Myde

How I Became The Gay Father Of Two

Chapter One: Hello, My name is...

It was the start of any normal day.

I was thrown out of another bar in the middle of the night. The only difference? It was raining. And damn, I hated the rain.

I sat on the curb, at the corner of Younge and Finch. I sighed, put up my hood, and prayed that the alcohol would warm me up by the time a cab decided to pick me up. I was out of luck; one, because no amount of alcohol could keep out this cold, and two, no cab seemed to want to pick me up. So I fished out a loonie and a dime, and took the bus to the GO station.

I should probably fill you in. The name's Xigbar. I couldn't tell you if I ever had a last name, my dad bailed on me shortly after my mum died, just after I was born. You'd think I was older, because of the silver streaks in my hair, but I'm not. 'Nuff said. I wear it in a ponytail at the nape of my neck, and wear mostly black to match what's not silver of my hair. After Mum died, I was put in an orphanage, run by a man who wished to be called "Superior", and his lackey, Saïx. The orphanage was situated in the ghetto of a relatively pleasing sub-urban division on the very edge of Toronto, called Scarborough. I met my longtime friends there, Xaldin, Larxene, Luxord, and Axel. Those guys got me into the trouble that gave me all of my scars, and my eye patch, which I still hate. Other kids I can remember from the orphanage were Lexaeus, Zexion, and Vexen. I can remember one day, asking Superior why we all had such funny names. The seemingly never-aging man kicked me out of his office. Saïx told me later that it was because none of us had names when we came to the orphanage, and Superior had named us. Then he whispered to me that Superior had always wanted to put x's in the names of all of his children, but since he couldn't have kids, used us as substitutes. All of my annoying child instincts told me to prod, and ask why he couldn't have kids with a mummy, but something held me back, like part of me knew I didn't want to know.

Larx, Axel, Xaldin, Luxord and I were, as I said, all good friends. We still go out and get hammered together on the weekends. Luxord held seniority, then Xaldin. I was stuck in the middle, then Larx, and lastly, Axel. We were all generally one year after the other, though we never knew for sure, since we based birthdays off of when we arrived at the orphanage. When we all reached the age when hormones became a daily harassment, we started investigating the Superior's private life. What we found was disturbing.

At first, all we found, was that Superior's room was messy. The boys and I dismissed it as regular male sloth-like behavior, and used that as an excuse not to go into the Superior's room. But Larx was a little wild. First she commented on how the room smelled like sweaty dog. We all laughed. But then she held up a hand, silencing us. Delicately using only the long nails of her thumb and index finger, she picked up a shirt that looked vaguely familiar. It was Saïx's. We all gasped. Luxord was the first to start making excuses.

"C'mon Larx!" he said, his British accent still thick. "Obviously, Superior and the Dog's laundry got mixed." he continued, using our derogatory term for Saïx. His crossed arms belied the confusion and disbelief in his eyes.

The blond raised the garment to her nose, then cringed. She threw it at us. "Does Superior smell at all like that?"

We were all somewhat afraid to answer. I spoke up. "So what are you saying? That the Dog sleeps with Superior?" I was, of course, referring to them sharing a room. Larxene had a goofy grin on her face, and left, skipping merrily down the stairs.

We all looked at Superior and Saïx's relationship a little differently after that. We noticed small things, like a quick brush of the hand on a shoulder, or fingers twining when they thought no one was looking, and I never looked at the creaking floorboards from upstairs the same way again.

But what surprised me was, that all of my buddies, save for maybe Xaldin (his manlyness just screamed 'straighter-than-thou'), were blatantly gay. Luxord had hit on me one night before we got to the bar, Axel had his eye on one of the local high-schoolers, and Larxene had been through two girlfriends already. Me? I wouldn't know, I haven't taken the time to look at men like that. I bring a different woman home with me once every week.

