Chocola Minaduki

[10/27, 10:50 AM, Dream] I’m running through a maze of caverns. The sounds of scratching and cats hissing echo around me. Occasionally, I see eyes reflecting the light from my flashlight. I need to get out of here!

I slip. I faceplant and slide a few feet on the slippery cave floor. My flashlight rolls around, coming to rest with the beam illuminating the paws of a giant cat. My eyes widen in terror. It starts stalking toward me. I try to move backward, but I’m paralyzed with fear. But then, it disappears. I breathe out a sigh of relief. (-o-) I feel a paw slap down onto my back. (O-O). Its claws slide out (~-~), impaling me. (≃-≃) It lifts its paw, taking me with it, and flicks it at the wall while retracting its claws. I fly off and slam into the wall. I cry out in pain. (><) I fall, landing with my cheek against the ground. (O-~ ) I see stars. (꩜-꩜ )

[10:54, RL] [Chocola] I’m sitting on the floor, keeping an eye on Alex for Vanilla. He spasms in his sleep, startling me. I look at the clock. It reads 10:58. It’s almost time to wake him up…He’s kind of cute…I can see why she likes him. His face scrunches, almost like he’s in pain. He cries out. Sounds like he’s in pain, too. He rolls onto his stomach, then back again.

[10:57, Dream] [Alex] It stalks toward me. I…need…to move!

I try to lift my head, and a surge of pain makes my eyes water. Hurts…too…much…

I feel breath against my neck. (O O) I manage to roll over, and come face-to-face with the cat. (O O) It lunges to bite me, so I put my arm up to block. Its fangs go halfway through my arm! I feel an intense burning that spreads from the site, tracing my veins, capillaries, and arteries. It lets go. I roll over, eyes watering, scrunched tight against the pain. I start screaming.

[10:58, RL] [Chocola] Alex is whimpering. He rolls back onto his stomach. He gets louder and louder. Then, he arches. His ears disappear, cat ears replacing them. A tail bursts out from the tail of his shirt. Wow…it looks like mine…but…lighter.

[10:59, Dream] [Alex] I arch as my human ears disappear to be replaced by cat ears, and a tail slips out of the bottom of my shirt. The burning crescendos as I scream.

[RL] My eyes shoot open. I roll over and sit up, still screaming. It subsides. I’m hyperventilating. I feel arms wrap around me, and I lean into them, trembling with fear.

[11:00] [Chocola] I move to wake him up, but he rolls over and sits up, screaming. He stops and starts hyperventilating. His eyes are dilated. Wow…he’s terrified!

I sit on the edge of the couch and hug him. He throws his arms around me. I hold him to my boobs, too concerned with calming him down to be embarrassed. I’ve heard enough stories to be wary of anything that may trigger him. He’s shaking like a leaf in a tornado, and still breathing heavily. We sit there like this for a few minutes. He slowly calms down, then pulls away and looks at me. His eyes return to normal as I watch. “Are you okay?”

“I-I th-think so…”

He looks behind him and checks out his tail, then reaches up and touches his ears. He tweaks them and winces. “Well, that was a fun way to turn into a cat. On the plus side, though, these ears are fluffy.”

His tail changes to look more like Azuki’s. He brings his tail into his lap and strokes it along its entire length. 

I swing my legs over the couch arm and lay back, Alex still on top of me. Wait…why isn't he snuggling…Oh…

I realize he’s asleep again. I smile. I slide him up so that I can cuddle him properly, then roll onto my side. I look at him. He’s cute when he’s asleep…he looks so peaceful!

I feel all the exhaustion of taking care of him for two days with no sleep kick in. It’s been a loooong two days. But…I can’t sleep. I promised Vanilla I’d keep an eye on him…and I’m too stressed…

[11:25, the void of sleep] [Alex] It’s been a loooong two days. But…I can’t sleep. I promised Vanilla I’d keep an eye on him…and I’m too stressed…

Wait…two days?!

I reach out and touch her consciousness. I recoil as a wave of stress, physical, emotional, and mental, floods my body, followed by aching. I steel my resolve and touch her mind again.

[11:26, RL] [Chocola] I feel Alex touch my consciousness, leave, and come back. Wow…two days…you weren’t kidding about the stress. Let me help.

But…I promised Vanilla I’d stay awake until she got back.

It’ll be fine…promise.

No! It’s okay, I’m fine!

No, you’re not! Are you just gonna keep going until you break? When’s the last time you slept more than an hour or two?

I think back. I…don’t know…I’ve been going for weeks, doing days at a time on a few hours of sleep, stopping only for meals and the bathroom.

Let me help, please!

No!

I feel my resolve waver.

Chocola…if you keep this up, you’re going to kill yourself.

I start to tear up.

You’ve been helping me…let me repay the favor and help you…Please, Chocola-chan. It’s just for a few hours, and I can split our combined exhaustion between the two of us. We’ll wake up at about the same time. Please!

The tears escape, running down my cheeks. He…cares…

Of course, I care!

Okay…I’ll do it.

I feel his relief. I hug him tight. Thank you.

