The Caterpillar: Part Two (special preview)

The Emotions Catalog was fairly new when I joined on. I had been working at the Sacred Archives for some time, so I had a set way of doing things already. Meeting Lutwidge for the first time, I thought I sensed a kindred soul who understood the work we were doing. He seemed so charming and regal upon our first encounter.

“I’m so excited to have a Platinum here,” he said. His hair was kept short back then, not the long mane he had now. He also wore his glasses regularly, and he had this wise, scholarly look to him.

“I’m very excited to be here myself,” I said as I followed along beside him. “I can’t wait to start working on the Catalog and make it something just as special as the Archives.”

Lutwidge got a look upon his face. “Oh, that’s right. You worked there.” he looked me up and down. “Emotions are a special thing,” he said calmly. “They won’t be as easy as the archives. Since they’ve had their system in place for ages.” He gave me a smile. “Things are going to be very different here at the catalog. Be prepared for that.”

Nothing could prepare me for what was going to become my norm from then on out. While keeping up appearances and making the top brass happy, Lutwidge also knew how to keep himself happy. He found a way to dilute emotions and turn them into flavors and essences for people to imbibe. He often used the hookah as his preferred method for such a thing.

“Why should the catalog be used only by the higher powers of Miror? They claim it’s for the best, but what will the rest of Miror see?” He told me one day when I questioned his shady dealings. “The archives are used by everyone, but the catalog?”

I was a bit more timid back then. “But that’s the order-”

Lutwidge put his finger on my lips. Yes, I’ll confess, at the time I did have a crush on him, and such a move made me swoon a little. “Haven’t you ever wanted to change the order and make it your own?” He brushed my hair from my face then slowly rubbed it up my soft, white ear. “Haven’t you ever thought you could do it so much better?”

I was blushing from my nose to the tips of my toes. “Well,” I fidgeted. All of that was not doing anything for my encroaching heat.

“Access to the masses is what I want.” he placed two of his six hands on my shoulders. “Don’t you want to help me achieve that?”

I stiffened up and nodded. “Yes, sir!”

Lutwidge chuckled softly then patted my head. “Alright then. From now on, it’s just the two of us. I’ll take care of you, and you take care of me.”

I was so excited even my tail began to twitch. “Yes! Of course!”

I’ve often thought back on how our relationship began, both with work and personal. I had supposed all this time he had charmed me and, over time, I just accepted him and his ways as being part of my life. But there must be more to it than what I’ve seen on the surface.

At first we worked together quite well. I took to the catalog naturally, while Lutwidge took ease at handling people, especially those in charge. The catalog was this big, brand new building, and the main hall was where all the work was done. The long hall was filled with shelves that moved and spun, revealing cabinets full of the emotions we kept. I created a system of organizing, first going by the basics of emotion and then splintering off by the subsets of each, as well as cross referencing those that blended together.

“Remarkable, this really is intuitive,” Lutwidge said one day, after going over my notes. “This will make the top brass very happy to see.”

“You really think so?” I gasped in elation. “I had tried introducing this method back when I worked at the Sacred Archives, but it’s so hard to make changes there. Everyone is so set in the old ways.” I smiled up at him. “So I'm happy you like this, sir.”

“No sense in settling on one thing,” Lutwidge replied. “Do you mind if I ask something?”

I was actually happy to have him ask me questions. “Go ahead!”

Lutwidge lowered the notebook in his hand and turned to face me. “Why do you call me sir? I never asked for that, nor is it needed.”

That wasn’t quite the question I was expecting. “That’s just what I am used to, I suppose. Even though I am a platinum rabbit, I was still one of the underlings at the sacred archives. This is my first job where I have a leader role. I should have asked what you would like.”

“Sir is fine. Lutwidge sounds so fussy when you say it out loud,” he laughed. “Call me sir or whatever you like. But what should I call you?”

“Dulcie is fine,” I replied. “I am not too picky. After being called ‘you there’ for so long, anything sounds much better.”

Lutwidge chuckled and he patted the top of my head. “Well, keep up the good work, Dulcie. I think the two of us will make a remarkable team.”