I used to work for Xaldin, as a fugitive apprehension agent. More commonly known as a bounty hunter. A person gets charged, insurance company (Xaldin) posts a bond, I bring in the FTA (failed to appear), and get ten percent of said bond. Piece of cake, right? Wrong. I have to keep in shape, run around with a gun, ammo, pepper-spray, tazer, and cuffs, just in case I run into the guy I'm looking for. Then he's gonna run! And, dammit all, I gotta catch him! Then I cuff him, wrestle him into a car, and bring him to the cops. And even before that, I have to figure out where this guy is hiding! Possibly the most strenuous thing I've ever done.

But like I said, I used to work for Xaldin. Now I'm a gym teacher at the local high school. I know, how the hell did I go from 'bounty hunter' to 'gym teacher'? I never really planned to make bond enforcement my true career. It was just the only job I could get that didn't require a background check. But being in that field gave me a trail to my father, who told me all I needed to know, before he died. Which gave me the ability to apply for a more respectable job. And I figured, since I was already in great shape, and the kids I had visited from the school seemed to like me... why not teach?

That sounds really lame, but I could care less.

However, no one calls me by my surname. That was among the information my father couldn't give me, since he and my mother were never wed, and he never even knew her maiden name. So every one at school, even the teachers, call me by my first name, and that suits me just fine. Some even call me by a childish nickname. And that suits me too.

The only time the students don't like me is usually on Mondays, since I'm usually so hungover I can't hear myself think. Which is usually because I didn't get kicked out of a bar, and stayed until I was so drunk that I was hitting on Larxene, then hit on the dancers, and would be taking them home two days later.

Presently, I was sitting in the window seat of the GO train, cursing the rain, and wishing I was home. The green and white train came to a chugging halt, and I stepped off, already pulling my hood up. I jogged down the street a couple of blocks, and turned left, walking up the path that led to the first of the uniform houses on my street. I turned the key in the lock, opened the door, and trudged up the stairs, falling into my bed to get the few hours of sleep I could get before school tomorrow.

"Xigbar!!" I heard the high-pitched soprano coming from behind me, and turned, already knowing who it was.

"Hey, Meaghan. What's kickin'?" I said, crossing my arms and slouching.

She smiled at me, sun glinting off the metal attached to her teeth. Her eyes were a blue-green today to compliment her blue shirt, a change from her regular hazel. They changed with what she wore, she said. Her sandy-blond hair was hanging down at her shoulders. Her hands were behind her back, and she seemed to be struggling with something. Her face screwed up, and she looked up at me. "Um... what's kicking? Well..." She took from what was behind her back out front, and she smiled awkwardly.

The blue-eyed kitten had tabby stripes, but were not the regular brown, nor the tiger stripe orange you sometimes see. The underside was a very distinguishable blond, with the stripes a chocolatey-blond. To add to it, there was a mane of hair on it, and the little thing looked like it had a faux-hawk to its shoulders. Quite possibly the most adorable thing I had seen.

She faltered for a moment, keeping the kitten from falling from her hands. "It is, Xigbar, and I can't keep him. Mum's allergic, so is Melissa's dad, and Chanel already has two puppies. You'd take good care of it, wouldn't you? I mean, I could come over and help you get set up, and even feed it when you're away, and everything! It's mum's dead, and so are the brothers and sisters. Please?" She said, looking up at me with what I guess she thought the kitten's eyes looked like. I sighed.

"If I said no, would you give up?" I asked, dropping my arms, sensing defeat already.

She smiled gleefully, eyes sparkling already. "Is Elton John straight?" She shoved the kitten at me, and skipped off.

"Wait!" I cried. She turned only enough to give me a look that shouted 'what?'. "Where are you going?"

She grinned. "I'm going to get everything you need." And she was off.

And now I was stuck with this cat. I sighed, and gave it a reproving look. It looked at me in such a way that almost made me squeal like a girl. I pressed my lips into a thin line to keep it and my dignity inside. I stroked it's mane, and was surprised to see the eyes close, as it leaned against my hand, and purr with enthusiasm. I chuckled, and began making my way to my house. I hugged it close, and chuckled again when it leaned against me again. "You're an affectionate one, aren't you?" It purred in response. "I'm going to go out on a limb here, buddy, and guess that you're a boy." Again, only a purr came as a response. I laughed. "I guess I should give you a name, eh?" I thought for a second, searching for something that suited him. The only thing that came to mind was a name I had neither heard nor seen before, but seemed absolutely perfect. "Myde..." The kitten looked up, and stopped purring. I was going to take it as a bad sign, until he jumped up, clawing his way up my jacket, and licked my face. I laughed, stroking his head, despite myself. I pulled his claws out, and looked at him. He clawed at my eye patch. "I guess you like that."

