witch's familiar

the cat is awake

Familiars are humans with magic in their veins. They have the ability to switch between a human form and an animal form but have no other magical abilities beyond that.
Initially, it was believed that the animal form could tell which tribe of primordial familiars it came from and that the form is inherited from one generation to the next. Today, however, it is known that the animal form does not come from the blood but from the soul. The animal reflected the personality of the familiar.
So it happened that a cat was born into a family of wolves. As in Zhou Zishu's case.

It was a blessing and a curse at the same time. He couldn't find his place in his own family and felt like a stranger on more than one occasion, but on the other hand, there were plenty of witches and wizards who wanted to take him in. He had everything that made a good confidant, but the problem was that he didn't want to be one. Sometimes he wished his human half didn't exist at all.
Zishu often found himself in the situation where he lost himself in his animal instincts and just turned off everything human in him.
This often resulted in him finding himself in places with no memory of how he got there. Zishu referred to these moments as 'coming to consciousness'.
The next time he regained consciousness he was lying on a sofa. In someone else's apartment. Naked.

He knew why he was naked. He had changed forms in his sleep - something that could happen now and then. What he didn't know was how he got here and whose apartment it was.
He got up carefully and looked at his surroundings. A large living room. Tastefully decorated but didn't really have much personality. It looked like something you would find in a furniture store, but the smell was different. It wasn't particularly strong, but Zishu was able to pick up the familiar scent. Flowery with a slightly fruity note. cherry blossom maybe? It was a perfume.
Before Zishu could think about it any longer, he heard the front door unlock and he shifted his form almost instinctively.
"A-Xu! I'm home again!"
The sudden change caused a slight whiplash and Zishu lost his bearings slightly, but the voice sounded familiar.

Wen Kexing came to his apartment with full shopping bags. It was the weekly groceries and this time only half of it was for his cat. At least that's what he claimed.
To say he spoiled A-Xu was an understatement. This man adored his cat and was willing to throw his life savings out the window just so A-Xu could live like a king.
However, Zishu continued to struggle with his memory and tried to figure out who this man was. All he knew was that his feline brain associated him with food and warmth.

Wen Kexing put the bags down in the kitchen and immediately went to the living room to greet A-Xu. What he saw was his beloved cat sitting next to the sofa and staring into one of the empty corners of the room. He tried to see what he was staring at, but couldn't see anything special about that corner. Wen Kexing had read about cats doing this from time to time, but this was the first time he saw A-Xu do it. He was well informed about the theories that animals could see spirits and therefore stare into the void but suppressed the thought of the possibility that his apartment could be haunted.
"A-Xu?" he asked cautiously.
The cat turned its head to him and gave a short meow. Wen Kexing threw one last look into the corner before he hugged A-Xu.
"Did you miss me?"
He didn't get a verbal reply and instead, Zishu placed his paw on Wen Kexing's cheek. The man's heart melted and he planted a kiss on the cat's head.

Fuzzy memories formed in Zishu's mind, but nothing was clear enough to understand how he got into this apartment.
All he knew so far was the man's name and that he was good. At least that's what his feline side said.

Weeks passed and Zhou Zishu was still no smarter. His memories came back partly in the form of emotions, but it was such a tangle with emotions ranging from fear and pain to joy and relief.
Wen Kexing was no help. He talked a lot, but none of it helped Zishu with his memory lapse.
The only useful thing he could find so far was a newspaper article.

Missing for two months - first traces lead nowhere

It was big on the front page with an old photo of him next to it. The article first briefly described how Zhou Xu - the name he used as a human - failed to show up for work one day and has not been found since. There were supposed eyewitnesses who claim to have seen him at various places, but they turned out to be wrong.
The biggest shock for Zishu was just the fact that he couldn't remember two months. There have been instances where he has lost consciousness for long periods of time, but never for more than two days.

"A-Xu! Do you read the newspaper?"
Zishu turned and saw Wen Kexing standing in the doorway. He was drying his hair with a towel and the white t-shirt he was wearing was partially stuck to his body.
When he was done with his hair, he put the towel around his neck and got closer to the cat. One look at the newspaper was enough to understand.
"I know you miss your owner. He'll definitely be back soon, but in the meantime I'll take care of you."
As he spoke, he scratched A-Xu behind the ear. However, he was even more confused than before.