Ai Sohma's Story

Ai pushed her away and shook his head. "No. That's not equal." He said, his iris and pupil shivering gently in the white crescents of his eyes. "Don't call me cute if you think you yourself are ugly." His gaze shot towards Mikuo, then at Ruki. "If you don't have enough pride, to even say that you yourself are beautiful, and say that being ugly as a good thing, that's just...I don't know."

The tears in his eyes got angry. They just wanted to drop, and a pain hurt the back of his throat, so he just cried there. He hasn't cried in a long time anyways, so it felt a bit good to let it out. "If you call yourself ugly, I don't want to be cute. Call me ugly. Call me a stupid, pea-brained, smelly, ugly rabbit, because if you think you're ugly, I want everything to be equal."

Ai got up and rubbed his eyes, making very tiny sobs that were nearly inaudible. The rabbit boy grabbed Ruki and Mikuo, pulling them close to him and hugging them.

"I know I may not be much, I just seem like a kid. But I try my best to help people, make them happy. I don't care about my well-being. I care about both of yours."

Ai listened to Ruki solemnly, the tears pouring from his eyes beginning to cease. Instead, it was replaced with a painful smile. "Both of you are beautiful," he said as he used his hand which was free to pet Mikuo's head.

He noticed Mikuo's eyes grow soft, and he seemed like he was about to cry. "One moment, Ruki." He said softly as he broke away from her hand and lowered his head a bit to meet Mikuo's gaze. "Let out your emotions. It's good to cry once in awhile. It helps let out the pain in which you've bottled up." His smile turned into a warming grin as he grabbed Ruki's hand and pulled her to hug them both. "Don't break away from my embrace, lady, 'cause I love you both and nothing can stop that."

"I'd even probably risk my life for you two, if it came down to that option in a predicament." Ai wrapped his left arm around Ruki to hug her, and then used his right arm to grab a hold of Mikuo. "Gosh," he whispered, almost in the hint of a small laugh. "I feel like a little dad or something."

"I don't mind though," he whispered, more quietly than before, as he rested his head ontop of Mikuo's as he hugged them both. "Hope 'ya don't mind. Keeping my head up like that kinda hurt."

Ai's face darkened a bit, as his grip around Mikuo got a little tighter, mainly because Ai got a bit scared and worried. You could even tell by the way he was breathing; he was nearly hyperventilating as if he was going to faint. "I haven't seen him in forever," he said quietly. Ai was fearful of Raiden for some reason. He's never liked the head of the family, and probably never will. The other reason he was freaking out because of how usually the heads of the families pick on the cat. What if he ended up beating Mikuo? What if he hit Mikuo? Raiden-sama was nearly unpredictable, in Ai's perspective.

The rabbit boy went silent for which seemed like minutes before breathing in a shaky breath and pulling his head away from Mikuo's. "Sorry, Ruki. I can't," he murmured quietly, nervously fiddling with a lock of his black hair. He felt a bit weak all of a sudden. Great. Was he going to turn into a rabbit right then? What another block of stress, huh.

Ai has always felt fearful around the head of the family. He's afraid that if he did one wrong move, he'd get hit, or get his hair pulled, or maybe even something worse. He thought about this frantically, but when he said no, he felt guilty. He didn't want to upset Ruki or anything, since he of course was her friend anyways, he thinks. What if Raiden scolded him for not seeing him for almost 2 years? What if he was forced to live there?!

That particularly thought made him extremely afraid. Yeah, it's nice there, but having to live with the head of the family, no. It's too scary. Wait. If Ai doesn't go, what if Raiden comes to see him?

Ai shivered. Raiden and Ai alone in his vacant of an apartment. That'd be a chance to beat him or something, where as if he went with Ruki, they'd be a group.

The rabbit boy screamed. "No!" From the build up of stress, he inhaled violently and suddenly..

Poof.

He was a rather small black rabbit sitting on Mikuo's lap with his clothes sprawled all over the floor. The black rabbit burrowed himself in one of Mikuo's pants pockets and shook.

"Sorry Ruki. I just can't come. Raiden-sama scares me, that's all." He said quickly.