All too suddenly, I found myself on my doorstep, and Myde was looking at me expectantly. I sighed once more, and opened the door. "For a thing that can't talk, you sure are demanding." I placed him down, and closed the door behind me. Immediately, Myde scampered off to the left, through double doors, into my living room. I raced as fast as I could after him, and found him, comfy as could be on the couch, seeming to grin at me. I shook my head, but his facial expression was the same. I was about to poke him, when a knock came at the door.

I opened it, and soon had my hands full of grocery bags. Meaghan was shouting her orders. "What you've got is a carton of homogenized milk and dry food. I've got the wet food, kitty litter, and the litter box. There's a kitty carrier in the trunk, and two dishes. Now, while I set up the litter box, you fill the bowls with only a handful of dry food, and half a bowl of milk. You'll have to check around the house for "oopsies" for the first week or so, but show him where to go, and he'll learn. If he gets vocal during the night, it's probably because he's lonely, in which case, you can give him my Moppsie, in the front seat, or bring him to bed with you, but you want to enforce independence for the most part. Got it?" She said, turning to look at me with hands on her hips, having placed her bags down.

I nodded.

She turned, and raced out to her navy blue Neon outside my house. Myde was at my heels, looking at me with curiosity. "Yeah... I didn't get it either." I smiled, and it looked like he smiled back. I got to pouring his food. He danced from side to side, apparently very hungry. Before I had even set it on the ground, his head was already in the bowl, scarfing down the bowl in record time. I smiled, and snuck in some seconds, knowing that Meaghan would go Kitty-Nazi on me.

Later, as we finished up, I turned to Meaghan, who was on the couch, playing with Myde in her lap, and asked what had been nagging at me. "Hey, Megz..." I said, using a nickname only her best friends used.

She didn't look up from Myde, but smiled. "Yes, Xiggy?"

I smiled as well. "You didn't... uh, pay for all of that, did you?" I raised my eyebrows.

She looked solemn, before she smiled again. "The kitty litter, box, carrier and bowls were mine. The rest I bought. I had always wanted a cat, but Mum's so allergic that she can't even be too close to something a cat has touched without breaking out in hives. But I wanted it so badly, that I bought everything I needed, just for fun. I was just glad to find a good use for it."Myde purred at her, and she stroked him. "You're lucky. A cat can sometimes be a better companion than any human. They're always listening, and won't criticize you... Just nod, and purr, and snuggle up to you..." She sat for a moment, her hair hanging over her face, obscuring what I could see of her face. When she looked up, she was smiling brightly, and she put the kitten in my lap. She stood, bowed in traditional Japanese fashion, and walked to the door.

I held Myde close, and saw her out, waving at her taillights.

I woke, in the middle of the night, to an incessant yowling from downstairs. Groggily, I stood, and descended, finding Myde sitting still, looking at me expectantly. I didn't say anything, just picked him up, and brought him into my room, and placed him on the edge of my queen-sized. I crawled in, and was just about to fall back into my blissful sleep, when I heard a purring in my ear. I grabbed the tiny frame, pulled him to my chest, and I'm sure, we both fell asleep like that.

It was lunch for the kids in the high school. Or, more of the end of it. Kids were getting to their classes, and the bell had just rung. I didn't have a class this period, so the principal had me patrolling the halls. I heard a slam down the hall to my right, and looked over to see Meaghan, late, and taking her time. I also saw headphone wires. She was singing.

Snow Kiss,
Kono mama kimi to good-bye nante,
Iwanaide,

Aitai,
Kimochi to ka torenai kizuato,
Kesanaide, Kesanaide...

