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xp_logs2004-11-14 02:47 pm
x-crowdofone.livejournal.com) wrote in xp_logs2004-11-14 02:47 pm
Sunday afternoon: Jamie and Catseye
After a nice leisurely ride, Jamie finds himself in an introspective mood and retreats to the hayloft--where the mansion's newest resident finds him, and they deal with his mood using the time-honored traditions of "petting the cat," "talking to the cat," and "playing with the cat." They then adjourn to feed the cat.
Pffft!
Hissing, Catseye trotted down the path leading to the barn, pausing now and then to hop into the undergrowth and vengefully scare a mole or squirrel to death. The smelly man was not only rude, he tasted bad. BAD. She'd tripped him up nicely because that's what cats did, although biting him had been purely because he'd sworn at her so loudly. Bad words she knew - the language was hardly an issue when the intonation said it all. But he'd taste just horrid, thank you very much. Ick. ICK! She was going to have to do something about him.
With a low rumble of annoyance she cut across the path after dismissing the idea of eating the stupid sparrow sleeping on a low branch, and instead settled on the notion of some mousies. The ones here were good. Scary good. A lot better than any of the hunting she'd ever managed in the city, where even you had to be careful about the rats sometimes because the little blighters ganged up on you. Very rude of prey to do that.
Jamie was flopped down in the hayloft, arms folded behind his head, eyes half-closed. The ride had been good, although he'd actually had to hang his jacket up to dry from all the horse slobber that was Misty's way of saying she'd missed him and he was not to disappear for most of a week without significant bribes upon return. But he'd found himself wanting space to think, when he got back--Doc Samson had said he would, randomly, for a while, and he was to take it whenever he needed it--and haystacks were comfy.
There was a faint scrabbling of claws, Catseye listening for mousies and hearing someone in her hayloft instead and not sure she was pleased about it. And the mousies were being very cautious, sticking to the walls, although she could hear a few starting to peek out. Ha. Let them feel comfortable, she thought. She could play with them later before having a snack. The person in her hayloft intrigued her though, and she slunk closer quietly, pondering a pounce. And stopped suddenly, sitting down and licking her shoulder instead. That was the one who'd smelled sick and sad before. She knew that scent.
Jamie blinked and sat up slightly. That was a cat. A purple cat. Weird.
. . . Oh, his mind supplied belatedly, that was Rahne's new roommate. Well, all right then. He smiled--he'd always liked cats, only they hadn't had them at the farm because Grandpa'd been slightly allergic and then they just never got around to having any. "Hello there."
A human's smile translate to a cat's whiskers forward, which Catseye replied very deliberately so, head angling just a bit as she returned it in catlike equivalent. He was moving and sitting up and he didn't smell so sick anymore, so that meant she was going to have no qualms about making him work for a proper like greeting at that.
"I'm not in your spot, am I?" Jamie scootched over to make room. "I think I was probably in the medlab when you showed up, but it's nice to meet you. My name's Jamie, and you're . . . Catseye, right?"
Ceding over of prime area - this one was cat trained already, Catseye noted with much satisfaction, stepping forward to claim the warm comfy spot without a second thought. "Mrrr." She curled up carefully, with all the dignity that Claiming a Spot required, and then yawned, pink tongue curling up at him. Keep talking. A slow stretch and her paw rested on his hand for a moment. Hello. Talk now.
"It's been a very weird weekend." Jamie smiled, offering a hand to sniff and hopefully be deemed an acceptable source of petting. "If you're gonna be staying here, you'll have to get used to weird things happening all the time."
Horses and hay and apples and sweat. And he had that tone of voice which meant he'd be rambling on a bit if she let him - some humans had nice sub-tonals to their voices sometimes, though they didn't seem to know what to do with them. Catseye knows weird. Turning into a human is weird. After a moment's consideration she stretched out, careful to end up leaning against him firmly on the end of the stretch. There. Pet me and talk.
