Chapter 8
Once James released her, Katie scooted over to her husband and pulled his arm around her. She looked up at her husband for protection. In a shocked voice, she said, "He's crazy."
It had taken Nancy a moment to recover from the shock of hearing that James was going to propose to her. She didn't realize that she was still on her knees in the begging position she had taken before the doorbell rang. Looking at her sister-in-law, she burst out laughing. It took her almost a minute to recover. Finally, she said, "You caught us in a playful mood. We were just having a little fun when you rang."
Joe was wondering what kind of kook his sister had hooked up with. Still standing on the porch, he leaned in and asked, "You were playing?"
Looking a little more serious, James removed the cape and stepped back. His action may not have altered their opinion of him, but he did look a bit more normal. Winking over at Nancy, he said, "Come on in, you two. No need to stand out there like Jehovah Witnesses."
"Come in. He doesn't bite," Nancy said and, after a slight pause, added, "much."
The couple stepped into the house. Katie made sure that her husband kept his arm around her. Seeing how closely she stood to her husband, James knew he had blown her mind. He said, "Nancy was just saying that you are a fan of mine."
"I was," Katie answered slowly.
"Good. I like hearing that past tense," James said with a smile of relief. This looked like one evening saved from the attentions of a fan who asked about every little detail of his books. Seeing the surprised expression on her face, he said, "Now you can get to know me and not the author."
"Oh," Joe said looking over at Nancy trying to judge by her reaction if James was being honest. His sister looked like she was having way too much fun with this situation. That was often a bad sign for his emotional state. That didn't keep him from relaxing a little.
James led them over to the couch and, after gesturing to it, said, "Have a seat."
While the couple sat down, James went over to where Nancy was still kneeling. He held out a hand and helped her rise from the floor. She continued to hold his hand once she was standing. Pulling him with her, she went over to her sister-in-law and hugged her with one arm. Grinning at the looks her sister-in-law was giving James, she said, "Hello, Katie. What do you think of James?"
"I'm not sure," Katie answered continuing to stare in the direction of the famous author.
"I'm sorry about the greeting at the door. We really were playing around when you rang and, well, he was just having a little fun with you," Nancy said. She was convinced that her sister-in-law would never forget that introduction.
"So was he proposing to you?" Joe asked.
"I hadn't quite gotten to that point, but I was rapidly approaching it," James answered.
"Really?" Nancy asked turning to face him and biting her lower lip.
He reached into his pocket and pulled out a jewelry case. Turning to Nancy, he tied the towel around his neck. Taking the heroic stance, he said, "My plan to foil the evil super-villain is to make you my wife. No evil super-villain will risk the wrath of Superwriter by attacking his wife. Will you agree to be part of my master plan?"
"Oh yes, Superwriter. I agree to be part of your plan," Nancy answered staring at the diamond ring. This was not exactly the kind of proposal that she had dreamed about, but it was exactly what she had come to expect from him. She giggled at the idea of how his publisher or agent would react if they were here to see it.
"Gosh! That's so neat! Let's kiss!" James said after slipping the ring on her finger. He stepped back into his superhero pose. It was so obvious that he was playing around that even Katie giggled at the sight.
Laughing, Nancy flowed into his arms and kissed him. The Quatyl, fearing the worst, immediately ran from the room. Too often kisses turned into more intimate activities and that led to them laying eggs. They weren't taking any chances.
The unexpected sight of eight small animals fleeing the room provoked a scream from Katie. She climbed up on the couch and pointed toward the hallway where the Quatyl had run. Convinced that she had entered a crazy house, she shouted, "What were those things?"
Breaking their kiss, Nancy guessed what had happened. In a lighthearted voice, she said, "Those were the Quatyl."
"The what-el?" Joe asked looking confused.
"The Quatyl," James answered removing the towel now that the proposal was over. Turning to face the hallway, James called out, "Hey, you critters can come out here. We're not going to have sex. We want you to meet Nancy's family."
Katie looked at James when he mentioned the bit about sex. Joe asked, "Sex?"
"They don't like it when we have sex," Nancy said thinking it was weird talking about that in front of her brother.
With a pained looked on his face, Joe raised a hand, palm out to Nancy, and said, "Too much information."
A minute later, the eight Quatyl entered the living room looking around cautiously. Katie stared at the little animals for a full five seconds. She squealed and said, "They are so cute!"