Ruki's eye's widened when Ai turned into a rabbit, and she was immeadiatly picking up his clothes. "I'm sorry, Ai. I didn't mean to make you transform. But I think you should still come. I promise that I won't let Raiden touch you. I would make sure if he can near you, that I would be between you and him. Ai, he would have to kill me before I let him get to you," Ruki said with a slight smile. Which was true. She was close to Raiden that she had some will power against him ... it wasn't a lot, but enough to protect the others. "And ... Mikuo ... you can come to. I know you probably don't want to, but it would be nice to see him with other's around." Ruki was partially hoping the two would accept, but she knew the way they felt about Raiden ... she knew how everyone felt about him. They were scared of him. But she had seen a side of him that they hadn't ... at least a few times. He did care, he just didn't know how to show it properly. "Maybe seeing us all together will make him happy. Trust me, I'm the Rat. I know a thing or two about Raiden."

Up above the rest of the students in the school one student was falling asleep on the roof. He had been watching the clouds go by and seeing all the different shapes they made. But then they had all started to look like fluffy sheep that were jumping across the sky. As he watched them his eyes started to close and his mind was shutting down.

BOOOM BIOON BIIIING

His eyes snapped open as the school bell rang. "How long was I out for?" he asked himself and hoped that it wasn't for too long. He stood up and brushed himself off to tidy up his appearance a bit. Deciding on a fun way to get to class he thought he might try being a bit acrobatic on his way back. So he stood at the edge of the storage shed's roof and spread his arms out wide as if he were a diver. He breathed in and out slowly then began. He flipped forward down towards the roof and landed perfectly and in good form. He imagined a panel of judges holding up various numbers ranging from 10 to awesome. But that was enough of that and he began to jog to the stairs and down.

He slid down the banisters to avoid the other people on the stairs and got a few surprised screams out of some girls and laughs out of a few guys. "Move move move! The Monkey boy's coming through!" he yelled as he reached the bottom of the steps. He tumbled down to the ground and rolled through it to spring up onto his feet. He gave a quick bow to no one in particular before going off again. When ever he had enough room he would switch from regular walking to walking on his hands. He liked doing that since it was harder than regular walking but more fun since it was a game of how long he could keep hand walking until he had to stop.

He came around a corner and almost hit Mikuo as he did. To avoid that he shifted his body sideways and went into a cartwheel and stopped on his feet. The first thing he noticed was Mikuo holding a small black rabbit. "Awesome a rabbit!" he exclaimed and moved in closer to look at him. He was almost oblivious to the fact that the Rat and Cat were even there. He inched his face closer to the rabbit with a 'Creeper' smile on his face. His fingers wiggled like snakes as they moved closer to touch Ai.

Just before he got a chance to get the rabbit in his gasp it yelled out in a high voice. It was then that he realized it wasn't a normal rabbit but instead one of his family. Which was probably why he zoned in on him so easily. But it didn't matter to him there was still a fluffy rabbit to pet. But before he could carry out his plan Ai poofed back into his normal self.

"Aww now I can't mess with you....." Yang said with mock sadness. "But oh well thems the breaks. He kindly looked the other way as Ai got dressed and was quick to wave at both Mikuo and Ruki as if he had just seen them. Once Ai was done he turned back to him to answer him. "Yes I do but I don't." He didn't really want to clarify but he did anyway. "I know you are the rabbit, he's the cat, and she's the rat. But I don't know what you guys look like in your other forms. Or at least I don't remember anyway." as he explained he pointed at each of them respectively. "Its probably because I do alot of stuff." By stuff he meant pranks and mischief he had caused around campus.

He crouched down next to Mikuo and Ai pulling a pack of gum out of his pocket. He slid a piece into his mouth and offered the two of them some as well. Although the packing and gum were green it was fruity flavored like a tropical punch. He chewed it and blew a small green bubble before letting it burst and starting again.

"Why?" Ai asked, not minding being shifted. His face went chibi, and his facial expression resembled this: -3-

"I like both of your forms, besides the other form being a bit smelly. It's not necessarily ugly, it's just special. We all have our flaws, right?" He asked with a polite smile. "What I don't understand is why you don't like your cat form." The rabbit boy frowned a bit. "I think it's cute. I've always liked kitties, and in your other form, you look cute. You look like an angora persian mix," he stopped, and then panicked. "Not that I've followed you around to see it!" He quickly added, blushing a bit at his stupidity. Ai looked over at the gum and took a piece, then gazed at Mikuo for which seemed like a minute.

"Thank you Yang. I've always liked gum, it's fun to chew," he said. He popped the piece in his mouth and chewed rather quietly, not loud like most people chew, and just relaxed on Mikuo, laying his head down a bit on his leg, though, he rose his head a bit and gently pulled down on Mikuo's head to whisper in his ear.

