Note on story structure from here forward: Each chapter will follow one of the girls through a day in their life as cats. I might, but probably won't, end up covering every day. It depends on how much trouble they can get themselves in to. So, this is going to be day one for Levy. Next will probably be day one for Lucy, and so on. And remember, they are a few hours into their first day already, so the first-day chapters may end up being a bit shorter.

DAY ONE

Levy

Levy couldn't stop purring.

It wasn't for lack of trying; she didn't want to let Gajeel know just how much she enjoyed being with him, being held and carried by him. But the way he was stroking her from the top of her head to the base of her spine left her a puddle of contented goo. She tried to stop the sound that reverberated through her entire body to the tips of her long whiskers, but it matched his heartbeat so well, dancing together to create a lullaby that had her closing her eyes and drifting away as he carried her to his house. She forgot why she'd been so angry or frightened or whatever dark emotion had been rushing through her and lost herself to his amazing fingers.

Is this what it's always like, being a cat? She thought to herself sleepily. Because I could get used to this. She was so caught up that she didn't notice when he paused for a brief second to open and close his front door and walked her up the stairs to his bedroom. He gently put her down on the bed, then lay out on his side and resumed stroking her, smirking when she pressed herself against his chest again to feel his heartbeat.

"Gihi," I guess you really do like me." He said, ruffling the fur between her ears. She harrumphed, annoyed as he stopped petting her, and opened her eyes. Finally, she noticed the change in venue.

Holy Mavis, I'm in his bedroom! She squeaked in her mind. I am alone with him, in his bedroom, on his bed! She felt suddenly very naked, despite knowing she was, in fact, a cat, with fur that covered every inch of her body. Nonetheless, she felt naked, and shivered, a chill suddenly running the length of her spine.

Gajeel was still giving her that smirk. But it was less of a smirk, and more of a smile, like he found her presence as comforting to him as he was to her at the moment. They stared at each other for a minute, just breathing in the silence of the house. Then Gajeel slapped a hand down on the bed, making Levy jump. "You must be hungry, then. Come on, let me make you something to eat." He stood, patting his leg as he walked out of the room. Levy made to follow, but stopped at the end of the bed. His bed was surprisingly high off the ground, higher than that tabletop had been that she plummeted off of earlier. "Come on, Little Blue." He urged. "You're a fighter; you can do it."

Levy cocked her head at him. He had been the first one in her entire life to encourage her like that. Everyone else had always seen her as the small, helpless, adorable little Levy McGarden that needed to be coddled and protected, but he had seen the potential for a bad-ass fighting machine from day one. He had always encouraged her to make her own way, but let her know he would be there to help her if she needed it. And he had recognized the spirit in her that told her the same thing.

Levy steeled herself, backed a couple steps away from the edge, then ran forward, springing off the bed, heart pounding as the floor veered towards her face. She landed lightly, though, gracefully, her forepaws hitting first, then her back paws, tail swishing triumphantly. She gave him a victorious mew and followed the chuckling dragon slayer from the room. The stairs looked a little daunting, but she managed them well enough. It was a lot more work, though, as a cat. Gajeel led her into the kitchen, where she hopped up on a barstool, then onto the counter, and sat expectantly.

Gajeel blinked and laughed. "Gihihi, you certainly know your way around a house. You sure you're abandoned." Levy's head dipped in acknowledgement, and he paused. "Can you understand me?" He said curiously. Levy wanted to laugh. He sounded so unsure. She knew why; normal cats couldn't talk, or understand humans. But he was a wizard, raised by a dragon, who lived with a flying, talking, warrior-cat. She dipped her head again and looked at him with an amused expression. He smiled wider. "So I have two super-smart cats. Cool. So, Blue, what do you want to eat today? I don't have any cat kibble." Levy scrunched up her face in disgust. He didn't think she would actually eat that, did he? "Okay, no kibble. I was going to make chicken and rice for dinner. You want some chicken?" Levy mewed in response and curled her tail over her paws. "Chicken it is." He grabbed a bowl out of the cabinet and turned on the tap, filling it with cool water. "Here ya go." He said, setting it down in front of her. Levy mewed in thanks and drank greedily, just realizing how parched she was—being extremely drunk, then hungover, then drugged, and hungover again didn't make a girl feel very good.

