Storms bring strange loyalties

[Anonymous]

He was shrugging; okay, maybe he'd give this hood thing a rest— oh gods, what was he doing?

Before Reks could even react, his hood was flicked off, exposing his cat ears for the stranger to see. His eyes widened, face turned red from embarrassment. He really, really did it — he really had the nerve to just be the most intolerable person ever and just flick off his hood, like it was nothing.

"Fuck," Reks cursed, left eye twitching. "What is wrong with you, seriously? Do you just lack any sense of common decency or what? That's a serious question." He crossed his arms over his chest, the tip of one of his ears twitching, an attempt to hold back all his anger. It was a miracle that the curse hadn't activated today; never before had he been so ridiculously pissed at someone who was just so casually annoying. It was insane.

"They do explain a lot of things. Yet . . ."

"Yes, that explains the hissing," Reks clarified, rolling his eyes. "Yet, what? What else could you possibly want to know? Or maybe you wanna feel 'em, to check for authenticity? You might as well!" He threw his hands up, defeated. "I mean, you've already breached my privacy once, right?" Gods, what was he even doing here— he could barely remember anymore.

[miss_sanguine]

No extra head. No mutant growth or wart the size of a dinner plate. He couldn't see what was embarrassing about cat ears. Why would the guy feel the need to hide them? It wasn't like cat ears were a mark of a devil or a sign of some morbid disease. Monnayage actually kind of liked them.

The guy's ire amused him terribly. Through all of the cursing and yelling and insults,  his smile just got bigger and bigger until he felt his face might split in half, or he'd break into loud bouts of laughter.

But then one of the ears twitched and he found the situation so hilarious that he did laugh. It exploded out of him, after trying so hard--or maybe not so hard--to hold it in. He laughed through most of the guy's words, then stood and stared, still grinning, as he finished.

"Don't mind if I do!" he said suddenly, altogether pleased, arms now in front of him as he reached out for the two furry appendages.

They were soft, like Maneki's, only furrier. Much furrier. "Cute," he said, chuckling some more.

[Anonymous]

Why was he laughing, of all things? This wasn't a game, he was not being amusing — he was a very angry mercenary and— wait, why was he reaching for his cat ears?!

"Don't mind if I do!"

"Wait, what." Reks stared up at the man; oh god, he was serious, he was actually going to touch them. "Shit, no, I was kidding," he clarified quickly. "You're not supposed to literally..." It was too late, though, and the stranger's hands were already stroking his cat ears, yet another breach of privacy.  "...touch... them..."

He was going to go on about he was the most annoying, frustrating, and intolerable man he had ever met, but he realized, with great dismay, that having his ears touched like this actually felt, well, good. He had taken care to make sure no one ever saw his cat ears, not even his friends from the islands, so naturally, no one had ever touched them before. But it was rather relaxing really, but most of all, it was calming. To Reks, a torrent of anger, it was rare for him to ever feel this calm.

His face was still red, mainly because this was probably the most embarrassing thing to happen to him, ever. Reks was a mercenary, not someone's kitty cat to pet! Again, he cast his eyes downwards, unable to look at this guy anymore, arms still crossed over his chest. "Hey, can you not... can you stop petting them. Please. This is all kinds of ridiculous."

Was that a goddamn purr forming in the back of his throat? He had never purred before and he was not sure he wanted to start doing that now. Gods, no no no, the less cat noises he made, the better. "Seriously, cut it out. You can't just go around stroking a random stranger's cat ears..." It was a very half-hearted attempt to get him to stop.

And he was calling them cute, of all things! No, no, no, Reks' cat ears were not cute, not in the least! This was why he hid them, so people didn't laugh or start petting them or start calling his ears cute!

"They're not cute, seriously, they're abominations." Reks related, but it was without his usual venom — it was hard for him to be angry when his ears were being stroked.  "A merc shouldn't have cat ears on his head."

