theboywhodied | and in nonsense fluffland...

Cedric isn't sure, but he thinks it can be reversed. He meows twice---one strong and sure, the other more wavering. He thinks that communicates what he means well enough.

He turns his head and narrows his eyes. We'll see how adorable you are if this happens to you---not that I'll be responsible, of course, he thinks. There's a definite weight of stress to his movements---his posture sags, not quite the kitty swag that someone might imagine.

There's a home remedy for a spell reverser he's trying to make---a simple potion that dissipates most magic, useful for when experiments go wrong. Like this one. He's already dragged some base ingredients on the counter: flour, pepper, egg, and tuna juice. Actually, the tuna might not be an ingredient at all. It's just tasty. If Howard looks, he'll see traces of tuna on guilty paws.

But what was the next ingredient? He whines, pacing about the floor in distress. Maybe a tour of the cabinets would help? The little lost kitten sits back on his hind legs and waves his paws, looking up at Howard expectantly.

Great. Joy. That's just perfect. Howard, rather than picking kitty!Cedric up, grabs the wand off the floor, points it at Cedric, and says "control-Z". Unfortunately, that fails to revert Cedric back, so he takes Cedric in hand and holds him up. What now?

"For once, I'm taller than you."

He tries to laugh but really, he's scared. A little less scared, now that he knows Cedric didn't just disappear and this isn't the FAYZ all over again, but still scared.

"Pfew. You smell like fish."

Cedric frantically shakes his head, waving his paws and crossing them in front of him. No, no, no! Messing with magic is how this whole problem started in the first place!

Fortunately for the two of them, Howard is a Muggle, and the most the wand does is shoot a spark or two. If the wand-holder had been a wizard, Cedric would currently be a sliver of wallpaper plastered to the nearest wall.

Cedric mewls, his equivalent of a little kitty sigh, and tries to make an expression akin to wrinkling his nose. It twitches instead. Hey, I found the bag. It smelled good.

Now that he has Howard's assistance, he curls up in Howard's hand and purrs, hoping to comfort both of them. There's a complicated task ahead, and...it might not show as readily, but Cedric's afraid too. As much as he loves cats, he does not want to be one. Cats are loving and wonderful, but they're no substitute for real human boyfriends.

Back to business. He straightens up and points a paw at the bags surrounding the bowl that Emergency Rations now occupies. Flour, knocked-over pepper shaker, some orange juice...

Cedric awkwardly bends a paw and stirs it, trying to imitate stirring. He manages a few rotations, then topples over and sprawls out over Howard's fingers.

No one ever said the life of a cat was easy.

~~So that's what control-Z does in the wizarding world.~~

Howard did not expect his day to involve trying to make a potion out of eggs and orange juice to turn his boyfriend back into a human. He's still having trouble believing it. He sets the wand down and shoos Emergency Rations out of the bowl, then just...stares at Cedric.

"Do I just put it all in there? I mean, aren't there measurements?"

The last thing he wants to do is turn Cedric into an ant or something. A kitten isn't ideal but at least it's warm-blooded and has a lifespan beyond a few days. He holds Cedric close to his chest and takes deep breaths, trying to sound calm and casual when Cedric can undoubtedly hear his heart jackhammering away.

Cedric won't let his fear stop him from trying. He very carefully claws his way up Howard's shirt, settling his fuzzy head under his boyfriend's chin. The cat's ears tickle there. Just the way Cedric likes it.

After that, he slides down and nods, leaping onto the table a second later. He's going to help with the measurements! He just needs to write...oh.

One headbutt later, Cedric and Howard are covered in flour. The kitten sneezes and shakes, then gets to work on writing the measurements.

1 cup flour, 2 tablespoons pepper, 1 egg, 1 cup orange....in other words, it's definitely disgusting enough to be a potion. Honestly, Cedric thinks he'd rather have the eye of newt---but these substitutes are important to know. Not every wizard has access to comprehensive stores all the time.

The last ingredients, half a sliced eggplant and one mashed sweet potato, sure make it sound appealing. Cedric is going to be sick if he survives this mess.

By this point, the other two cats are curious. They hop up on the counter and pounce, threatening to ruin the whole scribbled list. Cedric's fur stands on end and he lowers his head, hissing. That was hard enough to write the first time!

Howard can't believe this is happening, but he starts to put it all together. He hopes he's reading the scratch in the flour right, and that Cedric will protest if he starts to put in too much or too little of any one ingredient. The combination is noxious and doesn't look even remotely magic (although admittedly Howard would still eat it, and probably will as long as Cedric doesn't tell him it'll have negative effects), but, well. It's not as if there's any alternative Howard knows.

