capeandcowl | Twenty-Three [Video]

Entry tags:

† vivi ornitier | n/a

Twenty-Three [Video]

[Anyone even vaguely familiar with the library at the Xavier Institute will recognise it immediately, save for one difference; there aren't any books. Instead, there are hundreds and hundreds of cats all over the place, all black with white stripes or splotches. The camera pans around to reveal kittens and cats on every possible surface of the library - on the shelves, the stepladder, the chairs and tables, the returns desk. The camera finishes on Vivi, who has two kittens balancing on him and several more cats exploring. One of them tries to bat the communicator away, but Vivi holds it still.]

Um... if anyone here is allergic to cats, I'd suggest not coming to the Xavier Institute library today. I'm... not sure what's happened, but all the books have turned into cats.

[He picks up a cat and moves it closer to the camera; the image blurs for a bit before refocusing, and the black stripes on its coat turn out to be text. Vivi puts that cat on the floor, in time to catch another one with a children's book cover on its fur dash past.]

If anyone sees any black and white cats with text on their fur - or cats with pictures on them - could they return them to the library please? Or maybe hold onto them until whatever turned them into cats goes away and makes them turn into books again?

[Private to Dr. McCoy]
I think the library's going to need cleaning after this...

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Oh, goodness.

I'll say! It was quite a surprise; I thought at first someone had just filled the library with cats, but them I say the books were missing too and then I got a closer look at them...

Is someone messing about with April Fools Day again?

That is my assumption.

Is there a way to make it stop?

I don't think I have enough money to properly supply all these cats...

I am not sure anybody does.

We will give it until tomorrow. If they do not change, we will see about a more permanent solution.

[Sofia is checking on her own black and white kitten to make sure he hasn't had text added to his fur.]

Do you need any help looking after them while they are not books?

Yes please - finding them would help too. I opened the doors to the library this morning and almost got stampeded by a huge herd of cats rushing out. I think most of them are still all scattered around the Institute, but I can't get them myself because I need to keep the ones here in here.

[A pause] At least we won't have any mice or rats for a while...

I will be there in ten minutes. I've got a couple of boxes of cat treats that we can use to help round them up.

[Sofia is heading out the door while she talks.]

Thank you ever so much! I'm going through the catalogues now to see what cats I still have here and which ones are missing. This might take a while, since none of the barcodes are on their fur...

Are the titles on their fur?

[Sofia is flying as it's faster than making her way through the crowds.]

If the title's written on the book, they should be. Most of them will be identifiable, but some of the older books might be blank...

[He's trying to make his way through the library; it's slow going when you're small and have to pick your weay through cats]

[Sofia walks down the halls to the library. She opens the door wide enough to slip in and then closes it tight behind her. The amount of cats made her eyes widen.]

We are going to need a lot of carrier cases.

[Vivi isn't immediately visible; there are cats absolutely everywhere, on every possible place you could find a cat. He emerges eventually, walking very slowly with a kitten balancing quite proudly on the top of his hat.]

I... think they'll be all right here, but it's not exactly going to be easy to reshelve all of the books when they turn back.

[He stops and careuflly lifts the kitten off his hat and puts it on a shelf. It mews in protest.]

I may have to air it out too so it doesn't smell like cat so much. Is April Fools Day always like this? I don't remember it being so bad last year...

I will come and help you when they turn back.

I wasn't here last April Fools Day, but I heard the effects didn't last long.

[He looks quite greateful for the offer, though that doesn't last long when another book/cat decided he makes a good climbing post and has to be prised off his leg]

Thank you ever so much! It's probably going to take days to get them all in their proper places, not to mention tracking down all the errant books. I hope it's just for today; I can't think of how much adjusting I'd have to do to handle a feline library.

[Several kittens are now clustering around Sofia; all of them have children's book covers on their fur]

How many do you think got out?

[Sofia picks up a two kittens when their tiny needle like claws start to sink into her leg to climb up her. She read their fur.]

Black Beauty and Little Women. [She's amused when the kittens start to purr.]

I will have to read you when you are turned back into books.

