fen (cutslike) wrote in thedisplaced, @ 2018-05-04 07:35:00 |
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Entry tags: | !log/thread, fen, kylo ren / ben solo |
Who: Kylo Ren & Fen in...
What: The Great Kitten Caper!
Where: The Physical Cottage
When: Morning, April 29th
Warnings: No kittens were harmed in the writing of this scene.
Kylo Ren felt as if he still smelled like coffee when he entered the main downstairs sitting room in the cottage. He had been about to step into the shower and take time to clean up from his shift, but he'd stepped over to the box where Millicent and the kittens were, to realize they were all moved. This knowledge had been followed by a quick panic until he had reached out in the Force and realized that he could feel her, and more faintly the little ones - or at least he was certain of this. She had apparently decided the box was no longer good enough for her family and she had moved them. The more miraculous thing, truly, was that nobody had caught her in the process considering how many people were in the house. He sighed, slid the sweater he'd been wearing off, and headed back out of his and Eliot's room for the main downstairs sitting room, which he suspected was where she'd found a corner. Maybe the reading nook or - it wasn't as if there weren't enough small cozy corners to hide in the house. He hadn't expected Fen to be there when he walked in, and he'd paused, distracted momentarily from his purpose. Truth was, he still wasn't used to expecting Fen anywhere. For all Kylo had been very clear and up front with Eliot about his willingness to accept Fen if she were to show up, the practice was much more challenging than the words were. And Kylo tried not to be jealous, but… "Sorry," he offered. "I didn't know you were in here. I -" his eyes scanned the room. "Our cat. My cat. The kittens?" Fen was accustomed to being a second thought on a professional level. Being made Acting High King was more attention focused on her than she had in some time. At best, she was an adequate sidekick or advisor. She never saw herself at the center of it all like Eliot and Margo. So once she was back in the cottage, Fen was happy to curl up comfortably on the end of one of the downstairs couches with a tablet in her hand and quietly surf the internet looking at funny pictures. If someone needed her or wanted to speak with her, they’d know where to find her. The idea of getting a job or worrying about money hadn’t occurred to her yet. It’d never been an issue on Earth, so she didn’t see why it mattered in Tumbleweed. She was surprised then when someone she didn’t immediately recognize mentioned cats. It took her a few moments, brows scrunched down in contemplation before she recalled his name. “Kylo Ren?” Fen set the tablet down and was immediately on her feet, trying not to obviously straighten her blouse but wanting to make herself mildly presentable anyway. “It’s very nice to meet you in person. Eliot has told me a lot about you.” That hopeful expression faded slightly. She wanted to assure him the way King Idri had assured her, but Idri had always been very regal and sure of himself. Fen was… trying. “Kittens? What about kittens?” she asked. She wasn’t force sensitive, but he didn’t seem to want to be reassured. At least she could help with kittens. How did one go about introducing oneself to one's lover’s wife? Kylo hadn’t the faintest idea. The only thing he knew for certain was that this was the situation he currently found himself in, and that he didn’t know everything Eliot might have told her, although he knew it would be at least the most important aspects of the truth — Of that Kylo could be certain of because he knew Eliot. For an instant he stood without moving and then he stepped forward, swallowed, and offered something that might have been a smile if one could peel away the discomfort in his posture. “Yes, I’m Ren. Kylo. You’re Fen.” He added unnecessarily, for she certainly knew her own identity and being the stranger in the house, it would be obvious that he would easily be able to surmise hers. He turned an intense gaze to her, considering her for a moment. She was quite a bit shorter than him, pretty, and she looked kind. “Eliot has - told me quite a bit about you as well.” His gaze flickered across her face again. “I suspect it is a relief for him to have you here,” he offered, before breaking the sentiment abruptly with a switch to his original purpose: “But Millicent was in our room, and she seems to have gotten out, moved the kittens. I didn’t mean to bother you, but I sense they’re here maybe. Or I think so.” “Oh,” Fen blinked. She followed his lead. Perhaps neither of them were ready to talk about their situation. Fen certainly wanted to, but she had to do it right somehow, and she didn’t know how to do that. It