Crookshanks was not a happy cat.
Not since his servant brought him that...that male invader of hers around.
It was completely unacceptable of her to do without consulting him first. One would think after caring for him all these years, she'd have some sense to know how important his opinion was! Worse yet, that male acted like he was the one in charge. How utterly preposterous. Not even Crook's servant was in charge; although he was generous enough to let her think she was.
He quite remembered how the male came into their lives. It had been a fine day. His servant filled his food dish with delicious flakes of tuna and he had a nice, long nap.
And then he came.
/
"Now Crooks," His Servant gave him a few nice pets from the top of his back down to his tail. "I want you to be on your best behavior."
Crooks sniffed. He was always on his best behavior. It was the other humans that couldn't watch themselves. Alright there had been an incident where he tore up the ginger male's favorite piece of parchment but who could blame him? In his defense, he assumed the moving toy was a present for him. It'd been in his home, after all. That male was gone; a great relief. At the time, his Servant had been most upset with him for reasons Crooks had yet to figure out.
"I mean it," She wagged a finger at him. Crooks could have easily swiped at her for this display of disobedience but he learned this would not help. He would have to fix it in other ways. If she was good later on, he would reward her with his presence by laying next to her in the giant bed he allowed her to sleep in with him.
There was a knock on the front door to which she went to answer. His ears perked up and he stealthily made his way nearby the window to catch a glimpse of who this visitor might be. He heard his servant cheerfully greet the person, having the audacity to invite him inside.
"Thank you, Darling," Came a deep male voice.
Instantly, Crooks lowered his ears, not liking that this new invader was in his home. What was she thinking? Humans were astoundingly daft. This right here was why they didn't get to be in charge.
He came beside his Servant, rubbing against her legs to let her know he was there. She glanced down and exchanged a smile with the male. He sensed there must be something between them. Was he her mate? Oh, no. No, no. This would not do! This Male was not right for his Servant at all. "Tom," She said and-to Crook's horror-picked him up. "This is my cat, Crookshanks. Crooks, this is Tom."
This Tom was seemingly unimpressed with Crooks as Crooks was with him. The male was obviously trying to trick his Servant into thinking he liked him. Well, Crooks saw right through that.
He hissed.
The Male's eyes narrowed.
His Servant gasped. "Crooks! Naught boy! You don't hiss at people!"
Perhaps she didn't. Which he found strange. How else was she to express her displeasure?
"I'm so sorry," His Servant apologized to the Male. "He doesn't usually do this, well, not anymore. It took me forever to get him to stop him from doing this to Ron."
"It's quite alright," The Male swiftly lied with a tight sort of smile on his lips. "I'm sure he'll get used to me eventually."
He would most certainly not! Crooks attempted to swipe at him with his claws fully out. Unfortunately he missed. Oh, he would have given up tuna for a whole month to get a scratch on that face.
"Crooks!" His Servant sighed. She looked at the Male apologetically. "I'm-"
"It's alright, Darling," The Male seemed slightly more genuine this time. A red flush came over his Servant's cheeks, her lips pulling out into a small smile.
She gently dropped Crooks to the floor. His butt hit it first and he meowed in annoyance.
"I'll go fetch us some tea," She said to the Male without even bothering to ask Crooks if he wanted some water or milk. How inconsiderate of her. He waited until she was out of the room to glare at the Male.
Said Male lowered his eyes to meet Crook's. His lips curled into a sneer. "Foul thing," He muttered with distinct contempt. "You're lucky she's so fond of you. Otherwise you would be outside where you belong if it was up to me."
Crooks did swipe this time. Right on the Male's leg. It made a tear in the trousers he wore.
The Male swore. "You mangy beast!"
Crooks would've smirked in satisfaction if he could. For now, he settled on curling up on the floor, watching how the Male had to bring out his fancy stick the humans had to fix the tear.
"I hope he's behaving," His Servant said as she returned.
The Male smiled fakely again. "Oh, yes. I think I'm growing on him."
When she wasn't looking, he gave Crooks a dark look. It signaled to the feline that this was the start of a cold war between them. He didn't mind, of course. He rested his chin on top of his paws, getting comfortable. As if a mere human could outwit him.
How utterly laughable.