New Fosters!
We're back from our spring break beach trip (yay!) and wouldn't you know, it's time to dive headfirst into kitten season here in Appalachia! I have three new babies I just picked up today. They're about a week old, eyes still closed, and like all bottle babies their age, they've got a sad little story. Apparently one of ENKA's regular foster folks was at a local shelter to pick up a pregnant cat when a woman walked in with a box of screaming newborn kittens. She told them her neighbors had moved away and left their outdoor cat behind, and she'd tried to bring the cat indoors, then realized it was pregnant. The cat gave birth, then a day or two later had begun acting weird and eventually died at the vet's office, leaving behind five orphans. She couldn't take care of them and wanted to surrender them. The shelter told her they couldn't do anything for her except euthanize the kittens, but the foster asked her to wait and contacted ENKA's foster coordinator, who told her to bring them in. Situations like this are sort of our bread and butter, taking on kittens that shelters have no room or skills or resources for.
So now I have babies! Two of the kittens are with another foster because five bottle babies is A Lot, and I have the remaining three. There's a dilute tortie girl named Jocelyn, a gray girl with a white muzzle named Moira, and a gray boy with a white chin named Roland. (Their litter is the Schitt's Creek litter, so now I'm going to have to watch the show to understand what I'm calling them.
They're about seven days old now, which is still very little, but we're fortunate that they got five critical days with their mother so they got colostrum and learned how to suckle. Roland is a deeply inefficent nurser who mostly just wants to hold the bottle in his mouth and purr, but they are all eating well at two hour intervals.
Callisto, who is now four months old, is extremely miffed about this revolting new development. She is not allowed in the kitten room because they are under quarantine for two weeks, but she can hear their hangry cries when I am handling them and will stand outside the door and yell along. I have to keep a toy right outside the door to keep her from running inside the moment I open it, and as soon as I wash my hands it is Hold Your REAL Baby Time. Or it is "I am mad at you and I'm going to my sulking spot" time.
They've got another week or so of hyper-frequent feedings, then at two weeks we go to three hours in the daytime and 3.5 at night. I can't wait to see what they look like as they grow and become more cat-shaped, I think they're going to be real cuties!
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Without Saying (Floyd and Ruggie x Yuu)
"Oh can I help you? You seem to be lost." You attempt to cheerfully ask the vaguely familiar looking person in front of you. As if he is deliberately trying to rub salt in your wounds, Crowley ignored your request to leave campus for NRC parents day and is instead making you and Grim run errands. The person in front of you, blissfully ignorant to your inner turmoil perks up at your attention.
"Forgive me for asking, but are you the magicless prefect?" You and Grim exchange a confused glance. "You've got to be right?" They're practically glowing with how happy they are to see you. " Oh I'm sorry, I've just heard so much about you!" Wait, what?
notes: they/them pronouns used for Yuu, feral ariel (Floyd) vs light angst again (Ruggie). If you liked this please check out the previous parts on my masterlist.
Floyd
Under normal circumstances, a quiet Floyd was a suspicious Floyd but today- well today it was just odd. He doesn't look bored per se, just idle standing next to a very tall woman with similarly colored hair who is slowly, carefully, with extreme focus examining every inch of what you think is a novelty piggy bank shaped like the school's wishing well.
"Are you done yet Mamma?" Floyd sounds like he is being careful not to yawn.
"Hush now Floydie," she doesn't even blink, that's how tight her focus is, "Mamma is concentrating." Mrs. Leech's lips are tightly pursed while Floyd mutters something about going to get some candy and slinks off while you question if getting involved in this conversation is part of your job description or even smart. Unfortunately for you by the time you look back up from your clipboard Mrs. Leech has moved directly in front of your face in complete silence. "Human-" you go to scream but she silences you with a look you can't tell is from magic or practice raising the twins "Human can you help me with something?" She doesn't even wait for you to agree before holding up the piggy bank. "What exactly is the purpose of this object?"
"That?" You are surprised your voice doesn't give out entirely as she vigorously nods. "The piggy bank?"
"I see, I see." She nods sagely, immediately whipping around to where she evidently thought her son still was, shrugging undeterred as she decides to simply yell. "FLOYD! IT'S CALLED A PIGGY BANK."
"That's nice Mamma." Calls Floyd, oddly coming off as polite and rational from somewhere deep within the Mystery Shop. " But like what does it do?"
"EXCELLENT QUESTION! Say human what does it do?" You are deeply tempted to say that this woman cannot be serious but you don't really want to find out. You draw yourself up to your full height and nod.
"You put coins in it." Mrs. Leech blinks, a bit taken aback.
"Wait really?" Bravely, with a reasonable fear of being bitten, you reach over and gently lift up the top of the wishing well to show her the coin slot.
