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"Can we keep him?"
Delilah's voice is soft, timid, afraid of being shot down. Her rain-soaked shoes pool water and red mud into the tiled entryway of Baiken's little home. Her dress looks like it's falling down on her weak frame, dampened by the weather as well. Her hair is a mess; it's like Baiken's, full of curls that are forced out in humidity. The eyeliner Baiken swore she told Delilah to wipe off hours ago runs down from her waterline now, as if caught up in a tear.
"I don't see a problem with it," Anji shrugs, "so long as your mother doesn't mind."
Goddamn it, Anji. . . Leaving the harsh decision to someone else. . .
Baiken loves him, don't get her wrong-- honestly, she loves him more than she can properly express; she's tried, of course, but she sometimes worries that he doesn't really understand it-- and yet, *somehow*, in the moment, all she can do is level him a cold glare.
Anji, dressed in a polite, immodest houserobe and soft slacks, smiles at her, squinting behind his glasses. His cheeks are flushed and she can read it in his eyes that he's positively enamoured with the situation. Hell, he looks nearly as excited as Delilah does.
"C'mon Mom." Delilah doesn't whine, she just sounds very sad and nervous. "He's family now."
She holds out her arms once again, as if Baiken hasn't been staring at the rain-drenched creature in them for the entire conversation. In-between her outstretched hands, Delilah holds a very scruffy, wet white cat under his front legs, letting his stomach and back legs dangle down under her grip. The rainwater has made it so that his pink skin is visible under the fur and Baiken can see that he looks sickly; like she used to, his ribs jut out from his body, skin stretched tightly in malnourishment.
For a moment-- and only a moment-- her heart cinches. Hell if she knows where the cat is even *from*, but regardless, she knows she's been there. Miserable, cold, hungry.
"Is he now? Looks like he's another damn stray." Baiken huffs, watching as both Anji and Delilah jump to the cat's defense.
Anji is first to speak, face distorted with a playful pout. "Oh, don't be so cruel, dear! He's just a kitten!"
"So she's convinced you too, huh?" Baiken raises a brow at him, the man who had acted so impartial just seconds ago. "That was quick."
"Well, he is a very good boy. I found him in the storm drain outside- he was about to fall in." Delilah's monotone delivery just strikes another pang of pity in Baiken's heart.
They say age makes you softer.
She supposed they're not all wrong, whoever 'they' are. But it isn't age that's made her who she is now, it's *love*.
She loves Anji, who loved her even before she loved herself; Anji, who stood by her side through darkness and light, through her best and worst.
She loves Delilah, who taught her that life was worth living; Delilah, who showed her that nobody deserves to go through it all alone.
It's that deep and ever deepening love that pushes words Baiken doesn't even process out of her chapped lips. If it were anyone else, she would have dismissed the cat immediately and sent his holder away with him.
Instead, she humors her little girl. "That explains why he's so soggy."
Delilah's eyes widen and she lets on a look of shock and upset. "Noo." She shakes her head and softly gives a single exclamation of monotone upset. "Don't call him soggy."
"He is! He's dripping water all over the damn floors-" Baiken lifts her hands up defensively.
The cat turns to her and angles his head, meowing gently, as if contributing to the conversation. Delilah cooes at the sound.
"That better not be back-talk, boy," Baiken grumbles, "not if you want t' stay here."
"He's asking very nicely, dear. Give him some credit." Anji urges. He turns to the cat and puts a firm hand between his wet ears. "You were just trying to be polite, huh?"
"You made him upset, mom." Delilah points out, deadpan, gesturing to the limp creature with sadness. "Tell him you're sorry."
"You want me to tell a *cat* that I'm sorry?"
Anji looks up at her, still petting the cat gingerly. "Oh, darling, just apologize to the poor thing. His heart might just break otherwise."
The cat, as if aware of the conversation, glares at Baiken with two heterochromatic eyes, one red and the other hazel.
"Got a fuckin' staring problem?" She scoffs. The cat purrs- the audacity!
"He's waiting for an apology." Delilah reminds her, gently shaking the cat in her arms. How that drenched thing hasn't struggled out of her grip is beyond Baiken. She wouldn't want to be held under her armpits either.
Anji frowns, scratching the cat's ear. "Aw, he was just trying to be nice to you, love. You hurt his feelings."
"*His* feelings? I don' even remember what I did- and 'sides, it's my house and I decide who lives here!"
"You wouldn't throw him on the streets." Delilah states plainly.
"Oh, he's testing me to."
"Noo," another childlike pout, "don't do it, mom. He's so little."
"He's-" Baiken sighs, "Delilah, are you ready to take care of a cat right now?"
"Of course I am." She lifts the cat's head to her lips and gives him a polite little kiss.
