(open catch-all)

[fulgency]

Who: Ozymandias + You!
When: Prior to event
Where: Aefenglom (more specifically at the Purramid Cafe and on the riverbank)
What: Ozymandias fostering kittens in his cafe for adoption purposes and soaking in the sun
Warnings: None! Will update if needed.

(blink and miss 'em)
[It seems plain and obvious that the Purramid Cafe should lend itself as a temporary home to the teleporting kittens. With regular feeding schedules, plenty of toys, treats, and catmint, and some playmates, most of the kittens are easily occupied and their teleportation hijinks are at least kept to a more localized area instead of running amok in a store, home, or the city at large. Plus, it seems the odds of finding each kitten a master is much more likely within the cafe given that the majority of patrons are cat lovers.]

a. bulletin board

[Ozymandias also has a stroke of genius of how to use the cafe's bulletin board to the kittens' benefit as well. A dedicated space is created for this purpose and each kitten has bestowed upon them a name and a short letter "from" each kitten describing their temperament and preferences. The effort is ultimately a partnership as Ozymandias enchants each picture to continuously loop the identified kitten at play or at rest in a brief moving image rather than still photography. Leslie, meanwhile, has taken care to provide each kitten with their temporary name and neatly written "their" letters to showcase each's personality.]

[One of the kittens has successfully been adopted, and now that they have been sent with some basic supplies, Ozymandias is in the process of replacing the kitten's picture and letter with a picture of the kitten with their proud new owner, their new name, and notice that they have been adopted. Hearing footsteps come to a stop behind him, Ozymandias glances over his shoulder.]

Considering one for yourself?

b. training

[But really even with as much help that the cafe itself serves for the kittens, if they are to have any real hope of finding a permanent home, they must gain a little more control over their teleportation powers. And so, while Ozymandias has the time to spare, he begins working with them one at a time. Or, well, as best as one can work with one cat at a time.]

[Standing near the tree at the cafe's center, Ozymandias holds between this thumb and forefinger a tasty morsel and taps the shelf nearest to him with his spare fingers.]

Here.

[Two kittens seem to forget entirely that they have the ability to teleport and launch themselves towards the base of the tree to climb. A sphinx cub decides that now is a good time to perch itself on Ozymandias shoulder (although is foiled from taking the treat with a gentle hand over its face to prevent its progress). The kitten that is actually working with Ozymandias, however, does exactly as it is commanded and teleports.]

[It will be given plenty of praise should it be successful, but it's also entirely possible you might now have a kitten suddenly and very nearly on top of your breakfast sandwich or in your lap as it overshoots the tree by several feet.]

(before everything's on fire)
[The weather this month has not been quite as agreeable as last when it comes to sunning himself. The storms that roll through the city seem at times relentless, and he finds it frustrating each morning he wakes to find the skies darkened by clouds. But on those days where the sun seems keen to occupy the skies instead, Ozymandias takes to the riverbank to lay about on a blanket.]

a. closed to established cr

[There had been some vague intention to get some work done while he was out here. There's a small stack of papers tucked away in his bag either pertaining to the cafe's finances or even some paperwork regarding the community garden. (The project may not have been his and he has no interest in taking over, but Ozymandias cannot help but involve himself in some small way.) But it was forgotten perhaps as soon as he came across a familiar face and invited them to join him for a time. He has, after all, brought more than enough refreshments with him than for just himself. There is, after all, an entire tray filled with snacks and plenty of choices for a drink or two.]

[Ozymandias finishes refilling his companion's beverage of choice and passes back their glass. He sets the bottle back down with the others, reaching for the wine to refill his own as the sphinx cub continues its slow progressing into the others' lap. With the slight disruption of their drinks being resolved, Ozymandias prompts,]

You were saying?

b. open to new & old cr

[Ozymandias lifts his gaze from the papers when he hears a distant splash followed by sounds of disappointment. While Ozymandias has been reviewing his papers, the sphinx cub has been busying itself playing with some local children as they play around with a ball. Said ball was tossed a little too far and ended up in the water. Both the cub and the group of children now stand somewhat helplessly at the river's edge. Ozymandias sits up a little further to watch, resting his papers in his lap.]