might have been easier, perhaps, if Eliot hadn’t stayed in her room that first night. “I can help.” Fen got down on her hands and knees and began to look under the furniture. She didn’t do anything in half measures. There were two Fens: Resting Fen and Action Fen. Resting Fen was a state of Fen most people saw ninety percent of the time, a nice young woman who looked happy and passive to be where she was. Action Fen came about whenever she was needed, whether it was weilding a knife or putting all her love and energy into a very warm hug. When it came to the safety of kittens, clearly Action Fen was needed. “Here little kittens,” she called out as hunted for them along the floor, searching various nooks that might only be seen at certain angles. “Here little kittens?” Fen moved quickly enough that Kylo was just left to blink, and stare at her for a moment as she started looking for the kittens. It was a switch, but for the moment, anyway, it was a useful one, and so Kylo followed her lead. It was easier than whatever awkward conversation between the two of them might have been about to follow. "Millicent." He stated calmly, reaching out in the Force. To Fen, he added, as he headed towards the reading nook. "She'll want something dark and quiet, probably, and the mother is Millicent, and there are several kittens, mostly orange - except for the black & white one of Eliot's." He stuck his head in the nook, looking behind the pillow there. He was going to have to figure out a way to make certain the door to their room stayed closed, because the cottage was too large, and there were too many people coming and going to risk her coming out and being out. Fen checked a few other spots before raising up on her knees to give the room another general sweep. After a small huff of determination she stated, “I don’t think they’re in this room.” She hadn’t lived in or spent as much time in the cottage as Ren had, yet she was still familiar enough with its layout to feel comfortable opening a few cabinet doors and peeking in just in case there was sign of a new warm nest of cats. Alas, there was no such luck. “We’ll just have to search this place from top to bottom.” She paused. “From bottom to top!” Whatever the case, Fen was willing enough to put all of her focus and energy into it. She supposed she could try to make conversation with Ren after, but until the safety of several tiny kittens could be confirmed, she knew would have to wait. They mattered to him. Kylo frowned, at her statement, but not at her. Just at the frustration of not knowing exactly what had happened to them. He gazed off into the distance, reaching out in the Force for the familiar presence of Millicent - sassy and certain - and the less familiar, and far smaller presence of the kittens that were with her. "Why are there so many nooks in this place," he grumbled irritably as he pulled his focus back to the room. "You don't have to help me anymore, I mean, if you don't want to, I interrupted…" he glanced back to where she'd been sitting. He really didn't know what he'd interrupted. His gaze was drawn back to her, keen and unblinking. Maybe she wanted to help? It wasn't that he knew much of her outside of what Eliot had told him. But that didn't seem outside of the realm of what he knew of her. “I assume because this house was built for powerful magicians who have lived here over generations. They like their secret spaces.” The way Fen explained it sounded much more grand than what it really was, a magical frat house for obnoxious little shits. “I don’t think I’m needed anywhere else,” Fen’s smile looked slightly strained, at that. “I don’t mind helping you look.” With that Fen turned and continued to call, here little kittens! Listening carefully for a responding mew or sign of feline activity. It was a reasonable explanation, Kylo supposed. He wished briefly that he had Eliot's talent for making people feel at ease. He didn't have it, but he wondered a bit if it wasn't difficult not having a task in front of her. It had been for him. It had been one of the worst parts about arriving here first, back when he'd had no one except parents that were too young to remember him. "Millicent," he called again. This time opening up closets that might have been open earlier in the day and been closed again. Really what was the use of the Force if he couldn't pinpoint a cat's exact location? "You'll have something," he told her, turning around, his hand still on the closet door knob. "I mean, you'll be needed somewhere, here. It just takes time to figure out how you fit is all." He shrugged. Maybe he was going to need to do a bit of that again as well. She was shifting him around too, even if it hadn't been her intention. Fen looked up at Eliot’s lover and smiled, placing a hand over her heart for just a