Thunk!
Ashra felt her breathe was stopped for a few seconds and her life as she knows it reflected in her mind for few moments. Catching up her breath, she looked at a vending machine in front of her. It was upside down, bent and its wires pulled out with force.
"Not again..." she hissed. Knowing well what does flying vending machine in Ikebukuro meant. She tilted her her head to one side and saw exactly what she had thought. She said heavily and placed her palm on her forehead. Ashra walked towards the crowd where a fight broke between a group of male youngsters and one man wearing a bartender uniform with blue sunglasses. The lone man was currently holding a STOP signboard. Suddenly, three boys with weapons charged to the man from his back. Just like a beast, he sensed them straight away and swing the signboard - eventually sending the assailants flying away. Other boys in the gang start charging to the man too, but he repelled them one by one with punches and kicks. And swinging signboard too. When the last man was knocked out, then only the fight stopped. The bartender let go of the signboard and panted. That was tiring, he thought. He straightened up himself, then turned to walk away from the scene. He hates violence honestly but he can't control his emotions and super-human strength. He didn't started the fight too. As he took his first step, he raised his head and looked ahead. He stopped at the sight of a familiar figure.
"Shizucchi..!!" Ashra called out loud. Shizuo gulped and tried walking steadily as if nothing happened.
Ashra grabbed the collar of Shizuo's shirt and pulled his face close to hers. "What did I told you about fighting?!" she scolded, ignoring the looks from people surrounding them. "I didn't start the fight. That flea was the one bringing those brats..!" Shizuo explained, not in the way he should have though. "Then stop chasing after Izaya every single time you saw him!" she scolded again. "NO WAY! That damn flea! He run away just as I was about to kick his ass!" he grunted, just the thought of Izaya made him cringed and boiled his anger. Ashra sighed, still not letting go of his shirt yet. Then, she looked into his eyes through the blue glass. "Promise me, no more fighting after this okay? I don't want you to get hurt," she said softly. Eventually, she gave up scolding him. Dating the strongest man in Ikebukuro, plus the man himself have short temper is never easy. Shizuo calmed himself down and slowly, his hand reached to her head. He controlled his strength with all his might as he caressed her head. "I'm sorry," he apologized, placing his forehead on her head. Though he knew he doesn't get hurt that easily, he still did not want his girlfriend to be worried about him too much.
"Oh, wait! I have something for you," she looked up suddenly that she actually headbutt Shizuo. "OUCH!" he cried, feeling the pain on his forehead. If it anyone else, he might threw that person flying in the Ikebukuro's sky by now. Ashra started searching for something inside her bag. Shizuo smirked at his girlfriend, still rubbing his forehead. "What's up with you?" he asked, sounding indifferent. Anyone passing by might never guess those two were actually dating.
She stopped scrounging her belongings and looked at Shizuo with a grin. "Seriously, Ashra. What's wrong with you?" Shizuo asked again. He almost used the f-word but managed to stopped his mouth from doing so. He knew how much she hated it; he thought most probably because her being a teacher.
"Give me your right hand, please," Ashra requested. She raised her left hand with open palm suggesting to Shizuo to place his right hand on her palm. He did, though a little reluctant. God knows what she's planning now, he thought. As soon as she get hold of his hand, she pulled out a string of thread from her bag. She tied it as bracelet on his hand.
"There. Done." She looked at him like a happy puppy while he could not hide his bewilderment. Shizuo took a closer look at his own hand. "Why are you giving me this?" he asked, raising his eyebrows. Giving a rather proud grin, she replied, "Shizucchi, as long as you have this bracelet on.. I hope you would stop vandalizing things in this town."
"EH?"
"If I asked you to stop fighting straightaway, that won't work. I know. So, at the very least.. please stop destroying public properties," she explained. "Promise me this," she said sternly.
"Ceh," Shizuo looked away. Then, he take a look at the bracelet. "I promise," he murmured, with a mixed feelings.
Shizuo's anger could never be tame when it comes to Izaya. As usual, emotion over rational, he grabbed a soft drink vending machine with his mighty strength. With bare hands, he lifted the vending machine as if it's a light box and then threw it over to where Izaya was. Izaya jumped from one car to another then blending himself into the busy crowd to get away. Anyone new in Ikebukuro might thought that he is a parkour master, for he truly is good in running away in any way possible. Especially when it comes to running away from Shizuo. Therefore, he managed to escape yet another flying big object thrown at him in Ikebukuro.
As soon as he lose sight of Izaya, Shizuo calmed himself down. He was panting. Nobody dare to come close to him. Finally, as his rationality overtook his emotions, he realised he had done something he shouldn't have done. He looked up to the vending machine he had thrown several feet away and he could almost felt the nagging he'll get from Ashra.
"Shit, I better get back to Tom now," he said, walking back to where he left his boss, Tom.
He walked while catching up his breathe. Suddenly, he felt his chest tightened. His breathing became heavier. Something's wrong, he thought. He couldn't stand properly. He felt a pang of dizziness swarming to his head.
"That fucking Izaya, did he do something to me?" he muttered. He lean against the wall sideways as he keep on moving. He need to find someone, anyone who could help him. He saw the glimpse of Tom in front of him but in a split second he fell because there was no more wall for him to lean on.
Shizuo opened his eyes and felt like he experienced a blackout for a few moments. The tightness in his chest gone as well as the dizziness in his head. He saw Tom walking past him. He called out to him, but it was not his normal voice that he heard.
