Double Trouble for @catting
Nov. 2nd, 2025 08:45 amIt wasn't often that Charles went to visit Port Townsend on his own, nor, specifically, the cannery and the Cat that lived there. But this was a special occasion, and time-sensitive, and on top of that their initial uneasy truce on Edwin's behalf had become something far more than that, though Charles didn't particularly think there was a word for what they were now.
Regardless of any of that, it was mid-morning in Washington -and evening back home with Edwin and Crystal off to a holiday market- when Charles stepped out of the mirror in the corner of the warehouse dedicated to their comings and goings, with a greeting of: "Oi, Cat." And upon realizing that the Cat in question was currently holding court, possibly, it was hard to say if the array of cats was some sort of official business or if it was just the usual, he amended to, "Your highness. You have a minute?"
The thing was, Charles knew full well that the Cat was a shapeshifter, he'd seen it in action more than once, and it had been months since Edwin had told him what had happened at the lighthouse their first time in Port Townsend, and while his initial, knee-jerk reaction had been upset, that had only lasted a moment before turning to curiosity, and when his next question had been 'well was he any good at it? Being me?' which seemed obvious to him, but was apparently not so obvious to Edwin, given the answer was a confused 'I suppose not?' Charles had put the issue to bed, at least as far as Edwin was concerned.
He had, however, kept thinking about it, the beginnings and bare tap-roots of a plan starting to settle into his mind, and now with Christmas, and shortly thereafter Edwin's birthday -which Charles hadn't yet given up trying to get him to celebrate- on the horizon, it was time to see if the plan was even a feasible one.
Regardless of any of that, it was mid-morning in Washington -and evening back home with Edwin and Crystal off to a holiday market- when Charles stepped out of the mirror in the corner of the warehouse dedicated to their comings and goings, with a greeting of: "Oi, Cat." And upon realizing that the Cat in question was currently holding court, possibly, it was hard to say if the array of cats was some sort of official business or if it was just the usual, he amended to, "Your highness. You have a minute?"
The thing was, Charles knew full well that the Cat was a shapeshifter, he'd seen it in action more than once, and it had been months since Edwin had told him what had happened at the lighthouse their first time in Port Townsend, and while his initial, knee-jerk reaction had been upset, that had only lasted a moment before turning to curiosity, and when his next question had been 'well was he any good at it? Being me?' which seemed obvious to him, but was apparently not so obvious to Edwin, given the answer was a confused 'I suppose not?' Charles had put the issue to bed, at least as far as Edwin was concerned.
He had, however, kept thinking about it, the beginnings and bare tap-roots of a plan starting to settle into his mind, and now with Christmas, and shortly thereafter Edwin's birthday -which Charles hadn't yet given up trying to get him to celebrate- on the horizon, it was time to see if the plan was even a feasible one.
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Date: 2025-12-01 08:03 pm (UTC)The mention of a Holiday Party has him raising his eyebrows, not only because the idea of Edwin having any part in anything considered a party is a surprise (it had to be Charles' idea initially, right?) but also because of the thought that he might be invited to it. He's not modest, never under any strict governance to not go where he isn't wanted, but the idea that a place has been made for him at an occasion like that, even out of politeness, is plainly surprising. And even if the mental picture summoned in his little kitty mind at the word party is no doubt a far stretch from what their office party will actually end up being, he finds himself weirdly excited by the prospect. God, he's pathetic.
Thankfully, Charles' thumb across his fingers and the direction of his reply gives the Cat something to focus on that isn't the fact that he can't remember when he was last invited somewhere, and he grins. Not only at the word choice.
"I can't believe you brought up making out before I did. I'm turning domesticated." He makes a face, scrunched up nose and tight little eyes, which looks feline on his face but strangely childish on Charles'. "Obviously, I like the sound of that. Am I supposed to kiss you like I'd kiss you then, to make it obvious?" A not at all subtle glance at Charles' mouth. "Or do I need some lessons so that I don't give it away?"
