Chapter Text
Sena opened the door wearily. "Tadaima…!" He called out, his voice hushed with exhaustion. This day was very exhausting for the slight boy – he had two exam papers, the timetable was even more difficult if that was possible, and his boss was as demanding as ever.
"Meyow!"
And after that one call, a black and golden blur jumped on him, latching oh his jacket.
"Raiden!" Sena complained half-heartedly. "How many times did I tell you don't hang off of my jacket! "He scolded the now purring feline, which managed to wound around his neck snugly.
"Mrow." The slightly less hyper voice greeted him next, and Sena smiled. "Hello, Aoshi." The blue-furred kitten sat in front of the door into the kitchen regally, eyeing him expectantly. Sena laughed. "Yeah, I did bring you fatty tuna." He chuckled as the kitten perked up visibly.
"'Row." Another voice called from the kitchen. "Lazy as ever, Ichigo, I see." He called back, laughing slightly at the insulted sound that preceded the arrival of the crimson – colored feline.
"'Ruf." The gruff voice sounded, making Sena blink. It was… above his head?
"Haku…?" He asked tentatively.
From the four of them, Haku was the most unpredictable one. If Sena didn't know better, he would have thought Haku was a health-and sports- obsessed maniac.
Somehow, Haku was hanging from the thick rope that was hung on the wall and… doing pull-ups?
Blinking, Sena shook his head.
Yup, definitely pull-ups.
He chuckled. "That will be enough, Haku." He called to the kitten fondly. Flinty grey eyes looked at him, before the kitten reluctantly left the makeshift bar as to climb down on Sena's shoulder, much to Raiden's dismay.
Somehow, Haku's tail always found the way to land on Raiden's nose. And even if Raiden bit the offending appendage –
" – Raiden! Don't do that!" Sena scolded the unrepentant Teikoku – bred feline half – heartedly. Said feline was chewing on the offending tail, not listening to Sena's scolding a whit.
Sena just sighed. "I am beginning to suspect that you either don't have a sensitive tail, or you are just plain masochist," he muttered to Haku, who was nuzzling into his chest.
Aoshi chuffed, amused. Even their owner picked up on Shin's particular habit, and well…
They had been together with their new owner for a week, and they learned some very interesting things.
To their surprise, Sena was a student, and not only that, he was majoring in English at the Tokyo University. It made Yamato feel smug, as Kakei now owed him five pieces of fatty tuna, and Kakei was sulking, as he was reluctant to part with his precious dish.
Surprisingly – or not – Sena was completely at ease with them, but when he was with people, he was a blundering, clumsy and stuttering excuse for a human. It amused them as much as it annoyed them, as that meant that if they ever came to the point – with capital P, Sena was likely to have a heart attack rather than to hear them out.
Sena also didn't have many friends. Sure, he had his 'Mamori-neechan' – a young female whose scent was of home cookies and books, and the said female also mothered their precious owner something terrible – Akaba was surprised Mamori didn't just grab Sena and put him in diapers at the rate she was going. Nevertheless, all that babying just meant that they were all the more inconspicuous in their cover.
They also had a near-miss with a monkey – and Yamato still swore up and down that it was all Shin's fault, as the black kitten nearly gave Monta, as the monkey was obviously called, a heart attack, what with his misinterpreting the boy as a danger to his owner and dropping on him from his customary pull-up place. Monta had been freaked out almost to the point of passing out. In return, Shin almost got his eardrums busted out by the monkey's piercing shriek, that Monta called manly yell of surprise.
Akaba got his revenge on the person that was desecrating music, in the shape of shredding their music equipment into little bits of wood and plastic. Sena had been suspicious of Akaba's satisfied look when the neighbor came to complain, but he didn't have any evidence that it had been Ichigo that was the culprit. Well, except that the red – furred kitten watched the guitarists jamming their solos on MTV just a little too regularly for his liking.
Sena had to get used to four kittens that were constantly underfoot… well, not underfoot, per se, but he still had four roomies that significantly altered his day-to-day routine.
Sena was also surprised as how well-behaved the feline foursome was. In their stay, they never soiled the place they shouldn't have, and they regularly used the kitty litter box. He also noted the quirks each kitten had.
Raiden seemed to be really affectionate, if not a little goofy at times, but he was still the leader of the bunch. He loved to curl around Sena's neck, and watch Sena working on his papers, homework, or just reading the assigned book. He also claimed the spot on Sena's chest to curl upon, when it was time for sleep.
Aoshi was the voice of a reason, and the second-in-command of the little kitty bunch. He was serious, and his long fur made him to look like an oversized puff ball, whenever he was curled in for a rest. But the bluish – black fur was always impeccably groomed – the kitten was a perfectionist in that regard. Aoshi loved the fatty tuna to the extreme – the only thing he loved more, was being petted by Sena. He wasn't outright affectionate, like Raiden, but he had a sort of quiet dignity that made him noticeable, if the man looked for him.
Ichigo, the red feline, was as independent as he could be. His quirk was music, and he loved to listen to the guitar solos. He also didn't like Sena's neighbor, and Sena suspected that was him who destroyed Uzumaki-kun's karaoke system, but didn't have enough to seriously accuse him. Ichigo curled on his stomach when it was time to sleep, and was partial to spicy things. Sena didn't even want to think how the kitten could digest a wasabi of all things without any stomach troubles.