"Nyaan"
What is going on?!, he thought intensely. He raised his hands and all he can see was a white furry paws. He tried touching his face, it's so unfamiliar. He looked around his body again, all he can see was white furs. He saw his blue glass on the pavement and walked right to it. Wait, it feels more like walking with four legs. Seriously?!, he thought again. As he moved closer to the glasses, he can see a silhouette. He knew it was him but somehow it did not look like him at all. When his view became clearer, everything became clear to him too.
He is a cat now. A DAMN CAT. He turned around and found his bartender uniform laying on the floor, shirt perfectly inside the vest - as if he just vanished to the thin air. His bowtie and glasses were laying around and the one thing he still have on his body, cat body, is the bracelet Ashra gave him.
Just as he was about to grasp the meaning of what's happening, his surroundings turned darker. He turned and Tom was standing in front of him. Tom has a shocked look on his face as he squat down and held Shizuo's uniform.
"What in the world?" Tom wondered. He looked around and turned back to the uniform, glasses and cat.
"Hey, kitty. Do you know where my buddy Shizuo went?" he asked the cat.
"Meow meow meowwww," Shizuo cat said which actually mean, "Are you fucking kidding me?"
Tom scratched the back of his head, puzzled with what has been happening. He saw Shizuo a moment ago before his bodyguard fell to the alley junction. He ran as fast as he could towards Shizuo but couldn't find anyone around. Then, he only found his uniform. Weird.
"Argh. Maybe Shizuo has gone back home naked," he murmured.
Another sneer meowing was heard from the cat, which translated as "Why would I ever go anywhere naked, you dumbass."
Tom took Shizuo's belongings with him and walked away, leaving the cat by itself. Though Shizuo keep meowing to attract his attention so that Tom could at least bring him back home. But apparently, Tom does not speak cat language.
That night, Shizuo wandered around Ikebukuro as a cat. It was colder that night. Most probably because he has no clothes on it. Well, he's a fucking cat. It'll be weird if a cat is wearing clothes wandering around the town. But then again, the town itself is a place of weirdness. He felt lost for the first time in his own hometown. He walked past Russian sushi, Simon handing out flyers as usual. Surprisingly, the friendly big man even greeted him.
"Neko-chan, do you want to try so sushi? Sushi is good. Because sushi is fish and fish is good for cat," he spoke in his unique Japanese accent.
That reminded Shizuo how hungry he was. He wanted to say yes, but his answer came out as a meow. He thought of a way to ensure Simon understood that he really, really want that sushi. Then, he remembered how Ashra feed the cat in her school. She could always tell that the cat was hungry when the cat rubbed itself on her legs. So, Shizuo did the same thing. He rubbed himself against Simon's legs. It got Simon laughing and petted his furry head. The big Russian guy then lifted Shizuo's small body and brought him into the sushi-ya.
"Boss, is the leftover sushi still there? I wanted to feed this poor cat," Simon asked permission from the main chef. The main chef, a white Russian man was rumoured to be a mafia before becoming chef. He always had a stern expression on him but nevertheless gave sound advices to his customers when he felt like so.
"Yes. Go faster, don't let the cat disturb the customer," Chef permitted.
Simon walked to the inner kitchen of the sushi-ya and took a plate of various leftover sushi. Colourful but the taste are definitely questionable. Shizuo was reluctant to eat it at first but with Simon keep shoving the place to his face and his stomach started making noise, he had no better choice. Not that he could walked up to a fast food store and ordered food for himself, right.
Shizuo ate almost all of the sushi on the plate. Surprisingly it tasted normal. Maybe because he's a cat now? He had no idea. He thanked Simon for his kindness and Simon patted him again. Simon lifted him up again and this time they went out of the store. Simon let him go and waved him goodbye. Shizuo meowed at Simon again, thinking where to go next.
Shizuo walked few blocks and saw the same group of youngsters that attacked him few days ago making ruckus in the crowd. They came with iron bars, bats and other things as their weapons and waved it in the air. They were yelling like crazy nuts too, Shizuo thought.
"BWAHAHAHAHA!! NOW THAT SHIZUO IS MISSING, WE RULE THIS TOWN!!" Shizuo heard one of them yelled.
Hoh?, he thought. He stopped and observed those barbaric youngsters more. It was less than 24 hours that he turned into a cat and now these bastards thought they could be idiots forever.
"I wish Shizuo is still alive!" cried someone in the crowd.
"He is the strongest but he never do harm at us like these hooligans!" cried another. It was echoed with another cries from the crowd as the gangsters keep vandalizing and hurting anyone who gets to their way.
What the hell? Why is everyone acted as if I'm dead? Tom thinks I'm dead?
Such questions filled his head and he started running. He bumped into three high schoolers he had seen talking to Ashra. One of them is Masaomi. The girl picked him up and held him close to her chest.
"Poor cat. Getting caught up in this chaos. What is wrong with those people?" she asked.
"I heard from Izaya that Shizuo was dead but no trace of his dead body found. He said Shizuo-san most probably died outside of Ikebukuro," Masaomi replied. The other boy had a deep thinking expression, as if disbelieving the story.
Regardless, Shizuo found that one reason enough to boil his anger. ORIHARA IZAYA. That pest has been spreading rumors about him dead, most probably he stumbled upon Tom while Tom was searching for Shizuo.
Shizuo struggled to get away from the girl's arms and jumped out into the crowd. Izaya would most probably be around.
"Ah! Get away from me!" a girl shouted in the middle of the crowd.
ASHRA! Shizuo quickly turned and run towards the voice. She was being held by one of the hooligans.