Nancy said, "They are, aren't they?"
After a nice quiet dinner, Joe and Katie were seated on the couch while James and Nancy were seated on the loveseat. Joe had Scar on his lap and Katie was petting Face. Both Quatyl were purring. Running a hand along Scar's back, Joe said, "These are wonderful animals."
"I'm glad you like them," James said thinking that the couple had just adopted the pair even if they didn't know it yet. He reached down and petted Scout; evoking a loud purr from it.
"So you found them when you were down in Mexico?" Katie asked. Nancy had mentioned that he had found them while working on his last book.
"Yes," James answered. Realizing that it wasn't quite an accurate description of what happened, he added, "Actually, it was more like they found me. I was working away on the computer when Scout appeared at the door of the cabin. I tried to scare him off. When he didn't run off, I let him in and, well, the rest is history."
Katie was silent for a minute and then asked, "Do you think their sudden appearance has anything to do with that spaceship that crashed in Central America?"
"I doubt it. That was almost two hundred miles away from where I was staying," James answered. Scout raised his head and looked over at Katie.
"They said that it was filled with all kinds of unusual animals," Nancy said. Face listened carefully to what Nancy was saying. She was kind of proud that her pet was putting together an accurate picture of what happened.
"There was a big centaur creature that was discovered not too far from my cabin. It had been dead for a week or so before they discovered it. If it was from that crash and it took that long to make it that far, I doubt these little fellows could make that trip in the same amount of time. These little critters aren't really built for speed," James said. If Scout could have snorted, he would have. He wondered why his beast didn't think that they might have ridden out of the swamp on the back of the Gnord.
"You're probably right," Joe said.
"It was probably just a co-incidence that you discovered them in the same area where that Centaur was found," Katie said. She leaned down and kissed the Quatyl on the top of its head. She cooed, "These Quatyl are just so cute. I love them."
Having heard what Katie had said, it was obvious that their attempt to adopt a pet was succeeding. Scar wanted a chance to discuss the adoption of the pet with the other members of the crew. There were significant consequences to success. Scar rose and wiggled a little.
Noticing his movement, Nancy said, "Joe, I think he wants down."
"Oh," Joe said. He gently put the little animal on the ground. Scar moved a few feet away and then stopped to see if the other Quatyl would follow him.
Understanding what he wanted, Face performed the same little rise and wiggle maneuver. Reluctantly, Katie set Face down on the floor. The pair of them headed towards the kitchen and stopped to look back at the dens from which the others were watching. The other four Quatyl followed them out of the room.
Responding to cues from the animals on their laps, James and Nancy set Scout and Cubby on the floor. The pair raced off to the kitchen.
Having watched what was going on, Katie asked, "What are they doing?"
"They probably just want to eat a little something. They like it when you leave out food for them," Nancy answered.
"They might want to play," James said.
"Why not play here?" Katie asked.
Nancy answered, "They play this little game in the kitchen where they jump around on the tiles. It is really kind of cute. We haven't figured out if there are rules or not, but they enjoy it."
Joe said, "It sounds like you really enjoy having them as pets."
"You bet. They really are the perfect pet. They are very well behaved and aren't overly active. We've had almost a hundred of them in here and not one of them ever destroyed anything in the house. They don't eat much, just a little baby food. They aren't really too demanding of your time and, somehow, they know when not to bother you. Really, they are very clever little critters," James said.
"How do you think they would be with children?"
"Actually, I'm more worried about the children hurting them. They are completely defenseless. They don't have claws or teeth so they can't protect themselves by biting or scratching," Nancy answered.
"They sure are cute," Katie said with a sigh. She was wondering if they could take one of the Quatyl home with them.
"I agree with you on that," James said. He caught Nancy looking down at the ring on her finger. He put an arm around her and drew her close to him. She sighed and relaxed against him.
Looking over at James, Katie asked, "So what are you working on?"
"Oh, I was putting together the outline for another Dr. Dud story," James answered with a wink at Nancy. She giggled.
"What's it going to be about?"
"Dr. Dud is going to marry Bee Reste. Together they will have a son by the name of Arthur Dud. This book is going to be a set up for my masterpiece," James answered.
Katie was quiet for a moment and then burst out laughing. She said, "I love it. The wife's name is Breasty."
"I was going to make her middle name Ann," James said.
"So after she's married, her name becomes Bee A. Dud," Katie said with a laugh.
