Chapter Text
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Despite his over-enthusiasm, Sun is gracious enough to allow you to take this at your own pace. He busies himself with cleaning here, and there so he doesn’t crowd you while you sit down with the coffee and moon pie that Moon brought in. He’s in the daytime side of the room, and he keeps sneaking peeks to see which cat you’re with at the moment, but other than that, he just minds himself, humming a song that has a familiar tune. The melody dances around in your mind as you sit down on the big L-shaped couch in the nighttime area with a big white cat on your lap. You’re absentmindedly petting the cat, looking down at her as you find her profile on your phone on their adorable website.
It's Poptart. A three-year-old shorthair with heterochromatic eyes, blue and green. She’s very big, taking up your whole lap shamelessly as she lies across your thighs, she’s not kneading, just lying there. She’s not purring either, she’s quietly content, her eyes half-closed to show she’s satisfied here.
She’s a good contestant; she’s very chill, and even if you grab her head, purely due to curiosity, she just looks up at you with wide eyes before relaxing back into place. You smile to yourself, finding it a bit silly that you’re examining these cats and deciding which one you want to take home. It feels odd; you’ve never adopted one on your own before, so it’s a bit new to you.
Meanwhile, Sun is moving around in front of you as he cleans; his humming gets louder, and that melody captures your attention. Your gaze drifts away from Poptart, who’s securing you in place due to the rules, to Sun. He’s prancing around practically while he tidies up.
A black cat lets out a sleepy ‘mrrp’ when Sun moves a pillow on the couch he was laid up against, thus disturbing his nap. Sun doesn’t seem to notice since he’s in his own world as he fluffs the pillows, but once the black cat sees it’s Sun, he stands up in a leisurely stretch, arching his back as he meows. You scroll on the website while petting Poptart to locate the next profile, Joey. He’s an average-sized black cat with green eyes, and the pretty boy isn’t that old yet either, he’s only 2 years old.
Sun is thoroughly preoccupied, so he doesn’t immediately give Joey attention. He’s too busy wiping down a table that’s already been cleaned. He’s scrubbing it with a wet wipe, getting down on his knees due to his ridiculous height, and he’s even tilting his head at an absurd angle to see if the surface is truly pristine.
‘Obsessive compulsive much…? ’ You muse to yourself with one raised brow and the other furrowed while you observe Sun and his cleaning habits. It feels odd to you that he’s choosing to clean like this while you’re here. It doesn’t feel like something he should do when a customer is visiting… But, you’ve never run a business before, so what do you know? At least, that’s what you argue with yourself in your head while you just stare at the automaton while he works almost directly across the room from you.
As soon as Sun deems it pristine, little black paws land on the freshly cleaned table. Sun jolts, snapping his head back up in place as he huffs at Joey. He scowls at the black cat, narrowed green eyes meeting narrowed white optics as they focus in on the little troublemaker… Said little troublemaker demands attention, so he gets it, whatever the cost.
“You know what you’re doing…” Sun mutters accusingly before sliding his fingertips across Joey’s cheek to satiate the cat’s need for affection which pleases the cat. He begins purring, and Sun sighs, hoisting Joey up with one hand under his belly, taking him off the table, and plopping him back on the ground to wipe the paw prints off.
In your peripheral vision, you catch a glimpse of Moon with his head in his hands, shaking it disapprovingly. You can interpret that Moon is likely a bot of efficiency, and Sun is not acting very efficiently by focusing on cleaning a singular table that cats keep walling across. But Sun seems content and almost happy as he cleans, leaning down to scritch Joey’s head for a moment before he resumes his cleaning and humming.
You look back down to Poptart, who looks like she’s falling asleep. Your foot is growing numb since you tucked one leg under the other when you sat down on the couch. Your decision is being regretted now as you’re effectively trapped by cat law… and this is quite a large cat... Not that you're exactly complaining.
