Originally written in 2015

Just a quick little chapter to let anyone reading this know that I'm not dead haha. I've been trying to post a new chapter and finish the last one, but school and holidays got in the way.

Anyway, I hope you enjoy this random little drabble I wrote for Edward's birthday~

On February Third, Yuki picked Edward up and took him back to her house to celebrate his eighteenth birthday. For breakfast, she made him some blueberry pancakes with eggs, bacon and fresh orange juice.

Later on in the afternoon, the snow leopard drove him to the movie theater to see a brand new action movie the two had been looking forward to seeing. Afterward, they went out to eat for lunch, and Yuki paid for Edward's meal despite the boy's protest that he could pay for his own food. Either way, Yuki would have been paying for his lunch anyway. He earned most of his pocket money from her through the chores and odd jobs around the house he would often complete for her during the weekends.

Through out most of the day, Ginger remained nestled inside Edward's pocket. She poked her head out every once in a while to accept a few small bites of food from her friend's plate, or to have a quick chat with Yuki. As soon as the lights had dimmed in the movie theater, Edward had taken her out and placed her on his shoulder and held her close so that she could watch the movie, too.

Ginger enjoyed spending the day with Edward and Yuki, although she still felt a bit shy around the snow leopard. However, she was looking forward to later, when she could finally give Edward his birthday present. Of course, she had only been able to buy it with his help, but the boy had promised to act surprised when she presented it to him.

"Are you sure you want to get this for me, Ginger?

The boy had asked once she pointed it out to him in the store.

"Yes, of course I do! C'mon Ed, it;s your birthday! You're allowed to indulge."

"Well…I can't argue with that."

Edward finally caved in and bought the gift for Ginger to give to him. It had been sitting in a container on the table since yesterday morning, and the boy would occasionally cast it a hungry gaze.

Ginger giggled at the thought. She couldn't wait till he opened it, especially when he would discover that there was a special little surprise waiting for him on top.

That evening, a few friends came over to Yuki's house to sing happy birthday. It was the same group who had visited on Thanksgiving. Denali, Victor, and Phoenix stopped by with cake and ice cream, while Jessie and Oscar came along for the food.

Yuki prepared dinner while Victor, in animated tones, told Edward all the things he could do now that he had turned eighteen. "You could go skydiving, buy lottery tickets, even get a tattoo! Although I wouldn't recommend that until you're a little bit older."

When the festivities came to an end and the guests headed home for the night, Yuki drove Edward and Ginger back to their apartment building.

"I hope you had a great day, birthday boy!" Yuki exclaimed as she watched him climb out of the car.

"I did! Thank you for everything, Yuki." Edward told her, flashing a bright grin.

"Anytime, kiddo!" Yuki smiled. "I'll call you sometime before the end of the week. We still have to reschedule a date to bake our cookies!"

"That's right! We were all too busy to make them in time for Christmas… Maybe we can make some this month instead."

"Sounds good!" Yuki agreed, giving him two thumbs up. "Okay, I'll see ya later, Ed! Happy Birthday!"

"Bye, Yuki. Thanks again!" Edward waved to her before he closed the car door. As soon as Yuki pulled out of the parking lot behind his apartment building, he hurried up the steps to the second floor and ran to his room, shivering in the cold winter air.

As soon as she heard the door open and close, Ginger poked her little head out of his pocket again. "Are you ready for my present now?"

"You bet I am!" Edward chuckled as he reached into his pocket and pulled her out.

"Yay!" Ginger twitched her tail excitedly as she latched herself on to Edward's hand. "Could you leave me on the kitchen table for a few minutes? I'll call you in when I'm ready."

"Alright!" Edward carried Ginger into their kitchen and carefully set her down on top of the table.

"Thank you!" Ginger ran over the large container sitting nearby before she glanced back at the boy to make sure he wasn't peeking.

Edward playfully shook his head and turned his back to her. "I'll be in the living room. Just yell when you're ready for me." He told her as he headed out into the next room.

"Don't forget to act surprised!" Ginger called after him.

"Got it!" Edward shrugged off his coat and jacket, draping them over the couch as he walked by it. He always kept it nice and warm in his apartment during the winter, so there was no need for the extra garments.

With a sigh, Edward plopped down on the couch and stretched out a bit. After a moment, he held up his auto-mail arm, staring up at the polished metal with a pained expression on his face. Just like the rain and humidity, cold air and snow made his joints stiff and achy. If that wasn't bad enough already, his scarred skin beneath the metal was constantly cold and dry, no matter how many layers he wore when he went outside, and his left leg was no exception.