Don't, [he says when he sees movement in his periphery, assuming it to be a passerby intending to do a good deed. But after those few moments of observing, he saw the sphinx cub gearing up to do something about this situation. He won't have that effort put to waste.] Let him handle it.

[It's a tentative first few steps, but the cub begins wading into the river carefully off toward the ball.]

((feel free to riff of these if you're feeling adventurous, but know that you can always run something by me first if you're unsure. if you'd like a private starter, hmu via pm to this journal or on plurk (rebreather).))

Comments

before the fire - b

[sparkstrikes]

[That's exactly what Lightning was planning to do as she passes through the riverbank, walking near the water to cool herself off under the sun. The little plop of the ball breaking the surface has her turning her head, only to grow more curious when she sees the cat preparing itself at the edge of the water, but from what she knows, cats don't swim, so with a heavy sigh, she strolls down towards it...

Only to get a step in before a voice calls out from the ground beside her, and she stops, turns, and shoots up a brow.]

Right. A cat? Is gonna jump in the river...

[He must be crazy, but what does she know!]

[fulgency]

[There's a loud burst of laughter from Ozymandias, plainly amused by her skepticism.]

That is no mere cat, [Ozymandias corrects.] That is a divine beast!

[For a moment, the sphinx does not appear to know what to do with its wings as it wades a little further out into the water. (Unfortunately for the sphinx, they're not yet proportional enough to its body to allow for flight or this would be a trivial matter!) It tries raising them up to keep them dry, but it makes swimming a little more daunting in the end. It then seems to take more of a lead from waterfowl and draws them in close to its body, letting them go into the water.]

[There are some murmurs from the children as they watch the sphinx cub take itself further out after the ball. A few glance nervously back at Ozymandias, but he merely watches his little guardian.]

He should have no reason to fear anything, not even water.

[The cub manages to get close to the ball and very carefully tries to get a hold of it with his mouth. There are a few pleading and hopeful c'mooooooon!'s coming from the children at this point as they all bounce and shift about anxiously.]

[sparkstrikes]

[Lightning squints at the creature, and upon a much closer inspection, that is indeed... not entirely a cat? Divine beast doesn't exactly explain what it is either, so that only raises more questions as she watches it stretch its wings above the water's surface. Still, in spite of her confusion, she eyes it with piqued interest, eyes widening in surprise when it reaches the ball.]

Huh.

[Colour her impressed, though it's yet to actually grab it and bring it back, so she'll hold onto that for a while longer.]

You train it to do that?

[fulgency]

No, [Ozymandias says with a slight shake of his head.] This is his natural ability.

[Which likely becomes a little more evident as the sphinx cub is a little less elegant in trying to swim with the ball in his mouth. The task of holding his head above water is made a little more awkward by holding onto the ball. As much as he tries not to crane his head back to hold it and force more of it into the water to see where he is going a little better, the ball's buoyancy makes it a futile endeavor. The cub has no choice but to try and adapt, which comes with a combination of pausing and readjusting its hold on the ball as well as a more diagonal trajectory towards land. The kids run down along the river to meet him.]

[When the kitten is able to, he trots happily out of the water to much rejoicing and cheering from the children. It's almost a small wonder that they don't pick him up onto their shoulders, but he is given plenty of praise and pets, and there are some delighted shrieks when he shakes himself off and sprays water everywhere.]

Wehem-Mesut! [Ozymandias calls, which immediately catches the sphinx's attention (and some of the children).] To me!