"Remember the meeting after school on the roof, just another heads up," he said, then laying his little head back down on Mikuo's leg, though, his head was hanging a little bit off of his leg and he could see everything upside down. Long locks of his black hair tickled the ground a bit, and his gaze shifted to see upside down feet. Ruki's and Yang's, to be exact.

"Hehe," he said almost deliriously. "Your feet are upside-down."

"Remember the meeting after school on the roof, just another heads up," , Ai said to him, and Mikuo nodded.
"I know...I suggested it, I'm not likley to forget...", he replied, giving the black-haired boy a tiny smile, before looking up at Ruki.
While he wasn't exactly wanting to stay in school, he was unsure of the offer. Would it really be okay for the Cat and the Rat to hang out together? They certainly wouldn't be allowed to be friends. But what if...Ruki was only doing this so she could be mean later? Or use it to make Raiden angry at him? You could never tell with the Rat...or Raiden...

I need to stop thinking this way...Yes, she is the Rat, but she hasn't done anything bad...not yet anyway..., he scolded himself, though that little bit of doubt was still there. That one word. 'Yet'. Those three letters could change everything, as Mikuo himself had experienced before.

"What do you think, Ai-chan?", he asked the boy on his lap. Ai was confusing him just now. He thought Mikuo was cute? Or at least that his cat form was cute. Was he following him about? Judging from how quickly he had denied it, it would seem so....That was kinda creepy...but strangely, Mikuo was quite flattered. To think that Ai went to all that trouble to follow him around...

"Strong? No way," he said, tapping his bottom lip. "Though, I'll go if Mikuo goes!" He exclaimed, and then glanced at Mikuo's face, to stop and look at him. "Why do you look disoriented?" He asked. "Did I say something weird? Out of the ordinary? If, so I'm really sorry if I made you feel uncomfortable." Realizing rather quicky, about his comment before about "not following him around" and calling him "cute", he blushed and rather smoothly put his hand around his mouth and looked down.

A bit muffled from his hand, he spoke. "Sorry about that. I mean, sure, I followed you around, it's just...I guess I find you interesting. I always have, considering the loneliness you go through. I'm a friendly person. I could never exclude anyone without feeling painful remorse." The rabbit boy explained, looking at Ruki and Yang, and of course, cat boy Mikuo.

"I know it may sound like um..like stalking, but, I do it because I care for you all." Ai coughed a bit. "Considering, well, I used to stalk all of you, but now it's narrowed down to Mikuo, since I can only do so many things at the same time." The rabbit boy chuckled a bit nervously, his little body tensing. "I'm really sorry."

"I-I hope I didn't make any of you feel uncomfortable. I once even watched Raiden. It was back when I was little, since I was really lonely, so I thought the god may be nice like a parent, because my mother and father hated me because of what I was. I was very cute when I was a baby, and so, ladies would walk up to hug me, and then I'd turn into a tiny, helpless rabbit. I embarrassed my parents because of that, and so, my mother left me when I was a kid and I was raised with my dad until 4th grade, and I was 9 going on 10. He left me, and now, I think he lives in America, so it's a habit for me to watch people, as I feel like I'm less lonely until they catch me."

Ai's grip on Mikuo got a bit tenser, as he hugged him more affectionately. He looked like he was about to cry, though. "I'm sorry if I made you all uncomfortable. I'm really, really sorry. I'll go anyways to make up for it. Don't buy me food. I have some at home," he said.

Ai's tense body turned into a dead weight as he began calming at Mikuo's touch. His grip on him weakened as he relaxed. "Thanks," he murmured, his gaze shifting upwards a bit to look at the male.

He smiled and reached his hand to pet Mikuo's head, too. "I'll pet you too, kitty," he said in a joking way, chuckling at his comment and closing his eyes. "I might fall asleep like this. If I do, just wake me up."

Ruki rolled her eyes at Ai, saying she shouldn't pay for him. "Ai, we all followed people when we were younger. And I'm sure we've all had our fair share of following the Cat around. I always followed my dad around when I was little, I still do. And it's the same with Raiden. I can't fully understand wanting to look for a parental figure, but I do know what it's like to look up to someone from a distance. I did that to all the older Zodiac. I'm still paying for you guys, no matter what you say." Ruki looked in the direction of Mikuo, not making eye contact with him. She still was in a fog about things, everything she had thought had been changed in one day ... well mostly. She was still confused about things ... she'd talk about them later. "You can pick where we go, if you want, Mikuo. I mean ... I'm horrible at making decisions. But if you don't want to, Ai or Yang can pick a place," she said. The fog surrounding her mind was so thick, she could almost feel the pressure pushing out on her head. Great, another headache, she thought, putting a hand to her head. "And I would much go on a date with Ai that you Yang," Ruki said playfully. "His cutness compared to yours is like a million miles up on the scale," she kicked him lightly on the shin and stuck her toungue out. "I'm ready when you are."