Edward was just about to grab some oil for his stiff limbs, when Ginger finally called out to him from the kitchen.

"Ed, I'm ready now!"

"I'm coming!" Edward grinned eagerly as he hefted himself up off the couch and jogged into the kitchen.

Ginger was sitting in the middle of a large apple pie, her fur dripping with filling and flakey chunks of crust.

"Aww, for me? How did you know apple pie was my favorite?" Edward asked, playing at being surprised by her gift.

"Yeah! I had a little help picking it out, of course." Ginger giggled, tossing a pawful of apple filling into the air like confetti. "Happy Birthday, Ed!"

"Thanks, Gingersnap." Edward chuckled, watching as the glob of filling splattered on to the clean table top. He pulled out a chair and sat down, bringing the pie closer to him. "Mmm, this looks yummy!" He exclaimed, licking his lips. In truth, he was still feeling a bit full from the cake and ice cream he'd had at Yuki's, but he was never one to pass on a piece of apple pie. Especially if it was topped off with a tasty little ocelot…

"I'm not sure what to have first...you, or the pie you're sitting on." Edward snickered.

"Oh, me first, me first!" Ginger leaped up and reached out to him with her tiny, pie-covered paws.

Edward grinned. "Alright, but first let's get all that pie filling out of your fur." He carefully lifted her up out of the pastry and held her in the palm of his left hand. With a voracious glint in his eyes, he parted his lips and stuck out his tongue, licking the top of Ginger's little head.

Ginger giggled and closed her eyes as the boy rasped his tongue through the spiky tuft of bright red hair on her head.

"Mmmm…" Edward hummed in delight at the delectable flavor that flooded his mouth. The pie filling was creamy and sweet, with a bold undertone of ginger from the ocelot's hair. He quickly dove back in for more, running his soft, pink tongue through the fur on Ginger's paws and arms.

Ginger purred softly as she attempted to snuggle the boy's wet tongue every time he poked it out to taste her fur.

Edward chuckled, pulling a stray piece of crust into his mouth with his tongue before he gently blew into her face to tease her.

"Hey!" Ginger mewed and playfully batted at him with her front paws. His breath felt warm and comforting, and it made her anxious to curl up inside his cozy mouth.

At last, once Edward had lapped up all of the pie filling and crust out of her fur, he tilted his head back and dangled the little cat over his wide open mouth.

Ginger meowed happily as she stared down into the boy's dark throat. She could almost feel the strong muscles within pulling her down toward his waiting stomach. A few silvery ropes of saliva dripped down from his teeth as he lowered her closer to his mouth.

`"Listen, I know I've told you this before, but please be careful in my tummy, okay?" Edward asked her. "I ate a lot today, and I'm sure there'll be lots of chewed up food waiting for you…" With that, he placed her on top of his tongue and gently closed his jaws over her.

"Don't worry, I'll be careful!" Ginger exclaimed as she settled on to the boy's spongy tongue. As always… She added to herself. He was constantly reminding her to be cautious while in his stomach; watch out for falling food or the singeing acid that pooled at the very bottom. She had never met anyone besides her late aunt who had made such a fuss over her before. Ginger didn't mind of course, for Edward was only trying to protect her and keep her safe. He was very good at that.

Edward smiled as he gently swished her around inside his mouth, slicking her up with his thick saliva.

Ginger purred happily and cuddled Edward's tongue, rubbing her head up against it while kneading her paws into it's squishy surface. After a while, she crept toward the back of his throat, signaling that she was ready to slide down into his belly.

With a soft hum, Edward closed his eyes and tilted his head up, swallowing her delicately. He gently stroked his throat with the tips of his index and middle finger as Ginger slipped down it. When he felt her tiny form ease farther down, the boy slowly moved his hand down over his chest, as if to follow the path she took within his body.

Ginger purred when she heard his heart beating steadily somewhere above her. The sound was quite loud when she was this close to it, but it's rhythmic thrum was no less comforting to the little girl.

A final swallow sent the ocelot into Edward's tummy, and he slid his hand down his chest and on to his warm stomach to complete the path. He gave it an affectionate pat and sighed contently. "What's it like in there now?" Edward asked after a moment.

Ginger glanced up when she heard his voice. She had landed amongst piles of chewed up bits of cake and puddles of ice cream turned warm by the heat radiating within his body. "Stuffed with food, like you said, but it's comfy and soft!" She giggled, squishing a piece of cake beneath her paws.

