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 Posted: Wed Nov 23, 2011 11:26 pm
It was a bit cold today. Harmony normally didn't notice such things but even she had a coat on. It was sunny outside but the wind chill was killing her, whipping past her stockinged legs like knives. She clutched the coat tighter around her body and walked down the sidewalk. She had no particular place to go as the day ended. She was on break from school for the holiday and had just gotten off of work. There was no where else to go.
She thought maybe soup sounded good. She'd go home and make something simple and yummy. That's where she was headed. After the disaster with Jett she wasn't much up for social calls from boys at the moment. Speaking of boys she checker her phone for messages from him, stopping to lean against a railing to do it. Jett hadn't called. She didn't expect him to. She wanted him to, deep down, but with everything that happened.
God, she felt stupid and it showed on her face as she closed her eyes and gave a sound of annoyance with herself. Obviously, he was not the boy to like. And obviously he didn't like her as much as she thought. Horrible way to remember what had started off as a good date. And then her luck from there simply got worse with the attack from that Negaverse agent. Harm couldn't remember her name but she thanked God for Camelot. The man was her savior.
"I have no luck." she told herself softly, slipping her phone back into her coat pocket. "Face it, Harmony, you're going to be stuck this way with rotten luck."
With a heavy sigh she started walking again, wondering why she hadn't taken her car to work like any sane person in this kind of cold. At least she was close to home now and could almost hear her mom's chicken gumbo calling her name. It wasn't authentic in the strictest sense but Harm didn't know any better. She wasn't from N'Orleans.
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Posted: Thu Nov 24, 2011 2:00 pm
Marie had taken to wandering Destiny City, taking in the sights and getting used to her new body. It was still a rather odd experience, if for no other reason then it hampered Marie’s natural social butterfly tendencies. For some strange reason, it was hard to find people willing to have a conversation with a cat.
Of course, that didn’t deter her. Trotting down the sidewalk, large belly swinging slightly with her gait, Marie paused when she saw a shock of green (she’d mercifully retained the ability to see color).
“ Pretty hair!” She exclaimed as she shot towards the owner of said tresses. When she got close enough to rub against the girl’s ankles – and she did so without shame – she asked,“ Is green your natural color, honey?”
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Posted: Thu Nov 24, 2011 6:48 pm
It took a few seconds for Harmony to realize the voice she heard was not coming from a person. In fact, she whipped around trying to see who spoke and saw no one on the sidewalk that looked like they were close enough to have said a thing and have her hear it so clearly. There was, however, a cinnamon colored cat twitching around her legs. Like something out of the Adventures in Wonderland (not the first time Harmony paralleled her life to that particular fantasy. Her time in space was dubbed Through the Looking Glass for a reason) Harmony wondered if the cat had spoken to her.
She stopped to scoop the furball up, finding her a bit heavy, but marveled at the star on her forehead. That couldn’t be natural, could it? Harm wondered at the feline for a long minute, running her hands over the cat absently, petting her while she tried to figure things out. In point of fact green was her natural hair color. She came by it honestly through mother and father. The streaks were from her mother and the tone from her father whom she’d never even seen a picture of before. All she could do was take her mother’s word for it.
“You couldn’t have said that to me. You’re a cat.”
She thought a moment of the Cheshire cat of Alice fame and shook her head dumbly. The day cats started talking to her was the day she went home, went to bed, and pull the blanket over her head never to come out again. But, as she’d said only moments before, she simply had no luck. These kinds of things seemed just destined to happen to her…repeatedly.
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Posted: Sat Nov 26, 2011 12:16 am
“ Hm? Oh, dat; dat’s new. I was a human dis morning.” Marie’s tone made it sound like she was talking about a new haircut, not the fact that she had supposedly been turned into a cat. “ Stuff like dis happens a lot ‘round here, hm? Like all dem people dat vanished not so long ago; maybe dey was turned into cats too and den changed back.”
