One little bird...

2: To love a cat

A/N: This one has been hiding on my laptop for a while now. I'm not really happy with it, but it refuses to get any better, so I decided to just post it. Hope you like it!

None of them were quite sure how or when they had adopted a cat. She'd just been in Kota's garden one day, whining pitifully, snuggling up to whoever would pet her. She was a scrawny little thing, and so Kota had eventually gone inside and come out with a bowl full of Max's food. They were both meat eaters, he figured, so eating each other's food couldn't be all that harmful. The cat gobbled it up before curling up in his lap, purring. Stretched out in the sun, a warm hand on her back, she fell asleep.

*****

The cat became a regular visitor after that. It didn't matter if they were in Kota's or in Nathan's garden – and then in Uncle's diner, later on – one, or two, or all nine of them, the cat was always there. Always purring, looking for touch, snuggling up to whoever would have her. Gabriel finally took a brush to her, combing out all the burrs and snarls in her fur, until her multicolored fur was as soft and fuzzy as a blanket. And boy did she like being a blanket. Her favorite thing to do, by far, was to plunk down on whoever was sleeping in the sun and join them for a nap.

But she was still too thin, her bones poking out in places they shouldn't be. And so one day, North decided to go down the rabbit hole that was cat food. He instantly regretted it. Comparing brands and ratings and nutrition tables was worse than trying to wean Luke of sugar, though he never would admit it. It was worth it, though. The cat seemed to grow a little bit healthier. Then again, it might just be due to Luke's habit of giving her a plate full of whatever they were eating when he wasn't looking. Another bad habit he needed to be weaned of. North sighed in frustration.

*****

One day, their cat – it was their cat now, and none of them knew why – decided her knew hobby was to scare the bejeezus out of them. She'd climb up a tree, perched in a branch, just waiting for someone to walk underneath. And then... 

"You've got to stop throwing yourself out of trees, baby" North scolded after another close call. "What if we don't catch you one day?" 

The cat just gave him a smug look. 'You'd never' she seemed to say, and of course she was right. 

Besides, don't cats always land on their feet? 

It did, however, become a problem once Luke decided to join in the fun.

*****

They always knew that something was not quite right with their cat. Not in the physical sense, of course – Kota took her to the vet a few months in and he said that everything was fine, though she was still a little undernourished and she had a talent for always loosing her collar – but she was just too... smart. Any typical cat game they would play with her seemed to bore her after only a few minutes, though she'd sit in rapt attention in front of the TV when there was a mystery to solve. Not to mention how ballistic she went anytime someone tried to play chess. She had this eerie way of cocking her head when someone spoke, as if she could understand exactly what they meant. And anytime someone was complaining of having lost something, she'd drag it from whatever dusty corner it had been in, looking like a sad little lost puppy until someone praised her and gave her a belly rub. 

But they were still surprised when it happened.

*****

Silas had been sleeping by the pool, stretched out in the sun, his bronze skin glistening. Naturally, their cat was curled up on him, taking a nap. Though she loved doing it to all of them, Silas was her favorite when it came to beds, hands down. 

They weren't completely sure what happened, but suddenly there was a naked girl curled up on top of Silas, their cat nowhere in sight. "Be ready to grab her should she make any unexpected moves," Kota commanded as they circled the pair. 

But the girl slept on, merely turning over and stretching after a while, and suddenly there was a cat on Silas' chest again. 

They didn't know what to think.

*****

Luke had been working at the diner that day, but he was not at all surprised when they told him about it later. "It's about comfort and safety, I thing" he'd mused. "She's been doing it more often lately, and for longer periods of time. You remember your neighbors, Kota? They have a second daughter no one ever sees. I'm pretty sure it's our cat. She goes to Goose Creek, is actually in our year, I think." 

And then he'd revealed that the vegetables North had been complaining about had actually been made of marzipan so that put an end to that conversation.

*****

The next time all nine of them and their cat – could they still call her that? – were in one room Luke discreetly locked the doors. The cat looked at him warily, but decided that snuggling up to Owen was much more fun. Until, of course, he plunked her down in the middle of their little circle and fixed her with his glare. 

"We know you can understand us," he said. "Don't even bother pretending. Now, do you mind explaining exactly what's going on here?" 

The cat licked its fur. 

"Sang!" 

That got a reaction from her. The cat literally jumped a foot in the air, before desperately looking around for a friendly lap to hide in. 

"I don't care if you... shift back to human or communicate in another way" Owen continued. "But we would like to know what is going on."

And so, through abundant use of Morse code, the cat/girl's story unfolded. Yes, she had always been able to shift into a cat, and it freaked her parents out. No, she did not know any other people like her – she supposed her mother had been able to do it, but her dad said her real mother was dead and her stepmother hated the ability. She forced her into cat-form any time she wasn't at school and normally kicked her out of the house if she wasn't locked up in the basement or somewhere. Devils-spawn, she called her. Her name was Sang Sorenson and her sixteen years of life had not exactly been pleasant. Though she had tried many times, she could not catch prey and was usually forced to steel food or eat carcasses when her mother once again refused to provide. It had been the cat more than the human who had driven her to them, hoping for food and affection, but it had been her who stayed. Luke had been the first who noticed she wasn't quite what she seemed – if the involuntary shifts hadn't clued him in, loosing a game of chess to her certainly had. And yeah, she liked swimming. She was a weird cat in more ways than one.

*****

Over the next few months, the cat and the human slowly merged, becoming one purring Sang. One beautiful, loving person who finally said goodbye to her family forever. Who gave them sweet kisses before she crawled into bed for the night, never certain as to what she would wake up as. And if her nakedness when shifted led to other things... well, none of them really minded.

*****

Adrian Hendricks was stumped. He had been so careful, never letting those annoying Academy bastards anywhere near his pet project. And yet...

He'd been discovered, and no matter how much he raged against them no one believed him when he said the papers were a plant, that the Academy was trying to take over his school. They just rolled their eyes and gave him a tissue when he sneezed once again. Dam his cat allergies. He could've sworn he hadn't been anywhere near a cat the past week...

*****

Said cat was snickering from her perch on Silas' shoulders as she watched Mr. Hendricks be taken away in handcuffs on the school parking lot. For once in her life, being a cat was fun, not something to be ashamed of, and it made her want to yowl in joy. 

"Good job, Miss Sorenson" Owen murmured beside her. She grinned down at him, pleased, then turned when she heard her name being called. 

"Come on, Trouble!" Gabriel called from the waiting cars. "Our adventure has just started!"