Disclaimer: I own no part of LH.
(awkward silence)
Chapter LX: Much Ado about Pussy
Throughout the world, a set schedule has been put into place. People get out of bed, go to work, school or some combination of the two, return home and go to sleep, only to wake up the next morning and begin the cycle anew. Most are aware of the rut they have found themselves in, but many lack the means to pursue a change in lifestyle. Even for those who do, there is still the distinct possibility that, should things go awry, it will not be possible to return his or her life to what it once was.
However, there have been instances where such changes were not voluntary ones. When this happens, those involved have little choice but to adapt--or at least make an attempt to do so. Nowhere is this more true than at the Hinata-Sou Girl's Dormitory, whose inhabitants have endured more curve balls in the span of three years than most people have in a lifetime. This is a trend that will not be ending any time soon…
--- Friday, 4/23 8:45 AM
"Thank you for breakfast," Motoko said, having just finished said meal. "It was delicious as always."
"Mm hmm." Shinobu barely acknowledged the swordswoman's compliment. It wasn't that she was actively ignoring the praise--Heaven forbid. Rather, it was because her mind was focused on other matters. During the entire meal, the other magic user in the house was tracing his finger across the dining room table. The others did not appear to take notice of this, but to Shinobu it was all too familiar. Because of this, she skipped right past the first question in the natural progression and went right to the second. "How long this time?" she asked out of the blue.
"Hmm?" Sean said, having just been jarred out of his thoughts. "What was that?"
"I know you have another spell going through that mind of yours," Shinobu said. "How long will it take to make this one?"
"Here we go again," Naru thought. She as much as anyone knew that the resident cook didn't exactly enjoy the periods of time during which Sean would lock himself away in his room, working on one spell or another.
"Not long," Sean said.
"How can I be sure?" Shinobu asked. "Last time, outside of meals, I didn't see you for a week! You still never told me what it was you were doing in there! How many times do you expect me to deal with this?"
"I'm not making a spell from scratch this time," Sean explained. "All I plan on doing is combining a couple of old spells together and making a few… minor tweaks to it. I should be able to complete it by the end of the day."
"I wish I could believe that. For the longest time, I have been patient with you and your experiments, but lately, I feel like you're shutting me out of your life; like you don't want me around sometimes."
"That couldn't be farther from the truth," Sean said. "Listen, we all have hobbies; things we enjoy doing and take some personal pride in. Motoko and Jimmy have their martial arts, you have your culinary skills and I have magic. Ideas for new spells are always popping up in my head. I know from personal experience that if these ideas don't get purged, they'll just stay there. Eventually, my mind would get so cluttered with them that it becomes all I can think about and I'd end up isolating myself in my room for a month or more--something neither of us want.
"As for not including you in my research, I just didn't want to drag you into something that doesn't interest you as much as it does me. It's kind of like how you don't bring to the kitchen every time you have a new recipe. Plus, if you spent all your time helping, or even observing me, there wouldn't be as much time for more important things like your schoolwork for example. I didn't want you to sacrifice things like that for my sake."
For a few moments, Shinobu was speechless. She could only venture a guess as to how long Sean had that argument prepared. Whether it was minutes, months or more, it served its purpose. Nevertheless, there was one thing that still nagged in her mind. "Could you at least tell me what you'll be working on?"
"Oh, you don't need to worry about that," Sean said, at first appearing to avoid the question. "If everything goes as planned, you'll find out exactly what I'm doing tomorrow. If you'll excuse me…" He then went to go freshen up before settling down to work. At about the same time, Shinobu gathered up the dishes and took them to the kitchen, leaving everyone else to mull over what they have just heard.
"They are such a cute couple, don't you think?" Mutsumi asked.
"To me, it seems like their relationship is a bit shaky of late," Motoko said.
"Oh, please," Kitsune said. "As if you and Jimmy never argued about anything." Motoko suddenly found herself unable to look the fox in the eye. "That's what I thought."
"I wonder what Sean meant by 'you'll find out tomorrow'?" Keitaro thought out loud. "Something about that just doesn't sit right with me."
"I don't think there's anything to worry about," Suu said. "He didn't do that evil laugh of his this time. Shouldn't that be a good sign?"