That theory didn’t quite chalk up to what she’d managed to gather from *********, but she figured her theory didn’t have to make sense. After all, being a talking cat hardly made sense!
Marie started to purr, hoping maybe it would calm down the girl enough that she wouldn’t just drop her and flee. Marie so longed for conversation!
“ So honey, how ‘bout it? Dat pretty hair of yours all natural? Looks like it, but my new eyes could just be lyin’ to me.”
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Posted: Sun Nov 27, 2011 1:18 pm
"Yeah. It's natural." she confirmed. "My mom has this color"
She pointed to the dark streaks in her hair and gave up any idea that normal was where her life was meant to be. Of course humans could be turned into cats and of course they spoke. Wonderland seemed to be following her every single place she went. She shuddered when Marie mentioned the people that disappeared.
"Not quite the same." she corrected. "I was one of those people that disappeared. We were gone for over a month."
In the grand scheme of things she imagined getting turned into a car, while inconvenient, was better than being whisked away from everything and everyone you know and then dying for a cause you don't really know about or understand. She still didn't understand more than that it was a war. The Negaverse is bad. And the senshi tried saving her life. More than that she just wanted to survive and try to be a normal teenage girl. Impossible when things like this keep happening to her.
"I was gonna go home and have some of my mom's gumbo. I don't suppose you really want to eat cat food."
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Posted: Sat Dec 03, 2011 10:16 pm
“ You very lucky den. Not many people got such pretty natural hair.” As if to prove her point, Marie stretched her head up and sniffed at Harmony’s hairline. She was tempted to lick it, but just barely managed to resist the urge.
When Harmony spoke of her disappearance, the shudder Marie felt travel through her body was a clue that it likely hadn’t been a pleasant experience. Still, Marie’s nature made her unable to let that statement slide without comment.
“ I’m guessin’ y’all didn’t go on some nice vacation den. In light of dat, I’m glad I just got turned into a cat, though I sure do miss havin’ thumbs.”
If Marie had been a cat with thumbs, she probably wouldn’t have had any issues with being a feline. As it was, Marie liked to cook and sew, activities she had discovered were made much harder by the lack of thumbs.
“ Gumbo?” Marie perked up. “ Ooh, I would like me some gumbo, assumin’ it ain’t too much trouble. Since I’ve not suddenly got a hankerin’ for kibble, da thought o’ food has been a truly troublin’ one today.”
Apparently the Great Chef in the sky had perceived her worries and sent her a green-haired angel. A most fortunate thing, since all of her food at home was in her fridge or pantry, and thus not easily accessible for a thumb-less furball.
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Posted: Thu Dec 08, 2011 11:21 pm
Harmony had never been to Louisiana but she had seen Princess and the Frog and other things that took place in and around Louisiana. Therefore she placed the accent as being distinctly from there and not the usual southern accent. She didn't have an accent (or so she thought), least of all a southern one. But she found she liked listening to her. Her mom would have had a field day to study the accent from a real person who used it.
She scooped up Marie and started carrying her with her. The feline was heavier than she expected but not so bad she minded much. Her house was nearby, anyway, and Harm was pretty sure by now Jett wasn't going to call. Just flowers and no explanation beyond "Regret Nothing." What the hell was that supposed to mean, anyway? Should she just forget he had a girlfriend? Should she forget that she felt used and stupid for thinking they could be more? Those thoughts sent a frown to her face that looked very out of place.
She shook her head and tried to shake herself out of the funk. There were other things at hand now, better things than Jett Draven. Harm looked down again.
"My mom's gumbo isn't authentic but it's good. She just made it last night. It's always better when it sits overnight, I think."
When they got to her house she set Marie down and unlocked the door. They live in a townhouse, squished between two other people. Miss Lowell next door and Mr. Thompson to the left. The bedrooms were upstairs and the basement down with the living areas on the main floor. She pushed open the front door and let Marie go in at her own pace and explained things.
"The living room is to the right, through the arch way if you're tired. The kitchen's straight back and the dining room's between the two."
