23: Cat

“25 Keikoku Road...25 Keikoku Road...”

Yae took one more look at the back of the photograph to make sure she really was mumbling the correct address.  Sure enough, her sister’s words confirmed her thought, and she went back to walking slowly down the street and looking at the white numbers painted next to the curtained doors.

“Hmm, let’s see...21...23...Ah, here we go, 25.”  Her heart racing, she entered the building labeled as such, the smallest by far that she had seen on this street, and the closest to dilapidation.

---

“Welcome!  Can we interest you in a dog?  A cat?  A monkey?”

After blinking from the shock of this sudden greeting from a short, scrawny man with glasses and spiked hair, as well as the fact that this shelter apparently had monkeys, Yae shook her head.  “Actually, there’s a specific pet I’m here to pick up.  This one right here.”  She held out a photograph of a small white kitten curled up on some blankets.  “There’s some sort of identification number or something on the back, under the address.”

“Yes, yes, I see...1406...Hmm...”  He turned the sheet around to look at the photo once more.  “Ah, I think I know this one...I don’t know what you would want with it, though.”

“Huh?  What do you mean?”  Yae tilted her head in confusion; he had sounded genuinely disappointed by this assumption in Yae’s disinterest.

“You’ll see...” the shopkeeper mumbled as he fiddled with a large number of keys on a ring, eventually settling on a large brass one and using it on a heavy steel door in the back of the room.

---

It wasn’t a long walk to the appropriate section.  Yae moved slowly past the caged cats and stared at them as she did so, her heartstrings pulled by some of their reactions.  Many of them slept, apparently taking an afternoon nap, though some mewed and stared back as she walked by, and a smaller amount reached a tiny, desperate paw out through holes in their cages, hoping the green-haired kunoichi would reach back and release them from these dingy, confined homes.  “That’s so sad,” Yae said half to herself.  “You really should take better care of some of these cats, sir.  They look miserable...”

The man leading her stopped suddenly in front of three cages built into the wall and stacked on top of each other.  “Do you want your cat or not, ma’am?  She’s right here.”

“Oh, y-yes, please.”  Her heart accelerated as she stepped up behind him.  All her life she had wanted a cat, and thanks to the generosity of her sister and her friends it was finally happening.  The cat in the top cage, mostly white with black spots on two of its legs and on one of its cheeks, stared down with yellow eyes at the shopkeeper as he opened the one in the middle.

“All right, let’s get you out of here,” he said, softly but roughly.  Yae looked over his shoulder and saw a small kitten pressed up against the back of its cage.  It appeared to be fairly skinny under all the white fur, with eyes of green that matched those of its potential owner.  It pawed at the hands of the shopkeeper, less playfully than aggressively, as he tried to wrap them around her.  After sustaining some attacks from its claws and teeth that were surely barely noticeable, he managed to pick it up and pull it out of the cage.

The cat celebrated its first moments of freedom in Yae didn’t know how long by squirming, clawing, and hissing frantically.  “Ack!  H-Hold still, you little mon--”  Finally able to break free from his grasp, the cat half leapt, half fell out of his arms towards Yae.  “Ack, catch, quick!”

“Ah!”  Yae lunged forward and dipped down, holding her arms out and providing a cradle for the feline.  It landed on its side in her arms with a mew, and the kunoichi let out a sigh of relief.  “There, there, I’ve got you now, little girl...” she cooed as she shifted the cat to a more comfortable position and stroked its fur.  Yae cradled the kitten in her arms for a moment before coming to a realization.  “Hey, the cat’s a lot calmer now...And why did you insinuate that I wouldn’t want her, anyway?”

“Well, you saw, just a minute ago...Scratching, biting, hissing...She’s terrible.”  He took a deep breath and scratched the back of his head.  “So then...do you want her?”  He smiled eagerly.

Yae scowled and held the cat closer to her breast.  The kitten looked up at her and licked her cheek before purring affectionately.  Yae stared back down at her, smiling, feeling more content than she had in a long, long time.  “Of course I want her,” she said after some time.  “It would be cruel to keep her here, and I just can’t not want her.”

---

“All right, now sign here...and here...and here, and here, and here.  Oh, and initial here and here, if you would.”

Yae knew from the relatively small amount of paperwork she had to do as a secret agent ninja that filling it out was one of her least favorite activities.  She dropped the pen onto the table next to the form and rotated her sore wrist.  “So, can I just take her home now?”

