It seemed that my surprises for the day were not yet over. As we passed the living room Kumiko made a detour to the couch where Kimiko was watching a movie. She grabbed Kimi-chan's hand and pulled her to her feet. Then she wrapped her arms around her, picked her up, and carried her down the hall to the bathroom.
I was pretty much shocked into immobility, so I just watched as they went past me. Kimiko had a very indignant look on her face at first, but it softened almost immediately. Then she raised her hand and patted Kumiko very gently on the back of the head. Obviously they were having some sort of conversation, and, just as obviously, it wasn't for public consumption.
Fortunately that bathroom was public, so to speak, so I followed them in. Regardless of anything else I needed a good shower and a soak. I stunk and had no desire to share my fragrance with the rest of the family. Besides, they just might let a little bit of their conversation slip into the public "channel" where I could hear some of it.
I wasn't prepared for what I found though. Kumiko was on her knees hugging Kimiko around the waist and crying her eyes out. Kimiko was still patting Kumiko on the head, or rather she was stroking her head over and over.
As I'd hoped, there was a little bleed over from their conversation, but it didn't help me much. Kumiko was semi-incoherent but seemed to be apologizing for something that she had, or hadn't, done. Whatever it was, she was devastated by it.
Kimiko was repeating "Don't worry Nee-chan, it's all right," over and over.
At times like this, the only thing the parent can do is go on about her normal activities. Well of course I wanted to go over and hug both of them to death, but sometimes you have to let grief run its course without interrupting. Otherwise it can get stuck and will never be resolved. It hurts like hell to leave someone alone when they're suffering, but sometimes you just have to bite the bullet and stay back. At least, she had Kimiko to comfort her.
I stripped off my sodden gi, tossed everything in the hamper, and went to take my shower. Maybe by the time we were all soaking in the tub the girls would have calmed down enough to talk to me, at least a little.
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All right, I'll spell it out. What just happened? Use your imagination.
Kumiko picking up Kimiko and carrying her down the hall. Then on her knees with her arms wrapped around Kimiko. She's crying, a lot. She stinks, a lot. DIrty stinky girl hugging clean, fragrant girl. Which scent wins?
Sometimes you non-humans don't turn on your brains. Sure, you don't sweat and get smelly, but you can't understand this species unless you think. So get started thinking. To tell the truth, I'm getting pretty tired of having to explain things to you that you should have figured out or already looked up.>>
Grgur winced at the strength of the rebuke. She was extremely ticked at it. Unfortunately, she was right. It should have been able to figure out at least something this simple. After all, it had been watching them for over a decade. It sighed to itself and resolved to do better. At the very least it intended to avoid putting its foot in its mouth so often. If things it didn't understand came up in the future, it could always slip away into "No-Time" and look up the answer, or at least consult someone with more experience with humans.
Looking absolutely, idiotically stupid in front of one of your former teachers is totally humiliating. It's not an experience it wanted to repeat ever again.
I took an unusually long shower, but the girls were still glued together, although the "leakage" from their conversation had stopped. They both looked a bit more calm too, but it looked as if they'd gotten "stuck" and didn't know what to do next, so I decided to intervene. Sometimes when two people are having trouble interacting with each other, it helps to have them focused on someone else.
So I went over to them, picked them up, carried them into the shower, and turned on the water. Of course that made me stinky again, so I had to take another shower myself. It was worth it.
They both turned on me like wet cats and started yelling at me about my lack of delicacy. Perfect!
Later, when we were soaking, it seemed like a good time to start at least a basic conversation, so I decided to begin with something subtle.
"Have you two calmed down enough to talk about it, or do I need to toss you back in the shower again?"
Kimiko simply looked daggers at me and slid down in the tub until her head was under water. I took that as a "nope" from her and turned my attention to Kumiko.
She, on the other hand, was resting her chin on her hand and looking at me thoughtfully.
"While I find your technique reprehensible, I do understand your motivation. There was something that we needed to, ah, 'sort out' is the phrase, I believe. You perceived, correctly I must admit, that we were 'stuck' and in need of help in continuing.
"While that is true, tossing us into the shower like that showed a total lack of delicacy. Women should be more subtle in their actions."
I just looked at her and laughed. While she was giving me a very dirty look, I simply looked back at her with as little expression as I could manage. I knew that she was a smart girl and that she'd figure it out, eventually.
After several seconds, she blushed and looked away from me. The she too slid entirely under the water.
Great, I was in a tub with two girls pretending to be submarines. Ordinarily I'd expect Kimiko to come up for air first, given that she'd been under water 15 seconds longer, but she was more stubborn that her sister, so I considered it a toss-up. According to the clock over the sinks, it was another 25 seconds before they both surfaced.