[miss_sanguine]

Relaxed muscles were the first hint to Monnayage. The guy appeared to melt under his touch. It made him beam. Too much like a cat, even if he didn't smell like one. Cats loved to have their ears scratched.

He laughed under his breath, continuing to feel around. They were real, all right. Warm to the touch, too, after being held hostage under the cloak for so long. It had to be dreadfully uncomfortable, keeping them covered all the time like that.

While he had a cat of his own that he was often petting, he'd never had the chance to touch a cat-person's ears. It seemed a breach of protocol in the situations he'd been in when he'd met them. These ears were so similar to a cat's that he wouldn't have been able to tell the difference.

"They're soft," he said, as if this were a normal thing to say to someone about their ears. At the last words said by his new friend, however, he stopped and frowned a little, looking into the guy's downturned eyes.

"And why can't a mercenary have cat ears?" he asked, a little scolding. He backed up a little and folded his arms. Was this guy a victim of name-calling? Was that why he hid them? "I see nothing wrong with them. Dead useful, if you ask me. Cats can hear far better than any human." Except him. But he didn't count, since his abilities came from his familiar, Maneki.

[Anonymous]

Ever since the witch had cursed him, Reks had been a vehement maelstrom of anger and never ending frustration. The cat ears she had cursed him with, the tattoos that had manifested on his forearms as a mark of her magic misdeeds, the torrent of ceaseless pain that came with the witchery that settled in his body — all of had been nothing but a badge of shame for him to wear. He hadn't been calm — he was the kind of person who went to bed with his teeth clench — but now, just for a few moments, he was... calm.

It was stupid, he knew, letting a total stranger pet his ears like that, and even stranger for him to have found out about them so easily. No one had ever cared enough to ask why he constantly wore a black hood, and he had kept his distance from people, remaining cold and aloof, because it was better off this way, wasn't it? Until he found the witch and forced her to reverse her curse, he could never be normal. He could never be calm.

But just for a few moments, he'd allow this stranger to pet his ears. A wave of peace washed over him — and he had to choke back that purr that niggled at the back of his throat — and for the first time since he had left the islands, he wasn't angry. However, the sensation couldn't last forever, he knew, and the stranger eventually stopped. Reks' eyes opened a little wider as he did so, already missing how nice it felt. Gods, what was he doing, going soft? He should be glad that he had stopped invading his privacy, really...

Reks shoved his hands in his pockets, frowning a little. "Have you ever seen a merc with cat ears? It doesn't happen. Can't happen. No one would take you seriously, as I've learned the hard way. I mean — look at me." He gestured to himself, referring to his height. "I'm short enough as it is. Having cat ears to boot, well... It just makes it harder to prove yourself."

This guy thought they were useful, though. Reks absentmindedly scratched behind one of them, as it twitched in response. "Do you really think they're useful? I never thought of it that way, I guess..." He removed his hand, dropping it back at its side, and he couldn't help but laugh a little, grinning, at the thought of going without his hood on missions. "They don't exactly inspire terror into the hearts of your targets, though." The kitty mercenary? No no no, that was not happening...

[miss_sanguine]

Somewhere in the back of his mind, a feeling of satisfaction and pride that was entirely not his own made itself known, like a match had been lit unexpectedly. Maneki had apparently caught her prey and would soon be, or probably already was, eating the disgusting raw meat of the poor creature.

"Can't say that I have ever met a mercenary with cat ears, no," he answered honestly. "But then again, I haven't met that many mercenaries. One or two, maybe. And I don't see why a person wouldn't take you seriously." He pointed at the guy's ears, his mouth twitching with a restrained smile as the action seem to make one of them twitch again. "Cats are untamed creatures; hunters, animals that, while they can be pets, have no trouble surviving on their own if turned out of their human homes and left to fend for themselves."

The laugh made Monnayage beam. So, this guy wasn't such a big badass all the time, after all. That was good. He shrugged when asked the question, brushing off what was said. "Of course they're useful. You can hear better than other people, can't you? I'd say that's useful to one with a profession such as yours. As for being short? Who cares? Makes it easy to sneak around. Height doesn't make a difference in anything, except when needing to reach a high shelf in a pantry." Though, he had to admit, he found the guy's height amusing. That was him, though. He found almost everything amusing.

