5/04 - Fur
Title / Prompt: Fur
Character: Jack Bristow
Warnings: Extreme silliness?
Fandom: Alias
Word count: 961
Rating: G, for a change
Disclaimer: Not mine.
He finds the kitten early one morning when he walks to get the paper. He won't have it delivered, a bit of holdover caution from the old days. It's small, gray, and curled up beside the newspaper machine, and when it sees him, it starts to meow, a high keening sort of sound that he thinks may wake the entire neighborhood.
One of his neighbor's children jogs past, Starbucks' cup in hand. "You missing a cat?"
Jack shakes his head. "No. It's not mine." He buys his paper and turns for home.
A soft "mew" causes him to turn and glare over his shoulder at the kitten, which has taken a few tentative steps after him. "Go home," he tells it. It simply cocks its head to one side, looking particularly cute, and meows again.
He ignores it.
His cell phone rings, and he glances at his watch before he answers it. The phone's display reads "Marshall", and he nods. Marshall never seems to sleep.
"Bristow," he says into the phone.
"Hey, Mr. Bristow, it's Marshall- listen, it's not a bad time, is it? Because I can, you know, call back-"
"What is it, Marshall?"
"Well, I was checking the server logs, you know, not that they need it, just something I do- for fun, kind of, and I noticed-"
What Marshall noticed, Jack doesn't know, because at that moment the kitten lets loose a sound that is less a meow and more of a howl. How such a large sound can come from such a small body, he doesn't know.
"Whoa, sorry, bad time, obviously bad time," Marshall is saying very quickly on his end. "Didn't know you were torturing anybody this morning- not that you- I mean-"
"Marshall," Jack says, feeling very tired, "it's a cat."
"Oh! Oh, right, of course, silly me- When did you get a cat?"
"I do not have," Jack says, ignoring the feline, still following him, "a cat. Tell me about the server logs."
He walks to his car, listening to Marshall describe the problem in his usual somewhat scattered manner. "-So it's probably just a software glitch, I mean, I'm pretty sure it is-"
"I'll have a look when I get there. Is Rachel in yet?"
"Uh, it's kinda early- nobody's here but me, oh, and those guys from Analysis- you know, I don't think they ever see daylight anymore."
"Get started looking for that glitch. When Rachel arrives, she can help you try and track it down." The kitten yowls again.
"Okay," Marshall says. "Mr. Bristow, are you sure you don't have a cat?"
"Yes," Jack says, and hangs up.
When he opens the car door, the cat hops into the passenger seat. And sits there. And looks over at him with wide, innocent kitten eyes.
He glances at his watch. Sighs.
*
The kitten arrives at APO perched precariously on top of Jack's briefcase, clearly fascinated by the passing scenery.
"'Morning, Jack," Nadia calls on her way to the break room, coffee mug in hand. She pauses, looks back. "Awww." She walks over to scratch the kitten under its chin. For some reason, the kitten seems to enjoy this. "Does he- or she- have a name yet?"
"No," Jack says. "It's not mine."
Nadia just shakes her head and continues on her way to get her coffee.
Jack settles the kitten on his desk, where it seems perfectly happy to chase paper clips while he reads the paper and the morning reports.
Sydney pokes her head in the door. "Hey, Dad. Marshall says- Is that a kitten?"
"Yes? Marshall says-?"
"He found the glitch, he's working on it." She looks at the kitten. "Can I hold it?"
"I don't see why not," Jack says. "But it's not-"
"Hi, there," Sydney says. Talking to the cat. She pats it for a moment, which it seems to like well enough, but when she attempts to pick it up, it hisses and claws at her. "Alright, I'm sorry-" Sydney shakes her head. "I guess it likes you better than me."
The kitten hops down into Jack's lap, where it settles quite happily and begins to purr. He looks down at it, completely lost. "Sydney-"
"What was that noise? Did the fax jam again? I swear, I'm going to send Tom down to maintenance to give those guys a good sharp- Oh my God, he's so cute! He or she?"
Jack ignores this, busy attempting to get the cat back onto the desk. In response it begins to climb up his shoulder, claws digging in. "Ow!"
Sydney seems to be trying very hard not to laugh. "Hey, Rachel. Not the fax, for a change. Dad's cat."
"It is not-" Jack pries the claws from his jacket "-mine!"
*
They hold the morning briefing in Jack's office because the kitten will not let him up, and several people nurse slight claw wounds from trying to separate the gray ball of fur from APO's director.
The briefing stops when the kitten begins to whine, too loudly for any other voice to be heard.
Everyone stares at it for a time, until Tom ventures, "Maybe it's hungry?"
"Oh! There's some ramen noodles in the break room." Marshall, of course.
"Tech food," Tom says. "Nah, I don't think he'll eat that."
"Smart kitty," Nadia says quietly.
Weiss breezes in, late. "Sorry- deli line was hell, had to wait half an hour for my tuna fish sandwich-"
Which Nadia promptly snatches from him.
"Hey!"
They feed the kitten the tuna on an old AOL demo disc Marshall digs out of the recycle bin. It purrs happily, and dashes back over to Jack.
"Sydney," Jack smiles at his daughter. "Maybe Isabelle-"
"Dad. She's kinda young for pets. Besides, I think it likes you."