"Get...away...from me!!" she struggled but the man's grip grew harder on her and it's painful. She cried from pain and became weaker. But still not too weak that she tried kicking her captor next. Two more men came and took a grip on her. Another man came to tie her with a black rope.
Shizuo stood in front of them. Angered. But realizing that he was in a cat body, there's little that he could do. He saw another man walked towards Ashra. He grabbed her by her jaw and made her looked at him. Shizuo was still standing and watching, frozen at his own position.
"He he he. I know you're Heiwajima Shizuo's woman. It was unfortunate that he didn't die with my hands, though I would really love that. But alas, he's dead. I can still get my vengeance through you!" the last man said. He was the boss of the gangster, it seems.
Disgust was clearly shown on Ashra's face.
"Don't you dare say that he's dead! He's not dead yet!!" she exclaimed. Once again, struggling to be freed.
Pang! A slap landed on her face. Shizuo's heart broke as he saw her face reddened and her nose started bleeding. His claws were drawn, gripping firmly on the ground. He snarled fiercely at the men holding Ashra.
The boss turned to the cat. Mocking it with a mere 'heh'.
Shizuo gathered all the strength he ever had in his lifetime and jumped towards the men. He scratched and bit them ferociously, without any second thought. One by one the men leave Ashra alone. Ashra sat down on the ground and managed to untie herself.
"What are you idiots looking at?! Capture that cat!" the boss instructed. Everyone else in the gang tried capturing Shizuo. None succeed and all they get are scratches and bite holes on their body. All of them ended up bleeding, painfully. In the nick of time, police siren were heard nearby; sending the gangster to fled the area.
Shizuo, the cat walked towards Ashra and rubbed his head on her. She was trying her best not to cry as she gently caressed the cat on its head and neck. She lifted the cat up and hug it tightly.
"Thank you," she whispered weakly. "You are just like Shizucchi," she murmured before breaking into tears. The high school trio were her students and they ran to her to comfort her. Then, Some policewomen came and helped her to the ambulance too. With the little strength left, she refused to let go of the white cat that saved her life. She brought it home with her.
"Please take care and make sure you locked the house properly. I will keep searching for him until I find him. I know Shizuo, he would not simply disappear," Tom said. He helped to send Ashra home.
Ashra nodded and excused herself before locking the apartment's door. Slowly, she walked to her room and lay down on the bed. She grabbed the head pillow next to her and sniffed the familiar smell of Shizuo. It was his pillow. Once again, she couldn't help to cry.
Shizuo heard her cry and quickly jumped on the bed. "Nyaa.." he called out. He wanted to hold her so badly and tell her that he's here, next to her. And also to tell her that everything is going to be fine.
Ashra stopped crying and sobbed when she let the cat to lay next to her. She keep caressing the cat as her memories were full with Shizuo's memories. Where are you now, she wondered. At the very thought of Shizuo, the cat responded to her. With the cat by her side, she felt calm and secured. She eventually fell asleep with the last tear drop.
"Nyaa.." Shizuo meowed, saying "I love you". He tucked himself into Ashra's embrace and fall asleep too.
The next day, Shizuo woke up feeling cold. He turned around and he's in his own bedroom. I'm back to normal, he thought. He looked at his hands but much to his disappointment, it's still a furry paws. UGH.
Nobody was in the room anymore. So, he stretched his body and yawned as big as he could open that cat mouth of his. Feeling better, he jumped down the bed and walked out from the bedroom. He heard sounds from the kitchen so he headed to the kitchen. He found Ashra making her morning drinks and some bread toasts. She turned and saw him, she smiled.
She placed an empty container in front of the cat and poured milk into the container. "Good thing Shizuo loves milk," she said. "Please drink a lot," she added, patting the head of the cat.
How can I tell you that I'm Shizuo, he thought as he licked the milk.
Ashra was walking from the kitchen counter to the dining table several times. At times, she'll glanced at the cat. After a few times, she stopped. She just realised something. She kneeled down to the cat and reached out for its right front leg.
"This...bracelet.." she muttered. She gasped and covered her mouth with both hands.
"Shizucchi?" she called out. The cat turned and looked at her.
"Nyaa.."
Tears dropped from her ears again. She shook her head in disbelief. But part of her wanted to believe it. Believing it so badly.
"Really?" she asked again. This time she drew her face closer to the cat. The cat moved closer to her too. It licked her cheek and meowed again.
"But how..?" she sounded crazy but her heart keeps telling her to believe. She panicked and tried to think of so many stuffs that her head hurts. She stopped panicking and tried to calm herself. She took a deep breathe and exhaled.
"At the very least, I know you are here. You protected me last night, Shizuo," she cried.
Shizuo felt tears on his eyes too. No matter what form he is now, he felt contented as long as he coudl protect the one he loved. He rubbed his head on her lap.
Ashra fell into resilence for few minutes. Thinking and making sense of things that happened. She stood up and reached for her handphone. She dialled a number and waited for the call to be connected. Shizuo could only watched her. He looked around and managed to get himself up to the dining table top. Ashra stroked his head gently and left as soon as the call got connected.
"Moshi moshi. Tom-san? Ashra here. Yeah, I'm fine. I need to ask you something important. What happened yesterday before Shizuo disappeared? Yes. En. En. Oh, I see. Okay, thank you. I'll let you know if there's any update. It's okay, you've done enough. Thank you once again, Tom," she ended the phone call. Placing the handphone on the table, Ashra approached Shizuo.
"I think I know the right person to help you," she claimed. "I'll go get ready now," she rushed into the bedroom to change. Ashra took her handphone and shoved it into her bag. She lifted and carried Shizuo with her.