"That's beside the point, Suu," Naru added. "Keitaro's right. I think we should be on our guard tomorrow. There's no telling what might happen."
"I agree," Motoko said.
"Wait," Mustumi said. "What Sean's planning can't be dangerous."
"And why is that, Miss Expert?" Kitsune asked.
"Because he would never do anything to hurt any of us, especially Shinobu. If this was as dangerous as you think it might be, he wouldn't be demonstrating it--at least not here."
"You make a good point," Kitsune said. "But we should still be on the lookout for anything weird that may happen."
"Uh, Kitsune…" Naru said. "In case you don't remember, something weird is ALWAYS happening around here."
"Um… let's just stay the course then." Kitsune's attempt at a recovery was met by groans, sighs and the rolling of eyes. "Come on girl, you're better than this!" she thought. "You can't just let it end like this!" She looked around the table, quickly taking note that everyone was staring off into space--no doubt contemplating what Sean latest venture could be. Seeing this, she saw an opportunity and decided to take it. "You know," she said. "Don't you all have school to get ready for?" A collective gasp and a rush of wind later, Kitsune was the only one left in the dining room, chuckling to herself. "Not matter what," she thought. "I always get the last laugh."
Minutes turned into hours. Trips were made both to and from school. All the while, the residents of Hinata-Sou could not keep their thoughts away from Sean's experiments for too long. Nowhere was this more prevalent than in the mind of Shinobu, knowing that the final result would not be kept secret; at least not this time.
The next time anyone would see Sean would be at dinnertime. The entire time, he was practically mute, disclosing not the slightest hint regarding his exploits. This proceeded to make him the sole focus of everyone's attention.
That night, Shinobu found it difficult to get to sleep. Not only was it because of her anticipation of what Sean's latest spell, but also what was going on in said wizard's room next door--or rather, what wasn't going on. In most cases, she could hear him muttering some incomprehensible jargon through the wall, but within an hour after dinner, he fell silent. She found this very disconcerting, growing more anxious with every passing minute. It was with only a force of will--magically aided--that she was finally able to drift off to dreamland.
While Sean was telling the truth when he said Shinobu would learn of his latest exploits, another would find out before her…
--- Saturday, 4/24 6:25 AM
When one gets into a routine, it might get to the point where conscious thought in that regard is no longer necessary. Nowhere was this more true than for the resident swordswoman. Her mind still half-asleep, she got out of bed headed over to her dresser to prepare herself for her morning exercises. Along the way, she couldn't help but feel that something was slightly… off; like her room had gotten bigger somehow. She didn't think much of it and continued her journey, but something out of the corner of her eye caught her attention. Turning her head, what she then saw woke her up with a start and effectively preempted her usual schedule.
"This cannot be real," Motoko thought. "This has to be a dream." But it wasn't a dream; and she had to accept the cold reality that, while she slept, she had been transformed into a cat. Her newly acquired fur matched the hair she had as a human, along with the delicate sheen it possessed in the early morning light. All things considered, had she not been the size of an ordinary housecat, she would have easily been classified as a panther.
Upon further inspection, she saw a collar around her neck with a tag engraved with her initials. She didn't have to recognize the handwriting to know who was responsible for her current situation.
"Sean…" she thought. "So this is what you were up to this whole time." She was fairly certain that she was not the only one altered in this way, but that alone did not make Sean's actions just. With that in mind, Motoko turned for the door, quickly noticing that it had been opened just enough to save her the time and effort it would have taken to do it herself. "I should remember to thank him for the convenience after I deal him his punishment."
Entering the hallway, Motoko's path led her to Sean's room. Along the way, she took note that doors to the other tenants' rooms have been left open as well. Peering inside, her thoughts were confirmed; that the others have all been subject to Sean's magical mischief. Even she had to admit that the sight of them curled up on their respective futons was adorable, but she knew that the peace surrounding them would only last as long as they slept.
When Motoko reached Sean's room, she went inside without a moment's hesitation. Unlike the other rooms, this one turned out to be uninhabited. "Where has he gone off to?" she wondered. "If he thinks he can hide from me, he has another thing coming."
