Archive of Our Own ^beta

"You've been too stressed lately. It's not good for your health."

Hearing those words, Amanises sighed heavily. It was the third time she heard this, and that's only today!

Her coworkers, friends, boss and now even her own best friend. She's heard it all.

But Hela has a point. Amanises has found herself dozing off during meetings and even when getting herself drinks.

She still remembers the most embarrassing moment when her forehead met the glass of the soda vending machine. Worst of all, this was in the main hallway of the building, meaning the present staff members all witnessed how their stoic manager headbutted a vending machine.

What am I even supposed to do to get rid of stress?

As if reading her mind, the soft voiced Hela spoke: "You could start reading a book, take some time off and travel somewhere or go on a date."

"Yeah, everything is nice and all but, I don't have the time to read a book. At home the only thing I can do is play games and watch action movies and when I'm not doing that I have to work again." Countered Amanises.

Hela opened her mouth to speak again but got interrupted. "I don't have enough money to travel nor the motivation to do so. Trips are more stressful with extensive planning and making sure everything at home is safe. I rethink if everything is okay the minute I arrive here. Imagine what would happen overseas?"

Hela wanted to open her mouth again but closed it.

Even then, Amanises added:

"And don't get me started on dates. I have to pacify crying men every day, now you're telling me to do that without getting paid?"

And women too... Was what Hela wanted to add but she kept her mouth shut for the favor of not being strangled.

She was left defeated. All other ideas would come with more time 'wasted' and more people to deal with.

Amanises was hard to please.

But Hela, for the sake of her best friend, still wanted to try: "But what about a pet?"

Amanises raised her eyebrow in a sarcastic manner. "Really? That's your idea? Something that I can't even communicate with, have to understand through body language, shits all over my already cramped apartment and eats the most expensive food chosen?"

"I give up." Hela was defeated.

"I think I just need more coffee and I'll be fine. Good try though." With that Amanises turned her eyes back to the computer screen, ready to sort all of the files again, because someone somehow messed with it and it became her fault.

Dejected, the usually quiet woman slumped away, out of the office.

***

A few hours later. The sun was already gone, replaced by the bright half-moon and a sea of stars. This part of the city didn't have much light pollution so it allowed for quite the pretty visage.

Too bad Amanises wasn't interested in seeing it.

Rubbing her eyes from exhaustion and slight pain from the bright screen, she slumped in her seat.

Finally, I'm done...

It took half the entire work day to finish sorting all the files, then she had to send them to her boss, who had trouble receiving the e-mail. Many failures later and she finally relieved the text of approval.

The text that allows her the liberty to go home, lay in her bed, fall asleep instantly, wake up at 2am and realize she wasted her entire evening.

Followed by getting take-out, putting on a Marvel movie and stuffing herself with popcorn.

Sometimes she would connect her Xbox and play something, but would often ragequit and not be able to sleep after ending on a loss.

This was, unfortunately, her daily routine. During work days, at least.

Luckily, her weekends were off and today just happened to be Friday.

Thank God!

That means, our girl will be able to sleep the entire day, play video games and watch action shows with multiple episodes!

Maybe even try cooking again, if her hands would fail her.

Overall, there was something to be happy about. At least today.

Stuffing her work laptop, documents and personal journal in her large black handbag, she put on her ear buds and hit play on her music app.

For mornings—the metro was better to take. Easy, cheap and fast.

But after hours, Amansies preferred to walk back home.

Yes, she thinks that it's calming her, but god forbid actually getting out of the house just for a walk alone.

Midway home, the music stopped, interrupted by a beep sound. Amanises nearly rolled her eye in complete exhaustion. Just what I needed!

She picked up the pace, intending to get home faster, making a mental note to charge her ear buds.

Not even 5 minutes later, she stops by a convenience store, even with her bad memory, she somehow remembered the absence of milk. Which was unfortunate since she wanted to try pancakes for Saturday.

Entering to buy milk, Amanises left with a bag full of sweets, different aroma teabags and all sorts of sweets. She didn't forget the milk!

Putting her card back inside her wallet, Amanises glanced from the corner of her eye a cardboard box. It stood out on the alleyway since it looked brand new.