As soon as they got out from the apartment, a small group of men were gathering in front of the unit. It was the same men last night.
These shitty pests are persistent, Shizuo thought. He growled at them and his furs stood up with his claws drawn out. His claws were gripping Ashra's hand and luckily because she felt the pain, she had to let go of him. At the same moment, one of the men tried to capture Shizuo too. Shizuo jumped to his head and scratched the back of his head. Another men tried capturing the cat but the small creature was just too fast and strong for them. After fiercely scratching and biting them, Shizuo landed on the floor next to a flower pot.
Heh, maybe I should try this, he had a crazy thought. Well, not that he's doing anything out of ordinary for a Heiwajima Shizuo. Slowly stepping back for a few steps, Shizuo carefully not letting his sight away from his assailants. With his paws, he grabbed the flower pot and lifted it up.
"Nyaaaaaa....!!!!!"
With all his strength in the cat form, he threw the flower pot to the men. It was shocking and scary enough for them to realize that they are no match to that cat. They ran as fast as they could away from the apartment.
Ashra who witnessed everything turned to Shizuo and smiled. Feeling proud of her little furry Shizucchi. She lifted him up and carried her to the place she intended to bring him.
The taxi stopped in front of a shrine. Ashra stepped out of the taxi with Shizuo after paying the fee. She walked into the shrine's compound and turned right. If it is possible, Shizuo would actually be raised one of his eyebrows now. Ashra seems to be familiar with the shrine and she knew exactly where to go.
"Miko-sama!" she called out. A priestess walked out from one of the small side building of the shrine.
"Ashra-san?"
"Miko-sama, please help me. Shizucchi has turned into a cat," Ashra cried. She held the cat higher for the priestess to see. The priestess' eyes grown bigger. She turned to Ashra.
"What happened exactly?"
"I gave the bracelet you gave me few days ago to Shizucchi. I made him promise to me that he would stop vandalising things in the town. Before coming here, I called Tom-san. He told me that out of rage, Shizucchi threw a vending machine.. again. Tom-san was finally able to catch up with Shizucchi after the dispute and said that Shizucchi looked sick when he saw him. He fell on the ground and when Tom-san reached him, he was already gone. The only belonging on Shizucchi that Tom did not returned to me last evening was the bracelet."
The priestess nodded at Ashra's story. She turned to the cat and said, "You broke your promise. Therefore you were turned into a cat."
Oh, Shizuo said internally. He told himself to knock Ashra's head for getting the weird bracelet in the first place.
"Miko-sama, please! Can you please turned him back to normal? Because.. though he's a cat now, he still protected me and saved my life from bad guys twice since last night. Please... I can't live without Shizucchi," Ashra plead in sobs.
"Then why did you want him to wear the bracelet in the first place?" the priestess asked.
Ashra looked down and replied, "Because I am worried about him. I don't want him to get into trouble. In terms of fighting, I know he is strong enough to protect himself. But whenever he grabbed those signboards or machines like plucking flowers, I'm worried if he'll be arrested.. or that he'll eventually hurt innocent people in the crowd. Shizucchi hates violence, and never wanted to use his strength on innocent people."
Shizuo looked at Ashra. She was looking out for him more than he ever thought she did. She thought of things beyond for his sake. Deep in his heart, he regretted for not realizing this sooner. He should know better of not letting Izaya to get to him every time.
The priestess turned her look to Shizuo. "I really hope that you learnt your lesson now, Heiwajima Shizuo," she said sternly. She patted Ashra on her shoulder and told her that things will be okay. She brought Shizuo into the shrine and performed a ritual on him. She brought him back to Ashra who were waiting anxiously for them outside.
"Eh?" Ashra was clearly disappointed at the fact that the priestess came out with a male cat, not a human male.
"Don't be hasty. Bring him home. Clean and bath him. Give him something to eat or drink. Then, let him rest. He'll be normal after getting the rest," the priestess advised. Ashra took Shizuo into her embrace. After thanking the priestess, they went back home.
Ashra did everything she was told. Finally, she tucked Shizuo to sleep on their bed.
At least this process is less painful than before, Shizuo thought gratefully. Somehow his eyes felt heavy and he couldn't help but to fall asleep. Ashra felt the same and fell asleep next to the cat.
Few hours later, Shizuo felt pain all over his body. His throat felt a burning sensation, his chest tightened. He felt poking pain in his head and his muscles were feeling mellow. It was hard for him to open his eyes. After trying hard, he finally did.
He's in his room. He lifted his hands and it's a normal human hands. He wanted to quickly sat up but stopped at the pain he felt in his body. He grunted and slowly laid his back on the bed.
His voice and movement woke Ashra up. She sat up next to him, happiness shown on her face. She bit her lower lip, forcing herself not to cry. Her hands were shaking as they touch his body. She turned to him, their eyes met. Her hands moved up and cupped his face. Without words, only their gaze talking. She leaned closer to him, their lips met. His hands on her waist. He felt like the pain was slowly leaving him. He gathered his recovering strength and lifted her up to sit on him. He stroked her back gently. Their kiss broke and they looked at each other's eyes again.
"I'm glad you're back," she whispered.
"Even if I'm a cat, I'll be the strongest cat in Ikebukuro for you," he said, both of them giggling.
"It's good to be home. To your side," he whispered to her ear.
Ashra felt her breathe was stopped for a few seconds and her life as she knows it reflected in her mind for few moments. Catching up her breath, she looked at a vending machine in front of her. It was upside down, bent and its wires pulled out with force.
