"Partner, wake up."
Kazuya's eyes fluttered open at Nami's gentle touch. She sat by the bedside, her divine form partially eclipsing the moon's glow from the window. On any other night, he would have whooped Nami's ass for this disruption. But tonight... Tonight, he had granted her special privilege to ruin his sleep.
Nami's fingers traced his forehead, her smile soft in the dim light. "Unohana won't say no to me. I could go in your place."
"I have to do it myself."
As he attempted to rise, he found himself anchored by Yoruichi's arm draped across his chest. She clung to his side like she wouldn't let go no matter what. He may have dragged her into the bed, but she liked using him as her plushie more than he did, at least during her sleep.
Nami snickered. "She does that after rejecting a relationship for the hundredth time. Partner, I know the best way to convince Yoruichi. Push her down and tame her with your D."
"Easy now," he said, running his fingers through Yoruichi's hair, trying to ease her into letting go. "She lived all her life without romance. She needs more time to adjust."
Even Yoruichi could no longer deny her feelings for him. She just needed a little more time to grow accustomed to this dynamic, where she was more than just a friend to someone.
"Pet," she whispered as her eyes lazily opened. "Pet..." With another mumble, she nuzzled into his chest, and her breathing grew soft. She had drifted back to sleep in the comfort of his, or rather her 'Pet's' presence.
This wasn't the first time he had seen Yoruichi's Hollow taking over during the night. She left herself too vulnerable when she slept by his side, a typical habit of cats relying on others in the group to keep an eye out for threats.
'This cute little thing.'
Although his first meeting with her Hollow was far from great, he had warmed up to her cute antics. He didn't mind its presence as long as it acted within its boundary, which was never attempting a forced possession of Yoruichi's body.
"Release me and go to sleep," he whispered in Yoruichi's cat ears, and her right ear twitched in response. "I said release me and go to sleep."
Yoruichi's Hollow succumbed to the power of charm and loosened her grip around him. He gently disentangled himself from her arms and stepped off the bed before draping a blanket over her.
Nami wrapped her arms around his waist, glancing up at him from her seated position. "Someone learned to tame bad kitties. Or should I say baddies and kitties?"
"Both works," he said with a faint smirk. "Do you wanna be tamed too?"
"Haha. Partner truly looks the most charming when abusing your natural gifts."
He stroked her hair affectionately. "I thought I had a weird fetish, but you're in a league of your own."
She dismissed his comment with a soft giggle. Standing up, she reached up and unbuttoned his shirt with a deliberate slowness. "I like every side of Partner. But if I had to pick... I'll go with a moderate evil version with a balance of smarts and violence."
"Oh? Which version am I currently playing?"
"The good guy, of course." Nami looked away with a pout that looked outlandishly adorable on her regal face. "You haven't been evil ever since you entered the Soul Society... there was that fight with Byakuya. It was an exception, not the norm."
He patted her back in the most comforting way. "It's just the circumstances that made me. I'll be plenty evil for you in the future. Now, can you watch over Yoruichi while I'm gone?"
"Babysitting feral kitties isn't exactly my forte, Partner." She glanced at the sleeping Yoruichi and shook her head. "She is so unreasonable. I'd be really down if she was cute, fluffy, and meowie-wowie. Gosh, I'm gonna have to wait another few centuries to find a little catgirl pillow. I'm talking about your daughter with her, Partner."
She got along exceptionally with Yoruichi, however, the same couldn't be said for Yoruichi's Hollow. The feral entity had only one person in its eyes — her Pet. The rest of the world may as well be invisible to her senses.
Kazuya planted a kiss on Nami's cheek. "You're the alpha of Hollows. The future God Empress. How can you let a feral cat intimidate you?"
Her eyes widened as she realized her uncharacteristically spineless behavior. She took his hands and placed them on her cheeks. A smile bloomed on her face. "I know you're blatantly manipulating me into this… but I can't help it, you know. Your compliments fill to the brim with joy… and also, my title is 'Destined Empress of Heavens' now."
He leaned down and pressed his lips against hers. A brief contact of their lips was all it needed to make her grin ear to ear with confidence.
"I'm gonna get ready then, current Empress of Happiness."
The title got a good chuckle out of her. "Go without worry, for I, Izanami-no-Makoto shall protect this kitten with my very life."
He flashed her a thumbs up gesture before heading towards the bath.
***
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