The village of Alber is a fairly quiet place, normally, and the neko have lived here in peace for a very long time. Recently, though, there have been reports of bandits and a few dangerous-looking beasts in the surrounding woods. There have only been a few sightings, but those who venture out of town have been warned to be cautious and try not to travel alone if possible.

Currently, it is morning in town, and many people in the village are starting their day as they normally do. Shops are being set up, market stalls are opening up, and soon the village paths will be filled with people going about their business.

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Runo had gotten up for the day a couple of hours ago, and after preparing himself for the day’s events, he left the small cottage he shared with his other human roommate, a younger black-haired male named Kiro. They rented the small building from a lady in town who had been kind enough to let them stay back when they first arrived here a few years ago.
Upon stepping outside, Runo couldn’t help but notice what nice weather there was this morning. It was pretty sunny out already, though there did seem to be a couple of clouds here and there. That seemed good; hopefully he wouldn’t have to worry too much about rain while working with the plants today. Smiling to himself, he started off on one of the paths that led closer to the center of the town.

Silvia was outside taking a walk. It had been a few years sience she found this village of Neko a and had settled down. She was going to check out what the village had to offer this morning. In her pocket she kept a collar which she was still not able to gift to anyone yet but she would also look for a candidate.

In the early morning hours, a little black cat Neko was on his way to get his morning cup of strong, dark coffee. Then it would be off to the bookstore to look for more blueprints for his latest ideas. It was a repetitive schedule, but Ru Zhi didn't seem to mind the droll. After all, even when he wasn't studying the ideas of others to glean inspiration for his own inventions, there was always something different to read about. As long as it had pages and words, it was worth reading to him. As he came to the top of the bridge in the center of town he stopped for a minute to clean his glasses with a hanky and admire the crystal clear water running through the stream below. He was quiet but contented, his tail wavering back and forth in a gesture of pure happiness.

____

On the other side of the village, a badly damaged biplane had been rolled over into a dark corner underneath a tree. Tools and machine parts where scattered about haphazardly, along with a few dwindling, precious cans of soda. Preston was passed out in the cockpit, twisted up and looking exhausted. After a while, he stirred and yawned, and then frowned when he remembered where he was. The day before had been another long day of struggling to make the repairs he needed to get airborne again. When he first came here the strange cat-eared people hadn't alarmed him too much, nor had the odd black and red gemstone he'd found shortly after the crash. After all, he'd seen plenty of weirder things in his life. Still, he didn't have any intention of sticking around, although he was starting feel like he didn't have a choice in the matter.

Azure's ears flickered as he sneezed again, tail lashing to keep his balance atop the ladder he was perched on. He was happy to be taking care of the books in the bookstore but dusting had a price. He held in another sneeze as he finished with the row he was on. The small brown-haired neko stepped down off the ladder, moved the ladder to his last row and started again. He had gotten up a few hours ago and after dressing in jeans and a purple sweater with a stitched black heart on it, he ate an apple for breakfast then set off to the bookstore. It had been early still so the streets were not crowded and the neko didn't have to take his other route to his job. Dusting now done he set the duster behind the counter then sat there idly kicking his legs as he watched out the front window. The streets were beginning to fill as more and more people got on with their day. He didn't mind them in the bookstore, where he could watch from a safe distance.

Nadia woke up in the morning to a fresh start. After a quick shower, she put on her clothes and quickly left her house, saying goodbye to her mother. She skipped down the road with her tail swishing as she soon reached the local bakery. Her ears twitch as she hear sounds in the bakery, telling her that her boss was already inside. Going in, she put on an apron and smiled, starting her job of making some of the pastries and bread there. Hopefully today will be a busy day and she might get a bonus. It was the local bakery though, so they most likely would have a lot of customers ordering things.

