Chapter 2
"Cold?"
Blake glances up as she hears Yang's voice, turning to see the large cat approaching the couch.
She's spent a decent amount of the day simply napping and eating, she'd like to have been a little more active but her injured paw has kept her from doing much moving.
"I'm fine." Blake lies, shivering as a cool spring breeze blows in through the broken windows. It's storming out right now, a very common occurrence during springtime in Vale.
"Your fur's so short, you've got to be cold." Yang says, jumping up next to her and sitting down. "Why don't you come upstairs? The wind doesn't reach up there, so it's a lot warmer when it gets all stormy like this."
Blake opens her mouth to reply, about to assure Yang that she's perfectly comfortable right where she is, but a sudden, even stronger gust of wind blows through, rattling the windows and making her ears go flat. "Yeah, okay." She mumbles, nodding as she stands to her feet.
She follows Yang to the stairs, the large cat reaching the top much quicker, staring back down at her and looking like she's about to offer help as Blake struggles up the steps.
But Blake persists, eventually finding a reliable way to climb using only three legs and making her way to the top without assistance. Once there, she looks around curiously, noting that the upper floor of the house appears to be far smaller than the lower one.
From where she stands, she can only see one room branching off of the hall, and a ladder at the end that must lead up to an attic. Blake makes her way in the direction of the room, assuming this must be where Yang is taking her.
As Blake approaches the room, she sees through the crack in the door that there's a large bed inside, feeling all of a sudden very eager to sleep on a proper bed.
But Yang keeps walking down the hall. "C'mon." She beckons for Blake to follow with a flick her tail.
"I can't climb up that." Blake protests as they stop at the foot of the ladder, staring up into the dark opening above. "Why can't I sleep on the bed?"
"Ruby and Weiss have claimed that bed," Yang explains, turning to face her. "If Ruby wakes up and finds you sleeping there with her, she'll freak out."
"Oh. I think I'll go back downstairs." Blake mutters, beginning to walk away.
Yang quickly rushes to catch up to her. "No, I'll carry you up." She insists, shaking her head. "It's so much nicer in the attic than downstairs."
Blake hesitates, glancing between the stairs and the attic. She really just wants to sleep, and it would be nice to sleep somewhere a little warmer than the living room. "Alright, but be careful with me."
"Don't worry, I won't drop you." Yang promises, leaning over and closing her jaws around Blake's scruff. She carries her over to the ladder, Blake hanging from the larger cat's mouth as she climbs.
It's strange, to be carried in such a way, but Blake finds that she doesn't mind it. Yang's very gentle with her, and makes sure not to hit her on any of the rungs.
Yang deposits Blake on the attic floor once they reach the top, leading her over to a dresser that's been shoved against one wall, the bottom drawer pulled open and stuffed with a worn, fuzzy blanket. Judging by the color of the fur covering the blanket, and the strength of the scent clinging to it, Blake guesses that this is where Yang usually sleeps.
"Sorry if there's not much space." Yang apologizes, climbing into the drawer and lying down. "But I figured that you're probably small enough to fit in here with me."
Blake climbs in after her and settles down next to Yang. "It's alright." She murmurs, the sheer warmth emanating from the larger cat's body making her feel like she's sitting near a cozy fire.
Something about it all makes her so unbelievably sleepy, and Blake finds herself drifting off within minutes.
Blake licks the last scraps of sparrow from her lips, picking a feather out of her teeth with a claw. She stretches, arching her back and yawning before flopping down onto her side.
Yang has been kind enough to bring her plenty of food over the past few days, and Blake's been practically gorging herself on everything the large cat brings her, surprising herself with just how much food this tiny cat body of hers can consume.
She's definitely not going to be able to catch this much food once she's on her own, so she might as well stuff herself while she can.
Yang and Ruby are sitting on the other side of the room, laying in a sunbeam and lazily grooming each other. Blake glances down at her own fur, noting that it's started getting a little unkempt.