It could have easily been eighty or so, maybe a couple of hundred; it was a big rush and by the time I could actually react most of them were out. They're all labelled as being Xavier Institute books - when they're not being cats - so they should be easy to find.

[He takes out a notepad and pencil and writes something down] I'll put them both on reserve for you when they're turned back into books.

Thanks, [Sofia smiles.]

I'll make a tour of the school and see how many I can round it. How hard can it be to herd cats.

It's not easy - I've been doing it all day. Do bring them back when you can! I've got another box if that will help.

Please I will be take it. They will be easier to spot as cats than as books left in hidden corners.

[The video switches on to a cat flopped onto the sidewalk, leisurely cleaning itself and warming up in the sun. On its side, you can see half the cover of Where The Wild Things Are.]

Well, that explains this [Cassie sounds pretty incredulous, because what in the world is even going on]. I thought somebody decided to dye their cat.

I'm happy to help, if you need it. I think I saw a couple more nearby.

[Vivi smiles, somewhat obscured by several cats]

Oh, that's where that book ended up! I hadn't finished reading it! Are you ablwe to bring it back please? Any others you can find if you can too, that would make my job easier.

[She laughs softly, if only because this is so absurd.]

Of course! I'll bring it right now if it'll let me catch it. Hold on. [the video flicks off for a few minutes as she goes to grab the cat with both hands.

When the comm finally turns back on, the cat is slung over one of her shoulders--one hand is braced softly against its back to keep it in place, and the other is wrapped around it as well. The cat doesn't seem to mind.

For the moment, at least.] Xavier Institute, right? I think I'm a couple streets over? I'm kind of new, so I'm not sure exactly where everything is yet.

Yes, that's right! Thank you ever so much. There are an awful lot of cats, so any help is really appreciated.

I'm Vivi - I run the library at the Xavier Institute. How long have you been here?

It's no problem at all. And yeah, it looks like you have a lot on your plate. I don't think I've ever seen so many cats in one place before.

[She's walking now, heading towards where she thinks the Institute is, the book-cat still in her arms.] Only about a day! Or so. I'm still getting used to the fact that I'm here.

Neither have I! Not even in the industrial district of Lindblum, where pretty much everyone there has a cat. It makes it very difficult to walk through though, especially... oh, not again...

[The video shifts to a large, somewhat sinister-looking cat with this image on its chest and back just staring at Vivi. Vivi shoos it away, which takes a little while, but eventually the cat jumps down from the desk.]

I could really do without that cat staring at me all the time though.

[He shrugs] It does take some getting used to being here; it's quite different from where I was, but I find it makes a really nice change to actually have time to learn.

[The comm shakes a bit as the book-cat wiggles and Cassie has to readjust her grip on it to keep it from escaping.]

Everyone owns a cat? Sounds like a fun place to be, I love cats--[sudden pause, because wow that is a freaky-looking book-cat]--yikes. That one doesn't look too friendly.

So where you came from, what was different about it? And oh sorry, I'm Cassie by the way. It's nice to meet you, Vivi!

Not everyone. Regent Cid the First of Lindblum was the engineer who invented the Mist engine, and he owned a cat. It's kind of a homage to the man and a good luck charm for an engineer to own a cat; plus it keeps the rodents away from your work. The Industrial District of Lindblum is full of them.

[The Beksinski book-cat is now further in the background, staring at Vivi's back.]

Where I came from was very different to here! The technology has only just discovered the steam engine, but we have flying ships - and there's a lot more magic where I'm from too. I think this is a very low magic world, because technology is very advanced in comparison.

[Cassie switches to voice to make it easier as she walks towards the Institute. She's almost there, and thankfully the book-cat has decided to lazily settle over her shoulder.]

Oh, wow! That's cool. [So weird to hear all that. But so many questions pop into her head as well.] You come from a place with magic? Like, magic magic?

What's the 'Mist engine'?

Edited (html fail) 2012-04-18 10:13 (UTC)

[He nods] Yes - actual magic. I don't know a huge amount of useful magic unless we get in a fight, but there's quite a bit of it. At first I was amazed about how little magic there was here, but then I realized that the people here must be using technology to compensate for it.

