Mouse (to Eep): Hey, the kittens are fed... should we call the vet & check on the mom?
Eep (to Mouse): Yeah. I'll give them a call.
Mouse (to Eep): Thanks! I'm feeling a little zombified.
Eep (to Mouse): Hey. So, um, Mamma cat made it through surgery all right, but she's still kinda touch and go right now. Want some coffee? I'll make it so you'll actually wanna drink it.
Mouse (to Eep): Well, that's good to hear, hopefully, that's a good sign. And, I would love some coffee.
Eep (to Mouse): Yeah. Christ... I hope everything turns out OK. Otto seems pretty upset. And I don't know how I'm gonna do this "every two hours" feeding shit if she's not. God...
Mouse (to Eep): It's okay, I don't mind doing it & since I'm not working, I've got the time. Maybe, we should call in reinforcements?
Eep (to Mouse): I don't mind helping. I'm just grumpy cause I'm fucking exhausted. Course, I'm not gonna say no to help.
Mouse (to Eep): Go take a nap, sweetie, I'll man the kitten duty for a few hours.
Eep (to Mouse): That'd be awesome, but I gotta head to work. Are you gonna be alright on kitten duty alone? You could probably rope Wanda or Vincent into helping you. They both seem like they'd shit a brick over baby kittens.
Mouse (to Eep): Yeah, I'll be fine & I probably will give Wanda & Vincent a call. I could use a nap at some point. Have a good day at work! I'll see you tonight.
Eep (to Mouse): Oh shit! Vincent... Um, with everything with the kittens, I forgot. That lady that showed up at the door the other day?
Mouse (to Eep): Yeah?
Eep (to Mouse): Uh, I think she was connected with his dad. She had a logo on her polo for that church he's connected to.
Mouse (to Eep): Shit! That's just great... I have a bad feeling about this.
Eep (to Mouse): Yeah. I, uh... Shit. I'm sorry. There's nothing helpful I can say about this, is there?
Mouse (to Eep): I'm sure it'll be okay... At the moment, I can't imagine what it all means.
Eep (to Mouse): Yeah. It'll be fine. Get someone over to help you with the furballs and get some sleep, OK? I'll see you soon. Love you, missus.
Mouse (to Eep): Will do! I love you, too, Felix. (to Wanda & Vincent) Hey there folks! If you're not doing anything today, I could use some help over here... We've got kittens. The momma cat's been hurt and is at the vet.
Wanda (to Mouse): You have KITTENS? Awww, ittie bitties! I will totes help! I'm out of classes at 3. I'll see you then.
Vincent (to Mouse): Awww! That's the saddest thing I've heard all day. Do you need help now?
Mouse (to Wanda): Excellent, thank you. See you then. (to Vincent) They were fed a little while ago, but I could use some sleep, if you can come over in a bit. My brain is a bit mushy & Eep had to head to work. We took turns through the night.
Vincent (to Mouse): Well, then it's really for the greater food I help. You are scary on no sleep, older sister o' mine. ;-P I can be over in a few so you can catch some Zzzzs. Do you want me to arrive bearing coffee or food?
Mouse (to Vincent): I've got coffee, but food would be great. I'm even willing to eat fast food.
Vincent (to Mouse): You? Willing to eat FAST FOOD? You must be desperate! Never fear. I'll pick up some Chinese on the way over.
Mouse (to Vincent): You are a fantastic little brother...
Vincent (to Mouse): Don't I know it? :-P See you soon, sweetie.
Poppy (to Vincent): Hey honey, I'm at a thrift store buying a dresser & there's a fantastic wall mirror here. Should I get it for the new place?
Vincent (to Poppy): Ooo! We can never have enough mirrors, hun. Are you going to need help getting everything to the apartment? I'm en route to my sister's for a few hours, but I can pick it up after I'm done.
Poppy (to Vincent): No worries, honey, I talked them into delivering the dresser, I'll just add the mirror. Easy, peasey.
Vincent (to Poppy): Hee hee. I should have known you'd have the delivery all sorted. There are kittens over at Mouse's if you're interested, by the by. I'm going over to kitty-sit for a while.