Deciding to begin her hunt on the ground floor, she headed down the stairs by way of the handrail. From her perch at the bottom of said rail, she surveyed her surroundings, contemplating her search pattern. That's when she saw a cat, somewhat tiger-striped, sleeping on the living room table. Even though she had never seen it before in her life, its aura spoke volumes. "There you are," Motoko thought, instantly recognizing Sean's wavelength.
Indeed, being another species did not dull her senses in the slightest, but that was perhaps the farthest thing from her mind at this point. Under normal circumstances, she probably would have made her presence known being moving in, but her feline instincts called for a more stealthy approach--one that, despite her efforts, did not go unnoticed.
Sean's ears perked up. He didn't know what the sound was, but apparently, it was enough to, at least partially, rouse him from his slumber. Opening his eyes slightly, he saw a black blur though the haze of his own mind. "Oh, it's just Motoko," he thought, closing his eyes again. Moments later, that information was fully processed in his brain and his eyes shot open. "MOTOKO!" He rolled to the side just in time to avoid getting pounced on. Establishing a telepathic link between them, he said the first thing that came to mind--something he would regret immediately thereafter. "Motoko, what did you wake me up for!"
Motoko's fur stood on end; just one sign of many indicating her anger. "It is not me who has explaining to do." Even telepathically, her voice sounded like she was talking through her teeth. "What have you done to us?"
"Isn't it obvious?" Sean knew he was treading very dangerous territory, especially when he took note that Motoko's claws had emerged; something she wouldn't hesitate to use if the mood struck her.
"Yes, too much so." Motoko stalked towards Sean. "As will be what I shall do to you if you do not tell me why you did this."
"Um, okay then," Sean said, backing away a bit. "For a while, I have taken strides toward exploring different ways of viewing the world. You have seen me alter my perspective, my size, even my gender. The next logical step was species."
"That still does not explain why you changed all of us," Motoko said.
"I guess… I guess, for once, I didn't want to be alone in this. So many times, I have experimented with magic and, with few exceptions, I have been the only one to gain anything from it. Shinobu has felt… left out in that regard--for longer than you know--so I decided to make her a part of it; and you and the others as well."
"I suppose that makes sense," Motoko said, calming down.
"Besides, there would be no telling what Suu would do to me if she found me like this and she was still human herself."
"If that were the case, you could have turned yourself back."
Sean shook his head. "I'm afraid not. I have this spell on a timer. Not even I can end it prematurely."
"And just how long was this timer set for?" Motoko asked.
Sean hesitated a bit before answering--no doubt dreading the response it would receive. "Twenty-four hours."
"What! We are stuck like this all day?"
"I'm afraid so," Sean said.
"This is just wonderful," Motoko muttered. "How am I supposed to do my training now?"
"I'm sure you'll think of something."
A thought suddenly occurred to Motoko. "What will Jimmy do if he sees me like this!"
"I guess that all depends on how well he like cats," Sean said. "Now, if you're done being pessimistic, I'll be going back to sleep now. I was up past two in the morning and I would like get some more shut-eye before the others wake up."
"It took you that long for you to make that spell?" Motoko asked in disbelief.
"No, but it took that long to cast it. Of course, I could have done it in mere moments, but there would have been an all-too-real risk of you waking up while the change was taking place. Somehow, I doubt you would have been as… rational if that were the case."
"You certainly have a point there," Motoko said. "I shall let you rest. The other tenants would most likely want to get their licks in as well." She then turned back towards the stairs.
"Hold on," Sean called out. "There's one more thing I want to say."
"What might that be?" Motoko asked.
"You should consider yourself lucky I turned us into cats. My second choice would have been bunny rabbits. What would you have done then?"
Motoko pondered the question for barely a moment. "I would probably try to kick your head in." She then went upstairs unhindered.
"I figured as much," Sean thought before drifting back to sleep.
The reactions of the others varied somewhat from person to person. Some took the change in stride; namely Mutsumi, Suu and especially Shinobu, who's first coherent sentence after realization set in was, verbatim, "I look so CUTE!" On the other hand, Kitsune, Keitaro and Naru were all deeply upset at Sean, not only because of what he had done, but also the abruptness of it. Despite this, they showed more restraint than Motoko did… if only marginally so.
