Kitty felt more lost than ever now. The bustling city suddenly felt so much more overwhelming. The sounds of chatter, advertisements, something ringing, a siren far away, he felt his throat was closing, and he could hardly breathe. His breath quickened, and he found himself gasping for air. He covered his nose as the scents filled it, and flattened his ears to his head.
A loud sound of a truck blaring past forced him to crouch to the ground, closing his eyes. He wished he could disappear just to escape his own senses. He bit his lip, and warm blood trickled down.
Masaru, Kitty's human part, had never had such sharp senses, so the reaction was violent, but it was for his cat side too. Choco had been a pampered indoor cat, cut off from the outside world. He spent his days sleeping, and never experienced scents or sounds far beyond what he heard normally. Now, Kitty was experiencing the world like never before, his senses expanded more than ever. He bit his lip more strongly, and the pain seared through it.
"Hey! Hey!" A hand shook Kitty's shoulder. His tail bushed up and he turned and hissed.
"Who are you?!" He asked defensively, wiping his tears with a hand. "What do you want?" He looked up, and saw a girl, long and dark hair, and soft, pale green eyes. They reminded him of mint ice cream, and the left one even had a large black spot in it. His ears slowly unflattened as he realized how her expression was twisted. "Oh. I'm sorry I scared you," Kitty murmured, just loud enough to be heard.
The girl gazed at him with an odd look, like when Masaru went to the aquarium and gawked at the fish, mouth wide open. This made Kitty's hair stand on end, and he shrank a bit back, as she reached her hand out.
The girl's expression softened, and her eyes narrowed. "What are you doing out on your own? Are you ok?"
Kitty was a bit confused by the question, but he tried to interpret in a way that made sense," I'm an adult… I'm ok to be on my own. But I-" He hesitated. He was about to bother a stranger with his problems. He stood straight, and forced his flattened ears up. " Don't worry," He took a deep breath," I'm fine."
He turned to leave, forcing his face to be neutral with a great effort.
The woman's eyes widened, as she looked at Kitty's neck. "Where is your collar?"
"Hm?" He touched his neck instinctively. "I don't have one." Kitty was strangely upset that she noticed the lack of a collar, but not his bleeding lip. He roughly rubbed the blood away on his arm.
"Oh." Her eyes glittered with tears. "That's horrible… A stray, abandoned by his family." Her voice shook, and she put a hand to her mouth, then she wiped a tear off of her cheek," I'm so sorry for you."
Kitty: "???" The hell?!
She got close, and hugged him. Kitty's tail puffed up, he grappled gently with his hands. He wanted to get out of this situation right now. "Please, let me be," He said through gritted teeth. Her grip on him was tight, and he felt his lungs tighten a bit. She pet his head, and he cringed backwards. She gave him a kiss, and he hissed. Kitty could hardly feel bad. He was at his limit with this lady!
Releasing him, she covered her mouth again, and looked even more pitying, which was making Kitty pissed at this point. "I'm sorry! You poor thing, you must be traumatized to where even a human's embrace cannot soothe you!"
Kitty sighed. This girl is nuts. He cursed under his breath. "Look, I'm going to leave. You're lucky I don't press charges. That was assault, plain and simple." He glared sharply. "Clearly you must know that, right?"
He knew this was a different world, but surely there were laws against assault in such an advanced city, right?
"Assault?" She frowned. Then she looked to think for a while, and just before Kitty was about to walk off, she said," That law only applies to humans. You seem a little confused…? Maybe," she seemed to come to some revelation and gasped," Were you born without an owner? Homeless until now?" She looked about ready to give all her money to Kitty, not able to bear her bleeding heart.
"Dammit it's none of your business! Quit being so crazy!" His blood felt hot. " Goodbye!" He bowed, and walked quickly away, further into the city.
As he walked away, the girl called a number on her phone. She spoke frantically and urgently. "It's terrible!" Kitty heard her say. He tried to ignore her and closed his ears.
The bustle of the city finally quieted, as Kitty focused his senses to what was immediately close to him. He found a somewhat clean alleyway, sandwiched between two brick buildings. He sat with a thump, and hugged his knees. The solid floor and bumpy wall caressed him uncomfortably, but he felt solace. His thoughts cleared, and he numbly sat there. He hadn't even done much, but everything was already so overwhelming. It's so noisy. It really is too much. His tail fell limply to the ground. I want to go back home. I want to… hold Choco in my arms. He found himself dipping into Masaru's memories. The soft touch of Choco, and the warmth the cat gave him, were the most amazing feelings.
He swallowed back a sob. Mom…He had thought to himself he'd be with her for his lifetime, but now he imagined how sad she had become. The thought of her crying made his lungs burn. Breathing had never been so painful before. I would have been better off if Masaru had never made that wish. I'm more miserable now than ever. Masaru had loved and cherished his cat, and Choco was his companion, his daily source of joy. He sent pictures of him everyday to his friends, and they all fawned over Choco together. He realized, now, that being both Choco and Masaru was nothing like what he wanted. I wished to be together… but I wanted to hold him. I wanted to talk to him. And I also… wanted to share him. He was utterly alone now, and it was the worst thing ever.