She hasn't groomed herself yet since becoming a cat, the idea of licking herself clean is still something that she's quite hesitant about. But she'll need to do it at some point...
Blake lifts a paw and stares at it, wondering where exactly to start. She looks up to see Ruby lick a paw and rub her face with it, reasoning that it shouldn't hurt to imitate the other cat.
She licks her paw until it's thoroughly wet with saliva, then begins rubbing her face with it. She doesn't feel like she's getting any cleaner, so Blake licks her paw some more for good measure.
After trying with her face for a moment, Blake gives up and decides to switch her attention elsewhere. She leans forward and starts licking at a particularly grimy patch of fur on her stomach, where some dried dirt has clumped her fur together.
Blake grimaces at the gritty texture, spitting out dirt as she works her tongue through the matted fur. Eventually, she notices that Ruby and Yang have finished grooming themselves and are now staring right at her.
"Do you always groom yourself like that?" Yang asks as she pads over, causing Blake to pause.
"Yes." Blake nods, feeling a little self-conscious. It's technically true, considering this is her first time grooming herself.
"You just-" Yang shakes her head, a wide grin stretching across her face. "You look like a kit grooming themself for the first time."
Blake blushes, glad it can't be seen through her fur, though her ears going flat seems to give away her embarrassment to Yang. "Do you want me to show you a better way?" The larger cat offers, sitting down next to her.
Blake gives a small nod, still feeling embarrassed, and Yang raises a paw. "Alright, so what you're gonna want to do with your paws..."
She proceeds to follow Yang's instructions, imitating the other cat's actions as best she can. Blake feels very silly throughout it all, but she does indeed find herself slowly getting the hang of grooming herself.
Eventually, Yang nods, a proud look in her eyes as she watches Blake finish cleaning herself. "There you go! Just keep repeating what I showed you and soon it'll come naturally."
Blake smiles gratefully at her, noticing that Ruby's long since dissappeared. "Is Ruby out searching for Weiss again?"
"Yeah, she is. I really don't want her wandering too far so late, there's a decent amount of cats around here that aren't exactly friendly to queens traveling alone at night." Yang replies, frowning slightly. "Normally she would listen to me, but Weiss is her mate and Ruby's stubborn about anything to do with her."
"Oh? Weiss is Ruby's mate?" Blake questions, tilting her head to one side. "I didn't know-" She falters at a raised eyebrow from Yang, letting out a weak laugh. "I... didn't know queens could have other queens as mates." She finishes lamely.
Yang smirks, walking a little closer and lying down next to her. "Really? You had no idea?" There's a slightly teasing tone to her voice, and she looks amused.
Blake shakes her head. "No," She admits honestly. "This is the first I've ever heard of it."
"Well, it's certainly not common." Yang explains, resting her chin on her paws. "You've probably not heard of it before 'cause you're a housecat, I doubt you've interacted much with other cats in your life."
"I haven't." Blake agrees with a nod. Again, technically true, she hasn't interacted with many cats in her life, at least not in the way she's interacting with Yang now. "You and Ruby seem close." She remarks after a moment.
Yang chuckles. "We're sisters." She replies simply.
"Sisters?" Blake questions, feeling a little confused. She's not too familiar with how cat genetics work, but Ruby and Yang genuinely look nothing alike. Their fur length, general build, and coloration are all completely different, surely they can't be related.
"What? Can't see the resemblance?" Yang jokes, smirking again. "Nah, I'm kidding. We're not blood related." She adds with a shake of her head. "I never knew my original parents, Ruby's parents adopted me into their family. They had only one kit from their first litter so they were more than happy to have another join the family."
Blake finds herself smiling at that, though her smile quickly fades a little. "Did... Ruby's other siblings die?" She asks cautiously.
"Oh no." Yang shakes her head again. "Ruby's just part of a single kit litter, is all."
"Really? I didn't know that could happen." Blake comments, relieved to hear that Ruby doesn't have any dead siblings.
