Zhenwei had commanded armies.
Nothing in five centuries had prepared him for sleeping on a floral pillow beside a girl who snored softly and kicked in her sleep.
This was… highly undignified.
He lay on Xinyue's bed in his cat form, tail flicking irritably as moonlight spilled across the floor. The room smelled faintly of vanilla soap and clean cotton. Minmin, the little plant by the window, stood like a silent witness to his humiliation.
In the corner of the room, invisible to mortal eyes, Linghu hovered upside down near the ceiling fan.
"You look very… at home," the fox whispered into his mind.
Zhenwei mentally growled.
Go back to the mansion.
"Already handled," Linghu replied smugly. "I told the spirits you're 'on a personal retreat.' The ancestral hall is scandalized."
The ancestral hall, the only refuge of unwanted souls, outcast and banished from the immortal realm. Zhenwei wasn't banished, he was just undergoing some temporal punishment or so he convinced himself.
i don't care about their opinions
"You say that, but you're sleeping in a human girl's bed."
Zhenwei shut his eyes.
Monitor things there. If anything shifts—
"I'll know," Linghu said. "Always do. Now go, oh mighty war god. Enjoy your… sleepover."
The fox vanished from the room, his laughter trailing behind like smoke.
Zhenwei curled into a tighter ball.
This was a strategic decision.
He told himself that at least ten times before sleep finally took him.
Morning arrived gently.
Sunlight brushed across Xinyue's curtains, painting gold across the room. Zhenwei woke to movement — soft footsteps, the rustle of fabric, the quiet hum of a familiar tune.
Xinyue.
He cracked one eye open.
She padded across the floor in fuzzy slippers, hair tied up messily, still half-asleep. She moved toward the window first, picking up her tiny watering can.
"Good morning, Minmin," she whispered.
Zhenwei watched, frozen, as she carefully tilted the can, giving the succulent just enough water.
She smiled at the plant.
She smiles at vegetation, he thought.
This girl was dangerous.
She turned, spotted him on the bed, and gasped softly.
"Oh! you're awake" she said warmly.
She walked into the kitchen, and Zhenwei followed, hopping down silently onto the counter like a shadow not like that wasn't actually his name now.. He watched as she pulled out a small bowl of custard, creamy and golden, setting it on the table.
Then came the ultimate insult.
She opened a cabinet and pulled out a small packet of cat food.
She shook it gently. "Breakfast time, Shadow."
Zhenwei stared at it.
Stared.
i have dined in celestial halls. I have tasted offerings from kings. And you bring me… pellets.
"meow"
He leaped onto the table in one smooth motion.
And stuck his face straight into her custard.
Xinyue screamed.
"HEY!"
Custard smeared on his nose. Dignity in ruins.
He froze.
She stared.
Then she burst out laughing.
"Oh my gosh," she giggled, "a cat who doesn't eat cat food. Nice."
Zhenwei licked the custard off his whiskers, refusing to acknowledge the commentary.
She sighed dramatically and pushed the cat food aside. "Fine. I guess you're a spoiled prince."
Finally. Accuracy
She wiped his nose with a napkin, and he allowed it — barely.
The two of them sat in a strange, quiet peace as she ate toast and he finished what was left of the custard.
Zhenwei pretended he hated it.
He did not.
Xinyue grabbed her bag and slipped on her coat.
"Be good, okay?" she told him, crouching down to eye level. "mummy will be back okay"
His ears twitched.
She smiled, then rushed out the door, leaving behind the soft hum of her apartment and a war god sitting on a kitchen table with custard on his whiskers.
Silence filled the space.
Zhenwei hopped down and walked to the window, looking out at the city.
How am I supposed to be a CEO and… this? he wondered.
The thought should have annoyed him.
Instead, it lingered.
Linghu's voice echoed faintly in his mind.
"Careful, old friend. You're starting to look forward to mornings."
Zhenwei huffed softly.
Ridiculous.
But when he transformed back into his human form, straightened his suit, and stepped into the world again…
The faint scent of vanilla soap followed him out the door.