Snatching your attention away from Poptart is a low, melodic meow from Joey. Sun giggles between his soft humming as he finishes cleaning that table and moves onto the chair. As he’s cleaning and humming, Joey rubs against Sun’s legs while the automaton is crouched down. Little trills and chirps are added along with Sun’s humming.
Valentine by Laufey. You finally recall why it sounds familiar. Sun’s humming the tune, and occasionally a meow or little trill is added in here and there by Joey, who’s now following Sun around, almost like he’s trying to sing along. Your heart melts a little bit as you find yourself idly humming along without even realizing it.
Sun bobs his head left and right to the beat, his steps becoming languid and rhythmic as he seems lost in the song, carefully stepping around Joey, who’s following him now and avoiding any other cats, even as Cheese darts by, chasing a toy she’s playing with by herself. As Sun passes by you, he snickers at how you’re stuck but doesn’t comment on it. He’s holding a container of wet wipes and seems determined to wipe down every chair and table like there isn’t a cat on half of them currently.
Sun is engrossed with his self-assigned task as the humming becomes soft mutterings of the words, possibly singing, but he’s aware you’re here, so he’s being quiet.
You feign you aren’t wholly invested in hearing the sunny automaton sing when he has such a raspy and higher-pitched voice, but as you focus on petting Poptart, your ears are focused on Sun, who’s behind you now.
"What if he’s the last, one I kiss… What if he’s the only one I’ll, ever miss…" Sun sings along to the song playing in his head softly; he’s not Laufey by any means, but despite it sounding a little scratchy and slightly off-tune... It has a certain charm to it. Something you can't exactly explain. Sun’s voice seems a bit too high for the song, oddly enough.
…But there’s something sentimental about the way he sings, as if longing for it himself. There’s emotion and depth behind those words he utters hoarsely to himself, Joey chirping quietly after causing Sun to laugh a little over the next lines. You find yourself joining in, mumbling along quietly. The song is hypnotic and reminds you of an old-fashioned cafe or a slow dance from the 1900s, so your finger trails down the top of Poptart’s head while your head tilts left and right slowly to the rhythm of the song as you mutter the words with Sun now.
"Maybe I should run, I’m only twenty-one…"
Sun perks up after a few seconds. His focus had been on other things, so he didn’t register you singing along for a few seconds before you both sang the proceeding line together a little louder, glances stolen at each other.
"I don’t even know who I want to become…"
You feel a little flustered at how into it you got, Sun doesn’t seem much different as he turns his whole body away from you while he cleans the nighttime side of the room now. The next few lines are sung quietly and more to yourself, Sun doing the same as his gaze properly returns to the table he’s now cleaning a little mindlessly as the next words of the song die on his silicone tongue as he listens to you whisper it melodically.
"When I hear an ‘I love you’, ‘cause now I’ve got someone to lose…"
You pause after that, casting Sun a glare for him falling silent just to hear you sing. He’s caught red-handed, optics widening before his rays retract into his faceplate a little, and he sheepishly avoids your glare, resuming his own humming like nothing happened… Like his servos aren’t buzzing and humming internally a little louder and faster than normal… Like his processor isn’t emitting an audible ‘whir ’ now.
You no longer hum, spiting the animatronic cafe owner a little as you focus on petting Poptart. She eventually grows tired of the petting, so she finally vacates your lap. Your foot is spared from the painful buzz, and you stretch it out, massaging it through your pants and shoes tenderly. The pins and needles rippling under your skin are alleviated eventually, and you rise from the couch. You don’t look back at Sun, who’s now fallen silent from his humming too.
Joey meows one last time before he saunters off, brushing past your leg while you’re stretching and arching your back. You smile and pet the top of his head as he purrs, leaning into it while he continues his path, walking away to go run in one of the cat wheels. You decide that the darker side of the cat room will put you to sleep… So, what else could wake you up but a room full of kittens?
You are quite excited, peeking through the glass wall, you spot a few little bitty kittens, all of them sleeping here or there, two of them cuddled up in the same tiny cat tree bed, tangled together.
