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Welt lounged lazily in his room, sitting in an armchair with a cup of tea in one hand and a nice book in the other. On such a nice, warm, sunny, and peaceful day, Welt wanted to make the most of his free time by doing absolutely nothing. Piles of books were stacked neatly at one side of the room- the doctors didn’t have an extra bookshelf to put them, and Welt preferred to have his books in his room. He took a sip from his tea, and smiled. This was the life.
“Dr. Tesla, you did what. ”
“He looked so lonely and sad, you can’t just expect me to leave him there! Plus, I think he likes me.”
“Meow!”
Welt slowly lowered his book, staring at the door and listening closely to the doctors’ muffled voices.
“What, are you allergic or something?”
“No, but we don’t have the time to take care of a cat. We barely have any time for ourselves.”
“We have an assistant now, remember?”
Welt then heard footsteps coming up to his room. He put his tea and book aside and stood up, just as Tesla opened the door.
“Oi, you! You better not be allergic to cats!”
Welt shrugged. “Not as far as I’m aware.”
Nestled in the twintails’ arms was a small, sleeping tabby cat. He seemed somewhat thin, and dirty. In other words, Tesla was holding a stray cat in her arms.
“I heard you from outside, actually,” Welt said. “You want me to take care of your cat, right?”
“Well, it’s not completely your responsibility. We’ll all take care of him together.”
“Uh…”
“Come on, you destroyed your eardrums for Mophead and this is where you draw the line?”
“...Ugh.”
“Now, Dr. Tesla, stop bullying him,” Ein said as she walked up behind Tesla. Thank god for Ein!
“I’m asking very politely, actually,” Tesla said. “I could be much ruder if you want.”
“...I didn’t actually say no to taking care of the cat, you know,” Welt sighed.
Tesla’s eyes lit up. “Yes! So we can keep him!”
“Fine,” Einstein said. “We’ll just tell Schicksal we need the extra funds for research.”
“Does he have a name?” Welt asked, sitting on the couch watching the cat play with a ball of yarn.
“Not yet,” said Tesla, sitting on the armrest beside him. “We should decide on one, honestly.”
“What about… Galileo,” suggested Einstein, who was sitting beside Welt on the couch. Tesla rolled her eyes.
“Do you ever come up with any good names, Mophead?”
“I think ‘Welt’ was a good name,” Welt said. “Despite the irony, I quite like it.”
“Shut it, bean sprout!” Tesla grumbled, giving him a light knock on the forehead.
“Ow… okay, maybe we can name him after Schrodinger? She likes cats, right?”
“That’s a terrible idea, actually,” Tesla huffed. “What about something normal, like Macaroni?”
“Such a mediocre name would not fit such a wonderful cat. Why don’t we name him something special, like 3.1415926535897-”
“Let’s just call him Pi,” sighed Welt. “Please, don’t call him all the digits of Pi.”
“I was only going to say the first 100 digits of Pi, saying every digit would be impossible. But, yes, Pi sounds like a very cute name.”
“I think Pi sounds cute too,” agreed Tesla. She looked down at the cat, who was watching them argue over his name. “Hey, kitty, are you cool with the name Pi?”
The cat looked up at her with his warm, emerald green eyes. Though he could not speak, his eyes said “I do not understand a word of what you said to me, for I am a cat who does not know english.”
“I think he says yes,” Welt noted.
“Your conclusion stems from intuition, not factual information,” Ein explained. “Though, since we’re all in agreement, and the cat cannot express his consent verbally, we can assume that he accepts the name Pi.”
“Welcome to the lab, Pi!” Tesla exclaimed, crouching down and scratching the cat’s head. It purred happily, rubbing its tail against her leg. Welt chuckled. Such a sweet, adorable little cat.
Welt soon learned that this cat also had quite an appetite. Despite being given a full bowl of food by Tesla just half an hour, Pi still swiped his hard-earned sandwich from his hand right as he was about to eat it. He watched in defeat as the cunning cat gobbled up the whole thing in one go, letting out a small, satisfied burp.
“Are you serious?!” complained Welt, crouching down on the floor and giving it a pat on the head. “I hope cats can eat the stuff in that sandwich.”
The cat meowed mischeviously, licking his paws with sass. He stuck his tongue out at a dumbfounded Welt, as if he meant to say “know your place, you pathetic wet sack!” He wondered if Pi was being influenced by Ein and Tesla already.
“Honestly, I can’t stay mad at you for long,” he said as he sat down on the floor beside Pi. “Not with that face.”
Pi mewed amiably, expressing his gratitude for Welt’s kind comment. As he pet the little tabby, an odd idea popped up from the back of his mind. ‘I’m not so different from this lonely stray cat,’ he thought to himself. ‘Though if there’s one thing which sets us apart, it must be Dr. Tesla’s personal opinion of us.’ His hand made his way behind the cat’s ear, Pi purring in delight as he gently scratched the back of his ear. He began to wonder things about him. How long was he living on the streets? Did Pi have a name before Tesla found him? Did Pi have any other… cat friends? Or perhaps other human friends?
He felt somewhat embarrassed, emphasizing so much with some random cat his friend had found in some alleyway. Perhaps Pi had sensed his discomfort, as he leaned in closer to Welt, resting his body on Welt’s warm sweater. Welt couldn’t help but chuckle, holding the cat in his arms. He was warm, soft, and fuzzy, filling Welt’s heart with joy and contentment.
…Who needs sandwiches, anyways?
“Oh, Pi,” remarked Dr. Einstein as the cat jumped up on her desk. “I’m quite busy right now, maybe Tesla or Welt can play with you.”
Pi, of course, stuboornly refused to leave the doctor alone, his furry tail brushing over her paperwork every so often and disrupting her focus. After a few attempts to get her work done, only to accidentally write on Pi’s tail, she put her pen down and got up to take him out of the room.