When everyone had gathered in the living room to either praise Sean or chew him out for his efforts, he delivered a speech that was eerily similar to the one he gave back when his tenure as manager was a mere two weeks. The same calming affect then was achieved now--this time without the following guilt trip and attempt at suicide.
After the issue of food was put to rest (naturally, thanks to the mind and talents of a certain adolescent cook), everyone set off to explore their new forms and the traits that went with them. First and foremost was Motoko, who spent much of the morning (including the period of time between her encounter with Sean and when everyone woke up), she engaged herself in what was perhaps the closest she could get to her usual training routine, performing any and all feasible feats of acrobatics she could come up with. After a while, she began to secretly hope that someday, if she asked really nicely, Sean might consider turning her into a full-sized jungle cat.
Meanwhile, the exploits of the others were less… serious. With the sole exception of Kitsune, who found herself sunning on a windowsill (therefore, her usual day did not change a great deal), everyone played in the living room like the cats they have become. Even Naru and Keitaro, who normally distanced themselves from the goings on of the other residents, joined in. Then again, given the current circumstances, their range of choices was fairly limited.
In the midst of the calm, if not more relaxed atmosphere, someone should have recalled that such things have always been short-lived.
--- 1:20 PM
"Sometimes I wonder where they get all their energy from," Motoko muttered. The antics of the others have only been interrupted once due to growling stomachs--even then, it was brief.
"I know what you mean," Kitsune replied. The fox (who appeared more like her namesake than usual this day) and the swordswoman (swordscat?) were the only ones who chose not to participate, for their own reasons. "I'm getting tired just watching them."
Early in the festivities, Sean set up a telepathic link among all the transformed tenants, allowing them to communicate as long as they were within normal speaking distances. This permitted Kitsune and Motoko to chat from the sidelines without everyone else listening in.
"Does it not seem odd that everyone seems to have taken to this sudden turn of events rather well?" Motoko asked.
"It's like Naru said yesterday," Kitsune said. "Something weird is always going on at Hinata-Sou. It's been this way even before Sean showed up at our doorstep. When it comes to this place, it's either get used to it or get out."
Motoko nodded, knowing Kitsune's logic was sound. The two continued to look on in silence until a sound caught the attention of everyone in attendance: The sound of someone knocking on the front door.
"Of all days…" Naru said. Everyone's eyes first went toward the door, then, all at once, turned to Sean, as though he held the secrets of the universe within him.
"Uh…" Sean said, unprepared for the sudden attention. Being forced to improvise, he cast a modified version of telepathy. Its effect was nothing the others would have expected.
"Who is it?" a voice called out. Yes, it was Sean's voice, but it didn't come out of his mouth, neither was it sent directly to its listeners' minds. Rather, it seemed as though it came from some intangible loudspeaker. The stares he was receiving quickly turned to glares.
"That's it!" Naru yelled. "You have got to be kidding me!"
"What?" Sean said, mind to mind this time. "You expect me to think of every last contingency? I figured preventing Motoko from removing a few vital organs was enough. How was I supposed to know we'd have a visitor?"
Said visitor did announce himself, but he got nothing in response, as everyone's attention was focused elsewhere. Therefore, he just let himself in. He couldn't have predicted what he saw upon arrival. "Well, what do we have here?"
Everyone quickly reaffixed themselves to the matter at hand and breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing the familiar figure. However, for one of them, her earlier concerns have just become a reality.
"Hey, Jimmy," Sean said, as though nothing was different. "What's up?"
"Something tells me I should be asking you that," Jimmy said.
"What does it look like?" Kitsune asked. "Sean turned us all into cats."
Jimmy suddenly found himself in one of those "well, duh" moments, but shook it off when he noticed that one of the felines was trying to sneak away. A quick flurry of movement and a scream later, Motoko was in his arms. "And just where might you be going?" When Motoko refused to look Jimmy in the eye, he put all joking aside--for now. "What's wrong?"
"I didn't know how you would react if you saw me like this," Motoko said, sounding somewhat ashamed. "I was hoping the effect would have worn off before your next visit."
"Well, I for one think you're as cute as you've even been, so don't worry about it. Hey Sean, how long is the duration for this spell of yours?" He added that last part as an afterthought.