"They might not inspire fear, but I don't see them inspiring giggles, either. The only reason I laughed is because they were unexpected. If you didn't hide them all the time, then they wouldn't be." He tilted his head as he looked at the ears again. "And they don't seem to be domestic cat ears, anyway. Too big. Maybe a big wild cat's? Those aren't something to mess with." No need to mention that the guy's behavior toward them being petted was more of a housecat's reaction. He'd keep that to himself.

When he realized what he was saying, he blinked. What was he, some kind of counselor? He was talking to Mr. Serious as though he was a close friend. And he didn't even know his name!

"Name's Monnayage, by the way," he said, holding out his hand.

[Anonymous]

And I don't see why a person wouldn't take you seriously.

His quip made Reks suddenly remember the reason he had been talking to him in the first place. "You didn't!" Reks huffed, crossing his arms. "I asked you a simple question before, and you talked in circles and now I still don't know anything about those guys." He dropped his arms, regarding the stranger curiously. "Maybe this is another one of your brilliant distractions." The merc didn't really believe that, but hell, it could be true!

Despite everything, this man — this same guy who he had thought was a total pain in the ass before — was actually understanding about Reks' strife. The merc was sure he hadn't met anyone who had been able to talk with him about all of the issues that swirled so constantly in his head — except for one, back at the islands, but that was long ago. He waved the memory away, and smiled a little. "You're right, I guess... but it would be cooler to be taller, wouldn't it? It's kind of frustrating sometimes, is all..."

Reks blinked back in surprise when the stranger noted that his ears weren't those of a domestic cat. "Ah, you noticed?" the merc asked, twitching them voluntarily, flashing a proud smirk. "Yeah, they're supposed to be a panther's, actually. You've got a good eye for that sort of thing. Are you like, a cat..." He fumbled around for the words. "...a cat... researcher, or something? That would explain why you're just kind of hanging around the woods like this."

He was still curious about the nameless stranger, who would, apparently, not stay nameless for long. Reks committed his name to memory, staring at his hand warily, wondering if he should shake it. The only people he really shook hands with nowadays were his contractors. He couldn't tell how long it had been since he had shaken someone's hand in an act of friendship. Nevertheless, he took the man's hand, shaking it firmly, looking up at him.

"I'm Reks," he introduced, and found that he was smiling, despite everything. "Despite you being kind of a pain before," Okay, he had been a big pain. "You're a pretty alright guy, Monnayage." It didn't sound like it at all, but it was Reks' backwards way of apologizing for being so snappy before.

[miss_sanguine]

Question? Questi--oh!

That's right. He smiled. He'd forgotten about the whole reason he was talking to this guy. How silly of him. But he'd let the guy go on thinking this was a masterful distraction.

And panther ears, huh? Interesting. He'd never come across a panther before, but by the looks of the ears, they were probably quite beautiful.

"Ah . . . sure. A 'cat expert,'" he said, smirking. "You could say that." Even now he could feel Maneki approaching, her hunt finished. "Reks, huh? Easy to remember." Then he laughed. "It's my hobby to be a pain."

[Anonymous]

Reks crossed his arms at his nonchalant response. "You're pretty good at your hobby, I'll give you that," he noted, but was still grinning all the same. Try as he might, he couldn't really be mad at him anymore, despite how easily he had been distracted by him.

He was a little surprised, however, when he admitted to being a 'cat expert,' even if that wasn't the exact term for it. "Wait, so you are a cat expert?" the merc asked, his ears standing at alert — but then thought about it for a bit, shaking his head. "Or—or are you just teasing?" Reks frowned a little; it was hard to tell with him, sometimes. Plus, he wanted to learn a little more about this guy — he had somehow ended up bearing his soul to him after all. He was curious about him, but he didn't really know how to go about asking.