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Date: 2025-12-02 05:49 am (UTC)And maybe it was an excuse -as if Charles actually needed one- to get a feel for the difference himself, too, "We won't have much time for the actual snogging, since we'll have to clear space first, fewer things for him to worry about when he gets back means he'll be more amenable to join in like."
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Date: 2025-12-03 07:58 pm (UTC)The fingers up his arm make him bristle with interest, nerves alight with sensation and delight, as they always are when someone is touching him. He smiles, pleased by Charles' returned interest and taking a single step closer, with every intention to make good on that offer until he realises he's purring.
"Ah," he says, pursing his lips a little, using the moment of pause to sliiiide his arms around Charles' neck, delighting in how different his limbs look, how nice his hands are - those long fingers - as he slides them into Charles' hair. When he speaks again, he dips his voice a little, rounding the vowels; an approximation of Charles' voice if not a perfect imitation just yet. "Need to be careful of that, don't I?"
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Date: 2025-12-04 05:40 am (UTC)It wasn't even an objection, just a quiet, half-teasing statement of fact. He had definitely picked up on a couple of ways to distract the Cat, or at least draw his attention, but it seemed like the Cat had already picked up on all of his, much the same way Edwin had, which wasn't actually as distressing an thought as it should have been, the two of them having something like that in common. Likewise the fact of just how quickly the Cat was absorbing his mannerisms to use them back at him, that also just made sense.
While the hand that had been at the Cat's wrist had fallen away when the shapeshifter lifted his arms, that just meant that Charles could plant both hands on the Cat's hips to tug him just a little closer, something that he did with both the Cat and Edwin, when he could.
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Date: 2025-12-06 10:18 pm (UTC)Charles likes to make his partners happy — gets off on it, even — but when his partner is, in a way, himself... what would that look like?
"Don't bitch, puppy. It's not unfair, I just know what I'm doing."
It's something that fuels the Cat's thoughts as he firms his fingers in Charles' hair, raking blunt fingertips over his scalp before meandering up to paw through the longer curls at his crown. Slowly, he leans in, chin tilted up, lips slightly parted in an easy grin, like the one Charles sometimes has on his stupidly attractive face when he leans in to kiss the Cat when he knows full well how the slowness will piss him off and make him even more eager.
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Date: 2025-12-09 07:03 am (UTC)Not that he was going to complain about that, not really, he'd already known that if the Cat agreed they were probably going to have to make time for a couple sessions, especially since he knew how easily distracted they both were.
He made a quiet, pleased, sound in his throat at the scrape of nails against his scalp, the frustratingly-fleeting tension at his crown, and then that tease of a kiss, which was enough to get a soft huff of a laugh out of him, voice a near-drawl against the Cat's lips, "That's definitely how to kiss Edwin, to start with." One hand slipped up to catch hold of the Cat's -his?- jaw in the same way that Edwin so often did to Charles himself, hold solid enough for the time being, keeping him in place to deepen the kiss, hand sliding away around to the nape of the Cat's neck as he did.
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Date: 2025-12-10 08:01 pm (UTC)Edwin likes a little control, as the Cat well knows, but that enjoyment is only useful when there's something in need of bringing to heel, and though Charles will never taunt Edwin's more firm manner to the point where it could be considered taking advantage of his familiarity with the other ghost, the Cat has seen him get carried away countless times. That's the balance the Cat has yet to learn. How much is enough, how much is too much, how much will be forgiven and what will make Edwin pull away.
Baby steps, the Cat thinks, there's plenty of time to learn those steps to the dance. For right now, he focuses on Charles' mouth against his own, letting his mind wander back to the last time he'd watched them kiss -- curled on the couch with one eye open, feigning comfortable sleep as Charles leant down to where Edwin was sat at his desk, bringing their smiles together and letting his hand fall softly against Edwin's sternum. The Cat leaves one hand carding softly through Charles' curls as the other falls to his shoulder, fingers a constant pressure entirely unlike the flirtatious whisper of his own usual touch, and brings his hand round to press his palm to Charles' chest, over where he might find an eager heartbeat in a living boy.