"You don't seem to know a lot of things." Yang replies with a laugh, making Blake squirm in embarrassment. "Hey, do you have any siblings?" She asks curiously.
"Um..." Blake hesitates, not really sure how to answer that question. "I don't know." She eventually mutters.
"You don't know?" Yang looks even more curious now.
Blake shakes her head. "No, I was dropped off at an-" She stops herself before she says the word orphanage. "-a shelter shortly after I was born. I never knew my parents or if I had any siblings." She pauses, unsure if she should continue, but a kind look from Yang encourages her to carry on. "I don't remember much about growing up, actually, other than that I kept being taken home by different families. Nobody ever kept me for long, I was always too much trouble, so I always ended up right back at the shelter. Eventually, when I got old enough, I just ran away. I was tired of being passed around like some unwanted piece of garbage, I wanted to be free for the first time in my life, so I left."
Yang's silent for a long moment, a very sympathetic expression on her face. She shuffles closer until Blake feels the large cat's fur brushing against her side. "You must've been lonely." She murmurs quietly.
"It wasn't so bad. I had friends." Blake mutters, letting herself sink into Yang's thick fur.
It's a lie, she was incredibly lonely. She didn't have friends, she's never had friends.
"How long ago did you run away?" Yang asks, rolling onto her back and allowing Blake to fall comfortably against her fluffy stomach.
"Six-" Blake has to stop herself again before she says years. "-moon cycles?" She tries instead.
Yang hums. "Long time to be alone for someone your age. I mean, you can't be much older than two winters."
"I'm twenty two." Blake answers automatically, cursing herself internally for blurting it out so quickly. "Uh, moon cycles." She adds hastily.
Yang looks very amused now. "Never met a cat older than a kit that tracked their age in moons before." She comments, letting out a low chuckle. "You're certainly something else, Blake."
Blake's heard that a lot over the years.
You got a 4.0 GPA and honors with distinction in every class? You're something else, Blake.
You taught yourself fluency in five different programming languages in your first semester at university? You're something else, Blake.
You synthesized estrogen in a lab in order to transition? You're something else, Blake.
She hates hearing it. It always feels so othering, never fails to make her feel like she's something abnormal. She supposes she is abnormal, undeniably so, but it's still unpleasant to hear.
But... coming from Yang it doesn't stir any negative feelings. Maybe it's because Yang's just a cat, maybe it's because Yang has no idea of any of the things she's done, but Blake doesn't mind hearing it from her.
"Thanks for letting me stay here." Blake mumbles quietly, enjoying the warmth Yang provides. "You're really sweet, Yang."
Yang chuckles again. "No problem. Anything for a cat in need." She replies, and Blake feels her tongue swipe across the top of her head. "You missed a spot. Here, let me."
Blake closes her eyes as she lets the large cat groom her, feeling incredibly relaxed and content. Considering she's trapped in the body of a cat, things could be a lot worse than this.
This is actually pretty nice.
"I found her!" Blake is awoken by Ruby's loud exclamation, the cat's voice ringing throughout the entire house.
Yang is already sitting up as Blake opens her eyes, vision blurry from sleep, and she watches as the larger cat slowly stretches before climbing out of the drawer.
Blake yawns as she stands and stretches as well, following Yang toward the attic ladder. Her paw has healed enough to hold her weight now, though it still hurts to walk on for long periods of time.
She follows Yang down the ladder, taking the rungs slowly, one at a time so as not to accidentally fall. Her short legs make the process a little difficult, but with some practice she'll probably get the hang of them soon enough.
"Who did Ruby find?" Blake asks as they walk down the hall, hurrying slightly to catch up to Yang.
"Has to be Weiss, there's nobody else Ruby would be so excited about." Yang mumbles, her voice gruff from sleep.
At that moment, Ruby appears at the top of the stairs alongside a fluffy white cat whose fur is stained with blood and dirt. "I found Weiss." Ruby purrs, gently butting her head against the other queen's shoulder.
