Stubbornness

"Let's see…where are the litter boxes."

Kyoko couldn't believe she wasn't blushing, despite the fur. Briefly, she wondered it her dark fur would turn red like her hair. "No!" She cried, despite the fact that everything she said sounded like a variety of meows. "Tsuruga-san, no! I will not use a litter box!" A few people chuckled at the grown man wincing as a small black kitten meowed loudly in his ear. "You can't clean up my….my….no! I will use the t….to…toilet like always!" She wanted to bury her head in her han…paws but she was still trying to deter him from buying a litter box. Taking her paw, she tapped the side of his face. "Tsuruga-san! Are you listening! No! Not a pink one!" She screeched in his ear and he laughed, placing a hand over his ear.

"Princess!" He reached over and tried to pet her, but, thinking he was going to try and hold her, she ducked away and snaked behind his head. He sighed and she froze.

'Oh no! I'm making him angry! I'm so sorry Tsuruga-san!' Meowing sadly, she went to his other shoulder and stuck her nose in his ear. He gave a startled laugh and brought a hand up to his ear. She stiffened.

"Oh…my…God…I just stuck my nose in Tsuruga Ren's ear! How disrespectful!" She leapt down from his shoulder to the floor, briefly amazed that she landed on her feet, and did her best impression of a doegza.

Ren's eyes widened in shock as the kitten pressed her nose to the floor and mewed loudly. 'A…doegza?' He wondered in disbelief. "Um…Princess?" He reached down to pet her and she looked up at him forlornly, her ears pricked forward and her amber eyes sad. "It's okay. What's wrong? Do…do you not like pink litter boxes?" Realizing that talking was getting her nowhere, Kyoko decided to just shake her head. His mouth dropped open. He hadn't been expecting her to respond. 'I always heard that cats respond to tone of voice…that it didn't matter what you actually said. Surely she can't understand a word I'm saying.' He started to say something else when a worker walked up to them.

"Excuse me, sir? Is that your cat?"

"Huh?" Ren straightened to his full height, but either the man didn't know who he was or didn't care. "Yes. She's mine." Kyoko walked curiously up to the strange man, tripping over her own paws.

'Dang it! Okay. Front and back paw, front and back….no!' She didn't notice the men looking down at her strangely. 'No…diagonals. Front right back left. Front left back right.' She smiled as she began to move forward somewhat smoothly, the squeaked as her tail somehow slipped in between her back paws and she fell. Ren chuckled softly, crossing his arms as she gave up and law on the floor, ears pinned.

"Sorry, but all pets must be on a leash." The man told him, smiling a little at the little animal's antics. She extracted her tail and glared at it mournfully.

"Oh…um…can I get a leash then? I'm almost done." The man lifted an eyebrow but shrugged.

"That's fine." He reached over and picked Kyoko up. Squeaking in surprise, she turned to Ren.

"Tsuruga-san!" She hadn't been following the conversation and suddenly found herself in a stranger's arms.

"I'll be back, Princess." Ren disappeared for a second, leaving cat and cart in the worker's arms, and returned a few minutes later with a pink harness and leash.

"Pink! Why do you always pick pink things! Isn't it bad enough that I have to wear the stupid uniform?" She meowed in distress, struggling in the man's arms as Ren managed to slip the thing over her head and place her paws into the gaps.

"Calm down." Ren murmured, running his thumb over her head. The worker attached the leash to the harness and handed the other end to the man as he placed the cat on the floor. Ren thanked him; watching in barely concealed amusement as the kitten, barely able to walk anyway, tried to do so with a harness. He smirked and reached down, scooping her up.

"Here." He placed her back on his shoulder and she perched on his shoulder, gratefully.

'It's so embarrassing when he holds me…his hand is on my stomach and…' The kitten blushed again and focused on maintaining her balance without clawing him as he threw a beige litter box and a bag of litter into the basket, along with a scooper.

"Well, I think that's it. Do you want anything else?" He asked her quietly, petting her. She growled a little and he retracted his hand a bit nervously. "What?"

"Why are you buying me so much! What's wrong with you! How can you spend your money so carelessly! And on me! I can never pay you back for all this." She meowed mournfully. "I'm sorry!" She flopped down on his shoulder, giving up as he threw another catnip ball into the basket and headed for the check out counter.

Irritated at her inability to even attempt to pay, she lay limply in the passenger seat. 'I don't understand! What's going on? Why am I a cat? And why is Tsuruga-san taking care of me? Doesn't he have work? What about my work!' She cried in her mind, pinning her ears back.

"What's wrong now?" He asked quietly, reaching over and tugging her ear gently. She chirped at him, looking at him sadly.

"You keep buying me things and carrying me around and…and…I'm a cat! I don't understand what's going on."

