Monster (Cartoon Cat x Reader)

Preparations

Your motel room was just as nice as the office had been. The walls were painted a very modern light grey, with white and light turquoise accents around the room. It was almost unusually clean, and everything smelled faintly of lavender. Bright sunlight streamed in. It was the most beautiful motel room you'd ever been in, and also the one you were the most uncomfortable in. It had clearly been designed to feel like home, to feel comfortable, to feel safe.

It may have just been your nerves, but you didn't want to be in this room. You hadn't come here with safety or comfort in mind. You had come here to face the thing in the house. Facing possible death for the chance to see the paranormal in person. You were probably just anticipating the fear too much. After a real encounter with something so unnatural, being in such a normal environment was too off putting. Yeah... that had to be it.

You had been sitting idly on the bed, and now you glanced at your bags. You didn't need to unpack them, you'd only be here a week. They stood on their little wheels by the light grey wall, modest and annoyingly mundane. Since you didn't want to attract unnecessary concern and attention, you'd be investigating the house at nightfall. So you didn't even have that to distract you from the growing discomfort. Looks like it was time to talk to yourself.... again.

"Wow... a new town and all I want to do is sit alone and talk to empty walls. Maybe I should just set my stuff up for tonight and then go for a walk.... get a feel for the outside of the place, at least. Maybe make a couple of friends." You sighed, letting out a small, irritated groan. "But I don't wanna socialize.... prep and then more prep it is...."

Sluggishly, you moved towards the mockingly modest bags by the wall and pulled one away from the rest. A firm tug at the zipper opened the black Goliath of thick cloth. You swung the lid up to reveal a high definition camera, nestled between files of paranormal research, a notebook, and your laptop. Reaching inside, you pulled out the notebook, the camera, and the laptop. Setting the camera and notebook to the side carefully, you powered on and logged in to the laptop.

The portable computer was one of your most vital pieces of equipment. Not only was it your main source of entertainment, it was..... okay, other than researching a particular area, you did use it primarily to pass time. The joys of modern technology.

Ignoring the games and various apps, you clicked to a website and looked once more over a report you'd almost memorized. The top image was a picture of the house from the outside, followed by an article reviewing the many theories on the reason people disappeared upon entry. The list of people missing or considered dead was long and contained a great variety of people, trailing all the way back to 1928. The first reported victim was a nine year old girl, the then-mayor's daughter. Then more and more disappearances down to now. Many a famous ghost hunter or paranormal investigator appeared in random splotches in the list. Your brows furrowed. So many lives.... many considered dead.

You turned your attention back to the speculations themselves, the part where theories were all people had to go on. With the experience you'd just had, something had to match. Cult activity was ruled out straight away, as were most of the other theories. You groaned in frustration, there was very little left to go off of. You supposed ghost or demon activity was possible, but highly unlikely. You closed the laptop, rubbing your strained eyes. A glance at the clock told you you'd been going over the information for a solid three hours. "Geez, time does fly by when you're trying to make things fit nicely together... Let's go get some outdoor investigation done..."

Slipping the camera around your neck and a pen behind your ear, you managed to fit your feet back into your shoes and your phone back into your pocket. "Yes.... I am now ready. Ready to look like I belong in an internet cafe." You chuckled and made your way back out into the evening sunlight. It would be dark soon, so that was good. It meant you could... possibly... open the door and get a picture of the inside before moving back to the safety of the motel. The first picture of the inside that would make it out, hopefully. "Who knows, I might even see what's lurking inside on that image."

With that cheerful thought in mind, you began walking.

The inside of the house had effectively been made into a maze. A torturous labyrinth of rooms, halls, and dead ends. That was the joy of turning this place into his lair, the entity considered. He'd been here so long that the inside of the house was as fluid as his own body. It did help keep things interesting. This had to be the most elaborate he'd ever made it, though. Not even the guests who'd gotten the special treatment had gotten a trap this insanity-inducing.

The feel of someone entering his space drew the entity towards the front windows. His latest target was out there, looking over the house with an excited look on her face. She seemed to have brushed off the fear, or perhaps that was part of what made her so excited. As he watched, she took a step back, then stepped forward again. Wonder filled her face, stretching her grin wider. Any farther, and it could have rivaled his own.

A camera rested around her neck, the lens flashing red in the light of the setting sun. So... she had come with the express purpose to visit him. How flattering. Almost flattering enough to convince him to consider giving her a quick death. A low chuckle passed his grin. Would he actually do that? Of course not. Still...

A flash distracted the entity from his thoughts and he directed his focus back to the girl again. In the time he had been distracted, she had lifted the camera to her eye and snapped a picture of the house. That was fine. Many a prior victim had done the same shortly before entering. With luck, this meant he wouldn't have to wait for his prey much longer. She approached the front porch. The door swung open. A pair of (e/c) eyes, wide and much less sure, peered inside. It was time.