“Not quite...unfortunately...” the shopkeeper said under his breath.  “You need to name her.  You left that part of the form blank, see?”

Indeed, Yae had forgotten to write anything in the “Pet’s Name” field, and tapped the pen against her chin as she mentally went over the potential names she had devised with as a child.  There were many; the highly idealistic young Yae had dreamed of having as many cats as any person could handle.  There was one name that always stood out in her mind, however.  Something beautiful, something elegant, something that she felt matched her newest friend perfectly.  She wrote out the name in the appropriate field before turning to her new pet.  “Miyabi...What do you think of that?”  The cat mewed before licking her cheek once again, and Yae giggled before smiling at the man who had given her the feline.  “All right, I think I’ll be taking Miyabi off your hands now.”

---

“Oh my God, Yae, she’s adorable!”

“Heh, I knew we made a good choice.”

“Soooooo cute!  Let me hold her, let me hold her!”

“Ack, Ebisumaru!  Be careful, she’s delicate!”

Ebisumaru loosened his grip slightly on the squirming cat in his arms.  He brought her up to his cheek and nuzzled her, while Miyabi kept squirming and pawing at his face.  Taking this as a playful gesture, Ebisumaru giggled.  “Oh yeah, you’re a real cutie, Miyabi.  Why, I could just take you home and eat you up, you’re so sweet!”

“And I’d really rather you didn’t,” Yae interjected.  “I wouldn’t put it past you, but I’d still be pretty mad if you ate my cat.”  She then turned to Goemon, standing a few yards away from the huddled mass of Omitsu, Hitoe, Ebisumaru, and herself.  “Hey, what are you doing way over there?  Don’t you want to come over and meet Miyabi?”

“Er, no, not really...” Goemon replied as he rubbed the back of his neck.  “Ah, I mean, I’m sure she’s great and all, but, uh...I, I mean, she, I mean, I...”  He continued to stammer in this manner for some time before snapping his fingers excitedly.  “I’m allergic to cats!  Yeah, that’s it!  I, uh, I don’t wanna get sick, so I’m keeping my distance.”  He nodded fervently, while Yae cocked her head to the side and raised an eyebrow.

“Um...Okay, then.  If you insist.”  Yae asked Ebisumaru for her cat back and gently picked her up out of his arms.  Miyabi responded immediately by nuzzling Yae’s chest.  “Anyway, I think all this excitement must be tiring for poor Miyabi...She’s had an exhausting day, I’m sure.”

“Oh, okay,” Ebisumaru said, crossing his legs and resting his chin in his hands.  “I’ll just sit and watch, then, I don’t mind!”

Yae looked slightly uncomfortable, while Omitsu rubbed her forehead, stood up, and tugged on Ebisumaru’s collar to try and get him to do the same.  “I’m pretty sure she’s actually asking us to leave, Ebisumaru.”

“Aww, really?”

“Yes, really.”  She tugged harder, finally getting him on his feet, and was eventually able to shoo a reluctant Ebisumaru and an eager Goemon out of Yae’s doorway.  “Anyway, thanks for your hospitality, Yae, and for introducing us to Miyabi.  I’m glad you enjoyed your gift!”  She waved at the three that remained in the house before exiting.

---

Several days passed, during which Hitoe returned to the village of Yui and life became more or less normal once again.  Yae would go to work whenever she was needed and return home excited to see her Miyabi once again.  Though content with this routine, there was something about her that she found troubling...

“No, Miyabi.  The couch isn’t a good place for sharpening your claws.  Here...”  Miyabi, clawing at Yae’s living room couch, soon found herself lifted into the air by her owner and put back on the ground in front of her new scratching post.  Yae smiled as the cat looked up at her, purring and flicking her tail.  “You’ve been such a good little kitty...” she cooed as she knelt to pet her.  “If only you weren’t--”  A knock came at the front door suddenly, at which point Miyabi ran under the couch.  “...so scared of other people,” Yae sighed, finishing her thought.

The knock came again, only a few seconds after the first.  “I’m coming!” Yae shouted as she walked toward the door.  She could hear and feel Miyabi following no more than two inches behind her.  She opened the door to see a familiar face.  “Oh, Goemon!” she said with a grin.  “What’s up?”

“Ah, hey, Yae.”  A hiss rose through the air and Goemon looked down towards Yae’s waist.  “Er...”