[miss_sanguine]

Monnayage beamed under the compliment, standing a bit taller. It always felt good to have one's talent--in his case, his annoying personality--commended.

Reks' confusion made the situation all the more entertaining. Arms still folded, he quirked a brow. "Not teasing this time," he said.

And it was this moment that he sensed Maneki's presence just above them in the trees. He looked up, seeing her blue eyes glowing in the shadows as she peered at them.

<Have a nice hunt?> he asked her.

<Yes. Who's this? I've never seen him before.>

<I hadn't either until a few moments ago. New friend. Goes by Reks.> Now his eyes were back on his new friend. "Tell me, Reks," he said out loud. "Do you like cats?" It was hard to tell, what with the guy hiding his ears from everyone and complaining about them.

But Maneki, as always, did not wait to find out. Slinking down from the trees to stand by Monnayage's feet, she announced her company with a loud meow and peered up at Reks with mild curiosity, licking her paws in an imperious manner at the same time.

"Ha. Reks," he gestured at Maneki with his hand, "this is Maneki."

[Anonymous]

Wait, so— so he really was a cat expert, no jokes? Reks raised an eyebrow, not really sure how to take this newfound nugget of knowledge. But it was Monnayage's question that really involved some thinking — did he hate the buggers that he was forced to share so many attributes with? He wasn't sure, but even so...

Reks shook his head after a beat, crossing his arms over his chest. "Can't say I don't. I mean, sure, I don't like looking like one... but it's not their fault I've been cursed."

As soon as the words left his mouth, a cat slunk down from the treetops. His eyes widened, a little surprised, but the cat seemed friendly enough. From the way the cat sat at Mon's feet, it looked like he might just be her owner. Was this what he meant, when he said he was a cat expert? He looked up at him, and Mon confirmed it for himself with his gesture, introducing the cat as Maneki.

Reks crouched down, studying Maneki curiously. Despite his catlike features, he had never really spent much time, if any time at all, around cats. He could honestly say this was the first time he had seen one up close. "Hello, Maneki," he greeted, reaching out a hand towards her. "Do you mind if I pet her? I don't think I've ever, y'know, pet an actual cat before..." He was only asking because he hated having his ears touched randomly — maybe real cats didn't like it either? Reks wasn't sure if that was a logical conclusion to come to, but hell, better safe than sorry.

[ EDIT: omg there was a huge typo in this post. Originally Reks said "can't say I do" but I meant him to say "can't say I don't" as in, "I guess I kind of like cats." CRISIS AVERTED.]

[miss_sanguine]

Curiosity came alive when his new friend mentioned being cursed. Did he mean literally cursed, like in old childrens' tales, or just cursed because he didn't like having cat ears and considered it as such?

Caught up as he was in this new train of thought, Monnayage didn't have time to think about what the guy asked. A big mistake on his part, and he would mentally berate himself for it later.

At seeing the proffered hand, Maneki automatically went to it with obvious eagerness, pressing her back into the open palm to get as much as herself under his touch as she could. The cat loved being petted, loved being pampered and paid attention to.

And the touch, as always, was felt by Monnayage as well. He froze in place, half in horror, half caught up in the feeling of a hand on his back, which was always a pleasurable experience.

He felt like the trees that surrounded them, stiff, arms at his sides, hands almost clenching into fists.

Oh, hell. Not this again. It was one thing to watch in amusement as Reks enjoyed the petting of his ears, but another thing when he got caught in a similar situation.

<Damnit, Maneki. Warn me before you do this!> he hissed at the cat. Aloud he said, trying to cover up his stiffness as if it weren't occurring, "Ah . . . that's . . . good. That you don't . . . not like cats."

[Anonymous]

Before Mon could give permission, the cat had already pressed her back against Reks hand. The merc smiled, taking this as a sign of acceptance, and stroked the cat pleasantly, enjoying the feeling of the cat's warm fur against his skin. He moved his hand up towards Maneki's ears, curious to see what they felt like — and wondered if it felt as good for a cat to have their ears pet as it did for him. He figured it must, and thought that he may as well do the cat a favor, from feline to... part-feline.