[As the cub races over at Ozymandias' command, Ozymandias tucks his papers into his bag. The kitten looks up at Lightning as it passes her by, but since Ozymandias does not seem perturbed by her, he lets her be for the moment. Up close like this, Lightning will likely be able to tell that the sphinx is not only an unusual shade of deep blue, but he lives up at least a little to being called divine as he looks like he's been created from an endless, swirling galaxy. The cub stops short of stepping onto the blanket with Ozymandias, but when Ozymandias pats his thigh by way of invitation, it makes its way into his lap.]

[sparkstrikes]

[Even Lightning is splashed with the water it shakes from itself, having only an arm to shield herself from the unexpected mist. Unlike the kids, she grunts under a breath, only mildly annoyed by the inconvenience; the other part of her is amused by the fact that she just witnessed a cat-like animal fetch a ball out of the water.

She moves back half a step when it trots past her, exchanging an awkward sort of look with it, confused and curious. She's seen a lot of strange things, but nothing like this little guy. And that's meant in a good way.]

It can swim and does what you ask it to—doesn't sound like a cat to me.

['Divine beast' or not. It still looks like one at the end of the day, but she doesn't know any better.]

If it's not that, then what the hell is it?

blink and miss em - a

[awryprincess]

[She'd been helping wrangle a few of the kittens back up to send them back to where they belonged. She's not really surprised to see some of them have been spread out to other avenues, to reduce the amount of attention that is needed by one set of staff to watch them, but she is surprised to know this place exists at all.

It's... super cute, actually. A cat cafe? Sign her up. And what's more, she recognizes one of the little buggers rolling around with its littermate. It was one of the kittens she'd rescued. She feels a presence - hears someone behind her - before the voice sounds, and she tilts her head.] I recognize that one, there, with the "smudge" on its nose. I brought it back...

[She giggles, and finally turns and... oh, he's taller than she anticipated. Then again, she's shorter than most people, so she tilts her head to look up.] But! I don't think it'd be so bad an idea. I do live alone, after all. Well, and I'm boarding a horse, but those are a bit harder to cuddle when you sleep.

[fulgency]

[Ozymandias' gaze leaves her for a moment over toward the kitten she indicates. Her answer is one that he's heard a few times by now as far as a patron having previous experience with one of the kittens currently living within the cafe. While they are a challenge to keep up with, kittens have a fairly easy time drawing attention to themselves regardless of their ability to teleport.]

[Ozymandias sets the old image of one of the kittens down on a nearby table and picks up their adopted photo.]

Do you think perhaps that one may be your choice then? Since the two of you already have a history.

[awryprincess]

Hmmm... mayhap, mayhap... [She's trying to sound uninterested, but that facade breaks pretty easily, as she grins.] Well, but I can't do anything if it doesn't like me, now, can I? Do you mind much if I go over to say hello? [She's not sure what the proper etiquette is here, and there's no real reason to break it... so.... ]

[fulgency]

[Ozymandias nods a little.]

Of course. That is the whole point of hosting them here.

[Although the store they came from is not necessarily a bad environment, this cafe has a lot more appropriate things for the kittens to be busying themselves with comparatively. So, it provides perhaps a more realistic picture of what ownership over one of the little beasts might look like.]

You're free to use any of the toys as much or as little as you like, but we do charge for treats. You can purchase those at the counter.

kittens; b.

[weatherscience]

[ having caught a couple of the kittens, nami feels at least somewhat invested in their fate, even going so far as considering adopting one of them herself... but watching their teleporting efforts is also a fun pastime, and a nice way to relax after magic class and work.

she's narrowly avoided being bombarded by kittens going off the mark a couple of times, and yet she stays and watches... and when the kitten with ozymandias actually makes it to the target, she jumps up and cheers. ]

Well done!! You'res showing some real promise, aren't you?

[ .... addressing the kitten directly. ozymandias who? i mean. hi. ]

[fulgency]

[Normally, Ozymandias is in danger of suffocation if he's not the one receiving the praise. But when that praise is directed toward a creature in his care, he is far less likely to be offended as is the case here.]