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Date: 2025-12-12 06:27 am (UTC)Not that Charles was thinking much about that at the moment, just returning the kiss easily, at least until that hand settled against his chest, and realization dawned that Edwin had been doing much the same to Charles as Charles had been doing to Edwin, because invariably that was right where Edwin would set his hand as well, even when it would logically be easier -and sometimes more comfortable- to have it sit somewhere else.
The realization, along with the touch in and of itself, were enough to draw a soft laugh from him, shaking his head before drawing his head back just far enough to actually focus on the Cat's face, despite the Cat's other hand still in his hair, and Charles' own hand still against the Cat's nape, "Right, well now we're both acting like Edwin, aren't we? And that's not going to be any help at all if we're both supposed to be acting like me to get his brain rattled off track."
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Date: 2025-12-13 01:11 pm (UTC)"Hmm," He says, narrowing Charles' eyes a little as he surveys the young man himself. "That would be a lot simpler if the two of you didn't have so much overlap. You've spent long enough living on top of each other that I can't tell which of you is responsible for which mannerism sometimes."
But... Well, now that gives him a little food for thought. He inhales, exhales, and with a flash of purple smoke summons a desk and an upright chair that don't exactly match the one sitting in the Agency office in London, but are a close enough approximation of them. Then, he backs up on the corner of it, shifting to sit himself there with one knee up and one knee hanging down, both thighs bracketing Charles' hips, pulling the ghost in closer. The desk might not be a perfect imitation, but the way the Cat is sitting certainly is, having surveyed Charles' brand of sprawl too many times to count.
"Alright then. Show me. If I get you like this on the desk while Edwin is out, what should I do next?"
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Date: 2025-12-14 08:17 am (UTC)His brows both arched at the addition of furniture, smile tilting easily back into place at the Cat's particular slouch, because that was something he could recognize as well even though he'd never truly seen it himself.
He shifted just a little closer, settling himself in a comfortable lean with one hip against the Cat's thigh, not to tip him off-balance, but just to press a little closer, "Well, if the desk's here, and the chair's on this side, that means the mirror's going to be there." A gesture with one hand to the side that the mirror would be on in the office, "So whatever we're doing, we'll want to angle that direction, at least a bit." The crooked smile returned, "Don't need to give him a whole show as soon as he makes it back, but definitely want to make sure he's seeing more than just the back of my head, yeah?"
He straightened up from his initial lean, one hand settling on the Cat's thigh just above his knee, the other catching at the front of his shirt to tug him just a little closer, "Hands in my hair's good," not just for Charles own benefit, but as a tactic to keep Edwin from thinking too hard, "make him a little jealous even if he's not sure which of us he's jealous of."
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Date: 2025-12-19 05:34 pm (UTC)"Whatever we're doing..." The Cat repeats, a faintly amused smile loitering around the very corners of his smile as his dark lashes lower, following his eye line down to Charles' mouth. "I'm sure it'll really rile Edwin up if we're just sitting here talking about what we're planning to do." The fingers in Charles' hair briefly tighten, half a tease and half a warning, as he tugs lightly on his chain again. Like yanking on a dog's leash.
"Is it weird making out with yourself? Is that what's got you so focused on the theory? Because you should know, I'm a very tactile learner."
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Date: 2025-12-20 06:28 am (UTC)The grin went tilted as one brow lifted, leaning in just a little closer, "But maybe that's what's going to work best, yeah?" That particular 'yeah' was definitely a tease, given as how he was nearly close enough that his lips brushed the Cat's as he spoke, letting the hand not still curled in the Cat's shirt lift to slide through his hair instead, nails grazing his scalp, honestly curious to find if the Cat enjoyed the sensation as much as he did, but not actually waiting for a reaction before actually closing the space between them to claim another kiss.
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Date: 2025-12-20 08:31 pm (UTC)He would, however, argue that letting instinct take the wheel is usually where all the fun lies, and is in fact one of his favourite of all of Charles' traits, but Charles conveniently distracts his mind from any rebuttal by getting his mouth nice and close, teasing with that lowered pitch he knows full well drives the Cat crazy with all those sharp vowels and lilting tones, and slides long fingers up into the cropped curls at the back of his head.