Poppy (to Vincent): Oooh kittens... I may have to come over and help with that after the delivery.
Vincent (to Poppy): Hee hee. Kittens are hard to resist.
An hour later:
Vincent (to Mouse): Knock, knock, sweetie! I've got egg rolls, soup, lo mein and cashew chicken. What sounds good?
Mouse (to Vincent): Hey there! Lo mein sounds perfect.
Vincent (to Mouse): Lo mein for the surrogate kitty mom. So, where are the babies?
Mouse (to Vincent): Yum, thank you... Can I have an egg roll & some soup too? The kittens are in the laundry basket with Otto...
Vincent (to Mouse): Of course, hun! I can't eat all this myself. Oh my goodness! D'awwww. They're so teenie tiny! How is the mom cat doing?
Mouse (to Vincent): When Eep called this morning, she was out of surgery but still touch & go. They want to keep her a bit longer. God, this food is tasty.... I didn't realize how hungry I was.
Vincent (to Mouse): Hmm. I thought you'd probably forgotten to eat. Poor little babies. You just can't help taking in strays can you?:-P
Mouse (to Vincent): They're not strays so to speak... they're Otto's kids.
Vincent (to Mouse): Hee hee. I know. I'm just teasing you. So how do I feed them? You look like you need a nice long nap.
Mouse (to Vincent): The kitten formula just needs to be warmed up slightly, like 25 seconds in the microwave & then use the eyedropper.
Vincent (to Mouse): Right. OK. I believe I should be able to handle that. When do they need to eat next?
Mouse (to Vincent): In about twenty minutes or so, I've got the alarm on my phone setup to go off in 2 hour increments.
Vincent (to Mouse): Okie dokie. Go get some rest, sweet sister of mine. I'll take care of the kids.
Mouse (to Vincent): That is the best idea I have heard all day, sweetie. Thank you.
Twenty minutes later:
Poppy (to Vincent): Knock, knock... where are the kitties?
Vincent (to Poppy): Through here, hun. I'm just feeding the first one now.
Poppy (to Vincent): Oh goodness, they're so tiny.
Vincent (to Poppy): Are they? They were just born yesterday. Their mom is still at the vet's, so Eep and Mouse are feeding them for now.
Poppy (to Vincent): Honey, have you thought about what might happen to these kittens being Otto's?
Vincent (to Poppy): I did wonder if they would be a bit more...unusual than regular household cats.
Poppy (to Vincent): I've never seen the offspring of anything that's been mutated by the portals before... Have you?
Vincent (to Poppy): No, not naturally. I've seen some creatures that were purposely mutated using the portals, but nothing like this. This should be interesting to say the least. Do you want to feed one, hun?
Poppy (to Vincent): Oh no, honey, I couldn't... That's sweet, but what if I drop it? ... I'm not very good with babies of any sort.
Otto (to Poppy & Vincent): Mraow?
Vincent (to Otto): Don't worry, Otto. Poppy won't drop him.
Poppy (to Vincent): You're really going to make me do this, honey? Oh... um, what do I do now?
Vincent (to Poppy): Just hold the dropper over his mouth... like this. See? The little guy will do the rest. You're doing fine, hun.
Poppy (to Vincent): Okay, I think I've got it... Geez, I don't know how people do this sort of thing. Parenting, I mean. I've only been holding this kitten for a few minutes & already I'm a nervous wreck.
Vincent (to Poppy): Hee hee. Don't ask me. This is my first experience with babies myself. I'm the quintessential youngest child. I think he's all done, hun. You did fine.
Poppy (to Vincent): Oh good... Thank you, honey.
Vincent (to Otto): Here you go, grumpy. I told you there was no reason to fear.
Otto (to Vincent): Wrowwwl.
Vincent (to Poppy): Do you want some Chinese food, hun? We there's still plenty left.
Poppy (to Vincent): Actually, honey, that sounds good... I haven't eaten anything since breakfast.
Vincent (to Poppy): Here you go. Help yourself. You seem awfully quiet, hun. Surely holding a kitten isn't all that traumatizing. :-P
Poppy (to Vincent): Oh sorry, honey... I guess I'm just not very maternal.