Zoriah pushed his large, wooden cart forward, straining with just about every step. He had been out of town visiting the outside world for a little under two weeks, and was now returning with a whole slew of clothing, plants, seeds, books and even a chinchilla. Being dressed in such modern clothing made him feel out-of-place as he was entering the rustic and magical forest. Upon passing through the town's borders, he could feel there was a disturbance, and for a change of pace, this time it wasn't him. A group of old ladies were talking in front of a shop, and he overheard them jabbering on about a crashed flying machine, new store workers, and even the possibility of new humans entering the area.
Home-town. Noun; a place of permanent residence; or, in my case, humid air, adorable shops, and of course, our daily gossipers... Zoriah whispered to himself, wondering how accurate their petty stories were or weren't.

He paused for a minute and sat down on the ground, untying the head-band that had held his black ears down against his head, and, with a smile, replaced it with an over-sized, green magician's-type hat that better suited just about everything about Alber. Upon trying to stand up and failing, Zoriah decided he was going to sit down for a bit, now that he was in the safety of the town's borders. Of course, the aromas looming from the bakery probably wouldn't keep him there long...

Ru remained on the bridge for a few more minutes, then got ready to head on his way. However he stopped momentarily when he saw Silvia pass by. One of the books he'd read the day before was a book on manners, because he'd constantly been berated in the in the past for his mannerisms being too blunt and crass. This seemed like a perfect time to test out what he'd learned. He smiled, recalled the illustrations in the book, and then gave a little bow. "Good morning ma'am, I was just on on my way to have my morning coffee, and noticed how fine you are looking today." Then he looked up out of her from the top of his eyes, hoping desperately for approval.

_____

Sometime later, Preston finally forced himself to get up. The snack food he'd packed with him before leaving home was almost gone, and if he wanted to accomplish anything that day he realized he needed to eat. However, it took several minutes of wandering down the streets of the village before it occurred to him that he hadn't brought any money with him whatsoever. Annoyed and hungry, he eventually just sat down on the side of a dirt path and rested his chin on his hand. No plane, no money, no food. How much more frustrating could this get?

Silvia approach the main hub and began to walk towards the revenues. She saw the Neko and others waving to them in greeting.

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After some time, Zoriah got up slowly, untucked his tail and put his hands on his wagon of stuff. Waving to the gossiping ladies, he pushed his way up the hill towards the center of town, with intentions of making stops at the bakery and book store before heading home. Unfortunately, he didn't have the time to set up market today, so he intended to relax at least a little bit. First he pushed the wagon, then he switched positions and pulled, and then pushed again before feeling an abrupt change of aura.

Pausing, he looked around for where the feeling of irritable confusion was coming from. To the left, a field with a group of neko children bustling about. He waved to them with a smile. To the right, a human sitting on the other side of a connecting path, looking both dirty and possibly halfway asleep.
'Them gossiping hags weren't exaggerating, for a change of pace' Zoriah thought to himself, tilting his head, wide-eyed, trying to discern the specifics of the aura that was radiating off the human. He looked at the bottle of 'sassafras' tea he had brought with him from the outside. 'I got plenty of root, so i can always make more...' he thought to himself, as he began parking his wagon, ensuring it wouldn't roll back down the hill. Walking around his cart, he grabbed the unopened bottle of tea and began walking towards the human, feeling slightly awkward, wondering if he was making a good decision giving his stuff to a complete stranger...

On his way to the central gardens in the middle of town, Runo idly fiddled with the black collar he kept around his neck. Maybe it wasn't the most normal thing for a human to be wearing, but it was easier for him to keep track of there. He liked being able to put it on and forget about it without so many potentially terrible consequences. It was similar to the reason why he liked to wear clothing with pockets, really.

Upon reaching the first of the gardens in town that he had been hired to take care of, he got straight to work. Working with the various plants in the area was quite nice. Though most of the local foliage grew wild here, there were some public gardens in a few places in the village. Plenty of people also had private gardens as well, though they were often pretty small. Across the path from where he was working, Runo could see the bustling market, filled with vendors and people looking at the various wares.

