⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀╔···············································╗
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀┋ P3: AN UNEXPECTED INVASION ┋
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀╚···············································╝
The discomfort had returned to John's body the next day, so he didn't go to university, calling the professor beforehand to let him know.
Meanwhile, Molly had stayed in the room with him all day, taking some time to rest that morning as well. Around noon, she got up and went to make lunch, leaving John in bed.
What would have happened if the neighbor hadn't interrupted them? To what extent would they have gone...?
A couple of stronger questions crossed his mind, but he decided not to voice them out loud for fear of making a mistake and blurting it out by accident. From what he had noticed, Molly hadn't felt that carnal desire again since the morning began, being the warm and friendly person she always was. As he had theorized, her heat only activated at night, so it would also give him moments of calmness.
But, in reality, he had been left wanting.
"Is someone at home?"
Quickly, John began dressing just in case, then left his room only to be stopped by Molly, urging him to return to bed.
"Someone's at the door... it's impolite not to see who it is."
"I know... it's just that... well... it's him."
"Uhmmm...?"
John approached the window to see who it was, spotting the usual brown cat scratching at the door.
"Oh, him..." he whispered, moving away from the window to avoid being seen, swiftly closing the curtains. "I don't mind, I just don't like that guy."
"Not just because of that. It's just that... if he sniffs around, he might sense what happened last night... And I prefer to keep it a secret. It's something between us..."
John covered his mouth, trying to think of a way to get the cat to leave and stop bothering them.
"The headache still affected him... but he didn't want Molly to deal with it right now.
He approached the door and looked through the peephole.
"I'm sick, if you come in, you'll catch it. Besides, don't you have anywhere else to go? Take the day off, I'm not going anywhere."
"No wonder you weren't at school, I've heard that excuse too many times, idiot."
"I really am sick..."
However, he didn't hear another word from the feline, turning to see Molly, who was closing any possible entry into the house, from windows to other doors.
"Don't worry, I don't think he'll get in anywhere. If not, a thief would've been in here long ago," Jhon commented, sitting on the floor and resting his arm on a plush, soft piece of furniture.
"Get your hand off me, idiot."
.............
Both froze upon seeing the brown cat beside Jhon, their heads turning in different directions, trying to understand what had happened.
"How did you get in?" Jhon asked, signaling secretly to Molly to go into his room and stay there.
"Where else? Haven't you noticed that huge hole in the floor in your room?"
Molly stopped just before opening the door and rushed to the bathroom, locking herself in.
"Wait, is there a hole from the street into my house through that gap?"
"You'd better watch out for the rats, although Molly can hunt one or two. But a pack would be dangerous. I say this for Molly's sake, don't get any ideas."
John didn't appreciate the feline's intrusion, but he knew it was too nimble to avoid. Its movements were quite elusive, so he had to be cautious about where it moved or what it said.
"And what brings you here? I told you I'll be staying at home all day."
"I'm a vengeful cat, here to continue the game."
"...Game?"
The feline cleared its throat and let out a light, sharp meow, and suddenly, multiple footsteps could be heard. Hundreds of footsteps.
John began looking around, fearing the worst. "You don't mean to say..."
The brown cat smiled, gracefully wagging its tail. And then, dozens of cats started coming out of John's room; cats from the entire neighborhood and nearby streets had entered his house through the same hole in the floor that the feline had used to enter. They all sat behind the brown cat, who turned around to look at them with pride.
"Admire the human-cat!"
"Human-cat?!" exclaimed John, hearing a sudden "Oooooh" coming from all the cats, whose eyes were gleaming. "Wait, this is worse than I imagined. What are they all doing here?"
In the face of his complaints and doubts, the brown cat simply ignored him and, addressing his audience, introduced himself:
"Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for accepting my invitation. I told you what you would see was true, and indeed it is. I, the great Norman, have managed to find the human with a crow's heart and a donkey's brain, descendant of feline ancestors who have bestowed upon him the gift of speech with us, the supreme species."
John took a step back, starting to get nervous about the situation.
"I don't—"
"And that's not all! Along with him, we have the greaaaaaat, and I mean that literally, master and owner of this human, a cat with more strength than all of us and a beauty superior to the cat you have by your side, yes, I'm talking to you, Betsy (MROOW!). Her name is—"
In a quick rush, John grabbed the brown cat and took him to his room, locking the door securely. He placed him on his bed and enclosed him, placing his hands on either side.
"What on earth was all that?! You started by selling me for a show to about three cats... and now you bring almost the entire feline town?!"
"I sell what I know they're willing to pay for. I get rich, you make Negriza happy, and the city cats are happy. We all win, you little idiot!"
"But don't drag Molly into these stupidities! You've lied more than you eat. I thought you wanted to keep Molly's presence a secret."
"I had them mark with their paw on a paper that they would never reveal the rumor to anyone. By the law of Mifus, they are bound by this contract for life, for not reading the fine print. Did you see that orange cat that growled at me a while ago? It's cats like Betsy that instantly fall for shows like these."
John sighed, distancing himself from the cat, who licked his lips cunningly, staring at him with a sharp gaze.