Something about the close, intimate way cats cuddle tugs at your heartstrings in a manner that you only dream of being able to find in a romantic partner. You crouch down to observe them through the glass wistfully, admiring the tiny fuzzy faces with their little pink and black noses touching. The soft breaths they take as they nap peacefully, able to live a safe, sheltered life in the care of an extraordinary cat cafe until they’re adopted by a family or- a lonely person such as yourself.
Sun taps you on the top of your head, casually grabbing your attention. You look up at him, and he looks down at you. You’re still a little peeved at the whole song incident, but you don’t really hold anything against him.
“You know you can go inside, right? ” He inquires, having noticed you were just crouched at the glass- right next to the door. If he’s looking at you right now, you can’t tell. He’s facing you, but you don’t exactly feel as though he’s meeting your gaze. He might be a little embarrassed from the singing himself.
You huff at him, a sort of mix between a scoff and a sigh that makes Sun raise a mechanical brow as if saying, ‘alright sassafras’, like you have the audacity to sass him when he’s just trying to help… Even if his tone was a little teasing. “Yeah. I was just distracted… I mean, just look at them.” You murmur, gesturing to the cuddling kittens without tapping the glass so you don’t disturb their slumber.
Sun kneels down beside you, gazing at the kittens. For the first time, you can actually see where he’s looking. The mix of soft lights in the kitten room in front of you, the dimmed lights of the nighttime side of the main cat room behind you, and the brighter lights to the daytime side of the cat room are at an angle to your shared left side that leave those white irises to faintly glow. He’s staring at the little sleepy kitten cuddles, and he melts a little at the sight, stimming a little as he shakes his hands out. It surprises you to hear a soft jingle when he does this. You only saw a glimpse from before, so you keep forgetting he adorns little bells attached to some red ribbon wrapped around his wrist under his sleeves. You had noticed Moon wears identical ones on his wrists too.
“You make a very compelling point, friend! ” Sun agrees eagerly, giggling as he stops his stimming by grabbing the apron, a little fuzzy mouse toy spilling out of the kangaroo pocket that seems to go unnoticed.
You stare at Sun for a moment, still surprised that he actually has irises, but you don’t want to stare, so you look back to the kittens who remain sound asleep. He stands up, opening the little gate that also secures this door, “Now I have to give them some love, so come on! ” Sun chuckles sheepishly as he seems to want to join you in the kitten room now.
You stand up and slip into the little gated area with Sun, not registering how small it is and how big he is, so you’re awfully close to him as he reaches around you to close the gate back up. You’re standing in front of the door though, so Sun smiles nervously before he reaches around you to open the door. He probably doesn’t even realize he’s kind of pinning you to the door.
“U-Um…?” You prompt hesitantly, unsure what to even ask or say, so it falls flat on your tongue. Now, Sun pauses, so you end up in the position even longer. He tilts his head with a sweet, innocent smile.
Ah. He’s dense.
“N-Never mind.” You hastily dismiss it, wanting to get into the kitten room and not linger outside the door any longer. Sun’s irises can still faintly be seen with the darkness of the nighttime side behind him, and you can watch how his gaze studies your face, likely noticing it’s a little warm due to his close proximity, and then it travels down. Down his arm, to where he’s got a hold on the doorknob, but he was so excited that he didn’t give you any time to move out of the way. So, now you’re stuck between the corner of the wall with the door behind your back and Sun merely inches away from your front. On top of that, due to this annoying gate around the door to keep the kittens in and the bigger cats out, you can’t even scoot around him. Sun stands up a little straighter. It’s hard to tell if he has pupils or if it’s just a singular circle for his eyes, but whatever he has, they dilate before constricting as he reels back, finally noticing something.
