I Am NOT a Catgirl! Ch. 9: The Bedroom (Patreon)

I didn’t think to knock on the door before I went into my room.

I really should have knocked.

Augie was standing in her underwear and stockings, braless, contemplating the nightgown in her hands. Her slender back and taut stomach looked impossibly smooth, her fluffy tail swayed idly behind her, her breasts had tiny goosebumps on their tops and tips, and I couldn’t remember rushing out of a room so quickly in my entire life. I slammed the door behind me and slapped a hand over my mouth.

“M… Maddie?” Augie’s soft voice carried through the door.

“I’m sorry! I should have knocked. I’m so sorry.”

A tiny giggle. “Why are you sorry?” A shuffling of fabric. “I’m dressed, come back in.”

This was the night from hell for my emotions. My heart hammered against my chest, and it was hard to breathe. First Tristan, now this. There are two wolves inside me…

“Maddie,” Augie repeated. Now she sounded upset.

I inhaled, counted to five, then exhaled. My heart slowed as I opened the door for the second time. Augie tipped her head and looked at me with those big pink eyes. Her long white eyelashes were so pretty when they swept her cheeks, and she’d quickly braided her hair over her shoulder in a messy style that made me want to pet it.

“What’s wrong?” Augie touched her braid and frowned. “I-is there something about me that offends you? Is that why you refuse to change in here?”

“No. That’s, er, not it at all.” I couldn’t keep this from her. She’d trusted me with her deepest secret, and if we were going to walk into danger together, she deserved to know mine. “To be honest, I have a lot of questions that’ll only make sense if I… If I tell you something.”

Her brows raised. “Is everything alright?”

Oh yeah. It’s great. “I mean, beyond what just happened back there?” I jerked my thumb over my shoulder and laughed weakly. “Let me ask first, are you okay?”

Augie sat down on the edge of her bed and folded her hands in her lap. “I admit, I am a little afraid. Of fighting, of finishing school, of what will become of Anyona.” Her thumbs warred for dominance and, while she spoke, she watched them as if she had a running bet on which one would win. “But you were so brave. And Master Tristan was so brave. So, if I am with you, I know that whatever happens, I am not alone.”

“No. Never.” I sat down beside her and I realized that, no matter what happened from here on, I wanted to make sure Augie was safe and happy. Maybe it was stupid. I’d barely been in Nyarlea a week. But she didn’t deserve the horror I’d seen on that screen, nor should she have to suffer under Celestia’s fist. “I’ll never leave you alone, Augie.”

“Thank you.” Augie leaned to her side and let her head rest on my shoulder, gaze still locked on her thumb war. “Alright, your turn. What is it you would like to tell me?”

“This is going to sound absolutely insane, and Tristan is the only other one who knows…”

Augie giggled. “I’m certain it cannot be so bad.”

We’ll see. “The reason I don’t know anything about Sorentina, or Venicia, or Nyarlea is because, well, I’m not from here, Augie.”

She raised her head and blinked. “Not… from Nyarlea?”

“No.” I rubbed the back of my neck. I’m sure Gwendolyn felt a disturbance in the Force. “I’m from Earth, the same world Tristan is from.”

Augie opened her mouth, then closed it again.

“That’s, uh, that’s not all.” I looked up at the ceiling. “I’m a guy. A man. Well, I’m supposed to be a man. Like Tristan. But, somehow along the way, I was changed into a catgirl.”

Her eyes widened to the size of saucers, and she inched away from me.

That distance stung, and I tried to ignore it. “I know. I know it’s crazy. I know I sound like I need to be locked away in a padded room. I’m not really a fan of this whole situation, either.”

“Did Master Tristan believe you?”

“Yes.” Though it was a lot easier to give him proof.

“I-it’s… It’s not a Spell?” she whispered. “The shop I purchased the sleeping potion from, she sold [Impersonate Soul] scrolls—”

“I don’t think it’s that simple.” I sighed. “The thing is, if we’re going to fight together, I need your help. How do I choose a Class? Are there Skills I can learn? What was the iPaw Tristan had?”

“You really don’t know…?”