Raiden looked at the tall gates of the school, they were standing open. Even though they haden't been walking for long, he was still out of breath. "Good, I didn't want to run into any outsiders. I hate it when they stare," he said as he noticed all the kids going back into their classrooms through an window. He walked through the gates and the front building, standing in the middle of a nearly deserted hall. "I can feel them close ... this might not be as hard as I thought," he said, closing his eyes.

At Ruki's comment, Ai's face went a bit sweaty and he blushed...like a maniac. "T-Thank you. T-That's r-really n-n..nice of you," he stuttered, squealing and covering his face with his hands. Well, trying to atleast. His whole body was hot, and he was just a ball of sudden awkwardness, though he felt a bit flattered.

"Well, I'd date all of you if I could." He said, trying to compose himself. Realizing soon enough that, well, he was talking about everyone, he squealed and covered his cheeks, shaking his head back and fourth a bit frantically. "I-I mean If you boys were girls then probably maybe um I don't know what I'm saying!" Ai squeaked, sweatdrops trailing down his cheeks. He pulled his hands away from his eyes and there were half-closed from embarrassment.

He almost swallowed his gum, and so, he hit his chest a bit and felt his heart at the same time. Wow. It felt like a roadrunner was in his chest. "I-I-I-I-I'm o-k-kay," he stuttered, his whole face red, and his ears too.

Getting off of Mikuo, he stood a little ways off from the others and just stared at the ground, blushing and feeling his face sweating more to the point where he felt like he needed to pant like a dog. God. He just made a gigantic fool of himself, so oblivious to his words.

So, going on with that thought, he simply stuck his tongue out like a dog and started panting, which probably wasn't good for his breathing, but oh well, he doesn't have to be super smart.

(My computer is being an idiot today. My screen looks like your post is under mine. Just for safety precautions, well, I'm reposting what I posted.)


Ai stopped panting like a hot dog when Mikuo came over, and got even more flustered. He had no idea what to say now, and he spoke very fast... but whispered in his ear also. "I don't have to be a girl," he said rather tenderly, and broke away, fake-blushing now and bursting into a giggle fit. "I'm kidding!" But that thought kind of made him blush. He half meant it and he half didn't, well, he was just a kid. Perhaps he was just confused.

"No um let Yang-chan pick it I'm okay I don't need to pick it," he said, and covered his face with his hands again. "Oh I feel like such an idiot," he whispered. Wait a second.. Ai pulled his hands away from his eyes and looked up at Mikuo, only to hold back a tiny giggle as he saw he was blushing too, only a bit though.

"Now why are you blushing? Are you thinking about how cute I am? Or how cute I sounded? Or how cute I was?" He asked in the form of a joke, and broke into a little giggle fit. He said this in mainly a whisper.

"You're silly, Mikuo-chan," he said, hugging him and then breaking away. "But still. Let Yang-chan pick it," he said to Ruki.

Ruki sighed and looked at Yang. "I guess it's up to you, Yang. Where do you want to go?" Ruki honestly hoped he wouldn't back out of choosing either. What if she picked somewhere they didn't like or something related. It probably was nothing, but she always made a big deal of things. She saw Ai and Mikuo over further away now. "How cute," she couldn't help say. Ever since she saw them this morning, they had been together. It was adorable that Ai was being so nice and comforting to Mikuo. Ruki thought that, since he was the Cat, he probably needed it. If anyone could give the best love, it was definatly the Rabbit, their little Ai. All he ever did was be nice to everyone. "Isn't it just cute Yang," Ruki said, laying her head on his shoulder.