“Ah! You-You can’t get by with the gate and t-the wall- and my arm blocking you! Y-You can speak up, friend. Sorry for trapping you a little. Wouldn’t want to squish you! ” He stammers out, releasing the doorknob to gently guide you, a soft hold on your elbow taken, as he scoots you to the other side of the door so you don’t get squished when it’s opened.
“I-It’s fine.” You mumble quietly, starting to feel a little emotionally drained from everything that’s happened so far. Sun nods, avoiding looking at you now as he opens the door and slips inside, holding it open for you.
When you walk in, the sleepy kittens are awoken… and you’re greeted with an itty bitty, high pitched, ‘mew!’
Your heart melts, and you kneel down, reaching out to carefully pet the little thing, but metal fingers encircle your wrist, halting the motion. “Wash your hands first, please! We want to keep the kittens safe and healthy… It’s just a precaution.” Sun advises you, pointing to yet another poster, this one is an informational sheet on how to handle the kittens.
It’s just explaining you have to wash your hands before and after entering the kitten room, don’t pick the kittens up, don’t let them out of this room (obviously), and be very careful.
You gently take his hand off your wrist, and you could swear Sun looks like he just touched scalding hot water with how fast he reels back. He mumbles a soft, “Sorry!” before he just waits quietly in the corner, allowing you to wash your hands in the little sink at the back of the small room.
While you’re washing your hands, you look around the room. It’s very small, almost exactly square, but the length feels a little longer than the width. Along the wall to your left, as you’re facing the back wall, is a large, multi-level cage. There are three doors to it, four cat beds inside, a little cat hammock, and one lone kitten inside the massive thing. It’s a little black cat with white and ginger speckles. It’s hard to tell if she’s a calico or tortoiseshell when she’s mostly black… You’ve never seen a cat quite like this little kitten.
You dry your hands off with the towel provided, and you decide to ask, “Why is this one in a cage?” You inquire quietly, turning to look over Sun, who’s fussing with some little medicine droppers beside you now. You can’t help but wonder if he forgot and was reminded by you going in here since he previously claimed he needed to love on the kittens too.
Sun doesn’t turn to face you as he fills up the plastic syringe, tapping the tip so it doesn’t drip before he kneels down next to the tiny cat tree by the door where the two kittens are cuddling. The one with the pink nose is a grey tabby, while the one with the black nose is a tuxedo. They’re not even from the same litter, yet they cuddle so lovingly.
“That one?” Sun murmurs in question, kneeling at the cat tree while his head swivels to the large cage where the one tiny kitten sits alone. “Uh… She’s kind of mean. She’s not nice to the other kittens, and she doesn’t like either Moon or I. We’ve tried everything, but she keeps picking fights with the other kittens.” He explains quietly, gently slipping his long, slender, metal fingers around the grey tabby’s head, parting the tiny mouth despite her frantic mews of protest. She slaps her little cuddle buddy in the face in her attempt to squirm away, and the little guy hisses and rolls onto the other side to avoid the assault while Sun slips the plastic syringe into the tabby’s mouth, squirting the medicine down her throat, retracting it, and then closing her mouth, petting her little throat to help soothe her. “There we go… You did so well Bella…” He coos to the kitten, who swallows and then yowls at Sun, squirming away from him, all temperamental now. She gets up, arching her tiny little spine in a big stretch that quivers her whole body before she leaps down.
You sit down on the floor, and Bella comes up to you, shaking her head out with a little sneeze. She toddles over to you and sniffs your knee before pressing her head against it, flopping down in front of you with a ‘prrow’.
Your heart melts as you pet her belly, which she seems to enjoy, rolling onto her back for more.
Sun stands up and puts away the medicine. He hums to himself, bouncing on the balls of his shoes as he seems incapable of standing still. Once he washes his hands, he waves to you before taking a silent leave, allowing you to be with the kittens by yourself. He closes the door behind him, and a thunk is heard on the other end… Followed by Sun walking away with Cheese scruffed in one hand as he points to her, and his voice can faintly be heard as he chastises the young cat.