"Not again..." she hissed. Knowing well what does flying vending machine in Ikebukuro meant. She tilted her her head to one side and saw exactly what she had thought. She said heavily and placed her palm on her forehead. Ashra walked towards the crowd where a fight broke between a group of male youngsters and one man wearing a bartender uniform with blue sunglasses. The lone man was currently holding a STOP signboard. Suddenly, three boys with weapons charged to the man from his back. Just like a beast, he sensed them straight away and swing the signboard - eventually sending the assailants flying away. Other boys in the gang start charging to the man too, but he repelled them one by one with punches and kicks. And swinging signboard too. When the last man was knocked out, then only the fight stopped. The bartender let go of the signboard and panted. That was tiring, he thought. He straightened up himself, then turned to walk away from the scene. He hates violence honestly but he can't control his emotions and super-human strength. He didn't started the fight too. As he took his first step, he raised his head and looked ahead. He stopped at the sight of a familiar figure.
"Shizucchi..!!" Ashra called out loud. Shizuo gulped and tried walking steadily as if nothing happened.
Ashra grabbed the collar of Shizuo's shirt and pulled his face close to hers. "What did I told you about fighting?!" she scolded, ignoring the looks from people surrounding them. "I didn't start the fight. That flea was the one bringing those brats..!" Shizuo explained, not in the way he should have though. "Then stop chasing after Izaya every single time you saw him!" she scolded again. "NO WAY! That damn flea! He run away just as I was about to kick his ass!" he grunted, just the thought of Izaya made him cringed and boiled his anger. Ashra sighed, still not letting go of his shirt yet. Then, she looked into his eyes through the blue glass. "Promise me, no more fighting after this okay? I don't want you to get hurt," she said softly. Eventually, she gave up scolding him. Dating the strongest man in Ikebukuro, plus the man himself have short temper is never easy. Shizuo calmed himself down and slowly, his hand reached to her head. He controlled his strength with all his might as he caressed her head. "I'm sorry," he apologized, placing his forehead on her head. Though he knew he doesn't get hurt that easily, he still did not want his girlfriend to be worried about him too much.
"Oh, wait! I have something for you," she looked up suddenly that she actually headbutt Shizuo. "OUCH!" he cried, feeling the pain on his forehead. If it anyone else, he might threw that person flying in the Ikebukuro's sky by now. Ashra started searching for something inside her bag. Shizuo smirked at his girlfriend, still rubbing his forehead. "What's up with you?" he asked, sounding indifferent. Anyone passing by might never guess those two were actually dating.
She stopped scrounging her belongings and looked at Shizuo with a grin. "Seriously, Ashra. What's wrong with you?" Shizuo asked again. He almost used the f-word but managed to stopped his mouth from doing so. He knew how much she hated it; he thought most probably because her being a teacher.
"Give me your right hand, please," Ashra requested. She raised her left hand with open palm suggesting to Shizuo to place his right hand on her palm. He did, though a little reluctant. God knows what she's planning now, he thought. As soon as she get hold of his hand, she pulled out a string of thread from her bag. She tied it as bracelet on his hand.
"There. Done." She looked at him like a happy puppy while he could not hide his bewilderment. Shizuo took a closer look at his own hand. "Why are you giving me this?" he asked, raising his eyebrows. Giving a rather proud grin, she replied, "Shizucchi, as long as you have this bracelet on.. I hope you would stop vandalizing things in this town."
"EH?"
"If I asked you to stop fighting straightaway, that won't work. I know. So, at the very least.. please stop destroying public properties," she explained. "Promise me this," she said sternly.
"Ceh," Shizuo looked away. Then, he take a look at the bracelet. "I promise," he murmured, with a mixed feelings.
***
"IIIIIIIIIIZAAAAAAAYAAAAA!!"
Izaya sensed absolute danger from the voice calling out his name. Without further ado, he fastened his steps as Shizuo was chasing after him. At first, Shizuo hated Izaya for framing him for a crime he never committed. But now, he just hated the fact that Izaya is alive and kickin' in Ikebukuro, enough said.
"I told you to never come to Ikebukuro ever again!" he yelled. Izaya turned to his back while still walking fast steadily. Furthering himself away from the blond man. Izaya smirked, "I can't never leave these interesting people. You know how much I love people. Just like how I love playing with you."
Shizuo's anger could never be tame when it comes to Izaya. As usual, emotion over rational, he grabbed a soft drink vending machine with his mighty strength. With bare hands, he lifted the vending machine as if it's a light box and then threw it over to where Izaya was. Izaya jumped from one car to another then blending himself into the busy crowd to get away. Anyone new in Ikebukuro might thought that he is a parkour master, for he truly is good in running away in any way possible. Especially when it comes to running away from Shizuo. Therefore, he managed to escape yet another flying big object thrown at him in Ikebukuro.
As soon as he lose sight of Izaya, Shizuo calmed himself down. He was panting. Nobody dare to come close to him. Finally, as his rationality overtook his emotions, he realised he had done something he shouldn't have done. He looked up to the vending machine he had thrown several feet away and he could almost felt the nagging he'll get from Ashra.
"Shit, I better get back to Tom now," he said, walking back to where he left his boss, Tom.
He walked while catching up his breathe. Suddenly, he felt his chest tightened. His breathing became heavier. Something's wrong, he thought. He couldn't stand properly. He felt a pang of dizziness swarming to his head.
"That fucking Izaya, did he do something to me?" he muttered. He lean against the wall sideways as he keep on moving. He need to find someone, anyone who could help him. He saw the glimpse of Tom in front of him but in a split second he fell because there was no more wall for him to lean on.