"I'm pretty sure this one plays a song when you put a coin in too." You explain.
"But it's so tiny?" She marvels, repeatedly opening and shutting the top of the bank. "How're you supposed to keep your money safe if it's so fragile? But then again I do keep most of mine with my husband..."
"Uhm it's supposed to be a fun gift for little kids." It occurs to you that she might find that offensive since it did look like she was buying it for herself. "To teach them about saving money, at least where I'm from anyway."
"Oh how cute. That settles it, I am definitely getting this." As if sensing that it is check out time Floyd shuffles over and immediately perks up.
"Little Shrimpy! Were you the one helping my mom?" He seems really happy, causing you to breathe a light sigh of relief. Mrs. Leech looks confused, zeroing in on you with the same concentration from earlier.
"Yeah. Trying to anyway." You nervously say; Mrs. Leech's attention turns to her son.
"Aww, how cute. You fishin' for a favor shrimpy?" Normally you would play along with his teasing, but your eyes dart awkwardly to Mrs. Leech whose attention is back on you, then the piggy bank, then you then her son, then you agai-
"Not really, I'm just trying to do my job." You awkwardly laugh and Floyd pouts.
"Spring or Summer?" Mrs. Leech asks cheerfully. To your surprise she has somehow managed to snatch up a second piggy bank within the .2 seconds since you took her attention off her.
"I'm sorry?"
"Oh just wondering that's all." She has a very serene smile on her face. Almost too serene. Like you just somehow signed away your soul because you didn't read some fine print. "I'm more partial to Spring myself." You try to look to Floyd for some context but for some reason, he's refusing to make eye contact. Weird.
Ruggie
"Thank you dear." The elderly beastwoman breathes a sigh of relief as you help her settle onto a bench next to the Coliseum. "Goodness, Ruggie warned me this place was big but I didn't realize just how serious he was." You nod, unscrewing the cap on one of the water bottles you brought with you for the old lady. She takes it thankfully and you breathe a gentle sigh of relief, not that Granny Bucchi had been anything more than a bit winded when you found her, but it was still worrying to see an old woman bent over like that. "I really should have just waited for him."
"Didn't he promise to meet you at the mirror chamber?" You ask, trying not to sound too judgmental. You find it hard to believe someone who spoke as fondly of his grandmother at Ruggie wouldn't want to escort her around, Granny Bucchi looks at you sheepishly sort of confirming that.
"He doesn't actually know that I'm here just yet, I wanted to surprise him." She tries to pass you back the water back but you shake your head. The two of you lapse into a comfortable silence, the sort you only ever get while relaxing with a cup of tea, or in this case a nice old lady who is genuinely enjoying the campus scenery. It's so nice Grim curls himself up into your lap for a little nap. Granny Bucchi scratches just the right place behind his ears to convince the "not a cat" to let out a very cat like purr.
"Did you send him a message to let him know your here?" You whisper, trying not to wake your baby. "If not I can send him one." She lets out a small laugh, similar in sound to her grandson's but still very much her somehow.
"Oh I am sure he'd be half way here already if he knew I had you to myself. Who knows what sort of ideas I could be putting in that head of yours." She winks and takes out her phone, squinting at the keys trying to piece together a message. "You should still send him one though, you'll probably be faster than me."
"Do you mind if I take a picture?" You ask sheepishly. "You know so Ruggie knows you're ok." Lies you just want a picture of you with Granny Bucchi. Sure, to Twisted Wonderland she is just some lady, but she is easily celebrity tier to you with how much glowing praise Ruggie heaps on her.
"Oh please do!" To your surprise she seems genuinely excited and strikes a little pose. What a natural, Vil has nothing on this woman. Not that you are going to say that out loud because you don't have a death wish. You happily text Ruggie as Granny Bucchi looks on fondly. "Do you like taking pictures?" Her voice is much softer than it has been in the admittedly little conversation you have had. "Ruggie sends me a lot of the ones you've given him from your ghost camera, I keep trying to ask him if you're planning on being a photographer in the future but he always dodges the question." She's clearly curious and you can't blame her, you just aren't sure how to answer.
"The future is a bit complicated for me." Is what you settle on, really hoping it doesn't loose you points.
"Oh you don't need to feel bad about that." Her eyes are filled with warmth and affection that you haven't felt in a long time, it's enough to make you want to cry. "Technically the future is complicated for everyone, some of us just muscle through it better than others. Case in point." Granny hauls her self up and nudges you to turn around. Ruggie is staring at both of you with a strange look in his eyes, but when he makes eye contact with you he shakes himself out of whatever mood that was and jogs up to meet you both.
It would be nice, you think, if you could do this again.
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