"I know what I'm doing," he remarked, wagging his tail, "by the way... it smells different in here than before..."
In a swift motion, John extended his arm and opened the door, grabbing the cat and pulling him out of the room with him, closing the door behind them.
The feline leaped, landing on the floor gracefully, striding forward with pride.
"Apologies for the delay, our human had to clarify some details. Whenever you're ready, you can start approaching one by one to ask your question or make your request."
John tried to recall the name by which he introduced himself and looked at the cat.
"Wait... Norman, right...? Wasn't it just about bringing them here so they could see that I understand what they're saying...?"
He refrained from commenting on the fact that the whole story about feline ancestors and weird things was pure lies, as he saw dozens of kittens among the crowd with their mothers, excited to see him.
"Just sit and listen to them. Each one has a question or something they'd like to ask you for as a favor. I'll reward you if you help me out. Maybe you've wanted to give Molly a gift these days? You only know someone capable of bringing things from another world, meaning me~~"
...<
After fixing his weary gaze on the cat, he looked back at the patiently silent crowd.
The kittens started to step forward, purring amongst themselves, their little tails swaying from side to side.
Their faces were full of excitement and an innocent smile that melted his heart with little resistance.
<
John crossed his arms, letting out a long sigh. Norman, sitting beside him, lifted his tail and smiled at the audience, making room for the boy to sit, grabbing a couple of cushions from the couch, placing one in front of him and the other underneath him, to sit comfortably.
"..... V-very well... let the first one come forward," he said, with a faint smile on his face.
Norman purred and twitched his ears, prompting a pair of tiny kittens to approach, hopping over to the cushion where they would sit in front of him. They were identical. Perhaps the first pair of twins he had ever seen in his life.
"Only one at a time," Norman clarified, as he went to find Molly; however, John grabbed him by the tail, making him growl.
"You stay. Molly is not in the mood right now. You caught me sick, but I can handle this; but she's busy right now. If you're going to interrupt or bother her, then I won't continue with your little game," replied John, giving the brown cat a cold look.
Norman leaped, causing John to release his tail, and he hit him with his hind legs on the cheek, landing gracefully.
"Fine... You attend to them. I'll stay... But you'll have to explain to them as well; many of them have come just to see her."
"Don't involve her in your shows!"
"Sir...?"
John turned his head, looking down at the cushion in front of him. The pair of kittens had their ears low, somewhat timid...
<<...They're like children. Behave, don't shatter their excitement.>> he told himself, waving his arms to his sides and smiling gently.
"I'm sorry, this is my first time doing this. It wasn't anything against you," seeking some help around, he headed to the kitchen, opening one of the cabinets to retrieve a can of tuna and returning with it to the cushion, opening it and leaving it for both little ones, "Enjoy, my treat."
The little ones let out a cheerful meow, sniffing the food first before confidently starting to eat it. "Humans tend to get tense, but as always, they always succumb to the little ones. Isn't it annoying when they scold us for an accident but not the little ones? We're already grown-ups, we play dumb when they try to scold us, don't we, Kenny?"
While Norman controlled and improved the atmosphere, listening to the laughter and comments among the crowd, John focused on attending to the twins.
"Well... What are your names, little ones? I'm John Edwards."
"I'm Timmy!" the younger one exclaimed. Unlike his brother, he had green pupils and measured slightly shorter, just a couple of centimeters, "and he's Tommy."
Tommy remained silent, smiling timidly.
"Timmy, Tommy, you seem like good kittens. Isn't that right? Did you want to ask me something?"
Tommy perked up his ears, nodding slightly. He gestured subtly to his brother to speak for him.
"Oh, yes, yes. Right away. Umm, well, Tommy can't speak, and that has worried our owner. Her name is Emma, she lives a few houses from here. When she comes back from school, Tommy and I play with her, but Tommy can't express his happiness like all the other cats, and... lately, we've heard Emma sad because she thinks Tommy doesn't love her. But that's not true, right?"
Tommy shook his head, then hesitated, and nodded. His confused expression made John understand that he hadn't quite grasped the question, but fortunately, his emotions and response were clear.
"We'd like to know if you could go tell Emma that Tommy loves her very much! That would help us all. Mommy agrees, right?"
John lifted his head, looking at a gray feline, just like her children, nodding, greeting the boy with a purr.
"Please!"
John fell silent, clenching his fists tightly.
Deep down, he wanted to shout, "Of course, yes!" letting himself be swayed by the tenderness and emotion. If he put himself in the situation of the little feline, he would have also gone to a show like this, even if it had been a scam or not.
But the fact that they had paid Norman, who was now glancing at him sideways, making all the present cats do the same, made the situation more complicated.
"I'll gladly help you, count on me, little one."
John reached out his hand toward the small mute gray cat, who sniffed it for a few seconds and then began purring very softly against his palm, making the boy's heart beat faster.
However, there was something that worried him. Being realistic, for him, it was impossible; or at least, it would seem very odd if he did it just like that.
