Wanna see how it does meow?

Chapter 01: Tea Time [2022-10-20]
Chapter 02: Making Biscuits [2022-10-24]
Chapter 03: Bean Counting [2023-03-14]

“Minoth! Your tea is ready!” Flora called through the manor for the second time, “It’s going to get cold!”

She knew he could hear her down in his study, but for some reason he did not answer. It was strange for him to not at least make an ambiguous sound of acknowledgement, so she thought perhaps she ought to check on him.

He always kept the curtains shut while he was down there, almost like he was paranoid that someone would peek in at an unfinished play and spoil the story for the whole town. It had gone on for so long this way that he had started complaining about his eyesight. Of course, he rejected that the two were at all related, but the indisputable consequence was that Flora didn’t much like going down there, because it was so gloomy, and because it gave him less reason to ever come up and enjoy the daylight.

However, on such an occasion as today, when something seemed off, she would take his tea down the creaky steps. “Had enough of the sun for today?” he might say when he heard her.

Instead Flora found herself starting the conversation: “I see you’ve decided to open the curtains for once. It’s so much happier down here when you let the light in.”

But Flora found, taking his tea to his writing desk, that Minoth was not bent over his manuscripts, nor pacing about deep in thought. Instead, there was a small dark fluffy lump in the little bit of light by the half-open curtain, looking rather lost.

“Oh! Did Minoth let you in?” Flora gently tried to rearrange the lump to see exactly what it was. The confused beast dug its claws into the arm of the chair it was clinging to as its legs stretched out somewhat, unveiling the shape of a cat. It turned its face towards her, looking quite lost, revealing a large dark scar across its left eye, as well as a blue and purple crystal glowing on its chest.

“Minoth!? Oh you poor thing! Darling, what happened?” She stroked Minoth cat’s back, and scritched the top of his head. Comforted by the motion, his triangle ears settled back into a more relaxed position. Naturally, Flora leaned down and placed a soft kiss right between his ears with a quiet “mwah!”

Minoth cat looked up at her in surprise and gave a little meow, as if to say “Why did you do that?”

Momentarily offended, she said, “What do you mean? Whatever is that little space between your ears for, if not for me to kiss it! Silly.” She scooped up Minoth cat in her arms and carried him back to the stairs with her. “Now come with me, you’ll be much cozier on the sofa by the front window than down here in the dark.”

Flora placed Minoth cat down on the sofa by the front window as promised, and she got a little bowl of water, and another with milk until she could get proper cat food. Beside one of the throw pillows was a narrow patch of shade which Minoth cat tiptoed over to, and he managed to just barely squeeze himself between the two adjacent sunrays.

Flora went back to the kitchen to retrieve her cup of tea and brought it back to the front of the house with Minoth. Setting down the cup on the little coffee table next to the sofa, and seeing how the prickly loaf had managed to make himself seem so uncomfortable, she gave him a sympathetic look before adjusting the curtains on the window so he couldn't hide from the sun any longer.

“Silly, cats are solar powered, don’t you know? At least try to enjoy the sun for once!”

Minoth cat meowed discontentedly: “I’ll enjoy it when I have a reason to.”

“I know, I know. We’ll enjoy it together in just a moment, when I get settled.” She carefully moved the coffee table a little closer to the sofa, towards one end, and adjusted the pillows so that she could lie down comfortably while she sipped her tea. It was a bit of a trick to maneuver her legs around Minoth without pushing him off the edge, but there was just enough room.

Minoth still didn’t seem to know how to…cat, so to speak. He simply stared at her, and the lost look he had had when she found him downstairs returned. Another meow: “I’m not sure I’d call this either enjoying or together.”

“Oh, fine then. Come on up here!” she said. He didn’t move from his spot, so she set down her tea and sat up. She scooped him up once more and placed him on her belly before lying back down herself. “Is that better?” She started to stroke his back slowly, and then occasionally gave a small scritch between his ears; he seemed to like that, as he gradually settled down closer to her chest, laying himself out flat.

After a few minutes of slowly snuggling closer he discovered that her chest was very soft indeed, and was nice to feel under his paws by pressing gently with either one, alternating. She smiled sweetly at him as his eyes shut under the warm rays of the sun.

“See, darling? I told you you would enjoy it.” Of course, her own eyes couldn't stay open much longer either as he started purring softly in response.

Flora awoke from her accidental nap some time later, though she couldn’t be sure how much later, as the clock wasn’t visible from this spot on the couch. Minoth cat, for his part, had turned this way or that, surely dreaming of some silly thing or another, eventually winding up halfway upside down on her chest, his ear and cheek squished into a silly expression, while his front paws stuck up and out towards her face.

It almost looked like he was reaching up to hold her face but fell over on his side, asleep, before he got there. Leaning her head over a few inches almost let her see the bottoms of his paws. She lifted one hand to very gently stroke the top of one of his paws, eliciting a slight kick. She tried again, but instead of flinching, he simply retracted the paw before stretching out all four legs as far as they would go, spreading his toes wide, and revealing quite the adorable little beans. Not wanting to wake the kitty, Flora suppressed an exuberant gasp, but could not hold back a smile.

Taking advantage of the situation, she took the offered paw in her hand and looked closely at the intricate swirls of fur, and the varied pigmentation across the soft pads. She ran one finger across the first bean.
He dreamt of the spring, Flora’s roses in bloom just outside the sitting room window, and of sweet perfumes.

A second finger on the second bean.

He dreamt of warm summer evenings, catching lightning bugs, and digging under rocks for little beetles.

A third finger stroked the third bean.

He dreamt of raking autumn leaves, crunching underfoot, and coming home to the smell of dumpling soup.

A fourth finger pressed the fourth bean.

He dreamt of cold winter nights, cuddling under a cozy blanket by the fire, listening to the wood crackle, and opening his eyes to see Addam’s soft sleepy smile.

And oh, she likes Addam too…

The fourth bean pressed back as she almost drifted off back to sleep. Opening her eyes again, Minoth cat was staring intently, his head lifted now from his sideways lying position. He waved the paw lazily and stroked a stray strand of hair off of her cheek. She inhaled lightly at the gentle touch and took the paw in her hand and carefully pressed it to her lips, kissing that special fourth bean.

In a moment he put both of his paws on her face, holding her there. His pupils were wide dark portals in the center of his intense cerulean irises.

“What is it, Minoth?” she said. He did not break eye contact, but readjusted his grip on her soft cheeks.

“Silly, do you miss Addam?” Almost forcefully this time, he re-grasped her face with his paws again, and she looked back into his eyes with almost equal intensity .

“Oh love…” She wrapped her arms around him, squishing him close to her. He reminded her of Addam, how he also looks at her so earnestly… “I miss him too.”