Vincent (to Poppy): I'm sorry, hun. I didn't mean to force a kitten on you.
Poppy (to Vincent): No, no, honey, it was fine... I was just thinking. I uh, feel bad for the little guys. I didn't have a mom, either. Sorry. It was making me all introspective.
Vincent (to Poppy): Hopefully their mom will be OK. But, even if the worst happens, they'll still have Otto, Mouse and Eep looking after them. Biological bonds are FAR overrated if you ask me.
Poppy (to Vincent): Oh no, honey. Believe me, I know... You're very sweet, coming over here & helping your sister out.
Vincent (to Poppy): Far be it from me to correct you when you're complimenting me, but it's nothing, hun. Really. It's the least I can do.
Poppy (to Vincent): Well, she's lucky to have you, never the less... actually, we're all lucky to have you, honey... c'mere you... damn someone's knocking on the door.
Vincent (to Poppy): Just... Hold onto that thought for a minute, hun. I'll be right back.
A few minutes later:
Vincent (to Poppy): Well. I can honestly say I wasn't expecting that.
Poppy (to Vincent): Uh oh, what is it, honey?
Vincent (to Poppy): I was handed a cease and decease letter from my father's church threatening me with a libel suit if I contact the press.
Poppy (to Vincent): Oh no, honey...
Vincent (to Poppy): So much for being an "anonymous source" in that article, I suppose.
Poppy (to Vincent): Well, at least, they don't know where you live, honey.
Vincent (to Poppy): Mmm. They know I'm going by Vincent Potter, now. Yay.
Poppy (to Vincent): I'm sorry, honey, what can I do for you? Shall I infiltrate their organization & get incriminating photos? :-P
Vincent (to Poppy): Hee hee. Thanks, hun, but I have incriminating photos. I rather think that's what prompted the church to send me a letter.
Poppy (to Vincent): Honey, should I get you a drink?
Vincent (to Poppy): Probably.
A few hours later:
Mouse (to Vincent & Poppy): Hi you two, thanks for manning the kittens while I napped.
Vincent (to Mouse): No problem, sweetie.
Mouse (to Vincent): Hi you two, thanks for manning the kittens while I napped. I've got it from here, if you guys want to go home.
Vincent (to Mouse): Yeah. We're going to head home. Let me know if you need any more help.
Mouse (to Vincent): Little brother, are you okay?
Vincent (to Mouse): I'm...I'm upset. I received a lovely letter from my father's church threatening with me with libel today, so... Yeah. Upset.
Mouse (to Vincent): Oh geez, sweetie, it's definitely a scare tactic. We should go see my lawyer tomorrow.
Vincent (to Mouse): I know. I know. I'm just... really pissed off, actually. After six years, this is the first time they've given a shit about me? Whatever.
Mouse (to Vincent): I'm sure you are. Go home & relax. I'll call & set up an appointment if you want me to, tomorrow morning. And, not to worry, I have an idea... it might be a dumb one, but if those hypocritical jackasses want to play rough... I have a few cards up my sleeve. I mean, that is if you want to deal with this crap.
Vincent (to Mouse): I'm not sure what I want to do, honestly. I'll sleep on it. Thank you, sweetie. For everything.
Mouse (to Vincent): It'll be okay, little brother... Get Poppy to distract you for the evening, ask her to show you her performance piece. :-P (to Poppy) I think you may have a morose Vincent on your hands, tonight. I don't envy you.
Vincent (to Mouse): Oh. Well, I'm sure that would certainly distract me for an evening, at least. I'll talk to you tomorrow.
Poppy (to Mouse): Thanks for the heads up. I'll take care of him, I'm sure you have your hands full with kittens.
Mouse (to Poppy): Yeah, just a bit. Thank you for your help.
Poppy (to Vincent): Honey, how about a nice buttered rum?
Vincent (to Poppy): That sounds divine, hun. And satisfyingly alcoholic.
Poppy (to Vincent): Well then, let's get home & I'll fix you one... and, maybe I'll give you a back rub. :-)
Vincent (to Poppy): Really? Well, I can't complain about the ending to this evening then if that's the case.