Haku was the least weird of the bunch, if one would overlook his constant need for training, and sneaking upon the unsuspecting visitors of Sena's lair. Luckily, Mamori escaped that fate, but just because Sena told the kittens that she would come to visit. Unluckily, Monta burst in the apartment, and he was subjected to the kamikaze attack of the black feline. Monta still shivered at the memory of the kitten's ferocious eyes staring into his own brown orbs. Since then, he made sure to knock, before he entered the apartment. Haku was also the stoic of the bunch, and most of the time, Sena was reminded of a kitten – soldier. And who would forget a kitten eating vegetables – and raw ones, at that?
Sena sighed. "I'm so tired…" He moaned out, as he took off the shoes and a jacket, with the two kittens clinging to him. It was funny, but he never had to move the kittens to get the jacket off. They complied readily… the trouble was, when he had to get the jacket on. Every time he had done that, he had to check the sleeves of the jacket first – it seemed that Raiden's favorite method of deterring Sena to wear that accursed piece of clothes was to get into one of the sleeves and not budge out till Sena either admitted defeat and stayed home, or he had to somehow coax the black and golden furred kitten out, usually with promises of long, luxurious petting session and a generous doses of dango.
Sena was just thankful the landlord hadn't noticed his…. companions yet. Even Mamori – neechan operated under the delusion that Sena had the permission for the kittens to live in. Well, he kind of did – for one kitten. Instead he lodged four little furry companions, and if his landlord found that out….Sena gulped.
At least the kitties, especially Aoi, were good in playing possum, when it came to that particular visit. Even if they were somewhat traumatized at the very…precise inspection of their extremities and other unmentionables. NO self-respecting person - er, kitten – wanted to have prostate exam by the landlord's daughter masquerading as aspiring doctor.
Oh, the horrors.
"So… How was your day, guys?" Sena asked good-naturedly, as he scratched the underside of Raiden's chin.
Raiden purred loudly, while Aoi chuffed somewhat disdainfully at their erstwhile leader. 'Bootlicker,' Kakei accused still-in-the-flowers Yamato.
'But this feels so good!' Yamato moaned back, stretching luxuriously before yelping with shock as one black-furred paw with white cross unceremoniously dunked his head. 'Hey!' He complained, scowling.
'You hogged Kobayakawa long enough.' Was short and not so candid explanation of the owner of the paw.
'Says who?' Yamato replied back tartly. Meanwhile, he flexed his own paw in preparation to deliver one mighty kitty-slap back.
Gray eyes looked into amber ones seriously. 'Says me. By the way, your intelligence had dropped down again. Your feline form seems to impair your judgment.'
'Whaaa - ? Are you saying I am stupid? Er, stupider than normal?' Yamato gaped at the stoic kitten.
"Fuuu. 'Crimson eyes looked heavenward as Akaba followed their owner into the small kitchenette. 'Hallelujah, he finally gets it,' He snarked back. 'Maybe there's hope for you yet, Yamato.' He commented, earning a growl and a twitch of the Kitty Slap O'Doom aimed his way.
The red-furred kitten wouldn't admit under the threat of torture but it flinched minutely. Very, very minutely. That was a micro-flinch. Nobody noticed the micro-flinches. Right?
"Mroweeee – " Yamato whimpered piteously as he looked at his owner. Yes, his – Sena was his and he only loaned him to the three furry menaces that co-habited their flat. He conveniently overlooked the fact that the three of them were his kitten-mates and had his back since the beginning of that bizarre adventure.
"Hmmm?" Sena hummed distractedly. That poor-me-pity-me tone Raiden just emitted was heard often enough for Sena not to panic immediately upon hearing it. "What it is? Do you want to go to the kitty litter box again?"
The kitten stiffened and Sena yelped as he felt tiny claws pinprick through the sleeve of his turtleneck. "Ouch! Okay, okay, you don't need to!" He yelped back as he hurriedly put the plastic bag with groceries on the small desk.
Hearing Kakei snort, Yamato glared at him. 'You are a meanie,'He grumbled out petulantly. 'And you are tattle-taller.' Kakei returned the proverbial volley effortlessly.
He looked at the grocery bag with interest, making Yamato's kitty teeth grit in impotent fury, before he his face was cruelly bonked by two black furred paws, making him whimper and release the tail he had been chewing.
'Your teeth grip has improved,' Shin said matter of factly. 'However, I believe I still need the tail, although your help in toughening it up is appreciated.'
All three of the kittens looked at the black – furred one, gaping.
'It's official,' Kakei finally said, his aquamarine eyes wide. 'I believe there's someone nuttier than you, Yamato.'
The black and golden furred kitten nodded dumbly. 'Yeah,' He agreed absentmindedly.
Meanwhile, Sena was blissfully unaware of his four charges' conversation as he happily puttered around the kitchenette, humming a small ditty to himself.
All in all, it was an ordinary evening in apartment number 104.
However, unknowingly to the occupants, that was bound to change soon…
/To Be Continued/