that between activities Haruichi and Kuramochi are huddled together, doing their best to keep out of his way. He hunts them with single minded intent though, and there's part of Chris who wonders if that might be why he hasn't suffered the same fate as his little brother. Is it because Ryousuke is enough of a threat as he is, without adding to his hunter capabilities?
Perhaps.
He's shocked out of his reverie by the sudden yowl that comes from the direction of the bench.
The yowl comes from Miyuki, and was caused by Sawamura swiping at his tail, that had been hanging down over the side of the roof. The noise is shocking and sudden and Chris can feel his hair literally standing on end in response, the clipboard he'd been holding falling forgotten to the dirt at his feet.
Fujiwara is staring at him with wide, surprised eyes, then they soften and it's so obvious she's trying to politely stifle a titter, even as Isashiki's loud, distinct laugh begins to sound over the pitch.
Then others join in and almost the entire club is howling. Even Kataoka's shoulders are stiffer than normal, although of course he doesn't give any outward indication of his mirth.
Haruichi and Kuramochi are standing there in surprise too, their ear and tail fur puffed up and brush-like, and Chris realises that his must be too. It's this hilarious sight that their teammates are reacting to.
"Bakamura, I'm going to lock you out of the dorm tonight," Kuramochi yells, and throws a balled-up shirt in Sawamura's direction.
And Chris is so far out of his self-control he literally can't stop the muscles in his legs bunching, then launching himself at the missile to catch it right out of the air. It was pure unthinking instinct, and he wouldn't have been able to stop it if his life had depended upon it.
All those instincts to ambush, and hunt, and chase, that he's been keeping locked so tightly down behind iron self-control all day suddenly escaped him in that one single action, and after a mocking round of applause and even more laughter, he pulls himself back up to his full height, straightens his clothing and his hair, and with whatever dignity he has left, returns to pick up his clipboard and pencil, as if nothing had happened.
~
They're just finishing dinner when Takashima joins them in the dining room.
The room is lively and full of rowdy noise, and Chris is glad his thoughts have been drowned out by it. Hopefully it will keep whatever she says for their ears only, but he doubts, with the level of interest in the six of them, that that will be the case.
"So, there's good news and bad news." Takashima tells them, adjusting her glasses as she eyes each of them up in turn.
"What's the good news?" Miyuki asks, glancing up from his tray.
Chris thinks he's going to have to say something about how invasive his tail is eventually, considering every time Miyuki sits next to him it automatically seems to curl around his.
Hopefully it won't be an issue for much longer. And Miyuki never seems aware he's doing it.
Still, he doesn't suppose it matters much in the end.
"So the reason behind the cat features is because there's a capsule toy promotion occurring at the moment, a promotional tie-in with the IP's second season. So it's not harmful, and it's not permanent."
"Why me?" Chris demands. If that's the case he can understand the others but not him.
"Maybe they went for the people they thought would be cutest with nekomimi, Chris-kun." Takashima adjusts her glasses again, and Chris sees the amused little twitch of her lips.
He clamps his lips shut because his apparent cuteness as a catboy or otherwise is a direction he doesn't want to walk in with Isashiki in earshot.
"How long will it last? It was fun for a day but we have practice to get back to." Sawamura asks.
"The PR department said maybe a week, but at least that's the bad news."
"A week!?" Chris feels like he's just been punched in the stomach; there's no 'at least' to it. He drops his head to the table in front of him, his forehead hitting it with a loud thunk.
That means he's going to have to face his schoolmates, and his dad, made up like a cat cafe waiter. All week.
"I'm sorry, there's nothing we can do about it Chris-kun. At least it isn't dangerous, or permanent," Takashima tries to soothe him.
"Don't worry Chris, we've got plenty of enrichment for you guys." That's Isashiki, and his body automatically tenses, because nothing good comes out of Isashiki's mouth.
He hears the jingle of a small bell, and it drags his gaze up unwillingly, eyes zeroing in on the quick, hypnotic movement as he stills on instinct, ears forward, eyes intent and body held low to the table-top. Dancing in front of him is a feather toy on a stick that Isashiki is bouncing around temptingly.
He drags his gaze away through sheer force of will, meets Isashiki's eye and bares his fangs. Isashiki's loud, genuine laugh is already very much in evidence as Chris hisses at him.