Listening to the exchange, Joe shook his head in wonder. He asked, "How do you come up with those kinds of things?"
"Like Katie said when she came in the house, I'm crazy," James said with a grin.
"You said that you were creating the set up for your greatest masterpiece?" Joe asked.
Knowing where James was going to take the discussion, Nancy said, "You know that your publisher will never let you include the raccoon."
"Raccoon?" Joe asked looking confused.
James asked, "Have you ever wondered what noise a raccoon makes when it has an orgasm?"
"I imagine that it is a chirrup kind of sound," Joe answered surprised by the question.
"You are not going to have Arthur Dud rescue a raccoon and have his way with it," Nancy said rolling her eyes at him. She wished she had a camera to capture the expression on her brother's face.
Laughing at the image that flashed through her mind, Katie said, "That's too funny. You know, they like to wash their food before they eat. That has a lot of potential."
"You were right. She's a true fan," James said with a grin.
The Quatyl had gathered in the kitchen. Leac and Lear were walking around on the floor spelling out their conversation. Leac said, 'I want to adopt Joe.'
Lear said, 'I want to adopt Katie.'
'So?' Stac asked. He was not the only one of the Quatyl to wonder why they were taking the time to announce it now.
Taking over the floor, Lear said, 'We have to decide now.'
'Why?' Stac asked.
Leac answered, 'Katie and Joe will not stay here much longer. You know that.'
Lear said, 'We will have to leave with them when they go. We have to start their training.'
Getting angry at having two members of the crew threatening to leave, Atac said, 'We need to stay together.'
'Why?' Ceac asked, 'Our ship has been destroyed. We are stuck here on this planet.'
Cear said, 'We're going to find a pet and leave one of these days. We can't rely on your pets taking care of us forever.'
Looking from face to face, Atar could not believe that the original crew was breaking up. She said, 'We are still on a mission.'
The reminder of the mission depressed Atac. He moved onto the floor and said, 'Atar, they are right. The mission has been a failure. We aren't leaving this planet and they do need to consider their survival. That goes for Ceac, Cear, Stac, and Star, as well.'
'I'm going to miss you Lear and Leac," Star said once she accepted the inevitability of their leaving.
Moving slowly across the floor to spell out her message, Lear said, 'Oh, my friend Star. I'm going to miss you too.'
Joe and Katie left taking Scar and Face with them. The other Quatyl had gathered by the door and watched their crewmates leave. They were a subdued and quiet lot. Giving up the children had been hard, but that was the Quatyl way. Giving up friends with whom they had gone through miserable times was even harder.
James and Nancy stood at the open door and waved farewell to their guests. When the car pulled away, James said, "I'm going to miss Scar and Face."
"Me too," Nancy said. She looked down at the Quatyl as they slowly made their way to their individual dens. She said, "I think the other Quatyl will miss them too."
"Yeah," James said turning to watch them slink under their chairs.
Nancy didn't want the night to end on such a sour note. She smiled at the thought of what she had planned for that evening. Turning to James, she asked, "Would you mind taking the cups out to the kitchen? I'll wash them in the morning."
"No problem," James said looking around at the minor mess created by entertaining. Coffee cups and desert plates were set haphazardly on the coffee table. Thinking that the work would do him some good, he bent over and picked up two of the cups on saucers and headed out to the kitchen.
When he had left the room, Nancy bent down towards the floor. In a soft voice, she said, "You guys might want to make yourself scarce for a while. I'm going to take him in the bedroom for a little sex."
The three pairs of Quatyl stuck their heads out from under the chairs and looked up at Nancy. Deciding that they needed to know where the action was going to take place, she added, "We'll be in the bedroom."
There was a visible reaction to her announcement. The Quatyl relaxed and returned to their dens. They would move to the farthest corner of the house when James headed towards the bedroom.
After walking into the bedroom, Nancy went to the closet and removed the Genii costume she had purchased. She put it on and said, "You made all of my wishes come true this evening, Mr. James Leonard Foster. Tonight, I'm going to make a few of yours come true."
The night ended with James and Nancy being very happy. It was a very nice night in which no hair was pulled, pubic or otherwise, no heads knocked, and no mistaking of the navel with a nipple. Of course, the fake emerald gemstone in Nancy's navel may have had a little to do with that later condition. Although not nearly so happy, the Quatyl were relieved to have been given the warning.
