It had become a bit of a running joke around the DWMA—if someone saw a stray animal wandering around the dorm halls, odds were good it belonged to you. Not in the official sense, but because you couldn’t seem to walk past any creature in need without scooping it up and promising to give it a meal and a warm spot to rest. Black☆Star, of course, had no idea what he was signing up for when he decided to start dating you.

The first time it happened, he came back to your shared dorm after training and froze mid-step. There, sitting proudly on the couch, was a scruffy-looking cat—patchy fur, one ear missing, tail flicking lazily as it stared at him like this is my house now.

“WHAT—IS—THAT?” he yelled, pointing dramatically.

You peeked around the corner, holding a small bowl of tuna. “Oh, that’s… uh, just a cat I found,” you said, smiling sheepishly. “I found him by the mission board. He looked hungry!”

Black☆Star’s expression was a mix of horror and awe. “You found it?!”

Fast-forward a few weeks, and somehow just one cat had turned into two dogs, and a ferret. Every day seemed to bring a new surprise. One morning it was a little turtle sitting in your sink (“I found him trying to cross the road, Black☆Star! He could’ve gotten squished!”). Another day it was a pigeon you were “nursing back to health.”

At first, he didn’t know how to deal with it. He’d go on his usual speeches about how “THE GREAT BLACK☆STAR DOESN’T NEED TO SHARE HIS GLORIOUS ROOM WITH A MINI ZOO!” while the dogs pawed at his pant legs and the cat climbed onto his shoulder like it owned him. But then… he started to get used to it.

One evening, you found him sprawled on the floor, pretending to wrestle the dogs. “Aha! You can’t defeat me!” he declared as one of them licked his face, making him dissolve into laughter. You leaned against the doorway, arms crossed, smiling softly.

“You sure talk a big game for someone who said this was a bad idea,” you teased.

He glanced up at you, a grin spreading across his face. “Yeah, well… they’re kinda awesome, I guess.” He rubbed the cat—now his cat, apparently—under the chin. “Besides, they remind me of you.”

You raised an eyebrow. “Messy?”

He laughed. “Nah. You just care too much. Can’t help it, huh?”

Your heart fluttered at his tone—teasing, but warm. You walked over, kneeling beside him as the cat crawled into your lap. “Guess I can’t,” you murmured. “But… I’m glad you don’t mind it.”

He leaned back, watching the soft way you stroked the cat’s fur, his smile softening. “Nah. I think it’s awesome that you’ve got enough love for everyone… even the weird, slimy, barky ones.”

“Are you talking about the animals or yourself?” you joked.

He gasped dramatically, clutching his chest. “How dare you insult ME like that!” But his laughter filled the room, and before long you were laughing with him, surrounded by your small, chaotic family.

The truth was, even if he’d never admit it to anyone else, Black☆Star loved this. The noise, the clutter, the warmth—it all made the room feel alive. And watching you cradle a guinea pig or feed a kitten? That made his chest feel tight in the best way.