Cat Eyes || Tomtord

Friends

Tord stepped back, "Fuck- I shouldn't have done that. I'm going-" But it was too late for regret. Edd opened the door.

Tom filled with joy then drained with sorrow. It was Edd, his best friend. But he wore unhealthily large eye bags and a short, unshaved beard. Now that he's in front of him, he can smell more thick sweat than cola, and that's saying something.

Tom leaped at Edd before he even saw him, tears brimming his eyes. Edd yelped in surprise as Tom sunk his nails carefully into Edd's hoodie, ignoring the strong, putrid odour. He meowed and meowed and purred in happiness. Tord let out a hushed, "Cat!" but Edd didn't seem to hear it.

Edd giggled and held Tom in his arms, "Hi, little guy." Then he looked up and his smile dropped. Tom sensed panic in both of them. Tord's, surprisingly, was stronger.

"Edd..." Tord gulped.

"Tord?" Tom felt Edd's panic lessen and then rise again, "What are you doing here!? I thought you were dead!"

"I'm here to apologize. Please, I'm sorry. I'm really sorry," Tord said, tears streaming out of his eyes.

Edd shifted Tom into one arm and used the other to wrap around Tord, "I'm so happy you're not dead," he said, voice cracking.

Tord murmured Edd's name and they sobbed into each other, nearly crushing Tom. They pulled apart slowly, all of them so happy their sad and crying.

"Thank you, thank you," Tord said, cradling Tom's face and kissing his head.

"Edd?" Asked an amazing familiar voice. Tom meowed and climbed up onto Edd then pounced onto Matt. Matt covered his face in a characteristic gesture, yelling, "Not the face!" Tom cherished the narcissistic action and stood on his shoulder.

"Matt?" Tord called.

"Tord!" Matt exclaimed. He was caught in a web of be happy or scared. He broke free with strings of fear covering him, "What are you doing here!?"

"It's okay, Matt," Edd said. "He's come to apologize."

"He hurt my beautiful face! He destroyed all of my novelty toys and everything! He-" Matt stopped himself, seeing that Tord was looking down, hugging himself, crying; broken. "Tord?"

Tord looked up hopefully. Matt pushed the fear away at his old friend's misery, forgetting about the hatred and jumping into joy, "Tord, you're alive!" Matt ran to him and hugged him. Tord sobbed and Matt let tears trickle down his face.

The room swirled with emotion. So much sorrow and happiness that it was dizzying. Edd invited Tord into the apartment. They sat on the couch. Edd looked at Tord with sympathy, "Where have you been all this time?"

"I lied to you. When I said that I was going to the... the big city. I actually really liked joining the army and... I kind of started my own," Tord explained, sheepishly laughing, rubbing his neck.

"I loved it. I fucking loved the overwhelming power it brought me. It was humouring the sadistic part of me. Watching the blood pour out of a person, feeling the soul slip out of their body..." He was zoning out, then snapped out of it with a jolt. "Sorry! I shouldn't go on about it."

"Anyways, I kept coming back here, whenever you were gone. I had," he coughed a bit, ashamed. "I had a few cameras around the house to know. I was building that robot in secret, underneath the house. I was so caught up in my power that I didn't see a downside in just saying hi, grabbing a robot, and booking it." Tord breathed for a second and another tear left his eye, "I didn't mean it when I said I didn't need you."

"What happened after that? Your face..." Matt asked.

"After the robot blew up, I landed on a hill above your house. My arm was completely scratched up and so was my face. Funny thing was... the harpoon landed left of me but my right side was most injured. Anyways, I went back to my base, to the emergency room in the infirmary and they told me I was going to loose an arm."

He rolled up his sleeve. Edd and Matt gasped. "I fell asleep and woke up with this on. It's detachable, waterproof, has built in lasers; it's a big upgrade but it's not the same as my old arm. Later on, I ended up braking my other arm, so it's an exoskeleton. The fracture healed but they decided that I could use the power of two robot arms."

"It wasn't the same after I... blew up. I eventually got too stressed about being a leader. I just didn't want to do it anymore. I didn't tell anyone that, except for the cat. I was actually told to get a dog to help with the stress but, since dogs require work, got a cat." He laughed, "The cat is really the reason I'm here. He led me here, really. He's so smart," he stroked Tom affectionately and kissed his forehead.

Tom liked that. He surprised himself, liking when his enemy kissed him. It's nothing, Tom thought, Just feline instinct.

The others were silent, not knowing how to react. Ringo hopped onto the couch and meowed affectionately at him, rubbed his head along Tom's. He didn't know why, or how, but he got the feeling that Ringo knew he was Tom. Somehow.

"What's their name?" Edd asked.

"He doesn't have one," Tord said, "Just cat."

"You know how you said that he was the reason you were here? Ringo was kind of the reason I answered the door," Edd laughed, giving Ringo slow rubs. "I've kind of been depressed ever since the robot thing and..." Edd paused. He sighed, "Ringo was doing the meow that said Tom was here. She has special meows for everyone."

So Ringo did recognize him.

"Speaking of Tom, it'll be hard persuading him to forgive me," Tord laughed. Edd looked away and covered his mouth after letting out an audible sob. Matt looked down.

"What?" Tord asked.

"I would have thought you knew..." Matt said.

"What? Knew what?" Tord asked.

"Tord..." Edd whimpered out, his voice sounding almost unfamiliar. "Tom is dead."