Turtle & Canary; Wednesday [07/27].

[sake_shinigami]

Shunsui had a very fluffy new friend with him at the store that day. Through an incredibly handwavey series of events, it appeared as though he had temporarily acquired a cat. You see, in discussing the poetry of one Kobayashi Issa, Shunsui was reminded of a certain cat of the same name that he hadn't seen in quite some time. He was rather fond of that cat, after all, and wondered where she might have wound up...

...that, naturally, led to a somewhat convoluted but ultimately pleasant series of events that had him at Tisarwat and Lucille-chan's doorstep....and almost immediately after he'd shown even the slightest bit of interest in that cat, the plan to foist Issa on him was enacted. He was incredibly reluctant at first; he could barely take care of a plant, much less an actual cat, very well. But once he'd been assured it was temporary and quite possibly crucial for preserving the peace around their apartment and in their relationship, he felt truly compelled to comply.

And Issa was, in his opinion, a perfectly lovely and sweet cat, and he was currently enjoying teasing her with a little dangling feather toy over the side of the counter, which was clearly entertaining for her while also getting him out of doing any particularly demanding work, and he was starting to get ideas.

"Oh, I bet you would be a big hit with the ladies back home, too, Issa-chan ♥," he noted. "How'd you like to take a trip to the afterlife, hmmm ♥?"

Oh, like he was going to have a cat foisted temporarily into his possession and not use it to try and pick up chicks? When life hands you lemons, my friends....

Today's Squishy Flavors
Crème Brûlée
Chicken Fingers
Red

Turtle & Canary is open!

Comments

[okteiviakom]

Well, here was one chick coming in and immediately zeroing in on the cat.

(Though lamentably there would not be any picking up in the slang sense, alas.)

"Who's your new friend?"

[sake_shinigami]

"This," Shunsui's grin was almost proud, as if Octavia's immediate attention that was was only giving him proof that a feline foray into the Soul Society would only garner the best results now, "is Issa-chan ♥. I have oh-so-selflessly taken on the duties of cat-sitting for the sake of preserving love and romance, Octavia-chan ♥."

He pulled back the dangling toy, which did cause a moment of confused and disgruntled reaction from the fluffy white cat, but her attention was easily shifted over to the other person, who she looked up at and regarded with an uncertain meow.

Look, after months of avoiding certain food dishes because someone might have been trying to stealthily poison her, Issa was a little extra cautious.

[okteiviakom]

Octavia, no stranger to feeling cautious, was particularly slowly and calm about crouching down, and did not try to approach the cat more than that. Issa was free to make whatever move she wished.

"Ha yun, strikon," Octavia murmured. "Yu's firfou? Soukei."

[sake_shinigami]

Issa mostly just watched Octavia with her big, bright eyes, letting out a small chirrup of a meow as she got closer, long and fluffy tail making a few soft taps on the floor.

And hers wasn't the only interest caught with the murmured words, Shunsui's head tilted curiously as he listened and...considered.

"Whatever it is she's saying about me, Issa-chan," he then drawled, grinning, after a moment, "it's probably true ♥."

[okteiviakom]

Octavia gave a soft snort, glancing up towards Shunsui, briefly. Still letting Issa do her thing.

"Disha hef ste krei slagen, Issa," she told the cat, with just a little more of a rasp, corners of her lips twisting up, "ba stanop, seintaim."

Only truths!

[sake_shinigami]

Shunsui's own grin could only broaden, especially after that glance up. Octavia certainly had both their attention, though Issa's was still cautious in its curiosity.

"Sinpai naiyo~, Issa-chan ♥," Shunsui then replied, drawling it out just a bit more than he might usually as he placidly took his time in setting out a few cups. Three of them, to be exact. "Octavia-chan watashi no sukinahito no hitoridesu. Totemo yoi tomodachi. Sorenikuwaete totemo kirei na josei~~, neh ♥ ♥ ♥?"

[okteiviakom]

Octavia gave another soft huff.

And slowly held one hand out for Issa. Just left it there, still at a safe distance.

