#overgrown this is your fault this is because of how you’ve been drawing baby tails recently

[tornado1992]

The grief Sonic must’ve felt the first time he saw the yellow spots appearing in baby Tails’ brown fur.

Like, “hey, the kid is growing up”, but “oh, my kid is growing up”

[wri0thesley]

I've been a wreck all day because we have to put down our cat tomorrow (her name is ducks) can i get a scenario where josuke comforts his s/o who's in a similar situation, thank you

hi anon! i’m so sorry about your cat :cmy requests are closed right now but i don’t know what i’d do without my baby so i did this one anyway, sorry that it’s fairly short! i hope that it’s okay that i used your cat’s name in it too warnings for animal death and sads

You don’t know how to describe the way that you’re feeling other than ‘empty’.

You feel like a hole of nothing. You’d felt like that in the office of the veterinarian, as she’d softly explained to you what was wrong with your beloved cat. You’d felt like that when she’d told you what her options were. And you’d felt like that as you’d tearfully agreed that you would do whatever would stop Ducks from being in too much pain. You’d felt your hands shaking as you’d filled out the paperwork, but you hadn’t cried.

You weren’t sure if you still had the capability to cry.

Even looking into your cat’s trusting little face, eyes dark and little nose and whiskers twitching, you couldn’t summon the tears that you could practically feel welling up inside you. She’s been given enough painkillers to last through the night so you and Josuke could say your goodbyes--

Your heart does a twist in your chest and you squeeze your eyes closed, a hiccup escaping your lips. This would ordinarily be the precursor to sobbing - but again, there’s nothing. You feel nothing.

Josuke is waiting in the living room when you get home, and he gives you a tight smile as he comes in.

He knows the decision you’ve made. He was on the phone with you after you’d been given your options, and he’d heard the slow, robotic voice you’d spoken to him. He’d asked you if you were okay and all you’d been able to say was ‘I don’t know’.

You know that he supports you unconditionally, but as you look at him - those big eyes so hopeful, as if you might have come up with a miracle whilst on your way home - you feel like he’s judging you for not being a better cat owner. You feel like he’s about to blame it all on you.

And hell, maybe it is your fault. Maybe if she’d only ever eaten gourmet food or if you’d played with her more or if you hadn’t shut her out of the bathroom at night she’d hang on for longer--

“Why don’t you let her out of the carrier?” Josuke says, his voice impossibly soft. There’s a catch in the back of it, as if he’s been crying. You guess he has - Josuke loves Ducks just as much as you do. When you’d first introduced them, he’d laughed and said he was more of a dog person . . . and then, the next day, you’d found Josuke asleep on the sofa with Ducks curled on his lap, purring away to herself.

The memory almost pushes you over the edge, but you stop yourself tumbling down the precipice just in time. You should be inconsolable right now, right? There must be something wrong with you.

You sit down beside Josuke, grateful for his warmth and his strength, and lean forward to undo the catches of Ducks’ cat carrier. Her little face appears at the grate, nose gently pressing against your fingers, and you smile at how cold and wet it feels. It might be the last time you ever feel her nose.

“Hey there, baby girl,” Josuke says, as Ducks takes her first faltering steps out of the carrier. Your heart does that flipping again - she seems so slow and unsure, compared to how she used to be. “We’ve got one more night with you, so we’re gonna make the most of it, yeah?”

Ducks looks at Josuke and opens her mouth, little meow issuing forth. Josuke grins, the expression transforming his handsome face--

And the dam breaks.

You’re sobbing into Josuke’s shoulder before you can stop yourself, full body wracked with the force of your sobs, breath hitching in your chest and in your throat over and over. You know that you’re probably making a mess of your boyfriend’s expensive jacket, but you can’t bring yourself to care.

Ducks has never hurt anyone in her life, she’s the perfect cat, this isn’t fair.

You sob out as much to Josuke, even as his arm goes around your shoulders and his voice makes soft hushing sounds and comforting little noises in the back of his throat. Even as his hand draws gentle circles over your back to ease your tears along.

“I--I sh-should have taken better care of her!” You whimper out, clutching at the material of his clothes. “Th-this is my fault!”

Josuke’s eyebrows draw in, full mouth pulling downwards into a frown.

“Babe, you know that’s not true. Ducks is the most spoiled cat who’s ever lived--”

“N-no! I should have been a better cat parent, I st-stood on her tail once!” A hiccuping sob escapes, shoulders moving violently against him. “N-no wonder she hates me!”

“Babe, no. She loves you. Come on--”

You can’t stop crying. What are you supposed to do? You’ve had Ducks most of your life; when you moved here, she was your only friend. You’ve cried into her fur and whispered your secrets to her and felt blessed when she decided she wanted to sleep on your bed over anybody else’s.

Your memories are filled with her. Walking along dough that you’d been trying to make cookies for Josuke with. Getting stuck under the brand new armchair you and Josuke had bought. The first time she’d seen your boyfriend and she’d tried to bat his pompadour like an overgrown cat toy.

The last memory interrupts your sobbing, and you let out a hiccup that might be a chuckle. Josuke is evidently worried by this development; he whispers out:

“Babe?”

“I--I was just thinking about how she tried to use your hair as a ball,” you whisper to him, and Josuke grins.

“Remember when she stole the bird for Christmas dinner?”

You let out a weak giggle again.

“You were s-so mad. We had microwave food.”

“Hell yeah I was mad! I spent alla Christmas Eve sortin’ out that bird!” Josuke’s eyes are bright as he looks down at you, and you see them soften as he sees your tear-stained face. “Babe. I know this is shit. But . . . Ducks has had a good life. She’s a spoilt lil’ kitty. And . . . she’s not gonna be in pain anymore.”

“I know,” you whisper miserably to him, “I know. It’s just . . . she’s always been here. She’s like my childhood, y’know? She was my best friend.”

“I know,” Josuke murmurs, hand rubbing those soothing circles over your back. “I’m gonna miss her. I’m gonna miss her a lot. But it’s time.”

There’s another soft meow, and you look down to see that Ducks has put two of her paws onto your knee and is looking up at you like she’s wondering why you’re crying. She seems so concerned by your tears - just like she did when you were little and crying. You summon a weak smile for her, reaching over and scooping her into your lap. You don’t know if she’s strong enough to do it herself.

“Hey there, baby,” you whisper, voice soft. “I’m gonna make sure that you have the best last night any kitty’s ever had.”

Ducks purrs back at you.