I shook my head. “I grew up in a place called Washington. My mom and dad were unapologetically, entirely human. I worked at a fast-food joint and went to school for engineering, not etiquette. I played video games, tried to start working out, and ended up here.”

“F-fast food…? Video games?” she repeated slowly, touching one finger to her chin. “Enja… Enja-near-ing?”

I chuckled. Augie had no idea how cute she was. “Those words are as strange to you as Class, Spell, potions, and sewing are to me.”

“I see.” Her ears flicked forward, and she returned her hand to her lap. “So, is Madeline the name you had in this, um, Wah…Washing-tin?”

“No. It’s Matt.”

A faint smile crossed her lips, and for a few seconds, I felt a little better. “Can I still call you Maddie?”

“It’s probably easier that way on everyone, yeah.” It was close enough, and if she still wanted to use a nickname and wasn’t running away screaming, that was a good sign.

“Good.” She nodded and scooted back over until our arms were touching. “That’s good.”

“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you earlier, Augie. I hope you can understand why.”

“I can.” Augie looked at my arm, then rested her head back on my shoulder. Relief spilled over me. “I must say that I struggle to comprehend how this could have happened. Saoirse brings men to catgirls as gifts, and you should have been the same. To turn you into one of us seems, pardon me for saying, like a waste.”

You’re telling me. “I was hoping Tristan would know something about it. But we both saw how that went.” I shrugged the shoulder not holding Augie’s head. “It’s fine. I just need to understand how to fight.”

“Y-you’re not leaving?”

“What? When did I say that I was leaving?” I stroked her hair between her ears. God it was soft. “Didn’t I just say you wouldn’t have to go about this alone?”

“I just thought you would use this excuse to leave the school. Perhaps to travel to Badyron or Sorentina and find someone who could help you.”

“First of all, I have no idea how to get to either of those places. Second, if this ‘Defiled’ threat is as bad as what I saw in that window, then it doesn’t sound like I’m going to make it in one piece.” I regretted the words as soon as Augie winced. “Sorry…”

“N-no. It’s quite alright.” She wrapped her tail over her lap and toyed with its end. “I was not expecting to see the scene so…vividly on Tristan’s wall. It was like I was there all over again. Trapped.”

I wrapped an arm around her shoulders and held on tight. “You’re not. You’re here. You’re safe.”

She nodded and readjusted her head against the top of my chest. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d been so close to a girl. At least the boobs made for a good pillow, I guess.

“So, since we’re going to fight together,” I continued, dizzy from breathing in her perfume, “how do I choose a Class?”

Augie wiped the tears that had escaped her eyes and sat up. She smiled. “This is usually something a mother teaches her kitten.” Her giggle was good-natured and much preferred to her crying. “I’ll guide you as best I can. First, close your eyes.”

I nodded and did so.

“Now, think about your Class options. I would assume you have the same as a newborn man, so you will focus on the six First Classes: [Fighter], [Warrior], [Scout], [Mage], [Acolyte], and [Chemist].”

I let her words wash over me, and as she named the Classes, faint images of weapons hovered just before my mind’s eye. Sword, axe, bow, book, staff, and a potion. “I see them,” I murmured.

“Now choose one.”

Axe. [Warrior]. I thought without hesitation. Give me the tank barbarian Class. It’s what I played in everything. The axe solidified, and a faint glow separated it from the others. After one short burst of gold light, it vanished. “I picked [Warrior].”

“A good protection Class,” Augie mused. “I’m an [Acolyte] and we will see what Tristan chooses. Regardless, we can switch Classes so long as we are in a [Sanctuary]. Oh, um, cities are almost always [Sanctuary] locations. Like Venicia.”

“Got it.”

“Now, think of the word ‘Skills.’”

[Warrior] Skills. A warmth in my chest flared, and a string of excitement rushed through my veins. A collection of red…threads? appeared just within my mental grasp.

“I am not familiar with the [Warrior] Skills, but you should see the threads available to you. Each one will tell you what it does and allow you to pour your Experience earned from battles into them. At your first Level, you may choose just one.”

