Chapter 58
Side Story 2 (Part 3/3)
“Now I’ll teach you how to call out when you see a bug or a bird.” Mimi opened his mouth and demonstrated. “Short, quick calls, repeated, like wakakaka.”
Shao Sui the white cat imitated him.
“Wrong! Not meow, but gia, somewhere between a duck’s quack and ‘ah’!” Mimi said, “Gia, giagiagia!”
“…” Shao Sui had no intention of learning this.
Although cat language wasn’t as diverse as human language, it had many subtle nuances in intonation.
“Okay, let’s try something else, you don’t need to hunt anyway.” Mimi meowed again, “Meow~”
“Meow.”
“Wrong!” Mimi gestured with the ruler, “The tone should go down, then slightly up, like you’re a little sad and want company, cuddles and kisses are also acceptable.”
Shao Sui tried to recall if he had ever ignored such a meow when Mimi was still a cat.
Teacher Mimi, magnanimous, said, “One more chance.”
Shao Sui the white cat reluctantly meowed: “Meow~”
As soon as he finished, Mimi scooped him up, held his face, and kissed him repeatedly. He could barely breathe, letting out a series of muffled meows.
“You just asked for cuddles and kisses.” Mimi blinked.
“…”
Shao Sui understood, this was just a thinly veiled excuse for physical contact, the teaching just a pretense to satisfy the little cat spirit’s desires.
Mimi cleared his throat and resumed his teacher persona, “Oh right, the meow you just made means ‘Let go of me, I don’t like this, stop it.’ It can generally be interpreted as refusal.”
Shao Sui the white cat: “…”
It’s not that I don’t like it, I’m just suffocating.
Mimi hesitated, then added, his eyes darting around, “But if the refusal isn’t very sharp and forceful, it means you can continue… a little.”
…What does “continue a little” even mean?
Mimi, taking this as permission, picked up Shao Sui. Taking advantage of the fact that Shao Sui hadn’t learned how to express a forceful refusal, he bit the white cat’s cheek.
I want to eat you up!
So soft, so fluffy, so fragrant! He wanted to knead and pull him like a mochi, then stuff him in his mouth and chew!
He wanted to crunch on his ears like crispy cartilage!
Shao Sui the white cat: “Meow—!”
“Your refusal wasn’t firm enough, it means you can continue.” Mimi muttered to himself, continuing to nibble on Shao Sui’s ear.
This cat language lesson ended with a satisfied Mimi and a ruffled Shao Sui the cat.
However, after less than five minutes of rest, Mimi had a new idea: “Let’s go for a walk.”
Shao Sui the white cat raised his paw, making a stop gesture.
“Don’t play hard to get, I know you want to go.” Mimi put a leash on Shao Sui, went to the entrance to change his clothes and put on his shoes, “Let’s go.”
“…”
There was a large lakeside path behind their new apartment complex. Shao Sui had taken Mimi for walks there a few times, often seeing people walking their dogs.
Mimi didn’t like the silly dogs, even though he was human now, they could still smell him, and since he looked like a human, they would bark at him in alarm, attracting stares from passersby.
But occasionally, Mimi also liked taking… things for a walk, feeling cool and fashionable—new English words Mimi had recently learned.
Of course, he didn’t learn them from textbooks, but from the comment sections of short videos. As for the words in his textbooks, he forgot them almost instantly, getting almost all of them wrong when Shao Sui tested him.
Besides dog walkers, there were also bird walkers online, but that wasn’t suitable for Mimi, he would try to catch them, even if he didn’t hurt them, he would scare them away.
Sugar gliders were also cute, but they were supposedly very timid, he didn’t want to scare them to death with his scent.
Other rodents were out of the question, they looked like rats, not cute.
There were also snake walkers… but if he got a snake, he would be the one scared.
So Mimi often wondered, since he had a human, why couldn’t he put a leash on him and take him for a walk? How cool would that be!
Everyone walked other animals, only he would walk a human!
So last night, Mimi shared his dilemma on the cat spirit forum, receiving various responses.
Holstein from Shuhang District: Newly transformed cat spirits are like that, thinking the world revolves around cats, but it actually revolves around humans.
Tortoiseshell from Xihan District: Don’t talk nonsense, I saw humans say the world will keep turning without anyone.
Holstein from Shuhang District: Fuck off.
Black Cat from ** District: You can walk a human, as long as they agree, but you risk being arrested, humans have a crime called “corrupting public morals and offending public decency.”
Mimi didn’t understand how it could be considered corrupting public morals.
Less than a minute later, he received a voice message from the association teacher: “Get back here and redo your social training!!”
He knew he shouldn’t have used those words.
Fortunately, he knew some internet slang – “just kidding,” those three words were a get-out-of-jail-free card.
He regretted this initially, but now that Shao Sui was a cat, he could finally do it openly and legitimately. Shao Sui had bought the leash and harness when he first adopted him, but he had never used them since Mimi transformed into a human.
And so, among the dog walkers, there was also a cat walking a human.
“Woof!!”
“Such smooth fur, so pretty.”
“Woof, woof!!”
“Not afraid of people at all, must have been socialized.”
“Awoo—”
Several dog owners smacked their dogs, “What are you barking at?”
The dogs, cowering behind their owners, were terrified, as if seeing a ghost—
A cat that looked like a human, and a human that looked like a cat!
How terrifying.
They must still be dreaming.
Mimi, vain, puffed out his chest, enjoying the attention. But whenever someone asked, “Can I pet him?” he would immediately pull Shao Sui into his arms, “No, he doesn’t like being touched by others.”
Shao Sui was sure it wasn’t out of consideration for his OCD, but pure possessiveness.
And as a human who believed he was the center of the universe, being walked on a leash was rather humiliating.
