Tenacious: tending to keep a firm hold of something; clinging or adhering closely. Not readily relinquishing a position, principle, or course of action; determined. Persisting in existence; not easily dispelled.

Words: 1812

******

Even though he was a human now and the curse had been mainly dispersed,  Cecil occasionally displayed the behavior he'd retained as a cat from all those years he spent as one. Old habits die hard. Much to the other members' chagrin, the resurfacing of these symptoms usually equated to Haruka doting on him with her inconvenient fondness of animals. Particularly sleek black cats with bright green eyes.

It's become clear to everyone except Haruka herself that these moments of feline tendencies were short-lived, but Cecil still persists on clinging to her side. It took extensive measures to separate the two once the intimate contact commenced. Everytime.

Like when he took frequent naps in the most inconvenient locations; the tree, under the piano, on the windowsill, and Haruka has to retrieve him, only to be pulled into his unrelenting hold. Or when he bristles at the sight of anyone touching Haruka and continuing to silently sulk until he's got her undivided attention.  It was only a matter of time before purring and cuddling became an everyday occurrence.

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*

*

The weather was great; it was sunny with a cool breeze, the sky was clear and the school campus' meadow was swaying with the wind. It was a great day for a picnic or a stroll but it was not a time to be searching for the elusive, coincidentally narcoleptic Cecil.

He had run out on rehearsal claiming he needed a nap, and had swiftly vanished outdoors. Having become accustomed to his flighty behavior, the STARISH members just sighed in exasperation, some chuckling in amusement, but nevertheless, practice continued without him for a while. That is, until the part with his solo came and his presence was necessary.

Tokiya, breathless from his run-throughs asked Haruka, who, as always, was watching practice by the piano, "Would you mind getting the brat back?"

Haruka nodded, "You guys should take a break until I get back, alright?" Words of agreement swept the group.

So now, the composer was heading confidently towards where she knew he'd be resting. The tree they'd officially met at became something of a hideout for him, and she'd come to know all his tricks. She walked until she was under the longest branch of the maple tree a couple feet from the tree Cecil was supposed to be.

Pausing, Haruka tuned into the euphony of the woods around her. There was a rustling above her, cuing her to jump aside. Under any normal circumstances, Cecil would've been on the ground where she was previously standing, having dropped from the tree. When she didn't see his tanned, agile form crouched on the forest floor with a pout, she tilted her head back to search for sight of him.

Haruka heard a soft whine. "Haruka!" The voice didn't come from too far away, but it was muffled so distinguishing where it came from was a challenge. More rustling. Her eyes frantically shot to the lowest branch. A stream of sunlight glared into her eyes, obscuring her view of the shadow emerging from above her.

"Haruka!" This time, the voice called loud enough for Haruka to distinguish that it was indeed Cecil. Her head snapped to the right. She heard the branch creak and then, she was engulfed by darkness. Cecil had thrown himself onto her. She expected her back to meet the ground with a hard thud, but he had somehow managed to flip them over mid-fall so that Haruka was laying on his chest.

Her front to his, Haruka clutched onto him for dear life. Cecil laughed gleefully, "It wasn't as bad as I thought!" At the sound of his laughter, Haruka lifted her head out of the crook of his neck where she buried herself. Peeling her eyes open, she glared uselessly at him.

With a sigh, Haruka lifted herself up off of Cecil, but his firm hold on the small of her back kept her from getting very far. She fell back into the soft confines of his arms. He snaked his arms around her, pulling her impossibly closer, nuzzling his face into her neck and purred.

Haruka's eyes widened. She knew that once he became like this, it was very hard to get him back to the mindset of a dedicated idol in training. She tried shimmying out of his grasp, but her escape attempts were futile, his arms wrapping tighter around her waist everytime she struggled. After a while, she flopped down in exhaustion, having made no progress other than having flipped herself around. She was still in his arms as her squirming only changed their position – they were spooning on the forest floor now.

She laid there, squinting up into the canopy, streams of sunlight breaking through the leafy dome. It was a very mellow day, and the breeze was comforting. Cecil had begun humming a familiar song; it was the one he sang to her the day they met in this forest. Accompanied by the sounds of nature, Haruka was dangerously close from falling asleep on the forest floor in a dozing Cecil's hold.

