Tender Loving Paws - 13.0

Tommy shifted on the bed of leaves, turning over to see Adam's back facing him. The black cat had fallen asleep pretty quickly since he was so used to living out here. But for Tommy, it was a little harder, ever since he was a kitten, he had pillows and blankets as well as loving people to cuddle him to sleep.

Tommy's ears flicked, mind wandering back to Andy and Brian. The orange cat really missed his humans and he thought for a moment, did they even know Adam and him were gone? Tommy could easily picture Andy crying when the small human finds out and that thought hurt him.

The orange cat whimpered softly, ears drooping. He looked up again at Adam's back, realising the tuxedo cat was almost off the leaf pile, leaving Tommy with the whole "bed", so to speak.

Tommy smiled and began inching close to Adam until he was spooning the large cat, it was more like half spooning though, but Tommy didn't mind, enjoying the close contact with Adam.

Tommy turned his head slightly, resting his cheek against Adam's back, a soft purr rumbling in his throat. His arms bent against his chest with hands curled and pressing close to the black cat's shoulders with his tail resting on the tuxedo cat's thigh.

"Tommy?" came Adam's drowsy voice.

Tommy blinked, ears drooping slightly, "Did I wake you?"

"No, already waking up," muttered Adam, ears twitching and tail flicking.

Tommy purred, smiling, as he snuggled against the tuxedo cat, his big back was warm and comfy.

"Adam, do you think Andy and Brian know we are gone?" Tommy could not help but ask, worry in his voice.

"I'm sure Brian will call and find out, you know how that human is..."

"So... we are going back soon?"

"Let's wait one more day, we'll go back tomorrow, okay?" suggested Adam, craning his head back.

"Okay, whatever you say," mewed Tommy, kneading Adam's shoulders.









Andy and Brian immediately flagged a taxi, heading straight for home. Brain had asked for Rickey to be at their house when they arrive, and he better be or he was going to be so pissed, more so than now.

Brian was literally glaring outside the taxi window, feeling mad for the carelessness of his friend, but he was also mad at himself, for not thinking and just leaving the cats.

He snapped out his thoughts when he felt Andy grab his hand, those beautiful green eyes half lidded with worry, "Brian, stop blaming yourself," he whispered softly, "You won't have known."

Brian could not take it anymore, the pressure cracking him, "It is my fault! I-I shouldn't have called Rickey! I should've just called the pet hotel!"

Instead of being startled by his lover's outburst, Andy pulled himself closer to Brian, his thumb rubbing circles over the larger man's hand, "You just wanted them to stay at home, you know how stressful pet hotels can be to animals, don't blame yourself... please?"

Brian clenched his eyes, taking deep breaths. Then he looked at Andy, feeling guilty for saddening the other man. "I'm sorry, Andy," he muttered, leaning in to place a chaste kiss against the others lips. "We're start searching once we get home."

Andy allowed himself a small smile, nodding.









Tommy purred as he rolled on the soft grass, stopping on his back and curling up towards one side slightly, his slender body forming a shape akin to a boomerang. His ears flicked and tail twitched about, enjoying the sunlight shinning bright above him.

Adam stretched as he pushed himself out of bush next to his den, whiskers twitching as he sniffed the air. Today seemed well, not a tiny hint of rain at all. He looked around and spotted Tommy sunbathing. The tuxedo cat stared for a moment, admiring the other's soft fur that seemed to shine and glow under the light.

Adam found himself flushing lightly, what was he doing? He shook his head and walked up to Tommy, the smaller cat's eyes closed and a grin on his face.

"Hey, you're doing it wrong," muttered Adam, sitting down next to his companion.

Tommy cracked open an eye, looking right up at Adam, "Huh? What do you mean?"

"Sunbathing, it's not done like this out here," chuckled Adam, tail curling and resting on Tommy's belly.

"R-really? Then how do you do it?" squeaked Tommy, ears perking in curiosity.

Adam smirked, shrugging his shoulders, "I don't feel like it right now, lazy..."

Tommy bolted up, "Come on, Adam! Show me!" his tail flicked about impatiently.

Adam shrugged his shoulders again, a teasing look on his face, "Sitting here is nice."

Tommy whined irritably, bending down to grab one of Adam's hands and pulling the black cat, "Come on! Please!"

Adam faked a yawn, ears twitching in amusement. He let his body become a dead weight and sure enough, Tommy could not budge him even one bit.

But that did not deter the smaller feline and he kept tugging and tugging, arching his back as he continued trying, until he ended up panting, his tail going limp.

"Ad-ah-Adam, p-please," panted Tommy, whining in frustration.