"You'll have to feed him, clean up his shits, get him meds, all of that."
"I could always help too, dear," Anji chimes in, "since I'm older, I can supervise her to make sure she's remembering to care for him."
"Anji, what is it about the cat that you're so attached to?" Baiken puts her hands on her hips with a gentle huff.
Delilah waggles the cat's arms up in a show of faux sadness. "Mom, look. You made him angry."
"I did not make him-!" Baiken rolls her eye as Anji taps her on the shoulder delicately. Wherever he's concerned, he has her full attention. She looks at him with more love than he can possibly understand from such a single glance. In the background, Delilah becomes a dark green blur, continuing to move the poor cat around like a doll.
"Don't you think it would be good for Lilah to have a friend, love?" Anji lowers his voice, speaking specifically to Baiken. "It's not everyday she takes to someone so well."
That's the ticket; Baiken can say no to any damn person in the world, but when it comes to Delilah or Anji, she finds herself completely helpless. Love has undone her completely and honestly, she doesn't mind one bit.
"I-" She turns to Delilah, unable to prevent a small grin on her face that grows less subtle by the second as she envisions how her child will react, "Alright, *fine*. The cat can stay."
As soon as the words leave her lips, Delilah's little face lights up with joy and she squeezes the little cat to her chest. A laugh unlike any Baiken has ever heard her have fills the room as she spins around happily, hugging the creature like a long, wet plushie. "Did you hear that, Romeow? You can stay!"
"Romeow?" Baiken asks curiously, watching as Delilah and her cat both slow down dizzily.
"That's his name." Delilah shrugs, setting him down on the floor at long last. "Romeow Mito please."
Anji grins as Romeow stalks off into the house. "That's a cute name, Dede."
"Oh- wait Romeow, you need to have the house tour." Delilah doesn't respond to Anji, too busy chasing after the scruffy little guy as he scampers under Baiken's legs into the kitchen. She follows after him interestedly, her eyes widened with adoration.
Baiken looks to Anji, who's looking at Delilah with a fond smile.
"He'd better not make a mess," she says, but she doesn't really mean it. No, in her heart, there's a much different thought- a realization that she's made the best choice possible for her whole family.
---
Romeow likes Baiken.
Hell if she knows why, he just does.
It goes without saying that he likes Delilah. The two are inseparable, honestly. It's not often that Baiken sees her Lilah without Romeow trailing at her ankles, haunched over defensively, as if ready to take the warpath for his sister at any moment. He lays with her when she sleeps- he sleeps most of the day anyway, but can't fall asleep unless he's near her.
Credit where credit is due, she takes good care of the beast. She feeds him, she pets him, she bathes him, and she plays with him. She carries him around like a purse; he falls limp in her arm, flopping over in a complete bend. She keeps track of him at all times, never letting him so far out of sight that he could ever be suspected as missing. And, when Romeow can remember not to shit all over the house carpets and actually use the damn bin they bought and filled with sand *specifically for him*, Delilah cleans up after him.
She's responsible, so much more than she ever considered herself to be. That thought is a comfort to Baiken, at least.
What *isn't* comforting is the way that Romeow eyes the head of lettuce Baiken is working on chopping up in the kitchen; Anji is working late, so she's taking the responsibility of making dinner tonight. Lilah went to her room to 'work on school work' that Baiken assigned her to practice with, but within minutes, she came back downstairs and fell asleep on the living room couch, specifically angled so she could make sure Baiken was near her while she tested.
But, of course, Romeow goes where Delilah goes; they're a hellish buy-one-get-one-free deal. So, while she quietly snores on the couch and Anji works just two blocks away at the workshop he's renting, it's only Baiken and the cat that remain conscious.
Romeow sits at her feet, which is where he sound be if he knows his fucking place, but his soft, beady eyes blink delicately, persuasively. He lifts a paw to his tongue and licks it gingerly.
"Don't give me that shit, boy." Baiken turns her attention back to the important task at hand: making dinner for her loved ones. She's planning on adding tomatoes, chicken, raspberries, walnuts, and apples to the lettuce. "You'll get your own food when Anji gets here."
No, Baiken cannot touch the cat food. The woman who's hands have born the blood of thousands, the woman with scars riddling both her physical and mental state, can't fucking *stand* the soft texture of the wet food enough to dish it. Is that such a crime? It's horrific- Anji and Lilah both can, but the latter is sleeping and Baiken wants her to keep her peace as long as she can, so naturally, Anji'll feed the guy when work ends.
Romeow lets out a pathetic, mewling cry that's shrill and obnoxiously needy. He rubs his head against Baiken's leg too, looking for charity.
"Or you could just starve?" Baiken raises a brow. "Does that sound better?"
He hisses, rolling his mis-matched eyes back.