Jamie shifted slightly to accommodate her, running one hand gently along her soft fur. "It's a strange place, this school," he murmured. "Seems like, sometimes, either you grow up too fast or not at all. There's good people, don't get me wrong, I don't regret coming here, but . . . life was a lot simpler before I did. So you'll want to watch out for that." He chuckled softly. "Eh . . . what do you have to worry about, though, huh? You get to be a cat. Sunbeams and mice to chase and you just show up and people want to pet you. Must be nice."
Sunpots here are good. Even if WarmSugglyFriend hogs them sometimes. She shifted to her side, resting her chin on his leg, a low purr starting to rumble to life. No worries here. No cars to be run over by that much. It's nice.
"I envy mutants like you, and Rahne, sometimes," Jamie confessed. "You only have to be a person when you want to. A human, I mean," he corrected himself quickly. "Sorry if I offended. It's tough being a human, I wouldn't mind taking a break sometimes myself."
"Mrreow." The sound was agreeable rather than offended. He was right, after all - Catseye was only human when she wanted to. And she couldn't really argue about being a mutant. She was a mutant cat. And the Cat Lady had always said she was very special for it too. She tilted her head a bit, watching him as he spoke. Humans thought too much sometimes. Think less. Play more.
Jamie scritched lightly behind the cat's ears. "So what do you do for fun when you aren't chasing mice or embarrassing the heck out of Kyle, hmm?
A very patient look greeted that question. Catseye listens to people. They are weird. Of course, he wasn't going to get that one. Idly she batted at one of the bits of hay stuck to his sleeve. And then leaned into the scritch, because it was nice and he'd hit just the right spot. The purring went from an unsteady rumble to a soothing, steady sound.
Jamie grinned and kept scritching. "Like that, do you?" He dangled the bit of straw in front of her nose with his other hand. "Guess I'm just good at getting nice noises out of kittens. Could do worse for useful skills."
Ha. She'd been right. Cat trained already. She pondered that for a bit, eyeing the bit of hay intently. People studying was fun, but she knew exactly what to do here, Catseye did. Play. Her paw twitched but she waited a bit longer, enraptured by the way the twig kept moving in and out of focus if she looked at it just right, hindquarters gathering slowly for the pounce.
Jamie ticked the straw back and forth enticingly, waiting for her leap.
The straw was pretty. And shiny! Especially when the sun hit it just right. Eyes glazing over a bit, Catseye pretended to not see it, tail twitching madly the entire time as a dead giveaway. Mineminemine. With a low mrrr, she licked her shoulder, eyes never leaving the bit of straw. And then batted at it experimentally. Oooh - he was keeping it just out of reach. Tease. Catseye purred a bit, flopping on her back to bat at the bit of straw some more. Fun!
Jamie waved the straw around, bringing it closer to first one paw, then the other, then diving in, almost brushing her nose, and snickering at the nearly cross-eyed expression that gave her. He let her get in a few touches to keep things interesting (and had to pull back suddenly when she got in a few he wasn't expecting; she was very fast) before changing the game, dragging the straw along the floor with occasional twitches reminiscent of a mouse's tail.
HA! Catseye wasted not time twisting around to pounce on that one, paws drumming a rythm on the wooden planks of the hayloft as she didn't quite bring out her claws to tie down the straw just yet. It was fun to thwap neatly on either side of the piece of straw as Jamie trailed it along the floor, playing pretend 'corral the prey thataway' for as long as possible before trying to pounce again lazily.
Jamie added a few panicky flourishes to the straw's movement--he'd seen Tyke chase enough mice in the barn at home that he knew how they moved, although Tyke's method of barn security involved a lot more ecstatic barking and galumphing around and skidding into walls--or, it had when he was younger, anyway. Now, it generally involved lounging in sunbeams and emitting the occasional rumbling growl, which always made Jamie wonder if the barn mice passed down tales of the Great Toothed Thunder God from generation to generation.