While he stirs, Emergency Rations decides Cedric is far too messy a kitten and goes over, licking the top of his head like a mother cat. Howard chuckles at that; it's almost like him messing up Cedric's hair when Cedric's human.

God, he hopes this works.

He holds the stinking, nasty bowl towards Cedric.

Cedric nods in approval, making sharp taps on the counter every time Howard adds the correct amount of an ingredient. Yes, good. Assuming Cedric remembers all of this correctly, it should be fine. It's not an exact science...more of a remedy to expel magic from the body.

He mewls and rolls in the flour to get away from Spot's mothering, but she'll have none of it. She traps the kitten between her paws and licks, ensuring that the little kitten is nice and clean.

You don't get to do that every day, do you?

When she finishes, Cedric rubs against her. It's an odd cat instinct---but he does love her and he hopes he'll see her again more normally soon. He does the same to Howard, crawling onto his hand and nuzzling his wrist. But that's not enough, is it?

With some effort, he works his way up Howard's shirt again and licks his chin. A kitty-kiss for luck, just in case. You're lucky he's doing this before the substance makes his breath foul, Howard.

Finally, he drops back to the counter and paces around the bowl a few times, sniffing, waiting. When he's convinced himself as much as he can that it's the right stuff, he looks up at Howard and nods. This is it, for better or worse.

He drinks. And it's terrible, just as expected. The little kitten forces himself to have his fill. It churns unpleasantly, but the effect will take a little longer to kick in, if it does. With that in mind, he hops back down to the floor and shivers, waiting.

Howard sits down on the floor with Cedric and strokes his back. He's not sure what else to do. If he were the religious type he'd be praying, the superstitious type, crossing his fingers. And he can tell Cedric's having no fun with it either, the waiting and the hoping.

And honestly, deep down, part of him is mad at Cedric for getting into this situation, scaring him like this. And part of him feels so guilty being mad at Cedric when Cedric could honestly be looking at spending the rest of his life as a kitten.

He nearly asks how long until they know it's worked or not, but then remembers Cedric can't really answer, and scratches him behind the ears.

Howard won't be alone in that. Cedric's mad at himself too. Really, he shouldn't have tried to decorate for the cats with food in his mouth---one syllable gone wrong and look where he'd ended up. It'd be amazing if it was voluntary---Cedric, the fastest-learning Animagus ever?

But he knows he's not that lucky. He's lucky to still have his mind, and he's lucky to have this chance. And even if it doesn't succeed, he's lucky to have Howard still at his side.

With those thoughts in mind, he purrs under Howard's hand and snuggles in for the wait.

It starts five minutes later, and when it does there's no mistaking it. There's a distinct shift in the energy of the room, and the cat lets out a piercing howl of pain before he's silenced by the twisting of his innards.

The skin bubbles, the bones grind, and the torturous process of changing an entire structure begins. It's getting bigger, not smaller, as a first good sign. Every body part reforms inside and out, leaving the grotesque form convulsing in pain for the entire procedure. There's a point where it doesn't look feline or human, and if Cedric could think he might think he was turning into a horse.

Fortunately, he doesn't. The warping body resolves itself into the human Cedric. He shivers face-down on the floor, a continuous low moan sounding from his throat.

"S-sorry," he tries to say after a moment. The voice almost sounds like Cedric's been gargling rocks.

Howard's seen a lot of gross medical stuff, but even so, the entire reformation of Cedric's body is stomach-churning. And he doesn't know what to do for it, or how long it will last - he doesn't even know enough about what's going on to tell Cedric that it'll be okay soon, because for all he knows this is what happens when the potion goes wrong.

So he holds a hand over Cedric's paw, and then Cedric's hand, and rubs Cedric's back throughout as it morphs from furry to smooth.

"Shh, shh, it's okay." He resists the urge to just hug Cedric and squeeze him there, not knowing if maybe Cedric's bones are still forming again. "I'll get you a blanket, hold on. You okay?"

It's impossible to hide the concern in his voice.

Cedric's skin is completely drenched in sweat. He slips on the floor as he tries to move for the first time. Drat---he'll probably be clumsy for a while.

But it's worked. Despite the pain and embarrassment, that's enough to bring a tiny smile to his face. He can keep his perfectly happy human life.

"I feel human enough." He shudders again, biting back another unpleasant sound. "I'm not missing a toe? Parts can get lost sometimes."