Time passed with Nancy and James getting married in a traditional ceremony. By that time, all of the Quatyl with the exception of Scout and Cubby had been adopted by other family members. Within three years of their marriage, the young couple had two fine upstanding children, Bee and Arthur, although many wondered how they could have possibly given their children those names.
The spaceship that had been discovered in Central America helped propel the world into a new space age. The engines and computers had been reverse engineered. The star maps had been extracted from the computers and input into the new ones developed on Earth. New sensors had been developed. The material sciences had advanced. Spaceships, visible as bright dots, became a common sight in the night sky.
Arthur grew up to be a structural engineer specializing in space structures. The great project being developed when he graduated from college was a space station at the edge of the solar system. It was to be the last structure on the way to the vast unknown space outside the solar system. The official name was St. Louis in honor of the gateway to the west.
Arthur had the great fortune of helping to design the structure. The effort lasted the first few years of his career and established him as an internationally known engineer. It was followed by an effort to create a new spacecraft capable of navigating deep space. Arthur was fortunate to be named the lead engineer on that project.
Much to the consternation of her brother, Bee grew up with the same sense of humor possessed by her father. It manifested whenever it was the most embarrassing for him. After hearing about her father's proposal to her mother, Bee kept a small scarf in her purse at all times in case there was ever a need for the Daughter of Superwriter. She had embarrassed her brother many times with that cape, particularly in front of new girlfriends.
With the passage of time, Nancy and James grew old and died of natural causes. Scout and Cubby went to live with Bee. By the time the pair of Quatyl died of old age, there were almost a million Quatyl distributed across the world. The numbers were still growing at an enormous rate.
There were some interesting consequences as a result of the introduction of Quatyl to Humanity. People had separated into two camps, those who were accepted by the Quatyl and those who weren't. Those who were accepted by the Quatyl didn't trust those who were not. It seemed to people that Quatyl were extraordinary judges of character. For almost forty years, not one prisoner in jail had ever owned a Quatyl or, at least, a Quatyl that didn't growl at them.
Membership in the camp of those who were accepted by the Quatyl didn't really require that the person own one; just that a Quatyl wouldn't growl in their presence. No one really understood how the Quatyl formed their judgments. It just worked out that the little animals didn't like people who had selfish or criminal natures. The Quatyl didn't even understand how they could assess the character of a person so easily.
With time, Quatyl become more than just pets. Many companies kept Quatyl in their personnel departments. Folks who were growled at by the Quatyl were seldom hired. There wasn't much that the person could do to change the minds of those who trusted the judgment of the Quatyl.
Things changed for the Quatyl as well. While animal behaviorists argued that the Quatyl had no language skills beyond that of parrots, everyone else knew otherwise. The Quatyl loved to communicate using toy blocks with the letters of the alphabet on them. More than one lonely person had spent the night having long drawn out conversations with their Quatyl. The topics were actually quite varied and sometimes included engineering concepts. A few people even built the devices suggested by the Quatyl. Those that did so found that they were exceptionally rich as a result. Scientists often scoffed at those claims and suggested that illegal substances had to have been involved to produce such realistic hallucinations.
The average pet store had whole lines of products devoted for Quatyl. There were little habitats lined with lead that seemed to give them respite when couples had sex. There was even a self flushing toilet that could be used by the Quatyl. That was a particularly popular item with Quatyl owners. Other products included car seats, carry alls, and gourmet foods.
There was one toy that every Quatyl couple had to have. This was a small rectangular board with sixteen strange symbols painted on the front of it. People noticed that the Quatyl would take turns running from symbol to symbol in what appeared to be a tremendously complex game. Some folks suggested that they were actually talking to each other using the board, but the experts disagreed.
As strange as the game appeared to people, that had to take a backseat to the Quatyl fondness for guinea pigs. It was often commented that happiest Quatyl couples were those who lived in a household with the little rodents. It seemed to most people that the guinea pigs were happy as well since they were always making little squeaking noises.
For the Quatyl, the slight improvement in their standard of living made their time on Earth barely tolerable. For the majority of them, they no longer had to squat over the ground like mindless animals. Couples could talk to each other using either the letter board or a guinea pig, although the later was preferred.
Individual Quatyl, using the knowledge imprinted while in the egg,
worked hard to train their pets to take even better care of them. It
was a long slow process, but there were advances every year. The
hardest part was training the pet to pay attention to their attempts to
communicate.