Raiden looked back at Arisu and glared. "Of course I plan on calling them. Do you think I'm stupid enough to go through this entire school and look into every single class to find them. I would never go through such trouble to find them." Raiden walked up to a room that said office above it and entered it. He was used to people staring at him, so it didn't phase him as he passed through the room and everyone stared at him. "I'm the head of the Sohma's and I would appreciate it if you called my belongings here." The woman at the desk quickly looked away, to her computer, then back. "I'm sorry sir, but it says that they aren't in their classes. I could send someone to look for them. If you want," she said politly. Raiden rolled his eyes and began back out the door. "No, I'll take a quick look myself. And if I don't see them, I'm sure parent's would love to hear that you don't bother taking care of your students as well as you should. Good day," he said with a menacing smile, leaving the room. Being evil seemed to make him more attractive, or he had been told that. That it makes him look much older. "I swear ... If I don't find them." Raiden walked down the hall and turned left. After a minute, he almost gave up before trning down one more hall and saw the group standing in the hall. "At last," Raiden said to himself. "Shouldn't you all be in class," he said loud enough for them to hear.



Ruki's eyes widened as she heard a voice, one that was way to familiar to her. "Oh my God," she said.

Ai's eyes nearly narrowed as he saw Raiden. He immediately felt like going into an emotional breakdown, but he refused, and gripped Mikuo's hand also for both of their comfort. When he heard Ruki say "how cute", he blushed a bit, and just stared at Raiden. He couldn't hold it any longer, and so, he shuddered and jerked backwards, taking a step backwards and practically walking away from the head, but he continued standing there.

"I skipped class," he said solemnly, his black locks of hair covering his eyes. He was truly terrified, and it was visible the way his pupils and irises shrank. His back even arched a bit, making him look almost depressed or emo, but it was barely possible the way how tiny and "lovable" he appeared. Protectively and defensively, he let go of Mikuo's hand and stood infront of the cat.

"I won't let anything happen to you, Mikuo-chan," he whispered. "How are you, Raiden-sama?" He asked, his voice now louder than usual.

"I apologize for not visiting you for a couple of years. I've been busy, between my day job and school, along with taking care of other problems." He said apologetically. Yep. He had a day job. For 3 hours each day, he would work at a day care center called Sunshine Rays and help young children and the employees, but this usually happens at nighttime from 6 to 8.

Ai put his hands behind his back and timidly grabbed Mikuo's, still for comfort since he was clearly scared and nervous. Ai used both of his hands to grab Mikuo's, though.

Ai blazed, his eyes wide and furious at the god. "You are no god!" He screamed ontop of his lungs. "You're a demon, that's what! You're nothing!"

This is the first time Ai truly ever got angry, and it's because of someone he loved.

"You're a low life!"

"You're just a lonely person whom has no one!"

"You force people upon you, to live with you, only for your selfish needs!" Ai spat on Raiden, grabbing Mikuo and pulling him close to him. From Raiden's kick, Mikuo was most likely on the ground, because it seemed pretty hard. The rabbit boy pinned Mikuo to the ground, and the rabbit boy's body hovered a couple of inches away from Mikuo's. He looked up at Raiden, protecting Mikuo.

"Rabbits are labeled as fearful creatures," he said ominously. "but we can still stomp your head and crush your skull. Try hitting Mikuo again. Hit me, if you want. Don't hit the cat. He did nothing." Ai said as he panted, teeth gritted, his muscles tensing.

Ai began making soft sob-like noises, but they were barely audible. He cried violently, mainly out of anger.

Ai looked down at Mikuo, feeling as if his heart shattered the way Mikuo was speaking. It sounded pitiful. "You don't deserve anything horrible," he said, his voice cracking slightly. Ai bit his lip, trying hard not to cry harder. The rabbit boy bit his own bottom lip so hard it bled.

"Y-You don't deserve the pain and suffering you go through each and every day, Ruki doesn't deserve it either. No one does." He repeated. Ai wanted to explode. He wanted to scream and kill, which was unnatural for the rabbit, but he knew he couldn't do it because he was just..helpless.

It was because he truly loved everybody. He'd do anything for anyone, he was too naive.

His cheeks turned red, as he burst out into tears. "You destroy everything, Raiden-sama," he whispered to himself.

Mikuo, now able to breathe to some extent, even if it hurt, slowly pushed himself up so that he was sitting up. He didn't look at Ai, he felt like he couldn't really. Why had Ai done that? Why not just leave him to his pain? Anyone else would have, or else found a way to make it worse. His hand went up to his face, resting on top of the angry looking red mark from the slap. That would probably bruise fairly quickly, as far as he could tell. He was just glad it would just be a couple of bruises this time, it could have easily been worse. Raiden's abuse was worse than his uncle's, simply because his uncle's was fairly predictable. Raiden was the opposite, and that was worse. That scared Mikuo more than the pain.
He shifted his gaze to the others, to Raiden, Arisu...and Ryo. Yes, he knew about Ruki and Ryo. He paid attention to that kind of stuff. He didn't hate Ruki, but Ryo embodied the Rat that he hated, that he felt he could do nothing but hate. The Rat who had cursed him.
He wanted to hurt her, but found that he couldn't. It might be Ryo that was in control, but it was Ruki's body. He couldn't hurt Ruki. Ruki had done nothing to harm him.