Curiosity got the best of her, she got closer and glanced at the contents of the box. Her eyes widened.

Inside—was the cutest cat she'd ever seen!

It was all black, nearly blending with the darkness. It could only be differentiated thanks to the neon coloured advertisement board nearby and the red cloth that enveloped it.

And the most distinct feature—the bright yellow irises that stood out from the void.

Paired with the large pupils, it looked as if the cat only had two yellow circles for eyes.

It's so cute! My heart melts!

Who would let such a cutie in the street.

Moreover, the cat was squeaky clean! It shouldn't have been more than a day since it had been abandoned.

It pained Amanises to see it in such a state. I could ask one of my relatives to adopt it. Some of them live in their very own house. They could definitely take care of the cat!

Something seemed to echo in Amanises's mind. She focused and realized they were Hela's words from today. 'But, what about a pet?'.

Well, this adorable little thing could fill the quota for sure.

Can I even keep it inside? Would my landlord kick me out?

Her mind automatically brushed off that thought, remembering her neighbor being a cat lady—keeping and feeding about 10.

I definitely could, but the question is, do I have the time?

This was a cat, not a dog, parrot or hamster. Cat's don't need that much attention, they're known for being lazy and self-sustainable. Moreover, cat food isn't all that expensive. Heck, the supermarket near her home had some on sale!

So why shouldn't she take the poor little guy home?

She stared more at the kitty. The kitty stared back. It didn't run away, or get into a defensive position. Its tail continued waving.

She gave a tentative approach, slowly, steadily—extending her hand.

Closer and closer, until—the little kitten rubbed his muzzle on her fingers!

Her heart melted right there! She had to take it home!

Amanises squatted next to the cat inside the box, petting it continuously. The kitty showed no sign of being afraid—heck it got even closer.

She bent down and picked up the cat, discarding the red cloth and happy to not be scratched or hissed at.

With her groceries and purse, she held the cat with both hands. There was no need to mind the weight. The cat was as light as a feather!

She stopped at the supermarket and bought one kilogram of kibble. Her mood finally lit up.

***

Turning on the bright main light of the apartment, she placed the cat down first. She intended to let it roam a bit, fill a bowl with food and then play with it some more—but, to her complete surprise, the kitty jumped and ran away inside the small apartment.

H-heh?! Why are you running now?

She was extremely confused. It behaved so nicely up until now, so what changed?

"Come here kitty! Pspspsps!" She called out, yelling and checking every adjacent room, but the cat was nowhere to be found.

A tad of anxiety entered her chest. It shouldn't have gotten too far. This is a closed space!

She continued searching and searching until a small shuffle was heard. It was inside her slightly open closet.

Turning on her phone flashlight she threw a glance on the lower most shelf. Hah! There it is!

The poor cat's yellow irises peeked over the pile of disheveled black clothes she threw there.

Worst of all, it looked incredibly afraid, so it retreated from the light, further burying itself under the black pile.

Owh. Poor kitty! I'm sorry!

Dejected, she got up and walked out of her bedroom, going for the kitchen. She picked up one of her unused bowls and poured a handful of kibble and another bowl for fresh water.

She placed them outside her closet door, letting the kitten be for a while, before checking again. It hasn't eaten at all.

Disappointed, she left the cat alone once again, heading to the kitchen to prepare an instant meal and some popcorn.

A few hours later.

The movie was great, but she had definitely seen better, not to flame the producer or anything.

She once again checked on the black kitten, noticing that the food was left untouched. She sighed heavily, turned on the flashlight and checked the closet again. To her surprise the cat was completely gone!

Panic rushed in again. Where could it be now? Searching over the entire residence, Amanises was stumped. Only to later find it hiding in the bathroom, curled up in the bathtub, licking some leftover water from yesterday's shower.

Of all places you chose this? I put a whole bowl of fresh water for you right there!

She tsked. "Well suit yourself I guess."

She moved towards the cat who was almost done drinking, only to be taken aback once it started hissing at her.

Why so aggressive? What's gotten into you?

This cat has some incredible mood swings for sure! One hour he's leaning into her hand, another he's hiding in her closet and another he's hissing! Almost preparing to scratch her hand away!