[sake_shinigami]

With that extended hand, Issa's nose began to twitch a little, and she stretched her face forward enough so that she could start to tentatively sniff at the tips of Octavia's fingers. Uncertain but determined little snuffles, as if waiting for one sudden sharp revelation to determine exactly what to make of this one.

Meanwhile, Shunsui, for his part, had his sake jug in hand and was slowly, deliberately, as if mirroring Issa's caution, pouring some into the first two cups, after which he set aside that jug, grabbed another one from under the counter, and filled the third cup with that.

[okteiviakom]

"En's ku," Octavia murmured, staying still even as her until now tiny smile grew a little bigger, bloomed a little warmer. "En's ogud, strikon."

Her hand probably smelled like porgs.

[sake_shinigami]

Thankfully, Issa had, for the most part, been kept quite a bit sheltered from that particular menace, so instead of the revulsion that would have likely taken place if she was a little more familiar with porgs, it just seemed to spark her curiosity a little more. The smell could be vaguely treat-like, and that had her interest for sure. With that potential prospect in mind, Issa finally ducked her head a little bit to nudge the top of it into Octavia's fingers a little, as if testing her potential for scritches.

"I think she likes you, Octavia-chan ♥," Shunsui offered, having leaned in a way to peer over at them a little better with an amused smile. "She does have good taste ♥."

[okteiviakom]

"A lot of animals seem to," Octavia murmured, as she proved that yes, she was very inclined to give some good scritches right now. "Don't know why that is."

(Probably because she was like this with them.)

[sake_shinigami]

If there were good scritches, then perhaps there would be good treats to follow. Either way, Issa was very approving of anyone willing to offer such attention to her, and so she shifted a little closer so she could get the most out of this.

Maybe even with some purring thrown in, for good measure.

"Mmmmmm, yes," Shunsui seemed to hum, as he plucked up the cup of sake at the end of his little line of cups, although he was doing far less drinking of it as he was drinking in the scene, the marked differences in Octavia's approach to the cat, and her reactions to it. "Truly, a mystery of the ages ♥."

[okteiviakom]

Octavia was good with animals and small children. The rest of the world was a little more... complicated.

"Are there treats?" she wondered, softly, quietly, as she kept petting Issa. She had a hunch the cat would like something like that, too.

[sake_shinigami]

Of course there were treats. This cat was destined to be the most pampered and spoiled cat of all time while in Shunsui's care.

And so a small bag of them appeared on the edge of the counter as Shunsui quietly slipped them out from where they'd been tucked in the folds of his sash and nudged them subtly forward toward her with a grin.

[okteiviakom]

Octavia looked up and was not surprised to see the bag had appeared there.

She threw Shunsui an amused look as she reached for it, carefully, and fished out a treat. "This cat's not gonna want for much, is she?"

[sake_shinigami]

"Certainly not on my watch, anyway ♥," Shunsui agreed with a soft chuckle. He threw Octavia a wink in there, too, before finishing the sake in the cup he had plucked up, setting it neatly down again, adjusting it ever so slightly, and reaching for the jug to refill it again.

And if Octavia thought she had Issa's attention before, it was nothing compared to the wide eyes staring at her now that she had the bag of treats. That massive bottle brush of a tail began swishing more exhuberantly across the floor.

"By the way," Shunsui was all but purring himself as he poured, albeit Issa easily put him to shame in that regard, "how was your outing to the opera last week, Octavia-chan ♥?"

[okteiviakom]

"It was good," Octavia said, only sounding a little distracted because she had a cat to lightly tease with a treat. "Lucifer loved it. I wore a dress."

These things were even somewhat connected.

[sake_shinigami]

Shunsui's soft hum was an appreciative sound, and it probably didn't take much to guess which part had inspired it.

"Did you enjoy yourself, then ♥?" he asked.

[okteiviakom]

"It was a good time," Octavia replied, and the softness wasn't just because she was still looking at the cat. "I think maybe we needed it."

Something that just went... right. Effortlessly.