Character: Jack Bristow
Warnings: Extreme silliness?
Fandom: Alias
Word count: 961
Rating: G, for a change
Disclaimer: Not mine.
He finds the kitten early one morning when he walks to get the paper. He won't have it delivered, a bit of holdover caution from the old days. It's small, gray, and curled up beside the newspaper machine, and when it sees him, it starts to meow, a high keening sort of sound that he thinks may wake the entire neighborhood.
One of his neighbor's children jogs past, Starbucks' cup in hand. "You missing a cat?"
Jack shakes his head. "No. It's not mine." He buys his paper and turns for home.
A soft "mew" causes him to turn and glare over his shoulder at the kitten, which has taken a few tentative steps after him. "Go home," he tells it. It simply cocks its head to one side, looking particularly cute, and meows again.
He ignores it.
His cell phone rings, and he glances at his watch before he answers it. The phone's display reads "Marshall", and he nods. Marshall never seems to sleep.
"Bristow," he says into the phone.
"Hey, Mr. Bristow, it's Marshall- listen, it's not a bad time, is it? Because I can, you know, call back-"
"What is it, Marshall?"
"Well, I was checking the server logs, you know, not that they need it, just something I do- for fun, kind of, and I noticed-"
What Marshall noticed, Jack doesn't know, because at that moment the kitten lets loose a sound that is less a meow and more of a howl. How such a large sound can come from such a small body, he doesn't know.
"Whoa, sorry, bad time, obviously bad time," Marshall is saying very quickly on his end. "Didn't know you were torturing anybody this morning- not that you- I mean-"
"Marshall," Jack says, feeling very tired, "it's a cat."
"Oh! Oh, right, of course, silly me- When did you get a cat?"
"I do not have," Jack says, ignoring the feline, still following him, "a cat. Tell me about the server logs."
He walks to his car, listening to Marshall describe the problem in his usual somewhat scattered manner. "-So it's probably just a software glitch, I mean, I'm pretty sure it is-"
"I'll have a look when I get there. Is Rachel in yet?"
"Uh, it's kinda early- nobody's here but me, oh, and those guys from Analysis- you know, I don't think they ever see daylight anymore."
"Get started looking for that glitch. When Rachel arrives, she can help you try and track it down." The kitten yowls again.
"Okay," Marshall says. "Mr. Bristow, are you sure you don't have a cat?"
"Yes," Jack says, and hangs up.
When he opens the car door, the cat hops into the passenger seat. And sits there. And looks over at him with wide, innocent kitten eyes.
He glances at his watch. Sighs.
*
The kitten arrives at APO perched precariously on top of Jack's briefcase, clearly fascinated by the passing scenery.
"'Morning, Jack," Nadia calls on her way to the break room, coffee mug in hand. She pauses, looks back. "Awww." She walks over to scratch the kitten under its chin. For some reason, the kitten seems to enjoy this. "Does he- or she- have a name yet?"
"No," Jack says. "It's not mine."
Nadia just shakes her head and continues on her way to get her coffee.
Jack settles the kitten on his desk, where it seems perfectly happy to chase paper clips while he reads the paper and the morning reports.
Sydney pokes her head in the door. "Hey, Dad. Marshall says- Is that a kitten?"
"Yes? Marshall says-?"
"He found the glitch, he's working on it." She looks at the kitten. "Can I hold it?"
"I don't see why not," Jack says. "But it's not-"
"Hi, there," Sydney says. Talking to the cat. She pats it for a moment, which it seems to like well enough, but when she attempts to pick it up, it hisses and claws at her. "Alright, I'm sorry-" Sydney shakes her head. "I guess it likes you better than me."
The kitten hops down into Jack's lap, where it settles quite happily and begins to purr. He looks down at it, completely lost. "Sydney-"
"What was that noise? Did the fax jam again? I swear, I'm going to send Tom down to maintenance to give those guys a good sharp- Oh my God, he's so cute! He or she?"
Jack ignores this, busy attempting to get the cat back onto the desk. In response it begins to climb up his shoulder, claws digging in. "Ow!"
Sydney seems to be trying very hard not to laugh. "Hey, Rachel. Not the fax, for a change. Dad's cat."
"It is not-" Jack pries the claws from his jacket "-mine!"
*
They hold the morning briefing in Jack's office because the kitten will not let him up, and several people nurse slight claw wounds from trying to separate the gray ball of fur from APO's director.
The briefing stops when the kitten begins to whine, too loudly for any other voice to be heard.
Everyone stares at it for a time, until Tom ventures, "Maybe it's hungry?"
"Oh! There's some ramen noodles in the break room." Marshall, of course.
"Tech food," Tom says. "Nah, I don't think he'll eat that."
"Smart kitty," Nadia says quietly.
Weiss breezes in, late. "Sorry- deli line was hell, had to wait half an hour for my tuna fish sandwich-"
Which Nadia promptly snatches from him.
"Hey!"
They feed the kitten the tuna on an old AOL demo disc Marshall digs out of the recycle bin. It purrs happily, and dashes back over to Jack.
"Sydney," Jack smiles at his daughter. "Maybe Isabelle-"
"Dad. She's kinda young for pets. Besides, I think it likes you."