She turned away to leave the bathroom, turning off the light and leaving the door ajar in case the cat felt like leaving again.

Next day she woke up with the sun shining, almost penetrating her closed eyelids. She scrolled on her phone for a while, before preparing to do her morning routine.

Heading for the bathroom she was hit with a pungent smell invading her nostrils.

Inside the bathroom, the cat she left yesterday there sat straight near a small pile of shit. Looking so proud as if that's his lifework.

"Oh you took a shit on the bathroom tile and not the carpet! Oh I'm so proud!"

She picked up the cat and held it close to her face giving it some kisses. "Mwah, mwah, mwah."

Then, she put it outside the bathroom: "Now stay there and let mama clean up."

***

Phew. After she was done cleaning it, which was easier on tile. Her morning toilet was done with ease.

Leaving the bathroom and entering the kitchen she was hit with a comical sight.

The kitten was caught with a small chunk of expired meat in his mouth. Fuck! I forgot to throw that away.

She picked up the cat, snatched the meat out of its incisors and placed it down. She cut a slice of ham and dropped it on the ground near it. "Here. Eat that. That's better."

She threw the expired meat into the garbage bin.

***

A few hours later, Amanises opened her phone to a Discord notification.

It was from a server she had made a while back and now gets pinged every so often.

The server was called 'Nation of Evernight'. Thanks to her online nickname Evernight.

The people in the server sometimes called themselves Curly haired baboons—something which she has no idea why that happens.

007: Hidden Blade, why do you use a female character?

Hidden Blade: Smaller hit box!

007: Sigh.

Hidden Blade: Did you just sigh over text?

Loki: @EvernightGoddess am I allowed voice chat now?

Originally the server was meant for Amanises, Hela and some other friends. She has no idea where did these people come from.

EvernightGoddess: no

***

Amanises doomscrolled on her phone for a while, before hearing a loud thud coming from the kitchen. What is the cat up to now?

She hurried towards the kitchen only to be greeted by a happy and proud cat yet again.

Unlike before, there was no pile of shit, but instead a gray mouse held in the kitten's mouth.

"You've already caught a mouse? I didn't even know there were any here! I need to contact the landlord."

She picked up the dead mouse from the cat's mouth to hold as proof against the landlord, gave some head pats to the good cat and left.

***

Sometime later, Amanises was laying on her bed with a laptop over a short wooden plank to prevent overheating. She was doing some unfinished work with music playing on low volume in the background.

Out of nowhere, she felt soft fur near her arm. Turns out, the cat jumped on the bed by itself and snuggled close to her.

"Now you're deciding to stick close, are ya?"

She joked. The cat continued to caress her arm in a flattering manner, instantly winning her heart.

"Cutie, I can't have you been called "it" for the rest of your life now can I? You need a name! W-what is even your gender?" She flipped over the cat's tail around to check, earning a strange yelp.

"Boy. Hmmm... What could be fitting." She held her hand on her chin, hitting the Thinker.

"Oh I know!" She glanced at the cat's yellow irises. "Klein! What do you think?"

The kitten gave a loud meow which was taken as some sort of agreement. "Klein it is!"

Klein the cat licked his paw, completely indifferent.

***

"Ama, hop on the game!" This was the first thing she heard when picking up the call.

"Alright Lily, wait a sec. Gotta feed my cat."

There was a surprised gasp on the other line. "You got a cat? Send pics right now!" Lily demanded.

"Yeah, yeah just wait I'll send." She clicked end call and scooped up some kibble to pour into Klein's bowl.

Giving some pats, Amanises declared: "Klein! Time for the fashion show!"

Amanises sent 4 images. Click to expand.

Lilith didn't waste any second and immediately clicked on the images sent. They displayed the cutest black cat with the brightest yellow irises in the funniest positions.

One was on its back while Ama was scratching its belly. Another featured the kitty eating happily. And two more of it just playing around with a red string and a black glove of hers.

Lilith: CUTIEEE!! What's its name?

Amanises: Klein, he's a boy.

Lilith: I feel like he's missing something...

Amanises: What?

Lilith: Dunno

Lilith: Now hop on!

