CASSIE'S CHILDREN'S CONCERT Written by & copyright of Tom Radigan Featuring Cassie and Foxonian (Cassie's Husband) Cassie, the Rock & Roll Vixen http://www.cassietherockvixen.furtopia.org Please read the prequil, "Still Live," featuring Cassie, Foxonian (Cassie's Husband) Mark "Sparky" Robinson (Cassie's father), Cindy, (Cassie's Bassist) and Shiva (Cassie's security chief) at http://www.cassietherockvixen.furtopia.org/still_live.txt Please read the sequil, Ghosts of the Past, featuring Cassie and Jeff Best (former Furrosity lead singer & old friend of Cassie) at http://www.cassietherockvixen.furtopia.org/ghosts_of_the_past.txt All characters created by & copyright of Earl Bacon except Laretta, who is created by and copyright of Andre' Cotton, Alex, who is created by and copyright of Donna Fritz, Vixina and Cloudchaser, who are created by and copyright of Cloudchaser Shaconage and Victor & Ben, who are copyright themselves. Cassie's Children's Concert “Cassie, we've got to hurry, it's nearly time!” Foxonian called. “All right, all right,” responded Cassie as she finished fixing her hair in the bathroom. Satisfied she looked fine, she opened the door and stepped out into the hall. To her surprise, her husband had already found the case containing her acoustic guitar and had laid it against the wall nearby. She grabbed it and ran over to her husband, who was standing near the front door. “Do I look all right?” she asked. “You look just fine,” replied Foxonian, knowing she wanted an honest opinion and was not fishing for compliments. She would be playing a concert, but this time it would be at an elementary school and her audience would be a group of young children. This was quite an unusual event for the red fox furry morph vixen, who normally played an electric guitar in recording studios or large concert venues along with her band of other female furry morphs. But today she would be playing her acoustic guitar, more suited for her small young audience, and far easier to transport and use. For this concert she was not wearing her usual attire, either. She still wore her black choker on her neck, as well as black sheer seamed stockings with garters and pumps, but today she had on a more modest light blue patterned sleeveless sun dress, and her shoes were also light blue, and matched both her dress and her eyes. “You look fine too,” Cassie half-joked to her human husband, who was dressed plainly in a green striped short-sleeved shirt and tan twill trousers, and brown street shoes. They would travel together to the school, but Foxonian was there as an escort, rather than to perform. Cassie still couldn't figure out how the two of them got talked into this, as her normal audience was not small children, and she wasn't necessarily expecting them all to be future fans of her music. But it was a break from her long session of studio recording with her band mates, which was just as well as her latest songs weren't turning out quite the way she wanted. She was happy to have a day off doing anything else but that. “Let's go then,” said Foxonian, and they left the house and locked the front door. They walked up to the small sedan which they used on occasions when they didn't care to use one of their flashier vehicles. They were not going to a lower-class neighborhood where they feared their car might end up being stripped or stolen, but they wanted to subtly convey the message that this was not a special event for them; they were just doing a favor for the people at the school. Foxonian took out his keys, unlocked the trunk, and Cassie threw the guitar case inside. Closing the trunk, Foxonian got into the driver's seat while his wife entered the passenger's, and they drove the five miles to the school. It was a sunny spring day, not too warm, and the ride was pleasant. Foxonian found the staff parking lot and pulled into the space they had been told was reserved for them. Just as they got out of the car, several people stepped out of the school building and approached them. One was a heavy balding man with a darkish complexion, and wearing a white shirt, dark pants and shoes, and half-open striped tie, another was a youngish woman with red long wavy hair, light patterned pink blouse, brown slacks, and black shoes, and an older woman with gray-brown straight long hair, and a rather businesslike-looking mauve top and long skirt, with matching sandals. The young woman arrived first. “Glad you could come,” she said, and she gave both Foxonian and Cassie hugs. The three of them knew each other; the woman's name was Sandy Warner, and was responsible for convincing Cassie to give a concert at the school. She then introduced the two others. “This is Julie Snyder,” announced Sandy, and the older woman shook hands with them both. Sandy indicated the man and said, “This is the principal, Jason White.” The man looked uncomfortable as he reached toward Cassie, who guessed that