Ren smiled at the series of chirps and meows that came from the passenger seat. "I wonder what you're saying." He mused with a soft laugh. She sighed, as well as a cat can, she dropped her head on her paws and curled her tail around herself.

"I'm sure you do." She mumbled irritably.

The man carried the grocery bags through the parking garage, the sad cat lying on his shoulder. She had given up protesting that she could walk herself when she couldn't manage to make actual words. 'I can't believe how much in this man's debt I am! How am I even going to explain all of this…oh no…what if I turn back into a human! What if I'm sitting on his shoulder and…and I'll be naked!' She groaned, a strange, sick sounding sound for a cat, and Ren looked over his shoulder worriedly.

"Are you okay?" He murmured, adjusting the bag and hurrying for the elevator. "Hey, we're almost there. Are you hungry? Sick?" He realized that he was talking to a cat as if she could understand him again, and started to laugh at himself when she shook her head. "Princess? What is it?"

She rolled her eyes. "I was just trying to answer your question. But you don't understand and I can't clarify and I'm a cat!" She meowed irritably, the novelty of it all wearing off and he sighed.

"Moody cat." He mumbled.

Kyoko lay on the couch as Ren headed back to the cat to get the cat litter and food. Her bed was set up by the kitchen door, and there was a pile of new toys, mostly still in their wrappings, on the coffee table. 'I need to find that fairy. What was she thinking? Why would she turn me into a cat? I have work to do! And what about Moko-san! I have to call her…I can't call her. I'm a cat.' Once again the knowledge hit her like a ton of bricks. 'What am I going to do?' Strengthening her resolve, she stood suddenly. 'I have to tell Tsuruga-san what's going on…somehow!'

When the door opened, he looked around before catching sight of her. "Wow. You're a really good cat…you haven't moved at all." He placed the heavy bags in the kitchen with a huff. "Are you hungry?" She thought for a moment, then shook her head. For some reason, she really wasn't, despite the running around she had done since her strange transformation. Instead, she was thirsty. Standing up carefully and ignoring his strange look, she managed to walk into the kitchen, mindful of her long tail, and walked over to the sink. Looking up at him, she tapped the counter with her paw. His eyes were wide and he was staring at her in silence, so she meowed. "Oh…uh…you're thirsty?" She nodded and his jaw dropped. "You…you really understand what I'm saying?" She nodded again, rolling her eyes. "What kind of cat are you?" She meowed and he shook himself out of his stunned state, taking a bowl and filling it with tap water, and then placing it on the floor in front of her.

Leaning over, she sniffed it gingerly. 'Okay…cats lap up water with their tongue…like this?' She stuck her tongue out and scooped up some water in her mouth. To her surprise, she found that her tongue curled into a tiny spoon, and she was able to fill up with water after a few drinks. 'Oh. That's neat.' She looked up and realized that Ren was no longer in the room. Walking around the bowl, careful to keep her tail up and away from the water, she froze when she heard a strange noise coming from somewhere in the apartment. Gingerly padding into the living room, she found it empty, so she kept walking, looking around at how big everything suddenly was. The couch looked too big for her to climb onto, and because of her sharp claws she was afraid to try.

She found him in the bathroom with the door open, filling a pan hallway full with litter, and her eyes widened. He sighed as he stood. "I hope you're litter trained." He mumbled under his breath, then looked down at her, waiting for the response that always seemed to come. He was surprised when she backed away from the box on the floor, hissing loudly and bearing her sharp little teeth.

"No! I'm not using that! I can just use the toilet! I already told you that! Why did you have to buy a litter box?" He stared at her in confusion for a second, then shook his head.

"I give up. I have no idea what's the matter with you, you weird cat. I have to call Yashiro anyway. Amuse yourself, okay?" He walked away irritably and she shrunk back, almost afraid.

"Why is he angry? Did I do something? I just don't want him to have to clean up after me." She meowed sadly and, after a few minutes of contemplation, followed him into the living room. He was sitting on the sofa, his cellphone pressed against his ear.

"Hey Dad." His voice was soft and Kyoko's ears pricked up. She knew that she shouldn't be eavesdropping, but he was talking in front of her and didn't seem to care if she listened.

'But…I'm a cat. Of course he doesn't know it's me…' She pushed the rational thought away and sat in front of the sofa, trying to think of a way up. 'I don't want to ruin his furniture…' She backed away and made a running leap, but didn't jump high enough and only ran into the front face first.