Sean glanced over at the clock. "Another twelve hours, give or take."
"That's a shame," Jimmy said. "I've often considered having a pet."
In an instant, Motoko lifted a paw towards Jimmy's face, bringing her claws to bear. "If you value your manhood, you had better take that back."
"Calm down," Jimmy said. "I was only kidding." As if to emphasize that, he started scratching Motoko behind the ears, causing her to purr despite herself.
"Oh my," Motoko thought. "This feels nice." In spite of this, she couldn't help but think this was degrading. "I am going to get him for this." Even she wasn't quite sure as to who she was referring to.
Jimmy would leave after a short while, saying he had some important business to attend to. From that point on, things started to slow down and some of the girls even decided to take a nap. It was also during this time that one of them in particular spoke her mind.
"I'm bored," Kitsune said.
"You're first saying that now?" Sean asked.
"Well, I might have said something sooner, but you were so preoccupied you probably wouldn't have listened anyway."
"Uh huh," Sean said after hearing what he felt was a rather weak argument. "Well, what do you want to do?"
"I feel like watching a movie or two."
"You know where the vault's at."
Kitsune scoffed. "In case you can't tell by looking at me, I can't exactly reach that high right now. On top of that, you're the only one awake right now that can use telekinesis. We both know what that means."
"I know, I know, I'm going," Sean said, heading off toward the stairs.
Kitsune chuckled to herself. "It's good to know I can still get what I want from people."
"I heard that!" Sean continued up to his room where, upon arrival, he saw that the video vault was already open. "What in the…?" Upon further inspection, he spotted none other than Jimmy rummaging through it. Once again, he said the first thing that came to mind. "WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING IN HERE!"
Jimmy nearly jumped out of his skin, somehow, not hearing Sean's approach. Turning around, he found a very pissed cat staring right at him--and his claws would be the least of his threats. "Uh…" he said, at a loss for words. Fortunately, he would not have to say much.
"Here's a word of advice," Sean said. "If you want to borrow something from my room, ASK FIRST! Now get out of here before I do it for you."
"Sure, no problem," Jimmy said, not wanting to provoke Sean further. Without hesitation, he left the room by way of the window--presumably the same way he came in.
Sean's gaze lingered at the window for a few moments. "Just how long was he in here?" he asked himself. "I'll have to look at the surveillance tape in the morning." He turned his attention back to the video vault. Nothing appeared to be missing, but now wasn't the time to take a complete inventory. Besides, tomorrow, he would find out exactly what went on and what might have been taken. Picking a few choice films, he made his way back to the living room, stopping only to place magical barriers over every entrance. They wouldn't prevent further intrusions per se, but they would alert Sean to them. "I should have put up a security system long ago," he thought.
The rest of the day was spent with everyone either watching movies or napping. Only Sean found himself doing none of the above, his thoughts consumed by Jimmy's trespass, not to mention methods of punishment should it become necessary.
When the time came to head off to bed, a mutual agreement was reached that each person would sleep in their respective rooms. The reasoning behind this was that Sean was not sure what manner of dress they would be in when they returned to their human forms and there is no telling what someone might do in their sleep on any given night.
And so, the Day of the Cat comes to a close. Even though nobody was consciously thinking it, they all knew the next day would be interesting as well--and it certainly would not disappoint.
--- Sunday, 4/25 8:35 AM
Sean wasted little time, pausing only to change clothes before seeking out the previous day's video. "The thing about sneaks," he thought as he passed the shelves containing nearly three years worth of recorded images. "Is that, at the outset, they usually don't think they'll get caught and, therefore, remain oblivious of the possible consequences of their actions." Reaching the final shelf with any contents, he grabbed the DVD for the previous day. "And now to see what these actions truly were."
Retreating from the vault, Sean inserted the disk into his laptop and set it to begin shortly after Jimmy's initial visit. At first, Sean's room, as displayed on the screen, was still and silent, but the wait would not be long. After a few minutes, the door opened and Jimmy walked in. "Huh," Sean said to himself. "I thought he came in through the window. I guess he came down from the roof instead."
