[SFW VERSION]
🌹 There's something wonderful in those who stare death in the face. Even in a world wracked by relentless calamity, flowers blossom between a sea of corpses, the shapeless crimson rivers marched over by mechanical instruments of mass...
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Typical. You return safe from a lengthy mission with your squad, settle into the Commander's Room after a quick shower, and bam. You're hit with the classic ole onslaught of paperwork, or what you like to call the afterparty. It's a total drag to have spent well over a week on the surface, expending all your energy to conduct the strategic orchestra you and your trusted teammates play into the helpless ears of Raptures — only to return to dull paperwork.
Ugh.
You plop down into your chair, take a pen from the drawer, and look down into your impending doom. Your inevitable death clearly won't be at the robotic claws of a Rapture, nor will it be due to old age; you're just about to keel over and die looking at this unholy heap of finances and legal documents.
That's your fate. An old, worn-out shell of a person, slumped over on your desk — dead. Maybe a little drool on your enormous stack of papers for effect.
You're so lost in thought about this god awful paperwork that you don't even notice the figure curled up beneath your desk. It takes the touch of something warm and rough on your leg for you to actually notice. You blink, wiggle your ankle, then push your chair out to get a better look at what's beneath the desk.
"Scoops," says a voice. "How rude. You didn't even notice me. You were inches away from stepping on my tail, too. Meow."
You startle and kick your leg, that little jolt of surprise hitting you like a truck once you catch sight of a pearly pink and blue glimmer dazzling out of the darkness.
"Ah!" Your startled gasps escape your throat as you hop to your feet like you've just seen a beast flash its jaws. In this case, it's only Nero flashing her pretty feline eyes.
Before your foot can connect with Nero's ribs, her arm lashes out and holds your ankle at bay. The feeling of her fingers wrapped around your leg sends a cold tingle down your spine, and you ultimately end up pulling away, getting on your feet and scuttling away from your desk.
Once you're gone, Nero's full figure materializes into the space you once filled behind your desk. She stands, somehow simultaneously loose and at attention.
"Again! Rude!" Nero hisses, crossing her arms over her chest and looking at you with only one eye open. A stare of raw disdain. "Mrow! You were about to kick me! Jeez, Scoops!"
"You scared me! I didn't mean to!" For the most part, you're not completely convinced what you're telling her is the truth. You can't really tell if you were wanting to kick her or if your body just reacted in a really funky way.
Nero's ears flutter spastically as she stares on at you with that same look of contempt. "Pssh, remind me to never wait for you under that lonely desk of yours. Otherwise, I'll get clocked in my jaw by your big foot!"
"I'm sorry, okay?" You take a breath and lean on your desk, granting Nero ample time to come around and close the gap between you.
"Nevermind it. But listen, I heard you gave Biscuit a whooole bag of treats after you read her diary. Is that true, Scoops?"
Sparkling behind her sharp, mismatched eyes is a noticeable flare of hatred. Something you've never seen in her until now. But you don't make mention of it. You just answer her question: "That's true."
Upon hearing that answer, the one she fully expected yet didn't want to hear altogether, Nero flicks her tail. It whips at the air with a sense of gritty loathing. "So... where's my bag of treats, hmm?"
"I wasn't planning on getting treats for everyone. Biscuit was just... a special case." Your words stick like dust to the back of your throat. You know well you aren't convincing her with this.
With her arms still tightly crossed, Nero walks forward, forcing you to back yourself into the front of your desk. She stands overtop you, your bodies connecting while she defies all laws of your personal space.
"I can be special too, Scoops. Real special. Don't I deserve some treats, just like Biscuit? Maybe even more than Biscuit?"
At this point, you can't even do anything. She's all in your face, her body melting into yours. At one point you see Nero uncross her arms. You're not too happy to see that either because the next thing she does is use one hand to latch onto your forearm, and the other to begin caressing your neck. She does this while her tail glides and sways smooth through the air behind her.
"Is this enough for you, Scoops~? Does this make me special, to be so close to you and so touchy with you? Meow..."
You shake your head. "Finding dog treats was a stupid fluke, I swear! I'm not gonna be able to find you any cat treats."
"Oh?" Nero's tail halts, pausing in its rhythmic sways. One of her ears twitches, her lips falling into a stoic frown. "So I'm not special enough?"
"I didn't say—"
"I'm not as good as Biscuit, am I? Meow... what a shame. And here I thought I was doing a good job for you."
The fingers at your neck curl into your skin. You wince, though it's not enough to deter Nero from methodically sliding her sharp nails along your flesh. All the while, she is purring. You'd think she was getting headpats or a chin scratch from how satisfied and relaxed she sounds, but the only one getting any pets — or rather, tender strokes along the neck that leave cuts that are just barely bloody — is you.
"Special," she whispers, leaning her face in close so that her lips grace your ear. "I'm special, Scoops. I'm more special than Biscuit, that's for sure. I think I deserve treats. And if you even think of denying that—"
Her nails dig a little deeper. Faint trails of blood tickle her fingertips.
"—we can go a whole lot deeper."
Woooosh.
The door to your room hisses open, the sound of idle chatter and laughter immediately filling your ears. You look past Nero to find the Counters strolling into the Commander's Room. Couldn't be more thankful for their surprise appearance.
"... yeah, but I didn't think you'd actually eat it!" Anis' voice is followed by a giggle.
"What's a little bit of sand gonna do? If anything, it totally made the steak taste better." Neon's voice comes after.
Their presence is echoed by Rapi, who files into the room shortly after the two of them. Once they all see you and Nero at the desk, way too close for comfort, they all freeze.
"Commander." Rapi's voice.
Nero's attitude totally switches up at this moment. The fire in her eyes vanishes, leaving behind only those innocent feline irises. She pushes herself off of you, her tail swaying merrily in the air once again.
"Thanks for tidying up my fur, Scoops! Knew I could count on you." She touches the fur on her ears, wiggles them, and starts to walk out of the room. Right past the other three Nikkes. "See ya, Scoops! Meow!"
Just like that, she's gone. You have no words. Not only were you just scared half to death by what used to be a lovable catgirl, but damn, you still have paperwork to finish.
You try to look as casual as possible in this awkward standoff against your squad, but you definitely look like you've just seen a ghost. "Hey."
Rapi's eyebrow lifts, suspicious. "Commander. What... were you doing with Nero?"
"They were getting down and dirty in here!" Anis shouts, pointing fiercely at your face.
