The Paws-some Anthology (Book 1 1/2)

2. Play Date

"Come on, sweetheart." Roman lulled softly as he led the small girl into the kitchen. They had a busy afternoon planned and he wanted to make sure they were all fed right. Nyxie just scurried her way following after, clutching her teddy tightly, as they made it to the table. "Here... up." Roman lifted her high up into the air making the little girl giggle loudly.

"Papa! Papa! Higher..." Roman just smiled as he gently set her down on the chair making her giggle some more as she scooted closer to the table. "Silly Papa."

"Yes, I know." Roman laughed as he turned to look through the fridge. "Papa's very silly. Now... What do you want to eat?"

"SANDWICH!" Nixie beamed as she watched Roman pull out the bread. "YAY! Thank you!"

"Of course, Sweetpea." Nyxie just watched as her Papa worked, eying every movement with awe. She always liked watching as her fathers worked. Sometimes she would even copy them and if they spotted her they would all laugh. This was the first time in a while where she had a day where it was just her and her Papa though. Things had become very busy. Roman was building a new area in the castle just for them and was always busy. Virgil was busy trying to make sure it was all safe while also helping Patton and Logan out with something. Patton and Logan were busy but never said with what. So usually Nyxie was with both Virgil and Roman helping out where ever she could, but today... today Roman had said he was spending the WHOLE day with her and Nyxie couldn't have been happier. "Here you go, Sweetheart."

"Thank's, Papa." Nyxie purred as Roman gently placed the play in front of her before hopping onto the table himself to eat his own. Nyxie just laughed making Roman pause and give her a silly look.

"What?"

"You're being Daddy." Nyxie giggled making Roman gasp playfully. "You're sitting on the table. Daddy always sits on tables." Roman rolled his eyes with a smile as he just continued to eat. The two of them chatted about random things like how Nyxie wanted her bedroom walls to be pink and green. For which Roman had instantly said no to, but promised to use that color scheme for the overall design of it. They started talking about school and how Logan was her teacher. They even spoke about their favorite toys and what was so great about them. Roman obviously said Mr. Whiskers was the absolute best ever, but Nyxie cried out that her mouse Sir Squeaky was the best because her Papa gave it to her, and of course... that made Roman choke up a bit. That was why he jumped off the table to take care of their finished dishes, hiding the tears that fell as to not worry anyone. "Papa?"

"Let's go outside." Roman quickly called out as he pulled, albeit gently, Nyxie of the chair, hurrying out the door before anything more could be said. "We don't want to waste daylight."

"Papa!" Roman froze like ice, his watery eyes still occasionally slipping a tear down his cheek, as Nyxie frowned up at him. "Are you ok?"

"I'm perfect, Little one."

"But... You crying." Roman sighed as he wiped his tears away before kneeling down with a smile. He gently brushed his daughter's black hair back before holding her little hands in his. "You ok?"

"I'm perfect." He repeated, tapping her nose lightly to make her giggle. "They were happy tears. I just didn't want you to see me cry is all."

"But... But... When I was crying... Daddy said it was ok... that all big kids do." Roman's eyes flashed a bit as he tensed up before just groaning. "You should listen to Daddy."

"Yeah... I should, shouldn't I? Your Daddy is a smart man after all." Roman chuckled as Nyxie shifted her weight about. "What is it, Sweetheart?"

"You sure you ok?" Roman's heart literally melted seeing the concern in his daughter's eyes. He just nodded as he brushed his fingers over her cheek to make her smile.

"I am. They were happy tears, I promise. Hearing you say that you cherish my mouse toy because I had given it to you meant the world to me little one. I'm so happy you find him as fun as I did. That mouse king could never stand a chance against either of us." Roman purred as he carefully picked himself back up with a beaming grin. "Come on. Let's hurry up, outside. There's a lot I want to do today." Nyxie just lit up as she shifted into a cat and took off towards the door, making Roman have to run to keep up. 

The second Roman opened the back door, Nyxie was gone, disappearing in the tall grass like the like sneak she was. Roman rolled his eyes playfully as he meowed making Nyxies head pop up over the green. 

"Don't go too far, Nyx. We don't want you to get lost ok?" A small yip sounded through the wind and she was gone again making Roman laugh over how silly the little kitten was. Of course... He couldn't deny his own feline urges were started to kick in. All this tall grass... he absolutely loved when Virgil would take him out here and just let him play around. Roman couldn't help but whine softly as he hugged himself a bit. He had to watch Nyxie. He couldn't just give in. If anything happened to Nyxie... 

A small meow sounded at his feet making his eyes dart down to see the little black kitten just pawing at his feet. Her eyes met his as she tilted her head and Roman sighed. She made a soft trilling sound that only tore at his heart more. She wanted him to play with her, but he couldn't shift. Not when he had to watch her... He had to make sure everything was safe. Even if it was only their backyard... What if she got lost or tangled? She was a small kitten. 

"Ok, sweetheart." Roman smiled tensely feeling how she pawed even more on his pants leg. He summoned a bunch of toys making her eyes light up as he tossed them around. "The house is under attack..." He beamed as she instantly jumped to attention, running off towards the closest toy with a curt meow. Roman could feel that shiver down his spine. Virgil would hate him if anything happened to Nyxie. He couldn't. He couldn't shift and risk it. He... 

Roman sighed as he remembered what Virgil had told him the last time he tried to suppress his shifting. It wasn't good for him and only ended up making him very sick. Roman smiled as he let that energy build in him until suddenly he was looking at orange paws. He meowed as he put himself in a pouncing position. The grass before him started to rustle until Nyxie bolted through it tackling him and making them both roll around. 

This is what Roman called fun. 

The two of them were up and racing about. They'd run through the grass and 'fight' over the toys. Sometimes one would just randomly turn around and try to tackle the other turning it into a game of tag. Roman didn't even notice when the back door had open again or the soft chuckle that sounded through the air. He did notice when he was picked up though, making him flail about with a screeching hiss until he met those familiar blue eyes. The second he did he instantly melted, purring into Virgil's arms as he nuzzled in as close as he could get.

"Sorry for scaring you, Hun." Virgil chuckled softly at the small meow Roman gave him before looking down to see Nyxie there at his feet with a small toy in her mouth. "I see you two are having some fun." Nyxie spun around before crouching and swishing her tail a bit in response. "I will admit, I was a bit concerned about you, Ro." Roman's head tilted as Virgil gently scratched behind his ear. "I was worried you would try to suppress your shifts again. I'm glad to see you didn't." Roman simply meowed as Virgil gently set him down in the grass only to giggle as his fiance rubbed up against his leg. "I love you too, Roman. Now... Why don't we come back inside for a small break before you two go back to your father-daughter day." Roman shifted back into a human as he looked up at the sky with a small sheepish smile. The sun had already traveled so much and he hadn't even noticed.

"That... That might be a good thing." Roman laughed a bit before turning to see Nyxie now human again too. "I had a lot planned after all and we've been out here for hours."

"I don't care." Nyxie beamed as he danced out, still holding the toy in her hands. "I'm just happy I got to play with Papa."