Summary: An at first silly, theoretical experiment by Rei goes wrong, and all of a sudden, Haru turns into a sleek, black cat. Who gets lost. Rin finds this strange cat who loves swimming in water, and intrigued, he takes Haru home. In turn, Haru slowly starts to realize that Rin too has secrets, attachments, thoughts, and feelings he doesn't want to share with anyone.

Hey, everyone! I know that this isn't going to get into the actual and physical-making of the RinHaru until later on in the story (since Haru can't really do much, being a cat), but I do hope the wait won't be too long and that the smaller moments can be enjoyed.

It will get there, I promise.

EspeciallysinceIjusthavesomuchfeels.

Aaaand, since Rin's pride wouldn't let anyone else see his thoughts and attachments.

Enjoy!

Make My World Just Explode

Written by Ko-Sensei

part one entails of tense redheads and the strangest encounters

【それはその日雨が降っていました。】

【It was raining that day.】

"Damnit," Rin curses, and doesn't even bother to try and shield his clothes from the rain. It's too late to do that, as he'll probably be soaked wet by the time he gets back to the dorms.

He does, though, however, try to shield his bag from getting wet. The black satchel normally slung around his shoulder is now being held by both arms to his chest, in hopes of it staying dry.

Not to mention, Nitori is going to fuss all over him anyways, whether he gets wet or not, so there's no point. ("Matsuoka-senpai! What were you doing out there? I was so worried!").

Especially since Nitori always thinks too much about things.

Pfft-if anything, Rin guessed that he was still waiting in their dorm room to check that his roommate would get back in time before curfew.

Not that it really mattered. The redhead had always been able to figure something out with their dorm head-which explained why he sometimes wandered around in the evenings, or why he'd been able to sneak into the abandoned Iwatobi elementary that one time.

Fortunately, he only had some of his practice gear in his bag (trunks, goggles, and one spare change of clothes). So it wasn't like he had homework or textbooks to lose.

But still. It wouldn't do to reek of rainwater.

Normally, water was okay. Really okay with him.

Rain wasn't.

Suddenly, a strong headstorm blows over his head, and though at first the clothing just whips harmlessly in the wind, the armband he has tied around his elbow becomes undone quickly. He had tied the knot too hastily.

Rin can hardly see or open his eyes because the headstorm is too strong, but he can vaguely point out a black and red piece of cloth flying away towards the ocean.

"Goddamnit."

Maybe he should just ignore it and go back, because he was not in a mood to be playing around.

But then again, the ocean wasn't that far away and the armband was supposed to be worn by Samezuka's swim team 24/7 this week because they were going to another tournament soon. It was supposed to be something like ("Alright guys, we're all gonna wear this and have team spirit!") that, or maybe ("Waah, Matsuoka-senpai. Doesn't it look cool? It's like a uniform! We'll be wearing the same thing!")... some members like Nitori wanted to look cool.

Knowing fully that both Nitori and Mikoshiba (the team captain) would pester him about it afterwards, even if it wasn't his fault, he just purses his lips and turns around, running over a barred fence, onto the sand and towards the ocean.

Thankfully, though, the rain hasn't started pouring yet.

The redhead squats down at the edge of the water, attempting to look for the armband. He could've sworn it was here a moment ago-where the hell was it?

Splash. Splash. Splash.

Other than the syncopated, rhythmic crashing of the waves, there were smaller, irregular splashes that sounded from his right. What the hell… was there some little kid drowning out in the ocean right now? At this time?

What were they doing?

Rin curses again. It's not like he makes it his job to go around being a saint-he honestly couldn't care less, but then again it's not like he can just leave some kid to drown out here alone either. It'd be inhumane.

Giving up entirely on staying dry, the redhead offhandedly throws his bag behind him, hearing it land on the sands with a quiet thud. Not wanting to be walking around in heavy, wet clothes (it was damn cold out now, too), he strips off his jacket and throws it behind him.

Just as he's about to jump into the water-Rin spots what he'd heard and freezes.

"..."

What.

That isn't even possible.

What is that?

There's… there's some kind of animal that's swimming in the water.

It's definitely not a fish. It has a tail, four legs, looks like a dog-

What was it doing out here in the storm? Rin stares at it in confusion, because it's not even panicking or trying to swim out. The rain is coming down harder by the minute, the wind is howling, and by now some thunder is rumbling in the distance. Lightning will strike soon. But...but... It looks like it is just playing.

Playing in the water.

When he looks at it more closely, he realizes that it's not even a dog. It has pointed ears.

