Poor Nermal indeed! If we didn't torment him, he would think we didn't love him any more. We always laughed about how Nermal likes to be tormented. Especially fun was pinning him down with a foot and not letting him get up, moving your foot around and getting him really mad to where he would just want to get away. Once he got away he'd runnoff all huffy with his tail popping, and turn right around and come back for more, sometimes by attacking the foot that had him pinned.
Ever tickle his paws?
Sounds like the cat my sister had *L*