Poppy (to Vincent): Well, it's the least I can do. I hate to see you like this, honey.
Vincent (to Poppy): I'm sorry, hun. I'm trying not to be such dreadful company.
Eep (to Mouse): Hey. Fuck, I'm sorry I was so late getting back home tonight. Tell me you had help today. Was that Vincent and Poppy leaving?
Mouse (to Eep): No worries, man o' mine, Vincent & Poppy helped out, I got some sleep, the kittens & Otto are doing fine. How was your day?
Eep (to Mouse): Oh thank fucking God! Today was a clusterfuck. The computer system went down in the middle of some event. And if I had to field questions from one more white kid in a Che Guevara shirt... Heh. Josh sent me to the back at one point. How was your day?
Mouse (to Eep): Kitten duty, napping, chatting with Vincent & Poppy... Oh, and Vincent got served a cease & desist letter by his dad's church. So, you know, the usual crazy stuff.
Eep (to Mouse): Wait. He got what? What he'd get a cease and desist letter for?
Mouse (to Eep): Apparently, they're threatening him with libel if he speaks to reporters.
Eep (to Mouse): They what? They want to sue him for saying what a dick his father was? I... That doesn't even... Those epic fucking DICKS! Fat fucking Christ!
Mouse (to Eep): I know. I was trying to stay calm while Vincent was here, because I really want to go find his father & beat the shit out of him.
Eep (to Mouse): It'd serve him fucking right. How's Vincent holding up? How are you holding up?
Mouse (to Eep): Yeah... I think Vincent is upset & pissed off. I mean, this is the first time he's had any kind of contact from his family. If they came looking for him, they did a pretty piss poor job of it. I mean, until now when it threatens their church. Jerks!
Eep (to Mouse): Jesus. Seriously. You look ready to rip someone's throat out.
Mouse (to Eep): I feel like it... The kittens were fed a half an hour ago. If you don't mind, I'm going to go to the basement & punch something. Oh, have you heard back from the vet clinic, yet?
Eep (to Mouse): Oh. Yeah. So, uh, good news. Mamma Cat is doing a lot better today. They said to call back tomorrow... But, we should be able to pick her up. Does she have an own... I mean, uh, does she live with some family somewhere?
Mouse (to Eep): That's good news...I'm glad to hear it & I know Otto is going to be relieved. He had given me the impression she was an alley cat.
Eep (to Mouse): Yeah. I was afraid you were gonna say that. So, instead of having one cat, we now have five.
Mouse (to Eep): Oh god, I didn't even think of that. Otto really needs to go get a job, now...
Eep (to Mouse): Yeah, no shit. Are you gonna head into the basement, now?
Mouse (to Eep): Yeah, unless you want me to stay up here with you. I just need to burn off some steam.
Eep (to Mouse): Oh. No. It's OK. I just haven't seen you all day, but if you wanna hit something, I'm not gonna ask you to stick around me. Heh.
Mouse (to Eep): You could come down with me. That way, I can hit something & we can chat... I mean, if you want.
Eep (to Mouse): Uh, yeah. That'd be fine. It's not like I mind watching you, you know, hit things and stuff.
Mouse (to Eep): Boy, you always know the right things to say to me. :-P
Eep (to Mouse): Heh. Well, I guess statistically, there had to be at least one person out there that I'm not an utter spaz around.
Mouse (to Eep): Heehee. Well, as long as I'm that one person, I'm totally okay with that. :-)
Eep (to Mouse): Heh. My one and only.
Thirty minutes later:
Poppy (to Vincent): Here, honey, drink this... I'll put your favorite movie on & give you a shoulder rub.
Vincent (to Poppy): Oh. Thank you! Don't worry so much, hun. I'm OK. Mad as fucking hell, but I'm OK.
Poppy (to Vincent): Hush you... You need a clear head to decide what to do & the only way to do that is to relax... so, I'm trying to help. Let me take care of you, for once, honey.
