I come to a stop at the crossroads and look both ways, like a good little girl. Like the one so close to me, right up with her mom and dad. A frustrated sigh snorts its way on out and the limited traffic of Agadton drives on by. Every possible flavour of tax-paid equipment. Short-bellied lorries and back ripped cars not even given a colourful shine. Just the bare steel and an oil coating.
My gun bonces up and down my back and the little light on a pole switches up. I hurry along, passing the majority of the crowd before I can get lost in it. A little pebble catches on the end of my foot, flying away along the pavement. I score.
Right into one of the cracks!
"Come on... Where could you two have possibly gone?" I ask myself, coming to another stop at the corner of the street. I survey the street, scanning each possible parking space for a wagon. Above the head of each hwardgon resident for any signs of a human. Even a little puff of smoke will be more than enough to find one of them. So much time on the road, no one but me and Pops, surely Hrurim's feeling a little stressed?
My jaw clenches tight, a pop of air breaking my lips open. I get moving again and stick to the main street I saw them come into town through. Seriously, where have they gone? How am I barely packing anything and missing the pair that have literally everything!?
Finding myself in front of a restaurant, I take a quick glance inside and stare back at my faded reflection. My eyes roll and I look back towards the street, putting my back on the glass. A tune builds up in my throat, coming out as a series of clicks and tuts. Something drums the glass behind me.
I turn and- "Bastards."
Hrurim smiles and waves from inside and I double check to make sure the wagon isn't around here. It's not. I spin back his way and glare, heading on to the front doors and almost yanking it off. The hustle and bustle of the inside deafens me and I glance at Hrurim as he returns to his table.
"Hiya, Miss, what can I get you for?" a powdered and painted waitress asks, a fake smile on her face as she drums her nails along a clipboard of something. A menu, probably. Stupidly priced one at that.
"I'm here for my father." I answer, throwing out a gesture that she seems to miss completely. She giggles, keeping her end of the act up even as I fail to return the favour.
"I'm 'fraid we ain't that kind of place. Though, between you and me? Certainly wouldn't mind an older gentlehog." she tells me, throwing herself back with further giggles as I cock a brow. Don't really want that image, let alone a life like that. I move too much to suddenly be fine with not moving. All my needs handled for me. Boring!
"Right, I'll be joining them inside, then. They already have a table." I say and the waitress gives me a quick nod, her smile breaking as her hand points at my weapon.
"You'll have to make sure that ain't loaded. Folks are a little shaken up as of late, don't want no messes." she explains and I nod, throwing my paw back around to put the lock on the firelock. The click of the musket gives her smile some actual genuinity.
"Of course..." I say, heading off as she gets back to her other duties. An insult comes out on my next breath, served steaming fresh with another roll of my eyes. Coming around a corner of cushions, tables and chairs, I find my load of it. Already occupied and in use by two idiots.
"There she is!" Hrurim cheers, his human form not adjusting well to the furniture made with hwardgon in mind. I scoff at him and he licks his thumb, getting back to the business of eating his meal. A plate of chips and what appears to be battered up Water-Veins fish. Oh, who are my thoughts kidding? As if a place like this has surface fish and crab.
"I sure hope something on display here is for me." I say, not actually expecting anything. Still, something to peck at that's freshly cooked is not an unwelcome benefit to my stomach. Hrurim smacks his lips, taking up his milkshake's straw and slurping it right up. The noise is insufferably annoying.
If only for the fact I'm almost about to become as emerald as the finest wind magic...
"You can have my salad," he huffs, a smirk otherwise stuck on his face as much as a fortress is in the mountains. I glance at Pops, giving him a look as he keeps to himself and his rib rack. His backhand comes up, sliding a fat cup glistening with condensation into my face.
"Cookies and cream." Pops is quick to answer, and a wobble takes over my lips as I lean forward.
"Thank you." I let out, suctioning the straw to my mouth and gutting the milkshake for all its creamy worth. I spit the straw out, leaning away with a satisfied 'ah' escaping me without end. My face creases up, the brain freeze passing by with little complaint and I take my gun off. Throwing it onto the innards of our little cubicle, I meet eyes with a child.
Their eyes widen at the firearm and I huff, having nearly forgotten that I once had that face. I got rid of it real quickly, though. Guns are still cool, awesome things. But, now, I respect what they really are and it's right in the name. Gun.
"So... While I was out sneaking into town, finding you lot. You had already got yourselves comfortable with expanding bellies?" I ask, my mood going back to some bitterness as Hrurim continues to make a mockery of hwardgon-sized portions. What is already an uncontrollable pawful for me is nothing but a scoop for him. One that goes and fills that crushing jawline of his to the brink.
"We haven't been here long." Pops answers, slurping a bone clear of its meat and sauce. His teeth remain on its edge, gnawing at it for a few flakes of sweet-stained marrow. I snatch a few of his fried tunnel bird bits and get to flicking them into my mouth. Pops lets the box slide on over on a trail of soggy cardboard and grease slick. A sauce pot follows right after.