It appeared that they'd had another private conversation while they were submerged, because they acted exactly as they normally would in the bath from there on. In so doing, they made it clear that I was, sort of, forgiven, but they also didn't say a single word about what was going on. I guess I scored about 50% on that one.
Oh well. Maybe later they'd open up to me a bit. For the immediate future I intended to soak until the aches let up some. Then I intended to partake of whatever delicacies Jane was preparing. I couldn't quite identify the odors over the scents of shampoo and body wash, but I was starting to salivate, which meant that my body knew what it was and was demanding to be fed in the very near future.
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The following Saturday morning, Jane did her usual stretch and yawn when she awoke, only this time it was 2 hours later than usual. Being able to sleep in was a rare treat for her, and she'd enjoyed it to its fullest. Karla had left the night before for a courier job, so Jane hadn't needed to make the morning coffee.
She shuffled her way into the kitchen and, out of habit more than anything else, checked the video monitor showing the gate. Oh great. Someone had dumped a box of trash at the edge of the road. As she was frowning at it, it moved.
Jane turned on the infrared camera and took a closer look. Damn! Whatever it was inside was moving and it was alive. Wonderful! It looked like some jerk had decided that the countryside was a great place to dump an unwanted pet. This made the fifth time this year.
Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
Fortunately the rain had let up, so at least she wouldn't be soaked when she went to retrieve it. She headed back to her room to put on some jeans and a sweater.
As she was getting ready to head out the door, Ian wandered in from the hallway and asked, "What's up Onee-chan?"
"Nothing to worry about Ian. It looks as if some freaking bastard has dumped an animal at the end of the driveway, again! I'm heading down to pick it up."
Ian's growl was loud enough that the house vibrated with it. "God in heaven! What is with people like that? If you have a pet, you're responsible for it, permanently. I've always hoped that those kinds of slime never get around to having children."
Jane finished shrugging on her raincoat and turned back to Ian who had followed her to the mud room. "Amen to that. Anyway I should be back in a couple. Then we'll see what we have.
"Oh Ian, turn on the heater in this bathroom, will you? Whatever it is will probably be cold."
"Sure Jane, I'm on it."
When Jane got to end of the driveway, she saw that the box was duck taped shut. Well, at least it would keep whatever it was that was inside from attacking her out of fear. She picked up the box, and there was some hissing and some mewing from inside. Well, that answered that. In addition to being a jerk the person who dropped the cats off was an idiot. He or she hadn't bothered to have their pet spayed.
Oh well. They'd found homes for the others that had been dumped on them over the years. They could certainly do it again. OK, into the car and back to the house. That warm bathroom would come in handy with kittens involved. They sounded fairly young too.
She had expected Ian at the door. What she hadn't expected was the explosion of questions that hit her as she walked in.
"What is it? Is it OK? Can I help? Will it be all right?"
"How may we be of assistance? Is it in need of food or water? Should we call a veterinarian? May I please see it Onee-san?"
Kimiko was, as usual, bouncing up and down. However this time her head was almost hitting the ceiling with each bounce.
Kumiko, being more restrained, was just rocking back and forth on her heels.
Both of them were, however, standing little more than a few inches from Jane, which forced her to hold the box above their heads.
"All right! That's enough. Everyone BACK OFF and give me some room. Ian, open the bathroom door for me. Once I'm in, close it. I don't want the mama cat to run off and hide somewhere and leave the kittens alone."
That was her first mistake, and it was a big one.
"KITTENS! WOW. Can I see them?"
Kimiko, being Kimiko, wasn't all that good about moderating her "voice," and the intensity of it was almost enough to make Jane fall to her knees. If it weren't for her fear of dropping the box and injuring the kittens, she might well have done exactly that.
Kumiko, being Kumiko, realized immediately what had happened and took steps to get things (meaning Kimiko) back under control. She picked Kimiko up, hoisted her over her head, and ran down the hall toward their room.
Kimiko was so startled that she stopped "shouting." As the girls disappeared around the corner a contrite, and blessedly quieter, "I'm sorry Onee-chan," drifted back toward Jane and Ian.
Jane went into the bathroom with Ian on her heels. She put the box down as he was closing the door. After giving the cats inside a minute to settle down, she gradually pulled off the duck tape, while holding the flaps down. She didn't want the mama cat to try to run away or to get the mistaken idea that Jane was going to harm her kittens. If she did, she might attack.
She wasn't prepared for what did happen. There was a querulous meow from the box, and a dainty paw made itself visible, working its way along the seam as if to gently push the lid open.
Very carefully Jane pulled up one side and was surprised to see a lovely, short-haired calico cat looking back at her. Slowly, she thrust her hand forward to see what the cat's reaction would be.
The cat sniffed at Jane's hand and butted it with her head. Then she flopped onto her side and let her three demanding kittens resume their interrupted breakfast.
