First of all, I want to thank my fabulous Beta, xfang-girlx. I appreciate her having confidence in this story even when I didn't. I also want to thank all my reviewers for their kind words and encouragement. AmaterasuOmikami and Bonnie Fritz, thank you for having faith in my ability to pull off this strange storyline. I am grateful to all of you.


"MEEEE-OOOOW!"

Nami was off the couch and to the door in a flash. Yanking open the door, she shrieked with joy to see her black and white furry friend. Scooping him up into her arms, she kissed his fuzzy face and squeezed him until he meowed in complaint.

"Oh, you bad kitty! How could leave me?" she asked, holding him out from her to glare at him. She was crazy, and she did not care. Her baby had come home. Feeling his ribs beneath her fingers, she put him down to hurriedly fill his bowl.

"Bad cat. That's what you get for wandering away," she chastised him as he gobbled down the food.

"Meow-wow!" he begged after finishing it off. Surely, she would understand he needed more. She was a smart human, and he had not eaten for a week. He knew she would want to give him a treat since he returned.

"Oh, all right. I know what you want," she said, receiving a purr as she opened another can of food.

Nami went to the living room to allow him to eat at his leisure. Damn cat. She should have just left his furry behind outside. Unfortunately, she had allowed herself to get attached to the furball because he had been by her side virtually every waking moment after he walked into her life.

"We'll have to go to the pet store again tomorrow," she announced as he walked into the living room where she sat on the couch and jumped into her lap. Her hand stroked him from the tips of his ears to the base of his tail. She smiled while he purred loudly in appreciation. She wondered if the orange haired dog lover would be there again. But that was just stupid. What were the chances of that happening?

~\..'../~


"Hi!" Ichigo greeted her with a broad grin when they saw each other on the food aisle.

"Hi," Nami returned, toying with a lock of her coffee colored hair.

She had worn a black long sleeved turtle neck under a form fitting red sweater with a belt. She had even dabbed on a bit of make up just in case… just in case of this. Combating the shyness that was making her blush, she held his gaze and smiled. He looked handsome as ever dressed in jeans and a plain black t-shirt and leather jacket. Leather huh? Did he own a motorcycle? There were so many questions she would like to ask him.

"Meow!" Grimmy protested, nipping at her hand.

"Ow! You're already in enough trouble as it is," she snapped at the jealous furball.

"What happened?" Ichigo inquired with curiosity.

"Oh, he ran away from home. I suppose cats are prone to do that if they're left outside. I just never thought he would because he…" She trailed off, smiling sheepishly. He was probably not interested in her ramblings about her cat. "So how's Renji?"

"Oh, you remembered," he chuckled lightly. "He's great as ever. I wish you could see him. He's really cute."

'Like his owner I imagine,' she thought to herself, smiling asininely. She was relieved she had not said what she was thinking out loud.

"Um…well…uh…would you like to get together for a picnic or something? We could meet at the park and you could bring him," Nami suggested, shocking herself. Did she just ask him out? OHMYGOD! Would he think she had just hit on him?

"That sounds great," he rejoined with a big smile. Setting down the bag of dog food, he pulled his cell phone from his pocket. "Will you give me your number?"

"NOOOO!" the cat howled, causing both humans to gape at him in astonishment.

"Did that cat just say no?" Ichigo asked, staring wide eyed at the animal.

"It's just my imagination, uh, I mean your imagination," she nervously responded, staring at the cat with disbelief and alarm. Clearing her throat, she gathered her wits as best as she could. "No. Cats just make funny noises sometimes. He's probably just hungry again. He showed up half-starved after being gone," she explained.

She was relieved she was not the only one who thought the cat had said no. Apprehensively giving Grimmy a stroke down his long back, she recited her phone number for Ichigo. She watched him type it into his phone and then hers began to ring.

"Now you have my phone number too. I'll call you soon," he assured her, walking away with a small wave.

Grimmy arched his back and hissed threateningly when the orange haired man walked past. Sitting down on his haunches, he began to yowl a chorus that sounded like the drawn out, baleful 'no' of earlier.

"Stop that! You're creeping me out," Nami fussed at him, scratching him behind his ears.

"Mew," he mewled lowly in response. It was his attempt to apologize.

They finished their shopping and headed home with more food and a few more toys. Before they even reached the house her phone chimed to alert her to a text message.

Grimmy stared at her face as she looked at the rectangular device in her hand. Why was she smiling so strangely?

"Oooh, I just got invited to dinner," she informed him excitedly.

Grimmy growled deep in his throat. He was not happy.

~\..'../~


Gone again. Damn cat. Nami was beginning to think she should rename him DC. She called one last time and shook her head in defeat. She sat on her back porch wrapped in a blanket to tolerate the cold. Stupid cat. Stupid her. How could she care so much for a dumb animal who ran off again? Wiping angrily at her tears, she realized this might not be about the cat at all. This was just another reminder of her past that she had tried to run away from because it was too painful to confront. Maybe that was why men frightened her. Her father had left her and her mother alone, disappearing one day to never return. That could by why such a silly thing as a wayward cat was making her hurt so badly. The cat had returned once; surely he would come back once more. Oh, this was ridiculous. Why should she care?

"I miss you, Grimmy," she mumbled, walking into the house.

Nami had a date to get ready for. Ichigo would be picking her up in an hour to take her to her favorite Italian restaurant.

~...~

Grimmjow stood up to his full height of six feet since he was half-human, placing his paws against the window. He watched as she pulled a black dress out of the closet and held it against her body. Then she pulled out a short red one that barely covered her body.