You relax now that you’re alone, allowing the tranquility of the little kitten room to soothe your overstimulated nerves. You take a moment to pet the little grey kitten as you finish examining the room. You wonder if Sun was noticing your diminishing energy or not, or if he just got distracted or remembered he had something else he had to do.
You can see the nighttime side of the cat cafe along the glass wall where the door is, and the little short cat tree is up against the glass. Only the tuxedo kitten lies in it now, sprawled out, belly up, paws stretched out above his head as he takes up all the space and then some without his cuddle buddy who’s getting all your pets at the moment. Next to the cat tree is a little bed in the corner, and along the wall to your right is that big cage with the solitary kitten.
You decide to look up the profile of this kitten on the website, and while it loads with a crappy signal and no wifi, your gaze finishes sweeping the room. To your back are the counter and cabinets with the sink, a water mat sits on the floor behind you with a black kitten laid out across it, then to your left, a little cat bed with a top over it, and another cat tree. There’s a white kitten in the little bed.
You’re preoccupied with petting the grey kitten, it startles you to hear the door open again… but this time it’s Moon.
You feel a twinge of irritation that you won’t be left alone, but then you see he’s holding your coffee. The condensation is gathered in a copious amount so that Moon’s palm wrapped around it is nearly soaked as he sets it down beside you. “Don’t let the kittens get into it. They will try to lap at it.” He warns you quietly, nodding to you.
“Thank you.” You murmur, taking a sip of it to find the ice has melted a bit and watered it down ever so slightly.
Moon nods, and he’s getting ready to leave when you decide to try and ask, “Wait- Uh…” You falter, wondering if you might have a better chance if you ask Sun, but Moon’s already turned to face you, one brow raised and his dark grey eyelids lowered.
You swallow almost audibly as you set the coffee away from the grey kitten who has perked up, sniffing the air. You keep a hand on her as she begins to nip your hand playfully, and bunny kicks at your palm. You tussle the kitten around, gazing fondly at her while she purrs as you continue on with your question, “Could I… See the kitten in the cage…?”
You brace yourself for a resounding no or some scolding, but it never comes. Moon scoffs and crouches down in front of you, “Didn't Sun tell you she’s a mean little thing? ” He inquires, for once sounding genuine as he carefully pries Bella off your hand.
You smile at him in silent thanks as you rub your assaulted hand while answering his question, a bit bashful, “Well… Yes…” You mumble quietly, not elaborating further.
Moon gives you a look. It’s a look that says, ‘Are you crazy?’ but he stays quiet. Instead of calling you crazy, he plops Bella down to rejoin her snuggles with the little tuxedo kitten and moves to open up the cage. Much to your surprise…
“Don’t say we didn’t warn you.” He ominously mutters, shaking his head so the little bell at the end of his sleeping cap jingles. You take another sip of your coffee before standing up, setting it down on the counter out of the reach of the kittens, and then you stand beside Moon. He glances at you, and you glance up at him.
He’s obscenely tall. There’s no purpose for him to be this tall. Your gazes meet, but he doesn’t linger, not like how Sun seems to. He opens the top door that’s closest to the kitten.
“Do you want to try and hold her?” He inquires gruffly, his tone isn’t exactly inviting, but at least he’s asking.
“Um… Sure, er- yes, please.” You fumble, peering into the cage to see the little kitten. Your signal finally loads, and you glance down at your phone as you swipe to try and find her profile.
“Don’t bother; the kittens aren’t on there yet.” Moon interrupts your search. You blink and pause your swiping, only to continue as you realize he’s right. Shocking right? It’s not like he’s the one who made the website or anything… Moon shoots you a glare as he notices you looking anyway.
You catch his glare before he diverts it, knowing he shouldn’t be rude to customers, but you were a little too quick. “Sorry, I was just curious… Why don’t they have profiles?”