Fortunately, no one besides the dogs seemed to notice.
If an introvert wearing a mask could become an extrovert, what was wrong with a human wearing cat fur being walked by a cat spirit wearing human skin? Who would recognize him?
As long as the little cat spirit was happy, it was just this once.
Shao Sui the white cat maintained a cold, aloof expression, comforting himself with this thought. It seemed to be working, passersby assuming he was a dignified and unapproachable cat.
A passing dog owner asked, “Does he bite?”
Mimi said modestly, “Not me, but he might bite others.”
Shao Sui, playing along, bared his teeth at the passerby.
The dog owner was startled, “Hey! He seems to understand.”
Mimi said proudly, “He’s very smart.”
“What’s his name?”
“Shao—” Mimi almost bit his tongue, stopping himself before saying “Sui,” “Shao Gou Dan!” (Gou Dan is a derogatory name for dogs, often used to insult someone.)
“…”
Shao Sui closed his eyes, completely abandoning all dignity, no one would recognize him anyway. Being a cat was uncomfortable, his fur not enough to protect him from the cold, perhaps because it was his first time being a cat, he hadn’t adapted yet.
Mimi’s body temperature was high, warm to cuddle with, and Shao Sui the white cat, unable to resist, remained nestled in the little cat spirit’s arms.
Mimi’s arms were aching, but he enjoyed Shao Sui’s clinginess and didn’t want to let go, enduring the strain, his arms trembling after a while.
Shao Sui the white cat opened his eyes and meowed.
Mimi hugged him tightly, looking straight ahead, his expression resolute as if about to join the army, “I can do this.”
Finally, Mimi’s strength gave out, and they returned home early.
At the entrance, Mimi took out a wet wipe, his expression serious, “We have to wipe our paws when we get home.”
“…Meow.” Speak properly.
“Okay, I’ll kiss you after wiping your paws.” Mimi completely ignored him, carefully wiping each of Shao Sui the white cat’s paws, “Your paws aren’t completely pink! There’s a little gray spot here.”
Shao Sui the white cat coldly retracted his paw.
Mimi grabbed it again, knelt down, and kissed the pink, slightly flawed paw pad reverently.
Shao Sui the white cat’s paws were Mimi’s obsession.
Shao Sui, stiffly maintaining this position, felt it was unhygienic, then remembered he also used to kiss the cat’s paws after wiping them…
Mimi squeezed the paw pad in his hand a couple of times, his eyes suddenly lighting up as if discovering a new world, “So paws feel this good! No wonder you kept pinching mine even when I meowed in protest!”
Shao Sui: “…”
Talk about poetic justice.
Mimi’s excitement continued to escalate, “Baby, let’s take a bath!”
Shao Sui didn’t think much of it, he would transform back soon anyway, letting Mimi play for a bit wouldn’t hurt.
But the master bathroom in this apartment had a bathtub, and Mimi was filling it with water.
When Mimi held him by his armpits and started lowering him into the bathtub, Shao Sui finally couldn’t take it anymore, kicking his hind legs frantically, his face full of terror, was this cat trying to drown him!?
“You won’t drown, all kittens can swim.” Mimi continued lowering him. “It’s a skill we’re born with.”
Shao Sui’s hind legs touched the water – He wasn’t born a kitten!!
“You scaredy-cat.” Mimi conceded, “I’ll hold you while we bathe.”
Mimi took off his clothes, got into the bathtub, and let Shao Sui lie on his chest, scooping water and pouring it over him, “Comfortable, isn’t it?”
Shao Sui reluctantly relaxed. Surrounded by water, Mimi’s body was his only safe haven.
And so, Mimi’s opportunity to indulge in his cat-petting fantasies arrived. Taking advantage of Shao Sui’s inability to struggle, he showered the white cat with kisses, occasionally putting his entire head in his mouth, smacking his lips afterward in regret.
Shao Sui finally understood why Mimi always emphasized that cat meat wasn’t edible. Sometimes, human affection towards cats could be terrifying.
He also had to carefully keep his claws retracted, afraid of scratching Mimi’s delicate skin.
“If only you were always a cat.” Mimi suddenly said sadly. “Then you would only belong to me, no need to go to work, or talk to other people, just stay home with me.”
“Meow.” Then you would have to go to work.
“Want a kiss? Okay.” Mimi, having answered his own question, kissed Shao Sui the white cat repeatedly, ignoring his meows of protest, “I taught you before, this means no but you can continue a little, I know, you like it when I do this to you…”
Suddenly, there was a splash, and Mimi felt a weight on his chest. He cautiously opened one eye, “…You transformed back.”
Before Shao Sui could speak, Mimi instinctively ducked his head, squeezed his eyes shut, his face scrunching up, bracing himself for the impending scolding.
“You little rascal.”
Shao Sui wrapped his arm around Mimi’s slender waist, their positions reversed in an instant. He nibbled on Mimi’s cheek, then his soft lips, molding and shaping them as he pleased.
“Mmmph! Mmmph…”
After the suffocating kiss finally ended, Mimi’s ordeal wasn’t over. Shao Sui rubbed against his lips, his other hand slowly moving downwards, “A sharp meow means absolute refusal?”
Mimi instinctively answered in cat language, “Meow.”
Shao Sui: “Then do you know how humans express absolute refusal?”
Mimi, caught off guard, looked confused and shook his head.
“You don’t, and that’s good.” Shao Sui smiled mischievously, “Because no matter how much you struggle, I won’t stop.”
…
Mimi was almost done for.
He felt a little sad. He had just gotten a cat, and now it was gone, and he was being bullied by the cat’s human form. Tears streamed down his face, his body shrivelling like a sea cucumber.
