BlueJ Cafe [HDG]

[A story set in the universe of Human Domestication Guide. A simple feel-good tale of a lonely sophont meeting a catgirl at a class J cafe… and with domestication rapidly ensuing. A story I wrote last summer but never got around to posting until now]

It was past midnight by the time Riley [she/they/he] started walking home. Time had kind of gotten away from them, as they had sat by the beach in their hometown almost all day. Now, the twin moons were shining down, their reflections sparkling off the gentle waves out at sea.

Life was better for everyone. The Affini had swiftly dismantled the planet's corporate hellstate and installed the basic necessities within hours of their arrival. After a few days, they had swapped the substandard infrastructure for luxurious, safe, and healthy replacements as if they were just children's building blocks. Everyone was provided for and accommodated. Nobody had to work again in their new post-scarcity society. Everything was finally, genuinely good.

So why did Riley always feel like shit?

It had been months now since the Affini showed up. Months where Riley had lived in peace and without poverty. Months without needing to work for survival. Months of paradise on this formerly miserable, exploited ocean planet and its scattered archipelagos.

So why was Riley still miserable?

They asked themself that question every day, and again as they slowly wandered back to their hab unit.

Along the way, Riley realised they should probably drink some water considering they forgot to hydrate all day. And hey, if they kept that up, Riley would probably end up in mandatory domestication for their own good… if anyone even took notice of them.

The nearest place to get water was a class-J cafe just up the road - a place where florets and independents could get high on class-J xenodrugs. Its name was the BlueJ Cafe, with a cute little blue jay painted next to its sign. Well, and a whole bunch more blue jays and other birds painted all over the building's exterior. Riley figured some very enthusiastic painters started and just kept painting until they ran out of surface area to cover in cute birbs.

Riley peeked through the windows to see if anyone was still in the front room: empty, thankfully. All the independents who were on class-Js must have already been in the sleeping quarters, sound asleep as they were pet and cuddled by the cafe's Affini chaperones. The florets on class-Js would all be safe in their owners' habs by now. Riley's social anxiety could rest a bit easier.

With the coast clear, the independent human stepped into the BlueJ and walked up to one of the many atomic compilers spread through the lounge.

"Hey cutie!" The automated interface spoke in an excited, slightly condescending tone. "What would you like me to compile for you?"

"Just water, please." They replied quietly, hoping their voice couldn't be heard from the back room. The loud interface's voice, however, made that rather meaningless.

"Coming right up!"

In mere moments, a tall glass was assembled atom-by-atom, then filled with water the same way. Riley never tired of seeing the Affini's hyper-advanced, universal 3D printers in action.

Once they were clear to do so, Riley grabbed their water and found a window seat under a nice leafy canopy; it was incredible how easily the Affini could weave lush plant life into their architecture, though they supposed it made sense considering the Affini were giant plampts themselves.

The cafe had a wonderful view of the beach. Riley enjoyed just watching the little waves crash and flow up the sandy shore, only to be swept back a moment later. Lush palms swayed in the gentle midnight breeze, and a few wispy clouds glowed in the moonlight. This planet was truly breathtaking when it wasn't being destroyed by capitalism. But their attention was pulled away from the scenery when they noticed a gentle, adorable purring sound beside them.

"Ack-! S-sorry, you startled me…" Riley said quietly after nearly jumping out of their seat.

Sitting next to them was a human who was biomodded with feline features: kitty ears on her head; a tail gently flicking from side to side; big ol' paws instead of hands and feet; and of course, the ability to purr like a cat. Her mid-length black hair almost matched Riley's, though where theirs reached their shoulders, hers did not - plus, hers was a bit wavy near the end. Her dazzling green eyes shimmered in the moonlight, and her big dopey smile revealed cat-like fangs - probably another biomod, Riley thought. The catgirl was wearing a loose, light companion dress with a red, orange, and yellow leaf pattern. She was also wearing soft brown leggings with markings that made it look like tree bark, plus a matching collar, completing the very autumnal outfit. It was safe to say she was a floret given the collar and companion dress.

"What are you doing here? Aren't people on class-Js supposed to have someone to look after them?"

The catgirl simply blinked lazily.

"Yeah, I've heard the class-Js make it hard to talk, or even think too hard. So I guess I won't be getting any answers." Riley sighed. "I don't even know your name…"

But like many kitties, this catgirl was wearing a nametag on her collar.

"Oh, of course…" Riley facepalmed, then checked the tag.

'ALYSSA AUTUMNGROVE, FIRST FLORET'

Then they flipped it around.

'SHE/HER'

"Ah, h-hi Alyssa! I'm Riley! Oh, um, I guess I feel like… hmm… my pronouns feel like he/him right now, but I also use she/her and they/them. Buuut you're likely not going to be referring to me verbally at all. Or be able to remember much of this. I suppose that might be why I'm having such an easy time talking with you!" He chuckled quietly. "Are you just here to make a friend, or… oh yeah, I think I remember, class-Js multiply the pleasure of your sense of touch… So you're probably looking for headpats, aren't you?"