"Could have at least wa-waited outside!" I complain, stuffing my face a bit more as I eye the untouched bag tucked away at the table's other edge. Right by everything else these two cave-in baits brought in. Suppose that is for Nin. Keep him full of enough magic to otherwise stay alive.
"We did think that... Then someone came out of here and it, you know, hooked right through our noses." Hrurim explains, a noise of joy coming right out as he enjoys the lingering aroma on his fork.
"Hook you as badly as that fish there in the future..." I grumble, slurping up more of my milkshake. My anger forces a chocolate chunk right up through the straw, almost blowing up the shake in my face.
"No hooking anyone until we find a safe-house." Pops is surprisingly open with despite the locale. I double check everywhere, unable to think with how much noise there is- Ah.
"Times like these often mean that the uniforms will be harsher on squatters. Making sure no one is taking what they're not owed," Hrurim explains and I nod along, glancing out to the street as a police car goes on by, lights flashing. There's no telling how bad a place like Agadton is in normal circumstances, but it's much the same, regardless. Bad eggs will always see the glitter of treasure in moments like these.
Luckily for us, most of them end up going splat and cracking all over the stone. Fried right up on a grill of jail time or a scrambling whisk of a quick police beating. Not many coming out of this to be mixed into a cake. Not many at all.
"Oh... Could go with some of that, actually." I comment, peering off to the left as a member of staff goes on by with a tray of desserts. Jiggling gelatine the colours of red and blue. Multi-layered cakes of dark chocolate body and paler chocolate sauce. Even a golden-crusted pie, its insides much the same colour and stained with a gorgeous spicy sprinkle.
"We'll finish up here and grab you something to go, if you're still hungry." Pops explains, offering me a bit more of his meal. I shake my head, intent on spending every coin he slipped from whoever's pockets and purses. Besides, if I eat too much of his meal, he'll take mine.
"Depending on how long we're here, that shouldn't be a problem, no?" I ask and Hrurim's head swishes about, something lingering in his head and clogging it up.
"We'll have to have a look around town. Get an idea for where the focus on everyone is. If the workers being called on is any indicator, we might be able to set up at a construction site. No way those are being worked right now," he says, and I look over at the far side of the restaurant. A hole in the roof and an improvised wet floor sign warding people off. My eyes move around the building, taking in everything.
"You sure?" I ask, and his eyes take a trip around as well.
"Positive." the human nods and my lips purse at his words. Not a whole lot to take him on right now. Still, we'll figure it out. We're only getting the thoughts out into the open at the moment.
"As long as no one comes snooping. That's the main thing we want to look out for." Pops reminds us as if we could ever forget. Besides, once we get Nin properly locked up, no one will think twice about it. Speech or not. Maybe we can even charge to have sticks go into his backside?
"I'm sure someone's going to be feeling jittery about their home. We can always make a point of using it while they're out." I suggest, knowing there's already a fair few problems with it right then and there.
"It would have running water." Hrurim comments between chip decapitations. Bite, sauce dip. Bite, sauce dip.
"How can we be sure?" Pops asks, and I nudge him with my arm.
"Pops, if a... If a place like this can still be open, the water's probably fine." I say and he smirks at me in a rare case of overt smuggery.
"Pipes are complex constructs. Often not designed to be taken out again. Where one area might have a blockage, others might not." he points out and I give him a quick flash of food-decorated teeth. His paw knocks on my nose and I get back to peeling away at his meal, taking what sides I can get away with taking. He draws the line at the cheesy garlic bread, however.
"Most places around here have outdoor hoses anyway, don't they?" Hrurim asks and I pass the question through my memories, not really drawing anything.
"I... I think there's a law about it?" I fail to recall entirely, not that it matters. Not like a little bit of breaking and entering won't tell us the same with the indoor plumbing. As long as I don't have to go anywhere near the pipes themselves, I'm fine. Especially anything that is so much a sewage pipe.
"We'll start in the residential areas. Look them over and have our pick." Pops explains and me and Hrurim nod along, there not being a problem.
"And if we have to do a little eviction?" I suggest, though I'd rather avoid bloodshed, as that will only complicate things. If the earthquakes hadn't hit, the police might have a little more time to check their 'Most Wanted' listings. I doubt with the lack of an open declaration by the mob that the police have assumed Pops is dead.
"We make it clear we're guests for a little while." Pops makes loud and clear, another meaty bone in his mouth. He locks his mouth around it, sucking it clean and dry of everything, and it falls. The meatless stick rattles the pile of friends it has made and Pops moves onto the next one. He must've ordered quite the rack with how many bones he has.
"You know, with how much loose change there is... We could always find a hotel?" I suggest and Pops comes to a stop, the rib halfway to his mouth. I look his way, then Hrurim's.
"Some shady motel with a big back lot? I'm game." the human shrugs, a smirk coming to both of our faces.
"Four for the price of three." Pops huffs and I slip my fingers forward, throwing up a menu and having a look through it. A song of temptation fills my throat, glistening with anticipatory saliva. Oh, stomach, hungry, hungry stomach... What do I want for take out?