Rin wonders if he's dreaming because this really isn't possible and shouldn't be possible but... it is a cat.

A….. A kitten.

A cat swimming in water?

No, wait. In the first place, seeing a cat in water was shocking enough.

Seeing one swimming around, playing with the waves was just-

-Out of the world.

And it had his armband in it's mouth, too.

Jerked out of his reverie, Rin's eyes widen in slight surprise before he scowls, going towards the swimming cat because to hell with freak water cat but he actually needed his armband back.

Was it all torn up and mangled-

He hoped not. The thing better not have ripped into it with it's pointy teeth.

"Hey, you." Rin calls, wondering if he's a little crazy for trying to talk to cat. That is currently underwater at the moment.

Rin doesn't want to get wet, but he doesn't see any other alternative, so he wades into ankle-deep water, being mindful of the ever-growing violent waves that keep coming regularly. He's irritated by now, and really wants to go back.

"Give me that armband," Rin demands, and surprisingly, the cat stops swimming underwater and surfaces for a moment, standing in the water. It's tail flicks upwards, sashaying back and forth, and black ears perk up. It mews, and seems to be as equally surprised to see him.

Could cats even have surprised looks on their faces?

He couldn't even describe it. But this one did.

It has black fur, and blue eyes.

【そして、彼らの目が会った。】

【And then their eyes met.】

Really, really blue eyes. Clear, and like pools of light. Rin is startled once again, because not only has he ever not seen a cat with blue eyes, but for some reason it seems to be staring back at him with still the same amount of equal surprise. And not only is it startlingly unique, it's kind of pretty, too.

Which is weird, since Rin had never taken an interest in animals. They were a pain and hard to take care of-he just didn't have the time because of swimming. Only Makoto had ever had a pet, and that had been goldfish that died soon afterwards.

But he shivers as the cold runs over his skin, and he's reminded of why he's there again.

"It's mine. Give it to me," He demands again, and holds out his hand expectantly.

Rin briefly wonders if he's crazy, because how and why would the cat understand him-but he doesn't want to wade in any deeper or get into a fight with a wild stray, either.

The cat stills for a moment, not moving when more waves wash over its legs. It seems to be thinking about something, and when it looks back up at Rin, sapphire blue eyes blink.

Tentatively, the cat mewls softly and approaches him, ears flicked back. It drops the armband in his hand, and then it looks at him again.

Anyone would have called him clinically insane-but Rin swore that the cat was observing him. Watching. Not just looking at, but watching.

Clenching the wet armband in his hand, he's surprised (and relieved) to note that nothing has happened to it. The armband is completely fine and unscathed, other than being drenched in ocean water.

Which is weird, since he could have also sworn that the cat had sharp teeth.

Then, he's hit with an impossible idea. Rin is also sure that the armband flew out way further into the ocean… so why was it so close to the surface?

Taking the undamaged cloth into consideration, the redhead wonders if the cat swam all the way out there to retrieve it.

Why would an animal have an incentive to go after an armband?

It wasn't flashy or anything. No reason for a cat to go retrieve it.

And it was undamaged.

"...Did you go get this for me?" Rin asks, face unbelieving. It doesn't seem to have understood what it said, but then it's tail moves up into the air, fluttering around.

"Why are you out here alone?"

But at this, he feels like an even bigger idiot and flushes slightly. It's not noticeable.

Screw this.

"Why are you swimming out here?"

Lightning crashes further down on the beach where the two are at, but the proximity is pretty close, and it's starting to get dangerous out here, Rin realizes. If lightning hits the water-then the two of them are dead.

Why am I doing this, he thinks hopelessly, grumbling as he reaches down to pick up the black cat in the water by his feet. By doing so, he gets himself much drenched, and having to run while holding a wet animal is not very pleasing.

Surprisingly, the cat doesn't resist. Or rather, it seems too surprised to resist (which can't possibly be true, but it seems like that's what it is), or doesn't seem to be in the state of mind where it'd attack him. Smart thing, because if it had, Rin would have left it behind without a second thought.

Why is he doing this?

Well.. he can at least save the stupid thing's life, since it did go get his armband.

And… he's kind of intrigued by how it can swim.

Maybe. Just a little bit.

【そして、それは始まった。】

【Then it started.】

"Don't squirm," Rin warns it, tucking the cat under one arm and holding his bag and jacket hastily with the other. He really can't run like this, but he manages to do it somehow.

Just in time, too, because right as they leave the beach, a strike of lightning touches the water.

It just touches the water, but when it does, the surface of the ocean lights up and he'd rather not think about what would have happened had they still been other there.

