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“Well done.” B-12 turned to the Cat, and whizzed around its head. “Now, let’s get back to Momo’s apartment and-”
The little drone paused when it noticed Cat’s sleepy, almost blissful expression.
“Cat?”
“Mrp.” The cat reclined on its side, before rolling onto its back, paws waving expectingly in B-12's direction.
“Er...” The drone descended slowly towards the Cat’s neck, unsure.
Cat’s hopeful expression never went away, and B-12 leaned in and rubbed its head against Cat’s neck.
A strange, but pleasant vibration was registered within the drone as Cat let out those low purrs of contentment.
There was a little piece of paper crumpled up in the alleyway. B-12 only noticed when Cat let out a yowl of delight and had rushed ahead to pounce on it.
The drone watched the cat play. Sometimes, Cat would knead the little paper ball with its paws. Sometimes, it would nibble at it, tail moving back and forth lazily.
When B-12 finally approached, Cat placed a paw on its new toy and looked up with a mischievous expression. A slight tilt of the head and a flick of the paw, and the paper ball flew in B-12's direction.
“Hey!” B-12's startled lurch caused its head to collide with the ball, and it bounced off the robot’s head, and back in Cat’s direction.
Cat’s tail was swishing back and forth wildly as it reached out to toss the ball back.
They stare at each other. It had been a staring contest but they quickly learned that it wasn’t a fair competition.
Cat blinked slowly at the screen, head resting on its paws. A speck of dirt drifted down onto its nose and it sneezed.
“Bless you.”
The cat rubbed its nose with a paw and gave a twitch of its whiskers in thanks.
Boop.
A faint memory, but it was something that everyone on the Outside used to do to cats.
“Meow?” Cat tilted its head as B-12 looked on. How did one “boop” anyways? It searched its database for an answer, but came up short. Eventually, Cat got bored and turned away as it sniffed the air.
B-12's eyes rested on Cat’s pink nose. The way it scrunched and crinkled was mesmerizing.
“Hey, Cat?”
When Cat paused to look back, B-12 leaned in and-
Boop.
“Here, kitty-kitty.” B-12 teased as it flashed the light on the ground.
Cat shot him a look, asking it if it were serious.
“You know you want to chase it around.” A little shake and the beam of light danced right in front of Cat’s paws.
Cat glanced down and aside from a swish of tail, didn’t give any sign of breaking.
“Come on.” B-12 said, and Cat began to follow the rhythmic movements, hunching down in preparation to pounce. “It’ll be fun.”
With a playful growl, Cat jumped and chased after the light.
Cat yawned, and then circled the ground before pawing at it to make sure it was safe.
“It’s fine. I’ll keep watch, Cat. You did great, today.”
Cat kneaded the spot again before settling down into a sleeping position. From B-12's vantage point, it couldn’t blame anyone for thinking it was a ball of dyed cotton.
“Mrr...” Cat sleepily looked up and B-12 saw that there was a spot between its forearm that was just big enough for a certain drone to fit in.
“Oh, Cat. That’s sweet but I don’t-”
“Mrrr...”
How could one ever say no to that pleading purr?
“Alright.”
As B-12 settled into that little space, Cat gently nuzzled the drone before wrapping its tail protectively around them.
“Sweet dreams, Cat.”