A Bakeneko is, in Japanese folklore, a cat with shapeshifting abilities akin the kitsune or tanuki. There are legends about bakeneko everywhere in Japan, and the story of the bakeneko of Sagahan is especially famous.
Description
A bakeneko might resemble an ordinary cat, except walking about on two feet. It could also take the form of a human, and sometimes it was said to have three or seven tails.
Family
It is often confused with the nekomata, and the distinction between the two is vague.
Behavior
The bakeneko is often imagined licking the oil out of lamps, and as lamp oil used to be made from fish, this may have been based on actual feline behavior.
Powers / Weaknesses
There were a few ways in which an ordinary cat could become a bakeneko. A pet feline that had lived for many years was thought to be able to transform into a human. Additionally, a cat that had already become a nekomata might become a bakeneko after living a bit longer, but sometimes this order of transformation was reversed. A cat might also become a bakeneko in order to aid a human to whom it owed a favor.
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