[The kitten spooks a little at the sudden noise, jumping a little in the air to turn toward the sound and flattening itself down. It doesn't have long to really be so uncertain about the sudden noise though. There are too many distractions between its siblings making their slow way up, the sphinx on Ozymandias' shoulder trying to make a bid for its snack, and the fact Ozymandias has set the treat down completely on the platform to give it a reassuring pet or two.]

Each of them is quite intelligent! [With the kitten gobbling up its treat, the sphinx cub loses a bit of interest in it and leaps to a higher shelf off Ozymandias' shoulder.] I believe it shall only take more practice for this particular litter to exert better control over their abilities. They shall make great companions for those willing to commit themselves to their training.

[weatherscience]

Mm, they really seem like they are! Are you the one training them now?

[ she sounds a bit impressed that he's taken it all upon himself to do... especially when actually catching the kittens was such a hassle. ]

Hm, companions...? I guess you're right! I hadn't thought of that, but a cat that can teleport on command would really be an asset aside from just being cute.

[ should she consider adopting one...... maybe not, at least not until she's settled in better. ]

[fulgency]

When I have the time to spare, [Ozymandias says with a nod to her first question. As much as the thought of spending all of his time within the cafe would be nice, it's simply not feasible with some of his other responsibilities. But he doesn't mind spending some of his free time to work with the kittens and help them curb some of their more impulsive teleportations.] Are you considering adopting one?

[It seems a fair question to ask. Most are at least tempted by the idea even if they can't quite bring themselves to commit to it and by the sounds of it, she is as well. Or, well, she's at least put some thought into it even if it hasn't managed to completely capture her imagination.]

before fire a

[beariot]

[ Honestly, this was pretty damn ideal. At the cafe or on the riverbank, time spent relaxing with Ramesses, even if he was ostensibly trying to do some work, was never wasted. She gently pet the dub, sipping from her wine. ]

So, she thinks she looks cute in glasses and she absolutely does, but I think because of my initial mom-freakout over whether or not she needed an actual prescription has made her dismiss the idea of wearing them as a fashion thing...

[ A breath and... ]

I don't think Monika realizes mine are also basically pointless. I mean I do need them sometimes, but my eyesight's not that different with or without them, but now I'm worried she'll think I was being weird.

[fulgency]

[The cub leans itself into the pets, which only serves to let it settle completely in Chariot's lap. It almost immediately tucks its paws underneath itself into a perfect loaf form.]

If your children do not find your odd at some point or another, then I am not certain you are ever able to call yourself a parent, [Ramesses says, huffing a light laugh.] But perhaps you should buy her a pair. It will still be her decision to wear them in the long-run, but it will encourage her to at least not give up on the idea so soon.

[The social obligation of wearing a gift, particularly one from her mother, at least once would let her try it out, and truly weigh the pros and cons rather than basing it off Chariot's initial reaction.]

It would be a little simpler than explaining your glasses to her in any case and get more to the point.

[Because gods know Chariot struggles when trying to explain even the most innocuous of things to others when she works herself up when it wasn't academic in nature. And there was a fairly high chance she would over even something as small as this. Ramesses takes a sip of his wine and turns his gaze down to his sphinx. It looks perfectly content merely being in Chariot's lap, but he still reaches over and scritches underneath its chin.]

[beariot]

[ It was a sound idea, sure... She definitely felt like Monika should be able to explore different aesthetics for herself. But the reasoning behind it... ]

What it comes down to is... she sees me as such a role-model, I think she's got it in her head to just. Imitate me. And I'm not sure if that's necessarily good for her.

[ Especially considering... her nature as a person with two distinct selves. Both different sides of the same person, but so deeply different. ]

[fulgency]

[What Chariot says is not something that Ramesses can pretend to understand immediately. He serves as a role model plenty and has never found any fault in attempts to emulate him. If anything, he is in perfect agreement that he ought to be emulated as much as possible! But he also believes that in their attempts to be as much like Ramesses the Great as they can, others find their own paths to their own greatness. He also cannot pretend as though he did not spend many years of his own youth attempting to emulate his father much in a similar fashion.]