"Do you still hurt?" That's the important part, right now. Howard pulls a blanket from the couch and wraps it around Cedric's shoulders, glancing at Cedric's feet as he does so. "I see the right amount of toes."

He sits down again next to Cedric and puts a hand on his shoulder. Mad can wait. Right now he's in concerned fussing mode.

He pulls a towel from the stove and helps wipe some of the sweat off Cedric's brow and neck, too.

"Thank goodness for small favors."

Cedric makes a fist into the blanket and grinds it against the floor. It's dry enough to provide leverage, so he'll be able to get up when he needs to. He relaxes a little under Howard's hand first. It's not the same feeling he had as a kitten, but it's warm all the same.

For a moment, he forgets that he's no longer small and fuzzy and ends up rubbing his hair against Howard's leg. Oops.

After an embarrassed cough, he presses his fists against the ground and slowly rolls into a sitting position against the closest wall, blanket held closed across his lap. A quick peek down reveals that nothing appears to be wrong with his other body parts. Fingers could be tricky sometimes.

His voice is stronger now, thank goodness. Cedric takes a deep breath and speaks again. "I might be sick later, though. That's one of the worst potions I've seen."

Howard laughs at Cedric's weird little cat gesture, but it's strained. He's still not sure Cedric's okay.

"That's okay. I'll finish it." He gives a glance back to the bowl of potion. Because that is clearly what Cedric's worried about, the waste of egg and sweet potato. At least, that's what Howard's partially worried about, but he'll make sure those calories get used. He moves his hand in small circles over Cedric's shoulder. "And I'll clean up if you puke."

He keeps using his other hand to wipe the sweat away. If Cedric didn't look so exhausted it might even be sexy, but Howard's firmly in comfort mode, and that doesn't give much room for such thoughts. The other cats hop down from the counter and investigate, curious as to what their people are doing.

"It won't do anything to you. It just tastes awful," Cedric whispers, snuggling closer to Howard. He's almost draped across his boyfriend's side now, one hand searching for Howard's. He finds it and squeezes tightly.

Cedric's heart finally stops racing with the help of Howard's calming attention. He breathes softly, extending a finger to scratch Spot under her chin. She simply settles beside his leg, resting her head against his knee. Sushi follows, making a beeline for Howard's lap.

"I love them, but I don't want to be one," he sighs, scratching Spot's head. "I don't care how cute I was."

"Good." Howard gets up, gets the bowl and a spoon from the cupboard, and sits back down with Cedric. He also grabs the clothes on the floor with his other hand and passes them over. He sits across from Cedric, letting the cat take his lap, his knees touching Cedric's so Cedric knows he's there. His hand makes little circles around Cedric's knee. Not snuggling, maybe, but that calming physical contact.

"Personally, I think you might be cuter now." He tilts his head over to the side as if considering this, before just eschewing the spoon and drinking straight from the bowl. "Although you were pretty cute then."

Cedric sighs. He's alive, he's well...he's just a little worried about what will happen next. Casting that spell really was stupid, and it could have ended disastrously.

Once he stretches each limb and feels comfortable in his human form, he shuffles to the side slightly and begins the awkward task of getting dressed. He does a lot of twisting and writhing, and the blanket slips, but he's intact and decent in a few minutes and not too much worse at moving about than before. At least that bit of exercise has proven he hasn't lost control of his limbs.

He settles and bumps his knee against Howard's again. "Spot thought so," Cedric grumbles fondly, reaching to rub her head. "It was a cute kitten, from what I saw in my one trip to the mirror. Though that wasn't really what I was thinking about."

His gaze drops to his knees. A half hour ago, he would've been looking at paws.

Howard politely doesn't look. Doesn't matter that they're dating. There are times for being salacious and after a scare like that is not them. He pets Sushi instead.

Once Cedric's dressed, Howard raises his gaze and stares at Cedric. "Don't ever do that to me again. The disappearing thing." His voice is cold and steady, but his face betrays a certain amount of shame that Cedric saw him panic that quickly over it. Shame and a bit of anger.

He drops his stare back down to the cats, although he finds he no longer wishes to pet them.

Cedric withdraws automatically, curled into a little ball of shame. He'd known this was coming, but Howard's anger always scares him.

But he deserves it. Cedric's spent all this time trying to convince Howard that it's okay to trust, that people don't always disappear on you, and now he's gone and caused this. Accident or not.

Accident that shouldn't have happened.

"I didn't want to. I'll be more careful, I swear it."