Vincent (to Poppy): You're right, hun. I'm sorry. I'm certainly shouldn't complain about a pretty girl wanting to take care of me. :-P
Eep (to Mouse): Yeah. I'll give them a call.
Mouse (to Eep): Thanks! I'm feeling a little zombified.
Eep (to Mouse): Hey. So, um, Mamma cat made it through surgery all right, but she's still kinda touch and go right now. Want some coffee? I'll make it so you'll actually wanna drink it.
Mouse (to Eep): Well, that's good to hear, hopefully, that's a good sign. And, I would love some coffee.
Eep (to Mouse): Yeah. Christ... I hope everything turns out OK. Otto seems pretty upset. And I don't know how I'm gonna do this "every two hours" feeding shit if she's not. God...
Mouse (to Eep): It's okay, I don't mind doing it & since I'm not working, I've got the time. Maybe, we should call in reinforcements?
Eep (to Mouse): I don't mind helping. I'm just grumpy cause I'm fucking exhausted. Course, I'm not gonna say no to help.
Mouse (to Eep): Go take a nap, sweetie, I'll man the kitten duty for a few hours.
Eep (to Mouse): That'd be awesome, but I gotta head to work. Are you gonna be alright on kitten duty alone? You could probably rope Wanda or Vincent into helping you. They both seem like they'd shit a brick over baby kittens.
Mouse (to Eep): Yeah, I'll be fine & I probably will give Wanda & Vincent a call. I could use a nap at some point. Have a good day at work! I'll see you tonight.
Eep (to Mouse): Oh shit! Vincent... Um, with everything with the kittens, I forgot. That lady that showed up at the door the other day?
Mouse (to Eep): Yeah?
Eep (to Mouse): Uh, I think she was connected with his dad. She had a logo on her polo for that church he's connected to.
Mouse (to Eep): Shit! That's just great... I have a bad feeling about this.
Eep (to Mouse): Yeah. I, uh... Shit. I'm sorry. There's nothing helpful I can say about this, is there?
Mouse (to Eep): I'm sure it'll be okay... At the moment, I can't imagine what it all means.
Eep (to Mouse): Yeah. It'll be fine. Get someone over to help you with the furballs and get some sleep, OK? I'll see you soon. Love you, missus.
Mouse (to Eep): Will do! I love you, too, Felix. (to Wanda & Vincent) Hey there folks! If you're not doing anything today, I could use some help over here... We've got kittens. The momma cat's been hurt and is at the vet.
Wanda (to Mouse): You have KITTENS? Awww, ittie bitties! I will totes help! I'm out of classes at 3. I'll see you then.
Vincent (to Mouse): Awww! That's the saddest thing I've heard all day. Do you need help now?
Mouse (to Wanda): Excellent, thank you. See you then. (to Vincent) They were fed a little while ago, but I could use some sleep, if you can come over in a bit. My brain is a bit mushy & Eep had to head to work. We took turns through the night.
Vincent (to Mouse): Well, then it's really for the greater food I help. You are scary on no sleep, older sister o' mine. ;-P I can be over in a few so you can catch some Zzzzs. Do you want me to arrive bearing coffee or food?
Mouse (to Vincent): I've got coffee, but food would be great. I'm even willing to eat fast food.
Vincent (to Mouse): You? Willing to eat FAST FOOD? You must be desperate! Never fear. I'll pick up some Chinese on the way over.
Mouse (to Vincent): You are a fantastic little brother...
Vincent (to Mouse): Don't I know it? :-P See you soon, sweetie.
Poppy (to Vincent): Hey honey, I'm at a thrift store buying a dresser & there's a fantastic wall mirror here. Should I get it for the new place?
Vincent (to Poppy): Ooo! We can never have enough mirrors, hun. Are you going to need help getting everything to the apartment? I'm en route to my sister's for a few hours, but I can pick it up after I'm done.
Poppy (to Vincent): No worries, honey, I talked them into delivering the dresser, I'll just add the mirror. Easy, peasey.
Vincent (to Poppy): Hee hee. I should have known you'd have the delivery all sorted. There are kittens over at Mouse's if you're interested, by the by. I'm going over to kitty-sit for a while.