moment. “Oh, that’s very sweet of you Ren, but you don’t have to worry about me. I’m very used to this.” Still, she thought it was very thoughtful to say something at all. Another sweet kitten call, but no response. In the next room she was on her hands and knees again, searching the out of the way places a cat and her kittens might be hiding. Kylo tilted his head towards her, not certain if she meant the traipsing between universes, or something entirely different. He closed the closet door the rest of the way, slowly, thoughtfully. He didn't have to worry about her, possibly, but he couldn't help not doing so at all. He didn't know her, but she was connected to Eliot, and thus, connected to him through Eliot. But he wasn't certain how to say that. "There's a basket on the other side of the piano," he suggested, mid-way through that suggestion he broke off at the feeling that he was being watched, and he turned his head to find Millicent regarding him nonplussed from between the banister on the stairs. Fen spotted seconds after Ren did. Using a stage whisper she said, “Maybe Millicent will lead us to the kittens.” Fen stayed perfectly still, as if sensing that the cat would hide them or run in another direction if she moved, poised to follow her quietly. Her brows were raised, expression hopeful. Those kittens couldn’t be without their mother for too long after all. Millicent stayed perfectly still, and then she turned her gaze away from the humans who were watching her, as if purposefully ignoring them as she took a paw up to her tongue to lick it, and wash her ears. That task complete, she stood without glancing at either of them and padded up the stairs. Kylo rolled his eyes, and avoided an outright sigh. This cat would be the death of him. He started for the stairs, before turning back to Fen, and motioning with his head that she should follow him. She might as well see it through. Fen followed cautiously behind Kylo, careful to minimize the sound of her footfalls, as if walking too loud would only encourage the cat to keep them guessing in a game of very low stakes chase. She gave Kylo ample room in front of her to stop and direct as needed. He was tall, with noticeable scars and built like a warrior. He certainly didn’t seem like the magicians with their clever fingers and quicker words. Tall, dark and handsome. She could appreciate what Eliot saw in him. The magician king seemed genuinely close and caring of Ren in a way she’d only ever observed him treat Margo, so she could sense that the relationship was also very serious. “I’m sorry that I’ve complicated things,” Fen finally said, keeping her voice in an audible whisper. “But I don’t think they’ll really be that complicated, if it’s any consolation. He cares about you very much.” Kylo's attention was split from Millicent, the Force still keeping a beat on the orange tabby in front of him, while he turned his head back to glance over his shoulder back at Fen. For a moment, he said nothing, then his lips pressed together, and he shook his head, just barely: "I'm not." The words might have been unexpected, but they were truthful. He glanced back to Millicent who was disappearing through Julia's recently vacated door, and he took a step forwards before stopping. It was fairly certain where the kittens were, and this might be as important as the kittens who were likely to be all right for a bit. He turned back. "Eliot's… he cares about you. I know your marriage had to be, but he has worried for you, and I know there is relief that you are here. So. I'm not sorry." Fen was heartened by the words. There was no Bless Your Heart hand to her chest this time. Her face was an open book, incapable of deception, and this time she was clearly moved. “Eliot deserves to be with someone who makes him happy. You both deserve some happiness. I… I’m not sure what I am yet. But what I don’t want to be is in the way.” Did she like Ren more or less than King Idri? Fen gave Ren a brief evaluation. Eliot had chosen Ren. It wasn’t a calculated political move. For that reason alone, Fen liked him. Ren had no other apparent agenda other than he liked Eliot, too. Kylo's expression didn't shift much, but his eyes softened somewhat, and maybe if you were watching carefully, the corner of his mouth shifted into something that might have been a smile. It was brief, and it didn't last, but it had been there for an instant. He didn't know that he deserved happiness exactly, and had no idea what Fen would think if or more likely when she knew more about his story, but Eliot certainly deserved it. Perhaps he should have reassured her that she wouldn't be in the way, but instead he turned back to the kittens and continued to move forward, pushing the door to the room further open and looking around it. Millicent had disappeared completely