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 Posted: Tue Apr 19, 2011 9:43 pm
Maize Maizier, International Cuisine Extraordinare, served dishes from all over the world. And they did it in style. The restaurant featured artifacts from the different countries they specialized in, photos of the owners during their extensive travels, and waitstaff in traditional costumes of various cultures. While the decor and food often mingled in interesting ways, there were also plenty of theme days, where the restaurant went all out for one particular cuisine, with extra props and costumes to match. It was the next best thing to actually going on a world tour, so it was no surprise that when Lydia discovered it, she made a point of visiting. Often. For long periods of time.
On one such visit, since there was no theme that day, she elected to sit outside. There was a bit of a chill as day began to fade into evening, but Lydia was warm in her wool poncho, and watching the sun set beneath the linen canopies and fringed umbrellas that shaded the sidewalk cafe was a nice change from the restaurant's interior. Not that Lydia was bored of it, never bored, but she didn't want to overstimulate her mind either. Yes, that was it.
She gave the menu a cursory glance, already familiar with its contents. It had been quite a while since lunch, so she looked over the main dishes before deciding on a seafood biriyani and a mango lassi. That settled, she sat back in her chair and waited for someone to come take her order.
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Posted: Wed Apr 20, 2011 11:04 am
Today was ********* lucky day. Well, at least, she was thinking this at this very second. It wasn't everyday you sensed a senshi in such a fancy place. Such a fancy place with food.
Food was definitely the key word here.
Using that mental radar of hers, the manx cat approached the shaded side of the cafe. Her nose couldn't help twitching in delight, since there were so many pleasant smells teasing her stomach. Maybe whoever this senshi was would share food with such a sweet little kitty as *********? The manx definitely wasn't immune to wishful thinking.
Eventually, the tailless feline walked up to the barred fence that somewhat framed the sitting area, then somehow (despite her slight chub) slipped through them without any problem. Fortunately, there were no servers outside, meaning that there was less of a chance she'd get shooed away right off the bat.
I guess I should still be careful...
With that thought in mind, the cat began to make her way to one table by trotting between tables. It was like crossing the street in some sense, where she looked both ways before trotting from one table to the next, keeping to the ankles of the various patrons. ********* was very considerate, fighting off the instinct to rub up against the various legs she came across. It was only after she went under the table where a young teen was sitting that she paused.
This is my stop! she said to herself with a slight (and thankfully quiet) chuckle. There was no doubt this girl was a senshi. With that thought in mind, the manx rather suddenly leaped up into the girl's lap. Nevermind giving her a fright. ********* wanted to see this girl, face to face.
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Posted: Wed Apr 27, 2011 12:31 pm
It took a few minutes, but Lydia managed to get the attention of a poncho-wearing waiter to give him her order. It would be a little while before the food came, but that was a sign that they made it expressly for the person who ordered it. A sign of quality. For quality food, Lydia would wait an entire evening if she had to.
Still, it helped that there was a basket of bread on the table. She reached for a piece, but before her hand got there, something fell on her lap. Or at least, that was what it felt like. Her composure still mostly intact, she looked down to see a small gray cat looking back up at her.
While years of being coddled reminded her that animals were unsanitary and cat hair might trigger an asthma attack, Lydia was too surprised and too curious to worry too much. "Where did you come from, you pretty thing?" she asked, looking around. There was nobody nearby that seemed to be missing a cat. Maybe she belonged to the restaurant, then. Lydia had never seen her there before, but had seen cats at markets and delis from time to time. "Is this your home, then?"
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Posted: Wed Apr 27, 2011 11:02 pm
If this cat could talk (more in the sense of appropriateness instead of mere ability), she would easily say how she wished she could live someplace that had such delicious smelling food. Of course, her work meant so much more to her than anything else. This manx lived to serve the senshi, and even more so just to be with her girls again. Even if one of them was kind of defective and not a girl at all. Waylon had been giving her lots of sour looks in all honesty because of her little habit of still referring to him as the wrong gender.
There was something about the way the cat sat there in the girl's lap though. Perhaps it was the fact the pale green eyes were looking into the girl's deep purple ones? Or perhaps it was because this cat now had her paws on the girl's chest and was leaning in much closer to get a better look. The little feline nose began to twitch as she sniffed, then eventually the tailless cat closed her eyes to concentrate.
Who are you, senshi? One paw managed to place itself over the girl's heart.
You are... Her paw twitched slightly.
You are... Irene...
Green eyes popped open quite quickly after that name came to mind. It was her! This was one of her girls. One of *********> girls!! If this poor teenager hadn't already thought the manx was invasive, soon enough the little thing was rubbing herself all up against the purple haired girl's chest, as if trying to snuggle the poor thing to death.
