The Bet (Cheshire)

She showed up at his apartment at the agreed upon time that Saturday with a nervous feeling in the pit of her stomach. The school counselor versus homeroom teacher 1-A in a battle bet that the other teachers had participated in.

Whatever could go wrong?

Except, of course, losing terribly. She had given it her all but he'd been studying her techniques and countered every one of them. Elly sighed. She was going to have to train much harder come the following Monday. For now, however...

The door opened, and Aizawa Shota's scruffy face, normally devoid of emotion, greeted her with a smirk and what might have actually been a twinkle in his bloodshot eyes. He stepped aside, gesturing for her to enter, and pointed at a bag on the kitchen counter when she did.

"There's your outfit for the day. As soon as you put it on, we begin. No speaking, and only cat behavior - except for bathroom breaks, of course."

Her ears flattened as she peeked at what he had bought. "You can't be serious."

Aizawa shrugged and sat down on a worn out couch, that and one equally battered table seeming to be the only furniture in the whole place.

"You're my cat for the day, Ches. You'd better get used to the idea, since you lost."

"Ugh!" She stormed off to the bathroom to dress. He had gotten her a bodysuit almost like hers, with the same striping as her tail. This one, however, was far fluffier and only a half suit. The entire piece was fur, yet it left her arms and legs out for comfort. She put the paw booties on and stared miserably at what lay on top of the gloves - a sparkly, purple collar with a bell on it.

He was going to regret this.

Elly fastened the collar on and then tugged the gloves over her hands. They had paw pads like the booties, but unlike the noise-cancelling ones of her hero costume these had what appeared to be flexible foam. They squished down when she moved and made it awkward to walk, although she wouldn't be on her feet for awhile. She gritted her teeth, her fangs showing, and got down on all fours to crawl back out to the living room. The bell tinkled musically and she already hated it.

If Aizawa was amused by her appearance he said nothing, only glanced up as she approached and went back to grading papers. She sat on her haunches nearby and sulked, huffing lightly. Minutes passed, and she realized she really was going to be treated just like a house cat. He made no move to engage at all and was completely engrossed in his work.

For some reason this pissed her off more than anything else so far, even the water and food bowls she had noticed on the kitchen floor. She got up, miaowing loudly, and strode over to him. He absently moved his legs when she butted him but still didn't acknowledge her, so she growled under her breath and sat up, pawing at his pants leg.

This finally had the desired effect. "What?"

Her ears laid further back and she hissed at him.

"I'm not going to pet an angry cat," he told her blandly, shuffling the papers around. "I know better than that."

At the notion of him petting her she bared her fangs; she couldn't help it.

"No." He tapped her lightly on the nose and she blinked, startled.

Squinting narrowly, she slowly opened her mouth. Without appearing to look he flicked her again.

"I told you, no biting. Don't even think about it."

Elly dropped down and slunk off down the hall, her tail wildly lashing in rage about her legs. Aizawa had surprisingly given her the run of the house, it seemed, so she nudged the bedroom door open and stood still at the sight.

There was nothing there.

Well, not exactly - the bright yellow sleeping bag was tossed carelessly against the wall near the windows. That was the only thing she saw until she got closer.

There was a furry mouse toy laying beside the bag. It was a hideous bright purple color, chosen obviously because of that. As she grew closer she smelled it and blanched.

Catnip!

Did he know what that did to her, or was it because cat toys seldom left the herb out of their construction? She sniffed once, delicately, then sneezed. It was very fresh, almost as if he had sprayed it with extra scent. She shook herself all over and backed away before her feline half overcame her good senses.

When she returned to the living room she glared at him suspiciously around a corner of the couch. He was grimacing, rubbing at the back of his neck and looking at the rest of the tests with dead eyes.

Elly saw how tired he looked, even in this restful state, and thought better of biting him. Instead, she leaped onto the couch, causing him to twitch slightly as if startled.

"What's this?" He turned to find her staring at him with half-lidded eyes. She lowered her head and pushed at his arm.

For the first time Aizawa seemed hesitant. He reached out and laid a hand on the top of her head. It felt good, the palm warm and rough but a light touch. She pushed further, and he gently stroked her hair, rubbing her furry ears when she started to purr.

She had only thought of the downsides to this bet, but was starting to realize she could have a lot of fun.

When he tried to reach for his work she batted at his hand, insisting on more attention. He paused, then moved forward again and she caught his arm in her gloved paws and pulled.

"What the..!"

You wanted me to be all cat, buddy, she snickered to herself. Now let's see how well you handle me.

Caught completely off guard he found himself face to face with her. Aizawa blinked, and she was pleased to see confusion in his gray eyes. She suddenly very much wanted to see more, to watch uncommon emotions at play on his grizzled features not many people saw.

So she craned her neck up just a bit and licked his stubbled cheek.

His gasp was loud in the quiet room, his eyes so wide and round she could see more of the bloody flecks speckled in the whites. She purred softly and flicked her tongue out again, but this time instead of his nose that she was aiming for he moved swiftly and slipped his mouth over it. Her purr grew louder and he pressed forward, his hair stirring about his shoulders as they kissed.

When they broke apart in need of air, he looked rather sheepish. "I think," he said quietly, licking his lips and glancing guiltily around the room, "I would like to have you back to normal now."

She cocked her head at him quizzically, raising her eyebrows.

"Please, Ches," he coughed, the blush that had begun creeping out of his shirt collar spreading to his cheeks. "You've, ah, more than satisfied the conditions of the bet."

"I should think so," she sniffed, then smiled smugly as he reached for her again.