Reks, who had been looking down at Maneki, didn't catch Mon's odd behavior, at first. He shrugged a little, smiling down at Maneki. "Yeah, I mean, how can you hate cats? They're pretty cool, I guess," was his casual response. He looked up at his friend, and blinked back in confusion, peering at him. "Uh... are you okay? You look like you just swallowed a bug, or something." He looked down at Maneki, and back up to Mon. "Are you not cool with me petting her?" he asked, but was still absentmindedly stroking her fur. "I can stop, if you want...?"

[miss_sanguine]

Gods. How many times had this happened to him now? One would have thought that after the two years with Maneki, and this incident occurring with dire frequency, that he'd have learned to have better control over it, but no. Here he was, feeling the caress of Reks' hand on the cat's back as sharply as if it were his own the young man stroked.

Monnayage had the ridiculous urge to curl up against Reks right then and there and purr like an idiot. Reks was in the perfect position for it, after all, crouching there on the ground where making oneself into a cuddly ball against the curves of his body was more than possible.

And then, oh then, Reks just happened to move his hand up to Maneki's head, and the cat started to purr louder than a growling beast. Her ecstasy blared through him like a siren.

The rational, horrified part of him wanted to scream, Yes! Yes! Stop! but that wasn't the part of him in control right now. He couldn't have told Reks to stop any more than he could sprout wings and swoop through the trees. And, to add to the blissful misery, he couldn't remember what they'd even been talking about.

He shuddered, tingles running up and down his spine like little fingers. "Ah . . . you . . . " Words! He needed to say words! To draw Reks away from the fact that he—he what?

<I like you,> Maneki was saying as she was petted, and to Monnayage's utter horror, he realized the words had actually come out of his mouth.

[Anonymous]

What in the everloving hell was wrong with this guy?

Reks stared blankly at Monnayage, one eyebrow deftly raised, still stroking Maneki's fur without much thought. All of a sudden, he was just acting really weird, like... like a literal cat had stolen his tongue right from his mouth. He hadn't said petting Maneki was a problem, so why was he acting so... so...? He couldn't even put a word on it. His odd behavior was making Reks a tad uncomfortable — maybe he had overstayed his welcome? The merc honestly couldn't tell, but his mind was racing a mile a minute, wondering if Monnayage would ever explain himself.

The only words that left his mouth only made the situation more complicated.

I like you, he said suddenly, and finally did Reks' hand freeze, along with his whole body. His cat ears stood up — twitching alert, atop his head, and his dull grey eyes widened slowly. He liked him? What did that mean? What was with him all of a sudden, just saying that out of the blue?

The merc stood up, out of his crouched position, shoving his hands in his pockets. "I... like you too, I guess?" was his uneasy reply, darting his eyes away from Mon. His mind was skyrocketing, overthinking three syllables. Reks rubbed the back of his neck, obvious uncomfortable— not with Mon, but with himself. "I mean, you know, as a friend..." Backpedaling—backpedaling into his self-imposed closet. Don't overthink—don't overshoot—three stupid syllables.

He turned to Mon suddenly, eyes narrowed, face flushed red, the tips of his ears twitching in annoyance. "What's the hell's with you, anyway? Twitchin' around like some goddamn jitterbug..." He crossed his arms over his chest, huffed out an irritated breath. "If you didn't want me to pet your damn cat, you could've just said so..."

[miss_sanguine]

The moment Reks' hand stopped its petting, the storm clouds in Monnayage's mind parted, glorious rational thought once again at his disposal. But with the rational thought came the full realization of what had happened—what he'd said. Were he a man for blushing, he would have, but instead he gave an uncomfortable laugh.

There was no use hiding it. Not now that it had happened. As awkward as it already was, not explaining himself would only make it worse. The look on Reks' face made him terribly uncomfortable, and that wasn't a usual feeling for him. Normally he wouldn't care, but here was a guy he actually liked, that he considered a friend even though they'd just met.

