#earthrunes

Vince is the size of a housecat, as he watches the two 3 year olds playing in the park with their mom . Susan, forever his queen bess, smiles and tends. Both boys appear to be having a good time.. one plays in the litter box..err sand, with a scoop and bucket, the other sips his juicy cup

The one sipping a juicy cup has a Burger King crown on his head, clearly cut in size to fit. His brother had one too but it's lost by now

The majestic orange Tom purrs happily as he watches them. They are growing strong and well, and Queen Bess looks happy.

She does, fussing over her boys "No,don't EAT the sand"

Another woman with her own child goes "Susan , right? "

"Yes, Beth" Susan nods

"I understand your boys don't have a father?" A tut from Beth "A shame, my husband is a strong role model I value"

Vince pauses in licking a paw… listening

"My ex was an abusive asshole, and I'm very glad neither one has his DNA, because he blamed me for his fertility hang ups. I found not one,but two amazing men at a Gala, they did things to me most women only dream of, and finacial support keeps coming in, but do tell me about your pefect life, Beth" Dead pan "It's fascinating"

Beth blushes, sputtters, and retreats

taking her kid with her

Susan, as if she were a queen still, turns to her boys "Sorry kids, the world is fully of petty people. Look for the kind ones." A pause "Like those two men I mentioned. I don't remember much, but I know they were wonderful when I needed wonderful. "

One boy tries to eat sand again while mom isn't looking, the other has dropped his empty sippy cup, and tries to ninja away

Vince pads over and distracts the boy from his attempted getaway, waving his long fluffy tail… and getting a closer look.

Oh, the boy with the burger king crow's eyes widen and maybe with eyes that seem oddly familiar, or nnot so odd. Vince has met him before. The boy reaches ou a hand to touch the softness

He leans into the pet, and then, taking advantage of the fact that he is Metamorphed and not truly in his animal form, speaks to the boy, in a soft and velvety purr of a voice.

“Hello, lad. What’s your name?”

"Simba" the boy beams rather than given an answer to his name, clearly labeling the ttalkingg cat, and he strokes gently

He chuckles. “Yes, that’s my name. You’re a wise lad. Stay with your mother, my boy. I’ll be watching over you.”

"Okay" the boy says amiably, "Good kitty"

He is a VERY good kitty.

“Do you know how to share, my boy? Your mother’s friend, there? Why, I hear she doesn't have a sand box of her own. You might shovel some of this good sand into her purse to find later.”

The boy dutifiully gets up to do just that

Very pleased.

A moment later, the boy has done his task. Meawhile, Susan turns "Oh my. Okay, Dylan, Giles, time to go home I tthink"

One of tthe boys says "Bye bye Simba"

He raises a paw to wave, though silly adults may just think the cat is washing his paw.

"Oh dear, i Hope he's clean" Susan notices

"Dada" One of the kids says

The cat blinks bright amber eyes at Susan, she may notice a ribbon around his neck. A kept kitty, this, out on a stroll. No mangy stray here.

"Your father was taller" Susan assures her sons with a smile "I remember that much" And the boys back inn their two seat stroller, she walks away as the boys , both boys make litle wavey motions

A swish of tail and he pads back off, satisfied.

Indeed, and while much fuss is made over this new River, our dear Vince has every right to think the cutest kids in the world were the two he just checked on

---------

And so it is August returns

And seeks Coradel.

August is informed that Coradel has gone to speak with Lord Hume.

Then that's where he goes.

Lord Hume seems more confident than usua, but he still looks a BIT nervous with the Baronness

He can here her through his door. "...but I don't understand why removing information is so much harder than placing information."

August taps at the door.

"Come in!" Coradel calls, even though it's Hume's room.

"Because the interrnet holds onto stuff"

As he opens the door, August can see her blink at Hume. "The internet...is a chimera?"

"No, but folks save things, automatically, wayback machinnes, and copying... data collection is a resource, data erasure is a servie"

August enters, but doesn't interrupt.

She blinks again. "But...it can still be done, right?"

"Lord Hume, may I try an analogy?"

"Surely" Grateful look

"In a similar way to our Arts that affect memory, to change what the internet has stored and remembers takes delicate work and resources, and the effect can be hit-or-miss depending on the individual circumstances of each memory." August tries, glancing to check with Hume to see if he's close.

"Close" he says "But imagine every memory you had came with a book? And annyoe could pick the book up, make copies, and hen move on?"

"And all those books had to be erased too."