this was the first time he had ever met a furry morph. He shook her hand, but was very timid in doing so. He then turned toward Foxonian and shook his hand with equal timidness, not saying anything in the way of greeting. Foxonian was somewhat miffed; certainly he was married to, and lived and slept with, a furry morph, but did that make him a leper? Of course a number of people felt that way about him, and that was the price he had to pay for his marriage to Cassie-a price he had no regrets paying. “Cassie and I have been friends for a while now,” said Sandy. “Children's entertainment isn't normally your line of work, is it?” asked the principal, speaking for the first time. “Heavens, no,” Cassie laughed. “This is my first time I ever gave a children's concert, in fact.” “What songs do you intend to perform?” asked Julie. Cassie indicated her husband taking the guitar case out of the trunk. “Whatever songs go best with an acoustic guitar,” she replied. “I take it you're not going to smash it in the end,” said the principal in a tone which made the others wonder if he was joking or not. “Are you kidding? Of course not!” replied Cassie in a tone which definitely indicated she was not joking. “That kind of behavior was old hat decades ago. Why would I wreck a perfectly good guitar anyway?” “Do you already have a song list prepared?” asked Julie. “I have one,” said Sandy before Cassie could respond. “I thought we'd go inside and go over it to make sure it's okay.” They all entered the school building, and went down the hall to a secretarial office. Cassie and Foxonian were surprised to hear the noises of children but the halls empty. “It's the last class of the day,” said Sandy as if reading their thoughts, “so we've got a half-hour before everyone will gather to hear you.” “Where do I perform?” asked Cassie. “In the gym,” answered the principal. “Everything has already been set up.” Sandy pulled out several papers. “Actually, I have two lists,” she said. “I thought we'd start out with some traditional children's songs, then you'd play several of your songs.” “That's fine,” Cassie replied, then looked with surprise at the large number of song titles on each list. “I'm supposed to play all these?” Sandy smiled. “Of course not. These are lists of songs to choose from, which we thought would be most suitable. You pick out the ones you'd prefer.” Cassie looked at the traditional songs list, and at the top was “This Old Man.” “I remember when I was a child, and we had this school performance where our class sang it and acted it out.” The principal was surprised. “I thought you were just supposed to play the guitar and sing, and the kids listen?” “Yes, it is,” Sandy hastily replied. “But you can have the kids sing along if you like.” “I usually don't have people sing along with me during my concerts,” said Cassie. “But my audience isn't normally little children.” “Whatever you feel best,” said the principal. “It's your concert.” “That should be fine for the first song,” concluded Cassie. “Singing along is optional. I won't prompt the kids to do so or anything.” “What about 'Old MacDonald Had A Farm?'” asked Sandy. Cassie mulled for a second. “Yes, but which animals to refer to? It would make things complicated, and I prefer to sing straightforward songs.” “Okay, we'll cross that off,” said Sandy. “How about 'Puff The Magic Dragon?'” Cassie, Foxonian, and the principal all looked appalled. “What a horrible song to sing to children!” Cassie exclaimed. Sandy was nonplussed. “Excuse me?” “I remember hearing it as a boy, and it really bothered me,” broke in Foxonian. “I felt tremendously sorry for Puff when the boy deserted him! I actually thought he would commit suicide!” “I heard it as a boy too, and I cried for the rest of the day after I heard it!” said the principal, who was now really staring at Cassie and Foxonian. “Jackie Paper loved him, then suddenly up and decided he wanted nothing more to do with him, and didn't even say goodbye.” Cassie and Foxonian looked at each other, and guessed why the principal was staring at them like he did. “I can assure you,” said Foxonian to the principal as he put his arm around his wife, “Cassie and I have been married several years now, and I have no intention whatsoever of leaving her.” The principal relaxed as he was convinced Foxonian meant everything he said, and that he and his wife shared the familiar closeness only a married couple could have. Wanting to put the situation behind them, Cassie suddenly asked Sandy, “What other songs do you have on the list?” Sandy quickly crossed “Puff The Magic Dragon” off the list, then said, “Uh, 'On Top Of Spaghetti'.” Cassie smiled. “That should be a good choice. I'll perform that one.” “Okay,” said Sandy, “and there's 'Dad Threw The TV Out The Window'.” “What?” asked the principal, surprised. “I don't think that song is appropriate to sing at a school concert,” said Julie, breaking