Amanises: Alright

The woman really wondered what Klein was missing. A collar perhaps?

***

Sunday was spent in pure relaxation. Amanises played with Klein all day, while watching movies, working and doorscrolling.

She had fun watching him play with unused cables and random strings pulled from clothes. The funniest was him playing a whole hour with a single penny!

She was filled with giggles and finally felt stress free.

***

Monday rolled again, but this time it was different. Amanises was no longer sleep-deprived!

Hela noticed almost immediately.

She smiled brightly, happy that her friend had somehow found a way to calm herself.

Approaching the working woman she was instantly greeted by happy giggles. "Why so happy?" She inquired.

"Come here, take a look!"

Hela took a closer glance at the screen on Amanises's phone that she was showing. It displayed a black cat playing with a penny and rolling over trying to catch it.

This earned some playful chuckles. "Where'd you find it? Does the account have more?"

"Hah! I filmed it myself! I have a cat now!"

Hela gasped. "A whole cat?! Since when?"

"Like Friday, after work. Found him in an alleyway."

"You've had a cat for two whole days and didn't let me know?" Hela looked offended.

"Ehhh." She quickly found an excuse. "I was playing with him all day and forgot to show him to anybody! Sorry!" She held her hands in a sorry manner.

"It's alright, I was joking anyway. See, told you to get a pet!"

"Yeah, you're always right, I should listen more often."

***

Amanises made new purchases for her new companion. A special sand-filled litter box, a bunch of toys and more cat food.

"He's gonna love them!"

Klein didn't play with anything but the glove, coin and his own reflection in a small mirror.

***

A few days passed by and she and Klein became closer and closer. Sometimes he would scratch playfully and hide in the closet but would always come back to nuzzle against her.

Today was an important day, however. Since it was a project between two different companies from two different parts of the world.

Demonic Wolves from England and Penglai from China.

She met with Huang Tao or known by his english name Roselle to discuss some matters and exchange ideas and information.

"The documents are inside my apartment, you can come in for some tea while we get them."

"Tea with a wonderful lady? Don't mind if I do!" His jokes were just as poor as his accent.

Huang Tao entered the apartment and noticed all the cat related stuff on the ground. "Oh you have a kitty. May I see the little one?"

"Oh sure! He should be on the couch." She said while brewing tea.

Huang Tao saw the black cat glancing at him weirdly from atop the sofa. His yellow irises bringing strange recognition.

Oh I remember! An invisible lightbulb appeared over his head.

"Lady Amanises, I know this cat!"

"Huh really?" She was taken aback. "From where?"

Huang Tao started explaining. "He's my boss Tianzun's cat. I remember seeing him sometimes."

"He's the boss'? I found the poor guy on the street!"

Huang Tao's voice lowered: "I'm not surprised. Hey, between you and me, that guy is a complete asshole! It's surely believable he abandoned him on the street!"

Amanises was filled with anger. She wished to throw punches with the guy right away. Unfortunately, he's the boss. She might get fired for trying to lay a hand on him.

"It doesn't matter anymore." He waved it off. "Seems like XiaoZhou is having a much better time here!"

"XiaoZhou? The name sounds complicated..."

"Really? What did you name him?"

"Klein." Answered the woman.

"Hmmm Klein... Suits him! Take good care of Klein for me!"

"I will!"

***

The next day, Amanises had to present all her ideas to the other boss in person.

She now stood face to face with Tianzun, the guy she really wished to slam into the ground. It took sheer willpower not to do so!

"Amanises right?" He suddenly spoke up.

She lifted her head up. "Huh? Oh yeah, that's correct, sir."

"Hmm... You're first. Take good care of the others." Tianzun spoke complete nonsense.

Of course she was the first to present her ideas, the rest fled!

***

She stopped by an arts and crafts store to grab some printing paper when she came by the cutest smallest little top hat with a bright yellow ribbon.

I see what Lily was referring to! This definitely matches him!

She bought the small hat and the printing paper, heading straight home.

***

When she entered her apartment, Klein was curled up, sleeping soundly on her bed.

She placed the small top hat over his head, giving him a pat and a small peck.

She will wait for him to wake up.