Furry Purry Beancat

***Furry Purry Beancat*** is the titular star of *The Nine Lives of Furry Purry Beancat*.

## Information

Beancat is a tabby cat who, when she goes to sleep, wakes up in a completely different life each time. It's been established that although she cannot recall her lives, she has been living there as if nothing is out of the ordinary.

## Personality

Furry Purry Beancat has been shown to be a graceful, intelligent, if not vain, tabby cat. She is gracious towards those that assist her, and is happy to accept and send out compliments.

She is capable of (and shown to prefer) taking action where necessary.

## Biography

### The Pirate Captain's Cat

Furry Purry Beancat awakes on top of a pirate captain's hat. She soon learns that her pirate owner, Captain Topaz, owner of the Rapier, is dueling with a rival pirate ship known as the Doubloon. She reaches safety and meets Gordon and Ethel, a pair of rats who live on the ship. When their children return with their uncle Morris, they learn from their daughter Blue that the rival captain, One-Eyed Bart, is planning on sinking the ship.

They devise a plan, and Furry Purry Beancat sneaks to the captain's cabin where she meets Tommy Ten-Tun, who has been tasked with guardian her captain. When the door opens and One-Eyed Bart leaves, she sneaks in to meet up with her captain and get an idea of his surroundings, taking note of an empty treasure chest. When the door opens later, she casually leaves, and returns to see what else is going on.

She meets the cat from the rival ship, Cannonball, who steps on her tail to prevent her from leaving. Morris ties his tail to a large weight using string obtained from Blue, and Beancat makes her escape. Beancat locates Blue, and notices the set of keys around One-Eyed Bart's waist, including the key that resembles the pattern on the chest. Tommy Ten-Tun asks to keep Furry Purry Beancat, but when she gets loose, she gathers up the rats to form a plan.

While the rats chew off Powder Monkey's ropes, Beancat and Blue race to Captain One Eyed-Bart's room, and steal the key. Beancat proceeds into Captain Topaz's room, once again waiting for the door to open before sneaking inside. She hands him the key, and manages to show him that she wishes for him to hide in the chest. But before he can do so, Scraggs and Bowman appear with the intention of finishing him off and stealing his treasures. Working with 'Scratchy Bitey Beancat', the two are able to overcome the rival pirates and escape.

By the time they return to the main deck, the rest of his crew have been set free ultimately by the rat's intervention, and they go to battle once again. This time, with the additional help of the rats from both ships, Captain Topaz's crew are able to overpower One-Eyed Bart's crew. Beancat notices Tommy Ten-Tun about to sink the ship, but she finds he wasn't able to go through with it after all.

After celebrating, Furry Purry Beancat decides to sleep, wondering where she'll wake up next.

### The Railway Cat

Beancat awakes atop a stack of boxes, and discovers that she's actually on a train platform. She witnesses a young boy, named Charlie Gruff, stealing Eileen Fitzapatrick's handbag, but he is arrested by Tom and later Jim Graves, and Beancat notices the man who returns the handbag, Brown Bowler, steal something from the bag. Jack Robinson arrives, and Beancat recognizes that he's likely her owner in this life. He persuades Mrs. Fitzapatrick to let Charlie go without pressing charges, and takes the boy back to the station along with Beancat.

Here, Beancat overhears the boy mention that he was working for another, which Beancat knows is Brown Bowler. Before they get too far, Mrs. Fitzapatrick returns with Constable Franklin, and Charlie is ultimately arrested for theft.

Later, Beancat snoozes on the platform, and Tom playfully tips a bit of water over her head with his watering can. A crow named Caw descends and Beancat mistakes him for an enemy, but soon realizes that they're friends. She hears that Polly will be arriving on a train soon, and as people get off the train, notices her particularly as she refers to Beancat's human owner as her grandfather. Beancat also meets Yorkie, who antagonizes her.

They return to the stationmaster's home, where his wife, Martha Robinson, fixes up tea for everyone. Caw arrives, and the evening flies by quickly, with Purry learning some more information on her home. Mr. Robinson and Beancat then return to the station, where they hear from Barnes that Major Fitzapatrick wishes to speak with him. It turns out that some dynamite has gone missing.

The next day, Beancat notices Bowler Man returning to the platform, this time in new apparel. She follows him onto a train, but Polly chases after her. On the train, Beancat and Polly both notice Bowler Man slip something to a seemingly elderly gentleman opposite, whom Beancat dubs Blue Eyes. When Blue Eyes leaves the train, Beancat and Polly pursue him at a safe distance. They witness him change clothing to reveal a much younger man, who they follow past an old church and to an abandoned engine shed. Caw arrives and sneaks a peek for them, and reports to Beancat that the man is speaking to a Thin Man on the other side.

When Blue Eyes leaves, Beancat and Polly sneak in. They discover the engine shed, and Beancat accidentally unlocks a secret cavern leading down. They follow the path with caution, and emerge on a train track. Polly slips and injures her ankle on the track, and Beancat notices the missing dynamite nearby. Beancat exits the tunnel and finds that Caw has brought Yorkie to the area, and Beancat, knowing that Yorkie can speak a little human, asks him to repeat "girl in tunnel" and to warn the oncoming train about Polly. Yorkie does so with difficulty, and flies off.

Furry Purry Beancat feigns injury on the track ahead and the train is stopped in time. When they disembark, they realize that Polly is in the tunnel, and warn the next train to stop. Polly is helped out of the cave and the dynamite is reported.

With Polly making a recovery, Beancat thanks Caw and Yorkie for their help back home, and although Yorkie states that Polly will never forget what he did for her, Beancat knows that she herself will when she arrives in her next life. She goes to sleep, wondering where she'll wake up next.

## Trivia

* Furry Purry Beancat is based on Philip Ardagh's late cat, Beancat.
* In *The Pirate Captain's Cat*, it is revealed that Beancat hates water like most cats.