Why Would the Author Let You

Some time had passed over the night and you stand towering over Riley on a bean bag chair. Her arms and legs spread wide in a welcoming position, while her face adopts a false facade of fear.

"Oh no. What ever shall I do, meow," she pawed the air in front of her. Cat ears twitched on her head and a tail wiggled out underneath her body, rubbing the fabric of the bean bag chair.

-

Just an hour before, Riley knocked at the door. It was the middle of the night, so I decided to try and sleep through it, hoping she would get the message. I mean, what could she want at this hour anyways?

After the longest minute of my life Riley switched tactics from knocking to stretching at the door. I shot up off my mattress in fear her insistent scraping would wake the other neighbors and set a bad reputation for me, and ran for the door. Once there I stared through the peephole and noticed the strange cat garb she wore. She definitely didn't have this on earlier when me and Patricia first met her. It Patricia saw this, should would have stayed the night in fear for her big brother's safety.

"Go away," I moaned. I was too tired, otherwise I would have opened the door and calmly asked her to go away. She was my landlord after all, my very brand-spanking new landlord.

Riley guessed where I was and moved her head closer to the black dot on the other side of my door. "Please let me in. I didn't have the heart to tell you about weirdness of this complex. Especially not in front of your little sister."

I sighed and then tried to re-iterate my earlier request, "whatever kinky sex thing this complex provides I'm really not interested." I turned away from the door, yawning, and made my way back to my mattress. First thing tomorrow morning, I'll have a rather "wanting to avoid conversation" with Riley and get my safety deposit back. A strange visit at the middle of night and promise of cat girl prostitution was a no-go.

My foot was barley placed onto the soft mattress before the scratching resumed. This time it was followed by a cry. "Please! Just five minutes. It will be worth it, trust me."

I rolled my eyes, but gave in to her request. I walked over to the door, faster as I was more awake by this time, and opened the door to let Riley in. She waltzed into the room like she owned the complex and sat on the first box of unpacked belongings that fit her height. She crossed her arms and stared at me as I closed the door, waiting for me to make eye contact.

As I saw her position I knew it was going to take more than five minutes and mopingly crossed over to my mattress for someplace to sit. Yet, when I fell into my mattress I just fell straight down into it. Laying on it and letting a rush of tiredness prevent me from pulling myself up into a sitting position.

"Can you get on with whatever you have to say? I really just want to get back to sleeping."

"Hmph. You are in the presence of a great cat god. Show some respect," Riley chastised.

I sat up on my mattress. "Okay. If you're going to act like a child I'll treat you like a child." I stood up and walked over to where Riley was and grabbed her by the scruff of her neck and dragged towards the door. "And drag you out myself."

Her hands clawed at my as I dragged her closer to the door. "No! Please! I'll be good, just let me go!" She managed to break my grip and crawled her way back onto the box she sat on before. She patted herself down and started her story, "you see, most of the current residents are long lost deities. Forgotten to time and are no longer worshipped. And for the few lucky mortal residents, in order for us to remain a secret, are provided with godly services of their adjacent neighbor. Being your adjacent neighbor, my abilities as a cat deity are at your disposal for as long as you keep our secret from others." After her whole speech her lips curled into a smirk and her head did a self-approving nod.

"I call bullshit."

"Whaaaaa-" was the last thing to come from her mouth as I grabbed her once again by the scruff of her neck and dragged her to the door.

There was no way I was going to believe this psycho cosplayer. Not about gods, not about this complex being a home for them, or the plain fact that she had powers I could use if I kept quiet. More like kept quiet about their weird fantasies to get future tenets.

"Good night, and expect the loading truck back in the morning. I'm not staying," I said, getting ready to roll her out the door like a bowling ball.

"Wait! Let me show you my powers! I'll get outta your hair after that!"

I stopped and let go of her neck. "Really? Then you'll leave?"

Riley rubbed the back of her neck. "Y-yeah. Then I'll leave. But-" she jumped to her feet in a renewed sense of vigor, "I'll need to borrow your body."

"My body?" I didn't follow her. What exactly were her powers if they required my body? Transmutation? I mean, sure, that could be useful, but I didn't want that happening to any part of body.

She glanced the hesitation in my eyes and explained further, "I can switch bodies."

"..."

Riley walked up to me and waved a hand in my face. "Um, hello? You okay?"

I grabbed her waving hand and took a long look at her. It seemed to have the effect I was hoping as she shrunk into herself.

"I can only switch my body with another. From there I don't have to be the one in my body to continue to switch. As long as it's my body I can mentally switch it with another."

I let go of her hand and walked back over to my mattress. I sat on the edge and said, "fine. Do it, switch us both and then get out."

"B-but, you'll be in my body all night," she said sheepishly. "And I'll be in yours..."

Oh, for crying out loud. She still believes her own nonsense. "Just get on with it. That is, if you don't want me telling the world about this "god complex" you have here."

"Alright, here I go." Riley repositioned herself, with her legs crossed on the floor. She raised both her hands and turned them inward, towards each other. Dark purple energy started to emanate from her palms and swirl around her arms. The energy started to fall onto the floor and slowly make its way over to me.

I started to panic as I saw it coming my way and I tried to scramble over to the other side of the mattress. It was too late, as the energy started to pick up speed and it enveloped me before I even got halfway across the mattress. It consumed me and a few seconds later my vision gave out.