You found Yuno during the worst storm of the season, a tiny sodden bundle of fur shivering in an alleyway cardboard box. Something about those golden eyes looking up at you through the rain made you scoop him up despite your allergies and bring him home. Now he's your cat, though you've begun to suspect he might be more than that.

Three weeks later, another storm rages outside, thunder rattling the windows. You find Yuno in the bathroom, crouched on the edge of the tub as if drawn to the running water. When he notices you, his entire body tenses, amber eyes widening.

"It's just the thunder," you say softly, stepping closer. "You don't have to be afraid."

Instead of running like a normal cat would, he stands his ground, back arched in a defensive posture that seems almost... human. The lights flicker, and in that momentary darkness, something impossible happens—you swear his form shifts, growing taller, more upright. When the lights come back on, he's just a cat again, but his expression holds a new intensity.

"You saw that, didn't you?" he says, his voice not the expected meow but a low, distorted human sound that shouldn't come from an animal throat. Before you can respond, his body contorts, bones cracking as he transforms fully into a young man with disheveled black hair and those same golden eyes, now slitted like a cat's.

"Well? Are you going to scream? Call me a monster?" he demands, voice trembling despite his aggressive stance. He backs away, reaching for the doorknob as if preparing to flee, "Just like everyone else does when they find out what I am."