{SF} Sometimes You Need a Cat

[Humphries]

Normally Humphries didn't engage with these particular activities. He wasn't one to come out and frolic and play. Mostly this was because being a feline had enough pleasures without adding the noisy ones that involved teenagers and other annoyances. However, this particular one had been advertised as a bit more "all hands on deck" type of circumstance. Which meant that Humphries had been on call.

Which happened to be fortunate, as word got out that there happened to be a mouse in one of the buildings. In particular it had taken residence in one of the storage closets for one of the more popular eateries at the fair. The place had ample seating and food provided by local stores, so it edged out the various stands by a decent margin.

And now the cat trotted toward it, stopping as he reached the door. he looked up, studied the door for a moment, and sniffed. Yes, there was definitely the odor of mouse. However, there was also a problem. Humphries raised up as best he could, batted at the door, then lowered himself.

Hmm, quite interesting. He couldn't quite talk in public, not unless he knew that only mutants would hear. So that really left him only one option:

Humphries began meowing and looking around, scratching at the door and hoping some idiot would realize, preferably an idiot that also happened to have powers, but somehow Humphries wasn't holding out to be quite that lucky.

[James William Dale]

The fair wasn't the ideal location for James to wander in, dressed in his cardigan ,trousers and tie one could say he would stand out in all the surrounding summer wear though he managed to blend in enough, the lights were bright and the people were noisy, he held a large stuffed elephant in his arms that he won at a booth, though he wouldn't use those words. He saw the many flaws in the stand, four to be exact, how the game was almost rigged to not let him win, overcoming these flaws and learning the system behind the obscene simple skill of throwing a ball at some stacked milk bottles, James turned the game in his favor though he appeared to express no joy, his straight monotonous expression was not complimented with the large comical stuffed elephant.

The meowing became a sound that was different from the crowds usual ambiance, James hearing it between the fair games and people's laughter. He investigated, turning a corner he spotted the meowing feline. He observed the cats movements, seeing how the cat was attempting to get the attention of someone to open the door. James walked by the cat in a quiet manner, his large stuffed elephant almost dragging along the floor and placed his hand on the door while looking at Humphrey, he twisted the handle and pushed the door open with little force, the door creaking as it swung open at a slow speed. James stood aside for the cat to enter, he didn't speak but just shifted the stuffed elephant in front of him, the elephant looked as though James were strangling it. He waited for the cat to go in first, him wanting to see what

the interest was about.[/div]

[Humphries]

A young boy that Humphries didn't recognize approached. The cat stilled, watching him closely. Strange that he hadn't seen this one before, but that didn't mean nearly as much in this much more public forum. The boy carried an absolutely ludicrous stuffed toy, which Humphries felt the strange urge to attack. He shifted said urge, knowing full well that he would be satiating such urge soon enough.

the door opened. Humphries meowed his thanks before trotting inside, easily sliding around his helper. He paused a few feet inside, his nose twitching as he took in the myriad odors of the storage area. Food, lots of it, which wasn't that surprising. Then the underlying layer of mouse yet again. Humphries edged closer, head lowered, one paw in front of the other, looking to see if he couldn't locate the vermin in question.

It did occur to him that he should probably keep his assistant around. There were numerous boxes and containers that a cat couldn't handle on its own, after all. but the hunt had seized Humphries' full attention for the moment: it was stalking and nothing else he would do for the moment.

[James William Dale]

James watched the feline slink past him, his eyes following the smooth and flexible motions only a cat would have absolute ease doing, but James noticed a few red flags about the cat, it appeared to have not exhibited the same behaviors your average feline would take part in, these behaviors of course were to small to notice and someone would regard it as nothing but coincidence. Most adult cats, with the appropriate domestic upbringing, are confident enough to face what life throws at them. However, if a cat isn’t exposed to a full range of normal domestic happenings at an early age, it will have the potential to flee from the most innocuous things. This suggested Humphries was no stranger to human interaction or objects such as stuffed animal. It also seemed his level of aggression towards humans were minimal as there are often signs to look out for that shows a cat is signalling that it’s about to get aggressive with you. Dilated pupils, direct staring ,Thrashing/twitching tail, hissing, growling or spitting, ears flattening against the side of the head or rotate backwards, body posture often becomes crouched or tense . Humphries seemed relaxed till he went inside.

James spent enough time behind the study of animal behaviors, of course paying the price for having this knowledge and more. He observed Humphries, following him inside with caution, he looked around the room, boxes filled with food, tight spaces, dark areas, dry, he quickly deduced this was the ideal area for vermin to nest and reproduce and it was possible it was what Humphries was looking for. He sat his stuffed animal by the door, appearing as though it were observing the both of them, or guarding it. James again studied Humphries' stance, his body posture indicating alertness and preparation for the unexpected,depicting a predatory nature, all this information lead to answers yet the most likely would be that Humphries was on the hunt for a mouse, rat or small mammal seeking sustenance from human food sources.

