Pet Shop of Quixotic Horrors - Episode Two: A Bakeneko's Jinx
Summary: It's hard to tell when it happened. When her entire world turned upside down.
Yes, I swapped the cat and master persona between the two; because I love irony.
A meow,
Fills her ears,
As she watches,
The little paw,
Swipe at the bell,
Dangling from her hand.
She laughs,
As the kitty pounces,
On the bell,
Trapping it beneath,
Its paws.
"Having fun?"
Naho asks,
As Sayaka rolls the bell,
Across the ground,
From one paw to the next.
Another meow,
Fills the air,
And she smiles,
At the tortoiseshell kitten,
Her new pet.
Her whole body rumbles,
As a finger,
Scratches at the spot,
Behind her ear.
There's a knock,
At the door,
And Naho gets up,
Leaving her,
To open the door.
She watches,
As her owner smiles,
At the man,
Before calling back,
To her,
"Behave yourself,"
And disappears,
Out the door.
She is gone,
For hours.
Sayaka nudges,
The empty bowl,
With her nose,
Pushing it,
Right up against the door,
And letting out a caterwaul,
In the still air.
She sleeps,
In front of the door,
That night,
So she hears Naho,
Slip back in.
But it's not,
Out of the ordinary,
For her to come home late.
As long,
As it is just work.
As long,
As she doesn't forget,
The terms she agreed to,
When she took Sayaka from,
Count D's Pet Shop.
She is putting the papers,
In her bag,
But stops short,
From leaving.
There are so many things,
She wants to discuss with him,
To learn,
Yes,
But also,
To just talk about him,
Them.
That's what she wants,
Even if he is her senior,
Her mentor,
She wants more.
So she stays,
Finding new things,
To talk about.
Her maw,
Is resting,
On her paws,
As she stares at the door.
Naho is late,
Again,
For the tenth time,
And after the second one,
Her bowl remains empty.
Only filled in the mornings,
But Naho wasn't here,
The other day either.
At the sound,
Of footsteps,
Her ears flick up,
But they pass right by,
The apartment.
And she knows,
She has been forgotten.
She is talking animatedly,
To him,
Having spent the night,
When he glances to the clock.
"Thank you,
"For all your help,
"But I have a meeting now.
"I'm sure you have,
"Similar engagements,
"To attend as well."
"Of course,"
She agrees.
"I'll see you again,
"In a few days,
"Kibiki sensei."
When she leaves,
She is smiling,
Heading to work,
Stopping at the counter,
To sign in.
She has a interview today,
To talk about the occult,
Everything,
And anything supernatural.
"You're not in here."
"Check under n,"
She tells the person,
Behind the counter.
"Name?"
For a moment,
She stares at him,
She had been here,
Plenty of times,
Has seen this man,
Every time,
And after the first,
Public event,
He has been,
Familiar with her.
No,
He knew who she was,
Before her first event.
"Stop joking.
"I have an interview today.
"Your station is broadcasting it,
"On the show."
She begins to walk,
Around the desk,
To the door labeled,
Guest.
"I'm sorry,
"But I need a name,
"To check,
"If you're allowed back there."
This new game,
Is getting old fast.
"It's Naho Saenoki,
"Famous Paranormalist.
"You know that."
The man just stares at her,
Blankly,
Then reaches for the phone,
"We got a girl up here,
"Pretending to be...
"Someone,
"Send security."
She is in shock,
When security takes her,
From the building,
Requesting that she,
Naho Saenoki,
Not make jokes,
And go back to school.
She hurries back home,
To check her prior appointment,
It's all there.
What had they been talking about?
How could they not know her?
It's only after,
She glances around the house,
That she notices something off.
Sayaka has yet to meow at her,
To greet her,
And when she shakes,
The freshly filled,
Bowl of food,
There is no answer.
She spends minutes,
Then hours,
Looking for her cat,
To find nothing.
But the window,
The door,
Everything was locked.
How could she disappear?
Naho has her phone,
In hand,
Within the next second.
"Count,
"You have to help me-"
"You broke your contract."
"I-I suppose,
"I did,
"But I can't find Sayaka anywhere.
"And-and everyone I know,
"Is forgetting who I am."
"I told you,
"The shop is not liable,
"For what happens,
"If you don't follow the terms,
"We agreed on."
"So this is your fault!"
"No,
"Miss Naho,
"The fault is your own."
There is a click,
On the other end,
And the line goes dead.
She is striking the key pad,
To phone him again,
When she sees her calendar.
Empty of the previous appointments,
And the photo,
Next to it,
Of her and Sayaka,
That now only holds the cat.
At the sound of Kibiki's voice,
Outside her apartment,
She springs to her feet.
Finally,
Someone that could help her,
To make sense of all this.
But she stops,
In her doorway,
After swinging the door open,
And calling out,
To Kibiki.
There is a girl,
Standing next to him,
Arm looped through his own,
Leaning against him,
As she talks,
About the vacant -
Supposedly haunted
- building in front of them.
Her brown hair curls,
In waves,
Around her face,
Blue eyes sparkling,
A beauty mark,
Below her right cheek,
On smooth,
Tanned skin.
And she's wearing,
The same uniform,
Of the school,
Naho attends.
"Sayaka?"
She stares at the cat,
The girl next to Kibiki,
Who raises one hand,
Fingers curled,
Into the shape,
Of a paw,
When she waves,
"Ja ne."
Sayaka is depicted here as a Bakeneko.