This was getting to be serious fun and before long Catseye was indulging in a few impressive pounces and contortions, all designed to keep her from catching the straw while still keeping the game active and fun. A stray beam of sunlight briefly distracted her as well, causing her to rise up on her hing legs to bat at the motes of dust floating in the air before coiling to the side and pouncing on the bit of straw once more.
Jamie had to laugh at the cat's antics, although he kept his best of-course-I'm-not-laughing-at-you-you-mighty-hunter-and-bane-of-all-rodents face prepped in case she glared at him for it. He thought for a moment, weighing the potential extra fun against the possibility of Catseye freaking out, then shrugged and duped--and now there were two pieces of straw doing frightened-mouse impressions on the loft floor.
For a single moment, Catseye froze, as though wonder how her senses might have failed to notice there were two people there. And then the similar scents (and looks) made a point, reminding her of what Rahne had told her when telling her about the other students in the mansion. ManySelves! And with that the game started anew, this time Catseye playing in earnest (claws still sheated) considering the advantage Jamie had.
Jamie's eyebrows shot up as he rapidly revised his opinion of Catseye's speed. And stalking ability. Pity there wasn't really enough room for more than two dupes in the hayloft, with this active a game.
Finally, she landed with all four paws on one of the pieces of straw, and he pantomimed a dramatic death scene for it, complete with twitching, staggering, and the best agonized squeaking he could muster.
Nose practically stuck to the bit of straw and going quite deliberatly cross-eyed, Catseye studied the death throes of the straw intently. Ooh, and squeaking too - good squeaking at that! Once the mouse was "dead" Catseye flopped to her side, paw stretching out slowly over it, purring up at Jamie with a half-lidded approving gaze. Miiiine.
Jamie laughed and let go of the other end of the straw. "Hail the mighty huntress. Pity you can't eat this one, huh?" He ruffled her head affectionately. "Thanks for taking the time to cheer me up, Catseye."
The ruffling drew a faintly odd expression, that of a cat trying to wrinkle its nose. Not a dog! None of that! To make the point and because she did still want to play (or be petted) a bit more, Catseye handily attached herself to Jamie's arm, claws still carefully sheated away and not gnawing nearly hard enough to cause damage. La la la! Cat's not done yet!
"I have a cat attached to my arm," Jamie observed wryly. "Obviously the straw mouse was an insufficient conquest and you have moved on to larger and presumably tougher prey. I'll have to warn you, though, I'm a pushover for cute fuzzy critters."
Which was how things were meant to be, of course. Catseye gave him an angelic look, making sure to drop herself in his lap as hemoved his arm, stretching out half on his legs and half on the floor slowly - she was bigger than your average street cat, if still on the rangy side. Catseye can be cute and fuzzy. See?
"Oof." Jamie stroked her fur properly this time, long strokes with the occasional ear-scritch. "Cute, fuzzy, and eating pretty well lately, I see. Remind me to get Lorna to fix you some sushi one of these days." He snickered. "Or I bet I could come up with some pastrami."
..PASTRAMI! Jamie suddenly found himself nose to nose with a very intent looking purple cat, whiskers quivering madly. Now! The paws on his chest were very solidly planted, Catseye having forgetten all about being petted when in the presence of such an offer. "Mrrr! Mreow!!"
Jamie blinked. "Or we could always, y'know, go see if there's any pastrami in the fridge right now. This is another option that we have." He grinned and patted his shoulder. "Walk or ride?"
Ha! If there was food at the end of the line, Catseye wasn't worrying about hunting on the way over. Pondering the shoulder width and deeming it acceptable, Catseye meeped far too cheerfully, then proceeded to literally drape herself over his shoudlers, clearly having done this beforehand.
"Well, all right then." Jamie stood up carefully, so as not to dislodge his passenger or make her do anything untoward like dig her claws in or turn into a human. "Let's go get some food."
