Being a cat owner was no easy task, but Adrian suspected that that statement would be true for most pets. Cats were the type of difficult that caught people by surprise; most assumed they were easy pets to keep, that they took care of themselves better than dogs and were therefore easier to handle, but few took into account just how much trouble they caused. Between their efforts t get attention at the most inopportune times to their habit of knocking any and everything over, cats could be quite a bit of trouble, indeed.
But most house cats were small and therefore manageable. It was big cats that could cause the real trouble and Bubastis, despite all of her genetic modifications, was still a cat at heart, and she was anything but small. Though she was generally well-behaved, she was very playful and affectionate, and there were times when she got in the way and caused her fair share of problems.
Adrian loved her to death, surprising even himself with how much he cared for his pet, and was willing to put up with it, even when it should have been incredibly annoying. For instance, there were times when he brought his work home and would try to look over paperwork, but Bubastis would decide that she needed his attention at that particular moment. More often than not, she would try to leap on to his lap, and whether or not she succeeded, she would always manage to knock is papers to the ground. And if she did succeed, it would always take him a moment to recover from her sudden weight, and once she was on him, he couldn't do much until she had jumped back off. Of course, he was strong enough to shove her and send her on her way, but he never did and would instead pet her until she was content.
And if some of his papers were damaged in the process, well, that was why he had several copies made, and if she ever tore or dirtied his nice pants, replacing them was nothing to someone with his wealth. Even when he caught her scratching the furniture or tearing up curtains, all he could do was shake his head and smile to himself. The truth of the matter was that she was too damn cute to stay mad at. Adrian absolutely adored his big, troublesome cat.
Not everyone shared his sentiment though. His servants often complained about the extra work that this caused, though never for long, once they remembered who well they were being paid for their efforts. The special vet he brought in, who hated the cold and hated that Adrian knew the animal better- "Why even have a vet for your own damn creation?"- never seemed pleasured when he was called in for his regular visits. Adrian's lovers never wanted to be interrupted, though they often found that they were whenever he had one with him at Karnak. When Bubastis wanted his attention, she got it.
It had taken a lot of convincing to get Eddie Blake to take time off and even more convincing to get him to make the trip to Antarctica. Their arrangement, which even he, for all his genius, could not explain, was a strange one. Really, the two had nothing in common and had never really liked one another. How they had ended up in bed together and how they had ended up liking it enough to do it again was a mystery that he doubted either of them could solve.
Whatever the case, they were fuck buddies and though they never discussed the nature of their arrangement, the arrangement was there, and they would meet up from time to time. When they weren't together, Adrian tried not to think about it, but when he found himself missing whatever it was that kept him going back to Eddie, he would begin to plan their next meeting, until one day he decided that he wanted more than a quick fuck in a dingy New York hotel room.
That was not to say that he wanted more than just fucking; a real relationship, with Edward Blake of all people, was the last thing that he wanted. He just wanted something classier, something more his style. A weekend in is clean, pristine retreat where he could have as much as he wanted, when he wanted it.
Eddie was practically to his work- of course he was, given his attraction to violence and the amount of violence his work entailed- and he did not want to take his little vacation. Not only that, but it was too domestic for him. He didn't want Adrian getting the wrong idea and he didn't want either of them getting too comfortable with this. It took a lot of convincing, and a few accusations that Eddie wouldn't be able to handle the climate and knew it- just ego-bruising, ridiculous bullshit, because he could never back down from a challenge and that would ensure he would come- but eventually, he begrudgingly agreed to make the trip.
The weekend was off to a great start, at least by their standards. They got down to things immediately, without getting caught up in any arguments beforehand- though sometimes that only made their encounters all the more heated- and before long, they were in bed, with Eddie pinning him down while Adrian tried to plan how he would come out on top this time. He could hear the older man's heavy breathing as he left sloppy kisses along Adrian's neck, sometimes biting and always hard enough to leave a mark.
He was heavy on top of him, but not in an unpleasant way. Though he would eventually fight for dominance, he could never say he minded having someone else in control, just as long as he got the control back, eventually. He supposed what it was about Eddie that kept him coming back was that their relationship was nothing more than a power struggle and a challenge that he could not back down from.
And then they heard a loud crash and Eddie sprung off of him, looking ready to fight something. "The fuck was that?"
Adrian, on the other hand, just give a small sigh and stood up. "Don't worry, I think Bubastis just knocked something over again. Wait here." Sure enough, when he went into the next room, he found her next to an overturned table that had, luckily, not had much on it. He gave her a small pet before returning to Eddie.
Without a word, he charged the other man, planning to take him by surprise and have him pinned this time, but Eddie had not let his guard down and managed to grab him, pinning him once more. "Nice try," he muttered, and they returned to what they had been doing before.
They continued like that for a while, getting more heated, until Adrian heard the door push open and they both looked up, guilty, to see who had interrupted them. Adrian had given his servants instructions that would ensure no one would know Eddie was there, and he was prepared to tell one of them off when he saw that there was no one standing in the doorway. Confused, he glanced down and saw that Bubastis had strode into the room as if she owned the place, paying no mind to the fact that her master was otherwise occupied.
"Jesus Christ," muttered Eddie, "can't ya control your goddamn monster?"
"She is not a monster," he replied indignantly. "Trying to explain her genetic makeup to the likes of you would probably be useless, though for all intents and purposes, you could start by calling her a cat."
"You know I can't stand it when ya start talkin' like a fuckin' know-it-all," said Eddie, his eyes darkening with lust. He clearly didn't mind it as much as he said, or at least enjoyed the anger, and forced his lips onto Adrian's, engulfing the younger man in a rough, passionate kiss.
Their new passion did not last long before a loud rip was heard and they once again both popped up to see Bubastis tearing into his curtains, looking back at him almost defiantly, almost as if she knew what she were interrupting. That had happened many times in the past, so much so that he did suspect she might be jealous of his lovers, but he always just let it slide. She didn't know any better, after all.
"Oh my fucking God, why is that thing still in here? Can't ya just send her out or some shit?"
"She's not bothering you," said Adrian, rolling his eyes. "Forget about her."
"She's fuckin' annoying is what she is," Eddie shot back. "'Sides, maybe I don't want some goddamn cat watchin' us while we...ya know." He still had a hard time admitting that they were doing what they were doing.
"Please do me a favor and shut up," he said, and this time he was able to catch Eddie by surprise and overpower him, pushing him down and holding him, trailing kisses down his neck and across his shoulders. If there was one thing the older man was weak to, it was a nip on the shoulders, and it didn't take much to have him squirming and writing, despite all of his tough talk. With the situation now completely under his control, he was ready to take what he wanted...
...but then a loud crash sounded from across the room, something heavy hitting the floor.
"Son of a bitch!"