She started to head to the kitchen to get things done before she paused, looking back at the cat.
"I'm Harmony, by the way. Harmony Rosen."
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Posted: Sun Dec 25, 2011 11:47 pm
Marie was quite happy to be carried. It meant that she didn’t have to haul her fat body around on impossibly tiny feet, plus she got to be closer to her new friend. It was from her new, closer position that Marie, ever observant about emotions, was able to detect a flicker of clouds across Harmony’s expression.
“ Mm, leftover gumbo is good, and I do need me some. Gumbo’s good for da belly and da soul,” And with a soft look she added, “and for da heart.”
She’d heard enough tales of relationship woes that Marie was pretty good at seeing the signs of ailments of the heart.
Down on the floor, Marie felt the urge to explore. She didn’t race off, but instead began inspecting the house at an easy stroll, sniffing here and rubbing there. She looked up from the furniture she had been rubbing against to say, “ I’m Marie. I also go by Big Mama, but I’m guessin’ dat’d be a funny name to call me when I’m a lil’ cat.”
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Posted: Mon Dec 26, 2011 12:55 pm
Big Mama...yeah, Harm could see that. Even though she was bodily very small her personality seemed to be every inch as big as her nickname claimed. And Harm wasn't so blinded by her own thoughts that she missed the mention of the heart and shook her head slightly at the idea. No amount of gumbo was going to make her feel ok about getting used and hurt.
"I don't think it's gonna help this time." she replied softly.
She stuck a bowl of the thick soup in the microwave and pressed a few buttons to warm it up. The smell immediately radiated out. She went into the living room and sat on the couch to wait, letting Marie poke about as she wanted to. She wasn't in any sort of a hurry to be anywhere or to do anything.
"I don't suppose you know how you got to be a cat, do you?" she asked, trying to change the subject from what gumbo can sure.
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Posted: Mon Jan 09, 2012 11:46 am
Since Marie couldn't give advice on a subject she didn't know the particulars of - in this case, what had happened to make Harmony look so depressed - she allowed the subject to be changed. Though, if whatever happened bothered this sweet girl too long, Marie was gonna have to drag the issue out of her so she could get to fixing it.
Marie took a moment to peer under the couch Harmony had sat on, for no other reason then because she was closer to floor level now. Crouching down, she stuck her head underneath, tail twitching in excitement when she spotted something shiny; penny! Marie's new feline instincts had her flopping over onto her side and reaching a paw under the sofa, trying to bat the penny out into the open. When Harmony asked her a question, Marie's first reaction was to look up with wide, innocent eyes that seemed to ask,' Who, me? I'm not doing anything.'
In other words, a typical, guilty cat expression.
Catching herself, Marie didn't even bother getting out of her undignified position on the floor, partially under the couch when she finally answered.
" Not real sure. Didn't really seem like nothin' unusual happened, 'cept for the changin' into a cat part. I mean, I was just walkin' down da street, off to see a friend, when suddenly I felt, well, tingley I guess. Den I started shrinkin', an' next thing I know I'm a cat."
Not a particularly thrilling tale. There'd been no ray guns, mad scientists, or even pretty terrorists around to blame.
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Posted: Tue Jan 17, 2012 12:53 pm
"Weird."
She'd heard of weirder, space whales came to mind, but this was strange in the grand scheme of things. The smell of gumbo was intensified now that the stuff was warmed through and the microwave beeped to confirm that for Harm. She dished out two bowls and set one on the floor for Marie, thinking about what she said.
"Do you really think this stuff fixes a broken heart?" she asked softly, imagining Jett for a second even though she didn't really want to.
She took a spoonful and kept mulling it over in her mind about what had happened to her recently and how much it affected her. Between going to space, dying, reconciling a bit with her mother, working at the library, Jett, and now this Harm wasn't sure she could take any more bad things happening this year. Maybe even next year if she could help it. She was overwhelmed by the bad so that the good didn't stand out very much in her mind.