"Yes it's me. " She tried again, ears still peeled as she attempted to climb up next to him. "I…yes I miss you too. I…I actually called because I have to ask you something." He took a deep breath. "Is Kyoko with you?" Kyoko froze in her attempts and sat down, looking up at him with wide eyes. Suddenly she had the strongest urge to lick her paw. Unable to resist, she began to wash herself as he spoke. "No…the President said he sent her away to do a Love Me task, and that she is being taken care of by someone that cares about her."

'President said that!' She stiffened in shock. 'Does he really know what's going on? Why else would he lie! But…someone who cares about me? Why would Tsuruga-san's father care about me? I don't know anything about Tsuruga-san's family…'

"Well, I just thought that since she took care of you while you were in Japan…and I know you have her call you father…you were the only person I could think of. No…I have no idea. Yes, I am worried about her. You can try. He wouldn't tell me anything. No. I don't think…surely he wouldn't do something….no. I can't imagine him telling her to do that."

Kyoko stood and walked away stiffly in the middle of the conversation. Her hair was standing on edge and she could feel her tail thrashing. 'He's Father's son…he's Kuon.' The realization hit her with every step as she made her way to the guest room. Looking around, she decided on the bed. She crouched down a little and crawled under, hiding in the farthest corner by the wall. Her skin felt funny as her fur stood straight up, and she tried licking herself to flatten it but soon gave up, curling into a tiny ball. 'He lied to me. All this time…and he and father were lying to me. I'll bet they had a good laugh after I was gone. How stupid can one person be?' She closed her eyes and felt her cheeks get wet. Whimpering, she curled up tighter, shutting out the world by pinning her ears back and covering her eyes with her tail. 'I thought I had a father…but he was lying to me…I'm sure he doesn't really want a daughter like me anyway…not when he has Tsuruga-san.'

Ren drummed his fingers, waiting for Yashiro to pick up his phone. "Hello?"

"Hey Yashiro."

"Ren! I've been waiting for you to call! The President said that you were taking off work for today and tomorrow? What's wrong?"

"He wants me to take care of his cat." Ren deadpanned. "Listen, have you heard anything about Kyoko?"

"Um…no." The strangely serious tone of his charge's voice kept him from teasing the distraught man. "Why?"
"The President said he sent her away somewhere for a Love Me assignment…and he doesn't know when she'll be back."

"What? What about her work?"

"That's what I asked him. And he said that she did something wrong and she's not allowed to work until she completes her assignment." There was a confused silence.

"Ren…doesn't that sounds a little strange to you?"

"Of course, which is why I called you. She's not with Hizuri Kuu, and she's not with anyone at LME, or so he said. He said that someone who cares about her is watching out for her…who else could it be?"

"Maybe the people where she lives? Or the family she grew up with?" Ren was thoughtful.

"She isn't answering her phone. But she may be at home…I might try going by there tomorrow."

"Um...Ren? Why does the President want you to look after his cat?"

"I wish I knew." Ren leaned back against the back of the sofa with a sigh, disconnecting the call after wishing his manager a good day. 'He said to treat the cat like I would treat Kyoko…but why was he so adamant about that? And why does that cat act like she can understand me? It's unnerving…' He remembered snapping at her earlier, and then looked around. Not finding her anywhere, he frowned and stood up. 'Crap…if she can somehow understand me, does she think I'm mad at her?' 'I cannot stress this enough….take good care of Princess. Pretend that you are taking care of Kyoko.' "Why would he say that? He even repeated it…"

The next thing Kyoko knew, the name Princess was echoing across the apartment. She pinned her ears back again and stayed where she was. 'He lied to me…he and father both. Even after everything we went through as Setsu and Cain…he never trusted me enough to tell me the truth…' The thought caused her physical pain. She thought back to her conversation with Kanae. 'I…I love him…and he lied to me. I can't love someone I don't trust.' Of course she couldn't make her feelings for him disappear, so she only closed her eyes again, tucking her tail around herself. 'I don't want to see him right now.'

She opened her eyes and realized that she must have fallen asleep at some point. She carefully uncurled herself and stood up, stretching from nose to tail. 'I'm really hungry…what was I doing under the…' Her train of thought came to a screeching halt. 'He lied to me.' The thought, which had seemed so painful before, seemed a little less after a nap. 'Okay…maybe he had a good reason…' She couldn't think of one, but she shook her head. 'I can't jump to conclusions. I have no reason to think that father doesn't love me, anyway. Maybe…maybe Tsuruga-san just wanted him to keep the secret and Father didn't want to break his word. Or…maybe they just aren't close.' She sighed a little, none of her explanations making much sense, but she was tired of hiding under the bed and thinking about her father not loving her. 'When I'm a human again…whenever that may be…I'll talk to him.' She walked to the edge of her hiding place and looked around. 'I wonder what happened to Tsuruga-san. Did he give up? What time is it?' She took another step and came to a horrific conclusion. 'I have to use the bathroom.' Meowing sadly in distress, she placed her head in her paws. "NO!" She cried into the carpet. 'I'll just hold it. I'm not going in the litter box!' Slipping out from under her hiding spot, she looked around the dark room, her pupils opening wide to take in all the light so that she could see easily in the darkness. She hurried to the door and listened for sounds of movement or a voice. Nothing.