Kitty sat there for a long while, and night fell. The night's cold air came in, and he shivered. This was no good, he couldn't stay here all night…
Grumble. Kitty's stomach churned. His throat was hot and dry. He remembered he hadn't eaten since waking up in this world. "Surely… If it is so similar to Japan, the restaurants might work the same?"
Sure enough, the smell of warm beef, chicken, fish, and soup as well as other ingredients wafted into his nose, as he walked back down the street.
The restaurant was a short building with black walls outside, and hanging menus at the entrance. He was nervous, but thought "Remember! I'm not weird in this world, I'm a Bakeneko, a completely normal person!" He clenched his fist firmly, readying himself.
He entered, and breathed it in with a weak smile. "Excuse me" He said nervously.
Kitty paused, as he expected the warm voices of the workers, as they welcomed him. He looked around, and saw the people eating, a few chattering with smiles. Some drank beer, laughing loudly. He looked, and saw one of the servers. They had a weird, wide-eyed expression.
"Excuse me-" He began, and the server swiftly ran away, leaving Kitty befuddled. "Hello?"
A long time passed, and Kitty didn't know if he should leave or not. The bustling of the restaurant felt so quiet now. The moment seemed to drag on for a century. This is so awkward!
The server came back, with a phone in hand. They smiled tightly, a forced expression. "You can sit down, sir." The server led him to an empty table.
"Thanks very much!" Kitty did his best to look friendly, and not give away his nervousness.
The server bowed and ran away just as quickly as before. Kitty stared at the bare table. There was no menu, and the stove had been covered. He realized his position at the back corner of the restaurant, and looked around at the other customers, and suddenly noticed a few sideways looks. They stared, and even some of the ones who were laughing heartily before, shot him a look silently. He felt as if everyone's eyes were on him, burning into his skin, as the sweat dropped down his brow. He shifted uncomfortably in his seat.
After a while, the feeling of being trapped dug into Kitty's skin, and he tapped his nails on his palm in a rhythmic fashion, trying to calm himself. Should I just… leave? He shook his head. He came here to eat, and he would. But he hesitated to get up and ask someone. He didn't want to be a bother… So he just sat and waited, in a stasis, stuck because he was taught to be polite, but his hunger was gnawing at his stomach, and his cat side was begging to heck with politeness I need food!
Just as he stood about to give in to his instincts, a waitress, and some large men approached. He sat back down quickly, and his cheeks turned a little pink. "Hi! Do you have a menu-"
"Mr. Bakeneko," one of the large men said. "Do you happen to be a foreigner?"
Kitty thought how to respond, and quickly supplied an answer,"You could say that." His ear flicked, and he scratched it with his claws. " Is it obvious?"
The big man on the left of the waitress exhaled, sounding a bit frustrated. " I'm not sure where you are from, but here, being a stray is illegal. You must have a collar, and be registered with a human owner." His expression was a bit dark, and his brown eyes glittered with disdain, and his pale beige skin looked red with anger."Bakenekos are pets, and shouldn't be loose in this big city," he growled through clenched teeth.
The other man, a tall and muscled dark skinned guy, grabbed something from his pocket, and flipped it open. A police badge? " With full permission of Mell city's laws, we will be taking you to the pet shelter. There, you will be cleaned and prepared for adoption. Please do not resist."
"What? Huh?" Kitty's two colored eyes bulged, and he at once felt panic rise within him. Kitty pushed the panic down, trying to see the best out of the situation. He looked around, hoping some kind of joke was being played, when a firm hand grabbed him by the arm. The severity of the situation hit Kitty, blindsighting him. He gaped at the men, and then tried to tug his arm away. He kept his claws away, though, because he didn't want to cause too much trouble. The man's arm was too strong. He hissed and growled in frustration, writhing as the other man grabbed him, and they started to carry him off.
"Let me go!" He screeched. He saw the people in the restaurant, staring, and he noticed. The bakenekos, they were all eating at a different table, and given no utensils, no napkins. Just food bowls, like a common domestic cat. Their collars… were leashed and tied to a pole near the table. What the hell?! He let out a scream, and bit the arm that wrapped around him tightly.
"Stop resisting." The red-faced man with blond hair snapped. He tugged on Kitty, and Kitty felt pain shoot up his arm. "That was a warning. Next, I'll dislocate your shoulder. That ought to pacify you."
Fear crawled up Kitty's spine. He really was helpless. He sagged in defeat. His tail and ears lay limp, and he bit his lip–a bad habit Masaru had developed, when he was stressed, usually when he was trying his hardest not to fail at school. The pain grounded him, and let his focus come to a single point. In the past Masaru had had a scar on the right side that was constantly ripped back open. The pain was even worse with Kitty's sharp cat-like teeth that punctured his own skin easily. But it still brought him a strange comfort, as the hot blood ran down.