her silence. “What's the title again?” asked Cassie, unsure she heard it correctly. “Never mind, let's not do that one,” replied Sandy, crossing the title off the list. “It's 'Dad Threw The TV Out The Window', and it's about a father who's upset that his children are watching the TV all day and doing nothing else, and finally does as the song title says and the kids finally do other things.” Sandy smiled and added, “And in the last verse of the song, the kids catch the father watching a ball game on television, and they get back at him.” “Sounds cute, but not really appropriate to sing at a school, like she said,” said Cassie. “So what else do you have?” Sandy ran down the list, Cassie selecting several others and discarding the rest. When the last song title was reached, Sandy was looking at it hesitantly. “I'm not sure if this song is appropriate or not,” she said finally. “Why, what is it?” replied Cassie. “It's called 'The Fox Went Out On A Chilly Night,” Sandy said. “Oh, that's perfect,” Cassie replied brightly. “Thanks for finding that one! I'll certainly perform that!” “You're familiar with that song?” asked Sandy in surprise. “Of course I am,” said Cassie, who started singing, “The fox went out...” “Wait, wait,” interrupted Sandy. “I know it's fox-related, and you're a fox, er...” “'Red fox furry morph' is the technical term, but it's okay to call me a fox,” said Cassie. “But the song depicts the stereotypical act of a fox stealing a goose from a pen,” replied Sandy. “But foxes really do that,” said Cassie. “I'm not offended by hearing about that.” “And in the end, the goose gets killed and eaten,” said Sandy. “That might be upsetting to little children.” “I'm sure they're old enough to learn about that sort of thing by now,” replied Cassie. “Certainly some of them must have cats or other pets who go out and catch things, and they must know where meat comes from. Especially if they've seen the Thanksgiving turkey carved.” “All right,” said the principal. “You seem to particularly want to perform that song, and I see no problem with it. And you're right, kids should know by now about animals being killed and eaten.” “Okay,” replied Sandy with a hint of reluctance. “That takes care of the traditional songs, what about your own?” Cassie took the paper with her songs listed, borrowed a pen from a nearby desk, and crossed off all but three of the song titles on it. “Those are the three I already decided on of mine,” she said. “They're children's songs?” inquired Sandy. “No, no,” replied Cassie, “just three songs I decided were most appropriate for our audience, and which would sound right on an acoustic guitar. I assume you weren't expecting me to bring my band along.” “No, of course not,” said Sandy. “Are we all set then?” “Lead the way,” replied Cassie. “Wait,” said the principal. “I have to make sure everything is ready.” He left the office as the others waited silently. About ten minutes later he came back. “Okay, follow me,” he said. The group followed him out of the office through a hallway, then the principal unlocked a door, and they went through. To Cassie's surprise, they wound up going through a kitchen area, whose operations were all shut down. She suspected the school's gymnasium also doubled as a cafeteria. Then the principal opened another door, and the group went out into the gymnasium. Along the right-hand wall was a set of wooden pull-out bleachers, which had been pulled out. But they were unoccupied, and a sizable group of children ranging from first through fifth grade were standing in front of a set of doors beside the bleachers. Cassie was rather surprised to see they were all human and no furry morphs were among their number, though she knew of no other furry morphs who lived in the immediate neighborhood. In fact, the children seemed rather surprised to see a real furry morph in their presence, and the younger ones even started running up to her. The ignored the school staff who told them to get back, and began rubbing her furry arms and tail, to determine they were for real. She crouched down and some of the children gave her hugs, which she returned. After the hugging and petting session died down and the children went back to rejoin the group, two of the older children were standing near her, holding pens and paper. “Can I have your autograph?” they chorused. “Sure,” replied Cassie, and one of the children was a girl with a blank autograph book; Cassie suspected she was an autograph hunter, and added the first autograph to her collection. “Thank you,” she said and went back. Then she noticed the boy, who was holding a ticket stub from one of her concerts. “My brother is a big fan of your music,” said the boy. “I like it myself. When he heard you were coming here, he tried to come here himself,” The boy smiled and added, “But they wouldn't let him.” Ah, I do have at least one actual fan in the audience, Cassie thought