Adam's ears jerked at the sound and he looked up at the orange cat, finding him flustered and annoyed. The tuxedo cat found himself heating up again, causing him to hastily stand up, "Alright, alright, just stop trying to dislocate my arm," he stuttered, looking away to hide his flushed cheeks.

"Yeah!" meowed Tommy, throwing his arms up in victory.

Adam sighed, shaking his head, "This way and stay close."

Tommy nodded, excitement shinning in his chocolate eyes as he trotted alongside Adam through the park.

"So... how are we going to sunbath?" mewed Tommy, unable to hold in his curiosity anymore.

"Just be patient, even kittens need to learn that," teased Adam, watching Tommy fidget in anxiety.

"Just tell me!"

"We're almost there," said Adam, grabbing Tommy's hand and pulling the orange cat as he started walking faster.

The two cats came to a small clearing where somehow the trees avoided the patch of grass, causing sunlight to shine in. There was a small stream flowing through that sparkled from the light and a large flat boulder next to it, creating shade for any fishes underneath.

"Wow! The water's sparkly!" giggled Tommy, running over to look into the stream, spotting obvious grey shapes immediately darting away from him.

Adam walked up to him, looking down as well, "This is one of the places we can't fish, they can see us so well with the strong light."

"Oh, so, that's why we sunbath here? Looks the same like just now," asked Tommy, tilting his head and pointing to the grass behind them.

Adam blinked, ears perking, "You don't sunbath on the grass."

"Huh? Then..."

"You do it here," smiled Adam, patting Tommy's shoulder and then walking over to the large rock. He easily leaped up onto the flat top, hands spread out across the warm surface. Then he turned around after sitting on the rock, beckoning Tommy over.

Tommy's ears perked and he obediently trotted over, letting Adam pull him up onto the rock.

There's was enough space on top for the two felines, the top was gray and quite smooth, not to mention really, really warm.

Tommy's tail swept across the rock surface, feeling the warmth sink into him, this was way nicer than grass. A purr rumbled in his throat and his ears flicked happily.

"Adam! This is amazing!" he meowed, bending down to lay on his belly. Oh, now that felt so good, like the warmth was licking his belly.

Adam laughed, tail twitching knowingly, "The best spot to sunbath."

"Yes..." purred Tommy, stretching his arms out in front of him, "So warm..."

"Enjoy it well you can, sun won't be this strong forever... and we don't have a rock at home," laughed Adam, laying down his back with hands behind his head.

"Aww, I want one now," muttered Tommy, but he quickly went back to enjoying the sun, the tip of his tail playfully poking Adam's ankle.

The two cats laid quietly, only the soft rumbling of their throats could be heard as the sun slowly dragged across the sky.

It continued to remain peaceful until loud rustling nearby caught Adam's attention. The tuxedo cat sat up, blue eyes darting around for the source of the sound. Unlike the comfort of their yard, you couldn't always let your guard down so easily out here because you were usually not alone.

Tommy craned his head back, looking at Adam, "Adam, what's wrong?"

"I don't know," he whispered, ears flexing about.

Tommy moved to sit up, watching Adam with slight worry. The older cat had a very serious look on his face, ears flexing nonstop and tail curled in tension. His nose twitched ever so slightly once in awhile as he sniffed the air.

"We're not alone," Adam finally murmured, one hand immediately grabbing Tommy's arm, "It's time to go."

"W-what...what's going on, Adam?" stuttered Tommy, ears drooping.

"Hush," Adam meowed, pulling Tommy off the rock, "Go back to the den."

"What about you?" muttered Tommy, he did not know what was going on, but he was still shocked by Adam's sudden change in behaviour.
Adam seemed to be not listening to him either, the black cat looking around and sniffing the air. So he followed, tilting his head up, Tommy took a strong whiff, a distinct scent stuck out from the surroundings.

"W-what's that smell, Adam?"

Adam looked at him, frowning slightly, "We're going back to the den, stay behind me," he instructed firmly.

Tommy wanted to ask again, but the look in the older cat's eyes made him silent and he simply nodded.

Adam took a few steps forward, head sticking out to sniff around before beckoning Tommy to follow.

They were quite close to the den when the bushes nearby suddenly rustled loudly, causing the two cats to jump and momentarily freeze up.

Then a black and white figure leaped from the bushes, heading straight for them. Adam hissed and tried to pull Tommy away but the other was faster, crashing himself right into the orange feline.

The stranger and Tommy ended up on the grass a small distance away, with Tommy on his back, chocolate eyes wide in shock.

Adam gasped, ears folding back. For right on top of his small companion was a dog, his mouth open and canines right at Tommy's throat.