A boy barely finishing adolescence and stepping into adulthood, going to find a girl he didn't know, and by the way his pets spoke of her, she might be younger than him. It would make the situation very uncomfortable, and he might get into trouble if he couldn't explain it well.
But that would be a problem for his future self. Or at least, that's how he started thinking, trying to focus on brightening as many hearts as he could.
Internally, he denied it, but the truth was that the situation wasn't that bad either. If it wasn't for his need to suppress a cough or to cough discreetly into his arm to avoid discouraging the kittens waiting in line and starting to ask him about how to resolve certain conflicts or convince their mothers during a tantrum, then that morning would have been one of the happiest of his life.
The comfort and attention he felt from each of the little ones present lightened the tensions he carried with him, making him feel more relaxed, gradually sensing his body becoming less heavy and tense.
The constant meows and smiles from each one motivated him to keep his health condition hidden, making gestures and sharing a bit more tuna with the little ones.
Until, in the end, they finished their line, leaving him facing the real challenge.
He had attended to about ten kittens by now, and some touched him more than others, but overall, it had been a very wholesome and satisfying experience. All well cared for and healthy, to his relief.
However, the scene, at that moment, turned very different. Cats he had seen on the street, some he had knelt with in the park, a few with a missing ear or scratches on their side, and others that looked hefty but sinister stood behind everyone, leaving the older and younger cats up front, murmuring amongst themselves.
There were cats of all kinds gathered in that single room, and he doubted if he could hide his cough from them, which was gradually worsening.
His stomach began to growl with hunger, and he asked the brown cat for a break. He headed to the kitchen to grab a couple of bread rolls and then made his way to the bathroom, knocking on the door three times.
"It's me... let me in, please," he whispered to Molly, who didn't respond at first, but then he heard the bolt slide and let him in.
John felt his legs tired and somewhat cramped, so he slumped onto her arms, and she guided him inside, locking the door securely.
"Norman... I think that's his name... He brought almost all the cats from the city. And I'm hungryyyy..." he commented, chuckling a bit, while handing her one of the bread rolls.
Molly remained silent, looking thoughtfully at the bread. She began to eat it eagerly and started to purr, pondering something.
"But you're sick... couldn't you just make them leave? It's your house," she said.
John took her paw in his hands, shaking his head gently. "You live here too, with me. This is your home as well, don't forget."
Molly remained quiet, this time due to a blush that changed her mood, removing the heaviness from before, making her nervous with a blush covering her entire face, causing her tail to flick.
"D-Don't change the subject, John Edwards," she replied, laughing a bit while trying to maintain a semblance of seriousness, "I-I don't like having so many cats here. They make me nervous..."
"Does Norman know?"
"Norman is just my guardian! He's not my bodyguard or anything like that."
John refrained from asking about the term "guardian" because he noticed her getting flustered.
She truly had a fear of large audiences.
"Okay, I'll wrap this up quickly. Once this is over, it'll just be you, me, breakfast in bed, and we can repeat what we did last night."
Molly stared at John with disbelief and a blush coloring her cheeks. The sudden shift in the conversation left her breathless for a moment. She cleared her throat, trying to regain composure.
"J-John, that... that has nothing to do with what we were talking about," she stammered, a mix of nervousness and confusion evident. She tried to focus on the previous conversation, although her thoughts wavered at John's new words.
He smiled, noticing Molly's reaction. "I'm sorry, I just wanted to distract you a bit. But seriously, do you need something to feel more comfortable here? Maybe I should talk to Norman to limit the number of cats roaming around?"
Molly nodded quickly, grateful to return to the original topic. "Yes, that would be great. It's not that I don't like cats, but with so many, I feel a bit overwhelmed. And... and thank you, John, for understanding."
"Of course, the last thing I want is for you to feel uncomfortable. Always keep that in mind, you're the most important thing to me," he responded sincerely. "Now, how about some breakfast to lift the spirits? I'll bring it to you right away, just wait here."
The blush on Molly's cheeks began to fade as she nodded, thankful for John's understanding.
John returned to the living room with determination. Norman looked at him with his yellow eyes, conveying a kind of mockery without saying a word. The cats had dispersed throughout the house, exploring every corner with feline curiosity.
"I'm sorry, guys, but this isn't a good place for you," said John calmly, ignoring the silent taunts from the brown cat. With gentle movements, he began guiding the cats back to the living room, speaking to them kindly so as not to alarm them.
He asked for a moment to prepare a quick breakfast, amidst dozens of complaints, one stood out more than the others due to the tone with which it was addressed to him.
"I've been waiting outside first for hours, then I gave up my spot to the little ones, and now that it's my turn, I have to wait more! Just answer me one thing, my delicate paws shouldn't even be touching such a disgusting place!"
John turned, feeling a spark of anger within him, seeing Norman vainly trying to calm the feline, whose tail whipped against the floor in impatience.
And at that moment, he recognized her.
The leopard-spotted cat with the most expensive jewelry collar in the city, the one who could humiliate others solely by the wealth of her family.
Charlotte, Eleanor's leopard cat, who cost him a million dollars, had made her first appearance before him.