smitten kitten // larry stylinson

where our story begins

note: this is a spin-off of the "smitten kitten" oneshots that i wrote in my oneshot book. many of you (and myself included!) wanted me to turn it into a full, proper book so here it is, along with all of the previous chapters i wrote put into chronological order with the rest of the story. i will be simultaneously updating this story in this book and in my oneshots book, and it's also on archive of our own if you're interested.

please comment your honest feedback and request some things you'd like to see in the future! it's extremely helpful for me and encourages me to keep writing :)

*****

It was raining, and Geoff Payne had forgotten his umbrella at home.

Luckily for him, it was only a slight drizzle, but he still walked as fast as he could, hands shoved into the pockets of his long coat as he walked back home. He was passing by an alleyway when he heard a quiet sniffle, making him stop and look around. The rest of the street was quite deserted, and he was about to start walking again when he heard another sniffle.

He turned his head and looked into the alleyway, where among the dumpsters was a large cardboard box that seemed to be shaking. Geoff rubbed his eyes, sure that it was just his imagination, but when he looked again, the box was still moving slightly. There was another sniffle, and Geoff was sure it was coming from that box.

He thought about leaving it alone and just going home - it was raining after all - but curiosity got the better of him and he approached the cardboard box carefully. He bent down and reached for the box, heart in his mouth, and opened it to reveal a... kitten?

No, whatever was in there was too big to be a kitten or a cat - in fact, it was the size of a small human, but the first thing Geoff could see where fluffy, caramel kitten ears. The creature in the box looked up at Geoff, fear in its beautiful blue eyes. It had the face and body of a boy, but the ears of a cat, and Geoff recalled reading about so-called "kitten hybrids" in the newspapers - cruel, illegal experiments where crazy scientists merged a human with a cat. This creature must have been one of the hybrids that had been created before the operation had been shut down.

"Hey there, little guy." Geoff held his hands up to show he wasn't a threat. "What are you doing here?"

The little hybrid didn't say a word, and instead shrunk into his cardboard box, starting to cry silently.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to scare you, I'm not going to hurt you," Geoff said, reaching out to gently pet the kitten. The kitten looked terrified of Geoff's hand, but allowed himself to be petted.

"Are you out here all by yourself?" Geoff asked.

The kitten nodded.

"Do you have any home to go to?"

The kitten shook his head sadly, staring at his lap.

Geoff bit his lip. The kitten hybrid looked so sad and lonely and scared and it just felt wrong to leave him there. "Do you want to come home with me?"

The kitten looked up, eyes wide. He stared at Geoff and tilted his head, like he was trying to see if Geoff was joking.

"I'm not kidding, love. You look like you need a home and I think my wife and children would be willing to help you." Geoff tried to convey his sincerity in his words, hoping that he would be able to get this boy to trust him.

After a minute or two of deliberation, the kitten slowly nodded his head, deciding that he didn't have anything to lose. He'd take the chance and follow this kind-looking stranger.

"Good." Geoff smiled and reached a hand out for the kitten to take. "My home's not far from here."

The kitten took Geoff's hand hesitantly, but didn't make any move to leave his cardboard box. Geoff raised his eyebrow at this, but didn't say anything and simply leaned down to pick the hybrid up. The hybrid let out a pained whine and automatically kicked his legs out, making Geoff stop and look at the kitten worriedly.