Poppy (to Vincent): Oooh kittens... I may have to come over and help with that after the delivery.
Vincent (to Poppy): Hee hee. Kittens are hard to resist.
An hour later:
Vincent (to Mouse): Knock, knock, sweetie! I've got egg rolls, soup, lo mein and cashew chicken. What sounds good?
Mouse (to Vincent): Hey there! Lo mein sounds perfect.
Vincent (to Mouse): Lo mein for the surrogate kitty mom. So, where are the babies?
Mouse (to Vincent): Yum, thank you... Can I have an egg roll & some soup too? The kittens are in the laundry basket with Otto...
Vincent (to Mouse): Of course, hun! I can't eat all this myself. Oh my goodness! D'awwww. They're so teenie tiny! How is the mom cat doing?
Mouse (to Vincent): When Eep called this morning, she was out of surgery but still touch & go. They want to keep her a bit longer. God, this food is tasty.... I didn't realize how hungry I was.
Vincent (to Mouse): Hmm. I thought you'd probably forgotten to eat. Poor little babies. You just can't help taking in strays can you?:-P
Mouse (to Vincent): They're not strays so to speak... they're Otto's kids.
Vincent (to Mouse): Hee hee. I know. I'm just teasing you. So how do I feed them? You look like you need a nice long nap.
Mouse (to Vincent): The kitten formula just needs to be warmed up slightly, like 25 seconds in the microwave & then use the eyedropper.
Vincent (to Mouse): Right. OK. I believe I should be able to handle that. When do they need to eat next?
Mouse (to Vincent): In about twenty minutes or so, I've got the alarm on my phone setup to go off in 2 hour increments.
Vincent (to Mouse): Okie dokie. Go get some rest, sweet sister of mine. I'll take care of the kids.
Mouse (to Vincent): That is the best idea I have heard all day, sweetie. Thank you.
Twenty minutes later:
Poppy (to Vincent): Knock, knock... where are the kitties?
Vincent (to Poppy): Through here, hun. I'm just feeding the first one now.
Poppy (to Vincent): Oh goodness, they're so tiny.
Vincent (to Poppy): Are they? They were just born yesterday. Their mom is still at the vet's, so Eep and Mouse are feeding them for now.
Poppy (to Vincent): Honey, have you thought about what might happen to these kittens being Otto's?
Vincent (to Poppy): I did wonder if they would be a bit more...unusual than regular household cats.
Poppy (to Vincent): I've never seen the offspring of anything that's been mutated by the portals before... Have you?
Vincent (to Poppy): No, not naturally. I've seen some creatures that were purposely mutated using the portals, but nothing like this. This should be interesting to say the least. Do you want to feed one, hun?
Poppy (to Vincent): Oh no, honey, I couldn't... That's sweet, but what if I drop it? ... I'm not very good with babies of any sort.
Otto (to Poppy & Vincent): Mraow?
Vincent (to Otto): Don't worry, Otto. Poppy won't drop him.
Poppy (to Vincent): You're really going to make me do this, honey? Oh... um, what do I do now?
Vincent (to Poppy): Just hold the dropper over his mouth... like this. See? The little guy will do the rest. You're doing fine, hun.
Poppy (to Vincent): Okay, I think I've got it... Geez, I don't know how people do this sort of thing. Parenting, I mean. I've only been holding this kitten for a few minutes & already I'm a nervous wreck.
Vincent (to Poppy): Hee hee. Don't ask me. This is my first experience with babies myself. I'm the quintessential youngest child. I think he's all done, hun. You did fine.
Poppy (to Vincent): Oh good... Thank you, honey.
Vincent (to Otto): Here you go, grumpy. I told you there was no reason to fear.
Otto (to Vincent): Wrowwwl.
Vincent (to Poppy): Do you want some Chinese food, hun? We there's still plenty left.
Poppy (to Vincent): Actually, honey, that sounds good... I haven't eaten anything since breakfast.
Vincent (to Poppy): Here you go. Help yourself. You seem awfully quiet, hun. Surely holding a kitten isn't all that traumatizing. :-P
Poppy (to Vincent): Oh sorry, honey... I guess I'm just not very maternal.