Ai sighed rather shakily, and he solemnly eyed a water fountain from afar. He rummaged through his pocket and pulled out a handkerchief he never used before (considering that one of his friends gave it to him a long time ago, but it was never used) and he got up. Running down the hall, he slid to a stop and nearly fell over the water fountain, catching himself before he went face first into metal. Shaking his head, he blinked and pushed the button to make the water come up.

Argh. It was chilly. Setting the handkerchief under the rushing water, he wetted it a bit and then ran back to Mikuo, crouching and gently removed Mikuo's hand from his cheek. Pushing the cold cloth against the stinging slap mark, he grabbed Mikuo's hand and ordered him to keep it there.

"Keep it there for now. It should soothe the pain a bit and should make it numb, considering how cold that thing was. Also, sorry about before. I had to do it, because I didn't want you to faint or go in a coma. I hope you'll soon come to the conclusion that I care about you. If your side begins hurting more, press your hand against it. Natural body heat can sometimes help, almost like reiki." Ai had a concerned look in his eyes, and he narrowed them a bit. "Another thing," he stated before sighing. "if you're having a hard time, considering that..well, you're the cat, and someone is messing with you, you're always welcome at my place. Everyone is," he said, but he felt the urge to add. except Raiden-sama, he felt like saying, but he didn't, considering his might get beaten for it.

"Also, Mikuo, forget the meeting on the roof," he whispered. "I'll just talk to you outside. I don't want you to end up stretching a muscle where you got hit, and then get injured more."

Standing up, Ai forcefully pulled Mikuo to his feet. Well, try to atleast. "I should go help at the day care, or something. Go outside," he said solemnly. "If you wish to come," he said, and sighed. "You may." Getting on his tippy-toes to whisper something in Mikuo's ear, again, he suggested something. "You should come. With you and Yang alone, along with abusive Raiden and mean Ryo, you might get even more hurt than before. I don't know about Yang though. I think he might be able to handle himself, after all, he is quite fast."

Not letting Mikuo even decide, just for his safety, Ai wrapped his hand around his (his free hand, since Ai made Mikuo press the cold cloth to his cheek) and began walking towards the door, passing Raiden and Ryo. "Goodbye!" And with that, Ai rounded the corner and turned away from the school.

"I don't want to run into them anymore," he whispered to Mikuo, finally letting his fear get over him. "I-I don't want to e-ever see him again..t-that's why I've not seen him in 2 years. S-Suddenly he decides to pop up."

Ai gazed frantically around for a bench, and when his eyes caught a rather vivid red one, he let go of Mikuo's hand and sat on the bench, his legs to his chest as he gazed at Mikuo solemnly. "I made a solemn promise to myself that I would protect you, even though I've not told you. I'm overprotective of people. I swear, I'm some kind of miniature father or mother or something," he said quietly.

"I'm sorry if it seems awkward," the rabbit boy added.

"Somehow I doubt it that lunch is an option...but, sure. Ice-cream sounds good.", Mikuo said with a small laugh. Once he realised what he had done, he stopped. He hadn't laughed for a long time. Yet another way Ai was affecting him. it was a good thing, right? He was allowed to be happy, wasn't he?

Screw it. I don't care anymore., he decided. He might be the Cat, but Ai was right, he was still a person. Still 'human', sort of. He could still be happy, he could still love. Whether he would be loved in return was another story, but it seemed that Ai at least cared about him. That was enough, to be cared about.
The strangest thing was, Ai hadn't yelled at Mikuo when he kissed him, as he had expected would happen. He didn't even know why he had done it. He assumed that since he hadn't been able to think of words to explain, that he would use actions instead. And that one just seemed to fit the best.

"You know what, Ai-chan? You really are unique. Completly insane, but unique.", he said out of no where, ruffling Ai's hair a little. The movement pulled on his latest injury though, and he winced a bit, though he tried to hide that. He would have to explain to Ai about the other wounds. He owed the boy that much.