“Just stay outside. I need to finish these reports,” Einstein said as she began to pick the cat up. But just as his paws left the desk, he managed to snatch a picture frame from the doctor’s desk. Breaking free from her arms, Pi scurried out of the room.
“Tsk.” The girl wondered whether she should go after him or not. She quickly came to the conclusion that allowing the cat to misbehave like this would only make the problem worse as time came on. And, on that note, she let out a heavy sigh, and followed the path which the cat took.
She followed Pi into the study, then the kitchen, then the lab, until she finally cornered him in the study once again. Realizing he’s been defeated, the cat dropped the frame in his mouth, staring up at Ein with his classic kitten eyes. Unfortunately for him, Einstein was barely fazed by his cuteness, as she simply rolled her eyes and picked up the picture along with the cat.
“1946” was written in elegant cursive handwriting on the back of the old picture. The picture was of 3 smiling figures - an older man with dark hair and round glasses, a slightly younger woman with long green hair and a mischievous glint in her eyes, and a little girl with a wide smile and an unmistakable messy hairstyle.
This was a remnant from the doctor’s history, a relic of the past. That unforgettable summer changed her life forever, but all things had to end. She had learned years ago that some things may be gone forever, no matter how much you kept dreaming, no matter how long you kept hoping. But now, she was surrounded by many kind, wonderful people who brought her joy and security. And though this may one day all come to pass, she still felt happy.
‘Cats live for only a fraction of our own lifespans,’ she thought to herself. ‘ Yet we still wish to make their short lives as wonderful as possible.’
Pi felt surprisingly light, nestled in her arm. He slowly fell into slumber, and as Ein entered her office, she carefully lay Pi down on a couch beside the desk. She placed the old picture back where it was meant to be, and her eyes drifted towards a more recent picture, of her, Tesla, and Welt. Her smile was noticeably smaller in this picture, but perhaps that was just a consequence of growing up.
Perhaps they should take another one soon.
Tesla walked into the kitchen, yawning. Her eyes drifted over to Welt, filling Pi’s bowl with cat food. Welt scratched his head as Pi went to go eat. “Oh, we’re out of food.”
“Tsk, that cat eats a lot,” muttered Tesla. “Oi, bean sprout. Come on, let’s get this little fatty some more food.”
“How rude,” Welt remarked as he stood up. Tesla scoffed.
“Oh no, I’m gonna offend the cat who doesn’t even understand what we’re saying.”
Pi finished wolfing down his food, finished in less than a minute. As Tesla and Welt walked out the door, the cat dashed after them, climbing up on Welt’s scarf and sitting on his head.
“You look ridiculous,” Tesla joked. “Absolutely pathetic.”
“Ha-ha,” sighed Welt. “For such a big cat, Pi is weirdly light.”
“Such a curious phenomenon. Maybe this would be an interesting research topic for Mophead.”
“...I hope you’re joking.”
Tesla shrugged innocently. After a few moments, she asked him a question.
“What do you think of Mophead?”
“Ein? Kind of a sudden question, but I think… she’s a wonderful person. A kind, intelligent, and pleasant friend.”
To his surprise, Tesla simply smiled. “You may not believe me, but I’m actually quite happy you two get along. A lot of people don’t like her because they think she’s weird, or pretentious, and I think that’s honestly so dumb.”
“Really?”
“Yeah, so I guess you’re smart sometimes . That girl… she’s obnoxious sometimes, but she’s incredibly talented. And even then, I don’t think she can really be defined by how smart she is, or what she’s done.”
Welt silently followed along, nodding his head.
“You know, one time Professor Planck told me a story. Welt, I think you should know what I’m talking about.”
“Do I?” Welt thought for a bit, then realized. “Oh. You mean… Karl Gustav?”
“Yeah. Mophead… she’s been through a lot. Maybe that’s why she was so interested in you. Perhaps she just wanted some closure after that mysterious tragedy.”
Welt went quiet again, lowering his head. A wave of guilt washed over him. Pi, recognzing his sadness once again, gently comforted him with a soft purr and some headpats.
“Hey, don’t feel so down. The past is in the past, you know? Remember what I told you? Just keep living your life, don’t let Karl, or anyone else’s pasts hold you back.”
“I don’t know if you’ve realized yet, but,” continued Tesla. “There are people who love you now. You’re surrounded by love, they’re not limited to some boring old letters you get every so often anymore. I think you deserve to enjoy that, like any other person does.”
“Tesla…”
“Oh, don’t give me that. Besides, if we came home with you looking so gloomy, Mophead would blame me for it.”
The sun had set long ago, and the moon shone through the smog-filled skies of London, a lonely light in a sea of darkness. Sleeping under a beam of light which shone from a window was Pi. The cat began to wake from his dreams, his eyes slowly opening. He got up and stretched his legs, before heading over to an opened door leading into a lit room, the warm light spilling into the dark study.
Pi looked up at the desk, papers scattered messily all around. One of Dr. Tesla’s drones sat at the corner of the desktop, dangerously close to falling. Laying on the couch, fast asleep, were the 3 residents of Lab 42. Dr. Tesla slept in Dr. Einstein’s lap, with her lab coat still on and her glasses close to falling off of her face. She snored quietly and peacefully. Einstein was in her pajamas, her messy hair spread across the backrest. Sleeping on her shoulder was Welt, who looked somewhat awkward leaning down to the girl’s height. Still, he looked comfortable, huddling himself up in his coat.
Pi yawned, climbing up onto Tesla’s lap. He stretched his body once again, before laying down and curling up into a ball. The moon still shone bright in the sky as the four slept. Who knows what the morning will bring?