Shizuo opened his eyes and felt like he experienced a blackout for a few moments. The tightness in his chest gone as well as the dizziness in his head. He saw Tom walking past him. He called out to him, but it was not his normal voice that he heard.
"Nyaan"
What is going on?!, he thought intensely. He raised his hands and all he can see was a white furry paws. He tried touching his face, it's so unfamiliar. He looked around his body again, all he can see was white furs. He saw his blue glass on the pavement and walked right to it. Wait, it feels more like walking with four legs. Seriously?!, he thought again. As he moved closer to the glasses, he can see a silhouette. He knew it was him but somehow it did not look like him at all. When his view became clearer, everything became clear to him too.
He is a cat now. A DAMN CAT. He turned around and found his bartender uniform laying on the floor, shirt perfectly inside the vest - as if he just vanished to the thin air. His bowtie and glasses were laying around and the one thing he still have on his body, cat body, is the bracelet Ashra gave him.
Just as he was about to grasp the meaning of what's happening, his surroundings turned darker. He turned and Tom was standing in front of him. Tom has a shocked look on his face as he squat down and held Shizuo's uniform.
"What in the world?" Tom wondered. He looked around and turned back to the uniform, glasses and cat.
"Hey, kitty. Do you know where my buddy Shizuo went?" he asked the cat.
"Meow meow meowwww," Shizuo cat said which actually mean, "Are you fucking kidding me?"
Tom scratched the back of his head, puzzled with what has been happening. He saw Shizuo a moment ago before his bodyguard fell to the alley junction. He ran as fast as he could towards Shizuo but couldn't find anyone around. Then, he only found his uniform. Weird.
"Argh. Maybe Shizuo has gone back home naked," he murmured.
Another sneer meowing was heard from the cat, which translated as "Why would I ever go anywhere naked, you dumbass."
Tom took Shizuo's belongings with him and walked away, leaving the cat by itself. Though Shizuo keep meowing to attract his attention so that Tom could at least bring him back home. But apparently, Tom does not speak cat language.
That night, Shizuo wandered around Ikebukuro as a cat. It was colder that night. Most probably because he has no clothes on it. Well, he's a fucking cat. It'll be weird if a cat is wearing clothes wandering around the town. But then again, the town itself is a place of weirdness. He felt lost for the first time in his own hometown. He walked past Russian sushi, Simon handing out flyers as usual. Surprisingly, the friendly big man even greeted him.
"Neko-chan, do you want to try so sushi? Sushi is good. Because sushi is fish and fish is good for cat," he spoke in his unique Japanese accent.
That reminded Shizuo how hungry he was. He wanted to say yes, but his answer came out as a meow. He thought of a way to ensure Simon understood that he really, really want that sushi. Then, he remembered how Ashra feed the cat in her school. She could always tell that the cat was hungry when the cat rubbed itself on her legs. So, Shizuo did the same thing. He rubbed himself against Simon's legs. It got Simon laughing and petted his furry head. The big Russian guy then lifted Shizuo's small body and brought him into the sushi-ya.
"Boss, is the leftover sushi still there? I wanted to feed this poor cat," Simon asked permission from the main chef. The main chef, a white Russian man was rumoured to be a mafia before becoming chef. He always had a stern expression on him but nevertheless gave sound advices to his customers when he felt like so.
"Yes. Go faster, don't let the cat disturb the customer," Chef permitted.
Simon walked to the inner kitchen of the sushi-ya and took a plate of various leftover sushi. Colourful but the taste are definitely questionable. Shizuo was reluctant to eat it at first but with Simon keep shoving the place to his face and his stomach started making noise, he had no better choice. Not that he could walked up to a fast food store and ordered food for himself, right.
Shizuo ate almost all of the sushi on the plate. Surprisingly it tasted normal. Maybe because he's a cat now? He had no idea. He thanked Simon for his kindness and Simon patted him again. Simon lifted him up again and this time they went out of the store. Simon let him go and waved him goodbye. Shizuo meowed at Simon again, thinking where to go next.
Shizuo walked few blocks and saw the same group of youngsters that attacked him few days ago making ruckus in the crowd. They came with iron bars, bats and other things as their weapons and waved it in the air. They were yelling like crazy nuts too, Shizuo thought.
"BWAHAHAHAHA!! NOW THAT SHIZUO IS MISSING, WE RULE THIS TOWN!!" Shizuo heard one of them yelled.
Hoh?, he thought. He stopped and observed those barbaric youngsters more. It was less than 24 hours that he turned into a cat and now these bastards thought they could be idiots forever.
"I wish Shizuo is still alive!" cried someone in the crowd.
"He is the strongest but he never do harm at us like these hooligans!" cried another. It was echoed with another cries from the crowd as the gangsters keep vandalizing and hurting anyone who gets to their way.
What the hell? Why is everyone acted as if I'm dead? Tom thinks I'm dead?
Such questions filled his head and he started running. He bumped into three high schoolers he had seen talking to Ashra. One of them is Masaomi. The girl picked him up and held him close to her chest.
"Poor cat. Getting caught up in this chaos. What is wrong with those people?" she asked.
"I heard from Izaya that Shizuo was dead but no trace of his dead body found. He said Shizuo-san most probably died outside of Ikebukuro," Masaomi replied. The other boy had a deep thinking expression, as if disbelieving the story.
Regardless, Shizuo found that one reason enough to boil his anger. ORIHARA IZAYA. That pest has been spreading rumors about him dead, most probably he stumbled upon Tom while Tom was searching for Shizuo.
Shizuo struggled to get away from the girl's arms and jumped out into the crowd. Izaya would most probably be around.