Vincent (to Poppy): I'm sorry, hun. I didn't mean to force a kitten on you.
Poppy (to Vincent): No, no, honey, it was fine... I was just thinking. I uh, feel bad for the little guys. I didn't have a mom, either. Sorry. It was making me all introspective.
Vincent (to Poppy): Hopefully their mom will be OK. But, even if the worst happens, they'll still have Otto, Mouse and Eep looking after them. Biological bonds are FAR overrated if you ask me.
Poppy (to Vincent): Oh no, honey. Believe me, I know... You're very sweet, coming over here & helping your sister out.
Vincent (to Poppy): Far be it from me to correct you when you're complimenting me, but it's nothing, hun. Really. It's the least I can do.
Poppy (to Vincent): Well, she's lucky to have you, never the less... actually, we're all lucky to have you, honey... c'mere you... damn someone's knocking on the door.
Vincent (to Poppy): Just... Hold onto that thought for a minute, hun. I'll be right back.
A few minutes later:
Vincent (to Poppy): Well. I can honestly say I wasn't expecting that.
Poppy (to Vincent): Uh oh, what is it, honey?
Vincent (to Poppy): I was handed a cease and decease letter from my father's church threatening me with a libel suit if I contact the press.
Poppy (to Vincent): Oh no, honey...
Vincent (to Poppy): So much for being an "anonymous source" in that article, I suppose.
Poppy (to Vincent): Well, at least, they don't know where you live, honey.
Vincent (to Poppy): Mmm. They know I'm going by Vincent Potter, now. Yay.
Poppy (to Vincent): I'm sorry, honey, what can I do for you? Shall I infiltrate their organization & get incriminating photos? :-P
Vincent (to Poppy): Hee hee. Thanks, hun, but I have incriminating photos. I rather think that's what prompted the church to send me a letter.
Poppy (to Vincent): Honey, should I get you a drink?
Vincent (to Poppy): Probably.
A few hours later:
Mouse (to Vincent & Poppy): Hi you two, thanks for manning the kittens while I napped.
Vincent (to Mouse): No problem, sweetie.
Mouse (to Vincent): Hi you two, thanks for manning the kittens while I napped. I've got it from here, if you guys want to go home.
Vincent (to Mouse): Yeah. We're going to head home. Let me know if you need any more help.
Mouse (to Vincent): Little brother, are you okay?
Vincent (to Mouse): I'm...I'm upset. I received a lovely letter from my father's church threatening with me with libel today, so... Yeah. Upset.
Mouse (to Vincent): Oh geez, sweetie, it's definitely a scare tactic. We should go see my lawyer tomorrow.
Vincent (to Mouse): I know. I know. I'm just... really pissed off, actually. After six years, this is the first time they've given a shit about me? Whatever.
Mouse (to Vincent): I'm sure you are. Go home & relax. I'll call & set up an appointment if you want me to, tomorrow morning. And, not to worry, I have an idea... it might be a dumb one, but if those hypocritical jackasses want to play rough... I have a few cards up my sleeve. I mean, that is if you want to deal with this crap.
Vincent (to Mouse): I'm not sure what I want to do, honestly. I'll sleep on it. Thank you, sweetie. For everything.
Mouse (to Vincent): It'll be okay, little brother... Get Poppy to distract you for the evening, ask her to show you her performance piece. :-P (to Poppy) I think you may have a morose Vincent on your hands, tonight. I don't envy you.
Vincent (to Mouse): Oh. Well, I'm sure that would certainly distract me for an evening, at least. I'll talk to you tomorrow.
Poppy (to Mouse): Thanks for the heads up. I'll take care of him, I'm sure you have your hands full with kittens.
Mouse (to Poppy): Yeah, just a bit. Thank you for your help.
Poppy (to Vincent): Honey, how about a nice buttered rum?
Vincent (to Poppy): That sounds divine, hun. And satisfyingly alcoholic.
Poppy (to Vincent): Well then, let's get home & I'll fix you one... and, maybe I'll give you a back rub. :-)
Vincent (to Poppy): Really? Well, I can't complain about the ending to this evening then if that's the case.
