Cassandra breathes out an unnoticeable sigh of relief as her mom doesn't seem to notice something immediately - and there's truly nothing out of the usual anyway, right, just a ... dog from the streets. There's worse things in the world (like Cass' beloved sentient garbage bag). She peers at the counter, but it's not one of the meals she'd hope for. It's been years, and she's not sure if she's come to miss her father more or less. ... definitely the first.

"Thanks, Mom! I'll have a bite later. Amanda baked cookies yesterday, so I'm not too hungry right now," she calls back, hoping to sound natural. Gladly, the furfrou behind her stayed quiet and unmoving, waiting for Cass to do anything, which made the possible stealth part slightly easier. However, she's more unsure than ever about just sneaking it past her mother and into the bathroom (which sounds less and less of a good idea now that she thinks about it), as she comes face to face with Purrseus, her mother's purrugly.

She freezes up for a moment, her eyes widening as her thoughts start to race around in her mind. "Hey, Purrseus! I saw some delicious pokétreats on my way home, so I thought I'd get you some," she says, her voice slightly frantic but also vaguely monotone because she did have those treats - she just intended her for her other pokémon, but they'd have to wait until she gets more pocket money again. She cautiously motioned the furfrou to move onwards, but obviously, the hound has never been to her home.

While Cass starts rummaging in her bag, the furfrou stays in place, and does a questioning wimper that makes her heart plummet. Did mom hear-?

Calpurnia Kubrick

"There are breakfast cookies," Cass returns, but knows her mom's words to be true - after all, the sugary cookies her friend baked could hardly count as their more healthy, cereal-based variant. "I'll eat later, there's something I wanna do first," she does add, hoping to smoothly be able to get out of this situation quickly and upstairs, since the stray (not stray?) furfrou is still here and needs to be moved. The more she thinks about it, dealing with it in the garden probably would have been a better idea, but the creeping cold does not mix well with any clean-up endeavour ...

... just like Purrseus who's currently the biggest concern regarding making everything blow up in her face. Gladly, she could convince him for the moment to keep quiet with the snacks she bought. While rummaging in her bag quickly, the dog pokémon behind her grows increasingly uncomfortable with the tension, letting out a whimper - the only whimper Purrseus needed.

Alarmed, Cass makes an effort to try and shove the furfrou out of the way, frantically also searching for a piece of furniture behind which she might hide it for just another moment. With a thud, this motion also indeed sends her flying to the ground, but several accidents and mishaps have honed her reflexes, so she doesn't actually break a bone. "Uh, yeah, I'm just fine! Got a bit too, eh, hurried," she calls back, rubbing her arm that's suffered a little bit, a numb pain echoing through her body. However, that moment of respite doesn't last long, as she bolts upright again, trying to figure out the current situation.

Calpurnia Kubrick ooc. reply at last! and no worries, ur post is perf \o/

Cassandra lets out a laugh, somewhere between reality and despair. "I can't deny that," she returns, her mind shortly drifting to the annoyance of ads being everyhwere, capitalism, and all that before focusing on the currently more real problem at hand. "And yeah, that book report is kind of a drag ..." She hasn't really been able to get into the book, and not by lack of trying. And while it isn't her immediate concern, she gladly jumps on it for as long as she can, hoping to delay the inevitable for just a few moments more until she'd be clear ... "Like, some things don't really make sense, I think, and I got the feeling that the teacher has some very clear expectations what we should write, so ... kinda more of a 'guess what they want' than usual." She does enjoy literature, but interpretations are a nightmare. The clarity (most of the time) of maths appeals more to her.

But the laws of physics could've been a bit more merciful as she slams into the ground, her fall a bit cushioned by the carpet. Soon, it's followed by Purrseus going back on their bargain, and her mother's terrifying glare. Cass clears her throat, her expression a mix of embarrassment with a hint of teenage rebellion, a notion she couldn't shake.

"Uhm, eh, that's a Furfrou. I- found it on my way home, and I tried getting to its collar, but its fur is all terrible- I thought I could practice on it a bit, and find its owner because it was getting late and dark outside, so I couldn't just let it out there all on its own, not knowing when the owner might come back, and I'll clean up everything, I swear, it's like nothing will have happened-" Cass fires sentences like bullets, one after another before eventually stopping to catch a deep breath.

Calpurnia Kubrick

Cassandra couldn't hold back the pout at her mother's words - it's true that living in a society entails exactly this, but that doesn't mean she has to like it, right? (She WILL have to deal with it though, and probably sooner rather than later. According to her, later would be more preferable.) This topic is quickly swapped out for the more ... current, and in fact, less preferable situation with the furfrou that Cassandra has decided to bring home. For. Reasons.