She meowed softly in the large apartment, wondering where he could be. The living room was empty, but her bed was lying closer to the sofa and had a soft toy placed in the corner. Smiling, she nudged it with her nose, easily identifying his scent on it. She moved on to the kitchen. Two bowls sat on the floor, one filled with fresh water and the other with little nuggets of dry cat food. She sniffed it hesitantly, but wasn't sure she was hungry enough to try it Taking a few sips of water, she decided to try his bedroom.

Kyoko nudged the door to the dark room open and smiled. There, on his giant bed, the man was lying under the covers. Looking out of his window, she could see that it was just getting dark. 'He must have been tired. I wonder how long he was looking for me.' The thought made her press her ears back sadly, and she walked over to his bed. Crouching, she leapt straight up in the air and managed to pull herself up onto the comforter. She padded over to him and sat down, watching him silently. His brow was furrowed and he mumbled, suddenly turning over, and she jumped back to avoid his arm. He mumbled again, the lines on his brow deepening, and she caught her name amidst the murmuring. "Tsuruga-san?" She meowed softly. His hand formed a fist in the blanket.

"Kyoko." He mumbled sadly, his head turning. Her large eyes widened.

'Why is he dreaming about me? Is he…worried about me? Because I'm gone?' Walking closer, she lay in the crook of the arm at his side, reaching up and touching her nose to his cheek. He smiled a little, and she pressed her nose harder against him, meowing softly. "I'm sorry that I'm making you worry." She told him, patting his face with her paw. He suddenly jerked awake and found himself holding the little cat that he had been scouring the apartment for for the last few hours.

"Princess?" He asked tiredly. "There you are. I was worried." He turned a little and ran his hand over her head, smiling when she rubbed against him. "Why did you run off?"

Kyoko's eyes dimmed and she rested her head on her paws, taking a deep breath as he continued to pet her. There was no way to communicate to him what had so upset her, so she just closed her eyes. "Go back to sleep." She meowed. He gave up after a second and closed his eyes, his hand on her back.

Kyoko woke an hour or two later, her bladder informing her that she could no longer put off using the bathroom. 'But…but…I can't use the litter box!' She cried in her mind as her body once again woke up. There was a heavy, comfortable weight on her back, and turning her head she saw that she was lying next to Tsuruga-san's naked chest. 'Naked! Why didn't I notice that before?' She blushed under the fur, pulling away a little. He frowned, but lifted his hand in his sleep, allowing her to escape. "I'll be right back." She meowed in a whisper.

She hurried into the bathroom and stared at the litter box for a few moments, then looked up at the toilet. Making a decision, she leapt up onto the tall white structure, balancing carefully on the edge. The lid was down, so she backed up carefully, her tail in the air, and sighed in relief as the pressure on her bladder eased. When she was finished, she carefully turned and, moving slowly, lifted her front paw and placed it on the handle. 'Ha. There. That was easy. Now I just have to….eep!' She pressed down on the handle, but as the loud flushing sound filled the room, her back paw slipped and she crashed into the bowl, surrounded by the swirling water.

Ren jerked awake when a loud, horrible screech filled the air. Forcing his brain to respond, he managed to separate the screaming with the flushing noise. Eyes wide, he jumped out of bed and ran into the bathroom. Reaching into the toilet, he grabbed the partially submerged animal from the bowl and jerked her out of the water in panic.

Kyoko felt the hand close around the scruff of her neck and squeaked in pain as she jerked her into the air. He seemed to realize his mistake because he gently placed her on the floor while kneeling down as she choked and gasped for breath, her entire body shaking. Her legs gave out as she collapsed against the floor, her eyes closed tightly in fear. After a few seconds, a towel wrapped around her and she felt herself being cuddled to his chest.

"What on earth were you doing?" He cried, caressing her head with his thumb to calm her down. She coughed again and meowed sadly, trying to tell him that she didn't like the litter box. "Did Lory train you to use a toilet? How did you flush it?" He sighed when he remembered that the intelligent little creature couldn't actually answer him and stood slowly, holding her close. "I'll have to remember to put the lid down." He mumbled as he carried her into the kitchen, dug around in a bag, and pulled out the shampoo he had bought. "Well, I hope you like baths." Kyoko felt a strange terror invade her body as he turned the faucet on and placed the stopper in the sink.

'Oh no…'