Poppy (to Vincent): Well, it's the least I can do. I hate to see you like this, honey.
Vincent (to Poppy): I'm sorry, hun. I'm trying not to be such dreadful company.
Eep (to Mouse): Hey. Fuck, I'm sorry I was so late getting back home tonight. Tell me you had help today. Was that Vincent and Poppy leaving?
Mouse (to Eep): No worries, man o' mine, Vincent & Poppy helped out, I got some sleep, the kittens & Otto are doing fine. How was your day?
Eep (to Mouse): Oh thank fucking God! Today was a clusterfuck. The computer system went down in the middle of some event. And if I had to field questions from one more white kid in a Che Guevara shirt... Heh. Josh sent me to the back at one point. How was your day?
Mouse (to Eep): Kitten duty, napping, chatting with Vincent & Poppy... Oh, and Vincent got served a cease & desist letter by his dad's church. So, you know, the usual crazy stuff.
Eep (to Mouse): Wait. He got what? What he'd get a cease and desist letter for?
Mouse (to Eep): Apparently, they're threatening him with libel if he speaks to reporters.
Eep (to Mouse): They what? They want to sue him for saying what a dick his father was? I... That doesn't even... Those epic fucking DICKS! Fat fucking Christ!
Mouse (to Eep): I know. I was trying to stay calm while Vincent was here, because I really want to go find his father & beat the shit out of him.
Eep (to Mouse): It'd serve him fucking right. How's Vincent holding up? How are you holding up?
Mouse (to Eep): Yeah... I think Vincent is upset & pissed off. I mean, this is the first time he's had any kind of contact from his family. If they came looking for him, they did a pretty piss poor job of it. I mean, until now when it threatens their church. Jerks!
Eep (to Mouse): Jesus. Seriously. You look ready to rip someone's throat out.
Mouse (to Eep): I feel like it... The kittens were fed a half an hour ago. If you don't mind, I'm going to go to the basement & punch something. Oh, have you heard back from the vet clinic, yet?
Eep (to Mouse): Oh. Yeah. So, uh, good news. Mamma Cat is doing a lot better today. They said to call back tomorrow... But, we should be able to pick her up. Does she have an own... I mean, uh, does she live with some family somewhere?
Mouse (to Eep): That's good news...I'm glad to hear it & I know Otto is going to be relieved. He had given me the impression she was an alley cat.
Eep (to Mouse): Yeah. I was afraid you were gonna say that. So, instead of having one cat, we now have five.
Mouse (to Eep): Oh god, I didn't even think of that. Otto really needs to go get a job, now...
Eep (to Mouse): Yeah, no shit. Are you gonna head into the basement, now?
Mouse (to Eep): Yeah, unless you want me to stay up here with you. I just need to burn off some steam.
Eep (to Mouse): Oh. No. It's OK. I just haven't seen you all day, but if you wanna hit something, I'm not gonna ask you to stick around me. Heh.
Mouse (to Eep): You could come down with me. That way, I can hit something & we can chat... I mean, if you want.
Eep (to Mouse): Uh, yeah. That'd be fine. It's not like I mind watching you, you know, hit things and stuff.
Mouse (to Eep): Boy, you always know the right things to say to me. :-P
Eep (to Mouse): Heh. Well, I guess statistically, there had to be at least one person out there that I'm not an utter spaz around.
Mouse (to Eep): Heehee. Well, as long as I'm that one person, I'm totally okay with that. :-)
Eep (to Mouse): Heh. My one and only.
Thirty minutes later:
Poppy (to Vincent): Here, honey, drink this... I'll put your favorite movie on & give you a shoulder rub.
Vincent (to Poppy): Oh. Thank you! Don't worry so much, hun. I'm OK. Mad as fucking hell, but I'm OK.
Poppy (to Vincent): Hush you... You need a clear head to decide what to do & the only way to do that is to relax... so, I'm trying to help. Let me take care of you, for once, honey.
Vincent (to Poppy): You're right, hun. I'm sorry. I'm certainly shouldn't complain about a pretty girl wanting to take care of me. :-P