Ru almost lost this balance. "She barely noticed..." He mumbled under his breath, and then breathed a heavy sigh. What had he'd done wrong this time? Was he a little too direct for someone who was only an acquaintance? Was he too formal? Dejected, he waited for a few more moments and then went on his way to the bakery. When he arrived, he saw that it was already open and let himself in by pushing the door with both hands. He stood on his tiptoes to seem taller and more respectable as he approached the counter and then rang the bell at the desk. "Hello. I'm here to pick up my breakfast and coffee. Is anyone available?"

_____

Preston was looking down at the ground and rubbing his shoes into the dirt out of sheer boredom. He was about ready to nod off again right there, as drained as he was. At first he didn't notice the Neko approach him, but when he did he was initially a little bit alarmed. No one had just come up to him directly since he'd arrived, or paid him much attention at all aside from all the gossip. He got up as quickly as he could and brushed himself off, although all at once realizing that even standing up he wasn't very visually intimidating. He knew he could hold his own if this stranger was going to threaten him, but he'd rather not have to do that at all and just being able to scare him off would have been nice. Sometimes he hated being short; no one took you seriously like that until you had to show them what you where made of. His father and brother where both over six feet tall, but apparently he'd inherited his grandfather's small guy stature.

"Uhm, hey..." He muttered to the stranger Neko. "What's up?"

Zoriah limped a bit closer to the human to see if he was awake. He took a sudden step back quickly as the human jumped up. His eyes carefully examined his posture and stamina, trying to read everything about him.
Giving a gentle smile, Zoriah tilted his head, "Relax; I'm holding a glass bottle, not a .22 and a dagger... you okay?" Zoriah looked down, realizing what he said could be taken offensively. "Uhm. You looked tired, so I just thought I'd give ya some sassafras tea..." Zoriah remarked, shaking his head at himself and sitting down on the ground abruptly and tugging the cork out of the extra large, spherical glass bottle. "It'll taste like a non-fuzzy version of what you might know to be 'root bear', I think it was...? Only this will strengthen, refreshen and energize you a bit..." Zoriah concluded, holding the cold, glass bottle up and waving it back and forth at the human with both hands, making sure to not make eye contact. The auburn liquid swirled gently inside the bottle. "Don't drink too much, though..." he added with a hint of serious caution in his voice.

LesleyDrakken said
Ru almost lost this balance. "She barely noticed..." He mumbled under his breath, and then breathed a heavy sigh. What had he'd done wrong this time? Was he a little too direct for someone who was only an acquaintance? Was he too formal? Dejected, he waited for a few more moments and then went on his way to the bakery. When he arrived, he saw that it was already open and let himself in by pushing the door with both hands. He stood on his tiptoes to seem taller and more respectable as he approached the counter and then rang the bell at the desk. "Hello. I'm here to pick up my breakfast and coffee. Is anyone available?"

"Nadia! Attend the customer!" The bakery owner shouted as she was making bread dough. Nadia's ear twitched a little as she heard her shout. "Coming!" She shouted, going to the front. She went to the counter and smiled, something she liked to do. "Your breakfast abd coffee.." Nadia said, looking through a list. "Uhm, which one would it be?" She asked, looking at him, her tail swishing around a little.

Silvia was hungry now so she staked out the best place to go. She could go to the cafe or the bakery or any of the food stalls . Maybe she would finally find what she was looking for. Sighing she headed to a random eatery which happened to be the bakery.

Nadia's ear twitched as she heard the door open. "Welcome!" She said brightly, smiling.

"Hello what do you sell here?" Sylvia asked wanting to know what was this stores specialties."Do you serve breakfast?"

"Well, we sell bread, pastries, sweets, cupcakes, cookies, etc" Nadia said, smiling at the female customer. "And yes, we serve breakfast! Here is our breakfast menu, our specialty is French bread and omelletes" she said, showing her the menu while waiting for the male to tell her ewhich order was his.

Silvia smiled back as she looked at the menu."ok I'll have a egg omelet with a side of a muffin."She said handing the menu back. "With orange juice please."She finished and took a seat in a booth.

"Coming right up! Please wait for a moment!" Nadia grinned at her and wrote down the order, placing it near her boss as always. She went back to the counter and waited.