Softserve

this chapter is finished! thanks for reading!

8 – Let's go Fishing and Hunting.

In a small room above a clothing store, a black-haired woman with Moka cream skin held a lion-tailed beastkin in her sleep. As Talia's consciousness returned she began to ponder about the odd feeling of furry pillows she was gripping in her hands. Slowly opening her eyes she traced her line of sight to her hands which had somehow in her sleep slipped under Eve's cloth and had taken both of Eve's mounds in a hand each.

Talia snapped awake while swiftly removing her hands from the precarious position they found themselves in she spoke in a yelp. 

Talia: "Ahh! sorry master!"

Having closed her eyes and waiting for her master to scold her for her slip she began to slowly open one as she noticed that her master was still asleep despite all the noise and movement she was making. (Talia: "Maybe master is sick?) Talia thought for herself before softly getting out of bed and reaching over to take her master's pulse only to panic when she felt stillness instead of a heartbeat. Talia calmed herself down as she noticed that Eve was still breathing she decided to take her master to a healer to find out more.

Eve found herself locked in her mind again a familiar place she had spent an unknown amount of time inside. Eve worried she left the world she had just arrived in for another world before quickly dismissing the idea. She clearly remembers snapping out of her sphere and falling from the roof and the small conversation with Talia afterwords. while feeling completely hopeless as she did not feel her sphere moving this time and therefore not leaving the world. (Eve: "It seems I am once again trapped in my mind?") Suddenly Eve noticed the familiar presence of the star that had guided her before only this time the star had grown to the size of a sun. The energy from the star flowed to Eve like a rushing current as she felt her consciousness return. Opening her eyes again Eve still saw the star in front of her even with her eyes wide open as she quickly realized it was the sun. Talia glanced over to her master who she was carrying with her arm over her shoulder as Eve stood up full of energy as if her 'illness' this morning had been a lie. Talia sighed with relief as a great weight had just been lifted literally and figuratively off her shoulders. Taking her master's pulse again Talia was shocked. Instead of the pulse she was expecting Eve's pulse felt like a river rushing through a waterskin. It was so fierce that it could grind down stones down to pebbles and yet somehow it did not seem to harm Eve at all.

Talia: "Ah! master wha..."

Eve: "Mhmm... *yawn* good morning Talia! I am starting to feel better now thank you for looking after me!"

Eve stretched out with both hands above her head. Seeing Eve's chest puffing out as she stretches, Talia then looks over to her own hands and squeezes air a few times with them before keeping her head down to hide her blush. 

Talia: "Master... are you sure your alright? This morning I did not feel a pulse when I checked you in bed and just now your pulse gave off a weird feeling."

Eve: "you did huh?..."

Eve checked her pulse as she felt a current of energy matching her energy and gave it some thought.

Eve: "Well... I'm sure it is nothing. I j-just did not get enough sun is all. I spent too... much time cooped up indoors yesterday. Just give me a day of relaxing in the sun and I'm sure it will be all better, okay?"

Talia gave her master a look that suggested she did not believe what she was hearing but relented anyways. (Talia: "I only really just met master... if there is something she does not want to talk about I should not force her.")

Talia: "Well... if you're sure. However! you better visit the healer if you even remotely start to feel like your sick again!"

Eve smiles then lifts Talia in a hug and spins her around once. People in the street who began their morning early stare at the strange spectacle.

Eve: "Aww, my Apprentice is worried about me! Thanks Talia I'll be sure to ask around to find the healer later!"

After seeing that her master was okay, Talia and Eve decided to head back to the store. Along the way Eve found some strappy sandals she had found adorable and absolutely had to buy. Eve danced and spun around a few times enjoying the look and feel of her new sandals as Talia smiled at Eve's enthusiasm.

Talia: "I am glad you are seeming much better than this morning master!"

Eve: "Thanks Talia! By the way, buying these shoes reminded me of another thing I would like to buy! Do you know where I can buy a fishing rod!?"

Talia: "A... fishing rod master? what is a fishing rod?"

Eve: "You know! A fishing rod, its a pole with a line to one end that carries a metal hook on the end which you attach bait for the fish to bite into and the hook catches the fish and allows you to pull them up out of the water!"

Talia: "I have never heard of anyone making any kind of metal hooks..."

Eve: "huh? no metal hooks? well... what was the sewing needles made from... come to think of it! they did not feel like metal."

Talia: "Ah those? I had them made from a saber-boar's teeth I had gotten from the hunter's lodge! They do nice work. The only metal work I can think of is the mirror I had installed back in the shop. The whole thing was quite costly to have one imported from Ganna but still necessary for my work."

(Eve: "hmm... come to think of it all the spears I had seen the soldiers carry all had white spear-heads were they all made of bone as well? I also had not seen a single sword carried by the soldiers just spears and arrows... But what was that spyglass Neesha carried when she came out of the cart? I will have to have to ask her if I can look at it later.")

Eve: "Well Talia do you know where I may find the hunter's lodge? Maybe I can see if I can get a hook I need from there!"

Talia: "Sure master! It is on the southeast side of the city. It's the big building with the red roof before where the forested area starts. Do you need me to show you where it is?"

Eve: "Oh no worries Talia! I am sure I can head there on my own!"

Talia: "Ah! Wait, master!"

Eve quickly leaps to the top of a nearby building and takes off to the southeast leaving many people gossiping in the street about the crazy beastkin. Eve passed several buildings from the rooftops as she watched them become shorter and the area more rural as the surroundings began to remind her of forests she had seen in Florida growing up. Rice fields and ranches with pens housing fat round-faced lizards and what looked like chickens began to be more common when the building she was looking for came into view. Eve had already left the rooftops and began jogging along the street. As she turned a corner she quickly came to a stop almost bumping into a young beastkin. The young beastkin of about 4 feet in height with round black bear ears slowly pulled a log at least twice her size to the hunter's lodge. The girl hummed a tune to herself as she set up the log on a chopping block and took up an ax that was at least as big as her. With a leap, the short beastkin brought the ax down on the log.

Eve: "Ah! look out!"

The young beastkin girl made her cut about halfway through the log before the ax got stuck and both her and the log began to tumble to the ground. Eve quickly rushed to the log catching it and the girl before setting her down on the ground.

The loli beastkin turns to face eave giving her a big smile showing her comically sharp and jagged teeth.

Beastkin loli "Lussa was worried she would fall again! Thank you mister cat!"

Eve: "My name is Eve and its miss cat, not mister cat! Nice to meet you Lussa!" Eve said with a giggle.

Lussa opened her eyes wide and looked at Eve.

Lussa: "How does miss cat know Lussa's name!?"

Eve giggled.

Eve: "Well... you told me!"  Eve said giving another giggle.

Lussa looked to Eve wide-eyed and tilted her head to the side.

Lussa: "Lussa does not remember meeting miss cat, when did Lussa give miss cat her name?"

Eve: "When you said Lussa was worried I took Lussa for your name *giggle*, after all, you have constantly addressed yourself as Lussa."

Lussa: "Ah! Lussa forgot she does that! by the way, what brings you here miss cat?"

Eve: "Fishing hooks! I'm looking to buy a hook made from saber-boar teeth to go fishing with!"

Lussa: "Oh Lussa knows! miss cat wants to visit a bone carver! let me take you!"

With that Lussa pulled on Eve's hand dragging her along to the hunter's lodge with a red roof.