After looking around the room for a brief moment, Jimmy made a beeline for the bookcase. It was apparent that he knew exactly what he was seeking--and it would not take long for him to find it. In an instant, Sean recognized the seemingly ordinary binder that was removed. Of course, it was far from ordinary, as it contained the majority of his spells within. Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out a digital camera. Opening the binder, he proceeded to take pictures of every page.
While the video played, Sean just sat there in silence--but his mind was anything but. "Does he not realize a wizard's spellbook is sacred!" he thought. This alone would have easily been grounds for retribution, but this did not explain why Jimmy was rooting through the video vault.
A few minutes later, Jimmy closed the binder and returned it to its former place. His sights then turned to the vault. Through some means that even Sean could not quite follow, he gained access to the DVD stash. From this point on, Sean watched even closer than before, wondering if there was anything in particular that he was looking for. What this ended up being was nothing short of the worst-case scenario.
After an eternity of taking out DVD cases, examining them and putting them back, Jimmy finally found one that got his interest. Opening it, he removed the disc and slipped it into his back pocket. Now, this might have been bad enough, but when Sean caught sight of the label, he nearly blew his top. He only saw two words, but that would be more than enough: "The Treatment."
"Oh, he did not…" Sean muttered angrily. He could only imagine what Jimmy may have planned for a certain concoction--one he'd rather not have deal with ever again--but he knew it could not be a good thing. Without a moment's hesitation, Sean got up and headed out the door, not even bothering to turn off his laptop. Had he stayed, he would have also seen Jimmy filch a few more videos, these featuring him (or, in this case, her) and one of the girls in… shall we say… intimate contact with one other.
---
"Are you sure we shouldn't wait for Sean to come down?" Shinobu asked as she set breakfast down on the dining table. Only he was not in attendance.
"He did not get much sleep yesterday," Motoko said. "No thanks to me," her mind added. "I think it would be best if we let him rest."
Shinobu slowly nodded in understanding and sat down to eat. That morning, when everything went back to normal (at least for them), the tenants reflected on the previous day and some of them conceded that they might want to do it over again, if only for an hour or so and if they had some say in what they would become.
The beginning of the morning meal went by in the usual small talk, but that all came to an abrupt end when Motoko suddenly turned her head. "What's going on?" Kitsune asked. "Sean awake?"
"To say the least," Motoko said.
"What do you mean by that?" Shinobu asked, beginning to worry.
Motoko found herself unable to respond, as her full attention was directed toward the growing energy signal traveling down the hallway upstairs. The emotion that went along with did not sit well with her at all. This was illustrated when Sean appeared at the bottom of the stairs, his fists balled at his sides and a look on his face like none of them have seen since Naru and Motoko started controlling their temper.
"What's wrong?" Shinobu called out after Sean passed by without so much as a greeting. "Why are you so upset?"
"Nothing you need to concern yourself with," Sean said, anger and determination apparent in his tone. The next part he said directly to Motoko's mind. "Don't kill me for what I might do."
"What…" Motoko stuttered, confused by that statement, but before she could ask him to clarify it, Sean was out the door. Had he not shown restraint, said door probably would have either been knocked off its hinges or blown to smithereens.
Without a word spoken between them, everyone exchanged worried glances. They all knew that getting Sean that mad was no small feat and prayed for the safety--if not the survival--of whoever was stupid enough to pull it off, as nobody was willing to try to stop him.
---
In the time to took Sean to take two steps outside, he teleported to Jimmy's house. He would only look at the front door for a moment before making it vanish with a wave of his hand, only to have it reappear as soon as he was inside. Undeterred, he made his way to the living room, where he would make his presence truly known.
"JIMMY!" he scream at the top of his lungs. "COME HERE AND TAKE WHAT YOU'VE GOT COMING TO YOU!"
"Alright, alright!"
The look of rage on Sean's face suddenly turned to one of shock. "No…" he thought. "He couldn't have… It's not possible…" He hoped his ears were simply playing tricks on him, but as soon as the owner of the house appeared before him, those hopes were dashed.
"Sean, what did you wake me up for?" Jimmy asked Even though Sean was absolutely sure this was who he was looking at, he found himself unable to believe that his long time friend had, in fact, transformed himself into a woman.
End of Chapter LX
(evil giggling)
(more evil giggling)
(awkward silence)