Did it sound like there was a little bit of laughter? It must have been that girl's imagination...
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Posted: Sun May 01, 2011 9:09 pm
Lydia hadn't met too many cats up close- she was more of a dog person- so she really wasn't sure what to do with the one in her lap. She settled for awkwardly patting its head, but that only made it stand up, putting its paws on her chest. "I don't think that's a good idea, kitty," she said quickly, trying to gently get the cat back into a sitting position. It didn't work.
Sighing, Lydia looked for a waiter, or anyone who might take the cat back where it belonged. She was not prepared for it to suddenly rub itself against her, quite literally in her face. Under such circumstances, there was really only one thing Lydia could do.
She sneezed.
Lydia's pet allergies were quite mild, so that with a little medication, she was usually fine around animals. But now that she was at school, she had stopped taking it. While casual contact with a cat was fine, having one mash itself into her chest was making her eyes water and her nose itch uncomfortably.
"Okay, that's enough," she said firmly, picking the cat up and depositing it on the ground next to her chair. "You're very cute, but go get somebody else to pet you, okay?"
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Posted: Tue May 03, 2011 1:00 pm
********* didn't want to be petted by anyone else right now. She made this perfectly evident by going under the table for a bit longer than a brief moment. In fact, it sounded like a couple of objects were dropped under the table.
If the girl had thought she was safe of cat, she was clearly mistaken. Soon enough, the manx once more bounded into her lap, silently claiming it in the name of Asteroids. However, this time it wasn't just a cat. It was a cat that had an awkwardly large purple pen in her mouth. And soon enough, her little kitty head was bumping itself against the girl's chest, as if saying This belongs to you.
And strangely, it almost felt as if that pen did belong to Lydia.
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Posted: Wed May 04, 2011 5:06 pm
For a moment, it seemed like the cat was following Lydia's advice. And while she was a little sad to see it go- eating by herself got lonely after a while- it was definitely better for her allergies. She sat there for a moment, wrinkling her nose as if she expected herself to sneeze again, before shrugging and looking for the waiter again.
Then came a clatter from under the table. Lydia frowned and leaned forward, but before she could lift the edge of the tablecloth, the cat was back in her lap. The frown deepened. "Kitty, I know you're probably lonely. I'm lonely too. But we can eat together next time I come, okay?" Next time she would make sure to take her medication beforehand. "So- what's that you've got there?"
Lydia tried to take the pen, and to her surprise, the cat let her have it obligingly. "It's awfully pretty," she said, turning it around in her hands. It was purple and rather thick, with an ornate gold top engraved with a bird. "Did somebody lose this? Or," she giggled, "is this some kind of early birthday present?"
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Posted: Thu May 05, 2011 10:54 am
The cat remained sitting in her lap, watching the girl as she gave the henshin pen a glance over. The pen was definitely the girl's, even now, ********* could see they belonged together. As the girl tried to find some sort of explanation to the purple transformation wand of sorts, the manx thoughtfully nodded her head at the second notion. Sure, it was an early birthday present. Super early present that would probably turn this poor girl's life upside down. However, it was necessary in the name of duty!
With the pen having been sorted out, the pale cat once more retreated to under the table. There was still the matter of the cell phone. Now, given her current form, it would be near impossible for her to pick this object up with her mouth. It was just too awkward. So instead, she pushed it along the ground (making a minor scratching noise against the concrete that caused her kitty ears to fold back) until it bumped up against the girl's foot.
If that hadn't gotten her attention, the sudden onslaught of mewing at her feet would hopefully get Sailor Irene's attention.
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Posted: Tue May 10, 2011 8:48 am
Lydia stopped giggling. "Did you just nod at me?" she asked, her tone suddenly serious. It seemed that something about this mysterious cat's behavior was starting to seem odd. Maybe she finally noticed that she was dealing with no ordinary cat.
"Cool! I bet this is all part of by birthday party!"
... then again, maybe not.
Thoroughly intrigued now, Lydia looked down as the cat jumped off her lap. She was too well-mannered to crawl under the table herself, even though she wanted to follow. Instead she had to settle for lifting the edge of the tablecloth, reaching down when she felt something hit her foot.
"A cell phone?" Lydia wrinkled her nose as she turned it over in her hands, finally sighing. "Babbás, I told you I liked the iPhone! I don't need a Blackberry- even if it is pretty." Still in her own world, she looked down at the cat next. "And while this cat is adorable, you know I'm better with dogs! Cats don't listen to a word you say. Right?"