happily to herself. She smiled and said aloud, “It's just as well. This is just me with an acoustic guitar, not the normal concert with my band.” “Are you going to sing any of your songs?” asked the boy. “Oh yes,” replied Cassie. “Later on, but first I'm singing some regular children's songs as a warm-up.” “All right then,” said the boy, and started to walk back before Cassie stopped him. “Don't you want my autograph?” she said, and the boy hurriedly brought back the ticket stub, which Cassie signed. The boy went to rejoin the group, and the school staff ushered the children into the bleachers while Cassie walked toward an area where a stool and a microphone stand was set up. Cassie checked the tuning on her guitar, then the operation of the amplifiers, and told the principal, who had come nearby, that everything was ready. Then the principal went to address the audience in the bleachers. “All right, today we have a very special guest,” he announced. “I know that some of you know who she is and are fans of her music. For everyone else, she is a well-known rock musician and has graciously come to perform for our school. So, let's give a big welcome to Mrs. Cassandra Vixena, or as some may know her, 'Cassie-The Rock Vixen!'” There was applause from the gathered children, and cheers from those who were familiar with Cassie. The vixen smiled and stepped up to the microphone, “This is a special performance for you, kids. Normally I play an electric guitar and have five other band members perform with me, all female furry morphs like myself, and I play big concert stadiums. I know there are at least a couple of you who are in fact quite familiar with me and my band, and you will hear me play several of my own songs at the end, though I shall start by playing more traditional children's songs, which I have personally chosen. So are you ready to hear me perform?” The children said yes, so Cassie then announced, “Okay, our first song will be 'This Old Man'. I trust everyone knows that one.” The furry morph did not necessarily mean it as a joke, but there was a smattering of laughter from the audience. Cassie started to play her guitar and sing, “This old man, he played one, he played knick-knack on my thumb, With a knick-knack, patty-whack, give the dog a bone, this old man came rolling home.” She heard some of the children sing along as she went up to ten, then said, “Okay, that's enough. Next song is 'On Top of Spaghetti'. How many of you know that one?” About half the children raised their hands. “Okay, then...” “On top of spaghetti, all covered with cheese, I lost my poor meatball when somebody sneezed.” After completing that song, Cassie announced, “All right, here's another song on the topic of a meatball, but this time without the spaghetti. It's an old song called 'One Meatball'.” She started playing the guitar and sang, “A little man walked up and down, He found an eating place in town, He read the menu through and through, To see what fifteen cents would do.” A few laughs emanated from the children, but Cassie simply replied as she continued playing her guitar, “I said it was an old song.” There was a brief burst of laughter from not only the children but the adults as well, which quickly subsided. Then Cassie continued, “One meatball, one meatball, He could afford but one meatball. He told the waiter near at hand, The simple dinner he had planned. The guests were startled, one and all, To hear that waiter loudly call, 'What, One meatball, one meatball, Hey, this here gent wants one meatball.' The little man felt ill at ease, Said, 'Some bread, sir, if you please.' The waiter hollered down the hall, 'You gets no bread with one meatball. One meatball, one meatball, Well, you gets no bread with one meatball.' The little man felt very bad, One meatball was all he had, And in his dreams he hears that call, 'You gets no bread with one meatball. One meatball, one meatball, Well, you gets no bread with one meatball.'” “All right then,” announced Cassie after completing the song, “here's a little change of pace. This is a song you might have heard on the radio sometimes.” Then she started performing the Jim Croce song “Bad, Bad Leroy Brown”. “Well, the south side of Chicago is the baddest part of town, And if you go down there, you'd better just beware of a man named Leroy Brown.” The principal, Julie, and Foxonian were surprised to hear Cassie sing that, as this was not actually a children's song either. But Sandy and Cassie both thought it acceptable for their young audience, and they both liked the song's theme of a bully getting his comeuppance. The older boys especially seemed to enjoy this song choice. Then Cassie announced, “You may have heard of the Edward Lear poem 'The Owl and the Pussycat'. Now you shall hear the musical version of this poem.” Then she sang: “The owl and the pussycat went to sea In a beautiful pea green boat They took some honey and plenty of money Wrapped up in a five-pound note. The owl looked up to the stars above And sang to a small guitar, 'O lovely pussy, o pussy my love, What a beautiful pussy you are, you are, What a beautiful pussy you are!' Pussy said to the owl, 'You elegant fowl, How charmingly sweet you sing. O, let us be married, too long we have tarried, But what shall we do for a ring?' They sailed away for a year and a day To the land where the Bongtree grows. And there is a wood a Piggywig stood With a ring at the end of his nose, his nose, his nose, With a ring at the end of his nose. 