Yeah, the more she thought about it, the more stupid it sounds, but this felt like a classic teen moment. (And it would really be a good hairdressing practice, and all in all, it could've gone worse! Probably!)

"It isn't that bad," she returns defensively, but also only looks at the poor pokémon from the corner of her eyes - better not refresh her memory on how bad the situation actually is. "Bringing it here just seemed ... faster." She's not sure if she should bring up practicing hairdressing yet or at all, given that they've just talked about a book report she could be doing instead.

"I won't do it again, promise!" Cassie flinches at the sound of her mother's frustration and scorn, looking at her pleadingly. "Just this once? Please?" Gladly, her mother doesn't seem to want to throw out the furfrou immediately, and she nods enthusiastically. Unlike Kelpie, Cassie's not hesitant to touch the pokémon, now trying to give it a few encouraging coo's and nonsense blabbering as she motions it to the bathroom with her mother.

"I'll go find the own- ehm, give it to the pokémon center tomorrow first thing. I'll wake up extra early, too!" she promises another time, and another time with a rather untrustworthy track record of barely getting out of bed in time for school. However, she does move quickly to get the furfrou into the bathtub, starting to run water a bit away from it to let it heat up. "Think my shampoo will have to do for now ..." she murmurs, glancing at her mother to see if she got any other ideas here - she's sure Purrseus would kill her if she even looked at the products intended for him right now.

Calpurnia Kubrick

Cassandra flinches into an upright pose. The shivers down her spine seemingly add to the need to at least appear prim and proper, even with the whole history of mud and falling over herself written in the wrinkles of her clothes, her tousled hair. She bit her lip, and quickly let go of it - steadying her breathing instead.

"Sorry," she could only say, eventually, after her mother's scolding words, and then an embarrassed "haha caught me" smile follows with the reminder about the times before. ... yeah, she did indeed not have the best track record. "I really don't try to ... and will do better in the future. I pro-ho ho ho-mise," she said, another time, and this time, muddy dust tickles her nose, and she could barely hold in the sneeze. She flashes Calpurnia another smile, hoping to maybe soothe things over with charms (which she's not really good at). "I'll take them to pokémon centers next time." Because, as much as she'd plead for anything right now, throwing another bold-faced lie did not seem like the best play here.

The furfrou itself seems to have caught the tense situation, and behaves as docile as it can be. Indeed, it has been pretty tame the entire time Cassandra has been with them so far, which makes her curious ... After Calpurnia's reluctant approval of Cass using her shampoo to wash it, the student gets to work, rolling up her sleeves. She takes the shower head, turning on the water at lukewarm and praying that the mud won't reveal a flea. "Haha ... ... But it's kind of strange, actually, I think it's ... it kind of makes me think more like if, ehm," Purrseus had a roll in the mud, which Cassie does not voice. "Like if Saude, my emolga, had a roll in the mud. It doesn't seem really ... wild, they're also pretty docile."

Even as Cassandra gently washes away the water, it doesn't seem to be too disturbed or bothered at all.

Calpurnia Kubrick

Cassandra looks highly embarrassed at that slip, and is quick to defend herself, "That was just! I had to sneeze!" Her expression is defiant, but seeing her mother actually crack a smile makes her smile as well, and she clears her throat. "And it's never too early, at least if you ask the Marketing people or whoever puts spiced biscuits into the shelves already." Not that she actually complains - not that she actually doesn't have a stash of spiced biscuits all-year-round in her room.

"So I ... won't promise," the teenager says carefully, definitely balancing a thin line as she wonders just what exactly she should do - another time of guessing what anyone wants from her. (It's tiring, generally speaking.)

Gladly, she could quickly occupy her mind with shampooing and washing the furfrou as they walk towards the bathroom and she starts with letting warm water run through the mud and fur. She's had her sleeves rolled up - one of her hands is holding the showerhead, the other is helping some stubborn mud to get loose and down the drain.

"But those are very trustworthy eyes," Cass counters, which ... is a very subjective thing, but she doesn't believe that those black beads could actually harm anyone. ... but she is quite biased towards pokémon, anyway. She's startled by her mom's sudden interception, but gladly doesn't let the showerhead go haywire, but holds it steady.

"Do you mean here?" she asks, focusing on the neck area and combing with her hands through wet fur ... "Oh! See, it's got an owner! Well, at least a collar. Let's see..." She moves the furfrou's chin upwards to wash the front, hoping to see a little metal plate with a name and maybe even adress on it ... The pokémon doesn't resist, on the contrary - it seems to enjoy the bath. "Also, I really don't think it's their first time being bathed."

Calpurnia Kubrick