[A pause] A Mist engine is like a steam engine but it runs on something called Mist, a substance native to where I'm from. It's less efficient than steam, but steam was only recently invented.

There wasn't any magic [--unless you counted her ability to morph as magic, but that was actually rooted in advanced alien technology--] where I came from, so I've been pretty amazed to hear about it.

[Then:] Useful magic? [There's a short pause, and the only audio sound is the thud of her shoes against the sidewalk for a few seconds]

Did you get into fights often, back home?

Edited 2012-04-25 09:13 (UTC)

Well, there's very little magical lore here; everything I've found so far is filled with faulty theory and unnecessary ritual as to be almost useless, and it's all for big things that wouldn't work properly anyway.

[A pause at the question about fights] More than most; I wasn't by myself for them though. I had good friends and we looked after each other, but I've seen a lot of combat. It's what my magic was made for anyway...

[It's weird. His answer was almost a complete mirror of her own story, back home--she'd seen combat too, she'd had friends to look out for her as they all fought in the same war. Her own powers had been basically tailored to combat.

And so maybe it's why she decides to answer the way she does, in a quieter voice:] I understand how that is. Back home, we had to fight too.

Was there a war going on where you lived?

At first there was, yes. It started off with me getting caught up ina kidnap-slash-rescue attempt, where the theatre troupe hired to perform at Princess Garnet's sixteenth birthday was alos hired by her uncle, Regent Cid of Lindblum, to kidnap-slash-rescue her from her mother. We found out the hard way that Queen Brahne - Garnet's mother - had been making soldiers to invade the other countries and we kind of got caught up in that in one way or another. It eventually ended up with us chasing down the person behind all the warmongering in the first place, but it was quite the saga.

[A pause] Not many people seem to be able to understand that without having lived it... have you come from war too?

[Calvin is glaring furiously at a cat he's holding with 'Dinosaurs of the Early Cretaceous' written in its stripes.]

This stinks! I can't read a cat! It won't hold still for- whoops!

[And the cat slips out of Calvin's arms and runs away.]

They aren't exactly easy to - aah! Catch it, please!

[The video shuts off and Calvin's running feet are heard]

How? It's about dinosaurs, it probably has extra-long claws!

No, it's okay. They've just turned into normal cats, not feline anthropomorhizations of the books. It's as safe as a normal cat.

Okay, I've almost got it!

[There's the sound of more running, then a grunt of effort and something crashing or falling over.]

Yikes! I think I've- AAAAGH!

[A cat yowls.]

Careful! Don't hurt the cat - or yourself!

Are you all right?

[Silence. Then purring noises and an indignant Calvin.]

It's sitting on me! Hey, book, do I look like furniture to you?

No, don't go to sleep!

[A laugh]

At least you can pick it up from there. I've lost count of the number of times I fell asleep with an open book on my chest. It's never been a cat though.

Yeah, I bet you weren't on the floor either.

No - a hammock, which is a bit trickier to get out of.

Surely you can shift the cat off you. carefully, of course...

I'll try. I just hope it doesn't claw me.

[Meow.]

Okay, I've got it. Oof, you're a heavy book, aren't you?

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Twenty-Three [Video]

Voice;

Voice;

Voice;

[Voice]

[Voice]

video

[Video]

Re: [Video]

[Video]

Re: [Video]

[Video]

Re: [Video]

[Action!]

Re: [Action!]

[Action!]

Re: [Action!]

[Action!]

Re: [Action!]

[Action!]

Re: [Action!]

video;

[Video]

[Video]

[Video]

[Video]

[Video]

[Video]

[Video]

[Video] --> [Voice]

[Video]

[Voice] - fdsjakl sorry for the delay, busy week :c

[Voice] It's all good - as you can't tell I haven't been much better.

[Voice] <3

[Voice]

Video

[Video]

Voice

[Voice]

[Voice]

[Voice]

[Voice]

[Voice]

[Voice]

[Voice]

[Voice]