Sniff, sniff. Had he been gone long enough? Josh wasn’t quite sure. Time did funny things sometimes and his sense of it had never been that great. A hind paw scratched at his ear as he considered the smells in the air.

Surely Kit had been gone at least ten minutes now? A clock would be nice. Then he could stop timing things by which footsteps he heard in the hallway and how long smells lasted! Kit’s smell wasn’t that strong at the moment so he was probably gone at least thirty minutes. Right?

Well, it was long enough! Josh needed to gather mana and it was much more comfortable to do that on the bed rather than under it.

Josh yawned and stretched his paws forward, wriggling his toes, and as he did they changed into fingers and wrists and arms. The change sank into his chest and blossomed out to his face while his back and legs relaxed into human form. Like a too-tight muscle that was finally losing a cramp, Josh snuggled into the comforter with a small sound of joy and relief.

It felt so good to be human!

“Oh,” he breathed after a moment, thoughts turning to the ears and tail he’d almost forgotten to keep. Just in case.

Blush! Josh wondered how shameful he looked rolling around on Kit’s sheets completely unclothed. If only his skill had extended as far as clothes and accessories! He sat up for a moment with a pout on his face and covered the most important part as he glanced at the window.

No one was there.

“It would be nice if there was a shade there,” he grumbled aloud. Josh loved the sunshine just as much as any cat however there were times when privacy was just as important. A bedroom on the first floor with a window overlooking the garden?

Rich people really were different. Josh knew the garden was enclosed, private, and only the staff and knights would occasionally wander by. That didn’t mean they wouldn’t question a strange man in the young duke’s bed!

And what if they saw him snooping? He was supposed to be gathering secrets right now. That was definitely questionable activity someone would report.

Josh cautiously stood and crept over to the window, looked carefully for anyone who might be nearby, then closed the fogged glass that shielded the room from the weather outside. It wasn’t quite enough to be called privacy, but it was enough that Josh might be mistaken for a servant or Kit by a passerby.

Most of the wardrobe had been blocked off so that Josh couldn’t get clothes even in his human form. However Kit had a tendency of leaving out a single pair of soft sleepwear somewhere Josh could reach. Josh suspected this was on purpose; rather than having Josh tear apart his clothes Kit left out something that would appeal to a kitten. Sometimes they were warm clothes fresh from the laundry and sometimes they were clothes he’d worn the night before. Josh didn’t mind either way - except that all Kit’s clothes were large on his small frame and tended to slide down over his feet and hands.

He let out a small groan when he saw the pile of papers on Kit’s desk. “That’s too much,” he whined softly, giving a longing look back at the bed. A single strip of sunlight fell right across the middle of the sheets. The comforter was incredibly soft and tempting. And there was a small wrinkle where he’d transformed from kitten to human.

Sleeping was the fastest way to gather mana. Gathering mana was the most important priority. Therefore it was most important that he take the time to nap in that pile of sunshine!

Josh, pleased with his deduction, fell back on the bed with a happy sigh. He reached a hand under a pillow and pulled out the little golden toy from yesterday, cradling it close to his chest.

Heaven was warm sunshine, soft blankets, and the faintest smell of red snapper!

Slow breaths in and out easily put him in a light doze. Sleeping was when the human body took the time to heal, and that included gathering mana. It wasn’t the only way to restore the magic. It was just the simplest and the easiest. It didn’t require any tools or outside help. Without a magic object to restore his mana or someone else feeding mana to him, sleeping was his only option.

Besides, who would pick any other option when they had a napping spot like this!

Josh couldn’t help the silly smile on his face as he let himself drift off in a doze that was probably more asleep than awake. It had to be because there was someone petting his hair now and that couldn’t be anything but a dream. The soft strokes were even set off a light rumble in Josh’s chest that was almost a purr. He knew it had to be a dream then because there was no way Josh would ever purr in his sleep.

When he was young his mother would pet his hair the way this person did. When all the orphans were in their beds his mom would take him upstairs and they would snuggle together. She’d tell him stories about dragons hoarding treasures, princes and princesses doing impossible deeds, and fairies playing tricks with mana. Josh’s father would watch them from the side with just a little bit of a smile, and sometimes interject about a brave knight or a powerful beastkin. He always liked to add a bit of adventure to the stories.

Josh missed his parents and the other children. He missed his home.

It was the sound of someone stomping in the hall that woke him from the dream. “Fudgecakes!” he yipped when he realized how dark it was - Kit could be back at any moment! He quickly changed back into a cat and then drug the clothes to make a nest in the center of the bed.

“He’s going to wonder how I got it up here,” Josh cried, burrowing under the comforter to make the dip where he’d slept look more natural. “How could I sleep so late?”

Still, better Kit wonder how his kitten got the strength to get clothes on the bed then wonder about the human sleeping on his sheets! Josh would just die of embarrassment and then Kit would execute him as a pervert!