Huge shout out to AkakuHana for always leaving reviews and staying with the story even after over a year of inactivity! It means a lot!
I have taken a small liberty with assuming Ichigo has already graduated from school during this story mostly so he can have some good bonding time with Grimm.
The substitute shinigami woke to a quiet and still morning, which was unusual in the Kurosaki household, but he welcomed it with a sigh. Lifting his still heavy limbs out of bed, the boy eyed the small sleeping form of the cat nearby. The feline looked so peaceful, but he selfishly reached out and pet the animal softly. He wasn't sure why he always wanted to be close to the cat and wondered if all animals had the same tugging sensation in your hearts.
But as the teenager lifted his hand away from Smudge, a large clump of fur trailed after it and fell to the floor. Said heart nearly leaped out of his chest as Ichigo noticed that there was now a large bald spot along the cat's side. The small animal stirred and rolled over to reveal even more fur missing. As quick as he could, Ichigo dialed Urahara's number and waited for the man to answer.
"Ah Ichigo, you called quicker than I thought you would. How are things going over there?"
"What the fuck did you give him? His fur is falling out and everything!"
The man chuckled on the other side of the phone. "Calm down and take a good look at him. I'm sure he's just fine. It's good to hear that the pills are taking effect. Speaking of which, don't forget to give him his dosage for today~!"
"Urahara! What do –" but before Ichigo could finish his sentence, a long dial tone sounded through the phone. The other man was obviously finished with the conversation and didn't wait for the Shinigami to question him further.
A soft knock came to his door and he nearly broke his neck to respond to the worried voice on the other side of the door. "Ichigo? Is everything okay? I heard yelling."
Leaping from his seated position in front of his cat's box, the teen plastered himself against his bedroom door to prevent it from opening. "Uh…yeah! I'm f-fine! Smudge just surprised me, that's all."
"Well alright…Dad is in the clinic and Karin and I have to go to school soon. Your meals are in the fridge. Don't forget to eat today!" With that, Yuzu disappeared down the stairs to leave Grimmjow and Ichigo alone.
So fucking loud in the morning the espada groaned; digging his face into the soft cloth under him and trying to fall back asleep. His thoughts were interrupted once again as cloth loudly rustled next to him and a large hand pet his back.
"Just what did that bastard do to you?"
The feeling crept up his spine and down his tail within seconds. Get the fuck off! Grimmjow yelled as he scrambled away from the immense human crouched over him. His muscles no longer ached and energy flowed through his body like blood. From a safe distance away, Grimmjow whipped around and hissed at the teen.
Surprised by the sudden outburst of anger from his cat, Ichigo could only be stare into the cyan eyes of the feline. They almost look…human? He questioned with the cat thrashing his tail against the ground and the remainder of his fur bristling. Now that he had a good look at the cat, he could tell he looked a little different. It almost looked like the forelegs were much shorter than the back legs. With as many things as he as seen, he couldn't just brush off this change as a trick of the eye; Smudge was changing…but into what?
Ichigo wasn't the only one to notice the change. Grimmjow, more than any human in this house, suddenly realized the awkwardness of being down on all four paws. His paws tingled almost like they were still asleep and his front legs didn't feel like they wanted to stay on the ground. His spine wanted to straighten out and his mind willed him to walk on two legs instead of four. Breaking away from the piercing gaze of the human in front of him, the man stole a glance down at his paws. The toes were longer than they were and by flexing them, he found that he had something much closer to a human hand than a paw. The joints bend in and felt like they could actually grip something, even if they were very short with only two joints and the claw.
The air became heavy and difficult for the two beings in the room to breathe. Both hearts beat quickly and minds buzzed with different thoughts. What's happening? What should I do? What were in those pills?
"Smudge?" Ichigo was the first to break the silence while the feline continued to inspect its own body. "I…I guess you have another name since you are responding to what that bastard gave you. To think he was actually right about this…" Another silence was drawn out between them before a hiss erupted from the cat.
"Of course I have a different name you fucking idiot!" His shook his body and released more loose hair into the air. Whatever he had been given was the cause of his small transformation and while he felt much more awkward stuck in the middle of cat and human, it was at least a start. If only it would go faster! His skin itched and he wanted nothing more than to be left alone. He wouldn't thank the Shinigami, but he was at least grateful that his behavior towards him would change to something more appropriate.