"No, not that one!" he exclaimed, ducking when she turned toward the window.

He pressed his body against the side of the house waiting several minutes before he stood back up to make sure she was preoccupied with searching for a dress again. He could not believe she was actually going out on a date with that – that man! Looking down at his paws where hands should be, he pondered for the millionth time – what was he? He still did not know but what he did know without a doubt was that he loved her and did not want her going out on a date with another man. Especially a man with a dog. Yuck!

Grimmjow gripped the windowsill and bit his lower lip when she dropped the towel to slip on the azure blue dress that hugged every curve and bump on her body. He did not like the way his eyes were automatically drawn to certain areas. It angered him to know that the orange haired man's eyes would be looking at those areas too. That man would be looking at what belonged to him. He had purposely picked her to be his owner so he felt he owned her in return.

Grimmjow watched while she fluffed her hair and rechecked her make up. She was beautiful but did not seem to understand that. She always complained about not being skinny enough or pretty enough or tall enough or anything enough. To him she was everything and more than enough. His luminous cerulean blue eyes looked her over longingly as she continued to stare at her reflection and primp. He could not let that man have her. He could not put off revealing his true identity to her much longer or he would lose her. Unfortunately, he could still lose her by disclosing the truth of his…condition. Watching her slide her hands over her hips, he knew it was a risk he must take, or he would never know if she would accept him or not.

~...~

Nami returned home late. She wore a big smile on her face and felt as if she were walking on a cloud instead of the floor. She really liked Ichigo. He was so sweet and romantic. He had brought her flowers which was so old-fashioned and dated but simply adorable. She could almost feel herself falling for him right then. He had taken her coat, pulled out her chair, allowed her to order first, and everything else that a polite gentleman does for a lady. At the end of the date, he had opened the door for her to lead her out to his car. When he returned her to her house, he walked her to her porch and kissed her good night. While walking back to his car, he promised to call her tomorrow.

'Just hang on, Nami,' she told herself in her mind. 'Wait and see if he calls, then get excited. But only a little! Time will tell if he's worth giving your heart to.'

~...~

Grimmjow used his nail to pick the lock on the back door. He was tired of sleeping out in the cold. Nami had returned from her date about an hour ago and would be in a deep sleep so she would never be the wiser to his presence. Entering the house in complete silence was easy with his velvety padded paws that kept his movements soundless as he sauntered across the floor. He was not in danger of bumping into anything because he still retained his feline night vision. What he was in danger of was being distracted as he walked past her open bedroom door to reach the door for the attic stairs. Glancing inside her saw her turn in the bed, kicking out from under the covers. Her drawn-out sigh made every muscle in body tense as he stood still as a statue watching her to see if she was going to wake up.

"Grimmy," she moaned in her sleep.

Grimmjow could not help but smile since she called out his name. Taking a terrifying but exciting chance, he crept into her bedroom for a closer look at her. He crouched down by her bed, reverting to his cat instincts to keep her from detecting his presence. His blue furry ears twitched and moved forward listening to every sigh and little noise she made. Steadily inching closer and closer to her, he was almost on the bed with her when she rolled back over onto her back. She was as miserable without him as he was without her. On the nights he slept on her chest she never moved. His curious cat nature kicked in and pushed out the human good sense as he looked at her body that had been bared by the covers falling away. He reached out to touch her exposed shoulder then recoiled when he saw his colossal, furry black paw next to her ivory skin.

Was he a monster? Would she think he was a monster? Grimmjow had no idea what the answer was to the questions. He held his breath, his eyes going to his paw when he felt her hand on it. Although he was afraid, he did not move. Moreover, he was enjoying being touched by her. It felt different than when he was in full feline form. Driven by his inherent inquisitiveness, he leaned forward to nuzzle her face. She startled him when her hands went to his face, then tentatively moved toward his ears.

"Grimmy," Nami called, pulling him forward to hold his head against her chest.

Grimmjow was terrified at this time. He could only imagine how she would react if she woke up. Her hands began to stroke through his long blue hair while the steady beat of her heart thumped against his ear. Allowing himself to relax in her arms, he touched her this time being careful not to scratch her as he slid his paw over her arm.

"Nami," he purred.

He felt her shudder under his touch, but she held him tighter so he could not leave her. His purr grew louder, vibrating her slightly. He could smell the faint, overly sweet smell of alcohol wafting from her mouth. The consumption of alcohol and the late hour at which she arrived home explained why she was not waking up. He remained a few moments longer, relishing the feel of her fingertips against his skin when she stroked his cheek. No matter how badly he did not want to leave her, he knew he must.

Grimmjow rose up a bit, looking down at her. Unable to stop himself, he ever so tenderly pressed his lips to hers. It was a chaste kiss, and he had to be particularly cautious not to nick her tender lips with his razor sharp incisors. He shifted off the bed to retreat to his planned hiding place in the attic so they could both get some sleep for the night.

~...~

Nami found it difficult to rouse herself when the alarm went off. Forcing her eyes open and blinking against the bright morning sun, she stared at the ceiling while she contemplated the bizarre dream she had experienced last night. She had dreamed that Grimmy was a half cat, half human creature. A smile found its way to her lips when she remembered the date she had been on with Ichigo that had definitely not been a dream. She had drunk two glasses of red wine with dinner so that would explain the unbelievably weird dream. That settles it. No more wine with dinner and no more cats. Unless Grimmy returns.