This was so much like a JRPG that it caught me off guard. Maybe I understood more about this than I first thought. “Are there multiple Levels to each Skill?”

“Excellent question, Maddie. Yes, there are.”

“You’d make a good teacher, Augie.”

She giggled. “Thank you.”

I moved through the threads and considered them carefully: [Provoke], [Axe Mastery], [Increase Attack], [Adrenaline Rush].

Just gauging from Tristan’s physical build, he was highly unlikely to pick a front row Class. And, even if he did, I needed to help keep shit off of him and Augie.

I pulled the thread for [Provoke] higher and concentrated. This is the one I want. The dull red brightened into a vivid crimson, and I could feel a part of myself siphoning into it. When it returned to the collection of threads, it was brighter than its siblings and moved with more energy.

“I picked [Provoke],” I said.

“Were you able to bring it to Level 1?”

“Yes.”

“You learn so quickly! It took me three tries when I first reached my Class.” Augie touched my knee. “You can open your eyes.”

I did so and was happy to find her smiling.

“Whenever you go to cast [Provoke], you will draw upon that thread until you feel it activate. This can be a different sensation depending on the catgirl, so it’s impossible for me to explain.” She blushed, and her ears flicked to the sides. “Whenever I successfully cast a Spell, I… I suddenly taste cupcakes.”

“Well, then, I hope I taste them, too.” I chuckled. “Or maybe a really good steak.”

“You will have to tell me! Oh! Do you understand what a ‘cool down’ is?”

Another benefit of too much gaming. “Yeah. I can’t use a Skill or a Spell again for that amount of time, right?”

“Yes! Very good, M-Matt…” She blushed and touched her cheek. Hearing my actual name out of her mouth made my heart skip. “U-um, when you Level, I will teach you how to increase your Stat Points. It is very similar, but you must reach the next Level first.”

“Er, right. No problem.” I wanted her to say my name again. It felt correct in my ears. It didn’t involve the awkward mental gymnastics of trying to make “Madeline” or “Maddie” get my attention every time. Was it weird to ask? “Is there anything else I should know?”

“One more thing, I believe. There is [Combat Mode], and then there is [Civilian Mode]. Currently, we are both in [Civilian Mode]. You cannot activate Skills or Spells in this mode. This is a topic we can discuss more of tomorrow before we start our first evening together.” She shifted her hands back to her tail. “We will find out if you have armor and a weapon or if we need to purchase one for you.”

“Hang on. You can’t cast anything in [Civilian Mode]?”

“Correct.”

Anger prodded at my stomach, and I frowned. “So if a certain maid used [Steal] and [To Dust] on me, she was in [Combat Mode]?”

“Yes, b-but—” Augie gaped. “Who would do such a thing?”

Bitchy Veronica. I shook my head and rolled my eyes. “Don’t worry about it. Really. Thank you for helping me, Augie. I’d seriously have looked like a fish out of water tomorrow without you.”

“For what it’s worth, I do not believe Master Tristan has ever experienced combat before, either. You may be flopping fish together,” she said with a sly little smile.

So long as that fact didn’t get us killed, the mental image was hilarious. I laughed with her, anyway. The more she could make light of the whole situation, the better.

“Do you have any other questions?” she asked.

“Just one.”

“Hm?”

“Could you…?” I swallowed and brought all of my hair over one shoulder. I’d learned that it helped cool my neck down in situations like these. I would never take short hair for granted again. “Could you say my name again?”

The red hue returned to her cheeks, and she took my hand. “Matt.”

I closed my eyes and let her voice settle over me. I hadn’t realized just how badly I’d needed to hear it. It shut out the Madeline voice in my head and just let me be me.

Even if my own voice was currently urging me to do things with Augie that were not exactly in the etiquette textbook.

Augie’s warmth shifted beside me, and there was a sudden pressure on either side of my thighs. I opened my eyes just as she wrapped her arms around my neck and tilted her forehead against mine.

She was sitting in my lap. Augie was sitting in my lap. She was so light and warm and perfect. Her lips were inches from mine. I froze. I had no idea what to do with my hands.

“Thank you, Matt,” she whispered. And then she kissed me.