The catgirl continued to blink slowly and purr contently.

Riley hesitantly reached out and lightly pet Alyssa between her cat ears. Her purring got much louder as she leaned into Riley's hand, but the purring died out altogether when he finished petting her. Now, her eyes were pouty and wide, her ears drooped, and her tail fell still.

Alyssa lifted one of her big bappy pawbs and placed it gently on Riley's forehead. He felt just how soft and squishy her pad and toebeans were, which made him giggle giddily.

"Ok, ok, I get it!" Riley laughed, returning to stroking the adorable kitty woman.

Before he could get much petting in, however, Alyssa curled up on Riley's lap and held him in a cozy hug.

His cheeks flushed with warmth and his heart nearly skipped a beat. The resurgent purring trailed off a bit, alerting Riley to the fact that in his shock he paused his petting. Correcting his mistake, the independent Terran returned to giving headpats to the floret on his lap.

After a few more minutes of pets and cuddles, Riley spoke again. "This is nice. You're nice… I wonder if you'd still like me this much without the xenodrugs in your system…" He sighed. "If you weren't on class-Js, I probably wouldn't even be able to look at you without my anxiety going wild. It's bad enough as-is right now…. Stars, I hate social anxiety…"

At that, Alyssa began to rub her head into Riley's body. Her tail was back to swishing adorably, and her paws were gently kneading his back as she continued to hug him.

"As much as I love your- I m-mean-! As much as I'm enjoying cuddling you, we should probably get you home to your owner…"

The floret remained enamoured with her cuddles and headpats.

"Um, I'm s-sorry, but I should-! You need to-! Your owner will be-!" Riley gently nudged the kitty on his lap.

She didn't budge.

"Alyssa, I'm sorry, but this can't go on forever…" Riley murmured gently.

"Why not?" Alyssa raised her head to reveal her wide, pouty eyes again.

"ACK-!!" This time, Riley jumped from his seat enough for Alyssa to hop off, but she was quick to sit next to him again.

"Hee hee, I'm sorry! I didn't mean to frighten you!"

"B-b-but c-class-Js!?" Riley stammered breathlessly.

"I haven't been on any 'Js lately, I just like acting like that!" The kitty woman flashed a toothy grin. "Besides, you looked lonely, and I was getting bored waiting for Owner to finish up in the back room. You're a great cuddler by the way, and you give great head-petties!"

Riley barely registered the sound of a door opening before an Affini was looming next to their booth.

"Is everything alright, darlings?" The massive plampt lady asked with concern in her voice, and in her biorhythm. "I heard a shout and came running."

Unable to look at the imposing figure for more than a split second at a time, Riley weakly put his thumbs up.

"Owner!" Alyssa meowed excitedly, immediately nuzzling up against her Affini. She graciously accepted fervent petting from her loving Mistress. "Don't worry, Mistress, Riley just got a bit spooked. He thought I was high on class-Js, but then I unexpectedly spoke to him, that's all."

A relaxed air radiated from the Affini through her biorhythm. "Ah, I'm glad you cuties are both alright."

"H-h-hi, I'm, uh, I-I'm…" Riley struggled to make words come out of his mouth.

"Riley. Don't worry, I heard you as I watched you and my darling Alyssa from another room~"

He'd been watched!? His heart felt tight in his chest and his stomach churned. The Affini seemed to notice.

"Oh petal, your biorhythm feels so distressed…" Alyssa's Owner cooed with a renewed concern. "Don't you worry, darling, neither of us will bring you harm. Do you already have a prescribed xenodrug regimen for anxiety?"

Riley shook his head, still too intimidated to look at the massive plampt for more than a moment.

"You poor thing… we can rectify that first thing tomorrow if you'd like me to accompany you to the xenoveterinarian."

Wincing at the idea of a doctor's appointment, Riley simply curled up and hid his face. His heart pounded relentlessly.

"Hmm, no? I see." The Affini muttered softly, taking a moment to think. "Ohhh, I believe I understand now. I will not force you to see medical practitioners if you have pain and trauma tied to such visits."

Surprised the huge plant gathered that so quickly, Riley slowly nodded his head. He felt Alyssa grab his arm in another hug as she caringly nuzzled into his shoulder. Her presence, her touch… It felt so nice.

"Oh petal…" Alyssa's Owner sighed. "I'm no xenoveterinarian, but I'm still an Affini and I know a thing or two about making anxiety leave poor cuties alone." A vine slowly extended to dangle a bright blue rose-like flower in front of Riley. "This has a blend of Class-A, -E, and -F xenodrugs - my darling Alyssa's favourite mix, in fact! If you'd like, I can administer a dose for you right now to take away those painful thoughts and feelings."