I shook my head, and pulled the MP3 out of her pocket. "D.Gray-man, first Ending" it said.

Meanwhile, she had tensed up, and pulled the headphones out. She wasn't turning around. "Is there a problem...?" She said monotonously.

"Audio devices are not allowed on school property, Miss Ingram." I chuckled when she wound down.

She held her heart. "You scared the crap outta me, Xiggy!" She smiled, and I patted her head.

"Just checkin' to see if the song was any good. Now get your behind to class, missy!" I watched her scamper off, and chuckled. She was going to fail this year. I was going to go back to my office, when I heard something. It sounded like...

Yowling!?

I raced through the halls, following the sound as it got louder, and arrived at my office, looking at the furry head that had stuck itself out of my shoulder-bag. His ears twitched, as he meowed, and I picked my Myde up in my arms. "You." I said as sternly as I could, with him cuddling up to me, "You are not supposed to be here. How the hell did I not notice you in there? Whatever. You need to keep quiet, if you're going to be here with me." He purred in response. I sighed, and held him to my scarred cheek, letting him nuzzle up there. And I waited for an hour for the next period.

When the next bell rang, I put Myde down, and looked at him sternly. "You are going to stay here during this class, 'kay?" He purred, and I took it as an affirmative. I left the office, and entered the gym, only taking off my coat to be in my track outfit already. The first boys entered, and snickered amongst themselves. I nodded to them, and they nodded back, but seemed to laugh even louder afterward. It wasn't until I started the warm ups that I noted the cause of their joviality. The tail swished, in all it's creamy blond-ness, and the eyes were sparkling, oblivious to the glare I was giving him. "Continue." I said, picking Myde up, and placing him on the desk in my office. I sighed. "I thought I told you to stay in here, dammit!" I went to leave, but saw him right at my heels. And after two attempts with the same results, I got tough.

"That's it. Outside!" I picked the kitten by his scruffy mane, and placed him outside, closing the door on those pleading eyes of his. I returned to the gym, bringing the attention back to me, and lead the boys around the gym twice, before leading them out of the gym, and around the track. And yet, the snickers continued. I looked back, shook my head, and nearly stopped them all, before I saw the same blond fur beside my feet. I groaned audibly. "Keep going!" I shouted, thoroughly agitated. I picked Myde up by the scruff of his neck, placed him in my office, closed the door again, and returned to my class.

I walked home with Myde trailing at my heels. I opened the door only long enough to let him come in, gave him dry food and substituted milk with water, and put it down (laughing inwardly at the disgusted look on his face), and sat on the couch, turning on my music. The stereo was connected to the computer in my living room, where all of my good music was. What was turned on was Lithium by Evanescence. I promptly ignored the pleading, hurt look on the kitten's face, and nodded my head to the beat.

But what Myde did in response was weird.

He started yowling. Not that sharp, annoying yowl, but a more melodic meow, in complete harmony with the lyrics. Needless to say, I was surprised.

Later that night, when I was getting ready for bed, I heard the same melodic meow, coming from the living room. Only it wasn't the tune of any song I knew. Suddenly, he hit a note that sounded wrong, even to me, yowled in what sounded like pain, and then started the phrase that he had made the mistake in. The exact same notes, from what I could hear, as before. It was strange. I dismissed it, and went down to get him. He stopped, and looked at me warily. I played dumb.

"You, Myde, are not supposed to come to school with me." He whimpered. I laughed, and picked him up, making my way up the stairs. "But I just can't resist that face of yours." He purred loudly, rubbing his face against my jacket.

I stripped to my black boxers, and crawled into bed, Myde snuggling himself under my chin.

End Chapter One

A/N:Soo... ever had one of those ideas that pop into your head, and just won't go away, so you think about it, and think about it, till it's so big that you have to get it out or you'll explode? This was one of those. I saw my Gramma Nina this weekend, and she has a new kitten in the house. So that was my inspiration.

Cookies to any one who gets the little hidden thing in the third last paragraph about Myyde-kitty:3

O.o

Cheers!

- m . i, brainnndead. :D