Rapidly blinking her eyes, Haruka wrenched her body out of Cecil's grasp and rolled away, eliciting a whine from him. Eyes still shut, he threw his arms up and stretched, his back arching off the ground as he keened. Yawning, he looked at Haruka with sleepy, teary eyes, the green of his irises complementing the greenery around him.

Resisting the urge to lose herself in his eyes and dote on him, Haruka patted herself off and offered a hand to Cecil, who was still seated sulkily on the ground. "Come on, you've still got work to do," she scolded.

When he made no move to get up, Haruka added, "We can play afterwards, okay?" This got his attention, and she could almost see the cat ears perk. He jumped up, disregarding her extended hand and instead, swept her off her feet  (literally). With leaps and bounds, Cecil carried her back to the practice hall with the surges of energy that came with the promise of time with Haruka.

She really didn't say much as he skipped back, partly because she was already used to his antics and knew nothing she said would have much effect but mainly because she was more prioritized with clutching to his shirt to prevent any ill-positioned falls.

His woodsy scent was really pleasant, though.

But when they started nearing the door to the room the members were currently waiting in, she began to beat his chest with her fists to indicate that he should put her down.

Luckily, he set her on her feet just as he entered the practice room but he conveniently kept an arm around her shoulders. When the door creaked open, all heads turned and the first thing they laid their eyes on was the tan arm draped over Haruka's shoulders.

Stepping boldly into the room with a smile, Cecil ushered for practice to continue, "C'mon! What are you guys slacking off for? We've got dances to rehearse!" His members looked back at him in disbelief and frustration.

"You were the one who decided to run off, you little sh-" Syo yelled, stepping towards Cecil with every word. Natsuki came forward from behind Syo and pulled him back, effectively cutting off what would've been a nasty string of curses.

Haruka swept in as the mediator once she saw everyone start to get riled up. She assumed it was because of Cecil's impulses, but she didn't notice his arm migrate from her shoulders to her hips. The guys were bristling at their close proximity, but luckily Haruka stepped out of his hold before anything started. "How about you guys rehearse the closing number a few more times and we can get lunch?"

A unanimous word of agreement rang in the room.

No one noticed the mischievous gleam in Cecil's eyes.

******

The music faded away, leaving the room resonating with vibrations. The guys were glistening with sweat, panting in exhaustion. As they were swigging water, Cecil made his move, hastily making his way to the piano bench where Haruka was seated. "Let's go, let's go!" Cecil rushed excitedly, looking anticipatedly at her.

This got the simultaneous attention of the guys in the room. "Go where?" Almost all of them asked suspiciously in sync.

Spinning around to face them with a triumphant gleam in his eyes, "Haru-chan promised to play with me!"

Eyebrows were raised. Ren tested the waters first, cautiously asking, "Play?"

Cecil eagerly nodded his head, oblivious to the implications that left eyes wide before turning his head back on Haruka. She smiled fondly up at him. His resemblance to a cat was too much for Haruka's inner self-restraints to take, but before she succumbed to his workings, she had to hold to the offer she made the group.

"I told them that we'd get lunch though..." Haruka tried to explain to Cecil. He hung his head and she already knew he was throwing one of his silent fits. She would get the eyes, then the lip, and he'd finish off with a soft whimper that hit her in the heart every time. She knew she would give in, so she looked away, awkwardly making eye contact with the members who were silently watching this spectacle in both suspicion and amusement.

Cecil brought his head up. Haruka whipped her face away from his, bringing her gaze as far away from him as possible. She held her breath, waiting for the whining that was to follow but nothing. She risked a glance in his direction to be met with his intense gaze. Without meaning to, she found herself holding his gaze.

Cecil took a step closer and bent down, closing the distance between them. The shuffling of feet behind him could already be heard from the guys getting ready to launch an attack. But he did it anyways. Cecil rested his forehead on Haruka's and leaned in until their noses touched. Gently nudging the tip of her button nose, Cecil did the eyes and the lip.

And she fell. Haruka fell hard. She bit her lip to keep from squealing. "Okay, okay." She gave in,  throwing her head back and away from his before she was tempted to lean in anymore.

Cecil whooped triumphantly and took Haruka's hands in his, pulling her up from her seat. As he ran off with her in tow, yelps of surprise and outrage rang behind them. Haruka briefly wondered if she should do something about her lack of immunity towards him, but left it at that.

A cat will do what a cat does.