Monnayage gave a nervous laugh, rubbing the back of his neck. Feelings of euphoria still rushed through him, adrenaline making his heart pound. As he calmed, the laugh became more confident, more Monnayage. "It's not that I didn't want you to pet her," he said. Gods, no. Had he a choice at the time, he would have let him keep going, bringing more embarrassment onto himself, more discomfort onto the other. "It's just that—ah. Well. She moved in too quickly."

He got to his feet, brushing dirt and leaves from his pants, grinning now. Usually he had to explain this kind of thing to girls, not to guys. "Maneki's my familiar. She . . . " How to explain it? He'd done so several times before, to countless other people, but each time it was difficult. "Here. Remember this?"

Without giving any warning, he stepped toward Reks once more and grabbed at his ears, running his fingers through the coarse fur as he had before. "When you petted her, this is what I felt."

[Anonymous]

Okay, so it wasn't about him petting the cat. What the hell was it about then?

Apparently, the cat was a familiar? His familiar. He had no idea what a familiar was, but it sounded magick-y to Reks and the word was already setting off alarm bells in his head. The merc was watching Mon carefully, hands still crossed over his chest, regarding him warily. When he strode closer to him, however, the last thing Reks expected him to do was start petting his ears again.

"Wait, no—!" he protested in vain, but it was too late – his deft fingers were already stroking his ears, and that serene, calm feeling washed over him again. Gods, and he was probably just going to keep petting his ears again, another total invasion of privacy, but how the hell was he supposed to say no? With Monnayage stroking his ears, he didn't have to worry about tomorrow, or explode in a torrent of rage over a mission or failed merc job. There was peace here, but he felt guilty about taking advantage of it, especially after...

Somehow, Reks managed to pull away from Mon, glaring at him, speechless – he groped around for words, found none. This is what I felt, he had explained, and somehow, that made the situation even worse. So that cat – when he was petting his innocuous cat – he felt like this? It was already embarrassing enough for Reks that a strange could make him feel this calm, at peace, all around relaxed, but to know he could do it for another...

"Listen," You goddamn tease, Reks started, placing a hand on his cheek, as if such a gesture could hide how red his face was. "You can't— you can't just pet my ears any damn time you feel like it, okay?" He turned away, no longer looking at him, as if he were talking to the trees. It wasn't that he didn't like Mon petting them, because he was the only person who had, but it was just— he didn't know! It was too nice of a feeling—he didn't trust himself to feel it.

"And you shouldn't let people like me go around petting Maneki, if that's how you felt! I mean, isn't that weird?" It was totally bizarre to him. "Or—or do you just not mind when someone indirectly pets you?" Why was he feeling so explosive about this? He honestly didn't know. But he was probably the strangest person he'd ever met, Reks confessed, and he didn't understand him at all.

[miss_sanguine]

By moving the focus of the situation onto something else, something else that he found extremely amusing—yeah, he was a hypocrite! He admitted it—he found himself over his discomfort. He was back to happy-go-lucky Monnayage, and he much preferred it that way.

He made no move to follow as Reks pulled back, instead just smiling and watching, arms going back to his sides. The guy's face was as red as the flushed breast of a robin, which made everything better for some reason. Shrugging, he said, "Sorry. Didn't know how else to explain it, Reks. It is a good feeling, though, isn't it?" He sighed in pleasure and folded his arms. "But then comes the pesky awkwardness of what's causing the pleasure." Something the two of them had in common.

Maneki circled around Reks' feet, pressing up against his legs and purring. Won over so quickly, Monnayage mused, just because the guy had petted her.

Cats. All the same.

Grinning at this thought, he turned his attention back to his friend, whose question discomfited him though he didn't show it. "If given enough warning, I can cut off the feelings," he said. "But, like I said, she moved in too quickly. And it is weird." Here he chuckled. "You would not believe how many young women I've scared off. Apparently the sound of my purring like a mad cat is a turn-off."