"Good." Edward smiled warmly as he gazed down at his stomach. "I'm going to eat a slice of pie now, okay? Find a wall to cuddle up against so you don't get hit by falling pieces of apple." He told her.

"Alright!" Ginger happily obeyed, crawling over to the nearest wall and huddling up against it. She purred quietly as she stretched out her front paws and kneaded them into the cushiony flesh beneath her.

Edward narrowed his eyes in bliss and placed his hand over his stomach, rubbing it gently with his thumb. After a moment of this, he stood up and grabbed a knife from a drawer near the kitchen sink. He cut a generous slice from the pie and plunked it down on a clean plate, grabbing a fork before he walked back out into the living room to eat it. Edward took a seat on his couch and popped a forkful of apple pie into his mouth, chewing it thoroughly before he swallowed it down.

When she heard the bite drop down behind her, Ginger giggled and huddled closer to the boy's stomach wall. She gently rubbed the slick, velvety flesh in front of her as he ate up his birthday treat.

"How was the pie?" Ginger asked when she no longer heard the sound of his snack dropping into his stomach.

"It was delicious! Thank you, Gingersnap." Edward grinned, patting his full belly gently.

"You're welcome! I'm glad you enjoyed it."

"I sure did." Edward leaned forward to set his empty plate on the coffee table in front of him. "There's still a whole pie left over, so we can have it for dessert during the week!"

"Yay!" Ginger cheered. "Just don't eat it all at once!" She teased, poking the wall of his stomach with the tip of her tiny finger.
"Don't worry, I won't." Edward chuckled, glancing down at his tummy.

"Good!" Ginger purred, rubbing her head up against the boy's soft stomach. With a happy sigh, she curled up in front of the grooved wall and pressed her paws into it, massaging it softly.

Edward grabbed a well-worn leather bound book off the coffee table before he sat back against the couch, placing his free hand over his stomach. "Do you mind if I read for a little while, Ginger?" He asked her.

"Sure! As long as you don't mind if I take a little nap in your tummy."

"Go right ahead." Edward smiled, though she couldn't see it. "I'll cut you a deal, you can take a nap while I read a few chapters, and when I'm done, I'll let you out so we can read something together before bed. How's that sound?"

Ginger's ears perked up in excitement at the mention of reading. "I'd love to!" She exclaimed. Now that she had started asking Edward to pronounce certain words or to explain the meaning behind confusing phrase found in the books she read, he had decided to give her reading lessons every once in a while. "How many chapters are you going to read?"

"I'm going to try to read five or six. They're pretty long, so it'll take me about an hour. Does that give you enough time for your nap?"

"Yes, that's perfect!"

"Alright." Edward settled back against the couch and opened his book to a page marked by a candy wrapper. "I'll wake you up as soon as I'm done. Sleep well, Gingersnap."

"Thanks, Ed!" Ginger said. "See you soon." With that, she closed her eyes and wrapped her tail around herself, giving a tiny yawn. The warm, humid environment within his tummy never failed to make her feel drowsy and lethargic, yet she welcomed the feeling. During her travels, she had spent many a restless night out in the elements or on the run from stray cats and other predators of the night.

Needless to say, she enjoyed being able to sleep somewhere safe and warm for a change, whether she was nestled inside her friend's body, or simply lying near him.

Ginger purred happily at the thought as she snuggled up against Edward's stomach wall. She placed her paws against his soft flesh and stroked it gently. Thank you for protecting me, Ed... She thought as she drifted off, lulled by the soft gurgling sounds now echoing around her.

Edward smiled and rubbed his belly gently back and forth when he felt her tiny body relax against him. He continued to read his book, holding it in one hand while he massaged his tummy with the other.

About an hour later, after Edward had set his book back down on the coffee, he laid down on the couch and patted his belly a few times to wake Ginger up. She climbed back up the boy's throat and into his mouth so that he could let her out. He gave her a quick bath in the sink before he carried her into their bedroom. After getting ready for bed, Edward picked up the book of mysteries they had borrowed from Yuki and sprawled out on the bed with Ginger nestled on his shoulder. They took turns reading passages from the book aloud, although Edward had to stop frequently to define a word or re-read a sentence for Ginger if she didn't understand.

When they both started to yawn after reading only a few lines, Edward set the book down on his nightstand and turned off the light. He soon fell into a peaceful sleep after recounting the fun day he had spent with his friends.
When she heard Edward's soft snores, Ginger curled up against his warm neck and closed her eyes. She fell fast asleep as well, feeling safe and sound lying close to her best buddy