case #002 ☕ [dicated]

[themuse]

[Kate had tried. She had really tried to totally ignore the egg. She had ignored it when she'd woken up to find it had appeared on Castle's bed stand. She ignored it when he started poking it excitedly. She ignored it when she came into the room and found it sitting nestled between her pillow and some blankets. She ignored it so much, and with so much of her heart and soul, she was almost sure at some point she would blink and it would simply vanish.

Instead, it hatched.]

Hey. Hey! No, off the bed! Off the bed! What, you want to chew up the other pillow too? How about my shoes? You want one of those, too!

[It takes a moment for Kate to realize her journal is open. Mainly because the small direwolf puppy that hatched is now chewing on the corner, droplets of drool hitting the paper and she swats him to get him away.]

Castle! I swear... [She is going to strangle him. But since her journal is already open, she might as well take some advantage of it.] Does anyone have any... I don't know, dog food?

Comments

oof, work trip happened, feel free to ignore if this is too old!

[givetheslip]

I'm a little afraid to admit it. It...seems to be...a manticore, though such beasts aren't supposed to really exist. But it's just as the tales described.

[So, kinda ugly.]

no worries at all

[themuse]

Yeah, well, my fiance's kid got a unicorn. I think animals that actually exist weren't exactly a concern to whoever passed the eggs out.

[givetheslip]

At least you can tame it and get some use out of that sort of beast. Do you ride?

[themuse]

Ride? Uh, I have... before. Not in a while though. And I've definitely never rode a unicorn.

[givetheslip]

I doubt it's much different than riding a horse, though of course you'd have to watch out for more than its feet and teeth if it got annoyed.

[themuse]

[ Kate laughs at that. ] I guess you're right, I don't think a unicorn is something I'd want to mess with when it's in a bad mood. A manticore doesn't sound much better, either, actually. What are you going to do with it?

[givetheslip]

I'd like to cut the thing's head off, but apparently that isn't acceptable.

[Maria Thorpe, parent of the year.]

[themuse]

[ Welp. ] I could see how that would be frowned upon in some circles. I take it your 'acquaintance' wants to keep it?

[givetheslip]

Yes. [Here is a deep, long-suffering sigh.] It didn't seem worth it to fight him and deal with the beast.

[themuse]

[ Kate can't help but laugh. ] Believe me, I get it. I'm pretty sure my fiancé isn't letting this one go without a fight and I'm really weighing whether or not it's worth it.

[givetheslip]

Perhaps we should leave the two of them to parent these beasts together and free ourselves from the burden.

[themuse]

That's not a bad plan. Let them bond over their new pets and leave us out of it. I don't know about you, but I definitely have better things to do than teach a dog how to play fetch.

[givetheslip]

Wonderful. I'll tell him to look out for—what was the name of your betrothed?

[themuse]

Uh, Castle. Richard Castle. He's been here for a while.

[givetheslip]

Ah, the trickster. I've spoken with him before.

[themuse]

The trickster? I guess he's made a reputation for himself.

[givetheslip]

Just a little. He was responsible for a few japes at the beginning of last month. Nothing harmful.

[themuse]

I'll try to keep him under better control from now on.

[givetheslip]

I don't think I got the worst of it, but others will be thankful, I'm sure.

[themuse]

He's always been good at finding trouble. Or causing it.

[givetheslip]

In my experience, those who do one of those often tend to be very good at the other, too.

[themuse]

That is... So true. Guess you know the type, huh?

[givetheslip]

I've known enough of them. Hopefully your fellow is less aggravating than most of the ones I've met.

[themuse]

On and off with him. Sometimes he drives me totally nuts but... I guess it's something I like about him.

[givetheslip]

I...think I might know the feeling. And I'm sure he has his better points.