"I wonder if you can even understand me like that," Ichigo pondered as he noticed the same behavior as before the change. He thought back to the parakeet Chad took care of for a short time, but this situation seemed so different. The parakeet could at least produce human speech but his cat showed no such process, even if it looked quite unusual and sickly compared to what it first looked like. "Well it isn't worth fretting over, I guess," Ichigo concluded, talking more to himself than Grimmjow. "You barely ate anything yesterday, you must be hungry. Come on, I'll warm something up for you."
As he said this, the teen crouched over the small animal and brought it into his arms. As much as he squirmed, Grimmjow was held against the human's shoulder when both of them made it to the small kitchen on the ground floor. The espada would never admit it, but he was happy he didn't have to tackle the horrid stairs again and instead settled with digging his claws into Kurosaki's flesh as deep as he could. Unfortunately for him, the transformation dulled his claws and made them much shorter so they did not provide him with the same satisfaction as they did yesterday.
"Here Smudge, nice and warm," Ichigo said after shifting the cat towards him and slipping the rubber nipple into his mouth.
Before he could stop himself, his instincts took over his actions and he sucked at the bottle hungrily. The warm liquid pooled at the bottom of his stomach and filled him up quickly, even if humiliation heated him up more than the formula ever would.
With the bottle (reluctantly) finished, the teen scratched the animal's pink exposed belly. "Good boy," he praised, only remembering afterwards that there might just be a human soul in the feline. "Ah, sorry! Just hope you can't understand me in there," he laughed.
Finally released, Grimmjow fled as swiftly as he could away with only the bell chiming and hisses that followed him. It happened again! This body is fucking useless! I can't wait to get back to normal and stomp Kurosaki into the ground!
Watching the cat go, Ichigo warmed his own meal and sat down to eat. He couldn't help but feel embarrassed, hoping silently that the cat wouldn't remember any of this for both their sakes. Finishing up, he cleaned his dishes and set them out to dry when he noticed the time. "Shit! It's almost been 24 hours since the last pill!" Scrambling to find the small container of pills, he wondered what kind of changes the second will have. He paused, questioning if he should even give the feline the other pills. The first almost seemed like it made him sick, will the second make it worse? Will he lose all his fur? He cringed when he thought about having a bald cat to take care of.
A new smell hit his nose as he lay under the couch trying to forget the horrible acts his mind just forced him through. It was so alluring, calling to him as it got closer. Closer and closer it came until Grimmjow sensed no motion. Curious, he sniffed again until an object flew in front of the opening. Attack! His mind yelled to him as he leaped out from his obvious hiding place and pounced on the object.
The Shinigami smiled to himself as the small feline played with the small mouse toy he got at the store. He vaguely remembered reading on the label at the toy was filled with something called "cat nip." He wasn't sure what exactly it was but was happy Smudge seemed to like it. "I know you won't like this, but it will only last a little while." He said as he held the small pill in his hand.
Looking skyward, he realized his mistake when his mind was free from his instincts. Fingers dung into his sides as he was lifted far from the ground and mouth forced open. A small item was thrown to the back of his throat. Luckily for the both of them, the obstruction was much easier to swallow than yesterday. Even so, Grimmjow gasped for air once it was over.
Placing the cat on the floor and giving him a small pet, Ichigo proudly stalked away to tackle his other responsibilities.
Hissing at the large retreating human, the espada sat there for a good while attempting to calm his fluttering heartbeat. A-Another?! His mind tried to make sense of the situation. Just what are these fucking humans doing to me? What is this second one for? One was enough! He coughed, feeling tired and worn out even though it was only half way through the day. "Bastard," he hissed!
Not wanting to stay out in the open any longer, the cat snuck back under the safety of furniture and closed his eyes. Calm down, calm down he chanted as his heart only continued at its current pace. His muscles became tense, as if they were cramped, and an unpleasant feeling shot down his spine. Grimmjow panted as his paws gave a loud crack and his skin became hot.
He almost wanted to plead for help, hope to anyone that would listen to make it stop. While the changes took place, the once strong resolve was shattered with a pathetic, weak meow.
K-…Kurosaki!