"I know you didn't mean to, just..." Howard squints his eyes and takes a shaky breath. "I get so scared, okay? I thought for sure you had...I don't want to lose you like I did my parents. So don't do that. Try real hard not to do that to me."

He finishes the bowl of potion, licks the inside and sets it aside. He blinks a few times and then leans forward, resting his head on Cedric's lap. He doesn't want to scare Cedric; he doesn't even think of himself as that intimidating a person, and he'd never hurt Cedric, not on purpose, not physically, nothing like that.

"I just don't want to lose you."

"I promise. No more magic with my mouth full.."

Cedric's voice is heavy with regret and conviction. He feels the weight of what he did and accepts it, desperately wants to atone for it.

With that thought in mind, he lowers his legs to fit Howard's head there comfortably. His hand tentatively brushes Howard's short hair, then curves to rest lightly but protectively.

"I don't want to lose you either. You three are all that I have," he admits, briefly glancing at the two cats. They seem content to stay curled up with them. "I'd never be able to say that if it hadn't worked. So...thanks for saving my life."

Howard's hand gets a warm squeeze for that.

"Oh, that's what it was? I'm going to ban you from doing it if you ever get a tongue piercing, too."

Howard closes his eyes for a moment, then opens them. It doesn't matter that he can feel Cedric's still here and alive and well, he wants to see it. He shifts a bit so he's staring up at Cedric, rather than out. As sad as Cedric looks, he also doesn't look hunched over in pain or fear right now, so Howard guesses that's an improvement.

"And that's not true. You have your team, you have the house, you have your health and all. You'd be okay without us." But he squeezes Ced's hand back. "But you're welcome. I'd always save your life. It's kind of what I get paid to do."

"A tongue piercing?" Cedric makes an interesting face. His mouth is open just enough for Howard to see his tongue curling in revulsion. "Why on earth would anyone want to do that? I've seen people in the shops with them, but it seems like a lot of unpleasantness for not very much reward. I heard I wouldn't be able to kiss you for a month."

And that, surprisingly, is more objectionable than being unable to do magic. The revelation catches Cedric off guard.

Cedric smiles, though it's sadder than before. He knows what Howard's saying: there's always a small chance this won't last, and if they have to go on without each other, they'd better be able to. It's true, but it's the last thing he wants to think about at the moment.

"Then you want me to pay you now?" Cedric asks lightly. "What do I owe?"

"Well, that's just unacceptable." He stretches up and gives Cedric a kiss on the side of his mouth. Personally, he wouldn't be a huge fan of a tongue piercing on Cedric either; there's something about Cedric's wholesome boy-next-door look that would run at odds to piercings or tattoos or whatever.

There's always the haunting sensation that this is temporary. It's faded the longer they've been together, but the undercurrent of fear is still there. Howard thinks - hopes - that a few years longer and it'll be gone. Bumps like this make it temporarily worse, though. The way he's squeezing Ced's hand is more like a cling than anything.

"I don't know. I could use some comfort-snuggling. Since I didn't get to snuggle you much as a cat."

A smile stretches across Cedric's face, noticeably more pronounced on that side of his mouth. Oh, Howard. Cedric loves when you're closeby.

Cedric tightens his grip for a moment, almost to the point of hurting, before he loosens it and rubs Howard's knuckles. "Sorry. But you've got two more," he points out, opening his arms to let Howard in anyway.

"Is it the fuzzy ears? Or that you're the bigger one?"

If the grip's tight, Howard doesn't really notice. He rolls over to his hip so he can fully embrace Ced and rest his face against Cedric's neck.

"Honestly? Probably the second. Do you know how often I get to lord my height over other people? It's precisely never." It would be at little kids' birthday parties if Howard would ever be caught dead within half a block of small children.

Cedric lets out a little hum of contentment. He enjoys these quiet moments with Howard so close. He can be almost as cuddly as a kitten if he tries.

"You're cute as you are, though," Cedric protests. "Though I have to admit it is fun to carry you sometimes."

"I'm better for you than weight-lifting." Howard kisses Ced's neck and nuzzles there. Cedric's still here. Things are, for all intents and purposes, as they were last night, before transformations into kittens happened. "Want to carry me to bed, oh strong man?"

Cedric laughs. "What, do you want to be a kitten next? Not that I would, of course---too risky, and I like being able to talk to you."

As requested, he bends and sweeps Howard into his arms, like he's going to carry him over the threshold. "Yeah, you're right. I could use some more weight training."

He kisses Howard's temple, and off they go. It's strangely peaceful for once in their lives.

and in nonsense fluffland...

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