Riley thought for a moment. He didn't want to be a burden to either of them, and he certainly didn't want the Affini to waste medicine on him when it could be used by Alyssa. He didn't want to be needy like always, but he also didn't want to be rude by refusing help.

He then realised that the more time he thought, the more time he spent as the center of attention. Riley just wanted to slink away and forget he was ever perceived at all - and to be forgotten. It would have been so much less complicated if he'd just taken his water to go.

An air of concern again radiated off the Affini, making Riley begin to panic. He knew he must have hurt Alyssa or her Owner or both, he knew they must be disgusted by him, he knew-

The Terran's spiralling thoughts were interrupted by the Affini's flower being pressed to his face. "Breathe for me, petal…" Alyssa's Affini said gently.

Doing as instructed, Riley let go of the breath he didn't realise he had been holding, then inhaled deeply. A wonderful, floral scent filled his nose, followed soon by a sharp drop in anxiety. The soft, comforting flower gracing his skin felt so wonderful, and somehow very intimate. What's more, it wasn't petrifyingly anxiety-inducing like intimacy had always been for him.

The anxious feelings and thoughts that usually ate away at him were almost nonexistent now. It was as if the RAM in his brain had been wiped clean, freeing up so much more room to experience pleasant sensations. His attention was now on the gentle flower and the warm, caring presence of the other two sophonts beside him.

But soon enough, the flower was pulled away, eliciting a short, quiet whine. The feeling of soft, smooth petals sliding off his skin felt so much more vivid and breathtaking than before his dose of xenodrugs. Riley's whole body shivered as goosebumps appeared and hairs raised on end.

"It's ok, Riley!" Alyssa moved back over and nudged his shoulder, then sat in his lap again. "I still like you even when I'm not on class-Js~"

The independent Terran's face flushed with heat again. "Wh-why, though?"

"Because you're sweet and you're kind and you gave me head-petties!" Alyssa beamed brightly, and her Affini did too.

"Petal, nobody needs a reason to like you. Besides, my kitty Alyssa is right!" The Affini added.

"Th-thanks, um…" Riley glanced between the giant plampt and the cat in his lap.

"Oh dear, where are my manners!? Mala Autumngrove, Second Bloom, she/her, at your service!" Mala curtseyed with a dress made of her own plant matter.

Now that Riley could steal a glance without his anxiety spiking, he saw that Mala's 'hair' consisted of huge blue petals that looked similar to the flower which gave him xenodrugs. Her dress was made of big green vines woven with autumnal leaves - much like Alyssa's, though these were genuine leaves on her body as opposed to just a pattern of fabrics. Three shimmering, metallic eyes looked down on him - they were currently blue with flecks of gold, but Riley knew Affini eyes changed colours and patterns to reflect their mood. He also knew there was no universal colour code, but that it varied from Affini to Affini. He wondered what emotions were causing her eyes to appear like this now…

"H-hi, I'm Riley, he/him right now."

Mala giggled softly. "Yes petal, I know~"

Oh yeah. She had observed the two Terrans from another room. Riley's cheeks would blush again if they weren't still flushed.

"I'm sorry, I don't mean to keep you from… whatever you're doing. I can go now if you want…"

Alyssa let out a distressed merp and held Riley tight. Her eyes were all big and pouty again.

"Nonsense, Riley dear, you have nothing to apologise for. We'd both love to have you join our family~"

Alyssa vigorously nodded her head, and her purring grew faster and louder.

Riley’s mind wandered back to his hab unit. It was fine, but was there anything there - hell, anything in his day-to-day life at all - that he’d miss if he were to join Alyssa and Mala? He didn’t have to think too hard to conclude the answer to that question was no.

So what was holding him back? He already knew the answer to that, too: his habitual tendency to avoid socialisation.

“Y-you really… want me to be part of your f-family? B-but you don’t even know me… What if you don’t l-like me?”

Alyssa giggled quietly and Mala’s whole body rustled as if being moved by a gentle breeze. Whether that meant she was sighing, laughing, humming in contemplation, or something else, Riley had no idea.

“Petal, we’ve seen the person you are when you think nobody is watching consciously; we’ve seen your heart, and it’s so tender and beautiful~” Mala smiled warmly.

Tears flooded Riley’s eyes as he glanced from the catgirl to the affini and back again. Finally, after so long, his desire broke through the walls he’d built around himself: he nodded with a little sniffle.

“Mrrrow!!” Alyssa leapt onto Riley again, nuzzling and kneading with fervour.

Before Riley even knew, he and Alyssa had been scooped up by a number of vines and were being held close to Mala’s core. The affini’s biorhythm was almost tangible this close to her, and it felt so nice; it felt like home.

“Alright darlings, let’s get you home now, hmm?” Mala purred lovingly.

Riley closed his eyes and pulled Alyssa closer. “I think… I already am.”