“What are you--?!”  Yae lifted Goemon’s chin so that he was once again staring at her eyes.  “Up here, Goemon!  Up here.”

“Er, right, sorry...It’s just that...”  Goemon pointed down, and Yae looked to see Miyabi sticking her head between Yae’s ankles and baring her tiny fangs.

“Oh, Miyabi, now you’re just being ridiculous!”  Yae pushed her cat’s head back and picked her up.  “Come on in, Goemon,” she continued as she stepped further inside, allowing him access to the interior of her abode, and gently bounced Miyabi in her arms.

“Thanks, Yae,” Goemon said as he followed her, making sure to keep his distance.  “Um...Omitsu asked me to come borrow some stuff from you.  Some, uh...soba, that’s it!  Yeah, Omitsu’s out of soba and she wanted me to get some from you.  So she could, you know...cook with it and stuff...”

“Er, right...”  Yae put Miyabi in her bed and raised an eyebrow at Goemon.  “Seems odd that Omitsu would run out of something like soba so suddenly, but I’ve got plenty to spare.  I’ll be right back.”

As Yae walked to the kitchen, Goemon moved silently to Miyabi, who was too involved in licking herself to notice him until he was right over her.  They stared at each other for a brief moment before Miyabi stood up and climbed out of her bed.  She would have trotted away if Goemon hadn’t reached out and picked her up from under her stomach.  “Oh, no you don’t!  This isn’t gonna work if you keep trying to run away like this,” he hissed.  Miyabi squirmed and made hissing sounds of her own, trying with all her might to get out of Goemon’s grasp.  “Shh, hold still...” he said as he petted her gently, trying his best not to drop her but prepared to dash out the front door as fast as his legs would carry him if he did so.  “There, now that’s not so bad, is it?” he whispered after she had calmed down a bit.  Miyabi purred quietly.  “Heh, you’re actually kind of...well, kind of cute, you know that?”

It was at this moment that Yae emerged from the kitchen, behind Goemon.  “Hey, I got you your--” she mumbled.  “What are you doing with--” she said, slightly louder.  “Aww, that’s so sweet,” she whispered, peering over his shoulder at the cat in his arms slowly falling asleep.

“Hmm?  Uwah!”  Not only waking Miyabi up with his sudden scream, but also nearly dropping her, Goemon recovered his composure and the cat before it could slip out of his arms.  “D-Don’t do that, Yae!”

“Sorry,” Yae giggled.  “So then, how is it you’re not sneezing and gasping for breath, Mr. ‘I’m-allergic-to-cats’?”  Caught in his own lie, Goemon began stammering frantically while Yae smirked and put a hand on her hip.  “Come on, just admit it.  You like her.”

“Er, well, I mean, maybe...Ack, I mean--”

“Heh heh...You know, it’s really nice seeing this sweet, sensitive side of you, Goemon.”  She smiled and petted Miyabi.  “It...Heh, well, it makes you more likable, especially with women.”  She began to blush, so slightly that neither she nor Goemon took much notice of it.

“Really?” he responded after blinking several times.  “Even with you, Ms. ‘I’m-not-interested-in-romance’?”

“Eheh, well...”  The blush came on a bit thicker, and Yae covered one cheek while turning the other away from Goemon’s view.

“I’m just teasing, Yae,” Goemon said with a grin.  “Anyway, thanks for the, uh...what was it again...oh, yeah, the soba!  Yeah, thanks again, I’ll see ya around!”

“Uh-huh...You’re welcome...” Yae mumbled as Goemon put Miyabi back in her bed and ran out the door with the noodles he had requested.  She looked down at her pet, who was yawning and curling up in a ball.  “Wow, I’ve never seen you that comfortable around anyone except me, Miyabi...”  Yae knelt and petted her absentmindedly.  “He must be really special, then...Maybe Goemon really is kinder and more gentle than he seems...”

---

Goemon was proud of himself.  Not only had Yae’s cat proven to be easier to handle than expected, but he was looking forward to being 20 ryo richer when he told Omitsu that he had risen to her challenge and won their bet.  “Heh, this is gonna be awesome,” he thought, grinning wider and walking with increased perkiness with each step.  “I can’t wait to see the look on Omitsu’s face!”

He stopped in front of a trash bin in a park not far from his home and stared for a moment at the soba in his hand, the food he had retrieved from Yae.  With a smirk, he tossed the noodles into the can before walking off.  “Scared of cats...Ha!”