No…thank you for doing this…

I start to relax wherever Alex is touching me, and it spreads throughout the rest of me. I hear numerous CRACK!s as my muscles unknot. I feel a lot of the tiredness leaving me, then a reduced amount of sleepiness flooding me. I feel a cloudy peace. My thoughts become sluggish. Sleep tight, Chocola. I’ll…be here…for…you…

He trails off. I feel his consciousness fade into a level of sleepiness I didn't even know existed. Jeez…I think he actually kept most of it…but why…

Then, it hits me. He would only do it if he thought that Vanilla would be back before I woke up…But…he must’ve seen my memories if he knew how long I’ve been doing this. I could tell he knew it would be days before she got back. So why…

My eyes shoot open. He lied to me…

It…was the only way you’d listen…

[11:30] He floods me with the missing balance. Before even I know what’s happening, I close my eyes and sleep.

[10/29, 8:16 AM] [Vanilla] I soar back into Akihabara and land in front of Sora’s office. I walk in and look around. Huh…guess she’s not here.

I hear a toilet flush. Sora walks out of the bathroom. She turns red when she sees me. I start to stare at her mostly visible cleavage, then catch myself and look away, blushing profusely. Not now…and especially not with her.

“Is it done?”

“Everything is prepared for Alex. I purposefully didn’t use any gender-specific pronouns, Alex being Alex.”

“Good. Go. Rest up.”

I walk to me and Chocola’s room. I wonder how Alex is doing…but I’m more worried about how much longer Chocola can restrain herself.

[8:31] I walk in, then go around to the other side to see Chocola and Alex. Alex has his back to the couch, arms and legs around Chocola. Chocola is cuddling Alex. Alex is a neko, and both are asleep. Chocola is snoring lightly. Alex must’ve woken up then…I’m gonna take a shower.

I grab clothes and climb in.

[8:43] [Chocola] I wake up with Alex snoring lightly, inches away. His shoulders rise and fall with every breath. Wow…I feel…amazing! As much as I want to resent Alex for lying to me…He was right. He knew I’d be mad if I found out, even to the point of possibly hating him…yet he still kept trying to convince me…and succeeded. I needed the sleep, and he knew I was just going to keep going if he didn’t do something to stop me. He risked our relationship, as well as his relationship with Vanilla--and possibly the other catgirls--to help me. If that’s not love, I don’t know what is. Also…he’s seen my memories, as well as my thoughts. He knows me better than anyone, including Vanilla…Or maybe even me!

I stare at his sleeping face. He’s so CUTE!

I start to imagine what that face would look like buried in my chest. I look away, blushing. Why’d Vanilla do this to me?! We have the same schedule!

Alex sleepily opens his eyes and smiles. “Correct…it does feel good, doesn’t it?”

I hug him tighter and he snuggles in. I blush and look away. Then I grin. “Chocola…you’re…scaring me.”

I grin wider. I roll so I’m on top of him and hug him, then bury my face in the hollow between his neck and shoulder. He pauses, unsure how what I'm doing, then hugs me back.

[9:00] We hear a door open and look at each other. I look at the bathroom door and see Vanilla. I pull back, but it's too late. She saw us. Uh-oh…

He's ashen-faced. Why are we panicking?

We're in heat, and Vanilla can't control herself.

[8:58] [Vanilla] I turn off the water and step out of the shower. I stretch. I towel myself off and dress in a black pleated miniskirt, light pink panties, and a t-shirt depicting the “Hang in there” cat. I blow dry my tail, ears, and hair. I brush my teeth and walk out. I immediately wish I hadn’t. Chocola is cuddling Alex, and he's looking at me like a cat caught in the act. The urge to cuddle crescendos. I can’t help it! I’m gonna join them, 

[9:01] [Alex] She takes a step forward. I roll backward, using my hands to spring over the back of the couch. I nearly fall over after landing from the shock. How the hell did I just do that?!

Chocola scrambles back in crab position. Jeez…if Chocola is scared of cuddly Vanilla...wait, cuddles are good...why is this bad?!

She almost killed me last time.

I gulp.

[9:01] [Chocola] Vanilla’s eyes turn catlike. Alex…I take it back, this is worse! Don’t make any sudden movements. She’s given herself completely over to her instincts.

“Vanilla…let’s talk about this…”

She swivels to meet his gaze. He pales. I slowly inch my way over to him and use his arm to slowly pull myself up. I hug him.

He turns his body to hug me. “Talking to her won’t do anything. That is no longer Vanilla, it is cuddling in its purest, most undiluted form.”

“What are the odds of us getting out the door before she catches us if I open the door from here, right now?”

“Absolutely zero.”

He crouches, putting an arm around me. His other arm goes behind my knees. He carefully scoops me up and slowly straightens up. I put my arms around his neck. The door flies open. Vanilla darts over to it, putting a few more feet between us. I feel a tingling that spreads from everywhere that he touches. He slowly pivots. “Fool…you think that’s gonna stop us?”

He sprints at the window, which overlooks the front of the building from six floors up. “Are you trying to kill us?! If we don’t die from the sixty-foot fall, brain damage will finish the job!”

“Live a little!”