"Ah! Get away from me!" a girl shouted in the middle of the crowd.
ASHRA! Shizuo quickly turned and run towards the voice. She was being held by one of the hooligans.
"Get...away...from me!!" she struggled but the man's grip grew harder on her and it's painful. She cried from pain and became weaker. But still not too weak that she tried kicking her captor next. Two more men came and took a grip on her. Another man came to tie her with a black rope.
Shizuo stood in front of them. Angered. But realizing that he was in a cat body, there's little that he could do. He saw another man walked towards Ashra. He grabbed her by her jaw and made her looked at him. Shizuo was still standing and watching, frozen at his own position.
"He he he. I know you're Heiwajima Shizuo's woman. It was unfortunate that he didn't die with my hands, though I would really love that. But alas, he's dead. I can still get my vengeance through you!" the last man said. He was the boss of the gangster, it seems.
Disgust was clearly shown on Ashra's face.
"Don't you dare say that he's dead! He's not dead yet!!" she exclaimed. Once again, struggling to be freed.
Pang! A slap landed on her face. Shizuo's heart broke as he saw her face reddened and her nose started bleeding. His claws were drawn, gripping firmly on the ground. He snarled fiercely at the men holding Ashra.
The boss turned to the cat. Mocking it with a mere 'heh'.
Shizuo gathered all the strength he ever had in his lifetime and jumped towards the men. He scratched and bit them ferociously, without any second thought. One by one the men leave Ashra alone. Ashra sat down on the ground and managed to untie herself.
"What are you idiots looking at?! Capture that cat!" the boss instructed. Everyone else in the gang tried capturing Shizuo. None succeed and all they get are scratches and bite holes on their body. All of them ended up bleeding, painfully. In the nick of time, police siren were heard nearby; sending the gangster to fled the area.
Shizuo, the cat walked towards Ashra and rubbed his head on her. She was trying her best not to cry as she gently caressed the cat on its head and neck. She lifted the cat up and hug it tightly.
"Thank you," she whispered weakly. "You are just like Shizucchi," she murmured before breaking into tears. The high school trio were her students and they ran to her to comfort her. Then, Some policewomen came and helped her to the ambulance too. With the little strength left, she refused to let go of the white cat that saved her life. She brought it home with her.
"Please take care and make sure you locked the house properly. I will keep searching for him until I find him. I know Shizuo, he would not simply disappear," Tom said. He helped to send Ashra home.
Ashra nodded and excused herself before locking the apartment's door. Slowly, she walked to her room and lay down on the bed. She grabbed the head pillow next to her and sniffed the familiar smell of Shizuo. It was his pillow. Once again, she couldn't help to cry.
Shizuo heard her cry and quickly jumped on the bed. "Nyaa.." he called out. He wanted to hold her so badly and tell her that he's here, next to her. And also to tell her that everything is going to be fine.
Ashra stopped crying and sobbed when she let the cat to lay next to her. She keep caressing the cat as her memories were full with Shizuo's memories. Where are you now, she wondered. At the very thought of Shizuo, the cat responded to her. With the cat by her side, she felt calm and secured. She eventually fell asleep with the last tear drop.
"Nyaa.." Shizuo meowed, saying "I love you". He tucked himself into Ashra's embrace and fall asleep too.
The next day, Shizuo woke up feeling cold. He turned around and he's in his own bedroom. I'm back to normal, he thought. He looked at his hands but much to his disappointment, it's still a furry paws. UGH.
Nobody was in the room anymore. So, he stretched his body and yawned as big as he could open that cat mouth of his. Feeling better, he jumped down the bed and walked out from the bedroom. He heard sounds from the kitchen so he headed to the kitchen. He found Ashra making her morning drinks and some bread toasts. She turned and saw him, she smiled.
She placed an empty container in front of the cat and poured milk into the container. "Good thing Shizuo loves milk," she said. "Please drink a lot," she added, patting the head of the cat.
How can I tell you that I'm Shizuo, he thought as he licked the milk.
Ashra was walking from the kitchen counter to the dining table several times. At times, she'll glanced at the cat. After a few times, she stopped. She just realised something. She kneeled down to the cat and reached out for its right front leg.
"This...bracelet.." she muttered. She gasped and covered her mouth with both hands.
"Shizucchi?" she called out. The cat turned and looked at her.
"Nyaa.."
Tears dropped from her ears again. She shook her head in disbelief. But part of her wanted to believe it. Believing it so badly.
"Really?" she asked again. This time she drew her face closer to the cat. The cat moved closer to her too. It licked her cheek and meowed again.
"But how..?" she sounded crazy but her heart keeps telling her to believe. She panicked and tried to think of so many stuffs that her head hurts. She stopped panicking and tried to calm herself. She took a deep breathe and exhaled.
"At the very least, I know you are here. You protected me last night, Shizuo," she cried.
Shizuo felt tears on his eyes too. No matter what form he is now, he felt contented as long as he coudl protect the one he loved. He rubbed his head on her lap.
Ashra fell into resilence for few minutes. Thinking and making sense of things that happened. She stood up and reached for her handphone. She dialled a number and waited for the call to be connected. Shizuo could only watched her. He looked around and managed to get himself up to the dining table top. Ashra stroked his head gently and left as soon as the call got connected.
"Moshi moshi. Tom-san? Ashra here. Yeah, I'm fine. I need to ask you something important. What happened yesterday before Shizuo disappeared? Yes. En. En. Oh, I see. Okay, thank you. I'll let you know if there's any update. It's okay, you've done enough. Thank you once again, Tom," she ended the phone call. Placing the handphone on the table, Ashra approached Shizuo.