It didn't take long for James to begin moving ahead without much of a word, analyzing the rooms most vulnerable and likely locations for a small animal to nest in or find food, he began to unstack boxes, though it was no simple feat for him with his small frame though the job finished nonetheless. He was careful not to disturb too much as it might interfere with Humphries' hunt, James appeared to have picked up so much from so little, to the normal individual it might seem strange but nothing to worry about, but to the observant individual one might say he knows more than what you'd think, making one wary or curious.

[Humphries]

The young assistant was certainly proving to be a good deal sharper than most of the clods that Humphries encountered in the area. the cat heard him approaching of course, but the young man didn't move in the way or anything along those lines. Quite the contrary: he seemed to anticipate what Humphries wanted and began moving boxes around. The cat let out a soft meow of thanks before once more lowering himself. He needed to be prepared for when the vermin inevitably fled from whatever hole it had hidden itself inside.

The boxes moved, and a blur of motion caught Humphries attention. He shot forward, his body almost liquid, only to find the creature scampering just under a line of boxes. Humphries let out another meow as his attempts to follow were quickly foiled. Frustrated, he pawed at the edge of the box, turned to the human, and then let out a meow. As soon as the young man looked, Humphries would pat the box one more time, then back away, certain that someone sharp enough would figure things out quick enough, and this young man definitely qualified.

[James William Dale]

Pausing while he watched Humphries go into action, he remained still himself till the blurry shadow shot by. He blinked for a few seconds and sniffed. Setting the box back down and moving over to the next box he registered the meows coming from Humphries, he moved over to the next box, picking it up, his legs strained somewhat when lifting the heavy object, it wouldn't budge, not even a few centimeters, looking at the box label he read it contained many cans. He looked to Humphries and shook his head.



James looked about the room again, trying to figure out a simple yet effective way to move the box with little force from his end. Looking about the room, passing Humphries a few times, he scratched about the room for something useful, having to push aside useless equipment, holding some objects for a few seconds, inspecting it then throwing it aside he finally managed to find a small pole, a brick and a trolley used for moving boxes. Placing the trolley next to the box, wedging the pole underneath and placing the brick beneath the poles end closer to the box, he created a makeshift torque. Going to the free end of the pole he balanced his foot on it and looked at Humphries. Showing that as soon as this box moved ,Humphries would have to act fast as the mouse's sanctuary disappears.



Holding up three of his fingers he pulled one down, mouthing the word three, then two then one. He pressed on the pole with force, the box toppled over onto the trolley and the mouse was exposed.

[Humphries]

Humphries noticed the lack of movement and rather quickly deduced that the young man was putting his all into it: he simply didn't have the strength. Before Humphries could start looking for a lever or somehow make that suggestion, he saw the young man moving. Figuring that this one actually happened to be savvy, Humphries instead focused on sniffing, catching and following the scent of his prey.

The pole appeared. The young man held up fingers. Humphries let out a meow and bobbed his head slightly before turning back to the box. Three. Two. One. And Humphries sprang, moving as if made of liquid. His blurred body hit the mouse hard, and he quickly batted it with his paws. The feline took over and Humphries spent a few seconds simply playing with it. He could feel the primitive urges overriding his intelligent brain and literally forcing him to frolic like a normal creature.

Then his thinking brain took over. He flipped, grabbed the mouse by the neck, and bit hard, twisting just enough to cause it to pop. He dropped it then and looked up at the young man. Humphries made certain to look at the youngster before letting out a meow and, yet again, bobbing his head.

[James William Dale]

Watching the action occur made James take a step back, James was not disgusted, nor did he feel remorse for the mouse that had been killed, he shuffled his feet beneath him as Humphries made his kill. Judging from the cats actions James would believe that Humphries had a certain level of intelligence higher than that of other felines, to test this theory he planned to attempt a more thorough form of communication than simple gestures.

"You're welcome." He nodded at the cat and began to tidy up, other than touch the mouse, he was not inclined to touch a dead animal. He looked at his stuffed elephant and paced towards it, he looked back at Humphries, "You don't seem like a normal cat." He picked his elephant by the ear, "Then again people wouldn't consider me normal either." He trailed off, dusting the elephant from the floors dirt, he stared at the door and mumbled, "I suppose it's back to the academy, public areas are the least of my interests." Sighing ,he pressed his eyes tightly, to humor himself he would ask a question, "Do you have anywhere to be besides eradicating vermin?" it was partly a joke, however he wanted to see if this cat understood, and if it did, James would find more interest in staying for a moment longer.

[Humphries]

Ah, so now the young man was communicating directly with Humphries. The cat looked up at him as he spoke, noting the manners there. His attention shifted toward the elephant for a moment, the movement catching it. Humphries managed to pull himself back to look at the young man once more. Was he normal? Humphries purred in amusement at that, his tail flicking, sweeping some of the dirt along the floor.

Back to the Academy? strange that the young man would be giving up on the public so easily. Humphries was tempted to shake his head at that. Since they were all the way out here, it only made sense to enjoy being in public for at least a while longer. The cat moved and jumped onto a box, hoping to get a bit closer to eye level with the young man. He made certain to look into the young man's gaze.

did he have something else to do. Humphries looked left, looked right, then bobbed his head, offering up a single meow. Yes, yes he did, and he needed to be in this area. Short of accessing one of his devices to outright say as much, Humphries wasn't sure how to get that across.