He dives. I grip him as tight as I can without restricting his airflow. We pass through the wall, him keeping a tight grip on me. He completes a full rotation. Wait…you can take people with you when you ghost?!

Apparently.

He turns solid. The tingling fades. “Alex, are you crazy?! That’s solid concrete, we’ll be pancakes! I mean, it won’t permanently kill us, but still, it’ll hurt!”

“Choco, you really think I didn’t plan for this? Swing around to my back.” He lets go. I fly around and slam into his back. His wings unfurl, then he folds them, and we hit the concrete. The concrete shatters in a circle around him, his left fist is the epicenter. His wings snap out, making it look even cooler. Wow…

I kick off, landing a backflip, while he faceplants with a THUMP! as his forehead hits the jagged edge of the crater. My hands fly to my mouth and I run back to him. He’s struggling to push himself up into a sitting position. He gives up and says, “A little help, please?”

His wings dissolve in the harsh sunlight. He’s whimpering. I roll him over and place his head in my lap. A chip of cement is embedded in his left eyebrow, blood flowing down over his closed eyelid. His left fist goes from an almost black-purple at the tips of the fingers to “slightly-sunburnt” pink at the wrist. His right eye is watering, and a tear falls every time he blinks. It’s almost hypnotic. I appraise the damage to the concrete. “You attempted to use it, didn’t you?”

In a shaky voice that manages to hide most of his pain, he says, “If you mean One for All, then yes. To be honest, though, I was bluffing about being confident in this plan. I didn’t think One for All would work with my other forms. Guess I have to train, just like Deku did…”

“That may be so, but you did well for your first time. His first time, he…”

“Broke his whole arm, as well as his legs, yeah.”

“You only broke your hand, and not even fully.”

He looks at his hand. “As for this being my first time, you’re half right. I’ve used it once before, to catch a ball of lightning that Kanna threw. However, this is my first smash. But anyway, how do we stop her?”

“We hide for a week…”

“We both know that won’t work.”

“Then we need to help her.”

He focuses on something over my shoulder and pales. I pivot around.

“I think she’s gonna help herself…to us.”

“Master…come back. Why won’t you play with Vanilla?”

“Leave him alone! He doesn’t want to!”

I grab his hand and tug him away. He stands rooted to the ground.

“Master, please! We need to go! She'll suffocate you!”

She charges at me. He unfreezes and we run. I look back to see she’s reaching for Alex. “Master!”

He reaches up and grabs her forearm with both hands as it passes over his shoulder, wincing in pain. He digs his feet in. “Vanilla, please forgive me!”

He yanks forward and down. The force, combined with her momentum, causes her to flip over his shoulder and slam down on her back. She cries out. He lets go and starts running. He catches up to me and we run. Please don’t be dead!

“She’s not…I’d know if she was…but that judo flip? Awesome!”

“I stole that from Deku.”

I look back to see Vanilla full-on Naruto running toward us.

“Chocola, give Master back! I know that you want him, too! I’ll let you join! Please!”

No! Must…not…succumb…to…love!

Choco…I can carry you...you can hug me then.

“Come on, give in. All you have to do is tackle him for me!”

I’m ahead of him, so I stop. “Sorry abo-”

He sweeps me off my feet as he dashes past. “Hey! Put me down!”

“No time!”

I bounce with each step. He shifts me so my head is on his shoulder and I wrap my legs around him. I’m struggling to hold them up. This is nice...

I fade into blissful sleep.

[9:30] [Alex] Chocola falls asleep and starts snoring cutely. So cyuuuute!

[9:31] [Vanilla] I’m slowly gaining on them. He can’t keep up this pace forever…not carrying her.

“You may as well give up! You’ll collapse eventually. It’s you I want, so just put her down and run.”

“No! I don’t bow to attempted murderers!”

I laugh. “You asked for it!”

I tap into my reserves and charge with a burst of speed. I leap forward and tackle him. He manages to flip over and land on his back, protecting Chocola. He holds her tight. He cracks his skull on the cement and tightens his grip on her. “Just do it. But please, bring her with us, and don’t hurt her.”

I consider. “Okay.”

“Thank…you…”

He pushes himself back so his head is level with Chocola’s, then rolls them so she is on top. “Just drag me.”

His tail disappears, but his ears stay. Then, he passes out. Chocola snuggles into him. I grab his legs and drag him into the building, then to the base of the stairs, Chocola in tow. I manage to carry them both up the stairs at the same time, then drag them to the room. I open the door, drag them in, and shut it. I drag them into our room and lay them on the bed. Alex snuggles into Chocola and shivers. I cover them with the blanket. Then reality sets in. What have I done?

[9:59] I walk out, lay on my stomach on the couch with my laptop—a Chromebook 14 g5 that Kashou bought me—in front of me, and watch videos of girls cuddling in wholesome ways. After about five minutes, I shut the laptop. Bad idea to watch that! Alex…Chocola…please…wake up…I need cuddles…really…bad…

Tears stream down my face. I feel the floor shake and hear a Thud! from the bedroom. I slowly stand up, and walk to the bedroom. Chocola is sprawled facedown in front of the bed, toward the door, arm outstretched like she was trying to grab my leg and collapsed.