It makes sense that the Cat likes hands in his hair — or, if he's honest, hands petting any part of him — almost as much as Charles does, given that he's a Cat, but the soft gasp that escapes his mouth before it's claimed by Charles' own is reserved solely for the feeling of nails against his flesh. The Cat's other favourite thing about Charles is his readiness to be a little grabby, a little rough; always playful, never with the desire to actually hurt, but enjoying the feeling of a body that certainly won't break underneath his hands.
It makes it easy to rile him up, to get him to retaliate, to know what gets him going and to be ready to take the consequences. So, when Charles kisses him, the Cat King makes a groan that's half relief and half encouragement, tightening his hand in a mirror response as he wastes no time in deepening their kiss, scraping his teeth softly along Charles' lips.
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Date: 2025-12-21 01:14 am (UTC)Likewise the firmer grasp in his hair was enough to have his eyes going unfocused completely, a soft groan curling free from his throat in return, a similar pitch and timbre to the noise the Cat had just made, though that just made sense, given the givens.
The hand that wasn't tangled in the Cat's hair, scratching against his scalp was still curled in the front of his shirt, though he let go to skim it down around the Cat's side, nimble fingers tugging at the hem of that shirt so that he could get at warm skin underneath. He was amused as much as he was frustrated to find the singlet in the way as well, nipping at the Cat's lower lip, the amusement filling his tone, "Good job, got the layers right."
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Date: 2025-12-21 06:54 pm (UTC)He pulls Charles in again with the two vantage points his hands have, but instead of just pulling him in so their mouths meet, he leans back even further than that, encouraging Charles to loom over him while the Cat gets his back flat on the desk. It's regrettably empty since he'd just poofed it out of thin air, but it delights him to think of Edwin's fussing were he to get his papers all mussed up from a heated makeout session.
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Date: 2025-12-22 03:55 am (UTC)Of course that was at the same time his head dipped to press a kiss to the underside of the Cat's chin, working around to the corner of his jaw and down the side of his throat even as he pinched a little more firmly, content to lose himself in the warmth of the Cat's skin against his mouth, at least for a little while.
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Date: 2025-12-23 10:06 am (UTC)"Mmh," He says eloquently, words trapped in his throat by Charles' rougher treatment of his nipple, the sharp pain-then-pleasure making his spine arch. In return he tightens his grip in Charles' hair, pulling as if he's about to force him back and away, only to flex his fingers and push him closer. His other hand slides around to join as his legs lift onto the desk properly, knees either side of Charles' hips. with one leg coming up to hook around him. And he makes sure to use the leg that would be closest to and in best view of the would-be mirror off to the side of the desk.
"Gonna bite me like I bite you, puppy?" He murmurs, trying to stifle an excited purr threatening to rumble through him. "Gotta make it believable, right?"
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Date: 2025-12-24 05:19 am (UTC)It was, however, enough to make him grin down at the Cat, one brow lifting, "Think I might be able to manage that, yeah." The Cat had a way of biting to hold on -rather than nipping to tease the way Charles did- that Charles didn't generally employ himself, but thoroughly enjoyed when it was used on him, which made him confident enough to attempt it.
He rocked his hips forward in the easy hold of the Cat's legs, head dipping to pick up where he'd left off, except he set his teeth against the jut of the Cat's collarbone, not just pinching the skin and letting go again like he usually would, but actually holding firm, pausing only briefly to make sure he wasn't holding tight enough to do any damage before shaking his head just once, a solid little tug of movement altogether too much like a dog with a toy.
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Date: 2025-12-29 07:51 pm (UTC)The canine aspect to it isn't lost on him, and perhaps it's that realisation that makes a light laugh cut through his breathless panting, makes him tighten a hand in Charles curls at the same time as his thighs tighten around his hips.
"Good boy," he purrs, knowing it's not as good coming from him as it is from Edwin, but knowing that in this context it's more than appropriate. He wonders, idly, how Edwin would react to seeing them get a little more rough with each other; Edwin himself doesn't like to be bitten, but he's never shown much aversion to watching the two of them kiss like it's an argument, often with more teeth than with tongue...