She looked at the cat again, expecting it to run away and prove her point.
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Posted: Tue May 10, 2011 12:31 pm
The cat was listening a bit too well actually. This girl had noticed her nod of the head, yet still seemed to find some sort of excuse to explain the cat's ability to agree. It didn't really bother *********. This was a very common reaction. Instead of allowing herself to get discouraged by the young teen's words, the cat once again hopped into her lap.
However, instead of remaining in place like she had before, she used the girl's lap more as a stepping ladder, then hopping up onto the table itself. She made certain to avoid all of the various settings on the table, leaving them undisturbed. She sat her haunches down so she was a bit to the left of where a plate could go, then just looked to the girl. Her green eyes were attentively upon the girl's purple ones, as if she was waiting for the girl to speak once again.
The bread in the basket smelled awfully good. However, this was a nice eatery. So rather than just stuff her face into the bread basket without permission, the manx glanced back to the basket, then to the girl. In as pitiful a manner as possible, she mewed out. Kitty was hungry. It was time to now feed kitty, yes?
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Posted: Thu May 12, 2011 3:54 pm
"Oh!" Lydia exclaimed, as the cat took her question as a cue to hop up on the table. In a surprisingly neat way. Lydia's experience with cats was minimal at best, so she couldn't be sure that was normal or not. She'd heard that cats were notoriously clean animals though, so maybe they didn't like making a mess of their surroundings. Or maybe this was just a really weird cat.
Then the cat mewed at her, and Lydia went "oh!" again. Now that it had finished giving her presents, it looked like it wanted something in return. "I don't think I have anything here that you'd like, kitty," she said apologetically. "I'm sorry. But if you want to stay until my food comes, I could share a little?" Cats liked seafood, right?
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Posted: Thu May 12, 2011 4:02 pm
This girl was thwarting ********* want of bread. How could she?! All food was good food, this was a fact of life. Some day Sailor Irene would learn this fact, but for now, the manx had to try her best to steer the situation in a favorable direction for herself.
Very pointedly, she turned to face the bread basket and continued to mewl in that pitiful manner. Sure, ********* already knew what was in that basket, but she had to make it extra evident to the girl that kitty wanted bread. And bread was in the basket. Kitty wanted bread, do not deny kitty of what she wants.
Despite how obnoxiously adorable her mewing was, the feline still sat there like a polite dinner guest, waiting for permission to attack the bread.
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Posted: Thu May 12, 2011 7:51 pm
All that attention towards the bread basket was starting to make Lydia hungrier. Usually she ignored the bread unless she knew it was going to be a long wait. Or the place had really good bread. Or she was absolutely famished, which she wasn't, but it felt like it. It had been a long day, and if she was sharing her meal with a cat (why was she sharing her meal with a cat, again?) then she wanted to have some sustenance beforehand.
"You'll just have to wait," she told the cat again, absently reaching into the basket and picking out a thick slice of baguette. There was butter on the table, but that would be a little much. She tore the slice into bite-size pieces, piling most onto the bread plate in front of her. One fell onto the tablecloth, but Lydia was to engrossed in her project to notice.
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Posted: Thu May 12, 2011 8:19 pm
I don't want to wait!
In retaliation to this cruel and unusual manner of teasing, the manx began to lick at her maw slightly. Though she still kept her rump firmly on the table, her paws began to lift up a forepaw, then switching to the opposite one. This time, she began mewing in a nearly agitated manner until a nugget of delicious fell onto the table. For a few seconds, all ********* could hear was the angels singing Hallelujah in her head.
For all of her manners, they seemed to get tossed out the figurative window after the girl let one small piece of bread stray onto the tablecloth. Her rump soon enough was lifted off the table and she padded immediately up to the small piece of bread. Though it was broken into a human bite sized piece, the moment ********* claimed the piece between her paws, she gobbled the fluffy piece of food in less than 5 seconds.
From her new location, she sat her rump down and looked to the girl once more. "Mew?"
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Posted: Mon May 16, 2011 4:50 pm
Lydia frowned. It had already been made abundantly clear to her that she was dealing with no ordinary cat. Ordinary cats did not nod understandingly. Ordinary cats did not have table manners. Ordinary cats did not bring random girls pens and cell phones in their favorite colors.
So while it was not really a surprise that extraordinary cats ate bread, she couldn't help but feel that it was a bad idea. "You'll give yourself a stomachache," she told the cat sternly. "Fish is much tastier. But if that's what you want to do..."
Judging by the way the cat was looking at her, it was. Lydia sighed, ripped one of her bite-sized pieces in half, and held it out cautiously.
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