"What happened to you?" Yang questions, her expression growing concerned. "How badly are you hurt?" She steps toward Weiss, examining the white cat's fur more closely.
"Oh, don't worry, I'm alright. Most of this blood isn't mine." Weiss replies, sounding very weary. "I had a scrap with some of Roman's crew who thought I would be fun to play with. Ruby helped me fight them off."
"Those bastards." Yang growls, clawing angrily at the floor, claws clicking against the hardwood. "If I was there..."
"Don't worry, I made them sorely regret trying to mess with Weiss." Ruby states, puffing out her chest proudly, Blake noticing that her fur is also darkened by blood in places.
Weiss rolls her eyes at that, though the look she gives Ruby is very fond. "Yes you certainly did, Ruby." She purrs, nuzzling against the smaller cat's cheek affectionately.
Blake feels her heart warm at the sight, although she quickly grows nervous as Weiss turns to stare intently at her. "And who might this be?" Weiss questions, raising an eyebrow.
"Oh, uh, this is Blake." Yang introduces her, nodding in Blake's direction. "She hurt her paw, so she's staying with us for now."
"Blake..." Weiss murmurs, nose twitching as she steps forward. Blake's anxiety builds as she continues to sniff the air, hoping that Weiss won't somehow be able to recognize her by her scent.
"Nice to meet you, Blake." Weiss eventually says, dipping her head and returning to Ruby's side.
"Nice to meet you too, Weiss." Blake replies, relieved that her fears were unfounded. "Yang told me about how you went missing, I'm glad you've come home safely."
Weiss nods, yawning widely and leaning against Ruby's side. "Well, I'm feeling rather tired and my fur is in desperate need of a good wash, so I'll be retiring for the night." She declares, heading toward the bedroom and glancing back over her shoulder at Ruby. "Coming?"
Ruby quickly scampers after her, kicking the door shut as she slinks into the room. Blake glances over at Yang to see the large cat looking at the bedroom door with a tender smile on her face. "I'm glad she's back." Yang murmurs, turning and walking back over to the ladder.
Blake doesn't say anything, but she's also happy that Weiss is home safe. Though she can't help but feel guilty for the way she treated the cat when working for Merlot.
Ah well, it's in the past now, there's no point dwelling on things she can't change.
Blake feels a paw prodding her side, groaning and batting away the offending appendage. "Go away, let me keep sleeping." She grumbles, turning and burying her face in the blanket beneath her.
When the prodding continues, Blake finally lifts her head, scowling as she opens her eyes. "Yang, can you please leave m-" She freezes as she sees the fluffy white cat standing over her.
"Enjoying your beauty sleep?" Weiss purrs, and Blake really doesn't like the way she's looking at her right now.
"Hey, uh, Weiss." Blake greets her nervously, confused and a little unnerved by the other cat. "W-what's up?"
Weiss steps closer, a predatory gleam in her eyes. "I know what you are." She says, and Blake flinches back as she leans over her, drinking in her scent.
"I don't know what you're talking about." Blake squeaks out, shrinking further into the corner of the drawer.
Weiss places a paw against Blake's chest, pressing down with all of her weight. "I've always had a rather exceptional nose," She growls, teeth bared menacingly, and Blake squirms as she leans in even closer. "And I can detect certain... traces of that human's scent in your own."
"Weiss, I don't-"
"Don't play dumb with me!" Weiss hisses, claws extending and digging into Blake's skin. She presses down even harder, making Blake cry out in pain. "You're that human, aren't you? The one that took my blood? Somehow you turned yourself into a cat?"
"I'm not-" Blake shrieks as Weiss's jaws close around her shoulder, whimpering in fear as the white cat draws back a moment later with blood dripping from her teeth. "Yes! Yes, I am that human! P-please don't kill me..."
Weiss smirks, licking her teeth clean. "There you go, that wasn't so hard now, was it?" She begins cleaning one of her paws, not removing the paw from Blake's chest.