“Yet. ” He corrects you first, his gaze focusing back on the kitten in the cage. She’s on guard now that it’s been opened, and she’s hopped out of her bed to press against the far wall of the cage. Her little back is arched, her fur bristling, and her ears pinned back as her tail swishes back and forth in agitation. “They’re too young to be adopted. They’ll be added once they’re old enough.”
“Oh, they’re not up for adoption?” You ask a little disappointed. You hadn’t factored in age for your adoption. It feels almost wrong to adopt a kitten since that’s what everyone usually wants… But it’s for a reason. They’re undeniably cute, plus they’re young, so they'd live with you longer.
"Yet." Moon adds in again; his voice is quieter as he focuses on his current task... Moon stares down the kitten, and the kitten stares back, the silence they hold broken by this pitiful little weak hiss. And Moon… Hisses back.
You stare at him like he’s the crazy one, but when the kitten hisses even louder and even swipes at him, he leans back, chuckling at how easy it is to rile this kitten up. He covers his mouth with a hand and glances at you while he smothers his sadistic giggles. “Sorry- sorry… She’s too easy…” He fumbles, ever so slightly embarrassed to be caught acting a fool while working.
He sighs and runs a hand down his face to compose himself, shaking his head once more, “The kittens are not up for adoption yet. You could reserve a kitten, so to speak. You can pick one out and request to book a future adoption once the kitten is old enough. You can’t have someone buy them out from underneath you either… But doing this means you won’t instantly adopt the kitten. Depending on which one you reserve an adoption for, it could be weeks before you can bring them home.” He explains more professionally… As if he didn’t just hiss back at the kitten.
It’s playing on repeat in your mind and slightly distracting you from what he’s saying, but you understand him. It doesn’t sound bad, actually. It would give you time to really consider and prepare.
“Oh, that- makes a lot of sense...” You manage to mumble back, casting your focus back to the kitten. She looks very upset now; her tail is now puffed up twice its size, and she’s giving Moon a scathing death glare.
“You still want to hold Calypso?” He asks again, this time supplying you with her name.
The name strikes a chord with you, even though the kitten room has the lights dimmed, you can see the orange and white flecks across her fur almost look like stars, it’s fitting. You offer her a weak smile, and her little blue eyes lock onto you, and she simmers down a little. She licks her lips and lies down eventually as you answer Moon, “Yes, please.”
Moon lets out a deep sigh. He doesn’t seem too happy about having to do this, but it appears the only two who work here are the animatronic store owners. So, he reaches into the opened cage, and the little thing lets out a fussy short hiss, swatting at his extended hand. Moon grumbles and reaches further in as Calypso ducks to avoid him, squishing her tiny self into the corner. She bares her bitty fangs, and when Moon finally captures her, she yowls in protest, upsetting the other kittens in the room.
Bella and her little fancily clad compadre sit up in the bed, staring wide-eyed at the cage as Moon likely sounds like he’s assaulting the kitten inside… When in reality, he’s just delicately picking her up by the scruff. She’s just got her claws on the bed she was lying in, and now he has to drag her, and the bed, out of the cage while she makes her protests very well known.
The black kitten, who was laid across the water mat, gets up and darts across the room to leap inside the bed with the white kitten. Those two watch with wide eyes and bushy tails too.
Moon glances behind him to see all the kittens in a tiff now, and he mutters and grumbles unintelligibly under his breath, likely complaining about Calypso. Once he’s freed her from the cage and her bed, she hangs limp in his hand. She’s barely even the size of his hand, and yet she puts up such a fight. She obviously thinks she could beat Moon and take him down.
Moon glares at her and then holds her out to you, “Do you know how to hold a kitten.”
Your eyes widen, and you glance at one of the posters, “I-It says not to pick them up…” You point out quietly.
Moon glances at the poster, and then he looks back at you, still holding Calypso at arm's length. “The poster is only half correct. Sun made it in error- don't- don't tell him... You can hold the kittens with permission and supervision. ”
“Ah… I don’t know if I do…? Is it just like a baby…? Or…” You trail off, not having realized there was a certain way you had to hold a kitten.