Pffft!
Hissing, Catseye trotted down the path leading to the barn, pausing now and then to hop into the undergrowth and vengefully scare a mole or squirrel to death. The smelly man was not only rude, he tasted bad. BAD. She'd tripped him up nicely because that's what cats did, although biting him had been purely because he'd sworn at her so loudly. Bad words she knew - the language was hardly an issue when the intonation said it all. But he'd taste just horrid, thank you very much. Ick. ICK! She was going to have to do something about him.
With a low rumble of annoyance she cut across the path after dismissing the idea of eating the stupid sparrow sleeping on a low branch, and instead settled on the notion of some mousies. The ones here were good. Scary good. A lot better than any of the hunting she'd ever managed in the city, where even you had to be careful about the rats sometimes because the little blighters ganged up on you. Very rude of prey to do that.
Jamie was flopped down in the hayloft, arms folded behind his head, eyes half-closed. The ride had been good, although he'd actually had to hang his jacket up to dry from all the horse slobber that was Misty's way of saying she'd missed him and he was not to disappear for most of a week without significant bribes upon return. But he'd found himself wanting space to think, when he got back--Doc Samson had said he would, randomly, for a while, and he was to take it whenever he needed it--and haystacks were comfy.
There was a faint scrabbling of claws, Catseye listening for mousies and hearing someone in her hayloft instead and not sure she was pleased about it. And the mousies were being very cautious, sticking to the walls, although she could hear a few starting to peek out. Ha. Let them feel comfortable, she thought. She could play with them later before having a snack. The person in her hayloft intrigued her though, and she slunk closer quietly, pondering a pounce. And stopped suddenly, sitting down and licking her shoulder instead. That was the one who'd smelled sick and sad before. She knew that scent.
Jamie blinked and sat up slightly. That was a cat. A purple cat. Weird.
. . . Oh, his mind supplied belatedly, that was Rahne's new roommate. Well, all right then. He smiled--he'd always liked cats, only they hadn't had them at the farm because Grandpa'd been slightly allergic and then they just never got around to having any. "Hello there."
A human's smile translate to a cat's whiskers forward, which Catseye replied very deliberately so, head angling just a bit as she returned it in catlike equivalent. He was moving and sitting up and he didn't smell so sick anymore, so that meant she was going to have no qualms about making him work for a proper like greeting at that.
"I'm not in your spot, am I?" Jamie scootched over to make room. "I think I was probably in the medlab when you showed up, but it's nice to meet you. My name's Jamie, and you're . . . Catseye, right?"
Ceding over of prime area - this one was cat trained already, Catseye noted with much satisfaction, stepping forward to claim the warm comfy spot without a second thought. "Mrrr." She curled up carefully, with all the dignity that Claiming a Spot required, and then yawned, pink tongue curling up at him. Keep talking. A slow stretch and her paw rested on his hand for a moment. Hello. Talk now.
"It's been a very weird weekend." Jamie smiled, offering a hand to sniff and hopefully be deemed an acceptable source of petting. "If you're gonna be staying here, you'll have to get used to weird things happening all the time."
Horses and hay and apples and sweat. And he had that tone of voice which meant he'd be rambling on a bit if she let him - some humans had nice sub-tonals to their voices sometimes, though they didn't seem to know what to do with them. Catseye knows weird. Turning into a human is weird. After a moment's consideration she stretched out, careful to end up leaning against him firmly on the end of the stretch. There. Pet me and talk.
Jamie shifted slightly to accommodate her, running one hand gently along her soft fur. "It's a strange place, this school," he murmured. "Seems like, sometimes, either you grow up too fast or not at all. There's good people, don't get me wrong, I don't regret coming here, but . . . life was a lot simpler before I did. So you'll want to watch out for that." He chuckled softly. "Eh . . . what do you have to worry about, though, huh? You get to be a cat. Sunbeams and mice to chase and you just show up and people want to pet you. Must be nice."