"W-what are you going to do to me?" Blake whispers, fearing that Weiss might just decide to kill her now.
She never thought that she'd reach a point in her life where she'd be cowering in terror before a cat with a squished face that looks like grumpy cotton ball, but here she is.
It's almost funny.
Almost.
"There's a part of me that wants to drag you out into the back alley, split your belly open, and leave you to the crows." Weiss replies, grinning wickedly. "But I think that simply leaving you like this would be a far more amusing fate, so..." She lifts her paw from Blake's chest and steps away. "Leave and never return."
Blake is silent for a moment before nodding hurriedly. "Can I at least say goodbye to Yang and Ruby first?" She asks in a small voice.
"No. Leave." Weiss growls, turning and beginning to walk away. "They're out hunting right now, so you don't need to explain anything to them."
Blake nods again, standing shakily to her feet and climbing out of the drawer. "I'm sorry." She whispers, feeling very sorry indeed as she exits the attic with her tail between her legs.
"You have no self control, you know that?" Ruby growls as Yang follows her up the plank leading to the broken living room window. "I mean seriously, you find a whole nest of mice and you just scarf them all down right there?!"
"I was hungry!" Yang protests, feeling very embarrassed. "Besides, we found more prey anyways, so we're fine."
Ruby snorts. "You're just lucky I found this rat." She mutters, ducking as she slips through the window. "Five mice, Yang..."
"They were small ones..." Yang tries to defend herself weakly, and Ruby just shakes her head. "Blake! Weiss!" She calls out as they make their way through the house. "We've got food!"
Weiss bounds down the stairs to meet them, smiling brightly as she approaches. "That's a good catch, nice and fat." She compliments as Ruby drops the rat to the floor.
"Thanks!" Ruby beams, grinning widely.
Yang frowns, looking around in search of Blake. "Where's Blake?" She asks, confused as to why the small cat hasn't joined them yet.
"Oh, yes, Blake." Weiss mutters, turning to face her. "She left."
"She left?" Yang repeats, and Weiss nods.
"Mhm, in quite a hurry, actually." The white cat replies, crouching down to take a bite from the rat. "She said that she didn't want to intrude on your hospitality any longer, and then just left."
Yang's ears droop at that news. "Oh." She murmurs, feeling a little upset that Blake didn't even wait to say goodbye. It's a shame, she was starting to grow fond of the strange little cat.
"C'mon," Ruby beckons her over with a tilt of her head. "Let's start eating before this rat gets cold."
Yang can't help but smirk a little bit as she walks over. "Weren't you just complaining about me eating all those mice?" She asks with a raised eyebrow. "Aren't you worried I'll leave none left for you and Weiss?"
Ruby rolls her eyes. "You probably have hardly any room left in your stomach." She replies, beginning to eat as well. "So c'mon, eat."
Yang joins the other two cats over the rat, chuckling quietly as she dips her head and begins to eat.
Blake shivers from the cold, her fur drenched and clinging uncomfortably to her frame. The sun is beginning to set, and it feels like every minute that passes the rain only grows heavier.
After Weiss threatened her, she ran as far away as she could, not daring to remain anywhere near the neighborhood. She might have run a little too far, though, because now she has no idea where she even is.
Blake sees a forest up ahead, right outside the outskirts of Vale, and quickly begins making her way in its direction. The trees should provide some level of cover from the rain, hopefully enough to keep her from getting any wetter.
She enters the forest, keeping her eyes out for somewhere dry to hide until the rain stops. Eventually Blake spots a bramble bush that's thick enough to prevent the rain from wetting the earth beneath, carefully worming her way under it and curling up into a tight ball.
She's hungry and cold, throughly soaked to the bone, but at least she's found somewhere dry to rest. Blake's reminded of the times she's slept out in the rain in the past, glad she has fur to keep her just a little bit warmer this time around.
Oh, she misses sleeping in a proper bed already.