'Dear Pig, are you willing to sell for a shilling Your ring?' Said the Piggy, 'I will.' So they took it away and were married next day By the turkey who lives on the hill. They dined on mince and slices of quince Which they ate with a runcible spoon, And hand in hand on the edge of the sand They danced by the light of the moon, the moon, the moon, They danced by the light of the moon.” Cassie acknowledged the applause from her young audience, then turned toward the adults and flashed them a small but noticeable smile, as if to acknowledge that she, too, was like that pussycat, and her husband the owl. But she suspected few if any of her young audience knew of her having a human husband, who was in the same room with them, and she saw no point in bring the subject up to them. She was here to entertain, and went on to announce the next song. “As you see, I am a fox furry morph,” said Cassie, “and I do have a fascination with my four-legged counterparts. And my next song is about the life of one of them.” And she played her guitar and sang, “The fox went out on a chilly night, He prayed for the moon to give him light, For he'd many a mile to go that night, Before he reached the town-o, town-o, town-o, He'd many a mile to go that night, Before he reached the town-o. He ran til he came to a great big pen, Where the ducks and the geese were put therein, 'A couple of you will grease my chin, Before I leave this town-o, town-o, town-o, A couple of you will grease my chin, Before I leave this town-o.' He grabbed the gray goose by the neck, Throwed a duck across his back, He didn't mind their quack, quack, quack, And their legs a-dangling down-o, down-o, down-o, He didn't mind their quack, quack, quack, And their legs a-dangling down-o. Then old Mother Flipper-Flopper jumped out of bed, Out of the window she cocked her head, Crying, 'John! John! The gray goose is gone, And the fox is on the town-o, town-o, town-o!' Crying, 'John! John! The gray goose is gone, And the fox is on the town-o!' Then John, he went to the top of the hill, Blowed his horn both loud and shrill, The fox he said, 'I better flee with my kill, Or they'll soon be on my trail-o, trail-o, trail-o!' The fox he said, 'I better flee with my kill, Or they'll soon be on my trail-o!' He ran til he came to his cozy den, There were the little ones, eight, nine, ten, They said, 'Daddy, better go back again, 'Cause it must be a might fine town-o, town-o, town-o!' They said, 'Daddy, better go back again, 'Cause it must be a might fine town-o!” Then the fox and his wife without any strife, Cut up the goose with a fork and a knife, They never had such a supper in their life, And the little ones chewed on the bones-o, bones-o, bones-o, They never had such a supper in their life, And the little ones chewed on the bones-o.” The audience responded approvingly, and Cassie smiled. Sally's fears were misguided; even the youngest of the children showed no sign of being upset over the goose's violent fate, presumably because they were perfectly well aware that hunting and eating other animals was a fact of life. Cassie basked in the audience's approval for some moments before she spoke again. “What you have just heard was a variety of songs from many different artists, some famous and others unknown,” she announced. “But now I have several of my own songs to sing, that I composed myself. Would you like to hear them?” “Yes!” said the audience members, and the principal and Julie were surprised, wondering what sort of songs Cassie would have for her non-usual young audience. They were not children's songs, of course, but ones Cassie decided would be suited for them. “My first song is called 'Rebecca',” said Cassie, and she sang that song. As might have been expected, when she finished, the older kids had more enthusiasm for the song than the younger ones. She announced another song, 'The Darkness', then finished with 'Sunrise on Eternity'. The audience, especially the boy and girl who had asked for her autographs earlier, responded enthusiastically. “Encore!” shouted the boy. Cassie smiled in response. “I'm sorry, but that's out of the question,” she said, pointing at a large wall clock. “As you can see, it's near the end ofthe school period, and you'll need to go home.” “It would be neat if you came home with me,” said the boy. “My brother