Sunpots here are good. Even if WarmSugglyFriend hogs them sometimes. She shifted to her side, resting her chin on his leg, a low purr starting to rumble to life. No worries here. No cars to be run over by that much. It's nice.
"I envy mutants like you, and Rahne, sometimes," Jamie confessed. "You only have to be a person when you want to. A human, I mean," he corrected himself quickly. "Sorry if I offended. It's tough being a human, I wouldn't mind taking a break sometimes myself."
"Mrreow." The sound was agreeable rather than offended. He was right, after all - Catseye was only human when she wanted to. And she couldn't really argue about being a mutant. She was a mutant cat. And the Cat Lady had always said she was very special for it too. She tilted her head a bit, watching him as he spoke. Humans thought too much sometimes. Think less. Play more.
Jamie scritched lightly behind the cat's ears. "So what do you do for fun when you aren't chasing mice or embarrassing the heck out of Kyle, hmm?
A very patient look greeted that question. Catseye listens to people. They are weird. Of course, he wasn't going to get that one. Idly she batted at one of the bits of hay stuck to his sleeve. And then leaned into the scritch, because it was nice and he'd hit just the right spot. The purring went from an unsteady rumble to a soothing, steady sound.
Jamie grinned and kept scritching. "Like that, do you?" He dangled the bit of straw in front of her nose with his other hand. "Guess I'm just good at getting nice noises out of kittens. Could do worse for useful skills."
Ha. She'd been right. Cat trained already. She pondered that for a bit, eyeing the bit of hay intently. People studying was fun, but she knew exactly what to do here, Catseye did. Play. Her paw twitched but she waited a bit longer, enraptured by the way the twig kept moving in and out of focus if she looked at it just right, hindquarters gathering slowly for the pounce.
Jamie ticked the straw back and forth enticingly, waiting for her leap.
The straw was pretty. And shiny! Especially when the sun hit it just right. Eyes glazing over a bit, Catseye pretended to not see it, tail twitching madly the entire time as a dead giveaway. Mineminemine. With a low mrrr, she licked her shoulder, eyes never leaving the bit of straw. And then batted at it experimentally. Oooh - he was keeping it just out of reach. Tease. Catseye purred a bit, flopping on her back to bat at the bit of straw some more. Fun!
Jamie waved the straw around, bringing it closer to first one paw, then the other, then diving in, almost brushing her nose, and snickering at the nearly cross-eyed expression that gave her. He let her get in a few touches to keep things interesting (and had to pull back suddenly when she got in a few he wasn't expecting; she was very fast) before changing the game, dragging the straw along the floor with occasional twitches reminiscent of a mouse's tail.
HA! Catseye wasted not time twisting around to pounce on that one, paws drumming a rythm on the wooden planks of the hayloft as she didn't quite bring out her claws to tie down the straw just yet. It was fun to thwap neatly on either side of the piece of straw as Jamie trailed it along the floor, playing pretend 'corral the prey thataway' for as long as possible before trying to pounce again lazily.
Jamie added a few panicky flourishes to the straw's movement--he'd seen Tyke chase enough mice in the barn at home that he knew how they moved, although Tyke's method of barn security involved a lot more ecstatic barking and galumphing around and skidding into walls--or, it had when he was younger, anyway. Now, it generally involved lounging in sunbeams and emitting the occasional rumbling growl, which always made Jamie wonder if the barn mice passed down tales of the Great Toothed Thunder God from generation to generation.
This was getting to be serious fun and before long Catseye was indulging in a few impressive pounces and contortions, all designed to keep her from catching the straw while still keeping the game active and fun. A stray beam of sunlight briefly distracted her as well, causing her to rise up on her hing legs to bat at the motes of dust floating in the air before coiling to the side and pouncing on the bit of straw once more.