"Them's fighting words." Baiken rolls her eyes, ignoring how oddly comforting it is to feel the weight of another living creature leaning against her sturdy frame. "Now get out- I need to focus right now."
She turns her attention to the squat fridge in the kitchen; the berries and apples are kept there until being eaten so they stay fresh. Opening it up, Baiken lets out a grunt and reaches for a small Tupperware container with raspberries trapped inside. If she pops one or two in her mouth while looking for the leftover chicken for several dinners ago, nobody is around to speak on it.
After taking the needed supplies from the fridge, she kicks the door shut and turns back to the counter, back to the head of lettuce-
*Shit.*
The lettuce is completely missing from the cutting board, only leaving a few damaged leaves hanging from the counter to the floor as evidence of its wearabouts.
Not that Baiken needs it.
"Oi, shitass-" she walks into the living room, a fist balled by her side, to see Romeow tearing the vegetable to shreds by the second. A considerable pile of leaves sits out around the floor, surrounding him. He looks up, face decorated in greenery, and gives Baiken a sly wink before resuming his desecration. "Oh, *goddamnit* Romeow!"
Delilah stirs lightly, lips parting to let out a small "nooo," in a monotone, sleepy voice.
Romeow mewls, slowly munching away innocently on the lettuce.
"What the hell are we gonna do for dinner now?" Baiken puts her hands on her hips.
He doesn't look her in the eyes. He just bats a small clump of lettuce leaves in her direction. A suggestion.
"Absolutely not."
---
Romeow is just okay with Anji.
Anji loves the little guy more than is good for Baiken's heart; he cooes when Romeow sits with him and speaks to him in a soft, high-pitched tone. He considers himself the cat's 'dad', picks him up and covers his head in kisses, calls him 'peanut' while scratching his ears. It's adorable-always is to see how soft Anji is to everyone and everything about him- but perhaps a bit foolish by the way Romeow returns the affection.
Unlike Baiken, Romeow treats Anji very strangely. On any day, it's anyone's guess as to whether he will love the nurturing terms of endearment or lash out at Anji's hand like a scorned creature. He doesn't have a pattern for it; just decides off the dome when he wants to play nicely.
Doesn't matter a damn bit to Anji, though. He loves Romeow every day, even on days when his hand is lightly bleeding and covered in scratches.
Today is one of the better days.
Anji and Baiken are in bed together, him to her right, and Delilah is snuggled between them. Her little head rests sleepily against Baiken's shoulder; she's a leech when it comes to her 'mother'. Her arms are wrapped around Baiken's arm and her legs are tucked into her side. Anji ruffles Delilah's hair with a lightly clawwed hand and she snores lightly. Baiken watches them from her small distance, a charmed smile on her face.
And then, up comes Romeow, padding across the thick comforter on the bed with his little paws, a sensation that's very noticeable to Baiken.
"Oh, come here peanut!" Anji pats the bed beside him gently, needily.
Romeow addresses this request with a disinterested meow and a sheepish frog blink. It's not exactly a ringing endorsement, but it leaves Anji unbloodied, so it's fine.
"Told you, he's a brat cat." Baiken murmurs, watching as Romeow busies himself with kneading the blanket.
Anji huffs amusedly. "My dear, he's just a little man! Have some compassion!"
"I will. . . when he learns how to behave."
"Leave him be," Lilah sighs, slowly opening one eye to scold the way Baiken talks about her cat, "let him make some biscuits in peace, Mom."
"Okay, first of all, you're supposed to be asleep, Delilah." Baiken shakes her head, not really feeling disapproval, but knowing that her kid probably needs to see it anyway. "And second of all, who the *hell* lied to you an' said cats could cook-
"It's a term used to refer to when cats paw at the blankets like how he is now. It's like kneading dough, that's why." Anji interjects.
"Maybe he just got a bulk order at the biscuit bakery." Delilah adds tiredly.
Baiken snorts. "Like hell he did."
Romeow's little paw digs into the side of Baiken's foot accidentally as he goes to further scratch the comforter.
"You're a real ass for a freeloader."
Lilah's head jolts slightly. "Noo. He's here to stay."
"Keep scratching me like that, boy, and you'll be making biscuits at the pound." Baiken nudges Romeow with her foot. He takes note of the gesture and mewls sheepishly, cuddling up right at her feet as if the whole thing never happened.
"We won't take him to the pound, will we, Mom?" Delilah murmurs, falling tiredly against Baiken once more.
Anji leans over to Baiken and cups her jaw fondly. "We won't, right Mom?"
"There's two of you now," Baiken tries her best to frown, but she can't when Delilah balls up into her side and Anji runs a thick thumb across her chin.
And. . . when Romeow lays at her feet quietly.
"Three of us." Delilah corrects her.
That's. . . That's nice too.
<3