would love to meet you.” “I'm afraid that won't be possible either,” replied Cassie. “Certainly not tonight. I've been recording some new music with my band this past couple of weeks, and though I enjoyed the break I must get back to that.” The principal stepped over beside Cassie. “Let's all thank her for being so generous in coming to perform for our school,” he announced. “Thank you,” said the children in unison. “You're welcome,” Cassie called back. “And thank you for being such a wonderful audience!” Cassie packed her guitar back in its case, and the children were escorted out of the gym, Julie going to help with the task while Cassie, Foxonian, Sandy, and the principal went back into the kitchen. “It's a half-hour early,” said the principal, “but we'll send the children home now, the ones who aren't getting rides.” To Cassie he added, “Thank you so much for being generous with your time, Mrs. Vixena.” “My pleasure,” replied Cassie, “and in fact I'll do more than that.” She looked toward Sandy and pulled out her checkbook. “I remember you mentioned you needed equipment for your music department?” “Oh yes,” replied Sandy, caught by surprise. “But you already honored us with your performance.” “All the same,” said Cassie, “I believe children should have a good musical education, and I'd be happy to make things easier for that.” The vixen drew out a fountain pen. “So how much do you require to get what you need?” “Well,” said the principal, and specified an amount. “I don't expect that much from you, of course.” But to his surprise, he got a check for slightly more than that amount. “I hope that will cover everything,” said Cassie. “Oh, it certainly will,” replied the principal in shock, and to everyone else's surprise, stepped over and hugged the furry morph vixen warmly. “The school board would never have given us this much just for the music department.” “What do those people know about education anyway?” joked Cassie, and to her surprise the principal let go of her and laughed uproariously, as did Sandy. Cassie and her husband got the idea that they and the school board were not on the best of terms. This time it was Sandy's turn to hug Cassie, and to give her a kiss on the muzzle. “Thank you thank you thank you for everything! It was far more than I had ever anticipated!” “I thought you could use it,” replied Cassie. Cassie and her husband were escorted back to their car, and they placed the guitar case back into the trunk. Julie had come back out to say goodbye, and Cassie gave her and the others hugs and kisses goodbye, and this time the principal was quite comfortable touching Cassie, and shook hands with Foxonian much more firmly than before. Kids were pouring out of the school, but the entrance doors were on the side of the building opposite the staff parking lot, so Cassie and her husband had no trouble driving out. Foxonian was going to go along the side streets to avoid the crowd of children, but Cassie indicated she wanted specifically to go past the children she recently performed before, so Foxonian drove slowly past the group of children, who recognized Cassie in the passenger's seat, and they and the furry morph vixen waved at each other. Once they were past the school zone, Foxonian sped up and went right back home. “So how was it?” asked Foxonian. “Glad you took the time?” “Oh, yes,” replied Cassie. “It's always nice to play to a good audience, even if it isn't my standard one.” “Not your standard concert either,” said Foxonian. “First time in a while I've seen you perform without kicking your shoes into the audience.” “Ha-ha. In any case, everyone at the school seemed to be happy I was there.” “Especially after you gave them the big check.” Cassie frowned. “Nobody was expecting me to do that. Sandy is a friend of mine, that's why I did it, plus I think the school's music department deserved the new equipment. Or did you think I shouldn't have given them the money?” “No, no,” said Foxonian quickly. “Giving them the check was perfectly fine. But I was thinking of how the principal dreaded to touch either of us when we first met, and after you wrote the check, he hugged you like a teddy bear.” “Don't tell me that made you jealous?” “Ha-ha, I can tell when someone's actually trying to hit up on you, and he wasn't. But the money certainly changed his attitude toward you.” “It probably wasn't necessarily the money,” said Cassie. “He probably never met a furry morph before, or for that matter a major rock musician. He probably thought I was going to be some obnoxious self-centered prima donna. That's not the first time people have reacted this way to me, you know.” “I know,” said her husband. “Are you going back to the studio?” “Not until tomorrow,” replied Cassie. “I gave the others the day off.” “So what are your plans for the rest of the day?” “Guess.” And Cassie finally kicked off her shoes, though she only had an audience of one.