Levy watched in amusement as Gajeel donned a black and red "Kiss the cook" apron before pulling out pans and food. He hummed to himself as he worked, almost dancing as he moved around the kitchen with a practiced ease. She liked seeing him this calm. She could get used to watching him cook; she shook her head as an image of him doing the same wearing only the apron flashed in her mind. She swiped a paw over her ear, and would have blushed if she could.

Then her eyes caught something and held it, making her freeze.

The strings of his apron ties swung from the small of his muscular back, dangling over his perfect ass. She felt some instinct rising in her, and was unable to stop herself from dropping silently into a crouch and creeping to the edge of the counter. Without warning she pounced, leaping off the counter with a playful yowl, paws outstretched toward the ties. Luckily for him, Gajeel heard her and spun, catching her before her claws could sink into his skin. "Oh, no, you don't," He said. "Attacking people is bad." He carried her to the living room and placed her on the floor. Glancing around, he found a piece of string and made an odd, mobile-like contraption from his iron, hanging it from a hook in the ceiling, as well as a tiny iron bell. He attached the bell to one end of the string and let it hang from the mobile, the bell just within Levy's reach if she stretched up. Her eyes lit up. When she batted at the bell with a paw, the string moved, the mobile spinning. Her heart raced, and she was instantly entranced with his invention.

Gajeel returned to his food, hearing the tinkling of the bell and the soft mews of frustration as the kitten played with her new toy. She kept playing until he called her for dinner. He even had to go remove the string to get her attention. "We'll play more later, Blue. It's time to eat now." Her ears perked up and she leapt back up to the counter to where he had a saucer with some chicken cut small so she could eat it and a handful of rice. She licked her lips. She knew how good a cook he was; it was legend within the guild, though no one said anything about it to him, or to Mirajane, since he far outdid even her best dishes.

He didn't disappoint. The chicken was tender and juicy and perfectly season, so that, even as a cat with strange taste buds, it was delicious, and the rice was perfectly cooked. She licked the plate and smacked her lips when she was finished, mewing her appreciation to him. She glanced down to see grease on her paws and instantly bowed her head to clean it off. Her paws became her legs, became her shoulder, and soon she began rasping her tongue over everything she could reach, feeling a wonderfully clean sensation at the soothing act. No wonder cats are always licking themselves, if this is what it feels like. She mused. While she finished, Gajeel stood and cleaned the kitchen, still humming. They finished their tasks at the same time.

Gajeel yawned. "I think it's about time for bed, little one," He said, picking her up and cradling her to him. Levy looked up at him and mewed in argument. She wasn't sleepy; it was time to play some more. Gajeel smiled like he knew what she wanted. "We'll have more fun tomorrow. For now, it's late. Come on." Levy sighed and let him carry her back upstairs.

Wait.

Did he expect her to sleep with him?

In his bed?

All night?

Her heart beat faster, and she looked up at him. But he began petting her again, and her eyelids fell lower, and she lost her train of thought to the incessant purring.

He set her back on the bed, and walked to his dresser, pulling out a clean pair of boxers. Levy was so at ease from his attention, she almost didn't understand what he was doing as he pulled his shirt over his head. Then, of course, she was too distracted by the perfect sculpting of his torso—seriously, whatever gods were above spent a lot of time shaping this man just right—to look away as he unbuttoned his pants and pulled them down. She snapped out of it at last when he hooked his thumbs in the waistband of his boxers and began sliding them down, turning as quickly as possible in shock. She crouched panting on his bed, eyes wide, ignoring the voice in her head that wanted her to turn around, since this was the perfect opportunity to get an eyeful—the voice sounded a lot like Cana, she mused off-handedly. Gajeel slid into bed under the covers, then grabbed Levy and hugged her close to his bare chest. She froze as her paws came in contact with his smooth skin, blemished by scar after beautiful scar.

"Night, little Blue," He murmured, and he was asleep in seconds, still holding her close. His heartbeat, his long, deep, slow breathing, and her purring lulled her back into that hypnotic state before she could object to being curled against an almost naked man, and she followed him into the land of dreams.