Two For One

Chapter 2

As far as apartments went, Blake couldn't exactly complain about hers. The two bedroom, one bathroom apartment was located directly above their cat rescue, which her father constantly reminded her was not a shop, despite the ease in calling the physical space that. The living room was connected to the kitchenette by an open archway, giving the space a feeling of more room than it actually had. All the same, it had been home for Blake since birth. The apartment was not only convenient, but it was also home to the four "foster fails" that the Belladonnas had acquired over the years.

First, there was Gambol and Shroud, two sister black cats that Blake had fallen in love with when they were kittens. As far as anyone was concerned, including Gambol and Shroud, they were Blake's cats, and Blake was their person. Not a moment went by in the apartment in which there wasn't one of the duo following at Blake's feet, riding on her shoulder, or sprawled out in her lap.

The third cat that inhabited the Belladonnas' apartment belonged to Kali. Sienna, a gorgeous bengal cat, acted like the queen of the house. She took no nonsense from Gambol nor Shroud, who despite being three years old each, still acted like they were kittens.

The final cat was Ghira's, a giant Maine Coon named Chief. Chief was larger than the other three cats combined, and acted tough around pretty much any cat he'd ever met. He had a habit of fighting other male cats, but they'd successfully kept him around only female cats for years. Chief also did not put up with the childish gimmicks of Gambol and Shroud, but would do anything for Sienna, who the Belladonnas jokingly called his queen.

Blake always found the comparison between the cats of the family and her actual family amusing. It was a common saying that cats mimicked their people, and people mimicked their cats, but the parallels between Sienna, Chief, Kali, and Ghira, was simply too much.

It had often crossed Blake's mind that perhaps they all mimicked each other so much because they were all cat Faunus. It was never a question she would ask out loud, knowing all too well what the implications of that question were, but she would be lying if the thought did not have at least a bit of weight in her mind. There was absolutely nothing better than to pet both of her kitties at the same time, while they lay on her, kneading her chest, and the three of them, including Blake, purred together.

"Blake!" Kali called from the front door, pulling Blake out of her thoughts. "We're home."

Blake nodded towards the door as her parents entered, Gambol curled up on her lap, purring away as Blake scratched behind her ears. "Hey," she replied. "How did the rescue go?"

"Two new cats," Ghira said with a sigh, hanging up his coat near the door. "One more than expected. They look identical, so we think they're sisters. They're spending the night overnight at the vet for their spaying before we bring them downstairs tomorrow." He knelt down, as Chief had approached him to welcome him home.

"Twenty-two cats then?" Blake asked.

Kali nodded. "For now. We still have room for three more, but I'd rather not push it for the time being."

"We had a prospective adoptee today," Blake told her, pointing at a packet sitting on the kitchen table with her free hand, her right arm still occupied by a purring Gambol.

"Oh?" Ghira stood back up, much to the annoyance of Chief, who was enjoying his head scritches. He walked over to the table, and picked up the packet. "Yang Xiao Long," he read out loud. "Online, or in person?"

"In person," Blake replied.

"Did you do her interview?" Kali asked.

Blake nodded. "She seems pretty good. She's looking to get a cat for her younger sister as a surprise birthday present, but her younger sister has been talking about and planning for a cat for at least two years."