Moon shrugs his shoulders, “One hand around the chest, the other supports the paws. If she starts kicking, I’ll take over.” He explains in that neutral tone of his. It’s hard to decipher any emotion or vocal tones in his manner of speaking.
You nod and gently wrap a hand around Calypso’s torso. She hisses quietly, but she doesn’t start to kick or bite you, even when your other hand supports her little paws. Moon slowly releases her scruff once he’s sure you’ve got her.
“Now, hold her close to your chest. She’ll be able to hear your heart from there.” He murmurs quietly; his volume seems to be turned down now as if he’s wary of setting the kitten off again… Especially since Calypso's quieted down now, and in turn, the other kittens have relaxed.
You do as instructed and hold Calypso to your chest. You slowly sink to your knees and look down at the little spitball. She’s still got her ears pinned back, her pupils are constricted, and she’s breathing a little fast as her tail whips this way and that between your fingers. You gently rub your thumb up and down the side of her neck, feeling how velvety smooth her glossy fur is… And slowly… Slowly... She calms down. Her breathing regulates, and she looks up at you. Her pupils dilate when she sees you looking back down at her, and she lets out a much more delicate little meow.
Moon scoffs at the sight, shaking his head in disbelief. You smile and kiss the top of Calypso’s head, unable to resist when she has this little ginger mark right on the center of her forehead that looks like a ring. Like a little bullseye for kissing.
Calypso starts to purr quietly, snuggling into your chest as she closes her eyes. Your heart absolutely melts, and you find it difficult to ever think about letting her go. She seems to trust you.
“Unbelievable.” Moon mutters, his arms crossed as he stands by the cage still, looking down at you and the pacified kitten.
You smirk up at Moon, still gently rubbing her neck with your thumb as you meet his gaze through your lashes, “Jealous…?” You tease almost on instinct. You’ve found yourself gravitating towards teasing and jesting with people due to having a younger sibling.
You’re about to regret it when Moon starts spluttering and acting like you said the most incredulous thing ever. “Jealous!? You’re funny. A real comedian.” Moon snips back a little sharply, but something about his optics, despite the red glow to them, seems almost intrigued and amused with your audacity.
You smile gently, almost to yourself, as you continue to gently pet Calypso. She settles down in your hands completely and melts into the pets. Her eyes close slowly, and you look up to see Moon subtly waving Sun down with his middle and index finger.
Sun stops whatever he’s doing and trots over, waving through the glass. Moon nods his head to the door, a silent invitation for Sun to come in, which he abides by. He slips inside, mindful of the gate and the other cats, and he closes the door behind him. He glances at you but doesn’t initially spot the anomaly, turning back to Moon with his goofy grin, “What’s up, Moon?” He asks densely, not seeming to register you’re holding the ‘mean one’.
Moon groans and runs a hand down his face before he points to you unapologetically. You stare Moon down as he makes direct eye contact with Sun, who slowly follows the line of sight of where his sibling is pointing. Sun looks to you, tilting his head before he spots Calypso. His optics widen, and he turns his head from the open cage, to you, back to the cage, and then halts on you again. “Is that-!?” Sun exclaims in an excited, hushed whisper as he shakes Moon’s arm.
Moon nods, gently but firmly pushing Sun’s hand off him. “That’s what I waved you over for, idiot.” He grumbles, shaking his head in disappointment.
Sun scowls at him before rolling his eyes, the pupils just barely visible in the dim lights of the kitten room and the darker nighttime side of the room behind him. “No need to be so rude.” He chides Moon playfully, though his stationary grin somehow feels a bit sharper.
Calypso lets out a little fussy whine; it sounds like the start of a yowl or hiss as she shoots Sun a glare, her tail tip flicking back and forth.