Jamie had to laugh at the cat's antics, although he kept his best of-course-I'm-not-laughing-at-you-you-mighty-hunter-and-bane-of-all-rodents face prepped in case she glared at him for it. He thought for a moment, weighing the potential extra fun against the possibility of Catseye freaking out, then shrugged and duped--and now there were two pieces of straw doing frightened-mouse impressions on the loft floor.
For a single moment, Catseye froze, as though wonder how her senses might have failed to notice there were two people there. And then the similar scents (and looks) made a point, reminding her of what Rahne had told her when telling her about the other students in the mansion. ManySelves! And with that the game started anew, this time Catseye playing in earnest (claws still sheated) considering the advantage Jamie had.
Jamie's eyebrows shot up as he rapidly revised his opinion of Catseye's speed. And stalking ability. Pity there wasn't really enough room for more than two dupes in the hayloft, with this active a game.
Finally, she landed with all four paws on one of the pieces of straw, and he pantomimed a dramatic death scene for it, complete with twitching, staggering, and the best agonized squeaking he could muster.
Nose practically stuck to the bit of straw and going quite deliberatly cross-eyed, Catseye studied the death throes of the straw intently. Ooh, and squeaking too - good squeaking at that! Once the mouse was "dead" Catseye flopped to her side, paw stretching out slowly over it, purring up at Jamie with a half-lidded approving gaze. Miiiine.
Jamie laughed and let go of the other end of the straw. "Hail the mighty huntress. Pity you can't eat this one, huh?" He ruffled her head affectionately. "Thanks for taking the time to cheer me up, Catseye."
The ruffling drew a faintly odd expression, that of a cat trying to wrinkle its nose. Not a dog! None of that! To make the point and because she did still want to play (or be petted) a bit more, Catseye handily attached herself to Jamie's arm, claws still carefully sheated away and not gnawing nearly hard enough to cause damage. La la la! Cat's not done yet!
"I have a cat attached to my arm," Jamie observed wryly. "Obviously the straw mouse was an insufficient conquest and you have moved on to larger and presumably tougher prey. I'll have to warn you, though, I'm a pushover for cute fuzzy critters."
Which was how things were meant to be, of course. Catseye gave him an angelic look, making sure to drop herself in his lap as hemoved his arm, stretching out half on his legs and half on the floor slowly - she was bigger than your average street cat, if still on the rangy side. Catseye can be cute and fuzzy. See?
"Oof." Jamie stroked her fur properly this time, long strokes with the occasional ear-scritch. "Cute, fuzzy, and eating pretty well lately, I see. Remind me to get Lorna to fix you some sushi one of these days." He snickered. "Or I bet I could come up with some pastrami."
..PASTRAMI! Jamie suddenly found himself nose to nose with a very intent looking purple cat, whiskers quivering madly. Now! The paws on his chest were very solidly planted, Catseye having forgetten all about being petted when in the presence of such an offer. "Mrrr! Mreow!!"
Jamie blinked. "Or we could always, y'know, go see if there's any pastrami in the fridge right now. This is another option that we have." He grinned and patted his shoulder. "Walk or ride?"
Ha! If there was food at the end of the line, Catseye wasn't worrying about hunting on the way over. Pondering the shoulder width and deeming it acceptable, Catseye meeped far too cheerfully, then proceeded to literally drape herself over his shoudlers, clearly having done this beforehand.
"Well, all right then." Jamie stood up carefully, so as not to dislodge his passenger or make her do anything untoward like dig her claws in or turn into a human. "Let's go get some food."
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Miiiine.
Uh-uh. Mine. -does her best not to get terretorial.-
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*will temporarily cede for pastrami?*
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But I'll give you the pastrami anyway.
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But with pastrami involved, Catseye is willing to negociate! :D
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Hey, pastrami is an excellent opening bid on my part, and I'll put forward a small bowl of cream and a can of tuna.
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But is good opening bid!
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;)
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(Says the wolf-girl who is sharing her established territory with a crazy purple cat. Hmm.)
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