"I guess I just wish that things would go away for a while and let something good happen to me."
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Posted: Tue Jan 31, 2012 4:30 pm
“ I think it’d help. Best way to eat gumbo is wit’ good company, and good company sure can’t hurt.”
Back in Louisiana, gumbo was one of the meals of choice for family get-togethers. Marie’s family was big, loud, and loving, so those get-togethers were always a positive experience for her. Now, Marie wasn’t rightly family to Harmony – least ways, not yet – so she couldn’t be sure what topics would brighten her up, but she could take a guess.
“ I ain’t had as much dinner company as I’d like since movin’ here. A shame, since my dat means no one got to see how my attempt at making pizza resulted in me wearin’ pizza dough on my head.”
Humor, Marie thought, was a key ingredient to making people feel better. A little humor to keep the mood from getting too bad, while slowly talking out the problem.
“ ‘course, I’m thinkin’ your problem ain’t dat a cutey saw ya’ wit’ pizza dough on yer head.”
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Posted: Fri Feb 03, 2012 3:50 pm
"Nope." Harm responded softly, picking at her food. It smelled good, she was hungry, but the topic of conversation was suppressing her desire to eat anything. She watched Marie, though, to see if the feline was enjoying her meal. She shrugged and pet Marie down the back, scratching behind her ears. It was something to keep her busy and was an idle gesture, not meant for anything else.
"He asked me out while he had a girlfriend and I fell for it. He even kissed me!"
Harm felt disgusted with herself, her stupidity at not seeing it but really there had been no signs to see. She was beating herself up about nothing. Just the same she imagined it again and how good she'd felt, how normal, and then it was taken away from her. Sure, this sort of thing happened between teens all the time but she hadn't wanted it to happen to her. Who does?
"Just...being with him felt normal. When I died, in space, I came back and everything felt different. I had nightmares, didn't sleep. I just wanted something good to happen for once and it turned into this."
Clearly she was still hurting about the situation. But then she got angry, bursting out "And then he had the nerve to send me flowers without even an apology. Just a message "Regret Nothing." She groaned. "So why do I want him to call so much?"
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Posted: Thu Mar 22, 2012 12:33 am
Marie purred as Harmony pet her, quite enjoying the sensation. She understood now why cats were forever trying to trip people, rubbing against their legs while they were trying to walk; they wanted petting because petting felt good. Something made her suspect that she’d be even less able to deny cats pettings in the future.
When Harmony finally began to speak of what had been bothering her, Marie perked up and listened attentively. The root of the problem was one she had suspected: love.
“ ‘cause you’ve got a heart, baby.” Marie said. “ And as great as a heart can be, it can hurt jist as much. It ain’t ever fun, and I’m not one to try to tell ya’ different. But hurtin’ now might help ya’ later. You’ll get yourself a sweetie one day, you’ll see, and den your love will feel all da better for dis.”
Marie abandoned her gumbo to rub against Harmony, offering what comfort she could.
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Posted: Mon Apr 02, 2012 11:22 am
She’d needed to tell someone about it. She couldn’t tell her own mother because Kyndall would only get over protective and say all those things mothers say about him not being worthy of her. Those words were fine and all but Harm already knew that. Her head knew a million reasons why she shouldn’t spend any time thinking about Jett Draven. Her heart, however, was slow to catch up. It didn’t want to think about any of them. It just hurt.
“I just wish I didn’t feel so stupid.” She admitted quietly. “I don’t understand why it had to be me he did this to!”
She was almost in tears again and not for the first time. Marie was right – a heart could hurt as much as it could cause joy. Harm had never had her heart broken before for all her flirting and teasing. It was such a sharp contrast! She’d felt so good when he was with her and now she felt so horrible being without that. Black on white. She hated that she still liked him, that she was weak enough to want him to call.
Just one of those things as her mom would say.
She picked up Marie and plunked her into her lap, petting her distractedly as she thought about it. Love hurt and she was fairly certain she wanted nothing more to do with it.
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