“Oh! Calypso baby, it’s okay! Easy girl…” Sun attempts to soothe the kitten, but unsurprisingly, it doesn’t work, and when he kneels down to get more on her level with you, reaching out a hand, it only serves to upset her more. She yowls and swats at his hand, hissing with that little airy kitten hiss. She’s much too tiny and doesn’t have the lung capacity to really get a good hiss, but damn does she try.
Moon snickers while Sun reels his hand back, rubbing his knuckles sorely since they got caught on her claws when she swatted at him. Little bitty kitten claws are particularly sharp after all. Sun pouts with his jealousy unabashed, unlike Moon’s, as he scowls at Calypso, opting to ignore Moon.
“She’s just a kitten… Try not to take it so personally.” You aim to settle his nerves, and it works. He huffs out a breath and crosses his arms, muttering under his breath about how all the other cats like him and he’s not a bad guy once you get to know him.
You smile and hold Calypso up; her little limbs dangle as she mews at you, her sharp baby fangs visible every time she opens that teeny tiny mouth of hers. While you’re looking her over, Moon silently slips back out to return to the front. Calypso’s tongue is so pink, and her teeth so white compared to her dark fur, and a few specks of white and orange flecked across her face, almost look like freckles.
The pull to this kitten is undeniable, but guilt for adopting a sweet baby kitten gnaws at you when there are older cats that are less likely to get adopted. Sun notices your conflicted expression as you gaze up at the delicate kitten in your hands. He hums softly before offering his advice, “You don’t have to adopt today, or tomorrow, or even next week. You can take as much time as you’d like… Business is rather… Slow… So, if you’d like to pick a few out and reserve them, we’d be happy to do so for you.” Sun offers gently; his tone is so gentle and kind… It’s something you haven’t even heard from a human in such a long time.
You set Calypso down, and she wobbles on her little legs before she looks up at Sun, hisses at him despite him not even doing anything, and then she toddles over to your side to play on the water mat since the black kitten scurried off. Sun shoots Calypso an ill-tempered scowl before relaxing his narrowed mechanical brows when he looks at you again. Your own brows are furrowed and you have to almost manually relax them from the tension, you don’t realize it until you try to smile, but your resting face is usually a tired scowl.
“Thank you… I’d like that if... I-If it’s no issue… I wouldn’t want to impede a cat or kitten from getting adopted.” You explain your only concern gently, rising to your feet as Sun looks up at you, remaining seated. “It’s no problem at all! If anyone comes in and expresses interest in one of the cats or kittens that you have, we’ll text or email you to let you know, and we’ll ask for your opinion on the matter! Don’t worry; I’m on messaging duty, so I’ll get back to you quickly!” He explains in a chipper tone.
He turns to likely make some remark to Moon, only for his mouth to part, but his comment never leaves his tongue when he realizes Moon is no longer in the room. "Oh! When did Moon…? Ah- never mind… If you’d like to interact with the other kittens or the cats, you’re free to for your remaining appointment. I’ll hang out with Calypso and keep her out of trouble while she gets some time to roam around.” Sun apprises sweetly… but his tone is double-edged. He has ulterior motives.
He wants to befriend Calypso if it’s the last thing he does.
You smile, catching on only due to the intense stare Sun has on Calypso while his fingers twitch where he rests his hands on his knees while he sits crisscrossed on the floor a good few feet away from her. He doesn’t even look at the black kitten who’s returned from hiding to rub against his leg, he just pets him absentmindedly, his mind clearly preoccupied with his goal. Talk about a one-track mind.
“Thank you, Sun, I’m sure you’ll get through to her.” You offer, almost under your breath, as you slip out of the kitten room carefully. You wonder if he even heard you because when you pass by, Sun doesn’t catch your gaze, he’s trying to coax Calypso to come to him instead of him trying to go to her… and it’s still not working. She has her back to him as she bats at the little plastic fish under the plastic, rolling around as she enjoys the squishy, cool texture of the toy.
Now that all areas have been explored, the hard part begins. Choosing the one who will come home with you.
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