"I think I know the right person to help you," she claimed. "I'll go get ready now," she rushed into the bedroom to change. Ashra took her handphone and shoved it into her bag. She lifted and carried Shizuo with her.
As soon as they got out from the apartment, a small group of men were gathering in front of the unit. It was the same men last night.
These shitty pests are persistent, Shizuo thought. He growled at them and his furs stood up with his claws drawn out. His claws were gripping Ashra's hand and luckily because she felt the pain, she had to let go of him. At the same moment, one of the men tried to capture Shizuo too. Shizuo jumped to his head and scratched the back of his head. Another men tried capturing the cat but the small creature was just too fast and strong for them. After fiercely scratching and biting them, Shizuo landed on the floor next to a flower pot.
Heh, maybe I should try this, he had a crazy thought. Well, not that he's doing anything out of ordinary for a Heiwajima Shizuo. Slowly stepping back for a few steps, Shizuo carefully not letting his sight away from his assailants. With his paws, he grabbed the flower pot and lifted it up.
"Nyaaaaaa....!!!!!"
With all his strength in the cat form, he threw the flower pot to the men. It was shocking and scary enough for them to realize that they are no match to that cat. They ran as fast as they could away from the apartment.
Ashra who witnessed everything turned to Shizuo and smiled. Feeling proud of her little furry Shizucchi. She lifted him up and carried her to the place she intended to bring him.
The taxi stopped in front of a shrine. Ashra stepped out of the taxi with Shizuo after paying the fee. She walked into the shrine's compound and turned right. If it is possible, Shizuo would actually be raised one of his eyebrows now. Ashra seems to be familiar with the shrine and she knew exactly where to go.
"Miko-sama!" she called out. A priestess walked out from one of the small side building of the shrine.
"Ashra-san?"
"Miko-sama, please help me. Shizucchi has turned into a cat," Ashra cried. She held the cat higher for the priestess to see. The priestess' eyes grown bigger. She turned to Ashra.
"What happened exactly?"
"I gave the bracelet you gave me few days ago to Shizucchi. I made him promise to me that he would stop vandalising things in the town. Before coming here, I called Tom-san. He told me that out of rage, Shizucchi threw a vending machine.. again. Tom-san was finally able to catch up with Shizucchi after the dispute and said that Shizucchi looked sick when he saw him. He fell on the ground and when Tom-san reached him, he was already gone. The only belonging on Shizucchi that Tom did not returned to me last evening was the bracelet."
The priestess nodded at Ashra's story. She turned to the cat and said, "You broke your promise. Therefore you were turned into a cat."
Oh, Shizuo said internally. He told himself to knock Ashra's head for getting the weird bracelet in the first place.
"Miko-sama, please! Can you please turned him back to normal? Because.. though he's a cat now, he still protected me and saved my life from bad guys twice since last night. Please... I can't live without Shizucchi," Ashra plead in sobs.
"Then why did you want him to wear the bracelet in the first place?" the priestess asked.
Ashra looked down and replied, "Because I am worried about him. I don't want him to get into trouble. In terms of fighting, I know he is strong enough to protect himself. But whenever he grabbed those signboards or machines like plucking flowers, I'm worried if he'll be arrested.. or that he'll eventually hurt innocent people in the crowd. Shizucchi hates violence, and never wanted to use his strength on innocent people."
Shizuo looked at Ashra. She was looking out for him more than he ever thought she did. She thought of things beyond for his sake. Deep in his heart, he regretted for not realizing this sooner. He should know better of not letting Izaya to get to him every time.
The priestess turned her look to Shizuo. "I really hope that you learnt your lesson now, Heiwajima Shizuo," she said sternly. She patted Ashra on her shoulder and told her that things will be okay. She brought Shizuo into the shrine and performed a ritual on him. She brought him back to Ashra who were waiting anxiously for them outside.
"Eh?" Ashra was clearly disappointed at the fact that the priestess came out with a male cat, not a human male.
"Don't be hasty. Bring him home. Clean and bath him. Give him something to eat or drink. Then, let him rest. He'll be normal after getting the rest," the priestess advised. Ashra took Shizuo into her embrace. After thanking the priestess, they went back home.
Ashra did everything she was told. Finally, she tucked Shizuo to sleep on their bed.
At least this process is less painful than before, Shizuo thought gratefully. Somehow his eyes felt heavy and he couldn't help but to fall asleep. Ashra felt the same and fell asleep next to the cat.
Few hours later, Shizuo felt pain all over his body. His throat felt a burning sensation, his chest tightened. He felt poking pain in his head and his muscles were feeling mellow. It was hard for him to open his eyes. After trying hard, he finally did.
He's in his room. He lifted his hands and it's a normal human hands. He wanted to quickly sat up but stopped at the pain he felt in his body. He grunted and slowly laid his back on the bed.
His voice and movement woke Ashra up. She sat up next to him, happiness shown on her face. She bit her lower lip, forcing herself not to cry. Her hands were shaking as they touch his body. She turned to him, their eyes met. Her hands moved up and cupped his face. Without words, only their gaze talking. She leaned closer to him, their lips met. His hands on her waist. He felt like the pain was slowly leaving him. He gathered his recovering strength and lifted her up to sit on him. He stroked her back gently. Their kiss broke and they looked at each other's eyes again.
"I'm glad you're back," she whispered.
"Even if I'm a cat, I'll be the strongest cat in Ikebukuro for you," he said, both of them giggling.
"It's good to be home. To your side," he whispered to her ear.
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