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Date: 2025-12-30 07:01 am (UTC)He'd made that same observation himself -that Edwin seemed to enjoy watching the two of them go at it in ways he wouldn't enjoy them going at him- and it was part of what had given him the idea for this in the first place.
It was the praise as much as it was the laugh -genuinely amused rather than outright teasing- that kept him from fighting the way the Cat was bodily keeping him in place, giving him just enough leeway to roll his hips again, pressing closer once more even as he tried to tilt his head into the hands in his hair without letting go of the Cat's throat in the process.
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Date: 2025-12-31 11:31 am (UTC)And, speaking of playing his part, he tightens his fingers a little more in Charles' hair, a pulse of pressure beyond just getting a good hold on him, like a warning or a re-grounding, not entirely dissimilar to the way Edwin firms a hand on him when he wants Charles' attention, or when he's telling him off for getting carried away.
"C'mon, don't you wanna see if I've paid close enough attention to what you look like under all these annoying layers?" He asks, voice breathy against Charles' ear because fuck he sure knows what he's doing with the angle of his hips, somehow just as good against the facsimile of his own body as it is against the Cat's slightly larger form. "If we really wanna blow his mind, I think at least one of us should be looking more debauched."
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Date: 2026-01-01 09:47 am (UTC)"But I am curious." The hand that had previously wriggled under the polo that mirrored his own only to find the undershirt there as well moved again, hand splaying comfortably against skin now that he could, just sliding a little higher -as far as the hem of the shirts against his wrist would allow- as he dipped in to claim another kiss, though he grumbled a little, "Going to have to let you up to get you out of this lot, aren't I?"
He didn't really want to move, partly because he was enjoying the kiss and the Cat's hand in his hair, but also because the rest of the position was comfortable as well, which did surprise him a little, since he knew how rangy his own limbs were, it didn't quite make sense that two of those would fit together so easily.
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Date: 2026-01-01 04:30 pm (UTC)He kisses Charles back, even anchoring him down for another before he can properly move away because... well, because he can, before he grins against his mouth. If Charles is expecting the Cat to allow him to leave now that he's been pretty consistently grinding down against his hips, he's got another thing coming. He might not have claws in this form, but he can still knot his hands in Charles' hair to keep him put.
"Aww," He coos, smile sharp and decidedly feline even on Charles' features, though with his angles he looks a little more foxish than catlike. "You're so cute. You're not the only one that can will away clothing—" Using the hand that isn't wound in Charles' hair, he theatrically snaps his fingers to poof away the black woollen coat, and the first layer of jacket beneath. "—remember?"
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Date: 2026-01-03 03:08 am (UTC)He couldn't help the soft laugh at the violet flare of the Cat's magic, head rolling forward even against that hand in his hair, brow resting against the curve of the Cat's shoulder, muffling a quiet laugh.
Getting ahold of himself again a moment later he lifted his head again, "I had forgotten about that, actually." He'd gotten caught up in the moment, the same thing happened with he and Edwin sometimes, they both forgot that they didn't have to do things the long way, and usually by that point they were both too worked up to manage vanishing clothes in full.
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Date: 2026-01-03 11:21 am (UTC)"It's pretty gratifying to know I can distract you so bad even when I don't look like myself. Mm, that's the one downfall in this little plan of yours, isn't it? It's all well and good trying to teach me what to do, but I've never been one to make it easy. And you're not the one who keeps us all on track." The Cat flexes his fingers, encouraging the polo shirt to disappear as well, pulling the exact face Charles pulls when he's done something and has caught on to how hot the Cat is getting about it — flexing his hands a certain way, making him wait for a kiss, using the deeper register of his voice... there's a few.
"I might feel good now, but if we take this too far you'll be back at square one. Which, I'm not complaining about, but we don't wanna get so into it that there's no room for the person this is actually in aid of, right?" The Cat might be an unpredictable force, a nuisance and a pest, but he's also a King. He's capable of some guidance, even if it's typically selfishly driven.
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