Fishsticks

Two cats sat side by side. The larger one, the tom, had his head turned away. He was sleek and dark with ice blue eyes. His tail twitched nervously, giving his emotional state away. The other, the female, was quite and still. She looked at the ground. She was slender and dark with fiery red highlights in the shine of her coat.

The tom cleared his throat. The female looked at him. If one looked closely, one could see a ghost of a smile curl her lips upwards.

"Um...Akane?"

"Yes, Ranma?"

"I-I wanted to say.... I mean, I-" The tom's tail swished around wildly. The female smiled. She leaned up against him and wrapped her tail around his, forcing it to calm.

"It's okay, Ranma. I understand."

Ranma's only reply was to purr.

END