again, but he didn't think there was a portal she could have escaped through in here. A momentary panic bubbled up, before he pushed it down and walked over to the closet. "There you are," he looked down at the cat. Fen stood still. She didn’t know him well and mistook his silence for rejection. Pressing her lips together nervously, she watched him approach the cat. Her fingers laced together in front of her ribcage as she anxiously debated what to do next. “Are the kittens with her?” Fen whispered again. Though this time she wasn’t entirely sure who it was she wanted to avoid disturbing. She looked around. The room had been Julia’s at one point when Fen had been in the cottage. It was clean, orderly and empty. This time Kylo did smile, because Millicent - despite the fact that she sometimes made him very grumpy - was still his cat, and he tended to smile around her more than around anyone else except for Eliot. "Come see," he told Fen, and he reached down picking up the little black and white one - Eliot's favorite - and stepping forward to hand the handful of fluff over to Fen if she wanted it. "This one is Eliot's favorite," Kylo told her, the smile turning fond over whether it was for the kitten or the man being discussed, it was difficult to say. "I'll be surprised if we give him away." Fen blinked rapidly as she tried to process her surprise. Ren really liked cats, she decided. At least she knew what she could safely discuss with him. Her expression and heart, however, melted when she felt the warm, tiny kitten in her hands. She did not respond to the idea of giving any kittens away, instead choosing to focus on the tiny creature in her hands as she cooed at it, fingertips gently scratching its head. “Do any of them have names yet?” she asked. Kylo watched her play with the little one. He wasn't the smallest, that honor went to one of the little orange ones that Kylo had been keeping his eye on carefully. But Major Tom had been a favorite almost since the beginning - he was, in fact, one of the few who seemed to have a distinguishable name, mostly due to Eliot. The memory of Eliot singing to the kitten, cemented the smile on Kylo's lips, and his posture relaxed a bit. "That one is Major Tom, I think. You could ask Eliot for certain, but he always seems to call him that. Most of them I haven't named exactly, although Millicent seems to distinguish between them in her own way - it's not really language like we would think of it though." Fen looked surprised. “I’ve known cats that could talk, but I’ve never heard of a special cat language before. On Fillory, all the humans and talking animals speak the same language.” Eliot’s wife seemed to regard the kitten with new eyes, wondering if it would start to say something in its curious tongue. “What do you think, Major Tom? I think that’s a good name. ...Do you speak to Millicent often?” Fen asked, turning her attention back to Ren. "Like Fray's Bear friend," Kylo nodded. "She doesn't talk, talk, not like I think the talking animals of your world, but she's very opinionated in the Force, so I can pick up on what she's thinking and feeling alot then. Not all animals are as clear as she is. I think…" he looked down, Millicent was watching Fen intently, but she seemed calm enough for the moment, not too worried about the kitten that had been picked up away from her, just aware. "I think she chose me and that likely has something to do with it." “I’m not sure what The Force is, but it looks like Millicent selected a very mindful protector for her and her kittens.” Fen offered the tiny kitten back to Ren, to reunite with the rest of its family. Kylo took Major Tom back, and slid him back into the box with Millicent and pressed his hand to her back for just a moment, then a finger down each kitten's head, the one that was smallest getting an extra soft pet, and he slid one of that one's siblings to the side, so that he could more easily access Millicent. "It's -" he hesitated and then he straightened back up, and gave Fen a smile. "Probably something that requires more explanation than you're ready for right now. It's life, and sort of magic. In a quick sense." He stepped back. "I think I'll go get the box and take them all back in together." A beat, and he turned to her, swallowed. "Thank you for helping me look." “Of course,” Fen said, bowing her head just slightly. He sounded like Eliot. Magic wasn’t unknown to her, but it could never be completely known either. And while she might have once been Acting High King, Eliot and the other magicians were still higher in station than she was. The same likely went for Ren. To stay any longer might have been awkward. She was dismissed, even if she had perhaps dismissed herself. Fen left the room quietly to return to the couch downstairs and her tablet with the internet. |