Like Jane, Ian had crouched down to watch the goings-on. "Well that's surprising. I'd have expected her to freak out, not act like everything was totally normal."
In the sudden silence, they could hear a scratching at the door. Thinking that it was a now subdued Kimiko coming to beg forgiveness, Ian got up and opened it. Odd, there wasn't anyone in the hall. Then what could have made the noise?
He turned around to tell Jane and then realized what had made the scratching sound. Tigger, Mrrrrr, and Kataryna had walked in and had arrayed themselves around the box. Jane became wild-eyed when she saw them. Cats can be VERY territorial, and a sudden confrontation between strangers can end violently. However, what happened was anything but.
The calico in the box looked up at the three heads surrounding her and made an odd sound that was like a mix of a mew and a purr at each of them. Then the resident trio walked a few feet away and sat with their heads almost touching each other. A few seconds later Tigger and Kataryna faded out of the room.
Mrrrrr walked back to the box and flowed into it. Both Ian and Jane tensed to grab her if the situation got violent, but, again, it wasn't necessary. Mrrrrr carefully avoided stepping on the kittens and stretched out to the newcomer. Then she began to give mama cat's head a thorough washing, purring all the while.
There was a scratching at the door again, and Ian turned around to see what the other cats were up to this time. Again he was surprised. It was Kumiko and Kimiko.
"May we please be admitted to the room? Kimiko has promised not to make a sound."
Kimiko nodded, vigorously enough that she looked like one of those bobble-headed toys that people put in the back windows of their cars. Jane waved them in, and the girls crept over to the box and peeked inside.
"Oh, my. They are such delightful creatures, and so small. Jane Onee-san, how old do you think they are?"
"They look to be three or four weeks old. I can't tell for sure, but that's probably a good ballpark estimate."
Kimiko suddenly pushed herself back away from the box, then stood and walked out of the room. Immediately thereafter everyone heard the sound of running feet.
Kumiko sighed, and put on her "fond but exasperated" face. "Onee-san says that she did not think that she could control herself any longer, so she removed herself before she could embarrass herself, again.
"She is rather difficult to live with at times, but she does try hard.
"Oh. And she says that the mother cat should be called 'Isis' because she is such a good mother.
"We are going to keep them, are we not? After all, of the three cats currently residing with us, two sleep with Okaa-san and the third with you Jane Onee-chan. The rest of us are lonely without companionship."
Kumiko was practicing her poor, pitiful, abused child look. Jane had to admit that she was doing it rather well too. She also had to admit that Kumiko had a valid point. She'd seen all the wistful looks that the children had given her and Karla when they were cuddling the cats. She also realized that learning to take responsibility for another creature could build character.
<
Mrrrrr jumped back out of the box, walked over to Jane, and meowed at her. "You're right of course. Isis is probably hungry. Let's get that taken care of first."
Jane went to the storage room and got two bowls and a spare litter box that they'd stuck in the corner. By the time she had finished setting things up, Isis had finished feeding the kittens and had jumped out of the box herself and was sniffing her way around the room.
She went over to Jane and butted her with her head again. Then, as was her due, she accepted Jane's caresses. After that she had herself a snack. Finally she walked over to the throw rug on the floor and curled up for a nap.
Taking that as a signal to leave, Jane went back outside and found herself surrounded by the children again. She put her finger to her lips then shooed them down the hall.
Once they'd settled in the living room, she told them what she'd figured out. "Right then. First of all, yes, we will be keeping them. Second of all, I'm not sure what Mama is going to say, but if we're completely organized when she gets home tonight, she probably won't be all that upset. I hope."
"Here's what we're going to do. Kimiko and I will be going out for more bowls, litter boxes, and poop scoopers. You're going to have a litter box, food and water bowls, and a covered, lined trash can in each of your bathrooms."
There was some mild frowning and fidgeting from the kids. Jane stomped on that before they could say anything, and continued. "You want them, you WILL take care of them. I expect that the stench of an uncleaned litter box in your bathroom will be an excellent stimulus for cleanliness."
"Do you all understand me?"
"We are agreed on the need for proper care for the cats Jane onee-san. However I will not permit Kimiko to go out without me. I shall come also."
Jane choked back her almost automatic response to having her decisions challenged when she saw the look in Kumiko's eyes. She was smart enough to know that if she argued she wouldn't just lose the argument. She'd be trampled into the ground.
As she agreed to Kumiko's demand, she wondered just what had happened. This was totally unlike her usual behavior. "All right Kumiko, you shall come along as well. Ian, will you please keep an eye on our new family members while we're gone?"
"Sure Jane. I'll be happy to do that."
He'd seen Kumiko's expression too. He also understood the concept of scorched earth and knew that Kumiko would apply it to him if he objected. He had absolutely no idea what was going on, but he knew that now would probably be a very bad time to try to explore the reason.