The young mage pointed at his cat. "She likes to embarrass me by doing things like that. And succeeds, most of the time."

<Every time,> the cat corrected him.

"I guess it'd make more sense if you knew what a familiar was. It's not too common anymore. Mages don't practice it as much as they used to."

[Anonymous]

Man, how could this guy be so impossibly happy-go-lucky? It made no sense to Reks, and while it was almost infuriating to him, he couldn't say he altogether hated his attitude. Mon's smile was pretty much the total opposite of Reks' grumpy exterior – it was, what was the word? Refreshing, maybe? He didn't know.

He couldn't help but smile a little as Maneki pressed up against his legs. She was a cute cat, he admitted – and while he was tempted to pet her again, he decided he should probably refrain from doing so again... Instead, he listened to Mon's explanation – of the feelings that came whenever someone pet Maneki.

Reks laughed a little as he brought up his purring. "Yeah, I can imagine..." he began, but then did a double-take. Did he really sometimes purr without wanting to? He had never met someone else who was plagued by that same problem. "Wait! You do that too?" He asked, surprised, but then realized what he had just admitted. Damn, Reks, shut up! "I mean, uh..." He rubbed the back of his neck. "Not that I do that...sometimes... on accident..."

There was that word again, familiar, but accompanied with another word this time, mage, and by this time, the alarm bells were sounded off louder than ever in Reks' head. He stared a Mon for a second, unable to absorb the truth. He wasn't sure why he was so surprised – nearly everyone in Serendipity was a mage – but for some reason, he had... he had expected better from Mon, expected him to be different.

"You're a mage?" He asked, in the same tone someone would ask, 'you're a spy?' Accusation rang in his tone, although he didn't mean for that to happen. He had meant for it to be a simple question, honest. But he already knew the answer – he just didn't want to face the truth.

He was a mage... a mage who had a thing for cats. This all seemed so very familiar.

"Listen," Reks began. "Before you tell me about your familiar, I have to ask you something." Reks looked him dead in the face. "And its—it's a serious question, okay? So don't laugh or anything, but..." He hesitated, uncomfortable, shifting on his feet. "You've never... tried to turn anyone into a cat, have you?"

His question was dead serious, and so was the expression on his face, despite how nonsensical the question seemed.

[miss_sanguine]

What a terrible liar Reks was, and he wasn't very good at keeping his secrets very secret. So the guy purred, too. Nothing to be ashamed of, unless he did it around women or people that weren't aware of his condition. Now that Monnayage knew, he felt that he wouldn't be as embarrassed were he to suddenly start purring.

<We could start a little band,> he said to Maneki, who had settled herself down on one of Reks' feet, licking her paws. She looked to him when he spoke and blinked at him. Her nose jerked up into the air.

<That doesn't sound dignified at all,> she said, then went back to her licking, tail twitching behind her.

He'd thought it was a funny idea. The three of them standing out in the streets and purring to the beats of songs. With some practice he was sure it was possible. They could make some money by it!

There was a noticeable change in Reks' behavior when Monnayage mentioned being a mage; Reks went back to looking tense, alarmed. And his following words sounded accusing, as if Monnayage carried a plague. He listened to and watched this change with bemusement.

"Why, yes. I'm a mage. Not a powerful one, but--what?" He stared.

Turn someone into a cat? The blond would have laughed if his friend didn't look so darned serious. What had brought this on, anyway? Did he look like a guy that turned others into cats? There was the temptation to jest that Maneki had once been a lover of his, but no. He didn't have the heart. Not when Reks looked at him like . . . like he'd run over a beloved pet with a wagon.

Monnayage cleared his throat to stop any laughs that might want to bubble up, covering his mouth with a closed fist. "No. No I haven't. I don't have that kind of magic. And even if I did, I wouldn't really see the point in such a thing. One cat is enough." Maneki glared at him. "Why would you ask that, anyway? You know a person that's been turned into a cat?"