Even though he's sure that being tucked under an arm and being told to hold still shouldn't be easy for any human being, yet alone a wild, stray cat, being surprised yet again, it doesn't move too much. Which doesn't even make sense. It seems smart, and compliant.

Though Rin can feel the black tail waving back and forth, occasionally laying on his shoulder before darting down to brush against his elbow. And it's not a nice feeling right now, because said tail is very, very wet.

"Stop that," The redhead chides, but the cat doesn't listen to him and continues.

"Where am I going to put you?" Rin sighs, now completely drenched and very cold. His bag was probably completely soaked, too.

So much for his effort.

After doing some thinking, he supposes that there's only one place he can dump the cat at for now.

Although it is kind of annoying, he has to turn around and go back in the opposite direction from the one he was walking to (towards Samezuka), but it's not too far away so it's fine, probably. And maybe he could dry off and get an umbrella first.

Knock. Knock.

"Eeehh? Nii-chan?!" A familiar younger sister exclaims, jaw almost dropping to the ground. "Why are you here? What happened to you? Your clothes are soaking wet, didn't you take an umbrella to you to practice? And that looks like your practice bag… you can't get that wet, you know! And it's really late at night, what are you doing? And what is that thing in your arms?"

Rin just leans across the doorway. His bangs are wet and sticking to his forehead-so he brushes them away. "One question at a time, Gou. And I'm going to stay here tonight, don't want to go anywhere in this storm."

Gou blinks at him, still dumbfounded. "Aren't you going to get in trouble?"

He just ruefully grins. "I have connections with the dorm manager. And, they can't do anything bad to me since I'm an asset to the swim team. Just let me in."

It takes a few minutes for her to calm down. Gou flails and panics and has a mini-breakdown, being all dramatic. She runs all over the house looking for towels (when Rin just calmly points to the closet), almost sets the kitchen on fire trying to make hot chocolate, asks ten questions about what were you doing every two minutes, and still can't figure out the mystery in Rin's arms.

The redhead comes out from the shower, towel hanging on his head. He sits down on the couch (plops down and kicks back on) and sips at the hot chocolate Gou made for him (which came with a lot of effort from her, naturally).

"Wash that thing," Rin casually says, pointing to the drenched cat that he dropped inside a box and almost (leaving one small hole) barricaded inside. As to be expected, the cat had not been pleased at this turnout. It wasn't making a lot of noise, but the constant scratching and mewing didn't sound too cat-happy-go-lucky.

Gou just stares at the box.

"...Nii-chan, when I was younger and I begged you to let me take a stray animal home, no matter what it was, you always made me leave it. And you've never had an interest. Where did this come from?"

She'd finally stopped being melodramatic.

…. He didn't to explain. She'd probably not believe him anyways.

Or actually, she probably would, since that was the kind of person she was.

"Just wash it. That thing was in the ocean."

At this, Gou jumps up and runs over to the box, cooing. "Awww, you poor thing. Were you drowning in the ocean? That's horrible! In this weather? You must be cold! And I can't believe Rin did something like lock you up in a box! Let's get you bathed. Kitty-chan, kitty-chan…!"

Gou takes a bracelet and ties her hair up into a ponytail, also rolling the hems of her pants up.

Of course, she'd be really ecstatic and get into this.

Pfft.

Content to let her take over for a while, he lays back on the couch, and eventually falls asleep.

【それは彼が期待したものではなかった】

【It was not what he expected.】

"...-chan! Nii-chan, nii-chan!"

There's the sound of splashing and Gou calling him. Groggily, Rin gets up from the couch, kind of irritated… before he remembers what had just happened that night.

Was something wrong?

"Nii-chan! About the bath… kitty-chan…"

Oh, no.

The redhead gets up right away, heading towards the bathroom (and after all these years, it's a bit unfamiliar to him).

Did something happen to Gou? ...He should have known. Cats didn't like water. He did have some friends back in Australia that had told him dramatic stories about how their cats had attacked, scratched, or bitten them when it was bath time. Maybe she'd been caught off-guard by how docile the thing was?

"Wake up, nii-chan! Hurry!"

She does sound alarmed and a bit off-beat.

Maybe something did happen..?

"Gou?"

"Nii-chan, hurry! I'm in trouble!"

Don't ask me why I'm writing this. I really don't. No answer to that question whatsoever.

Honestly, I think Haru would have been a better off as a dolphin or a mermaid. But I just can't.

Sharkbait pairings! This series is /really/ too short.

Thanks for reading!

Leave a review, s'il vous plait.

And if I get enough of them, I'm thinking of updating every Tuesday.