[And perhaps more importantly than any of that, he doesn't think it so terrible a thing for a young girl to wish to be like Chariot. Her past, her mistakes are obviously not things to overlook, but that does not make her less. Especially not with how hard she has worked over the past year to regain her "shine" and come closer to the person she was meant to be but lost along the way. He finds it difficult to find anything more admirable than that, in fact, and that is not really a product of any inherent bias stemming from his love and affection for her.]

[But as always, he takes her words seriously and doesn't dismiss them out of hand simply because understanding isn't immediate or because he can think of a dozen or so rebuttals. He's able to be more patient than that and allow Chariot to explain herself further.]

Is it the imitation that's the problem or that you are the one she is looking to imitate?

blink and miss 'em - b

[wordsinthesoul]

[It's a good plan, from what Thancred can see- though admittedly he isn't expecting the kitten to end up on him. He goes still, eyes a little wide, and reaches out a moment later, patting it gently.]

…well. I suppose it's a work in progress, still. It's still a little impressive!

[fulgency]

[Ozymandias' immediate attention is, of course, on the platform and the surrounding area, but when the kitten fails to appear within seconds of disappearing, he turns his attention instead to the rest of the cafe. He spots the kitten on Thancred just as he's reaching to pet it.]

It's certainly better than yesterday...

[Though still plenty of work to be done yet still!]

[wordsinthesoul]

That's something. But they've still got a long way to go, hm?

[…maybe he shouldn't be petting it, if this isn't the intended training.]

Is there some way I might be able to assist?

[fulgency]

[For training purposes, it's not particularly helpful for him to pet the kitten, but it's also not all that detrimental either as Ozymandias believes in encouragement even when there's a failure. How else is such a young creature to have the will to continue trying? And it does seem to be ready to try again. The kitten is beginning to make a tentative journey on Thancred to get into a better position to try and make it toward that platform.]

With this particular kitten, I do not believe so. But you are more than welcome to work with any of its siblings.

before the fire - b

[heartmunculus]

[Sieg isn't only really here to observe, off to the side. When was the last time he saw a gathering like that? Children who were just playing instead of fighting for the ability to keep living?

He only really moves to get a better look at the cub- but when he's told to stop, he does- looking over at the person who called out.

He's a servant, right? Not one Sieg's personally met before...]

It's my first time seeing a sphinx cub. [The fully grown divine beasts aren't completely uncommon.] I didn't know they started so small.

[fulgency]

[It hasn't been an altogether common occurrence for Ozymandias' sphinxes to be so easily recognized among others here. Many of the Mirrorbound come from worlds where such beasts do not exist and so there simply isn't a frame of reference. And for others, the more celestial appearance seems to conflict with their notions of what a sphin ought to be.]

[And so, Sieg's correct identification manages to draw Ozymandias's attention for just a brief moment for the unusualness of it. Nothing in particular about this young man stands out to him as particularly remarkable, however, and he's certainly not one that he recognizes. How odd...]

You have familiarity with my sphinxes, yet I do not know you. [In the distance, the sphinx cub now contends with what to do about its wings. It decides in the end that it's best to tuck them in close to its body. They will get wet, of course, but it will take less energy to swim like this than trying to keep them out of the water.] Who is it that now finds himself in the presence of the King of Kings?

[heartmunculus]

[Oh... Royalty? That makes sense, there are plenty of heroic spirits that are known for that specifically. Sieg doesn't really know what to do in their presence- he just defaults back into his customary politeness.]

My apologies, my name is Sieg.

[That explains absolutely nothing.] I spent most of my time with phantasmal beasts. [Close enough.]

[fulgency]

[His name really doesn't amount to anything for Ozymandias, but it's not altogether uncommon for Ozymandias to be terrible at retaining names given that he's not always the best at remembering to ask for them. So, the addition holds more value by way of explanation even if it's not much.]

Is that so? That is a rare thing indeed.