Into The Sea

After taking her medicine, Lan Wu carried Ji Lingyue’s bowl, returning to their room with light steps.

She pushed the door open, only to find the bed empty. Looking around, she found the small cat curled up by the window, her ears drooping sadly. From behind, she looked like a soft, fluffy white ball.

Lan Wu tiptoed closer and poked her furry back. The poke made Ji Lingyue stumble, and she straightened up with an indignant meow before quickly closing her mouth and running to the other side of the room to lie down again.

When she poked the fluffy ball again, all she got was a silent cat pretending to be an ostrich.

Lan Wu couldn’t help but smile. She figured Ji Lingyue was embarrassed and didn’t want to talk to her, so she carefully placed the medicine bowl on the table and said softly, “Time for your medicine.”

Ji Lingyue sat with her front paws tucked in, as still as a statue. When Lan Wu moved closer, she slowly shifted her body to face the other way, showing her only her back.

Lan Wu blinked, her attention quickly drawn to the tail trailing behind Ji Lingyue. After a moment of hesitation, she couldn’t resist reaching out and giving it a gentle tug.

“Meow!”

The fluffy white ball instantly puffed up, and a paw swiped at Lan Wu. Lan Wu hissed, quickly pulling her hand back. This seemed to startle Ji Lingyue, who widened her eyes and let out a few worried meows before trotting over to Lan Wu.

Two shallow scratches appeared on Lan Wu’s pale hand. Though they didn’t look serious, Ji Lingyue still felt guilty. She looked up at Lan Wu with watery eyes.

Lan Wu smiled reassuringly. “It’s okay. I shouldn’t have grabbed your tail like that.”

Even so, Ji Lingyue paced back and forth restlessly. Finally, she slowly nudged her head against Lan Wu’s injured hand, lowered her head, and carefully licked it with her pink tongue.

Lan Wu’s lashes fluttered as she looked at Ji Lingyue in surprise. “Ah Yue?”

The cat didn’t reply, but continued licking her wound gently. Her fluffy tail silently wrapped around Lan Wu’s wrist, the tip of it slipping into her palm.

After a while, Lan Wu whispered, “Ah Yue, your tongue has little barbs. It’s a bit prickly.”

Ji Lingyue was speechless.

She suddenly lifted her head, her four paws stomping on the table in frustration before she turned and walked away. But Lan Wu smiled, suddenly scooping her up from behind and holding her in the air.

“Meow!”

Ji Lingyue was startled, her fur puffing up. Lan Wu laughed brightly, burying her face in the cat’s soft belly. “How can you be so cute?”

Unfortunately, the little cat wasn’t having it. She retracted her claws, using her soft paw pads to push against Lan Wu’s face, struggling fiercely in her hands. Lan Wu had no choice but to put her down. As soon as her paws touched the ground, Ji Lingyue ran back to the medicine bowl, paused, then turned her head and let out a few loud meows.

Lan Wu understood. “I won’t look.”

She obediently turned her back. Soon, she heard the lapping sounds of a small animal drinking.

It seemed she wanted to quickly drink her medicine, heal her wounds, and return to her human form as soon as possible.

Lan Wu tilted her head helplessly. The moment she moved, the lapping stopped, followed by two more meows.

Lan Wu quickly sat up straight, promising, “I really won’t look.”

Later that night, Ah Li came by.

After what happened today, her previous dissatisfaction with Ji Lingyue had faded. Now, seeing the white cat curled up on the bed, she couldn’t help but feel guilty. She placed a tub full of water on the floor, threw in a fire pearl, and then ran away.

Ji Lingyue had always loved cleanliness. Now, when Lan Wu tried to bathe her, she was met with strong resistance.

She looked at the small cat shaking off the water droplets and wondered aloud, “Does turning into a cat change your habits too?”

Since Ji Lingyue didn’t want to, she didn’t force her. After bathing alone, she draped a thin robe over herself and sat on the bed to apply medicine to her wounds.

A few moments later, a furry head poked out from the edge of the bed. The small cat climbed up, sitting obediently beside her and watching her intently as she applied the medicine.

Perhaps because merfolk had a naturally good constitution, the gruesome sword wounds had become much shallower in just a few days. After finishing her medicine, Lan Wu picked her up and laid her down on her chest.

Ji Lingyue lowered her head, pressing it against her chest, listening to the steady heartbeat. Slowly, she began to relax.

“Ah Yue.”

The cat shifted, raising her head to look at her.

Lan Wu sighed, scratching her chin softly. “This kind of life… it feels like a dream.”

Ji Lingyue closed her eyes involuntarily, purring contentedly. She rolled over in Lan Wu’s arms. Lan Wu was taken aback, looking at her rare, carefree expression. Her eyebrows began to relax.

“Never mind, I shouldn’t think about these things.” Lan Wu turned onto her side, placing her hand on her warm body. “Good night, Ah Yue,” she whispered.

Ji Lingyue curled up, nestling into the pillow, and let out a soft meow.

Lan Wu closed her eyes, her consciousness fading into a hazy darkness. Her breathing became even and slow. It should have been a peaceful night, like any other. Until a sharp pain on her lips woke her with a muffled groan.

All she could see was darkness. Lan Wu frowned, confused. She felt a hot body pressed tightly against her, nibbling and licking her like a small animal. Lan Wu blinked, instinctively reaching out to push the person off of her, but her hand sank into soft flesh.

She was shocked, freezing in place. After a long moment, she was able to make out the person on top of her in the moonlight.

“Ah Yue? You… you’ve changed back?”

But Ji Lingyue didn’t respond. She gripped Lan Wu’s wrists, pinning her down as she kissed her neck. As her long hair fell, Lan Wu caught a glimpse of two ears poking out from the thick black strands.

Cat ears.

Lan Wu: ?

The scene was so bizarre that she couldn’t process it. But the person in her arms seemed solely focused on licking and biting, leaving a mark on Lan Wu’s neck with another nip.

“Ouch!” Lan Wu winced, her eyes filling with tears. She glared at Ji Lingyue, who seemed to sense her emotions and paused. She lowered her head, licking the bite mark with her small tongue as if to apologize.

The hot breath on her skin made Lan Wu gasp, unsure how to handle this situation.

Clearly, Ji Lingyue wasn’t acting normal either.

Lan Wu sat up, struggling to push her back by her shoulders. She asked in a trembling voice, “What… what are you doing in the middle of the night?”

After being pushed away, Ji Lingyue let out a few impatient whimpers, her ears twitching nervously. After a moment, she suddenly took Lan Wu’s hand and pressed it against her bare chest, a familiar purr rumbling in her throat.

Seeing that Lan Wu was still confused, she opened her mouth and finally said, her voice slurred, “Want… want you…”